Question: Are lightsabers capable of cutting through any substance, or are there objects in the franchise (even if the examples are no longer canon) that have been specifically mentioned as being resistant?
LorgSkyegon
25th Jan 2020
Star Wars (1977)
Answer: The Force Awakens features stormtroopers using the "Z6 riot control baton", which they use to block the lightsaber when Finn uses it.
Is it the baton itself that is resistant, or the energy surge around it? Because I know Snoke's guards were able to block lightsabers with energized weapons as well.
Yes you see them in Episode III as well when fighting on the bridge of the chancellor's ship. My guess is the energy blocks the lightsaber. It's logical they would come up with some sort of technology to block lightsabers if materials that can block them are that rare.
Answer: There are a handful of items, but I don't believe any have been mentioned or shown in the film series (other than another lightsaber itself). Mandalorian Iron (also known as Beskar) and Phrix are resistant to lightsaber attacks and have been mentioned in the TV show "Star Wars: The Clone Wars", but I don't recall if their resistance is specifically mentioned in the show.
11th Nov 2019
The Greatest Showman (2017)
Question: When Philip was in the hospital there is a man in a black suit in the background who appears to be coming to see him but then did not approach them. Who was that supposed to be?
Answer: It appears to be an accordion folder rather than a clipboard. My guess would be that it's someone Philip used to take care of his financial situation.
8th Jan 2020
House, M.D. (2004)
Question: Why did Nate beat his chess opponent after winning? I know it's revealed that he's simply a jerk, but that's not the behaviour of a jerk, it's the behaviour of a psycho, and it seems like it wasn't addressed.
Answer: The hemachromatosis the patient suffered from can cause rage attacks due to hormone imbalances.
30th Dec 2019
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001)
Question: If Harry's relatives hate him, then why are they against him going to Hogwarts to study magic? Why wouldn't they be excited to be rid of him most of the time?
Answer: Because they know of his wizard heritage and they hate it. They think he and his parents were freaks.
Good answer, but I'd add they also knew it was something Harry would very much want, and they would always deny him simply to be as mean-spirited as possible.
Not to mention one of Vernon and Petunia's overriding motivations is to appear normal to their neighbors, and the more magic Harry knows, the less likely they are to achieve that. It could presumably also be dangerous for them, as future books/movies confirm.
1. They were constantly being barraged with letters from Hogwarts in an increasingly disruptive manner. Eventually, this would be noticed as something weird by their neighbors, which is something they REALLY don't want: anyone to know about Petunia's magical relations. 2. They were flat out threatened by Hagrid and terrified on both him and Dumbledore Better to let him go there then have to spend their entire lives on the run without it even working.
They were against it long before the barrage of letters or Hagrid showing up. They knew about the school, Petunia's sister went there and she told Vernon. They don't want to seem weird to the neighbors in general, they aren't afraid people around them will think they have a wizard in their family because nobody believes in wizards.
24th Jan 2008
The Karate Kid III (1989)
Question: On IMDB, the bio for actor Sean Kanan who played Mike Barnes, stated that he almost died during filming of this movie. However the trivia section states nothing about it. Does anybody out there know what happened that caused him to almost die?
Chosen answer: Kanan performed his own stunts, and during one of these he was injured with an internal bleeding, which was not discovered until later. When he took aspirin for the pain, combined with his injuries he went into hypovolemic shock and had to be rushed to the hospital.
It was the scene where Mr. Miyagi threw him through the doors of the new Cobra Kai dojo. They did a large number of takes, and it tore his abdominal wall.
20th Nov 2019
Twilight (2008)
Question: How come the vampires don't die during the day and are awake? How can the werewolves transform at will instead of by a full moon?
Answer: Because they are fictional characters, and Stephanie Meyer made up new rules for them to suit her narrative.
She should've still respected the lore as most do. This series is her as Bella and the two guys are based on guys she lusted for in high school who ignored her. Read between the lines people.
