#to all the people who haven’t listened to the latest episode

[petracozbi]

The newest collection just dropped

[goodqueenaly]

I posted about it a few days ago, but if you haven’t seen, Steven Attewell, perhaps better known on here as @racefortheironthrone, just passed away.

Steven Attewell wasn’t just a great writer and analyst (though he obviously was), nor just a great podcaster (though he was that too), nor just a great academic mind (though he was that as well). Attewell was a supremely kind, thoughtful, funny, and upstanding human being, someone I was very fortunate to call my dear friend. Hardly a day or two went by without one of us bouncing ideas for an essay or post off the other, or swapping some historical trivia, or sharing thoughts about the latest MCU project. When I got engaged, he was one of the first people I told, and whenever I, say, read a book about New York’s gilded age, or listened to a podcast episode about Reginald Pole, or learned that some Americans were still using hand crank phones into the 80s (no, really), I often thought “Attewell would appreciate that”. 

Even now, it seems utterly surreal to think of him as passed. Just a week before he died, I had been telling him how much my fiancé adored his X-Men ‘97 podcast. A few days before, he and I had been joking about the recent east coast earthquake. I knew how excited he was about his “Tyrion IX” ASOS CBC essay, since he and I had been discussing it in the weeks before he died, and his Tumblr posts right to the end displayed that same high quality you could always expect from him. I keep waiting for my messenger app to pop up with his name again, or his familiar avatar to appear at the top of my Tumblr feed with another ask from him. 

We have lost a giant of the ASOIAF community, but far more importantly, we have lost a very good person. Read some of Attewell’s works - “Who Stole Westeros” is a seminal piece IMO, as is his CBC analysis of “Eddard XI”, but you can’t go wrong with anything he wrote, and if I tried to list every piece I could recommend from him it would be a novel in itself. Listen to some of his podcasts or vlogs - his excitement over X-Men ‘97 is infectious. Keep reading and writing, just as he was doing. Miss him and grieve, by all means, but know that for the many people, myself included, he inspired and touched and interacted with, his memory and impact won’t be forgotten. 

[sid471]

Tom Disventure Camp needs a time out >_>

I made a post before DCAS started about Jake where I pretty much said, to sum it up, ‘Sure he’s a mess but he’s a justified mess 😊’ now that All Stars has started airing… I have some thoughts 😓. I’ll get to Jake another time. Maybe 😊. This is about Tom. Because I have a bone to pick with Officer Tom <_<

Let’s start with a flashback to Season 1. I cover the gist of what happened between him and Jake in the aforementioned Jake post. But what I didn’t mention is at the END of Disventure Camp season 1, Tom and Jake have a final conversation and they agree that they while they both still have feelings for each other, they shouldn’t get back together yet because they’re both pretty messed up. Jake asks if he’ll still talk to him and Tom says “I think we should take some time and grow as people. We are on the right path, but starting anything could ruin that. We’ll see where we are later in 🙂” and earlier in the finale he’d promised to keep in touch with Miriam. Sounds promising no? :3

Come All Stars, we find out Tom hasn’t talked to Jake OR Miriam at all in the last two years! ._. Now, listen, Jake and Tom’s relationship was… tumultuous. To say the least. And Tom DID say they should take some time apart. But he did NOT say… ‘Hey let’s go out of our way to avoid each other like the plague’ 😶 All Jake wants is clarity on where they stand. Are they friends? Are there still feelings between them? Is there even a chance they can reconcile at all? That’s all Jake wants.

If Tom can’t give him that, he should just say that. If Tom doesn’t want to be Jake’s friend, he should just say that. If Tom has moved on with someone else, say it with me now, he should just SAY that ._. And the kicker is… Tom was the one who got onto Jake so hard about communication in season one! .-. Now, Jake is TRYING to get Tom to talk to him and nothing .-. It’s understandable if Tom is still hurt over what happened in their season. All Stars has shown he can still hold a grudge with Ellie. But if he IS hurt… You know the pattern 😊 He should just say that >_>

Oh ho, and I’m not done. It gets worse. On top of avoiding Jake like the plague… He’s also being a massive hypocrite in regards to Jake 😶 In episode 4 the challenge is to get a sandbag and bring it back to the starting point, and the other players can use any means necessary to get the bag from you. Tom takes and throws Ally’s glasses then ALSO trips Grett later on. When Jake tackles Aiden to get the bag he has and gets the point, Tom gets petty and says ‘Wow! Real nice Jake 🙄’ .-. Tom… come on now ._. You know you’re being a dumb ass 😶

Episode 6, our latest episode, Ellie insists for their performance the two couples, her and Gabbie and Aiden and Tom, HAVE to kiss at the end of the song. Now… I don’t think I have to hold your hand and explain to you why that’s fucked up 😶 Especially because she EXPLICITLY said the only reason she did it was to psychologically fuck with Jake .-. Ugh >_> Sorry, this ain’t about Ellie, this is about Tom <_<. Tom, in a confessional, says “I haven’t talked to Jake yet and this kiss with Aiden will make it even weirder between us than it already is (who’s fault is that Tom >_>). What should I do? >_<“ And it’s like… Gee Tom… I dunno. Maybe you should TALK TO JAKE! ._. And yes, I know they’re on different teams. But Alec pulled someone from both of the other teams to form the villain alliance soooo… not like it’s impossible to talk to people from other teams .-.

In conclusion: Tom is pissing me off >_> Jake is on the rise, and I love to see it as a Jake lover and defender :3… Okay Jake has had his annoying moments too >_> but lately? Tom is the more annoying one 😶

[ninadove]

feligami and chlolila!!!!!

Great choices, Noctie. You know me well.

Chlolila ✅

1. What made you ship it?

Let’s be honest. This is not a ship you get into because it’s cute, or because you hope for a happy ending. And I’m not exactly known for my appreciation of Toxic Yet Fascinating Dynamics ™.

THAT BEING SAID — they are a great plot device. Just like I don’t enjoy whatever Gabeminath had going on, but recognise how it pushed the story forward. So I am likely to write Chlolila in the future (When? Who fucking knows. Certainly not me), as part of a bigger project, purely because the narrative potential is through the roof.

2. What are your favorite things about the ship?

See above! ☝️

3. Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

Despite everything I stated above — I can totally see how they could have been written as an evil, yet healthy duo. More on that here.

Now that this is done. Let’s move on to serious business, shall we.

Feligami ✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅✅

1. What made you ship it?

This iconic exchange from the Diamonds’ Dance, which I stumbled upon with exactly zero (0) context a little over a year ago.

Listen. I was so prepared to be annoyed. I, too, was an aro Felix truther. I, like many others, was a Marigami enjoyer before anything else.

ALL OF THAT GOT THROWN OUT THE WINDOW SO FAST WHEN I SAW THESE 20 SECONDS OF INTERACTION.

