#if anything happens in 2022 at least we’ll have these two idiots

[starlightthorn]

I Was Made For Lovin’ You - Eddie Munson

© starlightthorn 2022, do not repost, modify or translate!

synopsis: you and eddie had been friends for a long time now. you both liked each other but neither of you dared to say anything. it is not until you go to the concert of one of your favourite bands that something happens between you two.

a/n: no spoilers, just a bit of fluff for my own sake. hope you enjoy!! 

She looked good

She looked hotter than hell

All dressed in satins and lace

I looked at her and it was just too clear

I had to get on the case

I said "Lady, oh lady, can I take you home

There's just so much we could do

Your voices filled the car while singing in preparation for that night’s concert. You were excited, but Eddie’s excitament overcome yours. He couldn’t stop talking about how your were going to see KISS live for the whole week. In fact, he hadn’t shut up about it since you gifted the ticket to him for his birthday. Only a few bands had the courage to performed in the “cursed city of Hawkins”, it was an opportunity that you weren’t going to allow neither of you to miss out.

With a smile in your lips, you turned your head to Eddie in the driver’s seat and you looked at him singing for a few seconds before talking to him:

“Are you ready for tonight?” you asked jokingly. You knew the answer for that, he was going to pass out once you saw them on the stage.

“If I am ready? Are you joking?” He answered in a chuckle, “I am more than fucking ready, this is going to be the best night of our fucking lives, baby!”

You roll your eyes, your smile still not fading away. You secretly loved the petnames he used for you, you loved how he constantly teased you — obviously you teased him as well. You were only friends though, he only saw you as a friend. You, on the other hand, had developed a crush on him. Everyone seemed to have noticed but him, but it was fine. You preferred that to ruining your friendship. Nevertheless, Dustin was convinced that Eddie also had a crush on you, that kid was always trying to convince you to say something about it to him.

Once you arrived at the open field outside Hawkins, Eddie almost dragged you out of the car. He grabbed you hips to make you walk faster toward the cue to show the tickets. You couldn’t help but to laugh for seeing him like that. You only had seen him so excited in the Hellfire sessions and that time he showed you how he had learned an Iron Maiden song in the guitar.

“We are going to enter no matter what, you don’t have to break my shirt to get in the cue. You know that right, freak?” You look at him rising an eyebrow with a grin while you fixed your dad’s KISS t-shirt. “Or do you want to take my clothes off? You just have to ask.” You joked pulling your gaze away for him to look at all the people who was there.

Eddie couldn’t help but to bite his lip while looking at you “Maybe I will when only I can see you naked, baby.” The grab on your waist become tighter after that sentence, which took away your breath for a hot minute. You looked down subtly at his hand in your waist and the rings in his fingers. It wasn’t the first time he grabbed you that way, whenever you were in the film store where Steve worked he did it as well. According to him it was to make sure that Harrington wouldn’t try to do something with you again after he saw him flirting with you at a party. Dustin said that it was because he was jealous, but you knew it was because Eddie didn’t like Steve…or at least that was the reason you thought it was.

“Idiot.” You laughed not daring to look at him even when you were noticing his sight fixed on you. “It won’t be so easy.” You teased him moving his hand away from your waist, but he grabbed you again pulling you closer to him.

“We’ll see if that’s true, sweetheart.” He whispered in your ear with a half-smile before letting you go so you could show your tickets to the security. Your legs where shaking a little and you heart was racing, almost getting out of your chest. You prayed for him not to notice the effect he had on you because you knew he would continue to do things like that just to bother you.

It wasn’t long before you finally made it into the crowd, Eddie was grabbing your hand the whole time and grabbing your waist just to make sure no one would push you or he lost you among the people. Once you arrived at a spot near the stage, he got behind you and wrapped his arms around your shoulders in an embrace.

“I think I haven’t thanked you enough for this. It really means a lot to me.” He said near your ear so you could hear him above the band who was playing before KISS came out. “And seeing them with you just makes it better.” A sight escaped your lips when you felt his lips leave a kiss near your neck. He was definitely going to kill you that night.