Answer: The moon has no effect on the Quileutes because they are not werewolves. In the books, they are shape-shifters that can change at will. Rather than being created by a werewolf's bite, some Quileutes are born with a gene that becomes active and transforms them into wolves when vampires are near. They cannot turn other people into wolves. The movie series glossed over this fact, apparently to avoid confusion about the differences. Even though they are called "werewolves" in the movies, that is not what they are.
In addition, actual werewolves do exist in the Twilight universe. They are called "Children of the Moon." They follow most of the standard werewolf myths: changing only during the night of a full moon, feral behavior, infecting others by biting them, etc... They are also immune to vampire venom. The Volturi hunted them nearly to extinction after one nearly killed Caius.
Answer: It seems like you already decided your own answer, but like a lot of mythology and lore, hundreds of variations occur. Most often werewolves can change at will once they've gone through their first transformation. In a lot of lore, the full moon only forces them to change, even if it's against their will. It does not mean it's the only way to change. Meyer did add a twist to vampires in the sun, but in many stories, sunlight is not fatal, they can be safe in the shadows, or the sunlight only weakens, not kills, them, and/or they are strengthened by the moonlight (which is why they came out at night).
Didn't decide, only observed what I'd seen with the like of Chaney's Wolfman and Lugosi's Dracula, that's all.
The horror movies of that era, like Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolfman, etc. freely adapted their own interpretation of traditional folklore.
24th Nov 2019
Star Wars (1977)
Question: Has there ever been any sort of canonical discussion about the morality of droid treatment in any Star Wars titles? They're intelligent/sentient, are treated well by most people, even like friends/pets by some. And yet they also seem to casually get their minds wiped, or if they're destroyed many people shrug rather than mourn. Tools to some, valued comrades to others, it's just a bit all over the place. Idle thought really.
Answer: Lucas has gone on record as to the treatment of droids in Star Wars being a thought-provoking allegory for the way people treat minorities. I've never heard him specifically talk about how it's almost never commented-upon in-universe, but intentionally or not, I'm of the opinion that it's more compelling this way. Why doesn't anybody do anything about the way droids are treated? Well, go around asking people why they don't do anything about the way other people are treated and you'll quickly find out.
Answer: Not in the films, but several of the books removed from canon by Disney mentioned a "droids' rights movement" that decried memory wipes and other dismissals of sentience. https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Droid_rights_ (movement).
Solo, which is canon, features a subplot about droid's rights. So not everything has been scrubbed regarding this topic.
Chosen answer: Nobody in the Star Wars universe, except on rare occasions, has shown sympathy towards a droid or any AI. Even though these robots learn, they don't really evolve beyond their programming so they aren't considered "alive" (unlike in other fiction like Wall-E), not even by the most sentimental of people. Organic beings develop attachments to droids, but mostly towards their usefulness, not because they like their personality, not even Luke Skywalker towards R2 or Poe towards BB-8. If they are destroyed, too bad. Memory wiping doesn't remove the droid's original programming either, and their way of talking and manners stay.
In Episode 2, Obi-Wan makes the offhanded comment "Well, if droids could think there'd be none of us here", implying that droids do not actually possess artificial intelligence. R2-D2 seems to be a particularly unusual droid in that he is uncommonly resilient and steadfast, which makes his allies quite fond of him. Poe and BB-8 appear to have a bond that goes beyond simply being attached to the droid's usefulness, but like you say that appears to be a unique case.
Just because he said that doesn't mean they didn't have AI. They think for themselves, so they have AI. Just not as advanced as in other fiction.
The point is raised again later in the film when the cloners state that unlike droids, clones can think for themselves.
21st Nov 2019
Pokemon (1998)
Question: Why hasn't Ash's pikachu evolved into raichu?
Answer: I don't think so. Pikachu needs a thunderstone to evolve and I think in that episode Pikachu said it was happy the way it was.
Answer: He refused to! He is also not the only Pokemon in the series to have done that, the first time in episode 14 fighting a Raichu, and then other times in the series (episode 540 comes to mind). Pokemon have their own free will (for being a bunch of critters locked in tiny balls...) and some are so happy with themselves that they prefer not to turn into their evolved version. Which usually is way less cute, incidentally.
