Big brother was amazing to the end, I just appreciated it less. Watching The Man Who Souled The World the other day I yearned for its return. Skateboarding needs some raw in your face shit again. Every magazine out now whore themselves to the rest of the industry. They positively review every video, and tell you about how cool the dudes they are on tour with are. Shit talking and harsh reality are missing from skateboard mags.
To whoever mentioned Vice, at first I thought it was like Big Brother but without skateboarding, hell, they even have Nieratko* on staff. But then I realized, Vice is just hipster garbage. All they do is try to put other shit down and act like their own shit doesn't stink- despite being a bible to the most pathetically lame social.... social... I don't even know what to call hipsters- they are just a bunch of kids who never emotionally graduated high school. If it weren't for the fact that his show is better I would probably despise Patrick O'Dell more than Sheckler.
But yeah, give me blunt articles about your personal drug abuse, interviews with monkeys that skateboard, an article warning me about the dangers of nairing your asshole (apparently it burns when you put it in, and itches when your asshair grows back), ads that have the purpose of devirgining 16 year old kids, and the characters who never would have been part of the skate lexicon if it weren't for big brother. Vice may go over some of that shit, but it just ain't the same, and is probably poorly written by some asshole photo-blogger. Even when the days of nudity and the bong olympics are over, Big Brother still had the best shit in it.
In the end I'm pretty sure they went out because they talked shit and lost a lot of advertisers and potential interviews/tours. I think the magazines in skateboarding are too big of pussies. If companies put out shit, which they do, call them out on it! If the other mags had a tenth of the balls bb did then they would still be in business, and skating would be a lot cooler.
That, and I got a subscription right before they folded. I only got one issue and no refund, those assholes owe me 12 issues!
*Despite my hate for Vice, I still love the writing of Chris Nieratko.