We now live in a post-“Morbius”
society. After its announcement in
November 2017 by Sony, its first
trailer in January 2020 and then
its delayed release date of April 1,
2022 (in another world, it was just
an April Fool’s prank), the Marvel-
adjacent vampire movie starring
possible
cult
leader/method
asshole Jared Leto is something
that
now
exists.
It
defies
traditional description due to how
incalculably odd the entirety of its
existence has been: from inception
to production to marketing to
release and re-release.
Amid all of this were the
memes: mockeries of Sony for
thinking anyone wanted this,
typical Leto horror stories from
set as Sony kept making the movie
despite the mockery, everyone
seeing past Sony’s manipulations
in teasing past Spider-Men in
trailers and overhyping Morbius
as a “new Marvel legend.” When
it finally came out, “Morbius” was
so predictably devoid of quality
that the new joke was to give it
ironic and absurdist praise. What
was inspiring about the movement
was that despite flopping on the
first release, Sony interpreted the
memes as actual demand. They
re-released it in theaters, only for
it to spectacularly re-flop. After
Leto himself released a video
reading a script entitled “Morbius
2: It’s Morbin’ Time,” the meme
was declared dead. Now that the
joke born out of anti-corporate
revulsion had been embraced by
the very company that birthed it,
Morbin’ time was over.
However — like an undead
creature of the night — the
“Morbius” meme continued to
rear its decaying head over every
corner of the internet with nearly
every new cinematic release.
I remember seeing a review of
“Doctor Strange in the Multiverse
of
Madness”
after
being
disappointed and to my horror
(a different horror from most
times I read YouTube comment
sections), every single comment
displayed some variation of the
“Morbin’ time” format. There’s
a faint connection here — Doctor
Strange’s multiversal adventures
could
semi-realistically
tie
themselves to Sony’s pathetic
attempts at connecting “Morbius”
to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
But this excess of sardonic praise
could be another symptom of
superhero fatigue as Marvel and
similar companies push out more
and more content onto no-longer
engaged audiences.
Maybe in another life, we
would have been happy with
“Morbius.”
These
hyperbolic
expressions feel like tales from
another world, a place somewhere
in the “Morbiverse” where it
miraculously did live up to Sony’s
attempted hype. You know that
feeling when a good film whisks
you away into another world for
a few hours and you walk out
into the parking lot, a bit changed
from your time there? After
the “Doctor Strange” sequel, I
felt something I hadn’t before.
Instead of being a usual escape,
the film was a reminder of what
was wrong with modern media. l
was taken to a different universe,
but it was a darker timeline that I
didn’t want to be in. I flocked to
that review like so many others,
looking for sincere validation in
my criticisms, only to find nothing
but Morbin’ comments. When
I saw and reviewed “Jurassic
World: Dominion,” the feeling and
the memes returned — and when
I saw and reviewed “Thor: Love
and Thunder,” I ended up fooling
myself into thinking it was better
than it actually was.
The
Mandela
effect
is
a
phenomenon in which people
strongly
insist
on
cultural
discrepancies and — like the
Marvel
Cinematic
Multiverse
— some believe it’s the result of
parallel universes converging/
sharing information with each
other. Of course, believe what you
want, but gaslighting ourselves as
a society on such a massive scale
seems to only be reserved for these
Mandela phenomena. However,
as I said, we now live in a post-
“Morbius” society. If the Mandela
effect occurs when tiny aspects
of the universe feel “off,” the
“Morbius effect” is the feeling I’ve
gotten from so much of the highly-
anticipated art our modern society
produces feeling “off” in the same
way and falling flat. Inevitably,
these mediocre projects circle
back to the Morbin’ meme format
and are thus raised onto a pedestal
of irony, hyperbole and satire.
I believe we all want the art we
experience to be an amazing, life-
changing piece of media we’ll talk
about for decades to come. There is
only so much time in the world to
experience art, and only so much
space in our brains to internalize
it and billboards to advertise it.