Unlike most Pokemon which evolve as they gain levels, Pikachu can't evolve into Raichu unless it uses a Thunder Stone. In Indigo League episode "Electric Shock Showdown", Pikachu explicitly refuses to evolve, wanting to win its rematch with Lt. Surge's Raichu itself. Pikachu again refused to evolve in the Diamond and Pearl episode "Pika and Goliath!", simply resolving to train harder.
What I heard is that pikachu is the mascot of the franchise, and evolving it into raichu the anime would enrage a lot of pokemon fans.
Even if Pikachu had evolved into raichu, wouldn't there be a risk that it would decrease the number of the show's viewers?
21st Nov 2019
Home Alone 3 (1997)
Question: If they're spies then why are the four shown being booked in regular jail? Why aren't they in a federal prison?
Answer: Because it's just a movie, it's a comedy, and the filmmakers are not concerned with exact, realistic details. They expect the audience to just enjoy the silliness and not be overly concerned about reality. The two other Home Alone films employed similar "suspension of disbelief" in the plots.
Exactly like what happened to the guy that gave them the chip. Wouldn't he be arrested too, but we don't hear anything about what happened to him. I'm assuming since he had a plan to catch he was going somewhere he can't be extradited.
The guy who hired Beaupre and his team was in China the whole time, so he couldn't be extradited to America since China has no extradition treaty with America.
Answer: There are two possible explanations: 1) Because there is far less space available in federal prisons, compared to state and local facilities, federal prisoners and arrestees are often kept in local facilities. 2) Because the federal charges or providing support for terrorism and industrial espionage are harder to prove compared to the state-level charges of breaking and entering, assault and battery, and attempted murder.
It's doubtful the writers had all that in mind when writing a comedy holiday script. The plot simply calls for the spies to be caught and thrown into jail at the end of the story. There is also a difference between prison and jail. Prison is for those convicted of a crime. Jail is a temporary holding place after an arrest is made. With police being involved in the arrest, the spies would initially be booked and held in the local jail. The spies would later be transferred to federal custody to await trial.
6th Oct 2019
Superman II (1980)
Question: Why does Non never speak?
Answer: Jor-El calls him a "mindless aberration" and "without thought or voice." So it's either some sort of mental or physical defect.
6th Oct 2019
Forrest Gump (1994)
Question: Would the army really take a guy with a low I.Q., much less one with a cleft lip?
Answer: The Army doesn't issue IQ tests upon enlistment. Given that Forrest had a college degree, and passed basic training with flying colors because of his amazing ability to follow orders, he would be allowed in just fine. And Bubba didn't have a cleft lip, just big gums.
Answer: I can't even guess why you think a cleft lip would disallow someone from being admitted into the Army, or anything/anywhere else for that matter.
Because an unrepaired cleft lip is a disqualifying disability. You can't join the US military if you have one.
5th May 2014
The Last Samurai (2003)
Question: Who is the soldier who gave the order to stop shooting? Is it Yutaka Takenouchi?
Answer: No. The actor's name is Satoshi Nikaido. He is listed in the credits as "N.C.O."
12th Sep 2019
The Faculty (1998)
Question: Why are the aliens in that town? If they come from a oceanic planet then why not go directly into one of our five or so oceans?
Answer: The aliens needed fresh water. All the infected were drinking bottled water. When the gang were examining the slug in the garage, it dried up and died from salt, like a snail.
Answer: Whales and dolphins also lack manipulating appendages and the ability to survive on land.
Answer: The aliens need to infect intelligent life to thrive. There is no intelligent life in our oceans.
Answer: Well if they need to stay hydrated whales and dolphins make more sense than inhabiting people.
Dolphins and whales are also far less numerous. With populations numbering fewer than 10 million total across all species versus nearly 6 billion at the time for humanity.
Answer: It could be the salt or pollution. The aliens were drinking nothing but pure bottled water.
