#do i need to rewatch quicksand after this???

[sskk-manifesto]

!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[the-rewatch-rewind]

New episode! Script below the break

Hello and welcome back to the Rewatch Rewind! My name is Jane, and this is the podcast where I talk about my most frequently rewatched movies after 20 years of keeping track. Today I will be discussing my 37th most watched movie: Act III Communications’ 1987 fantasy adventure comedy The Princess Bride, directed by Rob Reiner, written by William Goldman based on his novel, and starring Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, and Mandy Patinkin.

This is another film like Mary Poppins that I’m not even sure I have to summarize, I feel like it’s so deeply ingrained in popular culture that anyone who is even vaguely familiar with the concept of movies knows Princess Bride. Even if you somehow haven’t seen it, you’ve almost certainly heard it quoted: I mean, it’s got “Inconceivable!” and “As you wish” and “Mawaige” and of course “Hello, my name is Iñigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die!” among many many other extremely quotable lines.

But, just in case you’ve forgotten what it’s about, let me explain…No, there is too much. Let me sum up. The Princess Bride is a story being read to a boy (Fred Savage) by his grandfather (Peter Falk) and tells of the beautiful young woman Buttercup (Robin Wright) and her handsome farm boy Westley (Cary Elwes), whose love overcomes a plethora of obstacles, including pirates, kidnappers, eels, cliffs, swords, poison, fire, quicksand, large rodents, a sadistic 6-fingered count, a torture machine, and a prince who wants to marry but also murder Buttercup.

This movie used to be on TV all the time when I was young, so I remember catching bits and pieces of it a lot, but I can’t recall exactly when I first watched it all the way through. The main first impressions I remember are being terrified of the ROUSes (rodents of unusual size) and not really understanding what was going on. But I know I had figured it out and grown to appreciate it well before I started tracking the movies I watched. Once I started keeping track, I saw it once in 2003, once in 2004, twice in 2005, once in 2006, twice in 2007, once in 2008, twice in 2009, and once each in 2012, 2013, 2015, 2017, and 2021: 15 times total.

If you’ve listened to my previous episodes, you may be wondering how on earth I’m going to argue that The Princess Bride is not a romantic film, and the answer is…I’m not. Though there is a lot of non-romantic stuff going on throughout the movie, I think we can all agree that the extremely romantic love between Westley and Buttercup is the main driving force of the story. And that’s okay, I’m not anti-romance simply because I’m aromantic; I’m anti-amatonormativity, the idea that every human wants and needs a long-term romantic partner. And while The Princess Bride is a love story, it is not amatonormative. None of the other characters besides Westley and Buttercup seem to be looking for romance, even though they are extremely well developed and do have clear objectives. Iñigo (Mandy Patinkin) wants to avenge the death of his father; Vizzini (Wallace Shawn) wants power; Fezzik (Andre the Giant) wants to be useful; Count Rugen (Christopher Guest) wants to torture people; and even Prince Humperdinck (Chris Sarandon) only wants to get married so he can start a war over the death of his bride. Granted, not all of these are presented as good objectives, but at no point is it suggested that any of these characters should abandon their quests and instead search for romance. A significant amount of screen time is devoted to loving but platonic friendship, especially the one between Iñigo and Fezzik, which is fun and beautiful. The camaraderie between them and Westley when the three join forces is a major highlight of the film. Of course, it’s all in pursuit of romance (and vengeance), but that doesn’t diminish the strength of their friendship. Obviously no one can deny that a major recurring theme of the film is that true love (which is generally implied to be inherently romantic) is the greatest thing in the world, besides a nice MLT – a mutton, lettuce, and tomato sandwich – which I assume is that world’s version of cake or garlic bread and Miracle Max is an ace icon, but anyway. My point is that the movie emphasizes that the kind of love between Westley and Buttercup is rare. If you find it, you should hold onto it, but not everybody is going to find it, so don’t sit and wallow in self-pity or despair if you don’t. And this is kind of how I always thought of romance for myself, before I knew that being aromantic was a thing. It would be great if I happened to find it, but if not, there are other things to focus on. So amatonormativity and its consequences – people desperately trying to find a partner, any partner, just to have one; expressions of pity toward single people; etc – really confused me. As did the knowledge, once I figured it out, that most people enjoy romantic movies because of the romance, and not despite it, as I eventually realized I was almost subconsciously doing. Like the kid hearing this story, I tolerate the kissing parts if the rest of the story draws me in enough, which Princess Bride absolutely does. The grandpa telling him “someday you might not mind so much” about kissing rather than something like “someday you will like kissing” was almost certainly not intended to fight amatonormativity, but we can choose to see it that way. The fact that the kid wants to hear about the kissing at the end could be interpreted as “he’s finally growing up and accepting that romance is part of life”; but, it can also be interpreted as, “he’s so into the story that he’ll put up with the kissing at the end so it doesn’t go unfinished,” and that I relate to. I also appreciate that the movie ends with the grandpa saying “As you wish” to his grandson. By echoing the way Westley said “I love you” to Buttercup, the grandfather is implying that those two different kinds of love are equal, refusing to play along with the amatonormative idea that romantic love is far superior to any other form of love.

While I’m sure that a lot of people do watch The Princess Bride at least partly for the romance, I think that unlike many romantic films, the reasons I enjoy it are also the main reasons most other people enjoy it. The script is clever, quotable, and fun; the characters are eclectic and fascinating and perfectly brought to life by fabulous actors; and the tone is unique. Apart from the scenes in the kid’s bedroom, what we’re seeing is not the actual story; we’re seeing what the kid pictures as he’s hearing the story, which is such a cool way to tell it. Everything feels larger-than-life, but in an honest, pure way that makes it feel realistic even in its absurdity. The Princess Bride is a delightful blend of a child’s imagination and an experienced storyteller’s writing skills, and I think that is a major contributor to its enduring popularity, even if most of its fans wouldn’t necessarily articulate it that way. It lives in that elusive space between childhood and adulthood where both children and adults feel at home, and therefore love to revisit. I read the book the movie is adapted from once as a teenager, and I remember being struck by how, even though many of the plot points had changed, the humor and tone were perfectly consistent between the novel and the film, which made it, in my opinion, an extremely faithful adaptation. Of course this makes sense because William Goldman wrote both, and Rob Reiner, the film’s director, was a big fan of the book. But often novel-to-feature-film adaptations get so focused on figuring out how to shorten the story without omitting important plot points that they lose sight of the heart of the original story. That absolutely did not happen here, and that’s a big part of why so many people love this movie. Sure, the plot points are interesting, but we’re really here for the unique comedic tone that was taken directly from the book. Changing the sharks to eels and eliminating the Zoo of Death were no big deal, but trying to tell the story without witty jokes simply would not have worked.

