#i think zach would win but only because of technicalities and point stealing

[sheriffofmagic]

a dimension 20 themed um actually episode where they have all the intrepid heroes on and they have to answer trivia questions about their own campaigns. brennan is trapped in a soundproofed glass box to the side banging on the walls desperately trying to answer questions but is not allowed to participate

[rpf-bat]

Rocking Out Just For The Dead

Pairing: Frank Iero x Male!Reader

Genre: Romance, Drama

Summary: Requested by @kpopchangedmylifesstuff. You’re playing Download Festival 2007 with your band, Paramore. My Chemical Romance are headlining the festival. After your set, Frank invites you onto his tour bus, for a friendly battle of Guitar Hero 2. But, when the hanging out turns into something more, your bandmate, Josh Farro, threatens to destroy whatever you and Frank have. 

You found yourself in Donington, England, playing your band’s brand new single, “Misery Business.” Okay - technically, Paramore wasn’t your band. You’d had no part in composing their new album, which would be dropping at the end of the week. But, their rhythm guitarist, Hunter, had recently quit, to go get married. Your longtime friend, Hayley, had called you up, and asked you to fill in for him, and you had jumped at the chance. 

You had done this once before. Paramore’s bassist, Jeremy, had randomly quit in 2005 - right before the start of Warped Tour. You weren’t sure what had caused him to leave, but you played bass and guitar equally well, so Hayley had asked you to join her and the Farro brothers on tour. You had the time of your life that summer. You had been eighteen then, and had felt more than a little star-struck, when you met people in “bigger” bands. 

Now twenty, you thought yourself older and wiser.  You were determined to be a professional this time around. No petty fights with your bandmates. No acting like a fanboy around the guys playing the Main Stage. Download Festival - the final stop on their Europe tour - was going to go off without a hitch, dammit!

Jeremy, now back in the band, stood to the left of you on the stage. Josh, the guitarist, was on your right. You tried your best to keep your guitar playing in sync with them, as Hayley belted out the final chorus:

Whoa, I never meant to brag

But I got him where I want him now.

Whoa, it was never my intention to brag

To steal it all away from you now.

But God does it feel so good,

'Cause I got him where I want him now.

And if you could then you know you would.

'Cause God it just feels so...

It just feels so good…

Zach played the final drum beat, bringing the song to a close. The crowd cheered. You took Hayley’s hand, and took a bow. She grinned at you, before addressing the crowd.

“THANK YOU, DONINGTON!” she bellowed into the mic. “YOU’VE BEEN AN AMAZING CROWD! GOOD NIGHT!” 

“It’s not really ‘night’ yet, you know,” you laughed, as you and the rest of the band walked off the stage. The sun hadn’t even set yet. 

“Yeah, I know,” Hayley sighed. “They put us on this super early time slot.” 

“Because nobody knows who we are,” Josh pointed out. 

“Yeah, the headliners get the later time slots, because they’re more famous,” Jeremy nodded. 

“Well, I think the crowd loved us,” Zach smiled optimistically. 

“He’s right,” you agreed. “Hal, I think you really killed it out there!”

“Thanks,” your friend smiled, brushing her sweat-soaked orange hair out of her eyes. “I really appreciate you coming on this tour with us, Y/N. I know it was really short notice.” 

“Wouldn’t have missed it for the world,” you smiled back. 

“I thought your guitar playing was great tonight, man,” Jeremy complimented you. “A perfect grand finale.” 

“Thanks, dude,” you beamed, as you grabbed a water bottle. These summer shows were way too humid. 

“I don’t know about that,” Josh mumbled, as he wiped his face with a towel. 

“What do you mean, you don’t know?” you frowned, setting your water bottle down. 

“I thought your timing was off during ‘Emergency’,” Josh said critically. 

“Oh….I’m sorry,” you frowned. “I tried to keep up with you…..”

“You should’ve tried harder,” Josh snapped, walking away from you, back towards the bus. 

Wow, you blinked. What’s his deal? 

The elder Farro brother had been needlessly rude to you, since the tour began. You honestly had no idea what you had done to get under his skin. But, you knew better, than to pick a fight with him. Zach was his brother, and Hayley was his girlfriend. You were just an outsider - a temporary, touring member of the band. 

“Are you coming back to the bus with us, dude?” Zach asked, snapping you out of the thoughts you had gotten lost in. 

“.....Nah,” you shook your head. “I think I’m gonna, um, walk around for a bit.” 

“Oh,” Hayley frowned. “Okay. See you later, Y/N.” 

You were pretty sure that she hadn’t heard what Josh had said. You saw no reason to tell her. It would just be starting drama. 

She seemed oblivious to a lot of the tension between you and Josh. He was always on his best behavior, when he knew she was paying attention. But, if it came down to it, you doubted she would side with her guy friend, over her boyfriend. 

It doesn’t even matter, you told yourself. This is the last show of the tour. On Monday, I’ll be heading home to Nashville. He won’t be my problem anymore.

You began wandering aimlessly around the festival grounds, with no real destination in mind. 

‘Hey!” a voice called out to you. 

You looked up, and saw a face you recognized - Frank Iero. 

You had met him on Warped Tour, two years ago. His band, My Chemical Romance, had been headliners, playing the main stage. Tonight, they were headlining this festival, too. His band had gotten even more famous after the release of The Black Parade.

“Hey!” you greeted. 

“Remember me?” Frank grinned. “I know it’s been a while.” 

“How could I forget?” you chuckled. Your heart had been racing the first time you met him backstage, but he had just shook hands with you, like the difference between your bands, was no big deal. You’d had to remind yourself that you were there to play a gig, not ask for an autograph. 

 “How have you been, Frank?”, you asked, trying to play it cool. 

“I’ve been good, Y/N,” Frank smiled. “How about you?”

Oh my god, you gulped. He remembers my name. 

“I-I’ve been great,” you stammered, hoping he couldn’t tell you were blushing. 

“I watched your set earlier,” Frank said cheerfully. “You were really good, dude.” 

“I-I was?!” you gasped. “You don’t think I was playing too slow, or….?”

“Huh?” Frank blinked, confused. “No, you were amazing, bro.  Your whole band was.” 

Ha, you thought. Suck it, Josh. 

“Thank you,” you said politely. “I’m probably going to go check out your band’s set, later, too.” 

“We’ve still got a couple hours before we go onstage,” Frank shrugged. “Since your band already played, you’re free for the rest of the day, right?” 

“Um, yeah,” you nodded, willing yourself to stop thinking gay thoughts about his new haircut. How did he get even better-looking after Revenge era? This is not even fair. 

“We have a PlayStation on our bus,” Frank revealed. “I was wondering if you’d like to play some video games with Mikey and I, for a little while?”

“Oh, sure!” you accepted his offer, trying not to sound too eager. You remembered playing a Donkey Kong bongos game with Mikey a couple years back. You’d lost pretty quickly, and he’d gone to find Zach, hoping that the drummer of the group would give him more of a challenge. You were determined to look less lame this time.  

You followed Frank to My Chemical Romance’s tour bus. He opened the door for you, and you followed him in. Mikey sat on the couch, holding a game controller. 

“Hey, Mikey,” Frank greeted. “You remember Y/N, right? From Paramore?” 

“Oh, hi, Y/N,” Mikey smiled. “Long time, no see, man!” 

“No kidding,” you laughed. “How have you been, dude?” 

“Pretty good,” Mikey replied. “The new record’s doing pretty well.” 

This was perhaps the understatement of the year. The Black Parade had sold more copies in its first week, than Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge, had sold in two years. You weren’t sure if your own band would ever have that level of success. 

“I bought a copy,” you confessed. “The day it came out.”

“Aw, thanks, bro, we appreciate the support,” Mikey smiled, sounding shockingly humble. 

“When’s the new Paramore record coming out?’ Frank asked. 

“June 12th,” you replied. 

“Oh, wow, so in four days,” Frank realized. 

“Yeah,” you nodded. “But, um, I didn’t help compose it.” You were just a touring member - not a full part of the band, as he was in his. 

“I’m still gonna buy it,” Frank shrugged. 

“Thanks,” you said awkwardly.

“So,” Mikey cleared his throat, “you’re gonna play Guitar Hero 2 with us, right, Y/N?” 

“He just finished playing half an hour of guitar onstage,” Frank laughed. “You think he wants to play more?”

“I don’t mind sharpening my skills some more,” you shrugged. 

“Whoa, you’re dedicated,” Mikey said, impressed. 

