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fridaythe13ththeseries · 1 year

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Bad Penny

Episode Recap #58: Bad Penny Original Airdate: November 11, 1989

Starring: Louise Robey as Micki Foster Steve Monarque as Johnny Ventura (as Steven Monarque) Chris Wiggins as Jack Marshak

Guest cast: Ed Setrakian as Parker R. Goreman Sean McCann as Vince Ventura John Bourgeois as Edward Briggs John Tench as Romeo Koslow Katherine Ashby as Rita Mark Melymick as Desk Sargeant Dwight Bacquie as Driver Raymond Hunt as Hard Hat Mung-Ling Tsui as Anchor Woman

Rest of cast listed alphabetically: Colin Fox as Sylvan Winters (archive footage) Jonathan Hartman as Cameron Tiriel (archive footage) John D. LeMay as Ryan Dallion (archive footage) Allen Stewart-Coates as Carl Naft (archive footage)

Written by Marilyn Anderson and Billy Riback Directed by William Fruet

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Show opens with the end of the "Tails I Live, Heads You Die" episode from Season Two. We see the collapse of the building with the Satanic cult, and the Coin of Ziocles left buried. Then cut to present day. A construction crew is excavating the site and workers come upon the skeleton of Sylvan Winters and the coin. To avoid work delays, they dump the remains and tell no one. The coin falls on to the ground.

At night, two cops in a car are waiting on another man. They plan to rob him, being tired of working hard for nothing. They see a car pull up and hurry over to spy on the man. This man pulls a briefcase out of hiding, full of drugs. The others accost him and want to know where the money is. He says it is hidden. The two men, Goreman and Briggs, argue and the other, Koslow gets away, shooting Briggs. Goreman then shoots Koslow, who says Goreman can't kill him since he's a cop. Goreman sees the coin on the ground and tells the other man to call it, let the coin decide. But it is the Coin of Ziocles, so a beam shoots out into Koslow's head, killing him. Goreman is surprised by this and picks up the coin.

Cut to credits.

We open on Johnny, sadly looking at a picture of him and his dad. Jack comes down, him and Micki are off to evaluate some antiques Micki asks if something is wrong and Johnny mentions he used to fish with his dad this time of year. Micki and Jack try to comfort him and offer support.

At the police station, his superior is going over Goreman's report of the shoot out that led to his partner Brigg's death and Koslow's weird burn. The chief tells him to take a few days off, but Goreman says no. He asks if any cases previously had marks like the one on Koslow's head, and the chief mentions the cult from a couple of years ago.

Jack and Micki arrive back as Johnny is watching the news report about the shooting. When the anchorwoman mentions the ram's head mark on the drug dealer's head, Micki drops the statue she brought home. Her and Jack are shocked, Jack tries to say it might not be the coin, but Micki knows it is and runs upstairs. A confused Johnny asks what's up and Jack fills him on the coin of Ziocles and what it does. And that it killed Micki. He also tells how they got Micki back and thought the coin was buried for good.

In the police file room, Goreman looks for a file for "Hewitt" and sees a photo with the ram's head.

Jack goes to check on Micki, who is sitting on her bed. She says she's scared. Jack says he is, too. She's afraid the coin will kill her again, but Jack says they have to go after it. Micki says no, she's paranoid the coin is out for her personally.

Goreman is at home, reading the file and all about the Coin of Ziocles. He learns the coin can kill and raise the dead. He goes to the morgue. He unzips a back, seeing a horribly disfigured body. Then he finds Briggs' body and places the coin on his forehead. Briggs awakens and Goreman welcomes him back.

Jack, Micki and Johnny arrive at the site where the building the cult had been, now the construction site. Jack goes to look around. Micki has a flashback of when the Coin was used to kill her. She freaks out and Johnny asks what it was like to be dead. She says she was cold and it was empty and Satan was waiting for her. She can't stay, telling Johnny she'll meet them back at the store before running off.

Goreman has Briggs at his apartment, telling him they can use the powers of the coin to bring Koslow back and find the money. Briggs is a bit off, sort of super pale and dazed. Goreman says they will kill Rita, the hooker who tipped them off, then use the coin to resurrect Koslow. Briggs is still acting weird.

Jack tells Johnny the cops won't let him investigate the area where the shooting happened. He then tells Johnny they should keep Micki out of this as much as possible. Jack wants to go to the police station to find out more, but since Johnny's dad had friends there, he offers to go.

At the station, Johnny talks to the Sarge, who knows him. Johnny asks about the shooting, and Goreman overhears. Johnny uses the computer when the Sarge leaves to find Goreman's address.

Back at the store, Jack tells Johnny to be quiet, Micki is napping. Johnny tells Jack what he found out and that Briggs' body has disappeared. Micki comes down, overhearing this. Johnny says maybe it is okay, maybe Goreman just wanted his partner back. Micki is aghast, and Jack tries to tell Johnny it doesn't work that way. Micki runs back upstairs and Jack goes after her.

Goreman and Briggs put on their uniforms and head out to find and kill Rita. Johnny arrives outside the apartment, and sees the men get into their car. He recognizes the now-alive Briggs from the paper. He follows them.

That night, Goreman and Briggs pull alongside Rita and tell her to get into the car. She is reluctant, so Briggs grabs her and tosses her in the back. Johnny watches and again follows as they drive off.

The cops take Rita to an out of the way spot and she's afraid they are going to assault her. Instead, Goreman tosses the coin in the air and when it lands, the beam shoots out, killing the woman. Johnny watches, shocked. Briggs takes Rita's body to dump. Johnny runs up and tackles Goreman. The coin falls and Johnny grabs it. Goreman shoots at Johnny, but he gets away.

Back in her room, Micki is writing to Ryan. She misses him and is scared. Jack comes to check on her. She says maybe the letter will help Ryan understand when she's dead. Micki is worried it won't be long before they are both dead at the hands of a cursed antique. Jack tries to comfort her. Johnny comes up but doesn't want to interrupt, so he goes back downstairs. He looks at the photo of him and his dad.

Later, at the cemetery, Johnny looks at the coin in his hand then begins to dig up the grave of his father. He eventually does, opens the coffin and places the coin on the dead man's forehead. Vince Ventura awakens, confused as to what is going on. Johnny tells him they need to get out of there.

In their car, Briggs and Goreman are going to find Johnny. Goreman heard Johnny at the police station and he thinks Johnny would take the coin to the cemetery to revive his father.

Johnny has taken his father to the place they used to go camp and fish at. Vince is acting a bit odd, which Johnny notices, but shrugs off, since he's just happy to have him back. Johnny goes to make a call at the lodge.

In the cemetery, Goreman and Briggs find the dug up grave and open coffin and head to find Johnny.

Micki comes downstairs, and Jack says Johnny's machine has a message that he went fishing. The phone rings. Johnny tells Jack he's on a lead for the coin. Jack tries to tell Johnny it is too dangerous, but Johnny hangs up. Micki is now worried they'll lose Johnny like they lost Ryan. Jack is frustrated. Micki tells him he doesn't know what it was like to be dead. Jack tells her to get on with her life, she's not dead now. Micki is just afraid, but Jack says they have to stop them.

Goreman and Briggs break into Johnny's apartment, then look for clues to where they went. They play the answering machine and see the fishing photo with the lake name and know where to go.

At their campsite, Johnny listens to his dad talk. Vince is acting very off, talking to Johnny about life and the universe. Johnny says he missed his dad, but Vince asks where Johnny's mother is. Just then, Goreman and Briggs arrive and threaten a confused Vince. Johnny pulls the coin and threatens to use it. He gets his dad in the car before the cops start shooting. Johnny dives into the car but drops the coin. He speeds off. Briggs and Goreman argue and Briggs shoots and kills his partner and gets the coin.

Jack and Micki arrive at Johnny's apartment and are worried about the mess. But then Johnny arrives, with Vince, which shocks Jack and Micki. Vince is confused and Micki realizes what Johnny did. Johnny tries to explain but Jack is angry, yelling at Johnny, who tells them to leave. Jack wants the coin, but Johnny says Goreman has it again. Jack and Micki leave, but not before Jack tells Johnny to stay out of everything they do from now on.

Jack and Micki go to the cemetery. They find a dug up grave and a parked car. They look around, but Briggs comes up behind Jack, hitting him with a shovel and sending him in to the open grave. Briggs then pulls the coin as a Micki stands horrified, remembering her death once again. Briggs gets ready to toss the coin, but Johnny speeds up and hits him with his car. Johnny tells his father to run as he goes to Micki. But Briggs is back on his feet. They run, the cop gets in his car and chases them through the cemetery. After a close call, they run again, but Briggs catches up. Micki falls into a grave. Johnny tries to lead the cop away, but Briggs keeps shooting at him. Then he goes to the open grave and sees Micki, trapped. He is again about to toss the coin when Johnny hits him, knocking him into the grave with Micki.

Johnny tries to get Micki out, but she sees the Coin and goes for it, struggling with Briggs. She grabs the shovel and attacks the cop with it in a frenzy. In tears, she picks up the coins and Johnny helps her out. Jack stumbles up and Micki rushes to him. She's says it's all over, but Jack sees Vince and says it isn't. Vince is confused, wandering about. Johnny tries to explain but his father doesn't understand. Johnny tells Jack he can't kill him, but Jack says he has to. Vince says they will talk again someday. Johnny reluctantly tosses the coin, which kills Vince. Johnny goes to him, sobbing, as Micki and Jack watch.

Another day, Jack asks Micki how she is doing. She says okay, but she's not sure about Johnny. Jack tells him to remember his father how he used to be. Johnny says he shouldn't be there, but Micki says he belongs with them. They will always be there for each other. The three embrace.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My thoughts:

Quite the episode. Very glad they did a sequel episode to the Coin of Ziocles. It was such an important antique that actually killed one of them, so never revisiting it would have been a missed opportunity.

I liked how justifiably freaked out Micki was. Of course she would be paranoid of this item, it killed her. Also like how Jack is very gentle with her at first, but as Johnny gets wrapped up in his own nonsense, Jack begins to lose it. All makes sense.

And Johnny. Not the first time we've had him wondering "why not?" with a cursed item. He doesn't yet have all of the experience with the horrors the items bring, so it is interesting to see this idea tackled. He is right, Jack and Ryan used the Coin to revive Micki, so why not his Dad? He might be wrong, but we can definitely understand his motivations.

The cops were really horrible guys. With the way Briggs and Vince act when they are revived, I get the idea the dead come back as more intense versions of their alive personas. Briggs was a bad cop, revived his downright evil. And Vince was a good dad, and now he is a philosophical zen dude. So, when the coin was used on Micki last year, did she come back a little more … Micki? Braver, stronger? Curious, anyway.

Glad Jack came around to sympathize with Johnny at the end. He was really angry there for awhile!

Wonder what the cemetery grounds keeper though the next day?

Next week: Hate on Your Dial

#episode recap #season three #the coin of ziocles #coin of ziocles #coin #micki foster #jack marshak #johnny ventura #steven monarque #chris wiggins #louise robey #robey #sequel #vince ventura #sean mcann

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grim-faux · 3 years

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15 - The Dark

For some reason I didn’t feel the rush of exhilaration I had hoped to achieve in reaching the exit. My mind might’ve been numbed by what I’d been through to allow such a mood, emotionally drained by the experience and horrors of what I had seen. It was such an empty sensation, completely robbing me what of I felt was deserved. Closure. But as with all matters tangled in Mount Massive’s mockery, I was to be disappointed.

I hesitated, straining to pick out the odd sounds beneath the heavy rain. A flash of light clarified the grounds momentarily and I burned the image into memory. Overgrown grass obscured most of the pathways, a net of greasy branches stretched over the sky. I moved into the cold rain and the dark, stepping carefully down the slippery stone steps. Lightening flashed, and I thought something skittered past overhead. Impossible, given the image wasn’t the best on the visor between the green tint and the heavy rain, there was nothing out here. As the flash fades, I could only see the brick path and the overgrown grass before me. I was the only living thing out here. Or nearly so.

