In a shocking move, the Explorers have hired the actor, thinking he is a real basketball coach Sadam Andler, Staff
Following the firing of former head coach Ashley Howard, La Salle University stated that Associate head coach Kyle Griffin would serve as interim coach while they performed an extensive national search for a new coach. When asked who they were looking for, the department responded, “There’s uniqueness about Philadelphia and the Big 5 and the history. Somebody really understands this community, I think that’s important.”
Just eight crazy nights later, La Salle has found their new head coach, actor and MTV Movie & TV Award for Best Fight winner Adam Sandler. Sandler was present on La Salle’s campus in September of 2021 to shoot his upcoming Netflix film “Hustle.”
“Hustle” is a story about a down-and-out basketball scout named Stanley Beren (Sandler) who finds talent in a streetball player and tries to bring him into the NBA. During the trailer for the film, Sandler can be seen in Tom Gola Arena going overboard yelling “I love this game, I live this game” referring to basketball. Not once during any promotional material for the film do we ever see Sandler shoot a basket or train in any way. La Salle seems to think that Sandler just clicks.
I know we are supposed to be fact bearing journalists who never comment on anything, but in this case we will have to put our award winning ethical standards aside to simply ask: How did this happen?
Did La Salle see the character of Beren and misconstrue him for a real person? Sandler does have an affinity for basketball in real life, but he also is a 5’10” 190lb 50-something with no coaching experience. Was the La Salle connection of him filming a movie here really enough to convince the rest of the coaching staff that he is the man for the job? Or, has La Salle finally started to move away from their basketball-centric financial plan to support a losing team with millions of dollars? Maybe it’s time Sandler started to read some bedtime stories to the starting players to prepare them for what’s to come.
Either way, many students at La Salle seem to be pleased with the change, with dozens of students lining up around the TruMark Financial Center to get a look at the new coach and La Salle’s new mascot, his pet dog Bagel. He killed Angus by the way, sorry you had to find out this way. Sandler must have really taken a liking to La Salle while he was here, with students singing him happy birthday and getting punch-drunk, loving him any chance they got.
He secured a $250 million dollar contract with Netflix in 2020, and after the critical success of “Uncut Gems,” he is at the top of his acting career, even after his comedic prime with films like “Happy Gilmore” and “Waterboy” winning the hearts of dad’s everywhere. So, first off, how did La Salle peg him down, and why did he accept? Perhaps it was a blending of his anger management skills and ability to throw a ball to the longest yard on the court, or perhaps there are more sinister reasons brewing. Allow us to offer some analysis.
We believe that Sandler has agreed to coach La Salle’s basketball team in order to further his underground sports betting career, not because of the school’s great deeds. Every time La Salle gets a new head coach, there is a chance, however slim, that La Salle could bolster themselves and become an underdog story. While it’s unlikely given the team’s track record, Sandler still worries about it in the back of his mind. In “Uncut Gems,” Sandler’s character repeatedly invests thousands of dollars in sports betting, gaining and losing lives worth of fortunes over the course of the film. Sandler, a method actor, no doubt carries these same types of bets in real life. Because he consults with grown ups, he likely bets against La Salle for every single game, slowly racking up small dividends on the odds to further his Netflix money. If La Salle were to hire someone noteworthy and rise against those odds though, Sandler could find himself a little sicky.
Will Sandler turn his time with La Salle into fifty first dunks, or will he just end up being the waterboy? We can’t wait to hustle and find out if he makes a ridiculous pick six (I know it’s football, let me have my puns) or if he’ll fall down the hill like Jack and Jill.
“Elden Ring” has been the obsession of many on the internet since it was revealed in 2019, but for me, it has been an obsession for about two weeks.
Platforms: PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series, PC via Steam Price: $59.99 Rating: M
“Elden Ring” is a Hidetaka Miyazaki joint co-created with “Game of Thrones” writer George R. R. Martin. The latter you might know as the writer of the book series “A Song of Ice and Fire” which was adapted into the juggernaut HBO series. Martin was also heavily involved in the creation of the series as a producer and story consultant, and is hailed for his worldbuilding and character development… although maybe people give him a pass on the last few seasons of “GoT” because he wasn’t as heavily involved.
The former, however, is a visionary known to many, but not nearly to the degree as Martin. Miyazaki is the auteur behind the “Dark Souls” series of games, as well as “Demon’s Souls,” “Bloodborne” and 2019’s game of the year winner “Sekiro,” all of which have scored incredibly high with critics and have gathered large followings due to their punishing difficulty, unique game and level design and obtuse, well crafted stories. While “Dark Souls” is ubiquitous with difficulty in the gaming community, outside of its core audience, many people do not realize that people don’t like it because they’re gluttons for punishment, but because the games are completely unique in the way you interact with them, and Miyazaki is the creative director behind it all.
“I doubt you could even imagine it.”
So, Martin and Miyazaki unsurprisingly worked together to make an immaculate world with intrigue around every corner. But, none of that matters if it isn’t fun. “Elden Ring” is by all accounts, an open-world action RPG, but it would be more apt to call it “Souls-like,” as in the gameplay involves you running head first into handcrafted encounters with multiple enemies entirely more powerful than you leading up to a boss (usually of the giant monstrous variety) who will kick the sh*t out of you over and over. You lose, you die, you suffer, repeat. And I love it.
Each time you clear an encounter, you move on, not only with the game’s currency: runes, which can be used to make yourself more powerful and prepared to fight, but also with the knowledge of how to clear that area and the satisfaction that you figured it out. If you die, you can return to the spot you failed to pick up your lost currency, but if you fail again before reaching them, you’re back to your last checkpoint having made no progress.
Bandai Namco
Giant enemies are always scary, but sometimes it’s the small ones that give you the most trouble.
