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nothingunrealistic · 1 year ago

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Former hedge fund mogul Bobby “Axe” Axelrod (Damian Lewis) did not give up his business empire easily. At the end of Season 5 of Showtime’s Wall Street thriller Billions, it took a two-pronged attack to drive Axe from New York City to Switzerland, turning him from a swaggering master of the universe into a financial fugitive. New York State Attorney General Chuck Rhoades (Paul Giamatti) had him on trumped-up money-laundering charges, and billionaire nemesis Michael Prince (Corey Stoll) bought Axelrod’s huge assets way below market price. But now Axe has reentered the ring for this seventh and final season, his charming, ruthless confidence intact.

“Bobby wants back in the game,” says Lewis (who left the show in 2021 to spend time with family after the death of his wife, actress Helen McCrory). On a show that is legendary for its betrayals, double-crosses and very flexible alliances, the possibilities of who will be going after whom seem endless. Giamatti and Lewis spoke to TV Insider about doing time on Billions.

Damian, welcome back! Did you plan to return for the final season or did you have to be convinced?

Lewis: Neither. I didn’t expect to come back, but I wanted to in the end. Axe has a rock ’n’ roll swagger that’s fun to play, and all my colleagues on the show are my bros.

Paul, what did you miss most about your scene partner?

Giamatti: I missed it all: the too-tight pants, the swagger. The character is iconic and unique. It was vital to have him back. Also, he’s a lovely chap and a lot of fun to act with.

Though admired by many, Bobby has always been about money, whether it’s acquired honestly or not. Has he evolved in any significant way?

Lewis: No, he hasn’t. Bobby found a way to make money from a major global conflict [the Ukraine-Russia war], and he’s doing business with a character you will enjoy seeing again. He’s an old-fashioned opportunist who is just out to make dough. If he’s the slightest bit likable, it’s because he enjoys the friendship of the group. But he will turn quickly to maneuver to where he needs to be.

How much does he want revenge on Prince?

Lewis: I’ll say any reentry into that story on Bobby’s part might involve Prince. There’s dissatisfaction within the ranks left behind with him. There’s still animus with Chuck, of course. But Bobby is [General] Sherman–esque in his scorched-earth approach to business and life, so he’s going to have to rebuild bridges.

Giamatti: Prince is such an interesting character. It was an attempt to create someone who did seem to try to be the good billionaire, but that seems to be a facade, which maybe makes him worse.

Is taking that guy down enough of a mutual mission for Bobby and Chuck to temporarily become allies, despite their deep distrust of each other?

Giamatti: Yeah. In reclaiming his throne [as U.S. attorney] for the Southern District, Chuck attempts to reclaim some moral compass. Maybe he’ll try to do the right thing for the right reasons. Handing the reins of power over to [Prince], a self-interested monster, is wrong and un-American. That becomes his mandate.

At one point, Chuck talks about how the U.S. founders were conflicted, flawed men trying to transcend themselves. Could that be true for your characters?

Giamatti: What’s interesting about my character is his failure to live up to those ideals, though he attempts to. Bobby doesn’t have those ideals, but he doesn’t need to. That’s what makes Chuck envy those [billionaires]. They have no constraints.

What role does Wendy Rhoades (Maggie Siff), Chuck’s ex-wife and Bobby’s adviser and almost lover, play in the new season?

Giamatti: She’s still maintaining this monkey-in-the-middle stance and trying to negotiate both sides, because she has her own feelings about Prince.

Lewis: If you’re a fan of Billions, there’s a long con always, and Wendy has proved herself as good a grifter as the next person, which is the overall arc for the show. I think, conclusively now, anyone who enters the sphere of the Billions world is corrupted by the money and power.

Giamatti: She may be the closest on the show to having a moral compass, but yes, she doesn’t really survive the corrupting influences around her.

Does Chuck want to rekindle his marriage to Wendy? Does Bobby want to further the relationship he started with her?

Giamatti: Chuck still harbors feelings for her — that’s dealt with this season.

Lewis: By far, the most profound relationship is between Chuck and Wendy. For Bobby, it would be an interesting, sexy thing for them to get together, but they know who they both are.

Taylor Mason (Asia Kate Dillon), now co-running Michael Prince Capital, tried to keep an ethical core too, no?

Lewis: Asia plays it so beautifully. It’s odd that a character who is seemingly devoid of emotional impulses and tries to rationalize in an algorithmic way is seduced by Bobby more than anyone.

Is Bobby eager to work with longtime right-hand man Wags (David Costabile) again?

Lewis: Absolutely — if loyalty is proven.

Giamatti: That’s unquestionable with Wags. Who’s Watson without Sherlock Holmes, Robin without Batman? I must say one of the principal pleasures for me this season is getting to work with Costabile finally!

Could Chuck have made less-reckless mistakes if he’d had his own Wags?

Giamatti: That’s a good point. He didn’t really have somebody like that, not only to share his hijinks, but to keep him real. That will change a little this season, but he’s actually a very lonely guy.

How does it feel coming to the end of such a compelling drama?

Giamatti: I don’t know if I was sorry to leave Chuck. It’s not the most pleasant space to occupy as an actor all the time, but for sure it was extraordinary to do.

Lewis: Leaving this time felt like the end. As an actor, you’re always ready to move on, but there’s sadness too, especially if the work has been this enjoyable.

#bobby axelrod absolutely unmatched in his record for war profiteering!#billions #damian lewis #paul giamatti #bobby axelrod #chuck rhoades #mike prince #wendy rhoades #taylor mason #mike wags #also hugely pleased by damian seemingly sinking the wendy/axe ship #a note at the end of the article claims this is an abbreviated version and you have to buy the full thing… considering it

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writer-monster · 3 years ago

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11 reasons why cap 4 should reintroduce Bucky Barnes as the love interest, an essay

to start this off, i am not writing this essay from a shipping place nor do i believe that this would have any influence at all over the upcoming movie. i expect nothing. this is simply something that i would personally like to see. (of course no hate to anybody who thinks differently)

here are 11 reasons why i think making Bucky into Sam Wilson's love interest in Cap 4 would be a good move for Disney.

1. on the Chinese film market - and why it's an irrelevant argument against the inclusion of homosexual themes in Cap 4

the Chinese film market is something that has been blamed for a lack of diversity in Hollywood films a lot lately. many people claim that this market with a lot of buying power has been responsible for the lack of gay and black representation in particular within Hollywood films.

and we have certainly seen Hollywood treating it as such, going so far as to cut gay scenes from movies for their Chinese releases, and vastly minimising John Boyega's (a black actor's) presence in the Chinese poster of Star Wars The Force Awakens.

[image ID: on the left is an image of the American poster for Star Wars The Force Awakens, featuring John Boyega prominently on the right-hand side. And on the right is the Chinese poster for the same movie, in which John Boyega is barely visible.]

so we know at the very least that Disney believes this through their own actions and efforts to self-censor for the different markets.

but Captain America 4 is a black-led movie, don't you forget. and Disney can't minimise Sam Wilson/Anthony Mackie in the movie or the poster because it's his movie and his poster. and no amount of creativity in the editing room can change that (thank God!).

so if by their own argument the film is already going to be either banned, panned or slammed in China... then what do they have to fear from making it a gay movie too?

2. oh, the queerbaiting

queerbaiting is an unusual cultural idea. and sometimes i find myself thinking that the term is far too easily used, but then all of a sudden i will stumble upon a movie or show that is so quintessentially cruel and overt in it's... well... queerbaiting that i will start to wonder what the hell kind of a bizarre relationship all these straight people seem to have with their friends. take Troy and Abed from Community or John and Sherlock from Sherlock as the perfect examples of this. (in which my reaction to the show's creators saying the show wasn't gay was to ask so then why did you make it so gay?!)

i felt that Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes in tfatws were getting quite close to this level of queerbaiting.

there was the field scene, the couple's counselling scene, the boat scene, the couple's counselling scene, Bucky going with Sam to face Karli when she told Sam to come alone, the couple's counselling scene, ALL the staring scenes, Sam checking out Bucky's ass here as they said goodbye, the "i would move in with him but" hidden scene, "Uncle Bucky" showing up at the cookout scene, the romantic walking off together into the sunset together ending scene, and the couple's counselling scene. did i forget anything? but i mean seriously, the couple's counselling scene!!! that thing they did with their legs and their crotches while staring deep into each other's eyes, would any straight guy willingly do that? do straight guys crotch-snuggle now?

[image ID: an image of Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes during the therapy scene with the quote, "Isn't anybody going to drag me into impromptu couple's therapy and slot my legs firmly between theirs before staring deeply into my eyes?"]

(yeah i stole this image from a buzzfeed article on the fan reactions to the couple's therapy scene. but given that they stole 80% of the content of that article from fandom tumblr, i think it's pretty even-steven.)

there's also the fact that people started talking about bisexual Bucky Barnes a lot after the tiger pictures line, and the lead writer Malcom Spellman responded to the talk of Bucky's bisexuality with "just keep watching". well we watched, Malcolm. but it's beginning to feel like you were just jerking us around.

3. the writing

seriously though, what else is Bucky Barnes doing right now in the MCU? his only remaining connection to anything going on right now is through Sam. there is literally nothing else established that's left for him to do that doesn't involve Sam. he moved to Louisiana to be closer to Sam (canonically), he hangs out with Sam's family (canonically), and Steve is presumably gone and is definitely not coming back for more adventures.

he has no villains or loose ends left. he has no other superheroes that he appears to be in contact with. he has no girlfriend or potential love interest, or even other friends or family. he is living in a tent that he has secretly set up in Sam's backyard and is mysteriously appearing from the bushes when it's time for dinner like a stray cat.

in my opinion there is no other meaningful and pre-established progression for Bucky's character that wouldn't just feel cheap.

plus, i don't think the general audience would be all that surprised if they kissed. i think a LOT of people picked up on all that tension. i think a lot of straight people picked up on all that tension too.

4. the chemistry between the actors & the chemistry between the characters

the original pitch for tfatws was essentially just this, it was the chemistry between Sebastian Stan and Anthony Mackie and their respective MCU characters of Bucky Barnes and Sam Wilson.

now obviously Anthony and Sebastian are simply friends, and i wouldn't mean to imply anything more. but they are also not their characters.

Sam and Bucky's scenes together before tfatws were both limited and short, and yet audiences still fell in love with the dynamic between the two characters.

in interviews, these two actors are constantly slipping into character and flirting with each other and frankly it's adorable. plus it's really entertaining. i'd love to see that dynamic, unfiltered, in a movie.

because believe it or not the flirting is actually even more open in their interviews than it was in tfatws. and i'm leaving some links as proof.

this here is known as the "married" compilation

and here's a "lucky dip" selection of interviews - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,

and here's Anthony trying to get Seb to take his jacket off.

i'm just saying, why not let their chemistry shine? these two are so talented and so entertaining, especially when you put them in a room together. and can you imagine how absolutely hilarious and brilliant it would be to watch them navigate being a couple?

(and for those who bring up the "friends would be uncomfortable pretending to be dating" argument, i'm not here asking for a sex scene or anything. i don't think anyone would expect them to show any more intimacy (physical or emotional) while playing a couple than what they've already shown together in say... tfatws or in their own interviews. not that i actually expect anything regardless.)

5. if they were a man and a woman they would've gotten together in tfatws

i have no more to add here. just that... yeah, they would've.

6. and i'm not talking about the comics here, i'm talking about the MCU.

i understand fully that none of what i'm saying here falls in line with these characters from the comics. but the mcu itself doesn't fall much in line with the comics either, and these two characters especially are very different from their comics counterparts.

i'm not asking for these two to get together in the comics. tbh i don't think that it would work.

but the mcu Sam and Bucky are different and closer than their comics counterparts. they've got different histories, different backstories, and a very different dynamic. please rest assured that i am only talking about them in the mcu.

7. Bucky Barnes is believably bisexual. and Sam Wilson has never been proven to be straight in the mcu, nor has he had a love interest.

(now please continue to keep in mind that these points only stand for the mcu versions of Bucky Barnes and Sam Wilson, and not at all for their comics counterparts.)

Sam Wilson has never had a love interest, which is crazy because have you seen that man! he has had two blink and you'll miss it moments of verbal expression of attraction to women, both in TWS. and that's the extent of it, through his entire history in the mcu.

Bucky Barnes has had a number of surface-level female love interests, but none of them even came close to the level of connection and chemistry that Bucky shares with Sam.

and i'm sorry SarahBucky fans, but i just don't think there's very much to their relationship either. i love Sarah, i really do. but it's Sam who shares all the meaningful moments and history and chemistry with Bucky. and i don't see what making her into a love interest would do for Sarah's character either, what would that add to her story?

[Picture ID: Bucky at the cookout with Sam, Sarah, Cass and AJ. Bucky and Sam are looking at each other and smiling.]

and also there is the whole tiger pictures thing... again. which does strongly suggest that Bucky is bisexual whether this was intentional on behalf of the writers or not.

8. it's representation... AND it feels natural

marvel hasn't had a lot of queer representation that's been noticeably present in the MCU at the time of writing this.

there have been a lot of failures so far, from the bisexual erasure of Valkyrie in Thor Ragnarok to the wlw erasure in Black Panther.

there was queerbaiting almost identical to the bisexual Bucky baiting for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2. when asked if he had considered featuring a gay hero in gotg2, director James Gunn stated that "We might have already done that. I say, watch the movie." after the movie's release audiences were understandably confused about the lack of queer representation. To which the director followed up his comments with, "But we don't really know who's gay and who's not. It could be any of them."

there is also Loki, considered by most fans after the airing of his six episode series on Disney+ to be both a poor attempt at both genderfluid representation and bisexual representation. with both attempts being summed up fairly well by the term "blink-and-you'll-miss-it". (also it's just terribly written and Loki doesn't wear any interesting clothes! fanficcers are a Goddamn blessing in this hard time!)

and let us not forget that Andrew Garfield was apparently FIRED for pushing for a bisexual spiderman. a bisexual spiderman within an interracial mlm relationship no less.

so for all these failures, marvel, why not allow us queer fans this? two brilliant and heroic men in a loving interracial relationship. two heroes that we can look up to.

now, one of the biggest detractions from the argument for representation is the idea of "forced diversity". and some poorly written characters certainly do end up feeling forced into the narrative. take Iceman in the comics for example, with Jean Grey just straight up suddenly telling him he's gay. like, marvel, sweetie, that's not how this works! and i don't know a lot of queer people who thought much of that "representation".

but the crux of the "forced diversity" argument is almost always that it feels unnatural within the story, right? and i don't think that anyone could say that about MCU Sam and Bucky ending up together, given these characters' existing chemistry and their history. they've both played characters in gay relationships before so we know that it's not outside of either actor's wheelhouse. and y'all know that Anthony and Seb can act, people. if it's in the script i believe that they'll make it seem like the most natural thing on earth.

9. it'd be a nice change

there's been an ongoing meme lately about "Disney's first gay character", the joke being that they continually announce gay characters without really ever including gay characters in their films.

this is to the point where Disney has formed a reputation amongst queer audiences of being homophobic.

if Sam and Bucky were to become a couple, then Disney could have its first actual gay character within a gay relationship. AND have him be in the lead of his own movie, no less.

it's also worth keeping in mind that there's likely an overlap between the people who were outraged by a Sam Wilson Captain America, and the people who'd be outraged by a gay Captain America. and if they were already not seeing the film, then i don't think much is gonna change that.

queer audiences would definitely love it, and the media attention would be guaranteed to be huge. i mean, simply look at the amount of media attention mere rumours of a character's queerness gets you and multiply that by a canon confirmation of said rumours.

but i'm pretty sure that Disney already knows this.

10. and yet, in truth, it's not about the representation

in truth i've never felt that i had any trouble relating to characters of any sexual orientation, race, gender, sex, body type, etc. (although that is not to throw any shade at all on people who do wish to see themselves represented) but for me, i think it's more about the story than the packaging.

and yet, a love story is still just a story. straight or queer, monoethnic or interracial. when two characters have chemistry and history and have sacrificed for each other time and time again, and they also can't keep their hands or their eyes off each other, then i'm pretty sure that that's a love story.

straight or queer, monoethnic or interracial, it shouldn't be about these simple labels. it should be about how well written the relationship is. it should be about chemistry, and history, and sacrifice.

because i'm fucking sick of all the hollow, forced romances in media no matter the genders of the participants. i'm sick of lazily written, shallow relationships where any two people sharing the same space for any extended period of time will simply fall in love. it's boring, it's repetitive, and as a writer myself it drives me up the wall!

romance stories suck! and everyone knows that romance stories suck. between twilight, and most of the entire YA genre, and love triangles (so boring), and romance used as poorly-written throwaway subplots in Hollywood movies, the world is in agreement that the romance in western media is simply dreadful. and yet we still want love stories. it's an entire genre that sits at the heart of the human experience (<3), and yet one which so few of today's best known writers seem truly able to capture.

i don't think that i'm the only one who feels this way, either. i suspect it's actually a large part of why fandom is so romance-centred in the first place, that we're all just starving for a good love story.

(btw i think fandom has a reputation for being something that as a whole that it is not. it has this reputation for straight up demanding things and harassing people until they get their way. while unfortunately there are a few people who do this, they're fucking annoying and i swear that they're far from the majority.

in my experience fandom is mostly about writing a five thousand word story at three am while drunk off your ass because it might make someone whom you've never met smile, editing it in the cold light of day, and then posting it. expecting nothing. sometimes getting nothing. and sometimes getting someone send you kudos or a comment so heartbreakingly wonderful that it makes you smile in return.)

