#Gabriel is unfit for the public

[alexanderdarkomorningstar]

Thinking about the time my ex actually believed my alter ego was a whole ass person I was having an affair with 💀

[galactic-glamour-girl-posts]

RANT : ML Season 5's Ending

I don't post about Miraculous much, but I need to get this off my chest.

WARNING :

Salt. Just...all the salt.

Chloe:

I don't like Chloe, she's a horrible person and hogged a lot of screen time throughout the show that could have been given to other characters, such as Nino. However, I find it disturbing that they decided to send a teenage girl to live with her abuser, with absolutely no friends; meanwhile her father, who only deciding to put his foot down last minute, gets to quit the job he's always hated anyway (even though he's abused his power before, and not just for Chloe's sake) without being called out for how he spoiled his daughter AND the adult magical terrorist gets a statue.

Not to mention Felix, a teenage boy who also has done terrible things, basically gets away scot-free. Remember when he basically tried to kill EVERYONE except for four people including himself, remember when he tried to force himself onto Ladybug, remember when he gave all the miraculous to a terrorist, remember when all it took to "redeem" himself was to emotionally manipulate someone in a vulnerable state into watching a play to convince her to solve the problem he caused for him (btw I can't believe Kagami came up with that plan and revealed Ladybug's identity behind her back, what the heck?) I get that he was abused, at the end of the day he's an abuse victim doing literally anything he can to gain the freedom he never had, but if he gets sympathy after all of that, what about Chloe? She was abused, she was neglected. Felix not only is seemingly forgiven and "redeemed", but still gets to be a permanent miraculous holder. When you combine that with how the narrative treats Gabriel and Andre, it looks like a sexist double standard...probably because it is.

Chloe sucks but that isn't entirely her fault. Andre spoiled her rotten, Audrey was a horrible influence when she wasn't straight up neglecting or verbally abusing her, Miss Bustier coddled her and Damocles let her get away with pretty much anything (although in their case I guess the mayor would've prevented them from letting Chloe face substantial consequences), Gabriel (and Lila) manipulated her multiple times. I'm not absolving Chloe of all blame, but she's 14. Leaving her with her abuser is horrible. That isn't cathartic, it's cruel. I'm not even asking for a redemption, I just think this "punishment" is too much.

Gabriel (and Tomoe too I guess):

Let's talk more about Gabriel. Gabriel, the abusive father, the magical terrorist, the guy that spent some of his final moments manipulating a teen, not only gets to make his wish, but also gets to be remembered as a hero. Statue included. Never mind that pretty much all of Adrien's classmates knew he was a terrible father at this point, they all clap and cheer when it's revealed he's getting a statue. The whole world is lied to and told the Alliance rings were hijacked by Monarch and that Gabriel sacrificed himself whilst trying to help stop him (I don't blame Ladybug for that though, I'm solely blaming the writers here). And we're supposed to be fine with this because he misses his wife and "tried to be a good father"? No.

An abused teenage girl is supposedly terrible beyond redemption, but an adult abuser is essentially outright vindicated by the narrative (the person he abused is tricked into thinking he was a hero, and Paris is basically a utopia post-wish). What a horrible message.

Remember, this may not be the end of the show, but this is the end of Gabriel's Agreste's story, and what an unfitting end it is.

Oh, and Tomoe gets away scot-free by the looks of it, because of course. Maybe she'll get comeuppance in a later season, but I'm not gonna defend the finale because of what a future episode might do, especially when this would've been the perfect time (and this goes for the possibility of Gabriel's secret identity being revealed to the public too).

Adrien:

I think Adrien is easily the most overrated character in the show. He's constantly coddled by the narrative, tends to "inspire" Marinette to be more passive and forgiving than she should be, and is incredibly bland (or at least he was until they started pushing just how angry he could get and how entitled to Ladybug's love he could feel, which I guess is something, but that something sure isn't pleasant); but you're telling me he doesn't get to have a legit passion beyond knowing he loves Marinette, to be involved in the final battle, to find out his dad is Monarch OR even that he's a sentimonster? He needs to know his life is tied to that ring and that he should be careful with it. This isn't "protecting him" (he's not a baby, if Felix eventually came to terms with being a sentimonster so can Adrien), if anything it's the opposite. Not letting him know that is dangerous! If not Marinette, Felix? Kagami? Nathalie? No one's going to tell him?! I hate to say it, but by robbing him of his agency and deciding they know what's best for him, they're being controlling over Adrien too; and no, I don't think that's "interesting", not after five seasons of Adrien already being controlled by someone else.

What is the show even trying to say? That Adrien needs to be controlled because he can't handle his emotions? Forget about giving him time or a good support system, he just wouldn't be able to handle it? If it was just his nightmare that'd be one thing, but Chat Blanc seems to indicate this is legitimately what they're saying. Why is this show trying to portray an abuse victim as someone who's dangerous and needs to be kept under control? Not just dangerous, but ultimately more dangerous than his abuser, since Gabriel made his wish and everything turned out fine (and at worst maybe one innocent person would have died/fallen into a coma had his wish not changed), but in "Chat Blanc" EVERYONE other than Chat died.

It does not matter if he finds out in a later season; it doesn't change the fact that his family is willingly lying to him and potentially endangering him by doing so, all for the sake of his abuser. Sure, you could argue Gabriel emotionally manipulated Marinette, but what's everyone else's excuse? I don't care if it leads to "interesting conflict", a) it's a conflict they've done before (Ladybug keeping secrets from Chat Noir), I'm not gonna praise the show for repeating itself, b) don't tell me telling Adrien the truth would've been "too sad" for the show to do but Marinette having to keep her mouth shut about Gabriel for the rest of her life (or even temporarily) is "interesting angst" (at least try to hide your favouritism, besides it's never even implied she feels guilty over this), and c) it's not like it will have a satisfying payoff, after all, it didn't last time. Even if Adrien does find out, Gabriel's not around anymore, so chances are Marinette will have to suffer the consequences of that, not Gabriel. That's not satisfying.

Like...Gabriel may as well have been related to Marinette instead (not her father but her uncle or something). Why not? Remember when he was her favourite fashion designer? (Don't worry if you don't, the show doesn't either.) Maybe have him become her mentor, imagine how much more of a personal impact Ladybug and Monarch finding out each other's identities could've had on both of them.

Why even have the main villain be related to the deuteragonist (giving him a closer connection to the main villain of the show than the actual main character) if you were just gonna side-line him in the final battle and rob him of any sense of closure? Whatever drama they can squeeze out of him finding out who Monarch is (IF he does) won't be nearly as interesting as it would've been to see Chat Noir confront Monarch, face to face, knowing that he's his father. Adrien might not even remember Gabriel being abusive at all, it's not made clear. But if he doesn't, all that time spent on Adrien's relationship with his father, building up a big confrontation between them? Wasted.

Remember how season 4 ended? How it built up Ladybug and Chat Noir working together to retrieve all the Miraculous back, after a season of them being more distant?

What a joke.

Is he the deuteragonist, or a trophy? The show can't seem to decide.

Marinette:

And then there's Marinette who, in a show that supposedly wants to empower young girls, doesn't even get to defeat the main male bad guy. After multiple seasons with her as the main lead, after multiple episodes where she's apologised or made to feel bad for either completely justifiable reactions or things that straight up weren't her fault (remember when she was made to say she was "out of line" at the end of an episode that was supposed to be about racism and police aggression?) meanwhile other characters rarely apologise to her in return, we don't even get the satisfaction of seeing her truly defeat the person that's caused her so much grief.

Seriously, she went through so much in this show; between the class consistently siding with Lila over her (btw turns out Lila basically had nothing to lose the whole time because she had multiple identities, yet another unsatisfying conclusion to a conflict), being forced to become a guardian, losing all the Miraculous, etc, and for what?

She failed. That's not me being too harsh. She may have influenced Gabriel to change his wish (emphasis on "may have", I'm pretty sure that woman was originally Emilie but in that case Nathalie being healed doesn't make sense), but her goal was to prevent the wish in the first place.

And why did they have to make her look like a fool? Felix's play spelled it out for her that Gabriel is Monarch, she even realises that he referred to the day she lost the Miraculous, but from the way it's presented she only figures out Gabe's Monarch after seeing him de-transform? Why did she think giving him a another chance would turn out well? She tried that all the way back in season 2, and it didn't work. Marinette is kind-hearted but she has her limits. You're telling me Lila crossed a line but Monarch could maybe be reasoned with? Why? Because he has a sob story?

Marinette is strategic and quick-witted. She's not an idiot.

Gabriel gets to make his wish and everyone else (who am I kidding, just Ladybug) has to clean up after him. Not only that, Ladybug does him a favour and ensures everyone is tricked into believing he was a hero. If anything, Chat Noir, the main male superhero, landed the killing blow.

Great. Just great. How empowering.

Bonus nit-picks:

--Did everyone on the planet seriously forget that the Adrien and Kagami in the Alliance rings aren't real, they're virtual simulations? That wasn't a secret. How did they fall for Gabriel's fake plea?

--If they were gonna put the girls from the specials and Future!Alix on the poster, they could've have them do more at least.

--Okay, Luka training with Su-Han was random but I guess since he was a temporary Miraculous holder it kinda makes sense...Penny and ESPECIALLY Jagged though? Nah.

--Ivan was the first person to EVER be akumatized then saved by Ladybug and Chat Noir. So with that in mind, surely he more than anyone would trust that they'd never kidnap two virtual innocent people, and would join Alya in reminding everyone else how they were always there for them, in a touching moment that brings the "first arc" full circle...oh.

--Look, Marinette is very talented, and I realise she had the book to help her but...I'm sorry literally HOW did she fix the Miraculous? Gabriel needed high-tech, presumably very expensive, machinery to re-shape them.

Final thoughts:

What makes this all sting so much more is that, wasn't season 5 supposed to be the original ending, just in case future seasons didn't happen? All seasons after this one are basically bonus seasons. So originally the show ended HERE. The last we would've seen of Chloe was her crying, trapped with her abusive mother. For all we knew Adrien would've been living a lie the rest of his life, looking up to his abuser. Gabriel is never fully revealed as the monster he truly was and is honoured as a "hero". Marinette literally gets stabbed in the back (well, it was her stomach, but you get the idea). There wasn't even a reveal, Ladybug and Chat Noir would've just never found out who the other truly is I guess.

Oh, but don't worry. Marinette and Adrien kissed.

That's all that really matters, right? (Never mind the fact that they spent five seasons building up to the start of a romantic relationship, and it will undoubtedly take even more for it to become a healthy one.)

Maybe the ending was originally different. Maybe they modified the ending of the season finale after finding out season 5 wouldn't be the last season. Maybe this will all somehow be fixed later (no matter how long they may will drag it out for).

Or maybe Marinette's blatantly out of character action (she hates liars, and only lied about her identity because she had to, even considering Gabriel's attempts to emotionally manipulate her previous episodes have made it clear she would not lie to Adrien, let alone the WHOLE WORLD, about Gabriel) will come back to bite her for the sake of having something to blame her for next season.

I don't know.

I don't care.

The writing for this show has been poor for a LONG time. I only stuck around because I still found myself having fun watching it from time to time, even as the problems got worse. That, and I was hopeful it would at least stick the landing. But after this, I don't think I can stomach continuing to watch a show that will probably continue to push such awful messages, and with such awful pacing.

Word of advice, all shows have flaws, so feel free to complain when a show does something you think is stupid (I've never found the argument that kids shows shouldn't be criticised because they're kid shows to make sense), but if you're not enjoying yourself because you can't overlook a show's problems, if you don't find pleasure in watching a show...just stop watching it. It's a waste of your time. Don't "wait for it to get good", don't wait for future seasons to clean up a current season's mess, don't continue watching it just because the fandom makes better content. I promise you there are better shows out there that deserve (and need) your attention.

So with that in mind...I don't think I'll be watching what comes next.

[stackrolli]

1960s space age fashion

#1960S SPACE AGE FASHION FULL#

Hats take on a humor and boldness that has its roots in the early 1950s. a waistband, fly placket, pockets– these pants were so narrow that they hugged the leg (aided by stretch knits) and generally had a stirrup strap passing under the instep of the foot.ĭespite the decline in the wearing of hats, some really fun and silly hat styles were available. While still retaining standard construction details–ie. In the early 1960s, knitted stretch pants with narrow legs were worn with straight, bloused, or knitted tops. Stilhetto heels were so narrow that it was necessary to embed a steel spike in the center of the heel in order to keep it from snapping. Starting in the mid-1950s, toes of shoes grew more and more pointed while the heels grew narrower. Since this new hosiery item essentially combined panties and stockings (thus the name), the use of garters and garterbelts declined. As a result, stockings without seams become popular.

#1960S SPACE AGE FASHION FULL#

It is most often seen in the trapeze dress which also featured a full A-line skirt (two variations of this style are shown here).ĭue to advances in technology, it became possible to make nylon stockings that fit the leg smoothly and without wrinkles. Starting around 1960 there is a pseudo revival of the empire waistline. At the far right, we see a Cassini-inspired jacket and skimmer ensemble. At the far left, we see a Chanel-inspired suit. It is a very short time before garments inspired by the big designers appear in read-to-wear catalogs (such as the one from which the the image at the left was taken). Women’s suits seem to take to the newer, looser silhouette the most quickly and universally. By 1964, this new silhouette becomes the most common line. A slight A-line in which the waist was loosely defined is also typical. The new silhouette is straight and unfitted or princess cut. The new alternatives sort of layer on top of the predominant styles.Īs we move towards the mid 60s, skirt lengths gradually shorten, and the overall silhouette relaxes. However, beginning late in the decade the new styles of Cassini, Chanel and others coexist with the Dior-inspired lines. The New Look silhouette is the prevailing silhouette through the end of the 1950s. The style is practically timeless, and flattered nearly every body type–an appealing trait to the older woman during the 1950s. She favored nubby wools and tweeds and acheived her desired fit through manipulation of the material rather than darts and seams. The suit feaured a straight skirt with an almost shapeless cardigan style jacket. The Chanel suit was a direct reaction to Dior’s New Look. Employing some of the same ideas as Cassini, her designs also help to shape the 1960s. When Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel reopened her atelier in 1954, she immediately resumed her place as a major force in couture fashion. The left image above is of one of his dresses designed for and worn by the first lady. He specialized in A-line dresses and suits/ensembles that were generally only slightly shaped though the upper torso. Kennedy, Cassini became a powerful figure in 1960s style offering a youthful, smooth modernity–a stark contrast to the lines of the prevailing New Look. Cassini was known for a sleek minimalism. She chose Cassini and made it a point to wear his clothes almost exclusively to all publicized events that she attended. As her husband’s political career headed toward the White House, Jackie took it upon herself to interview American designers clamoring to become her stylist. Kennedy had a full couture wardrobe filled with the likes of Balenciaga and Givenchy. Before her husband was elected President of the United States, Mrs. Designer Oleg Cassini is most identified with the wardrobe of Jackie Kennedy.

