#and at one point i was like I love the whole like futuristic cowboy thing with the outfits its great. Why the fuck is this the music. and

[nomairuins]

ive just realixed that just reading my posts some may think im actually very bothered by when lamp makes homophobic jokes at me so to clarify 1. its funny and also i am jokingly mean to them as well . and i also make gay jokes abt myself so its fine 2. lamp is not straight 3. when i make my posts complaining what you dont see is that i am sitting With lamp on tumblr and i go YOURE GETTING SO TUMBLR CANCELLED. and they go nooo dont tell your oomfies 💔 and were both laughing .

[inkblackorchid]

Hi! How do you feel about the Crashtown mini-arc?

Ahhh, Crashtown. Honestly, I’m extremely in two minds about the arc. See, here’s the thing. When I watch it, it’s a great deal of fun. It’s a very self-contained little story that has all the necessary setup and payoff built into itself, and the cowboy aesthetics in Crashtown’s unique setting, while technically still being part of 5Ds’ largely futuristic canon, are absolutely hilarious. Not to speak of the excellent dramatics, what with Kiryu being in his depressed bitch era and needing the Power of Friendship to remember why it’s nice to be alive. So, in isolation, I find Crashtown very funny and its self-contained story compelling.

However, sometimes, I get a little frustrated knowing how many episodes this arc takes up, because where the larger narrative is concerned, Crashtown accomplishes… Well, nothing, unfortunately. It doesn’t interact with the main plot in any way, doesn’t develop Yusei’s character in a particular way (because we already knew he’s a special kind of loyal-as-a-dog-devoted when it comes to Kiryu; if anything, Crashtown only shows us that he’s also a little more gullible than usual when Kiryu gets brought up), and while it does give Kiryu meaningful character progression, he’s sadly never relevant again after this point in the show (literally the only two times he shows up after this point is during the flashback of everyone cheering Yusei on during his duel with Z-ONE and in the epilogue as he loses to Jack). Worse yet, the whole arc begs the question of why only Kiryu and no other dark signer got this kind of tying-up-loose-ends treatment. (The answer, I believe, is that he’s specifically the dark signer who has the strongest ties to Yusei in particular, which awards him special treatment. That does nothing to justify why Carly, who I’d go as far as saying is at least equally important to Jack as Kiryu is to Yusei, doesn’t get anything like this, though, and is instead sidelined because she has amnesia. You know. Amnesia. Everyone’s favourite trope. Which Kiryu, curiously, also doesn’t have.) And considering how often I lament about the things I wish 5Ds canon had spent more time on, I don’t think it comes as a surprise that it leaves a slight, bitter aftertaste in my mouth that an arc like Crashtown that adds nothing to the larger plot or any character other than Kiryu gets so many episodes while many things I wish the show had addressed don’t get a single one.

So, Crashtown’s kind of a mixed bag for me. I think the best way to sum it up would be this: If you handed me the reins for a full 5Ds rewrite, one of two things would happen. Either the show would gain another twenty or so episodes where I’d try to give all the other dark signers similar treatment as Kiryu in Crashtown, developing both them and the main cast members they interact with more (and also try to make them at least show up one more time before the Ark Cradle arc, even if only to cheer Team 5Ds on during the WRGP), or Crashtown would be left on the cutting room floor entirely, because if the only way to improve the main cast and plot were to find time for all the necessary adjustments within the exact same episode count we already have, Crashtown (and all of the pre-WRGP arc’s pure filler episodes) would be the first thing to go.

Don’t get me wrong, the yeehaw arc has excellent aesthetics, excellent dramatics, and is great fun every time I rewatch it, so I don’t fault anyone for loving it to bits, I absolutely get it. My inner overanalyst/canon rewriter just can’t unsee how many episodes it took up that were desperately needed for other stuff sometimes.

[moxfirefly]

So I’m a newbie when it’s come to the anime fandom and one I though of, how would some headcanons be for the turtles being anime fans. Like what their favorite anime, do they read manga, do they have a anime crush, and bonus how would they react if their s/o is a anime fan too.

Lord I’m so hideously picky with anime like I’ve watched maybe a total of 5 lol. I know about a bunch but I don’t watch them. So with what I can work with I think I can decipher or at least attempt to explain what each lad might enjoy. (Ps: Hellsing is my all time favorite)

So let’s give this a try

I mean it feels right to make Leo the ultimate weeb lol but I just think he enjoys Japanese culture a heck ton so yeah he’s indulged in anime

I wanna say maybe he’s a fan of the classics (oldies?) like Fist of the North Star? Anything fight wise but with good fighting choreography.

Dragon Ball Z might be another he enjoys. Anything with fight tournaments in general. He’s into that shizz my dude and he probably is the type to be like “there’s no way to make that kick with breaking every bone in your leg”

Would he have an anime crush? Yeah why not but he likes it to be a lady that can hold her own. If she can fight he’s def gonna make heart eyes.

His and Raph taste are similar so I can see them bonding over a show amd watching it together. Probably always rooting for the opposites cause they gotta argue at some point who’s cooler or who’s more badass etc.

Our big boy does enjoy fighting centered anime’s but I can see him being into drama ones you know? Like a heavy drama plot based animes.

So he enjoys Death Note. Fascinated with the whole writing a name in a notebook and Bam! Dudes croaked. He wants to beat the shit out of Light Yagami (I mean who doesn’t)

Jokes that Donnie is their very own personal L.

He really gets into each cliffhanger, def yells at the tv and calls everyone a fucking moron.

I can see him also being into Cashern (I’ve seen the movie and it’s *chef kiss* but I know there’s an anime of it) that plot and futuristic setting is hella cool, he probably watches that one with Don

He so has an anime crush and it’s probably one of the Sailor Scouts from Sailor Moon (coughitsMarscough)

Evangelion and I’m dying on that hill

Yes Mech centered anime’s cause that’s his bread and butter

Gundam and Mazinger like he so would want to build one and he’s dabbled in the possibility when he’s bored, has a little blue print even if he knows it’s not doable

I can also see him being into messed up animes like the good scary ones.

Anything Junji Ito or similar that actually leaves him like “damn...” and he’s gotta watch cat videos for a few minutes to palette cleanse

More Sci-Fi based ones as well cause he loves that shit bro

Adventure based ones, and I don’t wanna say One Piece but I think he would just cause he wants to see if he can actually finish the damn thing before he’s 60 (one piece is so fucking long I can’t)

Yes Sailor Moon because pretty girls in pretty costumes kicking ass

He loves Lupin The Third, Cowboy Bepop

I can see him trying out any genre at least once . Like he’s more open about watching as many as he can if they catch his attention long enough.

I know there’s something ala Power Rangers and I don’t know what it’s called but that yeah

Pokémon probably cause he plays the damn game

Sexy animes because let’s be real this is Mikey

The man has too many anime crushes and we’ll be here all night.

[punkcherries]

ok wait i have thoughts on wat the tracks of the train to nowhere album drawing i did would be like lemme ramble hold on under da cut i ont wanna clog no ones dashes or watever lmfao

all aboard  would probably be a short intro track that samples real old timey trains, bout a minute and a half long, before fading into the next track wormhole judgement line  would be like a very futuristic dated-yet-timeless synth track introducing the concept of the album which is an alien train where whole worlds are held in the cars and anything can happen, again using real train samples ring for service  would be a bit of a swerve as it introduces piano and is reminiscent of hotel lobby music, but with a somewhat cold and unnerving synth edge, to reflect the anxiety and confusion ryan and min felt waking up on an iceberg with a talking floating magic call bell lmfao outlaw  would be even MORE of a swerve cus it would just BUST in, no real fade from the last track in, just BOOM cowboy music, which fits the whiplash between going from weird alien iceberg eon car to COWBOYS BABY. lyrically its about being a wanted outlaw in a place uve never been before man’s best friend (the cat)  would transition from the last track into a jaunty piano tune like ud hear in a saloon, but with an odd french twist, probably with some accordion samples here and there. the music would also reflect the lyrics in giving off an air of mystique and poise and a tinge of potential danger execution  could very easily be seen as just outlaw (reprise) but its musically much darker and more frantic, and also shorter, somewhere around a cool 2 minutes, and itd feature a light humming buzz in the background that develops into crackling and finally loud shocking noises accompanied by a pained scream before..,,, silence little piggy  would be the strangest track by far, following the intensity of the last track with music box samples. itd start slow and melodic, but pick up speed and more instruments layered on top as it goes, and lyrically would have kind of a nursery rhyme vibe to it, very very unnerving and very very unlike anything else on the album saturnalia  would be more like the typical synth rock ud expect from a duo like ryan and min, very musically up beat and great dance music with a KILLER bass line and fuzz guitar, but lyrically would be..... kinda depressing, about being alone at a party and ykno basically what happened in the astro party car, ur friend ditched u lol. the song would have a fade out to prep for the next track bathroom interlude  would literally just be the song min and ryan played in the bathroom but like a minute long. no instruments other than guitar and mini synth crooked paintings  would bring back the piano and maybe accordion from earlier, eerie and cold and dark, juxtaposing the relatively warm vibe of the interlude before it. lyrically, itd be about the art gallery car of course but mostly focusing on themes of being alone but feeling like ur not. spooky!!! phantom hands  picks up the pace from the last song as the feeling of not being alone becomes fact, while crooked paintings toned back the guitar in favor of a dark brooding bass track, phantom hands would have more rough fuzzy guitar, almost drowning out other instruments, as kind of a highlight to the intensity and fear of what happened there is this your stop?  almost halts phantom hands in its tracks, bringing back the future-y synths to the forefront as the lyrics contemplate escaping the panic, although the music of phantom hands starts building up again in the background, and ultimately melds with the synths before the track fades out, being a swift minute and a half or so long locked out  while being a reference to ryan literally being locked out of the art gallery car would be more metaphorical lyrically, about the things both of them kept at arms distance from eachother, and have more acoustic instruments to it, which would transition quite smoothly into the next track mega maze  also a literal reference, but lyrically metaphorical about their relationship and how confusing navigating emotions can be. more synth is added in at this point but really only serves to make the song feel even more cold and dazed manhunt  picks the album’s plot back up and were back to literals here, as the electric guitar kicks in for a life-or-death chase track, its a race to the castle doors as suddenly musical themes from outlaw, little piggy, and ring for service come back into play, and by the end of this ~4 minute track comes in, organ samples are introduced adding a gothic tone which bleeds over into the next track 202  is where a lot of tension bubbles over, dark instrumentation and sharp lyrics about hope and despair and fear of being alone, very pre-emo emo if i do say so myself, using mostly electric guitar organ and bass. as the tension cools down, the synth starts to kick in, possibly sampling im gonna dress my dog in a toque, like a ray of sunshine coming in to warm up the track and fade into the next stuck with you  would be a sort of synth ballad, about reassurance and dedication and building something together and Its Totally Not Gay What No Way Were Best Friends Haha I Promise Mom. the guitar really starts to kick in in the second half before the end which does not transition into the next song but does end on the same note the next song starts on train to nowhere  would just be the song from the show but extended lol

overall the album would be a really kitschy concept album to the lay listener and a wild autobiography about being on the train to anyone In The Know and also very fucking gay i can imagine lgbt ppl in universe writing whole essays on the subtext and how Actually The Album Is An Allegory For Being Gay And Closeted And In Love In The 80s sjfhkdjg

[benjaminjamestaylor]

My Top 10 Albums of 2018

If you know me well, you know I do this every year. It’s not in the hope that people will read it; more a sort of time capsule that I can look back on in the future and fondly remember the music that soundtracked my year. Some years, there’s a clear and obvious number one (Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly in 2015, for example). Others – such as this one – are more of a close-run thing, with the top spots changing sometimes as late as the writing process.

Before I get to my top ten, I would be remiss not to mention a few albums that missed out but have nonetheless been regulars in my rotation this year. Firstly, I should tip my cap to the experimentation shown by Beach House, Ben Howard, and Low, all of whom showed a refreshing intent to break from their norm and make some greatly interesting music. I’m also acutely aware of the lack of representation for R&B and hip-hop in my top ten – I didn’t ignore these genres, it just so happened that they weren’t among my ten favourites. Kids See Ghosts and Earl Sweatshirt in particular came close, and Janelle Monáe was another that I enjoyed greatly. Here’s my honourable mentions list in full:

Beach House – 7; Ben Howard – Noonday Dream; Low – Double Negative; Janelle Monáe – Dirty Computer; Brockhampton – Iridescence; Anderson .Paak – Oxnard; Villagers – The Art of Pretending to Swim; Jeff Tweedy – WARM; Matt Maltese – Bad Contestant; Kids See Ghosts – Kids See Ghosts; Pusha T – Daytona; Earl Sweatshirt – Some Rap Songs; Parquet Courts – Wide Awake; Kurt Vile – Bottle It In; The Beths – Future Me Hates Me; Jungle – For Ever; Courtney Barnett – Tell Me How You Really Feel; Mitski – Be The Cowboy; Hop Along – Bark Your Head Off Dog; Lucy Dacus – Historian.