Nah, you thought. I just wanna prove that Josh is wrong about my playing being shitty. 

“Here,” Frank said, handing you the guitar-shaped controller. He pulled up the game menu, with the full list of songs. “We can do any track you want.” 

“You’re going to play against me, in two-player mode?” you realized. 

“Yeah,” Frank smirked. “What’s the matter? You scared of a little challenge?” 

“No way,” you smiled slyly. “I bet I can take you.” 

“Oh, wanna bet?” Frank raised an eyebrow. “Name the song. I’ll show you what I’ve got.” 

“How about this one?” you decided, making a selection on the screen. 

“Um, Y/N…..” Mikey’s eyes widened. “That’s ‘Dead’.” 

“So what?” you smirked. 

“So, that’s our song,” Mikey pointed out.

“I know what it is,” you said certainly. 

“Wait, Y/N, are you serious?” Frank stared, mouth open in shock. “Of all the songs in the game, you want to challenge me with that one? The one I fucking wrote?” 

“What’s the matter?” you asked, staring boldly into his hazel eyes. “You scared I’ll beat you at your own game?” 

“As if,” Frank snorted. “I’ll tell you what, Y/N. If you can actually play ‘Dead’, better than the guy who plays it for a living, I’ll give you one of my fuckin’ guitars.” 

“Seriously?” Mikey gaped. “You’d give one of those away?” 

“He’s not gonna win, dude,” Frank said, with an air of certainty. 

“You wanna bet?” you challenged. 

“Okay, it’s a bet,” Frank decided. 

“If I lose, you can have my guitar,” you wagered. Unlike him, you only had one. But, the tour was over, you considered. It wasn’t like you were going to need it again in the immediate future. 

“It’s a deal,” Frank nodded, extending his hand to you. You shook on it. 

“Well, this is going to be interesting,” Mikey said warily, as he handed Frank the second controller. 

“What level do you want to play on?” Frank asked. 

“Expert, of course,” you grinned. “We’re professionals.” 

“Alright,” Frank grinned. “Just don’t come crying to me when you lose.” 

“You’ll be the one crying when you have to give up your guitar, Iero,” you bantered, feeling cocky. You played Guitar Hero with Jeremy and Josh all the time, and you never lost. It always seemed to drive Josh fucking crazy. 

He hit START, and an animated guitarist in a top hat waddled onto the screen. You heard Gerard’s vocals begin the song with a scream. 

And if your heart stops beating

I'll be here wondering

Did you get what you deserve?

The ending of your life

And if you get to heaven

I'll be here waiting, babe

Did you get what you deserve?

You focused on the fret buttons on your controller. Your Rock Meter started at yellow, but the dial quickly went up to green. You didn’t miss any notes, but, of course, neither did Frank. 

And if your life won’t wait, then your heart can’t take this….

You glanced at Frank. He waggled his eyes at you suggestively. You reddened. If he was trying to throw you off your game, he was succeeding. You told yourself sternly to focus. Then, the chorus kicked in. 

Have you heard the news that you're dead?

No one ever had much nice to say

I think they never liked you anyway

Oh, take me from the hospital bed

Wouldn't it be grand? It ain't exactly what you planned

And wouldn't it be great if we were dead?

“Fuck!” you swore. You’d forgotten how fast this part was. Frank’s fingers were, of course, dancing over the “strings” with no problem. You knew you had to catch up to him. 

You noticed your Star Power meter was almost full, so you waited for just the right moment. 

Tongue-tied and, oh, so squeamish

You never fell in love

Did you get what you deserve?

The ending of your life

And if you get to heaven

I'll be here waiting, babe

Did you get what you deserve?

Just before the second chorus kicked in, you titled the neck of your guitar upwards, activating your Star Power. This meant you would get a quadruple bonus for whatever points you earned. You gave it your all on the chorus, and watched your score go up and up. 

“Whoa!” Frank gasped, seemingly thrown off. To your surprise, he missed a note. 

“Oh, man,” Mikey groaned, from his spectator spot on the couch. 

It was still a pretty close match, when you got to the bridge. But, by the time you got to the outro, Frank seemed to be sweating. As Gerard’s prerecorded voice sang his final “la-la-la”s, the outcome became certain to you. 

If life ain’t just a joke, then, why am I dead?

Oh, dead!

PLAYER ONE WINS!, read the screen, in bright, flashing letters. You realized, panting, that you were player one. 

“I….I did it?” you gasped. 

“Holy shit,” Frank gasped, dropping his controller in shock. “He actually won.” 

He sank down onto the couch, like he couldn’t believe it. 

“Are you….mad?” you frowned, wondering if you should have talked less trash. 

“No, that was amazing!” Frank praised you. “I wasn’t expecting that at all.” 

Despite your bravado, you hadn’t really been expecting to win, either. Whatever confidence you’d lost when Josh critiqued you, had been regained tenfold. Mikey gave you a slow clap. 

“Well, a bet’s a bet,” Frank said finally, standing up, and walking to the other end of the bus. 

“Where are you going?” you blinked. 

“Getting this for you,” Frank smiled, handing you a gorgeous, white Epiphone guitar.

“Frank, you don’t have to….” you gasped. 

“No, I’m a man of my word,” Frank insisted. “I’ll even help you carry it back to your bus.” 

“You serious?” you asked, incredulous. 

“Hey, man, you earned it,” Frank shrugged. He put the guitar in its case, and then put the case on his back. “Let’s go.” 

“Thanks for hanging out with us, Y/N,” Mikey waved. “That showdown was pretty fun to watch.” 

“See ya, Mikey,” you waved back. “Thanks for having me.” 

You still couldn’t believe this had happened. They seemed so much cooler than you.

Frank was quiet at first, as you walked back to the Paramore bus. You felt awkward, unsure what to say to him. 

“So,” he asked, “do you think that your bandmates are gonna be impressed, when they see the guitar you won?” 

“I’m sure Hayley will,” you replied. “Josh….maybe not.”

“Why not?” Frank asked. “He’s the lead guitarist of your band. Wouldn’t that make him more impressed?”

“I don’t know,” you sighed. “I feel like he’s never impressed with anything I do.” 

“What’s his beef with you?” Frank asked, looking annoyed on your behalf. 

“I’m not sure,” you confessed. “Maybe it’s because he’s super Christian.”

“And you’re…..not Christian?” Frank guessed. 

“And I’m gay,” you confessed. 

“.....Oh.” Frank stopped in his tracks for a minute, seemingly taken aback by this. 

Your face went red. Fuck. Maybe you shouldn’t have said that out loud. 

“Do you, umm…..do you mind that?” you asked nervously. 

“Pfft,” Frank scoffed. “Dude. You think I ‘mind’ gay guys? Have you missed the part, where I’ve spent half this tour, making out with Gerard, in front of thousands of people?” 

“Are you and Gerard…..together?” you asked uncertainly. 

“Oh, no,” Frank shook his head quickly. “I’m totally single.” 

Your heart began to beat more quickly, as you noticed he said I’m single - not I’m straight. Were you reading him wrong? You wondered if you had the balls to make a move. 

This is the last night of the tour, you told yourself. If I don’t say something right now, I won’t get another chance. 

“Frank….”, you said, taking a deep breath, and telling yourself to man up. “I, um, I think you’re really cute.” 

“Really?” Frank said, stepping closer to you. You felt the hot metal door of the bus against your back. “Y/N, I think you’re pretty cute, too.” 

“Y-you do?” you breathed, your cheeks going hot as he leaned in. Was this real life? Or had the June heat made you start hallucinating?

“I do,” Frank smirked. “How about you give me my guitar back, and I give you a kiss instead?”

“Sounds like we have a deal,” you purred, and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him into a kiss hotter than the summer sun. He responded, eagerly, pressing you harder up against the door as his tongue found its way into your mouth. You moaned….

But, just then, you were launched violently forward, as the door swung open behind you. You and Frank hit the ground, as Josh came storming out of the bus. 

“You guys are disgusting!” he growled. 

“Dude, what’s your problem?!” Frank demanded, getting up, and brushing the dirt off his pants. He gave you his hand, and helped you up out of the grass. 

“My problem is the display of perversion, that you two are putting on, in front of God and everybody!” Josh cried. “Do you have to do that in front of my bus?!” 

“You think we’re perverts?” you gasped, shocked and hurt by his words. 

“All gay men are perverts,” Josh sneered. “What kind of image are you setting for the band? A lot of our fans are Christian. They won’t buy our new record, if they see you behaving like this, Y/N!” 

