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jackoshadows · 10 months

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The Night's Watch needed leaders with the wisdom of Maester Aemon, the learning of Samwell Tarly, the courage of Qhorin Halfhand, the stubborn strength of the Old Bear, the compassion of Donal Noye. What it had instead was them. - Jon, ADwD

So, on the topic of Jon’s mentors and mentorship, I thought I would highlight what Jon’s mentors taught him and how he used that as a leader.

As a protagonist, Jon Snow is one of those characters with many mentors and father figures as he climbs that ladder to become Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch and possible future KITN. He learns from all of them - enemies and allies - what to do and what not to do. He implements what he learns from them and in some cases his mistakes stem from not using what he has learned.

Let’s start with Ned Stark, the character Jon refers to the most in terms of advice and strategic policy making. It’s from Ned that Jon has gained his understanding of the North, from how to treat with the mountain clans to his distrust of the Boltons. Jon’s chapters are peppered with ‘My father said this’ or ‘My father’s bannerman would do this’ and so on.

From studying the dead wights:

“My lord father used to tell me that a man must know his enemies. We understand little of the wights and less about the Others. We need to learn.” - Jon, ADwD

to knowing his men and their abilities to have the best man on the job.

Jon hopped down onto the ice, thanked the men on the winch, and nodded to the spearmen standing sentry. Both wore woolen hoods pulled down over their heads, so nothing could be seen of their faces but their eyes, but he knew Ty by the tangled rope of greasy black hair falling down his back and Owen by the sausage stuffed into the scabbard at his hip. He might have known them anyway, just by the way they stood. A good lord must know his men, his father had once told him and Robb, back at Winterfell. - Jon, ADwD

The Halfhand gives him similar advice on their ranging beyond the wall and their mission to find the Freefolk - ‘Know your men’. And Jon does. Jon observes and assigns jobs to his men based on what they are capable of doing despite the obvious bigotry they face from the other crows at the Wall.

It was at times like this that Jon missed Maester Aemon the most. Clydas tended to the ravens well enough, but he had not a tenth of Aemon Targaryen's knowledge or experience, and even less of his wisdom. Bowen was a good man in his way, but the wound he had taken at the Bridge of Skulls had hardened his attitudes, and the only song he ever sang now was his familiar refrain about sealing the gates. Othell Yarwyck was as stolid and unimaginative as he was taciturn, and the First Rangers seemed to die as quick as they were named. The Night's Watch has lost too many of its best men, Jon reflected, as the wagons began to move. The Old Bear, Qhorin Halfhand, Donal Noye, Jarmen Buckwell, my uncle … - Jon, ADwD

One common criticism levied against Jon Snow as a leader is that he should have just replaced his top deputies if they were not ready to listen to him or follow his orders. Replace with whom though? He had no one else. All he had were the likes of Othell, Bowen, Clydas etc.

He hires Satin as a steward and Leathers as Master-at-arms, assigns many of the castles to men and women like Iron Emmett and Morna White Mask.

Septon Cellador spoke up. "This boy Satin. It's said you mean to make him your steward and squire, in Tollett's place. My lord, the boy's a whore … a … dare I say … a painted catamite from the brothels of Oldtown."

What he was in Oldtown is none of our concern. He’s quick to learn and very clever. The other recruits started out despising him, but he won them over and made friends of them all. He’s fearless in a fight and can even read and write after a fashion. He should be capable of fetching me my meals and saddling my horse, don’t you think?” - Jon, ADwD

"Is it true that you mean to replace Emmett with this savage Leathers as our master-at-arms? That is an office most oft reserved for knights, or rangers at the least."

"Leathers is savage," Jon agreed mildly. "I can attest to that. I've tried him in the practice yard. He's as dangerous with a stone axe as most knights are with castle-forged steel. I grant you, he is not as patient as I'd like, and some of the boys are terrified of him … but that's not all for the bad. One day they'll find themselves in a real fight, and a certain familiarity with terror will serve them well."

“He’s a wildling.”

“He was, until he said the words. Now he is our brother. One who can teach the boys more than swordcraft. It would not hurt them to learn a few words of the Old Tongue and something of the ways of the free folk.” - Jon, ADwD

And then there is Jeor Mormont under whom Jon Snow is trained as a steward.

Life at Castle Black followed certain patterns; the mornings were for swordplay, the afternoons for work. The black brothers set new recruits to many different tasks, to learn where their skills lay. Jon cherished the rare afternoons when he was sent out with Ghost ranging at his side to bring back game for the Lord Commander's table, but for every day spent hunting, he gave a dozen to Donal Noye in the armory, spinning the whetstone while the one-armed smith sharpened axes grown dull from use, or pumping the bellows as Noye hammered out a new sword. Other times he ran messages, stood at guard, mucked out stables, fletched arrows, assisted Maester Aemon with his birds or Bowen Marsh with his counts and inventories. - Jon, AGoT

And as steward to Jeor Mormont, Jon is present when Mormont makes plans to defend the Wall.

The Old Bear unrolled a map, frowned at it, tossed it aside, opened another. He was pondering where the hammer would fall, Jon could see it. The Watch had once manned seventeen castles along the hundred leagues of the Wall, but they had been abandoned one by one as the brotherhood dwindled. Only three were now garrisoned, a fact that Mance Rayder knew as well as they did. “Ser Alliser Thorne will bring back fresh levies from King’s Landing, we can hope. If we man Greyguard from the Shadow Tower and the Long Barrow from Eastwatch …”

“Greyguard has largely collapsed. Stonedoor would serve better, if the men could be found. Icemark and Deep Lake as well, mayhaps. With daily patrols along the battlements between.” - Jon, ACoK

And then as Lord Commander Jon Snow implements what Jeor Mormont planned to do. This is how the author organically builds up and writes a leadership arc.

“True enough,” the small man said. “Is it just to be Icemark, then, or will m'lord be opening t'other forts as well?”

“I mean to garrison all of them, in time,” said Jon, “but for the moment, it will just be Icemark and Greyguard.” - Jon, ADWD

“The wildlings will remain upon the Wall,” Jon assured them. “Most will be housed in one of our abandoned castles.” The Watch now had garrisons at Icemark, Long Barrow, Sable Hall, Greyguard, and Deep Lake, all badly undermanned, but ten castles still stood empty and abandoned. - Jon, ADWD

Then there is Tyrion Lannister, one of Jon Snow’s first friends he makes at the Wall.

Let me give you some counsel, bastard,” Lannister said. “Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armor yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.” - Jon, AGoT

A piece of advice Jon never forgets. He embraces and uses his bastardy to gain Mance Rayder’s confidence and by the time we get to the end of ADwD, Jon Snow shrugs off insults easily enough considering the existential apocalyptic threat at their doorstep.

“And did you see where I was seated, Mance?” He leaned forward. “Did you see where they put the bastard?”

Mance Rayder looked at Jon’s face for a long moment. “I think we had best find you a new cloak,” the king said, holding out his hand.- Jon, ASoS

“If you mean to kill me, do it and be damned for a kinslayer. Stark and Karstark are one blood.” “My name is Snow.” “Bastard.” “Guilty. Of that, at least.” - Jon, ADwD

There’s Donal Noye who plainly and openly tells Ned Stark’s son of his privilege, which Jon acknowledges and makes right with his future friends.

Donal Noye leaned forward, into Jon's face. "Now think on this, boy. None of these others have ever had a master-at-arms until Ser Alliser. Their fathers were farmers and wagonmen and poachers, smiths and miners and oars on a trading galley. What they know of fighting they learned between decks, in the alleys of Oldtown and Lannisport, in wayside brothels and taverns on the kingsroad. They may have clacked a few sticks together before they came here, but I promise you, not one in twenty was ever rich enough to own a real sword." His look was grim. "So how do you like the taste of your victories now, Lord Snow?"

"Don't call me that!" Jon said sharply, but the force had gone out of his anger. Suddenly he felt ashamed and guilty. "I never … I didn't think …" - Jon, AGoT

Grenn edged backward and put up his hands. “Stay away from me now, you bastard.”

Jon smiled at him. “I’m sorry about your wrist. Robb used the same move on me once, only with a wooden blade. It hurt like seven hells, but yours must be worse. Look, if you want, I can show you how to defend that.” - Jon, AGoT

Donal Noye who puts Jon Snow in charge of the defense of the Wall:

"No," Donal Noye roared at three of the Mole's Town men, down below. "The pitch goes to the hoist, the oil up the steps, crossbow bolts to the fourth, fifth, and sixth landings, spears to first and second. Stack the lard under the stair, yes, there, behind the planks. The casks of meat are for the barricade. Now, you poxy plow pushers, NOW!" He has a lord's voice, Jon thought. His father had always said that in battle a captain's lungs were as important as his sword arm.