Also, here’s a Spotify playlist of all my favourite tracks from the year.

Now on to the top ten…

10. Blood Orange – Negro Swan

I’ve got a soft spot for a true album – one that’s greater than the sum of its parts, and should be listened to as a whole. There are actually very few tracks on Negro Swan that hit home outside the context of the album. But there’s so much to like here: the way tracks flow into each other, punctuated by regular snippets of dialogue from the likes of transgender activist Janet Mock. The word that defines this album is ‘introspection’ – there are regular references to the desire to be loved and the fear of allowing oneself to be loved completely. At times the tracks feel frustratingly unfinished, and that’s all that keeps this at the back end of my top ten.

Highlights: ‘Saint’, ‘Charcoal Baby’, ‘Nappy Wonder’

9. Snail Mail – Lush

It’s been a hell of a year for young, female indie rockers (more on that later…), and Lindsey Jordan (A.K.A. Snail Mail) is perhaps the most prodigious of them all. The teenager’s debut, Lush, is a highly impressive record that showcases her signature sound: subtle, twinkly guitar melodies and foot-tapping drum beats. It tails off a little towards the back end of the album, as the novelty of her style begins to wear off. You wonder if this was a record she rushed into making, to capitalise on the considerable hype around her. If that’s the case, it’s a shame as a few more songs to the standard of ‘Pristine’ and ‘Heat Wave’ may have pushed this album up into my top five.

Highlights: ‘Pristine’, ‘Heat Wave’, ‘Stick’

8. The 1975 – A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships

This album is getting a lot of love, and I’ll admit that on first listen I didn’t get the hype. The 1975 are a somewhat controversial band – they face lavish praise and upturned noses in seemingly equal measure. There were moments of their absurdly-titled previous record that I liked, but their overly synthetic sound and Matty Healy’s unique vocal style are occasionally grating. ABIIOR has its flaws, but there’s also much to admire. They’ve incorporated a variety of styles, from stripped-back acoustic to arena pop and even jazz. The obvious themes of life and love in a digital age are well-explored and the production is, at times, gorgeous. Stick with it – it might just grow on you.

Highlights: ‘Love It If We Made It’, ‘Inside Your Mind’, ‘I Always Wanna Die (Sometimes)’

7. U.S. Girls – In A Poem Unlimited

In many ways, this record is a better executed version of the 1975’s. Meg Remy looks at similar themes of our problematic modern world, though in her case she explores them through a lens of feminine anger. Songs like ‘Rage of Plastics’ and ‘M.A.H.’ are direct, furious tirades towards American politics in the Obama era. The instrumentation and production is staggeringly brilliant throughout, with each track demonstrating a different string from Remy’s bow. On ‘Rosebud’, she channels her inner Madonna to produce one of the finest, most listenable indie pop tunes of the year.

Highlights: ‘M.A.H.’, ‘Rosebud’, ‘L-Over’

6. Maribou State – Kingdoms In Colour

My favourite electronic album of the year, Kingdoms In Colour improves on Maribou State’s encouraging debut, 2015’s Portraits. The improvements lie in their balance between the dance-pop hits, where they utilise long-time collaborator Holly Walker on vocals, and the more experimental, sample-based pieces that make up the rest of the album. It’s the latter that leave the most lasting impression, no better than on ‘Vale’, with the sample of Melanie de Baliso’s ‘I Feel You’ dovetailing beautifully with the group’s accompanying melody. If you’re looking for an album to put on as a backing track at your next party, look no further.

Highlights: ‘Beginner’s Luck’, ‘Nervous Tics’, ‘Vale’

5. Big Red Machine – Big Red Machine

A collaboration between Bon Iver and the National was never going to be bad, was it? Big Red Machine doesn’t quite hit the heights you might expect from such a high-profile meeting of minds, but there are enough moments of genius here to make it an album worth revisiting repeatedly. For the most part, Justin Vernon leaves his trademark complex song structures at the door in favour of simpler, more lineal compositions. This leads to some tracks feeling repetitive at times, although even these feature a central hook strong enough to keep you interested. And on 'Lyla', with its polyrhythms and meandering structure, there are hints of the exciting fruits this partnership could eventually produce.

Highlights: ‘Lyla’, ‘Hymnostic’, ‘I Won’t Run From It’

4. Arctic Monkeys – Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino

Perhaps Arctic Monkeys’ most divisive album since Humbug, TBHAC is also their bravest and most ambitious. It’s essentially a concept album – tales of a futuristic hotel on the moon brought to life by Alex Turner’s controversial switch from guitar to piano. It’s no surprise that the album has alienated some of the band’s more fundamentalist fans, as there’s a blatant lack of Turner’s usual indie dancefloor hits as well as a side-lining of outstanding drummer Matt Helders. Instead, we’re treated to songs without clear structures and, aside from ‘Four Out Of Five’, catchy choruses. Turner occasionally strays too far towards self-indulgence (‘Batphone’ is a difficult listen), but he’s still a remarkable lyricist and he’s produced an album that cements their status as the band of their era.

Highlights: ‘Star Treatment’, ‘American Sports’, ‘Four Out Of Five’

3. boygenius – boygenius EP

I may be cheating a tad here by including an EP, but given that there’s as much to enjoy here as on many fine albums released this year, you’ll excuse me. boygenius are a supergroup of sorts, featuring female up-and-comers Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus. Individually, all three are well worth a listen. But their collaborative EP propels them to new heights. Each has their own songwriting moments (two each from the six-track EP), and these intertwine through stunning vocal harmonies to form a completely cohesive collection of songs. The finest moments are Bridgers’, with her soft vocal timbre particularly captivating on ‘Me And My Dog’. We can only hope the success of this experiment results in a full-length album in 2019.

Highlights: ‘Me And My Dog’, ‘Souvenir’, ‘Ketchum, ID’

2. Kacey Musgraves – Golden Hour

No album surprised me more in 2018 than this one. After a slew of out-of-this-world reviews, I decided I had to give Golden Hour at least one listen – if only to be able to confirm it as what almost all country pop albums are: ‘not for me’. The thing is, this record transcends genre, and even those who like neither country nor pop will appreciate its beauty and the quality of its songs. Everything on Golden Hour is well-executed: Musgraves sings beautifully; the instrumentation feels minimal yet rounded; the production is absolutely on-point; and the melodies are to die for. There are even psychedelic elements throughout – nods to Musgraves’ use of acid during the album’s production. Give this album a chance, leave your prejudices at the door, and you’ll be treated to a simply perfect collection of pop songs.

Highlights: ‘Slow Burn’, ‘Wonder Woman’, ‘High Horse’

1. Soccer Mommy – Clean

As I mentioned, this wasn’t a runaway number one. But the more I re-listened to my shortlist, the more it became clear that Clean was the strongest candidate for top spot. Snail Mail and boygenius have already taken spots in my top ten, demonstrating what a strong year it has been for female indie vocalists. But Soccer Mommy’s (Sophie Allison’s) album just feels like the finished product that both Snail Mail and boygenius are aiming to eventually produce.

Clean doesn’t just contain great songs with deliciously spiky lyrics (the opening line of ‘Your Dog’ is a belter), it also feels so well balanced. Laid-back, melancholy tunes like ‘Still Clean’ and ‘Blossom’ are countered by catchy indie numbers like ‘Cool’ and ‘Skin’. Allison’s voice seems refined too – perfectly able to handle those two ends of the spectrum. Considering the album centres on a feeling of teenage angst, the sound feels remarkably mature. It’s a worthy album of the year.

Highlights: ‘Cool’, ‘Skin’, ‘Blossom (Wasting All My Time)’

[the-ice-sculpture]

Books I read in April 2021

*assume all the book are aimed at an adult audience unless specified otherwise in the description

The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling ★★★★★ (4.5*s) 📖 Sci-fi/Horror. 432 pages. A futuristic caving survival story. Also has giant worm creature things. The main character finds herself a deal: do a highly dangerous expedition into an unknown cave for weeks on end to get rich enough to leave her desolate planet behind. Except that now she’s in the cave she’s beginning to have second doubts about whether she can trust the person who’s guiding her. There’s plenty of tense action, increasing horror (psychological and physical), a focus on the relationship between the caver and her handler (there’s a tiny element of eventual sorta f/f enemies to lovers here), and a whole lot of revelations along the way. It has nice short chapters and great pacing, and is easy to read without feeling simplistic or undeveloped. There weren’t enough small details and descriptions to make it feel like the author was a seasoned caver/climber – it was more like an absence of super specific knowledge rather than anything jarringly wrong though. But I went into this as someone who has done a fair amount of caving/climbing so it would be hard to satisfy me on that front. But overall this was really engrossing and original and such a ride from start to end.

Cowboys and Indies: the Epic History of the Record Industry by Gareth Murphy ★★★☆☆ (2.5*s) 📖 Non-fiction about music. 382 pages. An overview of the whole history of the record industry in roughly chronological order, discussing the technologies that allowed music to be recorded, influential businessmen, how record labels came to be developed, how the music industry evolved and so on. This took me over a month to read. I’m glad I read it because it was informative and will come in useful for my Rockstar AU (even if it ends up being in more indirect ways), but it definitely wasn’t the kind of book I could breeze through. For one thing, there’d be too much information for me to absorb, and for another thing, while the writing style isn’t dull, I wouldn’t describe it as particularly engrossing or full of character either. There’s not really much discussion going on, it’s more about laying down the facts. So all in all, it’s kind of dry (not horrendously so though) but does the job.

The Voyage of the Basilisk by Marie Brennan (The Memoirs of Lady Trent #3)  ★★★★☆ 📖 Adventure/Fantasy. 370 pages. Studying dragons, going on worldly expeditions, and anthropology.  Set in an 1800s-feeling world similar to ours only with (non-magical) dragons, the main character’s job is to scientifically research and study dragons. This series is pretty much everything I wanted Fantastic Beasts to be. In this third instalment, Isabella & co voyage across the seas to study giant sea serpents and investigate how closely they’re related to other dragon species.  It’s fairly optimistic in tone, very adventurous (remains me of Around the World in 80 Days in some aspects), and the writing style is elegant without being dense. There’s a lot of humanity to it without overlooking the more negative aspects, and there are nice friendships that develop along the way. There’s also explorations of different cultures, a tiny bit of archaeology, sprinkles of humour, and the pacing is medium-slow. I should probably point out that the focus is very much on the journey and adventure rather than just the dragons or the characters though. Another thing – how great is it to have a book for an adult market which has illustrations inside? I wish more books did this because it adds such a nice touch to the reading experience, especially in this genre where the only illustration you usually get is a map at the start.

One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London ★★★★☆ (3.5*s) 📖 Contemporary Romance. 424 pages. Before describing the premise, I’d like to point out that this book is self-aware, and it does present the setting as a multi-faceted nuanced thing. This is about a plus-sized model who becomes the star of a reality show based on The Bachelorette. Except it’s about more than that because it's also about discussions of fatphobia, the general lack of diversity in those types of shows, self-acceptance and self-worth, and the fakeness (sometimes realness too) of reality TV. It’s light-hearted and easy to fly through, with an easy to root for main character. I didn’t really care for any of the romances (though it’s incredibly rare for me to) since they all felt like they were developing too fast and like they barely had time to get to know each other (to be fair, this is probably typical for these kinds of shows, and I don't think there'd be room for slower development without massively adding to the word count), but it's still an enjoyable read. There are also excerpts from group chats and blogs etc about the goings-on of the show which made it feel like you're involved in the spirit of watching the show as well as getting the experience from the main character’s POV, which was a nice bonus.

Abandoned:

How Music Works by David Bryne 📖  Non-fiction about music. p166/366. Very hit and miss. Some chapters were fascinating and enlightening and really altered my perspective and understand of music and the philosophy of it. Other chapters were... dull. The good parts were amazing, but the rest of it was tedious and it took me over a month to wade almost halfway through the book. I got a lot of ideas and understanding out of it, but I couldn’t push through anymore.

