Devil’s Chew Toy by Rob Osler
Dead in the Garden by Dahlia Donovan
Death Before Dessert by A.E. Radley
Magic, Lies, and Deadly Pies by Misha Popp
Renovated to Death by Frank Anthony Polito
Bonus: Coming August 9th, A Killing in Costumes by Zac Bissonette
Double Bonus: These are all standalones or short series, but for a much more extensive collection, check out Ellen Hart’s Jane Lawless…
86 Thoughts while watching The OC season one episode 4: The Debut
1. I love that these early episodes really focused on the Cohens+1 as a family, and established these really deep dynamics.
2. Seth is such a shitty kid and it’s so funny in these early eps. It feels more endearing than like...shitty in later episodes.
3. Ryan getting adoptedddddddddd what a good lil math nerd.
4. Anyone who thinks Ryan is a bad boy I feel like you miss the point of the character. He has terrible luck, and a bad temper, but also, he is a MATH NERD who says whole sentences with his eyes.
5. “You steal a car? You burn down a house? You beat up the captain of the water polo team?” Let’s be real, Luke won that fight. Ryan isn’t a good fighter lol.
6. Kirsten is not a hugger.
7. Brody’s little groove walk is fun.
8. Califoniaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa here we cooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmme
9. underpants!
10. Seth rolling around on Ryan’s bed like a puppy. Sir what.
11. He doesn’t have any things.
12. Poor Ryan, he does not know how to deal with this debutante thing.
13. Peggy deserved more than two episodes, she’s so salty and I love her. Where did she go???
14. Jimmy and Sandy are such strange frenemies. Like Jimmy so clearly still has a thing for Kirsten and Sandy knows. He knows, and he knows they have to play nice (for now), but he is not thrilled. He’s a friendly dude mostly, so he’s not gonna start shit just because, but like. He knows it’s bad.
15. My big quibble with this episode is that the girls’ dresses look incredibly cheap. At least for the main three girls they could have gone higher end. Or maybe it’s just that 2003 style.
16. I know Luke is like “bleh Ryan” but I can’t help thinking of it as a lil bi panic.
17. Summer trying to bang Ryan. Ryan like “I mean she’s hot but...but...but...”
18. Ryan and Summer should have banged.
19. Like not a relationship. But just. Boning.
20. I’ve warmed up to Marissa as I’ve gotten older. She’s very sweet in these early episodes.
21. That is so much wine Sandy just poured Kirsten. SO MUCH. BRUH YOUR WIFE HAS A DRINKING PROB- we’ll talk about next season.
22. I love all the comic books just lying around as set dressing.
23. Ryan’s favorite comic is Justice Society of America, and I love that for him. It’s very classic superhero, but it’s not one of the BIG ONES.
24. Poor Kirsten, finding out about Jimmy’s dumb shit.
25. Sandy is in full lawyer mode. “We have to tell everybody this dude stole from them.”
26. I wish I liked these dresses more.
27. But god the music cues are so on point. The soundtrack for the OC is just top notch, all thees years later.
28. And ask the world to stay away please....
29. Ryan is so sweet. He just can’t say no.
30. Fucking Jimmy.
31. God damn, Julie just spending every last cent. She doesn’t ask ever about their finances. She just assumes. But Jimmy let her believe they were more than fine.
32. Jimmy is such an idiot. I wish I liked him more. He’s supposed to be charming. I love Tate Donovan. But god. That character.
33. Try to enjoy this, please! I love Peggy. Justice for Peggy.
34. The dancing. Poor Ryan.
35. Who let Adam Brody out of his feral nerd cage? Whoever it was, I’m grateful.
36. Summer is such a douche in these early episodes. Her character arc is amazing through the series. Truly. one of my favorites in TV history.
37. i still don’t quite buy Ryan and Marissa’s chemistry. Part of it is that Misha Barton is so young, and she hasn’t had time to develop as an actress. I feel like if she’d been like two years older when she played Marissa it’d hit harder.
38. Annaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. God I love Anna. Again. She has such good chemistry with Seth and Ryan. Again. Ryan should have been allowed to date Anna. The two with the most common sense in the whole bunch together? Power couple.
39. Kirsten, stop trying to save Jimmy he doesn’t deserve it.
40. Oh Holly. I would have loved for her to get a redemption arc. Like still kind of brainless, but more mature. Less shitty. She comes back in s4 and has learned nothing.
41. Ben McKenzie eye acting choices.
42. Jimmmyyyyyyyyyyyy karma said “hey hi how ya doin”
43. Barbecutionist.
44. Marissa watching Luke’s friends and feeling just so done. Girl I get it.
45. Poor Ryan. He just wants to go home and hide in his pool house and read comic books and not deal with this dumb crap.
46. Luke’s weird toxic masculinity is pretty rough. He gets a nice redemption arc later where he just turns into a golden retriever. I love that for him.
47. Yep. There’s the JSA issue.
48. Julie really wants to be a good mother, but she puts so much importance on appearance and image and perception. And dumping all of that on her very sensitive daughter is cruel.
49. I love Julie’s eye makeup.
50. Melinda Clarke is such a heavy hitter in this series. Julie Cooper, Urban Cougar was such a thing.
51. Sandy not going either. Sandy said fuck that.
52. Again, these dresses...they’re just not...great.
53. lol Sandy and Ryan just....”Nah.” “Yeah, me neither.”
54. THE BONDING. THE VIDEO GAMES. I love this dynamic so much.
55. Sandy serving truth. “They’ve all got secrets and they’re all terrified that the guy nextdoor is gonna find them out.”
56. It’s such a sweet moment, and then “You just stabbed me again.”
57. Summerrrrrrrrrrrrr.
58. lol Anna and Seth spewing comic book stuff.
59. YOU’RE A GIRL. Bitch I have been reading comic books since 1991.
60. The birth of the Summer/Seth/Anna triangle/almost thruple.
61. I just tried to liken them to Roy/Keeley/Jamie but there is no grumpy asshole.
62. But if it were Summer/Ryan/Anna, we would have a Lasso Thruple sitch.
63. But not really.
64. Sandy is the best. I swear.
65. Jimmy and karma doin that dance.
66. Luke is, in fact, an idiot.
67. “Stop hitting a dude who didn’t actually do anything to you.” “I AM LEAVING BECAUSE YOU MAKE SENSE!” Oy.
68. Anna is so charming. I love her.
69. Julie just dislikes Ryan so damn much. Christ.
70. “Confidence, Cohen!” Ugh. So cute.
71. I love Seth/Summer but Anna/Seth was also so so fun.
72. “We’re gonna go this way.” lol
73. We don’t see Summer walk by herself. I think that was a missed opportunity.
74. Peggyyyyyyyyyy! My beloved!
75. The sweetness of this scene lasts all of three seconds before Jimmy gets slugged in his face.
76. I love that they were never afraid of the fact that Marissa was just a lil taller than Ryan. the visual works so well for the show.
77. Here we go.
78.”Bad accounting.”
79. hot damn y’all this old man fight lol.