More than ten stepped forward, and the smith picked his four. "Jon, you have the Wall till I return."For a moment Jon thought he had misheard. It had sounded as if Noye were leaving him in command. "My lord?"

"Lord? I'm a blacksmith. I said, the Wall is yours." - Jon, ASoS

Then there is Maester Aemon and his advice and guidance to Jon Snow about making the tough, unpopular choices as a leader. Something that Jon follows by actively pushing through his decisions despite facing opposition at every level. From sending the paper shields to getting the men to listen to him:

Fewer than a dozen shields remained, sad grey things with faded paint and long cracks in the wood. But fresh torches burned in the iron sconces along the walls, and Jon had ordered benches and tables brought in. Men with comfortable seats were more inclined to listen, Maester Aemon had once told him; standing men were more inclined to shout. - Jon, ADwD

Mance Rayder is very important with respect to Jon’s arc of being a leader to the Freefolk. It’s from Mance that Jon understands how to get the loyalty of these people, how to interact with them, how to get them to follow orders.

"Free folk don’t follow names, or little cloth animals sewn on a tunic,” the King-Beyond-the-Wall had told him. “They won’t dance for coins, they don’t care how you style yourself or what that chain of office means or who your grandsire was. They follow strength. They follow the man.” - Jon, ADwD

We see the value Jon has for Mance’s experience and leadership in how he keeps advising Stannis to use Mance instead of executing him as a deserter of the NW and in his understanding of the Freefolk

"Mance knows the haunted forest better than any ranger," Jon had told King Stannis, in his final effort to convince His Grace that the King-Beyond-the-Wall would be of more use to them alive than dead. "He knows Tormund Giantsbane. He has fought the Others. And he had the Horn of Joramun and did not blow it. He did not bring down the Wall when he could have." - Jon, ADwD

It is too cold for this mummer's show, thought Jon. "The free folk despise kneelers," he had warned Stannis. "Let them keep their pride, and they will love you better." - Jon, ADwD

While Stannis Baratheon and Jon Snow end up butting heads over strategy, there is begrudging respect for each other on both sides. It’s Stannis who first agrees to let the Freefolk this side of the Wall and Jon later builds on what Stannis sets in motion.

No, thought Jon. You closed that door. Longclaw descended. “Can I have his boots?” asked Owen the Oaf, as Janos Slynt’s head went rolling across the muddy ground. “They’re almost new, those boots. Lined with fur.” Jon glanced back at Stannis. For an instant their eyes met. Then the king nodded and went back inside his tower.- Jon, ADwD

Jon going from mocking Sam’s love for books to appreciating his learning and wisdom makes Samwell the next mentor. Or more like an honorary mentor considering they are around the same age, help and learn from each other. From both Maester Aemon and Samwell Tarly, Jon appreciates the useful knowledge obtained from old books.

Books covered his table, tall stacks of them. He’d fetched them up himself, after spending half the night searching through dusty vaults by lantern light. Sam was right, the books desperately needed to be sorted, listed, and put in order, - Jon, ADwD

We will see, Jon thought, remembering the things that Sam had told him, the things he’d found in his old books. Longclaw had been forged in the fires of old Valyria, forged in dragonflame and set with spells. Dragon-steel, Sam called it. Stronger than any common steel, lighter, harder, sharper … - Jon, ADwD

Other honorary mentors include Ygritte and Arya Stark. Ygritte who teaches Jon Snow the ways of the Freefolk and who opens his eyes to the fact that the Freefolk are simply different and not to be hated.

"Maybe they were tired of fighting. Tired of barring their doors every night and wondering if Rattleshirt or someone like him would break them down to carry off their wives. Tired of having their harvests stolen, and any valuables they might have. It's easier to move beyond the reach of raiders."

But if the Wall should fail, all the north will lie within the reach of raiders."You know nothing, Jon Snow. Daughters are taken, not wives. You're the ones who steal. You took the whole world, and built the Wall t' keep the free folk out." - Jon, ASoS

"Gerrick is the true and rightful king of the wildlings," the queen said, "descended in an unbroken male line from their great king Raymun Redbeard, whereas the usurper Mance Rayder was born of some common woman and fathered by one of your black brothers."

No, Jon might have said, Gerrick is descended from a younger brother of Raymun Redbeard. To the free folk that counted about as much as being descended from Raymun Redbeard's horse. They know nothing, Ygritte. And worse, they will not learn. - Jon, ADwD

And finally I see Arya as being the lone positive female figure in Jon Snow’s childhood, growing up Winterfell, and this is exemplified in the girls he admires, appreciates and ends up loving. Sadly, while Jon has a dozen father figures he is provided with no mother figures to help and guide him and all he has is the little girl he loves and to whom he gifts a sword. Interesting then that this little girl resembles his mother in both looks and personality.

He keeps seeing an Arya in every girl - be it his lover Ygritte or little Freefolk girls wanting to fight for him. She’s not his mentor, just someone who very much influences his outlook on women and girls in Westeros, seen in his respect for the Spearwives and trusting them with the defense of an entire castle.

“The Lannisters are proud,” Jon observed. “You’d think the royal sigil would be sufficient, but no. He makes his mother’s House equal in honor to the king’s.”

“The woman is important too!” Arya protested. - Arya, AGoT

“I will take any boy above the age of twelve who knows how to hold a spear or string a bow.

“And girls?” a girl asked. She looked as young as Arya had, the last time Jon had seen her. “Sixteen and older.”

“You’re taking boys as young as twelve.”

“As you will. Boys and girls as young as twelve. - Jon, ADwD

Then there are his teachers in Winterfell like Rodrick Cassel and Maester Luwin. Teaching him the sword and his lessons on history, math, languages etc.

Jon Snow is essentially a character that absorbs a lot from the characters he interacts with, learns from his betters and and tries to succeed where others before him - Jeor, Mance, Stannis - failed.

#Jon snow #Mentors and Mentorship #JonSnowFortnightEvent2023

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brookstonalmanac · 2 months

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Birthdays 2.26

Beer Birthdays

Gabriel Sedlmayr II (1811)

Frederick C. Miller (1906)

Art Larrance (1944)

Five Favorite Birthdays

Tex Avery; cartoon director (1908)

Johnny Cash; singer, songwriter (1932)

Jackie Gleason; actor, comedian (1916)

Plato; philosopher (428 BCE)

Theodore Sturgeon; writer (1918)

Famous Birthdays

Robert Alda; actor (1914)

Grover Cleveland Alexander; Philadelphia Phillies P (1887)

Erykah Badu; singer (1971)

William Baumol; economist (1922)

Michael Bolton; pop singer (1953)

Godfrey Cambridge; actor (1933)

"Buffalo" Bill Cody; scout, entertainer (1846)

Honore Daumier; artist (1808)

"Fats" Domino; singer, pianist (1928)

Herbert Henry Dow; chemical manufacturer (1866)

Bill Duke; actor (1943)

Kevin Dunn; actor (1956)

Marshall Faulk; St. Louis Rams RB (1973)

William Frawley; actor (1887)

Jennifer Grant; actor (1966)

Victor Hugo; writer (1802)

Betty Hutton; actor (1921)

John Harvey Kellogg; dietician, doctor (1852)

Kara Monaco; model (1983)

Teresa Palmer; actor (1986)

Tony Randall; actor (1920)

Mitch Ryder; rock singer (1945)

Levi Strauss; inventor (1829)

Jenny Thompson; swimmer (1973)

Elihu Vedder; artist, illustrator (1836)

Wenceslas of Bohemia; ruler (1361)

#Birthdays

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singeratlarge · 2 months

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Robert Alda, Erykah Badu, The Beatles’s 1970 HEY JUDE (AGAIN) LP, Lazar Berman, Buffalo Bill, Michael Bolton, Bunny Briggs, Jonathan Cain, CL, Dane Clark, Jaz Coleman (Killing Joke), Paul Cotton (Poco), Ida Cox, Mark Dacascos, Fats Domino, Bill Duke, Cyrus Faryar, William Frawley, Jackie Gleason, Hagood Hardy, Bob “Bear” Hite, Victor Hugo, Betty Hutton, John Harvey Kellogg, Husband E. Kimmel, Marta Kristen, Christopher Marlowe, Max Martin, Seth Morrison, Michael Pate, Pepe, Corrinne Bailey Rae, Tony Randall, Nate Ruess, Mitch Ryder, Doug Sandom, Schubert’s 1869 Symphony No. 4, Levi Strauss, Dub Taylor, Yōsuke Yamashita, and the legendary singer-songwriter, musical pioneer, actor, and Bible scholar Johnny Cash.

