#franchise management strategies

[champstorymedia]

How Franchising Can Help You Achieve Financial Freedom

Introduction: Franchising is a business model that offers individuals the opportunity to own and operate a business with the support and guidance of an established brand. With the right approach, franchising can be a pathway to financial freedom, allowing individuals to build wealth and achieve their financial goals. In this article, we will explore how franchising can help you achieve financial…

[updatewave07]

Strategies to Increase CPM Rates on YouTube

[astroboyart]

Astro Boy Reboot not dead yet; new visual unveiled at 2024 edition of Annecy International Animation Film Festival

Sources: TF1 Pro (English Google Translation), Mediawan Kids & Family (X)

Announced on June 11, 2024 at the Annecy Festival in France, Astro Boy Reboot has surfaced once again with a new visual.

This version of Astro Boy Reboot will be co-produced by Method Animation (Mediawan Kids & Family) and Shibuya Productions. No release date was given.

TFOU, a youth based TV channel in France, signed an agreement with Method Animation/Mediawan Kids & Family to develop this new version of Astro Boy Reboot which will be geared towards the 6-10 year old crowd.

It will have 26 episodes which will each last 22 minutes.

A pitch for the show was posted:

Atom is 9 years old, he plays soccer, has his small group of friends at school, bickers with his little sister Uran, and dreams of telling his friend Silica that he is in love with her. But Atom is no ordinary boy. He is a 9-year-old ultra-advanced robot and the only android capable of feeling real emotions! He hides his true nature to live like a normal child. But when supervillains threaten the coexistence between humans and robots, he must act, because he dreams of a world where everyone lives in harmony. Secretly, he transforms into a superhero to protect Metro City. To all the locals, he is Astroboy! But can Astroboy save the city without revealing its secret and thus preserve his complicity with the marvelous Silica?

A couple major figures for Astro Boy Reboot also commented on Astro Boy Reboot:

Yann Labasque, director of youth programs at TF1. "Welcome Astro Boy to the TFOU family! We are delighted to launch the development of this new animated series with Mediawan Kids & Family," rejoices Yann Labasque , director of youth programs at TF1. "A series rich in promises of action and adventure, but also of emotions through the eyes of this little robot boy with a human heart who will have to find his place in a divided society and the solutions within him. Themes with great stories to tell and great values ​​to convey.

Katell France, General Manager and Content Director of Method Animation. "We are very happy to be able to develop the reboot of Astroboy, an iconic character created by Osamu Tezuka, with our historic partner TF1 who has supported us for many years on the Miraculous franchise with the success that we have known. Astroboy is a legendary character whose values ​​such as the cohabitation of technology and nature, tolerance and friendship, perfectly embody those that we defend at Mediawan Kids & Family. This series responds to our strategy of creating a great franchise for young people and families. We look forward to bringing Astroboy back to life through this reboot, and new stories in which all children today will recognize themselves."

[project-sekai-facts]

is it me or does prsk not really cater towards hardcore yuribait or yaoibait as much even when given the opportunity especially compared to other gacha games, like even the wedding events neither of them was focused on a popular pairing or even just in general with the stories (except for minoharu and vbs i guess?)

Yuribait and yaoibait are strong words that aren't exactly right to describe project sekai. They're just alternative ways of saying queerbait, which implies a marketing strategy of attracting a queer audience by falsely promising representation. While they didn't advertise queer representation, spn and sherlock were accused of this due to the way they wrote their leads (i guess spn did become genuine rep. Ish). Proseka isn't that, neither are similar franchises, like bandori or love live for example. Even if they rarely say things outright, which admittedly is in part because of corporate greed and appeasing fans, I wouldn't say it's queerbaiting, especially for this game and the two I've outlined (well LL has a complicated history but this isn't the time or place). The whole idea of falsely promising queer rep or marketing off it doesn't really happen here, especially in project sekai it feels very genuine and clear even if not labelled. I put this down to the writers saying on record that they want the characters, and their relationships and issues, to feel realistic and relatable.

To actually answer the question now my little media ramble is over, yeah it does feel less compared to other games, especially bandori which gives content to multiple pairings for the same characters. Like don't get me wrong prsk has quite a lot of ship tease when you really get down to it and track through all the stories, but it definitely feels limited to only a handful of pairings. While prsk does give moments for multiple pairings for the same character sometimes it's just... less ig. Again i think it's just to do with the intentionally realistic way of portraying the relationships, so imo it makes sense that they only pick a hanful to give much more obvious or outright romantic subtext to (aka mmj/vbs), even if they still give little moments here and there for other pairings for those characters, as well as giving less-fleshed out or explicitly romantic shiptease for other pairings that don't include those characters (does this make sense? it's hard to talk about shiptease in the game without explicitly talking about shipping. oh well...).

