#Agent Worley

[1x20]

DEAN This is Assistant Director Kaiser.

SHERIFF ROY Uh... This is Sheriff Alden Roy. Just checking on Agent Worley.

DEAN Would you put my agent on the phone, please?

— Supernatural 15.06 Golden Time, written by Meredith Glynn

[donaidk]

Back again to continue our Night Agent talk, thank you so much for responding to my previous one!

You didn’t make me feel bad about the spoiler thing, no worries there. Hubby and I were watching together and we also had to pause and just say “is that it?” multiple times when that reveal occurred. For all the advanced technology that was shown in the show it makes me think that maybe this universe didn’t really have as much of a social media presence as our society does as couldn’t Maddie just have posted online about her issues with her dad? Surely there were options available other than hiding a recording in a stuffed bear in the basement of their old house. But then that idea is belied by the fact that Peter was so harassed by the Rome Tome idiots which clearly were using an online presence. Also, why did Maddie wait so long to think about releasing that video if she hated her father so much??

In terms of your Maddie question, I totally suspected that the art teacher was in on the whole thing since he was first introduced. He was so creepily into her! That being said, I thought he was in on the WHOLE conspiracy and I was completely and utterly shocked when Colin Worley shot and killed him. His idea to seduce Maddie so that she’d shoot a PSA for the environmental group was dumb as fuck but his death scene was intense and I don’t think he deserved that.

Omg today has absolutely ran away from me 😭

I feel like it's a great example for how manipulation can fuck with someone's head. I remember a dialogue between Maddie and Chelsea where she mentioned how the lie is sometimes so comfortable that even she believes it once she falls into it. I could see her being scared about what her life would be like if she exposed the VP. No mum, no sister, no dad afterwards... sometimes staying in a shitty situation is less scary than stepping into a scary unknown. There may have been a point where she got fed up enough with him and posted it finally. But maybe her literal life being in danger was the "small" push she needed to finally act on it.

I remember staring at my screen when Colin showed up and just uttering "dumb fuck" once he was shot 😂 It was such a stupid way to go and also felt like overkill to get him killed off, but i get tying loose ends. Bit dramatic still 👀

I was - as usual - killing time today on TikTok, going down the usual peter sutherland rabbit hole and saw like 4 edits of the part whenErik and Chelsea arrest Peter and Rose at the pear and immediately thought about you and the ask that was sitting in my inbox. It reminded me how much I wanted Chelsea to be the one to stand on Peter's side after Farr pretty much stabbed him in the back, and how angry I was at Monks for being so cold towards the idea of Peter being innocent even though I think even his experience was telling him something was fishy about him being a suspect. Guess I got what I wanted in the end finally 🥺

[djangodurango]

In January 1932 alone, Floyd was identified as robbing banks in three separate towns, only one of which he probably robbed. It didn't matter. The Daily Oklahoman called for mobilization of the National Guard; on January 14 insurance rates on rural Oklahoma banks were doubled, a move blamed directly on Floyd. Governor William "Alfalfa Bill" Murray announced a $1,000 reward for his capture.

It was a classic case of media hysteria, of hype that would shape reality that would in turn create a legend. Every morning that winter brought a story of Floyd's exploits, a bank robbed, a supposed sighting, speculation where he might strike next. Lawmen combed eastern Oklahoma in a futile manhunt. Floyd understood the situation and made a crude bid for public support. In a letter to the governor, he demanded that the reward be withdrawn. "I have robbed no one but the monied men," Floyd wrote, a claim guaranteed to find favor in rural Oklahoma. Floyd thus cannily positioned himself as an attacker of only "monied" interests, making the governor their defender. In doing so he created a socioeconomic debate he was guaranteed to win.

- Bryan Burroughs in Public Enemies, on Pretty Boy Floyd

"Asked what Dillinger was like, Grover Weyland [a bank president Dillinger's gang had taken hostage to escape the robbery of his bank] told reporters the gang had been "genial". At one point, he said, one of the robbers in the getaway car--later identified as [Charles] Makley--had cursed, and Dillinger had told him to cut it out, because of the presence of a lady [Anna Patze, a bank teller they also took] in the car.

This kind of small courtesy was becoming a Dillinger hallmark. Like most of his peers, Dillinger was an avid reader of his own press clippings, and one suspects this penchant for niceties had less to do with good manners than with an increasing awareness of his own public image. Dillinger knew how the public tended to celebrate daring bank robbers, and he craved its adulation. He got it. Just as Pretty Boy Floyd had aroused populist sentiment in dust-bowl Oklahoma, Dillinger was quickly perceived by many mid-westerners as a force of retribution against moneyed interests who had plunged the nation into depression. Letters of support began popping up in the Indiana newspapers.

"Why should the law have wanted Dillinger for bank robbery?" read one. "He wasn't any worse than bankers and politicians who took the poor people's money. Dillinger did not rob poor people. He robbed those who became rich by robbing the poor. I am for Johnnie."

And this was only the beginning."

Bryan Burrough, Public Enemies, re: Dillinger being his own goddamn press agent.

"At 2:45 Dillinger and [John "Red"] Hamilton stepped out of a car double-parked outside the bank. They left the driver in the car; his identity has never been established. Inside the marble lobby, Dillinger pulled a submachine gun out of what several eyewitnesses thought was a trombone case. "This is a stickup!" he shouted, startling the dozen or so customers in the bank. "Put up your hands everybody!"

