#american carnage spoilers

[c-k-mack]

Immigration’s answer to A Modest Proposal

[yautjalover]

saw the 'bother with asks and questions' post and reblogged it so a lil obligated to BE THE CHANGE I WANT TO SEE. I appreciate a fellow yautja appreciator that is for sure. I didn't watch the latest movie, if you did, how would you compare it to any of the other predator (or AVP) films? I'm taking my sweet time, but good press from someone who is focused on whats important (tHE BIG ALIEMS,,,), might move it up my priority list.

I get you! We gotta be the change we want to see! I myself went out and asked some folks things. 😊

As for your question concerning “Prey”, in comparison to the others in the franchise it stands out for multiple reasons.

1. It’s not set in the modern era.

With this film not being in modern times, we get to explore, for the first time on film, what a predator hunt in the past would look like! It’s no longer just seeing their historical hunts in the comics and novels, which has long been something we fans have wanted to see on the big screen. “Prey” also answers questions concerning historical hunts.

How different would their technology look and behave? Would they get tangled with historical events that shaped the future? What would they do in the face of long outdated weapons of that time?

“Prey” answers these pretty well, I think!

We get to see possible earlier iterations of the iconic weapons Yautja are associated with, we get to see how one becomes entangled with big historical events in pre-colonial North America, and also get the treat of one dealing with 17th century weapons.

The weapons of the time provide a few genuinely funny moments that help break the tension a little. I won’t spoil them, but I’m sure they’ll give you a good laugh!

I will say that it’s not riddled with excessive humor like 2018’s “The Predator”. There is a wonderful balance.

2. The lead isn’t some forgettable buff military guy and instead a Comanche Native American woman.

Unlike other current Hollywood female leads, she’s a genuine bad ass. She’s allowed to learn and grow from her mistakes, shaping up to use her intelligence against Feral. Naru knows the land and uses it to her advantage. She grew up surrounded by nature and picks up that something weird is going on, something she can’t explain until things happen.

Sorry, no spoilers here!

While there are moments where there is obvious plot armor, she still a cool and likable character with flaws but manages to also be a surprisingly worthy hunt for Feral. It’s also cool to see Indigenous representation and see a glimpse into that culture! We see parallels between a cryptid (can’t confirm if it was just for the movie or actual mythology for that tribe) and our titular Yautja.

With Naru, we get a coming of age story that mirrors Feral in this hunt being his first time on our planet and him slowly learning more about this hunting ground. They’re both, seemingly, out to prove themselves, setting up for later events in the film that pay off.

3. New Sub-Species of Yautja!

Thanks to Feral we get a glimpse of what a Yautja who originates from a different region, other than the jungle, of the planet looks like, with this case being a desert environment. While I think the facial design is atrocious, I can see what they were going for.

We learned from interviews with the design team that his sub-species consumes bones and has a special palette just for that in his mouth. His locs are slender and more numerous in order to keep cool, plus it looks pretty cool! I’m sure he’d be a shampoo company’s dream model!

You get to see a predator actually hunt things other than humans! I won’t spoil it, but there are some awesome scenes that really showcase the strength and agility that Yautja are known for but we hardly get to see. It’s pretty bad ass!

In “Prey”, we also see a more brutal predator who revels in bloodshed and fucks people up. There’s more violence on display, plus some new cool weaponry that only aids the carnage. While he gives off Young Blood energy occasionally, he’s still a bad ass! When he’s on the screen, he commands your attention!

However, he’s the only Yautja I’ll want the mask to stay on. He’s not a pretty fella and I liken him to a golden roast chicken.

“Prey” was the return to form the franchise needed after the questionable decisions made in 2018’s “The Predator”. Whoever thought that Yautja would be interested in my Autism was a big dumb ass. This film breathes new life into the franchise and gives us something genuinely entertaining while also bringing back some of the terror that the original 1987 “Predator” gave us!

I personally rank this high up on the list of previous films we’ve received over the years. It’s better than “Predators”, “The Predator”, and “AVPR”, sitting right with the OG, Predator 2, and AVP for me.

It’s worth the watch. It’s not a 10/10, more like an 8/10, but it’s still worth the watch! You should run to Hulu and give it a go. You won’t be disappointed!

Sorry for the LONG response, but I wanted to break it down. Thank ADHD and Autism and my rabid horniness for Yautja.

Oh! Last thing!

On a scale of 1 to 10, Feral is a solid four for me. His body is gorgeous. Those thick fingers? HELLO!

It’s the face that lowers the rating, though. My GODS that face design is…wow. 💀

[grison-in-space]

Still listening to 1632, and honestly I forgot how much I like its narrative choices.

Okay, we have the climactic battle scene where the giant marauding mercenary army of pikemen and arquebusiers menaces the brave little 2000s era West Virginia town, right? With the substantial benefit of an M60 machine gun someone smuggled home from Vietnam and buried out in the back of his property. ("look, I'm not like a survivalist weirdo or anything. It seemed like a prank more than anything else at the time!") That did happen sometimes, but that sure was a lucky stroke, yeah? And of course our ragged band of hillbilly heroes, armed with their deer rifles, slaughter the shit out of the giant experienced army of seasoned veterans. Sure. Everybody cheer: remember, this is the army we first encounter raping and killing the shit out of civilians for maximal earnings. The ranks of men begin to fall like a glacier cleaving flesh rather than ice: what an image. Everyone sit back and bask in American technological superiority. USA! USA!

Except.... er, we just took the time to humanize one of the soldiers in that army a couple of scenes ago. He's just joined up to protect his family. His big sister's a camp follower; their family got attacked a year or two ago, and she's pretty, so she got picked as the kept woman in their band. He's just gotten old and big enough to be useful as a soldier, so he's been taken on as a recruit, and he's drinking the crap out of anything he can keep down so he can always be mysteriously too drunk to participate in the looting.

He's pretty sure he's in hell. And then he marches off into that scene of technological carnage.

So this does a bunch of things. One: it's real hard to surrender into treating that slaughter as a total victory when you know that Hans is out in it. We like Hans. He's doing his best and we really hope he lives, okay? (Spoiler: he does live.) Two: it forces you to think about everyone involved--we get a lot of POV from his sister Gretchen next--is experiencing and perceiving these American loons from a specific context that exists beyond them.

There has also just been an absolutely delightful scene where a couple of 2000s-era American doctors are proposing a joint practice with a local Sephardic doctor and he casually suggests they check over everything in Avicenna before they prescribe that in case it works. He's mildly startled when they gape at him like a fish and essaying "uh, you can read Arabic, right?" and when it becomes clear that the answer is definitely no, adds "oh, well, you're in luck, I have a Greek translation!" One of the Americans asks, very cautiously, how many languages he speaks, and he rattles off nine that he's fluent in, another four he's proficient in at least enough to read, and a fifth he's currently picking up for political reasons.

At which point the high school history teacher wanders into the room and asks what's going on, to be told by the Sephardic man's daughter "ah, it turns out my father is a more accomplished linguist even if he doesn't know some things":

"Well, of course!" Melissa snorted. "Americans are ignorant louts when it comes to language." The schoolteacher planted her arms akimbo and gave Nichols and Adams the same glare which had cowed thousands of students over the years. "What?" she demanded. "Did you think you were actually smarter than these people?"

God I love Melissa.

[bubblespalace]

Haunted Halloween

@moonlightkenobi I hope you enjoy this! Please ignore any typos or grammar mistakes, I did my best but I couldn't catch it all 'cause I might not exactly know everything when it comes to grammar yet. <;3 @cbsghostsdaily Thank you for putting together this gift exchange!

Also read on A03: https://archiveofourown.org/works/49767124/chapters/129457186

{I recommend reading on Halloween for a special sense of excitement! You don't have to follow but if you do, it inhances the experience!}

(Slight spoilers for the Purge, Scream, and Nightmare Before Christmas.)

-----

"So what does everyone want to do tonight?" Pete asked with a bright smile on his face as he sat down next to the others on the couch. "We can go smell some of Jay's cooking, we can go watch trick-or-treaters from the boundary..."

Sasappis sighed. "We can listen to you ramble all night." He said with an annoyed tone in his voice.

"Shall we go watch a film?" Isaac inquired. "In the spirit of the season, we could watch something scary."

"Thor like that idea." Thorfinn bellowed. "Thor miss seeing gore on daily basis."

"I do not wish to watch anything with too much blood," Hetty said.

Flower stopped reaching for the 'butterfly' she saw in the air. "Me neither, man! I was always jumpy with horror movies. Too much needless violence!"

Trevor glanced at her. "Flower, you talk about people in the cult locking each other up in a room until one killed the other." She just shrugged in reply. "But I was never a fan of horror films either, I like the college comedy the best."

The jazz singer next to him hummed. "My movie tastes back when I was alive was very different from how it is now. You all know I like anything with Jason Momoa." She paused. "Why don't we watch Aquaman again?"