I think of all the movies I’ll be talking about on this podcast, The Princess Bride is the one I’ve watched the most in large groups. Most of my movie watching has been done at home, maybe with a few family members or friends, and I’ve certainly watched this one that way as well, but I remember seeing it several times at big movie night events. While I’ve definitely encountered people who don’t love it and think it’s overrated, most people I know are always up for a Princess Bride rewatch. And because of its wide appeal and quotable script, it’s very fun to see with a big crowd. While I’m too young to have seen it in a theater when it was first released, I did go to a 30th anniversary screening in 2017, which was awesome. My favorite part of that experience was after Buttercup hears that Westley’s ship has been captured by the Dread Pirate Roberts, who famously takes no prisoners, and says, “I will never love again,” a kid sitting behind me muttered, “Well THAT seems a little extreme” and I’ve been laughing about it ever since.

In addition to crowded viewings themselves, just being familiar with this movie in general has been a very social experience. As a teenager who loved old Hollywood and frequently referenced movies most kids my age had never heard of (I know the movies I’ve talked about here so far are fairly well-known, but just wait), it was fun to be able to bring up this one and have most people know what I was talking about for once. A few years ago I got to participate in a Princess Bride script reading with some friends, and I read for Vizzini and a few other minor characters, and it was so fun! I kept losing my place because I was so caught up watching everybody else. The joy of reading this excellent script with other people who also love the movie cannot be expressed in words. Also, a former coworker of mine LOVES this movie, and we used to quote it to each other all the time when we worked together. At one point everyone in our office got these “mood indicators,” which were desk calendar looking booklets where every page had a different emotion and a colorful emoji-style face on it – I guess to give people who approached our desks a heads up on how we were doing that day? I’m not sure how other people used theirs, but this coworker liked to cut out post-it notes in the shape of hair and various props and speech bubbles to add to them, so the ones in our department would quote bits of Princess Bride, mostly parts of the scene when Fezzik keeps rhyming with Iñigo and winding up Vizzini. I’ll post pictures I took of them on Tumblr – have I mentioned that this podcast has a Tumblr? It’s the-rewatch-rewind. The link will be in the show notes. I know most people stopped using Tumblr a while ago but it’s still my favorite social media platform, so that’s where I’ve been putting the transcripts of this podcast.

Anyway, while 15 is a lot of times to watch a movie, it feels like I’ve watched Princess Bride way more than that in the last 20 years, partly because of how frequently it comes up in life. Some films are more memorable than others, and this one leaves a deep impression every time I revisit it, so each viewing feels like multiple. I’m also still noticing new things about it – it took me until writing this episode to appreciate the humor of the man with the extra finger being a count. Obviously, the movie isn’t perfect; it could certainly use more female characters and racial diversity, for a start. But overall I think it deserves its popularity and devoted followers. It’s a well-told story with an excellent sense of humor featuring an ensemble of fascinating characters; what’s not to love?

Thank you for listening to me discuss another of my most-rewatched movies! Remember to rate and review, and subscribe or follow on your podcast platform of choice if you’re enjoying this and want to hear more. Next episode will be the first one to feature a movie that was made after I started keeping track, so stay tuned to hear about something a little more recent. As always, I will leave you with a quote from that next movie: “I don’t have a skull. Or bones.”

[batri-jopa]

I think I finally understood this.

Whoever I recommend this movie do not became its fan. My enthusiasm probably only makes it worse for them because they watch it and experience the what's-a-big-deal moment... Like nobody falls in love with this movie at the first sight. I mean someone may like it of course. Somebody else can even say they liked it a lot. But nobody loves it wholeheartedly after first watching.

It all depends if that first watching left something in you.

This could be anything. Maybe just that new kind of music you want to hear again. Maybe a dance scene you wish to see once more. Maybe you read a review judging the character's motivation in a way you could not agree and rewatch to make yourself sure about it. Maybe you're curious about any possible detail of that different culture you only just learned existed. Maybe you're concerned about any of the social issues of the country you never bothered about before. Maybe there's something unexplainable and hard to verbalise that just caught your interest now.

All in all it means this movie somehow ignited a spark in you that can't be easily put out. And once you make your own decision to watch it the second time just to see more... you're caught in it like in quicksand.

Now rewatching it for god-knows-which time again, after reading all the possible reviews and interviews, after seeing all the screenshots and gifsets for numerous times, knowing it all by heart alreadt - I still feel the need to pause and repeat few scenes...

It doesn't stop to amaze me how easily I could have missed this shared glance! How probable it was that I could have never payed enough attention to the meaning of this whole scene! I might not have bothered about this conversation at all! I could have thought this gesture was just a stop gag! I was so close to be fooled that this tiny detail was an accident and thus uniportant!

All in all if I'd only watch it once - I know would have missed so many things I learned to absolutely love, I would miss adoring all the tiny details like hidden message, deeper meaning, all the subtle allusions and inspirations that were involved into creating this masterpiece!

Ps. I mean the movie And Then We Danced / და ჩვენ ვიცეკვეთ (2019), dir. Levan Akin but it could probably apply to other great movies that don't show their true value when only seen once.

[thisismyobsessionnow]

Can they stop loving on each other, pls! I can't 😭

[bestworstcase]

to the last post, New Dream? real hard analysis if u can

this thing

tts really Salvaged new dream for me because the film failed utterly to persuade me of this being a relationship that could last. i know “rapunzel falls for the first man she meets!” is sort of a common refrain that folks like to lob scathingly at tangled, but to my mind it sort of misses the mark? the issue isn’t that eugene is the first man she meets so much as it is that the first man she meets is... eugene. 

early in tangled (2010) we’re introduced to eugene as this devil-may-care rogue who snatches a royal artifact out from under the nose of the kingdom’s guards and then screws over his own partners in crime to escape. he’s an adult man of indeterminate age [remember that before tts pinned his age at 23 during the events of the film, there was speculation about him being as old as 26!] whose first impulse upon meeting a baby-faced teenager a few days shy of 18 is to put on this persona of suave insincere charm and hit on her. rapunzel asks him to do her a kindness, and he repeatedly tries to manipulate or intimidate her into just giving him back his satchel - it isn’t until they’re trapped in the flooding mine that he demonstrates any real concern for her as a person. all of this is intentional - eugene is supposed to be a smarmy, self-centered jerk who discovers his heart of gold as he falls in love with rapunzel. 

you know, over the course of just three days. 

