Who megan fox is dating

A fox is a wolf who sends flowers. - Ruth Brown

2008.11.16 08:26 A fox is a wolf who sends flowers. - Ruth Brown

The fox - one of the most amazing animals there is! Submit pictures, questions, or anything related to foxes. For the species in the genus *Vulpes* or any other 'true fox' species.
[link]

2014.11.04 00:18 Dating Over 30: Because dating is hard, no matter how old you are.

A subreddit for folks nearing or over 30 who are looking for dating advice.
[link]

2013.03.04 07:38 yahoo_bot Gal Gadot

Reddit's arrogance in all but ignoring the mods needs has resulted in only harming our users. This sub went dark due to the terrible handling of Reddit's API pricing changes and policy decisions. /Save3rdPartyApps/. Under duress and for the benefit of our users, we are reopening the Subreddit despite this issue not being resolved.
[link]

2024.06.09 23:10 AllOutForNow (Offer) List (Request) Lists/Offers

I'm not interested in any Sony Buff Passes or Universal Rewards
●Movies Anywhere●
•(Bundles)•
•Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection Volume 1 (4k) (4 Movie) (One Code)
1: The Birds (4K)
2: Psycho (4K)
3: Rear Window (4K)
4: Vertigo (4K)
•Best of the 2000's 10 Film Collection (4K/HD) (One Code)
1: A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (HD) (10-Film)
2: Best in Show (HD) (10-Film)
3: The Departed (4K) (10-Film)
4: A History of Violence (HD) (10-Film)
5: The Hangover (4K) (10-Film)
6: I Am Legend (4K) (10-Film)
7: Letters From Iwo Jima (HD) (10-Film)
8: Mystic River (HD) (10-Film)
9: Ocean's Eleven (HD) (10-Film)
10: Pan's Labyrinth (4K) (10-Film)
•Halloween Trilogy (4k) (One Code)
1: Halloween (2018) (4K)
3: Halloween Ends (4K)
2: Halloween Kills (4K)
•High On Your Watch List 8-Film Collection (HD) (MA) (One Code)
1: Due Date (HD) (8-Film)
2: Friday (HD) (8-Film)
3: Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (HD) (MA) (8-Film)
4: House Party (HD) (MA) (8-Film)
5: Inherent Vice (HD) (MA) (8-Film)
6: Project X (HD) (MA) (8-Film)
7: Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny (HD) (MA) (8-Film)
8: We're the Millers (HD) (MA) (8-Film)
•Men in Black Trilogy (4k) (One Code)
1: Men in Black (4K)
2: Men in Black 2 (4K)
3: Men In Black 3 (4K)
•Meryl Streep 8-film Collection (4K/HD) (MA) (One Code)
1: Death Becomes Her (HD) (8-Film)
2: It's Complicated (HD) (8-Film)
3: Mama Mia!: The Movie (4K) (8-Film)
4: Mama Mia!: Here We Go Again (4K) (8-Film)
5: One True thing (HD) (8-Film)
6: Out of Africa (HD) (8-Film)
7: Prime (HD) (8-Film)
8: The River Wild (HD) (8-Film)
•(4K)•
1917 (4K)
2 Guns (4K)
Abominable (4K)
The Abyss (4K)
Aliens (4K)
Ambulance (4K)
American Gangster (Extended Edition) (4k)
Annie (4K)
Ant-Man and the Wasp Quantumania (4K)
Aqua Teen Forever: Plantasm (4K)
As Good As It Gets (4K)
Avatar: The Way of Water (4k)
Avatar: The Way of Water (Collector's Edition) (4k)
Avengers (4K)
Babylon 5: The Road Home (4K)
Backdraft (4k)
Battleship (4K)
The Batman (4k)
Big Hero 6 (4K) (MA Split)
The Big Lebowski (4K)
Black Hawk Down (Theatrical & Extended) (4K)
Black Panther Wakanda Forever (4k) (MA Split)
Black Widow (4k) (MA Split)
Bloodshot (4K)
The Blues Brothers (4K) (Theatrical & Unrated)
Bullet Train (4k)
Cinderella (4K) (MA Split)
A Christmas Story (4k)
Cliffhanger (4k)
Concussion (4K)
Cruella (4K)
The Dark Crystal (4k)
District 9 (4K)
Do the Right Thing (4K)
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (4K)
Doom (4K)
Dr. Strangelove (4k)
Encanto (4K)
Enter the Dragon (4k)
Eternals (4K)
Evil Dead Rise (4k)
The Exorcist (4k) (Theatrical & Extended)
The Exorcist: Believer (4K)
The Fabelmans (4k)
The Fast and the Furious (4k)
Fast X (4k)
Field of Dreams (4k)
The Forever Purge (4K)
Free Guy (4k)
From Here to Eternity (4k)
Fury (4k)
Get Out (4K)
Ghostbusters Afterlife (4K)
Glass (4K)
Glory (4K)
Godzilla (1998) (4K)
Gran Turismo (4K)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (4K)
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (4K)
The Guns of Navarone (4k)
Heat (4k)
Heavy Metal (4K)
Hellboy (2004) (4k)
Hellboy 2: The Golden Army (4K)
His Girl Friday (4K)
Hobbs and Shaw (4k)
Hocus Pocus 4k (MA Split)
In the Line of Fire (4K)
Invisible Man (4k)
It Happened One Night 4k
Jaws (4k)
Jaws 2 (4k)
Jumanji (1995) (4k)
Jurassic World Dominion (4K)
Jurrasic World Fallen Kingdom (4K)
Kick Ass 2 (4k)
King Kong (2005) (Theatrical) (4k)
Kramer Vs Kramer (4K)
Last Actio Hero (4K)
The Last Picture Show (4K)
Lawrence of Arabia (4k)
The Lion King (Animated) (4K)
The Lion King (Live Action) (4k)
The Little Mermaid (2023) (4k)
The Lost Boys (4k)
The Martian (Extended Edition) (4k)
Meg 2: The Trench (4K)
Moon (4K)
Morbius (4K)
Mulan (2020) (4K)
National Lampoon's Animal House (4k)
National Lampoon's Vacation (4k)
Oblivion (4k)
Oliver (4k)
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (4k)
Onward (4K) (MA Split)
Oppenheimer (4k)
Parasite (4k)
Paprika (4K)
Poltergeist (4k)
Predator (4k)
The Prestige (4k) (MA Split)
The Prince of Egypt (4k)
Punch Drunk Love (4K)
The Raid Redemption (4K)
Rebel Without a Cause (4k)
R.I.P.D. (4K)
Rudy (4k)
Sense and Sensibility (4k)
Schindler's List (4k)
Shang Chi (4K)
To Sir With Love (4k)
Sleepless in Seattle (4K)
Smokey and the Bandit (4k)
Snow White (4K) (MA Split)
Soul (4k) (MA Split)
Spartacus (4k )
Speed (4K)
Spider-Man Across the Spider-Verse 4k
Spies in Disguise (4K) (MA) (Split)
Super Mario Bros. (4k)
Starman (4K)
Tár (4k)
Unbreakable (4K) (MA Split)
Venom (4K)
Violent Night (4K)
West Side Story (4K) (MA Split)
Whiplash (4K)
Zero Dark Thirty (4K)
Zombieland (4k)
•(HD)•
Ant-Man & The Wasp (HD MA) (Split) (MA)
Avengers: Age of Ultron (HD) (MA Split)
Beauty and the Beast (HD MA) (MA) (Split)
Black Panther (HD MA) (Split) (MA)
Black Phone (HD) (MA)
The Breakfast Club (HD)
Brother Bear (HD) (MA)
Brother Bear 2 (HD) (MA)
Captain America: Civil War (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Captain America: The First Avenger (HD MA) (Split)
Captain America: Winter Soldier (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Despicable Me 2 (HD) (MA Split)
A Dog's Purpose (HD) (MA Split)
The Fast and the Furious 6 (Extended Edition) (HD) (MA Split)
The Gunman (HD) (MA Split)
Hercules (Disney) (HD) (MA Split)
Hocus Pocus (HD) (MA) (Split)
Home (2015) (HD) (MA)
How to Train Your Dragon 2 (HD) (MA Split)
The Huntsman: Winter's War (HD) (MA Split)
Jarhead 2 (Unrated) (HD) (MA Split)
Jurrasic Park HD MA (Split)
Jurrasic Park: The Lost World HD MA (Split)
Jurrasic Park 3 HD MA Split)
Jurrasic Park 3 HD MA
Jurrasic World HD MA (Split)
Les Misérables (HD) (MA Split)
Megan Leavey (HD) (MA Split)
The Menu (HD) (MA)
My All American (HD) (MA Split)
The Nightmare Before Christmas (HD MA) (Split)
The Nut Job (HD) (MA Split)
Oz the Great and Powerful (HD) (MA Split)
Peter Pan (HD)
Pitch Perfect (HD)
Pitch Perfect 2 (HD)
Point Break (HD) (1991)
Rio (HD)
Rise of the Guardians (HD) (MA Split)
Sleeping Beauty (HD MA) (MA) (Split)
Snow White (HD MA) (MA) (Split)
Snow White & the Huntsman HD (MA Split)
Straight Outta Compton (Theatrical) HD (MA Split)
Straight Outta Compton (Unrated) HD (MA Split)
Sword in the Stone 60th Anniversary Edition HD (MA Split)
Thor Love & Thunder HD (MA Split)
Upgrade (HD)
When the Game Stands Tall HD
Willow (HD) (MA Split)
●Google Play Disney Splits●
•(HD)•
101 Dalmatians 2 (HD GP)
Ant-Man & The Wasp (HD GP)
Atlantis: Milo's Return (HD GP)
Atlantis: The Lost Empire (HD GP)
Avatar: The Way of Water (HD GP)
Avengers: Age of Ultron (HD GP)
Avengers: Endgame (HD GP)
Bambi (HD GP)
Banshees of Inisherin (HD GP)
Beauty & the Beast (HD GP)
Bedknobs and Broomsticks (HD GP)
Big Hero 6 (HD GP)
Black Panther (HD GP)
Black Panther Wakanda Forever (HD GP)
Black Widow (HD GP)
Brave (HD GP)
Bridge of spies (HD GP)
Captain Marvel (HD GP)
Captain America: Civil War (HD GP)
Captain America: Winter Soldier (HD GP)
Captain America: The First Avenger (HD GP)
Cinderella (Animated) (HD GP)
Coco (HD GP)
Disneynature Monkey Kingdom (HD GP)
Doctor Strange (HD GP)