[fragmentsofchaldea]

FoC Fluff Trivia 7

Let’s do a small check on Nitocris for the day:

It’s not uncommon to see Scheherazade practically glued to her hip, especially in times of greater anxiety like Nobunaga running around with “new and improved” prank bombs.

The Medjed have been a growing common sight in Chaldea. They’re sometimes the heralds of Nitocris’ arrival or messengers. They never actually talk, but sometimes they have official letters tied around them with ribbon.

There are over 57 variations of her ‘embarrassed squeaks & yelps’ collectively recorded by witnesses. Of that, 32 were considered adorably cute.

Ozymandias still teases her whenever he spots an ‘improper display unfitting for a great Pharaoh.’ Cleopatra still joins in every now and then.

Ozymandias was also the reason Nitocris is the Chaldean Council’s ambassador: She’s a far better secretary and negotiator than she lends herself credit.

Her friendship with Ereshkigal has bloomed beautifully, though they mostly spend time together in one of their rooms. Marie didn’t have any scandalous gossip about it because she was aware of the truth: The two enjoy playing with their Sphinx kittens outside of the public eye so they’re not ‘ridiculed’.

On occasion, she still takes late night cooking lessons with Boudica.

Gabrielle secretly has a ‘slip counter’ for how many times Nitocris makes a cute & silly mistake. Medb and Suzuka help add to it if they spot anything.

To date, Nitocris’ greatest public slip-up was falling for Merlin’s prank that he gifted a flying carpet for her. In truth, it was a passing ‘joke’ rather than a full fledged prank. She still spent an entire hour trying to get it to fly at the resort. She also still keeps the ordinary carpet rolled up in her closet, but has since joined the growing list of “people who want to strangle Merlin.”

[heroicadventurists]

2020 Eisner Award Nominees

Best Short Story

“Hot Comb,” by Ebony Flowers, in Hot Comb (Drawn & Quarterly)

“How to Draw a Horse,” by Emma Hunsinger, The New Yorker, https://www.newyorker.com/humor/daily-shouts/how-to-draw-a-horse

“The Menopause,” by Mira Jacob, The Believer, https://believermag.com/the-menopause/

“You’re Not Going to Believe What I’m About to Tell You,” by Matthew Inman, The Oatmeal, https://theoatmeal.com/comics/believe

“Who Gets Called an ‘Unfit’ Mother?” by Miriam Libicki, The Nib, https://thenib.com/who-gets-called-an-unfit-mother/

Best Single Issue/One-Shot

Coin-Op No. 8: Infatuation, by Peter and Maria Hoey (Coin-Op Books)

The Freak, by Matt Lesniewski (AdHouse)

Minotäar, by Lissa Treiman (Shortbox)

Our Favorite Thing Is My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, by Emil Ferris (Fantagraphics)

Sobek, by James Stokoe (Shortbox)

Best Continuing Series

Bitter Root, by David Walker, Chuck Brown, and Sanford Greene (Image)

Criminal, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)

Crowded, by Christopher Sebela, Ro Stein, and Ted Brandt (Image)

Daredevil, by Chip Zdarsky and Marco Checchetto (Marvel)

The Dreaming, by Simon Spurrier, Bilquis Evely et al. (DC)

Immortal Hulk, by Al Ewing, Joe Bennett, and Ruy José et al. (Marvel)

Best Limited Series

Ascender, by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen (Image)

Ghost Tree, by Bobby Curnow and Simon Gane (IDW)

Little Bird by Darcy Van Poelgeest and Ian Bertram (Image)

Naomi by Brian Michael Bendis, David Walker, and Jamal Campbell (DC)

Sentient, by Jeff Lemire and Gabriel Walta (TKO)

Best New Series

Doctor Doom, by Christopher Cantwell and Salvador Larocca (Marvel)

Invisible Kingdom, by G. Willow Wilson and Christian Ward (Berger Books/Dark Horse)

Once & Future, by Kieron Gillen and Dan Mora (BOOM! Studios)

Something Is Killing the Children, by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera (BOOM! Studios)

Undiscovered Country, by Scott Snyder, Charles Soule, Giuseppe Camuncoli, and Daniele Orlandini (Image)

Best Publication for Kids

Akissi: More Tales of Mischief, by Marguerite Abouet and Mathieu Sapin (Flying Eye/Nobrow)

Dog Man: For Whom the Ball Rolls, by Dav Pilkey (Scholastic Graphix)

Guts, by Raina Telgemeier (Scholastic Graphix)

New Kid, by Jerry Craft (Quill Tree/HarperCollins)

This Was Our Pact, by Ryan Andrews (First Second/Macmillan)

The Wolf in Underpants, by Wilfrid Lupano, Mayana Itoïz, and Paul Cauuet (Graphic Universe/Lerner Publishing Group)

Best Publication for Teens

Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass, by Mariko Tamaki and Steve Pugh (DC)

Hot Comb, by Ebony Flowers (Drawn & Quarterly)

Kiss Number 8, by Colleen AF Venable and Ellen T. Crenshaw (First Second/Macmillan)

Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me, by Mariko Tamaki and Rosemary Valero-O'Connell (First Second/Macmillan)

Penny Nichols, by MK Reed, Greg Means, and Matt Wiegle (Top Shelf)

Best Humor Publication  

Anatomy of Authors, by Dave Kellett (SheldonComics.com)

Death Wins a Goldfish, by Brian Rea (Chronicle Books)

Minotäar, by Lissa Treiman (Shortbox)

Sobek, by James Stokoe (Shortbox)

The Way of the Househusband, vol. 1, by Kousuke Oono, translation by Sheldon Drzka (VIZ Media)

Wondermark: Friends You Can Ride On, by David Malki (Wondermark)

Best Anthology

ABC of Typography, by David Rault, translation by Edward Gauvin (SelfMade Hero)

Baltic Comics Anthology š! #34-37, edited by David Schilter, Sanita Muižniece et al. (kuš!)

Drawing Power: Women’s Stories of Sexual Violence, Harassment, and Survival, edited by Diane Noomin (Abrams)

Kramer’s Ergot #10, edited by Sammy Harkham (Fantagraphics)

The Nib #2–4, edited by Matt Bors (Nib)

Best Reality-Based Work

Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations, by Mira Jacob (One World/Random House)

Grass, by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, translation by Janet Hong (Drawn & Quarterly)

Kid Gloves: Nine Months of Careful Chaos, by Lucy Knisley (First Second/Macmillan)

Moonbound: Apollo 11 and the Dream of Spaceflight, by Jonathan Fetter-Vorm (Hill & Wang)

My Solo Exchange Diary, vol. 2 (sequel to My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness), by Nagata Kabi, translation by Jocelyne Allen (Seven Seas)

They Called Us Enemy, by George Takei, Justin Eisinger, Steven Scott, and Harmony Becker (Top Shelf)

Best Graphic Album—New

Are You Listening? by Tillie Walden (First Second/Macmillan)

Bezimena, by Nina Bunjevac (Fantagraphics)

BTTM FDRS, by Ezra Claytan Daniels and Ben Passmore (Fantagraphics)

Life on the Moon, by Robert Grossman (Yoe Books/IDW)

New World, by David Jesus Vignolli (Archaia/BOOM!)

Reincarnation Stories, by Kim Deitch (Fantagraphics)

Best Graphic Album—Reprint

Bad Weekend by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)

Clyde Fans, by Seth (Drawn & Quarterly)

Cover, vol. 1, by Brian Michael Bendis and David Mack (DC/Jinxworld)

Glenn Ganges: The River at Night, by Kevin Huizenga (Drawn & Quarterly)

LaGuardia, by Nnedi Okorafor and Tana Ford (Berger Books/Dark Horse)

Rusty Brown, by Chris Ware (Pantheon)

Best Adaptation from Another Medium

Giraffes on Horseback Salad: Salvador Dali, the Marx Brothers, and the Strangest Movie Never Made, by Josh Frank, Tim Hedecker, and Manuela Pertega (Quirk Books)

The Giver, by Lois Lowry, adapted by P. Craig Russell, (HMH Books for Young Readers)

The Handmaid’s Tale: The Graphic Novel, by Margaret Atwood, adapted by Renee Nault (Nan A. Talese)

HP Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness, vols. 1–2, adapted by Gou Tanabe, translation by Zack Davisson (Dark Horse Manga)

The Seventh Voyage, by Stanislaw Lem, adapted by Jon J Muth, translation by Michael Kandel (Scholastic Graphix)

Snow, Glass, Apples, by Neil Gaiman and Colleen Doran (Dark Horse Books)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material

Diabolical Summer, by Thierry Smolderen and Alexandre Clerisse, translation by Edward Gauvin (IDW)

Gramercy Park, by Timothée de Fombelle and Christian Cailleaux, translation by Edward Gauvin (EuroComics/IDW)

The House, by Paco Roca, translation by Andrea Rosenberg (Fantagraphics)

Maggy Garrisson, by Lewis Trondheim and Stéphane Oiry, translation by Emma Wilson (SelfMadeHero)

Stay, by Lewis Trondheim and Hubert Chevillard, translation by Mike Kennedy (Magnetic Press)

Wrath of Fantômas, by Olivier Bocquet and Julie Rocheleau, translation by Edward Gauvin (Titan)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia

BEASTARS, by Paru Itagaki, translation by Tomo Kimura (VIZ Media)

Cats of the Louvre, by Taiyo Matsumoto, translation by Michael Arias (VIZ Media)

Grass, by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, translation by Janet Hong (Drawn & Quarterly)

Magic Knight Rayearth 25th Anniversary Edition, by CLAMP, translation by Melissa Tanaka (Kodansha)

The Poe Clan, by Moto Hagio, translation by Rachel Thorn (Fantagraphics)

Witch Hat Atelier, by Kamome Shirahama, translation by Stephen Kohler (Kodansha)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips

Cham: The Best Comic Strips and Graphic Novelettes, 1839–1862, by David Kunzle (University Press of Mississippi)

Ed Leffingwell’s Little Joe, by Harold Gray, edited by Peter Maresca and Sammy Harkham (Sunday Press Books)

The George Herriman Library: Krazy & Ignatz 1916–1918, edited by R.J. Casey (Fantagraphics)

Krazy Kat: The Complete Color Sundays, by George Herriman, edited by Alexander Braun (TASCHEN)

Madness in Crowds: The Teeming Mind of Harrison Cady, by Violet and Denis Kitchen (Beehive Books)

Pogo, Vol. 6: Clean as a Weasel, by Walt Kelly, edited by Mark Evanier and Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books

Alay-Oop, by William Gropper (New York Review Comics)

The Complete Crepax, vol. 5: American Stories, edited by Kristy Valenti (Fantagraphics)

Jack Kirby’s Dingbat Love, edited by John Morrow (TwoMorrows)

Moonshadow: The Definitive Edition, by J. M. DeMatteis, Jon J Muth, George Pratt, Kent Williams, and others (Dark Horse Books)

Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo: The Complete Grasscutter Artist Select, by Stan Sakai, edited by Scott Dunbier (IDW)

That Miyoko Asagaya Feeling, by Shinichi Abe, translation by Ryan Holmberg, edited by Mitsuhiro Asakawa (Black Hook Press)

Best Writer

Bobby Curnow, Ghost Tree (IDW)

MK Reed and Greg Means, Penny Nichols (Top Shelf)

Mariko Tamaki, Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass (DC); Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me (First Second/Macmillan); Archie (Archie)

Lewis Trondheim, Stay (Magnetic Press); Maggy Garrisson (SelfMadeHero)

G. Willow Wilson, Invisible Kingdom (Berger Books/Dark Horse); Ms. Marvel (Marvel)

Chip Zdarsky, White Trees (Image); Daredevil, Spider-Man: Life Story (Marvel); Afterlift (comiXology Originals)

Best Writer/Artist

Nina Bunjevac, Bezimena (Fantagraphics)

Mira Jacob, Good Talk (Random House); “The Menopause” in The Believer (June 1, 2019)

Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, Grass (Drawn & Quarterly)

James Stokoe, Sobek (Shortbox)

Raina Telgemeier, Guts (Scholastic Graphix)

Tillie Walden, Are You Listening? (First Second/Macmillan)

Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team

Ian Bertram, Little Bird (Image)

Colleen Doran, Snow, Glass, Apples (Dark Horse)

Bilquis Evely, The Dreaming (DC)

Simon Gane, Ghost Tree (IDW)

Steve Pugh, Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass (DC)

Rosemary Valero-O'Connell, Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me (First Second/Macmillan)

Best Painter/Digital Artist

Didier Cassegrain, Black Water Lilies (Europe Comics)

Alexandre Clarisse, Diabolical Summer (IDW)

David Mack, Cover (DC)

Léa Mazé, Elma, A Bear’s Life, vol. 1: The Great Journey (Europe Comics)

Julie Rocheleau, Wrath of Fantômas (Titan)

Christian Ward, Invisible Kingdom (Berger Books/Dark Horse)

Best Cover Artist

Jen Bartel, Blackbird  (Image Comics)

Francesco Francavilla, Archie, Archie 1955, Archie Vs. Predator II, Cosmo (Archie)

David Mack, American Gods, Fight Club 3 (Dark Horse); Cover (DC)

Emma Rios, Pretty Deadly (Image)

Julian Totino Tedesco, Daredevil (Marvel)

Christian Ward, Machine Gun Wizards (Dark Horse), Invisible Kingdom (Berger Books/Dark Horse)

Best Coloring

Lorena Alvarez, Hicotea (Nobrow)

Jean-Francois Beaulieu, Middlewest, Outpost Zero (Image)

Matt Hollingsworth, Batman: Curse of the White Knight, Batman White Knight Presents Von Freeze (DC); Little Bird, November (Image)

Molly Mendoza, Skip (Nobrow)

Dave Stewart, Black Hammer, B.P.R.D.: The Devil You Know, Hellboy and the BPRD (Dark Horse); Gideon Falls (Image); Silver Surfer Black, Spider-Man (Marvel)

Best Lettering

Deron Bennett, Batgirl, Green Arrow, Justice League, Martian Manhunter (DC); Canto (IDW); Assassin Nation, Excellence (Skybound/Image); To Drink and To Eat, vol. 1 (Lion Forge); Resonant (Vault)

