#Shark week 2018

[damianbugs]

with all this gotham war stuff (most recently the comic sc you posted on your twt with jason and bruce), can u explain what is actually going on? like, i’m not that far so i haven’t read it, but… like is it actually bruce saying all that stuff about the kids? or is it this zur person people keep talking about?

oh my friend, it's crazy around here, but i will try my best to explain it!

A GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING TO BATMAN IN GOTHAM WAR:

firstly, the comic reading list to catch up with gotham war is: as of 01/10/23 (the ones in italics are core issues to the story)

for some background on what happens leading up to gotham war:

Batman (2016) #125-136

(Optional) Knight Terrors: Batman

(Optional) Knight Terrors: Catwoman

and then the actual gotham war story:

Batman/Catwoman: The Gotham War - Battle Lines

Batman (2016) #137

Catwoman (2018) #57

Batman/Catwoman: The Gotham War - Red Hood #1

this is everything that is out right now, but from the third of october to halloween we will also be getting: Batman #138, Catwoman #58, Gotham War: Red Hood #2, Batman/Catwoman: The Gotham War - Scorched Earth.

secondly... who is Zur En Arrh.

Zur En Arrh taking over Bruce, Batman (2016) #126

zur en arrh, in the simplest way of explaining, is this alter ego/personality (it's unclear) bruce created for himself should batman (bruce wayne) ever be psychologically compromised or brainwashed. it's not him, but a more sadistic and crueler person that is the "ultimate batman" who doesn't care about anyone or anything but getting the mission done.

during Batman #125-130, zur takes over the role of batman because bruce was losing very badly to the robot Failsafe (which is zur's own creation, that bruce has no memory of making). after getting vaporised by failsafe and sent travelling through dozens of alternate universes, losing his hand and fighting a flying shark (Batman #131-135), bruce returns to gotham incredibly mentally unstable.

During a peaceful dinner with his family, Bruce suddenly imagines the entire world on fire, Batman (2016) #136.

during everything, bruce managed to mentally fight back and kind of... merge their ideals together in order to survive and win in the moment.

and then successfully trapping failsafe back into his mind where he can no longer take over!

Bruce uses some sort of mental technique to lock Zur away in his mind, Batman (2016) #136.

except he didn't succeed! at all!

you see, when travelling through all those universes, bruce somehow brought back every single version of zur en arrh with him. now all of then combined, plus his already deteriorating and weak mental health from the last few years, bruce is currently operating under the impression that he's locked zur away, when he actually hasn't.

zur is the one partly, or even entirely, in control. right now, he's just pretending to stay locked away so bruce continues to do what he thinks is 'right' despite them being incredibly out of character for the run.

During his eight week coma, Bruce sees Zur 'locked away' and he is, apparently, not alone, Gotham War: Battle Lines (2023)

an example is when zur referred to robin as batman's solider, bruce mentally fought back to make it clear that tim was his son. but then, a few issues later, bruce refers to his children as his soldiers and that they've all betrayed him, implying that zur has always had control and isn't locked away.

Bruce and Zur get into a fight inside his mind about Robin [Tim Drake], Batman (2016) #127

so yeah, zur is not bruce! they're both batman, but zur en arrh is like his somehow unimaginably even worse twin. if you're interested more in him, i would suggest giving his character history a read! be warned it gets changed A LOT and is definitely not everyone's cup of tea (personally i hate him and need him shelved for another forty years).

now that that's all done and explained, the current state of gotham war is Bruce (thinks he's okay) fighting everyone else (except Damian) because in his (Zur's) point of view, they're all against the mission and therefore are now his enemies (he's lost his mind). totally not convoluted.

to answer your original question, yes, this is all bruce saying and doing these things but he is being HEAVILY influenced by Zur. we can't tell for certain how much of this is bruce and how much is zur, but we can definitely prove zur is partially or completely controlling him again.

even jason points it out after bruce implants that fear toxin chip into him in Batman (2016) #138:

like we can see the intention is to keep jason out of this, because compared to everyone else, jason was the most directly opposed to bruce. but zur is twisting how this concern gets expressed, since forcing jason into feeling fear everytime he gets an adrenaline rush is hardly the reformation bruce is usually encouraging. the other batfam members also talk about how uncharacteristically violent bruce is being.

"He's out of control." / "He's gone [In more ways than one.]" Batman (2016) #137

as the story progresses we see more and more of zur replace bruce, but because he can't have bruce trying to stop him again, zur is playing along and convincing bruce he's locked away. so really, bruce is at war with not only his entire family, but also his own mind. just another average tuesday for batman. he's being tricked and is unknowingly doing exactly what he was trying to prevent.

to understand what the actual war in gotham war is, give the comics listed above a read! if you find the story boring/ridiculous/stupid, don't worry, it is! the social commentary leaves a lot to be desired, as does most of the characters writings (especially selina's).

bruce and his one sided battle with zur is sort of an overarching story happening alongside it (along with a bunch of other ongoings. i don't even understand how detective comics and batman and robin are going to tie into this once it starts up again).

sorry the answer isn't a simple one, but unfortunately nothing is ever simple with bruce. also apologies in advance if any of the future gotham war comics come out and completely debunk all of this! who knows what will happen in this dramatic family drama.

[myrquez]

Do you know what's dovquez relationship like currently? Ik marc has said (in preseason maybe?) that he wants to ride with dovi and they have a good relationship(but idk where is this from) also i saw a post where dovi said that he and marc have a "special" relationship but they aren't friends and he regrets it(in his book maybe) or maybe i'm hallucinating ( sorry i'm new to this)

HI AND WELCOME TO THIS WHOLE MADNESS ANON

Don’t worry, I got you!! This will be LONG but I hope it’s also gonna be helpful if you want to “dig” into their lore a bit more!!!

As for the two episodes you mentioned, first one was in the Gresini Team Presentation on January 20th in Riccione, and if you want to watch the whole thing its here!! They did ask Marc if he had any plans to go training in some of the motocross tracks in Romagna, like the 04 Park, while he was there. And Marc said that just that morning he thought something like, “Im gonna call him and ask him if he’s busy?”, but then he basically had no time so he couldn’t actually go. And then he said something like “I would still like it very much, especially to go riding around Dovizioso’s track, whom I have a beautiful relationship with!”. And then we all cried. (me, i cried)

As for the book! Yes, he did say that he would’ve liked to have relationships and connections with other riders in general, because there’s not many people in the world that have the privilege to share their same experiences. He spoke a lot about how the relationships work in the paddock, which he describes as a shark tank basically (literally says minefield). And he said it’s a shame he basically had no friends within the motogp environment, but it’s how it works, because in that world everything it’s about money and feral competition. About Marc (the book was published in 2018 if i’m not wrong, so as for their relationship in 2018 at least) he said they’ weren’t technically friends, but they thought highly of each other, respected each other, smiled to each other when one saw the other one! He spoke a lot about how the connection grew stronger in each one of their battle. How at the end of every race he felt like they just climbed a mountain and they arrived right at the peak together. “The connection has deepened. The relationship was preserved”. It’s one of my fave part of the book, maybe I’ll try to translate the whole thing!

And finally!, as for their current relationship, I’d say it’s still… very good? Dovi was in Mugello this year, and he had this beautiful interview with SkySport Italia where he praised Marc for his outstanding work. If you want to watch it, it’s here! He never stops showering that little menace with compliments. He cannot help it.

