#long beach street circuit

[viper-motorsports]

Chip Ganassi Racing rounds out the GTLM podium at the 2018 IMSA Sports Car Grand Prix of Long Beach with the third place finish of their N°66 Ford GT Le Mans.

#ford gt le mans #sports car grand prix of long beach #chip ganassi racing #long beach street circuit #imsa #gtlm #fordgt #ford gt ecoboost #street racing

[magiccath]

Secrets big and small

tenth doctor x GN!reader

Summary: in which you are forced to admit your feelings for the Doctor, even if you think he will leave you for it

A/N: For the absolute love of my life and favorite beta, thanks for dealing with me talking about this more than I wrote it

The Doctor poked his head out of the TARDIS, his nose twitching as he sniffed the air. After a few good inhales, he popped back inside the ship, his eyebrows furrowed in concentration. 

You waited by the ship's console, your hands planted firmly on your hips. The Doctor had promised you a beach vacation, and judging by his face, this wasn’t a beach. Sometimes you wondered how much control the Doctor actually had over the ship, considering it only landed in the places he intended about 25% of the time. 

“We’re not at a beach are we?” 

The Doctor ignored your question and moved over to the console, grabbing one of the many oddly shaped screens attached to the control panel. He pulled his glasses out of his suit pocket, perching the spectacles on the bridge of his nose. 

“Interesting…” He hummed, more to himself than you. 

“Where did we end up this time?” You asked, opening the door to peek outside. You knew better than to walk off without the Doctor, but a little look had never hurt you. 

The minute you opened the door you were met with the bustling noise of a street. All kinds of aliens walked by you, each one unique in their own way. 

“It would appear we landed on the planet Phact, but I’m not sure why.” 

You continued to stare out of the TARDIS wide-eyed, taking in all of the strange creatures before you. Your eyes followed an individual who walked by, a series of tentacles hanging out of his mouth.

“Is it safe?” you asked as an afterthought.

“As far as I know,” the Doctor shrugged, putting his glasses back in his pocket. He moved away from the console to stand at your side by the door. 

You looked over at him, debating if you should tell him that wasn’t exactly a reassuring thought. 

“Since we’re here…” he smiled cheekily, inclining his head toward the door. You laughed and rolled your eyes. The Doctor never could resist a good adventure. 

You followed him out the door, waiting momentarily as he locked the TARDIS up. 

“Remember that time you forgot to tell me it was rude to wear less than three layers on Titan 4?” you ask, watching him slip the key back into his endless coat pockets.

The Doctor shrugs, pushing his hands into his pockets and leaning toward you. “Yeah, what about it?”

“Is there anything I should know about this planet?” you raise your eyebrows questioningly.

The Doctor’s brow wrinkled as he thought about it, trying to remember his limited knowledge about Phact.

“I don’t think so,” he shrugged again, smiling softly. 

You scrunched your nose slightly, not sure you believed him. Still, you followed him.

The Doctor talked excitedly as the two of you walked through the city streets. Most of the time, you only understood half of the words he was saying. Frankly, you just enjoyed listening to him talk.

As you walked your eyes took in everything around you. It didn’t matter how long you traveled with the Doctor, it always seemed like there was more for you to learn and discover. 

The Doctor continued talking, waving his hands about in the air. Abruptly, he stopped to look at a nearby poster. You followed him, trying to peek over his shoulder to see what he was looking at. The Doctor shifted to the side so you could read the sign too, the TARDIS translation circuit making the writing legible to you.

“The 998th Olympic games?” you read aloud, your eyebrows furrowed. 

“That would explain all of the species here!” he smiled brightly, looking at the diverse crowd around you. 

You nodded in agreement, following his gaze. There really did appear to be all kinds of species from around the galaxy. 

“Want to go?” He whispered to you, raising his eyebrows mischievously. 

“We don’t have tickets. Or money.” 

The Doctor wiggled his eyebrows again, pulling the psychic paper out of his pocket. He shook it at you with a mischievous grin.

A smile took over your own face as you nodded, “alright then,” you said excitedly. You’d never been to the Olympics, let alone the space Olympics. 

The Doctor guided you through the crowd towards the giant area, holding your hand tightly so as not to lose you. You tried not to focus too much on the feeling of his hand wrapped around yours. He just didn’t want you to wander off, there wasn’t much else to it, right?

“Y’know I carried the Olympic torch once,” he smirked back at you, still guiding you through the crowds. 

“Why am I not surprised?” 

“What?” the Doctor asked, not catching your comment over the chatter of the crowd. You smiled softly and shook your head, deciding it was best not to repeat yourself.

The Doctor led you to the ticket line, waiting patiently for the guards to check your tickets and let you in. He bounced slightly on his feet, unable to stand still for too long.

“Are you sure this is going to work?” you asked anxiously, eyeing the copious amounts of security surrounding the arena.

“Of course!” the Doctor smiled brightly, rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb. The movement made both of you realize he was still holding your hand, even if he didn’t need to. With a small, hardly discernible blush, the Doctor slid his hand from yours. 

The line moved forward and the guard asked for your tickets. The Doctor winked at you before handing the psychic paper over with a confident smile. 

“Are you serious, mate?” The guard laughed dryly, looking between you and the Doctor. 

“Most of the time,” the Doctor’s confident smile didn’t waver. 

The guard sighed and leaned into his walkie-talkie, chattering softly to someone on the other end. You looked up at the Doctor with wide eyes, urging him to explain.

“Probably getting us a special escort or something,” he shrugged, turning the paper around to see what your fake tickets said. When his eyes landed on the paper his face instantly turned ghostly white.

“Doctor…” you growled softly. 

“W-we should probably run now,” he whispered back. Before you could react, the security guard pulled the two of you firmly to the side. 

“Doctor, what is going on?” You whispered as the guard led the two of you to a police car. At least, you assumed it was a police car. Unless flashing red and blue lights meant something else on other planets, it was definitely a police car. 

“I’m sorry,” the Doctor winced softly as the security guard guided the two of you to an officer. The cop looked you up and down before guiding you inside of the car.

“I would feel a lot better if you told me why.” 

You weren’t necessarily mad about the police car, it wasn’t the first time you had gotten arrested on the Doctor’s behalf. Usually, he was able to get you out of it. You were more frustrated that he wasn’t telling you what was happening. 

“Remember Titan 4?” he winced. 

“Doctor!” you snapped angrily, “I specifically asked you if I needed to know anything about this planet!” 

“Right, I know I’m sorry, I forgot,” he whispered, shaking his head softly. 

“How bad is it?” you sighed, looking down at your lap. 

“They’re not gonna kill us,” he shrugged with a sad smile. 

“What did we even do?”

“You can’t lie on Phact.” 

“Like, physically?” 

The Doctor grimaced, thinking the question through, “not exactly,” he offered. You waited for him to further explain. 

“They can tell telepathically if you lie and that ability extends to psychic paper.” 

“I gathered as such,” you sighed, “but that still doesn't explain why we’re in a cop car” 

“It’s illegal to lie.” 

“Seriously?” you gaped, “any kind of lie?” 

The Doctor nodded.

“Even if you tell your friend she looks fine when she really looks a mess 'cause you want to spare her feelings?”

The Doctor frowned but nodded again, more tentatively this time.

“That’s a horrible idea.” 

“Don’t tell them that.”

You sighed softly in agreement.

“I really am sorry,” he looked at you with those big, sad brown eyes of his. It was very, very hard to stay mad at him when he looked at you like that. It was your weakness.

“It’s fine,” you shook your head. “What are they going to do?” 

Before the Doctor could answer, the car stopped and a cop came around to help you out of the car. The officer led you inside a very space-looking police station to a very Earth-looking interrogation room. You sat next to the Doctor in metal fold-out chairs, a table separating you and the officer. At least they didn’t cuff you.

“Names,” the officer groaned, clicking his pen and hovering it over a yellow legal pad. He had the kind of face and demeanor that told you he would rather be anywhere else.

“The Doctor.” 

“Really funny, what’s your actual name?” the officer frowned. 

“That’s my name,” the Doctor pouted, offended that someone would think it wasn’t. You smiled softly to yourself, finding the Doctor’s disappointed frown adorable.

“Fine,” the officer groaned, scribbling it down on his paper. “Age?”

“904,” he said without blinking. You hid your widening smile with your hand. You were starting to feel a little bad for the police officer. 

“You’re how old?”

“904.”

“Species?”

“Gallifreyan.” 

“Never heard of them,” the officer shook his head, writing it down on his paper. “You lot must age differently,” he grumbled, more towards his paper than the two of you.

“Right, and you?” the officer asked, tilting his head in your direction. 

The Doctor nodded softly at you, urging you to comply with the officer’s wishes. You sighed and answered the same questions. The officer just seemed relieved to write down something less ridiculous. 

“Alright,” he slid the paper pad away from him before leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed “You have been charged with a first-class felony of deception. You will not be fined or executed. To be released from custody you must provide your biggest secret”

“That’s it?” you asked, it seemed a little too simple. The officer nodded, clearly fed up with you and the Doctor.

“Look, folks, let’s just make this easier for all of us and get on with it?”

The Doctor nodded his agreement, casting a nervous look over at you. You nodded back, trying to think of something you could say. You knew easily what your biggest secret was, but you knew you couldn’t say it out loud. Especially not in front of the Doctor. 

“I’m terrified of hospitals,” the Doctor said with a small frown. 

“That’s ironic,” you chuckled, assuming he was making a joke. The officer stared at him for a few minutes, probably thinking the same thing. 

“Checks out,” the officer sighed, writing “scared of hospitals” next to his other notes on the Doctor. “Weird secret, mate,” he added before turning his attention to you.

You fiddled anxiously before leaning back in your seat, your eyes trained on your hands. 

“Does he have to be here for it?” you asked softly. The Doctor looked at you confused, wondering what was so bad you didn’t want him to know. 

“I just admitted I'm terrified of hospitals as a doctor, it can't get worse than that,” he laughed.

“Does he?” you asked the officer, ignoring the Doctor. The cop looked between the two of you; the Doctor staring wide-eyed and open-mouthed at you, and you trying to act like he wasn’t there.

“Yes,” the officer challenged, leaning back in his seat again. You narrowed your eyes at him, wondering if he only said that to see how things would play out. 

“So, what’s your secret?” he smirked, confirming your suspicions. “I’ll know if you’re lying” 

You sighed, trying to steady your racing heart. You wanted to scream, maybe even cry. You wanted to blame the Doctor, even if it wasn’t really his fault. Even more, you wanted to wipe that stupid, smug smile off of the officer’s face.

You took one last look at the Doctor, smiling sadly at him. He looked back at you with confusion, unsure why you were looking at him as if it was the last time you’d ever see him. To you, it felt like it would be. He could never look at you the same, not after this.

