I feel bad taking a swing at the movies because they are such great adventures. They were a part of my childhood too, and I never get tired of watching them as an adult. I'd never thought about kids associating with Short Round, but you might be right. He certainly gets stuff to do in that movie — both Willie and Short Round save Jones' life at some point, which is a big deal. It validates their characters and means they actually change the outcome of the movie. Also, it's hilarious that Spielberg wound up marrying Willie! Do we think they got married at the Obi Wan Club?

I don't find Marion annoying, but it's disappointing that she's consistently useless. Like Jones, she doesn't really do much to change the outcome of the movies. She's just there to argue with Jones and be a bit saucy — which she's great at, but it doesn't give her much to do as a character.

Mutt is an interesting point. "Mutt" is supposed to be a bit like Indiana's own nickname, which he took from the name of the family dog. The problem is, Indiana is a sexy name and Mutt isn't. Mutt isn't a bad concept for a character, but Indiana Jones is Harrison Ford. I'll watch any number of Indiana Jones movies starring Ford, but they can't keep making the movies without him. Would you accept Indiana Jones being like James Bond, with a dozen people playing him over time?

Also, this is completely wonderful. A few months ago the University of Chicago (where Jones is supposed to teach) received a mysterious package for Henry Walton Jones, Jr.… http://news.uchicago.edu/article/2012/12/19/indiana-jones-ma...