#Whittingham fair

[bjdavis5]

Bayonetta 3 - weapons

[sonofanumbranwitch]

Viola Should Have Had More Weapons.

I feel like Viola really got screwed over in the gameplay department. Her blocking mechanic has already been pretty divisive but on top of that her only weapon she uses is about the single most generic weapon you could've given her. Like why would anyone choose to play Viola over Bayonetta unless they were trying to challenge themselves but limiting their options?

Because of this Viola doesn't really feel like a Bayonetta character to me. She feels more like the generic idea of an action game protagonist that games like Devil May Cry helped to solidify. And so her gameplay feels a lot more generic.

I was brainstorming ways this could be fixed and I came up with two ideas that kind of stack on each other.

First, Not only would I give Viola more weapons I would have given her the ability to equip weapons to her hands and feet like Bayo could in the first 2 games. This option seems to have been removed to accommodate the demon masquerade mechanic and I'm honestly fine with that. But Viola doesn't use demon masquerade so not only would this option give her more gameplay variety, it would help her appeal to players who miss that aspect of the games.

My second idea came to me because I'm really not a fan of Viola's weapon just being a generic katana and also how her design doesn't tie her to her mother Bayonetta in any way. She needs something in her gameplay that ties her to her mother so players can be more opened to accepting their relationship.

So I thought, "Hey why not let her reuse the weapons from Bayonetta 1?". Viola's mother, B0, seems to be a variation on the first Bayonetta so it would make sense that she trained her daughter to use the same weapons she did during her adventures. Now Viola has a fair size pool of weapons to use, and she has something that connects her with her mother. Plus people with nostalgia for the first game get to reuse some of their favorite weapons again.

In this hypothetical change, Viola's main weapon would be the Onyx Rose, (Both because B0's version of Scarborough Fair, Whittingham Fair, was lost during her fight with Singularity, and because the shotguns fit Viola's personality more). And she would gain access to other B1 weapons like the whip Kulshedra, the Durga claws, the Lt. Col Kilgore etc.

She could still use her block over dodge since she is still an Umbra Witch in training, and just have Cheshire's charm on her body somewhere or have it move around based on what weapon she has equipped.

[yestolerancepro]

My dear girl, there are some things that just aren't done, such as drinking Dom Perignon '53 above the temperature of 38 degrees Fahrenheit. That's just as bad as listening to The Beatles without earmuffs!” A blog inspired by the music world of James Bond  Part 3A The Bond songs I am not so keen on Thunderball and The Man with the Golden Gun

Introduction

Hello there as part 2 covered the Bond songs that I love its only fair we cover the Bond films/songs that I don’t really like.

Thunderball

Originally meant as the first James Bond film, Thunderball was the centre of legal disputes that began in 1961 and ran until 2006.[14]

This article from the Screenrant website details how Thunderball nearly become James Bonds debut adventure at the cinema and if it had been made how it would have altered the James Bond film series over the next 61 years read it by clicking here https://screenrant.com/james-bond-first-007-movie-thunderball-franchise-changes/

 Former Ian Fleming collaborators Kevin McClory and Jack Whittingham sued Fleming shortly after the 1961 publication of the Thunderball novel, claiming he based it upon the screenplay the trio had earlier written in a failed cinematic translation of James Bond.[15][6] 

 The lawsuit was settled out of court; McClory retained certain screen rights to the novel's story, plot, and characters. By then, Bond was a box-office success, and series producers Broccoli and Saltzman feared a rival McClory film beyond their control; they agreed to McClory's producer's credit of a cinematic Thunderball, with them as executive producers.[16]

Later, in 1964, Eon producers Broccoli and Saltzman agreed with McClory to cinematically adapt the novel; it was promoted as "Ian Fleming's Thunderball". Yet, along with the official credits to screenwriters Richard Maibaum and John Hopkins, the screenplay is also identified as 'based on an original screenplay by Jack Whittingham' and as 'based on the original story by Kevin McClory, Jack Whittingham, and Ian Fleming'.[16]

Thunderball Brought to Book

 Screenrant the film website recently published an article ranking all 14 of Ian Flemings James bond books Thunderball was number 5 in thier list here are their comments about the novel

In many ways, Thunderball is arguably Fleming's most straightforward novel, though that's not a bad thing. The plot involves Bond investigating the disappearance of two nuclear weapons, which eventually leads him to the Bahamas and the home of SPECTRE agent Emilio Largo. While it offers very few surprises in the way of plot - Bond saves the day and gets the girl once again - Thunderball is, nevertheless, a charming and well-paced thriller that brings a fresh burst of energy and wit to the series. 

The 5 Basic rules to get a James Bond film to work

Let me start by saying that is a lot to like about Thunderball so I will start with the positives first and tell you why I don’t really like later,

The are 5 key areas in any Bond film that need to be tackled if you want to stand a chance these are in no Particular order the Bond Girls the gadgets the Villians the story and the music Thunderball as produced by Kevin McClory hits 4 of the 5 of these key objectives right on the nose indeed The What Culture website picked out the Bond girls in Thunderball as their standout moment of the film

22. Thunderball - The Bond Girls

With its bloated length and excess of underwater action, Thunderball's definitely the worst Bond film of the 1960s, and the unofficial remake, Never Say Never Again, is arguably better but it's still an enjoyable, glamorous retro action flick that gets some things absolutely bang-on - most of all, its Bond Girl characters.

While the Bond Girl was always a very important part of the series' formula, it was only with the fourth film in the series that the Bond series got this archetype absolutely right for the first time.

Few of the Bond Girls from the first three films were all that great. Even the best such character from the first three movies, Dr No's Honey Ryder (Ursula Andress) doesn't get enough to do in her film.

In contrast to its predecessors, Thunderball did a great job with its Bond Girls. There are two main Bond Girls - Domino (Claudia Auger) and Fiona Volpe (Luciana Paluzzi) - and they both rank amongst the franchise's finest even after all these decades.

Domino is a fantastic female lead that really feels like a fully-realized character, mainly because she actually has a compelling story going on. Ultimately, it's her actually who kills the lead antagonist, not Bond.

Similarly, Fiona Volpe is a very sinister and unsettling femme fatale who feels like a real threat to Bond and, even if her death scene was disappointing, she's still among the finest female villains in the Bond canon.

And talking about Fiona as played (Luciana Paluzzi) - The movieweb film website picked her as number 1 in their list of the deadliest women in the Bond Franchise this is what they had to say about the deadly SPECTRE female agent.

SPECTRE’s skilled assassin Fiona Volpe (Luciana Paluzzi) is tasked with seducing and killing a French Air Force pilot, and helps a fellow enforcer surgically alter his face to resemble the victim and take his place. Their plan is to steal a nuclear bomber armed with two warheads. After seducing and making fun of 007 (Connery), she holds him captive with the help of two other agents, but he manages to escape. Later, she catches on with him at a club, and attempts to distract him with slow-dancing, while her henchman fires at him from behind a curtain. But Bond spins her around just enough for her to be the bullet’s recipient.