“I’m in love with this idiot,” you sighed, cocking your head towards the Doctor. The silence that followed was deafening. While the Doctor’s brain struggled to process your words the officer sized you up, searching for any falsities in your statement. 

“What a strange pair,” the officer shook his head, leaning forward to write on his pad again. “In love with the other one”

You looked at those words scribbled on the thin, crappy paper and felt your heart clench. It was out there now, the Doctor knew. At the moment, you couldn’t think of anything worse. You would rather spend your entire life in prison than have had to admit that.

“You’re free to go,” the officer waved you off, more preoccupied with writing more things on his paper pad. It seemed so simple, yet one little secret had turned your world upside down.

You nodded solemnly and stood up, heading out the door. The Doctor wasn’t far behind you. 

The walk back to the TARDIS was really quiet, a stark contrast from a few short hours ago. You tried not to sulk too much as you walked through the busy streets back to the ship.

The Doctor unlocked the doors without a word, holding them open for you. You walked inside the ship for what you assumed was the last time. The Doctor followed, heading over to the console to mess with a few buttons. 

“I’ll pack my things,” you whispered, more to the floor than the Doctor. You moved towards the hallway that led to your room but the Doctor cut you off. 

“What?” 

“I’ll pack up,” your eyes remained trained on the floor, not wanting to look into his. You knew the Doctor wasn’t going to keep you around after this. It was glaringly clear that he didn’t have those feelings for you, that he couldn’t.

“Why would you do that?” he frowned, moving away from the console. 

“You’re kicking me out.” 

“I think I would know if I was.” He moved so he was standing in front of you, tilting his head down in an attempt to catch your eye. 

“It’s ok,” you shook your head, your eyes trained on your shoes, “I know you don’t want me around anymore.” 

“Is this about the whole secret thing?” the Doctor asked gently.

“I know you don’t feel the same, I never expected you to,” you shook your head, averting your gaze again. “I’d understand if you just wanted to drop me back at home.” 

“Is that what you want?” 

You shook your head, clearing your throat, “It’s not exactly about what I want is it?” 

The Doctor remained silent, his mind working for the right thing to say. He didn’t fully comprehend what was happening. 

“You’re under the assumption that I’m going to drop you because you love me?” He said softly, still trying to catch your eye. 

“Is that not what’s happening right now?” You frowned, confused. 

The Doctor laughed softly, moving away from you with one long stride. He ran his hands through his hair, tugging at the spiky strands. You continued to frown at him, confused by his demeanor. 

“I can establish a psychic block,” he explained, waving his hands about as he talked. You frowned, confused as to why he was talking about this now. “I told the officer a secret, but I didn’t tell him my greatest secret.”

He had the kind of look on his face he got when he was trying, and failing, to figure something out. It was a look you knew well at this point, you had just never been the cause of it. 

“There’s so much of you in my head,” he groaned, waving his hands by the sides of his face, “which is saying a lot 'cause I have more in my head than you will ever experience in your entire life.” 

You gaped at him, unsure what you were supposed to say in this scenario. Was this his secret?

“You take up so much space,” he emphasized exasperatedly, repeatedly running his hands through his hair. “Even when you’re not here I’m constantly thinking about you!” He leaned his hands against the console, hanging his head as he continued rambling.

You stared at him like he had grown a second head. No, three extra heads. And a tail. 

“I’m sorry, what?” you asked.

The Doctor moved back over to you, reaching out to cradle your face in his hands. He cupped your cheeks gently and bent his head forward so your foreheads connected. 

“You take up so much space,” he whispered, his breath fanning across your face. “And the fact that you can’t see that kills me, it really kills me.”

“Doctor-” you whispered in shock. In your mind, there was only ever one way that the Doctor could react to your feelings, and this certainly wasn’t it. “Are you saying what I think you are?” 

The Doctor laughed sharply, shaking his head against yours, “You’re clueless, y’know that?”

“You’re not much better,” you frowned back. “But that doesn’t answer my question.” Your heart thudded against your chest, threatening to beat right out of your body. The mere implication that the Doctor could have even a shred of feelings for you was sending your senses into overdrive.

“Yes, I am,” he whispered. That was all you needed. You knew it was hard for him to say things like this. He wasn’t exactly the “I love you” type. The fact that he had said this much already was a wonder. 

You didn’t really think about it, you just kissed him. His lips fit against yours perfectly and the kiss was over much sooner than either of you had wanted.

Your face was still cradled in his hands as the Doctor bent down to press another, quicker kiss against your lips, returning the act of affection. You smiled happily as he pulled back, looking up at him with pure adoration.

“Are you really afraid of hospitals though?” you asked, your eyebrows furrowed. 

“Terrified,” he shook his head.

#10th doctor x reader #10th doctor/reader #tenth doctor x reader #tenth doctor/reader #10th doctor #requests open #tenth doctor #the doctor/reader #the doctor x reader #the doctor #doctor who #doctor who fanfiction #doctor who fic #fanfiction #fanfic #hurt/comfort #fluff #angst with fluff #angst with comfort #angst with a happy ending #request #magiccath #david tennant

[facecollapsedthroughentropy]

104 Degrees (M.H)

Summary: Meet-cute with Matty, loosely based on "104 Degrees" by Slaughter Beach, Dog.

Word Count: 667

Warnings: This is disgustingly cute, my teeth are rooting from the sheer amount of sweetness.

Author's note: I haven't written in a long time, so bear with me. If you have any requests for blurbs or imagines, send an ask! I would love to write more for Matty. :)

It was the first day of summer in London. The midday sun was blazing down, distinct shadows of each tree cast down upon the bustling streets.

Matty was sweating, the sun beating down and the lack of water didn't help in any way. Maybe a trip to the bookstore in this unbearable summer heat wasn't a smart choice in hindsight, atleast so he thought.

He stepped out of the small boutique, a bag filled with books in his hand. Beads of sweat were forming on his hairline and even in his linen shirt, he felt clammy. Looking through the crowd, he observed each and every one of the passersby.

Families with their children, sticky ice-cream-covered hands gripping at their parents'.

Groups of teens going on shopping sprees, clad in the hippest clothes and iced coffees in their clasp.

Oh.

His eyes suddenly landed on something, or rather someone. There she was, sitting alone on a bench just outside of his go-to café. The swarm of people simply blending into one mixture behind her, leaving only her figure in focus.

A book in hand, which he promptly recognized to be Murakami's "Kafka on the Shore", and a pair of deeply tinted shades sat on her nose.

He knew it sounded cheesy, even cringing at his own internal thoughts at that second, but he was taken, completely and utterly enthralled.

He watched as her hands reached up to tie her hair, how the sweat stuck to each strand at the back of her neck.

He didn't know how long he had been standing there, but he was abruptly pulled out of his trance when her gaze lifted to look at him. His unbelieving stare reflected in her dark set of sunglasses.

She smiled at him.

His brain short-circuited. Good God, what was he doing! Smile back, you idiot!

He grinned, after an embarassingly long second, and lifted his hand up to wave at the woman. The next thing he heard was a crash.

Oh no...

His books went tumbling down onto the pavement and right at that moment, he wanted to be swallowed whole. Change his name and forever disappear, preferably to somewhere a bit colder.

He quickly reached down to collect his clumsy mess, hastily shoving it into his totebag in hopes of her not having seen his little accident.

He reached to grab ahold of his last book, ironically another work of Murakami's: The Wind-Up Bird. His hand instantaneously covered by a foreign one, trying to help him by picking up the last piece.

"Thank you..." he spoke softly to the stranger and smiled looking up. He was met with his own reflection yet again, which slowly disappeared as the stranger lifted up her shades, revealing her glimmering eyes.

"You're welome," she said in an amused tone, clearly having seen his antics.

Matty's face turned beet-red. This couldn't get any worse, could it?

"Uhm," he started trying to piece together a coherent sentence. Why was he like this! His usual, overly-confident self was gone, off on holiday and never to be seen again.

"Nice choice," she stopped his blubbering and handed him the book.

"Yeah... One of my friends recommended it to me," he spoke out nervously, reaching up to adjust his curls.

"Thanks again, for helping me and all," he chuckled out softly.

She hummed in response, grinning up at him and opening her mouth to respond, just to be cut off by the overly-eager man.

"Do you want to get something to drink? So I can pay you back for your kindness y'know," Matty offered hastily, beaming at the woman he had yet to know the name of.

Overtaken by his sudden confidence, the woman beamed back at him. Internally, she was going crazy. The minute she saw him step out of her favourite bookstore, she knew she was done for. The way his curls feel onto his forehead, how the light linen shirt contrasted his dark tattoos.

Oh God. She was entranced.

"I would love to."

#matty healy #matty healy x reader #matty healy fanfiction #matty healy fic #matty healy fluff #matty the 1975 #matty healy imagine #matty healy blurb #the 1975 #the 1975 fanfic #the 1975 fic #the 1975 imagine #the 1975 fluff

[differenteagletragedy]

I love the story you did of the MC proposing to Derek! I don’t suppose you could bless us with the other scenario, of Derek’s proposal to the MC? Pretty please 🙏?

Yesssss, the Derek love! Of course! Here we go:

One thing about Derek is that if he's going to do something, he's going to take the time to do it right.

So when he decided he wanted to marry you -- or, well, he'd decided he wanted to marry you when you were kids, but when he'd determined it was actually something that could really happen -- he didn't feel the need to rush.

After all, he'd been waiting over ten years for you. He was good at waiting.

By the time he took you for a date at the boardwalk, ring in pocket and raring to, he'd put months into planning his proposal.

First, he'd made a quick trip out to Sunset Bird while you were at work to ask for your parents' permission: he couldn't go forward with his plan without their blessing.

After your moms hemmed and hawed over him and told him that of course he had their blessing, he'd walked across the street to ask Cliff the same thing. Derek knew that you considered him your dad, so it was important to talk things through with him as well. He didn't really imagine the man having anything bad to say, but it was still sweet when he teared up and hugged him.

He talked to Cove about it too, of course, but the next step in his official plan was to reach out to Liz -- he needed to pick out a ring, and he thought your sister might be a good resource for what you might like. She gave him some tips, along with a healthy amount of teasing, then advised him to call Lee, too.

"Lee is going through this crazy phase," you'd told him that night after he spoke to your cousin. "Like she's not even seriously dating anyone but she's all into weddings, she texted me all afternoon about what kind of engagement ring she'd like and what she'd want at her ceremony."

You went on about how she must have gotten into those wedding reality shows, and Derek smiled to himself. The next day, Lee got back to him with the intel she'd gathered.

He took his time shopping, wanting to make the right choice despite how eager he was to put a ring on your finger, but eventually he found one he knew you'd love.

