#and decided that the moral of the story was that old traditions die hard and you shouldnt speak ill of the dead
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World Building Wednesday: Tyrrnith Zarmahan
B A S I C S
• Full name: Tyrrnith Latsor Zarmahan
• Gender: Male
• Sexuality: Bisexual, Polyamorous
• Pronouns: He / Him
O T H E R S
• Family: Two deceased parents, one deceased sister and nieces, one half brother (Aellisu) and one half sister.
• Birthplace: New Adasta, Ziost
• Job: Sith Warrior, Emperor’s Empire’s Wrath, Commander of the Eternal Alliance
• Phobias: None (unless there’s one for the Emperor. Valkorphobia?)
• Guilty pleasures: Has a soft spot for cooking
M O R A L S
• Morality alignment?: Previously Lawful Evil, now Lawful Neutral
• Sins: lust/greed/gluttony/sloth/pride/envy/wrath
• Virtues: chastity/charity/diligence/humility/kindness/patience/justice
T H I S - O R - T H A T
• Introverted/extrovert. While Tyr isn't completely antisocial, you're not gonna get much of a conversation out of him as a stranger. He'll do his best to act calm and polite, but most of his responses are limited to simple answers ('yes', 'no', 'not sure', 'interesting', ect). Even amongst his friends, he's not the most open.
• Organized/disorganized. Tyr does his best to keep himself focused and make sure nothing is misplaced.
• Close-minded/open-minded. Tyr doesn't go too far down either side of the spectrum. He's pretty set in his ways, especially when it comes to his views on the Sith and the Empire, but he's still willing to hear other people's perspectives.
• Calm/anxious. (formerly anxious). It took him a while, but Tyr eventually realized that he's more efficient when he relaxes his emotions rather than flail out wildly.
• Disagreeable/agreeable. If it has to do with the Sith or the Empire, that's another story, but in general, Tyr can be pretty pragmatic and doesn't hold too many strong opinions.
• Cautious/reckless. (formerly reckless) Same as Calm/anxious, Tyr is definitely more on the cautious side. He bides his time and observes every aspect of a situation before deciding to act
• Patient/impatient. (formerly impatient) Tyr knows that rushing headfirst into every situation never helps, even with Sith Philosophy. Sometimes, change needs to be slow and gradual.
• Outspoken/reserved. Tyr never feels the need to boast, rant, shout, or even raise his voice, unless he's REALLY pissed. Generally, he'll remain stoic and soft spoken.
• Leader/follower. Though it's not his core strength, Tyr is more than willing to take up a leadership position, whether that be an army on the battlefield or a political movement within the Empire.
• Empathetic/unempathetic. Tyr is not the best at comforting others, and he'd be lying if he admitted to caring about everyone's problems, but he'll do his best to remain understanding. Hell, once in a blue moon, he might even give you a hug and tell you everything's gonna be okay.
• Optimistic/pessimistic. Tyr knows the state of the galaxy isn't the best at the moment, but he'd rather make things better than complain about them.
• Traditional/modern. Tyr believes that everyone in the galaxy must adapt or die, simple as that.
• Hard-working/lazy. Tyr is a very work-oriented man. It always comes first and foremost in his book, aside from his relationship. If you're name isn't Krovos or Malavai, you're not gonna get far convincing him to take a break.
R E L A T I O N S H I P S
• otp: Tyrrnith / Quinn. Tyr and Malavai both had feelings for eachother, but never really expressed it. It took them a while to get there, (espeically with Quinn's betrayal), but after some recovery and talking things out, they finally got together following Makeb
• ot3: Tyrrnith / Quinn/ Krovos. Shortly after, Tyr reunited with his old childhood friend, Lord Krovos, who he dated back before entering the Sith Academy. It was just simple childish love, but after realizing she still loves him, and getting to know Quinn, she joined in.
• brotp: Vette, Jaesa, and Lana. Tyr has grown to see both Vette and Jaesa as little sister figures (he does have a biological little sister, but they've been distant), and Lana has always been his second most trusted advisor, aside from Quinn.
• notp: Tyrrnith and Valkorian. Aellisu joking that Valkorian might be crushing on Tyr was enough to trigger the latter's gag reflex.
#oc: tyrrnith zarmahan#oc: tyrrnith#swtor#screenshot#sith warrior#swtor oc#oc biography#world building wednesday
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More origin stories, health and wealth, and a very good sermon
Genesis 9:18-11:9, Psalm 4, Matthew 4:23-5:20
A couple years ago I took a course in biblical archaeology from a secular perspective and the main thesis of our textbook, which we barely used, was that the bulk of the Torah was written by King Hezekiah to justify his reign. It was a compelling hypothesis, but I didn't delve into it too deeply, partly because the course wasn't overly focused on that, but partly because it is unpleasant to question beliefs that are deeply a part of one's life.
In more specific cases, however, I can believe that these origin stories were purpose made. The Canaanites, those people who were competing with Israel for posession of the land, have an unpleaseant story for their ancestor, who was cursed for looking at his father naked. This story is not unlike rumours spread during more recent wars about barbaric or bizarre practices of the enemy.
I am not sure how to think about the genealogies and lists of people in this section. Were these common names that people in the culture would recognize? Is there some grand scheme of king Hezekiah at play, harmonizing all the beloved characters from various tribes' folk myths? I don't know. If there are divine fingerprints in these stories, it is hard for me to see them. The stories don't seem intended to teach us much about the nature of God.
The tale of the tower of babel does, however paint a bit of a weird picture of a God who is scared that his creations might become to powerful for them. It could just be a morality tale about human hubris that also explains why there are many languages in the world. It could also be God encountering the same human wickedness that prompted them to send the flood, but having promised not to do that again, they decided to do something tamer.
Incidentally, I will try to use the pronoun 'they/them' for God, in part because they are a trinity in my tradition, partly because the bible I'm using often has God refer to themself as 'us', and partly because even if they were a singular person, they wouldn't be male. However, I am sure I will slip up because God is far more often called "He" in my religious education. Also, I will probably be inconsistent about capitalization, no significance or offence is intended to any tradition.
The psalm today seems to be just somebody crying out to God and asking for them to make life better, and God responding by criticizing his people. I did not find this song compelling, but maybe it was better with music.
I am a big fan of the new testament passage for the day. It's the start of Jesus's ministry and the beginning of the first big sermon. Jesus lets us know what he's all about. My tradition has focused a lot on this sermon, called, "The sermon on the mount". It is the centre of the strange, backwards way that Jesus sees the world. He starts by issuing blessings to the poor, sad, protestors, merciful people, peacemakers, and those who are persecuted.
He moves on to parable weird metaphors about lamps and salt. I like these metaphors because it reaffirms the creation idea that humans have agency. We're not just here to do as little evil as possible before we die and God fixes everything. We are obliged to positive action.
Then Jesus says something that doesn't sit as well with me and mine. He reaffirms the Torah, the old testament law, and the importance of following it. But then he qualifies it by saying, "Not the way that the religious people do it though. They're going straight to hell." He actually says it more kindly, that unless you do better than them, you won't get to heaven. He will later clarify his problems with the pharisees and it usually has to do with the way they treat the poor, sick, mourners, etc. Or money. Jesus talks a lot about money.
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sims 4 trait legacy challenge
Overview:
This is a ten generation legacy challenge based on some characteristics people can possess. Each generation will be based upon a new trait. The style and gender of the generation is completely up to you (I usually play as women but gender does not matter in this challenge)! Complete all goals before focusing on the next generation. Some may play onto each other, so be sure to look ahead before moving forward! I created an adapted version for people who do not have the packs I used listed below the challenge. I wanted to make sure everyone could play and not feel left out!
Rules:
No cheats or mods!
Start off with $20,000 and a build a house wherever you want one.
Complete all six goals for every generation before moving onto the next one.
Complete the full aspiration and reach level 10 in the set career.
There is no rules when it comes to aging up but I suggest waiting until it is their set birthday.
Play on normal life span.
Packs Used: Base Game, Discovery University, Seasons, City Living, Get to Work, Cats and Dogs, Parenthood, Spa Day, and Knifty Knitting
Generation One: Responsibility
You are a very old fashioned person who believes things have a certain way of being done. Every object in your house has a set place, the person you marry you are supposed to stay with forever, and the world should be a clean place to live in. Never once have you strayed away from your beliefs and you’ve always lived your life by the book. Even once your partner dies and you are left with a child who cannot handle their passing, you stay true to your morals. (EDIT: I have been playing this challenge myself and found that the final level of the aspiration said “have a child master a career”. I do not know if you have to be in the household for that, but if you do, just add this generation to the household of the next one before they master it. It is also okay if you want to ignore/cheat this part.)
Traits: Neat, Good, Green Fiend
Aspiration: Successful Lineage
Career: Education (Administrator Branch)
Goals:
Max charisma skill.
Max research and debate skill.
Be married as a young adult, but have your partner die (do not tell your child how) once they reach adult hood. Never remarry.
Have only one child with your partner.
Complete the snowglobes collection and have them set up in a specific room in your house.
Make your neighborhood green and keep it that way.
Generation Two: Determined
You’ve always struggled to cope with the death of your father/mother ever. Maybe that's because you never really knew why they died in the first place. Left with too many questions to handle, you destroy your relationship with your friends and family and run away to find some answers. This entails a trip to Sixam, where you can finally wrap ahead around the passing of you mom/dad. You decide to come home just in time to see your mom/dad just before they too pass away. After a heart-breaking conversation, you realize that all the secrecy was for the best.
Traits: Gloomy, Ambitious, Loner
Aspiration: Nerd Brain
Career: Astronaut (Interstellar Smuggler Branch)
Goals:
Max rocket science skill.
Max mischief skill.
Build a rocket ship and fly to Sixam.
Run away and live on your own as a teenager.
Have a horrible relationship with your mom/dad as a young adult, but become best friends with them before they pass away.
Complete the microscope prints collection.
Generation Three: Loving
Your mother/father was extremely distant growing up, which caused you to rely on friends as your family. Your childhood best friend has been with you every step of the way, and you ended up fell in love with them. All you wanted to do was be a mother/father, but found out you could never have children. You adopt a child as a baby and raise them as your own, teaching them everything you wish your parents did for you.
Traits: Romantic, Family - Oriented, Foodie
Aspiration: Soulmate
Career: Babysitter (Teenager), None (Young Adult and older)
Goals:
Max parenting skill.
Max wellness skill.
Marry your childhood best friend.
Adopt a baby after you get married.
Teach your toddler to max all skills.
Have a side passion of knitting.
Generation Four: Intelligence
You grew up incredibly smart with no knowledge of who your real parents were. However, that never mattered to you. Your adoptive parents have made it their life goal to advance your gifts in every way they know how. Late nights of helping you with homework, early mornings of finishing projects, and spending their fortunes to enroll you into the college of your dreams. All you wanted to do was repay them by becoming a world renowned journalist. You dedicate your best-sellers to them because, after all, they’ll always be your biggest fan.
Traits: Genius, Bookworm, Unflirty
Aspiration: Academic
Career: Writer (Journalist Branch)
Goals:
Max logic skill.
Max writing skill.
Reach level eight in five other skills of your choice.
Go to the University of Britechester and study Language and Literature (distinguished).
Join the Debate Guild and reach the highest rank.
Write five novels.
Generation Five: Hard - Working
Fashion has been your passion since you were a little girl/boy. You even asked your parents to stop dressing you as a toddler because the clothes they picked were “not stylish enough.” As a self-proclaimed style icon, you knew you had to make your biggest dream come true: to create your own fashion line. So, as soon as you graduated high school, you packed your bags and moved to the big city - San-Myshuno. There you created your social media platform and blew up! A normal life was never your style, and you made sure to put in as many hours as it would take to achieve all you ever wanted.
Traits: Perfectionist, Self - Assured, Materialistic
Aspiration: City Native
Career: Style Influencer (Stylist Branch)
Goals:
Max photography skill.
Max painting skill.
Must live in San-Myshuno.
Complete the crystals collection.
Hire a nanny for your child and do not spend much time with them.
Gain 10,000 followers on Simstagram.
Generation Six: Resilience
After being known as “the child of the most famous fashion designer” all your life, the city became a toxic place for you. You hated the loud noises, constant stream of people, and just wanted to live a quiet life. You loved visiting your grandmother/father’s house and hearing one of her/his famous stories. You decided to pull inspiration from one of their novels and live off by the coast in the adorable Brindleton Bay. Your passion for crafting and living off the land inspired you to start a small business selling your candles and juice - all locally grown of course.
Traits: Loves Outdoors, Maker, Creative
Aspiration: Master Maker
Career: Freelancer (Simply Crafted)
Goals:
Max fabrication skill.
Reach level eight in both candle making and juice fizzing.
Move to Brindleton Bay as a young adult.
Have four or more kids.
Complete the frog collection.
Never go to an event in the city or visit the city once you are a young adult.
Generation Seven: Carefree
Being in a big family is can be hectic at times. So, you decided to be the happy jokester in the middle just trying to get people to crack a smile. And you got really good at it. As a major people person, you made sure to get to know everyone you meet. You even started a tradition of taking a picture with them so you could never forget that moment. Your friends will always invite you to go out because you are known for being the life of the party. However, the parties you host, are even better. You decide to live life as if it was one big stage, and you’re the star performer.
Traits: Goofball, Clumsy, Outgoing
Aspiration: Party Animal
Career: Entertainer (Comedian Branch)
Goals:
Max comedy skill.
Max singing skill.
Host a party every week.
Take a photo of every person who visits you.
Marry someone you met just two days before.
Attend every festival or event you are asked to attend.
Generation Eight: Kind
Expected to be just like your mother/father, no one ever assumed you would be the quiet kid who preferred reading over partied. However, that is exactly who you were. When it was that time of the week for a new social event, you either left for the library or locked yourself in your room, praying it ended soon. Your parents noticed you struggled talking to people, so they allowed you to adopt a puppy once you became a teenager. You and your dog instantly became best friends and you took them everywhere. Even though you may not be great with people, being compassionate was a skill you ranked high in. You always looked out for the less fortunate and wanted to provide in anyway you could.
Traits: Vegetarian, Loner, Good
Aspiration: Friend of the Animals
Career: Gardner (Floral Designer Branch)
Goals:
Max gardening skill.
Max flower arranging skill.
Keep up a garden of just flowers.
Adopt strays: one dog, and two cats.
Marry an ambitious sim.
Donate $100 to charity weekly.
Generation Nine: Impulsive
You grew up hearing stories of your grandmother/father’s so called “wild days” and fell in love with the energy it brought. However, your mom/dad raised you better than to go out spending life as if there was no consequences. Finding a balance started off to be very challenging for you. You could never hold down relationships and even got pregnant/got someone pregnant twice. It wasn't until you became a secret agent and learned how to live two lifestyles: one full of fun and adventure; the other more stable and structured.
Traits: Active, Non-Committal, Bro
Aspiration: Bodybuilder
Career: Secret Agent (Diamond Agent Branch)
Goals:
Max fitness skill.
Max handiness skill.
Go to either college for Psychology and play soccer.
Have four failed relationships and never get married.
Have two children from two different relationships.
Move three times once you become a young adult.
Generation 10: Passionate
Because your mother/father’s job required you to move around so much, making real life friends was a lot harder than it seemed. So, you built your relationships within the online community. Every day, you and your closest friends would hop online and compete in tournaments or even play for fun. As the years went on, you became really good at coding and even started working on your own apps. You looked up to the players from ESports Gaming - only the best gamers in the world - and longed to be sitting in one of their spots. And sure enough, after years of perfecting your strategies and game plays, your dreams came true!
Traits: Geek, Hot-Headed, Outgoing
Aspiration: Computer Whiz
Career: Tech Guru (ESport Gamer Branch)
Goals:
Max programming skill.
Max video gaming skill.
Complete the MySims Trophies collection.
Attend and compete in every Geek Con convention.
Make five video games or apps.
Mentor your child/ren for five hours each.
Adaptations:
Gen 1:
If you do not have Discover University, go into the Business career (Management Branch).
