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f-o-r-g-e-t-m-e-n-0-t · 4 years ago

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Axel was not okay.

Sure, he wore the skin of a man keeping it together. They’d ask “how are you doing?” and he’d say he’s “doing just fine” when in reality he was a man held together by duct tape and chewing gum and a rediscovered smoking habit.

623 days.

Six hundred and twenty three days.

Axel kept count.

His friends told him he looked well, lately. That he stood a little taller. That he looked grounded. They purposefully didn’t look at the gold band still on his finger. They didn’t ask about his work.

Axel had quit the Institute. He was being rash, he was having a breakdown, he’d regret it once the world settled around him. That’s what they all told him. It was such a great honor to work there, according to everyone else. Axel had thought that way too, once upon a time.

Six hundred and twenty three days ago.

Axel didn’t trust the Institute anymore. The name tasted like bile on his tongue, it’s pristine halls were glorified prisons. Eyes watched him, he was sure. They wouldn’t tell him anything. He had a right to know and they wouldn’t tell him anything! They just filled him with empty platitudes about how sorry they were for his loss...

His loss.

How patronizing.

Everyone ignored it. People went missing all the time now, each a mini tragedy that was chalked up to natural reasons and forgotten by the world at large.

Deja vu was a daily occurrence for everyone. No one talked about it. Nor did they talk about the things only seen from the corner of your eye, or how you would be so sure some everyday object was... different. Exactly the same, yet not. Replaced, somehow, by a perfect replica that could fool the eye, but you knew. You always knew. But you didn’t mention it.

People ignored the way the sky would sometimes shift and bend, like cellophane pulled and twisted by greedy hands. Axel wondered when it would break – he was sure it eventually would – and what would come pouring into their world that had previously been kept just behind the blue.

623 days.

Everything was wrong. Wrong wrong wrong.

An no one mentioned it. Pretended not to see. The same way they pretended not to see the way Axel still kept two pairs of shoes by the door. Two coffee mugs on the kitchen counter. Two toothbrushes in the bathroom.

A wedding ring on his left hand.

Six hundred and twenty three days. That’s how long he’d been alone. That’s when his world had fallen apart.

That’s when-

“Hey, Axel.” A heavy hand clapped down on his shoulder, pulling Axel from his thoughts.

Axel blinked rapidly and pulled his eyes away from his computer screen. “Morning, boss.”

Barret was a mountain of a man. Tall, imposing, and built like a brick house. He could easily snap Axel’s skinny body in half, if Barret weren’t, in reality, such a softie. The man had taken Axel into when he needed it most. Practically grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and hauled his drunken ass in to the little group he’d formed.

“Heard ya used to work for the Institute. We could use a brain like yours. Now, don’t lookit’ me that way, I – we – understand. We know what you’re goin’ through, kid. It’s hard. You ain’t obligated to do anything, but at the very least, come see what we’re about.”

Axel had done just that, and accepted his position on the spot.

Their team was small. Underground and secretive in their work. They didn’t even have a name, just a common goal.

Axel found he fit in with the band of misfits. They were all like him, eyes opened to the world around him, and disillusioned to its lies.

He was grateful to the team. After departing the Institute, he’d spent his time alone, isolated, running himself thin. When he wasn’t working, he was drinking into oblivion. When he wasn’t drinking into oblivion, he was working. He often had more cigarette smoke in his system than food.

The team gave him some stability. A sense that he belonged. That he wasn’t alone. That he wasn’t crazy. He couldn’t say he was terribly close with any of them — though some were certainly more friendly than others — but their presence was grounding and reassuring all the same.

And they were all looking for something. Someone.

Yuna’s boyfriend had gone missing two years prior. Lightning’s sister just a little longer than that. Prompto was looking for his best friend – a senator’s son, shockingly enough. Balthier was looking for his ‘partner in crime’, though Axel suspected there was more to the relationship than the man let on.

Barret probably had it the hardest. His young daughter had been missing for four years. It had been the driving force behind him starting up his little venture in the first place.

And Axel? Well...

“I’m sending you, Lightning, and Prompto out to the Western Wilds today,” Barret said. “Big energy flux out there.

With a nod and no questions asked, Axel grabbed his things and prepared to depart.

The Western Wilds had been beautiful once. Rolling green hills interspersed with the occasional grove of lush green trees. Blue skies that stretched on for miles. It had been left largely uncultivated, and instead acted as a nature preserve and wildlife park. There’d been a time when Axel, like many others, enjoyed weekend getaways there to camp or hike and simply ‘be one with nature.’

Now, it felt broken. Damaged. Strange rifts had opened up there, distorting the once beautiful and safe landscape. People couldn’t ignore the rifts as much as they did everything else, so they opted to abandon the place altogether. Retreat to the cities and their illusion of safety. Axel supposed be couldn’t blame them, there. Even much of the wildlife had fled.

It had become a routine place for the team to investigate because of the strange rifts. Surely it held answers for them. Surely it was connected to everything else so broken and wrong with their reality.

It’s distorted landscape was familiar enough, but as Axel and his companions hiked out onto the rolling fields, it felt... different. The air felt sharp, and something hummed in Axel’s veins.

Next to him, even the usually chatty Prompto had fallen quiet, camera gripped tightly in his hands, a thumb playing nervously with a dial. Lightning was never chatty, but there was a sharpness in her gaze. A tenseness in her shoulders. Something was different today.

It didn’t take them long to find their target, the cause of the energy flux. Cresting over a hill, the team spotted it immediately.

What had once been a small grove of trees, mercifully untouched by the schisms, was now a rats’ nest of distortions. Axel could hardly focus his eyes on the place. It was a smeared painting of what had once been trees. Leaves vibrated to the point of blurring, or seemed to flicker in and out of existence entirely. The very air around it warped and bent, like heat rising off asphalt. A strange black substance, so dark it absorbed light, oozed from bark like poisoned sap.

It was unlike any distortion they’d seen before.

Next to him, in a hushed voice, Prompto asked, “What on Earth is that?”

No one answered him. They had no answer to give.

Slowly, cautiously, they carried their equipment down the hill and approached the rift-torn-grove. The air buzzed as they picked their way between trees, closer and closer to the source of the distortion.

They knew it when they saw it, as it was unlike anything Axel had seen before. The very space seemed cracked, like a broken mirror, and reality sat disjointed and askew. A deep void in the center of the breakage, swirling black, and Axel felt the very blood in his veins pulled towards it.

The rifts of the Western Wilds often distorted and broke the landscape. None had such a... hole in them.

They stopped a few feet away, not daring to move any closer, and unloaded their equipment.

Every member on the team had their own theory to the distortions. A rift in time, from the future or the past. A tie to another reality altogether. Even a sentient being, or collection of beings caught in space time. No one theory prevailed above the others, but neither had any been ruled out.

Attempting communication with them or whatever was on the other side was one of their key goals, and since Axel had been working on doing just that before joining the team, he was in charge of continuing that work.

His equipment worked to record any transmission received from the rifts, where Axel would take them back to the lab to decipher what – if anything — they relayed.

He also sent his own messages out to the rifts, hoping something — someone — might pick it up.

His messages were wide and varied. Greetings in numerous languages. Speeches, Morse code, music. One song in particular was his favorite. It had been their song. Axel hoped that maybe it would reach, well...

It was one of multiple messages he’d use today. His teammates had their work as well. Prompto snapped photos and recorded video of the odd new rift, documenting it from every angle he could safely reach. Lightning surveyed the surrounding area, made notes of the trees, the plants, the soil, the wildlife – or lack thereof.

Axel’s first transmission went out, the sound oddly muffled and muted in the warped air around them. If Axel didn’t know better — and maybe he didn’t — he could have sworn the very sound and frequency was pulled into the void itself. He sent it out a second time, but his machines recorded no response.

A second, a third, a fourth, and a fifth all went out the same way, and all were greeted with silence from the other side. Axel couldn’t say he was surprised. Disappointed maybe, but this had long since become routine. He’d become used to the lack of a breakthrough.

He was nothing on his own. A bitter thought really, one that burned like bile. Smart? Capable? Hard working? Yes. But brilliant? No. Brilliant had been... brilliant was when they were together. Two minds working as one, filling in for and lifting up the other. Brilliant was-

With a sigh, Axel prepped the last message to be sent off to the void. His song — their song. The soft melody drifted up and out, bittersweet these days but no less lovely to Axel’s ears. He had almost let himself drift away with the music, when a loud ringing echoed through the grove. A sharp ping, like a glass being struck, so clear and loud compared to all other muted and warped sound.

All three members of the group stopped and, after a moment’s pause Lightning and Prompto rejoined Axel’s side. He could practically feel the questions on their tongues, but neither spoke, as all three simply waited with baited breath.

As they hoped, there was another loud ring. It came from the void and Axel’s equipment at once, as though the two were linked and communicating somehow. His heart stuttered in his chest at the revelation. Something had made contact! Something had made contact!

The next ring that came stretched into a long note, and Axel realized it was in tune with the music. A little warbly and distorted, but sure enough, there was a second song playing along with his own.

Axel didn’t have time to process that thought before the music began to get louder, and louder. Shrill and ringing it sliced through the crackling air, and sent the three team members to their knees. They covered their ears as the whole world vibrated around them, like a struck tuning fork. Cracks in the sky and the air splintered out, slicing reality like so much broken glass. Just when Axel thought they couldn’t take much more, it stopped.

The air went quiet and still.

Looking up, Axel saw the void had changed. The hole, the rift, had gotten wider. The dark expanse beyond it now seeped out, rolling like fog and dripping like oil. Where once the world had bent and pulled in towards toward the rift, now whatever was on the other side seemed to bulge and push back out.

The three held their breath as they watched, as silent and still as the air around them.

Movement. A shape, dark and cloaked in shadows, or rather, dripping with them. Inky black and moving oddly as it emerged from the void. It took a moment for Axel realize there was solid form at all beneath the darkness.

It shambled, staggered, then righted itself, moving like something injured or exhausted beyond reason. Perhaps both. All the while, the black substance sloughed off it like so much rotten skin. As more fell, the shape beneath was revealed.

They were human, or at least, human-esque.

Another stagger, and an arm raised to wipe away more of the inky black substance. It fell away with ease, leaving the person beneath it clean where Axel would have assumed them stained in black.

Each bit that fell away revealed more of the person beneath. Tanned skin, muscular arms. A tattered top, and dark, worn-in boots. Blond hair.

Axel tried to swallow the odd lump that had formed in his throat as his own heart threatened to beat out of his chest. He was standing, equipment dropped and forgotten on the grassy earth. Next to him, his team members called his name, but they sounded so far away. So unimportant. All Axel could focus on was the figure before him.

623 days.

Another step, and the man faltered, exhaustion finally taking its toll. He fell, one leg giving way, then two, before he slumped to the ground entirely.

Axel was running before he knew it, the frantic calls of Lightning and Prompto far, far behind him. He skidded to the ground next to the fallen, unconscious man.

With shaking hands and held breath, Axel brushed blond hair aside to behold the familiar face. Tanned skin. Freckles. Hidden eyes that Axel knew to be blue. A wedding ring on one finger.

Six hundred and twenty three days since he’d gone missing, disappeared like so many others. Six hundred and twenty three days that Axel had waited, and hoped, and searched, and now...

Axel’s husband was home.

Roxas was home.

#akuroku #drabble #prompt #my writing #no I won’t finish this or do anything with it lol #no beta we die like men #axel #roxas #au

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aion-rsa · 3 years ago

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Rick and Morty: A Guide to Every Voice Actor

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

The world of Rick and Morty has grown to absurd proportions. The show spans multiple planets, galaxies, timelines, and multiverses, meaning there’s always an opportunity to meet strange new people and creatures.

As such, Rick and Morty’s voice cast has grown along with the adventures of its titular pair. While co-creator Justin Roiland, Chris Parnell, Spencer Grammer, and Sarah Chalke have reliably voiced the central Smith-Sanchez family this entire time, the show also relies on a large crop of other voice actors. Some actors recur while others pop up only a time or two as very special guests. But all contribute to the rich aural tapestry of Adult Swim’s very ambitious animated series.

Gathered here is a list of (to the best of our knowledge) every voice actor who has popped up on Rick and Morty, who they played, and where you may have heard (or seen) them before.

Justin Roiland

Rick, Morty, Mr. Meseeks, Mr. Poopybutthole, Mr. Always Wants to Be Hunted

Justin Roiland is not just the co-creator of Rick and Morty but also the vocal engine for how much of the show sounds. Roiland portrays Rick, Morty, Mr. Meseeks, Mr. Poopybutthole, and countless other distinctively voiced characters in the show’s weird world. From the pilot on, Roiland’s tic-filled voice patterns have driven a lot of the humor behind the show.

Roiland has been an animator and a voice actor for quite a long time, getting involved with his eventual Rick and Morty co-creator Dan Harmon and his Channel 101 imprint back in 2004. There he made Internet-only cult animated series like House of Cosbys, and 2 Girls One Cup: the Show. His voice was previously well known as Earl of Lemongrab (“Unacceptable!!!”) in Adventure Time.

Chris Parnell

Jerry Smith

Former SNL cast member Chris Parnell has had a prolific career in comedy both as a live-action and voice actor. Parnell is best known for playing Garth Holliday in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, Dr. Leo Spaceman in 30 Rock, and many more roles in film and television. In the animation world he’s voiced characters on Archer, Robot Chicken, Gravity Falls, and beyond. His voice is often perfect for the “everyman” role and as such he has only been required to embody the sad form of Jerry Smith on Rick and Morty thus far.

Spencer Grammer

Summer Smith

The daughter of Kelsey Grammar, Spencer Grammar got her start as Casey Carywright on the ABC Family college dramedy Greek. Since then, she has done chiefly live-action work on shows such as CSI, Chicago PD, and Grey’s Anatomy.

Sarah Chalke

Beth Smith

Canadian actress Sarah Chalke brings two enormous roles from TV comedy’s past to her work on Rick and Morty. At first she was best known as the “second Becky” on ABC sitcom Roseanne. She would then go on to portray Dr. Elliot Reid for nine seasons of the classic Scrubs. Chalke is still chiefly a live-action comedic actress today but has done some more voice work in the past, including on Clone High and American Dad.