There were several venues that would have felt right for a proposal -- the beach, the park by your house, even the grocery store by your apartment held some special memories. But in the end, the boardwalk won.

"We haven't been here in forever," you told him when you parked.

He stepped out quickly and jogged over to open your door before you had the chance. You smiled at him, then smiled bigger when he reached a hand out to help you up.

"Just when I thought you couldn't be any more of a gentleman," you told him.

"I'm full of surprises," he replied, hoping his nervous laughter didn't give anything away.

You did the usual boardwalk routine -- face-painting (he got his star, and you decided to match with him), rides, games. It was a blast, as always, and every moment made him more sure that he wanted you by his side for the rest of his life.

Finally, you were walking along by the sand, taking a break from all the activity and simply enjoying each other's company. He saw the opportunity, and he grabbed it.

"Hold on, my shoelace is coming untied," Derek said, bending down to fiddle with his perfectly fine laces. "What do you want to do next?"

He watched as you looked around in thought, as he knew you would, and quickly grabbed the ring from his pocket. When you looked back down at him, about to answer, he was there, on bended knee, presenting you with the loveliest ring you'd ever seen.

He'd had a speech planned, a long, elaborate thing to tell you about how much he loved you and how he wanted to spend the rest of his life taking care of you, but in that moment, when he realized that he was finally in this position -- for real, not in his fantasies or with some kind of long timeline or stipulation -- his brain sort of short circuited from the sheer joy of it all. So he kept it simple.

"Will you marry me?"

Derek was strong and solid, but you nearly knocked him to the ground with how hard you threw yourself into his arms. He laughed, wrapping his arms around you as tight as he could without worrying he'd hurt you.

"Is that a yes?" he asked, feeling a few tears welling up in his eyes.

"Of course it's a yes," you told him. "It's always been yes."

He stood up then, pulling you up with him, and he slipped the ring on your finger. He held your hand close to his face, marveling at the site -- not at the ring, he'd spent long enough picking out to have every bit of it engraved in his memory, but at what it meant now that you were wearing it. He glanced over at his own bare ring finger, so thrilled at the thought of his own ring that would tell the world that he was yours.

Then you were back in his embrace. He held you there for a long time as people passed by on the boardwalk, stroking your hair, telling you about how happy you'd made him.

"I'll always take care of you," he said, leaning down for a kiss. "I promise. Always."

You could tell that was an important point for him, but you had to tweak it a bit.

"We'll take care of each other," you corrected. "Always."

#our life beginnings and always #olba #our life #olba derek #our life derek #derek suarez #derek x reader #derek x you #derek x mc #derek suarez x reader #derek suarez x you #derek suarez x mc

[cadmium-free]

My stress dreams mostly take the shape of navigating unnavigable spaces, but the space is consistent across dreams. They are real places except utterly unreal. False cities.

new york city, in my dreams

A vast city of brownstones with no end, but I always find myself on the same street with green trees casting a dappled shade over ever thing. It’s dense with low those red brick houses and parked cars.

If you walk down the steps to the basement of the houses you would find vast unmarked shops, empty in their centre, and customers crowded into corners. If you were to walk up the steps into a home it would be empty. All white walls and narrow rooms.

There is a train in this city, if you are able to find it’s entrance. It’s a gash in the ground where the packed streets converge into a spiral. You enter impossibly deeper and deeper inside it. It’s hard to leave once you enter.

The walls are white brick. The platforms are white brick. The maze of hallways and stairs descends deeper to a network of too many train lines. You descend stairs to platforms merely ten feet long or a different set of stairs to a platform that stretches impossibly long into the dark. The tracks and platforms intersect haphazardly, and if the trains didn’t run quite on time you know they would run each other through.

If you get on a train, you can take it to the outer reaches of the city. I have not gotten off in the north, but I’ve seen the landscape out the train windows. It is made of small sandy islands that the train stays far above. It takes a long slow and circuitous route. The train rarely stops, just passes over places that desperately need it to stop there. There are so many train lines but they so rarely share stations with one another. A passenger has no choice but to ride a trains long winding two hour route to their destination.

In the South, the train moves around a neighborhood set into the curve of a mountain. There is only station here, and when you exit you take a long winding path down the mountain into the neighborhood. The houses and streets are as tightly packed as they are in the city centre, but here they are built into the curves of the mountain. It’s hard to distinguish between plant, brick, house, and geology. It’s also where all the interesting people doing thankless work live.

Walking north from mountainous neighborhood, you approach the southern beach. There is a long, flat, wide bridge only slightly above the water level, made from planks of wood. It has no guardrails. It is essentially a massive boardwalk. Next to the bridge is a set of train tracks level with the water, but no train comes here anymore. Following the boardwalk takes you to a small flat island of sand. You could walk from side to side in under five minutes but it would take an hour to walk the length. There are houses here too, uncomfortably far apart from one another and fading into a haze of heat and pollution. This is the only place you can afford to live. It’s entirely exposed. It will be washed away in the next storm.

#i wrote out these dream cities several years ago so i could remember them clearly and map them #i have one for Philadelphia too #New York and Philadelphia and the Montreal Airport are my big three reoccurring dream spaces #text

[cabezadeperro]

cordyceps, for echo/fox(/fives)?

hi tru!!!

this is Old (january 31 kind of old lmao), but here it is!! it's a mix of canon star wars and the last of us: a bunch of stuff happens the same way but add a cordyceps epidemic a la TLOU.

T, canon character death. ~930w.

---

Fox has made himself hard to find, going to ground in Coruscant’s lower levels, his knowledge of the terrain working in his favour to render him invisible. Echo sneaks into the old Corrie barracks, slices into Imperial records, braves one of the sealed sectors of the city just to find that the lead he was following ends there.

Coruscant has become the carcass of what it used to be, all blackened ribs and parasites gnawing at the bones. Echo moves from quarantine zone to quarantine zone, avoiding the hordes of infected and making his best to mingle with what’s left of the planet’s population, and meanwhile the new Imperial Palace shines blackly on what used to be the Jedi Temple, almost as big as it is ugly. 

In the end, Fox is the one who finds him, as Echo half-expected to happen from the start. He takes the seat next to Echo’s in the cantina, nondescript and half-invisible in the crowd, and Echo’s traitorous heart blooms with something that tastes like joy and relief and grief all mixed together.

Echo looks him in the eye in that way he has of looking through you, familiar face wan and too pale, and then it’s—easy. Echo pays his tab and follows him out of the bar and into the crowded streets of what used to be Coco Town, raw sewage in the water of the artificial beaches and armed droids patrolling the street. Fox finds a way through the force shields and the walls and even deeper under the planet’s surface, and Echo follows, hyperaware of the noise of their footsteps through the now abandoned arcades and boulevards.

Most of the districts still have power: Coruscant’s infrastructure is its own thing, self-sustaining, older than the oldest inhabited levels of the planet, and after inhabiting its circuits Echo knows it is a terrible thing, too big and complex to understand. 

Fox’s safehouse looks barely used. Dusty and dark and cold, with black mold growing on the fresher’s ceiling and nothing in the conservator. It’s not the one Fox is using, that’s obvious and insulting, and Echo might not be that sure he is glad to see him but the distrust hurts in a way he didn’t quite see coming, because there was a time, not that long ago, when Fox looked at him like couldn’t quite believe he existed, like he would do terrible, painful things for Echo if given half the chance.

But then again, that was before Fives.

Echo has seen what happens to the infected. He’s had to put brothers down himself. But he knows, in his heart of hearts, that he would have never been able to do that to Fives. He knows he would have waited it out with him, and he knows that Fives would have hated him for it; Echo knows that he wouldn’t have regretted a thing.

He can’t tell what hurts worse: the fact that Fox loved him enough to kill him before the fungus took him, or the fact that he didn’t love him enough, and that he pulled the trigger anyway.

After Echo steps inside the apartment, Fox closes and locks the door at his back. He unholsters his blaster and looks into every single room, shoulders loose, and Echo watches him in silence, feeling the way his patience runs out.

Fox called him to Coruscant. After years of silence, Fox somehow found a way to send him an encrypted comm through their old channel: Echo can’t quite believe he did as he asked.

He used to think he hated Fox. He was so sure of it: how could he not? He loved Fives and killed him anyway.

The building settles and resettles all around them. Echo folds his arms and eyes the door, Fox’s back, the dusty surface of the couch. He thinks he might remember this place, from back before the war ended and he got caught. It bothers him the fact that he doesn’t know for sure. His once perfect recall, scrambled by the implants and time and all the awful shit he’s seen and done in his life.

Fox exhales. He holsters his blaster and stops in front of Echo, the weak light from the ceiling lumas washing him out. He opens his mouth, closes it again, and then—he sighs. He sounds exhausted, and that part of Echo that is not as dead as it should blooms, reaches out, wanting to comfort and touch and just be with him, because Echo might miss Fives more than he misses his own limbs, but sometimes it’s like he misses Fox more just because he’s still alive. He still remembers the way Fox tasted, the sound of his sighs and his groans, the dorky, unexpected little snort he made every time they made him laugh.

He watches Fox, and Fox watches him back, longing sudden and awful in his dark, familiar eyes, and then he looks away. He clears his throat.

“Fives was right.” That croak of a voice, low and creaky. 

It takes a second to register. Right about what?

“Fives was right,” Fox says again. “He was—he was immune.”

What?

Echo’s shaking. He can feel it, but he can’t stop it. He sees Fox’s hand reaching out for him, and he’s too slow to move back: by the time it touches him, warm and sweaty and heavy, resting awkwardly on his shoulder, it’s too late.

“They still have him,” Fox says. His fingers twitch around Echo’s shoulder; he lets go. “And I need your help to get him back.”