meanwhile, of course, rapunzel is a teenager who grew up in total isolation, and eugene is the first person she’s ever met besides her exceptionally abusive ‘mother,’ and that puts her in a very vulnerable position. there’s a reason that the best inoculation against abuse is a wide, diverse network of interpersonal relationships - cruel, toxic, unhealthy, or outright abusive behaviors are all much easier to spot if you see them against a background of normal, healthy relationships. but rapunzel? the only thing she knows when she meets eugene is vicious emotional abuse. that’s her one point of comparison. 

so here’s what i always think when i rewatch tangled: what if eugene hadn’t changed? what if he hadn’t undergone this rapid, radical shift in personality? what if he hadn’t rediscovered his conscience and ability to care for someone other than himself? 

the entire romance hinges on eugene metamorphosing into a whole new person in a matter of days because rapunzel is just that wonderful. it is a changing-the-bad-boy fantasy, featuring a jerk in his twenties and a sheltered girl who turns eighteen in the final third of the film—and then the ending narration is like ‘i asked her over and over and over to marry me until she finally said yes! we got married! she ruled her kingdom and we lived happily ever after!’ and lol.

sure.

it is a house built on quicksand. 

now i’ve said this before, but i really do think the tts team was aware of how perilous ND would be, realistically speaking, as a long-term relationship, and while of course there were some constraints on where they could take that (obv rapunzel and eugene have to stay together and get married in the end), to the greatest degree possible within those bounds, tts did the work that tangled didn’t in order to sell ND as a functional and healthy relationship. 

tts examines how eugene and rapunzel are in different stages of life, with different emotional needs, and shows how they communicate with each other and work together to build bridges over those divides. it shows eugene continuing to grow and change, continually improving himself as a person, concurrent with rapunzel becoming more confident, self-assured, and independent without relying on him for protection or guidance as she did in the film. it gives both rapunzel and eugene lives outside of each other, friendships that they build and maintain independent of each other. it takes the uncomfortable ‘after asking and asking and asking’ line from the ending narration of tangled and turns it into an exploration of how they go from two people who should absolutely not under any circumstance be thinking about getting married right now to two people who are completely in sync and ready to make that lifelong commitment with each other. like... it can’t be emphasized enough how much effort went into taking the ridiculous fantasy relationship sold by the film and transforming it into i would argue the strongest and most believable relationship in the disney princess franchise.

[severalspoons]

Liveblog: Rewatching Trigun, Episode 9 (a Very Important episode)

This is where Wolfwood enters the story. TBH, I would’ve guessed he’d appear earlier. Anyway, I’ve been looking forward to this! Here we go!

-- “That is one heck of a well-prepared dead guy” lol

-- Wolfwood resting against the cross looks vaguely crucified. Oh, symbolism.

-- Could you possibly show any more of your chest, Wolfwood? ;) 

(Also, where does he get his razors and how can he afford them? Actually, same question goes for Vash, too).

-- Vash introducing himself in a silly fake-deep voice. Longest. Name. Ever. Like he’s trying to joke and impress Wolfwood at the same time. Pretty sure he’s flirting. He sounds ike a middle school child trying to talk to a crush, lol.

-- That’s quite a handshake. Would probably break a normal person’s hand.

-- OMG the way they’re laughing maniacally about the water is the best thing ever. 

It isn’t actually that funny, so I think this bit is supposed to stand in for a longer conversation where they’re joking around. 

-- Wolfwood’s voice sounds so blase when he’s talking about the orphanage. 

So we have Meryl guarding her feelings with anger and Wolfwood guarding them with distance/blocked emotions. The only one expressing their feelings in any sort of open way is Vash. In fact, he might be expressing too many feelings. Actually, even Vash doesn’t express deep and meaningful feelings, only momentary reactions to the situations around him, or oversharing about body needs (hunger, thirst, pain, needing the bathroom). He’s a great example of how to hide your feelings while looking like you’re sharing them openly.

-- Wolfwood and kids. Compare how he acts with these kids to how Vash was with Kaite last episode. Wolfwood is gentle and sweet, and literally gets down on their level <3. 

-- What are those food bars Wolfwood is sharing? They look like something astronauts would eat. Are they “lost technology?”

-- Wolfwood feeding the orphans. My heart!. No wonder Vash smiles so sweetly. I probably have the same look on my face right now. XD <3

-- Holy shit Wolfwood’s character analysis of Vash after knowing him for like 30 minutes. It’s perfect. Especially after starting out similarly to Meryl, being like, “this goofy guy can’t possibly be Vash the Stampede.” 

-- And then from that he launches into advertising like, “That’s this man’s opinion anyway...and THAT’S why we have this confessional!” “You really are good at your job, aren’t you?” Vash looks surprised and pissed off. I don’t blame him. He’s been wandering the world for many years, no one understands him and he probably feels so alone. Then someone gets him, but he doesn’t care, he’s just doing a bait and switch routine. Ouch.

-- I think Wolfwood probably did the confessional thing because he just got way too personal and was starting to feel uncomfortable and awkward. This was an excuse. Plausible deniability, if you will: “I’m just doing my job.”

-- “You would have gone anyway, wouldn’t you?” Awww

-- Why the f*** did the colonists of this planet make these giant mechanical spider-things? Of all the guards you could possibly make, why? ::asking the real questions::

-- The little girl whispering “how embarrassing” as the guys who were supposed to save her spin around in quicksand. Ahahahaha

-- These guys fight together really well. They move together really well. In other words, they have perfect chemistry. SO fun to watch.

-- “That’s no ordinary priest.” What/how much does Vash know?

-- Why does Wolfwood bother lying that he’s never used a gun? First of all, Vash just saw him shoot the mechanical spiders outside. Second of all, he’s about to shoot like someone who knows wtf he’s doing, realizing Vash will notice.

-- This episode is really playing up the similarities between Vash and Wolfwood. That surprised me because I remember Wolfwood as more of a foil. But it’s so cool to see Wolfwood at his best and kindest.

-- Wait, where’s the little girl?  Did Vash and Wolfwood even bring her back when they got out of the spaceship? Did they forget why they were out there in the first place?

-- OK, so the entire episode shows the similar values/chemistry/synchronous fighting/endless flirting of Vash and Wolfwood, and then just kind of abruptly pairs them off with the girls for the rest of the ride, for no apparent reason.  

-- Well, not quite no apparent reason. I don’t know how much Wolfwood likes Milly yet, but considering that the alternative is Meryl, I’d pick Milly, too. Lol, poor Vash is left to be tormented by her.

-- Haha, I love how Vash has learned to roll with Meryl’s diatribes and just sass her back.

-- Wolfwood falling asleep on Milly’s shoulder and Milly being a little embarrassed and then just going with it and falling asleep leaning on him herself, aww.

-- It takes four men to lift that cross out of the truck and toss it down to Wolfwood, who just catches it without his arms even sagging, as if it were nothing. No wonder he was dying, he lugged something that took 4 normal men to carry for 100 iles (the equivalent of miles), in the desert heat.