“You don’t have to thank me for anything, Eddie.” You said with your voice shaking a little. you cleared your throat getting a bit more close to him, resting your back on his chest.

Neither of you moved during the performance of the opening band, if anything it seemed like both of you were looking for ways of being more close to each other and leaving caresses on your arms and hands. You had been like that before, but no so close to each other. Sometimes you reached for each other hands above the table in the high school canteen and you played with his rings, or when you talked in your rooms after school you touched his hair and his tattoos. But it never felt so intimate like that time.

It wasn’t long before KISS took the stage and both of you started singing with the rest of the crowd; but still holding hands or looking to each other while dancing to the songs. Finally, to end the show, they played your favourite song, *I was made for lovin’ you.* He knew how much you liked that song, he sometimes played it to you with his guitar.

He was looking at you while you sang, he couldn’t help but to smile at the sight of you enjoying the moment so much. It reminded him to the times that you both pretended to be at a concert in his room while listening to the tapes and vinyls of your favourite bands.

Tonight

I wanna see it in your eyes

Feel the magic

There's something that drives me wild

You turned your head towards him only to find him looking at you and your eyes met, it seemed like you never had seen each other before. Almost like if you had been looking for each other for such a long time that now neither of you dared to look away. He let your hand go only to grab your t-shirt and pull you closer to him while both of you were singing to each other like you were the only people there.

And tonight

We're going to make it all come true

'Cause, girl, you were made for me

And, girl, I was made for you

Your eyes went down to his lips, just like his went down to yours. You placed your hands on his chest to grab his t-shirt between your hands, pulling him closer to you. Your heart racing and your legs shaking for the proximity of your bodies. Finally, your lips meet each other once he grabbed the back of the neck and closed the distance between you two.

Oh, oh, oh

Can't get enough

Oh, oh

I can't get enough

Oh, oh, oh

I can't get enough

Yeah

The kiss was everything but soft, the tension between you two finally was out of the way and the kiss only showed how much you needed each other. Your hands let go the fabric of his shirt only to tangle your fingers in his hair looking for more of him, just like he looked for more of you. Finally, once you had to pull out of the kiss, you looked at each other with a smile on your faces but it wasn’t long before he pulled you into another kiss.

[arcticdementor]

Recently, a lot of you who told me I was insane when I said that Winnie the flu was all theater and though it existed and was a flu and would probably take “severe flu, no vaccine numbers” it was and is stupid to lock the sick and the healthy in, destroy the economy and make everyone wear a mask, have come back and ask how I knew. And apologized.

Well, attention in the isles, my friends on the right: you are falling for the same king of bullshit diversion. You are being spun like a top. And you’re falling for it and falling in line.

I blame you and I don’t. You didn’t grow up with the constant-pretend-reality of communist psi-ops, and you haven’t learned to smell it.

Over and over again, you condemn Trump and the “rioters.”

NO ONE RIOTED. Not compared to this summer. THERE WERE NO RIOTS. And the protesters were treated with an iron fist and live ammo, btw.

There are videos. I don’t know which ones are still live. They keep removing them. There was no riot. There was a protest. You know, those things that are vital for public health?

Did they go into the Capitol? Yes they did. You know what? It’s a public building. WE PAY FOR THE F*CKING CAPITOL’S UPKEEP.

But, but but…. the congress critters ran. They were scared!

Were they now? WHY? No, seriously, why were they scared, if the people they work for want to watch the deliberations. They’re in our presence all the time. You know the worst thing we do — or used to do — we called them traitors. That was it.

But they vandalized Nancy Pelosi’s office! Oh, my stars and garters? Evil people. Was that before or after she vandalized our constitution and sank a knife in the heart of the republic? Is the evil bitch dangling from a lamppost this morning? No? They were civilized beyond all hope.

But Sarah, you’ll say, this will give them the excuse to avenge themselves on us.

