To keep the RPadTV database nice and tidy, I’ve decided to go through old WordPress user accounts and delete the fake ones. Account spam is an annoying WordPress problem, even for small websites. Over the years, RPadTV has accumulated hundreds of thousands of spam users. Since the site now uses Disqus, 99.9% of the accounts serve no purpose. Still, I wanted to keep some of the originals for nostalgia. For the most part, I kept most of the OG RPadholics in the Great Purge of 2019. A few were hastily deleted (sorry Big Blak and Redtailman!). Check out the screenshot above to remember some old friends and to see how quickly you registered an RPadTV account.
Author: RPadTV
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Green Arrow Oliver Queen: Worst. Boyfriend. Ever.
Two nights ago in the RPadTV Google Hangout, RPadholic Tokz and I were discussing what an amazingly crappy boyfriend Oliver Queen (Green Arrow on The CW’s Arrow) is to his lady friends. If you go through his romantic history, you’ll find a list of women that have ended up dead, crippled, and jailed. On last night’s episode of Arrow, Laurel Lance (Black Canary II) became the latest victim. With her death fresh on comics nerds’ minds, I thought it would be a good time to go down the list of Oliver Queen’s girlfriends in order to illustrate why no woman should date him. It’s just dangerous.
Laurel Lance (Deceased): Arrow introduced Laurel as Ollie’s first love interest on the show…and promptly shows him running away on a boat to have a sexual cruise with her sister. For some reason, she decides to run back into his arms five years later. Once a lawyer with a promising future, Laurel has neglected her legal career to run around Star City as the least capable member of Team Arrow. As of last night’s episode, she’s dead.
Shado (Deceased): While Oliver was still a wuss during his early days on Lian Yu, this strong and capable woman was instrumental in his survival. Oliver returned the favor by electing not to save her life when she was held at gunpoint by the nefarious Dr. Anthony Ivo. Romance is dead…and so is Shado.
Helena Bertinelli (Jailed, Nuts): Oliver was kind enough to take this mentally unbalanced young lady and attempt to turn her into a vigilante. With Green Arrow’s “guidance,” she became the Huntress and went on one hell of a crime spree. She’s guilty of murder, theft, kidnapping, extortion, and more.
McKenna Hall (Crippled): A dashing SCPD detective, Ms. Hall exercised poor judgement in pursuing a relationship with Oliver Queen. In something of a crossover, Hall took and arrow from Arrow’s ex, the Huntress. This left her crippled. A few seasons later, Oliver has access to a cure for paralysis and never mentions helping out Hall. At least he’s consistently inconsiderate.
Isabel Rochev (Deceased): The situation with this woman is all kinds of messed up. Rochev was having an affair with Oliver Queen’s father, Robert. Years later, she returned to Star City as a pawn in an elaborate revenge plot against Oliver. She ends up boning Oliver. Later, powered by Miraclo Mirakuru, she attempts to kill Oliver, but ultimately ends up getting killed herself.
Sara Lance (Deceased, Resurrected, Nuts): Presumed dead throughout Arrow season one, the superior Lance sister returned in season two. After some initial reluctance, she resumed her relationship with her sister’s ex. Hardened by her experiences on Lian Yu and with the League of Assassins, Lance became the kick-ass vigilante known as the Black Canary. Unfortunately, she died…and was resurrected with mystical waters, only to become battier than ever. While she has to live with an insane bloodlust for the rest of her life, Sara made the wise decision to get the f*ck away from Green Arrow…and go time traveling with a group of heroes that pose far less danger than a relationship with Oliver Queen.
Felicity Smoak (Paralyzed, Healed, Emotionally Damaged): After pining for Oliver for three seasons years, Felicity gets her turn on the Arrow express at the end of season three. Their relationship features lots of secrets and lies, peaking with a bombing by a Green Arrow enemy that leaves Felicity paralyzed. Thankfully, she has a genius working for her at Palmer Tech and receives a “Terrific Chip” implant that enables her to walk again. She made the smart decision to walk out on Oliver Queen, figuratively and literally. While she has genius-level intellect, all signs point to her eventually coming back to the Oliver Queen nightmare.
Taiana Venediktov (Most Likely to Die Next): A character from the season four flashbacks to Lian Yu, all signs point to her having a fling with Oliver Queen. This also means that all signs point to her becoming a corpse before the season is over.
