#which works for him because that means there's no danger of danny leaving the league

[hypewinter]

I got a take on the Danny is Damian's older brother au. He's Damian's brother but he's his adopted brother. So hear me out:

Danny is running away post TUE and he encounters some assassins. For whatever reason they get into a fight and he beats them. This ends up getting back to Ra's who is quite curious about who beat up his most prized assassins effortlessly. After some investigation, he extends an invite for Danny to train under him. On Danny's part, he jumps at the chance to disappear off the face of the earth and have a free place to stay.

Danny ends up being an absolute prodigy. This is him close to being Dan so his morals are much shakier. He doesn't leap at the opportunity to kill, but he's most definitely not above it if need be. Combine that with his ghost powers and personal training by Ra's himself and the guy becomes like the golden standard within the league. So much so to the point where Ra's even names him his heir and adopts him. Though Danny insists he is his adopted grandson and not adopted son.

Flashforward to Damian being born and Ra's obviously wants him to be his new heir. Not that Danny has any problem with this. He's very clearly Ra's favorite considering the things he's allowed to get away with. Like letting targets go, having worldly possessions in his room (TV, gaming console, computer, etc), and even befriending his subordinates (Ra's particularly doesn't like that one but knows Danny will never allow it to become a weakness for him). Even if Danny wasn't the heir, he would still maintain a significant level of authority within the league (again not that he cares about having power as long as there's a roof over his head).

The problem is, Damian can't compete with Danny. After all, who could match up to a highly trained half ghost with dubious morals? Let alone a kid. Too bad Ra's doesn't see it that way. He sees Damian as a failure who will never measure up to Danny. That's why he sends the boy off to live with his father. It's under the excuse that he'll be receiving a different sort of training but in reality, the Demon Head no longer wants anything to do with his biological grandson.

Obviously this turns into quite the complex for Damian. Meanwhile Danny absolutely adores Damian. From the moment he was introduced to the baby he was ecstatic. He'd always wanted to be an older brother. He would constantly be barging into Damian's room to hang out and whenever they'd sparred together, he'd try to let him win. Ra's quickly caught onto that one and put a stop to it immediately though. Basically Danny is Damian's League of Assassins version of Dick. An example of what he's supposed to be that he will always compare himself to (and that also has no idea what personal space is).

Danny loved his little brother so much that he even managed to get a mission to Gotham about a year after Damian had been sent there in order to surprise him with a belated birthday present.

The bats are absolutely shocked with an assassin suddenly charges at Damian and before anyone can react, scoops him into a hug. Damian is screeching bloody murder as he attempts to get Danny to let him go. Danny is just hugging him while saying stuff like "I missed you little brother" and "You've grown so much since I last saw you" all while avoiding knives to the chest.

The bats get shocked x2 because wait.... little brother!? Talia had another child!? And one far older than Damian to boot. Damian is quick to clarify that Danny is adopted while still trying to stab him. Imagine the boy's horror and Danny's delight when he gets invited back to the batcave to speak further.

#dp x dc #dc x dp #dpxdc #dcxdp #winter's tales #btw i don't think ra's knows that danny is a half ghost #just a troubled kid trying to run away from something #which works for him because that means there's no danger of danny leaving the league #or is there?

[thealexanderfiles]

DCU from a Marvel fans limited perspective

recently i've accidently been sucked into the DCU universe, mostly Bat family, if i'm being honest, and although i've never watched a single movie/episode, this is what i have gathered from purely reading the occasional fanfiction/lots of tumblr posts

SPOILERS i guess

There are A LOT of batkids

Bruce Wayne adopts these motherfuckers like they're some kind of limited edition pokemon set

no one is actually sure how many there are but if you have black hair and blue eyes and live in gotham, Batman doesn't care if you've got parents or not. you're coming home with him

There appears to be five Robins and Batman goes though these children like a chainsmoker with a pack of cigarettes

people die a lot

Thats okay though because people come back to life a concerning amount as well

Jason Todd died and came back to life by being dumped in a pit of magical water

Damien Wayne is the only biological child of Bruce and he mentions this a lot

Dick Greyson was the first Robin and the first adoption and i think he and Bruce got in a fight and he left to become Nightwing

Jason Todd stole the Batmobile's wheels and became the second Robin. after he came back to life he became Red Hood

Tim Drake was not an orphan, he just fit Bruce's target demographic and was conveniently close (I mean come on, it's like express shipping) He is also some kind of super-genius. He was the third Robin but became Red Robin/Drake

Stephanie brown(?) was the fourth robin(?), not sure for how long. People get upset when other people forget. I think she's called Spoiler or something

Damien Wayne is the final Robin. Hes this assassins son and im pretty sure Talia dropped him off at the Wayne Manor and said, "I had him through the terrible twos, you get the teen years'

Not entirely sure if Tim runs Wayne enterprises

Brucie wayne is the funniest fucking thing i swear

He's so stupid

not sure is Tim, Dick and Jason follow Bruce's lead and become absolute airheads as well

Alfred is a butler

Alfred has guns

There's someone called Duke and Cass knocking around

The Justice League think Batman works alone

someone in the JL is allergic to the colour yellow

there is a concerning amount of Danny Phantom x DC crossover fics

sames goes for Miraculous

Tim Drake is Bi and for some reason people don't like that

internet is divided on whether of not Batman is a bad dad

#OnlyInGotham is a thing?

Gotham is like an australian NYC

the Riddler is a not funny, less aggressive version of the Joker

apparently Alcatraz and Arkham are different prisons but thats on me

there's a whole group of superheroes out there, each have strong powers and they decide to leave the most dangerous city to the member that has no powers and dresses up as an anthropomorphic bat and runs around the city causing copious amounts of property damage with his children

there is a girl called barbra? Gordon

there is a criminally small amount of content for the girls

for some reason people ship the bat kids together, ike, anytime you have to remind yourself 'its TECHNICALLY not incest is Not Good'

Clark Kent is running round acting as if his reading glasses are the only thing standing between a normal life and CHAOS and the worst thing is that he is right

i am a MCU fan and i was SO sure that Deadpool was MCU but now i'm not so sure

Fandom likes to have this troupe that Bruce wayne doesn't believe batman exists when obviously the superior troupe is that Gotham is pretty sure they are exes

teen titans and young justice are a thing but i cant figure out which robin is who.

Damien Wayne has enough animals to open a zoo

who tf in the batfam are metas?????

Batman has definetely used the Tired Dad voice on villains and the Brucie Wayne voice on the JL

Bruce Wayne has contingency plans if someone discovers his contingency plans

THERES A PLACE CALLED THE FUCKING BAT BURGER???????

it took 2 robins until batman realized that a small child running around in a vest top and speedos was not the greatest idea

Someone needs to tell me, like right now what's going on, where to start and what to read. bc rn im LIVING on chaotic fics

#bruce wayne #brucie wayne #batman #dick grayson #nightwing #jason todd #red hood #tim drake #red robin #damian wayne #dc robin #dc comics #dc universe #someone pls tell me what DC means im actually loosing my mind here #batfam

[welcome-to-goldport]

How friendly is everyone to outsiders? - Totally Not Inky No Not At All

Most of the general population in Goldport is warily kind. You’ll get a passing smile, but that’s about it. If you’re new to goldport and moving in, or just visiting for your first time, it all depends on who you meet first and/or ask for directions, because Goldport is a very big city and you will need help. (this will get long and i’m sorry)

If you’re lucky enough to run into Candace when you first show up (which isn’t outside of the realm of possibility- her candy shop is only a few blocks away from the metro station), she’ll be super friendly towards any new face that shows up. You’ll probably be taken back to her shop and given a lot of free stuff as a welcome to the city.

With Pietro, you would definitely have to initiate the conversation with an “I’m new here” or “I’m visiting”, and even then, you wouldn’t get much out of him other than a cold shoulder. He doesn’t like his conversations lasting too long, and he’s more of a bootstraps theory kind of person.

If you meet Bugsy Bethany first, you’d definitely have to start up the conversation. She would be helpful in a condescending manner, like an adult giving a child directions. If you’re shorter than her, she’ll even look down on you. But you’ll get directions to her dance club. Catalina would be a lot nicer about everything, although a bit shy.

Dastron would be nice to any first-timers, especially if they don’t know that he’s a major-league crime boss. During the entire conversation, you’d get an odd vibe, and he’d casually but discreetly throw in some crime-related things that would catch the interest of any criminals moving in so he can scout out potential new partners in crime. But otherwise, you’d get what info you needed from him.

Maximoff is a pretty intimidating guy, but he’s nice enough. He doesn’t really change from his neutral expression ever, so he’s hard to read, but he’d help you with whatever you needed.

Harry would usually be with Freya, and if you were to approach them, Freya would do most of the talking. She’s rather nice, although a bit blunt about how much crime there exactly is in this city. She’s also very smart. After a lot of info in a short amount of time, Harry would simply apologize to you and they would leave.

Felix would be the one walking up to you, probably trying to get you involved in whatever get-rich-quick scam he’s got in the works. He’d follow you around trying to make “friends” with you and get your money.

Jade & Jayd would talk over each other and would try their best to help, but it’d be first graders giving directions. They’d try their best and it would be super cute and nice, but no help whatsoever.

Levi is very intimidating as well, but he’s approachable at least. He’ll help you out with whatever questions you have, but he won’t make conversation at all.

If you decide to approach Riker first youre insane. That man has very obviously killed people before and youre about to ask him for directions. He’s not mean, but he’s definitely not someone who you see and think to approach unless you’re a criminal or crazy.

Robinson and Phil are incredibly nice and would definitely help you out. They’re like those nice grandpas that always have those strawberry candies on them somewhere. They’d direct you to their restaurant and offer you a 10% “First-Timers” discount.

Calvin and Circuit are definitely some of the most knowledgeable people in regards to the city. They know the best places to eat, the best places to stay, and are also incredibly friendly. Calvin’s a little weird, and Circuit’s a little awkward, but they’ll give you a good sense of what the people in Goldport are like.

Skell doesn’t know much about things despite living in this city for most of his adult life, so he wouldn’t be very helpful but you’d have a nice conversation. Skell would be very awkward the whole time, though.

Stratos is kind of softspoken, but nice. He’d physically take you places rather than tell you directions and you might possibly end up spending the whole day with him dragging you around, but he’d be nice about it.

Randall definitely stands out in a crowd, and if approached will definitely help you with directions, give you recommendations, grab something off a tall shelf for you, etc. but if you try and make conversation he slowly starts panicking.

Beta and Audrey would probably poke fun at you, but they’d answer any of your questions and know the city pretty well.

you would probably meet Danny and Duna only if you arrived by boat rather than plane, as they spend most, if not all of, their time at the beaches. However they’d be very nice (Duna would probably try and gaslight you into going into her clothing shop), but not too knowledgeable about the entire city.

If you manage to work up the nerve to speak to Copper, this very tall, leather-clad skeleton man who looks like he could and will knock your teeth in, he’s very friendly and would be nice to talk to. He’d even buy you lunch.

Robert is boring, but nice to have a conversation with. He knows more about his own neighborhood, but would know some good places to stop by.

Sousa is a very obviously eccentric person, but they give off good vibes and are very approachable. They also know a LOT about Goldport and would probably give you a map they made themself in a mapmaking class.

Mac & Rooney are… nice. Eccentric. Definitely give odd vibes. They’d be helpful and would make conversation, but you’d definitely feel like you’re in some weird kind of danger around them.

and finally i’m so so sorry if you have the misfortune of 👁 being the first one you contact in this city. Goldport is at least slightly better than they say it is I promise. I’m so sorry. Candace’s shop is a few blocks away go there and have a good time and please for the love of god forget about your interaction with 👁

#goldport #ask #OC interaction info

[dukereviewsxtra]

Duke Reviews Xtra: Alice Through The Looking Glass

Hello, I'm Andrew Leduc And Welcome To Duke Reviews Xtra Where We Are Going To Continue Our Look At The Movies Of Disney...

And On Today's Show We Continue What I Am Now Calling Wonderland Week As We Look At The Burtonless Sequel Of Tim Burton's Alice In Wonderland, Alice Through The Looking Glass...

This Film Sees Alice Returning To Wonderland To Find The Mad Hatter Acting Madder Than Usual When He Wants To Discover The Truth About His Family Which Leads Alice To Visit The Being Known As Time (Played By Sasha Baron Cohen) To Borrow The Chronosphere To Travel Back In Time To Save The Hatter And Discover The Truth About His Family...

Will Alice Discover The Truth Before Time Runs Out For The Hatter?

Let's Find Out As We Watch Alice Through The Looking Glass...

The Movie Starts In 1874 As Alice Is In The Second Year Of Her Travels Through The Orient As She's Now Captain Of The Wonder, A Ship That Once Belonged To Her Father As They Leave The Strait Of Maiacca, Their Ship Is Attacked By Pirates..,

Believing They Should Surrender Due To The Dangerous Rock Formations And The High Number Of Pirate Ships Surrounding Them, Alice Instead Decides To Take Them From There Without Being Caught By The Pirates Or Sinking The Wonder...

And It Works, The Pirates Ships Sink As The Wonder Heads Back To London...

Arriving One Year Later, Alice Meets Up With Her Mother As They Go To Talk With A Man Named James Harcourt Who Works For The Trading Company That Owns Her Ship, That Hamish's Father Died In Between Movies And Hamish Now Owns Her Ship And Is Alice's New Boss...

Returning To Their Home, Alice's Mother Tells Alice That Hamish Is Throwing A Party Tonight At His Mansion So, Alice Decides (Despite Not Being Invited) To Discuss Future Travels To The Orient With The Wonder...

But Unfortunately Hamish Reveals To Her That She Will No Longer Captain The Wonder But Instead Work As A Secretary For The Company Also That While She Was On Her Travels, Hamish Forced Alice's Mother To Sign A Contract That Say That The Only Way Alice Can Keep The Wonder Is To Exchange Their London House For The Ship...

Realizing That Hamish Is Doing This To Her Because She Didn't Accept His Proposal To Her In The Last Movie (Despite Being Married To Someone Else Now) And Because Of Her Attitude. She Confronts Hamish On It....

Only For Him To Accuse Her Of Not Being The Right Person To Command The Ship (Despite Her Achievements) Because She's A Woman...

Careful, Hamish! You Know What Happens To People Who Say Stuff Like That? They Have The Me Too Movement On Them Before You Can Say Ready Set Go...

Distraught By The Situation, Alice's Mother Argues With Her As She Tells Alice To Conform To Society's Expectations About Women Only For Alice To Say...

As She Runs Off, Secluding To The Gardens On The Property Only For Her To Find A Blue Butterfly Which She Believes To Be Absolem Who She Follows To A Mirror In Hamish's Father's Old Office...

However, Before She Tries To Go Through The Mirror, Her Presence Is Caught By A Few Partygoers Who Go To Get Hamish As They Try To Invade The Office To Discover Who Is Inside...

But Going Through The Mirror, Alice Ends Up In A Mirrored Version Of The Office In Underland Where After Encountering Humpty Dumpty, Re- Encounters Absolem, Who Urges Alice To Go To Her Friends Because He Will Be Gone Before Long...

After Falling Through A Door In The Sky, Alice Reunites With Her Friends At The White Queen's Castle, As They Inform Her That The Hatter Is Acting Madder Than Usual And That Everything They've Tried To Do To Get Him To Be Himself Again Hasn't Worked...