A bank vice-president named Walter Spencer pressed a silent-alarm button beneath his desk; a block away, it rang at police headquarters. As the customers raised their hands and lined up against a wall, one forgot his cash on a counter. "You go ahead and take your money," Dillinger said. "We don't want your money. Just the bank's."

Bryan Burrough, Public Enemies, re: the beginning of this heist movie trope.

"While [Raymond] Hamilton was inside the vault, Clyde snatched the $27.00 from Ollie Worley's hand. As they left, he turned to Worley. "You worked like hell for this, didn't you?" Clyde asked, motioning to the money in his hand.

"Yes sir," Worley said. "Digging ditches..."

"Here," Clyde said, thrusting the money at Worley. "We don't want your money. We just want the bank's money."

Among the dozens of eyewitness accounts of Clyde's behavior, this exchange is unique. If Worley's memory is to be believed--he related the story to Dallas historian John Neal Phillips in 1984--it is perhaps the only time Clyde ever expressed anything approaching an altruistic impulse towards one of his victims. Moreover, Clyde's choice of language is telling: the words he spoke to Worley were precisely the same words newspapers reported Dillinger using six weeks earlier when robbing the First National Bank of Chicago. The incident, along with his tailored clothing and uncharacteristically polite behavior that day, suggests that Clyde was adopting Dillinger as a role model, that at the very least he was aware of Dillinger's exploits and was attempting to emulate his success. It's not a stretch to suggest that Clyde craved the adulation Dillinger enjoyed and was altering his behavior in hopes of attracting something similar."

Bryan Burrough, Public Enemies, re: Clyde Barrow trying to be as classy as Dillinger.

i have developed a much more viceral understanding of why bank robbers were widely regarded as popular heroes in the 1930s

[barefootbaltimore]

Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said his officers will not work with ICE agents. As the Trump Administration is set to take office next month and deportation has been a hot topic, Baltimore City leadership is standing firm.

...

Scott issued that statement on the C4 and Bryan Nehman Show on Thursday.

“We will go after people who have committed crimes period,” he said. “No ifs, ands or buts about it. What we will not do is go after folks just because they are immigrants-that’s not going to happen.”

[ulkaralakbarova]

When Queen Elizabeth’s reign is threatened by ruthless familial betrayal and Spain’s invading army, she and her shrewd adviser must act to safeguard the lives of her people. Credits: TheMovieDb. Film Cast: Elizabeth I, Queen of England: Cate Blanchett Sir Walter Raleigh: Clive Owen Sir Francis Walsingham: Geoffrey Rush Sir Christopher Hatton: Laurence Fox Amyas Paulet: Tom Hollander Elizabeth Throckmorton: Abbie Cornish Robert Reston: Rhys Ifans King Philip II of Spain: Jordi Mollà Mary, Queen of Scots: Samantha Morton Anthony Babington: Eddie Redmayne Calley: Adrian Scarborough William Walsingham: Adam Godley Archduke Charles: Christian Brassington Count Georg von Helfenstein: Robert Cambrinus Dr. John Dee: David Threlfall Spanish Minister: Vidal Sancho Ursula Walsingham: Kelly Hunter Lord Howard: John Shrapnel Torturer: Sam Spruell Cellarman: David Sterne Admiral Sir William Winter: David Robb Courtier: Jonathan Bailey Walsingham’s Servant: Steve Lately Woman with Baby: Kate Fleetwood Infanta Isabel of Spain: Aimee King Annette: Susan Lynch Mary Walsingham: Kristin Coulter Smith Queen Elizabeth’s Waiting Lady #1: Hayley Burroughs Queen Elizabeth’s Waiting Lady #2: Kirsty McKay Queen Elizabeth’s Waiting Lady #3: Lucia Ruck Keene Queen Elizabeth’s Waiting Lady #4: Lucienne Venisse-Back Laundry Woman: Elise McCave Margaret: Penelope McGhie First Court Lady: Coral Beed Second Court Lady: Rosalind Halstead Manteo: Steven Loton Wanchese: Martin Baron Walsingham’s Agent: David Armand Sir Francis Throckmorton: Steven Robertson Ramsey: Jeremy Barker Burton: George Innes Mary Walsingham: Kirstin Smith Old Throckmorton: Tim Preece Dance Master: Benjamin May Royal Servant: Glenn Doherty Dean of Peterborough: Chris Brailsford Executioner: Dave Legeno Spanish Archbishop: Antony Carrick Marriage Priest: John Atterbury First Spanish Officer: Alex Giannini Second Spanish Officer: Joe Ferrara Courtier: Alexander Barnes Courtier: Charles Bruce Courtier: Jeremy Cracknell Courtier: Benedict Green Courtier: Adam Smith Courtier: Simon Stratton Courtier: Crispin Swayne Mary Stuart’s Lady in Waiting: Kitty Fox Mary Stuart’s Lady in Waiting: Kate Lindesay Mary Stuart’s Lady in Waiting: Katherine Templar Courtier (uncredited): Morne Botes Young Boy (uncredited): Finn Morrell Tyger Salior (uncredited): Shane Nolan Film Crew: Screenplay: William Nicholson Director of Photography: Remi Adefarasin Editor: Jill Bilcock Original Music Composer: A.R. Rahman Original Music Composer: Craig Armstrong Set Decoration: Richard Roberts Stunts: Peter Pedrero Stunt Coordinator: Greg Powell Casting: Fiona Weir Stunts: Rob Inch Stunts: Andy Smart Additional Camera: David Worley Costume Design: Alexandra Byrne Supervising Sound Editor: Mark Auguste Production Design: Guy Hendrix Dyas Supervising Art Director: Frank Walsh Director: Shekhar Kapur Screenplay: Michael Hirst Editor: Andrew Haddock Art Direction: David Allday Set Costumer: Martin Chitty Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Steve Single Scenic Artist: Rohan Harris Stunts: Ray Nicholas Art Direction: Andy Thomson Art Direction: Jason Knox-Johnston Production Manager: Mark Mostyn Stunts: George Cottle Stunts: David Anders Stunts: Peter Miles Visual Effects Supervisor: John Lockwood Stunts: John Kearney Stunts: Paul Kennington Stunts: Nick Chopping Costume Supervisor: Suzi Turnbull Hairstylist: Morag Ross Art Direction: Phil Sims Music Editor: Tony Lewis ADR Recordist: Robert Edwards Stunt Double: Abbi Collins Script Supervisor: Angela Wharton ADR Editor: Tim Hands Art Direction: Christian Huband Visual Effects Supervisor: Richard Stammers Stunts: Rowley Irlam Assistant Art Director: Helen Xenopoulos Foley Artist: Mario Vaccaro Visual Effects Supervisor: Steve Street Property Master: David Balfour Greensman: Ian Whiteford Foley Editor: Andrew Neil Stunts: Gordon Seed Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Tim Cavagin Dialogue Editor: Sam Auguste Scenic Artist: James Gemmill Unit Publicist: Stacy Mann Camera Operator: Ben Wilson Visual Effects Editor: Aled Robinson Stunts: Paul Herbert Hairstylist: Do...