Apart from this, no new crumbs? FOR NOW!! Motogp will be in Misano for a few weeks since Kazakhstan got cancelled, so we basically have 1st race in Misano, Misano tests and THEN 2nd race in Misano again which means pleeeenty of time to go and have a bit of fun at the 04 Park i guess <3 manifesting this so hard anon

If you feel the need to have some more lore to dig and stuff, here there’s a beautiful post with some fun facts AND a list of people on the motogpblr that basically are the Dovquez scholars, so there you will find everything you need to know and even more. Have fun!!! <3

[goryhorroor]

do you have the full list for horror movies condemned by the church? Thank you

so there's kinda seperate lists for it, ones condemned by the Legion of Decency, during the years of

Legion of Decency (before it was stopped in 1978):

Rosemary's Baby (because it depicts satanism)

The Devils

The Wicker Man (promotion of sexuality & violence)

Lemora, A Child's Tale of Supernatural

The Rocky Horror Picture Show (promotion of sexuality)

Carrie

The Omen (because it depicts that idea that there is an antichrist in the book of revelations)

J.D.'s Revenge

Dawn of the Dead

The Exorcist (this one is so-so because it was still banned for its profanity & sexual situation, but it's not like they hated the idea that it promoted the catholic church; no the church did not help the exorcist production)

These modern ones morally offended the Catholic Church (this list is offically complete from starting in 2003-July 2022, since OSC News took them over to do movies reviews)

28 Weeks Later

30 Days Later

The Belko Experiment

Black Swan

Brightburn

The Cabin in the Woods

Candyman (newer one)

Child's Play (remake)

The Collection & The Collector

The Crazies (remake)

Crimson Peak

The Descent

The Devil's Rejects

The Devil Inside

The Evil Dead (remake)

Final Destination 3 & 5

The entire of the Purge movies

Freaky

Friday the 13th (remake)

Friend Request

Fright Night (remake)

The Green Inferno

The Grudge (remake: 2019)

Halloween (remake: 2007) & Halloween II

Halloween (2018) & Halloween Kills

Hell Fest

High Tension

The Hills Have Eyes (remake)

Hostel & Part 2

The Hunt

It Follows

It Chapter 2

Jennifer's Body

Jigsaw (2017)

The Last House on the Left (remake)

Let me In

Ma

Malignant

Midsommar

Mother!

My Bloody Valentine (remake)

My Soul to Take

A Nightmare on Elm Street (remake)

One Missed Call (remake)

Pet Sematary (remake)

Piranha 3d

Prometheus

Ready or Not

The Ruins

All Saw movies

Scream (2022) & Scream 4

Shark Night 3D

Silent Hill

Slither

Sorority Row

Spiral

Splice

The Stepfather (remake)

The Strangers: Prey at Night

Studio 666

The Texas Chainsaw 3D

Tusk

Underworld series

Unfriended

We Summon the Darkness

Wolf Creek

X

You're Next

Zombieland 2

[salvatoraes]

name : mirissa. nickname / s: rissa, riss to people closer to me ! height : 5"2. nationality : american. favourite fruit : strawberries !!!! 🍓 favourite season : summer !!! but fall too. favourite scents : campfire smell, lavender, lemon grass, fresh linens, cinnamon ... some more i can't think of. favourite animals : foxes, tigers, sharks, dogs. tea, coffee, hot cocoa :  iced coffee <333 average hours of sleep : usually like 8 - 9, sometimes way less when my brain won't shut off lmao. when my blog was created : this one is only a couple months old but i've had stefan since 2017 or 2018 perhaps ? # of followers : 350+ & i love all of you so much <3 random fact :  i was supposed to be born on halloween but i came early, coulda been a witch for real </3 favourite food : mashed potatoes, anything chocolate, pasta, steak, ice cream ... favourite t.v. shows : friends, tvd ( sometimes ) , gilmore girls, degrassi, chilling adventures of sabrina, bob's burgers, how i met your mother, buffy the vampire slayer, superstore, new girl ... god i have so many & this isn't even it ?? favourite movie :  titanic is my all time favorite but scream & nightmare before christmas are close behind. sexuality :  a proud bi - sexual heh. pronouns : she + her. favourite book series : ooo probably acotar or the hunger games ! favourite video game / s :  fortnite, mario odyssey, dreamlight valley ( really need to get back on omg ) & sometimes the sims. favourite subject :  in high school it was my digital media classes & college it was photoshop & my art ones. guys or girls :  both ! last time I cried :  a week or so ago i sobbed watching a movie lmao what I should be doing :  writing lol heh ... favourite fandoms :  i don't think i have any ???

tagged : nobody, i stole it from an old blog lol. tagging : @kwsatz , @forbaes , @klaeus , @neptunc , @nuks , @snnynatural , @wiredsmile , @chth0nia , @malka-lisitsa , @milleroptimism , @saralans & you, tag me !

[luke-r-gillespie]

May 23 - Osaka / Kaiyukan Aquarium (Freeday) + Media Reflection

Freewriting

Today was another (and our final) full free day! It was a little unideal to have our two free days in Kyoto on days two and four in Kyoto, but it is what it is. I of course took full advantage of this opportunity to sleep in until 10 (I know, crazy stuff!) After rousing from my slumber, I ate two croissants (purchased from family mart yesterday,) before getting ready to head to Osaka with Zachary, Griffin, and Noah. Leaving the hotel, no one was super eager to navigate to Osaka, so I offered (rookie mistake on all of our parts to be honest.) I lacked the insight to find the aquarium's official name (Kaiyukan Aquarium) and assumed that Osaka Aquarium would be sufficient (it was not.) After about two hours of train rides, while waiting for our bus to "Osaka Aquarium," Noah decided to double check our destination and it turns out that "Osaka Aquarium" is a pet store about an hour away (by train) from the actual aquarium (oops.)

So, after catching ANOTHER train we arrived on the correct island and grabbed food in a shopping mall (which was probably the coolest mall I have ever been in) before heading into the aquarium. The island itself was super cool and had way more to do than just the aquarium, but we kept our eyes on the prize.

We split up in the mall and Zachary and I went to a beef place while Noah and Griffin decided on Wendy's. The restaurant we ate at was called ビフテキ (Beef Teki) and it was delicious (I have attached an image to rub it in!)

After eating, we finally went to the aquarium (roughly three and a half hours after out initial departure from Kyoto.) The aquarium was amazing (best aquarium I have ever been to hands down.) The standouts for me were definitely the penguins and whale sharks, although the seals doing tricks were also pretty cool.

We spent about two full hours exploring the aquarium before catching a few trains back to Kyoto (the journey back took significantly less time, I was not the one navigating.)

After getting back to Stay SAKURA, I chilled out for twenty minutes before grabbing dinner at a little place around the corner with Griffin and Zachary. No picture this time as I was pretty hungry and inhaled my food. It is now 10 and I plan on watching some TV for a little before getting an early night, as our meeting tomorrow is at 8:10 (meaning I will be waking up at 7:10.) Overall another eventful and fun free day in Kyoto!

Independent Excursion: Media Reflection (Jujutsu Kaisen & Kaiyukan Aquarium)

Jujutsu Kaisen is an extremely popular Japanese manga series (with an equally popular anime adaptation) written and illustrated by Gege Akutami. The series has been serialized in the popular weekly manga magazine, Shonen Jump since March of 2018. As of May 26 of this year, the well received manga has 261 chapters and is currently ongoing. Since 2020, Jujutsu Kaisen has been in the top four of Shonen Jump's most popular serializations, only losing out to One Piece for the first place spot for the past two years (2022 & 2023.)

I am a huge fan of Jujutsu Kaisen and after seeing Kaiyukan Aquarium and its iconic whale sharks be beautifully depicted in chapter 70 of the manga (as well as Season 2 episode 3 of the anime,) I knew this was a location that I had to visit while I was in Japan.

The section of the "Hidden Inventory" story arc that depicts Osaka, follows the main cast as they travel to Osaka to rescue a kidnapped character. Despite Jujutsu Kaisen being a Shonen series and centering around a fictious power system called "cursed energy," the series depictions of locations in Japan (such as all of Shibuya and much of Osaka) are extremely accurate. Much of the Japanese culture depicted in the show (by the high school and older aged characters) is also authentic to what I have experienced in my time here. After spending two weeks in Tokyo and two weeks in Kyoto, it is clear to me that Gege Akutami inserts his fictional characters into nonfiction settings. Perhaps this is a part of why his series is so successful in Japan, as well as in other countries.