Doctor Strange: Multiverse of Madness (HD GP)
Dumbo (Animated) (HD GP)
The Emperor's New Groove (HD GP)
Finding Dory (HD GP)
Finding Nemo (HD GP)
The Fox and the Hound (HD GP)
The French Dispatch (HD GP)
Frozen (Sing-Along Edition) (HD GP)
Hocus Pocus (HD GP)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (HD GP)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame 2 (HD GP)
Iron Man 3 (HD GP)
The Jungle Book (Animated) (HD GP)
The Jungle Book 2 (HD GP)
Kings Man (HD GP)
Kronk's New Groove (HD GP)
The Last Duel (HD GP)
Lightyear (HD GP)
The Lion King (Animated) (HD GP)
The Lion King (Live Action) (HD GP)
The Little Mermaid 3 (HD GP)
Luca (HD GP)
Maleficent (HD GP)
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (HD GP)
McFarland U.S.A (HD GP)
Mickey's Christmas Carol (HD GP)
Million Dollar Arm (HD GP)
Moana (HD GP)
Monsters Inc (HD GP)
Mulan (2020) (HD GP)
Muppets Most Wanted (HD GP)
Nightmare Alley (HD GP)
The Nightmare Before Christmas (HD GP)
Onward (HD GP)
Oz the Great and Powerful (HD GP)
Peter Pan HD (GP)
Pete's Dragon (Live Action) (HD GP)
Pixar Short Films Volume 3 (HD GP)
Pocahontas (HD GP)
The Prestige (HD GP)
Ratatouille (HD GP)
Raya and the Last Dragon (HD GP)
Robin Hood (HD GP)
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (HD GP)
The Santa Clause (HD GP)
Sleeping Beauty (HD GP)
Snow White (HD GP)
Soul (HD GP)
Spies in Disguise (HD GP)
Star Wars: A New Hope (HD GP)
Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (HD GP)
Star Wars: The Last Jedi (HD GP)
Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (HD GP)
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (HD GP)
Sword in the Stone 60th Anniversary Edition (HD GP)
Thor Love & Thunder (HD GP)
Thor Ragnarok (HD GP)
Tomorrowland (HD GP)
Unbreakable (HD GP)
West Side Story (HD GP)
A Wrinkle In Time (HD GP)
Zootopia (HD GP)
●iTunes●
•(4K)•
Allied (4k) (iTunes Split)
Annihilation (4K) (iTunes Split)
Avengers: Endgame (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Captain Marvel (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Daddy's Home (4K) (iTunes Split)
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (4k iTunes) (MA)
Despicable Me 2 (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Despicable Me 3 (4K iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Doctor Strange (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Everest (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
The Fast & the Furious 6 (Extended Edition) (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Finding Dory (4k iTunes) (split) (MA)
Forest Gump (4K) (iTunes Split)
Gemini Man (4K) (iTunes Split)
Ghost in the Shell (Live Action) (4k iTunes Split)
Heat (4k iTunes) (MA)
How to Train Your Dragon 2 (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Iron Man 3 (4K iTunes Split) (MA)
Joy (4k iTunes) (MA)
Jurrasic Park (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Jurrasic Park: The Lost World (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Jurrasic World (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
The Kingsman Secret Service (4k iTunes) (MA)
La La Land (4k) (iTunes) (Split)
Les Misérables (4K iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Lone Survivor (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Maleficent (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (4K iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Moana (4K iTunes) (Split) (MA)
No Time To Die (4k)
Rocketman (4K) (iTunes Split)
Sicario (4K) (iTunes) (Split)
Sleeping Beauty (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Thor Ragnarok (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
War for the Planet of the Apes (4K iTunes) (MA)
Warcraft (4k iTunes) (Split) (MA)
Why Him (4k iTunes) (MA)
•(HD)•
All Eyes On Me (HD) (iTunes Split)
An Inconvenient Sequal: Truth to Power (HD) (iTunes Split)
The Big Short (HD iTunes) (Split)
Cheech and Chong: Up in Smoke (HD) (iTunes Split)
Den of Thieves (HD) (iTunes Split)
Good Kill (HD) (iTunes Split)
The Guilt Trip (HD) (iTunes Split)
I, Frankenstein (HD) (iTunes Split)
Megan Leavey (HD) (iTunes Split) (MA)
Nebraska (HD) (iTunes Split)
The Nut Job (HD) (iTunes Split) (MA)
Rise of the Guardians (HD) (iTunes Split) (MA)
Top Five (HD) (Itunes Split)
●Vudu●
•(4K)•
Annihilation (4K) (Vudu Split)
Apocalypse Now (Triple Feature) (4k) (Vudu)
Creed 3 (4k) (Vudu Only)
Daddy's Home (4K) (Vudu Split)
Early Man (4k) (Vudu)
Ender's Game (4k) (Vudu)
Everything Everywhere All at Once (4K) (Vudu)
Forest Gump (4K) (Vudu Split)
Gemini Man (4K) (Vudu Split)
Ghost in the Shell (2017) (4K) (Vudu Split)
Highlander (4k) (Vudu)
La La Land (4k) (Vudu Split)
The Man Who Fell to Earth 4K (Vudu)
The Mist 4k (Vudu)
Ran 4k (Vudu)
Rocketman (4K) (Vudu Split)
The Secret Garden 4K (Vudu)
Sicario 4K (Vudu Split)
Source Code 4k (Vudu)
Ugly Dolls 4k (Vudu)
•(HD)•
The Big Short (HD) (Vudu Split)
●Lionsgate●
•(4K)•
Apocalypse Now (Triple Feature) 4k (Vudu)
Belly 4k (Vudu)
The Cabin in the Woods 4k (Vudu, iTunes, Google Play)
Early Man 4k (Vudu)
Ender's Game 4k (Vudu)
Everything Everywhere All at Once (4K) (Vudu)
Expendables (4K) (Vudu, iTunes, Google Play)
Expendables 2 (4K) (Vudu, iTunes, Google Play)
Fall 4k (Vudu, iTunes)
Hacksaw Ridge 4K (Vudu, iTunes, Google Play)
Highlander 4k (Vudu)
The Hitman's Bodygaurd 4k (Vudu, iTunes, Google Play)
The Hitman's Wife's Bodygaurd 4k (Vudu, iTunes, Google Play)
Jigsaw 4k (Vudu, iTunes, Google Play)
John Wick Chapter 4 4k (Vudu, iTunes)
La La Land 4k (Vudu, iTunes) (Split)
The Man Who Fell to Earth 4K (Vudu)
The Mist 4k (Vudu)
Plane 4k (Vudu, iTunes)
Ran 4k (Vudu)
Requiem for a Dream (4K) ( Vudu, iTunes)
Reservoir Dogs (4K) (Vudu, iTunes)
The Secret Garden 4K (Vudu)
Sisu 4K (Vudu, iTunes)
Source Code 4k (Vudu)
Total Recall 4k (1990) (Vudu, iTunes)
Ugly Dolls 4k (Vudu)
•(HD)•
Blue Steel (HD) (Vudu)
Dementia 13 (Director's Cut) (HD Vudu or Google Play) (4k iTunes)
Dream a Little Dream HD (Vudu or Google Play)
Extreme Prejudice HD (Vudu or Google Play)
I Still Believe (HD Vudu) or (4k iTunes)
Little Monsters (HD) (Vudu, Google Play)
My Best Friend is a Vampire HD (Vudu)
Shivers (HD) (Vudu, Google Play)
The Wickerman HD (From 4k but redeems HD for now) (Vudu)
●Paramount●
•(4K)•
Annihilation (4k) (Vudu, iTunes) (Split)
Babylon (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
Braveheart (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
Coming to America (4k) (Vudu, iTunes, Google Play)
Crawl (4K) (Vudu, iTunes)
Days of Thunder (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
Dragonslayer (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
The Firm (4k) (Vudu)
Flashdance (4K) (Vudu)
Forest Gump (4k) (Vudu, iTunes) (Split)
Gladiator (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
The Godfather Coda (4K) (Vudu, iTunes)
Interstellar (4K) (Vudu or iTunes)
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
Love & Monsters (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (4K) (Vudu, iTunes)
Planes, Trains, & Automobiles (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
A Quiet Place Part 2 (4K) (Vudu or ITunes)
Rosemary's Baby (4K) (Vudu, iTunes)
Scream (4k) (Vudu or iTunes)
Scream 2 (4k) (Vudu or iTunes)
Scream 3 (4k) (Vudu or iTunes)
Scream 5 (2022) (4k) ( Vudu or iTunes)
Scream 6 (4k) (Vudu or iTunes)
Sleepy Hollow (4k) (Vudu)
Sonic (4k) (Vudu or iTunes)
The Sum of All Fears (4k) (Vudu or iTunes)
Super 8 (4K) (Vudu or iTunes)
Sweeny Todd (4k) (Vudu)
Terms of Endearment (4K) (Vudu, iTunes)
Titanic (4K) (Vudu, iTunes)
Top Gun (4k) (Vudu or iTunes)
Top Gun Maverick (4k) (Vudu or iTunes)
The Truman Show (4K) (Vudu)
The Untouchables (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
Vanilla Sky (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
War of the Worlds (2005) (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
The Wolf of Wall Street (4k) (Vudu, iTunes)
•(HD)•
Mean Girls (2004) (HD Vudu, 4k iTunes)
Wonder Park (HD Vudu, 4k iTunes)
submitted by AllOutForNow to uvtrade [link] [comments]