Going By His House, The Hatter Is Happy To See Her As He Tells Her That The Reason He's Not His Usual Self Is Because While Playing With Bayard One Day, The Hatter Found A Hat He Crafted When He Was A Child That Was Supposedly Thrown Away By His Father Over A Fight Years Ago Which Was Never Settled...

And That Despite Knowing That His Family Perished On Horunvendush Day On The Day The Red Queen Took Control Of Underland, He Sees It As A Possibility That They May Be Alive So He Wants To Go Out And Find Them So He Can Mend His Relationship With His Dad...

But Remembering His Story About How His Family Was Killed, Alice Tries To Comfort Him By Telling Him About How He Lost Her Father, But The Hatter Knowing That She Doesn't Believe Him, He Kicks Her Out Of His House And Locks Himself In...

Worrying About The Hatter's Deteriorating Health Alice Returns To Tell Her Friends What Happened, Which Leads Them To Realize That Finding The Hatter's Family Is The Only Way To Stop Him From Dying...

So, The White Queen Decides That Alice Needs To Go Back In Time By Herself To Save The Hatter's Family, Telling Her To Consult With Time (Played By Sasha Baron Cohen) To Ask Him To Borrow The Chronosphere...

Using An Old Clock, Alice Travels To Time's Castle Where She Meets Time After Discovering That He's The One That Controls The Life And Death Of Everyone In Underland...

Showing Her Around His Castle, She Eventually Tells Him Why She's There Only For Time To Tell Her That She Cannot Have The Chronosphere As Altering The Past Cannot Be Done...

Upset At This, Alice Is About To Leave But Before She Does She Discovers That Time And The Red Queen Are In League With Each Other (Despite The Red Queen Being Only Interested In Time For The Chronosphere)...

So, Alice Decides To Steal The Chronosphere To Prevent Time From Giving The Chronosphere To The Red Queen And Uses It To Travel To The Red Queen's Coronation...

There, A Younger Mad Hatter Mocks The Red Queen When The Crown Doesn't Fit Her Abnormally Sized Head...

(Start At 0:36)

Wow, Who Thought That Thorin Oakenshield Could Play Favorites?...

With The Hatter's Father Reprimanding His Son For Laughing Despite The Hatter Not Understanding What He Has Done, The Fight Escalates To The Point That The Hatter Decides To Live Away From His Family To His Mom's Despair...

Alice Tries To Convince The Hatter To Go Back And Forgive His Father, Saying That He Will Regret It In The Future But His Mind Is Made Up That He Will Go Live With The March Hare And The Doormouse As He Invites Her To Join Them For Tea..

She Also Tries To Warn The Hatter's Family About Horunvendush Day But Before She Can The White Queen Apologizes For The Red Queen's Behavior, Telling About The Day The Red Queen Went Mad, Fell Day...

So Alice Goes Back To Fell Day, In Another Attempt To Prevent Not Only This Day But Horunvendush Day From Happening While Time Arrives At The Hatter's Tea Party With The March Hare And The Doormouse...

Asking Him Where Alice Is, The Hatter Tells Him That He Invited Alice To The Party But She's Not Here Yet So, Time Decides To Wait...

(End At 0:45)

Asking Again When Alice Is Coming, The Hatter Admits That While He Invited Alice He Never Said That She Was Coming...

Upset About This Deception, Time Curses Them All Stating That Until Alice Comes To The Party, The Hatter, The March Hare And The Doormouse Will Be Stuck At That Table With The Time Always Being 1 Minute Before Tea Time...

So, In Otherwords When Alice As A Child Showed Up, She Was Actually Freeing Them From Time's Curse...

Arriving On Fell Day, Alice Meets The Mad Hatter When He Was Just A Child Who Is Impressed By Alice's Head And Invites Her To His Family's Shop To Get A Beautiful Hat...

Saying Yes, Alice Follows Him Back To His Family's Shop Where He Asks If Alice Wants A Fun Hat, But The Hatter's Father Reprimands The Hatter Again Saying That The Job Of A Hatter Is Not To Create Fun Hats But Hats That Will Fit What Society Demands...

Defending His Arguments By Showing His Father The Hat He Found In The Future, Hatter's Father Is Unimpressed And Doesn't Even Recognize It As A Hat, But When He Tries To Fix It. The Hat Rips Which Upsets The Young Hatter As Runs To His Room In Tears...

Remembering Her Mission, Alice Goes Off To Find The Young Red Queen, Who Is In A Castle With Her Sister, The Young White Queen, Enjoying Tarts That Their Mother Made...

However When The White Queen Steals The Last Tart, The Red Queen Is Blamed When The Crumbs Are Found By Her Bed Despite Her Knowing That The White Queen Ate The Last Tart...

Shocked By Her Sister's Lie And The Accusations Against Her, The Red Queen Runs Away From The Castle As Alice Searches For Her To Prevent The Accident From Happening...

But The Accident Still Happens Despite Alice Stopping The Reason For The Accident, Which Has Her Then Harkening Back To Time's Words That It's Not Possible To Change The Past.

However, As She Prepares To Leave, Alice Sees The Hatter's Father Retrieving The Hatter's Hat From The Trash And Placing It In His Pocket Which Means That They're Alive...

But Before Alice Can Head Back She's Confronted By Time Who Tries To Get The Chronosphere But Before He Can Get It, Alice Jumps Into A Mirror Where She Returns To London Only To Wake Up In The American Mcgee Institute For Crazy Women That's Run By Moriarity...

Yeah, It Kind Of Is A Pointless Scene, But I'm Sorry I'll Take Any Chance I Can To See Andrew Scott As A Bad Guy Afterall...

Eventually, Finding The Chronosphere, Alice Escapes Moriarity's Asylum Of The Damned And Heads Back To Hamish's Estate So She Can Return Through The Looking Glass And Back To Underland...

Returning To The Present Afterwards, Alice Goes To The Hatter's House To Tell Him What She Discovered, But Is She Too Late?...

(Start At 0:16)

Arriving At The Red Queen's Hideout In The Outlands, Alice, The Hatter And The Others Find The Hatter's Family Inside Of The Red Queen's Ant Hill But Unfortunately...

With Everyone Locked In A Vegetable Prison And Weakened Time Next To A Skeletal Knave Of Hearts....

Did The Red Queen Hire Biff To Kill Him In Return For Hill Valley?

The Red Queen Takes The White Queen Back To Fell Day On The Chronosphere As Her Henchmen Release Alice And Her Friends Who Take Time To His Castle While Alice And The Hatter Go To Get The Chronosphere...

But Unfortunately The Red Queen Breaks The One Rule Of Time Travel In Wonderland Which Is That People From Wonderland Can Cannot See Themselves Else Time Will Freeze Or Rust In This Case...

Racing Back To Time's Castle On The Chronosphere As Everything Starts To Freeze, They Eventually Arrive Only For Everyone To Freeze As Alice Goes To Put It Back In The Grandfather Clock...

Making It Just As She Freezes, The Clock And Time Are Restored As The White Queen Makes Up With The Red Queen And The Hatter's Family Is Restored To Normal Size...

Going To Apologize To Time For Everything, He Forgives Alice And Becomes Friends With Her Before She Goes To Say Goodbye To Her Friends

(Start At 0:07)

Returning To London, Alice Returns In Time As Her Mother Was Signing Over Her Father's Ship To Hamish, However, Instead Of Stopping It, Alice Decides To Let Them Go Through With It, Claiming That The Wonder Is Just A Ship And There Will Be Others...

So, Her Mom Decides To Rip Up The Contract In Front Of Hamish, Stating That She Is Grateful That Alice Never Married Him Because He Is A Horrible Person...

(Hamish) I'll Get You Next Time, Alice! Next Time! (Snort)

Creating A New Trading Company Named Kingsleigh And Kingsleigh, Alice And Her Mother Vow To Remove Hamish And His Company From The Market In Just One Year, As The Wonder Leaves London With Alice And Her Mother On It...

And That's Alice Through The Looking Glass And Again, Just What Is So Bad About This Movie?!?

The Story Is Interesting, The Effects Are Fantastic, The Characters (Minus Hamish) Are Better Written Than They Were In The First Movie, I Think At Least Mia Wasikowska Does Better In This Film Than She Did In The First Movie...

I Also Like Both Johnny Depp And Sasha Baron Cohen In This Movie, Especially Sasha Baron Cohen, I Thought Time Was An Interesting Character And That His Minutes Were Some Of The Cutest Characters In The Movie...

I Don't Care What The Haters Say About This Movie, This Was One Film I Thought To Be Interesting And Cool Throughout And I Definitely Suggest Everyone To See It...

Tune In Tomorrow As We Look At Part 1 Of The 1985 Version Of Alice In Wonderland, Till Then, This Is Duke, Signing Off...

#alice through the looking glass #Johnny Depp #Mia Wasikowska #anne hathaway #helena bonham carter #sasha baron cohen #Matt Lucas #Michael Sheen #Alan Rickman #Stephen Fry #timothy spall #rhys ifans #richard armitage #disney #disnerd #disney + #disney remakes

[oddsandendsandthings]

Did somebody say Pokémon AU??

I honestly have no clue if this has been done or not. But here' what I'd think a Pokémon AU would look like complete with Pokémon teams.

So for the most part everything follows the show with the added bonus of Pokémon being a thing. The Magnus Institute exists to investigate and catalogue paranormal and supernatural experiences that fall outside the range of regular Pokémon shenanigans. So in the beginning, Jon is an even more cynical ass that chalks everything up to being just typical ghost Pokémon messing with people. But there are greater forces at work that fall outside of even Arceus's range of understanding. And there is more to fear than just Pokémon lurking in the shadows.

Jon: He wasn't like most kids with grand dreams of being a Pokémon master. He was and still is much more content reading a book than training Pokémon. All the ones in his team caught him more than the other way around which is really just par for the course for Jon really. He also can’t be bothered to name any of them.

Absol: It just started following him after the brush with the Leitner and just refused to leave. It tries to warn Jon about bad situations but the man has zero self-preservation instincts. Essentially acts like a beleaguered mom looking after her self destructive toddler.

Rotom: It really just kinda came with the tape recorder.

Unknown: Jon didn't intentionally catch it. The unknown just live in the Archives and made themselves at home in his office until one finally just tapped into a pokeball conveniently left on his desk. It likes helping him find real statements in the Archives and tries to work with its brethren and Absol to warn Jon about incoming dangers. He’s just too buried in statements to see ominous warnings literally floating above his head.

Buneary: It was the first and only Pokemon he ever purposefully caught. It hated him when he caught it and it still hates his guts now but they both refuse to let the other go out of spite. Tim gets a kick about teasing him about it.

Purugly: His first pokemon given to him when his grandma's purugly had kittens. It spends all its time skulking around the archives just doing cat things.

Chandelure: He caught it in the woods as a litwik as a kid and used it as a reading light. He doesn't believe in the stories surrounding them stealing your life force but it definitely does and he’s just too hyped on caffeine to notice.

Martin: I imagine Martin as the breeder type who loves to nurture Pokémon from eggs and just overly spoil his entire team. He of course names all his pokemon after Romantic poets.

Joltik:  Used to belong to Jon before he gave it away after the Leitner incident. He really just kinda threw the ball as far as he could and it hit Martin upside the head. Jon doesn't realize that Martin was that kid or that that Joltik was his and it makes both of them very sad. The only pokemon he hasn’t named since he doesn’t know what Jon named it and it didn’t feel right to change it.

Araquanid: He named it Byron after Lord Byron. Pokémon who, depending on who you ask, either drowns unsuspecting Pokémon or cares for them. Fits Martin to a T if you ask me and he would take pity on a poor, misunderstood spider.

Sylveon: He named it Felicia after Felicia Hemans. He raised it from an egg he found in the backyard. It was also his first Pokemon period that he hid in his room because his mom didn't want any Pokémon in the house. When she did find it she begrudgingly allowed it. She always seemed to dote on it more than she ever did Martin himself...

Klefki: Named it Will after William Wordsworth. This little guy is half the reason Martin is able to get into half the places he does.

Chansey: Named Keats. Another Pokemon raised from an egg, it is just as doting as Martin is to the others in the archives. It is also consequently the most powerful member on his team.

Zorua: Named Percy after Percy Shelley. He initially thought he was catching a volpix when he caught it. He bonded with it over having to hide who he truly is too. It is the overprotective guard dog he deserves that no one realizes how dangerous it truly is.

Tim: his team is comprised of beautiful Pokémon that can absolutely kick anyone's ass at a moments notice. They are all as salty as they are beautiful. He names his pokemon after famous actors and actresses.

Roserade: Named Angelina after Angelina Jolie, it was the first Pokemon he ever caught, the two are a dazzling duo charming anyone that crosses their path.

Yamask: It showed up and started hanging around him after his brother was taken by the Stranger. After that, he knew without a shadow of a doubt his brother was dead. He dotes on it constantly because of it despite how much it creeps others out. He, of course, named it Danny.

Milotic: Named Kiera after Kiera Knightly, he evolved it from a feebas he hatched from an egg. He still treats it like his baby.

Lopunny: It was his first Pokémon. His brother gave it to him as a gift and he took it as a challenge to get it to like him enough to evolve. He named it Audrey after Audrey Hepburn.

Liepard: Its stealthy nature is extremely helpful when scouting locations and doing research for the institute. It also hates Jon as much as Tim does. He named it Jackman after Hugh Jackman.

Diancie: He inherited it from his bro after his passing. Danny found it while exploring an old cave and used to travel everywhere with him. It and Danny are still inseparable. Its name is Mila after Mila Kunis.

Basira: Her team is as practical as she is. They are all extremely powerful and could easily take down the entire league if she wanted to. She just doesn’t want to. Her no-nonsense attitude means she just doesn’t see the point in naming any of her pokemon.

Arcanine: What's a cop without their traditional canine companion? Her arcanine fell in love with Daisy's before they even had a clue they were made for each other and set them up in a very 101 Dalmatian style.

Serperior: Her first pokemon given to her from the local pokemon professor. They share the same unimpressed icy stare.

Mightyena: They are truly cut from the same cloth and is honestly more of her partner than her official partner.

Alolan Ninetails: Her strongest Pokémon and her fiercest protector. It loves playing mind games with people.

Umbreon (evolved during the Raynor incident. It seems especially keen on picking up on paranormal activities making it very useful to have on hand)

Mewtwo (cause if anyone has a legendary Pokémon, it's Basira. She caught it during one of the section cases she took and just didn't tell anyone)

Daisy: She is the “gotta collect them all” type of pokemon hunter. She catches any new pokemon she comes across and sends them to the local professor cause she has to fill that pokedex.

Arcanine: Second verse same as the first with this one of being a staple of being a police officer. It will look for any excuse to burn someone. The only person it likes besides Daisy is Basira and her Arcanine.

Houndoom: Her first pokemon she got as a houndour. She terrorized the neighborhood kids with it and is essential for her hunting down both new pokemon and perps. 

Treevant: She caught it as a phantump after it showed up as she was looking into a cold case. At least if she never was able to file an official report, she at least knew how the case ended.

Sawsbuck: She caught it as a deerling and was the first pokemon she ever caught. What kinda hunter hasn’t caught a deer right?

