#rob sibley

[fezwearingjellybananas]

Some Flash (TV) fic recs for @genworkjune:

Life in Technicolour by templeandarche

"This is my family. I found it all on my own. It's little, and broken, but still good. Yeah, still good". - Stitch

G, 1k, Joe West, Barry Allen, Iris West

with each passing day (the backpack remix) by dancesontrains

"So," Joe said, folding his hands together like he had seen his own father do when he was young, "why were you trying to break your father out of jail?"

Barry looked at Joe. "Because you won't."

G, 1k, Joe West, Barry Allen

Triggers by kitkatt0430

Barry had thought he was fine when he woke up from his coma. Just a few extra powers, nothing to stop him from going right back to work and getting on with his life.

Except... it's not really so easy to bounce back from trauma and the first thunderstorm after Barry wakes up reminds him of this quite firmly.

G, 3k, Barry Allen, David Singh, Rob Singh, Eddie Thawne

Prodigal by cardinalstar

Being an older brother is never easy. Being Cisco Ramon's older brother, Dante finds, is distinctly challenging.

He wishes he didn't see siblinghood as a competition, but when he's been struggling to stay ahead his entire life, it's hard to do anything else.

G, 6k, Dante Ramon, Cisco Ramon, Cisco & Dante's parents

Infinitesimal by sibley (ferns)

The particle accelerator explodes, and Cisco is among hundreds who tender their resignations to Dr. Harrison Wells.

He gets a new job at Mercury Labs relatively quickly. It's nice. Good coworkers, even if some of them are a little weird. Good boss, even if she's strict. Good pay, even if he doesn't always feel like he deserves it after helping someone destroy half the city and ruin people's lives. So overall, it's pretty good.

Well. Except for all the supervillains suddenly trying to recruit him.

T, 11k, Cisco Ramon, Tina McGee, ect

Under the Mask by himynameisv

Everyone thought it was due to trauma over his mother's death. Joe knew better. AU with mute!Barry. One-shot.

T, 1.8k, Joe West, Barry Allen, contains mentions of canonical character deaths

Surprise by sibley (ferns)

“This was a bad idea,” Dawn muttered, pacing back and forth in Cisco’s kitchen. “No, it was a great idea. No, it was a bad idea. No, it was a great idea. No, it was a bad idea. No, it was a great idea. No, it was a bad idea. No-”

G, 1k, Dawn Allen, Cisco Ramon, Iris West, Barry Allen (the first fic I read with a Trans Tornado Twins headcanon, which has stuck so much it's a permanant headcanon now)

all love ever does is (begin again) by shrinkthisviolet

“I’m not exactly a model of healthy grief. But you? You’re Barry Allen, you’re the Flash. Love is your greatest strength—and what’s grief if not love enduring?”

“That’s weirdly sentimental of you.”

Harry’s lips quirk up. “I’m not completely heartless, you know.”

After Flashpoint, Barry finally takes the time to grieve his father.

T, 3k, Barry Allen, Harry Wells, Iris West ect, contains discussions of canonical character death

Reconstruction by kitkatt0430

Kendra Saunders dreams of flying on her own. But the thing is, it has to be her choice.

T, 1.5k, Kendra Saunders (aromantic Kendra!)

an hour in a week (to focus on my thoughts) by shrinkthisviolet

"I'm worried about you, West."

"Well, you shouldn't be. I'm always fine, and I'll be fine now too."

"Are you trying to convince me," Harry asked, "or yourself?"

While Iris is hiding on Earth-2, she and Harry talk, and Iris lets herself feel.

T, 1k, Iris West, Harry Wells, contains discussions of impending character death (set during series 3)

The Haunting of Harrison Wells by QuarticMoose

Harrison Wells died in 1958. Nearly sixty years later, Barry meets a ghost in STAR Labs...

T, 17.9k, Iris West, Barry Allen, Cisco Ramon, Caitlin Snow, Harrison Wells, Eobard Thawne, contains canonical character death (though it's an AU) and briefly mentioned animal death (possibly best not read in bed with the lights switched off)

[finishinglinepress]

FLP CHAPBOOK OF THE DAY: daughter, while i’m still here by Marilyn J. Baszczynski

On SALE now! Pre-order Price Guarantee: https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/daughter-while-im-still-here-by-marilyn-j-baszczynski/

The poems in daughter, while i’m still here capture a #mother’s desire to convey what over eight decades of experiences and learnings have revealed about the fragility of #life, #relationships and happiness, which she shares in poignant moments of recollection during her final weeks in hospice. Each poem reveals fragments of an enduring connection with her #daughter, sometimes wound into stories about teeth, snapshots or shoes, but more often in an opening up of her most vulnerable self. There are reasons to cry, laugh, and grieve as she allows her daughter to share and feel her thoughts, hopes, and dreams, even as she tries to push back against the #dementia that ultimately robs her of her words.

Marilyn Baszczynski is a retired French teacher, originally from Ontario, Canada, who lives and writes in rural Iowa. Her chapbook, Gyuri. A Poem of Wartime Hungary (Whistling Shade) was published in 2015. Her recent poems appear in Backchannels, Conestoga Zen Anthology, Flying Dodo, Gyroscope, Halfway Down the Stairs, Healing Muse, KYSO Flash, Last Stanza, Scapegoat Review, Shot Glass, Slippery Elm, Star82 Review, andSunbeams, among others. Marilyn is editor-in-chief for the Iowa Poetry Association’s Lyrical Iowa anthology since 2017.