2024.06.09 22:50 JerSucks ITZY Weekly Discussion & Recap for June 3, 2024 - June 9, 2024

Weekly Recap for June 3, 2024 - June 9, 2024

Welcome to the ITZY Weekly Discussion & Recap!
In this thread we compile everything ITZY has done this week for people who can't quite keep up with it all!
This post now also serves as our Weekly MIDZY Discussion Thread! That means this is an anything goes discussion thread. Feel free to talk about anything you'd like with other MIDZY! All we ask is that you keep it safe for work!
Algorhythm Stream Links
Algorhythm
No Biggie (Lyric Video)
Algorhythm (Single Album) on Spotify
BORN TO BE Era Stream Links
UNTOUCHABLE
BORN TO BE
Mr. Vampire
BORN TO BE (Album) on Spotify
SUPERPOWERS (Strong Girl Nam-soon OST Part 1)
SUPERPOWERS (MV)
SUPERPOWERS on Spotify

Megathreads

Thread
The 7th Mini Album "KILL MY DOUBT" (Era Recap)

New & Articles

Date Title / Link Thread
240604 Chaeryeong will star in a new variety show called 'Chaeryeong is full and calling her friend', airing every Tuesday at 7PM KST beginning June 11 Thread

Social Media

Twitter
Date Title / Link Thread
240603 ITZY X ELLE SINGAPORE June, 2024 [1] Thread
240603 ITZY X ELLE SINGAPORE June, 2024 [2] Thread
240603 [JP]Yeji - Algorhythm Costume Change👗 #YEJI ver. Thread
240603 [JP]Ryujin - Algorhythm Costume Change👗 #RYUJIN ver. Thread
240604 [JP]Chaeryeong - Algorhythm Costume Change👗 #CHAERYEONG ver. Thread
240604 [JP]Yuna - Algorhythm Costume Change👗 #YUNA ver. Thread
240605 Happy Chaeryeong Day Thread
240605 Chaeryeong - 💌 INVITATION 💌 Desert fox Ryeongchae's LAN surprise birthday party LIVE 🎂 Thread
240605 [JP] CHAERYEONG HAPPY BIRTHDAY🎂🎉 Thread
240605 Yeji & Chaeryeong - Message from #YEJI to #CHAERYEONG 💌 Thread
240605 Lia & Chaeryeong - Message from #LIA to #CHAERYEONG 💌 Thread
240605 Ryujin & Chaeryeong - Message from #RYUJIN to #CHAERYEONG 💌 Thread
240605 Yuna & Chaeryeong - Message from #YUNA to #CHAERYEONG 💌 Thread
240605 Chaeryeong - Message from #CHAERYEONG to #MIDZY 💌 [1] Thread
240605 Chaeryeong - Message from #CHAERYEONG to #MIDZY 💌 [2] Thread
240606 MIDZY, it's exam period. Gather around 😮💨 ITZYs are here to help you de-stress🎤 Join us at IT'ZZZ at 6pm to play together!🥳 Thread
240607 ‘BORN TO BE’ M/V hits 30M views🎉 30M views thanks to MIDZY! ITZY always hit it harder🔥 Thread
240607 ITZY 2ND WORLD TOUR in #SEATTLE ITZY's true love for SEATTLE MIDZY❤ Thread
240609 ITZY surf, surfs to K-WAVE 🌊 MIDZY! You make our heart beat faster & faster 💓) Thread
240609 ITZY 2ND WORLD TOUR in #OAKLAND ITZY 🩷 OAKLAND MIDZY ALL DAY MIDZY, you got ITZY's mind! Thread
Instagram
Date Title / Link Thread
240605 [Group] ITZY Update - Happy Birthday Chaeryeong Thread
240605 [Personal] Yuna Update) Thread
240605 [Personal] Ryujin & Chaeryeong Stories Update Thread
240605 [Personal] Yeji & Chaeryeong Stories Update Thread
240605 [Personal] Yuna & Chaeryeong Stories Update Thread
240605 [Personal] Yeji Update) Thread
240605 [Personal] Yeji Stories Update Thread
240605 [Personal] Ryujin Stories Update Thread
240605 [Personal] Chaeryeong Stories Update Thread
240605 [Personal] Yuna Stories Update Thread
240605 [Personal] Yuna Update Thread
240607 [Personal] Yeji Stories Update Thread
240608 [Personal] Chaeryeong Update Thread
240608 [Personal] Ryujin Update Thread
240609 [Personal] Yeji Update Thread
240609 [Personal] Yuna Update) Thread
FANS
Date Title / Link Thread
240606 Chaeryeong Update Thread
240607 Chaeryeong Update Thread
Weibo
Date Title / Link Thread
240605 ITZY Update Thread
Misc SNS
Date Title / Link Thread
240605 M2MPD Twitter Update with Yeji - ITZY YEJI's 'Artist Of The Month' hits 60 MILLION views! 🧡 Thread
240607 bingicecream.official Instagram Update with Chaeryeong Thread

