#like unless they plan an american debut?????? this makes no sense

[whenfatecollides]

dcc already starting with the questionable decisions

#it hasn't even been a year since their last us tour and they haven't had an asia tour since 20fucking19.... 2019!!! it's been almost #4 years like what are you doing when you don't even have a new album to promote? #like unless they plan an american debut?????? this makes no sense #god im so done with all of this lmao #PROMOTE THEM IN KOREA PROPERLY FOR GODS SAKE #jt

[book-extravagance]

2023 BRF Predictions (from a Rookie Royal Watcher)

Going way out on a limb here, because predictions are never fun unless you do.

1. Archewell makes its social media debut on a POC-founded Twitter alternative.

2. Anti-Diana Youtubers have a Hot Moment with a breakout viral video. When the creator gets profiled in 2024 we discover that they broke into the 100,000+ bracket in income the year before.

3. George does an engagement with William. (He answers like two questions clearly and creditably. British royalists explode with admiration for this incredible exploit. I am underwhelmed, but concede that it was nice.)

4. Buckingham Palace releases a 3-page refutation nitpicking not-terribly-essential quotes from Harry's memoir. This causes the entire legal staff, such as it is, to have a collective coronary, but Charles is determined.

5. The press arse-kissing leading up to Charles's coronation is nauseating. (Okay, so I have one safe bet.) They emphasize how much he's a man of the people and also how many black clients friends he has. Some RR reporter writes an op-ed on how Charles is akshually far more anti-racist than Harry and Meghan.

6. Charles does bestow the Edinburgh duchy on Edward, shortly before the coronation. I'd say one month. Kingly sense of noblesse oblige and all.

7. a. What I'd like to see happen for the coronation: Harry and Meghan stay home. (They might not even get an invite, because I think Charles would work it out with them that if they intend to decline, he won't send it. Whatever. H & M are pleased to have no more to do with the dumpster fire.) Charles tells Andrew to stay home too. (Andrew throws a temper tantrum that will be related with great gusto in royal biographies years down the road.)

b. What I think will happen: Harry goes to the coronation because he's a glutton for punishment he has a misplaced, battered, yet still-operant sense of filial duty and Crown veneration... and Meghan goes to stand by her man. Fuckin' Andrew is there too, because Charles is already considered too much a wild-eyed radical and he needs the support of the worst dregs of the aristotrash, who all think Andrew has been rather mistreated.

We all know who the press spills more ink analyzing and digging up dirt on.

8. A would-be regicide gets arrested before the coronation. The government and press use this to beat the royalist drum harder than ever. There are grave op-eds about the danger that the royal family faces in these troubling times of social media radicalization.

Will and Kate brief that they will be making fewer public appearances due to security concerns. (Charles is rumored to be Unamused.)

9. Kate looks bloody stunning at the coronation and/or wears a new tiara.

10. Camilla also looks the part. Very shiny.

11. Kate astounds and impresses us all by doing two solo foreign visits. At least one is European. Similar to the time she went to Denmark and appeared with Mary.

12. Season 2 of Archetypes features a genuinely tone-deaf moment (more tone-deaf than having Andy Cohen and Judd Aptow on for the grand finale). Press is fuckin' gleeful.

13. Someone publishes a questionable tell-all about Elizabeth's final days.

14. Charles has a health scare. Maybe planned surgery with a longer-than-expected recovery. He pulls through well in the end, but not after the papers have enjoyed running hundreds of articles speculating about what an early William ascension would look like.

(Spoiler alert: They all reckon it looks like a Tory's wet dream! But they don't say it in those words, of course.)

15. A Twitter account pops up, tracking either William's or Harry's itinerary & flights. If it's William, it's taken down pronto and there is much hang-wringing about the invasiveness of the press. If it's Harry, it stays up and, bonus! Musk has a truly hilarious reason to explain why.

16. Meghan appears at a very political gala. Probably not Biden but a high-ranking Democrat, like Pelosi. Americans are pretty shrug because Meghan's giving Last Year's News at that point, but the UK press goes into a complete meltdown.

17. An unnamed victim brings another suit against Andrew. The British press has significantly less to say about this than a financially independent American going "partisan" four years after the UK establishment pretty unambiguously told her to piss off and die. It's settled quietly. Charles manages to avoid it officially getting out that he pays the settlement until 2024.

18. There is chatter from "palace sources" that Charles is considering having Beatrice do some engagements in order to bring some youth and glam to the rota. The only ones considering this are some courtiers, and the "chatter" goes nowhere because neither Charles nor Bea want this.

19. Another big story from "palace sources" is that Kate has also been struggling with depression, etc (or possibly a miscarriage). The narrative is that Kate herself would never dream of telling anyone about this or ever speaking in public but her dearest friends want to speak out because people who exemplify grace never get credit... Kate is so brave and she's so relatable and also this is how you deal with mental health problems, Harry and ME-AGAIN!!1!!! Keep calm and carry on without a pity party, like an ADULT! Will and Kate allow this narrative to stand (because of course; it came from them), thus doing real damage to the public perception of mental illness and how to best treat it. Otoh, the press goes to town crowning Kate the and Patron Saint Princess of Ordinary People Struggling with Mental Health. (The press does not mention Kate's previous claim that she's never suffered depression because of how wonderful her upbringing was.)

20. Harry and Meghan's popularity in the US spikes around the time of the Spare release and then they get a little stale in 2023. Ironically, the hundreds of references to their "falling star" or "loss of luster" in (American) media actually helps keep their brand pumped up.

21. They come in strong with the unveiling of a big Archewell initiative in December, though. It's been underway all year and they're only spiking the football once they get results. They bring some charity to international prominence with this event. (I can't possibly hazard a guess as to what kind of initiative or event. One thing I seriously respect the Sussexes for—their humanitarian work is creative, authentic, never cookie-cutter. So I'll wait and see.)

22. British papers and news programmes, without directly referencing William, start pushing the narrative that "Open Relationships" might be Okay, actually? Some are skeptical, but! Experts say they're hip and relatable, but also traditional, and they've long been the well-kept secret to a healthy long marriage!! (Obviously I don't have anything against consensual open relationships. But the purposefulness of this Engineered Cultural Moment will be hard to miss.)

23. And you know what this means! Earthshot in Sydney, baby!! Oceania tour time, bitches!!! All three kids, cute as a three-buttoned coatdress!!!? Let's gooooo.

Big splashy Wales moment, it gets good play in mainstream press. Louis behaves fine for his age but gets side-eyed for a random look on his face as it appears in one photo.

24. I think Charles will be able to refrain from briefing against Rishi Sunak for 2023.

He's gonna do a lotta that sort of thing in the future, though.

#tagging this as NOTHING lol #just a homework assignment for myself really #this whole blog is just my study notes for this deep dive #actually i think charlie will show remarkable and uncharacteristic restraint in his briefing during 2023 #it's the year of his reign that he'll be under most scrutiny and he knows it #i also think at least some of the leaks so far were because he didn't have his new office properly disciplined yet #... but don't you worry #we'll get Prince Palace Sources Say back again in the future #and i for one look forward to it #yes i do think his palace will release a refutation to Spare but that's not the same #he'll put his own damn name on it and i respect that #speaking of that ofc an official response to Spare will depend #on how behind-the-scenes relationships and negotiations for the coronation go #i think Charles wants the Sussexes there very much actually #so i expect he's working on them #and if they have agreed to come his response will be much more muted in his mum's 'recollections may vary' vein #but if H and M are hemming and hawing and/or bow out all bets are off lol #a third alternative is leaving the war to william to conduct which is also a bit lolll #ofc it's all messy and kinda sad but the notion of charles now thinking himself #too REGAL to get in the mud... you handle it william i believe in you boy... #yeah i would definitely have a chuckle

[lesbiancarat]

I wonder what they mean by SEVENTEEN. Are they saying they’re not the group Seventeen in that universe? Or is it age seventeen? As in they’re not the lost boys/children anymore because something happened

i feel like they mean seventeen the group, and it's some alternate reality where they're not in seventeen anymore. but i can totally see it being a double meaning of them growing out of their youth/lost boys kind of thing

but at the same time i feel like that makes more sense from an american/western perspective where the age of adulthood is 18, so 17 is sort of on the cusp of adulthood and is an age referred to a lot in popular culture to signal someone who is not a child but also not yet an adult. but in korea the age of adulthood is 20 so i wouldn't think they have the same connotation with the number (unless it's gotten picked up through western media?)

(also fun fact, when i first got into svt i never questioned why they were called that bc i did just assume it was referring to the age and was just meant to evoke the feeling of youth, which made a lot of sense with seventeen's freshteen/boyish concepts back then. it wasn't until later that i found out the age of adulthood is 20 in korea, and by that time i had already heard about 13+3+1 and pledis's original plan to debut a group with 17 members and an avg age of 17. although i still wonder why they chose that number specifically in the first place. maybe they just liked how it sounded compared to other numbers? but i digress)

#melia.ask #anon #also sorry i think this ask is a few days old #i remember reading it but i must not have had time to answer and then forgot about it ;-;

[mattbrothersscriptwriter]

My Top 20 Films of 2019 - Part Two

I don’t think I’ve had a year where my top ten jostled and shifted as much as this one did - these really are the best of the best and my personal favourites of 2019.

10. Toy Story 4

I think we can all agree that Toy Story 3 was a pretty much perfect conclusion to a perfect trilogy right? About as close as is likely to get, I’m sure. I shared the same trepidation when part four was announced, especially after some underwhelming sequels like Finding Dory and Cars 3 (though I do have a lot of time for Monsters University and Incredibles 2). So maybe it’s because the odds were so stacked against this being good but I thought it was wonderful. A truly existential nightmare of an epilogue that does away with Andy (and mostly kids altogether) to focus on the dreams and desires of the toys themselves - separate from their ‘duties’ as playthings to biological Gods. What is their purpose in life without an owner? Can they be their own person and carve their own path? In the case of breakout new character Forky (Tony Hale), what IS life? Big big questions for a cash grab kids films huh?

The animation is somehow yet another huge leap forward (that opening rainstorm!), Bo Peep’s return is excellently pitched and the series tradition of being unnervingly horrifying is back as well thanks to those creepy ventriloquist dolls! Keanu Reeves continues his ‘Keanuassaince‘ as the hilarious Duke Caboom and this time, hopefully, the ending at least feels finite. This series means so much to me: I think the first movie is possibly the tightest, most perfect script ever written, the third is one of my favourites of the decade and growing up with the franchise (I was 9 when the first came out, 13 for part two, 24 for part three and now 32 for this one), these characters are like old friends so of course it was great to see them again. All this film had to do was be good enough to justify its existence and while there are certainly those out there that don’t believe this one managed it, I think the fact that it went as far as it did showed that Pixar are still capable of pushing boundaries and exploring infinity and beyond when they really put their minds to it.

9. The Nightingale

Hoo boy. Already controversial with talk of mass walkouts (I witnessed a few when this screened at Sundance London), it’s not hard to see why but easy to understand. Jennifer Kent (The Babadook) is a truly fearless filmmaker following up her acclaimed suburban horror movie come grief allegory with a period revenge tale set in the Tasmanian wilderness during British colonial rule in the early 1800s. It’s rare to see the British depicted with the monstrous brutality for which they were known in the distant colonies and this unflinching drama sorely needed an Australian voice behind the camera to do it justice.

The film is front loaded with some genuinely upsetting, nasty scenes of cruel violence but its uncensored brutality and the almost casual nature of its depiction is entirely the point - this was normalised behaviour over there and by treating it so matter of factly, it doesn’t slip into gratuitous ‘movie violence’. It is what it is. And what it is is hard to watch. If anything, as Kent has often stated, it’s still toned down from the actual atrocities that occurred so it’s a delicate balance that I think Kent more than understands. Quoting from an excellent Vanity Fair interview she did about how she directs, Kent said “I think audiences have become very anaesthetised to violence on screen and it’s something I find disturbing... People say ‘these scenes are so shocking and disturbing’. Of course they are. We need to feel that. When we become so removed from violence on screen, this is a very irresponsible thing. So I wanted to put us right within the frame with that person experiencing the loss of everything they hold dear”. 

Aisling Franciosi is next level here as a woman who has her whole life torn from her, leaving her as nothing but a raging husk out for vengeance. It would be so easy to fall into odd couple tropes once she teams up with reluctant native tracker Billy (an equally impressive newcomer, Baykali Ganambarr) but the film continues to stay true to the harsh racism of the era, unafraid to depict our heroine - our point of sympathy - as horrendously racist towards her own ally. Their partnership is not easily solidified but that makes it all the stronger when they star to trust each other. Sam Claflin is also career best here, weaponizing his usual charm into dangerous menace and even after cementing himself as the year’s most evil villain, he can still draw out the humanity in such a broken and corrupt man.

Gorgeously shot in the Academy ratio, the forest landscape here is oppressive and claustrophobic. Kent also steps back into her horror roots with some mesmerising, skin crawling dream scenes that amplify the woozy nightmarish tone and overbearing sense of dread. Once seen, never forgotten, this is not going to be everyone’s cup of tea (and that’s fine) but when cinema can affect you on such a visceral level and be this powerful, reflective and honest about our own past, it’s hard to ignore. Stunning.

8. The Irishman

Aka Martin Scorsese’s magnum opus, I did manage to see this one in a cinema before the Netflix drop and absolutely loved it. I’ve watched 85 minute long movies that felt longer than this - Marty’s mastery of pace, energy and knowing when to let things play out in agonising detail is second to none. This epic tale of  the life of Frank Sheeran (Robert De Niro) really is the cinematic equivalent of having your cake and eating it too, allowing Scorsese to run through a greatest hits victory lap of mobster set pieces, alpha male arguments, a decades spanning life story and one (last?) truly great Joe Pesci performance before simply letting the story... continue... to a natural, depressing and tragic ending, reflecting the emptiness of a life built on violence and crime.

For a film this long, it’s impressive how much the smallest details make the biggest impacts. A stammering phone call from a man emotionally incapable of offering any sort of condolence. The cold refusal of forgiveness from a once loving daughter. A simple mirroring of a bowl of cereal or a door left slightly ajar. These are the parts of life that haunt us all and it’s what we notice the most in a deliberately lengthy biopic that shows how much these things matter when everything else is said and done. The violence explodes in sudden, sharp bursts, often capping off unbearably tense sequences filled with the everyday (a car ride, a conversation about fish, ice cream...) and this contrast between the whizz bang of classic Scorsese and the contemplative nature of Silence era Scorsese is what makes this film feel like such an accomplishment. De Niro is FINALLY back but it’s the memorably against type role for Pesci and an invigorated Al Pacino who steals this one, along with a roll call of fantastic cameos, with perhaps the most screentime given to the wonderfully petty Stephen Graham as Tony Pro, not to mention Anna Paquin’s near silent performance which says more than possibly anyone else. 

Yes, the CG de-aging is misguided at best, distracting at worst (I never really knew how old anyone was meant to be at any given time... which is kinda a problem) but like how you get used to it really quickly when it’s used well, here I kinda got past it being bad in an equally fast amount of time and just went with it. Would it have been a different beast had they cast younger actors to play them in the past? Undoubtedly. But if this gives us over three hours of Hollywood’s finest giving it their all for the last real time together, then that’s a compromise I can live with.

7. The Last Black Man in San Francisco

Wow. I was in love with this film from the moving first trailer but then the film itself surpassed all expectations. This is a true indie film success story, with lead actor Jimmie Fails developing the idea with director Joe Talbot for years before Kickstarting a proof of concept and eventually getting into Sundance with short film American Paradise, which led to the backing of this debut feature through Plan B and A24. The deeply personal and poetic drama follows a fictionalised version of Jimmie, trying to buy back an old Victorian town house he claims was built by his grandfather, in an act of rebellion against the increasingly gentrified San Francisco that both he and director Talbot call home.

The film is many things - a story of male friendship, of solidarity within our community, of how our cities can change right from underneath us - it moves to the beat of it’s own drum, with painterly cinematography full of gorgeous autumnal colours and my favourite score of the year from Emile Mosseri. The performances, mostly by newcomers or locals outside of brilliant turns from Jonathan Majors, Danny Glover and Thora Birch, are wonderful and the whole thing is such a beautiful love letter to the city that it makes you ache for a strong sense of place in your own home, even if your relationship with it is fractured or strained. As Jimmie says, “you’re not allowed to hate it unless you love it”.

For me, last year’s Blindspotting (my favourite film of the year) tackled gentrification within California more succinctly but this much more lyrical piece of work ebbs and flows through a number of themes like identity, family, memory and time. It’s a big film living inside a small, personal one and it is not to be overlooked.

6. Little Women

I had neither read the book nor seen any prior adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s 1868 novel so to me, this is by default the definitive telling of this story. If from what I hear, the non linear structure is Greta Gerwig’s addition, then it’s a total slam dunk. It works so well in breaking up the narrative and by jumping from past to present, her screenplay highlights certain moments and decisions with a palpable sense of irony, emotional weight or knowing wink. Getting to see a statement made with sincere conviction and then paid off within seconds, can be both a joy and a surefire recipe for tears. Whether it’s the devastating contrast between scenes centred around Beth’s illness or the juxtaposition of character’s attitudes to one another, it’s a massive triumph. Watching Amy angrily tell Laurie how she’s been in love with him all her life and then cutting back to her childishly making a plaster cast of her foot for him (’to remind him how small her feet are’) is so funny. 

Gerwig and her impeccable cast bring an electric energy to the period setting, capturing the big, messy realities of family life with a mix of overwhelming cross-chatter and the smallest of intimate gestures. It’s a testament to the film that every sister feels fully serviced and represented, from Beth’s quiet strength to Amy’s unforgivable sibling rivalry. Chris Cooper’s turn as a stoic man suffering almost imperceptible grief is a personal heartbreaking favourite. 

The book’s (I’m assuming) most sweeping romantic statements are wonderfully delivered, full of urgent passion and relatable heartache, from Marmie’s (Laura Dern) “I’m angry nearly every day of my life” moment to Jo’s (Saoirse Ronan) painful defiance of feminine attributes not being enough to cure her loneliness. The sheer amount of heart and warmth in this is just remarkable and I can easily see it being a film I return to again and again.

5. Booksmart

2019 has been a banner year for female directors, making their exclusion from some of the early awards conversations all the more damning. From this list alone, we have Lulu Wang, Jennifer Kent and Greta Gerwig. Not to mention Lorene Scafaria (Hustlers), Melina Matsoukas (Queen & Slim), Jocelyn DeBoer & Dawn Luebbe (Greener Grass), Sophie Hyde (Animals) and Rose Glass (Saint Maud - watch out for THIS one in 2020, it’s brilliant). Perhaps the most natural transition from in front of to behind the camera has been made by Olivia Wilde, who has created a borderline perfect teen comedy that can make you laugh till you cry, cry till you laugh and everything in-between.

Subverting the (usually male focused) ‘one last party before college’ tropes that fuel the likes of Superbad and it’s many inferior imitators, Booksmart follows two overachievers who, rather than go on a coming of age journey to get some booze or get laid, simply want to indulge in an insane night of teenage freedom after realising that all of the ‘cool kids’ who they assumed were dropouts, also managed to get a place in all of the big universities. It’s a subtly clever remix of an old favourite from the get go but the committed performances from Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein put you firmly in their shoes for the whole ride. 

It’s a genuine blast, with big laughs and a bigger heart, portraying a supportive female friendship that doesn’t rely on hokey contrivances to tear them apart, meaning that when certain repressed feelings do come to the surface, the fallout is heartbreaking. As I stated in a twitter rave after first seeing it back in May, every single character, no matter how much they might appear to be simply representing a stock role or genre trope, gets their moment to be humanised. This is an impeccably cast ensemble of young unknowns who constantly surprise and the script is a marvel - a watertight structure without a beat out of place, callbacks and payoffs to throwaway gags circle back to be hugely important and most of all, the approach taken to sexuality and representation feels so natural. I really think it is destined to be looked back on and represent 2019 the way Heathers does ‘88, Clueless ‘95 or Easy A 2010. A new high benchmark for crowd pleasing, indie comedy - teen or otherwise.

4. Ad Astra

Brad Pitt is one of my favourite actors and one who, despite still being a huge A-lister even after 30 years in the game, never seems to get enough credit for the choices he makes, the movies he stars in and also the range of stories he helps produce through his company, Plan B. 2019 was something of a comeback year for Pitt as an actor with the insanely measured and controlled lead performance seen here in Ad Astra and the more charismatic and chaotic supporting role in Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood.

I love space movies, especially those that are more about broken people blasting themselves into the unknown to search for answers within themselves... which manages to sum up a lot of recent output in this weirdly specific sub-genre. First Man was a devastating look at grief characterised by a man who would rather go to a desolate rock than have to confront what he lost, all while being packaged as a heroic biopic with a stunning score. Gravity and The Martian both find their protagonists forced to rely on their own cunning and ingenuity to survive and Interstellar looked at the lengths we go to for those we love left behind. Smaller, arty character studies like High Life or Moon are also astounding. All of this is to say that Ad Astra takes these concepts and runs with them, challenging Pitt to cross the solar system to talk some sense into his long thought dead father (Tommy Lee Jones). But within all the ‘sad dad’ stuff, there’s another film in here just daring you to try and second guess it - one that kicks things off with a terrifying free fall from space, gives us a Mad Max style buggy chase on the moon and sidesteps into horror for one particular set-piece involving a rabid baboon in zero G! It manages to feel so completely nuts, so episodic in structure, that I understand why a lot of people were turned off - feeling that the overall film was too scattershot to land the drama or too pondering to have any fun with. I get the criticisms but for me, both elements worked in tandem, propelling Pitt on this (assumed) one way journey at a crazy pace whilst sitting back and languishing in the ‘bigger themes’ more associated with a Malik or Kubrick film. Something that Pitt can sell me on in his sleep by this point.

I loved the visuals from cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema (Interstellar), loved the imagination and flair of the script from director James Gray and Ethan Gross and loved the score by Max Richter (with Lorne Balfe and Nils Frahm) but most of all, loved Pitt, proving that sometimes a lot less, is a lot more. The sting of hearing the one thing he surely knew (but hoped he wouldn’t) be destined to hear from his absent father, acted almost entirely in his eyes during a third act confrontation, summed up the movie’s brilliance for me - so much so that I can forgive some of the more outlandish ‘Mr Hyde’ moments of this thing’s alter ego... like, say, riding a piece of damaged hull like a surfboard through a meteor debris field! 

3. Avengers: Endgame

It’s no secret that I think Marvel, the MCU in particular, have been going from strength to strength in recent years, slowly but surely taking bigger risks with filmmakers (the bonkers Taika Waititi, the indie darlings of Ryan Coogler, Cate Shortland and Chloe Zhao) whilst also carefully crafting an entertaining, interconnected universe of characters and stories. But what is the point of building up any movie ‘universe’ if you’re not going to pay it off and Endgame is perhaps the strongest conclusion to eleven years of movie sequels that fans could have possibly hoped for.

Going into this thing, the hype was off the charts (and for good reason, with it now being the highest grossing film of all time) but I remember souring on the first entry of this two-parter, Infinity War, during the time between initial release and Endgame’s premiere. That film had a game-changing climax, killing off half the heroes (and indeed the universe’s population) and letting the credits role on the villain having achieved his ultimate goal. It was daring, especially for a mammoth summer blockbuster but obviously, we all knew the deaths would never be permanent, especially with so many already-announced sequels for now ‘dusted’ characters. However, it wasn’t just the feeling that everything would inevitably be alright in the end. For me, the characters themselves felt hugely under-serviced, with arguably the franchise’s main goody two shoes Captain America being little more than a beardy bloke who showed up to fight a little bit. Basically what I’m getting at is that I felt Endgame, perhaps emboldened by the giant runtime, managed to not only address these character slights but ALSO managed to deliver the most action packed, comic booky, ‘bashing your toys together’ final fight as well.

