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aion-rsa · 3 years

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25 Best Sports TV Shows

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Sports stories have traditionally belonged to the movies. Something about the rhythms of competition, in which an athlete or team trains, plays, and then either wins or loses, is a natural fit for the film world’s three act structure.

Television, with its multiple episodes and seasons, is often more discursive and therefore less viable for truly great sports stories. Thankfully, that all seems poised to change. While some sports TV shows have found success in the past, now the medium has really kicked things up a notch. Sports stories like Brockmire, Ted Lasso, Cobra Kai, and more are not only welcome on television, but an essential part of the cable and streaming landscape.

The United States of TV High Schools

By Alec Bojalad

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The Best Sports Documentaries To Stream

By Scott Fontana and 2 others

With that in mind, it’s high time we pay homage to TV’s great sports programs. What follows is a list of 25 of the best sports TV shows of all time, hand selected by Den of Geek (i.e. me: the arms-crossed weirdo in the picture at the bottom of this article).

It’s important to keep in mind that these are the best scripted sports TV shows. Television is, of course, no stranger to live sports and the various programs that surround them. Consider these unscripted American sports shows as honorable mentions: Hard Knocks, Last Chance U, Ken Burns’ Baseball, The Last Dance (and most other 30-for-30s), Cheer, Inside the NBA.

Enough of the undercard, now onto the main event.

25. Red Oaks

Amazon Prime’s Red Oaks examines the bougie tennis lifestyle of the 1980s. It all comes through the lens of David Myers (Craig Roberts), a college student looking to pick up some cash by taking a summer job at an upscale Jewish country club in New Jersey. Sports stories and coming-of-age stories fit particularly well because the end goal of each one is usually growth. It’s hard to say whether David grows during his time at Red Oaks, but he certainly changes over the series’ three seasons.

24. The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers

A TV show based on Disney sports movie behemoth franchise The Mighty Ducks was all but an inevitability, particularly when the major conglomerate secured its own streamer in Disney+. We’re all lucky then that The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers turned out to be quite good rather than completely perfunctory. The show is bold enough to recast its Ducks’ franchise as the villains and to rally around the radical idea that youth sports should be fun.

23. One Tree Hill

At first glance, One Tree Hill doesn’t seem too different from the other teen shows of its era on The CW (though The CW was still “The WB” for One Tree Hill’s first two seasons). It’s about high schoolers in a small town, doing high school things. Where One Tree Hill excels (at least in its early, still high school seasons) is the introduction of basketball as a storytelling crutch. Half brothers Lucas (Chad Michael Murray) and Nathan Scott (James Lafferty) have a turbulent enough relationship to begin with. What better way to contextualize that relationship than through the high stakes lens of high school basketball?

22. Lights Out

Not to be confused with the 2016 horror film of the same name, Lights Out is a boxing series from FX that ran for one excellent season in 2011. Holt McCallany (best known now as Agent Bill Tench on Mindhunter) stars as retired heavyweight champion Patrick “Lights” Leary. Despite displaying signs of neurological trauma from his career, Lights can’t help but want to return to the ring for one more shot of glory (and to pay off his family’s many debts). Lights Out is a sad, elegiac little story about how one man who sees a sport that broke his brain as the only realistic option for success.

21. Big Shot

Big Shot premiered shortly after its bigger-named Disney+ cousin The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers. And while Game Changers made a slightly bigger splash, Big Shot might be the better sports show. The story follows Marvyn Korn (John Stamos), a tempermental basketball coach who ends up at an elite all-girls prep school to shepherd its basketball program. Big Shot runs through all the tried and true tropes and beats of sports stories and does so with aplomb. Consider it Hardball meets Hoosiers with plenty of Stamos charm.

20. Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper

Sports are somewhat incidental to Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper’s mission. Sure, lead character Mr. Cooper (Mark Curry) is a former Golden State Warriors basketball player turned PE teacher. But like its TGIF programming block peers, this show is a charming hangout comedy with few lasting conflicts to speak of. Still, you don’t spend that much time in a gym without some three-pointers and lay-ups.

19. Coach

Before Craig T. Nelson was Mr. Incredible (or made this truly amazing televised statement), he was best known for portraying the title role in ‘90s ABC sitcom Coach. In fact, many of our archetypical perceptions of what makes a football coach likely come from Nelson’s portrayal of Coach Hayden Fox (who first coached for a fictional NCAA football team and later an NFL one). This is a man whose skill at molding young athletes belies his lack of skill at…well, everything else. Ultimately, Coach is a worthwhile multiseason experience in which a grown man grows up.

18. Kingdom

Kingdom is probably the best sports TV show that you’ve never heard of. Don’t worry, it’s not your fault. That’s just the kind of thing that happens when a show is damned to languish on AT&T’s ludicrous “Audience Network”. Kingdom is set in an MMA gym and captures all the drama provided in the heightened world of mixed martial arts combat. The show is blessed with some great characters and an even better cast. Frank Grillo (Captain America’s most annoying foe, Brock Rumlow), Kiele Sanchez (Lost), Matt Lauria (Friday Night Lights), Jonathan Tucker, (Justified) and Nick Jonas (yes, that Nick Jonas) all make their mark on the series.

17. The White Shadow

Premiering in 1978, CBS’s The White Shadow was uncommonly progressive for its time. The series follows Ken Reeves (Ken Howard), a white NBA player who retires after a knee injury and elects to take up coaching at Carver High School in South Central Los Angeles. Coach Reeves’s team is made up primarily of Black and Hispanic players and the show deals with the social ills of life in the inner city. It’s also quite funny and charming and features a commitment to realistic basketball scenes.