Sasappis ignored the suggestion from Alberta. "Look, we have two TV's, we can put a scary movie on one and a different movie on the other that more friendly for the kids."

Pete cringed at the name Sass has called the four youngest. "We aren't kids, we just don't want to watch something scary, especially not right now. You saw the story on Jay's phone, right?"

"What is this story you are talking about, Peter?" Isaac questioned.

"There's some psychopath on the loose right now. He could apparently be anywhere." Pete explained.

The Native American man scoffed in disbelief. "I'm sure we're fine. The mansion is in the middle of nowhere. Also, we're ghosts."

"Sasappis right. Not like people can hurt ghosts."

"What 'bout Sam and Jay though?" Trevor weighed in. "They can die or get hurt."

"What are the odds though? It's not like he's contained to one area, like us. He'll pass us by without a second thought."

"Sass is right." Alberta said. "Let's just go watch our movies. Trev, you gotta find something for us to watch and put on something for these four."

"Hetty?" Flower asked. "You're gonna watch a scary movie? For real?"

"Well, I normally will not tolerate gore scenes because of how grotesque they always become. But, I am an adult, I shall be mature and bear it for the sake of Halloween." She said grasping Isaac's arm.

"So it's settled, we will see you after our respective movies." Isaac concluded.

\_____/

Trevor, after many minutes of struggle that both annoyed and amazed the older ghosts, had put on a movie that caught the eye of the four, entitled: The Purge.

Hetty was already skeptical about the title and the image that appeared on the screen, the mask with the eyes crossed out had freaked her out a bit.

She leaned into Isaac, seeking his comfort when somebody on screen was shot at. He, luckily, leaned to her too, grabbing her hand and rubbing it comfortingly. She noticed his breathing was also very abnormal, taking uneven breaths.

Sasappis wasn't exactly comfortable watching this either, no man was an actual man, instead they were all blood thirsty demons in search of carnage. It terrified him. He didn't even find the story too interesting to watch, he found it predictable which character was gonna die next. The gore scared him the most.

They all jumped at a scare on screen. Isaac gasping loud enough to wake up the dead, and Hetty jumping out of her seat. "This is too much! I tried to be mature but I am sorry, my female brain cannot handle this, Sasappis!" She cried. "It's too much for my eyes to bear! I'm going to make my way to bed. I wish you all a good night."

Isaac rubbed his eyes, trying to hide the tears of fear that were there. "Goodnight, Henrietta. Sleep well, my friend."

The other two murmured a goodnight too as she scurried out of the room as fast as she could in her dress.

\_____/

Meanwhile, the others were having the time of their lives. The four has taken to singing all the musical numbers of the movie Trevor had chosen for the group, Nightmare Before Christmas. This movie seemed to have something for everyone, but they all enjoyed the music!

While singing 'Kidnap the Santa Clause', they heard loud screams from the other room. Trevor chuckled, as everyone in the group stopped belting out the lyrics but Flower, who kept singing and dancing on the couch.

"And that is why I hate horror movies." He said.

Pete grimaced. "I kinda feel bad, I mean, Hetty's in there. She can't handle gore. And Isaac's been in war for goodness sake, what if he has PTSD?!"

"If they decide they can't handle it, they'll either come join us, or stop the movie." Alberta reasoned over Flowers's slightly offkey singing. "And I'm sure they are fine anyways, they did want to watch a horror in the first place which meant they had to have known what they were stepping into."

"Fine," Pete said. "I just hope they're alright."

Trevor laughed. "Hetty's tougher than she seems, and Isaac knows it's all fake. I'm sure the gunshot wounds don't even look real."

\_____/

"Why do the gunshot wounds look so real??!!" Isaac screamed. He was covering half his face with his coat in terror. Why, oh why did they decide to watch this?

Sasappis had his eyes wide open and his jaw on the floor. "This movie was made by evil people, pure, pure evil. Who could even imagine something like this?!"

Another person was shot on screen, causing the three men to jump. "No, no, no. That it. Thor not watch anymore. Too scary even for Thorfinn." Thorfinn shuddered.

Sasappis got off the couch. "Yeah, I'm not watching anymore either. The concept is just too horrifying, I come up with my own scary stories and none of them are like that." He looked at Isaac and reached out his hand. "Come on, that's it, we aren't gonna watch anymore, this is nightmare fuel."

Isaac shook his head with distinct hesitation. "I can finish it. I was a captain, I can do this."

Sasappis sighed. Isaac wasn't gonna leave, the man was too determined to finish what he started, even if it meant sacrificing his sleep. "Okay, we'll be in our rooms." He said subtly offering help if needed later.

\_____/

Isaac awoke to a loud crash downstairs. He jolted up in surprise and looked at the clock Samantha kept on the wall.

Who in the world would be up at 3 a.m.? Sure, Hetty had insomnia often, but she couldn't touch things. So what had caused the sound?

Sasappis and Thorfinn peeked their head through the door. "What was that?" Sasappis had asked.

"I have no idea, why are you asking me?" Isaac said in reply. "It came from downstairs."

"What if it dangerous man Pete talking about. What if Purge is going on in world outside?"

Isaac paced through the door and looked at the two of his oldest friends. "I'm sure we are fine, maybe a pot or pan from the kitchen fell?"

Just then, Hetty came racing down the hall. "I was searching everywhere for you three!" She whisper-shouted. "A window is open in Flower and my room. I believe someone might have broken in!"

Isaacs's eyes went wide and the four dead souls glanced at each other in worry. "Alright troops," Isaac commanded, getting back into his old captain mindset. "We shall split up and search the house for anomalies."

"No, you idiot!" Sasappis objected. "Never split up! It's like a death wish!"

"Sass is right. We see movie Scream with Trevor last week. We learn all about the rules."

"There are rules?" Isaac inquired.

"Yeah, you also can't have sex," Hetty blushed and looked down. "You can't drink or do drugs, and you can't say: 'I'll be right back.' You won't be right back." Sasappis explained to the two twin like best friends. "Good thing I'm a virg-" He cut himself off, realizing what he had said. "N-nevermind."

"So it's settled, we shall storm the house together."

The quartet tiptoed down the stairs, being careful not to make a sound. Even Thor kept his feet light, so as to not alert the possible intruder.

Clangs of metal echoed throughout the house, originating from the kitchen. Isaac put his head as close to the door as possible without putting it through.

Another sound came from the study upstairs, making everyone jump. Isaac yelped and almost fell to the floor, but Hetty caught him before he fell flat on his back.

"What was that?!" Sasappis yelled.

Isaac scrambled up out of Hetty's grasp and turned to the stairs. "Someone must check that out too."

Hetty sighed. "Silly rules aside, this is not a movie. We shall be fine going to check it out by ourselves, Isaac. We shall go upstairs and check the library while Sasappis and Thorfinn check the kitchen."

"Alright, don't blame us when you've been gutted like a fish." Sasappis countered.

"We shall be right back," Isaac said before he could stop himself. "Damn my mouth." He muttered under his breath.

Sasappis and Thorfinn stepped toward the door, both glancing at each other uncertainly. "Thor, I want to be a good best friend and insist you go ahead."

Thorfinn laughed. "No, no, Sass. You go first."

"But I insist."

"Thor double insists."

Sasappis exhaled and looked at the door, pausing for just a moment before he stepped through. Thor lagged behind him.

It was dark, but through the dark, they could see a mess in the kitchen. Pots, pans, and ingredients were spilled throughout the room. A red liquid was dripping off the table, and Sass gasped. "Is that... blood?"

"Thor know blood. That is blood." He said, terror seeping through his voice

A man rose up from behind the island, he held a object in his raised hand. "I'm gonna kill you!"

Thor and Sasappis screamed in horror as they ran out of the kitchen, not looking back.

\_____/

In the meanwhile, Hetty and Isaac climbed the stairs. Hetty was grasping onto Isaacs's arm so tightly, it would have stopped his circulation.

Another loud bang came from the room in question, causing them both to cower together. "You said: 'We'll be right back', Isaac. You have doomed us."

"I'm sorry, okay! It just slipped out!"

They fazed their heads through a wall to see what was going on. Inside the dark room, they saw the silhouette of a woman, she was hitting the safe with the sharp end of a hammer.

Hetty gasped and pulled Isaac out through the wall. "We are being robbed! I bet you tonight is a Purge night! We are all going to die!" Hetty hissed, overcome with hysteria.

Just then, Sasappis and Thorfinn came running up the stairs in a hurry. "There is a murderer in the kitchen! I think he killed Sam and Jay! There is blood all over the table!"

"Gadzooks!"

"They killed Sam and Jay?!"

Thor nodded. "Puny man and tiny woman stood no chance."

"Well, there is a robber in this room trying to break into the safe!" Hetty exclaimed.

