#this is set after the episode 'edge of disaster'!!!!!

[spacenintendogs]

For the drabble game, maybe a platonic 24 for Astrid and Snotlout? That would be really interesting 👀

24.

“You’re the only one I trust to do this," Astrid says.

Snotlout blinks and looks around, seeing no one else in the clubhouse besides them. Is she serious? He points to himself, "Me?"

"Yes, you," Astrid says with that "of course you idiot" tone and rolls her eyes, "You're the only one here, yes?"

"Uh, yeah. But... why can you only trust me?"

"Snotlout would you just come on."

"Alright, alright, jeez." Snotlout stands and follows her out of the clubhouse "Of course you'd need my help," He says, puffing his chest up as he walks, "I'm the strongest of us."

"I don't need your strength, not physically, anyways," Astrid says, not looking behind as they walk down the wooden bridges of the Edge, "It's something else."

Snotlout huffs, "Are you making me do work? Did I do something? I haven't done anything to piss you off in like... a day!"

"It's not work, I just need you to get on Hookfang and follow me and Stormfly," Astrid says as she clamors onto the aforementioned Nadder's saddle. Stormfly chortles happily at seeing Snotlout. He gives her a pat and then climbs onto Hookfang, who blows a jealous puff of smoke at Snotlout. Snotlout rolls his eyes and gives Hookfang an affectionate scratch behind his horns where he can't reach, making the Nightmare purr happily.

As they take off and soar through the air, Snotlout continues asking questions about what Astrid wants him to do, Astrid shutting him down. They're above nothing but the ocean when she stops and turns Stormfly around to face Snotlout and Hookfang.

"Here," Astrid says.

"Here?" Snotlout repeats, "What about here?"

"So we can talk..."

"You dragged us all the way out here to tell me a secret?!"

"Snotlout, please!" Astrid shouts, frustrated, "Please."

Snotlout freezes. Astrid isn't usually the type to say please, especially when it comes to him. He shares a glance with Hookfang, his dragon as confused as him. "Alright... what's up?"

"How well would you say that you know the Twins?"

"Uh..." Snotlout pauses as he thinks. He likes to think he knows them well, he certainly can fuck around with them more than Hiccup, Fishlegs, or Astrid, "Pretty good."

"Fishlegs?"

"Probably more than I want to."

"Hiccup?"

"Please, he's an open book."

"Good... I want you to help me surprise them all."

"Huh?! Woah, woah," Snotlout puts up his hands, "I don't do that type of stuff!"

"Snotlout, I'm not good at doing these sorts of things, I never have been. You do this type of stuff a lot! You look at something and know exactly which of us would like it! You remember things, like when we were kids and we couldn't find Ruff and Tuff and then you said they were in their 'dark, soggy alone place.'" Astrid says, pointing her finger at Snotlout, "You got Hiccup the exact bottle of ink he loves a month ago. You do listen and remember what Fishlegs says you're just bad at explaining what he says!"

Snotlout scoffs, "What-Whatever! So what?"

"Help me set something up for them!"

"Why?"

"Because they're our friends and I want to do something for them!"

Snotlout studies her face and then sighs, "Astrid, what happened?"

Astrid deflates, and Snotlout doesn't like it, "I'm... I'm not a good friend, Lout."

"What? Yes you are!"

"Snotlout, while you and Hiccup were gone, and me and the Twins had to defend the Edge, we got into a bad argument beforehand. We made up, but I feel like my apology doesn't... mean anything if I don't actively try," Astrid sounds so lost and it's freaking Snotlout out, if he's being honest.

"Look, you... you can't just rush into trying and doing stuff for them all at once. It doesn't go well and it might come off as pushy," Snotlout says.

"You say this like you know," Astrid grumbles.

Snotlout raises an eyebrow at her and it clicks with her. "Ah..."

"Yeah," Snotlout says, "Actively trying is good, but instead of doing things for them just... be there as they need you, I guess?"

"That makes no sense."

"Uhh... basically just... I don't know! Like, say Fishlegs is going off on one of his weird nerd rants. Instead of blowing him off, actually like... listen?"

Astrid smirks, "So... when they do something, just do the opposite of what you would do?"

"HEY!" Snotlout shouts, "... Maybe."

Astrid laughs, "I do still wanna do something for them."

"I can help you set up a nice evening or something. I can make dinner and you can find something fun for us to do that's NOT a training exercise," Snotlout says.

Astrid brushes her bangs out of her face, "... There's the Peaceable island, they've got a lot of shops and little areas to relax?"

Snotlout can't help himself from grinning excitedly, "That sounds awesome!"

Astrid sighs in relief, "Good... thank you."

"For what?"

"Talking with me," Astrid says, smiling, "I'm glad I can trust you."

Snotlout feels a rush of pride through him. He beams, "Of course! Now let's get to planning that vacation, huh?"

Astrid is still smiling at him as she nods and he has to say, he likes it way more than when she's annoyed.

[youbutstupid]

My personal ranking of all of the episodes directed by Matthew Gray Gubler

1. Mosley Lane, 5x16: the first episode directed by MGG and arguably one of his most iconic. The carnival themes along with the actual story created a really stressful but engaging watch and I loved watching the mum be proved right. The line ‘he was alive yesterday’ really sealed the episode for me.

2. Mr Scratch, 10x21: I love dark and creepy episodes, as you will see from this list, and this episode was perfect. The horror movie aspects added to the mind games that were being played on both the audience and the characters were insane. I loved how the lighting in this episode remained dark so the audience never got any reprieve from the horror. We also had to grieve each character at some point.

3. The Lesson, 8x10: this episode was so gruesome and I don’t normally like gore but this was done in such an interesting and terrifying way. I loved the ballet scene and the end when Hotch is walking through the fake ‘audience’- both such beautifully haunting scenes and I loved how we were put inside the unsub’s delusion.

4. Lauren, 6x18: arguably one of the most iconic episodes for Emily Prentiss’ character. I really loved how this episode opened a lot of things up for Prentiss as a character and also allowed for a lot of things about her to be explained. I also loved the reveal about Doyle’s son and it really left me on edge and questioning a lot.

5. A Beautiful Disaster, 11x18: I really deliberated this ranking because I wanted it to be higher but didn’t know where to place it. I’m not easy to make cry yet this episode had me sobbing. It was so intense and Morgan’s departure was done so beautifully, I honestly didn’t know what to do with myself after watching it. MGG really perfected his craft with the set out of this one.

6. Tall Man, 14x05: this episode is amazing because you can see the influence it takes from the real life Slenderman case which made it really eerie but interesting to watch. I also loved that the episode was JJ centric and we got to learn more about her and her background with Roslyn and her parents. This episode really made me adore JJ’s character even more and AJ’s acting was incredible (I know that isn’t a note about MGG’s directing but I just needed to give AJ her credit because she was insane).

7. Heathridge Manor, 7x19: the old Salem themes with the medieval dresses and the old rituals? Stunning. The visuals for this episode were amazing and the story was so interesting. The end when she hallucinates and we are left with the image of her alone on the doorstep; my Lord.

8. Elliott’s Pond, 12x06: this might not be the right word for a Criminal Minds episode but it honestly felt kind of cosy? With the 80s horror themes and the overall lack of death, this episode is more wholesome than other Gubler episodes whilst still maintaining his classic spark. The end of the case itself was really emotional and heartwarming and I’m glad that MGG gave Hotch’s character some semblance of a goodbye because we know how close he was to Thomas Gibson.

9. Blood Relations, 9x20: probably the most messed up episode ever. Picture every dark theme you can put into a piece of media and you get this episode. It honestly made me feel sick and I think that’s why I liked it so much; I like episodes that make leave an effect and this one definitely did that. I can’t even describe what happened in this episode without getting banned but oh my. This only isn’t higher because I preferred the storylines in the previous episodes.

10. The Capilanos, 13x17: this episode had a good premise and I think the introduction where there is no music and you’re left with the odd squeaks of the clown was amazing. I liked the calls to IT, my only issue with this episode is it had the opportunity to be really tense and scary but the middle chunk of the episode just wasn’t. The end of the case was good though and it started to pick up a lot.

11. Alchemy, 8x20: this episode had a good storyline and the visuals definitely had influences from horror movies such as The Shining. The only reason it’s not higher is because it didn’t hit me as hard as the others, but it’s still a really good episode to watch.

12. The Gatekeeper, 9x07: the storyline was good, it just felt more like classic Criminal Minds than a Gubler episode. The main star of this episode is the team bonding that we get to see with Rossi helping Reid grieve Maeve and then the karaoke scene was so beautiful.

[sezija]

Ok i think i’m actually going insane not talking abt this so fuck it

Dragonwalker Hiccup AU

My fic of it, set during HTTYD1; basically just a prologue

Ramblings underneath (like, a lot. i’m warning you.)

So basically, Dragonwalkers are humans who, when they fall asleep, turn into dragons. Just go watch Wolfwalkers actually it’s a very good movie and the concept is very hard to put into words, i’ve found.

Anyway; thoughts. Many MANY of them. :)

Valka’s had her dragon form (a night fury) her whole life, and lived on an island w her family AND a family of Night Furies. (Night Furies live in family packs, w the parents leading/raising/teaching their children (they only have 1 egg at a time, and only lay up to 3 in their whole life) until they’re old enough to get their own mate and start their own pack. (When a Night Fury pair’s children all have left and started their own families, they will sometimes join their children’s packs since they can’t hunt and fight on their own that well as they get older.))

And bc thw sucks and Grimmel, a man who is still alive, somehow killing off an entire species of dragons is stupid, i’m using my sibling’s idea, which is that Grimmel’s family has been hunting Night Furies for generations. It’s a family tradition basically, tracking and killing them until none are left. (And every person in his family has been killed by Night Furies, further motivating them.)

So Valka’s family (dragon&dragonwalker) were all killed, and only she escaped, ending up on Berk. Fell in love w Stoick, tried to make the vikings stop killing the dragons, was taken by Cloudjumper, the usual. She reunites with Hiccup early, during RTTE, just bc i want them to kick dragon hunter ass together. The war w Drago happens later.

Also i’m completely discarding the whole “king of all dragons” thing, it doesn’t fit w how i want this world to feel. Also toothless sucked as Alpha, i dont want that. And what i’ve always liked abt the HTTYD dragons is that they’re animals. The whole “king of all dragons” kinda,,, ruins that. So that’s also gone now.

I’ve been having a lot of thoughts abt how dragon flocks/packs/pods work, and these are my current ideas;

A “Flock” is a group of dragons of different species, under the control/protection of an Alpha (the Red Death’s flock, (Valka’s) Bewilderbeast’s flock, that one flock of dragons in RTTE s2e8-9 “Edge of Disaster”)

A “Pack” is a group of dragons of the same species, under the control/protection of a leader/queen/etc. etc. (speed stingers, fire worms, terrible terrors, (night furies in this AU))

A “Pod” is the same as a Pack, except for Tidal-class dragons specifically (a pod of seashockers, scauldrons, etc.)

The whole franchise is very inconsistent abt this so i’m working w what i have ok

The “Great Beyond” was separated from Berk/Berserkers/etc. by a heavy wall of fog all around them. There were some spots you could cross, used by traders and such, but the rest of the world has stayed pretty separated from this one corner of the world that experiences Dragon Raids.

However, after the Red Death’s demise, the fog has been slowly dissipating, allowing more to cross over; this way, the riders taking hours and hours of exhausting flight to reach “the great beyond” AND Gobber somehow making his way to Dragon’s Edge on a small, rickety boat both make sense; the more time passes, the easier it is to cross.

A lot of the conflict in the series comes from the human characters not understanding why the dragons are doing something, so giving Hiccup the ability to communicate with them takes away a lot of it, which i’m not happy abt bc it means i need to come up w my own stuff >:( (communicating w the dragons is actually kinda difficult in human form, since his hearing isn’t good enough to hear a fair amount of their vocalizations, and his throat isn’t made for producing those sounds.)

