They were. I look back now at the WB cartoons of my youth, and realize how sophisticated they were, and how they shaped my worldview. Pronoun trouble, anyone? And monsters are such interesting people.
Also, I was delighted and amazed when I started watching SpongeBob cartoons, and the level of sophistication and meta-ness they sometimes achieved.
I love Spongebob, especially the old ones.
“The Paper” is one of my favorites!
Hunter S. Thompson and SpongeBob, that’s my kind of guy 
Back in the the day, I was absolutely astonished that someone really dares making a movie of “Fear & Loathing” – saw it once (maybe twice), then turned to the book again. Was very happy some years ago when I caught a rare copy of a German translation of some of his other writings (if English is not one’s native language, reading Thompson may become a bit difficult at times). I’d also recommend “The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent and Depraved”, the origin of his Gonzo writing:
As for SpongeBob, I’d like to put it like that: the ring tone on my mobile phone is (and has always been) the SpongBob end credit music. Need I say more?
When my niece was still little, she was a big SpongeBob fan (and still is, 20 years later). We spent many a Sunday afternoon on the sofa, binge watching. But when you want real craziness, try “Rocko’s Modern Life”…
It is included in the tome I picked up yesterday. I will turn to it next.
One of the things that surprised me was the sheer pleasure of Thompson’s prose. I was not expecting that at all.
These are really effective in establishing Wint and Kidd as omnipresent without Bond’s knowledge, which amps up the creepy factor. There’s also the scene with the pair sitting directly behind Bond on the plane, with Kidd even getting up to peek behind the curtain. The only time they all have a conversation is at the very end.
This is great. Thank you.
I never thought of the camera movement as establishing Wint/Kidd as omnipresent, but doing so enriches my reading of DAF as a film of anxiety with regard to the status of the classic straight male hero. Wherever he might go, queers, empowered women, and other challenges await him. They cannot be avoided, since they are omnipresent–a newly assertive part of society/culture.
Thanks again.
They had Bond cold twice and he didn’t even know what they looked like. There’s entertainment value with Wint and Kidd’s statements but their effectiveness can’t be denied. They’re killing just about every time they appear on screen, or at least attempting to. They’re ghosts who appear when Bond least expects it and at his most vulnerable time. They could’ve done anything they wanted to with him.
They are indeed the creepiest henchmen of the series I would say.
I do think Jaws is very scary in TSWLM and the carnival scene in Rio (until he begins to dance). But Wint and Kidd are so much enjoying their evil behavior they are kind of in their own movie, only sometimes colliding with others.
Which is one reason Shady Tree’s murder was cut. And “killing” in Vegas is something most people, from comedians to gamblers, want to do.
I like that phrasing.
I do not see them as enjoying their evil. They just take pride in their work–which can be said of almost every character in the movie–from Plenty to Slumber to Klaus to the Countdown fellow. People like what they are doing, and are good at it (including Q cheating at slots). There is a delicious amorality to DAF–Bond included–which invigorates the film.
An interesting angle - the work ethic of Wint & Kidd.
Shady Tree - lazy - has to die.
Saxby - no obvious purpose - has to die. I appreciate they don’t kill him, but it’s thematically coherent.
Mrs Whistler - patronising old bag - has to die.
Dr Tynan - corrupt and not doing his job - has to die.
Franks - gets caught rather easily, patently incompetent, has to die. Again, I know it isn’t them but I am warming to my theme.
The helicopter pilot - fails to shoot them on sight, has to die.
Plenty O’Toole - neither use nor ornament, has to die.
Fat he may be, but Bond is competent at his job so they cannot kill him.
It’s when they pretend to be waiters, doing another job, that they come undone. When they join in on the pretence of being someone else, it all goes bang. And wooooooooo.
Moral - be true to one’s self and increase productivity.
Reads like the tag line to the next spring budget…
Just had an epiphany about the powers of the pink tie (caught DAF by chance, while flipping through TV channels).
The pink tie is a hitherto undisclosed Q gadget that can render other things in its proximity totally invisible. This has to be the reason why I never before noticed (and apparently nobody else, because afaik nobody ever mentioned it) this abhorrent example of a tie (or is it a beach towel?), worn by Felix Leiter in the same scene.
Feeling old. I was already born when this was considered acceptable.
This is dreadful!!!
Its the mustsrd shirt thsts truly revolting
Fifty-three years later, and the treasures of DAF continue to be mined.
The tie is an unconscious emulation of Bond on Felix’s part, which he tries to camouflage with his bluster over Bond’s behavior.
And as usual he comes up short.
Touché!
Toupee!
Side note: I have been watching/thinking about my favorite Cassavetes movie, THE KILLING OF A CHINESE BOOKIE, and I realized that I just love the look of 1970s cinema–the clothing; the location; the personal grooming–the entire ambience.
Can’t you just see Cosmo Vitelli meeting Connery Bond 2 in Vegas?