-- “It’s so heavy because it’s full of mercy” lol iconic

-- Wait, why is Wolfood leaving? I thought he had reasons to stay with them--wait, is that a spoiler?

-- Haha he says goodbye to Vash personally by name and then says goodbye to everyone else as a unit.

I’m going to fall asleep smiling now. Seeing them happy makes me happy.

[toniwilder]

The Melody of Memory

           They say that our sense of smell is what we link closest to our memory. Who is they? They means a collective whose opinion I need to serve my monologue. Don’t worry, we won’t sit on them long.

           I’d say that’s fair. People enter rooms when the first rainfall of April hits, when the clouds are hanging heavy over the city, and say, “Smells like spring.” They know that because it smells like all of their other springs, I’d assume. I can only assume since I didn’t have a sense of smell growing up.

           I broke my nose as a young girl with a penchant for falling into things. I hadn’t become familiar with the phrase “the squeaky wheel gets the grease” so the broken nose didn’t get fixed. I grew up with a gag of bone spurs forming in my nostrils until my nose went crooked. I entered all my milestones with one sense missing, the one we overlook that we’re supposed to use as the anchor for our memories.

           The wise and convenient They say that your senses compensate for the ones that need a little help. You focus in on the senses you have instead of those you don’t in order to paint a brighter picture; like Van Gogh working with blues and yellows so brilliantly with an obvious distaste for the reds. My brain saw that missing deck of cards and said, “Well, okay, I suppose music will have to do.”

           My dad had a penchant for old country on long road trips—a mixed tape that played the same dozen tunes over and over until my mom and brother were hitting their foreheads against the car window and contemplating jumping off onto the shoulder of the I-75 in search of quiet. The car ride probably smelled like cigarette smoke, but I only remember mono crooning by dead men. If I hear “North to Alaska” the chills picket along my arms until I roll my shoulders back, and it sends me deep into memories like I’m eleven all over again.

           Songs of the summer are different. Which summer? Do we mean the summer where I used little pink cassette tapes to record my favorite Hilary Duff song off the radio and screamed when the DJ talked over the first word nearly every single time? Or do we mean the summer where I decided I never needed to see the sun again, so my mom shoved me outside and locked the door behind me with only my MP3 player and a bottle of water to keep me entertained so I didn’t get sick from a vitamin D deficiency? We probably don’t mean the summer where I decided I was really into poetry and wrote a lot of prose in my Hello Kitty notebook about how nobody understood my angst to the sound of My Chemical Romance in my bright yellow, Pikachu decorated bedroom.

           When I was twelve years old I became obsessed with Antonio Banderas over my school’s Christmas break. It hit me suddenly and without warning, after dad recorded Desperado on the DVR. In the first scene, Antonio appears on screen playing a melancholy guitar while the opening credits roll. He then proceeds to sing—a song I didn’t understand a lick of because it was in Spanish—hit a guy over the head with a guitar, and walk across a bar top. You know, normal stuff.

           As prone as I am to exaggeration, I need to stress how I am not fibbing any numbers when I say I rewatched Desperado over Christmas break at least three times a day. Of those three times, I would rewatch that credits scene five times during each watching.

           If you aren’t a fan of math, and I can’t blame you, I watched the opening credits scene during these rewatches at least fifteen times every day. Remembering that Christmas break is two weeks, approximately fourteen days, and that I watched it for the first time on my second day of break, that means I watched the opening credits scene of Desperado, directed by Robert Rodriguez, Starring Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, and Steve Buscemi, directed in 1995, at least one hundred and ninety-five times over that break alone. That’s nearly nine hours of me listening to Cancion del Mariachi. I didn’t have a lot of hobbies.

           Why am I specifying this? I’m specifying this because when I say, “this is the sound of Christmas,” and I take the auxiliary cord away to play a mariachi ballad from a movie released in 1995, that you understand what that means. Christmas doesn’t smell like cold, dry air. Christmas sounds like Antonio Banderas. It also sounds like my parents saying, “I’m going to delete that movie off the DVR if you don’t go out with your friends in the next three days.” They never deleted it. I now own five copies of Desperado in every available format.

           When I turned sixteen, I got a nose job. I look about the same, minus the bump in my profile. I got it because I guess the summation of moments of me telling my parents, “I can’t smell,” had totaled up to a level that warranted a doctor’s visit. The doctor took one look at my nasal passages, said, “oh yeah, this sniffer is broken,” and then there I was: A sixteen-year-old with a nose job. Admittedly, I think he could have done a better job, but I didn’t say anything. I can’t do anything about it now, because his license was revoked after killing a patient in surgery. I also can’t tell you what that memory sounds like, because it’s not a song and it’s just a long list of curse words, but I digress.

           I went to college shortly after. The beginning of college sounds like the fight song, which just thinking about gets it stuck in my head. It sounds like a cacophony of white noise in an auditorium where I’m another face in the crowd. It sounds like my first roommate crying herself to sleep. There was something prophetic in us having the same first name.

           I think the scariest part is when college doesn’t sound like anything anymore. I can tell you what it felt like: it felt like eating five hundred calories a day out of the recommended twelve hundred, going weeks without talking, and watching the same episode of Kitchen Nightmares over and over because my depression was so heavy I couldn’t remember what I’d just watched. It felt like there was some kind of creature in my chest trying to crawl out from my sternum.

           I don’t remember what I listened to towards the end. I just remember feeling alone.

           The kicker is that I have never listened to music more than during my undergraduate experience. I listened to it on every walk to class from my dorm or my apartment. I listened to it when I got home, until I went to bed, and then immediately when I woke up the next morning.

           I remember none of those songs. Not even the ones I listened to when a classmate followed me to the bus every day and waited for me to get on. Not even when he shoved other men aside to sit next to me so he could put his hand on my thigh. I remember blasting my music like a Bose speaker for a theater’s grand auditorium, yes, but nothing sunk in. I was a quicksand of stimulation, where my brain absorbed and disintegrated everything around me until the entire experience became a fog.

            That’s four years of silence in my brain that I can’t account for. It rocks me more than knowing I had sixteen years of no smell. I hadn’t known what wasn’t there before, and retrieving my sense of smell before going to college hadn’t exactly been the best timing. A girl’s dorm isn’t much better than the boys. People need to be chased with Lysol in nearly every context, especially when their parents aren’t there to do it for them.

           I graduated in four years somehow, with a psych degree that hadn’t helped me self-diagnose my own massive depression. I came home with a piece of paper with my name on it, drove with the radio on high while it rained. I remember it rained, I remember thinking it was poetic. I remember the tornado sirens and thinking, “Not yet. Not after I just got done.” I’m motivated solely by spite.