“Not every Christian is a homophobic piece of shit like you,” Frank snapped, putting himself between you and the irate guitarist. 

“What did you just call me, you nancy boy?!” Josh hissed, and threw a punch in Frank’s direction. 

Frank caught the punch in his hand. “I called you a piece of shit!” he repeated, before throwing a punch of his own. Unlike Josh’s, it connected, sending your homophobic bandmate down into the dirt. 

“You’re gonna pay for that, Iero!” Josh yelled, wiping the blood from his nose. He tried to get up, but never made it off the ground, as Frank kicked him in the ribs. 

“Frank, stop!” you cried. “That’s enough!” 

“No, it’s not!” Frank said angrily. “You said it yourself, right, Y/N? This guy has been being a dick to you all summer, just because of your sexuality! That’s bullshit!” 

He aimed another kick in Josh’s direction. You were surprised, how defensive Frank had become of you, despite knowing you for such a short time. 

“What the hell is going on here?!” cried a familiar voice. You turned, and saw Zach approaching the bus, with Hayley close behind him. 

“Hal and I leave for two seconds to go get snacks, and some asshole starts beating up my brother?!” Zach gasped. 

“Josh, oh my god, are you okay?” Hayley gasped, running over to check out her boyfriend’s nosebleed. 

“He’s not an asshole,” you explained. “Guys, this is Frank, from My Chemical Romance.” 

“I don’t care what band he’s from,” Zach said angrily. “Why is he kicking Josh?”  

“Because Josh called me a pervert,�� you explained. 

“A pervert?” Hayley repeated. “Why would he say something like that?” 

“I said it, because this freak had his tongue down Y/N’s throat!” Josh explained. 

“Wait, what?” Hayley blinked. 

“We, um, yeah, we were kissing,” you admitted, embarrassed. 

“You, um…..you like to kiss guys?” Zach asked awkwardly. 

“Um, yeah,” you said, feeling uncomfortable. You had never come out to him. You knew he was a devout Christian, too, and had assumed he would hold the same views as his brother.

“That doesn’t make you a pervert,” Zach said, surprising you. 

“But, what will the fans think?!” Josh demanded. 

“Some of our fans are gay, too,” Hayley pointed out. “And there’s nothing wrong with it. I can’t believe you would call Y/N names, just for something like that.”

“Yeah, Josh, I’m really disappointed in you,” Zach frowned. You were stunned. You never expected him to take your side. 

“You don’t think that what he and Frank are doing is a sin?” Josh asked. 

“I think God loves everyone,” Zach said plainly. “And only He can judge Y/N. I’m not going to.” 

“You guys can’t be serious!” Josh gaped. 

“I’m seriously reconsidering your position in this band,” Hayley said, narrowing her eyes. “And in this relationship.” 

“What? Babe….come on,” Josh pleaded. “Y-you wouldn’t dump me, and fire me, just because of this stupid fruit…..”

“Call him a fruit one more time,” Frank snarled. “See what happens, pal.” 

“Frank, it’s okay,” you said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I have my band on my side now, and that makes….all the difference.” 

You were touched by their support. You had stayed silent this whole time, because you didn’t think you would have it. 

“Y/N, I’m sorry that my brother treated you like this,” Zach said quietly. “I want you to know, I support you, and your boyfriend.” 

“He’s not my boyfriend,” you shook your head. “We just kissed for the first time today, and….” 

“I could be your boyfriend,” Frank said softly. “If you want me to.”

“Wait, what?” 

“Do you want me to?” Frank asked, smirking at you. 

“I….I’m supposed to be going home to Tennessee soon,” you hesitated. “And you live in New Jersey, so….”

“I’m in the most famous band in the world,” Frank said smugly. “I have a private jet that can take me wherever you are.” 

“......Oh,” you blushed. 

“So,” Frank repeated, leaning in closer again, “do you want me to be your boyfriend, Y/N?”

“....Yes,” you breathed. “Yes, I do.”

You pulled him into another kiss, not caring that the rest of your band was watching. Or how much it pissed Josh off. The tour was ending, but your once-in-a-lifetime romance was just beginning. 

[briangroth27]

The 100 Season 4 Review

Full Spoilers…

The 100’s fourth season was a spectacular apocalyptic roller coaster that had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish! I had no idea how they could possibly stop a worldwide nuclear meltdown and, smartly, they didn’t try. The point wasn’t to stop the latest apocalypse; it was to find a way to survive it. The writers created so many dead-end solutions to surviving praimfaya that it not only felt like an extremely difficult struggle, but by the season finale they’d convinced me there might not be a happy ending.

I liked that they resolved the remnants of the Alie (Erica Cerra) plot quickly and efficiently. The fragile peace established in the wake of the City of Light’s destruction set things up perfectly for tensions to rise again just as everyone should’ve been coming together to save the human race. Allowing the people Lexa (Alycia Debnam-Carey) killed in the City of Light to die in the real world was a great way to set things off with our heroes immediately in danger and distrusted, even with impending nuclear apocalypse 2.0 on the horizon. I loved that the season continually built to insurmountable odds; whenever the kids would get a win, they’d be forced with an impossible choice, like freeing slaves or getting a hydro-generator, that would exponentially worsen their chances for survival. Then people started turning on each other, making things even worse. For every character, this season was a test to see how far each of them would go to survive and what going past their limit would mean for their humanity…if they even thought survival was worth fighting for. Discussing what kind of leaders humanity needs in the future and the right way to lead, some of this season’s biggest character arcs felt like a true transfer of leadership from the adults to the kids. Ever since the adults landed at the end of Season 1, there’s been a struggle for them to put the 100 back in their place in the pecking order (to varying degrees of success and/or cooperation), but now it feels like it’s really time for the kids to take over.

The eventual plan for the main heroes to go back to space was a fun one and a cool way to bring things full circle before the time jump at the end of the season. And it’s about time they jumped ahead: no one looks 17 anymore. The entire season was fraught with tension, but the final episode was one of the finest thrill rides I’ve ever seen. Everyone seemed like they could die at almost any moment and I wasn’t sure if they’d make it to space. I was ready for even Clarke (Eliza Taylor) to die, and I’m not sure that I’ve truly believed any main character on a show would actually get killed before. I absolutely loved that—like in the rest of the season—every step of the way was a challenge for the heroes; even getting into the Ark and installing the air generator were struggles that nearly killed the kids! This is how you build tension and create plots overflowing with danger! The incoming worldwide catastrophe was a great excuse to visit as many varied locations as the show could come up with, though I do wish they had the time to dig into each clan’s culture more before wiping them out and sticking them into a melting pot in the bunker. Perhaps we’ll see both the remnants of the various clans and a new, unified culture in Season 5. It was great to see so many differing sets and environments, and it’s going to be interesting to see what the face of the Earth (and the underground bunker) looks like six years later.

Clarke Griffin/Wanheda I really enjoyed Clarke’s attempts to keep the peace and save everyone through multiple political deals with Roan (Zach McGowan), subterfuge in trying to pass herself off as a Nightblood, and finally sacrificing her chance at getting off the planet to get her friends to safety. She’s had to make many hard and divisive choices over the course of the series, but the first time I actively disliked her was when she went along with Jaha’s (Isaiah Washington) plan to steal the bunker when the outcome of the last conclave was in doubt. That was incredibly wrong—even born of desperation as it was—though I liked the role reversal she and Bellamy (Bob Morley) got because of it. I also liked that Clarke found some measure of happiness with Niylah (Jessica Harmon), though I miss Lexa a lot. I truly thought they were going to kill Clarke in the Praimfaya wave…and I think I would’ve been OK with it if she had. I like Clarke a lot, but if she was going to die, going out a hero to save her friends would’ve been acceptable and commendable. It also might’ve been thematically fitting since her leadership and Earth-shattering decisions were so tied to the Earth that we knew, and that era has ended. However, the twist that her homemade Nightblood saved her was a clever one, and a good, unexpected use of an earlier survival attempt. I can’t wait to see how she’s changed in the six years of the time jump and how she’s faring in her new role as a mother figure! What has wandering the Earth nearly alone for six years done to her? Will she be drastically different from the Clarke we knew? Will she be able to fit in with the people in the bunker or those in the Ark now? Or will she have more in common with the new arrivals from deep space?

