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simplegenius042 · 4 months

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It's hard to choose one wip to ask but, may I know about UnTitled Venture: Village Of Shadows (Resident Evil Village)?

This particular WIP is part of my prequel saga for The UnTitledverse, called The UnTitled Ventures saga.

UnTitled Venture: Village Of Shadows is the third installment of the saga and follows the events of Resident Evil Village. It is still early in WIP but I have a rough idea where I want to take it. Though this isn't set in stone, things might change.

Shortly after the events of UnTitled Venture: Evil Residence (canonically Resident Evil Biohazard), 35-year-old Joaquin Lockwood unfortunately drew the short straw in fate between his small family (which only includes Eveline and his dead best friend/partner's daughter, Elise) and the Winters when being forced by the BSAA, Umbrella and his old pals from Taskforce ECHO in relocating.

So he gets sent to Romania with a regular three-year-old and a BOW ten-year-old while Ethan and Mia go to Hungary. So close and yet so far.

Unfortunately Joaquin and Ethan can't continue their vitriolic bromance that started at the Baker's home anymore so they do so long distance. Sometimes they even visit one another.

Fun fact! Joaquin shares the "godparent of Rose" title with Chris Redfield, which is most definitely not due to the lack of either Ethan's or Mia's families being alive or that interested in their married lives.

Anyway, both Joaquin and Ethan are fungi bros, and are very aware of this considering last time Joaquin checked, he saw Ethan die in the Baker's home and proceeded to be killed afterwards so that's more or less a secret they keep from the BSAA and continue to support one another through their fungus troubles (it's like, "you died in the house, I died in the house, Eveline gave us a miraculous recovery... let's tell no one else about this").

Four years later in February 2021, Joaquin is turning 39, Eveline is 14 and Elise is six turning seven in September.

On the drive home from the Winter's house, Joaquin and his kids' car is hit by wild Mother Miranda and stuck in a ditch, knocking Joaquin unconscious and chasing after Eveline as the young teen runs off into the woods with Elise.

Why would Miranda do this? Because Rose is safe in Hungary and Joaquin's got Mold in him, so its only logical that Elise would too right?

By the time Joaquin wakes up, its still snowing, so he crawls out of the wreckage, takes a duffel bag, and follows after the trail... or more he follows the voice of the fungi screaming from within him to go towards the Village that is going to kick his ass for teaching the Romanian Mold his Aussie words.

He'll be able to call Ethan at the most inconvenient times to his own expense and explain the situation he's gotten himself in, and while Ethan goes prepare a drive to Romania while getting Chris, his BSAA team and Taskforce ECHO together to save his brother from another mother, Joaquin goes to search for his girls in the village, and learns empathy, gets chased by wolfman, loses his dominant hand, becomes best buds with the Duke for giving him a neat prosthetic, appreciates the unnecessary and unhelpful aesthetic of having cool shades in a dark snowy climate, is forced to have tea with the Lords and manages to hate someone more than he does Madame Callaghan.

Overall, its a wonderful family experience that no one with more than three braincells should have to go through.

That's all I got.

#the untitledverse #the untitled ventures saga #resident evil #resident evil village #wip: untitled venture village of shadows #oc: joaquin lockwood #ethan winters #oc: elise lockwood #rosemary winters #re7 eveline #mia winters #mother miranda #chris redfield #re8 the duke #oc: madame callaghan

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measuringbliss · 9 months

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Spider-Man Read-Through 024: Shang...ri-La (GSSM 2, ASM 138-140)

MASTERPOST

Today's post features Fu-Manchu, a bromance, purple, a bear (<3) and psychic powers, woohoo!

In our first issue, Spider-Man faces (and then fights with) Shang-Chi, who you may now know from the MCU. Back when I was a kid, I heard of him through Giant-Size Spider-Man #2.

The story begins with Spidey interrupting thievery by men who soon die unexpectedly, just as they start telling our hero about their master (Shang-Chi... or is he?). I feel like that idea of criminals dying as soon as they're about to tell all secrets has already been used recently on the comics but I'm too lazy to look that up. Shang-Chi's the son of Fu Manchu, the actual baddie and a cliché of the West's vision of Asia.

[Sorry, I used Ctrl Z again on Tumblr and it removed like half my text ugh]

The issue's nice, it's an obvious imitation of typical kung-fu movies and it works much better than other SM 100% fighting issues.

Now, onto the main plot...

Here's how ASM 138 opens:

I'm putting those panels for two reasons:

to show Peter is still a handsome motherfucker (affectionate)

to appreciate the continuity! Last ish, Harry did blow up their condo, and there's consequences for that! It's great to see.

Peter calls each one of his acquaintances, but none can house him (not surprising considering how much of an ass he was after Gwen's death), except one... as Peter's last call is for his old frenemy Flash.

AND THUS BEGINS THE FLASH/PETER SHIP'S GOLDEN HOUR. Look at Peter in the third panel, acting like a school girl who just asked her crush out. You go, Pete! Go get him!

Gerry Conway and Ross Andru seemed quite attached to realism. Why not! I do appreciate the purple.

There's an ugly villain with mystical powers just waiting to feed on Peter's aura, but we've got more pressing matters, such as:

Boyfriends!!!

"Slugging", huh...

I'm probably putting too much panels, but this issue is plain gorgeous.

The villain's story is absolutely horrifying, just like the premise of his powers.

I'm sorry, I don't have many observation to give, it's just an interesting issue to me and visually quite gorgeous (purple pants!!!).

Charles S. LeCates thinks that the Jackal is actually Richard, the Kingpin's son. He's apparently the only one who had that thought! That's not a bad theory... but it's incorrect. Oh well! Other theories are: the Jackal isn't a costume and the Jackal is the thief who murdered Uncle Ben. Hmm! Still wrong.

In the opening pages of #139, Peter says it's been "a few months" since Gwen died and "three weeks" since he became Flash's roommate. His life has been pretty hectic!

Unfortunately for me, he's already found a new appartment thanks to Liz when I was fully ready to see some Peter/Flash shenanigans. They were too gay to be featured as roommates for more than a single issue!

The Grizzly suddenly attacks the Daily Bugle, but Jameson's not interested.

(He's still attacked anyway.)

Jameson is saved by Spidey, who ends up following the Grizzly as Peter...

Can I just say how much I love this ending? It's a great moment. A bit silly on Peter's part, but very gloomy. Frightening, actually. My child self was scared of the Jackal's hand jumpscare hahaha. It's very effective! The penultimate page is actually quite liminal.

This is also the end I was left with for at least a decade.

...Well, not exactly. See, I also read those little jewels:

The first one compiles issues 144-151, that is to say, most of our next batch (the OG Clone Saga), so I haven't read issues 140-143, but I still know what happens after that.

The second one, while I'm at it, covers issues 30-35 of ASM Vol. 2 (2001) and thus ends just after Peter reveals his secret identity to a certain somebody... and I still don't know how they react!!!!! Can't wait to get there in, like, ten years.

So we have a final issue in this batch, one that I've never read. What are we waiting for?

You know me, I'm always here to see Peter get manhandled.

Gorgeous gorgeous GORGEOUS colors. Ned's wearing a pink jacket! I love it. I love it so much. Hell yeah!

You can't see it, but I'm slurping deliciously because between the arm & hand p0rn, the whump, and the colors, I really love those panels.

