Grantland Issue 3 by Bill Simmons

Grantland Issue 3 Reviews

• 
  Ken

  I read most of this quarter's stuff online during the slow march of death that is known as May as a high school Math teacher.
  
  What will make these quarterly's really shitty is that when the content sucks online, the quarterly will suck also. So when I open the package to see the a pouting Tom Brady, NBA players dressing like Carlton Banks and the overanalyzed Jeremy Lin on the cover, I was worried. Rightfully so, even if the article on NBA fashion drives home a great point (that the current nerd look is basically a giant middle finger to David Stern and his dress code).
  
  Don't know if I will hit the re-up on the next prescription. It's all ridding on Volume 4.
• 
  Ricky Carrigan

  Another solid collection of sports and pop culture writing. Not as great as volume 2 but still good. The highlights are two very good pieces on the future of the NFL re: the concussion problem, and one great piece on the career of Tom Molineaux. Like vol.2 there is an ill advised short story at the end, however this one is just flat-out bad. Overall though this is still some of the best sports writing out there, beautifully crafted in collaboration with McSweeney's. Just skip the short story at the end.
• 
  Mike Smith

  Grantland delivered another fun edition of the quarterly. As usual, not everything is great, but I find I appreciate the articles I wouldn't usually read when they show up online. But the quarterly manages to at least keep me somewhat connected to some of the pop culture that I often ignore. And I love the articles like the Eddie Murphy history that describe full careers in a way that allows the reader to connect with eras that have been forgotten or never experienced. The detailed story of the Palace Brawl was also great. It came at the perfect time when some of the protagonists are still relevant to the NBA, but we are far enough removed from the shock of the violence to more carefully examine it and come to more nuanced conclusions. I also felt the illustrations took a big step forward even if we all hate to see a Harvard grad on the front cover of a sports quarterly, it's hard to claim he shouldn't be there. And the end sheets of Hochuli and Tebowing were brilliant signposts of the sports/culture intersection.
• 
  Christopher

  This issue was even more uneven. I like the idea that Grantland.com covers the intersection of sports and popular culture, but Simmons really needs to mature beyond his obsession with reality TV. I know that he and his buddies love it, but I think he dramatically misjudges the interests of his readers. I also think it is time to take this endeavor past its initial basement blog navel-gazing and actually commission some writers to get out into the field and really discover some good long-form stories.
• 
  Kyle

  These volumes are beginning to fall into a nice reliable pattern. The Bill Simmons stuff is always good. Brian Phillips can make me care about anything (even soccer) and I love Louisa Thomas' stuff. Needs more David Shoemaker. I also enjoy the short stories at the end of these volumes. Finally, the oral history of the fight between the Pistons and the Pacers was very well done.
• 
  David

  The series seems to getting thinner as it goes.
• 
  Cameron

  Great collection from Grantland in its third edition. This subscription is the gift that keeps on giving.
• 
  Tom

  The sports writing is good; the celebrity gossip (*three* articles on the Oscars, coverage of so-called reality TV, Van Halen, et cetera ad nauseum) blows major donkey dick.
• 
  Christopher Dart

  
  
  Some really outstanding articles and some others which only a year later are already dated or just boring. Would give it 3.5 stars.