Sasappis inhaled deeply, trying to calm himself down. "It can't be the Purge. Sam would have told us."

"Sam not tell us things in past cause she thought it would freak out us. What if the same tonight?"

"Whatever it is, what can we even do?" Hetty yelled.

Sasappis and Thor tensed. "You guys," Sasappis said. "Run. There are people right behind you. "

"Oh, very funny Sasappis." Hetty scoffed.

"I'm not kidding run!"

Isaac and Hetty both turned around, not expecting anything, only to be spooked by five shadows behind them.

The four ran down the hall and down the stairs, screaming and yelling out in horror.

"We're gonna die!"

"Let me into Valhalla, gods!"

"IT'S THE BLOODY PURGE!"

"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!"

The ghosts stopped running about at the sound of Trevor yelling over their screams. They all turned and saw the four youngest ghosts staring at them like they were crazy. "What in petes sake is wrong with you four?" Alberta asked.

"Sam and Jay are dead!" Sasappis yelled.

"I think we are anything but dead, Sass." Sam said. The lights all flickered on, illuminating the once dark room. The four gazed up the stairs in incredulity, before quickly making their way closer to the woman they though was dead.

"Samantha! Thank goodness you are alive!" Hetty exclaimed. "We had thought the murderer in the kitchen had gotten you!"

Sam raised her eyebrows. "Murderer in the kitchen? Wait back up."

Just then, Jay strode out in kitchen door holding a spatchula. "Hey babe, I finally killed that bug in the kitchen."

"Bug?" Isaac said.

"Yeah, the power went out while Jay was in the middle of making us a late night snack so I went to the safe to grab a flashlight."

Thorfinn pointed upstairs. "Why you hitting safe like Thor used to hit Danes?"

"The lock got stuck again. This time I couldn't get it open." Sam explained.

"What about the blood on the kitchen table?" Sasappis asked, looking over at Jay.

Sam looked at Jay, who was cleaning off 'blood' from his hands. "Sass wants to know why there was 'blood' on the table."

The man laughed. "That wasn't blood!" He explained. "I spilled red food dye! When the power shut off, I started dropping pans and spilling things like crazy!"

"Wait." Isaac said. "You mean, there was no intruder?"

"But my window was open!"

Sam smiled. "I must have just forgot to shut it." She said. "Are you four alright? You look really scared."

Thorfinn laughed, embarrassed. "Thor wasn't scared, tears are from allergies."

"Yes, Sam we are right as rain." Isaac said confidently.

"BOO!" Flower screamed as she jumped out from behind the group.

The four flinched and yelped, Hetty and Isaac jumped into each others arms and Thorfinn hid behind Sasappis who was covering his face with his hands. "Oh my god, we are gonna die!" He yelled through his hands.

"You're already dead! We are already dead!" Trevor said with a wide grin.

Alberta tsked. "You poor babys, you should have come watched a movie with us! Instead of watching that blood-bath you did!"

Sam turned toward them in surprise. "You four watched a scary movie? What was it called?"

"I put on something called 'The Purge' for them."

She turned her head toward Trevor so quick, the ghosts were afraid she would break her neck. "The Purge!? That movie is intense!"

"I didn't know that! They were browsing and saw it, they wanted to watched it so I clicked start! It's not my fault!" Trevor defended himself.

"We really gotta put that childs lock on the TV, Jay." Sam said. "But are you four alright?"

"We shall be okay, Samantha. Just please, close that window in my room."

Sam grinned. "Of course, Hetty. Just remember, we are careful about making sure the house is locked up, we won't let anything happen."

"And The Purge isn't real!" Jay added.

Sam nodded. "Thank you, babe."

And so they all went back to sleep.

\_____/

Sasappis woke up the next morning, eyesight blurry and clouded. He rubbed his eyes and positioned himself so he was sitting on the edge of his bed.

He smiled thinking of the night they had last night. Sure it was scary at the time, but now he looked back on it and laughed. Sasappis set his feet down on the ground and yawned.

He felt hands grab at his ankles from underneath the bed. The native gave a high pitched scream and jumped off the bed.

"Hahahahaha!!! Oh my god, dude that was awesome!" Trevor said, crawling out from underneath the bed. "I wish I could have seen the look on your face!"

"You suck." Sasappis spat. "You suck so hard, I'd slap you if it wouldn't land me in Ghost Court."

"You were so scared!"

Sasappis just rolled his eyes in response and walked out of the room before he did something he would regret.

({[THE END]})

[wavernot4love]

hello wanted 2 talk about a bunch of fun things from Thursday first show of War All The Time tour 2nite at the Town Ballroom in Buffalo (this will include setlist spoilers)

(starting with a random little video of title track, the rest of it is in the keep reading thingy)

- TURNPIKE DIVIDES FOR THE LAST SONG??? they let her see the light of day!!! i am probably the only person who has heard her at 2/3 of the thursday sets they have seen /lh

- geoff took the piss out of victory records for not paying bands while talking about how i'll be you & jbny are mirrors of each other then played them back to back (also described jbny as their heaviest song.... correct!!!)

- crowd was GREAT. great pits, surfing vibes, actually hell, vibes were just great all around.

- make sure you get there early so you can catch both many eyes & rival schools (steve (thursday) actually played for rival schools today which was cool). i thoroughly enjoyed both sets, and tonight honestly made me a fan of many eyes as a project. i wasn't sure what to expect receptionwise from a buffalo crowd [insert every time i die lore] but everyone showed up for keith (buckley, former singer of etid)/them. i also thought he/they did great, and he seemed genuinely humbled. also saw him around after the show, bro was loading out merch so i didn't wanna bother him, but yeah, dude seemed chill. really enjoyed the songs as well, i'll be spinning them and staying tuned for future releases for sure.

- between that set, everyone just feeling like a true community all night, & a cameo from a local scene legend (if you know hardcore, the singer of terror/buried alive was watching sidestage all show, keith shouted him out hahaha), let's just say i felt like how i'd imagine patriotic americans feel when they hear the national anthem, but the western new yorker edition.

- between rupture and rapture & division st. were probably my favorite non big singles. so great to hear watt in full dude and the crowd was very engaged the whole time

- one thing that really sucks is geoff explained as they came out that pretty much all their instruments randomly got stolen right before they left for tour, so they were a little panicky and stuff but basically, nothing was gonna stop them from having a good time in buffalo (paraphrased). apparently when they were sorting out the tour routing a while back someone told them they should start in toronto but they were like, nah dude, we want to start in buffalo. back to my western ny patriotism analogy, i see. anyways, now that's what i call resilience. they put on a great performamce with such great energy, you can tell this is a band that truly loves doing this whole thing. support the guys extra hard this run.

- as the opening bit of understanding started i looked back at the carnage going on in the giant pit that was open at the moment and had to just. smile at That being a moment people were crowdkilling each other to /lh

- i brought my (digital) point & shoot and shot from the crowd! very stoked on those as i was quite close all show, will update with those once i edit em! will probably also be posting a review kinda thing on my site/ziney thing once i get that back up and published

- one final thing that haunts me is the wonder of what geoff was talking about here in this instagram story post from earlier. i even stuck around after the show (which ended around 10:30) in case... i don't know, thursday were to fly out of some sort of confetti cannon at 11 pm sharp, i have no idea, dude. someday i will ask geoff about Minds Blown - 11.00pm

anyway, every time i've seen thursday this past year of having the joy of really knowing their music (i'd heard of them of course just through being in the scene for years, but had just never listened then) thursdayband has come 2 mean more and more to me and i truly hope they never stop playing together as long as it makes them happy <3

[carohasopinionsonbooks]

A Case for The Wave by Todd Strasser to replace Lord of the Flies by William Golding

*disclaimer - these r just my 2 cents, feel free to disagree*

Ok if you went to an American high school, chances are you were made to read Lord of the Flies by William Golding. You usually read this book as a type of cautionary tale to show how slowly and yet fast a society can devolve. One little hiccup within the people in power and the dominoes can fall towards a world of chaos and injustice, usually at a gradual yet effective pace. Now, I will say that the point the book makes is a good one and one all of us should keep in mind.

Given that, I did not like this book one bit...

For a bit of background, Golding wrote this book on the beliefs of Thomas Hobbes, those being that the lives of humans are "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short" and that without structure, humans would just descend into chaos and become, especially in the context of Lord of the Flies, carnage machines. This is something I don't personally agree with but it makes a lot of sense when you find out Golding fought in WW2. He, like many others after the war, questioned how things could go so south so fast. He happened to decide on the theory mentioned above and this way of thinking sets the tone for the whole plot of the book.

(tangent - Golding was also just a really messed up guy, seriously, look him up, he was wild....)

Brief plot overview - A group of British boys crash land on an island and are faced with the task of living alone with no adults and with no one telling them what to do on a remote island in the middle of no where. The boys at first try to deal with their situation civilly, but within a matter of weeks it all devolves into violence and chaos.

