#Jorge you mad man

[celesrangeepic]

“What’s a title a goddess could lend if ill never sleep at night”

Compared to

“Maybe if I helped you reach your goal- Life could be that bright, I could sleep at night”

It just shows how Athena changed from thinking Odysseus was being dramatic about his guilt with his dead crew members to understanding how and why Odysseus felt that way because she feels the same way Odysseus felt, she had no way of knowing if Odysseus was dead after My Goodbye and that guilt that is shown in We’d be Fine- just the pure guilt and reconsideration of if Athena did something different, would Odysseus still be there. That just makes her more human and I love it so much

[dudethatsmyundeaduncle]

Love getting into reading comics after years away and remembering that people used to draw in the most butt fucking ugly way you can imagine.

[nanaimothoughts]

Calypso, Nuance and Misogyny

Whoop-dee-scoop I'm mad at people on TikTok again. Yippee.

I love Not Sorry For Loving You. It does so much for Calypso's characterization in this musical. And I'm tired of seeing people blatantly ignoring that.

"This is emotional manipulation!!" "She's a narcissist!" "She's not actually apologizing to Ody!"

Y'all are fucking insufferable (/lh). Yes, what Calypso did to Odysseus is bad. I am not going to say it isn't. Forcing a man to be with you is bad. But a character doing bad things doesn't mean that you can brush off everything she says under "bad woman bad".

Here's the second verse of NSFLY (via LyricFind on Google)

Let me speak I spent my whole life here Was cast away when I was young Alone for a hundred years I had no friends but the sky and sun So when you washed ashore I thought for sure that you were my dream come true I thought I knew

This contextualizes her actions. Not excuses, but explains why she did what she did.

Calypso was banished to her island because she's Atlas' daughter and not much else from what I've gathered. And she's telling the audience that she's spent more or less her entire life completely alone. Of-fucking-course she's gonna be overly/unhealthily attached to the first other person she's seen in the last hundred years or so. She finally has someone to talk to. And ignoring that nuance is not fair to her character.

There's also the simple truth that Homer didn't write EPIC. He wrote The Odyssey, which EPIC is based on, but Jorge's the one that actually wrote EPIC, meaning that this is Jorge's version of Calypso, which is clearly more humanized/sympathetic than Homer's.

Speaking of the original Odyssey, if you've gotten this far you might be wondering why I put misogyny in the title. The answer's simple:

Homer was a misogynist. So were most all men in Ancient Greece.

As I'm sure a good chunk of people in this fandom know, Ancient Greece… wasn't kind to their women. When one of the healthiest marriages in the mythos starts with the woman being kidnapped, it's hard to argue anything else. And surprise to no one, this also affected the written versions of the myths, including Homer's works.

The original Calypso is no exception. She's an evil temptress who's only motive for being evil is being rejected sexually. There was nothing else to her character. In fact, every woman in Greco-Roman mythology is either "evil typically temptress mwah-ha-ha" or "I have absolutely no agency whatsoever"

On the flip-side, the version of Calypso that Jorge's written is more three-dimensional than that (well, as much as she can be with only two songs). So effectively, in brushing off the context given to her character because "well she's evil so…" is in my humble opinion, reinforcing the misogyny that was woven into her that modern retellings are trying to remove from her character.

Anyway, it's almost midnight. I'm tired. Thanks for reading to the end, and goodnight.

[sunshinemayhem]

Different Beast thoughts

boss music

LET'S CUT THE CHARADES (love Jorge's voice.)

Yeah, I know exactly who you are: a siren. WHOOSH

ODYPEN supremacy

"what?" it's the last what apparently. lovely.

we won't take more suffering from you (HE'S FLIPPED IT)

BEESWAX

he read her lips LOL

he knows how to get backkkk home

we are a different beast now --sigh he's actually become a monster hasn't he?

spare us (I really love the voice harmoniessss)

I mad a mistake like this, it almost cost my life the foreboding

CUT OFF THEIR TAILS, LET THEM DROWN gasp

He is a different beast now. It's not "we" anymore

a man-made monster.

Odysseus, I don't recognize you anymore.

[moonshynecybin]

Hi, if its convenient can you put me a link to all Bezz vrimes of haterism on Marc. Is he really that insane to go on record like a drunken man

omg i would love to... those videos are so literally iconic and all of this is so funny to me... SO um. like marc absolutely had a hand in crashing bez out really early at valencia 2023, but it didnt get on the broadcast bc the fucking TITLE FIGHT was happening and stuff so the broadcasting crew simply had other priorities. sorry marco. BUT this still pisses known vale loyalty weirdo and proud scorpio bez off. like a lot. so after the last race of the year when everyone is doing burnouts and getting drunk and celebrating the end of the season he decides to fucking show up to honda hospitality to idk. demand justice. or something, maybe get an apology or explanation. like honesty i have no idea what he thought would happen tbh, because marc had also crashed out of that race later on (jorge martin doing stupid shit and marc high sided to the MOON) and on top of that it was his LAST RACE WITH HONDA. so marc is literally crying all over the place and trying to achieve emotional catharsis about closing a major chapter of his life and saying goodbye to this team that he loves and means so much to him then bez (A FUCKING VALE CRONY??) shows up and starts allegedly yelling at him. which i imagine did not impress marc in the least. so he refuses to talk to him! or turns him away idk but SOMETHIN happens that pisses bez off even moreeeee so he goes into his post race briefing just absolutely spitting mad in like. a puffer jacket with a beer literally in his hand. messy.

so he starts running his mouth. calls marc the dirtiest rider in motogp and says marc only got away with it bc hes MARC MARQUEZ and there was a conspiracy from the stewards and the broadcast in favor of marc (um. buddy.) and its makes a bunch of headlines bc vr46/marquez flavored beef keeps the lights on around here. MARC says to the media i dont wanna even talk about that person. NEXT. so it goes.

but its not even over, because later that day (entering the celebration portion of the evening) bez gets WAYY drunker (TOASTED.) and posts up to the ducati garage to party about pecco’s championship win, whereupon he steals a microphone from skyitalia and goes around bothering people and dropping little digs at marc the wholeeeee time. tbh it is VERY funny. hes like pecco hello how are you today congratulations i WILL beat you next year. did anyone know that marquez made me crash. now lets talk to your GRANDMA ! like its awesome. i watch it when i get sad and imagine the PR guy was locked in a closet somewhere screaming. theres a vid with excellent translation here. homie is on the MOON.

anyways he saw marc on track at testing and was clearly still a lil annoyed but then he walked most of this back like three days later (i DO think some stories got published saying they physically FOUGHT and there were some made up quotes that were obvs crazy, but i also think my man marco got a taste of the vale/marc media divorce vortex and went runningggggg) which is. also so funny. "i dont care what people think" (cares sooosossoso much)

[goosedoes-fics]

Madness Headcanons

Madcom x Reader

Content Warnings: I talk about tits a lot sorry. Also mentions of organ failure and transfem Tricky

Notes: Trying to get back into the writing groove. Sorry if this is shit

HANK J WIMBLETON

If you didn't know ASL before meeting them, they would communicate primarily with hand and head movements. He's too cool to use a notepad

Not a big fan of PDA, but in private he's quite affectionate and cuddly. theyre just a big ass guard dog cmon

Hank Motherfucker Wimbleton what are you doing here????? waiting for them to play gangnam styl.

DEIMOS

Transgenda

I like to imagine Dedmos's rock face works similarly to Hank's metal jaw. It's just a rock jaw. Rock lobster.

He is an ASSHOLE (affectionate)

The kind of person to like. Punch your shoulder when they laugh

Their ideal first date is stealing the declaration of independence

If you don't make him, he will go days without showering he is SO smelly anfd SO stinky. He has GREASY ASS HAIR i just know it

SANFORD

If Hank is a guard dog he's one of those goofy dogs that look like bear cubs

VERY big fan of PDA he will smooch you anywhere. everywhere. any time any place any day

He takes missions more seriously than Deimos but outside of missions he is just a big fat goofball

I'm going to place my hands directly on his man tits. anyways where was I

He lost his nipples in The War

I'm kidding. He lost them during top surgery.

At this point i'm aiming the transgenderification beam at all of them. nobody is safe. BE TRANSGENDER

DOC

Sometimes he wears his hair down and it's like a mullet w/ shaved sides

Out of all of them he's the most adverse to PDA but! In private he is very sweet. very silly

Hey are you okay with being tested on? Yeah? Cool will you drink this organ failure potion I brewed

Plays the piano sometimes! He might serenade you if you ask nicely

TRICKY

BE TRANSGENDER. (shoots her with my transfem beam)

Yeah so he/she bigender Tricky is real. Krinkels told me himself

He is like a big weird dog as well. He might lick your face (don't let him zed spit is slightly acidic)

Probably likes PDA the most. She will make out with you very grossly and sloppily in the middle of McDonalds

Very soft very fluffy. Which is surprising considering how many times he's died

His tail is somewhat prehensile, he could dangle from a tree branch if he tried hard enough

CHURCH AND JORGE

They are very good at sharing!

Sorry not sorry yandere enjoyers but they would NOT kill someone for looking at you they would be like haha yeah everyone should look at our awesome fucking partner theyre so cool and hot

Sometimes they forget how big they are compared to you so they might try to like flop over on you. Pigpile on the small one

Very prone to roughhousing and play fighting but they'll be gentle if you ask

BEEFY BOYS 😍

[shebeafancyflapjack]

hello hi and omg the Stockholm syndrome with calypso thing. I've never thought of it that way for some reason. woah do you have any other thoughts on that I'd love to hear!!