           Coming out of my depression is marked by a lot of songs in minor key sang by guys with surly attitudes. Songs about long ways down and acid rain and being dead inside. The kind of playlist that got my friends asking, “Hey, you okay?”

           I remember them, so I guess I was.

           I used to sing all the time. I went to contests, I tried to start a band. It hadn’t been any good, but I had drive and naivety to back me up. I stopped for a long time during the fog. I hadn’t realized I’d come back up for air until I was in the car on my way to class trying to rap to a Broadway musical about Alexander Hamilton. It sounded like winter again, with me taking long drives to early morning work shifts. I didn’t like my job, but I remember it. I remember listening to classic rock while I did data entry, with Alice Cooper in the background of my keystrokes. I remember the trees were dead outside, my coat was green and littered with dog hair. I remember laughing more. I remember eating again.

           I remember music.

[allisonswrittenwords]

Seas are shining bright, and I’m gonna take you to…today’s Retro Rewatch!

In the last few Retro Rewatches, I’ve been covering one-off children’s specials, from puppets who know how to hug, stuffed bunnies who feel more than stuffed, a cartoon icon who learned math is, in fact, useful, and a Mongoose who bravely defends his territory, and his owners, against cobras.  All of these specials were ones I saw as a little kid, and some I hadn’t seen in years, other than a revisit as a teenager.  Today’s Retro Rewatch, while serving as the pilot for a series that didn’t really air as a series initially, qualifies because it has been quite a few years since I’ve seen it.

The (Sporadic) Adventures of Rainbow Brite

“Peril in the Pits” served as the pilot episode for Rainbow Brite, but it would be six months before the next episodes, a two-parter, aired.  The first six episodes were considered “specials,” and aired sporadically through 1984 and 1985, until after the release of Rainbow Brite and the Starstealer in November 1985.  Episode six aired in January 1986, and the second half of the series, episodes seven through thirteen, would air continuously from June 5, 1986, until July 24, 1986.  The entire series, all thirteen episodes, moved to the DiC syndication block Kideo TV.  That is more than likely how I saw the show in its entirety.  By that point (1987), Rainbow Brite had run its (first) course.

Surprisingly, the San Diego Zoo Adventure video eluded me until adulthood.  I still don’t know how that happened!

I mean, I have an idea of how it happened, but how did I not beg to see this when I was three years old?

Anyway, the Retro Rewatch.

I’m definitely going to watch the entire series at some point, which would mean quite a few Retro Rewatches in my future, but for today, I’m covering the first special, which serves as the pilot episode.

From June 27, 1984, this is Rainbow Brite’s first adventure on Earth…we assume.

“Peril in the Pits”

This is Brian.

He’s down, and tells his dog that he didn’t make “the team.”  He feels that nothing has gone right today, while ignoring the beautiful rainbow making itself known across the sky that his dog cannot otherwise ignore.

Meanwhile, a little girl riding her horse, with a furry companion of her own accompanying her, wonders what she has to do to get that boy to look at the rainbow, knowing that seeing the rainbow would make him happy.

Said girl unleashes the star sprinkles and magic from her color belt to plant the rainbow onto the ground…which the oblivious Brian walks right into.

He wasn’t supposed to walk into the rainbow, and the girl decides she needs to go and talk to him, despite Starlite’s objection about revealing themselves to the boy, who doesn’t seem to be overly upset with being covered in colors…yet.

Rainbow Brite comes down the rainbow and greets her new friend, who has “more questions than colors” about who she is, and how her horse flies.  So she introduces herself and Twink, but Starlite introduces himself.  “Staaaarlite…The Magnificent Horse, the Glory of the Galaxy.”

Pretty sure this is all mindblowing to Brian, until he realizes that he needs all these colors off of him, and informs Rainbow Brite that his father is a lawyer.

Whoah, whoah, when did he get all Entitled Brat who needs a Safe Space, whose Lawyer Daddy could sue the colors off of Rainbow Brite?

Rainbow’s solution is to help get the colors off (because she doesn’t wanna be sued an all, right?), but it means having to go to Rainbow Land!

On the way there, the two introduce themselves to each other.  The girl tells Brian she is Rainbow Brite!

Meanwhile, Murky Dismal is concocting a plan to rid Rainbow Land – and in turn, the world – of all colors, and make everyone gloomy.  Murky, along with his bumbling sidekick, Lurky, drive off in their Pollution Mobile (that’s not its real name) toward Rainbow Land to hatch their plan.

If they can stand all the colors on the way into Rainbow Land, that is.  They’re spotted by another one of those cute and cuddly creatures (this one is orange), who races off in his car to warn others of Murky and Lurky’s arrival.

Meanwhile, at Child Labor Land – er, Rainbow Land – other kids dressed similarly to Rainbow Brite, but with a single color work on mining the lands.  The babbling cuddly creature arrives and babbles to the kids, who understand his panic as Murky and Lurky are in Rainbow Land.  A boy in red, and a girl in orange (Red Butler and Lala Orange), decide that they’ll take care of Murky and Lurky.

According to their character descriptions, Lala Orange has a crush on Red Butler, albeit a secret one.  I guess this makes them the Fred and Daphne of Rainbow Land, since they’re going off together?

It sounded funny when I wrote it, friends.

Anyway, Murky brings his “Gloom Cloud,” which will make Rainbow so gloomy, she’ll be compliant enough to hand over her Color Belt.  It is at that moment that Rainbow Brite returns.  The other kids run to warn her of the situation, but of course, Murky and Lurky are hiding in the bushes.  Rainbow says she will never hand over her color belt, and a blast of the “Gloom Cloud” is countered with Star Sprinkles which hit Lurky and make him “full of pretty colors!”

And those colors clearly make him happy, wouldn’t you say?

A blast of the “Gloom Cloud” rids Lurky of all the pretty colors, and the two retreat from Rainbow Land, their plans foiled.

It won’t be the last time.  This is about 24 minutes, so it won’t take long for them to return.

Meanwhile, the two hide on a mountain, with plans to capture the Color Kids.  The kids check on their Star Sprinkle supply, when they get hit with the Gloom Cloud.  Compliant and moody, the Lala Orange, Red Butler, Patty O’Green, and Indigo accept their capture and go willingly with Murky into the cave.

That seemed to be a little too easy, wouldn’t you say?  I mean, even the My Little Pony characters kidnapped and taken hostage in Midnight Castle put up more of a fight than the Color Kids did.  It was all one spray of the Gloom Cloud and “we’re sad and moody.”  It all feels so…lazy.  And that, my friends, makes me sad.  I know it is a kiddie cartoon, I know it is the first episode, but I just don’t get it.  They’re supposed to be brave, and they don’t even try to put up a fight.

