Late "Black Panther" star celebrated as a hero on and off the screen

We're two-thirds of the way through 2020, and this seemingly endless year brings yet more tragedy.

The world woke up on August 29 to the shocking announcement that Chadwick Boseman had died of cancer. His sudden passing was even harder to reckon with given his youth; he was just 43 years old. His powerful portrayals of Black icons -- from Jackie Robinson and James Brown to his career-defining turn as Black Panther -- cemented his status as one of Hollywood's most admired stars. 

The public announcement of Boseman’s passing has become the single most “liked” tweet in the history of Twitter.

This tremendous loss came with the staggering revelation that Boseman’s stage three colon cancer had been diagnosed as early as 2016. Mourning fans are suddenly looking at his recent work with new awe, realizing the tremendous duress the actor had defied to continue performing.

Even more impressive -- and heartbreaking -- are the resurfaced images of Boseman’s many charity appearances for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. If a screenwriter had come up with the story of an actor concealing his own worsening illness to appear as a literal superhero in a kids’ cancer ward, it would be too unbelievable. Yet here Boseman was, smiling with the kids whose struggles he understood better than any of us knew.

The world sheds tears for not only the loss of a great man, but also for all the work he might have done. In addition to Black Panther 2, Boseman had also been set to star as Yasuke, the 16th century African warrior whose incredible tale led to him forging a legend as Japan’s only black samurai. But we should also take the opportunity to appreciate the example he chose to set. 

Along with other lost stars such as Kobe Bryant, Heath Ledger and Amy Winehouse, dying suddenly at the height of his fame will ensure Chadwick Boseman’s memory remains strong in the public mind. Through his incredible stoicism and commitment to helping those in need even when he knew his own time was short, Boseman will become a lasting inspiration for millions.

“Wakanda Forever” indeed. 

Esports becomes antitrust battleground as Apple engages in Epic clash

The novel coronavirus has interrupted almost all of society’s regular cycles -- but not the one about the rich getting richer, it seems. Especially when it concerns a handful of tech giants.  

There’s nothing inherently wrong with success, but there have been questions about the practices and conditions which have led to such tremendous growth in a concentrated group of companies. “Monopoly” is a dirty word in the fast moving, hard-to-regulate tech world, and “duopoly” isn’t that much more pleasant, particularly for Apple and Google stakeholders. U.S. figures show these giants controlling over 95% of app sales, thanks to their proprietary app stores baked into iOS and Android smartphones - from which they take a 30% cut.

This apparent duopoly has been repeatedly criticized by small app makers who struggle to succeed under this significant tax, as well as by the Department of Justice. Now things have been taken a step further by Epic Games, the heavyweight publisher behind Fortnite. Epic enjoyed immense growth in recent years on the back of the game’s monstrous streaming and esports success.

Now, the scale of that 30% app store tax has reached a threshold where the company feels it has to act. Epic intentionally challenged the authority of Apple and Google by instituting an independent point-of-sale for Fortnite customers, where players could bypass the 30% cut and pay lower prices. Epic made their motive for the change clear, hoping to win gamers over with their narrative that the tech giants were unfairly forcing people to pay more.

Of course, any workaround violates the agreement that app publishers like Epic sign to get their products onto phones in the first place. This drives home the antitrust complaints against Apple and Google. Because they exert complete control over which apps can run on their phones, app companies have to bow to their demands. Case in point, Apple swiftly removed Fortnite from their app store, and Google followed suit. Not only does this stop new players from downloading the game, but all current players will effectively lose access and will be unable to download new versions.

The companies have kicked off legal proceedings against each other, as well as a battle over public opinion. Fortnite unleashed a parody of Apple’s infamous “1984” Super Bowl ad, casting Apple as the grim authoritarian power they once railed against.

But Epic makes for a poor underdog. With annual net profit in the billions and several of the gaming sector’s most visible and lucrative products, the publisher is only small when compared to Apple.

It may be some months before the legal action surrounding this case concludes, but we may not need to wait that long. Epic’s actions amount to the app store equivalent of a hunger strike - and as we have seen, these tech companies aren’t good at going profit-starved for long.

Fast fandom

As always, there is a ton going on in the interconnected world of pop culture and fan media. Here are a few of the stories that caught our eye:

Beloved voice actor mourned by fans and comrades

A sombre few weeks continued for '90s kids in particular, as we lost one of the team responsible for the iconic X-Men animated series the other day. Norm Spencer had a prolific career in voice acting which covered many TV shows and video games, but was most famous for giving life to Scott Summers (Cyclops) over a number of X-Men adaptations.

The Animated Series was by far the most high-profile of these, attaining a significance over its five-year run which is still visible in memes and homages a quarter-century later. Spencer’s definitive performance as the stoic laser-visioned mutant was celebrated by his colleague on the show, Cal Dodd (Wolverine).

LeBron's son becomes a signed athlete at 15 -- in esports

In a scenario highlighting current trends across generations of sports fans, LeBron James’s son has signed a big-time contract to play Call of Duty. Bronny James, who already has 330,000 followers on Twitch, tagged up with the legendary FaZe Clan. The deal seems like a good fit; FaZe is one of the most brand-savvy gaming organizations. The group expertly straddles the space between media company, esports team and lifestyle brand with their best-selling streetwear and massive Twitch personalities. It has a history of successful partnerships with major sports leagues, hosting the NFL’s virtual draft this year.

Whether Bronny, who is considered a top high school basketball prospect, will end up representing FaZe in serious competition is almost besides the point. The signing is generating mainstream coverage and heralds the growing comfort of young audiences to cross over between pro gaming and pro sports.

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