#there are already some notable differences in the netflix show to how they are handling katara and aang that I really appreciate

[runawaymun]

if you don't mind me asking, what's wrong with kataang? i haven't watched avatar but i know the plot through osmosis, and wanted to hear your thoughts on that

Ah okay! Let me try to explain...

Caveat 1: this will probably be a bit rambly Caveat 2: it has been a long time since I watched either At:LA or TLoK, but I have watched it both as a kid (teenager, really) and as an adult multiple times.

My problems with kataang is kind of split into two categories: problems with the ship based off of who they are as characters from a writing/themes/narrative arc/messaging standpoint, and problems presented by how the creators of At:LA and TLoK - Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konieztko (not Aaron Ehasz you're doing amazing sweetie) treat the characters and seem to think about the characters, based off of choices that they made in the telling of the story, especially how the characters are treated in their endgame scenario in TLoK (which, notably, Aaron Ehasz didn't write for due to creative differences).

TLDR: IMO Kataang ruins the character arcs, they're bad for each other, and the writers did a disservice to Katara in favorite of their pet meow meow -- which hurt both character arcs and legacies, ultimately.

My chief issue is that Katara and Aang are bad for each other, romantically. They bring out the worst in each other. They're bad at holding healthy boundaries, bad at communicating, and the ship itself is very unbalanced. And I wouldn't have a problem with this if it was recognized by the narrative or the shippers, but the narrative treats them as a great love story when really it's anything but. I won't get into age differences -- because by the time they marry a two-year age difference is very negligible and I don't really think it's a good argument against the ship (even if I do think that shipping a 12 year old boy with a 14 year old girl is insane like what 14 year old girl WANTS to date a 12 year old boy. 12 year old boys are gross haha <3) -- but let's talk about it from a thematic and character growth standpoint.

Aang's arc is fundamentally about not running away from his problems, and learning to step into his role as the Avatar. He struggles with responsibility, struggles with emotional regulation, and struggles in the tension between being very much a 12-13yo kid, and being the Avatar, who has to save the world. His arc is beautiful. It's done SO WELL. And he manages to stay true to himself and I love that for him.

Katara's arc IMO is fundamentally about learning to fight for herself, and not just for others. Katara is very maternal. She has had to grow up extremely quickly in the face of losing both parents at a young age, and understanding that she has to live in constant fear of being murdered for her waterbending abilities. She constantly has to stand up for herself, and has a bad habit of suppressing difficult feelings in lieu of helping others work through theirs. This culminates in Katara taking several seasons (iirc) to actually properly talk to someone about her grief and the burden she is carrying, and to learn to set healthy boundaries -- to help her friends and to grow into a strong warrior and work on herself.

The problem here is that the narrative, over and over, forces Katara to emotionally regulate Aang, and this is never really addressed. They have really poor boundaries and she's always mothering him -- Aang is not a partner for her. He doesn't often reciprocate the same level of support that she gives to him -- mostly because he is twelve. Katara, narratively, acts like a crutch for Aang to lean on. Aang actively holds Katara back from setting healthy boundaries and growing into her own person.

They have an emotionally imbalanced relationship, and again -- Michael and Bryan really don't ever try to rectify this, and I think also they're just really bad at writing romance idk. Because over and over Aang makes passes at Katara, and Katara never really expresses interest. That could be down to Katara being bad at expressing her emotions, but it really doesn't feel like it. The last straw for me -- from a narrative standpoint, is the episode where Aang confesses his feelings to Katara, Katara literally says "I don't know how to feel. I'm confused." And Aang, without asking, decides that this is the perfect moment to kiss her.

Which, fine. They're kids. Kids make mistakes. They don't do things perfectly. I'm fine with characters making mistakes. But for a kids' show that's pretty intent on helping us all learn good life lessons -- this is never addressed. Katara is never given the chance to say "Hey, I didn't appreciate that." Aang never is made to apologize for crossing a boundary. It's treated as just a big stepping stone toward their incredibly forced romantic arc. And I hate hate hate when stories tell boys that the appropriate response to a girl asking for space to sort out her feelings/being unsure is to oh, just kiss her, to help her figure it out! instead of, I don't know, let her make up her own mind and give her space. "I don't know" is not fucking consent, and they shouldn't treat it like it is. Especially not in a kids' show.

Which-- yeah, that kind of leads well into my second problem with Kataang - which is how the creators of the show treat it. To them, Kataang is endgame, it is in the "DNA of the show" as one put it. Which is very weird to me because it is so, so poorly done, and the writers really seem to care so little for Katara. Why do I think this? Because of how they choose to treat Katara in TLoK.

Katara, in her 80s in TLoK, is relegated to a healer and teacher. She's insignificant to the story when characters like Zuko and Toph get much cooler entrances and scenes. She's stuck being a passive bystander to a war (Katara would never.) She's stuck being a healer (Which, sure, she is. But so much of At:LA she chafed at being put in that box! She's also a fighter, goddamnit!) -- and some people have tried to say "well what do you want an 80 year woman to do?" and I don't! fucking! buy it! Characters in At:LA were badass fighters well into their 80s, like Hama (the fearsome bloodbender), Pakku (the Waterbender), Iroh (y'know...), and most notably, Bumi, who is 112 fucking years old. Don't give me "80 year old Katara sits on her ass at home while the men go out and do things and Zuko, at the same age, is literally riding around the world on fucking dragonback." I won't have it. It's Katara slander, I tell you! Let that old woman be a badass!!!

And the writers even go so far as to erase her from her kids' lives! They never talk about her!!! It is always about Aang! Always Aang! And you just get the impression that Katara dropped absolutely everything to be "The Avatar's wife" and SHE DESERVED BETTER RAUDGAHSGH

She doesn't! even! get! an honorary statue! On the very island on which she should! be a war hero! Aang does! Toph does! Zuko does! EVEN SOKKA DOES. The ENTIRE Gaang gets a statue, except Katara. That is a deliberate art choice! WHY did they leave her out?

They absolutely destroyed her ENTIRE At:LA arc in TLoK, and I am honestly not even surprised because the writers have said outright that Aang is a self insert character, and that Kataang is "that childhood romance that we both wanted as kids". Katara, in their brains -- and idk maybe this is unjust-- but she seems to be just the amalgamation of those 14 year old girls that wouldn't give them the time of day when they were snotty twelve year olds, except they're writing the story so of course Aang gets the girl.

Anyway, this doesn't even go into how there are infinitely better choices for Katara, and how Aang's arc is worsened by having a romantic subplot, and etc. etc. I could go on forever about how much I dislike Kataang from a narrative standpoint.

Literally my first thought when I heard they left the Netflix show "due to creative differences" was: "Oh my god, is it because there's no kataang???" and now that there's confirmed to be no kataang and that they may be going a zutara route instead, I'm convinced that's why.

Because it's "in the DNA of the show, you see" they have broken with cocreators before over their pet self insert ship and the narrative treatment of Katara (Aaron Ehasz), and I don't see any reason why they'd change.

alkdasdlkgh anyway. God. Thanks for the ask! Sorry about the really long anti kataang rant aslkdgh. This got kind of aggressive but I do feel very strongly about the treatment of Katara. My girl deserved so much better.

[denimbex1986]

'It's taken an unusually windy road, but Ripley, the latest adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's classic novel The Talented Mr. Ripley, is finally going to see the light of day at Netflix. The series, which was originally developed at Showtime, stars Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley and comes from four-time Oscar nominee Steven Zaillian.

Whether you're a longtime fan of the classic story or just somebody looking for a dope new show to binge, we've got all the details about the upcoming Ripley series, including the cast, crew, and when you'll be able to inject Ripley directly into your veins.

Ripley trailers and teasers

The full-length trailer for Ripley, released in early March, gives us our solid look at the series, showing just how effortlessly Tom Ripley (Andrew Scott) inserts himself into Dickie Greenleaf's (Johnny Flynn) life, much to the suspicion of those around Dickie. "He's a liar," Marge (Dakota Fanning) says, in an incredible understatement. "It's his profession." He's also a murderer and a con artist, but who's keeping track?

Ripley's first teaser, released in February, was not particularly story-focused, with more of an emphasis on what sort of vibe you should expect from the series — but what a vibe it is, with the very stark and eye-catching black-and-white cinematography from the great Robert Elswit, and Ripley (Scott) looking appropriately creepy.

Ripley release date and episode count

Ripley will launch on Netflix in the United States on April 4, 2024, with all eight episodes of the series dropping that day. Ripley is a limited series and is not expected to go beyond this season.

What is Ripley about?

The Talented Mr. Ripley novel focuses on a con man named Tom Ripley who is hired by a rich man to encourage his prodigal son vacationing in Europe to return home to the United States. But Tom, who got this gig by pretending to already be friends with the man's son, has more nefarious plans as he attempts to ingratiate himself with these wealthy socialites.

The appeal of the Ripley character isn't just in what he does, but how. Tom is a charmer who very effectively carries the pretense of true culture despite having none, and his sexual flexibility gives him some bonus animal appeal. In other words, Tom Ripley is the sort of character who, if handled correctly, is hard to look away from.

This is the sixth time that the complicated sociopath Tom Ripley has been given life in a screen adaptation, and some big names have taken on this role in the past: Barry Pepper, Dennis Hopper, John Malkovich (who appears in Ripley as a different character), and most notably by Matt Damon in the late Anthony Minghella's The Talented Mr. Ripley. That last film, and performance by Damon, is the standard by which Netflix's Ripley will be judged.

But the new Ripley, Andrew Scott, is no slouch himself, and he's certainly got the skills necessary to make his mark in the role if the show is good enough.

Who will be in Netflix's Ripley?

Aside from Ripley himself, the key characters in the book being adapted here are Dickie Greenleaf, the man that Tom is hired to bring home, and Marge Sherwood, Dickie's girlfriend. Dakota Fanning will be playing Marge in this version of the story, with Johnny Flynn as Dickie — these are the roles that were played by Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow in the 1999 film. And John Malkovich will make some kind of appearance — he makes a lot of sense to play Dickie's father, which is a relatively small but very key role in the story.

Who created Ripley?

This new Ripley adaptation was created by Steven Zaillian, who also wrote and directed all eight episodes. Zaillian is best known for his prestigious career as a movie screenwriter, which earned him four Oscar nominations, most recently for Martin Scorcese's The Irishman. Zaillian also co-created the HBO mini series The Night Of, and directed all but one of the episodes of that series.

Where to watch Ripley

Ripley will be available exclusively on Netflix when it's released on April 4.'

[mermaidsirennikita]

I didn’t know about Diana’s bulimia and suicide attempts until watching the doc on Netflix yesterday and I really can’t imagine how William and Harry even tolerate any of the Windsors.

Tbh, I don’t get the sense that Harry DOES anymore lol.  And now I’m going to indulge myself and do a whole rundown lol.

Here’s what I know about Harry’s relationship to the Windsors, based on various bits of gossip picked up over many years of royal-watching (as a disclaimer): Harry was once extremely close to his brother William to a codependent degree.  This was probably the kind of “glue” that kept him close to the rest of the family as he grew up and dealt with various mental health struggles and what was clearly, from his military service years onwards, a burgeoning desire to “break free”.  This closeness extended to Kate, who William has obviously been with for many years, close to two decades counting their dating era.  These three were kind of packaged as a trio until Harry got married, and he was never REALLY an independent royal spokesperson for anything beyond military causes.

Fast forward to Meghan entering the picture.  Harry gets serious about Meghan very quickly, William expresses concern that Harry moved that quickly because William is one of THOSE older siblings who assumes that everyone has to do everything the same way.  Harry is super hurt by this as he and William have previously had each other’s backs over basically everything, including the infamous Harry Takes Las Vegas scandal, and a wedge is driven between them.  Rumor has it that this wedge actually deepens because.... William cheats on Kate.  Which Harry apparently was already pissed about because he really did love Kate as a sister + fears of history repeats with a future Prince of Wales, but THEN as the media already starts attacking Meghan, the Cambridge camp ALLEGEDLY begins planting fake stories about Meghan and exaggerating true-ish stories (like... Harry throwing a fit about wanting Meghan to get what she wants for their wedding turns into Meghan pitching a fit about a tiara, for example) in order to distract from the TRUE scandal, which is William cheating on Kate with a mutual friend.  Meghan is pregnant and very emotionally stressed already right now due to the media issues and her father’s side of the family being garbage.  So Harry understandably ices William out for this, and they’ve never been the same since.

Regarding his father, Harry and William have apparently always run hot and cold towards Charles?  Like they’ll be super close at times (Harry obviously was super grateful to Charles for walking Meghan down the aisle, which was a nice gesture but APPARENTLY HOLLOW BIG SHOCK CHARLES) and then other times it’s hard for the younger princes to be convinced to do anything with the Prince of Wales.  I imagine this wouldn’t be as much of an issue if Charles wasn’t married to Camilla, tbh.  The big family photo that was taken with William and Harry and their wives and William’s kids and Charles and Camilla was apparently really hard to coordinate because both Harry and William didn’t really wanna show up lol.  I’ve heard little concrete about Charles’s feelings re: Harry breaking free, but he has apparently tried to be Mr. Big Man by forcing the brothers to talk, by coordinating conversations between Harry and the Queen about all of this, etc.  Charles wanted to par down the senior royal circle anyway when he became king--hence Andrew’s family getting quietly put in the shadows.  (Charles knew the Andrew issue was going to be A Bigger Deal In The Future before anyone else in the family, apparently.). But I don’t know that Harry’s exit was.... how he wanted that go down.  He also apparently clashes with William a lot because both of them want to swing their dicks around be the One True Heir.  Charles is never going to step down, he’s dying to be in charge, but William knows that he’s much more popular than Charles and will be following him up anyway.  Kind of a similar dynamic to the queen and Charles, but flipped in that the son has much more popularity than the parent.

The Queen has always favored Harry, and... though she’s pissed about how the exit was handled, I’ve always read shit that this hasn’t...?  Really?  Changed?  The Queen loves a rake, is the thing.  Andrew was her favorite child and probably still is, Harry was and probably still is deep down her favorite grandchild.  She adores a military man who gets into a bit of trouble and is rascally.  So I don’t think that the personal relationship with them is actually as bad as Harry’s relationship with Charles is--which, bad luck for him, because Charles is running the show on a practical level more than the queen is right now. 

William is a pod person.  This is an exaggeration lol BUT.  Diana always said that William was an emotional individual and the rumor has always been that he’s very much a “burn me once and you’re dead to me” type.  Which is ironically what Diana was.  William hates the press; William hates the idea of Harry and Meghan coming off as more glam and charismatic than himself and Kate, even though that’s naturally going to be a perception to some when William and Kate don’t do as much press and Kate is a naturally shy person compared to the more outgoing and new age Meghan; and William has been heavily conditioned to be the heir and has evidently bought into all of that bullshit hook, line, and sinker.