Jim Campbell, Black Badge, Coda (BOOM Studios); Giant Days, Lumberjanes: The Shape of Friendship (BOOM Box!); Rocko’s Modern Afterlife  (KaBOOM!); At the End of Your Tether (Lion Forge); Blade Runner 2019 (Titan); Mall, The Plot, Wasted Space (Vault)

Clayton Cowles, Aquaman, Batman, Batman and the Outsiders, Heroes in Crisis, Superman: Up in the Sky, Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen (DC); Bitter Root, Pretty Deadly, Moonstruck, Redlands, The Wicked + The Divine (Image); Reaver  (Skybound/Image); Daredevil, Ghost-Spider, Silver Surfer Black, Superior Spider-Man, Venom (Marvel)

Emilie Plateau, Colored: The Unsung Life of Claudette Colvin (Europe Comics)

Stan Sakai, Usagi Yojimbo (IDW)

Tillie Walden, Are You Listening? (First Second/Macmillan)

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism

Comic Riffs blog, by Michael Cavna with David Betancourt, www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/comics/

The Comics Journal, edited by Gary Groth, RJ Casey, and Kristy Valenti (Fantagraphics)

Hogan’s Alley, edited by Tom Heintjes (Hogan’s Alley)

Inks: The Journal of the Comics Studies Society, edited by Qiana Whitted (Ohio State University Press)

LAAB Magazine, vol. 4: This Was Your Life, edited by Ronald Wimberly and Josh O’Neill (Beehive Books)

Women Write About Comics, edited by Nola Pfau and Wendy Browne, www.WomenWriteAboutComics.com

Best Comics-Related Book

The Art of Nothing: 25 Years of Mutts and the Art of Patrick McDonnell (Abrams)

The Book of Weirdo, by Jon B. Cooke (Last Gasp)

Grunt: The Art and Unpublished Comics of James Stokoe (Dark Horse)

Logo a Gogo: Branding Pop Culture, by Rian Hughes (Korero Press)

Making Comics, by Lynda Barry (Drawn & Quarterly)

Screwball! The Cartoonists Who Made the Funnies Funny, by Paul Tumey (Library of American Comics/IDW)

Best Academic/Scholarly Work

The Art of Pere Joan: Space, Landscape, and Comics Form, by Benjamin Fraser (University of Texas Press)

The Comics of Rutu Modan: War, Love, and Secrets, by Kevin Haworth (University Press of Mississippi)

EC Comics: Race, Shock, and Social Protest, by Qiana Whitted (Rutgers University Press)

The Peanuts Papers: Writers and Cartoonists on Charlie Brown, Snoopy & the Gang, and the Meaning of Life, edited by Andrew Blauner (Library of America)

Producing Mass Entertainment: The Serial Life of the Yellow Kid, by Christina Meyer (Ohio State University Press)

Women’s Manga in Asia and Beyond: Uniting Different Cultures and Identities, edited by Fusami Ogi et al. (Palgrave Macmillan)

Best Publication Design

Grunt: The Art and Unpublished Comics of James Stokoe, designed by Ethan Kimberling (Dark Horse)

Krazy Kat: The Complete Color Sundays, by George Herriman, designed by Anna-Tina Kessler (TASCHEN)

Logo a Gogo, designed by Rian Hughes (Korero Press)

Madness in Crowds: The Teeming Mind of Harrison Cady, designed by Paul Kopple and Alex Bruce (Beehive Books)

Making Comics, designed by Lynda Barry (Drawn & Quarterly)

Rusty Brown, designed by Chris Ware (Pantheon)

Best Digital Comic

Afterlift, by Chip Zdarsky and Jason Loo (comiXology Originals)

Black Water Lilies, by Michel Bussi, adapted by Frédéric Duval and Didier Cassegrain, translated by Edward Gauvin (Europe Comics)

Colored: The Unsung Life of Claudette Colvin, by Tania de Montaigne, adapted by Emilie Plateau, translated by Montana Kane (Europe Comics)

Elma, A Bear’s Life, vol. 1: The Great Journey, by Ingrid Chabbert and Léa Mazé, translated by Jenny Aufiery (Europe Comics)

Mare Internum, by Der-shing Helmer (comiXology; gumroad.com/l/MIPDF)

Tales from Behind the Window, by Edanur Kuntman, translated by Cem Ulgen (Europe Comics)

Best Webcomic

Cabramatta, by Matt Huynh, http://believermag.com/cabramatta/

Chuckwagon at the End of the World, by Erik Lundy, https://hollowlegcomics.tumblr.com/chuckwagon

The Eyes, by Javi de Castro, https://www.javidecastro.com/theeyes

Fried Rice Comic, by Erica Eng, https://friedricecomic.tumblr.com

reMIND, by Jason Brubaker, https://is.gd/T7rafM

Third Shift Society, by Meredith Moriarty, https://www.webtoons.com/en/supernatural/third-shift-society/list?title_no=1703

[ericleo108]

Trump’s Effect on America

I wanted to make a quick statement about American politics. For a large part of the country, it was a sigh of relief that Trump lost the presidential election. Trump's presidency was particularly bad not only because the majority of the country didn’t agree with his policies, but because of his approach, attitude, and behaviors. 

Deflecting Blame

Trump and the Republicans have taken to denying reality and then deflecting accusations upon democrats. The Republicans would claim Biden has dementia which is really his stammer and is more of a disability. Meanwhile, in reality, Trump’s aides were thinking about invoking the 13th amendment to get Trump removed from office because they thought he was in the early stages of dementia. When the winter storm hit Texas Republicans blamed the blackout on the green new deal even though the majority of Texas’s electric grid is gas, privatized, and the Green New Deal has never been passed. One of the most pathetic though is how conservatives try to claim Antifa also covertly stormed the capital on January 6th. 

Emboldened Aggression

Republicans are not the party of reason, they’re the party of religion so they don’t necessarily listen to logic. What has become even more concerning is their delusions and aggression. Qanon supporters lead storming the capital which is quintessentially what has happened to white America. Racist, militant ignorance that’s pursued with vigor and hurts the country.

Trump has emboldened white supremacy, racism, and xenophobia. He has created a wave of ignorance of people who deny reality. Trump’s rhetoric has always been dangerous (examples #1 & #2) but it’s no more evident with his 2020 presidential campaign loss. 

Because Trump saying that the election was rigged poll workers got death threats, regardless of party affiliation. Republican poll workers that verified the results for Biden received death threats thanks to Trump. Trump said nothing to curtail or stop the aggression, if anything he encouraged it. Gabriel Sterling, a Republican, has come out to publicly condemn Trump saying “someone is going to get hurt.” This is why Bernie Sanders says Donald Trump is the most dangerous president in US history. 

Cognitive Dissonance 

Trump has provided an alternative view of the world as an authority to the point that the world he presents is the world his followers believe. This is all too normal considering an ancient book provides many with a worldview that Trump plays to, called the bible. It’s to the point that it’s obvious Trump’s followers have cognitive dissonance. Instead of changing their worldview to fit the evidence, they change the evidence to fit their worldview. They believe Trump and think everyone else is lying instead of believing (the CDC or other) authorities and thinking Trump is lying. 

Some have pointed out that on top of the cognitive dissonance is the Dunning-Kruger effect. Basically, stupid people think they are smart. Unlike educated people who know how much they don’t know, (in this case) Trump supporters are so ignorant they think they know without any knowledge, experience, or education. 

Cult Trump

Cultivate an irrational fanatic following and Trump supporters are more like a cult than a political party. Trump’s supporters idolize him, think he’s a God, is sent by God, and loves them. There is a disconnect when talking to some of my friends that are Trump supporters in Michigan. They can’t grasp reality and see that Trump is a con man, inept, and mentally ill. 

Who is to blame? Trump or his supporters? Here's how to bring QAnon believers back to reality. The consensus in America is one of schadenfreude about Trump and the capital rioters. Most people are happy to see Trump get banned from social media and rioters get arrested for their assault on the capital. 

Impunity

Trump is as corrupt as they come but it may not all be his fault. In her book, Trump’s niece who has a Ph.D. in psychology thinks Trump has a narcissistic personality disorder and a long-time undiagnosed learning disability. Coupled with a life of extreme privilege and full of little to no consequences it’s no wonder he acts the way he does. 

Trump acts with impunity. For months he lied about a rigged election and provoked the insurrection. He contributed to Qanon conspiracy theories. For me, the insurrection wasn't a surprise.  I've been saying Republicans are the most dangerous radicals in America.

Trump is making money from undermining the confidence in democracy. He has made more money after the election complaining about the results. He gets to keep his campaign money and can spend it on whatever he wants.

By Affiliation

Trump will never stop. It is vitally important he is punished for January 6th. He’s dangerous and should never be allowed to hold public office again. 

But again, the real problem is that Senators like Marjorie Greene are emboldened to follow their perverted and ignorant agenda. Trump is only concerned with dividing the country. He can’t even lose graciously or come together for the betterment of the country. His Easter statement claims he won the election and blames “the radical left.” Trump is either intentionally hurting our democracy by contradicting the official results or he is delusional and can't grasp reality and is unfit for office. Either way, Trump should never be trusted.

Throughout all of this, I can’t help but think of the closing Voltaire quote. It couldn’t be any more relevant or true today. 

“Those that believe absurdities are likely to commit atrocities” - Voltaire

[detective-pulp]

La route semée d’embûches des Eisner Awards 2020 vers un palmarès admirable

Les Eisner Awards (Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards de son nom complet) récompense depuis 1988 la crème de la crème de l’industrie du comics book. La cérémonie se tient chaque année conjointement à la San Diego Comic Con. Elle rend hommage au pionnier américain Will Eisner. Il est notamment le créateur de A Contract With God, considéré comme le premier roman graphique, ou encore du personnage de Spirit.

Tout comme la SDCC, les Eisner Awards ont connu une édition 2020 tumultueuse à cause de la pandémie. Les organisateurs de la cérémonie ont dû s’adapter à la tendance actuelle en se servant du numérique. Cependant, comme leur partenaire, cela n’a pas été sans son lot d’incidents.

Le processus de vote du jury officiel a été mis à mal par les restrictions sanitaires, le site de vote était défectueux et une polémique autour du manque de diversité a éclaboussé la présidence. Cependant, tout est bien qui a bien fini, la cérémonie et le palmarès de cette édition ont été un vrai succès.

Elire en période de pandémie

La liste des nommés aux prix a été publiée début juin, incluant les publications du 1er janvier au 31 décembre 2019.

Jackie Estrada, administratrice de la cérémonie depuis 1990, s’est exprimée sur le défis que représentait le processus de vote mis en place en raison du COVID 19 :

« Normalement, les juges se rencontrent à San Diego. Pendant quatre jours, ils échangent entre eux dans une pièce pleine des comics et livres soumis au vote. Avec le confinement, ils ont dû rester chez eux et communiquer via émail, réseaux sociaux et Zoom. Des colis de livres ont été transbahutés dans tout le pays ».

Elle poursuit en précisant :

« Heureusement, nous avons pu travailler avec les gens de comiXology et la plupart des éditeurs pour que tous les juges aient une version digitale des centaines de comics en lice».

Ajoutant :

« Le processus a prix deux mois de plus que d’habitude, la fenêtre de vote a été significativement raccourcie comparée aux années passées. »

A la base, les votes devait être clôturés le 18 juin, ça n’est arrivé que le 30. En cause, une vague de problèmes techniques concernant le site de vote.

Une brèche dans la matrice

Plusieurs professionnels de l’industrie du comics ont détecté des anomalies concernant le site de vote des Eisner Awards. Ils ont constaté la modification de leurs informations personnelles et potentiellement celle de leurs votes. Un problème délicat quand on sait que pour s’authentifier sur le site, il fallait entrer toutes sortes d’informations privées (nom, adresse postale, numéro de téléphone et rôle dans l’industrie).

David Glanzer, Chef de la Communication et de la Stratégie de la San Diego Comic Con, s’est exprimé chez Newsarama :

« Nous avons fermé les votes et lancé une investigation pour éclaircir la situation. Nous ferons une annonce dès que nous aurons des informations supplémentaires. Nous sommes désolés pour la gêne occasionnée aux votants. »

Jackie Estrada a envoyé un mail le 24 juin pour apporter les conclusions de l’enquête :

«En se fiant au résultat de notre investigation concernant les récents reports de problèmes avec le site de vote des Eisner Awards, il semble que ce n’était pas un acte malveillant, mais une erreur informatique de la plateforme. Notre examen du dossier nous mène à croire que le problème était minime et nous n’avons aucune preuve d’altération des votes. Pour plus de précautions, nous avons décidé de refaire les votes sur une plateforme sécurisée. »

Pour plus de précisions, les comptes des participants étaient interconnectés. En modifiant leur compte, ils modifiaient celui des autres et ainsi de suite.

Un imbroglio pas possible poussant à remettre les votes à zéro. Cependant, un bon nombre de votants n’ont pas accédé au second tour, car ils n’ont pas reçu le mail de relance.

En conséquence, des professionnels se sont dédouanés des résultats, voir ont remis en question la légitimité de leur prix, car il est difficile de savoir à quel point les votes ont été biaisés lors de cette édition.

Le vote blanc

Si le comité des Eisner Awards a évolué dans le bon sens pour inclure plus de diversité dans la sélection des nommés, ce n’est pas le cas au sein du jury qui préside.

Le site américain Comic Book Resources a dénoté un manque répété de créateurs de couleur au sein de la présidence. Chaque année, l’équipe de juges est majoritairement composé de « caucasiens ». Exception faite cette année, grâce à la présence du journaliste Simon Jimenez. Jamie Colville, Martha Cornog, Michael Dooley, Alex Grecian, et Laura O'Meara sont les autres membres du jury. On notera une tentative de parité ratée avec la participation de deux femmes sur six.

Pour en avoir le cœur net, j’ai vérifié par moi-même la composition du jury des Eisner Awards de ces cinq dernières années. Et le constat est indéniable. Un schéma évident de sous représentation est répété. Jamais complètement blanc, le jury est toujours composé d’un membre issu de minorité. Coïncidence ou préméditation ?

Une solution simple serait d’augmenter le nombre de juges, tout en faisant un effort sur la sélection des professionnels, en introduisant plus de travailleurs marginaux afin de croiser les expertises.

La cérémonie et le palmarès

La 32ème cérémonie des Eisner Awards s’est tenue le 24 juillet dernier sur Youtube. Elle a été présentée par Phil LaMarr, acteur (Marvin dans Pulp Fiction) et surtout doubleur spécialisé dans les séries animées (Futurama, Justice League, Star Wars Rebels…).

