#fat charlie nancy

[ultrameganicolaokay]

Anansi Boys #1 by Neil Gaiman, Marc Bernardin, Shawn Martinbrough and Chris Sotomayor. Cover by David Mack. Variant covers by (2) Martinbrough and (3) Denys Cowan. Out in June.

"#1 New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman joins forces with Eisner nominated Adora writer Marc Bernardin and Thief of Thieves cocreator Shawn Martinbrough to adapt Gaiman's Locus and British Fantasy Award-winning novel as a comic book series for the first time - and soon to be a television show on Amazon Prime! 'Fat' Charlie Nancy leads a boring life as a boring Londoner, until he discovers two things: That his recently deceased father was, in fact, Anansi the Spider, the trickster god of African folklore, and that he has a twin brother he's never met. Which kicks off a reality-spanning odyssey of sibling rivalry, jealous deities, and one poor soul who'll realize what it means to be a god."

[rcreveal]

Hurricane Warning

Summary:

NanoMutt Prompt a Day Challenge Day 20: How you said I love you-while we huddled sheltering from the storm. I just love Anansi Boys and thought that the four of them, Spider, Fat Charlie, Crowley and Aziraphale would be just too much fun together. Of course, Crowley and Aziraphale would vacation in the Caribbean, right?

Work Text:

“I thought this was supposed to be a tropical paradise!” yelled Crowley while leaning into Aziraphale as they supported each other through the gusting winds and sideways rain.

“It is!” replied Aziraphale, “I guess this is why the tickets were cheaper!” Banana trees and palms, their fronds shredded by the unrelenting storm, rattled.

“Why’s that?” Crowley caught a piece of tin roofing that was scything towards the angel.

“Apparently, they have something called a hurricane season?” replied Aziraphale as they made their way to the boarded up restaurant.

The proprietor didn’t seem too surprised to see two tourists out in hurricane force weather and let them in.

“It’s my two favorite customers! How come you aren’t sheltering at your hotel?” asked Spider Nancy.

“Well, if you must know, we greatly prefer your cooking, if we are going to hunker down for twelve hours,” replied Aziraphale.

“And your liquor selection is far superior.  Where can I put this?” asked Crowley, referring to the 4x6 foot twisted piece of corrugated tin he was casually holding.

Spider considered and said, “Over by the front, I’m sure someone will need it after,” while making their favorite cocktails.

“You know, it’s fortuitous that you two would show up today,” Spider said flashing them the bright smile of a trickster who’s about to propose a real corker.

“You’re up to something!” Crowley pointed at him with the hand still holding the cocktail.

“Nuthin’ an angel and a demon like you can’t handle,” replied Spider casually, “You two were really impressive at the Second Coming,” Spider replied, leaving Crowley and Aziraphale to gawp at him.

Aziraphale recovers first, “You were at the Second Coming and you remember what went on?”

“Let’s just say that my brother and I weren’t willing to let your pantheon’s world-ending business take out our home without a fight,” and the grin he leveled at them was much sharper than the softness of his usual form as the best chef on the island.

A door opened against the wind and a rich voice called out from the kitchen, “Spider! They weren’t at the hotel!”  Fat Charlie Nancy came into the main room of the restaurant, somehow still wearing a fedora.

“That’s cuz they already dropped by, my brother,” smiled Spider.

Crowley was pointing at the men one at a time, “So what pantheon are you from?”

“That’s really beside the point when we’ve got a Class 5 hurricane headed straight for us, don’t you think?” replied Spider smoothly.

Fat Charlie continues, “We’ve been able to deflect or weaken the other hurricanes that have come this way, but I’m afraid we just don’t have the power for this one, so we were going to ask you to give us a boost.” 

“You make us sound like a car battery!” Crowley replied.

“Nah, more like a top notch, arena-level, concert sound system.  We’ll steer, but we need more power.  Are you game to give a go?” asked Fat Charlie.

“You mean right now?” blustered Aziraphale.

“Well, yeah, the hurricane isn’t getting any weaker, “ said Spider.

“Sure, why not,” said Crowley, “Arena-level sound system, huh?”

“State of the art,” replied Fat Charlie, with the smile that graced most of his album covers.

“Tell us what you need,” said Aziraphale.

