#mike 2022 year in review

[thissying]

An overview of my F1 videos from Dutch media: documentaries, race weekend interviews etc., subtitled/translated to English when needed. Mostly Max, but other drivers as well.

MAX VERSTAPPEN

Anatomy of a Champion clips:

Sophie Kumpen 📽 subtitled

Family Dinner at Sophie's 📽 subtitled

Max & Kelly, back from vacation 📽 subtitled

nl.motorsport.com review ep 1 + 2

F1 Talks with Max Verstappen 2022 📽 (english spoken)

Amber chose violence for the opening of F1 Talks 2022

episode 1, p1/5

episode 1, p2/5

episode 1, p3/5

episode 1, p4/5

episode 1, p5/5

episode 2, p1/4

episode 2, p2/4

episode 2, p3/4

episode 2, p4/4

Red Bull Racing Home Run, 10 December 2022

Max arrives 📽 text translation

Max after his first run 📽 text translation

2023: Red Ginger Bull 📽

Picture Perfect 2022, 26 November 2022 📽 subtitled

p1/5

p2/5

p3/5

p4/5

p5/5

Race weekend interviews with Viaplay 2023

Max on Father's Day and Penelope, GP Canada, 2023 📽 subtitled

Max, pole sitter and comedian, GP Canada, 2023 📽 subtitled

Max about Helmut's phone, GP Spain, 2023 📽 subtitled

Max telling the story about Sassy being locked inside the closet, GP Monaco, 2023 📽 subtitled

Max (of course) post-race, GP Miami, 2023 📽 text translation

Max post-race, GP Miami, 2023 📽 text translation

Max reacting to George saying his actions crimes were okay, GP Azerbaijan, 29 April 2023 📽 subtitled

Max's race win preference and who he fears the most for the upcoming race, GP Azerbaijan, 29 April 2023 📽 subtitled

Max about changes in F1 and his plans for the future, GP Azerbaijan, 29 April 2023 📽 subtitled

Max on being ill before and during Jeddah, GP Australia, 31 March 2023 📽 subtitled

Max on the new fences rule and a Melbourne race win, GP Australia, 31 March 2023 📽 subtitled

Max and Nyck about The Lap of Jeddah '21, GP Jeddah, 18 March 2023 📽 text translation

If Max doesn't get pole and win this weekend, this could be why: GP Bahrein, 3 March 2023 📽 text translation

Race weekend interviews with Viaplay 2022

Max post-race interview, with a Daniel hug and touchy Lando, GP Abu Dhabi, 20 november 2022 📽 no subtitles/translation

Pre-race routine: reaction time tests with Max, GP Baku, 2022 📽 subtitled

Mike Hezemans congratulating Max on his pole lap, GP Mexico, 2022 📽 text translation

Pre-race interview with Max , Sophie's birthday, GP Mexico, 2022 📽 text translation

Post-WDC win interview with Max, GP Japan, 2022 📽 subtitled

Max on training for Singapore, GP Singapore, 2022 📽 subtitled

Miscellaneous 2023

Ayrton Senna and Max Verstappen, GP Canada, 2023 📽

Lewis, Max and George scheming in the cooldown room, GP Spain, 2023 📽

Foreign press about Max, GP Spain, 2023 📽

At age 25 Max Verstappen is already quickly on his way to becoming one of the greatest in Formula 1 history, GP Monaco, 2023 📰

Max & GP and the team pre-race, GP Monaco, 2023 📽🔇

Max and Ole post-qualifying, GP Monaco, 2023 📽

Max with GP darting in and out with super secret info, pre-sprint race, GP Azerbaijan, 29 April 2023 📽🔇

Max getting strapped into the maxi-cosi, pre-sprint race, GP Azerbaijan, 29 April 2023 📽🔇

Max pre-sprint race, GP Azerbaijan, 29 April 2023 📽🔇

Maxplaining to Charles, GP Azerbaijan, 29 April 2023 📽🔇

Max & Christian Horner, pre-qualifying, GP Australia, 01 April 2023 📽 🔇

Max & Christian Horner, Helmut Marko, pre-qualifying, GP Australia, 01 April 2023 📽 🔇

Maxplaining, Bahrein test day 1, 23 February 2023 📽

Pre-season testing interview with Max for Viaplay, Bahrein, 25 February 2023 📽 subtitled

Christian Horner and Max Verstappen about Ford, RBR Launch 2023 📽 subtitled

Christian about Daniel, RBR Launch 2023 📽

Max Verstappen about sim testing and improving, RBR Launch 2023 📽 subtitled

Max Verstappen about the new year + car, RBR Launch 2023 📽 subtitled

Miscellaneous 2022

Max's Machine trailer, with David Coulthard, 11 November 2022 📽

Max and Martin Garrix meeting at the garage, GP Mexico, 2022 📽

Post-championship win interview with Sophie Kumpen, 9 October 2022 📽 subtitled

Daniel x Max in Max Verstappen: The Next Generation 📽 subtitled

Daniel x Max background crumbs 1, GP Brazil, 13 november 2022 📽

Daniel x Max background crumbs 2, GP Brazil, 13 november 2022 📽

Daniel x Max background crumbs and Maxplaining, GP Singapore, 2022 📽

Daniel and George watching Max's last qualifying lap at Singapore, GP Singapore, 2022 📽

Sophie Kumpen and Victoria Verstappen, on RTL Late Night, post-GP Barcelona, 17 May 2016 📽 subtitled

Sophie Kumpen and Giedo van der Garde, on RTL Late Night, post-GP Barcelona, 17 May 2016 📽 subtitled

Jan Lammers on RTL Late Night, post-GP Barcelona, 17 May 2016 📽 subtitled

Max on the difference between working with Renault and Honda, 2019 📽 subtitled

Max about his onboards, Peptalk 2017 📽

Max, guest on Peptalk in 2017, playing Guess Who Said (I) 📽 text translation

Max, guest on Peptalk in 2017, playing Guess Who Said (II) 📽 text translation

OTHER

Race weekend interviews with Viaplay/Dutch media 2023

Lewis and Fernando banter, post race, GP Canada, 2023 📽

A tour of the Red Bull garage with Daniel, GP Canada, 2023 📽

George interview, about racing Max and that spatial awareness comment, and getting a gift. GP Canada, 2023 📽

Carlos about Le Mans and participating in the future (with Charles), Canada GP, 2023 📽 (link won't save. tag: le mans carlos)

Fernando post-race, GP Miami, 7 May 2023 📽

Lance Stroll interview, GP Azerbaijan, 2023 📽

Fernando Alonso checking if the lighting is flattering, GP Australia, post-qualifying, 1 April 2023 📽

NOS interview with Daniel Ricciardo, Australian GP, 1 April 2023 📽 + 📰

Daniel Ricciardo on when/if he's driving the car this year, GP Australia, 31 March 2023 📽

Nyck and Max about The Lap of Jeddah '21, GP Jeddah, 18 March 2023 📽 text translation

Viaplay visited orphanage Wat Sakraeo and talked to Alex Albon about it, Studio Formule 1: Bahrein Shakedown, 3 March 2023 📽 subtitled

Yuki only has knowledge about the cars, Bahrein, 25 February 2023 📽

Race weekend interviews with Viaplay/Dutch media 2022

Lando Norris, post sprint-race, GP Brazil, 13 November 2022 📽

Kevin Magnussen on his F1 comeback, living in Denmark, and Mick Schumacher, GP COTA, 2022 📽

Christian Horner interview with David Coulthard, post-race, GP COTA, 2022 📽

Daniel "I 🧡 Austin" Ricciardo, pre-race, GP COTA, 2022 📽

Williams vs. Alfa Romeo playing Dutch Trivia, GP Zandvoort, 2022 📽

George Russell and Daniel Ricciardo chatting mid-interview, GP Monza, 2022 📽

Sjoelen with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr., GP Zandvoort, 2022 📽

Mick Schumacher onboard after scoring his first points, GP Silverstone, 3 July 2022

[kolbisneat]

MONTHLY MEDIA: August 2024

The days are getting shorter and the nights are getting cooler. The summer is waning. But the monthly media posts carry on. Here's how I spent the month of August.

……….FILM……….

Wendell & Wild (2022) I don't want this to be one of the last major stop-motion film to ever be made, but the filmmakers put so many stories into this that I wonder if they thought this was their last shot. Essentially a 12-course meal from a great restaurant: the accomplishment is impressive but the whole is overstuffed and some of the smaller portions were undercooked.

Love Lies Bleeding (2024) The lightly surreal elements of the movie were great, but there's a point late in the story when that surreality kills all of the momentum.