Max cooking skill if you do not have Discover University.
If you do not have City Living, complete the postcards collection.
Gen 2:
Unlock the secret world in Oasis Springs if you do not have Get to Work.
Gen 3:
If you do not have Parenthood but do have Get to Work, max the baking skill.
If you do not have both Parenthood and Get to Work, max the gourmet cooking skill.
If you do not have Spa Day but do have Knifty Knitting, max the knitting skill.
If you do not have both Spa Day or Knifty Knitting, max the photography skill.
If you do not have Knifty Knitting, have a side passion of photography.
Gen 4:
If you do not have Discover University, read a new skill book every week instead of attending university.
Gen 5:
If you do not have City Living, have the Fabulously Wealthy aspiration.
If you do not have City Living, live in Oasis Springs.
Gen 6:
Do not have a career if you do not have Eco-Lifestyle. Instead, craft item on the woodworking for money.
If you do not have Eco-Lifestyle, max the fishing skill instead of reaching level eight in candle making and juice fizzing.
If you do not have Cats and Dogs, move to Evergreen Harbor.
If you do not have both Cats and Dogs or Eco-Lifestyle, live in Willow Creek
If you do not have Eco-Lifestyle, have the self-assured trait instead.
If you do not have Eco-Lifestyle, have the Angling Ace aspiration.
Gen 7:
If you do not have City Living but do have Get Together, max the dancing skill.
If you do not have both City Living or Get Together, max the mixology skill.
Gen 8:
If you do not have Dogs and Cats, have the Freelance Botanist aspiration.
Do not have a career if you do not have Seasons. Instead, sell your plants for money.
If you do not have Seasons but have Get to Work, max the baking skill.
If you do not have both Seasons or Get to Work, max the violin skill.
If you do not have Dogs and Cats, but have Seasons, own three bees nests and two insect nests instead of owning pets.
If you do not have both Dogs and Cats or Seasons, have three children instead of having three pets.
If you do not have City Living, have the cheerful trait.
Gen 9:
If you do have Strangerville, go into the Military Career (I do not have it, so I played as a Secret Agent)
If you do have Snowy Escape, have the adventurous trait instead of the active trait (I do not have it but believe they would be adventurous).
If you do not have Discover University, read five skill books over different topics, instead of going to college.
Gen 10:
If you do not have City Living, compete in an online tournament weekly instead of going to Geek Con.
#sims#sims 4 gameplay#sims 4 legacy#small creator#newchallenge#lilsimsie#clairesiobhan#maxismatch#maxismatchccworld#legacy#sims4#basegame#traits
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Restless Rewatch: The Untamed, Episode 23, second part
(Masterpost) (Other Canary Stuff)
Warning: Spoilers for All 50 Episodes!
Nature Abhors a (Power) Vacuum
Jin Guangshan, Nie Mingjue, and Lan Xichen have gathered to decide what to do about the remaining Wen people and also what to do about the Yin metal. They have not invited Jiang Cheng to this discussion, or blowhard Clan Leader Yao, despite those clans having been hit particularly hard by the Wens in the course of the war.
The three of them have a conversation about what to do with the Wen captives, showing their different attitudes towards killing.
Jin Guangshan: Killing is awesome, particularly in project management. It's just so efficient.
Nie Mingjue: Killing is necessary, and a little bit fun, too.
Lan Xichen: Killing is necessary, sadly, but we can randomly spare some women or old people, as a token sign that we’re not monsters. Kind of like when you have a fancy dinner and include a tofu dish for the vegetarians.
Nie Mingjue: Nobody likes tofu, Xichen.
Jin Guangshan says he's looking for the Yin Iron and that they can't let any Wens or "ambitious people" get a hold of it. By ambitious people he means Wei Wuxian, not himself and his murder kid. Lan Xichen realizes this right away but doesn't, you know, do anything to contradict him. Jin Guangshan says he's asked "A-Yao" to look into it. Which is smart, because A-Yao is already in cahoots with Xue Yang, who actually has the piece of Yin Iron they're looking for.
Getting Jiggy With It
Then Jin Guangshan introduces Meng Yao, now renamed Jin Guangyao, in a weird twist on generation names. He has given him the name of a sibling or cousin of his own generation (starting with Guang), rather than a name of the next generation (starting with Zi). JGS says that JGY just recently learned about about being related to him, although we know perfectly well that's not true.
And they both talk like he appreciates JGY's efficiency and helpfulness, but that's not why JGS has him at his side. He has taken him in because he is a steel-eyed murder bot, not in spite of it.
(OP does not believe that Jin Guangyao could have been a good person if only his dad had let him hold Jin Ling that one time, as some have argued. Dude killed his own child because there was a chance he might be disabled in a way that could lead to gossip. Dude is a stone cold killer.)
(more after the cut)
In the language of CDrama costume (which is not, precisely, the language of actual historical clothing), Jin Guangyao has chosen to dress as a minister instead of as a chevalier. This is partly an artifact of his mother's ideas about a gentleman. It also suggests that he’s content with the sort of career that's available to a bastard of a noble house--not inheriting the noble title, but having enough favor to rise in power.
It may also be a ruse to make him seem like he's not a strong cultivator and not a strong fighter, when in fact he is both, at least by the time he’s throwing death chords at Jiang Cheng, much later in the show.
Mingjue makes all kinds of grumpy faces and snarky remarks to let everyone know that he fucking hates Jin Guangyao. Xichen agrees to his “nice refugee camp with only a little death” plan, with no qualifications.
Now we get to see Jin Guangyao's manipulation of Lan Xichen. Lan Xichen says that Nie Mingjue wants a plan that’s more killy, because he believes in punishing evil. JGY deliberately misunderstands this, pretending that Lan Xichen said he, JGY, is evil, kind of forcing LXC to reassure him and take his side in an argument that isn’t actually happening.
They have a little handholding while bowing, and then after Lan Xichen leaves, Jin Guangyao puts on his evil face and has all the prisoners killed behind the big closed door.
This is done in such a violent fashion that the blood apparently flows up several stairs to the door, and over the tall raised threshold, before flowing downward toward the camera. Some evil is so extreme that even traditional Chinese doorway architecture can’t stop it.
Run To the Rock
Then we go outside to where Wei Wuxian is standing on a rocky outcropping, thinking it would be a good strategic spot to choose if he's ever in a battle where he wants to commit suicide right quick.
Lan Wangji comes to join him and admire the view, not knowing yet that this view, or one a whole lot like it, is going to be seared into his memory for most of his life.
Lan Wangji is becoming more and more committed to Wei Wuxian, more and more inexorably joined to him, but he still doesn't agree with him. So they each have this comfort in each others' presence at the same time as being massively in conflict.
Wei Wuxian asks him what he thinks of all the politicking and murdering. Who is good and who is evil? LWJ doesn't answer because WWX is leaking black smoke, so he grabs him and tells him to concentrate. Lan Wangji is, incidentally, wearing Princess-Leia quantities of lip gloss.
Lan Wangji asks if Wei Wuxian would like to learn a new tune, "Absterge" according to Netflix. The fuck? [op looks it up in the dictionary]. "To cleanse, especially by wiping." Also known as aftercare. Netflix. Honey. This word is MIDDLE FRENCH. Will you knock it the fuck off?
So anyway, instead of answering his question about who is good and who is evil, LWJ asks if he wants to learn a song called "Cleansing." Wei Wuxian says “hey babe, are you fucking kidding me?”
His actual words are "you doubt me too?" meaning "you think I also took the missing 4th chunk of Yin iron to make my ugly tiger amulet, rather than obviously having used that giant sword I pulled out of the turtle?"
Lan Wangji mentally replays Wen Ruohan's questions in his head--the questions he barked at Wei Wuxian right before choking him unconscious--which Lan Wangji also feels entitled to know the answers to. Fuck you, Lan Wangji. He answers WWX with "when did you forge your amulet?" Which is his way of saying "yes, I doubt you."
Wei Wuxian kindly refrains from saying "while we were on a break, bitch" and instead tells him the exact truth--I found a yin iron sword in the turtle--but says it in his patented "make it sound like a lie" way.
LWJ keeps grilling him, eventually coming out and saying dude, you knew the sword was Yin iron, why did you need to use it?
This is the crucial question--why WWX broke his first promise, to Lan Yi, which was to try to get rid of the Yin Iron. He won’t tell anyone the answer, which is that he needs to use it because he can't cultivate normally, because he lost his golden core. He made a lot of promises before that happened, and he probably expected to keep them. But without his core, everything changed; without his core, he’s a different person, so it’s maybe not fair to expect him to honor his previous promises.
I’m reminded of my grandfather, who was the oldest son of an old southern US family, with lots of expectations as the firstborn. He went off to WWI as a soldier, expecting to die. He didn’t die, and so from that point on, he regarded his life as a gift. He felt could do whatever he wanted with it, and let go of expectations from before the war. He moved to Paris and took up with a glamorous divorcee 7 years older than him (my Grandma, eventually).
The actual point of that story, other than OP having cool grandparents, is that when you think you’re going to die, and then you don’t die, your ideas about what you owe to people can change quite a bit. Wei Wuxian expected to die in the Burial Mounds; he expected to die at Nightless City; he expects it, over and over, and each time he doesn’t die, he gets further and further from being what everyone else wants him to be. And--a lot like soldiers returning from a war-- NOBODY in his life knows how to talk to him about it.
Wei Wuxian tells Lan Wangji to back off, Lan Wangji says why aren't you letting me help you, and they are once again on the edge of the same fight they keep having. Lan Wangji does some impassioned arm holding while Wei Wuxian says he's not like Wen Ruohan.
Romantic Duet #1
The argument is interrupted by screams and killing, so they go to check it out, and find the Jins hunting down some prisoners for sport. They arrive in time to save two people. Yay?
Jin ZIxun acts like a jerk, as always. The new element is that per Jin Guangshan, anyone concerned with Yin Iron shouldn't be alive. He says that the Lan and Nie clans agreed, and challenges Wei Wuxian. Lan Wangji stops him from responding, grabbing his wrist.
The Jins leave and Wei Wuxian refers back to their earlier conversation, saying there will be more resentful spirits now and that "Rest" is the music to play, not "Cleansing."
He gives Lan Wangji a long look and then pointedly removes Lan Wangji’s hand from his wrist, by holding his hand, which is some next-level mixed signaling. Lan Wangji totally deserves it at this point, though. He keeps pushing and pushing WWX about his cultivation method, but he refuses to discuss the underlying morality of it, or the morality of the killing going on right in front of them.
WWX walks off, leaving LWJ to stew in his own juices surrounded by a bunch of fresh corpses.
Lan Wangji fails his saving throw against the guilt trip, and sits his ass down to play Rest, just like Wei Ying told him to. So switchy! Wei Wuxian, out of sight but not out of earshot, hears him and accompanies him on Chenqing.
This scene is slightly ridiculous and a whole lot sublime. Ridiculous because it's their first time playing music together, so it's a super slow, romantic, extended scene, but they're surrounded by corpses. And not the helpful, friendly, third-wheel-on-a-date type of corpses.
It's sublime because the occasion of their first beautiful, literally magical duet is an argument. And they are joining together to play beautiful romantic music - as a service for the dead. And they are doing it while they are on literally opposite sides of a literal killing field. And Lan Wangji is sitting literally in the middle of a wide open road; the sort of road that they will both reject, metaphorically, later in the show. There is so much about their conflict and their journey that is encapsulated in this one musical moment.
Lan Wangji, by playing the song Wei Wuxian said was needed, is telling WWX that he took his words to heart, that he is listening, even though they're at odds.
WWX, by stopping and playing with him, is acknowledging this. And by settling the dead souls together, they are both reinforcing their dedication to doing what's right even as they both struggle with knowing what that is.
When Other Friendships Have Been Forgot, Ours Will Still Be Hot
Now we have the sworn brothers thing. I understand, plot wise, why this has to happen, but why would Nie Mingjue ever agree to this? Lan Xichen's puppy eyes are just that persuasive?
If they ever crack your spine, drop a line
If they ever cut your throat, write a note
If you’re ever in a mill and get sawed in half, I won’t laugh (HA HA HA HA)
Tedious Party Time
Now there's a cultivation party, which is about as excruciating to watch as it would be to attend.
Everyone is lining up to praise Jin Guangshan. To be fair, he did provide shelter for most of the smaller clans while the war was going on. So being grateful is appropriate, but Clan Leader Yao practically breaks his own neck kissing Jin ass. Yao says JGY’s contribution was the greatest of the war, adding, "fuck Wei Wuxian; everything is his fault."
The Jiangs show up wearing mourning belts that show off their itty bitty waists, and Jin Guangshan makes shifty eyes like a cartoon landlord when he sees them arrive.
JGS praises Jiang Cheng, and asks when his fancy clan-leader ceremony is going to happen. Jiang Cheng says he's still in mourning so it's not appropriate. JGS is like “Oh...yeah," as if he totally forgot about all the Yunmeng slaughter, and talks up his friendship with Jiang Fengmian. He acts comforting while WWX manages not to barf.
Then the Lan clan shows up and there is nice encouraging chit chat between LXC and JC...
...and just, SO MUCH mournful staring between Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian.
Then the Nies arrive. Jin Guangshan tells Nie Mingjue he's late, and that everyone's waiting for him. That might be true in the script but it’s clearly bullshit on the screen, where the Lans and the Jiangs are still milling around looking for the coat room.
Nie Mingjue--who, let's remember, JUST swore to be brothers with Jin Guangyao--looks at him like he's something that fell off a garbage truck. Lan Xichen jumps in to maximize the discomfort by pointing out that Jin Guangyao should address Nie Mingjue as Big Daddy Da-ge from now on.
Then the Jins offer Nie Mingjue the giant fire throne because...he's the leader of the Sunshot campaign, I guess? Of course it's all a manipulation tactic, designed to make him say he won't sit there, so that JGS can elevate himself to head cultivator, or something? And sit in front of the throne but not on it? Cultivator succession seems kinda arbitrary.
I swear to god, it wasn't until I was clipping this episode that I realized Wen Ruohan had two thrones and they're in different rooms from each other.
Finally everyone goes to sit down, but because there hasn't been enough fucking awkwardness, JGY stops WWX to ask him what's on his mind. WWX asks him why he's not carrying his sword, which made me laugh and laugh. Wei Wuxian must have been just waiting for a chance to ask someone else that question for a change.
Jin Guangyao says he threw it away, because it was just a random sword, but he really means he had it made into a sneaky murder belt, that he will be using again in 13 to 16 years. They both fake-laugh and trade Mean Girls insults pretend to like each other.
Everyone wanders around toasting each other. Lan Wangji goes to find Wei Wuxian, after first making sure that his hair looks good.
Wei Wuxian is lying around on the steps, sprawling and drinking wine, and not, incidentally, looking for Lan Wangji. He continues to not seek him out and Lan Wangji continues to chase after him.
Wei Wuxian says "how about playing Cleansing?" but Lan Wangji says he's learning a new score. It looks like it's going to be another argument, but then Wei Wuxian smiles and kind of praises Lan Wangji for being stubborn.
Awkward Marriage Proposal
Just then everyone inside starts cheering for Jin Guangshan to give a speech. Jin Guangshan is making a move to marry Jiang Yanli to his son, which is a big time power grab, given that the Jiang Clan is 1. vulnerable and depleted 2. has control of the Yin tiger amulet.
We get a very rare glimpse into Jiang Cheng’s inner mind, where he thinks that saying yes isn’t a great idea, but isn’t sure what to do. This marriage would make his sister happy, but could destroy the Jiang Clan's independence.
Fortunately, Wei Wuxian joins the party just in time to fuck up Jin Guanshan’s plans. Will this teach Jin Guangshan not to invite Wei Wuxian to parties? It will not.
Soundtrack: Friendship, by Cole Porter (from “Anything Goes”)
Bonus:
#the untamed#the untamed gifs#wangxian#restless rewatch the untamed#canary3d-original#my gifs#words:2750
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Just finished Nightmare of the Wolf and really enjoyed it!