(Also as an aside: mmj is also a bit of a genre thing, and a lot of a Love Live thing. I'm not reaching by saying that either, it showed up on the results to a survey about media the staff at colopale like. mmj does take a few cues from LL here and there, (rooftop practice, genki orange leader, the white feather, airis character design and voice actress) so this is probably one of them)

Even though the wedding events don't usually focus on a ship (aside from the Honami/Kanade one (for context it's honami's most popular ship at least on pixiv, although it's still on the rarer side of things, and it's not that popular in terms of Kanade pairings)), they have always featured popular ships on the card lineups, aside from the most recent one. the first one had cards for the two most popular Akito pairings, and the second one had An/Kohane and Shizuku/Airi. The second one is particularly notable since the event didn't go lightly on the ship tease at all in some parts, though it makes sense since both pairings have romantic text and/or subtext in the story. Even the first wedding event had a tiny bit in one of the card stories, and this year's one managed to squeeze in a scene where Minori imagines Haruka getting married (presumably to her).

We also had the buddy funny spend time event back in 2021, which was explicitly a double date event featuring an/kohane and minori/haruka (again two pairs with romantic text), and we've had other events that follow a sort of similar concept of two popular pairings doing something together, without the double date thing attached, but you can tell what they were thinking lol. I don't really wanna elaborate on that bc I don't wanna start a whole thing but if you look through the event list you can probably work it out.

But then again, this is the Hatsune Miku friendship game. Friendship and community are two of the core themes of the game, which again explains why it might feel like there's less romantic teasing and such compared to other games. Because there is. The events and other stories prioritise writing the platonic relationships over giving ship tease. There's definitely events that you can come out of with little to no moments for the ships you like. This isn't saying that other idol games don't focus on the friendship by the way, I'm just saying prsk has much stronger and consistent themes. From an objective perspective it has the best writing of the major idol games on the market (maybe, idk what's going on in bandori nowadays I've heard MyGO and Avemuji are really good).

Yeah it's the hatsune miku friendship game which prioritises realistic characters and relationships that's about the best way I can put it.

(aside #2: back to the idea of queer content, while they don't write the game, sega is pro-lgbt and is a sponsor of tokyo pride, and offer protections for queer staff. Other sega franchises like Yakuza and Sonic have queer characters! And mizuki is about 5 events away from coming out as trans unless they fumble super badly. So it's a nonzero chance that prsk can and will include textual queer rep in future (i mean they already have lol). It genuinely is down to the realism other fan appeal. Again this isn't to hate on other franchises I'm a huge fan of LL and a casual bandori enjoyer, prsk is just Like This)

[aeonmagnus]

https://newsroom.hasbro.com/news-releases/news-release-details/hasbro-announces-til-all-are-one-transformers-40th-anniversary

40 YEARS. ONE LEGACY.

Relive the Magic of the 1984 Animated Series Featuring an Exclusive Behind-the-Scenes Table Read with Peter Cullen, Frank Welker and Other Original TRANSFORMERS Voice Actors – Only in Theaters Starting May 15

PAWTUCKET, RI — April 3, 2024 — Hasbro Inc., a leading toy and game company, announced today a special cinema experience to celebrate four decades of the TRANSFORMERS franchise with ‘TIL ALL ARE ONE: TRANSFORMERS 40th ANNIVERSARY EVENT. Honoring the brand’s legacy in bringing continuous action and adventure to fans of all ages, the theatrical event will provide limited screenings of episodes from the classic 1984 animated series “THE TRANSFORMERS.” Screenings will be available in select cinemas across the US, UK and Mexico, along with select territories in Europe, Latin America and Asia starting on Wednesday, May 15. Tickets for the TRANSFORMERS 40th Anniversary Event will go on sale at Transformers40thCinemaEvent.com on Wednesday, April 10 at 9.30am Local Time.

This special cinema experience will take fans back to the very beginning as some of the TRANSFORMERS original voice-over talent, including Peter Cullen (original voice of Optimus Prime) and Frank Welker (original voice of Megatron), team up for the first time in decades to revisit their characters and recreate the enduring magic of the classic 1984 animated series. An exclusive behind-the-scenes table read appears on a split screen for the pilot episode, More Than Meets the Eye, Part 1, followed by a traditional screening of the next three episodes of the series. Fans can experience the original Saturday morning cartoon on the big screen and get a glimpse of its evolution with a sneak peek of the new season of the original animated kids’ series TRANSFORMERS: EARTHSPARK. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to celebrate 40 years of TRANSFORMERS action, humor and legacy at an anniversary event that is truly... More Than Meets the Eye!