Spice World (1997) Still holds up.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023) Still amazed at how well this pulls off what it seeks to do. But maybe I'm biased because I love practical effects, puppets, and action scenes that serve the narrative. We may not get another D&D movie but I'm glad we have this one.

Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) Based on other live-action multiverses, I went in with modest expectations, and this was a pleasant surprise. Maybe it's because it continues to do what Deadpool does well. Thoroughly entertaining in the moment.

……….TELEVISION……….

Neon Genesis Evangelion (Episode 1.14 to 1.20) It's been a couple of years since I stopped watching (mid season!) but luckily one of the episodes was essentially a recap of what's happened so far. Really ramping up in the abstract and the philosophical and I'm a big fan. These kids are meeeeeeeessed up.

Made for Love (Episode 2.01 to 2.08) I only really caught the first season in pieces but I knew enough going into this season that it really clicked! It hit me the same way early Black Mirror episodes felt, only with more humour, depth, and nuance. It's a real shame there's no plans for season 3.

……….YOUTUBE……….

I think this will be a Short Video by Matthew Colville A really great reflection on making art in the social age, the algorithm, communities/audiences, and how these can clash with the natural impulses of creativity. VIDEO

I'm What the Culture Feeling (The full story of Kendrick Vs. Drake) by F.D. Signifier Almost 3.5 hours but for someone like me (who knows next to nothing of this world, these artists, or this conflict) it expertly breaks it all down to paint a complete picture. Really great watch. VIDEO

……….READING……….

Cards On the Table by Agatha Christie (Complete) Top-tier Christie. The premise is so fun, and while I know the multiple detectives appear in other stories, it's a nice introduction to these characters. This book made me want to learn how to play Bridge.

The People of the Black Circle and A Witch Shall Be Born by Robert E. Howard (Complete) I have this collection of Conan stories and after a years-long break, decided to read a few more. Both great! The latter puts Conan in an almost supporting role and it's fun to see him take on a secondary role to the story. Keeps it interesting. And the former is such a classic pulp story (cults, magic clothing, a giant snake) that I can't help but love it.

Delicious in Dungeon Volume 14 by Ryoko Kui (Complete) It's been a 6-year-long journey for me and while I couldn't be happier with how it ended, I'm sad that it's over. Still so impressed with how well it stuck the landing for me. Do I wish there was more of a wind-down with these characters? Sure. But I really respect an artist who knows what they want to say/do and says/does it. Very excited to see what Ryoko does next.

Hellboy Library Volume 1 by Mike Mignola with John Byrne (Complete) Without being hyperbolic, this is one of my favourite contributions to the craft. So confident and fully-formed right out of the gate. Excited to reread this series.

……….AUDIO……….

The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess by Chappel Roan (2023) Technically I started listening to this at the end of July. I saw a positive review, figured I'd check it out, and it felt like that was at the same time everyone else in the world was talking about her. Love an album with such a focused perspective.

Currents by Tame Impala (2015) In recent years I've been really enjoying Tame Impala's one-off songs (Barbie and Dungeons & Dragons soundtracks, their collaboration with Gorillaz, etc.) so I figured I'd really dig into this album. Easy to listen to both casually in the background and with a magnifying glass just pouring over the lyrics. Love it.

……….GAMING……….

Neverland: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting (Andrews McMeel Publishing) Only got a few sessions in this month but the crew is still reassembling the skeletal pirate they trashed years (real time) ago. Now they're about to face a big electric centipede to recover his legs.

Oz: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting (Andrews McMeel Publishing) The Mof1 crew split the party and one half casually shopped and planned while the other half discovered a secret testing facility full of captured magic-users.

Wonderland: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting (Andrews McMeel Publishing) We got in a single session of Wonderland and it was a small party but a lot of fun! Also the first true character death of our playtesters. Luckily we had backup characters though character 2 ended the session losing their arm. Hey that's Wonderland.

And that's it. See you in September!

[neil-neil-orange-peel]

Neil Bitch's Pinned Post 🍊

Hi, scumbags! R here. I thought I'd put together a post of links to the various things I've written or been a part of during my time in the fandom. I'll add to it if/when anything new comes along, or I remember something I've forgotten.

Likes/follows come from @scumbaganarchy. ❤️

Closest I'll get to a face reveal. Art by @xgardensinspace for Scumbag Monthly.

Fanfic ✨

My ao3 account is scumbaganarchy.

Fics of mine I'd like to signal boost:

Once In Every Lifetime (written 2019-2020) - First thing I ever posted on ao3 and my way back into writing. The Young Ones. Set post 'Summer Holiday'. Four parts. POV switches to a different young one with each part. Eventual Rivyan. 20K in total. Link to OIEL master post on Tumblr.

Prompts From Scumbag College (written 2019-2021) - Series of shorts/one shots based on one line prompts. The Young Ones. Featuring mostly Rivyan, but also PunkPye, Mivyan, CookPunkPye, CoolPye, and Gen prompts. 20K in total. Link to prompt master post on Tumblr.

Punks and Princesses (written 2019-2020) - The Young Ones. Halloween fic. Eventual Rivyan. 18K.

A Bastard's Carol (written 2019-2020) - Christmas fic. Parody of A Christmas Carol. Rivyan. Crossover between The Young Ones/Kevin Turvey/Filthy, Rich & Catflap/Drop Dead Fred/Bottom/The Comic Strip Presents.../The Dangerous Brothers/The New Statesman. 59K.

Rantings and Ravings (written 2021-present) - Ongoing series of writings for Rik and Ade Fests. Features various Rik and Ade shows. Currently 19K in total.

The Basterds of Hammersmith (written 2022-present) - Bottom/The Young Ones crossover. OC heavy. Set pre both shows. Concerns the history of the Basterd family. Includes heavy topics. Eventual Richie/Eddie. Slow to update. Currently 19K.

I also tag everything I post about any given fanfic of mine on this blog with its title (example: #the basterds of hammersmith).

Scumbag Monthly ✨

Scumbag Monthly was a free online fanzine for The Young Ones (and sometimes adjacent media) produced by fans between 2020-2023. From Issue #4 (1.6.20), I was its editor.

Twenty-five regular zines were produced, as well as several specials. SM featured fanart, fanfic, memes, puzzles, competitions, pages "made by" the characters, occasional thought pieces, and other miscellaneous bits and bobs.

SM's website is here, and its archive of zines is available here.

All SM Comic Strip reviews are also available on ao3 here. The twelve episodes of The Young Ones, as reviewed by twelve scumbags for the TYO 40th anniversary zine, are available on ao3 here too.

These reviews are also available on Tumblr: Demolition, Oil, Boring, Bomb, Interesting, Flood, Bambi, Cash, Nasty, Time, Sick, Summer Holiday.

Scumbag Monthly zine timeline:

1st March 2020: Issue #1, No Theme

1st April 2020: Issue #2, April Fool's

1st May 2020*: Issue #3, Alternate Universe

1st June 2020: Issue #4, Pride

9th June 2020: Rik Special

1st July 2020: Issue #5, Summer

1st August 2020: Issue #6, No Theme

1st September 2020: Issue #7, Back to School

1st October 2020: Issue #8, Halloween

1st November 2020: Issue #9, Bonfire Night

1st December 2020: Issue #10, Christmas

1st January 2021: Issue #11, New Year's and New Beginnings

1st February 2021: Issue #12, Valentine's Day

1st March 2021: Issue #13, One Year Anniversary

1st March 2021: One Year Anniversary Poster Book

1st April 2021: Issue #14, April Fool's

1st May 2021: Issue #15, Modern AU

1st June 2021: Issue #16, Pride

9th June 2021: Rik Special

1st July 2021: Issue #17, Road Trip

1st August 2021: Issue #18, Pirate AU

1st September 2021: Issue #19, Mike the Cool Person

1st February 2022: Issue #20, Monster AU

1st March 2022: Two Year Anniversary Poster Book

20th May 2022: Issue #21, After the Cliff

9th June 2022: Rik Special

18th August 2022: Issue #22, Summer Camp

31st October 2022: Issue #23, Historical AU

9th November 2022: TYO 40th Anniversary Special

13th January 2023: Issue #24, Fantasy AU

1st March 2023: Issue #25, Band AU

1st March 2023: Strip Tease Compilation

*Zine arrived late on 20th May 2020

The twenty-five regular cover arts of SM.

SM sign off post, written by me.