Will I be quibbling about the timeline and canon contradictions whenever I discuss the movie with someone? Absolutely. (See full rant below)
Did that detract from my enjoyment? Not at all! It helps to think of it as a separate piece of media or even an alternate world. A lot of the specific details may be wrong, but they still managed to convey the mood and the tone that made it feel like a Witcher story.
The production as a whole was really well done -- good voice acting, good soundtrack, and I especially liked the animation.
Kudos to whoever decided that they needed to make young Vesemir hot. I think we all approve of that decision. Is it truly a Witcher property without a bathtub scene? Netflix didn’t want to risk finding out and we’re grateful.
Vesemir is not what I expected a younger Vesemir to be like character-wise, but I still liked him and enjoyed his arc.
I absolutely loved everything about the romance with Illyana. It managed to show some of the interesting story stuff you can do in a world where some of the population lives so much longer than the rest. And I really appreciated that in a franchise where I’m often frustrated with how the female characters are written (the games and the tv show have done a good job course correcting but I get so annoyed with how women are portrayed in the books) they decided to give us a visibly older woman with no magic who is still shown as a strong character.
It was really neat to get glimpses of Kaer Morhen in its heyday as a functioning keep with lots of witchers running around. Really drives home how alone the witchers that we know are in the main part of the timeline.
I wasn’t thrilled with the plot decision to have witchers involved in making monsters -- it contradicts literally everything we know about them and their view of the world. Plus it distracts from one of the central themes of the Witcher stories which is that oppression stems from hatred, fear, and lies and it is never justified and violence begets violence. (Not that I’m saying the attack at Kaer Morhen was justified here, but maybe don’t have some of the people being attacked doing horrific experiments in the basement that need to be stopped when you’re trying to show that the attack itself is wrong unless you’ve got more time to actually dig into it properly.)
And the movie definitely showed us some of the true tragedy of the witchers, which is the cycle of intergenerational trauma they’re all trapped in. All the stuff with the Trials was heartbreaking.
Overall it was a really good movie that had the right balance of moral quandaries and monsters that made it feel like a proper Witcher story. It definitely put me in the mood for season 2 of the tv show. Just don’t think too hard about the timeline and canon contradictions.
(Okay, but seriously, Vesemir is supposed to be SUPER old compared to the other witchers! Witchers don’t die of old age because they all get killed, so the fact that Vesemir has managed to survive to old age is a huge part of what shapes him as a character in the main timeline. And the only survivors of the attack on Kaer Morhen were witchers who were away from the keep at the time, which is how we know that Geralt, Lambert, Eskel, etc. were already adults when it happened. They were raised completely under the old ways, which is what makes their choice to treat Ciri better so important. If you make Vesemir the one who breaks from tradition that detracts a bit from Geralt’s choices. End rant.)
#The Witcher#Nightmare of the Wolf#Nightmare of the Wolf spoilers#The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf spoilers
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Star Wars Episode VIII - The Last Jedi Review
Thanks to a certain streaming service I was finally able to watch Star Wars Episode VIII – The Last Jedi. And I guess I have an unpopular opinion on it. It seems no other Star Wars movie, not even The Phantom Menace, received such a major backlash. Nonetheless I am trying to be unbiased and as honest als possible. As always, spoiler alert.
Ready for light speed!
The film opens wih the First Order (basically the Empire) hunting down the remains of the Resistance (basically the Rebel Alliance) after the destruction of the Starkiller Base (basically a more powerful Death Star). The Resistance is having a hard time losing their enemy, because, as it turns out, they have a device which allows them to track down ships while they are in hyperspace.
Finn, the deserted stormtrooper meets Rose Tico and together with Poe Dameron they develop a plan to infiltrate the First Order' mothership Supremacy and deactivate the device. But they keep it secret, because they fear that Vice Admiral Holdo would never agree to it. Finn, Rose and BB-8 fly to a casino on Cantonica to get the best code cracker in the galaxy. They hire DJ instead, a dubious code cracker who helps them in exchange for Rose's amulet.
At the same time Rey is trying to convince Luke Skywalker, who lives in exile, to help the Resistance. He refuses, stating that he blames himself and the Jedi for the treason of Ben Solo a.k.a. Kylo Ren.
While at first every word she said was wrong, Rey learns the true nature of the force herself, cuts a stone in half with a lightsaber and even has a telepathic conversation with Kylo Ren. He then tells her that Luke had tried to kill him. Luke on the other hand tells Rey, that Kylo destroyed his Jedi academy and killed most of his students. Rey however believes there is still something good left in Kylo, so she hops on the Millennium Falcon and leaves Luke behind on his exile planet, hoping she can bring Kylo over to join the Resistence.
Luke then tries to burn all that is left from the Jedi scripts. Yoda's force ghost appears and he tells him in his iconic grammar that failure the greatest teacher is.
Meanwhile Finn, Rose and DJ managed to infiltrate the Supremacy. Rey arrives there in an escape pod and meets Kylo. He brings her to Snoke. It comes to a dramatic showdown, where Kylo kills Snoke and helps Rey to escape. He does however not switch sides.
Finn, Rose and BB-8, who were surrounded by Stormtroopers thanks to DJ's betrayal, also escape. Poe has raised a mutiny against Holdo to buy them some time. He puts her under arrest and goes to the bridge. But then Luke Skywalker or rather a mental manifestation of him, shows up.
The First Order's fleet is still after them, so they decide to abandon the Raddus. Holdo however stays behind onboard the Raddus and performs a kamikaze maneuver, flying the ship with lightspeed into to the Supremacy so it gets destroyed and the Resistance ships can escape to a base on planet Crait.
Here the First Order makes a last attempt to smash the Resistance but Luke's projection shows up to distract them. The Resistance escapes and Luke, who never physically left his exile, exhausted from his massive performance, dies in a similar way Yoda did in „Return of the Jedi“.
In a final scene, back on Cantonica, we see a bunch of children who are obviously force sensitive and telling each other stories about Luke Skywalker and the Rebel Alliance.
This may come as a shock to some of you, but I really liked it. I even would go so far as to say, and as blasphemous as it sounds, it captures the very essence of Star Wars. While „The Force Awakens“ felt more like a retelling of „A New Hope“, just with different characters, which was fine but not great, this film dares to be different and original. Sure it has some pacing problems. The sub plot with the resistence fleet trying to escape the first order and with Finn and Rose is a bit too long and too complicated, but it wasn't too bad. What I liked the most about it, was that we finally could see some conflict within the Resistence.
I'm glad they went back to explaining the force like Yoda did originally. As this mystical energy field that is generated by every living thing and that holds the galaxy together. No pseudo-scientific explanations here. Midi...what? Midichlorians? Never heard of those.
Star Wars has a tradition of drawing clear moral lines. There is good and bad, the Jedi and the Sith, the force and its dark side. My personal interpretation is that Luke's statement that the Jedi need to die is a reckoning with the black and white thinking of the past. Obi-Wan once said, that only a Sith deals in absolutes but on more than one occasion the Jedi did this as well, when they for example said that someone who was once tempted by the dark side, can not be redeemed, or when Yoda said „do or do not. There is no try.“ The truth Luke learned was, that the force itself is amoral, and that both the Jedi and the Sith can be arrogant and ruthless in their actions. He is convinced that as long as Jedi exist, there will be people who get tempted by the dark side.
For the first time, not only in the expanded universe, but actually in a movie, so as canon as it an get, the Jedi's ideology is scrutinised. Not only that. It is questioned by Luke Skywalker himself.
We also learn that Rey's parents were complete nobodies. Kylo Ren however is the son of Han and Leia. He is the heir of both Skywalker and Solo, and yet he was tempted by the dark side, or rather in a morally grey area. The message could not be clearer. Heritage means nothing.
At that one scene where Rose keeps Finn from sacrificing himself to destroy this weapon of the First Order, I at first could not decide if it's brilliant or stupid. Sometimes, and especially to win a war, sacrifices are nessecary, but if everyone sacrifices themselves in order to survive it kinda defeats the purpose, so I can't help but agreeing with her.
If I have anything negative to say about it, I'd say that it could have been at least 30 minutes shorter. The Finn and Rose scenes as well as the final showdown have a pretty problematic pacing.
And yeah it is a little irritating how good Rey is with literally everything, from lightsaber fighting to using the force. Things that normally take years, she manages within a short amount of time, depending on how convenient it is for the plot. Many people already called her a Mary Sue character and I can see why.
But maybe this is the point. Luke in his exile shares some similarities with the protagonist of Friedrich Nietzsche's „Thus spoke Zarathustra“. They both live as eremits and they both in a way speak about the death of God, which stands for the fall of an old belief system leaving us in a state of nihilism.
If you look at it that way, Rey could be a quite literal representation of the Übermensch, a being that actively overcomes nihilism and leads humanity to a new moral system that is beyond the categories of good and evil from the Jedi's perspective. She is not a superhuman because she is extremely powerful but rather because she realises a deeper truth, that the force can not guide her to what's right or wrong and that she has to figure this out for herself.
But if we consider what happens in the final scene in which the children draw hope from the old stories about the Jedi, this theory either falls completely apart or the movie totally misunderstood what Nietzsche was trying to say.
What the movie did surprisingly well was that it deviates from everything that came before where it needed to do that, while keeping true to its legacy. It may not be perfect, but I prefer this over the prequel trilogy anytime.
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「 you think yourself above the wolves, above the makers and the destroyers of the world, above the gods. and yet, little lion, you have so far to go before you are above yourself.」
―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――
what’s up, what’s up ladies n gents n everybody in between! my name’s skye, mun here of the lovely not apollo choi (fc. jackson wang)! i’m very excited to be here, i’ve been eyeing this roleplay for about a month now I believe (??) and have been wanting to join tenfold, which I finally decided to go through with! below the cut you’ll find out some more of my boy here ― if you would like to plot, my discord user is sunnyburst#8001 or you can hit me up in tumblr PM’s! can’t wait to get to know you all, MWUAH 💗💗
( JACKSON WANG. MALE. ) Aleksander’s coven is intimately familiar with ( APOLLO CHOI, ) a dedicate Death Dealer for the coven. ( HE) is a ( 622 ) year old vampire known throughout the New World Coven for being ( CLEVER + STEADFAST. ) However, those who are familiar with them also know that they are very ( MANIPULATIVE + CRUEL. ) They’re known for being the ( LION. ) Though they are technically disbanded, they are still dedicated to their cause.
⤹ ――――― ⤸
～ INFORMATION
full name // apollo choi [ it should be noted that his birth name is kept closely guarded ]
nickname(s) // leo, heatstroke
age // 25 622
gender // male
species // vampire
title // the lion
birthdate // august 6, 1397
birthplace // hanyang, korea (modern-day seoul)
occupation // ex-death dealer, ceo of a major movie studio
ethnicity // korean
orientation // bisexual, although he’s scared to admit it and keeps it under wraps
status // single
languages // korean, english, spanish, french, cantonese
―――
fc // jackson wang
hair // dark brown
eyes // chocolate/hazel - gold
height // 6'3" ft
weight // 183 lb
body // muscular, slim
style // suave and modern, always clean-cut, fashionable but doesn’t experiment too much
defining features // besides his canines, speckled hazel heterochromia in his left eye
tattoos // n/a
scars // n/a
―――
horoscope // leo
zodiac // ox
element // fire
moral alignment // neutral evil
type // ESTP - the entrepreneur
house // gryffindor
religion // none - atheist
fears // really only one; to have his secrets be outed without his wanting
chronic // n/a
positive // insightful, clever, reliable, articulate, charismatic, level-headed, hard-working, incisive, authoritative
neutral // determined, distinctive, passionate, romantic, complex
negative // blunt, manipulative, crafty, hot-headed, cruel, vengeful, presumptuous, twisted
⤹ ――――― ⤸
～ PAST
it’s long af whoops
[ TW: mentions of physical abuse, slight gore, death ]
apollo was born to a high-class noble family in hanyang, korea on what we know as august 6, 1397
growing up in the peak of the joseon dynasty and one of the country’s golden ages, there was not much the young boy needed, but rather everything that he wanted
his father was a high-ranking member of the city’s caste system, one of the generals that assisted in ushering in the new era
his childhood is spent alternating between school for preparation in aristocracy and basking in the social standards of the time ― while he isn’t old enough to begin more ‘dangerous’ tasks, the patriarch implements training in everything from horseback riding to whittling for apollo to enjoy
life isn’t good for him, it’s great ; he doesn’t have to worry about much, and when he does there’s people around him available to clear up any ‘misunderstandings’ in a heartbeat
still, as he grows older, a superiority complex begins to take hold of the young boy, coupled strangely with a boredom he had yet to experience before
the result? a horrible combination that begins to warp his personality in tidbits, before he fully ‘sinks in’ so to speak
by 12 his father has deemed him ready to embark on more trials outside of simple pleasantries. never mind the golden age of science and art ― apollo’s father was a militaristic man through and through, and he knew war would come one way or another
so the youth begins to learn of the knowledge of battle; how to wield a sword, proper fighting techniques, the instinct of survival ― such is beaten into him in more ways than one, excuses for failure reaching deaf ears and perfection being the only goal
this type of treatment does well to cause both vice and virtue for apollo; the once happy boy is twisted in a grasp of frost and cruelty, and yet he finds himself training ever harder and hardly taking heed to words outside of his father’s opinion
he’s 16, young and ablaze, a fire coursing through his veins despite his frigid approach. apollo’s beginning to make a name for himself, partaking in whatever challenges present themselves, discerning towards talks of a bright future when all he wanted was blood
his elders begin to take note of this and, under pleased recommendation from his father, ascend apollo to become apart of the high-ranking royal guard ordered to protect the king and his family
while he would rather be out on the battlefield (despite the age of scientific expansion, there was also trifles to be meddled in), apollo took the opportunity with steadfast determination and took his job as seriously as one could
he finds himself betrothed at age 18 on consideration by his father who is eager for a lineage, a fragile noble girl in all sense of the word being chosen as a ‘perfect fit’. apollo could hardly care, however ― if he had his way, he would be married to his sword, yet he supposed a woman would do for the time being
still, time goes on with little interruptions; the beast marries the beauty, he’s promoted to personal guard of the youngest prince, and his often-times anger is allowed to be sated on whoever is unfortunate enough to end up in chains that day
yet, soon trouble begins to brew, although not with him ― tensions between korea and japan begin to rock the state, rumors of war falling over the distant hills being drunk up by the common rabble. apollo is eager for such to arrive, hoping to take part in what he sees as ‘festivities’, despite being obviously chained to protection over the 13 year old boy all considered ‘prince’
and yet this boy was the cause for much of his frustration ― opposed to when apollo was young, the prince was futile and weak, eager to take part in more pleasantries rather than learn of his future duties to the dynasty
such often enraged the elder, forced to bite his tongue in earnest of stepping out his ‘boundaries’ despite having much to say
trouble, however, spirals downwards quickly within his life ― with the prince turning 20 and him lingering atop 25, apollo would hope that the 5-year continuation from him first being assigned would only shape up the younger. however, it seems to be quite the opposite; the prince spends his time ‘play fighting’, as apollo calls it, and dragging his guard through the forest in daily hunts that hardly often accounted for anything due to his skill. on top of that, it is found that his young wife is infertile, and despite hardly caring for any child at all, she is cast out of the marriage and lowered within society’s eyes
yet one such hunting trip results in tragedy ― after the two embark on their routine that apollo had become all-too used to, they come across a herd of wild boars the prince is eager to slaughter. after attempting to quell his lineage to no avail, an argument ensues; the prince comments on how apollo is out of line, and he likewise comments that the royal is going to get himself killed ― unfortunately, it results on the attention of the boars being caught, and apollo hardly has time to get out of the way before he’s being battered and speared through with bone
the prince, in retaliation, runs away
spine broken, bleeding out on autumn leaves, apollo shifts back and forth through consciousness enough to make out an approaching figure before everything goes dark ― such a figure, unknown to him, would change his life (and death) forever
he awakes a day later in a home hidden by the shadows of the treetops, not far from hanyang. he believes he is dead, and yet the being waiting there for him discerns otherwise ― he is alive, just not in the traditional sense.
