1. I don't know who "we" is when you say "we think the parody's a bit mean-spirited," but my part of "we" thinks it's pretty damn funny, and that when parody is pretty damn funny it doesn't matter if it's mean-spirited.

Posted at 2:30AM on Apr 6th 2008 by Eric D. Snider

2. I didn't say it wasn't funny, so "we" seem to be in agreement.

But "doesn't matter" is kind of a loaded term. Doesn't matter how? If you mean "doesn't make it less funny," then I agree. If you mean "doesn't measurably increase one's chances of being challenged to a duel," then I beg to differ.

Posted at 10:38AM on Apr 6th 2008 by Eugene Novikov

3. Good point, Eugene. I guess my real point is that I think only the very thin-skinned would find it mean-spirited. :-)

Posted at 2:00PM on Apr 6th 2008 by Eric D. Snider

4. To be fair, we're not the only ones he goes after. Yes, the site looks like Cinematical, but upon further inspection some of those posts mimic other sites. I'll let you all figure out which sites he's spoofing.

Posted at 10:24AM on Apr 6th 2008 by Erik Davis

5. Damn right you should be flattered. Mean spirited?? That you're even remotely upset is ridiculous. Jeez it barely even looks like your site. The Transformers poster joke is brilliant. You should be so funny.

Posted at 7:33PM on Apr 6th 2008 by Dan Katz

6. Hey now, who's upset? I didn't mean the post to come off that way. Like I said, it's pretty funny.

Posted at 7:52PM on Apr 6th 2008 by Eugene Novikov

7. I do not think you are wrong to be a little offended.
It's like when someone is just "joking" in a kind of mean way, you can't help but feel a little sting. There are a lot of sites that really deserve being made fun of, i do not see how this is one of them.

Posted at 8:03PM on Apr 6th 2008 by Lisa

8. i think vern was just using you guys as the template...i've been reading him for awhile and he's not what i'd call "mean-spirited"...he was just taking the piss. but he did nail it.

Posted at 8:20PM on Apr 6th 2008 by Jordan

9. I do love that he used a picture from Thunderbirds as the image for Gandhi. And those fake ads are great. The "scour for nude photos" button made me giggle.

Posted at 9:12PM on Apr 6th 2008 by Peter Hall

10. Hey guys, I'm the same Vern who did that parody. I can't deny some of it being kind of mean, so I appreciate you having a sense of humor about it.

For what it's worth though, my goal was definitely not "to paint Cinematical as so much corporate hackwork." Most of the movie blog related things I made fun of (half-assed top 10 lists, "exclusive" movie posters, anti-"torture porn" hysteria, obsession with box office) are criticisms of modern movie coverage in general. I based the look mostly on Cinematical, but I didn't mean it to all be seen as a swipe at you guys specifically.

So, sorry for any offense, thanks for the link, and viva la Geocities.

Posted at 11:44PM on Apr 6th 2008 by Vern