11. so once again, it is all about the writing.

i want to see Sam and Bucky get together in the mcu, not because they would be a gay couple but because i genuinely believe that their story has potential to be an amazing love story.

and i know the mcu isn't about the romance. it's why in my personal opinion we haven't gotten a lot of good canon romances besides Peter Quill and Gamora. and i don't think that the mcu should be all about the romance either. i fucking love the action and the fighting scenes. i love the comedy. Captain America: The Winter Soldier had no romance and it was a fucking treasure, it was an amazing spy-action-thriller and it made my little gay heart dance. Thor Ragnarok had no romance, and it was an utterly brilliant comedic spectacle action film. not every movie needs romance.

but mcu Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes were doing couple's therapy and fixing a boat and walking off into the sunset together in tfatws. they were inseparable on the battlefield. they've got a dynamic. it's beautiful, it's romantic, and it's gold.

a budding relationship between them in the next movie would be a good way to explore both characters more without the narrative feeling too stilted and separate. at the end of tfatws, both Sam and Bucky fans found that their respective fave felt somewhat underutilised and that their characters were underexplored.

now, that problem would be even more difficult to remedy in a movie, because the plotline of a movie needs to be really tight to work (giggity). and we know that the central conflict of the movie is gonna be action-based (which is good), but we still need each character's personal journey and growth to tie into the main conflict. (which is another issue that some fans found with tfatws, that these characters didn't really feel connected to the action-based plot on a more personal level.)

if Sam and Bucky are already in a relationship, however, this whole dynamic changes. first, their relationship has already been set up for nicely since TWS and through tfatws and they would officially be the best-fleshed-out couple in the mcu. but most importantly, a relationship gives them a perfect vehicle to explore both of their pasts comparatively and connect them personally to the action-based plot.

do you want to establish that Sam is a little too trusting and naïve? then establish this through his relationship with Bucky, and through showing his placing his trust in Bucky. (rather than through having him sympathise with a villain who threatened to murder his sister and his nephews).

perhaps you want to show Bucky recovering from his trauma? show us how comfortable he is with Sam. they get along, they're enjoying each other's presence, we see more of Sam's life and of his family, and then let Bucky tell Sam something that's raw and dark and honest about his life as The Winter Soldier. something about a memory, one that he only just recalled. he's opening up. and maybe what he tells Sam is even something that sets up the future action-based conflict, to ground that in something real.

you want to explore that Sam has trauma too? do this through Bucky. he tells Bucky a story about his time in the military. in the form of a flashback, he shares his own story of loss to evoke before the audience the shared theme of feeling at fault even when you're simply a helpless bystander to an act of pure destruction.

then, action sequence! and it's directly connected to Bucky's time as the Winter Soldier. explore the grief of someone whose life the Winter Soldier tore apart manifesting into a villain perpetuating the cycle of pain. establish your villain.

Later, Sam is dragged into battle against this villain for protecting Bucky. But Bucky doesn't want Sam to protect him. He feels guilt for what he can't control and he doesn't want Sam getting hurt because of him. Bucky reminds Sam that he has a family, one who needs him and who loves him. He tells him to go home.

Sam reminds Bucky that he's a part of that family. And that sure Sam's a hero and his job is to protect anyone and everyone, but that he's doing it because he wants to. It's not simply to prove that he can, or to prove that he's not a bystander (this connects to Sam's trauma here), but that he's doing it to help people.

and this gets Bucky thinking about who he is and what he's doing here. is he a hero who stands by Sam's side? or is he an ordinary man who stands aside? or perhaps, does he stand alone? what does he stand for? Maybe Sam knows. But does Bucky?

Sam and Bucky fight off the villain again, and for the first time Bucky meets this adversary face to face. And Bucky recognises this villain, and has a flashback to the genuine pain that he inflicted upon them in the form of the Winter Soldier. Bucky freezes mid-fight, he almost dies, and Sam has to save him.

Sam chews Bucky out for almost getting killed because he was afraid for him. but Bucky takes this the wrong way and goes off to fight the villain alone, or perhaps to die alone, he's not quite sure.

He puts up a half-hearted fight. He apologises for what the Winter Soldier has done, and he waits for the killing blow, when Sam swoops down and he saves him. He asks Sam why he saved him and Sam calls him a moron. And then, Sam asks him what sacrificing himself would solve. He tells him that you can't choose your past but you can choose your future (connecting to his own experience of loss and guilt and grief). And that no matter what Bucky Barnes still has a future, whether that's as the Winter Soldier or the White Wolf or just some dork with a day job. And that he has a future as a part of Sam's family too.

Sam fights the villain, and it's toe to toe. He delivers a few good blows, but receives a fair few himself. And then the villain tears off his wings, first one and then the other, in a manner reminiscent of what the Winter Soldier did to him in TWS. Through Bucky's eyes there's a flashback to highlight the parallels. Sam gets back on his feet and he fights his best fight, but is now losing.

And then the heavily injured Bucky steps up and fights by Sam's side, and only together do they take down the villain.

"So... I inspired you, huh?" Sam teases with a smile, utterly exhausted. "With my heroism and-"

"You inspired me." Bucky said, equally exhausted. "Let's leave it at that."

Together, Sam and Bucky go back to the safety and warmth of their family. Sam fixes his wings. Sam goes back to being Captain America. And Bucky... he's around, but it's unclear what he's doing.

That is, until the very end. When Sam is in a fight, and suddenly Bucky shows up and helps him out.

"What are you doing here?" Sam asks.

"I've made up my mind." Bucky says. "I'm the Winter Soldier. But now I'll save lives, Sam. Now, like you, I'll be a hero."

Sam smirks. "So does this make you my sidekick, then?"

Bucky smiles. "C'mon, at least make me a partner." He says.

"How about co-workers." Sam says (in flashback, he remembers back to the death of his last on-the-job partner).

"How about friends." Bucky says, with a wry look.

"Bucky... I don't want to see you put your dumbass self in danger." Sam says.

"Oh, and it's ok for you to go running off into danger on your own all the time?" Bucky asks.

"Yes." Sam says stubbornly. "Absolutely it is."

"Why?"

"Because I'm not a dumbass?!"

"Sam, if you think I'm not gonna be watching your back for the rest of time... then you're the biggest dumbass I know. And I don't care if you need me or not, I will be there for you."

"Because Sam, you're more than Captain America. You're more than a good soldier. You're a good man. And I think sometimes, the world forgets what the difference is."

...or something like that.

(i only spent like 15 minutes on that. you know if i were actually writing this movie i would come up with something much better. and if anyone from marvel is seeing this, yes i can come work for you. i will make the time, let's do this thing right!)

finale

at the end of the day, whether or not the mcu chooses to make Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes a couple, it's their decision. and they don't owe me anything.

i'm just some random person on the internet. who thinks that Captain America 4 should #givecaptainamericaaboyfriend

#givecaptainamericaaboyfriend #meta #analysis #captain america 4 #caatws #fatws #tfatws #captain america #cap 4 #sam wilson #bucky barnes #sambucky #marvel #mcu #mcu phase 4

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thiswasinevitableid · 3 years ago

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93. I hire your matchmaking services but all the people you set me up with are horrible and I’m demanding a refund and you’re asking me for one more chance??? what are you going to do? be my date?

Indruck, nsfw, please!

Here you go! I was inspired by @kriskukko's incredible art for the orc designs in this, and I highly recommend checking them out!

“Indrid? Some from Kepler House is here to speak with you.” Ned pokes his head into Indrid’s rooms.

“Drat” Indrid hisses, dressing gown whipping about him as he scrambles to put the apartment in order while also dragging his notes on the man in question to the forefront, “I didn’t forsee anyone coming by today, goodness, he had his first engagement with Lady Austens daughter last night, what on earth could they need to see me for?” He tosses his spare pens aside, landing them in his second set of house slippers.

“Well, dear boy, given the luck you’ve had with them lately-”

“It’s not luck, it’s simply very unlikely futures. Please just, just stall whoever it is a moment, Leo is usually patient and-”

“I’m afraid I cannot do that my friend.”

“Why not? I watched you once talk an entire flock of constables away from your door. Praytell, why can Ned “Silver Tongue” Chicane not get rid of a single attendant?”

“Because the attendant ain’t here this time.”

Indrid slams the drawer of his desk, looking up as an orc in a deep brown suit steps into the room, tossing his hat onto the table. He’s shorter than Indrid and Ned (stout and strong, according to the notes Indrid received), wavy black hair streaked with grey at the front. One eye is blue, the other brown, and both regard the harried matchmaker with casual annoyance.

“Mr. Newton, I, ah, I was not expecting you to visit me.”

“Yeah, well, I didn’t expect to be on a date where she found me so damn dull she hailed a cab as soon as dinner was done. I was already in town on some business for Minerva, so I decided to come tell you I ain’t in need of your services anymore.”

“I beg your pardon? Your benefactor employed me to find you a suitable match and I intend to do just that. I know there have been missteps, but such things are to be expected when searching for one’s lifelong partner.”

“Uh huh. And the fact I’m Lady Minerva’s chosen heir, which means there are a bunch of folks waitin to mimic my style and choices, has got nothin to do with it.”

“I, ah, I can’t say that I’m ignorant of the potential repercussions of being the one assigned to locate a spouse for you.”

“Which is the long way of sayin you know damn well that if I decide to stop askin you for help, no one with money is ever gonna come to you again.”

There’s a determined set to his rounded jaw, and a glimpse at the future suggests Indrid will have better luck with a different tactic

“....were they really so awful?”

“Yes. They were rude, or thought I was rude, or thought I was dull, or we just had fuck-all in common.”

“Have you considered you might just be a tad more demanding than average?”

“It ain’t demandin to want the person I spend the rest of my life with to actually like me.” He sighs, “I’m sorry, Mr. Cold, but unless you got a real winner up your sleeve, I’m done.”

All responses, all timelines show Duck ending his time as Indrid’s client and walking out the door.

“You could try me!”

“Really?” Duck looks deeply unconvinced.

“I will admit it’s unorthodox, but I, I foresee us having a perfectly nice time together. It will let me prove that I am capable of choosing companions for you.”

The shorter orc looks him up and down more deliberately and Indrid fights not to draw his dressing gown tighter. He will not be intimidated by some newcomer from across the sea.

“Okay, I’ll make you a deal. I got to go to this concert tomorrow; someone from Kepler house is expected to show and Minerva is busy. You’re comin with me.” He holds Indrid’s gaze, daring him to renege on his offer.

Indrid summons his best, professional grin, “I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”

---------------------------------------

Indrid smooths his waistcoat and jacket as he steps from the cab, tucks a strand of his silver hair behind his ear. It’s his only concession to the nerves skittering up and down his spine.

Gatherings such as these are nothing new to him; he goes to them to gather new information and new clients, to remind the well-to-do families of London and beyond that he is the matchmaker extraordinaire. But there is always the moment between when they see him and when they recognize him, when every face in the room wonders why someone like him dares to enter their space.

Somewhere in Indrid’s ancestry is a love story between an orc and a goblin. His silver hair, very angular features, and complete lack of tusks or fangs is the proof. The red eyes don’t help--they unsettle everyone who sees them--but his mother insists they’re evidence of other orcs gifted with rare magic on her side of the family. He wears red spectacles over them just to be safe; he rather likes how the color stands out against his skin, and his glasses let him avoid prying questions.

Duck is waiting for him under the awning outside the music hall; he’s in a grey day suit this time, looking just as understatedly handsome as he did yesterday morning. Indrid must admit his desire to save his reputation is not the only reason he agreed to this; he cannot understand why Duck is having such trouble meeting his match. He’s good looking, moneyed, American--an exotic background in the eyes of the average, sheltered upper-class orc--but still has family history here in England. All Indrid’s matches showed a high probability of success. The point of failure must lie with the orc himself.

“Afternoon, Mr. Cold.” Duck smiles with everything but his eyes.

“Indrid is fine, given the reason for our meeting.”

Duck nods. Indrid wishes the ground would swallow one of them up. When the pavement fails to oblige, he offers his arm. The shorter orc takes it, both of them doffing their hats as they step inside.

“I, uh, like the earring.” Duck indicates the moth cuff on Indrid’s left ear, a stark contrast to the single gold hoop in his own.

“Thank you. A friend gave it to me. I, ah, I rather enjoy working moths into my wardrobe; I find them fascinating.”

“Y’know, back home we got moths that look like hummingbirds.”

“Really?” Indrid’s ear twitches, “how big?”

Duck holds up his hands to indicate the size. Indrid is about to demand details when they’re waylaid by their hostess and pulled into a cluster of families. Indrid breathes deep, feeling crowded in, and notices Duck routinely being cut off in conversation or given disapproving looks behind his back. Yes, Indrid supposes his manners are a bit rough, but there’s no harm in that. Too, everyone seems far more interested in the goings on at Kepler House and with Lady Minerva than with Duck himself. By the time they’re seated, their arms feel locked together from shared tension.

The violinists are quite good; Indrid enjoys strings, his recordings of them being his favorite music to listen to while drawing. But his mind is so consumed by futures and by thoughts about the orc beside him that he struggles to focus on the music. Duck is having a similar issue, though he hides it well; were they not side by side, Indrid would miss the way he fidgets with the knee of his trousers.

“Are you alright?” He whispers under the applause.

“N-ye-uh. Fuck. I, the musics real nice but I gotta say I’m gettin kinda bored. But I got no fuckin clue if leavin will piss everyone here off.”

“Intermission is soon. When it comes, keep quiet and follow my lead.”

When the guests rise to stretch their legs and fetch refreshments, Indrid guides Duck to their hostess.

“I’m so very sorry, but I’m afraid my stomach is rather angry with me and it’s best if I go home. Duck has agreed to accompany me so I do not pass out in the street. I’m sure you understand.”

She nods, and in a matter of moments they’re out on the street, each breathing deeply.

“Thanks for that.”

“My pleasure.”

“Guess I oughta just head back to the hotel.” Duck sighs.

“You could. But, ah, we’re not far from Kew Gardens and the weather isn’t miserably cold for once. If you’d like-”

“Hell yeah. Wait, fuck, sorry, tryin to swear less in public.”

“I don’t really mind.” Indrid starts them down the street.

“Lots of them do” Duck tips his head back towards the concert hall, “I mean, at least that rule is easier to figure out. It’s not that there aren’t weird rules and class stuff back home, but I grew up learnin them. Here I always feel like I’m one move away from makin an ass of myself. No one’ll say anything because of Minerva, but I know if it weren’t for her, none of ‘em would give me the time of day. It makes every interaction so goddamn stressful.”

Indrid twinges with sympathy, “When I first started in these circles, I wrote myself notecards and had Ned test me on them.”

Duck giggles, so absurd and loud it draws stares from passersby, “why? You seem to know your stuff.”

“I didn’t come from money, and I don’t always read social situations the way others expect. It was learn or live as a penniless artist for all my days.” As the gardens come into view he adds, “I know the basics of your life in America but if you weren’t here, what would you be doing there?”

“Workin in the Yosemite valley. I was a ranger there for a few years before Minerva called me here.”

“What was that like?”

Duck tells him as they wander the first stretches of the gardens. He’s midway through a tangent about bears when he stops.

“Holy fuck, you’re really still listenin.”

“Of course I am, this is fascinating.”

His companion smiles, “Glad you think so. But it ain’t polite for me to dominate the conversation like this. Now you gotta tell me what you do when you’re not gettin fancy folks together.”

“...You promise you will finish the story about the bear and the tent later.”

“You know it.”

Indrid knows that time passes more quickly with good company, but he’s still startled when the sun sets. The Savoy, where Duck is staying, is closer than his home, so their cab stops there first.

Duck pauses halfway out the door, “Meet me here for dinner tomorrow?”

Indrid grins, “I’d like nothing more.”

--------------------------------

“I didn’t know the line even went this far.” Indrid watches the moors race by them out the window of the train.

“You and me both.” Duck rotates his map, glances at the letter he received a week ago, “okay, once we get off at Amnesty, we need someone to take us down Greenbank road. The house is at the end of it, somewhere around here.” He taps a patch of moor miles from anything else. Indrid studies his fingers and is glad that, of his more rugged habits, one he elected to keep was letting his nails stay claws rather than filing them down.

“My visions suggest that as long as we don’t ask anyone to drive us out after dark, we should have no trouble reaching it.”

Indrid tries not to be too giddy at the prospect of spending weeks and weeks more or less alone in the countryside with Duck. They’re going because an anonymous note informed him that he did indeed have a family estate and--once they determined that the house near Dartmoor did indeed legally belong to him--it was decided he would go to see how the old place was doing and perhaps take up residence.

He asked Indrid to come without even glancing up from the telegram from the solicitor. Indrid agreed without looking away from his drawing. If two months of semi-courtship in a crowded city got them close enough for that, Indrid dares to hope that being out here together will bring them closer still.

Amnesty is small, as they both expected, the air chilly and fog threatening to swallow whole buildings as they make their way to the Lodge where they’ve been told they can find a driver. When Duck asks the young woman working the counter for help getting to Greenbank Hall, she quirks her lips in a frown.

“I’m not sure there’s even a place called that around here….OH! Do you mean Beacon House?”

“Maybe?” Duck looks at Indrid, who quickly looks at the futures.

“Yes, it seems we do.”

“Okay. Since it's still light, I should be able to find someone to get you out there. If it comes down to it, I can, like, drive you out myself.”

They end up being driven by a friendly young man named Jake, who deposits them and their bags on the steps of the massive house with a friendly wave farewell.

“Agh” Indrid shivers as they step through the newly unlocked doors, “I think it’s actually warmer outside.”

“No kiddin. Damn fog means it’s already gettin too dark to see too. I’ll go get some kind of fire started, you see if you can find some lanterns or candles so we ain’t trippin all over ourselves.”

Indrid begins his search, comes to the kitchen and finds some matches and a candle. The solicitor arranged for food and other supplies to be brought in ahead of time, so in theory lanterns should be somewhere nearby. He’s just glad that the paltry light shows no signs of rodents getting into their food.

When he gets upstairs, he discovers two things; one, all the lamps are gas, so he’s able to light them easily. And two, a mother tortoiseshell cat is nesting with her kittens on a guest bed.

“Well, that explains the lack of mice.”

Footsteps behind him, “Got a fire goin in the sittin room, if you wanna pick a room for yourself I can light one th--awwwww” Duck moves past him towards the cat, who hisses at him, “now, there ain’t any need for that, missy. I ain’t gonna hurt you or your babies. But we oughta bring you somethin more’n mice to eat.”

“I saw some tinned food in the pantry.”

“Perfect, lemme go find a bowl.”

----------------------------------

Beacon House has seen better days, but Indrid discovers the houses loss is his gain. Duck decides they can do many of the repairs themselves, and sets about ordering supplies from London or bringing them in from Amnesty. The few times they need help, the cook and several others from the Lodge come to assist in the project. These gatherings are far more pleasant than any Indrid had to attend for work (well, except for the ones where he was with Duck). And they always end before dusk.