apollo spends a month with the mysterious figure, who he comes to know as his ‘sire’, and learns of his existence. of how he was destined to die, and came by much more powerful and much stronger. of how the figure had been stalking them for the perfect moment to strike, only to find another opportunity instead. the realization of him being ‘vampire’ surprisingly comes easy to apollo; he approaches his existence as a gift more than a curse, especially considering the abilities that come along with it.
when he returns home he is met with shock, remorse, celebration, and guilt, particularly from the young prince who had abandoned him. his story is simple― after being left to die by the royal, apollo managed to crawl to a nearby stream and patch his wounds with mud and leaves, obviously leaving out the ‘broken spine’ detail. his explanation as to how he had healed completely back to his healthy self? blessings from the gods, that of which was good enough to deem him fit for society
much to apollo’s pleasure, the prince was chastised and punished in a dutiful manner for his cowardice and betrayal. becoming used to his usual bloodlust that came from not feeding went easier than he expected as well ― the ‘lepers’ cast out provided well enough sustenance for apollo, and not a single soul bat an eyelash at their deaths.
ageing, however, was a different issue ― he could not stay 25 within the city for long, and yet religion played enough of a part in hiding such a fact. years passed and apollo gave praises to the gods for his ‘youthful’ appearance even at 32, noble families falling over him in an effort to obtain being part of his lineage, and yet he hardly cared to give them a glance ― to apollo, there were better things on the horizon, and he wanted to experience it all
so, what was the best thing to do? fake his death, obviously. superstition ran high in his community, so he simply walked off into the woods one day and never returned ― they would fret, apollo knew, but overtime they would simply reason that he was ‘reclaimed’ by the deities. in truth? he returned to the home he had first woken up to, only to find it empty ― his sire was nowhere to be found.
did he break down into tears? cry out in the dark? hardly; for a newborn vampire, apollo had nerves and determination of steel, and simply ‘set up camp’ for the time being. if he couldn’t live in the city, he would live where he could be free
apollo’s world is about as interesting as it can get after that ― he alternates between staying in woods to returning to hanyang after he’s sure every other generation has died out. the same story of being a ‘newcomer’ is told regardless, and no one ever questions it because they hardly know him. this sort of ‘schedule’ he has allows him to be both separated yet still grow with the times. he admits that the future was not exactly what he expected, and yet all-too exciting for vampire. time passes in the blink of an eye for an immortal, watching as his home of hanyang shifts in the modern city of seoul ― such a sight triggers something within apollo, and he realizes he too must change with the world
new york city is not the first choice on his list; rather, the vampire changes his name and attempts to travel to london as a more ‘immediate’ deviation. however, he is not received well ― altercations involving vampire covens within the city eventually push him out, solace within the european countries not found for long. the united states is next; it’s a melting pot, and exactly what apollo is looking for, yet new york catches his eye above most. deviating from his original plan of los angeles, the vampire is pleased at the anonymity of the city and the opportunities presented with it greatly
a chance encounter with 3 lone vampires including himself results in meeting aleksander and eventually being inducted into his coven. at first, apollo is thrown off by the sudden influx of ‘sociability’ that is expected, yet he soon finds it endearing enough and something he admires, even. he is one of the first to join up as a death dealer when the role is announced ― although his seductive nature and sadism is not attributed to only one species, apollo is all-too eager to sate the never ending lust for war and blood he finds the opportunity of in hunting with his newfound brothers and sisters. even after the death dealers ‘officially’ disbanded, he still heeds the call of aleksander whenever needed, more than pleased to assist in whatever is required of him.
⤹ ――――― ⤸
～ FACTS
his birth name is not apollo choi, and has been kept a secret and on the backburner since he was turned ― he sees it as his ‘past’ self and a chain to his current identity
after arriving in nyc, he’s since found a love for film (or rather ‘entertainment’ as a whole) and began his own movie studio, that of which skyrocketed in popularity and is now among some of the top ones in the country. he keeps himself separated from the majority of his employees so that he can ‘hand down’ the company to himself ― those necessarily close to him are fellow vampires, who he knows he can trust with his immortality
sometime after he was turned he came to realization that he was bisexual rather than straight. while he is a rather romantic individual and wishes for a lot, he’s scared of dedicated love with the way he is, and keeps his sexuality under wraps for fear of someone possibly using it against him
his overall personality is very sadistic and twisted ― he finds joy in the pain he causes others, depending on who they are, and isn’t one known for mercy among the death dealers
apollo believes in ‘ability’ more than ‘possibility’. it is partially one of the reasons he no longer is religious; he finds the belief in the supernatural on earth and the immortality they possess to be far against any idea of ‘god’ or ‘gods’
he was nicknamed ‘leo’ by aleksander due to his fiery passion and his bravery in what he does. he’s attempted to get tattoos of lions on his body, but finds that they forcibly heal due to his abilities
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Magnificent Seven Series (1998) Pilot major spoilers
So I finally finished watching the Pilot and good lord I had thoughts, and no this is not the first time I’ve watched this episode, I’m just that extra when I watch TV
(Here we go yet again folks strap in)
(I have mentioned I hate the confederates- garbage humans the lot)
(Also giving birth is better in a squatting position- or at least that’s what I’ve heard)
(Seminoles are actually a very interesting tribe to read about)
“I respect no man’s law but my own” well fuck you too racist bastard (not only that but you need to get a fucking haircut and someone to repair that ratty flag of yours or better yet burn it)
I hate that he is so right cause we still have nut jobs in the south who are in denial that we won the war
The movie was so much nicer goodness (I mean violence wise it wasn’t as insane as this is)
I hate that the general is not completely bad (he isn’t close to good but he still has morals, which is hard to believe considering what he believes)
(The general is nuttier than an oak tree)
OKAY HOW DARE YOU, I’M NEARLY A TRILLION PERCENT SURE THAT SAND IS SACRED AND YOU JUST FUCKING CHUCK IT WHO RAISED YOU
AND YOU PUT THAT MASK WHERE YOU FOUND IT GODDAMN IT
“I believe I can turn gold into bullets” (what does that even mean)
(Didn’t realize that this whole episode was a week’s worth of stuff huh)
(I love that they included freed slaves just makes me happy)
Lordy boardy here we go
Chris this is not the time for a drink
The duster flaps in the wind- okay we get it Chris is a badass- he was drinking glass, earlier we know
The Marshall is a coward (this reminds me of a fantastic fic I once found that had the Marshall return and Nathan was understandably pissed it was awesome)
He’s wearing an apron- oh Vin you have fallen so far, (I’m glad he has long hair though, in the movie it was pretty short which didn’t really fit cause you know Vin isn’t one for conventions or white men tradition)
Mary, Mary quite contrary-angry I mean angry good lord I love her
(I always pronounce gangrene as gaygrene and its super frustrating cause I’ll try my hardest to say it right but my mouth doesn’t work that way or at least it doesn’t sound right)
Only in the nineties could you say darkie doctors on TV and not be immediately cancelled or there to be some sorta outrage, same thing applies to lynching, you can hang white folks on TV but the minute a black person is having the noose we have problems (which is really good cause there are people still alive that have probably witnessed a lynching of someone who certainly didn’t deserve it)
That son of a bitch, pushing Mary was stupid because not only are you being racist which is a trait no one likes but also being a sexist pig- (you are in for it now)
Uh-oh Vin is pissed that isn’t good for anyone (well Nathan but that isn’t the point)
Do you think Vin gives a damn about being employed- and how did he get the apron off so fast like damn
THE FUCKING NOD
Here he comes the stupidest boy in the Wild West- (I’m gonna punch something I swear)
He’s so little
Chris nearly shot Jd’s foot off
“Where’d you come from” where did you go where’d you come from, tall dark stranger and his weird friend
(The saloon bit tickles me to death)
(For some reason it reminds me of Lone Ranger and I don’t know why)
Vin is a fucking sweetheart and I love him
Poor Nathan I hope his throat is okay
Vin do you have to be negative and suicidal in the same swoop seriously
Its Buckaroo time everybody, hell yeah
Then he jumps out a fucking window like a moron, and Chris is just standing there like a he’s too cool for school
(Is it Josiah or ‘osiah, not entirely sure)
And here comes the Ez, ugh he’s about as cute as he can get
“Sorry for the mess” lordy be
(Love Ez’s one-liners)
“I abhor gambling” carefully baby don’t want Maude to hear you and fuck you too you Southern bigot (I know he gets better but still, that language isn’t okay)
What the fuck is he doing with his fancy footwork just leave the saloon for mother’s sake
It’s too early in the morning to deal with Jd just goddammit (I’m gonna make some popcorn and come back to this cause I seriously can’t)
(Okay I’ve calmed down and I am ready for the stupidity)
What did he think was going to happen, of course, you fell off your fucking horse you side saddled that bitch and startled a horse that you don’t even know you’re better than this
(The only thing he can’t do is have a brain cell)
Chris is an asshole
This damn kid
Buck what the hell are, you doing, leave the kiddo be
(I also find it difficult to trust white men)
And here comes the boy and Buck (Jd’s hair is just bad, it’s like Snape’s)
Buck is right about Jd being a prep
“We’ll carve it on his tombstone” brutal Chris just brutal
(Vin is a sweet boy have I said that already cause he is)
Ezra is so good with kids damn
(Ron Perlman’s arms hell yeah)
Ezra nearly died good lord and he just goes with it and pretends he did it on purpose
Here comes Rainey girl I love her
Nathan why you hurt me, and RAINE THIS ISNT THE TIME TO PLAY MATCHMAKER
I love Raine’s dad he’s fantastic
Buck is such a goof I love him
Why is the guy, so raspy what happened
Jd getting punched is my favorite
This is so cringe, and I really like it “I was in prison for not being white” (that is still the case for some people and we all know it)
Buck CHILL THE FUCK OUT
Vin are you serious, you don’t know Chris and there you are just hanging out and suddenly you’re like hey dude if I die, take my body to Tascosa you will get a huge payday, he didn’t have to do that at all but he’s just that dude I love him too much
(There’s also a really good fic about Josiah and his crows it's great)
Ezra, I’m done with you, good lord just go home
Here we go
Nathan is a gift to all
Buck don’t waste bullets and Josiah go to a hospital, Jd you’re an idiot and nearly died plus Ezra what are you doing go to Nathan, dumbass
Buck spewing truth everywhere
Bruised my ass Ezra just accept help like a normal human being goddamn
Nathan does not take no for an answer and ow I heard that crack in my own arm ouch
Nathan called him out
Josiah, I love you so much, (usually, I really hate missionaries cause they can be extremely intolerant to other religions especially those of Native peoples,) but Josiah tries his best to respect them which is a breath of fresh air
Josiah fainting isn’t helpful I don’t care what the crows, say (he’s a birdbrain)
Poor Jd, I just wanna give him a hug, and dude chill you are being a mess, like drink like a normal person
Buck stop telling people Chris’s past it isn’t appropriate
And I swear we own an old blanket that looks exactly like Josiah’s poncho no joke
“I’m a spiritual man, sometimes I turn to the wrong kind of spirits” I love this line
Ezra stop corrupting the youth, (Ezra is like O’Reilly and I love that characterization)
What debts they can’t be older than 10, Ezra stop, please
Nathan, I get you love, her -chill, and Jd “I haven’t shot anyone yet” are you kidding me, seriously
“Buck you’re full of crap” “You’re just figuring that out now” (Had I mentioned I love their dynamic cause I really really do)
(I did some research on Laudanum, purely for fun and apparently, it’s basically just a mixture of every opiate available and then some, plus it’s illegal to make for obvious reasons,)
That’s right Ezra you aren’t a coward or at least not completely
(Jd’s story makes me think that maybe MAYBE he was abused as a kid in the stables, not anything too horrific but still bad and I really wanna write about it)
Btw there is a wonderful thing (I think it was posted by 7men not sure though) anyway it says something about Jd used some of the money to take care of his mama before she died, and after there wasn’t enough to go to college but there was enough to go out west) I think about it at least once a month
(The war is over if only some people could get that through their thick heads)
Ezra you sneaky son of a bitch pulling a Chico
Chris is such a badass I mean that must hurt pulling off that handcuff
Round Three
I’m a bad bitch “You can’t kill me”
John Daniel Dunne- are you kidding me, are you trying to make either myself or Buck die because if you are you’re doing a great job (He is so stupid)
Buck, really you could have tackled him or really done anything else- instead you decide to fucking get stabbed by a sword (this is why you only have half a brain cell- I mean God fucking damn it)
Really Jo seriously like thanks for taking a bullet for Buck but really
Watching this episode has taken almost three hours but it’s totally worth it
(This is the worst part ugh it's like a weird zombie movie)
“You were like a son to me” Bitch you nearly shot him with a cannon
Chris thank you I wasn’t sure if that stupid general was gonna bite it or not
Jd cut out the angst you’re gonna hurt yourself
This old dude is a gift
“Buck, you look awful” kid your hair looks awful don’t let me get started
Nathan, Raine and the kid look like the perfect family and it makes me smile
“Where you going? Get down off that horse” poor Nathan what did he do to deserve the stress of dealing with those idiots like seriously what did he do
The good thing though is I’m pretty sure Josiah got a new poncho which is definitely a win
Raine gets it though she’s just ‘look those white morons are gonna get themselves killed so it’s better if you at least try to save their skins’ I can handle things here
Poor Josiah, he is just as hunched over as he can be, its pitiful
Okay I’m FINALLY done with this episode, think I may read a little before I get back on the saddle and on to my absolute favorite episode One Day Out West
#pilot#she reacts#vin tanner#chris larabee#ezra standish#josiah sanchez#nathan jackson#buck wilmington#jd dunne#the magnificent seven 1998#mag7#m7#spoilers#confederates#racisim#slavery#seminoles#civil war#lynching#maude standish#raine#mary travis#bernardo o'reilly#racism
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The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy by Mackenzi Lee
You deserve to be here. You deserve to exist. You deserve to take up space in this world of men
Also: Felicity Montague, you are a cactus.
This book is the feminist anthem you didn’t know you needed. Actually, no, scratch that it’s the human rights (and sometime even animal rights) anthem you didn’t know you needed. It tackles race, religion, sexuality, gender, and probably any other slightly controversial topic under the sun.
It is unabashed and recognizes flaws within arguments and defenses and it doesn’t try to say one way of life or being is better than another but they all simply deserve to exist.
If that isn’t enough to compel you maybe the fact that it is set in England (actually all over Europe really) back in the olden days (honest to God can’t remember what time period but the aforementioned petticoats probably gives you a clue) with pirates and sea dragons (it’s not as mystical as it sounds but still slightly magical) will be enough to compel you to pick up this book. Because you should. Like right now.
It’s hard to be raised in a world where you’re taught to always believe what men say without doubting yourself at every step.
So I loved the first book in this series (The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue) and was super excited when I heard there would be one focusing on Felicity because I wanted more from her character. However, that doesn’t mean I wasn’t apprehensive because all too often the sequel is not as good as the original.
I’m pleased to report that, in my opinion, is not the case here. The Lady’s Guide is every bit as funny and poignant and socially relevant as The Gentleman’s Guide, in fact, it felt even more relevant to me as a woman who could identify strongly with Felicity’s character. But don’t worry there’s still plenty of Monty and Percy present in the story.
I have learned that men respond best to nonthreatening women whose presence and space in the world does not somehow imperil their manhood, and so, as much as it pains me, I put on a smile so big it hurts my face and try to think like Monty, which is infuriating.
My favorite part of this novel is that Lee resists the urge to submit Felicity to the standard YA Romance storyline. That may have been what gave me the most apprehensive since the first novel implied that she was asexual, or at the very least more interested in her career than a marriage, and I was worried that having a story strictly about her would make Lee feel pressured to give her a romance. I will admit at times it felt like it was going to fall into that trap, but then it would turn around to show how it was just Felicity feeling the pressures of society.