“For decades, the battle between the Autobots and Decepticons has come to life in movies, comic books, innovative toys, live experiences and digital media, elevating the TRANSFORMERS brand to a global powerhouse franchise with millions of fans around the world. To celebrate 40 years, we’re bringing fans back to where it all started,” said Alyse D’Antuono, Vice President, Global Franchise Strategy & Management, Action Brands at Hasbro. “THE TRANSFORMERS animated series captured the imagination of fans of all ages when it premiered in 1984, introducing a timeless battle between good and evil fueled by action and adventure. Ask any longtime fan, and they can probably tell you where they were when they first heard Optimus Prime’s iconic phrase ‘Autobots, roll out’ or what it felt like when they first converted a bot character into its alt mode. With exclusive content featuring the series’ original voice actors, this theatrical event is truly for our fans and invites audiences to experience the fun that started it all.”

Distributed by Trafalgar Releasing, the global leader in Event Cinema distribution, this is the second time the company has partnered with Hasbro, Inc., following Peppa’s Cinema Party that screened in cinemas worldwide in February 2024.

For the latest information on the TRANSFORMERS franchise, including toys and entertainment, follow @TRANSFORMERSOfficial on Instagram, @TransformersOfficial on Threads, @TRANSFORMERS on Facebook and @TRANSFORMERSOfficial on TikTok #40yearsonelegacy.

[weirdmarioenemies]

Name: Fish Bone

Debut: Super Mario World

Fish Bones are—hey! We’ve already talked about you, and very recently at that! We love you, Fish Bone, but it’s time to stop hogging the spotlight!

Name: Fishbone

Debut: Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards

There we go!

It’s that funky fresh time of year where all the strange Mario creatures retract into their holes to make way for other, stranger beasts, and boy is Fishbone strange!

Fishbones are the reanimated skeletons of dead fish, and golly, what a great skeleton to have! Just three boomerang-shaped bones and two hollow eye sockets. No spine, no discernable jaws of any kind, just pure, abject salminimalism! I bet you wouldn’t even know these were bones if I didn’t tell you, and yet they still manage to evoke a fish skeleton so well!

But whose skeletons ARE they? While we don’t have any direct confirmation, it feels pretty likely to me that we have the skeletons of dear old Floppers on our hands! There’s a common fish enemy in most Kirby games called Blippers, but Blippers are entirely absent from Kirby 64, and Floppers are a lot thinner and pointier than them anyhow!

But even with that in mind…wow! This still only barely looks like it could be in a Flopper. Just a wonderfully abstract skeletal structure all around. And it only gets weirder from here!

There’s a reason for the peculiar shape of Fishbone’s head! Rather than hop or jump around like most water-based enemies, they shoot their skulls at Kirby for damage! (Don’t worry, it grows back!) Why, you may ask? Well, they provide the Cutter ability, which in Kirby 64 looks like this!:

Most underwater enemies in Kirby don’t give abilities, since Kirby typically can’t inhale while in water (understandable!). He can do this in Kirby 64, though! With them shooting their heads to attack and being fairly common, this makes Fishbones the most Cutterest enemy in the whole game, even more Cuttery than Sir Kibble himself!

They are, in fact, SO Cuttery that Miracle Matter’s embodiment of said ability looks a lot like Fishbones!

They STILL couldn’t get enough of Fishbone, though! If you inhale and carry it over your head, you can shoot its skulls yourself! Due to the way Cutter works, this is actually MORE ideal to use when you’re underwater, since using the ability makes Kirby sink!

Sadly, they reverted how Cutter works after this, and with Kirby going right back to spitting bubbles underwater, Fishbones didn’t stand a chance ): Despite its awesome design, it just joined the foray of thousands of other Kirby 64 enemies to never see the light of day again.

But who knows? Maybe it will appear in a future game, just like beloved Plugg, and grant the Cutter ability once more! After all, the Kirby franchise has finally started begrudgingly acknowledging that Kirby 64 did, in fact, exist.

And I think that any enemy that can say they could be combined with Ghost Knight to inexplicably let Kirby create a giant toothy maw out of his arms, deserves a second chance. :)

Before you ask, no, there’s no way Fishbones could come from the only OTHER bony fish in Kirby 64, Blowfish, either. As for why, let’s take a gander at the scrapped enemy Blowfishbone herself!

“Oouuughh…I am–I’m so, so many bones…ooohgghhgh…”

Thank you, Blowfishbone.

(All gifs taken from the Strategy Wiki!)

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Weltschmerz is a German word that describes a feeling of sadness, weariness, or hopelessness about the world. It's made up of the words Welt, meaning "world", and Schmerz, meaning "pain".

[Thanks Ellen Geller]

* * * *

Put one foot in front of the other. Repeat.