80. Julie’s shaking fingers is such a nice touch in this moment.
81. I guess Sandy figures karma has done its job on Jimmy and now he can be supportive. lol.
82. Seth and Annaaaaaaa. Jesus so cute. Even though they’re kind of the same person lol.
83. Another great music cue. To Sheila, by the Smashing Pumpkins.
84. I just. I want to like Marissa more. I’m still not sure why I can’t get there all these years later.
85. LOL Luke. With the weird sneak attack.
86. And that’s it. A last shot of Ryan alone, who should be heading home to avoid the police.
eddie munson ~ joseph quinn
katherine pierce ~ nina dobreva
dean winchester ~ jensen ackles
jasper whitlock ~ jackson rathbone (single ship w/ astrid’s alice)
klaus mikaelson ~ joseph morgan
sally owens ~ daisy edgar jones
𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐘 𝐌𝐔𝐒𝐄𝐒
steve harrington ~ joe keery
stiles stilinski ~ dylan o'brien
elijah mikaelson ~ daniel gillies
caroline forbes ~ grace van dien
buffy summers ~ meg donnelly
willow rosenberg ~ madelaine petsch
𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐀𝐑𝐘 𝐌𝐔𝐒𝐄𝐒
matt donovan ~ froy gutierrez
evan dimarco ~ tom holland
lucifer ~ undecided
flora staahl ~ phoebe tonkin
petra davalos ~ hallea jones
bonnie bennett ~ undecided
maggie greene ~ alycia debnam-carey
𝐑𝐄𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐒𝐓 𝐌𝐔𝐒𝐄𝐒
castiel ~ misha collins (single ship w/ astrid’s meg)
eric draven ~ samuel larsen
mackenzie walsh ~ daniel sharman
star ~ samantha logan
phoebe halliwell ~ hande erçel
drusilla ~ daisy head
misty day ~ lily rabe
Well I don’t mind if there’s a marriage prospect for sure, it’s just don’t feel right with some characters, and if it’s only happened with Remy and Leon (which I agree, proposal fits good into relationship development) then I’m fine. ST is more concern, I understand that it was normal back then, but I played Donovan and Neil’s routes and they both are so from husband material. In real life it would take years for them only to get used to that idea, and it was so not in character.
I actually disagree with Neil and Donovan to an extent. I played both routes too and I agree it was rushed (but that is because of story decisions, ST had a lot of backstage factors that meant it ended up with rushed plots) and that neither of them are husband material, but disagree it is not in character if only because both men respect Charlie so much and would feel obligated to “do right” by his niece. Would it be a good marriage? Not necessarily (I feel that way of most of the relationships in ST actually) but I don’t think it is unrealistic given the setting.
I do like tht QoT seems to be spreading it out and pacing it better than some of the others series and while I am sure that all routes will end in marriage, I hope it fits the plot and the build of the characters and relationships (of the ones I have played, I do have the hardest time seeing marriage in Jett’s future, though, and am curious how they do it, unless his route gets the unplanned pregnancy that seems to crop up in one route in almost every series).
Periphery Live Preview: House of Blues Chicago, 4/18-4/19
Photo by Travis Shinn
BY JORDAN MAINZER
Hail Stan continues Periphery’s rather paradoxical streak: It’s cohesive within their discography in that it, like many of the D.C. prog metal band’s previous albums, is not thematically or instrumentally cohesive within itself. Contextually, it certainly stands out. It’s the first of their records released independently, and their first released since bassist Adam “Nolly” Getgood left. (He tracked bass parts and helped produce and mix the album but did not write.) The band spent a year making the record, up to and including live orchestrations and choir from Randy Slaugh. They reworked a Haunted Shores song for it. And it’s got their longest track ever.
No, really, that’s saying something. “Reptile” is almost 17 minutes long, opening with cinematic strings, eventually becoming your typical hard-nosed blaster. It doesn’t move much, and it’s about--wait for it--a stoner trying to save the planet from reptilian aliens. But aside from a bit of both sides-ism, unnecessary posturing about the surveillance state, and spoken word from Mikee Goodman at the end, the song doesn’t take itself too seriously. That’s generally the recipe for success for conceptual prog metal bands with a djent bend like Periphery. Single “Blood Eagle”, with references to Nordic sacrifice, is perfectly theatrical. “Chvrch Bvrner” combines post-punk guitars with a thrash beat and features a very goofy glitch breakdown at the end. “Crush”’s synth bass beat eventually gives way to a silly techno thump.
However, I won’t knock Periphery for having their heart in the right place. Many of the songs on the horribly titled record are actually pretty serious. The piano- and vocal-forward “Garden in the Bones” is about Native American genocide; closer “Satellites” is directed towards humanity from the point of view of the Earth. “All we care about is blood and satellites,” sings Spencer Sotelo. It’s hard to argue with him. On a personal level, “It’s Only Smiles” is about Sotelo’s sister, who passed away a couple years ago, featuring moving lyrics about how his sister would want him to overcome his troubles, related to her passing or not.
