{"id":1972,"date":"2013-07-09T05:00:52","date_gmt":"2013-07-09T12:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/?p=1972"},"modified":"2013-07-08T23:13:25","modified_gmt":"2013-07-09T06:13:25","slug":"mark-reads-john-dies-at-the-end-chapter-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markreads.net\/reviews\/2013\/07\/mark-reads-john-dies-at-the-end-chapter-6\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Reads ‘John Dies at the End’: Chapter 6"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the sixth chapter of John Dies at the End<\/i>, I definitely think this is the most bewildering thing I’ve ever read. And I really like that word. If you’re intrigued, then it’s time for Mark to read John Dies at the End<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Chapter Six: Meet Dr. Marconi<\/b><\/p>\n

My god, how? How do I talk about this? <\/i>I’m serious! Like, I have a few thoughts about this. Some are positive, some are negative. But this visceral, frightening journey to the Luxor in Vegas is so fucking weird<\/i> that I don’t even know how to discuss it. I just want to react<\/i> to it. And while I think Dr. Marconi does<\/i> provide some insight into what’s happening here, I largely feel pretty much the same as I did when I started this. I don’t know what’s going on<\/i>.<\/p>\n

There’s a humorous aspect to all the violence here because<\/i> it’s so ridiculous and over-the-top, and it helps that John spends an entire sequence in that ballroom spouting the best chair-related puns I’ve ever experienced. Y’all don’t know how much I love puns. You really don’t. Yet I don’t want to ignore how disturbing this is. I will completely understand if this is too much for some of you because at times, it was even too much for me. I’ve been watching horror films since I was a kid, so I admit to being desensitized towards gore and blood. Well, not all<\/i> of it. Lately, violence in films is getting too realistic for my tastes, and it’s hard to detach myself from violence that isn’t stylized, cartoonish, or campy. I especially can’t do torture porn because no<\/i>. It’s the otherworldly element to the violence in John Dies at the End<\/i> that entertains me, though, like this is all a love letter to H.P. Lovecraft and Cronenberg, who I’ve brought up before.<\/p>\n

I also mentioned in a past review that the tone and diction of this book reads decidedly modern. I’m okay with that! I am not<\/i>, however, comfortable with how much this particular chapter seems edgy just for the sake of it. There’s no reason all the slurs that are here need<\/i> to be here. They don’t add to the story. They don’t build character. You know, my policy on slurs here on Mark Reads isn’t even reflective of how I feel about them in a non-Internet setting. I try to have an inclusive community that takes into account the variety of human experience when it comes to marginalization, and my rules are a simplistic way of taking care of that. But slur reclamation is a real thing! I mean, that’s why<\/i> I’ve described myself as queer for the past decade of my life. That word was used to dehumanize and demonize me, and I’ve turned it into something powerful. I don’t spend all day calling my friends out on language because\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 well, first of all, it would be pedantic and near impossible. Plus, the dynamic that I have with one group of friends changes when it’s with a separate one. Sometimes, I’m comfortable enough to address some things. Other times? Not so much.<\/p>\n

BASICALLY THAT WAS A LONG WAY TO EXPLAIN WHAT I MEANT. Let’s talk about some other moments in this super long chapter:<\/p>\n