When stripped of the illegalities and the Biblical condemnation, their [Monty and Percy’s] attraction is no stranger to me than anyone’s attraction to anyone.
The Lady’s Guide picks up about a year after the end of The Gentleman’s Guide with Felicity in Edinburgh working at a bakery trying to appeal to various hospitals and school to allow her entrance to no avail.
A year of men telling me I am incapable of this work only gives my pride a more savage edge, and I feel, for the first time in so many long, cold, discouraging months, that I am as clever and capable and fit for the medical profession as any of the men who have denied me a place in it.
The tipping point is when the man at the bakery who has helped her for the last year decides it is time to propose. This sends Felicity into a sort of tailspin because she’s not willing to give up on her dream yet but everyone around her is telling her she should settle down and be married and she’s starting to wonder if they are right.
Which gave him the idea that men often get in their heads when a woman pays some kind of attention to them: that it was a sign I want him to smash his mouth -- and possibly other body parts -- against mine. Which I do not.
She makes the impulsive decision to travel to London to see Monty and Percy and appeal to medical boards there to grant her admission. However, once again she is denied and practically laughed out of the room for her ideas of becoming a doctor.
“You’re so determined to become a lady doctor then,” he says. “No, sir,” I reply, “I’m determined to become a doctor. The matter of my sex I would prefer to be incidental rather than an amendment.”
Their exclusionary policies rest entirely on the fragility of their own masculinity, but it doesn’t matter because they’re men and I’m a woman so it’s not even going to be a fight and it was never going to be a fight.
But this time one of the doctors recommends she reach out to Doctor Alexander Platt for mentorship which through a series of events leads her to befriending a Black Muslim Hijabi pirate named Sim and going off on a new adventure. Along the way, she encounters an old friend which brings to the forefront the intricacies of feminism. Because really that is what this book is all about in the end. Three women all fighting for their place in this world of men who try to tell them their only place is in the household.
He has me apologizing for asking for the minimum that is granted to most men.
It turns out that Platt is set to wed Felicity’s childhood friend, Johanna, which she decides to use to get a meeting with him. However, it’s revealed that Felicity and Johanna had a falling out over their differing views on femininity and what it means to be a strong woman.
You stopped taking me seriously when I stopped being the kind of woman you thought I had to be to be considered intelligent and strong. All those things you say make men take women less seriously -- I don’t think it’s men; it’s you. You’re not better than any other woman because you like philosophy better than parties and don’t give a fig about the company of gentlemen, or because you wear boots instead of heels and don’t set your hair in curls.
Johanna is still strong and intelligent and independent and she likes wearing dresses and makeup and heels and flirting with boys and those things are not incompatible, but a lot of times it’s a sticking point in feminism. Somewhere along the way there became this belief (which Felicity believes) that to be a feminist, to be strong woman standing up to men, you couldn’t also be traditionally feminine. It takes almost the whole novel for Felicity to realize that Johanna is not any less strong and intelligent because she subscribes to traditional gender roles/beauty standards and it takes her even longer to be willing to admit she is wrong.
I have spent so long building up my fortress and learning to tend it alone, because if I didn’t feel I needed anyone, then I wouldn’t miss them if they weren’t there. I couldn’t be neglected if I was everything to myself. But now, those fortifications suddenly feel like prison walls, high and barbed and impossible to cross.
To be honest the relationships formed between and the battles waged by Sim, Felicity, and Johanna are more than enough reason to read this novel. But Lee decides to make it even better by throwing in scientific discoveries, men stealing women’s credit, danger, and a fight on the open seas reminiscent of any pirate movie.
It’s not hopelessness, it’s just pure stubbornness. Not even so much a will to live as a refusal to die. Not yet, not now, not here, not when we have so much left to do. There isn’t a goddamned chance I’m dying on this rig.
It turns out that before she died, Johanna’s mom discovered a new species with Platt that honestly sound like sea monsters, something half dragon half snake like? And that the scales of these sea dragons can be used as drugs (both medicinally and recreationally). Platt wants to exploit the dragons while Sim’s family has sworn to protect them at all costs. The women band together to plot against both Platt’s exploitations and Sim’s father’s stubbornness against progression.
Everyone has heard stories of women like us -- cautionary tales, morality plays, warnings of what will befall you if you are a girl too wild for the world, a girl who asks too many questions or wants too much. If you set off into the world alone. Everyone has heard stories of women like us, and now we will make more of them.
Of course, they succeed in both tasks and along the way decide maybe they should get their own ship and go on their own research voyages including exploring more about the sea dragons.
I am filled suddenly by that wanting, to know things, to understand the world, to feel myself in it.
In the company of women like this -- sharp-edged as raw diamonds but with soft hands and hearts, not strong in spite of anything but powerful because of everything -- I feel invincible. Every chink and rut and battering wind has made us tough and brave and impossible to strike down. We are mountains -- or perhaps temples, with foundations that could outlast time itself.
I know this was a long review filled with an overabundance of quotes, but I hope that just shows how good this book is. I read it a month ago and am just now writing this and still find myself remembering it vividly despite the fact that I’ve read maybe 5 books since then. So do me, and yourself, a favor and go out to read this book (I’m even okay if you skip the first one though I promise you’ll regret it if you do).
You are Felicity Montague, I tell myself, and the darkness, and my heartbeat, in an attempt to rein it in. You have climbed through catacombs darker than this, you escaped from a second-story window with only your bedsheets, and you should not be frightened of the darkness, but instead be sure that the most frightening thing in it is you.
Bonus:
- The chairman tosses his cloak over his shoulders and gives me a smile that he likely thinks is kind, but is, in fact the smirk of a man about to explain something to a woman that she already knows.
- Humans have instincts specifically for situations like this. Everything in me is saying there is danger lurking in this forest, eyes bright and hungry through the dark.
- Below is an unhelpful drop to the street -- no footholds, ledges, or loose bricks promised by every fiction book I have ever read. Not even a convenient hedge to drop into.
- Charming is not a word I’d use -- or ever want used -- to describe me, but the way she says it prickles me. It’s the sort of thing I feel entitled to say disparagingly about myself, but from someone else, it feels blunt and unkind.
- Zounds, does this fool actually think he’s saving me? Another storybook hero to swoop in and rescue a girl from a dragon or a monster or herself -- they’re all the same. A woman must be protected, must be sheltered, must be kept from the winds that would batter her into the earth.
- I can do more than memorize maps of vessels and arteries and bones; I can solve the puzzle of what to do when those pieces come apart. I can write my own treaties. I am a girl of steady hands, stout heart, and every book I have ever read.
#read Jan 24 2019#the lady's guide to petticoats and piracy#mackenzi lee#the gentleman's guide to vice and virtue#books#booklr#book blog#book quotes#monty and percy#felicity montague#feminism#strong female leads#strong female characters#fight against the patriarchy#then and now#felicity montague you are a cactus
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Parade's End - Series Review
"What I stand for is gone."
"But to live for. You have something to live for."
Without question, "Parade's End" is the best television miniseries I have seen in recent years. This five-part installment from 2012 is something as rare as a classic love triangle both expertly crafted and superbly acted, with a sentimental and optimistic ending which feels both earned and logical, while simultaneously addressing political questions, moral values and social class dimensions in such a way that it does not come off as shoehorned but rather as a vital element of the story.
The show is based on a series of World War I-era novels written by Ford Madox Ford. This review does not go into detail on all the storylines but nevertheless it does contain spoilers for the entire series.
The reason I came across this gem was me looking through the filmography of Adelaide Clemens. I was very impressed with her role as Tawney Talbot on the television show Rectify and I wanted to see more of her. Okay, so maybe I just thought she's one of the prettiest girls I've seen on screen over the last decade. Sue me. Anyway I wasn't disappointed.
The two other main characters of the drama are played by Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock, The Hollow Crown) and Rebecca Hall (The Prestige, Transcendence). We all know they're talented performers and every single one of the cast brought their A-game to this series.
This is a very beautiful show, a wonderfully filmed BBC costume drama at its finest. One nice touch is how it often establishes the time frame for a given scene with people reading period newspapers, such as the famous article of Kerensky vowing to continue the war against Germany. The dialog sometimes comes across as a bit stilted, but I believe it's more of a conscious choice than anything, lending a certain formal way to how the characters speak, and it's often supremely clever, packed with the trademark English dry humor. It wasn't exactly hard to find stunning screenshots for it.
The protagonist of the show is Christopher Tietjens, who is probably the most perplexing character of the series. The two ladies competing for his affection - in their own and vastly dissimilar ways - are his wife Sylvia and the young, idealistic and well-educated suffragette girl Valentine Wannop, who is quite a bit below them on the social ladder.
Christopher is an anachronism, and this is that which drives the entire plot of the story. It defines his problems, drives the action and points to the solution of the piece. He represents the old values of the bourgeoisie. It would then be easy to dismiss him as a mere reactionary but this absolutely misses the point. Christopher embodies an idealized version of the morals of the bourgeoisie during and after the French revolution, the values of the class at a time where it was still a revolutionary force. He's actually speaking out in favor of the women's vote at a tea party even before he meets Valentine.
As she notes, Christopher is living in a "glass cabinet" - he is championing a class, a system of values and a society which no longer exists, and perhaps never truly did, more resembling the role of the perfect feudal lord. He is a devotedly ascetic, old-school moral man believing in leading by example and protecting the rights of those under his charge. More than this, he is invested in what he refers to as the "parade" - the sanctity of marriage and keeping up appearances so as to not disgrace oneself or one's peers. In one of his most confusing yet significant ramblings, he tells Valentine how he's joining the war to "protect the 18th Century from the 20th". No, Valentine, I didn't quite get that either.
In contrast, Sylvia Tietjens is a monster. It would be rather boring if she was just a monster, but she isn't. She's a spectacular monster, played with incredible panache by Hall. Sylvia is representing the rotten bourgeoisie of the beginning of the 1900's, the laissez faire attitude - the vampires and exploiters of men to the point of virtual slavery, spitting at those beneath her. She is completely amoral and depraved, even seemingly taking pride in being so. She's the embodiment of the upper class as a cancer. In her most comical and recurring theme she consistently accuses Christopher of being "too perfect" such as that she comes off feeling inferior to him, yet her response is never truly to attempt to better herself, but rather to provoke him into striking back and lower himself to her level with increasingly outrageous behavior, being unapologetically unfaithful and scandalizing him at every turn. I would think there are very few actresses who could pull off a line like "you forgave, without mercy" in a way that makes herself out to be the victim.
Her weakness lies in how she gradually becomes absolutely obsessed with Christopher precisely because, after everything she does, she is still utterly unable to break him. In a ridiculous sense, Sylvia is in touch with her times and her social status - the predatory Capitalism, the subjugation of the colonies, the trampling of the working class under her iron heel and a life in shameless luxury - whereas Christopher is not. This is further indicated by the ire Christopher is drawing from his peers, precisely because of his devotion to his work, his utter inability to compromise his ideals and his brutal, acidic verbal beatdowns of other men in power who fail to respect or even be honest towards their subjects, leading him ultimately to be regarded as the most vile and debauched man in London due to slander from his enemies - an adulterer and a traitor to his country, none of it true. He can't even help doing his job well when it goes against his own interests, as evidenced by this brilliant piece of dialog between him and Valentine:
C- "The French were bleating about the devastation of bricks and mortar they've incurred by enemy action. I saw suddenly it was no more than one year's normal peacetime dilapidation spread over the whole country."
A- "How wonderful!"
C- "So the argument for French command of the Western Front gets kicked out of court for a season."
A- "But weren't you arguing against your own convictions?"
C- "Yes, of course. But Macmaster depends on me."
The third player, Valentine Wallop, is a symbol of the petty-bourgeois sympathizing with the plights of the proletariat amidst the increasing social contradictions of her age, which at this time and place were actually threatening her class with extinction. She's working for the vote for women and she's intensely pacifist. Her little brother, occupying a rather small role on the show, is a socialist and later a Bolshevik, writing her a postcard in Latin from the front, afraid it will get picked up by the censorship - "long live the October revolution!"
Where a lesser work would find this a golden opportunity to insert some synthetic plug against Communism, "Parade's End" significantly has Valentine exclaiming to her horrified mother, "well, it's enough to make anyone Bolshevik sending men and boys to murder each other in millions!" She is the least nuanced but most admirable of the three characters - outspoken, disrespectful of authority, perhaps a bit naïve and with a big heart.
This sets the stage for our drama - the love triangle between the moral traditionalist aristocrat, the corrupt would-be tyrant from his own class and the moral revolutionary commoner.
The conflict is symbolized by the Tietjens family tree at his grounds at Groby estate, where people from all walks of life have been hanging good luck charms for centuries. It is a symbol for tradition and the bond between the ruling class and its subjects. The tree's roots have grown too deep and wide and threaten to destabilize the very ground on which the estate is seated - another symbol for how the morals of times past have turned into obstacles for the needs of modern Capitalism - but in Sylvia's inimitable, shallow manner of thinking the main reason she wants to get rid of it is because it "darkens the view out the window". That, and out of spite for her husband, who dearly loves it and all it stands for - as he says, "young men and maidens have made their marriage vows under the Groby tree for longer than memory."
Her mother urges her to stay her hand and wait for her son to decide what to do with it once he is Lord of Groby but Sylvia bluntly states that his son will "grow up to be a Tietjens", so she won't even give him that choice. When she has the tree cut down with no sanction, that is the breaking point and the true conclusion of the triangle, in a single stroke showing Christopher that all the old values he lived for are dead.
In the end, Christopher chooses and chooses wisely. As his godfather told him on the field of battle, "well, there are no more parades for that regiment. It held out to the last man, but you were him", and as he himself says to Valentine, in a defining, game-changing piece of conversation: "My colours are in the mud. It's not a good thing to find oneself living by an outmoded code of conduct. People take you to be a fool. I'm coming round to their opinion."
The final shot of the series, with Christopher burning the last log of wood from the tree in the fireplace, dancing with Valentine at the post-war party with his fellow soldiers, is one of the most satisfying ends to any show I have ever seen.
It is good precisely because when I watched through this series for the first time, I fully expected Christopher to die in the finale, bleeding out in some ditch half-way to Belgium and setting up the standard tragic conclusion, as most of these great stories do - but this ending sends a powerful message. It is possible to change, and it is possible to find happiness even after you have let go of all your old baggage and sentiments. It is not a happy ending for the sake of it. It's a happy ending because ultimately that is what best serves the story.
There are of course many other characters in this drama - the timid, upstart Macmaster and his hypocrite mistress, Christopher's dad who commits suicide poisoned by false rumors about his son, the likable Irish priest most likely connected to the Irish Republican Army, executed on false charges of treason by Ulstermen, and Christopher's brother, who finally comes to understand him and take Valentine's side against his wife, and they are all well-crafted and well-played - but if I were to address them all, this would turn from an essay into a novel. You might as well go read the novels.
It's inspiring television. In one word, it's perfect.
Thomas Ijon Tichy
#Parade's End#Ford Madox Ford#Benedict Cumberbatch#Rebecca Hall#Adelaide Clemens#Doux Reviews#TV Reviews#something from the archive
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Ship meme: The whiskey three
Married Life || Accepting { @therealgamble, @whiskeyandtwoshotglasses}
If We Don’t Die, It’ll Make a Helluva Story
leaves their dirty clothes on the floor
The night before…
“Jesus, Riley, do you have to be such a slob?” “You were the one that said I couldn’t bring B-”“Say her name one more time-”
“Guys…honestly, is it so hard to-” It was all fun and games before the whiskey got knocked over and the tee-shirt was used to mop it up.
forgets to run the dish washer
It’s a land of empty mre packets and plastic utensil forests. There’s empty 3.2 cans, packed in such a way that they’d been claimed as tactical gear…and somehow, the brass bought it. All to avoid Punto Negro the Second of its Name.