Octavia Blake/Skairippa Octavia (Marie Avgeropoulos) had perhaps the best arc of the season, going from assassin protecting Roan’s tenuous hold on power, to a warrior who wanted peace, to the victor of the final Nightblood conclave, and finally to the leader of the new combined Grounders. I never could’ve imagined the Girl Under the Floor from the pilot episode who just wanted to party in fresh air would become a Grouder, much less the leader of nearly every human left on Earth! With this season, Octavia has tied Raven (Lindsey Morgan) as my favorite character on the show. Avgeropoulos got to display a huge range of emotion this year, with Octavia’s badass assassin moments (leading into her bloodlust issues), her yearning for peace and her near-suicide, her doubts about whether she could win the conclave, and finally the daunting task of forming a new type of clan. She was great at playing all of Octavia’s sides! I liked that Kane (Henry Ian Cusick) brought up Lincoln’s (Ricky Whittle) death to talk Octavia down from executing Ilian (Chai Hansen) for destroying the Ark; that was a great moment that provided some closure to Lincoln’s death, which I felt was a little rushed. Though Avgeropoulos’ acting was great, I’m not sure I fully bought the writing behind Octavia’s suicide attempt (connected to Lincoln as it was)…though it’s entirely possible Jasper’s (Devon Bostick) constant pleading for death just left me over the whole concept. I didn’t have a problem with the twist that she sought a peaceful life with Ilian of all people, though. I do wish her life as a farmer with him had lasted a little longer, but I get that there wasn’t time for that in either the season or the world. Invoking Octavia’s past as the Girl Under the Floor as a strategy for winning the conclave was really clever and I loved that episode! I was really proud of Octavia when she decided everyone would get a fair stake in the bunker—even going so far as to threaten Skaikru with death if they didn’t pare down their number to 100 and resolving not to punish Azgeda for Echo’s (Tasya Teles) dishonorable actions—and I left the season thinking it’s decisions like those which prove she’s the rightful leader. I can’t wait to see how she leads, and I hope she’s been successful at keeping peace in the bunker without resorting to evil means. Seeing her go from someone who thinks she’s destined to be a warrior to taking on a peacekeeping position will be fascinating! I also wonder if her rule will survive once people get out of the bunker and aren’t forced to live with each other anymore. It’d be a shame for them to come together to survive, only to fall back into war once they’re safe.

Raven Reyes Raven has been awesome from day one and this year was no different! I loved how torn she was over letting Alie’s upgrades run rampant in her brain; on one hand, they increased her intelligence and allowed her to outthink the apocalypse, but on the other they were killing her. This was a clever way to bring Becca “back” while turning Raven’s specialty—technology—against her. I also liked that we got to see Sinclair (Alessandro Juliani) again, acting as the good angel on Raven’s shoulder. Lindsey Morgan was great at portraying Raven in her various crazy, desperate, despondent, and ultimately plucky and resourceful stages throughout the year. She’s also very good at delivering the technical explanations and conveying all the mathematics involved in whatever technology the characters are using (or inventing on the fly). It was great to see Raven forgive Murphy (Richard Harmon) for shooting her; I wonder what’s happened between them in space. I do wish she hadn’t been trapped in the lab for what felt like forever, but that’s where she was most useful. It was awesome seeing all of her friends show up to get her out! They had me convinced Raven would burn her brain out figuring out the key to saving the day, so when she killed herself to shut down Alie’s upgrades and managed to bring herself back right after, I was beyond impressed! I’m eager to see what kinds of technological improvisations she’s accomplished in space over the past six years. It’d be interesting if she’s grown into a different role than just the tech genius since we last saw her. I hope she’s gotten to spacewalk to her heart’s content!

Bellamy Blake I hated Bellamy after he mindlessly slaughtered Grounders last year, even with the understanding that it was supposed to be a parallel to fear-driven actions people took post-9/11. That may have allowed me to understand it, but it didn’t excuse it. So, I liked that he got back together with Clarke as the co-leaders of the 100 this year and the writers did a fairly good job of rehabilitating him over the course of Season 4. Clarke can lead without him, but it seems he needs her to be his best self. I don’t want him and Clarke to ever get to the point where they’d date, though. I liked his efforts to do the right thing all year, especially when he insisted they open the bunker after Jaha and Clarke stole it; that was some great character progression! I also loved every moment he got with Octavia this year, particularly her forgiving him for his role in Lincoln’s death and their last communication with each other over the radio; I really hope their brother/sister relationship is explored more next season. It’ll be interesting to see him come back to the world now that she’s the leader and he might not be; that’ll be an interesting reversal of their dynamic. I wonder if he’s still the leader on the Ark, or if they’ve just done away with that concept altogether because there’s so few of them. I could maybe see him and Echo getting together, but who knows what’s happened in six years. I think it’d be kinda funny if he and Murphy had come to an understanding and came back from space as best friends. And what will the survivors of Skaikru say to the man who opened the bunker, leading to many of their friends and family’s deaths?

Monty Green Monty (Christopher Larkin) didn’t have as meaty an arc this season as he did last year (outside of learning the Ice Nation chief killed his father, after which he let the freed slaves kill him), mostly because he was stuck trying to convince his friends not to kill themselves for so long. I liked that he stood by them to try and convince them to seek better shelter for as long as possible, though. Even if by the end he was just there for Harper (Chelsey Reist) and Jasper, he was far more patient than I would’ve been with impending doom coming at them so quickly. His final scenes with Jasper were really well-acted and made me care about Monty’s loss, even if I’d long stopped caring about Jasper himself. I like Monty and Harper’s relationship a lot and I was very relieved she finally left with him. I hope they’re still together after their six years in space. I also liked that Monty was brought more into the core leadership group of the 100, even if it led to him discovering Clarke’s emergency backup list of people to save, leading to dissention among Skaikru. His reaction to learning he wasn’t on the list was really well done. I wonder what role he’s settled into in space; he seems to be something of an underrated jack of all trades, so in addition to assisting Raven more I’m up for any new uses of his skills. Perhaps he will continue to be the moral compass for the group to contrast Clarke’s tough survival decisions, Bellamy’s guilt-driven efforts to be better, Raven’s analytical mind, Murphy’s self-serving instinct, etc. I liked that Murphy went back to save Monty from the black rain and increasing radiation and I’m definitely interested to see how they’ll have been interacting now that they’re stuck on the space station together. Monty seems like he’d be the optimistic foil for Murphy, so some fun sparks could fly there.

Harper McIntyre As much as I like Harper, I definitely think we need to get to know her better. She’s been recurring since the first season, but if we’ve learned much about her background or even her interests, I don’t remember it. She seems to pick the right side of issues for the most part and she definitely has a deep sense of honor-driven guilt, given her arc this year, but I want to know more. I understood her feeling guilty about accidentally trampling a fellow member of Skaikru (Jesse James Pierce) to escape the black rain—saving herself instead of helping him—but I really wish that subplot had ended sooner. I wish she could have realized more quickly that while she wasn’t right to leave him, feeling as horrible about it as she did means she’s not a terrible person; she was afraid and made a selfish mistake driven by her survival instinct. Yes, it was wrong, but killing herself pointlessly wouldn’t bring him back. What I hated most about this arc was how she sided with Jasper; instead of at least trying to atone for what she’d done by working harder to save as many more as she could or something, she joined the fools doing just waiting for death by contributing nothing. I was really glad she came around in the end, though. I also liked that her reaction to her mistake contrasted her pretty sharply with most of the other main characters: I don’t think she could ever settle for making one of the impossible choices Clarke makes on a weekly basis and she wouldn’t ever do something evil and fear-driven on the scale that Bellamy did. With that in mind, I’d like to put her in some of those impossible situations to see how she might grow as a result next season. Maybe she’s had to face a few of them in space over the past six years.

John Murphy I hated Murphy at the start of the series, but he’s grown on me ever since and Harmon always brings an entertaining energy to his scenes. His standoffish and self-serving nature also brings out some fun conflict in his scene partners, which is always fun. It was good to see his softer side (to an extent) this year as he and Emori (Luisa D'Oliveira) tried to do whatever would give them the best chance of survival. I’m definitely a fan of their relationship and I hope it’s lasted the six years in space. I’m glad he and Raven reconciled their past—their goodbye when she decided to stay behind and keep working, presumably to die, was really well done—and I’d like to learn that they’ve formed a stronger bond in space. I feel like his arc this season was about moving from being selfish (such as refusing to let Bellamy out of his cell to open the stolen bunker) to realizing he needs to help the whole group survive—even if only because that’s also his best chance of survival—and I’m hoping that teamwork instinct has grown within him. For a moment I thought he’d leave Monty to die in the black rain and I was proud that he went back for him. I wonder how much more he’ll choose—or be forced—into becoming a true member of the space team. It’d be a pretty great twist if they made it back to Earth and he had become their leader!