At the time of writing this, I have played “Elden Ring” for more than 60 hours and I have died over 500 times, most of which were from throwing myself at a boss until I figured out their patterns and was able to perfectly squeak out a victory. While seeing my character level up and become more bad*ss over time is a reward in itself, really a lot of the fun I’ve had playing “Elden Ring” comes from the satisfaction and happiness I get from learning and growing as a player, not necessarily as a character in the world, which is the same reason Miyazaki’s 2015 creation “Bloodborne” got me through the pandemic semester without going insane.
With a magical samurai sword in one hand and a staff that shoots lightning bolts in the other, I’ve never been so proud to be a nerd.
Capture courtesy of Jakob Eiseman
My character stands victorious after taking down a warlord in a hellish, war torn desert.
The story places you, an exiled “Tarnished” in a world torn apart by war over pieces of a Tolkien-esque magical artifact known as the Elden Ring that can control basically everything and grant the user limitless power. As a Tarnished, the story is one of a lowly underdog working his way up through increasingly more powerful enemies to eventually claim the ring and become the Elden Lord, punishing those who exiled their kind for decades. The story is incredibly well written and detailed, and Martin’s worldbuilding comes in spades. But, it is up to the player to interact with the story by exploring and reading into the lore rather than just telling you through cutscenes or menus, which makes it much more rewarding to learn about what’s truly going on and what factions you’ll side with.
“The fallen leaves tell a story, across the fog, the Lands Between.”
Capture courtesy of Jakob Eiseman
Torrent, the horned horse of “Elden Ring” quickly becomes a companion in a world full of hate.
I’m not a big fan of high fantasy, part of the reason why I never finished “Game of Thrones,” and why I was never a big fan of “Lord of the Rings” or aptly, “Dark Souls.” But, something about the vibe and setting of “Elden Ring” sparked my interest. Instead of everything being dark, brown and depressing, the world of “Elden Ring,” the Lands Between is bathed in bright colors, giant glowing trees, deep scarlet red swamps, sun bathed forests and crystal lit caves. I’ve never been one for the knights and dragons motifs, but when everything looks like this, and the dragon dive bombs me from the sunset sky I can’t help but be impressed.
All of Miyazaki’s creations are revered for their large worlds and interconnected maps, but oh my lord, this map is absolutely huge. Pictured left is the portion of the map I spent the first 20 hours of the game exploring, and pictured right is the entirety of the map, a majority of which I have yet to even see.
Bandai Namco
The Lands Between are twice as large as “Skyrim” and are about two square miles larger than “GTA V.”
Not to mention that the entire map has a system of underground caves, lakes and cities…
I will never finish exploring the Lands Between, and that’s okay. My favorite moments in “Elden Ring” have just been riding my horse around exploring and taking in the world that was crafted inch by inch to be filled with story, set pieces and cool interactions. If I see a random smoke signal, there’s probably a camp. If I see a mountain, there’s probably a giant cave system inside.
There’s nothing like walking along in a major walled city, taking a look at all of the shops and homes when out of nowhere intense music starts playing, a giant health bar appears at the bottom of my screen and an eldritch horror, the likes of which Lovecraft only dreamed of, claws its way out of the ground into the streets. Every single location on this gigantic map just makes you appreciate how much thought, care and pure fun went into the creation of “Elden Ring.”
“You are Tarnished.”
I’ll level with you. Since I got my hands on “Elden Ring,” my productivity has hit rock bottom;I spent most of my free time over spring break hunched over, eyes burning, being the quintessential mom’s basement geek playing “Elden Ring,” it’s bad. This is my game of the year so far, and it’s one of the best I have ever played.
Every time I think I’m getting close to the end, another five hour adventure falls into my lap, and every time I think I’m about to get bored, one of the coolest things ever happens, like a man using a dragon’s head as an arm to eviscerate me or finding a random treasure chest that rewards me by teleporting my character to actual hell.
Bandai Namco
The bosses in “Elden Ring” are incredibly difficult by design, which turns some people off to the game.
But, its issues are still incredibly noticeable and distracting, and while I don’t think they take away from the experience explicitly, they do really make me disappointed that the developers can’t just bring themselves up to 2022 standards for certain things like accessibility, player choice and respect for time.
First off: there is no pause button. You are either playing “Elden Ring” or you are not. I found myself wanting to take small breaks between work to play for 10 or 15 minutes, but it was about five minutes of setup each time because I couldn’t just pause the game, I’d have to completely exit out each time. People defend this decision by saying that feeling immersed in the world with no distractions is part of the artist’s creation, but that’s completely derisive to me and I’m sure many others. People can’t always dedicate mass amounts of time to a game, and people should be able to experience it how they can.
On that theme, there are next to zero accessibility options in “Elden Ring,” subtitle size is small for the visually impaired, there are no closed captions for the hearing impaired and most of all, there are no difficulty options. Every time a “Soulslike” comes out, there is a debate about why they have to be so hard or so punishing so that some people are not able to experience the story or talk about it with their friends to which many respond that the difficulty is part of the overall experience you get while playing, and to make it easier would take away from its themes and the satisfaction of winning.
To that I say, you are wrong and naive, and I 100-percented “Bloodborne” and killed two of “Elden Ring’s” main bosses on my first try. I don’t want these games to be easier, although I do admit the balance can be off at times, but there are so many people I’m talking to who are interested in “Elden Ring,” because of the world, the critic reviews or Martin’s involvement that simply won’t touch it because they know they won’t have any fun playing it. That is a shame. Let people tailor their experience to how they want to play. The perception of art is subjective and video games are art. Do better.
“The Elden Ring, that which commanded the stars.”
