#✘ || Thin dicked politician ( gregory )

[savedpeople]

//first mini tag drop for updated tags

[bamby0304]

Victoria Grimes VIII: War

Ch.3: The Only Way

Series Masterlist

Summary: Daryl and Victoria have worked through her mistakes made at the Sanctuary and have decided to keep the truth between themselves. But with the war between their communities and the Saviours brewing, their bond will be tested all over again. Lies, death and the threat of defeat are coming for Vickie… will she be strong enough to come through in one piece?

Warnings: Angst. Violence. Death.

Bamby

NPOV

“Well, I, uh… I'd just like to start by saying thank you for having me here today,” Gregory started as he sat across from me.

I didn’t believe this asshole for shit. He was a snake. You could see it in his eyes. He would bend over backwards to save his own ass and throw everyone else under the bus. So of course I didn’t trust him… but people are a resource. I could still use him.

That’s what this meeting was all about. It was why I’d gathered Gavin, Simon, Regina, Dwight and Eugene. My top people. If Gregory proved useful, I wasn’t going to waste any time.

“Negan, let me lay this down straight for you. I know how it is negotiating the slippery, steep terrain of managing resources and the population and the big, scary ‘U’,” he went on. “But you might know, it's called the unknown.” He watched the rest of us, waiting for a reaction- which he didn’t get. I just sat there, with my leg on the table as I fiddled with Lucille. “Listen, I-I mean it when I say it, Negan, I don't like killing people any more than you do.”

“I like killing people.” I grinned.

He squirmed in his seat. “Oh, well, I-”

“I say it's about killing the right people,” I noted. “So, you kill the right people at the right time… everything falls into place. Everybody's happy. Well, some people more than others,” I chuckled, shrugging. “But you kill one, and you could be saving hundreds more. And that is what we are all about. We save people.”

“That's- That's why you're called the- the Saviours. Oh,” he mumbled as if just realising.

Pushing out of his seat, Dwight sighed. “Gonna grab a smoke.”

“Now?” I asked, stopping him from walking outside. “You don't want to hear this?”

He shook his head. “Don't need to. Tell me where to go and what to do, I'll make it happen.

I chuckled as I watched him walk out of the room. I knew I could always count on Dwight-y boy.

“Where were we, Gregory?” I turned back to the man in question. “Oh, that's right. You were telling me that you don't like to kill people, and I was saying that I do.” I paused before adding, “Under the right circumstances.”

“Well, this- this situation that we- we find ourselves in, this- this conflict I can stop it before it even gets started,” he explained. “I mean, here it is. I go to my people, and I- I tell them if- if you're joining with this- this misled crusade, you're no longer citizens of the Hilltop. You're out on your asses.”

“You're still their guy? They still listen to you, Gregory? Can you exile people?”

“The Hilltop is my house. I'm still the guy. I've always been the guy,” he assured me, getting a little defensive.

“Huh.” My eyes turned down to Lucille in thought. “If you're still the guy, if indeed, you have always been the guy, then why the hell didn't you know about the widow leading an army of your people straight up my ass in Alexandria?” I gave him a pointed look, watching as he started to sweat. Leaning forward, I held his gaze as I got serious. “You know what I think, Gregory? I think you're playing both sides. I think you are a thin-dicked politician threading the needle with your thin, thin dick. Now, is listening to you the right way to go, or is it the right place and time for something else?”

“No, no. Not trying to do that. No, not- I was- wasn't aware of things until they were already in- in motion. N-No hesitation. Allegiance, right there, the whole thing. I just- I-I didn't know until I-I knew, you know?”

As Gregory continued to fumble over his words, Simon leaned forward to rest his hand on the man’s shoulder, shutting him up. “Gregory, hey. I believe you. Now make Negan believe you, huh?”

Taking a moment, Gregory got his nerves under control before trying again. “The Hilltop is mine. I let a fox into my hen house. She and her people took advantage of my generous nature. I see that now, and I will fix it.”

“If we go in with the right stage picture, a thick and veiny show of force surrounding Gregory when he lays down the law, I think things go back to copacetic,” Simon noted, trusting the snake beside him. “If they don't, we take a flyer on the place and kill everyone there. Unfortunate play, but the other communities will get the message, and we achieve equilibrium. Plan A. Plan B-”

I slammed Lucille on the table. “People are a resource.” Lucille met the table again. “Money on the table.” Rising from my seat, I continued to hit her against the table. “People are the foundation of what we are building here!”

No one could look at me as their eyes stayed cast down. I could feel the fear in the room, and I was pleased with it. We had morals here, and plan, and vision. We might not be as goody-goody as Rick the Prick might want, be we are about saving, not killing mercilessly.

Resting my hands on the table, I stared Simon down. “Who the hell do you think you're talking to? Are you confused about who we are? Are you confused about who is in charge? Are we backsliding, Simon? Please, tell me we're not backsliding.”

“We're not backsliding,” he assured me. “This is a pronounced event and a fragile moment.”

“Hell, yes, it is. We need to win it all. Plan A is taking the Rick, the Widow, and King Ass-face alive and making them dead in a very, very public and instructive way.”

“What about the Princess? The girl? Rick’s daughter?” Regina looked over at me. “She’s one of them. She’s one of their leaders.”

My jaw clenched as my hands curled into fists. “No one touches the girl.”

“But she’s-”

Once more, I slammed Lucille down onto the table.

“I don’t care if she dictates every second of their lives,” I made sure I said each word clearly and concisely. “I don’t care if she holds the key to every community. I don’t care if she knows every secret, every plan, every step, every single tiny fucking detail. No one touches the girl, am I clear?” I looked at each and every one of them.