Espurr: She got it after the whole coffin incident. She just kinda cam across it by chance and felt a kinship with it about having to restrain a flood of overwhelming power it holds.

Lyanroc Midnight form: It is as vicious as she is when in full Hunt mode. 

Melanie: She is the one type kinda trainer and it’s, of course, ghost types. She is determined to prove the paranormal exists outside of ghost type pokemon.

Gengar: It was the Pokémon that started her fascination with ghosts and the first Pokémon she ever had.

Honedge: She found it when looking into that ghost train and couldn’t not catch it. When she’s threatening to stab someone, she uses honedge to do so.

Sableye: Found in an abandoned, haunted mine shaft.

Banette: Cause what kinda ghost hunter doesn’t have a haunted doll?

Gourgeist: She caught it as a pumpkaboo on her very first ghost hunting trip.

Spiritomb: Caught it poking around the wrong place at the wrong time she came across it and had to catch it cause if anyone would have a spiritomb, it would be her. It’s just as bloodthirsty as she is.

Sasha: Do I mean this team was made by Sasha or Not-Sasha? The answer is yes.

Mimikyu: The first pokemon she ever caught. Wait... wasn’t it supposed to be a pikachu?

Ditto: This one just speaks for itself.

Baynette: After she caught it she started reading up on the stories and pores surrounding certain Pokémon that put her on the path of working at the institute.

Gothitelle: It started crying nearly immediately after Sasha started working for the Institute but didn't buy into the wives tale about them predicting their trainer's deaths. It mysteriously disappeared after the Prentis incident.

Claydol: She found it wandering around artifact storage and felt bad for it.

Parasect: Her first pokemon. She really just found it as a paras in her parents' backyard as a kid and begged them to let her keep it. It evolved during the Prentis incident while trying to help her fend off the worms.

#I spent waaaaay to long on this #did you like my picks for pokemon teams? #think I picked wrong? #feel free to add more or correct things if you do! #pokemon AU #the magnus archives #tma #Jon sims #sasha #martin blackwood #daisy tonner #basira hussain

[nathjonesey-75]

The Thirty-Year Itch

When I was a young boy, I used to think that even twenty years was a lifetime – thirty was a millennium. When I turned thirty, I had the sinister feeling that I would have to grow up, start behaving maturely and that my young, green and careless days would be naturally terminated as instantaneously as my twenties.

 As it happens, looking back for three decades – my thirties were possibly more enjoyable, along with the realisation that – as the meme suggests – “Don’t grow up, it’s a trap!” So, turning back the clock to the year of 1989; an unbelievably pivotal year, not only for its eventful happenings, good and bad; but for the long-term change for the world.

 Globally, we had the start of crumbling dictatorships and old regimes as the “Iron Curtain” began to flake. Romania’s overthrowing of its communist president, Nicolae Ceausescu and overhaul of the old communist republic, the smoother Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia and even more famously – the majestically powerful opening of the Berlin Wall, ending one of the biggest divisions of the twentieth century, starting the reuniting of what we now know as Germany.

 From the eyes of a naïve, small-town boy from Wales who had two passions – sport and music, this particular year was an eye-opening door to wowing, new worlds and understanding heartache in a cruel world. In the sporting sense, it should have been another year remembered for success and silverware for my teams Llanelli RFC and Liverpool FC. Tragically, the events in Sheffield on April 15th, 1989 would change the landscape of years to come for my Merseyside second home after the loss of ninety-six lives at Hillsborough. With only a month to go until the anniversary of that colossal tragedy, I’d only like to think of Liverpool as a city more solidified through its guts, grit and togetherness ever since.

 Not only did the injustice, corruption and governmental evil epitomise the darker days of Thatcherite Britain and its inappropriate old guard of politicians and so-called leaders; but the legacy of loss and undermanagement in football changed how sport was facilitated, law was conducted – and how Liverpool and a city and as a football club – was both seen and run. Solidarity and deep doggedness from the Justice for the 96 team is something which I have grown, supported and seen – and wholeheartedly admired from Anne Williams, Margaret Aspinall and Trevor Hicks and all of their league of big, fighting hearts. Finally, some justice was seen two years ago – but did not replace those lost.

 This would be something which also deeply personified but affected one of my first heroes, Sir Kenny Dalglish. As much as it makes me proud to see him acknowledged in being knighted for his compassionate work in the city’s communities as well as for the football club, his career as our manager was torn apart by this maelstrom, forcing him to resign less than two years later. Probably my most memorable flashback of the year was watching the horror unfold on my grandparents’ old television on that fateful day. If 1989 produced some vintage wines in the way of the aforementioned freedom around the world – this one was a poisonous drop.

 On a more positive sporting note, while this was the height of passion in old Welsh rugby days – pre-Hillsborough’s standing areas meaning you could fit way, way over capacity in each stadium; I remember sitting as a ball boy in the Scarlets matches on frosty, cold nights with what must have been around 20,000 people watching derby matches in a stadium which only held 10,800 people. Possibly the link of two happenings as a ball boy was being interviewed by a New Zealand TV crew, as I was wearing an All Blacks jersey on the side of the pitch one evening – as a precursor to their tour in October 1989. Meeting the squad – one of the best teams (even to this day) I have ever seen, the day after they beat Llanelli 11-0 the previous day. Sir John Kirwan, the towering winger signed his autograph in my little old book with “Go For It”, leaving me open-mouthed, as if I’d met a god.

 In culture, my most-watched movie (apart from Star Wars Episode 4: A New Hope) in cinemas was released in June 1989, among the most memorable of marketing campaigns I can remember as a child. Tim Burton’s Batman was something which I can honestly say – changed my life. I watched it four times in cinemas, then countless times when released on VHS later that year. The soundtrack by Prince, the score by Danny Elfman as well as the gothic darkness were elements with which I identified, more so than Spider-Man, after collecting tens of comics as a younger kid. It began a lifetime of slight obsession with the DC Comics character – which only petered out once Zac Snyder started making (and tarring) the Caped Crusader films with his green screen only style.

 Furthermore to the Prince soundtrack, as it was a world of far fewer musical genres back then; I was a Hip-Hop child. It was a time of mullets, soft rock and heavy metal along the mainstream music world – so discovering Hip-Hop in ’87 was something which kept me a bit one-eyed (or eared) as far as music went. 1989, it can be argued – was the best vintage year for the genre. Before the USA’s absurdly possessive copyright laws came into effect, we heard a year of sublime releases. Genre-expanding, sample-tastic albums, using the essence of Hip-Hop’s DJ styles – cutting pieces of tracks into new grooves were extending this brand of music method with new sub-genre styles. After years of Gangster Rap and politically charged messages from bands such as Ice-T, NWA and Public Enemy, a new wave of artists with alternate points to make had arrived, as did a segway from the underground to commercial hip-hop via some huge hits (Tone Loc, Neneh Cherry and so on).

 This week holds significance as the thirty-year anniversary of the release of one of my most influential albums. My copy of De La Soul’s “3 Feet High And Rising” became one of my school year’s most passed-around tapes. Along with this fresh piece of genius (which incidentally cost the band more money because of the samples used, than made them cash – and which they are currently battling with Tommy Boy Records for being finally released digitally), we were blessed with rap pearls such as Beastie Boys’ Paul’s Boutique, Young MC’s Stone Cold Rhymin’, Queen Latifah’s  All Hail The Queen, 3rd Bass’s The Cactus Album….the list goes on. London’s Mixmaster supreme DJ Yoda even agrees with me on this!

Agreed, as DJ Yoda mentioned, there would definitely be some degree of personal nostalgia, vis-à-vis the albums which saw your personal growth and happy memories, but also the longevity of these album releases, as well as significance at the time. Latifah’s giant step for women in hip-hop, music’s expansion to new land and social equality through the softer messages of new types of rapping, following the domination of ‘Gangsta Rap’ and political bravery in the previous few years.

 One massive encounter in connection with this brand of music – was seeing the DMC Technics DJ Mixing Championship for the first time, on the television. Despite it not becoming my selected style of mixing material years later, this is where it all started for me. Cutmaster Swift was the first non-American to win the title, but it was the imprint on my mind of analogue mixing brilliance which pushed me further into records – and what can be done with them.

 At the time of this all happening, a new wave of music had begun. One of which I may have seen snippets on Top Of The Pops via certain tracks – in fact one which is now on my wall, after it was number 1 in the charts that year. L’il Louis’s French Kiss sounded like an excuse for “rudies” in a song to a fourteen-year-old heathen sheltered lad. After listening to Ice-T and especially Public Enemy’s Fight The Power – rebellion at the time for me was listening to lots of wise uprising, occasionally violent lyrics with lots of swearing and lots of putting White American policies to the ethical sword. It was five years later I caught the club-bug - and discovered House Music properly. But in 1989, it was blowing up as a scene. The effects of raves in Britain and the USA, not to mention the early stages of the club DJ superstar was catching headlines, being targeted by police and the tabloid press – with a late-eighties revamp of punk’s rebellious anti-establishment stance via electronic music and the drug Ecstasy. It was such a big year on so many levels.

 Finally, in other news – let’s have a look at what quirky little differences or nuances our kids would be baffled by – or at least raising eyebrows towards. In 1989, Madonna released the highly-anticipated, then controversial “Like A Prayer” video (for depicting Jesus as a person of colour) via a Pepsi commercial when we only had four TV channels in Britain. Now, we anticipate when she will finally call it a day. It’s not as if the royalties dried up a few years ago, is it?

 Adverts were good. I rest my case (click on link).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYkrvoI_oVE

Mullets and Shell Suits. *twitches uncontrollably*  

 *twitches uncontrollably again as Australia – proudly – announces mullets are back*

 Dear Generations Y and Z, there is a reason these garments have not been worn for over twenty-five years. This is called ‘not being a chav or bogan’. I hope you can understand why it would be dangerous to revisit this abhorrent get-up.

To close – in 1989, Sir Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web, or what we now know as the Internet. You wouldn’t be reading this now without it.

 Cheers.

#1989 #Thirty Year Itch #history #tragedy #Hip Hop #House Music #Liverpool FC #Hillsborough #DJ #Mixing #Technics #Bad Taste #Mullets #Shell Suits #Growing Up #Political Change #Freedom #Communism

[serenawitchwriter]

The Super-Switch

(part 3)

being the most responsible member of the justice league was exhausting.

take today for instance, batman had thankfully stopped the potential catastrophe that was two insanely powerful individuals incapable of controlling their newly acquired powers charging into battle. superman and phantom switching places was hedging on disaster even now, because despite the quality of their character, they both were powerful enough to destroy the world, especially if a fight between them were to escalate too far.

batman, ever cautious has been putting counter measures for the possibility in place for years and honestly he was grateful that he wouldn’t have to use them yet. both heroes were be cooperative and despite some sharp barbs at each other and general frustration at the circumstance, they weren’t attacking each other.

however, that did not make the situation any easier. batman would always be thankful that things haven’t reached the worst case scenario but that didn’t change the fact that bad is bad.

they had returned to the space station and the secure training facility within it. they had started to lay the ground works of a plan and were meanwhile getting phantom and superman to adapt to their current bodies.

the plan was simple enough. the flash, wonder woman, hawk man, and hawk woman would be pursuing the ghost that had performed the switch. batman had already acquired a military stock of fenton technology so they were well armed and phantoms profile on the ghost was impressively detailed. though there was some humor to be found in the caps lettered “DON’T MAKE WISHES OR SAY THE WORDS I WANT OR I WISH IN HER PRESENCE OR AT ALL!” the warning was reiterated several times throughout the profile and clarified she’ll grant the wish even when you can’t see her.

phantom and superman were, for their part anxious about leaving the hunting to others. phantom especially holding a sense of responsibility because ghost hunting is his department. superman was insisting his own involvement because a slight sense of guilt over making the wish. batman and several other members of the league had backed phantom up and chastised the hero for his loose phrasing an use of the taboo phrase. phantom wasn’t the only hero with a rule against wishing.

batman had made it perfectly clear that until they could control each others powers they were liabilities. a point that was emphasized when superman, in Danny's body, began to slip intangibly through the floor

which was how they got this point. training their deadly and highly destructive powers.

“look you just gotta feel solid. like continuously be aware that you can touch stuff.”

“that’s what i’m doing.”

“no, i mean you gotta keep that awareness. like...” phantom scrunched superman’s eyebrows together as searched for the right words. “it’s kinda like breathing, you know? most of the time you aren’t aware of your breathing you just let your lungs do their own thing. intangibility is a ghosts natural instinct/state, so to be solid you have to actively think about being solid, like when you’re suddenly aware of you own breathing and have to work to do it.”

“how can you cautiously be aware that you’re solid all the time,” the phantom double growled sounding frustrated. he was once again slipping through the floor and superman pulled him back up by the elbow.

“well, i’m not, exactly. eventually the solid-intangible switch just became a sort of muscle memory thing. most of the time awareness of my solidness is just floating somewhere in the back or my mind, just always running. letting go of the awareness to become intangible is actually weird because like you have to like let go of that awareness. it kinda sucks, because I've gotten so used to being tangible that i sometimes completely forget to turn intangible when i actually need to. it’s kind of confusing.”

“i agree.” superman glaring tiredly up at his own face. it was fascinating to watch the differences in expressions. watching superman’s body act like an earnest but typical teenager was rather cute. phantom sarcasm and sharp smirks looking out of place dangerous on the normally kind or brooding face of the alien but he brought an energy and expressiveness that superman often lacked. he talked with his hands and showed off his small ticks. seeing ‘superman’ nervously rub the back of his neck and tilt his head to the side with a shy smile, was a memory that batman would keep tucked away amidst his fondest memories.

 meanwhile superman’s good posture and kind smile softened the ghosts image considerably. gone was the tricksters glint and in it’s place was a bright-eyed child. batman had never acknowledge how cynical phantom was in caparison to superman, but to see his face free of it was a startling revelation. phantom looked younger with superman controlling him. he moved with confidence and his neon green eyes sparkled with optimism. it was nice to see but carried with it slight disappointment that phantom himself couldn’t produce such a smile on his own.

“maybe it’s kind of like with your super strength?” phantom wondered. he was proving entirely more adaptive to superman's powers that superman was to his. he still proved to be clumsy when it came to the finer adjustments of strengths and applications, but he had mastered flying with the newly weighted body and powers like heat vision and psychokinesis were practically instinctive to him. the only real problem he had was focusing with superman’s enhanced hearing, providing a constant din and distraction. “like you have to be consciously aware of your movements and strength so you don’t accidentally destroy everything, right? well, treat it like that only instead of strength it’s how solid you are.”