I cannot recommend “Elden Ring” to you unless you’re incredibly committed to learning and being beat down over and over. But, if you’re open to the challenge, and want to learn more about the incredibly detailed world crafted in the Lands Between, I’d say go for it. It is an excellent entrypoint to the “Soulslike” genre as it has many quality of life improvements that make it easier on newcomers, and the visuals, while not amazing, are still beautiful and compelling for those who like a great artistic depiction of a fictional world. If you’re a “Souls” veteran, this is a no brainer. I will continue playing “Elden Ring” likely until I keel over from playing too much and maybe, just maybe, one day I’ll actually beat the game.
“Elden Ring” is a 9/10 for me, and I can’t wait for other people to experience it as well.
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson had her third and final day of Senate hearings on Wednesday, with critical Republican Senators and supportive Democratic Senators lobbing dozens of questions her way regarding her experience with prison time rulings, critical race theory, her sentencing regarding sex offenders and even her empathy as a human being. These questioning hearings have been described as marathons, with Brown being before the podium for hours at a time. Here is a breakdown of some of the major takeaways from all three hearings:
In the opening remarks on Monday, the Republican Senators stated that this nomination would be pivotal to the future of the systems of government in place in the U.S., referencing frequent attacks on the Supreme Court’s legitimacy by political analysts and representatives as well. Democratic Senators echoed the importance of this nomination, instead opting to refer to current political topics that the Supreme Court may weigh in on in the coming years such as access to, and support of abortion. Both sides of the aisle agreed, at least publicly, that the nomination of Jackson is monumental in U.S. history as, if confirmed, Jackson would be the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court. On the third day, Dick Durbin, D-IL, began the session as Senate panel’s Judiciary Committee chairman stating that “America is ready for the Supreme Court glass ceiling to shatter.”
Expectedly, Ted Cruz, R-TX, used his time slot in the opening remarks to bash Democratic Senators and how they have handled the last few Supreme Court nominations, barely making mention of anything related to Jackson or her history in law. Several other Republican Senators including Mike Lee, R-UT, echoed this sentiment in their remarks, additionally hitting Democrats for their suggestion to expand the number of justices on the court. Democratic Senators also strayed from discussion of Jackson herself quite a few times, with Amy Klobuchar, D-MN, referencing cases that the Supreme Court will soon weigh in on such as health care reform.
When actually addressing Jackson, or speaking to their colleagues about Jackson, most comments came back to Republicans insinuating that Jackson was too soft on crime during her time as judge, and Democrats stating that just because she was a federal public defender does not correlate to her being overly-empathetic toward defendants.
At the end of the first day’s event, Jackson was allowed to issue a closing statement, and in a lengthy speech, she said “I stand on the shoulders of so many who have come before me… I have dedicated my career to ensuring the words engraved on the front of the Supreme Court building, ‘equal justice under law’, are a reality and not just an ideal,” a motto she has frequently upheld in her rulings in the past.
Boston Globe
Some common themes in questions from Republican Senators on following days included questioning Jackson’s rulings on sex-related crimes during her service as a federal judge. Some questions and criticisms for Jackson by Republicans stated that she tended to issue shorter or lighter sentences to sex offenders than is recommended federally, accusing her of endangering children and people because of her actions. To this Jackson responded that regulations are not one size fits all and that “As a mother and a judge, nothing could be further from the truth.”
Jackson represented Guantanamo Bay detainees in court in the aughts, and Republican Senators seemed to be under the impression that this made Jackson a terrorist-sympathizer despite public defenders having little control over who they defend and that she was doing her duty as a federal employee.
When questioned on her beliefs regarding critical race theory, Jackson responded that as a judge she is to be impartial, therefore it “wouldn’t be something I would rely on.” Some criticized her as dodging the question, but others have supported her that her personal beliefs regarding the sanctity of the government have little to do with her actions as an arbiter of the law and constitution.
She also managed to avoid answering questions regarding policing, again declining to answer on the grounds that her opinions on policing have little to do with her service as a lawyer, judge or justice.
In a third and final attempt to crack open Jackson’s personal life and beliefs in order to disparage her character, Lindsey Graham, R-SC, asked Jackson to discuss her religious beliefs to which she responded that there is a separation of church and state in the U.S. and that she would uphold this within herself and her service as a court justice.
On the subject of abortion, one that was put toward her from both Democrats and Republicans, Jackson said that she has a personal religious belief regarding abortion, but, as was stated before, would put that aside when ruling on cases and intends to uphold the precedents established by Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.
A question came from Thom Tiillis, R-NC, and again accused Jackson of being soft on crime. But, rather than attacking, like Cruz and others, he implied that Jackson was too sympathetic as a person to rule as judge, a concern that pundits and political commentators from both parties have expressed in the past and is her main blocker during this nomination period.
After being repeatedly targeted by Senators regarding her rulings on sex crimes in the past, somewhat heatedly, Jackson snapped back at Josh Hawley, R-MO, stating “Senator, what I regret is that in a hearing about my qualifications to be a justice on the Supreme Court, we’ve spent a lot of time focusing on this small subset of my sentences.” “No one case, Senator, can stand in for judging an entire record,” said Jackson.
The Democrat-majority senate is likely to affirm Jackson’s nomination to the Supreme Court. An update will be applied to this article when the voting comes to a close.
Editor’s note: If you are reading this the morning of March 3, 2022, there is a faculty session being held by the political science and history departments at 12:30 p.m. that will provide some more context to the Lasallian community on Russia’s goals in Ukraine and how other nations have responded to their invasion. More details can be found here.