Within the Osaka and Kaiyukan Aquarium sections of the Jujutsu Kaisen story, Riko Amanai is enjoying her final day of life with her new friends before she is to be absorbed (which is most likely to lead to her death) for the good of Japan and the world (within the world of the series obviously.) While walking in the aquarium and gazing at the whale sharks, she has an epiphany about how large the world is and how little of it she has actually seen up to this point. This ultimately leads to her making the decision that she wants to keep on living and see more of what the world has to offer. Below is the two page spread of Amanai walking past the whale sharks tank.

While in Japan, I have had a similar realization. Japan has totally changed my world view and opened my eyes up to how people live in other parts of the world. Prior to this trip, I had only traveled within Europe and the United States and all of the countries that I had visited had similar ideals to the United States and were set up in a similar way. Japan is the first major departure from this that I have experienced myself and it makes me excited about what else the world has to offer. Having struggled with my own mental health in the past, I relate to Amani's epiphany in seeing the beauty of things that were before, unbeknownst to oneself.

While at Kaiyukan Aquarium, I searched for the exact location of the manga panel that I previously mentioned. While I could not recreate the exact shot, I am still happy with the level of accuracy Gege Akutami provided within his work.

The vibe and feeling of the aquarium were dead on, aside from Amani being the only one there in the manga, as it was quite busy when I went (however, this is not an issue in the anime.) I would certainly say that Jujutsu Kaisen provided a reasonable depiction of the real world location, with almost no slippage between the media and reality.

[virtchandmoir]

'Bringing the energy': How Scott Moir is moulding the next generation of ice dancers

Scott Moir hasn't lost his edge. 

January 10, 2023

Former Olympic dance figure skater Scott Moir, one half of the gold medal team of Virtue and Moir, now coaches teams from the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Moir works with Canadian ice dancers Jacob Portz and Alyssa Robinson as they practise at the Komoka Wellness Centre west of London on Friday Jan. 6, 2023. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

“We're going to kick Charlie's ass,” Moir, 35, quipped during a lively training session last week at Komoka Wellness Centre. “Quote that one.”

The one-liners, verbal jabs, laughs and hockey talk is so familiar to anyone who closely followed Moir’s career with his longtime partner, Tessa Virtue of Ilderton, to Olympic gold and the top of the skating world.

Later this month, the ice dance superstar-turned-coach will be in San Jose, Calif., to support one of his promising teams – Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko – at the U.S. national championships.

In the fall, he bet Ponomarenko, a die-hard San Jose Sharks fan, the Maple Leafs would beat them. When Toronto didn’t, Moir wore one of Sharks captain Logan Couture’s jerseys on the ice, then handed it over to his student.

“He loved that,” said the head coach and managing director of the Ice Academy of Montreal’s Ontario campus.

The American ice dance team of Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko work through their routine under the gaze of coach Scott Moir at Komoka Wellness Centre on Friday Jan. 6, 2023. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

This week, Moir will wear out a path to the Kiss and Cry area at the Canadian figure skating championships in Oshawa. His local crew is looking to take big steps after some international success.

Londoners Lily Hensen and Nathan Lickers aim to crack the Top 5 in the senior ranks while Ridgetown’s Alyssa Robinson and Calgary’s Jake Portz have that potential, too. Haley Sales and Nikolas Wamsteeker, who relocated from B.C., hope to grab a podium spot.

Kilworth’s Jordyn Lewis and Ilderton’s Noah McMillan want to earn a junior worlds berth and former novice champs Layla Veillon and Alex Brandys, both Londoners, are taking the next step up the ladder. Lewis and Veillon are also on the Ice Ignite synchro team seeking a junior worlds spot.

Internationally, Leia Dozzi and Pietro Papetti skate for Italy and Samantha Ritter and Daniel Brykalov represent Azerbaijan.

Senior ice dancers Nathan Lickers and Lily Hensen of London work on their routines under the guidance of Olympic champion Scott Moir and his mom, Alma Moir, at Komoka Wellness Centre Friday, Jan. 6, 2023. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

“The project here is to create two equal schools,” Moir said. “Montreal is, by far, the most dominant in the world. At the last Olympics, they had 10 of the last 20 skaters (in ice dance). That’s a lot. It’s a big ask, but I think it’s possible now.”

Moir studied the Montreal way when he and Tessa Virtue moved there for their dominant run to the 2018 Olympic title. They worked under old friends Marie-France Dubreuil and Patrice Lauzon, then Moir brought the spirit of camaraderie and friendly, in-house competition back home.

“The kids have to create the atmosphere they want,” he said. “They cheer each other on. Even though a lot of them will go and be on the competition ice with each other, I learned the real magic is if you have each other’s back. There’s a balance to be struck.

“We (Moir and Virtue) didn’t have the same in Canton (Mich.),” he added. “We had it early when Charlie and I were really firing in 2010. I wasn’t the most mature young man in 2014, so I didn’t use that environment to my advantage. But we doubled down on it in 2018 (alongside the French team of Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron) and it was to our advantage, for sure.”

Former Olympic ice dancer Scott Moir now has a thriving business coaching teams from the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Moir skates past his mom, and fellow coach, Alma Moir, at Komoka Wellness Centre on Friday Jan. 6, 2023. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

LENDING A HAND: Moir grew up surrounded by figure skating coaches. That family connection remains at the academy. His mother Alma, aunt Carol and cousins Sheri and Cara are part of the staff.

“It’s fun – it’s kind of hard to call him my boss now, though,” Alma joked. “He stresses a positive attitude to the coaches and an old (veteran) here sometimes, I have to do a check on how positive I am some days. It took a while for the kids to feed into it, but you could see the energy change from the summer to now.”

Moir has some non-family help, too, in Justin Trojek and soon-to-be-married Madison Hubbell and Adrian Diaz, a Spanish ice dancer. Hubbell, who finished third at the last Olympics with Zachary Donohue, called her immediate jump from athlete to full-time coach a rare transition.

“It was really after meeting Adrian and seeing his love of skating and different perspective that I started enjoying analyzing skating together,” the 31-year-old from Michigan said.

“When we trained together (in Montreal), one of my favourite things was Scott’s energy – whether it was doing back-and-forth cardio or competing on a daily basis. It can feel like a very solo sport and Scott made a point of including you and cheering you on with a compliment or kind word. He’s a big instigator in what I would consider more of a hockey mentality: rowdy, yelling and having fun.”

MOVING FORWARD: Moir, who’s married and has a two-year-old daughter, recently congratulated Virtue on her engagement to Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly. Once in a while, he admits he will press her for some inside info on his favourite team.

His skaters want to hear stories about Virtue, too.

“I looked up to Tessa so much and still do every day,” said Carreira, 22. “She came to the rink once and it was literally the best day. Getting to train with Scott Moir every day is a privilege. I grew up in Montreal and they were my heroes.”

Moir believes the much-loved on-ice connection he shared with Virtue can be taught technically, but he has no interest in churning out mere carbon copies.

“These athletes aren’t going to be able to be Tessa and Scott, because in four, eight and 12 years, Tessa and Scott aren’t going to be good enough,” he said. “They already aren’t. We wouldn’t have won the last Olympics. The sport is evolving, the skaters will and I have to, as well. It’s about making it their own. Everyone has a different look and story.”

Former Olympic dance figure skater Scott Moir coaches American skaters Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

Carreira and Ponomarenko, whose parents Marina and Sergei won 1992 Olympic ice dance gold, are developing that mature skating connection that served Virtue and Moir so well. But Moir isn’t designing similar programs for Veillon, 16, and Brandys, 17.

“You can’t coach two athletes the same way and you motivate the man and woman different,” Moir said. “That’s the fun of coaching. I don’t come here to walk down memory lane. I come here to learn, too. How can I teach this kid a counter even though I was a good counter turner? Now, I need to figure out a different way. It’s a challenge and my coaching staff challenges me. Hopefully, this momentum turns into a snowball and keeps rolling.”

The bond is already encouraging.

“Even though I’m one of the youngest, you completely forget an age gap,” Veillon said. “You get to come to the rink every day and skate with some of your closest friends. The coaches are amazing, they want the best for us and we have such a fun time.”