“I forgot your ego, Mr. Bond. James Bond, who only has to make love to a woman, and she stars to hear heavenly choirs singing. She repents, then immediately returns to the side of right and virtue... but not this one!”

Volpe is the ultimate female villain because she is one of the few who are immune to 007’s charm. One of her most memorable scenes include her firing missiles at a car she’s pursuing on her motorcycle.

Q Branch

Gadgets again Thunderball scores high in this regard as well in fact it out does its predecessor' in the area Goldfinger and that used a lot of hardware.

In Thunderball we have :

Homing pill

When Bond takes this pill, it emits a signal that can be detected only by a certain receiver

Air supply

A small device that can be carried on the person without notice and when in use, is held in the mouth to provide four minutes of air in emergencies when the user has to go underwater. (Effectively a miniature Scuba set.)[18][9]

Underwater jetpack

Bond is equipped with a jet-propelled scuba tank.[9]

Breitling 'Top Time' Diver Chronometer watch

with built-in Geiger counter.

Underwater camera

capable of taking eight shots in succession in darkness using an infra-red film.[21]

Geiger counter camera

A camera that conceals a Geiger counter. Bond gives this to Domino to look for the bombs on the yacht.[22]

Miniature Very pistol

a pocket-sized flare gun firing a red signalling beacon.[22]

Cassette recorder hidden in book

Bond uses this to learn that Quist is hiding in his hotel room.[23]

Perharps the most famous of all the gadgets is the Bell Rocket Belt Jetpack indeed it top the list of Best Gadgets used in the Bond films on the Den of the Geek website

1. The Jetpack

Whether it’s science fiction or semi-realistic thrillers, the jetpack has become an example of a gadget that has captured moviegoers’ imaginations. Humans want to fly and the concept that one could be propelled using the thrust of an engine strapped to their back is a thrilling proposal. Jetpacks of course exist in the real world, and the iteration seen in Thunderball is not quite as fictionalized as many might expect, despite it differing from the hydro-packs audiences can actually experience today.

007 has flown a wide array of aircraft in his time, yet none seem quite as volatile as Connery’s backpack during his fourth film’s opening sequence. The Bell-Textron gear was originally built for the U.S. military but could only last in the air for about 20 seconds, making it a largely redundant design. Despite the dangers it posed, the production strapped Bond (or a stuntman) to the jet, with the character making a quick getaway through the air from his pursuers. It’s a remarkable moment in the movie, with the sound design reminiscent of a powerful plane thruster, helping to sell the idea of its sheer strength. Bond might look slightly clumsy getting lifted in the air by the jetpack, but the premise itself was intriguing enough to mesh well with his style and there really wasn’t anything cooler to a kid watching the scene for the first time.

The final great strength of Thunderball is the amazing score by John Barry the above part of the blog quotes the sleeve notes written for the 2003 re-release of the full Thunderball score under the James Bond remastered series by Neil Bond.

Music

John Barry produced one of the most cohesive and propulsive of all of the Bond scores for Thunderball but he faced some trouble over his original title song taking his cue for Japan’s nickname for 007 Barry wrote a sly,insinuating tune called Mr Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (with lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and recorded it with both Shirley Bassey and Dionne Warwick . In keeping with his prior approaches to From Russia with Love and Goldfinger, Barry also wove his title melody into the fabric of his score and jaunty tune worked particulaly well as a counterpoint to the Bahamian night-life depicted in the film.

click here for a link to a you tube video of the song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrNeTRrX4Zs or if you perfer the Shirley Bassey take on the song click here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1debbldqGc

A change of course

However shortly before the film premièred however the producers realised the previous films had featured the films title in the song and they requested that Barry write a new song called Thunderball Not only did Barry face a rush deadline but Ian Fleming’s original title did not lend itself particularity well to lyrical treatment Since know one was actually sure what a Thunderball was.

Barry turned to Song writer Don Black to describe a mysterious man who runs while others walk and who strikes like Thunderball opening with a menacing six bar brass fanfare derived from The James Bond theme. The songs ambiguous lyrics meant the singer could be describing Both Bond or the films villian Largo

The song was recorded by Tom Jones who reportedly nearly passed out recording the songs final note

For the score Barry was able to write a great deal of atmospheric undersea water music for 007s survillance of Largos operation with low flutes and undulating suspended textures Early on the composer introduces a slow and subtle expression of the pulsating 007 theme he first created for Russia with love this theme became the basis for Barrys scoring of the Spectacular underwater battle and the climatic fight aboard the disco Valantie

The result is the most sustained and spectacular action music in the franchises history Barry was under enormous pressure to finish The Thunderball score and he only completed the first half of it when it became the time to release the soundtrack album

Part of the unreleased Thunderball score was included on the 2nd disk of the American version of the first Best of Bond CD in 1992 which featured a Thunderball suite of music totalling 16 mins of music the CD also included the Bassey and Warwick versions of Mr Kiss Kiss Bang the complete score was released in 2002 as part of the James Bond remastered series in 2002

But doesn’t include the Shirley Bassey or Dionne Warwick recordings of Mr Kiss Kiss Bang.

One more key strength of Thunderball is  the killer 10 minute opening title sequence detailed by the collider film website in this article where they describe the scene as follows  

These are hands down the 10 most intense  minuites you will ever see in a Sean Connery James Bond Film I think they are slightly over egging the pudding but you can read the article here  https://collider.com/sean-connery-james-bond-thunderball-opening-scene/

So after all those positives what don’t I like about Thunderball?

Well I find it really hard to watch at 2 hours 10 mins the film is a bit too long for me and the film editor Peter Hunt who did such a good job on the other films really should have got together with the script editor and cut a good 10 or 20 mins to make a much pacer film.

to watch a trailer for Thunderball click here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JowkFmI1Fo&list=PL17vqAEJv6CUxmeZBk3JGDLBbcPEd4CDp&index=9

to watch a video with Sean Connery’s best moments as James Bond from the Storm Chaser Z Youtube channel click here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfRuzgSR_XE&list=PL17vqAEJv6CV1syq4_fFKgBwSqGdJzH9z&index=288&t=56s

To read an article about how the Sean Connery James Bond films are ranked by James Bond fans click here https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2554534/james-bond-sean-connerys-movies-ranked

To watch  a Sean Connery tribuite video called Thunderball 007 click here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYMZTIncsCM

The Man with the Golden Gun

Roger Moore’s 2nd film as James Bond released Just a year after Live and Let and Die I think it was released to the public too soon Its not helped as well that film is based on an Ian Fleming James Bond novel that was not one of his best as this Screenrant article points out which ranked all 14 of Flemings James Bond books Man with the Golden Gun  was number 13 on their countdown they had this to say about the book

The Man with the Golden Gun shouldn't be treated too harshly, given that it was Fleming's last Bond novel and was released eight months after he sadly passed away. Because of this, the book feels half-finished, almost like an early draft of something that Fleming intended to do rewrites on before sending it off to be published. And while there certainly is a decent novel in there, unfortunately, the version that made it to bookstores is a limp and lackluster imitation of Fleming's earlier 007 works.