“adjusting how lightly you touch something is completely different from being constantly aware of your own breathing.” superman griped irritably.

he was having a considerably harder time mastering phantom’s powers. they’d been working on tangibility on in off more the last couple hours because it was apparently the most important skill in terms of functioning normally. superman seemed to be slipping through the floor and dropping objects every other minute. and phantom almost seemed to be silently laughing even as he tried to help. it was quite clear that phantom had dealt with these problems in the past.

when they weren’t struggling with that, they were struggling with the other basic powers. like Danny, superman picked up flight rather easily. but manipulating ecto energy and all the powers that depended on drawing from his ghost core was escaping superman’s grasp. the way phantom described reaching for his core seemed rather meditative and simple to batman, but then again batman wasn’t the one with the powers so he wasn’t in the position to judge.

phantom refused to show superman his more powerful attacks, claiming, “if you can’t even make an ectoblast you wouldn’t be able to perform a ghostly wail. it’s not really something you can do accidentally. so as long as you don’t feel like your freezing to death you should be fine.”

it wasn’t the most comforting statement but batman preferred that they didn’t test those powers here anyway. there was no telling what a ghostly wail would do to the ship, especially because superman would have no control over it. they’d have to travel back to earth to do it and as late in the evening it was getting returning to earth that day for a non emergency seemed too exhausting.

speaking of which, “i think it’s about time for bed,” batman called to the heroes. phantom flinched and the sheepish look on ‘superman’s’ face, yet again, melted his cold black heart.

both were obviously exhausted so they didn’t argue about that, thou superman did mutter. “if i have to be thinking about solidness, what happens if i turn intangible in my sleep.”

“it’s easier not to go to bed tangible at all. just lie by the bed and float intangibly there. you’re less likely to move from there than if you turn intangible mid dream. if you do that i guarantee that you’ll fall through through the floor.”

“it was a rhetorical question.”

batman rubbed the bridge of his nose. this was going to be a long weekend

here’s hoping they’re back to normal tommorrow.

(part 1) (part 2)

#dpjl #Danny Phantom #justice league #superman #batman #body swap #hestiawrites

[cctaehyung]

vi. first snow.

2016 on december fourth. taehyung recognized the date all too well.

the first time he had experienced the date, he had just gotten a job on this day. after a difficult time cooperating with the father of the ceo, he was able to get the job that he has had until the event happened. but as of now, according to kento, he had gotten the job ever since june 20 of 2016. strange date, he thinks to himself. he doesn’t question it any further, though. in this timeline, he just learns to go with the flow. in order to get by, he just had to question everything only to himself since it was obvious he wasn’t going to get any answers from others.

surprisingly, though, he has a day off today. kento and his family are off on some vacation, so that gives taehyung about a week off from work since standing by kento was pretty much his only job. his job was to make sure that the boy doesn’t get himself kidnapped and to not let his father know that kento was watching some hardcore yaoi porn. in those times, taehyung feels the most stress because if he fails to do his job, not only will he get fired but he’ll be disliked by mr. yamazaki even more. he’s already got plenty of reasons to dislike ricky, but the redhead was not going to let his actual boss believe that he converted kento into anime boys with tremendously large hands. taehyung doesn’t even watch anime anymore! he didn’t want to be slandered!

he’s not used to thinking this week when he means that week of 2016. when he wants to refer to a time in his journal that he has kept since then, he used to debate whether he should write one or the other. eventually, he settled for “this week the first time i experienced it” with a sky blue pen to match his magical outfit that he has worn to this day.

surprising as it is, he’s writing in it now. with a color switching ballpoint pen that he stole from danny’s room, taehyung writes a new entry with december fourth as the date, drawing a number two in parenthesis next to the 2016 that begins the date. he begins with “this day the first time i experienced it, i got a job that i have kept even up to this time.” he writes about how in eight days from now in that time, he would experience a life changing experience after he reminisces the past. it would earn him the color of sky blue, as well as the blue flower on his index finger.

in this timeline, he never does go to a hospital. he never stays in a coma for three weeks with a possibility of dying because why would he? according to other special class heroes, they have already destroyed the tantalus in the summer. it’s strange to know that even though he’s experienced time already, he feels as if he’s missed out on so much already because everything else is different now.

taehyung hopes march sixth stays the same.

he writes about life. there’s no one in mind but himself as he moves the pen across the paper. usually, he would write pages about specific people he’s seen. he’s written about yoongi, obviously. there was an entry dedicated to taeyong and another dedicated to envy. he’s received a glare from kana, once. he briefly wrote about that.

though he had thought about kento and his father while writing it, he didn’t write anything about them besides the fact that they got him the job. just that sentence. “they gave me the job.” of course, he feels a little bad about writing it, but it cannot be helped since there’s not much thought into them. perhaps, maybe in the future, he will go more in depth on his relationship with them even if he’ll be the only person reading the entries.

once he finishes writing, he puts his journal away in a box in his closet. after he tops the box with its lid and leaves the closet, he sees danny burst into his room with excitement on his face.

“ricky! it’s snowing!” it’s another thing that differs from the past timeline. he doesn’t remember it snowing last year on this day. right behind his youngest triplet is soonshim who also seemed to be happy over the weather outside.

“snow is normal in december, danny,” he says, hiding the fact that he was slightly impressed by it.

“don’t you want to come outside? it’s super pretty!” danny smiles. “you can even contemplate it while i wrestle soonshim to the ground in it.”

taehyung frowns. “please don’t wrestle my dog.”

“no promises,” the other replies with a grin. “come on!! get dressed! i don’t mind you turning into an ice cube, but you help pay rent and we can’t lose you!”

“who says i’m going out with you?”

“i do! now get your emo ass out here or i’m going to call the police.”

“fine, fine,” ricky sighs before going back into his closet to search for a coat.

“we’ll meet you out there, okay?” danny shouts while ricky was still searching. “and i’ll try not to wrestle her. but if you find the both of us on the ground, it’s her fault. not mine.” he hears hurried footsteps fading away from his room after that.

he finds one, eventually. it’s red with some fur on the hood. it’s puffy, but he knows it will keep him warm. he wears it to match it with danny’s purple one that looks exactly the same. it’s kind of cheesy to go jacket shopping with his brothers only to get matching ones. he’s just glad he didn’t have to get matching ugly christmas sweaters along with it.

putting it on and zipping it up, he makes his way out of his room and the apartment before making it to the open front door where he sees his brother along with soonshim playing in the snow together. even with the sight in front of him, he doesn’t feel left out from their shenanigans (in fact, he didn’t want to partake in them in the first place). rather, he pays attention to how the snow falls and he thinks to himself silently while they do. due to the fact that it was the season of his birthday and of his favorite holiday, winter had always been his favorite out of the four. the feeling stepping on snow with shoes felt satisfying as he ruins a perfect, untouched bed of white with one footstep. it was all the power of such, small flakes. but if they’re all piled up on each other, they can become something beautiful yet dangerous at the same time. it was quite fascinating.

in fact, the longer he thought about that philosophy, the more he thought about the league. it all started with aku, but as more heroes joined, they became a league. perhaps that’s why taehyung feels as if he was apart of something big whenever he remembers his position as a special class hero. when he looks at his brothers who are apart of the same league as him, he can’t help but feel a bit of pride for not only being higher than them (of course he would), but for the fact that they were apart of something big. with him. that was the only thing that could prevent them from being killed more,

it was the only thing that could have prevented the apocalypse.

that was the reason why it started, after all. everyone parted ways and the league was losing members quickly. even if the majority of the league didn’t survive, most of the resistance members were apart of it.

but with the fact that he was looking at the snow and the thought of the apocalypse came to mind, his thoughts eventually lost themselves. rather than thinking properly, he looks at the perfect snow white world and sees gray all over. no longer was it the winter of 2016, but rather the colorless summer of 2020 of that time. he sees gray around himself with only small blotches of red in random spots of the scenery. no longer does he hear his brother’s laughter and the happy, high barks of his card. sounds of happiness are suddenly replaced by the sound of taehyung’s heavy breathing.

in a week from today at that time, he would experience a life changing experience. in four years from this year in that time, he would live through the nightmare he sees now. no one is with him at this point. all of his family has left him. no one was with him to make him feel all better. even with the resistance by his side, he felt so alone with noone to lean on or turn to.

the moment he realizes all of this, his knees go weak and he feels himself fall to the floor, feeling the scenery around him change once again. he’s in a different place, but he’s still in the same time. the whole world was in gray and red once again, but with him is the familiar boy who he held in his arms during his last few moments.

“taehyung,” the boy says with a weak smile. “y-you need to go on without me. you need to protect everybody and, and-” he interrupts his own sentence with a cough, more blood leaving from his mouth.

taehyung wants to shout. he does. he wants to shout at yoongi for being so careless and for getting himself hurt. taehyung does not even remember his intentions for doing so. all he could even think about at that exact moment was that he was losing someone. he was losing someone so important to him that he had dated for three years and he could do nothing about it. when he sees yoongi’s eyes that were quickly losing light, he sees memories from the past and expectations for the future fade away. all the memories full of smiles and laughter and the future with even more vanish in the literal blink of his eyes.

“ricky, ricky,” he calls out silently to get his attention.

“why are you crying?” another voice asks to bring him back to reality.

time suddenly comes back to ricky and he is brought back to 2016 with snowflakes falling from the sky, not helping with the fact that taehyung was shedding tears now. it was easy to recognize which one was a snowflake on his cheek and which one was a teardrop.

danny’s in front of him now. he’s full of so much excitement and life that the longer he looks at his brother, the more sadness he feels.

he couldn’t be out here. he couldn’t be with other people now. he needed to be alone.

“i need to go back inside,” taehyung says, using his sleeve to wipe his nose and his cold, shaking hands to wipe his eyes. “i’m sorry.”

he turns away, walking back into the apartment complex in silence.

#( * SOLO ) #fuck proofreading #an alternate title would have been saudade #but i didn't want to misuse the word bc ... memrise and i are on a break atm so i'm not studying #plus the lovely mun of ccyoongi said that first snow was a Them song so <3 #&& solo #death // #&& eternity series #( * FORGET ME NOT SERIES )

[thisdaynews]

Chelsea 0-2 Southampton: Saints claim vital win at Stamford Bridge

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/chelsea-0-2-southampton-saints-claim-vital-win-at-stamford-bridge/

Chelsea 0-2 Southampton: Saints claim vital win at Stamford Bridge

Nathan Redmond prodded Southampton into a 2-0 lead in the second half

Chelsea manager Frank Lampard called on his players to show “personality” after they were condemned to consecutive home defeats for the first time since 2011 by an impressive Southampton.

Lampard’s side fell behind to Michael Obafemi’s superbly taken strike at Stamford Bridge and had fewer shots than in any game since he took charge during the summer.

The introduction of Mason Mount for defender Kurt Zouma at the break injected some energy but only a vital Fikayo Tomori intervention denied the away side a second.

And with 20 minutes remaining, a fine team move saw the ball break for Nathan Redmond and his simple finish from 10 yards wrapped up six points for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side from festive away games at Aston Villa and the Blues.

It means Chelsea have now lost five of their last seven league games and three times in a calendar month for the first time since 2015.

“We control a lot of the ball but we do not do enough with the ball around the box,” Lampard told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“I think it’s been the story for us for a while, not just in recent times. We need to get better because we need a better home record.

“What we need to do, the players on the pitch, whoever they are need to make goals and score goals. It’s the hardest thing to do in football. It’s a challenge for all of us.”

Relive Southampton’s win at Chelsea

All the action and reaction from Boxing Day’s games

Abject Chelsea fail to get going

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Chelsea not answering questions at home – Frank Lampard

Hasenhuttl was suitably impressed and raced on to the pitch with his fists clenched on the final whistle after a result which moved his side up to 14th in the Premier League – three points above the drop zone.

Southampton – on 21 points – are six better off than they were at the same halfway stage last season. Lampard’s Chelsea are fourth in the Premier League but eight points worse off than they were under Maurizio Sarri after 19 games last term.

Despite coming off Sunday’s win at Tottenham, Chelsea found no sort of rhythm and when Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg found Obafemi, he was allowed time and space to progress, shift the ball on to his left foot and fire high into the net from the edge of the box.

Michael Obafemi scored for the first time in 12 months to give Southampton the lead

Chelsea’s Cesar Azpilicueta flicked a corner into the six-yard box – forcing the impressive Alex McCarthy to help the ball away from danger – but it took the home side until the stroke of half-time to find the target with a tame effort from 30 yards.

Mount came off the bench and quickly gave Tammy Abraham the chance to fizz a shot into the side-netting but Chelsea were collectively poor and both Tomori and goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga make key second-half interventions to keep the score at 1-0.

Lampard’s side ran over 5km less than the visitors overall and generally lacked creativity and energy. The January transfer window – where they can again sign players after serving a ban – looks key to giving them the chance to inject something fresh and change their recent fortunes.

“We have found now that when teams make it difficult for us and do not give us space, we are finding it tough and so it clearly needs to improve,” added Lampard.

“We need to tough it out and get over it quickly. Personality is a huge thing in football – you cannot let that beat you.”

Brave Ralph and a brave display

Ralph Hassenhuttl said the display was “maybe” Southampton’s best of the season

Arsenal and Liverpool were the last sides to record back-to-back wins at Chelsea in 2011 and Southampton deserved to follow Bournemouth in leaving Stamford Bridge with all three points in December.

Hassenhuttl made the brave call to leave Danny Ings on the bench, despite his 11 goals leaving him second to only Jamie Vardy in the top-scorer charts this season.

Obafemi – who had not netted in over a year – and Che Adams – who is yet to score for Saints – worked relentlessly up front for the away side, while James Ward-Prowse was the only player on the pitch to run over 12km in a tireless display.

The midfielder contributed nine tackles – three more than anyone on the pitch – while the Southampton back four repeatedly seemed well positioned, with Jack Stephens and right-back Cedric Soares constantly turning crosses away.

When composure was needed, the away side found plenty and their second goal saw them run the clock down with a lengthy spell of possession that ended with Redmond netting his second league goal of the season.

The fact the ball was turned into his path by a Chelsea player may hide the large number of passes in the build-up, but Saints could then ease home as they ended a run of 13 league games without a clean sheet.

Hassenhuttl will also get the chance to strengthen in January but he looks to have harnessed a superb spirit, a feat that looked unlikely after a 9-0 home defeat by Leicester just 10 games ago. His side have now lost just twice in seven league outings.

“In the first two or three months we played like a relegation team and now we are playing like a Premier League team,” said Hassenhuttl afterwards.

Man of the match – James Ward-Prowse

With more ground covered than anyone else and more tackles than anyone else, James Ward-Prowse served up a superb display in the Southampton midfield on a day where their work rate was so key

Shots falling for Blues – key stats

Chelsea have lost seven Premier League games this season – only one fewer than they lost in the entirety of the 2018/19 season under Maurizio Sarri (8).

Chelsea have lost three Premier League games during December 2019, their most in a calendar month since October 2015 (also three defeats).

Southampton have won four of their last six Premier League matches (L2), one more than in their previous 20 games (W3 D6 L11).

Southampton won an away Premier League match against a team starting the day in the top four of the division for the first time since May 2016, a 2-1 win at Spurs.

Chelsea had just 10 shots against Southampton, their fewest in a Premier League game under Frank Lampard and fewest since April against Liverpool (six).

‘Maybe our best game’ – reaction

Chelsea manager Frank Lampard:“Teams are making it difficult here. We are not making enough chances, we were at the beginning of the season. I think we have enough to be better than we were today. It needs to be a quick learning process now.”

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Massive performance from every Saints player – Ralph Hasenhuttl

Southampton manager Ralph Hassenhuttl:“I think we saw the passion from every player on the pitch today. It was maybe the best game of the season. With fixtures coming, we needed to rest players but everyone played a fantastic game.”

What’s next?

Southampton now have back-to-back home games against Crystal Palace on Saturday and Tottenham on New Year’s Day. Chelsea face a trip to Arsenal on 29 December and then go to Brighton on 1 January.