Especially after the pandemic
made moviegoing impossible for
so long, it’s a letdown that so many
of these post-COVID movies were
below or shockingly just mid, at
least to me.
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Arts
This
Saturday,
the
Kelsey
Museum of Archaeology hosted
its second annual “Spooky, Weird,
and Magical: Halloween with the
Kelsey” tour. Led by docent Robin
Little, the tour explored a variety
of objects from the approximately
1,500 on permanent display through
the lens of Halloween. Before we
began, Little made clear: “When I
say weird, I don’t mean weird in a
negative way. I mean unusual. I am
not putting any value judgment on
the word ‘weird’.”
Here are the 5 “weirdest,” or
most unusual, artifacts we saw,
along with explanations about their
historical context, according to the
tour.
1. A Cat Mummy
The Kelsey has a strict rule
against
any
human
remains
within its collection; however,
this policy does not extend to
the domain of animals. Their
collection currently includes a
mummified hawk, baboon, cat head
and entire cat (pictured above).
In Ancient Egypt, animals were
associated with certain gods, and
cats were particularly powerful
divine symbols. Many Egyptians
wanted to have their pets buried
next to them and as a result, many
mummified animals have been
found alongside the remains of their
owners . But dealers were not always
scrupulous, and the recent ability
to x-ray artifacts has revealed that
many animal mummies actually
just contain random assortments
of bones. It remains uncertain what
remains are actually under this cat-
shaped mummy.
2.
Four
Human-Headed
Canopic Jar Lids
The Ancient Egyptian process of
human mummification began with
the removal of four internal organs:
the lungs, the liver, the stomach and
the intestines. Once the organs were
removed, they were treated with
various chemicals, wrapped in linen
and then placed into canopic jars
like the ones above. The jars were
buried alongside the mummified
body in their sarcophagus. Different
jars were reserved for specific
viscera and possessed specific
magical properties.
3. Some Very Rusty Forceps
These forceps are an example of
a medical tool that would be used
to deliver babies in Ancient Rome.
Although seemingly not the most
hygienic instrument, they allowed
practitioners to reach areas they
could not with their fingers alone.
Forceps came in various forms
and could be used for various
other purposes, such as extracting
tumors or even cosmetic surgeries.
Romans would often accompany
such medical practices by taking
votives of certain body parts to
shrines in hopes of receiving
prayers for healing.
4. A “Demon Bowl”
“Demon Bowls,” also known
as “incantation bowls” from the
Parthian Period in modern-day
Iraq, were an ancient alternative
to demon busters and an example
of early practical magic. The bowls
were used as a protective measure
to lure and then trap demons or
ghosts, although they could also
be used to summon one for help.
Since the majority of people were
illiterate, the spells were often
illegible.
Recent
research
has
even suggested that the spiraling
magical inscriptions were gibberish
or “pseudo script,” so we still do not
know what they mean to this day.
The five spookiest
artifacts from the Kelsey
Museum Halloween Tour
Wednesday, November 9, 2022 — 5
Design by Meghana Tummala
JADEN KATZ
Daily Arts Writer
‘Scorn’ is a fleshy
nightmare I’m glad to
wake up from
Do you remember going to
Halloween parties as a kid
where someone made you close
your eyes and feel a bowl of
peeled grapes, telling you they
were eyeballs? Or that a bowl
of spaghetti was a bunch of
brains? Each thing you touched
was a vile mystery, making you
both disoriented and disgusted.
This is the kind of horror that
sticks with me longer than any
jumpscares or haunted houses:
the psychological terror of the
unknown.
Developed by indie team Ebb
Software, “Scorn” understands
this type of horror well, using
it to immerse players in its
nightmarish world. The game
begins with your character
disconnecting themself from
some sort of parasitic machine,
and from there you are free
to roam around. There’s no
explanation
for
where
you
are or who you might be, but
you can gather from your
surroundings that you must be
in some version of hell.
The environment of “Scorn”
is both beautiful and disturbing.