Indrid occupies himself with figuring out why. There was no mention of this house when he first researched Duck, and even using the local name turns up very little. It’s not until he finds a diary belonging to one H. Newton in the library that he understands.

October the 15th, 1805

I fear the worst is upon me. I cannot leave the house, dare not even peer out the windows for fear of what I shall see. Lucy says it is my health, that we should travel to warmer regions so it will improve. But I know it is not so simple. Were we to flee, it would merely wait for our return. It may even waylay us before we reached town. I am cursed. We are cursed. We always will be.

Beneath the words is a hastily sketched image; yellow eyes and sharp fangs peering from between the bars of the front gate.

There are no more entries.

Indrid is unsure whether to raise the matter with Duck. On the one hand, he wishes him to know of any possible dangers. On the other, his friend is so very content these days, coming in from some project or other with grime on his skin and a smile on his face. Indrid’s own desire to stay with him here, in a house he can pretend is theirs, threatens to drown out all other reasons.

Eventually, his conscience shouts it down while he and Duck are on their evening walk.

“Oh yeah, Barclay told me about that a few days ago. Some ghost apparently wanders around the moor at night; got somethin to do with a murderous ancestor.”

“That does not alarm you.”

“You know I don’t believe in curses and destiny or anythin like that. People make up all kinds of stories when they’re alone in wild places.”

Indrid’s foresight guides his arm, gripping Duck and keeping him from moving forward.

“Does that look like a story?”

Directly ahead of them, a tor rises like a spike. Atop it, revealed by the rising moon, is a gigantic, fur-covered shape.

“See” Duck whispers, “were we back home, I’d say that was a bear.”

“And now?”

“Given there ain’t been bears in this part of the world in decades, I say we get the hell outta here.”

They take off back down the slope, the hall a collection of yellow squares of light in the darkening distance. A howl splits the air behind them and Indrid quickens his pace, keeps his eyes on the future in hopes of protecting them both.

This means he doesn’t see the burrow in the path until his ankle goes sideways in it.

“‘Drid!”

“Under no circumstances are you to try and help meAH!” He yelps as Duck swings him over his shoulder and continues his flight towards the house. As he’s bounced about, Indrid watches a glowing shape bounding closer.

“Thank fuck.” Duck crosses the gate, slams them closed, and lowers Indrid to his feet. Nothing glares at them from the path. But a growl creeps from the shadows and follows them until they shut the door.

------------------------------------------

“How’s the ankle?” Duck drops his coat on the chair opposite Indrid before tending to the fire.

“Better than yesterday. I should be up and moving tomorrow, if the futures are to be believed.”

“You know you don’t gotta rush. I’m happy to take care of you.”

Indrid picks at the ends of the blanket in his lap, “but I miss being able to aid you with work.”

“There’ll be lots of time for that. We got plenty to do to get the house to where we can live in it full time.”

“We?”

Duck goes completely still, then fails to put the fire poker back in place three separate times. When he finally meets Indrid’s eyes, he looks worried.

“‘Drid? What’s your endgame? With, uh, with me?”

“I…” Indrid grabs his teacup, intending to drink it to buy time and finds it empty, ‘I...I don’t know. I, I wanted to prove to you that I could find you a companion who made you happy, hoping you would give me another chance to locate your perfect match. But lately I, ah, I struggle to see that plan working. As I do not wish you to have any match but me.”

Duck moves across the rug, shadows on his face making it hard to read.

“I know that shows great selfishness on my part. If that is not something you wish to have in your life I, I…” he shrinks back as Duck leans down, certain this is the timeline where he accuses him of being a conniving monster.

“Funny you should say you’re bein selfish” Duck braces his arms on either side of the chair, “because I’ve been beatin myself thinkin’ I was selfish for keepin you out here so long.”

“Keep me here forever.” Indrid whispers. Duck smiles, closes the remaining space between them. His lips are still a bit chilly from working outside; Indrid does everything he can to warm them with his own.

The shorter orc straddles him and he whines so needily that Duck snickers in reply.

“What’s wrong darlin? Kissin too much for you?’

“On the contrary; it is far too little, but my injury means my ability to drag you to my bed and beg for more is greatly impeded.”

“Good thing we live alone.” Duck pulls the blanket from Indrid’s lap, nibbles his ear as the seer catches on and begins frantically undoing the buttons of Duck’s workshirt and shoving his suspenders. When at last he pushes it open he loses himself a moment, tipping forward to tongue at the golden ring in Duck’s left nipple.

“AHheh, gettin right to it. Good” Duck unbuttons his pants, “because I’ve been wantin to fuck you since before we even came out here.”

“Oh I see” Indrid purrs, “you lured me into the countryside to sully my virtue.”

Duck laughs, full throated, as his tusks catch in the firelight, “You forgettin the time we got drunk instead of goin to the opera and you told me you convinced two sailors to take you home?”

“Only if you’ve forgotten telling me about the young ranch-hand you gave several rides to” Indrid nibbles along his neck, his twitching oddly in their quest to grind against him without jostling his ankle.

“Not a chance. But I don’t care about reminiscin right now; right now, I got the best lookin fella in the world beggin for my dick.”

“I’m not begging.” Indrid tilts his head back to help Duck get his shirt open some.

“Not yet.” Duck grins, then shoves his hand down his trousers.

“Ohhhhhyes” Indrid reaches for him.

“Keep your hands on the armrests until I say you can move ‘em.”

“But, but” it’s hard to argue when he’s trying to stare a hole through Duck’s remaining clothes. His partner notices and makes a show of moaning louder.

“Only good boys get to watch the show. You gonna be good for me?”

“The best.”

Duck kisses the tip of his nose, then wiggles and kicks his pants and underwear off. Indrid can only watch, growing more envious by the moment, as he fucks himself open and rubs a thumb along his cock. Indrid tries bucking his hips, only to discover Duck is keeping himself out of reach.

“Cruel creature.” Indrid groans.

“Cruel? I’m giving you a seat to the best show in town.”

“I’d rather you take the best seat in town.”

Duck laughs, is still doing so when he bends to kiss him. Indrid whimpers, nails digging into the upholstery to keep his promise of good behavior. Duck notices.

“Good boy.”

“AHHHnnnthankyou, thankyouthankyouthankyou” Indrid moans as Duck drops his weight into his lap, grinding on his clothed cock with abandon. He flings Indrids hands up to his shoulders. The seer glides them up to his hair, burying them there where he’s now certain they’ve always belonged. Duck mirrors him, lips only leaving his to bite the tip of his ear.

“Fuck, Indrid, that’s it darlin, lemme ride you like the sleek little beast you are.”

He whines, loses his thoughts as Ducks hips quicken.

“I know ‘Drid, you like bein mine, like that I’ll bounce on this fuckin perfect dick as often as you want as long as you’re my good, sweet, ohsweetfuck, fuck, darlin’” Duck drops his forehead to Indrid’s shoulder with a groan as he cums, soaking the fabric of his pants. Before Indrid can think about stopping, Duck picks up again with as much force as before, growling in his ear to be a good little social climber and cum for his lord.

Indrid cums at that with a chirping sound he thought he’d stopped making long ago, legs spasming from the force of his climax. Unfortunately, this means his pleasure is chased by a burst of pain. He whimpers, flinches, and Duck spots the problem.

“Oh, oh darlin I’m sorry” He drops to the floor, rubbing Indrid’s thighs, “thought the position would keep you from hurtin.”

“Apparently not. I, I want you to know I don’t regret it in the slightest.”

Duck smiles, relieved, and rests his head on Indrid’s stomach, “Guess you did find me a match, huh?”

Indrid bends slowly, nuzzling his hair with a hum, “Yes, I believe so.”

#indruck #meet ugy #indrid cold/ duck newton #orc au #victorian au #trans duck newton

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notebooknebula · 4 years ago

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Randy Lawrence, The Real Estate Preacher, Joins Jay Conner LIVE!

https://www.jayconner.com/randy-lawrence-the-real-estate-preacher-joins-jay-conner-live/

Jay Conner is joined by The Real Estate Preacher, Randy Lawrence.

“I’ve seen and done it all in real estate. Now I want to help you achieve the success I’ve enjoyed.” – Randy Lawrence

Prosperity Capital Partners lives its mission of serving others by providing Investors with financial freedom: Double-digit returns with zero capital loss and excellent tax benefits to our private investors for 17 years via asset-backed real estate investments.

Families with high-quality, affordable homes: Offering updated affordable housing enhancing the quality of life of working American families who live in our apartments.

https://pcpre.net/ https://therealestatepreacher.com/

Real Estate Cashflow Conference:

https://www.jayconner.com/learnrealestate/

Free Webinar:

http://bit.ly/jaymoneypodcast

Jay Conner is a proven real estate investment leader. Without using his own money or credit, Jay maximizes creative methods to buy and sell properties with profits averaging $64,000 per deal.

#RealEstate #PrivateMoney #FlipYourHouse

————————————————————

Jay Conner (00:02):

Well, hello and welcome to another episode of Real Estate Investing with Jay Conner! I’m Jay Conner, the Private Money Authority, also the host of the show. And I wanna welcome you whether you’re a brand new or you’ve been following the show for some time. My lands! We’ve launched back in June, 2018, tracking fast over 300,000 downloads. Thanks to you. And I do need your help. If you find this episode to be valuable, and you can use this information in your real estate investing business, then please help me out. Let’s share this information, like share, subscribe, write, and review whether you are on iTunes or watching on YouTube or any of our other platforms. Well, here on the show, we talk all things that relate to real estate investing. We talk about how to find deals. We talk about how to fund the deals without relying on local banks, mortgage companies, or even hard money lenders.

Jay Conner (01:11):

We talk about how to sell houses, rehab houses, and how to automate your business to where you’re actually running it. And it’s not running you. But as I mentioned, I’m known as the private money authority. I became an expert on raising private money and I’m not talking about doing business with brokers. I’m talking about actually attracting hundreds of thousands and in the millions of dollars in funding, that’s got nothing to do with your credit, your verification of income, or actually even the number of deals that you’ve done. If you’re interested in getting more funding for your deals to where you never miss out on a deal because you didn’t have the money, I’ve got a free gift for you. Yes, I have got a new monthly membership that I launched that I’m going to show you how to get free access to the membership. It’s called The Private Money Academy, and on the, or in the membership twice a month, I am live on Zoom with coaching for all of the Academy members.

Jay Conner (02:11):

We’re tracking fast to a thousand members. Right now, we got about 150 members. And as a matter of fact, the next live Zoom coaching call is within the next week. So I’m going to tell you how to get in, you get the live coaching. We also put someone, one of the members in the hot seat where we analyze your business, figure out your challenges and fix your challenges to where you’re able to take your business to the next level. And we also have new content and training in the membership every month on finding, flipping, automating funding, selling, et cetera. We also cover all in the membership, all types of real estate deals. We cover single family houses, commercial land, self storage, and you name it. We got it covered. So here’s how you can take advantage of checking it out for free. Go to www.jayconner.com/trial.

Jay Conner (03:10):

Again, that’s JayConner.com/Trial. Look forward to having you live on the membership Zoom conference calls. Well now in addition to that, if you’ve been tuning in for any time, you know that here at Real Estate Investing with Jay Conner, I have amazing experts. And in fact, the guests that I have on today’s show is a good friend of mine and is a fellow member of a very top and mastermind group where we have about 120 real estate investors from all across the nation. We get together about four times a year and help each other out on our businesses. Well, let me tell you about my friend. First of all, he’s an entrepreneur with over as of today, 24 years of experience, and he has four very successful real estate investment companies.

Jay Conner (04:08):

In addition to that, my friend and I have got the same, same heart, and we’ve got a lot in common. He’s a pastor and also a founder of multiple life-changing ministries. And as of this day in the last 15 years, he has impacted and then blessed impact over 40,000 people. He’s been seen on CBN, NBC, CTN and featured in the St. Petersburg times Tampa Tribune. And he’s known as the transformation expert. In addition to that, he’s experienced his own life transformations as well, overcoming the upbringing from a broken home and his life as a drug dealer to becoming a successful entrepreneur, pastor husband, and a father. In addition to that, his spiritual breakthroughs led him out of the economic collapse and the financial collapse of 2008. And man can, I not relate to that! Took him from bankruptcy to a real estate rehabbing business, generating a seven figure annual income, again, something else that he and I have in common.

Jay Conner (05:16):

Also he, and I’ve got another yet person. That’s a mutual friend and mentor back in 2013, he co-authored a book titled Dare To Succeed with Jack Canfield, who is the co-creator of Chicken Soup For The Soul detailing in this book his personal and professional rise from the ashes, his mentors and his coaches include world renowned business leaders, authors, international speakers, such as Les Brown and also John C. Maxwell. He also is an active member contributed to the same mastermind group that he and I are a member of. Comprise, as I mentioned of nation’s elite real estate investors, beyond that he passionately believes in God’s promise of abundance and freedom, and he uses his unique strategies to help transform lives like yours by unlocking spiritual, mental, and tactical financial potential through real estate investing. He also has a very popular podcast titled The Real Estate Preacher on the podcast. He shares his successes and his failures along with his proven strategies and techniques that help build systems that work he’s proven them to work. And he does this so others like you can achieve their own seven figure incomes and their own abundance, just like him. Welcome to the show. My friend, Randy Lawrence also known as the Robo State Preacher.

Randy Lawrence (06:47):

Awesome! My brother. Good to see ya.

Jay Conner (06:49):

Good to see you too, man! Would you reach around please? And like scoop up a little energy and bring to the show to grab a little more

Randy Lawrence (06:59):

After that intro I’m ready to jump up and run around the building Man! Praise the Lord!

Jay Conner (07:04):

Randy, you’ve got quite the story, quite the backstory at one time you were a drug dealer you were bankrupt. You were like, you know, you were like slap dab in one time. And the financial collapse of 2008.

Randy Lawrence (07:19):

Yup!

Jay Conner (07:19):

So, before we get into those pieces of your story how about give us your backstory and little an overview as to.

Randy Lawrence (07:29):

Yeah

Jay Conner (07:30):

Where you’ve been in, what you went through to get you where you are now

Randy Lawrence (07:34):

For sure, man. Well, so my background, I come from, you know, a broken home parents divorced it, you know, four or five years old that kind of led to, by the time I’m in middle school, high school doing my own thing, kind of wayward with the wrong crowd, wrong group, doing the wrong things and just, you know, partying and all like that. Went on through college, got my degree in finance, minor in economics, went into the stock brokerage business right after that really kind of continued on with that same kind of money and partying lifestyle and all. And it was probably about 27 that I, you know, had had success in, in that respect, but really wasn’t fulfilled. And it was at that time that I really kind of found through reading a book Norm Miller chairman of Interstate Batteries, where it outlined about faith in God.

Randy Lawrence (08:25):

I put my trust in Christ. It really just complete 180 from my life, Got involved in the church locally and then got met my wife there. We got married and then, you know, God called me in the Ministry as well. And so I’m running a money management company that I started and then also ministering there at the church and probably around about 2003, God, just really, Has showed the power of the difference of what real estate can do versus, you know, stocks, bonds, option traditional money management. So really started focus on that. And you know, that was really the beginning of where things took off for us. We sold our money management practice in 2006 and moved out North of Tampa to start a church. And then of course that’s where we were having gone through that economic collapse that happened here in Florida.

Randy Lawrence (09:17):

And it was just quite the incredible journey because I was simultaneously pastoring the church, also running the real estate business and navigating the economic collapse that the whole country went through. So really kind of an incredible time at that moment in time.

Jay Conner (09:34):

Did you say you met your wife at church?

Randy Lawrence (09:36):

I did. You know, it’s funny. My dad always used to ride me now again, he was in North Carolina, we’d see each other, maybe once a year, talk on the phone once a week, I’d be going to the bar at happy hour after work, you know, and talk to him on the weekend. And he’s like, what’d you doing? That’s all, I’m going out with some friends at a ball game. And he’s like, man, you should go to church. I’m like go to church? He’s like, well that’s where you going to meet you a right girl. And I’m like, yeah, that’s not the kind of right girl. I want to meet, but he was right. You know? And so yeah, I was blessed to meet my beautiful wife, Sarah Jo there. And we’ve been married now 21 years coming up in October.

Jay Conner (10:16):

Did you say her name is Sarah Jo?

Randy Lawrence (10:18):

Sarah Jo? Yeah. She’s.

Jay Conner (10:20):

We got two things in common, We both met our wives or our to be wives At church.

Randy Lawrence (10:25):

Yeah.

Randy Lawrence (10:25):

And both of them have good Southern devil names. Mine’s Carol Joy,

Randy Lawrence (10:32):

Okay.

Jay Conner (10:32):

And yours is Sarah Jo, you want to know something else we got in common?

Randy Lawrence (10:36):

ah.

Jay Conner (10:36):

So in your bio in 2013, you coauthored a book with Jack Canfield named Dare To Succeed.

Randy Lawrence (10:44):

yup!

Jay Conner (10:44):

Well guess what? Two years later in 2015, I got certified as a Jack Canfield trainer by Jack Canfield.

Randy Lawrence (10:53):

Awesome. Yeah, it’s a, it’s amazing how many things, you know, it’s like the commonalities that the Lord, when you surround yourself with great people, it’s like you attract those similar qualities. And then here it is, you know, that we’ve been together through CG and the friendship there. And then now as we connect together with that further, you find all these backstories that line up with the identical things. That’s just pretty cool.

Jay Conner (11:22):

Well you know, I don’t know who came up with the idiotic idea, In my opinion, that opposites attract that’s stupid.

Randy Lawrence (11:29):

yeah.

Jay Conner (11:29):

I want to be around people. That’s like me. It’s like birds of the same feather flock together. Right?

Randy Lawrence (11:34):

For sure. Absolutely. And that’s, you know, we’re really, as you begin to have the synergies, the thinking is the same, the thinking that elevates one another and pushes each other to higher levels. That’s when I heard your intro about the monthly mentorship program, it’s like, man, that’s what people need to be a of because you know, you just, you come together with great thinking and then it inspires your thinking and then you see these actions that others are doing, or, you know, it’s just a win, win. It’s like the synergy of one plus one, it’s more like, you know, two times two equals four and then it just expansively grows, you know? And that’s the thing, man. So,

Jay Conner (12:15):

Yeah, exactly. So would you say, first of all, were you raised going to church or no?