In the global Lasallian community, March is known as Mission and Heritage month, and in a note to the university community, Brother Ernest Miller explained what this means for La Salle University. Within this letter, he quoted the very poignant line from Lasallian Reflection Six, “The Lasallian vision is seeing abundance where others see scarcity and bringing nourishment where there is none.” While Miller’s letter was setting up the community for a very important time for the university that includes the Day of Giving and other university-centric events related to the mission, this quote stood out to me particularly in relation to the situation the global community finds itself in. The war in Ukraine is difficult to unpack, and we have covered it in-depth in our politics section and will continue to cover it as more developments progress. But, I think it is particularly important that we take this time to realize that as a Lasallian community, it is our duty and our mission to support those in need, especially those in Ukraine who are in many cases losing everything.
Interim President Tim O’Shaughnessy addressed the university community about Ukraine on Feb. 25, and the sentiment was well heard. “Together and by association, we must unite in prayer,” said O’Shaughnessy, “lifting up those who are directly impacted by these traumatic acts of aggression and calling for an immediate end to this invasion of Ukraine.” This was what this address centered around: prayer. Yes, we are a Catholic institution, and the Brothers of the Christian Schools are a deeply religious organization. However, we need to do more than pray. Many members of our Lasallian community are not prayerful individuals or even religious at all. The mission of the brothers, and of St. John Baptiste De La Salle, however, goes beyond religion and prayer. The desire to want to help others and support the needy through education and mission is not exclusively a religious desire, and we need to acknowledge that there are ways for us to help outside of thoughts and prayers. And, whether you are religious or not, by entering into the Lasallian community, you chose to be a part of a group that makes helping others their main personality trait.
There are several ways to help the cause in Ukraine from 20th and Olney, including several ways that do not involve any monetary contribution. The group that falls most in line with the Lasallaian mission is refugees that have fled the war-torn nation that are seeking shelter, not just in neighboring countries like Poland, Romania and Germany, but globally, including right here in Philadelphia as families of Ukrainian descent open their doors to relatives forced to flee their homes. However, the standing military and current large influx of enlistments in the Ukrainian military need financial help in any way they can receive it. We will be providing some options to support medical foundations and the providing of medical aid for soldiers defending their homeland. Below, you will find a list of several charities and foundations with a small description of who they are and how supporting them will benefit Ukrainian refugees, civilians and soldiers:
“Revived Soldiers Ukraine is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing aid to the people of Ukraine so that they may fulfill fundamental rights and freedoms such as right to life, right to appropriate and affordable medical care, freedom of belief and freedom for an adequate standard of living.” Money donated to RSU will go directly to medical aid and living supplies to soldiers in Ukraine.
Razom means “together” in Ukrainian, and was established as a non-profit seeking to “unlock the potential of Ukraine.” Since the 2014 invasion of Crimea by Russia, Razom has been supporting refugees and volunteer groups to better the lives of those whose lives were upended by Russia. Now, they have been continuing this mission by assisting families who are choosing to stay in Ukraine, as well as those that were forced to flee.
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) was created in 1946 as an effort from the U.N. to assist children who were orphaned, injured or displaced as a result of World War II. UNICEF is the leading children’s aid charity in the world, and in 1965 was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Any money donated to UNICEF will go toward supporting children across the world, with a particular campaign being put forth right now to help youth in Ukraine.
Doctors Without Borders is a world renowned non-profit that provides medical assistance to those in war-torn nations across the world. Currently, the organization has a special effort in Ukraine in which they are setting up emergency response teams in Poland, Moldova, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia in order to assist refugees.
Non-monetary aid
Sky News
Obviously these organizations are currently in need of money, and this is the most effective way to support them. But, alongside praying and educating yourself on the situation, sharing any fundraising effort on social media will put eyes on it that were not there before. Any of the organizations listed above are good ones to share to your stories or pages, and here is a list of some others you may want to get behind. Also on social media, there are posts going up every minute containing misinformation or blatant propaganda related to this situation. Rather than just ignore this or the infamous “Russian bots,” if you see something, say something. Use Twitter, Instagram, Reddit and other sources to your advantage by educating others in the comments and using the built in reporting system to eliminate misinformation. Always follow trusted sources, and be sure to verify reports regarding developments in Ukraine from multiple sources before sharing it to social media. I know not everyone can contribute financially, but we also know it may seem frustrating to feel like you cannot help in any way. But, we as a community can contribute to aid efforts like Ukraine aid through the transfer of knowledge, which is just as important as funds when done properly. Everyone can contribute in some small way, and this is your charge to do so. Live up to the La Salle name. Help Ukraine.
Editor’s Note: At the time of publishing for the Feb. 24 issue, much was still unknown about the reported Russian invasion of Ukraine, but we did not want to avoid reporting on it due to unfortunate timing. Periodically throughout the week we will be updating this page with news regarding the attack. However, at the 7 a.m. publishing time we have no official report. Please bear with us.
Around 7 p.m. last night, the Ukraine government received word that Russian invasion had been approved by their military leaders, and was prepared for a war to break out at any moment.
At 8:30 p.m. the U.N. announced an emergency meeting. Around the same time, a large number of military vehicles could be seen moving along the northeast Ukrainian border in large numbers.
Between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m., Russian President Vladimir Putin publicly announced a “special military operation” in the Donbas region of Ukraine. Earlier this week, Putin recognized Donbas’s capital city Donetsk as an independent region alongside the Ukrainian region of Luhansk. During this address, Putin added “Whoever tries to interfere with us, and even more so, to create threats for our country, for our people, should know that Russia’s response will be immediate and will lead you to such consequences that you have never experienced in your history.”
Just after 10 p.m. explosions could be heard at Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv. Just after, explosions went off near Kharkiv in the Northeast.
Around 11:30 p.m., the U.N. emergency meeting was held, and Russian ambassador Vasily Alekseevich Nebenzya defended Russian military action claiming “The root of today’s crisis around Ukraine is the actions of Ukraine itself, who for many years were sabotaging its obligations,” referring to those found in the Minsk Agreement.