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#Bridge #Stamford

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Transfer news: The questions Manchester United must answer before Thursday’s deadline

Manchester United have spent the summer shaping a new look defense with goalkeeper David de Gea agree to a new contract and spend £ 130 million to Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Harry Maguire.

But while the transfer window is ticking, there are still many problems for Ole Gunnar Solksjaer to continue working on the pitch.

Who takes care of the creativity in midfield – is United going to buy a top 10 without problems like Christian Eriksen? Are Nemanja Matic and Scott McTominay sufficient to offer a midfield shield to protect the back-four or is a Sean Longstaff player still needed?

And what happens to the biggest names Paul Pogba and Romelu Lukaku who wants to leave?

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was supported this summer, but he still wants more additions

IS ANIKENEN THE ANSWER TO NO 10?

The team of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has pace to burn – Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and his first signing of the summer, £ 15 million speed star Daniel James

But they lack the technical quality to between Play the lines and find a killer pass. Juan Mata is probably the only player currently known in the United books and at 31 he cannot play at that level twice a week.

It is possible that Alexis Sanchez or Paul Pogba could play more centrally, but United would be in the market for a real top class No. 10.

Christian Eriksen may have a premium price on his head, but he would answer the problems of United

United States have been associated for weeks with Bruno Fernandes (left) and Paulo Dybala (right)

They have been associated for weeks with Bruno Fernandes from Sporting Lisbon and Paulo Dybala in Juventus, but the dark horse can Eriksen from Tottenham because he only has one year left for his contract with White Hart Lane and Spurs are willing to sell.

The biggest problem is that Daniel Levy prefers the Dane to go to a foreign club than a direct Premier League rival. That means a premium on the prize and more than £ 50 million is a lot for a player who can be signed for free within 12 months. On the field, however, he would be ideal.

WILL POGBA AND LUKAKU REMAIN? (AND WHAT WOULD THEIR PRESENCE OF THE DRESSING ROOM BE?)

Both Pogba and Lukaku made noises about wanting to stop Old Trafford. United wants Pogba to stay so that they can build a team around him – Lukaku they seem ready to sell

The £ 75 million Belgian striker did not play in the preseason and returned to Brussels to train with Anderlecht waiting for a move

The problem is that United does not want to sell it cheaply to Inter Milan or Juventus and an exchange agreement with Juventus involving and / or Paulo Dybala or Mario Mandzukic has fallen apart

United would like Paul Pogba to remain so that she can have a team around him able to build over it

Lukaku has to leave until the end of the month because the European transfer windows remain open until then, but if United wants a replacement, they have to do so by 17:00 on Thursday.

Marcus Rashford, Mason Greenwood and Anthony Martial can all play in the middle, but that trio lacks experience during an entire season, so 33-year-old Mandzukic, the finalist of the World Cup for Croatia, is interesting.

Real Madrid try to exploit Pogba & # 39; s desire to play for them by ridiculing United £ 27 million plus James Rodriguez for the French World Cup winner. But the United States does not want Rodriguez or Gareth Bale to fit in with Solskjaer's model.

So the odds are that Pogba must stay and Solskjaer will have the biggest test of his available man management skills. .

However, the club seems ready to sell Romelu Lukaku, who is linked to a move to Italy

WHO WILL THE ROCK BE IN MIDFIELD?

Every modern team with an excellent defense record has a midfield keeper who helps protect the back and limits the danger of their opponents.

Nemanja Matic looked like he was beyond his peak Chelsea days last season and the jury is on his academy graduate Scott McTominay is currently the highest elite level.

United spent the summer looking for a young defensive midfielder to do the work that N & Golo Kante did to help Leices Di and Chelsea win titles, but were priced out of the market for Declan Rice and Sean Longstaff.

Now United States to bite the bullet and decide whether to make Newcastle an offer they cannot refuse for Longstaff, as they did with Maguire and Leicester, or manage with what they already had at the club.

United must decide whether to make Newcastle an offer that they cannot refuse for Sean Longstaff

WHICH MIDDLE BACK MAKES AHEAD FOR MAGUIRE?

It is likely that United's first choice at the heart of their defense are Maguire and Victor Lindelof.

That means Chris Smalling, Phil Jones, Marcos Rojo and Axel Tuanzebe as cover. At least one of them must move, possibly two.

Steve Bruce, boss of Newcastle United, is enthusiastic about Tuanzebe who was on loan to Aston Villa last season. But Solskjaer has said that he wants to keep the younger and let one of the higher defenders go – if there is a market.

Everton wants a middle half and if they are rejected by Chelsea for Kurt Zouma they would look good for the United exiles. Rojo is naturally left-sided and played well in the last preseason of United against AC Milan in Cardiff on Saturday.

Maguire (right) shakes Solskjaer's hand after completing his £ 80 million move to United

WHO CAN GIVE EXPERIENCE IN THE DRESSING SPACE?

Solskjaer has confirmed that Ashley Young will be United's captain this season. At 34, he is the only outfield player in the team from the first team over 31, and for all the potential at Old Trafford, they could do with signing an experienced body or two if they are serious about fighting for big trophies.

Only Alexis Sanchez, Mata and Nemanja Matic are older than 30.

It is because it has made Mandzukic crazy as it may sound, Fernando Llorente has done a good job at Tottenham last season with his cameo roles in the Champions League. But that deal now seems to be off the table.

Franck Ribery is available and although he may not play every week, he can pass on to younger teammates what it's like to win. Danny Welbeck, 28 years old, is a little younger but has a lot of experience and knows Manchester United through and through. Is he worth a point after his release from Arsenal?

Bringing in Mario Mandzukic would have done more experience added to a young dressing room

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#Transfer news: The questions Manchester United must answer before Thursday’s deadline"

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Premier League Tactical Analysis Wolves vs Leicester

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Premier League Tactical Analysis Wolves vs Leicester

Artwork by @chapulana

When Wolves and Leicester last met at Molineux in the Premier League, it ended in an epic seven-goal thriller. Sixteen years later, surely the same thing couldn’t happen again, could it? Lo & behold, lightning did strike twice as Wolves and Leicester played out another barnstorming game.

Wolves leapfrogged their East Midlands opponents after a stoppage-time winner from Diogo Jota gave them a deserved win. In this tactical analysis of the Premier League game, we are going to look at each of the seven goals and also a couple of the more questionable decisions from the referee. 

Team news

Romain Saiss deputised for the suspended Willy Boly as the left-sided central defender with Leander Dendoncker, Joao Moutinho and Ruben Neves continuing as the midfield triangle. In a somewhat surprising decision, Ruben Vinagre was brought in for Matt Doherty with Vinagre playing on the left and Jonny on the right. Nuno, forever the man of few words, explained that Doherty was only on the bench “because Jonny is playing” when asked by Sky Sports.

Considering Saiss is left-footed, it makes sense to play with the left-footed Vinagre on that side of the pitch. Whether or not that was Nuno’s thinking as well remains to be seen, although it will become clearer as there are two more games without Boly. 

Claude Puel sprung somewhat of a surprise as he opted for the recently recalled Harvey Barnes over the illustrious James Maddison. Barnes didn’t disgrace himself, not by a long shot, especially as he was integral to Leicester’s first equaliser. On the other hand, Maddison’s wicked delivery drew the Foxes level on the second occasion.

The early bird…

Going into the game at Molineux, Wolves had scored 23 goals, of which only two came in the first 15 minutes of games. After the first 15 minutes of this game though, that tally was doubled.

The imperious Joao Moutinho became the first Wolves player to produce two assists in a top-flight game since Kevin Doyle in 2012. How did the ex-Monaco man manage that, though?

Strong work from Dendoncker.

Since Dendoncker made his full Premier League debut against Spurs, he has grown into his role. Here, you can see him pressing Demarai Gray and turning over possession. Jimenez then has the ball in a promising position. Due to the pace that Wolves play with, these quick turnovers are so important.

Moutinho is just out the shot. However, he’s soon involved as you can see from the following image.

Moutinho doesn’t have an awful lot of space, but as it turned out it was more than enough.

Jimenez slides in Joao Moutinho and despite Jota’s position, he ends up on the end of his countryman’s delivery. Big question marks have to be slapped on Danny Simpson as from the above image, how on earth does Jota end up goal-side of the Premier League winner?

Jota doesn’t need asking twice.

If we look at Simpson (circled) and his body shape, he doesn’t seem up for it. It’s not fair to say that he doesn’t know that Diogo Jota is behind him because he undoubtedly will, but he’s almost flat footed whereas the Portuguese is bouncing. Jota gets the right side of Simpson and stabs it home beyond Kasper Schmeichel, who didn’t have too long before produced an outstanding save to thwart Neves.  

At the double

Just after the 10-minute mark, it was 2-0 to Nuno’s side. Another telling delivery from Moutinho, more weak defending from Leicester and better desire from Wolves were all the ingredients that were required as Bennett powered a header beyond the Leicester keeper.

Zonal marking doesn’t work on this occasion.

It can be fiercely debated whether or not zonal marking works. Regardless of your opinion, it is clear that it doesn’t this time. Saiss, Bennett and Dendoncker are only being picked up by Ricardo meaning they’ve all got runs on the Leicester backline. In essence, once Bennett judges the flight of the ball, there’s only ever one outcome on the cards.

Maguire was targeted and he doesn’t cope well.

Dendoncker slips to the near post, Saiss runs down the middle and Bennett arcs his run to the back of the trio. Morgan and Ndidi are left standing there helpless as the delivery from Moutinho passes them by. If they were man marking, it wouldn’t have happened. If they had someone on the post, it would’ve been kept out: fine margins.

Diogo Jota had a glorious opportunity to make it 3-0 but his header was straight at the Dane between the sticks and ultimately, that changed what happened at the start of the second half.

The early bird (part two)…

While Wolves started the first half at a blistering pace, the complete opposite could be said about the second. A catalogue of errors allowed Leicester a way back into the game. Strangely, it all started with a misplaced cross from Ruben Vinagre.

Vinagre brings it back onto his weaker right foot.

Instead of whipping the ball in with his left (white line), he cuts the ball back and tries to curl it in with his right (red line). From a Wolves perspective, it’s positive to see four Wolves players in the box as there have been times earlier in the campaign when balls have been played in the box to absolutely nobody. Anyhow, Barnes heads the ball clear and then it’s Bennett’s turn to make a mistake.

Bennett completely misreads the ball

Somehow, Bennett manages to totally misjudge the flight of the ball. From that moment, Leicester are in the driver’s seat. As is evidenced, Gray is slightly behind Neves, but as soon as the ball bounces over Bennett and Vardy collects it, Gray is off and away. Bennett has little chance of recovery due to Vardy’s pace and once the ball is played into Demarai Gray, Wolves are at sixes and sevens.

Nobody gets near Gray

Pin-point pass from Vardy.

Once the ball is played to ex-Bluenose Gray, Saiss has two tasks and two tasks only: keep him wide, and don’t let him shoot. The Moroccan midfielder-cum-defender does one without the other. Gray is kept relatively wide but because Saiss jumps in, Gray is left relatively alone. Take nothing away from Gray, though, he still has an awful lot to do.

Into the bottom corner.

Despite the best efforts of Wolves skipper Conor Coady, Gray’s shot finds its way beyond Rui Patricio. So, with less than two minutes played in the second half, Wolves’ lead had been halved.

Four minutes later, it was gone altogether as a surging run from Ben Chilwell caused all manner of problems. There is a question as to whether or not Jonny is unfairly impeded. Either way though, it’s not the best defensive phase of play from the Black Country side.

Chilwell is tracked by Dendoncker.

Looking at it from the reverse, all you see here is Chilwell run and run with Dendoncker covering him relatively soundly. Chilwell then comes to a dead end by the name of Jonny Castro.

Is it a foul?

Two issues in the above image.

Essentially, what you need to know is Jonny was knocked to the floor by a stray Chilwell arm hitting him in the chest. That’s why Dendoncker’s arms in the air as he is appealing the misdemeanour.

Unfortunately for Wolves and Dendoncker, Harvey Barnes plays to the whistle and finds the back of the net via Conor Coady. Coady now has two goals in two games, both at the wrong end of the pitch.

The protege takes centre stage

While Moutinho may have assisted two goals in the first half, it was his young accomplice Ruben Neves who stole the show for Wolves’ third and fourth with two exquisite passes. In between those goals, Wes Morgan levelled and looked set to give Leicester a point. Ironically, you could say Morgan was at fault for Wolves’ third as Jota leaves him for dust.

Neves pings a sublime long ball to Jota.

It’s crazy to think that this pass wasn’t even his best of the game. Still images don’t do it justice: it is well worth watching back a full replay. As soon as Jota takes the ball even further away from Morgan with his first touch, there was only ever going to be one outcome.

Jota puts Wolves back in front.

With his second touch, Jota rifles it through Schmeichel’s legs. Could the Dane in goal have done better? Maybe. Did Jota deserve another goal? Absolutely. For nigh on 25 minutes, it looked certain that Jota’s second was going to be enough for Wolves to win the game.

Nuno brought on Doherty and Gibbs-White for Vinagre and Moutinho. Whether or not either of the subs were the right thing to do is up for debate. Vinagre adds more natural width on the left and Moutinho is well, Moutinho.

Bringing on Traore for Moutinho would’ve made more sense as Traore’s pace would’ve stretched the game tenfold. As it happens, it was Puel’s decision to bring on Maddison that almost made the biggest difference.

Maddison puts in into the danger zone.

If the Wolves defence are where the white line is rather than where they are positioned, they would arguably have been in a better position to defend Maddison’s delivery. While there would have been Leicester players running onto them, it would surely have been better than what happened.

Neves & Jota to the rescue

The one beats the three.

Morgan beats Saiss, Dendoncker and Doherty in the air. He was Dendoncker’s man to mark and while there was a question mark over whether or not Morgan fouled the Belgian, let’s not run the risk of sounding like a broken record. Rui Patricio could arguably have done more.

Admittedly, Maddison’s delivery was an outswinger, but the Portuguese goalkeeper could possibly have come out to collect the ball. In the end, it didn’t make a difference, but it’s certainly a worry. A high volume of Wolves’ goals that they concede come from set pieces.

Neves pings his second sensational long ball forward.

Neves produced another mesmerising pass to set Jimenez on his way. It could be argued that he’s borderline offside. Considering the decision that went against Wolves and Doherty against Spurs at Molineux though, you could say Wolves deserve a bit of luck. Jota would clearly have been considered offside in past. That’s not how the rule works anymore, much to the confusion of certain Sky Sports commentators. Regardless, Jimenez squares to Jota as we see below.

Jota seals his hattrick.

Jota has an awful lot of time to think about this. By the same token so does Schmeichel, but Jota gets the better of the Dane for the third time. Cue pandemonium around Molineux: an epic finish to a wonderful encounter.

Final thoughts

Credit: Sofascore.

Both sides had sustained spells of pressure, in what was a sensational game for the neutral. Diogo Jota ended up with the match ball. It is debatable whether he was even the best player on the pitch though, as Neves looked more like the Championship self we all grew to love last year.

Wolves make the short trip to Shrewsbury this weekend in the FA Cup fourth round, while Leicester have got the week off after succumbing to Newport County in the previous round.

Until the next time.