Kari Wahlgren

Jessica, Cynthia, Samantha, Mother Gaia

Kari Wahlgren works extensively as a voice actress for animated movies, TV shows, and video games. As evidenced by her character list above, she is often Rick and Morty’s go-to voice to portray one of Summer’s teenage peers.

Brandon Johnson

Mr. Goldenfold

Brandon Johnson is a familiar face and voice to Adult Swim audiences. He has previously popped up on NTSF:SD:SUV and American Dad. On Rick and Morty he voices Mr. Goldenfold, who is seemingly the only teacher at Morty and Summer’s school.

Phil Hendrie

Principal Gene Vagina

Philip Hendrie is best known for hosting The Phil Hendrie Show, a proto-Comedy Bang Bang-esque talk radio show in the 1990s where he portrayed both a fictionalized version of himself and many other wacky characters. He broke into animated voice acting in the late ‘90s, voicing dozens of characters on King of the Hill and popping up in Futurama as well. On Rick and Morty he plays the unfortunately named principal of Morty’s school.

Ryan Ridley

Frank Palicky, Lighthouse Keeper, Concerto

Ryan Ridley is a writer and producer on Rick and Morty, and like many of the show’s writers is sometimes called upon to lend his voice to a character or two. His best known creation is the Lighthouse Keeper on the Purge planet obsessed with his terrible screenplay. Ridley has also written for Ghosted, Blue Mountain State, and Community.

Rob Paulsen

Snuffles, Centaur

Rob Paulsen is a legendary voice actor best known for voicing two Ninja Turtles (Raphael and Donatello) and several Animaniacs characters. His filmography is truly impressive and includes the important role of Snuffles the Smith family dog on Rick and Morty.

Jess Harnell

Scary Terry, Ruben

Harnell is another Animaniacs veteran. After voicing Scary Terry and some additional voices in season 1, Harnell has yet to return to Rick and Morty.

Patricia Lentz

Joyce Smith

Patricia Lentz provides the voice of Jerry’s mom. She’s had a long, impressive career of live-action and voice acting with some highlights including Runaways, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and Happy Days.

Dana Carvey

Leonard Smith

The voice of Jerry’s dad is provided by one of SNL’s better known alums in Dana Carvey. A master impressionist, Carvey was an important figure on SNL during the ‘80s and would go on to star in Wayne’s World, The Master of Disguise, and Trapped in Paradise. Shortly after his SNL career, he hosted The Dana Carvey Show, which did not last long but is notable in TV history for having an incredible cast of writers including Louis C.K. Charlie Kaufman, Jon Glaser, Robert Carlock, and frequent Dan Harmon collaborator Dino Stamatopoulos.

Echo Kellum

Jacob Philip, Brad, Triple Trunks

“I throw balls far. You want good words? Date a languager.” So sad that we had to leave Brad behind in C-137. Echo Kellum provides the voice of Brad and several other Rick and Morty characters.. Kellum is a UCB grad who has appeared in Key & Peele, Comedy Bang! Bang! and most notably Arrow as Mister Terrific.

John Oliver

Dr. Xenon Bloom

John Oliver now carries on the legacy of The Daily Show in his superb HBO news series Last Week Tonight. Prior to finding his perfect comedy news niche, Oliver had a lengthy comic acting career starting in his native England and extending into his new home in the U.S. Oliver previously played an important recurring role in Harmon’s Community and pops up just once on Rick and Morty.

David Cross

Prince Nebulon

David Cross is one of several sketch comedy legends who lent their voice to Rick and Morty as part of their lengthy careers. Cross created and starred in sketch series Mr. Show with Bob and David alongside co-creator Bob Odenkirk (how has he not popped up on Rick and Morty yet?). Since then he’s had a successful stand up career and been a part of some impressive TV ensembles such as Arrested Development.

Dan Harmon

Birdperson, Kevin, Mr. Marklovitz, Davin, Ice-T, Dr. Glip-Glop, Nimbus

Dan Harmon is the co-creator of Rick and Morty alongside Roiland. The two share a long history going back to the Channel 101 days. While both Roiland and Harmon are skilled storytellers, Harmon has truly delved into the science of story throughout his career. Harmon is best known for creating and showrunning Community, which became an onscreen sensation for fans and an offscreen nuisance for NBC due to Harmon’s at times difficult behavior. On Rick and Morty, Roiland and Harmon deploy Harmon’s deadpan delivery to good use, with him often playing monotone characters like the beloved Birdperson.

Tom Kenny

King Jellybean, Squanchy, Conroy, Million Ants, Etc.

Tom Kenny is an incredibly successful voice artist who you likely best know as none other than SpongeBob SquarePants. On Rick and Morty, Kenny’s roles are decidedly less wholesome than the sponge who lives in a pineapple under the sea. Kenny was a big factor in season 1 playing King Jellybean and Sqaunchy. He’s popped up sparingly in seasons 2, 3, and 4 as well, most notably as Million Ants of the Vindicators.

Cassie Steele

Tammy Gueterman, Tricia Lange

Somebody’s gotta play Tammy Gueterman, that traitorous monster. And that “honor” goes to Cassie Steele. Steele’s name is recognizable to Canadian (and some American) audiences due to her role as Manny Santos on Degrassi: The Next Generation. Rick and Morty was her first voice acting role. She will continue her voice acting career as the lead in Disney’s upcoming Raya and the Last Dragon.

Claudia Black

Mar-Sha/Ventriloquiver

Claudia Black has turned up on Rick and Morty twice, once in season 1 and once in season 4. It’s a surprise she hasn’t done so more often as she’s built up quite the voice acting career. After becoming well known in sci-fi series like Farscape and Stargate SG-1, Black continued on into a successful gaming career, providing her voice to Uncharted, Gears of War, and Dragon Age.

Maurice LaMarche

Morty Jr. Brad Anderson, Abradolf Lincler, Crocubot

Maurice LaMarche’s smooth baritone is quite familiar to many animation fans. LaMarche has voice acted in everything from Animaniacs to Futurama. He’s got a killer Orson Welles impression and that seems to be the starting point for many of his Rick and Morty characters.

Alfred Molina

Mr. Needful

Many of us know Alfred Molina from his incredibly successful film career in projects like Boogie Nights, Spider-Man 2, and The Da Vinci Code. But Molina has also had quite the career as a voice actor as well. In the past couple decades, Molina has lent his sturdy voice to Rango, Monsters University, Ralph Breaks the Internet, Frozen II, and more. He was clearly a shrewd choice for the Lucifer-like Mr. Needful. It’s a wonder why he hasn’t turned up on Rick and Morty more.

Richard Fulcher

King Flippy Nips

Richard Fulcher is best known as the unofficial third member of British comedy troupe The Mighty Boosh, though he himself is American. Fulcher wrote and acted in every incarnation of The Mighty Boosh. He has also had a prolific career in comedy acting outside the troupe. As of late, Fulcher has leaned into his voice acting abilities including this sadly one-off role on Rick and Morty as King Flippy Nips, ruler of Pluto.

Nolan North

Scroopy Noopers, Multiple Others

Nolan North has done extensive videogame work in franchises such as Uncharted, Assassin’s Creed, and the Arkham series. That’s right: the voice of shrimpy Plutonian Scroopy Noopers on Rick and Morty is both Nathan Drake and Desmond Miles. North also voices many other characters in positions of authority for the show.

Aislinn Paul

Nancy

Aislinn Paul is another Degrassi: The Next Generation alum who has broken into the voice acting world. On Rick and Morty, Paul plays only Nancy, Summer’s nerdy classmate who everyone is always mean to. Hopefully one day there will be justice for Nancy.

Alejandra Gollas

Lucy

Alejandra Gollas is a bilingual Mexican actress who has acted in films, TV shows, and stage productions for decades. Her only Rick and Morty role was that of creepy Titanic enthusiast Lucy.

Scott Chernoff

Revolio Clockberg Jr.

Originally referred to as “Gearhead,” Revolio Clockberg Jr. is one of Rick and Morty’s most recognizable recurring characters. Embodying this important role is veteran voice actor and TV writer Scott Chernoff. Chernoff has lent his voice to dozens of animated properties and has even written for many successful comedies including BoJack Horseman, The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien, and School of Rock. He is one of many Channel 101 veterans involved in Rick and Morty and pitches in with some other background voices on the show here and there.

Keegan-Michael Key

Schleemypants

Keegan-Michael Key is likely best known as half of the ultra successful sketch comedy duo Key & Peele. (Wonder whatever happened to the other guy!) Key has had an enormously successful career as a comedic actor on television. On Rick and Morty he plays testicle-looking time cop Schleemypants.

Jordan Peele

Second Fourth-Dimensional Being

Oh, here’s Peele! Schleemypants’ unnamed partner is the only character Peele has played on Rick and Morty.

Jemaine Clement

Fart

New Zealand comedic actor Jemaine Clement is best known for being half of the Grammy award-winning comedic musical act Flight of the Conchords alongside Bret McKenzie. Clement has also worked extensively with fellow Kiwi Taika Waititi to produce recent classics like What We Do in the Shadows. His deadpan delivery was a perfect choice monotone gaseous being “Fart.”

Andy Daly

Krombopulos Michael

Krombopulos Michael is Rick and Morty’s Boba Fett: he looks cool but ultimately does nothing. Playing K.M. was one of the most sought-of “character voice actors” in the industry. Daly’s cheerful everyman delivery has proven useful on dozens of comedy shows across the entertainment landscape. Perhaps best known for his starring vehicle Review with Forest MacNeil, Daly has also lent his voice to series such as Harley Quinn, Bob’s Burgers, and Big Mouth. He can also be heard as a crucial role on Roiland’s Solar Opposites.

Christina Hendricks

Unity

Christina Hendricks is best known for her role as Joan Holloway on Mad Men. In addition to that, however, she’s appeared in quite a few genre films and shows like Firefly, Life, and The Neon Demon. Hendricks has done some voice work here and there and her only role on Rick and Morty to date is assimilation expert and one-time Rick Sanchez paramour Unity.

Patton Oswalt

Beta-Seven

Patton Oswalt is basically the dark matter of the comedy universe. He and his voice turn up just about everywhere. Perhaps his best known voice acting role is that of lead character Remy in Ratatouille. On Rick and Morty he has played only Beta-Seven thus far and is surely due for some more appearances.

Keith David

The President

Even if you’ve never heard of Keith David, you have surely heard his voice. An unmistakable baritone with gravitas, David has leant that voice to projects such as Gargoyles, Halo, and Spawn. David has worked with Harmon before on the final season of Community. Surely, there is no better voice for Rick and Morty’s unnamed President…or its Reverse Giraffe.

Kurtwood Smith

General Nathan

Not sure if you recognize Kurtwood Smith��s voice? You would if he called you a dumbass. Yes, Smith is best known to TV audiences as Eric Forman’s ornery dad Red on That ‘70s Show. He provides that same ornery spirit to the role of General Nathan on Rick and Morty in “Get Schwifty.”

Stephen Colbert

Zeep Xanflorp

Stephen Colbert is of course a longtime comedic actor, host of The Colbert Report, and now host of The Late Show on CBS. The Late Show understandably takes up most of his time nowadays but he was nice enough to portray the intelligent alien living inside Rick’s flying saucer’s Miniverse battery.

Nathan Fielder

Kyle

“The Ricks Must Be Crazy” has quite the star power among its voice cast. In addition to Colbert’s Zeep, the episode also introduces another Microverse populated by Kyle. Kyle is played by Nathan For You’s cringe comedy maestro Nathan Fielder.

Jim Rash

Glaxo Slimslom

Jim Rash is another frequent Dan Harmon collaborator, best known for his role as Dean Pelton on Community. Rash is an accomplished comedic actor and an Oscar award-winning screenwriter. He’s the perfect choice to play alien couples counselor Glaxo.

Matt Besser

Fungo

Matt Besser is an improv comedy specialist who is a founding member of the Upright Citizens Brigade comedy troupe. Over his long career, he’s appeared in just about everything. On Rick and Morty he portrays alien diplomat Fungo, who tries to convince Jerry to donate his penis to Shrimply Pibbles.

Werner Herzog

Shrimply Pibbles

Werner Herzog might be the strangest inclusion in the Rick and Morty voice canon. Herzog is a towering figure in the cinema world as a director, screenwriter, documentarian, and occasional actor. His German accent and generally serious and pessimistic disposition has made him a natural target for comedies looking to inject a bit of weird humor into the proceedings.

Chelsea Kane

Arthricia

Chelsea Kane has appeared in several TV series targeted to tween audiences like Disney Channel’s Jonas and Freeform’s Baby Daddy. Her brief role as the Purge planet’s Arthricia was a jumping off point to try more voice actor roles on shows like Hot Streets, Regular Show, and DC Super Hero Girls.

James Callis and Tricia Helfer

Pat and Donna Gueterman

James Callis and Tricia Helfer portray the parents of double-agent Tammy Gueterman for a very specific reason. Callis and Helfer are best known for their roles on Syfy’s classic series Battlestar Galactica, with Callis playing brilliant scientist (and traitor to humanity) Gaius Baltar and Helfer playing Cylon model Number 6. Pat and Donna Gueterman on Rick and Morty look just like the actors playing them, which should have been our first clue that something is amiss.

Nathan Fillion

Cornvelious Daniel

Who is Nathan Fillion if not nerd culture’s best friend? Fillion came into prominence by playing Captain Mal Reynolds on Joss Whedon’s beloved Firefly. Since then Fillion has had a solid career on shows like Castle and The Rookie. In his spare time, however, he provides his voice to animated series like Rick and Morty and Big Mouth, often playing a thinly-veiled version of himself. Cornvelious Daniel is notable for being the first character onscreen in Rick and Morty to enjoy that sweet, sweet McDonald’s Szechuan sauce.

