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If you haven't seen Russell Brand's vodcast about Renee Zellweger's appearance, take a look now. What follows is a reaction to it.

We talked about Zellweger at the office the day the startling photos came out. We discussed it briefly, and not to the degree you see in the entertainment media in Brand's vodcast. Our reaction was more like, "Oh, that's different," shrugged, and went on with our days.

I'll regularly evaluate the appearance of entertainment figures, actors and actresses particularly. Part of our attraction to those in visual performance arts is, well, visual. Certainly skill plays a key role, but appearance is also a factor. Why else do we have the phrase, "I can't take my eyes off (insert celebrity's name)"?

Zellweger's appearance may not have been a big deal to you, but there's an entire sub-culture that lives to overreact to things like an actress looking different. And another sub-culture that loves to overreact to overreaction. (If your social media world does not include people from either sub-culture, count yourself lucky.)