A beam of light cut through the downpour and the glossy branches, sweeping over the yard. There light was too bright on that side to confirm it, but it had to be ‘Father’ Martin. He’s the only person I knew of that used a torch. Pretty sure. He was signaling me from across the yard. I think if I had the chance, I’d like to strangle him. Get him caught in an elevator, or cut his fingers off with a pair of giant shears. The camera was getting low on power, had to move it. Strange sounds echoed in the wind, snapping branches or something large crashing through the gaunt bushes along the cobblestone path. Sometimes I thought it was following me, but the rustle would soften at a distance or maybe the rain was picking up force. I ducked down when I thought Chris appeared, but it was only my imagination forming shapes in the NVs haze. No one was out here with me, just Murkoff staff cut up and sitting drenched on benches, staring with glazed eyes at the storm. Did they come out here to die, or did someone leave them like this? I was soaked before I reached the fountain. So much for getting dry, at least rain was clean. That sound again, something shrieking in the night and I thought there was a form overhead, in the branches as they crackled. I tried to follow it with the camera, but my nerves gave and I whimpered as I knelt to crawl along toward the only visible light. It no longer signaled me. How long had Martin been out in this weather waiting for me? Not long enough. Leaves scuttling along the ground spooked me, the way they played at the edge of the visor. I stopped in the downpour to get up, and fought to wrangle my breathing under control. My chest ached with my heart thudding in my chest, the wind picked up and I shivered into the soggy embrace of my coat. There was nothing out here but dead people and a psycho guy that fancied himself a priest. I remained wary though as I moved up the steps, beneath a broken lamp blazing in the inky night. I had to change the batteries in the camera, a tricky choir in the rain. I crouched low and tucked the camera under my coat and popped out the old battery, then slapped in the new one. My camera was keeping me more alive at this point, rather than provide the evidence at my psycho evaluation. I had some difficulty slipping the strap back over my hand, my knuckle was a little swollen and I needed to loosen it in order to get it over. Once it was done I wouldn’t need to worry over it for a while. Probably. No one was waiting for me when I reached the top of the steps. Only the words scrawled in blood on the wall across from me how alive are you At my feet on the damp cobblestone and in a diluted puddle of blood, rested a file in a plain folder. Inside was a notepad tinged by the soaking rain, but enough of the note was illegible. “I don’t even know your name. But I’ve come to think of you as one of my blood, my Paul, I hope you don’t mind. And I hope you don’t indulge the vanity of self-pity, the fear that your suffering is more than others’. We all must endure this, and you are nearly done. There’s no way to heaven but by the cross. And every man needs another to help drive the nails in. I am here for you. I am waiting up ahead.” This actually would have been really comforting, except at the end where he mentions the cross. If he thinks he’s crucifying ME, I’ll be more than happy to disappoint. I’ll die before he gets ahold of me again. Fuck them all. I’m not going through all of this to wind up as some sacrifice! I tossed the folder down and cautiously crept up the steps at the right to a wire fence, the door and frame wrapped with thick chains and padlocked tight. Stepping back, I examined the gate standing between me and presumed freedom. In favorable circumstances I’d fly over a chain linked fence. What was it to me? An insult to my dexterity? Right now, too many factors worked against me to attempt the climb. The weather was bad, barbed wire at the top, don’t mention my fingers, and I was bleeding again. It didn’t look like there was much for me on the other side either, it this just led into another yard. Damn, where do you have to go to get out of this place? I judged the fountain to be a center piece of the yard, if that assessment was correct I would locate other pathways leading from it across the grounds. That would keep me from getting too lost, I was incredibly disoriented with the weather and all-consuming black. As I made the return trip, a light glittered in the distance between tree trunks and mist. I kept my attention locked on it while trying not to deviate from the path, it was tempting to tear across the yard if only to find the source. Overhead the branches groaned and snapped, I ducked down as that noise returned, sounding like pellets in a pipe and shrieking with the crashing thunder. I dove off into the tall grass and kept low, listening and searching for what might be there. A shape slipped through the treetops, but the night blazed with green brilliance, blinding me through the NV. I turned my head down and realized my knees and shins were soaked in the icy mud, but I didn’t care. I didn’t want to move and alert whatever was out there to my location and have it come down on me screaming mad. I didn’t want to see it, I didn’t want to know what was there. It was just getting to me, the weather and this feeling of isolation in the yard. It made me feel like something was out there stalking me, and only me. I needed to get into some shelter and dry off. Or just get out of this drumming rain for a bit. I shuffled along ducking beneath the low twigs and pressing through soaked brush. I’m certain the path was at my back but I didn’t want to find it just yet, I needed to stay hidden in the undergrowth until it felt safe. I’m not sure what I was hiding from but I needed to stay hidden from it. Recollections of the sewers, people shrieking behind the metal gates as an unseen force punished them. I exhaled a sharp breath and pressed my left hand over my face. Don’t go back. Try not to think about it. I murmured something strange, a comforting sort of sound to reinforce my resolve. I’ll get out of this. But I have to keep moving. Another gate appeared in my path, and I ran my hand carefully over the chain linked fence. A stone wall was built on the other side, crates stacked on the floor. There was a door in the wall. The gate was locked with chains— The timber above snapped and fell onto my head, and that screech rang in my ear as though it were right beside me. I whirled away tearing through grass and sharp brush towards the stone fountain, not stopping until a light in a doorway appeared somewhere on my left. I flew to it not hesitating before I slammed into the door at full force, and flung it shut with a loud CRACK! I stood quivering under the light, dust swirled in the warm beam as I panted, gazed fixed on that door. The storm howled beyond the weathered wood, sounding eerily like human sobs. What the fuck had that been? Power in the nightvision needed to be changed out. Already? I just changed the battery. Something was going on here. Much of the same that clung to this place, a lot I didn’t understand and what I did get still made no sense. I switched out the battery and looked at the small tool shed I had crashed into. Some basic things, a few shelves with paint cans, some pliers and wire cutters, and propane cans stacked by the door. There were a few hooks, and one had a silver key dangling on it. It had to be a key to somewhere, maybe one of the gates? I had to go back out there and search them all down. It could be done, but it would be time consuming. Before heading out I gave my camera a quick evaluation, to make sure it was still in satisfactory working order. I rubbed off some of my bloodstains that had clotted on its side and checked some of the footage, in a dull state. It began to frighten me how little I reacted to my own terror in the night, as though I didn’t care five minutes previously I’d been racing across the yard in a panic. I did forget my initial goal was to confirm the camera was still operational despite its abuse, but I’d fallen into a repetition of cycling through all its functions and struggling to adjust the color settings, despite the mechanical flaw caused by being thrown out of a fuckin window. I eventually gave up and stared at the visor as it recorded the floor of the shed. Time to go. The handle turned loosely in my hand and I pulled the door back, while keeping my shoulder by one side in case I needed to shove it close. I didn’t have my camera up yet so all I could make out was the oily yard with its slumped shapes glimmering under the flash of electricity. The sky was a muddy expanse stretching over the tree tops, it seemed lower than the sky should be, barely brushing above the canopy of jagged timber. There was nothing hostile, nothing visible I wouldn’t come to expect with the relentless storm. Complete silence but for the thick water and rumble of thunder. It was eerie, after I had raced across the yard accustomed to the bizarre sounds, and suddenly there were none. For a moment, I was startled by a black shape hovering near the fountain, but in a flash of light it was gone. Just the guard slouched on the bench, on the other side of the yard. It was him I had seen, very dead and immobile, nothing could change my mind. I returned to the gate beneath the light, where ‘Father’ Martin had left his message. I took the padlock but found I was wrong in my assumption. The key was thick, more along the lines of a skeleton key, and the padlock used the more modern thin keys. Damnit. I climbed down the wall and walked along one side of the yard hunting for a door, or gate that would use the key. There had to be some sort around here, Martin left the key in the shed for me, the mystic bastard. Couldn’t just leave doors open, has to lock me in and leave me to the mercy of his ‘disciples.’ This place was probably Satan’s holiday house. A light on the other side of the yard caught the visor, and I started in that direction in a casual jog. It sounded like a shape was shredding through the canopy overhead, I hunched down as I hastened my pace through a sharp gale of wind and rain. I doubt the light would deter it but the dark didn’t seem to do much either. I shoved the key into the lock breathing a small sigh of relief when the latched clicked. My hand fumbled with the slick knob, scraping my finger in the process as I forced it open and threw it shut after me. I moved away from the door and fought back the trembles that clutched my body, just couldn’t get myself under control. Beyond the wire door I thought there was a dark mass swimming through the storm, but a boom of thunder killed out any sound there might’ve been. Focused and still, I waited for nothing. The water made a soft pit-pat sound as it dripped from the edges of my soaked coat and chin, insects buzzed overhead driven wild by the intense light. The gentle atmosphere somehow overpowered the nightmare of the storm and what it concealed. I allowed myself one whimper as I let the tremors take me, tensing my muscles to block out some of the cold. There was something out there and it was following me. I don’t know how to explain it. I don’t want to explain it. The very notion I couldn’t comprehend this terrified me. What the fuck was it and what did it want? My mind kept flashing back to the sewers, the wails and sobs of people dying. The sounds. Those sort that couldn’t be replicated. They were the kind of sound a person made the moment death took them, and would never be repeated by that individual. Death throes. I changed out what was once a battery at half-life, and put one with full power in. That should last me. Maybe. It looked like some sort of greenhouse, or was once one until the asylum came to be in the early nineties. I moved away from the wall to distract myself with this place, this façade of reprieve. No plants were kept in here, just some pallets and materials for the grounds. Windows along the upper walls flashed with peculiar outlines, like faces watching through still portraits and the unsettling sensation that I was not alone and had never been alone in this place. Just nerves, I told myself. I was cold, soaked, and the lightening hid shapes as it revealed me to those same shapes I hid from. I gave a loud sneeze and bit my tongue. Perfect. Briskly, I moved out of the light, into the shadow of the doorway at the other end. I raised my camera and gave the crossing corridor a look over, before I stumbled out into someone. Smelt like people came in here to piss as though the yard was too good for them. In this weather, it might’ve been. Looked like most of the material for reinforcing the doors had been hauled from this storeroom, it must’ve been stocked with lumber before the nightmare began. Two by fours and plywood were leaned against one side of the wall, and on the other was a shelf with a hammer and some dried out potted plants. Pieces of splintered wood lay across the stone path, and nails had been scattered to the sides. A radio had been abandoned on a shelf out here, but the batteries were not the right ones for my camera. I turned to check what the other side might offer, and stepped through a doorframe into a spare shed. At the far end the exit awaited, nearly missed as I scanned the entrance, skittish as I was. I was spooked by the icy dots of rain that hit my face, only to realize there was a large hole in the roof above. I shut my eyes and exhaled trying to calm myself. Just the rain, it was just the rain. Though I was freezing, I didn’t bother to move out from under it, as I looked over the room. Thin boards lined the walls and some propane tanks were left stacked at the furthest corner. Shelves were dotted with eroded paint cans, and more tools to reinforce doors without restraint. Good to know all that hard work and sweat had paid off in the end. I could just imagine Murkoff freaking out, terrified by the things they created and not understanding any of it. Just trying to get barricades built, doors sealed, and then curl up in the darkest corner while they listened to their colleagues, abandoned outside, get pummeled by the big fucker. And he seemed like such an interesting man. Slowly, I turned the handle of the door and pulled it open a crack to scope out. Tall brick walls extended from the building on either side, effectively boxing the path in. I heard a noise like… screeching. Nails on a chalkboard, or something? Thick bars stretched from the wall into the dark, at the current range of the NV I couldn’t see how far. A form in the dark. I’m not sure how to describe it, it was an outline at first, then it took a shape. It was insubstantial and had no face, just what looked like a head perched on a rib cage as it fluctuated and shrieked and… headed RIGHT TOWARDS ME! It was right at my face before I slammed the door and braced my shoulder against the icy steel. A strangled cry came from my throat as my ribs crunched under the force. I didn’t see that, what was it? That was impossible, it didn’t walk, I didn’t see its feet! It didn’t have feet, it— The door shuddered but it was too dark to see, what I could make out was through the visor quivering just beside my face. It… materialized, and crawled ‘through’ the crack under the door. I only caught glimpses of the fog, I was too lost in fortifying a barrier on something that was slipping beneath it like in a cartoon. This isn’t possible, not possible! This isn’t natural what’s going on here! Was that its head? Was it looking at me?! When it grabbed at my feet I charged out of there, crashing into the metal gate under the light before I recalled how doors worked. I fled across the yard stumbling through grass, bushes, and finally toppling over a bench I didn’t see in the black veil of night. Somehow in my madness I fell to my good shoulder and skid across the stone path, terrible wails surrounded me in the gloom as the lightening blazed and the world came into momentary clarity. I envisioned the patients surrounding me, Chris Walker in the distance stalking through the yard. A shapeless form howled as it hovered over me, reaching out a twisted branch to crush my head. Strange sounds curled around me, and I knew was making them. I tried to block it out as I twisted to rise but something was wrong, I rolled sideways and fell down again before my legs could carry my weight. Once I was mobile, I raced the rest of the way to a bright light shimmering in the distance like a salvaging beacon. It only occurred to me as I flew up the steps that it was the same Asylum that I had recently escaped. It was the last thought in my head as I barreled through the nearest door, into the dark and dry safety of this horrible place. I didn’t get a chance to fling it shut, my instincts screamed – flee, flee, escape, HIDE! I crammed my body into the furthest corner between the bookcase and a desk. There I cringed, panting, shivering, wide eyed, and waiting for the thing to find me. I just couldn’t understand what I saw. Couldn’t comprehend it. I wasn’t into the supernatural, I’ve never see shapes or heard voices…. Up until I came to this crazy place. How could I have been charging all over this messed up Asylum, and only now out in the yard I come across something vaguely supernatural. It didn’t make sense. I felt like I just lost my mind. I was fuckin insane. Completely bonkers. “God help me, I think I’ve seen the Walrider.” My ears are ringing. That shrieking snarl, when I was face to face with it…. I don’t know what happened. There was a flash, I thought it was the lightening, but it felt like I suffered a sharp blow to the head. I thought I’d seen into its face, o god, inside its skull… I didn’t feel right. Not bad, I didn’t feel good either, but not bad, but something….something doesn’t feel right. Like I lost something, or forgot something. Just my nerves, I’m shook up and cold, and probably not in the best of health with all the blood loss. I wipe some of it from my hands, but with the heavy rain the clots can’t hold. Couldn’t stop here, had to push on. Find that proverbial light out of this hell hole. No ‘illusion’ of MKULTRA would stop me. My legs felt soupy as I made the long trek back to the gate, the only route I knew that might offer a way out. Or lead someplace dry. It took some time to find the gate, I left the door wide open and became confused when I saw the smaller shed through the rain. After further searching, in which time I’m certain I was more lost than I should have been, I did find the greenhouse. I shut the door behind me and listened, primed to bolt if I saw it, or heard that unnatural call it generated. I couldn’t fabricate the exact noise in my head, only that it was inhuman and terrifying. The metal door was untouched, and still in one piece. It had been crawling ‘under’ the crack. How the hell? As before, I opened the door slowly and strained to hear. Noises did come, illusions my mind conjured of screams as the thunder rolled, or the rustle of leaves beside the metal bars flipped about. I felt like I was losing my mind. Give me naked thugs, deformed giants, freak doctors with huge scissors - give me a ghost, massive nope factor right there. I slid through the door and shut it behind me. On the ground swirled dark splotches in clear puddles, another one of Martin’s markers for me. I had this insane thought that maybe it was hiding in the blood. What was I thinking anymore? A soft hiss issued from the other side of the bars, and I threw myself against the set to the left when I thought it was coming back. I saw nothing, no vague outline, nothing. Just the blaze in the sky, sometimes I thought there was a corpse sitting in the distance, washed by rain, or was it the black outline of a tree framed by light? I couldn’t tell anymore. If I kept moving, everything would be all right. If I waited, it would find me. I turned the corner and stepped off the stone path into thick grass, with about an inch of water coating the soil. The mud clung to my shoes and weighted my feet, I wobbled but managed not to fall over. It was a challenge staying on my feet as it was, I didn’t need to fall to my hands and stuff mud into the wounds. A lamp blazed down into some sort of storage yard, from when Murkoff remolded the place for reopening. A lot of materials they couldn’t get rid of such as concert barriers and pallets were sorted and stacked. I ducked back from the halo of light when the brittle timber above snapped and dropped into the grass, not far from where I hid. I raised the camera and kept low listening as the sounds moved off, a soft tinkling of metal pellets echoed from the distance. The same sounds I heard in the sewers, when I thought I saw shadows. Beside the lamp was a ladder fixed against the brick wall. I fastened the camera in its hoister and started up, keeping a tight grip each step I pulled up. The heavy downpour coupled with my muddy shoes made the exercise a difficult one, I nearly lost my footing twice before I had a suitable rhythm down. Overhead, jagged bolts crossed over the black sky, blinding me briefly but I held my climb steady. I’ve done this hundreds of time, the weather just complicated the task. The ladder ended abruptly, or it seemed to when I couldn’t see how far I had to climb. I crawled onto the roof of the greenhouse, or whatever the building was and fumbled for my camera. I bit the edge of my lip when I tried to force my hand through the strap and wound up jamming my finger on the thick material instead. Carefully, I slid my fingers under the loop and gripped the camera tightly in my hand, trying to ease out the knot of pain rolling in my knuckle. I tasted blood but I think it was worth it, distracting myself momentarily from everything else. I used my left hand to steady myself as I stood and stepped up the remainder of the slant, onto the flat surface of the roof. It was comprised of wooden shingles roughed by hours of sun and harsh winters, easy to keep traction on even with the thick runoff. I focused on the visor of the camera as I stepped along, the power is more than half done with. A flicker of light reveals the shattered portion of the roof, for which I gather a short dash before I make the leap. In a surge of brightness that follows, I nearly stagger back from a shape below my line of sight, but it’s solid and thin and not the thing in the dark. A man sits on the roof of the greenhouses entrance. I must’ve looked like a lunatic to him, running everywhere in the dark and hiding in the glass. Or, was he watching it too? He’s emaciated and stares into the unyielding storm, silent and still, aside from the brief movement of his hand scratching at his chin. Beside him sits a small walkie-talkie. I shuffle to the low section of the roof, eyes fixed on him should he realize my presence. I kneel low and reach beside him to pick up the small device without disturbing his watch. My camera is already dimming, I toss the depleted battery aside and put in the one I’ve just picked up. It’s dead as well, which would explain why he’s not listening for chatter. I toss that battery as well and put in one of my own. Half dead, but it’ll do. I pull myself back up to the roof and resume my way. The path comes to an end, above the curl work of barbed wire topping a fence below. As I glance around, I’m certain someone has screamed out there in the yard, but I can’t decide which way only that it sounded painful. On my left there’s a decorative ledge running along the Asylum’s wall, the opposite of which direction I’m almost certain that shrill originated. I step back and get up some speed before leaping. When I hit, my shoes skid over the water coating the slick cement, but I keep on my feet. Another roof was not far from the ledge to the left, I walk over to it keeping the camera firm in my grip as I leapt to the soaked wood without issue. In the branches I pick up the crackle and rustle of something, but I can never see a definite shape. I pause to crouch down and film open air and the rain, until the echoes have either faded or my mind ceased to fabricate them. I push myself back to my feet and continue, barely three steps before I reach a piece of plywood lain down bridging the roof to some scaffolding. More evidence of Murkoff’s attempted repairs before everything went to shit. Some boards are set over the short space, which I cross as I constantly search the ground and the canopy. It feels like the sounds are following me. I’m almost elated by the notion, despite the pulsing in my veins. Did I want to see it again? I don’t think so. But I was curious. The initial shock had worn away, and every scuttling noise I thought was the thing in the dark terrified me. But it also teased my inquisitive nature. I teetered on a delicate and dangerous line, if I drew to near the sun it would burn me. But I couldn’t help myself. I wanted to forget why it frightened me, and learn why I should be frightened by it. My heart thumped with the acuity, just a glimpse of the shadow to know I wasn’t losing my mind. I step from the short structure of scaffolding, onto a flat cement ledge. There’s no other direction to take, the ground below I can barely find without the zoom. To my right is a thin gutter line, a possible path I’m not comfortable to attempt in the fierce weather. But I could manage it. I set my heels against the wall and shuffle out testing my stability, the edge ends just beneath my toes but I press my back against the cold brick and chance it. I have my camera crammed under my chin at an awkward angle to avoid bumping the wall with my elbow. I can barely keep my balance, and see enough just through the visor this way. As I slipped around a sharp corner, my leg nearly gives out and I slip a bit but catch myself by pushing off the wall a fraction. I sway in the open air as the wind tugs at my drenched coat, if I budge I will fall and snap my leg, or something worse. It will be painful. I let my body sway until my back gently touches the brick wall, then I continue, shuffling slower this time. The small path ends on a large cement ledge, I drop to my knees to catch my breath. A set of planks awaits a few feet from where I lean over, appearing very sinister in the flash of light and the crack of thunder that follows. The noises around me have calmed somewhat, and it’s just the rain and I. This doesn’t comfort me, though it should. I feel unsettled, like the eye of the storm. Using my camera I search for my next heading and zoom in on a slanted roof a short distance, beyond those unassuming planks. I return to my feet and secure the camera in my grip, I take a short dash before I leap. When I hit, my foot slips over the rain cascading off the rough planks and I topple sideways. I clutch the camera to my chest and jam my elbow against the slant, twisting around to force my body parallel with the edge. I shove my feet against the friction and hold, until I’ve stopped completely. The night feels cold and silent, except for the rain drumming on my face generating its soft prattle. Water gathers at my side where I’ve blocked it, filling my coat and jeans with the frigid liquid. I’m so cold. After a minute I collect my senses and inch away from the edge of the roof, until I can flip over and get up on my hand and knees, and crawl to the top. When I make it to the other side, I’m dismayed to find no other path to take. This should be good news, but I preferred being someplace high where I couldn’t be reached. I examined the distance to the floor from the roof before I put my camera away, then lower myself from the edge of the roof by my hands. A light shining from a pole above cut through the dark, offering some visibility before I dropped to the cobblestone floor. Some crates had been left beneath the roof, as though to protect them from the elements. Steps lead a few feet down towards a dead guard, and a steel door I bet would be locked. I made my trip down to confirm this belief, and to get out of the rain for a bit. At times it felt colder sheltered from the constant pummel than wandering through it. The guard has nothing worthwhile on his person, not even a candy bar. Not that I want one, but I was thinking about it. Up a set of steps on the opposite side, sat some neglected sawhorses and another collection of pallets. Otherwise, another dead end. I climbed over the short wall, down to where the ledge sheltered the small walkway and where the guard sat. I could see a path to take if it led anywhere worthwhile, a stack of pallets across from me was fixed beside a dumpster, both positioned under a cut out in the fence. The sounds came again, rattles in the pipes or a frail cylinder cast by the strong wind. I shrank into my coat but didn’t bother to raise the camera or seek out the source, I’m not certain at that particular moment what I was thinking, other than I needed to move. I raised my right hand to my face and blew in my palm, to get some of the chill from my fingers. It wasn’t very effective, but the warmth did ease the pain a little. That same sensation came over me, the jolt to my head or some kind of vertigo. I shut my eyes and let the feeling pass, I kept repeating in my head ‘keep moving, keep moving’ but I wasn’t ready. I just wanted to stand out of the rain and stare at nothing, maybe wait for the storm to pass, but I know by the time it did, it would be too late for me. The wind slid under the ledge and I gave in, crossing to the pallets and climbing up to the fence. I couldn’t fathom who might have cut the wire, a few pairs of wire cutters and a chainsaw had been missing from the toolshed. I was screwed if Chris Walker was out here with the chainsaw. I was still so fuckin lost. You’d think I’d be able to find my way around outside, without the walls and abundance of locked doors, but no. I was somewhere, maybe in the backgrounds of the Asylum. I couldn’t locate a feasible way out of this place, had to keep heading around searching for one of the locked gates to the front. There had been a few I looked at before finding that shattered gate, but there was the staff parking I had viewed on the one side. “Have to get out….” I stopped as I turned the corner. On the ground lay a patient, by a steel door pinned with boards. I gave the handle a rattle and it clanked hollowly on the other side, but the screws in the stone kept it from budging. The patient seemed wounded or sick, I gave him his distance as I moved around to the only route visible. Fence on one side, fuckin big building on the other. When I reached my jeep I was going to crank up the heat, tear off my coat, and just get my skin warm. And comfortable warm, not hot, not inferno, not hell hot, just warm. I was beginning to loose feeling in my fingers and toes, I was soaked to the bone, and I just didn’t feel right. My head was still ringing from when the thing screamed at me, it might’ve damaged my eardrums. My hearing seemed fine, just that humming I couldn’t stand. Felt like it was in my nerves. There was another door, up some steps on the right. Same as the previous, locked solid. Don’t know why I bothered checking, force of habit. I did want to get some place dry for a bit, but anyplace in Mount Massive I’d soon come to regret. Miserable place this was, would never wish it on my worst enemy because, I’m not that kind of guy. Trager’s too good for my enemies. The lightning blazed and I spied another tall fence ahead, with a patient plastered to it shuffling against its side. I observed him through the visor as I approached, he seemed near oblivious to me. “I can see his ghost.” What was it they were so fixated to find out here? When I was close enough to see him clearly, I found that he had been coddling the gate for so long his face was a bloody mess and his nose was missing. It reminded me of lizards in the pet store, if they wanted to get out they’d rub their nose on the bars until their lip had worn away. Pitiful to see a human like this, out here in the rain. For a span I recorded beyond the fence, to pick up what it was he saw or to confirm my doubts, I wasn’t sure. Sometimes I thought there was something, a glimmer and shift in the lens, the film was always clear and never faltered. I could hardly remember what it was I thought waited out there, only that it could stare back, and this made me uneasy. The patient mumbled something as he moved closer to me, and I only recalled that we were standing completely exposed to the storm. Well, I realized I was standing in the rain. I didn’t bother the other man as he sought to see his delusions. The fence ended at a wall, to which brick stairs led to a higher patio. Across from the steps two benches were poised, on one sat a man in a straightjacket and chemical scarring marred his face. His eyes glistened in the NV when he noticed me. I turned to climb the steps, halfway up he called after me, “Be as one of us.” I hurried to the upper level through an open gate, one of the first in a long while. Blood and gore was in my immediate path, I continued in that direction passing various guards and doctors of Murkoff, in a splattered display of death. It looked like they had fallen out from somewhere, their bodies twisted and guts spilling out and glass everywhere. Had they been thrown out of a window? Or had they found their own way out? The door across from the dead had a plate reading Prison Block and the doors had been boarded up. The most opportune way out for some of them, I suppose. I located another open area in the fence, a few pallets stacked to give a clear step up over the sharp edge. A bolt streaked across the sky illuminating the immediate area, but below the light could not reach but for the thin tree limbs reaching high. Before I risked getting lost in that lower area, I returned to where the gate entered the patio space, and took the path that had been open on my left. It was a large area beneath an eve, where I could get some time away from the storm. A few old drums, possibly gasoline like the ones in basement, had been discarded here. The walls had tall, thin windows cloaked by tattered curtains, I could make out no sign of cracks of wear to indicate anyone might have tried to escape this way. Bags of trash had been discarded by a large dumpster, and before it stood a man in a straightjacket struggling to get out. The dumpster, after the stagnant decay that had been shoved into my sinuses, smelled wonderful in the cold storm. But the linger of rot was here, and blood had pooled at the patients feet. “Bleed for me.” It was time to leave. I climbed the pallets and braced myself for the fall before I let myself down, the soft earth compressed under my weight, but the jolt still traveled up my ribs. I stepped away grunting and stretching to get the soreness from my muscles, I was moving through the tall grass before I had my camera up. The front grounds had really been let go, but this was beyond neglect. Thick bushes grew everywhere catching my pants and whacking my fingers as I navigated what seemed to be the clearest path, but everything was overgrown. The grass was up to my chest, and large concrete blocks dotted the yard, hidden until I was directly upon them. A thin vapor spilled from them, maybe from the lower levels of the Asylum, the basement? I turned my camera to examine the interior and found thick metal bars, and a warm draft that lifted from within. I’m sure the yard might have been open to the better behaved patients during good days, but when Murkoff took over the patients never had ‘field’ days. They only needed to keep the front lawn looking decent for appearances, and let everything else go to hell. There were even pallets and large propane tanks stacked along the wall. Even for an asylum, this place must have looked nice when things were kept neat. But Mount Massive was shut down for scandal, so there was no telling if this place ever had ‘nice days.’ The grass began to thin out as I neared a small pool of water in the middle of the yard, with a charming little bridge built over it. Large stones had been set to boarder the small pound, but even in the dark I could identify the thick grime that grew along the waters edges. If not for the rain cloaking the miasma of still water, I imagined it wouldn’t be all that lovely. Labored breathing pressed through the drone of rain, alerting me to duck down or be seen. There was no guarantee I wouldn’t be seen. A blaze of lightning followed threatening to reveal my location out of spite, and in it I saw the shape of the big fucker as he wandered the yard. It would’ve been too good if he didn’t show up. I knew something was wrong. Without hitch he continued on his way, pausing to glance over his shoulder as I paced through the water gently. It wasn’t very deep, but he would pick out the odd sound given the contrast to the persistent shower. I paused with the bridge between us, the big fucker looked in the other direction and began that way. I breathed out a soft whine, even as the sky lit up with another blaze. The big fuckers back was still to me, I was safe for now. I checked the camera as the light dimmed. Another battery went in, my last one, a full one. I had no idea how much further I had to go out here, but for the time I needed to see. There was no indication of where to go, but for some light up at the top of a stack of pallets and propane tanks. Chris couldn’t climb after me, he could fall after me, but he was a shit climber. At least, he’s never jumped up after me, yet. For all I knew he could fly. As quietly as I could muster, I sprint over to the stack and pulled myself up. I heard no sound from the big guy, he must still be enjoying the weather. I slipped up to the high ledge, another one of those tall thin windows greeted me, but of escape there was no evidence. I wasn’t too keen on going into the Prison Block anyway. A small rain trail led along the wall to the left. The water wasn’t washing over it quite so hard, but I had to take the awkward angle with my camera again to keep from losing my balance. I’d prefer to put my camera away and not risk dropping it, but it was more disorientating being unable to see where my feet were and the wall pressed into my back. I passed over a fence topped with coiled barbed wire and came to another sharp corner, on the edge of the building. Rather repeat my earlier slip, I stuffed the camera in its pack and carefully lowered myself sideways. Little by little in the dark, until my right hand touched the ledge. I made sure I had my hand on it before I pivoted, and dropped, snapping my left hand onto the edge as well, and let my weight settle on my arms. A small grunt snapped from my throat as my ribs sang in pain, but I wasn’t falling backwards this time. I strafed along the wall, turning the corner easily and kept going until I felt the path at my hands end. I pulled the camera free and checked what was under me. Just the floor, it was a distance from my feet but not far enough to break my legs. I let myself drop and turned, wary of my surroundings and what may be lurking. The sky blazed causing me to cringe down, in the resulting flare I thought there were shapes closing in but through the visor I saw nothing too hostile. Nothing alive at any rate. There was a small gazebo near the center of the yard, with steps leading up to it. The aged wood creaked underfoot as I moved around the center, benches were situated around a small garden area full of black dirt and twigs, at one point it was probably filled with flowers or a hedge. What looked like a doctor was laying on one bench, his coat tinged with dampness and his back to me. I didn’t bother with the body and kept moving. I crossed over and crept down the steps, back into the tall grass and into the dismal rain. Overhead twigs crackled and fell, I crouched low scanning the lens along but couldn’t locate the cause. It could have been the limbs heavy with water after a long drought, they sometimes snapped during a heavy rainfall, but that seemed like such a pissy excuse. I wiped the water from my face and cringed at the sensation of my missing finger, I was not getting used to that any time soon. I picked myself up and continued, slowly as I listened for more movement, my camera scanning the dark sky as lightning flared. It seemed to have moved off for now, if there was ever anything there. Maybe I was just as cuckoo as the patients, and seeing things in the dark. Suggestion was a powerful tool. There was nothing to guide me, no remarkable land marks that I could identify aside from the gazebo. The stone paths were so overgrown with weeds, it was impossible to distinguish them from the tall grass. I just kept going, relying on the fence that surrounded this area to direct my way. Maybe I’d find a place where patients had escaped from. Or maybe they already had, there was the break in the fence I first came through, that led to the open window. Wasn’t there a document that referred to them as ‘environmental contamination?’ It still sounded wrong. It seemed to take an hour or almost to get around the yard, stopping every so often at shapes in the visor, static in the camera, sounds in the woods. Not animal sounds, but the strange chatter and wail of the thing I could not describe. Lurking somewhere and watching me clearly as I staggered through the unforgiving foliage. At some point I did find my way around, into an area I thought led into the woods, but instead a patient was staring back at me from a cobblestone path. It startled me, and I staggered away. I knew my hands were bleeding again but I couldn’t bear to turn the camera and view the damage. My blood felt as thin and cold as the rain, but I’m certain it was my blood. It had a differing consistency than to water streaming over my skin, but I refused to check. Finally, at long last I spotted a light source. I could hardly believe it but I moved towards it, my battery was getting low and I couldn’t be stumbling blindly around in the dark. The harsh brush tore at my shoulders and hands as I made my way towards what looked like a wall, or walls on either side topped with chain wire fence. A set of steps led down into a lower area, maybe another basement. There was evidence to indicate this as a possibility but I doubted it. I didn’t care where the stairs led either, I just needed the reassurance of a firm direction. The sky blazed with a wild flash, blinding me momentarily before I saw a pair of eyes glimmer in the dark. Shit! I spun away racing back along the fence as Chris gave a howl of rage, initiating the chase. Where had he come from? Was that a gate to the connecting yard? I didn’t care to know, my concentration was absorbed in not buckling under my terror. Branches slashed at my torn fingers in my frenzied escape, it sounded as though he was close behind me. I turned my head to check, running right into a tree that knocked me down and slapped the camera from my loose grip. “You got nothing left to live for.” He was right on top of me. Where was my camera? The tall grass had hid the bright visor, but not well enough. I snatched it up as the big fucker came crashing into my vicinity, the chains clinked very close to my face in what might’ve been a grab attempt. I lunged just out of his path and saw, in a beam of lightning the gazebo. He can’t climb! He can’t climb! I was just beyond his reach as I clambered up the rail and flopped over the side, I groaned as my ribs pulsed with pain but it bought me a moment. He shoved his arm through the gaps in the rail, but the chain caught on the rotten boards preventing him from grabbing my scalp as I lay stunned. But I wasn’t safe yet. With a nasally snarl, Chris charged around toward the steps. I lifted my camera and watched through the NV feed as he set his dead gaze on me. I rolled to my feet, and threw myself over the rail to sprint in the direction I thought that light had been. Chris swung himself over the rail, I know this because I felt the ground tremble when he came down. I kept on my feet locating the steps and shot down them, taking the corner on my right and stumbled down more steps and nearly toppled forward. The deep rumble of the big fucker echoed on the confining walls, he would be on me in the next instant. At the corridors end was what looked like a wall, its appearance draining the remainder of my blood… until I caught sight of the lower side. The cement had been chiseled out and rebar ripped back. I knelt down and crawled through, as Chris gave his disapproving roar at my neck. I hadn’t stopped yet to flaunt it, I was on my toes running up the narrow corridor back into the storm. An open and better kept yard greeted me at the top of the slop, but I didn’t stop to admire it. Across the yard a large set of double doors waited, boarded tightly with planks and plywood, tall glass framed the sides spilling comforting light onto the grass. I still raced into them and tried the handle, confirming this was not for show. The plate beside the door read Female Ward, though I wasn’t sure of this. I knew there were female patients involved with MKULTRA and the sleep therapy, but it wasn’t clear to me if they were involved with Project Walrider. It was asking too much that I would never find out. But due to the wandering patients and contamination, I think I should have seen women by now. Or… could I not recognize them as being female? My head ached from the revelation, I needed to get out of the rain. I was borderline hypothermia, I had to get dry. If I couldn’t find my way out of this yard soon, I didn’t doubt the big fucker would find his way to me. I walked along the fence that stretched from the building, and found an opening into another yard. A fountain sat in the center surrounded by benches, the strong stench of copper from it overpowered the open air. I had turned the NV off, but the camera was still running, it always was. I stared at the garden piece full of blood, so much I couldn’t be sure if there ever was water in it to begin with. The heavy rain drops hit the surface, but the thick black clots held tight. I immediately felt sick and took a moment to sit down at a bench, off to the side. “So much blood in the water I can smell it. Like putting a penny in your mouth when you were a kid. The whispers are making more sense, I’m looking for static. It’s like an itch.” I stuffed the pen and notepad back in my pocket, and stood to resume the search of the lawn. Some fresh air would help, put some distance between this grotesque red pool, and myself. Get it off my mind if only for a second. Steep hills lead up to high fences and what must have been the brick walls of the outer courtyards, polished and slick with rain and higher than the Tower of Babel. Was there no way out of this place? Did the world outside cease to exist? Stupid thoughts. Miles, you idiot. Keep it together, I’m gonna make it out of this. Just takes time. Stay alive, and find that way out. I returned to the fountain. Bodies bled out, in all manners of decay, on this side the wind picked up enough to give me a whisper of the spoil that seeped from the corpses. A still functioning lamp spilled light on the poisoned well. I didn’t feel safe standing in the open like this. But I turned the camera anyway to sounds in the trees overhead, and the odd outline of something at the roof. Or was it another of Murkoff, ready to end it all and escape this hell? I walked along the wall of the building to get out of the rain for a moment. Stacks of pallets had been neglected here, like much of all Murkoff’s tools, as its people. The light above reflected off glass, but one window failed to cast its sheen. I jogged over and examined it from the ground, before I hauled myself up the precarious stack of pallets to the high window. That sickening-familiar scent of old moldering wood, rank dust, and the trace of sweet humid rot swept over me as I entered through the shattered frame. The new reek of scorched, sodden wood saturated the air. At the edges of the NV I could catch glimpses of walls tinged in charcoal, where the fire had reached forth to spread. Damn it, how did this happen? Like a tar pit, the more I fought the harder I stick. There was nothing on my left, just glassed in walls around some office or lobby. Thinking on it, that might be the barred entrance of the Female Ward. The dust within was thick enough I could view it settling over a neglected wheelchair, tipped sideways. It was a depressing sight. I turned to my right, clinging to the lamps outside the windows to offer some guidance as I shut off the NV for a short while. I was ready to raise it if something caught my attention, or if that haunting wail returned. I shivered as a light pierced through collapsed beams, slanted across my path. I looked up to what must’ve been an upper floor and its doorway before the fire spread, all of it black charcoal and some of it cinder now. Steam was still rising from some of the white ash of the timber causing the air to fog thickly, but the light cut through blinding me briefly. It was Father Martin, nested in a doorframe of the second floor, flashing his light to signal me. This was getting old. “You saw the Walrider, didn’t you?” He gave pause as I moved closer, presumably into his line of sight. I adjusted my collar ready to cover my nose with it, but postponed the action to glance around and turn my gaze back up to him. I tilt my head, only vaguely interested in what he had to preach. “You’re beginning to understand, but not yet.” He gestured his finger upward, dramatically. “Even Abraham had to cast his eyes to the ground. But soon, soon. This way. Revelation is at hand.” With his speech concluded, he spun away and disappeared beyond the gate. Okay, thanks. How was I supposed to get up there?