No matter where I went as a kid, the “boom-chicka-boom” of Johnny Cash and The Tennessee Three were playing in the background, with emphasis on the Sun sessions and the prison albums. Cash was one of the unifying sound-streams amongst family and friends who’d, otherwise, never agree on what to listen to. With his own brand of rebellious humility, he sang about the temporal and the eternal, intertwining the world view of a hardscrabble working man with that of a mystic. Throughout my life, in consistent and sometimes surprising patterns, Cash spoke to me about spiritual matters, even if I didn’t get it on the first pass. Musically he proved that stark and simple could be amazingly effective. HB JC and thank you for being a role model. Please enjoy my cover of “Ring of Fire”…

youtube

#birthday #JohnnyCash #ringoffire #juncarter #merlekilgore #bandan #oregon #johnnyjblair #SunRecords #prison #tennesseethree #arkansas #dyess #fire

#johnny j blair #singer songwriter #music #singer at large #Johnny Cash #birthday #June Carter #Ring of Fire #fire #Bandan #Oregon #prison #Arkansas #Youtube

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dannyreviews · 1 year

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Rolling Stone Magazine Top 200 Singers - The Omissions List

Once in awhile, I’ll do a music themed blog post and boy do I have a post for you. Rolling Stone Magazine opens 2023 with a list that no one asked for. Their 200 Singers list is an all time low for the once flourishing magazine. When you include auto-tuned singers like Billie Eilish, Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Ariana Grande, Lana Del Ray and dull as dishwater singers (again, my opinion) like Morrissey, Courtney Love, Michael Stipe, Bono, Bruce Springsteen and Eddie Vedder, you lose credibility in my book. Here are the singers of different backgrounds, genres, and vocalizations (in alphabetical order) that Rolling Stone failed to include on their inept list:

Jon Anderson

Julie Andrews

Paul Anka

Tina Arena

Charles Aznavour

Michael Ball

Jimmy Barnes

The Bee Gees (Barry, Maurice and Robin Gibb)

Pat Benatar

Tony Bennett

Andrea Bocelli

Jay Black

Colin Blunstone

Michael Bolton

Gary Brooker

Jack Bruce

Eric Burdon

Maria Callas

Eric Carmen

Paul Carrack

Enrico Caruso

Shirley Cesar

Peter Cetera

Eric Clapton

Petula Clark

Joe Cocker

Nat King Cole

Phil Collins

Perry Como

Burton Cummings

Bobby Darin

Sammy Davis Jr.

Neil Diamond

Judith Durham

The Everly Brothers (Don and Phil)

John Farnham

Dan Fogelberg

Marie Fredriksson

Art Garfunkel

Judy Garland

Vince Gill

Ian Gillan

Lou Gramm

Daryl Hall

Johnny Hallyday

Morten Harket

George Harrison

Russell Hitchcock

Noddy Holder

Mick Hucknall

Billy Joel

Brian Johnson

Tom Jones

Eddie Kendricks

Carole King

Johnny Maestro

Steve Marriott

Dean Martin

Michael McDonald

Meat Loaf

Ethel Merman

Klaus Meine

Liza Minnelli

Jim Morrison

Anthony Newley

Harry Nilsson

Luciano Pavarotti

Gene Pitney

Leontyne Price

Maddy Prior

The Righteous Brothers (Bobby Hatfield and Bill Medley)

Paul Rodgers

Sam and Dave (Sam Moore and Dave Prater)

Neil Sedaka

Bon Scott

Beverly Sills

Carly Simon

Paul Simon

Levi Stubbs

James Taylor

Frankie Valli

Sarah Vaughan

Anthony Warlow

Dionne Warwick

Ann Wilson

Carl Wilson

Steve Winwood

Robin Zander

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frobislive · 10 months

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so you don’t have to: mermaid’s song

hey friends! today’s review will be on the movie mermaid’s song, also known as charlotte’s song, directed by nicholas humphries. it is a loose retelling of hans christian andersen’s the little mermaid.

i did not know this until the opening credits of the movie. let me give you the description of this movie that i saw when i first watched it on tubi [where it is still available at the time of writing this]:

A girl in the 1930s has a family business a gangster wants to illegally help, but he doesn’t know she’s a mermaid who controls minds with her voice.

to call this description misleading is... an understatement. but before we get into that, let me clarify a few things: i have watched this movie before, and this will be like my 4th time watching it as i write this. most reviews i have seen of this movie do NOT like it one bit, and i can see why. but for me it has a certain je ne say quaough. i will be giving a rather lengthy summary of the movie talking about a lot of aspects i really enjoy and a lot i think they could do SO MUCH BETTER, so naturally, this review will be LONG and have a lot of SPOILERS! this is your only warning [for this review]! but i hope you guys won’t mind because the reason i’m reviewing this movie in particular first is to introduce my subgenre of reviews: SO YOU DON’T HAVE TO, where i watch the random movies i find going through a hot actor’s filmography—you guessed it—so you don’t have to! all will be formatted like this: less of a professional review and more me telling you what happens in the movie and getting silly with it.

so levi, you might ask, who is the hot actor you subjected yourself to this identity crisis of a movie for?

well, let me show you the poster:

notice anyone familiar? someone from... game of thrones, perhaps?

that’s right folks, i watched this movie for mr ramsay bolton himself, iwan rheon. so let’s get into it, shall we?

the movie takes place, as stated before, in the 1930s. this wouldn’t be so strange if not for the fact that it is set in oklahoma. do you know what absolutely killed middle america in the 1930s? i’ll give you a hint: exactly what’s killing the southwest right now, only about a hundred times worse.

this is a mermaid movie in which the only water exists in a bathtub or wash basin.

our main character is charlotte, a thirteen[?] year old girl who is the youngest of six girls. i do not remember any of the sisters’ names despite seeing this movie several times, so it might get a little confusing but we’ll be okay. the movie begins with a flashback charlotte, about six years old, catching fireflies. she comes inside and we are introduced to her sisters and the girls’ mother, singing for a crowd in their bar that is also their house. her older daughters—all except charlotte—are background dancers. the patrons look pleased and their father [whose name is george] watches lovingly from the bar. as charlotte walks away from the stage, she is stopped by a man [iwan rheon] who, seemingly telepathically, tells her be careful. she looks confused, so he kneels down and says, out loud, “i said, be careful.” by the way, when he kneels down to her level, and when he gets back up, his movement is sped up. it is not clear why they do this and i believe it is the only time it happens. the mother notices him and looks concerned but does not stop the show. this opening bit is cut with shots of a classic big ol’ fairy tale book complete with many mermaid illustrations, which are fucking awesome, and narration of one such fairy tale.

i want to take a moment to point out that the sound editing in this movie is atrocious. it is not balanced at all. at many points the music is almost too loud to hear the dialogue/singing. i watch movies with subtitles, so this does not bother me, but it seems to be a big issue for many people who have reviewed this movie. this also does not stop me from getting the songs stuck in my head for weeks after every time i watch this.

now we are introduced to charlotte’s “grandmother”, the sea witch of this retelling. we quickly learn that she is not her real grandmother and no one likes her except charlotte. she tells charlotte what is essentially the story of the little mermaid and the movie makes it obvious that this story is about her mother. the sea witch tells charlotte that “unless [the mermaid] returns to the sea, another must be found to take her place, for the balance between worlds must be preserved at all costs.” by “another” the witch means charlotte, as she immediately tries to steal her away, but the mother catches her and locks her in george’s office, after which she goes to argue with him, because the prophecy must be fulfilled and it’s her or charlotte. here is where the setting of oklahoma comes into play, as it’s revealed that they have moved as far away from water as they could in the hopes that the witch wouldn’t find them. george suggests they “pay the debt” and give up charlotte, and she responds by killing herself, with charlotte finding her body. yes. seriously. take that, sea witch, i guess?

cut to title sequence, where the title card looks an awful lot like they used a rip-off pirates of the carribean font.

now we move to present day. the dust bowl is in full effect, and the family’s business has been affected heavily by this and by the death of their mother. the sea witch still lives with them and has been subjugated to maid status. we also find out that this bar/cabaret is also a gas station now? or maybe it always was. either way, charlotte feels bad for a family that cannot pay for gas and ends up running out on their property, so she fills up a canister behind george’s back. on her way to give them the gas canister she runs into a man named tim, an old friend of the family. he offers to deliver the gas can for her and says he’ll be back in a couple days to talk to george. tim is young and cute and it is very obvious charlotte has a schoolgirl crush on him. tim obviously loves her too, but in a very familial sense.

we see the family growing stressed because of money troubles and customers becoming increasingly dissatisfied with their entertainment [can’t fuck the girls] and drinks [can’t afford real liquor to serve]. the sea witch tells charlotte she will soon have to make the choice that her mother did, and it becomes increasingly obvious that charlotte is regarded as the black sheep and the baby of the family. also, george is not a good father, and soon he’ll get worse.