And tbh, that’s not surprising.  The heir is always the most “programmed” one.  It might have been different had Diana lived and been able to continue keeping William a bit more normalized?  He’s certainly not as fucking weird as Charles was at his age, to be fair.  But I think that Harry had the freedom to do like, years of therapy and have his big come to Jesus moment about how much of this is just BULLSHIT in a way that William was probably a bit more prohibited from doing?  It’s clear that William buys into this idea of a contract between himself and the public, where he and his act a certain way and in exchange he gets this bullshit title and he “earns” his riches and privilege by acting the prince.  Whereas Harry seems to have taken a very “Diana post-divorce” approach.  He clearly still values his privilege, but less so the titles and notoriety except in the sense that he can use them to accomplish his humanitarian work AND maintain that privilege.  Like, Harry’s always going to be Prince Harry even if he isn’t formally Prince Harry, so I don’t begrudge him for capitalizing on that and making some $$$ off of what he was born into.  Because he’s making money that way, and through Netflix deals, through the natural familial wealth that Charles CAN revoke whenever he wishes but apparently hasn’t, the money that Harry was left by Diana, etc., he is not obligated to have the same blind familial loyalty that William has.  Which I’m sure has a lot to do with his break from the family. If you stay in, you’re basically making a deal with them and the public so that you can keep doing the smile and wave act to keep the lights on.

(And I will note, as someone who will forthrightly admit to preferring the Sussexes to the Cambridges--for years, Kate was referred to as Duchess Do-Little by the press, and William got some of that flack too.  They do what they’ve got to do to keep those lights on and only since they started that little war with the Sussexes have I noticed a more concentrated attempt to win over the people.  Because they basically got public love through popping out babies.  Meghan notably did a fuckton more engagements before she started to recede from public life than Kate did in the same amount of time.)

I really do recommend the You’re Wrong About podcast again for their 5-part Diana series; the episode about her theoretical plans for life after her divorce (which sadly only lasted about a year) draws a strong contrast to what Harry and Meghan have been doing, and sheds a bit of light on what I think his feelings towards the family probably are.

[sol1056]

multipart ask on Keith

I would honestly love your thoughts on Keith’s character development, specifically him leaving for the Blades in S4. Personally I’ve always been on a fence with how they wrote Keith’s character after that. For one, he started as a lone wolf and I always thought they would subvert that along the way with more character interactions and team building episodes like in S1, but apparently S4 throws all of that away. I thought him forcibly being the leader of voltron would be a great opportunity for development but Shiro takes his place in the black lion and Keith just leaves. 

It really didn't help with all the signs pointing as him as the true leader of voltron when he barely even interacted with the team personally (except for shiro) after that point. To top it all off his “maturation” was a two year time skip montage with his mom and he suddenly became level headed and ready to fly Black. So when he finally returns and become the leader of voltron it felt a bit underwhelming and hollow. To be honest I also find his interaction with the team afterwards kinda out of character [...] 

I just wanted to hear from a writers perspective if Keith leaving was a good idea for his character in general. He had some really good scenes in his time with the Blades but i personally think in exchange it took way too much [away from] his development with the others. I also wonder if it's even possible [to execute well] leaving for the Blades and then becoming the leader of Voltron. 

Here’s a general rule: avoid leaving any of your protagonists at a bus stop. 

A few chapters is already pushing it; the equivalent of 1.5 seasons is out of the question for all but the most superlative of writers. I’ve met superlative, and believe me, no one on the VLD staff qualifies. If they did, they wouldn’t have been writing for VLD in the first place. 

The start of S4 will forever baffle me. Had S3/S4 been broadcast as a complete season, I might’ve assumed there was a technical error, and would’ve tweeted at Netflix and not returned to watch until I got word this really was the midpoint episode. No warning, no foreshadowing, not even a peep out of Keith, and suddenly he’s working with the Blades. 

In an ensemble cast, the point is that it’s an ensemble; you don’t forget one of your core cast at the bus stop while the story-bus trundles on. If Keith were meant as a protagonist, then sidelining him for 1.5 seasons is an even worse crime. If the intent of the story, thematically, is 'stronger together’, shoving one of them out of the picture is pretty much the antithesis. 

This is not to say you can’t do it; in hindsight, I think the clone should’ve been shelved and the real Shiro returned at the end of S3/S4. But that comes with the assumption that a) the team would struggle a great deal more in his absence, b) prompting development that would create a new dynamic once Shiro returned, and c) that Shiro himself would change in some degree, from/during his absence: one that, by definition, that would need to be complete.

In other words, if you’re going to remove a protagonist, two things must happen. One, they must be removed, which Keith wasn’t. The story checks in on him irregularly, and each time, he's treading water while the story moves on. Two, the absence must become a driver: in a sense, the absence is a presence of what’s missing, and regaining the character must be paramount. 

VLD put minor effort into recognizing the impact of Shiro’s absence, limited mostly to the torture-porn of watching Keith isolated in (and by) grief. It couldn’t even be bothered to do that much, when it was Keith’s turn to fall off the team. No one missed him, no one needed him. The result was a clear message there was nothing Keith brought to the team that couldn’t be done by someone else. There was no presence in his absence. 

Consider the few scenes in S4-S6 with anything of Keith. His storyline did nothing to push the main story forward. In S4, the Blades are focused on tracking a new quintessence, a subplot that discovers nothing, provides no twists, and goes nowhere. In S5, despite Keith being with the Blades, the two groups have dropped communication to such degree that neither is aware of the other’s participation in the Kral Zera. 

If you’re determined to leave a protagonist in another castle, for heaven’s sake, use that distance to allow them to continue to impact the main storyline. Make their absence into a working presence that can link the two groups; the complete radio silence just underlines how meaningless the story considers Keith, in the overall plot. 

In that light, Kolivan’s left-field decision for Keith to extract Krolia feels like VLD was grasping at straws, trying to find something to occupy Keith. Worse, that mission contradicts S4: the quintessence is no longer blue, no longer notable for its energy levels, and no longer transported to secret bases in massive quantities by major warships. It’s back to the usual maroon, carried on small cargo ships in limited quantities, and now a dangerous substance with questionable side-effects. 

In a nutshell, VLD left Keith mired in pointless actions with no bearing on the rest of the characters (hello, suicide attempt never mentioned again). Late S5, VLD realized it needed to get a move on, if Keith was to get an upgrade. So it took the easy way out: an overload of exposition flashbacks that neatly evaded any emotional beats between Keith and Krolia. VLD had no idea how to get Keith from point A to around point K, so it settled for just telling us Keith had grown up. On a space whale.

Had we been given a better reason (or any reason) for Keith joining the Blades, had we been given a hefty sub-plot for Keith that led him back to the team in an organic fashion (or at least dovetailed with the main throughline), had the story used those seasons to show us Keith learning with the Blades in a way he couldn’t or wouldn’t with the team... well, for one thing, it’d still contradict the ‘found family’ and ‘stronger together’ themes, since it’d be even more clear that Keith was stronger elsewhere. 

But setting that aside, at the very least, Keith wouldn’t have returned feeling he’d gotten a personality transplant. We would’ve seen his progression, such that any given point along the way would’ve been recognizably Keith, even if the starting and ending points were almost a one-eighty. It’s called character development; most stories do it as a matter of course. 

I’m left concluding that the creators genuinely don’t grasp that characters will change per their experiences. It’s a crucial element in storytelling, because characters are the core of any story. If you can’t figure out what would make a character choose A this time and B next time, you’re failing on one of the most fundamental aspects of characterization. In fact, you’re missing the entire point of a story: character choices are the plot.

I do have to take exception to ‘signs pointing to [Keith] as the true leader.’ I’ve posted before about the mentor trope, and how Shiro’s S1/S2 arc contradicts Keith as Black Paladin. I suggest you read those before coming at me with the assumption VLD did any of the work required to establish Keith's leadership as inevitable. 

It’s possible to have someone strike out on their own, learn valuable lessons, and return grown-up and able to handle the situation they’d originally fled. It’d be a very different story, though, one that isn’t focused on a titular robot, but on a single protagonist’s journey. It’d also be a story that has nothing to do with ‘stronger together,’ as the movement away (to learn) and back (to reclaim) means the protagonist only became stronger when they weren’t with the rest. 

Keith taking command of Black in S6 should feel like a victory in terms of his arc: where once he’d recoiled, now he steps forward. But since we never saw how or why his perspective changed about leadership, all it would’ve taken is a subtle shift in Yeun’s delivery and we could be talking instead about how Keith returned and was still in his ‘you want me to lead, this is how I lead’ pique. 

Shiro’s return creates another turning point where the question would be logically raised, and it’s almost as though (once again) there’s an episode or two we didn’t get. It’d be reasonable for someone to raise the question of whether the team now swaps again. Yet no one does, and we’re supposed to expect Keith --- who waved the little ‘Shiro is Black’ banner far more and for far longer than any other character --- is now content to command Black, with no need to even broach the topic. 

That’s a radically different perspective Keith shows in S7 onward, and it’s a problem created by the lack of development for Keith, in S4-S6. In the course of a single episode, we literally went from Keith being his slightly out-of-his-emotional-depth awkward self, to someone clear-eyed and commanding almost to the point of arrogance. It’s not helped when his original characterization returns for the duration of his fight with Shiro --- only to blip out again as soon as Keith returns to the team. 

And forcing that abrupt shift on Keith’s part meant the rest of the story (and the characters) got shoved around into their respective places and out of shape, as well. Stories are made of characters, and characters are dominos. You knock one over, and it has a cascade effect. Changing Keith from the character we knew to someone else wearing his face could not happen in isolation, and every character around him suffered as well. 

Like Shiro and Lance, Keith had major potential to be a groundbreaking character. He was introduced as the kind of independent, socially awkward, spitfire character usually pushed to the forefront in American media, yet S1/S2 gave him a solid place as Shiro’s greatest supporter. Keith had all the makings of a hero we rarely see: someone who truly believes the title of leader is beside the point, that the team is what matters.

I’m used to Gundam, which almost always strives for a resting place of five (or four) protagonists standing shoulder-to-shoulder. There might be one among their ranks who gets the central position, but the narrative is firmly consistent that should the team lose any one person, it would fall apart. There’s no need to ever tell us the team is ‘stronger together,’ we can see that lesson play out, over and over, whenever the team is divided, split up, or loses someone. 

AtLA followed a similar pattern; by the end, it’s obvious the strengths each person brings to the final battle. There’s no question that every single one is crucial for victory; there’s no point where someone leaves and there’s not immediate and significant impact on the remaining characters’ successes. Sure, Sokka may not be able to bend like the rest of them, but without his brains, they’d be sunk. Katara, Toph, and Zuko might not be able to bend every element, but if any one of them isn’t there, the team is going down. Aang may command the central position, but he can’t do it all on his own. 

While AtLA shone in having characters who visually broke the mold of our usual white-dominated, male-dominated American cartoons, it also broke away from the lead hero + band of intrepid (but far less capable) sidekicks. Like Gundam, it presented a group of characters who grew into a true team. The pictures might show Aang in the middle, but every one else contributes an equal amount, in their own way.

VLD had the makings in its first two seasons to go that route. But its EPs wanted dark and edgy, a perspective too cynical to embrace the optimism inherent in a team-based story. Sure, their deconstruction of VLD’s S1/S2 trope-subversions brought the story to a point where Keith was declared the definitive top guy, the true Black Paladin, head of the paladins. 

Thing is, pushing Keith into that position required altering his personality beyond all recognition, destroying the team dynamic, and gutting any chance of recognizing the other characters as equally integral to team success. In effect, making Keith the de facto leader required destroying the team: and what’s the point of leadership, then?

[dajoezenone]

TEXT REVIEW OF INFINITY WAR

UNFOLLOW ME IF YOU DONT WANT TO READ THESE SPOILERS I DONT USE THIS ACCOUNT SEE IF I CARE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Seriously this is gonna have spoilers go away if you dont wanna see. 

I liked it. Kinda want to see it again and may change my mind on stuff at a later date but I want to get these thoughts out while they’re in my mind. 

1. STORY STRUCTURE:  The structure of this film is weird? But not really. It makes sense once you realize Thanos is the main character. Act One we’re being introduced to all the different heroes, which is done masterfully and paced really well so we never feel overwhelmed despite the sheer size of the cast. Act Two starts once Gamora tells Star Lord he may have to kill her, and then Thanos is re-introduced. I’ll come back to this later but I dislike that there’s a good couple scenes where its just GotG characters interacting with each other with no Avengers around. Like this is an Avengers movie. Couldn’t SOME Avengers character have been around for this Like this is a crossover why are these characters still with just their regular crew? Anyways from then on Thanos’s POV takes center stage. Once Gamora is dead Thanos, like Thor, has nothing he really cares about left to lose. He’s at his lowest, despite also being 2 stones away from infinite power. Act Three begins with him this way, recalling to Doctor Strange his origin, and reasserting his resolve to go through with this. He beats both of the split forces of the Avengers, one on Titan, and the other in Wakanda, and despite nearly being beaten three different times, he manages to snap his fingers. We see the results of the world he’s created, while he sits back and watches the sunset. 

I like that they decided to let Thanos win and kill half the universe. I know it’ll traumatize a lot of kids watching the movie, but like, these things are rated PG 13. There have been sex references and character deaths and such in these for a long long time. Its the big bad final battle for the Avengers and they needed a cliff to hang on and so they hung people. I dont believe the people turned to ash will stay dead, but I didn’t expect a happy ending either. PLUS this gives us time to really focus on the characters that need more room to finish their arcs in the real finale. 

I like the way the movie is structured. It doesn’t feel overcrowded and it makes a lot of sense when you realize its Thanos’s movie not any of the heroes’. And it helps make Thanos the most developed bad guy in any MCU film. SPEAKING OF WHICH. 

2. CHARACTERS: (the long one)

-THANOS: The best bad guy in any MCU film. Not my FAVORITE bad guy in an MCU film though. Loki still holds that title, and if we’re counting the Netflix shows, Fisk and Kilgrave are still PRETTY dope. Thanos is WONDERFUL. But I neither love him or love to hate him. I appreciate what was done with him though. He earns his place as the biggest threat in this universe, despite a lack of real competition. You feel his struggle, even though you really want him to fail. Its really well done. Cant help but wonder why no mention of his love for Lady Death though? I at least expected Hela to show up and be like “SURPRISE IM LADY DEATH” or something idk. We never saw her die in Ragnarok. Is that really not something they’re gonna at least do something off of? 

-THOR: despite spending MOST of the movie on what is basically a side quest, he’s the hero who gets the most development. I figured that the way Ragnarok was handled was done specifically to set this up and I got what I expected to fall out from that and then some. I love his arc in this. I love his conversations with Rocket and I love how powerful he is now. He’s just really well handled and I love how he’s developed as a character. Also, side note, I like that each Avengers movie changes which of its members gets the most development. Cap was the one who was still finding his place and going through an arc in the first one, Tony is dealing with paranoia and being the one to create Ultron in AoU, and Thor is still dealing with the death of his people here. 

-TONY: I have less to say here. I hate nanite tech being used in pretty much anything. idk why it just bothers me. It always feels dumb. but it was fine here actually. I love his conflict with Strange and Peter and the other Peter. I love that he has to deal with watching everyone else die. The whole movie plays on your expectation that Tony is going to die in the end and then COMPLETELY subverts that and I love it. 

-DOCTOR STRANGE: Great. Comes off a little more of a jerk than he does in his own film but we also mainly see him through the eyes of Tony, so I think thats why. I love his magic and how smart and calculated he is in combat compared to the other characters. The Russos are VERY aware and very good at showing the characters’ character traits via how they fight which is good considering how much action there is in this movie. 

-SPIDER-MAN: I swear he’s more competent here than in his own movie. Also we see SPIDEY SENSE GO OFF which we NEVER SEE HAPPEN IN HIS OWN MOVIE. He still doesn’t REALLY feel like Peter Parker though which is weird bc he almost did by the end of Homecoming and now here he just kinda reverted back out of that.

