Pariah

Bates Motel is better. My mother told me so. Following Up: Bates Motel vs. Hotel California

Vote early and vote often!

To begin, one band from each category above. Rush, of course, are basically retired at this point. The announcement a few days ago really only makes official what has effectively been in place for some time. Asia, although they have made no such announcement that I am aware of, are effectively done at this point. John Wetton died about a year ago, and Steve Howe and Geoff Downes are working with Yes. I'm not sure what Carl Palmer is doing is present. At any rate, without at least Downes, there is no Asia. (The only other hope on that front, former vocalist John Payne, is now working on another band called Dukes of the Orient. He said he wanted to pursue that rather than anything with the Asia name, out of respect for Wetton.) Yes are presently limping along with no original members remaining. Steve Howe and Allen White have been with the band a long time, of course, but without Chris Squire or Jon Anderson, it just doesn't feel like Yes anymore. Kansas, on the other hand, has enjoyed a recent reinvigoration. Primary songwriter Kerry Livgren has been out of the band since about 2001 (and has since been working on a side project, Proto-Kaw, which is a long story in and of itself), and vocalist Steve Walsh hasn't wanted to do any new recording because it would take away from the band's touring schedule, which was supporting him financially. Violinist Robbie Steinhardt left at least a decade ago as well. But now that Walsh has finally retired, the band has brought in some new blood and recorded a new album, 2016's The Prelude Implicit. It has a similar sound, and the same energy, as their stuff from the late 70s and early 80s--not quite up to the level of Leftoverture or Point of Know Return, but as good as anything else in their catalog. Okay, who else do you guys wanna talk about?

Rather than continue to hijack Cygnia's thread, I figured we could start one specifically to talk about our favorite bands from the glory days of yesteryear. Some are recently retired (or effectively so), some closed up shop a long time ago, some are still going strong, and some are limping along, a shadow of their former selves. In any case, there's plenty to talk about. So here it is.

While my sister-in-law and nephew, both die-hard Patriots fans, will undoubtedly be insufferable for at least the next two weeks--and most of the remaining calendar year, should the Patriots win--at least it won't be physically painful. Worse Choice for an NFL Franchise: Paying the league minimum for quarterbacks who chronically underperform vs. Overpaying for a quarterback and having him be merely mediocre

Go and screw themselves. New Topic: Subtle signs that (insert professional athlete's name here) has been replaced with a zombie.

Crocodile Hunter. Just as fearless as the Anaconda, and a lot smarter. More Palatable to Watch: Tom Brady in yet another Super Bowl vs. Another year of Tweets from POTUS

"In short, about what you’d expect."

Agreed, Death Tribble and Doc Shadow. The only modern version of a hero that I like better than the original is Jaime Reyes as Blue Beetle.

Zoot, Rolpf, and Animal have formed a trio to play jazz standards.

The kids and I just watched Mulan again. Man, that movie is a classic. My four-year-old son sings along with "I'll Make a Man Out of You". It's awesome.

Best of luck to you. It sounds like you've got good people to work with.

Up until 10 years ago, decent superhero movies weren't done all that often and Hollywood either.

Dating all the way back to ancient Egypt, certain priests and sages have foretold the coming of an Invader who would conquer the entire Earth. For centuries, these have acted as the Guardians of a power which would one day be bestowed upon a worthy individual to defend the world. That day is today. Wise and benevolent, Teth-Adam is the young king of Kahndaq. Gifted with the powers and attributes of the ancient Egyptian gods, he has pledged to stand against V'han, and especially against Mary Marvel, whose powers he sees as a corruption of the ancient trust. Protagonist: Black Adam (known as White Adam in Backworld)

I didn't find Rush until much later, but if there's one song that perfectly explains my high school experience, it's Subdivisions. So I'll echo what Cygnia said: Yeah, these guys get it.

CBS Sports is picking the Jaguars and the Eagles in today's games, and the Eagles to win the Super Bowl. It'll be fun to see if they get any of that right.

Of the Yes vocalists not named Jon Anderson, I like Benoit David best. Having said that, David's vocal work with his regular band, Mystery, is even better. And of the Yes bassists not named Chris Squire (R.I.P.), I like Geddy Lee's performance on "Roundabout" at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction best. And we're back to Rush.

Let's see...I predict...adamantium-enhanced Borg with frickin' laser beams on their heads!

Quick! While the government's shut down, let's switch everything to metric!

I'm not really a fan of the Jacksonville Jaguars. But on this occasion, I'm willing to make an exception.

Astronomy is often considered (correctly or otherwise) a subcategory of physics.

I'd rather have dinner with Bigfoot. "If You Could Have Dinner With Any One Person, Living or Dead": Carl Sagan vs. Freddie Mercury

Not at all. I think that was the point.

I'll take Elvis. Thank you very much. Better Pseudo-Celebrity Date: The AT&T Cellular girl vs. Flo from Progressive

They make a pact with a scary alien race to incinerate your world as the light by which they will achieve apotheosis.