Bottom Line: Dating Oliver Queen always ends up in disaster. Certainly his life a Green Arrow has a great deal to do with that, but the guy was dangerous well before he donned the hood. Women should know that dating Oliver Queen means that there’s a great chance that they’ll die earlier than they ought to, a good chance that they’ll end up crippled, and a slight chance of them being jailed. To the fictional ladies of the CW Arrowverse — don’t do it!
Monday Housekeeping: Disqus Returns!
I’ve switched back to the Disqus commenting system. While the WordPress Jetpack commenting system looked promising, it failed on multiple levels. It wouldn’t allow comment nesting and in a few cases it ate your comments. I apologize to any of you that wrote long comments and had them obliterated by WordPress Jetpack. While I have some issues with Disqus, I know that it works and many people love it. So kindly dust off your Disqus accounts and leave a comment below to make sure this thing works with the current RPadTV theme.
A few notes:
- I’m importing newer comments as I type. Hopefully the import will go smoothly and will finish by the end of the day.
- I have disabled Disqus’ cookie tracking, just in case you have any privacy concerns. To double up, I recommend going into your Disqus account to make sure you’re opted out of the company’s additional tracking.
Vaping Diaries #290: Lavish Elixir Eddie Latorre Interview (Vape Nights)
Another new Southern California company in the highly competitive field of vaping e-liquids, Lavish Elixir has launched with a trio of fruit-and-cream juices. At Vape Nights 2014, I caught up with Lavish Elixir owner Eddie Latorre to learn more about the company, the three initial e-liquids, and what’s coming next.
Eddie’s three launch flavors are Jet Setter, Swanky, and Pristine. Jet Setter is a combination of strawberry, mango, guava, and cream. Swanky is a blend of kiwi, watermelon, peach, and cream. Lastly, Pristine is a mix of dragon fruit, guava, papaya, and cream. For fans of layered fruit vapes, the Lavish Elixir launch flavors seem like compelling blends. Eddie seemed particularly proud of Continue reading “Vaping Diaries #290: Lavish Elixir Eddie Latorre Interview (Vape Nights)”
The Vape 48 Week 2: Vape Maps Alex Pessah
Vape Maps co-founder Alex Pessah joins me for the second episode of The Vape 48 on RPadTV. One of the best mobile apps for vapers, Vape Maps has several new features coming. The Android and iOS apps will be getting updated visuals and functionality, and new features are coming to the website too. Alex covers it all in the opening segment.
Moving to the hardware side, Alex brought the fascinating PrimusZ box mod. This Bluetooth-enable box mod allows users to track and share vaping stats, adding a nerdy and social aspect to the hobby. Alex also brought a Continue reading “The Vape 48 Week 2: Vape Maps Alex Pessah”
Vaping Diaries #289: Bizarre Juice Supply Interview
A few weeks ago, I meet Bizarre Juice Supply founders Ally Piddock and Jack Gallagher at The Vape Source’s one-year anniversary party. They’re friends with my excellent pals Ronald and Mel, so I had a feeling they’d be cool. While they’re definitely fun people, what’s more interesting to you guys and gals are the vaping e-liquids they make.
Bizarre Juice Supply e-liquids stand out for several reasons. The most obvious aspect of the company’s goods is the bottles they come in. They’re made from frosted glass and shaped like skulls. That’s frickin’ awesome! More importantly Continue reading “Vaping Diaries #289: Bizarre Juice Supply Interview”
Kanye West Cements His Status As Music’s Biggest Prick
Oops, he did it again. Kanye West just can’t help himself. Unhappy with Beck’s Morning Phase winning “Album of the Year” at the 2015 Grammy Awards over the heavily favored Beyonce self-titled album, West stormed the stage and interrupted the proceedings. The classless move was similar to the time ‘Ye interrupted Taylor Swift winning an MTV Video Music Award over Beyonce. While it was only a brief hop on stage at the Grammys rather than the full-on interruption at the VMAs, West followed up his moronic stunt with some ignorant comments:
If the Grammys want real artists to keep coming back, they need to stop playing with us. We ain’t gonna play with them no more. ‘Flawless,’ Beyoncé video. Beck needs to respect artistry and he should have given his award to Beyoncé, and at this point, we tired of it.