Later, Flash helps Peter move in.

I think I remember her so I'm pretty sure she features in later issues. Hmm, a model... Is Marvel trying to introduce a rival to MJ?

Flash is very interested in her, but she's obviously much more into Peter.

So here's some more arms and colors, because we all deserve it.

Hoping the Jackal was bluffing, Peter tries removing his bracelet... and succeeds with the power of blue flames! I wish he hadn't been able to discard it so quickly, especially considering the Jackal should know Peter's quite smart...

...and also a joker.

Jameson isn't so bad himself. He ruined the Grizzly's wrestling career!

Following those revelations and a few gags, Spidey tracks down the Grizzly and proceeds to strip him.

With the Grizzly neutralized, Spidey assures him that someday, he'll get the Jackal.

OH MY GOD??????? I'M SO HYPED! WHAT THE HELL?!?!?!

Okay, before I close this post, please remember this panel for the next batch:

The Jackal sure looks agile... Who could it be?

#peter parker #flash thompson #amazing spider-man #spider-man #comics #comic books #peter/flash #whump #peter parker thirst #the grizzly #the jackal

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lucaonthropy · 1 year

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Finished Mencuri Raden Saleh so these are my (non-linear) thoughts. Spoilers ig

- Why is there so many car crash in this movie lmaooo like. From the first plan to the final one there's always at least one.

- The acting is not the best imo but it's good and very enjoyable.

- Now the voice acting though? That fucks. I'm officially in love with Fella and Tuktuk's voice in particular. The way they speak and all. The others are also good. I think Ucup is the weakest tho ngl.

- Gofar and Tuktuk's sibling bond is going to be the death of me. I actually cried when Gofar snapped after Tuktuk got jailed.

- I have ... thoughts ... about the decision to make Sarah the bait because it really doesn't make sense. She (in character) is portrayed as someone who can't really lie or act so I don't get why they immediately agreed on her being the bait.

- But her fighting scenes are chef's kiss ohmygod. The "Kurang ajar! Dasar katrok!(?)" scene got me cheering on my seat like damn wreck that fucker.

- Also a lot of questions about the random guy flirting with her.

- Anyway. Plot-wise it's consumable. I'm not a proper film critics so this is purely subjective but I love it. Are their plans messy af? Were their decisions questionable and have very bad consequences? Well. Yeah. But it makes sense because their backgrounds. None of them had ever done this kinda thing so the mistakes they made, while kinda annoying, make sense.

- Not a fan of Sarah and Piko being together. Not merely because I ship Hackforger but because their scenes together don't really have a ... spark? They don't connect or bond at all. It's just your usual hetero relationship that got pushed by the staff.

- Not as much Hackforger as I expected from seeing Twitter but eh. I'll take what I can get. Their bond is pretty clear and it's classic bromance to romance type of thing.

- I'm gonna reiterate that I'm in love with Fella.

- The flashbacks are getting annoying ngl.

- Ok so I've heard it's gonna be a trilogy or something so I'm not gonna say much about Ucup and Budiman's locked backstory. They are probs saving it for the next movie.

- Kinda disappointed that there's not much scene detailing the painting or the process of forgery because I'm actually interested.

- Oh! Speaking of which: I now headcanon Piko as autistic-coded or at least neurodivergent-coded because there's no way that guy is neurotypical. Just. No way.

- Whoever chose Tuktuk's actor needs a raise honestly. I'm honestly pretty ok with most of the cast because I never grade a film through that lens (I have face blindness. I couldn't care less about the cast) but oh. My. God. He radiated youngest sibling energy throughout the film and as an oldest sib I both want to punch him and kiss his forehead.

- Detective Sita is also very interesting as a character. Def wanna see her more in the future.

- Mbak Dini!!!! Goddamn I love her. Maybe it's the haircut lmao. But also her outfit when visiting the police station is muah. Love it, love her.

- Hoping Permadi and Rama will die tbh.

- Mas Gito the MVP!!! I always have a soft spot for a loyal butler-esque character like Alfred and Gito soooo yeah.

- Also. I thought I'm gonna finish this movie with shipping Fistjack buuut Fellafullo/Gofella got me in a clutch. Love the back and forth they have going.

- Now for some of my favorite moments:

1. When Gofar and Tuktuk's father scolded them for ruining a car and said "Is it not enough that you two have different mothers and you still bring trouble back!" (paraphrased) and Tuktuk replied "Well but you're the dad."

2. Every fight scene with Sarah.

3. The continued saga of Gofar snacking on Fullo after Fella started bringing them to their hq.

4. Gofar breaking down after Tuktuk got caught.

5. Every Hackforger hug.

6. "Fella already bought the company."

7. The chase scene in the first plan.

8. Whenever Ucup laid out the most unhinged plan. Especially the one that got inspired by uhhh idk PUBG? FF?

9. Every scene of Fella being a pro gambler. Like, red flag but also you go Queen.

10. Piko vs Budiman. Nuff said.

#luca rambles #random ass thoughts #mencuri raden saleh #mrs #spoilers

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tom--22--felton · 2 years

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Posted @withregram • @samswainsbury The dressing room saga continues... @222aghoststory #222aghoststory #dressingroom #pranks #tomfelton #scare #bromance https://www.instagram.com/p/CfA_Nu6K7Z9/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#222aghoststory #dressingroom #pranks #tomfelton #scare #bromance

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fiercemillennial · 2 months

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No Yogic Bromance Can Save You Now: Kimora Lee Simmons Clowns Russell Simmons Online

Kimora Lee Simmons is BACK, and her target is ex Russell Simmons' latest rebranding tactic. Is a yogic bromance enough to erase the past? 👀 #RussellSimmons #KimoraLeeSimmons #Usher #FierceCulture #PopCulturePower

The messy divorce saga continues as Simmons finds himself the latest target of his ex-wife’s sharp wit. Remember the iconic duo of Russell Simmons and Kimora Lee Simmons? Well, years after their messy divorce saga, Kimora is stirring the pot again. This time, she’s poking fun at her ex-husband’s recent “bromance” with Usher during his retreat in Bali. Russell Simmons, the music mogul behind Def…

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#Accountability #controversy #divorce #FIERCE CULTURE #FIERCE MILLENNIAL #Kimora Lee Simmons #pop culture #Pop Culture Power #Russell Simmons #Usher #women’s voices

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stripey-land-shark · 7 years

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THERE WE GO

#THE WAY IT WAS MEANT TO BE #The Bromancing SaGa continues #gdahjsdfs #jesus christ caizero u nerd you just blew up my notifications

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blackknightgargiemoviephile · 3 years

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How To Train Your Dragon Saga

In the beginning, I was never really interested in watching the movie and never even bothered to watch the trailer, since we thought it was one of those cliche failure movies (and Dreamworks hasn't really had a very good track record of good animated movies at the time), but after being bombarded with tons of Toothcup fanfics and fanarts and after very high recommendations by my friend Jello13 from dA, I finally got down to watching the movie. Boy, was I glad I took my friend's recommendation to watch this movie, and the subsequent sequels after that, because after 3, 4 friggin' times, I still fucking LOVE this movie!!!