Dormant Tumblr blog: @scumbag-monthly

Dormant Instagram, includes stories "from" the characters: scumbag_monthly

Active ao3 account, which is still used to host Rik and Ade Fests through a pseud: ScumbagMonthly

Redbubble: Scumbag Monthly

Rik And Ade Fest ✨

The Rik and Ade Fest is run by myself and @xgardensinspace as a yearly fandom event. It involves fans submitting prompt ideas for any show/film featuring Rik and/or Ade, which participants can then claim and make fic/art for. Each fest's creative output is hosted in its own collection on ao3.

Though the first fest in 2021 ran to coincide with Christmas, every fest since has run to coincide with Scumbag Easter (12th June).

The Rik and Ade Fest was originally "sponsored by" Scumbag Monthly and still uses its email address and ao3 account to operate.

Tumblr blog: @rikandadefest

Ao3 account, a ScumbagMonthly pseud: RikAndAdeFest

Link to the fest master post, containing links to all collections, the Google form prompt sheet, and Discord server

Complete Bastards Week ✨

A new fandom event due to run in January 2025. A list of seven NSFW and seven SFW prompts were voted on by fans, who can now make fic/art/anything pertaining to these prompts.

Running: Mon 20th - Sun 26th January 2025

Tumblr blog: @completebastardsweek

Master post containing the prompts

Miscellaneous ✨

A Bastards Carol PDF - formatted with cover art by @viviangreeneart

An Epilogue (and a Prologue) - writing for TBOH, available in three parts on Tumblr. Centred on Vyvyan. 5.8K in total. One. Two. Three.

The Young Ones as a Cultural Source for Early 1980s Britain - undergraduate essay I wrote about The Young Ones.

All answered asks are tagged #asks

I tag my wafflings, both fandom and miscellaneous, #me rambling

My fandom OC tag is #my bastard ocs

[dustedmagazine]

Weak Signal — Fine (12XU)

Weak Signal has been my pick for “best rock band you never heard of” for a few years now, and this fourth full-length only strengthens the argument. It pulls their clanking, grinding VU-ish drone in new and intriguing directions—an acoustic blues folk a la Aquarian Blood, a guitar-heavy clangor akin to Crazy Horse—without sacrificing any core competencies. It adds some guests, including Hot Chip’s Alexis Taylor, Doug Shaw of Gang Gang Dance and Cass McCombs, without diluting the locked in synchrony of its three founding members.

To review, Weak Signal is a three-piece led by Mike Bones who is linked to some cool NYC noises via an association with Endless Boogie and a stint with Soldiers of Fortune (Kid Millions is also a member). Sasha Vine plays mostly bass, but also a little violin and sings. Tran, the drummer, also sings. They’ve been a band for about seven years, and Dusted has favorably reviewed two of the three previous albums, 2021’s Bianca and 2022’s War on War.  

Fine is an advance for Weak Signal but not a shock. Though most of its songs sound very much in line with previous albums, it diverges in some fruitful ways. Both “Out on a Wire,” and “Baby” begin in a frenzy of feedback and improvisation, beginning side one and side two of the vinyl edition in exhilarating freefall.

“Out on a Wire” coalesces eventually into Weak Signal’s trademark vamp, a dissolute cousin to “Peter Gunn” that slinks and struts and smirks and all but has a lit cigarette dangling from the corner of its mouth. And yet, it’s pure rock and roll, this cadence, full of menace but also vibrating with heart and vulnerability, talk-sung with bracing cynicism but sweetened by boy-girl harmonies.

“Baby” is more of a surprise, because once the din lets up, a softer aesthetic emerges in jangling folk acoustic chords and soft lyricism. It’s an appealing shift, and it continues through “Terá Tera,” a fragile, pretty but deeply felt cut that puts me in mind of other unplugged psychedelic garage rockers: Aquarian Blood, The Duchess and the Duke and the Gris Gris’ Greg Ashley’s solo work.

The best cut, though, is ��Wannabe,” a blown-out guitar-psych tune with shades of ragged glory. That’s the one where Cass McCombs guests, and if it’s him letting the long notes fly at the beginning, they should consider offering him a full-time gig. If Weak Signal’s songs have had a flaw up to now, it’s been a certain dank claustrophobia. This cut blows the doors down and lets some light in.

Weak Signal entertainingly imagines life as a Brian Jones-style figure in “Rich Junkie,” tapping into a pre-digital fantasy of rock ‘n roll excess (and financial rewards). Though spiritually part of a strung-out but brilliant lineage, Fine will likely never buy a mountain villa for anyone involved. It’s just another good one from a band you ought to know but probably don’t. Why not fix that right now? You owe it to yourself.

Jennifer Kelly

[juiceicicles]

Stranger Things Ship Stats (AO3)

Ok so, these stats aren't representative of all the ships on AO3 because there are a lot (Murray/Enzo is a ship, it has 3 works, I did not include that one.) but these are representative of the top 12 romantic ships I believe? I had to scrounge around past about 4k works so I may have missed one. I tried to include all ships with over 900 works (it was gonna be 1k but Robin/Vickie doesn't have 1k so-)

TOP SHIP: Steddie (Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson)

10th most tagged ship from July 2021-August 2022, and 1st most tagged ship from Jan 2022-Dec 2022

TOP WLW SHIP: Ronance (Robin Buckley/Nancy Wheeler)

TOP HET SHIP: Jancy (Jonathan Byers/Nancy Wheeler)

TOP POLY SHIP: Stoncy (Steve Harrington/Jonathan Byers/Nancy Wheeler)

HONORABLE MENTION: Byler (Will Byers/Mike Wheeler)

6th most tagged ship from Jan 2022-Dec 2022

WORK STATS

(lol these were easy to find)

Most Hits: Keep it Steady, Eddie by outofmygourd

Most Kudos + Most Bookmarks: Not So Bad by outofmygourd

Most Comments: The Existence of Dragons by wayfarers0

76.8% of all works completed

31.8% of all incomplete works updated in the last 6 months

24% of all works updated in the last 6 months

21.7% of all complete works updated (finished) in the last 6 months

TAG STATISTICS

Top Tags:

Fluff

Angst

Hurt/Comfort

Bisexual Steve Harrington

Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence

Top Characters:

Steve Harrington

Eddie Munson

Robin Buckley

Mike Wheeler

Nancy Wheeler

Want more statistics? Go to AO3 Ship Stats by centreoftheselights, there are multiple Stranger Things ships on the 2022 lists (What fanfic was the world writing in 2022? (AO3 Year In Review) and AO3 Ship Stats 2022). If you'd like I can go through these and make a post on it.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Matt Gertz at MMFA:

Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) will be Donald Trump’s running mate for the 2024 presidential race, the former president announced Monday. The move completes Vance’s dizzying transformation — overseen by Fox News and its former star Tucker Carlson — from self-proclaimed “Never Trump guy” to MAGA culture warrior. Vance fills the spot created because Trump dropped former Vice President Mike Pence from the ticket. In 2021, Pence refused to submit to the then-president’s demands to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and blamed Trump for a mob of his supporters storming the U.S. Capitol on January 6. By contrast, Vance says he still questions the election results, that he would have taken a different course if he had been vice president, and that “no real Republican with any credibility in the party is still blaming” Trump for the January 6 insurrection.

Vance was a favorite of elite bastions like The New York Times and the Aspen Ideas Festival for much of 2016 and 2017. His bestselling 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy, which provided a despairing look at the community in which he grew up and was published around the time Trump became the GOP presidential nominee, made him an in-demand voice to explain Trump’s supporters. Vance either agreed with or played to his audience during this period, publicly denouncing Trump as “an idiot” who was “noxious and is leading the white working class to a very dark place,” identifying as “a Never Trump guy,” and privately mulling whether Trump was “America’s Hitler.”

But Vance also possessed a will to power, and unable to beat the MAGA movement, he joined it. He stopped appearing on news channels like CNN and MSNBC for years and camped out at Fox, making at least 151 appearances on the Trumpist propaganda network’s weekday programs since 2018, according to a review of Media Matters’ database. A closer look at that data and the would-be vice president’s appearances reveals that Carlson — who earned notoriety for mainstreaming white nationalist talking points and concocting sinister counternarratives that minimize the violence Trumpists perpetrated on January 6 — played a key role in Vance’s right-wing rebrand. Indeed, the only figure who may loom larger in Vance’s story is Peter Thiel, the fascist billionaire who employed Vance and then spent millions supporting his 2022 Senate campaign.

[...] Carlson, like his fellow MAGA extremists Steve Bannon and Charlie Kirk, who also regularly host Vance on their programs, reportedly urged Trump to pick the Ohio senator as his running mate. “Carlson said that picking Vance would be ‘a sign of Trump’s commitment to his own voters,’ whose views he said Vance uniquely understands,” The Wall Street Journal reported.