There were a few mumbled responses and some nodding heads.

I knew it wouldn’t be enough, though. I couldn’t risk them hurting her. Vickie and I had a deal, a past. She might be back in the arms of her husband, but things had changed. Just like I couldn’t stop thinking about her, I knew she couldn’t stop thinking about me.

“If anyone touches her, I’ll chop them up into pieces, slowly, over months, and I will feed them to themselves. I will make them watch me kill everyone they ever smiled at. Are we understood?”

“Yes, Negan.”

“Good.” Pulling back, I put on a smile as I sat back down. “We kill the right people in the wrongest way possible, and we make them all watch.”

The sound of gunshots had as all pause and turn to the windows behind me.

“Should we get our people out there?” Simon asked as I stepped over to look outside, seeing Rick and his piss patrol. “Line 'em up, light 'em up?”

“No. They got some sort of hillbilly armour,” I noted, seeing the shields they’d built onto their vehicles. “We'd just be wasting metal on metal. And the RPG is stashed at the cache, so let's have ourselves a little chat. Simon, bring your new little friend. We may need him to say some words.”

RPOV

With our gathered crowd of people from our three communities, we stood and waited for Negan and his people to step outside. There was no doubt the gunshots had caught their attention… and the attention of the approaching herd.

The door swung open as Negan stepped out, Lucille in hand and a grin on his face. “Well, shit. I'm sorry. I was in a meeting.”

He took in the number of people we had that he could see as we remained ducked behind the shields we’d fashioned and attached to our vehicles. He didn’t look surprised or shaken, but his ego wouldn’t let him feel either of those things.

“I see you got your little mudflaps with you. So I'm not exactly feelin' a reason for us to try throwin' lead at each other. I care about my people. I don't want to just march them into the line of fire because I won't play ‘my dick is bigger than yours’. It is. We both know it.” His grin grew. “But I'm also comfortable enough to accept the fact if it wasn't. I'm certainly not gonna let my people die over that shit like you're about to. So, Rick, what the hell can I do for you?”

Standing in the open, I lifted my hand and began to point at the people who’d stepped out with Negan. “Dwight. Your name's Simon. You're Gavin. And you?” I paused on a woman.

“Regina,” she called.

“Rick, I'd feel remiss if-“

“No,” I cut Eugene off. “I know who you are.” There was nothing he could say that I wanted to hear. He’d picked his side. “Listen, you five. The Saviours inside. All of you have a chance to survive here. To survive this. You all can live if you surrender. Can't guarantee it any time but now. Right now.”

Leaning his free hand on the railing in front of him, Negan watched me with an amused glint in his eyes. “So they surrender and you and your little piss patrol doesn't kill them. That sounds like a good deal!” He tilted his head. “What about me, Rick?”

“I told you. Twice. You know what's going to happen.”

“I do. I do know what's gonna happen.” He nodded. “You don't. You have no idea the shit that's about to go down. Let me ask you something, Rick… do you think you have the numbers for this fight? You don't.” Looking over his shoulder, he called, “Simon?”

Simon ducked back into the room they’d exited from, and pulled out someone only barely unexpected.

Gregory.

“Of course that's where he went,” Jesus mumbled, not surprised at all.

Negan reached Gregory and wrapped his arm around his shoulders as he looked out at the rest of us. “What do you have to say to the Rick and the piss patrol, Gregory?”

With his hands on his hips, Gregory exclaimed, “The Hilltop stands with Negan and the Saviours. Any resident of the Hilltop who takes up arms or who supports this ultimatum against the Sanctuary or any of the Saviours, for that matter, they will no longer be welcome in the colony.”

“And?” Negan pressed.

“Their families will be thrown out and will be left to fend for themselves.”

Giving his shoulder a pat, Negan stepped away from him as he pressed again, “And?”

“Go home now. Or you won't have a home to go back to!”

The Hilltop people shifted where they stood, weighing the options. Maggie and I looked to each of them, knowing the pressure they were now under. This wasn’t just about their lives. It was about the lives of everyone they loved and cared for.

“You do what you need to do,” Maggie told them all, assuring them that it wouldn’t make her think any less of them.

Jesus, however, simply shrugged. “All I have at the Hilltop are a bunch of books and an old lobster bib.”

“You heard the man. Go back to separating wheat and shit or whatever the hell it is you people do.” Negan watched and waited as no one made a move.

Smiling proudly and smugly, Maggie called, “Doesn't look like anyone's goin', does it?”

“Hilltop stands with-“

Having enough of Gregory, Jesus cut him off, “The Hilltop stands with Maggie!”

The look on Simon’s face had Gregory shaking.

Simon gave Gregory’s chest a hard jap with his finger as he backed the man towards some stairs. “I feel like I invested a lot in you, and I am very, very disappointed.” Shoving Gregory’s shoulders, Simon sent him tumbling down the stairs.

In the distance- though not too far away- we heard a loud explosion go off right as Gregory hit the ground.

VPOV

“How close are we?” Carol asked as the five of us stood on a walkway bridge above the road.

We’d set up a few tripwires that were connected to more dynamite before meeting up here. It was all about us waiting again. Waiting for the walkers. Waiting for the Saviours.

“Close,” Daryl grunted, pulling me closer.

From where we stood, we could see the Sanctuary.

I knew he hated that I was so close to it, again. He hated that I was here. But I had to be, we both knew it. To be honest, he would hate wherever I was, whether it was here with him or back home alone. He was never going to stop worrying about me. I was okay with that, as long as it didn’t affect anything else.