It’s a film of three parts, each pretty much broken up into one hour sections. There’s the genuinely new and interesting initial section following our heroes dealing with the fact that they lost... and it stuck. Thor angrily kills Thanos within the first fifteen minutes but it’s a meaningless action by this point - empty revenge. Cutting to five years later, we get to see how defeat has affected them, for better or worse, trying to come to terms with grief and acceptance. Cap tries to help the everyman, Black Widow is out leading an intergalactic mop up squad and Thor is wallowing in a depressive black hole. It’s a shocking and vibrantly compelling deconstruction of the whole superhero thing and it gives the actors some real meat to chew on, especially Robert Downy Jr here who goes from being utterly broken to fighting within himself to do the right thing despite now having a daughter he doesn’t want to lose too. Part two is the trip down memory lane, fan service-y time heist which is possibly the most fun section of any of these movies, paying tribute to the franchise’s past whilst teetering on a knife’s edge trying to pull off a genuine ‘mission impossible’. And then it explodes into the extended finale which pays everyone off, demonstrates some brilliantly imaginative action and sticks the landing better than it had any right to. In a year which saw the ending of a handful of massive geek properties, from Game of Thrones to Star Wars, it’s a miracle even one of them got it right at all. That Endgame managed to get it SO right is an extraordinary accomplishment and if anything, I think Marvel may have shot themselves in the foot as it’s hard to imagine anything they can give us in the future having the intense emotional weight and momentum of this huge finale.

2. Knives Out

Rian Johnson has been having a ball leaping into genre sandpits and stirring shit up, from his teen spin on noir in Brick to his quirky con man caper with The Brothers Bloom, his time travel thriller Looper and even his approach to the Star Wars mythos in The Last Jedi. Turning his attention to the relatively dead ‘whodunnit’ genre, Knives Out is a perfect example of how to celebrate everything that excites you about a genre whilst weaponizing it’s tropes against your audience’s baggage and preconceptions.

An impeccable cast have the time of their lives here, revelling in playing self obsessed narcissists who scramble to punt the blame around when the family’s patriarch, a successful crime novelist (Christopher Plummer), winds up dead. Of course there’s something fishy going on so Daniel Craig’s brilliantly dry southern detective Benoit Blanc is called in to investigate.There are plenty of standouts here, from Don Johnson’s ignorant alpha wannabe Richard to Michael Shannon’s ferocious eldest son Walt to Chris Evan’s sweater wearing jock Ransom, full of unchecked, white privilege swagger. But the surprise was the wholly sympathetic, meek, vomit prone Marta, played brilliantly by Ana de Armas, cast against her usual type of sultry bombshell (Knock Knock, Blade Runner 2049), to spearhead the biggest shake up of the genre conventions. To go into more detail would begin to tread into spoiler territory but by flipping the audience’s engagement with the detective, we’re suddenly on the receiving end of the scrutiny and the tension derived from this switcheroo is genius and opens up the second act of the story immensely.

The whole thing is so lovingly crafted and the script is one of the tightest I’ve seen in years. The amount of setup and payoff here is staggering and never not hugely satisfying, especially as it heads into it’s final stretch. It really gives you some hope that you could have such a dense, plotty, character driven idea for a story and that it could survive the transition from page to screen intact and for the finished product to work as well as it does. I really hope Johnson returns to tell another Benoit Blanc mystery and judging by the roaring box office success (currently over $200 million worldwide for a non IP original), I certainly believe he will.

1. Eighth Grade

My film of the year is another example of the power of cinema to put us in other people’s shoes and to discover the traits, fears, joys and insecurities that we all share irregardless. It may shock you to learn this but I have never been a 13 year old teenage girl trying to get by in the modern world of social media peer pressure and ‘influencer’ culture whilst crippled with personal anxiety. My school days almost literally could not have looked more different than this (less Instagram, more POGs) and yet, this is a film about struggling with oneself, with loneliness, with wanting more but not knowing how to get it without changing yourself and the careless way we treat those with our best interests at heart in our selfish attempt to impress peers and fit in. That is understandable. That is universal. And as I’m sure I’ve said a bunch of times in this list, movies that present the most specific worldview whilst tapping into universal themes are the ones that inevitably resonate the most.

Youtuber and comedian Bo Burnham has crafted an impeccable debut feature, somehow portraying a generation of teens at least a couple of generations below his own, with such laser focused insight and intimate detail. It’s no accident that this film has often been called a sort of social-horror, with cringe levels off the charts and recognisable trappings of anxiety and depression in every frame. The film’s style services this feeling at every turn, from it’s long takes and nauseous handheld camerawork to the sensory overload in it’s score (take a bow Anna Meredith) and the naturalistic performances from all involved. Burnham struck gold when he found Elsie Fisher, delivering the most painful and effortlessly real portrayal of a tweenager in crisis as Kayla. The way she glances around skittishly, the way she is completely lost in her phone, the way she talks, even the way she breathes all feeds into the illusion - the film is oftentimes less a studio style teen comedy and more a fly on the wall documentary. 

This is a film that could have coasted on being a distant, social media based cousin to more standard fare like Sex Drive or Superbad or even Easy A but it goes much deeper, unafraid to let you lower your guard and suddenly hit you with the most terrifying scene of casually attempted sexual aggression or let you watch this pure, kindhearted girl falter and question herself in ways she shouldn’t even have to worry about. And at it’s core, there is another beautiful father/daughter relationship, with Josh Hamilton stuck on the outside looking in, desperate to help Kayla with every fibre of his being but knowing there are certain things she has to figure out for herself. It absolutely had me and their scene around a backyard campfire is one of the year’s most touching.

This is a truly remarkable film that I think everyone should seek out but I’m especially excited for all the actual teenage girls who will get to watch this and feel seen. This isn’t about the popular kid, it isn’t about the dork who hangs out with his or her own band of misfits. This is about the true loner, that person trying everything to get noticed and still ending up invisible, that person trying to connect through the most disconnected means there is - the internet - and everything that comes with it. Learning that the version of yourself you ‘portray’ on a Youtube channel may act like they have all the answers but if you’re kidding yourself then how do you grow? 

When I saw this in the cinema, I watched a mother take her seat with her two daughters, aged probably at around nine and twelve. Possibly a touch young for this, I thought, and I admit I cringed a bit on their behalf during some very adult trailers but in the end, I’m glad their mum decided they were mature enough to see this because a) they had a total blast and b) life simply IS R rated for the most part, especially during our school years, and those girls being able to see someone like Kayla have her story told on the big screen felt like a huge win. I honestly can’t wait to see what Burnham or Fisher decide to do next. 2019 has absolutely been their year... and it’s been a hell of a year.

#top 20 #films of the year #films of 2019 #10-1 #toy story 4 #the nightingale #the irishman #the last black man in san francisco #little women #booksmart #ad astra #avengers endgame #knives out #eighth grade

[gogogogolev]

We’re overdue for an update post, so here we go.

The ISU has shared some info on the 2020-21 GP series in Communication No. 2339.

What does this mean for Stephen? If he chooses to compete as a senior, and he is selected, he would be able to compete at 2020 Skate America. The event is scheduled for October 23-25 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

A little geography for context: Nevada is just east of California.

I have some hope for his selection for Skate America. He is a foreign skater training in the US. Canada will most likely select American skaters like Jason Brown, and all three top American ice dance teams who train here to compete at Skate Canada International, so USFS should be able to have Stephen and Keegan Messing at Skate America in return. Even if he was selected, Stephen wouldn’t be able to compete at SCI without having to quarantine, thus it makes more sense for him to be at Skate America. His SB score is within the top 75, so his selection would be within the rules. With the JGP series cancelled, he likely would want to take any international compeitition opportunities available, even if at the senior level. We are in the pre-Olympic season now.

These events are not worth any world standing points nor do the TES count towards minimum scores for ISU championships but there may be some way to qualify for the GP Final. There may also be prize money involved. We’ll hear more details after August 28.

Stephen’s health and safety, and that of his family, come first and foremost, so if Stephen chooses not to compete then I hope all his fans will be understanding. As always, I have no idea what his plans are, except that he’s training.

Per their last update Skate Canada appears unwilling to send skaters out to international events this season due to the quarantine requirements in Canada. Challenger Series events may be out of the question for Canadian skaters. The federation, along with the BC/Yukon section, are testing out a virtual competition format. It sounds incredibly promising from what I’ve heard of it. As of right now the domestic season will proceed as planned with in person competitions. If Stephen does a GP then he would only be required to compete at Nationals. He could possibly do that virtually if the system they’re testing out now works and he doesn’t want to return to Canada. The new Canadian national team will be named by September 1.

Locally, there were two events planned in Orange County. Glacier Falls Summer Classic, where Stephen made his season debut last season, was set for August 21-23 in Anaheim but has been postponed to the fall after OC saw a spike in coronavirus cases. Stephen’s home rink will be host to the Golden West Championships, scheduled for September 4-6. Unlike Glacier Falls this event is not sanctioned by Skate Canada, but foreign skaters are welcome to compete. The entry deadline for Golden West is August 7, but the event is in USFS’ own system so unless someone leaks an entry list we will not hear about who’s signed up. Afaik there is no live streaming planned. Let’s see if Stephen ends up competing there.

ETA 2020/08/07: NBC published an article with some more information on the GP. ISU VP Alexander Lakernik has clarified that skaters will be limited to one GP event. NBC will provide coverage of the GP series.

USFS for their part are still planning to hold Skate America in Las Vegas, but that may change. I apologize for being unable to cite a source, but this is information from USFS itself.

ETA #2: The 2020 Golden West Championships have been postponed to December 11-13. Keep an eye out for Stephen’s next event, because we have no clue what it is right now.

ETA #3: Glacier Falls Summer Classic is now a fall classic, with the event set for October 30 – November 1. This overlaps with Skate Canada International.

I’m going to be honest - at this point in time I believe every event in Canada will be virtual. If Great Park Ice can hook Stephen up with a livestream, and they do have the capability for that as we know from 2019 Glacier Falls Summer Classic, then Stephen could do SCI. The judging panel should at least meet the ISU criteria for his TES scores to count, which I’m not sure will be the case for Skate America. Anyways, this is a lot of speculation. Someone needs to get word from Raf on what the heck the plan is for this upcoming season because this guy needs to compete somewhere, but right now he cannot compete in California. We need to wait for an update, as usual.

#stephen gogolev #2020 2021 season #information

[majingojira]

Superman Real-Time Aging Timeline

As a followup to my Batman Timeline, here’s Superman!  

After this, it’s either Wonder Woman, Spider-Man, or The Flash, but I don’t think any of them will be this complex.  After all, it’s Superman! 

A thing to understand, just as a general rule, there are other Kryptonian and Kryptonian like species running around.  Sort of.  There are basic species and then several derivatives, which have since become their own cultures, but all hold to the same general roots of which Kryptonians are a part of.  These include, but are not limited to: The Kree, The Kherubim, The Viltrumites, and The Daxamites.  There are others, of course, but that should give you an idea of what’s out there in the vast reaches of the universe.  

As before, I won’t really go into villains that much (unless people ask me to do a quick rundown, at which point I’ll do my best).  

Another thing to note is that, for the purposes of the crossover timeline, things are a lot less powerful than the comics would have you believe.  A lot of people who engage in crossover timeline work tend to work from a “World Outside Your Window” approach.  So, while weird things happen, they aren’t well known or accepted.  

But we live at a time when flat-earthers and all sorts of reality denial run rampant.  

But the short of it is, ya know how the Golden Age Superman couldn’t fly and could only jump 1/8th of a mile? That’s basically where we are at.  Artillery shells can harm him, but bullets can’t.  He has amazing senses and laser-eyes, but only his descendants who study advanced Chi-altering martial arts can exceed the limits of flesh and they are the ones who truly fly.    

This is also why things that would normally be a joke for Superman to face in a crossover turn out to be actual threats.  

But the comics do exaggerate in part to inflate Superman’s abilities to avoid conflicts if at all possible.  Yes, as Watson to Holmes, DC is to Superman as far as this timeline is concerned.  So, we get to take everything with a grain of salt. 

I mean, remember last time when Cass pissed of the editors? Same deal. 

Okay?  Here we go! 

The Crisis: The Crisis is an Even that is, was, and will occur across the multiverse (or segments of it).  It occasionally seeps into time and space at different points.  Since we are here, it can be assumed that the villain was defeated.  It’s a weird time-space thing.  

Pre-history: A humanoid space-faring race suffers through many rises and falls over several thousands of years of development.  This leaves strange pockets where their descendants become their own race on different planets.  Krypton was one such planet.  A heavy gravity mining colony orbiting a red sun.  The species race, now called Kryptonians, managed to maintain some technology of their glory days but did not explore much outside their homeworld.  They augmented themselves into a race of “Supermen” to survive the harsh environment of the planet and the dangers of mining.  This included nanites which acted as solar energy storage for emergency lighting and welding.  However, the mining had begun destabilizing the planet...

1894 - Hugo Danner born. 

Lex Luthor born.

1900 - The overlord Shao Khan (a.k.a. Mongul) of another realm known as “Outworld” challengers Earth to Mortal Kombat for control over its lands.  He is tricked into doing this, as Earth isn’t another realm, but a whole planet that he could not absorb into his own even if he tried.  For the next 10 years, champions are selected to battle his champions.  10 victories on one side will ‘seed’ territory to the other.  Or, so Shao Khan thinks. 

1910 - Hugo Danner fathers Arnold “Iron” Munroe.  

1916 - Kal-El is born. 

1917 - The destruction of Krypton, leaving only a handful of survivors.  Among them are Kal-EL and the city-ship Argo.  Kal-El is found on earth by the Kent family who adopts him and names him Clark. 

The Argo City ship is affected by space-time and moves slower than Kal-El’s warp rocket.  As it travels to “Pick Up” the stray (Kal’s rocket), they encounter a parasitoid alien life form (”Xenomorph”)that manages to slaughter many of the Kryptonians after assimilating their genetics. Kara Zor-El is the only survivor and manages to destroy Argo before heading to the only family she has left.  The time-dilation effects mean she still thinks of Kal would be a defenseless baby.  (modified Superman vs Aliens) 

1930 - Clark Kent’s growing powers truly start to develop.  He helps out in secret most of the time with the odd ‘disaster’ or two.

Hugo Danner fakes his death.  

1932 - On a visit to New York for the first time, Clark runs into an early instance of true “Supercrime.”  A group of criminals uses terrifying prototype mecha to cause all kinds of hell for law enforcement and people alike.  The young Clark does his best to put a stop to them, but the true end for the gang comes from in a hail of bullets from the vigilante known as The Spider. (Satan’s Murder Machines/Superman (Comic Strip) “The Bandit Raiders of Metropolis”)   

1937 - Clark Kent moves to New York City, THE Metropolis, to work at the Daily Star paper (later renamed the Daily Planet).  He also debuts as Superman later in the year. 

1938 -  The Sarmaks of Mars, responsible for the 1898 invasion of earth, land a small invasion force in New Jersey.  The Military is brought in to put it down, but are unable to accomplish much until a “Man of Action” (Superman) appears and routs the Invaders as they reach the edge of the Hudson River. (The War of the Worlds/It’s That Time Again 3: Even More New Stories of Old-Time Radio  “War Between Two Worlds”/Superman: War of the Worlds).  The event is broadcast partly by Orson Wells but is forced to say that it was all a Halloween radio play by a group of “government agents.” (Funny story, James Moriarity formed a group to aid the Martian Invasion and the thing went so badly for him that he created an organization specifically to make sure no one ever found out how big a mistake he made which eventually evolved into a general ‘coverup’ NGO.  Nothing is more fragile than the ego).  

1939 - Lex Luthor and Superman begin their rivalry.  But at the time it is overshadowed by the so-called “Ultra-Humanite” who desired a new body to host his amazing mind.  Superman and Batman meet for the first time stopping one of the Ultra-Humanite’s plans. 

1940 -  The Masked Vigilante Boom of the 1940s begins in earnest, with many people taking to vigilantism to battle crime. Black Canary and Green Arrow get their start among many others.

The Rocketeer: The Cargo of Doom - The Rocketeer deals with people smuggling animals from Skull Island, Superman lends a hand with the Megaprimatus kong brought with them that the comics later dub “Titano.”

The first Toyman, Winslow Schott, starts bothering people. 

1941 - Formation of the Justice Society.  As a social club for vigilantes and superhumans to unwind in.  They mostly share stories and shoot the breeze, but occasionally teamed up for larger missions, especially when America entered WWII. But it’s primary purpose is networking and recovery.

Many of the Fleischer Superman cartoons occur around this time, except when noted. 

1942 - All-New Collectors’ Edition #c-54 “Superman vs Wonder Woman” - Diana of Themyscira learns about the Manhattan Project and is utterly horrified.  Clark and Diana have a confrontation about it, that does get briefly physical.  They put their differences aside afterward (the threat of a Nazi bomb is a good reason to do so), but Diana starts to grow warry of the American Government. 

1943 - Puck first bothers Superman as Mister Mxyzptlk.  

Clark learns the full story of Krypton and first encounters Kryptonite (World’s Finest #271)

1944 - Superman creates his own “Fortress of Solitude” to hold dangerous things he encountered before it evolved into a general “Home Away from Home” he could visit. 

1945 - The Last Days of the JSA

1946 - Alexis Luthor, son of Lex Luthor, is born.  

1948 - Superman: Terror on the Midway/Mighty Joe Young - A large gorilla is brought from Africa to perform at a nightclub in Los Angeles.  Lois is doing a report on it for the Planet when three drunks manage to get backstage and manage to both get the gorilla, Joe, drunk, but harass him to the point he breaks out of his cage.  The gorilla goes on the rampage, breaking lions out of their cages as he does so.  Lois helps people escape as Clark changes into Superman to subdue the Lions.  He also assists in getting Joe back into his cage as the police arrive to shoot what lions Clark had not yet rounded up.  When the incident goes to court, Clark covers the case. The court, however, rules to have Joe destroyed.  His owner, the nightclub owner, and several others sympathetic to joe engineer his escape -- only to be stymied by a burning orphanage.  Joe’s rescue of the orphans, Superman rounding up the drunks who sparked the conflagration, and Clark’s editorials sway public opinion and Joe is brought back to Africa.  

Clark Kent and Lois Lane wed.  

The House of Un-American Activities starts to target Costumed Vigilantes.  The Justice Society disbanded in response.  Diana Trevor, Wonder Woman, starts working from inside the system to counter McArthy and J. Edgar Hoover.  Subtly and openly, be it the Holiday Girls (secretaries make excellent spies) or secretly abetting other superhumans. Still, most costumed vigilantes retire at this point.  As for the rest… Some are apprehended, others sign up with the government, and others still are killed in FBI Raids.  

As Superheroes are under fire from the government, several class-action lawsuits also hound more public figures of superheroes, and only a few survive with their reputations and resources intact.

1949 - Joel Kent is born to Clark and Lois Lane-Kent.  Clark scales back his Superman work to take spend more time with his family. Joel is born without Superman’s fantastic abilities, but he is better than average almost everywhere else.  

1950 - Jonathan Kent jr. was born to Clark and Lois Lane-Kent.  Jonathan, however, is closer to his father than his brother. This causes some animosity between the boys as they grow older. 

1952 - Richard Tyler, Hourman, is arrested as part of the FBI crackdown on costumed vigilantes.  Very few remain active.  Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Shadow, and The Avenger are the most prominent.  Superman and Wonder Woman working with the Government, The Shadow, the Avenger, and Batman operating outside the law.  

1953 - The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms/Superman “The Arctic Giant”/Batman #104 “The Creature from 20,000 Fathoms”  – A prehistoric monster is awakened by nuclear testing in the arctic and proceeds to swim down to New York, sinking ships along the way. Superman confronts the beast as it lands in New York, driving it off for a moment before the military arrives to deal with the creature. When they manage to injure the creature with an anti-tank weapon, they release a deadly bacterial agent among the populous. Batman (Bruce Wayne) is able to deduce a method for dealing with the agent and the creature hosting it: radiation treatments.  The man who first saw the creature manages to introduce a radioactive isotope to the monster’s system. The creature dies from its wounds in the midst of a roller coaster fire at Coney Island. The film omits the interference of costumed vigilantes, the Batman story, in particular, doing its best to be as far off as possible to the point where it doesn’t even make sense as a Batman story. 

Clark Kent becomes the editor of the Daily Planet after Perry White retires. 

1955-1975 - The Vietnam War. 

1955 - John Henry Irons is born. 

John Wilson and his family are lynched. He survives, dons a mask and grabbing a hammer, he hunts the Klan as the vigilante John Henry.  

David Xanatos born. 

1956 - Clark Kent first discovers the Phantom Zone Projector, a device from his homeworld, and learns of the various criminals held in there, such as Faora and General Zod.  Some of which escape from time to time.  

1958 - John Wilson is killed, but his legend as the civil rights defending, Klan smashing vigilante John Henry endures.  

The malicious data life form known as Brainiac firsts demonstrates an interest in Earth.  

1959 - The Centre incident occurs.  (DC: The New Frontier)

Diana Trevor works out a government organization to better employ multi-mystery-man operations in the future with her at the head and thus limiting access to their identities or technologies by the other branches.  This is often called “The Justice League” or “The Avengers” among other things.  The laws about costumed vigilantism are changed somewhat.  

Kara Zor-El’s rocket finally lands on earth.  The press dubs her “Supergirl” when she joins in the “Family Business” and, being from a highly enlightened society that’s generally moved beyond barriers of gender or race, is extremely frustrated by the primitive mudball that is 1960s earth. 

1960 - Wilson Fisk, who often claims to be a son of Lex Luthor, becomes the “Kingpin of Crime.”

1961 - The first appearance of the Parasite.  

1963 - Incredible Hulk vs Superman - Superman attempts to apprehend the Incredible Hulk, but finds more dangerous foes about. 

1964 - The children and relatives of many World War II heroes; including Jennifer-Lynn Scott (Jade), Iron Munro, Dee Tyler (Phantom Lady II), Tsunami (Miya Shimada, a Deep One), and Artemis Crock (Tigress II, daughter of Paula Brooks, Tigress I) among others; form a short-lived adventuring group called the Young All-Stars or All-Star Squadron. An adventure to the Maple White’s Lost World and meeting Hugo Danner (and his superhuman progeny) ends the team.  Hugo Danner survives the encounter but is left brain-damaged.  His later rampages are given the moniker of “Bizarro.”

Alex Luthor ‘takes over’ as the primary Luthor giving Clark and his family hell. 

1965 - To battle monstrous threats, robotic sentries dubbed “Sentinels” or, more aggressively, “Terminators” are created.  Though defeated early in their lifespan, they are often re-created in various models.  The Data Life Forms these shells attract are often genocidal and highly dangerous.  This is the start of the aggressive timeline of the rogue A.I. known as “Skynet” that continually attempts to ensure its creation and the destruction of humanity. 

1966 - Kara Zor-El changes her moniker to “Power Femme” to coincide with the feminist movement she supports.  The press still calls her “Power Girl.”  She sometimes shows up to aid protests and has several clashes with the police.  And by clashes, I mean “People hurt themselves trying to hurt her while she protects as many as she can.”  It doesn’t help as much as she’d like. 

Darkseid first shows an interest in earth. 

Natalia Luthor, a niece of Alex Luthor, finds herself involved in her uncle’s business when she clashes with Supergirl. 

1969 - Lois Lane passes away.  

1970-1971 - Joel serves in Vietnam, and is generally horrified at what happens.  he does his best to help where he can, but the system works against him.  He rescues many people, one of them, Mei-Li, eventually becomes his wife.  Together, they have a son.  They name him Conner Kent.  The experience mellows him significantly.  He reconciles with his brother. 

1970 - The Kent State Massacre occurs.  Kara takes it very hard, having missed the protest to deal with other disasters.  

Jack Nimball takes over as the second Toyman. 

1972-1977 - A covert war against various demonic and subterranean attackers is waged primarily across east Asia, the front line of defense being various ‘Super-Robots’ such as Mazinger Z and Getter Robo.  These use a modified ‘spirit engine’ to essentially use raw willpower to make up for what the technology lacked, but it had terrible side effects and the technology was eventually abandoned, if not outright banned. It is likely these helped in the creation of the Biomegas.  

1972 - Lex Luthor passes away.  

1973 - Diana Prince/Wonder Woman and Clark Kent take the time to comfort each other after the deaths of their spouses.  This results in the birth of Athena Prince/Eiko Megami.  She is raised primarily in Japan for the education system.  Her power is best described as “Ungodly.”

Birth of Biko Daitokuji/Kiri Fujikawa, daughter of Tony Stark and Rumiko Daitokuji/Fujikawa (last name dependent on adaptation).  They do not marry but keep open ties to each other.