You can thank former Fox host Tucker Carlson for elevating J.D. Vance to MAGA stardom despite his past anti-Trump record.

[justforbooks]

Charli XCX: Brat review – insecurity-obliterating anthems by pop’s most human superstar

Beyond the sleaze, grinding bass and it-girl in-jokes, the British visionary’s sixth album is a masterpiece that understands how a hard persona can offer protection

Charli XCX’s last album was designed to reach as many people as possible. Satisfying the contract she signed with Atlantic as a teenager, 2022’s Crash was a conceptual go-for-broke by a pop star who had made her name as a refusenik, save a few uneasy youthful flirtations with the mainstream. She swapped her avant garde collaborators for blue-chip songwriters, mastered slick choreo and duly interpolated old dance bangers. It worked, becoming her most successful album yet. Having simply decided to be successful and then pulled it off, most artists in her position would surely keep at it. Not Charli, who has since admitted that she couldn’t even listen to some of Crash, nor stomach the rictus-grin promo. The sleazy grind of Brat, her superb sixth album, is the palate cleanser, albeit one that tastes like cigarettes, vodka and chemical afterburn.

Indicative of her unique cult status, Charli has returned to Atlantic and also to the intimacy she shares with a devoted fanbase steeped in her 16-year evolution from DIY teenage raver to “your favourite reference, baby”, as she flexes on confidently minimalist opener 360. You’re DOA in pop right now without a wealth of lore – just ask poor Dua Lipa, whose sheeny surfaces no longer cut it. But Charli’s remains niche, the subject of Discord and Reddit communities rather than tabloid gossip (excepting perhaps her engagement to 1975 drummer George Daniel). For all Brat’s anxious lyrics about her celebrity status – including the ones in which she admits calling the paps on herself, because “everyone else does it constantly” – it makes no apologies for its insider energy.

Its singles operate on a first-name basis, peppered with references to Gabbriette, Julia [Fox], AG [Cook], George [Daniel], Mike [Skinner] and Sophie. The brilliant video for 360 features intimidating “hot internet girls” meeting to appoint their newest member; Chloë Sevigny’s cameo is the only concession to anyone over the age of 27. And there are songs about apparent pop rivalries that require a firm grasp of Twitter history. If you know, you know.

But Brat transcends exclusivity because Charli’s unbarred feelings of insecurity, bitchiness and obsession are so fiercely well observed that they make tedious footnotes irrelevant. They hit less like complaints about fame – pop’s most deadening theme – than profound observations on all kinds of relationships, not least how women end up constructing brusque personae to survive the stupid hell of socialisation. Charli’s Partygirl club nights may be famously impossible to get into, but here the only price of entry is having ever worried about whether you fit in. That and a high tolerance for bass.

Brat wears a prickly carapace as lure and defence. Unlike the crowd-pleasing Crash, the textures here are defiantly underground – panel-beating, serrated, darkly bubbling with acid – made with the likes of Daniel, AG Cook, Easyfun, Hudson Mohawke and Gesaffelstein. It plots Charli’s history with dance music, from lifelong Aphex fan to blog house teen and PC Music doyenne with a sincere respect for trash. Addictive lead single Von Dutch echoes 2006’s turbo-revving Bodyrox hit Yeah Yeah; Mean Girls hat-tips to David Guetta. It’s the sound of nihilism and wayward dominance. Von Dutch taunts a jealous onlooker with a blaring, siren-like refrain – “I’m your number one” – destined to drive them even more insane. 360’s bookending twin 365 goes harder into Yeezus territory. B2B is a cold wound about being strung along. The tachycardiac Club Classics is insatiable, freaky dubstep about Charli and friends making exactly the kind of music that she wants to hear – and guess what, so do millions of others.

As much as Brat wears its bad attitude on its lurid green sleeve, it is also trenchant, raw and affecting. Charli’s sensitivity has always been evident to anyone undeterred by her brashness, yet her vulnerabilities have never been so widely exposed, and her conversational intimacy underscores their resonance. On anaesthetised ballad I Might Say Something Stupid, she’s feeling dejected at a celeb party: “I don’t feel like nothing special / I snag my tights out on the lawn chair,” she sings, perfectly encapsulating the moment of misfortune that affirms that, yes, you are dirt and everyone knows it. Such insufficiency can inspire defensive rivalries – Girl, So Confusing and Rewind channel detached, Uffie-style irony to convey how furiously banal it is to feel this way – or the cultivation of a harsh exterior. Nihilistic thumper Mean Girls is a love letter to today’s terrifying internet it-girl which understands not just how quickly she calcifies into cliche, but the love-hate feelings she inspires and also the security the pose offers.

It’s part of Brat’s bitter truth: when such a monumentally successful pop star sings so often about failing to measure up to her peers, it shows how insidious these forces are for all of us. And potentially worse: the devastating So I is a tribute to Charli’s late collaborator Sophie which manages to be both glacially expansive and utterly crushed, as she regrets having shied away from the producer’s friendship, intimidated by her greatness, prior to her death at 34 in 2021. “You’re a hero / And a / Human,” she sings in a hymn to not letting inferiority complexes cheat you out of connection.

Also fleshing out Brat’s rattling skeleton are Charli’s lingering questions about whether the party might be over. The awestruck Everything Is Romantic narrates Charli’s visions from a trip to Pompeii, “a place that can make you change”, and the music’s reckless mutation between Hollywood swoon and hard baile funk embodies that alchemy. If true love is such a salve, then what might come next? I Think About It All the Time is like Sheila Heti’s book Motherhood set to girlish glitch – a disarming inquiry into whether Charli, 31, should have a baby; the knowledge it might inspire, the freedom it might snatch away. She hums what would usually be a floating synth line, taking us right inside her head and to the crux of her fears: “Should I stop my birth control? / ’Cos my career feels so small / In the existential scheme of it all.”

But whatever the stats and her self-esteem might say, it’s hard to think of another pop star whose vision is so expansive and generous, not least in her willingness to risk being seen as mean in order to say something true. Most of her superstar peers are busy making unrelatable music about how hard it is to be famous. Yet Charli has never lost sight of how hard it is to be human.

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[rjzimmerman]

Here’s why so many Republicans won’t buy EVs. (Washington Post)

Electric cars have taken off across the United States. Even amid news of slowing sales, the country sold almost 1.2 million fully electric vehicles in 2023, more than quadruple the number in 2019. Grocery stores and rest stops are installing charging stations across the country; electric cars have moved beyond niche status and are being produced by Ford, GM, Hyundai and many others.

But there is one thing holding the nation back from the dream of an all-electric future: politicalpolarization. Sales data have consistentlyshown that while Democrats have been buying the new cars in droves,Republicans haven’t jumped onto the EV-buying train.

“The Republican is like, ‘They’re trying to ban gas cars — I’m not going to buy a Biden-mobile,’” said Mike Murphy, a former Republican strategist who runs the nonprofit EV Politics Project, which attempts to counter misinformation on electric cars and encourage conservatives to adopt the vehicles.

Personal cars account for 20 percent of U.S. planet-warming emissions, and more Americans still prefer gas-powered ones. A Washington Post-University of Maryland poll last year found that 46 percent of respondents favored a gas car, compared to 19 percent who wanted a fully electric vehicle. If that doesn’t change, it will be almost impossible for the United States to meet its climate goals.

According to a Gallup poll conducted in March of this year, 61 percent of Democrats reported that they were “seriously considering” or “might consider” buying an EV in the future — compared to only 24 percent of Republicans. At the same time, 69 percent of Republicans said that they “would not buy” an EV in future, compared to 27 percent of Democrats. The difference in Democratic and Republican respondents who owned an EV was within the margin of error.

Actual sales show a partisan trend. According to an analysis from researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, MIT and HEC Montréal, between 2012 and 2022 about half of all EVs sold went to the top 10 percent most Democratic counties in the United States. Around a third of all EVs sold went to the top 5 percent most Democratic counties. That pattern persisted when researchers analyzed the most Democratic states, according to the working paper, which has not yet been peer-reviewed.

The finding held when researchers accounted for income, gas prices and population density. That means that even when looking at dense, urban areas — which are more likely to have more public EV charging — Democratic counties outweighed Republican ones in EV adoption.

[noneedtofearorhope]

January 8, 2024

Minneapolis, MN — In a historic ruling, Hennepin County Judge William Koch vacated Marvin Haynes’ murder conviction, dismissed his charges with prejudice, and ordered his release from prison where he was sentenced to serve life. Haynes walked out of MCF-Stillwater as an exonerated man into the loving arms of his family and supporters on Dec. 11, 2023.