The four men, two men and…four male-identifying beings, Crowley wasn’t sure what they all were and didn’t care at this point, stood in a circle holding hands.  Fat Charlie sang, his rich voice creating a reality where the hurricane wasn’t as bad as predicted, and didn’t hit this island or any other as predicted, and dropped a lot of its power before hitting the mainland.  His brother Spider, well Crowley couldn’t really tell what that trickster was doing, and he and Aziraphale were boosting the whole thing as much as they could…

~~~~~~~~~

The sand crunched behind Aziraphale’s beach chair as Crowley walked up to bring them another iced soda from the cooler.  They looked out at the two happy families: Fat Charlie with a pregnant Daisy both playing with their little boy and Spider and Rosy strolling hand in hand while a wizened, yet somehow animate, mummy glared at everyone from her own beach chair.

“Thank you, Crowley,” Aziraphale said, accepting the drink as Crowley stretched out on his beach lounger. “Well it’s been a lovely trip to the Caribbean, hasn’t it?”

“Yeah, but we need to work on what we think of as a restful vacation, Angel,” retorted Crowley with a grin.

[keycomicbooks]

Anansi Boys #1 (2024) Denys Cowan & Chris Sotomayor Variant, Neil Gaiman & Marc Bernardin Story, Shawn Martinbrough Pencils, 1st Appearance of "Fat" Charlie Nancy, Optioned for an Amazon Prime Series

#AnansiBoys #1 (2024) #DenysCowan & Chris Sotomayor Variant, #NeilGaiman & Marc Bernardin Story, Shawn Martinbrough Pencils, 1st Appearance of "Fat" Charlie Nancy, Optioned for an #AmazonPrimeSeries "Untitled" "Fat" Charlie Nancy leads a boring life as a boring Londoner, until he discovers two things: That his recently deceased father was, in fact, Anansi the Spider, the trickster god of African folklore, and that he has a twin brother he's never met. https://rarecomicbooks.fashionablewebs.com/Anansi%20Boys.html @rarecomicbooks Website Link In Bio Page If Applicable. SAVE ON SHIPPING COST - NOW AVAILABLE FOR LOCAL PICK UP IN DELTONA, FLORIDA #RareComicBooks #KeyComicBooks #DarkHorse #DarkHorseComics #ComicBooks

[redvelvettecakes1]

SONGS THAT REMIND ME OF WELCOME HOME CHARACTERS ‼️

Barnaby B. Beagle

Fat funny friend - Maddie Zahm

Sucker - Jonas Brothers

How long - Charlie Puth

Candy - Robbie Williams

Cake by the ocean - DNCE

Perfect to me - Anne-Marie

Sorry - Justin Bieber

Rude - MAGIC!

I can’t decide - Scissor Sisters

Louise - TV Girl

Julie Joyful

Call me maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen

Your Reality - Dan Salvato

Jump up, Super Star! - VGR, Jenny

Falling for ya - Grace Phipps

FANCY - TWICE

Sally Starlet

The Man - Taylor Swift

Girls - MARINA

I / Me / Myself - Will Wood

Alejandro - Lady Gaga

Take a hint - Night Inn

Superstar - Toy-Box

Judas - Lady Gaga

Eddie dear

Heaven knows I’m miserable now - The smiths

Two Time - Jack Stauber’s Micropop

Love Grows - Edison Lighthouse

Boys Don’t Cry - The Cure

Head over heels - Tears for Fears

Good old fashioned lover boy - Queen (2011)

Frank Frankly

Eddie my love - The Chordettes

Your stupid face - Kaden MacKay

Despair - leo.

Somebody’s watching me - Rockwell

I do adore - Mindy Gledhill

Wally Darling

Posin - Glenn Gatsby

Oh Klahoma - Jack Stauber

Puppet boy - DEVO

Livin’ in the sunlight, Lovin’ in the moon light - Tiny Tim

The red means I love you - Madds Buckley

Honeypie - JAWNY

Another Believer - Rufus Wainwright

Poppy Partridge

Moral of the story - Ashe

Turn it down - OR3O

Home - Cavetown

Rises the moon - Liana Flores

Howdy Pillar

SPIDER WEB - Melanie Martinez

Please please please let me get what I want - The smiths

Charlie’s Inferno - That Handsome Devil

Somethin’ stupid - Frank sinatra, Nancy sinatra

Out of touch - Daryl Hall & John Oates

. . .

Another random post, I’m bored guysss, but yeah these songs honestly remind me of these guys 🙏

(All art not mine ‼️)

[book--brackets]

Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman (2005)

When Fat Charlie's dad named something, it stuck. Like calling Fat Charlie "Fat Charlie." Even now, 20 years later, Charlie Nancy can't shake that name, one of the many embarrassing "gifts" his father bestowed-before he dropped dead on a karaoke stage and ruined Fat Charlie's life. Because Mr. Nancy left Fat Charlie things. Things like the tall, good-look-ing stranger who appears on Charlie's doorstep, who appears to be the brother he never knew. A brother as different from Charlie as night is from day, a brother who's going to show Charlie how to lighten up and have a lit-the fun. And all of a sudden, things start getting very interesting for Fat Charlie. Exciting, scary, and deeply funny, Anansi Boys is a kaleidoscopic journey deep into myth, a wild adventure, as Neil Gaiman shows us where gods come from, and how to survive your family.

Gemma Doyle by Libba Bray (2003-2007)

It's 1895, and after the suicide of her mother, 16-year-old Gemma Doyle is shipped off from the life she knows in India to Spence, a proper boarding school in England. Lonely, guilt-ridden, and prone to visions of the future that have an uncomfortable habit of coming true, Gemma's reception there is a chilly one. To make things worse, she's been followed by a mysterious young Indian man, a man sent to watch her. But why? What is her destiny? And what will her entanglement with Spence's most powerful girls—and their foray into the spiritual world—lead to?

Babel: An Arcane History by R. F. Kuang (2022)

Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal.

1828. Robin Swift, orphaned by cholera in Canton, is brought to London by the mysterious Professor Lovell. There, he trains for years in Latin, Ancient Greek, and Chinese, all in preparation for the day he'll enroll in Oxford University's prestigious Royal Institute of Translation — also known as Babel. Babel is the world's center of translation and, more importantly, of silver-working: the art of manifesting the meaning lost in translation through enchanted silver bars, to magical effect. Silver-working has made the British Empire unparalleled in power, and Babel's research in foreign languages ​​serves the Empire's quest to colonize everything it encounters.

