#and a series of 17 episodes straight where a guy is trapped in a room & the audience is just psychoanalyzing him. hghj.. Maybe I find all

[anvils-and-dynamite]

Hey, Felix! - A Review of The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat - Guardian Idiot

Viewing the series as a whole, we could say that Twisted Tales is a mixed bag: not only in the sense of “the ratio of good to bad episodes is like a 50/50″, but, since it suffered from too many cooks in the kitchen during its production, we can see episodes taking entirely different directions.

The current plan is to review the three first episodes of the series: these were the very first ones I’ve watched and the ones that made me fall in love with the series, and we’re going to attempt to pinpoint exactly why. At first, I wanted to approach all three at once, but I think it will be better if I tackle them one by one. Still, I’ll keep this video that has all three because it’s got the best quality I could find.

GUARDIAN IDIOT

- 1:09-2:17 - We start not with Felix himself, but with the villain of this episode! And a pretty memorable one to boot! You just can’t go wrong with the morbidity of the meat industry, especially in a setting where animals are sapient.

Highlights of the Butcher’s presentation are:

(1:09-1:17) introduces us to the main subject and the place the villain operates in: a fast food restaurant where people are chowing down burgers in a rather gross and even brutal manner (pay close attention to the background lady)

One of my personal highlights of the Butcher’s presentation is the dialogue with the lady who asked for salad (1:17-1:31). I’m not an expert on comedic timing, but I like how he politely follows her request with “And what kind would you like?”, to prompt her to say “What kind do you have?”, only to deliver that brief, explosive “NONE!”.

Look at his face. He was trying to lead the conversation to that point all along. Whoever was acting his voice was having a blast.

(1:31-2:02) L I S T E N T O M E N O W

Ok we get to the Butcher’s proper musical number, which give us a taste (HAH) of what to expect from Twisted Tales:

Things appearing where they don’t belong (like the beefed-up steer (HAAH) inside the banana)

Objects coming to life (I know, it’s weird to classify meat as an “object”)

And a tinge of the disturbing (animals being turned into pies/sausages yet still singing, a roast pork being fed to a family of pigs)

- 2:02-2:17 Somehow, the Butcher has run out of supplies. I like how the guy spends 5 good seconds pondering until he reaches the conclusion he has to get more meat. The cricket providing the sounds to signal an “empty” room is a nice touch, and so is the Butcher noticing it, picking it up and just chucking it aside like “naah that won’t do”

- 2:18- 2:28 And here he is, the star of the show! I love Felix as a street artist here, and how everyone runs away when he removes the top of his head as a hat to ask for tips. Yes, it could be interpreted as nobody wanting to pony up some pennies for the poor cat, but I really prefer the “body horror” route better (we’ll see a more extreme case of this in a later episode). This, coupled with Felix’s main issue (”Man, am I hungry”), portrays him as someone who tends to get the shorter stick in life, which makes him especially sympathetic to the audience and especially vulnerable to the villain.

- 2:28-3:04 These next scenes are brief, and the purpose of that is to take us to the kicker of the episode: Felix meets Butcher, Butcher lures Felix inside his restaurant/slaughterhouse with the promise of free food.

Seems that the Butcher is making things up as he continues with his plan, at least as I see it when he says “I’ve... got something for you!”. Observe how he looks up, thinking, and then, when he comes up with the rest of the sentence, his face stretches up in a smile and rolls his eyes, denoting his weirdo mannerism. It’s the small details like these what makes this character so fun to watch. And Felix’s enthusiastic “Oh boy!” while the Butcher prepares a cleaver behind his back!

We get some more old school cartoon weirdness with the Butcher sniffing Felix with his elongated eyes, what I assume is a string of meat-related puns (I’m sorry, my hearing is not that good) and some more subtle silliness, such as the Butcher giving Felix the menu in the shape of a playing card.

I really like the Butcher’s joyous glee he takes in murdering innocent animals. You know, the kind of stuff you could really enjoy in fiction. Or maybe it’s just me and my love for cackling, over-the-top maniacs.

-3:04-3:29 So this is the situation: our MC is about to be slaughtered alive by a sentient meat grinder (which by the way it’s a pretty good reflection of our villain’s cruelty). It’s interesting to put Felix in such a helpless situation right at the start of the series, but it’s pretty much done for the purpose to give way to the real meat (HAAAH) of this episode. Felix’s scream for help takes over the whole screen and reaches heaven... 

