Over the past year or so, I’ve resumed buying DVDs and Blu-rays (and ripping them on my computer to my own media server) as an alternative to paying for a few expensive streaming services, such as (HBO) Max and Netflix. (Or buying digital rights management (DRM)-encumbered digital videos.) However, fewer places now sell physical media versus before the “streaming wars” kicked off. Back in January, I wrote about a few places I buy DVDs and Blu-rays. I thought I’d expand on such with a dedicated post. Amazon Given the decline in retail sales, shopping for DVDs/Blu-rays online is increasingly bec ..read more

Back in 2019, I bought a sixth-generation, entry-level iPad, replacing the several Android/Fire tablets I used through the 2010s. At the time, I was tired of the mediocre quality of most Android tablets (the software, the OS, and/or the physical tablet itself), so I thought I’d give Apple’s famous tablet a go. While the iPad’s worked fine, it’s started to greatly show its age over the past year or so; the 32GB of storage has definitely become problematic. Also, it’s likely to lose new iPadOS system updates from Apple either this year or next year (more likely the former). Overall, it’s clearly ..read more

The “fediverse,” the decentralized, federated social media world (powered by the ActivityPub protocol) has seen some recent changes. Threads, Meta’s attempt at a Twitter-like text-based social network, has now opened its app (as a beta) to the fediverse as an optional setting. Once activated (instructions here), Threads users’ accounts will be visible on ActivityPub-based social networks such as Mastodon. That said, Threads federating has generated much controversy on Mastodon, to the point some Mastodon instances have blocked federating with (i.e. access from) Threads. Among the Threads users ..read more

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has released its annual statistics on US music revenue for 2023. Below are my thoughts on this year’s report. Overall, music revenue grew by 8% from 2022 to a record high (not adjusting for inflation) of $17.1 billion. Here’s a chart summarizing 2023 US music revenue. The full report is available here. Source: RIAADigital formats As usual, streaming is the dominant music format, making up 84% of all revenue ($14.4 billion). “Old-school” digital downloads (i.e. buying MP3s from Bandcamp, iTunes, Amazon, etc.) continues to be a shrinking porti ..read more

This week, Disney officially launched (after several months of beta testing) Disney+ with Hulu integrated. To summarize the new setup: Subscribers to the Disney Bundle (Disney+ and Hulu; ESPN+ optional) will be able to use the new version of Disney+. Those only subscribed to Disney+ can see the new Hulu tile/its content, but won’t be able to watch Hulu stuff unless they upgrade. Of course, Disney plans to push the Bundle harder. Disney+ and Hulu will remain standalone services. Hulu-only customers who don’t want Disney+ can continue using Hulu as-is; nothing will change. Ditto those who only ..read more

Here’s a look at what media of interest is coming out for April 2024 (and beyond). Graphic novels/manga Moriarty the Patriot, vol. 15 (Viz), on sale April 2, $12 Teen Titans: Starfire GN (DC Comics), on sale July 2, $17 Disney+ A full list is available here. Wish, April 3 Peacock A full list is available here. Migration, April 19 Sports NBA Finals playoffs, starting April 20 (ABC, ESPN, TNT, NBA TV) NHL Stanley Cup playoffs, starting April 22 (various channels) My thoughts “Migration.” (Illumination) DC’s continuing its Teen Titans graphic novel series with a volume for Starfire. Good ..read more

Time again for another blog status update post. Dropping Google ads (again) For those visiting my site with their ad blocker turned off, you’ll notice I’ve turned off Google ads, at least for now. Google’s own downsides aside, there’s also that the amount of revenue from Google ads has declined, even by my meager standards. I’d sometimes meet Google’s $100 minimum payout level about once a year (if lucky). However, at the current rate, I wasn’t meeting even that. Thus, I figured I’d save on the site code/load speed and ditch Google’s ads for now. If interested in supporting my site financially ..read more

The 2024 NAACP Image Awards was held last week. The awards, of course, honor African Americans in media, including movies, television, and music. Below, I look at this year’s animation-related nominees and winners. Winners are in bold; animation/comic related entries are in italics. Outstanding Animated Motion Picture Spider–Man: Across the Spider–Verse (Sony Pictures Releasing) Elemental (Pixar Animation Studios) Trolls Band Together (Dreamworks Animation) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem (Paramount Pictures) Wish (Walt Disney Animation Studios) Outstanding Character Voice–Over P ..read more

The 2024 Academy Awards (aka the Oscars) were held this Sunday. Below, I take my annual look at the animation-related Oscar winners, plus other Oscar thoughts. Animated Feature Film The Boy and The Heron (winner) Elemental Nimona Robot Dreams Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Animated Short Film War Is Over: Inspired By The Music of John and Yoko (winner) Letter to a Pig Ninety Five Senses Our Uniform Pachyderme My thoughts “The Boy and the Heron.” (Studio Ghibli) As usual, I didn’t bother tuning in for the Oscars. To summarize from last year’s post the reasons why: I’m only really inte ..read more

Warner Bros. has seen plenty of changes over the past 100 years, including passing through multiple owners (twice in just the past decade). While Warner Bros. Discovery has plenty of assets (CNN, TNT, etc.), it’s the company’s franchises that stand out. Especially recently, given the questionable decision making by WB CEO David Zaslav and the company’s poor performance. Below’s a list of the top 10 Warner Bros. franchises of all time, based on revenue figures from Wikipedia. The figures listed are for the franchises’ total earnings since day one, and thus includes revenue earned before or outs ..read more