On Critic Proof, Alyssa and Sonny talk Man of Steel (includes spoilers) and offer an intellectual defense of Zack Snyder, the film’s much-maligned director. They discuss what Man of Steel gets right about female characters, and whether mass-casualty action sequences have gotten out of hand. Can Hollywood drop the three-part origin story and start telling superhero stories in better ways? Plus: Could patrons like Samsung and Megan Ellison make pop culture more interesting?
On The Posner Show, Sarah discusses the protests in Turkey with Haroon, who just returned from Istanbul. Haroon talks about why the protests are not as the American media has portrayed them, and how he got tear-gassed and saw Man of Steel on the same weekend. They discuss the lack of an effective political opposition to Prime Minister Erdogan. Haroon recounts his surprising discussions with conservative and religious Turks, and explains why the protests in Turkey are not like the Arab Spring. Is Erdogan going for the political “death blow“? Plus: What it feels like to be tear-gassed.
On The DMZ, Bill and Matt discuss Bobby Jindal‘s recent op-ed encouraging Republicans to quit the introspection. Has conservatism given up on solving problems? What’s the deal with Jindal’s red meat about liberals? Turning to immigration reform, they consider why top Senate Republicans are threatening to kill their own bill. Plus: Matt asks Bill how his feelings about Ronald Reagan have evolved.