Also at 11:30 p.m., CNN uploaded an infographic showing all believed explosion sites. As Ukraine is in a state of panic, know that these reports may change:
CNN
Just after Nebenzya spoke at the U.N. emergency meeting, Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.N. Sergiy Kyslytsya pleaded with the U.N. to use the organization’s security power to end the war. “It is the responsibility of this body to stop the war. So I call on every one of you to do everything possible to stop the war,” said Kyslytsya. To which Nebenzya responded “This isn’t called a war, this is called a special military operation in Donbas.” As he continued his speech, Kyslytsya urged the U.N. security council by claiming it was beyond the time for de-escalation and that military action needs to be taken.
Just before midnight, Russian ships carrying hundreds of soldiers landed in Odessa, a shore city in Southern Ukraine.
At 12:15 a.m., martial law was declared in Ukraine.
At 12:30 a.m. additional Russian forces invaded Ukraine through Belarus., cementing this as a full-scale invasion and war.
At 1 a.m., Ukraine announced it was being attacked through multiple Russian borders, as well as through Belarus, Crimea, and the sea.
At 5 a.m. European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced plans to issue extreme sanctions against the Russian government and economy in order to “weaken Russia’s economic base and its capacity to modernize.” “These sanctions are designed to take a heavy toll on the Kremlin’s interests and their ability to finance war. And we know that millions of Russians do not want war,” said Leyen.
Around 6:15 a.m. NATO published a statement reading “Today, we have held consultations under Article 4 of the Washington Treaty. We have decided, in line with our defensive planning to protect all Allies, to take additional steps to further strengthen deterrence and defense across the Alliance. Our measures are and remain preventive, proportionate and non-escalatory.”
As of the most recent update, the death toll has risen to over 50 Ukrainians, 40 soldiers and 10 civilians, with about 50 Russian soldiers also being killed.
Late this morning, it was confirmed that Russia had taken control of an aircraft base near Kyiv. There have been reports of firefights breaking out near the base and aircraft circling over it.
About 10:30 a.m. Ukraine Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that their Western border is still secure and that “On the territory of Ukraine, all services of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine in martial law ensure law and order, provide assistance to injured, eliminate destruction and fires.”
12 p.m.: President Biden convened with the National Security Council this morning, and at 12 p.m. he will be reporting the results of that meeting.
HBO “Peacemaker’s” opening credits sequence is a cheesy musical number with every member of the cast.
Not only is “Peacemaker” the best new show I’ve seen in 2022, it’s the best thing to come out of DC in a decade, the best HBO Max original, John Cena’s best role, best superhero series to date and the first series I’ve watched that didn’t have a single bad episode. Normally, when I review something for the Collegian, it’s because it’s new, trending or deserving of a spotlight for one reason or another. This is the first time I’ve gone into a review for this publication knowing I cannot be objective and that this is going to be an entire column of me hyping up this silly, awesome, heartfelt, stupid, amazing show.
“Eat peace, motherf***ers”
HBO The lovable cast of friends from “Peacemaker” won me over in the end.
In August 2021, Warner Bros. released “The Suicide Squad,” a strange match-made-in-heaven situation that paired up the characters of the DC Cinematic Universe (DCEU) with director James Gunn (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Slither”) known for his signature style of rapid-fire comedy and heartfelt storytelling. The film served as a pseudo-sequel to the 2016 film “Suicide Squad” that was absolutely abysmal and failed in nearly every way. I believe “Suicide Squad (2021)” suceeded because of its amazingly written comedic characters and that bounced off each other, spouting jokes nearly every minute of the film, but in a way that also endeared you to the squad and kept you emotionally invested in their stories and antics. Among this cast was a character named Peacemaker, played by WWE Wrestler and underrated actor John Cena. Just before I went to see “The Suicide Squad,” I had read that Peacemaker would be getting his own series on HBO Max written and partially directed by Gunn, so while I was watching, I kept a close eye on him, and I wasn’t entirely impressed to be honest. I walked out of that movie really anxious about how the “Peacemaker” series was going to stand alone, as I thought Cena was good in the role, but the character was weak and not the best among the group. Beyond this, the series was also going to feature an additional cast of characters that shared maybe five minutes of screentime in the movie and were annoying the whole time. I was anticipating a major flop.
To set up the series: Peacemaker is a wannabe superhero with daddy issues whose slogan is “I cherish peace with all my heart. I don’t care how many men, women and children I need to kill to get it.” Okay, it’s funny enough to see Cena in way too tight of a costume with a ridiculous helmet acting as a walking irony generator, but it was everything that surrounded this that led me to love the series so much despite my initial concerns. In the same way Gunn made me care about the team from “The Suicide Squad,” he wrote the main cast of characters in “Peacemaker” to be equal parts lovable and ridiculous, and by the time we got to the final episode of the series, if any of them died I was ready to riot. Whether it be the lovable Leota Adebayo played by Danielle Brooks (“Orange is the New Black,”) the gruff military agent Amelia Harcourt played by Jennifer Holland (“Brightburn”) or the idiotic bloodthirsty Vigilante played by Freddie Stroma (“Harry Potter,”) every single character was heightened, but also grounded in real emotions and reactions, and made me laugh out loud and nearly cry every episode, almost in equal measure.
“What separates us from other killers is we only kill bad people. Usually… Unless there’s a mistake.”
HBO Alongside the silly violence and comedy, the plot kept me interested and ready to watch week to week.