The main issue that I have with the book is that it just seems so unrealistic. Now you might be like, "Caro its exaggerated at some points bc he is trying to make a point, not all of it is gonna be realistic, its the message that's important" which is true but like holy moly is the violence just a lot sometimes. Also the fact that its all British boys just creates another detachment. As a person who identifies as female, there is a bit of disconnect there. The racist undertones in regards to indigenous peoples do not help the book's case either. The whole book comes across and looks like a raging angry dumpster fire (I mean have you seen some of the covers? Its really intense :|).

(a fun little fact: there was actually a real life Lord of the Flies example with a group of Tongan boys - here is the wiki in case you want a brief overview of the story - which ended in literally no drama so that deducts another point for believability)

Another reason why I just did not connect with this book at all was because I had read a different book that has the same message as Lord of the Flies which was 1000x times better. That book was The Wave by Tod Strasser. The Wave is a fictional account of a real experiment done by a high school teacher in California. The book starts out with a high school history teacher trying to teach WW2 to his class, specifically the part where Hitler rose to power. The students, all of them bored, complain that they have heard this so many times already and that they would 100% know, detect, and intervene if something like that were to happen again. The teacher, in response, decides to start an experiment with his students to put them to the test. What that experiment is I will not say for spoiler reasons but at first everything seems fine and then devolves oh so fast and oh so slowly. It takes place in a familiar environment (a high school) and I feel it is much more relatable and realistic than Lord of the Flies which is why I find it all the more impactful and effective. I read this book freshman year of high school and the story still sticks with me to this day. I would seriously recommend everyone go read this book if they haven’t already. Why we haven’t already replaced Lord of the Flies with The Wave within high school curriculums is beyond me and probably would have saved me a few brain cells …

[kudosmyhero]

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (vol. 1) #27: Dreams of Stone

Read Date: July 08, 2023 Cover Date: November 1989 ● Writer: Michael Dooney ● Pencils: Michael Dooney ● Inks: Michael Dooney ● Letterer: Mary Kelleher ●

**HERE BE SPOILERS: Skip ahead to the fan art/podcast to avoid spoilers

Reactions As I Read: ● ok, a different writer/artist this time. the art is solid so far. going by the cover art, I’m a little worried about the story… ● I was gonna say something about her being casually naked, but then I realized, so are they

● also, what if “naked” rhymed with “raked”? ● oh wait, she’s not naked. she’s got that silvery body suit thing. ok. ● not really my cuppa but not nearly as bad as some of the stuff that happened a number of issues ago ● 👏👏

Synopsis: As the issue begins, Donatello's dreams are being disturbed by a disembodied voice, questioning the distressed Turtle about how he can sleep while the voice's granddaughter is struggling. On the following page we find ourselves inside of Don's dream, where he sits as a giant upon a mountain in the forest. By the mammoth Turtle's side is an equally gigantic Native American chief, who floats cross-legged in the sky.

"W-what?" Don asks.

The Chief continues, "Well, are you listening little shellback? The Spirit is everywhere! Can you hear it in the rivers? Do you feel it in the wind? Tell me, can you hear the wind in your city? Or are you made of stone… made of brick and steel… man made… like him!"

We then see an even larger muscled, caped monster in battle with a beautiful Native American woman.

"Complete Carnage!" Don shouts.

"And my granddaughter, who you call Radical." finishes the apparition. The two first appeared in Tales of the TMNT #5.

As Donatello grabs his bō and prepares to assist Radical, the Chief continues, "She is proud. The darkness seeks to consume her… it is strong here in dreams. She fights the evil one alone. They are bound together… they will know no peace. I thought you might want to help, little warrior, but here you must be bigger…"

Don rushes to assist Radical, and his size increases until he's as big as the two opponents. Donatello leaps into the fray…

And crashes onto Leo's bed, awakened from the dream (as are the rest of the guys).

Meanwhile, Complete Carnage and Radical are both lying stunned on the ground - apparently the Turtles' shared dream had far-reaching effect! CC decides it's time for him to go and he leaves a very weak Radical behind as he melts into the road and disappears.

The TMNT report their dream to Splinter, who states that it is a powerful omen. The Sensei also reveals that he also had a dream, a vision of great peace and great destruction… as well as a giant, neon buffalo!

Leo remembers that Casey had mentioned a neon buffalo, so the guys head out to search for the clue. The Turtles head to an abandoned and dilapidated "Indian Goods" store near Buffalo Rock, in the middle of nowhere, where they find an old sign in the shape of a buffalo that was once outlined with neon lights. They also find Radical sitting in deep meditation. Once Radical is alerted to the Turtles' presence, she asks Don if he's a Dream Walker. Don tells her that it was her grandfather that brought him to her, and Radical states that her granddad was a powerful shaman who has been dead for ten years.

Meanwhile, Complete Carnage emerges from the road in the nearby city of Springfield. As he walks the streets contemplating what havoc he'll wreck, he spots an advertisement in a store window for "Radical price cuts!" which angers the villain and he smashes the window out, screaming that Radical haunts him wherever he goes.

Back in the woods, Radical performs a Native American ritual in attempt to get some answers from the spirits. Radical tells the spirits of Complete Carnage, how he draws his power from man-made structures of rock, and how the changes that the white men have made to the landscape power her enemy. The air spirit, Wakinyan Tanka, answers Radical's call and tells her that no matter the strength of her enemy, she must remember her own - and then the thunderbird flies off. Radical then tells the TMNT that they must draw CC back to this spot, as its power will hold him. They'll be able to lure the monster to their location through the dream realm.

Complete Carnage is stumbling through the sewers of Springfield, tired but fearing sleep, as he knows that Radical will attack him in his dreams. As CC grumbles about how he wants to crush Radical out of his life, he drifts off to sleep…

The TMNT offer their assistance, but they ask the lady to give them some background information, so Radical explains her origin to the Turtles. She insists that she's not a super-hero, as her powers did not originate from radioactivity or lightning. She tells of how when she was a girl, her grandfather brought her to this very spot and taught her the importance of the local beavers, who were the children of the Great White Grandfather Beaver. The shaman was honored to have the beavers set up their home in his locale. When Radical told the story to a local boy who did some chores for her granddad, the kid attempted to kill one of the animals by throwing a rock at it. Radical was able to block the missile, and the boy became her enemy. Legend states that there is a giant totem pole that holds up the world, and that the Great Beaver is at its base, gnawing the wood whenever he is angered. Radical believes that the evil spirits cursed the boy that day and chose him as their avatar, turning him into Complete Carnage. Likewise, the good spirits chose Radical to fight for the side of right… so the two are constant and ancient foes. Radical has been given the powers of the great Thunderbirds, she can fly and manipulate the clouds, while Complete Carnage holds influence over all that is man-made.

Radical then explains that she has done her best to battle CC in the Dreamscape, in effort to prevent damage to the earth… but Carnage is growing stronger and wiser in his abilities, so the fight looks like it will be brought to the real world. She then disappears, telling the guys that she'll be bringing Complete Carnage back with her when she returns.

Radical travels to the Dreamscape and finds CC quickly, and taunts him into chasing her to the spot where the Turtles are waiting. A long battle ensues and Complete Carnage seems to have the upper hand. Donatello works frantically carving symbols into the power-drenched earth, attempting to help Radical win the lop-sided fight. CC grabs Radical and pulls her towards the pavement… Radical cries out to Don to remember the Coyote. Don has a revelation, "That's it! Coyote the Trickster!" and he quickly scribes a symbol into the ground, just as both CC and Radical disappear into the road! As Raph admonishes Don for failing, Leonardo notes that the blacktop is turning into water…

Radical bursts up from the street, which has suddenly become a river! She then captures Complete Carnage with a giant fist made of stream water, which pulls the beast to its depths. Carnage struggles but cannot break the water-fist's grasp. A stunned CC cries out - he doesn't understand what happened - he could have sworn the road was made of rock. As he realizes that he's been duped, he evaporates into the water and disappears… and the entire stream also drains away to leave a dry and empty riverbed behind.

Radical explains that the Coyote has an odd sense of humor, so things may not be as they seem - but it looks like the great spirit changed the rock to water just as Carnage was attempting to absorb its power into himself, thus causing him to become water and dispersing his atoms, perhaps for good.

Later we see Donatello seated alone on Buffalo Rock, which overlooks a lake. Raph approaches and tells Don that they need to get going. As Donatello prepares to leave, he hears the old shaman's voice once again.

"Tell me, little shell-back… tell me what you hear…"

Just then Radical flies overhead to say goodbye and thanks.

Donatello looks to the clouds, smiles, and answers the shaman, "I hear the spirit of the wind!"