- 3:29-3:46 ...and a guardian angel apprentice is tasked to help him. I’d like to point out the queue of taller, more muscular, arguably more handsome angels: they are there to contrast with and underline the goofiness of the one Felix gets assigned to (complete with buttwings and straight up falling from heaven hollering). It’s nice to also get a motivation for him (”If I do good, I can get rid of these... training wings”)

We’re mostly focusing on scenes and how they work in these reviews, but I’d like to point out the background for heaven. I like sunset-like gradients that much.

- 3:47-4:16 The eponymous Guardian Idiot presents himself to Felix (not before getting a reminder of the trouble the cat is facing) and tells him he can take him anywhere he wants. This is where you realize the whole Butcher plot’s purpose is to take Felix to wacky places and have mini-adventures in them. Here is also where we can see better that Felix’s guardian angel might be... somewhat incompetent, with his ”Uh-oh, I’m thinking, but I’m not hearing anything!!” bit and him checking on a tourist guide, taking his sweet time while Felix inches closer to the meat grinder. But he finally does his magic and...

- 4:16-5:21 The reveal of Felix being underwater is done like the following: First, Felix takes some time to chill on a hammock and lazily gaze at a fish swimming above him... then he realizes something’s fishy (HAAAAH) and then it zooms out to reveal that he’s on a sunken ship! And he’s not alone: there’s a crew of skeleton pirates who also want to make mincemeat (HAAAAAH) out of him! Look at that wild take Felix does (4:31), that’s another tinge of the disturbing I like so much.

We also get the first instance of Felix using his tail as a tool or a weapon, in this case a sabre to fend himself off the pirates. We get some more lovely cartoon shenanigans as Felix finishes his confrontation with the skelepirates (like the bone unicycle and the gossipy ship figures), but it abruptly ends when Felix gets trapped inside a clam and asks for help again. This, in turn, makes his guardian angel appear again. Felix is not happy at all with his wish and asks him to put him “on dry land”

- 5:21-6:35 “...It sure is dry”. The water joke falls a bit flat to me, and I don’t quite get what’s going on with the snowing log cabin (is it a reference? or just for the sake of randomness?).

And because you can’t be a Toon and not be in the desert without seeing some mirages, here we have Felix suffering from double vision and dancing cacti. I really like the gag of his pupils multiplying because he’s seeing double, as well as the “deserty” version of the can-can.

(5:58-6:19) Is our boy Felix learning from a certain someone or what

Again, Felix gets in another life threatening situation and happens to stumble across his angel again, who is building a sandcastle in the desert. I really like it when Toons engage into casual activities in life-threatening environments. Felix requests to be put somewhere else (not before getting a shot of the vultures chasing him) and...

- 6:35-6:58 We get a short string of sequences of Felix being put in increasingly ludicrous scenarios (seriously, what’s going on with the cult and the clown chase). Fed up, Felix asks the angel to put him back where he was, even if he’s supposed to save him. Reluctantly, the eponymous Guardian Idiot does so, and comes to watch Felix’s fate

- 6:58-7:35 Back to the slaughter house, the guardian angel mourns Felix beforehand, feeling bad that his incompetence did not help him at all. We get a shot of Felix on the edge of death and then the Butcher enters the scene, eager to get some fresh meat for the restaurant. I really like how he notices the “fairy” weeping and straight up goes like “GRANT ME A WISH”. He’s so unfazed, like screw it, awe is for weenies. And yes, the angel is so heartbroken he’s willing to serve the bad guy, but then...

Well, it goes as well as you expect with a wish such as “make me that fattest, greasiest sausage in the world””. Was it incompetence or that the Angel finally realized this is his chance to save Felix? You decide.

- 7:35-7:55 So we get a happy ending with Felix congratulating his guardian angel (”What do you know? You’ve saved me, after all!”) and we even get to see him getting his new wings (airplane wings because of course we gotta crank up the silliness whenever possible). And just in case the villain being turned into a sausage wasn’t disturbing enough for you, as the iris closes out on Felix, he pulls out a burger that might or might not be made out of the Butcher...

And that’s it for now! I’m glad I started this review because it made me notice things I haven’t noticed about my favourite series before, what makes it what it is, and what makes me love it so much. I think the two next episodes follow the same formula, so we’ll check on them sometime. Stay tooned!

[stormkarate19-blog]

The Linc - Nick Foles: The greatest QB in Eagles history?

Let’s get to the Philadelphia Eagles links ...