#foxecho #foxechofives #cloneshipping #word prompts #arc trooper echo #commander fox #maría writes

[dystini]

Indycar Driver Lore

Indycar Driver Lore Masterlist

Colton Thomas Herta

Birthdate: March 30, 2000 Hometown: Valencia, California Residence: Brentwood, Tennessee Height/Weight: 5’10”/140lbs

Rookie Year: 2019

Team: Andretti Global

Follow him on: Instagram Twitter

Career Stats

2018: 1 race with Harding Racing - 37th Overall 2019: Harding Steinbrenner Racing - 7thg Overall 2020: Andretti Harding Steinbrenner Autosport - 3rd Overall 2021: Andretti Autosport - 5th Overall 2022: Andretti Autosport w/ Curb-Agajanian - 10th Overall 2023: Andretti Autosport w/ Curb-Agajanian - 10th Overall

IMSA 2019 BMW Team RLL, GTLM class, won Daytona 24 2020 BMW Team RLL, GTLM class 2021 Turner Motorsport, GTD class 2022 DragonSpeed USA, LMP2 class, won Daytona 24 2023 BMW M Team RLL, GTP class

2022 Race of Champions

-He was the first NTT INDYCAR SERIES driver born in the 2000’s and is a seven-time race winner. -Became the youngest race winner in NTT INDYCAR SERIES history when he won at Circuit of The Americas in 2019 at 18 years, 359 days old and became youngest pole winner in NTT INDYCAR SERIES history at 19 years 83 days when he scored his first pole at Road America in 2019. -Son of former NTT INDYCAR SERIES driver Bryan Herta, who won four races in his driving career and two Indianapolis 500s as a team owner. Bryan Herta was race strategist for his son's NTT INDYCAR SERIES team and a co-owner of the Andretti Herta Haupert with Marco and Curb-Agajanian entry. -Won the 2019 Rolex 24 at Daytona with BMW Team RLL in GT Le Mans class. -Competed for Andretti Steinbrenner Racing in INDY NXT by Firestone in 2017-18, winning six races. -Enjoys electronic dance music (EDM), comedies and video games. He is also an active athlete who enjoys cycling, running and golf. -Plays drums in a rock band caled The Zibs, which is an arabic slang term for penis. The band toured the West Coast in 2019 -Doesn't really drink coffee

-left handed

Iconic/memorable moments 2022 INSIDE THE RACE // COLTON HERTA AT HONDA INDY TORONTO Outside the Line: Colton Herta HONDA PACE CAR // COLTON HERTA AND ALEXANDER ROSSI What Racecar Phenom Colton Herta Is Listening To JAVA WITH JAMES // JAMES HINCHCLIFFE WITH COLTON HERTA Colton Herta crashes, flips in final Indy 500 practice | Motorsports on NBC Colton Herta impresses in Formula One test at Portimão Circuit Outside the Line: Colton Herta The Racer Channel videos with Colton Herta Unbelievable Herta Save | Indycar GMR Grand Prix 2022 2022 PACE CAR LAPS // BRYAN AND COLTON HERTA ON THE STREETS OF LONG BEACH King Taco: Questions with Colton Herta

IndyCar rookie phenom Colton Herta's side gig: Rock band drummer Colton Herta INTERVIEW! The IndyCar Podcast Tom Griswold Interviews Colton Herta (2022 Indy 500) Colton Herta and Dan Wheldon Celebrate Bryan Herta's Win at Michigan 2005 MP 651: The Week In IndyCar,, Sept 28, with Colton Herta Colton Herta Loves Star Wars, Drumming, & Talladega Nights

Andretti IndyCar Drivers Test Their Pit Stop Skills | #AllAndretti | Indy 500

Road and Track's music issue, Feb/Mar 2023:

Colton is easygoing and laidback, a true California kid, yet is intensely competitive. Participant (rumored to be the mastermind) in several of the infamous Indy 500 bus lot pranks in recent years, he somehow eludes any true blame falling upon him. He’s well-liked within the paddock, most recently sort of adopted by the Bus Bros and nicknamed “Swolton.” He is also close friends with Alex Rossi, often staying with his former teammate when he needs to be in Indy. He doesn’t make a lot of waves off-track, one of the quietest drivers on social media, but makes up for it on-track with fantastic saves and crashes in equal measure. Just 23 years old in 2023 has 7 wins, 11 podiums and 9 poles in his young life.

F1 discussions.

In late summer 2022, it was announced that F1 team AlphaTauri had an interest in Colton for the 2024 F1 season. Colton, already signed to McLaren F1 as a test driver in addition to his Andretti contract in Indycar, was not eligible for a Super License, a requirement to drive in F1, but this could be addressed with an exception by the FIA. At one point it was announced that this was a done deal but it was not and Red Bull (AlphaTauri’s parent team) soon abandoned all efforts to acquire Colton as a driver.

The Super License system is a convoluted thing that I will not explain here other than to say that Indycar is vastly underrated in points assigned and if not for this discrepancy, Colton would have had more than enough points. But as it is, Colton had 32 points out of a needed 40. Other drivers in similar situations have raced in various lower tier FIA sanctioned series to make up the points and Colton was willing to do this over the winter of 2022-23 but this was also not allowed by the FIA.

But seeing Colton in F1 is still a possibility, should he do well enough in Indycar to earn the points needed and should Michael Andretti eventually succeed in buying an existing F1 team or convincing F1 to allow him to enter a new team. After the end of the 2022 Indycar season, Colton signed a multi-year contract extension with Andretti that includes the ability to switch to an Andretti owned F1 team.

Fanfic Lore

Paired with Pato O'Ward, ship name O'Herta

#indycar rpf #indycar #fanfic #driver lore #colton herta

[timetorace]

Things you need to know for today’s IndyCar race (I know I’m late but pretend I’m not):

- Nashville served CUNT (💅🏻) last year so we are expecting something dramatic: a lot of yellow flags and probably at least one or two red flags. A natural disaster could happen and I wouldn’t be surprised.

- It’s a street circuit with very bumpy streets. Something more similar to Toronto than St. Pete or Long Beach in terms of pavement.

- Silly season IS ON. Keep that in mind.

-Next year Nashville is gonna be the last race of the season and we love to see it.

- McLaughlin on pole.

- Yesterday qualy was delayed four hours due to rain so pavement doesn’t have the usual rubber in it.

- Palou is starting P4 (1st in championship) and NewGarden is starting P9 (2nd in championship)

EDIT: Pagenoud STILL not fit to race and Lundqvist is jumping in

#indycar #scott mclaughlin #josef newgarden #alex palou #nashville gp 2023

[pearllemon-classics]

Cruising Through Dreams: Bucket List Classic Car Events Around the World

Fasten your seatbelts, my fellow motor enthusiasts! We’re about to embark on an exhilarating adventure through the globe’s most iconic classic car events. From the heart-pounding roar of engines on Europe’s legendary circuits to California’s sun-kissed streets, these must-attend events are guaranteed to fuel your passion for vintage motoring. Whether you’re a seasoned aficionado or just daydreaming about owning a classic car one day, these events offer a sneak peek into the very essence of automotive history. So, don your driving gloves and join us as we journey through the ultimate classic car experiences worldwide!

1. Goodwood Festival of Speed

West Sussex, England

Tucked away in the undulating landscapes of West Sussex, England, lies the Goodwood Festival of Speed — a paradise for car lovers. This annual spectacle presents a breathtaking collection of classic cars, from timeless racers to contemporary supercars, all vying for glory on the legendary Hillclimb course. Goodwood seamlessly weaves together nostalgia and exhilaration, promising an indelible experience for devotees across generations. Picture yourself delving into the rich legacy and sophistication of classic automobiles at events like this one. Pearl Lemon Classics crafts bespoke experiential tours that transport enthusiasts on immersive journeys through the magnificence of classic cars and iconic racing events throughout the UK and Europe. Embrace this opportunity to live your passion!

2. Monterey Car Week

Monterey, California, USA

Every August, the charming coastal town of Monterey, California, transforms into a grand stage for one of the world’s most esteemed classic car events. Monterey Car Week is not just an event; it’s a week-long celebration of automotive brilliance that captures hearts worldwide. From prestigious concours d’elegance to heart-pounding races at Laguna Seca and awe-inspiring auctions where vintage gems find new homes, every moment is steeped in excitement and elegance. Whether you’re marvelling at rare Ferraris on the Pebble Beach Golf Links or embarking on a nostalgic journey along 17-Mile Drive in your own classic car, Monterey Car Week is an absolute must for any car aficionado. With Pearl Lemon Classics, you can immerse yourself in this glamourous spectacle through tailor-made tour packages that promise more than just experiences — they create timeless memories filled with history, sophistication and thrill!

3. Le Mans Classic

Le Mans, France

For those whose hearts beat faster at the thought of endurance racing, there’s no event that compares to the Le Mans Classic. Held every two years on the legendary Circuit de la Sarthe in France, this event is a magnificent homage to motorsport’s golden age. It showcases a captivating collection of vintage race cars, each competing for honour on a track steeped in history and tales of triumph and tragedy. Whether you’re basking in the thunderous symphony of classic prototypes from the grandstands or soaking up the electric atmosphere in the bustling paddock, Le Mans Classic is an adventure that every racing enthusiast should experience. Picture yourself standing amidst history at Circuit de la Sarthe, where Pearl Lemon Classics offers exclusive insights and access to private collections — ensuring an immersive experience at events like Le Mans Classic that truly encapsulate vintage motoring’s timeless allure.

4. Woodward Dream Cruise

Detroit, Michigan, USA

Heralded as the globe’s grandest one-day car festival, the Woodward Dream Cruise is an unparalleled homage to American automotive heritage. Each August, a cavalcade of classic cars invades Detroit’s historic Woodward Avenue, morphing it into a dynamic exhibition of motoring milestones. From brawny muscle cars to sizzling hot rods, and from vintage trucks to bespoke cruisers — the Dream Cruise is a visual and auditory banquet. It offers live music, culinary delights and boundless chances for reminiscing with fellow aficionados. Immerse yourself in exhilarating events like the Woodward Dream Cruise with Pearl Lemon Classics — nurturing a community of passionate enthusiasts and crafting unforgettable experiences within the pulsating realm of retro motoring.

5. Classic Days Schloss Dyck

Jüchen, Germany

Imagine being enveloped by the serene beauty of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, where Schloss Dyck stands majestically as the stage for one of Europe’s most esteemed classic car events. Classic Days Schloss Dyck is more than a weekend event; it’s a jubilant celebration of automotive history that captivates and thrills. From admiring the timeless elegance of pre-war classics to experiencing the heart-pounding excitement of vintage race cars in action, Schloss Dyck offers an all-encompassing journey into automotive heritage for enthusiasts across generations. Picture yourself at Classic Days Schloss Dyck, where Pearl Lemon Classics nurtures a passionate community and provides personalised attention, crafting indelible memories in the enchanting realm of vintage motoring.

As we draw the curtain on our thrilling journey through the world’s most coveted classic car events, it becomes resoundingly evident that the fervour for vintage motoring is a universal phenomenon. Whether you’re meticulously planning your next escapade or simply harbouring dreams of one day possessing a classic beauty, remember that an exhilarating world of vintage motoring stands ready to set your passion ablaze and fuel your aspirations. With organisations like Pearl Lemon Classics offering bespoke tours tailored to enthusiasts craving immersive experiences amidst majestic classic cars and iconic racing events, the opportunities are boundless. So come along! Let’s revel in the timeless legacy of classic cars and salute the vibrant community of enthusiasts who keep the flame of vintage motoring burning brightly!

#vintage cars #luxury cars #car show #cars #classic cars

[heartsandmuses]

writing pattern game

I keep seeing people doing this and I wanted to give it a go myself!

rules: list the first line of your last 10 posted fics and see if there’s a pattern!