16. The League

FX comedy The League works as a sports show (and as a TV show in general) because it has a deep understanding of sports from a fan’s perspective. Sure, fans watch collegiate and professional sports to marvel at the athleticism, training, and skill on display. But more importantly, they watch sports to have something to talk about with their friends. Though the participants in the titular fantasy football league at the center of The League grew up as friends, who’s to say they would have stayed friends so long without this league keeping them together? Ruxin (Nick Kroll) is an asshole. Andre (Paul Scheer) is annoying. And Taco (Jon Lajoie) is, well…Taco.

15. Rocket Power

If the ‘90s taught us anything it’s that extreme sports are sports too, man! Rocket Power is a lovely little slice of life Nick Toon that follows four kids in a fictional California surfing community. Otto Rocket, Reggie Rocket, Maurice “Twister” Rodriguez, and Sam “Squid” Dullard spend their days skateboarding, surfing, playing street hockey, and occasionally snowboarding. It’s a wonderful ode to childhood and all the athletic activities that make the day (and years) go by far too quickly.

14. Luck

If things shook out differently, perhaps Luck could have been considered one of the five or so best sports shows of all time. All of the pieces were in place. This 2012 HBO series had the right creative team (created and run by Deadwood’s David Milch and starring Dustin Hoffman with a pilot directed by Michael Mann) to go along with an intriguing premise (complicated characters’ lives intersecting at a horse track). But alas…the dead horses. Oh so many dead horses. Despite stringent safety measures put in place, Luck lost three hoof bois during filming of its first season and was canceled shortly thereafter. May they all rest in peace.

13. All American

High school is a turbulent time in all our lives. And when the high stakes world of competitive football is added in, things can only get more intense. The CW’s All American opts to take the world of high school football and opts to add in a welcome dose of sociopolitical commentary. This series is loosely based on the life of former New York Giants linebacker Spencer Paysinger and follows his character “Spencer James” as he is recruited from South L.A. to play for the affluent Beverly Hills High. The show wisely understands that sports (particularly when they involve Black teenagers) are a marvelous portal to explore American society.

12. Pitch

Cruelly cut short after just one season of 10 episodes, Pitch is the kind of sports show that will inspire sports stories for years to come. This baseball series for Fox comes from Dan Fogelman (This Is Us) and Rick Singer. It follows the saga of Ginny Baker (Kylie Bunbury), who becomes the first woman to play in Major League Baseball when she’s called up to pitch by the San Diego Padres. Pitch was blessed with an excellent cast including Bunbury and Mark-Paul Gosselaar as a veteran catcher nearing the end of his Hall of Fame career. More interestingly, it was blessed with an actual MLB licensing deal. There are no silly fictional teams in this show like the Tuscaloosa Barn-Burners or the Helena Hellcats. It’s all real MLB team names and logos, adding to the realism of a cool premise.

11. Ballers

Of course, Elizabeth Warren’s favorite show has to be on this list. Ballers has a bit of an unearned reputation for being cringe thanks to its ridiculous name and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s delightful cornball energy. In reality, this is an exceedingly watchable TV show and one that examines the corporate side of professional sports quite well. It’s also noticeable for being most viewers’ introduction to eventual Tenet star John David Washington.

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10. GLOW

Is professional wrestling a sport? Vince McMahon would argue that it’s “sports entertainment.” I would argue that that’s more than good enough to get the excellent GLOW on this list. GLOW tragically fell victim to Netflix’s whimsical cancellation procedures. Why the almighty algorithm decided a show needed to be canceled after it was already renewed is beyond me. But don’t let that sour three seasons of superb sportsy storytelling. GLOW follows the fictionalized rise of the very real “Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling” and it centers it on the conflict between two former best friends, Ruther Wilder (Alison Brie) and Debbie Eagen (Betty Gilpin). GLOW differs a bit from the usual sports fare in that the “sport” at its center wasn’t necessarily plan A for the athletes. But the experience of watching the ladies train, grow, and succeed is pure and sublime sports story stuff.

9. Cobra Kai

Cobra Kai absolutely could have been phoned in. The streaming world runs on nostalgia and there’s nothing more sweetly nostalgic than The Karate Kid franchise. Instead, this Netflix series changes the original franchise’s perspective by focusing on the “villainous” Cobra Kai dojo and re-examines things from Johnny’s point of view. Ralph Macchio and William Zabka deserve credit for embodying realistically adult, yet flawed versions of their original characters. Equally deserving of credit though is a whole host of young actors bringing the martial arts to a whole new generation.

8. Blue Mountain State

A lot of the shows on this list are, let’s say, reverential to the sports, teams, and athletes they cover. Spike comedy Blue Mountain State is decidedly…not. This series, following the Mountain Goats football team for the fictional college Blue Mountain State, understands that not all depictions of athletes have to be saints. Sometimes college football player can just be the big dumb animals you want them to be. Through three seasons, this show developed a cult following that would follow it over for a lifetime of reruns on Netflix. Blue Mountain State is crass, dangerous, and entertaining, not entirely unlike football.

7. Sports Night

Speaking of being reverential to sports…like all Aaron Sorkin-created TV series, Sports Night can be a bit full of itself sometimes. That only works when the topic at hand, like the federal branch of the U.S. government, is consequential. Thankfully, sports can be pretty important sometimes too! This late ‘90s show follows the goings-on at a Sportscenter-esque news program hosted by Dan Rydell (Josh Charles) and Casey McCall (Peter Krause). It has all the witty dialogue you’d come to expect from a Sorkin venture. And if you can make your way through the inexplicable laugh track of the early episodes, you will find a mature, entertaining show that properly understands and contextualizes professional sports’ role in American society.