Tony Hale

Eli

Tony Hale won two Emmys for playing the Vice President’s bagman Gary Walsh on Veep. Before that he was the youngest Bluth child, Buster, on Arrested Development. As of late, however, he’s getting more into the voice acting scene. You (or your kids) may best know him as the beloved Forky in Toy Story 4. But prior to that, he popped up as a cheery Mad Max-style biker named Eli on Rick and Morty.

Joel McHale

Hemorrhage

Joel McHale is, of course, another Community alum. He played lead character Jeff Winger on Harmon’s old NBC series. In addition to that, McHale has had a lengthy career in comedy, having hosted The Soup and Netflix’s recent Tiger King special. He was also a tight end of the University of Washington football team but that’s neither here nor there. He voices bucket-wearing post-apocalyptic warlord Hemorrhage on Rick and Morty.

Susan Sarandon

Dr. Wong

Perhaps no character on Rick and Morty has delved deeper into Rick’s psyche than Smith-family psychologist Dr. Wong. Lending her voice to Dr. Wong in the infamous “Pickle Rick” episode is legendary actress Susan Sarandon a.k.a the Louise in Thelma and Louise.

Peter Serafinowicz

Agency Director

Peter Serafinowicz is a British comedian and actor who used his role voicing Darth Maul in The Phantom Menace as a launching pad to befriend some truly talented creators and get some truly fascinating roles. Serafinowicz has popped up in Shaun of the Dead, Guardians of the Galaxy, Parks and Recreation, and more. He also portrayed the titular Tick in Amazon’s The Tick. His role in Rick and Morty is briefly that of a Russian villain agency director who tries to take down the ever-elusive Pickle Rick.

Danny Trejo

Jaguar

“Pickle Rick” really has quite the impressive guest voice cast. Danny Trejo joins Peter Serafinowicz and Susan Sarandon in lending his voice to this episode. Trejo plays Rick’s loose canon action hero ally, Jaguar. Outside of Rick and Morty, Danny Trejo may be one of the most recognizable faces in entertainment. A frequent collaborator of Robert Rodriguez, Trejo has leveraged his fascinating upbringing and tough guy appearance into countless roles.

Gillian Jacobs

Supernova

Another Community alum! Superhero team The Vindicators requires a lot of guest voice talent and clearly Dan Harmon knew one place to turn. Jacobs played Britta on Community (she’s the worst). The Pittsburgh-born actress has also appeared in Girls, Don’t Think Twice, and Ibiza.

Christian Slater

Vance Maximus

Christian Slater is a big get for Vindicators leader Vance Maximus. While he’s best known to modern audiences as the titular Mr. Robot in Mr. Robot, Slater got his start as an actor with popular roles in movies like Heathers, Interview with the Vampire, and Broken Arrow. Slater has had a fruitful voice acting career as well, having previously played “Slater” in Archer.

Lance Reddick

Alan Rails

Alan Rails is another one of the hallowed Vindicators crime-fighting team. Playing the ghost train-summoner is Lance Reddick. Reddick has been a mainstay on television for decades, turning up in Oz, Fringe, Lost, and more. Most notably he played Cedric Daniels for the entirety of The Wire’s run.

Logic

Logic is one of the few Rick and Morty guest stars who gets to be an animated version of himself. This Maryland-based rapper has released five successful albums and enlisted Rick and Morty to help promote his sixth mixtape Bobby Tarantino II.

Clancy Brown

Risotto Groupon, Story Train passenger

Talk about a guy with a commanding voice. Clancy Brown has been a successful actor for a long time, going back to his roles in Highlander, The Shawshank Redemption, and Lost. He’s undoubtedly best known to animation fans, however, as the voice of stingy Krusty Krab owner Mr. Krabs in SpongeBob SquarePants. On Rick and Morty, he’s played alien restaurant manager Risotto Groupon and a Story Train passenger in season 4’s “Never Ricking Morty.”

Thomas Middleditch

Tommy Lipnip

Thomas Middleditch is likely best known to television audiences as overmatched tech tycoon Richard Hendrix on HBO’s Silicon Valley. That’s just the tip of the iceberg for Middleditch’s comedy career. The prolific improviser played Tommy Lipnip in Rick and Morty and must have impressed Justin Roiland enough to give him a lead role on his Hulu comedy Solar Opposites.

John DiMaggio

Multiple Minor Roles (Death Stalker, Leader, Knight, etc.)

John DiMaggio is an incredibly busy voice actor. If you’ve ever enjoyed an animated comedy, there’s a good chance DiMaggio contributed his voice to it. His best known roles include Bender on Futurama, Jake the Dog on Adventure Time, and Scotsman on Samurai Jack.

Sherri Shepherd

Judge

Sherri Shepherd is an actress, comedian, and TV personality best known for being a co-host on The View for seven years. Since then she’s turned up as an actress or talking head on many shows and lent her voice to portray a judge that deals with Morty in the season 4 premiere.

Sam Neill

Monogatron Leader

In addition to having one of the best Twitter accounts in the world, Sam Neill is also an actor best known for playing Dr. Alan Grant in Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III. The New Zealander has continued to work quite a bit in recent years, turning up in Thor: Ragnarok and Peaky Blinders. On Rick and Morty he plays the leader of the Monogatron alien race in “The Old Man and the Seat.”

Taika Waititi

Glootie

Playing another Monogatron, this one named Glootie, is New Zealand actor/director Taika Waititi. Waititi got his start in the New Zealand comedy scene alongside other Rick and Morty guest star Jermaine Clement. Since then he has only gone on to become one of the most in-demand filmmakers on the planet. Waititi is behind Thor: Ragnarok, JoJo Rabbit, and an upcoming Star Wars film.

Kathleen Turner

Monogatron Queen

Kathleen Turner is what you would call a “get” for Rick and Morty. Turner has won two Golden Globe awards and been nominated for an Oscar and several Tony awards. She is best known for her roles in ‘80s movies Romancing the Stone, Prizzi’s Honor, and The War of the Roses. Turner has also been working as a voice actress since the ‘80s, voicing Jessica Rabbit in Who Framed Roger Rabbit and going on to act in The Simpsons and King of the Hill as well.

Jeffrey Wright

Tony

Jeffrey Wright is no stranger to sci-fi, having toiled away as sad robot Bernard on Westworld for three seasons. Wright got three-quarters of a way to an EGOT in one role by playing Belize in Angels in America. Since then he’s acted in several Daniel Craig Bond films, Boardwalk Empire, and The Hunger Games. On Rick and Morty he plays the role of an alien who vexes Rick into an existential crisis by continuing to use his private toilet.

Elon Musk

Elon Tusk

Elon Musk is a South African/Canadian/American engineer and industrialist who serves as the founder and CEO of SpaceX and CEO of Tesla, along with numerous other ventures. Presumably he did not call anyone behind the scenes of Rick and Morty a pedophile but you never know.

Justin Theroux

Miles Knightley

Justin Theroux has had quite the career in Hollywood. He first came to prominence acting in the David Lynch films Mulholland Drive and Inland Empire. He then continued to appear in major films while also writing some for good measure like Tropic Thunder, Iron Man 2, and Rock of Ages. On television he played Kevin Garvey in HBO’s The Leftovers. For Rick and Morty, he played the role of “heist artist” Miles Knightly in “One Crew Over the Crewcoo’s Morty.” You son of a bitch, I’m in.

Pamela Adlon

Angie Flint

Pamela Adlon is the rare case of an actor who was first best-known for voice work breaking into the live-action arena in a big way. Adlon is best known for giving voice to Bobby Hill on King of the Hill, while also voice acting in other animated projects like Recess, and 101 Dalmatians: The Series. A longtime collaborator of Louis C.K. (though not so much anymore), Adlon appeared on FX’s Louie and got a well-received FX show of her own, Better Things. On Rick and Morty, Adlon portrays Angie Flint – a lock-picker who Rick recruits to his heist team.

Matthew Broderick

Talking Cat

Matthew Broderick is a longtime stage, film, and television actor best known for his roles on Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, WarGames, The Producers, and much more. Most recently he turned up on Netflix’s sadly-departed post-apocalyptic comedy Daybreak. On Rick and Morty, Broderick plays a Talking Cat with a secret so heinous it will drive anyone to near insanity.

Liam Cunningham

Balthromaw

To portray the voice of a wizened dragon, Rick and Morty turned to an actor best known for a series filled with them. The Irish actor Liam Cunningham is known to most people as Ser Davos Seaworth from Game of Thrones. Though not usually a voice actor he must have enjoyed his role on Rick and Morty as he turns up again briefly in Roiland’s Solar Opposites.

Phil LaMarr

Multiple Minor Roles

The first two things most people (and by most people I mean me) think of when they think of Phil Lamarr are his time on Mad TV and the moment his head explodes on Pulp Fiction. But aside from sketch comedy and head explosions, LaMarr has had a remarkable voice acting career. He portrayed the title character in Samurai Jack while also providing his voice to Justice League, Static Shock, and countless video games. It’s surprisingly hard to figure out what voices Phil LaMarr plays on Rick and Morty but given his talents it’s certain to be quite a few.

Christopher Meloni

Jesus

When Rick and Morty briefly presented the savior of mankind in season 4’s sixth episode, surely there was only one choice to play him. Christopher Meloni has had one of the more fascinating careers in entertainment. After playing the deadly serious role of Elliot Stabler on Law and Order: SVU for years, Meloni has re-embraced his comedic side in projects like Happy!, Harley Quinn, while reprising his role in the Wet Hot American Summer franchise.

Paul Giamatti

Story Lord

Paul Giamatti once joked in a late night talk show interview that his role in any given heist or action movie would be the guy wearing a headset in a van, typing on a computer, and telling the hero to “get out of there, man!” He has since parlayed that character actor sensibility into a remarkable, multi-award-winning career. Giamatti is best known recently for portraying Chuck Rhoades on Billions and producing AMC’s Lodge 49. Prior to that he played lead roles in American Splendor, HBO’s John Adams, and much more. The guy has a good handle on stories and therefore makes perfect sense as Rick and Morty’s Story Lord.

Alan Tudyk

Chris, Observant Glorzo, Multiple Minor Roles

Alan Tudyk is a nerd culture mainstay. Very few comic-cons come and go without Tudyk involved in at least one project presenting within them. Tudyk has played Hoban “Wash” Washburne on Firefly and its spinoff movie Serenity, Mr. Nobody on Doom Patrol, and many more beloved characters. His live-action appearances are just the tip of the nerd iceberg, however, with Tudyk providing his voice to everything from Solo: A Star Wars Story (K-2SO) to Harley Quinn (Clayface/The Joker). On Rick and Morty, Tudyk plays several unnamed characters.

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Rob Schrab

God

Rob Schrab is a Channel 101 veteran and longtime Harmon collaborator. Schrab is best known for his work as a director of projects like Monster House, Community, Parks and Recreation, and more. On Rick and Morty he plays none other than God…or at least the Zeus-like god of a remote planet.

Jim Gaffigan

Hoovy

Jim Gaffigan is a wildly successful standup comedian who co-created and starred in a TV show about his life for TV Land called The Jim Gaffigan Show. While he’s appeared sparingly in films, of late he’s dabbled in voice acting, lending his voice to Hotel Transylvania 3, Playmobil: The Movie, and Luca. His kindly Midwestern accent lends itself nicely to the helpful but doomed Hoovy on Rick and Morty.

Planetina

Alison Brie

Five seasons in and Rick and Morty is still finding old friends from Community to make their debut. Alison Brie played Annie Edison on Dan Harmon’s classic series. Since then she’s become quite the star, serving as a lead on GLOW and voice acting in BoJack Horseman and The Lego Movie 2. She even provided the voice of Natasha Romanoff a.k.a. Black Widow in the video game Marvel Avengers Academy.

Steve Buscemi

Eddie

Steve Buscemi is a prolific and talented character actor known for his classic roles in Fargo, Reservoir Dogs, The Sopranos, and more. That he plays such a relatively minor role on Rick and Morty suggests that he might be a fan of the show and just wanted to stop by and say hey. Buscemi is also notable for being a New York firefighter prior to his acting life.

Christina Ricci

Princess Ponietta

Once known as a talented child actor, Christina Ricci has continued her creative work into adulthood. The actress has starred in films like Speed Racer, Black Snake Moan, and the upcoming fourth Matrix movie. Bless her for dropping by Rick and Morty only to play an CHUD horse-person princess pregnant with Rick’s heir.

Kyle Mooney

Blazen

Kyle Mooney is an SNL cast member and writer who specializes in offbeat characters and sketches. He also wrote and starred in 2017’s Brigsby Bear. His role hasn’t been officially confirmed on Rick and Morty yet but it seems as though he voices the Mortal Kombat-esque faux badass Blazen.

The post Rick and Morty: A Guide to Every Voice Actor appeared first on Den of Geek.

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phantom-le6 · 4 years ago

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Episode Reviews - Star Trek The Next Generation Season 1 (3 of 6)

As we draw close to crossing the first month of 2021 off the calendar to make room for February, which in my view is only of use for Pancake Day and nothing more, I’m back with yet more reviews from the first season of Star Trek: TNG. Will these episodes prove any better than those of the first two rounds, or are we looking at more lemons with warp engines? Let’s find out…

Episode 10: Hide and Q

Plot (as adapted from Wikipedia):

The Enterprise is en route to Quadra Sigma to aid colonists caught in a methane explosion when Q re-appears and demands that they abandon their mission to compete in a game. He teleports Commander Riker and the bridge crew, with the exception of Captain Picard, to a barren landscape and appears in front of them wearing a uniform of a Napoleonic era French marshal. He explains the rule of the game is to stay alive, and after Lt. Yar refuses to compete, he transports her back to the bridge of the Enterprise in a "penalty box".

Q returns to the bridge too, to talk Picard into setting a wager. He explains that the Q Continuum is testing Commander Riker to see if he is worthy of being granted their powers. Picard, having the utmost faith in his First Officer, takes the bet, as winning it would mean Q would get off their backs. Meanwhile, Riker and his team are attacked by what Lt. Worf reports as "vicious animal things" wearing French soldier uniforms from the Napoleonic era and armed with muskets that fire energy bolts instead of the classic projectiles. Q returns to Riker and tells him that he has granted him the powers of the Continuum, and Riker promptly returns his crew mates to the ship but remains behind with Q to ultimately reject the powers. Q brings the crew back to the landscape, this time without their phasers and with Picard. The crew are attacked once more by the aliens, and both Worf and Wesley Crusher are killed. Riker uses the powers of the Q to return the crew again and bring both Worf and Wesley back to life.