The greatest Eagles QB ever? There’s only one answer and it’s Nick Foles - NBCSP Ron Jaworski didn’t miss a game from 1977 through 1984, led the Eagles to the playoffs four straight years and made it to a Super Bowl. Randall Cunningham revolutionized the quarterback position, had an MVP season in 1990 and led the Eagles to the playoffs in his four healthy seasons from 1988 through 1992. Donovan McNabb won nine playoff games — still 11th-most in NFL history — and shattered the Eagles record book. Jeff Garcia had a higher passer rating, Mark Sanchez threw more yards per pass, Bubby Brister had a better interception ratio and Wentz has won more games. But when someone asks me who the greatest quarterback in Eagles history is? I won’t hesitate. Nick Foles. With what he’s accomplished? The way he’s connected with the fans? The remarkable clutch performances in just about every big game he’s played? The positivity that eminates from his very being 24 hours a day? The Super Bowl. The Philly Special. The TD to Alshon. Fourth down to Ertz. The game-winner to Ertz.

Eagles vs. Redskins Game Preview: 6 questions and answers with the enemy - BGN The Philadelphia Eagles (8-7) and Washington Redskins (7-8) are set to play on Sunday at FedEx Field. In order to preview this Week 17 matchup, I reached out to our enemies over at Hogs Haven. The sharp Scott Jennings (@HunterLoganX) took the time to answer my questions about the upcoming game. Let’s take a look at his answers.

The Kist & Solak Show #60: Playoff Talk w/a Side of Preview - BGN Radio Michael Kist and Benjamin Solak get you prepped for the frantic week ahead as they discuss the scenarios playing out for the upcoming Sunday action, plus they take a new spin on previewing Eagles-Redskins by telling you what it would look like if this is an actual “trap game”! Powered by SB Nation and Bleeding Green Nation.

Safety Blitz with Malcolm Jenkins: ‘I’m sure we’ll be looking at the scoreboard’ - PhillyVoice “So I think in times when doubt is creeping in and we didn’t have the kind of success we thought we would have, people are going to look at the leaders and what they’re doing, or if they’re taking plays off or not sticking to their routine. And I know that, and it’s why I try to stay consistent and try to keep things the same and keep them consistent. That consistent message allows the leaders, and not just me, Chris Long speaks up, Fletcher Cox, guys that just keep it the same. It doesn’t matter, high or low. That helped us weather the storms we had this season. Now we have to keep the focus on us and what we need to do this Sunday against Washington. It’s about keeping it consistent and keeping the focus on what we’ll need to control. I’m sure we’ll be looking at the scoreboard or checking on scores at halftime, but it won’t mean anything if we lose. We have to do our job.

Help Needed - Iggles Blitz Of course, none of this matters unless the Eagles beat the Skins. The Eagles are facing some scrub QB so they should win. You could have also said that in 2010 when the team faced Joe Webb in a key game. Somehow the team lost (on a Tuesday night, no less) and Webb earned his place in Eagles infamy. Josh Johnson has been functional in his three starts for the Skins. The Eagles will be glad to face anyone else after dealing with Deshaun Watson last week. Johnson is athletic, but not on the same level as Watson. The Skins have been a thorn in the Eagles side in recent years so I hope the Eagles are completely focused on this game. Whatever happens with the Vikings, don’t worry about that. Beat the Skins. Do what you have to do and hope for the best in the other games.

The ‘invisible village’ that helped turn Zach Ertz from quiet kid to record-breaking tight end - The Athletic When Tom Brady’s final heave fell incomplete, Jones remembered an email he had sent to Patriots owner Robert Kraft about five years earlier. It was a month before the draft, and Jones was trying to let all of his NFL contacts know that Zach was going to be a stud and that they’d regret it if they passed on him. Jones knew how much Bill Belichick liked to use two tight end sets. He’d had a prior relationship with Kraft so he sent him a note. Kraft responded, thanked him and told Jones that he’d pass along the recommendation to Belichick. The Patriots had the 29th pick in the first round but traded it away to the Vikings. The Eagles selected Zach five spots later. “There was a big part of me that wanted to resend that email after Zach beat him in the Super Bowl,” says Jones with a laugh.