6. Survivor’s Remorse

Survivor’s Remorse came into the world with two strikes against it. One is a bizarrely overwrought name, and the other is that its home network, Starz, isn’t a given on many cable packages. Still, this LeBron James-produced comedy is shockingly one of the best sports TV shows ever (and perhaps still the best creative venture James has been involved in yet). This story follows NBA athlete Cam Calloway (Jessie T. Usher) as he tries to balance the business and basketball aspects of his life. At first the show focuses on Cam’s guilt for having got out of his impoverished neighborhood when so many couldn’t (hence, the show’s title), but ultimately it evolves into a family comedy drama featuring some truly remarkable characters and performances like Cam’s cousin and manager Reggie Vaughn (RonReaco Lee) and his baller half-sister “M-Chuck” (Erica Ash). Even Monica Rambeau herself, Teyonah Parris, is a part of the proceedings.

5. Playmakers

Sometimes I can’t even believe that Playmakers is real. Surely, this ESPN series about a fictional football team in a fictional league that is clearly the NFL was just a post-9/11 fever dream we all endured together. Alas, Playmakers was real and it was awesome. This series follows the players on the Cougars as they navigate a football landscape filled with ripped-from-the-headlines strife including Performance enhancing drugs, good old-fashioned drugs, domestic abuse, concussions, and more. The series even introduces the outing of a gay player more than a decade before Michael Sam and Carl Nassib revealed their sexual orientations. Naturally, Playmakers was canceled when the NFL intimated to its broadcast partner ESPN that it wasn’t too pleased with the content of its show. And enraging the National Football League alone is enough to make this an all-time classic.

4. Eastbound & Down

Eastbound & Down creator and star Danny McBride isn’t necessarily a huge fan of baseball. But he is, thankfully, a huge fan of weirdos and creeps. When McBride discovered just how bizarre and poorly behaved certain flamethrowing relief pitchers could be, Kenny Powers and the show around him was born. The baseball “action” in Eastbound isn’t much to write home about. The show isn’t too concerned with the results of any given baseball game and McBride always looks like he’s throwing a javelin and not a baseball. It’s still a phenomenal saga about athletes that dives into Paul Bunyan-esque tales of legendary misbehavior that fame encourages. It’s no coincidence that in the follow ups to Kenny Powers, McBride has delved into megalomaniacal vice principals and bejeweled, sweaty televangelists – all different aspects of the white American male id.

3. Ted Lasso

Of all the sports shows in the TV canon, none feels more like a traditional sports movie than Ted Lasso. This Apple TV+ series plucks an American football coach-fish and gently places him out of water in the English Premier League. The affable Lasso (Sudeikis) is charged with reversing the fortunes of EPL side AFC Richmond. Little does he know, however, that spiteful owner Rebecca Welton (Hannah Waddington) is counting on him to fail, Major League style. Ted Lasso isn’t interested in reinventing the wheel. Instead it perfects it. This is a tale of relentless optimism and unconditional positive regard. Ted breaks the mold for what we expect from coaches, which is probably why so many actual coaches are fond of the show. Simply put: sports stories can’t be done much better than this one.

2. Brockmire

Sometimes commentators like to bemoan the modern state of baseball. What was once American’s pastime has now supposedly fallen behind things like football and videogames in the pop cultural pecking order. Then along comes something like Brockmire to teach us that baseball as a continuous, seemingly eternal American presence is just as vital as ever. In a career-defining role, Hank Azaria plays disgraced baseball broadcaster Jim Brockmire. Once at the top of his game, an on-air drunken meltdown loses him his job and his sanity. In season 1 of this superb IFC show, Brockmire returns to the booth, this time for an independent league team in Morristown, Pennsylvania. The four seasons that follow are one big love letter to not only baseball, but the messy human experience itself. It’s rare that you get something this funny and this affecting. The fact that it’s wrapped in a stylish diamond-shaped bow is just icing on the cake.

1. Friday Night Lights

Not only is Friday Night Lights the best sports TV show of all time, it’s hard to imagine it ever being supplanted from its throne. Simply put, Friday Night Lights is a sports television masterpiece. Each of Friday Night Lights’ five seasons (save for the writer’s strike-shortened second) fully capture the ecstasy and agony of high school football in a small Texas town where high school football is the only thing that matters. Friday Night Lights doesn’t shy away from the unsavory institution that is big time high school athletics.

The series opens with a life-changing injury before following it up with tales of corrupt boosters and garden variety West Texas racism. And yet, the show never looks down on its characters. If winning state is important to Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler), Matt Saracen (Zach Gilford), Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch), Smash Williams (Gaius Charles), and Vince Howard (Michael B. Jordan), then it’s important to us too. In fact, when Friday Night Lights is really rolling and the W.G. Snuffy Walden’s Explosions in the Sky-style soundtrack is swirling, you might not recall anything ever mattering to you as much as the Dillon Panthers or the East Dillon Lions winning a football game. Clear eyes, full hearts, absolutely cannot lose.

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purplesurveys · 4 years

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do you think weird it's for someone to have never tried soda? I’d be surprised that they were never curious enough to try it if they can access soda, but then again I live in a third world country and not everyone gets to try everything. I’ve learned to judge less when it comes to opportunities like this. is there any foreign film you recommend? Portrait of a Lady on Fire was fucking intense and so, so so good. do you have the same religious beliefs as your parents? My dad might also be atheist, but I’ve never known for sure. He once confided in me that he was atheist in college but “it changed” when he met my mom... but honestly we’ve always grunted the same way whenever my mom tells us it’s time to pray or if we have to watch our weekly mass livestream. So idk. I think he just acts Catholic to appease her, but yeah he’s definitely weird about it. which floor of your house/building are you on now? Second floor. It’s my first time to want to hang out in my bedroom in months because IT’S ACTUALLY RAINING and it’s cold enough in my room to wanna stay here. are there any maps hanging in your room? No maps here.