As with any James Bond film even the bad ones there are some good things in it I like the Title track by Lulu (which was never released as in the UK or the US) the Bond girls in the film played by Maud Adams Andrea Anders and Britt Ekland as Mary Goodnight are Both very good.

 As is Christopher Lee playing the man with the Golden Gun himself Francisco Scaramanga The What Culture website picked out his performance as the best thing in the man with the golden gun here are there comments

 The Man with the Golden Gun, with its low stakes, dull story and general lack of memorable moments (aside from, perhaps, the barrel roll jump) which was highlighted in another article about James Bond this time looking at the 25 best set pieces in a James Bond film  the barrel roll jump  was  number 24 in Yard Barkers list

This is a fairly standard car chase at first, and a highly annoying one at that given the presence of Clifton James’s J.W. Pepper. Why the redneck Louisiana sheriff from “Live and Let Die” would be vacationing in Thailand is a mystery for the ages; all that matters is that he’s along for the ride when Bond improvises a jump across a collapsed bridge with two spiraling ends. The “corkscrew jump” made the Guinness Book of World Records, but plays rather underwhelmingly in the movie thanks to composer John Barry’s baffling decision to score the stunt to a slide whistle.

The Man With The Golden Gun is easily the single most mediocre instalment of the series. That being said, it is still fairly watchable, mainly because the villain is so great.

A superbly crafted, ultra-cool and gloriously badass assassin, Francisco Scaramanga is an exceptionally entertaining antagonist who really stands out in what is otherwise such a low-effort of the series. It certainly seems like more effort was put into him than into any other part of the movie.

He was already a very strong villain on paper, but Scaramanga was elevated to an absolute all-timer by one of the most on-point casting choices in Bond history. The great Sir Christopher Lee fit the part like a glove and gave an absolutely formidable performance.

As much as Scaramanga deserved a far better film than the one he got, he's still one of the best Bond villains ever.

And the Golden gun itself was number 4 in Den of the Geeks Best Gadgets to feature in a James Bond film

Going back to the villainous theme, The Man With The Golden Gun included such a spectacular gadget that the film was named after it. The talented and deadly professional hitman, Francisco Scaramanga, had been given that very nickname because of the unusual firearm he carried with him. It might have been a calling card that has featured in the legacy of Bond pictures, but the gun was also crafted in a genius way to conceal it in everyday life.

Firing golden bullets, the weapon was custom made to separate out into different fragments, each of which represented a regular item: a pen, a lighter, a cigarette case, and a cufflink could all be disassembled from the firearm. Low frequency metal detectors are also far less effective at finding gold, meaning security would be a lot easier to travel through with the device on one’s person.

The slow assembly of the gun helps to raise the ominous tension of any scene. The gadget is such a perfect display of James Bond movies at their best, the narrative itself being driven forward by this conflict-causing surprise weapon, which not only rivals some of the best guns that Q has created but has also been involved in plenty of other Bond projects. It’s difficult to find a spinoff game for instance that doesn’t allow players to utilize the popular golden artifact.

So why does The Man with the Golden gun miss its Target?

Guy Hamilton’s direction he was so good in Live and let Die yet its so bad here the man problem is James Bond himself Guy Hamilton has forgotten what made Roger Moore Bond tick there are even a few scenes in the film where Guy is trying to turn Roger Moore’s Bond into Sean Connery and it doesn’t work  

Setting the film during the Energy Crisis of 1973 has dated the film very badly lastly why are people who work for Universal exports so angry with each other and acting out of character? To watch a trailer for the man with the golden gun click here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gF5fr3Zhi7E

To watch a video review of the film by Oliver Harper on his own You Tube channel click here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1kiQD7J-ao

Pictures Thanks to Google images

1) one of the many posters for James Bond Thunderball 1965

2) Domino and James Bond at the Beach

3) Fiona Vulpe

4) Q on holiday in Thunderball

5) James Bond with his Jet pack

6) Dionne Warwick

7) Shirley Bassey

8) Tom Jones

9) Man with the Golden Gun poster from 1974

10) one of the best stunts ever seen in a Bond film the barrel roll from Man with the Golden Gun 

11 and 12 Francisco Scaramanga  with his Golden Gun 

Notes

Thank you to the following websites for their links and content What Culture website for their best moments of Bond Den of the Geek for their top 10 countdown of Bond Gadgets Wikipedia for its background material on Thunderball

Oliver Harper youtube channel for the retrospective review of Man with the golden gun Stormchaser Z for the James Bond era videos also Neil Bond for his Thunderball soundtrack sleeve notes

And the Yard Barker website for their article title 25 Best Set piece from the Bond films

If you have read and liked this blog please consider giving a donation to the Tolerance project by clicking on this link https:https://gofund.me/5cf25de4

[yoursaltytears]

It was the Whittingham Fair Bayonetta that is ended up with L*** and not the Scarborough Fair OG Bayonetta. As what I heard.

People calls you dramatic over a review because of how it ends, but to think that Jeanne went to space to save Bayonetta from her deranged father and then Cereza went to hell to save Jeanne knowing the consequences. It's not all for nothing 🫠🤧

[umbranstilettos]

SWEET DREAMS, LITTLE ONE 2/?

IN UNIVERSES BETWEEN LIGHT, DARK AND CHAOS, INTERTWINING IN UNTOLD LAYERS…

“I know what I said Viola!”, Cereza struggled as she tried to form the words out of her mouth, closing her eyes as images of the downpour flashed before her eyes, her grip tightened around her pistols ‘The Whittingham Fair’ even a second of rest was a privilege as she tried to gather through her thoughts, the scent of mildew pervading her nostrils as she continued to walk the sewers with few jackboots following her trail as she argued with her young daughter about her decision to finally accept the challenge of Singularity, if this were a few years back before she had Viola, she wouldn’t careless about anything, and faced the battle head on—but in the first time, she had something to lose, she could remember from Jeanne’s words that fear seemed to have clouded her eyes, when she awoke from her slumber at that lake, but now the fear from accepting her fate was replaced by losing those that she held dearly protecting them from harm is the only thing that is keeping her going now.

Jeanne is dead and while being humanity’s last hope was overwhelming, but the thought of losing Viola was a loss she couldn’t afford. It was the last straw, last night she had a conversation with Sigurd for him to promise her that he’ll give the last crystal to Viola for her to jump into another universe and warn the other Arch Eves to find the chaos gear, her eyes always held the fire inside them with each strike, slash and kick as she began training to learn some few tricks up her mother’s sleeve she always has been closer to her father than to her, from hearing the fabled version of the events that occurred five hundred years ago, to hearing the truth from her mother’s lips one night when she was asking her mother about grandmother.