1974 - Jonathan Kent takes over primarily as “Superman II” Though Clark still helps out where he can. 

1975-1984 - The Biomega War is waged in Japan and in its coastal waters.  It appears to end with the death of Doctor Shinka in 1984.  Parts of him, however, survive, and biomega drones, beasts, and kaiju occasionally rise up from the depths after his defeat.  They appear to be derived from the Centre.  

1975 - Karen Kent Jr, named for her aunt, is born to Joel Kent and Carol Star-Kent.

David Xanatos receives instructions on how to become rich from his future self, as well as the coins to do it.  

Superman vs. the Amazing Spider-Man: A Duel of Titans - Superman (Clark Kent) and Spider-Man (Peter Parker) are tricked into fighting each other by their foes, Doctor Octopus and Lex Luthor. The two heroes quickly team up and defeat the evildoers.  

Scooby-Doo Team-Up #9 “Truth, Justice, and Scooby Snacks” - Clark Kent brings in Mysteries Inc. to help solve a haunting at the Daily Planet. 

1977 - Jonathan Kent trains with Muhammad Ali to better handle opponents who are as strong or stronger than himself.  

1980 - The being known as Lobo first appears on earth.  

Shao Khan challenges earth to Mortal Kombat and picks up an unexpected “Kombatant” - Jonathan Kent.  Appalled by the entire thing, he, as Superman, smashes not just the competition, but the entire contest of Mortal Kombat that cycle.  The whole thing is thrown out, but Shao Khan is infuriated by this insult.  Since the contest is considered a wash, his win streak remains unbroken...

Spider-Man and Superman: The Heroes and the Holocaust - Doctor Doom has a plan, involving the Parasite, Wonder Woman (Diana), The Hulk, and Superman (Clark).  The timely interference of Spider-Man, however, disrupts his plans for world conquest.  

1982 - Natasha Irons, daughter of John Henry Irons, is born.  

The first true Arm Slave, the M4, is developed.  Military use of giant robots (they tend to max out at 8 to 10m tall without exotic materials).  

David Xanatos has his first clash with Superman in one of his dealings.  The comics dub him “Lex Luthor” in many of his appearances. 

Superman has his first encounter with a Banshee.  

1983 - The “Doomsday Plan” to destroy several different superheroes begins forming.  It culminates in elements from Project Metalbeast/Weapon X and Project Cyborg being applied to the original Mr. Hyde and lacing his body with radioactive substances such as Kryptonite.  They dub this creature “Doomsday.”

The Terminator - The Skynet timeline sends two robotic assassins after its greatest foes.  Against John Connor, it sends a T-800 Terminator. Against the Academy of the Strange/The X-Men/The Doom Patrol, it sends TN-001 Nimrod.  

1984 - Superman Annual #11 “For the Man Who Has Everything” - Shao Khan/Mongul attempts to get revenge on Superman, but is stopped by the combined efforts of Wonder Woman, Batman, and Robin.  

1986 - Doomsday is unleashed.  Superman I and Power Girl I are crippled.  Superman II is killed.  The monster is killed and, in the light of the full moon, Hyde rejects the implants and continues on his horrible path restored to his former pre Doomsday glory.  In the wake of the tragedy, Conner Kent tries to fill in for his Uncle and Grandfather and is dubbed “Superboy.”  John Henry Irons creates a powered armor for himself and helps out as “The Man of Steel” or just “Steel.”   The Skynet timeline also sends an agent, a “Cyborg Superman” to try and defeat its future foe.  

1987 - Biko Daitkouji gains a controlling interest in her father’s company. 

Project A-Ko - The daughter of Superman and Wonder Woman, under the pseudonym “Eiko Megami”, or just A-Ko, enrolls herself in a Japanese school, where she meets up with (and gets into a rivalry with) “Biko Daitokuji”, the daughter of Tony Stark.  An intense rivalry develops over a ‘friendship’ one has and the other desires.  It eventually devolves into a routine of Biko building a large machine or powered armor and getting into a fight with Eiko before school on a regular basis.  Even an alien invasion (a single rescue ship causing havoc over one city) goes unnoticed until the target of their friendship is revealed to be their target.  They put aside their differences briefly to get her back.  The alien ship is crippled and can’t leave without heavy repairs.  The aliens may be the Zentradi from the Macross series – the all-female Meltrandi side of their species at least.  Its timeline placement is only here due to another crossover cameo and it may be set in the year 2009, but the only real available/likely time for both the character parentage to occur places it here.  The newspaper her father is seen reading contains a reference to the Fleischer Superman short “The Bulleteers”.

Project A-Ko: The Plot of the Daitokuji Financial Group – 3 weeks after the events of Project A-Ko, during summer break, Biko and Eiko continue their rivalry as Biko’s father’s company tries to find the alien ship and raid it for technology.  Unfortunately, every agency imaginable interested in alien technology trips over themselves trying to get the technology, and they end up with nothing once they anger Biko.   The aliens once again manage to escape and hide amongst the populace, resigning their fate to earth until rescue can come.  Eiko’s father is once again seen reading a “Daily Plenet” newspaper with a story discussing another Fleischer Superman short (the very first one, in fact).

Predator

Superman vs Predator - When the “Predator” self-destructs, his ship does not. when an alert signal is sent, another Predator comes to earth to clean up the mess but finds humans using the technology to insidious ends, as well as a worthy opponent: Superman (Conner Kent).  In his first real big case, Conner is kept off-balance by the experienced hunter, but the plot is foiled and Conner manages to defeat the predator.  

1988 - Karen Kent Jr. starts acting as Supergirl II. “Cir-El” is created by a cloning project.

Biko Daitokuji, in an effort to impress someone, starts acting more heroically and takes the moniker “Iron Woman” (as the band Iron Maiden didn’t want the name on a superhero).   She also sometimes refers to herself as “Rescue.”

Project A-Ko: Cinderella Rhapsody – Biko and Eiko clash again over summer break, but this time over a guy.  Ciko, the girl who had their ‘friendship’ earlier, feels left out until it turns out the guy Eiko and Biko are chasing likes Ciko instead of them.  The JSDF is called out over the two girl’s squabbling, including weapons employed against the Frankenstein Brothers Sanda and Gaira (War of the Gargantuas). A brief appearance from the leads of the anime/manga Yawara! The Fashionable Judo Girl occurs in one scene where Eiko is working at a fast-food restaurant.  They were customers. 

1990 - Project A-Ko: Final – Kei’s arranged marriage drives Eiko and Biko into more of a tiff than usual, but they are left to themselves when a battle group of ships finally come to rescue the trapped aliens and their princess Ciko.  She is taken back home and the fleet leaves.

Mortal Kombat - Shao Khan is defeated in Mortal Kombat.  

Superman and Batman vs Aliens and Predator - This story is a mess, but here’s what is known from it: Batman (Bruce Wayne Jr.) and Superman (Connor Kent) are drawn into the ritual hunting of some Xenomorphs by Predators on earth.  It goes sideways, Batman and Superman intervene and help the predators get back home with a “And Don’t come back!” message.  The Predators take it as a challenge. 

1991 - Mortal Kombat II - Shao Khan decides to just invade the earth anyway.  He does so while EIko Megami is on vacation.  The Invasion ends swiftly and Shao Khan slain.  This forces a change in how the magical realms handle their conflicts.  A year later, the Unseelie Accords are adopted by most major supernatural ‘nations’.  

1994 - Karen Kent Jr. becomes Power Woman/Power Girl II. Conner Kent becomes “Superman” in the public eye at long last. 

Arm Slave technology filters down to the public sector.  Heavy construction mecha, known as Labors begin to see use in Japan and later the United States.  These machines are 6 to 10 meters in height.

1995 - The first known instance of Labor-based crime occurs.  After this, police forces with heavy labor use in their districts adopt Special Vehicles Units, police squads that pilot labors, to counter labor crime.  These “Patrol Labors” eventually get nicknamed “Patlabor” Military contractors see this as an excellent testing bed for many technologies that would later be employed on military labors and arm slaves.

Conner Kent and Cassandra Sandsmark wed, but she keeps her name as is. 

Terminator 2: Judgement Day

Superman vs Terminator - Parallel to the events of T2, Terminators are sent after another foe Skynet foresees--Superman (Conner Kent).  Working together with Sarah and John Connor, Superman is able to put down the threat from the Skynet timeline, as well as finish it off in the future.   At least, one future...

Shock-Jock Leslie Willis becomes Livewire. 

1996 - An angel with the ‘human’ identity of Linda Danvers aids the Super-family and becomes known as Supergirl III.

Buffy Anne Summers is called as the next Vampire Slayer.   

Wilson Fisk passes away, and his mantle as Kingpin of Crime is taken up by “Gentleman” Johnny Marcone.  

The formation of “Young Justice” - a friendly hangout of many second and third-generation superhumans.  Members include Conner Kent, Cassandra Sandsmark, Tim Drake, Carrie Kelly, Helena Bertinelli Jr, and Bart Allen.  With many others joining the group as time goes on.  Their exploits are occasionally disseminated as either the “JLA” or “Young Justice” depending on the tone of the adventure. 

1997 - David Xanatos, after marrying and having a son, reforms. 

1998 -  Superman/Gen13 

Savage Dragon/Superman -  Superman III (Conner Kent) and Savage Dragon work together on a case in Chicago involving criminals being mind-controlled by parasitic worms. 

Superman/Savage Dragon - Superman and Savage Dragon battle a New God known as Killroy.  

1999 - The third generation of Arm Slaves begins the prototyping phase.  The development of the Lambda Driver alters the development of this mech.  Many of the early bits of technology are taken from prototyping the technologies in police Labor units.

The vampire known as Angel sets up “Angel Investigations” to help the helpless.

Hiro Okuamura attempts to be a “Heroic” Toyman.

JLA/Witchblade - Sarah Pezzini, wielder of the Witchblade, goes to the “Justice League” for help understanding her artifact (primarily Cassie Sandsmark).  The Witchblade then jumps around the group’s female members to find ‘better’ hosts before Sarah shames it into coming back to her.  

2000 - Linda, has taken to calling herself “Lee” leaves the material world behind and moves to the mystical between-worlds city of Bette Noir and eventually becomes its ‘mayor’.  

Conner Kent and Cassandra Sandsmark/Wonder Woman III have a son together, Jon Kent III.  

Natasha Irons takes over her father’s mantle as Steel II.   

Superman III (Conner Kent) confronts the darker actions of his contemporaries who call themselves “The Authority” ... and schools them.  (“What’s So Funny About Truth, Justice and The American Way?”)

2003 - Cir-El/Mia Kent is adopted by Conner Kent and Cassandra Sandsmark, starts operating as Supergirl IV.

Sunnydale is destroyed and the number of Vampire Slayers goes from a single lineage to over 2000 at any one time. 

The Darkness/Superman - Superman confronts the current wielder of the Darkness, Jackie Escatato.  

JLA/Cyberfoce - An informal group of heroes aid a covert cyborg team with some cyborg-zombies.  

2004 - Fallen Angel Reborn- In order to regain her lost powers, the Old One in a Human Shell, Illyria, travels to Bette Noir to reclaim her icons, and battles Lee the Fallen Angel for them.  Illyria learns something about her new state and accepts that she, herself, has changed. 

The Circle of Black Thorn (also known as The Pride) and Wolfram & Hart are defeated by a group of Runaways, the vampire Angel and his allies.  Angel and his cohorts are caught in a temporal loop as punishment while the children escape.  Massive destruction is initially wrought, but undone via time loop. Many people in LA have vague memories of what happened, eventually leading to the production of the film “Last Angel in Hell” starring Nicholas Cage. 

DC Comics insists Mia wear a blond wig to better display the “Iconic” supergirl.  She really doesn’t like the new look.  

2005-2015 - The Biomega Kaiju menace trickles through with various attacks until it comes to a head in 2015 when it revives the Centre.  The beast is destroyed, ending the Biomega threat...for now. (Atomic Robo and the Ring of Fire, Pacific Rim)

2008 - The Cellphone camera becomes common.  This means that supernatural events are part of common knowledge, but a combination of factors (not lining up with common religious beliefs, the “Somebody Else’s Problem Field”, charlatans continuing to operate regardless, etc) mean that while people ‘know’ they don’t really do much about it, deny its existence, or think of them in completely wrongheaded ways.

Livewire’s powers are finally put under control and she is allowed to perform “Community Service” with her abilities as a hero.  

2010 - Jon Kent starts adventuring as Superboy III.  

*

And that’s where things have left off.  

#DC #superhero #Crossovers #Superman #Clark Kent #Timeline #Crossover Timeline #Connor Kent #Superboy #Kon-El #Supergirl #Power Girl #Kara Zor-el #Mia Kent #Cir-El #Lex Luthor

[weekendwarriorblog]

The Weekend Warrior Home Edition May 8, 2020 – CLEMENTINE, SPACESHIP EARTH, BLUE STORY, VALLEY GIRL, ARKANSAS, HOW TO BUILD A GIRL and more!

And the summer that never was continues with no new movies in theaters unless you include a number of select drive-ins scattered across the country. There’s a lot of new stuff out this weekend, some good, some bad, but we’re getting to a point where every distributor big or small is dumping their movies to VOD in hopes of making money. But I guess that means there’s a lot more options of things to see, right?

The Virtual Oxford Film Festival continues this Friday with the virtual premieres of Steve Collins’ comedy I’ve Got Issues and the unrelated doc feature, I Am Not Alone (Note: both of these are only available for folks in Mississippi!). Also, the Hello, Gorgeous Shorts block (love the names they come up with to put these shorts together!) will debut with 8 new shorts, including Bad Assistant. You can get tickets to all of these things at the festival’s Eventive page.

For the next few days only, you can also win the Oxford Film Festival award-winning short Finding Cleveland right here for free! The film directed by Larissa Lam that follows husband Baldwin Chiu’s journey to Mississippi to investigate his roots will have its feature version, Far East Deep South, premiere as part of Oxford’s virtual festival in June.

One of the better films I watched this week (I guess that makes it this week’s “Featured Film”) is Lara Gallagher’s feature debut CLEMENTINE (Oscilloscope), a seemingly simple two-hander indie drama showcasing two fantastically talented actors in Otmara Marrero and Sydney Sweeney (HBO’s Euphoria). Marrero plays Karen, a young woman looking to get away after ending a relationship with a significantly older woman, deciding to break into her lover’s isolated lakeside home. There, she encounters Sweeney’s Lana, a mischievous younger teen of indeterminate age who Karen befriends. The two of them get closer as Karen is still in mourning for her previous relationship, but as she learns more about Lana, things clearly aren’t what they seem.

Gallagher has written a sweet and subdued character piece that at times veers into thriller territory but never goes so far across that line to take away from the drama. At the film’s core is the mystery about the two young women and their respective pasts, because we don’t even learn that much about Karen before heading to the lakeside house.

where there’s a lot of mystery about both of the young women at the story’s core, There were aspects of the movie that reminded me of the recent dramatic thriller Tape, where there’s also an aspect of sexual abuse and revenge, but it really never goes to places that might be expected. I’m a little bummed that I missed this at Tribeca last year, and part of that can be blamed on the enigmatic title which doesn’t really give a sense of what the movie is about at all. But Gallagher and her cast have done a fantastic job with a film that’s not necessarily easy to define or describe but leaves you with a warm feeling that films like this can still be made. (See Never Rarely Sometimes Always as another example of this.)

Now might be the perfect time for Matt Wolf’s new doc, SPACESHIP EARTH (Neon), which is all about the eight people who locked themselves into Biosphere II in the early ‘90s with the plans to live inside the ecologically self-contained environment for two years. Neon had two amazing scientific docs in 2019, Apollo 11 and The Biggest Little Farm, both which were in my Top 10 for the year, so imagine my disappointment when neither of them received Oscar nominations. Wolf previously directed 2013’s Teenage and last year’s Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project, the latter being a decent doc using archival footage, and Spaceship Earth mixes all of the amazing archival footage with interviews with many of the key characters. In case you weren’t familiar with Biosphere II, it was an experiment set up where 8 individuals would spend two years inside an environment that’s meant to be fully self-sufficient. Wolf’s film goes back to the start of what was essentially a theater group who put together a number of global projects before tackling Biosphere II, a project that wasn’t taken very seriously by the scientific community because there were no scientists among the group. It was seen as “ecological entertainment” by some and a cult by others, and those feelings increase when it was discovered that not everything is what it seems. When an accident causes one of the “biospherians” to have to go outside, she ends up sneaking things back into Biosphere II, which is against the rules set up by the group. It’s a fairly fascinating doc if you were around during this time but only heard about it filtered through the news and the PR, but Wolf’s film goes deep into the project and the controversy surrounding it, as well as when it inevitably goes wrong. Wolf manages to get many of those involved, including the group’s leader, John Allen, and there’s even an appearance by another figure from U.S. politics who had their own documentary just last year! This is a really strong doc that is getting a digital release and apparently, it will even be screened on the sides of some buildings, which is a cool idea in this time where there aren’t many theaters.

A relatively big hit in the UK, BLUE STORY (Paramount), the directorial feature debut of British rapper Rapman, adapted from his own YouTube series, is now available via digital download, having originally been planned to get a US theatrical release in March. It’s about the friendship of two young British teens, Timmy and Marco, from the Peckham area of London but from opposite sides of what’s become a violent street gang feud. I saw this movie way back on March 11, and I had to rewatch it more recently since I had forgotten whether I liked it or hated it. I’m probably somewhere more in between, as I thought the young leads, Stephen Odubola (Timmy) and Micheal Ward (Marco), were both terrific in a movie that generally had some storytelling and pacing issues. 

Honestly, I didn’t understand a lot of what was going on due to the heavy accents (even with the necessary subtitles), but it also didn’t really stand up to last year’s Les Miserables,  a film set in a similar setting in France, but that one  was nominated for an Oscar after being submitted by France. Besides writing and directing, Rapman also acts as the film’s ad-hoc narrator through a number of raps that gives his film a bit of a hip-hop musical feel. I’m not sure I was crazy about this decision since a lot of the time he is recapping something that we just saw take place.

The film definitely has a unique energy, as the first half alternates between youthful innocence and faux machismo, neither which generally does very much for me.   I did enjoy the film’s romantic underpinnings as it shows young love between Timmy and a classmate named Leah (Karla-Simone Spence) , but that storyline comes to an abrupt and shocking halt about 45 minutes into the movie before the story jumps forward three years into something very different.  (To be honest, the romantic aspects were handled in a far more interesting way in the recent indie Premature.) The movie does get far more dramatic and tense in this last act, while it also shows what a talented cast Rapman has put together in order for them to shift gears into the very different tone the movie then takes. It’s a jarring change, but it adds to what Rapman was trying to do in making Blue Story an almost-Shakespearean coming-of-age story set against an authentic urban landscape. I’m not 100% sure Blue Story will connect with young urban Americans in the same way as it clearly did in the UK, because the dialect and slang that pervades the film often makes it difficult to follow, but it’s quite a striking debut from the rapper/filmmaker.

Next up is VALLEY GIRL (Orion Pictures), a musical remake of Martha Coolidge’s 1983 movie that introduced many people to one Nicolas Cage. The new movie is directed by Rachel Lee Goldenberg (A Deadly Adoption, “The Mindy Project”), and it stars the wonderful Jessica Rothe (Happy Death Day) as Julie Richman, the valley girl of the title who is going to high school with her valley girl friends but becomes enamored with the punk kid Randy (Josh Whitehouse), who comes from a very different world. I’m not sure what else I can tell you about Valley Girl, since I’m under embargo on this one until Friday, so I’m not sure if I can tell you if it’s good or bad. I will say that if you like popular ‘80s groups like Modern English and others, the movie may give you a smile. It also stars Alicia Silverstone as the older Julie, telling her own daughter this story in a framing sequence, as well as Judy Greer as Julie’s mother and others, such as Mae Whitman, who can really belt it out in her role as Randy’s bandmate, “Jack.”  This is supposed to open in some of those aforementioned drive-ins, as well as being available digitally.

Getting away from this week’s musicals, Clark Duke co-wrote and stars in his feature film directorial debut, ARKANSAS (Lionsgate), based on John Brandon’s novel. I haven’t read the novel, but Clark plays a lowlife named Swin, a drug-runner along with his partner Kyle (Liam Hemsworth), both of them pretending to be park rangers. Kyle is particularly interested in learning more about their enigmatic boss, the Arkansas-based drug kingpin known only as “Frog,” but their business arrangements get more complicated.

I had a few problems with this movie, much of it coming from the relatively weak writing that comes across like it was made by someone who has watched way too many Scorsese or Tarantino movies without really understanding why those filmmakers’ movies are so brilliant. I hate to say it, because I generally like Duke as an actor, but casting himself in the role of Swin without doing much beyond growing a moustache to make himself look sleazier really didn’t much for the material. He was a very odd pairing with the rugged and tougher Hemsworth.

The best part of the film is when it flashes back to 1985 West Memphis and we meet the actual “Frog,” played by Vince Vaughn, and we see him interacting with Michael K. Williams’ “Almond,” who he betrays to take over his drug business. I liked this bit of the movie even if Vaughn’s accent wasn’t great, but then we’re back to Duke and Hemsworth in present day, and that doesn’t hold up as well. Clarke overcomplicates things by creating a non-linear narrative that jumps back and forth in time and between two storylines – again, like Pulp Fiction – but the storytelling and dialogue doesn’t do enough to make up for the confusion this cause.

Clark certainly has brought on some decent actors, such as John Malkovich and Vivica A. Fox, but making himself the focus of much of the movie compared to the far more charismatic Hemsworth, hurts the movie more than helps it. I didn’t hate Eden Brolin as Swin’s love interest, Johnna, but they really didn’t enough chemistry to make them believable as a couple.  Don’t get me wrong. I definitely commend Clark on taking on such a big project as his directorial debut, and it definitely grew on me, but it’s an erratic piece that pays tribute to far better films and that is its biggest detriment.  Originally planned for a theatrical release on May 1, Arkansas will instead hit Apple, Amazon, On Demand platforms, DVD and Blu-Ray on Tuesday.

Beanie Feldstein from last year’s Book Smart stars in Coky (“Harlots”) Giedroyc’s HOW TO BUILD A GIRL (IFC Films) as Johanna Morrigan, an ambitious 16-year-old from Wolverhampton, England who gets a job at music magazine “D&ME.” She creates an alter-ego pseudonym for herself in Dolly Wilde, and quickly learns she has to be mean in order to succeed and earn the respect of her peers as one of the UK’s most hated music journalists, even after falling in love withs (and then betraying) rock star John Kite (Alfie Allen, who also was on “Harlots”).

Based on British journalist Caitlin Moran’s 2014 semi-autobiographical novel of the same name, I definitely should have liked this movie more, having been a regular reader of the Melody Maker around the time Moran would have been writing for it. The screenplay she’s co-written adapting her own book isn’t great, and everyone involved just seems to be trying too hard to be funny and failing miserably.

I guess the biggest issue, once you adjust to Beanie Feldstein’s British accent, which falls somewhere between Harry Potter and the Beatles, is that it’s hard to care about her character even a little, since she’s acting all quirky one second and then becomes a monster as the film goes along. Johanna is just annoying and when she transforms into “Dolly,” she becomes even worse.

Paddy Considine plays Johanna/Dolly’s father, who still has aspirations of being a rock star after giving birth to a huge brood of children. There’s a few other small roles from other actors like Emma Thompson, Michael Sheen and Gemma Anderton, many of them portraying Johanna’s author inspirations talking to her from her wall of idols.

How to Build a Girl is just another example of the sad state of British comedies, although there are a few shining stars like last year’s Yesterday, which was in my top 10, and this year’s Emma. This one just isn’t particularly funny, and there’s a general feeling of been-there seen-that, as it tells a fairly typical rise and fall story where Dolly’s debauchery turns into an awful human being, and it’s not like I liked her much to begin with.  She isn’t as funny as intended and then she gets awful, and it’s impossible to feel bad for her when things ultimately go wrong. Anyway, five minutes later, everything is fine.

It’s the type of autobiographical thing that a writer writes to make themselves look like some kind of hero, and it reminds me a bit of last year’s Blinded by the Light in some ways. h I know a lot of people liked the movie, but I wasn’t really a fan at all. This movie is even less funny and not particularly original, making it feel about as pretentious as the British music press became in the ‘90s. Either way, it will be available to watch at home via VOD as well as in some open drive-ins where applicable.