There are towering cathedrals,
twisting stone staircases and
strange operating rooms with
menacing buzzsaws and brain-
scooping devices. The game
takes heavy inspiration from
the works of H.R. Giger, the
legendary artist who designed
the
xenomorphs
from
the
“Alien”
franchise.
As
you
traverse through the world, his
self-described “biomechanical”
art style is brought to life with
fleshy cobwebs hanging from
every ceiling and strange red,
pulsing tubes reminiscent of
intestines running along the
floors.
The game’s sound design
is another great addition to
the atmosphere. An ambient
soundtrack accompanies you
as you explore, which starts to
sound like white noise as time
goes on. This gives the game a
very womb-like feeling, which
is perfect considering your
surroundings. Strange groaning
noises and muffled shouts help
to guide you along your way,
although their sources aren’t
always clear; then again, not
much in “Scorn’”s world is.
As you wander around you’ll
find strange devices to interact
with, but you’re left completely
in the dark as to what they do.
A lot of these are levers that
require you to insert your
fingers into sinewy slots to pull
them, allowing you to control
something in the room. This
might be a giant crane that
helps you move an object or a
drone that flies around. The
game’s main objective lies in
trying to figure out how to use
these devices to unlock a path to
the next area. I don’t know what
it is with horror games having
some of the most frustrating
puzzles known to man, but
some of the ones in here really
tripped me up. I’m no stranger
to weird puzzles, but I spent
over 20 minutes on one in
particular that required me to
spin a series of stone dials until
I aligned them all perfectly.
Although I understand that
“Scorn” is supposed to make
you scared and confused, this
just broke my immersion and
made me want to bang my head
against the wall.
If the world of “Scorn” is
compelling enough for you to
get immersed in, you’ll enjoy
your
play-through
exploring
every
squishy
nook
and
squelching cranny. But if you
are expecting a gory romp
through hell like in the latest
games in the “Doom” series,
you’re going to be disappointed.
There is some combat, but the
sloppy mechanics make for an
experience too frustrating to
enjoy. While the clunky combat
in horror games like “Resident
Evil” and “Silent Hill” adds
to the horror by making the
player feel helpless, it feels like
an afterthought in “Scorn.”
Thankfully, you can usually
avoid the headache of having to
fight by just running past your
enemies.
HUNTER BISHOP
Daily Arts Writer
The ‘Morbius’ effect:
a new age of online art consumption
SAARTHAK JOHRI
Daily Arts Writer
puzzle by sudokusnydictation.com
By Bonnie Eisenman
©2022 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
09/21/22
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
Edited by Patti Varol and Joyce Nichols Lewis
09/21/22
ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
Release Date: Wednesday, September 21, 2022
ACROSS
1 Thwack
5 Informed (of)
10 Compensation
14 Tuck out of view
15 Wrinkled
16 Many a univ.
donor
17 365 days
18 Rub ingredient
19 HBO political
satire starring
Julia Louis-
Dreyfus
20 Impractical way
to get dressed?
23 Barack and
Michelle’s eldest
daughter
26 Family room
27 Impatient
28 Lives
30 Cookie fruit
31 Planning meeting
for the costume
department?
35 “Stop filming!”
38 Broody sorts?
39 Sir or sri
40 More than dislike
41 Donkey
42 Disappointing
sign on a
store selling
warm-weather
garments?
44 GPS display
45 Small village
46 Food cart snacks
in South Asia
49 Texting letters
52 Swerves
53 Really pulls off a
jacket?
56 Initial poker bet
57 Japanese noodle
dish
58 Carried debt
62 Appear to be
63 “You __ kidding!”
