Oh, the arguments when they got to Clausewitz. Mairwen and Rhian would just quietly get up and leave the room.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

Unfortunately, Azula at 15 is largely blind to any form of humor more sophisticated than that which would be enjoyed by, say, the average Cimmerian plainsman. It's one of the many unfortunate disfigurements she's been left with by her preposterous upbringing.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

"Nah, that can't be her."

"They planned their campaigns just as you might make a splendid piece of harness. It looks very well; and answers very well; until it gets broken; and then you are done for. Now I made my campaigns of ropes. If anything went wrong, I tied a knot; and went on."
-- Arthur Wellesley, First Duke of Wellington

Well, satire and parody overlap (enough that they're essentially interchangeable in common usage), but they are not perfectly coterminous. From Wikipedia:

Satire is a genre of literature, and sometimes graphic and performing arts, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, corporations, and society itself, into improvement. Although satire is usually (emphasis mine) meant to be humorous, its greater purpose is often constructive social criticism, using wit as a weapon and as a tool to draw attention to both particular and wider issues in society.

Parody is usually satirical in form, but the humor is usually the main point, rather than criticism. Satire is usually, but not always, humorous, but the criticism is its principle goal. I don't think too many people would characterize The Prince as humorous (I've not read more than bits and pieces, so I can't offer an opinion either way), but even if its satire is missed by many people when it's the only Machiavelli they've read, his other writings make it clear that he did not endorse the style of leadership and ethics it describes; quite the opposite, in fact.

Either way, the point stands: Azula's appreciation of subtlety and irony is at least as lacking as one might expect, given her history.

"Mathematics brought rigor to economics. Unfortunately, it also brought mortis."
- Kenneth Boulding

Robocop was a satire. So was Starship Troopers.

-Merc
Keep Rat

I'm sorry, did you just claim that Robocop and Troopers were trying to be subtle?

Matrix Dragon, J. Random Nutter

"This is probably a stupid question, but . . ."

They were both subtle enough that a lot, I mean a lot a lot, of people fundamentally didn't get the point.

I mean that above and beyond "Is the movie good or not." I've talked to quite a few people who are like "Starship Troopers might have had the potential to be a decent little action movie if it hadn't been so jingoistic, you know?"

-Merc
Keep Rat

... if more of the serial numbers had been successfully filed off. Including the title, and the characters' names.

(Sorry, sore point. Heinlein's book is an enjoyable read, but the film as a film of the book was IMHO a dismal failure.)

--
Unable to save the day: File is read-only.

"Dismal failure" doesn't even begin to cover it. It implies that there was an intention to make a film of the book. The interviews with the director seem to indicate that all it was to him was a title and some names.

To be fair though, unless you read Grumbles From the Grave or Expanded Universe, the intentions of Heinlein with Starship Troopers (an "if this goes on...you idiots" scenario and a discussion of the nature of civic virtue) aren't totally clear. Also, RAH left an inconsistency in the book as to the nature of Federal Service which has probably confused people as well:
http://www.nitrosyncretic.com/rah/ftp/fedrlsvc.pdf

Edit: http://www.kentaurus.com/troopers.htm is an excellent discussion in this area.

--
"They copied all they could follow, but they couldn't copy my mind,
And I left 'em sweating and stealing a year and a half behind."