Question: If Doc Ock were to die, would the arms attached to him also die? Also, if they did, could they be removed from him, and attached to someone else and come back to life?
TedStixon
4th Aug 2019
Spider-Man 2 (2004)
Answer: How the tentacles work in the film differ a bit from the comics, so any answer would be speculation (and not really relevant since any future Doc Ock movie character is going to be a reboot with rules based on the writers' whims). In the film, the tentacles were attached to his nervous system along the spinal cord and he was able to control them mentally (mentally controlled prosthetics are a real thing). In the comics, they were more remote-controlled and his exposure to radiation gave him telepathic control over them and he could control them psionically, even when severed from his body. In the film, the tentacles had been built with more A.I. than in the comics, and the blast from his sun experiment actually caused the tentacles to gain control of Doc Ock because of the A.I. If Doc Ock died, the tentacles could continue to "live" if they had a power source. They could then be attached to someone else in the same manner, i.e. connected to the nervous system. However, whether or not they would be in control of that person or "alive", without going through another similar accident, would be speculation and up to the writer.
29th Jul 2019
Pet Sematary (2019)
Question: What was wrong with Rachel's sister Zelda? In the flashbacks it shows the older sister as having a twisted spine and being in bed. But what was wrong with her? Was she crippled?
Answer: In the original film, she has a condition called "spinal meningitis," which is an infection in the fluids and membranes around the spine and brain. The disease in real life can cause a range of effects including severe joint and back pain, weight loss, light sensitivity and even brain damage. The implication in both films seems to be that we're not really seeing the "real" Zelda, but more of a monstrous version of Zelda based on Rachel's memory as a child.
20th Jul 2019
The Lion King (1994)
Question: Something I've wondered for a long time, and it might have been hinted at or addressed in one of these movies at some point but I've not actually seen them in a few years. After Simba runs away as a cub, and then is found a long time later as an adult by Nala, how much time had passed? How long was he living on his own with Timon and Pumbaa?
Answer: Applying real-world logic... when he leaves, he's likely a bit less than six months old based on his size and development. And when he returns, his development seems to line-up with about a 3-4 year-old lion. So he was probably gone somewhere in the range of 3 years. Maybe 4 if you really stretched it.
Question: How did Shredder escape the back of a garbage truck after it was turned on by Casey Jones?
Answer: He didn't escape. He just managed to survive somehow. Hence, we see him escaping at the dump after the truck drops off the garbage.
Then how exactly was he not crushed while inside a garbage truck?
People have survived (badly injured) in real life. Being crushed in a garbage truck is very dangerous but can be survivable depending on how much and what sort of garbage is in there, when the victim gets rescued and what medical care they get afterward. Also Shredder is a movie supervillain in armour so he is stronger and better protected than the average person.
14th Jul 2019
Tremors (1990)
Question: When Val and Earl first come into Perfection the sign says population 14. If you add up all the characters in the movie excluding Rhonda, there's 14 people. The question is who is taking care of Melvin?
Answer: According to one of the writers, his parents were both immature ne'er-do-wells who would often abandon him for long stretches of time. So he's pretty much on his own. Hence, his parents are not counted on the population sign, since they're barely there for him. It's also mentioned in the original script (which can be found online) that they spend a lot of their time in Las Vegas, presumably gambling. (Val says the line "Why don't his parents ever take him to Vegas with them?" in regards to Melvin in scene 13).
Answer: His Uncle Nestor.
To my knowledge, nothing in the film indicates Nestor is related to Melvin.
When Nester dies, Melvin lets the audience know that was his dad.
Um... no. No he doesn't. All he does when Nester dies is shout "No way, man! You guys have gotta do something!" to Val and Earl. He definitely never says Nester was his dad. As I said above, the writers have specifically said his parents were immature ne'er-do-wells who just aren't around most of the time. In fact, it's even mentioned in the original script that his parents were often away in Las Vegas rather than taking care of him.
11th Jul 2019
Bride of Chucky (1998)
24th Jun 2019
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
Question: How come Miles could venom strike and turn invisible on command just because of what Jeff said?
Answer: Miles was touched by what Jeff said, and it inspired him to finally find the focus needed to control his powers.
12th May 2011
Silent Hill (2006)
Question: Anyone have any idea why Rose decided to try and outrun the police officer? It didn't appear Rose did anything illegal, so it seems she could have just waited to see why she was pulled over and then continue on her way.