November 16, 2024

Robert B. Hubbell

It was a tough week—on the heels of an even tougher week. A few Democrats are revved up and ready to jump back in the fight. But if my inbox is a reliable indicator, many (most?) people are still reeling from the losses on Election Day. They are bewildered, exhausted, tapped out emotionally and financially, and angry. You wouldn’t be human if you did not feel those emotions in some measure. Hopes were high, and the loss was unexpected. The disappointment was exacerbated by PTSD.

The president-elect has a feral sense that many Democrats are emotionally vulnerable. His cabinet picks are designed to rub salt in our wounds and deepen our sense of bewilderment. We must recognize that the ludicrous nominations over the past week are part of a strategy to dispirit and weaken Democrats—in hopes of reducing their resolve to resist his dark plans.

We cannot give in to the president-elect’s transparent ploy. Although I am not a fan of the Godfather movie franchise (no hate mail, please!), every American knows the line, “‘It’s not personal, Sonny. It’s strictly business.”

Trump’s bizarre, anti-government nominations are not personal. They are strictly business—to Trump and to us. He is using them as an emotional cudgel against Democrats and a test of loyalty for incredulous Republicans. Our job is to defeat as many of the nominations as possible—thereby demonstrating that Trump is vulnerable and weak after his narrow win.

It is possible that Trump will resort to unilateral recess appointments by forcing an adjournment of Congress for ten days so that he can cram his unqualified, anti-establishment choices on the American people.

Doing so would be a mistake and would overplay Trump's hand. The officers would be branded as illegitimate leaders who could not make it through a Senate confirmation. More importantly, such a move would instantly convert Trump into America’s first (and last) dictator.

No other president has forced an adjournment of Congress, much less for the anti-democratic purpose of evading the Senate’s “advice and consent” role under the Constitution. Although lawsuits would challenge the recess appointments unilaterally engineered by Trump, the bigger point is that the move would drop all pretense of a president bound by the rule of law.

Whatever the Framers thought they were doing with the recess appointments and the adjournment clause, none of them believed those clauses could be manipulated to strip the Senate of its constitutional obligation to review presidential nominations.

If Trump manages to remove the Senate’s advice and consent role from the Constitution, he will sow the seeds of his quick undoing.

As I write, it appears that the nominations of Matt Gaetz, Pete Hegseth, and Robert Kennedy are in trouble—at least if they go through the Senate confirmation process.

We can help keep up the pressure by notifying our Senators and Representatives that we oppose the nominations of Gaetz, Hegseth, Kennedy, and Gabbard. See Jessica Craven’s Chop Wood Carry Water for a word script and link to phone numbers. Chop Wood, Carry Water 11/14.

There are two other themes that deserve mention as we head into the weekend.

The first is the stand-alone injury to women across America who hoped that the 2024 election would be a major step to re-establishing their status as equal citizens under the Constitution. Few opinion writers or journalists have mentioned that the re-election of Trump has dashed those hopes—at least for another four years.

Mother Jones has addressed the issue of the election’s impact on women in its article, Of Misogyny, Musk, and Men by Clara Jeffrey. The article runs under the sub-header “Women are not okay. We’re furious.”  

For all of the punditry analyzing the reason for Democrats’ loss on November 5, almost none of them mention the Trump campaign’s explicit appeal to sexism among young men. Any pundit who purports to analyze the reasons for Kamala Harris’s loss and does not list misogyny among the top three reasons is running cover for Trump—whether they intend to or not.

The second issue is the unrelenting tidal wave of pundit analyses that seek to assign blame for the Democratic loss. Spoiler alert: The reason is (allegedly) that Democrats are “liberal elitists” who ignored the working class.

The above analysis is both wrong and lazy. But even if it were accurate, it beggars belief that journalists and pundits are wasting their time assigning blame at the very moment that Trump “is slouching toward Bethlehem” in the manner of the “rough beast” in The Second Coming.1

If the above metaphor is too obscure for a Saturday morning, here is another: Imagine that we are on an oil drilling platform in the North Sea. A fire has started in the galley and threatens to engulf the entire platform. What is the better course of action? To argue over who is responsible for starting the fire in the galley or to work on extinguishing the fire?

It is appropriate and necessary to understand how and why Democrats fell short in 2024. But to do so at a time when we are stranded on a burning platform is suicidal. Assigning blame may fill column inches but it corrodes unity. The legacy media is failing us.

And yet, readers cannot resist the temptation to forward articles to me with the thesis, “Democrats are liberal elitists who got what they deserved.” I get a dozen such emails a day (often multiple duplicates of the latest from NYT or WaPo). I have received hundreds since November 5.

Amplifying such articles merely compounds the journalistic malpractice of the legacy media. We should not give them oxygen. They invite disputation and discord. They are inimical to our prime objective: Resist the efforts of the Trump administration to erode the rule of law.