#miles upshure #outlast #outlast fanfiction #outlast novelized

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twdmusicboxmystery · 5 years

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Predictions for the Finale (Sort of)

Let’s talk predictions. I said yesterday that there’s a structural dynamic that gives me a lot of hope that we’ll see Beth in the finale. So let’s dive right in..

On Sunday, after the episode aired, I tried to get on the app to watch the trailer for next week. It wasn't there right away, but the sneak peek was. The one a lot of people are posting where Daryl asks Carol what she sees when she looks at him.

In terms of TD symbolism, what stuck out to me was Jerry talking about the coming storm. He called a “mother of a storm”. Even though this is a snowstorm rather than rainstorm, I couldn't help but think of the big storm in Them, which happened right before the music box woke up. I didn’t think too much more about it right away. But...

About half an hour later, the opening minutes for next week's episode appeared on the app. Basically, the opening minutes show the Kingdomers abandoning the Kingdom for the winter.

It's falling apart around them and they can't stay there over the cold season, so one of the other communities will take them in for the winter. We see them all gathering their things and moving out and we hear a voice-over of Ezekiel talking about what's happened.

It’s stated in very general terms, but he's obviously talking about Henry's death. He talks about how they tried to make it work, but everything is broken now. Then we see them leave the kingdom, with Ezekiel looking sad and casting glances back at his home.

This is when it all sort of came together for me. They're basically doing a retelling of S5. Obviously, Henry's death—along with all the others—would represent a parallel to Beth's death (and Tyreese’s). Because this opening part focuses on Ezekiel and the Kingdom, I’ll frame this in terms of them, though of course it extends to all of TF. Henry's family is losing their home, Ezekiel looks sadly over his shoulder as he does so. It reminds me of the prison falling, Carl looking back, and Rick saying, "Don't look back."

But then we have Henry's family on the road, wandering as it were, and essentially homeless. Kind of like TF was in Them, 5x10.

And then there’s this huge storm.

And while it’s snow rather than rain, we also have all the Christmas/Santa Clause symbolism which might have showed that the storm preceding the music box waking up for real (in other words, preceding Beth’s arrival) would be in the winter. In other words, a snowstorm.

Remember in the barn in 5x10, we saw a Beth walker. In the background, there was a calendar flipped to the month of November.

We’ve tried to interpret that November all sorts of ways over the years and we’ve always been wrong. Maybe we were overthinking it. Maybe it's just a matter of showing a storm (like the rain in 5x10) that will come in November. Therefore, it would be a snowstorm.

The point is, after the storm in 5x10, the music box woke up. So I'm wondering if after the snowstorm, Beth will arrive.

Also in the opening minutes of next week, we see Ezekiel talking into a radio that looks and sounds a LOT like the one from 5x09. You know, the last episode Beth appeared in?

All that said, I don't want anyone get your hopes up too high. I'm trying not to get mine up to high (yeah, I know, good luck with that, right? 😆)

I've said this before, but it really depends on how far we get timeline-wise in the episode. If they make it through the snowstorm and into the next morning (or whenever the storm ends) I think there's a good chance we’ll see her. On the other hand, they might do a cliffhanger-y ending in the middle of the snowstorm, in which case we really may not see her into until 10x01.

I think it's more likely that we'll see her in 9x16, or at least it makes a lot more sense from a narrative point of view. More on that in a minute.

I could really turn these Them parallels up to eleven, guys, but I won’t. I will say one more thing, though. In the barn, Rick told the story about his grandfather’s experience during the war. He talked about how in order to survive, his grandfather pretended to be dead.

I actually talked about this before the season began, because I wondered if the “war” Rick talked about with his grandfather perhaps foreshadowed All Out War. If the war in Rick’s story symbolized AOW, the maybe Beth would return after AOW ended. I still think I could be the case, honestly. Even though it hasn't happened yet, and even though they did the time jump, this is still the season right after AOW. If we see her this season, it will still be a matter of her showing up after the war.

In thinking over the stuff I mentioned above, two more things occurred to me.

1) The war Rick mentioned may have foreshadowed the Whisperer war rather than AOW. I assumed AOW because that's the major war story line everyone talks about, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's what the writers were going for. It still COULD be, but I’m just throwing another possibility out.

2) Rick talking about his grandfather pretending to be dead. That sounds like an analogy for the Whisperers. They walk around with the dead and pretend to be them. Especially with all the emphasis the season on people wearing masks and wolves in sheep's clothing and how deceptive they can be, it very well could be that this was a foreshadow of the Whisperers we simply never picked up before. And again, after the big storm, which TF worked together to survive, the music box woke up. Now we have TF heading into a snowstorm.

One other thing: I’ve been told that other members from the fandom (non-TDers) are also getting Them vibes from the footage from 9x16, so it’s not just us. I mean, look at these two pictures:

TTD:

1) Gimple made an extremely random Christmas reference. It makes me happy because it shows the Christmas theme is the thing that were heading into the snow season, and campus spoilers do tend to pan out further than others.

Chris Harwick was giving Gimple a hard time about never giving any spoilers and called him “No Spoiler Gimple.” Gimple laughed and repeated it but called himself, “No Spoiler Building and Loan.” I immediately recognized that reference because it comes from the classic Christmas film, It's a Wonderful Life. It’s one of my and my dad’s favorite films. I grew up watching this show at least once each Christmas season, so I’m very familiar with it.