Allies and Enemies I like Emori and feel she brings a fun energy to the series, but I also enjoyed the darker side we saw this year. Unlike Harper, Emori was absolutely willing to do whatever it took to survive, even serving up a random Grounder (Bradley Stryker)—claiming he was Baylis, a Grounder who’d imprisoned her and her brother (Myk Byskov) earlier (Edit: I’d incorrectly remembered Baylis being completely made up; thanks to daisytachi for that correction!)—to Raven and Abby’s (Paige Turco) Nightblood experiments rather than let them use her as the test subject. The fact that Clarke nearly did experiment on her, proving her suspicions and fears about the limits of the kindness of her compatriots, gave a lot of weight to a situation that could’ve been easily written off as her just sacrificing a guy out of paranoia. The 100 loves those tough choices and messy character arcs even for the heroes, and I love it for that. I like that as much as Emori really cares about Murphy, at first she pulled him toward his self-serving tendencies; that was an interesting tug-of-war for both of them. I loved that like him, she’d become a team player by the end of the season, and I’m excited to know how she’s changed after being in space for six years. Her enjoyment of zero gravity was a nice light moment for her; I wonder if she's still enamored with space or sick of it by now. I’d also like to see how her do-anything-to-survive attitude has contrasted with Harper’s guilt over tough choices while in space.

I couldn’t stand Jasper last year or this one, so I was glad he finally got his death wish fulfilled. His begging for death needed to end far sooner than it did, to the point that I had no sympathy for him well before he actually died. He’s been through awful things, sure, but every character has and no one became the do-nothing, self-destructive fool that he did (though many of them did at try to choose suicide rather than face the praimfaya). Jasper even convinced several other people to die for no reason, dragging them all down with him and making him much worse. His drawn-out death didn’t move me except for how it impacted Monty and I’m glad we’re finally rid of Jasper.

Jaha was in a similar position for me: I disliked him last year and ended this season hating him again. It’s true he came in handy with his scientific know-how and his quest to find the bunker. There was definite worth to letting him try to rehabilitate himself after the Alie debacle for Skaikru—I firmly believe anyone can improve—but stealing the bunker was the last straw for me, and should’ve been for the characters as well. That was so selfish and his self-righteousness about how the Grounders would take space from people—it also stuck out to me that he doesn’t even consider the Grounders to be people—made it even worse. At least Clarke felt bad about doing it; Jaha had no problem screwing over anyone who wasn’t one of “his” people, as if an Earth repopulated by Grounders wouldn’t be human in the same way one repopulated by Skaikru would. True Skaikru had the skills to operate the bunker, but they didn’t need all of them for that. I definitely don’t think he deserved a spot in the final 100 Skaikru spots. Sure they were working from Clarke’s list, but he could’ve easily given up his spot to Hardy (Cole Vigue), the man whose kid (Beckham Skodje) he’s adopted, instead of sending Hardy to his death and again saving himself. I do not trust Jaha and wouldn’t be surprised to find that he’s a source of strife in the bunker under Octavia’s rule, particularly given it was her who issued the ultimatum that Skaikru pick their 100 survivors and share the space or die.

I liked that Season 4 found Marcus Kane starting to step back as a leader of Skaikru; instead trying to keep the peace for Clarke while she was off looking for solutions to Praimfaya. An ambassador role suits him and I hope he’s also been a good advisor to Octavia in the bunker. Hopefully he’s learned to trust her as their leader, just like he did Clarke. Talking down Jaha from his plan to kill the Grounders trying to come into the bunker was probably my favorite Kane moment this year. I’d like to see that wisdom come into play in the bunker in the coming season. Will any of Skaikru even listen to him again, given how he talked Jaha out of fighting for the bunker, essentially sending most of their friends and family to their deaths? Or will his (and Jaha’s) realization that there’s no point in saving humanity if you’re going to do it by acting inhuman help bring peace to the bunker?

This year, Abby ran the gamut from doing whatever it took to keep her patients alive, be they Roan or Luna’s (Nadia Hilker) radiation-poisoned people, to giving up on life completely. While she was struck by what they’d done to “Baylis” in Becca’s radiation chamber with their Nightblood tests, she was also willing to run the test again to get their desired result (even with Raven calling them out as being like Mount Weather). It was interesting to see her go from using meds Murphy stole for her to try and save a kid to being willing to risk Emori’s life to create a radiation cure. She justified it with a “do whatever it takes, then figure out how to be human again” rationale, but I wonder if the show will explore whether or not there are limits to coming back from some of these characters’ choices. I’m a big believer in redemption, but with the show constantly throwing impossible choices that often lead to death at these characters—or just having them make huge mistakes that cost lives—is there a limit to the humanity they can regain? While I was disappointed in Abby when she wrecked the chance to test the Nightblood Clarke injected herself with (Alie-induced hallucinations of Clarke dying in it or not), I was proud she sided with Bellamy on opening the bunker chamber. I wonder if she’s been able to cure herself of the Alie upgrade or if it continued to drive her insane, and possibly to her death? I hope it’s not the latter, as an offscreen death in the 6-year time jump wouldn’t be fitting for her. I’m also wondering if Abby will forgive Kane for saving her. She seemed like she’d given up completely, even just letting Clarke leave to save Raven without a fight, which was drastically different from how she’s treated Clarke in the past (as pointed out here). I hope they don’t have an arc where Abby and Kane are fighting and she hates having survived; we just did that with Jasper and it made me hate him. I don’t want to hate Abby too. I want to see her rebuild herself somehow; to figure out how to make a life worth living again.

Octavia’s longtime mentor, Indra (Adina Porter) didn’t seem to get a lot to do this year beyond protecting the interests of Trikru, and that’s a shame. She’s a great character and I hope she has a larger role in the bunker and in Season 5. It was perfect to see her set aside her Trikru focus and push Octavia to claim the leadership of a new type of clan, particularly after how tense things were getting over the occupancy of the bunker. I wonder if her dedication to Octavia and to this new unified clan has held up over the six years in the bunker, or if they’ve parted ways to some extent. It was also cool to meet her daughter Gaia (Tati Gabrielle), and I hope we get to see more of their relationship next season! Gaia was interesting and I’d like to see where she goes now with the leadership structure of the clans not determined by the Flame. Will she abandon the Grounder religion she’s kept sacred to form something new, or, as I’ve seen suggested elsewhere, will her religious focus create problems for Octavia’s right to rule?

Roan worked as a tenuous ally for Clarke. I didn’t think that partnership would last as long as it did (or that it would take on as many forms as it did), but it was only a matter of time until his people became more important than Lexa’s old allegiances and Skaikru outlived their usefulness. I liked that he was willing to see the logic in siding with Clarke instead of irrationally ignoring her warnings or disregarding Skaikru’s technological skill. His death in the final conclave could’ve felt like a convenient time to clear the board of characters, but given so much of his conflict with Clarke and Skaikru had come from trying to save his people, it made sense for him to give his life to that goal as well.

Echo had a long, hard road to finally becoming an ally of Skaikru again after initially blaming them for Alie and it was an interesting one. She played off Roan as his more hardline and distrusting soldier very well—even risking dishonor and shouldering banishment to try and help him win the final conclave—and I’m excited to see if that loyalty has transferred to Skaikru in the six years they were in space. Her interactions with Bellamy were some of her best scenes, and I wonder if they’ve gotten together while orbiting the planet. I also liked that she respected Octavia when she thought she’d died; this show has done a good job of humanizing many of the Grounders and Echo was no exception. As I saw pointed out elsewhere, can Echo and Emori survive in space due to the Grounders’ lower radiation tolerance? If not, I wonder if Raven remembered enough of Becca’s instructions to make them both Nightbloods. If she did, that should be an interesting arc for Echo; she felt it’d be blasphemous if everyone became a Nightblood. Like so many others, Echo attempted suicide in the season finale and by that time I was completely over it as a reaction to praimfaya (so Raven’s “whatever this is, finish it” was perfect!). Those moments felt like they could’ve been cut for more time elsewhere. Regardless, I can’t wait to see how she’s been fitting in with Skaikru over the past 6 years! How she reacts to whatever changes to Grounder culture Octavia has instituted in the bunker to keep the peace will be interesting too. Will Echo see herself as the last true Grounder, or will she identify more with Skaikru now and feel out of place among her former people? Will she and Octavia still harbor bad blood for each other?