“Shit.”

Tara caught my attention as she looked down at the road. Following her gaze, I spotted a walked walk around the corner of some building and head straight towards our tripwire.

Shifting on the spot as if she wasn’t sure if she should do something, and if so she wasn’t sure what she should do, Tara asked, “Could that thing set it off?”

Morgan answered before anyone else could open their mouths, pulling out his cane. “I got it.” With that, he headed down to deal with the walker, while the four of us watched it, him, and our surroundings.

When he reached the walker, he made quick work of it, but then his body language changed.

“What’s wrong?” I called out to him.

Hurrying towards a dumpster, he yelled, “Saviours!”

Daryl pulled me down as the rest of us ducked, hidden by the bridge's railing. I knelt on my knees and watched as three cars approached before the first one tripped our wire.

The explosion shook the place, causing the other cars the crash into each other, wiping them out.

RPOV

The look on Negan’s face was no longer calm and collected. “Sounds like shit is goin' down, Rick.”

“You ‘lieutenants’, you're gonna have to make up your minds,” I warned.

“Maybe we can take a time-out here-”

I cut Gavin off, not wanting to waste the time we didn’t have, “No. This has to happen now. This is the only way.” Leaning on the railing, Negan grinned, watching me. “You're gonna make me count? Okay. Okay.” I nodded. “I'm counting. Ten! Nine! Eight! Seven!”

“Tell me, Rick,” he started, cutting me off. “How’s Victoria?”

At the mention of my daughter again today, I snapped.

Lifting my gun, I gave up on counting and began to shoot.

DPOV

“It's started.” Carol stood beside Vic and me by my bike.

We watched as the herd from before caught up, drawn in by the explosion.

“Yeah. It was always gonna be that way,” I grunted, offering Vic my canteen of water.

Having no reason to stick around, and other places to get to, Tara turned to the rest of us. “Pleasure doing business with you.”

“Beat 'em,” Morgan added before the two of them headed for their car.

“We will,” Carol called.

Vic handed me the drink back and leaned into my side as I brought the canteen to my lips. I held her with my other arm, wrapped around her waist. We’d been a lot closer lately… because we both knew we’d almost lost each other.

“Shit, this is gonna be fun,” I mumbled as I put the bottle away.

Carol frowned, shaking her head. “No, it isn't.”

“It's better than lettin' things be, though, right?” I countered.

“Yeah. It is.” She couldn’t deny that.

Stepping towards Carol, Vic pulled her into a hug. “Stay safe.”

“You too.” Carol squeezed her before letting her go and turning to me. “Both of you.”

I just gave a short nod as I sat on my bike and waited for Vic to climb on behind me.

Carol jogged off to her own car as Vic and I stayed where we were, one of her arms wrapped around me while the hand of her other rested on her knee with a gun in her grasp. We watched the walkers, waiting for them to get closer as I lit a cigarette and put it between my lips.

“Ready?” I asked, looking over my shoulder at her.

Giving me a small smile, she nodded. “Ready.”

Not needing to be told twice, I started the bike and began to follow the road that led to the Sanctuary. As we neared the first box we’d set up earlier, Vic lifted her gun and shot right after we’d passed it. The dynamite inside exploded, drawing the walkers our way.

That was the plan. To shoot all the bombs we’d set up on the road the Sanctuary and lead the walkers straight to them.

RPOV

We’d been shooting for some time now, just keeping the Saviours at bay while the rest of the plan worked on catching up with us. The aim wasn’t to kill but to scare. To keep the Saviours hidden inside.

“Now!” Maggie yelled over all the gunfire.

The sound of Maggie pressing on the horn of her car was the signal for everyone to get in their vehicles and drive off. It was also one more thing to draw in any walkers nearby.

Slowly, our crowd began to move back to their cars, section by section like we’d practised. I waited for my turn to leave, to move on to the next part of the plan… but then I spotted him.

Negan was on the ground, huddled by the steps. I could see him, which meant it wouldn’t be too hard to take a shot and end all of this before it had to go any further.

Gabriel jumped in the RV and started it towards the Sanctuary gates. Once he had it rolling, he climbed out of the window and let it do the rest as it rolled closer. Right as it got to the gates, he nodded to me and I pulled out a small trigger from my pocket and pressed the button on it.

The RV went up in flames, blowing the gates wide open.

I stayed right where I was, shooting at Negan as he tried to hide. I knew I should have been trying to leave, to get out before it was too late, but I couldn’t not when he was so close. Not when I could end it all now…

“Rick!” Gabriel ran over to me. “He's not going anywhere! Rick! We have to go! Rick! He's not going anywhere! We have to leave now! It's not about you, right?” I stopped, his words finally getting to me. “Not about you,” he repeated.

It was true. None of this was about me. It was about our communities and Negan. We’d made a plan and I had to honour it. Not only because everyone deserved that, but because it was our safest bet- especially with a huge herd of about a hundred walkers headed our way.

Lowering my gun, I gave him a firm now, letting him know I was done. He trusted me and rushed off, moving to his own car. Before I could go, though, I grabbed the polaroid camera out of my vehicle and turned back to the Sanctuary before snapping pictures of the damage we’d done. Then I got in my car and drove off, knowing the walkers weren’t too far behind, and the Saviours had nowhere to run.

Bamby

[londoncapsule]

You know what I think, Gregory? I think you're playing both sides. I think you are a thin-dicked politician threading the needle with your thin, thin dick. Now, is listening to you the right way to go, or is it the right place and time for something else?