The Building and Loan is the name of George Bailey's bank. This was significant to me because this is a story where George Bailey is given a chance to see what the world would be like without him. It's a fairly common story line, but this is a very classic instance of it. Basically, George dies in that he never lived, but he comes back to life at the end and reunites with his family.

And remember that random hints like this that have come from Gimple have panned out in a big way in the past. Need a refresher?

I’m sure most of you remember back when S6 ended and everybody spent the hiatus trying to guess who Negan’s victim was. I actually guessed wrong. I didn't think it would be Glenn and Abraham, because that seemed too obvious to me. The thing is, Gimple actually told us in a really, subtle sneaky way who it would be.

On the TTD after 6x16, Gimple talked about how he knew everybody would be examining the footage from 6x16 trying to figure out who it was. He knew they’d be looking at the angle of the trees and the lighting and everything trying to decide who it Negan killed. He encouraged fans to do that, saying that he wanted people to "Zapruder" that thing. For those who don’t know, Zapruder is a reference to the footage of Abraham Zapruder. He was a man who was taking a home video on the day JFK was shot. He caught the assassination on film because his camera happened to be pointed at the president when the shot was fired.

The reason Gimple said this is that people looked at Zapruder’s footage over and over and over again. They played it backward and forward and looked at every possible angle, trying to decide where the shot came from. It's the classic conspiracy theory about whether the shot came from the grassy knoll or not.

So, Gimple threw this reference out, and then it was Abraham who died. There's no way that's a coincidence. He purposely drops these little hints. And this was a very specific hint. Because of course Glenn died too, but it wasn't him we heard die at the end of 6x16. He didn't die until later, after Daryl punched Negan. So this was a hint at who we actually heard get killed at the end of the episode. Of course, we couldn't know that was the case until 7x01 when we saw who died.

So now, consider this Christmas movie reference from him. Why would he say “Building and Loan?” It has nothing to do with anything. It makes no sense in the context of what Chris was saying. There was absolutely no reason for him to call himself that on TTD. I think this is something Gimple said very purposefully and I think it's a big hint that there's going to be some sort of resurrection around his Christmas theme.

2. Gimple also hinted at interesting things to come on FTWD. While explaining that there’s a lot going on in the TWD universe, and that they have several projects in development, he said that in the first half of this coming season of Fear, a story will play out which the fandom is familiar with and which will affect the TWD story/universe moving forward.

Now, we saw a huge amount of this same Beth-related symbolism in Fear this past season. Many of us have theorized that she might show up first in Fear. So, my group got super excited thinking that this really might be her.

I instantly formed the theory that maybe she would show up as a cliffhanger ending at the end of 9x16, then we would see her back story play out in FTWD over the summer. It really seemed plausible to me.

Then somebody realized that we already know (because AMC announced it) that Dwight is moving to Fear. Since we know he's going there, and the fandom is already familiar with him, more than likely he's the one Gimple means.

So, I don't want to get anyone's hopes up and have them be disappointed. However, just because he was talking about Dwight doesn't preclude the possibility of Beth being there.

In fact, many of us also theorized that Dwight may have something to do with Beth's return. Two major reasons for that.

1. Because there's a big emphasis on Daryl letting Dwight live so he could go find "her." Obviously, in Dwight’s case that means Sherry. But remember how heavily they paralleled him with Daryl, to the point of even using Daryl’s crossbow, riding his bike, and wearing his clothing. The fact that it’s Daryl who told him to go “find her” and make it right, makes it seem like, at least symbolically, this extends to Daryl in some way.

This emphasis really can't be ignored. So we were thinking that maybe in finding Sherry, Dwight might also run into Beth. That, coupled with the fact that we've theorized that she might show up in Fear, and that we know Dwight is moving to Fear, makes this even more plausible.

2. The other reason I would like to see Dwight find Beth and either direct her or bring her to Daryl is thematic. Daryl really wanted to kill Dwight and fully planned on it. And honestly, after everything Dwight did — think Denise — Daryl had every justification for doing so. The fact that he let him live showed mercy (which was the title of the episode; not only did Rick showing mercy to Negan like Carl wanted, but also Daryl showed mercy to Dwight, which is what Beth would've wanted), but also showed an inherent faith in people, which has to be a remnant of what Beth taught him.

He had to have faith that Dwight really had changed, wouldn’t go back to his bloodthirsty ways, really felt sorry about Denise, and that he would go find his wife and make things right. So, I would absolutely love it if because Daryl showed mercy to Dwight, that's what brought Beth back to him. It would show that if he had been bloodthirsty, more like Negan and old Dwight, he never would've seen Beth again. I think that's a powerful theme and powerful message. I would really love it if they did it that way.

Of course, all this remains to be seen. All conjecture right now.

One thing we haven't talked about in terms of Emily cancelling her tour dates is whether she was, perhaps, not filming for regular TWD, but maybe for Fear. And then there was that random filming that went on at Grady Memorial Hospital some months before filming for TWD S9 began. This spoiler site didn't pick it up because it was outside their normal filming season, but several people posted about it on social media and believed it was TWD filming there. So, it’s possible she was filming, not for the main series, but for Fear instead. Just wanted to throw that possibility out there.

Ozzy and the Highwaymen:

One last thing and then I'll wrap it up for today. When we first met the highwaymen, I said I was 50/50 on whether they were good or evil. At this point, I'm officially convinced they are/were good. Two reasons.

1. Well, they're dead. If they had some sinister agenda, it would only make sense to tell us about before Ozzy died. It wouldn’t make sense structurally for the writers to suddenly go, "oh, by the way, they were super evil." I mean, not to sound harsh, but at this point, who cares? They're dead. Or, at least, two of them are, and they’re the only two the audience has any kind of connection with.

2. Siddiq’s story about them actually says a lot about their character. The highwaymen found the people in the barn and ran in to save them. If they were evil men with a negative agenda, it simply wouldn't be in their nature to risk their lives to save people they'd only just met. They would've been more likely to go find help and bring it back to the barn. Instead, they charged in like heroes to help and died for it.

So, I said we were a little mystified by why the highwaymen were introduced and then killed so quickly. There must be a reason for it. Especially given all the Beth symbolism around them. Well, my group has collectively come up with a theory.

Remember in the note Ozzy sent to Ezekiel, they asked for 40 novels, but no romance novels. That's Beth symbolism to begin with, but we also never saw Ozzy or any of his men actually reading a book. They don't really seem the type to sit around reading novels, whether romance novels or not.

So we’re thinking maybe they were getting novels for someone else. Maybe there are other people who were once part of their group out there and if someone will come looking for them. After all, who would specifically not like romance novels? Perhaps someone for whom things simply didn't work out in the romance department? Say, a blonde who lost two boyfriends and then got separated from her entire family, including a certain redneck with a heart of gold?

It's just a theory we’re throwing out there (and the creds for it goes to other theorists in my group, not me) but I can totally get behind it. After all, there must be some reason for the Highwaymen and all the weirdo symbolism around them.

So yeah, I think that's it for today. Oh, except I said I’d talk about why it would make more sense to see her in 9x16 than 10x01. We’ve said many times that it would be a genius marketing tactic to have her show up in the finale. That way, the entire hiatus would be full of fans talking about it and getting hype going.

On the off chance that we’re right about her showing up on Fear in some way, it would also boost Fear’s ratings, which are nowhere near as good as the main show’s. So it just makes more sense that we’d see her this week rather than next season. But of course, the writers don’t always do what we want them to do

so we’ll just have to wait and see.

Crossing my fingers that will see her this next week. What are your predictions?

#beth greene #beth greene lives #beth is alive #beth is coming #td theory #td theories #team delusional #team defiance #beth is almost here #bethyl

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groguhasaknife · 5 years

Text

Endgame Callbacks and References

proceed with caution - there will be a break before spoilers start but it may not work on mobile. If it does not work, I put 5 bold, header "Endgame Spoilers” in the beginning and 5 bold, header “End Post”s at the end

Please feel free to DM me I would love to talk to someone about this.

I literally spent 2 hours typing up my feeling and categorizing them so yeah this is just the references I remembered but I have other categories lololol and hopefully if I have time to format it I will post them later too.

This obviously is not all of them it isn’t many at all actually but hopefully when I watch it again on Friday I can add more cuz I loved the references.

Endgame Spoilers

references/callbacks - these are all internal to like marvel itself

Joe Russo in support group

the same Russo bro was in Winter Soldier as a doctor

really liked how the subtly added an explicitly gay character, it was not the main point. as someone who is gay, I am always in disbelief when I see representation and I really could not believe it when he referred to his partner as he, I was so happy.

“Suit of armor around the world”

age of ultron

Tony, I love you. but it would have only delayed Thanos a little bit, it is the thought that counts.

Captain America’s Ass

okay this is not really a reference but this is just an homage to Chris Evans’ amazing backside

love that they pointed this out, love that they talked about it for a while

love that Tony commented on it and basically confirmed bisexuality love that

i like to think that this was for the fans

THOR VIKING BEARD

again not really a reference

there was a tumblr post going around that thor never got his braided hair well he did get braided hair or at least i think it was somewhat styled in thor 2 but WE GOT the braided beard babey with the full power up yummmm yess go off sir

also tell me thor in the end did not look like aquaman... or give you aquaman vibes love that for him and his final character arc, giving up his throne to valkyrie cuz he knows its not for him

Loki into Cap

callback to Thor: The Dark World

I knew as soon as I saw Loki again when they went back that they were going to think cap or tony was loki in disguise and they even pointed that out with loki transforming

it’s funny how loki only turns to Cap or at least he has done him the most from what we have seen

“I can do this all day”

the first avenger, civil war

This one was an obvious one, but I loved it just as much and future cap’s response? so good loved that for them

Elevator Scene

winter soldier

biiitcchhh i was toooo hyped when I saw this, but I just realized now, of course there was gonna be a callback to winter soldier and so like exactly because the Russos directed it obvi. But this was so good

like did they use the same footage in the beginning? (ik they didnt) It felt dead same to me but there were some different characters right? like was sitwell there in that scene in tws?

Hydra Cap

scene itself to Winter Soldier, Cap knowing they were hydra and reference to the comics plot twist that everyone was up in arms about

I think this was strategic for cap and I am pretty sure Chris Evans was against hydra cap? right so it was definitely not approving it or anything

the men "didnt feel so good" - when Cap is distracting Hank Pym

infinity war

I really don’t know if this was intentional but I was just like ……… really marvel youre gonna do us like that

"operating a machine" - howard stark

Iron Man 2

where he said tony was the best thing he ever created/invented, talking about him like a tool…...more on this another time

Jarvis!!!

agent carter

the same actor from agent carter! love him the most

“on your left”

from winter soldier

i died at this part, it took me a second to like process what was happening but jaglakjdf love u sam :((

“Avengers Assemble”

callback to tease in Ultron, and comics obvi

I may have cried. I was waiting for that. It was so good.

Steve Rogers wielding Mjolnir

from age of ultron…….more on this another time

callback to cap budging the hammer in age of ultron

“don’t worry she’s got help” - female characters

Infinity War

I don’t know if this counts since it was literally from Infinity War, maybe not the exact wording, but…... more on this another time

Someone standing behind Wanda

in the funeral scene there was someone standing behind Wanda, Bucky, and Sam that I did not recognize and idk if I’m just blind but they looked like evan peters to me...... and i know it was not him from searching it but i thought it was like an introduction of xmen to the mcu slowly as disney bought fox but i was wronggggg but who was it? was it maria hill? I saw she was credited in the well credits but i swear i dont remember seeing her in the movie

Wanda and Clint’s dynamic still remaining

callback to age of ultron

father and daughter relationship, really good

“don’t do anything stupid until I get back” “how can i? youre taking all the stupid with you”

from the first avenger

:((((((( i- that was very emotional like i didnt process that one either that was like deep in the recess of my memories wow that was solid

Clink of Tony working on the original Iron Man suit - end screen

from Iron Man (2008)

I did not actually infer that it was from Iron Man at first, that was in the back of my mind, but given that end scenes are always about the future I thought it was like the forge where stormbreaker and mjolnir and the gauntlet were made and referencing future characters, weapons, etc. But it was a great callback alkdfjalskdjfajlafjdklajkdl I love Tony :(((

also some unedited ramblings (i only added periods to make it somewhat comprehensive) :

I had the ending robbed from me by dumbasses on instagram. I predicted tony would take the gauntlet and die from it because I knew he was going to die. I wish I could relive watching that not knowing, but if any marvel fans want to tell me how they felt I would love to listen and talk about endgame and the mcu with you and live vicariously through you. that black widow dying and cap getting old was also spoiled. I thought cap was gonna stay when they time traveled the first time but I knew where the soul stone business was going. I wanted to sob at Tony dying and I knew I would have if I didnt know, but I already knew and had accepted it but now it feels like he isnt actually dead idk like when tony almost died in iw I cried so I know I would have sobbed.... but even so tony’s death had been spoiled to me 3 separate times in the three days since its been released and each has been on a different day so I guess it was meant to be but im still mad that was taken from me

End Post

#endgame #endgame spoilers #avengers endgame #a:e #a:e spoilers #spoiler #spoilers #long post

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gaymusicchart · 5 years

Video

GAY MUSIC CHART - 2018 week 39

Is Gay Music Chart still alive ? Well, it isn’t totally dead yet… But for how long ? We will make a video which explain with more details the problems we have with the new YouTube copyright robot and the new European legislation.

The edition this week will not have a video, but only a playlist. The ranking was made only with the views of our previous playlist of the previous edition.

BLOGGER : http://gaymusicchart.blogspot.fr

FACEBOOK : https://www.facebook.com/GayMusicChart/

TWITTER : https://twitter.com/GayMusicChart with #GayMusicChart

TUMBLR : http://gaymusicchart.tumblr.com

Here is the recap for this week :

OUT : Ryan Dolan - "In My Blood" (LW: 27 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 27)

OUT : Bayli - "Out For Love" (LW: 28 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 28)

OUT : Troye Sivan - "Animal" (live @ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert) (LW: 29 / WO: 4 / PEAK: 13)

OUT : Ben Davidson - "Learning To Let You Go" (LW: 30 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 30)

OUT : Fabich x Jafunk feat FHAT - "Back to Life" (LW: 32 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 32)

OUT : Gia Gunn feat. Alaska Thunderfuck - "La China Mas Latina" (LW: 33 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 33)

OUT : Deitre - "Feeling Good" (LW: 38 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 38)

OUT : Robert O'Connor - "No Second Chances" (LW: 39 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 39)

OUT : Alex Anwandter - "Locura" (Official Lyric Video) (LW: 42 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 42)

OUT : The Struts feat. Kesha - "Body Talks" (LW: 45 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 43)

OUT : Rae Spoon - "Do Whatever The Heck You Want" (LW: 47 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 47)

OUT : 星屑スキャット Hoshikuzu Scat - 「ご乱心 / Go ranshin / Melancholy」(LW: 49 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 49)

OUT : Troye Sivan - "Plum" (live @ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert) (LW: 50 / WO: 1 / PEAK: 50)

01 (=) : Peter Wilson & Sean Smith - "Verona" (LW: 01 / WO: 6 / PEAK: 01 (x2))

UK - 2018 / from the album "The Passion and The Flame"

This awesome cover of the 2017's Estonian Eurovision track from Koit Toome and Laura is produced by Matt Pop.

02 (+ 2) : Nacha La Macha - Eres Cobarde (LW: 04 / WO: 10 / PEAK: 03)

Spain - 2018

03 (+ 5) : Calvin Harris, Sam Smith - "Promises" (LW: 08 / WO: 5 / PEAK: 03)

UK - 2018

04 (- 2) : Troye Sivan feat. Ariana Grande - Dance To This (LW: 02 / WO: 14 / PEAK: 01 (x1))

Australia / USA – 2018 / from the album 2018 "Bloom"

05 (- 2) : Allen King feat. Amor Romeira - "My Boy" (LW: 03 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 03)

Spain - 2018

06 (+ 17) : Panic! At The Disco - "High Hopes" (LW: 23 / WO: 3 / PEAK: 06)

USA - 2018 / from the album "Pray For The Wicked"

07 (+ 15) : Imagine Dragons - "Natural" (LW: 22 / WO: 4 / PEAK: 07)

USA - 2018

08 (+ 16) : Cher - "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" [Audio] (LW: 24 / WO: 6 / PEAK: 03)

USA - 2018 / from the album "Dancing Queen"

An ABBA revival, thanks to "Mama Mia 2".

09 (+ 37) : Cassandre - "Respire" (LW: 46 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 09)

France - 2018 / from the album "Nous"

10 (+ 3) : Reigen - "Ride" (LW: 13 / WO: 3 / PEAK: 10)

USA - 2018

The clip follows a super-cute couple as they meet for a romantic late-night bicycle rendezvous. "This track is about crushing hard on a friend, wondering if they know or feel the same, asking them silently, do you know that I’m ride or die?", Reigen explains to Billboard."

11 (- 6) : Sam Bluer - "Body High" (LW: 05 / WO: 7 / PEAK: 03)

Australia - 2018

This is his debut music video. A revelation.

12 (- 3) : Years & Years - All For You (PSEN Televisual Exclusive) (LW: 09 / WO: 11 / PEAK: 01 (x1))

UK - 2018 / from the album "Palo Santo"

13 (+ 2) : Tiago Braga - Ilusão (LW: 15 / WO: 18 / PEAK: 06)

Portugal - 2018

A story of infidelity.

14 (RE-ENTRY) : Man Meadow - "Play It Loud" (LW: - / WO: 4 / PEAK: 14)

Sweden - 2018

15 (RE-ENTRY) : Chris(tine and the Queens) - "5 dollars" (LW: - / WO: 4 / PEAK: 15)

France - 2018 / from the album "Chris"

16 (+ 3) : Sandro Cavazza, P3GI-13 - High With Somebody (LW: 19 / WO: 14 / PEAK: 07)

Sweden - 2018

A sweet song and a music video which shows bisexuality.

17 (- 11) : Laganja Estranja feat. J. Tyler - "Look At Me" (LW: 17 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 06)

USA - 2018

18 (+ 16) : P!nk - "Secrets" (LW: 34 / WO: 8 / PEAK: 01 (x2))

USA - 2018 / from the album "Beautiful Trauma"

19 (- 9) : Antonio Navarro - "Karma Dharma" (LW: 10 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 10)

Spain - 2018 / from the album "Punto Zero"

20 (- 13) : Years & Years - "If You're Over Me" (LW: 07 / WO: 19 / PEAK: 01 (x2))

UK - 2018 / from the album "Palo Santo"

21 (NEW) : Ryan Dolan « In My Blood » (LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 12)

Ireland - 2018

This is a cover of Shawn Mendes.