64 Grow tiresome
65 Jekyll’s
counterpart
66 Basil-based
sauce
67 Yields, as a profit
DOWN
1 Bashful
2 Blip on a
polygraph, maybe
3 Hugo-nominated
novelist Palmer
4 Continues
5 “One more
thing ... ”
6 Totally beat
7 Ouzo flavoring
8 Scouting mission,
briefly
9 Garden with
forbidden fruit
10 Fluttering in the
wind
11 Warning signal
12 Ballpark figure
13 Like cans in a
recycling bin,
hopefully
21 Doth own
22 Fall flat
23 Anime genre
featuring giant
robots
24 Wheel-
connecting rods
25 NFL team whose
mascot is named
Roary
29 Punchline lead-in
30 __ and blood
32 “Pull up a chair”
33 Corp. computer
exec
34 Fuzzy sitcom star
of the 1980s
35 “The Grouchy
Ladybug” writer/
illustrator
36 Out-and-out
37 Tries, as one’s
patience
40 Place of origin
42 Cheerios grains
43 “__ Nagila”:
Israeli folk song
44 Defiant retort
46 Cymbal sound
47 Bee product
48 Performed
49 Open up, in a
way
50 Fast-spreading
social media
posts
51 Fragrance
54 Hip hop genre
55 “I’m __ your
tricks!”
59 Pint-size
60 “Mangia!”
61 Many profs
SUDOKU
By Lisa Senzel & Christina Iverson
©2022 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
09/14/22
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
Edited by Patti Varol and Joyce Nichols Lewis
09/14/22
ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
Release Date: Wednesday, September 14, 2022
ACROSS
1 Spanish tennis
great Nadal,
familiarly
5 Upgrade, as
machinery
10 Uncertain
14 Cabbage buy
15 Glazer of “The
Afterparty”
16 Skating
commentator
Lipinski
17 Analogy words
18 Bridal path flower
piece
19 Stash, as gear
20 Japanese drama
21 Cookbook
contents
23 Author Rand
24 Genre for
composer
Terence
Blanchard
26 Informal “You’re
oversharing”
27 Caramel candies
29 Like some
dangerous
isotopes
32 Curry of the NBA
34 Bike part
35 Quintet for most
starfish
38 Prefix for a
lifesaving “Pen”
39 Not so big
41 Knock
42 Try to hit
44 Tell it like it isn’t
45 Speed skater
Ohno
47 Act parts
49 Past the point of
caring
50 Michelle of “Crazy
Rich Asians”
52 Neighborhood
53 *Secretive email
option
60 Uncommon
61 Assertion
62 Cookie used as a
12-Down topping
63 Admit frankly
64 Omit in speech
65 Spreadsheet unit
66 Soaks up the sun
67 Calf-roping event
68 Diet that’s high
in fats and low
in carbs, as
illustrated by
parts of the
answers to the
starred clues
DOWN
1 Safari herbivore
2 Fabulous writer?
3 *Figure often
depicted with a
scythe and an
hourglass
4 Hubbub
5 Ready for
picking
6 __ college
7 *Pakistani-born
chef who was
posthumously
honored with a
James Beard
Award
8 Up the creek
9 Story
10 Part of FWIW
11 *Serious
software
problem
12 Dessert from
16 Handles,
familiarly
13 Signs of
boredom
21 “Wicked!”
22 __ Lanka
25 Sidelines cheer
28 Fertility lab cells
30 Maker of the
Deep Blue chess
computer
31 Workout top
32 Bodies of water
33 __ fail
36 Timbuktu’s land
37 Predicament
39 Fine horse
40 Black bird
43 “What’s the
latest?”
46 NBC symbol
48 Abby Wambach’s
sport
49 Juliet’s cry
51 Winnie-the-Pooh
greeting
52 Tolerate
53 Sassy kid
54 Chocolate
__ cake
55 Waffle maker
56 “Kills bugs
dead!” spray
57 Hockey Hall
of Famer
Willie
58 Hit, as with
snowballs
59 “Seize the day”
initialism
PARKING
Parking Space
for Rent
North State & Kingsley
734-904-0649
CLASSIFIED ADS
Your classified
ad here! Email
wmg-contact@
umich.edu for more
information.
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
Read more at MichiganDaily.com