I wasn’t that big a fan of Luna’s arc from outsider pacifist to losing all faith in humanity and trying to sentence everyone to death. It was a shame to see a character so diametrically opposed to major tenants of Grounder culture (and violence in general) become the thing she’d hated and fled. However, since it came from the death of her entire clan and from watching Abby and Clarke willing to do anything to make sure their Nightblood tests succeeded (even if Clarke was eventually willing to subject herself to the radiation to test it), I bought it. I just would’ve liked her to continue to find an alternate way of doing things. Perhaps her arc reflects a message of the show in general: you can’t sit on the sidelines and eventually you’ll have to get your hands dirty. Alternatively, it could mean that once the peaceful are driven to war, all is lost. Or that breaking someone so dead-set on one way of doing things shatters them completely.

Nathan Miller (Jarod Joseph) could’ve used more screentime this year. He and Bryan (Jonathan Whitesell) had a falling out over the hydro generator and I wonder if his practical nature—saving 500 in the Ark was more important to him than the 25 slaves—will play into helping Octavia run the bunker. I also wonder if his distrust of the Grounders from the early seasons will continue to thaw after living among them for so long; at least, I hope it will, because the tribalism has to stop if humanity is going to survive. Though they ultimately went with Clark’s list and left his father (Chris Shields) out, I wonder if he’ll find out his dad put two names into the initial lottery to stay in the bunker. Either way, I’d like to see his reaction to his father’s death.

I’d definitely like to know more about Niylah! At first I thought she’d just be a rebound relationship for Clarke, but she’s proven herself a loyal, genuinely good person and this show could definitely use that contrast with so many other characters making the hardest of choices. As I’ve seen pointed out elsewhere, she’s one of very few characters who have kept their hands clean over the course of the series and I wonder if that’s been possible in the bunker. Has she been instrumental in leading the people within towards a brighter future? Given neither Skaikru or Trikru wanted her around at the end of this year, with only Octavia standing up for her, has she been forced to harden herself for protection in the bunker? I loved Lexa, but perhaps Niylah’s very different personality is what Clarke will need going forward. Has she waited for her sometime-paramour in the bunker, or has she moved on? Their reunion should be interesting no matter what form it takes.

Ilian’s obsessive hatred of technology—sparked the Alie-related death of his family—and Skaikru made him a solid minor adversary early on; he was a nice bit of unexpected fallout from Alie’s City of Light arc. I liked that the City of Light arc wasn’t forgotten in the rush toward Praimfaya. I was surprised he managed to burn Alpha Station, one of several tragedies befalling Skaikru’s efforts to survive this year. I thought Ilian brought out interesting character moments in the people around him, like Kane being ready to kill his own people to keep them from descending into vengeance-fueled mob rule and Octavia being forced to confront who she’d become and face Lincoln’s death again. Once he tried settling down with Octavia, his optimism was a nice contrast to so many other characters and his view of death and life as being akin to crop cycles was an interesting outlook: they were planting crops not necessarily for themselves, but perhaps for future generations. In that sense, he became an unexpected foil for Luna; she lost faith in humanity and wanted to destroy it, but Ilian went from wanting vengeance to optimistically planning for humanity’s future. He also chose to fight to save his people in the final conclave, which makes me wonder if survival in this world requires violence and a loss of humanity to save the humanity of others.

Riley (Ben Sullivan) felt all sorts of awkward, since everyone suddenly knew him very well when we’d never even heard of him before. It makes sense they’d all know him given they’re all from the Ark, but since no one had ever mentioned missing him, the sudden (for us anyway) first-name basis he was on with everyone felt off. He died without much fanfare (a drug overdose at Jasper’s end of the world party) too, so I’m not sure what the purpose was for the seeming attempt to set him up as a new major supporting character. His best moment may have been attempting to assassinate Roan, since that allowed us to see Bellamy fighting for redemption for his own war crimes.

Season 5 I don’t think they can top praimfaya as an “enemy,” so I hope the focus next year is on exploring the new status quo they’ve set up and the conflicts that it will breed, even if they’re smaller scale. How do you build a new society? I was a little confused over the prison ship that arrived in the end, but this talk with show creator Jason Rothberg made me much more excited for what’s to come. Unlike when the adults landed on Earth and of course already knew the kids, this feels like a true parallel to the series premiere, when the 100 landed and knew no one on the ground. What are these prisoners going to be like? Will they be used to the harsh Earth conditions given their asteroid mining, much like the 100 were better suited to the radiation levels on Earth’s surface than the Mount Weather people? And given that they’re miners, certainly they’ll be able to dig out the bunker, right?

I’m definitely excited to see how Octavia has been keeping the peace in the bunker too! I really hope they’ve found the time to rediscover their humanity and work together, so they can emerge from the bunker as a true unified force. And what have the kids been doing in space for six years? Have they been captured by these prisoners, or did they work out some sort of partnership before they found out the ground was habitable again? I’m excited to see Clarke in a mom role and I’m interested to see how Abby will respond to that. I can’t wait to find out more about Clarke’s Nightblood “daughter” Madi (Imogen Tear, Lola Flanery) and where she came from either.

 Season 4 was fantastic; one of the finest, most exciting seasons of television I’ve ever seen. Bring on Season 5!

[babiesjeep44-blog]

Cold Takes: A Look At Chicago’s Windy Win Over New York

We’ve all seen the “Hot Takes” from the last weekend’s games all over the net.

In this series, I’m letting some time pass, and after reviewing the game tape a couple of times, I’m going to share some “Cold Takes.” about the Bears crazy battle against the Jets. These are just a series of my thoughts and observations about the game as well as the Bears in general up until this point, presented in no particular order.

My game ball goes to Bryce Callahan again. Dear Ryan Pace, let’s find a way to get that Callahan contract extended, m’kay?

Matt Nagy did a great job in getting Mitchell Trubisky in a position to succeed in the second half. Great play calling, great overall coaching. Nagy’s made some rookie mistakes but he’s certainly the best coach we’ve had since Lovie Smith.

I’ve asked several people who were at the game how windy it was at field level, and have gotten different answers from each one, ranging from “about normal” to “crazy windy”. I was wondering how much the win affected both quarterbacks and both kickers. Well, the truth is I don’t know, because the answers I got were too varied. Anybody reading this who was at the game near field level, please comment on your thoughts about the wind strength where you were.

The New York Jets are pretty bad on offense, but their defense is still legit.

I liked Jamal Adams in the draft, and I STILL like him. He’s a Pro Bowl type player now and will be an All Pro one of these days. Love the guy’s game, and I’m glad he’s having a good career so far.

Kyle Long, man that injury is a real buzzkill.

Still, in a next man up league, we could do worse than Bryan Witzmann. The Bears signed Witzmann in October, he started for nearly a full season at left guard in Kansas City and he was “adequate”. Honestly, he was better than 4 of Minnesota’s starting 5, and I was surprised the Vikings hadn’t scooped him up when he was available. I’m not a fan of PFF rankings but I can tell you (for those of you who are) that Witzmann is rated higher than Eric Kush’s career average, and his last year’s rating was pretty close to Kyle Long’s (Long’s was slightly higher). He’s a replacement level player, but that’s just fine in a backup.

The Bears are looking for ways to get Jordan Howard going, and I think Howard’s role is about to grow in this offense. I believe what we saw in the Jets game is what we are going to be seeing more over, an emphasis on getting Howard the rock in his hands. The Bears passing game may be is a bit erratic, but it’s also good enough to keep people from stacking 9 in the box on every play.

Tarik Cohen is just fun to watch, and frankly I’m surprised that it took until week 7 for either him or Taylor Gabriel to break a short screen pass off for a TD. That is a bread-and-butter play for this offense, and we should see more of it in the future.

Despite really missing badly on several throws, Mitchell Trubisky put up another week of good stats... but to me, the most important stat is the “zero turnovers” line. Moving the offense well enough to score 27 points (yes, 27, I’m looking at YOU Cody Parkey) and not turning the ball over will win Chicago a LOT of games with this defense.

Kevin White is still a bust, but he’s a bust who’s actually playing well in many aspects of the game. He’s a solid #4 WR. Of course, that’s not what you expect out of a top 10 draft pick, but still, it’s better than nothing. I actually hope we sign the guy and bring him back on a one-year prove-it next year, because he already knows the offense, he’s catching passes and has turned into one hell of a downfield blocker, which is a big deal for a #4 WR. When you are option 5 or 6 on a play, you are basically a downfield blocker... something we’ve relied on and had some great success with (Alshon Jeffery and Brandon Marshall were both amazing downfield blockers).