Oxford, the city of dreaming spires, is a fairytale for Robin; a utopia dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. But knowledge serves power, and for Robin, a Chinese boy raised in Britain, serving Babel inevitably means betraying his motherland. As his studies progress Robin finds himself caught between Babel and the shadowy Hermes Society, an organization dedicated to sabotaging the silver-working that supports imperial expansion. When Britain pursues an unjust war with China over silver and opium, Robin must decide: Can powerful institutions be changed from within, or does revolution always require violence? What is he willing to sacrifice to bring Babel down?

Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard by Rick Riordan (2015-2017)

Magnus Chase has seen his share of trouble. Ever since that terrible night two years ago when his mother told him to run, he has lived alone on the streets of Boston, surviving by his wits, staying one step ahead of the police and the truant officers.

One day, Magnus learns that someone else is trying to track him down—his uncle Randolph, a man his mother had always warned him about. When Magnus tries to outmaneuver his uncle, he falls right into his clutches. Randolph starts rambling about Norse history and Magnus's birthright: a weapon that has been lost for thousands of years.

The more Randolph talks, the more puzzle pieces fall into place. Stories about the gods of Asgard, wolves, and Doomsday bubble up from Magnus's memory. But he doesn't have time to consider it all before a fire giant attacks the city, forcing him to choose between his own safety and the lives of hundreds of innocents. . . .

Sometimes, the only way to start a new life is to die.

Abhorsen by Garth Nix (1995-2016)

Sent to a boarding school in Ancelstierre as a young child, Sabriel has had little experience with the random power of Free Magic or the Dead who refuse to stay dead in the Old Kingdom. But during her final semester, her father, the Abhorsen, goes missing, and Sabriel knows she must enter the Old Kingdom to find him. She soon finds companions in Mogget, a cat whose aloof manner barely conceals its malevolent spirit, and Touchstone, a young Charter Mage long imprisoned by magic, now free in body but still trapped by painful memories.

As the three travel deep into the Old Kingdom, threats mount on all sides. And every step brings them closer to a battle that will pit them against the true forces of life and death--and bring Sabriel face-to-face with her own destiny.

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern (2019)

Zachary Ezra Rawlins is a graduate student in Vermont when he discovers a mysterious book hidden in the stacks. As he turns the pages, entranced by tales of lovelorn prisoners, key collectors, and nameless acolytes, he reads something strange: a story from his own childhood. Bewildered by this inexplicable book and desperate to make sense of how his own life came to be recorded, Zachary uncovers a series of clues--a bee, a key, and a sword--that lead him to a masquerade party in New York, to a secret club, and through a doorway to an ancient library, hidden far below the surface of the earth. 

What Zachary finds in this curious place is more than just a buried home for books and their guardians--it is a place of lost cities and seas, lovers who pass notes under doors and across time, and of stories whispered by the dead. Zachary learns of those who have sacrificed much to protect this realm, relinquishing their sight and their tongues to preserve this archive, and also those who are intent on its destruction. 

Together with Mirabel, a fierce, pink-haired protector of the place, and Dorian, a handsome, barefoot man with shifting alliances, Zachary travels the twisting tunnels, darkened stairwells, crowded ballrooms, and sweetly-soaked shores of this magical world, discovering his purpose--in both the mysterious book and in his own life.

The Roots of Chaos by Samantha Shannon (2019-2023) The House of Berethnet has ruled Inys for a thousand years. Still unwed, Queen Sabran the Ninth must conceive a daughter to protect her realm from destruction--but assassins are getting closer to her door. 

Ead Duryan is an outsider at court. Though she has risen to the position of lady-in-waiting, she is loyal to a hidden society of mages. Ead keeps a watchful eye on Sabran, secretly protecting her with forbidden magic. 

Across the dark sea, Tané has trained all her life to be a dragonrider, but is forced to make a choice that could see her life unravel. 

Meanwhile, the divided East and West refuse to parley, and forces of chaos are rising from their sleep.

The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden (2017-2019)

Winter lasts most of the year at the edge of the Russian wilderness, and in the long nights, Vasilisa and her siblings love to gather by the fire to listen to their nurse’s fairy tales. Above all, Vasya loves the story of Frost, the blue-eyed winter demon. Wise Russians fear him, for he claims unwary souls, and they honor the spirits that protect their homes from evil.

Then Vasya’s widowed father brings home a new wife from Moscow. Fiercely devout, Vasya’s stepmother forbids her family from honoring their household spirits, but Vasya fears what this may bring. And indeed, misfortune begins to stalk the village.

But Vasya’s stepmother only grows harsher, determined to remake the village to her liking and to groom her rebellious stepdaughter for marriage or a convent. As the village’s defenses weaken and evil from the forest creeps nearer, Vasilisa must call upon dangerous gifts she has long concealed—to protect her family from a threat sprung to life from her nurse’s most frightening tales.

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo (2003)