Cereza wasn’t a stern parent to begin with, but she never really understood if she were to sugarcoat everything to her daughter Viola, maybe that’s why going through a phase with her Evanescence, Bones UK and anything that is an up and coming grunge artist was playing on her earphones one night when she was tucking her into bed. Luka was always the good cop in their little power dynamics, he wasn’t much keen for Viola to undergo training as an Umbra Witch fearing that the wrath from above would get directed to her as soon as she tries to make her pact with a demon. Hell, there were days that her bedroom looked more similar to what a typical trope for Witches, she might die if she finds a witch bottle under her bed.

“But mom, you said so yourself Jeanne can take care of it”, Viola stammers as she followed behind being a part of the resistance and her mother being the leader along with Commander Sigurd, it has been months of hiding from the Homunculi that could conform into any shape, when Jeanne tried to take care of one the fight was similar to those kaiju battles from Japan as Madama Styx tore the creature to shreds it was only a matter of minutes before it could regain their limbs and swept the skyscrapers with their massive tails sending debris to civilians the last she heard in the news that this was dubbed as a phenomena and the world as we see it today will fall under the hands of Singularity; the typical villainy that spouted from the lips of what sounded like a mad man behind the creation of those creatures it was a Sunday afternoon when her mother, father and Jeanne were taking their afternoon tea as high maintenance as her mother was to implement a very strict tea time, she did love doing the tradition especially when she was a child playfully swinging her feet in the air as she nursed the tea cup and took small bites from the artisan Macarons, that Jeanne brought from the local posh bakery that she and her mom frequents to even now as they drowned in laughter mocking each and every word before the downpour came.

Her eyes couldn’t believe as people melted when they were covered by the white glob then spider like creatures jumped, crawled and leaped with heavy artilleries on their head zapped people away from existence, when she had the time to take cover she immediately contacted her mom for her to pick her up as the global phenomenon occurred that is when her mother made the decision with the remaining armed forces and led the resistance to go under the sewers to avoid casualties. Her father wanted to investigate and find the source of the truth about the Alphaverse and the source behind the mass production of these humanoids as he confronted Rodin one night to learn about the complexities of the multiverse the result of the World of Chaos being split into multiple layers of reality birthing a new one each and every time there were significant events that altered the course of the world and that the main objective of the Interloper was to merge all multiverse into one Alphaverse to restore the balance as her mother was dubbed as one of The Arch Eve of this Universe as the main cause of the split between realities as a woman lost in her time creating a different reality as The Left Eye of Darkness harnessing the power of creation, thus altering her fate birthing to a new reality in the timelines.

Part of her blamed The Infinite One from not meddling as he simply put himself out of every situation the only thing he could do was to find the solution, that is when he brought the idea of The Witch of Genesis, a variant of the arch eve that possesses the entirety of the Chaos as the only eve that walked the longest path and her knowledge in harnessing the spirit energy came unrivaled to those who went and took the path before her.

[of-quills-and-scrolls]

Book Title: London’s Late Night Scandal (Midnight’s Secrets #3)

Author: Anabelle Bryant

Pub Date: September 24, 2019

***ARC  was provided to me by Net Galley and the Publisher for a fair and honest review***

Overall rating: 3/5 Snowy journeys, scientific intrigue, stolen kisses.  

Heroine (Theodosia): 3/5 She is the granddaughter of Lord Talbot an aging scientific figurehead. Isolated in the countryside she has had time to develop scientific interests of her own. 

Hero (Lord Matthew Strathmore, Earl of Whittingham): 3/5 He injured his leg and now walks with a limp. He is self conscious about the injury but tries to never allow it to hold him back. 

Plot: 3/5 Matthew is sent to find out from the source whether certain points in a scientific journal can be proven. He visits the country home of Lord Talbot late one snowy evening to find he cannot return to London for a few days. During that time he learns secrets of the family such as it was Theodosia who wrote the article in the first place. Will Matthew even want to leave this interesting girl when the roads clear?

Personal Review: The first third of the story has a lot of scientific jargon and leaves the conversations and inner monologues a bit stilted. But as the story goes on it becomes much better. 

I liked the sleigh ride scene and the library scene is very cute.

[bayonettawitch]

GUYS GUYS GUYS!

I did some more research into the meaning behind “Whittingham Fair” and it’s the SAME SONG (or at least very close) to Scarborough Fair.

Scarborough Fair goes as follows:

“Are you going to Scarborough Fair?

Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme,

Remember me to one who lives there,

For once she was a true love of mine.”

And here’s Whittingham Fair:

“Are you going to Whittingham* Fair?

Savoury, sage, rosemary and thyme,

Remember me to one who lives there,

She once was a true lover of mine.”

I’ve talked before about how the guns and music that goes along with their naming has a lot to do with the plot of the game.

Here’s what someone said about the differences between the songs:

“The text of this version (Whittington Fair) is from Songs of Northern England (Stokoe) and has the same pedigree as its better known cousin, Scarborough Fair, both originating from Child Ballad no. 2 The Elfin Knight.”

Here is a full link to the article I am referencing to:

https://mainlynorfolk.info/martin.carthy/songs/scarboroughfair.html

Any ideas about what these details could mean?

[bjdavis5]

Bayonetta 3 rewrite mini ideas #2 bayonetta 3 whittingham bayonetta nickpik

I don't like whittingham bayo looking like bayo 1 at first I found it cool when people started to point it out in the first teaser

But this is something that goes over most people heads confusing her for bayo 1

And I get her losing her ribbon for dramatic effect but you have real bayo 1 already have only one ribbon it feels so odd

And I haven't seen anyone comment on 2 bayo 1 at the end screen.

Personally for me I would just change her design you can even use a old costume

I imagine this but she has yellow ribbons with red text.

And use one of these call called them whittingham.

What is with the game not showing the name

They also do this with bayo 1 like they want to confuse people who don't read the archives.

[maeday-gae]

I think..... I think the name on the Guns is ‘Whittingham Eve’

But I can’t find what that is? The other guns are named after songs, but this isn’t turning up anything...

They look IDENTICAL to Scarborough Fair, even the keychains are exactly the same, I’ve checked, the only difference is the name.

And actually, if the symbol color is purple, it would make sense if the game is somehow between 1 and 2, cause the first game’s main color was red and the second games color was mainly blue, so when you combine the two... purple.

EDIT: It’s possible the gun names are just to screw with us? 

But if the name isn’t to throw us off... aside from a possible retcon, the idea that 3 is between 1 and 2 might be thrown off by the fact that Scarborough Fair appears in 2 in an unaltered state... so there’s that. Unless that appearance is non-canon somehow.

Do you think Hideki Kamiya disliked the bayo2 design? Would he forcefully go back to her original look (despite 2′s popularity) in a true sequel? 

[higgsinos]

Gathered from the teaser

1) purple flames = rodin???? you can also kinda make out a figure in the flames with glasses and no visible hair... SOMEONE DIDNT PAY THEIR TAB

2) The guns are called Whittingham Fair. Sneaky.