22 (+ 18) : FRANKIE x Scott Hoying feat. One Night - Ghost (LW: 40 / WO: 14 / PEAK: 14)

USA - 2018

The music video is an interesting queer remake of Grease.

23 (- 9) : Javiera Mena - "Espejo" (LW: 12 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 12)

Chile - 2018

24 (- 10) : The Internet - "Come Over" (LW: 14 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 14)

USA - 2018 / from the album "Hive Mind"

The track was #1 at the Top 40 LGBT Urban Chart.

25 (+ 12) : Heidrik - "Island Fever" (LW: 37 / WO: 3 / PEAK: 25)

Faroe islands (Denmark) / 2018

26 (+ 17) : Blonde feat. Bryn Christopher - Me, Myself & I (LW: 43 / WO: 10 / PEAK: 26)

UK - 2018

27 (NEW) : Thalles - "Just When We Were High" (LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 11)

Brazil – 2018 - from the album "Utopia"

28 (- 17) : Kerstin Ott - "Regenbogenfarben" (LW: 11 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 11)

Germany - 2018 / from the album "Mut zur Katastrophe"

29 (RE-ENTRY) : LP - "Girls Go Wild" (LW: - / WO: 4 / PEAK: 20)

USA - 2018

30 (+ 1) : Maroon 5 feat. Cardi B - "Girls Like You" (LW: 31 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 30)

USA - 2018

31 (+ 10) : LSD feat. Sia, Diplo, Labrinth - "Thunderclouds" (LW: 41 / WO: 3 / PEAK: 31)

UK / USA / Australia - 2018

32 (NEW) : Christophe Willem - "Madame" (LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 17)

France - 2018

33 (- 17) : Adore Delano - 27 Club (LW: 16 / WO: 12 / PEAK: 01 (x2))

USA - 2018 / from the album "Whatever"

34 (+ 10) : Greyson Chance - "Good As Gold" (Live at Roland Studios) (LW: 44 / WO: 3 / PEAK: 34)

USA - 2018

35 (RE-ENTRY) : THE TRIPLETZ - "You Better Fucking Dance" (LW: - / WO: 7 / PEAK: 06)

Spain - 2018

"Better fuck with them boys

Better fuck with them girls

Better fuck with them both

Who fuckin cares?"

36 (- 9) : Ryan Beatty - "Party's Over" (LW: 17 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 17)

USA - 2018 / from the album "Boy in Jeans"

37 (NEW) : Achille Lauro feat. Cosmo - "Angelo Blu" (LW: - / WO: 1 / PEAK: 36)

Italy - 2018 / from the album "Pour l'amour"

38 (- 12) : Panic! At The Disco - Hey Look Ma, I Made It (LW: 48 / WO: 11 / PEAK: 07)

USA - 2018

Brendon Urie comes out as pansexual. The funny music and his puppet illustrates that fact.

38 (- 20) : Grace Petrie - "Black Tie" (LW: 18 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 18)

UK - 2018 / from the album "Queer as Folk"

40 (RE-ENTRY) : Steve Grand - Don't Let The Light In (LW: - / WO: 2 / PEAK: 36)

USA - 2018 / from the album "Not The End of Me"

The music video is a collection of his childhood and concerts footage. His second album has just been released.

41 (- 15) : Big Dipper - "Thiccness" (LW: 26 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 26)

USA - 2018 / from the album "Late Bloomer"

42 (RE-ENTRY) : Davi - "Tenho Você" (LW: - / WO: 6 / PEAK: 28)

Brazil - 2018

This is the first single in solo of the member of Banda Uó.

43 (- 23) : Boy George & Culture Club - "Let Somebody Love You" (LW: 21 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 21)

UK - 2018 / from the album "Life"

44 (RE-ENTRY) : Gargäntua - Mohammed je t'aime (LW: - / WO: 3 / PEAK: 40)

France - 2018

This music video, about love and homophobia in cities suburbs, was put in private mode on YouTube after the flood of hateful comments from people who did not apreciate that it speaks about a gay Arab.

45 (- 9) : Monét X Change feat. Bob The Drag Queen - Soak It Up (LW: 36 / WO: 16 / PEAK: 08)

USA - 2018

The drag queen was voted Miss Congeniality of the 2018 edition of RuPaul's Drag Race.

46 (RE-ENTRY) : LVRK - "Heart to Heart" (LW: - / WO: 2 / PEAK: 40)

Sweden - 2018

47 (RE-ENTRY) : Kylie Minogue - "A Lifetime to Repair" (Lyric Video) (LW: - / WO: 4 / PEAK: 17)

Australia - 2018 / from the album "Golden"

48 (- 23) : The 1975 - "TOOTIMETOOTIMETOOTIME" (LW: 25 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 25)

UK - 2018

49 (- 14) : Kiddy Smile - "Be Honest" (LW: 35 / WO: 3 / PEAK: 35)

France - 2018 / from the album "One Trick Pony"

50 (- 30) : Bright Light Bright Light - "How I Feel" (Official Lyric Video) (LW: 20 / WO: 2 / PEAK: 20)

UK - 2018 / from the EP "Tought Love"

#Gay Music Chart #2018 week 39 #LGBTQ music

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sasslightertm-a · 6 years

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seethem-dancing replied to your post: NOMED: What am I talking about? I’m talking about...

Piper also flat out confirmed (in the final flash-forward montage in Forever Charmed) that when their kids - in the case of her & Leo it would be Chris, Wyatt&Melinda - were “old enough” they “took over” the “[demon] fighting” (it being accompanied by the footage of Chris & Wyatt brewing an indefinite vanquishing potion). This was a BLATANT allusion to the potential spin off (so was Chris & Wyatt’s “demon arse-kicking” exchange when they were transported to past to reclaim Wyatt’s powers) which we never got to see (due to the fallacious notion that “SPN has the same concept” when A) Dark Future arc (2003-2004) predated this show which was premiered in 2005 and B) the original Charmed is about wicca practicing/evil forces fighting siblings (a trope widely used in media, i.e Practical Magic). Another avenue a reboot - if one was inevitable - could’ve considered was to focus on Paige’s charges (new generation of witches and whitelighters she took on the task of protecting & tutoring). Instead, we are getting the original show erasing (by the same network that treated it’s actresses with grotesque misogyny), queer-phobic (referring to one of the heroines’ sexuality as a “twist” & reducing her to anger management issues suffering, possessive lesbian stereotype), ableist (the “r” word featuring comments from one of the cast members) rip off perpetuating the oppression of the vulnerable & marginalized groups that derived motivation & strength from the original, legitimately empowering series (versus a classist Western feminism promoting "reboot" that celebrates youth, ability privilege & ladder climbing. Since it labeled the original show as not empowering the idea is that the acquirement of high socioeconomic status for a woman is superior to emotional growth. Original Charmed only had Phoebe represent this brand of “empowerment” and she was the OUTLIER among the other characters who actually had to mentally grow & fight for their happiness. Rather than being rewarded for their entitled, agency robbing & predatory behaviors by a successful career & a man being sent down to them literally from heavens by in-universe powers that be). There is also the matter of Chris’ repeatedly displayed PTSD & aftereffects of his traumas that were either never acknowledged or outright ridiculed with “that is one bitchy Whitelighter”/“your big brother picked on you”/“neurotic little freak” remarks (that is, until Chris’ family realized THEY too were going to be affected by the sources & causes of his traumas - which is when it became his job to save them & die per Phoebe). Enough material to delve into and NOT make the spin off/reboot strictly about neurotypical people’s problems (and maybe give Chris an opportunity to finally address his traumas related to his brother being a tyrannical dictator in the original timeline where his father was a deadbeat & his mom and aunts were dead - which Chris’ family dismissed with “you’re so dramatic”, “why are you so edgy anyway”, “if Chris lives long enough to tell me what to change” & “YOU gotta take it easy on Wyatt [because] he’s gonna be different" and “it all worked out”; not covering the infamous “Chris’ destiny might have been just to come here and warn us about Wyatt and that’s all” from his narcissistic, “been on that whole future thing when it benefited HER & promised her a happy ending” aunt Phoebe).

It should be noted that the Chris we see in “Forever Charmed” is not the same Chris that came back into the past, but it is more or less outright stated in both “Imaginary Fiend” and “Forever Charmed” that he does remember the original timeline—and in any case, Chris does seem to have a much better and healthier relationship with Wyatt and his family in the new timeline. (Which is not to say that there isn’t any psychological issues there—there most likely are, given Chris has two different sets of memories in his head.)

The ending of the original series also made it clear that Piper and Leo become grandparents, and that the next generation (of which Chris, Wyatt, and most likely PJ were the first) has over the Charmed Ones’ duties in fighting evil and protecting innocents. It is also clear that Magic School is still up and running, that (as you mentioned) Paige has embraced her Whitelighter side and is focusing on helping her charges. The reboot could easily have gone any route with all the future options opened up in the series finale.

But no. They didn’t, and instead we are getting a reboot that only wants to capitalize on the Charmed name, the already-existing fanbase, and the buzzword topics currently being debated upon in society while simultaneously erasing the original show and acting as if the Halliwell line never existed in-universe. (Yet somehow the new sisters are distantly related to Melinda Warren and are the new Charmed Ones. Uh-huh. Yeah. Sure, Jan.)

#seethemdancing #anti Charmed reboot #someone just screwed up our future ( anti Charmed reboot )

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: Bucky Barnes MCU History Recap

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This Friday, Disney+ starts the next step in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Spinning out of the Captain America movies, the series follows the character’s two best friends working together (albeit reluctantly) to fill the void left from Chris Evans leaving the series. One of these heroes is Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier, as played by Sebastian Stan.

Bucky is an interesting part of Marvel history. He predates most characters in the MCU, created during World War II in Cap’s very first appearance by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby as a blatant Robin knockoff. When Captain America was thawed out and joined the Avengers, it was established that Bucky died in an explosion. It was mandated that Bucky would never come back. He was as permanently dead as Ben Parker and Gwen Stacy.

Then, in the mid-00s, Ed Brubaker took on the writing duties on Captain America and decided to actually go through with bringing Bucky back into the fold. It shouldn’t have worked, but it did. As we’ll get to in a second, it even got its own film adaptation!

So let’s go back in time and see the tragedy and triumph of James Buchanan Barnes.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER

Bucky Barnes was the childhood best friend of Steve Rogers, a skinny and sickly guy with a tendency to stand up to bullies twice his size. Bucky was occasionally there to get Steve out of trouble. When it came to World War II, both Steve and Bucky wanted to do their duty and fight the Nazis, but only Bucky was healthy enough to enlist. Eventually, he reached the status of Sgt. Barnes.

Steve took part in a science experiment that transformed him into the pinnacle of human health. Unfortunately, due to the scientist behind it being assassinated, Steve was the only super soldier. He was used as a tool for patriotic propaganda under the moniker Captain America, but when touring in Italy, he found out that Bucky and his unit were captured behind enemy lines.

Captain America rescued Bucky and the rest, earning him a more hands-on role against the Nazis and the offshoot organization HYDRA. Cap led a squad tasked with taking down as many HYDRA bases as possible.

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One of their missions involved hijacking a train containing HYDRA scientist Arnim Zola. While the mission was a success, Bucky was knocked out of the train and fell to the water below, his fate all but sealed. Steve mourned his lost friend, but soldiered on.

Captain America saved the world from the plans of the Red Skull, but in doing so, he ended up being frozen for decades. Thawing out in the present, he was disheartened to find that practically everyone he held dear was gone.

But not everyone…

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER

The plot of the Captain America sequel dealt with the discovery that for years, HYDRA had infiltrated SHIELD and was using its resources to fulfill its own fascist ends. HYDRA’s heavy hitter was the mysterious Winter Soldier, an unstoppable assassin with a metal arm, long hair, and mask. During his early moments in the movie, he was able to horribly wound SHIELD Director Nick Fury and proved himself to be more than a match for Cap in hand-to-hand combat.

Eventually, the mask came off and Steve realized the horrible truth: Bucky didn’t die in that fall during the war. Instead, HYDRA got their mitts on him, replaced his damaged arm with a metal one, and brainwashed him into becoming the ultimate killing machine. He would remain frozen for years at a time, only to be thawed out for special missions. To make matters worse, he had no memories of being Bucky or serving for the US.

Still, the Winter Soldier understood that Captain America recognized him and that put some cracks in his conditioning. He was once again mindwiped to fight for HYDRA and seemed to be all-in on his mission. He and Cap fought on a SHIELD Helicarrier and the Winter Soldier even succeeded in shooting him. An emotionally weary Cap decided he was done fighting his friend, even though the assassin kept angrily punching him and egging him on. As the base exploded around them, Cap weakly told his nemesis that he would be with him, “’til the end of the line,” a quote from happier times in their past.

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Bucky’s wordless response was that of realization, confusion, and sadness. Steve’s body fell out of the Helicarrier and into the water below. Though still confused, Bucky knew enough to dive in and rescue this man who seemed to give a damn about him. He brought Steve to safety, then wandered off alone.

Sometime later, Bucky visited a museum. At a display about Captain America’s World War II exploits, the confused assassin read about his own identity with a look of wide-eyed intensity. Elsewhere, Steve and his new friend Sam Wilson – The Falcon – were dedicated to tracking down Bucky and giving him the help he needed.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR

With only two people out looking for him, Bucky was able to keep to himself and stay hidden with little problem. Then Helmut Zemo – a man with a deep hatred for the Avengers – framed Bucky for an explosion at the United Nations. One of the casualties was Wakanda’s King T’Chaka, causing his son T’Challa to suit up as Black Panther so he could hunt Bucky down and unleash his vengeance.

At the time, the Avengers were dealt a blow with the Sokovia Accords, which mandated that all superheroics had to be under the thumb of the world’s governments. Though Captain America and Falcon stepped down due to their refusal to sign on, they knew that they were the best option to bring Bucky in without casualties on either side. As they tried to catch Bucky, a furious Black Panther appeared and complicated matters. Eventually, all four were arrested and taken into custody.

Zemo infiltrated Bucky’s cell and read off a series of secret words that would trigger him into once again becoming the brainwashed killer. The reborn Winter Soldier ran amuck through the facility, but was eventually taken down by Captain America and Falcon, who were able to escape with him. Held captive by the two heroes, Bucky was able to prove to Steve that he finally remembered their history together. He also explained that once upon a time, he was put in charge of training a small army of fellow Winter Soldiers who were being kept in stasis in Siberia.

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Due to the Sokovia Accords complications, Cap was stuck having to face those who were for government oversight and were therefore tasked with taking him in. A massive battle took place with one side featuring Captain America, Bucky, Falcon, Hawkeye, Wanda Maximoff, and Ant-Man while the other team was made up of Iron Man, War Machine, Black Widow, Black Panther, Vision, and Spider-Man. In the end, Cap and Bucky were able to escape, though their comrades were defeated and apprehended.

Iron Man became aware of Zemo’s master plan and chose to work with Cap as an ally. The three prepared to face the Winter Soldiers, but found them all killed by Zemo. The true reason Zemo brought them together was to show them footage of a brainwashed Winter Soldier coldly murdering Iron Man’s parents Howard and Maria Stark in the name of HYDRA in the early 1990s. Overcome with rage, Iron Man tried to kill Bucky, only to be defeated by a protective Cap.

At first, Bucky helped Cap spring the others free from prison, but he knew he was too much of a liability due to all the HYDRA programming in his brain. Until he was free of that threat, he needed to be kept on ice. Prince T’Challa, having accepted that Bucky wasn’t behind the death of his father, took him in and promised to help cleanse his mind.

BLACK PANTHER

In the post-credits scene, Bucky was shown having lived peacefully in Wakanda, given the nickname “White Wolf.” T’Challa’s sister Shuri found success in freeing Bucky’s mind, but said there was more for him to learn.

AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR

The cosmic villain Thanos was bent on obtaining the six Infinity Stones and gaining ultimate power. One of the Stones was located on Earth and the last stand to protect it took place in Wakanda. Outfitted with a brand-new arm made from Wakandan technology, Bucky returned to action. Reuniting with Steve, Bucky took part in the battle to protect the Mind Stone. The main highlight involved him teaming up with Rocket Raccoon in the midst of the chaos.

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Sadly, Bucky’s latest mission was a failure. Thanos was able to gather all six Infinity Stones and snapped his fingers. A confused Bucky fell over and turned into dust upon hitting the ground. 50% of the universe’s population was wiped out due to Thanos’ belief that was the wisest way to prevent overpopulation.

Faced with the reality of this epic loss, Steve could only sit and say, “Oh God…”

AVENGERS: ENDGAME

At first, Thanos was able to destroy the Infinity Stones to prevent anyone from undoing his wish. Then the Avengers realized that they could gather the Stones via time travel and wish everyone back. Having succeeded, this soon led to Captain America, alone, staring down Thanos and his entire army. Luckily, he had plenty of allies after all. Portals opened all around and warriors from Wakanda, New Asgard, space, and so on stepped through. This included the resurrected Bucky.

In the end, Iron Man gained access to the Infinity Stones and wiped out Thanos’ side with a snap of his fingers. Sadly, this move killed Iron Man. Bucky was seen showing his respects at Stark’s funeral.

Shortly after, Captain America had to use the time machine to return all the Infinity Stones to their places and times of origin before they were snagged. He said his goodbye to Bucky, who seemed to have a good idea of what his old friend was up to.

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Rather than reappear on the time machine when his work was done, Steve remained back in the era of World War II, creating a new timeline where he returned to be with the love of his life, Agent Peggy Carter. The two were married and while the details of Steve’s new life are unknown, he made sure to return to his original timeline by the time he was an old man.

Sam Wilson found the elderly Steve waiting for him on a bench with a new shield in hand. Steve handed it off to Sam, christening him the new Captain America. Despite having his own issues with Sam, Bucky fully supported the decision.

Now Bucky is in an interesting place. He’s cured of his brainwashing and can live his life, but what kind of life is there for a man like him? Especially since Steve is out of the picture.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

It looks like we’ll see this Friday with the first episode of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

The post The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: Bucky Barnes MCU History Recap appeared first on Den of Geek.

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scruffyplayssonic · 6 years

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And the best movies of all the years I’ve been alive are... (updated for 2017!)

Hey folks, I’ve got of a bit of a tradition that I’ve started. It wasn’t a New Year’s tradition previously, but this feels like the best time to be updating

Back in August 2015, I watched a Youtube video by Jeremy of @cinema-sins, where he was answering fan questions. One question that he addressed was, “What is the best movie of every year that you’ve been alive?” While Jeremy thought this was a great question, he didn’t think one video would be long enough to explore it fully, and he wanted to find another way to answer it. This eventually was done through the Cinema Sins podcast, SinCast. Each week, the cast would discuss the movies of a certain year and then vote on which one they thought was the best, starting with 1975 in episode 14, and then working their way through another year each episode right up until episode 54, where they voted on the best movie for 2015. They then took a break for a few weeks to get caught up on some of last year’s movies that they hadn’t seen yet before finally tackling 2016 in this week’s podcast, episode 58.

