Featured Essays Wonder Man Wonder Man Was Great, but Disney Corporate Synergy Still Messed It Up The series was a gem… except for the oversaturated branding By Emmet Asher-Perrin | Published on February 10, 2026 Credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+ Comment 0 Share New Share Credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+ Wonder Man is easily one of my favorite pieces of the MCU’s last five years. (Marvel Studios should have let it be a weird little movie instead of an awkwardly paced miniseries, but I digress, and it’s too early for a digression.) It does the thing that the sprawling cinematic universe did well at its outset and keeps forgetting as its mythos builds: take a few subgenres and aesthetics, and meld them into a coherent narrative with a superpowered person(s) at the center. And the show skimped out on action sequences, to my never-ending delight—so many movies, even within the action movie millieu, could use fewer. (The third act climatic battle has become a punchline rather than a crescendo over the last decade.) We got more talking! More backstory! More thematic resonance! And yet… we’ve got to talk about the Josh Gad in the room. There’s a bubbling issue in our age of deregulated media conglomerates that brings to mind the brand synergy zeal and business word salad that blossomed in ‘80s corporate America. Everything that you “consume”—and that obviously includes media of any kind, according to these folks—is ultimately being optimized to remind you to consume more stuff. That’s what makes the capitalism engine go vroom. And there’s also rights issues to consider, right? Namechecking (or visually showing) an IRL brand in your fictional story typically costs money in one direction or another, and demands sponsorship contracts with clauses galore. You’ve likely heard some of these stories before: E.T. and the fateful Reese’s Pieces product placement when M&Ms wouldn’t play ball. Wayne’s World devoting an entire joke segment to egregious sponsorship deals. Wreck-It Ralph 2 basically being a two-hour ad for being online. Superman getting thrown into an IHOP that one time. Remember when James Bond movies were in the business of making Sony Vaio happen? Anyone? But now that a few measly megacorps own… everything, these references are being reworked to keep you within a super-brand “stable,” as it were. Why make deals with outside companies when you can make a deal with yourself, and get yourself more money? It’s weird enough when television characters spend any length of time debating television, but now characters in Netflix programs inevitably make comments about “cuing up Netflix,” when the subject of cozy evenings arise. Or a buddy is being dramatic, and someone teases that their lives are going to become the subject of a Netflix special. Or a kid comes into the room to tell mom a big secret, but just wait, she’s gotta pause Queer Eye on the giant flatscreen before you can talk! It’s wildly inorganic and throws you out of an immersive state every time, because even if the dialogue or situation doesn’t feel forced (which is rare), you cannot help but be reminded of the fact that you are watching a thing on Netflix, and Netflix wants to remind you of this, so they can encourage you to keep watching a thing on Netflix. Nothing in this world makes me want to exit the app faster. The fact that each individual streamer only uses their own service makes the effect that much worse—in case you forgot you were watching Hulu, don’t worry about it… they’ll be sure to remind you at the thirty minute mark. But I’ve got a different beef with Marvel Studios because they’re owned by Disney, and Disney is determined to be the best at what they do. Part of the difficulty here is that the House of Mouse is now home to some of the biggest fandoms on the planet—they’ve got Marvel, yes, but also their entire stable of animated films (plus Pixar), and all of Star Wars to name a few. (Please don’t get me started on the fact that Disney has gobbled up the studios that produced work by animators and creators they wouldn’t give any creative control or capital to, thereby managing to own reams of work that they once outright refused to bankroll.) Disney knows something about fandom because that’s a business they’ve had to harness in order to survive. Credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+ So you can see how Josh Gad might have ended up in Wonder Man, and why Disney might have thought itself oh-so-clever for the premise: We’ve got a bottle episode giving backstory on the in-universe ban against superpowered people working in film and television. We need the central character of the episode to enjoy a brief stint working for a celebrity, who can have fun poking at their own career while they play a fabricated version of themselves. If we pick from our own roster, we can lightly roast ourselves (without needing to work out any kind of pesky permissions) while heartily reinforcing brand supremacy. It’s a nice gig for the actor in question, who doesn’t have to commit to an entire series-worth of shooting time in order to make some money. Gad’s an easy choice because he voiced one of Disney’s most recognizable sidekick characters for one of the most popular animated films of all time, a character who’s deliberately off-kilter and lends himself