[we-love-flandus]

"You know what I think Gregory? I think you're playing both sites. I think you're a thin-dicked politician, trying to thread the needle with your thin, thin dick." - Negan

[jokerasylum91]

Negan: hmm..If you're still *The Guy*....if you indeed have always..... been.... the guy....then why the hell didn't you know about the widow leading an army of your people straight up my ass in Alexandria ? ....You know what i think Gregory ? I think you're playin' both sides.... i think you are a thin dicked politician threadin the needle with your thin thin dick.... now is listening to you the right way to go? or is it the right place and time for somethin else....

Me: *emotionally dehydrated/exhausted from JDM being an absolute daddy in this scene*

[sueboohscorner]

#TheWalkingDead Season 8 Episode 5 'The Big Scary U' In-Depth Recap and Questions

Sunday, November 19th

Sunday's episode of The Walking Dead was fantastic! Slowly but surely, everything is beginning to show how it all came to fruition. From the "pancake" comment directed at Gregory in 'Monsters' to Negan's arrival back into The Sanctuary, all questions left unanswered were finally resolved. Let's get down to it, shall we?

*WARNING: THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS GRAPHIC DETAIL FROM SUNDAY'S EPISODE OF THE WALKING DEAD. IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THIS EPISODE, TURN BACK NOW. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED*

For the past four episode of this season, we hadn't seen Father Gabriel until now. When the episode opened, he was seen (presumably) inside the Alexandrian church. He was making a final prayer, praying for a purposeful death if it may fall upon him. Simon is seen bringing Gregory pancakes Simon made "himself." He tells the cowardly former leader of The Colony that he did well by coming to him when things went disarray. Gregory repeats for the umpteenth time what happened to Simon, but Simon isn't the one who needs persuading. It's Negan. When brought to the meeting, he addresses Negan, Dwight, Eugene, Regina and another Savior. Gregory has all, but Negan convinced. Negan  addresses Gregory's comment about "not liking to kill." "I like to kill. But it's about killing the right people. If you kill the right people at the right time, everything falls into place, everybody's happy. If you kill one, you could save hundreds." As Dwight excuses himself, Gregory says he can stop it before it begins. But, Negan questions Gregory's roll in the whole situation. Negan wants to know why "the guy" didn't know how the Widow planned driving an army up his ass if they were truly underneath his command. Negan believes Gregory is a "thin dicked politician who likes to thread the needle with his thin, thin dick."

Negan asks if they should listen to him or continue with "another route". Gregory says Maggie and her people took advantage of his generosity. Simon lays out a plan A which Negan doesn't find too appealing. Negan asks Simon if he's backsliding. Simon says no. Taking Rick, the Widow, and King Assface and killing them publicly is plan A. Gunfire is heard. Negan says the "Well Shit," line as he and the others pile out. When it came back to the 'present', he and Gabriel are seen in the trailer. Negan tackles him and checks his weapons. One's empty and one's full. Gabriel says he wasn't planning to fire and Negan praises him for doing so. He helps him to a sitting position and they talk. Negan tells him Rick's gonna get people killed. Negan admits to killing Glenn and Abe but Rick got them killed. Negan just killed them. Gabriel says his worst fear to Negan: a fruitful death.  Negan laughs. Then, Gabriel says "Maybe I'm here to take your confession."   

   When the commercials end, Rick and Daryl question the Savior who they got the machine guns from. He tells them everyone at the chemical plant is dead including the King, the Axeman, and the psycho short-haired lady. The Savior dies. Negan tells Gregory the only thing that he has to confess is he rubbed one out where Gabriel currently sat. Negan asks why Gregory became reverent. Gabriel says to help people. Negan says him, also. Regina and the others are in the meeting hall. Regina says they must assume Negan is dead. Simon says he's Negan as are the rest of them. She lays out a plan which Eugene does no5 agree with. She says maybe they should put "The Thinking Man" out there. Dwight agrees with Eugene. Gavin says that someone in the room is responsible for what happened there. Dwight and Simon banter back and forth before Dwight finally says that Simon can't lead but he can. Simon gets in his face and congratulates him. Dwight meets back with Eugene and Eugene thanks him for having his back and offers him his jar of cucumbers. Dwight says if he didn't say it, he would've. Negan tells Gabriel he helped kids "before." Negan calls people weak. Gabe calls Negan weak, and he both agrees and disagrees with the reverent. Negan says he's both strong as f weak because "everyone is a mix. If you use your weaknesses to drive your strength, they obviously you become strong as shit." He tells Gabriel the Sanctuary is where it is because of him. He tells Gabriel he's gonna find his special purpose. Gabe says he's strong; he asks Negan what makes him weak. He touches a nerve in the big villain about the wives, asking if be had a wife "before." Negan raises Lucille and says "Lucille, give me strength," then Gabriel goes to grab the gun and Negan swings. He ducks into a closet. Negan tells Gabriel "It's time to go."

   Daryl struts down the incline and investigates the truck that's currently dripping gasoline. He and Rick pull out a crate full of dynamite. Daryl wants to blow up the compound. Rick isn't for it. Daryl won't listen to Rick's reasoning, and he socks him. Rick jumps up and tackles Daryl. Daryl lands one helluva sucker punch to the ground when Rick rolls. Then, Daryl gets Rick in a choke hold. Rick throws the dynamite into the flaming truck. Rick calls to Daryl, and they jump out of the way as the truck explodes. They watch the pyrotechnics.

