Nathan Rabin

In 2007, Nathan Rabin set out to provide a revisionist look at the history of cinematic failure on a weekly basis. What began as a solitary ramble through the nooks and crannies of pop culture evolved into a way of life. My Year Of Flops collects dozens of the best-loved entries from the A.V. Club column along with bonus interviews and fifteen brand-new entries covering everything from notorious flops like The Cable Guy and Last Action Hero to bizarre obscurities like Glory Road, Johnny Cash’s poignantly homemade tribute to Jesus. Driven by a unique combination of sympathy and Schadenfreude, My Year Of Flops is an unforgettable tribute to cinematic losers, beautiful and otherwise.

The A.V. Club Presents One Man's Journey Deep into the Heart of Cinematic Failure

My Year of Flops

A writer's journey with the fan bases of Phish and Insane Clown Posse describes his unexpected discovery of how both groups have tapped the human need for community, a finding that coincided with his diagnosis of bipolar disorder.

Phish, Insane Clown Posse, and My Misadventures with Two of Music's Most Maligned Tribes

You Don't Know Me But You Don't Like Me

A writer at The Onion A. V. Club assesses pop culture as experienced during his life, from a childhood marked by a mental hospital and foster home, to his adult efforts to reconnect with the family that abandoned him, to his pursuit of a career in entertainment journalism.

A Memoir Brought to You by Pop Culture

The Big Rewind

Al Yankovic

DIVThe undisputed king of pop-culture parody, “Weird Al” Yankovic has sold more comedy recordings than any other artist in history, receiving three Grammy Awards (and 14 nominations) in the process. The man behind classics such as “Eat It,” “Amish Paradise,” and “White & Nerdy” performed in more than 100 cities throughout North America, Europe, and Australia in support of his latest (and, to date, highest-charting) album, Alpocalypse. At last the time has come for a comprehensive illustrated tribute to this icon of the American humor landscape. Covering more than three decades of hilarious songs, videos, concert performances, and his life story in words and pictures, and featuring an introduction, lists, tweets, and photo captions from Yankovic himself, Weird Al: The Book is the ultimate companion piece to an extraordinary career. Praise for Weird Al: The Book: “Part biography and part pop culture museum, Weird Al: The Book is a treat.… A gorgeous look at Yankovic’s life.” —Huffington Post /div

The Book

Weird Al

Ridiculously Self-Indulgent, Ill-Advised Vanity Edition

The Weird Accordion to Al

Brock Wilbur

In 1997, game studio Running With Scissors released its debut title, Postal, an isometric shooter aimed at shocking an imagined pearl-clutching public. The game was crass, gory, and dumb—all of which might have been forgivable if the game had been any fun to play. Postal gained enough notoriety from riding the wave of public outrage to warrant a sequel. And DLC. And a remake. And, perhaps most surprising of all, a Golden-Raspberry-winning feature film adaptation directed by the infamous Uwe Boll. In this thoughtful and hilarious tag-team performance, Brock Wilbur & Nathan Rabin probe the fascinatingly troubled game and film for what each can tell us about shock culture & mass shootings, interviewing the RWS team and even Boll himself for answers. Like it or not, Postal is the franchise that won't die—no matter how many molotov cocktails you throw at it.

Nathan Rabin

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