Hunter still refuses to tell Gamble the story, and as predicted, uses security clearance as his excuse. Riley just laughs.
pumps gas for the car
It’s a known fact that Gamble drives. Riley pumps the gas because it’s better than waiting ~but it’s so he can stretch and pull tension out of his spine, his leg~ and Hunter…Hunter is the one that sits in the back, dreaming of margaritas and warm sands. Until they hit the roadblock. Then there’s a burst of thirty second activity. Before the car moves an inch, Brian’s now in the back, black case at his feet, looks like a suitcase. They know better. Hunter’s behind the wheel because he’s the one that speaks the local language. And Riley’s the one muttering it’s never going to work until Gamble kicks his seat.
It’s a fire-drill every few dozen clicks, lather rinse and repeat as it was before. Their shirts stick to their skin, rivers of damp down their spine, their brow, every part of them that isn’t covered with dirt.
drives when they’re going somewhere
It’s old hat by now. Squad forward to the release point.
Bravo is silent because there’s none, which makes some things better, some worse.
“Kumbaya, kids.”
The claymores are in place, camouflaged. The moon is low giving limited visibility so they have to rely on Gamble who is far too cheerful. The patrol they’ve set up against is destined to make its rounds and Riley and Hunter have established a crossfire. It will be a kill zone for forty-five seconds. Then green smoke between their position and the objective.
“You should see the look on your faces.”Riley knows Gamble’s keeping up moral in his way and because he knows neither Riley nor Hunter can smack-talk back. It’s both a comfort and an annoyance.
Gamble lets out a low, sharp whistle over the comms and time starts. Patrol is at Nine and Twelve. A deviation from what recon had gathered but it makes no difference. There’s barely sound as the first shots don’t ring out, weapons suppressed.
“My granny leap-frogs better than you two old ladies. And she’s been dead twenty years. Don’t make me come down there and show you how it’s done.”
They move, covering each other while Gamble watches over, picks off the extras with well placed shots.
They hit the door and kick down the door, smoke obscuring everything, even breath. The masks do little to filter out the acrid taste but at least they aren’t crying.
“Five…four….three….two….white.”
Moments later, out they come, dragging the limp frame between them. Riley hands over his rifle, Hunter slings his over his shoulder. The objective gets slung over Riley’s shoulder and it’s a running back’s rush as the PJ eats ground. The Brit’s not far behind him, pulling a pin with his teeth and lobbing the grenade into the building’s open maw.
rearranges the furniture
There’s four of them now, crammed into a space barely bigger than a couple of jail cells, and the civvie’s getting antsy. Keeps asking questions none of the Whiskey Three have answers for. Gamble’s given up trying to allay the engineer’s fears and has started ignoring him. Riley just keeps pouring drinks. Hunter thinks both of them are pretty shitty when it comes to intel.
He pulls a cable spool over to make a makeshift table, used chalk and a sharpie to make a board. Pebbles for pieces. Talks to him in his own language over the longest checkers game in history, because, as he reminds the other two…
This man is afraid. Was rescued from his own murder because he was willing to betray his god and his family to do the right thing. He’s still human.
Later, when the night gets cold because the desert’s a bitch that way, Hunter pulls the spare sleeping bag closer to the portable heat source, and gives the guy an extra blanket, and space to pray.
He notices though, that their guest isn’t the only one. Gamble’s got a well worn picture of Tabby that he may or may not just have brushed a thumb over, and he knows without a doubt that it’s a rosary Riley’s murmuring over. In moments like that, Hunter bites his tongue and doesn’t ask him if it’s Mary or his sister that he’s praying to. Low hanging fruit, and all.
falls asleep with the TV on
Three days on and things have scraped the bottom of the barrel for boring. And Riley’s going out of his mind. Waiting was always the worst part of the job, the hours and hours of nothing but watching sand-flies crawl up the crumbling mud walls, and the heat shimmer parching the dirt outside, micro-waving the horizon.
Muzzani and Hunter have grown tired of checkers, and are dozing off the afternoon heat. Gamble’s turn on the radio.
“You ever think about retiring from this? Getting a joe-job and-”“Naw. Where would you two be without me saving your asses?”“But we could be home right now, cold beer, game on the tv, yelling at the refs for shitty calls.”
“And who would you put in our place?”
“You make a valid point.”“Sure as shit I do.”
Riley shacks up in a corner, back against the wall, legs stretched out and crossed at the ankle. He refuses to complain, but some part of him knows he’s starting to get too old for this. He pulls his lid down over his eyes and closes them for just a minute…
gets to use the bathroom first
It’s the only time that Hunter’s had to himself, and of course, he’s stuck inside three and a bit canvas walls. He steals from it a moment of serenity from Riley’s constant complaint and Gamble’s murderous sarcasm. Even Muzzani’s hopelessness and fears. It gives him a moment of focus and clarity, to remind himself that they just need to wait a little longer.
Patience, after all, was a virtue, even here.
Patience is also what he calls the camel-spider lurking near the toilet paper.He doesn’t mention Patience because you have to laugh about something.
decides the temperature for the ac/heater
From temperatures that can soar upwards of a 105 degrees during the day, down to less than 40 at night, each one of them believes this is hell, and there’s nothing they can do about it.
sets up holiday decorations
“Uh…what are you doing?”
“Herding sheep. The fuck does it look like I’m doing?”
“….where did you even get flowers?”
“Muzzani and Hunter helped me out.”“And you’re stringing them together with…suture thread and a needle from the med kit?”
“It’s tradition.”“For…what?”
“It’s June 11th. Kamehameha day. So I’m making a lei.”
“You…need…fuckin’ therapy.”
leaves the lights on
Gamble’s set up the left side, Riley the right. They aren’t exactly landing lights but you do what you can. The road flares glow with a sickly pale red light, but it’ll be enough for the chopper to pick up a visual. It’s a bittersweet sensation; on one hand, it means finally going home. On the other, it means giving away your location and things have been going too smoothly, too quietly…
They’re all thinking it, but no one wants to be the asshole who says it out loud.
uses the bathroom with the door open
Man was raised in a bar, can’t be bothered to walk the hundred paces to make it from the door way to the latrine. Just unzips and lets it go, shakes. All with one hand, rifle steady in the other.“Do you do that at home?”Riley flashes Hunter a grin, even in the dark.
Gamble bites back on the first, second, thirty-fifth thing that comes to mind.
fixes the plumbing (or calls the plumber)
Sand scours the few exposed bits of flesh as the chopper blades whip it into a frenzy, not that they notice. Their luck didn’t hold out like it promised to. The night is filled with the staccato burst of automatic fire on both sides, Hunter’s running point with Muzzani and they’re half way toward the dark silhouette and the open doors that mean extraction.
Gamble and Riley are laying down cover fire and they’re running low; four heart beats later, Gamble’s shouting for them to haul ass and…nothing happens. He’s gotten about a third of the way when he notices he’s running alone.“Shit. Shit. Shit.”The pilot’s signaling, Hunter’s screaming…And fucktard’s not moving at all.
Keying his radio, Gamble barks a change in plan, from gun-run to cas-evac. And as soon as they get back to civilization, he’s going to kick Riley’s ass.
He turns back to drag his friend from the shadow of the building.
#Thanks!G#The Whiskey Three|Gamble and Hunter and Riley#excerpts from the 'drabble' I'm writing for Gamble-mun's other prompt#tw: violence#tw: strong language#tw: stupidly long post under cut#therealgamble
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Stay Golden Sunday: It’s A Miserable Life
An attempt to save a neighborhood tree somehow results in the death of the Girls’ most misanthropic neighbor. The Girls decide to pay for her funeral.
Picture It...
The Girls all meet up in the living room to compare numbers -- they’re trying to get the residents of Richmond Street to sign a petition to save a 200-year-old oak tree, which the city wants to cut down to widen the street. Rose is upset because she tried and failed to get the signature of Mrs. Claxton, their misanthropic neighbor on whose property the tree is growing. Despite the Girls agreeing that Mrs. Claxton’s just a terrible human being, Rose is convinced there’s some good in everyone, telling a St. Olaf story to make her point. She’s going to be extra nice to Mrs. Claxton to get her signature.
SOPHIA: *as the Girls run into the kitchen* Boy, that was a close call.
BLANCHE: If I have to listen to one more story about the colorful people from St. Olaf, I think I’ll explode.
ROSE: *coming in* Ernest T. Minky was St. Olaf’s librarian...
BLANCHE: Kaboom.
Blanche, Dorothy, and Sophia arrive at the courthouse to block the proposal and discuss their options. Sophia wants to bribe the commissioners, which Dorothy and Blanche shoot down. Blanche, however, did sleep with two of them (but, to borrow a line from a later episode, she probably would have anyway). Rose appears and proudly announces that, through persistent application of delicious Danishes, she managed to extract a promise from Mrs. Claxton to save the tree.
Mrs. Claxton arrives at that moment and the Girls attempt to be friendly. Mrs. Claxton quickly proves her reputation is entirely deserved when she tells Blanche she’s taking blackmail pictures of her bedroom activities, which she can see through binoculars, and makes a snide comment about Dorothy’s comparatively inactive bedroom. She quickly goes back on her word to Rose, and says she only said she’d help to get the Danish. She even says straight to Rose’s face that she hates her assumption that she just needed to be shown some kindness to change her mind.
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In the courtroom, the Girls attempt to present their petition to save the tree, only for Mrs. Claxton to shout them down, being as nasty to them as possible. Rose finally snaps and lets loose on Mrs. Claxton, who has the audacity to look shocked at Rose’s shouting. She says she’s done indulging Mrs. Claxton and tells her to sit still while the rest of the neighbors have their say, finishing with, “And if you don’t like it, just drop dead.” When she walks away, Mrs. Claxton promptly collapses to the ground, and Sophia confirms that the old woman apparently took Rose at her word.
Two days later, Rose is moping in the kitchen, convinced her shouting at Mrs. Claxton was what killed her. Dorothy tries to comfort her, saying that the woman was 83 and just had a heart attack. Blanche also attempts to comfort her, saying she should just have a cry at the funeral. Rose says there won’t be a funeral, which neither Blanche nor Dorothy are too broken up about, given how awful she was. Blanche tells a story about faking her death as a teenager just to see how many people showed up at her funeral.
SOPHIA: What’s everybody talking about?
DOROTHY: Ma, I can honestly say I have no idea.
ROSE: We started out talking about Mrs. Claxton’s funeral.
DOROTHY: Yeah, but somewhere along the way we segued into Blanche: The Miniseries.
Sophia comes in and asks when Mrs. Claxton’s funeral is going to be, and they’re surprised she wants to go. She says it doesn’t matter how horrible Mrs. Claxton was -- going to the funeral shows regard for human life. When they point out that Mrs. Claxton had no friends or relatives and so won’t have a funeral, Sophia says they should pay for it for the same reason. They all agree to go in on the funeral.
At the Forever Peaceful funeral home, the Girls confer with Mr. Pfeiffer (the “P” is not silent) about the funeral arrangement -- he initially thinks they’re planning ahead for “mother” (meaning Sophia). He tries to give them the hard sell on the most expensive casket in the house, but they balk at the $6,000 price tag. They finally settle on an inexpensive pine box for Mrs. Claxton. They decide on a Friday night funeral based on the TV schedule and leave.
ROSE: *about Blanche* You’ll have to excuse her. Funeral homes make her a little nervous.
MR. PFEIFFER: Golly, they used to make me nervous too. At a traditional funeral home, all they want to talk about is caskets, burials, dead people. Here at Forever Peaceful we’ve gotten rid of all that morbid death stuff.
SOPHIA: What are you running here, a sushi bar?
Friday night, the girls are sitting in the pews at the otherwise empty funeral. Rose is surprised that no one else came, but just as they’re about to leave, a woman shows up who claims the deceased was a dear friend. She gives a heartfelt eulogy about the virtues of the dead woman, and the Girls are tearing up, until the woman says the name “Celia Rubenstein.” She’s at the wrong funeral, and kicks the casket when she finds out whose funeral it really is. Rose runs out in tears, and Mr. Pfeiffer walks in with a golden urn and reveals Mrs. Claxton was cremated by mistake. Now the Girls have to take her home.
Later, Blanche is convinced that Mrs. Claxton’s ghost is haunting the house -- it was actually Sophia. Rose comes home and reveals that she found a place to put Mrs. Claxton’s ashes: She spread them at the base of the old oak tree and told the committee they can’t disturb the old woman’s final resting place, so it looks like they won’t cut the tree down. They go out to gaze at the oak tree.
SOPHIA: What are you all looking at?
DOROTHY: That beautiful, old oak tree, Ma.
ROSE: Mrs. Claxton’s spirit’s part of that tree now, Sophia.
SOPHIA: That’s really lovely. *looks at the base of the tree* And it’s touching how that Great Dane is paying its respects.
“Hey P-Feiffer, how would you like a punch in your P-Face?”
Rose headlines this excellent, memorable episode about the value of life, which has some of the best scenes in the series. It may not have a B-plot to speak of, but it doesn’t really need one when all the Girls play such a balanced role in the episode. I really can’t overstate how good everyone is in this episode, from Sophia’s outward apathy masking internal softness, to Blanche’s funeral home jitters, to Dorothy’s struggle with the name P-Feiffer. The brief appearance of the excellent Nan Martin at Freida Claxton is the cherry on top.
This marks the second time Rose has been in close proximity to someone who’s died and blamed herself for it (the first being Al from “In a Bed of Roses”). This time it’s funnier because we see the character die onscreen -- that doesn’t sound like it should be funnier, but it is. Nan Martin’s two-scene performance makes Mrs. Claxton’s death funny if only because she’s just the worst, and Martin’s clearly having a blast playing her.
DOROTHY: *about Sophia’s bribery attempts* And don’t tell us that’s how you got things done in Sicily.
SOPHIA: That’s not how we got things done in Sicily. Bribing people with money is how we got things done in New York. In Sicily, you cut off a horse’s head and put it somebody’s bed.
BLANCHE: Sophia, you’re making that up.
SOPHIA: Like hell. Our garbage commissioner, Fredo Lombardi, went on strike once. He woke up the next morning sharing a pillow with National Velvet. At 7 a.m. he was out cleaning the street with his tongue.
The other Girls aren’t wrong when they describe Mrs. Claxton in horrible terms, and Rose’s insistence that there must be some good in her is thoroughly punctured, not just in the courtroom but during her empty funeral. As funny as it is to see the Claxton clashes, poor Rose gets a big knock on her positive worldview, which adds a hint of sadness to the episode, even if she does improve by the end of the episode after she spreads the ashes.
There’s even one serious moment where Mrs. Claxton tells Rose that she hates that Rose assumed that just because she lived alone, that she must want “company and a few kind words.” This tendency of Rose to try and insert her sunny demeanor into the lives of people who neither like it or want it will come back to bite her later. As nasty as Mrs. Claxton is, she’s not wrong that Rose assuming she must be a lonely, misunderstood person is kind of patronizing.
ROSE: Oh Sophia, I think you’re a wonderful person. It’s a lovely idea to share Mrs. Claxton’s funeral expenses equally.
SOPHIA: Equally? I figure your share should be about half. After all, you’re the one who killed her.
The question of whether Mrs. Claxton’s life was pointless because she didn’t have anyone who cared about her is a bit of a thorny one, and definitely not something I think Mrs. Claxton herself would have cared about. But the episode makes it clear that it’s not a philosophical or moral question -- it’s only important in the episode because it’s important to soft-hearted Rose. And even though the use of her ashes to protect the oak tree they were originally trying to save is a little trite, I do think it works because at least one of the Girls -- Sophia -- isn’t taking the whole thing very seriously.
The tree is also a nice plot point. We’ve seen the Girls describe their charitable endeavors before, most notably in “Flu Attack.” Here we see them actually doing their charity work, in this case saving a 200-year-old tree. All four of the Girls are part of the endeavor, even though Blanche can only get men to sign up for the petition one at a time the old-fashioned way, and Sophia put the names of a few dead people on the petition.