3) he cuT HER IN FREAKING HALF

[sciencespies]

Nobel science laureates stress urgency of addressing climate

https://sciencespies.com/environment/nobel-science-laureates-stress-urgency-of-addressing-climate/

Nobel science laureates stress urgency of addressing climate

Nobel Physics Laureate Didier Queloz speaks during a press conference at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm, Sweden Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019. (Jonas Ekstromer /TT News Agency via AP)

Three of this year’s Nobel Prize laureates say addressing climate change is of great importance.

Winners of the prizes in physics, chemistry and economics made the assessment Saturday at a news conference ahead of next week’s presentation of the prizes. The remarks come as a global summit on climate change takes place in Madrid.

Didier Queloz, who shared the physics prize for discovery of an exoplanet orbiting a sunlike star, took issue with people who shrug off climate change on the grounds that “anyway we’re going to leave the Earth at some point.”

“I think this is just irresponsible because the stars are so far away I think we should not have any serious hope to escape the Earth,” he said.

“Also keeping in mind that we are a species that has evolved and developed for this planet. We’re not built to survive on any other planet than this one. We’d better spend our time and energy trying to fix it.”

Esther Duflo, one of the economics laureates, cautioned that dealing with climate change “will require a change in behavior, particularly in the rich countries” that are heavy consumers of goods and energy.

While some believe that there is no need to consume less provided consumption is fueled by renewable energy, “it it would be great if that were the case but I don’t think we can count on it necessarily,” Duflo said.

M. Stanley Whittingham, who shares the chemistry reward for helping develop lithium-ion batteries, said “to help solve the climate issue, the time is right now, but we have to be pragmatic. … We can’t just turn off all the CO2.”

Chemistry Laureate Stanley Whittingham attends a press conference at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm, Sweden Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019. (Jonas Ekstromer /TT News Agency via AP)

From left, Nobel Laureates in Economic Sciences Michael Kremer, Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee attend a press conference at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm, Sweden Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019. (Jonas Ekstromer /TT News Agency via AP)

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Citation: Nobel science laureates stress urgency of addressing climate (2019, December 7) retrieved 7 December 2019 from https://phys.org/news/2019-12-nobel-science-laureates-stress-urgency.html

This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.

#Environment

[adeirwansyah]

My Piece on Bond, James Bond

Perjalanan Panjang James Bond, Agen Flamboyan 'Pemetik Bunga'

Ade Irwansyah

09 Nov 2015, 20:00 WIB

Kejadiannya berlangsung awal tahun 1960-an. "Kalau saja tidak silap," kata si empunya cerita Guntur Soekarnoputra pada majalah Jakarta Jakarta tahun 1990-an. "Yang pasti, waktu itu saya baru lulus SMA dan sedang sibuk ngalor-ngidul mendaftar ke Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB)." 

Kala itu, adik Guntur, Megawati meneleponnya ke Bandung, memintanya segera pulang ke Jakarta lantaran diminta Sukarno, sang ayah sekaligus presiden pertama RI. "Bapak cuma pesan supaya Mas pulang ke Jakarta, karena Jumat malam ini mau diputar film bagus cerita spion," bilang Megawati. 

Cerita spion maksudnya kisah intrik spionase. Malam harinya, Guntur penasaran. Ia tak habis pikir ayahnya memaksa pulang ke Jakarta hanya untuk menonton film. "Pasti ada yang istimewa di film itu," pikirnya. Ia pulang ke Jakarta keesokan harinya.

Sewaktu menjabat sebagai presiden, Sukarno punya kebiasaan menonton film di ruang film istana saban Jumat dan Sabtu malam. Sukarno beserta keluarga nonton bareng dengan warga Istana -- entah pengawal, staf rumah tangga Istana, pelayan-pelayan, staf dapur istana plus anak-anak dan istri-istri mereka. 

Kala itu, sebelum pertunjukkan dimulai tepat jam 9 malam, Guntur bertanya pada staf istana perihal filmnya. 

Yang ditanya hanya menjawab: "Wah, Mas, film ini pokoknya begini (sambil mengacungkan ibu jarinya). Tembakan sama berkelahi terus-terusan… dan perempuannya hampir-hampir telanjang, Mas!"

"Mau telanjang, mau nggak, kek, gimana nanti! Tapi filmnya apa namanya?" tanya Guntur penasaran.

"Apa ya, Mas? … Jimbon ... Jimbon gitu!"

"Huuh! Jimbon-jimbon, emangnya permen bon-bon."

Yang dimaksud Jimbon adalah James Bond. Malam itu di istana diputar film pertama kisah James Bond, Dr. No (1962). Guntur ternyata begitu menyukai filmnya. Ia tak menyesal datang jauh-jauh dari Bandung untuk menontonnya. "Pokoknya film itu bukan main, Pak," jawabnya saat ditanya sang ayah kelar menonton.

Bukan cuma Guntur yang terkesan begitu pertama kali menonton film James Bond. Pun demikian dengan jutaan penduduk bumi lainnya. Film James Bond pertama yang rilis lebih dari 50 tahun lalu itu masih ditonton orang hingga kini.

Film itu yang mengenalkan kita pada sosok James Bond, agen rahasia Inggris dari MI 6, berkode 007 yang artinya ia punya izin membunuh, penyuka minuman vodka-martini (“dicampur, bukan diaduk.”), serta pemuja wanita. 

Di Dr. No, agen 007 terbang ke Jamaika demi menggulung dokter jahat yang punya rencana menguasai dunia. Sejak itu Bond melakukan berbagai misi menyelamatkan dunia dari perang nuklir dan bom atom dengan melawan penjahat Perang Dingin dari Rusia dan organisasi misterius SPECTRE (Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion).

Bond beraksi ke berbagai tempat di Bumi dan angkasa. Selain kerap mengajak kita ke lokasi-lokasi eksotik di seluruh dunia, di Thunderball (1965) ia melawan musuh di dasar laut, sementara di You Only Live Twice (1967) ia melawan musuh terbesarnya, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, pimpinan SPECTRE, di dalam sebuah roket yang tersembunyi dalam gunung berapi. Sekali waktu, di Moonraker (1979), Bond beraksi di pesawat ruang angkasa. 

Di laman Time, saat memperingati kelahiran James Bond yang ke-50 tahun 2012 silam, kritikus film Richard Corliss menulis, sebelum film-film sekuel dijadikan andalan studio film meraup untung, film-film Bond sudah melakukan tugas itu. Sebelum Hollywood menemukan tambang emas dari mengadaptasi cerita superhero dari komik—seperti Spider-Man, Iron Man, Superman atau Batman—Bond adalah franchise superhero pertama. 

Terus dibuat hingga kini setelah lebih dari 50 tahun, ia merupakan franchise terpanjang. Dunia berubah, Perang Dingin berganti dengan Perang Melawan Teror. Pun pemeran James Bond berganti. Namun pamor filmnya tak surut. Setiap kehadiran film barunya di bioskop dianggap sebuah “movie event”. Artinya, filmnya selalu ditunggu penonton dan tahan kritik.