Dear idiots, you’re like the wife with her arm in a sling and both eyes blackened telling her husband “Please don’t say anything to Joe. He’ll be mad.”

In other words, are you out of your ever loving little minds? These people STOLE two elections — it’s now absolutely obvious the nominal right is fine with this. They hope for crumbs from their masters’ tables. The left is more likely to kill them, but never mind — in a row, in full view, and refused to let us have our day in court to show the evidence. Because the American people are now peons with NO STANDING and can be disenfranchised with no punishment. But you’re afraid that largely (truly) peaceful protesters “made them mad?”

Withdrawing the objection to the fraudulent votes due to the riot? That only makes sense in the mind of an abuser. “I stole your thing, and I was going to maybe give it back, but you cried, so now you don’t get it back.” Are you all actually out of your ever loving minds to blame the protesters and Trump for this?

These people are saying “You peasants dared to show up in our presence. We’re now going to take away even the illusion of franchise.” And…. you’re cool with this? It’s the protesters fault?

Get up off the floor. Wipe the blood from your lip. KNOW WHO YOUR ABUSER IS.

And BTW it’s not Trump. Trump thought maybe if congress saw how ad people were, they would play straight. I said before that’s all the protest was about, and that’s all it was. He told people to go home when it was obvious it had failed.

And I hope to G-d someone with access to him reads this and tells him it’s time. Take the family NOW and go to an undisclosed location. As much as it hurts me to say this, because I want him to continue harassing the left, he has to realize this is no longer the sweet land of liberty. This is now a tyrannical third world shithole. Or will be within months from the way our occupiers are behaving. They will find a way to kill him and his whole family, or kill him and turn his family against him. Go Mr. President. G-d bless. You’ve done all that you could. If the so called right in this country will pearl clutch and blame even people who engage in a very mild protest, they deserve what’s to come.

He now promises an orderly transition. I will tell all of you that DEAD is the most orderly of all states. And right now the Republic is effectively dead. There might be a hope for CPR, but I’m not sure there’s the will to apply it. Pence has joined the rats fleeing to the lefty rotten ship. because he hopes that will save his life. Spoiler, it won’t. The left will kill all the right who turns their coat. Because they can’t trust them. Good. They deserve it. I shall eat popcorn.

Do we ever get the republic back? I don’t know. I think the most likely thing is that we fall apart into separate states while around us the world falls into chaos, famine and misery. We’ve been feeding the world for a century. The world had better look to itself now.

What do those of us who’ve sworn an oath to the constitution do? I don’t know. Most are still busily doing a Peter in Pontius Pilates Yard “I was never with him.”

Oh, and there’s talks of rounding up Trump supporters. Of denying them flights and hotels and the ability to engage in commerce.

I suppose that’s the “protesters” fault too? Except that that, like the paper to withdraw objections because of the “protest” were already written. They would have found an excuse.

I don’t want war. But I liked having a homeland. To everyone who, like me, came here as the last place of refuge: I’m sorry. I don’t even know what to tell you. We need to fight this, but even if we do, unless the natural-born citizens see what they’re losing, it’s unlikely we’ll ever get our country back.

This morning, in DC, the police are beating down what remains of protesters. A young woman was murdered in cold blood yesterday.

And our side is pearl clutching and tut tuting, and hoping the abuser won’t get mad. Oh, and talking about 2022, because seeing two elections frauded RIGHT BEFORE THEIR EYES and courts refusing to let anyone see evidence of it is not enough. They need to be stomped on some more before they believe they’ve lost the franchise.

Me? I’ve seen what happens when your votes don’t matter. Elections will continue as a form, possibly for fifty years, if we let this bullshit go on that long. Your next president after Commie laWhorish is Michelle Obama, because the ignorant bitch hasn’t shit on us enough. She felt stupid and inferior at Harvard, and by gum, she’s going to make you grovel to pay for your sins.

But your real masters are now Winnie the Pooh and his merry band of fascists. And we know what they do and how.