If you love tactical analysis, then you’ll love the digital magazines from totalfootballanalysis.com – a guaranteed 100+ pages of pure tactical analysis covering topics from the Premier League, Serie A, La Liga, Bundesliga and many, many more. Buy your copy of the January issue for just ₤4.99 here, or even better sign up for a ₤50 annual membership (12 monthly issues plus the annual review) right here.

[inspiringcreator]

This Crappy Life: Episode Seven

"What the hell is going on?" Thomas threw his cell phone at the dashboard. It bounced off the windshield, cracking the screen. "I keep getting some damn recording."

"Dude, I told you the phones are out." Derek shifted on the bench seat pushing his thigh against mine.

Thomas's jaw hardened, but he didn't speak as he stared at the road. I was feeling the same way. What was there to say?

We'd tried the radio again and still failed to get a signal, which was really beginning to scare me. My eyes kept wandering back to the unending stream of numbers as the radio cycled continuously.

Thankfully, we decided to leave Derek's motorcycle behind for our little escapade. When I saw Thomas pull around his beefed out Ford truck, my jaw dropped. The thing was fricking huge with gigantic tires. And when I say gigantic, I mean it. A three foot lift is ridiculous when you're trying to get into any vehicle, and I'm a basketball player who has to make jump shots. Well, I'm only five foot six, but still.

What the hell was Thomas thinking when he made his truck so tall? Oh, wait. He wanted to grab every female ass that tried to get in. Go figure.

Or maybe he was a monster truck fanboy, but I couldn't imagine Thomas using this thing to crush a line of vehicles. He apparently had a relationship with it because when the phone bounced off the windshield, he didn't give one crap about checking the phone as he rubbed his fingers over the glass windshield to check for cracks.

So yeah, here I was, riding with two strange men in a metallic green monster truck, headed toward a warehouse to steal drugs on a school night. Wow. My life couldn't get any better.

And lucky me was squished in between them. I mean, they didn't even ask where I would be most comfortable. That's how guys are though. They always assume the window seat is automatically theirs.

Even after his outburst, Thomas rested his wrist over the steering wheel like we were going on a nice evening drive. How could he look so relaxed at a time like this?

My legs were bouncing like crazy. They did the same thing when I was on the court, waiting for Coach to put me back in the game. I needed my basketball and needed to run some drills or something.

Damn. I was antsy as hell.

The fact that Thomas had a gun tucked in his jeans worried me. What if they had to use it? What if one of them ended up shot? God. What the hell were we doing? Our families needed help, but there had to be another way. A better way.

Derek moved his hand over my knee to calm the bouncing, but I pulled my leg away from him, balling up further into my middle seat, straddling the stick shift.

Thomas glanced at me. "You're not gonna pee your pants are you?"

What did he just ask me? Fury pulsed through my veins. "No! I'm just freaking out because I'm worried. No one has discussed how this will go down, and we need a plan. Plans help keep me calm."

"Whoa. Slow down killer, you're gonna hurt yourself with all that thinking. You might break a blood vessel." Thomas patted my leg with a smile.

I ripped my leg away and glanced to Derek for help. Derek shrugged and gave me a "he has a point" grin.

Oh my God! It was time to school these two jerks before I hurt one of them. They needed to understand who they were dealing with.

"I'm going to tell you this one time and one time only. If you ever talk to me like that again, I'll punch you in the throat!" I shouted at Thomas who just smirked.

Oh no he didn't. "You might think I'm one of your prissy little girl toys, but I'll have you know I have a lot more goddamn self-respect than any of them. Hell will have to freeze over for you to ever find me in your bed because I'm not that type of girl. I'm the captain of Brooks Varsity basketball team, and I'm the main reason our team won the last two championships." I threw my hands up as I gave one loud laugh. "And I'm graduating with honors. I've been accepted to Ivy League colleges. So stop treating me like I'm some stupid bimbo you picked up at a bar to screw! Talk to me like I have a brain because believe me if you don't, I'll make you regret it."

Derek burst out laughing. The sound was so surprising I had to suppress a smile.

Thomas nodded, contemplating a comeback.

"Umm... okay... I'm not sure what to say other than," Thomas reached in between my legs to shift, "I'm sorry. From now on, I'll remember you have a brain."

My brow pinched as I eyed Thomas, trying to figure out if he was being sarcastic, but he appeared to be sincere. Not the reaction I expected, but whatever. My rant had successfully penetrated his man-whore exterior and just like that, the argument was over.

"So? What's the plan?" I asked.

Thomas gave me a crooked smile. "Alright, smartypants. I need you to go to security and distract them while we steal—"

"Not gonna happen," Derek spoke over Thomas.

"What? Why?" I asked. "I can help. I could make up some story about a guy who's after me, and I'd blame him for this." I pointed to my cheek.

"You're not going in, Casey. This is dangerous. If we get caught, I can't have you going to jail." Derek's eyebrows rose as he pressed his lips together. "We're going in, and you're waiting in the truck. If we're not back in fifteen minutes that means something bad happened, and we're not coming back out. You drive the truck to your house and tell everyone what happened."

"What do you mean? There are no piggies to haul us in. I have a gun. All we have to do is overpower Jon and Danny and run, but I'm sure they'll never find out if we do it right. Candi should be in pharmaceuticals tonight, and last time I checked, she was begging to get some. I've been putting her off for months, Bro. I told you that." Thomas tapped the steering wheel with his thumb as he chuckled to himself. The thought of Thomas pushing multiple girls away made me cringe.

"You think a lot of yourself, don't you?" I yelled without thinking. The words just came out.

Thomas grinned and nodded, stopping for the intersection. "Girl, you don't get it. Women are always throwing themselves at me. It gets old."

He did not just say that.

"Wow. It must be so hard being you, Thomas. Girls bowing at your feet, competing for your attention. You must have such a hard life." I puckered my bottom lip in a mock pout.

When he stopped at the sign, Thomas reached over my leg to down shift just as his dark gaze met mine. "You better pull that lip back in before I lick it."

I sucked in my lip, and Thomas's eyes flicked to my mouth. The way he studied my mouth was... well, intoxicating. His gaze lifted to meet mine. The thought of Thomas's tongue sliding over my bottom lip made my toes curl.

"Dude, stop! She's off limits. Got that?" The words seethed from Derek, low and harsh. It was a promise of violence if Thomas argued.

That snapped Thomas and I out of whatever trance we were in.

I turned my head to Derek. His glare could drill holes through Thomas. He was grinding his back teeth together and obviously livid. Why was Derek so upset? There were so many important things to be upset over. Not this. Thomas was obviously being his typical man-whore self.

"It's okay," I whispered, poking Derek's leg. I was trying to get him to calm down. Derek didn't stop glaring as he caught my hand and held it.

Uh. I seriously didn't know what to do. I mean, I just met Derek and knew nothing about him, but yeah, this was all so confusing because I couldn't stop myself from reveling in his warmth. I loved how his hand was strong and protective over mine.

Thomas chuckled, but it sounded fake. "You two got something going on I don't know about?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but Derek squeezed my hand, silencing me.

"You got a problem with that?" Derek's tone was venomous.

"Nah. I'm sorry, man. I didn't mean to step on your toes." Thomas's whiskey brown eyes met mine as we turned into a huge empty parking lot. "Sorry, Casey. I'm just not right in the head. I... I guess I'm looking for... well, shit... I don't know what I was thinking. Won't happen again. Forgive me?"

I nodded way too fast. Derek released my hand, which should've been a relief, but I wanted it back. Instead, Derek wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into him.

I scooted closer as he pressed his soft lips to my ear. "I'm sorry. I'll tell you why later."

His hot breath caused my whole body to become aware of our proximity. He was pretending and there was a reason. Whatever. His arm felt good wrapped around me as I leaned more into him.

"What do you think, Der? Just walk in like we own the place, and if anyone asks, I'll tell them I left something in my locker. Then when we get back there, I'll tell Candi to meet me in the employee restroom for a quickie. And--"

"You're going to have sex right now?" The words just erupted out of me. Again. I needed to stop that.

Derek's arm tensed.

Thomas furrowed his brow as he circled the truck around the gigantic warehouse. "I hadn't planned on it, but... I might not be coming back here to work if they review the security footage, so yeah, maybe I'll take Candi to plow town."

My lip curled. "You're kidding right?"

"He's messing with you." Derek shook me. "Of course, he's not having sex. We need Candi to leave pharmaceuticals for five minutes so we can grab and split."

Oh. I was just talking about being smart and I didn't even catch on to the easiest trick in the book--distract with sex--or something like that.

Damn, I needed to focus. Mom's battered face came to mind. "How long do you think you'll be?"

We rolled around the back of the warehouse, unveiling two smaller buildings behind it. Thomas pulled into a parking spot thirty feet from the entrance. This place was massive. The buildings weren't much to look at with their dull white exterior, but they created the buildings to store items, not to win beauty pageants.

I glanced around us, counting only five other vehicles. "This place is dead. Is it always like this?"

"Depends on the orders. It's been a slow week." Thomas pulled the gun from the back of his jeans to check if it was loaded. It was.

My legs bounced.

"Hey," Derek ran his fingers down my arm. "Look at me."

I bit my lips between my teeth and did as he said.

His blue eyes heated. "This is the easy stuff. In and out."

"In and out. In and out," Thomas said in a smooth, seductive tone. "In and out of Candi."

WTF? I whipped around and punched Thomas in the shoulder over and over.

"Hey. Hey!" Thomas wasn't doing much to defend himself as he smiled. "Okay. Okay. Stop. Stop! Now that hurts. Stop! I'm sorry. Okay? I'm sorry."

When I stopped, he wasn't smiling anymore. This boy brought out a side of me I'd never seen. What was that like twenty punches? Holy hell. My face was on fire. Derek's arm was no longer around me, and my whole body was on the seat, looming over Thomas. Sweat beaded on my forehead. What the hell was wrong with me?

I'd backed Thomas against his window and he was watching me like I would start up again.

"Your face." The words were barely a whisper as Thomas reached up and reattached a band-aid. When his fingers ran over my jaw, he was gentle.

I tensed up. I didn't want a guy like him touching me. Guys like him did this crap to all the girls.

He studied my face. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it."

"I'm sorry, too," I exhaled, gathering my thoughts as I put my feet back on the floor. I covered my face with my hands. "I don't know where that came from."

"I think we're all just under a lot of stress. The sooner we get this done, the better." Derek's door opened allowing a stream of fresh air to enter the cab. And fresh air was exactly what I needed. I waited for Derek to climb out and followed him.

"Whoa, what're you doing? You're not going in." Derek pushed my butt. What the hell? Hands! I slapped his hand away.

"I'm not going inside. I need some fresh air."

Derek huffed, jingling something in his pocket. "Alright, but I want you back in the truck once we're inside."

"Yes, Sir." I gave him a tight grin.

"I mean it, Casey." Derek turned away from me, rubbing the back of his head, messing up his dark hair.

"I get it. I'm not going anywhere. I'll wait here like a good little girl."

"Kiss for good luck?" Thomas's voice was in my ear. I jumped.

He'd snuck up on me.

Before I could say a word, Derek ripped Thomas away. Thomas just laughed. Yeah, my punching spree did jack squat when it came to Thomas the man-whore.

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#chronicles #this crappy life #apocalypse #yafiction #naficition #yastories #highschoolfiction #Episode Seven

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From Tim Burton’s iconic Batman to the baseball-bat swinging Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad, DC Comics superheroes and their villainous counterparts have been lighting up the box office since the 50s. With the launch of the M-Net Movies DC Heroes pop-up channel for DStv Premium subscribers, which is also available to stream on DStv Now, we’ve ranked every live-action DC comic movie ever!*

30. Stamp Day for Superman (1954)

Superman takes time from fighting crime to promote war stamps, used to fund the fight against the Axis powers of World War II. So it’s not the worst movie on this list, but it’s not actually a movie either - just something designed to be shown in cinemas.

29. The Return of Swamp Thing (1989)

This movie had about as much budget as the Joker has sanity. With that in mind, it does a respectable job. But only with that in mind - otherwise, this is just an awful low-budget monstrosity.

28. Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987)

Everyone had lost interest in making another Superman. But they were contracted to make one, so we got a fourth movie starring the man of steel. Its most memorable moment is how bad the special effects of the finale are. Yikes.

27. Catwoman (2004)

The first Batman character to get their own movie (other than Bats), there was a lot of hope for Catwoman’s maiden outing. Alas, very little is right here. It opted to invent its own story for the character, but just made a mess of everything. Not even Halle Berry could save it.

26. Batman & Robin (1997)

This movie shouldn’t be ranked so low. It’s funny and has some entertaining villains. But you know what? The entire thing was motivated to sell action figures. Seriously. Even the director apologised for it.

25. Steel (1997)

Back in 1997 nobody wanted to make comic book movies, not unless it was Batman. Steel, already a B-list DC character, got a low-budget straight-to-video movie. It doesn’t help that Shaq, who plays Steel, is not as good at acting as he is at basketball…

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24. Jonah Hex (2010)

If comic book movies teach us anything, it’s that actors should stick to the genre. It worked for Ryan Reynolds, Chris Evans and Ben Affleck. Ditto for Josh Brolin, who has portrayed three comic book characters. But even though he was a cool Jonah Hex, the movie not so much…

23. Green Lantern (2011)

Some comic characters are relatively simple and easy to put into a movie. Green Lantern is not, yet this movie wanted to make things even more confusing. Even Ryan Reynolds started making fun of it in his other films.

22. Superman and the Mole Men (1951)

It’s the 1950s, things are still in black and white, and Superman has the time to work out squabbles between frightened small-town people and underground creatures with big eyebrows. Most memorable as the first Superman movie and perhaps the first-ever true superhero movie.

21. Batman: The Movie (1966)

Back in its day, this was a big hit. But it’s really a case of “you had to be there”. Shot after the success of Season 1 of Adam West’s Batman, it’s a whole movie of WHAM! BANG! POW! and 60s pin-up girls gyrating with the dark knight to surf music. No, we’re not making any of this up.

20. Superman III (1983)

Superman III would have been forgotten today, were it not for three things: the Superman vs Superman fight, Richard Pryor’s non-stop jokes, and that scary android woman created by Lex Luthor’s supercomputer. Oh, and Superman dumping a frozen lake on a chemical fire. Ah, the 80s.

19. Supergirl (1984)

Superman’s cousin comes to Earth to retrieve a powerful artefact, while a wannabe witch uses it to amplify her powers. The result is a weird tale that stumbles and jumps through plot holes, but it’s still entertaining. Fun fact: Supergirl actress Helen Slater later played Superman’s biological mom in Smallville.

18. Suicide Squad (2016)

It is overstuffed, convoluted and had some nondescript bad guys that nobody can remember. Too much icing on too little cake. On the other hand, the main cast of characters are really cool and the soundtrack rocked, so it has a place in some fans’ hearts.

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17. Swamp Thing (1982)

It’s the DC movie you’ve never heard of - and the DC character you’ve never heard of. This quirky comedy would have been lost to time, were it not a campy cult masterpiece directed by Wes Craven long before he created Freddy Krueger.

16. Batman Returns (1992)

Tim Burton’s second Batman film is a little overproduced and lacks that raw shine of the original. But Michelle Pfeiffer is still the best Catwoman to appear in a movie and Danny DeVito is the perfect Penguin. Yet leave it to Christopher Walken to play a villain with no mask and no powers, yet still be the meanest thing in Gotham.