Speaking of Brandon Marshall, he’s available (at the time of this writing) again.

Guys who have earned a contract extension on the Bears (assuming they stay healthy): Bryce Callahan, Roy Robertson-Harris, Aaron Lynch, Zach Miller (as an assistant coach, not a player), Cody Whitehair (preemptively after the season, when he is eligible), Adrian Amos.

Guys who have not earned a contract extension or guys who can be cut to save money no big deal: Jonathan Bullard (not that he’s horrible, but there are better options on the team), Dion Sims and Marcus Cooper.

Guys who are playing well but may be cap casualties (of a sort): Bobby Massie & Danny Trevathan. Of the two I would be very, very surprised if Danny Trevathan is released, he’s playing at a very high level. Massie isn’t technically a cap casualty because he’s a free agent at the end of the season, but he’s playing well and that salary savings of may be needed to sign guys like Callahan and Amos. Cutting Trevathan would save $5.9M in space, with little dead money, but the way he’s playing? He’s worth more than we are paying him.

Perspective: We are paying Dion Sims more than Danny Trevathan. We are paying Dion Sims more than Bobby Massie. Yeah, I know, obscene, right?

One thing to keep in mind, we are going to have a very small draft cap hit next year because we don’t have a first or second rounder. That will clear up money for signing some of our own.

“There ain’t no such-a-thang as an ugly win. A win is a win is a win.”

BONUS COLD TAKES

Due to a technical problem, my Patriots Cold Takes were not published last week. I was able to recover part of my list, so I’m going to throw these in as a bonus about our frustrating loss to New England a week ago. The following are all about the New England / Chicago game:

My Game Ball goes to Cody Whitehair, who (whether you noticed it or not) has been playing Pro-Bowl level ball this season (minus a couple of iffy snaps early).

Charles Leno Jr. is also playing at a high level... perhaps not Pro-Bowl but certainly top 10.

The Bears scored 31 points. That SHOULD be enough.

Mitchell Trubisky had 414 yards on offense, and scored 3 TD’s, which should be good enough to win a game.

Mitchell Trubisky played poorly, and had 2 turnovers.

Both of the previous two statements are true.

Khalil Mack injured is not good.

Jon Gruden is still an idiot.

Trey Burton is worth the money.

Kevin White did a thing. Heck, Kevin White did two things in the passing game. He’s also one heck of a good blocker in the run game. Kevin White is still a bust, mind you, but at least he isn’t a COMPLETE bust... just a regular old fashioned bust.

I saw a lot of Bears fans getting on Cody Parkey because one of his kickoffs didn’t go for a touchback. Really? Missed game winning field goals? Yes, legit outrage... but expecting a 100 percent touchback percentage is a bit much.

Cody Parkey is fourth best in the league with a touchdown percentage of 77.78 percent. Last year the Bears touchback percentage was 46.67 percent.

Blocked punts drive me nuts, when it’s us getting blocked.

We were one yard away from overtime with last year’s AFC Super Bowl team when the clock ran out... and the only reason we were behind was two special teams TD’s. That’s just really, really annoying.

I wonder if a witch has put a “forgetful” spell on our defense, causing the men on that side of the ball to entirely forget how to tackle.

Mitch’s runs were things of beauty.

Bilal Nichols... I’m officially declaring him a “Ryan Pace 5th Round Steal” of this last year’s draft. Nichols had 4 tackles, one tackle-for-loss, a forced fumble and fumble recovery. Moar, rook... moar...

I think Ryan Pace’s worst returning veteran move this offseason was not cutting Dion Sims before his payday hit. Sims was terrible yet again, had a bad drop, and was invisible in the second half (if he was even out there... I don’t remember seeing him, at all).

So what do you think Bears fans? Spill the beans!

Source: https://www.windycitygridiron.com/2018/10/31/18047932/cold-takes-a-look-at-chicago-bears-windy-win-over-new-york-jets-england-trubisky-bryce-callahan

[scotwresnet]

As we continue the celebrations towards Aberdeen Anarchy 2018 on September 1st I take a look back at the event that started it all at The Beach Ballroom. I wanted to take a look at this event specifically as I hadn’t watched it in full since being there live on June 1st 2013, over five years ago. It was my first Aberdeen Anarchy, my first WrestleZone event so there are plenty of memories about the event.

I remember not knowing where The Beach Ballroom was so I drove from New Pitsligo, where I lived at the time, then got the train from Inverurie to Aberdeen, the 25 minutes, then a taxi to the venue. My sense of direction hasn’t improved much since then as I just hung about the venue for hours even though Cadonas was a couple hundred yards away. The country bumpkin in me was lost. Anyway, I had bought two tickets thinking I’d find someone to go with me but alas it wasn’t to be and it was just myself toddling along. When I got to the meet and greet portion I bumped into a bald man in a suit, on his mobile device, who looked like he was important, so I offered my spare ticket which he accepted, about 5 minutes later he came past with £15 to reimburse my ticket as he’d sold it. It was the hottest ticket in town. Little did I know at that moment was I was speaking to Mr P, one of my favourites in WrestleZone nowadays.

So I lined up for the meet and greet to meet Billy Gunn and ‘Hacksaw’ Jim Duggan. Being the fan I was I had prepared some items to be signed, a foam WWF Tag Team Championship for Billy Gunn and part one of the Royal Rumble anthology DVD set for ‘Hacksaw’. What I didn’t anticipate was the nerves. I stuttered out something to Jim as I bought his book and he signed an 8×10. He also signed my title because he asked if I wanted him to and who was I to deny ‘Hacksaw’ Jim Duggan?? I got the picture then moved over to Billy Gunn, stuttered out something about being a fan, belt signed and picture taken.

Things I learned that day: prepare what to say being meeting people in general, don’t wear a thick hoodie on a summer day and don’t stuff your manbag with supplies because it’s a pain in the backside to carry around. I have since learned from this, and I have learned where the venue is so I can actually drive there, I say learn, I can make it to Aberdeen but Google maps does the rest.

So I went to the gym next door for lunch, yes the gym not any of the fine establishments on the beach like Pizza Hut or TGI Fridays, didn’t I tell you I’m an idiot? Burger and chips while I read Jim Duggan’s book. Once I had outstayed my welcome I kept reading the book in the play park nearby while I watched my phone battery die slowly but not before I recorded a video with the venue in the background!

I had just started OSWtv at this point, this is how long ago the event was.

So there were some wrestlers about as we filed in to the venue for the actual show, as I had VIP (oh yeah) it was a little earlier. When I went in I only recognised one wrestler as I had been watching some ICW, that being Kay Lee Ray. So I got a picture with her and two other blokes, who was steal the show later in the night, Stevie Xavier and Bingo Ballance.

I think that’s enough preamble about the show. Now to re-watch and relive Aberdeen Anarchy 2013! I’ll review the show and throw in my memories from the event.

Before the main show there was a VIP match triple threat but for the life of me I can’t quite remember what it was, I’m thinking it may’ve involved Cysto, Mr Malice and Blue Thunder but I could be wrong, there was a dog lead involved at some point.

I went back and found the match on the bonus feature of disc two.

Triple Threat – Blue Thunder defeated Cysto & Mr Malice by pinfall (I think).

The disc starting freezing and I couldn’t actually watch the match. Awkward.

Let’s move onto the main show.

A young, fresh-faced, Martyn Clunes was the first man through the curtain for the official show, even though the lights were low you could tell that the place was rammed. It goes to show how long ago this was when Martyn announced that the match was for one fall when there was no “ONE FALL!” reply.

Bingo Ballance defeated Stevie Xavier by pinfall.

Often hailed, by myself as well, as the best match in WrestleZone history. I was interested to see if this would still hold up in 2018 considering that there had been so many great matches since this one. The match started with quick counters, pinfall attempts and traded armdrags. Once they warmed up we got springboards, standing shooting star presses and dropsaults. The action was balanced with Bingo hitting a hard backcracker then a Monkey Flip. More dives to the outside with Ballance continuing the control. Near fall after near fall with the “oohs” and “aahs” getting louder and more frequent as the two threw everything into the match. A split leg moonsault from Stevie couldn’t get the job done as he climbed to the top rope he was only to be met with a springboard enziguri from Ballance. Ballance hit the G17 for the win.