“Peacemaker” follows a typical big-budget movie story from the current superhero genre that takes a character that isn’t good at being a hero and places them at the helm of a world-saving quest to kill aliens. All the makings of a cheesy, run-of-the-mill sci-fi story are here. But, it’s the way that Gunn bends the conventions of the genre and plays with these tropes that makes the story genuinely interesting, and also highlights both comedic elements and flaws of each main character. The story is broad, sweeping, sci-fi as sh*t and unapologetically violent and grotesque.
Every major plot point in “Peacemaker” seems to be marked with a perfectly choreographed fight scene, extreme display of violence or gross alien shenanigans. But, instead of the characters reacting how they would in a superhero movie, they acknowledge how gross, violent, scary or awesome these situations are. The characters constantly flip back and forth between the zany heightened comic characters you’d expect to straight, normal humans with real emotions and real reactions.
Gunn expertly writes the story of the show through the background, with only about one main set-piece scene per episode being dedicated to driving the plot forward in a major way, with the other scenes giving moments between characters, the aftermath of the last episode’s events or small side-stories that eventually culminate in their own conclusions toward the end of the season.
As for the obstacles along the way of the story, the antagonists in this series are impeccable. The main villains are mysterious, sympathetic and can act genuinely evil, but the sub-antagonists are just as well-created. One of the main villains is an unapologetic white supremacist, which means I hated him from the jump, and loved to hate him througout. But, the way they tied his one-dimensional bigotry to the characters close to him made for excellent growth when they eventually broke ties with him because of his ignorance. Also, one of the bad guys is a short man in a leather suit who throws Cheetos at people. Just saying.
“You don’t want to believe in miracles? That’s on you.”
HBO Season two of “Peacemaker” was confirmed by Gunn and HBO on their Twitter pages.
The strange thing about gathering my thoughts for this review was that I realized I don’t have a favorite part of “Peacemaker.” The plot is genuinely interesting, the characters are actually lovable and sympathetic and the comedy throughout rarely missed a beat without getting me right back on board moments later. The fact that Gunn made me care so much about this silly character and his friends shows how great he is at his job. But, when I said Cena is an underrated actor I was serious. He is known for his comedic roles but he is a genuinely great actor that can display a wide range of emotions. Peacemaker as a character is deeply depressed, and many of the jokes that he delivers have an air of sadness as he is clearly pushing people away to avoid being emotionally vulnerable. By the end of the series, I feel like he grows as a character as a result of his opening up to the other characters, and I can’t believe I’m saying that about a character that has at least one fart joke per episode.
I’ve been writing reviews for the Collegian for four years now, and in all of the pieces I’ve written, I linger far too much on the negatives because it shows I did my job as a critic and as a journalist. But, “Peacemaker” is going to be the first review where that does not happen, and it’s also going to receive my first 10 out of 10 ranking for anything I’ve reviewed. “Peacemaker” is not a perfect show, and there are plenty of series that are far superior in terms of storytelling, drama and even comedy. But, I cannot praise the beautiful blend of action, comedy, emotion and story that HBO has achieved with this series enough, and it is fully deserving of a perfect 10. If you have HBO Max and are in the mood for a comedy, I highly recommend checking out “Peacemaker,” even if you’re not a fan of the whole superhero thing, which I understand, because this really does go past that into being a genuinely good character study and an amazingly funny piece of entertainment. Here’s to looking forward to a second season.
P.s.: If you ever click “Skip Intro” on “Peacemaker” you’re just sick and twisted.
On Feb. 9, Nintendo had its first Direct presentation for 2022. The last major Nintendo Direct presentation was on Sept. 23, 2021 and was the first time we heard about titles like “Kirby and the Forgotten Land,” “Splatoon 3” and the “Super Mario Movie.” While rumors about a Direct presentation coming soon have been rumbling for about a month now, this Direct was only announced yesterday, Feb. 10, leaving fans just a short time to speculate about what new announcements were coming. Some expected appearances included more information about the previously mentioned “Kirby” title set to release in March, “Splatoon 3” which was believed to be a summer title and “Triangle Strategy,” which was delayed from 2021 into early 2022. The following is everything announced at the February Direct:
“Nintendo Switch Sports” — April 29, 2022
A followup to everyone’s 2006 bowling obsession, “Nintendo Switch Sports” is a full followup to “Wii Sports.” “Nintendo Switch Sports” includes fan favorite sports bowling, tennis, golf and sword fighting, as well as the introduction of soccer, badminton and volleyball, all equipped with motion controls like the 2006 title.
“Mario Kart 8 Deluxe: Booster Course Pass” — March 18, 2022
The best selling Nintendo Switch game of all time “Mario Kart 8 Deluxe” is finally getting more content added to it after almost five years of being a kickback staple for nearly every Switch owner. The Booster Course Pass promises to add over 40 new racecourses to the title by the end of 2023.
“Mario Strikers: Battle League” — June 10, 2022
“Mario Strikers” is a soccer game series that adds all the childish zane of Mario to the classic sport. The other titles in the series are praised as incredibly fun party games for friends and family, and the new eight player mode in this title seems to live up to that reputation.
“Xenoblade Chronicles 3” — Sept. 2022
“Xenoblade” is a cult classic series that barely even got a sequel in America, but after the success and popularity of “Xenoblade Chronicles 2” in 2018 it appears that the series is here to stay. This dramatic expansive trailer shows the depth this new title looks to bring and appears to be a promising followup to its predecessors.
The following are some of the other notable announcements from the presentation.
“Kirby and the Forgotten Land” — March 25, 2022
“Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes” — June 24, 2022
“Portal: Companion Collection” — 2022
Additionally, further details were given for the previously announced “Advance Wars 1+2: Re-boot Camp,” “Metroid Dread,” “Triangle Strategy” and “Splatoon 3,” as well as new announcements for “Front Mission 1st,” “Chrono Cross,” “Live A Live” and other smaller announcements. A full list of content and further details can be seen on Nintendo’s website or in the full Direct below.