— — —

weekly lineup // stevetony

Tony’s favorite thing about spending Sunday mornings in the Compound was watching Steve post the weekly team lineup.

avengers tower magazine spread // stevetony

Ever since the terrifying and unexpected Battle of New York, questions have arisen about the team dynamics of the newly-formed Avengers. Despite leadership under America’s sweetheart, Steve Rogers, reports have suggested that the team isn’t cooperating with each other nearly as well off the battlefield as on.

the way to a man's heart // brucetony

Tony had always thought that Bruce’s love language was quality time.

beach break // brucetony

Tony was definitely not a morning person.

and baby makes four // buckytony

Alpine’s affectionate, but usually not this affectionate.

artist's studio // stevetony

“Tony,” Steve breathed, as he did another lap of the room, taking his time to admire the easel set up in one corner and the stacks of blank canvases by the window. There wasn’t any furniture in the quaint, cozy brownstone, at least not yet, but there were more than a few wooden crates overflowing with paint and brushes and sketchbooks lined up along the wall. “This is way too much.”

blueberry pancakes // brucetony

It wasn’t that Hulk-outs had gotten easier ever since Bruce had moved into the Tower—and honestly, he doubted they ever would—but the aftermath was certainly a lot more bearable nowadays.

saturday night live au // stevetony

When Tony Stark, riding high after the success of his latest box office hit, Iron Man, takes to the New York press circuit to promote the next film in the franchise, Steve more than anyone is surprised that he agrees to come on Saturday Night Live.

tiktok famous // stevetony

Two months after the rest of the team gets TikTok, Steve finally caves and makes an account of his own.

summer nights // stevetony

One of the pleasant and unexpected side effects of finding himself in Stark’s bed damn near every other night, Steve realized, was that the blacksmith had long stopped pestering the rest of the townsfolk with his drunken antics. The more time Stark spent in Steve’s company, instead of that of a bottle, the less he was passed out on the dusty tavern floor, or crowding up the cell in the sheriff’s station, or, as he was most prone to do, stumbling down main street with some low-shelf whiskey in hand and a tune on his lips.

— — —

conclusions: I shouldn't be so surprised that nearly all of these mention tony in some way, but I am surprised that not many are actually from his pov. idk why, but I thought I wrote from tony's perspective a lot more than I do lol... also, I didn't think I had written so many non-stony ficlets recently, but I guess I'm branching out :P all in all, a fun experiment!

#tony stark #steve rogers #bucky barnes #bruce banner #stony #otp: put on the suit #otp: science boyfriends #otp: winteriron #fic recs #fics #my fics #my writing #amy talks

[viper-motorsports]

Gradient Racing leaves the 2024 IMSA Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach CA missing a trophy after finishing their N°66 Acura NSX GT3 Evo 22 fourth in GTD.

#acura nsx gt3 evo 22 #grand prix of long beach #gradient racing #long beach street circuit #imsa #gtd #honda nsx #2024 gplongbeach

[truthin32bit]

Lightspeed over the Light Rail

Say what you will about the way American cities are laid out -- they make for some awesome race tracks.

When you string together a few 90 degree turns and connect it with a squiggly line on an empty lot, it can turn out to be racing magic. Such is the case for a circuit like Long Beach. A magical minute around the coast line through some of the most glamorous sights SoCal can provide a great spectacle that lives on in racing legend for decades. Toronto provides a white knuckle ride around Exhibition Place with little room to breathe, let alone race for position. Even something as silly as the new Nashville track can have its merits, albeit if it's just for a few laughs.

However, track designers must be careful balancing a very fine line between spectacle and disaster. The characteristics that can make for a great circuit can also lead to a terrible catastrophe -- something that has been seen time and time again throughout the last 30 years. With Champ Car and Indycar alike taking their chances to reach a wider audience there is bound to be a handful of nightmares for teams and organizers alike. San Jose and Baltimore prove as such examples for when public transport wreak havoc on suspensions.

In 2005 the CCWS went to San Jose for their inaugural Grand Prix. Looking to become a second reincarnation of Long Beach, the circuit was a blinding flash through the heart of the downtown district, only coming in at a mile and a half. Whilst the rest of the circuit wasn't very memorable, one part of it did stick out in the history books for all the wrong reasons. A fast chicane had the potential to be a fun challenge for drivers and a great spectacle for fans at the track and at home. Traveling at over 150 mph through this precarious flick would showcase bravery and skill, making the car dance right on the limit. There was just one problem though...

This single light rail track would seal the fate of the GP. These stiff and agile Champ Cars would fly over this small little bump in the road, causing figurative and literal pain. Although the organizers provided a quick fix the next year, it wouldn't save the event as the demise of Champ Car would not see the event return.

Indycar picked up the slack, adding their own multitude of street circuits after the merger. In 2011 Baltimore was able to host their own race, funneling drivers around Oriole Park via a very technical layout. Drivers found the chicane before the light rail section unnecessary after the conclusion of the first ever race, leading the organizers to remove it for 2012.

They would regret suggesting it.

Friday came around, with the drivers taking to the track for their practice laps. At full speed, the cars would visibly take off from the ground and come to a hard landing with not much time to react. Several Indycar and ALMS teams then pleaded the organizers to backtrack, re-adding the chicane and avoiding any potential chaos. Well, not really, but that came down to the rest of the track.

Baltimore would exit the calendar without much grace after 2013, with scheduling conflicts and broken promises of increased city revenue ultimately killing hopes of becoming a regular fixture in the motorsports calendar.

#ALMS #indycar #Youtube

[offscreendeath]

I watched Valerian last night. I appreciated how very ambitious it seemed, but ultimately the performances fell very short. My take is that a lot of filmmakers have tried to do what Fifth Element did as far as crafting an expansive and detailed world filled with unique designs for its characters and sets, which it absolutely did, but failed to create compelling characters who we follow throughout it. Jupiter Ascending which premiered two years after it did this much better, although I have similar critiques.

Dane DeHaan and Clara Delevingne and were not the worst actors I’ve ever seen, but they seemed too stiff and stoic to come off as endearing or relatable, even while they were joking. I didn’t feel much chemistry between them, and neither of them seemed to have meaningful character arcs to speak of.

I wish the writers took the mystery element of the plot even further. An action/adventure whodunit” type of story set in space would’ve been really cool. I found it difficult to accept Valerian as this super deadly space soldier and it wasn’t just because he doesn’t look physically intimidating. I got the impression that it was his ability to come up with a plan on short notice that was his real strength, but that wasn’t highlighted enough to be very memorable. Laureline straight up did not sell the badass and intelligent role very well.

Worse than them though, was Herbie Hancock, who didn’t have much time on screen, but his performance definitely revealed a lack of training and commitment to the role — no shade, I love his music, but he was not impressive. I was initially excited to see his name in the opening credits (and the opening scene was one of the best imo,) but after watching felt like it was mostly a ploy to draw attention.

I felt similarly about Rihanna’s performance. When she wasn’t giving awkward one-liner jokes, there just didn’t seem to be very much passion in her delivery of the lines. It doesn’t help that she was a cgi blue flubber squid alien for a good half of her appearance or dying in of the most egregious “we can’t afford to pay you/use all this cgi/create plot holes so we’re gonna have to kill you off” scenes I’ve ever witnessed.

That said, there were lots of things I found fun about this — the creative and fun moments with action set pieces, (like the chase following the market heist) practical effects, cool characters design (the three pigeon snitches, the albino twink beach aliens) and costumes (a circuit board design on a military uniform,) an unconventional story about war crimes being covered up…all things that could’ve been enhanced by just a bit more effort in terms of acting and storytelling.

There are moments where I was a bit confused about the tone of the movie. Was this a comedy? Is it for children? Am I supposed to be sad about this character’s death scene when what led up to it was a visual pun about stinky trash? I have my own issues with Marvel films, but at their very best they can manage to balance humor and tense/depressing moments pretty well. I got the impression that there was this rush to establish certain things narratively, and as a consequence, certain other parts (the best parts,) weren’t given much breathing room.

After watching Jupiter Ascending I felt pretty hungry for more exciting space epics with immersive, elaborate worlds. After also watching Avatar 2: The Way of Water just a few days earlier, unfortunately I’m still searching. JA wasn’t perfect, but had less obvious flaws than either, helped greatly by some legitimately decent performances. Avatar made me feel sorta motion sick after a while, even though it also had a few interesting plot elements and thrilling sequences.

I was expecting more, and I’m not sure why. I remembered watching the trailer years ago when it first released, and recalled feeling like “oh yes this is what the streets been waiting on!” and quickly forgetting about it not very long afterwards. The 2010-2019 period of Hollywood was very strange. I liked the direction this was heading and since it didn’t do well I’m wondering if it’s failure signaled a departure from movies like this and into the direction we’re headed now. It being the most expensive independent film kinda blows my mind—but only because it makes the end result all the more disappointing.

I don’t regret my watch, however. I think there were plenty of good decisions that were made, but unfortunately casting wasn’t one of them.

4.6/10

#valerian #valerian and the city of a thousand planets #review #text post #film blog #film review

[f1]