I can’t get the order, but we’re about to see: social credit; the banning of conservatives from the internet; branding us as terrorists, just as they’re doing to innocent protesters; show trials; people disappearing; our money confiscated; our houses confiscated; more lock downs, to prevent revolt; more masks to promote alienation; more lies.

When people die in the famine to come, it will be Covid-19 and Trump’s fault and you’ll be required to repeat it publicly.

It wont’ last. These commies are industrial-level STUPID. It won’t last. I give them ten years, maybe, before most of the country is starving, and they have no clue what to do about it. And then it all falls apart, because unlike Venezuelans, we have no one to help and no place to run to.

Or, you know, we can stop pearl clutching and say “Hell no.” and “Molon labe” and stop repeating the lies the left wants written into history.

To lefty idiots: yes, the election was stolen. Because if it had NOT been, the left would have joined the right in demanding the courts take the case, and that it be shown to all as an honest election. Also, to lefty idiots, what the protesters — and all of us at home — want? ANOTHER ELECTION with minimum accountability. I mean, we can’t even clean the roles. There wouldn’t be enough time. We just wanted to make sure each person voted only once, and the votes were counted with full supervision.

Instead, you’re handing off the country to China, via their bought and paid for man, Biden. Yes, I know you heard good things about China. You’ll find out, along with the craven right that the leftist press makes Pravda seem honest. Enjoy the ride.

As for you and me, my friends. We’re going to eat the bread that the devil baked. Save what you can from the ruin. It won’t be much. And don’t let them into your head. NEVER let them into your head. They’re invaders. They’re oppressors. They’re thieves. Treat them as what they are. Do not comply unless you have to, and then engage in malicious compliance.

Keep the republic in your heart. Maybe there are enough of us left that it will rise again. But in the meantime, this is going to hurt and hurt badly. And the longer the restoration of law takes, the higher the butcher’s bill.

Most of you have no idea how bad it will get. Imagine your worst nightmares. Then double them. Prepare for that as best you can. You won’t be able to do much. If you’re lucky they’ll leave you your conscience.

Your country was invaded (even if the invaders were born here, their masters aren’t) and is about to be raped. The least you can do is not cooperate.

[ameliascorsones-blog]

Permanent December ▸ chapter two.

a/n: this chapter jumps three years to where the story is currently set. Honestly, this is a little choppy because I started it a few days ago, and finished it this morning, so I apologize for that. Even if things seem smooth sailing right now, it wouldn’t be a good story if things were completely unproblematic, now would it? This is the last chapter to come out before the heart breaking episode airs, so I hope you guys enjoy, another should be out next week, or maybe on the weekend, we’ll see! Let me know what you think!

----------------------

Three years later;

May 6th, 2022

“Hi, this is Amelia Shepherd.. may I ask who’s calling?”

Of course she didn’t check the caller ID, but she hadn’t when the two of them were together, so who was Owen to be surprised?  He didn’t even have it in him to be surprised because he knew that he was guaranteed to get an earful in about two minutes anyways so he wasn’t going to be angry about it now, plus she seemed like she was sleeping just a moment before, anyhow. Who was he to harp on what she did when he had Leo for the week. It wasn’t like they were together, and even if they were, he still wouldn’t test it.  Still though as he paced the hospital lobby, the strawberry blonde surgeon rolled his eyes. Most people would blame it on frustration but he couldn’t pretend like Amelia’s tiny habits that he still loved didn’t piss him off.

“Can you come down to Grey Sloan? It’s Leo, Carla took him to the park and I guess she let him do the money bars on his own and he..”

Instantly she was sitting up and tossing the covers off, her jaw clenching just like it had that night three years ago, when he’d been on her absolute last nerve just like he was now. “Owen! What the hell, I told you a million times I don’t want your girlfriend around my kid alone! Are you deaf or something? I mean, I give you one rule, and you can’t even follow that! Plus what kind of teenybopper idiot lets a four year old do the monkey bars by himself!” With one hand she balanced the phone, the other working on getting jeans past her hips. “You know I can’t stand her, she was probably on her phone, group chatting with one of her stupid little friends.”