As the only surviving mouse of the litter, Despereaux was always considered the loser, the runt, so naturally, he falls in love with a princess named Pea. The story also tells of a mouse called Roscuro, who lives in the darkness but wishes for light, and Miggery Sow, a serving girl who wants one wish. They set off on a journey that will end them up in a terrible dungeon, a wonderful castle, and of course, with each other.

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree (2022-2024)

Worn out after decades of packing steel and raising hell, Viv the orc barbarian cashes out of the warrior’s life with one final score. A forgotten legend, a fabled artifact, and an unreasonable amount of hope lead her to the streets of Thune, where she plans to open the first coffee shop the city has ever seen.

However, her dreams of a fresh start pulling shots instead of swinging swords are hardly a sure bet. Old frenemies and Thune’s shady underbelly may just upset her plans. To finally build something that will last, Viv will need some new partners and a different kind of resolve.

[literaticat]

Hello. Just wondering what you think of the current "Roald Dahl re-write" controversy.

Hahaha I have a lot of feelings. Some of them you probably won't like? IDK.

First of all, lemme just say, Roald D was an anti-Semitic asshole, a notoriously difficult and bad man, his books are mean-spirited and rankle me, I really don't give a fig about him or his books or his legacy, and I'd never give them to a child.

(I wouldn't stop a child from reading one if they wanted to, either! I wouldn't BAN them! It's fine with me that they EXIST and are readily available for anyone who wants to read them! I just personally would not spend my money to present a child with a copy of one of his books, I think there are better things to read that I'd rather gift.)

So if you were under a rock and you didn't hear this latest "outrage", evidently the Roald Dahl estate + the UK publisher decided to do an update to a bunch of his books removing some of the particularly egregious language around things like minorities, fat people, etc. Some of the coverage of this makes it sound like they removed vast swathes of text, essentially rewriting the books. Which would obviously be insane if true. But it's not true. The changes are, as the estate put it, "small and carefully considered." There might be hundreds in total, but if they are tweaks to words across dozens of books - that's really not very many?

Anyway lots of authors are decrying it as CENSORSHIP!!!!! In my opinion... that is a little dramatic. First of all - censorship would be if they redacted the language without the permission of the rights holder. That is not the case. The rights holder is very much on board here - presumably because they know that the language is old-fashioned at best and OFFENSIVE at worst, and they just signed a many-million dollar contract with Netflix! And I'm sure they would like people to NOT boycott those Netflix projects and continue to buy the books!

It would also be censorship if somebody rounded up all old copies and destroyed them, preventing people from ever experiencing the text as originally published. But that's not happening. There are literally MILLIONS of copies of these books in print. They are SO available we could all build houses out of them. Nobody is taking anything away here.

Additionally -- this happens ALL THE TIME. All! The! Time!!!! Mind you -- MOST books just go out of print and are forgotten. But books that are lucky enough to stay in print for decades are often updated / tweaked to reflect changing cultural mores, etc.

For examples: In the 1930's, Nancy Drew was 16 years old and carried a gun. In the 1950's, they realized that was not going over well anymore, so they changed all her stories to make her 18 with no gun.

In the 1970's, Margaret of ARE YOU THERE GOD fame wore a "sanitary belt" for her period. I read these books in the early 80's and was like "wtf???" -- well, in the late 80s, they changed it to pads.

Oh, and also, in early editions of CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, the Oompa-Loompas were Black pygmies from a tribe in Africa! They changed them to orange fantasy creatures later, because guess what, people were weirded out about it.

While it's true that Roald D himself made/approved that change (presumably because somebody back in the day told him, "yo, you are going to get a LOT of money from Hollywood if you make this change" and he realized it was true) -- he's dead. If he were alive, he'd probably have the same convo, and people would say "yo, Netflix is giving you millions of dollars, apologize for the hatred you spewed and change some words or your deal is toast." -- And he'd have done it, just like he did the first time. Since he's dead, his heirs made that decision. Which they are fully allowed to do.

Most of the time, literary executors of author's estates are trying to do the most lucrative things for that estate; they have a fiduciary responsibility to do so. That being said - if you feel strongly that after your death your books must be frozen in amber and never changed a bit, never sold to Hollywood / adapted for stage or TV or film, never sold into foreign countries where words change in translation all the time -- then let your heirs / executors know that explicitly, they DO NOT have permission to agree to any of this. And the books will likely just go out of print, and sink into oblivion.

ETA: Are these changes really being done because of concern for children's "delicate" brains, or "cancel culture gone mad"? ... OR, is it a somewhat cynical cash-grab to ensure that a multi-million dollar Netflix deal doesn't go down the tubes? Probably the latter!

But also, that isn't censorship. Creators and their estates are allowed to grab cash if it is offered, and can change or not change things as they will. They are the rights holders.

--