to endless send-ups; if you’ve watched Frozen 2, you already know that Disney has milked this cow before, with an entire extended credits sequence featuring Olaf recapping the plot of the first film to Marshmallow the snow giant. This time we’re treated to Gad in the club, where he’s allowed to perform with the DJ (because he’s famous, natch), and treats the crowd to an adult rendition of “In Summer,” telling the room “We’re melting! Melting, bitches!” as he pours his drink on a guy’s head. Comedy gold, of course. Wow, Disney sure does know how to razz itself by allowing an actor to cut loose and “riff” on his own ultra-famous performance with curse words… Here’s the part that the corporate sector never seems to understand about these setups: It’s not funny when you make the joke. Your implicit permission ruins the gag. This was a major piece of the marketing for Deadpool & Wolverine, by the way: There are countless interviews where star/co-writer Ryan Reynolds and director Shawn Levy tell folks that they were stunned at the jokes that Disney and Marvel Studios allowed them to make at their so-called expense. It’s a strange party line to witness because when you take stock of the jokes that fit the description, there’s nothing remotely unsafe about them: Disney says we can’t do cocaine. Disney brought Hugh Jackman back as Wolverine after the studio-previously-known-as 20th Century Fox killed him off. Pegging isn’t new to Deadpool, but it is to Disney (and still is, because no pegging ever occurs, alas). “Alioth is in this thing? From [insert relevant brand connection for further consumption]?” Suck it, Fox—I’m going to Disneyland. All the while, we’re wholly aware of the fact that Disney is signing off on these jibes because it makes them look better as a company. Disney doesn’t mind if you take the piss; they’re not a regular mega-conglomerate, they’re a cool mega-conglomerate. They’ll make fun of themselves, see? You don’t even have to do it. But they do, in fact, mind when you do it: Disney’s lawyers are famously tetchy if you mess with their IP without express approval. They tried to fine an elementary school parent teacher association a few years back for screening one of their movies without a $250 permit, as a mild reminder (before realizing that was a bad look and apologizing). And just in case you think that Disney was at least mature enough to steer clear of the dreaded streamer name-drop, I direct you to episode five of Wonder Man: a shot of the El Capitan Theater shows a billboard bearing the words ‘Ohana means family’ with the Disney Plus logo directly beneath it. But perhaps it was just there when the scene was shot, you might point out? Afraid not, as Wonder Man was filmed and edited over the course of 2023 and 2024—Lilo & Stitch didn’t premiere at El Capitan until May of 2025, well after the show had wrapped. The billboard is there for the obvious reason, which is to subliminally call you toward a different viewing once you’re done. Less awkward than a character suggesting that their favorite movie was just added to Disney Plus, but just as blatant and tacky. Credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+ I could go on about how patently strange it is when the MCU tries to intersect bluntly with our own reality (I’m still reeling from Luke Cage suggesting that Barack Obama was president in the MCU, after what we’d seen of their world leaders up to that point). What does it mean for Frozen to be a hit in the MCU, and how did the public handle the film coming out the year after Captain America reemerged from his own thaw? Why is Disney just as obsessed with doing live-action remakes in their universe as our own? Are we allowed to talk about the fact that the high school auditorium quality of Rogers: The Musical indicates that Broadway is still decimated in the wake of multiple attacks and the Blip? But really, all it makes me want to do is think about Who Framed Roger Rabbit? and the endless behind-the-scenes negotiations that film had to go through because two major studios—Disney and Warner Bros.—were in an all-out brawl to demand equal screentime. The quality of the film can be put down to the fact that it was emphatically not an advertisement for other properties; it was meant to be a real world where animated characters were real actors. It was possibly the only time that being deeply referential didn’t feel like a garish cash grab, or a fight for our endless collective attention. The worldbuilding was authentic and the place felt lived-in, inch by two-dimensional inch. The brand synergizing notes that occurred in Wonder Man weren’t massive asides, but they were glaring ones that distracted from the tale they had to tell. It felt like nothing so much as a Disney executive entering my living room with a skateboard to “How do you do, fellow kids” me until I re-upped my Disney Plus subscription. And I’m not saying that this did or should have distracted everyone else to the same extent—I’m saying that we should all be concerned about the ways in which our entertainment and precious attention are being continually and grossly modified and commodified to aid someone’s bottom line when all we ever agreed to… was being told a story.[end-mark] The post <i>Wonder Man</i> Was Great, but Disney Corporate Synergy Still Messed It Up appeared first on Reactor.