I did my own picks for my favourite movie of each year back in August 2015, when I first saw Jeremy’s Q and A video. I really liked that question and was inspired to try and name my own favourites from each year. I reuploaded the updated version of this when the SinCast finished going through it last year, and I’ve been waiting for New Year’s Eve to update it again for this year. I hope you enjoy it. Feel free to comment and/or argue about my choices. And thanks again to @cinema-sins, for providing me with laughs every week in the podcasts and videos they release. :)

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1982: E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial This might be a bit of a cheat, since the film came out in June and I wasn’t born until October, but oh well. It’s still the same year.

1983: Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi The first Star Wars movie I was around to see the cinematic release of, although I wouldn’t see it in cinemas (or at all, shamefully) for another 14 years.

1984: The Terminator The original was pretty chilling. This still gets me every time. “Listen, and understand! That Terminator is out there! It can’t be bargained with! It can’t be reasoned with! It doesn’t feel pity, or remorse, or fear! And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead!”

1985: Back to the Future The beginning of what I still believe is the greatest movie trilogy of all time.

1986: Aliens More awesome from James Cameron.

1987: Spaceballs Well, it’s pretty funny. Plus I haven’t seen much else from this year, other than Lethal Weapon.

1988: Die Hard The original and quite possibly the best. More on that later.

1989: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade This was a tough one to pick, as Michael Keaton’s first Batman film, Licence to Kill, AND Back to the Future: Part II all came out this year. But it really has to be the onscreen chemistry of Harrison Ford and Sean Connery!

1990: Back to the Future: Part III At the time, I probably would have picked DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp. Ahhh, nostalgia.

1991: Terminator 2: Judgement Day I’m sure most of you who know me and know my favourite movies saw this one coming. This was my very favourite movie of all time for almost twenty years, but recently something has surpassed it. Silence of the Lambs would probably get second place for this year.

1992: Batman Returns It was a hard choice between this and Aladdin, which was my favourite Disney cartoon for a very long time. But since it’s not in my dvd collection and Batman is… Honourable mention goes to A Muppet Christmas Carol, my favourite of the Muppet movies.

1993: The Fugitive Another tough choice, considering that Jurassic Park also came out in 1993. But I just love the battle of wits between Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones.

1994: The Lion King Another of Disney’s finest. No contest, although True Lies, Speed, and The Mask were all excellent films too.

1995: Goldeneye (007) This was another tough choice, and Die Hard with a Vengeance came very, VERY close. It’s hard to live up to the awesomeness of that first film, but the partnership with Samuel L. Jackson definitely pays off here. But Goldeneye was the first Bond film I saw in the cinema, and I remember that experience vividly. Pierce Brosnan remains my favourite Bond, even though the next three films he starred in didn’t quite live up to this one.

1996: Scream The Rock and Independence Day were my other main picks from this year, but Wes Craven made an instant classic with Scream, which inspired so many other movies and spoofs. If only they’d stopped after the first Scary Movie…

1997: Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (Special Edition) It’s a bit of a cheat, but technically the original Star Wars trilogy was re-released in cinemas that year with new “special edition” footage, which is when I first fell in love with the series. From original movies that came out in ‘97, it’s a toss up between Men in Black, Air Force One, and The Fifth Element.

1998: Rush Hour Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker were hilarious in this one. The Mask of Zorro was another great movie, and Deep Impact, which was waaaaaay better than Armageddon. Of course, a Michael Bay film will be obsessed with making things go ka-boom. :P Yes, yes, I know The Rock was a Bay film too. So sue me.

1999: The Matrix Another of my very favourite movies. The effects, the plot, the action… it was just sensational. The Sixth Sense was another very clever movie, and Austin Powers: The Spy who Shagged Me was hilarious! But… c'mon, The Matrix, man!

2000: The Whole Nine Yards I was still a big Friends fan at the time, so I loved Matthew Perry starring alongside Bruce Willis. There was also Gone in 60 Seconds, which is one of my favourite Nick Cage films, The Emperor’s New Groove, and of course, X-Men. And then there’s Mission: Impossible 2… hey, be nice. I watched this a lot when I was in Virginia and homesick for Australia :P

2001: Ocean’s Eleven Such a clever film with a great cast!

2002: The Bourne Identity Spider-Man came pretty close, but Matt Damon was amazing as Jason Bourne. …well, that most recent movie was kind of hit or miss…

2003: Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl Who would have ever guessed that a movie based on a Disneyland ride could be so good?

2004: The Incredibles It was a good year for animation - there was this one, Shrek 2, and Team America: World Police. National Treasure came out too, which I quite like.

2005: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire There was also The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (a huge improvement on the previous two movies), Batman Begins, and of course, Serenity; the movie that had Firefly fans screaming, “NOOOOOOOOO!!!” near the climax. :P

2006: V for Vendetta I just LOVE this film. Top performances from Hugo Weaving, Natalie Portman and John Hurt. The Da Vinci Code was my second choice. Controversial it may be, and people tend to poo-poo Dan Brown a lot, but I loved this movie too. Tom Hanks was the perfect choice for Robert Langdon, and Ian McKellan was brilliant as always. Casino Royale also came out this year, which brought the 007 franchise back from oblivion.

2007: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix I had to find a cinema playing this in English in Nanjing - no easy feat! But at least they didn’t butcher it like they did with Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (my second pick, after I saw the uncut movie on DVD). Ocean’s Thirteen was pretty good too, if not as good as the original. And of course, The Bourne Ultimatum. I was on the edge of my seat for that one.

2008: The Dark Knight A no-brainer. One of the best films of the decade, let alone the year. Iron Man was a surprise hit too. Little did we know of what was to follow - and in fact, you’ll be seeing a few MCU movies coming up on the list. Taken was great. Oh, and I quite liked Steve Carrell’s take on Get Smart, even if he didn’t quite capture the original magic of Don Adams.

2009: Up One of my very favourite Pixar movies. Angels & Demons was pretty good too, although not as good as the first movie. Plus Tom Hanks cut his hair - I thought his shaggy do in the first movie suited Robert Langdon better. :P Strange that I liked Angels & Demons better of the books but The Da Vinci Code better of the movies. Robert Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes was great too.

2010: Kick-Ass This one was a surprise, but I loved the deconstruction of the traditional superhero movie they did here. And when I read the original comic, I loved the film even more for the improvements they made. Nicolas Cage was hilariously hammy, but the major star of this one was undoubtedly Chloe Grace Moretz as the tiny killing machine, Hit-Girl. After that, there was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, and Toy Story 3.

2011: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 A fantastic end to a fantastic series. There was also Rise of the Planet of the Apes, which really surprised me. Excellent stuff there. The Adventures of Tintin - an amazing film that tricked me into forgetting it was animated and not live-action several times. Finally, The Muppets, which was such a fantastic return for some of my favourite childhood icons.

2012: The Avengers No surprise there. Honourable mentions go to The Cabin in the Woods, which is a delightfully insane deconstruction of horror movies, Looper, a film I still occasionally stay up late at night scratching my head in confusion over, and Skyfall, which is probably Daniel Craig’s best Bond film so far. I also loved Wreck-It Ralph.

2013: White House Down This one was definitely the film I liked best from 2013What can I say? I love Die Hard, and this was basically Die Hard in the White House, yet it felt original enough to not just be a knock-off. The other ones I liked best would be the Marvels (Iron Man 3, the Wolverine and Thor: The Dark World), Kick-Ass 2, and Gravity, which was absolutely terrifying.

2014: Guardians of the Galaxy Marvel sure knows how to get my bum into the cinema - X-Men: Days of Future Past and Captain America: The Winter Soldier are up there, but Guardians wins out for pure fun (and the delightful company I had in the cinema <3). There was also The LEGO Movie, which I thought was very clever, and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

2015: The Martian When I first made this list in August 2015, my prediction was that Jurassic World would be my favourite of the year. Nope, not by a long shot. The Martian was absolutely amazing - Matt Damon’s ability to keep the audience on the edge of their seats when he’s completely alone on the screen (and on the planet) is a major credit to him as an actor. In fact, I think this film has now actually surpassed Terminator 2 to become my favourite movie of all time. Then of course we have Avengers: Age of Ultron, Mission: Impossible: Rogue Nation, and Terminator: Genisys. …no, really. Stop laughing, I really enjoyed it. :P And then there was Ex Machina, which was a really intriguing film that kept me guessing the entire time.

2016: Captain America: Civil War It’s no secret that I love my comic book movies, and this was definitely my favourite of last year. Civil War (the comic) was the first instance that got me intrigued enough to actually pick up and read a Marvel comic. It really raised an interesting question for me - just how accountable should superheroes be for what they do when fighting crime? Granted, the comic really went too far and made both Cap AND Iron Man look like total dicks, and I was relieved when the film managed to not use some of the more ridiculous ideas, such as a homocidal Robo-Thor-clone or a prison for superheroes in an alternate dimension that literally saps your will to live. On top of that, the film also introduced a fantastic Black Panther, and Tom Holland really nailed what Spider-Man should be. And that airport scene was worth the price of admission all by itself.

2017: Wonder Woman Ohhhhh man, it has been a really good year for superhero movies. We’ve had Tom Holland really prove he is Spider-Man in Homecoming, and the most ridiculous-and-yet-accurate portrayal of Batman ever in the LEGO Batman Movie. Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart’s swansongs in Logan were heartwrenching. Ragnarok and Justice League were a lot of fun (yes, I liked Justice League. Fight me). The Guardians managed to surpass their first movie in Volume 2 with really great character development and humour, and that would probably have been my pick for the year if there wasn’t one other superhero movie I loved even more. But I found Wonder Woman to be truly inspirational. Patty Jenkins,Gal Gadot, Chris Pine and everyone else involved with this movie created something that took my breath away. I cheer every time I see her walk out onto no man’s land, and I scream, “FUCK YEAH!!!” every time that iconic butt-kicking theme music plays. In non-superhero movies... Coco was simply amazing, and is another of Pixar’s very best movies. Star Wars Episode VII: The Last Jedi was fantastic, and I can’t wait to go see it again. And I went into Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle with pretty low expectations, but I really enjoyed it and laughed a lot.

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I challenge any of my friends out there who are avid movie lovers to give this challenge a try - it’s not as easy as you’d think. Wikipedia is your friend though - just browse by “(insert year here) in film.” Comments telling me, “Yes, I love that film!” or, “Are you nuts? How could you forget THIS film?” are quite welcome. :)

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paniccord-ff · 7 years

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25. Part 5

Smoking my blunt watching the security footage with Mark, I am a little tired “I never knew you had this room” Mijo said, I ended up telling Mijo because I needed my homie. I needed someone to speak too about this “what can I say, I got the best of the best. I got all this security for what? Just to not capture shit” shit is so annoying “y’all some nasties though, y’all started at the lobby” Mijo said, busting out laughing “nigga, just stop watching me. Shit happens sometimes” that was a good night “one minute boys, if you see this here. Your dog here stood up, so we need to see the camera near the double doors” Mark said reaching his hand over to switch the cameras “look! Just see this” my eyes widened watching the screen “why isn’t my dog’s barking!?” I am so confused “the person came running from where your dogs are and put their hood up as he ran. I think he showed his face to the dog’s, I am not sure and I am guessing this. This is a male that is known Chris” Marked looked at me, staring back at Mark “wait, just look” Mijo pointed, watching the guy slide open my door “no” my heart fell, this person knows my home “this is not Hood, someone skinny and tall and that leaves Lo” Mijo glared at me, getting up from my seat “woah! Chris. You can’t just assume shit, cool it” Mark also got up “he knows me, he knows this home. It’s him” I will get his ass.

Walking out of the room “Chris, let’s do this by the law. Can we not do it your way please” pressing the passcode in to open my safe “Mark, please! This nigga watched my girl naked, I am killing someone” grabbing the gun I had in my safe “oh come on Chris! That was there for emergencies. You can’t do this” Mijo spat, stuffing the gun between my jean band and my back “Mark, you’re the man of the law. Pretend I have gone for a walk” I am angry, he has been in my home and tried to blackmail me. He watched my girl naked, he watched us the motherfucker. I am going to kill him “fuck! Wait for me” Mijo said behind me, I am not saying I will use it but if he playing I will “you need to talk, what if it ain’t him?” Mijo said behind me as I made my way down the steps “can we not like kill anybody today? I really don’t want to go down for this” I did say I would protect Rylee and I am, it kills me inside to know anybody saw my girl like that.

Sitting in silence outside Lo’ apartment, I am not in the mood to speak. I know for a fact that Lo did this, I know he is the one creeping in my home. He is the guy behind this, he liked Rylee and now this. The car parked in front of us “so who are these?” Mijo asked, the car lights switched off “someone that don’t like me and I don’t like him but we have one thing in common” seeing Blake get out of the car, Nathan is not with him but four other niggas got out of the car too. Blake looked at my car making his way to the passenger side, opening my car door as he slid inside. I text Harvey, he gave me his number instantly and here we are “Chris” Blake said, looking in the rear-view mirror “you don’t like me, I don’t like you but we want one thing. Your sister happy, I couldn’t explain to you properly but he has been creeping on me and your sister. He took pictures of us in ways, seen your sister naked. I know you been trying to get at him but he is here right now” Blake mean mugged the car seat in front of him “he is here yeah?” Blake said, nodding my head. Blake opened my car door, I know for a fact Blake will kill him on my behalf.

Mijo eyeballed me, he doesn’t like this at all “so Chris, he won’t open the door to me at all. You go in first, you” he pointed at Mijo “after five minutes you open the door for us, if shit goes sideways then we dip, this is for my sister. Nobody fucks with my family” Mijo is not happy but I don’t care at all, I want this done with so we can live. Walking across the street to go to Lo’ apartment “I am running if anyone gets shot” Mijo said “I am just going to say I went to see my friend, I don’t care” pulling open the entrance door “shit is going to go sideways Chris, Jesus. These guy’s mean business and you telling me that is her brother? He is so big, like beat a nigga up. Why hasn’t he hit you?” tapping the elevator button “Rylee protects me, he doesn’t like me at all but he will do anything for his sister. I think he will warm up to me. He won’t show it but I know he think I am cool” the elevator doors opened, Mijo pushed me inside “you ain’t shit nigga” he gets so annoyed with me.

Knocking on the door for the second time “he ain’t going to answer” Mijo said to me in a whisper “he’s here, his precious car is here so he will be” he can’t really run far either, hearing footsteps walking towards the door. Staring at the door waiting for it to be unlocked, the door flew open “Bailey?” I said a little shocked “uh, what are you doing here?” she said a little shocked, not like I owe her a speech on why. Pushing the door open which caused her to fall back “what the fuck! Watch it, I am pregnant” I don’t really care, looking everywhere as I walked in “yo, Chris” Lo came jogging out from his bedroom “Lo, long time homie. I came to see you, I need a hit” hitting his arm, I really want to punch “what?” looking around the living area, I need to see any clue “I mean I got some gear for you? I can give you some” Lo looks so nervous “why you so uptight? Hiding something?” he is sweating, I know he is lying and I know he did it. He made a mistake by entering my home like that, he showed me a trick on how to enter someone’s home with the new locks.

Lo and I just stared at each other “so, you going give it me?” I questioned “give what?” he spat “the hit! Fucking get me some” he let out an oh, turning around to walk back into his bedroom. Looking at Mijo and Bailey, I am about to follow Lo. Reaching behind me as I followed behind Lo, gripping the gun with my hand. Bringing it forward and placing it on the back of Lo’ head “you think I am stupid?” I said, Lo slowly raised his hands up “I don’t know what you mean?” he acting stupid “you disrespecting me, you came into my home and you saw my girl naked” kicking the back of his leg so it gave way and he fell onto his knees, my ears perked up hearing Bailey shout something but I can hear Blake “what the fuck you doing here!? You can’t do that” hearing the place being trashed “turn his place out” Lo got up from the floor in a panic “oh shit, brother. We meet again” Blake said, I got a feeling that Lo has the pictures here “don’t trash this room, he has it in here” I said looking around “I ain’t got shit!” Lo shouted out, Blake grabbed his shirt and yanked him out of the room “don’t go in that room” Blake said, following behind him.

I just want to know where the video or pictures are but he keeps on denying it “you know what, thank you for this Lo. I need some money” Blake took the stack, Lo’ face is fucked “I told you to never fuck with my sister, you did. You knew this would happen” Blake looked around the room “where is it?” he said “where is what?” Lo said “Chris asked you, where is it. Chris speak to this snake, talk to Lo. Ask him how he put a hit out on your home, ask him how I stopped that shit because my sister is there. Boys talk, go on Chris talk to him” he put a hit out on my home “it’s a lie” Lo said, Blake paced the room “get on your knees when you speak to us please” Blake asked him “Chris please, Blake is a crazy motherfucker! I didn’t do anything! I promise you” I jumped as the gun shot rang out in the room and Lo screamed out falling to the floor “I said get on your knees, I mean it” he really shot his kneecap “hold him in position please, we haven’t got much time” Blake said to one of his people, they grabbed him up “stay still now, I will shot the other one” Blake did worse then what I want to do, this is crazy.

“Where are the pictures, what have you done with them?” I asked him, Lo cried out in pain “I don’t know” he said again, Blake groaned out “this bitch here, Bailey. I will kill the baby inside her, you tell me now before I punch her stomach, hurry the fuck up!” I believe Blake would “ok ok, it was me! I just wanted money, it was her idea. I just knew your home! The pictures and videos are under my bed, just please leave me alone” I came for one thing, I don’t care about anything else, walking around Lo “you disrespected my family, my sister you watched her naked!? You sick motherfucker” Blake shouted, getting on my knees looking under the bed. Seeing the clear box filled with papers and a camera, pulling the box out from under the bed.

Carrying the box “you speak on our name, I will make sure you die. You and that unborn child, get the fuck out of my city by tonight” Blake said, walking by Mijo. I just came for one thing and this was it “sort him out” hearing Blake say, walking out of the apartment room “can we get the fuck outta here” Mijo pushed by me, I am sure Blake will follow me but I need to go. I am so glad I got Blake, he is one scary motherfucker and it’s like he has no heart. He just doesn’t care, I think he would have punched Bailey in the stomach and I got a little scared with that. I don’t how Rylee got away with anything because Blake is an ass.

Closing my trunk, Blake jogged across the road “where is she? My sister” he shouted “asleep in a hotel, she good” I said, his boys hasn’t come out at all. Hearing sirens from afar “you go, Rylee wouldn’t forgive me if anything was to happen and you got caught. Good looking out” does that make Blake and I friends or guys that want to protect Rylee “give my love to my sister, the police will be coming from that side so do a U-turn” I am confused on what he is about to do “what about you?” opening my car door “walking off down there, Lo won’t speak anyways. He will be dead if he does” Blake walked off like nothing had just happened, he walked off all calm. I hope the situation is now done with, least I can rest knowing Rylee is happy. I am about to go home and watch the video and also frame the picture, sitting inside the car and closing the door. Picking my phone up from the side panel switching the car engine on, I do have a picture of this on my phone. I had to take a picture of it, I'm just so proud. Tapping Instagram as I looked around and did a quick u-turn, tapping the photo icon and seeing the image of Rylee giving me head. Letting my hand go of the steering wheel so I can crop out Rylee and it's just me staring down, god this is so sexy. Captioning the picture 'And I know you love your privacy ;)' smiling so wide pressing send.

