EPISODE · Dec 19, 2017 · 58 MIN
#56: Rocky IV: Ivan Drago, The Russian Boxer
from General Snobbery | Film and Philosophy · host General Snobbery
Rocky Balboa is a guy who is Sylvester Stallone. When we watch Rocky progress over the course of many movies, we watch a man undergoing the effects of increasing steroid use. That all culminates in Creed, where Balboa's head has become the shape of a square.But let's not overlook the skull-shaping effects of fifteen rounds of Ivan Drago punches. Ivan Drago is a man who is Dolph Lundgren, a certified genius, whose first name is short for "Dolphin." Dolph can punch so hard that he is capable of impressing an entire nation of Communists. After that, he punches so hard that he is capable of murdering Carl Weathers. It is very sad when that happens. But it's also triumphant, because Rocky Balboa realizes his skull can take fifteen times as many Drago punches than the skull of Weathers. Thus, America reigns supreme! Join us, listener, for this snob that meanders through the Siberian wilderness (which is actually just Wyoming) and pumps up through many training montages and a deep reading into Rocky IV's enduring allegorical nature. We hope you have fun. If not, well, at least you can climb a snowy mountain and scream, "DRAGO!" at the top of your lungs. This can be very helpful, even in the darkest of times.
What this episode covers
Rocky Balboa is a guy who is Sylvester Stallone. When we watch Rocky progress over the course of many movies, we watch a man undergoing the effects of increasing steroid use. That all culminates in Creed, where Balboa's head has become the shape of a square. But let's not overlook the skull-shaping effects of fifteen rounds of Ivan Drago punches. Ivan Drago is a man who is Dolph Lundgren, a certified genius, whose first name is short for "Dolphin." Dolph can punch so hard that he is capable of impressing an entire nation of Communists. After that, he punches so hard that he is capable of murdering Carl Weathers. It is very sad when that happens. But it's also triumphant, because Rocky Balboa realizes his skull can take fifteen times as many Drago punches than the skull of Weathers. Thus, America reigns supreme! Join us, listener, for this snob that meanders through the Siberian wilderness (which is actually just Wyoming) and pumps up through many training montages and a deep reading into Rocky IV's enduring allegorical nature. We hope you have fun. If not, well, at least you can climb a snowy mountain and scream, "DRAGO!" at the top of your lungs. This can be very helpful, even in the darkest of times.
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#56: Rocky IV: Ivan Drago, The Russian Boxer
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