Marvin Haynes was 16 years old when he was framed for murder by the Minneapolis Police and Hennepin County Attorney’s Office. Haynes’ wrongful conviction was supervised by former Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar and upheld by the Minnesota Supreme Court years later in an appeal.

After a Petition for Post-Conviction Relief was filed and evidentiary hearings were held in November 2023, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty and Judge Koch agreed to vacate Haynes’ conviction. The judge ruled that Haynes’ due process was denied because his conviction relied on “constitutionally improper” eyewitness evidence.

Read Unicorn Riot’s Investigative Series on The Case of Marvin Haynes and watch our film: Part One – Part Two – Part Three – Part Four – The Film – Further Reporting

Proclaiming his innocence since being arrested in May 2004, Haynes remained hopeful his truth would be heard. Along with his sisters, led by Marvina, and his family and advocates, the fight for Marvin’s freedom never ceased despite falling on deaf ears for nearly two decades.

The Great North Innocence Project (GNIP) took up Haynes’ case in late 2022. Their legal team and staff found new evidence of coerced and false testimony along with faulty police procedures. An expert reviewed the suspect line-up techniques and witness processes applied by the police. Witnesses signed affidavits recanting previous testimony as well as Haynes’ family swearing he was at home sleeping at the time of the murder. Based on these findings, GNIP submitted an application of exoneration to Minnesota’s Conviction Review Unit (CRU), which they helped create, in December 2022.

GNIP attorneys and staff then took the fight for Haynes’ freedom to the court itself. They filed a Petition for Post-Conviction Relief in the District Court of Minnesota in June 2023 which ultimately led to Haynes’ vindication.

[...]

GNIP lawyers were able to get patched through to Haynes in Stillwater prison on Dec. 6 to tell him over the phone on his 36th birthday that his conviction was soon to be vacated and he would be a free man. “That was the best birthday present I ever received,” said Marvin.

[...]

Dozens of other Black men, who were youth in the 2000s, have been calling out what they deem their own wrongful convictions. “Like many Black boys at the time, our criminal legal system too easily wrote [Haynes] off, failed to protect his rights and sent him to prison,” said Moriarty at the press conference.

During the reign of Hennepin County Attorney’s Mike Freeman and Amy Klobuchar, “the state prisons became the Blackest places in [Minnesota’s population],” said Michelle Gross to Unicorn Riot, the President of Communities United Against Police Brutality. “The prison population of people of color increased by over 300% during that time period.”

In a similar case to Haynes, however two years apart, Myon Burrell was wrongfully convicted of a Minneapolis murder and sentenced to life in prison before he was able to get his sentence commuted and released from prison after pressure from the community during Klobuchar’s run for presidency in December 2020.

Many other families have been pushing the names of other prominent inmates like Phillip Vance, Deaunteze Bobo and Cornelius Jackson, to name a few, who also proclaim their innocence.

[...]

Summary of Marvin Haynes’ Case

Marvin Haynes was accused of robbing a flower shop in North Minneapolis and fatally shooting 55-year-old Harry “Randy” Sherer in May 2004. He was charged with assault and murder despite no physical evidence linking him to the crime. Haynes was found guilty by a jury in a 2005 trial.

Proclaiming innocence after the verdict, Haynes’ exhorted “I didn’t kill that man.” Haynes was sentenced to life in prison. Haynes’ attempt for a new trial was then denied and his legal team filed an appeal which was also denied in July 2006 by then Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar. Finally, in January 2007, the Minnesota Supreme Court upheld his conviction and life sentence as Justice Lorie Skjerven Gildea found no abuses by the state or district court in Haynes’ prosecution.

[...]

Haynes also has an ongoing civil suit alleging Hennepin County Attorney’s Office and Minneapolis Police withheld documents and information they’re compelled to provide from the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act. A donation page has been created to help Haynes get back on his feet.

[thegreatimpersonator]

Hi everyone! Here’s the newest addition to my Creator Shoutout Series (january 1 - january 8)! For info about the series, I explained it in the first post here, but generally, it’s to show appreciate to editors and their creations that i love from the past week. To track this series or look at previous shoutouts, please check out the tag on my blog *creatorshoutouts. Have a great week everyone!

taylor swift: the great war gifset by @georgesezra​

sza: kill bill graphic by @studiorinagraphic​

succession gifset by @humanveil​

taylor swift: midnight rain music video gifset by @rogerhealey​

stranger things: jopper gifset by @petersevan​

scream 2023 gifset by @glendoll

taylor swift: lover music video gifset by @cherryslips​

wednesday icons by @olivias-cooke​

the menu + letterboxd reviews gifset by @trashcora​

taylor swift: new years day edit by @notmuchfordancing​

glass onion gifset by @buffysummers​

abbott elementray gifset by @naiey

taylor swift: speak now (taylor’s version) concept design by @castlescrumblingtv​

lucy dacus: please stay graphic by @ourobores​

only murders in the building gifset by @trueloveistreacherous​

taylor swift gifset by @amessageinbottles​

101 dalmatians (1961) gifset by @naiey​

pearl (2022) gifset by @slained​​

taylor swift gifset by @tayloralison​

glass onion gifset by @kitherondale​​

gilmore girls gifset by @paramores​​

taylor swift: i knew you were trouble/maroon gifset by @soaheadofthecurve​

the menu: margot gifset by @zen-coleman​

pride & prejudice gifset by @stars-bean​

taylor swift: evermore redesign edit by @ohgaylor​

brooklyn nine nine gifset by @jakeyp

taylor swift: ivy art by @fountainpensongs​

the menu: tyler gifset by @peterparkcr​​

​stranger things: eddie munson gifset by @kingofscoops​​

taylor swift: lover photoshoot gifset by @treacherous​

confessions of a teenage drama queen gifset by @bakerolivia

taylor swift: the eras tour graphic by @ohgaylor​

paramore: this is why graphic by @killrockstar​

the princess diaries gifset by @stydixa​​

taylor swift: fearless (taylor’s version) gifset by @castlescrumblingtv

get out gifset by @anyataylorsjoy

taylor swift: lavender haze graphic by @tossedkeys​

selena gomez: my mind & me gifset by @selenaigomez

taylor swift art by @you-can-face-this​

brooklyn nine nine: jake and amy scrapbook gifset by @levetan​​

stranger things: nancy wheeler in season two gifset by @olivias-cooke​

heartstopper: charlie and nick gifset by @simon-eriksson

taylor swift: red gifset by @santaswiftie @newrcmantlcs

the menu: margot gifset by @nancywheelor

glass onion: birdy jay gifset by @duchessofhastings​​​

taylor swift: haunted gifset by @santaswiftie​ @starsbythepocketful

the office: the ultimatum gifset by @chestnutsroasting​

taylor swift: pantone shades of green gifset by @santaswiftie @felicitysmoak​

the menu gifset by @mike-mills​

taylor swift: stars by the pocketful graphic by @missegyptiana

wednesday: season two gifset by @yenvengerberg​

taylor swift: fifteen x midnight rain parallels gifset by @reputation

glass onion: helen brand gifset by @antifandor

taylor swift: bejeweled gifset by @endiness

glass onion gifset by @lemoncupcake

taylor swift: getaway car graphic by @cellphonehippie

the perks of being a wallflower: you’re on your own kid gifset by @highqueendreamgirl​​​​​​​​​

taylor swift: question? graphic by @andichoseyou

legally blonde gifset by @naiey​

taylor swift: lavender haze gifset by @lovestory

brooklyn nine nine: jake and amy gifset by @glendoll​​​

[seerofmike]

mike 2023 year in review

whats up, this is something i started last year where i decided at the end of the year i would talk about 7 movies + 7 viddy games i enjoyed this year (the movies will be 2023 releases, the games will be all over the place). this is so i can look back on the future on the things i enjoyed this year but since im posting it publicly most of these will be written as recommendations i guess

also i did not have a lot of money to see movies this year so most of these will be IP movies :( sawi. also also 2023 was a mega good year for gaming. or so i've heard. most of the big 2023 games this year either came out on consoles i don't own (nintendo + sony releases), are next-gen only as far as xbox goes or unable to run on my dinky little laptop (AW2, the finals, re4, etc) or are just games in genres i dont really give a shit about (bg3, starfield, sea of stars). significant 2023 games i did play this year were dave the diver and dredge but not enough to be on the list. maybe next year hehe

anyways without further ado. my top 7 movies and top 7 games this year, in alternating (movie/game/move/game/etc) AND alphabetical order:

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

yeah you knew this shit was going on here. i saw this movie 8(eight) times in theaters. the first two times were because of the audio issues with the first cut but the rest was because the movie fucked babeeeeey. you don't need me to tell you how good this was

The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood (2023)

ok listen before i recommend this game i have to be mean to make a point first. if you know anything about me you know i think tarot is stupid as fuck and i think witchy nonsense is. well. just that. nonsense. it makes me roll my eyes especially the particular brand of like. r/WitchesVersusPatriarchy stuff. man i just dont like any sort of spiritualism or religious stuff. with that being said this game fucks tremendously and i cannot recommend it enough

you get to design your own tarot deck and each card will be unique and have meanings based on the templates you're given. you can then use these cards to tell your friends' fortunes. except it goes way deeper than that but i dont want to spoil the twist for you. also it kind of becomes a different game midway through but i like management games so its fine. anyways good game and very repayable with all the card designs you can make and fortunes you can read. art style is also very nice.