PRAISE FOR daughter, while i’m still here by Marilyn J. Baszczynski

Compelling, elegant, and remarkably honest, daughter, while i’m still here is filled with stark, realistic poems that paint an intimate portrait of love, loss, family, identity, and the ever-present need for empathy. In these vibrant poems of nature and biography, Baszczynski showcases a true talent for imbuing the smallest human details with authenticity and layered meanings. Each poem maps out the human heart, in all its internal conflicts, with precision and grace. Overflowing with vivid and accessible language and uniquely compelling structures, daughter, while i’m still here is both intellectually stimulating and emotionally engaging, written with clear eyes and an open, curious heart.

–John Sibley Williams, author or prize-winning Scale Model of a Country at Dawn, The Drowning House, As One Fire Consumes Another and Skin Memory

With a bittersweet intimacy, the voice and persona of a mother in hospice comes fully to life in Marilyn Baszczynski’s daughter, while I’m still here. Through the eyes of a woman in conversation with her daughter, the poet, with her scrapbooks, stilettos, and remembered moments with long-silent loves, Baszczynski weaves a tender narrative through dried roses, dentures and dream dances. Baszczynski, with her light hand and fine craft, simultaneously recreates her mother’s joys while grieving the inevitable: “a laugh rumbles up past congested lungs, / catches in my throat and i cough, while / tears tumble over my crinkled cheeks.” For anyone who is a daughter, a mother, a grandmother, a child, a parent, the power of this work will cause your own re-examination of all that is loved, hidden, transcribed and imagined in your dearest relationships.

–Dawn Terpstra, author of Songs from the Summer Kitchen

Please share/please repost #flpauthor #preorder #AwesomeCoverArt #poetry #chapbook #read #poems #life #relationship #mother #daughter #family #dementia

[viralnews-1]

Recent Match Report - Warwickshire vs Hampshire 2022

Recent Match Report – Warwickshire vs Hampshire 2022

Hampshire 4 for 0 trail Warwickshire 272 for 4 dec (Yates 104, Sibley 54, Holland 3-85) by 268 runs Rob Yates completed his seventh first-class century but Warwickshire and Hampshire were again kept largely inactive on the second day of their crucial LV=Insurance County Championship tussle at Edgbaston. It was a deeply frustrating day for Warwickshire, who must win to have any chance of…

[hopeshoodie]

Ok so in light of the Independent article (see my tag #fusebox layoffs for more info), I’ve been trying to piece together the sequence of events that lead to FB Going to Shit™. 

All of the below is based on articles, tweets from the staff, and dates from screenshots. Especially with the Matchmaker stuff, I’m using the dates I personally accessed the stories- that might not be accurate to when they were actually released to an international audience, just when my phone updated the app. In hindsight, I’m not a great person to do this because I have a shit memory and don’t keep receipts, so if you have any corrections PLEASE lmk either in the dms or replies. 

In sum, the timeline appears to be:

1. Key players left Fusebox in early 2020. 

The one that people are probably most familiar with is David Gallopim, one of the artists who helped define the S2’s distinct style, leaving sometime before March 2020. He seemed to indicate that there was conflict over the new art style of S3, and released assets he’d designed of Harry in his own style (notably way prettier than Harry looks in-game). 

But probably more important to the direction of the company, Michael Othen, one of the co-founders and former CEO, left in July of 2020 (I had thought it was earlier in the year but according to LinkedIn it was July). It’s much more unclear why he left, but it’s notable because he was a huge force in making the game inclusive of LGBTQ characters. 

So all in all, not a great sign when employees who had a huge hand in creating the content and direction of a game that defined its success jump ship. Especially after the game was seemingly hitting its stride, with the host of Love Island (the TV show) doing a sponsored Let’s Play of S3 and projects in the works like Boat Party and CMM.

2. It seems like Fusebox‘s CEO/executives hired new management, either in 2020 or early 2021. Employees complain that the executives don’t understand what it takes to make a game and are pulling the studio in the wrong direction. It’s unclear if the newly hired execs had experience. 

Wil Stephens, the CEO/founder, has been with FB since its inception but also appears to have only founded game distribution ventures and not worked in any development or employment capacity. If that’s the case, maybe the complaints about lack of experience/knowledge about the mechanics of making games work are about him. If not, then some of the newly hired execs would likely be to blame. 

Paul Virapen, COO, was brought on in November of 2020. He’s worked with Disney’s gaming division, Big Pixel studios, Wooga. The quality of that experience is dubious since he headed up the ‘let’s make apps for Apple watches, it’ll be the next big thing’ department… Lol. Notably also, all of his roles had been in the executive/managerial realm, not the development teams, so the complains might have been about him. THIS IS SPECULATION, but I’m willing to bet that Virapen was a if not THE driving force in switching Fusebox’s focus entirely to matchmaker. All the studios he’s worked with have primarily produced and promoted Match 3 games, and he has a background working with big studios that produce games for large international audiences, not small studios making narrative games for limited audiences.

A new Manager of Finances, Ruth Erskine, was brought on in December of 2020

Rob Goddard, a new producer, was brought in January of 2021

Several key operations positions were filled by existing employees being promoted to management- 2 as far as I can tell. But as a whole it seems like December 2020 was a huge shift in leadership for the upper management while a lot of the other teams expanded but kept their old players as well.

3. At some point in late 2020- mid 2021, the executive team made the decision to switch LITG’s focus from a narrative pass-based game to a Match 3 incorporating romance narrative cut scenes. In early 2021, Fusebox teased more content to come while releasing S3 (seemingly referring to Matchmaker and not S4). In the interim between S3 endings and Boat Party’s release they put out an interview confirming the new game will be Match 3 but did seem to indicate that the plan at that time was for Matchmaker to be a side project with a different development team and not replace the main game. Notably, the LITG writers and artists were reassured that their roles will continue to exist (according to the independent article) as they’re working on S4.