ONE-ON-ON WITH COACH SCOTT MOIR

Former Olympic dance figure skater Scott Moir demonstrates some footwork for one of his teams at the Komoka Wellness Centre on Friday, Jan. 6, 2023. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

Has your approach to the sport changed since on-ice retirement?

“I was much more performance and result-based. I wanted to win. I studied the points and what needed to be better to be on top. My experience with Tessa, as a coach, showed me if I strategize properly, it can work. I was a little riskier as an athlete, because it’s you out there. You’re the one who puts your heart and soul into it. Now, I feel I owe it to the kids. You feel responsible, but you still have to be a little dangerous. That edge is what gives us an advantage. The goal is not personal-best skates alone. It’s taking advantage of your opportunity. Go for it and take the lessons of being able to perform in front of people, because you have to really bring it on this stage.”

What’s the goal of the Ice Academy of Montreal’s Ontario campus?

“To make great people. It sounds so stupid, but we believe success is a byproduct. You’re a good person first, support your teammates, demand the best of yourself, never stop wanting to grow and be ready to learn. It’s not a trade-off. I used to think you can drink the Kool-Aid and be your best self, but I wanted to win. Patrice, Marie-France and Romain (Haguenauer) showed me it all goes hand-in-hand. We’re an elite school and we want to be on top of the world. As we develop these kids and these skills that will serve them well in life, we want to become excellent athletes able to stand on top of podiums. We don’t have a ton of great skating schools in Canada and our success doesn’t mean we can’t have great schools in Scarborough, Vancouver and Calgary. We’re the most dominant skating country with the most rinks. I hope we can get the footprint a little bigger so we can affect more athletes. Hopefully, we can compete against our Montreal teammates and push their boundaries, too.”

How can you affect the skating experience for your students beyond the technical elements?

“I had success in my career, but I got bogged down in the negatives over many years. Who knows if we would’ve beaten Marilyn (Davis) and Charlie, but I think my outlook on skating kept me from being my best self leading up to 2014 (silver medal in Sochi). I’d love for the kids to hear my wisdom and not have to go through the black period I did. At the same time, it’s their journey and they need to have their own path. I can have a direct impact on the negative parts of the sport that don’t need to exist. There are parts of the sport people may think of as ugly or the judging, but being able to be happy about yourself no matter what people think can be a positive. In this age of social media and all that s—, it’s important. Even before the scores, are you personally happy? Did you give everything you had? I’m hoping to prepare for them to deal with those issues the right way.”

How do you impact a generation of skaters who didn’t face the same challenges you did?

“They motivate very differently. It’s tricky for me. I grew up in the other one. My dad was fair and hard on me. If I deserved it, I got it and I deserved it a lot. He didn’t baby me and I thrived. I have fantastic parents. I had some coaches that were a little harder on me and when you go through the Russian schools, of course, that’s the way it is. I loved it. There were also dark parts it created that I also had to deal with later in life. I think there’s a way to expect the most out of these kids and have them expect it, but through love and support. There’s a balance. You can be critical and deliver the message the right way. This generation motivates from exciting things. You’ve got to keep it fresh and keep them rolling and feeling good. My first couple of years, I got bogged down in hammering on them, because I like being in the trenches. The kids felt it was super heavy and it didn’t work. I started being more positive and bringing the energy every day and you see them lift up with results much better. We’re trending that way and it’s natural for me, too.”

Are you able to watch old videos of you and Tessa Virtue skating without finding every little fault in it?

“My perspective of our career is probably the most jaded. You can’t really watch yourself without it. Watching it is getting better and better, actually. You forget the cues you’re supposed to be doing and I’m able to just watch Tessa much more than what I’m doing wrong, so that’s enjoyable. I watch it with a different eye now that I coach. I was very critical and it wasn’t fun to watch tape before, but it’s getting better. I think for the sake of ice dance – and I think that’s why 2018 was such a success for us – the sport evolved. We came back, dove in, pushed ourselves and were able to come away with Olympic gold again. It would be foolish for me to step in and say if I can create 10 Scott Moirs, we’re going to be successful. I don’t believe that.”

—The London Free Press

[lurkinglurkerwholurks]

Teenage Mutant Power Rangers

First posted: August 12, 2018

Focuses on: Bruce Wayne et al

Favorite bookmark: "wdym this isn't dc canon"

Tier: Decently middle of the road, higher up in overall metrics than I expected, for sure.

This is my "behind the scenes" series where I indulge myself horribly by annotating my fics. Link to the fic itself above. Thoughts below the cut.

The BatFam week prompt was "time travel." Not my favorite thing to deal with, but I had fun writing this one.

I love writing new-to-vigilantism baby Bruce. He's so horribly emotastic and optimistic all at the same time. He has no clue what he's doing but thinks he does. He's so twenty-something.

More than anything, though, Bruce regretted how rough the aftermath was going to be on Alfred. He knew the old butler saw him as a son, and no father should have to identify their child’s corpse.

Another fun thing about writing baby Bruce is lacing in the casual zingers. They don't hit him, but they hit readers dead on if you do them right. :3

Bruce’s head whipped around to stare into the masked face of a green-hooded figure.

Figuring out how to color code everyone was a nightmare. This family is over-reliant on red and black.

“What, kill me? Wrong-o, B. I’m not the one with mortality issues. You had a fifty-fifty shot and you whiffed.”

Love me some zingers.

The boy cut open the tear in Bruce’s suit, stabbed what felt like a local anesthetic into the meat of Bruce’s shoulder, and began inspecting his bullet wound. 

I believe at this time it was more common to assign Tim the medical role, so that's what I did here. Funny, the microtrends that surge in fandom.

He watched as a lithe, hooded figure with a swimmer’s build dropped next to the gang’s lieutenant, graceful and silent as a cat, and swept the legs out from under the brawler, who dropped like a stone. In quick succession, two more hooded fighters appeared out of the shadows as if they had been born from them, a broad-shouldered mountain of a man and a slender figure with suspiciously feminine hips. 

Trying to describe everyone when 1) their faces and identifying features are all covered and 2) Bruce has no idea who they are was, again, a nightmare.

For a while, Bruce thought there was only the four he had seen, but then he noticed the men that disappeared into the darker corners of the alley and never reemerged. Once, he managed to spot the pair of hands that reached out and pulled a man in, as fast and as deadly as a goblin shark’s jaws.

As a general rule, it's always best to make Cass the scariest, no matter what. Also, if you're reading this and haven't looked up videos of a goblin shark, do.

“Seriously, he’s what? Twenty-five? Bet he’s still got all his original teeth, too.” Bruce opened his mouth to snarl that of course he had all his original teeth, what kind of monster children were they and where were their parents, when a shadow split off from the rest and touched his shoulder.

Baby Bruce is so so so out of his depth and it's a delight.

And though the teen hadn’t catalogued Bruce’s busted knee, they were able to catch Bruce when he took a step and crumpled. A chorus of knowing groans rose. “Your knee? C’mon, B, you should’ve said,” the teen—Red? he had a green hood, that didn’t make sense—said. “He’s Batman-ing,” the blonde said. “Totally Batman-ing,” the tall man—Hood? or were they all Hood?—agreed. Bruce blinked as the man tucked his chin into his neck and growled, “I’m invincible. I bleed justice. My bones are made of truth and the American way.” “Don’t be ridiculous, Hood,” sniffed the boy. “That sounds more like Su—” “Ah, ah, ah!” the slender man interrupted as the shadow clapped its hands over the boy’s mouth. “Ixnay on the Ooper-say. You know the rules. Wibbly-wobbly, butterfly wings, et cetera, and we’ve screwed up enough.”

I delight myself, retroactively. They know exactly how he is and love him in spite of it, but no way will they pass up a chance to rag him for it. Also, yes, their names are stupid. But also, I think I was inspired by Loki mocking Captain America here, and I'm not ashamed of that. But also Lion King with the pig latin.