(more under da cut)

Barbie

man i know a lot of people dont like this movie after the hype wore off because its Baby's First Feminism. and that's fine. i don't really think it was trying to achieve some uber deep commentary. but the set design and costuming was great and you could tell the actors and crew were having so much fucking fun and as someone who wants to go into movies i will always like movies where the people making them are having fun.

The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog (2023)

i like the visual novel where everyone dresses in a funny costume and sonic fucking dies ok. it was so cute and had very good characterization for people i didnt think would ever be in the focus of a game again like espio ........go play the murder of sonic thee hedge

Bottoms

this one is probably my 2nd favorite movie of the year tbh. i need more absurdist gay comedies. i wish i could go on about how hilarious this movie is but i dont wanna give away all jokes but anyways go watch the lesbian incel movie and have a good time

Potionomics (2022)

if i had a nickel for every gay witch game i played this year with significant card and management mechanics and appealing art i'd have two nickels. which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.

anyways potionomics is absolutely my favorite game that i've played this year. it's not all that similar to cosmic wheel sisterhood despite the basic concept and some gameplay elements. CWS is more like a visual novel. potionomics is a fucking nightmare and i love it SO much.

you brew potions and then sell them by haggling with customers using cards. customers can haggle back and it can get VERY difficult. everything you do takes up limited time slots such as gathering ingredients and brewing potions and visiting your friends and btw you can visit your friends and all of the characters are incredibly charming and i had trouble picking which one to romance. (roxanne my beloved <3) (also the white haired character in the screenshot above is a nonbinary goblin :) ) (this game has CAT PIRATES)

the game also rewards you with befriending the characters and gives you cards the deeper your relationships become and new gameplay mechanics open themselves up to you until the last couple stretches of the game. it's very fun, very stressful, but very rewarding once you figure out how to maximize your profits and use up your time slots effectively. i had a fucking blast.

also the animation is so good. literally the best animation on this sort of stylized 3d model in a game i've ever seen. PLEASE play potionomics.

Guardians of the Galaxy 3

god man. i just love the guardians so much. tbh this is my least favorite movie of the trilogy but all three of them are easily better than nearly every other marvel movie regardless. i love nebula and rocket so much and seeing small moments between them like her choking up when she hears he's okay fucking Gets To Me. i loved me asshole mercenaries who become a found family and try to be good people.

Prey (2017)

prey is not my favorite game this year nor my favorite survival sim but the first five or so hours of this game were the most engrossed i was in a game this year. towards the middle and ending portions it starts to lose me a little bit (the game is still good!) but the beginning was absolutely the best part.

being trapped in space with aliens that can mimic items in your surroundings leaves you extremely paranoid, and combing through the station finding recordings and notes and evidence of the lives of the people who were once there, knowing that most of them are probably dead--while monsters lurk around the corner ready to fuck your shit up--was deeply engrossing. i wish i could erase my brain and experience those first hours again being terrified of everything that moved before i got a shotgun and figured out how to win fights pretty regularly lol

Killers of the Flower Moon

if you're gonna watch a 3 hour movie this year about atrocities committed in the past i'd recommend this one over The Other One tbh. i found it deeply engaging and thought lily gladstone gave a great performance that easily outshone leo. the events of the movie are deeply harrowing and i think there is definitely some discussion to be had about how the movie centers on the white men despite scorses's intentions but the technical work was great and i think it really does a good job of showing just how deep this shit went in the community as opposed to being 'just a couple of bad whites' or w/e other narrative people will try to spin.

Psycholonials (2021)

im gonna go ahead and say right now i don't really recommend this game unless you are familiar with andrew hussie and HS/their other work. i think the game was fine but tbh it probably would not have been on my list if it was made by anyone else. that's not to say it's bad, just like. nothing mind blowing.

that being said i did very much enjoy this game in the sense that, as someone who DOES know a thing or two about andrew hussie, the way they feel about their work (especially HS in the years afterward), it was interesting seeing them make a game about starting a cult by accident, with all the gender fuckery and feelings of paranoia about being cancelled and how out of control its become feeling like a little glimpse into them. watching how manic and obsessive the protag gets with several years of Hussie Context(tm) makes this way more interesting than the game itself if im being fully honest.

if the game truly sucked it wouldn't be on here but do take my word for it that you'd probably appreciate it way more if you were a HS fan LMAO

Skinamarink (2022)

ok so technically skinamarink came out in 2022 BUT it got a theatrical release in january 2023 which is when *i* saw it so i'm counting it as a 2023 movie. anyways skinamarink is simultaneously very scary and also boring as shit and i could never actually recommend this movie to anyone but the fact that it was made at all and made a PROFIT is outstanding to me and i'm obsessed with it as an aspiring filmmaker. an hour and fourty minutes of staring at a dark corner to build atmosphere. fuck yeah

Venba (2023)

this one's very short but i found it very compelling despite how short it was. it almost felt TOO short but i like it for what it is. as the son (and grandson) of mexican immigrants who often regretted migrating for cultural and language reasons this really connected with me and the cooking puzzles were fun but i really wisht here was more of them. it's less about the puzzles though and more about the narrative and i thought it was really smart to make the throughline food. very good game. buy it.

TMNT: Mutant Mayhem

look at my fucking sons. everyone say thank you spider verse for changing the animation industry. i love how the boys' VAs were just goofing off and having fun and bouncing off each other it was great

This War of Mine (2014)

this one is a survival management game where you have to scavenge for materials somewhere in war-torn eastern europe with some stealth mechanics. some of your characters die very easy and some characters have 'negative' traits like being unable to sneak out or fight or drink up all your alcohol and it's not like the best in its genre but i did spend a ton of time in it. i still need to finish like a single scenario and not a custom game LMAO

[greensparty]

Concert Pics: Metallica

Fri. 8/2/24 @ Gillette Stadium (Foxborough, MA)

This column Concert Pics isn’t about reviewing the concert, it’s about sharing my pics from the show. It has been a while since I went to a stadium show at Gillette Stadium, but if you're going to go big, it may as well be a bigger-than-life band. I first saw Metallica in September 1992 at Foxborough Stadium with my friend Mike. That show was co-headlined by Metallica and Guns N' Roses with openers Faith No More (me at 16 was psyched out of my mind). I saw Metallica again at the 1996 Lollapalooza festival. I haven't seen Metallica since but I did see bassist Robert Trujillo at the 2015 Asbury Park Music in Film Festival and I got to attend a press event of guitarist Kirk Hammett's 2017 exhibit at Peabody Essex Museum. Gillette Stadium has now replaced Foxborough Stadium and 32 years after Mike and I first saw them, he and I met up in Foxborough to see Metallica (kind of symbolic in a way). But first I hit the Metallica Pop-Up Shop at Patriot Place.

me at the Metallica pop-up shop

We missed Mammoth WVH who was the first opener. Kind of bummed as I wanted to see them (I reviewed their 2021 debut). But we got in to see Pantera. I was a fan of their 1992 album Vulgar Display of Power. Since the band re-formed in 2022 (they broke up around 2003) they needed to replace founders Dimebag Darrell (who was killed in 2004) and Vinnie Paul (who died in 2018). Their touring line-up at this show featured guitar legend Zakk Wylde (he played on Ozzy's No More Tears album which is possibly my favorite Ozzy solo album) and Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante (I was a fan of Anthrax's Persistence of Time). The band did some of their familiar favorites from the early 90s.

Patera onstage

Next up it was Metallica! They did loads of classics off of Master of Puppets and the Black Album. Great show!