-GAMORA: Really great. Somewhere in between Guardians 1 and now she stopped being every single one of Zoe Saldana’s characters in anything ever to being a pretty fleshed out character. Though its kinda weird that Thanos’s other children in this movie are so much more loyal to him than her and Nebula are? Like whats up with them? Why is Gamora the favorite when she openly hates him? 

-STAR-LORD: Great. Not much else to say. 

-ROCKET AND GROOT: ALSO great. They’re especially great as sidekicks to Thor. They have some great exchanges, even if their screentime was primarily spent on a side quest. I nearly squealed when Groot used his arm to create the Stormbreaker Axe. I’m annoyed Groot died again at the end. WE’VE SEEN ROCKET MOURN GROOT’S DEATH BEFORE THIS ISN’T INTERESTING OR NEW.

-DRAX AND MANTIS: pretty good. I like them both. If anything there’s probably too much of them. I love them so I cant complain too much but like idk I feel like we saw more of these Guardians side characters than some of the Avengers main characters in an Avengers movie. 

-WANDA AND VISION: Wanda has always been one of my fav characters in the MCU and that doesn’t change here. Her romance with Vis is great. Honestly I love her whole arc and I love how its foreshadowed by Gamora telling Quill to kill her earlier in the film. Wanda having to lose the closest person to her AGAIN is emotional and sad and everything and idk Elizabeth and Paul give great performances and both do a great job playing some good characters. Vis is basically a damsel in distress the whole film, which seems disingenuous because he’s like the most powerful avenger prior to Thor’s buff over these last couple movies. But I guess it makes sense in context. They’re not GREAT but like I said I like them so I’m biased. 

-CAP, FALCON, AND NAT: Kinda useless tbh. They dont do much. They dont even have many lines. Like they fight in the Wakanda battle. Thats it. They’re tired and grumpy because they’ve been on the run for TWO YEARS. Something we dont see at all. Not that thats what I want to see, but... they’re basically just there to shuttle Wanda and Vision to Wakanda and then fight a bit. 

-T’CHALLA, OKOYE, SHURI, AND M’BAKU: Even quieter and less notable than the Cap crew. Which really cheapens how much of the film takes place in Wakanda. Like, why does the Cosmic stuff feel authentic to what James Gunn built in the Guardians movies, while this stuff feels so underwritten and underrepresented? We have four Wakandan characters here and they do so hecking little. AND THEN T’CHALLA IS ONE OF THE PEOPLE WE SEE TURN TO ASH. WHAT? WE ALREADY GOT A FAKE OUT DEATH WITH HIM IN HIS OWN MOVIE. I HATED IT THERE. WE GOTTA SEE HIS FAMILY DEAL WITH HIM BEING DEAD AGAIN??? Shuri better become black panther in avengers 4 man. thats the only way I’ll be ok with him dying a SeCONd TiME. 

-BUCKY, RHODEY, NICK FURY, MARIA HILL, LOKI, RED SKULL AND HEIMDALL: all play really small parts but manage to do their jobs and be really notable anyways. Shoutouts to them. 

-BRUCE BANNER: meh. Bruce has finally kind of accepted the Hulk but Hulk is scared of Thanos so he wont come out. So Bruce spends the whole movie in his head having conflict with himself and not really engaging with whats going on? Kind of a dumb choice imo like if CAP is a minor character whos mainly there to banter with other people so should Banner. We dont even really see him interact with Ross or Rhodes once he gets back to Avengers HQ. dumb but not a big deal. 

3. SMALL DETAILS:

-Music was weirdly lacking from a lot of the movie. Like it feels like Silvestri only orchestrated like half of the film. So much of it is just left.. quiet. Empty. This is INFINITY WAR. IT SHOULD BE ALL ABOUT THE SPECTACLE. 

-Are Valkyrie, Korg and Miek still alive? We dont see them at all on the Asgardian ship? 

-What happened to Sean Gunn’s character? Also wasn’t Nebula still with the Guardians at the end of Vol 2? Did I miss something or...?

-How did Thor know to go to Wakanda? He should have been going to Titan to meet up with Quill, right? 

-How does the Bifrost work if the Bifrost is broken? That was a big thing in Thor 1 wasn’t he? 

-They didn’t get Hugo Weaving back to play Red Skull but thats fine I still geeked out when he showed up. 

-Peter Dinklage was good but he was in the movie too long. Thor’s stuff really felt side questy even though its the best stuff in the film. 

I think thats about everything it was good but not GREAT k bye

[ladylilithprime]

All numbers divisible by 3, 5, or 7?

Ugh, math at three in the morning? XP

3: What season finale was your favorite/least favorite?

Hm. I really can’t pick a favorite, simply because every season finale is either bittersweet or very obviously leading Somewhere Bad. For the complexity, I’d have to say Swan Song is the leader, just barely edging out “Do You Believe In Miracles”. Least favorite is definitely season twelve, if only because it felt so sloppy and kind of rushed.

5: Which episode makes you cry the most?

I actually can’t answer that as I still haven’t seen all of the episodes, and my reasons for crying vary between gutpunch and rage, so… I dunno. We’ll see.

6: Which episode was the funniest to you?

Hands down, 6.9, “Clap Your Hands If You Believe”! XD

7: What’s your opinion on Megstiel?

Probably my favorite canon pairing for Castiel, and I’m sorry we didn’t get to see that explored more in the show.

9: Which episode title do you think is the funniest?

Tough choice there! I think I’m going to go with “Are You There, God? It’s Me, Dean Winchester”. Sorry, Dean-o, Margaret you are not.

10: What’s your opinion on Garth?

Answered that one!

12: Who is your favorite angel?

Castiel, though Gabriel is a close second!

14: What’s your opinion on Wincest?

You do know they’re brothers, right? ^_~ In all honesty, I can see it about as well as any ship for either brother, but I have to be in a certain mood for it and it needs to be handled with the utmost consent on both sides.

15: What’s your opinion on Lisa? (And Ben, if you want)

Lisa could have been great, both as a character and for Dean. I think the biggest problem was that she and Dean alway seemed to come together when they both needed different things from each other, and when Dean tried to be what Lisa was looking for it kept rubbing up against the fact that what he needed most wasn’t her. Both she and Ben were badly harmed, not by Dean being in their lives, but by his inability to be wholly in their lives because part of him was still on the road and in the Hunt, and by his repeating Mary’s mistake of “living normal” meaning no protections against the baddies he knew damn well were out there and would happily come a’calling for their pound of Winchester flesh, which he also knew could happen considering Adam Milligan lost his life to ghouls who wanted revenge on John Winchester for his killing their parent. Erasing her memory was a dick move and will in no way protect her from anything because sometimes it doesn’t matter what a person knows or feels for someone else, but what the bad guys think they know or feel– or know the first person feels for them. Overall, two great characters who were poorly handled by “plot”.

18: Do you have a favorite Dick (Roman) joke?

Probably a line from @rodiniaorzetalthepenquin ‘s fic Out Of Purgatory, “After you and Cas disappeared in a shower of exploding Dick….” (Go read it, it’s great!) Although Sam’s line about Dean using his computer for “More anime, or are you strictly into Dick now?” is priceless canon material. XD

20: Who do you ship Sam with?

Consent! (Also Castiel, Dean, Gabriel, Michael, Chuck, Anna, Max Banes…. XD Yeah, I think it would be easier to list who all I don’t ship Sam with. ^_^U)

21: What’s your opinion on Destiel?

Thanks, I hate it. No, really, you want to hear an unpopular opinion? Destiel in canon makes as much sense as the Joker and Harley Quinn, and is just as abusive and unhealthy. Harley should go be with Poison Ivy and Castiel should go be with Sam and leave the Joker to laugh at his own bad jokes somewhere he can’t hurt them anymore. Could it work? Maybe if Dean got a shitton of real, actual therapy and pulled his head out of his ass, or in an AU scenario, but as far as canon goes? Their friendship is already unhealthy enough and you want to add sex into it? (And let’s face it, most Destiel shippers do.) Thank you, please exit to the left, goodbye! (It takes a really careful handling and really fucking great writing to get me to read it, and you had better be bribing me with something amazing if you want me to write it.)

24: Do you read smutty fanfiction?

Not as much as I might if there were more of the pairings I want to read. As it is, the fics for my preferred pairings usually lend themselves more to plot than porn, with some notable exceptions.

25: Do you think Destiel will become canon in season 9? (Regardless of whether you want it to or not)

I really don’t. Oh, they’ll throw in some teasing here and there, but it would take the series ending for good before Dean, Castiel, OR Sam gets a canon relationship they can keep.

27: Which episode is the scariest to you? (Horror-movie type scary)

“The Benders”. As Dean put it, “Monsters I get. People are crazy.”

28: What’s your opinion on Sabriel?

I like it a whole lot better than Destiel, which really makes it frustrating considering how many times that pairing is used to “pair the spares” and give Destiel writers a couple of shipping cheerleaders. That said, there are Issues with the pairing itself that stem from canon, “Mystery Spot” in particular. Healthy communication and closure, or even just serious canon divergence is necessary for this ship to sail strong, but it can be done and done well! The frustration is still just as strong whenever it’s handled poorly or Sam’s very real and valid trauma is brushed aside or ignored. They both deserve better than haphazard narrative.

30: Do you have any friends off of the internet that watch Supernatural?

Sure do! At least three that I know of, including @jupiterjames , and probably a few more who don’t talk to me about it because they know why I didn’t go near Supernatural for years.

33: Do you like AU fanfics?

Sure! I usually have to be in a certain mood for them, and there are some AU scenarios I just can’t get on board with, but that’s a matter of personal preference just like any other aspect of fanfic.

35: What’s your opinion of Samifer?

Creepy and terrifying and an absolutely brilliant job of acting by Jared, both in “The End” and in “Swan Song”. (I would not ship them in a box, I would not ship them wearing socks, I would not ship them here or there– I WOULD NOT SHIP THEM ANYWHERE!!)

36: If you have an OTP, at what point did you start shipping it?

From the first moment I realized that it was possible to ship them, I have shipped Sastiel.

39: Which actor would you most like to meet in real life?

I’m told that Jared’s hugs are not to be passed up if given the opportunity, but in all honesty I want to meet Felicia Day.

40: If you could be any character on the show, would you want to? If so, whom? If not, why?

Answered that one!

42: What is your opinion on Sastiel?

You found my OTP! (Hey, you know me!)

45: What’s your favorite moment from any of the gag reels?

Answered that one!

48: What’s an unpopular ship you have?

If by unpopular you mean I ship I have that just really doesn’t have a lot of content, probably Samichael or Sam/Chuck.

49: What’s your opinion on Wincestiel?

Dean needs so much therapy…. ~is jabbed in the ribs~ Uh, I mean, yes! I ship that! It’s actually tied with Casabriel for my OT3.

50: Can you dig Elvis?

Leave the poor man to his rest, huh?

51: Do you listen to Carry On Wayward Son even when you’re not just watching a finale?

Sure, it comes on the radio plenty of times.

54: Do you think Sam should have completed the Trials?

Honestly, that’s a difficult one to answer. On the one hand, it’s entirely possible that closing the Gates of Hell would have been another “Nice Job Breaking It, Hero” moment this series is so fond of, creating a backup of damned souls with nowhere to go like we saw happen with Heaven, and it’s a popular theory that the two sets of Trials would mirror each other. However, I actually don’t think that the spell Metatron used to close Heaven’s Gates was even close to the real Heaven Trials, nor would it be in any way the same as the one for closing Hell’s Gates. We won’t know for sure, because Sam didn’t finish them, but Metatron’s spell ejected all the angels. Pretty sure Kevin would have seen if the Trials to close Hell were going to eject all the demons, considering he was banking heavily on all the demons being locked away so he could go home and not have to worry about Crowley and his demons breathing down his neck. That said, the Demon Trials were definitely taking their toll on Sam, but it’s all speculation as to whether that was because the Trials were killing him because that was the Trials, or because Sam’s demon blood was reacting badly to the influx of Power, or what. That’s up to fanfic authors to explore, but since canon didn’t take us in that direction we’ll probably never know.

55: How long would you survive as a hunter?

I’d do well enough, provided I wasn’t a victim of unfriendly fire, ie other hunters coming after me because they’re extremist assholes. I’d do better as part of the support system, running a hunters’ bar/restaurant and information network and phone tree.

56: What’s your opinion on Calthazar?

Balthazar deserved better than to be stabbed in the back by a Hell-corrupted Castiel.

57: Do you have a Netflix account? If so, what’s your username and password? Wait a second, just the first part.

I have no idea what the family Netflix username is since I’m usually not… using it? At all? Because my kids take over the television to watch Paw Patrol and Bubble Guppies and Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood?

60: If you could change just one thing about the series, what would it be?

Fire BuckLemming.

63: What’s your opinion on Sam/Crowley?

I could see it happening, maybe. Crowley certainly respects Sam. The problem is that after Ruby and the continuous Sam-shaming over her that Dean/fandom does, Sam is really not keen to get involved with another demon like that, especially not after some of the things Crowley’s done to Sam and to people Sam cares about. Work with him as a wary ally, yes, but a relationship? Highly doubtful outside of AUs.

65: What’s your favorite (or at least a memorable) pop culture reference that has been made on the show?

Dean calling Sam “Velma”, particularly after Scoobynatural where we got canon Salma. Jinkies! XD

66: Just a random confession you have regarding the show/Asker makes up their own question.

I most likely would have continued to not watch this show if I hadn’t been drawn in by the fanfic first, and indeed actually started watching the show so I wouldn’t be breaking my own rules of not writing fanfic for a fandom for which I haven’t seen the source material when I inevitably gave in to the plot bunnies nipping at my vulnerable brain.

[wesleybates]

Content Marketing Strategy Is The Secret Sauce For B2B Sales

We see internet disruptions every day. The results of which are obvious in highly visible industries, such as media and publishing, music, consumer products, advertising and more.

It has also affected the way B2B companies go to market. Most notably, on the marketing side where advertising has become more competitive, less effective, and usually reaches a point of diminishing returns.

In fact, it’s become so difficult to figure out where our target audience is consuming information, it’s no wonder why marketers are so frustrated.

From a sales perspective, the internet has put a serious damper on the sales person’s ability to prospect. No one wants to talk to them. Most aren’t equipped to prospect online. After all, that’s not covered in sales training. And because they’re under pressure to make quota, most will give up too early. So they go back to doing what they’ve always done—make calls, send emails and go to networking events and conferences.

What’s Different?

This subtle disruption may be showing up in several ways:

• Your revenue has remained flat, or it has steadily declined, year over year–all despite being in an industry growing up around you, or a growing economy in general. • Or, maybe your company has a revolving door of sales people, who are in and out faster than you get to know their names. • Perhaps you’ve always relied on referrals, and maybe you still get them, but it’s not going to be enough to grow revenue like you want. • And you might have noticed an increased animosity between sales and marketing departments. After all, marketing believes they’re doing great because the web traffic is up. Sales thinks the leads are terrible and marketing isn’t doing enough for them.

The Marketing Shift

Investing in marketing has always been dicey for companies with a complex sale. I’m defining complex here as any company with a product or service that requires a sales person to touch it before it becomes a deal. These products and services are usually costly to purchase, have long sales cycles, require education and consultation, and result in some sort of customized solution.

Many B2B CEOs that I’ve talked to are still hesitant to shift dollars into a demand generation system because they haven’t been able to measure marketing success very well in the past.

And even with internet measurement tools like Google Analytics, the measurement is still at the campaign level. In other words, branding and awareness marketing activities will always be difficult to measure when it comes to the true impact on revenue.