[shallowstories]

Dean + covert Columbo references

I got super inspired by this post, and now I'm obsessed with the idea of Dean referencing Columbo spousal things to amuse himself, then panicking whenever he gets close to being perceived. (It's another of those "harmless" things he can play with and "no one will ever get, because it's an old show." Poor dumbass.) He starts doing this around the same time as the mixtape, FYI. It's a whole thing, and once he starts doing it, he can't seem to stop.

#then he gets even weirder about it #he starts giving cas a pencil every time he sees him #but cas doesn’t lose them so he keeps rejecting it like #dean i don’t need— #and dean stuffs it into his pocket like shut up and take it #so cas’s dashboard in the truck is FULL of pencils #dean continues to make columbo’s spouse references #like he jokes that cas is gonna win them a cruise at a church raffle #he gives cas a new coat and accuses him of hating it for funsies etc etc #dean’s secret bullshit #he jokes he’s been listening to madame butterfly when he hasn’t #obv it’s a joke but no one gets it#sam certainly doesn’t watch columbo #cas starts donating pencils to local schools and he explains that dean gives him pencils every time he sees him#and one of the teachers clocks the joke IMMEDIATELY#and makes assumptions about dean and that he's adorable #actually i’m obsessed with cas talking about the mysterious dean on his cases now thx #dean's anecdotes especially #after cas dies dean finds himself meeting some folks that know cas and they inexplicably know about dean and his pencils and his anecdotes #oh YOU'RE dean??? etc etc

Bonus points if Dean's conceptualized as this mysterious figure that some ppl who met Cas think is real, and some think he was totally made up to establish rapport. (To be fair, Dean's anecdotes are likely way more random than in Columbo, so he does sound kinda fake.)

Depending on when Dean finds out about it, he feels some sort of way about it, from grief-stricken to confused to embarrassed to absolutely giddy that Cas talked about him to other people.

Dean discovers that most ppl who met Cas, or "agent Spears, Worley, etc" were told about some variant of Dean, to fit the scenario/situation/tone of the case. Sometimes, he's simply Dean, and sometimes he's "my partner, Agent Bon Jovi," and sometimes he's even "Daphne."

[goalhofer]

2023 World Baseball Classic Great Britain Roster

Pitchers

#17 Tahnaj Thomas (Altoona Curve/Freeport, The Bahamas)

#18 Donovan Benoit (Dayton Dragons/Key West, Florida)

#19 Cam Opp (Binghamton Rumble Ponies/Denver, Colorado)

#21 Tyler Viza (free agent/Phoenix, Arizona)

#23 Akeel Morris (Long Island Ducks/St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands)

#25 Michael Petersen (ACL Rockies/Middlesex)

#27 Matteo Sollecito (Swarthmore College Garnet/London)

#29 Michael Roth (free agent/Greer, South Carolina)

#32 Alex Webb (free agent/Surrey, British Columbia)

#33 Daniel Cooper (free agent/Newport Beach, California)

#34 Chavez Fernander (West Michigan Whitecaps/Freeport, The Bahamas)

#35 Ryan Long (Delmarva Shorebirds/Woodinville, Washington)

#41 Branden Noriega (ACL Cubs/Miami, Florida)

#42 Malik Binns (FCL Phillies/DuPage Township, Illinois)

#43 Trayce Thompson (Los Angeles Dodgers/Rancho Santa Margarita, CA)

#44 Joseph King (St. Louis Cardinals/Redwood City, California)

#49 Vance Worley (free agent/Sacramento, California)

#50 McKenzie Mills (Tigres De Quintana Roo/Marietta, Georgia)

#55 Gunnar Groen (ACL Diamondbacks/London)

#67 Jake Esch (free agent/St. Paul, Minnesota)

#70 Andre Scrubb (free agent/Prince William County, Virginia)

#72 Jack Seppings (Brown University Bears/Newnan, Georgia)