Robert B. Hubbell Newsletter

[breelandwalker]

Funny thing I've noticed as a longtime LARPer and dedicated Critter who just started playing Baldur's Gate 3 (my first experience with the more recent version of the franchise, having previously played Dark Alliance) -

I am pretty damn good at TTRPG battlefield strategy for someone who's never really played TTRPG.

Like, to the point where my husband (a much more experienced gamer and habitual hack-n-slash all-fighters combat player) took several tries and a couple of party member resurrections to get through a battle that I managed in one shot....with a party of mostly magic users.

The conversation afterward went something like this:

"Wait, you got that in one? How'd you do it?"

"Well, here was my strategy going in.... [quick rundown of distributing potions and useful items between party members, prepping situationally-appropriate spells, using ranged attacks and bonus actions wherever possible, remembering to heal people, and making sure to get in a surprise round on turn-based mode before starting the fight proper]"

".....you had a STRATEGY?"

"....................you DIDN'T?"

I think I just might be good at this. 😁

[sgiandubh]

Your answer earlier today mentioned the fandom was bored and cantankerous and it actually seems like the series ended when 7a did: no fan engagement, no details about the second half of the season, no trailer, no interest from the actors and on and on it goes. It's like it's over but there was no closure so people are basically being jerks (more than usual) because they are at loose ends.

Dear Loose Ends Anon,

While I globally agree with your assessment of the situation, I think there's no possible excuse for a bunch of supposedly adult women to act like an overexcited high-school clique, and then some more. There is no possible excuse for the borderline obsessive preoccupation regarding the whereabouts of a perfect stranger, even if that man was 'very lucky, very blessed' to be cast as JAMMF. There is no possible excuse for knowingly ventilating fake homosexuality rumors, based on proven & deliberate 'evidence' planting on Wikipedia and/or some laughable rants on an obscure American gay forum. And there certainly is no possible excuse for the pervasive hypocrisy amongst the 'Best Fans Ever'.

All the above are WRONG. So no, no excuses, as far as I am concerned.

Add to this a narcissistic writer, who either does not want or is unable to properly manage the most difficult part of any project - its end. A greedy TV network (***) facing financial turbulence and willing to milk the OL franchise until the last drop - BOMB and the Stalinist paranoia surrounding its cast is evidence enough. Two leads who simply try to exist beyond this crushing pressure and who, somehow, will always be found wanting.

By the same logic, there might never be a closure, since I already could bet the farm, Bebe the dog, Zorba the car and all the rest of my worldly possessions that the last episode of Season 8 will be just the start of thunderous and frustrated wailings, all over the world. Hell, depending on its solvability, *** might even consider a Downton Abbey type marketing strategy, finally catching up with madame Gabaldon's turtle sprint. And churning out at least two or three motion pictures based on the inextricable Book 9 (and of course, 10) gibberish.

The only silver lining in all this disaster is that, after all, this is but a storm in a teacup. Consider the scale, Anon - it should be optimistically sobering.

[champstorymedia]

Why Owning a Franchise is the Key to Business Success

In the competitive world of business, finding a successful business model can be challenging. However, owning a franchise has proven to be a key to business success for many entrepreneurs. Franchising offers a unique opportunity to own and operate a business with the support and guidance of an established brand. In this article, we will explore the reasons why owning a franchise can be the key to…

[ogradyfilm]

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga - Hope Takes Root

[The following essay contains MAJOR SPOILERS; YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!]

I. Living Off the Corpse of the Old World

Come on, Max. Tell me your story. What burned you out? Kill one man too many? See too many people die? Lose some family? Oh, so that's it. You lost your family. That makes you something special, does it?

This monologue, originally uttered in 1981’s The Road Warrior, is still thematically relevant to the increasingly sprawling Mad Max Saga, resonating three films and more than four decades later. Every installment in the franchise—from its scrappy, low-budget debut to its most recent spinoff—revolves around loss. The desolate Wasteland takes, and takes, and takes again, consuming friends, family, resources, sanity. Those that linger are little more than disillusioned scavengers—“maggots living off the corpse of the old world.”

That description certainly applies to Dementus, the central antagonist of Furiosa. A charismatic, flamboyant warlord commanding veritable legions of bloodthirsty marauders, the self-proclaimed “King of the Bikers” (one of several grandiose titles that he flaunts like undeserved trophies) quickly establishes himself as a cunning tactician, utilizing an audacious Trojan Horse strategy to effortlessly overwhelm a formidable stronghold with minimal casualties to his own troops.