How the swiping of big name developers could affect you and your wallet.
Jakob Eiseman, Editor-in-Chief
Header Image: Sony
In a move that might not seem like a big deal to those who don’t pay attention to the tech industry, Microsoft has announced one of the largest acquisitions of an entertainment publisher to date: planning to purchase the video game company Activision Blizzard for $95 a share, roughly $68.7 billion. The deal, which is expected to go through in the fourth quarter of 2023, is currently being reviewed by the Federal Trade Commission.
Activision Blizzard carries such a large price tag because it is the parent company of juggernaut game franchises like “Call of Duty,” “World of Warcraft,” “Candy Crush” and “Overwatch.” In 2021 alone, the “Call of Duty” games “Vanguard” and “Black Ops Cold War” were the number one and two best selling games, respectively, worldwide, according to the NPD Group. Acquiring “Call of Duty” alone would have essentially been a license to print money for Microsoft, but the acquisition of long-praised Blizzard franchises like “Overwatch,” “Diablo” and others, as well as the “Candy Crush” franchise of mobile apps which made $1,190 million in the year 2020 according to Business of Apps, sets Microsoft up to dynamically change the way the games industry operates.
Microsoft
Microsoft’s direct competitor, Sony Interactive Entertainment and their PlayStation line of systems, has long been a thorn in the side of the Xbox company, and has been touted by many as the better and more popular of the two since 2013. The companies have always pushed each other to create new, better exclusive properties and products, going head to head with some of the best games of the generation with Microsoft’s “Forza,” “Halo,” “Ori” and other franchises going up against Sony’s “Uncharted,” “God of War,” “Spider-Man” and more, not to mention their feats in hardware development.
But, since the two mega-corporations started beefing, there has always been a sense of respect and profitability that came from sharing a majority of giant titles between the two systems, with games like “Call of Duty,” “NBA 2K,” “Fortnite” and others being available on both at the same time and for the same price.
Xbox
In the summer of 2020, Microsoft began the process of trying to close the gap between themselves and Sony in popularity by acquiring ZeniMax Media, parent company of the “Elder Scrolls,” “DOOM,” “Fallout” and “Wolfenstein” franchises, for what at the time seemed like an unfathomably large number: $7.5 billion. Sony did not flinch at the loss of these storied franchises, and instead kept pursuing their own goals such as creating new installments to some of their highest praised games or making deals with companies for their subscription services. But, after news of Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition, coming in at almost 10 times the value of ZeniMax, Sony has been forced to move their hand.
“Bungie,” which is to be purchased for $3.6 billion, are ironically the masterminds behind the “Halo” franchise, Microsoft’s cash crop. But, in 2007, Bungie split from Microsoft, becoming an independent studio. In the time since, Bungie has blown up as its own entity, creating two of the highest selling games of the generation: “Destiny” and “Destiny 2.” Sony has acquired Bungie, no doubt to get their hands on all that “Destiny” money, but also to show that they have a new, first-party studio willing to sell to them. To further the irony, the “Destiny” games were made with the help of Activision, the headlining studio now acquired by Microsoft.
Sony
If this is all a bit in the weeds for you, here’s what you have to know: Xbox is buying up giant studios to crush their competition; PlayStation is fighting back with their own acquisitions and we are all probably worse off that this is happening.
Platform exclusive titles have a tendency to review higher and receive more praise from consumers, which bodes well for these acquisitions. But, they also have a tendency to take longer to make and infrequently drop in price. Beyond this, while before platform owners could own a single device and still enjoy a majority of the games on the market, these acquisitions and exclusive deals will take away dozens of options unless a consumer owns both an Xbox and a PlayStation, which will run you well over $1,000 nowadays.
While Xbox offers many of their exclusive titles on their subscription service, Gamepass, at no extra charge, and PlayStation tends to provide occasional deals on their products, the prices are only going to go up from these business decisions. What was a cold war for many years is turning red hot as these giant corporations begin to gobble up once independent or public companies, taking options away from their competition and their competition’s fans.
Bungie’s $3.6 billion pales in comparison to ZeniMax’s $7.5 and Activision Blizzard’s $68.7 billion, but Sony is not a small company, and if they wanted to make money moves the way Microsoft has been, they can. This Bungie acquisition might just be a warning shot — but it could also be the shot heard around the world. Many eyes have turned to fan favorite publishers like Capcom, which owns franchises like “Street Fighter” and “Resident Evil,” Sega which owns “Sonic” and “Persona,” or Konami which owns “Silent Hill” and “Metal Gear” as possible collateral to this clash of the titans.
Obviously, it will be up to each company to take care of their consumers and to not ruin this still budding industry, but when billions upon billions of dollars are being slung in what is effectively a “gimme gimme, more more” era, the consumers will likely be the ones who face the harshest consequences in the form of even higher price hikes, a lack of game availability and a reduction in output for their favorite franchises. There are obvious benefits to this process, such as higher quality games and a more streamlined experience on a system, but, overall, the games industry is heading into a dystopian-esque megacorp-driven future unless these giants stop acquiring studios. It’s worth keeping your eye on if you have any interest in playing games, even casually.
Every year — every semester even — the Collegian publishes something about final exams, discussing the infamous stress and crunch that comes with them as well as ways to cope with that stress and succeed. Because we detail this topic so often in a variety of ways, we considered not running a piece regarding it this semester. But, after some discussion, it became apparent that the reason we continually write about the same themes around finals season is that there has been no meaningful change or improvements that would lead to another perspective.
Is there not some way to appreciate exams without causing hundreds of students to feel like their future depends on one two-hour memorization assignment?