Riker makes a promise to Picard never to use the powers again and the ship arrives at Quadra Sigma. A rescue team beams down and discovers a young girl who has died. Riker is tempted to save her, but in the end, he refuses to do so out of respect for his promise. However, he quickly shows signs of regret at this decision, which he expresses to the captain. Tension between Picard and his first officer grows as Riker now seems to be embracing his powers, and his behaviour toward the crew begins to change. At Q's suggestion, and with Picard's blessing, Riker uses his powers to give his friends what he believes they want, turning Wesley into an adult, giving La Forge normal sight in place of his visor, and creating a Klingon female companion for Worf. All the recipients reject their gifts, however, with Data even anticipating and declining Riker's attempt to make him human. Picard declares that Q has failed, and when Q attempts to go back on his word, he is forcibly recalled to the Continuum. Picard is pleased to see Q gone, and praises Riker for confirming his trust in his "Number One".

Review:

There are two main reasons to enjoy this episode; Q and Picard. This is the first time since the pilot that we’ve seen Q and Picard interact, and it’s much better this time because both the actors are a bit more at grips with their characters. The scene in the Captain’s ready room between the pair where they both quote Shakespeare is one of the real highlights of the first season, a veritable miniature diamond in a season-long run of rough. In some respects, it’s almost a pity Picard-Q meet-ups aren’t more frequent, but ultimately, I think that they have to be done as little as possible to retain some impact in the later seasons.

Unfortunately, the episode lacks sufficient subtlety in trying to convey a story about power corrupting. The key reason why the Dark Phoenix story in the X-Men comics is a classic that no adaptation has ever effectively captured is because it involves Jean Grey being corrupted by power slowly, inch by inch, until circumstances push her over the edge. When the Primarch Horus is turned to Chaos in the Horus Heresy novels that form part of Warhammer 40,000 lore, it’s not an overnight transformation from the noble being he was to the power-mad tyrant laying waste to Terra years later. It’s a slow, gradual seduction by power, and a single episode of any TV show doesn’t give that.

As a result, the idea of Riker’s shift in character and attitude seems too rapid and falls flat. The only thing that doesn’t fall flat is how the rest of the cast reacts when Riker tries to act with benevolence. It’s a testament to each of them how they resist being granted their supposedly fondest wishes. I especially applaud Geordi and the autistic-like Data for their choices. I never like stories that try to push the idea that characters who are somehow differently abled, either blatantly or through the metaphor of a genre-specific concept, should always want to eliminate that difference. Maybe Geordi can’t see like everyone else, but considering all the different things he can see with his visor, it’s not like the vision he has is any better or worse. It’s just a pity his reason for saying no was more about not liking a Q-style Riker than about accepting himself and all the goodness inherent in that.

Add in Troi not being around at a time when her character could be very annoying without much effort, and you’ve got an episode that has many saving graces propping up a poor execution of a decent core concept. End score for this one, probably 7 out of 10.

Episode 11: Haven

Plot (as adapted from Wikipedia):

The Enterprise arrives at the planet Haven, where the ship's half-Betazoid Counsellor Deanna Troi has been summoned by her mother Lwaxana. Deanna had previously been set into an arranged marriage to the young human doctor, Wyatt Miller, and his parents have since tracked down Lwaxana to enforce the marriage. After Lwaxana and the Millers are welcomed aboard the Enterprise, the parents argue over whose cultural traditions will be honoured at the ceremony. Deanna and Wyatt attempt to get to know each other but find it difficult, as Deanna is still in love with Commander William Riker. Wyatt has had numerous dreams of another woman with whom he has fallen in love, and had initially believed her to be Deanna communicating telepathically with him.

The Enterprise then learns of an unmarked vessel approaching Haven. Captain Picard recognizes it as Tarellian, a race they thought to have been wiped out by a highly lethal and contagious virus. When they contact the ship, they find a handful of Tarellian refugees who have been travelling at sub-light speeds to Haven in hopes of finding an isolated location to live out the rest of their lives in peace. Picard insists that they cannot go to the planet for fear of spreading the virus, and has the Tarellian vessel placed in a tractor beam. Wyatt discovers that one of the Tarellians, Ariana, is the woman from his dreams, and she too recognizes Wyatt. Wyatt tells Dr Crusher that he will transport some medical supplies to them, but transports himself along with the supplies. When the crew discovers this, Wyatt's parents demand that Picard bring Wyatt back to the Enterprise, but Denna insists that he cannot return, as Wyatt would now carry the Tarellian virus. Wyatt promises his parents, Deanna, and the rest of the crew that he knew that this would be his destiny, and is happy to try to help cure the Tarellian virus. Wyatt convinces the Tarellians to leave Haven and search for help elsewhere. Picard orders the tractor beam to be dropped and allows the vessel to depart the system.

Review:

When it comes to Majel Barrett in the era of the TNG-DS9-Voyager shows, her best work as a guest star is her voice work as the voice of any given Starfleet computer. Her worst work is when she’s guest-starring as Deanna Troi’s mother. Her whole character is the very definition of nails on a chalk board, and it’s very rare if ever that an episode featuring her can be anything good. That said, her presence does help to improve Deanna’s character just because it means Deanna’s suddenly no longer the most likely to irk you with her characterisation. Basically, anytime Deanna’s on the screen at this early stage in the show, all I can think is “please don’t have her go all over-sensitive like she did in the pilot.”

Leaving the Troi family aside, the episode isn’t much to get excited about. Just a run-of-the-mill b-plot about a plague ship that interconnects with the main plot nicely to save us from the Trek equivalent of a shotgun wedding. Frankly, I’d have preferred it if they’d done a plot exploring the arranged marriage idea and casting it down as the terrible idea it is, but then I suppose it wouldn’t be politic to do that with a culture that is part-and-parcel of the Federation instead of being the guest-race-of-the-week. I’d give this one about 3 out of 10.

Episode 12: The Big Goodbye

Plot (as adapted from Wikipedia):

The Enterprise heads to Torona IV to open negotiations with the Jarada, an insect-like race that are unusually strict in matters of protocol. After practicing the complex greeting the Jarada require to open negotiations, Captain Jean-Luc Picard decides to relax with a Dixon Hill story in the holodeck. Playing Detective Hill in the holo-program, Picard takes up the case of Jessica Bradley, who believes that Cyrus Redblock is trying to kill her. Picard decides to continue the program later and leaves the holodeck to affirm their estimated arrival at Torona IV. He invites Dr Beverly Crusher and historian crewmember Whalen to join him in the holodeck. While Crusher is still preparing, Picard and Whalen are ready to enter the holodeck when Lt. Commander Data arrives, having overheard Picard's invitation. Entering the holodeck, the three discover that Jessica has been murdered in Picard's absence. As Picard explains that he saw Jessica at his office the day before, Lt. Bell brings Picard into the police station for questioning as a suspect in her murder. Meanwhile, the Enterprise is scanned from a distance by the Jarada, causing a power surge in the holodeck external controls. Dr Crusher later enters the holodeck, first experiencing a momentary glitch with the holodeck doors, and joins her friends at the police station.

The Jarada demand their greeting earlier than the agreed time and are insulted at having to talk to anyone other than the Captain. The crew tries to communicate with Picard in the holodeck but finds it impossible; the Jarada signal has affected the holodeck's functions, preventing the doors from opening or allowing communication with the crew inside. Lt. Geordi La Forge and Wesley Crusher attempt to repair the holodeck systems. While inside the holodeck, the group returns to Dixon's office. Mr. Leech appears, having waited for Picard, demanding he turn over an object he believes Jessica gave him. When Picard fails to understand, Leech shoots Dr. Whalen with a gun, and the crew discovers that the safety protocols have been disabled, as Whalen is severely wounded. As Dr Crusher cares for his wound, Picard and Data discover that the holodeck is malfunctioning, and they are unable to exit the program. Mr. Leech is joined by Redblock, who continues to demand the object. Lt. McNary arrives and becomes involved in the standoff. Picard tries to explain the nature of the holodeck, but Redblock refuses to believe him.

Outside, Wesley finds the glitch; however, he cannot simply turn off the system for fear of losing everyone inside. Instead, Wesley resets the simulation, briefly placing Picard and the others in the middle of a snowstorm before finding themselves back in Dixon's office. With the reset successfully clearing the malfunction, the exit doors finally appear. Despite Picard's warnings, Redblock and Leech exit the holodeck, but dissipate as they move beyond the range of its holo-emitters. As they leave the holodeck, Picard thanks McNary, who now suspects that his world is artificial and asks whether Picard's departure is "the big goodbye", to which Picard replies that he simply doesn't know. Picard reaches the bridge in time to give the proper greeting to the Jarada. The Jarada accept the greeting, heralding the start of successful negotiations.

Review:

The Big Goodbye has a special place in the era of holodeck era of Trek as the first example of a “holodeck-gone-wrong” episode. Later episodes of this series and the spin-off shows Deep Space Nine and Voyager would return to the premise of holodeck malfunctions time and again as either minor or major plot points. Unfortunately, the holodeck is already going wrong as a plot device in the show just from a technical realisation standpoint.

The basic idea of the holodeck is that it creates 3D images that resemble whatever is programmed into the computer, with some kind of force-fields giving the images substance while other aspects of the technology fill in the proverbial blanks (e.g. special programming to create interactive characters, localised environmental controls, etc.) However, everything that exists within the holodeck can only exist within the range of the room’s tech; if anything created by the holodeck moves beyond its walls, it should instantly cease to be. However, in the Farpoint pilot, Wesley Crusher fell into water on the holodeck, and when he walked out into the corridor, he remained wet and dripping when all the holographic water should have disappeared the instance he walked through the exit.

Likewise, in this episode Picard picks up a lipstick mark when he first tries the holodeck’s new upgrades, and that should have disappeared when he later briefs the crew in the observation lounge. Instead, Dr Crusher has to wipe the lipstick off for the captain, despite the fact it should have disappeared from Picard’s face long ago. It’s an annoying issue, and one that could have been easily fixed even back in the 1980’s when this show was made; evidently, this was just another example of how bad the show was at this stage. If TNG ever gets the kind of reboot the original series did, I sincerely hope any use of the holodecks pays attention to and rectifies this error in the application of the holodeck concept.

Otherwise, this episode doesn’t do much more than give Brent Spiner a bit more to do with Data by having him impersonate a 40’s-style gangers and give Patrick Stewart someone else to be besides the captain of the latest version of the Enterprise. It’s a fairly well-made episode for season 1 of this show, and it really sells the illusion of the holodeck program for the most part. The people who made the show just needed to learn that anything that gets made in the holodeck stays in the holodeck. I’d give it about 5 out of 10.

Episode 13: Datalore

Plot (as adapted from Wikipedia):

While on the way to Starbase Armus IX for computer maintenance, the Enterprise arrives at the planet Omicron Theta, the site of a vanished colony where the starship Tripoli originally found the android Data. An away team travels to the surface and finds that what had been farmland is now barren with no trace of life in the soil. The team also finds a lab which they discover is where Dr. Noonien Soong, a formerly prominent but now discredited robotics designer, built Data. The team also find a disassembled android nearly identical to Data and return with it to the ship. As the course to the Starbase is resumed, the crew reassemble and reactivate Data's "brother" in sickbay. He refers to himself as Lore, and explains that Data was built first and he himself is the more perfect model. He feigns naiveté to the crew, but shows signs of being more intelligent than he is letting on. Later, in private, he tells Data that they were actually created in the opposite order, as the colonists became envious of his own perfection. He also explains that a crystalline space entity capable of stripping away all life force from a world was responsible for the colony's demise.

Lore then incapacitates Data, revealing that he plans to offer the ship's crew to the entity. When a signal transmission is detected from Data's quarters, Wesley Crusher arrives to investigate. He finds Lore, now impersonating Data, who explains that he had to incapacitate his brother after being attacked. Wesley is doubtful, but pretends to accept the explanation. Soon after, the same crystalline entity that had attacked the colony approaches the ship. Lore, still pretending to be Data, enters the bridge as the object hovers before the Enterprise and explains that he incapacitated his brother by turning him off, causing Doctor Beverly Crusher to be suspicious, since Data had previously treated the existence of such a feature as a closely guarded secret. Lore then explains that he can communicate with the crystalline entity and suggests to Captain Jean-Luc Picard that he should show a demonstration of force by beaming an object toward the entity and then destroying it with the ship's phasers.

Lore's attempts to imitate Data are imperfect, though initially only Wesley is suspicious, and his efforts to voice these concerns only draw rude rebukes from Picard and his mother. However, Picard does ultimately become suspicious, especially when Lore does not recognize Picard's usual command to "make it so". Although Picard sends a security detachment to tail him, Lore overpowers Lt. Worf and evades pursuit. Meanwhile, the suspicious Dr Crusher and Wesley reactivate the unconscious Data, and the three of them race to the cargo hold to find Lore plotting with the entity to defeat the Enterprise. When Lore discovers them, he threatens Wesley with a phaser and orders Dr Crusher to leave. Data quickly rushes Lore and a brawl ensues. Data manages to knock Lore onto the transporter platform, and Wesley activates it, beaming Lore into space. With its conspirator no longer aboard, the crystalline entity departs, and the Enterprise resumes its journey to the starbase.

Review:

This episode very heavily relies on answering the mystery of Data’s origin and giving him a villainous brother in a manner similar to the Thor-Loki dynamic of Marvel superhero lore (pardon the inadvertent pun) to make it worth watching, because goodness knows it falls down everywhere else. Spiner is remarkable playing the treacherous Lore alongside his regular character of Data, and it’s fun to see him make the best of what ultimately becomes a poor episode on other fronts.