Lundgaard narrowly beats Rosenqvist for first IndyCar pole position | IndyCar

Just 21 months after he made his IndyCar debut at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway grand prix circuit, Christian Lundgaard has won his pole position in the series for Saturday’s Indianapolis Grand Prix. Lundgaard reached the Fast Six stage of qualifying for the first time this year in the previous round at Barber Motorsports Park, and with 75 seconds left in qualifying, he took provisional pole with a time of 1’09.332. On his final flying lap, Felix Rosenqvist strung together fast first and second sectors and was tracking towards pole for himself. But at turn eight his car got unstable, and a scruffy run through the S-curves was enough to deny Rosenqvist the pole position by three milliseconds. That secured an all-Scandinavian front row led by the Dane Lundgaard, with Sweden’s Rosenqvist starting in second place. Alex Palou, who was fastest in this morning’s practice session, qualified in third place. Lundgaard’s maiden pole position was made even better by the fact that all three Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing cars advanced to the second round of qualifying. Jack Harvey made the Fast Six for the first time in two years, qualifying fourth. Graham Rahal narrowly missed putting all three RLL cars in the Fast Six as he qualified in eighth. Pato O’Ward was fifth-fastest and will share the third row with Long Beach winner Kyle Kirkwood in sixth. IndyCar championship points leader Marcus Ericsson will start seventh alongside Rahal, with Scott Dixon in ninth. Alexander Rossi, who won last year’s Brickyard Grand Prix at this venue, in tenth place. Marcus Armstrong was the fastest rookie once again in 11th, while five-time Indy GP course winner Will Power will start down in 12th place – as the only Team Penske driver that advanced out of the first round of qualifying. Bad timing caught out Josef Newgarden in the first group: He caught a spinning Benjamin Pedersen at turn one and had to abort his final flying lap. Newgarden, who won the Texas Motor Speedway race, starts 13th tomorrow. Several big names just missed out on advancing into the second group, including Colton Herta in 14th and Scott McLaughlin in 16th. Romain Grosjean, who’d made the Fast Six in every road and street course race so far, was livid after his Q1 ejection, and will start a lowly 18th. Herta will start from the same place where he won last year’s Indy GP in May, which was an affair of wildly changing weather conditions. The start of tomorrow’s race – the first big event of the Month of May at Indianapolis – is scheduled for Saturday at 6:10 PM BST. Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free Indianapolis Grand Prix qualifying results Position Car Driver Team Engine 1 45 Christian Lundgaard RLL Honda 2 6 Felix Rosenqvist McLaren Chevrolet 3 10 Alex Palou Ganassi Honda 4 30 Jack Harvey RLL Honda 5 5 Pato O’Ward McLaren Chevrolet 6 27 Kyle Kirkwood Andretti Honda 7 8 Marcus Ericsson Ganassi Honda 8 15 Graham Rahal RLL Honda 9 9 Scott Dixon Ganassi Honda 10 7 Alexander Rossi McLaren Chevrolet 11 11 Marcus Armstrong Ganassi Honda 12 12 Will Power Penske Chevrolet 13 2 Josef Newgarden Penske Chevrolet 14 26 Colton Herta Andretti Honda 15 29 Devlin DeFrancesco Andretti Honda 16 3 Scott McLaughlin Penske Chevrolet 17 21 Rinus VeeKay Carpenter Chevrolet 18 28 Romain Grosjean Andretti Honda 19 60 Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Honda 20 18 David Malukas Coyne/HMD Honda 21 20 Conor Daly Carpenter Chevrolet 22 51 Sting Ray Robb Coyne/RWR Honda 23 55 Benjamin Pedersen Foyt Chevrolet 24 77 Callum Ilott Juncos Hollinger Chevrolet 25 78 Agustin Canapino Juncos Hollinger Chevrolet 26 06 Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Honda 27 14 Santino Ferrucci Foyt Chevrolet Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free IndyCar Browse all IndyCar articles via RaceFans - Independent Motorsport Coverage https://www.racefans.net/

#F1 #Lundgaard narrowly beats Rosenqvist for first IndyCar pole position | IndyCar #Formula 1

[typingtess]

NCIS: Los Angeles Season 13 Rewatch:  “Come Together”

The basics:  When a robotic vehicle robs a casino’s armored car pick-up, the team is looking get it off the streets.  Big life changes ahead for Callen, Kensi and Deeks.

Written by:  Kyle Harimoto wrote "Omni", "Merry Evasion", "Chernoff, K", "Command and Control" as episode 150, "Granger, O.", "Ghost Gun", "Kulinda", "767", "Se Murio El Payaso", "Assets"/"Liabilities", "Venganza", "Superhuman", "One of Us", "Let Fate Decide" (season 11 premiere), "Decoy", "Answers" , "Watch Over Me", "Cash Flow", "Fukushu" and "Bonafides".   He co-wrote "Three Hearts", "Leipei", "Humbug", both ends of the "Matryoshka" two-parter, "Smokescreen" part two, "Searching", "A Fait Acompli" and "A Tale of Two Igors" (season 12 finale).  

Directed by:  John P. Kousakis directed "Imposters", "Sacrifice", "San Voir" part one, "The Fifth Man", "Parley", "Inelegant Heart", "Chernoff, K.", "Active Measures", "The Long Goodbye", "Talion", "Glasnost", "Unleashed", "Party Crashers", "This Is What We Do" (episode 200), "Goodbye Vietnam", "Ninguna Salida", "The Guardian", "High Society", "A Tale of Two Igors", "Under the Influence", "Genesis", all of the Afghanistan scenes from "Iron Curtain Rising" to "Zero Days" in season five and all of Kensi’s injury/recovery storyline scenes from "The Queen’s Gambit" to "Sirens" in season eight.  

Guest stars of note:  Bar Paly as Anastasia "Anna" Kolcheck is back from “Down the Rabbit Hole”.  Vyto Ruginis as Arkady Kolcheck, Richard Gant as Raymond Hanna and Natalia Del Riego as Rosa Reyes are all back from “Work and Family”.  Both Duncan Campbell as NCIS Special Agent Castor and Cyd Strittmatter as Ms. Janice King return from “Hard for the Money”.  Eugene Young returns from “Bonafides” as Sang.  Lesley Boone as Nina Barnes, Sara Young Chandler as Amanda Chen and Monique Mosee as Woman (Raymond confuses her for Sam’s mother).  

Our heroes:  Have a barbeque.  

What important things did we learn about:

Callen:  Getting married. Sam:  Really trying with his Dad. Kensi: Foster parent. Deeks: Foster parent. Fatima:   Dating profile whisperer. Rountree: Bad dating app luck. Kilbride:  Admiral in the Navy, BBQ master at the beach.

What not so important things did we learn about:

Callen:  Mr. Carl. Sam:  Switch. Kensi:  Brings Deeks a bagel sandwich for his ride home from LAX. Deeks:  Still looking to do trust falls with the Admiral. Fatima:  Good at circuit training and hot yoga. Rountree: Good at circuit training and bad at hot yoga. Kilbride:  Big “Moana” fan.

Where in the world is Henrietta Lange?  Callen talks to Sam about wanting to speak with her about his past.  Hetty’s décor choices in the boat shed got a thumbs up from one visitor and a thumbs down from another..

Who's down with OTP:  Kensi and Deeks are parents, Callen and Anna are getting married.  Things are going well.  

Who's down with BrOTP:  Sam tells Callen that Anna is good for him and Callen agrees.  Everyone on the team is over the moon with Kensi and Deeks bringing Rosa to the OSP family.

Fashion review:  Callen starts the episode in a grey quarter-zip with blue sleeves that looks a lot more like Chris O’Donnell fashion than G. Callen gear.  For the rest of the episode, he is wearing his blue and black checked button down shirt.  Long-sleeve black tee-shirt for Sam.  Kensi is wearing a golden brown cropped hoodie for Kensi.  Grey henley for Deeks.  

Working out, Fatima wears a dark pink and white workout top with dark pink running tights.  Working, Fatima is in a blue sweater.  At the beach, she’s wearing a pale, purple turtleneck.   Rountree works out in a medium blue tee-shirt and grey shorts. At work, he’s in tan sweater.  At the beach, he’s wearing a green and white button down short-sleeve shirt (a Hawaiian shirt cut without the bold colors).   The usual dark blue suit, pale blue dress shirt and blue and grey tie for Kilbride.  At the beach, the Admiral is wearing khakis, a Hawaiian shirt and a beige bucket hat.  

Music:  “TV Dinner” by Holy Wars is playing in the casino.  “Carry On With Me” by Junius Meyvant is playing when Kensi, Deeks and Rosa get to the party.  “On the Nose” by Ryan Pollie is playing while Kilbride, Raymond and Arkady chat.  “The Magician” is playing while Callen and Sam talk.

Any notable cut scene:   No but there was a gag reel.  Chris O’Donnell introduces himself as Agent O’Donnell, Eric Christian Olsen has a hair emergency on the Allegiance and Gerald McRaney wears his mask into a scene.    

There is also a Season 13 season wrap-up.  They try to explain the Callen childhood nonsense.  Chris O’Donnell is incredibly complimentary to Linda Hunt, who always surprise him in how she delivers her lines.  Pembrook is being set up as a “fun villain” in the future.  LL Cool J likes playing Switch because it take Sam and the audience on different journeys.  The producers talk about prior mentions of Sam’s father and they wanted to see the man who made Sam the way he is.  The program is doing more than catching the bad guys, they are looking at their character’s humanity.

The infertility storyline didn’t take the easy way out and brought in the issues with immigration.  They talk about celebrating the family you have and not the family you though you’d get.  

Growing more comfortable with her place on the team, Fatima is getting a chance to shine.  Rountree is learning to think before he acts and be a part of a team.  The two of them are friends, not a couple “for right now.”  This is a more interesting relationship, especially with Fatima being the more tenured of the two.  

Gerald McRaney is thrilled with the way his character is written.  He’d like to go into the field more.  He feels guilty calling what he does working.  

The program takes their social responsibility seriously with the violence against Asian-Americans.  Gerald McRaney’s father trained Japanese Americans who were fighting in WWII and always thought it was terrible these young men were going to die for the country that had their families in internment camps.  Caleb Castille spoke about “Perception” and the fear young Black people live with.  

The program asked Daniela Ruah and Eric Christian Olsen if they were OK writing and directing together.  Daniela Ruah is thrilled that the start of her directing career is someplace where the team is so good.  Cast and crew loves her work.  Frank Military thinks that directing is her future.  Eric Christian Olsen wanted to write an episode that was funny and became a freight train by act four.

The season finale was written as a series finale if they weren’t renewed.  

Quote: Tie:

Rosa:  “Who are all these people?” Deeks:  “They, they’re…” Kensi:  “That’s our... and now your family, Rosa and I think it's pretty clear they're excited to meet you. Are you ready to meet them?” Rosa:  “Yeah.” Deeks:  “Oh my God, this is happening.”

Callen:  “Anastasia Kolcheck, will you marry me?” Anna:  “Of course I will.” Callen:  “Yes.” Anna:  “Yes.”

Anything else: At a casino, a waitress picks up her things from her locker.  The tips have been bad and she’s questioning her life choices as she walks to the employee parking lot.  What looks to be a golf cart blows past her firing a weapon mounted on the cart’s roof.  Over a speaker, someone in or around the cart orders two armed security officers making their casino bank run to stop and cooperate if they want to live.  The officers are told to put the money into the vehicle.  They comply as the waitress watches.

When the cart drives off, the two officers start firing at it.  The waitress moves behind a dumpster to protect herself and to watch what’s going on.   The cart stops and races back to the officers.  The big gun on the roof fires into a nearby vehicle, causing it to explode.  The officers go flying off their feet.   The cart races away as the waitress does the same in the other direction.

A grateful Deeks is playing up to Kensi for not only picking him up at LAX but having a Nate ’n Al’s bagel sandwich waiting for him.  It is next level love.  When he asks about Callen, Kensi tells him he’s being really open about his feelings and the entire team is helping him through this difficult time.  That earns a ‘touché’.  