Everything is there already!!! The instant recognition of someone who has been messed up by life in the same way you were (child abuse, queerness, neurodivergence, you know the drill)! The challenging of each other’s worldview! The softness of her hand in his! Disobedience as an act of devotion!

And upon watching the episode — is there anything more beautiful than this evil genius/desperate kid abandoning the masterplan he dedicated his entire life to, the scheme he threw away all moral considerations for, just to make this pretty and deeply hurt girl he just met happy?

2. What are your favorite things about the ship?

Every. Single. Aspect.

What can I say that I haven’t said before.

They are incredible representation (AH!!!!! See what I did there?) for basically every marginalised group ever.

They are incredibly soft, even though they were created to be perfectly emotionless (Kagami) or perversely cruel (Felix). Not only is their relationship forbidden, their capacity to love itself is an infraction to the blueprints crafted by their parents.

The ease with which they switch moral alignments for each other, which is majorly overlooked on Kagami’s part. More on that in another post on another day.

Felix willingly following her guidance in Representation is the ultimate proof that he has achieved freedom; devotion is meaningless if it is not freely given.

THEY HOLD HANDS SO MUCH. WHEN THEIR AMOKS ARE FUCKING RINGS. IF THAT ISN’T THE ULTIMATE SHOW OF VULNERABILITY AND TRUST I DON’T KNOW WHAT IS.

And much more. I am slightly drunk right now, so I’m probably forgetting a lot.

3. Is there an unpopular opinion you have on your ship?

Shipping Feligami is controversial in itself, somehow. Let me tell you, many people out there have weird grudges against 14-year-old characters, and absolutely zero reading comprehension. DO NOT READ THE COMMENTS ON BUGGACHAT’S LATEST CHAPTER, Sunny. You would be shocked by how many advocate for violence against our boy.

Other than that, as you said yourself — childfree Feligami for the win. There is no way these queer (!) abuse survivors (!!) who defy any and all societal norms (!!!) would have kids. I rest my case.

Thank you for the ask, Sunny! 🖤☀️

Ask game here.

[white-weasel]

hi nic!! have you listened to the the latest film reroll episode? I haven’t seen the fifth element but I’m loving the reroll version

Hey Meg!!! Yes, I actually was just able to listen to eps 4 and 5 back to back for the Fifth Element reroll and I’m absolutely LOVING it

I also haven’t seen the original either (though when I was flipping through Hulu this weekend I saw it was on there so maybe I’ll watch it and see just how different the reroll is from it lmao) but I’m so in love with the whole cast of characters we’ve found ourself with. It’s such a weird, but charming ensemble but I think they all really balance each other out at this point with their different skills

Joz as Leeloo is especially such good casting. Probably sounds weird from someone who hasn’t seen it, but a super powerful being who has incredible power and potential, but also doesn’t know much, if anything about Earth culture? Yeah, give it to Joz. They’re killing it

The synergy of Andy, Joz, and Scott is also always so good to see - the Halloween crew back in action! I don’t remember if there’s been another reroll where it’s just this trip, but they really do work so well together. I love hearing them bounce ideas and role play off one another.

And of course major major props to Paulo as always. I have NO idea how he’s able to flesh these worlds out so completely. Like, Joz flies/crashes their car by a river and Paulo has this entire tribe of river people already in his head? He made up this fungi scientist who has a strained relationship with his son who’s some sort of corporate “archeologist” specifically for alien artifacts/technology? I’m always in awe of him and this is no exception. Paulo Quiros, teach me your ways!!!

But yeah I’m totally totally hype for the next episode!! Idk if it’ll be the final one, but we’re definitely in some sort of action climax and I’m excited to see how it goes :]

[rhysdarbinizedarby]

New tweet from Rhys Darby last night and more about him below:

Billy T’ Billy: Rhys Darby on finding success in New Zealand and overseas

Rhys Darby has gone from performing in New Zealand to leading his own HBO show, Our Flag Means Death

Rhys Darby is one of New Zealand’s biggest entertainment exports of the last 20 years, going from performing local standup to co-starring in Flight of the Conchords, and now is a regular fixture in Hollywood blockbusters.

He has become such a success story that it’s easy to forget he lost one of New Zealand comedy’s top prizes - twice.

Darby was nominated for the Billy T Award, which recognises rising talent in the New Zealand comedy industry, back in 2001 and 2002, but lost the prize to Jan Maree and Dai Henwood.

Speaking to the Billy T’ Billy podcast from his home in Los Angeles, Darby told host Rhys Mathewson it was something to strive for while young, but not something he wanted to sit around for “waiting for some dude to tick me off on his chart”.

“As soon as you find out in your own head through the power of realisation that awards are not the be-end-all, and in fact, are just a pain in the arse, they’re not the finish line, then you’re gonna do better,” Darby said.

“And I think people are still struggling with that idea today because it gives them some sort of recognition, uh, and then they can get their next step up. But we’ve seen from experiences in the past that it gives you about five minutes’ worth of recognition, and then what are you gonna do?

“The most important thing to do is recognise yourself, not through an award, but through hard work. And a show that has sold out, a show that has reviewed really well, and that will tell you that you are a winner, not some dude with an old gumboot on a bit of wood.”

That’s a reference to the Fred Dagg Award, which goes to the winner of the Best Show award at each year’s festival and is indeed a gumboot on a plank of wood. Darby joked that the accolade does count - after all, he won it in 2012.

Darby said his goal always was to go to the United Kingdom, where he was able to break out and start his international career. He credits the New Zealand International Comedy Festival with helping him get there, as many of the international comics who came over for the festival told him he’d do well on the UK circuit.

Getting into the Comedy Store in Leicester Square in London was when Darby knew he’d made it.

“I had one chance to get in there. And I knew I had to prove myself and you get 15 minutes, or not even that, it might be a 10-minute spot in front of the big cheese. And after that, you’ll come off stage and he’ll bring you into the office and he’ll either say, ‘keep at it’, which means, you’re not there yet, or he’ll do what he did to me and which was, ‘I want to give you a paid weekend and I haven’t really done this with anyone that I’ve only seen for 10 minutes before in a long time’.

“And once you’ve got your spot on a Friday, Saturday night, then the rest of the comedy world knows that you’re a major player, and then you’re getting booked in for all these clubs left, right, and centre.”

Listen to the latest episode of Billy T’ Billy from 40:05 minutes in for more from Rhys Darby on his comedy beginnings and memories of local comedy.

Source: NZ Herald

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

I watched the TV show Hold the Front Page last week. It’s weird that it took me so long. A year or two ago, I’d have been all over that shit the moment it aired. Josh Widdicombe; one of my favourites from TV, no matter how boring his stand-up is; and Nish Kumar, one of my favourite wonders of the world; combined with local news, a thing of which I very much approve.

I saw the promos for it when it came out, and I thought it looked interesting, but not quite enough to watch it. TV shows like that have been somewhat spoiled for me, compared to a year or two ago. Not that I ever thought they were real. I knew that panel shows and shows where people off panel shows go and do shit like this were staged things where everyone prepares beforehand and then goes out and pretends they didn’t. But I didn’t mind. I enjoyed the interactions, I enjoyed the shoehorned bits of stand-up, it was still funny.