are you often a third wheel? or is someone a third wheel to you? Yep I third wheel pretty often. My girlfriend and I study in different schools and I have friends in my school who are couples, so if Gab isn’t visiting my campus for the day I just tag along with my couple friends. I don’t get bothered or feel insecure by it because I have my own relationship lolol what's the last dvd you bought? Holy shit...DVD? I don’t even remember anymore. It was most likely an Audrey Hepburn film, back in 2013 when I was really into her. That or Beyoncé’s Life Is But A Dream documentary, which was the last thing she ever released on DVD. Also came out in 2013. tell me about your favorite pair of jeans. High-waisted 90s-styled jeans. Nothing much to say other than they fit me well, I got a lot of compliments whenever I have them on, and they match any t-shirt I paired with, which made me like wearing t-shirts again haha. would you ride a motorcycle if given the chance? (or have you?) I would but only if someone super experienced was driving. I haven’t been on one because my parents don’t allow me to, and tbh I don’t mind the rule because I’m mostly scared of motorcycles anyway. is your hair healthy? No. Some hair salon I went to around ten years ago put some cheap products in my hair when I had it rebonded and it never felt 100% healthy again. Until today it gets very stiff when it gets into contact with water and only shampoo, and I always have to pair it with conditioner. if a hotel offered free breakfast in bed, what would you order? Eggs Benedict and some very creamy warm coffee. how often do you take a train? Never. I don’t trust the public transport here and I’m better off driving in my own car. what are your thoughts on reincarnation? (have you ever read up about it?) I don’t think of it at all because I don’t believe in it. I don’t mind others who are into it, just don’t shove it down my throat. what's your favorite led zeppelin song? I don’t have one. does your home have a balcony/deck/porch? Yeah we have a balcony. We used to have a full balcony, but we transformed 3/4 of it into my brother’s current room a few years ago because he was starting to grow up and he needed his own room. We retained 1/4 of the space so that it can be the place where my dog can still do his business. what does your closet/wardrobe say about you? It says I am a very messy person who can’t keep her closet consistently organized lol. It will also tell you I’m quite girly based on the clothes I own. do you enjoy theatre? I was never a fan. how would you feel about traveling abroad alone? If I was offered the chance to do it I certainly wouldn’t give it up, but I really, really, preferably would travel with at least one companion. Traveling is one of those experiences I’d want to share with someone, and I would hate if I had to go back to my hotel room at the end of the day with no one to talk to. who would you call a lyrical genius? Laura Jane Grace. how do you treat yourself? My go-to gift for myself is giving into my cravings hahaha. Nothing speaks more to me than food, and if I feel like I deserve a reward for a job well done, I’ll go to a slightly more expensive restaurant to celebrate. do you have an interesting passport? Idk, it’s a normal one and I never had it customized or anything. are you going to pursue a career according to what you enjoy? I hope I get to. I really enjoyed my PR internship and I’d love to be headed there. what happens to your old clothes? They go to the very back or the very bottom of my wardrobe for the most part. My mom will make us throw out clothes we don’t like anymore once a year, so that’s the time I get to get rid of them. what's your favorite frozen treat? Cornetto ice cream is one of my faaaaavorite comfort snacks. The end of the cone where they save chocolate chunks is the best part. who supports you financially? My parents. Getting increasingly guiltier about it by the day, too. if you wanted to go to the movie cinema, how would you get there? I would wait for the clock to strike midnight tonight, because in 48 minutes they’ll finally loosen lockdown rules AND I CAN FINALLY GO OUT. Hahaha. After that I’ll jump to my car, drive out of the village, take a u-turn, and I’m there. how many pillows are on your bed? Two big ones. would you pay more for organic food? Only if I had the money for it. Organic food is a thing of the (very) privileged here and is not very accessible to begin with, unless you’re in posher grocieries. have you ever had a crush on a sibling's friend or a friend's sibling? I haven’t. I’d find it weird considering they’re all a bit younger than me. do you have a friend who mooches? what to do about it? (or is it you?) She’s never done it with me but I’ve heard enough horror stories about her to know that she tends to do this, but yeah Mils is apparently quite the moocher. I’m soooo not one; I’d wait for my friends to offer to pay for stuff, but otherwise I’m fighting them over the bill lmao. do you know much about feng shui? (do you use it?) I’m not knowledgeable on it but I’m definitely familiar with it, because we have a rather large Filipino-Chinese community/culture in the country that glorifies feng shui during Chinese New Year season. I don’t really have a choice but have Chinese culture shoved down my throat whether it’s in the news, the media, or my Chinese friends. how would you make friends in a quiet class? I preferably wouldn’t because I’m only interested in getting good grades and getting that class over with hahaha. But if I was interested in making a friend or two, I’d typically scan the classroom and see who seems to be responsible? Like if they take notes as hard as I do. are you generally a quick learner? No. I take some time, and I especially take long if the thing being taught is more hands-on, like origami. I’ve just never been good at following certain tasks, and I prefer learning from reading instructions. what's your favorite spot to read? Skywalk or the dining table. has anyone given you a nickname you didn't like? (what was it?) Not that I can recall. I’m okay with all of them. did you know that buddha is not considered a god to buddhists? Yes. do you save tickets from movies, etc.? If it’s a significant enough date or event, sure. I’ve kept my 2018 Paramore gig ticket to this day, but like I’ve thrown out my ticket for Knives Out because I hated the movie lol. without looking him up, who was jim morrison? Vocalist for The Doors. when's the last time your bedroom was painted/wallpapered? Idk, 2006 or 2007 when the house was being made? It’s never been repainted. teach me something in another language. (not french/chinese/german/arabic) Why so language-ist lmaooooooo uh “Nakauwi ka na?” means “Did you get home? / Have you gotten home?” what type of body wash did you last use? Idk, I never read the labels on it actually. what type of music do you like and why? Right now I’m into lo-fi because it makes me feel relaxed, but I’m also starting to get into the recent trend where today’s artists put out songs that sound like they’re from the 80s, like Dua Lipa’s Physical or The Weeknd’s Blinding Lights - I think the genre is called synth pop/synthwave. They simply sound cool haha and they’re awesome to listen to while driving. if you randomly want to eat something in the house, do you eat it or wait? I check the time, like if we’re supposed to be having dinner soon, then act accordingly. who knows the most about you (besides yourself)? My girlfriend. do you have a nervous habit? (e.g. biting nails, tapping feet, smoking) Plucking eyebrow or eyelash hair, but that behavior is reserved for extreme cases where I’m incredibly and inconsolably anxious. On a milder day I would vape, sigh a lot, or bite my nails. how's your favorite pro sports team doing lately? I don’t watch sports with teams. would you be/are you a good role model to a younger sibling? I don’t get into trouble but I’m not the best influence either.