ETA ETA: I also should have mentioned a similar case from a couple years back: In 2021, the Seuss estate elected to *stop* publishing certain titles that contained racial and ethnic stereotypes. (And also - those particular books were among his least popular and they were not losing anything by making that decision, they make a billion dollars off his other books, and actually that news made his books SKYROCKET in sales, but whatever). It would not surprise me AT ALL if this hand-wringing news actually causes a big spike in Dahl sales.

[mayamistake]

#1 New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman joins forces with Eisner nominated Adora writer Marc Bernardin and Thief of Thieves cocreator Shawn Martinbrough to adapt Gaiman’s Locus and British Fantasy Award-winning novel as a comic book series for the first time—and soon to be a television show on Amazon Prime!

“Fat” Charlie Nancy leads a boring life as a boring Londoner, until he discovers two things: That his recently deceased father was, in fact, Anansi the Spider, the trickster god of African folklore, and that he has a twin brother he’s never met. Which kicks off a reality-spanning odyssey of sibling rivalry, jealous deities, and one poor soul who’ll realize what it means to be a god.

Faithfully adapted from the original novel!

[callmebrycelee]

9-1-1: LONE STAR REACTION

This reaction is for the season 4, premier episode titled "The New Hotness" which originally aired on January 24, 2023. The episode was written by Molly Green and James Leffler and directed by Bradley Buecker. Spoilers ahead!

***LAST TIME ON 9-1-1: LONE STAR***The 126 was rebuilt and reopened! Owen nearly died (again) after a building collapsed on him. We also learned that he doesn't have cancer so yay! Tommy was finally settling into her new normal, being a single parent to her twins Evie and Izzy. Grace gave birth to a beautiful baby girl named Charlie (named after Tommy's late-husband, Charles) and she and Judd got to experience childhood for the very first time. Judd learned he had a son and we got to see the relationship between he and Wyatt develop over the season. Nancy and Mateo got together which no one saw coming. And lastly, the couple that launched a thousand ships, TK and Carlos, got engaged!

Okay, now that we're all caught up, let's talk about the premiere episode of season four - THE NEW HOTNESS!!!

We began the episode with a cold open and two familiar faces - our favorite dysfunctional young couple, Brianna (McKaley Miller) and Caleb (Sean H. Scully) . Immediately I thought to myself, oh great! What's about to happen to poor Caleb. Just in case you forgot, we were first introduced to these two in the season one episode "Act of God" when Caleb got locked in his father's gun safe as he attempted to hide during a tornado. The next time we see them is in last season's "The ATX-Files". Poor Caleb gets thrown from an ATV, after he drove off without Brianna, and was launched into a barbed wire fence. 

Caleb is fully recovered and he and Brianna are spending an evening at a loca fair. Caleb spends 80 bucks trying to win a giant ass teddy bear which he believes will show Brianna and her family (who thinks he's a big fat loser) how much he cares about her. When Brianna tries to address the current status of their relationship, the fried soup (eww) that Caleb ate starts to wreak havoc on his stomach. He takes off towards the portable toilets, nearly knocking over a man and his daughter (more on them later) along the way. He makes it into one of the porta potties and it is on. Caleb totally gets the poop sweats so he has to take off his clothes. Unfortunately for him, a violent windstorm picks that very moment to hit. Intense heat causes balloons to pop, the ice cream cone in Brianna's hand to melt, and the latch on the portable toilet's door to melt, trapping poor Caleb inside. The strong gust of wind carries the porta potty with Caleb inside off into the air and that is when we get a title card!

We rewind to eight hours before the events at the local fair. We head over to the firehouse where we see all of the 126 sans Owen gathered watching a weather report. They are warned of gray skies and drizzle which isn't that big of a deal to the same people who have battled dust storms, volcanoes, and forest fires. TK talks about his upcoming wedding and tells the crew about all of the 14 venues he and Carlos have looked at. The venue they really want is in their budget but since everyone in Austin wants to get married there, they would have to wait 18 months. 

Owen arrives on a motorcycle because of course Owen Strand is now the owner of a motorcycle. Now, I'm the BIGGEST Owen apologist there is, mostly because I absolutely adore Rob Lowe (watch Dog Gone ... you won't be disappointed). Owen Strand in his firefighter gear really, really does it for me. Owen Strand in head to toe leather ... doesn't do it to me. Plus, and I'm not body shaming or anything like that, Rob Lowe, who is an extremely fit man nearing his 60s, looks really small in all the leather.

Anywho, Owen is now the proud owner of a brand-spanking new motor bike and he even has a few new buddies to hang out with. Mostly everyone seems amused albeit a bit concerned by Owen's obvious mid-life crisis but I'm gonna cut Owen some slack. Looking back on season 3, Owen went through a lot of shit, some of it health-related. I say let him have his big boy toys!

Next up, we get a scene between Carlos and his mother, Andrea Reyes (Roxana Brusso) and let me say, I adore Carlos' mom. She had that motherly, no-nonsense vibe about her that reminds me so much of Eddie's abuela and Aunt Pepa in the original 9-1-1. Now, the one thing that was hinted at prior to the airing of this season, the one thing the entire Tarlos fandom has been talking about, is this deep dark secret that Carlos is suppose to be keeping from TK. While Carlos has lunch with his mother, he gets a call from the wedding venue telling him they have an opening in 8 weeks. When he doesn't seem too enthused about it, his mother deduces that he hasn't told TK 'the truth'. Carlos assures her he will finally share 'the truth' with Carlos. Then the sky turns a hazy shade of green and it starts to rain.