Despite his short-term victories on the battlefield, however, Dementus consistently proves himself to be an utterly incompetent leader in times of peace, with his conquests almost immediately descending into chaos and disarray. He’s essentially a post-apocalyptic Ozymandias in the making: “Round the decay of that colossal wreck,” you can easily imagine the History Man saying of his ruined domain, “the lone and level sands stretch far away.”

II. A Fuel-Injected Suicide Machine

Of course, it is implied that Dementus’ numerous “failures” are actually intentional. Although he claims to seek a “land of abundance,” finding it isn't his true goal; rather, what he desires is the pursuit of paradise—the thrill of a chase without end, futile and fruitless. To paraphrase Michael Mann’s Heat: “For [him], the action is the juice.”

[FINAL WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS BELOW!]

Beneath his boasts, bluster, and pretensions of ambition, Dementus is a devout nihilist, so irreparably shattered by the tragic deaths of his children (symbolized by the stuffed toy that he constantly carries on his person) that even physical sensation—pain, pleasure, exhilaration—now eludes him. As he explains to Furiosa during their climactic confrontation, the gaping wound in his heart can only be healed (albeit temporarily) by violence—the fleeting adrenaline rush of seizing territory and crushing his enemies underfoot.

Perhaps this is what motivates him to “mentor” our young heroine: he wants to remold something untainted by rust and radiation in his own savage image—not merely as an heir or a replacement for his biological offspring, but as the ultimate validation of his pessimistic philosophy. To this end, he forces the poor girl to watch as he brutally murders her mother, burning every excruciating second of agony and torment into her memory. To add insult to injury, he literally tastes the tears that she weeps, reveling in her grief and misery.

III. Feels Like Hope

Nevertheless, Love somehow manages to endure amidst the despair—like a lush and verdant Green Place thriving in the middle of a barren desert. If Dementus is a dark reflection of Max Rockatansky’s worst qualities—selfishness, cynicism, indiscriminate rage—then Praetorian Jack anticipates his eventual altruism. Like Max, Jack’s parents were once “warriors searching for a righteous cause.” Unfortunately, nobility and morality are as illusory and insubstantial as a mirage among the merciless dunes; following their senseless deaths, their orphaned son resigned himself to an empty existence of defending an egomaniacal tyrant’s supply caravans from roving bandits and rival gangs.

In Furiosa, though, Jack recognizes a kindred spirit. While circumstances have reduced them to their basest survival instincts, they both dream of something greater: she of returning to the home from which she was snatched, and he of discovering a purpose beyond the “fire and blood” of the Road War. Together, they forge a relationship that transcends romance, nourishing the seed of Hope in one another. He wouldn’t hesitate to lay down his life in exchange for hers; and she, in turn, would gladly sacrifice a chance at freedom in order to protect him.

Even Jack’s unceremonious demise can’t totally extinguish the faint ember of optimism that he sparked in Furiosa’s subconscious. Though she briefly succumbs to wrath and exacts cruel vengeance on Dementus, she refuses to fulfill her adversary’s grim prophecy that she will become his successor—the personification of his bleak worldview. Instead, she follows Jack’s example; inspired by his inherent goodness, she conspires to liberate Immortan Joe’s abused and exploited “wives” (glorified sex slaves, valued solely as breeding stock), leading them to salvation beyond his seemingly infinite reach.

IV. Some Kind of Redemption

“Who killed the world?” is a recurring question throughout Mad Max: Fury Road; the complementary characters in its belated prequel provide something resembling an answer. Dementus, haunted by his traumatic Past, destroys everything that he touches; by the conclusion of his journey, his band of loyal disciples has dwindled to a meager handful, and he finally marches towards his doom alone. Joe, meanwhile, rules the Present with an iron fist, but his single-minded obsession with producing a “pure” genetic legacy sabotages his dynastic aspirations; without any “perfect” progeny to inherit his cult of personality, his empire is too fragile to outlast him. Furiosa, on the other hand, realizes that the Future lies not in oppression and subjugation, but in cooperation, collaboration, and compassion.

Greed, authoritarianism, and Hate killed the world; it is therefore only logical that Love should resurrect it.

It’s a message as elegantly simple and universal as the archetypes that populate George Miller’s modern mythology. Furiosa is a worthy addition to the legendary series, expanding upon and recontextualizing its predecessors while simultaneously excelling on its own merits. It is magnificent, spectacular, and appropriately epic.

[dynared]

So apparently the initial reactions to Transformers One are that it’s going to be amazing -

After Earthspark failed on a viewership and commercial level, and Season 2 managed to alienate its existing audience with an ill-thought retool that just made things make less sense, One is probably the best chance the franchise has to avoid completely going into hibernation for an extended period ala Power Rangers, and may also define their future with Paramount, which is very publicly dealing with its own problems as they scramble to find a buyer.