A Man Called Ove by Fredrick Backman 📖 Hard-hitting Contemporary/Feel-Good. p173/337. The grumpy old neighbour from hell is forced to adapt to life again when he gains some quirky new neighbours. It’s kind of similar to A Wonderful Life, and Ove follows a similar (but more grey and nuanced) character arc to the old man from Up. It’s in parts sad and in parts more on the funny side. There’s nothing I can point to that was specifically wrong with this (though apparently I’m fine with fictional murderous characters, but not with fictional cat kickers?), but despite how well-loved this book is, I just increasingly didn’t have urge to pick up the story again. The pacing is pretty slow and my investment dropped. I’d still give other stuff by this author a chance though.

Still reading:

Amberlough by Lara Elena Donnelly The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

[pinkfloralcake]

Fandom Tag Meme

I was tagged by @gallihafry :D

1. Your current OTP(s):

fitzsimmons from agents of shield :)  and lately i’ve been feeling morse and joan

2. A pairing you initially didn’t consider but someone changed your mind (bonus points: who was that person).

the first post i saw about miss fisher’s murder mysteries after i started watching it was @awkwardmorse listing a few of her otps, one of which was phryne and  mac but having started the show mid-season, i had never seen an episode with mac yet ! i hadnt considered any other pairings for phryne than jack yet

3. A pairing you used to love, but it all fell apart for you.

west allen. i love my girl iris west but  barry

4. Have you added anything cracky/hilarious to your fandom, if so, what?

heee heee heee....

crack is my fav  *devilish grin* where do i start ?

endeavour text post edits (and one lewis one so far), endeavour valentines, lewis tag yourself, cowboy jakes and bus driver jakes, cowboy jakes art and ranch dressing jakes, jakes cake (i dont mean for it to be so many jakes things ! XD), oxford apostrophes, i lik the bred, laura hobson “do you have brain damage?”, over a pint, Hathaway: ( ಠ_ಠ ), i want my sock back, i don’t always post about british detectives, cathaway (going way back for that one !), hathaway in glasses, robbie’s face, “division would like us to deal,” and then there’s just all the morseverse crack (mine and others’) under this tag.

oh also for shield: robbie reyes sitting on things and “certain skills” (which i dont think anyone thought was funny but me hhaahaha)

5. What’s the longest you’ve ever been in a fandom?

star trek. i grew up watching tng religiously with my mom. i dont remember when i started, i mustve been too young to really watch the early seasons but i watched even if it went over my head.  i distinctly remember watching the transition from tng to ds9 on tv though ! the visual of the enterprise docking, and o’brien moving over to the new show (and later worf) <3  

6. Do you remember your first OTP, if so who was in it?

tom paris and b’elanna torres come to mind, but it’s hard to say... i didn’t think of ships as ships back then... haha maybe robin hood and maid marian from the disney animation, she just had those lovey looks

7. Name a fandom you didn’t care/think about until you saw it all over Tumblr.

i discovered miss fisher’s murder mysteries and star vs the forces of universe on tumblr !

8. Say something genuinely nice about a character who isn’t one of your faves (chars you’re neutral on are fair game, as are chars you dislike).

caitlin snow is a hard worker and puts up with a lot

9. Name three things you wish you saw more of in your main fandom (or a fandom of choice).

more crack and haha i wish more people participated in my morse mateys party i tried to start (though i love those that did)

10. Choose a song at random; which ship or character does it remind you of?

ooohhh my god the song that just started on my ipod is “like it or not” by madonna and because i was just looking at @gallihafry’s supernatural crack my head went to crowley, hahaha

Better the devil that you know Your love for me will grow Because This is who I am You can like it or not You can love me Or leave me 'Cause I'm never gonna stop No no

now im picturing a crackvid for him to that song

11. A pairing you ship that you don’t think anyone else ships.

jean innocent from lewis and rhona kelly from shetland

12. Your most scandalous headcanon for your current OTP(s).

yeah i dont really have anything, not very scandalous. i guess it might be scandalous that i really like fitzsimmons as just friends too ?

13. Do you have any hard and fast headcanons that you will die defending, about anything at all?

lol i like your answer @gallihafry ! i

14. 5 favorite characters from 5 different fandoms.

it’s too hard to pick favorites

15. 3 OTPs from 3 different fandoms.

@gallihafry ooooh i loved Lois & Clark on Lois & Clark did you watch that ? i looooooved it, again another show i watched religiously in the 90s <3

haha that was just a reply not even an answer... ok let’s see, fitzsimmons in agents of shield. mcelliot in last tango in halifax.

16. 5 favorite ships.

oh that is a good answer ! i am going to say the enterprise ncc-1701 and the tardis as well and add the enterprise ncc-1701-D too <333 and the milennium falcon, oh and the one from lost in space it was so cool and 60s retro-futuristic

17. Just ramble about something fan-related, go go go (prompts optional but encouraged).

it’s been really exciting for me to get into fan art since joining tumblr last year, i feel like i have learned so much and gotten so much more confidence in digital art and in myself !  it’s really freeing to draw and paint (it feels more like painting to me, even though i call it drawing because it still feels unfamiliar to me to call it painting... like can i really say that ? the experience in my brain is more akin to when i was painting) on the computer and to be able to change things, remove things, make decisions after the fact. it still blows my mind sometimes that i can just turn whole layers/sections of a drawing off, which has helped me free up to balance my impulsive drawing style with my liking simplicity ! goodness thanks tumblr for inspiring me to get into digital art

tagging @cathawayinspace @awkwardmorse @kingsmanassemble @missthursday @arda-ancalima @lucyemers @dearestmrdarcy @youre-mostly-water @anelementofsurprise @absolute-twaddle and anyone else who would like to (optional as always) !

[superman86to99]

Superman: The Man of Steel #22 (June 1993)

REIGN OF THE SUPERMEN CONTINUES! Presenting John Henry Irons, a.k.a. Henry Johnson, a.k.a. Shaq-- uhh, STEEL. John is the big dude we saw emerging from the rubble of the Superman/Doomsday fight in Adventures #500. Now we find out more about his backstory: he was a military weapons designer who quit his job/whole life for some reason, and has been living in Metropolis’ Suicide Slum under an unfindable fake identity (he just switched his first and middle names around). A few weeks ago, John was saved by Superman after falling off a construction site -- so when the Doomsday battle broke out, John decided he should return the favor and save Superman. This didn’t go so well (for anyone), hence the whole “buried in rubble” thing.

(Note the “energy” being passed from Superman to John as he saves him. Artistic license, or something else...?!)

Anyway, once John is out of the hospital from that little incident, he sits down and tells the tale of his namesake John Henry to some Suicide Slum kids (including Superman’s pal, Keith the Unlucky Orphan, because this is a really small neighborhood). As the kids are leaving, they get caught in the middle of a gang fight and one of them is literally fried by some sort of hi-tech gun.

“You BASTARDS!” (Sorry.)

John chases after the gang members, and as they try to kill him for butting into their business, he recognizes their hi-tech weapons as his own design. When he gets out of the hospital (again), John decides to do something about it. With Superman dead, someone has to step up and protect the city, so John forges himself an iron-- uhh, STEEL armor designed for crime-smashing. John debuts his new heroic identity against the same gang from before after they come back to finish the job and firebomb his building.

John kindly asks the gang members where they got such sci-fi-esque weapons. Just as one of them is about to talk, he’s sniped by a mysterious lady with a big-ass gun, “The White Rabbit”. She seems to know John from before, and decides not to kill him because he might be "profitable” in the future. (I’ve got bad news for you, lady.)

Meanwhile, Metropolis is abuzz with news reports of John’s exploits. A psychic lady he saved when that building blew up explains that he’s not “a” man of steel but THE Man of Steel -- according to her, Superman’s spirit has returned from beyond and possessed the body of a man whose own spirit left him (John, after whatever happened that made him leave his old life). The still bed-bound Pa Kent seems convinced, while Lex Luthor Jr. is at least intrigued by the idea, and who knew Superman better than those two? No one. Welcome back, Superman!

Character-Watch:

The White Rabbit actually appeared briefly during John’s segment in Adventures #500, but I forgot to mention it. Here’s a gratuitous shot of her shorts to make up for it.

Plotline-Watch:

Futher evidence that John is the one true Superman: he says that when he was buried in the rubble, he saw "Fog. Angels and demons. I think my grandfather. He didn’t want me to die.” That sounds like a spot-on summary of what Superman’s soul went through in Adventures #500.

Poor Lois Lane’s life is bound to take a turn for the better now that the love of her life has returned: I mean Jeb Friedman, her douchey ex. To be fair, Jeb did wait like a week (comic book time) after Lois’ fiancee was presumed dead before putting the moves on her, so he’s not that bad.

I should also mention that Myra the Orphanage Lady has the hots for John -- she gets a new Halle Berry hairdo when she and Keith visit him in the hospital. You may now begin shipping them.

Lex Luthor Jr. orders his crony Dr. Happersen to find out who’s furnishing street gangs with futuristic weaponry. That’s his job, dammit!

And my job here is done, so click below to read the great Don Sparrow’s section:

Art-Watch (by @donsparrow):

Probably the most abrupt change from the Funeral for a Friend storyline comes in the pages of SMOS, where we’re thrown into  an almost entirely new cast of characters (aside from the much loved Myra and Keith), a great departure from the Superman comics we know.  We begin with the cover, which features probably the s-shield closest to the official one, with some slick, great looking Walk-Simonson-esque shading on the chrome of the insignia—this pattern will be a theme throughout the run of this character.

Inside the first page we get our first full look at John Henry Irons in full regalia, and it looks great.  The colours help a lot in selling the metallic look, and I love the elements of his costume that are a cheat—There’s no way a metal mask could so closely follow the contours of John’s face, particularly as he speaks and emotes.  But it looks awesome so we accept it.

As I mentioned, we can feel a bit lost being thrown into this story with a wholly unfamiliar character, so they subtly let us know which character we’re supposed to be following by helpfully putting him in the familiar red and blue as we first see him. 

To my eye, in this storyline, Bogdanove abandons his usual slick, fluid, Fleischer cartoon look for a much hatchier, urban feel.  The faces are more caricaturized (sometimes, perhaps, to a fault) and the action a lot grittier.  Indeed, I don’t remember so much violence in the first couple pages of story since before the Doomsday storyline.  The effect is intentional I think—we’re supposed to be horrified by the destruction these toastmaster weapons leave behind, but man, that smouldering skeleton of a teenager on page 4 is tough to take, as is the brock wall smeared with Irons’ blood at the bottom of page 5. 

Still, even in his first appearance, Bogdanove has this character’s physicality and wardrobe very well established and down pat.  The parachute pants go a long way in suggesting his athleticism, and also hint at a possible inspiration in the sports world, as Shaquille O’Neal was just entering the NBA (and rap and video game worlds as well) at the time. It might be a chicken or egg argument, but I suspect some of Irons’ look is based on Shaq’s, for better or worse.            

The flashback sequence of Irons’ inspirational meeting with Superman is well-told, and there’s some interesting imagery as there appears to be some sort of beam transferring between them on page 8, lending credence to the “spirit walk-in” spin this book put forward.  The full page splash on page 11 is a good one, as you really feel the heft of his hammer in his body gesture—though maybe a little more time could have been put into the face.

The low point follows soon after—no, not dead teenagers (though there will be more of them), something worse—Jeb Friedman makes his obnoxious return to Metropolis. Worse still, Lois dives into his arms knocking off his cowboy hat.  Oh, yeah, apropos of nothing, he was wearing a cowboy hat, by the way. [Max: He seems more like a fedora kind of guy.]

Page 15 has a great look at Irons’ mask, as he perches, Batman-style, on a rooftop before jumping in to bust the gun-runners.  More dead torsos follow as one of the gang gets disemboweled (and then some) in order for the Toastmasters to blast Irons.  The cracked image of Martin Luther King is an effective way of relating some of Irons’ guilt—his actions in the past certainly haven’t advanced Dr. King’s noble causes.  Rather, they’ve just made the streets a deadlier place.

We get a good look at Irons’ array of weaponry in the story as well, as page 19 features his gauntlet, which, appropriately for his namesake, drives steel railway bolts (I’ll just accept that Irons is a great shot, and ignore how utterly deadly that would be as a weapon).  We’re then introduced to the White Rabbit, our apparent villain, in booty shorts as revealing as a code book would allow at the time. [Max: See above.]

There’s a LOT of exposition to get through, and the issue does a good job of all of it—Irons’ guilt at having dedicated his life to weaponry, and donning a costume to atone (shades of the first Iron Man film), some interesting issues with power, race and inner-city crime (with both gangsters like the White Rabbit and big businessmen like Luthor trying to take full advantage) some history on Irons’ own tragic childhood, and also some upsetting scenes with Lois and Jonathan Kent dealing with the emergence of all these new characters.    