Randy Lawrence (12:21):

I was not. You know, both my parents, you know, kind of by the time I was in middle school, I was kind of given ability to start making my own decisions and, you know, good parents, but this not focused on, you know, religion or, and again, as a broken home you know, they were just trying to do the best they could do to do their thing. And, you know, so that left me to my own accord and left them on accord. I probably connected together with the wrong group and ran with the wrong crowd and all that kind of stuff.

Jay Conner (12:53):

So I want to speak for a moment to people listening in or viewing whichever platform they’re viewing as someone or listening. My best guess is the majority of people out there like you and me went through a time in their life. The majority, not all, but a lot of people went through a time in their life or an extended time in their life that was very dark. Right? And I went through my dark time. My dark time lasted from the time I was 21 years old until I was 24 years old. And it just progressively got darker and darker and darker. Here’s my question for you. Did you have a wake up call? If so, what was it?

Randy Lawrence (13:42):

Yeah.

Randy Lawrence (13:42):

And if you did, what was it?how did you get out of it?

Randy Lawrence (13:50):

Yeah, So I was, you know, in that period for me would probably been 13 through 27. So like 14 years kind of like a Joseph in the journey, the two kind of coming out of the pit and all like that. But it was really at 27. I was helping take care of my mom. She had gone through numerous health challenges with failed back surgeries and all like that. And I had gotten a DUI charge, you know, for driving home apparently intoxicated. And again, I’m like, no, you know, that’s not the truth, but really what it was for me at that moment was it was this wake up call that here I am, 27, I’m facing the possibility of losing my license for six months. And, you know, I worked at a brokerage firm in Tampa. I lived in Seminole there with my mom helping to take care of her.

Randy Lawrence (14:43):

There were these recoveries and health things she’s going through and it just hit me like, you know, good Lord, man. I’m nowhere near where I want to be in life, cause if I lose this thing, now I’ma have to ride my bike to the 711 and maybe get a job. There not knocking people to work at 711, but that was not my aspiration. And I’m like, what I’d aspired to become and to do and achieve is nowhere near the realities. And the truth of the matter is it’s because of where I’m at in my life and the choices. And so that began to be that process to me, to see it’s like, what I’ve been doing is not the right thing. And so in short order, I laid my hands on a book, another friend of mine and I we’d started in an automotive garage and in the we sold interstate batteries.

Randy Lawrence (15:33):

And so the interstate battery salesman dropped off a book called beyond the norm. And it was about Norm Miller and his journey. I thought it was a sales success book, but it was his journey on how he came to faith in Christ. And then they became the number one battery reseller in the world and went on to such great success. And when I read that book, I’m like, that’s it, he’s got a beautiful wife, he’s got success, he’s got fulfillment. He’s in, he’s found it all in Jesus. And I’m like, wow! And I’m like, you know, Lord, if that’s true, and this is real come into my life, come into my heart, show me the direction you want me to go. And it was just like wham! This giant Volkswagen that I’ve been carrying on my shoulder for 15 years was just released. And it was just an incredible thing. And I, I knew I didn’t know what exactly happened, but I knew something happened and that my life had been changed. I could just feel it at that moment,

Jay Conner (16:31):

If you would like to follow Randy Lawrence and his story, you can follow Randy at www.TheRealEstatePreacher.com So Randy what does your, so how’d you. So when did you start in real estate? How did you get into real estate and what is your business model look like today?

Randy Lawrence (16:52):

Yeah, so we started in 2003. I bought my first multifamily property with little small duplex in 99. And you know, just really loved real estate even while I was a stockbroker and a money manager, you know I just loved real estate. And the more I looked at it, I saw the power of the returns you could generate in real estate with a really a lower adjusted beta or better risk adjusted return than what we were getting with our stock portfolios. And so it was 2003. I mean, God just really helped me to see that’s the direction. And so we bought our first small apartment complex in 2003 and began buying more properties. Now in Florida, it was a real white hot market. So it was tough to get properties. My first mentors had a several thousand doors that they own in apartments.

Randy Lawrence (17:41):

And so that had always been our focus, but you know, we probably started in five and six rehabbing houses just cause there’s so much, you know, money that could be made in that arena. And so we started building that business and also, you know, owning the small multi-families and 2008 hit. We went through the decline here in Florida you know, thankfully it was a great retooling that helped me to just learn a lot through that process. And so we came out through that process where a lot of people just left real estate. We did a huge short sale business, helped hundreds of people. And then, you know, 2011, 12, 13 started rehabbing houses again. And then 15 started focused back on large multifamily. So now to this day, kind of fast forward, we have over a hundred million dollars in apartment complexes on our commercial multifamily side. We have probably three more complexes under contract. Now we’ll buy eight more complexes next year. It’s kind of a velocity approach that we use. And then we still on the residential side buy fix and sell about 70 houses a year.

Jay Conner (18:53):

Wow! That’s quite an operation for both single family and your commercial, what size operation do you have as far as employees that are with you full time and numbers size is your team?

Randy Lawrence (19:08):

Yeah. So our internal team here in the office, we’re based in Largo, Florida, which is kind of the Tampa Bay area. We have seven employees in our internal office team. And then we have right about 28 employees that are through our multifamily side, through our management partnership so that, you know, they’re, they’re not direct report to me, but they work for our company through our management operations. So with every property that we buy, cause on the apartment side, our complexes tend to be 75 units to 200 units is the range kind of the sweet spots, probably a hundred, 110 15. And so every one of those complexes, we always have a full time manager and a full time maintenance. And so with every complex we buy that adds two more people to the mix. And then we have a regional manager that oversees them. And then one of our internal asset managers that oversee them as well

Jay Conner (20:07):

On your apartment complex projects is your business model to search for distress properties that you can fix up and get the rents raised and then turn them for a profit or what’s your business model would like, are you staying in the deal long term or what?

Randy Lawrence (20:24):

Our focus typically is about a three year hold. We look for kind of the threefold, the Holy grail, if you will, that we’re looking for the, the property that has a, you know, original type condition. So we focus on workforce type housing. So that’s people making between 30 to 60 grand, you know, real C, C plus type property. These people are, you know, typically blue collar or lower end white collar workers, you know, just good quality working Americans. They need a good place to live. So that property typically built in the seventies, early eighties, original condition on the interiors. A lot of times, a little bit of deferred maintenance, you know, where they’ve owned it, but they just haven’t really fixed it up and kept it spruced up on the outside. They’re typically, you know, keeping the cashflow and then operational areas where we can improve efficiencies.

Randy Lawrence (21:15):

Cause we have a more corporate structure, you know, large scale discounts. So with that, we’re able to go in upgrade the units so that they’re for about $3,800. We’re able to make them like new two thousands, you know, paint the cabinets, new floor, new lighting and then bring the rent because if they’re renting at 800 and the market’s at nine, it makes sense. This place is a little tired. The place is not updated. So we’re able to update the units on the turn. So that keeps cashflow consistent. It keeps us to be, you know, positive out of the gate so that we’re not running a negative. And it also is much more secure because we’ve got positive cashflow from day one. So on a hundred unit property, it takes us probably about 18 months to cycle through the rent roll, renovate the units. The first 90 days though we renovate the exterior. So it gives it a fresh pop and looks nice. So, you know, you know, the first three months you pull up on the property, looks like a new place and we’re able to start methodically working through the rent roll to improve the interiors during that time as well. And then that prepares us to be done within 24 months and then operate it for another 12 months to really improve the the T 12 and prep it ready for sale.

Scott Paton (22:37):

I think we lost Jay for a minute there, Randy. So.

Randy Lawrence (22:42):

No problem. Well then, you know, so just kind of carrying forward with our business model on it. So typically those properties, you know, we’re buying them at 85, 90, 95% occupied, and we have people that invest with us in the complex. So, you know, we’re buying a, let’s say a $10 million complex, we get a seven and a half to $8 million loan. And then that additional 2 million comes in the form of our capital as well as other people investing with us. And you know, it’s a typically like that is a three year hold period based on the model that I just share.

Scott Paton (23:18):

Cool! So I have a question that’s of interest to me, and that is, is the, if I invest in your deal or your project, is it interest that comes back or interest plus a percentage of profits? Or how does that?

Randy Lawrence (23:33):

So how it works on the majority of our properties, we have a preferred return model where you’re getting a 12% preferred return. So you get 7% paid on cashflow. So that’s a quarterly check every quarter. And then you get another 5% appreciation that is then a preferred return so that you, for example, put in a hundred grand, you’re getting 7,000 a year paid quarterly and then another 5,000 a year that’s accruing as appreciation so that when the property sold in three years, you get the hundred grand back plus another 15,000. That’s the appreciation. And then meanwhile, you were paid 21,000 through the cashflow during that three year hold period. The interesting thing with apartments too, and this is one of the greatest elements to it because you’re an actual owner in the individual apartment, you get a K1.

Randy Lawrence (24:24):

And so instead of a 10 99, you get a K1. And on that K1 because of the depreciation, you’ll get you typically on a hundred thousand, about a 40,000 depreciation loss. So you actually got 7,000 of income, but your tax statement shows you lost 40 grand. So you don’t pay any tax on that 7,000. So it really is a highly favorable and tax efficient investment vehicle.

Scott Paton (24:48):

I don’t understand why anyone would buy stocks, just listening to you right now. But Jay has returned.

Randy Lawrence (24:54):

Awesome!

Scott Paton (24:54):

I’m going to step away and make room for him right now.

Randy Lawrence (24:58):

All right. Very good.

Randy Lawrence (24:59):

So I don’t know what happened, but poof! I’m going poof I’m back

Randy Lawrence (25:05):

Yeah.

Jay Conner (25:05):

So, You may have already answered this question, Randy, but one more chance, your favorite way to find your apartment deals and how many of you got the analyze to buy one?

Randy Lawrence (25:14):

Yeah, they’re very good questions. So really, you know, we network in any market. So like if you focus on a market that you want to be in, we want to be in high growth markets cause that’s where demographics and jobs are coming. So in that market, you’re going to have typically three to five people that are the majority of the brokers that sell the big projects. Right? And so we develop a relationship with those people. They know that we’re no BS shake on it, we get it done. And with that, we’ve developed a very clear track record and a confidence. So when a deal comes that’s like, I just got an email yesterday, guys like, Hey, we’ve got an amazing property that it’s off market. The sellers looking to want to sell it. We want to get your input on it. First we get that kind of first shot at stuff that other people aren’t going to get because of the relationships we’ve developed and the performance that we’ve done in executing, you know? And so that’s really the number one strategy that is yielded the results that we’ve seen. And then currently we own 11 complexes right now just over a thousand doors. And then we have three more complexes under contract right now. That’ll bring us right to about 1400.

Jay Conner (26:34):

Awesome. And how many deals you’ve got to analyze to buy one?

Randy Lawrence (26:37):

Oh yes. That’s the question right there. So it probably is anywhere from 30 to 40, a lot of times, you know, we’ve developed a system where I have a full time acquisitions person. We have a two 10X14 double spreadsheet and he’s just going through property after property, after property. And so on a weekly basis, kind of the crap that’s on the back and it migrates to the front. So now when you get to the front page, the top 5 to 10 are right there for me to look at. And then we say, okay, dive into this one, this one, this one. And that’s a process that we’ve refined and developed so that we’re able to go through that kind of ball on, because you got to shift through the chafe, define that, you know, nugget of gold and you know, and that’s really been the key.

Randy Lawrence (27:26):

And so I think a lot of times people looking at apartments, you know, they mistake well like, Oh, well I look at this one or look at that one. And it’s like, that’s really not how it works. You’ve gotta be willing to 1, be accurate and understanding the dynamics that go into it. And then 2 have the volume ability to be able to look at a lot of deals.

Jay Conner (27:45):

Excellent. Well, Randy has been such a pleasure to have you here on the show and folks to stay connected with Randy Lawrence, go on over to his website at www.TheRealEstatePreacher.com. God bless you, Randy. Thank you so much.

Randy Lawrence (28:04):

Thank you so much, brother. You have an awesome day. God bless.

Randy Lawrence (28:07):

You too. There you have it. Folks. This wraps up another episode in show of Real Estate Investing with Jay Conner. I’m Jay Conner, The Private Money Authority wishing you all the best here’s to taking your real estate investing business to the next level. And I’ll see you on the next show!

#Jay Conner #Private Money Lender #Real Estate Business #Real Estate #Real Estate Investing #Real Estate Investor #Real Estate Profit #The Private Money Authority

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localhorrornerd · 5 years ago

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31 Horror Movies for the Halloween Season

Well.. It’s a little bit over 31 bc of sequels and such but it’s a fun title for horror recs! For the record these are in no particular order in like what’s the best or anything! It’s just a list of horror movie recommendations that might get you in the Halloween mood. I tried not to have huge well-known movies on here, but I did throw in a few just because I love them and couldn’t resist. I did try to add small descriptions for each one, but given there’s like 31 movies on here, they are rather short. Either way, hopefully you’ll find one or a couple movies here that you’re interested in!

1. Trick ‘r Treat

A rather well-known one but is it really a list without Trick ‘r Treat? A fun horror anthology with four different stories that connect to each other in some way - including the fact they all take place on Halloween night! A fun one to actually watch on Halloween.

2. Hell House LLC

For the record there are two sequels (Hell House LLC 2: The Abaddon Hotel & Hell House LLC 3: Lake of Fire), however I have not seen either of them so can’t include them here, but if you want to watch them I’d say go check them out! Basically it’s a documentary style type film that follows what happened up to the days a horrible tragedy took place on the opening night of a haunted house attraction. No one knows exactly what actually went down, so the reason for the documentary is to attempt to figure out what truly happened that night.

3. Repo! The Genetic Opera

A horror musical! It’s set in a future where organ failure is extremely common so naturally a huge company comes along and is like “Okay you can have an organ transplant, but you have a huge payment plan and if you can’t pay then we’re just gonna kill you and take your organs back.” Also it has so many good songs would highly recommend if you haven’t seen it (and you can stomach a bit of gore).

4. The Devil’s Carnival & Alleluia! The Devil’s Carnival

Another horror musical! And done by the same people who did Repo! For the record The Devil’s Carnival is only about an hour long but the sequel is a full length movie! A short quick explanation is that it’s set in Hell (unsurprisingly) and follows the people who end up there - also during this the Devil is planning an attack - but I’ll let you find out the rest if you haven’t seen it yet.

5. Ju-On and/or The Grudge (Any Film)

It’s my favorite horror franchise, so of course Ju-On was gonna end up on here! Whether it be the original Japanese films or the American remakes, it follows vengeful spirits who were murdered in their home and are taking revenge on anyone who enters.

6. Sinister & Sinister 2

Okay I know Sinister 2 is one not very well liked, but since I have seen it I decided I might as well include it (though I don’t really remember my thoughts on it it’s been a while). Video tapes that contain children murdering their families and a mysterious being that may be at the center of it is the basic plot for these movies.

7. Tragedy Girls

Basically you got two best friends who capture a serial killer because they themselves want to become serial killers! Don’t wanna say too much outside of that, as that is the basic plot concept honestly, but it’s a really fun movie.

8. The Final Girls

A girl dealing with the anniversary of her mother’s death ends up, with a small group of others, stuck in a horror movie that her mother actually starred in. Okay as much fun as this one is it does pull on the heart strings a bit I gotta admit. But it’s truly great and naturally has a feel of an older slasher movie.

9. You Might be the Killer

Another one that’s got that older slasher movie vibe as it takes place at a camp. One where the counselors are getting picked off one by one by a masked killer. Comes in our protagonist, who is calling his friend, who isn’t at the camp and also is a huge horror enthusiast, for help to figure out what to do and maybe figure out what’s going on/who the killer is.

10. Danur (aka Danur: I Can See Ghosts)

A young girl who just wants friends finds them in the form of three potentially paranormal ones. Though it seemingly being just a childhood thing, it actually becomes of great importance as she gets older. This movie also has a sequel, Danur 2: Maddah.

11. Fright Night

For the record I am talking about the remake here, as I have not seen the original, but if you would prefer to watch that one - or maybe even both - go for it! Basically, teen starts to believe his new neighbor is a vampire after more and more people go missing. Also David Tennant is there if you go with the remake so that’s always fun!

12. Tales of Halloween

Admittedly I wasn’t too into this film, but I know a lot of people like it! Not too much to say, it’s a horror anthology with 10 different segments that take place on Halloween! So you’re bound to find something you enjoy within it, whether it be the paranormal, witches, or even just dumb fun horror comedy antics.

13. The Tag-Along

Based on an urban legend from Taiwan, “The Little Girl in Red”, it focuses on a man and his girlfriend. Of which the man’s grandmother suddenly goes missing one day - eventually leading to him discovering clues of a potential unknown little girl who had began following his grandmother around. There are two sequels to this movie as well that I have not seen yet, that being The Tag-Along 2 & The Tag-Along: The Devil Fish.

14. Three... Extremes

Another anthology film that contains three separate stories, each one coming from a different East Asian country. It also has a prequel, Three (or 3... Extremes II in the U.S.), and a full length film made from one of the stories within it, Dumplings.

15. The Hallow

Really feel like the point of this movie is like ‘Don’t fuck with the woods’. As it basically focuses on a couple and their baby, who seems to be the target for the odd things happening to them that seems rather connected to the woods nearby.

16. The Devil’s Candy

A man moves with his family into a new home, and slowly begins to feel as though something is possessing him in a sense. That and also the potential fact his family is being targeted by the previous resident of the home.

17. Wake Wood

Apparently FMA did not teach us not to fuck with the dead enough, so here’s a movie about a grieving couple that lost their daughter who move into a town that holds the power to bring someone back from the dead for only 3 days. Unfortunately like FMA, things go horribly wrong (just not... in the same way as FMA).

18. The Cabin in the Woods

College students go out to a cabin in the woods in which things quickly take a turn for the worst. Seems simple enough, but it’s so much more complicated than that - however I won’t be sharing any of those details for those who haven’t watched it yet.

19. Prevenge

A pregnant woman who’s husband has recently passed away, believes that her unborn child wants her to track down and kill everyone who was involved in the accident. An extremely wild but honestly rather fun time.