Film James Bond adalah perkara bisnis yang besar. Dari Dr.No sampai Spectre telah dibuat 24 film resmi James Bond. Dikatakan resmi karena lahir dari produser Albert R. Broccoli (Casino Royale versi 1967 dan Never Say Never Again rilisan 1983 tak dibuat Broccoli). Hingga film ke-22, pemasukan yang terkumpul totalnya USD 5 miliar. Film ke-23, Skyfall meraih rekor pemasukan USD 1,1 miliar dari seluruh dunia saat edar 2012 lalu. 

Jika dihitung dengan nilai dollar saat ini, pemasukan film-film Bond lebih besar lagi. Sebagai contoh saja, Thunderball yang rilis 1965 pemasukannya sama dengan USD 1,1 miliar bila dihitung dengan nilai dollar sekarang.

Kelahiran James Bond          

Pertanyaannya, bagaimana franchise ini bisa demikian sukses? Adakah formulanya? 

Untuk mencari jawabnya kita harus menengok dahulu bagaimana karakter James Bond lahir dan berkembang di novel dan film. 

James Bond, kita semua hapal, dikarang penulis Inggris bernama Ian Fleming. Mantan intelijen Angkatan Laut di masa Perang Dunia II, Fleming menuliskan cerita aksi mata-mata berdasar pengalamannya di ketentaraan. Fleming, misalnya, mengambil sosok M, bos James Bond, dari atasannya Laksamana Muda Henry Godrey, kepala intelijen AL Inggris. 

Setelah PD II usai, Fleming menjadi manajer pemberitaan perusahaan media Kemsley Newspaper, yang antara lain memiliki koran The Sunday Times. Jabatan itu memungkinkannya setiap musim dingin pergi ke daerah tropis, Jamaika. Ia pertama kali ke Jamaika saat masih berdinas di AL. Saking jatuh cinta dengan Jamaika, ia membangun rumah di sana pada 1946. Rumah pondok itu dinamainya Goldeneye, dari nama kode rahasia rencana militer Sekutu mempertahankan Gibraltar dari pihak lawan. 

Dari tahun 1952, Fleming menulis cerita James Bond dari mesin ketiknya di Goldeneye. Tahun berikutnya, novel pertama cerita sang agen rahasia, Casino Royale terbit di Inggris. 

Selain menulis novel, Fleming sudah membayangkan kisah rekaannya diangkat ke medium lain, entah serial TV atau film layar lebar. Selama tahun 1950-an, ia dua kali terlibat pembicaraan mengangkat serial TV tentang agen mata-mata yang terinspirasi dari novelnya. Pertama dengan stasiun TV NBC menggodok serial yang dinamai Commander Jamaica, lalu dengan CBS untuk mengangkat kisah Bond sebagai serial mingguan. Dua rencana itu tak pernah terwujud. 

Fleming lalu menjual hak memfilmkan Casino Royale pada aktor bernama Gregory Ratoff. Sang aktor keburu meninggal sebelum novelnya difilmkan. Hak atas Casino Royale—di luar novel-novel Bond yang lain—lalu jatuh ke agen yang mewakili Ratoff, Charles Feldman, yang setelah film-film Bond sukses besar, membuat versi film parodi sang agen rahasia dengan bintang Peter Sellers dan Woody Allen berjudul Casino Royale. Baru pada 2000-an hak atas Casino Royale didapat Broccoli yang lalu membuat film James Bond berjudul dari novel itu untuk dimainkan Daniel Craig pada 2006.

Gagal jadi serial TV dan filmnya tak kunjung dibuat, tak menyurutkan mimpi Fleming. Pada 1959 ia berkolaborasi dengan Kevin McClory dan Jack Whittingham membuat treatment skenario untuk sebuah proyek film yang mereka namai James Bond, Secret Agent. 

Kisahnya baru, bukan dari novel Fleming. Tapi ia kemudian malah menulis novel Bond dengan cerita dari skenario Thunderball pada 1960. Kontan saja McClory dan Whittingham tak senang. Fleming dituntut ke pengadilan. Keputusannya, McClory turut mendapat hak cipta dari skenarionya, sedang Fleming untuk novelnya. Maka, di film Thunderball, nama McClory tercantum pula sebagai produser eksekutif. Bertahun-tahun kemudian perkara Thunderball ini belum beres. Di luar film James Bond buatan Broccoli, lahir Never Say Never Again (1983) yang sejatinya buat ulang dari Thunderball, dengan Sean Connery sekali lagi jadi James Bond. Padahal waktu itu Roger Moore yang memerankan agen 007 di film Broccoli. 

Jalan Broccoli mendapatkan hak memfilmkan novel-novel Bond pun penuh liku. Waktu itu tahun 1959, novel ke-7 kisah James Bond, Goldfinger telah terbit. Namun belum satupun filmnya dibuat. Broccoli berjanji ketemu Fleming membicarakan kemungkinan memfilmkan Bond. Tahun sebelumnya, Broccoli sudah membuat janji dengan Fleming dan perwakilannya, namun terpaksa ia batalkan karena istrinya mesti dirawat akibat kanker. Di lain pihak, mitra Broccoli kala itu, Irving Allen, tak menyukai cerita James Bond. Pada Fleming, ia pernah bilang, “Menurut saya, buku-buku ini bahkan tak cukup bagus untuk diangkat jadi serial TV.”

Pamor novel James Bond naik ketika di majalah Life edisi Maret 1961 presiden AS yang baru diangkat waktu itu, John F. Kennedy menyebut buku ke-5 si agen rahasia, From Russia with  Love sebagai salah satu dari 10 buku yang kini jadi bacaan favoritnya. Publik Amerika yang sedang gandrung dengan presiden baru mereka yang muda dan tampan jadi penasaran dengan novel Bond.                      

 Tahun itu pula, Broccoli sudah berpisah dari Allen. Produser keturunan imigran Italia itu menemukan mitra baru, Harry Saltzman asal Kanada. Kedua orang ini punya ketertarikan yang sama pada novel-novel James Bond. 

Saltzman ditugaskan mencari produser Hollywood yang mau memfilmkan James Bond. Dari situ takdir mempertemukannya dengan Broccoli yang akrab disapa “Cubby”. Saltzman dan Broccoli lalu mendirikan perusahaan film bersama, Eon Productions. Mereka juga sudah dapat studio film, United Artists yang bersedia membiayai produksi dan mengedarkannya kelak.

Setelah urusan hak cipta beres, berikutnya adalah menemukan sosok James Bond yang disepakati semua pihak. Tidak mudah. Ada dua kandidat jagoan sebagaimana terekam di tulisan David Kamp di majalah Vanity Fair edisi Oktober 2012: Roger Moore dan Sean Connery.