#Chrianna #Chrianna FF #Fanfiction

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tortuga-aak · 6 years

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The Navy's $500 million electromagnetic railgun will likely never see combat

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The Office of Naval Research’s much-hyped electromagnetic railgun prototype is finally capable of flexing its futuristic muscles.

After more than a decade of research and development and more than more than $500 million it will likely never see combat.

The electromagnetic railgun could land in a “valley of death” between R&D and procurement.

It can fire a solid metal slug at speeds of up to 4,500 mph, or Mach 6. It can hit targets up to 100 nautical miles away. It’s capable of defeating incoming ballistic missiles and liquefying even the most durable enemy armor, the equivalent of a weaponized meteor strike fired from the world’s most powerful gun.

After more than a decade of research and development and more than more than $500 million, the Office of Naval Research’s much-hyped electromagnetic railgun prototype is finally capable of flexing its futuristic muscles — but despite the swirl of science-fiction excitement surrounding the muscular new cannon, it will likely never see combat, Task & Purpose has learned. According to interviews with several congressional and military sources, the much-hyped supergun has come under scrutiny from lawmakers and military planners thanks to the Strategic Capabilities Office, the once-classified department created in 2012 to fast-track new tech languishing in the DoD’s sprawling bureaucracy, and develop, as then-Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter once put it, “game-changing capabilities to confound potential enemies.”

With SCO’s interest drawn to other weapons systems, ONR may end up without the necessary funding to push the exceedingly complex railgun toward a critical testing milestone — a delay that, with increasing budget pressures and the DoD’s shifting strategic priorities, could condemn the decade-long project to an inescapable limbo of research and tinkering far from any ship.

‘They’re simply not buying it’

Over the last decade, the Pentagon has funneled money into the development of several next-generation, directed-energy weapons through the Navy’s Research, Development, Testing and Evaluation (RDT&E) appropriations: The electromagnetic railgun, which has been in development since 2005 in conjunction with defense contractors General Atomics and BAE Systems; the hypervelocity projectile (HVP), a super dense, low-drag tungsten projectile designed as specialized ammo for the railgun; and solid-state lasers, long-time fixations of every service branch and a near-term short-range missile defense for surface vessels.

As of a Nov. 30 Congressional Research Service update, electromagnetic railgun research was progressing in line with the ONR roadmap that once envisioned installing the completed weapon on a destroyer like the USS Zumwalt by the mid-2020s.

In recent years, however, SCO has turned its attention to the HVP: once developed explicitly for the railgun, the super-dense shell’s compatibility with conventional powder artillery, offering a cheaper and less technically complex alternative to the Pentagon’s incomplete supergun for not just the Navy, but the Army to rapidly equip.

“SCO shifted the project’s focus to conventional powder guns, facilitating a faster transition of HVP technology to the warfighter,” SCO spokesman Chris Sherwood told Task & Purpose.

usnavyresearch/YouTube

“Our priority continues to be the HVP, which is reflected in the program’s budget.”

Researchers and policymakers confident on the system’s potential now fear that the reallocation of railgun funding at SCO’s behest will end up forestalling the successful installation and demonstration of a tactical rig aboard a naval vessel.

According to multiple legislative and military sources, insufficient funding for the railgun in the current defense budget will grind any meaningful progress to a halt, condemning efforts to R&D purgatory.

As one defense contractor with direct knowledge of the project recently told Task & Purpose, underfunding railgun now would effectively render the decade-long supergun project “dead in the water” by 2019.

“People at SCO don’t want to fund the railgun because they’re simply not buying it,” one senior legislative official with direct knowledge of the project told Task & Purpose. “They are imparting that priority on to Big Navy, which is pulling the money away from ONR.”

One last push

In the year since publishing the jaw-dropping footage of a tactical electromagnetic railgun demonstrator at the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division’s Terminal Range in Virginia in November 2016, ONR has been working diligently alongside defense contractors BAE System and General Atomics to bring the supergun closer to combat readiness.

usnavyresearch/YouTube

A second video released in July showed the rig firing off multi-shot salvos on Dahlgren’s 25-mile Potomac River test range. Through massive, repeated pulses of energy over a short period with minimal cooldown time, the railgun managed to fire 4.8 shells a minute, inching closer to the requirements laid out by Naval Sea Systems Command in a 2013 call for demonstrators that could fire 10 shells a minute and store up to 650 shells. While ONR’s rep-rate demonstrations at Dahlgren represent a major leap forward for the railgun, the system still faces major technical hurdles that make the HVP a relatively inexpensive alternative.

Generating the electromagnetic fields necessary to accelerate a shell to tank-liquefying velocities without chemical propellants requires an energy farm or capacitor base significantly larger than what most Navy surface vessels can generate currently.

Next-generation “electric warships” like the Zumwalt can channel 78 megawatts from their generators through its power-distribution network, making them ideal for all manner of directed-energy weapons, but other surface vessels would require a major overhaul of their electrical infrastructure for the “pulsed-power architecture” required for multi-shot salvos.

The crucial railgun component that may threaten the entire effort is the “common mount.” A universal system for equipping sea or land-based platforms with a mass-produced tactical electromagnetic railgun, a 2016 House Armed Services Committee report noted that lawmakers were increasingly worried that SCO’s newfound HVP fetish “[had] left the Navy with a funding gap in developing the requirements and design for a common mount, which is a necessary prerequisite to getting this capability into operational use.” No mount, no tactical demonstrations — and, in turn, no railgun.

Without actually mounting a working demonstrator on a surface vessel, sources say, the electromagnetic railgun could land in a “valley of death” between R&D and procurement that may prevent the ambitious, decade-long project from ever going to war.

As with most technological moonshots, success and failure are a matter of optics: If the ONR can’t show off something with a Tony Stark-level “wow” factor for the military planners and lawmakers who pull ONR’s purse strings, researchers risk letter their political capital on Capitol Hill and in the Pentagon E-ring slip away.

“Promising technologies fall into the ‘valley of death’ all the time,” a legislative source told Task & Purpose. “Testing is great, but unless you want to put money into transitioning that tech into an actual weapons system then what the hell are you doing? We’re afraid to take a risk and try to get things moving.”

The railgun’s advocates know the supergun is in trouble. In July, Rep. Jim Langevin, a Democrat from Rhode Island and co-chair of the Congressional Directed Energy Caucus, recommended an additional $26.4 million SCO outlays in the House Armed Service Committee’s version of the 2018 defense budget explicitly earmarked as “transition funding” for a shipboard tactical railgun demonstrator program, the second legislative boost to the project alongside an additional $15 million added to the Innovative Naval Prototypes line item by the Senate, according to an amendment justification obtained by Task & Purpose.

According to the Navy’s 2017 strategic program guide, the bulk of the appropriations already designated under that item line are for developing the thermal-management techniques that both the launcher and pulsed-power architecture require for that target sustained firing rate of 10 shells a minute.

The three-month continuing resolution passed in September offered a brief reprieve for advocates to make the case for an additional millions in transition funding to achieve a successful shipboard demonstration, and as of late November, lawmakers had authorized just $15 million of Langevin’s $26 million railgun amendment, funding the congressman told Task & Purpose would likely boost R&D efforts on the common mount.

“Our Navy must be given the ability to test this weapon’s lethality, range, and power at scale, and it must continue to develop the common mount prototype to take this technology to the next level for a shipboard demonstration,” Langevin told Task & Purpose.

But even though the NDAA is now in President Trump’s hands, the coming appropriations fight looming represents yet another uphill battle for the railgun program, putting ONR researchers who have devoted a decade to the project “in a constant state of stress,” as one legislative source put it.

“We’ll take it,” they told Task & Purpose of the $15 million approved by Congress, “but nobody has any idea what will happen after Dec. 8.”

Changing priorities

Task and Purpose

Despite the pleas of devoted researchers and congressional allies, the electromagnetic railgun will live and die at the whims of high-level decision-makers at the Department of Defense.

According to legislative and military sources, the legislative uncertainty and ONR’s resulting year-long charm offensive surrounding the supergun are shaped by changing strategic priorities within SCO, which wields considerable clout when it comes to developing next-generation weapons systems.

In 2015, SCO realized that the HVP, originally conceived as a specialized shell of the railgun, was just as effective when fired from a conventional powder cannons like the Army’s 105mm and 155mm M109A6 Paladin self-propelled howitzers and the Navy’s deck-mounted Mk 45 5-inch guns.

A May 2016 report from the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessment found that large caliber guns could fire an HVP between 10 and 30 nautical miles at Mach 3, faster than conventional unguided rounds.

“We thought railguns were something we were really going to go after,” then-Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work stated at the Atlantic Council in Washington, D.C. in May 2016. “But it turns out that powder guns firing the same hypervelocity projectiles gets you almost as much as you would get out of the electromagnetic rail gun, but it’s something we can do much faster.”

Wikimedia Commons

The potential for rapid fielding across both the Army and Navy proved an alluring prospect for SCO’s mission, one that trumped the railgun’s hype.

When asked about the organization’s priorities, SCO spokesman Chris Sherwood confirmed to Task & Purpose that the office is focused on “developing the [HVP] for use in existing powder gun systems to give the Navy and Army near-term, cost-effective long-range fires and missile defense solutions.” Translation: Why invest in an expensive gun if the bullet alone can get the job done?

SCO has publically emphasize that it’s not abandoning the electromagnetic railgun outright. SCO chief William Roper insisted during a July 2016 conference that months after Work’s dismissal of the railgun, the new focus on the HVP would not jeopardize ONR’s work on the fearsome cannon.

“[It’s] not that we’re not interested in railgun — we are,” he said. “But if you look at the delta between fielding in quantity — we have [more than] a 1,000 powder guns, we have very few railguns.”

But according to military and legislative sources, SCO already squandered a shot at helping ONR achieve its critical shipboard installation milestone. In the internal justification memo obtained by Task & Purpose, Rep. Langevin’s office attributed the cut to transition funding under the 2017 defense budget to SCO, “[the] initial entity responsible for work done on the railgun mount, which they subsequently never undertook, leaving the responsibility to the Navy.”

Budget crunch

The problem of transition funding facing the electromagnetic railgun isn’t totally unique. Congressional budget anxieties frequently kill ambitious weapons development projects; consider the 7.62mm Interim Combat Service Rifle, the extra-lethal combat rifle solicited by the Army to defeat enemy body armor that ended up dead on the vine.

Task and Purpose

As one congressional source put it, “the greater question of uncertainty is: Just how much priority will the Navy and DoD give on the railgun in the coming years?”

An analysis of the Navy’s 2018 RDT&E funding request by Task & Purpose reveals significant changes in the line items that govern directed-energy systems. Appropriations for Power Projection Applied Research fell from $88.94 million in FY 2016 to $13.6 million in FY 2018 due to a reallocation of funding from railgun barrel testing; similarly, appropriation for Future Naval Capabilities Advanced Technology Development fell from $251.17 million in FY 2016 to $205.6 million, although this was partially due to the ramp-down of additional HVP research & development under that specific line item.

This isn’t to say the railgun is now completely without funding — Congress appears poised to fund a new Innovative Naval Prototypes line item to the tune of $163.1 million for a demonstrator, but the shifting funds reflect the SCO’s desire to separate the HVP from ONR’s existing suite of directed-energy programs.

“Money is being put into HVP, and not railgun projects, which is why the two are being split,” as one senior legislative official told Task & Purpose. “We’ve been able to rescue some of this funding, but Big Navy sees different opportunities, and because [the railgun] is a major challenge, they don’t want to explore it.”

As far as the Navy is concerned, the focus has remained on the core of the railgun project: the pure science and research that could, in time, put the futuristic weapons of tomorrow within the Pentagon’s grasp. “ONR’s intention is to continue working on the system, continuing to maturing the components, and moving towards demonstrating a full-scale 32 megajoule launcher and pulsed power system capable of high repetition firing,” ONR spokesman David Smalley told Task & Purpose, declining to comment on funding decisions. “The S&T has continued to make great technical progress and there have been no show stoppers to date to prevent the Navy from having a railgun in the future.”

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aion-rsa · 4 years

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The Walking Dead: What is the Origin of the Zombie Outbreak?

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Back in the “Before Times” of January 2020, The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman fielded a Twitter question about a pandemic unrelated to the one that would soon seize the world.

“What was the origin of the zombie outbreak on The Walking Dead?” one Twitter user wanted to know. Kirkman answered the question simply and succinctly with:

“Space spore.”

You may have noticed that the exchange above contains no links to the tweets in question. That’s because they no longer exist. Kirkman deleted his “space spore” tweet shortly after dozens of websites picked it up and ran with “The Walking Dead Creator Reveals Zombie Outbreak Origin” headlines.

One could forgive the Internet Take Industrial Complex for taking Kirkman’s answer and running with it though. Kirkman has a decent track record of spoiler-reveals. Through 193 issues of The Walking Dead, he was fond of holding spoiler-y information over readers’ heads in his Letter Hacks Q&A sessions at the back of the book. Not only that, but Kirkman was once a contestant on Comedy Central’s @midnight and when host Chris Hardwick cheekily asked for an upcoming Walking Dead spoiler, Kirkman just flat out revealed that one day a character named Negan will arrive to kill Glenn on the show, several seasons ahead of the actual moment.

Alas, this Twitter exchange was one of those instances where Kirkman really was joking. He confirmed as much in April via his account.

In reality, Kirkman has always been adamant that the origin of the zombie pandemic on The Walking Dead would never be explained. And in the end, the writer was true to his word. The Walking Dead concluded its run with Issue 193 last year and nowhere in those 193 issues is there any indication of what kind of virus or supernatural event could have reanimated corpses around the world.

For years Kirkman steadily maintained that the cause of the zombie outbreak was never important. He was more concerned with telling a simple horror (and later action/adventure) story with relatable characters. Zombies were inherent to that mission as antagonists and occasional environmental obstacles.

The closest Kirkman ever came to going on record in describing what caused the zombie outbreak was in the Letter Hacks section for Issue 147. In it, he explained just how someone becomes a zombie thusly:

“Just to get this on record once and for all… and it is complicated, I know… here’s how zombification works. Whatever makes people come back as zombies after they die–it’s inside them. It’s inside everyone. No matter how anybody dies, as long as the brain is intact… they turn into a zombie. Well… bites, and direct to blood contact with zombie gunk, […] causes death. It’s a strong infection that leads to fever that kills someone. Then the “virus” or whatever is already in them… turns them into a zombie.”

Kirkman’s words there suggest that the cause of zombification is indeed some kind of virus. But ultimately, it was never important to Kirkman or the story to further elucidate what kind of virus can bring the dead back as shambling monsters. What was important was that the “rules” of the virus were understood.

And both The Walking Dead comic and TV show made sure those rules were established early on. In the comics, it’s The Governor who reveals to Rick and Michonne that everyone is “infected” and will return as zombies after death. In the show, CDC doctor Edwin Jenner (Noah Emmerich) reveals this information to Rick. Jenner even has fascinating MRI footage of what happens to the brain once a person dies during the zombie apocalypse. After all the electrical impulses of the brain die down, the body cools for a couple of hours and then suddenly brain activity can be recorded in the brainstem – the most primitive part of the organ.

Still, none of this actually establishes what the “virus” is – only how it works. The Walking Dead zombie virus does not have a name like the Cordyceps Brain Infection in The Last of Us. In fact, it might not even be a virus at all. No less scientific a mind as Edwin Jenner leaves the door open for a supernatural explanation and so too should we.

And that brings us back to the space spore of it all. Yes, Robert Kirkman was definitively, canonically trolling with that answer. But it is a fun little nod to a path that The Walking Dead could have taken.

Kirkman originally developed The Walking Dead as a Night of the Living Dead comic. But when Image Comics encouraged him to develop his own idea so that he could control the IP, he retooled the idea into something original. Even then, Image wasn’t fully sold on the idea. So Kirkman concocted a “Plan 9 From Outer Space-esque tale of how the zombies were actually animated by an alien race that was preparing to invade Earth by disrupting its infrastructure.”

That’s right: space spores. Ultimately Image accepted that concept but Kirkman just plowed ahead with his own, less fantastical version of The Walking Dead. Image must have known they were duped at some point but the comic was so big a hit that they likely forgot all about those space spores.

The post The Walking Dead: What is the Origin of the Zombie Outbreak? appeared first on Den of Geek.

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scruffyplayssonic · 7 years

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My favourite movies of all the years I’ve been alive.

I did my own picks for my favourite movie of each year back in August 2015, when I first saw Jeremy’s Q and A video. I really liked that question and was inspired to try and name my own favourites from each year. So to celebrate the SinCast crew finally completing this task, I thought that I’d re-post my list, which is now updated to include 2015 and 2016. I hope you enjoy it. Feel free to comment and/or argue about my choices. And thanks again to @cinema-sins, for providing me with laughs every week in the podcasts and videos they release. :)

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1982: E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial This might be a bit of a cheat, since the film came out in June and I wasn’t born until October, but oh well. It’s still the same year.

1985: Back to the Future The beginning of what I still believe is the greatest movie trilogy of all time.

1986: Aliens More awesome from James Cameron.

1987: Spaceballs Well, it’s pretty funny. Plus I haven’t seen much else from this year, other than Lethal Weapon.

1988: Die Hard The original and quite possibly the best. More on that later.

1990: Back to the Future: Part III At the time, I probably would have picked DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp. Ahhh, nostalgia.

1991: Terminator 2: Judgement Day I’m sure most of you who know me saw this one coming. To this day it’s still my favourite movie of all time. Silence of the Lambs would probably get second place for this year.

1993: The Fugitive Another tough choice, considering that Jurassic Park also came out in 1993. But I just love the battle of wits between Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones.

1994: The Lion King Another of Disney’s finest. No contest, although True Lies, Speed, and The Mask were all excellent films too.

2001: Ocean’s Eleven Such a clever film with a great cast!

2002: The Bourne Identity Spider-Man came pretty close, but Matt Damon was amazing as Jason Bourne. ...well, that most recent movie was kind of hit or miss...

2003: Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl Who would have ever guessed that a movie based on a Disneyland ride could be so good?

2004: The Incredibles It was a good year for animation - there was this one, Shrek 2, and Team America: World Police. National Treasure came out too, which I quite like.

2008: The Dark Knight A no-brainer. One of the best films of the decade, let alone the year. Iron Man was a surprise hit too. Taken was great. Oh, and I quite liked Steve Carrell’s take on Get Smart, even if he didn’t quite capture the original magic of Don Adams.