I know some reviewers have stated they don’t understand Lore’s motives for allying with the Crystalline Entity, but as a Marvel fan, it’s actually fairly easy to deduce. Much like Loki in Marvel’s Thor franchise, Lore is a bit of a trickster, an android Q but without the pseudo-godhood or ultimately benign motives of Q. Also like Loki, Lore is the unfavoured son, one who was basically cast aside in favour of something supposedly better, so he’s turned against the humanity his brother admires and emulates out of jealousy and the pain of rejection. It’s not a hard motive to grasp, but with Lore not explicitly saying it, you need that knowledge of another fictional reference to make the deduction. Given that Marvel lore was largely overlooked by the adult world until superheroes were made into a legitimate cinematic genre at the turn of the century, it’s unlikely many original reviewers would have made the link.

However, as I’ve noted, the episode falls apart in other respects. The crew’s haste to reassemble Data’s brother mid-flight is very risky behaviour more akin to the cowboy antics of Kirk’s crew from the original series than Picard’s more measured approach, and they are remarkably stupid in failing to catch onto Lore’s threat. Only Wesley shows the requisite insight and intelligence, but expresses it poorly because at this time no one on the show could write Wesley with any kind of competence. As a result, Picard ends up looking like a total git for his outburst at Wesley, Wesley’s mother comes off almost as bad, and when it turns out that, as ever, Wesley was right, there’s no apology from Picard at all. On balance, this episode rates about 5 out of 10, which can be taken as the anti-Wesley acting having a severely detrimental impact on a great Spiner performance, or a great Spiner performance saving the episode by some horrid Wesley-bashing.

Episode 14: Angel One

Plot (as adapted from Wikipedia):

The Enterprise arrives at the planet Angel One, which is ruled by an oligarchy of women. The ship is looking for survivors from the shipwrecked freighter Odin, over seven years after having been evacuated. The freighter was missing three escape pods and the only planet in range was Angel One. An away team consisting of Commander William Riker, Lt. Commander Data, Lt. Tasha Yar, and Counsellor Deanna Troi beam down to the surface. They attempt to negotiate with Mistress Beata, the "Elected One" of the native inhabitants, to let them search for the survivors. Time is of the essence however, as the Enterprise must travel to a Federation outpost near the Romulan Neutral Zone (where a group of Romulan Battlecruisers has been detected) as soon as they resolve their investigation into the Odin survivors.

Beata reveals that they are aware of four male survivors of the Odin who have caused disruption in their society, and are considered fugitives. Beata requests Riker stay with her (and later requests that he order Troi, Data, and Yar to track down the survivors' camp and their leader Ramsey, while staying and dining with her). After some back and forth, Data concludes Ramsey and the survivors of the Odin would have platinum with them, and Angel One is naturally devoid of platinum, allowing the Enterprise to easily detect them. Meanwhile, Riker dresses in the garb given to him for his dinner with Beata, Troi and Yar tease him for dressing in clothes that sexualize him and, in some ways, demean him. He responds by saying he is honouring the local customs, and acknowledges Beata's beauty, and that the garb is rather comfortable.

The Enterprise searches while in orbit around Angel One. Doctor Beverly Crusher relieves Captain Jean-Luc Picard of duty after he and most of the crew have fallen ill to a random virus on board. The Captain leaves Lieutenant Geordi La Forge in command (Geordi's first time in acting command of a starship). Shortly after, they find Ramsey and transmit his location to the Away Team, who beam directly to there.

When confronted by Data, Yar, and Troi, Ramsey and his men, having taken wives and started families during the seven years, refuse to leave. Data points out that as the Odin was not a star fleet vessel, its crew is not bound by the Prime Directive and the Enterprise cannot remove them against their will. Geordi informs Yar of the medical situation on board, and that more Romulan ships have been detected near the Neutral Zone. Riker gets close to Beata as they compare how gender roles differ between Angel One and the Federation. On the Enterprise, systems are becoming harder to maintain with more crew succumbing to the virus. Geordi (after a friendly reminder from a sniffling Worf) remembers that in command, he must delegate tasks so he can stay on the bridge. Dr Crusher finds that the virus is an airborne organism that produces a sweet smell, to encourage inhalation, after which it becomes viral inside the body.

Riker gets up to date with the situation, and decides that while Ramsey and his group are at large and refusing to leave the planet, there is little they can do. Before leaving they find that one of Beata's fellow mitstresses, Ariel, has married Ramsey, and was followed by Beata's guards to their camp, where they arrested the survivors and their families. The Away Team attempt to explain to Beata the reason for Ramsey's refusal to leave. Beata and her council reject his reasoning, and threatens to execute them the following day. After failing to convince Ramsey and his group to leave with them, Riker contacts the Enterprise in hopes of transporting Ramsey and his group without their consent (despite it being a violation of the Prime Directive, and almost certainly an end to his career). However, Dr Crusher (while treating an incapacitated Geordi in the Captain's chair) refuses to allow anyone to beam aboard for fear of them being infected, but allows Data, an android, to return. Riker orders Data to take command and get the Enterprise to the Neutral Zone before it's too late.

The following morning the Away Team is invited to witness the execution of Ramsey and his followers. Moments after Riker rejects their invitation Data makes contact and informs them that there is a 48-minute window in which Dr Crusher has to find a cure, and Riker must defuse the situation on the planet before the ship must leave for the Neutral Zone. On the planet, Ramsey and his men are prepared to be executed by disintegration despite Ariel's pleas, while Dr Crusher discovers a cure for the virus. Riker is prepared to have the away team and the Odin survivors beamed to the Enterprise, but makes a plea that execution will do Angel One’s society little good. He contends that Ramsey and his men have simply become a symbol for pre-existing dissatisfaction with the current society on Angel One, an evolutionary change that execution may only accelerate by turning Ramsey’s group into martyrs.

After deliberating with her fellow mistresses, Beata announces that she will stay the execution and banish Ramsey, his men, their families, and any others that support them to the far side of the planet. She explains that their banishment will not stop the fall of the oligarchy, but will slow it down enough that Beata will not be around to see its end. The away team return to the ship and Picard, already recovering from the virus but hardly having a voice, orders the ship to the Neutral Zone at high warp.

Review:

Apparently, the idea of this episode was look at South Africa’s apartheid system, but using a gender-based schism in a female-dominated society to explore the concept along gender lines rather than being more direct and using anything akin to a racial divide. As a result, the intention is lost behind some very horrendously sexist rubbish that makes the show seem more like a bad parody of feminism. The episode also has a lousy b-plot of a virus story that adds nothing to the episode, and again showcases how badly the holodeck concept was being handled at this time. A snowball from a holodeck skiing program should not be able to go through the holodeck doors to hit Picard and Worf in the corridor. 2 out of 10 is all this episode deserves.

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osmw1 · 5 years ago

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Crowbar Nurse Chapter 15 — Fanficcers Ship, That’s What They Do

Back in front of the safehouse, the three of us had begun planning our endgame strategy together.

“This would be the path to get to the truck ending.”

I drew a line on the ground with a stick of chalk. Kiryū and I came across a set of sidewalk chalk on our way home and now we were putting it to good use by drawing maps. … Originally, it was meant to evoke the image that children were playing in the streets one day and then suddenly getting attacked by zombies, but it was never shown in the actual game for ethical reasons… Oh, and if you wanted to know, the set had every color a kid could ever need.

“Go this way, then here, turn here, then like this, then… and that’s our goal. Simple, right?” “Turn this way here?” “No, no. It’s that way there.” “Oh… so, like this?” “No, not like that. Like this.” “And then that way?” “No, the other way.” “Then this way.” “No! I’m telling you, that way over there…” “Gaaah! Knock it off, you two! Neither one of you are making any sense anymore!”

Elizabeth interrupted our serious and earnest preparation session.

“What is going on?! Ever since you have returned from the firing range, you lot have been completely incoherent, mainly because you are deliberately avoiding any eye contact! What on earth happened between the two of you?!” “Umm, erm…”

Stumbling with my words, I glanced at Kiryū who immediately looked away in a fluster. Both of us must’ve been embarrassed about how I had run up and hugged him earlier.

“… N-Nothing at all! There’s nothing that you have to worry about, Elizabeth!”

I squeezed my eyes shut and shrieked back at her, but I don’t think it helped my case at all.

“… I see. So, that’s how it is,” Elizabeth responded in a low whisper. “Huh?"

I opened my eyes to see her grinning from ear to ear.

“Umm, Elizabeth?” “I see. I understand now. So, that sort of stuff happened at the firing range.” “Wha—?!”

My head was about to snap off from how hard I was shaking my head, but Elizabeth wasn’t reacting to me at all. She was dripping with fraught just a moment ago. I guess it was good that she’s got her spirit back, but where did all of this excitement come from?

“Umm, are you alright, Elizabeth? Is something the matter?” “… I apologize for the late and abrupt introduction.” “Huh?” “I am but yet another wage slave from Shinjuku. My hobbies include dating simulations, reader-inserts, and providing dating advice to the friends around me.” “Reader-inserts?”

The term seemed to have thrown Kiryū for a loop.

“What are those? I come across lots of fan labor made by women due to the nature of my work, but I’ve never heard of that one before… Any clue, Sera?” “No, not one bit.”

As I shook my head again, this time, Elizabeth responded with a chuckle.

“Not a surprise, seeing how Sera is but a normie… Reader-insert is but a small subgenre within fanfiction. It is a type of story in which the audience inserts themselves as the protagonist, paired with a canon character. Though it doesn’t get much attention, the subgenre has quite a few followers worldwide, even outside of Japan, where they’re sometimes called x readers .” “What does the x mean though?”

Elizabeth readily answered his question.

“The x denotes pairing. You would put the character name before the x to signify the work pairs the character and the reader in a relationship, usually a romantic one. Authors overseas usually write in second person, but here in Japan, we use cookies and scripts to pull the reader’s name from their account and insert it into the text. … And for your reference, I stan canon/OC pairings. That is to say, rather than using the reader, I prefer stories with OC.” “OC?”

Kiryū was thrown for loop after loop, then he looked at me.

“… Any clue, Sera?” “No, not one bit.”

Elizabeth sighed in exasperation as I shook my head for the third time.

“You truly know nothing, don’t you…? ‘OC’ is short for ‘original character’. Anyway, getting back on track and to summarize what I mean, I indulge in observing the romance between other people. Just listening to my friends and family gushing about their love interests is simply not enough. Instead, I have to reach out to dating sims and fanfiction to satiate this desire of mine. Though I don’t care much for getting directly involved. That is why I am delighted to see this unfold.” “… What exactly is unfolding here?”

My question had only pleased her more.

“Why, of course, the situation between you and Kiryū! You two are almost like grade schoolers in how you are so conscious of each other now.” “Yeah, right! What are you talking about?!” “I am so not!”

Somehow, we both picked the most childish ways to respond to her. It was likely just him panicking, but the way how Kiryū said it was exactly how a grade schooler would.

Elizabeth mockingly scoffed back, “Heh. It’s obvious, seeing how flustered you two are. So, something did indeed happen at the firing range, then? I’m not about to judge. However, with how confused you two are, you have also lost your teamwork and communication. Now, hurry up and tell you love each other and embrace already so that we can proceed with the ending with clear heads.”

She extended her hands out towards us, as if she were waiting on something to happen.

“Think about us for a moment, Elizabeth! Surely, it’s obvious that you’re asking for something totally unreasonable!” “I am?” “Yes, you are! I haven’t met Kiryū in person before, you know? There’s no way I could even consider anything romantic between us! My feelings towards Kiryū are purely and genuinely one of respect!” “Right, sure. So she said, Kiryū.”

She takes an upwards glance at him as she spoke. Kiryū simply nodded and brushed off her comments as to end this embarrassing topic for good.

Elizabeth, why did you have to go and bring that up…?

I sighed in defeat as I looked up at Kiryū, who looked just as fed up with the situation as I was. I’m sure we were both thinking the same thing as we couldn’t help but chuckle at our predicament.

“… See how in sync you two are?”

In a complete reversal, she had turned to a sage; her expression was calm and gentle and her laughter dry, but different from the teasing tone that marked her previously. … A thought randomly popped into my mind: Oh, that’s right. She’s got her teaching license, doesn’t she? Perhaps she’s taught boys and girls in her class that acted the same way. Interrupting my thoughts, Elizabeth continued,

“It’s good and well that you two are in sync but remember that our teamwork crumbles if you two are being awkward and refuse to look each other in the eyes. Cooperation is just as important in slaying zombies as it is in folk dance in PE class. Nothing will work to your favor if you are embarrassed. Don’t forget that our lives are on the line too.” “You’re… absolutely right.”

I nodded after listening to Elizabeth. She smiled back as if to say, Just as long as you understand. I have the feeling that she had messed with us only to snap us out of our emotions. She has my gratitude for that, but yet… having how bothered I had been pointed out made me feel a little sheepish.

“… I know perfectly how to get to the truck ending, so don’t worry about memorizing this.”

I punctuated my explanation with a sigh,

“But to give everyone the gist of it, our plan is to take a bit of a detour to slip past the traps ahead of us as we force our way to the enemies and bosses. After the detour, we’ll barrel down the missile-torn roads in our truck towards ‘You’… That’s the plan, at least. Should be a piece of cake.” “A piece of cake? There were exactly zero parts in your plan that sounded easy.”

Elizabeth squeezed her temples as if she had a terrible headache. Raising my head upwards, I looked into her eyes, reassuring her that we’ll be fine, and she smiled.

“Don’t worry. Let me take care of massacring the zombies. Sure, it may be a little rough ahead, but we’ve got so many toys in our arsenal, so let’s have some fun enjoying this game too. Let’s just step on the gas and see if we can’t power through it.” “I trust you, Sera.”

The man of few words picked up his crowbar.

“The path is as you marked out, right? There ain’t much time. Let’s get a move on.”

He wasn’t kidding about hurrying; he sped off, leaving Elizabeth and me to frantically catch up. Elizabeth saw the blush on my cheeks and empathetically patted my on the shoulder with a gentle smile.

“… You have fallen for Kiryū, haven’t you? Perhaps you are surprised at how sudden these feelings came?” “I-I’m telling you, I haven’t! Really!”