Hi!

Couple things; so this has been one of my favorite songs long before the saga came out as the demo out on YouTube was pretty much the full version. It's so beautiful and tragic, but I kept assuming that - given the sympathetic vibe of the song - Jorge was going to change this part of the story to make Calypso less of a villain.

Like my assumption was she wouldn't be the one keeping him trapped, it's just the curse of her island and even if she let him go he'd just come back or get hurt. So she's as much of a prisoner as him, basically. But also that it would be clear she didn't SA him as in the Odyssey. It would just be an innocent one sided infatuation that she would keep hoping he'd fall for her over time but wouldn't. So at first I assumed the "I love you" line would be like "I love you as a friend, I would have been alone and gone mad here for years without you, you gave me a bit of peace after all the trauma." Etc.

But then the Wisdom Saga came out...

And Love In Paradise definitely has SA and manipulation vibes. Rather than helping Ody heal in any way, he becomes even worse. Athena says outright "she's kept you trapped out of your control". There's no wriggle room for that. It's not just an innocent love. I would love to have confirmation from Jorge if this Calypso did force herself on him in any way as I think it would clear up things in the fandom.

So with that all in context, I can't hear the line as "I love you as a friend". It doesn't feel earned, we've not glimpsed anything from Calypso that would have Ody respect her that way. So for me it would be more affection born out of captivity and isolation and feeling sorry for your captor, but still wanting to get as far as fuck away from them.

It reminds me a lot of the real life kidnapping of Natasha Kampush whose book describing her ordeal where she was kept trapped underground for eight years is a chilling read. But it is a fascinating insight into what we think of as "Stockholm Syndrome" and how it's not like people imagine where they're brainwashed to be hopelessly devoted to them (and before anyone jumps down my throat, yes I know there's some debate over the name and having it be seen as a mental health condition when it's mostly just human empathy and survival tactic). Natasha's complex feelings towards her abuser and how media tried to romanticise it after her escape reminds me a lot of Odysseus and Calypso. She feared this man, he made her life a misery and treated her worse than a dog - but he was still the only company she had for eight years. There would be times when she felt fleeting moments of normalcy and affection, it's just human nature for that to create a bond. And she would grow sympathy for how messed up he clearly was, probably in much the same way Ody felt sympathy for Calypso being trapped alone.

Yes Calypso is a goddess but she feels the most human out of all the ones who appear in Epic, in the most messy way humans can be.

Hope I've explained that well. 😅

[agentcalypso]

my (mostly) coherent thoughts on the wisdom saga

written during first listen/the livestream this time bc i have shit to do tmrw so forgive me if i miss some stuff (will prob do a part 2 once i have a spare hour or so)

(also spoilers)

𓅓 LEGENDARY 𓅓

first off there were over 100k ppl in the livestream by the time the saga started which i think is a record so good job winions

MICO's voice fits telemachus SO well its not even funny

and like he also has a bit of jorge's voice in him and it's just. augh /pos

the L-L-L-L-Legendary :D

ok but you can hear his voice get just the tiniest bit softer when he starts talking abt the suitors/penelope

ARGOS :DDDDDDDD

MAN OF THE HOUSE

also the animatics are SO GOOD

ANTINOUS YOU BITCH /POS

"WHAT YOU GONNA DO ABOUT IT CHAMP?" LMAOOO

12/10

𓅓 LITTLE WOLF 𓅓

THE ART??? HELLO??????

i hate antinous /pos

but also his voice is sooooooooooo good

this. this is just street fighter (/pos)

ATHENA WITH THE QUICK THOUGHT

"Whoa, this is so sick!" i love him <3

god teagan sounds sooooooooo good

i did not expect him to lose but it makes sense so im not complaining

10/10

𓅓 WE'LL BE FINE 𓅓

athena looks so pretty in the art omg

athena opening up? holy shit

"my time with you's been splendid, the best day of my life" telemachus you got beatne to a pulp are you okay

i like the new lyrics for telemachus' part better tbh

TELEMACHUS FALLING THROUGH HER LMAO

9/10

𓅓 LOVE IN PARADISE 𓅓

THE TIME DIIIIIIIIIVE

gigi hitting HARD with the animatics again

CALYPSO'S FACE WHEN HE TALKS ABT PENELOPE LMAO

also calypso's animation is so flowy i love it

"last i checked goddesses can't die ^_^"

it was at this point the livestream died for "policy violations" i think youtube just hates us

pov: you are in the epic the musical discord at 11:44 p.m. EST

THE OG STREAM WENT FROM 110K TO 4.6K IN LIKE THREE MINUTES LMAO

i came into the new stream to jorge cackling like mad and i think that sums up the general energy of my reaction to this whole saga pretty well

the glowy effects on her are so cooooool

damn poor ody :(

fuck you jorge /pos

"i have to see her" vs. "he needs my help" pick you poison

10/10 -1 point for youtube being a little shit /neg

𓅓 GOD GAMES 𓅓

luke. just luke

wolfy animatic :D

the harp strings are so fun

love hephaestus' animation omg

also hephaestus being voiced by jorge's dad is so cool :D

aphrodite. that's it that's the post <3

i still maintain that you can do the camp rock march to ares' part idc

ATHENA DANCING LMAO

BEAST MODE ZEUS HOLY S H I T THE GROWL

"is she dead?!" i love him but yea there's a reason ares isn't the smart war god

THE FLASHBACK??????? HELLO???????? I WILL BE THINKING ABOUT THIS FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS

OH SHIT ARES WAS RIGHT

12/10

in conclusion idk what kind of crack got put in this saga specifically but consider me hooked

[frogwiththephatahh]

Lines from Epic that absolutely destroy me every single time

"A cave! You're saying there's a cave where we could feast?" (Just because I know that's coming) "Yes, you shall be the final man to die" (mostly because we're at the thunder saga now and Ody literally is the last man standing just...ahhh) Polites' rasping, broken "Cap...tain..." followed by "He's got a club...he's got a club!" "Since you claim you're so much wiser, why's your life spent all alone? You're alone!" "Cause the end always justifies the means/Everything's changed since Polites" The crew screaming "Captain!" as Poseidon destroys the other ships. "I keep thinking of the infant from that night...I keep thinking of the infant from that night..." Odysseus' wistful "Polites..." when Polites appears in the Underworld. "I'm right here, mom, can't you see? I'm waiting" (this genuinely made me tear up the first time I heard it and I still cry when I try to sing along) "And if I gotta drop another infant from a wall in an instant so we all don't die- then I'll become the monster!" "Cut off their tails! We're ending this now. Throw their bodies back in the water- Let them drown." (fucking BRUTAL) "Eurylochus, light up six tourches" Also, you can HEAR the crewmates screaming as Scylla grabs them during "Scylla" and it's haunting. Before I get into the MANY that Mutiny has, I've gotta give a shout out to Jorge and Armando for the insanely emotional and moving acting they deliver during this song. It's a masterpiece. "Use your wits to try and say I'm crazy and mad" the DESPERATION in Eury's voice I can't "Say something!" "I can't!"

"This statue...the God of the Sun. Don't know where it's from, but here's where we found all these cows to hunt" I read The Odyssey long before listening to Epic and knowing exactly where this was going made me shudder "Please don't tell me you're about to do what I think you'll do" One of many callbacks to other songs in Mutiny "Ody, we're never gonna get to make it home, you know it's true" "I'm tired, my friend!" Armando I hate you /aff "Eurylochus, no! You've doomed us. You've doomed us all, Eurylochus!" followed by Eurylochus softly saying, "captain?" And of course we can't forget "Captain?" "I have to see her" "But we'll die" "I know" In conclusion, I love this musical

[thatrandoontumbler]

Ok so Six Hundred Strike…

This song was just absolutely beautiful in storytelling and music. Honestly I’d be here all day if I picked it apart piece from piece. The way it was executed was just perfect to the tee.

The way the first half is this silly little anime battle meant to hype you up and then the second half is meant to DESTROY YOU. My sibling and I were both freaking out listening to it and how it’s a perfect sequel to Different Beast when Odysseus finally embraces his Ruthlessness 🫠. We both started losing our minds when just like in DB, Poseidon’s yells was used as a melodic accompaniment just like the siren screams from the previous. And then of course Ody just deciding to embrace the man he is now because regardless he finally gets to go home.

Jorge you’re a mad genius and I will now retreat back to my little cave to await the Ithaca Saga. Good day to you all ✨

[i-will-change-this-someday]

Here are my thoughts on The Vengeance Saga.

(Spoilers ahead)

I enjoyed it, I don’t think it’s my favorite, but I still really like it.

I think it’s because this is the first saga to come out after I started listening, but the transitions to each song seems a bit abrupt.

Cause when I think about it, the cut from Just A Man to Full Speed Ahead, Open Arms to Warrior Of The Mind, and The Underworld to No Longer You are all pretty abrupt as well.

Pretty sure this is an unpopular opinion, but Calypso is... fine? She's not good by any means, but people act like she's evil incarnate.

I don't know if I'm missing something here, but why are people making her out to be most evil character in all of EPIC?

Polyphemus thinks it's fair to kill 600 people over the life of one sheep (That he would have killed and eaten anyway?)