So while Hail Stan is doesn’t have a strong central theme, Periphery use variance to their advantage by embracing it rather than letting it stand out. Perhaps it’s easier to imagine the album as a collection of singles, which is why they should stand out more when mixed in a live set.
Rock quintet Dance Gavin Dance headlines. British rockers Don Broco, California post-hardcore group Hail the Sun, & instrumental trio Covet also open.
Misha Ge is a gift to skating and to mankind. Enchanting, artistic, intense both in the SP and in the FS. My moral winner. Thank you for the dreamy performances Misha :,)
Mah boi Shoma is a fighter. In spite of his injury and the botched first jumps today he was still charismatic and IC and bounced back in the second half jumps-wise too. So glad he managed to get silver at the end. Moral winner #2
Kolyada... managed to get bronze (yay!). 2 out of 3 podium medals of my dream podium happened and given this Milan 2018 Falls Curse it’s a little miracle.
Lots of highlights and promise in the lower ranks and/or by freshly ascended to Senior cat skaters! 1) Donovan Carrillo confirmed showman and little star in the making. What a charmer. 2) Kazuki Tomono feels like a dream fusion of Yuzuru Hanyu and Daisuke Takahashi. Lots of potential this boy. 3) Julian Zhi Jie Yee is a natural entertainer and performer and it’s always a delight to see. 4) Matteo Rizzo confirmed for mental fortitude. Granitic young lad. Attempted quad in competition in spite of low success ratio in pratice and mostly nailed it! Plus bounced back from a fall immediately later on. Can only get better ^_^ .
Engaging performance by Michal Brezina!
Veteran Alexander Majorov’s performance was a welcome highlight. From Russia With Love, confidence, fun factor and rather springy jumps too.
Last but not least Deniss Vasiljevs was a treat to watch. Smooth, charming, fun. His best FS performance of the season I believe ^_^ . Wish he could have ended on the podium.
The neutral: I wish I could love Chen’s skating in any way. But he managed a clean performance and in context that was plenty to secure him the gold today. Good display of mental fortitude on his account.
The bad:
In the final group especially basically everyone was falling?! It became like Worlds 2017 all over again?!
everyone was falling?!
see above
lack of Yuzuru Hanyu
lack of Adam Rippon
lack of Jason Brown
lack of Javier Fernandez
I’m still crying over Boyang Jin’s FS disaster but at least he was able to smile still :,)
So, I'm gonna cancel the yandere series, I really like this one (The Pharaoh x male reader). And because I have never seen one that involves Pharaoh x male reader.
Same rules:
PICK ONE CHARACTER! (Don't say [Character 1] or [Character 2] you must pick or I'll choose for you
You MUST put it in the comments. If you can't type in the comments or you want to stay anonymous, send me an ask with your vote and I'll add it in the comments.
Non-comprehensive list of 2021 summer club competitions. This post will be updated as more information becomes available. The list will focus on competitions with notable skaters. Note: Withdrawals are common for summer club competitions.
See also: Calendar of events
Last updated: Aug 29, 2021
Lake Cup
Time: May 3-4
Place: Otsu City, Japan
Results
Website
Notable entries: Sr - Mana Kawabe. Jr - Ayumi Shibayama. NvA - Mao Shimada
Note: This competition includes free skates only.