so far, this movie is strange at best and a disappointment at worst. the acting is hit or miss, the sound design isn’t balanced, and the story is confusing. but now, a character returns to the fray: randall. oh randall. iwan rheon does such a wonderful job with randall. he’s the perfect combination of cheesy b-movie fruity villain and seriously scary. iwan serves cunt in this role and if you disagree i cannot help you.

anyway, who is randall? well, remember the ‘gangster’ the poor description of this movie mentioned? yeah, that’s him. he offers george a steady supply of canadian whiskey and an untold amount of money as an investment, under the condition that he has the final say in how the business is run until the loan is paid off, after which george resumes control and randall gets a cut of profits. he also tells george that he must begin prostituting his daughters, saying he needs to “utilize all the assets at [his] disposal.” george agrees, for all but charlotte [i think the next oldest is like. 16 but who is paying attention to age of consent laws in 1930s oklahoma. did they even have any back then?]. the dance show also involves stripping now. charlotte initially does not know that her sisters are being prostituted, but finds out after she sneaks into her sister’s room to put on makeup and has to hide in the closet when she comes in with a man.

cut to: it has been a couple days. what does that mean? tim is back!! when he comes in, george is... chopping chairs apart with an axe, for some reason? anyway, tim talks with george about the struggles of the world and we learn he has come back from california. george offers him a job working for him and tells him about randall. tim warns george to stay away from him, as he has worked for randall in the past and he is not a man to be trifled with. george is angry that tim is telling him his new boss sucks so he kicks him out.

now, when randall made this deal, he left a man, harold, behind to make sure things are running to his liking. harold takes a... problematic liking to charlotte and suggests that george does start prostituting her, specifically, to him. george agrees but it is obvious that he feels he needs to do it because they are so broke, as immediately after harold leaves the room he vomits. would like to see that same revulsion for what you’re doing to the rest of your daughters though, sir.

charlotte is prepared by her oldest sister for her, um, “meeting” with harold and it is clear she does not know what’s about to happen. as it turns out, neither do we. once she realizes what harold is there for, she has a panic attack which triggers HER FIRST MERMAID TRANSFORMATION!!! instead of harold getting to ruin a little girl’s life, he gets a face full of mermaid claws and runs away screaming. the sea witch appears again as charlotte passes out and she instructs charlotte’s sisters to put her in the bathtub and fill it with water.

here i want to point out that another thing i really like about this movie is the cinematography. it feels a bit lynchian, and i cannot tell if they were going for that vibe on purpose or if it’s just the result of some weird ass editing [affectionate]. either way, something about this movie feels distinctly twin peaks-ish.

charlotte wakes up in the bathtub and notices that a small patch on her leg still has scales. she picks one off. her sister brings her some water and charlotte begins singing, and it is here she realizes that her singing gives people visions of whatever they want most, a trait she inherited from her mother. her sister has a vision of her [secret] boyfriend proposing to her. it’s not 100% clear whether or not charlotte can actually see these visions she’s causing but i think she can. this is important later. george brings tim back to the house to inform him about this catastrophic clusterfuck and that charlotte is starting to get mermaid-y [apparently tim knew that the mother was a mermaid as well]. tim says he’ll talk to randall for george and try to smooth things over. charlotte speaks to tim before he leaves, and he tells her some things about her mother before she ends up kissing him. he tells her they can’t do that, obviously, to which her response is, “you won’t have to pay like the other men,” after which tim immediately gets up and physically fights george, who claims they were going to kill him if he didn’t start prostituting charlotte as well [lie]. tim still agrees to speak to randall.

we go through more family troubles, all of the daughters rightfully hating their father for the situation he’s putting them in. charlotte learns more about mermaid stuff and is able to sneak into the sea witch’s room with the ring of keys that harold dropped when she attacked him. did i mention that george had “forbidden” the sea witch from seeing charlotte, and what he means by “forbidding” is tying her to a chair and locking her in her room? because that’s what he does. charlotte releases her and the sea witch convinces her to let her take her to the water, to be home. unfortunately george catches them and just. kills the sea witch with a fire poker? if she could be killed by mortal means why didn’t they do it like 10 years ago lol. charlotte is obviously upset about this and we get some real cool shots that i’m pretty sure are supposed to symbolize the nightmares she has afterwards. one of her sisters comes to comfort her and again she sings, and again she finds that her sister has a vision, this time of their mother.

now, remember the sister with the secret boyfriend? well, apparently, she has a plan to run away with him. she agrees to take charlotte with them and sends her to steal the money that george has stashed away in his office while he is asleep. in his office. naturally charlotte fucks it up and george wakes up and chases them outside the house, where he tries to shoot the sister’s boyfriend. unfortunately, he misses and instead shoots... the sister, killing her instantly. this is never talked about again and has no effect on the story other than to make charlotte more upset with her father.

but no matter: randall is back! he informs george that harold is, in fact, alive and “won’t stop raving about the monsters.” george claims that he tried to look for him [lie] but couldn’t find anything, and randall thanks him by threatening to cut off his finger! how does george respond? by begging them to cut off his oldest daughter’s finger instead of his! fortunately, no one actually has any fingers removed, as before they can start on the oldest daughter, charlotte begins to sing to them, stopping the men as well as her sister in their tracks, daydreaming as they stare into the distance. randall seems rather unaffected by this, staring down charlotte directly. when she finishes, he tells her, “neat trick,” quite bitterly, which is a line i absolutely love. charlotte convinces randall to let them go back to the regular song and dance show with no more prostitution, i suppose because he’s becoming intrigued with this weird little girl with bigger balls than her fucking father.

charlotte begins singing in the shows, which brings a life back to their business that they have not seen since their mother died. however, george has not stopped the prostitution like he promised, but does not tell charlotte or randall, and pockets the cash himself. shortly after this change, george successfully pays off randall’s loan and does not tell his family. tim comes to visit again after charlotte begins doing the show, and this time he brings his fiancée. charlotte clearly does not appreciate this, and it only gets worse when tim tells her that they are moving away, but before he leaves she tells him that she has something to show him, which means that she sings for him and he has a vision of himself kissing her mother. now, i forgot to mention that at some point in this movie, we learn that if a mermaid and a human conceive a child, that child will only be a mermaid if it is born out of true love. so, DING! now we know why charlotte got the mermaid gene and not ANY of her FIVE other sisters: she’s tim’s kid, not george’s! aaand now it makes it even weirder that she kissed him.

charlotte is now beginning to recognize that people aren’t actually coming to see her for her voice, but rather the visions she gives them, and she quickly becomes disillusioned with her celebrity. she decides to leave, but on the night she tries to sneak out, randall is in her house for reasons we do not fully understand for the time being. he speaks to her telepathically again and we also learn he can seemingly control lights or electricity? idk he turns on a lamp by waving his hand over it. seeing him use these powers prompts charlotte to say, “you’re one of them,” and to which he responds, “them? i’m one of us.” which is also a banger line and i think about it weekly. charlotte realizes that he has been trying to push her towards realizing her powers and he tries to convince her to come with him and be a protégé of sorts, so he can teach her all the wonderful ways they can use their powers to mess with humans [and i like to imagine that this means randall sings to his gang sometimes]. she refuses and like, sure, you do you, but girl i’m different. that sounds fun as hell. imagine being mermaid loki’s sidekick. before randall leaves he tells her that george has indeed paid back his debt.

we soon see why randall is at the house/bar/cabaret stage when he confronts george, dragging a beaten and bloody tim with him. randall says tim tells him that he had spoken with george the previous day, george says he hasn’t seen him in ages, randall shoots tim in the knee. when this happens, a rather jarring synth note plays just before he takes the shot. not extremely important but another little bit of lynchian influence i love. i think about that shot all the time.

from here, everything turns to chaos. charlotte learns about the prostitution, george learns randall is a mermaid, randall tells his men to “take the girls, kill george,” everyone is struggling and fighting, another sister gets shot, and then charlotte has another mermaid transformation and starts screaming. apparently, mermaid screams work the opposite of mermaid singing, as the men all begin to have visions of themselves doing “sinful” things and end up killing themselves or each other. this also causes the oldest daughter to shoot and kill george. randall simply leaves the bar in the middle of this with a very “my work here is done” air about him.

finally, charlotte gets to leave. as she takes one last look at the house she’s spent her entire life in, randall approaches her. he tries once more to convince her to come be evil with him, and as she instead walks towards her new life, he comments, “very brave of you to go in the exact direction they’ve been trying to lure you this whole time.” she smiles and responds, “i’ll write you when i get there.”

and that’s the end of the movie! first thing, i obviously absolutely love randall’s character. he is really the only light in this dreary, underwritten cast and i so wish that either he and charlotte played off each other more or she did decide that being evil is fun actually. this movie also introduces a lot of weird mermaid powers that i’ve never really seen before? but only uses them like once. i mean, yeah, we’ve all heard of siren song, but has anyone else ever heard of telepathic mermaids, or mermaids with super speed, or mermaids that can control electricity/light?

this team obviously had a vision here, and even if it wasn’t executed very well, i appreciate the hell out of the passion i can see in this project and everyone involved. i hope that the team behind this movie learns from the mistakes they made and keep all the things that made this so beautifully strange.

if you liked this post, stay tuned! i’ve got a lot more movies to talk about.