Poseidon kills over 500 men all for his own pride (I really don't think he actually cared that much about Polyphemus given how crass he sounded about killing him)

Circe turns men into pigs (And eats them?) without giving them a chance at proving that they mean no harm

Odysseus sacrifices the lives of his men who he is captain to, and I might be talking nonsense, but I feel like that means that he has a responsibility to them and their safety, he is their captain, they are saying "I trust you with my life and to take me home" and he betrayed that trust

All of them do these awful things, but you can understand why they do. But for some reason the same is not given to Calypso, she literally says he is all she's ever known. It's not fair for her to keep Odysseus on the island, but can you blame her when letting him go means she'll be alone again? Would you be able to let the one and only person you have ever met go? Knowing you'd likely be alone again forever?

Anyway what I don't see nearly enough is hatred for Antinous, I hate that man, he's literally a child abuser (I know Telemachus isn't a child, but he was at one point and Antinous was there [Telemachus literally doesn't even know how to fight] do you really think he didn't abuse that child?) That man is (assumedly) already nobility, but that's not good enough for him, he needs to be king and will force himself onto Penelope and kill her son.

Okay rant over, anyways Dangerous is a bop.

I really do adore Troy's voice, and really like his music (I'm actually listening to his music as I write this)

Dangerous is probably my favorite song this saga, but only in terms of "I will listen to this outside of a full listen of the musical" I probably wouldn't listen to the others without context of the rest of the musical.

How do you pronounce Charybdis?

I do feel like he got past Charybdis really easily, but I get that Poseidon was the focus for the saga, so I don't mind it.

Steven Rodriguez's voice is so good.

I was kinda hoping for one more verse from Poseidon before Odysseus's line but that's alright

At this point I shouldn't even be surprised if there's a Polites cameo

Also I feel like this is a given, But Jorge's voice is also amazing, and he really gave his all for the screams and yells this saga.

Okay, time for another tangent, I'll admit the wind bag jetpack is kinda goofy, but it's really not that bad to me. Ancient Greece also didn't have high fives (I'm pretty sure anyways) but people don't say anything about that, also the slang "sick" probably wasn't invented in ancient Greece. (I will say, I did like one idea I saw that someone say [I'm sorry, I don't remember who] that the wind bag split the ocean and they were fighting on the ocean floor)

I've seen a lot of people be mad that Odysseus beat Poseidon, but I feel like it would have been unsatisfying if he just lost. Like say he didn't beat him, and was getting beaten up until Zeus or someone was like "Yo, chill bro that dude is like fine or whatever, let him go" I feel like that would have been an underwhelming conclusion to the Vengeance Saga.

Like sure, should Poseidon been able to kill Odysseus? Yes. But don't humans beat the Gods in some stories? (I‘ll be honest, I don’t know a whole lot about Greek mythology and most of what I do know is from PJO which I haven’t read in a while.) Like Arachne was a better weaver than Athena, or Diomedes wounded Ares (?) so I feel like it’s not that unreasonable.

I’m not saying you have to like it, I just feel like people are saying it’s bad without giving an alternative that would be narratively satisfying. Like, it’s satisfying to get to see Odysseus knock Poseidon down a peg, it’s compelling to see how much Odysseus has become a monster, and wonder how much more he will fall to monstrosity before he returns home.

To me, the story is a tragedy about a man who wanted something so much he gave everything he had, his morals, his companions, his compassion, he gave everything for it, and in the end he became someone else entirely.

Ody beating up Poseidon shows how much he has changed, if he had lost and just pleaded with him, how is he any different from the Odysseus that got on his knees and begged a god to spare a life in the very first song? He's not that man anymore, he has changed so much that it's, at least in this moment, a god kneeling and begging.

[batsplat]

Jerez 2006

[It] was certainly within the four walls of that gym, between rep after rep on different muscle groups, that the 'LorenShow' was born. There was a time when only Rossi used to put on a show, but even that has become a rare event. 'Now he only does it on certain occasions,' says Jorge. 'The World Championship was losing a bit of sparkle. Other riders were trying things but they weren't funny, especially in 125cc. There was a time when Melandri tried to imitate Rossi but he never managed to make it as funny.' Jorge had been thinking for a long time about how he could offer his fans something extra after a win. A lot of people saw him as too serious, but he wanted to show that he cared about them, that he enjoyed what he did and that he was affable and good humoured, as well as imaginative. He needed an ingenious plan because he had a clear objective: to celebrate the World Championship title in style. 'We wanted to do it in style, go mad,' recalls Dani Palau. That seemed a long way off, back in the summer of 2006, but once the crises of Turkey, Shanghai and Le Mans were behind him the dream of beating Andrea Dovizioso was alive again.

Strictly speaking, the first episode of the 'LorenShow' was at the Spanish GP in 2006. It was his first victory in the 250cc class and Jorge got off his bike, took off his helmet and started shouting at the fans. 'It was pretty spectacular and it was the first time we used the word "LorenShow",' he recalls. 'Palau and I used to put together a ten-page magazine of our own after each Grand Prix and on the front cover of that particular edition we put a photo of my celebrations and the headline [in English] "Welcome to the LorenShow!" That was awesome, really different. I have always been creative and I fancied doing something special after I won, so I decided to give it a try!' The design of the magazine, by the way, was similar to GQ. 'Well, not similar exactly. We kind of copied it! We were worried about getting into trouble for copying it but I hope they don't hit us with a lawsuit now ... it was only for us!' he laughs.

March 2007

After his victory at Losail Jorge pretended to skip like a boxer, as he'd done for so many hours in the gym with Marcos. It was a spontaneous, intuitive celebration and an early turning point for his season. After such a morale-boosting performance during and after the race, why not celebrate all his victories from now on? 'In Qatar I did the skipping-rope thing but I never thought that in the future I'd be using props to celebrate my victories!' The preparation that went into each episode of 'LorenShow' was a simple but elaborate process. Generally the original idea would come from Jorge and, often with the help of his computer, Palau would fill in the details. It became something of a team effort at Motorsport48, where almost everybody began to join in the fun. Everybody except the boss: Dani Amatriain kept his distance. He didn't like or dislike the celebrations but he preferred to leave them to Jorge as a bit of innocent fun. Out of the blue came another idea, this time from Marcos. Once again, it was an idea born in the gym. 'You are a warrior. You have to reclaim the championship, right? But what kind of a conqueror doesn't have a flag?' Jorge's eyes began to twinkle. 'It has to be something really visual,' Jorge told Palau, taking on the idea. 'Imagine that in each race I stick a flag into the ground, as if I have conquered that land. Like Christopher Columbus when he arrived in America!' The design process was short, with Jorge's X-fuera logo the obvious choice, set on a black background - the colour used by pirates. And written in English, so that it would be understood all over the world, not just in Spain, would be those now famous words: 'Lorenzo's Land'.

The day of its first unfurling soon arrived. It was the Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez, known as 'The Cathedral' by local fans. Dani Palau headed for partisan territory - the section of track that features the 'Angel Nieto' and 'Peluqui' corners, where he would meet his friend if he won the race. 'I had goosebumps. You should have heard the noise from the crowd when Jorge stopped!' he recalls. There were 140,000 people packed into the grandstands at Jerez that day and they had been treated to an outstanding 250cc race: 'la carrera de los cuarenta y dos adelantamientos' ['the race with forty two overtakes']. Jorge Lorenzo savoured the moment. As he had done in 2006, he removed his helmet, got off his bike and punched the air to celebrate his second victory at Jerez. Then the flag appeared by his side. He took it and drove it deep into the gravel. Jerez had been conquered, the first circuit to be claimed as 'Lorenzo's Land'. A few weeks later he won again, in China, and again he planted the flag. However, unlike Jerez, this victory was his first in Shanghai. Nobody was going to stop him now.

"Now what's happening with Lorenzo? Oh, he's going to plant the flag, I think. Here we go! Or he's going to throw the flag. He's going to do something, but, eh... All the script we have in front of us, all the timings, goes out of the window when Lorenzo wins a 250cc race... so you can just, rustle up your papers, any scripts you've got, what's coming up next, disappears, because he delays everything. There we are. Plants the flag..."

Le Mans 2007

Lorenzo, who designs his own logos and comes up with fun things like the pirate flag he sticks in the sand at the circuit where he wins to "announce to everyone" that he has conquered "that land" , says that preparing for these celebrations is just another way of coping with the hard training he does and, above all, having the best time possible. "Looking for ideas for the parties I have at the circuits encourages me to win ," he said yesterday after his excellent victory over Dovizioso.

The Mallorcan, who did not hesitate to admit his mistake on a line and apologize to Dovi for the push he had given him ( "I'm very sorry, I went out too wide on a curve, I wanted to regain verticality too soon, get back on the right line and I crashed into him" ), yesterday came up with nothing better than to dress up his soulmate, Dani Palau, as Jorge Lorenzo, with whom he shares the entertainment of festive designs and games. Palau appeared on the lap of glory and tried to get his two-and-a-half-litre Aprilia and, as they had agreed, Lorenzo told him to go away, that the bike was his and that he was the owner of the winning machine. "We wanted to make a joke, implying that the double, which was him, Dani, represented the Lorenzo who had fallen on Friday and that the real one, that is, myself, was the one who had won the race."