3. In September of 2020, Matchmaker became briefly available in the US. That’s when I first downloaded it, at least. It would be added/removed from the google play store multiple times before having a unilateral release in July of 2021. 

Throughout 2020, Matchmaker is available to Asian audiences solely with LITG S1 getting rolled out in incremental updates. 

Eventually, Beanie Quinn is released (March 2021)

LA Noir is released (May 2021)

Seduction Games is released (late May or June 2021- I got the update and played it June 3rd, but hadn’t opened the app for a month or so. It might have come out before then, which is unfortunate for this timeline since it’s so inextricably linked to the open letter and layoff dates)

LITG S2 is released (only like 20 levels of it) the same month- June 19th for me. Notably, all of these stories are only released to an international audience, with the UK and USA still not having access to the app.

4. At the same time, Fusebox’s internal affairs are pretty quiet from 2020-2021, at least on social media. 

S3 comes out in 2020, Boat Party comes out later in the year and finishes in 2021. Post S3 in October of 2021, a survey goes out gauging player interest in new art styles and representation, which was pretty in keeping with past actions and seemed promising for S4. 

Boat Party features a promising cross promotion implementing irl brands into the game. It’s unclear if enough money was made from this on FB or the sponsor’s end to make that strategy viable, but that might’ve impacted management’s outlook for the profitability of LITG.  

Fusebox teases more content for the summer on Instagram, and then follows up and confirms it’ll be a proper season.

5. More key players leave in early 2021

Ed Sibley is still listed as Narrative Direction on LinkedIn, but he’s not credited as a writer on Season 4 (he was on 3,2,and 1) and started work with NetSpeak games in May of 2021, so we can assume he left around then or at least transitioned away from Fusebox then.

Fred Francis, another writer who had been on the team since S1, turns in his resignation ‘weeks’ before the layoffs were announced in late June. So we can assume he made his exit sometime early June or late May.

6. Prior to the release of Seduction games in May/June, staff expressed concern about the biphobia in Seduction Games. No sources have given a specific time when this took place. They were reassured that the problem would be corrected prior to release, but then the story was released as is to an international audience in June. The article released by the Independent is unclear- there might have been discussion prior to the open letter where staff expressed concerns and then were reassured before the game going live. OR the open letter might have been the first expression of concern by the staff. I tend to think the former, and the open letter was a response to Matchmaker going live with Seduction Games anyways, but I have no proof for that. On May 24th, 31 employees sent an open letter of concern regarding the problematic content in Matchmaker. This letter isn’t public, so we don’t know the scope of the employees' concerns or who the employees were.

7. To resolve the situation, a meeting between the staff and at least the COO (likely more than just him though) was held sometime after May 24th. Allegedly, Virapen was disrespectful to the employees who had questions, refused to answer, and ended the meeting early before any resolution was had by closing his laptop and leaving the room. At least 4 HR complaints were made in the wake of that meeting, we do not know the nature of those complaints. 

8. Some time mid-July (maybe July 26th? A writer tweeted about their job ending soon on that date), employees were made aware that the LITG app would move into ‘sunset mode’. It’s unclear what was communicated, but it seems as though S4 will be heavily delayed or cancelled altogether and no future seasons would be made. Writers begin to post about looking for work on Twitter

9. June 30th- The majority of Fusebox writing staff announce on twitter they’re out of work. In addition to the entire writing staff, unity engineers and producers are also let go.

10. July 5th - Fusebox executives respond to an article by MCVUK with a statement asserting they were “consulting with [their] employees on a proposed change to its business model” that would focus on producing Matchmaker content. They also expounded that the move was to secure “cash injections and and continued support from respected investors across the media and gaming industry”

11. July 6th- Fusebox announces that S4 will be delayed from the summer release date and that there is no fixed release date. 

12. August 2nd- three jobs are posted to Fusebox’s careers page on their website, one being Head of Narrative Content. In the job listing, it specifies that they’ll be maintaining existing properties as well as new ones, and that because of the co-development model (re:fusebox outsourcing Matchmaker to another studio) the new Narrative Lead must collaborate with external content creators.

Hopefully posting this timeline gives players a better understanding of how radically Fusebox has changed in the course of 2021 (and how royally they screwed over the people who made LITG what it is). Again, please let me know if you have receipts showing dates are different or things to add. 

[shefaniquotes]

Gwen: „We like to do everything together – fight, not fight, hang out, talk, eat, be on The Voice.“

Blake: „It’s true.“

Gwen and Blake, The Voice, October 2019

“He's my best friend. We tell each other everything and I don't want to do anything without him.”

Gwen, Apple Music’s At Home With Sessions, December 2020

 [Playing a game called ‘For goodness' Blake’] Radio DJ: “When [Blake] tries to make you watch something you’re not into?”

Gwen: “Oh, you mean like every day. I’m good with that. At the end of the day, I just like hanging out with Blake. It doesn’t matter what we do”

Gwen, The Morning Mash Up, September 2019

Sibley Scoles: “What’s the last TV show Gwen binge-watched?”

Blake: “Paw Patrol. Sat right through it with her.”

Blake, E! News, February 2017

“When I met [Blake], it was when Gwen Stefani first started her makeup line. And so I said to him, ‘I’m wearing Gwen’s eyeshadow right now’. And he was like, ‘Oh, no way. Me and Gwen, we were just lying in bed together the other day, we were looking at YouTube videos of all these girls and what they do with her makeup and it’s so cool.’”

Radio DJ, ATM Podcast, November 2017

“The Eighties is what we have, you know, in common. Like from the movies to music, like you say, it’s crazy how much we have in common when it comes to that decade. It’s nuts.”