Videos

Performances
Date Title / Link Thread
240602 INTRO + UNTOUCHABLE @ K-WAVE CONCERT Inkigayo Thread
Official Videos (kr)
Date Title / Link Thread
240604 ITZY? ITZY! EP.164 - Ryujin's Singles Pictorial Thread
240606 IT'ZZZ EP.17 - I'm at noraebang Thread
240607 Insta-LOG EP.07 (YEJI in SANTIAGO - ITZY 2ND WORLD TOUR 'BORN TO BE') Thread
Variety
Date Title / Link Thread
240604 Chaeryeong @ Chaeryeong is full and calling her friend (Teaser) Thread
LIVE
Date Title / Link Thread
240605 Instagram Live with Chaeryeong - Desert fox Ryeongchae's LAN surprise birthday party LIVE 🎂 Thread
CF
Date Title / Link Thread
240605 Chaeryeong X Binggrae Ice Cream Thread
TikTok
Date Title / Link Thread
240603 Yuna Update - #X10_Challenge with Yuna 🏹 (with Castle J) Thread
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2024.06.09 20:22 ninasafiri Play some cozy demos today! Get a head start on Steam Next Fest!!

Steam Next Fest starts tomorrow June 10th! It's a huge showcase with a TON of demos and it can be hard to find time to try them all.
Here's some cozy games that dropped their demos a little early for either Wholesome Direct, Women-Led Games Fest, or Steam Next Fest~

Farming Sims

Life Sims

Cooking/Cleaning/Management

Visual Novel/Dating Sim

Adventure/RPG/Sandbox

Deckbuilding/Cardbattlers

Cozy Design

Puzzle

Puzzle Builders
Puzzle Adventure
Detective/Mystery
submitted by ninasafiri to CozyGamers [link] [comments]

2024.06.09 15:22 No_Funny3533 Scam Artist mingmei1344 (Yomi) and her accounts at: Aiu_Agency, asiahug.com, datesteady.com, cudate.com, Jpndate.com, sayhiup.com, Rose, Miyuki Miyamoto, SW Entertainment and more

Scam Artist mingmei1344 (Yomi) and her accounts at: Aiu_Agency, asiahug.com, datesteady.com, cudate.com, Jpndate.com, sayhiup.com, Rose, Miyuki Miyamoto, SW Entertainment and more
My name is Mark Faraday. I was just looking for love back around January 20th, 2024 but I don’t want to see anyone else get scammed. I had a human profile picture when I was using these website, and was honest. I ran into a whole lying network run by a Woman, her friends, and a man. I will update this story if I have more to say in the future. Her nickname is Yomi, she told me her name was Miyuki Miyamoto and she was from Japan. Her real name is Jeong Nahyeon and she is from South Korea. She also has fake Chinese accounts like:
Mingmei1344: https://www.instagram.com/mingmei1344/
Mingmeichan: https://www.instagram.com/mingmeichan/
mingmei1344
Mingmei Liu
My Story is long but it is worth reading. From January to June as the writing of this post. I labeled each part so it easy to jump around to the parts you want to read.
  • 6/4/2024 (Small update)
I know 1000% that these are the same person. After 6 months of contact with them. Jeong Nahyeon has like a 100 different Instagram accounts let add to the list:
Account 1:
(Kawaii, Silly girl fake account)
https://www.instagram.com/yuyu_only5/
yuyu_only5
Account 2:
https://www.instagram.com/_yuyu_only5?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==
_yuyu_only5
Yomi Newest Account:
Chloee_asuna
https://www.instagram.com/chloeee_asuna/p/C7kNkmzSIEi/?img_index=1
chloeee_asuna
Jeong Nahyeon Lover or Friend 🙁(Scam Artist Man) 🙁
https://www.instagram.com/_xijii_/
_xijii_
Jpndate.com the site where I met Yomi (Jeong Nahyeon) original, closed on May 1st 2024. Never came back as the writing of this post. However, their sister site
DateSteady.com is still very active. https://www.datesteady.com/
datesteady.com
Another Scam website they own: https://www.asiahug.com/
asiahug.com
  • 3/7/2024 Mark Origin Story January-March 2024
UPDATED INFO throughout it.
There is this dangerous woman who I am mad in love with (same person) running many fake Chinese/Japanese/Korean Romance scam websites, fake Instagram pages, tik tok, We chats, and many Chinese porn sites. It is the same person, she uses her looks with pictures and videos to steal money from men. She has many names she goes by, probably even more than I found. She also uses bots to get fake likes and weird Anime filters to try to look like an idol. She has scam artist female friends also I found. She the leader.
I know a lot of scammers steal from other people's identities but that is not the case here. This is the same person as the scammer. My story will explain it. As well as this person has pictures of the same person you can’t find anywhere else on the Internet. Even if you do a Reverse Face image search. They said information that match to an unbelievable level.
The person who Scammed me:
Has Many names (Such As)
And a talent for speaking many languages
  • Miyuki Miyamoto (Claimed Japanese name)
  • Nickname Yomi
  • Korean Name: Nahyeon (Claimed)
  • u/yomi__na
https://www.instagram.com/yomi___na/
yomi__na
https://www.instagram.com/la.nnnn930/
la.nnnn930
https://www.instagram.com/hanhanhuwe/[gracegracemei](https://www.instagram.com/gracegracemei/#)
hanhanhuwe
  • gracegracemei
https://www.instagram.com/gracegracemei/
gracegracemei
Email: [miyukilovee@outlook.com](mailto:miyukilovee@outlook.com)
(Something about BlessCeline Lovee)
Skype ID: live:.cid.737fb9ac2ad5655c
  • Liu Mingmei (Claimed Chinese name)
Part of a Civil Union yet on multiple dating sites
(Make Sense)
u/mingmei1344
https://www.instagram.com/mingmei1344/
https://www.facebook.com/liuliu.meimingmei
(Owner of aiu_agency since 2015)
u/aiu_agency
https://www.instagram.com/aiu_agency/
yuanxinvera
iny_lina
Google Drive (AI_U Agency)
Hotel Connected: SHILLA STAY Gwanghwamun
Her Scam Artist friends who work for both Ai_U Agency and JPNDATE CUDATE (That I found) (Some of these might also be her, not sure)