Mugello 2007

Jorge was coming up with more ideas for celebrations than he could use, and that was probably a good thing because some of them would have got him into more trouble than they were worth. Like the one that involved him wearing an Andrea Dovizioso mask. 'We've still got the mask but Andrea would have had to do something really bad to me to warrant getting it out ... though he'd better ‘watch it!' smiles Jorge. Another one that failed to get past the ideas stage was for Valencia, the final race of 2007. Jorge had already claimed the title and, after being criticised all year for using the 'Lorenzo's Land' flag instead of the Spanish one, planned to go completely over the top, using not only the Spanish flag but dressing up' as a bullfighter. Maybe it was a good thing he only managed seventh. The celebrations he did get to use became ever more elaborate and meticulously planned. He would scour the circuit for the best comer, with the best camera angle and the best view for the fans. Jorge had decided that each celebration should have something to do with the country he was in, and in Italy a friend, Jordi Ohva, who worked for Dorna [the commercial and television rights holders for MotoGP] gave him an idea. 'In Italy they've nicknamed you "Spaniard". The commentator on Italian television has started calling you that.''"Spaniard"? Why?''Because you are like a gladiator and that's what they call the main character played by Russell Crowe in the movie Gladiator.' Maximus Decimus Meridius was a Roman general born in Merida, Spain. He lived in the second century and since this was the second year of domination by a Spaniard in the 250cc class then what better way for Lorenzo to celebrate victory in the Italian GP than by dressing up as his namesake? 'In fact, the idea of doing something historical came after watching 300 with Marcos,' explains Jorge, 'We watched the film again with Palau, the three of us talked about it and we decided we wanted to do something related to the Battle of Thermopylae. It was while we were looking for a King Leonidas suit that we came across a Gladiator outfit. That coincided with me finding out what [Italian television commentator] Guido Meda was calling me.' The wheels were quickly put in motion. like any good media relations manager, Pere Gurt sourced an exact replica of the costume worn by Russell Crowe in the film, which was owned by an agency in Madrid. It cost 600 euros a week to rent and the sword was extra. It was kept in a corner of the garage at Mugello, where Dani Palau devoutly guarded it from the inquisitive eyes of journalists who were already wondering what Lorenzo had up his sleeve if he won this one. On race day Palau headed for the comer where they'd agreed to meet if a miracle should happen. Jorge was starting from 20th on the grid, but he still had his sights set on victory. Everybody knows what happened next. On the big screens around the circuit, Palau watched his friend slide into the gravel after colliding with Bautista. He jumped onto his scooter and raced to fetch him, sword, breastplate, helmet, 'Lorenzo's Land' flag and all. The Italian fans spotted the props and, despite Jorge's popularity there, Dani could hear them laughing and shouting insults. The mediocre can be unforgiving when a winner falls from his perch. 'The preparations were perfect, but unfortunately the race wasn't!'

Catalunya 2007

You have to be very confident in your abilities to appear on the starting grid, having previously asked two friends to dress like you, to wait for you at a strategic point during the lap of honour and to take out some guitars so you can emulate your favourite band in front of 112,600 spectators. That was how Jorge Lorenzo celebrated his fifth victory of the season at Montmeló, giving a concert on the track and another one off it, microphone in hand, as a tribute to the Red Hot Chili Peppers and to make up for his fall at Mugello a week ago. This time, the Mallorcan needed two stunt doubles at his side for his performance, and those who dressed as him were Dani Palau, his webmaster and the same one he used at Le Mans, and Ricard Cardús, a CEV driver and Carlos' nephew.

Looking back on his performance, it could be said that the most critical moment was the start, when Thomas Luthi had taken the lead on the first corner. 'Por Fuera' did not back down, he lived up to his nickname and made an epic outside turn. That was the only thing that really cost him, or so it seemed from the sidelines, because he later said that it had been a difficult race. Maybe he said that because he still had in mind the blunder in Italy, that fall on the last corner when Álvaro Bautista overtook him. Whatever the reason, he was exultant and at the end of the podium ceremony he dared to take the speaker's microphone to address the public. "Did you enjoy the show?" he asked from the top of the podium. And he continued: "I know that some of you liked me and others didn't, but I don't care. You are Spanish like me and I love you! Thank you."

The trio completed a recce of Montmelo on Thursday and Friday and performed a rehearsal at the corner of choice, in front of the stadium section. I told them, "When we're playing here, I want you to jump around like the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Go on YouTube, have a look at the videos and learn the dance moves," ' recalls Jorge. 'But the bastards ignored me!' For one magic moment Jorge, Dani and Ricky were no longer Lorenzo, Palau and Cardus. They weren't even three Lorenzos, dancing and singing like maniacs in front of 100,000 people. They were Anthony Kiedis, Flea and John Frusciante. Only Chad Smith was missing on drums, otherwise they would have been the real Chilis. 'I wanted there to be four of us, like the real Chilis, and I was going to ask Ricky's older brother Jordi to join in but there weren't any more leathers in my size. Also, getting a drum kit onto the track would have been a nightmare!'

Donington, Assen, Sachsenring 2007

After Catalunya came the British GP and before travelling there they went to dinner with a racing friend, Xavi Ledesma - the owner of the Fortuna Team hospitality unit and one of Jorge's closest friends in 2005, as well as being the organiser of the Copa Aprilia when he first started racing Xavi told them that the tradition in England was to drink tea in the afternoon. No sooner said than done. They went out and bought a tea tray, complete with teapot, cups and spoons. Palau planned to sit at a table at the Melbourne Loop, dressed as a waiter in a tuxedo and crash helmet. All Jorge had to do was turn up, rest his feet and have a drink. Oh, and win the race. Unfortunately, the final and most crucial part of the plan started to go wrong in the warm-up because, as is well known, rain is as traditional at Donington as tea. Despite the heavy downpour, Jorge produced a great performance - he was having the best wet race of his career. 'Shall I go out or not?' thought Dani halfway through the race. His buddy was running in second place behind Dovizioso. He had to have faith. 'If you have any doubt, something is bound to go wrong,' says Jorge. 'Whenever I have felt sure I would win I have won, but if there has been any kind of doubt I've lost, come second, or something has happened. That is what the brain is like.' And just as Palau made his mind up and went to load up the scooter with props, Jorge hit the deck. That was one cuppa that was hard to swallow. Jorge's next celebration was enjoyed by the Spanish fans, although it was on a Saturday rather than a Sunday. The Dutch are a bit different in everything, even their racing, and since 1949 the TT at Assen has always taken place on a Saturday. Jorge knew exactly what he was going to do if he won. He wanted to copy the thousands of locals by riding a pushbike. They rehearsed their routine at two or three different comers. 'This place is best. How far will you ride the bike? Will you be able to cycle in boots?' Every minute detail was taken care of. 'We'd practised in that area where Valentino sat when he won the MotoGP race, the bit that looks like a target. I was going to leave my Aprilia and the pushbike would be in the middle of the circle. We thought of it before Rossi!' Suddenly, he changed his mind. On his return to the pit garage he realised that there was a stage, all set up right next to the track, because just by the final chicane that leads into the start-finish straight there is a VIP terrace. It was the perfect place - and not only that, there was a television camera directly opposite.

'We could sit down and have a drink,' Jorge told Dani. The fact he'd missed out on his cup of tea at Donington a few days earlier still irked him, so it was all hands on deck. The owners of the terrace had to be consulted and asked for permission. Initially they weren't too keen because there are no fences there and it is easy for people to get out and access pit lane. For that reason, a huge deposit has to be paid to hire the area, which the circuit organisers retain if there are any problems. In the end they realised it was a Lorenzo celebration and they went along with it. This time Jorge backed up his plans with a dominant victory. However, having left his bike propped against the fence before climbing over the tyre wall and on to the terrace, he was swamped by punters taking photographs and the television cameras lost him in the melee. 'On top of that, the bar owner was a complete opportunist and he got a bunch of people to hold up an advertisement! It was a disaster.' Even though not much could be seen on the television, it was clear that Jorge's double had returned and that they'd gone to have a drink together. But why? Jorge was happy to provide the answer in pare ferme. 'After the crash at Donington, somebody [Dovizioso] had suggested I was getting nervous. So I sipped on a herbal tea.' Some time later Dani Palau insisted that the initial idea was to drink a glass of water but, as at Le Mans, Jorge was thinking on his feet and he was eager to hit back at Dovizioso. 'Sometimes that happens to me. I get really good ideas on the spur of the moment. Other times I really have to think things through for them to work out. But sometimes I get a flash of inspiration.'

Jorge finished fourth in Germany but there were no plans for a celebration even if he'd won. He was worried about the joke wearing thin. 'You have to keep people guessing. It is good to have an element of the unexpected. If we did it every time it wouldn't be funny any more. The truth is that I like things to be complete and maybe I would have continued the celebrations race after race but I let them convince me. It was good to have a break.' The summer holidays were approaching and they wanted to leave the fans gagging for more. To be fair, I have to say that I can't always put on a big celebration because I need helpers and Palau didn't come to every race. For the ones outside Europe we had a much smaller group.' There were no celebrations in the Czech Republic either, but this time for a different reason. Nobody at Motorsport48 was in the mood for a party. Dani Amatriain's assistant, Esther Serra, had just lost her brother, Marc. Jorge won but conducted a silent parade of his now obligatory 'Lorenzo's Land' flag in honour of the family. 'The problem with the celebrations is that it gets harder and harder to come up with something original, with meaning, that isn't just plain stupid,' says Jorge. 'Ideas are finite. We had something planned for Portugal but I'd prefer to keep it to myself - I might use it in the future. We also wanted to do something with animals but are they allowed on the track? We planned to get Datil, my mum's dog, a set of made-to-measure leathers but imagine if we brought him out and he had a shit on the track! That'd cause a scene!' Jorge fell about laughing as his imagination took over. 'It's a shame Marcos doesn't come to more races because we could dress him up as Shrek! Ha, ha!'