Here's my findings of the saga:

Apparently this movie was based on a children's novel written by Cressida Cowell which focuses on the 2nd book in a 10-volume book franchise. There are certain deviations between the real Hiccup and Toothless and the storyline as a whole, but after reading the summary of the original story, I think I like the movie version better. In fact even the writer said so in her blog that she likes the deviation as the movie captured the core essence of her story and it was amazing to see her story to be interpreted this way.

The storyline and the pacing is very good, and the sarcastic humour and slight optimism of Hiccup despite people thinking he's anything BUT a Viking is very intriguing. I love his catchphrases like "I'm way too muscular for their tastes. They wouldn't know what to do with all...this" and "Thank you for summing that up" and his famous line "You just gestured to ALL of me!" is just some of the LOL-worthy lines the talented Jay Baruchel who voices Hiccup does.

I was totally shocked to find out that Gerard Butler plays the role of Stoick, Hiccup's old man! I have never expect him, who is known for his brawniness and action-packed persona, made famous in the movie 300, would actually play a voice-over for a cartoon character. After finding out, spotting his voice and hearing the familiarity was much, much easier.

And of course, the creme de la creme of the entire movie: TOOTHLESS!! He is just so, so, so, soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo uber cuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuute~~~~!!!!! When I read about him in fanfics and caught glimpses of him through fanarts, I was thinking, "Hey, this dragon is quite cute." Now amplify that feeling by a gajillion times more. That's how I feel about Toothless. He started off a little vicious with his snake-like slit for eyes, trying to act strong and tough like the dragon he was, but the moment he let his guard down a little, he got these pair of big doe eyes that is just so MOE and SQUEE-worthy. And of course I finally learn how he got his namesake: with retractable teeth that he can materialize at will

My most favourite scene of the entire movie would be this scene where Toothless finally was at peace with Hiccup and allowed him to touch him. The way Toothless tried to copy his drawing, and then growled whenever Hiccup stepped on his drawing, then Hiccup moved to avoid the lines in tune with the music until finally they were so close they were allowed to touch was just so AWW-worthy. And the music score was perfect too, especially the title of that score: Forbidden Friendship. Isn't that just sweet?

The part where Hiccup and Toothless slowly develop that bond while trying to get Toothless back on his flight feet again was also very interesting as they slowly worked together and forget each other's differences to reach a common goal, while at the same time trying to learn about each other, and Hiccup using that knowledge to good use (the eel and the scratching of the neck part was really epic), making him the life of the team, much to his crush, Astrid's chagrin.

I also love the part where Hiccup tries to convince everyone during the final exam of killing a dragon that dragons are not what they think they are, and tried to pacify the Monstrous Nightmare only to be interrupted by Stoick and having Toothless coming to the rescue (damsel in distress much, Hiccup? XD) and revealed their relationship. It felt really sad and my heart just broke when Hiccup shouted Toothless for him not to kill Stoick and Toothless looked at him with his doe eyes, then Hiccup tries in vain to stop everyone from hurting Toothless, and that argument which led to his disowning, and earning back his role as a son by proving his worth and Toothless' reputation, though a cost of his leg. I was wondering where would be the scene where he looses his leg, since I read that he had a prosthetic in fanfics, but turns out it happened in the near end of the movie, and literally mirrored Toothless' missing left tail fin.

Ending is a bit cliche where he gets the girl, he is lauded as a war hero and gained the respect of everyone including his father, the dragons made peace with humans and all that, but still it was a very heartwarming cliche scene. One that leaves a smile on your face and a sigh of contentment in your heart.

Speaking of Astrid, not really sure it's because of that yaoi in me, but I never really saw Astrid as a suitable pairing for Hiccup. I know, I'm not usually one for bestiality, but seriously, can't you just FEEL the love between Hiccup and Toothless to the point where you can consider them as lovers? Toothcup (Toothless/Hiccup) pairings are in the rage right now since the movie has been uber popularize, and you cannot deny that sort of relationship exist, right?

This one, personally I feel, is almost as par as the first one. Not better, not worse, but more or less par. Hiccup and Astrid are still together, but the Toothcup shipper in me just don't feel like they match somehow. Moreso, suddenly out of the blue, Snotlout and Fishlegs were heads over heels with Ruffnut, which I ABSOLUTELY have NO CHEMISTRY feel whatsoever! Even after I've watched their TV series that led to the second movie, I STILL don't get the vibe or the chemistry between those three people. It's like "Wait, what?" moment.

Although that moment when Ruffnut was just totally thirsty for Eret was absolutely hilarious though. I couldn't help laughing and cringing at the same time.

When the moment Hiccup's mom Valka showed up, I was not expecting her to be so... skinny. Stoick said that he made helmets out of Hiccup's mom's breast plate, and it seemed pretty big, but looking at her, she didn't look like someone who was close to being a big bosom woman, but what is continuity anyways? LOL Though Hiccup definitely has inherited her knack for dragons. Guess it's in the blood after all.

I teared up a little when Stoick died, and I felt so bad that their bromance was threatened by this, but thankfully Hiccup still loves Toothless and is willing to forgive him and try to bring him back to his side. Goes to show how deep their bond is, and Toothless ended up becoming the Alpha Dragon was one of the most epic moments in the whole movie.

It also kinda interesting that Hiccup has somehow became pretty hot in this movie. Was pretty surprised at how he transformed from the awkward tiny little runt of a boy to a strapping man LOL

Plot feels similar to the 2nd one, but the ending was so so SO bittersweet. A fitting ending, but sweet yet painful for me to watch.

My heart broke at the scene wen Hiccup was complaining about Toothless being in love n said "Am I not enough?" and I was like internally screaming "YES! U ARE ENOUGH!! U TWO ARE ENOUGH!! FUCK THAT LIGHT FURY!!"

Throughout the courtship scene btwn Toothless and the Light Fury i was like internally screaming "NO, SHE'S A TRAP! SHE'S A FUCKING TRAP! HICCUP, WHY ARE YOU OKAY WITH THIS?! I'M NOT HAPPY WITH THIS! I AM NOT OKAY WITH THIS!!"

I cried like a fucking baby, especially at the end of the movie. It was like I knew it was happening, that they were gonna break up, but I was in denial, then when Toothless hugged Hiccup goodbye, I lost it, waterworks all over. In fact, waterworks all the way to the end at their final reunion ugly-cried like a fucking baby.

It did ended perfectly; perfectly bittersweet and perfectly heartbreaking and I was like "This is it. It's official. It's over. My Toothcup ship has fucking sank!!"

Fuck you, DreamWorks, you have killed my bromance!! Gahh!! I hate and love this movie at the same time!

Overall rating:

HTTYD: 9/10

HTTYD2: 7.5/10

HTTYD: 9/10

#httyd #how to train your dragon #hiccup and toothless #movie review #toothcup

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beybladenerd · 3 years

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Things I Wished We Got in The Metal Saga

1. Nods to the Original Bladebreakers: Even with all the tournaments, WBBA involvement, and opportune moments to throw in an original series Easter Egg for longtime fans, we didn’t get any real nods to the original Bladebreakers. They don’t even drop a hint at any “Old World Champion.” when the world tournament began in Metal Masters. Which I think is a shame considering they left a huge impact on Beyblade by the end of G-Revolution and in the original manga series. If we could’ve gotten any of their children in this series, I would’ve been ecstatic.