#mermaid's song #charlotte's song #so you don't have to #frob reviews #iwan rheon #movieposting #side blog #long post

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alldancersaretalented · 8 months

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Tigr Icons

Sophia Schiano (DancePlex -> ??)

Balbina Cueva (Ale Mancilla Dance Studio)

Madden Zook (Artflux)

Quincy Hadlock (Artistic Dance Project)

Andrez Jimenez (Artistic Edge Dance)

Alexis Austin (Brava Dance Center)

Caroline Medley (BPMDC)

Brooklyn Medley (BPMDC)

Savy Luechtefeld (Caroline Collective)

Cydney Abbott (CDC)

Grayson Niemcyzk (CDC)

Zac Gibson (Can Dance)

Caleb Livingston (Center Stage Dance Studio)

Amaya Weeks (Club)

Elsie Sandall (Club)

Ashton Wullbrandt (Club)

Lauryn Aniyah (Collective Phoenix)

Karson Koller (Collective Phoenix)

Morgan Wendt (Complexity Dance)

Kate Baker (CSPAS)

Violet Schwarz (CSPAS)

Brooklyn Ward (CSPAS)

Kylie Lawrence (CSPAS)

Stella Hafen (CSPAS)

Richie Ford (Coastal Dance Works)

Jakey McCullough (DH Dance Company)

Alana Gordon (Dance Connection)

Paige Kim (Dance Enthusiasm)

Aracely Lee (Dance Deluxe)

Gage Davis (Dance Deluxe)

Antonia Zanin (Dance Edge)

Haven Greene (DC Dance Factory)

Hannah Fogel (Dance Institute)

Zachary Roy (Dance Town)

Rylie Bordon (Dance Unlimited)

Addilynn Sullivan (Dance Unlimited Boise)

Cameron Janson (DDPC)

Kennedie Caldwell (Denise Wall)

Talia Mempin (Elements Elite)

Jack Schofield (Elite Academy for Dance)

Mya Lanigan (Evolve Dance Complex)

Gavin Morales (Evolve Dance Company)

Coltrane Vodicka (Evoke Dance Movement)

Addi Perrotto (Expressenz)

Brynn Jones (Expressenz)

Kate Jarboe (Expressenz)

Bella Aren (Focal Point)

Regina Espejo (Gaby Pinzon Dance)

Madelyn Duncan (GCDA Dance)

Sophie Flowers (HDC Studio)

Emory Pettit (Impact Elite)

Levi Caicco (In Motion Dance)

Blais Lingle (JD Charleston)

Phoebe McNamara (Just Elite Dance)

Taya Osso (Katies Dance Connection)

Finley Aldridge (Kim Massey)

Pierson Aldridge (Kim Massey)

Bella Charnstrom (Larkin)

Cameron Kennedy (LD Dancer)

Cha Cha Shen (Mather)

Helena Olaerts (Mather)

Cova Card (MVMT)

Canaan Blasit (MVMT)

Erika Del Mazo (New Era ADF)

Emma Bassel (New Level)

Desa Jankes (New Level)

Katie Dong (Nor Cal)

Mika Takase (Nor Cal)

Channing Embry (NSDPAC)

Matthew Conway (NSDPAC)

AvaLeigh Mackaron (NSDPAC)

Madeleine Shen (Northpointe)

Sophia SantaMaria (OCPAA)

Khloe Kwon (Pave)

Addyson Paul (Pave)

Camila Cuevas (PEDC)

Izzy Pascuale (Performance Edge 2)

Lincoln Russo (Poiroir Productions)

Stella Eberts (Project 21)

Richie Granese (Project 21)

Olivia Toneguzzo (Pulse Dance Centre)

Kaylin Gabosh (Revolution Dance)

Elena Markonidis (Rhythm Dance Co)

Ansley Matchack (Sceniccity Dance)

Dylan Custodio (Stars)

Hugo Silva (Stars)

Anita Rodriguez (Stars)

Camila Giraldo (Stars)

Skyla Lucena (Stars)

Santiago Sosa (Stars)

Alonzo Dock (Stars Elite Training)

Vera Souvannavong (Studio4Talent)

Samantha Sweetman (Studio4Talent)

Kloie Goodman (Synergy Academy)

Josh Lundy (Studio 413)

Peyton Nowacki (Studio 702)

Norah Johnson (Studio7TalentCenter)

Annabella Grace (Studio L Hoboken)

Avery Nicole (TDA Prep)

Katherine Khait (Techniques Dance)

Lakota Loya (The Right Combination Dance)

Rissa Laugana (The Rock)

Addison Price (The Rock)

Tiara Sherman (The Rock)

Caitlyn Paik (TTP Dance Pilates)

Kelsey Suka (Utah Dance Institute)

Kennedy Anderson (Vision Dance Alliance)

Rudie Bolton(Weissman)

Reagan Hess (WFDC)

Kaylin Marie (Your Haven)

Blake Metcalf (Xtreme)

#tiger #dance #tigrfriday #???#why are there so many

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liamhaydn-blog · 1 year

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An Arsenal Fan’s view on what the club need to do this summer to compete on all fronts next season.

The Summer of 2023 promises to be one of the most important ones in recent memory for Arsenal. For much of the last decade plus they’d sleepwalked themselves into becoming something of a sleeping giant. Perhaps understandably at first given the financial restraints of paying off their new stadium, a time where Arsenal spent most of their time anxiously guarding their world class talents. Rather than being able to look around the market and buy more, they instead had to settle for the more mediocre and year after year their best players were plucked from under them and Arsenal had to endure watching them lift the big prizes elsewhere.

The signing of Mesut Ozil was added to Santi Cazorla, and the following summer when the trophy drought was ended, Alexis Sanchez was also brought in. Arsenal appeared to be waking from their stupor. However, just as in the days of Fabregas, Nasri and Van Persie, Wenger was either unable or unwilling to pay up for a support cast that could turn Arsenal back into real title contenders, though the prospect momentarily flickered from time to time.

Next Arsenal gambled and went big with the signings of Lacazette, Aubameyang and Nicolas Pepe. There was short-lived success in the shape of another FA Cup, but things quickly lurched to disaster. Arsenal went from finishing 2nd in 2016, to back to back 8th placed finishes by 2021 under fledgling new manager and former captain Mikel Arteta. Transfer policy shifted with Arsenal identifying young talents such as Aaron Ramsdale, Ben White and Martin Odegaard. This added to a special young trio of talents, that of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Emile Smith Rowe. Despite narrowly missing out on Champions League football, the confidence and feel good factor was slowly returning to Arsenal and they then added Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko from Champions Manchester City.

Those summer additions helped Arsenal produce a starting 11 so good they won 23 of their first 29 league games. However, 2 defensive injuries to the colossal William Saliba and back-up right-back Takehiro Tomiyasu have laid bare the lack of depth that still exists in this Arsenal squad, in terms of being able to actually win the league against one of Sport’s most dominant ever teams in Guardiola’s City. Those injuries have meant Arsenal have had to turn to Rob Holding, a player signed from Bolton for £2M, who peaked in his 1st season for the club as a 20-year old, since then he’s only gone downhill. Arsenal exited the domestic cups very early, they exited the Europa League at its first knockout round, they didn’t have that many players involved at the World Cup as starters for their nations, and STILL injuries have once again derailed their season. It simply must stop happening, the time is now for Arsenal to build a squad which can compete in both the Premier League and the Champions League.

Arsenal have a brilliant, ambitious young manager, a fantastically talented young team who with meaningful additions in the right areas this summer can set themselves up to be the kind of team that produces the consistency of say Klopp’s Liverpool at their peak. They really can. But it requires those at the top to continue being bold and not resting on their laurels. The thinking from the board under Wenger was: “So long as we get the Champions League money by making top 4 we’re happy.” Such thinking can not be allowed to return. That kind of thinking damaged Arsenal for years, damaged United in recent years under the Glazers, and is damaging Spurs under Dan Levy now.

Arsenal could be on the precipice of doing special things at home and maybe even abroad, but they are not there yet. But they must not hesitate, the momentum is with them. They are one of the biggest clubs in the biggest league in the world, therefore they are one of the hottest destinations for talent in the world, and they also happen to play in what is regarded as one of the best cities in the world, the City of London. Having woken from their slumber, it’s time for Arsenal to no longer be a sleeping giant and begin to throw their wait around like the big club they are. Can they go and ruthlessly take West Ham’s captain and best player? Can they go back in for Caicedo, and actually get him this time? The outcome to these questions will surely tell us more about whether Arsenal can once again produce glory years akin to those with Pires, Henry and Vieira or if it will be another era of nearly men, of ‘if’s’ ‘but’s’ and ‘maybe’s’.