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pantheon-pjorp · 7 years

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Melody Tramonto | 15 years old | Daughter of Apollo | Cabin Seven | TAKEN

↳ T h e l i f e o f M e l o d y T r a m o n t o —

Alyson Tramonto, Melody’s mother, enlisted in the army after graduating high school and spent her service performing in the military band. Alyson is also a highly disciplined soldier. It was during her time in the Army Band that she attracted the attention of not one god, but two. Ares was drawn to Alyson’s discipline, sensing the potential she could have as a soldier if only she could be put to the test. Apollo, on the other hand was enchanted with her musical talent and her devotion to music. In the end, Alyson proved her love of music was stronger than her desire to be a soldier when she fell in love with Apollo. It wasn’t long before Alyson had Melody. Ares thought Alyson to be a bitter disappointment and a waste of potential.

Melody grew up as an army brat, moving locations every 3-4 years to a different military base with her mother. Being the new kid so often, Melody found solace in her hobbies during times of transition. Musically gifted like her mother, as well as growing up surrounded by professional musicians, Melody became accomplished at both piano and violin. However, Melody found her true passion was in tennis. She practiced daily, hitting against large stretches of walls around the base and developing her skills on her own. When Melody’s mother retired from active duty, they moved to California to be closer to family. Melody’s uncle recognized her potential and spent hours helping her practice. Through hard work and dedication, combined with her natural ability, Melody has ranked as one of the best tennis players in her age group in the country.

Melody never knew she was a demigod, although her family did. Her mother chose not to tell Melody, as she was worried this could put her in danger. She hoped growing up on military bases would provide enough protection to keep her daughter safe. She eventually realized that the constant moving was tough for Melody and their extended family was missing out on Melody growing up. Time was running out before Melody would have to make her way to camp and her mother wanted to give her a childhood before it was inevitably taken from her, as it was for all heroes. Although it was a hard decision for her, Melody’s mother retired from active duty to give her daughter a chance to have a relationship with their extended family and as close to a normal childhood as she could provide before it was time for her to go to camp.

↳ C a m p J u p i t e r ‘ s 8 – m o n t h l o c k d o w n —

Melody was a recent arrival at Camp Half Blood during the 8-month lockdown. After moving off the military base, more and more strange things kept happening. For the most part, Melody didn’t notice or attributed it to life off of the base. Her family knew better, yet they couldn’t find the words to tell her. Melody’s mother prayed that Apollo might give her an idea on how to break the news to Melody, or give her a clue of when she should send her to camp but he was serving his punishment as a mortal. Another god was listening, however, and Ares saw this as an opportunity to cultivate Melody into the warrior that her mother wasn’t. With Apollo out of the picture, there was nothing stopping him asserting his own influence.

Melody wasn’t concerned about Camp Jupiter. She knew that others were concerned though, and she realized something serious must have been happening. Having never seen the camp for herself, and never knowing anyone from Camp Jupiter, she didn’t understand what everyone else was missing.

↳ P e r s o n a l i t y —

Melody is a very focused and driven girl. When she discovers a passion for something she commits herself to it wholeheartedly. Her dedication to music and tennis are only a few examples of this drive. Sometimes her dedication can be too intense and she doesn’t know when to let things go. Some people call it being strong-willed, others might classify it as being stubborn.

Part of Melody’s stubbornness is her refusal to accept some aspects of her new life as a demigod. She avoids using healing magic as to use it would be to admit that it is real. She likes her mace, since swinging it feels familiar to swinging a tennis racquet. In target practice she prefers a rifle as it grounds her more firmly in the familiar.

Melody is a performer at heart and a bit of a drama queen. She thrives under the spotlight where others might shy away. This has also been a help in her tennis career as crowds don’t distract her. She also rarely suffers from stage fright. However, it is not enough for Melody to be in front of a crowd. She needs to have some sort of response. Applause is something she thrives off of and further fuels her drive to succeed. Being ignored is her own personal form of torture.

Melody is very personable and gets along with a lot of people. She has a hard time forming lasting, meaningful relations though since she is so used to moving from place to place. She doesn’t mind being alone with her music or training for tennis matches.

↳ A b i l i t i e s a n d w e a k n e s s e s —

✔ Musically inclined. Some healing magic. Sports medicine. Perfect aim.

‣ Like all Greek demigods, Melody suffers from ADHD (to keep her alert to threats) and, because her brain is hard-wired to read Greek, from dyslexia.

✘ Her underdeveloped healing magic takes time to “recharge” after each use.

↳ T h i n g s t o r e m e m b e r —

She is a nationally ranked tennis player in her age group.

She plays the violin and the piano

She hates the sight of blood, but is interested in sports medicine

She wants to become a chiropractor one day.