   Rick attempts to start the ditched truck, but it's not working. Daryl pulls up. Rick tells him to follow the plan. Daryl says they need to win. Rick says "Uh yeah. And choke hold's illegal, asshole." Daryl says "uh huh, sure is." They split up. Daryl goes one way, and Rick goes the other. Negan begins mapping out their escape. Gabriel confesses his early doomsday acts and tells Negan that he'll come along with him if he confesses. So, Negan does. "My first wife was a real wife, my only real wife, till death do us part. I lied to her, screwed around on her. She was sick. When she went out, it was during this. I couldn't put her down. That's how I was weak." Gabe comes out and offers the handgun. Says he's forgiven. Negan thanks him. Then, they begin covering themselves in putrid walker guts. They make noise then the walkers are let in. They go unnoticed for a while until Gregory trips. Negan and he go to battle then get to the stairs where more walkers wait.

   In the meeting room, the blonde Savior that flirted with Spencer comes in, says the workers are coming. Simon addresses them. Tempers are high, but Dwight defuses. The workers demand answers. Simon tells them to get back to the factory floor. Regina suddenly shoots a worker and then Negan's whistle is heard. He ridicules Regina, says he's in need of a sandwich, a shower and a deep tissue thing a guy named Frankie learned in San Fransisco. He then proceeds to reiterate them just who he is. He carries Lucille, he wears a leather jacket and has nuts of steel. He then turns to Gabe and says "That's why I'm here." They discuss who took the guns and who let it happen. Rick is seen walking. Suddenly, a helicopter is seen going over his head. Wait, what!? 

   When the meeting lets out, Negan calls Eugene back. He offers him a way out with either a luxury life or an easy death. Rick is seen through a blurry scope. The scout whistles. Eugene is seen bringing Gabriel a pillow and welcoming him to The Sanctuary. When he doesn't respond, he unlocks the door. Gabe is seen sweating. He says he found his purpose; to get Doctor Carson back to Maggie.

What did you think of this episode? Will Gabriel Survive? Was he bitten? Why has Rick gone back to the Scavengers? Where is Daryl headed and why is Negan in total buddy mood? Tune in this Sunday at 9 p.m. only on AMC.

Editor: Joeleen Gatlin

[uacboo]

I have been reading a lot recently about how models are treated really badly. I thought this had been sorted out ages ago. -Charles, by email Yes, mysterious, isn’t it? Rather like how we sorted out that fashion magazines were no longer going to feature skinny models. And yet here we are again, with models complaining about how horrendously they are treated, and magazines not exactly lacking in visible hip bones. Huh. It’s almost like the fashion industry … just doesn’t care? Let’s unravel this story one grim revelation at a time. In a long post on Instagram last month, the respected fashion show casting director James Scully wrote about specific instances of the fashion industry being, for want of a better phrase, a massive dick. Along with the usual depressing stories of racism, with one label allegedly refusing to audition any models of colour for their show (they responded saying the claim was “completely untrue”), Scully called out Balenciaga’s casting directors, Maida Gregori Boina and Rami Fernandes, whom he described as “serial abusers”. Boina and Fernandes, Scully wrote, left 150 models in a dark stairwell for hours at a time, leaving many “traumatised.” Boina and Fernandes have firmly denied these claims, although models Judith Schiltz and Mollie Gondi posted comments on Scully’s post verifying some of his accusations. Balenciaga has said that they are no longer working with Boina and Fernandes and apologised to modelling agencies, but Gondi wrote, “The apology to the agencies from the fashion house is laughable because the agents have known this for years and don’t think twice because they want their girl in the show.” Meanwhile, in Australia, a news programme screened last week in which one model, Victoire Dauxerre, was asked if she thought a woman could be a successful model without having an eating disorder. “No,” she replied. “I felt like I needed to shave a bone off. I didn’t know how to get smaller,” another model, Edyn Mackney, said. “It is like the only ideal of beauty today is to be skinny”. Let’s deal with the skinny stuff first, again, because fashion is basically just Groundhog Day, with the same trends and issues coming round and round and round, driving a lady to do a lot worse than throw a radio playing Sonny and Cher at the wall. It’s not “like the only ideal of beauty today is skinny” – that is literally the only ideal of beauty, and it doesn’t matter how many times Karlie Kloss poses with her kookies (geddit?!?!?) in front of her thigh gap, or how many condescending articles fashion magazines run with plus-size model Ashley Graham (she’s not skinny – but we accept her! Like a weird pet!). Emma Thompson reiterated this point last week when she said, “Actresses who are into their 30s simply don’t eat.” Some newspapers said Thompson “revealed” this insight into Hollywood, but the only people who could have found this to be a revelation had to be as blinkered as Aaron Sorkin, who recently professed himself to be amazed “that women and minorities have a more difficult time getting their stuff read than white men”. The man might be able to walk and talk but apparently not look and think. Thin is in, and that is not changing. And extreme thinness is still equated with the ultimate aspiration in too many people’s minds, especially in the fashion industry. The only thing we, the public, can do about it is not to buy from labels that use extremely skinny models in their adverts and shows, and write to them to tell them this. Fashion labels can ignore well-intended if woolly edicts from politicians and even fashion magazine editors. But they never overlook a missed sale. As to the actual abuse of models, stories of high-end models demanding tens of thousands to get out of bed, or throwing their jewelled mobile phones into the brains of cowering minions, have given the public the idea that models are all pampered divas. But news that 99% of models are treated like expendable dairy cattle will come as no surprise to anyone who has ever been on a fashion shoot or to a show. As one young woman put it in a recent survey about how models are treated, “We have a job that millions of girls would kill for, so we should be happy with what we’re doing, even if it has a dark and sadistic side to it.” That pretty much sums it up, and it’s an attitude many other young people working in similarly much-desired professions – pop music, acting, even certain kinds of journalism – will recognise. It’s pretty telling how little people talk about the abuse models have repeatedly said they suffer, focusing instead all their outrage on how models make them feel. And the reason for that is pretty obvious: people see models as mean girls, deliberately making us sadface with their skinniness, as opposed to thinking about what goes into making these images. When stories like Scully’s come out, people say, “Well, why don’t these models just get different jobs?”, as though modelling were a lighthearted hobby for silly little girls and jobs grew on trees for young women. That models are treated so badly by the industry is an indictment of fashion; that the public is so uninterested in these stories is damning proof that most people are as bad as the fashion industry at failing to see models for what they are: vulnerable young women. Source: The Guardian

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In the latest episode of The Walking Dead, Father Gabriel finds his purpose.

