WWW.PANTHERNATION.COM
GO PANTHERS!
welcome

Welcome to the best UNI Panther forum on the net!

Become a PN Supporting Member! Get exclusive access to the Panther Den forum and more. Click here for info.

30-minute show exclusively highlighting UNI Athletics. Click here for info.

  • You need to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed.
  • To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.
  • If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the help page by clicking this link.
  • If you have any questions please use the Contact Us form.
This website is not affiliated with the University of Northern Iowa or the UNI Panther Athletic Program.

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

30 for 30

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • #31
    Re: 30 for 30

    Benji: Highly talented basketball player who (SPOILER ALERT!!!)












    Tragically dies before being to live up to his high potential (at least that's what I've inferred from the commercials)
    Last edited by panther-state; 10-23-2012, 03:09 PM.

    Comment


    • #32
      Re: 30 for 30

      Isn't this basically the same story that we saw in Without Bias, The Guru of Go, and Once Brothers,

      Comment


      • #33
        Re: 30 for 30

        Finally got around to watching it today. If you're going to classify all of those together then I'd put it above Without Bias but below Guru of Go and Once Brothers.

        Honestly I think they're all different with their own tragedies and powerful lessons. When looking at the way each one died the differences are obvious (a murder, a drug overdose, a car accident and the enlarged heart) but I can see what you are getting at in that most of the stories revolve around the tragic death of a young star who had not yet reached his full potential.

        Once Brothers is centered much more around the friendship and falling out of Drazen and Divac but the death of Drazen is still big part of that story, obviously.

        Guru of Go focused on this radical new style of offense from Westhead and how surprisingly effective it was...but the death of Gathers derailed the whole thing. Once again the focus was not nearly so much on the death but it becomes an obvious part of the story. Btw, this has to be one of the most powerful and tragic episodes of the series. No one was really at fault, no one knew about the enlarged heart and everything happens right there on the court...just wow.

        Bias' death was completely preventable and in a way self-inflicted since it was a drug overdose. Overall the story focuses completely on the death of Bias but also the reactions and how this helped changed ideas on recreational drug use, particularly among athletes.

        Benji falls more into line with "Without Bias". They build up more of the background story because for the most part this incident isn't as widely known. The death and reaction takes up a smaller portion of the documentary but the idea that we lost an incredible athlete before seeing what he was capable of is the central theme, much like with Len Bias. I think the big thing with Benji is how the community reacted to his death and the fact that it was completely senseless and preventable. Ben Wilson was just another victim of gang violence in Chicago but it took someone who had such a large presence and celebrity status in the community to really wake people up as to what was happening. I think what happened after his death with his mother's resilience and Billy Moore's own confession of the murder was one of the bigger messages of the documentary. I have never seen someone admit to a murder before, that kind of left me in shock.

        Anyway, I've rambled. Benji was good, not great. Anyone know what's next up on the block? I haven't paid attention lately

        Comment


        • #34
          Re: 30 for 30

          Ghosts of Ole Miss is next. Haven't seen any previews, but I know that's the next one.

          Comment


          • #35
            Re: 30 for 30

            Originally posted by panther-state View Post

            Benji falls more into line with "Without Bias". They build up more of the background story because for the most part this incident isn't as widely known. The death and reaction takes up a smaller portion of the documentary but the idea that we lost an incredible athlete before seeing what he was capable of is the central theme, much like with Len Bias. I think the big thing with Benji is how the community reacted to his death and the fact that it was completely senseless and preventable. Ben Wilson was just another victim of gang violence in Chicago but it took someone who had such a large presence and celebrity status in the community to really wake people up as to what was happening. I think what happened after his death with his mother's resilience and Billy Moore's own confession of the murder was one of the bigger messages of the documentary. I have never seen someone admit to a murder before, that kind of left me in shock.

            Anyway, I've rambled. Benji was good, not great. Anyone know what's next up on the block? I haven't paid attention lately
            I have yet to watch this, but thanks for the synopsis. I can tell you the that people around here still talk about his story. Sure, part of it is bound to be embellished given the circumstances, but I get the impression he was an icon in the making. Those in the know, as far as I can tell, mention him in the same way as Derek Rose, and that's absurdly good...like Jordan and Kobe good. There are a couple of ex Panthers who could shed some firsthand light on this, if they're on PN and happen to read these posts.

            Comment


            • #36
              Re: 30 for 30

              Just watched the 30 for 30 on James Meredith, the Ole Miss race riots, and their football team. Being a local and having relatives who were there, the narrator/producer asked a lot of interesting questions that shed light on the historical context in a way that I, at least, had never considered before. 5 stars.
              Top ten UNI football plays from 2001-2011

              Comment

              Working...
              X