Anyway, my thoughts have been specifically focused on one episode of RTTE, my favourite one since i first saw it, up there w Dire Straits and Enemy of my Enemy; s3e8 “Stryke Out”.

In this AU, hiccup is taken by dragon hunters in his dragon form, taken to a dragon fighting ring. He’s worth a lot to them, being a Night Fury (this is what the art at the top of the post is depicting). He’s caged up for a few weeks until the news of a Night Fury in the ring spread enough, and he has to start fighting. The Riders figure out where he is due to these rumours, and interrupt his fight with the Triple Stryke 3 days into him being forced to fight the other dragons, the same day Ryker came to collect his cut of the money again.

Anyway, that’s all i rly wanted to get out rn. Just. Obsessed. Hiccup becoming crueler and much less forgiving towards dragon hunters after this experience. He’s seen their cruelty many times before, but being caged and muzzled and forced to hurt other dragons if he wants to live, dependant on them for food, even for the capability to eat it, bc of the hook they put in his mouth, really just... changes him. God i love torturing my faves <3

He would take the Dragon Fliers&their Singetails so personally here.

anyway, art;

(i forgot to add his chin scar in many of these oof)

[scrumptiousstuffs]

Only Friends, Episode 6 - Happy F@#king birthday

In which we see Ray’s self-combust while leaving a trail of destruction, Sand showing his darker side, Ton continues to be an arsehole and Mew finally knows the truth

Sand

This episode more than anything depicts how complex human nature can be. Sand (who so far has been shown as someone with integrity) reached a breaking point. We know he is street smart, cares for his mom, and has basically fallen for Ray. We also know to some extent he cares for Nick. But the recent revelations of Ton/Top shenanigans, followed by Ton’s outing Ray on the latter’s feelings about Mew on his birthday plus Ray’s ambiguous comments about their relationship (not that I blame Ray or Sand specifically - the latter never made it clear he wanted more and the former is still hung up on Mew) have made Sand at edge. And then we have Sand deliciously tense confrontation with Top in hospital, where we sees while Top may have changed for Mew but remains arrogant to everyone else, and as per Sand “a prick.” With Top reminding Sand where he sits at the ladder (the bottom), it’s truly a sight to see Sand being calculative (but also in my personal opinion, it’s his way to make sure Ray/Nick being cut off from Ton (plus Top) because they are arseholes) - deliberately destroying his phone (when he doesn’t have lots of cash to begin with), manipulating Nick AND Ray to set off a catastrophic cascade of effects with the latter’s alcohol/substance abuse(s) playing a huge role on what truly was an explosive scene during Mew’s party.

Nevertheless, we sees his caring nature comes into play again. Sand was the only one out of everyone in the party to come after Ray, and despite Ray continuos lashing on Sand (the former trying to physically and emotionally pushing the latter away), he still chased after Ray, worried that the latter will hurt himself with his drunk driving.

Ray

My disaster muffin 😩😫….despite his many flaws, Ray at baseline is an honest person. We know he loves/cherish his friendship with Mew. And I truly believes he is starting to like Sand (also slowly growing to trust and loves him too. At the very least, Sand is the first person outside Mew who treats him more than an inconvenient and seems to truly care for him).

Yes, Ray is immature, but he only really acted whenever he perceived (or being manipulated) to think Mew is in danger. He kissed Mew impulsively when Ton suggested Top is only interested in playing around with Mew. And when he tries moving on, Ton again brought up his feelings for Mew. Even then, he didn’t act out (just giving death stares to Ton in class and during their hangouts), until Sand calculatively informed him of Top/Ton transgression. Again rather than telling Mew straight up, he confronted Ton first (unfortunately hot-headedly), which makes it easy for Ton to control the narratives by playing on Ray’s insecurities and emotions - accusing Ray of wanting Mew/Top to break up so that he can play a hero (which again I don’t think it’s true - I feel Mew has made it abundantly clear Ray will only be a cherished bestie and Ray accepted it - with sadness but he does!), but for Ton to keep putting salt on the wounds, it’s upsetting to see on Ray’s part.

I am not surprised with how Ray self-destruct during Mew’s party. He has suppressed his views and feelings for so long - Ton keeps making snide remarks, Cheum despite being kind and cheerful (as a default mode) has also always thought of him as a drunken fool, Top with his smug “I win” face, and even Mew whose automatic mode whenever he sees Ray is to mother him (thinking that he is either drunk or doing hard drugs, which although comes from a good place doesn’t really help Ray’s fragile self-esteem). And so, when you include Ray’s medicating himself with alcohol (and maybe drugs) into the equation - his inhibitions have gone out of the window. What he actually said during his drunken mess is NOT wrong (except his accusation on Sand being a gold digger - but even then, remember - their relationship started of as transactional and so, it’s easy for Ray to turn on default mode and lash out on Sand) - but the way he said it and timing of all it, well…we saw the trail of destructions he left in his wake.

His relationship with Sand took a setback this episode. Sand never made it clear what he wanted from Ray (from an outsider POV, it’s clear he wants more; even Sand’s wise mom could see it. But Sand is wary, probably a combo of his last broken relationship, destroyed by Top and Ray himself declaring multiple times they are “just friends”). Ray at least has told up front he thinks Sand as friends with benefits. The only point he has never told Sand (before the end of last episode) was his unrequited feelings for Mew. And it’s not something Ray needed to tell Sand. It’s personal and they are still at the stage of just getting to know each other. Anyway, I am in dire need for my sweet SandRay vibes back 😩😫 (and from next week preview, I’m hopefully going to get my wish)

(On the side note, Khaotung beautifully portrayed a broken, alcoholic mess. People with drug/alcohol addictions often hurt and lashed out on their family and friends. They also turn into the worst versions of themselves. So, while I’m still hurting from this episode, I am in awe with Khaotung’s acting 👌)

Boston

Ton continues to be unredeemable for me. He is unrepentant, selfish and unscrupulous. The way he manipulates Ray and Nick is masterful (definitely a politician son, and also the way his dad is proud of Ton’s many one night stands???, let just say I can see why Ton is the way he is!) - the way he spitefully jabbed on Ray when the latter confronts him regarding the whole Top/Ton situation to the way he playfully (and seductively) placates Nick when the latter attempts to firstly confronts his terrible behaviour in outing Ray/Mew in front of Sand (even then he blames the weed cookie rather than himself) and secondly when Nick found out Ton is likely going to move to New York after university.

He is also hypocritical. He doesn’t like being filmed without consent (fair enough, nobody should be filmed/photographed without consent). But for him to say it when he has been doing the exact same thing all this time…urgh, what an arsehole.

And to the end he remains consistent with his personality - not a hint of remorse when Ray drunkenly tried to expose him. Nor a shred of guilt when Nick tried to show solidarity with Ton by embracing him. Just Ton pushing Nick away (which tells you so much about who is in Ton’s mind - HIMSELF)

This is the one character I am hoping karma will come and hunt him!

(I despise him as a character but Neo as Ton is delicious to see. You can tell Neo has fun playing a despicable villain as a change from his usual roles. So, kudos to him and I hope we can see more of him in 2024, sinking into more meaty roles!)

Nick

Everytime I see him on screen, I winced. Ton has him in hook and reads him like a book. It doesn’t help Nick loves Ton and despite knowing Ton’s callous nature, Nick accepts this, making leeway to Ton’s behaviours. I want him to learn he is worth more than Ton because for now, he is moulding himself to make sure Ton never lose interest in him (and if that means ignoring all the red flags 🚩 that are waving madly in front of him, then so be it 😣). From what we see in the trailer, he breaks down in front of Sand with Sand reiterating what an arsehole Ton is (I assumed it may be related to Nick confirming Sand stole the video recording as we Nick clueing on it when he got back his phone). We see time after time, other people (Top, Ray and even Ton himself) also warning Nick about Ton. But love is truly blind, and I wonder what will be the breaking point for Nick - the one that will finally make him break free off Ton (maybe it’s Papang’s character?)

Top

In my opinion, he truly likes Mew (not sure about love yet, but they are getting there). He is trying hard to change - in his own word “a better version of himself.” The problem is, he is only a better version FOR Mew. I can see why Mew falls for him - he is sweet, attentive and basically the perfect gentleman/boyfriend that any person can ask for. However, as we can see, other than Mew - Top is just his usual self, arrogant and used to getting his own ways. He is dismissive towards Ray (and forever lording on the fact he won Mew, like Mew is a prize rather than an individual). Similarly, he belittles Sand (Top is never going to be a person who apologises except to Mew), again emphasising how he always gets what he wants, reminding Sand where he stands in the pecking order. He loathes Boston (fair enough) and in my opinion, he only tolerates Namchuen/April because the girls are not a threat to him (and his relationship with Mew).

He is also a coward. He kept silent about the Top/Ton situation, thinking it’s never gonna come to light (again he didn’t apologise about thinking Ray/Mew had a sexual relationship, which as far I am concerned even if they did it was 2 yrs ago). So, when Mew played him at the end, all I can say is - FINALLY (and even then he initially tried to say him sleeping with Ton was only before TopMew is a thing?? until Mew pressed him, exposing that he knew Top slept again more recently).

Mew

Which brings me to sweet Mew. I have always thought there is more to Mew than meets the eyes. Yes, he is inexperienced in some ways, but he is observant, well- adjusted and intelligent. Him being brought up by loving lesbian couple 🥳😘. And him knowing he doesn’t need to have a bf to feel fulfill cause he knows he can get love from his friends and moms. And so, for him, Top is someone he chose consciously as a partner.

I also love the analogy the screenwriters/directors took with the whole TopMew sensory deprivation dates we had so far (laser tag - touch, silent DJ - hearing, blind date - sight). I perceived it as Mew seeing Top in rose-tinted glasses (during their getting to know each other phase) until he finally got laser treatment this episode (such an irony it was Top who suggested it), and P’ Yo commenting it’s like Mew being reborn. So, Mew finally achieving clear vision and for him to learn about Top’s cheating - 👌. Also, kudos for Mew, playing the long game when he found out Top’s cheating by staying calm and collected at his own party, decking Ray (unfortunately, Ray needed it cause he was truly causing havoc with Ray not listening to any reasonings even when Mew attempts to do that first by trying to calm Ray down), to him seducing Top before dropping the bombshell (Book played this part masterfully and to see him tearing Force’s Top character into pieces - 👍)

I will say it again, I really like Mew and Ray’s genuine friendship. Yes, Mew cannot return Ray’s feelings (and I suspect Mew is trying to gently “wean” Ray off his dependency of Mew cause despite being a good/close friend he cannot be there for Ray 24 hours) but other than that, Mew has made more efforts (than the rest of the group) to be there for Ray. And so, I’m glad that Ray did tell Mew (as any bestie should!) about Top/Ton. I just wished Mew have communicated to Ray better about letting him handle Top (I suspect it’s one of the reason why Ray may have drunkenly try to expose Top cause Mew may have kept his silence, probably trying to process what he has heard from Ray but Ray may have perceived it as Mew not believing him).

April and Namchuen

I’m glad we are seeing more of them (finally!). Like any relationship they have their own problems and with Ray again exposing their private issues during his drunken tirade (urgh that was disastrous, but also yay! - it’s a catalyst for this couple to communicate effectively and sort out their issues).

However, it does seem Namchuen is truly clueless about what’s going on with her male besties. She knows superficially about Ray being perpetually drunk and Ton being a slut. But other than that, it seems the boys are shielding her from the rest of their issues. So, it will be interesting to see how their dynamic changes now that some of the secrets and lies are being exposed (I’m also genuinely worried they are ALL not gonna pass their hostel project 🫣)

Anyway, as usual, it was a roller coaster 🎢 ride of emotions by the end of the episode. The cast and their actings continue to impress me - but the stand out for this episode belongs to Ray, Mew and Sand 👌….so, is it Saturday yet? I need to see Top grovel on Mew’s feet, Mew duking it out with Ton and some SandRay sweet moments to compensate for what I just experienced with episode 6

17/09/2023

[maximumwobblerbanditdonut]

Colin Firth, filming Lockerbie and embodying Dr Jim Swire, 88, in Glasgow as he sported Jim's famous 'Lockerbie: The Truth Must Be Known' badge. 📸 © Wattie Cheung

Sky drama and Peacock “Lockerbie”.