2. More time with Benkei: I feel like after Metal Fusion Benkei got shafted to support cast rather than main cast. Yes he still played a huge part in the story, but he didn’t get a lot of development outside of a few highlight moments. Which is a shame considering he could’ve given us some powerhouse moments in regards to his bromance with Kyoya and his loyalty to his friends. He’s shown to be powerful enough to be considered Kyoya’s right hand man even after Kyoya goes through all his training and he’s still an emotional center whether his friends realize it or not. I just think we should’ve gotten some proper Benkei episodes after his brief episodes sprinkled throughout the series.

3. The Continuation of the Zodiac Importance: I touched upon this briefly before, but I feel like the series really dropped the ball when it came to the importance of having a Zodiac bey. In Metal Fusion, having a Constellation Bey was like having a bit beast in the original series. It was THAT important to the plot and anyone who had one had characteristics associated with that zodiac. Even though I don’t personally take them seriously, I just wish they would’ve kept that same level of importance in the later seasons. Yes I know we had a similar thing with the quest for the Bladers of the 4 seasons but it honestly wasn’t the same for me.

4. The Dragon Emperor’s Soft Side: By the end of the series we know that Ryuga considered Kenta close enough to be his friend but we didn’t get a lot of time to see more of his soft side. He has done some pretty honorable things since becoming purified of the Dark Power, even becoming the antihero to the main gang. But besides his few episodes he gets with Kenta in Metal Fury, we never really got to see just how emotionally complex Ryuga is as a main character.

#Beyblade #Beyblade Metal Fusion #Beyblade Metal Masters #Beyblade Metal Fury #Beyblade Metal Saga #Benkei Hanawa #Kenta Yumiya #Ryuga #Takafumi Adachi #Things I Wish Happened in the Metal Saga

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formula365 · 3 years

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Champions in the making - Emilia Romagna GP review

The breakthrough kid

It is not always possible to pinpoint the exact moment in which a driver goes from young promise to champion in the making. There can be breakthrough performances, in which a driver lays down a marker and announces himself to the world, but more often than not the progression is so gradual over a number of seasons that the driver eventually makes it to the top in slow steps, a sink filling up drop by drop from a leaky faucet.

But every once in a while, we get to witness a breakthrough moment, one of those weekends that, when looking back into a career, will be seen as a pivotal moment in which the promise has come good, which removes the doubt of whether that potential will be fulfilled. Moments like Sebastian Vettel winning in a Toro Rosso, or Max Verstappen becoming a Grand Prix winner on his Red Bull debut; we knew, there and then, what they would become.

It wasn’t his maiden win, but this is what we witnessed this weekend from Lando Norris.

Coming into this season, the young Brit knew this could be a make or break year for him. He had done really well to match his more experienced teammate in his first two seasons, but the challenge with his new partner was at a different level. No disrespect to Carlos Sainz, who is definitely a talented driver, but Daniel Ricciardo is a proven race winner, someone who had driven for Red Bull and been considered by Mercedes and Ferrari. The Aussie had spent the last two seasons destroying Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban Ocon, no slouches themselves, which meant there was a risk for Norris to be swallowed up by the Honey Badger’s performances.

His first two seasons had shown glimpses of his talent, but also a certain on-track shyness, in contrast to his expansive personality off it. He himself admitted during pre-season that he needed to improve on his aggressiveness and push harder on wheel to wheel battles; he had to drive the car ever closer to its limits. After a couple of seasons maturing and honing his skills, now was the time to be a more imposing figure behind the wheel, including within his own team.

Bahrain had already shown glimpses of that. He started the race behind his teammate, but passed him early on and never looked back. Imola, though, was something else. McLaren didn’t have the right set-up throughout Friday and both drivers seemed to be struggling, but on Saturday Norris looked to be one with his car. Bar a small mistake on his last run, he would have not only out-qualified his teammate, but also Verstappen in a much faster Red Bull. The track limits infringement left him P7 on the grid, but on Sunday he would more than make up for the mistake.

He had blistering pace from the get-go, to the point that he radioed his engineer when stuck behind his teammate to ask to be let through. In a moment that could be defining for the season, Ricciardo did let him through and then saw the youngster disappear down the road in the chase for the Ferraris. On the restart, he made light work of Leclerc (with much faster tyres, to be fair) and then fought Hamilton hard for several laps until the lack of grip on his rubber forced him to concede.

Overall, Norris showed a wide array of his skills at Imola: blistering one-lap pace, attacking, defending, tyre management, determination to come back after the mistake on Saturday, even authority in the team when he asked to be let through his teammate. A complete performance that leaves no doubt about his talent: he has the skills to be a future champion, the only question remaining is whether he will have the consistency to deliver over a full season. Given his mental approach - he is very open to speak about mental health - it seems he is addressing that side of his driving as well.

Until now, Norris had been the fun kid with a turn of pace, the meme-generator and half of a McLaren bromance. The end of the partnership with Sainz might have been a liberating factor for him: in order to be taken more seriously, the banter has to take second place to his driving, and with Ricciardo also looking to leave his more goofy side in the background, this can be the perfect time for Lando to do the same and let his driving do the talking. He certainly did that this weekend.

Talking points

* My oh my, do we have a fight on our hands. Verstappen v. Hamilton is already becoming such a compelling story it is hard not to make it the subject of every race review and preview; the feeling is that this will be a fight for the ages, that we will have a season to be remembered for many years to come. This time around it was the Dutchman who had the upper hand, with a superb start to go from P3 to P1 into Tamburello. He gave no quarters to Hamilton on the outside and then managed the race beautifully, although he was left unchallenged in the second half after Hamilton’s crash. The game is most definitely on.

* The reigning champion may have given some small signs of the pressure getting to him. Mostly unchallenged in recent years, Lewis made an uncharacteristic mistake when lapping back markers and then seemed to have had a scrambled brain moment as he struggled to get out of the run-off area. He is human, after all, some might have thought. The red flag gave him the opportunity to reset and come back to re-claim P2 and a podium place he would have certainly lost otherwise. He showed his mental resilience then, but it will be interesting to see how he (and Verstappen as well) will manage the pressure of a title fight (hopefully) over 23 races.

* One of the big talking points post-race was the massive crash between Bottas and Russell. Approaching Tamburello, drivers hit speeds above 300 kph, so it’s no surprise it was a nasty one, and that both drivers felt the other should have done more to avoid it. Controversy aside, the big question has to be why was Bottas defending P9 from a Williams. Like Monza, Turkey and Sakhir last year, when the Finn gets caught up in the midfield he struggles to move forward, and even manages to fall further back. To make matters worse, in all these races his teammate was caught in similar situations and had no problem cutting through the field. When the dust settles, Bottas will certainly have some soul searching to do.

* How good is it to see McLaren and Ferrari fighting each other for top spots? The two historic teams collected all positions from P3 to P6 and seem to be a step above the rest of the midfield contenders. This is one of the biggest, if not the biggest, rivalry in F1’s history, and it’s great for the sport to see it reignited.

* The only midfield team that seems to have the pace to challenge them is AlphaTauri, but they are struggling to convert their pace into points. Tsunoda ruined his weekend with two (very rookie) mistakes, while Gasly’s race was ruined by the decision to start on full wets. He still made a great recovery drive to finish P7, but this felt like another missed opportunity for AlphaTauri, specially at a track they know so well. They have a genuine shot at finishing in the top half of the table, which is Franz Tost’s goal for the team, but in order to achieve that they have to start using their pace to score points.