Still holds up as a fantastic match in my opinion. It had loads of twists and turns with both having support from the crowd. They were there for the whole ride. I didn’t know if there was a story coming into the match so going from a cold open to being on the edge of my seat by the end was wonderful. As far as a singles match goes, this is still the best match in WrestleZone but with the added stakes and stipulation matches over the years it may’ve been knccked from the number one spot as my favourite match from Aberdeen Anarchy…

Scotty Swift & Ross McTavish defeated Sterling Oil (William Sterling & Alan Sterling) w/Mr Malice by submission.

So going into this one I was aware that Sterling Oil had been bullying Ross McTavish from the Evening Express. That was about it. The crowd were unglued for Scotty Swift’s entrance, a man that I had only seen in photos with his striking look. A slower start with the tease for Ross to be tagged in and when he was it was LOUD. William toyed with Ross, irritating him with hair brushes but Ross got a double leg take down into a kneebar as William scrambled to escape. A little distraction saw the Sterlings take over with slaps and chops to McTavish’s back and front, visibly leaving marks. William missed a big elbow drop as Scotty was tagged back in clean house.As Scotty was dealing with the Sterlings, Mr Malice interjected himself before being locked into a triangle choke by Ross. Swift busted out a rare hurricurana and tagged in a begging Ross McTavish who locked a prowling Alan Sterling into a triangle choke for the quick tap out.

While Ross didn’t have the finesse of a pro wrestler but what he could do he did well, when it’s non-wrestlers there’s an expectancy for cringe but this was highly enjoyable. A really fun match.

The disc was stalling at this point as it came to Zach Dynamite versus Damien. A quick ejection of the disc and a wipe with my t-shirt and it came back alive thankfully.

Damien defeated Zach Dynamite by pinfall.

This looked like it was a grudge match of some sort with the butting of heads in the beginning so quite rightly it avoided the collar and elbow and went straight to the fighting. Damien had the upper hand by keeping Dynamite grounded. Dynamite got back into the match with lots of pinfall attempts before Damien countered a sunset flip by sitting down and holding the ropes for leverage.

Something about this match just didn’t click for me. It didn’t get out of first gear and the ending was flat. Nothing much happened.

‘Hacksaw’ Jim Duggan & The Granite City Hotshots (Bryan Tucker & Shawn Johnson) defeated Aspen Faith, James Midas & Scott Maverick w/Crystal Rose by pinfall.

The first of the two special guests, the first half main event. The place went crazy for Duggan coming out with his America flag and 2×4. Grabbing a Scotland flag from someone in the crowd and waving it about, which actually gave me goosebumps while watching this back. The disc starting skipping again at this point so I didn’t see the end of the match as it cut out just as Aspen was on the offensive right at the start. Subsequent disc polishing saw glimpses of the match but it kept skipping back to the menu so had to give this one up.

From memory the place went crazy for anything that Duggan did, he didn’t have to do much and the place was going nuts for him. Duggan got the win for his team with the three point stance clothesline onto Aspen Faith.

Billy Gunn defeated Rob Cage by pinfall.

Onto disc two with the second guest for Aberdeen Anarchy, Billy Gunn, taking on ‘The King of the Shining Wizard’, before he was Uncle Bobby but he still had the most punchable face in wrestling. Billy Gunn got on the mic and said that he learned a new name for Rob Cage while he’d been in Aberdeen which was ‘sheep shagger’, although most of the fans suggested arsehole. Quote of the night came during this with Rob Cage shouting “I don’t shag sheep!” in response to the chant accusing him of diddling the woolen beasts.

The match really started on the outside with Billy Gunn slamming the face of Rob Cage into the ring apron again and again and again. Cage rammed Gunn into the ring post to get the upper hand. I couldn’t make out the chants but I’m sure there was a ‘he’s a fanny’ chant but I am a bit hard of hearing. Gunn hit a headlock driver but Cage was too close to the ropes. Cage had a lot of offense with digging kicks and chokes in the early going but Gunn fought back with punches of his own and a Stinger Splash, a Famouser for the three made this a quick one.

Fun match, it was cool seeing Billy Gunn. Gunn was never known for your technical clinics so I wasn’t expecting flips and fancy things but it was fun and certainly entertaining. It’s hard to not be biased as Billy Gunn was one of my favourites when I was a young lad, even his ‘The One’ Billy Gunn phase.

Lumberjill Match – Kay Lee Ray defeated Carmel Jacob by pinfall.

When it came to women’s wrestling in 2013 I knew three names, Nikki Storm, Princess Sammii and Kay Lee Ray. Whom I considered the second coming of Lita with her red hair and highflying-ness. The lumberjills in this was The Granite City Roller Girls.

Carmel attempted to leave early on but was blocked by the lumberjills. Who also blocked her several other attempts even throwing her back in at one point. Fairly even match with Kay Lee having the early advantage before Carmel dodged a top rope dropkick and took over. Folding her up like an accordion following a German Suplex. There was a great bit where Carmel hit a Celtic Cross and went for a lazy cover, Kay Lee grabbed Carmel by the waist and bridged up, turned her into a backslide position then lifted her before planting a Gory Bomb. It looked so cool. Carmel got back in control with a second rope draping DDT. Carmel went for a second from the top rope but Kay Lee fought back and managed to sunset flip Carmel off the off the second turnbuckle. Carmel missed a spear and was given another Gory Bomb. A Swanton Bomb followed and it was a win for Kay Lee Ray.

A bit stumbly and bumbly in parts but overall a really fine match, bar a couple bits at the start the lumberjills had little bearing in the match.

Martyn Clunes announced that the show was a sell out, over 30 years since wrestling had taken place in The Beach Ballroom. 1,103 fans in attendance to witness WrestleZone.

Undisputed WrestleZone Championship – Special Enforcer: Len Ironside – Crusher Craib defeated ‘Tenacious‘ Johnny Lions w/Richard R Russell, Damien, Mr Malice & William Sterling by pinfall to win the Undisputed WrestleZone Championship.

This was weird for me to watch. I had only seen Johnny Lions at SWE at this point and he was as babyface as they could be, so to see him scowling and being the bad guy just blew my tiny mind. His opponent was the big and scary Crusher Craib, who was cheered. I didn’t know what to think.

Len Ironside and referee Mikey Innes ejected Sterling Oil from ringside before the match even started.

Craib smacked Lions about in the early stages, dominating the Undisputed WrestleZone Champion. Lions dodged a big boot and aimed his attack at the leg of Craib to chop down the beast. It wasn’t without error with Lions slipping off the ropes but recovered quickly for a coast to coast dropkick to the knee of Craib. Lions was like a shark sniffing out blood as he used every move and leverage to punish the knee of Craib. Craib rose from the dead to grab Lions by the throat for a chokebomb for a two count. Craib went for a big boot but his knee gave way which allowed Lions to jump back onto the offensive with a Best Legdrop Evah. Lions went up top again but was met by Craib how threw him off with a Fallaway Slam. Craib went for a boot but kicked Mikey Innes in the face, a follow up Blackhole Slam couldn’t be counted as William Sterling and Mr Malice returned. Len Ironside soon dispatched of them before Damien snuck in with a Superkick. Russell jumped in and smugly revealed a referee shirt of his own, shouting that he had a referee licence. Len pulled him out and of the ring and smacked his face off the apron. Lions recovered but couldn’t land the Lion Cutter, Craib smashed him with a big boot as Len Ironside counted the fall.

This match was far better than I remembered. The crowd were loud all the way through, there was some shenanigans and we got a new champion at the end. A great way to end the show.

Often when watching shows back there’s a danger of remembering it differently or rewatching it in your mind with rose tinted spectacles, like Aladdin Return of Jafar, I loved that film as a child then I rewatched it two years ago and it was just awful, that’s why I’ll never watch The Pagemaster again. There’s a danger of making matches and moments bigger than they really were. I wasn’t disappointed when rewatching this as it was pretty much how I remembered it. The event holds a dear place in my heart and in turn WrestleZone did exactly what they were aiming for. I was the person they were aiming the show towards, not me specifically, but the casual that would be coming to see Billy Gunn, to see Jim Duggan, it was then up to WrestleZone to build a show around them to get folk like myself back to Aberdeen or to Inverurie, Montrose or Keith to see their guys wrestle minus the international names.

Was it a 5 star show? No it wasn’t, the matches were good to great, bar one match which just didn’t do it for me, but was it entertaining? Absolutely. Did it have me coming back for more? Yes it did, every year since.

Five years and one month I’ve been attending WrestleZone shows. This was the start and I hope it won’t end any time soon!

Review: WrestleZone Aberdeen Anarchy 2013 As we continue the celebrations towards Aberdeen Anarchy 2018 on September 1st I take a look back at the event that started it all at The Beach Ballroom.