The whole thing also feels like it might be the last chance for the franchise to release something fun for a long while (unless you’re reading the Energon Universe comics, which you totally should be) opposite a lot of boring, heavy material that either took most of its cues from unpopular IDW comics, or was desperately trying to reminisce about the glory days of the Bayverse, to diminishing box office returns as Rise of the Beasts demonstrated. I’m pretty sure if One bombs, the GI Joe/Transformers crossover doesn’t happen, and Hasbro begins planning an exit strategy.

[felassan]

Article: 'Exclusive: Connie Booth, One of the Chief Architects of PlayStation's First-Party Studio System, Is Joining EA'

Veteran executive spent more than 30 years at Sony before her departure in 2023.

Excerpt:

"Former PlayStation executive Connie Booth, one of the chief architects of PlayStation's first-party strategy before her unexpected departure in 2023, is joining EA to help lead its studios amid its ongoing restructure. Booth's title will be Group General Manager, Action RPG, with a portfolio that will include EA Motive (Iron Man), Cliffhanger (Black Panther), and BioWare (Dragon Age, Mass Effect). She will report directly to EA Entertainment head Laura Miele. "Connie spent more than 30 years helping to build Sony Interactive Entertainment’s internal studios and is responsible for guiding the development of some of their biggest franchises, including Marvel’s Spider-Man 1 & 2, The Last of Us, Ghost of Tsushima, Uncharted, Ratchet and Clank, to name just a few," Miele said in a statement. "She is known for having created an incredible developer-first culture and supporting creative vision while driving innovation. I have known Connie for many years and have always been impressed by her love and commitment to games. She especially cares about game developers. She has an impeccable reputation within the development community and will undoubtedly have a positive impact on our games." [...] Booth's hiring points to EA's desire to replicate some of PlayStation's current exclusives strategy, in which it has found success with large-scale single-player games such as God of War and Spider-Man. In initiating its current restructure, EA has said that it is prioritizing its own franchises and that one of its pillars is "blockbuster storytelling" — an area in which Booth has considerable experience. One of Booth's major tasks will be revitalizing BioWare, which is hoping that Dragon Age: Dreadwolf will reverse its fortunes after Anthem and Mass Effect: Andromeda. BioWare suffered painful layoffs in 2023 and its next entry in the Mass Effect franchise remains in pre-production."

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Alright, I wanna say more about Joker: The World other than flagging misprints (only one I saw, fyi), so here's a little round-up!

🃏 United States: "Epilogue is Prologue" Writer: Geoff Johns Art: Jason Fabok

Of course we kick off with a Three Jokers epilogue like oh my god why are you doing this to me stop trying to make three Jokers happen Johns what did we ever do to you

For a 6-page story, I could bitch a lot about it, but maybe in a separate post. Generally, it got an eyeroll from me because I am out of patience, but if you're into Three Jokers and/or really love Fabok's art, maybe it'll be one of your reasons to pick this book up.

Anyway, onto something new and engaging!

🃏 Spain: "Spring Break" Writer and Artist: David Rubín

Spain features Joker on a little vacation, with the narration being from a postcard he's writing to Batman. He talks about the corruption of this city, and how it makes him homesick, but not for the reason you'd first expect.

I liked this one! Put it in the plus column!

🃏 Germany: "No Jazz" Writer: Torsten Sträter Artist: Ingo Römling

This is my favorite art! Colorful lil Joker managing his big thugs and throwing them out windows. I had a hard time picking one panel. But besides that, it has a fun story that credits Joker for the conditions at Wacken Open Air, a heavy metal music festival, in 2023. The music is not to his taste. :(

Another plus!

🃏 Italy: "Strategy of Tension" Writer: Enrico Brizzi Artist: Paolo Bacilieri

This one is similar to the Spain story in that we have Joker on a vacation of sorts in Bologna, where he teaches a class on storytelling. His students protest against the government, and after one bloody day, Joker decides the authorities deserve "the fruits of their madness."

More on the philosophical end, had me pondering, another good one.

🃏 Brazil: "City of the Mad, Cemetery of the Living" Writer: Felipe Castilho Artist: Tainan Rocha

Arkham Asylum is franchising, and to prove they can handle the inmates, "Colônia Arkham" in Santana da Mantiqueira is accepting a transfer of the Joker. While there is sentiment against the facility, comparing it to the horrors of Hospital Colônia de Barbacena, there are also crowds outside the new facility to welcome Joker. Joker is basking in his fandom until his barber relates how the old Colônia manufactured madness instead of resolving it.

This is the third story with Joker contemplating horrors and corruption outside himself, and it's refreshing against all the stories where he personally is The Worst Thing Ever. Thumbs up.