Silva’s Week 17 Matchups - Rotoworld Playing at a level reminiscent of last year’s playoff run, Nick Foles visits Washington in must-win position having completed 59-of-80 throws (73.8%) for 741 yards (9.3 YPA), four touchdowns, and two picks in consecutive wins over the Rams and Texans. Philly sneaking into this year’s postseason remains in play with a Week 17 victory and Vikings loss to the Bears. Only a spoiler, Washington is uncertain to deliver its best effort amid locker-room in-fighting that cost Pro Bowl alternate D.J. Swearinger his job. Even as something of a narrative-based play, Foles has shown ample upside for continued DFS consideration in stacks with Alshon Jeffery and/or Zach Ertz. … Increasingly a drain on the Eagles’ offense with 49 yards on 26 carries (1.88 YPC) in the last two games and last week’s back-breaking fourth-quarter lost fumble, Josh Adams has devolved into a touchdown-or-bust flex with zero catches since Week 11 and unstable Weeks 14-16 touch counts of 7 – 15 – 11. … Clearly Philadelphia’s best backfield option in last week’s win, Darren Sproles was used accordingly on backfield highs in snaps (50%), routes run (27), and touches (12), parlaying them into 108 yards and a 37-yard TD where Sproles beat three tackles en route to pay dirt. Sproles quietly has three touchdowns in his last four games, earning PPR-specific flex consideration.

Week 17 NFL picks: Eagles, Colts roll in must-win games and more of Jason La Canfora’s best bets - CBS Sports Eagles -6.5 at Redskins: Don’t you dare bet against Nick Foles this time of year. The Washington fans who do bother to show up will be there to savage Dan Snyder, and possibly Jay Gruden, after the latest drama in D.C. with them cutting D.J. Swearinger and a bunch of front office staff. Philly needs this game badly and Washington’s defense has collapsed in the second half of the season. This might as well be an Eagles home game. Josh Johnson is a gamer but the Washington offense is a disaster. I smell a major blowout here.

The 2018 NFL Week 17 Viewing Guide - The Ringer The playoffs would certainly be more fun if the defending champs make it in. Nick Foles is adding what could be another magical run to his bizarre career, and a resurgent Eagles team is a hell of a lot more interesting than a Vikings squad that is 0-5 against teams that have already clinched playoff berths. And while most people agree that Carson Wentz is the only long-term option for the Eagles under center, it would be very compelling to watch Doug Pederson and his staff juggle Wentz and Foles in the playoffs. But for Philly to make it back to the postseason, it’ll need some help from the Bears, which sets up an interesting dilemma for Chicago …

Week 17: Previewing key NFL matchups, fantasy football and Greenline - PFF Key NFL Matchup/Stat: Nick Foles (71.8) vs. Josh Norman (69.9). Since stepping into the starting role in Week 15, Foles has posted a passer rating of 103.0 on targets of 20 or more yards downfield, while Norman has allowed two touchdowns and 126 receiving yards on passes of 20-plus yards. Greenline/Predictive Analysis: A win and a prayer for the defending Super Bowl champions to break into the playoff party as they bounce between -6.5 and a touchdown favorite. Greenline gives a 77% win probability, but no real value exists on the spread or total.

Taking The Full-Optimistic Approach For This Weekend - PE.com If anything, the buzz at the NovaCare Complex is overwhelmingly positive. Good things are going to happen this weekend. The Eagles have the mojo going, and that’s the way the team is approaching business. Have a great week of preparation. Know that Washington has absolutely nothing to lose on Sunday, making the Redskins that much more dangerous. And then go into FedEx Field – I’m thanking you in advance, Eagles fans, for a home-field feeling on Sunday – and play a great football game. “We’re going there to win a football game,” defensive end Brandon Graham said. “We know what it means. We have to win. That’s all we know.”

Nick Foles’ love story with Philadelphia nears the final act - Inquirer It could come to an end on Sunday. The Eagles hope it doesn’t. If they beat Washington and Chicago beats Minnesota, the Eagles will make the playoffs.

NFL’s Jay Ajayi on Nigeria’s role in Super Bowl win - BBC The final episode of our Diaspora Diaries series comes from Philadelphia, where a Nigerian-British athlete has helped to make sporting history. The Philadelphia Eagles had never won the Super Bowl before. But 2018 was the year that Jay Ajayi helped to end that record. He explains to reporter Daniel Henry how his Nigerian upbringing drives him to success, both on and off the field.

A Quick Spin on the Coaching Carousel: 10 Nuggets as Black Monday Looms - MMQB From Ashton Jeanlewis (@fb_playbook): What team is about to be demolished by salary cap issues? Right now, the Jaguars and Eagles are probably the two most tapped out going into 2019, and that makes their quarterback situations interesting. The Jags have to go find a good one, or three. And the Eagles now have an injured young QB, in Carson Wentz, who’s eligible for a new contract, and a reliable veteran backup, Nick Foles, set to hit free agency. So it stands to reason that both the Jags and the Eagles will have to spend at the position, further complicating their cap issues. Ultimately, this could result in big names like Philly’s Jason Peters or Rodney McLeod, or Jacksonville’s Malik Jackson or Marcel Dareus, looking for a new team in the spring. Something will most certainly have to give in each situation.