* If AlphaTauri will be left ruing their weekend, Williams will be doubly so. With two drivers qualifying in the top 14, they had genuine hope to score points for the first time since the crazy rain-soaked German GP in 2019, but two crashes negated their shot. Latifi barely got going so we will never know what he could have achieved, but Russell was clearly in the mix and will be left pondering how high he could have finished if he had been a bit more cautious. With scoring opportunities so limited, that might have been the wiser approach.

* The second Red Bull continues the saga of the topsy-turvy weekends. One of the narratives for Albon in 2020 was that he was not able to have a clean, incident-free weekend, and that was limiting his results. Perez is going down the same path, and although he did manage to salvage a P5 in Bahrain, here he was left empty-handed. It’s still very early, and the signs from the first race were positive, but for Red Bull to challenge Mercedes he needs to be up there consistently.

* Ahead of the season, very few people would have betted for Stroll and Ocon to be beating their teammates, either in qualifying or in the race. The two youngsters are showing that world titles (a combined 6 after all) aren’t a guarantee of continued success.

* On that topic, it is worth noting that most drivers that are newcomers to their respective teams are struggling at the moment. Sainz at Ferrari is the exception; Perez, Ricciardo, Alonso and Vettel are all underperforming, some more than others. This quartet is uber-talented, though, so expect them to get closer to their teammates as the season progresses and they become more accustomed to their new cars.

* Curb your enthusiasm, Yuki. We love to see his on-track flamboyance: he is one of the most exciting drivers to hit F1 in the last few years, but it can work against him too. He needs to find a balance but two races in these growing pains were to be expected. Once he finds that balance, he will be one hell of a driver.

Driver of the day: Lando Norris

Moment of the day

The battle between Hamilton and Norris. The young Brit managed to hold off the 7-times champion for a handful of laps, with tyres well past their expiry date and no DRS; Leclerc, for comparison, was on mediums and was passed by Hamilton on the first lap he didn’t have DRS. Norris’ positioning was perfect and he was brave on the brakes. Eventually the lack of grip and Hamilton’s bravery led to the inevitable, but Norris put up an excellent fight.

#imola gp #lando norris #lewis hamilton #max verstappen #mclaren #ferrari #valtteri bottas #george russell #alpha tauri #williams f1 #sergio perez #yuki tsunoda #lance stroll #esteban ocon

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bamfdaddio · 3 years

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X-Men Abridged: 1981 - Bonus: Avengers Annual 10/What If? 27

The X-Men, those Claremontian mutants that have sworn to protect a world that hates and fears them, are a cultural juggernaut with a long, tangled history. Want to unravel this tapestry? Then read the Abridged X-Men! [more here]

(Avengers Annual 10 & What If? 27) - by Chris Claremont and Mary Jo Duffy, Michael Golden and Jerry Bingham

Avengers? You’re not here for Avengers! Let me make the following counterpoint:

Holy eye shadow, Rogue!

See, Avengers Annual 10 is less about the Avengers and more about three other things:

The rehabilitation of Carol Danvers who, after this, has had her fill of the Avengers and becomes an honorary member of the X-Men;

Spider-Woman and the X-Men trying to figure out what has happened to Ms. Marvel;

Mystique trying to spring her Brotherhood from prison, using a secret weapon: Rogue.

Depending on my mood that day, I might name Rogue as my favourite-ever X-Man, so I really could not skip her debut issue. Instantly iconic, all of this:

Her streak;

Her signature green outfit with hoodie;

Her accent.

Queen.

I love how Claremont once again almost effortlessly introduces a strong female character, one that single-handedly takes down three of the strongest Avengers. Also note how free Rogue still is with her powers: fun, flirty, without the tragic can’t-touch-anyone-angle that will define her for the next three decades.

I’m sorry, am I getting ahead of myself?

This story begins as a whodunit: who pushed an amnesiac Carol Danvers off the Golden Gate Bridge and stole her mind? For that matter, where did she came from? Wasn’t she happily married and pregnant in some alternative dimension last time the readers saw her? Spider-Woman rescues her from the choppy water and calls Professor Xavier to help out. He manages to retrieve the Jane Doe’s identity and knows who attacked her: a woman named Rogue.

Rogue, meanwhile, skulks about the Avengers Mansion, first taking out Captain America and then attacking Thor.

Considering what this comic is about, I don’t believe Hawkeye’s throwaway mysognism is accidental here.

Rogue’s powers work as follows: through touch, she can steal other people’s powers and memories. The longer she touches someone, the longer she’ll have them - with the looming threat of the theft becoming permanent.

After absorbing Thor, Rogue is faced with three Avengers who’s powers she can’t absorb - Spider-Woman (covered in a suit); Vision (robot) and Wonder Man (being of pure energy? Idk, I’m not really familiar with him other than his bromance with Beast). Hoping the three powers she has in her arsenal - Ms. Marvel’s, Thor’s and Cap’s - will be enough, Rogue flees.

Mystique, meanwhile, has duped Iron Man by pretending to be the Wasp and has paralysed Tony Stark in his suit with some sort of device. She picks up the powered-up Rogue and their plan becomes clear:

Rogue immediately earns her place in my heart by using billionaire Tony Stark the way the Coyote uses anvils. (Also note the odd way of spelling ‘sugah’.)

I love how both the Brotherhood and the X-Men continually pull focus from the Avengers: for an Avengers-comic, it's surprising how much they're pushed to the background. Again, this makes sense if you know what this issue really is about, but that won’t become clear until the epilogue. I don’t mind, it means we get a ton of great moments, like the Blob calling Mystique ‘Misty’:

My God, this era’s Destiny/Mystique is even more obvious than 90’s Rictor/Shatterstar.

A battle erupts. One funny moment is actually seeing Destiny fight. I’ve never really read comics about this incarnation of the Brotherhood and my collection mostly takes off after Legion Quest, so I mostly know Destiny posthumously. I always figured that, as a villain, she stood somewhere off on the side, delivering cryptic messages. I never realized she was the one to almost shoot Senator Kelly, nor that her powers are this practical.

X-Men drinking game rule 11: Drink anytime someone fatshames the Blob.

The fight is pretty evenly matched until Spider-Woman releases Iron Man from Mystique’s little trap. Soon, the Avengers overwhelm the Brotherhood. While Mystique and Rogue manage to flee, Destiny, Avalanche, Pyro and the Blob are detained again.

With the main antagonists sorted, we return to the actual storyline: the rehabilitation of Ms. Marvel. Professor X has managed to tease her out of her catatonic state and offers her therapy to restore her missing memories and powers. (The ones stolen by Rogue.) The Avengers, not fully understanding why Carol won’t ask them for help, eventually come by for a house call.

Carol asks the X-Men to leave while the Avengers gingerly confront her. It’s very awkward.

“Fuck the Avengers. Taking my beer.” - Wolverine, probably.

See, what all this refers to is the rape of Ms. Marvel. I haven’t read the particular comic in which this happens (Avengers 200), so if you want all the details, I’ll refer you to this article. Before I get into the details, it’s important to note that Claremont was the writer for Carol Danvers in her solo-series, giving her agency and turning Ms. Marvel into a three-dimensional character. The title was then cancelled and Carol was shuffled off to the Avengers. (Rogue was, in fact, planned to make her debut in that the solo-Ms. Marvel series, as one of Ms. Marvel’s new antagonists. Presumably, Rogue would steal her powers there, too. We all know Claremont loves to strip his heroes and heroines of their powers to show they’re even more badass without them.)