Cette édition a fait la part belle aux éditions indépendantes, tout en respectant une parité exemplaire. Le Big Two (DC et Marvel), sans être absent du palmarès, n’ont pas brillé en comparaison du nombre de publication en 2019. Le palmarès a une portée symbolique, comme une bouteille à la mer, invitant les lecteurs à se pencher sur des travaux moins mainstream.

Les grans gagnants de cette édition sont Mariko Tamaki et Rosemary Valero-O’Connell avec leur roman graphique Laura Dean Is Breaking Up with Me (Mes Ruptures avec Laura Dean en VF, disponible aux éditions Rue de Sèvres), raflant les prix de la Meilleure Publication pour Adolescents, Meilleure Scénariste, Meilleur Dessinatrice/Encreuse.

Retrouvez ci-dessous le palmarès complet des Eisner Awards 2020 (en gras les gagnants + l’éditeur qui le publie en France) :

Meilleure histoire courte

Hot Comb, Ebony Flowers (Drawn & Quarterly) 

How to Draw a Horse, Emma Hunsinger, The New Yorker 

The Menopause, Mira Jacob, The Believer 

Who Gets Called an 'Unfit' Mother?, Miriam Libicki, The Nib 

You're Not Going to Believe What I'm About to Tell You, Matthew Inman, The Oatmeal

Meilleur single/one-Shot

Coin-Op No. 8: Infatuation, Peter and Maria Hoey (Coin-Op Books) 

The Freak, Matt Lesniewski (AdHouse) 

Minotäar, Lissa Treiman (Shortbox) 

Our Favorite Thing Is My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, Emil Ferris (Fantagraphics) 

Sobek, James Stokoe (Shortbox)

Meilleure sérien en cours 

Bitter Root, David Walker, Chuck Brown, Sanford Greene (Image, HiComics en VF) 

Criminal, Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips (Image) 

Crowded, Christopher Sebela, Ro Stein, Ted Brandt (Image) 

Daredevil, Chip Zdarsky, Marco Checchetto (Marvel) 

The Dreaming, Simon Spurrier, Bilquis Evely (DC) 

Immortal Hulk, Al Ewing, Joe Bennett, Ruy José (Marvel)

Meilleure série limitée 

Ascender, Jeff Lemire, Dustin Nguyen (Image) 

Ghost Tree, Bobby Curnow, Simon Gane (IDW) 

Little Bird, Darcy Van Poelgeest, Ian Bertram (Image, Glénat en VF) 

Naomi, Brian Michael Bendis, David Walker, Jamal Campbell (DC) 

Sentient, Jeff Lemire, Gabriel Walta (TKO)

Meilleure nouvelle série

Doctor Doom, Christopher Cantwell, Salvador Larocca (Marvel) 

Invisible Kingdom (HiComics en Octobre)  , G. Willow Wilson, Christian Ward (Berger Books/Dark Horse)

Once & Future, Kieron Gillen, Dan Mora (BOOM! Studios) 

Something Is Killing the Children, James Tynion IV, Werther Dell’Edera (BOOM! Studios) 

Undiscovered Country, Scott Snyder, Charles Soule, Giuseppe Camuncoli, Daniele Orlandini (Image)

Meilleure publication pour les plus jeunes (- de 8 ans) :

Comics: Easy as ABC, Ivan Brunetti (TOON) 

Kitten Construction Company: A Bridge Too Fur, John Patrick Green (First Second/Macmillan) 

The Pigeon HAS to Go to School!, Mo Willems (Hyperion Books) 

A Trip to the Top of the Volcano with Mouse, Frank Viva (TOON) 

¡Vamos! Let's Go to the Market, Raúl the Third (Versify/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) 

Who Wet My Pants?, Bob Shea, Zachariah Ohora (Little, Brown)

Meilleure publication pour les enfants (de 9 à 12 ans) :

Akissi: More Tales of Mischief, Marguerite Abouet, Mathieu Sapin (Flying Eye/Nobrow) 

Dog Man: For Whom the Ball Rolls, Dav Pilkey (Scholastic Graphix) 

Guts (Courage,chez Akileos), Raina Telgemeier (Scholastic Graphix) 

New Kid, Jerry Craft (Quill Tree/HarperCollins) 

This Was Our Pact, Ryan Andrews (First Second/Macmillan) 

The Wolf in Underpants, Wilfrid Lupano, Mayana Itoïz, Paul Cauuet (Graphic Universe/Lerner Publishing Group)

Meilleure publication pour adolescents

Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass, Mariko Tamaki, Steve Pugh (DC) 

Hot Comb, Ebony Flowers (Drawn & Quarterly) 

Kiss Number 8, Colleen AF Venable, Ellen T. Crenshaw (First Second/Macmillan) 

Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me (Mes Ruptures avec Laura Dean chez Rue de Sèvres), Mariko Tamaki, Rosemary Valero-O'Connell (First Second/Macmillan) 

Penny Nichols, MK Reed, Greg Means, Matt Wiegle (Top Shelf)

Meilleure publication humoristique

Anatomy of Authors, Dave Kellett (SheldonComics.com) 

Death Wins a Goldfish, Brian Rea (Chronicle Books) 

Minotäar, Lissa Treiman (Shortbox) 

Sobek, James Stokoe (Shortbox) 

The Way of the Househusband, vol. 1 (La voie du Tablier chez Kana), Kousuke Oono, traduit par Sheldon Drzka (VIZ Media) 

Wondermark: Friends You Can Ride On, David Malki (Wondermark)

Meilleure Anthologie

ABC of Typography, David Rault (SelfMade Hero) 

Baltic Comics Anthology ! #34-37, édité par David Schilter, Sanita Muižniece (kuš!) 

Drawing Power: Women’s Stories of Sexual Violence, Harassment, and Survival, édité par Diane Noomin (Abrams) 

Kramer’s Ergot #10, édité par Sammy Harkham (Fantagraphics) 

The Nib #2–4, édité par Matt Bors (Nib)

Meilleur adaptation d’une histoire vraie

Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations, Mira Jacob (One World/Random House) 

Grass, Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, traduit par Janet Hong (Drawn & Quarterly) 

Kid Gloves: Nine Months of Careful Chaos, par Lucy Knisley (First Second/Macmillan) 

Moonbound: Apollo 11 and the Dream of Spaceflight, par Jonathan Fetter-Vorm (Hill & Wang) 

My Solo Exchange Diary, vol. 2 (suite de My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness), par Nagata Kabi, traduit par Jocelyne Allen (Seven Seas) 

They Called Us Enemy (Nous étions les Ennemis chez Futuropolis), George Takei, Justin Eisinger, Steven Scott, Harmony Becker (Top Shelf)

Meilleur album original

Are You Listening? (Sur la Route de West chez Galliamrd) ( , Tillie Walden (First Second/Macmillan) 

Bezimena, Nina Bunjevac (Fantagraphics) 

BTTM FDRS, Ezra Claytan Daniels, Ben Passmore (Fantagraphics) 

Life on the Moon, Robert Grossman (Yoe Books/IDW) 

New World, David Jesus Vignolli (Archaia/BOOM!) 

Reincarnation Stories, Kim Deitch (Fantagraphics)

Meilleur album de réimpressions (TPB)

Bad Weekend, Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips (Image) 

Clyde Fans, Seth (Drawn & Quarterly) 

Cover, vol. 1, Brian Michael Bendis, David Mack (DC/Jinxworld) 

Glenn Ganges: The River at Night, Kevin Huizenga (Drawn & Quarterly) 

LaGuardia, Nnedi Okorafor, Tana Ford (Berger Books/Dark Horse) 

Rusty Brown, Chris Ware (Pantheon)

Meilleure adaptation d'un autre médium

Giraffes on Horseback Salad: Salvador Dali, the Marx Brothers, and the Strangest Movie Never Made, Josh Frank, Tim Hedecker, Manuela Pertega (Quirk Books)

The Giver, Lois Lowry, P. Craig Russell (HMH Books for Young Readers) 

The Handmaid’s Tale: The Graphic Novel, Margaret Atwood, adapté par Renee Nault (Nan A. Talese) 

HP Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness, vols. 1–2, adapté par Gou Tanabe et traduit par Zack Davisson (Dark Horse Manga) 

The Seventh Voyage, Stanislaw Lem, adapté par Jon Muth, traduit par Michael Kandel (Scholastic Graphix) 

Snow, Glass, Apples, Neil Gaiman, Colleen Doran (Dark Horse Books)

Meilleure édition américaine d'une oeuvre internationale

Diabolical Summer, Thierry Smolderen, Alexandre Clerisse, traduit par Edward Gauvin (IDW) 

Gramercy Park, Timothée de Fombelle, Christian Cailleaux, traduit par Edward Gauvin (EuroComics/IDW) 

The House (La Maison chez Delcourt), Paco Roca, traduit par Andrea Rosenberg (Fantagraphics) 

Maggy Garrisson, Lewis Trondheim, Stéphane Oiry, traduit par Emma Wilson (SelfMadeHero) 

Stay, Lewis Trondheim, Hubert Chevillard, traduit par Mike Kennedy (Magnetic Press) 

Wrath of Fantômas, Olivier Bouquet, Julie Rocheleau, traduit par Edward Gauvin (Titan)

Meilleure édition américaine d'une oeuvre asiatique

BEASTARS, Paru Itagaki, traduit par Tomo Kimura (VIZ Media) 

Cats of the Louvre (Les Chats du Louvre chez Futuropolis), Taiyo Matsumoto, traduit par Michael Arias (VIZ Media) 

Grass, Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, traduit par Janet Hong (Drawn & Quarterly) 

Magic Knight Rayearth 25th Anniversary Edition, CLAMP, traduit par Melissa Tanaka (Kodansha) 

The Poe Clan, Moto Hagio, traduit par Rachel Thorn (Fantagraphics) 

Witch Hat Atelier (L'Atelier des Sorciers chez Pika), Kamome Shirahama, traduit par Stephen Kohler (Kodansha)

Meilleur travail d'archive pour les comic strips

Cham: The Best Comic Strips and Graphic Novelettes, 1839–1862, David Kunzle (University Press of Mississippi) 

Ed Leffingwell’s Little Joe, Harold Gray, édité par Peter Maresca et Sammy Harkham (Sunday Press Books) 

The George Herriman Library: Krazy & Ignatz 1916–1918, édité par R.J. Casey (Fantagraphics) 

Krazy Kat: The Complete Color Sundays (chez Les  Rêveurs), par George Herriman, édité par Alexander Braun (TASCHEN) 

Madness in Crowds: The Teeming Mind of Harrison Cady, Violet et Denis Kitchen (Beehive Books) 

Pogo, Vol. 6: Clean as a Weasel, Walt Kelly, édité par Mark Evanier et Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)

Meilleur travail d'archive pour les comic books

Alay-Oop, William Gropper (New York Review Comics) 

The Complete Crepax, vol. 5: American Stories, édité par Kristy Valenti (Fantagraphics) 

Jack Kirby’s Dingbat Love, édité par John Morrow (TwoMorrows) 

Moonshadow: The Definitive Edition, J. M. DeMatteis, Jon J. Muth, George Pratt, Kent Williams (Dark Horse Books) 

Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo: The Complete Grasscutter Artist Select, Stan Sakai, édité par Scott Dunbier (IDW, chez Paquet en VF) 

That Miyoko Asagaya Feeling, by Shinichi Abe, traduit par Ryan Holmberg, édité par Mitsuhiro Asakawa (Black Hook Press)

Meilleur scénariste

Bobby Curnow, Ghost Tree (IDW) 

MK Reed et Greg Means, Penny Nichols (Top Shelf) 

Mariko Tamaki, Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass (DC, chez Urban en VF); Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me (First Second/Macmillan); Archie (Archie) 

Lewis Trondheim, Stay (Magnetic Press); Maggy Garrisson (SelfMadeHero) 

G. Willow Wilson, Invisible Kingdom (Berger Books/Dark Horse); Ms. Marvel (Marvel) 

Chip Zdarsky, White Trees (Image); Daredevil, Spider-Man: Life Story (Marvel); Afterlift (comiXology Originals)

Meilleur auteur/dessinateur

Nina Bunjevac, Bezimena (Fantagraphics) 

Mira Jacob, Good Talk (Random House); “The Menopause” dans The Believer (June 1, 2019) 

Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, Grass (Drawn & Quarterly) 

James Stokoe, Sobek (Shortbox) 

Raina Telgemeier, Guts (Scholastic Graphix) 

Tillie Walden, Are You Listening? (First Second/Macmillan)

Meilleur dessinateur/encreur

Ian Bertram, Little Bird (Image) 

Colleen Doran, Snow, Glass, Apples (Dark Horse) 

Bilquis Evely, The Dreaming (DC) 

Simon Gane, Ghost Tree (IDW) 

Steve Pugh, Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass (DC) 

Rosemary Valero-O'Connell, Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me (First Second/Macmillan

Meilleur peintre ou dessinateur en numérique

Didier Cassegrain, Black Water Lilies (Europe Comics) 

Alexandre Clarisse, Diabolical Summer (IDW) 

David Mack, Cover (DC) 

Léa Mazé, Elma, A Bear’s Life, vol. 1: The Great Journey (Europe Comics) 

Julie Rocheleau, Wrath of Fantômas (Titan) 

Christian Ward, Invisible Kingdom (Berger Books/Dark Horse)

Meilleur artiste de couverture

Jen Bartel, Blackbird (Image Comics) 

Francesco Francavilla, Archie, Archie 1955, Archie Vs. Predator II, Cosmo (Archie) 

David Mack, American Gods, Fight Club 3 (Dark Horse); Cover (DC) 

Emma Rios, Pretty Deadly (Image, chez Glénat en VF) 

Julian Totino Tedesco, Daredevil (Marvel) 

Christian Ward, Machine Gun Wizards (Dark Horse), 

Invisible Kingdom (Berger Books/Dark Horse)

Meilleur coloriste

Lorena Alvarez, Hicotea (Nobrow) 

Jean-Francois Beaulieu, Middlewest, Outpost Zero (Image) 

Matt Hollingsworth, Batman: Curse of the White Knight, Batman White Knight Presents Von Freeze (DC); Little Bird, November (Image) 

Molly Mendoza, Skip (Nobrow) 

Dave Stewart, Black Hammer, B.P.R.D.: The Devil You Know, Hellboy and the BPRD (Dark Horse, Delcourt en VF); Gideon Falls (Image, Urban Comics en VF); Silver Surfer Black, Spider-Man (Marvel, chez Panini Comics)