(https://turtlepedia.fandom.com/wiki/Dreams_of_Stone)

Fan Art: Ninja Turtles by vshen

[cabbagequeen323]

Recovery books:

Finished North and South, my beloved

Read the majority of Beth Moore's memoir (all my tangled up life I think is the title). Reinforced the idea for me of how much shit women in ministry get in any kind of conservative circles these days.

Got one page into To Spark a Match (I forget the authors name and I'm not getting up to go find it right now). Noped out immediately when the first scene was the main character embarrassing herself by going to a ball(?) with her skirt caught in her bustle.

Started Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell

Started American Carnage by Tim Alberta. I loved his The Kingdom, The Power, and The Glory so I'm excited to get into this one. I don't think AC will touch as much on the topics that really got me in TKTPTG, but I really like his journalism.

I want to reread The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse and When Narcissism Comes to Church of I can find copies on Libby or hoopla. If not I'm going to buy copies when I am well enough to walk around again.

Might read some more of Raising Your Spirited Child by Mary Sheedy Kurcinka. The bits I've read so far have been really helpful.

Going to start Self Care for Moms by Sara Robinson, MA. It was on the library recommended shelf and it touches my heart that the cover has coffee and food stains on it. It checks out haha.

I read the majority of The Lies of Locke Lamora and enjoyed it, but it got kinda old for me towards the end. I'm just not really in the mood for anything that doesn't have a strong moral or philosophical core. It's fun fantasy, but not what my heart wants right now. (I also looked up spoilers for the next book and am even less interested in continuing)

I need to read The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima because it's part of my best friend's favorite book series. I'm afraid it might hit me in the same way as TLLL, but it's YA so it should be light and hopefully less violent.

[lifeinperpetualreview]

A Triangle of Sadness (2022)

Very delayed review coming in for this wonderful film I saw a fair few weeks ago now.

First of all, I had absolutely no expectations about this film, all I knew was that it was loosely a film that was going to take a punch at influencer/indulgent wealth culture and the fashion industry but it turned out to be a much more extreme version of that premise - it was some rogue power and wealth survival movie that was both hilarious, absolutely disgusting and wonderfully enjoyable.

I'm a novice to Ruben Östlund so I had nothing of his style to compare it to, despite the fact he's won the Palme d'Or before. The first thing I loved stylistically was that the film is set up into the 3 very distinctive acts, which increased in length & intensity as you went through the film which was very clever.

[Contains spoilers]

In the first act, we get introduced to the 2 main characters, Yaya and Carl. Here we poke a lot of fun at the fashion & model industry, also modern feminism as the two characters get into an argument about money during an expensive dinner. Absolutely highlight was how the elevator and its frequently closing doors essentially had leading character energy and added humour and tension to this act.

The next act takes place on board a beautiful yacht, full of the wealthiest and repulsively rich members of society and introduces a class trichotomy that makes for a great discussion for the rest of the film. First, we have the super wealthy and we include our main couple here despite the fact they were gifted their place on the yacht as influencers. Next, you have the front-of-house staff, at the main whim of the rich but equally money-minded, the scene where they're all huddled together chanting about money/tips is very wolf of wall street reticent. Lastly, you have the service staff, kept out of sight these are the maintenance and cleaning staff, often immigrants are treated the worst of all by both the rich & the other staff.

One of my favourite scenes was when a very wealthy Russian woman was being waited on and increasingly asked more and more of the girl, in the end asking her to get in the hot tub with her that would have cost her her job - watching the way the actress wrestled not knowing how to say no vs not break the rules on her face was a visual masterclass.

Then you come to the infamous dinner scene, first of all, the camera work of getting the set, set up on a tilting frame was so effective even I started to feel a bit seasick. Then you had the amazing contradiction of super high-end seafood dining (think wobbly fish jelly) being served to the wealthy guests whilst the captain (Woody Harrelson) had a burger and chips - the look of jealousy on the wealthy guests' faces at the solid food as they feel increasing ill is fantastic. It then progresses into a 20min plus scene of torture, violent seasickness, diarrhoea, injury, and pure carnage. I have never seen anything like that and I honestly hope to ever again, I've read it's called endurance cinema and a good % of every screening walks out during this scene.

To top that scene off, the Captain and the Russian manure oligarch get increasingly drunk unaffected by the boat and launch into political debate and word/quote play. The American socialist and the Russian capitalist lock themselves away in the breach and use the microphone to 'prank' the other passengers by telling them the boat is sinking. They then speak their truths over the tannoy. Meanwhile, the other passengers already in hell think death is imminent and everything goes to shit. This is Harrelson's only scene, however long and extended and boy does he pack a punch, in these few moments he instantly becomes the start of the show alongside Dolly De Leon's Abigail.

Ironically, the boat survives that madness and actually blows up the hands of pirates the next morning in the calm - ironically with a hand grenade made by one the arms dealers on board the ship.

In the final act, the survivors are washed up on a beach where the power dynamics change considerably. One of the Filipino service staff with her skills wastes no time in ascertaining herself as in charge, which is a fantastic play for her and the other women on board who gradually take control with her vs the useless wealthy men on board. So much so that Abigail takes Carl as her lover in the lifeboat in exchange for preferential treatment.

The film ends with Yaya and Abigail taking a walk together and discovering that they were right next to a luxury resort the whole time they've been stranded. Faced with the prospect of losing her power, lover and potentially facing repercussions for her behaviour on the island either by dismissal from the company or legally she prepared to kill Yaya. Carl realises it was dangerous to let Yaya go off with Abigail alone and the film ends on a cliffhanger of him running through the island as fast as he can to save her, does he get there? Probably not but it's a great cliffhanger and one best dance songs of the last year.

All in all, a little long but such a great take on power dynamics and class commentary, it makes you almost dream about a time when people have to utilise their skills for survival in a worth where possession of wealth carries little benefit. It's never going to happen of course, even in a survival structure money talks, the rich had a far better pandemic than the poor for example, in cramped housing, public health/no healthcare & sick pay and in front-line jobs facing the dangers head-on.

Loved it, beautiful, powerful and outright disgusting at times. 8/10

[scre6m]

I'm an asshole, JP. Not a quitter.

JENNA ORTEGA as CAMILA MONTES AMERICAN CARNAGE (2022) dir. Diego Hallivis

[dentedsky]

Review of The Untamed

This is one of the only tv shows i have ever marathoned and then immediately watched all over again. I started watching this show on Netflix knowing absolutely nothing about it; i didn't even know it was a gay love story... likewut. I had previously over saturated myself with American sitcoms and so looked for something completely different. Little did I realise I would smack myself in the face with my own love for the characters, themes, costumes, and downright beauty of the thing. I was immediately hooked in when in the first scene the lead character is murdered by his brother, cos I am a real sucker for stories that start out with, "Once upon a time, I DIED!!!" That to me is pure chef's kiss.

If you haven't watched it yet, let me forewarn you: the first two episodes are a clusterfuck of situations and lines and characters you don't give a shit about and have no context for. But push past these into episode 3 and beyond, and trust me, you will.

So here is my review of The Untamed. I'll try to be as spoiler-less as possible.

General premise

Five major clans control majority wealth, power and magic. Teenager Wei Wuxian is from one of these clans, and attends Ancient Chinese Hogwarts with BFFs/siblings Jiang Yanli and Jiang Cheng. But it's not all fun and hormones; soon after the semester ends they are thrown into war. Despite knowing magic and sword art, they are woefully under-prepared for the carnage and political shitshow that follows. Alliances fray, hearts are broken... and Wei Wuxian dies.

Sixteen years later he is resurrected by a necromancer who wants revenge on his shitty family. Wuxian's crush from magical high school, Lan Wangji, is now a 30-something hottie and a top-tier wizard, and is investigating a sword spirit that's gone apeshit. Since the revenge plot and the sword spirit issue are related, they team up buddy-cop style to solve the mystery.

The Pros

Costume and set design

It's beautiful. Someone in the costume department was having a ball with this one bc every outfit is gorgeous and unique. The long shots of the ancient Chinese sets are eye candy too. I found myself drinking in every little detail of their clothes and swords.

Themes and metaphors

I've seen a couple of Australian movies that talk about asylum-seekers, but I've never watched a show that has brought in the subject quite like this one. No doubt the episodes dedicated to our untamed hero Wei Wuxian saving war prisoners are a metaphor for China's incarceration of its minorities, but for me I was seething, constantly remembering that cunts like John Howard chose to use their power to treat people fleeing oppression like they were nothing but inconvenient garbage. Why governments choose to infeasibly sweep refugees under the rug rather than help them I still don't understand. In The Untamed, it's highlighted that the reasons are all about power - who has power must do all they can to keep it, even if it means torturing people they have never met, and slandering those who don't fall in line.