La Jolla Open
Time: May 16
Place: La Jolla, CA, USA
Results
Website
Notable entries: Sr - Starr Andrews. Jr - Kanon Smith
Colonial Open
Time: June 3-6
Place: Boxborough, MA, USA
Results
Website
Notable entries: Sr - Lindsay Thorngren, Shan Lin, Gabriella Izzo, Maxim Naumov. Jr - Isabeau Levito
Aqua Cup
Time: June 26-27
Place: Chiba, Japan
Results
Website
Notable entries: Sr - Wakaba Higuchi, Rinka Watanabe. Jr - Rion Sumiyoshi
Broadmoor Open
Time: June 29 - July 2
Place: Colorado Springs, CO, USA
Results
Website
Notable entries: Sr - Vincent Zhou, Camden Pulkinen, Tomoki Hiwatashi, Young You, Karen Chen, Pooja Kalyan, Paige Rydberg. Jr - Isabeau Levito, Mia Kalin, Clare Seo
Nagoya City Skating Competition: Minato Aquls Cup
Time: July 2-4
Place: Nagoya, Japan
Results
Website
Notable entries: Sr - Rino Matsuike, Yura Matsuda, Mana Kawabe, Rin Nitaya, Yuhana Yokoi, Nana Araki, Miyabi Oba, Chisato Uramatsu. Jr - Tatsuya Tsuboi, Hana Yoshida, Kinayu Yokoi
Skate Milwaukee
Time: July 7-11
Place: Milwaukee, WI, USA
Results
Website
Schedule
Streaming
Notable entries: Sr - Maxim Naumov, Ting Cui, Gabriella Izzo, Shan Lin. Jr - Ilia Malinin, Kanon Smith, Lindsay Thorngren, Isabeau Levito, Mia Kalin, Clare Seo
Los Angeles Open
Time: July 9-11
Place: Burbank, CA, USA
Results
Website
Schedule
Streaming
Notable entries: Sr - Starr Andrews, Hanna Harrell, Chelsea Liu/Danny O’Shea
Dallas Cannon Classic
Time: July 9-11
Place: Dallas, TX, USA
Results
Website
Schedule
Notable entries: Jr - Oona Brown/Gage Brown, Katarina Wolfkostin/Jeffrey Chen
Skate Wilmington
Time: July 13-18
Place: Wilmington, DE, USA
Results
Website
Notable entries: Sr - Gracie Gold, Rena Ikenishi, Emmanuel Savary
Note: This competition will determine South Korea’s JGP competitors.
Glacier Falls Summer Classic
Time: July 29 - Aug 1
Place: Anaheim, CA, USA
Results
Website
Entries
Paid streaming
Notable entries: Sr - Yaroslav Paniot, Andrew Torgashev, Hanna Harrell, Audrey Shin, Kailani Craine, Tzu-Han Ting, Chelsea Liu/DannyO’Shea, Jessica Calalang/Brian Johnson. Jr - Kate Wang
Russian Junior Test Skates
Time: Aug 3-6, 10-11
Place: Novogorsk, Russia
Schedule
Streaming & videos (singles)
Streaming & videos (ice dance, pairs)
Chesapeake Open
Time: Aug 4-7
Place: Laurel, MD, USA
Results
Website
Streaming
Notable entries: Sr - Molly Cesanek/Yehor Yehorov, Lorraine McNamara/Anton Spiridonov, Eva Pate/Logan Bye, Ting Cui, Ilia Malinin. Jr - Katarina Wolfkostin/Jeffrey Chen, Oona Brown/Gage Brown, Angela Ling/Caleb Wein, Utana Yoshida/Seiji Urano, Elliana Peal/Ethan Peal
Quebec Summer Championships
Time: Aug 5-8
Place: Dorval, QC, Canada
Results
Website
Schedule
Entries
Streaming - Rink 3, Rink 4
Notable entries: Sr - Gabrielle Daleman, Véronik Mallet, Vanessa James/Eric Radford, Lori-Ann Matte/Thierry Ferland, Deanna Stellato/Maxime Deschamps, Marie-Jade Lauriault/Romain Le Gac. Jr - Hannah Lim/Ye Quan
Kinoshita Trophy
Time: Aug 7-8
Place: Kyoto, Japan
Results
Website
Streaming (Japan only)
Notable entries: Sr - Sumitada Moriguchi, Lucas Tsuyoshi Honda, Hana Yoshida, Mana Kawabe. Jr - Azusa Tanaka.