🃏 Mexico: "The Wrestler" Writer: Alvaro Fong Varela Artist: Oscar Pinto

In Mexico, we're dropped in the middle of a festival, but the story revolves more around Joker's beef with a local wrestler, Ocelotl. Ocelotl was unable to complete a job for Joker, it seems, and Joker is offended that he sent his son to report the failure instead of appearing himself. And you know things end badly when you've irked Joker.

I'm kind of neutral on this one. I like the art, but the story is middling and drops in a "lesson" for Ocelotl at the end. The Batman stinger gave me a chuckle, though.

[7] Czech Republic: "Kafka, Beer, Semtex" Writer: Štěpán Kopřiva Artist: Michal Such��nek

This is a contender for my favorite story. Candidates for the Czech Joker (shown above) are interviewed by a panel overseen by the original, and each one explains their philosophy behind their crimes. Joker's choice in the end isn't particularly surprising, but the candidate's stories are fun and the art is dynamic.

Plus column!

🃏 Turkey: "Fool's Bootblack" Writer: Metin Akdülger Artist: Ethem Onur Bilgiç

In Istanbul we go back hundreds of years, when Ezekiel Arkham is among the Europeans visiting the city to take pieces of it back home. Like many westerners, he's been invited to a theater performance that night, and the Jester is encouraging his squad of shoe shiners to polish the shoes of all the patrons. The Mad Bat knows he's up to something and sweeps him away for interrogation.

Another neutral. I like the scheme, and I had to laugh when the Mad Bat's attempt to interrogate without a beating fails fast, but the story feels drawn out and the ending didn't really land for me.

🃏 South Korea: "Copycat" Writer: Inpyo Jeon Artist: Jaekwang Park

The Czech Republic tale introduced others taking on Joker's mantle, but this is the first story where other Jokers are fully center stage for a copycat spree in Busan. (And the original Joker does not make a showing.) Our protagonist is a cop who tries and tries to talk them down, but eventually the copycats become familiar with him, turning him into a target.

I'm on the fence about this one. The art is great, but it treats Jokerism like virus which… eh.

🃏 Argentina: "Funeral" Writer: Matías Timarchi Artist: Germán Peralta

In Buenos Aires, the story is also not about Joker. We follow a boy who grows up as part of his father's hooligan gang. He tries to take his father's position, but he's beaten down and not taken seriously— until he finds inspiration in stories of a homicidal clown in Gotham City.

On the fence about this one too. It's interesting how the protag's story isn't so different than the variations we've seen of Joker getting involved in crime early in life, before the vat, but it also leans into the issue of defining Joker more by outlandishness than by humor. You could see Joker himself remarking on that difference, but the story ends before that opportunity.

🃏 Cameroon: "Black Therapy" Writer: Dr. Ejob Gaius Artist: Bertrand Mbozo'o Zeh

In Cameroon, the protagonist already works as a clown, and he's frustrated by the lack of respect he receive in his community. But he's guided by a book, ominously titled Breaking the Chains of the Mind, into searching for the moment he can claim his salvation.

I had trouble connecting the dots on some details in this one. It's also another "spreading Jokerism" story that leaves me with more questions than the South Korea story. Joker is actually involved in this case, so it's part of a plan and not a virus, but… what is the plan? I don't think any of these stories are slotted for continuation, so it's just a case where it ends and you're like, well OK, I guess those answers are never coming.

🃏 Poland: "The Royal Jester" Writer: Tomasz Kołodziejczak Artist: Jacek Michalski

In Wawel Castle, Joker admires the painting of Stańczyk, from one of those memes you kids like. After the tour guide explains the painting's significance, Joker lingers behind to steal it, but he's foiled by Zawisza, a Black Knight with less patience for the clown than the Dark Knight.

It was nice to dig back into Joker himself as the book nears its close. His reasoning for why he finds the painting so attractive that he traveled to Poland is as lofty as you'd expect for him. There's more scene setting than necessary at the start, but by the end, I really liked this one.

🃏 Japan: "The Unfunny Joke" (Chapter 1 of Joker: One Operation Joker) Writer: Satoshi Miyagawa Artist: Keisuke Gotou

It's disappointing that this anthology closes with a reprint instead of a new story. And I've read all of One Operation Joker! I had a good time! But come oonnnnnn.

That said, look, you got Joker trying to care for Baby Batman. What better silliness and unexpected heartwarmth could you want?

🃏

Unevenness aside, I liked seeing these takes on Joker from writers across the world, whether they were about the character himself or the way his influence may reach far beyond Gotham City. (Except for the Three Jokers thing. Stop it. Stop it.) If you're a Joker fan, I say pick this book up.

And maybe I'll finally read the entirety of Batman: The World now! After I finish going through the Duke Thomas comics. And finally get back to Batman RIP. Ohhh and I still gotta start Knightfall! And