#79 Ian Gibaut (Cincinnati Reds/Houston, Texas)

#94 Richard Brereton (free agent/London)

Catchers

#8 Harry Ford (Modesto Nuts/Kennesaw, Georgia)

#20 Ural Forbes (free agent/Freeport, The Bahamas)

Infielders

#2 Justin Wylie (New Jersey Jackals/Lancaster, Pennsylvania)

#4 B.G.A. Murray; Jr. (South Bend Cubs/Nassau, The Bahamas)

#11 Nick Ward (Washington Wild Things/Kennett Square, Pennsylvania)

#24 Darnell Sweeney (free agent/Ft. Lauderdale, Florida)

Outfielders

#1 Anfernee Seymour (Long Island Ducks/Plantation, Florida)

#9 D’Shawn Knowles (Tri-City Dust Devils/New Providence, The Bahamas)

#12 Chavez Young (Lansing Lugnuts/Freeport, The Bahamas)

#14 Matt Koperniak (Memphis Redbirds/Adams, Massachusetts)

#15 Alex Crosby (Southern Maryland Blue Crabs/Vacaville, California)

Coaches

Manager Drew Spencer (London Mets/Glendale, California)

Bench coach Brad Marcelino (Tacoma Rainiers/Carlsbad, California)

Hitting coach Jonathan Cramman (London Mets/London)

Pitching coach Zach Graefser (Great Britain Baseball/St. Louis, Missouri)

Bullpen coach Conor Brooks (Great Britain Baseball/Plymouth, Massachusetts)

1B coach Albert Cartwright (Great Britain Baseball/Nassau, The Bahamas)

3B coach T.S. Reed (Great Britain Baseball/Temecula, California)

Assistant coach Antoan Richardson (San Francisco Giants/Nassau, The Bahamas)

[agentzreads]

So we’re all assuming Dean made Cas watch True Romance during one of their movie nights, right?

[dessertbird]

Castiel 😇😊💙

Agent Worley investigates. Proud of Cas. He solves the case, kills the Djinn, and saves someone’s son. ❤️❤️❤️

[maxwell-grant]

OK, I know this will probably be painful, and I may be a bad mutual for asking but...would you be willing to identify what, in your opinion are the bottom five worst Shadow adaptations, and give a detailed breakdown of why they were so lousy?

Oh christ, okay. I don't think you're gonna get as much of a detailed breakdown for these compared to some of the others, because I take more issue with adaptations that do have good qualities but also big or deep problems to talk about.

For example, I can't include Garth Ennis's Shadow in this list because the comic has a lot of strong points to it, despite a deeply, deeply detestable take on The Shadow's character, where as the rest of the Dynamite run doesn't reach neither the lows or highs of his run. Likewise, Andy Helfer's run has a couple or a couple dozen moments every issue that make me want to tear something to shreds in frustration, but it's also at many points a really good comic with great art and some occasionally very inspired writing. Really, I'd just be repeating myself talking about what I hate in those.

But, fine, let's list some of the others.

I think I'm just gonna have to get the elephant in the room out of the way here, and address that I won't be including Si Spurrier's 2017 Dynamite mini in this list, and I think at least some of you might be angry it's not Number 1 by default. I'm doing this because I intend to one day really revisit it, think about it and it's reception and what it was trying to do, and talk about it on it's own, now that it's been 5 years and everyone has moved on and we can maybe talk about it without kneejerk hatred driving everyone nuts (your mileage may vary on how warranted it was).

I'm also not going to be talking about James Patterson's new novel, because I haven't read it. It seems to be considered a forgettable potboiler by mainstream critics and a resounding failure by everyone who likes the character whether they've read the book or not, and frankly I don't have it in me to learn what the fuzz was about anytime soon, I got my hands way too full as is.

And I won't be including the Batman x Shadow crossovers here, because again, they do have a lot of virtues that put them far ahead of some of the really worst Shadow media, and I've talked enough about how badly I think they mangled The Shadow, which is really the big problem I have with them (well, that and Tim Sale blatantly copying a Michael Kaluta cover, that was really shitty). I don't really hate them anymore, I just get tired and frustrated thinking about parts of them, I said my piece as is. Really, my frustration over this comic is what inspired me to start writing about The Shadow here, so I guess in a way I do owe it at least that much.

5: Archie Comics's Shadow

I think some of you might be wondering why this isn't ranked higher, but to be honest, I don't actually harbor any hatred towards this. I mean, I have to include it, but I find it kinda silly that some people even today actually care about the existence of this comic enough to hate it.

For fans back then? Oh yeah, obviously, but this dropped to such instantaneous backlash that it never really got to live past 6 issues. Really, everything wrong about it can be understood immediately from the covers, and I've actually read the comic in it's entirety to see if there was anything worth taking. I found only a couple of things of note but, no, this really is just a painfully mediocre superhero comic that happens to have a couple of Shadow names in it. If anything, it gets too much credit.

The actual contents of what it is are never going to justify it's reputation, but the existence of it and the disproportionate response to it is the funniest and most enduring legacy it could ever ask for. This whole comic is The Shadow's version of Spongebob's embarassing Christmas photo.