“You don’t group chat with one per —-”

“I don’t care what you do and who you do it with!” Pressing speaker, the doctor tossed her phone down on the bed and tried to blink away tears that had gathered in the corner of her eyes, she couldn’t lose Leo too, not after Betty. Sure, he probably had a sprained wrist, a concussion at best but she was freaking, the therapy that she’d been taking so didn’t prepare her for this. T-shirt tossed to the floor, Amelia grabbed for another one in her clean laundry and took a deep breath. In and out, out and in.  

“Are you breathing?”

“No, Owen.. I’m dead.” Yet she couldn’t help the slight smile on her face at his caring words. She didn’t deserve it, not after all that she’d put in through all those months ago after Betty’s passing, but he’d been there for her always. Sure, at first there’d been bitter feelings, but now they were friends, or something of the sort at least and for that she was glad. Running fingers through her tangled hair, she sighed. Good enough, after all it wasn’t like she was going to a pageant or anything.  “Is he okay? Where is he?”

“He’s with Alex, they’re picking a cast color for his arm, but I know that he wants you..”

Keys in hand, Amelia struggled through the lump in her throat as she slipped on her sneakers, grabbed her bag and slipped out the door. Only a broken arm, that wasn’t so bad, right? Still though, it seemed the second that she addressed her anxiety in that therapists office a year ago, everything was so terrifying with Leo, with anyone that she cared about but maybe it always had been and it just hadn’t been on the surface until now. Everyone seemed to recommend anxiety meds, something for her depression but she couldn’t take those, wouldn’t. They’d become addictive and that wasn’t something that she needed to happen, she’d been doing so good with everything and she wasn’t about to risk it now. So instead she relied on the people around her, anything to help.  “Will you wait for me at the front doors?”

With an agreement in place, the brunette hung up and made her way.

————————-

Short drive and twenty minutes later, the two parents were leading a brave boy from the hospital. They’d planned to have Leo go back home with Owen since it was his week and he’d made a promise of not letting dumbass Carla alone with their son, yet suddenly Leo paused causing the two parents to stop walking. “I’m hungry, mama.” Here it came, sometimes when the three were together Leo tried his hardest to get them to spend time together, and with a shared look, Owen and Amelia both sighed. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to spend time together for Leo, but it was hard. Even if they couldn’t figure out why that was when everyone else clearly could ; they still loved each other, boyfriends and girlfriends and everything else aside.

“What about breakfast, huh? I’m kind of hungry too, babe,” and even though she was tired, wanted to go home and sleep, the doctor pasted on the brightest smile that she could just for her son.

“Can we makes waffles? Please, mama? Daddy doesn’t make them good.”

It hadn’t really been in her plans to go to that house, the one that she’d left all that time ago. Amelia figured that they’d eat out and she could go home. She hadn’t actually stayed for longer than a few moments when it came to drop offs but one look at Owens encouraging smile, and the brunette nodded her head. If they were gonna hang out, why not go all in, right? “I don’t see why not, since you were so brave this morning.”

It only took a moment for the little boy to grin just like Betty and tug tightly on Amelias hand toward Owens car. Instead of saying something though, like that she should probably take her own car, the brunette let him lead her only stopping for traffic before she buckled him into his carseat after Owen unlocked the door.

“Are you sure about this?” His voice rang into the chilly air, and she did her best to  smile just  as he had a few moments before as she nodded her head.

“Of course, what could go wrong? Now unlock my door before I freeze my ass off.”

————————————

Frankly, more could go wrong than Amelia’d originally thought because on the way back to what Amelia had once called her very own dream house, Leo passed out in the backseat, giving into the stress from the morning and refusing to wake up when they’d brought him inside. Amelia didn’t want to leave right away either because that would involve waking him up to get him in the car again and so here they were, staring at each other from opposite sides of the couch, the silence causing Amelia’s ears to ring before she opened her mouth to break it.