It's not the one original series "Lockerbie," about the 1988 flight disaster. Sky and Peacock began filming in Scotland in February and BBC, Netflix and MGM started programming in March.

The cast members in Lockerbie Colin Firth (The King’s Speech, A Single Man, The Staircase) join Catherine McCormack (Slow Horses, Temple, Lucan) to play Jane Swire opposite Firth’s Dr Jim Swire.

Known as the Lockerbie bombing and the Lockerbie air disaster in the UK, it was described by Scotland's Lord Advocate as the UK's largest criminal inquiry led by the smallest police force in Britain, Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary.

The five-part series, featuring Oscar-winning actor Colin Firth, is based on the tragic Lockerbie terror attack on 21st December 1988 when Pan Am flight 103 from London to New York exploded over the Dumfries and Galloway town, killing all 259 on board and 11 residents.

Colin Firth, will play Dr Jim Swire, a doctor who lost his daughter, Flora, in the 1988 tragedy. Writers also took inspiration from Jim's book, The Lockerbie Bombing: A Father's Search for Justice.

In the wake of the disaster, Dr Jim Swire (Firth), is nominated spokesperson for the UK victims’ families, who have united to demand truth and justice. Travelling across continents and political divides, Jim embarks on a relentless journey that not only jeopardises his stability, family and life, but completely overturns his trust in the justice system. As the truth shifts under Jim’s feet, his view of the world is left forever sullied.

Colin dyed his hair a whitish shade of grey to match Jim's and wore a tartan tie. 📸 © Wattie Cheung

Firth was seen on the set of the new drama in Linlithgow, which will close several roads in the east end and city centre during the filming. Colin was spotted in character and has taken on the role of Jim, 88, the father of one of the 270 victims of the 21st December 1988 Lockerbie bombing.

At the back of Colin's briefcase was a drawing of Jim's daughter, Flora Swire, who was on her way to the US to spend Christmas with her boyfriend when Libyan terrorists blew up the plane.

The real Jim (pictured in 2015) became famous after the bombing for his relentless lobbying towards a solution for the difficulties in bringing suspects in the original bombing to trial 📸 © PA

The series is based on the book The Lockerbie Bombing: A Father’s Search for Justice by Jim Swire and Peter Biddulph – as well as other sources.

Lockerbie bombing, The new drama, Flight 103: Film crew in Linlithgow to work on, have been spotted in Glasgow as filming begins in the city. Road closures are in place as filming kick starts.

A film crew is currently filming in Linlithgow working on a new TV series based on the Lockerbie disaster.

Linlithgow is situated between Edinburgh and Glasgow, to the south of the Firth of Forth and on the edge of Linlithgow Loch. Linlithgow Palace, Stewart residence, birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots, and rest stop between Edinburgh Castle and Stirling Castle.

It had been noticed for its similarity to the original Pan Am Flight 103 which exploded over the town of Dumfries and Galloway, 40 minutes into its flight from London to New York.

@getty Images

Scottish playwright David Harrower (Blackbird, Knives in Hens) is the lead writer. Maryam Hamidi (Vigil) is guest writer on an episode. Additional writing comes from Jim, Kirsten and Naomi Sheridan.

BAFTA Award-winning Otto Bathurst (Peaky Blinders, The Winter King) is lead director. Jim Loach (Save Me) will also direct an episode. Gareth Neame and Nigel Marchant are Executive Producers for Carnival Films. Sam Hoyle is Executive Producer for Sky Studios. Additional Executive Producers include David Harrower, Otto Bathurst, Liz Trubridge, Jim Sheridan, Kirsten Sheridan and Oskar Slingerland.

A true story with an Academy Award®-winning actor Colin Firth not to be missed 📍

#Lockerbie #ColinFirth #DrJimSwire #book #TheLockerbieBombing: AFather'sSearchfor Justice #SKY #Peacok #truestory #bombing #CatherineMcCormack #Linlithgow #Scotland #PanAmflight103 #DumfriesandGalloway #disaster #filming #newdrama #FloraSwire #JaneSwire #series #Libyanterrorists #plane #LockerbieairdisasterintheUK #policeforce

A release date for the series hasn't yet been set.

Posted 6th March 2024

[amorelray]

JJK Season 2 Ep. 17 - Yuuji's Mental Break: An Analysis

❗SPOILERS FOR THE MOST RECENT JJK EP.❗

To start, let's lay down some of the background that leads up to this pivotal moment:

Over the last couple of Episodes, the viewer has witnessed Sukuna take over Yuuji's body completely against his will. Sukuna starts by killing Nanako and Mimiko, the two young girls who had been raised by Getou. Both being merely 16 years old at the time of their death, are slaughtered at the hands of Sukuna - and by extension - Yuuji. Death #1 & #2

Shortly after slicing and dicing the two girls, Sukuna moves on to an opponent he finds a bit more worthy of his time - Jogo. (Man, I hated that bitch) Once again, Sukuna chooses to inflict chaos, pain, and destruction by picking a fight with a disaster curse that is on the same power level of 8-9 of his fingers. Throughout the fight with Jogo, Yuuji is trapped inside as - the great calamity that is - Sukuna lays claim over a vast majority of Shibuya. Additionally, alongside Sukuna's devastation, Jogo is also setting the city ablaze, and all Yuuji is able to do is watch from inside his own body. There comes a moment in the middle of the fight that Jogo prepares his Maximum: Meteor Attack against Sukuna. While he's powering up, a group of sorcerers (2 of which Yuuji knows: Kusakabe & Panda) see the charge and begin to run away. However, just as they all are ready to leave, Sukuna steps onto the scene and freezes all of them in place. He holds them all hostage as the meteor detonates and begins rolling towards them. As it nears, Sukuna releases them at the last second; and thankfully, they all appear to escape. Eventually, Jogo is taken out as well. Once again, by the hands of Sukuna/Yuuji. Death #3.

Not long after Jogo's death, Sukuna senses that something powerful has been summoned. Which leads him to the location of Megumi - thanks to Mahoraga. He finds the other student unconscious as Mahoraga deals with a foe in the near vicinity. Realizing what's happening, Sukuna takes matters into his own hands and saves the target of Mahoraga and heals Megumi because Sukuna "has plans for him." Sukuna then begins to attack Mahoraga under the assumption that if an outsider can take it out, Megumi will be fine. After quite a bit of trial and error, Sukuna finally manages to take down Mahoraga, but not without a blow of cataclysmic size.

Thus bringing the death count to a number the audience can no longer tally. Following the incapacitation of Mahoraga, Sukuna returns to Megumi to deliver him over to the sorcerers to heal him. However, before leaving the area, Haruta runs into the domain radius and is killed. Death #4 (closely witnessed by Yuuji through Sukuna) After dropping Megumi off to Shoko for recovery, Sukuna walks out towards the edge of the radius of his catastrophe and turns the body back over to Yuuji.

Which brings us to the start of the analysis.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Let's start with the very obvious events that related to Yuuji's mental/emotional break at the end of Ep. 18:

The Death of the Twins: These were the first two deaths Yuuji witnessed after Sukuna took over his body. It was likely the first few moments of shock he experienced as he realized what Sukuna would do and that he would be unable to reclaim his body for an unidentified amount of time. The Death of Jogo: This was likely another death that rocked Yuuji's world due to the possibility of mixed emotions regarding this character's death. Jogo was a curse. He was something Yuuji was actively learning to fight against and exorcise, but at the same time, Yuuji likely saw sentience and humanity in Jogo as well. The curse cried at the end and showed greater depths of thought and emotion than most of the other curses Yuuji has exorcised in the past. So, would Yuuji feel relief over Jogo's death, even by his hands? Or would he feel sorrow and guilt over the part he played in that eventual end? Sukuna's Domain Expansion: While the answer isn't explicit, it could be gleaned that Yuuji either knew exactly what happened inside the expansion or was, at least, aware of what took place within its radius. Therefore, adding countless, innocent deaths to be added onto the already crushing weight of 3 other deaths already notched into his belt.

Now, let's take a look at some of the less noticeable moments that likely added to the already hopeless state of Yuuji:

The Structural Destruction of Shibuya: While buildings and street lamps don't hold the same weight as a human life, it can be assumed that the sheer amount of the city that was laid to waste likely took a toll on Yuuji's psyche. Being in the throes of the event that leveled the entire city could easily have added to the already withering stability of Yuuji's mind. Then, finally seeing it with his own two eyes at the end of it all would serve no purpose other than a chilling reminder of what his two hands accomplished in the name of Sukuna. Megumi: Anything and everything. This is his friend, dare I even say potentially a best friend. The next time he sees Megumi, the classmate is unconscious and had managed to summon Mahogara in exchange for his life. He could have died had it not been for Sukuna wanting to save him for other plans, but even then...which one was better? Dead or potentially to be taken into the hands of Sukuna? Both options were much less than ideal. On one hand, Megumi couldn't be used by Sukuna, but on the other hand, at least he would be alive. Which one would be better? This dilemma likely played through Yuuji's head as well as Sukuna decided to save the fellow sorcerer. Would there be relief for Megumi's life being preserved? Or dread over the reason why? Both? Directly Playing with People's Lives: Sukuna let Yuuji get up close and personal with the idea of toying with lives. Showing him that anyone and everyone can be under his command at any point in time and that Sukuna has the power to grant or deny the continuance of life. By freezing the handful of sorcerers as Jogo's Maximum: Meteor Attack was unleashed, Sukuna demonstrated the use of this power to all of the people surrounding him, but more likely, it was a display for Yuuji. This was likely used in a subtle way to screw with Yuuji even further and go so far as to say something along the lines of, "You want them to have normal deaths, but I have the capacity to decide anyone's fate." Haruta's Death: This was a single death that was entirely unspectacular in almost every way, but it meant something. After everything died down, Sukuna returned to the place he first saw Haruta and the blond man feared for his life, but Sukuna let him go. The psychological fuckery that happened with this death in regards to Yuuji's psyche had to be absolutely devastating. It appeared as if maybe one person was going to be let go, spared from Sukuna's sinister grasp. However, just as the audience believed that Haruta was safe, Yuuji likely did too. Therefore, when he walked into Sukuna's domain by accident and was killed instantly - there are high chances that both parties were just as shocked at the almost quiet death.

●・○・●・○・●・○・●

The Breaking Point:

The scene itself is handled magnificently. From Yuuji throwing up: (Showing disgust at what happened and with himself)

To being prostrate and scraping his fingertips so harshly against the pavement that he bleeds: (All pride and sense of self-worth being lost. Being knelt over in a prostrate position is typically associated with asking for forgiveness or lowering oneself to a higher power [whether that be willingly or not]. The scraping of the hands shows the desperation, the hopelessness, and desire to try to grab onto anything to fix the damage done.)