4: David Liss's The Shadow Now

This is another "The Shadow as an immortal in modern times" comic and I think you may have noticed the pattern with those by now. I may revisit this eventually and I do have some moments from it saved for reference, but overall: It sucks, and it doesn't even suck in a way that lets me talk much about it, it's a diet version of Chaykin's Shadow. If Archie's Shadow is a generic mediocre superhero comic wearing The Shadow's name, this is a generic crime story playing beats from movie. The Shadow is an asshole and not even a grandiose or sinister one, he just feels like a sleazy douche in a costume. The art is a 50/50 coin toss between appropriately moody and "Google images with a filter on them", I don't remember anything about the plot other than Khan had a bomb again and he had a daughter, and there were new versions of the agents and the Harry stand-in turned evil and Lamont shacked up with Margo's descendant which, uh, no. I don't really hate this but I really have nothing nice to say about this comic other than Colton Worley's art is nice sometimes. I can't really muster anything else to say here.

3: Invisible Avenger

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

ZZZZZZZZZZZZ

ZZZZZZZZZZ...

...uuh, wha-

Yeah, I remember nothing about this one other than it's painfully boring and nothing about it, nothing at all, works in the slightest and I drift off to sleep even now trying to give this a rewatch. To be honest pretty much every other Shadow serial not starred by Victor Jory sucks and I don't really have anything to say about them, this one is just the worst of the lot. I dearly wish there was a good Shadow tv series but, if it was going to be like this pilot? Good riddance.

2: Harlan Ellison's The New York Review of Bird

This isn't really a Shadow story as much as it's a Harlan Ellison story that happens to feature The Shadow, but man am I glad that Ellison's "Dragon Shadows" was canned, because holy shit what a goddamn nightmare Harlan Ellison writing The Shadow for real could have been, going purely by the one time he ever touched the character. New York Review of Bird is a purely farcical parody story that wears real, real thin even before "Uncle Kent" shows up, and we get to see in it what is by far the most detestable and irredeemable take on The Shadow ever put on print, and not even in a critique or deconstructive way or anything that could be remotely worth discussing.

I don't hold any particular affection for Harlan Ellison and his writing (despite liking some of it) and I've come to notice the major red flag that is finding someone who looks up to Harlan Ellison in any capacity as a person, and this story in particular really feels like Ellison aggressively trying to channel his jackass tendencies through every line, just him being nasty because he built a personal brand on being nasty. The only reason this isn't Number One is because it's a very short story that saw zero influence or reputation, and thus it only exists as a brief mention in The Shadow wiki, and a brief mention is all it really calls for.

1: Howard Chaykin's Blood & Judgment

I'm guessing most of you already knew this one was in the top spot before I started writing.

I would actually rather not write a big piece on Blood & Judgment, because I think (or at least I hope) it's influence on The Shadow has waned a lot over the years and I would prefer to draw it the least amount of attention possible, but if I HAVE to talk about this, I guess I'd rather just vomit this out of my circuits now instead of giving it it's own post.

I would prefer to use a less unpleasant image on my blog, but if I'm going to talk about this comic, there's no image to better convey it than this drawing of macho asshole Cranston holding a sexualized mannequin at gunpoint. By leaps and bounds, Blood & Judgment is the most misogynistic Shadow story I've ever read. It's ironic that Chaykin justified the rampant misogyny he gave The Shadow with the idea that this is just a man from the 30s would act like, when he admits in the same breath that he never even touched the stories, and he wrote a story more sexist and demeaning to it's female characters than anything, literally anything, written in the Shadow pulps. It's almost impressive even.

I'll paste some segments from Randy Raynaldo's review

In Flagg, he intended to present his own point of view on American society while keeping his work tongue in cheek and acessible. But this vision dimmed, and Flagg had become a vehicle by which Chaykin could play out fetishes and portray gratuitous and stylish violence.

In The Shadow, stripped of the political and social veneer which was supposed to make Flagg unique, Chaykin's sensibilities and excesses become disturbingly apparent. For all of his liberal posturing, Chaykin's work demonstrates zero difference from the same kind of mentality exploited and made popular by similarly violent popular culture icons like Dirty Harry and Death Wish.

More than half a dozen individuals are indiscriminately and violently murdered in the first issue. Although the victims are characters who played major roles in the myth of The Shadow, we feel little sympathy for them, even for those of us who knew these characters at the outset. Who dies is unimportant, it's how they die that is the fascination.

Chaykin uses sexual decadence as a means by which to establish villains, and undercuts this device by making the protagonists as promiscuous as the villains. For all of Chaykin's seemingly liberal leanings, he demonstrates very little sensitivity in his portrayal of women.

Because everything works on rules of three, this comic also follows the pattern with other works mentioned here, as this isn't Howard Chaykin writing The Shadow: it's The Shadow reimagined as a Howard Chaykin character. He looks and acts exactly like Reuben Flagg and the typical macho protagonist of Chaykin's other works, he's a cynical sleaze with an entirely new origin who half-assedly dons a garb to machine gun people, and I already wrote a separate piece on why the machineguns are kind of emblematic of everything wrong with this take.

I understand that Chaykin has, or used to have, a big following of sorts, and I've tried to wrap my head around this for years, but I genuinely still don't get why Shadow fans stomach this comic unless they happen to be Chaykin fans first and foremost, I really don't. Everything, fucking everything Shadow fans hate about modern depictions of the character can be traced right back to this. The parts that stuck and changed the character for the worse, like him being defined as an immortal, bloodthirsty warmonger who got all his skills and powers from a magic city in Tibet, or Lamont Cranston being a coward who fears and hates the Shadow, or his agents being expendable slaves, stuff that has been ingrained into the mythos through this and the Alec Baldwin movie and other comics, to the point that people now think of it as the norm, that it's the baseline of what The Shadow is, and I hate it, I genuinely fucking hate it,

I hate it so much that it's a big part of the reason why I created this blog and why I want so badly to get to write The Shadow, because I plainly couldn't stand not having ways to tell people that this is all wrong, that this is actively shooting down the character's odds for success, and that they are missing out on something really great, because the well has been tainted with garbage that won't go away and everytime I read the words Shambala in a Shadow comic, even an otherwise good or great one, I get just a wee bit cross.