Almost all exams, even the most complex and broad, are just efforts in memorization. No matter how much application is necessary to succeed, or how broadly the content from the course is used to fulfill the exam goals, students will continue to stow content into their working memory for the allotted time of the exam, but simply do not have the emotional or physiological bandwidth to encode much, if any, of that information to their long-term memory as a result of the mass workload of finals week. For example, in order to recall those psychology terms, I had to go back to my notes from Psy 155 course rather than remember it despite taking several exams on the subject. I know this is a personal example, but if you don’t believe me, let’s look to some experts.
A 2013 experiment performed by MIT neuroscientists showed that even young students who achieved very high test scores, or sharp increases in test scores, did not show any increase in cognitive ability or ability to reason surrounding abstract thoughts. As we are trained to prepare for testing at a middle school age, and continue to be tested throughout academia, these results are concerning.
The Guardian
An undergraduate level experiment was also performed at Rutgers University which showed that only about 79 percent of information from a final exam was remembered by students five months after the exam was administered, and only 67 percent was retained from prior exams. In just five months, on average, students completely lost more than 20 percent of what was learned, and as time increases, so does the knowledge that is forgotten. What happens after years?
University of Georgia professor Kathrin Stanger-Hall found through testing that multiple choice format exams severely limit critical thinking and encourage students to memorize rather than learn, think linearly rather than critically and reduce their cognitive ability.
The body of research regarding testing, retention and performance still needs to be expanded, but in order to put this into a perspective that can be applicable to La Salle, I believe that providing some testing alternatives could go a long way to increasing the performance and academic abilities of students of all majors.
As a result of the remote modality of the spring and fall 2020 semesters, many professors at La Salle shifted their examinations to “take home exams” or asynchronous open-book exams that tasked students with applying knowledge from their courses in very detailed situations or complex combinations of theories and tools. These types of exams not only significantly reduce levels of stress due to the long period of time they can be worked on, but also negate the effects of memorization and loss of retention because in order to answer the questions students have to truly understand and think critically about their responses in essay format rather than memorize and quickly recall answers.
Many professors have opted to switch their final exams entirely over to essays or projects, which many students have found helpful in alleviating exam crunch, as these projects normally take place over longer spans of time and can be completed at one’s own pace. Additionally, final essays are often cumulative, and task students to apply and synthesize knowledge from throughout the semester, while also incorporating independent research, which shows critical thinking skills and ability to relate the content to situations outside of the course.
Verywell Mind
Finally, a somewhat uncommon alternative to final exams that I would like to propose is the academic presentation and research report. There are numerous reports and findings, particularly in the business, training and psychology fields which imply that by teaching others, we are better able to not only understand the content, but retain the knowledge over longer periods of time, even after leaving higher education to enter the job market. Learning-by-teaching methods are a great way to provide students with an alternative to testing and bring in unique concepts and perspectives to a course, because students can be graded on their ability to master a subject and effectively present it to and teach others. This can be done through presentations, study group sessions, independent research between small groups and a variety of other, flexible methods.
We highly suggest that Lasallian professors at least consider some of these alternatives when planning their courses in the future. Obviously there is a large body of evidence that supports that exams and testing are beneficial in many cases. But, no matter how it’s cut, when a student has five heavily-weighted final exams all within three days of each other, mastery, understanding and knowledge retention cannot be expected. So, if any instructors feel they may be at least interested in incorporating an alternative final, we at the Collegian would highly encourage it, and look forward to a potential shift away from the finals crunch in the future.
It was announced on Nov. 15, 2021 (after our last issue was already proofed) that La Salle University would be holding a COVID-19 booster vaccine clinic on Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2021 at the COVID testing facility built into TreeTops Cafe on South Campus.
Similar to the clinic held on campus at the end of the spring 2021 semester, Walmart pharmacy is coming in to administer the vaccine and encourage those looking to attend the clinic to complete all necessary prerequisites prior to arrival. While it was not stated which vaccine the clinic will be providing, the CDC has stated that it is safe to receive a booster vaccine that is not of the same type as your initial vaccination.
In order to receive a vaccine booster from the clinic, members of the La Salle community will first have to confirm that they are, in fact, eligible for the vaccine booster. The CDC recommends that boosters be administered no sooner than six months after the administering of the second dose for the Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine or two months after receiving the Johnson and Johnson vaccine. Those who are eligible are those who received their second dose of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine before June 8 or the Johnson and Johnson vaccine before Oct. 8. If you are unsure you are eligible for a COVID booster, please check the CDC’s website for guidance.
At this time, the clinic is open to “La Salle students, faculty, staff, and Christian Brothers” only, but like the previous clinic, it may open up to the North Philadelphia community if stock of the booster and demand is high enough. Vaccine boosters will be available from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. at TreeTops, and the University recommends that those interested schedule an appointment rather than walk in. Appointments can be made through this link. Those interested are also encouraged to complete the COVID-19 booster dose attestation form, which can be found here and on La Salle’s website.
While the booster, like the vaccine itself, is free to the general public, those who wish to receive the booster will have to provide proof of health insurance or sign an insurance waiver at the site on the day of the clinic. Those who attend the clinic will have to bring a government-issued photo ID, COVID-19 vaccination record card, and insurance card if applicable.
As of its most recent update on Nov. 12, the La Salle COVID portal reflects that about 95 percent of the campus community is vaccinated, and the vaccine boosters were approved for everyone above the age of 18 by the CDC on Nov. 19. The city of Philadelphia is urging its citizens to get the booster to further protect themselves, saying on their website, “Philadelphia has one of the highest rates of routine immunizations in the entire United States. Vaccines for measles and whooping cough and meningitis protect us every day. And many of those vaccines require a booster dose to make sure that we stay protected.”
The La Salle Collegian 