To tears and a blood-curdling scream: (This one seems to speak for itself)

This scene hits every emotional point needed to evoke the pure hate, fear, devastation, hopelessness, and desperation Yuuji feels from this one event. Then, we as the audience get the audio cue to drive it all home. The opening SPECIALZ begins to play in the background as Yuuji screams and cries and Sukuna laughs in the distance. "You are my special" Is such a spine-chilling, sinister phrase to throw into a moment like this. Especially when undertoned by a song in a minor key with an eerie vibe to it. The way this was used in the scene was absolutely magnificent. As the song started, it sounded as if it was Sukuna speaking directly to Yuuji. Like an ominous presence that will always be there and that he has no hope of escape from, because - in this moment - he is "special." Additionally, for weeks, the audience has had a chance to learn and get to know this song and it's been the "opening" or the "beginning" of each episode since The Shibuya Incident began. Each time it's heard it's been a warning for the eventual chaos that was yet to come. So, playing the song as Yuuji is breaking down and the entire Incident is coming to a close feels like a giant:

😈WELCOME TO THE REAL JUJUTSU KAISEN😈

Closing Thoughts:

Overall, I believe this episode was beautifully handled. The acting (JP) was excellent, the emotional beats were hit spectacularly, the directing nailed some of the most pivotal moments in this arc, and of course, the animation was absolutely magnificent. I look forward to am terrified of the future of JJK. I've loved this show for a multitude of reasons, but strong design, story, acting, and directing choices have continued to keep me coming back for more. Maybe I'll write another analysis on JJK one day 😅 For now, thanks for reading!💙

👇🏻Keep Reading for a Few More Additional Comments👇🏻

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE Support the Animators Against MAPPA

This Link has a bit more information regarding what's going on right now. As much as I love this show, I want people to be happy and healthy in the workplace! So, please consider boycotting MAPPA until the demands for better conditions are met!

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[tomorrowusa]

North Carolina may have just gerrymandered 3 US House seats out of Democratic control. But the New York Court of Appeals (what the state supreme court is called in NY) just indirectly gave the Democratic legislature the power to draw a new Congressional map. It will probably result in Dems flipping 3 or 4 seats and possibly as many as 6. In effect, the North Carolina gerrymander has been neutralized – or even more than neutralized.

Under a new map, Democrats could flip as many as six seats currently held by Republicans, enough to seize control of the closely divided House. The New York Republicans who rode a state-level red wave to Congress in 2022 are about to watch their districts shift dramatically to the left. The big question is whether New York Democrats will squander this opportunity with the kind of mismanagement and infighting that led them to disaster last year. Tuesday’s decision was the latest episode in the years-long saga over redistricting in New York. It began when residents voted for a constitutional amendment in 2014 that gave primary responsibility over the process to an Independent Redistricting Commission, or IRC. The 2014 amendment, however, divided the IRC equally between Democrats and Republicans, and the commission deadlocked on a plan after the 2020 census. So the legislature stepped in with its own congressional map—which the New York Court of Appeals struck down as an unlawful partisan gerrymander by a 4–3 vote in 2022. (The Court of Appeals is the state’s top court.) The conservative-leaning majority, appointed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo and led by Chief Judge Janet DiFiore, directed an outside mapmaker to redraw the plans. The mapmaker’s submission was heavily influenced by analyses from experts who specialized in GOP-friendly redistricting. It gave Republicans an edge while pushing two top Democrats into the same district, forcing them to compete against each other. As a result, Republicans seized five or six additional seats (though one was vacated when the House expelled indicted Rep. George Santos).

So we probably have that 2022 NY map to thank for George Santos's brief House career. His district, NY-03, is currently a tossup. But with a redraw of the map, much of that area would probably find itself in bluer territory.

In the peculiar world of NY politics, nothing is simple.

First crack at a new map will go to the IRC (Independent Redistricting Commission). But it will deadlock because it is evenly split along party lines. Then the task goes to the legislature with Dem majorities in both chambers. Dems will get out their mapping software and have a go at it. Republicans will inevitably appeal the new Democratic map and the case will end up back at the New York Court of Appeals which just handed down this decision on Tuesday.

All this has to be done before filing deadlines for the 2024 US House primaries. However, no date has been set for those primaries in NY. The primaries can be held as late as early September. Stay tuned!

[lovecolibri]

SaL anon here my friend, happy to wish us luck on the upcoming episode, on this very normal day where the 911 PR team absolutely did not choose to unleash chaos. Here I was just hoping to enjoy the conclusion of the cruise disaster saga, especially after last week's heartstopping Bathena performance, but nooooo, I won't even get to enjoy 1 millisecond of satisfaction before I'm gnawing my arm off waiting for next week's episode and an explanation for why Buddie are *waves hand nonsensically at stills* THAT.

Anyway, I know I should remember the mantra about getting our hopes up but I can't help it for tonight, the last two episodes have been so incredibly solid and everything I love about 911 that I can't help but raise the bar from where it was (somewhere around the Earth's core) to something at least knee high. So cheers friend, here's hoping any post episode drinking is optional, not necessary 🍷🍷🍷!!!

Not me hitting post limit before 4:30 in the afternoon 🙄. This has been me for HOURS

Sorry I have fandom shit going on Tumblr, and not a lot of actual work to keep me busy. I think the post limit should be at least 500 posts a day. Just let me be unhinged!! I even scheduled some posts out to different days to avoid this but here we are. 🙃 I need 911 and FHJY to not air on back-to-back days for realsies.

I didn't even catch those stills at first since my app is still not working so I can't actually see my dash so I was just chillin in the d20 tag when I suddenly noticed 911 was trending and decided to check what was up and WHOOOOO BOY! What IS all that?! Why are they like this?! They're killing meeeee!

ANYWAY

That mess is for next week. This cruise disaster arc is ABSOLUTELY a veeeeeerrrry close second to the tsunami arc for me. That one edges it out because we got to see more of everyone on the team doing rescues while this one (DESERVEDLY) focused more on Bobby and Athena, but MAN was it gripping television! I laughed, I cried, I legit clapped and cheered when Buck and Eddie showed up to get Bobby and the little boy, I mourned for Wes the security guard, it was all SO, so, so good. And we got badass Bobby on rescue duty!! Athena taking charge and taking NO shit from anyone! We got the firefam being a FAMILY which includes bickering, tattling, gentle ribbing, and having each other's backs because you know each other better than anyone else. I had a GREAT time.

I know we have been pretty good at keeping our expectations down but for right now, I'm felling a little more confident in the show as a whole to deliver good firefam stuff so I'm raising that bar a little bit. As for Buddie, well. I guess we'll see? I'd be lying if I said I was excited about seeing them dating other people AGAIN, no matter if it's supposed to "set the stage" or whatever for Buddie because I just think going the route we SHOULD have had after the shooting. Getting them both keeping their feelings realizations secret from each other and then having a third party confession come out with Chim/Maddie and Hen each getting one side of it and then accidentally cluing each other in has a better feel for me, especially with the delicious flavor of Eddie still having a gf at the moment. But I'm reserving judgement FOR NOW, on how it could ultimately play out for Buddie. It might be fine in the end with how it all comes together, but I'm not going to "settle" for just being happy if Buck comes out and taking whatever relationship we are given instead of the one that's been built up since season 2. But I'm also not throwing in the towel because we don't know where it's going yet. I'm firmly on the "fine but I'm going to complain the whole time" train at the moment with regards to Buck finally dating a man but for some god-forsaken reason it's not Eddie. (At least we lucked the FUCK out and someone else gave AK a job so we don't have to put up with THAT nonsense again.)

For now, I'm going to revel in the show ABSOLUTELY coming back with a bang and feeling like the 911 and firefam we all know and love and have DEEPLY missed. The difference between this arc and that blimp emergency is LAUGHABLE. Bless Tim for coming back and giving us this incredible arc and really showcasing Angela and Peter and the Bathena relationship. I'm excited to see what's next!

[kalinara]

Dream Show Challenge 2023

So it’s that time again, @singledarkshade issued her challenge and a whole bunch of us are taking part.  Keep your eyes peeled for the master list of entries, which I’ll definitely be reblogging soon.

My cast list is, as follows:  Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso), Pedro Pascal (the Mandalorian), Elden Henson (Daredevil), Rachel Luttrell (Stargate Atlantis), Adrian Paul (Highlander the Series), Grace Park (Battlestar Galactica) and Reggie Lee (Grimm).

Here’s my show:

Twenty years ago, an already famous crew set out on what was supposed to be the greatest heist in galactic history.  But everything went wrong: they were betrayed, the score disappeared, and the criminals scattered.

Until now.

They were know as...

The Silver Sisters

Our characters:

Kyra Blake (Grace Park) -  A brilliant pilot, wife and mother, Kyra Blake lives a life of perfect respectability, but it hadn’t always been this way.  Twenty years ago, she had been a Silver Sister, until betrayal and disaster sent her running for her life.  Now, the past is back with a vengeance, and if she’s going to save her daughter, she’ll have to face what she’s done and finish what she’s started.

Samantha Antrim (Rachel Luttrell) - Hacker, forger, criminal, she zigged when Kyra zagged.  Both Sisters fled the consequences of their failure, but where Kyra went for respectability, Sam went the opposite direction.  She lives life large and lavishly, but always with the razor sharp awareness that things can go wrong at any time.  Still, Sisterhood is forever, and when Kyra comes to her for help, she won’t hesitate to answer.

Gabriel Ramos (Reggie Lee) - A one-time victim of the Sisters’ crime spree, Gabriel has fallen on hard times.  The only way to regain his former prominence and prosperity is to resort to the same women who robbed him of them to begin with.  He does have one edge though: little Elly Blake.

Alejandro Campos (Pedro Pascal) - A henchman who’s never quite gotten the recognition he craves.  But there’s more than one way to skin a cat.  As a surveillance expert, Campos has access to a lot of information, and he knows exactly who will pay dearly for it.

Eric Blake (Elden Henson) - Kyra’s husband.  An ordinary man with an ordinary life, Kyra has done the best she could to protect him from any knowledge of her past.  

Captain Elizabeth Westphalen (Hannah Waddingham) -  Where there are criminals, there are cops.  Westphalen has a reputation for tracking down even the most elusive of criminals.  Except, of course, the Silver Sisters.  But now is her chance and it is very personal.

Chief Adam Beckett (Adrian Paul) - Westphalen’s mentor and closest friend.  He’d saved her once, when she was at rock bottom.  Cool-headed and patient, he does his best to keep Westphalen in check, with dubious success.

----------------

And now, our episodes:

The Sisters: Kyra Blake and Samantha Antrim, once members of the Silver Sisters, haven’t seen each other for twenty years, until Kyra appears on Samantha’s doorstep begging for help.  Someone from their past has kidnapped her daughter and she can’t save her alone.

Eric Blake has no idea what’s going on.  All he knows is that his wife and daughter are missing, leaving behind a whole mess of incriminating evidence that he doesn’t know how to process.  He has one hope for answers: Captain Elizabeth Westphalen.

The Avenger:  Kyra and Samantha use the latter’s connections to track down information on the kidnapper: one Gabriel Ramos.  Twenty years ago, they’d been hired to rob him blind and destroy his reputation in the process.   Ramos reiterates his demand: if they want little Elly back, they’re going to have to finish their last heist.

Meanwhile, Eric Blake gets a first hand look at the corruption within the police department as Captain Westphalen crosses line after line in her vicious pursuit of any and all information related to the Silver Sisters.  Worried that his daughter might be endangered in the crossfire, he goes to her superior, Chief Adam Beckett.  He lays down the law: Westphalen won’t be able to continue this crusade without some kind of actual lead or evidence.  For now, peace is restored.

The Traitor:   Alejandro Campos is a surveillance expert that’s been working for Samantha Antrim for years without any sort of recognition or advancement.  What he does have however is backup recordings of all of Samantha’s dealings, going back through the decades, including her meetings with Kyra Blake.  And he knows exactly who’ll pay the best price for them: Captain Elizabeth Westphalen.

Proof in hand, Westphalen now has free rein to go after Kyra and Samantha, in the process, revealing the truth behind her vendetta.  Originally, there hadn’t been two Silver Sisters, there were three.  

The target of the last heist was a data file that contained information on clandestine financial resources of entire governments.  They were betrayed, by the nameless, faceless man who’d hired them.  As law enforcement closed in, the Sisters fled, but Westphalen was left behind.  Adam Beckett was the one who saved her, by pulling her out of prison and giving her a new life and a new purpose: retribution.

The Doublecross: Besieged on all sides by cop and rival criminals, all of whom want a piece of the Silver Sisters’ action, or their hides, Kyra and Samantha return to the scene of their failed heist, where Westphalen and Blake are waiting.