Now – I’ve said before that it reminds me of when you eat good quality chocolate for too long and then try to go back to Walmart chocolate. What once tasted fine has become too sweet and overprocessed. Is a quite tenuous and barely-working analogy for when I listen to enough live comedy, suddenly the editing and production in TV shows that I always knew was there feels more intrusive than before, even baseline-level panel shows feel over-produced. So I haven’t been picking up new ones the way I used to.

But this is one I should have done. I recently heard Nish Kumar talk about it in his stand-up, the bit where he almost gets to “meet” Boris Johnson and shouts a lot of things at him, and I wanted to see the TV recording to compare it to his story. Then I decided that if I’m going to watch that bit, I may as well watch the whole episode. And if I’m going to do that, I may as well watch all six. I can’t add a show to my spreadsheet unless I watch every episode.

It’s on my spreadsheet now. I have to admit that a couple of episodes in, I thought I probably wouldn’t get through it. The awkwardly manufactured feel was so off-putting that I just wanted to turn it off and listen to Nish Kumar talk shit on The Bugle with no script. I mean, scripts are fine. In scripted shows. But it does annoy me more than it used to to watch a show that pretends to be unscripted, while clearly being scripted.

There’s one time in an episode of Hold the Front page when they say that Game of Thrones is Nish Kumar’s favourite show, and therefore he was excited to meet someone who worked on the set. In the latest Bugle episode, Nish Kumar mentions that even though he seems like the sort of person who’d be into Game of Thrones, he’s never seen it. Someone’s lying, and obviously it’s the TV, he’s telling the truth on The Bugle. It’s fine. I don’t think it’s horribly unethical or anything to lie about whether Nish Kumar has seen Game of Thrones. It just makes the show less interesting to me, that it’s not real. Not that I think every word said in a stand-up show is true either, but at least it was made up by one person, not a faceless team of writers who based it on market trends.

Though there are times when I’m glad it’s not real. They set up this premise where Nish and Josh are trying to get on the front page of various local papers, and they’re competing with actual journalists to do it. And I always like a competition, I watch shows that aren’t supposed to be competitive and manage to find the competitive side. But still, with this, I kept wishing they hadn’t brought in the competitive angle. Just have them go into the headquarters of a local paper and find out how it works. The competitive thing makes them look like dicks, because they keep getting in the way of hardworking journalists who are trying to do their jobs, without some celebrities and their camera crews interrupting with harebrained schemes. I can get into the competition of things that don’t matter – Taskmaster is funny because it doesn’t really hurt anything. Two guys going into an important institution like a local paper and mucking around, wasting the time of people with proper jobs, is a shitty thing to do.

Having said that, luckily I know it’s not real. Obviously all six papers are happy to be included, and the thing we see on screen of them being annoyed about it is a lie, because overall they get featured on TV and that’s a good thing for them. Obviously it’s all edited to maximize the parts where we say “look at these scamps mucking around and getting in the way of proper journalists”, because I guess the people doing the editing thought that would make them seem endearing, not annoying.

Also, it’s weird that they at no point acknowledged Josh Widdicombe’s background in journalism. They kept making jokes about how these are clueless guys with no idea what goes into writing a news article, ignoring that Josh Widdicombe worked as a sports journalist for The Guardian before being a comedian.

That’s why he’s on The Last Leg. People make jokes about how it’s weird that Josh Widdicombe is there despite not having a disability, and the joke is usually that his disability is asthma or vegetarianism or some shit, but there is an actual answer. The answer is that he was a comedian who used to be a sports journalist. The Last Leg started as Channel 4’s coverage of the London 2012 Paralympics – those three guys covered it during the Games, and it was so popular that the next year, Channel 4 gave them their own weekly show.

When decided who would cover the Paralympics, Channel 4 wanted people who were funny, who understood journalism, who understood sports, and who understood disability. So they picked Josh, an able-bodied comedian who used to be a sports journalist. Adam, a comedian who was disabled and had a bit of a connection to Parasport, hadn’t covered it as part of his career but did attend the Paralympics in 2008 and did a lot of charity work for Parasport. And Alex, a sports journalist who wasn’t a comedian but was disabled.

Anyway. Hold the Front Page weirdly ignored all that, because it didn’t fit their contrived storyline, but I did find the episodes got better as the show went on. The last episode featured some of the 2022 Edinburgh Festival, and it was interesting to see that on display.

But none of that is the point of this post. The point of this post is the screenshot of what I'm fairly sure is, despite nothing on TV being real, Nish Kumar's actual laptop:

Awwwww!

I have a sticker on the back of my laptop (old picture of my old laptop, but the same sticker is on my new one too):

I have that sticker because of the laptop from which Nish read during the episodes of The Mash Report when he had to record from home due to lockdown:

But obviously, since nothing on TV is real, that's not his actual day-to-day laptop. But I think I believe that that one from Hold the Front Page is. Nish Kumar goes around in real life with a Bugle sticker on his computer. Fucking lovely.

I've been thinking for a while that once I have enough money saved so I feel slightly comfortable, I should go to the Bugle merch page and buy a sticker to put underneath the "This is less than ideal" on my laptop. The price of a sticker is the least I owe them after all the hours of free entertainment they've given me. Maybe this is my sign that it's time to do that.

[zalrb]

I have some familiarity with The Boys, but not much. Isn’t the point that people, when they have godlike powers from being injected with Compound V, will abuse their power no matter what? It doesn’t matter to me that Homelander couldn’t consent to receiving Compound V as a baby when he was a fully cognizant adult when he commited atrocities.

So I think it’s an odd choice that the latest episode of Gen V is trying to have the audience sympathize with supes when the virus is the only line of defense that humans have against them. None of the main characters display any care or thought toward regular people; they just want to major in crimefighting at Godolkin and then because members of The Seven. They want fame and notoriety. All of them have suffered in some way, but they haven’t seemed to extend understanding and kindness as a result of that suffering, like when Andre accidentally ruptured that lady’s neck at the party, nobody seemed concerned about her and now it’s been forgotten. So I’m confused as to why the show expects me to feel bad for the characters, especially Sam, when I’ve seen the violence he’s capable and the lack of genuine remorse and not seeing him try to do better outside of Emma. I was honestly just watching for the mystery of The Woods, but now that that’s been revealed, what else is there?

Isn’t the point that people, when they have godlike powers from being injected with Compound V, will abuse their power no matter what? It doesn’t matter to me that Homelander couldn’t consent to receiving Compound V as a baby when he was a fully cognizant adult when he commited atrocities.