Misano 2007

From that moment on, Jorge defended his first place, riding alone and maintaining a calm margin over the second, who ended up being the Japanese Aoyama, after first catching his teammate Kallio, who fell next, and then Héctor Barberá, who added his third podium of the year. Lorenzo is now 50 points ahead and celebrated by doing a lap of honour dressed as a Roman gladiator. De Angelis is second after finishing a disappointing fifth in what was his Grand Prix.

Jorge toyed with the idea of wearing his new outfit [the gladiator costume he had been mocked for at Mugello] if he won at the GP of Catalunya but eventually decided that revenge is a dish best served cold and it was better to wait. The season would give him plenty of opportunities to settle the score and the Italian fans would have no choice but to bow down before him like a Roman general. Every great film has unforgettable lines that are often repeated by film buffs. This one from Gladiator suited Jorge down to the ground. My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius . . . commander of the armies of the north . . . general of the Felix Legions . . . loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius . . . father to a murdered son ... husband to a murdered wife ... and I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next. 'What a well-chosen phrase!' Lorenzo must have thought. Italy owed him one and he was going back to collect his dues. It wasn't to be in that first race on Italian soil, but he was determined to get his revenge in the second. He rented the outfit again, waving goodbye to another 600 euros, but this wasn't about the money. This was a question of honour. He didn't know the circuit, because there hadn't been a GP there since 1993, and although he had visited Misano once, when he'd signed for Derbi in 2002, he was only 15 then and not old enough to actually ride. None of that mattered now, because he went out and won. And on top of that, Dovizioso broke down. Jordi Perez and Cheni Martinez raced out onto the track to dress their man. They'd already discussed with Race Direction and the television directors where the best place would be for the celebration in terms of safety and maximum exposure. Jorge didn't want to take the outfit off - not when he stepped on to the podium, or when he sprayed the champagne. He even kept it on for the press conference. He clearly wanted to recoup his investment, but above all he wanted to enjoy the moment. He felt like the king of the world. ' "Now THAT was legendary," Guido Meda told me.' "

Sepang 2007

Dovizioso responded to remain in Lorenzo’s slipstream as the duo were caught by KTM team-mates Hiroshi Aoyama and Mika Kallio, plus Hector Barbera. The five battled until the penultimate lap when Dovizioso’s wafer-thin title hopes were ended as Mika Kallio took him out in an out-braking move. Hiroshi Aoyama inherited the lead and kept it to the flag from Barbera and Lorenzo. As Kallio remounted to finish fourth ahead of Tomas Luthi, Andrea Dovizioso remounted to cross the line eleventh. Meanwhile Jorge Lorenzo was celebrating keeping the 250cc world championship in a boxer’s gold-coloured gown and gloves, and picking up a fake championship belt in parc ferme.

Jorge won his second 250cc World Championship at the Malaysian Grand Prix with one race to spare, to top off an outstanding 2007 season. And what better way to celebrate in style than by looking way back to the very first race of the year in Qatar, when Jorge recovered the 'eye of the tiger'? His antics in 2007 had made him the leading contender for the title of paddock showman left vacant by Valentino Rossi in a season when the Italian had little to celebrate. It's clear by now that Jorge is up for a challenge and a second 250cc World Championship title was enough of an excuse for him to stake his claim, as the leading heavyweight in 'motorshowbusiness'. On this occasion it wasn't actually one of his own ideas, but he made it his own as soon as it left the lips of Marcos Hirsch. Having started the season training like Rocky Balboa and trying to recover the 'eye of the tiger', he took the title in Malaysia (coincidentally a country the famous Italian novelist Emilio Salgari referred to as the 'land of the tigers' ) and there was only one way to celebrate - as the new CHAMPION OF THE WOOOOOORLD! That box in the corner of the garage at Plulhp Island contained a story all of its own. Jorge and Marcos's initial idea was to set up a boxing match between the two of them, in which Jorge would knock Marcos out. The idea was that I had to beat a heavyweight. And boy is he heavy!' laughs Jorge. When I'd dressed as Jorge at Valencia the previous year, the message was that he had grown up,' explains Marcos. 'This time it was a case of demonstrating that he was capable of anything. Even knocking out somebody twice his height and weight, like me!' Another of Jorge's ideas was for Marcos to grow his hair like Don King, the world's most famous boxing promoter. In the end the celebration wasn't exactly as Jorge and Marcos had planned, partly because the Brazilian trainer was unable to make the trip to Malaysia.

The final idea came about after a conversation between Jorge and Marcos after which the 'celebration panel' of Jorge, Dani Palau and Pere Gurt set things in motion. They went on the Internet to download information about the Clint Eastwood film Million Dollar Baby and then researched other famous boxers like Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Oscar De La Eioya and Julio Cesar Chavez. Once they had decided on a look they set about sourcing the outfit. Esther Serra was sent to a fabric shop in Barcelona, which is where they encountered their first setback. They didn't have any gold fabric for the hooded cloak - only black - and if that shop didn't have it, it was difficult to imagine anywhere else that would. But necessity is the mother of invention and somebody suddenly remembered that the covers used to unveil Jorge's Apiilia RSW250 at the start of the season had been gold. Problem solved! Now it was a case of putting the whole outfit together. They'd found a blue cloak in a Barcelona boxing shop, and picked up a gum shield at the same time. There were some fruitless trips to fancy dress shops. It was time to get the family involved... Pere Gurt called his mother, Rosa Casas, and her friend, Carme Armengol. After much protest, which fell on deaf ears, the pair reluctantly accepted the assignment and, as a result, MotoGP ended up with two more avid fans - to the point where they would get up at 5am to watch Jorge race in Australia.

A world championship belt needed to be found at the same time, so the team got in touch with the Spanish Boxing Federation (FEB), who recommended 'Charlie's', a specialist shop in Madrid. Bingo! Not only did they have a belt, they also had a pair of golden gloves. The only problem was that the belt featured the Dutch flag, but Esther wasted no time in having the red, white and blue colours replaced with a logo designed by Dani PalaWeb that read: 'Loren Show II'. In the end Jorge didn't use the gum shield, but there's a little story about that too. When Juan Llansa saw it he said there was no point: 'That is a shit gum shield. You need one made to measure!' Juanito knew what he was talking about - he'd not only seen plenty of riders use them over his 20 years in motorcycle racing, but also his daughter, Zaida Llansa, was the 2001 Kata [a form of martial arts] World Champion. As soon as he landed in Australia he looked on the Internet for a martial arts shop near Phillip Island. He bought the silicone, warmed it in boiling water and made Jorge bite it for a made-to-measure gum shield. Lorenzo still decided not to use it for the celebrations, but Juanito saved it just in case Jorge decided he needed one for MotoGP. 'He never wore one in 125cc and 250cc but I've saved it just in case he really needs to grit his teeth in MotoGP!' Llansa laughed. Everything was prepared as quickly as possible because there wasn't much time. Jorge quickly became impatient: 'Pere, how's the cloak coming along?' 'Don't worry about it.' 'If it's going to be shit just leave it and we'll think of something else.' 'Trust me. I don't doubt your work, so don't doubt mine.' It was almost time to leave and everything was ready. Cheni Martinez picked up the outfit and went to meet Jorge at the Hotel Barcelo-Sants gym in Barcelona for a dress rehearsal. He had to try everything on before leaving for Melbourne. In the car on the way to the airport Jorge received a call. It was Pere. 'How is it?' 'Pffff. It's not that bad.' Pere Gurt hung up with a smile. 'We've done it,' he thought.

The box remained unopened in Australia, of course, but in Malaysia the surprise was unleashed. The hardest-hitting World Champion in racing was about to be crowned and the character of Rocky Balboa represented the strength he'd displayed to overcome his own limitations and fears. Jorge Lorenzo had not only clinched his second world title, he'd proved to himself and to the world that he could do anything, as a rider and as a person. And then he and the clan treated the public to their most memorable celebration yet. His friends, headed by Juanito Llansa, waited for him with the boxer's outfit that Lorenzo wanted to wear to mirror his battling performances on the track that season — the cloak, gloves and belt of a World Champion, made out of gold fabric and with a logo on the back, hand sewn by Pere Gurt's mother and her neighbour. It simply read: Loren Show II. World Champion 2007. The 'Lorenzo's Land' flag had fluttered at seven different circuits during the year, but this time it was the Spanish flag that an emotional Lorenzo drove into Malaysian soil, in the final turn of the Sepang International Circuit. The whole act had been Jorge's tribute to 'the eye of the tiger', the winning attitude of Rocky Balboa that he'd adopted as his own. All the knock-out blows to his rivals during the season had given him just cause for celebration. Celebrations are often forgotten the following day, as soon as the outfits and props have been returned, but not this time. The World Championship gown and gloves will always remain part of Jorge's life.. 'One day I returned home to find that my mother had prepared a surprise. She had redecorated my bedroom and there it was, my gold outfit, hung on the wall, looking magical.' Some people think Jorge Lorenzo is simply copying Valentino Rossi, the originator of post-race victory celebrations, in order to enhance his own image. Others feel that perhaps he takes things too far, or they may view the Lorenzo antics rather more favourably. Jorge will continue to hope they're accepted for what they are: harmless, innocent fun but always with a moral to the 'story'. There's no doubt, though, that he will have something to say if other riders start copying him...