Therefore, simply making a larger investment in marketing and assigning a series of new projects (like starting a blog) won’t get you where you need to go in the digital world. Marketing people of the past are ill-equipped to handle lead generation through content marketing.

And here’s why: Over the last 10 years, the sales model has begun breaking down. A good sales person used to be able to prospect enough with the phone, email, networking and knocking on doors to fill their calendars with appointments.

All they needed from marketing was branding and awareness, which is why most marketing people are trained this way.

In fact, as a B2B marketing director in the late 90s, I remember our sales people telling me: “I just want them to have heard of us when I call them.” And therefore, we focused our marketing efforts on mass media—mostly advertising and public relations to get the word out so that our sales people had some air cover. We also developed brochures, websites and sell sheets to help them close deals.

Today’s Sales Cycle

But today, sales people are finding it more and more difficult to get into enough sales conversations to make quota. Branding simply won’t open enough doors.

It’s not that we ever wanted to talk to a sales person, but it was necessary when it came to getting the information we needed.

Think about even a simple example of how you might buy a TV today as opposed to 10 years ago. Back then, you would go to Best Buy, find a salesperson, and start asking questions so you could make the right purchase.

Today, you’ll most likely do an internet search first, read reviews, shop for best pricing, and so on. Now, when you do show up at Best Buy, you’re armed to the hilt with information. So how likely are you to talk to the sales person?

My response when they ask me if I need help is usually, “Where are the TVs?” Or, “Your website says you have the Samsung model XKY in stock—can I take a look?”

Sales is Struggling

This same buying process is happening today with every B2B company, whether they know it or not. People are starting their searches for answers on the internet first. They will reach out to sales people, but only when they are ready to buy.

And because people are diagnosing their own problems and prescribing their own solutions, they often get it wrong.

Take the marketing automation industry for example. Do you know of a company that has bought Marketo, Pardot, Eloqua, Hubspot and more, just to have it sit on the shelf collecting dust? They grossly underestimated what it would take to operate them effectively, but it was the answer to their marketing problem, right?

If they’d been willing to talk to a sales person first, they would have told them what’s involved, what the team should look like, options for finding the right resources, and an estimate of what it might cost so a strategy could be prepared before spending any money on technology.

This is especially true if your sales people are selling products and services in an emerging industry. Prospects may not even know that they have a problem in the first place.

So if they’re not willing to take your call, and you can’t figure out where to find them at a conference or networking event, what are you supposed to do as a sales person?

Marketing Must do the Heavy Lifting

Don’t get me wrong. Sales people today are still responsible for developing 1 to 1 sales conversations and running the sales process. They’re still responsible for prospecting and getting into sales conversations. No one is saying they should wait around for the Glen Garry leads from Marketing.

And Marketing is still responsible for branding and awareness—the problem is, it’s not enough to drive one-to-one sales conversations.

The problem for both marketing and sales is that we now have a highly fragmented audience where the marketing activities that we’re used to — like advertising, public relations, SEO and social media — are all having diminishing returns.

And this is important for today’s B2B company. The only metric that matters for marketing is lead conversion. For those of you that know the lingo already, that’s Marketing Qualified Leads (in other words, someone that demonstrates digital behavior) and how many of those turned into sales conversations, or Sales Accepted Leads.

Creating Purposeful Content

If content marketing strategy is therefore intended to convert into b2b sales conversations, each piece that we produce must provide some sort of lead intelligence. Sales can then use this intelligence to try and have a conversation that leads down a buying path.

The bottom line is: if your marketing isn’t putting out content for people to find on a regular basis, you’re missing opportunities. Marketing strategy must be aligned with sales in B2B companies with a complex sale if they’re going to grow revenue—period.

This is important, so I’ll say it again, marketing’s new role in B2B is to drive one-to-one sales conversations digitally where salespeople either have difficulty getting their attention or are unaware of opportunities in the first place. It’s lead generation first, branding second. Branding in this case usually comes as a byproduct of this process when done well.

Even more critical, most innovative B2B companies know that it is now marketing’s burden to build as much of that trust online possible by providing thought leadership and lead intelligence in the form of engaging content that creates a unique experience for the consumer. In short, marketing must do the heavy lifting.

Marketing Like a Media Company

Some time in 2011, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City decided that it could not rely on its 150-year history to acquire enough new audiences—they needed to launch a massive digital initiative.

When your mission shifts from selling product and service to building audience and monetizing it later, how does that change the marketing that you would produce?

For the Met, they do creative storytelling in innovative ways. The example I like to point to is their Artist project series where they brought in 100 famous artists to the museum, put them on camera, and had them talk about their favorite piece and why. Then, they launched the series Netflix-style on their website so viewers can binge watch if they want.

Sreenivasan told me in an interview that he believes the future of every business is storytelling and finding the right way to tell the right story at the right time. And one of the biggest things he’s learned in his tenure at the Met is these lessons apply to every business, big and small, B2B and consumer.

That includes the importance of mobile, social, and video. But most importantly, it’s not about thinking of your audience as millions of people, even though that’s what they have at the Met, but rather it’s about thinking about the right people following you for the right reasons.

The point of this is example is that effective content marketing in B2B means thinking about your audience first, and connecting them with the right message, at the right time, and in the right sequence.

The digital experience must be so good that people want to stay connected to your content, and to have your audience participate in the conversation, you have to think like them.

Now, you certainly don’t have to build an entire news room (although that would be awesome!) but I show you this example because engaging an audience requires marketers to think differently. More like the mindset of a publisher.

In other words, think like a magazine and not like its advertisers. When publishing content, it’s all about what the readers want. It takes frequency (publishing at predictable intervals) and it takes database management (collection of digital behavior) to continuously serve up content that gets your prospect to pick up your publication at the newsstand (or read your email or blog post and want to consume more).

Getting to Know Your Audience

So how does content become a sales conversation anyway? It starts with the creation of content that is going to identify some lead intelligence on a prospect when they consume it. This is why the content strategy that maps to the sales process from the get go is so important.

But even Before you start pumping out blogs and buying marketing automation systems, it’s time to get to know your audience.

Doing that requires involving every part of your team that is client facing– from customer service, to account leads, to sales, to executives. They all know something about the customer that you don’t as a marketer.

For example, you might want to Interview your sales team about the types of customers they target. If they’re face-to-face with a prospect, how do they probe for painpoints? What did the sales conversation in a recent win sound like when they identified them as a prospect? In other words, what was the key issue that prompted the client to talk to you in the first place?

After interviewing colleagues, you can dig deeper by calling your customers and prospects and asking them to validate your assumptions.

Chances are, your customers were facing similar issues in their day-to-day lives as your prospects. Identifying those problems will inspire the content you’ll create to help them solve their problem and hopefully use you to do it.

I should also note that content at the top of the funnel cannot and should not focus on the products and services offered by the company. That comes much later in the sales cycle, when a customer is ready to make a purchase decision and you’re down to answering objections and running sales process.

Once you get that strategy in place and start developing content, you can then start to figure out how you’re going to distribute it so that it gets in front of the right audience and generates leads for sales.

Where to Find Content

If there’s any question about where to get content from, I’ll reiterate that sales and other customer facing job functions are a good place to start. They’re on the front lines with customers and prospects daily. They know what problems they typically solve, what common objections they hear, and what trigger events lead to sales conversations. That’s where you get content topics to generate top-of-the-funnel interest—by focusing on pain, pain, and more pain.

You’re going to need an ongoing process for extracting information from your subject matter experts so that you can communicate in mediums that make sense for your consumer. And you want that anyway because you want quality writing. So say hello to journalists, designers, videographers and other media personnel!

If there’s any doubt as to why many large companies are hiring journalists to write for them, it should be apparent now.

The Sales Pyramid

But anyway, let’s get back to sales and what the process now looks like with a demand generation engine providing marketing qualified leads.

Any good sales prospector should be able to use marketing’s support in the digital world to prioritize his or her prospecting efforts.

Jeb Blount, in his book Fanatical Prospecting, talks about a pyramid of prospecting where top sales performers view their prospect database as a pyramid:

At the bottom of the pyramid are the thousands of prospects they know little about other than a company name and perhaps some contact information. These are the coldest of the cold.

The goal with these prospects is always be moving them up the pyramid by gathering information, and qualifying. At the tip-top are highly qualified prospects who are moving into the buying window.

These are the highest-priority prospects and should be on the top of a sales representative’s daily prospecting list.

Once those top priorities have been exhausted, the sales person can move down the pyramid, following up on Marketing Qualified Leads and using lead intelligence to foster sales conversations.

If your sales people are always working at the bottom of the pyramid (the coldest of the cold) they’re probably not going to make quota. And even worse, if you’ve got good sales people who are always working at the bottom of the pyramid, you risk losing them to a competitor who can help them with marketing leads.

Measurement and Analysis

Of course, companies want to know the what content marketing’s return on investment will be, but it depends on several factors.

Let’s start with whether everyone in the organization has bought into the concept of content marketing. If the CEO is going to spend a few dollars to try it out, and 3 months later decide it’s not working and goes back to hiring more sales people, your ROI will be nada. (I’ve met several CEOs that fit this model exactly.)

Another question is, can you accurately measure your sales process now? In other words, where are your deals coming from now, and what percentage of them do you close?

Also, do you have technology in place such as marketing automation and a CRM, and do your sales people actually use it?

If your answer to all of those questions is yes, then it should be relatively easy to track some pretty significant numbers that will tell you exactly where to spend money and what needs to be fixed.

If not, then this is where you start: getting buy-in for content marketing, establishing a baseline for sales and marketing metrics, developing content, putting in the right technology, testing, and measuring.

If you are generating plenty of leads (or MQLs) every month, the statistics should show how many sales conversations that leads to. From those sales conversations, how many turn into opportunities? And of those opportunities, how many are we closing?

Playing around with those numbers will start to give you a sense of where to spend money.

If you’re closing a large majority of leads that come from various sources, but you don’t have enough “at bats” to move the revenue forward, you’ve got a marketing problem and you need to spend money to produce more qualified leads.

If you’re generating plenty of leads, but they aren’t turning into sales conversations, you could have a problem with the quality of content that your producing, or sales could be ill-equipped to nurture leads and run sales process.

Once you have real data, the measurement can even get more granular.

By determining your overall customer acquisition costs — all the money you spend on marketing and sales people for a given time period divided by the total number of customers you got in that time period — you can calculate all the way down to how much one lead was worth to you.

Content marketing done correctly should be completely measureable, giving you the ability to know where you’re going to have the best return on investment.

Finding the Budget

Acquiring new customers is expensive. It always has been.

Content marketing is no different because it’s a long game, and you should expect to make some significant expenditures in the short term to get it moving. It’s like pushing a giant boulder down a hill—it takes an extreme amount of energy to get it moving, and then it should generate momentum on its own.

So where to find the money for content? A lot of times, it’s about shifting available resources. I know—easier said than done. But If you’re currently spending marketing dollars on pay-per-click ads that have shown diminishing returns, of if you’re currently spending dollars to have a “presence at trade shows,” those are some good places to start.

Another place to look is the expenditures within your sales force. Do you have too many expensive sales people? Can any of the business development and nurturing functions be transitioned to an inside sales team?

But most importantly, stop hiring sales people because they promise a large rolodex of industry prospects that they can bring to the table. The only reason to hire more consultative sales people is that marketing and business development are sending over so many qualified leads that the closers can’t keep up.

Re-allocate and invest that money into a marketing front end that leads with great content that is going to add value to your prospects.

They’ll thank you with their business.

Consumers are searching daily on Google for products and services similar to your brand. Do you want them to find you? Studies on consumer behavior have shown that good online exposure is key to building and growing a business. Investing in the Best SEO services in St Petersburg, FL is, therefore, a wise decision.

[aprilpillkington]

We’ve all become aware of new netflix show, and more so,...

We’ve all become aware of new netflix show, and more so, we’ve all most likely invested hours drew into the world of one TV show or another that comprises the steaming system’s extensive collection of material. With 75 million yearly customers, Netflix is a television powerhouse, house to some of the most high profile shows in presence. It is every television show maker’s dream to see their show sizzle in the houses of countless individuals throughout the world, and there is really no location preferred to make this take place than through Netflix … but getting this done is an exceptionally uphill struggle. How do you make it happen? It starts with the concept. You are going to need something pretty damn special, as the tv world has actually never been richer in imagination than it is today. But fresh ideas are out there, and if you believe you’ve got a good one then hang on to it firmly. You are going to have to flesh out your idea in detail, familiarizing yourself with all of the things your show would encompass, from characters to setting to style to plot. Getting your potential show out there does not mean you need to write a whole series worth of content, often you need only a terrific, well-thought out idea to hook the right people who can get you where you wish to go.

But, typically, you as the author will require to develop a coherent script for, at the very least, the pilot episode of your show. TV Production companies are rarely interested in an “concept”, as everybody has concepts. If you have the ability to swing into action and put your idea into a developed, thoughtful script, ideally a number of episodes, you are a lot more likely to catch the eye of a production business. These individuals wish to see that you have actually considered your concept and have adequate product to turn it into a possibly long-lasting television show. You are then going to want to contact a manufacturer or agent that finest matches the direction you see your show heading in. You should do comprehensive research to figure out which production companies and studios would be a great fit, who specifically you ought to get in touch with, how they like to be queried (email, fax, mail, and so on) and what exactly they are looking for in regards to material (comedy, drama, sci-fi, and so on) The absolute finest case situation is to pitch in person, if you can manage to find a connection to a producer or somehow handle to organize an in person conference– it is the simplest way to passionately pitch your show, and you will be there to be particular absolutely nothing is misunderstood and the agent/producer is clear on your ideas and visions. There are a variety of concerns you should definitely have the ability to respond to about your show prior to heading into a pitch. These include: How are your main characters and your characters’ world unique? How are these fantastic, intricate, conflicted, multi-layered, maybe flawed characters ones that the audience is able to end up being emotionally bought? Why do we care and why do we require to tell this story? What’s the tone of the show? Have the ability to compare to a netflix or movie if possible. Season one primary character arcs. An overview of the first season plot. How is this series sustainable over 100 episodes? (this is the golden mark to reach, because it’s where prod co’s can syndicate out the series; if you can’t show a minimum of a shred of wish to make 100 eps, it’s barely worth thinking about doing). How is this show various than shows of the same category that are on the air now? Specificity is essential. Who are your dream writers/directors/cast? (nearly every single tv show on the air has multiple writers/directors– so pick a few who are dealing with shows right now and think they ’d do well composing your show). Now, if you’ve got an agent/producer, preferably one who has ties with Netflix already, you are on track to getting your show on to Netflix’s radar. Your kind of representation will help in preparing your task to be pitched to the network. If this is successful, you will be able to sell your show to Netflix for a talked about sum of cash, along with work out a contract for an order number of episodes and payment as per the regards to the agreement. From there, it can take any amount of time to get your new netflix show up onto the TV screen, if it even makes it to that point. The TV industry is extremely unpredictable, with shows being picked up, produced and completely made only to be cancelled at the last moment.

How To Pitch A Show To Netflix?