Honestly, one of the problems with The Boys is that it loses its own messaging and it muddles what it's trying to say (sound familiar?). But, like, we are supposed to believe that Homelander's upbringing contributes to his psychosis because he was raised like an experiment or an object without the warmth of a parent, hence his deeply disturbing obsession with milk, and then being in The Seven with Homelander at the helm and Vought as backing corrupts the other members like Maeve who has a conscience but has also done terrible things and she goes through her redemptive arc but then you have Starlight who is supposed to be "good" and doesn't allow herself to be corrupted after potentially going down that path in season 1 etc.

So I don't actually see the point of Gen V. Even when I thought the show was going to be about Marie wanting to be in The Seven to prove to her sister that she wasn't a monster, I thought the premise was flawed because The Seven is made up of supes who have literally committed crimes against humanity and are virtually indestructible so I was just like, wouldn't that just reinforce Annabeth's view of her? And then when we get to the school we see, as you said, Andre etc. getting high, Andre nearly killing someone and all of them only thinking about themselves and then when we meet the other students in the university, they're already pretty terrible so to turn around and be like Godolkin is the real villain has me like ... how? WE KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THE SCHOOL. Or the characters. And how is this different than watching The Boys and Vought? I never cared about The Woods because in The Boys, they already had a storyline like that with the Sage Grove Centre where they experiment on civilians and then Lamplighter (a Supe) burns them alive to destroy evidence so The Woods just had me like, well, yeah, we've established that they experiment on people, why is this any different?

It would've been more interesting if they explored teens/young adults whatever having to deal with the fact that their parents juiced them with V as babies and they now have powers that actually ruin their lives and saddle them with trauma like Cate telling her brother to leave and never come back and him listening to her and then her parents turning on her, I would've rather see her deal with that in real time, see Marie dealing with killing her parents in real time, instead of The Boys 2.0 that has even less character development than The Boys.

[whatiwillsay]

Matty should never be allowed near a podcast:

Resurfaced clip of matty calling out taylor’s fake activism for LGBTQ +

https://www.reddit.com/r/Fauxmoi/comments/13w64de/resurfaced_clip_of_matty_healy_calling_out/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=2&utm_term=1

And ❌trigger warning❌ the following is about a far right podcast that is hosted by people who seem like they hold all the same beliefs as N@z*s and incels 🙃

There’s a comment in here that I haven’t verified the info of - I’m not subscribing to them or listening to them, but here’s the bulk of the comment:

Matty has been sporting Merch from a podcast that: Made fun of Taylor's mom by calling her Miss Piggy. Made fun of Taylor for her ED and mocked her for having gained weight in recovery. Said they can't imagine any man being sexually attracted to her. And that they didn't believe she had an ED and that she looked better at her thinnest 🤡. And that's just a brief summary. (All this and more on Red Scare Podcast: Ep. "Making Americana Great Again 💫 it starts at the 26 minute mark)

ETA - They also make fun of her sex life, her libido, her boyfriends, her SA lawsuit and make some very gross comments about her body. I just don't feel comfortable typing out certain things 😅 go listen for yourself if you're curious.

Btw, he was spotted hanging out with one of the hosts just a couple months ago. The photo made it to Deuxmoi. Ironically, I found this out through The 1975 sub. According to one comment, he's friends with one of the hosts and used to post some of their text conversations to his stories.

On that same podcast, they victim blamed his ex (FKA Twigs) and called her a clout chaser for going public about Shia's abuse. Absolutely vile. (Episode "Shia Labuse")

❌❌❌❌

I’ve gone from questioning Taylor’s values and being disappointed in what she tolerates to being scared for her now. There’s no abuse allegations against matty, but wtf is this guy like if this is the stuff he’s into and wants to listen to and watch? 🤢

i was actually long aware of this having stumbled upon that exact ep of red scare years ago and blind listening to THAT ep and being totally disgusted at what i heard.

but posting for readers to be clued in to the latest trash matty has pulled lmao taylor’s really found herself a winner.

[thewarlocknerd]

So, I was listening to the latest Buffering the Vampire Slayer episode on “Empty Places” and....yikes. Let me start off by saying that I’m really uncomfortable with the way Jenny and Kristin have consistently bagged on Buffy Summers to the extent that the only other character who receives as much as criticism is fucking Xander of all people!! I’m just so tired of the constant judgment of Buffy as “so self-absorbed” “not a good enough friend to others” “a bitch” without ever really acknowledging the faults of other characters! Willow, Faith, Anya all get a pass bc the hosts love them and even with characters that they’re not overly fond of such as (early seasons) Angel and Riley, they allow them all so much nuance in the choices they make whether good or bad and their terrible behaviors even when there are instances in which these situations and behaviors are unquestionably amoral yet for every bad decision Buffy makes or for every time she isn’t The Sweetest Person In The World 24/7, they come down so unfairly hard on her! Especially with this last episode, where they justified and cheered at her GETTING KICKED OUT OF HER OWN GODDAMN HOUSE!! 

For God’s sake!!

It’s the middle of the apocalypse, Turok-Han and Caleb are all hunting them down, and these bastards (who, sure, have room to question some of her decisions) throw her out of her own house to wander this town all by herself where she could be murdered at any moment! And Jenny and Kristin are just so celebratory throughout the whole event and even defend Anya’s words to Buffy about “not earning her gifts” and “being luckier than the rest of us” as if we haven’t had 7 FUCKING SEASONS as proof that this is nowhere near the case! As if it’s more than just Buffy taking up the role of leader by herself and being prone to isolating herself but also the Scoobies continuously putting her within that position and placing pressure on her at every moment to save the day and lead them all to victory when tbh, aside from Spike and(to an extent Willow), none of them have been doing a whole hell of a lot to help her and actually aid her in this fight!! So no wonder she feels like she has to double down on being the sole leader, protector, and general of this huge group of people all pressuring her to be their savior! Giles is the one throughout season 7 consistently telling her to step up and be the general and make the hard decisions and detach herself from her emotions then has the nerve to get all pissy and upset when she follows his fucking instructions and starts acting as the general! 

I’m just so annoyed at Kristin and Jenny for even admitting at the start of the episode that Buffy is just so damn broken from all that she has experienced this season and yet still calls her a bitch for what?!? Not telling Clem to take care of himself when he’s leaving?? And it only goes downhill from the beginning! 

It feels like they missed the entire point of the series: the series is focused on Buffy Summers! It’s primarily shown from her perspective! You can’t call her self-absorbed and a narcissist when the show is quite literally grounded in her perspective and places the audience in her shoes!

Back to “Empty Places” and Anya’s speech: Buffy was not born with these powers! She had them forced upon her when she was only 15 goddamn years old! She wasn’t like Anya who chose to become a vengeance demon(TWICE),for the past seven years she has been doing the best she can with a burden that has placed the weight of the world on her shoulders since she was a child, stolen so many loved ones from her, and has placed an early death sentence upon her! 

BUFFY SUMMERS IS NOT LUCKY!!

Does she make mistakes? Yes!

Does she tend not to handle her problems in the healthiest of ways? Of course! 