Cancel culture and mob mentality is a constant theme in the show, shown throughout several episodes from start to finish. Although set thousands of years before the invention of the internet, The Untamed highlights one important truth: internet trolls have always existed in some form or other and they will never change. They don't attack the reputation of others because they honestly believe that person deserves it - they do it because it fucking makes them feel good. If you can't take their shit any more and you kill yourself, it only solidifies in their mind that they were right all along. It's uncomfortable, and is almost impossible to endure. Like Lan Wangji, I wanted to take sweet Wei Wuxian into my arms and whisk him away.

The love story

Hooo boy, da love story. I ofc realise this is the main reason fans love this show. Between them, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji portray all the emotions that have ever existed, and then some. I found myself melting at Wuxian's every smile, looking closely at Wangji's infinitesimal widening of his eyes or curl of his lips. Wuxian is a guy who talks a lot with his mouth and his body but never says the right things, and Wangji is a bloke who says very little but his thoughts are written all over his supremely gorgeous face. And when they're together... woof. Gurrl. Idek. The chemistry is just... something. There is some over-acting on Wuxian's actor's part in some scenes Wangji's actor isn't in, but when these two are in a scene together, they're kind of amazing. The actors put full effort in, and it shows.

The Cons

CGI and make-up

Although the same genre, don't expect the production value of Game of Thrones, or The Witcher. This one runs more along the CGI lines of Merlin and Doctor Who. If you can use some imagination and stomach those two shows, then you can watch this. Similarly, the zombies are not scary, like, at all. But maybe that is less to do with make-up and more to do with wangxian being so overpowered that if this was a jrpg video game, wangxian would be lv 99 by age 17.

Plot holes and side characters

This show is well written and paced. However, there's one episode in the second half that you could quite frankly chuck in the bin and nothing of value would be lost. The side story involves a third-rate villain and three side characters who the villain emotionally and physically tortures for shits and giggles. If you liked these characters, that's great, but the whole thing to me stank of torture porn and added nothing to the main plot or central characters or relationships. The Untamed is not the only show to suffer this; Altered Carbon comes to mind. There was literally a whole ep in that show dedicated to torturing the lead and I'm still flummoxed as to why some stories choose to do this when literally there is no point?? I get that this villain is central to The Untamed plot and that he is a dark reflection of Wuxian's future if he didn't have Wangji as an anchor, but those things could've been shown in other ways without dragging three characters idgaf abt into some flashback that bored me to tears.

Summary and general thoughts

Omg, dis my fandom now. I'm already reading fics and God, look, writing fucking essays. I'm so naughty - I got my bff into it just so I could have someone to talk to. Luckily, her 1st language is Mandarin, and after watching the show, she read the web novel in 4 days, then translated the porn for me. Of what she tells me though - unpopular opinion - I think I prefer this drama. I prefer the idea that Wuxian fell for Wangji love at first sight, and also, I'm not a huge fan of sex while drunk - it's actually kinda triggering for me. That's just personal things tho. Wangxian have some beautiful moments that I like to rewatch and keep cupped in my hands.

6/5 stars.

[c-k-mack]

Big MacSteamy

[anoutlandishfanfic]

Sagebrush: Prologue.

Yes, I promise I plan to update my other WIPs...

But like many others I fell in love with 1883 and cannot resist exploring an AU.

The Premise: Claire and Jamie journey into the American West with children Faith (age eighteen) and Willie (age six). There is a healthy measure of peril and doom along the trail. The tale is mostly narrated by Faith but with POV changes now and again to see things through her parents' eyes.

There will be 1883 spoilers if you haven't finished the series!! Proceed with caution.

This prologue mirrors the series opener. I did copy Elsa’s narration verbatim here, but this will not always be the case. I loved this style in the show and how it’s so similar to Claire’s in Outlander. It’s really what drew me to exploring this AU.

HERE IT IS ON AO3

Faith; Near the Colorado State / Wyoming Territory boarder, 1883.

I remember the first time I saw it… tried to find words to describe it… but I couldn’t.

Nothing had prepared me. No books, no teachers, not even my parents.

I heard a thousand stories, but no one could describe this place.

It must be witnessed to be understood.

Blinking once, twice, I tried to rid the sting of smoke from my eyes. They watered fast and the tears trailed down my nose, dripping off onto the unforgiving ground that bit into my cheek. I lifted my head slowly, shaking it in an effort to rid myself of the ear-piercing ringing and the distant screams that floated over the top.

And yet – I’ve seen it and understand it even less than the first time I laid eyes on this place.

The wind fueled the flames engulfing the wagon beside me into a roaring fury, sending bits of charred debris off into the grass. Movement out the corner of my eye caught my attention and I turned in time to see a man fall with an arrow sticking straight out his back.

Some call it the American Desert…

Others, the Great Plains.

Hoofbeats pounded the ground beneath me and a horse passed by on the other side of the wagon, completely unaware of my presence. Its rider whooped and hollered as they came into sight, their bow strung with another arrow and had let it fly all in the time it took me to clamp my hand hard over my mouth to keep from crying out.

But those names were invented by professors at universities surrounded by the illusion of order and the fantasy of right and wrong.

The rider’s back now to me, I slowly brought myself up onto my knees and hiked my cumbersome skirt up out of the way. I scanned the carnage around me – looking for my horse, for my loved ones among the fallen.

To know it, you must walk it… bleed into its dirt and drown in its rivers.

One of the pioneers lay not far from me, face first into the dirt with the hilt of his still holstered revolver gleaming in the cruel sunshine. I lunged towards him, scrambling across the grass on my hands and knees until I was at his side.

Then its name becomes clear.

Gooseflesh rose on my arms and all the air left my lungs as an arrow whizzed past my head and landed mere inches from my hand the very same moment my fingers touched the gun. I had not heard the rider in my haste and he was clearly playing games with me.

It is hell and there are demons everywhere.

I turned to him, keeping my fingers on the smooth wood of the hilt, but not withdrawing it from its place just yet as he shook his head in command.

His face was set in an expression that I could not read beneath the painted lines of war.

My fist clenched around my weapon and he brought his horse a step closer, speaking for the first time, “I said no.”

I set my jaw as I weighed my options – noticing he had an arrow sitting ready on the string of his bow.

“Will you let me go?” I bit out, both rage and fresh tears burning at the back of my eyes.

His gaze did not leave mine as he clearly enunciated, “I will sell you… or I will kill you.”

“You speak English,” I hissed through my teeth. “How can you do this?”

“You speak English… and, no, your people did this,” his brows lowered.

I rose with my own cry of war and turned the revolver on him, firing with perfect aim in the same moment he did. My bullet hit him in the chest and sent him backwards off his horse in a spray of blood just as his arrow went through me.

But if this is hell and I’m in it…

I could see it in me, feel the shaft protruding from my body with my fingers, but felt no pain… nothing within me but the blind rage that now coursed through my body as though it were the blood that now seeped into my clothes.

Then I must be a demon too…

Charging forward in staggering steps, I tried to make every bullet count and knocked three more warriors from their horses before it emptied. I tossed it to the ground with a bellow of frustration and locked eyes with the warrior before me, his weapon raised.  

And I’m already dead.

[aion-rsa]

Black Widow Timeline Explained

https://ift.tt/3yH3sEi

This article contains Black Widow spoilers. Read our spoiler-free review here.

Who is Natasha Romanoff? It’s a question Marvel Studios coyly teased for years and then… failed to answer as a full decade and the entire “Infinity Saga” passed us by. Yes, the long overdue Black Widow movie is finally reaching theaters this weekend, but Nat was killed off years ago in the sacred timeline of Marvel Cinematic Universe canon.

Nevertheless, we are happy that the character and Scarlett Johansson received some much deserved closure, and in a film which fills in many of the blindspots in the Black Widow mythos, not least of which includes what she got up to between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War.

With her narrative being seemingly closed for good, it’s time to unpack the oft-obscured life story of Natasha and consider whether she at last balanced out all that red in her ledger.