STRAY OBSERVATIONS:

Does John Henry have eyebrows?  They seem to be missing in his closeup shot on page 4, and elsewhere.

GODWATCH:  John Henry prays he’s wrong when he sees the what looks like an old weapon of his on page 4.

The story makes a couple mentions of Irons’ voice as being like Darth Vader, and later the voice of God.  Emphasiszing someone’s voice is an interesting way to establish character in a silent medium like comics, but definitely does help us flesh out who he is.

I’ll admit, I’ve heard better pickup lines than “Superman is dead and Clark is dead.” Bizarrely, it seems to almost work.

I remember reading an article (I think it was in Wizard magazine) about the spirit walk-in idea, and either Simonson or Bogdanove saying that the psychic would decidedly NOT sound like Mike Myers’ Linda Richman character from SNL.  In spite of their assertions (or maybe because of them), that’s how she sounds in my head, so they might have been better off not even bringing her up. [Max: Dang, now you’ve passed on the curse to me! Hey, maybe she was possessed by Mike Myers’ ghost?]

[westworld-daily]

Jimmi Simpson Talks Tailored Clothing and Westworld Predictions

Spoiler alert: Jimmi Simpson isn’t done with Westworld yet. At least he hopes he isn’t, as do the rest of us, who marveled at his character’s transformation from earnest, rumpled William into series-defining dark cowboy over the course of the show’s hit first season. Luckily, Simpson predicts there’s at least “six or seven” seasons of Westworld plot in the works: “It’s like The Odyssey,” he told us. And we’ll happily go along for the ride. Not only did Westworld deliver gripping performances—shoutout Evan Rachel Wood—and mind-melting plot twists, it was low-key one of the most stylish shows on television. Nearly every character’s costume in the futuristic Wild West theme park balanced historical accuracy with a pinch of contemporary trendiness. And Simpson’s character wore band-collar shirts, patterned silk scarves, black jeans, and cowboy boots with the best of them.

We sat down with the actor on the set of GQ Style’s Spring fashion portfolio—where he and some of our other favorite guys of the moment rocked the season’s best relaxed tailoring—to discuss what’s next for him, for William, and for his newly reinvigorated personal style. Check it out below, and stay tuned for the full shoot later this week.

What did you make of the overwhelmingly positive response to Westworld? I was delighted. It’s some of the work I’m proudest of. A lot of times, I do work either on stage or on small-scale television that a lot of people miss. It’s so nice to feel proud of something that people are engaged in.

It certainly struck a chord. Really—it’s so pertinent. We’re dealing with our own waves of revolution. And it was the perfect time for [Westworld writers] Jonah [Nolan] and Lisa [Joy] to talk about it.

One thing that really struck me about Westworld was the costume design. From the moment your character, William, arrived on the show by walking into basically a futuristic Tom Ford cowboy store— It was just gorgeous. The same person that brought the style into that scene was responsible for all the historically accurate style—or intentionally inaccurate style—throughout the whole show, [costume designer] Ane Crabtree. She did every single choice that blew your mind. And it’s because she’s so passionate about it.

Did you borrow any ideas from her after filming? Back in the day, they did things a little more fitted than I’m used to doing, and Ane encouraged me to do that in my life and have a little bit more structure in my look. I’ve always been a little bit Western-leaning anyway. Tailoring is something I think most, like, straight men aren’t aware of how amazing the effect is. Especially being a skinny guy. We learned from the baggy ’90s situation, where the idea was you’re thin, so surround yourself in fabric. But as I got older, I realized—when you cut the fabric away, you stop looking so skinny!

Sure, and now that dress codes are relaxing, wearing one is a much more conscious choice. Oh, it’s so true. I guess that’s why they’re looking sharper. The suit now is less a uniform that you’re putting on to go to school and it’s a choice, a choice to look better, as opposed to looking how you have to look.

Do you have any personal style inspirations? It would be helpful if I did. I think I’ve gotten most from the activity I’m doing, which is generally skateboarding. It’s about simplicity, and layers, and comfort. I think a well-fit T-shirt and jeans can just kill, style-wise. At least that’s what I tell myself, because that’s what I’m going to keep wearing till I die.

You skateboard? I mean, I’m 41, so I moved to the longboard when I hit 30, but it’s a lifesaver. Not only does it eclipse my time for parking in Los Angeles, because I keep my skateboard in my trunk at all times, but it helps me feel kind of young. I’ve skateboarded my whole life, and I’m going to keep enjoying it until my age prohibits me. My buddies who play golf, it seems to me a very passive choice of like, I’m old, I’m tired, and this is now my time where I don’t have to talk to anybody. And I’m like, Later, dudes!

What’s your next project? I just wrapped David Robert Mitchell’s movie Under the Silver Lake. He’s the guy who did It Follows, and he’s written this 150-page opus to L.A., and he’s fabricated this entire history and it’s fabulous, and Andrew Garfield’s our lead and he’s so talented.

How do you find the transition from television to film? It’s all its own art form, each one. I do a lot of theater, a lot of television, a lot of film. Even more than the medium, I think it’s project-specific as to how your craft changes. But it’s always different. And that’s one of the reasons I fell for this career, is because no matter which job you’re doing in acting, you have to be doing something different or else you’re not doing your job, basically. So it’s always new, and I personally get off on things being new and fresh. You always have to be pushing your boundaries. I try to avoid doing long-term roles that don’t grow or change. I’ve been in this business for 20 years, and I haven’t had a long-running sitcom or anything that’s a little more technical, because I think I’d start to lose my shit.

Everyone’s curious about Westworld season two and beyond. What do you know about your potential involvement? So far, my involvement in that is unclear. If they have more for William, I would assume it would be a whole new kind of story. Because I feel like this story, the love affair [with Evan Rachel Wood’s character, Dolores], we know everything, we know what happens, we don’t have to belabor that point. But if they have a reason—I mean, it was the greatest set I’ve ever worked on. But we’re all speculating what season two will be, and I think it’ll be something that will blow our minds, to the degree that the first season did. But I wouldn’t be surprised if William showed up season three or something.

[63824peace]

Monday, 21st of november 2005

Every morning I read the newspaper column "Vox Populi, Vox Dei." It has appeared in the morning edition of the Asahi Journal for a long time, offering some of Japan's finest writing for one hundred years.

No matter how busy I am, I never miss reading "Vox Populi, Vox Dei.”

I start reading "Vox Populi, Vox Dei" on the front page whenever I read the newspaper. Then I browse the table of contents to survey the whole issue. I remember where to find the articles that attract my attention, and then I turn to the second page. I move from the General Articles to the International News Articles. I read everything in the order of its presentation until I get to the TV schedule, which I rarely read these days.

I don't dwell for long on the Sports section, but I give a good part of my attention to the International News Articles. I also take time to check out the advertisements that run along the bottom of the page for recently published books. I catch the movie ads that run in the evening edition too, of course.

I used to read the newspaper backwards when I was a boy... I would start with the TV schedule and move to the National News Articles. I was an unusual boy who just liked to read backwards, as they say.

"Vox Populi, Vox Dei" actually got me to read the newspaper from the front-page forward. School entrance exams always included something from "Vox Populi, Vox Dei," so the students forced themselves to read the column while cramming for school.

They write a new "Vox Populi, Vox Dei" column every day. The writing focuses on current events and seasonal topics, with a variety of intellectual and cultural slants taken on the given topic. They condense current affairs into the short essay format really well. It's a concise, interesting, and useful column. Sometimes it even invigorates the mind like a masterful short story.

The Asahi Journal collects its columns every season and collates them into a book. The English language edition appears at the same time as the Japanese.

Newsprint is an informative medium. A journalist applies his subjective point of view to his story of course, but he does so without emotion. Our digital age can easily drown us in a sea of information, and that's because none of the information has any character. It lacks the force of human passion.

Humanity needs more than merely information. We express original ideas, humor, and our personal wills. We express passions and emotions. A person's point of view conveys all of these aspects of identity.

"Vox Populi, Vox Dei" never names its authors, but there's such a huge difference between their writing and the meaningless news bytes that infest the Internet. A pageant of emotions runs through "Vox Populi, Vox Dei." I anticipate each day's article as personal reading material, rather than cold news.

I have longed to become a writer or novelist ever since I was a boy. I thought, "I want to grow up and write for 'Vox Populi, Vox Dei' one day!"

HIDEOBLOG is an official blog. I write as though it were a diary, but I can't deny that it becomes part of the ruck of media sent into the world. I suppose it will have its readers as long as it remains dispatched media.

I feel peaceful when I read "Vox Populi, Vox Dei" every morning. I know that it sounds presumptuous, but I would like to convey the same experience through HIDEOBLOG.

I saw an advertisement in the Sunday paper. "Attention high school students! Challenge 'Vox Populi, Vox Dei!' Write for the column in the 'Vox Dei, Vox Nova' contest!"

The advertisement called for participants in a contest created and sponsored by the Asahi Journal Company. Entrants must complete an original "Vox Dei, Vox Nova" contest entry using their own words. They must write a continuation of the "Vox Populi, Vox Dei" paragraph that appeared on the front page. That's the subject for the given contest.

The contest will run in January. It sounds interesting... I would participate if I were a high school student.

Gucci and Ryan returned from their business trip to America. Gucci brought me the PS2 version of GUN, and Ryan brought me the Xbox version of Stubbs the Zombie.

I've been really eager to play these foreign games. I had considered waiting for GUN until its Xbox 360 release, but I couldn't help myself and opened it. I last played up to the part when you board the steamship. The atmosphere is good... it looks interesting.

I really enjoy both legitimate Western cowboy films and the Italian Macaroni Westerns. I naturally supported Red Dead Revolver when it hit the stores a few years ago. A game with nothing but a Western theme won't sell very well though. I'd like to make a Western game myself, but I haven't yet hardened my resolve.

I'd really like a game like GUN to become a best-seller.

I had ordered Director Teruo Ishii's film Feudal Pornography: Bohachi Bushido over the internet, and at last it arrived. Director Ishii has unfortunately passed away, but I'm pleased to see his works released on DVD. The Tokyo Fanta's ten-year anniversary event had been dedicated to Teruo Ishii's memory, and it was a huge success.

Feudal Pornography: Bohachi Bushido stars Ms. Yuriko Hishimi, and it's one of my favorite films for that reason. More to the point, I love the fact that she doesn't wear a stitch of clothing!

Ms. Yuriko Hishimi was my first love as Ultra-Seven's Agent Anne. I like Director Ishii's movie for more than just that reason, of course. The story's setting in Yoshiwara, the narrative development, and the perspective are all quite interesting. It's a film made to entertain, and it doesn't leave anything out.

However, it's an adult movie, so I can't recommend it to minors. Naturally I only saw it once I had become an adult.

The military equipment for our OOOO Training arrived at the office. We received all three of the styles that we had requested: Shin-chan's, Murashu's, and mine. We checked how well they fit by trying on the equipment that we'll wear over our other supplies.

We each felt like the bounty hunter from Domino.

We're going to apply professional camouflage during training, and we'll use this as the base for our outfits. Shin-chan and Murashu plan to make Ghillie Suits to prepare for training. We'll have cold weather during training, so we'll wear our fatigues underneath our flight suits. That ought to warm us up.

Rettsu tried it on. He looked like the monster Woo from Ultraman.

Murashu tried it on too. He looked like the monster Zazaan, also from Ultraman.

Phantom has provided all of this equipment. The Aggressor Group provided the holsters, gloves, and chest rigs. Phantom will lend us a big hand while we produce MGS4.

I had browsed through Phantom pretty frequently when I lived in Kobe. That was over fifteen years ago. I would visit their stores in Sannomiya and Umeda. I was crazy about military stuff back then. Phantom also supplied my very first camouflage and dog tags. My camo was the woodland pattern, and my dog tags had "Solid Snake" engraved on them.

I ate Gingjiao-rousi for lunch at the restaurant Fuuton San Raakyo.

I played a little bit of Stubbs the Zombie in the afternoon. The zombies shuffle through a world depicted in a retro-futurist aesthetic, kind of like Metropolis. It's awesome! I can't help myself when it comes to this type of imaginative world.

The game has an outstanding concept too. "Those who have been eaten by zombies soon zombify themselves!" I had wanted to make a zombie game like this! This is exactly the vision I had in mind!

My film buddy Director Yudai Yamaguchi had also recommended Stubbs the Zombie.

This is the ideal zombie game, hands down! This is the real thing! The game probably won't make it to Japan though, regrettably.

I have wanted to make an online game that utilizes this genuine zombie aesthetic. The core idea is that everyone zombifies who has been eaten by a zombie. I've talked about this more than once during interviews, and I've written about it in serialized articles.

Here's the basic idea.

First, a player logs on as a Zombie Hunter in a necropolis. He goes through the whole login process, including setting up an online payment account. The player will then hunt zombies. The game ends when all the zombies in the city have been destroyed.

However... if a zombie bites the player's character during the hunt, the character zombifies and wanders the city himself.

The player can't control his zombified character, but he can still manipulate the camera. The zombified character must live disgraced in the digital world.

And the online gaming fee will continue to tally while the zombie wanders the virtual streets.

If the player isn't happy with this, he can create a new Zombie Hunter. He can hunt down his former, now-zombified character. However, if zombies bite the new character then he zombifies too. The number of zombies associated with the player's payment account increases, and the fees continue to tally for the second character. This is real zombie simulation!

I want to make that game someday.

Mr. Nishimura bought me a copy of the CD soundtrack to Sympathy for Lady Vengeance. Unfortunately, they haven't released a Japanese version yet. We're stuck importing it from Korea.

I asked Mr. Nishimura since I couldn't find it anywhere, and then he got it for me! Wonderful! He is the king of soundtracks.

The CD includes some scenes from the movie, and it comes with a deluxe booklet. It has colored photos and the score's sheet music. The musical instruments intone the sentimental melodies in ways that really fit the Christmas season. I recommend the soundtrack as well as the movie.

I saw many Hangul characters (the Korean alphabet) after I finished transferring the music to my iPod. I felt refreshed to see that my iPod had become trilingual.

In the evening I re-read the Asahi Journal's morning edition. I stumbled across the "Vox Dei, Vox Nova" contest for general public entrants. The earlier contest had required that entrants use the concept of a river (or rivers in general) as their theme.

A forty-year-old housewife from Ibaragi Prefecture won that contest. She wrote a fantastic piece that interwove the ideas of a river, the family, and other aspects of life together.

The next contest will require entrants to use movies as their theme. The deadline is November 30, and it should have a word count between 620 and 680 characters. Should I submit an entry?

Then I heard my own personal Vox Dei....

"What are you thinking!? You don't have time for that. You need to make your game!"

[juliehamill]

Fifteen Minutes With Orian Williams, producer of Control, England Is Mine, True To You and fan of The Smiths

Orian Williams II is a tall, elegantly dressed man. He wears a black shirt and black jeans that match his raven-black hair. He sits down in a corner of Roger O’Donnell’s couch in East London and stretches out his very long legs front of him, as dead straight as two skinny palm trees, crossing one over the other at the ankle.  He has quite a shy smile, and appears very relaxed and polite, insisting I enjoy Roger’s chilled sparkling water that The Cure keyboardist actually left for the producer.  His laughing eyes give him away as a bit of a rebellious cowboy: despite Williams’ demure manner I know instantly that he hasn’t always behaved.

He credits his determination and passion to his mother: ‘She always said, Orian, pursue your dreams.  Don’t let anyone ever tell you that you can’t do something.’ Riding on the force of her words, he left Texas and Mississippi to chase a career in California, and, let’s say, through relentless, enquiring methods, found himself in the right situation at the right time to make a Hollywood film with Nicolas Cage. Williams has since produced many talked about films including Shadow Of The Vampire, Control, Big Sur and England Is Mine.  He currently juggles high profile projects about The Who, Jeff Buckley, Syd Barrett and Danny Sugerman as well as the eagerly awaited new Latino Morrissey fan documentary True To You by Adam Neustadter.

‘I guess it’s strange that I’m working on two films about Morrissey. I’m doing True To You because of Adam. I met him and I was like, ‘Oh my God I really like this guy.  What he’s got is really cool.  He’s genuine.  It’s so far a lovely film that crosses many borders and touches on things Adam didn’t expect to surface when he started the film.’

To this day, Williams finds himself repeatedly inspired by the video for The Smiths’ ‘How Soon Is Now’ which he first watched over and over in Houston’s Numbers nightclub during his late teens.  He cites HSIN as a turning point in his life and a constant reference to his style of production: ‘There’s something about that [How Soon Is Now] atmosphere that lingers into everything I do.  The aesthetic of it, the dirt of it all… that cruddy, layered and haunting imagery.’

He is a dedicated Smiths/Morrissey fan, likes Iced Tea and his favourite movie is Blade Runner. He still has a phone number that Morrissey gave him written on the page of a car manual in his apartment (but he won’t let me see it).

Friends in the life of Orian describe him as ‘unforgettable’.  I would agree.  ‘I think we’ll stay friends’ he laughs, ‘…if you’re lucky’.

JH:  Please say your full name.

OW:  Birth name? Alfred Orian Williams the second.

JH:  You’re a second?  That’s cool.

OW:  It was my Grandfather’s name.  In the States if you’re a second it means you usually have skipped a generation.  I only go by Orian.

JH: Orian it is.

OW:  I’ve never gone by Alfred.  I even if someone yelled ‘Alfred!’ in a room, I would be like, ‘Well, that’s not me!’ In my line of ancestors Orian is a middle name.  My grandfather and I had the same name.  I don’t know my father that well; in fact, I only met him a few times. My mom divorced him when I was three months old.  He has a bunch of other kids, I barely know, except from his parents who told me that if I was a girl I was going to be called Oreadus. These are some crazy southern names, Mississippi has some crazy names.  Like Uner, and my grandma’s name was Clara, and I had an aunt Lotis.  Down the street my Grandmother’s best friend was named Lillybell.  Some of these names you will have heard of, of course.  But in High School it was always like, ‘Alfred Williams?’ and I was just like, yeah, I want ‘Orian’ please, which, of course, made no sense to anyone in the room.

JH:  Can you describe yourself in a sentence?

OW: That would be… I’m a product of Mississippi, raised in Texas, somehow fell upon a club in Houston called Numbers, which highlighted everything that I focused on during my teenage life and for the rest of my life: photography, fashion, literature and an overall sense of aesthetic.

JH:  What were you like as a little boy?

OW:  I was more or less shy.  An only kid. It’s hard to say.  I just went along with whatever was in front of me. I grew up with my cousins and as little boys we’d ride horses and go to the farm, things like that.  I was observant, for sure.  My mom married a man when I was six and he took photographs on the weekend.  He had a dark room in our house.  He ran an oil company but photography was his passion.  From the age of six until I was about ten he would take photographs of my mom and I, running around and fishing.  He had this thing about photography, books always around, it was cool. My mom divorced him and he remarried and eventually died.  His then wife gave me all of his camera equipment.  I was about twenty.  It just opened my mind to another world.  In a big way it’s a defining moment that my stepfather inspired me to look at things differently.  

JH:  What music were you into during your teenage years?

OW: I worked in a record store when I was about seventeen.  Hastings Records, in Houston, Texas at the Galleria Mall, massive mall. I loved it.  It gave me this sense of power because you could put on a record, people would walk in and buy it, which felt like DJing, I profiled artists I liked. At that time, the artists that were well known were Whitney Houston, Sting, Wham, The Style Council, and Tears For Fears - Songs From The Big Chair. There were two guys there that managed the store and they both ran a magazine called Wireless.  I thought it was so cool that they were not only working there but they had this magazine. All the artists that came through Houston - ABC, Duran Duran, David Sylvian – were all were profiled in the magazine and of course the two guys would meet the bands.  I liked that, so I started working for the magazine.  I would do odd jobs here and there, I loved it all.  I attended several concerts where I’d meet the artists. Wham, Paul Young, Depeche Mode, Simple Minds, U2, Duran Duran so many bands.

JH:  Do you meet them now and say, ‘I was that guy.’?

OW: I met New Order in 1986 on the Brotherhood tour.  I went and hung out with them all night long. It was foggy but they remember bits and pieces. I thought I’d never meet them again, so I said ‘You guys are one of my favourite bands and I love you, I’ll never see you again, thanks for the music!’  

Lo and behold now I’m close to them and have made a movie about them.  I still look back at that time when I thought, ‘I’m never going to meet Duran Duran again.  I’ll never meet any of those guys again!’  And now I see them all the time.

I was lucky enough to have access to all of the promo posters that came through Hastings.  All the ones that the reps put up on the wall.  They would design it in such a way that looked cool.  So they’d say, ‘Hey would you keep this up for a little longer? Here’s two tickets to go and see so and so.’  I have masses of posters.  I have The Queen Is Dead, Shoplifters, big massive ones.  I have framed a couple.  I have Bryan Ferry Slave To Love.  There’s a great one of New Order that I have – Anton took the photo – It’s Substance 1987 and I guarantee you it’s one of maybe four in the world. I’ve never seen anyone else with it, ever.

JH: How did you end up in LA?

OW: I don’t really know.  I had gone to visit right after high school in ’85.  I took a little trek across America ended up in San Francisco.  We had a car and took the 1 freeway down to Los Angeles and at night we arrived. Somehow we were given tickets to see Frankie Goes To Hollywood, and the opener was Belouis Some.  I love that band – ‘Some People’.  We went to the Greek Theatre and had sixth row seats and I thought, ‘Hollywood is great! The music, and the people, and Frankie Goes To Hollywood!’   Then there was an after party at the Sunset Marquis.  I was a bit shocked at the insanity of this after party.  It was crazy.  But there were some interesting folks there that had some stuff to say about Los Angeles.  I hadn’t even attended college, I was just right out of High School.  So back to Houston, got into Baylor University which is in Waco, Texas and worked on a movie that shot in Waco.  That movie crew was compiled mostly of people from Los Angeles. They all said, ‘If you want to work in film, man, come to LA, you’ll like it!’

So I graduated, finally, and made my way west about four days later with a couple of friends.  The first bit of advice I received from a stranger was, ‘Get a job as an agent’s assistant,’ or ‘Get a job as a production assistant, on set - then you’ll learn both sides:  the business side and on set side, and you’ll find your way.’  So I did that.  I worked as an assistant to an agent and worked on set as a PA.  I did grunt work, lifting things, I got a job as an extra, I was acting in a few things and I thought well, ‘That’s easy!  You wanna do it?  You just go and you do it!’  Not really. I ended up in commercial production and for about five years I excelled in this world and ended up as a production manager.

JH:  What commercials did you make?

OW:  At the time it was Lipton, Chevrolet, Fanta, Kent cigarettes… a whole bunch of things. But the directors were really filmmakers and they worked on big films.  Mikael Saloman was a cinematographer for Spielberg; Colin Chilvers was the special effects guy for the first Superman.  A lot of talent there.  Next door was Ridley and Tony Scott.  It was amazing.  My favourite film at the time, and still is, Blade Runner.  So Blade Runner tied into this LA world because it was set in LA.  Then you combine this fashion element, period clothing, noir, if you will, then you had this futuristic thing going on.  Then it had Harrison Ford, who is the man, for me, the cool guy, he can do no wrong.  

I just couldn’t believe that it was the Blade Runner guy next door. I’ve met Ridley many, many times and he loves Control. It’s kind of a strange thing to have that.

I worked at the company CMS and I worked with the Coen Brothers.  One of them told me, Ethan I think it was: ‘If you want to work in film, you gotta get out of here, you gotta attach yourself to a young filmmaker, one you believe in, and you’ll rise with them.  The next day I met Elias Merhige.  He had created this art piece of film, called Begotten.  It took him years to make it.  Disturbing, haunting, beautiful, grotesque and revolutionary.  I thought, ‘Wow! This guy really knows what he’s doing.’  But he didn’t know what he was doing!  This was an art piece.  We met and he said, ‘I want you to be my rep.’ so I quit the job and started representing him.  We made some music videos together and one thing lead to the next and I hear that Nicolas Cage is a fan of this film.  It wasn’t easy to get in touch with Nic but I managed.

I found out through this creative director that Nicolas Cage had a production company called Saturn Films.  So I call Saturn Films.  This is two weeks into my journey of trying to find Nic, the highest paid actor at the time, and me a nobody, and I’m calling Saturn Films who have no interest in talking to me.  But I persisted and I changed the number by one digit on my end.  I got onto another person.  A guy named Jeff.  Turns out, in the company, he’s Nic’s best friend.  He said, ‘Are you the guy that keeps calling the front desk?’  And I’m like, ‘Yeah!’ and he said ‘Well you gotta change your name, buddy, if you’re gonna keep calling because ‘Orian’ is a pretty unforgettable name!  

JH:  Ha ha!

OW:  He said, ‘What film do you want to talk about?’  And I said, ‘Begotten’ and he said, ‘Well hold on a second!  Are you talking about the film that’s sitting right in front of me, right now?  That Nic walked into my office yesterday and said, ‘Find this guy!  These are the kind of movies I want to make!  These are the kinds of people I want to work with.’ Are you talking about that film?’  And I go, ‘Yeah.’ And he goes, ‘We need to meet.  Right away!