Gensan Summer Cup
Time: Aug 9-12
Place: Shiga, Japan
Results
Website
Paid streaming (Japan only)
Notable entries: Sr - Yuma Kagiyama, Yuto Kishina, Kazuki Tomono, Lucas Tsuyoshi Honda, Sena Miyake, Taichiro Yamakuma, Nana Araki, Chisato Uramatsu, Miyabi Oba, Rino Kasakake, Mana Kawabe, Kaori Sakamoto, Yuna Shiraiwa, Rin Nitaya, Wakaba Higuchi, Rino Matsuike, Yura Matsuda, Mai Mihara, Satoko Miyahara, Mako Yamashita, Yuhana Yokoi, Rinka Watanabe. Jr - Kao Miura, Ami Nakai, Ayumi Shibayama, Mao Shimada, Rion Sumiyoshi, Azusa Tanaka, Kinayu Yokoi
Cranberry Open
Time: Aug 10-14
Place: Norwood, MA, USA
Results
Website
Schedule
Entries
Streaming - Performance Center, West Rink
Note: This is the club competition held in parallel with the ISU events, Cranberry Cup International and Lake Placid Ice Dance International.
Cranberry Cup International
Time: Aug 12-15
Place: Norwood, MA, USA
Results
Website
Schedule
Entries
Streaming - Performance Center, West Rink
Notable entries: Sr - Mariah Bell, Kailani Craine, Amber Glenn, Gracie Gold, Gabriella Izzo, Shan Lin, Alysa Liu, Paige Rydberg, Madeline Schizas, Audrey Shin, Young You, Alexei Bychenko, Donovan Carrillo, Tomoki Hiwatashi, Jimmy Ma, Maxim Naumov, Yaroslav Paniot, Camden Pulkinen, Daniel Samohin, Vincent Zhou, Jessica Calalang/Brian Johnson, Alexa Knierim/Brandon Frazier, Chelsea Liu/Danny O’Shea, Audrey Lu/Misha Mitrofanov, Evgenia Tarasova/Vladimir Morozov. Jr - Elsa Cheng, Jessica Lin, Violeta Ushakova, Ava Ziegler, Joseph Klein, Jacob Sanchez
Note: This is an international ISU competition held in parallel with the Lake Placid Ice Dance International and club competition, Cranberry Open.
Lake Placid Ice Dance International
Time: Aug 12-15
Place: Norwood, MA, USA
Results
Website
Schedule
Entries
Streaming - Performance Center, West Rink
Notable entries: Sr - Molly Cesanek/Yehor Yehorov, Caroline Green/Michael Parsons, Lorraine McNamara/Anton Spiridonov, Yura Min/Daniel Eaton, Eva Pate/Logan Bye. Jr - Isabella Flores/Dimitry Tsarevski, Angela Ling/Caleb Wein, Elliana Peal/Ethan Peal
Note: This is an international ISU competition held in parallel with the Cranberry Cup International and club competition, Cranberry Open.
Tokyo Summer Figure Skating Competition
Time: Aug 21-22
Place: Tokyo, Japan
Results
Website
Notable entries: Sr - Rinka Watanabe, Yuna Aoki, Wakaba Higuchi, Akari Matsubara, Tomoe Kawabata, Ibuki Sato. Jr - Rion Sumiyoshi, Ami Nakai
Note: This competition includes short programs only for senior and junior categories.
Osaka Figure Skating Championships
Time: Aug 21-22
Place: Osaka, Japan
Results
Website
Notable entries: Sr - Kazuki Tomono, Sena Miyake, Riko Takino
Note: This competition includes free skates only.