I desperately shook my head from side to side, but… unfortunately, I can’t seem to shake Kiryū off my mind. Still, she's mistaken. These aren’t romantic feelings… I don't think so, at least. It was easy to brush off her earlier comments as a joke, but the longer I contemplate about this, the more embarrassed I get. I hadn’t given much thought about the Kiryū in real life up until now. I mean, I understand there’s a person in there, but I was charmed by the handsome Kiryū Sōichirō. And because of that, I’d been treating him like an actual in-game NPC. I was even being smug and cavalier to him.

I don’t think I would act like that anymore. I don’t think I could. I can’t even look him properly in the eyes.

“Is that right? Well, in that case, I should best stop teasing you about it. My apologies for being insensitive. But what really happened between you two?” “Umm… He was doxed? I doxed him?” “What? How did something like that happen?” “I guess I could say… I knew someone who spoke like him?” “And you knew who he really is from just that?” “Yes? But ma-maybe not? Huh. How the heck did I figure who he is from just how he spoke? That’s weird. That’s really weird…” “… Who the hell cares?!”

Kiryū interjected, severing our conversation. It seemed like he didn’t know where he was going and had to backtrack to us for guidance.

“Let’s hurry up and finish the damn game! That’s all that we should be focusing on right now!”

He was unnaturally worked up and visibly flustered. I can understand why. I mean, his face was all over the internet… But what if he never gets over it? Poor guy. Men sure have it rough in their thirties.

And so, we set off for the truck ending in this amusing yet awkward mood surrounding us. … Or at least until we get into combat again, where Kiryū and I returned to our normal selves. Hurrah, zombie games. Praise be unto zombie games. All hail mighty zombie games.

“—Muahaha! See you bastards in hell!”

As we progressed on the canonical route, the windows on the fifth floor of a mixed-use building smashed open, freeing a bunch of NPC’s. The moment they hit the ground, they became emotionless weapons of war, attacking all the zombies around them, and throwing them into disarray. The NPC’s jump down one by one as I laugh manically, putting off Elizabeth.

“… You know, I had expected an expert on zombie games to be… cooler than this…” “You can’t beat them if you worry too much about looking cool, Liz.” “Have you considered whether I preferred to be called ‘Elizabeth’?” “But your name is just so long. Anyway, zombie survival games are complex, you know? Sometimes, you’ve gotta do crazy things to win.”

The new soldiers rushed the infected, handily defeating them. Since they’re a low-level mob, so I’m not worried about killing too many of them. They don’t give too much experience anyway. As soon as I said it out loud, though, Kiryū wielded his crowbar and went wild at the zombies.

“Ooh, impressive. You’re really swinging for the fences.”

Before I knew it, I was already awed by Kiryū. It wasn’t just me though. Elizabeth was equally impressed.

“Kiryū is quite well-versed too, I see… Zombie games are simpler than I had thought.” “Don’t get ahead of yourself, Liz. This happens all too often. They watch a god gamer play and think they can do it themselves too. But once they try it for themselves, they get their butts handed to them. Still, for someone claiming he’s never played this kind of game before… Kiryū really is seriously good.” “Mm.” “Ah, we’ll get bombed if we head straight here, so let’s climb over the rubble to our right.”

As I was trotting to the hurdle, I looked behind my shoulder to find Kiryū hacking away at the zombies as if he were possessed.

“—There it is! That’s the truck!”

After climbing the rubble hill, we reached a plaza where the deuce and a half was abandoned. There’s no mistaking the flat dark earth behemoth as anything but a military vehicle. As the name suggests, it was designed to haul 5,000 lb of cargo.

“Let’s ride this bad boy all the way to the end.” “… Don’t you need the key for it?”

Kiryū, late to the party, ran his fingers along the truck and wondered about how to start it. He was dripping with sweat, likely from his killing frenzy.

“Of course, we need the key. That’s why it’s in your pocket,” I say as I plucked it out of his pocket.

“… Oh, that key, the one we weren’t supposed to get until the second week. That means the truck ending shouldn’t be open until then, too.” “That’s right. This isn’t a canonical ending, but rather an Easter egg, much like the so-called UFO ending.”

I stepped onto the running board, heaved myself into the driver’s seat, and stuck the key into the ignition.

“Oh, my. An ending in which the protagonist gets abducted by aliens? How amusing. I wonder if I can find a video online once I return home.”

As she says that, sparks rained down from the sky, igniting the buildings in our vicinity.

“S-Sparks are falling down on us all of a sudden!” “This cutscene plays once the key is in the ignition. It’s proof that my plan is working, so don’t worry.” “A-Also, another copy of Nick just appeared, and he’s terribly hurt!” “And he’s so much more handsome. Yep, that’s the Nick from the cutscene.”

I jumped off the driver’s seat to inspect this New Nick. Covered with cuts and soot, New Nick scanned his surroundings and suddenly started shouting in English.

＊＊＊ＥＮＧＬＩＳＨ＊＊＊ “N-Nick began speaking in English!” “Don’t worry, Elizabeth. He’s shouting something like, ‘Like hell I’m going to stay in this shithole.’” ＊＊＊ＥＮＧＬＩＳＨ＊＊＊ “And a middle-aged man just appeared, screaming something in English too!” “Like I said, it’s all good. He’s an NPC that only appears in this cutscene. And this guy is yelling, ‘I feel you, man. Ain't like we’re gon’ find survivors no more, so let’s skedaddle on out of this nightmare of a town,’ or something to that effect.”

I explained to Elizabeth beside me, as she curiously and attentively watched the two white men speak.

“… Hey, Sera? Why do they speak so monotonously? It’s completely different than in Glee…” “Oh, did you watch Glee as well?” “Back when I was still in university, I thought it would help with my English. It didn’t take long before I was hooked.” “Wow, how diligent of you. Umm, well, this sort of thing happened a lot when Japanese video games got localized. Even though they hired proper voice talents, for some reason, they still read their lines off a script. The acting was just awful in Resident Evil and those speedy blue hedgehog games…”

Nick clapped his hands, interrupting our chit chat.

“Ah, that’s Nick saying, ‘Let’s hurry on out of here.’ Alright, Kiryū, Elizabeth. Let’s hop in too. Of course, New Nick and the random NPC are planning to leave town, so we’ll have jack the truck before that happens. That way, we’ll be able to reach ‘You’ and the ending area. After that, then we can escape…”

Before I could finish, the world fell into darkness, accompanied by an odd screeching noise.

■ ＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊　　ＥＮＧＬＩＳＨ　　＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊

A reference to the cult classic Kowloon’s Gate, an adventure game from more than two decades ago. It’s not the author forgetting to fill in the English dialogue! In the original game, ＊＊＊ベトナム語＊＊＊(Vietnamese) would be displayed when a certain Vietnamese character speaks. (Yes, the voice acting was in perfect Vietnamese too.) It’s theorized that this was either simply a joke or that the developers didn’t have the resources to add a typeface with Vietnamese script support. How’s this for an obscure reference?

contents: /ch001/ /ch002/ /ch003/ /ch004/ /ch005/ /ch006/ /ch007/ /ch008/ /ch009/ /ch010/ /ch011/ /ch012/ /ch013/ /ch014/ /ch015/ /next/

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modelronpagame · 6 years ago

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The Frontrunners || Prologue VIII

The woman who was previously there to greet you - yet offered nothing more than the basics and her name - folded her hands in front after the introduction of the mascots as her one visible eye blinked slowly. She looked slightly tenser than when she first spoke, and when the woman stepped forward from her position in line, it was apparent that her years of strutting the catwalk weren’t quite enough to mask the slight rigidity with which she moved. Still, nothing changed about the tilting, affected tone of her voice.

“Hey heeeeey~! You already know who I am, but, like, what the heck! I’ll tell you all a lil bit more about me, the one and only.”

Riko smiled a polished smile, the sort that would be just as apropos a response to a press conference as a student initiation.

“I’m Riko da Silva, known better in Japan as Riko Kamakura, former SHSL Fashion Model but forever #1 in the country’s hearts. I’ve worked like, super duper close with the industry my whole life, and I’m, like, way looking forward to this next season! Like a wise dude once said, strut your stuff!”

The laugh that spilled out of her mouth was airy and light, one hand reaching up to cover the bottom half of her face. Shifting from one leg to the other, her hand came to rest on her hip once again.

“Actually... uh… nah. They don’t say that… um, I think. What they really do tell you is a helluva lot - so I wanna share as much as I can before it’s bye, bye, Hope’s Peak’s Most Excellent!”

She clasped her hands together.

“This is, like, totes exciting! And I aim to make it as fun as I can...”

Riko threw a sideways glance, and for a moment so brief it could be chalked up to the imagination, her smile faltered. But then, it reappeared as soon as it left.

“...along with my cool cat coworkers…! They like, explained themselves super well, but I’m the Executive Assistant to Xiaozhu. I make sure things run super duper smooth and take care of filing and… uh, like, whatevs needs to be done! Because of this, you maaaaybe won’t see me around. Don’t like, despair, just ask Choi if it’s a super cute and super duper fashionable gal you need and I’ll come running! I’ll like, deffo offer advice too… and maybe even, like, some juicy gossip, so I guess I could also be considered the Modelling and Fashion Advisor and junk.”

She leaned in slightly and put a hand to the side of her mouth, as if she was spilling a particularly juicy bit of gossip.

“Just like, between us, I totally made that up. Suits me better, right?”

Of those assembled, Riko had a fair bit of experience speaking in front of others in comparison despite her attitude - everything from her body language to her calmness seemed to indicate that this was nothing new to her, especially as she gave you a playful blink and returned to her former stance.

...Even if there probably wasn’t much going on behind her vacant stare.

“Yeah, there’s like, a lot here that’s un-be-lievable. K.I.T., our own mascots… you will find that the future’s like, totes amazing! Especially when tech and practical applications have a lil’ wedding. Um... are married together? Yeah, that! We wanted to make your experience super cool and comfy, so you will find that the agency has a full range of amenities. Like a super fancy hotel! And speaking of which…”

Clapping her hands twice, Riko kicked her heel out and turned to the side in a pose reminiscent of an anime.

“Mascots, you are dismissed.”

A whirring and churning later, the robotic menagerie - minus K.I.T. - left the vicinity. After this, Riko made a grand sweeping gesture and extended her arms out to either side.

“Yeah, like, welcome to the latest season of Hope’s Peak’s Most Excellent! I’m totes sure it’ll be our most exciting yet!”

With that, you were flashed another smile that lingered even as Riko’s hands returned to their former folded state at her front. She commenced retreating back to the crowd without missing a beat.

Before Riko is done returning to her position next to the other students, Huang is already moving towards the front yet again,

“Alright then, we’ve kept you all waiting long enough! You’re free to disperse and explore the vast expanse of luxuries available to you here at Hope’s Peak’s Most Excellent! Feel free to look around and partake in the many activities available to you- you’ll find our lovely high-tech ModelPads on the way to your dorms, each labelled for a specific designated student! Since there wont be any service while you’re here, we made sure there was a way for you all to communicate with us and your fellow students if need be! Additionally, you’ll find three shiny Kiracoins gifted to you along with your luggage! They’ll be used as your currency here during your stay, and you’re free to use them at our little boutique here at the agency! Make sure to look around, you might even find some hidden about the facility~ Kuku! There are no further obligations for you to worry about until tomorrow, so take your time to be leisurely! I’ll meet you all back here again tomorrow morning when I take my leave at 8 AM sharp! Make sure you aren’t late, I’d be terribly hurt if anyone forgot to bid me farewell!”

There’s a clear frivolity in his voice as he laughs and shakes his head, though you’ve got the slightest inclination that he’s serious.

“Now then, off you go!~”

And with that, he steps back to converse with the chaperones, leaving the crowd of antsy students to their own devices.

#modelronpa #huang #riko #prologue #chrono

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bookishlife · 8 years ago

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"They were harder-edged than most young men of their generation who, on this Sunday in early autumn, were weeks into their fall college semester. Most of these Rangers had been kicked around some, had tasted failure. But there were no goof-offs. Every man had worked to be here, probably harder than he'd ever worked in his life. Those with troubled pasts had taken harsh measure of themselves. Beneath their best hard-ass act, most were achingly earnest, patriotic, and idealistic. They had literally taken the army up on its offer to "Be All You Can Be." "In those hours on the street he had not been Shawn Nelson, he had no connection to the larger world, no bills to pay, no emotional ties, nothing. He had just been a human being staying alive from one nano-second to the next, drawing one breath after another, fully aware that each one might be his last." "The story of combat is timeless. It is about the same things whether in Troy or Gettysburg, Normandy or the Ia Drang. It is about soldiers, most of them young, trapped in a fight to the death. The extreme and terrible nature of war touches something essential about being human, and soldiers do not always like what they learn."

Book: Black Hawk Down Author: Mark Bowden Published: Signet (1999)

My Review: Pardon my language, but what a clusterfuck. Not the book, Black Hawk Down, but the catastrophe shit-show of a military mission it describes. There’s really no other way to describe what happened in Mogadishu, Somalia on October 3, 1993: CLUSTERFUCK.

In many ways, this is just another war story like any other... A whole bunch of far-too-young and semi-prepared men (boys, if we’re being honest) are ordered out with limited resources and poor, often confused lines of communication into a life threatening situation to fulfill some political motive determined by men so high up the military food chain they can’t even see what’s going on at the bottom. Unfortunately for a lot of people, what’s going on at the bottom is often a whole lot of brutal, bloody, earth-shattering carnage. And so it went in Black Hawk Down.

The book itself is very well researched; Bowden comments in the afterword that despite his initial plan to compile previously gathered information into a memoir-like retelling of this story, he found that much of what happened on this day had yet to be pieced together and recorded, even by the military itself. Thus, this book ended up being the very first telling of this story as a cohesive whole. And what a story it is! Bowden must have tracked down and talked to a hundred people to get everything straight...

