Boisebration
December 10, 2017 11:27 AM   Subscribe

Jon Bois, author of MeFi-celebrated multimedia narrative 17776 and creator of Breaking Madden, Chart Party, and Pretty Good, has written dozens of pieces (fictional and nonfictional) about class, feminism, aging, sports, politics, wonder, education, and art. Following the jump, a collection of links. (previously)

On feminism and inclusivity:
On death:
On capitalism and class:
17776 influences, references, precursors, and callbacks:

(Some mentioned in our 17776 read-along thread in July.)
On government, and libertarians:
On education and homeschooling:
On boredom, creativity, awe/wonder, and the purpose of games and sports: On his own writing/creative career: More silliness:
posted by brainwane (25 comments total) 127 users marked this as a favorite
 
I've only just started digging into these links, but I'm already having fun. Excellent roundup, brainwane. :)
posted by mordax at 11:44 AM on December 10, 2017


17776 is so good. If you somehow avoided it recommend catching up immediatly. And I say that as someone who is usually sports adverse.
posted by Artw at 11:48 AM on December 10, 2017 [1 favorite]


We ought to call him "Metafilter's Own" even though there's no indication to my knowledge that he even knows this website exists. He's just so good, he should be ours.

ours alone
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 11:52 AM on December 10, 2017 [18 favorites]


When the machine eats you up, as it is built to do, your spirit is all that will save you. Love yourself.

I really love this statement, from the participation trophies piece. I come back to it frequently.
posted by protocoach at 12:11 PM on December 10, 2017 [6 favorites]


I adore Jon Bois, have done at least FPPs from him that spring to mind immediately, probably more, and yet I never knew he wrote for Polygon. Him, Griffin and Justin at the same publication is almost too much for me to take.
posted by Navelgazer at 1:02 PM on December 10, 2017 [2 favorites]


Thanks for this, I like him on Twitter but had no clue about his body of work. Good post dot com!
posted by rhizome at 1:18 PM on December 10, 2017


> Him, Griffin and Justin at the same publication is almost too much for me to take.

For the completionist, Jon and Griffin did a video review of Goofball Goals.
posted by ardgedee at 1:24 PM on December 10, 2017 [4 favorites]


I am so glad y'all like this. And ardgedee, thanks for the link to the video - am about to watch. I am sure I missed awesome stuff he has written/said/made and would welcome further links!
posted by brainwane at 2:44 PM on December 10, 2017 [1 favorite]


I watched the Chart Party about Colin Kaepernick and was soon sucked into 17776, which is probably one of the most astonishing pieces of fiction I've read in recent memory.

I also reluctantly dipped a toe into Breaking Madden, since I don't really know anything about football, and was very pleasantly surprised. That series of articles has given me some of the most genuine and sustained laughter in a while. I can't even tell other people about it without cracking up.

Thanks for the round-up - I know what I'll be reading over the holidays.
posted by invokeuse at 4:33 PM on December 10, 2017 [3 favorites]


The Radio Shack one was brilliant but depressing. Corporate management sucks.
posted by scruss at 4:59 PM on December 10, 2017


Earlier this weekend I fell down a step ladder and bruised my leg and pulled a muscle in my left side somehow while falling on my face because I am awesome. Reading and/or rereading these makes painfully apparent that if given unlimited access to cake I would eat myself to death. Each laugh hurts. Can't stop, shan't stop. Ow.
posted by Perfectibilist at 5:26 PM on December 10, 2017 [2 favorites]


Even more articles can be found on the original Progressive Boink site via the Wayback Machine.
posted by BiggerJ at 5:54 PM on December 10, 2017


Whoops, wrong link - this version's links work.
posted by BiggerJ at 6:25 PM on December 10, 2017


List needs more NBA Y2K:

All Is Lost

Ten Years To Midnight
posted by HillbillyInBC at 6:43 PM on December 10, 2017 [2 favorites]


The only thing better than this post is Mister Jon Bois himself.
posted by wenestvedt at 8:27 PM on December 10, 2017


This piece, also discussed here previously, always makes me cry.
posted by kmz at 10:05 PM on December 10, 2017 [3 favorites]


Oh, man. I thought I was up on my Bois (at least the non-sports, non-video stuff), but I just got to the Radio Shack '02 story about Ham Radio Guy: "A couple weeks later, he walked in and asked to purchase another ham radio, this time with more timidity in his voice. I was required to tell him, 'no.' He gave me this look, as though I was betraying him, which I was. I never saw him again."
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:42 AM on December 11, 2017 [1 favorite]


And that CB radio "Cops and Robbers" game sounds like hella fun; that's the sort of thing that I'd do instead of street racing.
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:43 AM on December 11, 2017


I thought I was the only one who didn't like Destiny.
posted by Rock Steady at 7:49 AM on December 11, 2017


He's (originally) from my hometown (Louisville), and I just want to find out where he hangs, so I can buy him beers.
posted by DigDoug at 8:22 AM on December 11, 2017


Breaking Madden was where I realized Bois was a really funny writer, but NBA Y2k was where I found out he was a brilliant writer.

If he was French he would be lauded as one of the great living exponents of experimental fiction.
posted by ardgedee at 8:45 AM on December 11, 2017 [1 favorite]


This article, from 2004, has the single greatest joke I have ever read online. My wife and I still reference it to this day. Just find the Chone Figgins visual joke. I'll wait...

...

You're welcome.
posted by Groundhog Week at 10:46 AM on December 11, 2017


Hey, while you're all here, does anyone know what happened to Pretty Good episode 4? I love the story of Stanislav Petrov, but Jon's take on it seems have vanished off the face of the planet, or at least off YouTube.

Did... did it turn out to not be Pretty Good after all?
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 1:24 PM on December 11, 2017


I think there were copyright issues with that episode, and Jon was supposed to be making a new version sometime, but who knows.
posted by kmz at 2:00 PM on December 11, 2017 [1 favorite]


Taking a moment to appreciate those of you who flagged this post as fantastic and thus led to my recognition in the December Best Post contest as a runner-up for December 1-10. Thanks -- a bright spot in a kinda tough time.

ardgedee, I watched that Goofball Goals video and laughed incredibly hard -- thank you so much for the link!

One thing that Bois and Julia Evans share is a willingness to engage with the stupendous and the numinous -- she often narrates or illustrates a journey through confusion into wonder, as does he. Their work is like the opposite of Malcolm Gladwell's because of their passionate personal engagement and a sense of visceral curiosity and astonishment. Even Bois's astonishment throughout, and then that silent bit at the end of, "The Dumbest Boy Alive" ties into this for me.
posted by brainwane at 6:06 AM on December 12, 2017 [2 favorites]


« Older Poetry And Music For Christmas   |   Josephine Baker, Hero Newer »


This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments