#nick taking him there and finishing his contract like in the arc's arc

[franeridan]

I'm gonna start testing the reading comprehension of the next person that says tristamp is simply a trigun prologue

[gdwessel]

Wrestle Kingdom 13 - 1/4/2019; Ibushi Concussed; G1 Climax 29 Begins in Dallas, WK14 Will Be 2 Nights

Today is The Day. Wrestle Kingdom 13. You can watch it on NJPWWorld in Japanese or English. You can pay $35 on FITE TV for the same. You can wait until later tonight and watch a 2-hour version (continued the next 2 weeks) on AXS TV. Whatever the case, you can see it.

Wrestle Kingdom 13 - January 4, 2019, Tokyo Dome (NJPWWorld, FITE TV, AXS TV on tape delay)

NEVER Openweight  6-Man Tag Team Championship #1 Contenders Gauntlet Match: Togi Makabe, Toru Yano [CHAOS] & Ryusuke Taguchi d. Yuji Nagata, Jeff Cobb [FREE] & David Finlay Jr. and Hirooki Goto, Trent Beretta & Chuck Taylor [CHAOS] and Minoru Suzuki, Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. [SZKG] and Adam Page, Yujiro Takahashi & Marty Scurll [The Elite] Order of Eliminations - Finlay > Yujiro, Schoolboy, 4:39 - Finlay > Taylor, Schoolboy, 7:30 - KES > Finlay, Killer Bomb, 2:44 - Yano > Smith, Schoolboy, 8:09

NEVER Openweight Championship: Will Ospreay [CHAOS] d. Kota Ibushi [FREE] © (Stormbreaker, 18:13) - Ibushi fails his 1st defense - Ospreay is the 23rd champion

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship 3-Way Match: BUSHI & Shingo Takagi [Los Ingobernables] d. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado [SZKG] © and SHO & YOH [CHAOS] (Takagi > SHO, Last of the Dragon, 6:50) - Kanemaru/Desperado fail their 5th defense - BUSHI/Takagi are the 58th champions

RevPro Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship: Zack Sabre Jr. [SZKG] d. Tomohiro Ishii [CHAOS] © (Hurrah! Another Year, Surely This One Will Be Better Than The Last; The Inexorable March Of Progress Will Lead Us All To Happiness, 11:53) - Ishii fails his ? defense - Sabre is the 21st champion

IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship 3-Way Match:  EVIL & SANADA [Los Ingobernables] d. Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa [Bullet Club] © and Matt & Nick Jackson [The Elite] (SANADA > Matt, Rounding Body Press, 10:15) - GOD fail their 1st defense - EVIL/SANADA are the 82nd champions

IWGP US Heavyweight Championship: Juice Robinson d. Cody Rhodes [The Elite] © (Pulp Friction, 9:02) - Cody fails his 1st defense - Juice is the 5th champion

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: Taiji Ishimori [Bullet Club] d. KUSHIDA ©  (Bloody Cross, 11:17) - KUSHIDA fails his 1st defense - Ishimori is the 83rd champion

Jay White [Bullet Club] d. Kazuchika Okada [CHAOS] (Blade Runner, 14:18)

IWGP Intercontinental Championship No-DQ Match: Tetsuya Naito [Los Ingobernables] d. Chris Jericho [FREE] © (Destino, 22:35) - Jericho fails his 2nd defense - Naito is the 20th champion

IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Hiroshi Tanahashi d. Kenny Omega [The Elite] © (High Fly Flow, 39:13) - Omega fails his 4th defense - Tanahashi is the 67th champion

Hoo boy, a lot to break down here.

Every single title changed hands during this show, including the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. The last time that belt changed hands at a January 4 Tokyo Dome show was Wrestle Kingdom V on 1/4/2011, by, how about that, Hiroshi Tanahashi, beating Satoshi Kojima. Eight years since then, including last year's controversial retaining by Kazuchika Okada over Tetsuya Naito that some people are still salty about. So, essentially, the entire Bushiroad era. The (frankly piss-poor) reign of Kenny Omega as IWGP champion is at an end, and the rest of the Elite (including Kota Ibushi) are title-less as well. So let the speculation about Omega and All Elite Wrestling begin in full force. It will be interesting to see which direction he goes in either way. For his part, Tanahashi is now an 8-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, cementing himself with the record number of reigns. (The next closest is Tatsumi Fujinami at 6.)

Los Ingobernables all hold titles now as well, barring Hiromu, of course, being out injured and all. CHAOS holds one title, as does Bullet Club, who lost one and gained one. The Seikigun hold two, after Tanahashi and Juice won their matches, however lost one with KUSHIDA.

Tetsuya Naito regains the title he hates over Jericho in a brutal brawl, taking full advantage of the No-DQ stipulation,and with it, begins his redemption story, having to come to terms with the IC belt to finally truly move beyond it. Really interested in seeing how his 2019 will go.

Jay White winning over Okada is interesting. It redeems White for having a poor re-debut at WK12 last year, and sets up a continuing feud with the two. Kazuchika Okada having his redemption arc is going to be a major part of 2019 creatively, I think, as will Naito as stated above, and eventually the two will collide. Okada does not take a hit here. It only sets him up to be stronger in the end. And hey, the Longboys are gone, so we have the Rainmaker back!

Shock of shocks, neither of the three-way tag matches ended with the reigning champions being pinned. The junior tag match was REAL short. (So were many of the matches today) Three-ways are stupid and are there to a) not make the champions do the job b) cover up for a bloated roster. Perhaps with the Elite moving away from NJPW this will be minimized in future. But let's face it, now we'll get rematches with the previous champions v. the current ones coming up real soon.

Juice regains the US belt, and writes Cody Rhodes out of NJPW. Trent Beretta challenged Juice post-show. That'll be good. Hopefully they can do right by Juice this time. They made him look like an absolute star at G1 Special in San Francisco, and then proceeded to squander and ruin that the rest of 2018. ZSJ regaining the RevPro title is about what I expected. Now he can take the belt home to England. Yes, that is the na.me of that finisher

That... was a nasty looking elbow Kota took. Ibushi has been reported as being concussed, and that stretcher job was legit. NJPW says the concussion is not severe. Will Ospreay is trying to be in characer gloating about it, because he is a dipshit. Who knows what Ibushi's future is in this AEW era. He's been a freelancer this entire time, so if he too were to leave NJPW (again) so be it. I really think he has the potential to be a drawing IWGP champion, but that's up to him. He did decline a WWE contract after all (as did Sabre). His is the bigger question mark looming than Omega's, if I'm honest.

The mixed Seikigun/CHAOS team of Makabe/Yano/Taguchi won the pre-show gauntlet match, so will most likely challenge for the NEVER Openweight Comedy 6-Man Tag Team titles tomorrow at New Year Dash!!. Yuji Nagata filled in for the injured *spits* Michael Elgin, and made the match actually watchable now, because fuck Michael Elgin. The Most Violent Players still being a thing makes me think there really is going to be a unit shakeup coming soon. We already saw it with Jay White and Gedo earlier in 2018, and the continued CHAOS/Seikigun teamups point that way too.

All in all, a really good show that was weak on paper but in practice did really well. The attendance was announced as 38,162, up from 34,995 for last year's, but not as much of a jump (Nearly +10K last year from WK11). It's also the highest attendance listed since Bushiroad started using actual numbers rather than papered, which was 36,000 in 2015 for WK9. So as critical as I've been of Kenny Omega as champion, using the Meltzer Standard for attendance, it looks like Kenny was, in fact, a decent draw as champion, even if creative and match quality was the shits. Online, it seems that there were some issues during the show on NJPWWorld, for which apologies have been doled out.

The attendance is an interesting issue. Bushiroad owner Takaaki Kidani has said for years that he wanted Wrestle Kingdom 14 to be the sell-out show at the Dome, as it falls on a Saturday...

As part of today's show, upcoming big events were announced for the coming year, and the biggest one of these was the announcement that WK14 will be, in fact, a 2-day event, on 1/4 and 1/5/2020, both Saturday and Sunday. Not sure how that is going to work out for selling out the Dome in 2020. In fact it might dilute the attendance by splitting it. It's an interesting conundrum, and we'll see if NJPW has the momentum to sell out just one, if not both, of those dates this time next year.

Other major show dates were announced, some we already knew (if you look at the Upcoming NJPW Events post from 2 days ago). There is a mega-card announced for 4/20/2019 at Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium, without a name given, but no word on Sakura Genesis, so I'm wondering if there will even be one this year. Wrestling Dontaku 2019 is a two-day event in Fukuoka, much like last year's edition.

This year's Best of the Super Juniors 26 Final will be held on 6/5/2019 at Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan, which is great, finally giving the Final the prestige it deserves with such a massive venue to hold it in. A mere 4 days later, we go back to Osaka-Jo Hall for Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-Jo Hall on, oddly enough, 6/9/2019.

G1 Climax 29 will begin and end in interesting fashion. This year's tournament will actually begin in the USA, on 7/6/2019 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX, making this the only time G1 Climax matches have been held outside of Japan. As for the ending, following the success of last year's Finals at Tokyo Nippon Budokan, which was due to necessity of renovations happening at Ryogoku, they are going back this year from 8/10 - 8/12/2019 for this year's G1 Finals as well.

The last one to be announced is a solo date in London, on 8/31/2019 at The Copper Box, located in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Hackney Wick. This is the place where feuding YouTubers Joe Weller and KSI held a boxing match. I am sure there will be RevPro involvement in this show.

That's it. That's all I got. New Year Dash!! is tomorrow but they never announce the card for it ahead of time. Hope everyone enjoyed WK13, and we start a good year in New Japan Pro Wrestling.

[themoonandotherslikeit]

The Look in Her Eyes- Chapter 30

***While on a case, Dean and Sam meet a beautiful woman, Ava. She makes a large impression on the brothers, and ends up convincing them to take her on the road with them. It isn’t long before the shared experience, car rides, motel rooms, and risky cases pushes Ava and Dean together in an unlikely story of love, family, fate, and friendship.***

Chapter Thirty, Truth?

Ava

Twenty-Two weeks along

"Ava run!" Sam shouted as he dodged a blow from a demon.

We followed a demon lead to a bar in Oak Park Illinois. A powerful demon had been causing quiet mayhem. A girl killing another for a pair of shoes. A family dying of starvation five feet from a kitchen full of food. We thought it was one demon. We were wrong.

The manifestation of the seven deadly sins were circling us like hungry sharks. "You know I can't do that Sam." I said.

We were going to die.

"I don't have to go." Dean said for the fifth time as he packed his bag.

"Come on. It'll be fun." I said with a forced smile. "Bobby and your dad need your help. Plus, Sam agreed to go look at baby stuff with me a few towns over."

"I should be looking at baby stuff." He grumbled.

I leaned forward and placed a kiss on his lips. "It's just a few days. You love the hunt."

"But I also love you." He pouted.

I smiled and pressed my forehead to his. "What's this really about?"

He shrugged, and his warm breath tickled my lips as he exhaled slowly. "I just miss you already."

I laced my fingers with his. "I'm right here."

He nodded slowly and kissed me once more before pulling away. "Fine. I'll call you tonight."

"Have fun." I smiled.

He grabbed his bag and tossed it over his shoulder. He gave me a quick peck, touching my stomach. "I'll miss my girls."

"We will miss you."

I lied to him. I was going to die and he would never know.

The demon put a knife to my throat nicking the side, missing my carotid artery. I closed my eyes and clutched my stomach. I'm sorry baby girl. We never even gave her a name.

"Let her go! She's pregnant." Sam struggled against the demon that had him pinned.

"Sam I'm sorry. If you get out tell Dean..."

The blade pressed deeper against my throat, causing me to gasp. I felt the best of my own blood rolling down my skin.

"Tell him..."

Suddenly the knife in front of me fell to the floor. I turned in time to see bright, yellow electricity seemed to pulse through the demon before he fell to the floor.

A blonde about my age grinned back at me. The shock of their comrade falling caused the demon to falter. Sam got the jump on him, his elbow connecting with the demons jaw sending him stumbling backwards.

I grabbed a bottle from on the bar and turned, hitting another demon in the head. The blonde dodged a blow, before stabbing another demon.

Sam grabbed the head of one and shoved it into the sink. He dumped holy water on its head and began an exorcism. The demons head flew out of the water, smoke exploding from its mouth.

The blonde finished off the last few. We were bloody, but we were alive.