The only semi-redeeming aspects I can think of for this comic is one or two cool moments, like when The Shadow hijacks a concert using his Devil's Whisper or when he tames dogs with a stare. Just breadcrumbs of "not garbage" amidst an ocean of anything but. I hate that talking about why I hate this comic in-length can almost feel like I'm still enticing people to check it out of curiosity, but if you wanna do that, fine, just know this: The worst part of Blood & Judgment, even if you don't care at all about what it did to The Shadow, is that it's boring.

It is a deeply boring comic. If you like Howard Chaykin to begin with, you'll probably like this okay (although even Chaykin fans told me that this is his weakest work and that even he seems to agree). If you don't, I plain don't see what you could get out of this.

The comic itself is just nothing. It's the comic book equivalent of a pre-schooler trying to get a reaction by swearing. It has nothing whatsoever other than half-assed attempts at shock value. The plot isn't there, the ideas are stale, the dialogue is needlessly oblique and comprised entirely of unfinished sentences, interrupted conversations and one-liners without build-up. The characters are all unlikable and uninteresting stooges with no personality, or joyless cartoons. There's no heart or emotion or logic, and it isn't even funny enough to succeed as just an outrageous exercise in 80s excess. There's nothing in here.

I get "why" it was popular enough at the time, a rising star creator penning a modern revival of an old character based on controversy that pissed off the old fans, it's an old story that still gets repeated today. But manufactured controversy is not a replacement for storytelling and it rarely ever exists to benefit the people who actually want to enjoy the stories, it only benefits those for the crude benefit of those who want to sell you something out of the controversy.

I guess they got their money's worth back then.

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

Phew, okay, I did it, I finally vomited out a piece on Blood & Judgment and some others, allright, let's put this piece of negativity behind us now.

[beingforcedtolivebadwriting]

So in 15x06 Golden Times we get Cas buying batteries to listen to the cassette Dean made him and we get him introducing himself as Agent Worley. As in Darryl Worley, who is known for the album “I Miss My Friend”

Am I just supposed to be normal about this??

[dragonnan]

In light of the disgraceful and asinine decision to cancel Prodigal Son, what are some other shows that make your list of “WTF WHY WERE THESE CANCELLED????????”

Here’s some of mine (and I’m nearly half a century old so I may go back before some ya’ll were born...)

Early Edition (CBS 1996-2000):  Starring Kyle Chandler, Shanésia Davis-Williams, Fisher Stevens, Kristy Swanson, and Billie Worley.  Gary Hobson was just a regular dude when one day he got a paper (and a cat) at his door.  Thing is, this paper has tomorrow’s news.  The character of Gary has a little bit of a Peter Parker flavor to him - this guy who loves his city (Chicago) and wants to save everyone.  As the series goes on, he starts to realize the awful truth that sometimes he’s going to be too late.  As well, the stress of managing daily rescues means he’ll never be able to miss a day because someone could die.  That doesn’t mean he hasn’t tried getting rid of the paper a few times.  Two episodes stand out to me in particular.  The first is where Gary fails to save someone and they fall to their death.  Gary himself, later, will end up in a life and death situation and is faced with whether or not he even wants to live.  Another episode has Gary repeating the same day, over and over, as he desperately tries to stop his friend from getting killed - only to fail every time.

Invisible Man (SciFi Network 2000-2002): Starring Vincent Ventresca, Paul Ben-Victor, Eddie Jones, Shannon Kenny and Michael McCafferty.  Darien Fawkes was a fairly successful cat burglar (think Scott Lang) until he was finally caught by police.  However, instead of being locked away he was handed over to his older brother; a scientist working on some top secret, and highly dubious, experiments.  Darien became the guinea pig - implanted with a gland that can flush the body with a compound called Quicksilver - which turns anyone with the gland invisible.  Sadly, before further research can be done, Darien’s brother is murdered and he’s left alone - stuck with this gland he barely understands.  Worse still, the gland comes with a nasty side effect.  It slowly turns the user insane.  Long story short, Darien is captured/recruited by another top secret agency funded by the government.  Their doctor/scientist did some preliminary research on the gland and was able to develop a sort of stop gap injection to help control the side effects of the gland.  It is a painful but necessary treatment but accidents can still happen - such as over using the gland which means a quicker build-up of toxins in the system.  So Darien was given a tattoo (LIKE THOSE COLOR CHANGE PICTURES ON COFFEE MUGS hahahaha!) that will gradually change color the more the toxins build up (guys this is fucking scifi - don’t ask how the hell that works like this is a series about an invisible dude, okay??).  ANYWAY TL;DR Darien is partnered with a former CIA agent and the two of them chase bad guys and it’s awesome and whumpy as fuck and basically was cancelled cause the show blew its special effects budget.   