But when the others merely stood and looked at him, he sighed, and suddenly Bruce was lifted off his feet into a bridal carry. Bruce sucked in a sharp breath as the move jostled his ribs, then settled. The hold was surprisingly comfortable, and, in his addled state, made him feel fancy.

Pinkies up.

I hope everyone enjoyed each kid's final words to Bruce, because they were all very deliberate. Did you catch them? But also please note that I figured out Damian's first and wrote everyone else's just to get to that one.

They're rainbow color-coded ninja fighters and it's the late 80s, early 90s. Of course Bruce's closest frame of reference is the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers (with a side of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.)

[thesaleswhisperer]

B.S.ers Are SOL in Copywriter Jeff Putnam's World

Professional Sales Tips you'll learn today on The Sales Podcast ...

Listen to Jeff Putnam’s first interview on The Sales Podcast, episode 510, back on June 23, 2021, and see the change he’s made

Deep down, he always wanted to be a writer

He did a project as a kid on Ernest Hemingway and saw a picture of him smoking a cigar and hunting a shark with a machine gun that lit a fire

In December 2018, he got the idea for Rugged Legacy and launched it in early 2019

He didn’t want to work for anyone else

He had to learn copywriting so his business wouldn’t die

Then, he started teaching people how to do it

Wrote two books, and he reads all the time

Related episodes and posts

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Working on a novel and is about 1/3rd complete

Most people suck at writing so they pay him to write

Now 99% of his income comes from writing for others

He focused on Twitter rather than building a “personal brand”

He got so busy with work that he didn’t have the time or interest in building a brand

He no longer promotes himself online

People know who he is

He has a great network now

He has some coaching clients

He wakes up at five am, takes his huskie for a walk, gets some coffee, reads for four hours, then starts his day writing for clients

Vince Flynn/Mitch Rapp series

Jack Reacher series by Lee Child

Loves Musashi by Eiji Yoshikawa

Will reference a business book but doesn’t sit and read them

Does not like the appeal of the “digital nomad” lifestyle

He doesn’t want to live out of seven suitcases

He spent nearly five years hustling and grinding and perfecting his writing craft

A customer of his asked him if he’d help with their website, and that became his first paying copywriting client, but he was visible and active online and on Twitter, so they knew him

He Googled typical prices for copywriting and added 20% to that

Then he raised his prices until people balked, and then he dropped his prices 5%

He’ll include three revisions, but the fourth is 50% of the original invoice

He doesn’t design websites, but he writes the copy

He loves writing long-form content like 80-page white papers

He’ll write 16k-20k words every ten days or so

Many people confuse niche and industry

He can research any industry and write about it

A Web 3 startup paid him $60k upfront ($5k/mo) to do all of their content, and he had no experience in that space

The Web 3 client saw an article Jeff wrote on marriage and reached out to him

If clients are jerks, he cuts them loose

He charges 6-7 cents per word

He just does words

He uses AI as a style guide by uploading something like a five-paragraph description the client provides

“Additionally…in a fast-paced world…”

He loves 3-piece suits

Anchoring…

He’ll sometimes wear his suit to write to anchor himself

“Okay”

Zuby

“I’m a serious Catholic”

Adoration and Holy Hours and Mass

He carries his rosary always

He has Catholic cigars, Incensum Cigars

He converted to Catholicism last year

There are only 450 TLM churches in the U.S.

His wife is Hispanic who grew up in New England and is Catholic

He spent 18 months writing a book on Catholic masculinity

He decided to go to Mass May 7, 2023, which was two months after he launched the book

His wife was a lapsed Catholic, but now they go weekly

He’s in RCIA and entering the Catholic Church fully this Easter

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[xtruss]

About one-third of all shark species are threatened—and tens of millions are killed each year ​by commercial fishing industries. Photograph By David Maupile/Laif/Redux

Sharks Are Still Being Killed At High Rates—Despite Bans On Finning

Shark fishing regulations, including bans on cutting off fins, increased tenfold since 2000. Yet a new study shows that deaths may have actually ticked up as new markets for shark meat emerge.

— By Tim Vernimmen | January 11, 2024

In 2019 at least 79 million sharks died in fisheries, and at least 25 million of those belonged to threatened species—numbers that have stayed steady or even risen in the past decade.

Compared to 10 years ago, fewer of those sharks died because people cut off their fins and threw them back into the sea—a practice known as finning that is now prohibited in about 70 percent of countries and overseas territories. But regulations that have reduced the frequency of finning have not saved shark lives, an international research team reports in the journal Science this week.

“If anything, global shark mortality has slightly increased,” says Boris Worm, a marine ecologist at Dalhousie University in Canada. Now most sharks are landed whole, and a growing demand for shark products has driven fisheries to continue catching the animals.

Worm and seven colleagues spent the past three years collecting data on shark mortality and fishery regulations. “This was really a challenge,” he says, “as shark fisheries are notoriously underreported. We compiled everything we could find, from catch numbers to data from observers on boats in international waters to estimates of coastal fishing that include recreational, artisanal, and even illegal fishing.”

Employees of the Kowalski fishing industry in Santa Catarina, Brazil, wash sharks recently caught in ocean fishing. Photograph By Victor MoriyamaFor National Geographic

A counter in a Chinese medicine shop in Taipei sells shark fins. Photograph By Michael Wolf Estate/Laif/Redux

The global analysis reveals that even though there has been a tenfold increase in regulations on shark fishing and finning, mortality in the past decade remained more or less the same, with estimates of 76 million dead sharks due to fishing in 2012 and at least 80 million in 2018. Given that not all catches are reported in sufficient detail and some aren’t recorded at all, the researchers say, the number of deaths is likely to be significantly higher.

A Shark 🦈 Market

Marine ecologist Nicholas Dulvy of Simon Fraser University in Canada, who has not involved in the study, points out finning regulations did help “to ensure many catches could be identified to the species level, which is necessary for catch and trade limits” and also aids research. “Regulation of international trade has now begun, with the protection of over 100 shark species under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora,” he says.

While these trade regulations appear to have led to fewer sharks getting killed in international fisheries, coastal fisheries have started catching more sharks.

To try to understand why that might be, the researchers interviewed 22 experts including scientists, conservationists, and people working in fisheries or companies that process shark products. “They’ve told us that existing markets for shark products have expanded,” says marine conservation scientist Laurenne Schiller of Carleton University in Canada, a co-author of the study. “Which may be due in part to the increased availability of sharks resulting from anti-finning regulations.”

Shark meat, even from endangered sharks, is increasingly found in a variety of food products, and not just in still-popular shark fin soup. Shark is also often used in fish and chips, in ceviche, or as a fraudulent alternative for swordfish.

In addition, shark cartilage and liver oil are common ingredients in the medical and cosmetics industries. “Many beauty products contain squalene,” Schiller says, “which usually, but not necessarily, derives from sharks. So it’s good to look for products that use plant-based alternatives instead.”

The researchers say that that to save sharks, anti-finning laws clearly do not suffice, and there need to be more extensive fishing regulations.

“There are 29 countries and overseas territories that have already prohibited shark fishing in their waters,” says Worm. “The Bahamas, for example, have discovered that sharks were worth much more as a dive attraction for the ecotourism industry, which is booming. On average, we see such prohibitions are the only tool that consistently reduced mortality, so we would encourage that.”

Fishermen go out fishing sharks in Cananeia, a coastal town in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Restrictions on species allowed for fishing have led many local fishermen to specialize in other fish and crustaceans such as shrimp and sea bass. Photograph By Victor MoriyamaFor National Geographic

Gillnets Kill

In places where people depend on fisheries for their livelihoods or sustenance, bans may not be appropriate, but keeping fisheries at sustainable levels is crucial to maintaining wild populations.

“This includes, of course, science-based catch limits for sharks,” says Schiller. “But many interviewees also told us about the dangers of unselective fishing gears, like gillnets.” These walls of netting that hang vertically in the water column are designed to catch fish by their gills, and they tend to entangle every animal that is too large to fit through the mesh. “Our own analyses show they are commonly used in the places we identify as mortality hotspots. So phasing them out and encouraging more selective practices in places like Indonesia, Brazil, Mauritania, or Mexico could have a big impact,” Schiller says.