As an Avenger, Carol was wooed by some other-dimensional dude/entity named Marcus. He courted her by giving her flowers, worshipping the ground she stepped on and, oh yeah, ‘subtly’ influencing her mind to make her fall in love with him and consequently impregnating her.

Yes.

Now, Claremont is no stranger to putting his characters through their paces and he gleefully makes use of the whole mental manipulation-trope. In fact, telepathically coercing someone to fall in love with you is absolutely what Mastermind did to Jean Grey: he probably violated her just as much as Marcus did Carol. The difference is how it’s treated in the narrative: Mastermind’s actions are never laughed away or apologized for and are the direct cause for his downfall. They help trigger Jean’s transformation to the Dark Phoenix, whose first deed is taking out her fury on ‘Jason Wyngarde’.

That’s… not what happened with Ms. Marvel. There, the narrative condones Marcus’ actions by framing it as ‘her happy ending’ (married and pregnant, yay!), something which is celebrated by the Avengers.

This is where Carol calls them out for their bullshit.

We call this ‘The Reason You Suck’-Speech. It’s a thing of beauty.

The Avengers depart, tail between their legs, and Carol hangs out with the cool X-kids from now on. For now, at least.

So, this issue is not only a landmark because it’s where Rogue debuts, but you can also see Chris Claremont going to bat for one of characters: he (presumably reluctantly) gave back the character of Carol Danvers when her solo was cancelled, proceeded to see how terribly they massacred his girl and then claimed that ownership right back.

Good for you, Claremont.

***

The “What If… the Phoenix Had Not Died”-issue is kind of boring, because it’s basically a rehash of the Phoenix Saga. Why am I paying attention to it? Because of the (mild) gore (and because the Avengers Annual wouldn’t fill a whole post). Anyway, it’s like watching a Final Destination-movie: it’s silly, light on plot and never a particularly thought-provoking movie, but it’s still fun to see all those people inventively but haplessly die.

Plot! Instead of committing suicide on the moon, the Shi’ar strip Jean of her powers after her trial. Jean is trapped in a barren mental state, almost feeling like she's a veggie. But Jean's powers refuse to remain dormant: slowly, her telepathy returns.

When Galactus threatens the Shi’ar homestead, Lilandra summons the X-Men as her champions. Jean embraces her Phoenix-side and defeats Galactus. Everyone is grateful and super-convinced Jean can handle the Phoenix this time! Yay!

And, because that battle with Galactus took a lot out of her, Jean decides she can have a little asteroid. As a treat. She keeps slipping up on her diet, supping on the occasional meteor and lonely planet to keep her power levels up. It turns out to be a slippery slope: finally, she consumes another star (in an uninhabited system! And a small one! How dare you judge her!), but when she returns to the mansion…

The absolute worst moment to forget you have powers, Kitty.

Xavier attempts to bind the Phoenix, but last time, Jean helped him fight from within. This time, there's not much Jean left. Without breaking a sweat, the Phoenix wipes his brain. But she doesn’t stop there. Maybe the Phoenix remembers that, last time, she was undone by the principles of “friendship is magic”. This time, she’s determined to not let it get so far.

It’s absolutely bone-chilling.

And the stars blinked As they watched her carefully Jealous of the way she shone - Atticus

I wonder if there’s a rhyme or reason to the way Jean murders her friends: is it random? Does she go for the ones she loves the most first? Does she save Cyclops for last, knowing killing him might trigger Jean to respond?

The narration mentions that the three remaining X-Men are the most powerful ones: Polaris, Havok and Cyclops. (I would’ve swapped in Storm for Cyclops, but whatever.) They have formulated a quick plan: Polaris pulls focus while Havok and Cyclops shift into position. Phoenix disintegrates Polaris while Havok and Scott try and blast Phoenix to smithereens.

But at the last moment, Scott can’t. Havok’s blast alone is not enough. Phoenix shoots him through the heart and then, finally, kills Cyclops. That’s when Jean resurfaces, realizing what she’s done. She can’t take it - she’s in the mood to dissolve in the sky, as per Virginia Woolf - and she lets the Phoenix take over.

Phoenix finally lives up to her potential: The End of All That Is.

It's a mediocre plot with a lame ramp-up to a terrifying conclusion. In the regular universe, the thing that triggers the Phoenix is the utter violation of Jean’s body and mind; here, it’s being confronted by Kitty. One is the proverbial red cloth in front of the bull, the other is being assaulted by an ineffective wet cloth. The Phoenix Saga is iconic because all the pieces were carefully put in place; this just feels rushed an unearned.

Also, the Watcher is full of shit. You can’t say you don’t pass judgment whilst simultaneously comparing the merits of one tragedy to the other. Shut up, Uatu.

Check back next week for your regularly scheduled X-Men Abridged! It’s time for 1982 and the brood saga!

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austonmatthews-34 · 3 years

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So Freddie is gone.. THATS it!!? Auston is so crushed. Idk how I feel about this trade

Yeah I’ve been getting a lot of mixed messages about this. It’s sad that bromance is gone and especially since we haven’t really seen Freddie play recently due to his injury. How the saga will continue and we’ll get off season content!

#toronto maple leafs #Freddie Andersen #Auston Matthews #nhl trade deadline

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howaminotinthestrokesyet · 3 years

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It’s Complicated: The Bromance Saga of Mick and Keith

The story of the Rolling Stones most notably begins and possibly ends with Mick and Keith. In order to understand their relationship, you must go back to the beginning. They met as teenagers with a mutual obsession with the blues. The pair became one of the greatest songwriting teams in the history of rock and roll. Yet, today they are merely business partners. Keith will say that Mick is always going to be his brother, but it used to be he would have said best friend. The question now becomes as to what actually happened to cause the rift.

The best way to describe what actually happened is it’s complicated. During the mid to late 1970’s, Keith Richards was a hard-core heroin junkie. As he checked out of reality quite a bit, Mick Jagger needed to take complete control of the group, creatively, artistically, and financially. Without his presence, the band would not have survived the drug addictions that plagued most of the members of the group. In 1978, Keith Richards almost went to jail for a few years, which scared him straight. He came very close to losing the one thing that he could not live without, the band. The guitarist finally got clean around 1979-1980, so Richards starts to show interest again in decisions about the band. Mick Jagger pushed back against this because he had started to really like being the leader of the band. He had gotten used to doing things on his own without having to ask Keith about it.

The Stones went and made Emotional Rescue, which was actually a positive experience for the band. Yet, things were not all that great because the small rift over control of the band started to widen more and more. This also became a bit of a tussle over what kind of albums they actually made. Keith wanted to remain loyal to roots rock, blues, essentially the 1960’s. In contrast, Mick wanted to explore new music as they had with funk, disco, and country. Keith really did not see the band as something that should chase trends, but Jagger wanted to do this again and again. The singer would eventually win out when they made the 1983 album, Undercover. They explored more of a new wave sound that truly turned off fans. The band was barely recognizable on that album. Things got even worse when Jagger negotiated the new contract for their next record deal. Keith was absolutely furious when he found out that the singer had negotiated a side deal for solo albums. Jagger had reached a point where he did not want the connection to Keith Richards anymore. He had famous friends like David Bowie and Michael Jackson, who did not have that other person. He decided that he wanted everything that goes along with being a rockstar for himself, but forgot to tell the rest of the band that he was doing it. Richards looked upon the side deal as Jagger using the Rolling Stones name to get a solo career for himself. Things really hit the wall when Jagger refused to tour in 1984 because he wanted to tour his solo material. The problem at that time was the two did not see the band in the same light. Richards would live and die with the band, while Jagger at the time looked upon it as more of a vehicle than anything else.