Meilleur lettrage

Deron Bennett, Batgirl, Green Arrow, Justice League, Martian Manhunter (DC); Canto (IDW); Assassin Nation, Excellence (Skybound/Image); To Drink and To Eat, vol. 1 (Lion Forge); Resonant (Vault) 

Jim Campbell, Black Badge, Coda (BOOM Studios); Giant Days, Lumberjanes: The Shape of Friendship (BOOM Box!); Rocko’s Modern Afterlife (KaBOOM!); At the End of Your Tether (Lion Forge); Blade Runner 2019 (Titan); Mall, The Plot, Wasted Space (Vault) 

Clayton Cowles, Aquaman, Batman, Batman and the Outsiders, Heroes in Crisis, Superman: Up in the Sky, Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen (DC); Bitter Root, Pretty Deadly, Moonstruck, Redlands, The Wicked + The Divine (Image); Reaver (Skybound/Image); Daredevil, Ghost-Spider, Silver Surfer Black, Superior Spider-Man, Venom (Marvel) 

Emilie Plateau, Colored: The Unsung Life of Claudette Colvin (Europe Comics) 

Stan Sakai, Usagi Yojimbo (IDW) 

Tillie Walden, Are You Listening? (First Second/Macmillan)

Meilleure antenne de presse sur les comics

Comic Riffs blog, Michael Cavna 

The Comics Journal, édité par Gary Groth, RJ Casey, et Kristy Valenti (Fantagraphics) 

Hogan’s Alley, édité par Tom Heintjes (Hogan’s Alley) 

Inks: The Journal of the Comics Studies Society, édité par Qiana Whitted (Ohio State University Press) 

LAAB Magazine, vol. 4: This Was Your Life, édité par Ronald Wimberly et Josh O’Neill (Beehive Books) 

Women Write About Comics, édité par Nola Pfau et Wendy Browne

Meilleur ouvrage lié au sujet des comics

The Art of Nothing: 25 Years of Mutts and the Art of Patrick McDonnell (Abrams) 

The Book of Weirdo, Jon B. Cooke (Last Gasp) 

Grunt: The Art and Unpublished Comics of James Stokoe (Dark Horse) 

Logo a Gogo: Branding Pop Culture, Rian Hughes (Korero Press) 

Making Comics, Lynda Barry (Drawn & Quarterly) 

Screwball! The Cartoonists Who Made the Funnies Funny, Paul Tumey (Library of American Comics/IDW)

Meilleur design pour un album

Grunt: The Art and Unpublished Comics of James Stokoe, Ethan Kimberling (Dark Horse) 

Krazy Kat: The Complete Color Sundays, Anna-Tina Kessler (TASCHEN) 

Logo a Gogo, Rian Hughes (Korero Press) 

Madness in Crowds: The Teeming Mind of Harrison Cady, Paul Kopple et Alex Bruce (Beehive Books) 

Making Comics, Lynda Barry (Drawn & Quarterly) 

Rusty Brown, Chris Ware (Pantheon)

Meilleure publication sur le design

Grunt: The Art and Unpublished Comics of James Stokoe, designed by Ethan Kimberling (Dark Horse)

Krazy Kat: The Complete Color Sundays, by George Herriman, designed by Anna-Tina Kessler (TASCHEN)

Logo a Gogo, designed by Rian Hughes (Korero Press)

Madness in Crowds: The Teeming Mind of Harrison Cady, designed by Paul Kopple and Alex Bruce (Beehive Books)

Making Comics, designed by Lynda Barry (Drawn & Quarterly)

Rusty Brown, designed by Chris Ware (Pantheon)

Meilleure série en digital

Afterlift, Chip Zdarsky, Jason Loo (comiXology Originals) 

Black Water Lilies, Michel Bussi, adapté par Frédéric Duval et Didier Cassegrain, traduit par Edward Gauvin (Europe Comics) 

Colored: The Unsung Life of Claudette Colvin, Tania de Montaigne, adapté par Emilie Plateau, traduit par Montana Kane (Europe Comics) 

Elma, A Bear’s Life, vol. 1: The Great Journey, Ingrid Chabbert et Léa Mazé, traduit par Jenny Aufiery (Europe Comics) 

Mare Internum, Der-shing Helmer (comiXology; gumroad.com/l/MIPDF) 

Tales from Behind the Window, Edanur Kuntman, traduit par Cem Ulgen (Europe Comics)

Meilleur webcomic

Cabramatta, Matt Huynh 

Chuckwagon at the End of the World, Erik Lundy 

The Eyes, Javi de Castro   

Fried Rice Comic, Erica Eng 

reMIND, Jason Brubaker 

Third Shift Society, Meredith Moriarty

[orangetvnaija]

Halle Berry claims ex Gabriel Aubry had 'incestuous relationship' and accuses him of 'racism and psychological abuse' in newly unearthed legal documents from ugly 2011 custody battle .

Halle Berry made explosive claims about her ex Gabriel Aubry, accusing him of incest, racism and emotional abuse during their fight over custody of daughter Nahla, back at the turn of the decade.

New details have come to light about the case through documents obtained by Radar.com which were originally sealed by courts.

In the explosive legal documents from the 2011 case, the actress made several shocking claims about her ex.

Berry, 53, and Aubry engaged in a bitter public custody battle after their split in 2010. The couple began dating in 2005 and welcomed daughter Nahla in March 2008.

Among Berry's claims about Aubry: She reported he used racial epithets during their relationship, in addition to displaying bias by refusing to recognize their daughter as biracial.

She also discussed Gabriel's past sexual relationship with a member of his family, contending that the emotional damage from that situation ruined her and Aubry's sex life.

'After the first six months of our relationship, our sex life diminished and after one year we had sex less than three times per year,' Halle testified, according to legal documents. 

Berry said that Aubry failed to deal with their issues. 

'[Gabriel] refused to either recognize or accept responsibility for these issues. Instead, he criticized my body in ways which are very demeaning to women … I finally convinced [him] to go to a joint therapist to address these issues.'

She claimed Aubry admitted to having a sexual relationship with a member of his family during the time he was bouncing between foster homes.

In her deposition Berry said the relationship went on 'for years' until the unidentified partner ended things.

Berry further accused Aubry of having a history of mental health issues, suggesting he was unfit to be Nahla's primary parent.

She said that the model suffered from depression and social anxiety but refused to seek treatment, which in part lead to the couple's split.

Aubry's legal team requested that the court strike much of Berry's testimony from the record, claiming her comments were irrelevant or 'misstat[ing] facts,' and had 'no foundation.' 

Aubry's lawyers also said that Berry's claims about his psychological state breached therapist-client privilege.

The 2011 custody dispute was centered around Halle's plans to move to France with Nahla so she could live with then-boyfriend Olivier Martinez, a move which Aubry claimed would interfere with their joint-custody agreement. 

In November 2012 a judge denied Berry's request to relocate.

Two weeks after, Aubry and Martinez got into a physical fight at Berry's California residence. 

The skirmish sent both men to the hospital with injuries. Later shocking photographs of a bruised Aubry circulated through the media.

Afterwards Martinez, Berry and daughter Nahla were granted temporary emergency orders against Aubry. He shot back by obtaining his own temporary restraining order against Martinez. No charges were ever filed, however.

Following the fight, the former couple came to terms regarding Nahla's custody. 

And in 2014, a Superior Court ruled Berry pay Aubry $16k a month in child support along with a retroactive payment of $115k and $300k to reimburse Aubry for his attorney fees.

Berry and Aubry did not respond to DailyMail.com's requests for comment.

[bharatiyamedia-blog]

Mozilla Blocks UAE Bid to Turn out to be an Web Safety Guardian After Hacking Studies

http://tinyurl.com/y6s3hl86 Firefox browser maker Mozilla is obstructing the United Arab Emirates’ authorities from serving as considered one of its web safety gatekeepers, citing Reuters experiences on a UAE cyber-espionage programme. Mozilla stated in a press release on Tuesday it was rejecting the UAE’s bid to develop into a globally recognised Web safety watchdog, empowered to certify the security of internet sites for Firefox customers. Mozilla stated it made the choice as a result of cyber-security agency DarkMatter would have administered the gatekeeper position and it had been linked by Reuters and different experiences to a state-run hacking programme. Reuters reported in January that Abu Dhabi-based DarkMatter supplied workers for a secret hacking operation, codenamed Mission Raven, on behalf of an Emirati intelligence company. The unit was largely comprised of former US intelligence officers who performed offensive cyber operations for the UAE authorities. Former Raven operatives informed Reuters that many DarkMatter executives had been unaware of the secretive programme, which operated from a transformed Abu Dhabi mansion away from DarkMatter’s headquarters. The programme’s operations included hacking into the web accounts of human rights activists, journalists and officers from rival governments, Reuters discovered. DarkMatter has denied being related to offensive hacking operations, saying the experiences of its involvement had been primarily based on “false, defamatory, and unsubstantiated statements.” The UAE embassy in Washington and DarkMatter didn’t reply to a request for touch upon Tuesday. ‘Credible proof’Selena Deckelmann, Mozilla’s senior director of engineering, stated the experiences from Reuters, in addition to the New York Instances and the Intercept, had made the browser firm concern that DarkMatter would use the position of Web safety gatekeeper to launch surveillance efforts. Mozilla concluded “that putting our belief in DarkMatter and disregarding credible proof would put each the net and customers in danger,” Deckelmann informed Reuters. Web sites in search of designation as secure by Web browsers need to be licensed by an outdoor organisation, which is able to verify their identification and vouch for his or her safety. The certifying organisation additionally helps safe the connection between an accepted web site and its customers, promising site visitors won’t be intercepted. But when a surveillance group gained that authority, it might certify faux web sites impersonating banks or e-mail providers, permitting hackers to intercept person information, safety consultants say. Organisations that wish to get hold of certifying authority should apply to browser makers like Mozilla and Microsoft. Many of the certifying organisations are unbiased, non-public firms. Browsers like Firefox permit web sites to acquire certification from any accepted authority wherever on the earth. However many international locations, together with China, the US and Germany even have government-approved organisations within the position. DarkMatter executives have argued that rejection of the UAE bid to develop into a certifying physique could be a “dystopian” coverage by Mozilla “in opposition to sovereign nations deemed unfit of working their very own nationwide certificates.” Rising fearsIn 2017, DarkMatter utilized on behalf of the UAE authorities for certificates authority. The corporate additionally utilized to Mozilla to develop into a industrial certifier in its personal proper. Following Reuters experiences earlier this 12 months, Mozilla executives started to concern that DarkMatter might use the authority to spy on customers, a Mozilla govt stated within the firm’s public on-line discussion board. Mozilla executives stated rejecting an applicant on the premise of media experiences was unprecedented. In previous circumstances, Mozilla primarily relied on technical proof to find out certification authority. In Mozilla’s public dialogue boards, DarkMatter executives and a few safety consultants warned that counting on information articles to resolve who can develop into a certificates authority would completely taint the method with bias. Mozilla’s acknowledged issues confirmed “a hidden organizational animus that’s deadly to the concept of ‘due course of’ and ‘elementary equity,’” Benjamin Gabriel, normal counsel for DarkMatter, wrote within the on-line discussion board. In Could, a DarkMatter govt stated the corporate would transfer its certificates enterprise to a brand new entity referred to as DigitalTrust. That firm could be managed by a agency referred to as DM Investments, which is owned by DarkMatter founder Faisal Al Bannai. “This possession construction doesn’t guarantee me that these firms have the power to function independently, no matter their names and authorized construction,” stated Wayne Thayer, Mozilla’s certification authority programme supervisor, in his announcement on Tuesday. Together with rejecting the UAE’s software, Mozilla stated it could block a number of different separate bids by DarkMatter to develop into a industrial certificates supplier. Mozilla additionally stated it could mark as unsafe the greater than 275 web sites DarkMatter had already licensed below an earlier provisional authority that the corporate gained in 2017. Mozilla famous that one other UAE authorities entity referred to as the Dubai Digital Safety Middle nonetheless had a pending software to develop into a certificates authority, on which Mozilla had not but decided. Whereas every browser firm makes its personal selections about who it permits to develop into a certifying authority, Mozilla is seen as a frontrunner on this space. Safety consultants say rivals, resembling Google’s Chrome browser and Apple’s Safari browser, are inclined to observe its lead. Thayer stated in his announcement that even with no smoking gun that confirmed DarkMatter had misused certificates, the dangers demonstrated by the experiences had been too nice. ”Whereas there are stable arguments on either side of this resolution, it’s affordable to conclude that persevering with to position belief in DarkMatter is a big threat to our customers,” he stated. © Thomson Reuters 2019 Source link

[araitsume]

The Desire of Ages, pp. 97-108: Chapter (10) The Voice in the Wilderness

This chapter is based on Luke 1:5-23, 57-80; 3:1-18; Matthew 3:1-12; Mark 1:1-8.

From among the faithful in Israel, who had long waited for the coming of the Messiah, the forerunner of Christ arose. The aged priest Zacharias and his wife Elisabeth were “both righteous before God;” and in their quiet and holy lives the light of faith shone out like a star amid the darkness of those evil days. To this godly pair was given the promise of a son, who should “go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways.”

Zacharias dwelt in “the hill country of Judea,” but he had gone up to Jerusalem to minister for one week in the temple, a service required twice a year from the priests of each course. “And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his course, according to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.”

He was standing before the golden altar in the holy place of the sanctuary. The cloud of incense with the prayers of Israel was ascending before God. Suddenly he became conscious of a divine presence. An angel of the Lord was “standing on the right side of the altar.” The position of the angel was an indication of favor, but Zacharias took no note of this. For many years he had prayed for the coming of the Redeemer; now heaven had sent its messenger to announce that these prayers were about to be answered; but the mercy of God seemed too great for him to credit. He was filled with fear and self-condemnation.

But he was greeted with the joyful assurance: “Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost.... And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. And he shall go before Him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.”

Zacharias well knew how to Abraham in his old age a child was given because he believed Him faithful who had promised. But for a moment the aged priest turns his thought to the weakness of humanity. He forgets that what God has promised, He is able to perform. What a contrast between this unbelief and the sweet, childlike faith of Mary, the maiden of Nazareth, whose answer to the angel's wonderful announcement was, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word”! Luke 1:38.

The birth of a son to Zacharias, like the birth of the child of Abraham, and that of Mary, was to teach a great spiritual truth, a truth that we are slow to learn and ready to forget. In ourselves we are incapable of doing any good thing; but that which we cannot do will be wrought by the power of God in every submissive and believing soul. It was through faith that the child of promise was given. It is through faith that spiritual life is begotten, and we are enabled to do the works of righteousness.