Kanto Summer Trophy
Time: Aug 28-29
Place: Kofu, Japan
Results
Website
Streaming (Japan only)
Notable entries: Sr - Shun Sato, Kao Miura, Shiika Yoshioka
Let me dream, okay? Just let me dream. Bronze can alternatively go to Yelim or Kaori but her FS makes me sad. Mana can also get it. If I let a Russian get something Sasha can get on podium because I find her oddly charming
Men:
G: Cha Junhwan
S: Deniss Vasiljevs
B: Donovan Carrillo
OR
G: Yuzuru Hanyu
S: Jason Brown
B: Cha Junhwan
I will accept a Japanese sweep or Misha/Boyang/Keegan sneaking onto the podium. Give me Donovan in the top 10 though.
Pairs
G: Sui/Han
S: Peng/Jin
B: Miura/Kihara
Silver and bronze can go either way. give me an Apologist/Traitor not making the free skate/ last place finish for the hilarity
Dance
G: Gilles/Poirier
S: Stepanova/Bukin because Stepanova is so pretty she makes me want to cry
B: IDK anyone who has a fun program and isn’t American because I like when the USA lose. I guess Papadakis/Cizeron can get it because I’m gay for Gabby
If you thought I won't do it then you thought wrong 😂
King Yuzu slayed! ❤️ 🥳🥳🥳
Just look at this picture by Joosep Martinson, it says all about the fire 🔥 and energy of the program. Such an entertainment! No score can tell what performance that was. German commentators in ARD One and ESP both said this was the best SP ever skated. Well then....here is the disappointment, it doesn’t have the best score. 😕 106 enough for first but imo the PCS could have been way higher (only one 10.0 - c'mon he deserves all the 10s). Especially when Nathan receives just 1 point less for a program with a fall and just half the choreographic content...but what is new??? Overall I am just really glad Yuzu skated clean. The rest is not in his power.
Shoma why such a silly mistake? 😭 Program is superb! Loved it ❤️
The energy, the fire was all there but what a silly place to fall. A 3A of all jumps Shoma really??? Daniel Weiss (German comment on ARD) gushed all the way about how Shoma deserves high 9s for his skating, because of what he can do with his skates. And yeah I think the mistake costed on PCS. I think if Nathan can score 46 PCS with a mistake that would be very well justified for Shoma too and Shoma did a way better interpretation...Anyway I think the score was well enough for a mistake and I am super glad he made the last group. And he is not a SP skater anyway. So pls no silly mistakes in the free! 🙏And actually all that matters is that Shoma found the fun in skating again. Two years ago he probably would have been heartbroken with such a skate. Today he smiled and even joked in the interview arena. I love that. 😍
Photo by Asahi
Yuma Kagiyama was superb. 👌What a SP debut. The security was insane. 💯 was well deserved. You go Yuma! 🥳 Amittedly not a big fan of the music but the way he did the program was amazing! I am really sceptical though if he can maintain that carefree attitude he portrayed in the free skate...if he can then congrats kid you probably earned yourself a medal. 😊
Now the gushing about Team Japan is done. I could say a lot more though. 😅
Where to start with Nathan? The fall was really unexpected, you could just see it rattled him a lot. Until the combo was done there was hardly any commitment to the program. I already said his PCS were too high imo but with world champ bonus this was expected. And actually if they give a youngster debut 43 PCS how can they give Nathan with his reputation less? Is it right? No, but that's how reality is. In general ofc Nathan had the hardest layout, the BV was still there hence he didn't drop lower. I don't agree on Nathan's score but this is not his fault. And dammit ppl celebrating Nathan's fall are just mean. Again the scoring is not his fault!!! I absolutely wouldn't have predicted Nathan in 3rd.
Keegan Messing delivered! So happy for him! Canada is on a good way to earn a 2nd spot! 🥳 Such a lovely charming program from Keegan! ❤️ Last group probably a thing he didn't expect to see...