“Where’s Carla?”

“Uh, maybe at her place, I’m not really sure.. we got in a fight this morning after the whole park thing. You were right, she was on her phone.. I’m not even sure why she wanted to take him in the first place.”

Amelia’s jaw set and then she unclenched a moment later. She couldn’t be mad at Owen, especially if he was pissed off too,  but she couldn’t help the fact that she was frustrated nonetheless. “She wanted to impress you, probably. I mean, who wouldn’t? You’re a great man.. She just didn’t realize what kind of challenge she was taking on.” Sure, Amelia was mad, but there had to be something good about the blonde bombshell if Owen liked her, right?

“She just doesn’t pay attention to him ever, the other day I went to get his jacket so that he could go outside. I was gone for maybe a minute tops and she let him go out with no socks, shoes or jacket.” He took a breath and examined the brunette across from him for a moment,  the way her eyes rolled, and then settled because she was trying not to say anything too terrible about the woman who took up the other half of his bed on a good day. “Maybe you were right in saying she’s spacey.” It took him a minute and then he gave her the gentlest of smiles because she looked exhausted, almost as tired as Leo had earlier that morning with tears streaming down his face as he clutched his arm. “You should rest, Mia..”

“I said she was a dumb bitch, there’s a difference..” the brunette corrected teasingly. Eyes met his, and Amelia couldn’t help but nod. She was tired, and she’d felt kind of off for the past couple like she was coming down with something. “Hmm, maybe just for a minute and then I’ll get up and make Leo his waffles,” without even thinking about it, Amelia moved closer to her ex, tugging the blanket off the back of the couch as she did. Head resting on his shoulder, Amelia covered herself as her eyes closed.

“ ’s this okay?”

Maybe it wasn’t the best choice to snuggle with your ex who had a girlfriend well your son was sleeping off his pain, in his room but she wasn’t all there or at least that’s what she’d blame it on if she was questioned.

“It’s okay,” and really it was more okay than she’d ever know. Pressing the gentlest of kisses to  the top of her head, Owen wrapped his around her without even thinking.  They were all three tired, at least that’s what he’d tell himself if anyone caught them like this.

And much to his dismay someone would.

[britesparc]

Weekend Top Ten #462

Top Ten Things That Hopefully Will Actually Happen in 2021

I mean, it’s got to be better than last year, hasn’t it? Just on law of averages. I know it’s not really the greatest start. Everything’s shut again but it’s colder now. We’ve not got a handle on this thing. The idiots are still in charge. But I still feel cautiously optimistic. There is a vaccine now, at least. Trump is gone, barring some cataclysmic last-minute kerfuffle. A new lockdown is required, so hopefully however painful it is right now it’ll be the death throws of this wretched virus. Will 2021 look like 2019? No, not a chance. But maybe by summer, by autumn, we’ll be well over the hill. 2022, hopefully, will be great.

Not that I’m writing off the new year altogether! No siree. I think this is the year we turn the corner and see the road before us. I think this year can be good, and I think that – outside of pandemic and politics – there is quite a lot to look forward to.

I’m not right now talking about personal ambitions or wider, geopolitical hopes and dreams. This is all about stuff that I want to see or play or whatever. Things that don’t really have any bearing on if the world keeps spinning or we all make it through another tumultuous twelvemonth relatively unscathed. Just, y’know, stuff that’d be nice.

Cinematic Superheroes: 2020 was a bonkers year, and one of the things that was bonkers as it unfolded was how all these huge movies kept getting pushed back. As a result, there were precisely no Marvel Cinematic Universe productions released. Like, at all. Thankfully – hopefully – that will change in 2021. As well as some Disney+ stuff (see below) there’ll also be the belated release of Wonder Woman 1984, which came out around Christmas but which I’ll probably stream this month; and, lockdown permitting, we should finally see the likes of Black Widow, The Eternals, and things that were already scheduled for ’21 such as DC’s The Batman and The Suicide Squad. And y’know what? I’m even looking forward to Zack Snyder’s Justice League. Yeah, maybe some more will slip, but I’m just glad that we’re finally getting some men in tights back in our lives.