To the question of Zacharias, the angel said, “I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to show thee these glad tidings.” Five hundred years before, Gabriel had made known to Daniel the prophetic period which was to extend to the coming of Christ. The knowledge that the end of this period was near had moved Zacharias to pray for the Messiah's advent. Now the very messenger through whom the prophecy was given had come to announce its fulfillment.

The words of the angel, “I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God,” show that he holds a position of high honor in the heavenly courts. When he came with a message to Daniel, he said, “There is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael [Christ] your Prince.” Daniel 10:21. Of Gabriel the Saviour speaks in the Revelation, saying that “He sent and signified it by His angel unto His servant John.” Revelation 1:1. And to John the angel declared, “I am a fellow servant with thee and with thy brethren the prophets.” Revelation 22:9, R. V. Wonderful thought—that the angel who stands next in honor to the Son of God is the one chosen to open the purposes of God to sinful men.

Zacharias had expressed doubt of the angel's words. He was not to speak again until they were fulfilled. “Behold,” said the angel, “thou shalt be dumb, ... until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.” It was the duty of the priest in this service to pray for the pardon of public and national sins, and for the coming of the Messiah; but when Zacharias attempted to do this, he could not utter a word.

Coming forth to bless the people, “he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless.” They had waited long, and had begun to fear, lest he had been cut down by the judgment of God. But as he came forth from the holy place, his face was shining with the glory of God, “and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple.” Zacharias communicated to them what he had seen and heard; and “as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house.”

Soon after the birth of the promised child, the father's tongue was loosed, “and he spake, and praised God. And fear came on all that dwelt round about them: and all these sayings were noised abroad throughout all the hill country of Judea. And all they that heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, What manner of child shall this be!” All this tended to call attention to the Messiah's coming, for which John was to prepare the way.

The Holy Spirit rested upon Zacharias, and in these beautiful words he prophesied of the mission of his son:

“Thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest; For thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways; To give knowledge of salvation unto His people By the remission of their sins, Through the tender mercy of our God, Whereby the Dayspring from on high hath visited us, To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace.”

“And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his showing unto Israel.” Before the birth of John, the angel had said, “He shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost.” God had called the son of Zacharias to a great work, the greatest ever committed to men. In order to accomplish this work, he must have the Lord to work with him. And the Spirit of God would be with him if he heeded the instruction of the angel.

John was to go forth as Jehovah's messenger, to bring to men the light of God. He must give a new direction to their thoughts. He must impress them with the holiness of God's requirements, and their need of His perfect righteousness. Such a messenger must be holy. He must be a temple for the indwelling Spirit of God. In order to fulfill his mission, he must have a sound physical constitution, and mental and spiritual strength. Therefore it would be necessary for him to control the appetites and passions. He must be able so to control all his powers that he could stand among men as unmoved by surrounding circumstances as the rocks and mountains of the wilderness.

In the time of John the Baptist, greed for riches, and the love of luxury and display had become widespread. Sensuous pleasures, feasting and drinking, were causing physical disease and degeneracy, benumbing the spiritual perceptions, and lessening the sensibility to sin. John was to stand as a reformer. By his abstemious life and plain dress he was to rebuke the excesses of his time. Hence the directions given to the parents of John,—a lesson of temperance by an angel from the throne of heaven.

In childhood and youth the character is most impressible. The power of self-control should then be acquired. By the fireside and at the family board influences are exerted whose results are as enduring as eternity. More than any natural endowment, the habits established in early years decide whether a man will be victorious or vanquished in the battle of life. Youth is the sowing time. It determines the character of the harvest, for this life and for the life to come.

As a prophet, John was “to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” In preparing the way for Christ's first advent, he was a representative of those who are to prepare a people for our Lord's second coming. The world is given to self-indulgence. Errors and fables abound. Satan's snares for destroying souls are multiplied. All who would perfect holiness in the fear of God must learn the lessons of temperance and self-control. The appetites and passions must be held in subjection to the higher powers of the mind. This self-discipline is essential to that mental strength and spiritual insight which will enable us to understand and to practice the sacred truths of God's word. For this reason temperance finds its place in the work of preparation for Christ's second coming.

In the natural order of things, the son of Zacharias would have been educated for the priesthood. But the training of the rabbinical schools would have unfitted him for his work. God did not send him to the teachers of theology to learn how to interpret the Scriptures. He called him to the desert, that he might learn of nature and nature's God.

It was a lonely region where he found his home, in the midst of barren hills, wild ravines, and rocky caves. But it was his choice to forgo the enjoyments and luxuries of life for the stern discipline of the wilderness. Here his surroundings were favorable to habits of simplicity and self-denial. Uninterrupted by the clamor of the world, he could here study the lessons of nature, of revelation, and of Providence. The words of the angel to Zacharias had been often repeated to John by his God-fearing parents. From childhood his mission had been kept before him, and he had accepted the holy trust. To him the solitude of the desert was a welcome escape from society in which suspicion, unbelief, and impurity had become well-nigh all-pervading. He distrusted his own power to withstand temptation, and shrank from constant contact with sin, lest he should lose the sense of its exceeding sinfulness.

Dedicated to God as a Nazarite from his birth, he made the vow his own in a life-long consecration. His dress was that of the ancient prophets, a garment of camel's hair, confined by a leather girdle. He ate the “locusts and wild honey” found in the wilderness, and drank the pure water from the hills.

But the life of John was not spent in idleness, in ascetic gloom, or in selfish isolation. From time to time he went forth to mingle with men; and he was ever an interested observer of what was passing in the world. From his quiet retreat he watched the unfolding of events. With vision illuminated by the divine Spirit he studied the characters of men, that he might understand how to reach their hearts with the message of heaven. The burden of his mission was upon him. In solitude, by meditation and prayer, he sought to gird up his soul for the lifework before him.

Although in the wilderness, he was not exempt from temptation. So far as possible, he closed every avenue by which Satan could enter, yet he was still assailed by the tempter. But his spiritual perceptions were clear; he had developed strength and decision of character, and through the aid of the Holy Spirit he was able to detect Satan's approaches, and to resist his power.

John found in the wilderness his school and his sanctuary. Like Moses amid the mountains of Midian, he was shut in by God's presence, and surrounded by the evidences of His power. It was not his lot to dwell, as did Israel's great leader, amid the solemn majesty of the mountain solitudes; but before him were the heights of Moab, beyond Jordan, speaking of Him who had set fast the mountains, and girded them with strength. The gloomy and terrible aspect of nature in his wilderness home vividly pictured the condition of Israel. The fruitful vineyard of the Lord had become a desolate waste. But above the desert the heavens bent bright and beautiful. The clouds that gathered, dark with tempest, were arched by the rainbow of promise. So above Israel's degradation shone the promised glory of the Messiah's reign. The clouds of wrath were spanned by the rainbow of His covenant-mercy.

Alone in the silent night he read God's promise to Abraham of a seed numberless as the stars. The light of dawn, gilding the mountains of Moab, told of Him who should be as “the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds.” 2 Samuel 23:4. And in the brightness of noontide he saw the splendor of His manifestation, when “the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.” Isaiah 40:5.

With awed yet exultant spirit he searched in the prophetic scrolls the revelations of the Messiah's coming,—the promised seed that should bruise the serpent's head; Shiloh, “the peace giver,” who was to appear before a king should cease to reign on David's throne. Now the time had come. A Roman ruler sat in the palace upon Mount Zion. By the sure word of the Lord, already the Christ was born.

Isaiah's rapt portrayals of the Messiah's glory were his study by day and by night,—the Branch from the root of Jesse; a King to reign in righteousness, judging “with equity for the meek of the earth;” “a covert from the tempest; ... the shadow of a great rock in a weary land;” Israel no longer to be termed “Forsaken,” nor her land “Desolate,” but to be called of the Lord, “My Delight,” and her land “Beulah.” Isaiah 11:4; 32:2; 62:4, margin. The heart of the lonely exile was filled with the glorious vision.

He looked upon the King in His beauty, and self was forgotten. He beheld the majesty of holiness, and felt himself to be inefficient and unworthy. He was ready to go forth as Heaven's messenger, unawed by the human, because he had looked upon the Divine. He could stand erect and fearless in the presence of earthly monarchs, because he had bowed low before the King of kings.

John did not fully understand the nature of the Messiah's kingdom. He looked for Israel to be delivered from her national foes; but the coming of a King in righteousness, and the establishment of Israel as a holy nation, was the great object of his hope. Thus he believed would be accomplished the prophecy given at his birth,—

“To remember His holy covenant; ... That we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies Might serve Him without fear, In holiness and righteousness before Him, all the days of our life.”

He saw his people deceived, self-satisfied, and asleep in their sins. He longed to rouse them to a holier life. The message that God had given him to bear was designed to startle them from their lethargy, and cause them to tremble because of their great wickedness. Before the seed of the gospel could find lodgment, the soil of the heart must be broken up. Before they would seek healing from Jesus, they must be awakened to their danger from the wounds of sin.

God does not send messengers to flatter the sinner. He delivers no message of peace to lull the unsanctified into fatal security. He lays heavy burdens upon the conscience of the wrongdoer, and pierces the soul with arrows of conviction. The ministering angels present to him the fearful judgments of God to deepen the sense of need, and prompt the cry, “What must I do to be saved?” Then the hand that has humbled in the dust, lifts up the penitent. The voice that has rebuked sin, and put to shame pride and ambition, inquires with tenderest sympathy, “What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee?”

When the ministry of John began, the nation was in a state of excitement and discontent verging on revolution. At the removal of Archelaus, Judea had been brought directly under the control of Rome. The tyranny and extortion of the Roman governors, and their determined efforts to introduce the heathen symbols and customs, kindled revolt, which had been quenched in the blood of thousands of the bravest of Israel. All this intensified the national hatred against Rome, and increased the longing to be freed from her power.

Amid discord and strife, a voice was heard from the wilderness, a voice startling and stern, yet full of hope: “Repent ye; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” With a new, strange power it moved the people. Prophets had foretold the coming of Christ as an event far in the future; but here was an announcement that it was at hand. John's singular appearance carried the minds of his hearers back to the ancient seers. In his manner and dress he resembled the prophet Elijah. With the spirit and power of Elijah he denounced the national corruption, and rebuked the prevailing sins. His words were plain, pointed, and convincing. Many believed him to be one of the prophets risen from the dead. The whole nation was stirred. Multitudes flocked to the wilderness.

John proclaimed the coming of the Messiah, and called the people to repentance. As a symbol of cleansing from sin, he baptized them in the waters of the Jordan. Thus by a significant object lesson he declared that those who claimed to be the chosen people of God were defiled by sin, and that without purification of heart and life they could have no part in the Messiah's kingdom.

Princes and rabbis, soldiers, publicans, and peasants came to hear the prophet. For a time the solemn warning from God alarmed them. Many were brought to repentance, and received baptism. Persons of all ranks submitted to the requirement of the Baptist, in order to participate in the kingdom he announced.

Many of the scribes and Pharisees came confessing their sins, and asking for baptism. They had exalted themselves as better than other men, and had led the people to entertain a high opinion of their piety; now the guilty secrets of their lives were unveiled. But John was impressed by the Holy Spirit that many of these men had no real conviction of sin. They were timeservers. As friends of the prophet, they hoped to find favor with the coming Prince. And by receiving baptism at the hands of this popular young teacher, they thought to strengthen their influence with the people.

John met them with the scathing inquiry, “O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance; and think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.”

The Jews had misinterpreted God's promise of eternal favor to Israel: “Thus saith the Lord, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The Lord of hosts is His name: If those ordinances depart from before Me, saith the Lord, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before Me forever. Thus saith the Lord; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the Lord.” Jeremiah 31:35-37. The Jews regarded their natural descent from Abraham as giving them a claim to this promise. But they overlooked the conditions which God had specified. Before giving the promise, He had said, “I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be My people.... For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” Jeremiah 31:33, 34.

To a people in whose hearts His law is written, the favor of God is assured. They are one with Him. But the Jews had separated themselves from God. Because of their sins they were suffering under His judgments. This was the cause of their bondage to a heathen nation. Their minds were darkened by transgression, and because in times past the Lord had shown them so great favor, they excused their sins. They flattered themselves that they were better than other men, and entitled to His blessings.

These things “are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.” 1 Corinthians 10:11. How often we misinterpret God's blessings, and flatter ourselves that we are favored on account of some goodness in us! God cannot do for us that which He longs to do. His gifts are used to increase our self-satisfaction, and to harden our hearts in unbelief and sin.

John declared to the teachers of Israel that their pride, selfishness, and cruelty showed them to be a generation of vipers, a deadly curse to the people, rather than the children of just and obedient Abraham. In view of the light they had received from God, they were even worse than the heathen, to whom they felt so much superior. They had forgotten the rock whence they were hewn, and the hole of the pit from which they had been digged. God was not dependent upon them for the fulfilling of His purpose. As He had called Abraham out from a heathen people, so He could call others to His service. Their hearts might now appear as lifeless as the stones of the desert, but His Spirit could quicken them to do His will, and receive the fulfillment of His promise.

“And now also,” said the prophet, “the ax is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.” Not by its name, but by its fruit, is the value of a tree determined. If the fruit is worthless, the name cannot save the tree from destruction. John declared to the Jews that their standing before God was to be decided by their character and life. Profession was worthless. If their life and character were not in harmony with God's law, they were not His people.

Under his heart-searching words, his hearers were convicted. They came to him with the inquiry, “What shall we do then?” He answered, “He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath meat, let him do likewise.” And he warned the publicans against injustice, and the soldiers against violence.

All who became the subjects of Christ's kingdom, he said, would give evidence of faith and repentance. Kindness, honesty, and fidelity would be seen in their lives. They would minister to the needy, and bring their offerings to God. They would shield the defenseless, and give an example of virtue and compassion. So the followers of Christ will give evidence of the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. In the daily life, justice, mercy, and the love of God will be seen. Otherwise they are like the chaff that is given to the fire.

“I indeed baptize you in water unto repentance,” said John; “but He that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire.” Matthew 3:11, R. V., margin. The prophet Isaiah had declared that the Lord would cleanse His people from their iniquities “by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.” The word of the Lord to Israel was, “I will turn My hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin.” Isaiah 4:4; 1:25. To sin, wherever found, “our God is a consuming fire.” Hebrews 12:29. In all who submit to His power the Spirit of God will consume sin. But if men cling to sin, they become identified with it. Then the glory of God, which destroys sin, must destroy them. Jacob, after his night of wrestling with the Angel, exclaimed, “I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” Genesis 32:30. Jacob had been guilty of a great sin in his conduct toward Esau; but he had repented. His transgression had been forgiven, and his sin purged; therefore he could endure the revelation of God's presence. But wherever men came before God while willfully cherishing evil, they were destroyed. At the second advent of Christ the wicked shall be consumed “with the Spirit of His mouth,” and destroyed “with the brightness of His coming.” 2 Thessalonians 2:8. The light of the glory of God, which imparts life to the righteous, will slay the wicked.