In this piece I will lay out what Arsenal must, could and should do this summer to ensure they don’t stand still and continue to evolve.

Goalkeeper

No movement required in this area for Arsenal this summer. Ramsdale had an impressive debut season at Arsenal and he’s gotten better in his follow-up campaign. Up until recently he was having a brilliant season, best exemplified by his stellar performance away at Anfield, earlier on he was also outstanding away at Tottenham. In recent weeks his form has dipped, which has led some to question whether he is good enough to be the number 1 keeper in a league winning team. This in my opinion is harsh and a consequence of recency bias, if all Arsenal players were judged on their performances over the last few weeks, they would all need to be replaced as none of them have played like league winners. He’s also one of the best around with his feet which is of course essential to the way Arsenal build-up, so his number 1 spot is assured at the moment.

And at 24, he’s still a baby in goalkeeper years with plenty of room to grow over the coming seasons. If he can keep making small improvements the potential is definitely there to become one of Europe’s top goalkeepers, however he is still a way off the finished article. He hasn’t been commanding in dealing with corners this season, his confidence is usually one of his biggest assets but it has been wobbled slightly at times, and his confidence with passing has occasionally become over-confidence which has caused big problems for him and his side. Overall though, Arsenal can be optimistic that this promising young goalkeeper matures into a really great one.

Matt Turner as USA’s Number 1 isn’t a bad one to have as your back-up keeper, but he will be hopeful Arsenal go much further in the domestic cups than in his first season, or else his game time could be severely limited. At 21 it could be a good time for 3rd choice keeper and Estonian International Karl Hein to get first team football on loan somewhere.

Conclusion

Sell: N/A.

Loan: Hein.

Sign: N/A.

Defence

Gabriel and Saliba have formed what is the most complete centre-back partnership Arsenal have had since Sol Campbell and Kolo Toure, they are excellent together and Arsenal fans will be hoping they stay together for a long time. However an injury to Saliba exposed Arsenal’s lack of depth at centre-back and this summer needs to be the end of the road at Arsenal for Rob Holding. As the player’s at Arsenal have got better over the last 12 months, the extent to which he has been out of his depth has been further exposed. I think he lacks the speed, physicality, decision making and technical ability to be even a solid mid-table level Premier League defender and would instead be better suited to Serie A, where he could build his career in a way similar to Chris Smalling, who also struggled massively in the Premier League. Holding is obviously a popular dressing room figure, who is liked and trusted by Arteta, but to compete with the likes of City and other strong teams upon their return to the Champions League, they simply need better strength in depth than what Holding can muster and he must be sold.

Arsenal must also part ways with Cedric which seems inevitable, as does the departure of Ainsley Maitland-Niles whom I and many others once considered to have a bright future at Arsenal, due to his versatility. Despite initially winning Arteta over and playing well in Arsenal’s FA Cup triumph, he fell out of favour and having been linked with a permanent move away for some time, surely this is the summer it finally happens. Pablo Mari will also depart permanently for Monza, as per the terms of his loan deal.

Nuno Taveres was signed by Arsenal in the summer of 2022 for £8M but looked out of his depth at left-back in most of Arsenal’s league games, especially at the business end of the season where he was pretty costly in Arsenal’s missing out on top 4. He’s had a resurgent season on loan at Marseille, where he has often been deployed in a more advanced role on the wing. During a particularly good spell it was thought by some that there may be a future for him yet with Arsenal, but I don’t see it. I think he will always lack the tactical discipline and intelligence Arteta demands from his players, and aswell the intensity. The best case here is Taveres finishes the season strong and Marseille want to keep him, in which case Arsenal should be looking to at least make a comfortable profit on the 23-year old.

The subject of Kieran Tierney is an interesting and divisive one. He’s clearly a very good left-back and at 25 is likely approaching his peak. However he is a very different style to Zinchenko, and if the manager wants Zinchenko’s inverted position mimicked by his back-up, Tierney is never gonna be the one to do that well, because he’s not in that mould. Newcastle are thought to be potential admirers, and there’s no doubting he’d likely prove an excellent player for them and improve them even further. So considering Newcastle are now a rival for Champions League places going forward, does that mean Arsenal should definitely refuse to sell to them? Not necessarily, as Arsenal’s top priority has to be Arsenal.

Saudi-backed Newcastle have got huge money and they’re not afraid to splash it around, evidenced in January by them spending £40M on Everton’s want-away winger Anthony Gordon. He had scored 7 times in senior football and never been capped by his country. Therefore if Arsenal are to sell Tierney they would be fools to let him go for less than that.

It’s not essential to sell Tierney as he is a solid player, who’s a good option to bring on to replace Zinchenko to help see games out with more defensive solidity, but Arteta has not often used him like that this season, outside of a few very brief cameos. So if Arteta no longer values his importance to the side that highly, it makes sense for all parties for Arsenal to sell, but they would be smart to not allow Newcastle to secure for a low-ball offer, because he’s likely to be very popular on Tyneside, so the Gunners need to make sure they remain firm and don’t sell for below their asking price. Arsenal have struggled in recent years to get good value for their players, for example allowing Leno to join Fulham for just £8M. It’s an area they must improve in this summer.

Where the money from a Tierney sale should then be invested depends on several decisions Arteta could take. Polish International Jakub Kiwior was signed in January from Spezia for £27M. Given the reliability of Gabriel, and Kiwior being left-footed meaning there is only one CB spot (the LCB spot) available to him I find it hard to believe the 22-year old was signed just as a Gabriel back-up. I feel his profile could be used to replicate Zinchenko’s role in the side as an inverted left-back, taking up the usual central positions the Ukrainian takes. He has experience playing left-back and defensive midfield, so it seems likely this is a role that’s been earmarked for him. Therefore Kiwior could act as first in reserve for both Gabriel and Zinchenko, giving the Pole much more opportunities for game time.

Takehiro Tomiyasu has endured an injury laden 2 seasons with Arsenal, despite mostly being back-up behind Ben White this season. Given Tomiyasu’s 6 foot 2 frame, I believe there could be something to trying to convert him to become a centre-back option. The full-back role demands endless running up and down the flanks, often at speed and I feel trying Tomiyasu in the middle instead could better protect him from injuries. Tomiyasu has experience in the role having played there many times for his country and whilst playing in the Belgian Pro League.

He is a good passer with both feet and usually makes good decisions with the ball but his on the ball limitations are exposed more at full-back in this Arsenal team, as he often doesn’t look completely comfortable in the oppositions final third, rarely making runs beyond Saka to offer him that option or just to pull a defender away from the winger, as we have become accustomed to seeing from White. Whilst a fine right-back defensively, I can only see Tomiyasu’s body breaking down season after season in the role of an attacking full-back, which at Arsenal you need to be, so if he is to have a future at the club I think it needs to be as a back-up for Saliba and Gabriel, with more sporadic appearances at full-back in cases of emergency. Aswell as potentially taking that option, Arsenal will still need to sign a replacement for Holding and it will be very straightforward to identify a clear upgrade, who is more comfortable on the ball and better suited to the physical demands of the Premier League, potentially one who is already playing in it for a club somewhere down the table.

In Arsenal’s position I would then invest money from a Tierney sale on a right-back who can challenge for the position with White, and offer the same things White does with security in possession and with the fitness and attacking instincts to offer the overlap for Saka constantly throughout the game. A new right-back would give Arsenal more defensive flexibility and options, as if suffering with an injury/suspension for eg. they could move White to centre-back where he is reliable and play the new right-back alongside him. Or if White and Saliba were both injured, Tomiyasu could come into RCB with the new right-back now next to him. One right-back Arsenal have recently been interested in is 18-year old Ivan Fresneda of Real Valladolid, with the Gunners and Borussia Dortmund both vying for his services last January. Considering Arteta already has 2 solid right-back options, it seems likely his interest in a third would suggest he also sees a future for Tomiyasu in a centre-half role.

Conclusion

Sell: Cedric, Tavares, Mari, Tierney (if offered around £40M), Holding.

Loan: Trusty (to Premier League club).

Sign: Right-Back, Centre-Back.

Decisions: Tomiyasu as CB option, Kiwior as LB option.

Midfield

This is the position most rife with rumours when it comes to potential recruits for Arsenal this summer and understandably so. Partey is 30 this summer, Xhaka is already 30 and Jorginho is 31. There are 2 players at the top of virtually every Arsenal fans wishlist: Moises Caicedo of Brighton and Declan Rice of West Ham. Arsenal have already seen a £70M bid for 21-year old Caicedo rejected, but will remain encouraged despite his recent contract extension, due to his initial desire to join the club, which saw him issue a very public transfer request. Since then he has spoken of his desire to see Arsenal win the league, so he seemingly remains interested.