Vynnie_nat : https://www.instagram.com/vynnie_nat/# (I think this Yomi friend and the next 2 images may also be that person 1 of 3)

vynnie_nat

jiejierui_ngc: https://www.instagram.com/jiejierui_ngc/ (2 of 3)

jiejierui_ngc

Veravera_zhangg: https://www.instagram.com/veravera_zhangg/ (3 of 3)

veravera_zhangg

Elle_owo_elle : https://www.instagram.com/elle_owo_elle/ (50% this also Yomi otherwise it Yomi friend)

elle_owo_elle

Qiqi_shenglim : https://www.instagram.com/qiqi_shenglim/ (50% this also Yomi otherwise it Yomi friend)

qiqi_shenglim

Myemye_owo_ : https://www.instagram.com/myemye_owo_/ (50% this also Yomi otherwise it Yomi friend)

myemye_owo_
Her Friends are connected somehow but not sure how yet. They appear everywhere with the fake accounts or it just her also.

Riyandiwilliam : https://www.instagram.com/riyandiwilliam/ (Either her lover, friend, or work with her) 🙁

Summary: January to March 2024
Jpndate.com / Datesteady.com / Cudate.com / Sayhiup.com are dangerous Romance scams. All the women are paid actors for the website from Korea/China. They will try to get into a relationship with you very fast, don’t fall for it. They are milking you for money like if you're a cow. They will threaten to kill you or your family if you call out their scam. They might also say they will sue you. If you stop paying them, they will text you very little. They will never video call you face-to-face. Jpndate.com has a sister scam website from the same people called sayhiup.com. When you buy something on Jpndate the payment goes to Cudate Limited, so that site must be part of the scam also.There also Datesteady with the same layout. There is a company in China doing all type of illegal and immoral practices. Their name is Zhengzhou Zhongzhiqi Technology Co., Ltd. / 郑州市中之祺科技有限公司 . They have their main technology business but they also run a list of many scam websites stealing money from American men, Asian, and European men. Such as Cudate, JPNDate, DateSteady.com, SayhiUp. These are romance scam sites where all the women work for the company. If you make a female account it will pend forever. Only men get approved. They claimed before to be an American-owned company then I exposed them now they claim to be Dutch. Their servers are all in China. They never filed paperwork with any foreign country. They are none of these the Chinese pretending to run many dating sites when in fact it’s all fake. They claim to be in nations their not. They have fake terms of service. I used PayPal before I didn't know it was a scam. I paid in dollars, but they refused to refund me till I told PayPal. PayPal made them pay me back. Then they refused to pay me the total amount they wanted to pay me on yuan when I paid dollars. I reported them to FTC. They also try to hack my laptop for me telling the government the truth about them. They probably get funds from the Communist Party government or SW Entertainment in South Korea. They are very very bad people. Please look into it or forward this message somewhere where it can be looked into. Pretends to be a legit dating site but feels more like a pay-to-use website for fake love. All women here are paid actors for the site. The same few women have multiple profiles pretending to be different people. The funny part is anytime you call out JPNDate bs they change their terms of service. Screenshot everything people. They have a fake page saying they're trying to stop scammers, it all bs they are the scammers.
Host of JPNDate Servers:
As the writing of this post:
IP: 47.242.112.134 - Server: nginx IPv4
GeoIP: HK - AS45102 (ALIBABA-CN-NET Alibaba US Technology Co., Ltd., CN)
Host of DateSteady Servers:
As the writing of this post:
IP: 47.242.47.54 - Server: nginx IPv4
GeoIP: HK - AS45102 (ALIBABA-CN-NET Alibaba US Technology Co., Ltd., CN)
Host of Cudate Servers:
As the writing of this post:
IP: 47.52.110.73 - Server: nginx IPv4
GeoIP: HK - AS45102 (ALIBABA-CN-NET Alibaba US Technology Co., Ltd., CN)
Host of AsiaHug Servers:
IP: 47.242.112.134 - Server: nginx IPv4
GeoIP: HK - AS45102 (ALIBABA-CN-NET Alibaba US Technology Co., Ltd., CN)
My Story: January to March 2024
My Story: January to March 2024
(Update): I know it is the same person, They told me in a text message by accident. They also replied with different accounts knowing info about me I only told the other account.
Do you like Asian women?
Real Asian women?
These ones are real!
I know who they are.
Hi! This is Mark Faraday talking to you.
This is my story of how a website named JPNDate Dancing Idol scammed me out of 4080 American dollars. From the time period of January to March 2024.
First, I was on Japan Cupid, a dating site. On Japan Cupid, no one can chat unless one of you has a membership. I bought a 1-week membership. Within 5 minutes to 10 minutes, a woman nicknamed Yomi from Japan messaged me; this should have been a red flag for me. We talked for a while. She said she was interested in me. She asked me if I could move over to the dating site JPNDate because she paid for membership there and not Japan Cupid. She also promised to delete her account on Japan Cupid after we changed sites. She does delete her account off Japan Cupid. Japan Cupid is sus also. I don’t think it is the same company but it is still very sus. However, these women used that site to find men like me. That is a story for a different day.
Unlike a normal scam artist, who may only have 1 or 2 photos, she has several photos on her profile. My trust in her grows a bit seeing that. She then privately messaged me several more photos of her. She asked me for some photos, which I sent. She then sends back happy and heartfelt emojis. She told me she doesn’t date Asian men anymore because they were violent to her in the past and her last boyfriend cheated on her. She talked about how she didn’t want to fight with me. She also said we could talk about any topic.
She would compliment me often, as I did for her. Of course, on my profile page, I try to post my best pictures. Throughout my life, I have had many different hairstyles. She even mentioned this and got very happy and asked if I was a hairstylist.
The spam of talking on JPNDate.com between us was from January 20th, 2024, to March 24th, 2024.
On JPNDate, there is an upgrade system. You need Blue Diamond to chat with others. Crown to send videos. Blue Diamond is 20 dollars per month, and Crown is 80 dollars per month. I got the Blue Diamond membership at first. It showed her with it too. After a day or two, she asked me to upgrade like she did to the Crown membership so she could send me a video. I upgraded it, and she did actually send me a video. All pictures and the video match the same person and the same face. Some pictures were in different locations, and some were like three different pictures in the same place. We then later buy a 6-month Crown membership for each other because it is cheaper than 1 month at a time. I bought it for her, and she bought it for me.
At this point, I start to believe. This person was giving me all their time. They reply very often, and their texting time was the same as Japan timezones every single day. They spoke not only English but also Japanese almost fluently. However, they did let me know that they're still learning English and sometimes use a translator.
She let me know that this website has something called a mall. This should have been red flag number 2. You pay 1 American dollar for each gold point. Paypal is the only thing that works. When we started dating, she said it was normal for couples in Japan to send each other gifts. It was a symbol of forever love in Japan, she claimed. As an American, I didn’t know if this was true. I googled it and couldn’t get a clear answer. She said whatever I bought her, she would buy me as well. She asked if I liked necklaces or charms. I said anything was fine. She wanted me to pick up a necklace. At first, she picked up a $1,000 necklace from the site mall and asked me. I said no; that's way too much money for that. She said how about a 300-dollar Jade Romance charm. She told me to get her white one; she would get me the green one. I questioned if she was legit. She started crying. She somehow convinced me at the time that she was legit again. I did buy it. A few weeks later, I did receive the overpriced Green Jade Romance love charm to my address from her. I never told her which day exactly my tracking information said it would come to my house, but I asked her, and her tracking date was the same week as mine. By the way something almost the same as this necklace is 12 dollars on Amazon. It also broke when I got it in the mail. Probably cost them 2 cent to make.