Does she care about every single person around her and only wants to protect and take care of them with all of her heart and soul?? HELL FUCKING YES

She may not always have all the answers but for seven years she has tried her best over and over again to save the world and take care of her loved ones and lead them to victory and provide a better life for them! She has forgiven these people for so many of the horrible and quite frankly at times unforgivable things they’ve done to her 

AND THEY KICK HER OUT OF HER OWN HOUSE!

So for Kristin and Jenny, to cheer for Anya’s speech, to say stuff like Buffy deserved that bc she “doesn’t know how to be a follower” (when she was forced by these same people into the role!) and that she “would be all or nothing” in terms of choosing to hand over leadership or leave the house....I just couldn’t disagree more! 

Anyways, even two decades later, Buffy Summers deserves so much better from her loved ones, her fandom, from podcasters, from her narrative, and deserves so much more nuance in the analysis of her character rather than just deeming her a “privileged bitch”

Buffering the Vampire Slayer really dropped the ball on this one

[mangacat201]

𝐓𝐀𝐆 (𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐄) 𝐏𝐄𝐎𝐏𝐋𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐁𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑

Got tagged by @hedgewyse whom I was very happy to get to know better via this tag game, thanks a lot! Sorry it took so long to respond, I needed to get on tumblr on the laptop where I can actually type up text and I had a lot of things going on this past week that kept me LOL.

Favourite colour: Blue.

No explanation, not particular reason why, it’s just always been blue. All shades from deep purple to almost white. But I have a special place in my heart for the word ‘turquoise’, which I feel is just so the most. 

Currently reading: Oh good gosh, my open doc reading list is so long, I will constrain myself to the most recent things...

“(Love is)The second oldest profession” The 9-1-1 Buck/Eddie pornstar!AU I knew I needed but kept for a special occasion

I’m also reading “Achtsam Morden” a national German bestseller and the first actual like physical book I’ve picked up in probably four years. It’s hilarious and murdery and perfect

I’m listening to “Blood & Paper” by Kevin Hearne (whom I recently got to meet at a book signing event when he was visiting here and a friend asked me to spontaneously tag along - best decision in ages) Love the audiobook version read by Luke Daniels, he’s a whizz with the accents.

“Hide the drums (there’s fire in the sky)” latest installment of the Magical Marriage Ribbons-Verse, the Untamed Mega Saga, for which the author starandrea has been posting a chapter every day since May 31st 2020, so 805 consecutive days as of now without missing ONE. It boggles the mind. (I’ve started reading when the verse was ... oh I think about three parts in, I haven’t missed one too since then)

Last song: “The Greatest Show on Earth” - Nightwish, it’s my soundtrack for my daily yoga practice (no I am in fact not joking), so it doesn’t really count last leisure listening was the soundtrack of ‘Robin Hood - Das Musical’

Last series: Ooofff... ok, so many balls in the air at the same time. I’m watching “The Sandman” of course, as you do and loving it. Also “Extraordinary Attorney Woo” which is THE MOST(tm). Recently finished my rewatch and catch-up of “Manifest” and rewatched a couple of episodes of The Devil Judge with a friend who just started and that I got into it, remembering why I can’t be normal about those boys (and how delightful it is to rewatch with someone experiencing sth for the first time). Of course went down the magnificent and batshit crazy rabbithole that is Kinnporsche. Also, “Tomorrow” which is definitely my fav K-Drama of 2022.

Last movie: Day Shift - Fun and a nice remix of vampire tropes that you don’t really see on top of each other a lot. But it felt more like a set up to a movie trilogy I don’t know if it’s made enough impact into getting, so the premise might have been served better as a mini series? ...The Gray Man, which was solid and enjoyable and absolutely bonkers with how hilarious it was to watch Chris Evans have a ton of fun playing straight up, no holds barred, unredeemable villian. Ryan Gosling can stay... Ana de Armas is queen bee.

Currently working on: My last day of vacation :sob: and of course my WIP/plot bunnie enclosure excel spreadsheet (yes, I do not do things by half until I halfass writing them). Anyway, actual words or plotty thinky thoughts were put into:

- The Devil Judge a/b/o PWP (that has, so far, about 5k of set up and no porn) with a Jung Sunah made them do it scenario and non-traditional dynamics (yeah, idek...)

- Vincenzo Inception fusion - Jang Han Seo wakes up from getting shot to a curious set up of sleeping people around him (really really wanna write this one but the premise is so vast I’m afraid of flaming out again)

- three separate 9-1-1 Buddie fics of varying size and scope that reaches from one’s in love the other isn’t and confessions make things complicated (or do they), the fall out from the truck bombing goes the other way for Buck & the “Eddie deals with his 5B-issues by discovering shibari”!AU (do NOT try this at home-therapy)

- The Untamed - Blades of Glory!AU

pheeeeew. hooookay, wow, that was interesting, hope your learned something about me. I’mma tag some people, but please, feel free to participate at your own leisure. @hattalove, @the-marathon-continues-nip , @iskarieot, @themostglorioushour, @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels , @fondofeveryprickle, @ahhhnorealnamesallowed, @sam-t-a, @b612sunsets

[ino3zi]

Sing along with #Noé on this episode of #SongAssociation as he sings songs both new and oldies to beat #ELLE’s buzzer. #Forever show him love and be sure to listen to his newest album #Broadcast Symphony.

‘Hello, This is Noé and I'm here at Elle to play a game of Song Association. Wish me luck.’

‘I will have 10 seconds to sing or rap a song with the word that is given to me. If I fail to make it in time, I won’t get that point. I haven’t really played this game before so wish me luck for my first time and fighting! As well check out my latest album Broadcast Symphony. Now let’s go!’

WORD; ADORE

‘Just let me Adore you. Like it's the only thing I'll ever do.’ He sung before giving the camera a thumbs up smiling.

‘This song has been stuck in my mom’s head for the past few months. And anytime she calls me I can hear it playing in the background. So of course I had to sing it for her.’

WORD; BAMBI

‘You're my only Bambi, Bambi. 너와 딱 어울리는 밤이야.’

‘Baekhyun sunbaenim is a artist who I took inspiration from and who inspired me to achieve my dreams. Ever since 2015 since I listened to My Answer and Call Me Baby. Just hearing the way he sung brought a new passion to me.’

WORD; ROSE

‘In my rose-scented dreams, wrinkled silk on my sheets, I don't see nobody but you.’

‘This song came off the top of my head. I haven’t really listened to it before and just hear it on the radio when it plays but overall it's a good song. Moving on!’

WORD; THANK

‘Thank you, next. I'm so fuckin grateful for my ex.’

‘Thank u, next by Ariana Grande was a song that many people liked because it talked about feeling thankful for being taught a lesson from past relationships. Meanwhile I only listen to it while working or just to listen to it. It's kind of crazy.’