Now reunited, the Sisters do their best to try to kill one another.  Until Eric Blake pulls a weapon on all of them.  As it turns out, the Sisters had not completely failed their heist.  They hadn’t been able to get away with the data file, but they’d been able to lock it, in a way that required all three Sisters to finally retrieve it.  Eric demands that they do so.

Kyra is both thrilled and ashamed to see her husband, but that turns into horror when it becomes clear that Eric has no intention of delivering the file to his daughter’s kidnapper.  He’s been working for someone else, the whole time: their original employer, the one who betrayed them: Adam Beckett.

The truth comes out:  Beckett had been playing both sides of the law for years.  He’d hired the Sisters many times, under fake names and faces, to take out rivals and get himself an advantage.  However, not long after the Ramos mission, he had started to feel like he’d taken too many risks.  It was time to take the girls out.

The trap had worked perfectly, except for the stolen data file.  So in an attempt to get it back, he befriended the abandoned Westphalen and through her, he found Kyra Antrim.  He sent Blake in, and then waited patiently for his chance at the third Sister as well.  Now he has them all.

The Triplecross: Eric Blake is victorious.  He has the data file.  He has the sisters.  And, after he completes his call to Beckett, he gets shot in the back.

Eric wakes up and drags himself back to the others.  Kyra and Samantha are free and preparing to ambush Beckett.  Elizabeth is still tied up.  He is able to surreptitiously untie her and pass her his weapon before he’s noticed.

Beckett arrives, smug and with officers.  He warns them against ambush, revealing that if he dies, his men are ordered to blow the place to smithereens.  He goes inside, smug and confident, only to find Kyra holding the disk containing the file in her hands.  In front of him, she destroys it.

A furious Beckett orders Elizabeth to shoot.  She aims her weapon at him instead.  That’s when it comes out: the Sisters had never actually split allegiences.  They’d realized they’d been set up and they made a pact to find out who had used and discarded them.  Elizabeth, the toughest of them, willingly went to prison so the others could escape.  She hadn’t expected Beckett to help her, but was happy to use her position in the police force to gather more information.  

Beckett attacks, and in his rage, ends up letting slip more about his own role in the scheme.  He’s subdued by a well-placed shot to the leg.  Gabriel Ramos is above, in a sniper position, covering the sisters.  Meanwhile, outside, Alejandro Campos is using his technical expertise to broadcast Beckett’s incriminating words, as well as the research that the Sisters have separately compiled about their treacherous benefactor: more than enough for competent investigators to connect the dots.  It might or might not be enough, but then Eric offers to turn on Beckett in exchange for a lighter sentence and the ability to have some (carefully monitored) contact with his daughter.

Beckett is taken into custody by one of his ever-present subordinates (played by Arthur Darvill in a cameo role, as this is a RipChat meme after all.)  The Sisters, Campos and Gabriel all flee in Gabriel’s hidden ship, where little Elly Blake waits cheerfully.

The real sequence of events is revealed here.  Kyra, alerted by some odd behavior by her husband, starts becoming worried about the safety of her and her daughter.  She asks Gabriel to assist her by taking Elly and keeping her safe.  Gabriel, while furious at the Sisters for his humiliation, was ultimately more concerned with getting revenge on the one who set them on him to begin with and became a willing ally.  When she went to Samantha, as they’d always planned, they discussed the kidnapping and confronted Ramos as though it was real, so that Campos could then bring the recordings to Elizabeth and alert her that they intended to move.  Campos had been a petty thief when the Sisters were active, and he liked the thought that by helping them, he was becoming an honorary “Sister” himself.

The series ends with the five “Silver Siblings”  in Samantha’s luxurious secret hideout while little Elizabeth “Elly” Blake cheerfully plays in the background.

And as a thank you to @riphuntertimemasterlegend for helping me figure out how to end this monstrosity of a show, I include an image for our cameo:

[sleepykittypaws]

New Year's Eve Favorites

New Year’s Eve rolls around just six days after Christmas, when many are still knee-deep in wrapping paper and ribbon. It’s easy to just roll New Year’s into the Christmas celebrations, doing little to mark the moment beyond watching the ball drop at midnight. But there are plenty of films centered around New Year’s that deserve their own holiday film recognition. 

Updated: December 31, 2023

My Favorites…

About Time (2013) - This Richard Curtis written/directed movie is one of my all-time favorite films, period. But it all starts with a life-changing New Year’s Eve party.

When Harry Met Sally (1989) - Often considered a bit of a stealth Christmas movie, this rom-com classic ends, unforgettably, on New Year’s Eve.

The Cutting Edge (1992) - It’s hard to call this movie about a former hockey star turned Olympic figure skater “good,” in any objective sense, but that doesn’t keep me from loving it wholeheartedly. Even if you haven’t seen it 50 or so times, like I have, I doubt anyone can forget that moment when sparks fly, literally, between Doug Dorsey and Kate Moseley at a New Year’s Eve party, when they twirl into each other’s arms with sparklers at the stroke of midnight (sigh). 

Brittany Runs a Marathon (2019) - Not specifically holiday-themed but Brittany makes a pretty perfect New Year’s watch. Funny, inspirational and all about self-improvement. Absolutely adore this one.

About a Boy (2002) - While it also features some sweet Christmas scenes, Hugh Grant and Rachel Weisz meet cute on New Year’s Eve.

The Poseidon Adventure (1972) - The movie that defined 1970s disaster movies remains good, cheese-tastic New Year’s fun. I remember the first time I saw this one as a kid, on cable, on New Year’s Eve. A group of New Year’s revelers trying to escape a cruise ship that flips over? Indelible.

Starstruck (2021, HBO Max) - Think of season one of this 6-episode British series, written and created by a Kiwi, as a three hour rom-com that begins on New Year’s Eve and ends the following Christmas. A delightful watch any time, but extra-special during the holiday season.

Peter’s Friends (1992) - This criminally under-rated British ensemble  comedy features a host of stars—Hugh Laurie, Imelda Staunton, Emma Thompson, Kenneth Branagh and Rita Rudner—gathering to celebrate the New Year at their college chum’s English estate. 

Something from Tiffany’s (2022, Prime Video) - This holiday romance centers around Christmas gifts from the famous jewelry being inadvertently swapped, but most of the movie takes place between Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve when everything comes to a head.

Plane (2023) - If this New Year’s Eve-set action movie leaned in just a bit more to its New Year celebration, it could reach Die Hard-style holiday classic status. While the New Year’s element doesn’t factor much after the first 15 minutes, this is a well-made, well-acted and well-paced watch. Honestly, some of Gerard Butler’s best work which, yeah, isn’t the highest bar, but Plane is a super entertaining action-disaster pic that, forgive the pun, is a lot more grounded than expected.

Other People (2016) - This very well told story about losing a loved one to cancer is funnier than you’d think, given the subject matter, has an amazing cast, led by Jesse Plemons, Molly Shannon and Bradley Whitford, and starts off with a New Year’s Eve bash.

About Fate (2022) - This American remake of a Soviet-era New Year classic, 1976′s The Irony of Fate, available to legally watch on YouTube via Mosfilm, stars Emma Roberts and Thomas Mann as recent (sort of) dumpees who meet cute due to alcohol-induced architectural confusion, and end up attending a New Year’s Eve wedding together with chaotic results, with the whole story playing out from December 30th to January 1st.

Fruitvale Station (2013) - This gut-wrenching Ryan Coogler feature directorial debut should have won Michael B. Jordan an Oscar. Set entirely on New Year’s Eve, it’s the devastating true story of the last day of Oscar Grant’s life. 

Phineas and Ferb: Happy New Year (2012, Disney Channel) - This fun episode of the crazy kids’ series works as a stand-alone New Year’s special that’s better than most.

Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings: Two Doors Down (2019, Netflix) - Cheese-y, feel-good, queer holiday romance that ends with Dolly Parton singing Auld Lang Syne. What more could you want?

An Affair to Remember (1957) - This Cary Grant-Deborah Kerr classic is basically the third lead in Sleepless in Seattle, but it is a New Year’s classic in its own right, as Kerr and Grant’s characters vow to meet on the top of the Empire State building after an epic New Year’s Kiss.

Entrapment (1999) - There’s just something about thieves and New Year’s, I guess, as the final job in this Sean Connery-Catherine Zeta Jones film is set on Y2K. There’s also a good bit of bonus millenium Christmas content.

Snoopy Presents: For Auld Lang Syne (2021, Apple TV+) - A kid-friendly New Year's Eve watch the whole family can enjoy. Apple is doing a fantastic job of preserving the Peanuts legacy with their new holiday specials.

Holiday (1938) - Another Cary Grant classic that features a memorable New Year’s Eve. Even though the “holiday” of the title refers to a vacation, it’s on New Year’s Eve that sparks really begin to fly between Grant and Katherine Hepburn. Trouble is, she’s his fiancee’s sister.

After the Thin Man (1936) - This sequel to the runaway 1934 hit kicks off on New Year’s Eve, with James Stewart joining Myrna Loy and William Powell for more mystery solving slapstick antics.

Red, White & Royal Blue (2023, Prime Video) - Based on the book of the same name, this delightful rom-com’s President’s son-meets-Prince romance really gets going at a New Year’s Eve party, following fitful Thanksgiving-Christmas flirting via text.

In Search of a Midnight Kiss (2007) - This independent dark-ish, rom-com can be a little hard to find, but it’s worth seeking out. Two lonely people looking for hope and love by New Year’s Eve.

Ghostbusters II (1989) - Definitely less than the original classic, this holiday-set sequel concludes with New Yorker’s saving the city via a chorus of Auld Lang Syne, with an assist from Lady Liberty.

Boogie Nights (1997) - Definitely not an uplifting New Year’s Eve watch, this Paul Thomas Anderson classic does feature outstanding performances and an unforgettable New Year’s Eve party appearance by William H Macy.

Rudolph’s Shiny New Year (1976, ABC) - Not the only animated New Year’s special, but easily the most memorable, this Rankin-Bass classic has Rudolph teaming up with Baby New Year and Father Time to save the holiday.

More to Explore…

If my New Year’s picks don’t make your ball drop, there’s plenty more movies/specials set around welcoming the new year.

Happy New Year (2014) - This bouncy, Bollywood showstopper is available on Netflix.

New Year’s Eve (2011) - This farly-cynical Garry Marshall attempt to recreate the holiday anthology magic of Love, Actuallyshouldn’t even be mentioned in the same breath as that film, but this mess of a movie can still be fairly good fun when watched ironically with enough wine and the right friends.

Happy New Year, Charlie Brown (1986, CBS) - Nowhere near as iconic as the 1960s Peanuts specials, this is still a solid, kid-friendly New Year’s watch.

Pete the Cat: A Groovy New Year (2017, Amazon Prime) - Hep cat animated special based on the popular children’s book character.

200 Cigarettes (1999) - Set in the 1980s, this follows a group of young New Yorkers looking for a memorable New Year’s Eve.

Snowpiercer (2013) - The Chris Evans dystopian thriller where civilization is relegated to an always moving train, strictly divided by class, and New Year’s is celebrated every time they circumnavigate the globe.

Highball (1997) - This very early, extremely low budget Noah Baumbach movie takes place over a series of holiday parties that culminates with a New Year’s Eve bash. Is it good? Well, Baumbach petitioned to have his name removed from it, so…

Waiting to Exhale (1995) - This movie about a close-knit friend group and their complicated romantic lives, based on the book by Terry McMillan, is framed by New Year’s Eve celebrations.

Four Rooms (1995) - This overly ambitious anthology, featuring four stories each written and directed by a different high profile auteur, with only one connecting character, a hotel bellman, takes place entirely on New Year’s Eve.

Ocean’s Eleven (1960) - The Rat Pack original isn’t as fun as the George Clooney-Brad Pitt remakes, but it does set its heist on New Year’s Eve.

The Sword in the Stone (1963) - This Disney animated classic’s pivotal moment—the extraction of Excalibur—occurs at the New Year’s tournament, which Arthur attends as a lowly squire.