20. You’re Next

Home invasion, baby! In which everything goes to hell for a family and their partners when masked killers start trying to kill everyone there. Though things take a turn quick and you start to wonder who is really the ones being hunted down here. (A fairly well known one, but I had to recommend it given one of my favorite characters in horror is in this movie)

21. Kuronezumi (aka Black Rat)

Not too much to say here basic plot wise. Six students receive texts from their dead classmate, they follow as the texts ask and go to the school at night, and then start getting targeted by a killer wearing a rat mask.

22. Lights Out

A family potentially being haunted by a creature that only appears when the lights go out? Plus a whole lot of family drama? Always fun truly! It’s also somewhat based off a viral short film of the same name that the director had made before he got to make it a full length film.

23. Absentia

Absolutely had to put a Mike Flanagan movie on here. One that focuses on a pregnant woman who’s started towards attempting to move on with her life after her husband disappeared seven years ago. However, as she takes a huge step towards doing so, something rather odd happens - which I’ll let you find out for yourself if you choose to watch it.

24. Halloween III: Season of the Witch

Perhaps it’s because it’s the one Halloween movie without Michael Myers, or perhaps it’s because I was blanking out on movies I watched that aren’t extremely well-known, but I felt the need to add this one on here. It focuses on this man who is out to kill children on Halloween by using a line of Halloween masks. So basically another fun one to watch on Halloween!

25. The Barn

Teenagers go to a barn where there’s a supposed curse that can awaken Halloween-themed monsters on Halloween night. What could possibly go wrong? Honestly another one that would be a lot of fun to actually watch on Halloween.

26. Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon

A really fun documentary type film where it’s set in a world where iconic horror slashers are actually real! And a documentary crew are out to make a movie centered around Leslie Vernon, who wishes to go down in history as another one of the famous slashers. This one is really just *chef’s kiss* to me, very much recommend if you haven’t seen it.

27. Creep & Creep 2

Found footage type films in which we follow people who are hired by this rather concerning man to film him. That’s really all I can say unfortunately without trying to give away too much.

28. What We Do in the Shadows

Another documentary-style type movie! It tends to be more comedic than it is horror, but it follows a group of vampires that live together! Sort of documenting their lives and how they survive day by day. Honestly it’s so ridiculous and hilarious, and I know many people have seen it by now but I have to recommend it none the less as it’s one of my favorites. Plus, it also has an equally hilarious tv series now that you can also give a watch!

29. The Banana Splits Movie

Who doesn’t want to see the Banana Splits as animatronics that start randomly slaughtering people after the news that their show is going to be cancelled? Honestly it’s really just a fun, ridiculous movie that isn’t meant to be taken seriously. Perhaps something to watch with friends to get in the mood for Halloween.

30. The Last Exorcism

Another one that has a sequel I have not seen: The Last Exorcism Part II. Another documentary style film (Sorry I added so many of these whoops), that follows a reverend who goes around performing fake exorcisms. Things start getting a bit more complicated though when lines start beginning to blur between what is real and what is fake while doing his current “exorcism” he was asked to perform.

31. V/H/S & V/H/S 2

There is also a third film, V/H/S: Viral, however I have not seen that one. Not too much to say here, they’re basically just an anthology of short horror films that are supposedly being shown from VHS tapes.

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science-fiction-is-real · 4 years ago

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Listen. Leftists. LISTEN.

If we want to build a strong working class movement, we’re gunna have to fucking organize with republicans. I’m sorry. But there’s no getting around it. We’re gonna have to suck it up and organize with fucking republicans.

The idea of associating with someone who voted for trump makes many people on the left extremely uncomfortable. This is especially understandable if you are a person of color, not an American citizen, or LBGT+. And if you want to leave the work of organizing with republicans to your white cis-het comrades, go ahead, that's perfectly valid. I don’t want to invalidate the pain of people who have experienced bigotry.

But unless we are willing and able to organize with the ENTIRE working class, we cannot expect to gain any ground whatsoever in the fight for working class emancipation. This is just a cold hard fact.

How are you going to organize the Walmart where you work in Cornfuck Ohio if you don’t want to associate with your Trumpster co-workers?

How are you going to organize your community to petition for and vote for progressive ballot measures if you don’t talk to your republican neighbors?

How are you going to fight for working class empowerment when entire segments of the working class are not invited to the discussion table? Are you fighting for the working class, or just a segment of it? Because any working class movement that is unable to build strong coalitions across the entire population is doomed to failure, as history has shown.

Working class people who vote republicans don’t necessarily do so out of hatred for anyone outside themselves. They often do it because they correctly observe how liberal politicians consistently ignore the needs of working class people and consistently fail to deliver on promises to make life easier for the average person.

Obviously the republican politicians are no better. But If republican working class voters are brainwashed, democratic ones most certainly are too. If you still “miss Obama,” think Kamala Harris is a badass “Girl Boss,” or thing everything would have been just fine if Hillary had one in 2016, you need to grow the fuck up, get some class consciousness, and read a damn book. Those guys are all objectively terrible people who have done nothing but hurt and disenfranchise working class people their whole careers.

But when you see how support for republican and democrat candidates almost always get near 50-50 vote in presidential races, well those are the same numbers we would get if the majority of people in the country were picking who to vote for at random. It reflects the fact neither party makes a serious effort to address the needs of their voter base.

And we can see how states that swung for trump also passed some extremely progressive legislation this election. Such as Florida raising the Min wage to 15$ an hour. There is a deep hunger for progressive politics even in red states.

Are trump voters racist? Well, yeah, a lot of them are. But we most people in america are at least a little racist since we’ve grown up in a racist culture, being bombarded non-stop with racist propaganda. To say “well, they should know better by now,” or “why don’t they bother to educate themselves,” falls back on a capitalistic individual-responsibility narrative that is no more accurate in helping to understand what’s going on than telling poor people to pull themselves up by their bootstraps.

We don’t have time to moralize our neighbors. We need to build strategies based on material reality, with the goal in mind in putting money and power in the hands of the working class.

We also have to remember that the “culture war,” the idea that american people are either stupid backward redneck racists or crusty out-of-touch liberal elites, is one that is very deliberately manufactured by the ruling class to keep working class people divided. And we know that it’s working because the moment I suggest to you to organize with republicans, your stomach kind of twisted into a not.

Of course, that leaves the question, how do we bring right wing-voters into our movement without compromising our values for respecting diversity, and respecting the rights of individuals to live as they please?

I would suggest the best way to do this is to speak as if leftist tolerance is a common sense idea taken for granted. We fight for gay rights, abortion rights, and minority rights just as we fight for reduced rent and higher wages. We concentrate on positive demands for building a better world instead of morally condemning those who are not yet 100% on board with our ideas, due to having grown up in a culture that doesn’t jive with those ideas.

The other thing we have to remember is that very few things combat bigotry besides the class struggle itself. When we build mass movements that appeal to the material concrete needs of working class people of all backgrounds, when we encourage working class people to fight on their own behalf, what’s going to happen is people who don’t normally see themselves as allies will find themselves fighting on the same side. This is not a hippy dippy nice idea, this is something that has been demonstrated repeatedly in the history of working class movements. Go read about the black panthers and the Rainbow coalition.

This doesn’t mean we need to tolerate when people in our movement are racist or sexist or homophobic toward others in our movement. But it does mean we need to approach this problem with an educate-first, condemn-second attitude.

Obviously there is a lot of nuance to this topic, and a lot of caveats, potential counter-arguments, and lines of evidence, that I have to leave out so this post isn’t too long.

But the thing is... Organizing with working class people who are at a low or backwards level of political consciousness is just part of being a leftist.

#leftist politics #socialism #politics #u.s. politics

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af-answers · 5 years ago

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Four Times Artemis Tries to Convince Holly to go with him to Mars and the One Time he Didn’t

The First Time | The Second Time | The Third Time | The One Time he Didn’t

The Fourth Time

The fourth time was during their sting operation to find the Changeling Napper in the American West. Foaly’s e-mail had been the itinerary of a gnome named Rumi Mush, a fungus farmer on the south side of Haven. Agricultural workers received more topside passes than most other professions in the fairy world, because though Haven’s technology was great, there were some things (like fertilizer and new seeds) one had to get from the source. Mush had been to California a week before the kidnappings began, and the surveillance photos showed Mush bringing a large biohazard container topside. It wasn’t uncommon for his trade, but Mush himself didn’t work with biohazards like spores or bacteria. But that wasn’t the smoking gun.

Foaly had done a media sweep of the area. Two days ago, in the same little town where the A5 shoot let out in California, a human child had been abducted from its crib. A wood carving of a human child had been left in its place.

The LEP raided his house on the outskirts of the gnome district and found not only the four missing fairy babes crying in a locked closet, but the human child in a cage in the basement. There were more cages as well: apparently, Mush was putting together a menagerie.

When Holly put out a warrant for his arrest, Mush was on another surface run. They alerted border patrol, but he’d passed them hours before. Giving orders to detain him if he came back through, Commodore Short and a team of LEP Retrieval sprites suited up and took the fastest shuttle to the surface. The sprites complained the cramped quarters wrinkled her wings, and while Holly didn’t dignify them with an answer, she smiled to herself.

When they got to the surface, Mush hadn’t returned. To Holly, this meant either he knew somehow he’s been made and was on the lam, or he’d been caught in the act by humans. Both were worst case scenarios. Using intel about which babies lived nearest the fairy mound, the team split into three pairs, each taking a potential target.

“If you hear sirens, follow them,” she instructed over the comms.

She and her partner approached their assigned house downwind. Gnomes had excellent senses of smell; if their quarry caught a whiff of them, they were done. After all, he had the advantage of being magic-less and so could hide inside the house, not to mention the hostages he could take. She crept up to a window of the one-story brick house. All the windows were dark, but she looked in anyway, turning on her night vision.

“No movement,” she reported. “Check the other windows.”

Just then, a voice call alert flashed in the corner of her helmet, the icon ice blue.

“Not the time, Artemis,” she whispered, side-stepping a tipped over flower pot on the stoop of the porch.

“On the contrary, Commodore,” the Irish accent sounded even more pretentious over the phone, “you’ll want to hear what I have to say for once. The house you’re investigating is devoid of human occupants. Ms. Gregston won a all-expenses paid trip to the Bahamas this weekend, and she’s left her infant daughter with her parents.”

“How fortunate,” she snarked, straightening as the tension melted off her. “So I’m guessing Mush isn’t here either?”

“Oh,” she could practically hear his smirk stretch into a grin. “I wouldn’t say that. Look in the front window.”

Holly peeked over the cracking paint of the window sill into the front room. There, hog-tied inside a ring of candles, was Rumi Mush. Outside of the wax circle was a note, written in a woman’s hand,

“Come on in.”

“I’ll see you at the fairy mound,” Artemis said, then hung up the phone.

As her team escorted a handcuffed Mush into a police shuttle, Holly slipped into the woods to meet the hulking figure in the shadows.

“Hide and seek was never your game, eh big man?” she joked, tapping Butler on the thigh with her first.

“I was quite good at being ‘it’,” he said with a grin.

Holly turned her gaze on Artemis, who looked entirely too smug.

“What were you thinking, interfering with LEP business like this?”

The grin shrunk a few teeth. “If I hadn’t interfered, you would have had a hostage situation on your hands!”

“I’m not complaining,” she pointed out. “I’m asking what were you thinking. Why this case? Why now?” It had been less than forty-eight hours since their lunch conversation, but the boy— no, man— looked different now. Emotionally. Though he smiled and his shoulders were sloped back in a relaxed stance, her helmet sensors showed an elevated blood pressure and too-even breathing. Like he was regulating it manually.

She took off her helmet, tucking it under her arm before taking his hand. “What’s happened, Artemis?”

He looked up at his oldest friend, who coughed into one gargantuan fist. “I’ll go— wait by those trees. You know the ones.”

When he’d gone, Artemis sighed, his smile now tired. “I can’t beat Foaly’s sensors, can I?”

“Why would you try?” She activated her wings so she could hover at his eye level. “Does it have something to do with the space thing? Why are you so hung up on this Artemis? Why are you in such a hurry—“

“Hurry? I’ve been building this ship for four years!”

“And you can’t wait a little longer? You’re still young, your brothers are still young. If you leave now, you’ll miss most of their childhood.”

“All the more reason to leave now,” he joked.

“This all seems very reactionary for you, Arty. I’ve never known you to make such a big decision so flippantly.”

“Apparently I’m supposed to be flippant. Flippant is normal.”

Artemis ran his free hand through his hair— a rare gesture for him, as it mussed his quaff— and pursed his lips to keep himself from talking further (another rarity).

But that last word was all Holly needed. It was a word Artemis seldom used unless he talked about one specific person. “It’s your mother.”

Holly led him to the coffee house in the shuttle terminal. They got a lot of sideways glances, but Artemis had been on multiple Haven talk shows since his rebirth, so there was no outright alarm.

“It didn’t begin when I resurrected,” he said as she set a earthenware cup of hickory coffee in front of him. “It didn't even start after Hybras, it was well before then. I think Mother has considered herself a failure as a parent since Father’s return, and she’s been trying to rectify the problem— me— ever since.” He wrapped his hands around the cup, but didn’t lift it to drink. “First her behaviors were what I considered to be typical for a mother: buying me clothes I didn’t like, disapproving of my language, wanting me to socialize with people my own age. But when Myles showed signs of taking after me, it changed. Escalated.” He sighed deeply, and Holly realized this was hard for him, that he most likely had never voiced these thoughts aloud. She covered his hands with hers, but remained silent.

He took another breath, then went on. “She was already going to university for psychology and mental biology, so she took up some child psych classes. After her first class, she sent the twins to a private boarding school on the other side of Dublin. I know part of her reason was so the twins would be more socialized than I am. A noble goal to be sure.” He stared at their joined hands, a crease forming between his brows. “When the twins were suspended for criminal recklessness, I’ve never seen Mother so upset. Not only with the twins, but me as well. She would never accuse me of corrupting my brothers, of course, but after that she monitored me constantly. Every day she asked me probing questions, and I could feel her diagnosing me, trying to suss out how I was broken.” He pressed his eyes shut. “Do you know what it feels like, to have someone you love and admire try to change the fundamentals of who you are? To have someone make you question if you’re sensible or even real?”

Now Holly did speak. “Yes,” she said, squeezing his hands. When he opened his eyes to look at her, they were watery, the ice in his blue irises melting. “In my early days as an officer, Commander Root and my coworkers challenged every decision I made. If I showed emotion, I was acting like a girl. If I did something right, I was finally ‘thinking like a man.’”

“The commander said that to you?” Artemis asked, angry on her behalf.

She shrugged. “It was the way at the time. He apologized later, and no one on the force would dare make those comments now, but back then I was jeered at for acting like a woman, but rejected if I bucked gender roles. It was wrong of them to treat me as if my differences were flaws.” She said the next words gently, but firmly. “And it’s wrong of Angeline, too.”

He shook his head. “Your colleagues were prejudiced against your biology. I made horrible choices in the past, and Mother believes it’s her job to pick up the pieces.”

“You wearing Armani suits everyday and calling her ‘Mother’ doesn’t make you an evil dictator, Artemis,” she argued. “Your mother is upset because you are who you are independent of her influence. You took care of her when you were ten years old. You were saving the planet by fourteen. If she can’t see the amazing man you’ve become, it’s her who needs a shrink.”

The human blinked, then smiled, one side of his mouth pulling up higher than the other. “See? This is why I need you to come to Mars with me. Who else would put me in my place?”

She withdrew her hands and frowned. Her stomach fell like she’d eaten a meal of lead. “Wait. Was this all a ploy to convince me to go to Mars?”

He tilted his head at her, then laughed when he processed her question. “No, no it’s all sadly true. I must still have a way to go if you believe I’d tell such an egregious lie to trick you into running away with me. Or perhaps, you’re simply arrogant.”

Holly shared his laugh, her stomach light again. “Even though we shouldn’t change who we are to match someone else’s expectations, there's always room for personal growth.”

He finally took a drink of coffee, then winced when he found it was room temperature. “In all seriousness, the offer still stands. If there’s even a part of you that doubts, please think on it.” He produced a fairy credit chip to pay for their drinks, and Holly didn’t bother asking where he’d gotten it. He stood, still smiling sadly at her. The emotion was become a constant for him, and she didn’t like it. “The launch is scheduled for two weeks from tomorrow. Please let me know by then.”

She nodded numbly, her brain scrabbling to answer the unspoken question of whether she did doubt, when her thoughts finally snagged on two vital words.

“Two weeks?”

#mild spoilers #artemis fowl #holly short #angeline fowl #in which i work through some issues

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culturekaizen · 4 years ago

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What Is Kaizen

In February 2019, an article on mlb.com by Greg Johns states: "The official motto of the (Seattle) Mariners' Spring Training -- as posted boldly on the team's clubhouse walls at the Peoria Sports Complex -- is "Kaizen." 1 Every year the manager of the team creates a mantra. "This year, (Manager Scott) Servais chose a Japanese word: Kaizen," writes Ryan Divish for the Seattle Times.2 What does kaizen mean? How does a word made famous by the Toyota Production System (TPS) in the lean manufacturing world become the motto for a professional baseball team?

Simply translated from Japanese to English, kai = change and zen = good. Kaizen essentially means good change; it is also commonly used to say continuous improvement, where small improvements over time produce big results. The core of lean manufacturing in the TPS is identifying and removing waste, maximizing processes that add value, and continuously improving the systems and processes of the organization. Kaizen is one of the foundations of the TPS because the entire philosophy is based on the idea that everything can be improved. Every process has the potential to be better tomorrow than it is today.

"It sounds like a mystical Japanese philosophy passed down by wise, bearded sages who lived in secret caves" say Brett and Kate Mckay.3 But we aren't talking about zen gurus who levitate above a foggy mountaintop in full lotus. We are talking about Toyota, arguably the best manufacturing system in the world. We are talking about a professional baseball team's season motto. How does kaizen go from zen monk, to titans of industry, to a sports team? Because it is such a simple concept. Everything can be better than it is now. Small improvements over time produce massive results. You don't have to change the entire system today, or in the next week, or even the next month. However, make a small incremental improvement every single day and you will have made large strides forward after a while.