Blake, Rob and Holly on 99.5 WYCD, November 2017

“I love to be in Oklahoma and I love to be in nature. I love to relax and cook. I also love to garden and watch my chickens grow up.”

Gwen, E! News, June 2019

“I play tennis, badly, with Blake. Then we go to the gym.”

Gwen, Shape Magazine, October 2019

“We [sing together] all the time. We sing at the house, music is such a part of our everyday life.”

Blake, E! News, January 2020

“Me and Blake watch [Mollie B. Polka Party].”

Gwen, The Voice, October 2020 Gwen and Blake on how they spend their spare time, various interviews

[kwebtv]

TV Guide -  December 31, 1960 - January 6, 1961

Dorothy Michelle Provine (January 20, 1935 – April 25, 2010) Singer, dancer and actress. Born in 1935 in Deadwood, South Dakota, she grew up in Seattle, Washington, and was hired in 1958 by Warner Bros., after which she first starred in The Bonnie Parker Story and played many roles in TV series. During the 1960s, Provine starred in series such as The Alaskans and The Roaring 20's

In 1958, she performed in a credited walk-on part in the NBC Western television series Wagon Train, in the episode "The Marie Dupree Story." In 1959,  she again appeared in Wagon Train in the episode "Matthew Lowry Story", this time having a part that ran the full episode.

On January 3, 1959, Provine appeared as Laura Winfield in the episode "The Bitter Lesson" of the NBC Western series Cimarron City. Laura Winfield is a newly arrived schoolteacher with false credentials who is plotting with a male companion to rob a stage shipment of gold, but not before Deputy Sheriff Lane Temple (series star John Smith) falls in love with her. Dan Blocker and Gregg Palmer also appear in this episode as interested suitors of the new teacher. A few weeks thereafter, she was cast in a supporting role in the episode "The Giant Killer" of the ABC/Warner Bros. Western series Sugarfoot, with Will Hutchins in the title role.

In 1959, Provine appeared as Ann Donnelly in the episode "The Confession" of another ABC/WB Western series, Colt .45, starring Wayde Preston. Charles Aidman was cast in this episode as Arthur Sibley; Don C. Harvey as Sheriff Clinter. About this time she was also cast in an episode of the ABC sitcom The Real McCoys starring Walter Brennan.

Another 1959 appearance was as "Chalmers" in the episode "Blood Money" of the CBS televised Western The Texan starring Rory Calhoun as Bill Longley and Ralph Meeker in the guest cast as Sam Kerrigan. She also guest starred in the syndicated Western series Man Without a Gun starring Rex Reason.

Provine had a starring role in two ABC/WB series: The Alaskans (1959–1960), in the role of Rocky Shaw and with Roger Moore, and The Roaring 20's (1960–1962), in which she played the beautiful singer Pinky Pinkham. A profile in Time stated that "It is Dorothy’s oooohing and shimmying that have kept the series afloat."  Rex Reason, from Man Without a Gun, co-starred with her in The Roaring 20s, along with Donald May, John Dehner, Mike Road, and Gary Vinson. Provine recorded an album of songs from the show, and had two hit singles in the UK Singles Chart — "Don't Bring Lulu" (number 17 in 1961) and "Crazy Words, Crazy Tune" (number 45 in 1962).  

She guest-starred in the 25th episode of The Gallant Men called "Tommy", which aired in March 1963. Her character name was Joyce Adams, a singer who entertained the troops.

In September 1965, Provine starred in the two-part episode "Alexander the Greater" that opened the second season of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. TV series, alongside Rip Torn and David Opatoshu.  (Wikipedia)

[godzilla-reads]

Nonfiction Reading List

I love a good novel, but I also really like nonfiction books and all the information I can get from them, so here’s a list of some great greats!

Autobiography

“A Zoo in my Luggage” by Gerald Durrell

“I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness” by Austin Channing Brown

“Naturally Tan: A Memoir” by Tan France

“Mercury and Me” by Jim Hutton

“Assata: An Autobiography” by Assata Shakur

LGBTQ+

“Stonewall” by Martin Duberman

“This Book is Gay” by Juno Dawson

“Fun Home: A family Tragicomic” by Alison Bechdel

“Boy Erased: A Memoir” by Garrard Conley

“Redefining Realness” by Janet Mock

Bookish

“When Books Went to War” by Molly Guptill Manning

“Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader” by Anne Fadiman

“Diary of a Bookseller” by Shaun Bythell

“The Year of Reading Dangerously” by Andy Miller

“I’d Rather Be Reading” by Anne Bogel

Animals

“American Wolf” by Nate Blakeslee

“The Soul of an Octopus” by Sy Montgomery

“The Animal Dialogues” by Craig Childs

“Among the Bone Eaters” by Marcus Baynes-Rock

“In the Company of Crows and Ravens” by John Marzluff and Tony Angell

Pets

“Shelter Dogs” by Peg Kehret

“Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World” by Bret Witter and Vicki Myron

“Wesley the Owl” by Stacey O’Brien

“Alex and Me” by Irene M. Pepperberg

“Homer’s Odyssey” by Gwen Cooper

Plants

“The Hidden Life of Trees” by Peter Wohlleben

“The Little Book of House Plants and Other Greenery” by Emma Sibley

“The Emerald Planet” by David Beerling

“Wicked Plants” by Amy Stewart and Briony Morrow-Cribbs

“Braiding Sweetgrass” by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Ocean

“Down, Down, Down: A Journey to the Bottom of the Sea” by Steve Jenkins

“The Brilliant Deep” by Kate Messner

“The Perfect Storm” by Sebastian Junger

“The Unnatural History of the Sea” by Callum Roberts

“Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle” by Claire A. Nivola

Children’s/Young Readers/YA

“Pride: The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag” by Rob Sanders

“Americanized: A Rebel Without a Green Card” by Sara Saedi

“Alice Paul and the Fight for Women’s Rights” by Deborah Kops

“Enchanted Air: Two Cultures, Two Wings” by Margarita Engle

“#NotYourPrincess: Voices of Native American Women” by Lisa Charleyboy and Beth Leatherdale

[enkisstories]

Caroline: “Well, the family you already HAVE would like to see you around more often!”