Mick and Keith would eventually make up to create more albums and do tour after tour, but things were never the same. The thing about it was Mick had changed as a person as well. Keith wanted everyone in his orbit to remain that rebellious 19-year-old from the early 1960’s that gave authority the middle finger every chance he got. In contrast, Jagger wanted to be rich and famous. The greatest example of that is when he accepted the knighthood. Keith had some fierce words to say about his singer after that. If you look at their politics, Mick Jagger was now a conservative. He agreed with the same people that they were writing music against in the 1960’s. For someone like Keith Richards, this did not sit well at all. This begs the question as to who Mick Jagger really is in the end. You need to consider the fact whether the radical Mick Jagger was merely an act. or was the rich and famous Mick Jagger an act? This has been noted by many writers that the singer is quite like a chameleon and that he changes his personality to fit the situation. He has done this all of his life. Unfortunately, you cannot fool Keith Richards in this way. He will never let you live it down. This can be evidenced by the fact that almost 20 years later, the guitarist finally said what he wanted to say about his singer and his autobiography. This almost broke up the group too.

One could see a rift developing as early as 1972. If you look at the making of Exile on Main Street, you will see that Jagger lived separately away from Richards during the making of that album. He was staying in Paris with Bianca, his future wife. The heroin was already starting to take control of Keith Richards, so the pair who had been inseparable from 1968 to 1971 was now beginning to grow apart. If you think of the golden period of the band when they were at their most creative, it also coincides with the time in their relationship when they were the closest. Another thing to consider is the fact that the pair were addicted to different things. Richards was in love with this drug lifestyle, but drugs were never a problem for Jagger. He was addicted to sex, which would lead to him going to therapy for it by the 1980’s. If you look, Richards was probably actually closer to Mick Taylor within the band around 1971 because they had a mutual interest in heroin. The other band members did not submit to this lifestyle In the extreme kind of way that Richards had begun to do so.

One must accept the fact that they were complete opposites, except for the music. They were twins as their producing name denotes when it came to music. Now, that is not to say as they got older their musical preferences changed. Keith remained loyal to old school musical traditions, while Mick wanted to embrace everything coming up new. Although, they would go on to make Steel Wheels and other albums where the two did work together. Things between them were never the same after Jagger’s decision to try and go solo. Keith Richards never forgave him for that. They went on to work together, tour together, and even make albums, but the creativity or willingness for such a thing was absolutely gone. Mick Jagger, for his part, seemed to resist and keep a distance within the group anyway. His failed solo career taught him that he did need Keith Richards and the rest of the band, but he also made it clear that things were going to be different. This meant that Jagger basically took over control of the group anyway. Richards never really argued with it because they were making so much money from touring as an entertainment act, rather than a functioning band making albums. By that point, Keith had basically decided that he had enough creative outlets and other things to deal with the headache in his mind that was Mick Jagger‘s need for control. If you want to blame the end of the bromance on anything it was probably Keith quitting drugs and Mick Jagger finally being himself asserting his need for control. I think a certain myth has evolved when speaking about their friendship over the years because people tend to think of it as possibly being closer, than it actually was in reality. They had originally bonded over music, which is what they will continue to bond over, but opposites do not always attract in rock and roll.

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aion-rsa · 4 years

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Psych: The Essential Episode Guide

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As a TV series, Psych is like one of those frozen yogurt chains where the wall is ringed with different flavors and you can keep pulling levers for whatever combination you want. There are the Shawn/Gus episodes, the “Shawn’s psychic lie is threatened” episodes, the increasingly genius and lovingly rendered (often ‘80s-tastic) tributes, and the ensemble classics where the whole cast is just a well-oiled machine after years of riffing off one another. You can have whatever flavor you want. And don’t even get me started on toppings (there’s gotta be pineapple, at the very least).

Over its eight-year run, Psych interrogated its own premise, built out its supporting cast, let its characters play their favorite movie characters, and adapted its own internal mythology into trilogies that would make any movie-buff weep with appreciation. Here is a baker’s dozen of the most giggle-worthy, self-referential, surprisingly dramatic episodes of Psych. (And with so many to choose from, your favorite flavor combinations might be different from mine—share your own best episodes in the comments!)

Season 2 Episode 1: “American Duos”

Once the show had had a season under its belt of the fake-psychic shtick, the writers and actors got to really start playing in the sandbox they’d created. The second-season premiere has it all: a pop culture riff on a certain popular reality show competition; Tim Curry and Gina Gershon going above and beyond in their parodies of Simon Cowell and Paula Abdul; and Shawn and Gus giving a truly spectacular mashup performance as Curt Smith and Michael Jackson.

Season 2 Episode 3: “Psy vs. Psy”

I’m a sucker for the episodes where Shawn might have to come clean about his big fat lie. Season 2 poked at that possibility early on, with a counterfeit case that brings in government agent Lars Ewing (Lou Diamond Phillips) and female psychic Lindsay Leiken (Bianca Kajlich). Not only does Lars ruffle Lassiter’s feathers and get Jules hot and bothered, but Lindsay seems to be a lot more intuitive than Shawn—to the point where the SBPD may be looking to replace their consultant. Shawn has a knack for making things harder for himself, but the situations in which he has to actually fight his way out are always rewarding.

Season 2 Episode 13: “Lights, Camera… Homicidio”

The second season really cemented the series’ delight in its own ridiculousness—not just in the bizarre cases, but in how Shawn and Gus (and the rest of the SBPD) react to them. This week, it was an accidental murder via botched prop knife on the set of Explosión Gigantesca de Romance, Gus’ (and Henry’s) favorite telenovela, that really highlighted Psych’s embrace of the absurd. While doing his psychic thing, Shawn gets “discovered” enough to play the sexy delivery guy, who becomes a beloved character in his own right… only to learn for himself how badly the show’s fans blur the lines between characters and actors. Though not as outright meta as the tribute episodes, it still was wonderfully self-aware about the pitfalls of emotionally investing in fictional characters.

Season 4 Episode 5: “Shawn Gets the Yips”

This episode is a bit of a bait-and-switch in that Shawn having the yips (about baseball, not being a psychic) doesn’t really impact the plot, which starts with a shooting at a known cop bar and culminates in a commentary on the police force not properly punishing drug lords who sell opioids. The subplot about the drug lord supposedly targeting SBPD members is a bit of a red herring for the more nuanced twist about the cost of the opioid epidemic, but it contains one of my favorite moments, in which Shawn unintentionally gets a great workout because he believes that the message on his water bottle (your heart rate drops below 150, you die) is a threat. Just a solid mid-series episode.