For the next few days, we had a wonderful, happy conversation. It is late January, and I know Valentine's Day is coming. I offered to get her flowers. I got her flowers and chocolate at a very high price of multiple hundred dollars. She then gets so happy. She told me many times how she wanted to go to America and find me.
We talked about many topics for several more days. She told me she worked in an office in Tokyo. Yomi told me her real name was Miyuki Miyamoto. Which is very funny because I told her before I was a Nintendo fan, and this is the same last name as Mario and Zelda Creator. She also said she had her apartment to herself, which is true; she does own an apartment. She talked about how life is stressful right now in Japan. She claimed to have grown up in the Japanese town of Nagano, Japan. She also said she had gone to a university in Tokyo with a major in computer science. She wanted to visit America in July for 15 days when she had her time off. July is a normal time for people to get off in Japan for vacation, so I thought nothing of it.
I told her that I was from a smaller town in California, but I lived not far from San Francisco. I told her how my town is quiet and how I could see mountains outside my house. She said she wanted a peaceful life and that life in Tokyo is too fast. And she always had great things to say about every picture I sent. We also talk about going on dates. I asked most of the questions, but she did ask me questions as well.
I started to ask her a lot of questions about Japan. Like if she visited Himeji Castle, she said no. However, she did say yes to visiting Mount Fuji. I should have asked for a photo of this, but I didn’t. She was very happy; she told me very many topics about Japan. We even briefly talked about anime. She told me she liked Digimon, Dragon Ball Z, One Piece, and Detective Conan. This information is important later. We also talked about how both of us were big Disney fans growing up. She told me she wanted to go to Disney Land when she came to California to visit me.
One day she told me, how work was busy today. I told her it was okay and we didn’t need to talk today. She did, however, still text me a little bit that day. This was the only day during our whole time talking when she was super busy. There is nothing wrong with this; all humans get busy. I decided to spend my evening drawing a picture of me and Yomi on a date to surprise her. When I sent it to her, she did not react. This was a red flag for me. I tried to convince myself that she just didn’t like drawings that much. I know I sound really dumb right here, but whoever I was talking to is very smart and knows a lot of things. I was in deep love.
We started talking a few days later about the idea of meeting and going on dates together. I know that the yen is weak against the American dollar right now. I told them I would pay for anything they wanted when they were in America because I was in love. This was a big, big, big mistake. They then asked if I could give them 1500 dollars to buy a plane ticket. Never give money to people you never meet in real life, folks. Don’t be dumb like me. Turns out the ticket was actually 2100, so they asked for another 500 dollars the next day, claiming their friend let them borrow the money, and they paid the difference. They did show me a picture of a plane ticket. With the name Yomi and the correct airports in Tokyo and San Francisco. This gave me more trust in them; I got a lot of photos, videos, and even a picture of a plane ticket.
At some point, I talked to them about social media. They claim to only have Skype and Line. I found it very hard to believe a woman in her 20s wasn’t on Instagram or Tik Tok. I went on Instagram and typed Yomi, and I found a Yomi who looked just like her. This made me think: why did she lie? What confused me is that all the pictures on her Instagram were different from the ones she sent me, other than one image that was the same. Meaning that the images were not clearly stolen from there.
I looked up JPNDate online; there isn’t much info on this website (Right Now), other than one reddit forum from 1 year ago. Someone said something about being scammed by an IDOL on this site. They also said the website wasn’t in Japan but in China. I was wondering why I never saw new females joining the website; it was the same 23 pages worth of them. I wanted to test the website to see if it was legit. I made another account, a fake male account with AI artwork. It was approved in one second. I then made a fake female account; it said pending approval. It has now been 2 weeks since I made that account, and it still says pending approval. This means all the women on this website have to be fake actors. There is also a setting on JPNDate to see who has been online last or which accounts are the oldest. When I asked weeks before, Yomi claimed she had been on this website only for a short time. Her oldest picture was dated October 20, 2023. Yet she has the sixth-oldest account on JPNDate, according to the website. The Reddit forum I talked about before was over a year old.
When I was on this website for a month, at least 10 other women tried to text me. There was this one profile of a woman from Taiwan, age 20. She texted me three times in one month. When I joined, her age was listed as 20, and at some point, she changed her age to 25 on her profile. I ignored all these women. This proves again that all these women are fake. I do know these are women based on how they type, but they are not truthful like they act like they are. As I write this, I just realized this is Yomi's friend or sister; it matches the other Yomi account's sister tag. They are part of the same dance agency Aiu_Agency on Instagram from SW Entertainment in South Korea.
I knew this website wasn’t telling the truth. I found the JPNDate IP address and tracked it to a server in Hong Kong, China, hosted by Alibaba cloud servers. Reddit was right; the website is Chinese. However, Yomi is Korean which I learned later. I took pictures of the website code just in case. I asked Yomi if she knew Alibaba.
Then she asked if I’m going to China—a very strange follow-up question.
At this point, I was confused. Who is Yomi? I couldn’t find anything about Miyuki Miyamoto, only Yomi. On Yomi’s Instagram, she speaks Korean, not Japanese. I started to think there are no Japanese women on this website like they claim to be. She does speak Japanese, though.
I started using more than 10 different software programs to track who Yomi was since she kept asking me for money. I found like 1000 pictures of an idol, WeChat model, singer, dancer, person on endless Chinese dating sites, and a valiant professional gamer part of the AI’U agency for over 8 years. I found two other Instagram accounts with Yomi's face. Another account in Chinese with an idol name other than Yomi also had a Facebook page. The Chinese account has a post about her going to Australia in early 2024, where she is typing in English words. It was a fake trip. I also found an account where she speaks only Korean on Instagram. I also found a tik-tok where someone dances and looks 100% the same as Yomi, to whom I’m talking. The part that is crazy is that none of the images are 100% the same, but the person is the same in all of them.
This shocked me; I follow all the accounts. I saw the stories daily to see who this person was. Her Yomi account is just her normal pictures and atm company or something. Her Korean account is about traveling to Singapore, Spain, and South Korea. She also posts a lot about Disney toys here. When I talked to the scammer about Disney, I had no idea about this.