Over at the fairgrounds, we see actual frogs falling from the sky like something out of Exodus. Grace receives a 9-1-1 call from the same man we saw in the cold open. Not only is it raining frogs, a car plows into a poor lady sitting in a ticket booth. As the man reports the emergency, he looks up just as a frog falls. The frog falls into his mouth and goes down his throat while his daughter watches in horror.

The 126 arrive at the chaotic scene. The paramedics go to the aid of the man choking on a live frog while the firefighters tend to the lady who got run over. Tommy attempts to extract the frog from the man's throat but the frog slips further into his throat. As the man continues to choke, she goes to do the Heimlich and this actually works. Giant, tennis ball-sized hail starts to rain down so the firefighters huddle around the poor woman until it finally passes. The woman is placed on a backboard and it looks like she is going to be okay. When she looks up at the sky she sees the sun come out. 

Carlos is waiting for the 126 back at the station house and when they get back, he asks TK if he can talk with him in private. We are further delayed from this big secret when we see that Carlos has already told TK. TK paces back and forth as he processes the bombshell we still don't know about. Finally, we get to hear the big secret so allow me to give you the abbreviated version. Okay, here goes. Carlos is married, in name only, to Michelle Blake's (remember her) younger sister, Iris. Apparently Carlos and Iris were besties in high school and when Carlos came out, he really struggled with it, so his solution was to marry Iris. Carlos never got a divorce because Iris struggled with her mental health and went missing. He assures TK he thought Iris was dead but now that he knows she's alive, his health insurance is helping her afford the medicine for her schizophrenia. Whew, that was a lot!

I felt really bad for TK because he is not given the time or space to fully process all of the information Carlos just dumped on him. This reminds me of when Judd found out last season that he has a teenage son. When he told Grace, we got to see her journey as she processed this information and what it meant for her and Judd, and their relationship, and their family. TK insta-forgives Carlos for failing to tell him that he's already married and he immediately jumps into fix-it mode. I'm sorry, perhaps I'm a big immature or petty or whatever you want to call it, but I don't know if I could even be in the same room with Carlos after hearing that news. I would feel so betrayed and not because he is married or married to a woman. I would feel betrayed because if the situation was flipped, TK would have been duly punished for hiding something so big. It also makes Carlos jealousy towards TK's sponsor seem super hypocritical. All I can say is, TK Strand is a better person than me!

And now it's time for a science lesson! We learn from a meteorologist that the huge storm that popped up out of nowhere and rained down frogs and hailed is called a derecho. We also learned there is a chance for a mild heat burst which could cause a rise in air temperature as well as gusty winds, however, we are immediately assured the chance of something like this happening is one in a million. You might want to file that tidbit of info away for the next scene.

We head back over to the fair and we see the same man who nearly choked to death on a frog and his daughter get on a ferris wheel. We are now back at the beginning of the episode. The mild heat burst hits causing several balloons to pop and the ice cream cone in Brianna's hand to melt. Several people start passing out due to the intense heat and the mechanisms controlling the ferris wheel malfunction causing the man and his daughter to get trapped in one of the cars on the ferris wheel. 

Meanwhile, Grace receives a 9-1-1 call from Caleb who is stuck in the porta potty. He is unable to tell her where he is located, however, he does let her know the portable toilet is slowly filling up with blue water. Grace tells Caleb that the water has chemicals in it which contain formaldehyde and they are giving off toxic fumes. Yikes!!! Thankfully the 126 are back and Grace lets them know about Caleb. Since his phone signal is still registering as being on the fairgrounds, they know that he didn't fly away too far. They do manage to find him in the dunking booth. They are able to get him out but he has to be revived. Caleb survives and Brianna declares her love for him. All I can say is Mr. Caleb must have nine lives and we've already seen him use three of them.

The next order of business is rescuing the frog-gobbler and his daughter at the top of the ferris wheel. The 126 use a tarp as a net and Owen yells for the man and his daughter to jump down. The daughter hesitates and frankly I don't blame her. It's one thing to fall several feet onto something inflatable but falling down on a piece of tarp being held by a handful of firefighters is a completely different thing. One of the funniest parts of this episode is when the man pushes his daughter out of the ferris wheel car and all I kept thinking is, ten years from now she's going to be talking about this very moment with her therapist. The man jumps next but since he weighs a lot more than the little girl, he crashes through the tarp. Thankfully he hit the tarp before it ripped otherwise that would've ended nasty!

Tommy tends to the man and his daughter in the triage tent and we learn his name is Trevor Parks (D.B. Woodside) and his daughter's name is Melody. Trevor has recently gotten a divorce and has relocated to Austin. There is chemistry between Tommy and Trevor and Nancy sees it. She encourages her captain to make a move. Tommy walks over to Tony and gives him her number and mentions that Melody is around the same age as her daughters and they should do a play-date. Trevor asks if it will be a play-date or a date-date and I was like, Tommy, jump his bones now! I am so on board for this pairing! Plus Trevor has a shaved head just like our dearly-departed Charles. Tommy tells Trevor she is fine with either one before she walks off. 