Metallica onstage and in the round

[ashadowofburnedoutstardust]

Chris Evans Life path days 2022

Apparently CAA/Narrative are big followers of numerology like I am, either that or they've been reading my posts in the private group on LSA for a year and a half and have been using it to plot this PR shitshow

His "11" days are technically what I've been tracking

"2 days" & CE related events 2022

13/01/2022 (11)

shared ASP story from Mark Kassen

First Ghosted production update with shooting dates announced

Mila IG troll went down for the first time

31/01/2022 (11)

Replies “Interesting” to Gray man Review on Twitter

Priestesses big Tarot read on CE showing first indication of Tower moment

02/02/2022 Pluto (8)

12/02/2022 (11)

mila creates new account

(Alba IG location changed to us on 9-10 feb)

CE trends on twitter

Teachers friend sends tweet

Teacher decides to take down IG account

20/02/2022 (8)

Plutonic Chaos hits thread

21/02/2022 (11)

Mila tweets about Teacher video, tags Ghosts director, make IG public

CE follows Interior design pages on IG

First examination of Porto trios finsta accounts

Teacher replies to Mila on Twitter

02/03/2022 (11)

Scott posts "Theatre as a kid" TikTok

03/03/2022

Pluto fucks off again

Filming at Inman Park Atlanta

Union Strike rumour?

Photos from Ghosted set by pap

11/03/2022 (11)

Posts "fluffy hair" selfie to IG

DM blind about interior design follows

Teacher deletes comment, no response was given

Sugar baby page changes name to Seduction Secrets

Clout chasing TikTokers post le Mesa lounge/Doheny club video

Ok magazine article

10/04/2022 (11)

Thread notices SE followed back JA,

reportedly happened on Thursday, unfollowed again on the following Tuesday

Scott posts siblings day photo on IG

AB turns her comments back on

Scott ups price on Cameo,

gets trolled for JA follow back

09/05/2022 (11)

NZT - DM mention of Georgetown gym on Sunday spotting

Scott targeted by CE fan and video posted to Twitter to troll him claiming he was an asshole

Follows Mike Birbiglia on IG

Posts TGM moustache removed selfie to IG, pics determined to be taken December 2021 after end of TGM reshoots

Night shoot of Taxi scene in London for Ghosted

08/06/2022 (11)

Follows Jamie Foxx and Rita Oras Sister and Manager Elena Ora

Lightyear premiere red carpet

Posts pic of Dodger (turned foot) to IG story

Livestream on Tiktok for LY Premiere

Retweets LY reviews on twitter

07/07/2022 (11)

Deuxmoi Ballgag DMs story post

Posts June 18 dated video of Dodger to his IG story

Posts pic of Dodger to IG "New phone new pics"

Blahblah has live interview flooded with troll comments

Hits 17 million followers on IG

06/08/2022 (11)

Andrew Garfield DM blind

Posts pic of Dodger on IG

05/09/2022 (11)

Nothing occured

04/10/2022 (11)

Carly refollows Alba

Alba deactivated IG

Followed NE Pat's and NatGeo on IG

03/11/2022 (11)

#Pumpkingate

Follows Matthew McConaughey on IG

Variety article about TGM

Cosmo article about Pumpkingate

Various Gossip site articles about Pumpkingate

DM blind featuring screenshot of Tweet about Lisbon video

Another CE family member follows AB

Chris likes AB WN post

ASP app of the day on Apple retweet

Midterm elections retweet

02/12/2022 (11)

DM blinds

1 about Aly

1 about babytrap getting ditched for leaking stuff

C-Dawg emerges

Dex Fletch post about Ghosted

Random Shipper account requesting playlist ideas

Tara and Scott looking at CE hate accounts due to being tagged

11/12/2022 (11)

AB fan account posts old baby IG story pic

AB deactivated IG after accidentally posting nudes to stories, dark room thread created

Chris team continues to block Alba tags and name from comments section

Chris like Violas Star post

Chris likes Rocks R1 post

Justin's twitter goes public again

Shampoogate hits Reddit

Minor articles about Alba nude leaks

20/12/2022 (11)

Mentioned on BuzzFeed Celeb couples article

Posts a pic of Dodger to IG

Mama Lisa liked comment calling AB a racist in CEs comment section

And that ladies is his Life path days for 2022

🤍🪽✨

[doomedandstoned]

MR. BUNGLE MELVINS  ☆ SPOTLIGHTS ★ The Showbox, Seattle

  Photo Review by Chris Schanz

One might ask what would bring me out of retirement? Was I retired? What the hell have I been doing for the past three years? All things Doomed and Stoned have been in flux for me. I’ve been focusing on my day job. I’ve been focusing on my family. I’ve been focusing on my garden. All this focusing has left me nearsighted. Blurry. The COVID era left me with a shitty hangover (not long COVID – I’m just trying to forget that shit and move on!). Sure – I’ve shot shows, band portraits, weddings, funerals yadda yadda fucking yadda. I wanted a sign that the universe is ready for my gifts, once again.

Enter Mr. Bungle and The Melvins. The Geek Show Tour, sponsored by Ipecac Records celebrates both the vast accomplishments of Mike Patton (Faith No More, Fantomas, Mr. Bungle) and The Melvins – on their 40th anniversary! The perfect lure to get me off my ass and feel like I actually can contribute something to music, art and photography in general without licking the taint of Instagram and an AI-generated algorithmic overlord soon set to devour us, Titans, Gods and all.

The Showbox at the Market is the perfect set. I feel at home there, usually right by the soundboard. So many shows seen there – Sonic Youth, Nudedragons (Soundgarden), Brothers Of the Sonic Cloth, Sleep, Uncle Acid, Bell Witch, Graveyard, Chelsea Wolfe, The Black Angels – on and on, and on and on. It’s by far Seattle’s best concert hall, IMHO.

SPOTLIGHTS

I admit. I wasn’t prepared for Spotlights. A buddy of mine in Denver by way of San Francisco said they’re sweetly DOOMY. I was in. I got three songs to fall in love. Head over heels! Words escape my brain, only memories of sweet, subsonic joy flowing through my chest and brain. I followed up with Sarah Quintenero after the show at the merch booth, loading up on their vinyl. I’m blasting “Tidals” on vinyl while writing this in my cave, but “Alchemy for the Dead” is a MASTERPIECE! I’ve been binging on their Bandcamp all week now. Bold, deep bass fuzz, ethereal vocals and serrated guitar riffs. My new summer soundtrack.

They’re still on tour – and I highly advise you to see them now!

Alchemy For The Dead by Spotlights

Spotlights Setlist

"The Alchemist" (2023’s Alchemy For The Dead)

"Sunset Burial" (2023’s Alchemy For The Dead)

"Algorithmic" (2023’s Alchemy For The Dead)

"False Gods" (2023’s Alchemy For The Dead)

"Part 4" (2020’s We Are All Atomic)

MELVINS

This brings me back to the Melvins. The force that shaped my twenties in Seattle. My band Fuzzbud had a six-degrees-of-Kevin Bacon thing with a Morton, WA / Monteseno, WA, somebody’s cousin played in a band that opened for…whatevs. We tuned to DUH flat and had a good time. BUT…The Melvins were always a mainstay in any of my playlists.

King Buzzo did NOT disappoint! I was singing along from the photo pit. I was kidding beforehand that there should be some sort of SNL skit – a play by play commentary of the photo pit action. Think Howard Cosell announcing each of the photogs falling over each other for the shots. I thought it was funny, anyways. I’m a dork.

ANYWHOO. Buzzo provides! Dale’s a GOD. I got my HEALTHY fix of Houdini, culminating in a THREE BASS OVERLOAD on Night Goat with Sara Qintenero from Spotlights and Trevor Dunn from Mr. Bungle joining Steve McDonald to rumble your bunghole. What did I miss by NOT seeing the tour finale in San Francisco? A reunion of Fantomas (Mike, Buzz and Dave Lombardo)! When these guys get together, (black) magic always happens!

The Bride Screamed Murder by Melvins

Melvins Setlist

"I Can’t Shake It" (1998 split with Cosmic Psychos, Some Girls/I Can’t Shake It)

"Zodiac" (1990’s Bullhead)

"Copache" (1993’s Houdini)

"I Want to Hold Your Hand" (2018’s Pinkus Abortion Technician - Beatles Cover)

"Hammering" (2022’s Bad Mood Rising)

"Never Say You’re Sorry" (2022’s Bad Mood Rising)

"Evil New War God" (2010’s The Bride Screamed Murder)

"Let It All Be" (1999’s The Bootlicker)

"Honey Bucket" (1993’s Houdini)

"Revolve" (1994’s Stoner Witch)

"Night Goat" (1993’s Houdini - with Steve McDonald, Spotlights Sarah Quintero and Mr. Bungle bass Trevor Dunn on basses)

MR. BUNGLE

The main event. I knew they led with the Mr. Rogers theme on most nights. ADORABLE! But to my surprise, and delight! They performed the John Sebastian theme to “Welcome Back Kotter”! FUCK YES. I’m a Sweathog and everyone knows it! We would also be treated to the Pepto Bismol jingle not too far into the set.