There are a ton more movies this week, and unfortunately, I didn’t get to fully watch many of the movies below, though I still hope to watch more of these over the next few days and may add a few more reviews.

I heard good things about Christophe Honoré’s comedy ON A MAGICAL NIGHT (Strand Releasing), particularly about Chiara Mastroiani’s performance as Maria, which won her an acting award at last year’s Cannes. She plays Maria, a woman dissatisfied with her marriage of 20 years, who moves into a hotel room across the street after getting into an argument with her husband (singer Benjamin Biolay). I haven’t gotten through it yet as it seems, like so many French movies, to be very talky, but I’ll try to get to it. It will open virtually as part of Film at Lincoln Center’s virtual cinema, following its debut at the “Rendezvous with French Cinema” series that was unfortunately cut short midway this year.

Also continuing this weekend is Cinema Tropical’s “Cinema Tropical Collection” of Brazilian films, this week’s being Caetano Gotardo’s YOUR BONES, YOUR EYES,  in which the filmmaker stars as João, a middle class São Paulo filmmaker who has long conversations and monologues with the people around him.

There are a few other docs available virtually this week, including Sasha Joseph Neulinger’s REWIND (FilmRise), a collection of home videos from 20 years ago, when his father would film family gatherings but also documenting a family secret that would lead to a media firestorm and a court battle.  The film will be available to stream and download on iTunes, Prime Video, GooglePlay and Microsoft this Friday, and then will air as part of PBS’s Independent Lens on Monday, May 11.  

The Maysles Cinema in Harlem is continuing its virtual cinema with Alex Glustrom’s MOSSVILLE: WHEN THE GREAT TREES FALL, which will be available for a 48-hour VOD rental for $12 from Thursday through April 14 with a Zoom QnA with the filmmakers on Saturday at noon Eastern. The film centers around Mossville, Louisiana, a community founded by former African-American slaves that has been overrun by petrochemical plants and toxic clouds that have forced residents from their homes. Glustrom’s film focuses on Stacey Ryan, a man who refuses to abandon his family’s land and fights for his own human rights.

Apparently, William Nicholson’s HOPE GAP (Screen Media) is getting a second chance to be seen on VOD after a rather half-hearted theatrical release on March 6. It stars  Annette Bening as Grace who is dealing with her husband of 29 years (Bill Nighy) leaving her and how that break-up affects their grown-up son (Josh O’Connor).

Following its premiere as part of the virtual Tribeca Film Festival, Emily Cohn’s sex comedy, CRSHD (Light Year), will get a virtual theatrical release in New York, LA and other regional markets. It stars Isabelle Barbier as college freshman Izzy Alden who goes with her best friends (Deeksha Ketkar, Sadie Scott) on a journey to help Izzy lose her virginity.

Also in select theaters, on demand and digital this Friday is José Magán’s The Legion (Saban Films/Paramount), starring Mickey Rourke, Bai Ling and Lee Partridge. It takes place during the invasion of Parthia where two Roman legions are brought to a standstill in Armenia’s snowy mountains where they’re dying from the cold. Their only hope against the cold and the Parthian patrols is half-roman soldier, Noreno, who must cross the mountains to find the men who can help them change the course of this losing battle.

On VOD starting Thursday is Spa Night director Andrew Ahn’s Driveways (FilmRise), starring Hong Chau from HBO’s “Watchmen” and Alexander Payne’s Downsizing as Kathy, a single mother who is travelling with her 8-year-old son Cody (Lucas Jaye) to her dead sister’s house with plans to clean and sell it. There, she befriends a Korean war vet named Del (played by the late Brian Denneny), who quickly bonds with her young son.

Also in theaters and On Demand is Tom Wright’s Walkaway Joe (Quiver Distribution), starring David Strathairn and Jeffrey Dean Morgan, a film about an unlikely friendship between a young boy and a wandering loner, who helps the boy look for his father in pool halls across the country.

STREAMING AND CABLE

This week’s Netflix offerings including the comedy special, Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill, presumably taped at one of his nights in residency at the Beacon Theater. The hour-long special is now available and has been said might be Seinfeld’s last special. The Michelle Obama doc, Becoming, will also be on Netflix by the time you read this. It’s the first feature length doc from Nadia Hallgren, and its produced by the Obamas, much like the recent Sundance opener, Crip Camp, and last year’s Oscar winner, American Factory.  The second season of Dead to Me also debuts on Friday as well as a number of other series.

In case you missed it earlier in the week, you can now watch last year’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker on Disney+, which means the entire nonology is now on Disney+. You can also watch a new docuseries about the making of last year’s hit, The Mandalorian, called Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian, which has Jon Favreau doing roundtables with some of the creatives with the first episode, “Directing,” now on the service and the second episode, “Legacy,” premiering on Friday.

The new Hulu animated series, Solar Opposites, will premiere on the streaming service this Friday. It’s the new series co-created by Justin Roiland and Mike McMahan (respectively the co-creator and former head writer of Rick and Morty), and it features a voice cast that includes Roiland, Thomas Middleditch, Mary Mack and Sean Giambrone with a huge line of guest voices, including Alan Tudyk, Alfred Molina, Christina Hendricks, Tiffany Haddish and many, many more!

The final film in Lionsgate’s Friday Night at the Movies will be Keanu Reeves’ John Wick, which will show for free on the Lionsgate website on Friday night starting at 9pm Eastern.

Next week, more movies not in theaters!

By the way, if you read this week’s column and have bothered to read this far down, feel free to drop me some thoughts at Edward dot Douglas at Gmail dot Com or drop me a note or tweet on Twitter. I love hearing from readers … honest!

#TheWeekendWarrior #Movies #Reviews #Arkansas #BlueStory #ValleyGirl #HowToBuildAGirl #Clementine #SpaceshipEarth #Streaming #VOD #Digital

[onestowatch]

BENEE Went From Making Pizzas to Becoming Pop’s Next Big Thing [Q&A]

BENEE is the epitome of a breakout star. The 19-year-old pop visionary came out of seemingly nowhere to deliver “Soaked,” a single which has gone on to be streamed over 20 million times and arrived as a very early contender for the soundtrack to summer wistfulness. More than just a one-hit phenom, BENEE has gone from making pizzas in her native New Zealand to delivering one of the most varied and exemplary debut outings of recent memory.

FIRE ON MARZZ is more than an eye-catching name or piece of surreal cover art; it is the distinctive expression of a pop chameleon, blending in and out of a range of moods and lush sonic textures. Whether a certain song calls for a sun-soaked groove or a nostalgic-yet-novel moment of introspection, BENEE is sure to bring an explosive flair to the whole affair. The initial excitement surrounding BENEE is not unlike that of the first time we heard tale of a young Billie Eilish, and while the sonics may vary, the level of talent is undeniable. BENEE is pop’s next big thing. 

Ones To Watch had the pleasure hosting BENEE at our June Baño Flaco showcase (performance video coming soon!), and her live performance sealed the deal. The next day, I grabbed a slice or three of pizza with the pop star in the making to see exactly what goes on in the mind of a 19-year-old who just wrapped up playing her first-ever sold-out shows in Los Angeles and New York before even releasing her debut EP. From commenting on hypebeast culture, the quarter-life crisis that thrust her into music, to discovering a shared love for James Blake, this is BENEE.

OTW: What’s it like playing in the US for the first time?

BENEE: Pretty crazy. At the first show, I didn’t really know what to expect, cause I don’t really know what Americans are like, what their sense of humor is like. The New Zealand sense of humor is a weird one. But it’s been crazy and fun, coming from Europe was crazy as well. Getting out of New Zealand and just seeing things has been awesome.

OTW: What’s the craziest thing you’ve seen thus far?

BENEE: We did a three-hour cycle in Berlin on a graffiti tour, and that was the craziest thing that I’ve ever seen in my life (laughs) not actually.

OTW: Not the Supreme line outside?

BENEE: No the Supreme line was also pretty crazy. I was just like what the fuck!?!? There are some in New Zealand but not that big, and not that big of a line.

OTW: Is hypebeast culture much of a thing in Australia? 

BENEE: Not really, there are definitely some hypebeasts, we have a couple stores, but we don’t have a Supreme store. We have something that maybe features a tiny little range of Supreme stuff.

OTW: So, debut EP -- why is it Mars, why is Mars on fire?

BENEE: Why is there a fire on Mars? Why is Mars on fire? Good freaking question. I mean, coming up with a name, I didn’t really have a word or a phrase that could describe all the songs in it. Cause they’re all kind of different from one another, and some of them are weird dreams or weird stories, so I didn’t really wanna sum up the whole thing so I chose to go with something completely irrelevant to everything in the EP. 

It was a matter of coming into the studio like, “So what are we gonna call the EP?” I was just throwing out names, and I said, “painting mars,” and we stuck with that for a little bit, and then I was like no actually, it needs to be more aggressive, cause I want it to be visually appealing with the art, so I decided on “FIRE ON MARZZ.” It’s a little crazier than “painting mars.” 

OTW: You mentioned how all the songs are different, and I think I really noticed that on the last single, “Want Me Back.”

BENEE: With that one, it was the first sad, really slow song I’ve ever written and the most vulnerable I think I’ve been with my songwriting so far. None of the other tracks on the EP are like that one.

OTW: Since it ranges so much, how would you describe your music without using any genre terms?

BENEE: I guess it’s just a mixture, it’s a big ole’ soup with different spices and vegetables, maybe some chicken, food, and colors.

OTW: Given your song “Evil Spider,” are you afraid of spiders?

BENEE: So, here’s the deal. I can deal with spiders that are up to the size of my thumbnail, anything bigger, big no-go. I was in Australia, and there was a huntsman spider on this plant pot, and I was like, (gasps) absolutely not. So no, I’m not really a spider-lover, unless they’re small. You’re the same?

OTW: Yea, I can’t. My partner went out of town once and there was a spider, so I just didn’t sleep.

BENEE: Yeah they’re not nice. Are there big ones here?

OTW: Probably not as big as in Australia.

BENEE: Yeah, Australia has some massive ones. Tarantulas? I don’t like tarantulas. I stay away from big hairy spiders.

OTW: If someone were to go to New Zealand who’d never been, how would you tell them to spend a day?

BENEE: Oh, it’s definitely the beaches. A few are in the north island; that’s where I live. There’s like a beach called Peha, maybe going there. It would be good to get a car so you could drive around, do like a little road trip. Or, go to the south island, which is the cold island. Really good skiing, or beautiful for hikes, if you like to hike. It’s a good place to go if you’re really needing the outdoors and want a chill environment.

OTW: Very Lord of the Rings, right?

BENEE: I don’t think I’ve even watched it, is that weird? Quite a few New Zealanders are like that, I reckon. Or maybe it’s just me.

OTW: Vacation recommendations aside, did you expect “Soaked” to take off like it did?

BENEE: No, I did not expect that at all. We released it as my second single. “Tough Guy” was pretty low key, chill. I was planning what I was gonna release, and it was one of those songs that I had that I was like, “Ok, I like this song and I feel like maybe it’s a bore cause it’s like too much of that.” But I definitely did not expect anything from it. It’s been fucking crazy, man. Fucking crazy.

OTW: Yeah, cause you went to opening for Lily Allen after that single.

BENEE: That is maaaaad. I love Lily Allen. And that was crazy. It’s all bloody crazy.

OTW: So who are your Ones to Watch?

BENEE: Some artists I’ve been really into lately are Still Woozy and ROSALÍA. Those two I’m fucking obsessed with at the moment. I’ve been obsessed with James Blake since I was like, 14. OTW: Same.

BENEE: You too?

OTW: Well I’ve met him twice…

BENEE: SHUT UP! I DONT EVEN WANNA HEAR ABOUT IT. I’M FUCKING JEALOUS. Is he nice? (to the room) He’s met James Blake twice everybody, yea what the heck.

OTW: It’s not that cool… It’s pretty cool.

BENEE: It’s fucking cool. I’m gonna brag for you.

OTW: He’s my favorite person in the world. He’s really nice. But the first time I met him, he was just...

BENEE: Really shy?

OTW: He’s like very quiet, soft-spoken. Do you know Connan Mockasin?

BENEE: Yes, I fucking love him.

OTW: They’re best friends.

BENEE: Yea they did a song together! I love him, and I don’t even know him.

OTW: He’s so tall.

BENEE: Apparently he’s really tall.

OTW: He’s 6’5;” he’s like a football player.

BENEE: Woahhh, he’s a tall ass man. Damn, and he’s got a good voice. And a beautiful girlfriend.

OTW: He’s got it all.

BENEE: Yeah. (laughs) I’m going to cry.

OTW: On the subject of crying, let’s talk about your quarter-life crisis.

BENEE: Ok my quarter-life crisis. I’m such a fucking drama queen, oh my god. So basically, it was the end of my high school years. It was like my quarter-life crisis because I had enrolled into a University, I had released “Tough Guy” at the end of the year, and I was at Uni for two weeks, doing a communications degree. I lasted two weeks, and on the Friday of the second week, I was like, “I actually don’t think I want to do this with my life.”

I got home after that day, I was just bawling my eyes out like a little baby, crying to my mum and my dad, “Guys, I don’t want to do this with my life, I want to make music!” That was my quarter-life crisis. So I dropped out and started making music all year, making pizzas, and washing dishes. It was amazing. It was great. I don’t make pizzas anymore though, I just eat them.

OTW: Are you good at making pizzas though?

BENEE: Low-key... no (laughs). Maybe if I were at the place that I worked at, and I had all the ingredients... actually no.

OTW: Even then, no?

BENEE: Cause I can’t make the dough, and the dough is such an important part of a pizza. Like I just don’t think I’m that skilled at mixing the dough, and the yeast and shit. Nah.

OTW: Ok so last question, very important question: what are your ideal pizza toppings?

BENEE: It’s got roasted garlic, olives, feta, pepperoni, what else? Red onions on there, did I say olives? Put more olives on there. So, feta, olives, roasted garlic, red onion, pepperoni. And then chili flakes when it’s cooked. Oh! And jalapeños.

OTW: Spicy?

BENEE: Yes, a little spicy. Not really really really spicy, I can do like medium, mild. No, actually hot. Yes, spicy.

#benee #interview #pop #indie #indie pop #fire on marzz #album reviews #bene

[somar78]

The Volkswagen SP2 + The New (Almost) Production-Ready SP Concept Car

The Volkswagen SP2 is a car much loved in Brazil, but little known outside the South American country. The car is a small sport coupe that was designed and made in Brazil for the local market, using largely local VW components.

The styling of the car would have a strong influence on the VW/Porsche developed Porsche 924, and in recent years a team of automotive engineers have designed an all new SP. This turnkey design is currently waiting for a small volume automaker to put it into production, giving the SP an all new life in the 21st century.

Brazil: A Nation that Banned Imported Cars

Brazil was a nation that almost entirely banned the importation of motor vehicles during the 1960’s and 1970’s thus forcing car manufacturers to either set up vehicle production in Brazil or not have access to that market.

Volkswagen were one of the companies that set up manufacturing in the country and they finished up having a two thirds share of the Brazilian market: something that they were no doubt quite happy about, and something the Brazilians employed by Volkswagen do Brazil were quite happy about too.

The other dimension to this is that most car buyers are not the slightest bit interested in purchasing a sports car. Most people want comfortable, reliable and affordable transportation. Hence Volkswagens became the most popular cars in Brazil.

Brazilian Sports Cars

With the import ban in place it was a foregone conclusion that small scale specialist sports car builders would spring up. During the 1960’s a Brazilian company named Puma began making limited production sports cars using chassis of their own design with fiberglass bodywork and fitted with engines and mechanical components from DKW, Volkswagen, or General Motors.

Another sports car was the Willy’s Interlagos, which was a Renault Alpine A108 built locally. So there were sports cars being made in Brazil and they were in some ways quite like the British small volume specialist makers such as Lotus or TVR. They were cars that were fun, and affordable.

It was to be a conversation between one of the directors of Brazilian sports car maker Puma and the head of Volkswagen in Brasil that would precipitate the creation of the Volkswagen SP. The Puma director suggested that because Volkswagen Brazil did not have a stylish sports car that the pride of place on the Volkswagen stand at the 1969 Brazilian motor show should be a Puma (built on Volkswagen parts of course).

The head of Volkswagen Brazil, Rudolph Leiding, was probably not amused although I suspect he smiled politely even as he quietly began formulating a plan

Volkswagen’s Project X: A Car for the Ladies as well as for the Gentlemen

The stylish coupé that Volkswagen Brazil were making was the Karmann Ghia but this was due to be phased out and the head of Volkswagen Brazil, Rudolph Leiding, could see that there was a need for a suitable replacement in the form of a stylish sporting coupé.

Rudolph Leiding wisely had some discussions with his wife Helga in order to gauge what sort of stylish coupé would appeal to Brazilian women: women tend to look for different things in a car by comparison with men and Rudolph Leiding wanted the new car to appeal to both men and women.

Leiding made initial sketches of the car he envisioned and a Mr. Schiemann was appointed to head up “Project X” as the new initiative was called. Volkswagen Brazil’s in-house designer Marcio Piancastelli was briefed on the project and Leiding’s sketches handed over to him. The plan was to build the new sports coupé on the platform of the locally produced Volkswagen Type 3 “Variant” which featured typical Volkswagen torsion bar suspension and four cylinder horizontally opposed air-cooled engine.

For Marcio Piancastelli there was quite a bit of design inspiration available in the late 1960’s as he got to work. Jaguar’s E-Type had been called “The most beautiful car in the world” by none other than Enzo Ferrari and Japanese company Toyota had made everyone sit up and take notice when they unveiled their 2000GT.

Chevrolet’s C2 Corvette was also a real head turner. Piancastelli had done an internship with Ghia and was very capable of bringing Italian style to Project X despite the fact that it was to be based on the Volkswagen Type 3 platform. Could Piancastelli design something that looked like it should be a Porsche? He was about to prove that he could and in 1971 the concept car made its debut just as Rudolph Leiding was leaving Brazil with his wife Helga to take up his new position in charge of Volkswagen globally.

The Volkswagen Type 3 was actually a good foundation for a sporting coupé: it was much more sophisticated than the original Volkswagen Type 1 “Beetle” and this was especially true by 1968. By 1966 the Type 3 was made with a 1.6 liter (1,584 cc) version of the “pancake” (aka “suitcase”) four cylinder air-cooled engine. This engine had the cooling fan located at the end of the crankshaft to lower its height and was mounted on a separate sub-frame which also contained the rear suspension.

This unit was then mounted to the body using rubber mountings, a design that was highly effective in isolating vibration and road noise. In 1968 this engine was the first in a volume production car to be fitted with the Bosch D-Jetronic fuel injection system. Not only that but also in 1968 a three speed automatic version was made available.

The front suspension of the Type 3 was improved over the Type 1 also. The Type 1’s transverse leaf spring torsion bars were done away with and the Type 3 became the first fitted with transverse round torsion bars. For the front suspension the round torsion bar was located in the lower torsion bar tube while the upper one had the anti-roll bar attached to the upper trailing links on each side.

1968 saw another major advance with the old style swing axles replaced by a double jointed CV joint which kept the rear wheel camber consistent and eliminated the infamous handling vice of the Type 1 caused by the swing axles. The Type 3’s brakes were also upgraded to discs at the front and drums at the rear.

So the Type 3 platform that Marcio Piancastelli had to work with had a great deal of potential: with the right engine under the car it could almost have become a Brazilian Porsche (of sorts).

The Volkswagen SP Enters Production

The Volkswagen SP that Rudolph Leiding had sketched the concept for and Marcio Piancastelli had created entered production in 1973 and it proved to be a real head-turner. It had looks that seemed to combine a touch of Porsche with an Italian feel. The lines of the car were sleek, well proportioned, and flowing.

The interior was no disappointment either, unless you were over 6 feet tall that is in which case it would start becoming a tad snug. The dashboard was a purposeful design with a large tachometer and speedometer directly in front of the driver and four smaller gauges in the center; water temperature, oil pressure, fuel and clock. The interior was a quite brilliant blending of comfort with GT car instrumentation and controls.

The SP had a lot more going for it than its looks however. Piancastelli had design engineered it to be a car with impressive safety credentials. The steering column was collapsible, the brake hydraulics dual circuit, but the most interesting feature was the “collision belt”. The “collision belt” was comprised of “collision proof” structures that circled the perimeter of the car.

It included the bumpers which were spring loaded by being mounted on spring steel claws which would absorb impact, especially the 5 mph impact specified by US regulators, and side structures to protect against side collisions. The front, rear and side collision belt was covered in gloss painted rubber. It is very clear in the attention to engineering crash protection that Volkswagen do Brasil were intending to market the SP in the US and other world markets.

The SP was made in two models; the SP1 was the entry level model and the SP2 was the more up-market model. The SP1 featured quad headlights while on the more powerful SP2 the quad headlights were quartz iodine. The car was designed to provide excellent visibility and was fitted with front quarter vents to assist with ventilation along with opening rear quarter windows also.

Although the Volkswagen Type 3 in other markets was fitted with the Bosch D-Jetronic fuel injection system this was not the case for Brazil. In Brazil the quality of the fuel was quite low and so the compression ratio of the engines used and their state of tune had to be kept low. Two engines were used; the Volkswagen SP1 was fitted with the same 1.6 liter engine as the Type 3 but with twin Solex carburetors and producing 65 bhp (DIN).

The Volkswagen SP2 was fitted with a larger 1.8 liter engine also with twin Solex carburetors and producing 75 bhp (DIN). Performance of the more powerful SP2 was for a standing to 60 mph time around 16 seconds and a top speed of 100 mph. The SP1 was significantly slower and perhaps it could be said that it didn’t so much accelerate as “gain momentum”.

The SP1 was dropped from production by the time 88 cars had been made, leaving the SP2 as the sole model.

The Volkswagen SP had a lot more luggage carrying space than is common in the majority of sports cars or GT coupés. Because of Volkswagen engine there was a good amount of boot space above the engine, much the same amount as one would find in a Jaguar E-Type for example.

But that was not all, in typical Volkswagen style there was also a good luggage area in the front of the car. The spare wheel was stored at the very front leaving a decent luggage area behind the front axle line. So as a practical coupé the SP was intelligently laid out.

The “SP” name had originally been intended to stand for “San Paolo”, where the car was designed and made. However Brazilians have a sense of humor and pretty soon the “SP” was said to stand for “Sem Potência” which translates as “without power”, or in English we might make that “Slow Poke”.

That being said those who owned the SP2 seem to have a great affection for them despite the lack of road burning horsepower. As a comfortable coupé for touring the power was seemingly enough and the car was enjoyable to own and to drive. The SP2 was kept in production for three years with the last cars rolling off the production line in 1976 after a fairly respectable 10,205 had been made.

Given that the SP2 was made on the Volkswagen Type 3 platform it would not have been rocket science to dramatically improve the car’s performance by fitting a larger and more powerful engine: Volkswagen certainly had a range of suitable engines that could have been chosen and which would have been easy to fit.

But by that stage of Volkswagen’s history it was moving away from the 1930’s vintage rear-mounted air-cooled four cylinder boxer engines and migrating to water-cooled front-mounted engines and front wheel drive. Rudolph Leiding had been instrumental in pushing for that change and it was he who directed Volkswagen away from a Porsche designed prototype for the new Volkswagen Golf that had a mid-mounted engine.

That was the EA266 which featured a mid-mounted in-line four cylinder liquid cooled 105hp engine laid horizontally and placed under the rear passenger seat.

Volkswagen do Brasil did consider a suitable solution to the “Slow Poke” problem which would have been called the SP3 and which would be fitted with a 1.8 liter water-cooled four cylinder engine as used in the Brazilian Volkswagen Passat TS.

That engine had a compression ratio of 8.5:1 and was fitted with twin carburetors which enabled it to produce 99 hp @ 6,000 rpm. A prototype was made by an independent Brazilian company called Dacon who offered conversion kits for SP1 and SP2 cars. Unfortunately the cost of the kits seems to have been too high and not many were sold.