Jorge Lorenzo and 250cc celebrations

Lorenzo is authentic, reject imitations (2007); Shanghai race commentary (2007); A recital by Jorge Lorenzo to forget about Mugello (2007); Lorenzo 'Gladiator' conquers Misano and caresses the title (2007); Sepang MotoGP: Jorge Lorenzo is 2007 250cc GP champion, Hiroshi Aoyama wins race (2007); Jorge Lorenzo: My Story So Far (2010)

[madrone33]

Things have been CRAZY since the Thunder saga release! I love it SO MUCH! Thank you thank you Jorge and cast and crew and everyone it was amazing! (Also, Jay, pay for my therapy-)

Anyway, here's my immediate reactions to the Thunder Saga as I listened to it when it dropped at my midnight! (I'm australian, so I got to listen to it 12 hours before the Livestream lol)

Oh btw; copious amounts of swearing ahead. I had zero filter on my thoughts while smashing my keyboard as the songs played, so lmao yeah

oh what the fuck Penelope motif in EDM???

oh my god it's a fucking odypen duet.

"Jump in the water" naiad penelope??

DAUGHTER???

OOH MY FUCKING GOD NO IT'S SUFFERING???? THE SUFFERING!!! FROM THE CUT SONG CLIP! HE FUCKING JUKED US! HE LIED! JORGE WHEN I FUCKING CATCH YOU-

omg they're so cute

NO IT'S THE FUCKING ZEUS/INFANT TUNE??!!!!

Scylla!! Circe theme!

Is this. This has to be the sirens right??

OH MY FUCKING GOD IT'S LIKE THE START OF POLYPHEMUS WITH THE ARROW SHOT.

the grunge thing in the background reminds me of that one BNHA s5 ost track with the MLA boss. Uhhh Re Destro I think?

Oh god IT'S THE FUCKING SIRENS!! JAY FUCKING LIED A G A I N !!

ODY WHAT THE FUCK YOUR VOICE WHAT THE FUCK THIS IS SO FUCKING BADASS WHAT

Oh I just looked at the title it's called Different Beast!!

Beeswax!! They did the thing!

"So I just played along" -> "now I know how to get back to my island!" omg holy fuck Ody you're so fucking smart

This is just Suffering part 2 and I love it so much

Oh my fucking god. Ruthless odysseus is a fucking DIFFERENT BEAST.

NOT THE "WHOA" FROM REMEMBER THEM WHEN THEY'RE STABBING OUT POLYPHEMUS' EYE!!!

Holy fuck. That was insane. OMG IT'S SCYLLA TIME!! What the fuck those two songs went by so fast. Scylla's ALREADY HERE??

EURYLOCHUS' SECRET

HE OPENED THE FUCKING WIND BAG I KNEW IT!! BUT BRO REALLY JUST CAME OUT AND SAID IT! MY MOUTH LITERALLY DROPPED OPEN!!

NOT THE FORGIVE ME!

FULL SPEED AHEAD

OH GOD SCYLLA'S VOICE IS SO PRETTY

Odysseus totally ignoring his confession

AHHHHHH IT'S HERE!! THE FIDDLE !! IT'S HER!!!

"DROWN in your sorrows and fears!" THE GROWL!!

The death screams holy shit

"We are the same you and... I" Omg the harmonising.

Wait that's IT??? NOOOOO. But oh god it's Mutiny next

The orchestral LRO theme!!

Ohhh Eury's fucking pissed. Oof that spat "captain"

Wait I have to go back, I didn't catch that. Something wits something crazy and mad?

"When we fought the cyclops" It's this part!!! Ooh this is before the LRO reprise? 👀

ooof he's pissed.

*sword through flesh sound effect* - Ohhh that's fucking sickening

Oh shiiiit. wait wait wait that's Ody's voice. Did the crew just stab Ody in the back???? Wait I have to go back.

Oh they DID.

Yo wtf? Time skip?? Oh they didn't kill him??

oh fuck the cow sounds

Wait wait no oh shit Eury's singing the Zeus/survive melody???

"Please don't tell me you're about to do what I think you'll do!" Oh shit but that was EURYLOCHUS' LINE!! NO STOP

HE CALLED HIM ODY!

"I'm tired my friend!" NO NO NO

"Please don't do this! I need to get. Home!" ODYSSEUS' VOICE 😭

Ok but the ensemble and strings and shit is heavenly oh god

THE JUST A MAN NOOOO

*angry choir noises* - ohhhh they're fucked

did. Did eurylochus just try to suicide them??

"WHO DO YOU THINK HE'LL SEND?" Oh god ody that was raw

FULL SPEED AHEAD

*Thunder sounds* - oop

Aaand there's an ad. Fuck.

THE THUNDER!!!

STRIKE! he's HERE!!

AHHHH IT'S HIM!! LUKE THE LIGHTNING BOLT HOOOOLT!!!

i'm just going to adore these glorious vocals for a sec

"Choose." ohhh fuck

NO NOT THE CALL BACKS TO THATI AND JAM

OH GOD AND THE SIRENS TOO???

ooh the rain

oh bye bye eury

YO WTF. IT'S TELEMACHUS' LULLABYE. IS THAT THE END. IS THAT IT. WHAT THE FUCK. WHAT DOES IT MEAAAN

yeah that sounds like closing credits for real. If I didn't know he survives then I'D THINK HE'S DEAD FOR SURE

-

IT'S OVER????? Holy shit. Bro I have to just. Sit. For a second.

Ok I'm listening to that over. God.

The LYLA chick or whatever! From Spiderverse! That's who the "oh no *rolls eyes*" reminded me of!

Also, is this why Jorge said the 12 long years was wrong in TAOW? 'Cause it sounds like they've spent a while running from Poseidon after The Underworld saga, so was it intended for there to be a timeskip of two years between the Acts?

Ohhh wait shit. Did Scylla influence Eurylochus' decision to tell?? Is that what Jorge meant by her having some sort of telepathy?

So "reason for shame" and "we are the same" is to both of them - Eury for the bag, and Ody for what he's planning on letting happen - and "leaving them feeling betrayed" is because both things make the other feel betrayed?

oh god wait was I right about that too?? Six torches. Six men. He definitely planned that then. Shiiit

Yep that's six death screams.

Ohh yo. Eurylochus wanted all the power. He took the power from Odysseus. And then Ody game him all the blame when Zeus arrived.

There's boat creaking noises in the pause before "Then you have forced my hand." Huh I guess it makes sense that they're still on the boat. I guess my mental image was influenced by the beach fight vid XD

huh an ad again on thunder bringer. Wow yt hates this one

Yeah the vocal performances of the cast were are next level. The emotion in their voices hit 👏 different 👏

Well damn. I love it so much more the second go around, and I already loved it.

just kinda sitting here in silence lol. I don't have anyting rn. No thoughts head empty.

shit. Well eurylochus is dead. O7 I guess.

The Thunder Saga is over. Damn.

[petrichor-idyllic]

ON YOUR OWN PT. 3

MASTERLIST | MINHO MASTERLIST

PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3

Request for @d4n1elll4

SUMMARY: Follow up from part 2. Last part. Fem! Reader x Minho. Reader x Platonic! Gladers. Movie based fic.

You've only just found Minho now he's been taken away from you. WCKD has kidnapped your boyfriend, and you're going to do whatever it takes to get him back. Fortunately for you, you're accompanied with a bunch of equally stubborn, angry teenagers (and an old man).

Okay, so, you're getting a bigger time skip than you do in the films and we're heading straight into the Last City shit because I am not writing the entirety of TDC for a second time. Sorry. I'm also not writing Newt's death explicitly, because I did that for "Warmth in Cold Places" and it killed me lmao.

Also, I may or may not have changed your subject number to X in the last part, because it sounds way cooler. Not that it's used here, but just so you know.

WARNINGS: Inappropriate language, you're mad, everyone's favourite dumb dog is actually not present in this for a bit- you can't sneak into a building with Quest, sorry, WICKED being WCKD because movies. Let's go get your man.

You never really considered yourself rebellious. You never really had much reason to be. You didn't have anyone to disobey in the Maze, and the Scorch was a blur of chaos.

So, joining the forefront of the Right Arm felt scary, but definitely the right thing to do.

After six painful months and a mistake regarding a train carriage, you and Thomas were just about ready to go in guns blazing.

The desitations: The Last City.

A cool, and kind of daunting name.

Yours and Thomas' plan went wrong fairly quickly with Newt and Frypan immediately foiling it- only for you to get stuck in a tunnel full of Cranks and having to be saved by Brenda and Jorge. Again.

Then you ended up nearly dying via WCKD missiles just outside the City and somehow coincidentally ended up bumping into an old "friend" of the Gladers.

The word "friend" being used loosely since Thomas immediately tried to murder Gally.

Next step: kidnap Teresa and force her to perform minor surgery before using her to break into the WCKD building.

It's definitely been an interesting experience.

But, you're doing this for Minho. All of you are, he protected everyone in the Maze and the boys think the world of him- and your weird connection to him and feelings is more than enough for you to join in.

You had a boyfriend for a whole entire day before he got kidnapped- that's gotta be a record.