I was wanting, wishing for a few more songs from 1991’s Mr. Bungle release, primarily some “Squeeze Me Macaroni” and “Stubb-A-Dub” action. Stubb was my go-to track in our house in college. After many a trip, I believed I was the proverbial “family dog” to our tribe…just elated to be along for the ride scrambling from party to party. Luckily for me, I got some “My Ass Is On Fire” and I was satiated. “Speak Spanish Or Die” brought me right back to my thrash and skating days (Days. Rolled my ankle on the half-pipe and drove the crew to all the spots after that). Van Halen’s Loss of Control? A TOTAL surprise and I was elated! Ear to ear grins and giggles!

I came for the Melvins, Mike Patton and Dave Lombardo, but I left with a deep adoration for Spotlights and a 365-day calendar of “The Many O-Faces of Scott Ian” and that’s more than OK. I’m in love. Thank you, Scott, for fulfilling this schoolboy’s adolescent dreams, 30 years later!

The Night They Came Home by Mr. Bungle

Mr. Bungle Setlist

"Welcome Back" (John Sebastian cover)

"Bungle Grind"

"Eracist"

"Spreading the Thighs of Death"

"Loss for Words" (Corrosion of Conformity cover)

"Hypocrites"

"Speak English or Die" (Stormtroopers of Death cover) (changed to "Speak Spanish or Die")

"Glutton for Punishment"

"Anarchy Up Your Anus"

"Methematics"

"Hell Awaits" (Slayer cover) (intro)

"True/Cold War/True"

"Raping Your Mind"

"World Up My Ass" (Circle Jerks cover) (with Michael Crain)

"Sudden Death"

Encore: "Loss of Control" (Van Halen cover)

Encore: "My Ass Is on Fire" (with PEP tag)

[actuallylorelaigilmore]

2022 MOVIE OF THE WEEK #37

magic mike. i truly did not expect this to be my final movie of the year. and considering how much i did not like it, it’s pretty funny in retrospect that it was. THIS was how i ended the year? with matthew mcconaughey’s tinsled butt?!?

to be fair to me, i was planning on watching step up after this one, because kayla and i had such a terrible time with it and she’d seen step up before and liked it, and i like dance movies--and i figured we’d maybe fit in even another movie besides. but step up was only available to rent, and i hate renting from amazon when they already charge a membership fee. so it’s on the ‘someday when it comes back to a streaming service list’ and instead i showed her work it (which i still adore as a modern classic teen dance flick).

anyway, this one was not even on my watchlist. but between seeing black panther 2 and the whitney houston biopic, i saw the magic mike 3 trailer twice, and since kayla was with me the second time and she agreed that salma hayek looked fun in it, we decided to give this a try and work our way to the third one. i remembered reading that the cast had been encouraged to improvise, and i knew channing tatum was in it and that i like him (mainly because i watched him and jenna dewan do lip sync battle together while still married, and she made me like him). i knew he was a good dancer, so while i had no need to watch him strip, i figured it’d be adjacent to a dance movie--which as we’ve established up there, i am a fan of in most cases. 

...this was not a dance movie. this movie had no dancing in it. i kept waiting to see channing tatum show off some level of his talent, but it was just a lot of really dull, slow dialogue, almost no plot until the end, and a bunch of dudes stripping. with a yellowed tint to the outdoor scenes that reminded me of california fire season except the movie was in florida. 

now, any reasonable person might ask, what did we expect, exactly, from a movie that is advertised as being about a bunch of men stripping? and yeah, okay, we were the dumb ones who expected some larger plot, good writing, really interesting choreography instead of just a lot of humping and writhing from half-naked actors. 

but so many of the actors are genuinely otherwise talented! this movie has MATT BOMER in it, you guys. he’s given NOTHING to do but he’s there! i was so disappointed. i don’t like joe manganiello but i know others do, and alex pettyfer was famous for a minute--he has the most plot in the movie, but not in a good way. part of how kayla and i convinced ourselves to someday watch magic mike 2 was looking up the plot and learning his character and matthew mcconaughey’s don’t return for it. (like tom hanks and stanley tucci, i just never need to see matthew mcconaughey play the bad guy. i love him too much.)

i do hope to survive the second film someday though, because a dancer @actuallylukedanes​ appreciates is in it, as well as amber heard, and since i  haven’t checked aquaman off my list, i’m still aspiring to see her in something. and i want to know if they let channing tatum dance more in the second one, or let matt bomer do something. besides be a sexy gay stripper man, because i’m not saying he was bad at that. he seemed like was having a blast in the first one. tbh all the guys did. this was clearly a bunch of talented actors enjoying themselves...it just wasn’t fun to watch. though it is now a fun story of our experience watching it! and that can be worth it too. 

one good thing i can say about watching this movie is that it meant i successfully watched 36 movies in 2022--which is more than i’ve watched in previous years of reviewing and checking them off my giant list. so here’s to a 2023 where i hopefully surpass even that. :)

[gollancz]

Nominations for the 2023 Hugo Awards!

Nominations are still open for everyone's favourite phallic* SFF award! If you are able to nominate, why not consider some of our great books?

Everyone with memberships to either Chicon 8 or the 2023 Chengdu Worldcon that was purchased before February 1, 2023 is eligible to nominate up to five items in each of the 17 Hugo and 2 other award categories.

Some of the things you might consider nominating us for are under the cut!

*I don't wanna invoke the stalactite post but, like, come on

BEST NOVEL

Anything that came out in 2022 is eligible! And we had some bangers.

BEST SERIES

The Graceling Realm series by Kristin Cashore

The Elric Saga by Michael Moorcock

The Last War trilogy by Mike Shackle

The Hussite Trilogy by Andrzej Sapkowski

The Legacy of the Mercenary King trilogy by Nick Martell

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch

The Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson

The Great God's War trilogy by Stephen Donaldson

THE ASTOUNDING AWARD FOR BEST NEW WRITER

Rebecca Zahabi, The Collarbound

Kelly Andrew, The Whispering Dark

BEST EDITOR - LONG FORM

Gillian Redfearn

Maybe we’re biased, but Gillian’s the best. She’s been at Gollancz nearly 20 years, and is the editor for Brandon Sanderson, Joe Abercrombie, Alastair Reynolds, Aliette de Bodard, Joanne Harris, Garth Nix, Elizabeth Bear, Patrick Rothfuss, Miles Cameron, Chris Wooding, Sarah Pinborough, Charlaine Harris… the list goes on! She is so involved in the SFF community, attending cons worldwide and she is staggeringly great at what she does. The only UK-based editor to be shortlisted for a Hugo award, she’s also genuinely one of the nicest people you will ever meet. Shortly after I first met her, she said something nice to me in the pub and I cried. On the plus side I set the bar for our future relationship very achievably low.

Marcus Gipps

Marcus has been in the biz for decades, starting as a bookseller and had a review Livejournal (yes, that's right, one of us) that helped him build respect with so many people in the industry. Any of the legendary, big names of SFF? He probably edits them. Michael Moorcock, Christopher Priest, Paul McAuley, Pat Cadigan, Stephen Baxter... He led the acquisition of THE LAST UNICORN once Peter S. Beagle got his rights back, he heads our WITCHER publishing, and his knowlege of SFF history is encyclopedic. He also leads our SF Gateway and Masterworks projects, archiving out of print SFF and saving them to keep in circulation. Marcus may be the most unflappable many on the planet, which is good because I'm extremely flappable so we balance out nicely.

Brendan Durkin

Do you like CHONKY books? So does Brendan. If you want a book to use as an offensive weapon, Brendan will have likely commissioned it. Brendan finds the books that are going to be the classics of the future. He works with J. T. Greathouse, Christopher Buehlman, Mike Shackle, SJ Morden, Chris Wooding, as well as being the lead for the Ursula K. Le Guin estate, the Terry Pratchett estate AND the Frank Herbert estate! Oh, and our beautiful D2C editions? All from his crazy genius mastermind brain. Also if you need somewhere to eat in central London? Go to him for a recommendation. I impressed him with my lunch choice the other day and felt like I'd Made It.