2009: Up My favourite of all the Pixars. Angels & Demons was pretty good too, although not as good as the first movie. Plus Tom Hanks cut his hair - I thought his shaggy do in the first movie suited Robert Langdon better. :P Strange that I liked Angels & Demons better of the books but The Da Vinci Code better of the movies. Robert Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes was great too.

2012: The Avengers No surprise there. Honourable mentions go to The Cabin in the Woods, which is a delightfully insane deconstruction of horror movies, Looper, a film I still occasionally stay up late at night scratching my head in confusion over, and Skyfall, which is possibly Daniel Craig’s best Bond film so far. I also loved Wreck-It Ralph.

2013: White House Down This one was definitely the film I liked best from 2013 - and yes, that includes Frozen. You may charge with your flaming torches and pitchforks when ready. But what can I say? I love Die Hard, and this was basically Die Hard in the White House, yet it felt original enough to not just be a knock-off. The other ones I liked best would be the Marvels (Iron Man 3, the Wolverine and Thor: The Dark World), Kick-Ass 2, and Gravity, which was absolutely terrifying.

2015: The Martian When I first made this list in August 2015, my prediction was that Jurassic World would be my favourite of the year. Nope, not by a long shot. The Martian was absolutely amazing - Matt Damon’s ability to keep the audience on the edge of their seats when he’s completely alone on the screen (and on the planet) is a major credit to him as an actor. Then of course we have Avengers: Age of Ultron, Mission: Impossible: Rogue Nation, and Terminator: Genisys. …no, really. Stop laughing, I really enjoyed it. :P And then there was Ex Machina, which was a really intriguing film that kept me guessing the entire time.

2017 (so far - I’ll update this at the end of the year): Passengers I’ve only seen two films so far this year, and Resident Evil: The Final Chapter was okay, but not great. I really enjoyed Passengers though, despite all the controversy it has surrounding it. It’s definitely not the same movie the trailers made it look like it was going to be though.

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festpop · 7 years

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HARD Summer Music Festival- August 5-6, 2017

HARD Summer Music Festival (HSMF) will be celebrating its 10th anniversary this summer. HSMF will bring thousands together to celebrate the end of festival season at The Speedway in Fontana, Southern California on August 5-6. Boasting an amazing lineup and many new surprises, you know HARD will be bringing the heat for it’s 10 edition.

The Lineup

HSMF has a history of bringing huge names to the August festival, and the 10th annual event is no exception. The lineup features some of the most sought after electronic music acts, as well as some of the hottest rap artists in the game. Headlining this year is DJ Snake, Justice, Rae Sremmurd, Zeds Dead, Snoop Dogg, Dog Blood, Bassnectar, and Migos! In addition to this years headliners, I am looking forward to sets from Doctor P, Vincent, Jai Wolf, What So Not, Baauer, Brillz, Ekali, and Lookas.

This years lineup also features more female talent than any past lineup, including vocalists and rappers Charli XCX, Tinashe, Uffie and Tink, as well as producers and DJs Anna Lunoe, Nina Las Vegas, JPhlip, Kim Ann Foxman, Ellen Allien, Gina Turner, Nancy Whang, Masha, Sita Abellan, Heather b2b Collette, Louisahh, Kittens, J Worra, Uniiqu3, Cray, Jubilee, GG Magree, Qrion, Whipped Cream, and Deux Twins.

Saturday, August 5

DJ Snake / Justice DJ Set / Rae Sremmurd / Zeds Dead Tchami / Cashmere Cat / Skepta / Ty Dolla $ign / Malaa / A-Trak / Mobb Deep / Yehme2 / Doctor P / Anna Lunoe / Kayzo / E-40 / Brodinski / Charli XCX / Mercer / Busy P / AC Slater / Nina Las Vegas / Wax Motif / Soul Clap / Ellen Allien / Wiwek / Chris Lake / Chris Lorenzo / Amine Edge & Dance / Drezo / Mustdie! / Saymyname / Problem / Uffie / Egyptian Lover / Ghetts / Gina Turner / Nick Monaco / Vincent / Uncle Jxmi / Dj Heather B2B Collette / Doc Martin / Sita Abellan / Oshi / Josh Pan / Mad Zach / GG Magree / Cray / Jubilee / Oski / Qrion / Phlegmatic Dogs / Nukid / Masha / Whipped Cream

Sunday, August 6

Snoop Dogg Performing Doggystyle / Dog Blood / Bassnectar / Migos Jai Wolf / Snakehips / Claude Vonstroke / What So Not / Baauer / Kill The Noise / JME / Mike Will Made It / Destructo / 12th Planet / Tinashe / Madeintyo / Brillz / Party Favor / Shiba San / MK / Ekali / Giraffage / Jackmaster / Jimmy Edga / J. Phlip / Floating Points (DJ Set) / Motez Kim Ann Foxman / Whethan / Thugfucker / Kap G / LA Leakers / Graves / 4B / 24HRS / Dave / AJ Tracey / London On Da Track / Nancy Whang / Louisahhh / Tink / Walker & Royce / Hotel Garuda / Christian Martin / Madam X / Kittens / J. Worra / Lookas / Uniiqu3 Volac / Brohug / LDRU / Colby J / Deux Twins

HARD Drops 2017 Trailer – GRL PWR

Last year’s HARD SUMMER music festival only featured five female performers. This year’s edition–set for August 5 & 6 in Southern California–features 25. Today (May 2), HARD Events has released its annual trailer which takes a satirical, consciousness-raising, pro-women look at how supergroup GRL PWR gets on the bill. It’s DJ Snake, Claude VonStroke, What So Not, Party Favor and Kayzo as never seen before.

Super sleaze agent Harvey says to his clients–“Sex sells, not music!”–as he adjusts their anatomy to fit HARD‘s founder and festival mastermind Gary Richards’ request for more female talent. Longtime collaborator director Agata Alexander-who has entertained HARD fans with her smart, edgy video concepts (including pairing HARD performers as canines and putting together the legendary ‘Strawberry Gang‘) leaps into the timely discussion of how women are perceived in entertainment. The piece culminates with epic festival footage set to Cray’s “Infinity Signs”. View the 2017 Trailer Below:

Director Agata Alexander shares her thoughts on putting together this year’s HARD SUMMER trailer:

“There was no way I could do a trailer for this years’ HARD SUMMER without touching on something meaningful.

I spoke to Gary (Richards) about getting more females on the lineup. He, his team at HARD and I started to put together lists of women we could get for the show but it felt so predictable– a token gesture to have one or two big female headliners. Why did we have such a hard time figuring out who to get other than that? Why were all the new artists being pushed onto Gary from different managements men? Gary started digging deeper and I really respect him for this. He called me and was like ‘Yo, I’m finding so many dope chicks I’ve never even heard of. This is so cool.’ So that became our purpose. Giving the female underdogs a chance which brought us Madam X, Kittens, GG Magree, Cray, Jubilee, J.Worra, Uniqqu3 and others.

I decided that I wanted powerful male artists to do something crazy to make a point. It’s important for men to step forward and support women as loud as they can. We need that. Whenever a female voices her opinion about stuff like this, everyone points at her and says ‘she is a bit too much, perhaps one of those ‘crazy feminists… definitely not getting laid.’ I didn’t want to expose the female artists to this type of stuff in comment sections. I figured let’s turn the table and put the men through the ringer. It catches your attention as the absurdity of the situation becomes more clear and it’s important that the fans of these men look at the video and hopefully understand what’s wrong with our world.

Why did I put boobs on them? Cause tits automatically make you a sexualized commodity in this world and I found it humorous that the manager in the video felt that boobs is enough and all you really need. I respect these guys so much for being in this video and going all out. They showed up to that set without a complaint in support of women. In the end of the day it’s just boobs, everyone loves ’em, many of us have ’em. What’s the big fuss?”

Adds Anna Lunoe, who makes a cameo as a video director:

“Talking about being a woman in the electronic space in any capacity is tricky, multifaceted, tiresome and after so many years I just prefer to avoid the topic and get on with the job! I have known Agata for a few years now and she has a way of portraying things with the right amount of comedy, creativity and I trusted that she would get it right. If anyone understands the plight of being a minority in their industry its her. I’m a big believer in referencing to the absurdity of society in comedy and that itself being a great catalyst for cultural awareness & change – also, her script was just very funny even on paper!”

Kittens

Ticket Information

2-Day General Admission Passes- $129 Single Day GA Passes- $89 2 Day VIP- $309 // Single Day VIP- $159

VIP Tickets includes:

Exclusive Fast-Track Entry into the Festival (Skip GA Line) Exclusive Hospitality areas adjacent to multiple stages with expanded bar options, upgraded semi-exclusive restrooms, plush couches, and direct views of performances

Purchase your HARD Summer Tickets Here

About HARD Summer Fest

The very first HARD on New Year’s Eve in 2007 featured Justice, 2 Live Crew, Steve Aoki and Peaches and its eclecticism would in many ways shape the festival’s diversity to this day. The HARD stage has played host to everyone from Ice Cube, The Weeknd, A$AP Mob, Pharrell and Future to Giorgio Moroder, Die Antwoord and The Chemical Brothers. Moreover, the brand has continually evolved. HARD has delivered an unforgettable experience to millions of music fans over the years and augmented the mainstream rise of many leaders in the electronic music genre including deadmau5, Calvin Harris, Skrillex, Justice and many more.

An easy drive from downtown Los Angeles, The Speedway in Fontana boasts an expanded foot print reaching over 500 acres and convenient parking. Enhancements to this year’s festival experience include more shaded areas, doubling entry and exit points, expanded camping and increased mobility overall around the festival grounds. Stay tuned for more details.

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Photos by Alive Coverage

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HARD Summer Music Festival The Speedway in Fontana, Southern California August 5-6, 2017

Rashae- FestPop Staff Writer

HARD Summer Music Festival Returns for 10th Annual Event August 5-6, 2017 HARD Summer Music Festival- August 5-6, 2017 HARD Summer Music Festival (HSMF) will be celebrating its 10th anniversary this summer.

#Festival #hard summer music festival #music festival

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spynotebook · 7 years

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Cult favorite TV series Twin Peaks is mainly about a very intuitive FBI agent chasing down a supernatural serial killer, but it’s best known for being incredibly, bafflingly strange. I mean, of course it is; it was created by David Lynch. To pass the time until show’s return on May 21, we counted our favorite WTF moments from the original series (in chronological order).

19) “Her name is Lil.”

The Fire Walk With Me movie was released after the show ended, but the events in the film take place before the TV show. Like, for instance, this freaky pantomime, which baffles the FBI agent played by Kiefer Sutherland, but which plays out in easy-to-interpret code for the agent played by Chris Isaak. Just don’t ask him about the blue rose.

18) “We’re not gonna talk about Judy at all.”

Agent Cooper doesn’t get a lot of screen time in the film (reportedly at the behest of Kyle MacLachlan). But this scene—featuring David Lynch himself as Cooper’s FBI boss, Gordon Cole, and David Bowie as a fellow agent whose mysterious behavior foreshadows Cooper’s later experiences in Twin Peaks—is one of Fire Walk With Me’s strangest sequences. And that’s saying a lot.

17) The Breakdancing Student

Blissfully unaware that her best friend has just been found dead and wrapped in plastic, Donna Hayward stops at her locker before the first class of the day in the show’s very first episode. For once, the mood is light at Twin Peaks High—and in that rare moment, a student we never meet (or see again) takes the opportunity to add some funky flair to the background of the scene. Why? Well... why not? (“Northwest Passage”)

16) “There was a fish in the percolator.”

This might be the only scene in all of Twin Peaks to feature bad coffee, a beverage so prized in the town that Showtime recently made a fun video collecting the show’s many caffeinated scenes. It’s a genuinely funny moment, also from the show’s first official episode, featuring one of Twin Peaks’ most quotable lines, and is also a perfect example of the show’s fondness for peppering its more serious moments—say, the early stages of a murder investigation—with non-sequiturs. (“Traces to Nowhere”)

15) “Let’s rock!”

Agent Cooper’s dreams and visions become important tools in cracking the Laura Palmer case, even if the remarkably open-minded Sheriff Truman has a hard time following along at first. Cooper’s first dream features footage that Twin Peaks junkies will recognize from the international version of the pilot, which was released theatrically with a longer ending that made it more of a stand-alone story. But more importantly, it also introduces the Man From Another Place. (“Zen, or the Skill to Catch a Killer”)

14) “This is the best damn sandwich I ever ate.”

His small stature doesn’t diminish his dancing skills, nor his baffling ability to talk in riddles both forward and backwards These “red room” scenes have become an iconic part of Twin Peaks, both visually and thematically, but their off-putting vibes feel just as potent every time you see them.

Pie may be the signature treat of Twin Peaks—followed closely by donuts—but the show has plenty of foodie moments that don’t take place at the Double R Diner. Case in point: the above scene introducing the gourmet-loving Jerry Horne, just back from Paris with a suitcase full of brie-and-butter sandwiches, which his brother Ben samples with near-orgasmic delight. (“Zen, or the Skill to Catch a Killer”)

13) “I’m gonna turn it upside down!”

Dana Ashbrook’s performance as Bobby Briggs is extremely oversized, particularly in the first half of Twin Peaks’ first season, and especially when he’s confronted by authority figures like Sheriff Truman, Agent Cooper, or—as in this scene—his father, the stiffly formal Major Briggs. The funeral in question is, of course, for Laura Palmer—Bobby’s girlfriend, with whom he had a fraught relationship. And he does indeed turn it upside down, berating the assembled mourners (“Everybody knew she was in trouble, but we didn’t do anything!”) and nearly starting a graveside fistfight. Emotions run high in Twin Peaks, but Bobby’s run higher than most. (“Rest in Pain”)

12) Cooper Meets a Llama

While investigating a typically offbeat lead that might hold the key to discovering Laura’s killer, Agent Cooper and Sheriff Truman visit a veterinary clinic that could only have carved from the imagination of David Lynch. To Cooper’s credit, even when he’s confronted by “the beast incarnate,” he doesn’t miss a beat. (“The One-Armed Man”)

11) The Great Northern Dance-Off

Laura Palmer’s father, Leland, deals with his grief in strange ways. He’s very big on singing and wailing, but here we see him crack up on the dance floor at an important investment presentation. As portrayed by Ray Wise, Leland is equal parts campy, pitiful, and creepy—and this scene in particular is very, very unsettling. You want to laugh, but you know that you shouldn’t, especially when you see Audrey Horne sobbing at how goddamn awful everything is. (“Cooper’s Dream”)

10) Audrey’s Job Interview for One Eyed Jacks

Speaking of Audrey, she lands her gig working at a Canadian brothel by showing off a very special and strange talent to its skeptical madam. This became one of Twin Peaks’ signature moments—and the scene was later parodied on Saturday Night Live’s take-off on the show, in which an actress pretends to tongue a piece of ribbon into an elaborate gift-wrapping bow. (“Realization Time”)

9) The Great Northern Dance-Off, Part Two

At the start of season two, Leland’s hair has gone completely white, and his mind has continued to deteriorate. This time, however, the Horne brothers react to his strange behavior with even stranger behavior of their own.

As an aside, later in this episode, we see a tuxedo-clad Leland spontaneously perform “Get Happy” at a dinner party at the Hayward house. But that’s not even the weirdest part of that particular scene—that honor goes to the first and (so far) only appearance of Alicia Witt as the youngest Hayward sister, dressed as a fairy princess and displaying her child-prodigy skills on the piano. As you do. (“May the Giant Be With You”)

8) Creamed Corn

After Donna takes over Laura’s Meals on Wheels route—more for purposes of playing detective rather than any desire to actually help people—she meets a little boy and an old woman. One is a magician-in-training, while the other has very specific feelings about creamed corn. A teeny bit more context for this odd pair would come later in the series, as well as in Fire Walk With Me. (We also eventually learn a bit more about the significance of creamed corn.) But this first introduction is startlingly bizarre. (“Coma”)

7) “Deliver the message.”

No list of Twin Peaks’ weirdest moments can exclude the Log Lady. Really, you can choose any of her scenes. But this one, involving Project Blue Book’s own Major Briggs, is primo Margaret. (“Coma”)

6) “Cooper, you remind me today of a small Mexican chi-wow-wow.”

Cooper’s hard-of-hearing boss, Gordon Cole (again played by Lynch), shows up in Twin Peaks to deliver some important information at top volume. Apropos of nothing, however, he makes this observation. Cooper brings it up later, but we never get an explanation. Of course we don’t. (“Demons”)

5) Nadine Joins the Twin Peaks High Wrestling Team

Nadine Hurley is one of Twin Peaks’ most oddball characters right from the start, displaying super-strength and having a crazed obsession with inventing the world’s first silent drape runners. But after she attempts suicide, she awakens thinking she’s 18 again. Though this delusion negatively affects her marriage—which, to be fair, was already in trouble—her muscle power grows even more baffling, leading to a very odd interlude in which a middle-aged woman joins the local high school wrestling team. Frankly, Mike, a generally unlikable character who was underused after the show’s first few episodes, had it coming. (“The Black Widow”)

4) Ben Horne’s Civil War Re-enactment

The eccentric proprietor of the Great Northern Hotel, one of season one’s keenest schemers, drifts over the edge in season two when he becomes fixated on the Civil War. He’s eventually cured thanks to Dr. Jacoby and the help of his family and friends when they implement “the Appomattox scenario,” which wraps up an awful lot like The Wizard of Oz. (“Slaves and Masters”)

3) Josie and the Drawer

By this point in the show, master of deception Josie Packard has begun to realize she’s doomed to be at the mercy of the men in her life who are desperate to control her. Soon after we learn that Josie is the one who shot Cooper back at the end of season one, more gunplay ensues. But she doesn’t die from a bullet—instead, she has some kind of medical episode and Bob appears, asking, “Coop! What happened to Josie?” Well, Bob, this is what happens:

As best as we can tell, Josie’s punishment was to have her soul banished into a drawer knob at the Great Northern. Her fate is never elaborated upon much more than that. (“The Condemned Woman”)

2) “Grand theft auto!”

By its final episode, Twin Peaks had become extremely wrapped up in its own mythology. But in between all the messages from outer space and secret doorways in the woods and tarantula traps and beauty pageants, there’s still room for a classic Pete Martell interjection—as in this moment, after he mistakes a disguised Windom Earle for the Log Lady. (“Beyond Life and Death”)

1) “How’s Annie?”

“He can’t ask for your soul,” Bob explains to Agent Cooper in the Black Lodge, speaking of Agent Cooper’s evil ex-partner Earle. “I will take his.” Which version of Cooper (the good guy, or his evil twin) emerges from the Black Lodge with Annie? The very last scene of season two makes it pretty clear.

For the record, Annie “is going to be just fine,” according to Sheriff Truman in a conversation that takes place just before this. As for Agent Cooper—well, Twin Peaks returns to the airwaves May 21 for an 18-episode season on Showtime. Let’s hope we have lots of weird new moments to savor. (“Beyond Life and Death”)

#IFTTT #Feedly

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