You, Newt, Thomas and Gally are tasked with getting the WCKD Subjects and Minho out of the building, then find Brenda and Frypan to get out with the kids and then you're smooth sailing to the Safe Haven. You've lent Quest to Brenda to play emotional support animal for when you escape- mainly because he'd be a bit of a giveaway in the tower.

It's a somewhat simple plan.

Though, with Newt showing symptoms of the Flare, the promise of giving Gally's Allies access to the WCKD database and putting your lives in the hands of Teresa once again- you have more than enough to worry about.

Adorn in WCKD uniform that you managed to get ahold of via Gally, you successfully slip through the City.

"You sure this is a good idea?" Newt asks you as you stand in the building. You're both waiting for Thomas to enter with Teresa, and then you'll find Gally.

"We're in too deep now, man," Newt isn't the only one on edge. This is the most dangerous thing any of you have done and with Newt's dwindling health- you have to do it fast.

Newt nods forwards, towards the doors as Teresa passes through with a masked Thomas not far behind. Passing through the security entrance, you both walk towards them.

Joining them, Newt leads the way, passing by the parking lot and Gally tagging on.

You come to some doors that Gally has to open and you all stand around in the stair way, waiting. Newt's coughing is simply a bitter reminder.

Gally manages to grant his friends access to the building and as soon as the doors open, you all open fire on anyone in your way.

Clearing all the Guards, you start to open the cells containing the kids.

Taking your mask off, you meet the scared faces of a bunch of teenagers- most of them even younger than you are.

It makes you feel ill.

"Come on, you're safe now- we're getting you outta here," you usher them along, bringing them into the main area of the holding bay.

Gally attempts to get information out someone about a vault. "Guy," he says, "this might take some time."

But that's not what's getting to you.

Despite searching every cell, you can't find who you're looking for.

"He's not here," Newt confirms and your heart sinks all over again.

"Where is he?" Thomas stands in front of Teresa, his feelings for her clearly being overshadowed by pure anger.

The girl looks around, almost like she's unsure herself. "I don't know," she admits. "But I can find out."

Using one of the computers, she looks up Minho's subject number and finds his location.

Her face drops. "Somebody's moved him up to the medical wing. Thomas, that's on the other side of the building."

"Okay, take me to him."

"Alright, I'm coming with you," Newt adds.

"Yeah, me too." There's no way you're not going after him as well.

"Newt, no you're not," Thomas states, attempting to take charge. "You have to stay here, wait with Gally for the serum."

"You can't do this on your own." Newt tries to argue.

"I have (Y/N); I'll be fine."

"I've known him as long as I can remember, Tommy- Minho comes first, remember? I'm coming with you."

Thomas looks at you, but all you offer is a shrug. Newt has just as much of a right to help his best friend as you do. It just means you're working on borrowed time.

"Just go," Gally snaps. "You're wasting time. I'll get the serum. We'll meet you out back."

"Okay, fine," Thomas huffs, "let's go." He grabs Teresa again. "Come on."

Putting your masks back on, Gally wishes you good luck and you start making your way through the building again.

You reach an elevator, with Thomas getting agitated when it doesn't come straight away. The three of you stand behind Teresa once you get it, watching the doors slowly close.

Only for a hand to block it.

"Hold it," Janson says, stepping into the lift. And it's like everyone collectively holds their breath.

"You're working late," he says to Teresa after what feels like forever. "See, that's what I like about you, Teresa. No matter how bleak things get, you just... Well, you never give up. Times like this, you need a friend you can count on."

"I'll bear that in mind," Teresa says, clearly tense.

"There is one thing you should know," Janson continues. "One friend to another. Thomas is here." She looks at him, feigning subtle shock. You adjust your hold on your gun. "A surveillance picked him up outside the walls. Ava didn't want you to know, but there is a chance that he may try to contact you. And if he does, well, I'd like to think I'd be your first call."

"Are you going to kill him?" She asks.

"Would that be a problem?"

The door beeps, opening on your floor.

"This is me," Teresa says and you all look at each other before awkwardly shuffling past Janson, with Thomas being sure to knock into him.

You all pick up again, with Teresa trying to convince Thomas that the serum won't save Newt. Which makes your stomach drop, even if it doesn't affect Thomas.

Newt is quick to shut it down.

She desperately tries to convince him to run tests as he makes her open another door.

"I promise I can protect you."

"Oh yeah?" Thomas rips his mask off. "Like you protected Minho?"

"What are you doing?" You hiss.

"How many of us is it gonna take?" He shoves Newt away as the blond also tries to stop him from whatever dumb move he's making. "How many people do you have to round up? Torture? Kill? Huh? When the hell does it stop?"

"It stops when we find a cure." Teresa's voice wavers slightly.

"There is no goddamn cure!"

"Don't waste your breath, Teresa."

Well, that's brilliant.

Janson rounds the corner of the glass walkways, gun in hand. "He made his choice long ago."

"Drop it, kid!" A Guard yells, approaching from another direction.

Thomas grabs Teresa, pulling her in front of him and holding a gun to her head. "Back up. Tell them to back off!"

"Hey, Thomas, come on," Janson's smarmy voice makes you cringe. "It's me. I've known you longer than you can remember. You're not gonna shoot her."

"You don't think so?"

"Okay," Janson lowers his gun. "Go on, then. Shoot her. Prove me wrong." There's a pause as Thomas adjusts his gun, both you and Newt looking at each other. You know he can't. "Shoot her."

Teresa suddenly elbows Thomas in the ribs, turning around and shoving him, making him stumble into you and Newt. The three of you fall backwards behind the glass safety door as she shuts it.

They start firing at the bulletproof glass.

Newt takes his mask off, you following suit as the three of you walk away.

Newt is a grim sight to witness as you storm the halls. Without Teresa's directions, you're kind of running blind. But you know he's here somewhere as you hide behind a wall from the WCKD personal.

Chaos erupts around you as you turn a hall, coming face to face with Ava Paige. Thomas goes to shoot her, but Newt is quick to grab the boy as rapid fire comes your way.

Dipping and running. You all shout Minho's name as you storm the building, shooting anyone that gets too close or doesn't listen.

The entire building is chasing you. It's like an adrenaline junkies wet dream. But running low on ammo is definitely not ideal.

Newt throws a granade, paralysing everyone in the area with the sparks.

And then you're up again.

Only to get stopped by another Guard.

"You three! Freeze!"

With no ammo left and very little choice, you all freeze, probably not intentionally. Just out of shock. "Get down on the ground! Now!"

You all consider it for a second.

Until someone comes flying at him, slamming the Guard's body into the wall and letting out an animalistic scream before grabbing the guy's shirt and throwing him through a nearby window.

You blankly stare at the boy for a second, Thomas and Newt reacting before you do.

"Minho!" They gasp, stumbling towards him and throwing their arms around him.

"Is this real?" He asks, looking between them.

He's definitely seen better days. He looks rough, and is very clearly homicidal with rage.

And that's when he looks at you.

He softens for a second, letting out a sigh of relief as tears of happiness threaten to overwhelm you.

You rush forward, the boys giving you some space, you also throw your arms around him. He hugs you back, giving himself a second to burying his face in your hair.

He pulls away. "Are you okay?"

You give him a frantic nod. "Are you?"

He doesn't have time to respond as another herd of Guards come around the corner.

"Go! Go!" Thomas yells and you start booking it through the building once again.

Getting cornered again, you slip into a random room, barricading the door and desperately searching for a way out.

That's when the drilling noise starts.

"Any ideas?" Minho asks.

"Maybe," Thomas responds after staring out the window.

Throwing a giant metal canister through the window, it shatters on impact. It's dizzying watching the shards of glass vanish into the water several hundred feet below.

"Okay," Thomas clears his throat. "It's doable. Just need a little running start."

You look at Minho, who looks at Newt, who looks at you.

This is how you die.

"You sure about this?" Minho asks.

"Not really." Thomas responds.

"Brilliant." You groan.

"Nice pep talk," Minho's sarcasm is still there at least.

"Yeah, we're all bloody inspired."

The door flies open. "Shit," Thomas whispers as you all stumble to get your feet under you.

Running forward, you all dive out of the window.

It's enough to give you a heart attack, but as you hit the cold water, you're reminded that you're very much still alive.

One after another, you all rise again.

And Thomas flips Janson off. Because of course.

Scrambling out of the water, you're immediately confronted by more WCKD members.

That's until they're shot by one of their own.

Well, Gally.

That's going to be hard to explain to Minho later.

○ ○ ○

The next hour of your life is a blur.

So much happened that your brain has blurred most of it out.

The City got attacked by Gally's friends, Newt got considerably worse and you, Gally and Minho made a mad sprint to get him the serum.

But it was too late.

Newt's bloodied, veiny corpse with a knife sticking out of his chest will haunt you for life. Minho and Frypan's reactions breaking your heart as you and Brenda stood there motionless.

Thomas vanished for a while, and you had to save him from a burning building whilst Teresa helped, watching her get engulfed by the flames.

Thomas had been shot. And it was a mad rush to get him back to the Safe Haven whilst Minho was completely distraught. The thought of losing two friends would've killed him.

But, somehow, you made it.

Thomas was patched up by the medical professionals of the Safe Haven and people started to settle in.

It's been a week since the events of the Last City.

Minho has been attached to you at the hip, but he's been quiet. The Glader got used to moving at a million miles an hour, so now they're forced to face what they've been through.