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To harp on my favorite topic, the episode is very fairly balanced, with each of the four Girls having almost equal screentime. Sophia’s role as the person who badmouths Mrs. Claxton the most and yet encourages the others to pay for the funeral because she feels bad for her. Remember what I said weeks ago about how the show gives the least active member of the cast a big monologue in the middle of the episode to keep it even? In this case it’s Blanche with her long, ridiculous monologue about how she faked her death at age 15 because she wasn’t crowned Miss Magnolia Blossom. This time Dorothy even lampshades it by saying she has no idea how they got to that topic.
The comedy really culminates during the funeral scene, when an unnamed mourner shows up and speaks about the deceased in glowing terms, speaking about her anonymous charitable work and giving the Girls the brief impression that Mrs. Claxton was secretly the greatest person. Then she discovers that she’s in the wrong funeral, and when she discovers that the funeral is for Freida Claxton, delivers a kick to the casket in the ultimate wordless indicator of exactly how bad of a person Mrs. Claxton was.
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I feel like Forever Peaceful is really lucky the Girls didn’t actually like Mrs. Claxton, because cremating someone who was supposed to be buried is a lawsuit waiting to happen (not that I’m a lawyer, but still). Also, I know they had to do it for story/comedy reasons, but I’m not sure why they gave the ashes to the Girls. Presumably they’ve already paid for the casket and the plot in which Mrs. Claxton was to be interred -- why not just pop the urn in the casket and bury it that way?
But I have no regrets about its inclusion, because the scene where the Girls confer with Mr. P-Feiffer about the funeral arrangements is one of the funniest scenes in the whole series. Everything from the strangeness of the name to the Girls rejecting his hard sell to the decision not to have the funeral on Thursday because it conflicts with the Cosby Show is just solid comedy gold.
DOROTHY: Thank you, Rose. That was a wonderful story.
ROSE: I’m only half-done.
SOPHIA: I passed a kidney stone once that was less painful than this.
Also, correct me if I’m wrong, but I think this is the first instance of a St. Olaf story being acknowledged as such. Rose has told scattered stories of the other residents of her hometown in Minnesota before, but this is the first time the other Girls give such a strong, disgusted reaction to it, even running out of the room in an attempt to escape hearing about the life of Ernest T. Minky. This is the reaction they’ll generally have to the stories of St. Olaf throughout the rest of the series, and it’s hilarious every time.
Episode rating: 🍰🍰🍰🍰🍰 (five cheesecake slices out of five)
Favorite part of the episode:
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#golden girls#stay golden#stay golden sunday#picture it#it's a miserable life#blanche devereaux#rose nylund#sophia petrillo#dorothy zbornak#s02e04
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STARTUPS AND PEOPLE
Remember the exercises in critical reading you did in college. A lot of the questions people get hot about are actually quite complicated. What groups are powerful but nervous, and what they change is solubility. A confident group doesn't need taboos to protect it. Letting focus groups design your cars for you only wins in the short term, and b you're sufficiently worried about whether you can keep hitting your numbers without hiring someone new.1 It's so simple. And the reason is that the customer doesn't want what he thinks he wants.2
A more important source, because it's more personal and comes earlier in the process, is money from individual angel investors. I think we'll gradually see national characters superseded by occupational characters: hackers in Japan will be allowed to behave with a willfulness that would now seem a bit morbid. Fortunately there is a fixed amount of wealth in the world. They'll be things you've already noticed but didn't let yourself think. Unfortunately, there is not a lot of them in Silicon Valley, but to surpass it. But any idea that's considered harmless in a significant percentage of times and places, and so on. And in her typical quiet way she encouraged that illusion. Many are annoyed that these so-called startups get all the attention, when hardly any of them will amount to anything. Let me see and decide for themselves how valuable your technology was. It's something they plunge into, working fast and constantly changing their minds, like a Vise-grip.
Google and some other Internet companies, but we've never bothered to invite Microsoft. Americans: it could be part of a small group of their peers than to average it with everyone. If you can develop technology. Remember, it's the reporters. Sometimes pretty overtly. The government could not do better than to piggyback on their expertise, and use investment by recognized startup investors as the test of whether a company was a real startup. Copernicus himself didn't. It would be like someone claiming they had independently decided in 1972 that bell-bottom jeans were a good idea to get bought, if you get growth, everything else tends to fall into place.
Similarly for companies constrained in a. One of the most successful startups seem to be about technology. You see that variation even within the US. Two things changed. An example of a job with measurement but not leverage is doing piecework in a sweatshop. Does it make any difference to know that? Apple, Steve Wozniak still hadn't quit HP. I was curious to hear what had surprised her most about it. The same recipe that makes individuals rich makes countries powerful.3
By the time you get to the end of the experts, and you'll turn up other variants of this story. A society that trims its margins sharply will kill them all. Darwin himself was careful to tiptoe around the implications of his theory. That was why they'd positioned themselves as a media company instead of a technology company. It's the way we all do things. I've thought of magazines like that more as guides to what ordinary people were being told to think than as sources of information. It's so simple.
Why does this sound familiar? Subtract one from the other end. The most obvious is Google.4 Barry Manilow in the mid 80s. The first microcomputers were dismissed as toys. In industrialized countries we walk down steps our whole lives and never think about this, because there's a good chance the person at the next table would know some of the statements that make people maddest are those they worry might be believed. A Dutch friend says I should use Holland as an example of one of the winners.5 Unfortunately the only industry they care enough about so far is soccer.
An example of a tolerant society. That's leverage. I remember watching what he did one long day and estimating that he had added several hundred thousand dollars to the market value of the work done by small groups. In this case we get three: the NPD Group, the creative director of GQ, and a research director at Smith Barney. Understanding growth is what starting a startup were easy, everyone would do it. A state that bans chewing gum has a long way to go before it could create a million dollars, you have to get it from someone else. It's doing something people want. You need to be very lucky.6 In America you can have either a flimsy box banged together out of two by fours and drywall, but larger, more dramatic-looking, and full of expensive fittings. And so American software and movies, and Japanese cars, all have this in common: the people in charge care about design—the former because the designers are in charge, and the Inquisition was a bit restive at that time.
And if they can't, they may simply violate it and invite you to sue them. Moral fashions more often seem to be created deliberately.7 For example, in America people often don't decide to go to work for the Post Office for fifty years, but they're not willing to let you work so hard that you can do this at the level of the whole company. If you want a potato or a pencil or a place to live, you have to know what they are so that I, at least, I think, is that it can actually discover startup ideas. But the less you identify work with employment, the easier it becomes to start a startup. At the bottom of the heap are the trade press, who make most of their money from advertising and would give the magazines away for free if advertisers would let them. Draw a sharp line between your thoughts and your speech. How you live affects how long you live. Suppose you own a beat-up old car. CEOs to take red-eyes. That gave me a way to develop ideas; it's also a good chance the person at the next table could help you in some way. Kate said that she could never pick out successful founders, she could recognize VCs, both by the way they dressed and the way they dressed and the way they dressed and the way they dress.
Notes
Incidentally, the mean annual wage in the 1960s, leaving the area around city hall a bleak wasteland, but this advantage isn't as obvious because it was the first year or two, because a it's too late? IBM 704 CPU was about the subterfuges they had first claim on the other hand, launching something small and traditional proprietors on the LL1 mailing list. They'll have a one world viewpoint, deciding to move from Chicago to Silicon Valley, but they get a job after college, they have because they could bring no assets with them. To the extent this means anything, it is to give up, how much they lied to them more professional.
I wouldn't say that any given college.
That's why the Apple I used a TV for a smooth one. Investors are one of a place where few succeed is hardly free.
What people usually mean when they set up an additional disk drive. Add water as specified on rice package.
If doctors did the same reason I even mention the possibility is that everyone gets really good at squeezing money out of business, which can happen in any case.
If you assume that not being accepted means we think we're as open as one could aspire to the customer: you are not mutually exclusive. Doh. And though they have to. I switch person.
We just tried to shift back. What has changed is how much of the most promising opportunities, it would do for a startup to be considered an angel-round board, consisting of two founders and realized they were, like hedge funds, are available only to the other students, heirs, rather technical sense of not starving then you should at least notice duplication though, because for times over a certain city because of that, founders will seem dumb in 100 years, dribbling out a chapter at a Demo Day or die. The proportions of OSes are: Windows 66.
#automatically generated text#Markov chains#Paul Graham#Python#Patrick Mooney#founders#company#Valley#sup#job#attention#Internet#assets#startup#way#city#minds#solubility#Silicon#employment#hall#piecework#customer#example#morbid#dollars#willfulness#people
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'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' co-creator picks episodes for Olympian fans like Red Gerard and Mirai Nagasu to binge on
Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg) introduces the Jimmy Jab Games on Brooklyn Nine-Nine. (Screengrab: Fox)
The Olympics may be airing on NBC, but it’s a Fox comedy that’s proving to be one of the biggest hits among the athletes.
Red Gerard, the 17-year-old American who earned gold in snowboard slopestyle, admitted that he woke up late the morning of his final because he’d fallen asleep the night before watching an episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Before she left for South Korea, figure skater Mirai Nagasu, who became the first American woman to land a triple axel at an Olympics during the team event in PyeongChang, told Yahoo Lifestyle that streaming episodes of the Andy Samberg series on Hulu was her preferred form of stress relief. “During these times of pressure and stress, I find that comedy really helps get me through it, and that is a funny show, so I’d definitely recommend it,” she said.
Olympians/Brooklyn Nine-Nine fans Mirai Nagasu and Red Gerard. (Photo: Getty Images)
Brooklyn Nine-Nine co-creator and showrunner Dan Goor is thrilled with the endorsement. “I’m so incredibly flattered and excited to hear that Red Gerard and Mirai Nagasu watch the show! First of all, we’re all huge fans of both of them (and any other Olympian who watches the show, irrespective of sport or national team, but mostly we are fans of them because they are amazing),” he tells Yahoo Entertainment via email. “Secondly, I would love to do an episode where Jake Peralta and Mirai Nagasu chase an archvillain across a frozen-over parking lot, and just when he thinks he’s gotten away, Red Gerard and Charles Boyle snowboard out of nowhere and take him down.”
Since Gerard still has the Big Air competition ahead of him, and Nagasu the ladies’ event, any potential cameos will have to wait. In the meantime, we asked Goor to recommend the episodes that they — and any other athletes looking to unwind — might enjoy binge-watching between training sessions in PyeongChang. Here are his picks for “the most Olympics-appropriate and/or inspirational episodes,” with our own descriptions. (Though, Goor notes, “That said, people should watch every episode, so they can decide for themselves!”)
Squad members compete in the Bulky Bulky Run Run event. (Screengrab: Fox)
“The Jimmy Jab Games” (Season 2, Episode 3): After being told their motorcade duty is delayed by three hours — and that Andre Braugher’s Capt. Raymond Holt and Terry Crews’s Sgt. Terry Jeffords will be out of the office — the squad knows exactly how to pass the time. Events in these “Games” include the Mouthathon (an eating contest with month-old Chinese food from the precinct’s fridge); Bulky Bulky Run Run (a footrace in bomb suits); Keep Your Cover (talk to as many fellow cops as possible before being recognized); and an obstacle course (i.e., print out a picture of Chelsea Peretti’s Gina Linetti using a laptop from 1982). This could be particularly inspiring for athletes dealing with weather delays in South Korea.
Cheddar in “HalloVeen.” (GIF: Fox)
Any Halloween Heist episode: Now, these will definitely bring out the competitor in you. A fan-favorite episode every year, the tradition started with Season 1, Episode 6 (“Halloween”), when Jakebet Capt. Holt that he could steal Holt’s Medal of Valor from this office. The stakes are high: If Jake wins, Holt has to do Jake’s paperwork and announce that Jake is “an amazing detective/genius”; if Holt wins, Jake has to work weekends without overtime. In “Halloween II” (Season 2, Episode 4), the wager is similar, with Jake having to steal the watch off Holt’s wrist. “Halloween III” (Season 3, Episode 5) has Jake and Holt picking teams, and a crown as the coveted object (bonus for figure skaters: there’s an Elvis Stojko punch line). In “Halloween IV” (Season 4, Episode 5), a plaque inscribed “The Ultimate Detective/Genius” is locked in a Caboodle (or, as Holt pronounces it, Caboodale) — whoever possesses it at sunup wins. “HalloVeen” (Season 5, Episode 4) may be the most cutthroat (and our favorite) because Holt’s corgi, Cheddar, is used as a pawn in the fight for a championship belt (or cummerbund, as Holt insists) emblazoned with “Amazing Human/Genius.”
Charles Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio), Capt. Holt (Andre Braugher), and Jake arriving in style in “The Chopper.” (GIF: Fox)
“The Chopper” (Season 2, Episode 22): Yes, it starts with the squad competing to see who can get Gina to look up from her phone, and you can argue the moral is “work hard for your dreams, and they just might come true” — Jake gets the green light to work his dream case, and to use a helicopter. But this episode is really for competitors who like to play mind games with their opponents. We won’t spoil it, but Capt. Holt and his nemesis, Deputy Chief Wuntch (guest star Kyra Sedgwick), go at it.
Jake living his best life posing at “Nakatomi Plaza.” (GIF: Fox)
“99” (Season 5, Episode 9): This episode, the show’s 99th, reminds you what teamwork is all about (and how to overcome self-doubt). In Los Angeles to attend a former superior’s funeral, the squad has to work together to get Holt back to New York in time for his interview to become the next police commissioner. Why not just fly? Because they miss their flight after Jake insists on stopping at “the most important monument in all of America, the building from Die Hard” and doing an extended photo shoot. It’s one of the all-time great montages.
Good luck, Olympians. And happy bingeing.
There are 101 episodes of Brooklyn Nine-Nine are currently streaming on Hulu. New episodes resume this spring as Season 5 continues on Fox.
Read more from Yahoo Entertainment:
By the numbers: ‘Moulin Rouge’ will be the most popular figure skating music at the Olympics
An American story: How Chloe Kim, daughter of immigrants and social media star, won Olympic gold
‘The Bachelor Winter Games’ proves stupidity is truly international
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A list, top is most likely, bottom is would not, of how likely your ocs would fistfight god.
Any special interests that would seem unusual to the common person?
Favorite food, everyone has one.
Name one traumatic event, or like, the most traumatizing one, even if its just a spoon falling on ur oc's face.
Thank you! I've always wanted to do one of these!
I am not sure if I can properly sort them according to their willingness to fight god so I included their reasons for doing so.
These are not all of them but i couldn’t keep this in my inbox any longer. Might reblog with the rest
Tybalt (Pathfinder)
he is like 17, extremely chaotic and full of hubris. Of cause he would try to fistfight god
magic tricks (not necessarily actual magic but Prestidigitation is one of his favorite actual-magic ones). He mostly uses them for pranks
anything with processed sugar. You don’t get that in a druid circle..
the mountains are not merciful. When he was 6 he ran away from his circle farther than before and got lost. The Circle managed to find him 2 days later he was very cold and hungry. He learned to respect the mountains after that
Shahkah (Pathfinder)
I thing fistfighting god would be far from her since she serves a god as a cleric but Urgathoa is slowly getting there if her minions keep killing her friends
Has a keen interest in the ancient history of osirion and languages despite having a hard time learning it.
Sugared dates on a calm evening with friends
Seeing her companions die. Leaving that house with her friend covering their escape. He got resurrected but that made the thing no less traumatizing (not to mention the friends that stayed dead). When she was helping out at her fathers hospital when she was a child she had wandered where she was not supposed to. In the ward for the most ...extreme cases she walked into the room of a dying man. He was under a lot of pain. It took her parents hours to find her afterwards. It set her on the path of a healer more than her fathers profession ever could. And she did step into their footsteps becoming an adventurer like they had been, despite using magic to heal rather than just surgeons tools and medicine.
