THE UNDERGROUND — ISSUE #24
Everything you need to know about in this weekly series: A documentary that will chill you to the bone, the next series from DC Comics, the best steak you’ll ever eat, the real science of being a superhero, and a legendary TV series loses an iconic voice.
At Social Underground we go beyond the mainstream stuff and see what’s underneath the surface. What should we get into, listen to, read, eat or watch? If there is something in our culture that needs attention that’s our job: Show you the underground things that you need to know about: Books, music, television, movies, comedians, art, and whatever else we can find to get you into something you never knew about. That’s The Underground.
1. Thought Police: Cannibal Cop is a documentary that will make you think about thought crimes and delete your search history.
Before I dive into it, have a look at the trailer:
HBO documents an NYPD officer and his online antics. Sure, he never actually killed anyone and did some of the horrifying things he said online he was going to do, but that adds to the debate. At what point does fantasy in your mind and on the Internet become a real threat to the public? What can you search for on the Internet before it becomes a red flag to authorities (Not the obvious ones)?
This documentary feels like the Serial podcast. It goes back to a case and shows both sides that will make you doubt the guilt or innocence of someone like your opinion is swinging on a pendulum. At least a dozen times or more did I change sides in this case. The documentary would show you evidence against him, and then they’d show you the guy acting completely normal to the point where I said to myself, “It’s just online fantasy, he wasn’t really going to do anything bad.” Then back to even more damning evidence.
What really got to me was the parts where it showed what he searched for on Google. A lot of it was awful, but what if he was a horror writer or worked as a TV writer for a show like Criminal Minds? If you don’t have the information you need, you’ll have to look for it online.
For example: Blues legend B.B. King passed away recently. The last time I heard about B.B. King in the news was about him being abused by his manager in early May. When he died, I made joke about whomever abused him should be strangled my B.B. King’s own guitar strings. I knew that there was a name for doing that, so I Googled: “Term for death by strangulation.” This gave me the term “Garrote” which is “A wire, cord, or apparatus used to strangle someone.” I was nervous looking for it, but it was for a joke. This movie has made me afraid to look online for anything that would even look bad even though it’s under the most innocent reasons.
Check out this documentary on HBO or HBOGO to join the debate on thought crimes, but watch it at a reasonable hour and not 3 a.m. like I did.
2. The CW looks to expand its fantastic DC Comics catalogue of shows with The Legends of Tomorrow. I’m a huge fan of both Arrow and The Flash. Both shows are solid in their own right, and when they have a crossover episodes, it’s even more fun. They aim to add to the collective universe with The Legends of Tomorrow, which features characters from both shows as well as new ones.
Check out the brand-new trailer below:
What’s crazy is that the CGI for television is used so well on The CW that you would think it was a movie. Some of the stuff done in The Flash makes you think the production budget is that of Game of Thrones for each episode produced. I can’t wait to see what they do with this show, and how they will manage to have a few crossover episodes between all three shows. Marvel may be winning on the big screen, but with 3 different stations playing DC, I think they have television on lockdown.
3. Here’s the best recipe for a delicious steak that will dominate your Summer. It’s Spring now, so the grills are beginning to fire up. What better way to start of grilling season with one of nature’s greatest achievements: STEAK.
If you’re an amateur, you would think that all you need to do is turn on the grill, throw on some salt and pepper, cook, flip, and you’re done. If you’re cooking a 3 dollar steak that you bought on sale from the local grocery store that gets their toys shipped from China, by all means cook your steak like that. If you want to have a steak that you’ll want mentioned in your obituary for its greatness, then here we go:
The Ingredients For The Marinade:
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1 1/2 tablespoons garlic powder
- 3 tablespoons dried basil
- 1 1/2 tablespoons dried parsley flakes
- 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (optional)
- 1 teaspoon dried minced garlic (optional)
Preparations:
Place the soy sauce, olive oil, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, basil, parsley, and pepper in a blender. Add hot pepper sauce and garlic, if desired. Blend on high-speed for 30 seconds until thoroughly mixed.
Pour marinade over desired type of meat. Cover, and refrigerate for up to 8 hours. When it’s ready, throw it on the grill and cook it to your desired temperature (I suggest Medium to Medium rare). If you dip this steak into ketchup… I will find you.
4. Have you ever thought about the science of superheroes? Of course you have! With Avengers: Age of Ultron dominating the world box office, it leaves children and adults with dreams of flying an Iron Man suit or throwing a motorcycle like Captain America (Sorry, Hawkeye. You’re boring).
Well, according to science, we aren’t that far off from these types of machines and genetic changes to make it possible. Don’t expect to be flying around in an Iron Man suit just yet. The technology is still being developed to give people superhuman abilities that we never thought possible.
Check out this video explaining how one day you may be able to bench press a tank:
5. The Simpsons is basically over. In the past few days, we’ve learned that veteran Simpsons voice actor Harry Shearer would be leaving the show to do other things. You may not recognize his name, but if you’ve watched the show for the past 20+ years, you’ll recognize his voice by all the characters he has done:
- Ned Flanders
- Charles Montgomery Burns
- Waylon Smithers
- Seymour Skinner
- Dr. Hibbert
- Lenny Leonard
- Kent Brockman
- Scratchy
- Kang
- Eddie
- Otto Mann
- Rev. Lovejoy
- Rainier Wolfcastle
- Jasper
- Dewey Largo
- Sanjay
- Dr. Marvin Monroe
- Jebediah Springfield
- Marty
- Herman
- Judge Roy Snyder
- Bill Clinton
- Clancy Bouvier
- Dr. J. Loren Pyror
- George H. W. Bush
- Nigel
- Maggie Simpson (using his Kang voice)
- President Arnold Schwarzenegger
- Freak Show Manager
- Guy who Doesn’t Know if He’s Sarcastic
- London Symphony Orchestra
- Pig Guy
- Al Gore
- John Travolta
- Bort (Man)
- Skull
- Kissing Cop
- Toll Booth Man
- Guard
- Zookeeper
- Comedian
- Cameraman
- Phil the Alien
- Bank Owner
- Sailor
- Man on Video
- Regular Teacher
- Telegram Man
- Fat Prisoner
- Texan 1
- Texan 2
- Plastic Surgeon
- Man at Graduation
- Admiral Mann
- Man 1 in Future
- Man 3 at Gas Station
- Shelbyville Homer
- Hugh Jass
- Sam (barfly)
Most of those names are from characters that are iconic to the show, and it would be awful if they had to hire a dozen different people to replace each of the voices for the show to continue. It’s not that easy to replace such a voice when each voice has become a part of pop culture history. I advise that producers try to wrap up the series and switch to movies. I love The Simpsons, but sometimes a show needs to end.
Plus, it’s getting to the point where South Park’s “Simpsons did it!” joke is actually being used against The Simpsons itself:
Feature IMAGE: WIREIMAGE/MARK SULLIVAN
FOLLOW JEFF SORENSEN ON TWITTER
Jeff Sorensen is an author, writer and occasional comedian living in Detroit, Michigan. You can look for more of his work on The Huffington Post, UPROXX, BGR and by just looking up his name.
Contact: jeff@socialunderground.com