WORD; DESIRE

‘내 두 눈에 가득 Desire. 내 마음에 가득 Desire. 이 떨림의 끝은 누구도 예측할 수 없기에. I love my desire’

‘Ateez would be my Hoobae which is someone who debuted after me. But I have always liked their music and I have even met the members. Hyungs if you're watching this then let’s hang out!.’

WORD; BEAUTIFUL

‘Hey, beautiful beautiful beautiful beautiful Angel. Love your imperfections, every angle. Tomorrow comes and goes before you know.’

‘This song has slowly over time become a song I usually find myself listening or singing too. I wouldn’t say that it’s my favorite song but I wouldn't say it isn’t.

WORD; YOUTH

‘My Youth, my youth is yours. Trippin' on skies, sippin' waterfalls. My youth, my youth is yours.’

‘Troye Sivan is one of the many artists I listen to because his music is very relatable. Youth is one of the songs I only recently started listening to but it’s one that has been stuck in my head.’

WORD; NICE

‘아주 nice, 아주 nice 기분 기분 기분, Nice’

‘Seventeen Sunbaenim has always been a group I looked up to since their debut in 2015. 아주 nice is the first song I listened to of theirs and actually loved listening too. They are the group I would loved to collab with one day.’

WORD; MAYDAY

‘Mayday, mayday, mayday, Answer me now, 그래 이건 S.O.S’

‘Luvaphobic’s title track from the 4th mini album. This was one of the last albums we had put out before our disbandment. It’s one of the songs from the group’s discography that is my favorite because of the vibe of the song and music video.

WORD; SIDE

‘내 곁에 stay right by my side, And let me teach you how to love’

‘One of the newest songs on my new album. By My Side is one of the songs on the album that has a music video that goes along with it. By My Side, as you might've guessed is a song about love which I don't have much experience with but it's something I do feel and something I can express easily in words. Overall all the words I got were pretty easy to do but if I messed up I'm sorry. Hopefully, I'll do better next time."

"Congratulations Noé you actually managed to get all the words in 10 seconds. So you beat Song Association. How do you feel?"

"I'm proud of myself. I didn't think I'll be able to beat it but I did so I'm happy. And I'm happy to have been invited by Elle to try this especially after seeing others do it as well thank you viewers for watching too. Please be sure to check out my newest mini album Broadcast Symphony and subscribe to Elle. That's it for now. Bye."

[sshbpodcast]

Scotty, don’t beam me up yet, I’m taking a sh–: Transporter accidents in Star Trek

by Ames

[image from Jake and Ames’s visit to the Star Trek Original Series Set Tour, Ticonderoga, NY]

Cheeky blogpost title aside, the transporter in Star Trek is a horrifying invention and has proven to be dangerous countless times throughout the franchise. Well, maybe not countless, as we here at A Star to Steer her By are going to count the times right now! We talked about how great they are in our future tech article, and now we’re going to look at all the numerous downsides.

We’re not about to have the “do you die every time you go through the transporter?” debate because that’s a little too philosophical for this listicle (and who can beat this CGP Grey video?), so let’s see what McCoy finds so scary about beaming up. There’s a lot to choose from: getting split in two, ending up in another dimension or back in time, or just never getting reassembled correctly again. Check them all out below, listen to our discussion on the podcast episode (discussion starts at 1:02:09), and energize!

[images © CBS/Paramount]

“The Enemy Within”

Our first bungle in the jungle happened very early actually. The fifth aired episode of all of Trek was the well-known Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde allegory that we disliked so much way back in the day. And as transporter accidents go, it was enough to make any audience member wonder if these danged contraptions are worth using in the first place. For some it’s an intriguing look at what facets make up a person, but for others it’s clearly not something to mess with lest you get split into two people who cannot survive on their own.

“Mirror, Mirror”

It was due to some transporter wonkiness and ion storms and other technobabble that we first shimmered into the mirror universe. And it was a pretty interesting outing once you ignore all the illogical coincidences which we can mostly forgive for the sake of a story that depicts other ways Trek society could have gone if not for all the idealism and general not being fascist. A little less forgivable is how subsequent series would overuse the mirror universe so much, but who can really blame “Mirror Mirror” for that?

The Motion Picture

It isn’t until we hit the big screen that the transporter starts to get legitimately scary. In a mentally scarring scene, we witness what happens when the transporter goes really really wrong. Kudos to the sound effects team for making the unfathomable deaths of two crewmembers something so gross and frightening. We may not understand what is truly happening, but it’s clear that it’s Galaxy Quest’s “turned inside out and exploded” kind of terrible. And each new cut of the movie makes the scene progressively more stomach-turning. Check out the latest director's cut if you haven’t seen it yet, if you dare.

“The Next Phase”

It took The Next Generation much longer to get clutzy with the transporter – all the way to near the end of the fifth season! – but once they did, they were all butterfingers. One of the better uses we recall of the trope is when La Forge and Ro end up phased after failing to transport off a damaged Romulan vessel. Like earlier instances from TOS, it becomes more of a character study, this one focusing on how people cope with loss, as well as a bit of a survival adventure. 10/10 would go to that funeral.

“Realm of Fear”

The sixth season of TNG has basically a transporter accident every other week. They really should have shut these things down after a point because it was actually a little silly. We start off exploring Barclay’s well-deserved fear of transporters in the episode that introduces us to transporter psychosis. The whole thing is trippy and confusing, and there are shapes in the interspace between beamings that are both people and also quasi-energy microbes? I dunno if I fully understood this episode, or if anyone did, but I’m with Barclay on this one: I’ll just be taking the shuttle after this.

“Relics”

Literally two episodes later, a new problem comes out of the transporter! This one’s a good problem to have though, as it’s an old familiar face in Montgomery Scott. We also explore the possibility in this episode of storing a person’s signature in the pattern buffer basically indefinitely. Now in this instance, it only worked for one out of two test subjects, which are abysmal odds if you ask me. Redacting spoilers: We see the buffer used to store a person with much less fatal results in Strange New Worlds, so that’s nice to see. And maybe a little in Star Trek (2009), but I’ve blocked most of that movie…

“Rascals”

One of the worst things the transporter ever gave us was the episode “Rascals,” about which I’ve certainly shared my opinions before. As if de-aging back into children isn’t obnoxious enough, the physics behind the transporter contradict themselves scene by scene depending on what was needed to make the story progress. Luckily, what the transporter breaks it usually also fixes so we don’t have to deal with this mess of bad child actors, absolutely nonsensical science, and kiddie show gags for very long.

“Second Chances”

Prepare to have an identity crisis with this one. We’ve already seen in “The Enemy Within” that the transporter can split you in half, but in this case the two valid, self-sustaining copies are virtually identical, not some personality grab bag. Both Rikers have the same legitimacy to the name and life of our favorite trombonist, so what does it mean for a person to have two lives that fork so significantly? The question haunts me to me very souls.