A federal appeals court is allowing the Trump administration to proceed with plans to end temporary immigration protections for about 89,000 aliens from Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua. On Monday, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily lifted a lower court’s order blocking Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem from moving to end Temporary Protected Status for natives of the three countries. Noem hailed the appeals court’s decision as “a win for the rule of law and vindication for the U.S. Constitution.” “TPS was never designed to be permanent, yet previous administrations have used it as a de facto amnesty program for decades,” Noem wrote on X. “Given the improved situation in each of these countries, we are wisely concluding what was intended to be a temporary designation.” A win for the rule of law and vindication for the US Constitution. Under the previous administration, Temporary Protected Status was abused to allow violent terrorists, criminals, and national security threats into our nation. TPS was never designed to be permanent, yet… pic.twitter.com/SZhVNuhU1n— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) February 9, 2026 Temporary Protected Status provides protection against deportation and allows foreign nationals to live and work in the U.S. for a period. It is usually granted to citizens of nations experiencing war or recovering from a major natural disaster. Last year, Noem announced that the United States would end the status for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua after determining that the three nations “no longer met the conditions for its designation,” according to DHS. The move was challenged in court, and U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson blocked Noem in December from ending the program for the three countries. Honduras and Nicaragua were granted TPS in 1999 after Hurricane Mitch, and Nepal received the immigration protection in 2015 following a large earthquake. The Biden administration cited “numerous environmental, political, and social crises” in Honduras when it extended TPS for the country in 2023. In its TPS extension for Nepal that year, it cited “internal displacement, problems with reconstruction fund distribution, and ongoing environmental disasters” that had persisted since a devastating 2015 earthquake. The Ninth Circuit Court explains in its order that it determines whether to grant a stay pending appeal if the party asking for a stay has shown a strong likelihood “to succeed on the merits” of the appeal. The government, in this case, “is likely to succeed on the merits of its appeal,” the court document reads. The schedule for further proceedings will be determined in the coming days. The post Secretary Noem Celebrates ‘Win’ After Court Backs End to TPS for 3 Countries   appeared first on The Daily Signal.

WY Withdrawing Approvals for Two Wind Projects

Everything we know about these famous war animals has come from textual sources, so this is a significant new find.

They predate the previous record-holder by 9,000 years.

Turns out even a broken clock can get it right twice a day. The New York Times just plastered their front-page with an exposé connecting the sadistic Jeffrey Epstein empire with the politically radioactive Clintons. Following the release of long-awaited files pertaining to the Epstein case by the Department of Justice, Times investigative reporter Danny Hakim took a detour away from his employer’s never-ending Trump bashing to draft a February 8 story that’s sure to make liberal heads spin: “Epstein Files Reveal Scope of Ghislaine Maxwell’s Role in Clinton Circle.” What made this even more impression was it is something none of the CBS or NBC flagship morning or evening newscasts have been able to do. ABC has mustered only one mention thanks to Capitol Hill correspondent Jay O'Brien on Monday's Good Morning America. The story, which appeared on the front-page of Monday's print edition, exposed how the files revealed that Ghislaine Maxwell — longtime Epstein companion and convicted madam of his sex ring — “played a substantial role in supporting the creation of the Clinton Global Initiative, one of President Bill Clinton’s signature post-White House endeavors.” That certainly puts a new spin on the CGI’s notoriety as being part of a “charity fraud.” In fact, The New Yorker contributing writer Adam Davidson revealed in an August 2016 Slate podcast that “There is a really creepy vibe, to me, personally, at the Clinton Global Initiative.” “It seems to me that it is all about buying access. It is incredibly expensive just to go to the thing,” Davidson said, “and there are sort-of these explicit ways in which you get access. You pay more money to get more access to political leaders and to really rich people and big corporate leaders.” Looks like Davidson was really on to something all those years ago. Hakim documented the extent to which Maxwell was involved with the whole Clinton scheme: Ms. Maxwell took part in budget discussions related to the first Clinton Global Initiative conference; talked through challenges about it with both Clinton aides and Publicis Groupe, the company that produced the inaugural event; and arranged to wire $1 million to pay Publicis for its work on ‘the Clinton project,’ according to emails in the massive cache of documents collected as part of the government’s investigations of Mr. Epstein. The source of the money is unclear, including whether Mr. Epstein provided the funds. However, the emails show that he was aware of the payment. In fact, Epstein reportedly wrote Maxwell: “‘Ask him to tell you why [$1] million now and where will it be going.’”  The emails in Hakim’s estimation provided corroborating evidence of Maxwell’s claims last year that “she played a key role in helping set up the global conference.” On the whole, the new documents “provide texture about the connections between the Clinton and Epstein circles, which have long generated a swirl of conspiracy theories and unverified allegations.”  One thing’s for sure: ABC This Week anchor George Stephanopoulos must really be kicking himself over that $75,000 in donations he doled out to the Clinton Foundation years ago now. 