My only beef with this book is that there are so many characters and so many crises going on all at the same time that I found myself getting lost a bit. (“Wait, which one died? I thought that dude was the one with the shattered femur, not the one who had half his head sliced off by metal from the helicopter crash...? Which chalk is pinned down in the wrong place again?”) And maybe there’s no way to avoid that kind of confusion when you’re writing about a situation as insane and disorienting as this particular battle, so I really don’t hold that against Bowden to any great degree.

Overall, Black Hawk Down was intense, gory, and terribly sad. A well-written story of bloody battle, through and through.

#Book Review #Black Hawk Down #Mark Bowden #Mogadishu #Somalia #War #Military

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ultrasfcb-blog · 6 years ago

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Man Utd: Why it's harmful to jot down off Jose Mourinho - Alan Shearer

Man Utd: Why it’s harmful to jot down off Jose Mourinho – Alan Shearer

Alan Shearer joins Gary Lineker and Ian Wright on the primary Match of the Day of the season at 22:20 BST on Saturday on BBC One and the BBC Sport web site for highlights of seven Premier League video games. Right here, he appears to be like on the contenders within the title race, and the prospects for his former membership Newcastle.

It has been a troublesome pre-season for Manchester United, and we are going to learn how it has affected their gamers after they get the brand new Premier League marketing campaign began in opposition to Leicester on Friday evening.

This time final 12 months, all the things at United appeared very upbeat and optimistic, however now there appears to be a distinct temper across the membership, and their supervisor.

Jose Mourinho has had the grumps all summer season and once you examine his character now to the best way he was when he first arrived within the Premier League with Chelsea in 2004, it’s chalk and cheese.

Again then he was pleased, witty and smug, and appeared to all the time communicate with a smile.

As of late, he’s way more more likely to have a frown on his face – and it appears as if he desires to combat everybody.

I can perceive his frustration, as a result of each supervisor desires an even bigger and higher pool of gamers than they already have.

Jose isn’t any completely different – he has made it clear he desires to get one other central defender in earlier than Thursday’s deadline.

Mourinho desires two signings, however solely expects one

However he has already spent an terrible lot of cash in his two years in control of United and, when you take a look at their squad, they’ve a lot high quality there.

The backbone of their facet, with David de Gea, Eric Bailly, Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic, Alexis Sanchez and Romelu Lukaku is especially sturdy, even earlier than you get on to gamers like Marcus Rashford, Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial.

‘It might be harmful to jot down off Man Utd or Mourinho’

Their staff is certainly already ok to problem champions Manchester Metropolis for the title, however can Jose get the very best out them, and might they play in a method that may hold their followers pleased?

Like every huge membership, they want some silverware – in his first season at Previous Trafford, 2016-17, Mourinho received two trophies – the League Cup and Europa League – however he received nothing final season.

So, the strain is on and there’s even hypothesis he won’t final for much longer in his job.

However regardless of his present downbeat manner, it will be harmful to jot down United or Mourinho off.

We’ve got solely seen him when he has appeared in entrance of the TV cameras this summer season and heard what he has instructed the media, and I believe he’ll behave very in another way on the coaching floor along with his gamers.

I’m nonetheless anticipating them to be very sturdy this season, and I really assume that, together with Liverpool, they are going to be rather a lot nearer to Manchester Metropolis this time.

Metropolis received the 2017-18 title with a century of factors, scoring 106 objectives

‘Liverpool should deal with expectation after spending huge’

Liverpool have spent a fortune to attempt to shut the hole and it appears to be like like they’ve recognized their weaknesses, and tried to rectify them.

In fact, when managers spend huge they need to ship success and in Jurgen Klopp’s case, meaning a primary trophy since he took cost of the Reds in October 2015.

Klopp will know that too, however he would relatively have spent that cash – and need to deal with the strain that comes with it – than not.

Klopp on strain, expectation and Karius

Tottenham, in distinction, haven’t spent something thus far this summer season however in addition they must win one thing after coming so shut previously few seasons, in any other case they may don’t have anything to indicate for all their good work.

They haven’t had the identical funds to throw at their staff because the golf equipment round them however they’ve nonetheless acquired themselves right into a place the place they’re contenders.

I’m positive if they do not take that subsequent step and truly win one thing with the staff they have now, then in years to return they’ll look again with remorse.

These groups would make up my high 4, with Chelsea and Arsenal remaining exterior the Champions League locations.

Shearer’s top-four prediction 1. Man Metropolis 2. Liverpool 3. Man Utd 4. Tottenham

There may be nonetheless time for the Blues to purchase gamers however as issues stand now, with Alvaro Morata and Olivier Giroud as their primary strikers, I do not assume they’ve the firepower to problem for the title once more.

With Arsenal, it’s a matter of wait and see underneath their new supervisor Unai Emery. For starters, will probably be very unusual trying on the Emirates dugout and never seeing Arsene Wenger in there after so a few years.

It would do them the world of fine to freshen issues up, however I do not see them difficult for the title.

‘Groups will know what Man Metropolis do – however can they cease them?’

Liverpool have been Manchester Metropolis’s bogey staff final season – Walker

On the high, Manchester Metropolis stay the staff to beat.

I stated on the finish of final season that to go down as an all-time nice staff, they have to be serial winners and defend their title, and I feel they’ll try this.

Complacency has been a difficulty with Metropolis after their title wins previously, and their captain Vincent Kompany has admitted they have been lacking an edge to their play the season after they received the Premier League in 2012 and 2014.

I’ve been there myself, with Blackburn in 1995, and I understand how troublesome it’s to repeat the degrees that acquired you your preliminary success.

On high of that, the opposing groups know what you might be all about, and your fashion of play.

The distinction with Metropolis is that it’s one factor figuring out what they do, however it’s one thing else to attempt to cease it.

They set document after document final season for factors and objectives, and put down a marker for the brand new marketing campaign with their efficiency within the Group Protect final weekend.

Group Protect: Chelsea 0-2 Manchester Metropolis highlights

There isn’t a method Pep Guardiola will permit them to lose their drive for extra trophies. You’ll be able to see how demanding a coach he’s from the repeated success he had with Barcelona and Bayern.

I do not care how good you might be, although, you continue to must clean up your squad and Metropolis have achieved that by bringing in Riyad Mahrez from Leicester.

Not solely that, they’ve additionally acquired Benjamin Mendy again – after he missed nearly all of final season with a knee harm – which is like having one other new participant.

In fact, they’ll need to do higher within the Champions League – they haven’t gone additional than the semi-finals within the 10 years since Sheikh Mansour purchased the membership and began investing billions of kilos.

However I do not assume Europe shall be a distraction for them, as a result of they haven’t managed back-to-back Premier League titles but both.

They may need to win each, and they have the gamers and the squad to do it. It’s a problem they’ll relish.

A season of battle for Newcastle?

Newcastle does not appear a contented camp – Shearer

Sadly I feel my previous membership Newcastle usually tend to be close to the underside of the desk than the highest.

They’re going through the identical previous issues, with the supervisor Rafa Benitez and the followers demanding extra funding within the staff. Fairly rightly, they’re asking the place the cash has gone.

The fan in me hopes they have an excessive amount of to go down, however I worry will probably be an extended previous season.

Alan Shearer was talking to BBC Sport’s Chris Bevan.

BBC Sport – Football ultras_FC_Barcelona

ultras FC Barcelona - https://ultrasfcb.com/football/10147/

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brianreyes549-blog · 7 years ago

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Film critic accuses T.J. Miller of being transphobic following offensive email

Earlier this week, T.J. Miller was accused of sexually assaulting and punching a woman in college. Now, just two days later, the former Silicon Valley star is facing accusations of being transphobic.

These new allegations stem from an email received by film critic Danielle Solzman. Solzman, a contributing writer for Consequence of Sound and a member of the Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle, first befriended Miller at various comedy clubs in Illinois and even came out as transgender to him two years ago. Miller had initially been supportive of her and her transitioning process, but after Solzman pointed out what she described as an “offensive” transphobic joke on The Emoji Movie actor's website, his tune seemed to change drastically.

A lot of people keep asking what I sent to TJ Miller. If you need the context, here's the email that I sent him. I'm including the screenshot of the tweet in which I found out about his use of a transphobic slur in his site's meta description. pic.twitter.com/0Kadh4hflZ

- Danielle Solzman (@DanielleSATM) December 20, 2017

In a heated email to Solzman, Miller referred to her as “Daniel”, a “weird strange little man” and “a fucking asshole.” He claimed Solzman came out as transgender merely for attention, and also is shocked that he - someone who lent her his support from the very beginning - would be called offensive.

“You have merely confirmed what I always knew… This pursuit of transgender identity is nothing more than an opportunity for you to distinguish yourself as someone who is special, but what is really special is how retarded it is that you would ever think to attack me or say that I've been offensive.”

“Never contact me again you weird strange terrible man,” Miller continued. “If you were bothered to look into anything that I've ever done you would find it not only have I had sex with transgender people, but I have donated widely to organizations that support their freedom.”

I got this email in early August. I stayed quiet and while it's redacted, I'm too scared to name them for fear of legal threats against me. pic.twitter.com/J2kA5t1vW7

- Danielle Solzman (@DanielleSATM) September 27, 2017

“You're not a transgender, you're not a tranny - you're a fucking asshole Daniel. A fucking asshole.” He later added, “For so long I felt pity for you, felt sorry for you, and looked for ways that I could support you… You always wanted to be little, to be a victim. Well you are now. You're little to nothing to me at least.”

Solzman originally posted the email on Twitter back in September, but purposely left out Miller's identity. However, following the sexual misconduct allegations this week, she chose to name him publicly.

This morning Solzman spoke to CoS further about the incident. In particular, she discussed whether Miller had previously shown other transphobic tendencies and how his comments could never be misconstrued as comedy. Solzman also talked about transphobia in the TV/film industry.

Prior to receiving this email, had you gotten any other indications that Miller might be transphobic?

In my years of knowing TJ, I didn't see any indication of him being transphobic. He was one of the first people I came out to as transgender from within the small Chicago comedy circle of friends that I stayed in touch with over the years. The day I came out or the day after, he shared a pic of mine on his Facebook to say that I was his hero.

Just to play devil's advocate… what would you say to people who might chalk up his comments to some kind of misunderstood, extreme form of comedy? Or some poor choice of words in a heat-of-the-moment kind of situation? He certainly has a unique personality/brand of humor.

I have a background in comedy, having taken improv classes at the Second City Training Center. There's nothing remotely funny about the comments that he made. I am very aware of Emoji Movie getting slammed by film critics earlier that week. I'm certainly not a psychologist so I can't speculate as to his mental state of being during that week. I do know that he also went after another film critic, Mike Ryan,via Twitter DMs on the same day that he responded to my email. This was confirmed on Twitter yesterday.

Miller said not to contact him again. Have you? If you could speak to him right now, what would you say about the whole situation?

I've not contacted him since. I cut him out of my life. I blocked him from sending emails and I blocked him on social media. It wasn't until things started coming out of Austin and elsewhere in September in which I decided that I needed to public about the transphobic abuse. This was two weeks before the floodgates opened with the Harvey Weinstein story. I spoke to The Hollywood Reporter and ultimately, they felt it was too private/personal of a story to run.

I have zero interest in speaking with TJ ever again.

Would you say this Miller situation is an isolated incident in your line of work? What's your general impression of the TV/film industry's views regarding the transgender community?

I've dealt with transphobic hate as I've built up a following. When John Barrowman pulled a transphobic stunt at Comic Con, I've never seen so much hatred pointed at me in my life. Barrowman tried to make a statement in support of the new Doctor Who being female but when a cisgender gay male says he is the transgender TARDIS, it re-enforces a negative stereotype that transgender women are men.

I've gotten transphobic hatred in response to a review of The Layover from a super fan of one of the actresses in the film. While the response to going public has been generally positive, there have been the haters and thanks to TERF Blocker, I don't have to deal with the transphobes and TERFs who deny my identity as a woman.

My general impression is that while the tide is turning, there's still work to be done with increasing transgender representation in both TV and film. There were two films to premiere in 2017 with a trans woman in a leading role: And Then There Was Eve and A Fantastic Woman. Eve is still looking for a buyer and you can rest assured that I'll be supporting this film in anyway that I can. As for A Fantastic Woman, I'm elated that I can consider a film with a trans actress in a leading role when it comes to my awards nominations.

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yahoo-roto-arcade-blog · 7 years ago

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Week 6 Fantasy Sleepers: Heavenly results on tap for Kamara

Kneel at thy feet. Alvin Kamara could be the new king in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Bob Leverone)

Week 6 Fantasy Flames: Kamara, Hogan, Gabriel to catch fire

Each week the Noise highlights under-started names who he believes are destined to torch the competition. To qualify, each player must be started in fewer than 60 percent of Yahoo! leagues. Speaking as an accountability advocate, I will post results, whether genius or moronic, the following week (Scoring thresholds – QB: 18 fpts, RB: 12 fpts, WR: 11 fpts: TE: 10 fpts; .5 PPR). If you’re a member of TEAM HUEVOS, reveal your Week 6 Flames in the comments section below.

Kevin Hogan, Cle, QB (1 percent started, $20 in Yahoo DFS) Matchup: at Hou (Game over/under: 45)

Extra long sizes are required for those Cleveland fans that playfully list the organization’s number of quarterback starters since 1999 on the back of their jerseys. Tim Couch, Brandon Weeden, Charlie Frye, Brady Quinn … it’s a bottomless abyss of failure. It’s too early to determine whether Deshone Kizer, spectacularly awful the past couple weeks, is the franchise’s next great derelict, but he’s certainly trending in the wrong direction. Hue Jackson has yet to announce his starter for this week’s clash in Houston, but signs point to Hogan getting the call. Including the elevated backup in this column might be overly huevos-y, but it’s completely foreseeable Hogan proves skeptics wrong. How? The plus-athlete is a dual threat who’s shown promise in spurts. In Week 7 last year, for example, he passed for 100 yards and ran for another 104 more against Cincinnati. A week ago, he recorded a pair of TDs, attacked downfield (10.2 ypa) and padded the bottom line with 30 rushing yards. Mix in Cleveland’s pass D issues, Deshaun Watson’s fiery hand and Houston’s plethora of significant injuries on defense, and tabbing him a ‘Flame’ isn’t that outlandish. Keep in mind Jonathan Joseph, Kareem Jackson and Jonathan Banks have allowed at least a 115.1 passer rating on the season. Again, if Hogan starts, the Chihuahua could pack a vicious bite.