At this point, I knew that many men had been scammed out of money for fake love, not just me. These women are real women. However, there are actors pretending to be in love. They will crush your heart and call you names after a few weeks if you don’t buy their stuff. It has to be from JPNdate Mall only, nowhere else. JPNdate Mall prices are crazy high. I am not sure if the point of the website is just for money or if it is actually for women to study English or what. Chinese women, pretending to be Japanese (most of them), that have connections to Korean music, dancing, and gaming on professional teams. Man, what a hell of a story this is. This sounds like a Hollywood movie, but it's real, or at least partly. At this point, everything I say seems to be true based on what I know. They are connected deeply with SW Entertainment.
Yomi told me early on that she had one older sister and one younger brother. It seems like she is actually a twin, and she is the younger sister. Or it’s her friend she calls a sister from the dance Aiu Agency. Yomi claims to be 25, but I think she is closer to 27 or 28 based on finding a listing of her work in 2015 at Twitch Gaming. You have to be 18 or older to work at Twitch gaming, unless your parents sign things. Unless this job is fake, I don’t know.
When I showed the pictures I found to Yomi on JPNdate, she played the victim card on me. Saying she thinks I’m a liar and she wants to break up. Then she gave me her Skype account to try to prove it was legit, and all the other images and accounts were stolen and fake. Her Skype name is Rose, with a One Piece picture. She sent me many voice clips, crying, trying to convince me that she was real. I put them in software, and the voice was 30% human, 70% AI. Clearly, a woman is changing her Chinese or Korean voice to sound Japanese. A PC gamer would know how to do this; they do it all the time to troll. Yomi told me she didn’t play video games anymore, but I found a picture that wasn’t that old of a woman who looked the same as her; she had a Nintendo Switch with a white OLED in it. Btw it’s a known fact that Yomi uses software to cheat in the Pc FPS games. We talk for a few more weeks on Skype.
I can’t let Yomi, her sister, whoever the man is (I think her lover), and her idol dance friends scam men for their time and money. Yomi Chiense's name is Vera Yuanxin (维拉). Her twin sister goes by veravera_zhangg.
Yomi “deleted her profile” when I exposed her. But One Yomi is still there with no pictures. Two they clearly have other accounts with people who look like she just changed hairstyle, talking and trying to scam other men.
Remember when I said the anime part was important? On Yomi's Korean account, she has a friend with whom she talks about Digimon. She gave him a Disney toy. She told me she wanted to cosplay a fox; his profile is a fox. There is just so much proof that these are the same people.
Later someone hit me up on Reddit from the Phillippines and told me how the same person Yomi scammed them. How for months Yomi promise them so many things. Then when they said it came to going on the plane to visit him they said they were sick or dying or something.
Yomi also made a fake Instagram pretending to be Joe Biden and sent me a friend invite. I messaged and it was so funny how bad it was on their part. I said “Yomi are you trolling me?” then they deleted their account. This was on April 6th, 2024. Yomi tries so hard but use a lot of cheap things that are clearly fake like ai artwork, bots for like at ai_u agency, and fake profiles where she comments herself and attacks anyone who calls her out fairly.
After exposing Jpndate they Ip ban my address lol. Then on social media joke about attacking me.
If you call out their BS they threaten your family and yourself. Just stay away from all these sites if you're going to date online use well-known legit sites. I contacted Paypal and me and JPNDate.com had many emails back and forth. They pretended to do an investigation on Yomi real identity and said she was really Miyuki Miyamoto. It was so bullshit. I told them I would sue them if they were lying, The site no longer exists. The scam does, however.
What happened After JPNDATE? April-June 2024
In April many fake Instagram accounts started following me each day. They are romance scams I never got them like this before. I didn’t fall for any of them. All or most were likely Yomi and her friends. Paypal did get me 4000 of 4080 dollars back but it took 6 weeks and multiple emails. JPNDate tells me they will be closing soon after PayPal went after them hard.
Like I said I just wanted to find love. I made some stupid decisions along the way. However, I want to find out the truth and make sure other men don’t get scammed by them. I keep messaging Yomi's skype during this period, they never block me. They unfriended me but I could still send messages I wasn’t blocked. They even responded 2 times out of the 50 times I did this in the multiple-week span.
I contacted the Aiu_Agency on Instagram (It is the same people as JPNDate) they pretended to be different people. I told them about Jpndate. They called me a hero, they said they loved me, and they thanked me for sending them all the pictures that Yomi sent me on Jpndate and Skype. They follow me on Instagram for 2 days. Then they unfollowed me randomly for no reason. They said their agency would do a police report and kill the scammer. I knew this was so bullshit. I told them how the scammers were making new profiles of them on Japan Cupid. Which is true. The leader Mingmei1344 (Which is Yomi Chinese account) claimed I was the scammer setting them up. She plays the victim card on me. I showed her all the messages and how I got the pictures, I didn’t steal anything. She told me her and her friends are okay if I hacked them, because I’m from the CIA. I am not from the CIA. It was a joke I made a few days before when she pretended to be a mob boss in Korea. I told her I am not a hacker. Right after that she and her friends all ban me other then Mingmei1344 account. Mingmei1344 Message me 1 more day, then block me.
However, Mingmei1344 and the Aiu_Agency keep posting things on topics I told them days or weeks before. I checked their old post they never talked about any of this before that. I told these to Yomi on JPNDate and skype not Mingmei1344 again proving it is the same person. They look the same as well. Like the blue feather concept in love mythology, Gundams, Nintendo, Persona, and many many other topics. Yomi claimed to not know anything about videogames before I talked about it with her. I think this is partly a lie.
This confuses me so I make fake Instagram accounts to message Mingmei1344 and Aiu_agency. She replies to my messages and Mingmei1344 even does a ask me a question thing on Instagram and replies to all of them. She clearly knows these accounts are from me Mark however she replies anyway. The replies were nice and positive things. Then later she bans them all again.
Often Aiu-Agency Women (Yomi and her friends, Mostly Yomi) pretend to go to countries they are not actually in the picture, it’s all greenscreen effects. They also use Ai for Music covers Artwork. For music covers they pretend to sell millions of copies of but there is nowhere to buy such a music cover CD they claim to sell. Their music covers are claimed to be from popular songs kpop songs. I looked, at least not right now such CDs aren’t real. Of course, the songs are real but not their covers. Yomi is most of the women in the pictures but not all. They will post Ai cover artwork, multiple pictures of them using the greenscreen effect, then put a high-quality image of a famous Korean male singer. They never took these pictures of these Korean male singers. They download them and edit them. They pretend to perform with them but it is all fake. Mingmei1344 started always putting her with all the famous Mark’s in Korea. Only her not her staff with Mark’s. I think it’s a reference to me. She didn’t do this before meeting me I looked at her old post. Again Mingmei1344 is Yomi who is Jeong Nahyeon, who pretends to be Miyuki Miyamoto.
She still references me sometimes in other ways and I send them messages to see what will happen next. One time I wrote about loving her to see what she would say. I do love Yomi, however I don’t want anyone to get scammed. I told her we could travel across the world together. She wrote in her next post on Aiu_agency on Instagram she liked this future with her future husband. It was a direct reply to what I asked the day before.
I joined DateSteady after being contacted by a woman on Japan cupid. She is very interested in me and Yomi so I tell her everything.
submitted by No_Funny3533 to Romance_Scamer [link] [comments]