Daniel: “Is that about me driving to Sibley today? That’s twenty minutes there and twenty back again. I’ll be back in time for the feast with plenty of time to spare!”

John: “It’s less about the time and more about the principle. Normally I’d be all for putting work first, but not today. Today is our first time celebrating Thanksgiving as a real family. ”

Daniel: “The Andersons aren’t just a job. They are...”

Caroline: “They are the people who tried to rob us blind while posing as interior designers! Who almost got you and Johnny killed! And even if it wasn’t personal between us and those lowlifes, they just aren’t our kind of people.”

Daniel: “Disapproving of my friends? Yay for giving me a taste of the childhood I never had, “mom”!”

John: “Looks like our android entered the rebellious phase. Isn’t that exciting? Makes one feel all mature and accomplished in the parenting department!”

Caroline: “Tell me more about being mature...” *giggles*

[piraticalarchive]

Mrs Sibley:

“Indeed, Captain. That is a question I have long pondered myself.” The words were a murmur of sound, one brow lifting in quiet agreement as she raised her gaze to his for the briefest of moments. Mary rarely gave insight into her private musings, yet something in his words had struck a chord within her, a flicker of some inward humor that tugged gently at one corner of a generous mouth.

“Perhaps it is one best saved for the sages, those wiser than you and I?” The self-deprecating tone was entirely false, of course, for who was wiser thanshe? Yet the need to draw this man into her confidence and glean just what he might know of their world was greater than any desire to prove herself, and Mary stifled the smirk that lingered just beneath the benign smile.

Instead one slender hand came to rest upon leather-clad forearm, pulling him into her web of deceit as a spider lures its prey, guileless in her approach. “Tell me, Captain, of your many exploits. I find life here to be so dreadfully dull, and you must have seen so much of the world.”

The candle’s light flickers over her face, shadows dancing across her alluring beauty like a siren’s call for a poor man to notice. Blue eyes blink against the rapture that so wants to entrance him, traveling from the soft curve of her lips to the dark eyes hidden behind long lashes...

Bloody hell.

“Aye, that I have - “ The fingers on his coat sleeve burn, leather against flesh an unwelcome touch to the desire he finds roaring to life within. “ - though I’m afraid I’ve never found a town quite as .. pious... as your dear Salem.” Lips twitch in the corners at his own little jest and Killian cocks his head, wondering what secret she expects of him. Witch is the word on every tongue and so he guards his every move, lest he be their next victim. 

The silence between them grows, a deep quiet that would normally leave him unsettled, but now just serves to leave him breathless. “You flatter me, lo - Mrs. Sibley.” Life on the sea can rob a man of propriety, and he winces at the slip to such a respectable woman ... hoping that she finds no offense. He has business in this town, aye - and he aims to remain until he finishes it. “ Apologies my lady, for the first time in a long while I find myself short of words. Perhaps due to your undying beauty.” A noise from upstairs startles him, blue eyes flickering to the ceiling before once more following the path back to her. Its almost as if he can’t look away. “ I hear your husband has suffered an affliction. Shame, that. A woman like you is built for adventure .. the likes of which can only be rivaled by the open sea.”

[sinsoakedsaints]

he’s back on his bullshit your honour, and it’s with the deepest of regrets that this time, he’s gone full clownery. 

basic information – spider sibley.

birth name: spider.

full name: spider wade sibley. 

nickname: incy wincy. 

age: late 30s to early 40s, verse dependent.

star sign: pisces.

gender + pronouns: cis male + he/him.

occupation: grifter. 

species: human.

faceclaim: jensen ackles. 

➔ born on a commune to a large ‘family’ that outsiders would brand a religious sect, spider was gifted with his name when he came into the world ‘all arms and legs’ and wriggling like it was his job. 

➔ for the first thirteen years of his life, he lived on the commune in relative bliss. he absorbed his leaders teachings like the gospel he was lead to believe they were, and thrived working the land. despite not having a traditional relationship with his birth parents, he was happy to learn and grow among a growing group of people he considered his own. 

➔ nothing lasts forever, especially cults masquerading as religions, and his world turned sharply on a dime with the sound of megaphones and the sight of heavy duty weapons. the siege lasted for forty two days in total, culminating in a tear gas strike on the compound by the armed men. 

➔ despite not being able to recall much about the day he was taken, he had been told over and over in the weeks that followed that it had been a rescue. mostly by his adoptive parents, who’s strange way of life were more unsettling than anything else for him. he lived with the sibley’s from age fourteen until he turned eighteen in the governments eyes, and that’s when spider took off without ever looking back. 

➔ he only learned to read in his teens, and even then he’s never particularly enjoyed it. he forcibly dropped out of three high schools before his adoptive parents tried a home tutor, and even then he never got close to graduating. 