Oh heck, I’m just rambling on.  Moving on…

Rainbow successfully removes the colors from her new friend, and seriously, this is how she does it.

Brian braces himself like he’s getting a shot.  Look at that trembling and holding his breath!  All that worry, and it is over in four seconds!

Not over in four seconds, a potential rescue mission!

The sprites become frantic, informing Rainbow Brite and Starlite that Murky has captured the Color Kids, all because he wants her Color Belt.

Rainbow knows there is one thing she can do…rescue the kids!  With Brian along for the ride, she creates a rainbow that takes them to the Treacherous Pits, where the color kids are being held.  This is where her belt stops working, and causes Starlite to float in the air toward the pits!

Starlite cannot fly, but is able to break a potential fall and lands safely.  Unfortunately, he cannot fly (and can barely walk) in the pits, but is able to join the team when they set out in search of the Color Kids.  Rainbow informs Brian that if Murky were to get his hands on her Color Belt, the rest of the world would look like the pits.

Brian is appalled by the thought of this.  But hey, at least he won’t be getting his dad on Rainbow for what she did to him earlier.  There’s that.

Lurky is on lookout, and Murky uses blue Star Sprinkles he stole to disguise quicksand as water to entrap our heroes.  And of course Starlite, who refuses to look anything less than magnificent, sees the opportunity clean himself up and, well, leads himself to water.

Hasn’t he seen The Neverending Story?  This doesn’t end well!

Starlite becomes trapped in the quick sand, but Brian has an idea to form a chain to pull Starlite out.  Rainbow ends up in the quicksand with Starlite, and they very nearly sink.  It is the Color Belt, used as a rope, which saves them.

Seems this belt has more than one use, aside from The Most Important Use…providing all the colors!

But removing Rainbow’s belt proves disastrous, as the group is overtaken by their efforts, and weak and compliant (but not overcome by the Gloom Cloud!), they are put in a cage and captured by Murky, who now has the Color Belt for himself.  Again, it just seemed way too easy.  But I digress.  Now, he can succeed in removing all the color from Rainbow Land, which will remove all the color from the world.

In Rainbow Land, Murky dons the belt and uses it to make Rainbow Land lose its color.

Back in the pits, the Color Kids regain their grip on positivity and try to figure out a way to escape, until they find that everyone else has been captured.  When there seems to only be despair at the realization that Rainbow’s Color Belt is gone, it is Brian who pulls everyone together to plot an escape.

This boosts Rainbow’s morale, who says that they have hope, which doesn’t come from the belt, it comes from “inside us.”  It’s time for the group to get “unmurked,” and with the help of Brian’s baseball glove, Starlite (now magnificently unmurked!) kicks Twink to the top of the pits.

Seems dangerous, but it works.  Definitely the opposite of the “get captured” moments!

Meanwhile, Murky’s Gloom Cloud balloon is nearly ready to spread its dark gloom all over the world.  But Rainbow has escaped the Pits, and the group are ready to thwart Murky’s plans.  This involves climbing the rope to the Gloom Cloud balloon, and Brian successfully nabs the Color Belt from Murky. The balloon flies away, but Lurky lets too much air out, and the duo crash back into the cave, their plan a bunch of hot air.

Yeah, yeah.  Let me have my fun.

Easy come, easy go, the Color Belt is back in the right hands, and Murky has twelve more attempts to capture it from Rainbow Brite.

That’s not counting the movie.

Meanwhile, back at Rainbow Land, Rainbow’s adoring crowd of Sprites bid a newly-confident Brian goodbye, and Rainbow and Starlite help get Brian home.

His dog is happy to see him return.

Rainbow says goodbye to Brian, who responds (very shyly) in kind when Rainbow Brite tells Brian she will miss him.

Brian seems sad that his adventure is over, but Rainbow reminds “Grump Face” that next time there’s a rainbow, to “look up,” and that he might see her.  Brian promises he’ll look for her, and promises he won’t let things get him down.  He’s so confident, he says he is going to try out for the team again.

Didn’t they cut him?  How is he going to try out again?  Does he mean next time?

Ugh, I’ve got more questions than colors!

As Rainbow, Twink, and Starlite leave, and the Rainbow disappear behind them, Rainbow blows a kiss to Brian…

…who gets all bashful over that cute blonde girl with the flying horse.

As the familiar lyrics of Rainbow Brite’s theme play under the closing credits, thus ends Rainbow Brite’s first (documented) journey to Earth, and the first (that we’ve seen) encounter with Murky Dismal.  It won’t be her last.

As I said, he has twelve more attempts – ok, thirteen if you count the San Diego Zoo – to nab that Color Belt and destroy the world by removing all of its colors.  This also won’t be the last time we encounter Brian.  I do know he returns for the movie, but I haven’t seen the other episodes in a loooong time, so I’m guessing Rainbow Brite might need his help again?

We shall see.

Reaction

In all, not bad for a first outing.  The story itself has a lazy moment or two (the capture of the Color Kids, the stealing of the Color Belt).  I don’t know, it just seemed those moments could have had a little more effort written into them.  Like, why didn’t the Color Kids charge at Murky? I know I’m overthinking something that was mind-blowing for me when I was little.

I loved Rainbow Brite growing up, and even as an adult, I can remove my rose-colored nostalgia glasses to see through the childhood love and understand why I loved it so much.  It was fun (despite the lazy moments) and colorful.  As I said, for a first episode, it isn’t terrible.  It was actually entertaining.  The incidental music reminds me of Inspector Gadget, but there is a connection – Shuki Levy and Haim Saban.  Two composers that basically had their musical hands on everything 80s kids know and love.

Knowing that it wasn’t the human struggle to get through “Peril in the Pits,” I will most definitely watch the other specials/episodes of Rainbow Brite, and perhaps, the movie.

As for my next Retro Rewatch, I have a few ideas in mind, so I shall see which one comes to fruition.

Until then, if you see a rainbow, look up…

I’m kidding.  Like she’s ever going to come back.

I’d probably wind up with Joel McHale’s version of Rainbow Brite.

That’s my luck.

Have a great day!

        Retro Rewatch - Rainbow Brite: "Peril in the Pits" - My look at the "pilot"/first special for Rainbow Brite! Seas are shining bright, and I'm gonna take you to...today's Retro Rewatch!

[12-99-30]

Unorganized Thoughts from April

*Warning: contains a lot of unnecessary quotes. It’s the 2012 Tumblr in me that can’t escape*

Each month I feel like I’m a different version of myself than I was before. I’m tracking progress where there are days that I’m excelling, and days where I feel like I’m exactly where I started. I don’t realize how fast time is moving, and how much I’m growing with each passing day until I find myself in a different spot with a different mindset than before. 