Answer: It's illegal to enter Silent Hill and Rose knew the officer would try to stop her.
Why is it illegal to enter Silent Hill?
The air is toxic from the coal fires. Too much of a potential for people to get hurt or die by going in for too long.
20th May 2019
Jigsaw (2017)
Question: Why did Anna get so mad over Ryan killing Carly? If it were not for him, all of them would have died. All of them were almost dying when Ryan injected Carly. But after they were all release from the chains, Anna got so angry with Ryan and attacked him and said to him "Fucking asshole." It turns out that she killed her baby just because her baby didn't stop crying in the past. So she is not the type of the person who cares about people's lives very much.
Answer: She's just trying to maintain a moral high-ground over Ryan. Plenty of people do that all the time, especially in stressful situations.
20th May 2019
Jigsaw (2017)
Question: Why was Edgar asking for Halloran on the roof? Was that his game where he had to kill Halloran or trigger the remote?
Answer: Spoilers: As revealed at the end, Halloran is a crooked cop who has a past connection to Edgar. Edgar therefore wanted him there, since he presumably assumed Halloran could help him out of this jam. It's also possible that Edgar's tape instructed him to find Halloran, but we can't know this for certain, since it wasn't on-screen.
25th May 2019
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Question: What was Steve referring to when he said he'd seen Natasha flirt up close?
Answer: He was implying she had flirted with him at some point.
Not just an implication. We see this explicitly in The Winter Soldier.
What was it?
Natasha is constantly flirting with Steve throughout the movie.
21st Jan 2018
Before I Wake (2016)
Question: While there were various characters being held in a sort of "suspended animation" entwined in the "canker man's" roots/webs, only one was set free (the foster care agent), why? (01:20:35 - 01:24:25)
Answer: We only see her released, but the implication is that the others were, too.
11th May 2019
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Question: Spoiler! At the end why would Steve Rogers pass his Captain America mantle to Sam Wilson? He doesn't possess any kind of super strength, and his only talents are flying and being a decent fighter.
Answer: This is right out of the comics. When Steve Rogers retires as Captain America in All-New Captain America #1, he passes the mantle to Sam Wilson.
Answer: Steve Rogers didn't have super strength when he was chosen to be Cap. His demeanor, personality, and selflessness earned him the mantle. The abilities came with it.
His character earned him the slot in the super soldier program - his abilities are a direct result of the now-unavailable super soldier serum. Falcon is highly skilled and trained, doesn't mean he can't do a good job as a "new" Captain America with a different skillset, but he won't have the same strength and speed.
Answer: As shown throughout the events of the "Captain America" and "Avengers" sequels, Cap and Sam are very much kindred spirits with a great deal in common. Cap thus saw him as the perfect person to pass the mantle onto.
30th Apr 2015
Serenity (2005)
Question: Does the escape sequence at the start of the film take place before the events of Firefly, or was River captured after Firefly, and the opening sequence is her and Simon being rescued by Serenity?
Chosen answer: It is backstory, before the events of Firefly. So why does the agent only start looking for them after the events of Firefly? Mostly to give the movie a plot for audiences unfamiliar with the show.
Answer: To add to the other answer, the reason the "Operative" has only just started looking for River is answered in a comic book that was released entitled "Serenity: Those Left Behind." (The comics are all supervised by Joss Whedon, and are officially considered canonical.) In the comic, which takes place between the series and film, the "Blue Hands" from the show make their move and try to capture River, but are thwarted and killed. That's when the Alliance sends in the (much more dangerous) Operative, leading to the events of the film.
4th May 2019
Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)
Question: In the beginning of the movie Alice says the virus didn't just affect humans, that eventually the rivers dried up. Why would the rivers dry up? The virus doesn't affect the weather.
Answer: The implication is that the virus has began to effect the environment as well. (Presumably by adapting and mutating).
15th Apr 2019
Bumblebee (2018)
Question: Why didn't Frank Welker reprise his role as the voice of Soundwave for this film?
Answer: I couldn't find any other information, but honestly... Soundwave is barely in the movie. Probably just wasn't worth it for the production to pay Welker to come in just to record a few throwaway lines.