Mikhail Kolyada: The only reason Misha doesn't have an arsenal of titles is that he is one of the skaters with the most stupid mistakes all the time. He didn't put the full risk and a 4T combo he can do in his sleep probably, but nope mistake. This could have broken 100 and would have deserved it for the choreography, the way it was performed, the skills of Misha, but those silly mistakes...argh. I think they will keep him off podium because skating clean is not in Misha's repertoire...sorry to be so harsh but it's really upsetting that this talented man cannot deliver his standard. I am only so harsh on him because I know he can do more. I love the program for Misha though 😍
Jason Brown was scored like I actually would score Jason...not in comparison with what others got though like Nathan and his PCS (sorry Nathan that bugs me you see, not you the judges ofc) It's probably a very unpopular opinion but imo his scores are usually too high 🤷♀️ (His GOEs are often comparable to Tutberidze's ladies) So actually I am fine with Jason's place...I am not a fan of the program I liked many other SPs better of him but I know many ppl loved it and it was perfectly fitted to the music and Jason did super well but it's just not my cup of tea. 😅 (don't stone me!) I do like Jason very much though as a person and a skater, I may be just less euphoric about Jason!
Kevin Aymoz did well. He has some cool moves going on. I am not sure if I like the program or not but I love to see him perform. And I am super happy he made such a good skate because his last appearance I witnessed on Euros 2020 was heartbreaking. Well done Kevin! 👍
I have never seen Junhwan Cha so secure like he performed here! 👏👏👏👏Probably the first time all worked really well and he didn't receive URs, everything was perfect. 👌
Some other pleasant surprises of today were :
Lukas Brigtschi - good program and musically well performed, he improved a lot through a year 👏👏👏
Nikolaj Majorow - the cartwheel was cool. The energy and the program were fun to watch. 👏👏👏
Han Yan - so glad he is back. This gliding, those arm movements - wonderful. 😍 😍 😍
Deniss Vasilijews - they should have given him more PCS. 😤 He was so good. 🤩
Donovan Carillo - this ray of sunshine deserves the world! ❤️
I am always glad to see Alexei Bychenko and Michal Brezina. They may not skate perfectly. But at their respective ages the can still fight with the youngsters! Admirable!
I am very sorry for Boyang Jin. It just didn't go well. I am glad to see he gets help by BOrser but I wonder if the coaching change happened too late?
I am not a Vincent Zhou fan at all but no one deserves a skate like this. To not make the free was right but is tough. I am sorry. Only in the men discipline can a skater be a medal contender and not qualify. Who would have guessed this?
Anyone else notice the homage to Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade in Bridgewater?
I'm listening to Professor Bradshaw's "I am an academic I don't believe in things I study! don't try to make this sexier than it is" lecture while his come hither voice cracks
[But I just keep hearing Indiana Jones scribbling on the chalkboard in his sexy bespoke tweed at the beginning of the film and saying "and X never, ever, marks the spot"]
Which is immediately before Bradshaw is told by this asshole manchild that Bradshaw's missing father's badge has been found after forty years
[But I just see Indiana Jones being told by psychopathic rich manchild Donovan that his father's gone missing during the hunt for the Holy Grail that he's studied for like 40 years.
And Indiana is like scoff, scoff, panicked grumble, none of it's real- I'm only dashing off to Venice to look into this nonsense because my father is missing]
And Bradshaw is like groan, panicked grumble, scoff, groan as he runs off to the cursed lake or forest or whatever because his father went missing
[Then Indiana's like this is probably real, Jesus Christ]
And then Bradshaw will slap him because that's blasphemy to some people and we want to respect people's irrational beliefs before we year them apart in a monograph
Ok I'm getting mixed up but...
Oh gosh then there's Vipin being the Marcus to Bradshaw's Jones and probably getting lost in his own library and there I go again.
Personally, I think this is the best Indiana Jones homage that I've seen in long time. I mean, I don't think they'll run into actual Hitler or the cup of Christ or melt Nazi faces but they might be working towards a low-key Temple of Doom demon-worshipping slave labor cult reveal.
I DON'T KNOW. (I love that I don't know, the lack of predictability here juxtaposed with very clear homages to the classics is tantalizing.)
All I know is please, please, please have Misha/Bradshaw talk himself up to taking a leap of faith for his father's sake before he jumps thru that wormhole or basilisk mouth or whatever the fuck is in those bridgewater woods.