A Porsche “Volkswagen SP”: The Porsche 924

The Volkswagen SP had garnered quite a bit of attention in Brazil and in Volkswagen/Porsche circles. Although the Volkswagen SP only remained in production in Brazil for three years the idea got Volkswagen in Germany thinking, helped along by Rudolph Leiding in his role at the head of Volkswagen internationally.

The idea for a Volkswagen sports car/coupé, that Leiding had instigated and developed in Brazil was embraced by Volkswagen in Germany and work began in cooperation with Porsche to create a suitable model, whose design was very much inspired by the Volkswagen SP.

The project was designated EA425 and it re-located the engine to the front of the car with a transaxle at the rear: this gave the car a 48/52 front to rear weight distribution.

With a successful and very affordable design largely complete the EA425 was ready to rock and roll off the assembly lines but the oil crisis of 1973 persuaded Volkswagen to stop work on the project and sell it back to Porsche while Volkswagen moved ahead with their Scirocco model. Porsche completed the car as a replacement for the Porsche 914 and introduced it as the Porsche 924 in 1976.

The VW SP2 is Re-Created For The 21st Century

The Volkswagen SP may have been nicknamed the “Sem Potência” but it carved a place for itself in many Brazilian hearts as their home grown sports coupé that was almost a Porsche, and which in reality had been transformed into the basis for the Porsche 924.

So it should come as no surprise that in this twenty-first century that a group of Mechanical Automotive Engineering students at the FEI College (Educational Foundation of Ignatius) in Brazil decided to base their course major project on it. Final year students in this course were required to design a vehicle and its major components as a major assignment.

Around the table a group comprising Rafael Tardelli, Sebastián Honbono, Flavio Koiti, Eduardo Samartino and Fernando Piaya, looked at various options and considered that there had been a move to recreate “retro” style cars, such as the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, Morris Mini and Fiat 500 “Bambino”.

So as the discussions progressed the group decided that they could create a new version of Brazil’s Volkswagen SP that had almost become a Brazilian Porsche.

The student’s professor of vehicular dynamics and suspension, Mr. Ricardo Bock, was also teaching the Car Design Course, at the FAAP College (Armando Alvares Penteado Foundation) and finding that the retro Volkswagen SP2 project to be a very interesting one brought students from the two colleges together.

Professor Bock’s idea was to have the engineering and design students work together to actually create a design that could be built. The meeting brought together not only students but professors who had been working in the Brazilian car industry during the 1960’s and including Brazilian designer Ari Rocha, who worked at Studio Fissore and at DKW. It was he who subsequently introduced the students to the designer of the Volkswagen SP2, Márcio Piancastelli, and also to José Vicente Novita Martins (Jota) who had designed a number of Volkswagen cars.

Armed with background drawings, photographs and time spent with original designers from the 1960’s and 1970’s, the students went to work to create the design for a new version of the Volkswagen SP2, and they designed it so it could be built and driven. They used a tubular space frame chassis as is common for small scale sports car producers. The 1020 steel tubing was to have an external diameter of 50.8mm with a wall thickness of 2.5mm.

Suspension was to be by unequal length wishbones, “A” arms at the front and “H” style at the rear. Brakes would be discs all around.

The choice of engine remained with a standard Volkswagen/Audi engine, and the students chose the 1,984 cc, turbocharged, TFSI (Turbo Fuel Stratified Injection) engine which produced 195 kW (262hp) @ 6400 rpm and torque of 350 Nm (358lb/ft) at 3500 rpm.

The design team decided that the engine was to be mounted in the center (i.e. mid-mounted) and so it would most likely be mated to a transaxle as used for a front wheel drive car, but with the unit in the mid-engine position driving the rear wheels, in a similar set-up to the Lamborghini Muira. The SP Concept design is 4,143.43 mm long, 1,810.00 mm wide, and 1,191.00 mm high.

Given that this new SP would have more than triple the engine power of the original SP2 there is no way that this car could be called “Sem Potência”, in fact “Super Performance” might be more apropos.

With a mid-mounted transverse four cylinder engine the SP Concept could potentially have decent luggage carrying capacity in the front and perhaps a small additional space in the rear: making it a very practical touring car. Weight distribution should also be close to an idea 50/50, especially with a spare wheel stored in the front, and potentially the battery fitted in the front also. From the concept pictures it would seem the radiator was planned to be front mounted

In computer simulated wind tunnel testing the SP Concept achieved a respectable drag coefficient of 0.34. Overall the design looks to provide great stability, including high speed highway stability, and with its fully independent suspension should also provide excellence in handling.

The students had a student named Rafael Reston create the 3D modeling of their car and created a 1:5 scale model which they presented at a college event in 2003. Their design was much admired, being awarded the “Best Car” of the event. This SP Concept was a fitting tribute to those who designed the original Volkswagen SP2, and also to the Brazilian automobile industry that had achieved some remarkable things in the period when importation of cars was almost totally banned.

Despite being labelled “Sem Potência” the Volkswagen SP2 was not only a successful touring coupé but it was also the car that gave us the Volkswagen EA425 concept and then from that the Porsche 924, which was a car that realized the potential in the Volkswagen SP design.

The college student’s SP Concept car demonstrates that the original vision is not dead, and perhaps there will be a small scale car manufacturer who takes a serious look at it with a view to making a new sports coupé.

Much of the hard design work is already done by a team of professional engineers, and the final car is a genuinely beautiful coupe that’s already winning the hearts and minds of those who see it.

If you’d like to get in touch with the design team with a view to building the car you can contact us here and we’ll put you in touch with them.

Photo Credits: Volkswagen, SP Concept Group

The post The Volkswagen SP2 + The New (Almost) Production-Ready SP Concept Car appeared first on Silodrome.

source https://silodrome.com/volkswagen-sp2/

#cars

[ibelieveinahappilyeverafter]

Villainous Heroics - Chapter 5

Ha, well, this chapter got away from me! I had a lot of fun with it, though, so hopefully you all will, too! The first scene is directly inspired by one of the comics that @corndog-patrol did for this AU! For those who are curious immediately, the song is I Can't Decide by the Scissor Sisters. It's a very Villain!Mic song.

Edit - The previous chapters have been edited to where Shota refers to Kayama Nemuri as Nemuri instead of Kayama. This change was due to the fact that I thought Kayama was her first name. Wiki did me wrong, y'all.

Enjoy!

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Summary: Eraserhead is an underground hero who is constantly busy and doesn’t have time to be dealing with new villains - even if they aren’t all that villainous and make the night interesting.

Present Mic is the latest up-and-coming villain in the world and he has a point to prove to everyone out there - as long as he doesn’t keep getting distracted by Eraserhead.

Aizawa Shota is someone who soon learns that there is more to someone than the mask they show to the world - especially when it comes to playing heroes and villains.

Yamada Hizashi learns that there is more to heroics and villainy than he could have ever thought - especially in a world where some heroes still care about those lost in the shadows.

(Inspired and dedicated to corndog-patrol’s Villain!Mic AU on Tumblr.)

             <<First/Chapter>> <<Last Chapter>> <<Next Chapter>>

                                              Chapter Five

There were times where every pro hero made mistakes in their career, whether the ensuing results were small or not. Shota remembered the lessons his teachers had given his class when he had attended U.A., and some of them had been grim. There was no saving everyone, there would be battles where one would never be able to learn from the mistakes made, and there would be some mistakes that would be made that could have been preventable.

Shota had become too comfortable and secure in his routine. He knew he had that drawback - as did many other heroes - but he hadn’t expected it to end with him tied to a chair. A little wiggling showed that he wouldn’t be escaping the ropes unless he managed to break the chair or dislocate a shoulder and, considering he didn’t see his capture weapon anywhere, he was hesitant to put himself in a position where he would only be fighting with one hand.

“Well, well… Looks like the infamous Eraserhead can be caught after all.” Glaring up at the man in front of him, Shota narrowed his eyes when he was only met with laughter. “Come on, Eraser, let me have my fun! I’ve been at this for so long now.”

“You know kidnapping a pro hero is an actual act of villainy, don’t you?” Shota glared at where Present Mic was staring at him with a wide grin and crossed arms. For as much annoyance as he felt, he couldn’t really bring himself to feel worried.

“Of course I do! How many times do we have to go over the fact that I, Present Mic, being of sound mind-” Present Mic stumbled over the words when Shota gave a quiet laugh. “Oi! Don’t be mean!”

“Alright. You’ve captured me. Now what?” There was a stretched silence, Shota not surprised when Mic finally broke his gaze. If there was one thing he had learned after all these months, it was that Present Mic couldn’t harm a soul to save his life. He really was such a terrible villain. “What? No plan?”

“Well,” Mic said, drawing the word out before a sharp grin was back. “I could always sing to you, if you want.”

“I don’t.” Shota glanced around the room they were in, wrinkling his nose at seeing it was a drafty, old room that looked to be a part of a closed or condemned building. That just meant he could be anywhere along his usual patrol route, though.  

“Too bad.” That was all it took for Mic, a man born without any sense of shame, to begin singing a song in English that had Shota rolling his eyes. Present Mic, it seemed, was fond of anything in English, but he seemed to speak the language well enough. As he sang, Shota noticed he even had a tinge of an American accent and he wondered if that was a side effect of his quirk or if he had spent time in America. Could he mimic sounds and other voices? That seemed like it would be useful for underground work.

“I’m not a gangster tonight.” The touch of a hand on his shoulder slightly startled Shota, but not enough for him to show it as Mic pranced around him like he was having the time of his life. Shota really shouldn’t be surprised. Present Mic’s ‘debut’ involved forcing people to sing karaoke. “Don’t wanna be a bad guy!

Maybe if Shota avoided eye contact and did his best to pretend, he wasn’t there it would end sooner. He knew enough English to get along, but not enough that he couldn’t tune it out to a background murmur if he wanted – or needed, in this case.

“I’m just a loner, baby.” The hand was on his other shoulder this time and Shota felt how close Mic was. He made sure to not give him the attention he apparently needed to survive. “And now you’ve gotten in my way!”

An arm was around his shoulder, a hand on his chest, and Shota kept his head turned and his gaze as far to the right as possible. He was starting to regret putting up with this man’s behavior when it seemed to have only encouraged him.

“I can’t decide whether you should live or die!” The man was ‘dancing’ around the room and Shota took the chance to at least roll his eyes. One of them was having fun, it seemed. With the distance, though, it did give Shota the chance to notice that Mic wasn’t wearing his typical leather jacket or the speaker system around his neck and was instead in just a plain white shirt. Shota wasn’t sure if that was a good sign or a bad one. “Oh, you’ll probably go to heaven, please don’t hang your head and cry.”

Huh. Listening to the lyrics, this seemed like a very dark song for someone like Present Mic. Shota wasn’t worried until a heavy leather boot landed between his legs and pressed against the chair he was in, Mic’s arm thrown over his eyes dramatically, “No wonder my heart feels dead inside!”

A sudden push and Shota felt himself fall towards the ground back first. “It’s cold and hard and petrified!” Grunting at the jarring fall, Shota looked up to see that Mic’s boot was still on the same part of the chair and pinning him down, Mic’s smile wide and wicked as he leaned over and pushed up his glasses to give a wink of green eyes that were so bright they almost glowed, “Lock the doors and close the blinds, we’re goin’ for a ride!”

For a single moment, Shota could only feel shock as he stared up at Mic before the man was pushing off and dramatically dancing around the room as he sang the rest of the song. Shota stayed on the ground and his shock quickly turned to embarrassed anger because why the fuck had Present Mic looked, to borrow Nemuri’s words, fuckable.

Right. Shota could have a crisis over this, later. The one thing Mic had neglected to do, it seemed, was check his pockets, and, luckily for him, Shota’s knife was now right near his fingertips.

It took a little under seven minutes for Shota to break his bonds, get Mic to stop his ridiculous singing, and pin the man enough that he could start to handcuff him. He may have put a bit too much force behind a few of his punches, but that’s what the man deserved for frustrating him so badly. Shoat hated that he could already imagine Nemuri’s comments when she found out about this little debacle.

“I wasn’t really going to kill you!” Mic whined, staying still as Shota fit the handcuffs around his wrists. Shota was only a touch amused that the man always gave in and complacently let himself be cuffed once he was pinned and beaten.

“Tell that to the cops, you melodramatic Disney villain.” That amusement was overwhelmingly drowned out by annoyance and anger because Shota was still having an inner crisis. For as much as he insisted the other man wasn’t a villain, he was a criminal at the very least. Shota decided that he wasn’t even going to let his thoughts continue in that direction. It was too embarrassing.

“Boo.” Mic puffed his cheeks out and looked like the social mess he was again. Maybe Shota had been having Stockholm Syndrome symptoms because there was no other way that he had suddenly found Present Mic attractive when Shota had been tied up and unable to move with the man smugly standing over him.

Fuck. Nemuri was going to tease him for years if she ever found out about this. Right. He could never drink around her again.

“Oh, Eraser, your scarf is over in the other room.” Pausing, Shota blinked down at Mic, who gave him a little smile. “I didn’t want to lose it. Steel wire alloy woven with carbon nanofibers, right? Sounds expensive.”

“How did you know that?” This was what always threw Shota for a loop. The man had just pranced around the room and sang a song after capturing him like this was all a game, and now here he was with a look in his eyes that was far too clever for someone who acted like an idiot.

“It wasn’t that hard to guess,” Mic grumbled, rolling his eyes as he shuffled towards the other room, not even trying to make a break for it. “It was pretty easy to be sure, though, when your scarf didn’t work quite right around that one gang member with the fire quirk we fought. Those are the only kinds of materials that would be affected by heat like that - not to mention carbon nanofibers would be the only thing that would be able to handle the steel alloy without the scarf itself being ripped to shreds – especially considering what you put it through.”

Shota stared at Mic for a long moment, finally sighing as he rubbed at his eyes. His voice was soft, though, when he finally spoke, “Why are you doing all of this? You’re obviously not an idiot.”

“No, I’m not.” Startled at that, he looked to where Mic was nudging his leather jacket aside with his foot, Shota’s capture weapon wrapped up neatly in the corner of the room. A swift kick and it was sliding over to stop in front of Shota’s feet. “Hey, can you pick up my jacket for me?”

“You can’t do it yourself.” Grinning at the glare he was given, Shota made sure the familiar weight of his weapon was around his neck and shoulders before picking up the jacket, noticing the speaker nearby. “That’s a directional speaker for your quirk, right? Where did you get it?”

“Hm? Oh, I designed most of it myself, but I know this guy who was able to do the actual building of it.” Mic looked up from his jacket and paused at seeing Shota’s expression before giving a grin that was almost teasing. “Hey, hey, enough with the pity looks, hero. I don’t need them.”

“Mm.” This man was smart enough that he could have done so many things, but here he was in a horrible area playing at being villain for a reason Shota couldn’t figure out. It seemed the more they talked, though, the less Mic hid behind that bright, goofy behavior - although he was still far too loud and cheerful.

“Right, then! I need something out of the right pocket. You can either get it yourself or you can make me get it. Depends on if you think it’s a trap or a weapon, I suppose, but then again, would I really hurt you, hero?” It was ridiculous that the English nickname was what made Shota’s mind up for him.

Shota held the jacket out, Mic pouting as he turned around and tried reaching into one of the pockets while his hands were still cuffed. It was more amusing than it probably should have been considering Mic’s leather gloves weren’t helping him in getting into the pockets. “I can hear your laughter, Eraser.”

“You’re mistaken. I don’t laugh.” Shota hid his smile as Mic struggled for a minute or two before finally pulling out a plastic bag that had a white business card inside. “Handing out business cards?”

“I’m not,” Mic muttered, tone dark. It was a tone that made Shota straighten up at once before narrowing his eyes. “It was given to me a little over a week ago when I was at this club. The guy seemed like bad news and was talking about how people were interested in my quirk. I don’t think they know much about it because they offered to make it stronger instead of just kidnapping me.”

The way the words were said, simple and matter-of-fact, made Shota frown as he thought about Mic’s quirk. It was a voice amplifying quirk which sounded simple enough, but remembering back to the bar… How dangerous did Present Mic think his quirk was if he fought most of the time without it? How powerful was it if villains were already wanting to use it? Shota sighed, looking back to the card, “And? How’d they offer to make it stronger.”

“The guy called it Trigger-” The rest of the words cut off with a yelp as Shota slammed Mic against the wall, gripping his chin and forcing the man’s mouth to open as his heart near beat its way out of his chest. When he saw the tongue - pink, not black - Shota almost slumped in relief. “Oi, oi, if you wanted a kiss, then all you had to do was ask!”

“Shut up, you idiot. Trigger turns the tongue black.” It was also one of the more dangerous drugs still out on the street even though Shota had spent the last few years trying to get rid of it.

Shota forced the thoughts out of his head and glared at him, knowing it was a weak glare when Mic’s face softened, his voice quiet when he spoke again, “Like I said, the guy felt dangerous. I didn’t touch the card and I didn’t take whatever drug he attached. I don’t know if it’s laced or anything, but you might find a fingerprint on there if you check.”

“You’re a terrible villain,” Shota finally said, letting go of Mic and tucking the covered card away in one of his pouches before he was bending down to grab the leather jacket and speaker system. “Come on. The police are going to want to know there’s Trigger in this area.”

“Not like they’ll care,” Mic snorted, tone bitter as he followed him. “You’re the only hero that ever seems to come this far into the area, you know. The rest of them don’t give a damn what happens to people here, and if you call yourself a hero we all know what a joke it is.”

“Is that why you call yourself a villain and end up helping?” Shota knew pushing wasn’t going to give him any answers, but he couldn’t help but want to know as much as he could about this man.

“Spoilers, baby,” Mic grinned, sunglasses slipping down as he gave a little wink. “I just figured a hero that’s actually going to do something should get that.”

“Was the kidnapping even necessary, then?” Because Shota hadn’t been a fan of being tied to a chair. Waiting for Mic’s laugh and flirtatious joking, Shota frowned when it didn’t come. “Mic?”

“They knew my quirk and they knew where to find me to give me that card,” Mic finally said, voice quiet as he glanced around the street when they stepped outside. “That means on some level they’re watching me, and, well… Only a villain would kidnap a hero, right?”

As they walked to the closest precinct, Shota knew he had been given a lot to think about. Setting aside his… feelings for the man, Shota could see in a purely objective sense that this man wasn’t a villain.

If Present Mic were to ever become a true villain, he would be unstoppable.

                                                           ::

“Maybe I should have ripped his tongue out,” Shota said quietly, a warbling meow his own answer to his musings. “Then I wouldn’t be hearing his voice everywhere, at least.” He also wouldn’t be daydreaming about that last week when Present Mic had kidnapped him and sang to him. It seemed no matter how he tried to drown it out - whether with radio or television - he just kept hearing the man’s voice and seeing that stupid, sunshine smile. It was a good thing Shota never fought Present Mic in the day. The sun was already bright enough, and he didn’t need to put up with that and Mic’s smile.

It was getting bad. Nemuri had already caught on that Shota was hiding something from her and seemed to be narrowing the cause down each day. It wouldn’t take long until she guessed right, and Shota would be forced to move to another country. Maybe he could have Nemuri deal with Present Mic from now on. No, that was a bad idea, Mic would just come to his apartment since he apparently knew where he lived.

Maybe he should move? Hm. That seemed like a lot of effort when he was already settled in a nice little apartment that was close to his agency and close to U.A. He’d move if Mic broke in. Maybe.

Hearing Mic’s voice filter through his thoughts again, Shota groaned and laid down on his couch, Jelly not bothering to move from where she was on his lap. It took a long few moments to realize that the voice wasn’t in his head.

“-who just released a killer album last month! I’d definitely recommend checking them out!” That was Mic’s voice. No one else could put that much enthusiasm in words. Scrambling to sit up, Shota stared at his radio that he had turned on to fill up the silence. It was on a radio station that he honestly couldn’t remember, but he knew he had listened to it before around his time of night and had yet to hear that voice. “Next up… Oh, man, next up these idiots had some truly horrendous music they were about to play you. Not to worry though, listeners, because Present Mic is here to set the record straight!”

Shota was off the couch and halfway to the door when another song started to play, his capture weapon settling around his shoulders. While it was his night off, he was sure the police wouldn’t mind working with the hero who had become Present Mic’s babysitter.

It took a while to find someone who was willing to talk to him about just what was going on, of course, but Shota eventually found out that this wasn’t the first time Mic had taken over a radio station. It wasn’t even his second or third, according to the police officer he was talking to.

“And no one’s reported this?” Shota had his arms crossed, the officer shaking her head with a heavy sigh.

“No, they haven’t, and you know how it works. If we don’t get reports, then we can’t really call for a pro hero in to help.”

“That’s because the music he plays is actually decent!” An officer from behind the desk was shouting, the woman - Shelly? - glaring back at him. “Come on, admit it, you agree with me.”

“Shouldn’t you be working, Takamara! I know for a fact you have at least three case files still open!”

“Oi, you’re Eraserhead, aren’t you?” Hearing his hero name, Shota looked over to a set of chairs, two scantily dressed women handcuffed to them. The one who had spoken looked to be a bit older, but her grin was sharp as Nemuri’s. “Present Mic’s Eraserhead?”

Giving it a moment of thought, Shota finally responded, “No.” This only made the woman laugh, the younger girl behind her looking between them curiously. “What of it?”

“You’re looking for him, right? The radio station he’s at tonight should be the one down by the bar on Block 10 in this area.”

“And why would you be helping me if you know who Present Mic is? He sounds like a friend of yours.”

“Oh, baby, that’s why I’m helping.” Definitely like Nemuri. “Want me to pull up the website on your phone? They do live broadcasts.”

“No.” Shota took his phone out, holding it out to the girl slightly behind her. “She can do it. I don’t trust you.”

“I can’t believe he loves someone so nasty.” While the woman complained, the younger girl carefully took his phone, looking hesitant. “It’s okay, Lucy, he’s nasty, but he’s a good one. He’s a friend of Present Mic’s.”

“I wouldn’t say friend,” Shota muttered, noticing that Lucy nodded and relaxed before tapping on his phone. The girl looked too young to be handcuffed to a chair in a police station. While her blonde hair looked dyed, the bright white fur on her rabbit mutation quirk at least looked natural. There was still baby fat on her cheeks, Shota noticed.

“You know how it is around here, pro hero,” the woman said quietly, gaze going back to Lucy. “We do what we have to.” A second later and they heard Mic’s voice filtering out from Shota’s phone.

“-I mean, it wasn’t like it was my fault he fell out the window! Sure, okay, I punched him, but to be fair, he was playing such terrible music, listeners!” It was definitely Mic.

Lucy offered his phone back and Shota took it carefully before thanking her quietly and pocketing the phone, leaving it on before he was setting off. He was starting to wonder just how far Mic was taking this little pretend game of having feelings for him if even people in the police station knew about it.

Taking to the rooftops, Shota listened as Mic continued the show, opening a question and answer segment to inflate his already oversized ego. The first ‘question’ was someone swearing at him, Mic hanging up with an awkward laugh and quickly taking the next call.

“What was the name of that one song you played after the last time you talked? The one with the line ‘the sun never sets.’”

“Oh! That was Unbreakable! It’s number sixteen on the charts now and I have no doubt it’ll break into the top ten, at the very least!” Huh. Mic seemed to honestly like music, so at least his own persona wasn’t a gimmick. “I have a CD of Utada’s latest album at my own apartment, and let me tell you listeners, it’s great! Now, let’s keep it going with the next question!”

“Hi, so, uh, my partner for this class project is working at the station you’re at tonight and he still hasn’t done his half of the report yet… Did you kill him? I really need a good grade in this class.” Shota felt like turning right around and going home and retiring because was there any point in helping people like this?

“Not to worry, dear listener!” Mic sounded like he was having a hard time controlling his laughter and Shota hated how much he liked the sound. “The two usual controllers are safely wrapped up in the other room with no harm done. He’ll be able to help no problem!”

“Oh, cool. If you want to punch him, though, that’s fine, too. He probably deserves it. Great songs tonight, by the way. Better than the usual trash.”

It went like that the entire time it took Shota to get to the radio station where all of this was going on, Shota keeping a portion of his attention on the show, so he could listen for any information that might have helped him.

He didn’t think there was any helpful information in knowing Mic’s favorite food, color, and animal - okonomiyaki, yellow, and a tie between cockatoos and cats – but he ended up paying more attention than he should have.

When he dropped down in front of the station door - cracked open - Shota heard a viewer ask the very question he had been asking since he had first met Present Mic.