Carlos goes to visit Michelle Blake but learns that she's left on an outreach mission to Ecuador (and Liv Tyler is back in merry ole England living her best life). Carlos does find Iris, who is looking pretty healthy since the last time we saw her, and she slaps him. I didn't feel bad for Carlos at this moment because it needed to be done. The two of them do some catching up and Carlos tells her he's engaged and that he plans on getting married. Iris sees the writing on the wall and she tells Carlos that before she signs the divorce papers, she needs to meet TK. Something tells me she's not going to give over her John Hancock so easily. 

Perhaps the funniest part of the episode comes when Owen convinces Judd to go to a bar where his new riding buddies are gathering. When they get there, a young man named Mikey introduces himself to Owen and says it's an honor to meet 'an American hero and patriot'. He then asks if Owen was really involved in 9-11. Another guy named Red tells Owen to excuse Mikey and his excitement. He says that the Honor Dogs revere first responders. It is at this moment that I knew exactly what was going on and it was so funny to watch Owen and Judd figure it out. When Mikey is inducted into the Honor Dogs and branded, that is Owen and Judd's cue to leave because while the two of them may enjoy riding bikes, they are not down with white supremacy. 

The episode ends with Tommy attending church with her girls, Judd, Grace, and baby Charlie. The current minister introduces the congregation to the newest minister - Trevor Parks. Tommy is completely modified but honestly I don't see anything wrong. Ministers can date and since he's divorced and Tommy's widowed, I don't see why they can't see each other. This is something Tommy's clearly going to struggle with during this season. Also, Owen receives a visit from Special Agent Rose Kacey who wants to talk to the FBI about his new 'associates'. Dun-dun-dun! End of episode!

This was a fantastic start to a new season of 9-1-1: Lone Star. I'm glad both franchises are veering away from the huge, multi-episode disasters we've become accustomed to. Frankly at this point, there's not many natural disasters we haven't tackled on these shows. I do feel like we need to get a hurricane at some point though. As far as the Tarlos drama, I'm not really a fan. The whole Carlos is married to Iris news came out of nowhere and while I think it's great we are being reintroduced to a character from season one, it's just yet more drama for TK and Carlos to deal with and their whole relationship has been wrought with drama. Give them a break! 

I am deeply amused with Owen's storyline. Owen really took a backseat in this episode which was nice since a lot of you haters be coming after him complaining about how he gets too much screen time even though he is played by Rob freaking Lowe who is the reason most people even tuned into this show in the beginning. I am wondering what's going to happen next with Owen and this white supremacist group. Something tells me it's nothing good. 

I'm really excited about Tommy Vega getting her groove back. Last season we got to see her mourn the loss of Charlie. I think Trevor would be a good partner for her. They're both in the business of helping people. Tommy deserves to be happy and whether that happens with or without Trevor, I'll be happy either way. Can't wait to see what happens next.

Well, that's it for this episode's reaction. It looks like season four of Lone Star is going to be a good one. It looks like the next episode is going to go full-tilt into the white supremacist/terror plot. Until next time ...

[eddieheart]

MOTHER OF MONSTERS

(Part 4)

Fandom: Stranger Things

Pairings: NONE

Words: 528

Description: Moreen and the party talk.

Part 3:

"I'm sorry you fed him what?" Moreen asked in a sharp accusatory tone.

"Nougat. He likes it. What?" Dustins voice raised in pitch as the older girl crossed her arms and sighed. He glanced between Eddie and Moreen nervously.

"Nougat is not part of a healthy diet! Not for them! My gosh! Nougat!" She let out a huff of air and rolled her eyes.

"They're inter-dimensional flower monsters I don't think nougat will kill them." Eddie replied snidely.

Moreen's head whipped around to face the culprit. Billy stood with Nancy and Max near the back of the room, he was pacing wildly.

"It may not kill them as you put it, but it's not good for them. Look, let me show you," she turned away and walked towards a dark corner of the room. She called out. "Bubba! Bubba! There's my boy!"

A creature slowly crept out of the darkness, it walked on all fours. It snuffled as it crawled out, Moreen reached out a hand and rubbed it over the creatures... head? Rose hip? She pet the creature gently and Eddie jerked backwards as it's mouth opened.

Steve screamed out as it snarled, lips curling upwards. But Moreen didn't even flinch, she just moved her hand to the underside of its head and scratched it lightly.

The creature didn't look normal, at least not by demogorgon standards. It was large and fat, like a bear. Moreen reached out another hand and pointed to the ratty old couch with a demogorgon sitting on it.

"See that, Kemper. He looks like the kunorhodon you've seen. But here, here is Charli my baby, Charli is a proper weight, this is how they're supposed to look, this is what happens when they have a proper diet." She noticed their shocked faces and looked at them confused.

"What is it? What?" Eddie held his hands up and backed up slowly.

"It- it's gonna eat us!" He whisper shouted, pointing aggressively at the creature.

"What no... that's, that is a Fleming's response, like when horses flip their upper lip or a cat opens it mouth to smell. They don't have noses so to smell they have to open their mouths. See up here," she grabbed the monsters face and ran a finger up the side of its petals. "These little pores are their scent receptors, it's just how they smell."