The next day I was in the office with him.  This dumbfounded Elias because he thought, ‘You’re never going to get hold of Nic Cage!’

A couple of days later, I was sent a script by messenger - Shadow Of The Vampire.  I thought, this is too cool, Jeff must have sent it to me by mistake.  Why have they sent it to me?  I read the first page and was like, wow.  The card said, ‘Let me know your thoughts.’  I still have the envelope and the card.  I called Jeff and said, ‘Jeff!  You sent me a script.’ And he goes, ‘Yeah.  Read it!’ And I did.  And I sent it to Elias and he couldn’t believe it because the movie, Shadow Of The Vampire was about the making of Nosferatu the first vampire movie ever made, which is exactly the movie that inspired him to make his weird, crazy, beautiful film, Begotten!  So it seemed all connected to me. Nick is a very passionate guy and is an incredible artist. So we got Willem Dafoe, Eddie Izzard, Cary Elwes is in it, John Malkovich as Murnau, Catherine McCormack as Greta.  It’s a great cast.  Two Oscar nominations and it’s my first producing credit.

Now.  At the same exact time I was returning to LA to get all this stuff started, I saw the cover of a magazine with a book on it, written by Debbie Curtis, about Ian Curtis. I thought, I want to own that book - because of the picture.  So I went and bought it at Book Soup.  I thought, I love that, this could make a great movie one day.  That was April 14th 1997.  In tandem with that I was thinking about Anton Corbjn. I thought, he’s got to make a movie and I wasn’t the only person thinking that. He had lots of interested people wanting him to make a movie as a director. The first thing he said to me was, ‘I have no interest in making a movie about a band or someone I photographed.  No musical element.’ And I thought, ‘Uh, that’s too bad as it would have been great if I got him to do my Joy Division film.’  The story is very long and it goes on but eventually he did say yes, due to a set of crazy, circumstantial events that let him to it.  

My first real idea was Control. I found the writer through a friend of mine, Jason Isaacs, who is an actor in Harry Potter [Lucius Malfoy] and various other great movies like The Patriot and Black Hawk Down.  Anyway he suggested this guy, Matt Greenhalgh.  We met and I just liked him.

JH:  Are you proud of how the film turned out?

OW:  I am so proud of Control.  Sam Riley was incredible, he became Ian Curtis who had eyes like yours but Sam Riley had dark brown eyes, nobody seemed to care. I just tried to capture the spirit of a young musician dealing with a lot of stuff going on in his personal life and Sam was amazing. Samantha was wonderful as Debbie.  Alexandra [Maria Lara], who is now Sam’s wife, was just amazing as well.  Everyone was. They all were finding their own foot in the world of acting.  Becoming a band and playing for real was an important thing for them.  They weren’t just actors playing a role they became a band and learned the music.  Without Anton thought the film would never be what it became.

Joy Division were all young, learning their way as a band. All of a sudden Ian was gone.  After the film was done the actors never played as a band again. For me when I look back on it, I see the film being made in color.  I remember being there and visualizing the crew and when I watch the film it seems other-worldly in a way.  

JH:  It does transport you.

OW:  It really does. I love that.  I mean so many people poured their guts out on Control and when Anton Corbijn came on board people just thought, well, he’s a protector, no one else better suited to direct.  It was summer when we shot Control and it was hot juxtaposed to the Morrissey film which was very cold.  We shot in Macclesfield where Ian and Debbie lived.  It was kind of special to have that location.

JH:  Do the guys in New Order like the film?  

OW:  They seem to love it, but my guess is it brings back sad memories for them.  I know them all, It’s weird to think I’ve met all these people, now they’re mostly friends I respect and love.  It’s also interesting that they all had different stories of who they thought Ian was.  But after seeing the film they all felt we had captures Ian perfectly, which was really cool.

JH:  How different is it, working on a film about an icon who has passed away, versus an icon that is still alive?

OW:  With England Is Mine I wanted so many times to reach out to the people that mattered.  Billy Duffy was very helpful, and all the people that Mark knows in Morrissey’s life.  It was really helpful to have some of these eyewitness accounts from Billy. He has been a friend of mine for a long time.  The guy that played Billy, Adam Laurence, was great. With Control I lived in London for two years trying to get that movie made, I slept on couches, floors, you name it, I was trying to make ends meet, keeping myself from going insane.  You must keep going and fuel the possibility that something might happen.  I was an American making a movie about a band that never made it in America. It was kinda like, ‘This might never happen but I didn’t care.  I’m just gonna keep going.’  So that attitude stayed with me.  When we made England Is Mine I said, ‘Mark I’m not leaving here until it’s done.’  You just have to do that.  You have to put everything into it.  Every step you make in this town is about making your film.  It got to the point where I wouldn’t walk under certain signs because I thought if I walk under it, the film wouldn’t happen.  Bizarre things play on your mind.

JH:  I know from Mark that you had Anji’s diaries, Morrissey’s lyrics and Billy Duffy’s memories.  England Is Mine has been compared to Billy Liar.  As filmmakers did you immerse yourself in any of Morrissey’s favourite films?

OW: Mark did lost of research and came upon my film and music references that inspired him to write and direct the film the way he did.

JH:  You have been offered many Morrissey ideas.  What was special about the script for England Is Mine that drew you in?

OW:  To be honest with you… ten years ago we screened Control at this Edinburgh festival and I was pitched a Smiths film, right out of the gate.  Then a Morrissey film next, non-stop-Smiths-Morrissey-you-have-to-tell-this-story!  I think people were searching to find out more about the guy that they loved.   They read about him, they heard about him, they’d hear him talk; but they never really knew him.  So for ten years I’ve been thrown ideas.  

JH:  The plot of England Is Mine has a similar struggle to Control, I think.

OW:  Both Control and England Is Mine focus on a young artist, and their struggles to escape and make it, that appealed to me as well as that time period. I also liked Mark Gill a lot.  The plot appealed to everyone.  On set there was so much love for that movie amongst the crew.

OW: Oh look at that [looks at ringing phone] it’s Mark…

JH:  Take it!

[OW has a chat with Mark Gill, they do a lot of giggling: ‘I miss you already man.  I wish I was still there.  Ha ha! Well in that case, I’m on my way!’]

JH:  What were some of the production challenges with this movie?

OW:  On England Is Mine Baldwin Li was so wonderful at understanding the technicality of how this was going to work and be financed. It’s his first feature film and he learned a lot.  I’m still learning a lot.  I learn a new way every single time.  There’s no formula for making movies.  There are always production challenges.  Everyone is right when they say, ‘It should be done this way.’  That’s their experience.  Billy Duffy said, ‘Well I don’t smoke’ and we were like, ‘well you smoke in the movie’.  There will always be, ‘Hey!  I would have never have worn that brown shirt!’ you know?  In my experience I have a certain way and Baldwin has a certain way and together we make something different.  He was a wonderful partner, we complimented each other well.  Many times in our office we would just look at each other and be like, ‘This is never going to happen.’ We’d smile, glance with confidence and carry on.  

JH:  You mentioned that during shooting for the Morrissey film it was very cold.  Did you shoot in Stretford?  What locations did you use?

OW:  We shot in Stretford and surrounding areas.  We shot on King’s Road. They were all relevant and important locations.

JH:  Are you drawn to biopics, in particular?  Or is that just coincidence?

OW:  I’m drawn the human condition and if that means biopics, which is a word I dislike as it puts a formula on the genre, then yes, I’m drawn.

JH:  Do you think that people who don’t like The Smiths or Morrissey will enjoy the film? Who is the target?

OW:  I’m hoping so.. never easy to tell what people will think, I hope they get something out of it.. I’m a fan and I liked it.

JH:  How did you get into The Smiths/Morrissey?

OW:  I’m a massive Smiths fan.  I saw them in 1986 in Houston at the Cullen Auditorium and I’ve seen Morrissey a good handful of times.  The Smiths was the soundtrack to my upbringing, in fact, ‘How Soon Is Now’ is my favourite music video because it talks to what I said earlier about what I do now.  The cruddy imagery and the layered factory smoke and this haunting music that is depressing and yet optimistic to me.  Most of the music I do listen to has an angle towards depression or sort of gothic industrial music.  That video really touched me.  I remember just watching it over and over and over again back in the day and it resonated with me; I wanted to do something on film.  There’s something about that atmosphere that lingers into everything I do. The aesthetic of it, the dirt of it all, the haunting quality of the image, the beautiful girl in it!  If I could meet a girl like that!

JH:  You never married?

OW:  No. Never married.  No kids.  Maybe one day.  We’ll see.  I’m open.

JH:  Find the ‘How Soon Is Now’ video star and propose!

OW:  That would be it!  

JH:  Do you feel the same passion for a particular Morrissey song as you do for ‘How Soon Is Now?’

OW:  ‘November Spawned A Monster’ has recently come into my mind a lot.  The video is kinda crazy.  It’s been on rotation on my digital music device.  Songs are more than just putting it on and listening to it. For me it’s the video, the photos, the articles, and the stories that surround the bands.  It was going to the club in Houston that I mentioned earlier that shaped this for me. Numbers a club in the deep part of Montrose.  You go there dressed in weird outfits, lots of black, and lots of sexual affiliations.  I went for the music.  They sold Ecstasy over the counter for six bucks a hit.  It was one of the first places to sell X, I never tried it, I went in but while everyone was dancing I was fixed on the videos.

JH:  You’re also working on True To You fan documentary with Director Adam Neustadter.  How’s that going?

OW:  It’s great! That guy is the real deal.  There are a lot of people who are fans of Morrissey who understand that Latino world but Adam just went out and did it; and he’s done it so wonderfully.

There were some people that were involved who I knew before I knew Adam, who were like, ‘Orian, we’re producing this film with Adam, you should meet him.  We just want to see if you’d be interested.’  Then, before I knew it we had some music rights and things aligned with the film before I even met Adam.  But he just immediately took to me and we became very close right away. It’s been a year.  Most of the producers are gone and now it’s just us.

I guess it’s strange that I’m working on two films about Morrissey.  I’m doing True To You because of Adam. I met him liked him straight away.  What he’s captured is really cool.  He’s genuine.’  

I immediately loved the Latino/Morrissey connection idea and of course I know all about the Sweet and Tender Hooligans but I had never seen them. I’ve seen a lot of footage but I’ve never seen them on stage.

I remember several years ago I had become friends with Andy Rourke, He and I went to the Troubadour to see them.  There was a whole connection.  I remember dropping him off in my car but I couldn’t stick around.

With True To You we’re just getting to the point where we’re aligning ourselves with distribution and the rights.  We’re getting really close to Adam’s ultimate vision, soon people will see it, which is exciting.

It is, so far, a lovely film that crosses many borders and touches on things Adam didn’t expect to surface when he started the film.

JH:  Have you met Morrissey?

OW: Well, I don’t know him but I did met Morrissey in Los Angeles.  It was probably around 1999/2000, around that time.  I was sitting with a friend of mine, Michael, A friend of ours, a musician, with a successful solo career was looking for people who had some sort of fame in the world of music to come and guest on her record.  We were talking about it and had this long list of ideas. One of them was Morrissey.  We thought it would be great to meet Morrissey.  How do we get a hold of him?’  So we talked about it a little bit longer.  We were in a place called Fred Segal on Melrose Place.  We walked out and lo and behold who do we see walking to his Jaguar convertible was Morrissey.  And I’m like, ‘Oh my God!’  So we angled in on him, as if he was being accosted in a way but he was really good about it and super nice.  We talked about what we were interested in having him do and he said, ‘Well hold on a second.’ And he went to his car.  He ripped out his Jaguar owner’s manual front page and wrote MORRISSEY and his phone number.  We were like, that’s so cool that this guy would do that.

JH:  I know that you have met and know many famous people, but don’t you think Morrissey sits in a league of his own?

OW:  He does, he’s so elusive; I had never met him before until then.  He is definitely special and his influence is incredible.

JH:  Did anything happen after you met him?

OW:  No.

JH:  Do you still have the number?

OW:  Yes.

JH:  Can I take it?

OW: No.

JH:  Okay.

OW:  It’s different now because they changed the area code.

JH:  I don’t want it.

OW:  Hang on, I remember it’s 0–

JH:  Ha!

OW:  My friend who he handed it to has the original framed on his wall.  I have a copy of it.

JH:  Did you ever call it late one night? Just fancy a chat…

OW:  We called it! Many, many years ago.  Yeah we did call him but he just wasn’t interested. He was making another album I think.

JH:  These days do you get scripts sent to you all the time?