"Who are you?"

"Ruby." The blonde said, cleaning her blade of her jeans.

"That blade was able to kill demons." I said slowly.

"Yes."

"How?"

Ruby shrugged. "Is the how really important? I did save your asses."

"Thank you for that." Sam said extending his hand.

Ruby stared at his hand, and didn't shake it.

I frowned. "Who are you?"

"I already said that." Ruby said, flipping her hair.

"Why did you come here?" I asked, glancing at Sam.

"Heard a commotion." She shrugged.

"And you just happened to to saunter in with a demon killing blade?" Sam asked, eyeing her more now.

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Fine. You got me. I'm a hunter, Sam."

"He never said his name." I took a step away from her.

Ruby groaned. "Fine, but don't shoot." She put her palms up, flat. She blinked, her eyes turning inky black.

"She's a demon!" Sam exclaimed, reaching for his holy water.

"Slow down, kid." Ruby said blinking her eyes back to a soft human blue.

"Why did you kill this demons?" I asked, narrowing my eyes, it didn't make sense.

"Not all demons are the same, Ava." She said my name like we were old friends. She pursed her lips and smiled. "I wanted to help."

"Why?" Sam questioned, holding the flask, ready to splash it in her smug face. "Why would you want to help us?"

"Because Sam here is special. The boy wonder. Yellow eyes' pet."

"What do you mean?" Sams voice shook slightly.

"You don't know?" She pursed her lips. "Oh Sam."

I looked between the two of them. "Yellow eyes is dead. We killed him."

"Oh, I know." Ruby shrugged. "I just can't believe Sam doesn't know his own potential."

"Let's get rid of her, Sam." I said nervously. I didn't like what she was doing. I didn't trust her.

"No." Ruby said, putting her hands back up. "I just want to help you."

"And why should we believe you?" I asked, sharply.

"Well, first of all." She said, taking out the knife. She flipped the blade so the handle was out towards me. She extended her arm, offering it to me.

I raised an eyebrow and took the blade.

"And second of all." She said, meeting Sams eyes. "I can help you save your brother."

Sam

It was a long car ride with Ava and Ruby. I could tell Ava didn't trust her, but I wasn't in a place to turn down the help.

I pulled up to Ava's house, and put the car in park. "Don't tell Dean about this. Not yet."

"Oh don't worry, I won't." She pursed her lips. "Where are you going?"

"We just need to talk." I said, glancing at Ruby. "I've got the demon blade. I'll be okay."

"Keep me updated, okay?" She asked. I nodded and she gave me a hug. "What are you going to tell him about your neck?" I asked, eyeing her bandage.

She sighed. "No idea. I'm sure it won't go over well."

"Probably not." I agreed with a smile. "See ya."

Ruby and I drove in uncomfortable silence until we got to a coffee shop. I wanted somewhere public, where hopefully no one would try to kill each other.

I ordered two black coffees. She shook her hand away. "I want an iced mocha with extra whip."

I raised an eyebrow and she shrugged. "It's tasty, Sam. Don't be a prude." We got our coffee and sat down. She her lips onto the whipped cream and licked the swirl off the top. "Mmm."

"You said I was special. What did you mean?"

”You’re tall.” She teased.

”That’s not what I meant.”

"Fine. Right to the point." Ruby said licking her lips.

"This isn't exactly a social call."

"Right." She flipped her hair and picked at her nails. "Your mom died in your nursery."

"Yeah." I said, pain itching below my sternum. "Yellow Eyes killed her."

"Do you know why?"

I sat up a little straighter. "Is there ever a why with demons? It wasn't a deal."

Ruby laughed and sipped her coffee. She was beautiful, or at least whoever she was wearing was. When she laughed I almost forgot she was a demon, but the image of her black eyes were burned into my retinas. I saw them when I closed my eyes.

"What's so damn funny?" I asked, annoyed. I clenched my fists.

"God, you Winchester's are so serious!" She rolled her eyes and took another sip. "Have you ever been able to do anything with your mind? Any vivid dreams? Premonitions?"

"You're asking me if I'm... psychic? No."

"No?" She raised her eyebrows. "Hm."

I cracked my knuckles awkwardly. "Well... I... I did sometimes have dreams. They were weird, but I... I don't know."

"You don't know what he did to you, or who you were supposed to be." Ruby said leaning forward, closer to me. "He gave you his blood, Sam. Demon blood, and as you grew you became stronger, but you were a hunter. You grew up to kill monsters like him. He couldn't foster that behavior. Those talents."

"He... he... oh my god." I felt sick.

Ruby reached for my hand, taking it in hers. "Sam, you are strong. You're exactly what we need to save your brother."

I pulled my hand from hers, standing up. "Why are you doing this?"

"I want..." She pursed her lips. "I want redemption, Sam. When I was human I was a witch. I was damned for that, but I wasn't a bad person. This is my redemption arc. Plus you're so tall."

"You were human?"

"All demons were human once."

I looked in her eyes, trying to see if I believed her. If I could trust her.

I slowly sat down. "How can we save Dean?"

"You've been looking for the right thing in the wrong place. No low level demon owns contracts. No, the cross road demons are salesmen. You want the CEO."

"Do you know who owns his contract?"

She sipped her coffee and smiled. "I do. Her name is Lilith, and she's evil. Like really evil, and that's coming from me. Since Yellow Eyes died she has decided she wants to be the Grand Poopa."

I frowned. "And that's bad?"

"Oh yeah."

"How are we going to get her to drop Deans contract?"

"We aren't." She shrugged. "We are going to kill her."

"But if she's a big bad, then how are we going to do that?"

"You're going to. With your psychic brain." She said tapping my forehead.

"What? Ever since Yellow Eyes died I've felt completely normal. If there was anything brewing it's done now." I put my face in my hands, feeling like any hope was dying.

"Hey." She titled her head. "You just need some juice, and some practice. We will get you ready, Sam."

I moved my hands to meet her eyes. I didn't like the sound of that, but what other choice do I have?

Dean

The case was a total milk run. In and out, and I was home by the end of the day. I fell back onto our bed and closed my eyes. The sheets were smooth, catching the callouses on my fingers.

I couldn't believe I had anything this nice. I opened my eyes and stared at the ring on my left hand. "Fuck." I whispered to myself. I had a woman who loved me. I stood up and walked slowly into the nursery. The walls were light pink and recently dried. I cracked open the window to release the paint smell. I lowered myself into the rocking chair, moving the teddy bear that sat on the chair. I held it against my chest and rocked quietly.

My chest ached with the loss I was already feeling. I closed my eyes again. I rocked myself, the bear in my hands.

"Dean I'm home!" Ava said, as I heard the lock click from the front room.

"Back here!" I called for her, my eyes still closed.

I heard her waddle down the hall. I opened my eyes to catch her leaning against the door frame. "Hey." She said, eyeing me.

"Hey back."

"Whatcha doin?"

"Thinking." I sighed, putting the bear down. I opened my arms for her to come sit with me.

"About what?"

"Life. How was baby shopping with Sammy? Did you get any tiny shoes? You know how much I like those."

She walked to me, dropping into my lap. I wrapped my arms around her. She turned toward me, and I froze. "What is this, Ava?" I asked, moving her hair from her shoulder. There was a bandage on her neck.

"Oh this? Umm..."

I peeled back the bandage before I could hear her bullshit excuse. There were stitches. I recognized Sams handy work. "What the fuck?"

"Hey, I'm fine. I'm okay." Ava moved my hand from the wound into her hands.

"What happened?"

"It was an accident."

"Some accident." I frowned moving her off my lap so I could stand. "Tell me the truth."

"It was a demon." She bit her lip.

"A demon? I thought you were shopping!"

"Don't yell." She shrunk in front of me.

I was pissed, and I tried to clench my fists at my side and breathe. I needed to calm down. I didn't want to scare her.

I turned to her and put her face in my hands. "What happened?"

"It just kind of happened. We went to get some food and things got hairy. It was a coincidence."

"Truth?"

She nodded instantly. "Truth."

I searched her face. "You're okay?"

"Yes."

"Baby is okay?"

"Yes."

"Okay." I leaned in and kissed her. "No more hunting trips. Not for me or for you. I'm running out of time, Ave. I want this time to be with you. Just me and you."

"Deal." Ava said, standing on her tiptoes so she could kiss me again. "Just me and you."

"And Peanut." I said touching her stomach.

"Of course, and Peanut." Just the three of us. The way it always was supposed to be, and the way it never would be.

—————

Chapter Thirty-One, Monsters

Get caught up!

Forever Tag List:

@foreverwayward

@xjamiedennettx

[shewholovestoread]

Avengers 4 - Theories and Speculation

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

So, I saw Avengers: Infinity War and I’ve been a mess ever since. The film really guts you in a way that previous MCU films don’t. I’ve always had a problem with Marvel films, in that the stakes never felt high enough, you knew that the protagonists would make it through the end because there was another film in the franchise.

Avengers: IW threw all the out the window. The film starts with 2 deaths and from then on, the Mighty Avengers are playing catch up. They really never had a chance (save for one, but I’m not going there) So who’s gonna come back and who’s dead for sure? Well, I have some ideas, so here we go:

Who’s dead for sure:

Loki, Heimdall and Vision. I’m pretty sure that they’re dead for sure. For one, Idris Elba is done with his Marvel contract and he’s been pretty vocal of late of being done with the MCU as well. Tom Hiddleston as well, as far as I know has also finished the contracted number of films (Avengers 4 being the final one, so we may see him in some capacity) Vision died when Thanos ripped out the stone from his head. Now, I think that this Vision is dead. We may see another version of him assuming Shuri managed to save his mind, the part independent of the Stone. So there is the possibility of White Vision.

Who’s Coming back:

Pretty much everyone who got dusted. There is no way that Black Panther and The Guardians aren’t coming back. For one, BP was one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed film in the MCU, there is no way that Marvel is permanently killing him off after just one film. Similarly, we know that there is a Guardians 3 film happening and we know it’s going to feature Adam Warlock. So Peter, Drax, Groot and Mantis are coming back. But what about Gamora, you ask? Well, recently the Russo Brothers confirmed a theory quite a few of us had; that Gamora is alive inside the Soul Stone. I think she’s alive because she was Thanos’ sacrifice to obtain it. In effect, she is its first inhabitant, the 1st person put in there because of Thanos.

Now there are some people who are speculating that she may not come back till Guardians 3, I disagree. Her arc, what happened to her is tied to Thanos. She was pretty much the first person to defy him, it makes no sense to keep her absent from Avengers 4 when Thanos is eventually brought down. It would be poetic for her to be there when Thanos meets his end. To see him look at her, someone he loved most (albeit his version of love is twisted as fuck) standing over him. I didn’t know how much I needed that till I wrote it down. As for why Thanos saw her in her child’s form, that’s easy enough. He saw her as he wanted to see her, as a child, when she needed him and likely didn’t question him. When she didn’t look at him with loathing because she didn’t know what he had done.

As for the others who got dusted: Wanda, Peter Parker, Dr. Strange, Bucky, Sam Wilson, Maria Hill and Nick Fury, do you seriously expect me to believe that they’re gone for good? I’m not buying. For one, We need Dr. Strange to wield the Time Stone, for second we know that Homecoming 2 is in the works and Bucky is tipped to take over the Captain America mantle from Steve and Sebastian Stan has a 9 film contract with Marvel so he’s certainly not done. In which case, it doesn’t make sense why some of the characters would come back while others don’t when eventually they had all suffered the same fate. It does not compute.

Also, I can’t wait to see Okoye, Black Widow, Wanda, Gamora, Nebula, Wasp and Captain Marvel collectively kick Thanos’s ass.

We know that Avengers 4 has to undo Thanos’ genocide otherwise it was all for naught, half of the entire universe’s population stays dead and how is that a good end for this phase.

Speculation:

Now, how will we get people back from the dead? There are a few ways that it could come to pass... For one, it is entirely possible that the remaining avengers manage to get their hands on the stones after Thanos’ gauntlet disintegrates. I also don’t think any one Avenger will wield all the stones, more like a collective wielding. Strange will definitely wield the Time Stone, the rest are up in the air.

I have a feeling that the events in Ant-man and the Wasp take place slightly before the events in Avengers: IW or they’re running very close to parallel. Which is why, it still has the light-hearted tone that we usually associate Marvel films with. It’s only at the end that we’ll see the ramifications of Thanos’s finger snap affect the characters in Ant-man and the Wasp. It would be a pretty neat lead-in to Avengers 4.

As for Captain Marvel, I think it’s going to be a flash-back film. Marvel will need to tell us why she was missing for so long/ where she went. The reason I think it will be a flashback because it doesn’t make sense to a regular prequel/origin film just before Avengers 4. The tone will likely not match, not to mention that the time difference would be jarring (CM is set in the 90s).

What about Iron-Man and Captain America:

These guys are the first avengers and in many ways the fabric that holds the team together which is why the Avengers fell apart when Tony and Steve had a falling-out. The events in IW in many ways foreshadow what might happen to these guys.

While many speculate that Steve will die in the A4, I think it’s going to be Tony. Why? Let me elaborate: we see Tony and Pepper in IW, Tony wants to start a family but he can’t stop being Iron Man. It’s in his DNA. He loved Pepper, but even she can’t keep him from being Iron Man. He can’t stop, his identity as Iron Man is deeply tied in to who he is deep inside.

Steve, on the other hand, joined the military because he wanted to do the right thing. He became Captain America, not for glory but because, he felt it was the only way he could contribute. At his core, he’s a peace-maker. He doesn’t like conflict and only engages when he has no other alternative. He would want a quiet life, heck, he would want to get a chance to live his life, without being constantly on the run or fighting.

Also, Steve already died once, I refuse to believe that Marvel would do that again.

I need Steve to walk away, I will NOT be able to deal with his death! Don’t do it Marvel!

I think A4 will end with Tony’s death and Steve stepping down from the Avengers and handing over his mantle to Bucky.  It would be a good way to end Phase 3 and kick off Phase 4.

[theprocrastinatingalien]

Beyond Avengers 4 (looking ahead at Phase 4 of the MCU)

WARNING: SPOILERS FOR AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR

We currently know very little about what comes after AVENGERS 4.  This makes sense, as we really don't (officially) know that much about the follow up to INFINITY WAR. 

We DO know that head honcho Kevin Feige has stated that there will soon be a divide In the MCU... everything before AVENGERS 4, and everything after.  The face of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is changing... we don't even know if we'll get a 'Phase 4'.  Personally, I hope we do.  I think it's nice to have a group of films.  It helps with marketing.  It helps when charting character arcs.  You don't end up with an endless mash of movie titles (I'm looking at you DCEU!).  It helps gives direction.

For the moment, let's assume it IS called Phase 4.  if only to keep me happy.  What can we expect from it?  Well, boss man Kevin has apparently plans for 20 more films after AVENGERS 4.  That's basically as much as the first three phases put together.  It will be a mixture of sequels and new titles.

Let's start with what we know.

SPIDER-MAN: THE NEXT AVENGER

Okay, so I've made up the title, but it's better that HOMECOMING 2 (and there's already been a SPIDER-MAN 2). Okay, so let's get this straight - yes Peter Parker crumbled to dust following Thanos' click, but we already know we have this movie coming.  It'll be the first movie in Phase 4.  Obviously Marvel co-runs Spideyflicks with Sony, so they'd want a follow up as soon as possible... and that's in mid 2019!    What's more, it's been guaranteed that an Avenger will appear.  Now, it won't be Iron Man again (and I doubt Happy Hogan will feature either)... and whilst it could easily be one of the newer characters, I predict (and have done before), that it'll be Mark Ruffalo's Dr Bruce Banner and the Hulk.  He's sciency, and more importantly, Ruffalo is meant to have one more film on his contract following AVENGERS 4.  I could be wrong about Ruffalo, but Tom Holland will definitely be back (there'll be no switch over to Miles Morales), Marisa Tomei (Aunt May), Zendaya (Michelle) and Jacob Batalon (Ned) will all surely return too..  It'll be interesting to see which villains they use.  A VENOM movie is coming out, entirely Sony, starring Tom Hardy (which may or may not cameo Hollan), as well as BlackCat and Silver Sable movie coming too.  Will the MCU decide to use more characters that Sony haven't used before, or now start reusing known characters such as Green Goblin or Dr Octopus?  Filming will start later this year, so casting news will surely have to start hitting... giving away that Spider-Man isn't really dead...

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 3

James Gunn confirmed this, and has apparently finished the script.  It's definitely coming in 2020, and will likely be the first movie of three that year - probably around May time.  Now, obviously, there's a small matter that all but one guardian have died.   Will the film be entirely about Rocket Raccoon (voiced by Bradley Cooper)?  Of course not.  Just as sure as I am that Spidey will be safe, I think all the others that disappeared from the click will be back.  Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Drax (Dave Bautista), Groot (Vin Diesel) and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) will all be back. The big question mark for me is Gamora (Zoe Saldana). She died a different way, and that could be a permanent. Whilst I'm sure Saldana's back in AVENGERS 4, that could just be a tie to the soul stone and Thanos.  beyond that, I really don't know.  It could be that, just how VOL 2 came right after the first movie, VOL 3 could follow that... it might all be set before INFINITY WAR, in which case Gamora will be as right as rain.  If the movie truly follows on from AVENGERS 4, then we won't really know until that movie has come out... or VOL 3 starts filming before that movie comes out as we see Saldana on set. Karen Gillan's Nebula survived the most recent movie, but I personally believe she'll die in AVENGERS 4... so don't think she'll be in VOL 3.  If I'm wrong though, she will be...depending on whether Gamora is.  (I think Nebula's storyline is pretty tied to her 'sister'). Mid credits in VOL 2 told us that Ayesha had created Adam Warlock, so he could well be a main focus of the sequel - despite Gunn suggesting otherwise.  Sly Stallone's Stakar Ogord assemble his older generation of guardians too... so they could play a part.  And what happened to Sean Gunn's Kraglin?  It's possibly, Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) could join the team following AVENGERS 4, whilst she waits to be given her own sequel. Maybe Howard the Duck (voiced by Seth Green) could play a bigger part than a cameo.  No, I didn't think so either. For me the biggest question here is the time placement... before INFINITY WAR or after AVENGERS 4. The more I think about it, the more I think it could be before...

BLACK WIDOW

Okay, so we don't know this is happening... officially.  But it IS totally happening.  Writers have been assigned and Chris Evans pretty much confirmed it.  However, unlike the previous movies I've talked about so far, this film does NOT mean Scarlett Johansson survives AVENGERS 4.  It's highly expected that the movie will be a prequel, going back into her history as a spy. There's a lot they can do with this, and it also means a lot of characters could pop up. There's already been speculation that Sebastian Stan could feature as The Winter Soldier (back when he was still under Hydra control).  Obviously everyone expects (and will probably be disappointed if not) Clint Barton to appear.  It sort of feels like Jeremy Renner has got a bum deal, so flashing out their friendship would work wonders.  There's also the suspicion that Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson) could appear... about what about fellow agents Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders), Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) and Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell).  Any of them could feature to some degree. After playing a supporting character since IRON MAN 2 (back in 2010), it'll be nice for Johansson to headline a film in the MCU, finally. In a year, Marvel like to have at least one sequel and one new film.  I expect BLACK WIDOW will likely act as the 'new' movie that year, probably sandwiched between the two sequels GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 3 and...

DOCTOR STRANGE 2

You see, this is the problem... another character who disappeared at the end of INFINITY WAR... back for a sequel.  I suppose it's possible the sequel could be set between the first movie and INFINITY WAR, but I doubt it.  Now all the sequels can be set before, and I feel Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) will a major force going forward in the MCU.  Both Kevin Feige and James Gunn have stated the franchise will be a lot more 'cosmic' going forward, and Strange's magic, and use of different realms, will likely play a strong part in that. I think DOCTOR STRANGE 2 will round off 2020, with Benedict Wong returning as Wong, Rachel McAdams getting more screentime as Christine Palmer and Chiwetel Ejiofor playing a much bigger role as Mordo edged towards what could well be the 'new Loki'. I don't know much about the comics for this particular character, but word is Nightmare will be the primary villain this time around.  No word on who might play him though... but with Cumberbatch and Ejiofor at the front line, it'll need to be someone impressive.

BLACK PANTHER 2

Obviously the first movie was a massive hit.  Obviously there's going to be a sequel. Obviously there's a problem because the title character died at the fingerclick in INFINITY WAR.  However, unlike with Strange or Spider-Man, the sequel doesn't necessarily need T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) to live to go ahead.  In the comics, Shuri (Letitia Wright) becomes Black Panther, and Queen of Wakanda.  Now, if T'Challa's death was 'real'... that should already have happened before/during AVENGERS 4.  Wright could be the new BP!  Shuri was certainly popular enough, and Boseman could still appear via a spirit walk-thing. You know, that thing they do.  He apparently has 5 movies on his contract.  Now that could work as CIVIL WAR , BLACK PANTHER, INFINITY WAR, AVENGERS 4 and... BLACK PANTHER 2.  It could. Of course, I don't think that's the case.  Well, actually, in the comics, both T'Challa and Shuri are Black Panthers... and I reckon that might be where they take it - but Chadwick Boseman's character will be the lead, and alive.  I also expect Danai Gurira's Okoye, Luputa Nyong'O's Nakia, Angela Bassett's Ramonda all to return.  Probably Winston Duke's M'Baku.  Possibly Martin Freeman's Everett K Ross. I also predict Marvel will place the movie around the opening of May in 2021.  That's where they put all the films they're confident in.

ANT-MAN 3 (aka ANT-MAN AND THE WASP 2)

We haven't seen ANT-MAN AND THE WASP yet, but you have to assume Marvel are working on the assumption there will be a sequel.  When they announced their third phase slate, an ANT-MAN sequel wasn't included.  They waited to see how the first would do .  By the time they finally get around to announcing Phase 4, I expect they'll known whether ANT-MAN 3 will be on the table.  My guess is, it will be.  Paul Rudd as Scott Lang, with Evangeline Lilly as Hope Van Dyne will probably head-line again. Beyond that, with both ANT-MAN AND THE WASP and AVENGERS 4 to come, I wouldn't like to predict more than that. Other than I think it'll be released in 2021 - although it's worth pointing out that both ANT-MAN movies have been released AFTER an AVENGERS movie... so it could be held back until after...

AVENGERS 5

We know there'll be one... the question is, when. Typically AVENGERS movies are released at the start of may, three years apart. THE AVENGERS came out in 2012, AGE OF ULTRON in 2015 and now INFINITY WAR in 2018.  Obviously, we're breaking that tradition with AVENGERS 4 in 2019.  The earliest I expect AVENGERS 5 will be May 2022, but with an expanding slate of sequels, and the intention of including new titles, they might push it back a year to 2023. It will, in theory, be the first to not feature the likes of Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr) and Thor (Chris Hemsworth).  Nor might it include Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) or Hulk (Mark Ruffalo).  I mean, it might, but it's unlikely. So who will it include?  Personally, I have no idea who the villain will be but as for heroes... I guarantee it'll feature Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), Spider-Man (Tom Holland) and Black Panther (probably Chadwick Boseman, possibly Letitia Wright).  It'll probably feature Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) and Wasp (Evangeline Lilly). There's also someone else it might feature.  You'll notice I missed out Steve Rogers from the earlier list?  Well, as far as Chris Evans goes, he'll not be back after AVENGERS 4, but I doubt that can be said for...

CAPTAIN AMERICA 4

In the comics, the mantle of 'Captain America' has been used by several people - most notably Bucky Barnes. Whilst Evans only had 6 films on his contract (extended to 7 to encompass AVENGERS 4), Sebastian Stan signed up for 12 movies.  Right now, he's only spent four of those - the CAPTAIN AMERICA trilogy, and INFINITY WAR.  AVENGERS 4 takes him to five and if the rumoured appearance in BLACK WIDOW happens, that's only half of his contract.  That leaves (potentially) three more Cap movies, and three more Avenger movies. I've no idea who the villains will be in a fourth Cap movie, unless the movie itself is a 'Battle for the Shield', an idea I came up with that I'm taken with.  Anthony Mackie is already Falcon in the franchise, and in the comics, Sam Wilson becomes Cap also.  There's also the potential for Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp) to take on the shield.  There could be a three-way tussle for the mantle. Ultimately Stan will probably take the lead, as it seems to be the order of things.  As a side note, Wilson's Cap is trained under an older Steve Rogers, his age caught up with him. It's possible, rather that outright killing Chris Evans' character, they swap him out for an older actor, to train the younger successor.  Possibly not, but it's an option. The biggest question here is, when do they roll out this new Cap?  Before or after AVENGERS 5?  THE FIRST AVENGER lead into the first film to unite the characters, and a new character picking up the shield could do the same.  We'll just ignore that both Bucky and Wilson turned to dust.  They'll be back. Extra note - despite the title, with a new actor headlining, Marvel might treat the movie as a new franchise.

CAPTAIN MARVEL 2

The trickiest one on the list really... as the first CAPTAIN MARVEL comes out next year, certainly less than two months before AVENGERS 4. That will probably be enough time for Marvel to figure out if the movie deserves a sequel.  So far, only THE INCREDIBLE HULK has stood alone, with no sequels to speak of. I'll lay money on it staying that way, and CAPTAIN MARVEL 2 will be in the Phase 4 slate.   If the first is set in the 90s, then a sequel could be set in the 00s. More likely though it'll be present, so she can lead the Avengers.  As I mentioned earlier though, it's possible (rather than shoehorning a sequel into the slate) Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) could find herself back in space, now with GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 3... possibly filling the void left by Gamora.

NEWBIES

This is where we get really sketchy.  There's been rumbles of a film for THE ETERNALS, it might be time NAMOR gets some underwater adventures, or if the day-walking vampire BLADE comes in on the actions.  Let's also not forget that the deal with Fox will mean the X-MEN, FANTASTIC FOUR and DEADPOOL can crossover into the MCU.  It won't be yet... but look how quickly Spider-Man entered the area.

If I had to predict Phase 4, I'd go with the following:

July 2019 - SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING 2 (confirmed) - May 2020 - GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 3 (basically confirmed) July 2020 - BLACK WIDOW (sort of new) November 2020 - DOCTOR STRANGE 2 - May 2021 - BLACK PANTHER 2 July 2021 - CAPTAIN MARVEL 2 November 2021 - NEW FRANCHISE (example BLADE or NAMOR) - February 2022 - CAPTAIN AMERICA 4 (sort of new) May 2022 - AVENGERS 5 July 2022 - ANT-MAN 3 / ANT-MAN & THE WASP 2 So there we are, those are my predictions for Phase 4. How wrong am I?  I expect we'll have an idea come Comic Con 2019! 

[aromatickindling-blog]

Zenith: The Land of Contracts (1/2)

With the recent talk of everyone’s own summoner OCs, I thought I may as well put down the introduction I gave my version of Kiran mentally into words. Don’t ask why she initially considered Anna the grim reaper: instead take the easy route by blaming the scorpion venom and dehydration. It’s not the quality and quantity headcanons can usually give for cheap, but it does expand on why my Kiran mentioned running away from Anna to Alfonse in my previous story.

But since it became rather long, I’ve decided to split it into two parts. I’ll finish the second part sometime later; it’s all just dialogue right now. Hope it’s not too cumbersome to read. The rest is under the cut.

To think, just one moment ago she was contemplating her own demise in an empty desert basin at the hands of a walking photon anomaly. Yet here she was, still delusional from scorpion toxin and thirsty as a dog in front of a red-headed woman all too excited over her appearance. The ear-splitting whoop didn’t help her mood much either.

“I can’t believe it! It actually worked?!”

Yeah, the poison running in her veins really didn’t help. Venom did make for odd bed-fellows with fear, as the poor girl soon dealt with a train of thoughts all drowning her in a desire to run.

If this woman was so enthusiastic over her despite being strangers, she may as well have been kidnapped.

Nothing good ever comes of that.

“Ahem...Oh Great Hero from another world! Thou hast come so far-”

And now this lady spoke in gesticulating dramatics. With how tired she had become, this dialogue only translated into speech made from gargling rocks. Amplified by a sadist holding a megaphone.

She held up an open hand to stop the stranger.

“Just. Who...are you?”

“Wow, that’s quite a wispy voice you have there. Now that I think about it, you look terrible. All that dust staining your clothes...oh. OH.”

She soon had a canteen shoved in her face. Oh thank goodness. Glorious water. Maybe now her mind and throat would clear up. Against her better judgement, she greedily downed it all. All while making the most grateful face she could muster as her body sunk to the ground.

...She must have looked like a pathetic little gargoyle with how mussed up she was.

“FOUND YOU!”

Nerves jolting, the canteen loosed from her grip. She swore she could hear her neck snap from how fast it redirected itself at the source of the noise. Her strange new benefactor took to her side before smoothing into a defensive stance. She only now registered the heavily decorated axe wielded in front of her.

Just what kind of fever dream was this?! Was it the Renaissance Fair she attended last week? The D&D session her co-workers invited her to? The games she indulged in over the days where work threatened to take her sanity? Probably a mix of all three at this point…

Red hair parted as crimson eyes made contact with hers. Her companion’s lips moved, but her own mind failed to take in their meaning. With a bounding leap, she sped off, axe raised.

Both her red-headed companion and the helmeted loudmouth took to enthusiastically exchanging blows off each other’s axes.

‘Wait, if this is supposed to be a dream, then why isn’t...’

The metallic rebounds sounded too sharp to belong in her dreams. Was this a lucid dream? Her nose told her otherwise, as her nerves took to knotting her muscles. Dear lord, this was the worst time to gain nausea.

Red splatter flew through the air in front of her. Her now dubious companion’s axe sliced across the soldier’s torso with disturbing ease, becoming caked in a scarlet splash. The resulting shrill of pain only amplified its color.

This lady was no companion, she concluded. No. This was the grim reaper in disguise here to take her soul, with-or-without her permission.

At least, that’s what her addled brain could muster trying to rationalize everything with all the heavenly imagery surrounding her: from the abundance of clouds to the white-and-gold plating outfit to the Greco-Roman style stone structures surrounding her.

“Whew! I sure took care of him!...Uh, are you okay there?”

Startled at first, her face straightened out into a neutral expression as she strained herself to stand. She fought down bile threatening to purge itself from her body; may as well nod her head and go along with her for the time being. Best to run when a better distraction comes along. If that included shaking the hand of reaper, so be it.

“My name’s Anna. I’m the commander of the Order of Heroes. We- uh, I’ll save you the rest for now. Maybe after you get some rest back at camp. It’s not far from here.”

“Mmm”

“By the way, what’s your name?”

Shit.

   Anna, commander of the Order of Heroes and trusted advisor to the royal siblings of Askr, had found herself in a perplexing situation. Out of desperation for help against the Emblian Empire’s forces, she found herself taking the legendary weapon Breidablik to perform the rite of summons. Normally, she would have called the weapon as she usually did: the legendary paper weight. No one in Zenith could use it. Not her, not the Emblian royals, nor the Askran royals. But the legend attached to it kept it safe from being pawned off. Originally, both Embla and Askr traded the relic every half-century as an act of good will towards each other. But with Veronica and her father’s aggression towards Askr, it had been kept in their care longer than anticipated.

She may as well have made use of it anyways. What it gave her in return, however…

Anna turned her head at her newly-summoned aid. Breidablik must have granted her pleas for help in reverse; this young woman summoned as the ‘Great Hero’ looked closer to collapsing than toppling Embla’s forces.

   To think she had hoped for the Radiant Hero Ike to come and save them; better yet the legendary tactician Mark of Elibe to bamboozle the enemy lines into surrender with the meager forces they had. No. Instead, she now had a half-lucid lady in odd clothing limping alongside her to the Order’s camp. What should she tell Prince Alfonse? That the Breidablik malfunctioned?

She sighed. Maybe she’ll have a better idea as to why the Breidablik summoned her once she got some rest; then she could show a side of her that would explain why the Breidablik chose her.

“Kiran, it’s only a little further until we get back.”

“Mmm”

“Too tired to talk?”

A nod.

“Well, I should at least give you an idea of where you are. Care to listen?”

Kiran locked half-lidded eyes on hers. Pleased at finally gaining her attention, Anna began.

“This place is known as the World of Zenith. There are several kingdoms here, but the most important are Askr and Embla. I come from Askr, heading the Order of Heroes against Embla. Long story short, Embla’s been invading Askr recently and I used the Breidablik to summon you. Lucky us it worked!”

She paused. Kiran looked ill, clutching her head with one hand while guarding her mouth with the other.

“Need a break, Kiran?”

“THERE SHE IS! GET HER!”

More soldiers, at the worst time possible. Life did try hard at testing Anna’s patience.

“Drat. More of those Emblian soldiers. I can’t defeat them all by myself, and you’re definitely not equipped to help me. You run while I hold them off.”

Shoving the Breidablik at Kiran, Anna changed her lilt to the more commandeering tone she used on the battlefield.

“Take the Breidablik and get out of here, Kiran! Go!”

   Both shock and disbelief colored Kiran’s eyes as she spotted the relic. Anna could only gesture frantically at her to leave as she examined the relic with lightly-scarred fingers. She then gripped the handle almost naturally, all while Anna grew more desperate to shove her away from the battlefield. What was she thinking?! Kiran turned away from Anna, shifting to aim the oddly-shaped relic at nowhere in particular. Before she could yell at Kiran to run yet again, the relic started to glow.

“What’s that?! That bright light, coming from...”

Light shot out of the Breidablik, forming a slightly disheveled figure who quickly straightened out into a formal pose. A neatly-dressed noble wielding a silver bow greeted both Anna and Kiran. The latter, at this point highly disturbed, took to staring down the Breidablik’s supposed barrel in disgusted confusion.

“I am Virion, the finest archer of the fairest of realms. Delighted to be of service.”

Anna could only restrain a fraction of the excitement welling up inside her, as her hands gripped Kiran’s shoulders in an attempt to turn her into a living bobble-head. This was it; this would be the power that tipped the war in their favor, and she had found it!

“How’d you do that?! You summoned a Hero, Kiran! You just picked up the Breidablik, and you’re already able to use it!” Anna’s beaming smile faded as her attention shifted back to the Emblian forces, “but there’s no time to chat now. This Virion and I need to get to fighting.”

Both she and Virion left to fight, as Kiran could no longer hold in her gastric fluids from the flashes and sudden shaking. A nearby rock became her pillar as she sunk down to retch. But a glint formed in her eye as she noticed Anna’s absence.

Another axe fighter and an archer; an even fight awaited them. Raising the Nóatún in an arc, Anna barked out orders to Virion.

“Virion, take the right flank. I’ll show this fighter how to really use an axe!”

He swiftly agreed, swiping an arrow from his quiver to his tight bowstring in one clean motion. A horrible gurgling noise came from his feathery gift to the enemy archer’s neck.

“I should expect no less from myself,” he chortled as made a mocking bow toward his downed opponent. Yet his arrogance caught him a spare nick in the shoulder from the dying archer. He didn’t mind too much, save for the sharp pain and the embarrassingly high-pitched noise he made from it.

Meanwhile Anna’s Nóatún exchanged blows with a hefty silver axe. Despite how sturdy her opponent was, she acted as lightning, redoubling each strike that came her way.  

“Utterly blinding, fair Anna. Or are you an exception to the naming rule?”

Knocking a second arrow at Anna’s opponent, Virion continued. “You don’t seem to wear the merchant clothing your sisters wear.”

“What sisters?”

“Bwah? Erm, are not all of you related?”

She took to guardedly circling the Emblian soldier.

“Not when we come from different worlds, no.” One more blocked strike attempt pushed her back into circling.

“Gods above, I’ve been summoned to the Outrealms, haven’t I?”

    Noticing an opening, Anna decided to focus on striking the axe fighter’s exposed thigh. Ducking lower on her swing, she made a clean slice into the Emblian’s leg. They buckled with a grunt of pain, trying to guard their vitals just with a silver axe. It was not enough to survive Anna’s consecutive blows. With a breathy sigh, they collapsed into a growing puddle of their own blood. Blocking her own disgust, Anna looked away from the sight to Virion and smiled.  

“We won! And it’s all thanks to-” She turned to where Kiran should be.

Barren earth stood where she last left Kiran. No, no, no, this – wait. She did tell her to hide, to run. She must be around here somewhere. Yes, that’s it. Cupping hands to her mouth, she called out to her surroundings.

“Kiran! We took care of the Emblian soldiers! You can come out now!”

She paced around. 1, 2, 3...no response.

“Kiraaan! The camp is waiting for us! Fresh water and warm food awaits you!”

Nothing. Air hitched in Anna’s throat. Did she miss another soldier? Had Kiran been –

Virion languidly walked over to her, tapping her shoulder and pointing to the ground.

“Oh dear, seems that charming young lady you’re calling for has left.”

   Footprints led into the surrounding hillside forest. If Kiran had run away at the start, she could have had at least a mile’s worth of land covered over them – well, if she didn’t pass out from exhaustion. Wait, right, that poor girl looked sick before they started the battle. She couldn’t have gone that far. Right, she could find her before dinner and tell Prince Alfonse the good news. Still, no guarantee...

“Damn it...Virion, I know your contract’s with her, but please! I need you to help me find her!”

“But of course. She does owe me an explanation as to why I’m here. Oh, and do care not to look behind that rock; we have enough gruesome sights to look at in war.”

Anna looked anyway and gagged.

“So you’re a serial kidnapper in gun form?”

As useless talking to an inanimate object was, ‘Kiran’ still found some therapeutic value in it. May as well since she presumed her own death. Maybe she was in purgatory; that would explain the pain lingering in her aching legs and burning torso. But then why was her heart still feverishly beating at her ribcage?

Of course, ‘Kiran’ was only an alias here. If she ever saw her co-worker again, she’d probably have to apologize to her for taking the name. Ugh, so long as curses didn’t extend beyond this world...

Zenith...Anna had called it.

Shaking her head, Kiran took the gun-shaped relic, probing it everywhere for some switch or button.

“Just take me home. Please. I can’t even fight.”

A hot shower and heated consommé sounded deliriously heavenly. But the Breidablik denied her; the only grooves felt across its handle were decorative Celtic knots. Huh, didn’t know ancient Celts had an afterlife. If she ever got back home, it would be the first thing she’d look up.

She groaned, pitching her head back against the girth of one of the many trees around her. Life made no sense anymore. First it was the bark scorpion sting, then her loss of direction, then an empty canteen, then a light monster enveloping her whole, and now this mess.

Is this how a reaper works? Conscripting the dead to kidnap their targets?

Was she really even dead?!

She scraped a palm across her face. Thinking too hard about this place didn’t help. She needed to find water, food, and civilization, fast.

May as well give in to the madness that was this world. The Breidablik did put her in a bizarrely calm trance when she first fired it, so what was the point in trying to preserve the rest of her tattered sanity when it shot a living, breathing person out of it’s barrel?

Now, Askr and Embla were the two nations here, at war…

A single look at the Breidablik ruled out Embla. If any soldiers found her with it, odds are they’d gut her like a pig. That left Askr, and that meant Anna.

“Either way is doom, huh...” A despairing chuckle escaped her throat.

Frantic footfalls broke her thoughts.

“Kiraaaaan!”

“Kiran, come out and join us! It’s dangerous to wander here alone!”

Her body scrambled for cover at the familiar voices. Anna and her new conscription had come looking for her. Half a second later and her hands whisked the Breidablik out of sight. Bramble-laden foliage was the only barrier between her and Anna’s prying eyes. She prayed it would be enough to hide her.

Unfortunately, the Breidablik had other ideas, as it began to emit a gentle, pulsating glow.

“You. Little. Traitor.” Kiran seethed quietly through her teeth, smothering the light whole with her body as best she could.

“I thought I saw something near that thicket.”

“Really, Virion?! Is it Kiran?”

Gloved hands invaded the bramble, as Kiran’s breathing hitched. As she began to resign herself to being caught, more footfalls came.

“YOU THINK YOU CAN GET AWAY FROM US SO EASILY?”

“Ugh, not more of them! Virion, take the left flank while I deal with this lancer.”

“Very well.” Kiran just laid there as Virion’s brown gloves withdrew from the bramble. She nearly exhaled loudly in relief. With her heart jumping in her throat, she kept sifting through her options. She could shuffle away and risk being sighted to gain distance from them. Or stay here and risk Virion catching her.

   With no audible voices heard opposite the battle, Kiran opted to crawl away as quietly as she could. Running would come once she passed enough cover. Despite the Breidablik’s attempt at outing her, she couldn’t get herself to leave it. Somehow, it’s comforting presence gripped her heart with dread at the thought of leaving it. ‘Great,’ she mused, ‘I’m developing Stockholm Syndrome towards an object...’ With what little energy remained in her, Kiran willed herself into running as far as she could from Anna and Virion.

Unknowingly in the direction of the Askran camp.

[junker-town]

The Raptors found a formula to save their season

After a 2-8 start, Toronto is fully back.

The Toronto Raptors had the worst record in the NBA after their first 10 games of the season. The Raptors had easy excuses for their 2-8 start, but finding potential answers was proving to be more difficult. The team would be dislocated in Tampa Bay for the entirety of the season because of the pandemic. The center rotation was struggling badly after losing Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka over the offseason, Pascal Siakam was off to a slow start, and a defense that ranked No. 2 in the league last year was suddenly outside of the top 20.

The Raptors had been a picture of consistency since the Dwane Casey era, winning at least 58.5 percent of their games for seven straight seasons. Was this the beginning of the end?

We should have known better. After 110-103 win over the East-leading Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, Toronto is now over .500 for the first time all season at 16-15 overall. The Raps would be the No. 5 seed if the playoffs started today. They’re now top-10 in the league in both point differential and net rating.

The Raptors have won nine of their last 12 games with two wins over the Bucks, a win over the Nets (in the game Kevin Durant was pulled because of the health and safety protocol), and the win over Philly. Where Toronto’s ceiling ultimately lies is still up for debate because of a thin bench and a lack of size, but for now head coach Nick Nurse has found a formula to turn the season around.

Here’s how the Raptors have stabilized after such a poor start.

Fred VanVleet and Kyle Lowry are one of the league’s best backcourts

VanVleet and Lowry should be easy to expose on paper. It’s the league’s smallest starting backcourt with both players only listed at 6-foot. Neither player puts much pressure on the rim as a driver. Lowry will turn 35 years old next month. VanVleet has never dunked in his career, and Lowry hasn’t in a regular season game since the 2007-2008 season. This pairing shouldn’t work in the highest leverage situations against the league’s best teams, but somehow both players always seem to rise to the occasion.

The Raptors gave VanVleet a four-year, $85 million contract in the offseason, and he’s responded with a career-best season. While he’s only shooting 40.8 percent from the field and his scoring efficiency is slightly below average, VanVleet has emerged in some metrics as one of the league’s most impactful players. FiveThirtyEight’s RAPTOR WAR stat has him as the league’s third most valuable player right now behind only MVP front-runners Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid.

VanVleet is a master at creating shots for himself and his teammates. He’s one of the NBA’s best pull-up artists, taking 4.1 three-pointers off the dribble per game and hitting 36.5 percent of them. He’s also top-15 in the league in assists per game and is averaging a career-best assist rate of 28 percent.

VanVleet should be way, way too small to go head-to-head with Giannis Antetokounmpo and come out on top, yet his quickness and tight ball handling ability makes him so hard to stop.

Fred VanVleet making Giannis looking silly. pic.twitter.com/lLMqRCfgeW

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) February 19, 2021

VanVleet also plays much bigger than his size defensively. VanVleet is posting a steal rate above two percent again this season, and somehow has already set a new career-high in blocks. In his first 31 games this season, VanVleet already has 23 blocks. Last season, he only had 17 blocks in 54 games.

VanVleet never backs down against bigger players. Once again, just ask Giannis.

Fred VanVleet steps in and rips it away! @Raptors lead early on TNT pic.twitter.com/Nj0DhkZ18J

— NBA (@NBA) February 19, 2021

Lowry has also been as solid as ever even as he’s battled multiple injuries, including a thumb injury that kept him out of the recent win over the Sixers. Lowry has so many tricks as a scorer in his old age. He’s shooting a remarkable 70.2 percent at the rim per Basketball Reference and is making a career-best 52.6 percent of his two-pointers.

The Raptors have somehow won their last 16 games without Lowry. Trade rumors have started to swirl around as he plays out the final season of his contract, but the veteran guard very much remains the heart and soul of the team. Unless Toronto gets an offer they can’t refuse, expect Lowry to be leading the charge for the Raps in the playoffs, just as he does every year.

Chris Boucher has blossomed into a dependable contributor

Boucher is the least likely player in the NBA as someone who didn’t start playing organized basketball until he was 19 years old and bounced around two junior colleges before landing at Oregon. He tore his ACL in his final year with the Ducks and went undrafted in 2017. Two years ago, he won G League MVP. Last season, he was a sparsely used big man off the bench, averaging only 13 minutes per game in the regular season and often earning DNPs in the playoffs.

Now 28 years old, Boucher is fully tapping into the talent he’s flashed since his college days to become one of the great stories in the league. He’s averaging 13.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, and two blocks per game so far, all easily career-highs.

Boucher’s combination of length and shooting makes him an ideal fit in the modern game. He’s been a capable shooter since he was at Oregon, but he’s never been a good shooter at the NBA level. Now he is: Boucher is making 45.1 percent of his threes on 3.6 attempts per game from behind the arc. His release might be slow, but his shot is becoming more and more dependable.

.@chrisboucher: Never Shy pic.twitter.com/w7ZVAGh9Wh

— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) February 20, 2021

Boucher’s 65.2 true shooting percentage is No. 11 in the entire league right now.

His defense has been a revelation, too. Boucher is second in the league block rate at 8.7 percent behind only Myles Turner. He’s also top-20 in individual defensive rating. While Boucher can have problems against bigger and stronger centers, his shot blocking is becoming a huge asset for such a small team.

The Raptors are simply a better with Boucher on the floor. His net rating of +8.1 is tops on the team for any regular rotation player.

The offense has found its rhythm

Even when the Raptors posted the second-highest winning percentage in the league last season in their first year without Kawhi Leonard, the offense was just barely above average. Toronto finished No. 13 in offensive efficiency. Most of its success could be attributed to the league’s second-best defense.

The script has flipped for the Raptors this year. After a slow start, they’re now up to No. 9 in the NBA in offensive efficiency. The defense has also shot up to No. 12 overall, but given the general lack of size on this team, it feels like the offense is going to have to carry them.

Toronto has the No. 4 shot profile in the league right now, per Cleaning the Glass. They’re taking more threes than ever, hoisting a triple on 45.5 percent of their possessions (up from 42.1 percent last year), which is the fourth-highest mark in the NBA. Toronto takes mid-range shots on only 24 percent of its attempts. Only Houston and Indiana attempt fewer mid-range shots.

Nurse pulled Aron Baynes out of the starting lineup just before his team swept the Bucks in the two-game series last week. Toronto is committed to a small ball lineup with Siakam and OG Anunoby up front which has helped open up new offensive actions to breathe life into the team.

The Brooklyn Nets are emerging as the favorites in the East after the James Harden trade, but Toronto has the coaching and shot-making to give anyone in the conference trouble in the postseason. Toronto is a flawed team, but it’s one that’s learning how to make the most of its pieces.

This isn’t going to be the year the Raptors fall apart.

[thrashermaxey]

Ramblings: Texier, Pacioretty, Jones & It’s Looking a Little Dusty In Here, Someone Grab The Broom

                                                                  Artemi Panarin celebrates 

  The brooms were out in full force in Columbus on Tuesday evening. Well, not actually as the arena made it very clear they would not allow a broom to actually enter the barn. But you get the point.

  CBJ has been doing the unimaginable in this series – completely dominating one of the most prolific regular season squads in NHL history. They’ve owned them on the scoreboard, the shot clock, and the hits counter. The tenacious forecheck has completely befuddled the skillful design of the Lightning.

  Game four started out much the same way that the first three games went, with Columbus jumping out and dictating the pace of play. Rookie, Alexandre Texier got things rolling early with his first career playoff goal. It was on the first shot of the game.

  Texier’s developmental arc has been something to marvel. As the youngest player in the crop, he was drafted halfway through the second round in 2017 out the top league in France. All he’s done since is make the Columbus scouting staff look like geniuses.

  He had a very strong year in the Finnish Liiga as an 18-year-old in 2017-18. This past season his 41 points in 55 contests were the second most by a U20 player. He came over to the American League to close out the campaign and scored five goals and seven points in as many games. That earned him the call to the big club and I’m guessing he won’t be heading down any time soon.

  Texier will be an extremely interesting player to rank heading into drafts next season. Keeper leagues need to be all over this guy, but his original draft slot coupled with a bit of no-name vibe could push him into sleeper territory. That is, of course, if he doesn’t go off this post-season.