Moore telah lebih punya nama waktu itu. Ia membintangi serial TV The Saint, berperan sebagai pencuri budiman Simon Templar. Di lain pihak, Connery masih kurang dikenal. Moore kelahiran London, Inggris pilihan cocok buat jadi Bond. Ia tampan dan tampak santun selayaknya pria Inggris terhormat. Sebaliknya dengan Connery yang asli Skotlandia. 

Di tahun 1962 ada ungkapan yang pas menggambarkan sosok Conney: “rough diamond—berlian kasar.” Sebelum jadi aktor, Connery kelahiran Edinburgh, Skotlandia pada 1930 dari ayah seorang supir truk dan ibunya tukang sapu, melakoni banyak pekerjaan, termasuk jadi supir truk susu. Ia pindah ke London mengejar karier sebagai binaragawan. Dalam sebuah kontes ia meraih juara ketiga. Ketika usianya 22 tahun, ia pertama kali main teater South Pacific di London. 

Menurut Broccoli waktu itu Roger Moore dianggap “terlalu tampan.” Ia butuh seorang aktor yang lebih terlihat tangguh, tak sungkan membunuh, tampan sekaligus sedikit kasar pada wanita. Semua syarat itu ada pada Connery. 

Untuk meyakinkan pilihannya, Broccoli mengajak istri barunya, Dana, menonton film yang dibintangi Connery yang ia tahu, Darby O’Gill and the Little People sebuah film keluarga keluaran Disney rilisan 1959. Di situ Connery tak jadi pemeran utama. Mereka nonton di ruang screening Samuel Goldwyn Studio. Seketika, begitu melihat Connery, Dana Broccoli langsung berkata spontan: ”Itu dia Bond kita!” 

Formula Film James Bond

Lalu, seperti yang orang Barat sering bilang, “and the rest is history.” Yang terjadi selanjutya sudah jadi sejarah.

Sejarah seperti apa? 

Rilis pertama di Inggris pada 5 Oktober 1962, Dr.No tak hanya mampu mengembalikan modal USD 1 juta yang dikeluarkan, tapi juga meraup untung 20 kali lipat. Di AS, pihak booker bioskop semula ragu mengedarkannya secara luas. Tapi setelah sukses di New York dan Los Angeles filmnya edar di banyak wilayah.

Di AS, Dr.No meraup pemasukan USD 16 juta. Dengan nilai dollar sekarang angka itu setara USD 157 juta atau sekitar Rp 2,1 triliun. Maka, berturut-turut kemudian tiap tahun hingga 1965 rilis film James Bond teranyar. Saat itu, Bond mania telah mendunia. 

Kembali ke pertanyaan di awal tulisan ini, apa yang membuat Bond-mania mendunia?

Bila dilihat sekarang, film-film James Bond lawas memang terasa biasa saja. Tapi coba Anda pahami kondisi saat filmnya rilis. 

David Kamp di Vanity Fair edisi Oktober 2012 membandingkan Bond-mania di awal 1960-an selayaknya Beatlemania di dekade yang sama. Seperti lagu-lagu Beatles guabhan John Lennon-Paul McCartney yang mendahului zamannya, begitu pun film-film Bond. 

Perlu diketahui, pada 1960-an, hanya 2 persen penduduk Amerika yang bepergian dengan pesawat. Maka, film Bond yang menampilkan si agen rahasia 007 bertualang ke tempat-tempat eksotis di belahan dunia lain terasa baru saat itu. “Ada rasa ‘Beli tiket bioskop, kami akan mengajak Anda bepergian!’” kata Guy Hamilton, sutradara Goldfinger. 

Dia mengingat pesan Broccoli dan Saltzman tentang bagaimana Bond bepergian. “Jangan gunakan kereta bila memang bisa naik pesawat, dan jika naik pesawat, pastikan pesawat yang paling baru. Dan jika memberi mobil untuk Bond, jangan pakai mobil yang sudah ada—gunakan mobil yang belum keluar.” Itu sebabnya, jika di novel Goldfinger Bond mengendarai Aston Martin DBIII, di versi filmnya ia menggunakan DB5 yang rlis lima tahun kemudian. Itu juga sebabnya James Bond kerap dibekali senjata-senjata canggih dalam setiap petualangannya. 

Selain sisi eksotika dunia baru dan teknologi canggih terbaru, ada unsur lain yang wajib hadir di film-film Bond: seks. Kelahiran James Bond mewakili revolusi bagaimana tabu soal seks dibongkar dalam produk budaya pop. Tidak ada lagi kesantunan nan munafik era 1950-an. Saatnya seks tampil terbuka di budaya pop. 

Media masa itu mencatat, penampilan cewek Bond, Ursula Andres sebagai Honey Ryder yang berbikini nyaris telanjang bikin semua orang kaget. Kolumnis media hiburan Erskine Johnson ketika itu menulis, “Nama Ursula Andres, 26 tahun, seharusnya ditulis ‘Undress—tak berpakaian.’”

Intinya, setiap film James Bond dirancang untuk mendahului zamannya. Sehingga pengalaman menonton di bioskop jadi terasa baru bagi penonton. 

Selain itu pula, Broccoli punya trik pemasaran jitu. Orang di Barat bisa dengan mudah mengidentikkan James Bond sebagai kisah bagaimana mereka membekuk lawan politik Blok Timur Uni Soviet dan kawan-kawannya. 

Film Bond memang lahir di masa Perang Dingin. Bagi penduduk di Barat tentu senang melihat di bioskop mereka menang melawan Uni Soviet. Padahal, bila ditelisik lebih jauh, James Bond-nya Broccoli tak pernah menunjuk hidung secara langsung Uni Soviet sebagai dalang bagi segala kekacauan dunia. 

Richard Corliss di Time menulis, insting Broccoli tajam. Ia sadar, menuding langsung Uni Soviet sebagai penjahat bakal menyulitkan filmnya diterima di negara-negara yang berhaluan Komunis. Padahal, ia ingin Bond jadi franchise yang mengglobal, ditonton mereka yang menganut kapitalisme maupun komunisme. 

Itu sebabnya, alih-alih menyebut negara yang bertanggung jawab jadi penjahat, penjahat di film-film Bond kebanyakan aksi individual. Kalaupun ada kelompok penjahat, yang disuguhkan adalah organisasi macam SPECTRE.   

Sudah lima puluh tahun lewat dan USD 6 miliar kemudian, James Bond terus hidup. Sudah enam aktor berkesempatan mengucapkan kalimat “The name is Bond, James Bond.” Sean Connery (6 kali), George Lazenby (1 kali), Roger Moore (7 kali), Timothy Dalton (2 kali), dan Pierce Brosnan (4 kali), dan Daniel Craig (4 kali).

Setiap aktor menghidupkan karakter James Bond masing-masing sesuai tuntutan zaman masa itu. Saat tak lagi pas, si aktor bisa diganti. Kita masih ingat, pemilihan Daniel Craig sebagai Bond sempat mendatangkan penolakan lantaran ia dianggap kurang tampan dibanding pendahulunya. 