Plus all these Great Shows: just before Christmas Disney outlined its slate of upcoming releases and by Crikey it was mega. And the best part is, so many of these shows and films are imminent! In a couple of weeks WandaVision will hit Disney+, and later this year we’ll also see (I do believe) The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, maybe Loki, The Book of Boba Fett, and maaaaaybe if we’re lucky Obi-Wan Kenobi. Even outside of the other movies and things that they announced, and even if we don’t look as far ahead as 2022, Disney+ has a hell of a lineup for this year, and even if lockdown closes the cinemas, we can still enjoy a nice good stream.

Starred Up: the arrival of Star, the “grown-up” channel on Disney+, was confirmed (and confirmed to be included in the existing sub, which was nice), and recently it was announced that it will go live on February 23rd. For some reason I was expecting it later, so that’s nice. It’ll be good to see some of the smuttier Marvel movies make their return (especially Fox’s X-masterpiece, Logan), but I’m more looking forward to having all the Die Hards and Aliens in one place. Even the crap ones.

Finally, Halo Infinite: I really like Halo; it’s pretty much the reason I ever bought a console in the first place. So I was incredibly excited for Halo Infinite, and – I must confess – a bit disappointed by its reveal. A delay is fine; take your time, do a good job, try to avoid crunch. I’ve got more than enough to play. But with my pretty new Series X installed next to my shiny new 4K TV, I’d love to get into a proper new Master Chief adventure once again. And finally it’ll happen! My Big Christmas Game for 2021 is sorted.

Return of the (Lego) Jedi: speaking of Big Games for 2021… I love the Lego games from Traveller’s Tales, and it all started with Lego Star Wars. With the release of The Rise of Skywalker in 2019, I kind of assumed they’d be making a new one, and they are: The Skywalker Saga. Much delayed (I think it was meant to come out last summer originally?), but finally making its debut at some point in 2021, it promises to be a more expansive effort than any previous Lego game, and also offers a fresh look at every film in the increasingly-inaccurately-named trilogy. My youngest is really getting into Star Wars and she loves the Lego games, so this is something we can really enjoy together.

2020’s Greatest Hits: yeah, lots of great things coming out in 2021, but I gotta say one thing I’m really looking forward to is catching up on all of the things that were supposed to come out in 2020. I’ve already mentioned the likes of Black Widow, but there’s Coming 2 America (on Prime Video in March), Dune (potentially still hitting cinemas), No Time to Die (God knows), Spielberg’s West Side Story (delayed a whole year!)… even smaller-scale things like the cool-looking Freaky have been pushed right back. And whilst I’m not exactly looking forward to it, pity poor Peter Rabbit 2, knocked from an early Easter slot when the first lockdown hit, only to have its February half-term run destroyed by Lockdown III. Maybe next year, eh, Peter?

Matrix of Leadership: The Matrix turns 22 this year, shockingly enough, and last time I watched it was still absolutely brilliant in one of those hardly-ever-happens ways. The sequels I could live without, although I’ll warrant they’re still stylish with nice action, but they were a huge disappointment (moreso for me than the often-lambasted Star Wars prequels). However, I am super excited for Lana Wachowski returning to direct a fourth Matrix movie. I don’t know why, but I just think it’ll be great; there’s twenty years’ worth of “internet stuff” and “games stuff” and “comics stuff” she can use as reference or in-joke, and let’s face it, Keanu Reeves has never kicked as much ass in his life as he does in the John Wick movies, so we don’t need to worry about that. What the hell will it be about? How can you make a sequel to what felt like a pretty definitive ending? I mean, half the characters died (spoiler!). But I don’t care about that, I just want to see it (hopefully at a cinema).