Kensi’s phone rings, it is Janice King, the social worker.  Deeks says hello too.  While she has no new news on Pilar’s case, she has great news about Rosa’s adoption.  “Congratulations, you two have been approved to be a resource family.”  Kensi and Deeks look at each other, stunned.  They will be fostering Rosa.  Kensi and Deeks thank King, who tells them they did the hard work to make this happen.  She knows they will provide a wonderful home.  Deeks is looking for a time frame for when Rosa can move in with them.  It is “tonight”.  Kensi and Deeks are a little freaked – they just became parents.  Deeks thinks he should save some of his bagel for Rosa.

Leaving a neighborhood breakfast spot, Sam is dealing with a seemingly cranky Raymond.  Raymond wants to know if Sam wants a parade thrown in his honor for feeding him and putting blankets on his mattress.  Raymond sees Sam’s reaction and tells him he’s kidding.  He remembers that Sam takes his ribbing to heart.  Sam is happy to be living with his father and wants to make the most of it.  Raymond tells Sam he sounds just like his mother.  Sam misses her every day.  It is obvious Raymond does as well.  Looking at his take-out breakfast, Raymond could not see his wife being happy he was eating a breakfast burrito or Sam drinking a smoothie.  Sam agrees.

Raymond tells Sam about a place he’d go for dinner once a week after Sam’s mother, Vivian, died.  The owner, a Miss Sarah D’Arcy, would sit with him.  Never let him sit alone.  He would look forward to the company.  Sarah wanted a relationship but Raymond thought he was disrespecting Vivian.  Sam disagrees – his mother would want Raymond to be happy.  “Don’t ever have a Miss Sarah D’Arcy son, regret is real.”  Michelle would want Sam to be happy.

As a woman walks down the street, Raymond grabs her, mistaking her for Vivian.  Sam is able to pull the woman away and explain that his father is just confused.  Raymond is yelling that he knows his wife when he sees her.  He’s livid.  It takes Raymond a minute to get his bearings again.  The two walk home.

In a park, Fatima and Rountree are working out.  He’s impressed seeing her go from hard circuit training into yoga and being good at both.  It was Rountree’s final hot yoga class since he was a hot mess.  Rountree calls his prior night’s date a hot mess.  Fatima wants to know what went wrong.  Rountree says it was almost everything.  They couldn’t agree on movies, sports, food, even houseplants.  They had nothing in common.  Fatima thinks the algorithm did him wrong but Rountree agrees – the algorithm never did him right.

Reviewing Rountree’s dating profile, Fatima tells him the algorithm can’t help when he gave it so much bad data.  His dating profile says he enjoys eating takeout and reading a book on a Friday night.  A tiny bit defensive, Rountree says he’s done that before.  Fatima keeps going – he says he enjoys long hikes but she knows the longest hike he likes is from his car to the basketball court.  The profile says his fashion sense is “frugal, durable and functional.”  Rountree agrees – he wears Dickies.  He does, Fatima agrees.  He also pays someone on Beverly to make them look distressed and fashionable.  Rountree thinks characterizing himself as “salt of the earth” could be a problem too.  Fatima laughs – “you’re helpless”.

Sitting near the window of a house, Callen and Anna are sharing some quiet time.  She doesn’t want to leave but since it is a short time rental, sooner or later they’ll have to leave.  Anna still feels guilty about nearly killing Callen by opening the shipping container’s door.  She wants to be normal with him – go to work, come home, cook dinner and watch TV.  They kiss.  Callen is about to say something when Arkady knocks on the window.

Reluctantly going to the door, Anna lets her father in.  He gives her a big hug, he’s so happy she’s OK.  Callen says hello, Arkady does not react.  Saying that he came as soon as he got her text, Anna tells Arkady she texted him three days ago.  He was occupied with a beautiful, voluptuous – and Anna’s had enough of that chit chat.  Pulling out a bottle from his jacket pocket, Arkady has some nastoyka for “a celebratory drink.”  Turning to Callen, Arkady says he is glad he’s safe too.  It is obvious to Arkady how much Anna loves him.  Callen says “I like you too.”  They are going to drink to that.  

Walking into Ops, Kensi and Deeks join Fatima and Rountree.  The team is investigating the casino heist with military grade firepower.  There were dozens of spent shell casings found on the ground.  An Army vet from the Vietnam War playing poker at the casino told LAPD that the sound of the weapon reminded him of an M60.  Kensi is stunned.  

Bigger problem was the car blowing up – it was taken out by a grenade.  There was a second, undetonated grenade found next to the car.  The guards are sedated and recovering from the assault.  NCIS is looking into whether the weaponry was stolen US military property.  Kensi notes they haven’t seen any surveillance footage.  The machine gun took out all the cameras before the robbery.  Their only witness is the waitress – Amanda Chen.  Callen and Sam are on their way to speak to her because Admiral Kilbride wants to speak to both Kensi and Deeks.  Deeks thinks the Admiral just wants a hug.  Kensi gives him a hug instead.

Knocking before entering the Admiral’s office, Kensi and Deeks start with a good morning.  Of course the Admiral doesn’t have good mornings in Los Angeles.  40-minutes to drive 10-miles which gives everyone time to work on their mindfulness practice.  Deeks thinks the Admiral is serious, talking about taking a little scheduled time every day to check in with yourself.  Deeks is pushing trust falls once again.  The Admiral looks stunned.  Deeks thought they were at the point where they could banter but admits he miscalculated.

Getting back to the case, with a vehicle with an M60 driving around Los Angeles – and Deeks brings up crawling because of the Admiral’s previous comments which goes about as poorly as you can imagine – weapons and ordinance that can’t be bought by civilians, there has to be someone supplying them.  Kensi thinks the heist crew is being financed by someone.  The Admiral discusses an above-board, high end arms dealers with access to these type of weapons.  Putting some photos of a woman on his office plasma, the Admiral mentions a criminal dealer could be moving them too.

When Kensi comments that the woman in photo is a tough looking lady, the Admiral thinks that is an understatement.  Her name is Nina Barnes.  Barnes used to be one of the most connected arms dealers on the West Coast.  Deeks asks if she was above board or one of the criminal ones.  The Admiral thinks it is a 70% legal/30% illegal situation.  Barnes was caught making a purchase of stolen weapons a few years ago and the Admiral helped her out.  She owes his a favor – a big one.  Living in LA, the Admiral wants to them to find Barnes and find out what she knows.  Deeks is still open to some trust falls as he leaves.

In the boat shed, Castor drops off Amanda Chen.  She finds the boat shed has a “touch of that serial killer vibe”.  Sam asks about the shooter.  Chen explains that there were no shooters, it was a “supped-out armored go kart”.  Callen is surprised that nobody was driving it.  She compares to a life-sized robotic car that her brother used to play with when they were kids.  Chen also mentions to robotic voice that ordered the security officers around.  She saw the cart go south on Vermont.  

Calling it a UTV drone, Fatima can’t find the armed cart anywhere.  An excited Rountree brings up pulling “a full-on Knight Rider.”  For a change, Fatima is confused by the entertainment reference.  Growing up, Rountree’s neighbor had a TV and loved a show with a talking car “and the guy from Baywatch on it.”  The Knight Rider car would move around the country undetected in a big truck.  The casino is in a commercial area – a lot of trucks in the immediate area.  Everything in LA is a target if the UTV can move around without being detected.  Not just jewelry stores or banks, the UTV could go after soft targets and LAPD couldn’t stop it.

After checking the rental trucks in the area, none of the renters seemed suspicious.  The non-rentals are more of a problem since there are an awful lot of them and they are owned through corporation.  Reviewing the UTV, it is dangerous and it is expensive.  The people behind it wouldn’t move it around in a rental or stolen truck.  Callen realizes they know someone who moves things around.

Outside of the Premiere Bake Shop, Kensi and Deeks think they are in the wrong place.  Going in, they are not.  Nina Barnes is teaching a class in cake decorating.  Thinking Kensi and Deeks are Deana and Colby late for class, she’s surprised when they pull out their badges and drops the “federal agents”.  With a paying class, she’d be happy to help later that afternoon.  Kensi drops Kilbride’s name and Barnes is defeated.

When Fatima says it is a strange place they live in where an UTV could be used to rob a casino, Rountree breaks into song – “It’s a whole new world” – at his work station.  Fatima laughs – that is the version of Rountree that should be in his dating profile, his love and deep, deep knowledge of Disney musicals.  While he goes on about the Disney musicals, the Admiral shows up.  The Admiral is pleased Rountree can “carve out time to watch cartoons.”  After getting a sit-rep from Fatima, the Admiral asks Rountree “How can you not mention ‘Moana’?”  It tells the Admiral a lot about the person he is.  

Apologizing to her students, Barnes is sweetly offering the next class on the house as they leave.  With the shop empty and the “closed” sign on the door, Barnes asks “how is that old bastard Kilbride?”  Kensi brings up his dislike of LA.  Barnes is stunned he’s there.  “He must be miserable.”  If Kilbride sent them, Barnes knows some weapon is in LA that shouldn’t be – what is it?

When Deeks gives the specs, Barnes is impressed.  The machine gun is something that the SEALs use.  That gun would be easy to find.  The grenade launcher is the issue – that would be hard to bring to town.  If the weapons are in LA and she didn’t bring them in, she wants to know who did.  Since she doesn’t do guns in her cake shop, Barnes needs a place to work, a clean laptop that runs Kali Linux and Tor, internet access to the dark web and an untraceable cellphone.  Kensi orders it all for the boat shed.

Sang, the guy who messed with ‘Switch’ in “Bonafides”, leaves his home to find Callen in his back alleyway.  Callen asks for a good spot to get food in Koreatown.  Sang threatens Callen, pulling a gun what Sam as Switch easily takes from him.  “Damn you, Switch.”

Saying he knows nothing about a remote UTV and driving it around the city, Sang isn’t interested in even helping Sam since Switch stole from him.  Sam says it is redistribution program, not stealing.  Callen asks if Sang wasn’t moving the UTV, who would?  Sang has no interest in talking to Switch or his accountant.  Callen tells Sang his name is Mr. Carl and he is Switch’s life coach.  

Saying he needs the UTV, Switch wants Sang to help him.  Sang wouldn’t help Switch if he was hanging off a building.  Listing a few places where Sang has garages, likely with stolen items stored there, if Sang helps Switch won’t rob them all.  Sang reluctantly tells them to look for a 14-foot truck with out-of-state dummy plates.  He has a name.  But after that, they’re done.  Switch disagrees – Sang is going to take them to the name.  Now.  

Speaking in German, Barnes is working the phone.  When one call ends, another comes in.  Barnes is speaking Chinese.  Deeks finds Barnes impressive.  Kensi is worried she might be launching a missile strike.  When Barnes finishes her calls, she tells them she’s just waiting to hear who is bringing a rocket launcher into LA.