1984

The child who would become Natasha Romanoff is born in Stalingrad to a mother who is forced to give her over to the Soviet government. Despite the mother’s best efforts, she is unable to free Nat from the system. (Fury’s Big Week, Black Widow)

1992

After years of indoctrination and training in the Widow program, which is run out of Soviet Col. Dreykov’s Red Room, eight-year-old Natasha is selected alongside three-year-old Yelena to be part of KGB agents Alexi Shostakov and Melina Vostokoff’s cover story. The quartet of sleeper agents move to Ohio, posing as an all-American family while gathering American state secrets. (Black Widow)

1995

Alexi and Melina succeed in obtaining critical information and escape U.S. soil. Eleven-year-old Natasha and six-year-old Yelena, who’ve become increasingly Americanized and attached to the family identities they assumed, are traumatized. (Black Widow)

2002

Natasha completes her Widow training and graduates from the Red Room, which includes a “ceremony” where she is asked to execute a man bound to a chair. She is then sterilized on an operating table. Dreykov believes robbing “widows” of the chance to have children makes them more ruthless killers. (Avengers: Age of Ultron)

2002 – 2007

Natasha is involved in multiple mysterious and apparently bloody Widow operations, which include incidents of murder in São Paulo and a separate “hospital fire” atrocity she is still haunted by. (The Avengers)

2007 – 2008

Clint Barton recruits Natasha into the West’s international SHIELD organization. Part of her defection comes at the price of assassinating Dreykov in Budapest. However, it is merely Dreykov’s young daughter Antonia who feels the fire of Nat’s explosives. (The Avengers, Black Widow)

2009

Natasha has her first run in with the Winter Soldier when she attempts to extract a defecting nuclear engineer out of Iran. A brainwashed Bucky Barnes steals her prize by running her car off a cliff in Ukraine and then shooting a bullet through Nat’s stomach and into her asset—killing him instantly. (Captain America: The Winter Soldier)

Around this time, Natasha becomes an unofficial member of Clint Barton’s secret family, who live on an idyllic farmhouse. She’s known there as Auntie Nat. (Avengers: Age of Ultron)

2010

Natasha infiltrates Stark Industries under the alias of Natalie Rushman, working as a legal assistant who moonlights as a model in order to catch Tony Stark’s lascivious eye. (Iron Man 2)

Natalie becomes Tony’s assistant but is actually spying on him for SHIELD, which has come to realize Tony’s arc reactor—which saved his life in Afghanistan—is now poisoning him. Nat eventually reveals she’s a SHIELD agent and helps prevent an assassination attempt on Stark’s life by rival forces. (Iron Man 2)

Read more

Movies

The Black Widow Movie You Never Saw

By Don Kaye

Movies

Florence Pugh’s Best Roles: What to Watch After Black Widow

By Kayti Burt

2012

Nat abandons her infiltration of the Russian underworld to recruit Bruce Banner to SHIELD after Loki arrives on Earth, brainwashing Clint Barton and planning world domination. She later successfully interrogates and manipulates the supposed God of Mischief. (The Avengers)

Natasha becomes one of the founding members of the Avengers after saving the world from an alien invasion alongside Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, and the Hulk in the Battle of New York. (The Avengers)

2014

Still working for SHIELD, Natasha infiltrates a pirate-commandeered SHIELD vessel to protect/steal precious SHIELD secrets while Captain America naively thinks they’re there to save hostages. (Captain America: The Winter Soldier)

Black Widow goes rogue alongside Cap after an assassination attempt on her mentor, Col. Nick Fury. Fury of course survived and forms an underground operation with Nat and Rogers to root out HYDRA sleeper cells who’ve slowly taken over SHIELD leadership during the past 70 years. (Captain America: The Winter Soldier)

After saving the world from HYDRA’s latest attempt at world domination, Natasha publicly reprimands the American government at a baffling Capitol Hill hearing where she is being questioned by Pentagon brass. (Captain America: The Winter Soldier)

… MEANWHILE the Natasha Romanoff and Clint Barton from circa 2023—nearly a decade older and sadder—time travel to 2014 in order to undo the damage Thanos caused when he snapped half of life in the universe out of existence with the Infinity Stones. They journey to the planet Vormir where they’re told one will have to die in order to obtain the Soul Stone. Black Widow and Hawkeye fight over who will have the right to sacrifice themselves for the other—Natasha wins and falls to her death, thus ending her tragic timeline in the past. (Avengers: Endgame)

2015

Black Widow becomes a full-time Avenger, joining the team as they dismantle the last HYDRA base in Sokovia. They regain Loki’s powerful scepter with an infinity stone inside. (Avengers: Age of Ultron)

Black Widow strikes up an intimate and unrequited connection with Bruce Banner. She is the only Avenger able to talk the Hulk down from his rages. The pair consider running off together, but their burgeoning romance is thwarted by the arrival of Ultron—an artificial intelligence that wants to… destroy the world. (Avengers: Age of Ultron)

Nat and the Avengers prevent Ultron from killing all organic life on Earth—which involved lifting Sokovia’s capital city into the sky and then dropping it like an asteroid—but in the carnage, Banner/Hulk chooses not to pursue a relationship with Nat, disappearing to parts unknown as she accepts her role as a leader of the growing Avengers roster. (Avengers: Age of Ultron)

2016

Black Widow is part of an Avengers operation in Lagos, Nigeria, which goes horribly wrong when in an attempt to stop terrorist Brock Rumlow from stealing a biological weapon, an entire office floor of civilians is killed. (Captain America: Civil War)

Shortly after the Lagos incident, the Sokovia Accords are signed by the UN, requiring Avengers and other superpowered individuals to register themselves under the jurisdiction of the UN Security Council. Natasha at first accepts this as a reasonable path forward. She changes her mind when pro-Accords Avenger Tony Stark comes to blows with the resident skeptic, Steve Rogers, in Berlin. Romanoff helps Rogers escape and then also goes to ground. (Captain America: Civil War)

As a rogue agent, Natasha is invited back to Budapest and reunites with her faux-little sister Yelena, who reveals Dreykov is still alive and now is literally controlling the minds of the other young women he’s trained to be widows via mind-altering drugs. (Black Widow)

Nat and Yelena decide to track Dreykov down and kill him for real, and do so by freeing their “father” Alexi from Siberia and reconnecting with their “mother” Melina, who is still loyal to the Widow program. Melina nonetheless takes her girls to the Red Room, the hidden air fortress where they were trained as children. Yelena kills Dreykov and Natasha frees all the women under Dreykov’s control, including his daughter who did not actually die in Budapest. (Black Widow)

Natasha reconnects with Steve Rogers and helps him free Wanda Maximoff, Scott Lang, Sam Wilson, and Clint Barton from the government’s “the Raft” prison vessel. (Captain America: Civil War, Black Widow)

2018

As Thanos’ alien forces invade Earth, Rogers, Romanoff, and other renegade Avengers come out of hiding to save the universe. Natasha is reunited with Banner, and all of them converge in an epic battle against the armies of Thanos in Wakanda. (Avengers: Infinity War)

After the Avengers fail to stop Thanos from collecting all the Infinity Stones, Nat watches many of her friends turn to dust, along with half the living creatures in existence. (Avengers: Infinity War)

Black Widow and the Avengers track Thanos down to an uninhabited planet, only to discover he’s destroyed the Infinity Stones they planned to use to resurrect the universe. Thor decapitates Thanos in a pyrrhic attempt at revenge. (Avengers: Endgame)

2023

Natasha has become the top leader of the Avengers, organizing their superheroism throughout the cosmos via intergalactic Zoom sessions with Captain Marvel, Rocket, and others. Yet she and Rogers quietly cling to the hope of reversing Thanos’ victory. (Avengers: Endgame)

When Scott Lang returns from the Quantum Realm, revealing he’s inadvertently discovered time travel, Nat and Steve get the original Avengers lineup back together to travel into the past in order to steal the Infinity Stones. Return to the 2014 section to find out how that ended for Black Widow… (Avengers: Endgame)

2024

After Natasha traveled to her destiny in the past, Yelena visits her grave in Ohio… and is recruited for a new kind of team. (Black Widow)

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[introvertguide]

Easy Rider (1969); AFI# 84

The current movie under review from the AFI top 100 is the counterculture road film, Easy Rider (1969). As a note for anybody looking for screen captures, this is also the title of a magazine with many scantily dressed women next to vehicles, so be specific with your google image search. The film combines the hippie lifestyle with the beatnik concept of being free from "the man." It spoke to a lot of Americans at the time who were fighting back against government restrictions on one hand and the freedom of Civil Rights on the other. The film ended up making almost 100x the budget and was one of the first super performing, low budget indie films. The film was written by Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, and Terry Southern. It was produced by Fonda and directed by Hopper. It is funny to think about now, but it was basically Peter Fonda's hippie son and some of his buddies getting together and making a movie about a road trip. Well done! Before we go any further, let's get the normal warning out of the way...

SPOILER WARNING!!! I AM GOING TO SPOIL THE MOVIE THAT DOESN'T REALLY HAVE A MAJOR PLOT!!! WHAT STORY THERE IS I HAVE SPOILED SO WATCH THE FILM FIRST IF YOU DON'T WANT ME TO RUIN IT FOR YOU!!! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!

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Wyatt (Peter Fonda) and Billy (Dennis Hopper) are freewheeling motorcyclists. After smuggling cocaine from Mexico to Los Angeles, they sell their haul and receive a large sum of money. With the cash stuffed into a plastic tube hidden inside the Stars & Stripes-painted fuel tank of Wyatt's California-style chopper, they ride eastward aiming to reach New Orleans, Louisiana, in time for the Mardi Gras festival. This all happens either in silence, in Spanish, or beneath the in-coming planes at an airport, so there really isn't any dialogue. It truly is exposition at the most basic level. What the director is basically communicating is "two guys got some money, here's how, now don't worry about it and enjoy the travel montage."