The Godfather Part II (1972) - Fredo Corleone is handing out New Year’s party kisses in this, the only sequel to ever win the best picture Oscar.

Midnighters (2017) - When a couple accidentally hit a man with their car on New Year’s Eve, they put him in the backseat and go home to avoid the consequences.

Radio Days (1987) - This Woody Allen (yeah, I know) movie ends with the cast welcoming 1944 on a wintry New York, New Year’s Eve.

Repeat Performance (1947) - A New Year’s Eve wish to repeat the year comes true, but fixing mistakes made proves more difficult than Joan Leslie imagined.

Sunset Boulevard (1950) - The iconic tale, later turned into a Broadway musical, hinges on a New Year’s Eve party. 

A Midnight Kiss (2018, Hallmark) - Carlos PenaVega helps Adelaide Kane plan a New Year’s bash. 

Royal New Year’s Eve (2017, Hallmark) - Designer Jessy Schram meets her Prince at a New Year’s ball. 

The Birthday Wish (2017, Hallmark) - This is another Jessy Schram-joint that starts at New Year’s and is one of the more original Hallmark movies of recent years.

A New Year’s Resolution (2021, Hallmark) - This long-delayed Aimee Teegarden and Michael Rad movie finally got an airdate in early 2021.

Midnight at the Magnolia (2020, Netflix) - Natalie Hall and Evan Williams are radio hosts who fake a romance for a New Year’s Eve live show.

A Year and Change (2015) - Bryan Greenberg topples off a roof at a New Year’s Eve party, leading him to change his life.

The Gold Rush (1925) - For those who like their New Year’s celebrations extra-classic, this iconic Charlie Chaplin outing features the Little Tramp all alone on New Year’s Eve.

Two Lovers (2008) - This little-known Joaquin Phoenix-Gwenyth Paltrow movie culminates on New Year’s Eve.

Strange Days (1995) - Kathryn Bigelow’s sci-fi/romance prominently features a plot pivotal New Year’s Eve party.

Hudsucker Proxy (1994) - Some have called this critically-panned Tim Robbins movie It’s a Wonderful Life for New Year’s Eve. It even features Charles Durning as an angel.

Poseidon (2006) - This overly serious remake was a box office flop, but it’s still a big, dumb New Year’s Eve disaster flick. Just be careful it’s extra-long run time doesn’t make you miss the ball drop.

Money Train (1995) - This heist film starring Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson (remember when those guys were leading men and action stars?) has these former cops robbing the NYC subway on New Year’s Eve.

Are We There Yet? (2005) - Ice Cube’s original road trip comedy takes place on New Year’s Eve.

Carol (2015) - It’s a New Year’s Eve party that lets these repressed ladies first turn their passion loose.

Phantom Thread (2017) - Not mostly about the holiday, but does feature one of the most visually stunning New Year’s Eve parties ever committed to film.

New Year’s Evil (1980) - It wouldn’t be a holiday without a bad slasher film taking place on it.

Sex and the City: The Movie (2008) - The ladies celebrate a very memorable New Year’s Eves in this movie, based on the HBO series.

A Frozen New Year’s Eve (2019) - Direct-to-VOD animated kids’ movie

Dr Who: The Movie (1996, BBC) - The Time Lord takes on the millennium in this made-for-TV movie.

New Year’s Day (1989) - This little known movie is David Duchovny’s first major role. He plays a man who moves to L.A. on New Year’s Eve, only to find his newly-rented apartment occupied by three women. 

A Long Way Down (2014) - Four strangers meet on a rooftop on New Year’s Eve, each contemplating jumping.

Endings, Beginnings (2020) - This Shailene Woodley-starring movie features a love triangle that begins at a fateful New Year’s Eve party.

Do It Yourself, Mr. Bean (1994, ITV) - Mr. Bean plans a New Year’s bash in this ITV special. 

A Month in Thailand (2012) - This Romanian film follows a man in the time between Christmas and New Year’s trying to decide if he should pursue the ex who broke his heart, or stick with his current adoring girlfriend.

The Shining (1980) - This bleak, wintery horror classic wouldn’t be the most uplifting way to celebrate New Year’s Eve, but its plot pivotal NYE party photo certainly makes it seasonally appropriate if you’re looking to scream in the New Year.

Age of Adaline (2015) - This very weird movie starring Harrison Ford and Blake Lively begins at a New Year’s Eve party, with the holiday holding other significance in the story.

New Year, New You (2018, Hulu) - New Year’s entry in the Blumhouse-produced horror, holiday anthology movie series.

What for New Year’s Eve? (2018, a.k.a. Cosa Fai a Capodanno?) - This Italian comedy-drama from writer-director Filippo Bologna recently became available in the U.S. and explores what happens when a group of friends decide to switch partners at a New Year’s Eve party.

Midnight Kiss (2019, Hulu) - more holiday-set horror from Blumhouse.

New Year’s Kiss (2019) - Made-for-TV rom-com starring Erin Karpluk and Robin Dunne.

Way Through Snow (2017) - Russian movie about an online couple meeting for the first time on New Year’s, available on Amazon Prime.

Break (2019) - Russian horror-thriller directed by Tigran Shakyan about group of friends who get stuck in a gondola during a New Year’s Eve power outage.

I Hate New Year’s (2020) - LGBTQ holiday rom-com about a singer who goes home for the holidays and (surprise!) finds unexpected romance, made by TelloFilms.com.

The Lost Husband (2020) - Gentle romantic, Texas-set drama that’s not full of holiday cheer, but does start on New Year’s Eve, if you’re looking for a low stakes way to ring in the New Year.

The Silver Skates (2021, Netflix) - This sweeping Russian romantic epic, a lavish costume drama filmed in St. Petersburg, is set around the holidays, namely New Year’s, and is Netflix’s first-ever Russian-language international original.

All My Friends Are Dead (2021, Netflix) - Polish horror-comedy set at a New Year’s Eve party that takes an unexpected turn.

Prime Time (2021, Netflix) - Polish-language hostage thriller set on New Year’s Eve 1999. 

Ask Me to Dance (2022) - Rom-com set between Christmas and New Year’s when a fortune teller promises two strangers they’ll meet their true love by midnight on New Year’s Eve.

Stuck with You (2022, Netflix) - French romance about strangers stuck in an elevator on their way to a New Year’s Eve party.

Terror Train 2 (2022, Tubi) - Tubi original slasher sequel set during a New Year’s Eve train ride.

Snow Falls (2023) - The New Year’s Eve horror movie about a group of friends trapped by snow in a remote cabin stars Hallmark regular Jonathan Bennett.

To Catch a Killer (2023) - Shailene Woodley plays a troubled cop trying to catch a New Year’s Eve killer.

New Year, New Us (2019) - A newlywed couple overcomes challenges in their marriage with New Year’s resolutions.

New Year, New Us 2: Love Goals (2023) - Sequel to New Year, New Us

Sealed with a List (2023) - Hallmark holiday romance about undone resolutions that concludes on New Year's Eve

Christmas ➜ New Year’s

And don’t forget to consider these movies that carry over from Christmas to New Year’s, giving us a solid dose of both holidays.

Rent (2005)

Bridget Jones’s Diary* (2001) 

Last Holiday** (2006)

Holiday Inn (1942)

The Holiday*** (2006)

Sleepless In Seattle (1993)

Trading Places (1983)

While You Were Sleeping (1995)

Bachelor Mother (1939)

Bundle of Joy (1956, a remake of Bachelor Mother)

The Apartment (1960)

A Christmas Prince (2017, Netflix)

Holidate***** (2020, Netflix)

Starstruck***** (2021, HBO Max)

About Fate (2022)

Ask Me to Dance (2022)

Something from Tiffany’s (2022, Prime Video)

*If I hadn’t already dubbed Bridget my all-time favorite stealth Christmas movie, I’d have put it on my New Year’s list for sure, probably at No. 1, since Jones’s New Year’s resolutions bookend the film, which actually starts on New Year’s Day (when she meets Darcy at her mom’s annual turkey curry buffet). Really, it’s a pretty perfect New Year’s watch and an annual in between Christmas and New Year’s must-view in our house.

**As with Bridget, Last Holiday would be at or near the top of my New Year’s favorites, if I hadn’t already dubbed it one of my favorite Christmas films. But, while it takes place over the entire Christmas season, much more happens on New Year’s in this Queen Latifah classic, than Christmas, and it’s a great way to spend any New Year’s Eve.

***And the same goes for The Holiday, which is mostly Christmas, but culminates on New Year’s Eve, the only part of the film where all four leads share a scene.

****Yet another that would be at or near the top of my New Year’s list, if it weren’t already on my Top 25 Stealth Christmas Movies list, as the New Year’s Eve in Holidate was among its best, and most memorable, moments. 

*****Starstruck takes the opposite tack of the rest of this list, starting on New Year’s Eve and ending at Christmas.

TV Series Standouts

While Thanksgiving and Christmas-themed episodes of TV series abound, the timing of New Year’s, coming when most shows are on hiatus, means there are only a few truly iconic television episodes devoted to this holiday. A handful worth noting…

Mum: December (2016, BBC, series 1)

Absolutely Fabulous: Happy New Year (1995, BBC, series 3)

Dr. Who: Resolution (2019, BBC)

On My Block: Chapter Eleven (2019, Netflix)

My So-Called Life: Resolutions (1995, ABC, season 1)

The X-Files: Millennium (1999, FOX, season 7)

Futurama: Space Pilot 3000 (1999, FOX, pilot) - Like Matt Groening’s Christmas-themed Simpson’s pilot, this series intro could also be seen as a New Year’s Eve holiday special.)

That ‘70s Show: Finale (2006, FOX, season 8) -Though it aired in May, this series ender was set on New Year’s Eve 1979

Fraiser: RDWRER (2000, NBC, season 7)

30 Rock: Klaus and Greta (2010, NBC, season 4)

Friends: The One with the Monkey (1994, NBC, season 1)

Friends: The One With All the Resolutions (1999, NBC, season 5)

Friends: The One with the Routine (1999, NBC, season 6)

Modern Family: New Year’s Eve (2013, ABC, season 4)

How I Met Your Mother: The Limo (2005, CBS, season 1)

How I Met Your Mother: Tailgate (2012, CBS, season 7)

The Office: Ultimatum (2011, NBC, season 7)

Seinfeld: The Millennium (1997, NBC, season 8) - This one actually doesn’t take place at New Year’s, but is about a New Year’s Eve party

[juniperhillpatient]

The Chase Re-Watch

I love this episode. We get to see the Dangerous Ladies™ in action, & the fight scenes that take up the second half are just so fun.

I think that Avatar is consistently good at setting up interpersonal conflicts that feel engaging & real. Toph isn't instantly besties with the Gaang, & that's not all that surprising considering her brash personality. Mainly, she clashes with Katara & this is delightful to see. Katara is often designated as the most emotionally mature member of the group & in some ways, she is. But she's also prone to outbursts & she hates getting blown off. As someone who loves Katara's character, I actually love seeing this more petty side of her & I would love to lean into it in fics more often. I think Katara has certain things that trigger her anger & make her get mean & laziness & selfishness seem to contribute to this. It's also relevant that Katara was raised in a culture that values collaboration. The Southern Water Tribe is small. Everyone has to work together. So, Toph's more individualistic approach was bound to get under Katara's skin.

But what's really going on with Toph? Part of my reason for doing a re-watch is to understand the characters & their layered motivations more. I've watched this episode a number of times & always puzzled over Toph's behavior. She is the member of the Gaang I feel like I have the least solid grasp on as a character if I'm being honest. I have issues with Suki as well, but they're mostly due to her being underdeveloped & not given enough screen time, & we'll get to her later. For now, let's talk about Toph.