"Minho?" You managed to convince Vince to give you a hut, mainly because he took a shine to you because he was impressed by your bold nature.

Minho lies on your shared bed, Quest curled next to him with his head on your boyfriend's chest as Minho mindlessly pets him. You'd been helping around the camp, so, you'd given Minho some space today.

You'd actually spent a lot of time looking at the Stone- a block in the centre of the Safe Haven with the names of those you'd lost carved into it.

You're one of the few people here that had no names to stain the stone. You'd obviously lost people, but they were important to someone else before you, so you let the Gladers say their names.

You know you'll never understand what Minho's going through. You didn't have anyone to bond with in the Maze, but you're still grieving. Even if it is worse for him.

Walking over to the bed, he plays with your placid dog's ears, not even acknowledged you yet. Until you lay next to him.

"You okay?" You ask as you scoot up to him, Quest laying on the other side.

"Hm? Yeah," he mumbles, moving his arm to come under your head as you snuggle into his chest. "Just... thinkin'."

"You're always thinking."

"Got shuck all else to do," he smirks at you and you roll your eyes.

"What you thinking about?"

There's a pause, and you don't really need to ask. "You miss him?"

He scoffs. "'Course I do. It's... just so weird without him, yanno?"

"Yeah, but it'll get better."

"I know, I know."

"And I'm here if you ever wanna talk about it."

He looks at your out of the corner of his eye. "I know. Thank you." You kiss him on the cheek and his smile seems more genuine.

Suddenly, he dives on you, making you shriek as he kisses you. He climbs on top of you, deepening the kiss as your hands come to the back of his neck, pulling him closer as your legs tangle together.

He also startles Quest, who jumps off the bed and starts batking his head off.

The kiss becomes heated, Minho clearly using the physical as an outlet for his emotions.

"I love you," he mumbles between kisses.

Then he freezes, pulling away.

You grin as his face goes red. "You love me?"

"Ugh," he groans, sitting back on his knees. "Shut up."

You chuckle, liking seeing the flustered version of your boyfriend.

"I love you too... shuckface." You're not quite used to Glader slang still, but it makes him grin.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, of course, I do."

He dives on you again, making Quest start again.

"Shut up, Quest!" You snap at the same time, before looking at each other and bursting into a fit of giggles.

"You need to learn to control your damn mutt," he mumbles, practically into your lips.

"He's your dog too now, yanno?"

"Shuck, you're right," he smirks, flopping down next to you. "C'mere, boy." He pats his chest, and Quest makes no effort to ease his weight as he dives on the boy, making him groan and you laugh.

Quest sprawls across the pair of you, not caring how uncomfortable you are.

You smile to yourself as Minho messes with Quest, pushing his head and making the dog snap at him.

Things might be hard at the moment, but that's okay. You're safe and things will get better.

And you somehow still have your dog. And now you have the other Gladers, and most importantly Minho.

Things will be okay, because you're not on your own anymore.

DONE.

Not my most satisfying ending for sure, but there's only so much I can do when our love interest is MIA for most of the movie.

Anyway, I hope y'all enjoyed this mini-series, it was kinda fun :))

[searchingforserendipity25]

tag meme for posting your favorite 9 books read in 2023

Thank you @meadowlarkx! I'm loving getting to know everyone's book recs from last year.

Tagging with no pressure @sallysavestheday, @mayfriend, @theghostinthemargins, @thalion71, @247reader, @melestasflight, @nablah, @camille-lachenille, @m-b-w, and anyone who'd like to share their recs!

I took the liberty of writing a little about every book under the cut, because it is 22:30 and I am passionate about these books.

Lavinia, Ursula le Guin. It's le Guin, do I have to say it? I really have, because the depths of study on ancient animism in the Italian countryside is extraordinarily well researched, and even aside from the ambitious narrative approach of Lavinia speaking with Aeneas, the study that went into it is one of the most respectful and involving approaches to ancient spirituality I have read.

The Fury is Silvina Ocampo's recently translated short-story compilation! Whole-heartedly recommend any of her short works, which I understand are published with different titles. Reading anything of hers feels like the pervasive grey silence of staying awake till four a.m. as you consider all the familiar people and strangers you have known and reconcile with the strain of incurable isolation and cruelty present in human nature. Life, Silvina tells you, is sharpened and not redeemed by the possibility of understanding. You are not safe from Silvina Ocampo's studies in unsettling mundanity; no one, Silvina warns, is ever safe within themselves. But at least Buenos Aires is very beautiful, and so are all her deliciously malicious women.

The Fée et Tendres Automates (Béatrice Tillier-Téby) graphic book series starts with this book, about Jam, a young man who is not so young, surviving in a dystopic Victorian society while trying to reunite with the sentient mannequin he's in love with...it is moving, it is bold, it has class warfare and magic and a mad scientist, it is gorgeously written and illustrated.

I read The Blue Castle (L. M. Montgomery). Loved the Blue Castle. 'A book about being in your twenties' is a bad summary, but technically not wrong?

I wavered on putting on Claúdia Andrade's short-story collection 'Quarter Finals and Other Stories', because it's not translated, but it was my favourite book of the year, in many ways! An incisive and imaginative writer with a delightfully chilly grasp on human nature. I find myself thinking about the scenes she invokes several times a week. For instance, I think all dying old women should be cursed to speak the truth of every secret they ever knew.

Lords and Ladies was a lot of fun! Also reread Wyrd Sisters. Every years Granny Ogg grows hotter wait who said that.

The Fox (D. H. Lawrence) is about cottage-core lesbians, but like, detestable cottage-core lesbians in post-war England. It's terrific psychological work - I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. The last paragraphs haunts me. Will never trust seaweed metaphors again.

The Painter of Birds (Lídia Jorge) is translated. I recommend it. I recommend it a normal amount. I might be lobbying Lídia Jorge for a Nobel, idk. In all seriousness - she is an absolute powerhouse with a career of profound, invasive, masterful works, she's got most Portuguese language and French awards, do get a Nobel while she's still kicking. God!! This book!!!!

What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours (Helen Oyeyemi) is like nothing else. Ruiz Zábron married Angela Carter and then had an affair with Olga Tokarczuk? But it's queer and it's not white and unapologetic about being undefinable speculative fiction. Still chewing on it. Wonderful, wonderful, terrific.

[moonshynecybin]

unfortunately I do not have the skills to write this but I’ve been thinking so much about vale and marc fucking after assen 2015. vale being on cloud nine because he just won and marc has been showing him through his words and body language that he’s capable of feeling anger towards vale too, and it makes vale feel less of a piece of shit for having experienced this exact same feeling towards marc from the start of the season. and marc is so mad but he can’t just reject vale one of the few time he’s actually in a good mood, he can’t reject vale at all really. while vale just wants to kiss marc so bad to taste the bitterness in his mouth. also i know vale loves when marc is acting like a brat towards him, playing hard to get, which makes vale even more insane when marc still ends up losing his head under vale’s hands 🙃

assen 2015 is weird because looking back yeah of course vale was more irritated about marc's reaction than he said, and the relationship was probably starting to show its cracks a bit more. BUT assen was in JUNE and they didnt actually get divorced until OCTOBER. so theres like four full months of them still being visibly on good terms (they did post race grabby hands at sachsenring! and indy! and motegi!) until the ACTUAL trigger for divorce kicks in and vale starts feeling the pressure of jorge gaining and the uccio Telemetry Powerpoint of Evil influences his whims. and as much as ive written essays about assen as linchpin to divorce, it should be noted that both of them were very sweet and happy in that post-race pressconference, and even when theyre disagreeing theyre joking around! like rosquez dont generally like to do their confrontations head-on off-track (with a few notable exceptions). even in argentina. send uccio etc. SOOO all this to say they were absolutely fucking nasty at assen. undoubtably. i was there i SAW it

and it IS a little tense from vale but alsooooo they are not talking about why it is tense (vale is TRYINGGG to be cool and chill and marc is still cheerfully stubborn in believing he should win but also being like. its on track why would that matter to vale ?? he is like me he can separate it :) [<- clueless]) so i think. in order to incorporate the lovelyyyy idea you had about marc being a little brat and to incorporate their insanely messed up communication style during this period we can have marc JOKING (not entirely) about how he should have won in a bratty little skit that doesnt quiteeee land and vale playing along, while still nurturing a beautiful knot of resentment in his narrow little elf-man chest...

like marc IS being a leedle annoying a little goofy and vale usually finds it more charming BUT he also WON todayyyyyy and he loves assen so hes gonna have some fun. hot twink that he is in love with is throwing himself at him cmon. and maybe marc is postrace sweaty, shows up at wherever vale is... and hes like midsentence jabbering about the chicane or whatever, playing petulant but not really that mad, laughing more than anything, and vale's sitting down and cannot fucking believe this guy but also. this is before the paranoia sets in!!! and thats just marc!!! and hes being goofy and so beautiful and IRRITATING and vale just pulls him into his lap. cuts him off with an absolutely NASTY kiss. much ado about nothing voice come, i will stop thy mouth... and it starts off with vale getting a little rougher than normal. a little handsier. biting a little harder. line of hickies up marc's neck like this imageeee and a hand big and possessive on his lower back. consuming. and marc is so lost in the babygirl sauce hes just like completely onboard for the vibe shift when vale starts tugging at his clothes and thatsssss why he rates assen as his favorite moment of the season later <3 because vale fought with him on track and then made him come TWICE <3