➔ a drifter through and through, spider’s come to find that his strengths lay in using what he was thought on the commune to his advantage -- namely that sharing is caring. his klepto mindset has landed him in hot water too many times to count, but he’s grateful that he looks good in a mugshot. 

universes and genres i’d like to play spider in.

when he’s not trying to swindle or rob on y’all, i can definitely adapt him to work in these universes –

the purge / barry / how to get away with murder / the resident / ready or not / emergence / the walking dead / the good place / the town / IT / 9-1-1 / any kind of horror plot / animal kingdom / sons of anarchy / supernatural / most things within reason in this tag.

universes and genres i will not play spider in.

anywhere up the water spout, where down can come the rain. 

➔ like this if you wanna plot with m’itsy bitsy and i’ll hit you up! 

[netbreakingnews9]

County Championship: Rob Yates digs in as Warwickshire pursue victory against Hampshire

County Championship: Rob Yates digs in as Warwickshire pursue victory against Hampshire

Rob Yates has already hit three County Championship centuries for Warwickshire at Edgbaston this summer LV= County Championship Division One, Edgbaston (day three): Hampshire 89: Rhodes 5-23 & 322: Barker 75, Vince 48, Wheal 46; Norwell 4-64, Briggs 3-66 Warwickshire 116: Abbas 5-29, Barker 5-43 & 139-2: Yates 70*, Sibley 47; Dawson 2- Warwickshire (3 pts) need 157 more runs to beat Hampshire…

[sportsrepo]

Cricket: Rob Yates, Dom Sibley bore for glory as Warwickshire take victory shot seriously

Cricket: Rob Yates, Dom Sibley bore for glory as Warwickshire take victory shot seriously

Report Slow grind towards 296-run target makes for a day for the purists at Edgbaston Warwickshire 116 and 139 for 2 (Yates 70*, Sibley 47) require a further 157 runs to beat Hampshire 89 and 322 (Barker 75, Norwell 4-72) TS Eliot’s J Alfred Prufrock measured out his life in coffee spoons. At Edgbaston, Dom Sibley and Rob Yates preferred to measure theirs out in dot balls. Prufrock reflected…

[kwebtv]

Bodies  -  BBC Three  -  June 23, 2004  -  December 13, 2006

Medical Drama (17 Episodes)

Running Time:  60 minutes

Stars:

Max Beesley as Dr. Rob Lake

Patrick Baladi as Dr. Roger Hurley

Neve McIntosh as Sister Donna Rix

Keith Allen as Dr. Tony Whitman

Susan Lynch as Dr. Maria Orton

Tamzin Malleson as Dr. Polly Grey

Preeya Kalidas as Dr. Maya Dutta

Simon Lowe as Dr. Tim Sibley

Hattie Morahan as Beth Lucas

Vicky Hall as Chrissy Farrell

Nicholas Palliser as Sir Paul Tennant

Saskia Reeves as Mary Dodd

Mary Stockley as Susannah Marshall

[pakcricwiz]

England v West Indies: first Test, day one – live!

OBO updates from the behind-closed-doors Test at the Rose Bowl

Let nerves jangle and adrenaline flow: the first Test is here

Send your thoughts to Rob by email here

10.29am BST

“Greetings, Rob”, shouts out OBO stalwart Wayne Trotman from Izmir, (west coast Turkey for those who failed Geography GCSE ‘O’ level back in the day). “And greetings to all around the world tuning in for some distraction from news about you-know-what. Rob, today, is it a case of win the toss and bat, or win the toss, think about it for five seconds and bat? As usual, we are hanging on your every word, lad.”

Legal disclaimer: the Guardian is not legally responsible for the consequences of readers hanging on any of Rob Smyth’s words, never mind all of them. As for the toss, I suspect whoever wins it will bat but I don’t think it’s a straightforward decision. It’s overcast and we’re not sure what the pitch will be like, so there will be a tempation to let the opposition have first use. As a philosopher once said, you don’t want to go into the unknown not knowing. But

10.23am BST

If, as expected, England's top four is Burns, Sibley, Crawley and Denly, then it'll be the least experienced England top order (in terms of caps) since the fifth Test of the 1989 Ashes. The top four for that Test was Curtis (4), Moxon (9), Atherton (0) and Smith (6).#ENGvWI

If England have the same 50 per cent success rate as they did with those 1989 selections - Burns and Crawley the favourites in this case - we’ll all be very happy.

Continue reading... from Blogger https://ift.tt/38BanDk

[doctorwhonews]