Toph has just left behind her life of wealth. I've always taken her refusal to help set up camp as rich-kid lazy behavior. To an extent, I stand by that, but let's dig deeper into the "why."Toph has always had servants doing everything for her. But I think that her insistence that she "can carry her own weight" feels important, & implies that there's more going on than just laziness. She also snaps that she "gave up everything she had to teach Aang earth-bending." I think it's worth noting that Toph, while she wants a life of adventure, was also initially against joining the Gaang. She is, after all, only twelve. So, part of her attitude problem has to do with being away from home & probably trying to act tough when in reality, she's overwhelmed. I think that just doing things for herself feels like a big deal for her. She doesn't know how to operate in a group & can't understand what Katara wants from her. Maybe if Katara was more direct rather than dancing around the issue, that would help. Katara is indirect in her pushes to get Toph to help, & it's possible Toph doesn't really understand the crux of the issue & it would help to have it explained to her bluntly. So, different communication styles are at play here too.

It's also relevant that because they're being chased, everyone is tired & on edge so tensions are high. This is just a recipe for disaster. I loved seeing Aang snap too for similar reasons that I loved seeing Katara get petty. Aang is usually not an angry person. Don't get me wrong, he has anger. He certainly has a lot of deep-seated rage over what happened to his people, but this isn't about that. What I'm saying is that in interpersonal conflicts, Aang can be childish but he's typically not one to start yelling at people easily. I think two big factors pushed Aang over the edge here. 1. He's exhausted, & he's frustrated by the ongoing tension. 2. Toph decided to bring Appa into it & blame him.

Aang is right to be protective over Appa. Appa saves the Gaang's lives constantly. He's the one carrying the group on his back through all of this. Also, protecting your pet above everything is just a mood.

Still, after leaving everything behind Toph is ganged up on & she's had it. She leaves. Then we get one of my favorite Iroh scenes yet:

Iroh: I poured your tea because I wanted to and for no other reason.

Toph: People see me and think I'm weak. They want to take care of me, but I can take care of myself, by myself.

Iroh You sound like my nephew, always thinking you need to do things on your own, without anyone's support. There is nothing wrong with letting the people who love you help you. Not that I love you, I just met you.

The joke at the end gets them both laughing & Iroh goes on to explain that he is tracking Zuko & watching out for him. The conversation helps Toph, not because she relates to Zuko (who is just a hypothetical person to her right now anyway) but because she sees that Iroh needs Zuko.

This line at the end shows that Toph actually got more out of Iroh than he was perhaps willing to admit to himself: "Oh, and about your nephew, maybe you should tell him that you need him, too."

Iroh is another character I struggle to understand, though I feel like reading @Peony-Pearl's metas & thoughts on him has helped me gain insight. I think that Iroh was so focused on helping Zuko & looking out for him, he didn't consider that it might be mutually beneficial to their reconciliation if he just admitted that he needed Zuko too, but Toph figured it out right away. Also, props to Toph for her emotional intelligence here. She is brash so her ability to catch onto the nuances of relationships is easy to overlook, but it's there.

The fight scenes were probably my favorite parts of the episode, but I don't have much to say about them other than that they were badass. Ty Lee, Mai, & Azula are terrifying villains. When they show up, it's a lot scarier than when Zuko or Zhao showed up. They just feel so hyper-competent & unstoppable. There's a true "oh shit" feeling that drops when they pop up. Also, @Theowritesfiction mentioned that Ty Lee & Sokka's fight & her commenting on his cuteness afterward is a good reason Ty Lee/Sokka should be a more popular ship & I totally agree! Also, Ty Lee & Mai working seamlessly together for murder goals is cute.

I will never not love Azula imitating Zuko to explain to Aang who she is. Especially because Zuko later goes on to imitate Azula when planning how to get the Gaang to let him in. Siblings™!

The fight scene at the end with Aang, Azula, & Zuko is iconic. Again, I just don't have a lot to say about the fight scenes other than "neat!" The moment when Aang laughs at Zuko getting called "Zuzu" is a favorite for me, it's just so funny.

And of course, Azula doesn't truly "surrender with honor." She attacks Iroh. This was a smart move because it was a sure way to get Zuko to stop fighting & distract everyone while she ran away. Azula's devious mind shows itself in her every move.

Then we have a moment that gets me every time. Zuko chases away the Gaang when Katara tries to help. I felt this way the first time I watched the show & I stand by it now: This was the moment (so far) that has made me the most furious with Zuko. I'm not saying it's his actual lowest moment or the worst thing he's done or that I don't get that he sees them as enemies, I'm saying it makes me personally really angry. Iroh was just talking about how Zuko insists on doing everything on his own, & here he goes, demonstrating this flaw. If he'd accepted Katara's help as a healer, she could've possibly saved Iroh right there. If Iroh had died, Zuko would be at least partially responsible for turning away help. It's just very frustrating & infuriating for me.

That's all I have for this episode!

For the Iconic Behavior (behavior I personally think is Iconic) competition: Mai & Ty Lee get 100 points each for the fight with Sokka & Katara. Sorry, but the water siblings lost if it wasn't for Appa so they get none. Maybe I should've put Appa & Momo into this competition tbh but it's too late in the game now. Katara gets 100 points for the "I'M COMPLETELY CALM" moment though & Sokka gets 100 for putting up with the comments about how he doesn't count because he's not a bender. Katara gets 500 for saving Aang's life. I don't think Aang did anything special enough during this fight to earn any but he gets 300 for standing up for Appa. Azula gets 100 for the Zuko imitation. Oh, & I almost forgot it's Sokka who coins the phrase "Dangerous Ladies." Another 100. Points as they stand so far for Book 2:

Azula: 2700 Mai: 1200 Ty Lee: 1100 Iroh: 500 Zuko: 600 Toph: 1001 Katara: 1100 Sokka: 200 Ursa: 10 Aang: 300

[constructionaccounting]

581: The Importance Of Having A Contingency Plan For Construction Contractors

This Podcast Is Episode 581, And It's About  The Importance Of Having A Contingency Plan For Construction Contractors

In the construction industry, unexpected challenges can arise at any moment. Numerous factors, from material delays to unforeseen weather conditions, can disrupt project timelines and budgets. 

  From terrorism to fire, from extreme weather or earthquakes to cyber-attacks – how would your business cope if it was affected? Would your staff know what to do? Would you be able to keep working?

  That's why a contingency plan is crucial for construction contractors. It is not just a precaution but a necessity. Small construction businesses need to be prepared for a range of scenarios. Your company could avoid significant setbacks or closure with a solid contingency plan.

  Why contingency planning is crucial

Contingency planning involves foreseeing potential risks and developing a strategic approach to mitigate their impact. For small business owners, this means safeguarding their assets, ensuring business continuity, and protecting their staff and customers.

A well-thought-out plan can differentiate between a temporary disruption and a permanent shutdown. It helps contractors mitigate risks and minimize the impact of unexpected events on their projects.

Here are a few reasons why having a contingency plan is essential for construction contractors:

1. Risk Management: A contingency plan enables contractors to identify potential risks and develop strategies to address them. By proactively planning for various scenarios, contractors can better protect their projects from cost overruns and delays.

2. Budget Protection: Unforeseen events can quickly eat into a project's budget. A contingency plan allows contractors to set aside funds specifically for addressing unexpected expenses, ensuring that the project stays on track financially.

3. Schedule Flexibility: Delays are not uncommon in the construction industry. A contingency plan allows contractors to adapt to unexpected schedule changes without derailing the project timeline.

4. Client Confidence: Clients appreciate contractors prepared for the unexpected. Demonstrating that you have a contingency plan can instill confidence in your clients and reassure them that you can manage unforeseen challenges.

5. Competitive Advantage: Navigating unexpected obstacles efficiently sets contractors apart in a competitive industry. A well-executed contingency plan can demonstrate a contractor's professionalism and commitment to delivering results, giving them a competitive edge in the market.

Emerging issues and regulation changes

Ever-evolving regulations demand greater transparency and accountability from small businesses. This is particularly relevant in preventing and addressing financial fraud, which remains a substantial risk. The increased scrutiny from regulatory bodies means companies must have robust monitoring systems and response strategies. Failure to comply not only puts your financial standing in jeopardy but also your business's reputation.

Practical steps to develop your contingency plan

Risk assessment: Identify all potential risks that could impact your business. This includes everything from natural disasters and cyber-attacks to key personnel suddenly becoming unavailable. Rank these risks based on their likelihood and potential impact.

Document everything: Put together an operational guide for your business, outlining everything you would need to know to keep it running, such as who your suppliers are, how and when they are paid, and everything else that happens on a daily/weekly/monthly basis. As part of the same process, outline the roles and responsibilities of every senior staff member and scope out the daily and weekly tasks so a replacement could easily assume those responsibilities.

Communication plan: Develop a communication plan to keep employees informed during and after a crisis. Consider using multiple channels such as email, phone calls, and social media to reach out to employees and customers.

Develop response strategies: For each identified risk, develop a response strategy. This could involve establishing a crisis management team, setting up temporary operational sites, or creating data backup protocols. Ensure these strategies are detailed and cover all critical aspects of your business operations.

Regular review and testing: A contingency plan is only effective if it's current and functional. Review and update your plan regularly, especially after significant changes in your business environment. Conduct drills and simulations to test your team's readiness and the effectiveness of your response strategies. Your contingency plan should be a living document that evolves with your business.

Construction Client's Story (edited for brevity):

On Sunday, July 27, 2008, around 6:30 p.m., my girlfriend and I had just returned from an overnight hiking trip.

When we arrived home, we discovered that we had been robbed. We immediately called 911.

As we walked through the house, we discovered that our computer and many other valuables were gone. The computer had all the company business on it.

QuickBooks, invoices, all the subcontractors' info, and everything to keep the company books. We were at a loss for what to do. But as luck would have it, we had Randal DeHart as our accountant. He had all our info on a backup system somewhere on a huge server.

So we called Randal to let him know that we would get a new computer as soon as the insurance company paid us.

Randal called us the next day, July 28, 2008, and told us to come to his office. To our surprise, he had gone to Office Depot, purchased a new computer, loaded it with QuickBooks, and restored all our business information.

We are so appreciative that Randal had our backs. We had told him that we would pay him for the computer as soon as possible, but you know what he said,

No thanks are necessary; if we just pay forward, that's all he asked."

How's that for a Good Accountant?

Also, as a reminder that could be helpful in your planning:

QuickBooks plans to stop selling several versions to new U.S. subscribers. The deadline to purchase new subscriptions to the listed products has been extended from July 31, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2024.

QuickBooks Desktop Pro Plus

QuickBooks Desktop Premier Plus

QuickBooks Desktop Mac Plus

QuickBooks Desktop Enhanced Payroll

We do our best to inform you of your options based on your construction company's needs and ensure you are alerted to fundamental software changes that may affect your construction business now or in the future. Although extended, we recommend checking and upgrading immediately to avoid service disruptions and workflow interruptions. Please plan accordingly or reach out if you need help.

Final thoughts

As a business owner, a lot of critical information exists only in your head. As the founder, you always know what's happening and how to do things, but what would happen if you weren't there?

Developing a contingency plan is not just good practice; it's a critical component of your business strategy. By taking proactive steps today, you can secure the future of your small business.

Plus, having a plan gives you peace of mind that everything could continue in your absence or without crucial team members. It also makes for a better-run and more organized business. Forcing yourself to have everything documented centrally builds a greater awareness of roles and responsibilities across the organization while making holidays less challenging!

We could be a part of your contingency plan; let me know how I could help with yours.

PS 

We offer free resources to help you save time and money that you can download and print now. 

About The Author:

Sharie DeHart, QPA, co-founded Business Consulting And Accounting in Lynnwood, Washington. She is the leading expert in managing outsourced construction bookkeeping and accounting services companies and cash management accounting for small construction companies across the USA. She encourages Contractors and Construction Company Owners to stay current on their tax obligations. She offers insights on managing the remaining cash flow to operate and grow their construction company sales and profits so they can put more money in the bank. Call 1-800-361-1770 or sharie@fasteasyaccounting.com

  Check out this episode about Contractors Marketing - Accounting - Production (M.A.P.)!