I considered that possibility as well, but since Peter Cullen reprised his role as the voice of Optimus Prime yet again for this film despite Prime's minimal involvement, it doesn't quite wash. Also, given Frank Welker's highly prolific voice acting career, it's unlikely he would have declined on the basis of pay or importance of his involvement.
Soundwave was barely in the movie (he's literally only in a few shots) and only had one or two lines. As the other answer suggested, it probably just wasn't worth it for the studio to pay Welker to come in, or they just didn't feel it was necessary given that Soundwave was essentially just a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo. Optimus has a much larger presence, and Peter Cullen's voice is pretty synonymous with the character in the film series. Hence, it was worth it to have him return.
18th Apr 2009
Firefly (2002)
Question: When Shepherd Book gets shot and they take him to an Alliance base at first they do not want to treat him but he tells them to look at his Ident card and suddenly they are rushing to help him. What is so special about his ident card or him?
Chosen answer: Very little of Book's past was revealed in either the series or the follow-up movie. He's been shown to know a surprisingly large amount about the criminal underworld, government covert operations, firearms and so forth, which, combined with his apparent priority status with the Alliance, suggests that he, at some point, held a high rank of some nature within that organisation - one theory is that he knows about the covert Operatives (as seen in Serenity) because he used to be one. Ron Glass, with Joss Whedon's blessing, revealed a few details in 2007, including that Derrial Book is not his real name, but was taken from "somebody he killed", that he has at least one artificial body-part, that he is known for "his greatest failure" and that he apparently found God in a bowl of soup. Further details of any of these remain unrevealed. A comic-book series entitled The Shepherd's Tale, which will deal with his back-story, was announced for release in late 2008 but has, as yet, failed to appear.
Answer: To answer the questions further, here's some details from the book "The Shepherd's Tale," which is the official, canonical comic-book. Shepherd Book was born "Henry Evans." As a youth, he ran away from home to escape his abusive father, and he eventually turned to a life of crime before being recruited by the Independence movement. He eventually agreed to become a spy for the Independents, and had one of his eyeballs removed and replaced with a camera that fed directly back to them. He kills a man named "Derrial Book" and assumed his identity, and over time becomes a mole within the Alliance. Years later, Book is dishonorably discharged after an operation he spearheads results in thousands dying, and he becomes a homeless drunk. He eventually "finds god" while eating a bowl of chicken soup in a shelter. He becomes a Shepherd and several years later, finds his way to Serenity.
18th Jan 2007
Mortal Kombat (1995)
Question: At the end of "Mortal Kombat Conquest," Shoug Tsung and Kitana get killed, but in "Mortal Kombat 1," they are alive, and I was wondering about that.
Answer: Two explinations are possible: 1) Because the show was cancelled, we never got to see a later episode when they were presumably brought back to life; or 2) the show takes place out of continuity with the film series. Both explainations are perfectly valid.
Answer: The unproduced second season was going to show everyone being brought back to life by the elder gods. But the series was cancelled due to higher-than-expected production costs.
23rd Feb 2019
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)
Question: Why did Fridge explode when he got killed by his weakness, cake, but not Martha when she gets killed by her weakness, venom?
Answer: Allergic reaction.
Answer: The simple answer? It was just a funnier visual to see Fridge literally explode from eating cake instead of just dying. It's just a very minor inconsistency in the film for comedic purposes.
23rd Feb 2019
Beetlejuice (1988)
Question: If the Maitlands aren't dead at the end and the Deetzes agreed to share the house, then how did Lydia fly while dancing?
Answer: The Maitlands are still dead. They are still ghosts.
Answer: The Maitlands are definitely still dead. Absolutely nothing in the movie indicates they came back to life. Lydia flying and all the things happening around the house at the end are the Maitland's doing - they're having fun with Lydia using their otherworldly abilities because Lydia's doing good in school.
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Answer: It's hard to say. The film shows Doc Ock dying, and the arms seem to "die" with him. (Notice the lights on them slowly blinking out as he sinks into the water.) But at the same time, we don't know 100% how they work, so there's always a chance if they were removed and attached to someone else, they may come back alive and resume their "mission." Outside of the inhibitor chip, which seemed to have its own power source, the arms themselves didn't seem to "come alive" until the unit attached itself to his spine. So I always assumed they got their power/electricity from a host body. Which would explain why they appeared to "die" when Ock died.
TedStixon