Step 1: Think Up the Show. “Residue” began life as a concept in Harrison’s head. … Step 2: Financing the Show. The actual story covered by the very first 3 episodes of “Residue” is really various from Harrison’s preliminary strategy. … Step 3: Make the Show. … Step 4: Get the Show to Netflix. … Step 5: Make More of the Show(?). There are no set actions to creating a show and successfully getting it into the most sought-after streaming service. Numerous creators have actually taken various paths, as a great deal of it depends on connections/chance encounters, and what works for some people will not work for the other. It is very important to devote whatever you need to producing your show if this is something you really want to do, and following your gut and instinct in terms of picking a next action is exceptionally important. However, hopefully by following these steps you will give yourself the best possible possibility to make your tv-show deserving concept a truth. While the spring of 2015 has been controlled by Netflix releasing high profile series after high profile series, “House of Cards,” “Bloodline” and “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” aren’t the only new shows offered now for streaming. “ Residue,” created by John Harrison, premiered the other day on Netflix with 3 45 minute-long episodes. The genre series, starring “Game of Thrones” notables Natalie Tena and Iwan Rheon, tracks the aftermath of a devastating surge on the city of London and the government conspiracy that might be hiding the fact. (Netflix users might anticipate to see it as a recommended pick if they have actually enjoyed a great deal of “The X-Files” or other category programs.).

Via both phone and e-mail, Indiewire got a detailed breakdown of how “Residue’s” very first season arrived on the streaming giant, and what might take place next with the series. Step 1: Think Up the Show “ Residue” started life as an idea in Harrison’s head. He then brought it to manufacturer Charlotte Walls after a favorable experience working with her on the scary movie, “Clive Barker’s Book of Blood.” “ When [’ Book of Blood’] was ended up and launched, I went back to [Walls] and said, ‘Look, I have another concept that I truly want to do and I’m bringing it to you first because I would love to work with you people,’” he stated. And Harrison had a huge amount of product for the concept. “The thing I had actually visualized was quite a long story. The film that I was pitching them was essentially the start of the mythology, and with success we would have the opportunity to do more, so television sounded truly amazing to me, given how it has actually developed over the past numerous years– the novelization of television. Also, many of the networks are really getting creatively engaged with category product, which was not constantly real in the early 2000s and going back.” Step 2: Financing the Show The real story covered by the first three episodes of “Residue” is very different from Harrison’s preliminary plan. After optioning and establishing the product, manufacturer Charlotte Walls pertained to Harrison with the concept– and more notably, the cash– for a task that would function, in Harrison’s words, as “a proof-of-concept pilot.” “ Whenever someone states they have loan for production, you need to take it!” he said. According to Walls, “Residue” found its financing by means of International Pictures 4, Screen Yorkshire and Green Screen Studios. Due to the fact that a few of the money came from the UK, Harrison didn’t direct– they needed to make sure a certain percentage of the team was British. “We employed a really young gifted British director [Alex Garcia Lopez], who I had a great collaborative relationship with,” he said. “ [Lopez] is so key to the task, which brings his signature style. He was the hook for Iwan Rheon, who he worked with on 'Misfits,’” Walls stated. “ If we get to the next group and I’m able to compose them all and get them written before we get to production,” Harrison said, “Then it would be easier for me to drop back into the director’s chair.” Action 3: Make the Show sizzle

How do you bring on board understood players like Tena and Rheon? Harrison associated that to the script, along with its unconventional nature. “I think the combination of the product and the innovative group drew in all the talent. I believe everybody understood that we had fantastic ambitions for this also, so they wanted to get on board.” Those aspirations consisted of a non-traditional approach to the production, which caused a the project becoming both a netflix series and a film. “When we got it into post-production our supplier, Material Media, had a look at it and stated, 'Let’s … go straight to television,’” Harrison said. “So I wrote some extra scenes so we could pull, into these very first three episodes, a few of the larger conspiracy styles. We shot those and re-edited them into the 3 hours that are now airing on Netflix.”

“’ Residue’ is rather pioneering because it is genuinely multi-format,” Walls stated. “We scripted, shot and cut the project as a motion picture, which was released theatrically in the UK on March 20, 2015 on a minimal release. Whilst we were in post-production, we evaluated the product and decided to develop the three-parter as well, which was then offered to Netflix in this format particularly.” Step 4: Get the Show to Netflix How did that occur? Well, when “Residue” was completed in its newfound type as a television show, distributor Material Media brought the show to the October 2014 MIPCON, a trade show kept in Cannes that functions as a market for worldwide television. They likewise ensured that Netflix got an opportunity to see it in advance. “ That really began the sales pitch,” Harrison stated. “We had a number of entities who were interested in it, but Netflix wished to take it off the table.” The show is now offered for streaming in English-language territories; a global launch will present over the course of the year. In the meantime … Action 5: Make More of the Show(?). It’s actually just the start of the story, according to Walls. “’ Residue’ Season 1 is really an extended pilot and ought to be thought of that way,” she stated. “Netflix do not necessarily do the Amazon-style pilot season. However 'Residue’ is actually more in that design where these first three chapters are live before the existence of a full season.”.

How do I send something to Netflix?

Step 1– Improve Your Pitch For Netflix. Due to the fact that nearly every filmmaker dreams of getting a Netflix deal, there is an abundant supply of content. … Step 2– Discover An Aggregator or Distributor. … Step 3– Get An Action. Therefore the plan is to work towards a 10-episode 2nd season, and Netflix currently has the special alternative on it. Walls did clarify that since 10 episodes is a bigger dedication, there would have to be modifications. “Any full season would always be more standard in its financing as the general spending plan would be so much higher,” Walls said. “Netflix would be at the center of that financing plan from day one, for this reason the choice.”.

But independent funding has some benefits, and Harrison was happy with the experience: “It’s a great thing for someone like me, since creatively I’m solutioning to my partners as opposed needing to deal with a regular network structure. We made this without any disturbance from studios or networks. We were with the studio! That, to me, was really great.”

Four months after it was announced that Netflix would be investing CDN$ 500 million in original productions in Canada over a 5-year period, Netflix’s now previous VP of Content, Elizabeth Bradley, took the stage at Prime-time show in Ottawa to talk about how manufacturers can get their shows on the platform. It’s been 5 years because the commissioning of the very first Netflix Original series, Home of Cards, which had a spending plan of $100 million for 26 episodes. With its dependence on data that led to the show’s creation and promotion, Home of Cards marked a turning point in the way programs was made. Prior to the Canadian Netflix offer being announced, a variety of Canadian manufacturers had already had successful partnerships with Netflix. Some took the kind of extra windows for productions at first produced broadcasters while others were complete partnerships on Netflix Originals. To the latter category belong Travelers, Frontier, Alias Grace and the Anne of Green Gablesadaptation understood simply as Anne (when broadcast on CBC) or Anne with an E on Netflix. What is Netflix looking for?

When asked what Netflix is searching for in regards to category, Elizabeth Bradley replied “Whatever.”. Whether it’s sci-fi, a thriller, drama or funny or even a remake of Anne of Green Gables, she stated the key concerns writers and producers need to ask themselves are these: Why is it exciting? Why is it various? Bradley noted that once Netflix believes in the producer’s vision, the other pieces are secondary. “The package of directors and actors isn’t important to us.”. “ We can fix the cast and the director. What we can’t solve is amazing writing and storytelling.”. A story that resonates worldwide. Bradley continued: “When Moira [Walley-Beckett] and Miranda [de Pencier] concerned me with a script for Anne,” and it is very important to come with a script, she highlighted, “they had a genuine and grounded interpretation that we understood would resonate worldwide.”. And it wasn’t just the same old 1908 Anne of Green Gables. Vancouver-born Walley-Beckett came to the project with Emmy wins for her writing on the very 21st century Breaking Bad, so including some edge to the Anne character and narrative was all part of the plan. “We knew it would work worldwide,” said Bradley. That hunch turned out to be accurate. Anne with an E was among Netflix’s a lot of binge-watched shows around the world in 2017, with Prince Edward Island’s most well-known red-headed daughter winning over audiences as far away as South Korea, India and South Africa. So what does it consider a netflix original series to have an international appeal? Some believe that shooting in several locations around the globe resolves the problem, but Bradley cautioned that it’s not quite that simple. “ If you’re sitting with a good friend in Japan, and you both just get it … if you’ve got that sort of relatable story around the globe, that’s what we’re after.”. In addition to stories that work throughout cultural and geographical borders, there are logistical concerns to keep in mind when thinking about making a pitch to Netflix. For these factors, Bradley advises working with an agent, a manager or a legal representative. The value of partnering with a Canadian broadcaster or distributor.

The length of time should a TV show pitch be?

Your pitch ought to disappear than 12-15 minutes long. Concentrate on the hook of your show and why it would be a great suitable for their network. Your pitch should be as prepared as your treatment and your script, so practice it multiple times! In a January 2018 interview with the CMPA’s Indiescreen publication, Corie Wright, Netflix’s Director of Global Public law, shared a couple of more insights about working with the company that Canadian producers are most likely to discover useful. “ Many people don’t recognize that Netflix can’t make qualified CanCon without partnering with a Canadian broadcaster or independent Canadian distributor. That’s why all of our CanCon originals are co-productions with Canadian broadcasters. Other Netflix originals like the Trailer Park Boys reboot and Canadian director Tony Elliott’s movie ARQ include a lot of Canadian creativity and talent, and score high on CanCon requirements, however they aren’t accredited as CanCon since we can’t do CanCon on our own.”. Repeating the platform’s main interest in making the highest quality shows offered to a varied and dispersed audience, Wright stated this: “We attempt not to get too caught up in the labels and rather focus on making terrific movies and netflix tv show.”. TIP: Netflix and Hulu DO NOT want your “idea.” They desire your END PRODUCT. And even then, they only desire it if it makes sense for them. It resembles a book, individuals, I can not pitch them an unsolicited “idea,” since a million other people probably have the very same concept, and the last thing they want is for you to think they “took” yours, when it wasn’t even distinct to begin with. If you want to see your “idea” on Netflix and Hulu, establish a pilot, or produce a few episodes, or movie the movie. Once again, it resembles a book, the publisher wishes to see a finished manuscript, or at least some strong chapters …

We’ve all become aware of new netflix show, and more so,... published first on https://the4th3rd.tumblr.com

[michaeljtraylor]

Bonnie & Clyde Go Down in Style

Because we, as humans, have a fascination with famous people on the wrong side of the law, Bonnie and Clyde have become a tale as old as time. They’ve also become glorified figures to a degree and remain a staple of pop culture nearly 100 years after their deaths. Now, we have a compelling new look at the end of their familiar tale from the perspective of the men responsible for bringing them down in The Highwaymen. And rest assured, it’s one heck of an enjoyable ride.

The Highwaymen centers on legendary lawman Frank Hamer (Kevin Costner) and his longtime sidekick Manny Gault (Woody Harrelson). Both men have been retired for some time, as the Texas Rangers were disbanded by the governor. However, when Bonny and Clyde’s killing spree gets far too out of hand with no end in sight, they’re commissioned as special investigators and hit the road and take down the nefarious duo once and for all. This leads to a tense and deadly game of cat and mouse across state lines as Hamer and Gault try to finally end the killing for good.

The tale of Bonnie and Clyde has been told many a time over the years, perhaps most notably in the 1967 Arthur Penn-directed movie. While they are at this movie’s center, it is not their story. The criminals loom large as a presence, though, they’re used more like the shark in Jaws. Seen very sparsely and used to convey the imminent danger lurking in the background. The focus is on the manhunt and that provides us with an entirely fresh perspective on this well-known story.

Related: Highwaymen Trailer: Costner & Harrelson Go After Bonnie & Clyde

John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side, The Founder), a man who has brought his fair share of true stories to the big screen in the past, is in the director’s chair for this tale that has been largely a mystery to the masses, despite being a key part of the larger tale. Hancock has a way of conveying these real-life stories for the widest possible audience. It’s no different here. He manages to weave a healthy amount of humor into a very serious situation with major stakes. The balance is handled well. Too much humor and something like this could come off as tasteless. Not enough and it’s too grim.

Overall, The Highwaymen feels like an old-school popcorn flick in the truest sense. In the days of a bygone era long before CGI and superheroes dominated the movie landscape. A movie that would pass as a blockbuster, even as recently as the late 90s, that puts a couple of bonafide movie stars at its center and tells a compelling story not related to an already existing piece of intellectual property. Don’t get me wrong, I love my comic book movies and franchise fare, but this is the kind of movie that runs the risk of disappearing in the modern landscape. Say what you will about Netflix, but they are putting the money up to keep these things going.

The cast, top to bottom, is stellar and stacked. Kathy Bates, Kim Dickens, John Carroll Lynch, Thomas Mann and William Sadler all play key supporting roles superbly well, but this is a showcase for Kevin Costner and Woody Harrelson. We’ve come to expect Harrelson to deliver anytime he shows up on screen and here, that’s certainly the case. He’s a two-sided coin as the comedic relief and the story’s moral center. Kevin Costner, meanwhile, is a force to be reckoned with as a man determined to do what he sees as right by any means necessary. It’s an excellent reminder of how great Costner can be when given the right material. He’s quite possibly one of the most underrated leading men ever and he proves why here with one of his best performances in a long time.

There are those who may want something like this to come with more grit, perhaps in the style of Michael Mann or David Fincher. That’s decidedly not the approach the filmmakers decided to take here. That’s not good or bad, but expectations need to be set. It also may run the risk of dragging its feet a little toward the end for certain viewers, though not so much that it’s worth avoiding. Setting that aside, this is a truly compelling tale told in a crowd-pleasing manner that doesn’t glorify these vicious criminals, yet manages to still showcase their humanity. The Highwaymen is another big win for Netflix Original Films who have truly found their footing when it comes to making great movies.

Topics: The Highwaymen, SXSW, Netflix, Streaming

Writer of various things on the internet (mostly about movies) since 2013. Major lover of popcorn flicks. Avid appreciator of James Bond, Marvel and Star Wars. Has a tremendously fat cat named Buster and still buys CDs. I’ve got my reasons.

Source link

from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8312273 https://hashtaghighways.com/2019/03/11/bonnie-clyde-go-down-in-style/ from Garko Media https://garkomedia1.tumblr.com/post/183391973124

[garkodigitalmedia]

Bonnie & Clyde Go Down in Style

Because we, as humans, have a fascination with famous people on the wrong side of the law, Bonnie and Clyde have become a tale as old as time. They’ve also become glorified figures to a degree and remain a staple of pop culture nearly 100 years after their deaths. Now, we have a compelling new look at the end of their familiar tale from the perspective of the men responsible for bringing them down in The Highwaymen. And rest assured, it’s one heck of an enjoyable ride.

The Highwaymen centers on legendary lawman Frank Hamer (Kevin Costner) and his longtime sidekick Manny Gault (Woody Harrelson). Both men have been retired for some time, as the Texas Rangers were disbanded by the governor. However, when Bonny and Clyde’s killing spree gets far too out of hand with no end in sight, they’re commissioned as special investigators and hit the road and take down the nefarious duo once and for all. This leads to a tense and deadly game of cat and mouse across state lines as Hamer and Gault try to finally end the killing for good.

The tale of Bonnie and Clyde has been told many a time over the years, perhaps most notably in the 1967 Arthur Penn-directed movie. While they are at this movie’s center, it is not their story. The criminals loom large as a presence, though, they’re used more like the shark in Jaws. Seen very sparsely and used to convey the imminent danger lurking in the background. The focus is on the manhunt and that provides us with an entirely fresh perspective on this well-known story.

Related: Highwaymen Trailer: Costner & Harrelson Go After Bonnie & Clyde

John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side, The Founder), a man who has brought his fair share of true stories to the big screen in the past, is in the director’s chair for this tale that has been largely a mystery to the masses, despite being a key part of the larger tale. Hancock has a way of conveying these real-life stories for the widest possible audience. It’s no different here. He manages to weave a healthy amount of humor into a very serious situation with major stakes. The balance is handled well. Too much humor and something like this could come off as tasteless. Not enough and it’s too grim.