Namun Craig kemudian membuktikan pada kita, dialah James Bond zaman kiwari. Bond yang dingin dan tak kenal ampun di Casino Royale, sebuah reboot atau penceritaan ulang hikayat Bond bagi penonton generasi baru.

Generasi 2000-an telah tumbuh bersama Bond versi Craig. Pertanyaan besar menggayut saat nonton Spectre, film ke-4 Craig sebagai agen 007 setelah Casino Royale (2006), Quantum of Solace (2008), dan Skyfall (2012). Apakah kini saatnya Daniel Craig pensiun dan menyerahkan tongkat estafet pada pemeran baru? 

Percayalah, keluarga Broccoli yang kini mengepalai Eon Productions pasca Albert R.”Cubby” Broccoli tiada, yakni putrinya Barbara dan anak angkatnya, Michael G. Wilson akan selalu menemukan cara menghidupkan James Bond sesuai zaman yang tengah berubah. Selama 50 tahun lebih mereka sudah membuktikannya.***

___________________________

Versi belum diedit ini muncul sebagai artikel liputan khusus di Liputan6.com. Link asli: https://www.liputan6.com/news/read/2361161/perjalanan-panjang-james-bond-agen-flamboyan-pemetik-bunga

[evaluatingoot]

We have had a busy few months attending all of the local shows and fairs. From Rothbury Street Fair in May, the Music Festival, Powburn, Whittingham, Elsdon, Swarland, Harbottle, Ingram, Thropton to Alwinton, the last and the biggest of the shows we attended, we have spoken to nearly 800 people, visitors as well as local folk and our list of people to interview and contact has continued to grow. It was unfortunate that both Glanton Show and Simonside Fair succumbed to the weather but we are looking forward to taking part next year already.  It's been tiring and a bit of a learning curve - thank goodness for the stall next to us at Powburn show who lent us "proper" tent pegs and advised the best way to stop your gazebo from taking off.  Already have plans to attend the same shows next year but with some real progress to share. 

[junker-town]

The AP preseason poll’s treatment of UCF isn’t anything unusual

Non-power teams often fail to follow up on big breakthrough seasons, as you can see here.

The 2018 preseason AP Poll is now out, and as expected, there were a lot of reactions from fans depending on where (or if not at all) their team was.

One of the most popular reactions cam from fans of UCF, the 2017 self-proclaimed national champs checking in at No. 21 in the poll.

pic.twitter.com/ydyII3A6h2

— UCF Football (@UCF_Football) August 20, 2018

Sure, it’s a little odd to see the team that went undefeated, won the AAC, and upset Auburn in the Peach Bowl last season barely crack the top 25. But looking at past preseason AP polls, it’s actually pretty normal for one season’s star non-power to start out in the 20s or worse.

1999 Tulane

In 1998, Tommy Bowden’s Green Wave team went 11-0, and interim head coach Chris Scelfo coached the team to a Liberty Bowl victory over BYU. In the next preseason AP poll, Tulane was unranked and went 3-8.

2000 Marshall

In 1999, Bob Pruett’s Thundering Herd finished 13-0 with a Motor City Bowl win over BYU. The next year, his team was unranked in the initial poll, then went 8-5.

2004 Miami (Ohio)

Ben Roethlisberger’s RedHawks had gone 13-1 and finished No. 10 in the country. Without Roethlisberger the next year, Miami was unranked in the preseason poll and went 8-5.

Boise State’s pretty used to this

In 2006, first-year Broncos head coach Chris Petersen led the program to a 13-0 season, capped off by that incredible Fiesta Bowl win over Oklahoma.

But in 2007, Boise State checked in at 24th in the initial preseason poll. The Broncos would go 10-3 and finish unranked.

Then in 2012 after the Broncos’ 12-1 season the year before, they were ranked in that same 24th spot the next year. They’d finish No. 18, a slight jump up.

Utah, too

Utah was unranked in the initial poll following the Utes’ 12-0 season in 2004 and Urban Meyer’s departure for Florida. The 2005 Utes finished 7-5.

Then in 2009, after Kyle Whittingham led the Utes to a 13-0 year, his team was unranked in the first AP poll. This time, the Utes finished No. 18.

Oh yeah, this has happened to UCF before, too!

And it wasn’t too long ago, either. Remember that 12-1 season during Blake Bortles’ last season? The Knights were unranked in 2014 in the first poll and then went 9-4.

Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images

Houston was the most recent mid-major to get snubbed

In 2015, Tom Herman’s Cougs had a 13-1 year, capped off with an upset victory over Florida State in the Peach Bowl and a No. 8 ranking. They then started the next year down at No. 15, which still proved too high for UH despite a win over Oklahoma.

Boise State and TCU are the best examples for UCF to follow here.

The Broncos have had multiple top-five preseason rankings before, but they did it by having consistent big seasons, rather than having a winless season right in between two New Year’s bowls, as UCF has done recently.

And there are certainly fair questions about 2018 UCF.

The Knights are replacing their coaching staff and best defenders, but return what should be an awesome offense. Statistical rankings have the Knights higher than No. 21, but not much; S&P+ ranks UCF No. 17 entering the season after ranking the Knights No. 7 at the end of last year.

The only ranking that matters is the College Football Playoff top 25, so we’ll see where the Knights are by then.

On the other hand, the CFP committee isn’t perfect, and we called it out for having UCF way too low before and after the season ended.

While the Playoff committee could do a better job during the season of rewarding non-powers who are clearly having excellent years, the preseason AP Poll has a pretty good track record of not overreacting to a single good season, based on these teams listed here.

[rosedaddv]

So could Bayonetta 3 possible take place when Bayonetta awoken from the lake and what happens in between the time then and of the first game? The events of the first game takes place 20 years after she had risen. That also explains her guns in the new trailer due to her not recieving Scarborough Fair from Rodin until 20 years later either.

If you pay close attention as well, while Bayonetta is rising out the water, you don’t see the mole on Bayonetta’s face. That could’ve really been her in the new trailer, along with her old guns “Whittingham Fair” because “Scarborough Fair” wasn’t given to her yet.

[seaglassandeelgrass]

Traditional riddle ballads and variants.

Cover image is Claude Monet’s 1890 painting, Oat and Poppy Field.

Riddles Wisely Expounded (Child #1, Roud #161)- Anais Mitchell and Jefferson Hamer

Whittingham Fair (Child #2, Roud #12)- Hermes Nye

Captain Wedderburn’s Courtship (Child #46, Roud #36)- Karen James

The Riddle Song (Roud #330)- Pete Seeger

The Devil’s Question (Child #1, Roud #161)- Paul Clayton and Jean Ritchie

Lord Roslyn’s Daughter (Chile #46, Roud #36)- Cara Luft

The Elfin Knight (Child #2, Roud #12)- Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger

7 tracks; 25 mins. {Playmoss}