“Past Tense”

One of these days we’ll cover all the time travel episodes (subscribe to the page if you haven’t yet!), but the two-parter that brings our Deep Space Nine heroes to the Bell Riots is the only time that transporter shenanigans are the cause. As if getting thrown back in time to a perilous era isn’t enough, we also see O’Brien and Kira collecting chronitons so they can replicate the accident and go back to various points in time, mostly for the effect of the sight gags we get. Peace and love!

“Our Man Bashir”

Somehow we got a combination of a transporter accident and a holodeck malfunction wadded together into an episode that is simultaneously both and neither. In the end, it’s all a happy excuse to let most of the cast chew the hell out of the scenery in a genuinely fun, over-the-top espionage thriller parody thing! We’ve got to credit Eddington and Rom for quick thinking when the transporter just isn’t cutting it when they find a rare excuse in Deep Space Nine to do a holodeck episode, another topic we’re sure to revisit (like and subscribe!).

“The Darkness and the Light”

The last time we had a really gruesome death in the transporter was way back in The Motion Picture, and frankly, we’ve gotten too comfortable with the thing. So when Kira's resistance friend Fala gets horribly murdered in a transporter that’s been sabotaged, it’s a bit of a wakeup call that when these things go wrong, they go very very wrong. What’s your take? Is the TMP death more gruesome than “The Darkness and the Light”? Thanks, I’ll just take the stairs.

“Treachery, Faith, and the Great River” 

Okay, I’m just including this episode because it’s when we learn of the report on how Weyoun 5 died: in a transporter accident and definitely not because of anything that Damar was up to. Not even a little bit. Why would you even think that? Damar 2024.

“Jetrel”

Update 1/28/24: Holy Robert Oppenheimer, I forgot one! Whatever the hell Jetrel was trying to do and failing utterly at definitely deserves mention on this list because it was downright horrifying in the same way as some of these other instances are horrifying. The Talaxians have already been through enough, dying traumatically in the Metreon Cascade, but when Jetrel attempts to put someone’s loose particles back together and it just looks like a being getting tortured, that’s another step into nightmare land.

“Tuvix”

You’ll remember we were big fans of the episode “Tuvix” when we wrapped season 2 of Voyager because the ethical debate it presents us with is so fascinating. Like an episode that splits you in two, it presents you with a crisis of identity so profound it leaves minds reeling, but this time a little bit the opposite. Having two people merged into one to create a whole new person with their own sense of self is just interesting to watch and also heartbreaking in its obvious conclusion. Never trust orchids.

“Drone”

This week’s podcast episode covers this one more in depth, so I’ll be brief here. Transporting someone with Borg nanobots and someone with a mobile emitter from the future yields an even more magical mobile emitter capable of spawning new life if it gets a bite of tasty tasty human flesh. Which of course it does. What we’re left with is One, who is a darling little freak of nature who gives more evidence that individuality is a right, regardless of what certain Borg Collectives have to say.

“Strange New World”

If all of the transporter accidents we’ve seen so far have been reckless, dangerous, and downright horrifying, then obviously the device was only going to be more unsafe when it was brand spanking new. When we see early uses in Enterprise, the characters are basically flipping a coin every time they use the thing, as is shown in the season 1 episode “Strange New World,” in which a crewmember is transported during a windstorm and the debris and sticks and stuff from his surroundings freakin’ merge with his flesh! How did this thing make it past testing?!

“Daedalus”

In season 4 of Enterprise, we meet the inventor of the transporter, Emory Erickson, who just proves to us how dangerous the device is. Erickson has been working tirelessly to rescue his son Quinn, whose pattern got lost during an experiment, leaving his form in kind of a limbo space between existence and the buffer, a ghost that haunts space as much as his predicament haunts his father.

“Much Ado About Boimler”

Y’all knew that Lower Decks would repeat a couple of the tropes we’ve seen before, but with their own twists. The first transporter accident we see in the cartoon is basically “The Next Phase” again, but with only half the characters and only half phased. What we’re left with is a partially phased Boimler and a good bunch of jokes about how Starfleet treats crewmembers with disabilities.

“Kayshon, His Eyes Open”

That’s not the last time Boimler will have a rough time with the transporter since Lower Decks tends to drag his character a little bit (read: a lot). After foreshadowing it for quite a while with jokes about Will and Tom Riker from “Second Chances,” the episode pays off with a decent punchline of having a similar transporter accident create two Boimlers who are also the both same and yet also kinda hilariously different.

—

Congratulations, you’ve made it to the other side! Thank you for beaming with us today; please exit the transporter pad in an orderly fashion. Keep watching this space for more great Trek topics, keep up with our watch-through of Voyager over on SoundCloud or wherever you get your podcasts, friend us on Facebook and Twitter, and don’t forget to tip your transporter chief.

[kellshaw]

The robot uprising and the end of the publishing world!

New Post has been published on https://kellshaw.com/the-robot-uprising-and-the-end-of-the-publishing/

The robot uprising and the end of the publishing world!

New Post has been published on https://kellshaw.com/the-robot-uprising-and-the-end-of-the-publishing-world/

The robot uprising and the end of the publishing world!

I can’t remember the exact title, but there’s an episode of Doctor Who where Tom Baker’s Doctor, and Romana are discussing life on Gallifrey, their home planet. The Doctor likes painting, but Romana thinks that’s archaic, as in her mind, computers do art. And while that was science fiction in the 1970s, today we’ve got AI tools that do art, and writing!

Every author business podcast I’ve listened to recently, and a lot of book-ish social media groups, are furiously discussing the impact of modern AI tools on publishing. There’s a mix of speculation, gossip and fearmongering.

Publishers with low-effort, AI-churned out bookswill swamp the market place! No one will touch self-published books again!

Readers won’t love us writers anymore as they can walk up to a computer, enter some prompts, and receive a perfectly tailored story to their tastes and preferences.

Canny publishers will use AI to increase their output and draw readers’ attention away from my stuff!

There are arguments on both sides. A lot of this appears to be FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) – the fear that the AI assisted texts will make certain writers more productive and take the readers away from discovering other writers! I don’t think it quite works like that. Sure, I’d love it if my favorite authors were more productive, but I’ve also stopped reading a series where the latest volume loses that spark and feels ‘churned out’. And even if everyone flocks to mass-produced texts, there will still be people who prefer hand-crafted stories. Maybe it will become like craft beer—there’ll be always an audience for those who want the more interesting beverages on the side.

What makes a good story? Intriguing characters, pacing, the ability to evoke emotion, perhaps. How do you bottle this and create a reliable, reproducible formula for making engaging stories consistently? People have been to figure this out for years. There’s so many courses out there that tell writers about how to write unputdownable stories, or what the best formulas. I’ve found some stuff useful (structuring and pacing techniques) and others less so.

There’s also been heartwarming stories of people with disabilities who can now express themselves better using AI technology. People with language issues or Long COVID brain fog can now complete stories with AI assistance. This is how I’d like it to be used. I’ve got some issues myself, which makes it hard for me to engage in social media. I have trouble writing random social media posts about blah life stuff without wanting to sit and think deeply about out it for ages, but if I bothered, I could go to the ChatGPT and have it write my social updates for me!