  The 19-year-old has been skating on a line with Nick Foligno and Josh Anderson at even-strength and seeing some second unit power play deployment. With Artemi Panarin almost assuredly out the door this summer, a left-wing spot in the top-six will be wide open. If the Blue Jackets don’t fill that hole with a big fish (a big if), then I like Texier to put his name on it.

  Back to the game though, 1-0 CBJ on one shot on goal. After an Andrei Vasilevskiy save, Pierre-Luc Dubois doubled the lead with a tally of his own. The rink was rocking and the energy was being sucked completely out of the Lightning lineup.

  Steven Stamkos helped that out by getting his squad on the board halfway through the first frame.

  Steven Stamkos needed that one almost as badly as Tampa did. pic.twitter.com/bX5IR1fXgD

— /Cam Robinson/ (@Hockey_Robinson) April 16, 2019

  Cam Atkinson scored a power-play goal a few minutes later but Jon Cooper took a risk and challenged it as an offside earlier in the play. If he was wrong his team would be down 3-1 and, on the penalty, kill. Fortunately for him, he was right and finally showed a modicum of emotion. Finally, we see the coach get some.

  https://dobberhockey.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/04/Cooper-fired-up.mp4

  Columbus went up 3-1 in the third before trading tallies to make it 4-3. The Bolts pulled the goalie only to see the gaping cage be hit three times. Columbus took the game 7-3 and the series sweep was completed. This will go down as one of the biggest upsets in recent memory and the first playoff series victory for the 19-year-old franchise.

  How about GM, Jarmo Kekalainen? The brass balls on that guy to not only refuse to trade away his expiring contracts but going out and buying UFAs-to-be. It almost blew up in his face as it took until game 81 to lock down a playoff bid, but he sure looks good now.

  The Blue Jackets await the winner of Toronto and Boston.

**

Over in Pittsburgh, the Penguins were attempting to stave off elimination at the hands of the Islanders, and you just knew Sidney Crosby wouldn’t stay off the scoresheet in this one.

  The Pens shuffled the top line of Crosby and Jake Guentzel by adding Jared McCann to the mix. The trio clicked on a Guentzel tally just 35 seconds in the game. I’ve written about this before, but the 40-goal scoring, Guentzel is one of the few players who I believe can consistently live in the mid-to-high teens for conversion rate. It doesn’t hurt that he’s locked to Crosby at even-strength.

  I imagine he’ll finally take a full-time spot on the top power-play unit next fall as well.

  https://dobberhockey.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/04/Guentzel-snipe.mp4

  However, the Islanders were not to be blasted out of the building. They scored two of their own and went into the dressing room up 2-1. The score stayed that way until the dying minutes of the third period when the Penguins pulled their netminder and frantically pushed for the equalizer.

  But Robin Lehner would have none of it. The soon-to-be unrestricted free agent has been a marvel this season and has continued it in spades this post-season. This dude is going to get paid on July 1. And he can thank Barry Trotz for it. This Isles' squad is stifling defensively with him at the helm. One of the main reasons I picked them to win this series.

  Off to round two for the Islanders and a date with the Caps or the Canes.

  Oh, Mat Barzal did something that may catch the eye of the DoPS. Probably not, but you never know with these guys. 

Uh oh, Mat Barzal is out there swinging at the high heat pic.twitter.com/WSLdKR85bF

— /Cam Robinson/ (@Hockey_Robinson) April 17, 2019

  **

Tuesday night saw the Jets attempt to keep the streak alive that saw the road team win each of the first three games in their series against the Blues. It took more than 40 minutes before we saw the red light flash. 

  Vladamir Tarasenko buried one of his patented power-play wristers 35 seconds into the third frame. It was an absolute rocket. Needless to say, Vladdy appears to have his mojo all the way back after shoulder surgery last offseason robbed him on some zip for much of the campaign. You may even get him at a good value on draft day due to his less-than-stellar counting stats for the season as a whole. 

  There's literally nothing you can do to stop this shot from Vladimir Tarasenko.

1-0 STL pic.twitter.com/p6Si6jBXfu

— Cristiano Simonetta (@CMS_74_) April 17, 2019

  The Jets would not go quietly into the night though. Seven minutes later, the big line got rolling with Mark Scheifele tallying an exquisite diving tip into the top corner. Assists to Kyle Connor and Blake Wheeler. 

  https://dobberhockey.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/04/scheiffele-tip.mp4

  We needed extra time in this one, and the top line came out swinging once again for Winnipeg. 

  You've gotta love the Jets transitional attack. Kyle Connor ties the series at two games a piece with the OT winner. pic.twitter.com/LaEKupagt2

— /Cam Robinson/ (@Hockey_Robinson) April 17, 2019

  Back-to-back two-point outings for Connor. He's the least talked about upcoming RFA this summer. People are whispering about offer sheets all over the place, but the Winnipeg cap, coupled with his strong production may lead to some interesting negotiations. 

  With the Winnipeg victory, we have our first series assured of at least a game six. Hallelujah! 

  **

Off to Nevada, we go for the final tilt of the evening. The Sharks were attempting to even the series on the road. The first item on the agenda: Slow down Mark Stone and the Vegas second line.

  Stone is in one heck of a groove right now. He came into the evening leading the post-season in goals (6) and tied with linemate, Paul Stastny for the lead in points with eight. Before the puck dropped on Tuesday night’s action, Stone had outscored both the Pens and the Lightning this spring.

  It didn’t take long for that line to get moving and shaking with Max Pacioretty tallying a goal off a pass from Stone. It was another marker on the first shot on net.  18 minutes later, Shea Theodore scored to double the lead. Pacioretty grabbed a second assist on that one.

  This despite the Sharks out attempting Vegas 31-14 in the first frame. They were dictating the play for long stretches only to have any momentum sucked away thanks to weak goaltending.

  Let’s be frank, Martin Jones has been dreadful this season. For all netminders with at least 25 starts Jones finished the season in the bottom-five for save percentage (0.896) and hung around the bottom-10 for quality start percentage (45.2). His inability to make a stop is without a doubt the main reason for this club’s soon-to-completed season.

  That said, Erik Karlsson being on the ice for 80 percent of the goals against isn’t a great look either. EK is clearly still battling something. His acceleration looks dreadful. His ability to pivot from forwards to back is reminiscent of a young Patty Affleck. It's not pretty. The way this season has played out, it doesn’t appear to look good for a contract extension.

  The goaltender is well below average. The blue line is porous (himself included). I’ll be surprised if he isn’t in a new sweater for press conferences this summer.

  Pacioretty tallied another goal (assist goes to, you guessed it, Stone) to make it 3-0 on 14 shots after 40 minutes of play.  Vegas cruised to a  5-0 victory. 

  The series may be 3-1 for Vegas but this one looks over. 

  Patches finished with four points on the night and is up to 10 this post-season. He's tied with Stone at the top of the pyramid while Stastny sits third with his eight points. Imagine a team going out and purchasing an entire second line (first line on many teams) via trade and free agency. This Vegas squad has been exquisitely built and geared for another lengthy run. 

  Well done, George McPhee.

**

Follow me on Twitter @Hockey_Robinson

    from All About Sports https://dobberhockey.com/hockey-rambling/ramblings-texier-pacioretty-jones-its-looking-a-little-dusty-in-here-someone-grab-the-broom/

[flauntpage]

Your Tuesday Morning Roundup

Now that’s more like it.

After a horrendous Game 1 with cellphone gate and Ben Simmons hating people that boo, the Sixers stormed back to dominate in the second half to take Game 2, 145-123. And with that, the series is now tied at one game each.

Ben Simmons had an awful Game 1, but stormed back to make a huge impact in Game 2. Not only did he record a triple-double with 18 points, 12 assists, and 10 rebounds, but he made a much larger impact on the defensive side of the ball. Simmons knew he had to win the crowd back Monday night and did so.

Joel Embiid had a double-double of 23 points and 10 boards, Tobias Harris woke up with 19 points, and JJ Redick scored 17. The Sixers finished 9-of-23 from 3 with Mike Scott going 3-of-5 and scoring 9 of his 15 from behind the arc.

After leading by a point entering the half, the third quarter became a blowout. The defense forced Brooklyn with three turnovers and four misses to jump start a 21-2 run to blow the doors open. In the end, the Sixers scored 51 in the 12 minute span, a franchise record for points in a single playoff quarter. The 145 overall also set a franchise high.

It comes to show what the ceiling could be for the club. A performance like this should take care of the Nets easily in the next three games. But it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Game 3 is Thursday night in Brooklyn and the Nets faithful will sure be ready for that one.

The Roundup:

Aaron Nola has been a disappointment so far in the early season. The Cy Young contender a year ago does not look like one now.

Last night against the Mets with Ryan Howard on the ESPN call, the right-hander went four innings and gave up five runs on seven hits despite striking out six batters and saw his ERA go up to 7.45. That ain’t good.

It was a little better for Noah Syndergaard who went five innings and gave up five runs on nine hits with nine strikeouts.

But despite the fairly even pitching battle, the game went to extra innings where a Rhys Hoskins fielding error brought home Michael Conforto in the top of the 11th to give the Mets a 7-6 win. Hoskins also didn’t help at the plate, striking out four time and walking once.

Speaking of bad starts, Nick Pivetta is on the mound tonight for Game 2 of their three-game series at 7:05 PM on NBC Sports Philadelphia. Pivetta’s ERA is a 9.45.

Speaking of pitching, David Robertson landed on the Injured List with soreness in his right elbow/forearm. That’s great!

The Flyers named former Canadiens, Canucks, and Rangers bench boss Alain Vigneault as their next head coach. He’s a good coach when he’s got talent ready to win now. In my opinion, this team ain’t ready to win now. He’ll need to have some patience if he wants to steer the ship the right way.

The Eagles began offseason activities yesterday, and there was news. Nate Sudfeld signed his second-round tender so he’ll come in as the backup to Carson Wentz.

Josh Adams will miss the start of the offseason programs after recovering from labrum surgery. Could be where the Birds pick up another running back?

Speaking of injuries, Jason Kelce played with three of them last season.

In other sports news, the Clippers completed the largest comeback in NBA postseason history with a 135-131 win over the Warriors. They were down 31 at one point.

The Seahawks and Russell Wilson agreed to a contract extension that makes him the highest paid player in the NFL.

Carolina defeated Washington 5-0 in Game 3 of their Stanley Cup Playoff series, but Alex Ovechkin knocked out Andrei Svechnikov.

Andrei Svechnikov gets into a fight with heavyweight, Alex Ovechkin, and is knocked out cold #StanleyCupPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/TK7Xu1upo5

— James Nalton (@JDNalton) April 16, 2019

In the news, the 2026 MLB All-Star Game should be announced later today in Philadelphia.

The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris caught fire and the roof and spire collapsed.

The post Your Tuesday Morning Roundup appeared first on Crossing Broad.

Your Tuesday Morning Roundup published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

[jenmedsbookreviews]

No exciting nature shots to share with you this week I’m afraid folks. After a long weekend away last weekend for Bloody Scotland, this week has been all about work. Straight back into it on Tuesday delivering a training course for two days. Thursday I spent a good part of the day driving back up north to Airdrie as I was due to spend the day on Friday out with one of my delivery team. It was his first time out with our new POD system after being trained last week and the first time I’ve been out on a van in quite some time. Won’t be the last.

Had a cracking day out but after being in work for 06:00, spending the day making deliveries around Irvine, then at around 15:00 doing the slow drive back home, I was absolutely shattered. It meant the weekend has been spent catching up on all of the household gubbings I have missed like doing a grocery shop, shoving my clobber in the wash, buying new pillows… you know. The usual.

While I was raiding Dunelm (other shops are available), I picked up Luna a teddy bear blanket. She absolutely loves it. I know this because from the moment she jumped on my bed the first night she started purring and padding away at it. The purring lasted a good ten minutes until she finally fell asleep. After a feed the next morning she jumped back on my bed – same again. She crawled up a ways onto the duvet and had a bit of a fuss – nothing. As soon as she walked back down to her blanket that happy rhythm started up again.

I think I have been forgiven for abandoning her all the time. Either that or she just likes the blanket so much she has forgotten me entirely. Hey ho.