The last time we saw Father Gabriel, he was stuck in a trailer with Negan after that punk Gregory stole his armored car.  In this episode, we see some of the events leading up to the showdown at the Sanctuary.  Father Gabriel is praying.  He no longer fears death, and asks that if he should die, that it be worth something.  This conversation already has my hackles up because now I’m worried that something may happen to him.

At the Sanctuary, Gregory is in a room napping when Simon walks in with breakfast.  Gregory is understandably leery of anything he gets from that psycho.  The Saviors never give you something for nothing.  Simon wants Gregory to shut down the rebellion before it even begins.  Why the Saviors have any faith in that coward is beyond me.  Later, Gregory meets with Negan, Simon, Dwight and a few others (including that traitor Eugene) to convince them of his worth.  Dwight excuses himself from the meeting (to possibly meet with Daryl).  Gregory tells Negan that he’ll exile anyone from the Hilltop who joins the revolt but Negan doesn’t think he still has the clout.  He thinks he’s a punk.  “You’re a thin dick politician threading the needle with your thin, thin dick.”  Leave it to Negan to point out the obvious in a creative way.

Negan asks Gregory how come he didn’t know about Maggie and the attack at Alexandria.  I burst out laughing when I saw Gregory’s face because he was petrified.  He started stammering and speaking incoherently, causing Simon to calm him down.  Gregory puts on a good front and tells Negan he’ll shut everything down.  Then Simon jumps in and says if the residents of the Hilltop don’t cooperate they’ll just kill everyone.  Negan slams Lucille on the table and says that people are “resources.”  In other words, no one’s killing anyone unless it’s necessary.  Then Negan quietly asks Simon if he forgot who was in charge.  Simon (with a frightened Eugene sitting next to him) backtracks and says that it was “a pronounced event and a fragile moment.”  Negan told the group that Rick, Maggie and King Ezekiel will die in front of everyone in the worst way possible.  And then we hear gunshots.  Rick and Co. have arrived.  Negan tells his group that they’re going out to chat with Rick and they all walk out.

Back to present day, Negan and Father Gabriel are trapped.  Instead of using his gun and blowing Negan’s brains out, Father Gabriel gets slammed to the ground and his gun taken.  Seriously????  You had one job!!  After, the two men start talking (cuz they ain’t going anywhere) and then Father Gabriel says that he knows his purpose:  it’s to hear Negan’s confession?  Okay, huh???  What’s happening??

Inside, Simon and the rest are trying to figure out what to do about fixing their situation.  They try to come up with a solution, which would involve using the workers as bait for the walkers.  They feel like the workers are expendable so who cares?  Eugene speaks up and says that idea won’t work and Dwight agrees.  The workers would revolt and then the Sanctuary would be in chaos.  Which is what almost ends up happening.  The workers come upstairs and start complaining about the lack of air and water.  Simon tries to take charge but the workers aren’t having it.  Then Regina shoots one of the workers right before Negan and Gabriel walk in.  The men found their way back to the Sanctuary, covering themselves in walker guts.  After Negan makes himself known, the workers are controlled and all is back in order again.  Father Gabriel is taken to a room (probably the same one that held Daryl) until further notice.

Outside, Rick and Daryl are trying to get information from the Savior Rick stabbed.  He tells them that all of their people are dead except for Ezekiel, Jerry and Carol.  They go through the overturned jeep to find dynamite.  Daryl starts packing it so they can blow up the Sanctuary.  Rick wants to stick to the plan but Daryl wants to end it all.  Rick knows there are families who work for Negan and wants them to be on their side, but Daryl is like, nah man, let’s get this show on the road.  Rick tries to stop Daryl and gets punched in the face for his trouble.  Then the two friends start fighting!  Daryl puts Rick in a choke hold, bringing Rick down to the ground.  While these two idiots are fighting, the jeep blows up thanks to Rick tossing the dynamite during the fight.  Afterwards, the two men, still salty with each other, continue with the plan, going their separate ways.  While Rick is walking to his destination, he sees of all things a helicopter.  Where the hell did that come from?  He decides to walk the same way the coptor went, and ends up being spotted by one the creepy Scavengers.  He alerts the others, using some sort of whistle.  So weird.

At the Sanctuary, Eugene brings Father Gabriel some items and starts rambling on and on.  But Father doesn’t answer.  When Eugene opens the door, Father Gabriel is sweating profusely.  Dammit, I knew something would happen to him!!

Will Father Gabriel survive?  Will Dwight’s betrayal be revealed?  And will Rick and Daryl make up?

Stay tuned.

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on AMC.  Photos courtesy of AMC.

The Walking Dead, Season 8 – The Big Scary U In the latest episode of The Walking Dead, Father Gabriel finds his purpose. The last time we saw Father Gabriel, he was stuck in a trailer with Negan after that punk Gregory stole his armored car. 