Fearless Forecast: 223 passing yards, 2 passing touchdowns, 1 interception, 54 rushing yards, 21.3 fantasy points

Alvin Kamara, NO, RB (19 percent started, $17 in Yahoo DFS) Matchup: vs. Det (Over/Under: 51)

“Indiana Jones,” “Lord of the Rings,” “Lethal Weapon” – Tinsel Town is known for cranking out the sequels. Some meet or, in some rare cases, exceed expectations set by the original. Others, however, fall terribly flat. Take for instance the “Cars” series. The first one was an instant classic. Then Pixar, presumably driven by lucrative merchandise sales, made two more. They were completely forgettable. That trilogy is the perfect parallel to the Saints’ backfield. Kamara, the club’s true Lighting McQueen, is the only Black and Gold clad rusher worth watching. In terms of speed, electricity and efficiency, Mark Ingram and recently dealt Adrian Peterson pale in comparison. Off the bye, Kamara could experience a well-deserved expanded role, up for him his previously logged 31.8 percent opportunity share. Tough after initial contact (3.7 YAC/att), evasive and ultra-versatile, he needs more run. Sean Payton, who compared Kamara to Marshall Faulk earlier this season, absolutely loves the kid. This week against visiting Detroit, it would be no surprise if he earned 14-plus touches. The Lions, who’ve conceded a lowly 3.48 yards per carry and 129.2 total yards per game to RBs, rank outside the league’s top-15 in most fantasy points allowed to rushers. Despite the unattractive paper matchup, the physically fresh youngster will do work behind a top-shelf offensive line (No. 6 in run-blocking efficiency per Player Profiler). At the fantasy altar, Kamara is on the verge of being canonized, especially with CJ.2K, Peterson, now living in an Arizona retirement community.

Fearless Forecast: 10 carries, 51 rushing yards, 5 receptions, 39 receiving yards, 1 touchdown, 17.5 fantasy points

Andre Ellington, Ari, RB (37 percent started, $13 in Yahoo DFS) Matchup: vs. TB (Over/Under: 44.5)

Admittedly, I’m what you call a fantasy floozy. Rather promiscuous when it comes to running backs over the years, I openly professed my love for many under-the-radar rushers. Many of you are familiar with the names – Brandon Jacobs, Ryan Mathews, Melvin Gordon. A few raised arousal levels. Most caused unwanted dysfunction. Three years ago, Ellington joined the latter group. Though remarkably effective in smaller doses in 2014, he crumbled under the demands of an increased workload the following season. Eventually, David Johnson seized command of the Arizona backfield, relegating Ellington to mop-up duty. But with DJ sidelined and CJ2000 years old useless, the scrappy rusher is suddenly a thing again. Johnson and Kerwyn Williams will continue to dominate early-down work until AP is up to speed, but the multidimensional veteran has morphed into the desert’s version of Chris Thompson or Tarik Cohen. Targeted 39 times in five contests, he’s hauled in 28 passes for 256 yards — PPR goodness. He’s managed to dodge the end zone, but this is the week the afterthought leaves an indelible RB2 mark. His opponent, Tampa Bay, has yielded a foam sword in the trenches this season. The Bucs rank No. 8 in most fantasy points allowed to RBs giving up 133.5 total yards and 7.3 receptions per game to RBs. To be fair, they’ve given up just 3.27 yards per carry to plowshares, but Ellington’s strength resides dissecting defenses in the short field. FLEX him at a minimum.

Fearless Forecast: 4 carries, 19 rushing yards, 7 receptions, 61 receiving yards, 1 touchdown, 17.5 fantasy points

Donte Moncrief, Ind, WR (17 percent started, $16 in Yahoo DFS) Matchup: at Ten (Over/Under: OTB)

For Indy’s Frenchman, his 2017 fantasy season has tasted like unseasoned escargot. Targeted a mere 14.8 percent of the time, he’s hauled in an unusable 11 catches for 174 yards and one score. Dropped in droves in recent weeks, most believe the once highly touted thoroughbred isn’t race ready, even in deep leagues. Though Jacoby Brissett has spoon fed T.Y. Hilton and, to a lesser extent, his tight ends, this is the week Moncrief delivers flavorful results. “Miniatures” should replace “Titans” as the franchise’s nickname. Shriveled by its flammable D, Mike Mularkey’s club has been picked apart often by opposing quarterbacks. On the season, they’ve yielded a league-high 12 passing touchdowns, nine of which were hauled in by wide receivers. Peering through the microscope, Logan Ryan and Adoree Jackson have the appearance of amoebas. The pedestrian pair have enveloped few assignments. On the year, they’ve allowed a combined 115.8 passer rating, five scores and 78.8 yards per game. Given Moncrief’s limited volume, admittedly, he’s a dice roll, but the matchup and limited resources several have with four teams on siesta say No. 10 is certainly worth the hit. Gamble, and you may score blackjack.

Fearless Forecast: 4 receptions, 57 receiving yards, 1 touchdown, 13.7 fantasy points

Austin Seferian-Jenkins, NYJ, TE (23 percent started, $16 in Yahoo DFS) Matchup: vs. NE (Over/Under: 47.5)

At some point in our lives, every one of us is influenced by overconfidence. Self-talk, and the resulting ego boost we receive, convinces us to abandon conventionality, chase the river and pray a jack of any suit flips up to complete the straight. It’s bound to happen. It’s sure to happen. Last week on Twitter, I too nearly fell victim to a psychological stroking. After reading a rather hyperbolic piece on a competitor’s site, I tossed out a rather bold statement about ASJ. Luckily, it kept the hindsight haters at bay as the hidden gem finished TE8 on the week. Whew. Not one to back down, I’m doubling down on the Jet. Though New England temporarily learned how to read its defensive playbook last week in Tampa, it remains a highly beatable defense. Last Thursday, Patrick Chung blanketed Cameron Brate fairly well, but Jameis Winston misfires soured what was an otherwise a sweet-tasting fantasy night. On the year, Chung has conceded a 19-273-2 line to his assignments, several of those catches to tight ends. In fact as a unit, the Patriots stand at No. 4 in fantasy points allowed to the position. Seferian-Jenkins, who’s seen 21.4 percent of the targets share (TE4) since returning to action, is the mental boost we all need in another harsh bye week.

Fearless Forecast: 6 receptions, 55 receiving yards, 1 touchdown, 17.5 fantasy points

WEEK 6 SHOCKER SPECIAL (Under 10-percent started)

Taylor Gabriel, Atl, WR (2 percent started, $13 in Yahoo DFS) Matchup: vs. Mia (Over/Under: 47)

Speedy Gonzalez. Mighty Mouse. Scrappy from Scooby Doo. Gabriel, much like memorable cartoon characters and carbon copy Tyreek Hill, is a dwarfish receiver (5-foot-8, 167-pounds) chock full of speed and explosiveness. A year ago, he was one of the waiver wire’s shiniest gems. He enticed just 12.8 percent of the targets share and caught 36 balls, but his knack for bursting into the end zone briefly tabbed him a consistency king. From Weeks 8-15, he morphed into a matchup nightmare, crossing the chalk seven times. His subsequent 2.71 fantasy points per target set the pace among all wide receivers. Though he’s cashed six only once in four games, his amplified snap share (’16: 46.9%; ’17: 59.1%) and possible increased overall role with Mohamed Sanu questionable (hammy) suggest another scoring streak is on the immediate horizon. The matchup, too, is incredibly favorable. Miami, with or without top corner Byron Maxwell, hasn’t quite served up fantasy production on a silver platter. It ranks top-10 in fewest points allowed to WRs. That standing, however, is a bit deceiving. The ‘Fins rank top-12 in catch percentage (71.4, No. 2) and yards per catch (12.93, No. 12) surrendered. Scuba diving, current CB starters Xavien Howard and rookie Cordrea Tankersley have given up a 102.7 average passer rating. If Sanu sits, look for Gabriel, who ranks top-15 in separation yards per target, to skewer the Fish underneath.

Fearless Forecast: 5 receptions, 61 receiving yards, 1 touchdown, 14.6 fantasy points

BONUS WEEK 6 FLAMES

#TEAMHUEVOS PICKS OF THE WEEK Each week one fortunate guest prognosticator will have a chance to silence the Noise. Following the rules stated above, participants are asked to submit their “Flames” (1 QB, 2 RBs, 2 WRs, 1 TE, 1 D/ST) by midnight PT Tuesdays via Twitter @YahooNoise. How large are your stones?

@YahooNoise #TeamHuevos J Brissett, Aaron Jones, J McKinnon, fuller v, Mike Wallace, ed Dickson, NE D

— Alex Szabo (@AlexSzabo23) October 10, 2017

Fan Week 5 results: 3-4 (Season: 14-23) My Week 5 results: 5-5 (Season: 26-26; W: Jacoby Brissett, Duke Johnson, Jerick McKinnon, ASJ, Carson Wentz; L: Tyrell Williams, Alex Collins, Wayne Gallman, Adam Humphries, Oakland D/ST; DNS: Geronimo ALlison, C.J. Prosise)

Want to bull rush Brad? Follow him on Twitter @YahooNoise. Also check out his TV show, “The Fantasy Football Hour,” now available in 75 million households on Fox Sports Regional Networks, and his new podcast, “The Fantasy Record.”

#_category:yct:001000854 #_lmsid:a077000000CFoGyAAL #_author:Brad Evans #_revsp:54edcaf7-cdbb-43d7-a41b-bffdcc37fb56 #_uuid:d9ed445a-89d4-3c95-9d3d-20084a61c56e

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mavwrekmarketing · 7 years ago

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Image copyright Rhona McKinlay

Image caption Dementia sufferer William McKinlay was made to sit in a chair saturated with his own urine

A deaf-blind dementia sufferer was made to sit in a chair soaked with his own urine by a care home manager, his daughter has claimed.

Rhona McKinlay said 84-year-old William was left “utterly humiliated” for hours at the Latimer Grange home with a circle drawn around his chair.

The ex-prison officer said she had seen inmates treated better than her father.

Home owner Anthony Lampitt was contacted by the BBC, but a solicitor and PR firm responded on his behalf.

A spokesman for the home said it took “all allegations very seriously” and was “confident we provide a good standard of care”.

Northamptonshire County Council and Northamptonshire Police are investigating.

Image copyright Rhona McKinlay

Image caption Rhona McKinlay said staff could not explain a large bruise on her father’s stomach

Mrs McKinlay said her father also suffered bruising, flea bites and was not fed properly by carers at the home in Burton Latimer.

She recorded all her concerns in a diary, in which she wrote: “Dad saturated in urine, sitting in chair, wet to his knees and up his back.

“Anthony Lampitt drew a chalk ring around my Dad and made him sit back down. He was utterly humiliated.”

One former care worker, who did want to be named, told the BBC it had been her job to return Mr McKinlay to the chair.

‘I felt like crying’

A chalk circle had been drawn around the furniture to alert others it had been soiled and required cleaning, which is common practice in homes.

She said: “Mr Lampitt said to put him back there ‘as he is not going to urinate everywhere else’.

“He wanted to keep him there. That made me feel guilty. I felt like crying.”

Mrs McKinlay said matters reached a head when Mr Lampitt said her father was being put on a new drug.

She said she denied him permission to do so, but was shocked to find he had told carers to administer the medication anyway.

The home’s spokesman said it was legally required to follow the advice given by GPs and community psychiatric nurses and it had a robust medicines management policy.

Image copyright Rhona McKinlay

Image caption A note appears to show the decision to change Mr McKinlay’s medication was signed off by Anthony Lampitt

Mrs McKinlay said on another occasion she found a large bruise on her father’s stomach, but staff could not explain how it happened.

“The weight was falling off my dad. At one point he was covered in flea bites. They had to have the place fumigated,” she said.

“They couldn’t be bothered feeding him. He couldn’t see the food put in front of him and doesn’t have the mental capacity to eat properly himself.

“It was terrible.”

‘Bad place’

The carer said if there was a shortage of meals on a specific day food “would not [be given] to residents with dementia as they would not remember”.

Another member of staff, who also wanted to remain anonymous, alleged residents were left for months without being bathed.

“One time we took [William’s] top off and he had 16 flea bites because there was a cat in the home,” she said.

The care home said pets were allowed on the premises to provide a “home-away-from-home care experience” but pro-active flea treatment was undertaken.

Image copyright Empics

Image caption Mrs McKinlay has complained to police, the Care Quality Commission and the county council about her fathers treatment

They added there had been times the home had been “unable to meet” Mr McKinlay’s care needs.

“Our home is not equipped to support individuals suffering from advanced sight and hearing loss, as well as challenging aggressive behaviours.”

Mrs McKinlay said her father had been crying when she visited and had since moved to a different care home.

“The guilt was killing me,” she said. “Sometimes now my dad says, ‘please don’t make me go back to the bad place’.”

The council said prior to the launch of its investigation into Mrs McKinlay’s concerns, it had suspended new admissions to Latimer Grange after a routine contract monitoring visit.

The home said it was working with the authority on a number of actions and the “health, welfare and safety” of residents was “our primary focus.”

Image caption Latimer Grange care home caters for elderly people with dementia and Alzheimer’s

A council spokesman said it was aware of the issues raised by Mr McKinlay’s family about the quality of care at the home.

“We are working closely with the private care home provider and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to investigate those concerns,” they added.

In light of Mrs McKinlay’s concerns, the CQC inspected the care home in February but found standards were good.

A CQC spokeswoman said it had shared details of the complaint with the home and the authority and all “had been subject to safeguarding alerts”.

She added: “We are continuing to monitor this service.”

Mr Lampitt previously owned two other care homes, the Da-Mar Residential Care Home in Northampton and Clifton Residential Home in Rushden.

Both were wound-up due to financial problems and had been told they required improvement following inspections.