But back to the real reason I’m here. The books. No book post this week 😦 Unloved again, but that’s not a bad thing to be fair. I ‘collected’ a fair few last weekend. ARC wise I had just the three (whoops) from NetGalley – one of which was for a blog tour, another a Christmas feature. I received Barbara Copperthwaite’s Her Last Secret; Fiona Neill’s The Betrayals and The Usual Santas, a collection of Christmas crime capers from a variety of authors.

Purchase wise I’ve been very good. I only purchased 1 book. Well, preordered technically and that was Barbara Copperthwaite’s new book, out next month. I know right? See. I told you I’d been busy.

Busy… reading as it happens. Had a stonkingly good week book wise. Finished the audio book that I started last weekend, listened to another and read four actual book books. Go me. I feel accomplished. Now all I have to do is actually write the reviews…

Books I have read

Love Like Blood (Audio) by Mark Billingham

A BLOODY MESSAGE As DI Nicola Tanner investigates what appears to be a series of organised killings, her partner Susan is brutally murdered, leaving the detective bereft, and vengeful.

A POWERFUL ALLY Taken off the case, Tanner enlists the help of DI Tom Thorne to pursue a pair of ruthless killers and the broker handing out the deadly contracts.

A CONSPIRACY OF SILENCE As the killers target their latest victim, Thorne takes the biggest risk of his career and is drawn into a horrifying and disturbing world in which families will do anything to protect their honour.

Wow. What a powerful book. As anyone who saw the recent ‘Written In Blood’ Tv show will know, this book was inspired by a true story, that of Banaz Mahmod, who was tortured and murdered by her own family for falling in love with the wrong person. A so called ‘honour killing’. This book both moved and shocked me in equal measure, as Mark Billingham captured the subject perfectly, the unique elements of humour lighting what could otherwise have been a   very dark tale. My review will be posted in the coming weeks but you can purchase the book for yourself here.

…

The Surrogate by Louise Jensen

‘You know that feeling? When you want something so badly, you almost feel you’d kill for it?’ 

Be careful what you wish for…

Kat and her husband Nick have tried everything to become parents, and are on the point of giving up. Then a chance encounter with Kat’s childhood friend Lisa gives Kat and Nick one last chance to achieve their dream. 

But Kat and Lisa’s history hides dark secrets. 

And there is more to Lisa than meets the eye. 

As dangerous cracks start to appear in Kat’s perfect picture of happily-ever-after, she realises that she must face her fear of the past to save her family… 

From the no. 1 bestselling author of The Sister and The Gift, this is an unputdownable psychological thriller which asks how far we will go to create our perfect family. 

Oh my. What a story. More than simply a story about a woman desperate to become a mother, this encapsulates the power that a lie told or a secret kept can hold when finally it is uncovered. Forced to face her past and a secret she has never told her husband, Kat is not too keen on what she sees. But she’s not the only one keeping things back. Twisted with a slow building tension, nothing in this book is what it seems. You can preorder a copy here.

…

House Of Spines by Michael J Malone

Ran McGhie’s world has been turned upside down. A young, lonely and frustrated writer, and suffering from mental-health problems, he discovers that his long-dead mother was related to one of Glasgow’s oldest merchant families. Not only that, but Ran has inherited Newton Hall, a vast mansion that belonged to his great-uncle, who appears to have been watching from afar as his estranged great-nephew has grown up.

Entering his new-found home, he finds that Great-Uncle Fitzpatrick has turned it into a temple to the written word – the perfect place for poet Ran. But everything is not as it seems. As he explores the Hall’s endless corridors, Ran’s grasp on reality appears to be loosening. And then he comes across an ancient lift; and in that lift a mirror. And in the mirror … the reflection of a woman …

A terrifying psychological thriller with more than a hint of the Gothic, House of Spines is a love letter to the power of books, and an exploration of how lust and betrayal can be deadly…

Wow. Part gothic ghost story, part pyschological thriller, it’s hard to know how to describe this book and still do it justice. It certainly kept me turning page after page, combining all that I like about literature – horror and thriller blending seemlessly to create an unnerving tale with echoes of Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House, a book I absolutely love. I’ll be sharing my thoughts in full next week but do yourself and bag a copy by following the link here.

…

The Unexpected Inheritance of Inspector Chopra by Vaseem Khan

Mumbai, murder and a baby elephant combine in a charming, joyful mystery for fans of Alexander McCall Smith and Rachel Joyce.

On the day he retires, Inspector Ashwin Chopra discovers that he has inherited an elephant: an unlikely gift that could not be more inconvenient. For Chopra has one last case to solve…

But as his murder investigation leads him across Mumbai – from its richest mansions to its murky underworld – he quickly discovers that a baby elephant may be exactly what an honest man needs. 

So begins the start of a quite unexpected partnership, and an utterly delightful new series.

Last weekend I received rather a lovely email, inviting me to be part of a reviewing team for First Monday Crime, a once a month panel held down in London. The plan is to review books from the authors featured on the panel. November’s panel includes the lovely Vaseem Khan, so it seemed the perfect time to break out the audio books on my trip up to Airdrie. And who doesn’t love an elephant right? Well at the beginning of this story, Inspector Chopra is not too chuffed to find himself the proud owner of baby Ganesh. A truly intriguing story and one which captures the spirit of Mumbai through the eyes of a retired Police Inspector and a young elephant with a rather unusual gift. You can see my full review in the coming weeks, but in the meantime why not order a copy here.

…

We’ll Always Have Christmas by Jenny Hale

An enchanting story about the magic of Christmas, the importance of family, and the joy of falling in love during the most romantic season of the year…

Christmas has always been a special time for Noelle Parker. Winter evenings spent with family and friends, drinking hot chocolate and eating cookies at her family’s cozy bakery have shaped her love for all things festive. But this year everything is changing…

The beloved bakery is facing closure and Noelle needs a miracle to save Christmas.

Determined to raise funds for the family business, Noelle sets about revamping the bakery while juggling a surprise new job, caring for the elderly and cantankerous William Harrington in his luxurious, sprawling mansion.

As Noelle melts the frostiness of the house with cake baking, snowball fights and glittering decorations, she helps William to reconnect with a romance that has spanned decades and unexpectedly finds herself falling for his grandson – the gorgeous but mysterious Alexander Harrington…

In the countdown to Christmas, can Noelle save the bakery, reunite a family and create some magical memories of her own along the way?

Aww. My first Christmas book of 2017 and what a book it is. Single mom Noelle is facing unemployment, the loss of her Gram’s beloved bakery and an uncertain Christmas and future. When she is offered a job as a carer to an elderly gentleman it is the perfect lifeline – until she learns that she will be working for the very man threatening the bakery’s future. A heart warming romance written in a beautiful style, I raced through this in one evening. My review will be up soon as part of the blog tour but in the meantime why not preorder a copy here.

…

The Man Who Died by Antti Tuomainen

A successful entrepreneur in the mushroom industry, Jaakko Kaunismaa is a man in his prime. At just 37 years of age, he is shocked when his doctor tells him that he’s dying. What is more, the cause is discovered to be prolonged exposure to toxins; in other words, someone has slowly but surely been poisoning him.

Determined to find out who wants him dead, Jaakko embarks on a suspenseful rollercoaster journey full of unusual characters, bizarre situations and unexpected twists.

With a nod to Fargo and the best elements of the Scandinavian noir tradition, The Man Who Died is a page-turning thriller brimming with the blackest comedy surrounding life and death, and love and betrayal, markinng a stunning new departure for the King of Helsinki Noir.

Who knew mushrooms could be so deadly. Well, aside from anyone who has ever accidentally eaten a poisonous mushroom that is… I loved this book. I love the blend of hunour and mystery. I love the true sense of place and setting you get when reading Antti Tuomainen’s work. I love the simple and understated way in which the story makes me smile, the way the darker moments of humour make me chuckle out loud. I love the fact that I only started reading this as a break from writing up reviews and yet I powered my way through it in one evening. If you take one thing from my post today, let it be ‘buy this book’. You can do so by pre-ordering it right here. Genius.

…

Quite a week huh? Can’t quite believe it myself, but then it’s a lot easier when I can travel and manage an audio book or two. I’ll be listening to the second Inspector Chopra book later this week as I head back to Scotland again for a meeting. Some sacrifices have to be made I’m afraid 😉

Blog wise I had another full week, with a little help from the big sis. I’m still running my giveaway for another week so if you fancy some Scottish themed goodies, enter away.

Cover Reveal: Barbara Copperthwaite and Bookouture

A weekend to remember. @Bloodyscotland Roundup September 17 + Giveaway

#Booklove: Patricia M Osborne

Review: The Dragonfly by Kate Dunn

#BlogBlitz: The Missing Girls by Carol Wyer

#BookLove: Eve Seymour

Review: You Don’t Know Me by Imran Mahmood

The week ahead is pretty full on two. This morning I had a fab guest post from author Alison Brodie about her new book, Zenka. Tomorrow is a double whammy with an author interivew with Billy McLaughlin as part of the blog tour for The Daughter, plus I’ll have my review of She Did It by Mel Sherratt. Wednesday is my turn on the blog blitz for Cold Blood by Robert Bryndza and I have two more blog tours planned for The Frozen Woman and Reach For The Stars on Friday and Saturday. On top of all of that I’ll be sharing the #booklove with author Patricia Furstenberg and rounding out the week with a new review.

Busy Busy Busy. Loving it. I have a punishing schedule at work over the next few weeks but I’m determined to keep up with everything bloggish. If I’m quiet on Social Media, don’t panic. I’m still around but books and reading come second only to work this week.

Have a fabulously bookish week and see you next Monday

Jen

Rewind, recap: Weekly update w/e 17/09/17 No exciting nature shots to share with you this week I'm afraid folks. After a long weekend away last weekend for Bloody Scotland, this week has been all about work.

[frankthefightfanatic-blog]

Dana White Tuesday Night Contender Series Week 5 Preview

Dana White Tuesday Night Contender Series Week 5-Airing August 8, 2017

 The fourth week of the UFC Summer show ended up being, as expected by this writer, to be the best week of the show yet. From bloodbaths to ground battles to highlight reel knockouts, we saw pretty much everything last Tuesday Night.

 In the end, Cuban American middleweight Julian Marquez’s headkick knockout of the highly-touted Phil Hawes brought him a UFC contract, as well as a spot of UFC’s highlight reels for years to come. Meanwhile, Mississippi featherweight Brandon Davis engaged in a three round war with Washington’s Austin Arnett, and turned his win in the best fight of the series so far into a contract as well. Meanwhile, twenty-two year Kyler Phillips might have been a victim of his own brilliance, missing out on a contract despite his forty-seven second knockout of James Gray Jr.

 Now ten new fighters from up and down the scale will hope to add their names to the UFC roster this week, and go into this week knowing that a knockout may not be enough…

 1) Everette Sims (4-0) vs Shelton Graves (6-3)-3 Rounds-Heavyweights

 The big boys will be starting the night off on Tuesday with an interesting matching American Top Team product Sims and New Jersey’s Graves. Sims will be the second Glory kickboxer we see on the show and hopes to be as successful as the Week 3’s Karl Roberson, who got himself a contract. Sims was flattened by a more experienced pro, Xavier Vigney, in his Glory fight in February 2015, but has been much more successful since turning his attention fully to MMA. He has finished all four of his fights in the first round, but his opposition has been nothing to write home about and two of his wins come versus the same fighter, some dude named Frank Tate, not the boxer from the 84 Olympics thankfully.

 Sims opponent will be a much more experienced fighter in Graves, who turned pro in 2012. After a rough 2-3 start to his career, Graves took two years off before coming back with a vengeance in 2015, racking up four straight wins, the last three coming by stoppage, including heavyweight title victories in Global Proving Ground, as well as the well thought of Ring of Combat. While Graves has more experience and has fought better opposition, this one may come down to weight and conditioning, and whether Sims can use his kickboxing against the more well-rounded Graves.

 2) Ricky Simon (9-1) vs Donovan Frelow (6-2)-3 Round-Bantamweights

 Next up is a very even matchup at 135. Simon is a well-rounded fighter out of the Gracie Barra Camp in Portland who fought in such well thought of promotions as King of the Cage, Taiichi Palace, and Titan FC. He started out with seven wins to start his career and was dominating Anderson Dos Santos in Titan FC title fight in February 2016, when he got clipped with a left hook and put to sleep in a RNC, but never tapping out. He has since bounced back with two wins in King of the Cage, the last coming in May by submission. As good as he has been at times in the cage, he may be most famous in the MMA World from some comments made by Chael Sonnen on his podcast recently, where he claimed Simon “was better than McGregor.” Well, Simon will get the chance to show how good he is this Tuesday.