In the time of John the Baptist, Christ was about to appear as the revealer of the character of God. His very presence would make manifest to men their sin. Only as they were willing to be purged from sin could they enter into fellowship with Him. Only the pure in heart could abide in His presence.

Thus the Baptist declared God's message to Israel. Many gave heed to his instruction. Many sacrificed all in order to obey. Multitudes followed this new teacher from place to place, and not a few cherished the hope that he might be the Messiah. But as John saw the people turning to him, he sought every opportunity of directing their faith to Him who was to come.

[ikagrp]

Welcome, Dia! You’ve been accepted as your first choice of Genevieve Cortese as Alchemy Rose. Please send in your account within the next 24 hours.

Also, please follow these tags: ikag starter, Ikag social, ikaghh, ikag important, ikag task, ikagfollow, ikagunfollow and   ikag event

[ OOC INFORMATION ]

NAME / PRONOUNS | AGE | TIMEZONE

Dia / she/her / 22 / PST

YOUR ACTIVITY:

After this week I’ll be on break - so lots of free time to write whenever! - but otherwise, evenings and weekends will be my most active times.

ROLEPLAYING EXPERIENCE

Too many years

IC INFORMATION

WHO ARE YOU BRINGING TO THE SHOW?

Please keep this layout for us. So that it is easier for us to update everything.

FACECLAIM: Genevieve Cortese Secondary choice: Dichen Lachman

NAME: Alchemy Rose

AGE: 30

BIRTHDAY: July 4th, 1988

OCCUPATION: matchmaker & wedding planner

HOMETOWN: Brisbane, Australia

PETS: zero

BIOGRAPHY:

During the ambrosial hours of July 4th, the chirping of awakening birds was abruptly interrupted with the piercing sound of a baby’s cries, followed by the sound of sobbing. Gabrielle Rose had delivered her first child, a daughter, with her husband Alexander Dumitru standing stoically by her side. No one could have predicted that this day meant to be remembered as one of celebration would also end up being a day of mourning. Alchemy Dumitru’s birth began a chain of tragic events; her existence causing damage before she was even conscious of it. Born at her parents’ home on a vast coastal acreage in Brisbane, Australia, as soon as she took her first breath and began her life, it was the premature end of her mother’s. Although it was clear to everyone else in the room that something was wrong with her mother’s health at the time, Alchemy never had the opportunity to learn about the specifics of the situation. All she had been told, years later, was that within the following hour Gabrielle Rose had taken her last breath.

For the first 13 years of Alchemy’s life she was as carefree and happy as any other typical child, growing up with a seemingly ordinary childhood - as far as she could tell. Unexplained visits to her home from quirky looking characters always insisting on talking with her father in the other room in his native Romanian language probably happened to everyone, right? For that over a decade, the information that she had caused her mother’s death through delivery also remained purposefully undisclosed. Alchemy genuinely believed her mother was the woman her father had remarried a mere fortnight after his daughter’s birth: Anamaria Augustin. She could not have children, and treated Alchemy as her own the only way she knew how: pretending.

Only one other family member knew the truth and was willing to spill secrets - the mother of Alchemy’s father. Her Grandma was the epitome of the crone archetype; all white hair, wise eyes, half moon glasses, and a pipe cradled in her palm with which she would thoughtfully take a pull on whenever her curious granddaughter challenged with endless questions. Alexander considered his mother a crazy and unreliable character due to her age, despite her profession lending to her advice being paid for (a psychologist), but seemed content with her presence so long as it went hand in hand with providing free babysitting. In retrospect, Alchemy’s close bond with her Grandma may have inspired her own interest in studying human behaviours. She spent far more time with her Grandmother than her busy parents, and had thought it was normal until she started talking about it at school. The older she grew, the more things appeared obviously off kilter.

It happens one afternoon, no different from any other. Alchemy is sprawled on her Grandma’s floor with a pile of craft material making a handmade card for Mother’s Day. She’s been at it in silence for several minutes before she asking for clarification on how to spell her mother’s full name, to which her Grandma absentmindedly replied with “Which one?” It was swiftly revealed that Gabrielle and Alexander had been extremely private in their relationship. He had gone overseas to visit his hometown in Romania for covert business reasons, and returned with a wife on his arm. She had been a tourist; on vacation from Australia. Grandma suspected it was was more to due with him being allowed Australian citizenship than for the sake of genuine love, and had been more surprised to hear they had had a daughter than the fact that her mother had died. Apparently Gabrielle had been terminally ill for a while, seemingly unfit for pregnancy, and had been secretly been receiving therapy from Grandma to cope with Alexander’s lack of emotional investment in their relationship. 

Upon learning Anamaria was not her real mother, the world Alchemy thought she knew was spun on it’s axis. It was the first time she felt the need to strategize a battle plan. She knew little of what her father did, only that he was a strict and powerful man of influence in circles related to crime (and she only figured out such because he claimed to be a work-from-home artist yet did not own a single pot of paint). Throughout her years spent at home, at least twice a week she would answer the door to ominous looking men in suits with strange accents, bearing envelopes of money owed to her father. So, she sat on the information for a few days before confronting her father, knowing very well that one wrong move could end up with unreconcilable circumstances. With her stubborn determination against his equally headstrong attitude and repetitions of ‘you’re too young to understand’, their conversation soon escalated into questions too personal and met with threats, each stepping on each other’s toes so much a physical fight seemed inevitable. They were at each other’s throats within minutes. That was the first time her father raised his hand at her, and she surprised even herself with how willing she was to welcome the advance without flinching, but he was unable to follow through. Anamaria appeared to disperse the conflict. Alchemy was disorientated, unsure whether to resentfully cold shoulder them both or press her (step) mother for questions as well. Cornered, she decided to flee the scene to lock herself away in her room to regroup her approach. Taking advantage of her scattered state, Anamaria knocked on her door sometime after midnight, leaving at her door a short written apology and a bottle of something that burned Alchemy’s throat. Addicted to the sensation and numbness which ensued, she accidentally (and blissfully) became drunk for the first time. It only took a small amount before she fell asleep, but it activated a new kind of unquenchable thirst within her.

The relationship between Alchemy and her parents grew increasingly strained, and she held onto a heavy grudge toward the two figures she once would have laid her life on the line for. How could she be expected to sleep in a bed swathed with a fabric woven of deceit and secrets? Since she was legally forbidden to leave home until her 18th birthday, she found a loophole in being bound to her parents by escaping to sleepover at her grandmother’s as much as possible. An unspoken agreement was present between the two of them; don’t ask, you won’t learn. Ask, and you’ll receive the honest truth; no matter how much it hurts. As a result, they didn’t talk much about serious subjects, for Alchemy never knew when to stop asking once she started. Coping mechanisms prevailed. Under the radar, her budding alcohol addiction carried on throughout her years in high school. Every beverage she sipped always spiked with something. Anamaria unknowingly enabled the habit by supplying Alchemy with a steady allowance of a handsome sum, wanting to be involved on good terms with her step daughter even if the feeling was not mutual. The everyday dull buzz of inebriation paired with Alchemy’s dyslexia led to a very short attention span, and the majority of her classes ended up skipped or failed. For better or for worse, detention became her second home. There was one other regular in detention, Rasmus, and the two of them soon clicked with the common desire to create more chaos together, both on the streets and in the sheets. Recklessness was their hobby of choice, and co-creating was their strongest suit. Alchemy’s father had always been particular about her behaviour in public and the impression she made. He had ingrained in her that anyone carrying the Dumitru surname should not strive to draw attention to themselves unless establishing a creditable role of dominance. A teenager in revolt with a vicious grudge, it was hardly surprising when Alchemy started disregarding the household rule in favor of testing every limit. Together, Raz and Alchemy committed various offences such as stealing, severe property damage, and public debauchery. Alchemy was always able to flirt or bribe herself out of sticky situations, and often ended up with a new set of digits too. But it was her partner in crime that she fell for with unwavering devotion. He was her first love, her first kiss, her first scar, her first time, her first everything. She couldn’t imagine anything coming between them. She always assumed the feeling was mutual.

At 17 years of age, Alchemy looked down to see a pink ’+’ sign in the center of a pregnancy test stick. Knowing it was Raz’s, she was driven to keep it. Her excitement toward their potential future together crashed down the moment she told him the news and he laughed. Within a week, all forms of communication she extended towards him went unanswered and silent. Broken hearted by the abandonment from the one she adored, in a rare moment of desperation she sought out her parents. Her father was inexplicably angered by the news. She knew it was so by how quiet he became and the fierce clench of his fists, which remained anchored at his sides by a glare from Anamaria (who also gave little to no reaction to the news). Without looking his daughter in the eye, he instructed her to leave. Evidently, Alchemy was forced to live at Grandmother’s.

A month later Alchemy didn’t bat an eye when her Grandmother informed her that Alexander had gone missing. She ignored Anamaria’s calls and letters. No one mentioned Raz, but she dreamed about him for a year before she finally stopped looking for his face in every crowd. Jezebel ‘Ella’ Rose was born a few days shy of Alchemy’s 18th birthday. She was a perfectly healthy and beautiful baby. For the first three hours, Alchemy did nothing but hold and gaze down upon her. She refused to let go, knowing that once she did it was unlikely she would see her miraculous daughter ever again. Without a steady income or supportive home life, Alchemy had decided soon after Raz left that she would not be able to raise a child on her own. Even with the support of her Grandmother, it wasn’t clear how much longer the old woman would be alive, and she knew it would be selfish to rob the child of opportunity due to how much was lacking in Alchemy’s life. No father, no money, no real home. With little else than an apology note and a basket, Ella was left under Anamaria’s care. She understood now, why her father had done what he had done. Being loved, even if it was illusion, hurt considerably less than not knowing how it felt at all.

Wanting a fresh start, after Alchemy graduated from school (barely) she and her Grandmother moved overseas to the UK. It was there that Alchemy dropped her father’s last name in favor of her mother’s in an attempt at a truly blank slate. Deep down, Alchemy had wishful thinking that whilst abroad she’d find a high paying job that would allow her to one day return to Australia where she could support her daughter as her own. It only took a few months for her to make fast friends amongst the London nightlife, picking up the local lingo easily, yet never able to completely shake off her own accent. As a fun social experiment, she began setting up her single acquaintances on dates together… but when the results came back unexpectedly positive, she realized she had a natural skill for recognizing compatible chemistry a mile ahead of anyone else. Naturally, she then proceeded to busy her time with meddling in other people’s affairs. She was fascinated how universal love was. No matter which country she was in, everyone seemed kept afloat by it in some form or another. At the very least, being able to study of the emotions of others kept her from feeling so depressed about her recent personal estrangements. Feeling useful to others for the first time in a while, slowly but surely, her confidence began to rise again. The infamous cupid had earned her wings. 

Not long after, Alchemy’s grandma passes away. She doesn’t host a funeral, but has her cremated and spread among a rose garden. With no one keeping her tied to a particular place anymore - and refusing to return to Australia until she has enough money to be a reliable and supportive figure for her daughter - fate seemed to intervene with the path her life would take when, a library book on 'Wedding Planning For Dummies’ (quite literally) fell into her lap after a stumble into a bookshelf. After a few years of slowly booking appointments independently, eventually she was hired by a wedding agency. Professionally pulling romantic strings for heart eyed couples became what sustained her. If there was any a moment where Alchemy questioned her sexuality, it was at it’s highest when the bride’s final look was revealed on The Big Day™. Her infatuation towards the beautiful princess-like figures was hard to deny, yet thankfully a sight always in abundance thanks to the new clients sent her way each week.Nonetheless, 'speak now or forever hold your peace’ became an instance she’d have to deliberately bite her tongue over, lest she make an impulsive fool of herself. Ironically, her own love life and was the one she always gave the least amount of thought to. With her gifted knack in setting up others consistently reaping excellent results, no one would have ever guessed the lack of success Alchemy had experienced in love. The idea of getting invested in someone that could leave her behind the next day was far too unpleasant to dare endure again. But her inner idealist begged to differ, every time someone particularly pretty crossed her path. Maybe it was worth trying again? Or for the first time, all things considered…

RELATIONSHIPS:

None yet!

FOR RETURNING CHARACTERS ONLY:

X

ANYTHING ELSE:

I used to be a part of this RP waaaay back when. I’m stoked to see this revival happening. Thanks for all your effort and time! <3

[magicwebsitesnet]

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament http://www.nature-business.com/business-florida-grapples-with-another-shooting-this-time-at-a-jacksonville-game-tournament/

Business

(CNN)A lone armed man opens fire in Florida. Bullets fly, killing and injuring people.

It’s a pattern that has unfolded again in a public space in the same state that was the site of the Parkland shooting that killed 17 people

earlier this year

, as well as the 2016

Pulse nightclub attack

that left 49 dead and the

Fort Lauderdale airport

shooting that killed five in 2017.

The latest shooting happened Sunday in

Jacksonville at a video game tournament.

At least two people were killed, according to authorities, and several were injured.

“We have got to change,” said Florida Gov. Rick Scott on Sunday. “We’ve got to really stop and say to ourselves: there’s something wrong… Why are young men willing to give up their life, or why don’t they value somebody else’s life? We’ve got to figure this out.”

Some gun control advocates used the hashtags

#AnotherFLShooting

and

#GunshineState

— to convey their frustration and call for gun control in the state that has come to the forefront in the national debate over the issue.

Some criticized the state’s politicians and gun laws.

“We should not have to experience #AnotherFLShooting,” tweeted March For Our Lives, the student group organized after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland earlier this year. “We must #StopGunViolence.”

Student activist David Hogg tweeted to Sen. Marco Rubio: “How many mass shootings in your state will it take for you to do something?”

He and other activists urged voters to take action Tuesday at the polls during Florida’s primaries.

“The nation once again looks to Florida with grief and heavy hearts,” tweeted former US Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who was seriously wounded in a mass shooting in Arizona in 2011. “The massacre in Jacksonville is yet another devastating indictment of this country’s inability to keep our kids safe.”

The Giffords Law Center, a gun-control advocacy group that tracks firearms legislation, gave Florida an

“F” grade for its gun laws this year. The state doesn’t require a permit

or a license for someone to own a gun, according to the center and the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action.