April was the first full month of experiencing quarantine lock-down. Most mornings, I start off by listening to The Daily podcast and try to wrap my head around this new normal. We probably won’t get to experience “normalcy” until at least another year, and that’s generous. Even with the production of a vaccine, there’s the issue of mass-production and mass-distribution. We also need to consider priority to people who are most vulnerable. Even then, the virus will still be spreading. I’m mourning the lost luxuries of everyday life (*sighs*). 

The first two weeks of April in lock-down were therapeutic. I’m privileged enough to look at this quarantine as a time to slow down, pause, and invest in things I’ve been putting off. I know many families in the world can’t experience that right now. This is a financially stressful time for most, and a period of prolonged anxiety and fear. I’m sorry if this post offends anyone. 

Being inside protected me from the outside world. Somehow, the idea of the world stopping put a cap on how much of my worries could grow. I wake up with assurance that my mom will be sitting on her blue exercise ball, greeting me with a warm “Good morning, darling” as she does her work in the kitchen. My dad will be sitting in his dining room chair, on the phone yelling at his coworker who he refuses to acknowledge as a friend. If it’s past 10 AM, N-- will be playing Animal Crossing on the Switch or “working”.  Y-- will be comfortably sleeping in bed after a night of playing Fortnite until 4 AM. There is always an aroma circulating around the house - baked banana bread, chocolate oatmeal cookies, brownies, or even dumplings. In quarantine, I’m able to control the things around me to maximize my time and well-being. I am grateful to have so many things to celebrate during this time. 

But like all things of this earth, it leans towards corruption. As the weeks inside passed, my indulgence in anxiety-ridden, thoughts became overwhelming.

My 83 year old grandma got COVID-19. I was never close with her, so I had this guilt sensation that I should’ve been feeling more worried, scared, and saddened, when I didn’t. Instead I felt weighted by the sight of my dad feeling helpless.  The “strongest” man of the family suddenly transformed into a man of anger, tears, and a man desperate to make up for lost years. It’s times like these where you learn to apply everything the church is teaching you; to not live in fear, to love thy neighbor, and to seek God fervently. I attest that it’s so much easier said than done. 

As a person popped into my life for a passing moment, I felt like a girl ready to ditch her antibiotics just because the symptoms were being relieved. But J-- C-- (of course lol), sent me this piece of wisdom:

5 Better is open rebuke

    than hidden love.

6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend;

    profuse are the kisses of an enemy.

As the cheesy, Tumblr, teenage, coming-of-age, film quote states: “We accept the love we think we deserve.” Since tasting the love of God, I realize I deserve so much more. I deserve a friend who is honest, who values me, who won’t make me feel like I’m a choice out of convenience. A friend who comes clean of all things the first time. If this is him, trying to sweep the guilt for the pain he caused me under a rug, I don’t want it. If this is him trying to hold onto to two worlds, I withdraw from this game. I am slowly learning how to die to myself. To not let my emotions rule, and submit to the wisdom of Jesus. I’m working through forgiveness, but texted-apologies are empty unless there is action. Action has continuously proven to me that selfishness will continue to rule. 

“When someone shows you who they are, believe them.” - Maya Angelou

I believe what I saw. I believe what I continue to see. Until God takes hold, I refuse to fall into quicksand again. 

But even understanding these truths, there were many days where I slipped. It felt like I was chained to the thought of them, weighing me down and disrupting my peace of mind. There continued to times where I got vivid memories of everything. How it felt to read those texts that they were in NOVA, to see the location and know she was there, to have to take an exam with a hole in my gut. I feel chained to this embarrassment and shame that I was so ~stupid~ to miss him while he was in Richmond, DC, and her apartment. To convince myself that I was somehow on his mind. To not feel like a failure in all of this. I’m reliving these things over and over and I just want to escape. But God is calling me to remember it all. To remind myself to not be foolish. To put up a guard and draw closer to Him. 

I reread 2 Corinthians 4 many times this month, each time with a new reason (and sometimes the same). 

“8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;” 

 “ 16 So we do not lose heart. Though our 17 outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.  For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

Light and momentary compared to the eternal weight of glory. 

The mourning of COVID-19 and my own heartbreak feels like forever. But in this life - it’s so short. It’s passing. There is a Forever with God to remind me that this pandemic, this grief, and this anxiety will pass. The spiritual transformation that God intends for us through our struggles is to make us more like Jesus. This is an invitation to let God do deep work in us. To strip us down of everything and turn us into something beautiful. Suffering is one of the few things that can turn us into the image of Jesus, but only if we let him. Only if we have the capability to be honest with ourselves to say that we want to surrender our whole life to Him. Live like God is among us, because He is. 

“Aim at heaven, you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth, you get neither.” - C.S. Lewis 

I get to ~proudly~ say that I’m not perfect by any standards. But I am working on the person I am becoming, and focusing less on the final product of my character. Pastor D.L. puts it plainly: “The secret to life is your life in secret”

Our public failure is always preceded by private failure. Success as a married person is your success as a single person. I am striving for success in all realms of my life. A heavenly mindset that everything in this life is temporary, but the person I am is the person that will meet the Father one day. I am working on patience and care within my family, the people I take most for granted. I want to be a person who everyone can rely on to be consistent. It starts within a home. 

A Moment of Gratitude: 

Despite being alone for most of quarantine, I’m thankful to never feel lonely. I’m thankful that despite church not meeting physically in-person, we’re able to continue to meet and cultivate faith in our own homes. I’m thankful for my friends who continue to hear me list the same problems time and time again, and reaffirm me that they are always walking beside me.

I’m thankful for this momentary affliction. It reminds me I’m human (lol), and I need God. People come out of suffering - in spite of the bitterness, devastation, and loss - as better people. They come out as the best of people. I’m starting to see resilience being built in my family and myself. A new definition of love. A holy mixture of patience and hope. 

I’ll end this post with a snippet of quarantine life: 

We gather around the family sofa, rewatching childhood videos. I could feel all our eyes glued to the screen; the room echoes with reminiscent laughter and immense warm gratitude fill our chests. The videos of raw scenes of sharing coco puffs in the morning seemed exciting. Walking around Georgetown was an adventure. To anyone else, these are poorly edited videos with no climax. But to us, it reminds me of where I’m rooted. That no matter what I’m doing, where I am, everyday is exciting when you’re surrounded by the people you love. Thank you, Dad for capturing the ordinary moments. I hope to share these videos with someone who finds beauty in these intimate videos. Who will feel what I felt and see what I see. 