Good answer. Dang all you guys on this site are pretty good at this. I enjoy these answers you give since hardly anybody ever listens to me.
7th Sep 2019
I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998)
Question: Julie and her friend knew that they answered the question wrong for what is the Capital of Brazil, but won anyway. When they finally decide to talk about that glaring flaw being a setup it's more than 31 hours later while they are in the Bahamas. Why exactly did they not talk about that glaring flaw before leaving the USA?
Answer: They never knew they got the question wrong until they happened to look at that globe in the hotel.
Answer: Just because they took a geography class doesn't mean that they remembered a capital of a country they have no connection to.
7th Sep 2019
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005)
Question: If Aayla Secura's a Jedi Master then why does she wear a skimpy brown leather outfit? She should be dressed more like the other Jedi masters.
Answer: In-universe, it is the typical clothing of a Twi'lek female. Jedi are allowed to wear whatever clothing they want, though most choose the robes fitting the ascetic life of a Jedi.
Answer: Several possibilities. There are cultural differences in how the different races dress that may supersede the traditional Jedi uniform. However, and more likely, movies often sexualize women characters by dressing them in skimpy, skin-bearing costumes, even when it is out-of-sync with how others are dressed.
Answer: Going along with LorgSkyegon's answer, the clothing is common for female Twi'leks. Many Jedi observe a few traditions, customs, etc. of the worlds they came from. Since they are guardians of peace across the galaxy, they need to respect all cultures. It can be helpful for a Jedi to acknowledge their background, especially if they ever need to deal with a situation involving their species/homeworld.
2nd Sep 2019
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Question: Why wasn't Fury in the final battle? Or Hill?
Answer: Being regular humans without powers or highly advanced technology, they may not have been able to fight properly against Thanos' forces.
Neither did the Asgardians.
The Asgardians were there and they are superhumans.
The average Asgardians are all established to be vastly stronger, more powerful and faster than humans. Their soldiers even more so.
The remaining Asgardians were there.
Answer: Spoilers! Given what we see in Spider-Man: Far From Home it may be that they were offworld doing other vital work.
Answer: Since any reason given would be speculation, the easiest explanation is that they had something else to do in this, the one and only future where the Avengers won against Thanos.
2nd Sep 2019
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Question: How old is Cassie now?
Answer: Cassie was born in July 2007. So during the future scenes, she is either 16 or 17.
19th Aug 2019
Rookie of the Year (1993)
Question: When the Cubs are playing the last game against the Mets, the last batter that Henry faces is Hedo. However, Henry has pitched three innings and only nine batters, so if you back up to the last batter Chet faced in the 6th inning, it wasn't Hedo. So how was he the 9th batter Henry faced?
Answer: Since we never see Hedo on the field, it's certainly possible that he's kept solely as a pinch hitter.
16th Aug 2019
House, M.D. (2004)
Question: In the series finale, what would have happened to House if it was discovered that he faked his own death?
Answer: If he were caught, he would still be forced to serve the jail sentence he was given. In addition, he may be charged with various kinds of fraud: insurance fraud if someone collects on a life insurance policy, identity fraud if he gets fake documents, tax fraud, etc.
26th Mar 2019
D3: The Mighty Ducks (1996)
Question: Did Charlie ever work at the skate shop?
Answer: You can see Charlie working at the skate shop in the second movie, with Jan saying that he hired him because he was spending so much time there to avoid being around his stepfather.
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Answer: There are several substances in canon and non-canon that are resistant to lightsabers. Beskar, also known as Mandalorian iron or Mandalorian steel was used to make armor and weapons by the Mandalorian people. Cortosis was an ore that, when heavily refined, stopped lightsaber blades and blaster bolts. Phrik was another metal, used in Darth Sidious' lightsabers and the electrostaffs used by Grievous' robot guards. Neuranium was a very, very dense and heavy metal that was partially resistant to lightsabers, but was more often used to shield from scanners. The species orbalisk and vonduun crab had carapaces that could withstand the blow of a lightsaber.
LorgSkyegon