After a fierce debate over gun laws after the Parkland shooting this year, Florida lawmakers passed the

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act,

which includes banning the sale or possession of bump fire stocks, giving law enforcement greater power to seize weapons and ammunition from those deemed mentally unfit, and raising the age to purchase a firearm to 21 from 18. It also brought a

three-day waiting period for firearm purchases,

with some exceptions.

The suspect, David Katz, 24, used a handgun in the Sunday shooting, said Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams. He didn’t say how or where Katz acquired the weapon.

The suspect took his own life, the sheriff said.

Katz, who is from Baltimore, Maryland, was in Jacksonville for a video football competition. The FBI, ATF and Baltimore Police were searching the suspect’s South Baltimore home on Sunday.

During the Jacksonville shooting, nine people suffered gunshot wounds and two people were injured while fleeing the area, Williams said.

Dana Loesch, a NRA spokeswoman tweeted that shooting was a “horrible tragedy” and she blamed gun-free zones. “End gun free zones or have the security in place to keep people safe in them,” her tweet said.

Meanwhile, Chryl Anderson, volunteer leader with the Florida Chapter Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America’s said in a statement: “This horrible news is a deadly reminder that we must do more to prevent gun violence in our communities.”

CNN’s Doug Criss, Eric Levenson, Darran Simon and AnneClaire Stapleton contributed to this report.

Read More | Madison Park, CNN,

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament, in 2018-08-27 06:13:45

[captainblogger100posts]

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament http://www.nature-business.com/business-florida-grapples-with-another-shooting-this-time-at-a-jacksonville-game-tournament/

Business

(CNN)A lone armed man opens fire in Florida. Bullets fly, killing and injuring people.

It’s a pattern that has unfolded again in a public space in the same state that was the site of the Parkland shooting that killed 17 people

earlier this year

, as well as the 2016

Pulse nightclub attack

that left 49 dead and the

Fort Lauderdale airport

shooting that killed five in 2017.

The latest shooting happened Sunday in

Jacksonville at a video game tournament.

At least two people were killed, according to authorities, and several were injured.

“We have got to change,” said Florida Gov. Rick Scott on Sunday. “We’ve got to really stop and say to ourselves: there’s something wrong… Why are young men willing to give up their life, or why don’t they value somebody else’s life? We’ve got to figure this out.”

Some gun control advocates used the hashtags

#AnotherFLShooting

and

#GunshineState

— to convey their frustration and call for gun control in the state that has come to the forefront in the national debate over the issue.

Some criticized the state’s politicians and gun laws.

“We should not have to experience #AnotherFLShooting,” tweeted March For Our Lives, the student group organized after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland earlier this year. “We must #StopGunViolence.”

Student activist David Hogg tweeted to Sen. Marco Rubio: “How many mass shootings in your state will it take for you to do something?”

He and other activists urged voters to take action Tuesday at the polls during Florida’s primaries.

“The nation once again looks to Florida with grief and heavy hearts,” tweeted former US Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who was seriously wounded in a mass shooting in Arizona in 2011. “The massacre in Jacksonville is yet another devastating indictment of this country’s inability to keep our kids safe.”

The Giffords Law Center, a gun-control advocacy group that tracks firearms legislation, gave Florida an

“F” grade for its gun laws this year. The state doesn’t require a permit

or a license for someone to own a gun, according to the center and the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action.

After a fierce debate over gun laws after the Parkland shooting this year, Florida lawmakers passed the

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act,

which includes banning the sale or possession of bump fire stocks, giving law enforcement greater power to seize weapons and ammunition from those deemed mentally unfit, and raising the age to purchase a firearm to 21 from 18. It also brought a

three-day waiting period for firearm purchases,

with some exceptions.

The suspect, David Katz, 24, used a handgun in the Sunday shooting, said Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams. He didn’t say how or where Katz acquired the weapon.

The suspect took his own life, the sheriff said.

Katz, who is from Baltimore, Maryland, was in Jacksonville for a video football competition. The FBI, ATF and Baltimore Police were searching the suspect’s South Baltimore home on Sunday.

During the Jacksonville shooting, nine people suffered gunshot wounds and two people were injured while fleeing the area, Williams said.

Dana Loesch, a NRA spokeswoman tweeted that shooting was a “horrible tragedy” and she blamed gun-free zones. “End gun free zones or have the security in place to keep people safe in them,” her tweet said.

Meanwhile, Chryl Anderson, volunteer leader with the Florida Chapter Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America’s said in a statement: “This horrible news is a deadly reminder that we must do more to prevent gun violence in our communities.”

CNN’s Doug Criss, Eric Levenson, Darran Simon and AnneClaire Stapleton contributed to this report.

Read More | Madison Park, CNN,

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament, in 2018-08-27 06:13:45

[blogwonderwebsites]

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament http://www.nature-business.com/business-florida-grapples-with-another-shooting-this-time-at-a-jacksonville-game-tournament/

Business

(CNN)A lone armed man opens fire in Florida. Bullets fly, killing and injuring people.

It’s a pattern that has unfolded again in a public space in the same state that was the site of the Parkland shooting that killed 17 people

earlier this year

, as well as the 2016

Pulse nightclub attack

that left 49 dead and the

Fort Lauderdale airport

shooting that killed five in 2017.

The latest shooting happened Sunday in

Jacksonville at a video game tournament.

At least two people were killed, according to authorities, and several were injured.

“We have got to change,” said Florida Gov. Rick Scott on Sunday. “We’ve got to really stop and say to ourselves: there’s something wrong… Why are young men willing to give up their life, or why don’t they value somebody else’s life? We’ve got to figure this out.”

Some gun control advocates used the hashtags

#AnotherFLShooting

and

#GunshineState

— to convey their frustration and call for gun control in the state that has come to the forefront in the national debate over the issue.

Some criticized the state’s politicians and gun laws.

“We should not have to experience #AnotherFLShooting,” tweeted March For Our Lives, the student group organized after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland earlier this year. “We must #StopGunViolence.”

Student activist David Hogg tweeted to Sen. Marco Rubio: “How many mass shootings in your state will it take for you to do something?”

He and other activists urged voters to take action Tuesday at the polls during Florida’s primaries.

“The nation once again looks to Florida with grief and heavy hearts,” tweeted former US Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who was seriously wounded in a mass shooting in Arizona in 2011. “The massacre in Jacksonville is yet another devastating indictment of this country’s inability to keep our kids safe.”

The Giffords Law Center, a gun-control advocacy group that tracks firearms legislation, gave Florida an

“F” grade for its gun laws this year. The state doesn’t require a permit

or a license for someone to own a gun, according to the center and the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action.

After a fierce debate over gun laws after the Parkland shooting this year, Florida lawmakers passed the

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act,

which includes banning the sale or possession of bump fire stocks, giving law enforcement greater power to seize weapons and ammunition from those deemed mentally unfit, and raising the age to purchase a firearm to 21 from 18. It also brought a

three-day waiting period for firearm purchases,

with some exceptions.

The suspect, David Katz, 24, used a handgun in the Sunday shooting, said Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams. He didn’t say how or where Katz acquired the weapon.

The suspect took his own life, the sheriff said.

Katz, who is from Baltimore, Maryland, was in Jacksonville for a video football competition. The FBI, ATF and Baltimore Police were searching the suspect’s South Baltimore home on Sunday.

During the Jacksonville shooting, nine people suffered gunshot wounds and two people were injured while fleeing the area, Williams said.

Dana Loesch, a NRA spokeswoman tweeted that shooting was a “horrible tragedy” and she blamed gun-free zones. “End gun free zones or have the security in place to keep people safe in them,” her tweet said.

Meanwhile, Chryl Anderson, volunteer leader with the Florida Chapter Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America’s said in a statement: “This horrible news is a deadly reminder that we must do more to prevent gun violence in our communities.”

CNN’s Doug Criss, Eric Levenson, Darran Simon and AnneClaire Stapleton contributed to this report.

Read More | Madison Park, CNN,

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament, in 2018-08-27 06:13:45

[blogparadiseisland]

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament http://www.nature-business.com/business-florida-grapples-with-another-shooting-this-time-at-a-jacksonville-game-tournament/

Business

(CNN)A lone armed man opens fire in Florida. Bullets fly, killing and injuring people.

It’s a pattern that has unfolded again in a public space in the same state that was the site of the Parkland shooting that killed 17 people

earlier this year

, as well as the 2016

Pulse nightclub attack

that left 49 dead and the

Fort Lauderdale airport

shooting that killed five in 2017.

The latest shooting happened Sunday in

Jacksonville at a video game tournament.

At least two people were killed, according to authorities, and several were injured.

“We have got to change,” said Florida Gov. Rick Scott on Sunday. “We’ve got to really stop and say to ourselves: there’s something wrong… Why are young men willing to give up their life, or why don’t they value somebody else’s life? We’ve got to figure this out.”

Some gun control advocates used the hashtags

#AnotherFLShooting

and

#GunshineState

— to convey their frustration and call for gun control in the state that has come to the forefront in the national debate over the issue.

Some criticized the state’s politicians and gun laws.

“We should not have to experience #AnotherFLShooting,” tweeted March For Our Lives, the student group organized after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland earlier this year. “We must #StopGunViolence.”

Student activist David Hogg tweeted to Sen. Marco Rubio: “How many mass shootings in your state will it take for you to do something?”

He and other activists urged voters to take action Tuesday at the polls during Florida’s primaries.

“The nation once again looks to Florida with grief and heavy hearts,” tweeted former US Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who was seriously wounded in a mass shooting in Arizona in 2011. “The massacre in Jacksonville is yet another devastating indictment of this country’s inability to keep our kids safe.”

The Giffords Law Center, a gun-control advocacy group that tracks firearms legislation, gave Florida an

“F” grade for its gun laws this year. The state doesn’t require a permit

or a license for someone to own a gun, according to the center and the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action.

After a fierce debate over gun laws after the Parkland shooting this year, Florida lawmakers passed the

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act,

which includes banning the sale or possession of bump fire stocks, giving law enforcement greater power to seize weapons and ammunition from those deemed mentally unfit, and raising the age to purchase a firearm to 21 from 18. It also brought a

three-day waiting period for firearm purchases,

with some exceptions.

The suspect, David Katz, 24, used a handgun in the Sunday shooting, said Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams. He didn’t say how or where Katz acquired the weapon.

The suspect took his own life, the sheriff said.

Katz, who is from Baltimore, Maryland, was in Jacksonville for a video football competition. The FBI, ATF and Baltimore Police were searching the suspect’s South Baltimore home on Sunday.

During the Jacksonville shooting, nine people suffered gunshot wounds and two people were injured while fleeing the area, Williams said.

Dana Loesch, a NRA spokeswoman tweeted that shooting was a “horrible tragedy” and she blamed gun-free zones. “End gun free zones or have the security in place to keep people safe in them,” her tweet said.

Meanwhile, Chryl Anderson, volunteer leader with the Florida Chapter Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America’s said in a statement: “This horrible news is a deadly reminder that we must do more to prevent gun violence in our communities.”

CNN’s Doug Criss, Eric Levenson, Darran Simon and AnneClaire Stapleton contributed to this report.

Read More | Madison Park, CNN,

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament, in 2018-08-27 06:13:45

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Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament http://www.nature-business.com/business-florida-grapples-with-another-shooting-this-time-at-a-jacksonville-game-tournament/

Business

(CNN)A lone armed man opens fire in Florida. Bullets fly, killing and injuring people.

It’s a pattern that has unfolded again in a public space in the same state that was the site of the Parkland shooting that killed 17 people

earlier this year

, as well as the 2016

Pulse nightclub attack

that left 49 dead and the

Fort Lauderdale airport

shooting that killed five in 2017.

The latest shooting happened Sunday in

Jacksonville at a video game tournament.

At least two people were killed, according to authorities, and several were injured.

“We have got to change,” said Florida Gov. Rick Scott on Sunday. “We’ve got to really stop and say to ourselves: there’s something wrong… Why are young men willing to give up their life, or why don’t they value somebody else’s life? We’ve got to figure this out.”

Some gun control advocates used the hashtags

#AnotherFLShooting

and

#GunshineState

— to convey their frustration and call for gun control in the state that has come to the forefront in the national debate over the issue.

Some criticized the state’s politicians and gun laws.

“We should not have to experience #AnotherFLShooting,” tweeted March For Our Lives, the student group organized after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland earlier this year. “We must #StopGunViolence.”

Student activist David Hogg tweeted to Sen. Marco Rubio: “How many mass shootings in your state will it take for you to do something?”

He and other activists urged voters to take action Tuesday at the polls during Florida’s primaries.

“The nation once again looks to Florida with grief and heavy hearts,” tweeted former US Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who was seriously wounded in a mass shooting in Arizona in 2011. “The massacre in Jacksonville is yet another devastating indictment of this country’s inability to keep our kids safe.”

The Giffords Law Center, a gun-control advocacy group that tracks firearms legislation, gave Florida an

“F” grade for its gun laws this year. The state doesn’t require a permit

or a license for someone to own a gun, according to the center and the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action.

After a fierce debate over gun laws after the Parkland shooting this year, Florida lawmakers passed the

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act,

which includes banning the sale or possession of bump fire stocks, giving law enforcement greater power to seize weapons and ammunition from those deemed mentally unfit, and raising the age to purchase a firearm to 21 from 18. It also brought a

three-day waiting period for firearm purchases,

with some exceptions.

The suspect, David Katz, 24, used a handgun in the Sunday shooting, said Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams. He didn’t say how or where Katz acquired the weapon.

The suspect took his own life, the sheriff said.

Katz, who is from Baltimore, Maryland, was in Jacksonville for a video football competition. The FBI, ATF and Baltimore Police were searching the suspect’s South Baltimore home on Sunday.

During the Jacksonville shooting, nine people suffered gunshot wounds and two people were injured while fleeing the area, Williams said.

Dana Loesch, a NRA spokeswoman tweeted that shooting was a “horrible tragedy” and she blamed gun-free zones. “End gun free zones or have the security in place to keep people safe in them,” her tweet said.

Meanwhile, Chryl Anderson, volunteer leader with the Florida Chapter Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America’s said in a statement: “This horrible news is a deadly reminder that we must do more to prevent gun violence in our communities.”

CNN’s Doug Criss, Eric Levenson, Darran Simon and AnneClaire Stapleton contributed to this report.

Read More | Madison Park, CNN,

Business Florida grapples with another shooting, this time at a Jacksonville game tournament, in 2018-08-27 06:13:45