15. Batman Forever (1995)

Joel Schumacher’s first go at the Batman world is a clear hat-tip to the 60s era of the character. It was more fun and camp, and who doesn’t like George Clooney’s smirking Bruce Wayne, or Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones as Riddler and Two-Face? But it was a little too much at times...

14. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

The hopes were really high for this film and it was never going to please everyone. Lex Luthor’s inane and complicated plan sucks a lot of wind from its sails. On the other hand, the Batman combat scene not only saves the movie but shows why Ben Affleck is great as the character.

13. Watchmen (2009)

There are very few graphic novels more revered and complex than this epic - and director Zack Snyder tries to fit every bit of it into his film. Yet even after cutting a major sub-plot, Watchmen is still a long and dense experience. It’s got its fans, but like the comic, is the antithesis of superheroes. That’s not for everyone.

12. Justice League (2017)

Justice League isn’t perfect and its biggest problem is an overly generic bad guy that nobody cares to remember. But the team works well together, the fight with Superman is epic, Jason Momoa was born to play Aquaman, and we definitely want to see more of The Flash.

11. Superman II (1980)

The sequel to the original Superman movie was mired with problems, from losing its director and design consultant to being filmed right on the heels of the first film. But it holds up well, not least because Terence Stamp’s General Zod gives us every reason to remember why we need superheroes.

10. Superman Returns (2006)

Lex Luthor proves why he is as dangerous as any villain with superpowers, while the darker tone helps create a Superman persona that fits better with the 21st Century.

9. The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

It gets a little tiring to hear how old and beaten Batman is and maybe Tom Hardy’s Bane does too good a job, overshadowing just about every other character in this movie. But as a conclusion to Christopher Nolan’s trilogy, this was a classy send-off for Gotham’s saviour.

8. Man of Steel (2013)

Not only do we finally, after many years, get a new Superman movie, but some inspired genius casts Michael Shannon as the evil General Zod. It’s been too long and we’re happy Krypton’s son is back!

7. Constantine (2005)

At the time it was not a hit. But the first movie adaptation of the Hellblazer comics has since gathered a big cult following. Today it can claim a lot of fans because it’s actually really good. Hey, Keanu, where’s our sequel?

6. Batman Begins (2005)

Since 1989’s Batman, there have been other superhero movies that made their mark on the genre. Then Christopher Nolan shows up, hires Christian Bale, Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman, and turns comic book movies into crime thrillers. Brilliant.

5. Wonder Woman (2017)

A slightly weak third act doesn’t hurt the appeal of the Amazonian superhero in her first major movie outing. Let’s face it - nobody is panicking anymore about what might happen to Superman. Wonder Woman can take care of things.  

4. Superman (1978)

There had been a few superhero movies before 1978’s Superman. But this set the stage: big effects, great hero, amazing soundtrack - and Gene Hackman deserves more credit for his mean Lex Luthor.

3. Batman (1989)

Tim Burton unleashes his quirky style in grand form, creating the superhero movie that still influences the genre today. Then there’s Jack Nicholson’s Joker, Michael Keaton’s dry wit and the original soundtrack by Prince. Enough said!

2. V for Vendetta (2005)

This dark tale of a near future under a totalitarian state is already a gritty and powerful movie. But Hugo Weaving as the antihero V just takes it to another level. On top of that, this is an experience with real purpose and a serious message underneath. Remember, remember, the fifth of November...

1. The Dark Knight (2008)

Why so serious? Heath Ledger’s Joker is just entirely in his own league. And not just him - everything in this movie fires on all cylinders. The greatest DC movie? No. This is the greatest comic book movie in history.

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[minute20]

Biggest injury questions for all 32 teams in Week 6 2018

NFL Nation reporters assess the largest accidents throughout the league for Week 6.

Scan by means of all 32 groups by division, or click on right here to leap forward to your favourite staff:

AFC EAST

High cornerback Tre’Davious White was restricted in Wednesday’s follow with an ankle harm he apparently suffered throughout follow. White was seen strolling off the sector after follow along with his footwear off, accompanied by a coach. White being restricted or not enjoying Sunday towards Texans WR De’Andre Hopkins can be an enormous blow for Buffalo’s protection, which has struggled to discover a constant No. 2 cornerback between Phillip Gaines, Ryan Lewis and the now-retired Vontae Davis. — Mike Rodak

Dolphins DE Cameron Wake (knee) did not follow Wednesday, however Adam Gase stated he is not “too far off observe” from returning to motion. Bobby McCain (knee) and Andre Department (knee) additionally returned to follow on a restricted foundation. Getting all three gamers again shall be a giant increase to the Dolphins’ already efficient protection. Dolphins receiver DeVante Parker (quad) was a restricted follow participant and is predicted to return Sunday. — Cameron Wolfe

Who’s the NFL’s greatest tight finish proper now? Which participant shall be a fantasy flop this weekend? Picks for these and far more from our consultants.

These are the 25 greatest gamers in the marketplace subsequent March, plus our picks for who will signal huge offers to remain on their groups, be franchise-tagged and extra.

1 Associated

Beginning DT Malcom Brown (knee) has been restricted in follow after leaving final Thursday’s recreation with a knee harm, and he is the highest participant on the Patriots’ harm checklist this week. If he would not play, the Patriots would flip to both Danny Shelton or Adam Butler alongside starter Lawrence Man on the coronary heart of the road of scrimmage. Defending the Chiefs’ run-pass possibility performs has been some extent of emphasis for the Patriots, so shedding Brown can be a notable hit. — Mike Reiss

Operating again Isaiah Crowell (ankle), coming off a 219-yard dashing day, did not follow Wednesday, however he is anticipated to play Sunday. The Jets most likely shall be with out two of their high three corners, Trumaine Johnson (quad) and Buster Skrine (concussion). It will imply larger roles for Darryl Roberts, Parry Nickerson and maybe Rashard Robinson. — Wealthy Cimini

AFC NORTH

Michael Pierce, one of many extra underrated defensive tackles within the NFL, did not follow Wednesday with a foot harm after not enjoying Sunday. One good signal: Pierce was out of his protecting boot. Requested if Pierce will play in Tennessee, coach John Harbaugh stated, “That is a agency ‘possibly.’ I am very hopeful, and I say that in all sincerity. We’ll discover out, however we might use him. He is an element inside.” — Jamison Hensley

Bengals broad receiver John Ross returned to follow this week after lacking final week, whereas Giovani Bernard and guard Clint Boling missed follow. Marvin Lewis declined to say if Ross or Bernard would return after lacking final week’s recreation towards the Falcons. The Bengals’ offense might actually use Ross after sputtering considerably towards Miami, whereas Joe Mixon and Mark Walton mixed to take Bernard’s place. — Katherine Terrell

Broad receiver Rashard Higgins has a sprained MCL in his knee and sure won’t play Sunday. Higgins had a powerful preaseason and had 66 yards and a landing towards Baltimore earlier than the harm. With Higgins out, rookie Antonio Callaway’s snaps will enhance — after they’d decreased with extra time given to Higgins. Callaway has expertise, however he should be extra constantly dependable to assist the offense. — Pat McManamon

The Steelers hope to have inside linebacker Vince Williams (hamstring) again for the bodily matchup with the Bengals. He practiced in full Wednesday and didn’t expertise any setbacks. Inside linebacker L.J. Fort (ankle) proved worthwhile in passing downs final week towards Atlanta however is sidelined with an ankle difficulty. The Steelers will monitor his progress. — Jeremy Fowler

AFC SOUTH

Quarterback Deshaun Watson was listed as a restricted participant in follow with a chest harm on Wednesday, after he took a number of arduous hits on the run in Week 5. However the younger quarterback stated he’ll “for certain” play towards the Payments on Sunday, and that taking these hits is simply “a part of the sport.” — Sarah Barshop

Coach Frank Reich appears to have already dominated out receiver T.Y. Hilton (hamstring) and tight finish Jack Doyle (hip) for Sunday’s recreation on the Jets as a result of he continues to confer with them as “week to week.” The Colts had 9 different starters or key gamers who didn’t follow Wednesday. Rookie linebacker Darius Leonard, who leads the NFL in tackles (54) — regardless of lacking a recreation this season — was essentially the most notable participant on the harm checklist. Leonard ought to play towards the Jets barring any sort of setback between now and Sunday. — Mike Wells

Make amends for what’s occurring heading into Week 6: • Rating high 25 free brokers in 2019 • Energy Rankings: Stacking up schedules » • Predicting NFL’s subsequent $100 million offers • Contained in the NFL’s offensive explosion • Rating NFL’s greatest risers, fallers » Extra NFL protection »

The Jaguars have a bunch of accidents, however essentially the most important is, consider it or not, backup LT Josh Wells (groin) as a result of it means they’ve to begin a participant who hasn’t began a recreation there: Josh Walker. Or the Jaguars might decide to shuffle their line and transfer C Brandon Linder or RG A.J. Cann exterior. The staff is bringing in Ereck Flowers (a first-round bust with the Giants) on Thursday for a go to. The place is a multitude, and the Jaguars must do the very best they’ll to outlive there till Wells is ready to return. — Michael DiRocco

The Titans might have a difficulty with left deal with Taylor Lewan being wholesome on Sunday. He left Week 5 towards the Payments as a result of a proper foot harm. Lewan stated he could not push off the foot and it was an analogous harm to 1 that he encountered within the 2017 season opener. Mike Vrabel stated Lewan met with medical doctors on Monday, however he was not cleared to follow on Wednesday. If he isn’t in a position to go, anticipate reserve deal with Tyler Marz to begin in his place. — Turron Davenport

AFC WEST

Set to face the Rams’ defensive entrance, which options three former first-round picks and defending Defensive Participant of the Yr Aaron Donald, the Broncos have harm questions at each deal with spots. Proper deal with Jared Veldheer didn’t follow Wednesday and isn’t anticipated to play Sunday — that might be the second consecutive recreation he has missed — whereas left deal with Garett Bolles was restricted with an ankle harm he suffered within the second half of Sunday’s loss to the Jets. If Bolles performs this Sunday, he is anticipated to be examined early and infrequently by Wade Phillips’ defensive plan. Bolles has been flagged for 5 holding penalties already this season, together with two within the Broncos’ Week three loss to the Ravens. — Jeff Legwold

The Chiefs might be dangerously skinny at security towards the Patriots. Eric Berry (heel) and Eric Murray (ankle) didn’t follow on Wednesday, leaving Ron Parker and Jordan Lucas because the starters. Each joined the Chiefs proper earlier than the beginning of the season, although Parker has been an everyday ever since. The third security for now’s Josh Shaw, who was signed simply final week. Two different safeties, Daniel Sorensen and Armani Watts, are on IR. — Adam Teicher

Kicker Caleb Sturgis, who has missed 4 further factors and three subject targets already this 12 months, was a restricted participant in follow on Wednesday as a result of a quad harm. Sturgis missed all however one recreation final 12 months as a result of a hip harm, so his leg harm is value monitoring this week. — Eric D. Williams

Whereas sturdy security Karl Joseph returned to follow Wednesday in a restricted trend, left guard Kelechi Osemele, who missed final week’s recreation with a knee harm, sat out. He shall be questionable Sunday in London towards the Seahawks. And if Osemele has to take a seat out, Jon Feliciano will once more begin in his place, Jon Gruden stated. — Paul Gutierrez

NFC EAST

Professional Bowl left deal with Tyron Smith was restricted in Wednesday’s follow due to an ankle harm, however it isn’t anticipated to maintain him out of motion Sunday towards Jacksonville. If Smith suffers a setback, the Cowboys would go to Cameron Fleming at left deal with. Cornerback Chidobe Awuzie was additionally restricted due to an ankle harm. He was pulled within the second half of final week’s loss to Houston with Anthony Brown working exterior and Jourdan Lewis working the slot. If Awuzie doesn’t present confidence in his means in follow, the Cowboys will not hesitate to make an analogous transfer this week. — Todd Archer

Outdoors linebacker Olivier Vernon (excessive ankle sprain) is about to play in his first recreation of the season on Thursday evening. That is enormous for a protection tied for the fewest sacks within the NFL. However the offense nonetheless will not have TE Evan Engram (knee). He is possible per week away from a return. — Jordan Raanan

• What ails Packers’ offense? • Meet Minnesota’s philosophical pass-rusher • Falcons’ plan to maintain Matt Ryan upright • Beathard should reduce down on turnovers • Why cannot Rashaad Penny get going?

The Eagles are getting RB Corey Clement (quad) again after a two-week absence. That is excellent news with Jay Ajayi (ACL) misplaced for the 12 months and Darren Sproles (hamstring) nonetheless sidelined. Security Corey Graham (hamstring) and DT Haloti Ngata (calf) are out for Thursday’s recreation towards the Giants. — Tim McManus

Operating again Adrian Peterson (shoulder) must be out there for Sunday’s recreation at Carolina after an MRI Tuesday morning confirmed no additional injury. In the meantime, their receivers are banged up as receiver Josh Doctson (heel), Jamison Crowder (ankle) and Paul Richardson (knee/shoulder) all would have been unable to follow Wednesday had the Redskins held one (they’d a walk-through as an alternative). Doctson was near enjoying within the Monday evening recreation so must be prepared for Sunday and Richardson’s knee swelled up after the sport, however there’s optimism about him too. It is unsure how dangerous Crowder’s ankle is at this level. — John Keim

NFC NORTH

The Bears are hopeful to have rookie broad receiver Anthony Miller out there for Sunday’s recreation at Miami. Miller, who the Bears drafted within the second spherical out of Memphis, suffered a dislocated shoulder in Week three that compelled him to take a seat out Chicago’s victory over Tampa on Sept. 30. Bears coach Matt Nagy sounded optimistic on Wednesday that Miller will have the ability to have a full week of follow. The rookie has eight catches for 60 yards and one landing on the season. — Jeff Dickerson

The Lions are off this week and are hoping which means DE Ezekiel Ansah (shoulder), RG T.J. Lang (concussion) and TE Michael Roberts (knee) can all get again to well being for subsequent week towards Miami. The larger concern is All-Professional returner Jamal Agnew (left knee) who was carted off throughout the Week 5 win towards Inexperienced Bay. Particular groups coordinator Joe Marciano stated Tuesday the membership hadn’t selected a brand new returner but, however that it will possible come from throughout the present group. That stated, it is a dangerous signal for Agnew’s instant future that Detroit is making an attempt to determine how one can change him. — Michael Rothstein

Who’s the NFL’s greatest tight finish proper now? Which participant shall be a fantasy flop this weekend? Picks for these and far more from our consultants.

These are the 25 greatest gamers in the marketplace subsequent March, plus our picks for who will signal huge offers to remain on their groups, be franchise-tagged and extra.