[yahoo-roto-arcade-blog]

Booms and Busts: Navigating a world without Aaron Rodgers

We spend most of the day sorting through the winners and losers on an NFL Sunday. But when the slate includes a major injury to an inner-circle Hall of Famer like Aaron Rodgers, no one feels good. It gut-punches everyone.

I don’t have a lot of Rodgers stake this year, for a few different reasons — but I feel depressed just the same. Just a week ago Rodgers was underscoring his greatness, orchestrating a letter-perfect game-winning drive at Dallas. Forget rooting interests and fantasy plays for a second — if you couldn’t appreciate that brilliance when you see it, nothing can make an impression on you. (I rewatched that final drive four times, myself, taking advantage of the indispensable NFL Game Pass package.)

Rodgers didn’t last long Sunday at Minnesota — a first-quarter hit to the turf resulted in a broken collarbone. It’s feared he’s done for the season. Third-year quarterback Brett Hundley took over in the 23-10 loss, looking like the inexperienced quarterback he is. He threw three picks, absorbed four sacks, and finished with a messy 39.6 rating.

Everyone can see the downside of the situation going forward. I can’t imagine any Packers skill player will be better off without Rodgers. All the passing options obviously take a hit, and even if the offense relies on the running game more going forward, it’s going to be a running game that no longer has Rodgers to keep the offense afloat. One of the pinball machines in the NFL just went tilt.

Is there any silver lining to all this? Let’s strain our eyes and try to find something.

— Quarterback isn’t a difficult fantasy assignment

Obviously the next Rodgers isn’t walking through that door. But just a month ago, Deshaun Watson was a rookie quarterback with limited expectations. We can keep streaming against lousy defenses (the Patriots wave hello; Josh McCown cut them up Sunday). Quarterback is the easiest of the four major positions to fantasy fill. Unlike real football, where the quarterback is king, fantasy owners can usually navigate the wire and at least land a credible QB replacement, for the short term or the long term.

— Your opponents will get major injuries, too

I’m not saying we have to feel wonderful about this, but it’s a fact of life. Someone in your league lost David Johnson in Week 1. Someone in your league accepted a partial day from Jameis Winston on Sunday. Someone had to play without Stefon Diggs. No one gets through a fantasy season unscathed, and while it doesn’t completely eliminate the sting, it does make it somewhat easier to accept.

— The NFL remains a chaotic, snow-globe league

Just a month ago, many fantasy scribes were writing the obituary for Carson Palmer. This past week, you surely read a number of emphatic pans for new Arizona RB Adrian Peterson (I’m raising my hand; I thought he’d fall on his face in the desert). Jordan Howard was a flop through two weeks; he’s been a league-winner since then. If you don’t like the shape of the current NFL, just give it another week. We’ll feel differently about a number of things when they play the next fresh slate of games.

Try to keep your wits about you. We’re a long way from the conclusion of this fantasy season.

— Maybe Hundley (and the Packers) will be better than we think

We can’t take too much from Hundley’s relief appearance at Minnesota — the team obviously put zero effort into getting him prepared ahead of time. Starting quarterbacks take all the first-team reps. Perhaps Hundley will be able to morph into a capable quarterback once he’s given adequate time to work with the first-string talent in Green Bay. The Packers play the Saints next week — always good for fantasy production — and then receive a well-timed Week 8 bye.

That’s my best effort in trying to whistle a happy tune. We’ll get through this together, gamers. Let’s stay the course, keep making the best decisions we can.

Cleaning up the New Orleans backfield

For the first five weeks, the New Orleans backfield was a case of “you can’t always get what you want.” But a surprising midweek trade cleaned everything up nicely — in Week 6, all three backs got what they needed.

Mark Ingram was the biggest winner of the new world order, as he rambled for 150 total yards and two scores in the crazy 52-38 victory over Detroit. Running mate Alvin Kamara was also effective (10-75 rushing, 4-12 receiving), though he didn’t have any touchdowns. But the shocker of the afternoon came later — Adrian Peterson exploded for 134 rushing yards and two touchdowns as the Cardinals rolled past Tampa Bay.

Ingram’s day was projectable and Kamara was at least expected to do what he did, if not a little more. Peterson’s production was difficult to forecast (don’t look at me, I panned him all week). The Arizona offensive line hasn’t played well all year; Peterson didn’t get anything going in New Orleans (or with Minnesota last year); and the Tampa Bay rushing defense had strong stats into Week 6. Was Peterson’s outburst a story in motivation? A fluke? A sign of things to come? You decide.

I’m going to double down on the Peterson fade and suggest it’s a good time to shop him in trade. His Arizona breakout is going to garner plenty of attention, but he’s still dealing with a spotty run-blocking line and a difficult set of run-stopping opponents. Andre Ellington had zero touches and just one target for the day, a residual of Arizona grabbing a quick 24-0 lead. That’s not going to repeat very often. It’s a perfect time to see what type of trades might be available to you.

Pianow on the Take

• Antonio Gates is probably a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but the Chargers need to make Hunter Henry a centerpiece of their passing game. Perhaps the torched was passed in Sunday’s win at Oakland, with Henry posting a 5-90-0 line on seven targets, while Gates was thrown to just once. I don’t care about Henry’s erratic usage in the first month; I truly believe the Chargers have seen the light. Hopefully the burden of 16 straight road games doesn’t hold down this LAC offense.

As for rookie receiver Mike Williams, forget about him. He played just nine snaps in his rookie debut, coming back from a back problem. There’s a major learning curve for most rookie receivers (the 2014 explosion was a generational fluke, not something to chase after). And the Chargers have plenty of proven pass-catchers already ahead of Williams.

• Pierre Garcon has shown flashes of greatness during his 10-year career — he even led the NFL in catches in 2013 — but there’s a legitimate reason why he has just 37 touchdowns in 138 games, with a high of six. The Garcon/Kyle Shanahan angle was modestly overrated in the summer, especially with the quicksand the Niners have at quarterback (mediocre Brian Hoyer, inexperienced C.J. Beathard).

I give Shanahan and staff major props for keeping the 49ers competitive in most games, especially the recent stretch of three straight road games. But Garcon is merely a low-end WR3 for PPR formats, nothing past that in our fantasy world. He’s not an automatic starter by any means.

• Don’t look back, Mike Gillislee, something might be — well, is — gaining on you.

Gillislee has been under four yards a carry for the year, he still doesn’t have a target, and he lost a key fumble in Sunday’s first half in New Jersey. He wound up benched for a considerable chunk of time after that, while Dion Lewis (11-52-1) surfaced as New England’s primary runner. Lewis also punched in a short touchdown, generally the handiwork of Gillislee.

Gillislee’s value could be cratering soon, with Lewis reemerging and Rex Burkhead probably not far behind. And James White is always going to have some role in this offense, though he only had seven touches in the comeback victory over the Jets.