Moonlight (SyFy 2007-2008):  Starring Alex O'Loughlin, Sophia Myles, Jason Dohring, and Shannyn Sossamon.  The series is about a private investigator named Mick St. John who, among other thing, is also a vampire.  Mick ends up working with a reporter named Beth Turner as the two of them investigate various crimes.  What I really love is the spin on the usual sorta vampire mythology.  Mick is able to go out in sunlight (though within reason. Too long - too hot and he can get really sick or even die).  Getting a stake to the heart isn’t fatal but it does cause paralysis and hurts like fuck.  Silver CAN be fatal as it acts like a poison.  Fire is absolutely fatal as it will turn exposed vampires to ash.  On top of all that vampires can get triggers of the past via the blood they ingest (think iZombie) or even through scent.  Also some vampires have “gifts” - like there are some who don’t burn when exposed to fire.  Part of their culture, and what keeps them protected from exposure to humanity, are the “Cleaners”.  Cleaners (like the Blacklist) will get rid of all evidence of vampire activity such as dead vampires or humans killed by rogues.  And that’s another thing.  Vampire hierarchy is very important.  Vampires who create other vampires are referred to as Sires and their turned “offspring” are called fledglings.  Whatever gift the sire has they will pass on to their fledglings.  Sadly there was only 1 season of this series so there is a TON of mythology that was never explored but they managed to pack a whole lot into that 1 season.    

Lie to Me (Fucking Fox 2009-2011): Starring Tim Roth, Kelli Williams, Brendan Hines, Monica Raymund, and Hayley McFarland.  Dr. Cal Lightman is the founder of a company with highly skilled “human lie detectors”.  The series is based on the real world work of Paul Ekman, who is a specialist in detecting micro-expressions.  The series itself deals with various criminals and members of the group, primarily Lighman, sussing out the lies from the truth.  It also has one of my absolute favorite parent and child relationships between Cal and his daughter.

Whitechapel (BBC 2009-2013): Starring Rupert Penry-Jones, Phil Davis, and Steve Pemberton.  Sorta like a low budget X-Files (no offense!)  It’s creepy and mysterious with elements of supernatural happenings mixed with investigations in the area of Whitechapel.  It all has to do with murders that reflect Jack the Ripper.  

[lesbiandeancas]

just listened to darryl worley’s “I miss my friend” which I’m pretty sure is implied to be the reason cas takes the alias agent worley in golden time

ok!!!! like okay!!!!!! cas listens to this and thinks of dean and that’s supported by canon.

[laimdalen-itellam]

Getting to Know the Inquisitor

Basics

Name: Ma'aravel Lavellan

Age at the start of their game: 24 (Born 12 Bloomingtide, 9:17 Dragon)

Gender: Male

Sexual orientation: Bisexual

Race: Elf

Class: Warrior (temporarily); Rogue

Height: 5'3"

Weight: 118 lbs

Eyes: Hazel

Hair color/texture: Auburn; Straight

Skin tone: Peaches and Cream

Do they tan or freckle?: Tanning? Not so much. But he does have plenty of freckles, mostly bunched up on his cheeks and the bridge of his nose

Any distinctive physical characteristics?: He has a full face of olive green Mythal vallaslin

Personality

Personality type: INFP-T

Optimist, pessimist, or realist?: Probably an optimist, but clueless and naive might be better words for it

Best traits:

Kind

Open-Minded

Pure-Hearted

Loyal

Attentive

Worst flaws:

Impressionable

Naive

Unassertive

Soft-Hearted

Insecure

Tropes that apply to them:

Amnesiac Hero

The Chains of Commanding

Closest Thing We Got

Dream Walker

Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep"

Expecting Someone Taller

Frontline General

Go and Sin No More

Hearing Voices

Hope Bringer

Humble Hero

I Am Who?

Manchurian Agent

Messianic Archetype

Nice Guy

Oblivious to Love

The Only One

Power Palms

Red Baron

Reluctant Warrior

Right Man In the Wrong Place

Save the Villain

Sole Survivor

Spanner in the Works

Survivor's Guilt

Touched by Vorlons

Undying Loyalty

Unique Protagonist Asset

Unluckily Lucky

Unwanted False Faith

Weirdness Magnet

Are there any songs that particularly suit them?:

"I Don't Remember" by Peter Gabriel

"Stop This Train" by John Mayer

"Being Good Isn't Good Enough" by Barbara Streisand

"Do Something Good" by Darryl Worley

"With A Little Help From My Friends" by The Beatles

If yes, would they agree with your selections?: I'm not sure he'd know how to answer that, honestly

Preferences

Favorite color: Green

Favorite animal: Halla

Taste in clothing: Whatever's comfortable. He does really like the outfits he's seen Solas and some of the Dalish elves wearing, though

How do they feel about mage rights?: Shouldn't all people at least have the right to freedom? He doesn't understand segregation or prejudice of any kind

How do they feel about the other races of Thedas?: They seem nice enough. There are some humans that don't seem to like him, and that group of Qunari did try to kill him, but he knows better than to think a few individuals are representative of their whole population

Are they religious?: In a way. He definitely was before the Conclave, but then the amnesia hit. Solas retaught him many aspects of his culture and religion (with his own opinions coloring said lessons), and he has come across countless evidence that the Dalish gods exist, so he doesn't see why he shouldn't believe in them again

If they were to find themselves in a modern AU

Favorite food: Ice Cream

Drink order: Mudslide

What would they wear for a night out?: An untucked blouse or button-up, some pants, and a pair of boots

Song(s) that would be sure to get them on the dance floor: None that I can think of