I am a huge fan of Tim Ferriss and highly recommend both his bestselling books and world famous podcast. A theme that is constantly repeated by Tim is that when people try to learn a new skill, get rid of a bad habit, or implement a positive habit, they often start too big and end up failing very quickly. Just look at the classic New Years resolution to start going to the gym. Go to any gym the first week of January and it is packed with people who have the best intentions to change their lifestyle and become healthier, happier people. I applaud anyone who is trying to make this change in their life. But most of them drop out of the routine within a few weeks. Why? Often, they go cold turkey from not exercising at all to telling themselves they are going to go to the gym one hour per day, 5 days per week. That is a massive change for someone who is starting at zero or close to it. They make it the first two days, but on the third day, life or work or family get in the way and they miss a session. They start missing more days and pretty soon it's back to the way it was before. In this example, and many like it, the kaizen approach would be best. Rather than jumping from zero to one hour a day five days per week, start with 10 or 20 minutes one, two, or three days a week. Start small. Give yourself a goal that you can achieve so you don't feel like a complete failure when you don't live up to the unrealistic expectations you set for yourself. Build up from there. After all, 10 minutes of exercise two days a week is a hell of a lot better than zero. Pretty soon that turns into 15 minutes and then again becomes 3 days per week. Eventually, you might build up to the original goal. But small, incremental, continuous improvement got you there. Not diving in head first. Get the wheel turning and then use the momentum to keep moving forward.

"Big, giant goals can be awe-inspiring. But like many awe-inspiring things — a lion, a black hole, the Grand Canyon — they can also swallow you whole... Our quest to become better often feels like a roller coaster ride with its proverbial ups and downs. By the time you’re headed down Self-Improvement Mountain for the twentieth time, you’re vomiting out the side of your cart in self-disgust, cursing yourself that you once again bought a ticket to ride" write Brett and Kate McKay.3 Kaizen is the philosophy that will end your roller coaster of starting and stopping. In an article on inc.com titled Don't Try to Be the Best. Just Be 1% Better Every Day, James Altucher writes that if you can improve 1% every day "you will be 3800% better (38 times better!) in one year. Nobody does that. That's what superheroes do. You will be a superhero. Then everyone else will be worrying how they can compete with you." 4 Making that 1% change might not even be noticeable from one day to the next. But if you continue to making those 1% improvements over time, "you suddenly find a very big gap between people who make slightly better decisions on a daily basis and those who don't. (James Clear)." 5

Unfortunately for the Seattle Mariners, an article published by cbssports.com on September 6, 2019 was titled "The Mariners have been eliminated and the longest postseason drought in North American sports is one year longer." 6 Kaizen didn't end their historic playoff drought. However, Mike Axisa does write in that article "The Mariners have found some potential long-term building blocks this season." So one step better? Maybe. But professional sports are weird, and not always a reflection of real life. As the cliche saying goes, progress not perfection. Remember, kaizen is a philosophy and belief and system all at the same time. Believe that you can make everything better tomorrow than it is today. Use the system of small, manageable, incremental improvements and see where you land six months from now. One is more than zero, and two is twice as big as one. Those small numbers add up, as long as you believe change is possible.

Kaizen = Good change.

- Tyson

References:

"Mallex injury opens door for OF prospects," by Greg Johns, February 16, 2019, https://www.mlb.com/mariners/news/mallex-smith-injury-opens-door-for-prospects-c304044944

"Mariners Sunday mailbag: Explaining the Japanese origin of the team’s new slogan," by Ryan Divish, March 31, 2019 at 6:00 am Updated April 1, 2019 at 8:38 am, https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/mariners/mariners-sunday-mailbag-explaining-the-japanese-origin-of-the-teams-new-slogan/

"Get 1% Better Every Day: The Kaizen Way to Self-Improvement," by Brett and Kate McKay, July 31, 2020 • Last updated: September 5, 2020, https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/get-1-better-every-day-the-kaizen-way-to-self-improvement/

"Don't Try to Be the Best. Just Be 1% Better Every Day," by Quora, written by James Altucher, NOV 15, 2016, https://www.inc.com/quora/dont-try-to-be-the-best-just-be-1-better-every-day.html

"Continuous Improvement: How It Works and How to Master It," by James Clear, https://jamesclear.com/continuous-improvement

"The Mariners have been eliminated and the longest postseason drought in North American sports is one year longer," by Mike Axisa, Sep 6, 2019 at 12:38 pm ET, https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/phillies-introduce-dave-dombrowski-as-new-president-what-to-make-of-his-j-t-realmuto-and-payroll-comments/

Other sources:

https://www.kaizen.com/what-is-kaizen.html

https://www.leanproduction.com/kaizen.html

https://theleanway.net/what-is-continuous-improvement

https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newSTR_97.htm

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coolmarriagerecords · 4 years ago

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On Chronophage

By Zachary Lipez

https://zacharylipez.substack.com/p/notes-on-the-mekons-chronophage-and

Chronophage are a band from Texas. They have been around for three years. Chronophage consists of Parker Allen (they/them) guitar and vox, Sarah Beames (she/her) bass and vox, and Cody Phifer (he/him) drums. For the new record, Parker’s brother, Casey Allen (he/him) plays synth. That’s all I know about Chronophage. The internet shows no interviews and, besides punk zines I don’t own (and presumably critics on Terminal-Boredom forums), the music press outside of Austin has ignored them. I first heard about the band from MaximumRnR, which listed their debut, Prolog for Tomorrow, released in December of 2018, as one of the best albums of 2019 (you can do stuff like that when you’re a revered punk zine). Because MRR is famously *cough* averse to cover any band that even flirts with problematicism, I don’t have to worry about my ignorance of Chronophage’s individual members potentially allowing me to big up fascists. Maybe it’ll turn out they’re Maoists (an ideology MRR is less worried about) but I guess we’ll cross that bridge when/if we come to it. Anyway, I had never even heard of Chronophage (a small miracle unto itself considering the underground’s ready access to publicists and music writers- such as myself- who love few things more than being the first to “discover” a band.). But, even while my sense of aural adventure is a bit rusty since the days of having to risk $8.99 on albums based solely on cover art and/or vibes in the air, I just knew Prolog for Tomorrow was going to scratch an itch. Maybe not an immediate itch but, when you keep as many itches on file as I do, you can afford to trust your instincts. Especially when those instincts have already been validated by some punk weirdo in Oakland who’s probably still mad at the Go-Go’s for firing Margot Olavarria fifteen years before they were born. My instincts served me well because that hypothetical punk weirdo was right! (About both things.)

I’m not sure how to describe Chronophage. I’m not a major fan of the comparisons, to Swell Maps or the Messthetics comps, that the punks made. I don’t dislike either point of reference but knowing Chronophage supposedly sounds like both doesn’t affect how I hear the band. Prolog for Tomorrow’s inner sleeve art has “Curse of Chronophage” scrawled, which may be a reference to The Curse of The Mekons. Or maybe not. I’m trying not to project my bullshit on the band. Matter of fact, Chronophage don’t sound anything like the honky-tonkin’-Mekons. Not because Chronophage aren’t honkys tonkin’ but because, historically speaking, American bands aren’t as hung up on sounding American as English bands are. The album art for Prolog is reminiscent of much of the (actually) cut and (actually) pasted Pavementisms of the ‘90s, which in turn was lifted directly from The Fall and all that band’s adherents. Like early Pavement and The Fall, Chronophage are full of hooks, some overt and many buried under transient skronk. But, unlike all the obscurist indie Chronophage shares a typewriter with, the basic template on the album, if there’s one at all, is “folk punk.” I suppose? At least the sense of that genre is present, if dependent on an expansive notion of both “folk” and “punk.” Minus any busking grotesqueries in the “Wagon Wheel” vein, there’s the strum and twang of barely distorted guitars, every string visible in the mind’s eye, maybe in need of tuning or maybe just playing those jazz chords I hear so much about at music critic parties. While only three musicians play on Prolog, horns and keys go in and out of the songs like a C Squat marching band showing up to support the potluck. Adding to the offhand spontaneity of the proceedings, there’s intermittent cowpoke yowlings, some very live sounding drums, and at least one poetry reading. There’s a real anarchist house party vibe but just when it feels like Chronophage are going to lose their train of thought or, worse, ask to borrow the touring band’s kick drum pedal, another fragile and plaintive power pop chorus arrives in time to keep me from retreating to the kitchen to bum beer off strangers.

If we’re going to (re)subscribe to my initial thesis that there are certain sounds made by certain bands that provide a messily alluring alternative to the pat and disingenuous cleanliness of overculture, therefore making a prickly honesty worth striving for (even if that striving lends itself to either self delusion or a romanticizing of failure), then Chronophage are what we’re talking about. Even if on their new album, The Pig Kiss’d (out on November 23), they kind of fuck a significant amount of my thesis over by showing that they do, in fact, know what they’re doing. Whatever. I deserve it. The whole mythology around The Mekons as a band finding dignity in the face of drunken ineptitude was a fib. While not having the chops of The Texas Playboys, and certainly often drunk, The Mekons, by the mid-’80s, were writing and performing songs as subtle and dynamic as any non-boring rock and roll, not to mention post-punk, band could aspire to. Because perfection is so oppressive, its absence will always be its own inherent virtue. But even better than not being able to play your instruments is being able to play them real pretty, but throwing some ugly in anyway. Just to show all the aesthetic bible thumpers that heaven isn’t always the hot shit it purports to be.

The Pig Kiss’d is a sharper, more streamlined, proposition than Chronophages’s first record. The guitars, thankfully still mainly free of any distortion mush, ring out as cohesive riffs. Even while the lite-funk chunka-chunkas still occasionally approximate Desperate Bicycles covering Steely Dan (an under-appreciated subculture band influence… a lot of people don’t know that Big Black’s name was short for “Big Black Cow”), and the snare underpinning gives them a decidedly peace punk punchiness, the riffs now transform into razor-like, no wave leads instead of the decays into noise (or just silence) prevalent on Prolog. While the previous album positioned voices as hesitant souls in conversation, Chronophage’s dual singing is now consistently commanding. Not to say that either Allen or Beames are preoccupied with auditioning for American Idle anytime soon, but they both have cool, heavy-on-personality punk voices, ranging from conversating chill to accusatory growl, which the mix now accentuates. I’m not going to pretend that I don’t miss the feeling of a sinking ship, barely kept afloat by the bodies of oogles under the hull, but I’m also glad for a recording that doesn’t sound like the studio engineer is holding a personal grudge against the drummer. Of course, in no longer sounding a mess, Chronophage runs the risk of just sounding like, you know, a rock band. Of which there are plenty. Luckily this ain’t the case. The desperate, weird energy of Prolog for Tomorrow is still abundant. It’s just put in the service of songcraft more than ADD-infused mood. If there’s a newfound, almost psych, expansiveness in the songwriting, it’s a psych fueled by strychnine over any slouching towards bliss. And when the songwriting contracts, we get instant classics like the album closer, “Name Story,” which could be an undiscovered New Model Army a-side. So much does “Name Story” sound like a lost hit that I had to write the band and ask if it was a cover. (They responded that the aim was to sound like New Order… which is amazing.) Still, by contemporary indie standards, Chronophage sound like countrified First Wave of Black Metal-ers running through the American songbook. By contemporary post-punk standards, which can be applied now that New Order are on the table, Chronophage don’t sound contemporary at all. They sound out of the timeline; Richard Lloyd skipping post-punk entirely to jump headfirst into college rock, making that nerd rock hip, and vice versa. Lightning striking itself. In the face. Repeatedly. And by folk punk standards, if we’re bothering to still apply it, Chronophage continue to sound like the only true freaks in a field of future beer reps.Like I said, I don’t know much about Chronophage. While writing this, I exchanged emails with Parker but, preferring the mystery, I only asked about pronouns and whatnot. Maybe they’re apolitical. Maybe they are Maoists. Maybe they’re neither but still find my chronic naysaying abhorrent and dull. For all I know, they all campaigned hard for Pete Buttigieg and all the proceeds from The Pig Kiss’d are going towards having Chronophage Brand hostile architecture benches placed near the homeless encampments in Austin. Guess we won’t know for sure till the album comes out. But this feels like opposition music, and, more importantly (to me) it feels like music that speaks to a refusal to simply be grateful for the crumbs handed to us. Nit picking, as it were. If not exactly “dignity in the face of drunken ineptitude” then, in the face of endless war and empire and an oligarchal insistence to smile more, Chronophage make a sound that- equal parts sweet fury and sweaty sweetness and spilling over with a feisty, chaotic grace- approaches dignity. If the next few years are great, then great. We can play Chronophage at the cookout we’re all invited to. And if the next four years are instead a happy faced atrocity exhibition, at best a grinding exercise in defending cops, creeps, and landlords for the sole reason of the other side’s cops and creeps and landlords being so much worse? Then Chronophage’s sound will prove to be the kind of correct that’s too sloppy to be smug. Even under austerity, the anarcho-freak punx got bops. So even as COVID, the ice caps, or capital’s poptimist truncheon bear down on us, threatening to tickles our little chins, let us, at least, enjoy this thing.

https://zacharylipez.substack.com/p/notes-on-the-mekons-chronophage-and

* The cassette version of Th’Pig’Kiss’d Album will be available soon on Cool Marriage. Check this blog for updates.

#chronophage #chronophageband

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bbq-hawks-wings · 5 years ago

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I sincerely hope Keigo and Touya didn't meet at the HPSC. Other than finding it unlikely-ish, I don't want Touya intruding on Hawks' backstory in that way. He may already be in it, sorta. But I personally don't like that one. Anyways, had a thought that if they were to meet. Where exactly is that building now? Tokyo? At least if they moved Hawks from Kyushu to Honshu, he'd be closer to the Todoroki's. Its not like they let Hawks live in his old home right? Not with the state of that place.

“I’m hesitant to agree with Keigo and Touya being physically present for the Takami theif capture. Why would Endeavor take a child to a whole other island while on duty, and boom. Now the world knows about Todoroki Touya and I don’t think they do. But Keigo speaks of Endeavor as if he saw his flames shinning personally. Maybe not on TV as I previously thought? If that parent never came home, just the footage and knowing Endeavor stopped him could be considered being saved. You can be a shinning light just from giving hope or relief too right? It’s like respite.

Back to the other ask, Hawks being in Honshu could kinda explain why he knows Standard Japanese. Sure he’d learn anyways from hearing people who speak it, but also from being in a region that speaks it. Uses it more than Hakata dialect, despite slipping into it sometimes. I wonder if he chose Kyushu for his agency to return to a place he couldn’t grow up in? To be further from the HC? Tokyo too crowded? I mean there’s already so many big name heroes in the other regions. Honshu mostly I’m sure. That’s like half of the top ten. And there’s U.A. Hawks is the only one in Kyushu. Which is also the most distant from other places by both location and language. As if Hawks wasn’t alone and cut off enough already. Though logically it makes sense. Sent four asks, sorry!“

Anon- he-HEY! Anon. Anonanonanoanonaonanon. Look at me. For the past month the overwhelming bulk of my human interaction has been limited to a single toddler who currently only seems to ask for snacks and thinks pulling my hair/climbing all over me is just the best thing in the world.

Don’t you dare apologize about having a detailed discussion about this otherwise pointless thing I am still nonetheless passionate for, personally cannot shut up about, and have almost no one in my immediate circle with whom to talk about it.

This is a lot to cover so I’ll put the rest under the cut and try to break down your argument point by point to respond.

1. You feel like Touya entering Keigo’s story in the way that theory outlines doesn’t feel quite right - either from an emotional standpoint or otherwise.

On this point I would agree, not so much because it has anything to do with Keigo but moreso what it means for Dabi and the way his story has been built up against Endeavor up to this point. Dabi has been built up as a result of Endeavor’s abysmal failure as a hero and a father. While I would certainly argue at this point Dabi has accrued his own hefty laundry list of sins to account for, for him to be “solely” responsible for his own demise doesn’t gel cleanly with the narrative setup so far.

2. Potentially moving Keigo’s location during childhood/training would put him in closer proximity to the Todoroki’s.

This feels pretty plausible, and I would also be inclined to agree but again probably for different reasons.

A. His previous home was likely at least not conducive to the strict training he was about to go through as you mentioned.

B. For a long-time ward like that it’s probably easier on the organization, family, and child if he lived closer to headquarters where resources were more readily available due to already-present demand (i.e. other trainees).

C. I hesitate to weigh in on the language aspect as I don’t know enough about Japanese dialects, and these in particular, to comment much. I know that some Japanese dialects are so different from standard that even native speakers can have trouble understanding them. Standard Japanese is more than likely used in most media and entertainment across the country, though, (just like standard American English is where I am), so I probably wouldn’t say that’s how he knows it; but it would contribute to him being able to switch more smoothly between. Those introduced to and enforced to speak a specific way in specific circumstances (especially when young) can easily be trained to immediately respond instantly in whatever assigned speech pattern - often naturally doing so after a few short years of practice. It’s code-switching, though the fact that he more naturally falls into the Hakata dialect when comfortable or excitable enough to slip may actually reinforce the idea that he was located in a place where his relaxed, informal speech was Hakata (like at home) and switched to standard when working/training.

For those who aren’t as familiar with Japan’s geography, Kyushu is the southernmost island of Japan, and Honshu is the largest, main island where most of the big-name cities like Tokyo and Kyoto are located. UA Academy is located in the fictional city of Musutafu, Japan which is meant to be close to Tokyo. For the purpose of the argument, we’ll just consider those relevant regions Tokyo-adjacent. We actually don’t have much information as to the official location headquarters for the Hero Public Safety Commission, but just for a common point of reference we can probably assume it’s Tokyo-adjacent as well.

3. Speculation about Endeavor’s role in Keigo’s training/saving him.

This one gets fuzzy because there’s important gaps we’re missing. We know for certain that Keigo saved a street-crossing’s worth of people from a high speed multi-car pileup accident; we have solid evidence to believe that Endeavor and Keigo met face-to-face (even just a glance) when he was a child; we know Endeavor specifically stopped some thief with familial ties of some kind to Keigo, and we know that Endeavor in particular inspired Keigo to be a hero.

What’s fuzzy is the order and timing of these events. In the flashback to Keigo saving those strangers it’s unclear if he was immediately identified as the person who saved them (aside from the description of “a kid”). He was eventually discovered, but “Find this wonder child, quickly!” means there was some amount of searching involved.