 He draws a very credible opponent in Frelow, a World Series of Fighting veteran who started his career off with five straight wins after a 4-1 championship amateur career. Coming out of the Syndicate MMA gym in Las Vegas, Frelow has four wins by submissions and his two losses both come by five round decisions in WSOF bantamweight title fights, including one to current UFC Flyweight Magomed Bibulatov. This an excellent matchup that has a little bit of striker vs grappler to it and has fighters who have only lost their biggest fights. This is one that could produce some fireworks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0vFHXBjTcc&t=1s

 3) Kevin Gray (9-3) vs Alex Perez (17-4)-3 Rounds-Bantamweight

 Sporting the very cool name of “Pocket Herc”, Gray is a well-traveled flyweight based in the Midwest who has a reputation for being very strong for the weight class. He has competed mostly in the Midwest, including a title win in Caged Aggression over current hard-luck UFC flyweight Eric Shelton. His last two wins came in Victory FC, including submitting the more experienced Nick Mamalis for their flyweight title in May. Gray has a lot of experience, but he will be taking the most experienced fighter on the card here.

 Perez has twenty-one pro fights, making him one of the most experienced fighters we’ve seen so far. Fighting mostly out of the Taiichi Palace promotion in California, Perez was on a three year, eleven fight win streak before being submitted in back to back fights by TUF 24 contestant Adam Antolin and UFC vet Jared Papazian. Since then he was fired off four straight victories in four different promotions. This should be an interesting fight between two well-traveled veterans. Two things could come into play here-first, both men have proven to vulnerable to chokes in the past, with four of their seven losses coming by choke. Two, Perez has won ten of seventeen fights by decision. If he’s content to getting another here, it will probably take him out of the running for a contract.

4) Julio Arce (12-2) vs Peter Petties (5-2)-3 Rounds-Featherweights

 Fighting for most of his career in New Jersey’s Ring of Combat promotion, Arce went 5-0 as an amateur before starting off his pro career with eight straight wins, including winning the ROC bantamweight title and defending it three times. Arce then dropped two straight to current UFC bantamweight Brian Kelleher and moved up in weight, winning four straight including the ROC featherweight title. Arce is from the Tiger Schuman team that had several fighters shine at the recent UFC Long Island card and is both a former WKA Kickboxing Champion and a former New York Golden Gloves champion. He will bring an abundance of top flight striking experience into this Tuesday.

 But his opponent had been touted by some in recent years as one of the most promising prospects in MMA. Petties was an elite high school and junior college wrestler who left wrestling after his first year of college to set his sights on MMA. Due to a habit of smiling manically during his matches, he wasn’t given the name “The Joker” which he is not shy about playing up. When he is on, he is a devastating striker who has several highlight reel knockouts (he also once made an opponent vomit in the ring as an amateur, ala Here Comes The Boom.) But he has played around a little too much for his own good in fights, which have led to two split decision losses to more experienced fighters. He’s coming off a decision win in April and he’s facing a guy who might be willing to stand and trade with him. This one is going to have fireworks. If you were going to bet on a fight to produce a contract winner, this is the fight to do it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3T40wPZ9oU

 5) Mike Rodriguez (8-2) vs Jamelle Jones (7-4)-3 Rounds-Light heavyweights

 A tall light heavyweight at 6’3, Rodriguez clearly favors a certain UFC light heavyweight. He even borrowed his nickname, “Bones.” Rodriguez is a dynamic striker fighting mostly out of the CES MMA promotion in New England, which has also produced Week 1’s Matt Bessette and Week 4’s Carlos Candelario. His chances of being the first from the promotion to actually get a contract looks good. He has finished all eight of his wins by stoppage and after submitting to first round foot lock in November, Rodriguez has come back in 2017 with three first round knockout victories. Training with UFC lightweight veteran Joe Lauzon, Rodriguez looks primed for a contract and may have the right guy in front of him.

 Jamelle Jones was an elite high school wrestler and junior college national champion who made the transition to MMA after his third year as a college wrestler. Fighting mostly at the CFFC and KOTC promotions, Jones jumped out to 6-2 record as a pro when he tried out of Season 23 of The Ultimate Fighter, but he was matched with an a more seasoned striker, Myron Dennis and was the victim of the first round (sorta quick) stoppage. But Dana White seemed to like him. So maybe that was despite this loss and two out of three since, including being kayoed in the second round by TUF 19 contestant Anton Berzin in May. So unless Jones can impose his wrestling early and often against the dynamic striker in Rodriguez, he could be in real trouble come Tuesday Night.

 Winner: Graves, Simon, Gray, Arce, and Rodriguez

[junker-town]

The Toronto Raptors keep evolving instead of breaking

Toronto is modernizing its style and strengths even if an NBA title remains out of reach.

The Biosteel Centre has become the laboratory for the Toronto Raptors' reinvention experiments. During the tail-end of practices that are open to media observation, one can find four rims occupied by shooters, a hat-tip to their designs on internal improvement from beyond the arc. In the far-right corner, a fifth and final hoop is dedicated to the harder, non-habitual challenge of the Raptors' "culture reset" that is playing out, for the most part, on the offensive end.

Lorenzo Brown stands at the top of the key and receives a pick from Jakob Poeltl, who catches the ball on the roll, and bulldozes into assistant coach Nick Nurse, who is trying to stave off the 7-foot center with two pads. Instead of trying to finish through contact, Poeltl fires a drive-and-kick pass to Alfonzo McKinnie, in the corner, who misses a three. After a few more reps, Lucas Nogueira takes Poeltl's place. After that, it's the much-maligned Jonas Valanciunas, who, after a couple tries, starts hitting McKinnie right in the pocket.

“On time, on target passes. It’s something I know guys ad nauseam get tired of us talking about it and emphasizing,” says head coach Dwane Casey. “But I'm a firm believer that you are what you emphasize.”

The Raptors’ plan to bring back largely the same personnel for the 2017-18 season yet introduce a modern, pass-happy, 3-point heavy offense was met with reasonable skepticism. It felt like a stilted mandate, the plan of a team that acknowledges the problem but can't muster a solution. If they wanted to change things, why re-sign Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka to cap-killing deals, and retain Casey as coach?

Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

So far, they've made it work. At 15-7, the Raptors run the NBA’s fourth-most efficient offense. After finishing second-to-last in the NBA last season in assist ratio — the percentage of a team’s baskets that are assisted — they’re now in the top five. Casey’s goal, in training camp, was to shoot 30 treys per game. They’re shooting 32. The Raptors have always been able to rack them up, but their attack this season is more well-balanced, and they hope, harder to solve in the playoffs. In that regard, they’re certainly less solvable, but they’re still squarely behind the Cavs in Celtics in the Eastern Conference pecking order.

ERGE. #RTZ http://pic.twitter.com/3rKCOaS6h3

— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) December 9, 2017

The Raptors, in the end, represent high aspirations with middling results. That is the story of most of us, and most of us don't wallow and recede merely because even at our best, we couldn't be astrophysicists. We try, and sometimes fail, to be good friends, good family members, good employees. Professional sports, of course, veer toward more win-or-go home propositions. Yet the sense of dread that accompanies most good-but-not great teams is conspicuously absent in Toronto. It is hard, it turns out, for mediocrity to become the expressed persona of a team that is so dedicated to maximizing its abilities.

As the Raptors inch closer and closer to their collective best, it is painfully clear they are a cut below elite. Yet the organization is filled to the brim with people who, everyday, are striving to be better teammates and coaches.

Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images

Whether or not the Raptors truly believe or don't believe they can win a championship is a question best left to psychics. But I can say this: Professional athletes are so defiant, so single-minded, that if the opponent was gravity, they'd fervently contend that it's still anybody's game in the middle of a free-fall. The Raptors, who ran into LeBron two playoffs in a row, know what it's like to fall.

When you're really up against it, self-belief gives way to self-reflection. The Raptors, who plodded around the court, and ran their actions through DeMar DeRozan, the NBA’s last standard-bearer for mid-range basketball, risked going extinct.

Dippin' into the bag of tricks early. #RTZ http://pic.twitter.com/RPgcxw1ZnB

— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) December 6, 2017

That DeMar's parting offseason admission was that the Raptors were toast without LeBron James, but still entered this season with a renewed ambition to re-tailor his game in order to better serve his teammates, is some kind of beautiful. A beautiful that will not veer into the transcendent but will, over time, pay the bills.

“As a competitor,” says DeMar, “you wanna do every and anything to win. Sometimes, that comes with balance.”

Casey, on the other hand, is on his own mission against instinct: biting his tongue, as the Raptors hodgepodge of young talent works through their early kinks.

There's Pascal Siakam, busting out overzealous spin moves, taking threes early in the shot clock, dribbling around the world like an oversized Fred VanVleet, bobbling behind-the-back passes in transition. There's Norman Powell, driving into traffic, angles and helpers be damned, while OG Anunoby, fishing for steals, gets back-cut by Courtney Lee again.

“I don't wanna limit myself to just be an energy guy or whatever it might be,” says Siakam. “I want to expand my game, and I'm a hard worker. I started playing basketball late, so I have a lot of things I have to learn.”

To allow reps for Anunoby, Poeltl, VanVleet, Siakam, Powell, and Nogueira, Toronto is employing a 12-man rotation that, at this juncture, isn't showing any signs of tightening. Nobody has a short leash. Everybody's allowed to mess up. After spending three seasons in a row sweating every regular-season loss, the Raptors are finally making like a playoff team and treating it like a breeding ground. Sometimes, you can't act like you've been there until you've actually, you know, been there.

The Raptors, as a result, employ one of the best second units — the best, if you ask CJ Miles — in the NBA. None of the Raptors young guns projects to be a star, but they have helped strike the near-impossible balance of winning now and building for the future.

Bench mob connection. #RTZ http://pic.twitter.com/Gax156Lu03

— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) December 9, 2017

The team had plenty of reasons not to make it work. DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry, career scorers, would have to shelve inborne habits. The shortened preseason hindered their ability to effectively implement a new system. The toughest stretch of their season came early, when the Raptors, in the absence of immediate results, would likely be most prone to reverting to old habits. They couldn't hit a shot for the first month of the season. DeRozan was overpassing. Lowry struggled to channel the appropriate moments for aggression.

“Training camp was tough because it was short. Trying to institute a new system, I thought, we're not there yet,” recalls Casey. “We really struggled in those exhibition games, and the first few games.”

Wax cynical if you must. But the Raptors persisted. And because of that, they managed to execute the blueprint for change that has left so many other franchise stars on the trading block and coaches unemployed. The task of real, appreciable change is often impossible at worst, and trying at best. The Raptors have done it, they’ve done it well, and they have no designs on reversion.

A Sideline Story

I am writing this, dear friends, to eat crow. Well, first, I have to tell on myself. There was a juncture of my life (read: the past year) where I was truly convinced that Andre Drummond just didn't like basketball. I wasn't the only one, and hey, there was evidence suggesting we were onto something. A tall dude without a lot offensive skill who had his first and only All-Star season in a contract year and then proceeded to fall off dramatically in all manner of non-fantasy stats? It was fishy, to say the least.

It turns out that Drummond had it in him to give a shit. A lot of shits, actually. He spent the offseason doubling his free-throw accuracy, which has settled in at 62 percent, allowing his lumbering frame to attract attention down low without being hacked. That is, combined with an attitudinal shift, why he's averaging four assists per game this season — his career high, prior to that, was one. Even when he isn't being doubled, he's done an excellent job of finding cutters from the high post, when opponents try to cheat on pick and rolls. His defense has been a mixed bag. One-on-one, he can't stay in front of quicker guys and ends up in no man's land when he's matched up against spacier guys. But he's gotten better at shutting down traditional pick and rolls, especially with Stanley Johnson on the court, and he's flicked guards out of the restricted area with ease.

.@AndreDrummond had that 20-20 vision tonight. Check out his 26-point, 22-board evening. #DetroitBasketball http://pic.twitter.com/lfXr6pYSNT

— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) November 28, 2017

I don't know what the backstory is behind Drummond's resurgence (and Detroit's, for that matter) is. I'll leave that to Lee Jenkins. But what's clear to me now was that I was stereotyping a tall dude. It’s also a reminder that when things aren't right with a player, the explanation is often deeper than what's happening at the surface level.