Caicedo shows similarities to the N’Golo Kante we saw at Leicester and in his early years at Chelsea, a player capable of winning the ball cleanly from all manner of unlikely positions, such players are essential to a team and can be the difference across a season between finishing 1st and 2nd, as Kante demonstrated winning back-to-back Premier League’s with Leicester and Chelsea. Caicedo plays well beyond his years, despite having played less than 100 senior club games, with over a third of them being back in the Ecuadorian league. Less than a year after signing him for an undisclosed fee Brighton unequivocally rejected a £70M offer for him, which shows their confidence that when he does leave, it will be for an even bigger fee. They are right to believe that, especially after getting him to commit to a new contract.

Declan Rice has been linked with a move from his beloved West Ham for years now, and Chelsea always seemed likely to be his eventual destination. For Arsenal it was probably seen as a bit of a pipe dream, they’ve not been able to offer him Champions League Football and financially could not get into a bidding war with the likes of Chelsea. However the balance of power has shifted quite drastically this season with Arsenal leading the way for much of the season, with an exciting young manager and group of players which would interest any player looking for his next club.

Caicedo is more of a classic 6 than Rice, though he is much more than just a ball-winner, he possesses a diverse passing range. Rice can excel either as a number 6 or a number 8, so the most ambitious Arsenal fans are dreaming of signing them both and having them in the same midfield along with Odegaard. It’s not impossible, and I think it should at least be the club’s ambition to try. They are the bookies favourites to sign both players, but they will likely face stern competition for these players signatures from Liverpool and Chelsea especially who are both desperate for central midfielders.

With Champions League money in their pocket for the first time since 2016, Arsenal should have the financial might to be in with a shout, and it will be very disappointing if they are unable to secure at least one of those two. Should Arsenal secure for eg. Rice and the bidding war for Caicedo reach such a level where the money is close to £100M which I think it might, Arsenal would have 2 options, walk away and try to secure the services of a cheaper player who also appears to interest them such as Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad, or another interesting solution could be to part-fund the signing of Caicedo by off-loading Thomas Partey.

Now Partey at his best is undoubtedly one of the best in the league in his position, some games he oozes class and looks head and shoulders above everyone on the pitch. Overall he’s had a great season and some brilliant spells in particular but.. there has been times where he has cost Arsenal with some lacklustre play, being too careless and almost over confident. And in a league as fast and furious as the Premier League has now become, he can occasionally lack that real intensity to go alongside his obvious ability. There is also the matter of injuries, he played only 48 league games across his first 2 seasons, this season has been better but he has still missed crucial matches such as United away and City at home, both times he felt sorely missed but it has become an all too regular story. He still has 2 years left to run on his current deal and though 30, he remains young enough that they should be able to get a reasonable fee.

If an offer came in from a club overseas such as one of the big Italian clubs I think it would be something to seriously consider. I don’t suggest the sale of Partey lightly, but *if* it enabled Arsenal to bring in both Rice and Caicedo, and they otherwise couldn’t do it, I’d be in favour of it. Because the idea of Arsenal having a Caicedo-Rice-Odegaard midfield... let’s just say I’d sell more than just a Ghanaian Footballer for the prospect of that.

But if not, Arsenal must definitely sign at least one player who can play his position as it’s essential they become less reliant on him. Both Partey and Xhaka can have big roles to play in Arsenal’s future, but they can’t do it for much longer alone, certainly not when playing in 2 elite competitions week after week, when they return to the Champions League.

Odegaard is the captain and has had a fantastic season, however there are question marks about the strength in depth in reserve there. Odegaard has had excellent fitness in his time in North London and we all hope it continues, though when the Champions League gets added to the calendar next year it becomes unrealistic to expect him to be available and in form for every game. Fabio Vieira was signed last summer from FC Porto, but has really struggled to impose himself on games, especially in the Premier League.

He needs to have a big summer where he impresses in pre-season and gives everyone reason for optimism, because right now he looks a long way off the required level. And Arsenal really need him to become a capable understudy to Odegaard when they are aiming to play 50+ matches next season. There is a real possibility in my opinion that the best option for Vieira could be a season long-loan to a Premier League team, to get him more game time to adapt to the league.

He is not going to dislodge the captain from the team, and currently he looks like he could really benefit from more minutes to properly adjust to English football. A good possibility could be someone like Wolves, who have Portuguese players there to help him settle. This depends on how many midfielders Arsenal sign, but if they do bring in 2 and especially if they also keep Xhaka and Partey, by that point Vieira drops really far down the pecking order and there may not be room in the squad for him.

Another issue that’s emerged is with Emile Smith-Rowe, who has fallen out of favour with the manager and it remains unclear where he best fits into this Arsenal side. Outwide? In Xhaka’s position? In Odegaard’s position? None seem naturally suited but something needs to be worked out because the Arsenal youth graduate is too talented and has too much to potentially offer to be left in the cold like this. With 10 league goals last season, we cannot give up on ESR and need to develop the 22-year old in a way where he can operate in the team’s system. He cannot endure another season like this one, though admittedly it didn’t help he’s spent so much of it injured.

I believe it’s the end of the road for Albert Sambi Lokonga and we should look to move him on permanently at the end of the season. A season-long loan would not be the end of the world, but I struggle to see his attitude and mentality ever been warmed to by Arteta. And his performances on the pitch for Arsenal always left you feeling cold, like you know he could have given more. Charlie Patino should be given some game time in pre-season, and either given another season long loan, or if he impresses potentially kept around for domestic cup games.

Conclusion

Sell: Lokonga, Partey (if required to sign both Caicedo&Rice).

Loan: Patino (to Premier League club), potentially Vieira (to a Premier League club) depending on the size of Arsenal’s squad.

Sign: 2 Centre Midfielders are essential, ideally they are Caicedo & Rice.

Decisions: find ESR a role within the system.

Attack

Arsenal have 2 of the best wingers in the league in Saka and Martinelli, and given they are both just 21-years old, the likelihood is that in years to come they will be 2 of the very best in the world. Arsenal getting both players to commit their long-term futures to the club (Martinelli recently signed a new long-term contract, and Saka’s new contract has reportedly been finalised, just not officially announced at time of writing) is as important for the club’s future as any new signing they could complete this summer. They’ve both been incredible this season and are two of the most exciting and promising players in the world.

There has been question marks about Arsenal’s depth in their positions though. The signing of Leandro Trossard has eased those concerns somewhat, he is an extremely able replacement for Martinelli, and the Belgian’s versatility in the forward positions is of massive benefit to Arsenal. His impact on the side following his January move has quickly made him a fan favourite, and he’s one Arsenal fans should enjoy watching for years to come.

However on the right hand side, they are still very reliant on Saka staying fit. Luckily for Arsenal, the youngster has amazing fitness levels, he’s been involved in every Premier League game Arsenal have played since May 9th 2021. But that will become trickier when Arsenal are back playing Champions League Football as The Gunners will need him at his very sharpest to progress in that competition, it stands to reason that at different stages through the season they will need some alternative there.

One option they currently have is Reiss Nelson, the 23-year old who has had an up and down career to date. He had a very successful loan at Hoffenheim, where manager Julian Nagelsmann was very impressed with him. He returned to Arsenal and appeared often after Arteta had replaced Unai Emery but he lost his place the following season and was later loaned out to Feyenoord. This season has been another up and down one for him, he didn’t impress in his Europa League starts, then he got a chance against Forest after Saka went off injured and took it, but then picked up an injury which meant he wasn’t seen again until the Bournemouth game, where he was excellent getting an assist and later an outstanding game-winning goal.

Nelson’s contract expires this summer, though Arsenal are reportedly in talks to extend it. I think that would be a smart move by the club, he’s showed enough in his substitute cameos to prove that there is a real player in there, one definitely good enough to be a solid back-up option. Due to the quality and availability of Saka, Arsenal need a right-wing option who is willing to be patient, but who also has the required quality when called upon. I think Nelson fits into that category, as a Hale End Graduate, an Arsenal boy, he is more likely to be willing to wait patiently on the bench unlike a new signing who could easily get disheartened at the lack of game time. The one concern over Nelson is perhaps his injury record. Given he is behind Saka there will be times in a season where his chances of playing time are few and far between, but there will be definitely be moments he will be needed, whether starting or off the bench, and he needs to be fit and ready for them.