That’s just pathetic. I’m a Beck fan, but not an ardent one. He has written and performed several songs that I enjoy, but he’s also written and performed more songs that I don’t care for. I’m also weirded out that he’s Continue reading “Kanye West Cements His Status As Music’s Biggest Prick”
Vaping Diaries #288: All Good Vape Steven Arthur Interview (Vape Nights)
I first met the All Good Vape crew last year at an LA Vapers Club meet. After a quick taste of the company’s vaping e-liquids, I was smitten by several of its juices. All Good Vape e-liquids are complex and layered, using multiple ingredients to achieve unique flavors. After going back and forth with the owners, I was finally able to nab a video interview with All Good Vape at Vape Nights 2014.
In the clip above, All Good Vape owner Steven Arthur talks about the company’s background. He launched the company with the aid of friends in the bakery and chemistry fields. While several e-liquid companies were formed by people with culinary backgrounds, there aren’t many with people that have chemistry backgrounds. That edge is one of the reasons why All Good Vape e-liquids stand out. Steven also talks about three of the company’s popular flavors — Bewitched, Lucky Rabbits Food, and Tobacco Road — as well as the upcoming Lucky Devil juice.
As a fan of All Good Vape e-liquids, please check out my Vape Nights 2014 interview to learn more about this great company and its unique products. Also, a brief confession — prior to filming this video, I was drinking whiskey on camera with a man that calls himself “Vaping Jesus,” so I had a healthy buzz going on.
Vaping Diaries #287: Arsenal Vape Co Logan Ellis Interview
A couple of weeks ago, I attended Inhale Vape’s grand opening and met Logan Ellis from Arsenal Vape Co. A few of my friends were raving about his e-liquids and I was excited to learn more about the company. Arsenal Vape Co. was started by two Marines that are into vaping. The company strives to make high-quality juices that stand out in a highly competitive market. Naturally, the company name and its juice names reflect the founders’ Marine background. (Thank you for your service!)
Logan was kind enough to drop by Vape Star Los Angeles to tell me about his company and e-liquids. The three Arsenal Vape Co. launch flavors are Malibu Breeze, Tropic Thunder, and Warrior’s Breakfast. Check out the interview above to learn about these three flavors and to hear hints of what’s coming next.
As a bonus, here’s a cute story about Warrior’s Breakfast. Prior to learning about the founders’ military background, Vape Star Minjee totally cracked me up with her comments about this cinnamon/waffle mix. She said, “It tastes like waffles. Warriors don’t eat frickin’ waffles!” During the interview, Logan explained what a “warrior’s breakfast” was in the context of Marine training. So in addition to learning all about Arsenal Vape Co., you’ll be able to dazzle your friends with your knowledge of warrior’s breakfast. Win.
Furious 7 Superbowl Trailer is…Bittersweet
It’s with mixed emotions that I write about the Furious 7 trailer that aired during the Superbowl. As many of you know, I love the Fast & Furious franchise — the movies are an outstanding mix of action, fun, and stupid. You’ll also recall that I’ve always been mesmerized by the late Paul Walker’s acting. He was an amazing source of unintentional entertainment. While I’m thrilled that he’ll be returning to the big screen for one more high-octane adventure, I’m also sad that I won’t be getting more films from one of my favorite crappy actors in movie history.
The Furious 7 Superbowl trailer has me amped for the movie. The action looks bigger and more ridiculous than ever. The situations seem more absurd (love Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson kicking ass with a broken arm). I also love the addition of Nathalie Emmanuel; she’s a gorgeous woman with a hot accent (and yes, I enjoyed seeing her naked in Game of Thrones season 4). Several of my friends are excited about Jason Statham, but that guy kind of bugs me. He’s played the same character for like 20 movies and it looks like he’ll be going to the well one more time in Furious 7. Another possible negative is Iggy Azalea’s cameo. I don’t get her…at all (and she has crappy taste in basketball players). Having said that, there’s just too much big, dumb fun in the trailer and I have no doubt that I’ll be entertained by this big, dumb movie.
When you have a chance, watch the Furious 7 trailer below and share your thoughts on the clip (please!). Also, what’s your take on Jason Statham?