It’s unknown if the “thief Takami” was an immediate family member or even just Keigo himself. Given his age at the time, it’s at least suspect that a child that small would single-handedly draw the attention of a top hero without due cause, though with his quirk and given the fact that he was already so adept at using it (which we’ve seen in the series comes from practice) it’s not out of the question to believe that this thief was using Keigo as an accessory to whatever theft was taking place and thus drew Endeavor’s attention.

It’s possible Keigo never met Endeavor face-to-face. It’s possible that Thief Takami directly or indirectly caused the accident either in an altercation with Endeavor or while committing a crime - at which point Keigo swooped in and saved the day. In either case, Endeavor may have been the one to find/recognize Keigo as the hero prodigy or by taking custody of the thief inadvertently revealed Keigo’s identity to the HPSC. While he may have more or less recruited Keigo himself at that point, more than likely in the reporting of the incident, the “wonder child” was rediscovered.

It’s also possible that a string of coincidences and misconceptions led to Endeavor becoming Hawks’ personal inspiration as a hero in a similar way All Might was to Deku - a kid beaten and battered by society with a heart for others has a chance meeting with the hero he admires for specific, intangible reasons to be told from the horse’s mouth “you too can be a hero.” Assuming this, in Keigo’s case it’s tragic in the grand scheme of things as it was a matter of displayed aptitude rather than the spirit of the action that was recognized in Keigo during a time where Endeavor sought mere ability in a youth for his own narcissism to the point of torturing his own young children to attempt to pry it out of them. In other words, while a tiny child like Keigo was still aspiring to ideals over results he associated those qualities with a man who did not embody them and thus subjected himself to a lifetime of coercion under false pretenses even despite the fact his own intentions were pure.

Linking back up to point #1, I feel like that’s more in line with the story Horikoshi is setting up; but we won’t know until we have more information. At this point, I think almost - if not all - our questions will be answered soon. It’s just a matter of being patient for the drip-drip-drip trickle of information we get chapter by chapter every week.

#spoiler!hawks #spoiler!dabi #let's talk hawks

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coll2mitts · 4 years ago

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#67 Muppets Most Wanted (2014)

"We're sorry, Kermit. We're sorry we didn't notice you were missing. We're sorry we didn't tell you often enough how much you mean to all of us. We're sorry we ever took you for granted. But, that’s never going to happen again... Kermit, we convinced ourselves that evil frog was you because he gave us what we thought we wanted. When what we really wanted... What we really needed... Was you, Kermit. The actual, real you."

After The Muppets, I was fully prepared to eat my own shoes instead of watch this movie. My only motivation was the light at the end of the tunnel. Much like the Genie at the end of Aladdin, I would have fulfilled my end of the bargain and finally be freed from having to watch any more Muppet movies ever again. But something unlikely happened... They began The Muppets Most Wanted admitting their fans at the end of The Muppets were paid extras. They were transparent about a sequel being a not-as-good cash grab. The opening number was referential to the original sequel, The Great Muppet Caper, but the lyrics were self-aware, self-deprecating and peak Muppet.

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I’ll even go on record as liking this movie a great deal. I was able to forgive the product placement, the obligatory Disney references, the pop songs, and the 7000 cameos because this movie felt like... an apology? Like they had watched the last movie and realized it was hollow, and the spirit of Kermit was steamrolled by their desperation to emotionally connect to the audience.

True to Muppet fashion, their opening number states the stakes of the movie, Ricky Gervais (...ugh) approaches The Muppets with the idea of managing them during a World Tour. Kermit, being a level-headed frog, is hesitant to sign with someone named Dominic Badguy, and doesn’t want to rush into something new without establishing a proper show beforehand. Striking while the iron is hot with your new IP is not enough of a reason to rush out a project.

Kermit is eventually persuaded to hire Dominic, but books a series of smaller venues to ease them into the swing of things.

“Looks like they put the reviews up early!” “Yeah, or is that the suggestion box?”

The Muppets are disappointed by this, and are easily swayed by Dominic to bet big and rent extremely large venues under the assumption they will sell out their shows and make the money back. Kermit is against this at first (voting for “just giving up” instead of “believing in themselves”), but he goes along with the group because he was outnumbered. The content of the show is also a point of contention, as Kermit suggests they play to their strengths, because if the show isn’t successful, they might not have jobs after the tour. This concern is also brushed off, as Dominic tells Gonzo sure, bulls running around the stage sounds like a great idea, the magnetic bomb-attractor vest will be a useful invention, and Miss Piggy should be singing 4 or 5 Celine Dion classics a night.

While Kermit is disappointed, Dominic tells him to take a walk in East Berlin to clear his mind. We then find out this is a setup to kidnap Kermit and send him to a Siberian Gulag so Dominic and the The Most Dangerous Frog in the World can schedule The Muppets to perform in venues directly next to museums that hold clues and trinkets that will assist them in stealing the Crown Jewels.

Much like The Great Muppet Caper, this movie revolves around case of mistaken identity between bad frog Constantine and good frog Kermit, with their only differentiating feature being a mole on Constantine’s face. After Kermit is kidnapped, Constantine assumes his identity, and although Constantine has a Russian accent and speaks in Muppet one-liners, he’s covered his mole in green grease paint, so the cast has no idea anything is amiss.

As artifacts go missing, Sam Eagle from the CIA and Jean Pierre Napoleon from Interpol are on the case! They dislike each other at first, as everything Sam Eagle does is comically overstated and American, while everything Jean Pierre does is comically understated and European. They gradually come to respect each other, connect the dots, and determine The Muppets... are too stupid to perform a series of heists.

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Meanwhile, Kermit is having a hard time acclimating to prison life. Nadja, the prison warden, played Tina Fey (with a really terrible accent, which I can’t tell is supposed to be terrible as a gag, or it just is?) thwarts all his attempts to escape. Kermit grows to accept he is stuck in the Gulag and his friends are not going to come and rescue him. To distract him, Nadja puts him in charge of the annual lighthearted Gulag Review, and Kermit’s practice with wrangling the Muppets make him perfect for the job of wrangling hardened criminals, like The Prison King (Jemaine Clement), Big Papa (Ray Liotta) and Danny Trejo (Danny Trejo).

Walter is suspicious something strange is going on with their tour, because he seems to be the only Muppet with critical thinking skills. He shadows Dominic and finds him bribing Robert Crawley to post good reviews of “The Muppet Show” and pay people to put butts in seats. When Walter informs Fozzie, he laments they didn’t think of doing that before, but when Walter suggests that Constantine may have replaced Kermit...

They strike out to find Kermit so he can restore order to this entire debacle, but he’s now neck deep in Gulag Review rehearsals. Even when his friends show up and convince him he needs to leave, Nadja is hesitant to let him go because she’s formed a mild attachment to him.

They stage a breakout during one of the Gulag Review musical numbers, which just happens to be about working in a coal mine, equip with pick axes that dig everyone out of the prison and to safety.

While they were gone, Miss Piggy begins to suspect something is off with “Kermit”, especially since he seemed OK with Fozzie and Walter leaving the show. In an attempt to pacify her, “Kermit” escalates his affection toward her until it, of course, all culminates in a wedding between Bad Frog and Miss Piggy, even though the last time the Real Kermit spoke with her, they got in a massive fight about her obsession with planning a wedding when he hadn’t even proposed yet. "Kermit” also books The Tower of London as the wedding venue, so Dominic can use the artifacts they’ve stolen to steal the Crown Jewels while everyone else is distracted.

The wedding does not go as planned, though, as Good Frog Kermit shows up and prevents Miss Piggy from marrying the wrong guy. Upon being found out, Constantine decides to drop one more Muppet one-liner before blowing the place to smithereens. Much like Chekhov’s gun, Professor Honeydew’s magnetic bomb-attractor vest aids the Muppets in discovering that Miss Piggy’s engagement ring IS the bomb, and Beaker, who is wearing the vest, is launched out the window, saving The Muppets and all their wedding guests.

Dominic and Constantine try to get away in a helicopter, but Piggy kicks the shit out of Constantine, because again, Piggy’s violence solves every problem in the Muppet universe. With the bad guys captured, the Muppets apologize to Kermit for ignoring his concerns about the tour, and not noticing he was gone. The decide to continue the tour, but first, they will play the Siberian Gulag as a favor to Nadja.

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And the big climax at the end... fireworks. In the shape of the Muppets.

The original songs are excellent again, because Bret McKenzie is excellent. They do have a few non-original songs, but they aid the plot this time instead of just being included for whatever fucking reason (with one notable exception, as there is no excuse for “Moves like Jagger”). The Gulag review auditions used these the best, because seeing a prison full of men sing “End of the Road” is fairly comical, and is only topped by the entire reenactment of A Chorus Line’s “I Hope I Get It”, including a costume change that involves “Gulag” crop-tops.

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The best hybrid of pop references and original jams is “Something So Right”, which actually made me cry, until Celine Dion appeared and hammed it up. Her diva energy in this movie was just perfect - I loved seeing her and Miss Piggy belt out a song while Rowlf was playing a grand piano.

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Speaking of cameos, I feel like they service the movie a lot better than The Muppets. Everyone outside of the celebrity guests on the tour were playing some sort of part, instead of just showing up and answering a phone and talking about how famous they are. Josh Groban sang from inside a metal box several times, and you only see his face for maybe 2 seconds at the end of the movie, which make it clear he just wanted to be involved. Seeing Ray Liotta and Danny Trejo singing and dancing so earnestly made me roll my eyes again at the thought of Sarah Silverman handing Amy Adams a menu and Selena Gomez telling Kermit doesn’t even know who the Muppets are.

The guests on stage were utilized well, with Christoph Waltz dancing the waltz in Berlin, Saoirse Ronan dancing a ballet in Dublin, and Salma Hayek, who is famously Mexican, getting run over by bulls in Madrid. At least the Macarena is from Spain... lord help them.

The Muppet spirit of Muppets Most Wanted is so drastically different than The Muppets to me, and I’m trying to pinpoint why that is. Perhaps it was shifting the focus to the Muppets themselves in the story instead of attention being pulled to Walter and his brother and his brother’s girlfriend’s story arc. Or maybe it was because the plot of this movie was referential to the previous Muppet movies, instead of reusing sections of the plot of the older movies to fill out the runtime. Or maybe it was because this movie was fun, instead of the miserable time everyone in The Muppets was having, crushed under the weight of their potential failure. Or maybe it was because they didn’t end this movie hoisting the Walt Disney puppet over their shoulders while an entire street of people cheer on their new corporate overlord. Whatever it is, this movie is leaps and bounds better than the other.

This concludes Muppet Week! I have consumed more Muppet content in the last few months than I have in my entire life. The Muppets are cherished for a reason, with their ability to ride the line between comedy and emotional sincerity. Their film catalog has increasingly skewed more family-friendly as time has gone on, and they certainly have leaned more toward comedy instead of Gonzo quietly singing about dreams on the side of the road. I haven’t watched either reboot television show yet, and I need a break from Muppet content for a while, so I’ll hold off on my opinions there. But, I love The Muppets, and I hope Disney continues to honor Jim Henson’s legacy with their work.

And with that, I’ll leave you with Kermit and Dolly Parton singing “Everyday People” on The Dolly Show, because I so badly wanted to include this somewhere and didn’t have the opportunity.

#unwarranted opinion #100 best musical movies of all time rotten tomatoes

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rosalind-of-arden · 4 years ago

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Sword and Pen Reread, chapter 13 part 2

Or: now I babble about Wolfe more.

A bit of superstition: Wolfe thinks of Orpheus as he’s leaving the Necropolis, and not only does he not look back himself, he makes the kids go ahead of him.

In the prison in Smoke and Iron, Wolfe didn’t recognize Troll right away. Here, he does. A sign of just how out of it he was in prison?

Getting into the carrier, Wolfe feels tired. When did Wolfe last sleep?

“It was the gamble of it he loved, more than anything else: the pure will of those ancients who’d understood that without knowledge, there could be no truth.” This is so Wolfe. He likes defying the odds and he values education. This is why he loves the kids so much: they’re doing the same thing.

“he suddenly wished for peace, for the days and nights he’d spent traveling with Nic on the way to some dire crisis or another” Only Christopher Wolfe would define peace as the travel time between war zone missions.

Things Wolfe likes doing: “days they spent talking, or not talking, making love or just lying together, reading. Playing a nightly game of chess, or Egyptian sennet, or the board games of ancient Ur.” I do appreciate that sex is on the list, not only because I write Wolfe/Santi porn, but also because it’s such a completely normal thing that the text treats as completely normal - media tends so often to get weird about sex where gay couples and parents are concerned, so it’s nice to see this. The whole passage is just so sweet, and I am now craving Wolfe/Santi fluff.

Alexandria isn’t built to handle storms, which Wolfe describes as rare. The streets are flooded, and that’s apparently what always happens in weather like this.

Going into the conference room, Wolfe is already uncomfortable. He can tell something is wrong. And he looks to Santi for comfort, taking a brief moment to appreciate seeing Nic, and then addressing him by his first name even though this is obviously a Curia meeting.

A lot of denial once Wolfe hears what happened. “Santi did not fail.” Not admitting to himself why he would be invited to this meeting. Some part of him knows what they’re about to ask, and he’s fighting it.

“He stared at her. His eyes burned, and for a moment, he thought it was with tears, but no, no, it was anger. He couldn’t speak. Could hardly breathe for the pressure of fury building in his chest.” He’s furious, yes. But also, don’t these sound an awful lot like panic attack symptoms?

Wolfe turns to Nic for support, but Nic won’t look at him. Part of that is Nic being caught up in his own distress, but I suspect there’s also an element of not wanting to interfere. Wolfe and Santi have very recently argued about Wolfe being able to make his own choices, and that gives Nic a very strong motivation to stay out of this so that he doesn’t influence Wolfe’s decision.

Wolfe and Vargas were in the same class. They didn’t like each other. Probably because they’re too much alike - Vargas sounds like the cranky snarky sort, too. What I want to know is how Santi and Vargas got along.

Very satisfying to see Wolfe call the Curia out here. He knows they don’t really want him as Archivist, and he’s not mincing words.

Here’s Wolfe’s first moment of considering and rejecting something he wanted in the past. It’s never stated directly that he wanted to be Archivist, but we’ve had hints that he was ambitious. He imagines himself on the throne, but it’s “disorienting”, “it made him want to laugh, but he knew it would come out as half a sob.” He recognizes how much he’s changed since he was young and ambitious, and he’s also grieving what he’s lost.

“What a sour joke this was, that the same colleagues who’d looked the other way when he was dragged off in the night, when his work was scrubbed from the shelves and his body broken in the cells in Rome... those same colleagues wanted him to be their shelter. Their scapegoat.” And here’s why Wolfe rejects his earlier ambition: he can’t stand to work with the people who did nothing when the Library tried to destroy him. In a way, what the Curia is doing here is the same as what they did when Wolfe was arrested. They’re afraid, and they’ll let him be hurt rather than risk their own necks. They let him be tortured and erased rather than speak up for him. They’d rather let him be murdered or take the blame for anything that goes wrong than put themselves in that position. After everything he’s been through, he can’t tolerate that.

Best fucking moment in the book. Wolfe accepting the robe just to put it on Khalila and announce his retirement. Turning things around on the Curia and simultaneously putting leadership in place that won’t stand for the kind of corruption that resulted in his imprisonment. Khalila is young, idealistic, and stubborn enough to handle the Curia’s shit, and Wolfe knows it.

Still calling Nic by his first name. Wolfe doesn’t just want to hear from Lord Commander Santi, he wants to know what Dad Santi thinks of putting their kid on the throne, and this more intimate form of address subtly signals that.

Dad Santi supports Khalila for Archivist, even though he’s worried about her.

Morgan knows how to make an entrance. Does Eskander really agree, or is Morgan doing this on her own, knowing the Curia won’t ask questions?

Wolfe is aware of Morgan’s corruption. This suggests he could sense it in Ash and Quill, too.

“Beautiful, but fading like a winter rose, and seeing that hurt. I failed her, he thought. But he knew he couldn’t have helped her, either. Sometimes there were no good choices to be made. Only costly ones.” Wolfe’s guilt over Morgan’s corruption is very different than his guilt over Jess’s poisoning. What happened to Jess was a mistake that Wolfe could potentially have prevented. Asking Morgan to overuse her power was a more conscious choice on Wolfe’s part, and one that he knew the risks of when he made it. He knows he’s losing both of them, and both losses hurt, but he blames himself less for Morgan.

Apparently, a gold band is the only requirement to be Archivist.

“I agree with Wolfe; he hasn’t the inhuman patience necessary for the job. Neither do I, Christopher.” Vargas, being simultaneously friendly and insulting. Wolfe actually appreciates this, which is interesting, since he’s just expressed a profound distaste for the Curia and he usually prickles when called by his first name by people he dislikes. He may get along with Vargas better than he lets on.

Santi felt guilty enough over losing Murasaki to resign as Lord Commander. Under the circumstances, I really don’t think that’s a rational response. Of course there will be traitors in the ranks right after forcibly removing the old leadership, and it’s impossible to account for everything. But Santi isn’t thinking rationally. In his view, he’s had one failure after another for the past few months: betraying his company in Rome, failing to protect the pack in the Iron Tower and London, being too injured to do anything in Philly, failing to protect Wolfe and the kids in Castle Raby... The current battle isn’t won yet and the outcome is still uncertain. Losing the Archivist to soldiers the thought he could trust was just the last straw for him. But also, potentially, this could be a sign of some kind of pre-series friendship with Murasaki.

Lord Commander is eligible to be Archivist. Not that Nic wants anything to do with it. Under better circumstances, would he feel differently? Probably not; he knows what he’s good at, and that’s military leadership, not politics.

South American Vargas says “gods”, plural. Standard Library rhetorical polytheism or a sign of some form of polytheism being a major religion where she’s from?

Wolfe has a total dad moment, being simultaneously proud that his baby is the Archivist and terrified that he can’t help her.

The Curia stands respectfully for Khalila. “Wolfe leaned against the wall and crossed his arms.” Nice try, Wolfe, but we already know how much you care.

Santi feels better when there’s a job to do. Now that Khalila is Archivist, he needs to protect his kid, and he’s ready to get to work on that.

Wolfe knows Santi’s failure to protect Murasaki “would haunt him forever.” How many other past failures still weigh on Nic?