Arriving in the Land Rover at Pelican’s home, Callen asks Sang why is he called Pelican.  Sang doesn’t know and doesn’t care.  In Korean, Sang tells Sam Callen is annoying.  “I’ve gotten used to it,” Sam replies.  Sang wants Callen to change his look – he comes off as an accountant or law enforcement.  Callen asks what they’re talking about.  Sam lies about Callen becoming Sang’s life coach.  

Walking up to Pelican’s secured gate, Sang is allowed in but Callen and Sam are not.  Waiting, Callen admits to Sam that Anna is struggling a little about what happened with Katya.  Sam thinks most people would.  With Katya gone, Callen and Anna can live their lives without looking over their shoulders.  Callen brings up Pembrook and Sam tells him not to.  “Things start going good, you start focusing on the next thing and pushing people away.”  Sam tells Callen that Anna is good for him and Callen agrees.  

An aggravated Sang returns.  Pelican didn’t want to talk but Sang threated to steal all of Pelican’s business.  Pelican gave up a name – Lou Faria.  Pelican tracks all his vehicles – he gave Sang the transponder, which Sang gives to Sam.  As Callen and Sam get in the Land Rover, Sang is not allowed to join them.  He wants a ride home but Switch says they’re good.  Callen makes a life coach push.

Rountree tells Callen and Sam there is no response from the transponder but that may be because it only works when the vehicle is in motion.  Fatima has a long list of  Lou Faria’s crimes – drunk driving, robbery, assault.  Callen sees him more as a strong arm guy than someone who could build and control a UTV.  

In the boatshed, Barnes is looking at the photos on the wall, seeing pictures of Doc Paskowitz’s family.   She asks who hung them up.  Kensi speaks generally about the woman who decorated the place.  Kensi likes the life Paskowitz was living the photos.  Barnes asks if Kensi has kids.  She and Deeks look at each other and explain that they didn’t this morning but by tonight expect to be parents.  Barnes is surprised they are a couple.  She laughs and Deeks doesn’t see what’s funny.  Barnes thinks Deeks is punching a bit above his level and Deeks agrees.  

Barnes gets a phone call, she answers in German but scolds Elias on the other end for not telling her about the deal going down.  Based in LA, she needs to know these things so make sure it doesn’t happen again.  She learns the terms of the deal – it was a German grenade launcher that was traded for an unarmed UTV drone.  Deeks is a big concerned that a high-level arms dealer now has a UTV drone.  The two men who traded the UTV drone are Jacob Griffiths and Gordon Cassella.  

Both Griffiths’s and Cassella’s homes and offices were checked out by LAPD – nothing.  Both are engineers with the technical know-how to build a UTV.  But Jacobs works at a chemical plant in Hawthorne while Cassella works for a mechanical engineering firm in Simi Valley.  There is no link.  Different colleges, different homes, the only thing they have in common is being connected to the UTV.  They are likely hobbyists.  Thinking the men would need space to build the UTVs.  Checking, Fatima learns both men live in condos.  Fatima is going to see if they rented a warehouse – she immediately finds it.  

Kensi and Deeks are first to the warehouse.  Deeks find one of the men dead in a room in the warehouse with a bullet in his head. It is Jacob Griffiths.  The two wonder where is Gordon Cassella.

In Ops, Faria’s transponder is back working.  Fatima contacts Callen and Sam with the truck’s location.  

Seeing Faria’s in a truck coming their way, Callen and Sam try to cut the vehicle off.  They yell “federal agents”.  Faria picks up a gun and that’s the last things he does.  In the back of the truck, Callen and Sam find Gordon Cassella bound and gagged with the UTV and its remote control.

Saying that Castor is on his way with the car, Kensi and Deeks are sending Nina Barnes home.   Barnes find Castor pouty – doesn’t get her sense of humor.  Deeks says he’s “an angry, angry man.”  Kensi sees Barnes is still working on the laptop.  She hopes Barnes isn’t making illegal arms deals with it.  “Hope is a powerful thing.”  Barnes wants to know about the case.  Deeks confirms that Griffiths and Cassella built the UTV drones.  When they tries to sell them, Faria saw the criminal potential and strong-armed them into going for his plan.  Since both Faria and Griffiths couldn’t operate the UTV, Faria killed Griffiths and left Cassella alive to run the UTV.  Free to leave, Barnes packs up the laptop and starts making her way to the door.  Kensi thanks Barnes and hopes she can come back – depending on how many favors Kilbride can call in.  “And, that gear stays with us.”  Barnes says you can’t her for trying.  She also says she wishes her foster parents were a little more like Kensi and Deeks.  

Complaining that he’s missing his shows, Raymond asks Sam “why are we here?” as they pull into a parking spot.  Sam is going to introduce Raymond to some people.  If he can’t get to Raymond in a time of need, some of the people they are going to meet will be his back-up.  Raymond tells Sam he doesn’t need someone to “spoon-fed me.”  Sam promises Raymond he will like everyone.  Raymond isn’t so sure.  “Some people are morons.”

Raymond also tells Sam that he doesn’t know how fast whatever his has is going to run through him.  So Raymond wants Sam to know that who he is as a man…Raymond has a hard time saying proud.  Sam knows his father is proud.  After feigning that he didn’t remember why they were in the car, Raymond asks his son to lighten up –  Sam takes things too hard.

Worried that he’s not wearing a collared shirt, Kensi is calming down Deeks, who wanted things to be special.  Kensi promises him it is going it be special.  Rosa runs down the stairs to hug Kensi.  Mrs. King will speak to them next week.  Rosa says hello to “Mr. Deeks” but Deeks tells her Martin or Marty or Martisauarus Rex are all fine.  Deeks thinks it is a Dad joke.  Deeks gets a call – Kilbride wants to see them.  Deeks explains they are busy but they’ll be there.

Really annoyed, Deeks can’t believe that tonight of all nights, they have to see the Admiral at the beach.  Kensi is trying to keep him calm.  Rosa tells them if they have work she’s going to be fine.  She wants to take a walk on the beach – it looks beautiful.  Kensi hands Rosa a phone.  It is so she can keep in contact with both Kensi and Deeks as well as her family back in Guatemala.

Deeks is still railing against Kilbride and their lost dinner reservations when Kensi’s breath is nearly taken away.  She points out the welcome Rosa party starting on the beach.  There are big balloons that spell out ROSA, beach chairs, umbrellas, blankets, a portable barbeque, coolers – Deeks can’t believe it.  Everyone is there – Callen, Anna, Arkady, Sam, Raymond, Fatima, Rountree with the Admiral running the barbeque.  

Confused, Rosa asks who everyone is.  Kensi explains that they are our, and now your family.  Since everyone is excited to meet Rosa, is she ready to meet them.  She is.  Fatima spots them first and everyone is so happy.  Lots of hugging and introducing Rosa.  Kensi and Deeks meet Raymond.  The Admiral introduces himself as Hollace.

Enjoying their meal, the Admiral, Raymond and Arkady are chatting.  The Admiral is complaining about young people putting a lifetime of knowledge in a back seat to “technological acumen.”  Arkady doesn’t know much about young people except his ability to deposit their rent checks.  Raymond announces this is the most fun he’s has since being “kidnapped and brought to LA.”  Arkady talks about being on different sides of the Cold War but now they are comrades, sharing drinks and “a very fine cow.”  The Admiral is not his comrade and if Arkady goes back to his old ways, he will be locked up.  Arkady thinks Kilbride knows how to kill the vibe.  

“My man” Callen brings Sam a beer while Kensi and Anna are playing cornhole behind them.  Callen talks about it being a wacky few months.  Both are glad the deep fakes thing is over.  Kensi and Deeks are parents and Sam is living with his dad.  “Didn’t see that coming.”  Sam asks if Callen will ever speak to Hetty again.  Callen admits he needs to talk to her.  Sam sees Callen watching Anna.  “She’s always been good for you,” Sam tells him.  Callen agrees.

As the sun goes down, almost everyone is in a beach chair around a fire pit.  Anna is standing near the ocean, Callen arrives with a blanket.  He tries to say something but it  takes a second.  Telling Anna that in every aspect of his life, he didn’t know who he was until he met her.  Saying that he can’t give her the normal life she’s looking for, Callen tells Anna he’s broken.  She seems concerned where this is all going.  Callen wants to give her what she wants.  Anna says it is no secret that he is broken.  She’s broken too.  “That’s why we fit.”  They have their normal that makes senses.  The two share I love you’s and a kiss.

Kensi notices Callen going down on one knee and tells the group to shh.  Everyone watches as Callen propose.  Anna is giggling and crying.  She says yes.  Everyone is cheering Callen and Anna.  Another big round of hugs.  Even Arkady hugs Callen.  Sam offers a toast that they dodge all of life’s bullets and have a super successful family.  

What head canon can be formed from here:  Lesley Boone is a keeper as Nina Barnes.  

Doc Paskowitz lived on the beach and surfed for peace with his nine children from his third marriage.

This would have worked perfectly as a series ender.  Callen, the man introduced with no name and no family, now has a name and people who love him.  Sam is being the man his father brought him up to be.  Kensi and Deeks who came from troubled places in their childhoods are offering a safe home they didn’t always have.  

This works perfectly for another reason.  If like my other big show – The X Files – this one screws up the way things go for the characters when it ends, the show can just end here.  Mulder and Scully wound up on his couch sharing a beer and watching “Caddyshack” in “Je Souhaite” (season seven’s second to last episode).  Nothing happened after that. Those four seasons and a movie - nope.  If dumb things happen to this program going forward, it all ends here.

Episode number:  The 22nd and final episode of season 13.  This is the 302nd episode overall.

#NCIS: Los Angeles Rewatch #NCIS: Los Angeles #NCIS: LA #ncis la #NCIS Los Angeles

[petnews2day]

Flying Lizard set for ‘one-off’ IMSA comeback at Long Beach – Motorsport Week

New Post has been published on https://petnews2day.com/news/pet-news/exotic-pet-news/flying-lizard-set-for-one-off-imsa-comeback-at-long-beach-motorsport-week/?utm_source=TR&utm_medium=Tumblr+%230&utm_campaign=social

Flying Lizard set for ‘one-off’ IMSA comeback at Long Beach – Motorsport Week

Flying Lizard Motorsports are set to make their comeback to the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with a single appearance at the Grand Prix of Long Beach on 20 April. Drivers Elias Sabo and Andy Lee will drive the #28 Aston Martin Vantage GTD entrant at the street circuit sprint race, featuring two categories for the […]

See full article at https://petnews2day.com/news/pet-news/exotic-pet-news/flying-lizard-set-for-one-off-imsa-comeback-at-long-beach-motorsport-week/?utm_source=TR&utm_medium=Tumblr+%230&utm_campaign=social #ExoticPetNews

#Exotic Pet News