"Excuse me if I don't trust you, honestly how do we even know she isn't flayed or anything? Huh?" Eddie shouted, motioning to Moreen.

"She's not, I can tell. If he were here I could feel it, he's not." Will spoke out.

“Flayed?” She asked, tilting her head to the side.

“Umm... shit sorry. I um... Steve?” Eddie sputtered out, glancing to the other boy.

“Don’t look at me.” Steve crossed his arms and leaned away from the boy.

“There’s a monster, from the upside down. It-it infects people’s minds, kind of like a virus. It controls their minds, makes them do things.” Nancy replied for him.

“Red book. It hates heat right? I’ve... I’ve seen it. S’all in there.” She gestured to a red book sitting on the round table.

@buggylad

[graphicpolicy]

Neil Gaiman, Marc Bernardin, and Shawn Martinbrough team to adapt Anansi Boys to comics

Neil Gaiman, Marc Bernardin, and Shawn Martinbrough team to adapt Anansi Boys to comics #comics #comicbooks

Neil Gaiman’s award-winning novel, Anansi Boys, is getting a comic adaptation from Dark Horse Comics. Adapted by writer Marc Bernardin, the series will also feature art by Shawn Martinbrough, colors by Chris Sotomayor, and letters by Jim Campbell. The first issue will have a main cover illustrated by David Mack and two variants by Martinbrough and Denys Cowan, respectively. “Fat” Charlie Nancy…

[ultrameganicolaokay]

Anansi Boys #5 by Neil Gaiman, Marc Bernardin, Shawn Martinbrough and Chris Sotomayor. Cover by David Mack. Variant cover by Martinbrough. Out in October.

"As Fat Charlie nurses an epic hangover, and deals with the mystery woman who shared his bed after the night of mournful reverie, Spider heads to the Grahame Coats Agency to fill in for his brother. There, Spider gets into the kind of trouble only a trickster scion could muster – trouble that poor Fat Charlie will have to deal with."

[fangirlnationmag]

'Anansi Boys' Gets the Comic Book Treatment

Neil Gaiman’s Anansi Boys is being adapted by Dark Horse Comics by Eisner-nominated writer Marc Bernadin and artist Shawn Martinbrough. The series is planned for 8 issues, with issue #1 of Anansi Boys coming to comic stores June 26, 2024. For those who have never had the pleasure of reading this book, here’s a quick synopsis: “Fat” Charlie Nancy leads a boring life as a boring Londoner until he…

[geekcavepodcast]

Neil Gaiman's "Anansi Boys" Getting Comic Book Adaptation

Dark Horse has announced a new comic book adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys. The adaptation hail from writer Marc Bernardin, artist Shawn Matinbrough, colorist Chris Sotomayor, and letterer Jim Campbell.

"'Fat' Charlie Nancy leads a boring life as a boring Londoner until he discovers two things: That his recently deceased father was, in fact, Anansi, the trickster god of African folklore, and that he has a twin brother he’s never met. All of this kicks off a reality-spanning odyssey of sibling rivalry, jealous deities, and one poor soul who’ll realize that being a god is more trouble than it’s worth." (Dark Horse)

Anansi Boys #1 (of 8), featuring a main cover by David Mack and variant covers by Shawn Martinbrough and Denys Cowan, goes on sale on June 26, 2024.

(Image via Dark Horse - David Mack's Cover of Anansi Boys #1)

[nonbinary-weirdo]

Oliver! The musical cast

Oliver - Charlie

Dodger - Niffty

Fagin - Alastor

Nancy - Angel Dust

Mr Bumble - Adam

Bill Sykes - Valentino

Bullseye - Fat Nuggets

[4stringsandmorestrings]

Hey a chance for hyper-fixations to commingle…

[therealeagal]

Anansi Boys

Anansi Boys is a book written by Neil Gaiman. It is a spin-off sequel thing to his other book American Gods, but if you ask me Anansi Boys is the stronger of the two.

I feel obligated to warn you that I will recap the book in this post, so don’t come pissing and moaning to me about how I spoiled it for you. You’ve got no one to blame but yourself starting...now.

For your consideration: Charles “Fat Charlie” Nancy is a boring Englishman (but I repeat myself. Hey-o!) with a boring job who lives a boring life.

Then his father dies and weird shit starts to happen, as they are wont to do when your father is, quite unbeknownst to you, Anansi, the African trickster god.

So anyway, then Fat Charlie meets his brother, who is a dick, so Fat Charlie - with the help of some old ladies who it turns out are witches of some description, goes to the cliffs at the end of the world where a bunch of Anansi’s old cohorts live.

Fat Charlie asks them for help to force his brother to leave him alone but they all tell him to get bent because Anansi is an asshole that no one likes.

The only people willing to help him are Tiger and the Bird Woman, both of whom are so very obviously evil that Palpatine could take notes, but Fat Charlie is kind of a tool so he agrees to accept their help anyway.

Then I forget specifically what happens next. Stuff happens involving a cop. Other stuff happens involving a ghost. The Bird Woman tries to kill Fat Charlie’s brother with birds. Fat Charlie’s boss dies at some point but he’s a dick so it’s ok.

Then at the end Charlie returns the Bird Woman’s feather and she pisses off and then he makes fun of Tiger and Tiger pisses off.

Then everyone lives happily ever after. Except for Charlie’s boss, who’s dead. But other than that everyone lives happily ever after. Except for Tiger, because Charlie made fun of him.

So everyone but Charlie’s boss and Tiger lives happily ever after. Oh and also the ghost from before, but she goes to heaven or something, so close enough.

Anyway, you should read it and you should love it. If you don’t read it I hate you. If you do read but don’t love it, I double hate you.

Oh yeah, it’s also getting a mini-series, which I am...cautiously optimistic about after what happened with American Gods. Delroy Lindo is playing Anansi (I was pulling for Garret Morris, but Lindo’s also great).