The 5 O’Clock Club: The season finale that will be played at home in front of Eagles fans - Hogs Haven I’ll be cheering on the Redskins players on Sunday, but with a deep level of misgiving about what won’t happen on Monday, when it won’t be announced that Bruce Allen has been thanked for all he has done for the franchise and relieved of his duties. That’s why the players, who deserve better, will end up playing the finale at home in front of a lot of Eagles fans instead of cheering, loyal Redskins fans. Because of Dan & Bruce. I hope for a good performance by each of the Redskins players, but despair at the newest low point in the Redskins ownership and executive offices.

Bears-Vikings Injury Report: Eddie Jackson and Allen Robinson are doubtful - Windy City Gridiron The Bears still have playoff positioning to play for this Sunday on the road against the Vikings, and they’ll have to do it while being cautious with some of their best skill talent. Pro Bowl safety Eddie Jackson did not participate in Friday’s practice at Halas Hall and is officially listed as doubtful for the Bears’ regular season finale with his sprained ankle. Meanwhile, Allen Robinson, who suffered a ribs injury against the 49ers, also didn’t participate and isn’t likely to feature either. Factor in Aaron Lynch and a lingering elbow injury and you have a bit of a banged up football team that could use a breather. Fortunately, the games don’t get really meaningful for the Bears until next weekend, so they can afford to sit this trio of doubtful players as necessary.

Chicago Bears at Minnesota Vikings: Final injury reports for both teams - Daily Norseman The Vikings played without Anthony Barr the last time they met the Bears, and this time they’ll be without his UCLA counterpart as Eric Kendricks will miss his second straight game with a hamstring injury. I would expect that Eric Wilson will get the start in Kendricks’ place as he did last week against Detroit and play the majority of the snaps.

Los Angeles Rams vs. San Francisco 49ers: Final injury report rules RB Todd Gurley OUT - Turf Show Times Well this is new. Last week against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 16, the Los Angeles Rams made a gametime decision to leave RB Todd Gurley inactive. Today, the Rams ruled him OUT against the San Francisco 49ers from the official team injury report. S Lamarcus Joyner will also be ruled OUT. EDGE Ethan Westbrooks and RB Justin Davis are both listed QUESTIONABLE.

Rams money is not moving the line with 49ers heading into week 17 - Niners Nation I’m leaning towards laying the points. I would have preferred laying the 9.5 points, but ten points is better than the 10.5 some shops are offering. I do think the 49ers could hang close given Jared Goff’s recent struggles, but Aaron Donald could do serious damage to the 49ers offense. What do you think?

Panthers place RB Kenjon Barner on injured reserve, promote G Dorian Johnson to active roster - Cat Scratch Reader The Panthers have announced that running back Kenjon Barner has been placed on injured reserve and guard Dorian Johnson has been activated from the practice squad to replace him on the 53-man roster.

Welcome to the Redskins, where honesty is not in the employee handbook - Washington Post Here’s what will get you fired from the Washington Redskins: honesty. The quickest way to lose your job is to refuse to parrot the institutional lie. Safety D.J. Swearinger Sr. was cut for running his irrepressibly honest mouth about their coaching weaknesses. Chief operating officer Brian Lafemina was let go for honestly acknowledging their lousy business practices and busting the myth that there is a waiting list for tickets. The mistake of both men was in trying to make a difference, to swing the organization in a winning direction, by calling it out. These are the kinds of people who invariably end up cut or tossed to the curb by the Redskins, while the enabling go-alongers and happy-talkers remain. Swearinger tried to change the “culture” in the locker room with his insistent if unwelcome verbal accountability; Lafemina tried to change the culture in the ticket office by treating fans “the way they ought to be treated.” Neither was able to counter the no-standards, self-deceiving culture that owner Daniel Snyder has built over nearly two decades, with his insistence on punishing everyone else for his own bad news. There is no hand firm enough to pull this franchise out of its crazy gimbal-lock spin, the constant pitching and rolling and yawing from Snyder’s unsteady hand on the controls.

NFL Panic Index 2018: The Steelers are counting on the Browns - SB Nation Panic index: It’s never ideal to leave your playoff hopes in another team’s hands. Then again, the Vikings’ only win over a good team came against ... the Eagles. They’re also 0-5 against teams that have already clinched playoff spots, and that includes their next opponent: the Bears. And Matt Nagy isn’t planning on resting his starters, not with a first-round bye potentially at stake. So don’t count the Eagles out just yet.

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