Alex Mell-Taylor
Bio
I write long-form pieces on timely themes inside entertainment, pop culture, video games, gender, sexuality, race and politics. My writing currently reaches a growing audience of over 10,000 people every month across various publications.
Stories (87/0)
The Lean-in Feminism of 'She-Hulk: Attorney At Law'
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law was meant to be a meta-textual, feminist deconstruction of the MCU, and in some ways, it succeeds with this goal. Whether it's referencing Roxane Gay's Bad Feminist or jokes about women in the workplace, there are plenty of progressive nuggets for viewers to mine.
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in Geeks
A Brief Primer On What "Wage Slavery" Means
The concept of work has been challenged since its inception. For Aristotle, the end goal for humans was supposed to be leisure. This is a sentiment that has continued to the modern day. Contemporary philosopher John Danaher wrote: "Work, suitably-defined, is a bad thing and we should try to create a society in which it is no longer necessary." A statement that somewhat controversially opposes the well-ingrained idea that work gives us meaning.
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in The Swamp
How One Minecraft Video Proves The Futility of Increasing Police Budgets
Policing is a contentious issue in the US. As crime increases (though it is still far lower than our country's high in the 90s), a lot of politicians are saying that we need to increase police budgets so we can hire more officers. 46th President of the US, Joe Biden, has made repeated requests for increased police budgets, and the same proposals have been made by mayors and governors across the country.
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in Geeks
Forget Collapse: Things May Be Like This Until You Die
There has been a lot of talk of collapse recently. A study out of Harvard asserts that civilization might collapse if we do not make substantial changes. The Doomsday Clock has been moved to 100 seconds till midnight. It would surprise few to wake up one day and receive an alert on our phones telling us that a missile was launching, another plague had started, or that food reserves could no longer support our current population.
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in Earth
Westworld and the Limits of White Imagination
Thomas Jefferson described the relationship with the men and women he enslaved as holding "a wolf by the ear, and we can neither hold him nor safely let him go." While he allegedly favored "gradual emancipation," he feared that sudden liberation would result in a race war. We will discuss this fear in greater detail later, but keep it in the back of your mind as we examine the sci-fi hit Westworld and how it relates to revolution and imagination.
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in Geeks
The Website That Makes Climate Denial Easy — (ft. Climateaction.org)
Why hello there, traveler, and welcome to the "Apocalypse Tour!" This is the extraterrestrial walking (or hovering) tour where we observe all the locations that led to species 947's demise — 947 was also known as humanity [hyoo·ma·nuh·tee]. This tour covers the locations that contributed to humanity's untimely end on a tiny planet called Earth in the year 90,423 XE (what humans may know as 2XXX AD).
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in Earth
The Stormcloaks From Skyrim Have Always Been The Wrong Faction To Choose
The fantasy, open-world game Skyrim was first released over twenty years ago and remains a popular game. The mod community continues on stronger than ever, with fun mods still coming out regularly. If you want a fun hack and slash to get lost in with a sublime score, then the land of Skyrim may be for you.
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in Gamers
- Top Story - August 2022
Programmers Aren't WizardsTop Story - August 2022
“The amazing thing about software creation is that… it's this magical thing. You’re dealing with this arcane stuff.…manipulating symbols on this magical device that you are entering keys into and getting this mechanical thing to do magic for you, oftentimes across the planet….and not only are you using it to be powerful and exert some power over the world, but you're using it to craft superpowers for other people too. You’re creating something that other people can then use to acquire some valuable capacity.”
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in 01
'Stray' Proves Games Can Be As Dark As They Want To Be As Long As They Are Also Cute
BlueTwelve Studio's Stray is a charming game about a cat navigating a mysterious walled city. You play as an orange feline, effortlessly parkouring on top of railings, old air conditioning units, and signs. You can sleep in the laps of workers and musicians and headbutt cute robot denizens. There's a lot to like in this game, and I highly recommend you play through it yourself because it was a treat.
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in Geeks
Everything Is Falling Apart & I Can't Stop Watching Video Game Fails
Things are pretty bad right now. Fascism has been shockingly on the rise for years. Homophobic and transphobic laws are making the rounds in the US and the UK. Roe v. Wade was overturned in the US. And on top of all this, wealth inequality has metastasized, and the climate has deteriorated due to human activity.
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in Geeks
- Top Story - August 2022
Why Do We Always Cancel The Wrong People?Top Story - August 2022
I have a lot of regrets in my life. I am a former alcoholic who lived with many undiagnosed issues for the first thirty years of my life. I never did anything truly abhorrent, but there were plenty of friends and partners I treated like absolute shit.
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in The Swamp
Why Aren't You Watching The Queer Show 'Dead End: Paranormal Park'?
Dead End: Paranormal Park is a young adult supernatural thriller based on the comic DeadEndia by Hamish Steele. It's about a neurodiverse Pakistani woman named Norma Khan (Kody Kavitha) and a trans man named Barney Guttman (Zach Barack) having adventures in the demonic-infested theme park, Phoenix Parks — a cross between Disneyworld and Dollywood. Norma and Barney battle demons, perform exorcisms, and along the way, become more confident versions of themselves — a staple of Young Adult (YA) media.
By Alex Mell-Taylor2 years ago in Geeks