“Present Mic, I was just wondering, why are you a villain when you seem so nice?” There was nothing except dead air as Shota turned his phone off and pushed his way into the building, but a second later he heard Mic’s voice over speakers that seemed to be set up throughout the halls so the station always had its own music playing.

“Ah, well… That’s a bit of a tough question, listener.” Strained didn’t even begin to cover how Mic’s voice sounded. “Becoming a villain… was a bit of a wakeup call to all the pro heroes out there, I suppose.”

A wakeup call? Shota frowned and quietly made his way through the building, sticking to the shadows as he tried to figure out what that could mean. The listener seemed to have the same question, “What do you mean?”

“I mean, dear listener, that it’s a wakeup call to the heroes out there that the game they play isn’t the same game to others. It’s a reminder that all those ‘villains’ they take down aren’t always out to kill anyone or even hurt anyone. They’re as much victims as the civilians that get caught up in it all.”

Mic’s voice was getting more and more serious and Shota couldn’t help but feel a touch satisfied that he was at least right in the fact that Mic had a reason to be the villain he claimed. “The system of pro heroes has done a lot of good for our country, but it’s done just as much bad in the recent years. Sometimes the system fails, and I wanted to make people see what a failure it was.”

Vindication, but done in the name of proving just how bad their system was. Jeez… he was a villain in his actions, but a hero in his beliefs.

“When… When you tell a child that they have a dangerous quirk, what happens to them? When you force that child to never use that quirk that is called dangerous and a villain’s quirk, what happens to that child?”

Shota stumbled in his steps as he felt a chill run through him. He knew that the system was bad - especially in places like this and in places where he himself grew up, but the way Mic had said those words left an uncomfortable feeling crawling down his spine. Maybe there was more reason than one as to why Mic never used his quirk.

Just like that, though, Present Mic was laughing and sounding like the persona he had crafted, fun and upbeat and not at all bothered by anything. “Well, thank you listeners for sending such good requests my way and tuning in to all my ramblings! This is going to be my last song of the night, though, because it looks like my time with you all is up tonight.”

Wait, what? Why would his time be up? Looking around quickly, Shota frowned at seeing a door at the end of the hall that had the typical red ‘On Air’ sign above it. Before he could move towards it, there was quiet laughter that came from the speakers, and it was laughter that sounded excited.

“Well? Are you coming in, Eraser?”  

#bnha #boku no hero academia #mha #my hero academia #erasermic #corndog-patrol #villainous heroics

[switchbladegoddess]

Chapter 8 of naito’s autobiography which is about his time in mexico

USA TNA participation In S where will you base your base? Although it was a TNA expedition of gthr month, it was mainly three months and a half to America but during that time I stayed at the hotel in Orlando in Florida for a long time .. TNA is a venue within Orlando's "Universal Studios Florida" So I was recording games for TV taping. I think that it is probably about 1000 people not to enter probably because it is only the side from the main camera that the audience seats are made by making the audience seats and entrance gates in the place like the exhibition hall and placing the ring. Take a game of about two days and four weeks a month at a stretch here. We feel like one game a day. After that there was a PPV shooting with regular broadcast at about 1 a month, otherwise it was somewhat live show at other venues. That's why T does not exist. I was surprised that the number of games was quite small compared to New Japan, but in the NA era of Team 3D that was close to the hotel, I went through a total of 10 games and practiced a bit.D dojo is Brother Ray & Brother, Di ↓ "Youm 3D Academy" which was then the 1 WGP Tahugu champion then! Because there was a ring there, I played a game with young players at week 3, and Ray and Deepon were not about that content, but I could hardly understand almost (lol) I was instructing that my father seems to be a hot blooded foster, and have a rumbling dumbbell. He seems not to be a former wrestler, though. Well, the number of games is small, but I did not feel uneasy especially at that time. 11 TNA also learned Okada athletes and learned to be aware of the position of the camera during the match at the site, how about that? That is the same for me. Often it is said that millions of people are watching over the main camera r that TNA's erotic person ". It may be hard for Japanese customers to understand, but since TNA is mainly televised, it was playing while thinking about the camera's ancestry somehow. It is part that thinks attractive game, and this experience is living even after coming back to Japan. Even though I am watching Okada's game, I do not think she is conscious of the camera NO LIMIT won the MCMG with a non-title title in the first game of TNA, made a good start, I think that the reaction of customers was also good, is not it different from Japan? I bet he probably did not know who we were, but I think he was surprised at the movement of Koch. However, the ring of hexagonal system of TN A characteristic was hard to do anyway. Running at right angles to the opponent, basically it is necessary to run in the oblique direction of the opponent without having a corner, so, that is why, that was not used to the end at that time +2 «u was big names such as Sting, Cart, Angle, Kevin Nash etc in the American matte world, but what about doing research by watching the game? Or, I have not seen much of it (laugh). I think that I am interested in observing it now, but I was a wrestler over there and I had a bit of contact with Tama Tonga before coming to New Japan ... I saw it in the 3D dojo several times . When Tiger Hattori came to Orlando, we all went to eat rice, including Tama's father Mr. Ki Gaku, and Mr. Haku had seen the game left in fan days , "When you first met," Are you the one who was up to Arai Japan? "I thought after. It was Scott Steiner that I met a bit with the TNA and after all I was amazing at Steiner Brothers in New Japan in the 1990's, so I hit it with Patru Royal only once, so I got him over over the top rope I was dropped. At that time TNA had a lot of athletes, but I thought that the quality of the game was high is MCMG and AJ. I only watched their games. TNA is getting into the venue early in the day, it has been time to leave and slept in the waiting room. Because it is at 18 o'clock but the competition must be at 10 o'clock. Well, I guess I have only to go to bed. (Laugh) "11 As a result, from the surroundings I took a GOOD NIGHT and Nightwear," GOOD NAITO. It seems to have been called (laugh). r, what is this Japanese? (Laugh) "TNA had luxurious catering so much in the day and night, but basically I slept except to eat meals, but I occasionally play cards I had it mixed with AJ. It is rare for me to take that kind of behavior from myself, but it was 1 ton by crushing the ruins while playing cards with AJ and the opponent of the staff. I did not know the game, but I got taught somehow, I, sap and ase as "I am playing with uu, me, A J -." (1 夭) "When traveling abroad, are you also concerned about the trend of New Japan Matt? Will you be forgotten?" I was checking the news that I did not have when leaving Japan on the net. I was particularly concerned about the location of the 1 wGP junior tag. MC challenged in the United States and lost, MCMG did a defensive game with Ap o 11 o 55 in Japan, but even then you absolutely win! Because I was thinking. If it is not, there is no meaning that we got into America. 11 Especially what hard work did you have in the field? Because I thought, it is a barrier of words after all the words. We need English to appeal something before, during and after the game, we can not do that at all. Even when taking a promo, the TNA side did not have to speak r so much "It was like a feeling (bitter smile). No matter how good the game is in the United States, I understand it painfully that I can not succeed unless I can appeal in my business. Come to think of it, I also made Mike practice at the 3D dojo. Yujiro was doing his best in English in katakoto, but I can not speak at all, so what am I going to do. If you do that, you can do it for Japanese"I was ordered, Tetsuya Naito, my favorite food is a monster! I remember saying something like "(r)" It is delicious when you add mentaiko! It is great to eat while drinking a cola! "While saying" While I can say only this, there is a meaning to practice microphone I thought, 'Wonderful?' However, perhaps the outcome of the exercise at that time may be demonstrating now (laugh) In this TNA expedition it was the biggest match for NO LIMIT that was done on April 19> At MCMG 1 wGP Junior Tag with wire mesh 3 WAY Th e L atin A me ri can 2 change (It was a game that fulfilled the challenge with Homicide & Sean Hernande. In this house show about 2 days ago, Alex Sherry and Tag When I got involved, I got dislocated from his throwing technique and dislocated his knees.I was so swollen that I could not move at all.When on the day I hit a pain stop and tightened to tighten in the taping, the throne Although I tried to force it out because I could not shake the opportunity of war, it was not that sweet, TNA has also learned a lot, but I get back the belt Vivid debut with Mexican stews NO LIMIT went through the TNA expedition for three and a half months and wrestled Mexico CMLL from the end of May 2009 wwar What is this background? Originally, I planned to return to Japan in about two months after I regained IWGP junior tag from MCMG. It is just bad even if I go back to Japan as a result of a series match in the title match 4 It is feeling that I changed the ring to fight in the sense of breaking the state that er 勐 H was. If you are successful in CMLL, you can raise the value of NO LIMIT. - ICM LL is a naive group with the oldest history in the world. However, there are images that anyone who experienced a noise experience players who traveled to Mexico, but did not resist? I was worried about what kind of country in advance, but it is a dangerous place to investigate anywhere. To honesty I wanted to change the fighting environment, I honestly thought "I do not want to go for a while" (laugh). K, Funi, I watched the CMLL relay on Samurai TV in the era. At that time Mistico was a big There was no ater in Rucha as it was happening at , and the packing of Arena Mexico continued. Because I liked faster game development rather. However, there was prepared that I can not do it because I went to Mexico and I could not return home live (lol) "Yujiro leaked complain about Mexico entry, r ah, I never ever I had never been to go back to Japan and both of them would have enlarged the belly without any souvenirs.It will be impossible to return to Japan and the first round of CMLL will be on May 29th at the Arena Mexico Tournament Semi.Le Junior & La Sombra with a trio with El · Ifjo de Dos · Crows (Dos · Kaktor · Garza & Vorado · Ar-ú del Rio which becomes 33-ancu-ame to ena-se) Three people also participated in the New Japan later, and it seems that about 10,000 people were in the venue when I thought that it was awesome cards Japan and the United States It is totally different, the most way is to support, Mexico does not have a habit of flying calls to players together.If you like to blow a rumble that is like Vuvuzela, I mean, we were Ruud, but the response of the venue was not clear at the time It was a big boat. According to what I heard later. The guys who were near-tag champions come! It seems they had pretty much promoted it, like the advertisement like - u6 ga ga garasa down by ca at Stardust Press Garza decided to make a relentless debut with Canceled CMLL side I feel that syuji and this one became a big branch point for NO LIMIT. I decided Stardust Press at first, and KO the top players. Without this impact, the name could also be sold with a single shot, and the future of NOLIM ︼T after it seems to have changed a lot. I think that it was also connected to Ross Ingo Perna Breath after that. Did you recognize the players of R>? No, not at all in this first battle. However, as for Dos · crow, r has a little rim. He has been to the general competition in Japan several times, is not it? At that time, I got a ticket to a group of Hamaguchi gym and went to see the convention of the Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium (01-8: 18 = .DEEP 2001 In YOKOHAMA). At this time, Dos Crows threw the over mask to the audience seats before the game, but I caught it (laugh). I also wanted to tell him this episode But at that time, Spanish was also clear, so it was regrettable that I was not able to tell it, but when I was z ^ it seemed that I was staying at Eji Hotel all the time, but what is the life base in Mexico? I entered Mexico and 2 ^ 3 = was staying at a hotel next to Arena Mexico, but later I moved to a Japanese-owned pension found by Yujiro. After that I heard that Tanahashi Rider and middle 3P. It seems that he stayed there even when it was expedition to Mexico. Because it is for Japanese people, it seems that 4-point safety was guaranteed (laugh). But I also had dangerous eyes. I did not get stabbed, but I was scolded by a knife. Something, when I got on a taxi, the signal was stopped by a man who took a hand with a knife from the pick and r knife while swinging! What? Talk to me (laugh) "Because it was a strange eye, it may be that I was using an obscene medicine, then at that time the taxi driver got angry," Take that dirty hand back. It scolded and scolded away like me, but it was also!) "It is also nice (laugh). Speaking of a taxi, did not you do it? It is a routine event in Mexico. However, because it is not a big bait for the Japanese yen, it is said that it seems stupid SAZws fun is stupid "After two months or more - diarrhea continued and Kana In the stage immediately after entering the locality, I thought that "Tacos is Mexico is speaking" and I ate the guy who was selling at a stall in front of Paku, but that is a lucky stick "strong straw As it stops for a moment, I will be back soon again so when I go to Mexico it was over 100 kilometers over the 10 kilometers in that two months I did not want to go out much It was a mistake that I made it easily in front of the pension (laugh ).Area · Mexico's Luca classroom _ BUSH - This pension is the reunion in the selection? BUSH belonging to all Japan then - NO LIM 08 I went to Mexico since November but when I went to the preview of the pension it happened that I met Battari earlier than BUSH au T. I feel like each other? Since Hamaguchi Jim, I have not contacted Mexico all the time since that - it's BUSH when I first met! It is a fat image, but when I saw him in Mexico I was fluffy. With Mexico doppli and feel familiar. At that time impressive CAP who was accompanied by us] teaching Mr. Hattori, BUSHI takes care of you well · I will introduce sightseeing sites, teach the main shop, maybe the tie is , Boston's strength is the strength of BUSHI later (laugh) "It may be related to this transfer in 0, BUSH! The player has gone up to a different organization instead of CMLL at mexi n"? I went to a very far place. When I go to the venue with this taxi, it is a nightmare of CMLL! I guess it's gonna be like that. That's why it was 80% of what I would like to be harvested. (Laugh) - That was all that CMLL was broadcasting in a good time of terrestrial broadcasting, and I gained a sense of recognition at a stroke with a single shot that sent Gulfa to tanka. For me, Mexico is more indie group like iw RG than in the US It was a place like about 1 o'clock, but I was also enjoying having a lot of excitement going to see the game so far . - BUSH - It seems that it was a relationship held in the field. Certainly BUSH 1 took care of me, I am BUSH! I guess you'd feel like trying to give the ogle to you, BUSH! I came from Guy Guy (laugh) "I was not interested in organizations other than New Japan, and at that time he was a member of all Japan, so I did not feel like getting along well. One medicine. But, BUSH! Before I go anywhere I take the initiative I know something nice: with. It seems that half of the returning week seems to have taken me to a barbecue shop. Do not say the presence or absence when the slip comes in! "Offering to the cotch (laugh). Well, BUSH! I got a consultation when I made costumes and ring shoes in the field and he was selling it making original shirts and goods, but also support "Naito san also should do it" doing for me. Collectibles are irrespective of the permission of the group, it is feeling that each player is doing it without permission. Rather, if you do not do it yourself, it will be made without permission and sold at the shop (bitter smile). 111 Rights relationship is in an uncontrollable state (laugh). I was also Ogow, but CMLL was fight money so much! . Basically anything is ants, so that country. If you look at selling merchandises of Japanese maskmen around the venue still, you absolutely do not have permission, do you? I think (laugh). Also, BUSH! He gave me a variety of ingredients from Japan, so make curry and make rice balls for your lunch. I was able to rice well in the morning "and came to wake me up. Right now, his role in J. ru CA, in fact, it was exactly like a wife..What kind of pace was the CMLL? TNA has a small number of games, but CMLL has some permanent venues, and when I was there, Monday was around 3-4 per week from the beginning Arena Puebla 9. We are holding a tournament every week here, Tuesday is Arena · Mexico 冫: name - 1 and Arena ·, Coliseo · Guadalajara (C squirrel NE) 2 places. I wonder if it was Arena Mexico or Terrahara on Sunday. Clerical IT of CMLL It was too early to become familiar with IT Ruta. CMLL is closed on Wednesday and Thursday, Friday is on Arena Mexico on Saturday and is closed on Nácoliseo - + - a na ,, - 1, Arena · Coriceo · Guada once a week, I'm going to check out, but the games were organized on the main semi semi - NO LIM. That's why Yujiro has taken over the Japanese style battle. Whether Mexico did not suit, Rucha classroom which I am presiding also came only about the first time. _ cMLL holds a course to teach Lucha, from young people aiming for Lucha doll to active players. There are many classes, and what to do by the teacher is different. I was not forced to attend at Arena Mexico, but I was taught to the former athlete who took a break. There was not srer from the staff y; +0 so it is tires and 41 people. Q-. 'ther, r ___ ___ ___ ___ 0 ___ ___ 0 ___ ___ 0 ___ ___ ___ 0 It is practice of e to say that there were a lot of basic 6. So when you sleep after the 2 hour practice is over and go to the gym train to the gym from the evening when there is no match → + 6, honest Where in Luchi + 4 the room is quite quite quiet on the CMLL 's top, but the first places I sold originally did not come, but in my case I will stay there Because it was great that I became acquainted with other Ruchador because I was in trouble Temple helps you - What kind of lechado did you learn together? If you are familiar with Japanese fans, mascara, Dorada, or a race that is over 20 years old Probably it was before and after the CMLL debut.What is the same physique as me R "I became a partner well in the practice of becoming a pair of two people. Other than that, Sombra 6 gave a voice to me, but Jimbra was a different class. If you meet in the venue or in the street, feel free to talk about the original members of Ingo Berna Press, you tas. La I feel that the connection of has been used later. Everything is "Tranquilo" Is it also in Mexico? zo ー ー MIT was basically a separate action except on the ring, but I met only with the huge 1alar hand at the venue almost .. At the time of TNA was still in the same room at the hotel but in Mexico Because it was a separate room at Pensin, so much else. Well, I did not mention much about the pension itself, though. Unlike in the United States for some reason, I personally got hooked on Mexico. I made friends of Rucha d'Or and local colleagues, and I was imprisoned in the Mexican house unexpectedly. Back to the pension is when you are going to pick up your luggage, at that timing you feel like going out to eat rice with BUSH-. So, say "Ok then" I will return to my friend's house (laugh). 11 At that time, Naito was particularly good friends Ruchadoru? Angel de Oro 12 years rSUPER! Will you join? And then that older brother, Angel De I also know Soprano · Junior who came to 193 Plata (4th? DC) - "CMLL FANTASTICA MANIA" aw ru, war) since he was young. Because I lived behind the house of a good friend of mine. Is not the best reason why Mexico fitted was nonbillion. Everything is called "trunk-t" or CMLL officials said, "Because there is a TV coverage, we are gathering at Arena Mexico at 10 am", no one came by on time Yes. So when it comes around eleven o'clock or around twelve o'clock, it will come without worrying (a bitter smile). At the beginning I was with Ira, but the feeling that one can not be bound by that time has become fit for me. It was very free air. So, I did a lot of things that I do not do in Japan. Unlike Japan, there are no acquaintances in the venue, and even if we get in line, I do not understand it in Spanish, so it was said that it was an easy environment to do such things. For example, regular people sitting in the front row of the audience seats every time, but I was pretty much pleased. So, Mexico is tired easily because Mexico is thin, so I went to those people during the game, got a bee ,, aru or popcorn and played a game while nutritioning tu IICMLL requests and restrictions on games Did you have it? CA (laugh). It was said quite strongly that the weapon was not good. After that the pile driver is banned 194 It is cheerful, because it will be suspended when you use it, it seems that there is a license of Ruchador certified by the Mexican Federal District Commission beyond, so it seems that we can not do it together We are a special border from abroad , I got a license not to take a test, I always had one. "It was vulnerable. 6 · There was never been checked at the venue, well, well, basically if you pay for money it is what makes it the country. If there is no license for the car, the trial and Rucha · Libre competitor association (laugh). (Laugh), because it seems to buy with gold Na Nao is 8 patterns, Naito is posing positively with his index finger and thumb with his left eye Abre el ojo (AN - H Leo 4) J (REP Open your eye) It was born on an expedition this time, is not it? That's right. At first, after being afraid of being an oriental person, it is pretentious, but (uzuEre Japanese Ruchadoru) "What are you saying?" OKUMURA ​​player "Orient people are making a fool of opening their eyes. Because it is thin ". Certainly there were audiences who pulled out the edge of the eyes to narrow down the field, so on the contrary, "I see, you can open the cotch?" I started doing that gesture. After that, the reaction was big from the beginning, and it quickly penetrated as a trademark of self-sufficiency. As I walked through the city, I heard that I opened my eyes saying "Nait It is cheerful, because it will be suspended when you use it, it seems that there is a license of Ruchador certified by the Mexican Federal District Commission beyond, so it seems that we can not do it together We are a special border from abroad , I got a license not to take a test, I always had one. "It was vulnerable. 6 · There was never been checked at the venue, well, well, basically if you pay for money it is what makes it the country. If there is no license for the car, the trial and Rucha · Libre competitor association (laugh). (Laugh), because it seems to buy with gold Na Nao is 8 patterns, Naito is posing positively with his index finger and thumb with his left eye Abre el ojo (AN - H Leo 4) J (REP Open your eye) It was born on an expedition this time, is not it? That's right. At first, after being afraid of being an oriental person, it is pretentious, but (uzuEre Japanese Ruchadoru) "What are you saying?" OKUMURA ​​player "Orient people are making a fool of opening their eyes. Because it is thin ". Certainly there were audiences who pulled out the edge of the eyes to narrow down the field, so on the contrary, "I see, you can open the cotch?" I started doing that gesture. After that, the reaction was big from the beginning, and it quickly penetrated as a trademark of self-sufficiency. As I walked through the city, I heard that I opened my eyes saying "Naito!" Because there were many people who showed Bose, but in fact, it was not like ifa strings Gttee, Yujiro player ab, were you outraged? (Well, that poise came in, there are also many farming associations receiving interviews from various media on the site and it is said that in the talk show like r konko in Japan " I had been out, but because Spanish was the main thing so basically I just did a pose that opened my eyes all the time (laugh) "Were you playing with iR! 110 at that time? I was cheerful but I did not come to the scene on the day (bitter smile). Even though I take it one, I think that Mexico did not suit me. "OKUMURA ​​Even though the players are careful, Even if you are looking at by side whether you are watching by side, the feeling that you are having fun in the United States has been communicated, so Hirouji Shiro is nothing more about what will happen in Mexico, how it will be formed after coming back to Japan Thinking about it 41 On the contrary, I was thinking about Japan about returning to Japan n 40 and thinking that it was not the top in C MLL. "Did there be any difference in the popularity of NO LIMIT at the site? I think that it was so, like the cheers in the game, the venue 0, the rate I can call out when I get out Since I was watching the sun at Arenamakebi m and being playing well, it was Shokufuku, and in Rude ai - u the loss of Ross, Guerrero slug Nero 's missing! Timo Greero who did it was that boss and it was more noticeable as it was characterized by an aggressive attack. For Technico "r»: a 5, "The popularity of Stiko and Polador is terrible, and it is as the continuing after that, Sombra, about twenty years old, gathered attention and supported it, and to Japanese fans I suppose it will not be familiar, but I remember well the season like Tuscano and it is not a player with big features, but because I was the opponent who won the hair cut match. 111 Hair trimmer match, the Arena mehi nva hosted the big match r Infinno on July 31, 2009. It is a battle against 15 crowded wire gauze Cabella in A-L-Ring. It is er. As a fighting game, the man who escaped from the wire mesh is overwhelming, and at the end it became a single fight with Toscan EN, and I was dangerous whether it was late running away and being a booby penalty (K) 7-11 Last Naito fought at the Dragon Soup Rex and Toscano became a full-bodied figure! This and the first Tiger Mask Sayama on January 16, the Japanese won the match against Caberajer at Arena Mexico 79 A year ago, Alphon? Danthes. Since I made it a tea ceremony, it was the first time in 30 years that I gathered aw and collected It would not have been transmitted to Japan, but the locality was blown up by mecha kuchiya. In the first place u himself was winning Mexicans at the main of Arena Mexico, it was almost impossible almost impossible, so at the moment I won, the fireworks came up in the hall and confetti snowed. In that victory, I thought that the fire was more popular, listening to the name of the chief - Tiger is also legendary in the field, but rather I was called Raigel You're a Ryger player. When we were in Mexico, big linger players also joined in short-term expedition due to the appearance of Hisabisa in Mexico, but it was a hot topic. Ryger has participated in CMLL for about two weeks from September 11, 2009. I'm going to pick up Ryger at the airport, but not a local specialty magazine or a sports newspaper but a great number of media gathered from general magazines to television. Even when NOLIMI T entered Mexico, the number of TVs was one or two, but it did not compare with that one. -NO LIMIT is a quartet with Riger player and 0 KUMURA ​​players and Guelero & Atlantis & Garza & Black Warrior at the annual maximum event of CML on September 18 r Anniversary Salio " I won pairs and left the impact. At that time Arena Mexico was buried gissiri from end to end and it was awesome excitement, so its impression is stronger than the game. Mexico is strongly patriotic, so booing was focused on nch as expected, but when I came up with the Riger player at CMLL, I realized again that "Riger 's awesome popularity is reality. In my CMLL my popularity is higher "I thought. However, I was confident through this expedition as much as "I am not a device for Liger." The feeling was really strong. In the middle of November, during the expedition of Mexico in the war against Cabella, Mr. Sugiba president (currently · 0 and Tiger Hattori visited the site, having a meeting with the representative Francisco Alonso, the work of both groups The partnership was officially announced.CMLL It was thought that because NO LIMIT played an active part in Mexico that it became a solid relationship to that. Prior to that, Tanahashi player, Nakayashi Cho, Taguchi player and Goto players. Many Japanese Rises to CMLL. I only have and only months we have continued to rise to E main or semi because we are the only ones we had business collaboration announced during our expedition and it will be the success of NO LIMIT . I went up to the ring of Denipur Saorio and felt the rousing enthusiasm of Luca with skin, so I thought, "Japanese fans do not know this fever but I want to tell you by our active activities." So it was a pleasure when I heard the alliance. And at this time, President Suginbayashi gave NO LIMIT a 1.4 Tokyo Dome plan for the next 10 years. However, because NO LIMIT is an important time to dig into the CMLL 's top front line, "I want you to prepare conditions, positions and guarantee that we are convinced if returning home," then -2. This is totally real intention. It is a waste to let go of the position built with our power. In the place that it is set as the summit of Mexico a little more, I am lost about what I have to go back to Japan. That was the kind of feeling that I do not want to get out of New Japan before I go out on a trip abroad, but even though I felt the possibilities and responsiveness as my wrestler in Mexico. About TN when I was concerned about Japan, but after going to Mexico that CA It is not even. So, rather than returning to Japan, I was thinking how to deliver the situation that is active in this CMLL to Japan more. , At that time, NO L-MIT is CMLL and El Terrible & Tejano Jr.'s Tag Team · Iho de Apelo. And had developed conflict. Tejano is trying to challenge the 1 w GP junior heavyweight championship held by Mr. Minoru in 2007 and · Terrible later collaborated with BULLET CLUB, both of which are related to New Japan, but what kind of Do you have an impression? CMLL is a lot of lightweight players who are good at airborne killing, but terrier and Tehano obviously have a body deck .. There is not much flying skill and ordinary Japanese heavyweight players Feeling close to us, we were mutually mutual, but CMLL was losing as soon as we inflated a foul, so it was unexpectedly batting in a straight game. And, both teams will play Capelli 2 races at the main of December 4, CMLL's Last Big Match Jin Sarida '. At this time, it was done with three games, the third one greeted one on one, Naito ate after eating a 1 and Teribre visited the diving body press and was defeated and fought. sat, zo, MIT is becoming a shudder "to the key point (bitter smile)" The shopkeeper of Life = 3 degrees That was a humiliation 4 "It was as small as memorable vs, t2% It was yelled at the Makabe player and turned down by Mr. Masaru, Mr. Hirasawa (bitter smile)" It was the third time in my life But, in the first place the game you played in Mexico is the final settlement, or the title match is like a battle. So during this expedition period I and Yujiro also rounded Luchador. That is how I left the track record and fought at the front line of CMLL, but when they lost and became a shudder r ah, it ended up "I became a feeling. That 's why the things we built are close to the feeling of collapse. It is only a few minutes to cut it, but I thought about various things. Although it is Ruud vs Rude, as it is a graphic expression of Mehi ng Ha Pon や, it is exciting when the other side won over us no matter what kind of hands, because we used to make the Mexican shoulder until then Basically think that "Zamami kan Raw" was air - At the end of this game NO LIMIT will return to the country, but is the game still unforgettable? In many ways it seems ... ... Actually, I was in physical condition with a shock when I was invited to Mr. Sugabayashi to talk about my return home in November. Something, r, ever Mexi