I haven’t mucked around with AI yet. Actually, I tell a lie—I use souped-up grammar checker Pro-Writing Aid to clear up my text. I’m a messy first drafter with lots of dropped words, speling errors that are fixed down the pipeline. I use some of its suggestions, but not all. Lately it’s got this AI feature that rephrases sentences. Some of it sounds better, some of it’s bland. Mostly I ignore it. But the tool is there as an option. Anyway, more options are good.

At this stage, I’m not going to engage AI (apart from PWA’s grammar/reporting checks). I’m still working on my craft, trying to capture that magic of making a great story, or at least, improve of what I’ve done in the past. For example, when I wrote Final Night, it was the best thing I’d written and completed, and now I’m going to improve on that with the next book. When I think I’ve gotten my craft to a certain level, I might check out AI tools more deeply, but for now it’s fingers to keyboard.

[mohhamedriaz]

How Much Personal Data Does Facebook Have? Even If You Delete Your Account, Info Remains

Even if you haven’t created an account on a social media site, they might have a hidden profile with more details than you’d believe. Sneaky, right?

That’s why you should say no thanks when an app offers to take in your contacts to find all your friends. It’s not your info to give away.

If you use social media, it's worth clearing out all the things (and people) you've looked up. Here are easy steps to save yourself some potential embarrassment later.

Start the day smarter. Get all the news you need in your inbox each morning.

Perhaps you deleted Facebook years ago or never made one. Meta might still have your cell number, landline, or email address.

The shady side of social media Over the years, most of us have willingly overshared. Hopefully, you’ve removed your phone number and email address from your social media profiles.

Even if your account is private, anybody can take a screenshot. If you have any contact information in your profile, delete it now.

Those hidden accounts I mentioned are called Shadow Profiles. They exist thanks to all your contacts who passed along things like your full name, birthday, phone number, email address, and maybe even more.

If someone you know shared their address book with Facebook, Instagram, or Messenger, Meta probably has your details. Good news: You can remove them.

Get my 5-minute daily newsletter for more tech smarts.

How to fight fraud on Facebook

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UP NEXT UP NEXT

Opt me out, please First, head to this help page for non-Meta users. There’s an important line buried under the heading, How Non-Users can exercise their rights:

“Click here if you have a question about the rights you may have.”

That links to a contact removal tool, where you can ask Meta to delete your information from its address book database. Yeah, they don’t make it super easy to find.

Here’s how to delete your contact information from Meta:

Go to facebook.Com/contacts/removal.

Select the type of information you want to remove. Choose from a mobile number, landline, or email address, then hit Next.

Enter your phone number and/or email address to get a confirmation code.

Select the platform you want it removed from (Facebook and Messenger or Instagram), or select All.

Click Next and enter the confirmation code on the next screen. Hit Next one last time.

If something is found, hit Confirm to delete the data.

Hit Close on the next screen, or use the link to search for another number or email.

You can still use the removal tool if you have a Facebook account, but there are more steps you should take to protect your privacy.

Tap or click here for 10 Facebook privacy and security settings you need to change.

Keep your tech-know going My popular podcast is called “Kim Komando Today.” It’s a solid 30 minutes of tech news, tips, and callers with tech questions like you from all over the country. Search for it wherever you get your podcasts. For your convenience, hit the link below for a recent episode.

TECH SMARTS ON THE GO: China's app threat beyond TikTok, AI's plan to take 300 mil jobs & the device most likely to hurt you

Plus, I talk to a man who needs a safe space to share photos of his lost loved ones. Also, a 500K vehicle recall for Hyundai and Kia – and I reveal why you should park your car on the street for now. Worried about your job post the big AI boom? There's some exciting news about a new high-paying job that's emerging. And some pro tips to protect your website with free online tests.

Check out my podcast “Kim Komando Today” on Apple, Google Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast player.

Listen to the podcast here or wherever you get your podcasts. Just search for my last name, “Komando.”

Learn about all the latest technology on the Kim Komando Show, the nation's largest weekend radio talk show. Kim takes calls and dispenses advice on today's digital lifestyle, from smartphones and tablets to online privacy and data hacks. For her daily tips, free newsletters and more, visit her website at Komando.Com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How much personal data does Facebook have? Even if you delete your account, info remains

[graceedingess]

HBO Max merges with Discovery+: Flip or Flop?

Almost everyone in the world uses media, but not everyone truly knows or understands what these media companies entail and who owns the apps you use on your phone, the channels you stream on your television, or the music you listen to on the way to work. 

If you’re an HBO max user like me, or are a Discovery+ user, your favorite shows could be endangered due to one of these important media terms: convergence. If you haven’t heard already, Warner Bros., who owns both HBO Max and Discovery+, has decided to combine the two streaming platforms into one unified platform. Why are they doing this and why are some series being pulled? The answer is marketing and money.

WarnerMedia/Discovery want to create a new unified platform that will launch mid-2023 that will be their top consumers one-stop-shop; a platform that has all their most watched and most popular channels and series. Because of this, they want to focus their efforts on these buzzworth series and eliminate the rest; the rest including their least popular genre and viewers: kids and family oriented content. They are, or have already, getting rid of shows like Select Sesame Street Specials, Yabba Dabba Dinosaurs, and Elliott From Earth. They are focused on adult catered content; HBO caters to more male viewers and Discovery+, more female viewers, which hits both genders of their adult focused demographic. 

Not only are they steering away from kid-catered shows, but they are also dropping many series, mainly reality tv, and movies with low viewer traffic, even series created by HBO Max itself. According to an executive, they want to use the complaints about streaming competitor, Netflix, to their advantage and not clutter the platform with options people don’t actually want to watch. 

Marketing this “new, great platform” aside, WarnerMedia expects to make a lot more money from the merger. By cutting shows, they will be saving tens of millions of dollars. By cutting the shows they’ve created, they see the effects of the savings immediately. They also are selling shows to other networks, therefore decluttering and adding revenue. HBO Max has also laid off about 14% of their company in preparation for the Discovery+ combination. Warner Bros. have promised an extra three billion dollars from this merger. 

There are both positives and negatives to this convergence. If you enjoy both HBO Max shows and Discovery+ shows, this platform combination could save you time and money. You could watch the latest episode of Euphoria then finish the night with some Flip or Flop without having to pay and switch through both different streaming services or cable. But, if you have children and enjoy family show-binging nights, maybe you are less excited about this new combination. Subscription prices could also increase due to the new implementation of Discovery+ content. As consumers, we get used to the way our media works and we usually are not too excited when media companies change things up on us. We see the backlash when social media platforms change their branding or their features, or even when our favorite shows change up storylines and actors. But, atlast, we get used to the change and sometimes like the changes better than before. We will see next summer if this new HBO Max/Discovery+ platform will be a Flip or Flop.