In that right-wing position Arsenal of course still have Nicolas Pepe, who is the club’s record signing after they paid £72M for him in 2019. He has been on loan at Nice this season but has done little to convince anyone there’s a future for him at Arsenal. He is simply too inconsistent. Though capable of hitting real highs, scoring great goals out of nothing and looking very dangerous, just as often he has games where he constantly makes the wrong decisions and is very wasteful. Arteta requires players who even on a bad day never fall below a certain level of technical security and Pepe often falls below that level, so he will never be an Arteta type player. Arsenal should look to move him on this summer, as he is not good enough to push Saka for a place, and will be unwilling to spend the majority of his time sat on the bench. A move is best for all parties, and Arsenal will surely find a willing suitor somewhere in Ligue 1, but should not expect to recoup even half of what they paid out for the Ivorian winger.

Another right-wing option is Marquinhos, who Arsenal signed from Sao Paulo last summer. He had a dream debut away at Zurich where he hit a great goal and assist, but since then on his rare opportunities he’s looked very raw. In January he was sent on loan to Norwich, where again he scored and assisted on his debut but has struggled for impact since. The 20-year old is still young enough to be afforded time and Arsenal have the option to either keep him playing with the under 21′s for now or find another loan move for him.

At striker, Arsenal have some interesting possibilities. Gabriel Jesus was along with William Saliba, Arsenal’s best player before the 2022 World Cup. He brought a new dimension of quality to the attack, and set a new standard for the team with an insatiable work ethic and ability to fashion chances out of very little for himself and his teammates. At the World Cup he picked up a serious injury which required surgery. Upon his return, he quickly got back up to speed and scored 4 goals in his first 3 starts back.

Jesus has many strengths, but he also has his weaknesses, the big one being that he isn’t clinical, which is really the only reason he isn’t one of the world’s very best strikers, because in all other areas such as work rate, intelligence, creativity and dribbling he is, but he is not a man who will ever get 20+ league goals a season. Jesus was very wasteful in the games prior to the World Cup, but Arsenal fans accepted it because they were playing so well, they were winning games anyway in spite of these misses. However in recent games, with the absence of Saliba at the back meaning Arsenal are much less solid defensively, they are conceding more goals and now Jesus’ wastefulness is starting to cost them and therefore becoming more of a problem.

One problem Arsenal have currently is they don’t have a striker who can offer them something completely different to Jesus. The one other out-and-out striker they have is Eddie Nketiah, who other than fresh legs and a fresh mind if Jesus becomes fatigued in a game, doesn’t really offer a different problem to defences than the one Jesus provides. Nketiah doesn’t have an all-round game at the level of Jesus, his hold-up play isn’t as good, even though he’s slightly taller than the Brazilian, hitting long to him is less effective than it is with Jesus on the pitch, and in the box he doesn’t provide a greater threat in the air.

In 9 league starts whilst Jesus was injured, Nketiah played 9 full league matches and scored 4 goals, including that well remembered brace against Manchester United which featured that memorable last minute winner. But in those 9 starts, he fired 6 blanks and didn’t produce any assists either. Nketiah has many good qualities for Arsenal, his attitude is good, he has a serious desire for self-improvement evidenced by the way he has bulked up in recent times, he is a good goal poacher, a reliable cup goalscorer and as a Hale End boy, he loves the club and will be patient for opportunities, conducting himself professionally whilst waiting for a chance, and at 23 he’s young enough to still get better.

However does he have enough quality to ever seriously threaten to dislodge a fit Gabriel Jesus from the side? It’s doubtful and there lies the problem. A team that is looking to win the Premier League and reach the latter stages of the Champions League should be looking to have a striker who can really push Jesus for minutes. It’s of course normal to have a first-choice striker who is a long way clear of the second, and that’s fine if your striker is Erling Haaland or Harry Kane, someone who guarantees lots of goals. Arsenal don’t have that luxury with Jesus and therefore it’s not an acceptable position going forward that Jesus is just the first choice number 9 no matter what, no matter if he has a long scoring drought. Or that if Jesus is struggling in a game, there’s no point taking him off because the back-up striker can’t really offer a better alternative.

So to compete in both the Premier League and the Champions League, Arsenal will need to look at a different option upfront. One such option could be Folarin Balogun, the 21-year old striker currently on loan at Reims. He has scored 18 in 30 league games, and appears to at least present a completely different profile to Jesus, being more of an out-and-out goalscorer and therefore a more clinical finisher. This would definitely seem to present a good substitute option for Arsenal and perhaps even a good starting option at times when Jesus is struggling for scoring form. However there has been rumours circulating that Balogun wants to continue being a first choice striker and doesn’t want the competition of fighting for a starting place. At 21-years old he certainly has no divine right to a starting place ahead of Jesus, so therefore the best option could be to sell the striker. If Arsenal opt for this, they should be looking to get around £40M for him, considering he still has 2 years left to run on his contract. To get less than £30M for him would be a failure, especially if he is sold to a Premier League club.

Given he signed a new contract with the club last summer, I do not expect Nketiah to leave as he appears to have a good relationship with his manager and teammates. Nketiah is one of the better cup competition strikers around so can be relied on to net in the domestic cups. However I view Nketiah as a good mid-table level striker who would be a decent starter for the likes of Crystal Palace and West Ham. Given he has a contract running until 2027, Arsenal could expect to get decent money should they opt to sell him.

And I think there is a strong argument they should sell him, if an opportunity arose to sign a better striker than Nketiah, who aswell offers something completely different to Jesus. Players who fit into that category include the likes of Ollie Watkins, Ivan Toney and Dusan Vlahovic. Given the first 2 names are English and play for Premier League clubs, they would be far from cheap. However the sales of both Nketiah and Balogun would surely raise some not insignificant money to put towards capturing one of those players. Arsenal could really use a striker who is a real handful in the air, whether that’s in the penalty area to score from crosses, or someone who can win the header when the team opt to go long. It would also be beneficial for defending set-pieces, which Arsenal have been bad on recently. It would give the team that Plan B option in attack they do not currently possess.

Taking the best player off Aston Villa or Brentford will not be easy to achieve, but if Arsenal want to get over the line in the Premier League and really compete for the Champions League, this is the kind of quality and profile they need to really boost their attack. The other option would be to keep both Balogun and Nketiah, which atleast would give Arsenal some depth in that area and form between them would dictate who’s 2nd choice in that department. However if Balogun is determined to move, Arsenal must then go in for a striker and if the additional sale of Nketiah is required to fund the move of a really top one, such as one of the names mentioned, then in my opinion that’s something they should opt to do.

Conclusion

Sell: Pepe, Balogun (if receive an offer of over £30M), Nketiah (if needed to fund the acquisition of a top striker).

Loan: Marquinhos

Sign: Striker (with a very different style to Jesus).

Decisions: Extend Reiss-Nelson’s contract.

Conclusion

Arsenal played just 3 games across the 2 domestic cups and they played just 8 games in Europe, and they still picked up 2 defensive injuries at the same time which has put their outstanding league campaign on the verge of unravelling. Given they have now been knocked out of the FA Cup before the 5th round stage in each of the last 3 seasons it stands to reason they will be looking to progress deeper in it next season. They had a difficult 3rd round league cup draw in Brighton and an easier draw next season could present the opportunity to go further in that competition.

And after 6 seasons out of the Champions League, Arsenal’s return to the elite European competition is a big moment for the club, they will not want to exit meekly, they will want to make a statement to the world on the biggest stage to show how far they have progressed as a club. The Premier League will be as difficult to win as ever, as it continues to be inundated with quality managers from the top of the league towards the bottom. So assuming that next season Arsenal go further in both cups than they have done this season, the club should be aiming to play over 50 games next season. This will be a new experience for this team, as in recent years they have rotated heavily for the Europa League. Now the team will be expected to perform at a high level twice a week throughout the season and the club needs to ensure they have assembled a squad which can realistically handle that demand.

Season after season, Arsenal’s lack of squad depth has cost them their targets when it gets to April time. They need to reach a stage where they are prepared for the worst case scenario regarding injuries, so they are not in a position where the gap in quality between starter and back-up is as huge as is the case between say Saliba and Holding. Arsenal’s full strength starting 11 is very strong, the one area of the field where there is clear room for improvement is in midfield. Granit Xhaka is a very good player who’s had a very good season, but the difference in the squad’s quality if for example Declan Rice is signed for his position is enormous, as the knock-on effect is that Xhaka would then be a bench option and a very good one as opposed to having Xhaka starting and a bench option like Mohamed Elneny or Sambi-Lokonga, as has been the case at stages this season.

Arsenal have a great starting 11 and they are not miles away from having a great squad, clearing out the last of the deadwood this summer and replacing them with quality will give Arsenal the strength in depth they need to compete on all fronts. With the money they will receive for being back in the Champions League, Josh Kroenke’s growing interest in the club’s on-pitch performance and the possibility of selling non-essential players for a good amount of money, Arsenal have the funds to take their squad to the next level this summer.

#arsenal #afc #thegunners #arsenalfc #premierleague #epl

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