Overall, The Highwaymen feels like an old-school popcorn flick in the truest sense. In the days of a bygone era long before CGI and superheroes dominated the movie landscape. A movie that would pass as a blockbuster, even as recently as the late 90s, that puts a couple of bonafide movie stars at its center and tells a compelling story not related to an already existing piece of intellectual property. Don’t get me wrong, I love my comic book movies and franchise fare, but this is the kind of movie that runs the risk of disappearing in the modern landscape. Say what you will about Netflix, but they are putting the money up to keep these things going.

The cast, top to bottom, is stellar and stacked. Kathy Bates, Kim Dickens, John Carroll Lynch, Thomas Mann and William Sadler all play key supporting roles superbly well, but this is a showcase for Kevin Costner and Woody Harrelson. We’ve come to expect Harrelson to deliver anytime he shows up on screen and here, that’s certainly the case. He’s a two-sided coin as the comedic relief and the story’s moral center. Kevin Costner, meanwhile, is a force to be reckoned with as a man determined to do what he sees as right by any means necessary. It’s an excellent reminder of how great Costner can be when given the right material. He’s quite possibly one of the most underrated leading men ever and he proves why here with one of his best performances in a long time.

There are those who may want something like this to come with more grit, perhaps in the style of Michael Mann or David Fincher. That’s decidedly not the approach the filmmakers decided to take here. That’s not good or bad, but expectations need to be set. It also may run the risk of dragging its feet a little toward the end for certain viewers, though not so much that it’s worth avoiding. Setting that aside, this is a truly compelling tale told in a crowd-pleasing manner that doesn’t glorify these vicious criminals, yet manages to still showcase their humanity. The Highwaymen is another big win for Netflix Original Films who have truly found their footing when it comes to making great movies.

Topics: The Highwaymen, SXSW, Netflix, Streaming

Writer of various things on the internet (mostly about movies) since 2013. Major lover of popcorn flicks. Avid appreciator of James Bond, Marvel and Star Wars. Has a tremendously fat cat named Buster and still buys CDs. I’ve got my reasons.

Source link

from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8312273 https://hashtaghighways.com/2019/03/11/bonnie-clyde-go-down-in-style/

[nicholerestrada]

Bonnie & Clyde Go Down in Style

Because we, as humans, have a fascination with famous people on the wrong side of the law, Bonnie and Clyde have become a tale as old as time. They’ve also become glorified figures to a degree and remain a staple of pop culture nearly 100 years after their deaths. Now, we have a compelling new look at the end of their familiar tale from the perspective of the men responsible for bringing them down in The Highwaymen. And rest assured, it’s one heck of an enjoyable ride.

The Highwaymen centers on legendary lawman Frank Hamer (Kevin Costner) and his longtime sidekick Manny Gault (Woody Harrelson). Both men have been retired for some time, as the Texas Rangers were disbanded by the governor. However, when Bonny and Clyde’s killing spree gets far too out of hand with no end in sight, they’re commissioned as special investigators and hit the road and take down the nefarious duo once and for all. This leads to a tense and deadly game of cat and mouse across state lines as Hamer and Gault try to finally end the killing for good.

The tale of Bonnie and Clyde has been told many a time over the years, perhaps most notably in the 1967 Arthur Penn-directed movie. While they are at this movie’s center, it is not their story. The criminals loom large as a presence, though, they’re used more like the shark in Jaws. Seen very sparsely and used to convey the imminent danger lurking in the background. The focus is on the manhunt and that provides us with an entirely fresh perspective on this well-known story.

Related: Highwaymen Trailer: Costner & Harrelson Go After Bonnie & Clyde

John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side, The Founder), a man who has brought his fair share of true stories to the big screen in the past, is in the director’s chair for this tale that has been largely a mystery to the masses, despite being a key part of the larger tale. Hancock has a way of conveying these real-life stories for the widest possible audience. It’s no different here. He manages to weave a healthy amount of humor into a very serious situation with major stakes. The balance is handled well. Too much humor and something like this could come off as tasteless. Not enough and it’s too grim.

Overall, The Highwaymen feels like an old-school popcorn flick in the truest sense. In the days of a bygone era long before CGI and superheroes dominated the movie landscape. A movie that would pass as a blockbuster, even as recently as the late 90s, that puts a couple of bonafide movie stars at its center and tells a compelling story not related to an already existing piece of intellectual property. Don’t get me wrong, I love my comic book movies and franchise fare, but this is the kind of movie that runs the risk of disappearing in the modern landscape. Say what you will about Netflix, but they are putting the money up to keep these things going.

The cast, top to bottom, is stellar and stacked. Kathy Bates, Kim Dickens, John Carroll Lynch, Thomas Mann and William Sadler all play key supporting roles superbly well, but this is a showcase for Kevin Costner and Woody Harrelson. We’ve come to expect Harrelson to deliver anytime he shows up on screen and here, that’s certainly the case. He’s a two-sided coin as the comedic relief and the story’s moral center. Kevin Costner, meanwhile, is a force to be reckoned with as a man determined to do what he sees as right by any means necessary. It’s an excellent reminder of how great Costner can be when given the right material. He’s quite possibly one of the most underrated leading men ever and he proves why here with one of his best performances in a long time.

There are those who may want something like this to come with more grit, perhaps in the style of Michael Mann or David Fincher. That’s decidedly not the approach the filmmakers decided to take here. That’s not good or bad, but expectations need to be set. It also may run the risk of dragging its feet a little toward the end for certain viewers, though not so much that it’s worth avoiding. Setting that aside, this is a truly compelling tale told in a crowd-pleasing manner that doesn’t glorify these vicious criminals, yet manages to still showcase their humanity. The Highwaymen is another big win for Netflix Original Films who have truly found their footing when it comes to making great movies.

Topics: The Highwaymen, SXSW, Netflix, Streaming

Writer of various things on the internet (mostly about movies) since 2013. Major lover of popcorn flicks. Avid appreciator of James Bond, Marvel and Star Wars. Has a tremendously fat cat named Buster and still buys CDs. I’ve got my reasons.

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Source: https://hashtaghighways.com/2019/03/11/bonnie-clyde-go-down-in-style/

from Garko Media https://garkomedia1.wordpress.com/2019/03/11/bonnie-clyde-go-down-in-style/

[mrmichaelchadler]

The Best TV of 2018

It may perhaps merely be a product of our times that consensus gets further and further away with so many options for entertainment, but even a casual perusal of Twitter produces wildly different opinions on the state of television in 2018. Some notable critics believe we’re still in the Golden Age of TV. Others believe we’re far from it. Has the non-stop market saturation of streaming services reduced the overall quality? Or do we just have to try a little harder to find it? There does seem to be a sense that we’re all overwhelmed by the variety of options out there, and that it’s going to be increasingly difficult for shows to transcend all of the choices to become true phenomena. Would “The Sopranos” or “Breaking Bad” make the impact they did today? Probably not. By that same token, it does feel like TV has become more of a Big Box store—something for everyone—than the creator-driven medium it was five or ten years ago. But look at the quality below. We had little problem putting together lists of dozens of shows we liked this year, and we still had to cut a few that we think you should be watching. These are the ones that we feel most broke through the Target-ization of TV. Watch em all.

BRIAN TALLERICO

Runner-ups: “American Vandal,” “Big Mouth,” “Castle Rock,” “Everything Sucks!,” “GLOW,” “Legion,” “One Day at a Time,” “Ray Donovan,” “Superstore,” and “The Terror”

20. “Bodyguard”

19. “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”

18. “Billions”

17. “Dear White People”

16. “Westworld”

15. “Succession”

14. “Bob’s Burgers”

13. “Sharp Objects”

12. "Homecoming"

11. “The Americans”

10. “Maniac”

I’ve been saying this for so long that I’m starting to get bored with it myself: I’m stunned that the streaming revolution hasn’t led to more playfulness in terms of structure and genre. But maybe that’s changing? The reason we grew up with half-hour comedies and hour-long dramas was because of the structure of ad-supported television. So why are we still stuck with it? Why can’t we have short dramas and long comedies? Which brings us to “Maniac,” Cary Joji Fukunaga’s mesmerizing experiment in structure, genre, and length. Starring Emma Stone, Jonah Hill, and Justin Theroux, this mindfuck of a show is one of the few things I saw this year that truly felt like it was pushing the envelope of what television is capable of, paying homage to Stanley Kubrick, Joel Coen, and Terry Gilliam while also carving its own new ground. I get why some people were turned off by the tonal shifts and unique nature of the back half of this season, but that almost makes me like it more—sometimes the most interesting art provokes the most divisive responses.

9. “The Haunting of Hill House”

No single episode that I saw this year had quite the impact on me as the fifth episode of Mike Flanagan’s masterful horror drama, one that blended horror and heartbreak in equal measure. With an award-worthy performance by Victoria Pedretti, Flanagan and his ensemble paid off everything set up by the previous four incredible episodes. That the back half of the first season of this great show doesn’t live up to the first isn’t as important to me as some people. Taken as a 5-episode run, the first half is as good as any you’ll find in any series this year, and there’s enough to like in the second half that it doesn’t completely derail. I think the problem most people had was that after the towering emotional achievement of episode five and the technical one of episode six, anything was bound to disappoint. Again, and I’m going to get a little “broken record” here again if you've been reading me for the last few years, when you’ve been doing this TV thing for two decades, you increasingly embrace the new, and “Hill House” wasn’t like anything else on TV this year. It was so good, I watched it twice.

8. “Killing Eve”

One of the true honest-to-goodness buzzed-about hits this year (maybe the only one?), BBC America’s hit show did something virtually impossible and actually increased its viewership with each passing episode. It was a show that people were actually recommending to friends in a way that streaming/binge-viewing—where Netflix is dropping another show before you can actually talk about the first—has virtually eliminated. What got people buzzing? Incredibly smart writing and the magnetic performances from Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer as a cat-and-mouse duo in which neither would probably agree on which one was the feline. A shared obsession between a psychopathic killer and the woman tracking her is a great hook already, but Oh and Comer are so incredibly charming and fascinating that they instantly became a classic TV duo. More than any show this year, I can’t wait to see where this one goes next.

7. “The Good Place”

I’ll admit dear readers to being forking worried at a few points this season. This brilliant NBC comedy—so far and away the best show on network television that it’s almost unfair—completely upended its premise by delivering its protagonists back to the real world, a daring move for a show in which the setting was almost a fluid character of its own for two years. And I wasn’t sure where “The Good Place” was going for a few episodes, ones kept afloat by the stunning skill of the ensemble but missing a small degree of confidence when compared to the first two. And then they really stuck the landing. Even more importantly, this is an annual list, and the last five episodes of season two, which aired in January and February, were downright masterful. This show is funny, smart, moving, and insightful. And I never should have doubted it.

6. “A Very English Scandal”

Likely the least-seen entry in this top ten, I urge you to bookmark this page, drop what you’re doing, go to Amazon Prime and watch this, and then come back later. You won’t regret it. The best thing that Stephen Frears (“Dangerous Liaisons,” “The Queen”) has done in over a decade, this three-hour mini-series dramatizes the events around a notorious scandal in which a member of British Parliament tried to have his gay lover killed. Hugh Grant—having a career renaissance of late with “Florence Foster Jenkins,” “Paddington 2,” and this—stars as the politician and the great Ben Whishaw plays the sexual partner who wouldn’t go away to his liking. Biting, clever, and anchored by two fantastic performances, this is an entertaining reminder that truly dirty politics are not an entirely Trumpian trend. 

5. “The Tale”

Does it belong on a film or TV list? I saw it on a big screen at the world premiere at Sundance, but most people only had the opportunity to see it on HBO, so I’m qualifying it as TV (although wouldn’t argue with those who put it on their film list…it’s a line that gets blurrier every year). However you see “The Tale,” see “The Tale.” One of our best living actresses, Laura Dern, stars in this semi-autobiographical story of a woman whose life is turned upside down when her mother (Ellen Burstyn) discovers what she believes is evidence of child abuse when her daughter was a pre-teen. How we compartmentalize and make excuses for traumatic events in our life, how monsters so easily prey on the vulnerable, and the very structure and purpose of biographical filmmaking are dissected here, anchored by great performances from Dern, Jason Ritter, Elizabeth Debicki, and more. It’s a tough watch, but it’s worth it.

4. “Better Call Saul”

The best drama on TV by some stretch works on so many levels simultaneously that I’m not even sure where to start. How about the fact that the writers of this brilliant show had the nerve, just when viewers were truly expecting more tie-ins to “Breaking Bad,” to make their latest season mostly about the arc of the non-“Bad” Kim Wexler? Rhea Seehorn’s performance here is my favorite on any show this year, in any genre, and I’m flabbergasted at the trust the writers placed in her to convey what is so often missing from the fast-paced world of TV—inner monologue. They trust that fans of this show know these characters well enough that they don’t have to explain every detail and twist. So much of television is about characters telling you what they want, how they’re going to get it, and then getting it. “Better Call Saul” completely bucks this trend by presenting us with characters uncertain about their own needs and desires, taking life as it comes to them, whether they’re starting a drop-phone business or stealing a Hummel figurine. And it’s got the best ensemble on TV. By far.

3. “America to Me”

Steve James’ latest project should be essential viewing for all school administrations around the country, and most city politicians as well. In spending a year with the students and staff at Oak Park and River Forest High School, James and his crew created a portrait of life in Chicago in the late ‘10s that will stand the test of time. “America to Me” is a show about listening. It’s made by a filmmaker who listens to his subjects and allows their stories to guide his process. It’s about listening to overworked staff members who may not know the best way to handle the problems in their schools but wake up every day trying to figure it out. Most of all, it’s about listening to the kids—the kids who channel their hopes and dreams into poetry, athletics, or even just trying to graduate. We can only possibly succeed as a country if we start to listen to all of them.

2. “Barry”

I can’t remember the last time that my best-of list was topped by two comedies, but both of these shows are barely comedies. The half-hour structure makes them easily categorizable as comedies and they have more funny beats than dramatic ones, but they’re both shows that do that thing I was talking about way back in the “Maniac” entry: Push the boundaries of genre expectations. HBO’s best show starts as a seemingly predictable fish-out-of-water comedy about a hitman finding friends in an acting workshop in L.A., recalling “Get Shorty,” but becomes something much darker and deeper as the season progresses, landing in a place that’s more Vince Gilligan than Elmore Leonard. This is also the part that Bill Hader was born to play—believable in both Barry’s menace and his likability. In a very strong year for new shows, this was the best.

1. “Atlanta”

What is “Atlanta” about? I’ve watched many of its episodes twice and I’m still not really sure how to answer that question. I do know that it’s not like anything else on TV. When I start on an episode of “Atlanta,” I’m never quite sure what I’m going to get, but I have literally never been disappointed. There’s no such thing as a bad episode of “Atlanta,” through two seasons, and there are several masterpieces. So much has been written about “Teddy Perkins” that I couldn’t possibly add more to that conversation but the thing that not enough people have noted is that this season would be brilliant even without that episode. I really like “Alligator Man” and I love “Helen.” More than most shows in 2018, I feel like people are going to be writing about and dissecting “Atlanta” for many years to come. It is a groundbreaking, daring, brilliant show. And TV critics wouldn’t be so divided on the state of the industry if there were more like it. 