OW:  All the time. Every day.  Two ideas pitched to me today.  A lot of it is music.  It’s easier to say yes sometimes than to say no.  But I’m saying no more often.  When I read a script I read the whole thing and I go, ‘Well how do I feel?’  I don’t make notes.  I want to know, does it stay with me?  The memory for watching a movie is a collective memory, it’s not just isolated moments.  But I can also look at a lot of my favourite movies and go, I loved that movie!  The way the person walks and looks or something subtle.  

JH:  What would you like to do that you haven’t done?

OW:  The films that are on my slate.  I want to get my Jeff Buckley film going.  I’m filming a movie about The Who.  I’ve got a few ideas percolating for TV.

JH:  Aside from your mates Roger O’Donnell, Nicholas Cage, Bryan Ferry, Bernard Sumner, John Taylor, Simon Le Bon… who is the most famous person you know?

OW:  This guy named Mark Gill.  He just had a film premiere in Edinburgh…

JH: Ha! Which of your films would you recommend I see?

OW:  Well I’d like you to see England Is Mine, you’ve seen that, Control; you’ve seen that, True To You, you’re in that… Ha ha!  I’d like you to see Shadow of The Vampire.  Big Sur is good too.  I don’t know if you can get that here.  It’s a great film.  There’s another one you’ll like – it’s called Taken By Storm it’s the guy that did all the album covers for Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin.  It’s a documentary.  I have a documentary about Syd Barrett that’s almost done.

JH:  If Morrissey walked in here right now and said, ‘All right, Orian?’ what would you say?

OW:  All right about what?

JH:  Like, ‘all right mate?’

OW:  Like, am I all right?

JH:  Like, ‘hello there!’

OW:  I would say… ‘It is quite weird that you have found me in this remote part of London’ I guess I’d be shocked if he walked into Roger’s place.  But if you’re just saying that he’s present wherever I may be, existentially, I would shake his hand, and there would be moments of silence from him and myself.  If he didn’t know me too well then I would introduce myself. If he knew you, well, we’re pretty sure he’d be leaving.  We’re screwed!  

JH: Ha ha!

OW:  Actually wait, I would say, ‘Morrissey, I have a television here, would you like to watch the film?’

JH:  That would be nice, wouldn’t it?

OW:  Yes.  I’d sit here with him and we’d just have a chat.

JH:  What do you hope that Morrissey will feel about the film?

OW: I think he’d like parts of it.  I think he would laugh.  I’d like to know his different ideas of what he might have actually said.  I think he’d find it amusing.  I hope he’d feel like we did a great job.

JH:  If Morrissey came to your house what snacks would you put out for him?

OW:  Well I don’t put out snacks for anyone.  I never know what they’re going to eat and I wouldn’t want to assume that they want anything.  Unless it’s like a meeting and you know, ‘Hey let’s have a little snack or something.’ Then we’ll get things.  Knowing his vegan lifestyle I think I would probably defer to him.  I’m more of a person who likes to dine out anyway.  I think we would start the meeting there and then venture somewhere locally for a bite.

JH:  Morrissey is not coming unless there are snacks on the table.

OW:  I would get some Smarties, cos I would want to eat those things, and I would get some grapes.

JH:  Smarties and grapes.  

OW:  I don’t know if he would eat, uh, my snacks, but I would probably get Smarties and grapes.

JH:  What do you like to eat when you go out?

OW:  I love Italian food.  Simple pastas.  I don’t eat condiments.  Something light, a cream based sauce, olive oil, Parmesan.  Simple stuff. 

JH:  What is your favourite Smiths album?

OW:  Hatful Of Hollow.

JH:  Who is your favourite Smith?

OW:  Andy is my favourite Smith because he’s a friend.  I love him, he’s a good man.

JH:  Favourite Morrissey single?

OW:  ‘November Spawned A Monster’.

JH:  Favourite Morrissey album?

OW:  It would have to be the first one because that’s the one that I played over and over and over again.  I’m not kidding you, I listened to that over and over and over and I played hard. Viva Hate is my favourite album.  I love that record - that’s my favourite.

JH:  Favourite book?

OW:  I love a book called Wonderland Avenue by Danny Sugerman.  It’s a movie that I’m making but I also just really, really love it.  It connects with a twelve year old boy’s pursuit to follow his dream in the midst of dark times, certainly in the sixties and seventies. Danny became friends with Jim Morrison and before he knew it he was managing The Doors.  Then you see his life change from that moment.  

JH:  Is that your next project?

OW:  It’s one of them.  Danny is no longer with us but the woman that was married to him loved Control.  She’s a very dear friend.  I had met Danny a couple of times.  There are so many books that tinker with favourites but this one really comes to mind.

JH:  Did you read Autobiography?

OW:  I’ve almost finished it.  I love it. I like to listen to the voices on audio books.  I really liked Morrissey’s book.  I love details in movies and music.  There’s a lot in there.

JH:  Favourite pizza topping?

OW:  Quattro formaggi.

JH:  Favourite childhood toy?

OW:  My chemistry set. I don’t remember any specific experiments I did.  I just tried to keep from poisoning the dog.  I had a little workshop.  I was a little kid so I had to tinker with my own stuff. The other one was a tape recorder.  I talked into tape recorders!  I still have all these tapes.  It was more of a journal than a toy.  It was really cool.

JH:  Have you listened back to those tapes recently?

OW:  Not recently. It’s not like, ‘Oh my God I’m so depressed.’ It’s just more like, ‘Oh there’s a girl I like down the street.’  It’s cute to hear your own voice.  I should have them digitized because the tapes are all in a box somewhere.

JH:  What’s your favourite movie?

OW: Blade Runner, a hundred percent.

JH:  Favourite producer?

OW:  Robert Evans.

JH:  Favourite drink?

OW:  Iced tea. Sweet iced tea.

JH:  Favourite concert?

OW:  Elvis Presley.  I saw him when I was five years old, it was my first concert.  He is my favourite performer, musically.

JH:  Do you own a cowboy hat?

OW:  Yep. There’s a picture of me on Instagram wearing one, going to my first concert.

JH:  Who is your greatest influence?

OW:  My mom. She has always said, ‘Orian, pursue your dreams.  Don’t let anyone ever tell you that you can’t do something.’

JH:  What a great mum.  She must have seen that creative spirit in you.

OW:  She is a great force, in a real wonderful sweet way.  She’s the sweetest.  All my friends call her ‘Ma’.  She’s a good ol’ Mississippi girl.  I include my aunts, my cousins; we’re a tight family and get together every holiday.

JH:  I bet they can’t wait to hear what you’re doing.

OW:  They want to hear the stories.  As much as they like to hear my stories I like to hear theirs, and that fuels me in a way.  There’s nothing better than taking my aunts and uncle and mom to the BAFTAs or the premieres where they get to meet interesting folks. There’s nothing more rewarding than pleasing the people that you love.

JH:  Please could you write a note to my mum?

OW:  Absolutely, for sure, one hundred percent.

[JH:  Orian writes a lovely note to Pat which I clumsily leave behind.  Here is a picture or Orian and Roger instead.  Perhaps when they find the note.]

Found it!

Follow 'Golden Ian’ on Instagram @orianw.

© All content is copyright Julie Hamill 2017.  Unauthorised use and/or duplication of this material without consent from Julie Hamill is strictly prohibited.  

Contact @juliehamill

[vegastotherescue-blog]

Las Vegas For Kids and Family

5. Get a massage - If you are using the spa on your casino/hotel or one of those appearing thousands of other areas on/off the strip to find a massage, get a massage. Nothing is more relaxing than this. This tip alone will have you thanking me.

2. See a show - Proceed to one of the 1/2 price ticket locations and get tickets to something that you haven't ever heard of. A number of the cheap ticketed displays are extremely fun. Definitely get tickets into your hypnosis show and also be prepared. I would also suggest watching one of the big name shows like "Cirque". Tip - Once you have purchased tickets in the 1/2 cost place, you may typically have top-of-the-line privileges the next day to get tickets to something different.

Sure, there are at least a million ways to get into trouble in Las Vegas, and a thousand ways to find interesting things to do in vegas. The internet is filled with websites that will provide you coupons for 2 for 1 specials for displays and buffets. The majority of the casinos will provide you free gifts for registering for their player's clubs, and there are plenty of publications which include coupons. Information on Las Vegas comes in many types. I also have a couple of buddies that go to Vegas at least twice a year and they constantly tell me all the "inside" dirt over the "fun things" which they've discovered. I followed lots of their advice initially and quickly found that what one person finds enjoyment, you might not find even a little interesting. I cannot difinatively state that I know more than they do, but Iw sick at least tell you a few things that you may not have heard before. To that end , I have compiled a list of 10 things which may make your trip to Las Vegas a bit better or, at least, a little more interesting.

1. Get a rental car - Even though Las Vegas is a great place to wander around and people watch, it's a nightmare on the toes. I love to walk through the casinos and see what they need to offer, but have found that the appearing miles involving casinos on the strip, leave little energy for the interesting things to do from the casinos. The tram is a great concept, but it is at the rear of the casinos also, the majority of the casinos are as deep as they are wide. You will need to watch for the gazillion poor people which didn't follow my advice and are hoofing it around. When you are a block or 2 away from the strip, driving is a cinch.

6. Get over to Boulder - Vegas is more than the strip. I know I know, but vegastotherescue's facebook it is true. There is also the bonus of not near as much traffic as the

4. If you do not, find out.

3. Sit and enjoy the casinos - New york, New York is among the more visually stunning casinos, so drive your lease to the drop and move on in (the valet item is free except for the tip when they pull back your automobile). Sit in https://www.vegastotherescue.com one of the bigger traffic areas and just watch the people walk by. Take a look at the area which looks just like you are in an old part of New York, full of smoking manhole covers. Attempt New Sodas And Candies In Rocket Fizz

8. Find out when to Hold'em - Take a free class from the majority of the casinos to understand to play something you do not know. Learn how to play poker and sit in on a tournament. Play the bizarre games which are not in the main places. Sit and enjoy the free drinks and play the penny slots.

At a strip mall at the border of Vegas (literally, it is nothing but desert several blocks away), there's a cool shop named Rocket Fizz, where you can discover hundreds of

Their show is named Sunset Stampede, an eight-minute excursion of the Western pioneer as told via water theatrics, lights, lasers, and animation. It has no Bellagio fountains, but it's far better than buying cap guns and trying to reenact life in the Old West with your friends.

9. Check out the free material - There are so many neat things that people simply walk right by all the time. Enjoy a viewing of this pirate show in front of Treasure Island. Notice the dancing fountains in front of the Belagio. We have one of those Las Vegas City goes and spent most of a day doing the free things involved with it.

At the casinos a few miles away, your money goes farther. Table minimums are lower and casinos such as Eastside Cannery, a refined '50's inspired hotel with color-changing outside, and the elegantly designed Red Rock Resort, are replete with nickel and penny slots.

This may come as a surprise, but Las Vegas is much more than just a four mile strip of flashy hotels and loud casinos. It's truly a sprawling metropolis of 2 million individuals that spans over 4,000 square miles, meaning there is a whole lot more to do than watch a drunk guy try to find his missing shoe (even though that is highly entertaining). Here's some fun things to do off the Las Vegas Strip...

The first half of the series is trendy, depicting cowboys and Indians and dessert animals looking way more vibrant and futuristic than they do in real life. Suddenly the tune changes and the show morphs to an oddly uncomfortable show of pro-America propaganda, complete with state songs and images of military might.

strip.

7. Within this ever-changing city, there's a place that you can still get a feeling of the old days. Any of the casinos on Freemont street will supply an immediate opening into the "experience" and if you see nothing else in Vegas, see this. Wait until about 5:00 PM on a Friday evening and then walk into the throng of people that are gathered outside the doorways. There are pubs with the doors wide open and provides free or buy 1 get 1 drink specials. Watch for the lights to dim and the road performers to stop what they're doing, then stare up into the canopy and then watch the display. You wil NOT be let down. Additionally, there are some interesting, old strip clubs on Freemont that can, if nothing else, give you a sense of the other side of this glitz and glam of the other areas.

Go to A Casino Away The Strip

The one problem with The Strip resorts is the lack of free amusement (and at a city like Vegas where costs four times more than it should, free entertainment is the only thing preventing you from betting your mortgage at the tables). Among the few hotels which offers a free series is Sam's Town, a hotel way the heck out there on the outskirts of Las Vegas. Get Outdoors At Red Rock Canyon

Pinball Hall Of Fame

I grew up sucking at video games, but I still wish I grew up twenty years prior so that I could have sucked at pinball rather.

It is possible to see Red Rock Canyon way from the distance from most of the resorts - it sticks out like a swollen red sore thumb - plus it does not seem as if it would be that interesting.