Her weapon of choice is a mace, and she likens it to swinging a tennis racquet

She isn’t bad at archery, but prefers a rifle during target practice

↳ R e l a t i o n s h i p s —

Sebastian Jones: Melody and Bastian get along pretty well and have bonded over their mutual love of music. Like all siblings, they have their differences as well as their similarities and they are still getting used to the whole idea of being siblings. They are friendly but haven’t really developed much of a deeper relationship than that.

Flora Gonzalez: Melody and Flora have also bonded over a mutual love of music and get together often for impromptu jam sessions. They share a dramatic outlook on life and love to get together and update one another on what’s happening around camp. Flora and Melody instantly got along, and Flora has become one of Melody’s favorite people at Camp Half-Blood.

Isaiah Bradley: As two people who are friendly enough but unused to forming long-lasting relationships, Melody and Isaiah have gotten along extremely well. They have an easy and low-maintenance friendship. Melody is unaware Isaiah is a pathological liar, but as a naturally skeptical person, it won’t be long before she starts to pick up on it.

FC: Naomi Scott

#takenf #child of apollo #original character #greek demigod taken

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idolizerp · 6 years

Photo

[ LOADING INFORMATION ON OLYMPUS’ LEAD RAP, SUB VOCAL SIHWAN…. ]

DETAILS

CURRENT AGE: 26 DEBUT AGE: 18 TRAINEE SINCE AGE: 16 SKILL POINTS: 10 VOCAL | 16 DANCE | 10 RAP | 14 PERFORMANCE SECONDARY SKILLS: Modeling

INTERVIEW

perhaps out of force of habit, sihwan comes off as a troublemaker. he isn’t, really - midas won’t let him be - but they use that to their advantage by portraying him as a kind of playful rascal, someone who’ll play pranks on other members and find loopholes to missions on variety games. it has been a bit of a hit or miss in terms of success - he’s good at bringing fun and interest for viewers and he’s good at lifting the mood, but it has been interpreted as malicious or cheating equally as often. this is made worse from the fact that sihwan debuted with a lower level of skill than the rest of the group, giving him a cheater image from the get-go. midas keeps an eye on what posts and comments are saying about him and try to get him to amp it up or tone it down depending on what the situation asks for, but unfortunately it’s close enough to his actual personality that on occasion he’ll slip up when he’s not supposed to.

his success really stems from his charisma and stage presence. sihwan is good at covering up his mistakes with an absurd amount of confidence, which has also been helpful with his budding modelling career. olympus’ image is so carefully tailored and some of the fashions he showcases are vastly outside of it, but because of his ability to pull off almost anything he has the opportunity to further both his own career and his group’s as a whole. of course, confidence is often interpreted as arrogance, and working in high fashion definitely doesn’t help, but midas is fine with sihwan appearing arrogant as long as he maintains the interest of the public. his reputation is a mixed bag as a result, but generally it is relatively good - he gets both criticized and praised for different aspects of his idol work, and gets similarly positive and negative attention for visiting the hospital relatively often and getting photo ops with patients and medical staff.

BIOGRAPHY

( O N E . )

on the surface, their life is ideal. he’s the youngest of three. a father who worked as a bank teller, a mother who had been an elementary school teacher until she became pregnant with her first and decided to become a stay-at-home mom. they saved up until they could buy a modest home in the suburbs and settled down there to raise their family.

of course, things are never as easy as they seem. the family’s eldest child, a daughter, was pretty and healthy from day one, picking up sports soon after she had learned to run, eventually leading her school teams to victory time and time again. the second, a son, was healthy for the first few years, but as he grew older concerning symptoms showed up, and by the time sihwan was born, the family had grown used to frequent trips to the hospital, check-ups and tests and weeks spent monitoring over a young boy with a frail immune system. when sihwan came out healthy and stayed that way, the attention was immediately brought back to his brother - and he didn’t mind. he spent his days in his mom’s arms by his brother’s bedside, in meetings with nurses and doctors, and once he’d started going to school, he was enrolled in a school close to the hospital in order to walk over at the end of the day to meet his family for dinner. that was their normal - the routine, familial habit.

( T W O . )

his teachers complained that he was a troublemaker. the truth is he’s really just full of pent up energy that is never quite spent and he has a natural curiosity that has him asking incessant tangential questions, both of which become annoying traits to anyone who has to watch over him. but teachers don’t scold or complain, and his parents don’t notice or try to stop him, because he’s pitied - he’s the kid whose family is always dragging to the hospital, who is left aside while another child needs more fussing over.

as a result, sihwan grows up more or less without limits. suffering few consequences for any of his actions and given little guidance as he matures, he becomes lazy and aimless. he can’t imagine a future for himself, and more than that, he doesn’t bother to. there’s no reason to since no one is making sure he does, no one is forcing him to practice or cultivate any interests or talents he might have. he lives firmly in the present, taking every day at a time.

( T H R E E . )

sihwan is at a ddeokbokki stand with friends on his fourteenth birthday when a tall woman in a pantsuit approaches him and hands him a business card. “midas media”, it reads, and although he isn’t particularly invested in kpop it’s a notorious enough name that he decides on a whim to go for it. he has nothing to lose - scouting him means the company is already interested in him, right? parents aren’t a problem either, his will probably just be glad he’s finally working towards something.

by a miracle, or maybe just a lot of good luck, he passes the audition. but it soon becomes obvious that he’s not quite on the same level as the other trainees. midas is no joke, and everyone there knows it - some have been taking dance and vocal classes for years with the express purpose of debuting someday, others have an innate talent that no amount of hard work could imitate. most importantly, for the first time in his life, sihwan is challenged. there were very real consequences if he slacked off, and the company ensures that that is made clear. and, truth be told, he found his old life of slacking off at school and reading manhwas in the hospital boring. this one, with the potential of fame and glory, was much more enticing.