ALLISON SHOEMAKER

Runner-ups: “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “Jesus Christ Superstar Live,” “Howards End,” “Ugly Delicious,” “Doctor Who,” “Superstore,” “Salt Fat Acid Heat,” “My Brilliant Friend,” “Lodge 49,” “Harlots”

20. “A Very English Scandal"

19. “The Terror"

18. “Succession"

17. “Wanderlust"

16. “American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace”

15.” America to Me”

14. “Barry”

13. “Sharp Objects”

12. “American Vandal”

11. “Vida”

10. “The Good Fight”

I was late to the party with “The Good Fight,” the smartest televised look at life after the 2016 election. The first season, which begins with “The Good Wife’s” Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski) watching the inauguration of Donald Trump and promptly deciding to move to a vineyard in France (spoiler: that doesn’t work out), matches the series from which it spun (“The Good Wife”) in verve and wit. The second does something entirely new.

Creators Robert King, Michelle King, and Phil Alden Robinson didn’t plan to follow Diane under President Trump. Who among us planned on that? The break between seasons gave the show’s writers a chance to process and think about new ways to explore what it feels like to be alive—especially alive and black, female, or both—in this particular moment, and the results speak for themselves. “The Good Fight” has become not just TV’s best, most thoughtful procedural, but a cogent legal series laced through with heady surreality—visual, textual, metaphysical, political. Yet because of where we’re at, that surreality is heightened further. Is that office really full of balloons? Is there actually a pig in the white house? Is that camera still running, and did that person really just get shot? Can life possibly be like this, or am I just high?

9. “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”

“Riverdale” can take a seat—”Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” is The CW’s most daring series. An almost impossibly bold musical comedy about mental illness that deconstructs the tropes of romantic comedies and explores the ways in which those things intersect, Rachel Bloom and Aline Brosh McKenna’s critical darling (and underseen gem) spent much of its third season in a place as tender and painful as a bruise. With the beginning of its fourth—and final— season, however, ”Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” began to dig into the complicated nature of recovery with undisguised relish. As Rebecca Bunch (Bloom) grows increasingly self-aware, her journey becomes mirrored by that of those around her, creating a throughline of meta-commentary that doubles as a collection of thoughtful, almost gentle character studies—an approach epitomized by the reintroduction of Greg, a recovering alcoholic who’s so changed that he’s now played by an entirely different person (Skyler Astin, taking over from Santino Fontana).

That’s ambitious enough, all by itself. But the musical portion of the proceedings has continued to dazzle, and it’s that element that lends “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” one of the largest visual palettes on TV. The show’s directors (to say nothing of choreographer Kathryn M. Burns and Bloom herself, who conceptualizes the “video” for every musical number on the show) jump into these segments like kids playing in a puddle, bringing us into a demented “Oklahoma” one moment and allowing a supporting character to decry his own profession via the muted colors and jaunty angles of New Jack Swing the next. It’s wild, ambitious, undeniably entertaining stuff. I’ll miss it terribly when it’s gone.

8. “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow”

“Legends of Tomorrow” was once the Arrowverse’s dull-as-stale-bread stepchild, a mess of contradictory elements that added up to a whole lot of nothing. Not so anymore. Nowadays, even the memory of that first season is so remote that it’s almost as if Beebo smashed it all to bits and scattered the pieces throughout the universe. There are more visually accomplished shows out there—”Legends” doesn’t have the luxury of “Game of Thrones” money—but there’s no as willing to throw caution to the wind and simply do whatever seems the most fun. A lot of what happens is familiar territory,  but the self-awareness of the series ensures that even the mustiest tropes feel fresh. And sure, this is fluffy entertainment, but the writers’ commitment to character means that while you might call “Legends” a treat, you could never call it junk food. It’s silly, sometimes delightfully stupid, and there’s little to challenge the mind, but if I’m totally honest with you as well as myself, there’s no series I looked forward to with more eagerness than this one. You can keep “The Handmaid’s Tale.” I want the traditional timeloop fun montage.

7. “Atlanta”

I’m not even sure what’s left to say about “Teddy Perkins.” It’s a frankly astonishing episode of television, funnier than most comedies can ever boast of being, scarier than nearly any horror show could hope to be, and as layered as an onion (or an episode of “The Leftovers”). It does more in one scene than many shows could achieve in several seasons. And it’s my second favorite episode of “Atlanta” this year. Donald Glover’s remarkable series met and surpassed the high watermarks of its terrific freshman season, thanks in no small part to a series of stunning turns from Brian Tyree Henry (who’s having a pretty great year all around, not sure if you noticed.) Without “Teddy Perkins,” it would still be among the best things on television. With it? Holy shit.

6. “The Tale”

Behind the lens: Jennifer Fox, documentarian, working on her first narrative feature. Before the lens: Jennifer Fox, loosely fictional entity (Laura Dern), a documentarian unexpectedly in the position of interrogating herself. In her mind: Jenny Fox, age 13 (Isabelle Nélisse), turning her own trauma into a tale that she can bear, writing it down, word by word, until she finds herself believing it. When I first began watching Fox’s brave, shockingly intimate film, my initial response was one of disappointment about its home. A film this good deserves to be seen on the big screen, I thought. But when I’d paused it to walk away and catch my breath 20 minutes later, I reconsidered that notion. HBO’s acquisition of “The Tale” does more for the film than its proposed use as an educational tool would suggest, though that’s undeniably of great value. It allows the viewer to pause, walk away, catch their breath, let out a sob or two, and return to it when equipped to do so, like testing a wounded ankle to see when it will bear all that weight. Exquisite, unforgettable, and something I���ll never watch again.

5. “Pose”

In “Love is the Message,” the Janet Mock-directed, Mock and Ryan Murphy-written sixth episode of “Pose’s” remarkable freshman season, two people confront their own mortality, the painful future that awaits them, and the cruelty of the world in a moment of exquisite joy. They stand together, and they sing from the bottoms of their shoes. Created by Murphy, Brad Falchuk, and Steven Canals, “Pose” steps into the community of New York’s ballroom scene—and more specifically, though not exclusively, the trans women found therein—at a time in which any one of them could at any moment drop dead, the direct result of the AIDS crisis largely ignored by the American government. But while the pain and injustice of that time and place are clear, that’s not what dominates the series, or that scene. “Pose” is a series of joy, and as Mock’s camera captures every flicker of fear, so to does it observe the unbearable loveliness of being alive. Blanca (Mj Rodriguez) and Pray Tell (Billy Porter) breathe in, and it’s like a prayer. Then they stand together and sing, my god, they sing.

4. “The Good Place”

Much has been written about the almost casual manner in which Michael Schur’s thoughtful philositcom burns everything down. With some regularity, the denizens of “The Good Place”—once Team Cockroach, then the Soul Squad, and now, who knows what—see everything they know torn down, only to be rebuilt. Watching Schur, his writers, and the show’s (presumably very busy) production design team relaunch the adventures of Eleanor (Kristen Bell), Chidi (William Jackson Harper), Tahani (Jameela Jamil), Jason (Manny Jacinto), Janet (D’Arcy Carden), and Michael (Ted Danson) would be a thrill in any circumstance. But the show’s commitment to rooting all that tomfoolery in the exploration of what it means to be human and have a conscience at the same time makes it as personal and honest as it is ambitious and absolutely bonkers. That in and of itself is pretty honest—after all, you never know when you might be forced grab a lighter, yell “BORTLES,” and blow your situation up.

3. “One Day at a Time”

Rumors of the demise of the multi-cam sitcom have been greatly exaggerated, and “One Day at a Time” is living proof. The Norman Lear-produced reboot of his classic sitcom of the same name sees creators Mike Royce and Gloria Calderon-Kellett exploring the difficulties and pleasures experienced by the Latinx, immigrant, queer, and military communities with a greater sense of fun than one might think possible after reading such a list. While the contemporary feeling of its characters—played with irresistible panache by a top-flight cast, led by Justina Machado and Rita Moreno—might tempt one who hasn’t seen it to file it away from classics like “Cheers” and “All in the Family,” any viewer who has had the pleasure of witnessing its mastery of the multi-cam format will know better.

That expertise comes particularly in handy in “Not Yet.” The almost defiantly theatrical season finale, which takes place almost exclusively in the hushed hospital room of an ailing member of the family, draws viewers in one monologue at a time, achieving a sense of immediacy and intimacy that was, in this year, almost impossible to match. It’s back next month. I can’t wait. Cue the theme song.

2. “Killing Eve”

“Killing Eve” is the funniest murder show, the saddest black comedy, the most thrilling hangout series and the most casual spy story of the year, and it’s more than those things together. Sandra Oh is perfect. Jodie Comer is perfect. It does more storytelling with one piece of costuming alone than many other shows achieve in an hour, or more. It plays with tropes and plays off your expectation, defies classification while being every inch a cat-and-mouse story, and never stops being a damned good time, even as it explores love, lust, grief, trauma, fear, and the sometimes jarring reality of getting what you want.

1. “The Americans”

I’ve written about “The Americans” at length this year, both for this site and others, so let me just say this. In competitive figure-skating, each skater has a maximum score they can achieve, and that’s determined by the degree of difficulty of the routine they set out to perform. It’s possible to stumble, even to fall, and still to do well, because the essentials are perfect, or because another jump or two succeeds. “The Americans” had a bunch of crazy jumps in this season. Had creators Joel Fields and Joe Weisberg missed one or two, they’d still have medaled. But the trickiest jump of all—the series finale—could not have touched down more solidly and gracefully. The full 200 points are gratefully awarded.

from All Content http://bit.ly/2T2bkLR

[kayawagner]

Gnome Stew Notables – Donna Prior

Donna “Danicia” Prior is the Sparkly Princess of Social Media & Community Management. She is currently the Organized Play Manager for Catan Studio and the Executive Director of OrcaCon, the inclusive tabletop games convention. She has worked in both video games and tabletop games. In short, gamer, geek, and future wife of Wedge Antilles. Lives on Twitter as @Danicia. Find Donna on about.me/Danicia and Twitch.tv/Danicia

What projects have you worked on?

I’ve been working in the games industry now since 2007, starting with the video game industry. I got my start on Pirates of the Burning Sea, Guild Wars 2, Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising, TERA Online, and numerous properties for SOE (Sony Online Entertainment). I met Chris Pramas, CEO of Green Ronin Publishing, while working on PotBS, as we both worked at Flying Lab. I started contracting with Green Ronin a few years ago as the Events Manager, handling the Gen Con volunteer GM presence and outlining a Volunteer GM Program aka the Green Ronin Freebooters. After my last video game layoff, I was forwarded the Organized Play gig with Catan by a friend and that’s where I am today.

  You work in areas of gaming that are often overlooked in favor of the creators and designers, but the industry relies on hundreds, if not thousands, of people who are not  in the limelight. What does your job entail, and how did you get into that area of games?

My role as the Catan Organized Play Manager involves a lot of spreadsheets. Hah! I schedule regional Qualifier tournaments for the Catan National Championships where Catan is published in the English language. My largest amount of work is the US program, but I’ve also restructured the Canadian, UK, and Australia programs, plus created new programs for Ireland and Vietnam. I’ve still got so many more to put into place. I also coordinate and facilitate the Catan Masters Invitational, which a special tournament for the top tier US players. Plus, I coordinate with our team and Asmodee for a presence at shows such as Origins, Gen Con, UK Games Expo, and more.

Whilst Organized Play Management is different from what I’ve been doing (Community Management), it still involves community outreach, communication, coordination of people and events. There’s an aspect of content creation, social media interactions, and more. My plan is to also build out some typical community gathering spaces, to help grow said community of both competitive and casual Catan players.

As far as Community Management as a career? I was actually hired right out of a game community to work on PotBS’ Community Team. I was naturally already doing outreach, working with fansites, moderating and running communities on forums, LiveJournal, and more. It was a natural progression to actually start doing it for a living. Left the IT field behind without looking back!

For the future, I’d love to do some more writing and freelance work.

You spend a ton of time traveling to conventions and events. What are your secrets for survival? 

Alone time! No, seriously! I avoid parties. I make sure to take extra care to eat and drink plenty of water. I will meet with friends for dinner sometimes, but otherwise, I am back in my room in the quiet, watching Netflix or reading. It helps, when you’re running a 64-person event with all the chaos that it entails. I tend to bring along protein snacks with me when doing shows, or pick some up when I arrive. Nuts, cheese, trail mix, that sort of thing. Carbs might get you a big energy rush at first, but then you crash right on down. I also don’t drink sodas, eat candy, or chug coffee. I sit whenever I can, as the standing in one place thing is super hard on one’s body.

For the travel part of it, I tend to pay for slight upgrades on flights. As example, if it’s not too expensive, I’ll upgrade to first class for the relaxation of it. Doesn’t always work, but I go for creature comforts whenever possible.

There’s a lot of discussion of community and community responsibility lately. How can we build a better, stronger gaming community that welcomes everyone?

Gosh, there’s so much to unpack with this one. Really, it has to start from the top down. Geeks & gamers are not an oppressed group. Gaming and geek things are mainstream, and we should welcome the chance to play with everyone.

First, companies and community leaders should actually listen to people who aren’t already gamers. You’ll get a very different response on what people want in games and game communities. Listen to why people don’t feel welcome in game stores. Why people have a hard time finding D&D groups, tabletop groups. Find ways of making people feel welcome, instead of excluding. As an example, I was visiting a local game store. I talked with the owner at some length. He’s got a heavy Magic & Warhammer clientele. That’s not bad at all, a lot of those stores are very successful. But he wants to create a hub where everyone feels welcome to play games. Where women and families feel welcome. I asked him, “Do you have tampons and pads in your restroom?” and he looked at me like I was speaking a different language. It’s not that he was excluding people intentionally; I felt he was truly baffled why he couldn’t generate a good board game meetup hangout establishment. He’s got LOTS of potential in his store, but he just doesn’t know how to fix it.

I am experienced with games for years and years, so you have to do something super jerky for me to feel unwelcome. But, your average consumer will totally feel unwelcome if your store looks like someone’s extended basement. Clutter, posters on the wall with masking tape. Dust, unpainted concrete floors. Broken furniture (or cheap Costco folding tables and chairs) and the like. If you want to become a destination for communities, you need to clean the place up and make it friendly. It’s a hard thing, too, because that all costs money, which is something not a lot of FLGS (friendly local game stores) have, with the margins on games being so tight. That’s where it starts. If you create a welcome and safe environment, don’t tolerate harassment and grossness, you start creating a healthy community.

If you wanna have grognard shop, that’s fine, too. Some folks like that and that’s okay for them. For me, it’s sad, because it means there are heaps of people who will never feel welcome to play games, but folks can run their business how they want.

You’re also an avid gamer. Which properties and settings do you most love?

I am an unabashed lover of Forgotten Realms. One of my hobbies is actually just making characters and developing backstories, in hopes of playing them in a game someday. Hell, I hope to play in a game where people love the Realms as much as I do, and will have a super RPG heavy campaign. (HINT HINT IF ANYONE IS LOOKING FOR PLAYERS). I’m a huge fan of the Shadowrun lore, but HATE the system(s). I hate math. There, I said it (I’ve got Dyscalculia). I’ve always been a big Classic Deadlands fan, but it’s super hard to find compatible players. I love love love the Dragon Age setting and hope to kick off a Roll20 campaign after con season. I don’t know Blue Rose as much as some, but I love the setting and nope to get into a campaign (or run one). And I AM SO VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE EXPANSE RPG.