Season 4 Episode 16: “Mr. Yin Presents…”

Just like with Bones, Psych really came into its own when it mixed the laughs with actual life-or-death stakes—and in both cases, that was thanks to a serial killer obsessed with our protagonist. Season 3 ended on “An Evening with Mr. Yang,” which introduced Ally Sheedy (one of many, many famous cameos) as the eponymous serial killer who kidnapped Shawn’s mother to get closer to him. But with her locked away and more artfully arranged kills discovered, the SBPD have to confront that Yang might have a Yin—which of course spawns a trilogy.

Movies

Psych 2: Lassie Come Home Review

By Natalie Zutter

Psych 2: Lassie Come Home Stars on Hitchcock Homages and Special Reunions

By Natalie Zutter

The Empire Strikes Back of the Yin/Yang saga is my personal favorite, though I highly recommend watching all three. The team’s introduction to Yang’s twisted mentor is through his love of Alfred Hitchcock movies: He casts each of them in an iconic role while leading them on a wild goose chase through Santa Barbara, ending at a movie set mashup and presenting Shawn with an impossible choice between saving girlfriend Abigail or Juliet. The latter has one of her most powerful moments, stoically accepting her death while suspended from a clock and later breaking down in Lassiter’s arms. Her PTSD remains through the Yin/Yang saga, another sign of the series’ maturity as it explores the ripple effect of its more dramatic plots.

Season 6 Episode 2: “Last Night Gus”

While Shawn and Gus are the series OTP, part of the show’s beauty has been in building up its other bromances. This spoof of The Hangover has Shawn, Gus, Lassiter, and Woody waking up in the Psych offices with no memory of their antics the night before, but plenty of incriminating clues tying them to a dead body. Their attempt to solve the mystery of how they got so memory-obliteratingly drunk has them encountering a sweet gay bartender couple, a murdered donut mascot, and a hot girl who’s very into Last Night Gus… if only he knew what he did. In addition to riffing superbly on the movie, the episode is a fun commentary on our present selves solving the mysteries of our past personas.

Season 7 Episode 5: “100 Clues”

I managed to watch this without realizing what the Psych crew was going for, so the moment that Shawn and Gus pulled up in the Blueberry to a mansion in a rainy homage to Clue, I was squealing harder than Gus at the notion of a secret chocolate room. For the series’ 100th episode, they lovingly parodied the perfect locked-mansion murder mystery, with killer cameos from Lesley Warren, Christopher Lloyd, and Martin Mull (plus little nods to the Clue alums who couldn’t be there, like Eileen Brennan). From the Singing Telegram Girl to the secret passageways, only true fans could achieve this level of detail—a perfect landmark celebration.

Season 7 Episode 7: “Deez Nups”

The sign of a great ensemble series is that they can make the standard, super-tropey wedding episode feel fresh again. It helps that it’s Lassiter’s nuptials, and everyone wants to see the guy happy, which is what leads to Shawn, Gus, and Woody kidnapping the detective for a bachelor party, while Juliet and the Chief get roped into being Marlowe’s bachelorette buddies. The threat of a mob boss taking revenge on Lassie takes a backseat to such wedding fare as Vick getting weepy-drunk on shots and McNab popping up as a police stripper (I cackled at the payoff of his Chekhov’s tearaway pants). Just like with a real-life wedding, when you know the people involved, it feels special and unique. (There is also a gross, transphobic joke about a stripper, one of the aspects of Psych that did not age well.)

Season 7 Episode 8: “Right Turn or Left for Dead”

Tribute episodes are Psych’s bread and butter, but rarely do they advance the plot as effectively and emotionally as this riff on Sliding Doors. After Juliet finds out that Shawn has been lying about being a psychic, which makes her believe that everything about their relationship has been a lie, Shawn indulges in a fantasy in which he’s 1990s Gwyneth Paltrow (naturally) pondering the diverging paths of whether Jules does or doesn’t discover the truth.

The story immediately splits into two takes on the same case, but in one she’s a Jane Doe and in the other Shawn actually has a chance to save her… only to discover that her life path was already set in stone after an abusive childhood. Even with subtle moments of humor that highlight the parallel universes’ differences in solving cases, overall the episode is a study in how one choice has ramifications far beyond the initial action—a lesson Shawn needed to learn, in the penultimate season.

Season 7 Episode 11: “Office Space”

If the boys trying to cover their tracks in “Last Night Gus” was worth a few giggles, Gus and Shawn tampering with a murder scene and then trying to clean their hands of it in this episode is the kind of laughter that hurts. When Gus publicly confronts his abusive boss, only for the man to wind up offed and poor Guster very incriminated. The sequence in which they hysterically stumble their way through the crime scene is worth watching alone; but as evidence mounts and it looks like they could actually be caught in the crosshairs, the levels of ingenuity to which they’re pushed shows why this is the show’s best partnership.

Season 8 Episode 1: “Lock, Stock, Some Smoking Barrels and Burton Guster’s Goblet of Fire”

This is the episode that got me back into the show after years of casual viewing: a mashup of Guy Ritchie and Harry Potter that manages to add a whole new layer to one of Psych’s best recurring characters, refined art thief Pierre Desperaux (Cary Elwes) while giving him a proper send-off.

Like the Yin/Yang trilogy, the entire Desperaux quartet is worth watching for the heists, the Indiana Jones lampooning, and especially for his continued double-crossing of his greatest fan Shawn. But this one takes the cake because it adds a new layer to the Desperaux mythology: He’s actually Royston Staley, an Interpol agent who went undercover as a gentleman thief. Or is he?? Plus, add in the runner about poor Gus in his Hogwarts robes just trying to make it to PotterCon, and you have a near-perfect episode.

Season 8 Episode 3: “Remake, A.K.A. Cloudy… WIth a Chance of Murder”

What better way to mark your final season than by remaking one of your season 1 episodes? What’s incredible about Psych is how many different ways it goes meta, but there was something especially entertaining about its remake of season 1, episode 12 “Cloudy… With a Chance of Murder.” With periodic reminders that this episode is set in 2006, it recasts almost all of the characters—a teacher accused of killing a local weatherman, the lawyer for the prosecution (Ralph Macchio)—and makes space for new jokes (about remakes and My Cousin Vinny) and new twists. All long-running series should get a chance to try and redo their early episodes after they’ve gelled their characters and dynamics.

Season 8 Episode 10: “The Break-Up”

After trying to make their long-distance relationship work, Shawn decides to move to San Francisco to be with Juliet, a far easier choice than actually breaking the news to Gus. Of course the Psych series finale would be about these two facing the end of their partnership. Specifically, Shawn’s inability to say goodbye, so instead he and Gus wind up investigating a case involving special guest star Billy Zane, careening around in their high-school drivers ed car, and competing with SBPD’s peppy new detective Betsy Brannigan (Mira Sorvino). When none of this helps Shawn come out with the truth, he does so through DVD—a whole batch of DVDs, tailored to each of his colleagues and dear friends. Because Shawn loves telling a story.

There’s no better end for Shawn and Gus than a bromantic one, complete with driving cross-state (albeit turning back 12 times), dramatic declaration of love (at a crime scene), and pledging their lives together before Shawn actually proposes to Juliet (as a formality). And it’s not just about them: The finale has sweet moments of closure for new junior detective McNab (aww) and especially Lassiter, who finally gets Shawn’s confession—then breaks the DVD. If the Psych movies had never happened, it would have been enough; but instead, it’s the sugary-sweet end of one chapter and the opening of another.

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