( F O U R . )

he was put into a group to prepare for debut about a year after being scouted. it was obvious to everyone that he had been selected as a pretty face to add to the lineup - still lacking in terms of skill, he was given the position of lead rap and sub vocal, guaranteeing him some lines but not enough that fans would get too critical.

what he lacked in rap and vocals he made up for in charisma. his dance was not particularly strong when compared with the other members, but his onstage attitude was strong, compelling, impossible to ignore. even offstage he grabbed attention with his bright smile and dimples, a combination midas had him master early on. in front of the cameras and the smiling faces of the public, sihwan had the attention he had never realized he needed so badly.

( F I V E . )

in the early days after olympus’ debut, he could cover up some of his shortcomings with his confidence. by the time this was becoming less effective, the group had amassed a rabid following that would jump to his defence if anyone showed the slightest amount of doubt.

in the meantime, sihwan had become driven. he was not used to having a goal, and every fibre of his being became intensely focused on pushing olympus forward and keeping them ahead of other groups. he did anything and everything the company told him to on the chance that it would bring them more fame and success. he was greedy and ambitious; he had become addicted to the life he now lived. the future was all he obsessed over.

he practiced his rap and his vocals and reached a point where he better deserved his assigned spot. but it was clear that he wouldn’t improve much further. midas began sending him on photoshoots and getting him to talk with designers, trying to get olympus into the more exclusive fashion community through sihwan’s height and high cheekbones. and it worked - he took to modelling like a duck to water. it’s his non-musical contribution to the group, by maintaining an artistic side to their enterprise.

( S I X . )

olympus is on top. threatened every so often, but still standing on their own two feet on top of the kpop food chain. sihwan has barely any time to visit his brother anymore, but every once in a while he makes a point to go home or to the hospital with a copy of their latest release on cd to play in his brother’s walkman. the media paints him as a caring younger brother, a filial son, and midas makes sure that each time he sets foot in a hospital thousands of photos are taken of him shaking hands with patients, but none of that is really the truth. he cares about his brother, but he had never known him any other way but sick - visiting him is like visiting any relative. his relationship with his parents is as strange and distant as ever, and while he continues to send a portion of his pay home and pays for his brother’s hospital bills and bought his parents a car it isn’t out of a filial love, it’s just what’s done.

sihwan had never spent time predicting how his life would turn out, but even if he had this would not have been entertained as a possibility. but his ambition still burns, and he won’t stop until olympus reaches heights that no one else could dream of reaching. he won’t stop until all eyes are on him.

#id.bio #id.midas #id.olympus #id.lee hongbin

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junker-town · 7 years

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Replaying the greatest CFB games ever in EA Sports’ ‘NCAA Football 05’ Classics mode

Let’s go back and try to beat all 20 of these College Classics.

Before its last edition, NCAA Football 14, EA Sports had been cranking out college football games for years and years. The game served as a perfect counterpart to the ongoing Madden series. From the epic loading screen that opens to the sound of college bands ...

... NCAA Football was an amazing series that experimented with some awesome game modes over the years.

There was Campus Legend/Road to Glory mode, in which you could start in high school, choose your college, and become a college football deity. In the later installments, you could pick a classic college player, put him on ANY team in the game, and play out your career. Barry Sanders on the LSU Tigers? Sure. Tim Tebow on the Oregon Ducks? Absolutely.

One of the more memorable modes was College Classics. I already went over this game mode with the EA Sports basketball counterpart. I decided to go back with this one and give the NCAA Football 2005 Classics mode a try.

Of course, Easy Play mode was turned off. If it was on, it would have defeated the entire purpose of the article.

1980 Holiday Bowl

BYU vs. SMU Difficulty: Hard as hell.

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You have two minutes and 33 seconds to come back from a 45-31 lead against a pretty damn good running back duo that included Eric Dickerson. You have to be perfect, or you will lose. You have three timeouts, but you have to use them wisely.

Also, this is a video game in which receivers drop the easiest passes for NO REASON.

Some of you might have never passed this level, and playing it again after all these years, I don’t blame you. A lot of things have to go right to even have a chance. This is one of those levels where you really start to appreciate just how impressive this was in real life.

The Play

Cal vs. Stanford Difficulty: Hard, unless they miss the FG

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This actually starts at the field goal before the miraculous play, so you have a chance to block the kick ... or play until he actually misses it lol.

College kickers, am I right?

If the kicker makes the field goal, then you either have to return the kick for a touchdown or try to grab enough field position before the clock hits zero and going for the Hail Mary. Both are difficult to achieve, even without the band crashing the field in the video game version.

1983 Holiday Bowl

BYU vs. Missouri Difficulty: Easy

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Luckily for you, you don’t have to exactly replicate the play. This means you don’t have to run a halfback pass to score.

With that being said, you have 30 seconds to go 14 yards. The whole playbook is at your disposal, and you are already in field goal range. To top it all off, your quarterback is fuckin’ Steve Young. While he was just a backup in the 1980 BYU challenge, he is god-level good in this edition.

1984 Orange Bowl

Nebraska vs. Miami Difficulty: Easy

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Instead of taking the tie and the certain national title, you go for two, but you convert it. You then have to prevent a loaded Miami from scoring with less than a minute to go. Unlike the basketball counterpart, playing defense is not impossible, and you have a pretty good one, but this is only easy because of the amount of time.

Hail Mary

Boston College vs. Miami Difficulty: Hard

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It's just one play, and it's not an impossible throw, given where the line of scrimmage is. The only problem is that it’s a Hail Mary, so this may take you a few tries. This is the easier of the two Hail Mary challenges on here. In Flutie you trust.