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AMC’s The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 5: “The Big Scary U” Directed by Michael E. Strazemis Written by David Leslie Johnson & Angela Kang

* For a recap & review of the previous episode, “Some Guy” – click here * For a recap & review of the next episode, “The King, the Widow, and Rick” – click here In the dark of that trailer where we last left him, Father Gabriel Stokes (Seth Gilliam) is living out who knows what sort of terror. We skip back to a time before, when he prayed at his church for God to show him the way. “What I fear is a fruitless death. And what I ask for, after you have given me so much, is purpose.” Back at the compound, Simon (Steven Ogg) treats Gregory (Xander Berkeley) to a decent breakfast. He’s always poking, though. He worries about the problems at Hilltop, Alexandria, the Kingdom. He presses the weaker man, the former leader at Hilltop, who’s so easily manipulated. A little while later Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and the Saviors sit at their table, listening to Gregory ramble on about “the big scary U,” as in “the unknown.” He does what he can to stay in the favour of the man holding Lucille. They talk about killing; Negan digs killing, long as it’s the right people. This is before Gregory went back to Hilltop, trying to “exile people” if they don’t agree to work with Negan and the Saviors. But the leader believes he’s a “thin dicked politician” offering nothing but lip service. And he doesn’t take too kindly to Simon trying to stick up for his cowardly buddy. Therefore, he says they need to get the widow – Maggie (Lauren Cohan) – King “Assface” Ezekiel (Khary Payton), and Rick (Andrew Lincoln). Kill them in a horrible way for all to see. Make an example. Yikes. And now we’re back to a different perspective of what occurred after Rick and the rest of them came crashing down. Skip ahead to Negan and Gabriel in that trailer. The latter’s rushed by the former, though there isn’t a lot of fight. They’re stuck in there together, so I guess at least until they’re out of the predicament the horde of zombies is posing right outside, Negan might do well to keep an extra pair of hands around. Very compelling to see a sort of ‘big evil’ stuck in close quarters with a devout, righteous sort of character like Father Gabriel. Daryl (Norman Reedus) and Rick interrogate the Savior they’ve run down on the road, who tells them it was a massacre, everyone is dead. This leads them to believe their friends have been killed, as well. Meanwhile, Simon and the gang are inside the compound wondering whether their leader’s been killed. This leads us to wonder, as Negan suggests to Gabriel, if the leader is, in a sick sense, a safeguard against even worse atrocities? If he wasn’t around, would they devolve into utter chaotic violence? Well the Saviors are also starting to suspect a rat in their midst helped the assault from Rick and his friends. This puts Dwight (Austin Amelio) on the offensive, suggesting he’ll lead their people out of there; he’s not suspected, of course, it’s mostly Eugene (Josh McDermitt). Mr. Smarty Pants stops by later with a thank you for Dwight, for getting the heat off him. What an odd little situation. In that trailer, Negan rants about his strengths, his leadership qualities. This prompts Gabriel to reveal he was at the satellite station when Saviors were murdered. The priest pushes more, wanting the man to confess and beg forgiveness of God, of his fellow man. He pleads to whatever humanity’s left in him. “I haven‘t killed anyone who didn‘t need it,” Negan says. He’s a microcosm of the leaders people let rule them out of fear, fear of the unknown, fear of something else, fear of the other; he saves people by using them, bending them to his will, by force yet pretending it isn’t by force at all. Soon we end up with Gabriel attacking Negan from behind, slipping away into the back of the trailer with a gun. On the road Daryl and Rick search the truck run off the road, finding dynamite. Daryl wants to blow a whole in the compound, let walkers do the job. But Rick is afraid it’ll cause families to die, people stuck under the thumb of the Saviors and their leader. He doesn’t want to risk. We see more of the divide between Daryl and Rick, the former not willing to let people die anymore, he wants to kill first. The two friends get into a fight of their own. Now THAT is a goddamn fist fight right there, two tough bastards. They nearly blow each other up after Rick tosses the dynamite and the truck explodes. All that for, essentially, nothing. Plus now they’re both pissed off. Most intense is that trailer, where Negan tries coaxing the priest out of that room. Gabriel confesses about what he did at his church, locking people out during the beginning of the zombie epidemic. He knows redemption is possible, he’s living it every single day. I don’t think there’s any redemption for Negan. Although he talks about his first “real wife.” She got sick, before the fall of society. And when she died he couldn’t put her out of her misery. This gets Gabriel out of the room. Two men against a horde of zombies. They’re doing the old cover-yourself-in-guts-routine; when in doubt! They get outside and the dead are everywhere. The place is covered, completely. Like a rock concert, bodies mashed together. Things get dicey, then they’re forced to start swinging and firing to make it out alive, each protecting the other as much as possible.

Inside, the Saviors are still arguing about what’s gone on. They’ve got bigger problems, all the workers are gathering and near rebellion. Without Negan around, who’s to stop them? Things are shit. Nobody has any answers, and it’s starting to make the class division amongst this little society more clear than ever. It all changes once the leader himself arrives, his signature whistle putting everyone on their knees bowing. He’s arrived. Negan and Gabriel together. The whole situation with how things got like this is going to be a lot scarier, too. I know Eugene’s pissing his pants pretty right about now. What’s worse is Gabriel is looking very sick; is he bitten, or just ill? Shit, I didn’t expect that. “Well, here‘s a little refresher on who the hell I am: I wear a leather jacket, I have Lucille, and my nutsack is made of steel. I am not dyin‘ until I‘m damn good and ready.” Out in the woods, Rick thinks he sees a helicopter in the air. Does he? Or is it him hallucinating? Hard to tell. He’s heading to speak with Jadis (Pollyanna McIntosh) and her trash people in the nihilist garbage dump. MAAAAN, this was a lowkey episode, yet it was incredible. Loved seeing a different side of Negan, even if only for a brief few moments. He showed a tiny bit of vulnerability, and somehow that makes him really unsettling, knowing there WAS a human down in there somewhere, at some point. “The King, the Widow, and Rick” is next week. Bring it on. The Walking Dead – Season 8, Episode 5: “The Big Scary U” AMC's The Walking Dead Season 8, Episode 5: "The Big Scary U" Directed by Michael E.