Torchwood: Aliens Among Us - Part 1

Latest Review: Written By: James Goss, Juno Dawson, AK Benedict Directed By: Scott Handcock ​Lead Cast: John Barrowman (Captain Jack Harkness), Kai Owen (Rhys Williams), Tom Price (Sgt Andy Davidson), Paul Clayton (Mr Colchester), Alexandria Riley (Ng), Jonny Green (Tyler Steele), and Eve Myles (Gwen Cooper) Supporting Cast: Stephen Critchlow (The Mayor), Rachel Atkins (Ro-Jedda), Ruth Lloyd (Vorsun), Sophie Colquhoun (Madrigal), Rhian Marston-Jones (Quenel), Lu Corfield (Brongwyn), Rhys Whomsley (Osian), Sharon Morgan (Mary Cooper), David Sibley (Vincent Parry), Sam Béart (Catrin Parry), Anthony Boyle (Hotel Manager), Sam Jones (Toobert Jailert), Wilf Scolding (Personal Trainer) ​Released by Big Finish Productions - August 2017 In receiving the licensed green light to revive Doctor Who’s first full-fledged TV spin-off show, Torchwood, as an ongoing series of audio dramas in May 2015, Big Finish set themselves arguably their most daunting challenge since embarking upon a mission to do likewise for Who back in 1999. Like its mother show in the 1970s, the four season-strong, adult-geared BBC sci-fi drama had reached the height of its televisual powers by 2009, producing an award-winning miniseries in Children of Earth which suggested its writers had finally perfected their efforts to blend universe expansion with compelling, mature storylines capable of attracting newcomers alongside ever-devoted followers of the Doctor. Just as the arrival of iconic figures like Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy and John Nathan-Turner bred behind-the-scenes troubles which ultimately sealed Who’s 19-year hiatus, however, so too did Torchwood’s golden age of on-screen success reach a swift, turbulent crescendo just moments after its apex. The Starz-produced fourth season Miracle Day lacked the narrative momentum, multi-faceted supporting characters or overall British charm which had reaped Children of Earth such universal acclaim two years beforehand, once again prompting a previously beloved sci-fi saga to enter an indefinite purgatorial state, particularly as its showrunner Russell T Davies faced heartbreaking personal struggles not long after the run’s Summer 2011 broadcast. But between their sensational opening trio of monthly runs featuring beloved characters like Gwen Cooper, Toshiko Sato, Ianto Jones and of course the indomitable Captain Jack Harkness (if you’ve yet to try The Conspiracy, Uncanny Valley, Zone 10, Broken or Corpse Day, then head to Big Finish’s website when you’re done here and remedy that error), the tremendous The Torchwood Archive serving as both a fitting series coda and 10th anniversary special, and box-sets like Before the Fall offering profound insights into the titular secret agency’s mysterious past, Big Finish have more than confirmed their status as the brand’s perfect gatekeepers for the foreseeable future. Next up on their agenda, then? Continuing the story where Miracle Day left off, albeit making a few welcome course corrections en route to ensure that Season Five doesn’t trigger another near-death experience for Torchwood. Even with the support of the mighty Russell behind them, can the studio pull off such a Herculean feat, no longer simply hopping between eras of the show for standalone romps but instead conveying a whole new arc over the course of 12 episodes and three box-sets? Let’s begin the quest to find out with Aliens Among Us – Part 1, evaluating each of the four hour-long instalments in detail before ascertaining whether James Goss and company should ever have bothered embarking upon this audacious campaign… Changes Everything: “Torchwood is dead.” There’s an unmistakable sense of irony about wright James Goss’ decision to invert the title of Torchwood’s pilot episode in naming Season Five’s opener. While the Cardiff of “Changes Everything” has undergone no shortage of transformations, between mass immigration, mass homelessness and mass alien infiltration, while Jack and Gwen were fighting to end the Miracle in the US of A, this compelling first chapter largely works to re-establish much of the show’s pre-Miracle Day status quo, from the shattered but still intact Hub to the team’s iconic SUV to Jack and Gwen back in business at Torchwood Three’s helm. Much of the real change, then, comes with Goss’ introduction of two deliciously morally and psychologically complex new – potential in one case – recruits to the team this time around. Enter the irritable but courageous civil servant Mr. Colchester and the intrepid but concerningly ruthless ex-paparazzi Tyler Steele, the former of whom comes off as initially closed-minded yet has plenty more to him than meets the eye and the latter - brought brilliantly to life as an unashamedly slimy rogue by Jonny Green - bound to rile most listeners with his self-serving rationale as much as he does the rest of the team. For reasons that will become obvious by the end of the hour, Russell’s influence upon the characterisation of these two new players is as clear as daylight, lending them the same dramatically layered but equally realistic personalities that one would expect of any of the Doctor’s 2005-2009 companions or indeed any employee at Torchwood until the Miracle. It’s thanks to this pair of ever-evolving characters largely taking centre-stage – especially in Tyler’s case – here that a somewhat necessarily by-the-books set-up storyline revealing the existence of an unseen alien community pulling the strings in Cardiff remains thoroughly engaging to sit through, though that’s not to say the plot doesn’t pack any dramatic heft in its own right. Much as we’ve encountered plenty such shady organisations such as those behind Season Four’s Miracle or indeed the Committee at the heart of Big Finish’s Torchwood monthly range to date, that the latest foes to emerge from the Rift provoke racist sentiments and terror attacks across Wales’ capital city gives “Changes” a disturbingly relevant edge, the depiction of bombings taking countless lives sure to unsettle anyone following today’s headlines but all the more relevant a subject matter for the show to tackle. As with most season premieres aiming to kick-start a season-spanning arc, the extra narrative legwork “Changes” must perform ultimately robs the opening outing of the chance to become a stellar standalone outing, but even so, by injecting the show with a fresh, volatile new team dynamic at Torchwood Three and harrowing poignancy via its topical real-world ties, Goss sets Aliens Among Us off on a promising trajectory indeed. Aliens & Sex & Chips & Gravy: “Right then, let’s go to a hen night.” Has any episode title ever served to summarised the core tenants of Torchwood as a work of mature yet oft-hilarious drama than the epithet Goss attributes to Season Five’s sophomore outing? Probably not, but thankfully the man responsible for helming the brand at Big Finish doesn’t get complacent off the back of this unparalleled achievement, instead finding time to devise a largely isolated storyline which dedicates almost an hour’s worth of time to developing bothEve Myles’ Gwen and Paul Clayton’s Colchester, not to mention exploring the fascinating interplay between these two world-wearied soldiers