This level similar to "The Shot" in the basketball version.

1985 Iron Bowl

Alabama vs. Auburn Difficulty: Easy

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All you have to do is go down the field and get within field goal range.

You have time outs. This level isn't that strenuous when compared to some of the other challenges. It would have been cool to play the Cam Newton Iron Bowl or the “Kick Six,” if the game were still around today, but beggars can’t be choosers.

1987 Fiesta Bowl

Miami vs. Penn State Difficulty: Medium

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You have five minutes to beat Penn State, and you’re The U. You’ll be fine. Just don’t suck.

1991 Orange Bowl

Notre Dame vs. Colorado Difficulty: Medium

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Your job is to get revenge on C̶o̶l̶o̶r̶a̶d̶o̶ the referees for a controversial penalty flag on a Rocket Ismail punt return that would have given Notre Dame the lead and Georgia Tech the title. You don’t have to return the punt for a touchdown immediately, but you do have a limited amount of clock to get within field goal range.

You have 44 seconds and two timeouts to beat Colorado.

Also, Notre Dame went 4-8 in 2016.

Wide Right 1

Florida State vs. Miami Difficulty: Easy

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You have around three minutes to beat Miami. Take your time. Relax. You have a very good running back, Amp Lee, and a good wide receiver corps. You'll be alright. Don’t miss the field goal .

Snow Bowl

Notre Dame vs. Penn State Difficulty: Medium (Or easy, and I’m just trash at this level)

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This one is more difficult than it appears, for some weird reason. You're on the 3-yard line, but you're going up against a somehow OP (overpowered) defensive line performing a goal-line stand in the snow. Your receiving corps also drops almost every pass.

Once you do score, you should be in the clear unless you are atrocious at defense. When you do score, Penn State has less than 30 seconds and no timeouts to try to win the game.

“DEFENSE” clap clap “DEFENSE”

Game of the Century

Florida State vs. Notre Dame Difficulty: Medium

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You start out with a fourth-and-20, down two touchdowns.

You're playing as Florida State, trying to reverse the real-life outcome. You have a better chance at winning if you convert on the fourth-and-20, but to each their own. Some people don’t like to live dangerously, and that’s okay.

(I scored the second touchdown and was going to go for the win, but I forgot that you can get celebration penalties.)

Oops.

The Miracle in Michigan

Colorado vs. Michigan Difficulty: Damn near impossible

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You have to score on one or two plays from the opposing 36-yard line. The main problem with this level is that the video game version of Kordell Stewart can't throw the ball that far.

You might be playing this level for a long time. He literally can't reach the end zone, but that's okay because the receivers end their routes and start to frolic around the field. It's not like that's the most important part of the play or anything.

You can try to hot route the receivers, but Michigan Stadium is so loud that it’s extremely difficult to change the routes.

I actually beat this level on accident, as I pressed a button to throw to one receiver and another receiver caught it instead. I’m not complaining; I’m just saying that might be how you end up winning the challenge.

Choke at Doak

Florida vs. Florida State Difficulty: Easier than expected

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From reading the description, this sounds like this level is going to be hard as hell. But instead of having to complete the 31-3 comeback, you just have two minutes to get into field goal range. This could have been a lit level, but the actual challenge is kind of tame. I understand that playing 15-minute quarters in a video game would be too much, so I’m not mad.

1995 FSU at Virginia

Virginia vs. Florida State Difficulty: Easy

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One or two plays. Six yards. Just play defense lol.

1997 Rose Bowl

Arizona State vs. Ohio State Difficulty: Easy

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You start out on third-and-goal at the 11-yard line. Score a TD and don't let them score. Simple as that.

1997 Nebraska vs Missouri

Nebraska vs. Missouri Difficulty: Hard

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You have one minute to go 60-plus yards with receivers that drop the ball (and fumble numerous times, when I was playing). This was sneaky difficult. This would have been basically impossible if you had to replicate the actual Flea Kicker play, though.

The best game ever played in The Swamp

Florida vs. Florida State Difficulty: Easy

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You have enough time to make a calm, two-minute drive to win. You have a pretty good running back in Fred Taylor as well. Use him.

1998 Michigan State at Ohio State

Ohio State vs. Michigan State Difficulty: Easy

With 1:39 to go 51 yards, this isn't that hard. You have a chance to erase Ohio State’s only loss of that season.

1998 Virginia Tech at Syracuse

Syracuse vs. Virginia Tech Difficulty: Medium, but difficult if you hate passing

Fourth-and-goal at the 13. It’s just one play, but the pressure's on! You have Donavan McNabb (84 OVR) at the helm, so you're not doomed. I’d suggest five-WR or tinkering with the depth chart, because this is what it looks like when you start the level.

You only have one shot to gain 13 yards, so the play call is super important. Be clutch. Be cool. I believe in you.

2003 Fiesta Bowl

Miami vs. Ohio State Difficulty: Easy

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You can either tie the game with a field goal and hold Ohio State off in OT, or for some reason, go for the win, because this is a video game and you can do whatever the hell you want with the team that you control.

Just kick the field goal and take your chances in overtime.

When you compare this College Classics game mode to the basketball edition, most of the difficult levels reside on the football side. Regardless of difficulty, both are still very enjoyable to play even years later. It’s a truly timeless game mode that provides both a challenge and sense of nostalgia.

If the College Classics mode (and football game) was still around what moments would be highlighted?

Deshaun Watson’s game winner?

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The Kick Six?

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“The Spot”?

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The entire 2007 season?

It hurts that there would be so many options to choose from, but it’s not possible to play them at the moment.

While we can’t do anything about its the future, luckily the games past are still around. If you are a fan of video games and sports history, the College Classics game mode should hold a special place in your heart.

College Classics, you are dearly missed.

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