One (Other) Ring to Rule Them All: I ended up spending quite a bit of time in Middle-Earth in 2020, including reading The Hobbit to my girls, Unfinished Tales, and Ian Nathan’s book about the making of Peter Jackson’s trilogy, Anything You Can Imagine. So I am, shall we say, primed for Amazon’s new TV adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s opus. The Lord of the Rings series – as I think it might still be called? – will be set a lot earlier than the more famous stories, and although there are a lot of potential hiccups and hurdles in the way, I hope the less-familiar period and setting will offer scope for a series to make its own unexpected journey, showing even those that have read The Silmarillion something they’ve not seen before. I hope they don’t try to make it into Game of Thrones, and I hope they don’t try to shoehorn in too many aspects of The Lord of the Rings (I mean, hobbits shouldn’t really feature too much into it, surely?), but the pedigree is strong and I’m very excited.

Sinful: Russell T. Davies’ last show, Years and Years, was a fascinating combination of terrifying apocalyptic sci-fi and domestic soap opera, and one of the best things that happened in 2019. His next show, It’s a Sin, is about something altogether more real but still apocalyptic: the AIDS crisis in the gay community of the 1980s. I imagine he’ll still be expertly combining soapy drama with casual gaggery and moments of utter heartbreak. Apparently this is a story very close to his heart that he’s been wanting to tell for – yes – years and years, so it’s sure to be one of the TV highlights of 2021.

The Unconfirmed: one of the great things at the start of the year is, you don’t know what you’re going to get. Sometimes you get, well, 2020. But sometimes you don’t! Sometimes you get a year in film like 1984 (Terminator! Ghostbusters! Gremlins!) or 1999 (Matrix! Fight Club! American Beauty!); sometimes you get a year in gaming like 1998 (Half-Life! Zelda! Grim Fandango!) or 2007 (Halo! BioShock! Crackdown!). What’s coming this year? Well, with the new consoles out, we’re going to finally start seeing some new games that wrestle with the hardware; not just the cross-generational likes of Halo or Horizon but some new games, some unannounced games. We’ll also, no doubt, see proper footage and trailers for stuff we do know – Hellblade, Fable, hopefully Perfect Dark. Taika Waititi’s got at least two films on the go; that’ll be good. Spielberg doesn’t usually rest on his laurels; he’s finished West Side Story, so what’s next? Bond will come out, somewhere, somehow; will we get the announcement of a new Bond? Speaking of recasting, is Jodie Whittaker really leaving Doctor Who? I’ve not been too fussed with the show the last couple of years, but I’m always rooting for her and will be sad to see her go; but does that mean we’re in for another New Doctor palaver later this year too? Will we see or hear anything of Rian Johnson’s Star Wars films or, even better, a Knives Out sequel? The new Stranger Things has got to be this year, hasn’t it? What about Star Trek – Picard season 2 and Discovery season 4 should be happening, but will we also see the Pike and Georgiou-focussed spin-offs? God knows! It’s all up in the air! And these are only the things that we know or can speculate a little bit about! But that’s what makes it so exciting.

Well, that’s it for now. As I write this, what can only be called a mob of white supremacist terrorists – idiot insurrectionists, if you will – have stormed the US Capitol. Truly terrifying scenes, given the added worry of the Twat in Chief using the crisis as some phony excuse to cling on to power. I have faith that it’ll be resolved, short-term, and that democracy – capital-D Democracy – will endure, for now. But it just goes to show how volatile everything is. The kids are being homeschooled again. London’s hospitals are teetering on the brink. There’s gunfire in the Senate. But the first Black Senator just got elected in Georgia. My wife’s playing Ooblets. Somewhere it’s sunny, somewhere else a kid’s catching snowflakes, and somewhere else again some lucky sod is getting to watch Nine to Five for the first time ever. Things are scary and often crap but on the whole I think the arc of the universe tilts ever so slightly towards Being Generally Okay.

Take care of yourselves, wear a bloody mask, and here’s to 2021 Being Generally Okay.