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tag dump pt 2

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In the latest episode of The Walking Dead, Father Gabriel finds his purpose.

The last time we saw Father Gabriel, he was stuck in a trailer with Negan after that punk Gregory stole his armored car.  In this episode, we see some of the events leading up to the showdown at the Sanctuary.  Father Gabriel is praying.  He no longer fears death, and asks that if he should die, that it be worth something.  This conversation already has my hackles up because now I’m worried that something may happen to him.

At the Sanctuary, Gregory is in a room napping when Simon walks in with breakfast.  Gregory is understandably leery of anything he gets from that psycho.  The Saviors never give you something for nothing.  Simon wants Gregory to shut down the rebellion before it even begins.  Why the Saviors have any faith in that coward is beyond me.  Later, Gregory meets with Negan, Simon, Dwight and a few others (including that traitor Eugene) to convince them of his worth.  Dwight excuses himself from the meeting (to possibly meet with Daryl).  Gregory tells Negan that he’ll exile anyone from the Hilltop who joins the revolt but Negan doesn’t think he still has the clout.  He thinks he’s a punk.  “You’re a thin dick politician threading the needle with your thin, thin dick.”  Leave it to Negan to point out the obvious in a creative way.

Negan asks Gregory how come he didn’t know about Maggie and the attack at Alexandria.  I burst out laughing when I saw Gregory’s face because he was petrified.  He started stammering and speaking incoherently, causing Simon to calm him down.  Gregory puts on a good front and tells Negan he’ll shut everything down.  Then Simon jumps in and says if the residents of the Hilltop don’t cooperate they’ll just kill everyone.  Negan slams Lucille on the table and says that people are “resources.”  In other words, no one’s killing anyone unless it’s necessary.  Then Negan quietly asks Simon if he forgot who was in charge.  Simon (with a frightened Eugene sitting next to him) backtracks and says that it was “a pronounced event and a fragile moment.”  Negan told the group that Rick, Maggie and King Ezekiel will die in front of everyone in the worst way possible.  And then we hear gunshots.  Rick and Co. have arrived.  Negan tells his group that they’re going out to chat with Rick and they all walk out.

Back to present day, Negan and Father Gabriel are trapped.  Instead of using his gun and blowing Negan’s brains out, Father Gabriel gets slammed to the ground and his gun taken.  Seriously????  You had one job!!  After, the two men start talking (cuz they ain’t going anywhere) and then Father Gabriel says that he knows his purpose:  it’s to hear Negan’s confession?  Okay, huh???  What’s happening??

Inside, Simon and the rest are trying to figure out what to do about fixing their situation.  They try to come up with a solution, which would involve using the workers as bait for the walkers.  They feel like the workers are expendable so who cares?  Eugene speaks up and says that idea won’t work and Dwight agrees.  The workers would revolt and then the Sanctuary would be in chaos.  Which is what almost ends up happening.  The workers come upstairs and start complaining about the lack of air and water.  Simon tries to take charge but the workers aren’t having it.  Then Regina shoots one of the workers right before Negan and Gabriel walk in.  The men found their way back to the Sanctuary, covering themselves in walker guts.  After Negan makes himself known, the workers are controlled and all is back in order again.  Father Gabriel is taken to a room (probably the same one that held Daryl) until further notice.

Outside, Rick and Daryl are trying to get information from the Savior Rick stabbed.  He tells them that all of their people are dead except for Ezekiel, Jerry and Carol.  They go through the overturned jeep to find dynamite.  Daryl starts packing it so they can blow up the Sanctuary.  Rick wants to stick to the plan but Daryl wants to end it all.  Rick knows there are families who work for Negan and wants them to be on their side, but Daryl is like, nah man, let’s get this show on the road.  Rick tries to stop Daryl and gets punched in the face for his trouble.  Then the two friends start fighting!  Daryl puts Rick in a choke hold, bringing Rick down to the ground.  While these two idiots are fighting, the jeep blows up thanks to Rick tossing the dynamite during the fight.  Afterwards, the two men, still salty with each other, continue with the plan, going their separate ways.  While Rick is walking to his destination, he sees of all things a helicopter.  Where the hell did that come from?  He decides to walk the same way the coptor went, and ends up being spotted by one the creepy Scavengers.  He alerts the others, using some sort of whistle.  So weird.

At the Sanctuary, Eugene brings Father Gabriel some items and starts rambling on and on.  But Father doesn’t answer.  When Eugene opens the door, Father Gabriel is sweating profusely.  Dammit, I knew something would happen to him!!

Will Father Gabriel survive?  Will Dwight’s betrayal be revealed?  And will Rick and Daryl make up?

Stay tuned.

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on AMC.  Photos courtesy of AMC.

The Walking Dead, Season 8 – Some Guy In the latest episode of The Walking Dead, Father Gabriel finds his purpose. The last time we saw Father Gabriel, he was stuck in a trailer with Negan after that punk Gregory stole his armored car.