The only ones who can Translate into or out of the Archives are Morgan and Eskander. She now has equal access to him. They’re effectively sharing the Obscurist Magnus position, really.

Morgan has already planned to copy the Archives. Khalila has researched the Library’s history of making copies and is prepared to argue for it. And neither of them gives a damn what the Curia has to say about it. Wolfe suspects Morgan has already started the copying, and Khalila has no problem wielding her authority as Archivist to authorize it over any objections from the Curia.

As soon as Khalila calls on Santi to start planning defense strategies, Wolfe heads out. Interesting timing. Not being part of the Curia, he’s probably a bit uncomfortable being there, but I think this is also a gesture of trust in Nic’s ability to handle this.

“That was not the voice of his student. It was the voice of his queen.” Love this line. Nice sign of how Khalila inhabits her role. Also, somebody needs to include this in a Wolfe/Khalila fic.

And the chapter ends with Wolfe now having one more kid to worry about. Thomas is missing.

#the great library #sword and pen reread #sword and pen spoilers #long post

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magnoliawhetstone · 4 years ago

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scorched earth

trigger warnings: eating disorder/ disordered eating, passing out, verbal abuse, abusive parents, therapy

“Magnolia.”

Lia let her gaze linger on the tree outside the office a little longer, debating on how much longer she could ignore Tonya’s calls. She had never been excellent at avoiding people--her guilt often caused her resolve to dissolve immediately. Another second passed and the blonde turned her head toward the shorter, blacked haired woman.

“We can’t talk about anything else?” She asked, biting her lip as she let her fingers pass over each other in a constant motion. There were two topics that Magnolia had artfully avoided in her therapy sessions and they were, in part, dominoes of each other. One didn’t occur without the other--which meant they also existed symbiotically in her brain. To speak of the incident was to speak of the consequence, and neither made Lia feel warm and fuzzy.

“We don’t have to talk about anything, Magnolia. It’s your appointment, we go where you want to.” Tonya said calmly, assuredly. She was giving her the power back--classic counselor move. Lia had been with her long enough to figure out what she was doing, but even her knowledge didn’t change the outcome: she did feel slightly more empowered. She wouldn’t speak of it. She didn’t have to.

And yet...

She had started therapy two months ago, and great progress had been made. She had stood up to Mr. Worthington--and failed, but even her attempt at advocating would have been unheard of six months prior. She was taking more risks--going to the club with Moira, learning piano with Beck; she even made the first move with Jack all those weeks ago. Lia was finding someone else inside her--no, not someone else, but rather herself, the real version. The version that she had shackled to the darkest part of her heart, terrified of what mayhem might occur if she let her free. This version of Magnolia was bolder, more curious and she was also tired--tired of having a darkest part of heart. She wanted to see what happened when light touched the scorched earth, when fresh air wafted through the boarded up windows.

Tonya could tell--she had a knack for seeing parts of Lia that she had yet to find. That’s why her questions were always so pointed and it was why she could confidently tell Lia it was her appointment. She knew. She always knew.

“I haven’t talked about it before.” She whispered, her eyes now trained on the ground.

“I know, but it’s like we talked about--there’s no right way to say things, Magnolia. Not in here. There’s not one perfect story. It’s just your story. And this is a part of it. No matter how ugly it is.”

“It’ll hurt.”

“But doesn’t it hurt to hold on to it? Do you think it’ll be even more painful to talk about?”

“Maybe.”

“Maybe, I can’t say it will or won’t--but remember, you’re stronger than you think. I hear you always so fearful of pain--and for good reason, it’s not pleasant. But you’re not fragile, Magnolia. You’re not the delicate porcelain that you seem to always think you are. You can handle so many things--this included.”

Lia took a breath and closed her eyes. Inside, she could feel the tug of war within--the familiar push and pull of her mother’s words against the desire of the version of herself that had been set free. Freedom. What a word. What a feeling. Her heart flipped at the thought. Freedom.

“Momma had kept it a secret...”

Magnolia stared at the nondescript garment bag hanging in closet, her mind running wild. She had been dreaming of prom since starting high school--and talking with Jack about it for almost as long. It was a given, in her mind, she’d go with him--they went to all the school dances together. It hadn’t crossed her mind it could be a...date until a few weeks ago at the county fair. A small, faint grin danced on her lips, the memory of the kiss sending butterflies through her stomach and even into her chest. Magnolia had never been one to take a lot of risks. Risks meant potential failure and failure meant an angry Momma. If there was one thing she learned to avoid in her short sixteen years of life it was an angry Momma. But Momma hadn’t been at the county fair--and she wasn’t around when Derek had dared her to kiss Jack. Something had taken over the blonde in that moment, but as she pressed her lips against his--she was certain she’d never regret taking that leap. A giggle passed through her as she felt her cheeks flush at the thought of it all. She often found herself reminiscing about that night--or what prom could be like with him. Magnolia had always been a day-dreamer, but this felt different. It felt...well, for the first time in her life, a dream of hers felt within reach. Like it could actually happen.

A door slammed and she jumped, nearly falling off her bed. Reality. Blinking a few times, she remembered that even if that dream was closer than any other she had, it was still a reach--especially now. Momma and Father had been on edge for the last two weeks, causing Magnolia to spend more time locked in her bedroom than out of doors. She’d even cut her time with Jack shorter, for fear of setting her momma off on another tirade. She supposed she couldn’t blame her--if the one rule in the Barnes household was to uphold the family name, then Magnolia had screwed it up royally.

Passing out on stage was not her plan--of course it wasn’t. She hadn’t intended to push herself so hard, both in her food restriction but also the length in which she had been practicing. It was just that...Momma had been extra persnickety leading up to the Semi Finals--her blowout at the dress store had just emphasized the point. Magnolia didn’t want to disappoint her, even if she felt Momma had been being extra unreasonable. Even now, after the years of screaming orders and vindictive behavior, Magnolia still wanted to make her proud. She thought maybe--well, maybe if she could win Miss Teen America, she could finally earn her love.

It was like building a house of cards in a hurricane--impossible.

After the doctor had spoken with her about why Magnolia had passed out on the stage, there had been no “honey, are you ok?” or “sweetie, why didn’t you tell me?” No, that was not Mrs. Barnes style.

“Magnolia, how utterly selfish you are--don’t you know what this could cost your father?”

“I can’t believe you’d be so dramatic--if you just wanted attention, you could have saved us the histrionics and just said something.”

“What kind of daughter would sabotage her mother like this?”

So, her attempt to please her momma had backfired and now she was walking on eggshells. Well, at least I have some good dreams to run away to, Magnolia though, her unfailing positivity trying to make the best of a bad situation.

As she let her mind wander again, the door of her room burst open and there stood her father, large cardboard boxes in one hand and a suitcase in another.

“Father--what’s going on?” She furrowed her brows as he strode into the room to her closet and began throwing things in the boxes.

“Pack this--you’re going away for a bit.”

Magnolia felt her stomach drop. Going away? For a bit? What does that mean?

“Going away? Where? For how long?”

Silence exuded from her father as she watched him shove her perfect prom dress--garment bag and all--into a box. If she was only going for a bit, why would he be packing her whole closet....

“What’s going on?” She tried again, but it was her mother who answered.

“You’re going to London. Boarding school.” She said simply, taking the suitcase and throwing even more clothes inside.

“B-boarding school? I don’t--I’m, I like going to school here, though. W-why am I going--”

“--Magnolia Barnes, I don’t want to hear it. You’ve made enough of a mockery of this family, I won’t stand to see you drag our name through the mud anymore. All I asked you to do was be a good daughter, and you clearly can’t even do the simplest of tasks. Your only expectations were to smile, not make a fuss and win pageants. I made it oh-so-simple for you and you still couldn’t handle it. So this is my only option left. The Royal Academy for American Scholars is an excellent school--and you’ll be in no one’s way there.”

London. London, England. Like--like across the ocean, away from her friends, away from Bennett, away from Jack and Mrs. Whetstone and her whole life. And she had not a single say in the matter.

“What--Momma why?”

“Magnolia, I said enough. Now get to the car, your flight leaves in four hours and aren’t going to be late.”

“Don’t I get a say?”

“You had your say when you passed out in front of all those people and cameras. You made quite the statement, don’t you think?” Magnolia cringed at the memory.

“But what about my friends? Bennett? Ja--” Her mother cut her off.

“You needed concern yourself with Jack. I’ll handle it. You are not to say a word of this--we are keeping this quite as to not attract any more attention to you and your dramatic ways.” She rolled her eyes at the words. “Now I won’t say it again--Car. Now.”

The younger blonde blinked--how did her entire life just turn upside down in five minutes. How could her momma just...send her away so easily? She felt herself floating toward the car, as if she was having an out of body experience. She heard the car door shut and the hot leather of the seat against her bare thighs. She didn’t dare speak another word--though she didn’t have much to say. As the trunk slammed shut and the car rolled forward, she caught the last glimpse of her home and felt a tear drop from cheek. Wiping it away quickly, she cleared her throat softly and clutched the plane ticket her momma had handed her. In her lap sat a brand new copy of Pride and Prejudice from her brother--the only two remnants of her family since it was only her and the driver who would be going to the airport. Her heart twisted in the most painful of ways as the feeling of rejection settled into her heart. Magnolia had always known her momma wasn’t proud of her--but rejection, so bold and outright, was a new addition. It would become the foundation for fifteen years of self-hatred and heartbreak, but in that moment it stung like the fresh slap it was. The blonde closed her eyes tightly, letting her mind drift off to the dream that once had been so close--at least her momma couldn’t take everything from her. She’d always have her imagination.

Lia felt like someone had cracked her chest wide open without anesthesia. Their hands were deep within her chest cavity, rummaging around looking for something they didn’t even know they wanted. She wanted to run, hide, scream--anything to get rid of the searing pain that honesty often brought.

“Why didn’t she love me?” Lia gasped out, her cheeks still soaked from the sobs that accompanied her story. “Why wasn’t I enough?”

Tonya was silent--if Lia had been in more a perceptive mindset, she would have noticed her counselor was always misty-eyed. It wasn’t often that she heard such cruelty toward someone. She had no answer for Lia--not that she often did, but even this felt hard for her to think on.

“What about me was so abhorrent that she’d send me away instead of getting me help?” It was the first time she had ever admitted she might have needed help--truthfully, she still did. Her questions were punctuated with staccato gulps of air. “What--Am I really that broken that my own mother can’t love me?”

Upon the utterance of the last sentence, something clicked. Almost immediately, her chest felt like someone had sewn it shut and she stopped crying.

“No.” It was short. It was quiet. But it was firm. And it came straight from Lia’s mouth. “No, I’m not broken.”

“I--I didn’t deserve that. No one does. No one deserved to be shipped away from all they’ve ever known because their momma said so. No one deserved to be disowned and abandoned by the people who were supposed to love them the most. No one deserved to be treated like that. And that includes me.

“I was sick--I am sick. Sick people need love, they need compassion and care. They don’t need to be blamed, shamed and abused because they aren’t well. They need healing--and healing doesn’t come from being sent to boarding school.

“I am a lot of things--but I am not broken. I did nothing to deserve this, I did nothing to lose the love of Momma. Momma is a grown woman, she makes her own choices. I was sixteen--I knew nothing better. Did I make my own mistakes? Yes. But they don’t mean I am unlovable. It just means I’m--I’m human.”

Here’s the thing about sunlight--it burns at first. Your eyes, your skin--sunlight had the power to scorch what it hasn’t touched. But sunlight also gives life--without it, nothing would exist. The burn makes way for new soil, new earth--a new chance. Sunlight drives out darkness and provides new beginnings. Sunlight is redemption. The sunlight hurt, but Lia finally understood that this pain, the pain she was running from--it was the very pain that would save her.

Tonya smiled softly, nodding. She didn’t need to say anything--this was the point of her work. She’d be more content to never speak once in a therapy meeting, if it meant that her client could do it better. And Lia had done it beautifully.

Lia blinked a few more times, the tears in her eyes starting to dry and she let a small smile grace her lips. “I am strong enough, aren’t I? I lived through all that and I’m here to tell the tale--and write a new one too.” A giggle of astonishment escaped and she placed a hand on her mouth in surprise.

“So this is what freedom feels like.” And boy, it felt good.

( @malnatimedia )

#tw eating disorder #tw abusive parents #tw verbal abuse #tw passing out #tw disordered eating #tw therapy #[[homecoming queen?; headcannons]]

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comeallyelost · 5 years ago

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The Handmaid’s Tale 3x12 Thoughts

This episode honestly left such a bad taste in my mouth that part of me doesn’t even feel like reviewing it.

It’s like the little hope I had left for enjoying the remainder of the season all went to shit.

1. June/Eleanor/Commander Lawrence

Up until now, my biggest issue with the “get the kids out” storyline was its believability. That June singlehandedly orchestrated all of this out of some misplaced grief for Hannah and regret for what she did to Natalie. Like it had never occurred to anyone else in the complex network of the resistance to try to get kids out? A resistance, mind you, which we have yet to understand and was painted as super complicated in S2 when Nick organized June’s first escape and he had barely any info throughout the entire thing.

But now. NOW. June is so dead set on her mission that she let Eleanor OD and commit suicide?! It barely makes any sense at all. Because Lawrence’s WHOLE reason for helping June was for the sole purpose of getting Eleanor out and getting her proper treatment. At the expense of his freedom. Because despite his ambiguous alliances, his love for his wife went above all of that.

I hate this version of June. And the backbone for her “development” is so frail and stupid. I mentioned it in an earlier episode review that I got the same Mad Queen Dany vibes from Game of Thrones.

I really felt for Lawrence this ep. If this season did one thing well, it was his character. I’m guessing based on the last scene that he knows June let this happen. My question is why is he still going through with the escape if his wife is gone? He seems to have no one else and all that will be waiting for him outside of Gilead is prison. I know he can help with intel to the Americans, but does he even want to? Maybe he feels like he owes it to Eleanor? Idk.

And Eleanor. They did her character such an injustice. She really was sweet and kind and lovely. And also, I think with her illness, she embodied a lot Gilead’s failures. Proof that this society takes a toll on people. Proof that mental illness is no joke. That it requires proper treatment. And that people cannot survive in a society like this. Like Lawrence mentioned, Gilead failed to account for mental illness. She deserved better.

2. On Serena:

Yo so this bish for real sold out her husband for some time with the baby? I’m still not certain how that is supposed to work. Is she going to have like permanent visits with her or something?

Serena is a WAR CRIMINAL. She helped build Gilead too. Just because she turned one in doesn’t automatically giver her a free pass. That logic does not work. I can see Commander Lawrence’s logic--he brings in 52 kids and some intel so maybe he gets a pardon or a limited sentence. Maybe Nick does the same--proves he’s part of the resistance and gives endless intel if he turns himself in. But Serena is doing none of that. She’s turning Fred in. But Fred’s not gonna talk, he’s just on trial. And Serena has no plans on talking either. She just wants the baby.

If the show highlighted how this is white feminism/white privilege at its finest, then maybe I’d believe it and get on board with whatever the story brings. But it’s not acknowledging it whatsoever.

This episode also felt like one of those instances where June and Serena are both treated as the leads of the series. Especially because of the episode title, “Sacrifice”. June sacrifices Eleanor, Serena sacrifices Fred. Both do it for their own selfish “causes”. As if Serena has had it so hard. Her desperation to be with the baby is getting to be a bit much, I think.

I’m getting mad vibes from Tuello. I’m honestly intrigued, but who tf knows if anything is gonna come of that storyline given the awful job they’ve done with exploring plot lines.

Moira is da best. A+

3. On the trajectory of June’s character:

So Fred at one point tells Luke that June is no longer the person she was before Gilead and, yes, I think we can all agree since we have seen her change and grow(?) in her fight to survive. But did they really need to take it so far that she is now like...drunk on some pseudo power she thinks she has because she convinced a few people to shuffle some kids around and she killed a Commander?

Honestly, this is the same version of June we saw when she was driving Natalie to madness. Her energy is just being harnessed elsewhere. Which, if that IS the case, then she hasn’t changed for the better at all. She hasn’t changed period.

Why are writers trying to make our favorite heroines/protagonists into shitty people? We watch because we’re rooting for them. You can make them interesting without rewiring their moral compass, their intentions, their inner being. UGH. I’m just so annoyed.

I miss the June that was sassy and witty. The June that never relinquished her power to others despite her social standing. She was fierce and intelligent and learned how to navigate situations. OF COURSE I’m expecting her to change and adapt over time. We’ve seen her struggle with her coping mechanisms constantly. But ultimately we want to see her triumph. We don’t want her to go mad with power or become a villain. I’m tired of this Breaking Bad approach to main characters. A lot of TV shows are suffering from it and tbh it’s shit. And it’s an easy out for the “complex character” argument.

4. Predictions for the finale/ Thoughts on this season:

I can already tell there are going to be so many unanswered questions and I just...give up. I’ve held on this season because of how much I adored the first two. But there’s been way too much left unexplored and for no good reason because there have been countless filler episodes.

We’ve seen NOTHING of Emily’s readjustment in Canada. Nothing of Luke and Moira raising the baby. Or Luke coping after June’s tape for that matter.

The political situation in Gilead remains super ambiguous despite all those mentions of Chicago at the beginning of the season and all the extradition issues with the baby.

Speaking of Chicago, don’t even get me started on Nick’s absence and all of THAT wasted potential. We could have learned SO much about the resistance and about what was going on at the front. The writers found a way to keep the Waterfords relevant even when they were not directly connected to June anymore. They could have just as easily have done it for Nick’s character too. Wtf. He was IMPORTANT. He’s not merely a love interest here. He fell victim to Gilead too and that storyline would have been awesome to explore. And also WTF HAPPENED TO THE SWISS?!

And where are the other handmaids? Alma and Janine were supposed to help too!

Looking back at the trajectory of this season, there really was a HUGE disconnect after the DC episode (3x06). The first half of the season set us up for a lot of things and almost none of them were explored/ expanded on.

You know what it kind of reminds me of? Like when you set up a really good argument for a paper you’re writing, but then it’s barely held together by the end because you procrastinated too much and have to submit it.

#the handmaid's tale #june osborne #tht #tht 3x12 #sacrifice #handmaidsonhulu #handmaidstaleseason3 #handmaids tale #serena joy waterford #fred waterford #commander lawrence #nick blaine #nick x june #june x nick

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