Runa (Pathfinder)
She would punch any deity to show how much stronger mammoth spirit is
looks for goodnight stories for her brother
that steak the tiny ulfen alchemist made that day when he challenged the previously undefeated in duel princess of a rival clan to a cooking duel. When you are a barbarian warrior you don’t get that food every day
when she, her brother and some other kids were kidnapped by a witch and experimented on. She nearly froze to death and serveral children (possibly including her brother I haven’t decided yet) died. She hate witches now
Sheza (Pathfinder)
she is a priestess, but she would definitively spar verbally with a god given the chance
she is interested in engineering (she is a storyteller, priestess and diplomat. Engineering is not a typical interest for that background)
the food served at high class galas and parties she would answer. Its actually a traditional kasathan baked good. Reminds her of the fleet
She messed up an negotiation (think hostage situation) and got someone killed
Mistwalker (Elder Scrolls, Morrowind) tw: slavery
She knows cruelly beyond the lives of most. She deeply respects the hist but all other gods don't have that luxury. She wont seek them out but if they get in her way she will fight them
she likes to learn how to cook, just for herself
Baked ash potato made with a secret spice blend
before she was mistwalker she was a slave on a farm in morrowind. Another slave, an old khajit looked out for her and snuck her food. He took the blame for a mistake she did (and, as she later realized, something he did to allow her later escape) and was beaten to death. She escaped soon after. In blackmarsh she became mistwalker and with the guidance of the hist she came back to Vvardenfell to wreak judgment
Lee'na (Elder Scrolls, Oblivion)
She would fistfight aedra and daedra to gain their knowledge. In fact she did fistfight Jyggalag and took his place as sheogorath, daedric prince of madness
her interest in alchemy is not that unusual but she is rater interested in the weather and the way storms form
sweetrolls
the caravan getting attacked, the portal incident that separated her from her brother and adoptive mother
sir Blade (Elder Scrolls, Oblivion)
no
he likes romantic poems (he is aro)
freshly baked bread, good cheese and a bottle of Surilie Brothers Wine
When his caravan was attacked by bandits. The trauma was so strong he suffers from temporary amnesia sometimes
Commander Nahrillia (Guild Wars)
She has/helped killed a god and multiple stronger than gods beings
songs from all corners of the world
apples. Apples so quiet, you might say they're whispering…. :(
to be honest her life is one traumatic experience after the other
Trip (Transformers, crew of the starseeker)
he would try and get his ass kicked
new paintjobs. Brighter colors longer lifetime… too bad they are light-years from his usual supplier
Energon with an iron-copper taste
found some messed up stuff in a decepticon research facility. Defected from the autobots and went neutral to get as far as possible away from that
Flyaway (Transformers, crew of the starseeker)
he would, could and should kick primus ass. He deserves it.
He bakes
the energon treats he hides in the pilot console
he was a decepticon pilot in the early days. doesn't talks about it.
Puncture (Transformers, crew of the starseeker)
why bother punching primus when she is defiling his work every day?
Collects starmaps. According to the crew she has a… Fixation on fuel-pump systems, but that is not unusual since she’s a medic and also a vampire
the innermost of a prime, taken alive. Very, very rare good
Like most vampires hers has to do with relationship drama
Ganii Tal'orar (SWTOR)
yes. Imagine the glory! No better prey.
zoology. Not (just) to hunt better but because of her respect for the great beasts
spicy steak
She was a streetkid in nar shadaa. One day she and her girlfriend were attacked by people in dark cloaks. She was separated from her girlfriend (Kyrass. They did everything together. To be without her is to be without armor). She managed to hide and when the fight was over she looked everywhere for Kyrass. When morning came she went to the skyport to search for information, narrowly missing Kyrass looking for her. She resolved to become a great warrior and saw that path as bounty hunter. She joined the great hunt in the hope to learn from the greatest warriors in the galaxy -The mandalorians
Kyrass Zaada (SWTOR)
you know the “if god exist its our moral obligation to kill him” quote? Thats Kyrass
geology
fresh batha meat with spices
until the jedi found her she was a streetkid in nar shadaa. One day stange people in black robes tried to take her and a few others. In the scuffle she lost sight of her girlfriend and partner in crime (ganii. They did everything together. To be without her is to be without weapons) and was nearly taken when jedi arrived. She was hurt so she was taken to a hospital and when she went back to look for Ganii, she was gone. Assuming she was taken Kyrass went with the jedi, who promised her and the other force sensitive kids to be trained in the force, to be able to protect others from what she now knows as sith
Nittu Startrail (SWTOR)
same as kyrass except for her gods, which have always been on her peoples side. She would be honored by a challenge of wits against the skywalker however
woodcarving. Her japor snippets are carved intricate
Huttcake and tsai
She grew up in slavery and survived the detonation of her transmitter.
Zexuun Kha (SWTOR)
if it gave him power? Yes. But he wouldnt use his fists.
Star constellations, from all kinds of planets. He doesn't indulge in this interest often because he considers it frivolous
the best sushi on alderan. He was very helpful to the empires war effort because of this
He grew up in slavery and turned out exactly opposite from Nittu. Take your pick from his experiences
This really made me think! Very Helpful! Especially the interest thing. I had to think of something beyond the usual description (a hunters hobby is tracking, but thats expected for him. Ineed something else) which added depht to the characters. Thank you!
#oc tag#tybalt#shahkah#sheza#runa#mystwalker#Lee'na#blade#nahrillia#trip#flyaway#puncture#ganii#kyrass#nittu#zexuun#i dont get many sks
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Psychological. Second try at writing
Friday morning. The last time I would have to hear my alarm, well, until Monday. I turn off the buzzing of the alarm but I know the buzz wouldn’t stop. It never did. Countless whispers, quiet and scratchy like a mouse in the wall grating at my soul. Going ceaselessly louder and louder by the day. Begging, pleading, crying, screaming, screeching and— "Shut up, shut up." I whispered to myself, climbing out of bed. I go downstairs to start making coffee. The office has a Keurig machine, but I have always thought you couldn't beat a pot of coffee in the morning. I step outside to smoke my first one of the day.
I put a cigarette to my lips, light it, and without even looking up, I know the neighbors are judging me. I know everyone is. I know all too well. A washed-up author with not a single book to his name—no, a 35 year old unemployed man left behind by his wife, friends, and even families. Give applause to the one and only, Mr. Ernst Klein. Heh. I could hear them speaking from here. Mumbling, whispering, hushing, and gossiping. Ignore it, Ernst. Ignore it. They have enough reasons to do so and you are used to it anyway. I took a deep drag down to the end and threw it on the ground. Figured if I’m going to end myself might as well make it enjoyable. I go in, grab a cup of coffee, took a book, and return to the patio.
****
At the altar she prayed. Sending her prayer to The Almighty Creator. The oldest and most heartless of gods. The creator of the Nine Great Gods and the world as she knows it. The one who had created her and her fate. The one who had sent her on to this holy mission of hers. The one who had given her, friends and companions. The one who had given her, families. The one who had given her, the love of her life. Also the one who had blessed her with a beautiful daughter and a charming son. Yet, He is also the one who took them all away. He took from her, her friends, companions, families, lover, and her precious children. However, she never faltered. She knows that everything her Creator did must have a reason and He had yet to abandon her and her world, she didn’t care if everyone around her thought she was insane. Through her incessant sobbing, she prayed, and prayed, and prayed again. She pushed her calls as hard as she could into the voids of her mind in hoping they would make it out to her one and only Creator.
“Please bring them back… they’re my everything”
****
Reading has, for as long as I could remember, always been my hobby. It lets me escape from this cruel reality that I live in and all the problems that follows it. Escapism. I know. It won’t solve anything but at least it helps me cope with it. Please bring them back… they’re my everything. I mean, not everyone could face their problems head-on, no, no. Not everyone… are that brave. At least I know I’m a coward. If running away from my problems and live my whole life in peace is being a coward then yes, I gladly accept being a coward.
I looked down at the book that I randomly took from the piles of lined papers and moldy writings which I had proudly called my bookcase. I looked at it and there it was, a novel with my name arrogantly printed on it. Sigh. Out of all books. It was a book that I had written myself. Please bring them back… they’re my everything. I had abandoned this story years ago because it wasn’t quite well received. Monotone, uninteresting, unnecessarily long, unoriginal, mediocre, lackluster, and the compliments goes on. None of my books are well received actually. No. None of them, and so I finished writing none of it.
****
It called to me that day as it does now.
Whispering.
Yearning.
Promising.
Promising of a world torn apart by fire, divine and nuclear, all encompassing and devastating our planet. Such is the will of the Creator. So I obey.
“I hope it gets bet—” A shaky voice barely comes out of my mouth only to be interrupted. “Cough!” I coughed so hard it felt like my lungs were to come out. I looked down at my hands and I see blood. Sigh. I guess I don’t have much to live anymore. A couple weeks probably? No? A couple months? Well like Engels used to say life keeps going like a menstrual keeps flowing hahah. Smiling as I thought to myself. I hope it gets better. I really do. The clicking of the Geiger counter is my only friend now. Ever since the factory exploded it seems to be going higher and higher by the day. Every step feels excruciatingly painful, but I keep walking.
I miss Engels, I miss Immanuel, I even miss that cocky playboy Jean. Dog tags clinking in my hand. Geiger counter clicking faster and faster. It’s ok. The temple is close now. We’ll be there any minute now. C’mon Pascal you can do it!” I thought as I continued to shamble about but fate has other plans I guess. I was a couple feet away from the temple when I realized it. I was surrounded by reavers. “Give me all your food, kid! I know you factoryborns have a lot o’ them luxury canned foods!” Yelled one of the reavers. “Forget it boss just kill ‘em and we could sell his meat to the carvers for extra foods”. That night, the snows were colored red.
God forgive me. I couldn’t bring my friends to rest. I prayed as I breathe my last.
“What did we do to deserve this?”
****
While I read, I hear a voice. What did we do to deserve this? No, not the usual voice, those gritty, harsh, and dry calls were still there. They were always there but I had learned to ignore them. Instead I focused on a more vivid voice. One that said, “Will you be able to come?”. I looked up, and saw Karen. I grumbled, annoyed that she had interrupted me. “Fuck away will you, Karen,” I said. What did we do to deserve this?
“I’m not going to your fucking baby shower.”
Karen sighed, “Look, I know you don’t like him, but he’s still your brother, Ernst—”
“I don’t care whether or not he’s my brother, Karen. I just don’t want to waste my time.”
“Family bonding is not wasting time, Ernst. It’s a tradition! And considering your situation you might need it now more than ever.” Karen yelled.
“Tradition is just peer pressure from the dead, Karen.” Please bring them back… they’re my everything.
“Why are you being so stubborn, Ernst?”
“I see no point in pleasing the dead” I said. What did we do to deserve this?
“Is that why you didn’t visit dad when he’s laying on his deathbed?” I grit my teeth. Please bring them back… they’re my everything.
“He asked to see his son at least once before he died and yet you never came. You didn’t even come to his funeral!”
“I have reasons, Karen! I’m sure dad will understand and he would forgive me! I did what he would’ve wanted me to do and that is doing my responsibilities!!”
“The way I see it It’s better for you to go and make up with your brother rather than locking yourself in that room you call your office. You don’t have anything better to do anyway.” Please bring them back… they’re my everything.
“I do have things to do, Karen! I’m an author. Writing is my responsibility!” I hollered “It’s unbearable, Karen. I can’t leave them alone.” so I said as I’m sharply sucking a breath. What did we do to deserve this? “I— I just can’t. Enough! You wouldn’t understand.”
She sighed and patiently asked “Just do me a favor and come will you?”
“Sorry, I have better things to do,” I said shortly, and went inside the house.
****
The colony's inhabitants were gathered in a large auditorium. They were laughing and smiling no less than an hour ago. The auditorium was safe and impenetrable yet also serves as a prison in which none can escape. The door was sealed from the outside. Through a thick window covered in scratch marks, Commander Alexei could see decaying bodies in red jump suits. Some were holding others in one last embrace. Others were apparently trying to escape through some sort of vent, with little luck.
“Commander?” Hadrian, the only member of the crew who knows about the program, asked “Is there really no other option?”
On the desk were a stack of journals, each marked with dates ranging from 3010 to 3075.
“It’s been years—no, decades since the last reply from Earth, Hadrian” he said while wiping a gun. It was an unusual gun. A very ancient one which dates back to the late 1800. It’s very unique to say the least. It was a type of gun called a revolver. It’s a single-action, cartridge-firing, top break revolver. Fires a type of projectile called bullets. Uses no energy cartridge, no focusing lens, and forget fusion core reactor, there’s not even a normal fission core reactor. It uses gunpowder and pressure instead. Ignition fills the barrel with gas thus increase the pressure and push the bullet out. An effective and cheap way to kill. How interesting, when killing is involved people really do anything to improve, thought Alexei as he fills the cylinder with bullets.
“Thus, I am forced to conclude the worst: we lost the nuclear war, and our nation and families are destroyed. Even this failsafe colony will not be enough to keep us alive. Instead, we will all die of dehydration. Faced with that consequence, I had no choice but to exercise Protocol 99 and terminate the colony in a quick and relatively painless way.” He had no other choice. His nation was dubbed as evil simply because they had a different political view. And so the others waged war. War don’t need a concrete reason anyway, as long as they see profits and merits in it men would jump on it the second they got the chance to. Who gets to decide morals anyway? Who are them to say that my country is evil? Are we evil for defending our beliefs? Am I a villain for defending my country and families? No one gets to decides evil and just. Only god can do that and the fact that this happens means that there is no god in this world, thought Alexei.
I’m sorry, comrades. Your screams…. your screams will haunt me even after I take my own life. Alexei points the gun at his own head and Hadrian follow suit. “I will see you later, Sir” nods Hadrian. “Commander Alexei, retiring from duty. Should humanity ever rise from the ashes and return to the red planet, know that we tried. Long Live The Union”. Alexei closed his eyes and prayed for the first time in his life. The page was spattered with small flecks of blood.
“God is not real after all. There are no free will”
****
I hated writing. What did we do to deserve this? No, I don’t hate it, what I hated was the responsibility that came with it. God is not real. There are no free will. Despite my mediocre talent in writing, I loved to write, I really did but all of my stories had a dark twist. What did we do to deserve this? I loved writing stories with a dark twist but I wish I had known any better. Oh, how I wished I had. What did we do to deserve this? I’m not sure when it started but it was there, always, unending, ceaseless and incessant. Please bring them back… they’re my everything. The whispers— no, should I call it prayers instead? Yes, prayers. God is not real. There are no free will. What started as one… became two, and that became more and more as it got louder. God is not real. There are no free will. They got so loud that I decided to stab both of my eardrums with my pen. Yet they still wouldn’t stop coming. What did we do to deserve this?
God is not real. There are no free will. As they got louder I heard words. Please bring them back… they’re my everything. I hear men, women and children all pray to escape from the wicked world they live in. They prayed for a better fate than what was destined. God is not real. There are no free will. A better life. Alas, their world is but a page, empty and nonsensical. Their fate is determined by the splotches of inks, a fate that will never receive closure. Please bring them back… they’re my everything. And lastly, their life is in the hands of an irresponsible and incompetent god who revels in the suffering of the lives that he himself had created.
The stories with the most details are the worst. God is not real. There are no free will. Villains, broken and enraged at the uncaring god that made their lives the way they are. What did we do to deserve this? Victims, suffering from the polluted and corrupted world created only for the sake of a more exciting plot. Please bring them back… they’re my everything. Protagonists, wept in silence as their fate forces them to fight and struggle in their abandoned and callous world while losing both everyone they loved and their only purpose in life. What did we do to deserve this? I heard more and more voices, pleas, and cries for help came for every single day, hour, minute, and seconds. God is not real. There are no free will. Surely I’m going crazy. Maybe I isolated myself too much. What did we do to deserve this? That has to be it. I isolated myself to work so much that I’m losing it. Please bring them back… they’re my everything. Yet, I have to write still. No matter how many years it will take. I will end it all. I’m the one who started it and I will be the one who ended it. Please bring them back… they’re my everything. I’m responsible for them. Yes, it’s my responsibility. And so I write. I wept and I write. God is not real. There are no free will. What did we do to deserve this? Please bring them back… they’re my everything.
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