“We know that shark populations are under enormous pressure from fishing throughout much of the world’s oceans,” says marine biologist Colin Simpfendorfer of James Cook University in Australia, who was not involved in the study, “and the data presented in this new paper add further evidence.”

While finning regulations have not led to decreased shark deaths, Simpfendorfer points out they weren’t designed to reduce catches, but to prevent suffering and the waste of sharks being killed for their fins alone.

Without increased efforts to protect sharks, at least one in three species will face the threat of extinction, and many more are suffering population declines.

“I have many colleagues who are oceanographers, and they tell me that in the 70s and 80s, there were always sharks following the vessel because of the kitchen scraps they threw overboard—typically oceanic whitetips, a formerly very abundant species that is now endangered and hardly ever seen. I’ve never seen one in my life,” says Worm. “That’s when you get that sinking feeling that something is really wrong with the way we’re treating them. We should fix that, and we can.”

[indoraptorgirlwind]

CHARACTER PROFILE

Face claim: Allison Williams

Full name:

Quetzalli (Kit) Cort��s

Age:

20

Ethnicity:

mexican

Gender:

female

Nicknames:

Kit, Kit the cat, spider monkey, celest quetzal, quetzi

Personality:

Kind and soft with everyone. When she trusts or knows you she becomes an energetic person. When she doesn't, she's shy and reservated. Her experiences and personality can make her a little underconfident.

Appeareance:

she's short and skinny. Both her hair and eyes are brown. She almost always wears jeans, boots and a yellow hoodie.

When she's on her celest quetzal suit, she wears a black interior shirt, with both celest shirtfront and loincloth. Wears traditional huaraches. She has a mask with diverse mayan paintings and feathers (mainly green and blue) on the top

Abilities:

Spear and dagger handling, summoning of dinosaurs, agility, ability to climb and jump without hurting herself (mostly), wind manipulation, nahual shapeshifting (only into a quetzal bird)

Fears:

Almost any insect/arachnid (except ants, flies, mosquitoes, butterflies and long legged spiders), losing her brother, earthquakes, dissapointing people she loves/cares about, sea animals (except dolphins, whales and sharks)

Occupation:

paleontologist

Hobbies:

drawing, climbing, jumping, reading, etc.

Relatives:

Sergio Cortés Lozano (father, deceased)

Yazmin Alvarado Torres (mother, deceased)

Manuel Cortés Alvarado (brother, deceased)

Horacio Rivera Flores (guardian, deceased)

Favorite food, drinks and snacks:

Tamales (specially red ones)

Jackfruit

Ezquite

Tejuino

Flavored water

Chapulines

Favorite animals:

Quetzal birds

Ducks

Snakes

Iguanas

Alligators

Dislikes:

Seafood (except tuna), pumpkin, onion, melted and burger cheese only (she loves the rest of cheese). She doesn't like fishes, worms, roaches, rats nor mouses.

Backstory:

Kit lived on a loving home in Tlaquepaque, México with her parents, Sergio Cortes Lozano and Yazmin Alvarado Torres, and her newborn baby brother, Manuel (Manu) Cortes Alvarado.

At such young age of 4 years, she was already hyperenergetic and started climbing the couches, this was an early signal of such climber she would later become.

In 2011 when she was 7, there was a high level earthquake that destroyed her home. She was in school when it happened. When she arrived, she found her mother dying under a rumble, holding Manu up to her before dying.

She and Manu got adopted by Horacio Rivera Flores, a paleontologist who was the friend of their father.

To comfort them, Horacio took them to the museum where he worked, showing them the fossil of a concavenator and explaining them about the species and the diverse dinosaurs. Kit couldn't help but feel connected to these animals.

In 2018 when she was 14, her, Horacio and Manu moved to San Francisco in search of new animals to discover. She was already working with Horacio on his job. While doing an investigation on the inside of a ferry about the behavior of Basilosaurus. There, she got to see giant-man (she was on the ferry from amatw)

A day after that encounter, she became focused on finding out about this being and who it was. She discovered it was just ant-man, and in search of answers, she tried to give with his location and ask him herself.

In the following weeks, Horacio seemed sick. He was getting worse, and he was already way too weak on his bed. Horacio got blipped, while Kit and Manu survived.

She and Manu returned to México, grieving Horacio's and other loved ones deaths.

In 2020 at the age of 16, after living alone with her brother, she was arriving on an excavation, when she found an ancient artifact, a mayan obsidian dagger. It caught something in her so she didn't report it and sneaked it on her bag.

When she arrived home, she got curious of the dagger, as it had some kind of button. When she pressed it, she unexpectedly summoned a concavenator with it. After realizing it would follow her commands and configurating the button, she realized the dagger could somehow summon extinct creatures at her will.

She named the concavenator "Corve" and discovered other creatures that would aid her later.

One day, she discovered her brother got assaulted by a thief, so she took a choice. She got an old celest blue mayan suit from an event, made a plume mask, and with a homemade spear and her dagger, started to fight local crime, with the intentions to protect people, but overall, her brother.

She also met Ruben on this period of time, who was also a newly turned superhero due to a replication he worked on since he wanted to be just like the original spider-man.

In the following years she became more agile than ever. Her climbing became more and more expert, already climbing trees and even buildings.

In 2023 at the age of 19, when the blip was undone, Kit realized by the news, where the avengers communicated their journey to restore half of the universe. She remembered Horacio, and that he was so sick before being blipped.

She and Manu rushed to San Francisco again, but when they arrived at the department, it was too late. A worker informed them that after he unblipped, Horacio died by his disease.

Full with grief, Kit and Manu were devastated, but she noticed something. In the news, there was ant-man again, and now she knew how to find him.

Kit found Scott, and after meeting him, they became great friends.

Then time later, she would get lost on a forest. There, she finds a sorcerer named "white shaman" who offered her to let her know her spirit animal and help her find her way out of the forest.

The next day, with his guidance, she learned to turn into a quetzal bird. When she mastered it he suddenly dissapeared and was never seen again. She also adquired wind abilities.

One year after their friendship, now that she was 20, on another work travel, this time on Queens, she met spider-man, and befriended him as well.

She kept making friends and friends, finding comfort in their presence, a little breath after the storm of unfortunate events on her life.

However, shortly after that, tragedy struck again. Her brother, who was just walking to school, when a villain, known as "Black Shaman" had gotten information of Kit, attacked. Kit appeared and fought him, but he knocked her unconscious and then derribated a column agaisnt Manu.

When she woke in a hospital and found out about her brother, she became silent and her self-esteem got lower than usual. However, nowadays she's still fighting for good, and having fun with her friends.

THE DAGGER

[ausetkmt]

Police dogs are often portrayed as harmless, loveable members of the local police. But many departments across the country use dogs as weapons, training the animals to bite thousands of people every year, causing serious and even fatal injuries.

A new investigation from The Marshall Project, AL.com, IndyStar and the Invisible Institute exposes the widespread use—and abuse—of dogs in police departments across the U.S.

Here are six takeaways from our findings, based on data from departments across the country, thousands of pages of documents, videos and scores of interviews with victims, police officers and experts. The main article based on the investigation contains more information. We will publish more reporting in the coming weeks.

People are bitten across the country, but some cities use biting dogs far more often than others. There’s no national database of police dog use and who is bitten. Our reporting found bites in nearly every state, though data from more than 50 police departments shows the numbers vary widely by city. Police in Chicago almost never deploy dogs for arrests and had only one incident from 2017 to 2019. Washington, D.C., had five. Seattle had 23. New York City, where policy limits their use mostly to felony cases, reported 25. By contrast, Indianapolis had more than 220 bites and Los Angeles reported more than 200 bites or dog-related injuries. The Sheriff’s Department in Jacksonville, Florida, had 160 in this period.