1 Associated

Cornerback Jaire Alexander was a little bit of a shock scratch final Sunday at Detroit. He practiced on a restricted foundation main as much as the sport however didn’t play due to a groin harm he suffered the earlier week. Nevertheless, with an additional day earlier than Monday evening’s recreation towards the 49ers, coach Mike McCarthy stated “there’s hope he could also be prepared this week.” The Packers have not had their high two picks the final two years — Alexander (first spherical, 2018) and Kevin King (second spherical, 2017) — collectively on the sector since Week 2. King missed Weeks three and four due to a groin harm however returned towards the Lions. — Rob Demovsky

After lacking his second recreation of the season whereas nursing the hamstring harm he sustained in additional time at Inexperienced Bay, working again Dalvin Cook dinner practiced on a restricted foundation Wednesday, which featured him taking handoffs from Kirk Cousins throughout particular person drills. Cornerback Trae Waynes is out of the concussion protocol and stated he expects to play on Sunday towards Arizona. Whereas second-year go rusher Tashawn Bower continues to be held off form with an ankle harm, the Vikings had rookie Jalyn Holmes working a bit with the defensive ends. That is vital for Minnesota’s depth issue alongside the line of defense, given the quantity of snaps shouldered by Danielle Hunter and Stephen Weatherly in Philadelphia. — Courtney Cronin

NFC SOUTH

Operating again Devonta Freeman, who returned to the lineup final week after lacking three video games with a proper knee harm, popped up on the harm report Tuesday with a foot harm and did not follow. It is unclear when Freeman injured his foot within the Pittsburgh recreation, however his standing is value monitoring in preparation for the Buccaneers. If Freeman would not get better, then Tevin Coleman and rookie Ito Smith should carry the load towards Gerald McCoy and Tampa Bay’s robust entrance, which is stable towards the run. — Vaughan McClure

Professional Bowl heart Ryan Kalil averted a scare after leaving Sunday’s recreation within the fourth quarter with a neck harm, one thing that sidelined him for a lot of final season. He follow on full on Wednesday. Professional Bowl tight finish Greg Olsen was listed as restricted, however he stays on observe to return from a fractured foot after lacking solely 4 video games, 5 lower than he missed a 12 months in the past with the identical harm. — David Newton

Luckily the Saints are on a bye, as a result of they misplaced high cornerback Marshon Lattimore to a concussion within the first quarter of Monday evening’s recreation towards Washington, and the place is uncomfortably skinny behind him. Lattimore additionally missed a recreation with a concussion final 12 months, nevertheless it’s too early to foretell what his standing shall be for Week 7 at Baltimore. The excellent news is that backup cornerback P.J. Williams has stepped up huge the final two weeks. Moreover, seldom-used backup Justin Hardee (usually a particular groups ace) had a big-time interception and 77-yard return vs. the Redskins. — Mike Triplett

The Bucs are literally wanting so much higher on the harm entrance, with defensive deal with Beau Allen returning to follow for the primary time since struggling a foot harm in Week 2. Tight finish O.J. Howard returned to follow after struggling a sprained MCL in Week four. Beginning cornerback Carlton Davis, who aggravated a groin harm towards the Bears, was additionally again practising. All have been restricted although, so expectations must be tempered. — Jenna Laine

NFC WEST

Seven Cardinals missed follow on Wednesday, together with three of their 5 offensive linemen. Proper deal with Andre Smith is coping with a hamstring difficulty, his second harm of the season, and Arizona now has to fret about left guard Mike Iupati, who has an elbow harm. Add in left deal with D.J. Humphries, who missed follow with a knee ailment, and Arizona’s offensive line is banged up six video games into the season. If Smith cannot go Sunday, John Wetzel will get one other begin. The Cardinals will re-evaluate Mike Iupati on Thursday, coach Steve Wilks stated, after which resolve how one can proceed the remainder of the week. If he is out Sunday, then Jeremy Vujnovich would possible see the sector. — Josh Weinfuss

Receivers Brandin Cooks and Cooper Kupp are in concussion protocol, however coach Sean McVay is hopeful each will get better in time to play the Denver Broncos. “Making constructive steps in the best route,” McVay stated. “We we be ok with these guys being able to go.” Kicker Greg Zuerlein, who’s recovering from a groin harm, is predicted to be out one other week. — Lindsey Thiry

Receiver Dante Pettis (knee) has already been dominated out for Monday evening, and working again Matt Breida (ankle) is taken into account uncertain. However the Niners nonetheless have a number of key gamers they’ll monitor this week, together with tackles Joe Staley and Mike McGlinchey and heart Weston Richburg, all of whom are coping with knee points. Linebacker Reuben Foster can be battling a shoulder harm. The excellent news? With the sport on Monday evening, the Niners have been in a position to take an additional day to relaxation and heal up this week. — Nick Wagoner

The Seahawks are in respectable form health-wise heading into Sunday’s recreation in London towards the Raiders, however they’re going to once more be with out linebacker Okay.J. Wright. With Mychal Kendricks suspended and not out there to interchange Wright, the Seahawks as an alternative moved Barkevious Mingo from strong-side linebacker to the weak-side spot final week towards the Rams. Which may be the plan for an additional week as Wright works his method again from arthroscopic knee surgical procedure. Pete Carroll stated there is not any sense in dashing him again for this recreation with Seattle on a bye subsequent week. — Brady Henderson

The post Biggest injury questions for all 32 teams in Week 6 2018 appeared first on Breakig News.

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[medproish]

The 2018 NFL Draft was a historic one for quarterbacks with four picked in the top 10 for the first time in nearly seven decades. By the end of the weekend, 13 passers heard their name called.

For the five who went in the first round, the expectation is that they’ll be the franchise quarterback the team can be build around. For five more quarterbacks, there’s a difficult path ahead that could end with a starting job but likely just a backup role. And for three, even a backup job will be difficult.

So let’s rank the situations that 13 quarterbacks will walk into from No. 1 pick Baker Mayfield to Seattle’s seventh-round selection Alex McGough — a totally real person that the Seahawks definitely didn’t just make up:

Faces of the franchise

1. Baker Mayfield – Cleveland Browns

It’s easy to make the “poor guy has to play for [insert worst NFL team] heh heh” joke about whoever goes No. 1. But usually a team is terrible because of quarterback issues and it was DeShone Kizer’s awful season that dragged down the Browns most in 2017.

Kizer’s league-leading 22 interceptions and 60.5 passer rating — the worst for a full-time starter since Joey Harrington’s 59.9 in 2002 — spoiled a defense that finished No. 14 in the NFL and a rushing offense that averaged the sixth most yards per carry.

The Browns kept improving the roster this offseason with Jarvis Landry, Damarious Randall, Denzel Ward, Nick Chubb and E.J. Gaines among the players added.

Mayfield will have the unlikely task of beating out Tyrod Taylor — a veteran starter who was already guaranteed the job — if he hopes to lead that team in 2018. A likelier scenario is Mayfield sits for a while and takes over when he’s ready. Considering the talent on the roster, it’s a situation that could be a whole lot better than the jokes make it seem.

2. Lamar Jackson – Baltimore Ravens

It’s still Joe Flacco’s team in Baltimore, but the investment in Jackson made it clear that’s a temporary situation. His cap hits in 2019 and 2020 mean the Ravens have the freedom to toss the keys to the offense over to Jackson whenever they feel he’s up for the task.

That gives Baltimore the luxury of patience while preparing to unleash a unique talent in Jackson. He’ll work with Marty Mornhinweg, a coach who has spent decades working with quarterbacks including, Brett Favre, Steve Young and Michael Vick.

For now, it’s an offense that needs more work.

Michael Crabtree, Willie Snead, John Brown, Hayden Hurst and Mark Andrews were all added, but the team doesn’t really have a legitimate No. 1 receiver yet. That will be a priority in the next couple years to help Jackson along.

3. Sam Darnold – New York Jets

A year ago, plenty of people were convinced the Jets were gearing up to tank the 2017 season for the chance to draft Sam Darnold. The quarterback was even asked about it in August and Jets fans ordered jerseys close to a year in advance.

New York didn’t end up being as bad as people thought they’d be, but here they are with Darnold anyway.

Even with receiver Quincy Enunwa lost for the year in preseason, the combination of Robby Anderson and Jermaine Kearse made for decent receiving options for Josh McCown to target. Anderson has had difficulty staying out of trouble, but the return of Enunwa and the addition of Terrelle Pryor make for a young group with a lot of potential.

Like Mayfield and Jackson, Darnold has a capable starter in front of him in McCown. That’s a good thing, because Darnold has a lot of growing to do, but there’s a young nucleus of talent that the Jets can be excited about.

4. Josh Allen – Buffalo Bills

While the four other quarterbacks taken in the first round have established veterans ahead of them on the depth chart, Allen only has AJ McCarron and Nathan Peterman to battle for the starting job.

That’d be a little more exciting if Allen was as NFL-ready as Mayfield or Josh Rosen. It’s a little dangerous when the Wyoming product is as raw and as far from ready as Allen. The safest guess is that it’ll be McCarron starting Week 1, but if he struggles it could be the team’s No. 7 overall pick who gets thrust into action.

The offense isn’t that bad for a rookie quarterback, though. It could use more receivers, but Kelvin Benjamin is the kind of big-bodied pass catcher that could help Allen out. The offensive line lost Richie Incognito, but is still better than other teams on this list. And the real strength is that the Buffalo offense will still lean heavily on LeSean McCoy and the running game.

Still, it’d be a whole lot better for the Bills if Allen had time to figure things out more.

5. Josh Rosen – Arizona Cardinals

Reminder: this isn’t an indictment on Rosen, who I believe is the best passer of this draft class. It’s just to say that this could be quite the uphill climb for the No. 10 overall pick in Arizona.

The good news is that he has David Johnson in the backfield with him, the Cardinals added an exciting receiver in Christian Kirk, and Sam Bradford is a veteran who could help Rosen. The bad news is everything else.

Arizona’s offensive line ranked 31st in 2017, according to PFF, and needed much more than just the signing of Justin Pugh to make things right.

The hallmark of Arizona’s offense for more than a decade has been Larry Fitzgerald, but he’ll be 35 before the 2018 season starts and will probably retire at the end of the year. That’d leave a receiving corps of Kirk, Chad Williams, Brice Butler and JJ Nelson.

It’s not an offense with much for Rosen to work with, and Bradford’s lengthy injury history means the rookie could see the field sooner rather than later. Rosen was often on his own on a UCLA team that didn’t do him many favors. That may be the case in Arizona too.

A difficult path to a starting job

6. Kyle Lauletta – New York Giants

If Odell Beckham Jr. is a player the Giants commit to and make sure he stays with the organization, the skill position group in New York is really exciting.

Forget draft capital for a second.

There is a team with (age when season starts)

Odell Beckham – 25 years old Saquon Barkley – 21 years old Evan Engram – 24 years old Sterling Shepard – 25 years old

Good luck covering that

— Eliot Crist (@EliotCrist) April 27, 2018

The offensive line has been a problem for a while and still isn’t quite fixed, but signing Nate Solder and drafting Will Hernandez is a great start. It should give Eli Manning a boost in the final years of his career, but the quarterback is 37 now and the Giants are going to need to find his successor.

Lauletta will have a chance to compete for that role. His competition for now is 2017 third-round pick Davis Webb, although it wouldn’t be surprising if the Giants went after another quarterback in upcoming drafts.

Someone is going to have to take over for Eli soon. Lauletta’s probably not the favorite, but he’ll have a chance to prove he can be.

7. Mason Rudolph – Pittsburgh Steelers

Like Lauletta in New York, Rudolph will be in competition with a mid-round selection to be the successor for a quarterback who is in his final seasons. Ben Roethlisberger is 36 and has been contemplating retirement in the last couple years.

Battling to eventually take over will be Rudolph, 2017 fourth-round pick Joshua Dobbs, and 2013 fourth-round pick Landry Jones. It seems inevitable that either Dobbs or Jones will be released before the 2018 season begins, and Rudolph has to be considered the favorite for the future starting job, for now.

He’s the first quarterback the Steelers have taken in the top 100 picks of the NFL Draft since Roethlisberger, although — like other teams on this list — Pittsburgh could go back to the well in a bigger way in upcoming drafts.

But Rudolph will have a chance to impress on a roster that’s always geared up to compete.

8. Danny Etling – New England Patriots

Good roster around him? Check.

Good quarterback to learn from? Check.

Good coaching to get him prepared? Check.

The only other quarterbacks on the New England roster are Tom Brady, who turns 41 in August and Brian Hoyer who turns 33 in October. So Etling will have every opportunity to prove he’s the quarterback of the future for the Patriots.

I realize that sounds a little ridiculous considering Etling is a seventh-round pick and they usually have their work cut out of for them to make the roster, let alone become a franchise staple. But Brady was a sixth-round pick and Hoyer was undrafted, so who knows?

The negative for Etling is that the Patriots will probably invest in the quarterback position in a bigger way in the next year or two. So his path to New England superstardom will still be a hell of a climb.

9. Tanner Lee – Jacksonville Jaguars

An argument could easily be made that Jacksonville has the best roster in the NFL. The least impressive position group on the team is its group of quarterbacks: Blake Bortles, Cody Kessler and Tanner Lee.

Lee was among the nation’s leaders in interceptions thrown during his 2017 season at Nebraska and there aren’t high hopes that he’ll solve the Jaguars’ quarterback concerns. But like Etling in New England, the path to surprise everyone is in front of him.

The Jaguars lean on defense and running the ball with Leonard Fournette, and are still hopeful that Bortles will eventually play like a franchise quarterback. But if he doesn’t soon, it’ll be someone else’s job.

Lee will need to leave his turnover-prone ways in the past if he wants any shot at the job, and … don’t hold your breath.

10. Logan Woodside – Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals offensive line got better with the additions of Cordy Glenn and Billy Price, and has a legitimate No. 1 receiver in A.J. Green. The reason Woodside doesn’t get a higher spot here is because it’s going to be really difficult for him to earn a roster spot, let alone eventually start for the Bengals.

Andy Dalton’s leash is getting shorter and can be cut after the 2018 or 2019 seasons with no dead money under the salary cap. His inability to lead the Bengals to a single postseason win will eventually catch up to him and Cincinnati could be ready to look for another option.

But 2016 draft pick Jeff Driskel has already shown good things in preseason and has a two-year head start on Woodside. And if the Bengals do move on from Dalton, they’ll want more than just late-round picks ready to take over.

Battle for a backup job

11. Luke Falk – Tennessee Titans

It would be surprising if Marcus Mariota doesn’t end up being the quarterback of the future for the Titans. It’s not impossible considering his injury history and his struggles in 2017 with 13 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. But for now, Falk doesn’t have a path to the starting lineup and will battle Blaine Gabbert and Tyler Ferguson to be the long-term backup for Mariota.

If he gets the job, there’s a strong chance he’ll be thrust into action as Mariota hasn’t finished a 16-game season yet in his career.

And in Tennessee, he’d be behind one of the NFL’s best offensive lines with a powerful running back at his side in Derrick Henry.

12. Mike White – Dallas Cowboys

The goal for the Cowboys is to surround Dak Prescott with the tools to be the long-term solution at quarterback in Dallas. So White really has no chance at wrestling that job away.

It’s also going to be difficult to top Cooper Rush for the backup job considering how good the undrafted second-year player looked in preseason as a rookie. Rush finished preseason with six touchdowns and no interceptions, wrestling the backup job from Kellen Moore.

The Cowboys offensive line makes the Cowboys a dream landing spot for a quarterback, but White has his work cut out for him.

13. Alex McGough – Seattle Seahawks

Russell Wilson is the player the Seahawks are built around, and he won’t be giving up the job any time soon. To be his backup, McGough is going to have to beat out Austin Davis and Stephen Morris.

But if McGough was ever thrust into action, he better be ready to run because the Seahawks offensive line is still a work in progress.

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