Roughly six weeks past the deadline to publish all of its files on child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the Justice Department released over 3 million additional pages in response to the Epstein Files Transparency Act.While the documents provide new insights into Epstein, his degeneracy, and his international network of affluent allies, they are rife with redactions. Lawmakers have, however, been afforded the opportunity to review the unredacted files in person at the DOJ after giving 24 hours' notice.Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who with Democrat Rep. Ro Khanna (Calif.) rushed to inspect the files at the first available opportunity in hopes of identifying "the men who Jeffrey Epstein trafficked women to," revealed on Monday that he came across "the names of at least six men that have been redacted that are likely incriminated by their inclusion in these files."'Give the DOJ a chance to say they made a mistake and over-redacted.'While Massie indicated that it was prudent to identify the men from the House floor or in a committee hearing — where he would be protected from civil lawsuits over perceived defamation or libel — he told reporters that "at least one is a U.S. citizen, at least one is a foreigner, and the other three or four have names I'm not sure if they're foreign or U.S.""One is pretty high up in a foreign government," added Massie.Khanna, addressing reporters jointly with the Kentucky Republican, chimed in to note that "one of the others is a pretty prominent individual." The Democrat suggested there may be more questionably redacted names, stressing they had only scratched the surface with their two-hour review.RELATED: 'Game's up, mate': Starmer refuses to resign over appointment of disgraced Epstein ally as US ambassador Photo by Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images The Kentucky Republican noted, "I would like to give the DOJ a chance to say they made a mistake and over-redacted and let them unredact those men's names."'It wasn't unredacted until tonight.'The DOJ seized upon the opportunity to make some adjustments.Massie noted later on Monday that the DOJ had unredacted both "an FBI file that LABELS two individuals as co-conspirators" and "a file that lists several men who might be implicated."Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche confirmed that the DOJ unredacted former Victoria's Secret CEO Lex Wexner's name from a 2019 FBI document identifying him as a possible co-conspirator in Epstein's sex-trafficking case. He noted that Wexner's name appears "thousands of times" elsewhere in the Epstein files and stated, "DOJ is hiding nothing.""This is significant because Kash Patel testified to Congress that FBI had no evidence of other sex traffickers," Massie said in response. "This is FBI’s own 2019 document listing Wexner as coconspirator in child sex trafficking. It wasn't unredacted until tonight."The DOJ standards recommend against identifying unindicted co-conspirators unless they have been charged with the same conspiracy by way of unsealed criminal complaint or information. The document Massie referred to alleges that Wexner was a co-conspirator of Epstein.Wexner stated in July 2019 that he had long since severed any connection with Epstein and "would not have continued to work with any individual capable of such egregious, sickening behavior as has been reported about him.""When Mr. Epstein was my personal money manager, he was involved in many aspects of my financial life. But let me assure you that I was NEVER aware of the illegal activity charged in the indictment," added Wexner. Department of JusticeBlaze News has reached out to the Wexner Foundation for comment.'They're trafficking girls all across the world.'The Epstein Files Transparency Act permits the DOJ to redact portions of records that:"contain personally identifiable information of victims or victims’ personal and medical files and similar files the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy"; depict child pornography; "would jeopardize an active federal investigation or ongoing prosecution, provided that such withholding is narrowly tailored and temporary";"depict or contain images of death, physical abuse, or injury of any person"; or"contain information specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive order to be kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy and are in fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive order."Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a Florida Democrat who also reviewed the documents on Monday, concluded that there are "lots of co-conspirators," reported CNN."I mean, it's disgusting," said Moskowitz. "There are lots of names, lots of co-conspirators, and they're trafficking girls all across the world."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