During their trip, Wyatt and Billy stop to repair a flat tire on Wyatt's bike at a farmstead in Arizona and have a meal with the farmer and his family. It is kind of interesting because Wyatt talks later about nobody being willing to help him, yet he is invited to use the barn and tools and then invited to have dinner with the whole family. Later, Wyatt picks up a hippie hitch-hiker, and he invites them to visit his commune, where they stay for the rest of the day. The notion of "free love" appears to be practiced, with two of the women, Lisa and Sarah, seemingly sharing the affections of the hitch-hiking commune member before turning their attention to Wyatt and Billy. The people at the commune seem to like Wyatt and want him to stay, but Billy doesn't seem to fit in and he is antsy to get back on the road. As the bikers leave, the hitch-hiker gives Wyatt some LSD for him to share with "the right people".

Further down the road, the two see a parade and playfully join the back. The pair are immediately arrested for "parading without a permit" and thrown in jail. There, they befriend lawyer George Hanson (Jack Nicholson), who has spent the night in jail after overindulging in alcohol. After the mention of having done work for the ACLU along with other conversation, George helps them get out of jail and decides to travel with Wyatt and Billy to New Orleans. As they camp that night, Wyatt and Billy introduce George to marijuana. As an alcoholic and a "square", George is reluctant to try it due to his fear of becoming "hooked" and it leading to worse drugs but he quickly relents. It is funny when Wyatt calls it "grass" and George doesn't know what that means. I don't know about other areas, but any 13-year-old where I live would most likely know what Wyatt was talking about.

Stopping to eat at a small-town Louisiana diner, the trio attract the attention of the locals. There is a booth packed with young girls next to a booth packed with what I can best describe as hicks. The girls in the restaurant think the trio are exciting, but the local men and a police officer make degrading comments and taunts. Wyatt, Billy, and George decide to leave without any fuss. They make camp outside town and talk about how their freedom scares a lot of people. In the middle of the night, a group of locals attack the sleeping trio, beating them with clubs. Billy screams and brandishes a knife, and the attackers leave. Wyatt and Billy suffer minor injuries, but George has been bludgeoned to death. Wyatt and Billy wrap George's body in his sleeping bag, gather his belongings, and vow to return the items to his family. This happens really fast and I wasn't really sure what had occurred or that George was dead. First time I saw this, I was looking at something else for 30 seconds and turned back to see Wyatt and Billy going through a wallet. I rewatched and the time between George going to sleep and the duo going through his wallet after death was about 37 seconds.

Wyatt and Billy continue to New Orleans and find a brothel that George had told them about. Taking prostitutes Karen (Karen Black) and Mary (Toni Basil) with them, Wyatt and Billy wander the parade-filled streets of the Mardi Gras celebration. They end up in a French Quarter cemetery, where all four ingest the LSD the hitch-hiker had given to Wyatt and experience a bad trip. I had to double check the name, but it is the same Toni Basil of "Oh Mickey, You're so fine, You're so fine you blow my mind, Hey Mickey!" fame.

The next morning, as they are overtaken on a two-lane country road by two local men in an older pickup truck, the passenger in the truck reaches for a shotgun, saying he will scare them. As they pass Billy, the passenger fires, and Billy has a lowside crash. The truck passes Wyatt who has stopped, and Wyatt rides back to Billy, finding him lying flat on the side of the road and covered in blood. Wyatt tells Billy he's going to get help and covers Billy's wound with his own leather jacket. Wyatt then rides down the road toward the pickup as it makes a U-turn.

Passing in the opposite direction, the passenger fires the shotgun again, this time through the driver's-side window. Wyatt's riderless motorcycle flies through the air and comes apart before landing and becoming engulfed in flames. A helicopter shot shows the carnage as the truck drives away and the credits roll.

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This movie is not what I would call my personal favorite, but many critics have praised it for the dialogue, visuals, and story. I am assuming when mention is made of the dialogue, it is in reference to Jack Nicholson, because the two lead characters are that mix of uncomfortable and annoying that you get with sometimes who is inebriated in some way. They repeat themselves, say phrases that make no sense and then laugh about it, and constantly say "what?" so the line is just repeated. The actors were often high during the making of the film and that is not at all surprising.

It seems funny to me that Dennis Hopper acted, directed, and partly wrote the script for the film, yet he gave himself the part of basically the third wheel. The character of Billy seems like he wants to be rich and have nice things but has fallen into the hippie lifestyle. He seems uncomfortable with the drug deal at the beginning. He doesn't want to pick up the hitcher. He wants to leave the commune and get back on the road. He insults George and has to apologize. He is the first to talk about the girls at the diner. He wants to go get prostitutes at the place that George talked about. He is the one that flips off the guys in the truck. Billy is the driving force of everything that goes wrong.

We can't talk about this film without mentioning the soundtrack, because it is kind of what the movie is famous for. Songs on the sound track include: "The Pusher" and "Born to Be Wild" (Steppenwolf), "The Weight" (The Band), "If 6 Was 9" (Jimi Hendrix), and "It's Alright, Ma" (Bob Dylan). Try putting this soundtrack on while driving and you will realize how perfect it is for a road trip. I don't think there has been a better grouping of driving songs.

So does this movie belong on the Top 100 American movies? Well, I guess. It was a watershed independent film during a time of major change in America and the world. It caught the interest of many in a generation and that is interesting enough to experience. Now would I recommend it? Not really. The film was kind of boring and the end is not satisfying. It is fascinating on many levels and I thought that the conversations that involved the character of George were good, but all lot of the movie is kind of slog. The campfire conversation between Wyatt, Billy and the hippie is just painful. It is maybe ironic, but this is a road trip movie that doesn't really move. It is worth watching if you are interested in the time period.

[ao3feed--symbrock]

by Radioabsurd

"When all four of them had gotten together (finally), it was silently agreed that their relationship was theirs and nobody else's."

     That was before they had their kids, before they found them and took them in.

  They can’t hide their kids and, besides Anne and Dan being in love, besides them getting married, that’s what today is about.

  He leans forward and kisses Anne on the forehead, gives her a smile.

  “You’re going to explode, huh?”

  Anne glares, but her grimace is gone, turning into a smile.

  “I’m not losing $50 to Venom.”

  Venom slithers up his shoulder, poking a mini version of his head out to stretch his mouth into a grotesque smile at Anne."

  or: dan & anne get married, but it's really just about the chaos of being around family + the symbiote kids + venom winning money to get his chocolate.

Words: 2508, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: Venom (Marvel Movies)

Rating: Mature

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: F/M, M/M, Multi

Characters: Eddie Brock, Venom Symbiote (Marvel), Dan Lewis (Venom 2018), Anne Weying, Toxin Symbiote (Marvel), Riot Symbiote (Marvel), Phage Symbiote (Marvel), Lasher Symbiote (Marvel), Mania Symbiote (Marvel), Agony Symbiote (Marvel), Carnage Symbiote (Marvel), Scream Symbiote (Marvel)

Relationships: Eddie Brock & Dan Lewis & Anne Weying & Venom Symbiote, Eddie Brock/Dan Lewis/Venom Symbiote/Anne Weying, Eddie Brock/Venom Symbiote, Dan Lewis/Anne Weying

Additional Tags: Weddings, Rewrite, Dan Lewis is a Nice Thing, Minor Dan Lewis/Anne Weying, Minor Eddie Brock/Venom Symbiote, Black Character(s), carnage is implied to be african american based on their hair, Nonbinary Character, Makeup, sorry i have no clue how to tag this, dan & anne get married and eddie/ven & the symbiote kids are there, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Torture, its a throw-away line for mania, Riot - Freeform, and agony, uhhh but this is a rewrite of a terrible not!fic i wrote a couple years ago, Oh, Polyamory, ALSO WHY ARE THERE NO TAGS FOR DAN LEWIS AND ANNE WEYING WE SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF OURSELVES, Anyways, pls read ty :) smileys., no beta we die like anne's mom if she doesn't stop, talking trash about venom ot4's kids, scream is implied to be african american based on her hair, lasher is implied to be asian american based on facial features, yes most of the symbiote kids are poc sorry not sorry, nice dan lewis is nice, venom is a chocoholic, This Is STUPID, casual mentioks of cannabilism lmaoo, casual mentions of sexual, punishments??, lol eddie remnants on getting spanked for his mouth, as he should, dan lewis is daddy purrrr, anne is mommy as she should be, and eddie is papa thanks, im not taking any questions, kids being kids, im looking at you, Lasher - Freeform, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, boys in makeup we stan, possessive dan lewis is nice and possessive, lowkey background venom im sorry baby :(, tags are incohersnt SCREECHING RN, Crying, characters yeah, but also me, competent anne weying, Tags Contain Spoilers, how three white adults got mostly poc children is beyond me, anywhos, thats on #projection, Polyamorous Character, Minor Injuries, Future Fic