[helloworlddemo1122-yahoopar-blog]

Summer Film Preview: 27 of the Most Anticipated Movies of the Season!

Among ET's 90 top picks for summer are our 27 most anticipated films of the season.

Every summer, there is no shortage of new films to blow audiences away at theaters -- and blow away records at the box office. This summer, things are looking especially massive. Blockbuster season kicks off in a huge way with the highly anticipated back-to-back releases of Deadpool 2and Solo: A Star Wars Story, ushering in an onslaught of franchise films with new installments of Jurassic World, Marvel's Ant-Man, Mission: Impossible and The Purge.

Not everything is a sequel, though. Of the originals is the eagerly awaited adaptation of Crazy Rich Asians, marking the first time a major studio has produced an all-Asian-led film since The Joy Luck Club; Spike Lee's latest, BlacKkKlansman; and -- because it wouldn't be summer without one -- a shark attack flick, The Meg, starring Jason Statham.

But no matter what you’re looking forward to, there's plenty to choose from among these 27 sure-to-be hit films.

Deadpool 2 (Out Now)

The Deadpool sequel is bigger, louder and packed with more violence and superpeople, dick jokes and fourth wall-breaking meta-ness than the original X-Men-adjacent movie. And while that all sounds like a recipe for a bloated case of sequelitis, Ryan Reynolds and co. not only pull it off, but top the first.

Directed by: David Leitch | Written by: Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick and Ryan Reynolds Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Josh Brolin, Julian Dennison, Zazie Beetz, Rob Delaney, Leslie Uggams

Solo: A Star Wars Story (May 25)

Forget everything you think you know about the legendary smuggler and prepare for the unexpected. That's the best advice we can give you about Star Wars' latest anthology installment, which, sure, features the Kessel Run and Han Solo and Chewbacca's origin story, then blasts off for so much more.

Directed by: Ron Howard | Written by: Jonathan Kasdan and Lawrence Kasdan Starring: Alden Ehrenreich, Donald Glover, Woody Harrelson, Thandie Newton, Emilia Clarke

American Animals (June 1)

The Orchard / MoviePass Ventures

According to the minds behind American Animals, while most movies are based on a true story, this one is a true story, about four college students who plan "one of the most audacious art heists in U.S. history." It also marks the first appearance on this list by the true star of the summer movie season: Ann Dowd.

Directed by: Bart Layton | Written by: Bart Layton Starring: Evan Peters, Barry Keoghan, Blake Jenner, Jared Abrahamson, Ann Dowd

Hereditary (June 8)

A24

Following its screening at Sundance earlier this year, Hereditary was hailed as the scariest horror movie in years -- if not of all time. As for what actually transpires in the film, well, that is best left vague. Brace yourself for hypnotically unnerving tongue pops and flashbacks to Toni Collette's iconic turn in The Sixth Sense.

Directed by: Ari Aster | Written by: Ari Aster Starring: Toni Collette, Gabriel Byrne, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro, Ann Dowd

Ocean's 8 (June 8)

This year's Met Gala might as well have been early promo for Ocean's 8, which centers on another heist-happy Ocean, Debbie, who assembles a team of women to help rob a fictional Met Gala. (If you do some simple math, it seems Anne Hathaway's mark is one of the eight, too.) Unfortunately, Rihanna will likely not be dressed as a sexy pope.

Directed by: Gary Ross | Written by: Gary Ross and Olivia Milch Starring: Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Mindy Kaling, Sarah Paulson, Awkwafina, Helena Bonham Carter, Rihanna

Won't You Be My Neighbor? (June 8)

Focus Features

If you were a child in the '60s -- or '70s, '80s, '90s, the aughts, really, if you were a child ever -- then Won't You Be My Neighbor? will be a nostalgic return to your younger years, a look at the long-running and formative TV series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood and the man behind it, the late Fred Rogers.

Directed by: Morgan Neville

Hearts Beat Loud (June 8)

Gunpowder & Sky

This gem of an indie is for anyone who has ever wished Nick Offerman could be your best friend, your dad or both: Kiersey Clemons plays Offerman's daughter and reluctant bandmate as they navigate fame and family in Hearts Beat Louder. Sprinkle in a queer romance and an earworm-y soundtrack, and what more could you ask for?

Directed by: Brett Haley | Written by: Brett Haley and Marc Basch Starring: Nick Offerman, Kiersey Clemons, Ted Danson, Toni Collette, Sasha Lane, Blythe Danner

Hotel Artemis (June 8)

Global Road Entertainment

Read this logline: "Set in riot-torn, near-future Los Angeles, Hotel Artemis is a high-octane action-thriller starring Jodie Foster as The Nurse, who runs a secret, members-only hospital for criminals." Now re-read that sentence over and over and over until you go insane and this becomes your most anticipated movie of the year.

Directed by: Drew Pearce | Written by: Drew Pearce Starring: Jodie Foster, Dave Bautista, Sofia Boutella, Zachary Quinto, Sterling K. Brown, Jeff Goldblum

Incredibles 2 (June 15)

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

It has been well over a decade since the original Incredibles arrived in theaters and, even now, under the looming threat of superhero saturation, that first film remains one of the best superhero movies period. Finally, Mr. Incredible, Elastigirl, Violet, Dash and Jack-Jack are back, with Frozone and, of course, Edna.

Directed by: Brad Bird | Written by: Brad Bird Starring: Holly Hunter, Craig T. Nelson, Samuel L. Jackson, Catherine Keener, Sophia Bush

Tag (June 15)

Warner Bros. Pictures

This is a movie about tag -- as in, the game in which you tag someone and they are then "it." Specifically, Tag is about a group of childhood buddies who have been playing tag one month out of the year, every year, for 30 years. If you are wondering, Where do they come up with this?!, it was a Wall Street Journal article.

Directed by: Jeff Tomsic | Written by: Rob McKittrick and Mark Steilen Starring: Jeremy Renner, Ed Helms, Jake Johnson, Jon Hamm, Hannibal Buress, Isla Fisher, Leslie Bibb

Damsel (June 22)

Magnolia Pictures

If you hear that Robert Pattinson is starring in a Western, you probably have a notion of what that film is. Damsel is not the movie you're imagining, guaranteed -- unless, of course, you pictured a screwball comedy about a pioneer who voyages west with a drunkard and a miniature horse named Butterscotch.

Directed by: David Zellner and Nathan Zellner | Written by: David Zellner and Nathan Zellner Starring: Robert Pattinson, Mia Wasikowska, David Zellner

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (June 22)

In the colossally successful Jurassic World, the dinosaurs destroyed the park, as dinosaurs are wont to do, and now Isla Nublar is threatening to destroy the dinosaurs. Thus, Claire and Owen are enlisted to help save the dinosaurs from a second extinction -- and that's only the beginning of this adventure.

Directed by: J.A. Bayona | Written by: Colin Trevorrow and Derek Connolly Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jeff Goldblum, James Cromwell, Justice Smith

Under the Silver Lake (June 22)

A24

Something about those hot summer nights must make us itch for a mystery, because this is yet another noir-y flick arriving in cineplexes, albeit a very modern take on the genre. Andrew Garfield plays a stoner Angelino who begins sleuthing when his dream girl disappears in the middle of the night without a trace.

Directed by: David Robert Mitchell | Written by: David Robert Mitchell Starring: Andrew Garfield, Riley Keough, Topher Grace, Jimmi Simpson

The First Purge (July 4)

Universal Pictures

There's something almost comforting about knowing that every (sometimes every other) Independence Day brings a new installment in the ongoing Purge franchise. Who knew a nutty little murder flick could have so much steam? This one goes back to the beginning and the invention of a government-sponsored killing spree.

Directed by: Gerard McMurray | Written by: James DeMonaco Starring: Lex Scott Davis, Y'lan Noel, Luna Lauren Velez, Joivan Wade, Marisa Tomei

Ant-Man and the Wasp (July 6)

Consider the Ant-Man sequel a respite for those still reeling over the ending of Infinity War, a plucky comedic romp about heroes who shrink, supersize and now fly, too, which probably won't leave you frantically wiping away tears as the theater lights come on. Also, Michelle Pfeiffer plays a superhero!

Directed by: Peyton Reed | Written by: Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers, Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari and Paul Rudd Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas, Michelle Pfeiffer, Hannah John-Kamen, Michael Peña

Sorry to Bother You (July 6)

Annapurna Pictures

There is original, and then there is Sorry to Bother You. If a stranger, more out-there film has ever been made, I haven't seen it. I've never seen anything like this, a satiric tale about a telemarketer who uses his "white voice" to get ahead that feels at once painstakingly plotted and completely free-associated.

Directed by: Boots Riley | Written by: Boots Riley Starring: Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Jermaine Fowler, Steven Yeun, Armie Hammer

Whitney (July 6)

Whitney is not the first documentary to turn the lens on Whitney Houston in the years since her 2012 death, but it is the first to be endorsed by her estate, featuring interviews with loved ones of Houston who had never spoken publicly before and bombshell revelations that made news ahead of Whitney's official release.

Directed by: Kevin Macdonald

Eighth Grade (July 13)

A24

You know how adults always say, "I'm so happy I didn't grow up when there was social media." Watch this Sundance drama, comedian Bo Burnham's directorial debut, and feel that tenfold, alternately a cringey and heartwarming look at what it means to be coming into your own -- yes, with YouTube and Twitter.

Directed by: Bo Burnham | Written by: Bo Burnham Starring: Elsie Fisher, Josh Hamilton

Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (July 20)

Is Meryl Streep's character still alive for the Mamma Mia! sequel? Supposedly. We do know that we will see a younger version of Donna (played by Lily James) as the ABBA singalong jumps back in time to show the Dynamos' origin story, while in the present, Donna's daughter is pregnant with a baby of her own.

Directed by: Ol Parker | Written by: Ol Parker Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Meryl Streep, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters, Lily James, Colin Firth, Cher

Mission: Impossible - Fallout (July 27)

Paramount Pictures

After successfully completing five other supposedly impossible missions, whatever Ethan Hunt is tasked with in Fallout should be considered mission: pretty difficult but manageable. Still, Tom Cruise continues to up the ante in insane and preposterous ways, like jumping out of a plane at 25,000 feet, for one.

Directed by: Christopher McQuarrie | Written by: Christopher McQuarrie Starring: Tom Cruise, Rebecca Ferguson, Alec Baldwin, Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames, Henry Cavill, Angela Bassett

Christopher Robin (Aug. 3)

If you enjoyed last year's period drama Goodbye Christopher Robin, about the real boy who inspired the creation of Winnie the Pooh, then you are sure to enjoy this, too, Disney's less historical, more fantastical tale about grown-up Christopher Robin and how Pooh and the rest of the Hundred Acre Wood gang help him rediscover his imagination.

Directed by: Marc Forster | Written by: Alex Ross Perry Starring: Ewan McGregor, Hayley Atwell, Jim Cummings, Chris O'Dowd, Brad Garrett, Toby Jones

The Spy Who Dumped Me (Aug. 3)

I would pay money to watch Kate McKinnon read the phone book. Thankfully, she gets much more to do in this action-comedy, in which Mila Kunis plays the unwitting woman dumped by a spy. McKinnon plays her bestie, and the two quickly find themselves in over their heads trying to stop a terrorist group and save the world.

Directed by: Susanna Fogel | Written by: David Iserson and Susanna Fogel Starring: Mila Kunis, Kate McKinnon, Sam Heughan, Gillian Anderson, Justin Theroux

BlacKkKlansman (Aug. 10)

Focus Features

Spike Lee is back with his latest joint, the so-crazy-it-must-be-true saga of Ron Stallworth, the first black police officer in Colorado Springs, and his undercover operation to infiltrate a local Ku Klux Klan chapter, which was so successful that he eventually became its head.

Directed by: Spike Lee | Written by: Spike Lee, David Rabinowitz, Charlie Wachtel, Kevin Willmott Starring: John David Washington, Adam Driver, Topher Grace, Laura Harrier

The Meg (Aug. 10)

Warner Bros. Pictures

No summer is complete without a silly shark attack movie, and for the summer of 2018, The Meg fits that bill and then some. First of all, the shark in question is a megalodon, which basically just means a REALLY BIG F**KING SHARK, and hopefully Jason Statham will punch it at some point, right?

Directed by: Jon Turteltaub | Written by: Dean Georgaris, Jon Hoeber and Erich Hoeber Starring: Jason Statham, Ruby Rose, Rainn Wilson, Bingbing Li, Cliff Curtis, Masi Oka

Crazy Rich Asians (Aug. 17)

Based on the bestselling novel by Kevin Kwan, Crazy Rich Asians is about a Chinese American professor who travels to Singapore to meet her boyfriend's family and discovers they are -- you guessed it -- crazy rich! Hijinks ensue. This is also the first Hollywood movie with a majority Asian cast in 25 years, i.e., crazy overdue.

Directed by: Jon M. Chu | Written by: Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim Starring: Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Awkwafina, Gemma Chan, Michelle Yeoh, Ken Jeong

To All the Boys I've Loved Before (Aug. 17)

Netflix

Here's one YA fans have been waiting for. Based on the bestselling novel by Jenny Han, the title refers to letters our heroine, Lara Jean Covey, writes to her past crushes, love letters they are never meant to see -- but do, after they're accidentally mailed out. You don't need to head to the cinema to swoon over this one; it's streaming on Netflix.

Directed by: Susan Johnson | Written by: Sofia Alvarez Starring: Lana Condor, Noah Centineo, Janel Parrish, Emilija Baranac, Israel Broussard, John Corbett

The Happytime Murders (Aug. 17)

Nothing says summertime like puppets snorting ecstasy and soliciting sex. The Happytime Murders -- no lie, from the same director as The Muppet Christmas Carol and Muppet Treasure Island -- is about police partners, one felt and one Melissa McCarthy, investigating who is shooting the stuffing out of puppets.

Directed by: Brian Henson | Written by: Todd Berger Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Elizabeth Banks, Maya Rudolph, Joel McHale

MORE SUMMER PREVIEW:

Summer TV Preview: 26 of the Best New and Returning Series to Watch!

Summer Music Preview: 17 Albums We Can’t Wait to Hear

Summer Theater Preview: 11 Must-See Broadway and Off-Broadway Shows

Summer Book Preview: 9 Beach Reads by Bill Clinton, Emily Giffin, Lauren Weisberger and More!

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[justanotherprowrestlingblog]

This wasn’t planned, but i actually had some free time so i decided to spend it by coming up for a little column, where i’ll give you “My Two Cents” on something... so today we start with the 2018 Superstar Shake Up*

From Smackdown to Raw:

Jinder Mahal: First move in the Shake up and a very predictable one because usually WWE loves to switch secondary champions between SD and Raw and they did that with Mahal but not with Rollins as i thought while watching the beginning of the show...because Jinder lost the title to Jeff Hardy who got then traded to SD the following day. Mahal on raw could be a good move if he stays away from the Universal title picture.

Riott Squad: Since their debut, they didn't do much and maybe moving them to Raw could be a good move if they also get to be treated less like a women's job squad and more like a serious treat for the division. Ruby and Sarah could have some good matches with the likes of Sasha, Bayley, Alexa, Ember and even Ronda, while Liv is still very green for me but actually showed some sights of improvement in the squared circle

Sami Zayn and Kevin owens: Another predictable move and it makes sense storyline wise that they got picked up by Stephanie to punish Angle for his actions as GM. Now it will be interesting to see what they are gonna do with them: keep them as a tag team, going singles but still friends, feuding with each other like old times. Many options and potentially a great move for Raw

Breezango: Personally not a great pick for Raw, which actually got his tag team division weaker after the shake up but we will see why later. They defeated the Bar on Raw but personally i don't feel like WWE wants to give them more than just a random win in and there, but i hope they can rebuild them and make them more legit.

Natalya: Nattie did her time on SD and it's a good move to send her to Raw, where she can work with everyone and help the newcomers. She will 100% work with Ronda in a couple of weeks and potentially it could be a good match.

Dolph Ziggler&Drew McIntyre: well...this came outta nowhere because i wasn't even expecting Drew to be on Raw and watching him joining forces with Ziggler is kinda weird but i'm sure in the next weeks they will give us a reason why they are friends. Many people see in them the new “Shawn Michaels-Diesel” duo but Ziggler wishes he could be as good as HBK and Nash can say the same about McIntyre. No matter what will happen to their team, they are both two very solid picks for Raw and McIntyre going full heel, maybe with his old gimmick, would be pure gold. Also #BringBackBrokenDreams

The Ascension: I'm happy they're still employed with the WWE but i feel like their stint on Raw won't last too much...

Baron Corbin: Could this be Corbin's big break after losing the MITB Briefcase last summer? Personally it might be, he is the kind of athlete that WWE loves and with a good booking he could become a big star. He still needs to improve in the ring but in the past we had the Great Khali as World Heavyweight Champion so it's not a big problem. I can already smell Corbin facing Reigns soon

Zack Ryder: i'll say the same i said about the Ascension, but personally they have the possibility to bring back the team of Hawkins and Ryder and i hope they'll do it because it could be a good addiction to the Raw Tag Team Division. They'll never win the titles again but at least it's better than what they would do as singles.

Mike Kanellis: he deserves more than he did in WWE. Kanellis-Bennett is a great wrestler and i loved his TNA stint as the Miracle. WWE can bring him back to at least the level where he could be a good midcarder rather than a prestigious jobber. If his wife Maria will come back on screen (which i doubt, because she has a daughter now..congrats btw) i think it could help him a lot, they could do what Zelina Vega and Andrade Cien Almas (even tho Almas is better than Bennett as a wrestler) did on NXT

Chad Gable:Quite a shocking move because i never thought they would split him from Benjamin, but i see it as a very interesting and wise move because now we can have an American Alpha Reunion or having Gable going to be the “new Kurt Angle” kind of wreslter and Gable is such an underrated performer who needs the spotlight and the chance to have a big break.

Mojo Rawley: I see Mojo in the future as a good midcarder, he is an ok performer and personally i like him but sometimes he gets to much shit from the fanbase. I'm not saying he is or he will be an excellent performer, but at least he needs a chance to prove his doubters wrong. He seems to have some charisma and mic skill, now he needs to show something workrate wise.

Bobby Roode: Last but not least wrestler that went from SD Live to Raw, we have Bobby Roode and i think it's finally time to turn him heel and bring back the real Glorious One or even the IT Factor Roode we saw on Impact. He is a great pick up for Raw and he can do basically anything and he will do great Stuff for the red brand. Raw got indeed Glorious...

From Raw to Smackdown Live:

The Miz: What a lovely time for Miz to get drafted to SD Live when Daniel Bryan got back in the squared circle. Miz on SD can easily be the star of the brand i predict him to win or the MITB or the title by the end of year...but first he might have to substain a few kick from Bryan...

Jeff Hardy: As i said in the Raw after mania, i hoped for Hardy to be splitted from his brother matt so they could do their stuff and sending Jeff to SD is a great move because you have a guy who can work with anyone and they have a always ready uppercard for any occasion when you need one. Also Jeff bring some star power to the brand for the casual fans

Absolution: With Paige being the SD GM, it made sense for Mandy and Sonya to get drafted to SDLive. And also it made more sense to send them to SD after the Riott Squad got sent on Raw.They won't do much to be fair, unless we get some women's tag titles.

Samoa Joe: Huge move: Joe on Smackdown will finally have the right place where he can steal the show and being the good old samoan submission machine. I'm already hyped for the possible matches with the likes of Bryan, Styles and even Orton, as Joe said he always wanted to face Orton. Great idea from WWE to send Joe on SD, i'm less happy that i won't see him in Turin in may but that's life and he is more important for SD rather than Raw.

Sanity: Another very solid pick up for SDLive because they bring so much stuff for the show: EY can be a main eventer-uppercard, they could have Dain do the same, they could go for the titles thanks to the freebird rule. Nikki Cross with them is a bit of a bummer at the moment but i'd say there is a reason why she hasn't yet called up on the main roster and she will be probaly called up around SummerSlam. Let's hope she won't get repackaged because that won't help her at all.

Big Cass: i honestly don't like Cass, he is not my kind of wrestler but i'll give him a chance to prove me wrong because so far he has done nothing on NXT and Raw and this could his moment to show something rather than he is 7' tall. Let's see if he will do something with Bryan

Asuka: With the shake up, they made Asuka's move to SDLive official and she can be easily the next champion and get some payback for her loss at Mania with Charlotte. Asuka vs Becky is actually one of my few personal dream matches that could be huge with the right scenario and booking.