But after spending $7 to choose the 13-mile scenic drive and also stopping at various points to walk around, this things to do for free in las vegas blog prehistoric playground for hikers and rock-climbers took on an extraordinarily striking, even mysterious, life.

Bubble gum cigarettes.

There are even a few games that are new, like an Iron Man two pinball machine, and an enjoyable ski ball game called Dunk 'N Alien where competitors try to hit a moving target and dunk an alien.

Seems like a lethal combination, however, it was surprisingly good, although I'm not used to heat lingering in my mouth after a swig of soda.

They even come in a box that looks like a real pack of smokes. But here is the best part: pretend to smoke the white and smoke smoke shoots out.

If you have ever seen the History Channel show Pawn Stars, you are aware that the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop has become another Vegas landmark. But when you see the place, it's kind of a let down.

Varieties of candy and honey, a few of which you probably haven't seen since you last purchased something in the ice cream man.

Locate Treasure With All The Pawn Stars

There were a few motorcycles at the rear and a few old slot machines around the countertop, but not enough to warrant braving the huge crowds that pack into this little place to purchase overpriced souvenirs.

We didn't bring appropriate clothes to go trekking, nor do we possess the stamina to

There is a strange atmosphere about the giant stack of reddish sandstone rocks in the canyon. Not in a bad manner. It's easy to sense why the Native Americans believed it a religious location.

Undoubtedly the trendiest trip, and also the one we ruled that the most, was the push thirty minutes outside of Vegas into Red Rock Canyon.

But my greatest find was some thing which got me in trouble once I was a kid. It's definitely the most un-politically correct candy ever produced and I can't think they still make this stuff...

It is totally wrong and sends a terrible message to kids, but I am not gonna lie, it appears effin' sweet.

The shop is smaller than it looks on TV, the men on the show just work a few hours on weekdays, and everything is terribly overpriced. I thought we would see a lot of the intriguing antiques they purchase on the display, but it is mainly jewelry available. And the notion of wearing somebody else's jewelry, especially knowing they pawned it to likely pay for medical bills or anything else, is disturbing.

Perhaps my favourite word in the entire English language is "free," and also Rocket Fizz delivers free soda tastings on Saturday. After attempting this gently carbonated peach soda that tasted just like a real peach (science has arrived so far), I asked a clerk to get the weirdest soda. Finally, grab a show while in town. There are lots of entertainment options which range from raunchy comedy to top-notch productions that are nearly science-fiction in their production. Again, you may find discount chances if you opt to find the show at your resort, so check into what is available before heading into the desert.

At the end of a long day of gambling and shopping, most friends and couples will want to enjoy a good meal. There isn't any better place on earth to do this than in Sin City. Check out the restaurants on your hotel because you may be entitled to special discounts.

Sin City is really a fun town, particularly if you are to wagering a couple bucks here and there. The good news is, there are still a lot of ways to have a great time, even if you're not a gambler. The town is chock-full of entertainment, luxury, dining and actions so there's something to suit everyone's taste. This is good news if someone you love enjoys gambling, but you are not that into it. You will still have the ability to find plenty of things to do to pass the time while on vacation. Begin by arranging a way to stay out of trouble. While Sin City isn't much on family entertainment, there are still a few things for kids to do. However, you're more likely to avoid needing a child custody lawyer or custody lawyer of any kind if you live the children behind.

Always Be On The Look Out!

One of the most appealing areas of Sin City is the ability to unwind and enjoy luxuries you would not bother with in the home. Most of the hotels along the strip have spa facilities and many are very affordable. It is possible to reserve treatments like massages and facials, or you can just utilize the facilities for free without scheduling an appointment or paying for a service. The spas frequently feature fitness centers, water treatments, steam rooms and saunas, or you may just relax poolside. Some hotels even offer poolside massages. Before booking your hotel room, explore their spa and determine exactly what services are available for your personal holiday budget.

Challenge the canyon - it's far easier walking than things to do for free in las vegas scaling up - so that we didn't do much exploring.

If you are not interested in spa treatments, or adhering to a service in a health club, you are able to indulge in a few world-class shopping. There are few areas that are as jam-packed with high-end shops as Sin City. Even though you might not be able to afford to store in every store, there are just a few places which cool things to do in vegas wiki are better to window shop. Many of the hotels have been linked to their shopping areas and you may walk for miles past stores and stores without ever stepping outside. Among the high-end designer product are a couple of well-known, affordable stores, so plan to spend some time enjoying retail therapy while in city.

Las Vegas is a fast growing city with more entertainment options than many people give it credit for. Eliminate The Strip and remain on the look out for new stores, excursions and attractions.

[calvinwatchesstuff]

Calvin Reacts to Overwatch Finale: Profiles

I’m not even sure if anyone is reading these things, but I’m sure as hell going to finish them. 

Alright, here we are on the last section: the character profiles. I admit, I’m still not at all sure what’s going on with the majority of these characters, which might mean it was a bad idea to watch all the shorts first. But ah well, too late for that now. For now, it’s time to get straight into what I’ve been waiting for... the profiles! (Note: the format is going to be a little bit different this time; I kind of want to get all this done in one post. I’m also not going to be paying much attention to the gameplay section, since I don’t own the game and probably won’t any time soon.) 

GENJI 

Okay, so this is basically the story I kind of inferred from “Dragons”: Hanzo and Genji had a falling-out, Genji was left for dead, but he ended up getting saved by Overwatch and rebuilt as a cyborg. It’s interesting to learn that Genji is (at least as far as I can tell) the good guy in this scenario, since he was the one who wanted nothing to do with all the criminal shit that their family was involved in. Also interesting to see how Zenyatta is involved in this; I like this new sense of interconnectedness between the characters. 

McCREE 

Now here’s someone I barely saw in the trailers, and not at all in the shorts. I have to say, I like the idea; mercenaries almost always have something interesting going on. I still have no goddamn idea why he’s dressed like a cowboy, though; that was kind of the thing I was most interested in finding out. Ah well, I guess we all have our own thing. 

PHARAH 

Okay, based on her gameplay style, I’m officially calling her “Miss Explosion”. 

On the serious side, I can kind of relate to her in terms of getting to something just in time to find that whatever you were excited about was already over. It happens to me a lot with shows and book series I’m interested in; on the one hand it’s nice because I get to see everything at once, but on the other hand I don’t get the excitement of waiting for the next episode and the odds of me getting spoiled are overwhelmingly larger. It happened with Fablehaven, it’s happening with Homestuck, and it’ll almost definitely happen with Kingdom Hearts III. Goddamn early Japanese release dates. Let’s hope for a worldwide release for once. 

...did I say that was the serious side? Because I probably shouldn’t have. Anyway, another cool bio. 

REAPER 

Okay, here they just kind of cheated. I came here looking for information about who Reaper is and what’s driving him, and literally the second sentence of the bio is “[Reaper’s] identity and motives are a mystery”. Although the theory they do provide (which, let’s be honest, is probably going to be the one they go with or else why bring it up at all) is pretty damn cool. Still, wish we could have had some kind of backstory. 

SOLDIER: 76 

Yeah, this is basically the same bio we got from the animatic. Really should have read these earlier. Hey, don’t blame me; blame TVTropes for listing the profiles last. 

SOMBRA 

Well, for one thing she’s apparently capable of hacking the fourth wall to remove her personal information. 

Alright, so here’s where we’re starting to get into the lore: apparently Sombra stumbled upon some kind of conspiracy, presumably the same one that was responsible for whatever the fuck happened to Overwatch itself. It can’t be Talon, since the article specifically identifies them as being different entities. So who is it? I guess we’ll just have to wait for future updates to find out. 

TRACER 

Literally just the same stuff as the animatic, in some cases word for word. 

BASTION 

Basically the same stuff, but we do get some nice worldbuilding about the Omnic Crisis, and about Omnics in general. Yeah, definitely getting Iron Giant vibes from Bastion here. 

HANZO 

Yeah, this is just the “Dragons” short. From here on out I’m not going to comment on a page too much unless it has something new. 

JUNKRAT 

Alright, now here’s the something new I was talking about. So apparently in the future Australia has been rendered even less habitable than it currently is, due to an attack on something called an “omnium”. I’m gonna look up what the fuck THAT is once I’m done here. And apparently Junkrat found some sort of secret in the ruins of said omnium, but no one has any idea what it is. Intriguing. That’s something I’m gonna have to look into as well. Also, Junkrat’s face reminds me of someone, but I can’t for the life of me think who. 

MEI 

Another character I have literally no context for. And if you’ll forgive the unspeakably shitty pun, she has a pretty cool backstory! So apparently she was an environmentalist working with Overwatch to figure out how specifically we were fucking over the planet this time, but an avalanche caused her and her team to get cut off; so she basically Futurama’d herself in order to survive until rescue came. This again feels like something that’s getting built up to in coming updates; all these unknowns excite my inner theorist. 

TORBJÖRN 

So this guy seems to have created most of the weapons for the original Overwatch agents. I guess he really is a futuristic dwarven smith. And of course no one listened to him when he was talking about robots trying to take over the world, and then the bad things happened. Not too much backstory on this one, but I want to hear more about him tracking down his old weapons; that sounds like a killer story. 

WIDOWMAKER 

I’M NOT CRYING, YOU’RE CRYING 

D.VA 

Okay, so she’s a gamer, I guess. That’s always cool. As for the backstory proper, it’s like Pacific Rim, only somehow even more ominous: some kind of giant robot thing appeared near South Korea, no one knows where the fuck it came from, and apparently the entire country’s military and an army of giant mechs can’t kill it faster than it can adapt. Also, that last sentence indicating that she is now livestreaming her military battles might be the single most amazing thing I’ve yet come across in this series. 

ORISA 

Basically the same thing as the animatic. More cryptic references to Doomfist. I want to know who the fuck Doomfist is. Get on that, Blizzard. 

REINHARDT 

Well, I like that he’s a knight. In terms of backstory there’s not too much new stuff here, but I have to say, I kind of like the guy so far. I hope he gets some spotlight later on. 

ROADHOG 

So this is basically a prequel to Junkrat’s entry. I guess an “omnium” is an area that’s controlled by the Omnics, or else some kind of facility for robots? I’ll look it up later. As for this guy, I have to admit it’s a pretty sad story. I feel for the guy. 

WINSTON 

A lot of stuff I already suspected, but it’s nice to have it confirmed. Also, this backstory was even more full of feels than I was expecting. I love the idea that genetically enhanced gorillas are just a thing that everyone accepts exists in the future. 

ZARYA 

So she was an Olympic athlete who spent most of her life training to compete, but at the last second ended up having to change course and fight robots. Also, yeah, an omnium is definitely some kind of base for robots. 

ANA 

The last of the three post-release characters (so far; come on, Blizzard, where’s that Doomfist ARG?). Basically the same as the animatic. 

LÚCIO 

Another character I know nothing about, other than the fact that Hobbes keeps calling his weapon a “bass cannon”. As for the backstory...eh, it’s not much I haven’t seen in a crapload of other stories. Cool character design, though. 

MERCY 

Ah, so she’s the one who rebuilt Genji! Wow, nearly at the end and that whole thing comes full circle. Anyway, I like her character; she’s basically the world’s most badass pacifist. The backstory is pretty cool too; again, not too much I haven’t seen elsewhere, but it’s still interesting. 

SYMMETRA 

“Symmetra literally bends reality.” Well, that’s certainly one way to keep the reader on their toes. 

Yeah, this one is pretty cool. Absolutely cringe-worthy dialogue aside (seriously, “architechs”? “Utopaea”? I was having a hard enough time buying “Symmetra”), I am curious about who’s side she’ll ultimately end up being on. It’s interesting that one of the most powerful characters so far is one who isn’t with Overwatch or explicitly fighting it. 

ZENYATTA 

And here we are, the one I’ve been waiting for: Robo-Monk. I actually read the abilities on this one because I was so confused by them in the trailer. As for the backstory, it’s pretty damn cool! I have to say, I really like the whole thing with robots finding religion; that’s one of my favorite sci-fi tropes, seeing how aspects of our culture would be interpreted and adapted for a completely different form of life. And again, we get some more hints about future events. 

And with that, I have caught up. I am now familiar with the characters and the lore. Of course, I’m not finished; there are still the comics (which I'll check out on my own some time), and of course there is the game itself (which I might get at some point if I can figure out how the hell to run it on a Duel Disk). And of course, there will probably be other videos in the future, which I will of course react to. But for now, at least, I can finally put this series to rest. This is Calvin, signing off. 

(Oh, and expect some Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V reactions...soon-ish.)