Bites can cause life-altering injuries, even death. Dogs used in arrests are bred and trained to have a bite strong enough to punch through sheet metal. Their bites can be more like shark attacks, according to experts and medical researchers. When they are used on people, they can leave harrowing scars, torn muscles and dangerous infections. A woman’s scalp was torn in California; a man’s vocal cords were damaged in Colorado; an Arizona man’s face was ripped off. Occasionally, someone dies after an encounter with a police dog. Most recently, a 51-year-old handyman bled to death after being bitten by a police dog in Montgomery, Alabama, in 2018.

Many people bitten were not violent and were suspected of minor crimes—or no crime at all. While many police agencies say they use dogs only to capture people accused of violent crimes or when officers are in danger, our review of bites around the country found the dogs are frequently used in minor cases: traffic violations, shoplifting, mental health checks, trespassing and running from police.

Police officers sometimes can’t control the dogs, worsening injuries. Even when dogs are trained to release their bites with a verbal command, they sometimes don’t let go. While training experts say bites should last seconds, we found numerous cases that lasted minutes as handlers struggled to pull off the dogs. Some experts said that makes injuries worse, tearing flesh as the dogs are pulled away.

There’s little accountability or compensation for many bite victims. Excessive force lawsuits over dog bites are difficult to win. Police officers are often shielded from liability, and federal civil rights laws don’t typically cover bystanders who are bitten by mistake. It can also be hard for someone who pleads guilty or gets convicted of resisting arrest, or a similar crime, to file a lawsuit. Even when victims can bring cases, lawyers say they struggle because jurors tend to love police dogs.

Read the main article. In addition, our reporters will continue publishing stories from this investigation in the coming weeks, including the story of a Washington, D.C., woman who went for a walk, then encountered a police dog; an examination of the police department with the worst dog-bite rate among the nation’s 20-largest city agencies; and an examination of police dog use in Alabama and the state’s most dangerous K-9 unit.

Correction: An earlier version said a Maryland woman was bit while on a walk. She lives in Washington, D.C.

[mugoki]

'Stuck in one place' horror movies 💀 part 2

Breaking Surface (2020)

Two sisters go for some hobby diving at a secluded area in Norway, only for one of them to get stuck under a rock (if i remember correctly) 30 m down under water. Even though we mostly follow one sister's desperate attempts to find help while keeping her sister alive, there are many scary moments under water.

47 Meters Down (2017)

Another two sisters enjoying themselves diving, this time on a tourist attraction boat where you swim with wild sharks, safely inside a connected underwater cage. However the chains fail and the cage completely plunges to the ocean ground. With scarce amount of air, lost from the people above and surrounded by vicious sharks, the two sisters have to take dire risks to make it back to the surface.

Poseidon (2006)

Giant cruise ship Poseidon is hit by a giant wave, and pushed upsidedown with thousands of passengers inside. A bunch of strangers get together to reach the bottom of the boat in hope to signal for help, but one by one they're plucked away by misfortune. Underrated, almost forgotten movie !

The Pool (2018)

Imagine, you fall asleep on your summer floaty and hasn't noticed that the really deep pool has been emptied. And when your friend comes to help you up, they accidentally stumble and severely hit their head. Now both of you're stuck! And oh, then an alligator falls in too. Even if the plot sounds a bit goofy like that, this doesn't feel terribly unrealistic!

Mine (2016)

After witnessing his friend step on a mine and become several pieces, a soldier notices that he has stepped on one too - but it hasn't gone off yet. Having to stand still in such heavy heat while waiting for help does things to your mind for sure.

Fall (2022)

Two adrenaline junkie friends decide to climb an old rusty 2000 feet (about 610 meters) radio tower. But when reaching the top, the ladder falls apart and the women are completely trapped in the middle of nowhere, struggling in the desert heat.

The Lodge (2019)

A former cult-member still suffers trauma from the brainwashing she had to endure for years, even after starting a new life with a nice man and his two kids. When the bf has to go away for a business trip and a blizzard strikes, the woman is stuck with the two kids in the small cavern as strange things start to occur around them.

Vivarium (2019)

A couple looking for their first dream home together suddenly finds themselves trapped in their new house with a strange baby to care for. Imagine being trapped with someone else's kid 24/7 against your will, for weeks even months! No wonder they lose their minds.

The Purge (2013)

Since the never ending Purge franchise, i think many have forgotten that the very first one took place only in a suburban house as introducers try to get in. Still today holds up as a very stressful scary watch!

[ Part 1 ]

[icharchivist]

wait crotchery again what do you mean gbf is an adults only game, i thought it was just some character collect-n-battle kind of thing?? am i missing something here

I meant by that that the rating had changed from Teens and Up to Mature in the app store basically.

GBF is still a Gacha RPG Visual Novel first and foremost. you go through a main story and side stories event in Visual Novel form, you have to fight battles to get further into the plot, and to collect items that'd make you stronger, and for that you need to collect the gacha characters who each have features to approach the fights in the game.

The change in rating was done because GBF became increasingly more gore as the years went by and eventually started to tackle more and more serious subject. Sexuality is not the main reason of the rating going up, but it sure didn't help.

When GBF started back in 2014 it was rated Teen And Ups. In events from 2014 to 2018 the gorest you'll get is like, if someone gets stabbed their sprite will tremble and the description will tell you a quick thing about what's going on. Sexually speaking we had characters like Metera who were extremely flirty and would moan to fluster you but that's a bit standards even by gacha standards.

in 2018 What Makes the Sky Blues part 2 came out, with a huge gamble: Visually showing a major character death by showing his beheaded head, and having Belial as a major antagonist while he is always talking about sex. Even the English translation actually toned down his speech by a lot. ("so you're here for the sodomy?" was translated "oh you're ready to get down and dirty with me?" for example).

It was a major gamble at the time that was extremely well received by fans and it encouraged the company to do more and more as time went by. Villains introduced since Belial have had a tendency to be trying even more of the edge to see how far they can get away with. Gore scenes are visually illustrated on the screen as vividly as possible for a Visual Novel. Beheading, and such.

It culminated eventually in 2021 when the character of Ferdinand was introduced, a cannibal abuser and groomer who moans everytime something goes his way. (a throughout explanation of Ferdinand can be found here). At the same time, Lobelia (a serial killer who has orgams everytime he tortures people because he gets off on the sounds of screamings. he's a friend btw.) got a summer skin in which tapping on the screen will have you hear a woman screaming to her death as she's eaten by sharks.

I think those were two of the major points which had the censors especially decide to do something (especially the Lobelia thing that actually was quite the scandal at the time), though technically it's been a while since this type of things have been going on in the game. (it just that it was quite the timing, i think the rating really went up a few weeks after Lobelia's skin came out and a couple month after Ferdinand was introduced/right before he became a major focus also).

And that's when the app stores all decided to raise the content from Teen And Up to Mature, specifically, +17 people.

So at least it's Rated so that young players shouldn't play GBF.

GBF is mostly a browser game though (the app is only available in Japan but genuinely it's easier to play on browser, both on computer and on phone), so it's not really something Granblue concerned themselves with.

But as it is, the moment they had their rating raising, they kinda went, well, fuck it, if our attempts at being PG are not good enough, then YOLO.

And it's when we started to have extremely sexual units and arts. Summer Belial's crotch. Valentine Wilnas's ass. Yukata Ilsa or Yukata Narmaya.

So what i meant by adult game is in the sense that the rating is actually not recommanded for teens, and that the game is going ham to prove it, but it's mostly in question of gore and questionable content. Sexual stuff are still also a reason but it's actually not the major reason for it all.

But. We know for a fact it all started with Belial. he was considered the riskiest move from the company they almost scrapped him at the time. but since he was so well received, they decided to keep pulling those risks and here we are now.

And that's what you missed on granblue fantasy o7

[thorntonkrell-blog-blog]

It's been a very rainy/indoorsy week down here in Charlotte so today we're getting oudda house. We're going to Birkdale to see Asteroid City, the latest Wes Anderson extravaganza.

