We form a contingent of seven and see Batman Returns on opening night. Lucky we thought to buy tickets early, cuz the place is sold out, both screens, all shows. The house is packed and there's a sense of excitement in the air.

But midway through the movie J__ leans over and whispers, "Is it just me, or does this just, like, suck incredibly bad?" And he's right. The movie sucks. It's worse than Batman even, which I didn't think possible.

Don't get me wrong; it's still fun to watch this extavaganza with such a crowd, but some other part of my brain is getting pissed off.

Afterwards, we have a long and vociferous discussion of the movie at J__'s house, with T___ S____ as the principle apologist. Our contingent is evenly divided in opinion, with K___ sitting on the fence. I can't believe how passionate the discussion is for such a dud of a film. K___ falls asleep on the couch, but we keep talking into the wee hours. I smoke some pot and have a drink.