R-Truth: another guy i'm happy he's still employed with the company but at this stage i see him retiring soon and becoming a road agent/producer for SD Live. He won't bring much to SD as an active performer.

Luke Gallows&Karl Anderson: the division on SD live is now very stacked so i don't see them being involved in the title picture soon, but i see them reforming something WWE called once “a very famous club in Japan” with someone who is at the moment the WWE Champion..too sweet right?

The Bar: I hope they get to be tag team champions also on Smackdown but personally i predict them to split soon and give SD two new single wrestler who basically can do anything.

Zelina Vega&Andrade Cien Almas: outta nowhere, we get Zelina and ELLLL IDOOOLOOOO on SD Live and this is huge for the blue brand. I loved what they did on NXT and i see them doing the same on SD Live, but this time with the likes of AJ Styles, Daniel Bryan, Shinsuke Nakamura and even more. My god...what a time to be alive...NXT lost a big name but SD gained a future star.

Overall:I feel WWE did a good job with this Shake Up because they actually balanced their roster, gave us some new fresh faces, some new fresh feuds and also brought back some interest to SD Live, that in the last weeks felt a bit stale and boring to watch. NXT suffered the more but they are the brand where they are supposed to build people from scratches and send them to the main roster when they are ready for Raw and SD.

*In this shake up analysis, i haven't included they guys and girls who debuted(Lashley made his return) on Raw and SD during the AfterMania episodes and i already talked about them

#WWE #Wrestling #raw #Smackdown live #Superstar shakeup #jinder mahal #riott squad #Sami Zayn #Kevin owens #Breezango #Dolph Ziggler #Drew McIntyre #Ascension #Baron Corbin #Zack Ryder #Chad Gable #Mojo Rawley #Bobby Roode #Jeff Hardy #The Miz #Mike Kanellis #Samoa Joe #Absolution #Big Cass #Sanity #Luke Gallows&Karl Anderson #The Bar #Zelina Vega #Andrade Cien Almas

[shorthaircutsmodels]

Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hairstyles and Haircuts - 25+ - https://shorthaircutsmodels.com/evan-rachel-woods-short-hairstyles-and-haircuts/ - Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hairstyles and Haircuts, is an American actress. He began acting in several television series in the 1990s, including American Gothic and once again. Evan joined The Rachel Wood trend and sacrificed her long mane for a fairy with slightly longer covering hair and sideways fringes. She continues to surprise her followers with her creative hairstyles, as her hair is short. In October, Rachel Wood did it again. Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hairstyles and Haircuts Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hairstyles and Haircuts, The Ides of March actress gave her pixie a Sixties look. Straight Alice band is the perfect accessory for this fairy style. Evan Rachel Wood showed off her coolest short product, L'oreal celebrity hairdresser Mara Roszak. I love this length, it hits just below the ears and has curls at the ends. This fun and fancy hairstyle proves that short hair can be versatile. The edges are slicked back smooth while the top is styled in waves for contrast and shape. Evan Rachel Wood's Hairstyles and Haircuts Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hairstyles and Haircuts, This fab do is great for thin ones with medium hair and you need the product to keep and shine. And I like that you have a slightly longer front section to frame your face perfectly along with a deep side part. I actually love everything about this haircut so much that I had to contact Roszak to get tips on how to communicate with roszak, I'll never get mad at cutting my long hair. Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hairstyles Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hairstyles and Haircuts, That is to say. Here, the Westworld and Forest star and frontwoman of the new Gucci Guilty Eau perfume share her beauty in highs and lows. Her beauty vibe is androgynous and a little bold is my personal look. Evan Rachel Wood's Short Haircuts Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hairstyles and Haircuts, Evan Rachel Wood recently cut her long locks by debuting the super cute short cut in the episode pikie episode rockstar in the Season 4 premiere of True Blood. Compared to the long blonde hair she had before, it's almost hard to recognise her with shorter hair. But we love the messy texture on the back, and when it comes to work, we bet that this new cut will be surprising as it will never get in the way of any event it does. Wood would like to see more famous haircuts as big as most. Evan Rachel Wood's Hairstyles Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hairstyles and Haircuts, check out the figure Gallery of the best celebrity hair makeovers. Let's do it before and after to confirm the 23-year-old actress looks more stylish than before. Repeat. That's how he looked at the Mildred Pierce premiere in March. Which Wood do you prefer. It looks great in both directions but I'm leaning towards this haphazardly tousled short cut. Evan Rachel Wood's Haircuts Post your comments now and share your views on this vital to humanity or at least cut a fierce figure on the red carpet with a styled blonde quiff like Evan Rachel Wood on Evan Rachel Wood's head. This look isn't for everyone, but it works. You have downloaded GLAMOUR hair and beauty apps. Evan Rachel Wood turned heads last night as she debuted a dramatic new pixie hairdo. The actress attended the season four premiere of hit TV show True Blood as she showed off her super short new look and ensured her small screen cast was slammed. Earn a designer bag every day this month. Enter now to win. Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hair Hairdresser Peter Butler's back-to-back Sports Illustrated covers seven Canadian actress Evan Rachel Wood recently returned to the Gliss Hair Care line that began working with the androgynous aesthetic but the New-based New York Ambassador is known for sultry beach to create waves. Unlike the typical fairly long wig she wore at Westworld, she progressed through awards season in her Altuzarra tuxedos, which set off with her bleached short hair. We asked Butler how to pull short hair. A creative style should not be set in stone. Evan Rachel Wood's Hair Most of the world doesn't know Evan is a musician. He has a band with his wife and they are really fun and have the same hair as who we are at the moment but it will change. I'm so excited to work with someone who's so docile and open. I have a great idea what you think of this, ‘ she says. It strengthens an unconventional hairstyle. Evan's air is power. The edges of Evan's hair are gelled and combed to polish this sleek bold look. Comic Con is a super fun event for many reasons. TRESemmé celebrity stylist John D. Evan Rachel Wood Has a Message for Short-Hair She came up with an incredible look for wood for Comic Con and gave Allure all the exclusive details about her process. John said Wood himself was the inspiration for the look and wanted something withdrawn and stylish. It was to think of something that made the business less traditional, and it certainly succeeded. They didn't necessarily have a plan for the night when they decided to go with the wooden feeling of just what they are now and still ended up with a stylish look that screams confidence. Evan Rachel Wood short haircut She wore a black and white jumpsuit with structured shoulders, so I wanted the hair to have a sharp modern vibe to complement John's jumpsuit. We chose to pull back to 2 graphic knots on the back of the super chic head. The make-up was gorgeous and soft to create a beautiful balance in the final look. Haircut inspiration alert. Anyone who says you can't do anything with short hair at the LACMA Arts and Film premiere over. Evan Rachel Wood's Short Hair Color Is Going The weekend is wrong. Just wood. Every day my style turns into something new and there are so many different ways you can wear it. From Punky pixie looks to retro finger waves she has tried it all. Click through our gallery to see the many ways the actress wears her hair and read her tips on working with short strands. Wow. Evan Rachel Wood seriously cut her long hair and I can't wait to hear from the ladies if I like her new short haircut. The last time we spoke about Evan, he was wearing an elegant updo at the Met Ball. Evan Rachel Wood red hair But look at her hair last night at the premiere of True Blood. These short spoilt backs and sides are swept into long upper layers to make the shape and style tapered into confusing sides. It is flipped over the forehead to soften the front face, and the extreme completes the entire look perfectly. It was really fun back then but in retrospect, why did you pluck all your eyebrows, man? The first smell is my memory. when I was little, I used to sneak into Victoria's secret and spray myself with strawberries and champagne. Evan Rachel Wood Beauty Evolution I was too shy to buy. I'd go in and spray it and run. The smell of it now. I wore Gucci Guilty for years. hot and sweet. Gucci is more romantic and spiritual than guilty Eau is a bit softer. We've all been patiently waiting for HBO's newest sci-fi drama, Westworld, to air last year. A remake of a 1973 film written and directed by Michael Crichton's the Western world is about an amusement park, no matter how guilty or desirable it is for a robot House to wealthy visitors who want to live out your fantasies. Evan Rachel Wood black hair We're excited to see how this plays out and after watching the trailer we know Evan Rachel Wood is going to kick a big ass. The Hollywood premiere photos are out and we no longer know if we're more excited about the show or Evan's hair. The 29-year-old beauty effortlessly rocked a simple black cut dress and looked absolutely stunning. But the new hair colour completely stole the show. Evan Rachel Wood seems to embrace the ingenious experiment. Example. new La last night's Season Four premiere of True Blood was notable for the cut in all-and-Away challenge on stage, which was very different for a very stiff Fairy on top of texture, but still gave her versatile long-looking flowing locks. Evan Rachel Wood's Hairstyles & Hair Colors he was sporting cropped up recently. The length at the front is no longer his chin, but he graduates in a shorter and choppy way at the back. The mouth of the neck is cut really short and cleanly, and the cut is given a bit of a surprise element. For the opening gala L'oreal Paris spray increase the hair moist and straight creating and maintaining a tidy edge rough fiction and the top tapered used to blast the mixing layers long enough to be styled short left and the edges behind the head advanced high lift the hairstyle straight. Evan Rachel Wood haircut This versatile hairstyle can be worn or slipped as funky as you like for a more conservative style. To prepare wood's hair for all that badassery John spritzed TRESemmé, repair and maintain 7 pre-styling sprays for his hair. Evan said of the product that I wanted to prepare this conditioning front styling hair because the hair is so colorful recently and I wanted to give it a little extra love and protection from the heat or stress it might have by styling. Make sense. Sometimes we can use a little extra TLC. Evan Rachel Wood's Hair Evolution Evan Rachel Wood is not for harmony. Whatever the moment the great beauty trend is likely to be doing something away from it. But look at this has served him well even though he has had learning experiences. And his personal style is among his best. Anything unless you have a personal style and gorgeous hair. The product is needed to keep this style in place and will improve regularly every 4 to 6 weeks. Evan Rachel Wood looks stylish and cool in a short hairdo. This is a statement. The roots are really dark and the ends are pale grey. Evan Rachel Wood hair color It's a matte tone and not a color found in nature. I actually cut her hair just before the sag Awards and it was longer and shattered rather than blunt, so I sharpened the line. Your favorite guy made the 2020 list of Sexiest Men. Evan Rachel Wood's hairdresser makes sure her styles reflect her badass personality. Evan Rachel Woods may have short hair length but her style is certainly long. The length and length of the thin long layers enhance the jagged cut and edgy look and feel of the whole style over the dark ends to achieve cool and comfortable. Evan Rachel Wood's Six Tips for Styling Short Hair This funky style needs a small amount of product to tighten the ends and make the hair fly. Copper highlights pale suggestion is a recent study of the hair length of blonde Rachel Wood Evan. Evan maximizes the height of his super-short strands by combing his hair from the brow and back. You can copy her style by adding a volumetric product at home and combing back or teasing your hair behind the smooth front section. Evan Rachel Wood hairstyle Evan Rachel Wood was never afraid to make a bold move. Her most recent. make chopping off her long locks in favor of a short summer. Not only do fans cosplay as their favorite characters who seem. Super impressive but we also get updates on some of our favorite shows and movies. It couldn't be better if some of our fave celebrities show up for Comic Con and we get to see them rocking their best personal style. Pics of Evan Rachel Wood Pixie Evan Rachel Wood star of HBO's hit series Westworld will be at Comic Con this year, showing off her staying power on Strictly with her pixie haircut. The style belongs to true hair style classics. Currently pixies claim their prominent place in hair fashion. Soft steps give the haircut its characteristic shape. This type of cut gives the Fairies a particularly natural and feminine appearance. She made a prickly fairy cut at last night's HBO premiere, and we think the look really suits her. Evan Rachel Wood bob haircut Working with an edgy style like this, she featured delicate features and opted for a swipe of dark pink lipstick and eyeliner to further balance the feminine make-up. Now of course we're dying to find out if this has anything to do with his character on the show. This short do is ideal for a square face shape as it shows off its strong jawline and cheekbones.

[literaticat]

My agent sold English rights for my debut MG novel to a top publisher. That was about four months ago and I haven't heard anything since about a definite plan to sell the foreign rights we held on to. There is a dedicated foreign rights manager at the agency. How do foreign rights submissions work? What version of the MS should be pitched?

Congratulations! I would say that this would be a great question to ask your agent, as different agencies work in different ways, but I can give you a little brief about how ours does it!

Each territory, as you might imagine, is really different -- what works in Japan might never work in Spain, etc. Publishers in many foreign territories have gotten more risk-averse in recent years. They are often working in somewhat depressed economies and are not going to buy in books unless they feel that they have a high chance of resonating with their audience. So “highly American” stories are not really gonna fly in most countries unless they are ginormous bestsellers here. So with that being said:

1) Before we submit the book to publishers, we show it to our foreign rights manager, who lets us know if she thinks this will be “hot” in the foreign, etc. Sometimes (VERY RARELY), we decide to go simultaneously to US/UK and Foreign markets. Like, if the author is a bestseller, or we have reason to believe that this book is going to be abnormally gigantic. Or, if we all of a sudden have an auction in the US, that might spur going to the foreign early. BUT USUALLY, that isn’t what happens. USUALLY,

2) After the sale, the foreign rights manager (who is highly organized like a magical robot) logs the information we have into her catalogue. That info is, like, author, title, agent, publisher, tentative pub date, etc. You know, the basics. So if it is now Summer 2019, and I just sold a book that is coming out in Spring 2021, she will make a note that the final draft is due in Spring 2020.

3) Around the due date, Spring 2020, she will nudge me if I haven’t already sent her material. What she needs is, the final cover, the pub MONTH (not just season), author bio and photo, etc, and “sharable material” -- this is the edited (but not copyedited) version of the manuscript. This is now the catalogue entry. As we get amazing reviews and special recognition and any other thing that might spike interest (blurbs, awards, etc), we add it to the catalogue. 

4) In every territory, she has a foreign “co-agent.” These co-agents actually speak the language and are experts on the publishing scene in their home territory -- obviously important, as it would be impossible for her to communicate with everyone otherwise! So -- when she has the sharable material, she... shares this material... with all her foreign co-agents via email -- she is in touch with these folks constantly, and they have great relationships. She also meets up with all of them, as well as the foreign publishers, at the Bologna and Frankfurt book fairs, in Spring and Fall respectively, as well as traveling to other foreign territories in between to visit and get a sense of the “boots on the ground” (or in this case, I guess, “books on the ground”) situation.

5) So, I’m not in charge of foreign rights, but just by observation, I’d say there are several opportunities for us to sell: a) About 9-12 months out from publication, when the polished material first exists in the catalogue (“Hi, I’ve got an amazing new book for you to look at!”) - b) During the twice yearly book fairs, when she has a chance to pitch in person to publishers - c) Closer to publication, as we get those amazing reviews, blurbs and accolades (“Such-and-such has five starred reviews and is a NYT Best Illustrated pick -- if you haven’t had the opportunity to check it out, you should!”) - d) After publication, particularly if the book gets made into a film or show, or wins big awards, or is a bestseller. 

5a) There are also always the opportunity for what I’d call “passive” sales -- i.e., a publisher or scout sees the book online or something, and approaches US, rather than us actively pitching them. This can happen at any time from pre-announcement to years after publication. We’ve even had foreign interest (and sales) for books that are out of print in the US, decades after publication. Really!

6) It is very helpful (to me, anyway!) if you are also making sure that I actually GET the material when it becomes available. Sometimes, editors send the authors their book jackets, or authors send their editors their revisions, and the agent doesn’t even know that is happening. IF I don’t have that material, I can’t add it to the catalogue! When in doubt, cc your agent! 

Hope that helps? 

[thesportssoundoff]

DC, Mighty Mouse, “marketing African Americans differently” and attempting to dissect hows and whys

Joey

June 8th, 2017

HABOY.

There's no real way to parse this because, in essence, there's no definite truths. When DC talks about advertising/promoting to African Americans, it's tough because in MMA (and in pro wrestling), I can't think of any definitive examples of what would actually be a successful promotion of African Americans. What's more, I guess there's probably a lack of adulthood in terms of realistically discussing and analyzing what IS or IS NOT successful promotion in general and specifically successful promotions to groups of people (Asian fighters to Asian markets, Latin american/South American etc etc etc). If there was ONE actual definitive way to do this shit, everybody would be doing it. Star creation is luck, promotional design and the right talent and there's never an easy to follow pattern as to how to pull that off. Against better judgment, let's swim some treacherous waters:

1- The UFC (and MMA in general) absolutely could better market to African Americans/Black combat sports fans. Of that I'm sure there is no disagreement.

2- How? I 'unno. Maybe you can hire some people to better analyze how you can do that OR it's like with Bob Arum on White people; ya just kinda chalk it up as a loss.

3- When I look at the top draws in boxing who are Black/African American what have you (because SURELY we wouldn't consider Anthony Joshua an African American!), the reality is that MMA as a whole kind of sort of conflicts with what made a lot of those guys super popular. First let's begin by defining the main players I'm looking at. To me the big draws of the past 20-25 years or so are guys like Floyd Mayweather, Roy Jones Jr, Mike Tyson, Bernard Hopkins (MIGHT be stretching it here), Adrian Broner (does great TV numbers with really no sort of promotional push) and maybe a Keith Thurman? Removing heavyweights sans Tyson because I think we can agree Tyson is a DIFFERENT transcendent sort of name.

Whereas in boxing, trash talk and shit talk is really accepted, it's almost like MMA works hard to run AWAY from that. All of those guys mentioned above are pretty much great talkers. Thurman's an underrated talker to be entirely honest. The sport in many ways tries at times to nearly drown itself in humility and politeness and while I don't want 1,000,000 Conor McGregor's running around---the best fights draw more often than not on a basis of SOME element of dislike. As a boxing promoter pal once told me, it doesn't have to be real but it has to feel real. Fight promotion in many ways is simply about taking what works in pro wrestling/theater (people want to see real combat with a party they aim to root for or two parties they want to see BOTH get hurt) and subtracting what doesn't (over the top contrived nonsense, overcomplicated matters). Sometimes being humble is more than acceptable, GSP drew big money being humble as did Anderson Silva, but even THEY needed an antagonistic rival to draw the biggest money they could. Humble on its own in MMA, at least in today's MMA, can't draw significant money.

Now of course this goes any race, gender, orientation so on so forth. Anytime a conflict of significance FEELS real, you don't have to be a certain race or nationality to want to see this shit go down. Even if you buy into the idea of Japanese fans being ultra polite and all about the sport, I'd bet Rampage vs Wanderlei beefing it out did way better business than humble sportsman Fedor mowing down dudes. I'm just using the guys who drew big in boxing who were African American who drew big money and how they did it. It's not just about the skills, it's about the style that goes along with it. THAT, in turn, brings us to....

4- The MMA model directly car crashes with what makes a lot of those guys super popular. Going back to Bob Arum for a second, when Floyd Mayweather and Bob Arum had their big split apart, it came down to Bob not seeing what Floyd was seeing. Bob wanted another Sugar Ray Leonard but Floyd Mayweather believed that the public tide was turning. The rap lifestyle of flash, sizzle and big money was where the push was----and so with no true way to reconcile, the split occurred. Floyd ultimately was OBVIOUSLY correct as "Money" Mayweather has carried boxing (with pinch hits from Oscar De La Hoya, Manny Pacquaio, Miguel Cotto and Canelo Alvarez kinda) over the past however many decades. Look at Broner's poor man's (irony?) version of Floyd Mayweather act. Even being an utter goofball with the Buddy Landel edition of Floyd's Ric Flair, Broner does BIG business numbers whenever he fights. It's not just about who you are and how good you are, it's about flashing the rewards and repping the lifestyle while ya do it. Bernard Hopkins is clearly the outlier in this regard as B-Hop is notorious for being a guy who sits on money like it's about to hatch or something but look at Tyson, Floyd, RJJ, Broner and even "Sugar" Shane Mosley. There's a lifestyle to be lead here.

MMA doesn't pay in that way. No fighter ever will approach Floyd's major paydays and it could be realistic argued that this sport is 20 years away from making what Floyd made on the low side of his PPV fights before his big breakout. Right now ONE guy in this business could demand 1 mil plus and he's probably on his way out soon. Whether it can or can't is always going to be open to interpretation I guess---but I think we'd all agree that the UFC (or Bellator or anybody) aren't going to overpay somebody (in their eyes) on a gamble. Mighty Mouse the fighter may be worth $1,000,000 on resume, history and skills but from a promotional standpoint, his net worth is probably not even close to that. The UFC (or so on so forth) probably aren't going to upset their pay structure on the hopes that seeing a blinged out fighter draws in a section of the audience that's not tuning in now. Could it? I mean I guess it could since Conor McGregor's trying it but it sure seems like a lot of folks see through McGregor's rent everything for a day then return it gimmick. MMA doesn't pay in a way that's drawn in the more modern African American casual audience and until that changes, you'll forever be talking about the what if's of the whole damn thing.

5- There's almost an uneasiness to go back and look at what has drawn in the African American audiences, or just big audiences involving African American fighters, before. Now off the bat, we don't know the composite of what the household breakdown is or what the demos were but let's JUST look at the big drawing fights with African Americans at the top of the billing. The biggest fights off the top of my head are Rashad Evans vs Rampage Jackson, Jon Jones vs Daniel Cormier and Jon Jones vs Rashad Evans. There's elements of uncomfortable in that, ya know? The Rampage/Rashad beef, as fun as it was, involved a lot of really uncomfortable moments where Rashad accused Rampage of essentially of dumbing himself down for the UFC audience and running a minstrel show (a similar complaint/accusation was levied by King Mo at Rampage). Rashad vs Jon Jones was a massive falling apart between two guys who were essentially brothers to one another and Daniel Cormier vs Jon Jones involved shoes being thrown, Jones roaring on a stage like a madman and DC once proclaiming that the fans didn't like EITHER of them but they hated Jon Jones more so he was the by default babyface. I mean if  YOU were an African American looking to get into MMA, would that kinda shit drive you in?

6- What if the fighter who can appeal to African Americans just isn't in the UFC right now? Or MMA in general?

7- The UFC promotes everybody the same. The comment that always comes up is "THEY HAVE SPECIAL PROMOTIONAL TACTICS FOR GUYS THEY WANT TO PUSH" but common sense suggests they really don't.  The only person who is unique in that regard was Ronda Rousey but she's different. Guys debut on prelims, if they wow then the UFC will social media the hell out of them and then if win AGAIN they get hot and get moved up to a main card and if they catch even more smoke, the UFC starts to trumpet the guy in the same way they trumpeted everybody else. Some guys take and some guys don't. There's no absolute way to make it work. While they COULD do something different to market towards African Americans, they may just be fine with how they do things in general because the levy hasn't broken yet or at least not entirely. It's just kind of doing what it always does.

So where's all this leading? I mean I 'unno. I think we can all agree that the growth of the sport is paramount to fans, promoters, TV execs, web people etc etc etc. If there's a large community of folks who might like this madness as much as we do but they're not being drawn in for one reason or another then shit, we should all want them in. This failboat of a sport is for all!  The problem is that I just don't think there's an obvious solution. What's worked in the past for the African American audience in combat sports really can't work in MMA. They can't quite mind the gap between "I'd like to like MMA" and "I'd like to pay to watch MMA" because of SO many factors right now prohibiting it. Now of course I'd like to see more effort in promoting to other groups of people but unless they have a good plan in place to implement it, I suppose no effort and bad effort equal out to all the same. There's no Bill Watts (never thought I'd namedrop this guy on here, Jesus Christ) to come up with great ways to elevate an MMA version of the Junkyard Dog. Maybe that's not a bad thing though given Watts' reputation.

And even Daniel Cormier is quite honest about Mighty Mouse not fitting into a set group. He's a nerdy short dude who doesn't talk a lot of trash and as dynamic as he is in the cage, his personality fits for a very small niche of people like myself and probably the folks reading this. He's a niche guy and while I'm glad to be in that niche, I understand the limited appeal. In my mind, the one demo you can market Mighty Mouse to are to kids and teenagers given the fact he's not super big and does internet streaming and while this is a perfect comp, the Ray Mysterio factor of "look at this smaller guy doing cool shit!" should have some impact in MMA.

So I guess, in the end, figuring this whole thing out is truly a matter of determining the How's and Whys'.

#MMA #UFC #DC #Mighty Mouse #opinions