A video of Democratic Texas state Rep. Gene Wu has resurfaced on the internet this week in what one large social media account called a "mask off" moment for the lawmaker.In a December 31, 2024, episode of "Define American with Jose Antonio Vargas," Wu, an immigrant who was born in China, openly urged minority racial groups to unite against their "same oppressor."'Because we are the majority in this country now.'In the video, entitled "In This Texas District, 1/3 of Residents Are Undocumented," Wu was asked about different racial groups' relationship to each other and particularly the relationship between Asians and Latinos."It's not just Latinos. It's not just Asians. It's not just African-Americans. It's everybody. Right? We, our country and the forces that be, the powers that be, have spent tremendous time, effort, and money to make sure that those groups are never united, that they always see each other as enemies, as competitors, without ever realizing that they share one thing in common: that their oppressors all are the same," Wu responded."The oppression comes from one place," he quickly added.RELATED: Exclusive: GOP lawmaker wants Congress to take — and pass — a basic civics exam Without explicitly saying who these "oppressors" are, Wu made it easy to read between the lines: "I always tell people the day the Latino, African-American, Asian, and other communities realize that they share the same oppressor is the day we start winning. Because we are the majority in this country now. We have the ability to take over this country and to do what is needed for everyone and to make things fair.""Shame on him," Elon Musk said in response to the clip of Wu, who was first elected to Texas House District 137 near Houston in 2012.The Daily Wire's Matt Walsh pointed out the rhetorical double standard between Republicans and Democrats, referencing a more recent controversy in which President Trump shared a meme some decried as racist: "So I’m supposed to be outrage[d] about an Obama monkey meme while Democrat elected officials are labeling the entire white race 'oppressors' and openly plotting to conquer and subjugate us? Trump can post all the memes he wants. I really don’t care at all."The resurfaced video has since garnered nearly 14 million views on X.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Former St. Cloud City Councilman Jeff Johnson, a Republican candidate for governor in Minnesota, suspended his campaign on Monday after his 22-year-old daughter was savagely stabbed to death.The Republican Party of Minnesota confirmed Johnson was dropping out and stressed that the group is "heartbroken by the tragic loss of Dr. Jeff Johnson's daughter, who was killed in a violent crime Saturday night in St. Cloud.""There are no words that can adequately express the sorrow we feel for Jeff and his family," continued the Minnesota GOP. "The loss of a child is unimaginable, and our thoughts and prayers are with them as they grieve this devastating tragedy."The City of St. Cloud Police Department indicated that officers responded on Saturday evening to a report of a medical emergency at the apartment of Johnson's daughter, Hallie Marie Tobler, where they found her dead with multiple stab wounds. 'Join us in lifting up the Johnson family.'Dylan Tobler, her 23-year-old husband, was also found at the scene with life-threatening injuries that police believe to have been self-inflicted. Although initially taken to St. Cloud Hospital for treatment, police indicated Dylan Tobler — who is now in stable condition — will later be transported to the Stearns County Jail, "where he will be held for court on charges related to the homicide."RELATED: Thug who grinned in arrest photo after boy was murdered just got his sentence — and it should wipe smile right off his face Stephen M. Katz/South Florida Sun-Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty ImagesLast month, Dylan Tobler pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in connection to a June 2025 incident in which he choked his wife, reported the Duluth News Tribune.By Tuesday, Johnson's campaign page had been stripped down to its header. The former councilman, who served for two terms in the 2010s, announced his candidacy for governor in March 2025, vowing to tackle Minnesota's fraud and crime problems, keep businesses from fleeing the Gopher State, work with federal agencies to combat illegal immigration, and stand up to radicalism from the left. "Quite frankly, Minnesota has been operating in full crisis mode under Gov. Tim Walz for years," Johnson said at the time in an interview with the St. Cloud Times.The Minnesota GOP asked for residents of the state "to join us in lifting up the Johnson family during this incredibly painful time."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Now It’s a Pattern: Another Dem Shares Fake AI Image of Alex Pretti Shooting During Committee Hearing