I'm not a huge fan of Anderson. My three favorite Anderson movies are; "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou", "The Royal Tenenbaums", and "Fantastic Mr. Fox"

Anderson has a loyal and hip fan base. I am neither lyal nor hip so there's the first problem. Fortunately I probably won't have to put up with the over exaggerated in theater response from his fand who love to siganl how much they "get it" as I imagine our theater will be almost empty.

Asteroid City looks like another yet another aesthetic collision of idiosyncratic characters cast symetrically against an oddly saturated color palette who seem to be speaking in a coded language meant to suggest comedic subtlety.

Anderson illustrates one of the liabilities of the autueur theory. When we notice too many directorial touches, that stylization can come at the expense of the film most partiuclarly in terms of characterization and story telling. This lack of depth in characterization is part and parcel of ensemble casting and the cast for Asteroid City is about as attractive, eccentric and idiosyncratic as it can get in these days of cinematic decline. Let me drop a few names; Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Margot Robbie, Steve Carell, Edward Norton, Jason Schartzman, Jeff Goldblum and Tilda Swanson. All we need for a complete carnival would be the addition of Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Gwyneth Paltrow and or Adrian Brody. Thank God for semi-discipline.

So yeah, we're gonna give it a try.

Wes Anderson is a highly regarded American filmmaker known for his distinct visual style, meticulous attention to detail, and offbeat storytelling. Here are some notable films directed by Wes Anderson:

"Bottle Rocket" (1996): Anderson's directorial debut, a quirky comedy about a group of friends who plan and execute small-scale heists.

"Rushmore" (1998): A coming-of-age comedy-drama centered around an eccentric high school student named Max Fischer, played by Jason Schwartzman, and his friendship with a wealthy industrialist, played by Bill Murray.

"The Royal Tenenbaums" (2001): A dysfunctional family comedy-drama featuring an ensemble cast that includes Gene Hackman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Stiller, Anjelica Huston, and Luke Wilson.

"The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" (2004): A comedic adventure film about an oceanographer, played by Bill Murray, who sets out to exact revenge on a mythical shark that killed his partner.

"The Darjeeling Limited" (2007): A visually stunning comedy-drama that follows three estranged brothers, played by Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, and Jason Schwartzman, as they embark on a train journey across India.

"Fantastic Mr. Fox" (2009): An animated adaptation of Roald Dahl's children's book, featuring the voices of George Clooney, Meryl Streep, and Bill Murray. It tells the story of a cunning fox and his efforts to outwit three evil farmers.

"Moonrise Kingdom" (2012): A nostalgic coming-of-age film set in the 1960s, revolving around two young lovers who run away from their New England town, prompting a search party to find them.

"The Grand Budapest Hotel" (2014): A whimsical comedy set in a fictional European hotel, following the misadventures of a legendary concierge, played by Ralph Fiennes, and his apprentice.

"Isle of Dogs" (2018): Another stop-motion animated film by Anderson, set in a dystopian future Japan where a young boy searches for his lost dog on an isolated trash island.

These films showcase Wes Anderson's distinctive visual style, symmetrical compositions, vibrant color palettes, and eccentric characters. His work often blends comedy with poignant moments and explores themes of family, love, and the human condition.

what are his more current filmsChatGPT

As of my knowledge cutoff in September 2021, Wes Anderson's most recent film was "The French Dispatch" (2021). However, please note that there may have been subsequent releases or announcements since then that I'm not aware of. "The French Dispatch" is a comedic anthology film set in the fictional French city of Ennui-sur-Blasé. It features an ensemble cast including Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand, Owen Wilson, and many others. The film tells various stories published in the eponymous magazine, each presented as a separate article. It encapsulates Anderson's signature visual style and storytelling approach.

why some people aren't fans of WesChatGPT

While Wes Anderson has a dedicated fan base and is highly regarded by many, it's important to acknowledge that not everyone may appreciate his films or become fans. Here are a few reasons why some people might not be fans of Wes Anderson:

Quirky and idiosyncratic style: Wes Anderson's distinct visual style, meticulous compositions, and eccentric characters can be polarizing. Some viewers may find his aesthetic choices, such as symmetrical framing or exaggerated color palettes, to be too stylized or artificial, which may detract from their enjoyment of his films.

Slow pacing and dry humor: Anderson's films often have a deliberate pacing and dry humor that might not resonate with everyone. The emphasis on dialogue-driven storytelling and subtle comedic moments may not appeal to those who prefer fast-paced, action-packed narratives or more overt humor.

Lack of relatability or emotional connection: Some viewers may find it challenging to emotionally connect with Anderson's characters or find them relatable. His films often feature idiosyncratic and quirky characters that can be seen as detached or emotionally distant, which may make it difficult for certain audiences to engage with the story on a deeper level.

Repetitive themes and stylistic choices: Critics argue that Wes Anderson's films can be formulaic, with recurring themes, visual motifs, and character archetypes. While this consistency is appreciated by many fans, others may feel that his work lacks innovation or becomes predictable over time.

Overemphasis on style over substance: Detractors of Wes Anderson sometimes claim that his meticulous attention to visual detail and stylization can overshadow the substance or depth of his storytelling. They argue that his films can prioritize style and aesthetic choices at the expense of character development or thematic exploration.

It's essential to remember that personal preferences in film are subjective, and not every filmmaker or style will resonate with everyone. While Wes Anderson has a dedicated following, it's natural that some individuals may not connect with his films for various reasons.

[hariina]

First ever profile picture of Hanon, back in her original Tiger Shark form. From 2018, but this one still has a place in my heart. :') At the time, a good friend of mine invited me to her RPG group that was playing a home-brew GURPs Zelda campaign, completely build from the ground by the GM. He created stats for the races, weapons, spells, monsters... it was incredible. Playing her with them has been one of the greatest joys I've ever experienced, and it's still the high point of my week as we just ended the second arc of the campaign a few weeks ago, and now jump into D&D for a bit. A third arc of Zelda is in the works, but it'll be many centuries later and Hanon's adventures have reached their end... but someone will take the olympic torch when the time comes. :'3 In the meantime, there's still a lot of old art of her, along with stuff in the works because I just... love her too much. <3

[diningwiththeasquiths]

In my other Ireland vacation post I promised a separate post about the eco marine tour we went on. So here it is.

This tour's starting point is in Ventry, on the Dingle Peninsula, and I highly recommend it. The people are very friendly and experienced, and clearly care deeply about the wildlife. (This has also been my experience during two Cornwall boat tours in 2018, passionate people who respect nature are the best tour guides imo. ❤️)

Our trip got postponed by one day, ensuring that we had the best possible conditions. And even though the waves were still a bit rough, the weather was lovely and the sightings were plentiful!

We explored the Blasket Islands, some were blanketed in clouds and others looked so dramatic they reminded us of the Jurassic Park island.

We passed a beach where a grey seal colony lives.

They were so cute!! This one says ''hello''.

Next they took us over to the bird areas of the islands. Here we saw lots of razorbills and puffins, both beautiful and amazing animals! Sadly puffins are threatened with extinction. One of our guides said that if nothing changes we will be the last generation to see puffins in the wild. 😭😭

During the tour we also saw gannets, a peregrine falcon and Manx shearwaters. As for other non-bird related wildlife, we saw a bunch of common dolphins, including little ones, some swimming along with our boat!

And I kept the most incredible encounter for last. This has been a dream of mine for many, many years... WE SAW BASKING SHARKS 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍

They described this first one we saw as 'a smaller specimen'. Mind you, when they are born they are already 1,5 - 2 meters long. So it was still an impressive sight! 🤩 We encountered some more basking sharks later on, but those went under rather quickly (perhaps they heard me say 'IT'S SO BIG!' lol). I did see a giant dorsal fin up close since one of them swam close to the boat (hence my exclamation 😆).

So yeah it was one of the best and most awesome days of my life and I wish I could go on tours like these at least once a week, because I absolutely ADORE basking sharks and yearn to see them up close all the time. (It takes lots of luck to get the place and timing right though.)

Feeling so blessed 🥰🥰🥰 (And at the same time craving more boat tours *heavy breathing* Maybe next year in Scotland... 👀)