College major: Forestry or Natural Resources Conservation

Ideal date: Getting food, watching a movie, and cuddling

Favorite movie and/or film genre: Maleficent; Fantasy

Family/Friends/Love Life

Relationship with their parents: Lavellan's father was a city elf he never knew, but his mother was more than enough. She was kind and gentle and raised him lovingly until she fell deathly ill. The two of them returned to her clan, so that she knew her son would be cared for once she was gone. Sure enough, the clan kept him safe and healthy, but he was never shown even half the love he'd become accustomed to under his mother's care

Siblings (outside of canon): N/A

Best friend(s): Cole, Iron Bull, and Sera

Companion(s) they get along best with: Dorian, Solas, Varric, Cole, Iron Bull, and Sera

Companion(s) they get along worst with: Vivienne

Companion(s) from other games in the series you wish they could meet, and why: Merrill. They're both adorable sweethearts who were ostracized by their clans, so I feel like they'd get along pretty well

Age of sexual debut: Around 18 or 19

Romanced: Dorian (RPs won't go beyond an awkward date or two with anyone else, and not even that once he's started to date his vhenan)

Relationship status as of the end of Inquisition: Long-distance partners

Are there any songs that particularly suit their romance?:

"Crazy for You" by Madonna

"Teenage Dream" by Katy Perry

"Love Is Beginning" by Imaginary Future

"Your Arms Feel Like Home" by 3 Doors Down

What are they like as a romantic partner?: Eager and willing to please. Also, incredibly cuddly and doting

Do they enjoy cuddling?: As mentioned before, yes! He will take every opportunity to be as close to his vhenan as possible

Do they want children?: He hasn't really thought about it

Do they (now or eventually) have children?: Probably not

Skills

Can they cook?: If asked to. He's made some stews and roasted meats in the past

Can they sing/play an instrument?: No instruments, but he can sing slow songs pretty well. He has a hard time sticking to the beat on faster ones

Are they a good dancer? If not, do they do it anyway?: His only experience dancing was at the Winter Palace. He stumbled a bit at the foreign movements with Florianne, so Dorian let him rest his feet on his own during their later reconnaissance to avoid spoiling the mood

Do they have any creative hobbies?: No

Any martial training beyond their main weapon?: He used to use daggers or a shortbow, and eventually he went back to them, but on his first outing after the Conclave, he just picked up the nearest weapon, which happened to be a longsword he had to hold with both hands. Assuming he didn't know how to fight at all, he was taught the basics of the weapon by a few of his companions

Languages spoken: The common tongue and Elvhen

Any other unique skills they'd like us to know about?: None that he can remember

Template

[dotthings]

Looking at a gifset of Cas losing it a little after Dean hangs up, there’s so many things going on in that moment, and Cas has to visibly recover to get back into the “Agent Worley” persona. There’s the challenge of the emotional whiplash, where Dean said what he did that alienated Cas and drove him to feel he wasn’t wanted or needed so he had ot leave and now Dean’s insisting on talking to him, warning him about the big bad, checking in, and lecturing him that he should answer his messages, as if this is just another one of those times Cas went off on his own on some mission and they didn’t have a massive emotional split. A hint of exasperation mixed in with Cas’s emotions. There’s internal confusion as well. He thought he had it worked out. He was sad but resolute. Believing he wasn’t cared for or needed or wanted. Struck out on his own. One quick phone call with Dean and his sad resolution has been thrown into chaos. Cas “I don’t know what my emotions are doing” Winchester. Not to take away, at all, Cas as his own person and a strong independent angel who don’t need no man, I think it’s notable Cas’s change of heart by the end of the episode, in part is faciliated by that phone call with Dean, but not just that. It was Cas having some meditative time alone, fishing, and then a win on his own, saving people, hunting things, seeing he can make a difference in his own right. I had been thinking about how Dean can’t fix Cas’s sense of failure. Things could be fixed with Dean, they could make up with each other, and Cas would still feel like he failed, all the reassurances from Dean won’t make that go away. Cas going out there and proving himself to himself changes things.

But I’m also not going to discount that phone call with Dean in helping Cas get there mentally. Canon has positioned Cas as Dean’s hope for a long time, but what about the other way around. The phone call with Dean brining the emotional upheaval and confusion that stirs things up inside Cas is an important catalyst. Cas needed to prove himself to himself, but he also needed that sense of hope, that Dean wasn’t really done with him. Also Misha’s performance adds so much richness, the range he brings to Cas, and those pitch perfect moments of how Cas reacts when he’s overwhelmed with emotions he’s not quite sure how to deal with. Cas internalizes a great deal and he is a lot more emotionally repressed than Dean, remember his millennia of existence he was taught emotions were dangerous and compromising for an angelic soldier. Vulcans are the usual comparison for Cas’s relationship to emotions—it’s not that he doesn’t have them. He has them powerfully. He was trained to not express or act on them. But I think Jedi are also a good comparison. Jedi aren’t supposed to develop strong personal attachments, even to their padawans, and it’s relevant here to point out that the Jedi who broke those rules, when they embraced those attachments instead of pushing them away, those attachments were a personal salvation that kept them from going dark.

[cosmicstardustcastiel]

15.06 Agent Worley

Saw a GIF today of episode 15.06, Golden Time, where Cas and Dean are in their after breakup feels. Cas, in this episode, is Agent Worley. For fun and because I hate myself, I googled musician Worley. The main one that showed up was Darryl Worley, who is best known for “I miss my friend”. 

I come on this site and choose violence against myself. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zNf4sOO_mg

By the way, I am aware that it is most likely coincidental, but I still hurt my own feelings.