[knowlessman]

…idk, world heroes mission ig (bnha movie 3)? not clear on whether the Hawks minisode thing is before or after it so I guess I'll watch it after

"quirk doomsday…" k so they don't like quirks, they're like the non-bender faction in korra. Still kinda feels weird tbh when you got powered folks and non-powered folks and they make a faction that stands up for non-powered people and then make them unambiguously evil. Granted, I'm making assumptions because this group is ticking every box on the "evil cult aesthetic" checklist. -- "we, pure humans…" you, sir, are a vedalken. …uh, that is to say, blue. you are blue.

ho shit they got a death star? …oh, sewer gas or summat -- …a… mutagen thingy? no, it's boosting quirks… -- "you don't have a quirk, do you? and you didn't happen to randomly get murdered by the twenty-odd major disasters we just set off that demolished half the city. congrats, prolly half the people you know are dead but some of them had powers so it's fine"

"ohey, we don't have a hero from egypt yet" copies some clipart "there, now we do"

…WHAT??? HOW LONG HAS HE HAD THIS ALT SKIN? should I have got a few episodes in first? gawd, figuring out anime movie timing is flat-out impossible

ohey it's that guy from this movie that people like

dang, the animators are showing tf off with this chase stuff. the parkour's almost reminding me of mirror's edge 'XD -- pfft, then he just casually rail-grinds down a staircase bc I guess his quirk is being from a tony hawk game

why do I have the annoying feeling I should be recognizing this eyepatch gu - wait. spends ten years scrolling thru his own tumblr looking for his comments from the first movie okay eyepatch guy KIND OF sometimes has a similar face to the, I think, swordkil guy from the first movie, but the hair is not even close, nvm -- um. …shit what was even happening. marcellus wallace's soul, right. cept I think it was a jewelry store, so more like his pinkie ring?

ah k, so rody rhodepecker gets wallace's soul cuz he thought it was the gems he'd had before, so now rody's in the main plot and I guess eyepatch is dead and the chipmunks are gonna have fewer dolls to pick up -- (deku and rody fight over the case and it falls open) marcellus wallace's… tax returns?

"we gotta move somewhere safer. I know! THE TOP OF A MOVING TRAIN is the perfect place to set down this civilia - " okay fine, "suspect"

what kinda topsy-turvy world is this where midoriya gets on a country's most wanted list before God Explosion Murder? …I forget, Bakugo STILL never got hisself a hero name, right?

ah, so the local gov is all in the doomsday cult. …eyepatch seemed to think those papers were important, but deku found nothing of interest, why does everybody want marcellus wallace's tax returns? I guess it's got important inside cult info in code?

"he's going to klayd. bakugo, come on, we have another country we need you to endanger" -- you know you're important when they assign the stelfiest cops on the force to tail you. todoroki and bakugo better find a corner to walk around if they wanna lose these guys

not the sharpest rat on the street, this rody, huh. also, deku's a heavy sleeper apparently. had his hand all over that case and rody was able to just slide it away with no problem. -- you, sir, are an inuyasha villain

-- ("why did you protect me?") "saving people with a smile" is never gonna stop feeling like a brand slogan to me.

…okay, road trip montage ig. good stuff ig. -- "you have a quirk, right?" deku you were fucking born without a motherfucking quirk what the hell kind of a question is that. anyway clearly the farting bird is rody's quirk

(rody gets blasted off a cliff then ice jets show up and idfk stuff) wowee, dangit guys, you're makin me dizzy with the camera zipping all over the damn place -- under the blades bakugo UNDER THE FUCKING BLADES THAT HELI IS GONNA MAKE A SMOOTHIE OUTTA YOU HAVE YOU NEVER WATCHED AN INDIANA JONES MOVIE -- …well damn, Green Arrowette, dramatic enough?

aha, a sneakret compartment -- and obviously it's the puzzle toy from rody's childhood because cults are all about getting the kids involved -- bet the cult woulda loved it if rody had solved it way back when and fucking swallowed the data chip. …random question, where does nintendo get off putting an entire game in a choking hazard just because they can? irresponsible af

"I'm one of the scientists that the cult kidnapped yadda yadda yadda plot stuff final message" and. and they just. plugged this into a computer and hit play. with the speakers on. in a hotel lobby or wevertf this is. with civilians watching tv. FIVE. FEET. AWAY.

bakugo: "only an idiot would make a key without telling you where the door was! where's the place with no bombs… there! that's where their base is!" BULL. SHIT. BAKUGO. IS A HACKER. also bullshit because didn't the first bomb go off literally a hundred feet directly above their base? -- "I'm working on it, damn nerd!" - hackugo the hackerman who apparently is the only computer literate person in the room

okay these wobbly giggly sword-whip guys bakugo's fighting, them I kinda like tbh, designwise at least. …I guess because they just remind me of so many soul calibur characters at once 'XD

"they told me they'd stop the Otheon bomb if I give them the key" okay ten trillion percent he's faking this time, right? …right? -- ohhh, eddie soul. I musta been barely listening to… uh. um. eyepatch guy's audio log 'XD -- "my quirk is that silly pink bird with the mask that farted on you earlier" -- "and also dodging really good" - ohp, okay, not dodging good enough tho

HIS QUIRK IS THE FARTBIRD I WAS FUCKING JOKING. I mean like cool he has a ranger animal companion ig, hell, Minsc has kind of the same thing going for him and he ruined at least one Magic format with it

(bakugo finally won his match)(todoroki is still drowning) freeze the water dumbass, damn -- oh wouldja lookit that, he froze the water

"his quirk has a limit!" I mean, I guess. wobbuffet's only got so much hp. …I swear to god this guy was probably literally and actually and in fact based directly off of wobbuffet, it would explain everything about his visual design -- "you gave up on trying to get people to like you, heroes never give up" deku please just shut the fuck up and finish this fight, every single time you try to say something to somebody about their backstory, you just come off as an ignorant dickhead

"there's no explosion…" marvin martian: "where's the society-shattering kaboom?"

(the fartbird plugged the thing in, probably ages ago) go for the eyes, Boo! the one in texas goes off anyway because the power grid failed again and the disarm code didn't get transmitted to the bomb

oh goody, the not-corrupt police officers arrested the one that was. he was definitely the only bad apple in the bunch, yessiree

…ayup. movie movied. villain had paper-thin motive compared to all for one's easy-to-grasp god complex or the actual literal nightmare that is tomura's, but wever. and rody's fun.

the Hawks Soothe thing is five minutes, huh. -- I think bakugo listening to todoroki's "write 'people' on your hand then eat it" thing is the first hint of character development for bakugo I've seen in maybe this whole WHAT in the FUCK is THAT supposed to be

-- hawks just casually strolling up wearing the carpet from the Shining

jesus christ my guy, this is why they knew to put you in that hannibal mask

okay so this was literally just a prologue of them clowning around in the airport for a couple minutes and I shoulda watched it first, I had them in the right order in my notes. …dammit

anyway, on to s6 ig - wait no apparently there're two OVA bonus episode thingies for s5? huh, it's them playing baseball. lol shoji's got three bats in the cover image 'XD

[nellie-elizabeth]

Bob's Burgers: Mission Impossi-Bob (14x11)

A very fun episode!

Cons:

I really have no complaints at all. I could have used even more fun weird times with the crazy bunker man, I wanted to know his whole deal. Maybe if Teddy keeps doing work for him, he'll come back later.

Pros:

The main plot features Bob going on a rescue mission to find Teddy, who has trapped himself in a panic room/safe thing that a wealthy client has asked him to help with. There's all this convoluted information presented to us over a series of phone calls with Teddy, whose phone is in danger of dying as he rambles on about seemingly irrelevant things in an attempt to explain to Bob how to find and rescue him.

I loved the chaos of this, of Teddy freaking out and Bob trying not to get stressed. I also like that it's a success. Something I think this show does really well is you often see the Belchers embarrassed or overwhelmed or stressed, but often you also see them win, after unexpected challenges are set in their way. It's not that we never see the failure version of a story like this, but this time, Bob does in fact put the clues together and find Teddy, and not only that, when the owner comes home and nearly catches him, they come up with a clever idea to hide Bob from him and save the day even more!

Teddy is a character who I feel like is always on the edge of being too much, too annoying, but they always pull him back from the edge just enough. His strange mix of devotion and trust, but also misunderstanding and dismissiveness of Bob, always gets a laugh out of me. He thinks Bob is financially stable, but also seems not to understand his work at the restaurant. He believes in Bob's ability to find him, but wants to help walk him through how to download a song on his phone. It's such a funny mix!

The subplot features the kids and Linda making a giant burger to serve to a group of over-forty athletes who have just won a tournament. Again, you might expect this to become some sort of escalating disaster, and in a way it does, as they struggle with how to flip the giant patty, then run into a problem with their giant bread idea. But when it comes down to it, they do actually manage to serve the burger, and the group does in fact eat about half of it, which was better than I was expecting! The Belchers will be having leftover burgers for a couple days, it looks like.

I always love the energy of this family, this thing where the kids have a wacky idea and the parents actually, when reasonable, allow them to do it. There's something heartwarming about the idea that if you're going to make your kids help out with the family business, you might as well let them have some goofy fun with it once in a while.

So yeah! This was a fun one. This show usually finds a way to make me smile.

9/10 

[aguzziadventure]

Day 1: The Sprint to Plymouth

Just 14 days before setting off, the Guzzi decided to play its first card - a misbehaving bevel box. I had a rear tire covered in diff oil. Not exactly a minor hiccup, and definitely a potential journey-ender.

The quest for salvation led me to a packed-to-the-rafters garage in Ruthin, where a Ducati specialist agreed to throw me a lifeline. Our savior? A second-hand bevel box, sent over from Italy. The thing about relying on international postage, though, is it turns your life into an episode of 'FedEx Roulette'. Thankfully, the part arrived in time, got fitted, albeit untested, and I collected the bike a mere three days before D-Day.

The ride back seemed promising... until the newcomer also started to leak. Desperate hope led me to convince myself that it was simply due to an overfill and the oil was just settling. Cue an anxious countdown to departure, testing and re-testing, praying for the leak to slow down. So much for my grand plans of a calm and thoroughly prepped send-off.

Left with only a few hours to make final bike adjustments, I learned a vital lesson. Pre-trip panic is a recipe for disaster - like leaving a spanner attached to the inner rear wheel arch. Spotted it at a service station 120 miles later, after a luckily timed service-interval-light stop. Imagine that coming loose on the motorway - potentially fatal and something I'd rather not envision.

Despite these hiccups, the ride to Plymouth wasn't all gloom and doom. The bevel box was holding up, but an unsettling metallic pinging started to echo at high speeds. Forum scrolling led to multiple diagnoses, with the severity scale swinging wildly between 'meh, it's fine' to 'it's the end of the world!'. An anxious night ahead, I feared.

A coffee stop at Hummingbird Cafe in Hereford lightened the mood a bit. Nice little place, nestled in what looked like a refurbished 80s arcade. Met a fellow rider who shared some insider info on local roads worth a spin.

My Plymouth retreat was the luxurious Boringdon Hall. Starving for a good night's sleep and mouth-watering grub, I traded in the upcoming weeks of instant noodles and sachet coffee for a taste of their Michelin star offerings. A bit awkward, admittedly, dragging my roll-top bag through the opulent lobby in my road-weary gear. Despite the polite, if somewhat strained, smiles of the staff, I was gently nudged towards the idea of room service.

A dip in the infinity pool (short-lived when I misplaced my swim shorts!) and a satisfying dinner at the Mayflower Restaurant - sea trout, chard, samphire, and parmesan truffle fries - took the edge off the day's tribulations. The surprise star of the evening? A humble appetizer of fresh focaccia and beetroot butter.

The evening ended with a shared moment of camaraderie with a barman, a fellow rider. He tried to find the elusive 10mm spanner I needed to tinker with my bike - the one tool I’d forgotten. Alas, it wasn't to be. I guess one restless night wouldn't hurt, right?