as they march into one of their most unlikely – not to mention hugely comedic – missions yet. Laden with outrageous set-pieces – from absurd hostage situations to drunken car chases – and unsubtle but warranted politico-religious commentary, Goss’ script follows these veteran crime-fighters in their efforts to determine how young Madrigal’s upcoming wedding nuptials are connected to the still-mysterious powers manipulating Cardiff for their own ends, only for their investigation to result in the increasingly inebriated Maddie causing them no shortage of explosive grief throughout the night. One does admittedly get the sense as “Aliens & Sex & Chips & Gravy” progresses that Goss thought this delightfully disbelief-uprooting premise was entertaining enough to fuel an entire hour of audio drama, since the second act of proceedings feels rather padded, throwing in convoluted further plot developments and additional characters who don’t add a great deal to proceedings beyond further exposition surrounding the nature of Madrigal’s betrothal. All the same, with Myles and Clayton on top form as they explore how their respective characters deal with leading lives of near-total dishonesty when balancing work with family ties, with Sophie Colquhoun’s Madrigal serving up a veritable array of painfully chuckle-worthy one-liners with each successive pint consumed, and with Goss even finding time to resolve loose plot threads from Titan Comics’ Torchwood strip by revealing the fate of the Ice Maiden’s crew, “Gravy” achieves more than enough in its running time – and builds more than enough intrigue for what’s to come – to stave off any occasional sense of plot tedium. Most importantly of all, that Episode 2 gave yours truly the joy of writing out its pitch-perfect title in full for this review is reason enough for its existence. Orr: “Who knew there was an alien black market right in the middle of Cardiff city centre?” Clearly not content with allowing Goss to expand Torchwood’s core roster with Colchester and Tyler, Juno Dawson adds another player into the mix with Orr, a third RTD-endorsed recruit whose alien heritage affords her some, well, alluring abilities that play glorious havoc with each member of the team here. “Orr” once again marks a near-complete tonal departure from its immediate predecessor, returning to explore the haunting implications of extremist fanatics for a Cardiff already at economic war with itself, while also throwing in aspects of romance and series-changing tragedy for good measure along the way. As one might well imagine, handling such a delicate balancing act – and having to carry the burden of progressing Aliens Among Us’ overall arc in a far more substantial manner than “Gravy” with the full-scale arrival of the season’s core antagonist – would prove a challenging at best prospect for even the most accomplished of scribes. Sure enough, what with tackling weighty concepts like housing shortages, illegal commercial transactions hidden in plain sight and shapeshifts forced to cater for their onlookers’ sexual fantasies, Dawson can’t quite avoid imbuing “Orr” with a lingering sense of tonal discontinuity at times, struggling to decide whether to focus on the hearty laughs Orr’s powers inspire, the aforementioned topicality of her plot or indeed setting up a twist set to inextricably alter Aliens Among Us’ trajectory for the next nine episodes. Thank goodness, then, that the merits of those individual plot and character threads are strong enough to leave the listener suitably chortled, emotionally wrought and ultimately captivated to discover what lies around the corner as soon as the show’s iconic end credits sting kicks in. As shown by her sublime Torchwood one-off outing The Dollhouse back in April, when left to her own devices Dawson’s got more than enough comedic and dramatic chops to pull off a standalone storyline for the range, but even if “Orr” can’t quite match that entertaining Charlie’s Angels-riffing adventure’s lofty heights, as a penultimate instalment for Part 1 it’s got more than enough to keep fans and newcomers alike engaged. Superiority Complex: “All life is equal – animal, mechanical and everything in-between.” Those wanting Part 1’s concluding instalment to serve as a gripping mid-season finale which leaves one desperate to hear the next four episodes might need to restrain those expectations somewhat. Much as “Superiority Complex” affords the whole team plenty to do as they infiltrate a prospering alien hotel to determine the source of recent on-site murders, with John Barrowman clearly relishing Jack’s newfound role as a typically flirtatious barman and Orr’s abilities granting her unprecedented access to employees’ psyches, it’s certainly not concerned with resolving or substantially progressing many plot threads established so far, barring a last-minute cliffhanger which promises dire straits for Torchwood Three come October’s Part 2. With that disclaimer out of the way, though, listeners can focus on simply enjoying the sheer lunacy of the team’s present situation, one member hiding a particularly juicy secret as she spars wits with disgruntled guests and Orr’s encounters with the hotel’s true management proving both ridiculous and tangible given the current exponential growth of artificial intelligence. Between uniting Jack with a British monarch in The Victorian Age and transforming Cardiff into a disease-ridden warzone in Outbreak, AK Benedict  is no stranger to devising logic-eschewing premises anyway, but “Complex” tests the extent to which your disbelief can be suspended like never before, an experiment which if nothing else ensures an unpredictable listening experience presumably akin to watching an episode of the original TV series while under the influence of narcotic substances. Better yet, come Episode 4’s credits we’re left with the unmistakable, gratifying sense of a truly reinvigorated Torchwood, one packing a familiar status quo but with revitalising new elements in the form of the team’s latest recruits, and the fresh, unstable dynamic between protagonists old and new ensuring that both the standalone and arc-orientated instalments compel. If Goss and company could work to justify Kai Owen and Tom Price’s top billings as Rhys and Andy – neither of whom get much in the way of dramatic meat until “Superiority” – next time around, and develop the elusive Ro-Jedda as a multi-dimensional antagonist for Jack et al to battle, then Part 2 could take the show to Children of Earth-rivalling heights once more, but for now, the show’s well and truly back on form, and long may it reign as such at Big Finish. http://reviews.doctorwhonews.net/2017/08/torchwood_aliens_among_us_part_1.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=tumblr

[footballnewsscout-blog]

Arsenal v Lincoln City: FA Cup quarter-final – live!

Live updates from the 5.30pm GMT kick-off

Email Rob here with your considered opinions

Wenger confident he can win back faith of fans

Scoreboard: all Saturday’s results and latest scores

LIVE Updated

Lincoln’s Alan Power in action with Arsenal’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Photograph: John Sibley/Reuters Key events Show

11.42am EST11:42 Team news

6.31am EST06:31 Preamble