What is your dream game? (Either to make, or play.)

Sense8. I would LOVE to play in the Sense8 world, or run a campaign. Once Modern AGE comes out, I may try to pull together a mini convention game if Joe Carriker will help me. We have been chatting about working on this for fun ever since the series came out. Of course, I started brainstorming characters to be in different Clusters.

What upcoming projects or events are you excited about? 

I DID MENTION THE EXPANSE, RIGHT? I am also excited about REVOLUTIONARIES — American War of Independence RPG, Good Society: A Jane Austen Roleplaying Game, Sigil & Sign — Cthulhu Mythos RPG where you play the cultist, Satanic Panic, Mysteries of the Yōkai: An RPG Inspired by Japanese Folklore, A Delve in the Cave: 5th Edition Adventure, Overlight RPG: A roleplaying game of kaleidoscopic fantasy, and and and…well… a lot of other things.

Gnome Stew Notables – Donna Prior published first on https://supergalaxyrom.tumblr.com

[lucaumbriel]

The Last Jedi spoilers (and a huge wall of text) under the cut

The opening was way too similar to Empire Strikes Back, the Rebellion, sorry, the “Resistance” has just destroyed the First Order’s big bad weapon, but despite this the bad guys are stronger than ever (no, seriously, they apparently have defacto rule of the Galaxy or something now, because apparently the destruction of one system means the entire Republic is gone somehow) and the good guys are on the run.

Rey is seeking training from Luke, which is also a plot point lifted directly from ESB, but is done in a completely different way so it’s not something I hold against the movie. The training itself, however, is lack luster and feels more like something you’d see stretched out across an entire episodic season crammed into as little screen time as possible between everything else that’s going on. And I really didn’t like how they started going the route of “well, the Jedi need to die, but that doesn’t mean there are not going to be any more force users”, like they were going to have Luke get Rey to gut the tradition and legacy and keep everything else to sort of found a brand new order without any of the “you should fear the dark side because it’s the dark side and don’t ask questions about it because you shouldn’t be asking about that” and the removal of emotions and attachments and so on, and then go right back to “actually, nah, Rey’s gonna tell Luke that the Jedi are cool and that’s gonna change his mind and he’s even gonna acknowledge her as a jedi cause the jedi are cool and we wouldn’t want to stray from that or anything even though Kylo explicitly said he’s not gonna be a sith”. Like, there were so so many other arguments Luke could have used to show how the Jedi are not the undisputed good guys (just look at the people who try to say how “the jedi are the actual bad guys” cause they steal babies and enforce a specific lifestyle and doctrine and anyone who doesn’t agree with everything gets thrown out, instead of just “the Jedi were egotistical, they all died cause Palpy fooled them”, which is the single weakest argument for “the jedi weren’t actually that good” I think I’ve ever seen and that entire scene just feels pathetic and annoying).

Which brings me to the next bit and my major criticism with the movie: they try to do to much. It feels like two or three movies, or most of a Netflix mini-series crammed into two and a half hours. It doesn’t let you really digest anything that’s happening and everything from the subplots to the main plot feels rushed and there are a lot of little things (like the fight between Luke and Kylo) that feel really tacked on despite them actually being pretty important overall to the story. Like, they could have stopped the film at several points (most notably after everyone got in the base), but it’s like they kept coming back with “and one more thing” (the bad guys have a canon that can blast through it, which actually would have made an interesting cliff hanger, if this were the Netflix mini-series it feels like), and then “one more thing!”, and then “one more thing!”

The conflict between Poe and the Admiral feels unnecessary. Yes, Poe was wrong to go behind her back, and more wrong to try and mutiny because the Admiral did actually have a fully fleshed out and usable plan that would have worked perfectly if Poe hadn’t sent Finn and Rose off to infiltrate the flagship and allow the code breaker to betray them for money, but his actions were still justified because instead of explaining the plan to him or anyone else, she intentionally kept him the dark and obfuscated what she had planned for no reason what so ever, seriously, there was no reason she couldn’t say “we’re going to load people in the shuttles, yes, I know they’re shielded and unarmed and will never outrun the destroyers, that’s why I’m going to stay behind and pilot the cruiser, we’re gambling on them not looking for smaller ships, so this should provide a decent distraction, the shuttles will be going to a fortress world were they’ll have enough power to contact our allies”, but no, she never says that, instead she just tells him “trust me” and “hope” and when he finds out about the shuttles she blows him off. Yeah, Poe is a hot head and all, but she’s a shitty leader if she can’t be asses to explain a simple plan to someone who you have no indication of being a defector or spy or anything else. The entire time it feels like either she’s the traitor like Poe thinks, or she’s trying to trick a traitor by using Poe or some shit but there’s no actual payoff to the entire subplot except “Poe was wrong and should have blindly trusted his leader who’s first conversation with him involved her verbally bitch slapping him and acting like he’s been nothing but a detriment to the entire Resistance.”

Over all, the film feels like an action movie, with a lot of space battles, amazingly choreographed fight scenes, lots of big loud energetic moments like them crashing through the casino, it doesn’t feel like a Star Wars movie so much as an abridged season of Clone Wars or Rebels.

Oh, and how can I forget Rey. She continues to be a Mary Sue, never suffering any real complications or failings, even in this film, her absolute biggest fuck up, getting herself captured thinking she can turn Kylo to the light side and together defeat Snoke, results only in Kylo killing his only superior and acquiring supreme control over the First Order, and then she escapes with no real consequences otherwise. And if you say “well putting the immature, hot headed, egotistical, man-child in charge of the First Order instead of the highly powerful, nearly all seeing, calm, collected, and very powerful mastermind who put the First Order together in the first place” a bad outcome from this and something that has in any way actually strengthened the Order, especially since we already see the conflict between Kylo and Hux growing worse and worse with every scene they’re in, then I don’t really know what to tell you except maybe watch the movie again and actually pay attention.

The fight scene between Kylo and Luke was awesome, though, again, very action movie and, like I said above, adds to the list of “they tried to do too much in one movie”. I like that if you pay attention, you can see that it was pretty obvious he was never actually there. Not only “how did he get into a base there’s supposedly only one way out of” but “how did he even get there in the first place?” the only ship we see is the sunken X-Wing that’s probably been there for way too long for it to still be usable, and then not only is he not even scratched by the ATs, he doesn’t even have any dust on him period, he’s using a lightsaber that we just saw sundered, and he’s adamantly refusing to even block Kylo’s attacks. The dice thing, however, was stupid and makes no fucking sense at fucking all. I was waiting for him to say the line, but he never did, you’re supposed to become more powerful that he could ever imagine, damn it.

Luke’s ascension also feels kinda tacked on and forced, epic as it was. Makes me think they were planning to kill each of the main three at the end of their particular movie. We’ll see how that holds up...considering.

Kylo’s continued indecision was good, as was the twist with him killing Snoke and then taking command instead of turning. I also liked the fact that he used his apparent execution of Rey to cover his actual execution of Snoke, which reminded me of the “you will kill Luke Skywalker” thing with Mara Jade in the comics, though I am a little disappointed that after everything from the first film, this is all we get with Snoke unless he revives himself somehow. Which would be stupid, honestly.

The fight scene with the honor guards was awesome, though Rey continues to prove that someone who grew up fighting rats on a farm with a staff is a match for much better trained fighters. I was fine with the scene, up until she and Kylo were both being choked out and she’s the only one who figures out how to escape and then gets to save Kylo. With everything else on top, it just adds to my dislike of her writing as I’ve discussed above. How Kylo finished off the last guard was awesome, though, and everyone in the theater cheered cause it was awesome.

All of this, and any other things I might have forgotten, I still loved this movie and it was great. Great fight scenes. Great space combat. The casino scene with all the aliens was great. Luke was great. Leia was great. That scene between Luke and R2, especially once he played the message, was great. Rey, Finn, Poe, and Rose maybe not great but they were ok. The scenes that reminded me of other movies, comics, TV series were all great (except maybe the elevator scene that paralleled Return’s Luke/Vader scene, that just felt kinda weird). The pieces were all great, it’s the bits between them that are more...eh, and while some of them are necessary, others, like I’ve said, feel tacked on or fall into “and one more thing” near the end.

Overall, I would rate this as one of the better Star Wars movies. It’s better than Empire (the filler of Star Wars), and definitely better than most of Clone “I hate sand”/forced romance Wars. If it had been a mini-series instead of a whole movie or some of its points had been cut from here and put in some EU materials or another movie somewhere, I think it would have come out better because they would have had more time to flesh things out and work with more of the points they raised up instead of it feeling rushed and crammed together. Empire, for its faults, still handles its two plots better than Last Jedi handled it’s three or four.

[kayawagner]

Gnome Stew Notables – Donna Prior

Donna “Danicia” Prior is the Sparkly Princess of Social Media & Community Management. She is currently the Organized Play Manager for Catan Studio and the Executive Director of OrcaCon, the inclusive tabletop games convention. She has worked in both video games and tabletop games. In short, gamer, geek, and future wife of Wedge Antilles. Lives on Twitter as @Danicia. Find Donna on about.me/Danicia and Twitch.tv/Danicia

What projects have you worked on?

I’ve been working in the games industry now since 2007, starting with the video game industry. I got my start on Pirates of the Burning Sea, Guild Wars 2, Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising, TERA Online, and numerous properties for SOE (Sony Online Entertainment). I met Chris Pramas, CEO of Green Ronin Publishing, while working on PotBS, as we both worked at Flying Lab. I started contracting with Green Ronin a few years ago as the Events Manager, handling the Gen Con volunteer GM presence and outlining a Volunteer GM Program aka the Green Ronin Freebooters. After my last video game layoff, I was forwarded the Organized Play gig with Catan by a friend and that’s where I am today.

  You work in areas of gaming that are often overlooked in favor of the creators and designers, but the industry relies on hundreds, if not thousands, of people who are not  in the limelight. What does your job entail, and how did you get into that area of games?

My role as the Catan Organized Play Manager involves a lot of spreadsheets. Hah! I schedule regional Qualifier tournaments for the Catan National Championships where Catan is published in the English language. My largest amount of work is the US program, but I’ve also restructured the Canadian, UK, and Australia programs, plus created new programs for Ireland and Vietnam. I’ve still got so many more to put into place. I also coordinate and facilitate the Catan Masters Invitational, which a special tournament for the top tier US players. Plus, I coordinate with our team and Asmodee for a presence at shows such as Origins, Gen Con, UK Games Expo, and more.

Whilst Organized Play Management is different from what I’ve been doing (Community Management), it still involves community outreach, communication, coordination of people and events. There’s an aspect of content creation, social media interactions, and more. My plan is to also build out some typical community gathering spaces, to help grow said community of both competitive and casual Catan players.

As far as Community Management as a career? I was actually hired right out of a game community to work on PotBS’ Community Team. I was naturally already doing outreach, working with fansites, moderating and running communities on forums, LiveJournal, and more. It was a natural progression to actually start doing it for a living. Left the IT field behind without looking back!

For the future, I’d love to do some more writing and freelance work.

You spend a ton of time traveling to conventions and events. What are your secrets for survival? 

Alone time! No, seriously! I avoid parties. I make sure to take extra care to eat and drink plenty of water. I will meet with friends for dinner sometimes, but otherwise, I am back in my room in the quiet, watching Netflix or reading. It helps, when you’re running a 64-person event with all the chaos that it entails. I tend to bring along protein snacks with me when doing shows, or pick some up when I arrive. Nuts, cheese, trail mix, that sort of thing. Carbs might get you a big energy rush at first, but then you crash right on down. I also don’t drink sodas, eat candy, or chug coffee. I sit whenever I can, as the standing in one place thing is super hard on one’s body.

For the travel part of it, I tend to pay for slight upgrades on flights. As example, if it’s not too expensive, I’ll upgrade to first class for the relaxation of it. Doesn’t always work, but I go for creature comforts whenever possible.

There’s a lot of discussion of community and community responsibility lately. How can we build a better, stronger gaming community that welcomes everyone?

Gosh, there’s so much to unpack with this one. Really, it has to start from the top down. Geeks & gamers are not an oppressed group. Gaming and geek things are mainstream, and we should welcome the chance to play with everyone.

First, companies and community leaders should actually listen to people who aren’t already gamers. You’ll get a very different response on what people want in games and game communities. Listen to why people don’t feel welcome in game stores. Why people have a hard time finding D&D groups, tabletop groups. Find ways of making people feel welcome, instead of excluding. As an example, I was visiting a local game store. I talked with the owner at some length. He’s got a heavy Magic & Warhammer clientele. That’s not bad at all, a lot of those stores are very successful. But he wants to create a hub where everyone feels welcome to play games. Where women and families feel welcome. I asked him, “Do you have tampons and pads in your restroom?” and he looked at me like I was speaking a different language. It’s not that he was excluding people intentionally; I felt he was truly baffled why he couldn’t generate a good board game meetup hangout establishment. He’s got LOTS of potential in his store, but he just doesn’t know how to fix it.

I am experienced with games for years and years, so you have to do something super jerky for me to feel unwelcome. But, your average consumer will totally feel unwelcome if your store looks like someone’s extended basement. Clutter, posters on the wall with masking tape. Dust, unpainted concrete floors. Broken furniture (or cheap Costco folding tables and chairs) and the like. If you want to become a destination for communities, you need to clean the place up and make it friendly. It’s a hard thing, too, because that all costs money, which is something not a lot of FLGS (friendly local game stores) have, with the margins on games being so tight. That’s where it starts. If you create a welcome and safe environment, don’t tolerate harassment and grossness, you start creating a healthy community.

If you wanna have grognard shop, that’s fine, too. Some folks like that and that’s okay for them. For me, it’s sad, because it means there are heaps of people who will never feel welcome to play games, but folks can run their business how they want.

You’re also an avid gamer. Which properties and settings do you most love?

I am an unabashed lover of Forgotten Realms. One of my hobbies is actually just making characters and developing backstories, in hopes of playing them in a game someday. Hell, I hope to play in a game where people love the Realms as much as I do, and will have a super RPG heavy campaign. (HINT HINT IF ANYONE IS LOOKING FOR PLAYERS). I’m a huge fan of the Shadowrun lore, but HATE the system(s). I hate math. There, I said it (I’ve got Dyscalculia). I’ve always been a big Classic Deadlands fan, but it’s super hard to find compatible players. I love love love the Dragon Age setting and hope to kick off a Roll20 campaign after con season. I don’t know Blue Rose as much as some, but I love the setting and nope to get into a campaign (or run one). And I AM SO VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE EXPANSE RPG.

What is your dream game? (Either to make, or play.)

Sense8. I would LOVE to play in the Sense8 world, or run a campaign. Once Modern AGE comes out, I may try to pull together a mini convention game if Joe Carriker will help me. We have been chatting about working on this for fun ever since the series came out. Of course, I started brainstorming characters to be in different Clusters.

What upcoming projects or events are you excited about? 

I DID MENTION THE EXPANSE, RIGHT? I am also excited about REVOLUTIONARIES — American War of Independence RPG, Good Society: A Jane Austen Roleplaying Game, Sigil & Sign — Cthulhu Mythos RPG where you play the cultist, Satanic Panic, Mysteries of the Yōkai: An RPG Inspired by Japanese Folklore, A Delve in the Cave: 5th Edition Adventure, Overlight RPG: A roleplaying game of kaleidoscopic fantasy, and and and…well… a lot of other things.

Gnome Stew Notables – Donna Prior published first on https://supergalaxyrom.tumblr.com