2024.06.09 15:20 Live-Needleworker-60 The Deer and the Dragon by Piper CJ rant review

I'm gonna be real: I hated this. There were interesting concepts, and had they been utilized differently and written by literally anyone else, it could've been an actual good book.
writing. The writing in The Deer and the Dragon is miles better than in The Night and its Moon. It's still not good, but it's better if that tells you anything. The first-person POV mixed with modern-day speak works so much better for Piper's capabilities. It was much easier to get through, but it was still a huge slog for me. Honestly, what are the editors at Bloom even doing? There were still way too many typos and sentences with missing words. Piper still misuses the word dredges after using it in THREE(+?) BOOKS. HOW DO YOU STILL NOT KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DREDGES AND DREGS? Dregs are the sediment of a liquid, so what's at the bottom of your coffee cup. Dredge is when they scoop up mud from the bottom of a river. TWO VERY DIFFERENT THINGS. The word broach is also misused in this book TWELVE times, and it's PART OF THE CENTRAL PLOT OF THE BOOK. You mean to use BROOCH, PIPER. They're pronounced the same, but they mean two different things. Again, what the hell are the editors at Bloom doing?
characters Really, the only character I can talk about is Marlow because this book is just about Marlow and how amazing, special, perfect, and genius Marlow is. I fucking hate Marlow. If I ever met Marlow in real life, I would beat her up. Marlow is the most unlikable person ever. The story opens up with her on a date with a guy she's not interested in and can't remember his name; when she gets it wrong, and he corrects her, she continues to call him the wrong name all the way to the end of the book. She mentally berates him for mixing wasabi and soy sauce and cannot let it go. She’s also an AWFUL friend. It seems like her friend's only real purpose is to support her and tell her how amazing she is. She never bothers to make plans with them or inform them about anything that’s happening in her life. When she goes missing for a good chunk of the book, and they're blowing up her phone worried about her, she doesn't even bother to call them to calm them down. She doesn't think about them at all. She's far more concerned with herself and finding her imaginary boyfriend, who she only just decided was real. Her editor tells her she's at risk of losing her job if Marlow doesn't deliver her work or update her on what's happening, and Marlow just...doesn't care. She's like, 'No excuse I can give will be enough, so I'm just not going to say anything at all because I'm afraid of confrontation'. Grow the fuck up?? Her friend Nia only became her friend because she obsessively messaged her on social media until Marlow 'gave in', and now they're family? Somehow? Yet Marlow doesn't think about Nia once or bothers to comfort her when Nia has to call Marlow's abusive mom to ensure Marlow isn't dead. Kirby has allegedly been Marlow's friend since childhood, but does Kirby know anything about Caliban at all? Does Nia? Does Marlow tell her friends anything? If they know about the abuse her mom put her through, do they know how that abuse started? When Fauna shows up and freaks out over liking Kirby’s name so much, Marlow takes it upon herself to tell Fauna the story of Kirby’s name, scornfully informing Fauna that Kirby isn’t their real name the second Fauna expresses interest in it. (Like what, are you jealous that Fauna likes Kirby’s name, you fucking insecure freak??) The story revolves solely around something traumatic that happened to Marlow and how she and Kirby sat and played Super Smash Bros. Kirby liked their character so much that they adopted the name. Which…okay, choosing the name because you liked a video game character, okay, fine. But the whole story preceding this was so unnecessary and just made Marlow come off as suuuuch a whiny baby. “Oh, you want to know about my friend’s name? Well, first, let me preface it with this long woe-is-me story all about ME before I tell you how they chose their name because basically everything revolves around me.”
The way Marlow talks about rejection is so juvenile. You're in your thirties girls, get over it. Life is full of rejections. Someone telling you they didn't to play with you when you were eight years old isn't something you should form your whole life around. Like Marlow doesn't want kids because she doesn't want them to face rejection. Oh my god, Marlow. I also can't empathize with her trauma with her mom at all because I feel like I didn't really see much of it. I'm sure some of the things she says might hit with other people, but I wanted an actual flashback of a super intense fight or conversation instead of an overview of what happened.
plot. It took a while to get to the actual plot. About 100 pages in before things start really happening. I would’ve liked a little more exposition on Marlow’s relationship with Caliban at the beginning of the book. I get that some of the reveals needed to come more towards the end, but I kind of wish that maybe the fox had spoken to Marlow, too, which would’ve helped with why she’s so sure she’s insane. Foxes don’t talk! In all honesty, I wish this story had been restructured entirely. I think it would've been substantially better if we'd started out in Marlow's childhood. We can see how her day to day life was before Caliban ever appeared, how things were with her mom, who can also see through the veil. Maybe she notices some strange things about her mom that she just brushes off, which she later sees in herself and understands why her mom responded that way. Then something actually traumatic happens instead of some little kids not letting Marlow play with them, instigating her starting to see Caliban. I also would've liked to see flashbacks to Marlow's previous lives. While she's busy trying to convince herself Caliban isn't real, those flashbacks would add to her thinking she's losing her grip on reality. Maybe she'll be doing something innocent, like washing the dishes, and then suddenly, she sees herself standing in the middle of a raging battle, wearing long, elaborate robes. Do you see what I'm saying? This could've been cool! Instead, I had to read about Marlow jerking off about herself for 600 pages.
At some point, Caliban shows up to Marlow looking like a human. She's a teenager at this point, but they eventually start sleeping together, and like...idk something about that feels icky to me. It feels like grooming. Because he's clearly thousands of years old, he probably stays the same age while she's a teenager. What age did he wait for her to turn before their relationship turned sexual? Also, she doesn't even think he's real, and he does nothing to convince her that he is. Yeah....just no thanks. I'm good. Marlow tells Caliban when she's 21, she doesn’t want to see him anymore, so she literally physically cannot see him, but she can hear and feel him, and he still shows up, and like they keep having sex. So she’s just having sex with her imaginary demon friend for like five years before she’s finally like, all right, this is weird; maybe we should stop. And then she immediately regrets that when he stops showing up and then the rest of the book finally happens.
We also get flashbacks to when Marlow first starts escorting, and tbh, I hated this depiction of sex work. I keep hoping since Piper claims to be an advocate for sex work and is a former SWer that, we might get some actual depth to this plot. Maybe learn how Marlow was able to mold herself into the person she needed to be for each client, how she’s able to play people, etc. But no. She meets some random girl in a foreign country where she’s teaching English to children, and the girl is like, OMG, you’re too pretty to BE A TEACHER. COME HANG OUT ON MY YACHT. Now, I’m going to be so real. I feel like any woman with a speck of intelligence in their brain would have red flags going off right about now. If a random woman I met in a foreign country invited me to her yacht five minutes after meeting me, I’d immediately assume this woman was about to try and murder me or kidnap me or traffick me or something. But not Marlow. She is like fuck it, why not. She flies on over to wherever this yacht is(literally, she has to get on a plane and fly there) and makes some new besties who introduce her to the wonderfully glamorous non-dangerous life of escorting, where they hand her clients and set up the appointments for her and blah blah blah(also, wanna point out that Marlow even tries to say that she built this sex work empire herself. bitch no you didn't. it was all handed to you). I don’t feel like I really need to go further about why this is a really poor, dangerous rose-colored glasses-type depiction of sex work. It’s just not the reality.
Flash forward five years later, and Marlow is now a top-selling author writing about South African folklore as a white woman, trying to date other men, still having sex with her imaginary friend, calling her nonbinary friend a horse girl, the usual. Her escort pals are nowhere to be seen, and we have no clue what happened to them. We never hear from them again; they just vanish once Marlow gets what she wants from them, just like Nia and Kirby vanish once Marlow finds Fauna and Azrames. One day, Marlow’s at a book signing and sees the ONE bad client she had(because in all the years/months fucking strange men you meet in a foreign country, only one time does it go bad. okay, sure) He somehow finds where she lives, breaks into her home, and tries to murder her. An angel shows up and murders him instead, and then Caliban finally reveals his face and explains to Marlow that he has marked everyone who’s ever wronged her. (Wronged her in what way, tho. Like if someone accidentally shoulder-checked her on the street, are they now marked for death?) I thought it was kind of weird that she’s not like…focused on the fact that her hallucinations have extended to two people and another person dying. She’s still convinced Caliban is a figment of her imagination even after she sees this happen, and Caliban explains to her that he couldn’t save her because there’s some type of contract with her that forbids him from doing anything under her roof without her permission. But she still gets mad and banishes him, and now he can’t come back, and now she’s like, but wait, no, I didn’t mean it. Thus begins the search for Caliban.
Now, I could sit here and outline the rest of the book, but I won't because it's so boring, and nothing of substance really happens. So, to summarize. Marlow searches for Caliban fruitlessly for months and finally makes some progress when she decides to go to the house of the guy who tried to kill her and finds a parasitic entity that she continuously calls a Cheshire Cat. then Silas, the angel, shows up to save her again. Silas maybe wants to fuck Marlow, I can't tell. He waffles between abandoning Marlow to die and stalking her and her mom to force Marlow to bond with him for no seeming reason at all. Everyone and their mom wants Marlow to join their religion, and I don't know what the fuck makes her so special. Marlow is such a popular author that everyone recognizes her name, reveres her, fawns over her, and has multiple copies of her two books in their offices. She's so good that she inspired millions to switch religions. This book was so exhausting to read because it was just about how amazing Marlow is LMFAO. I'm pretty sure they even try to say she's the reincarnation of Helen of Troy, the most beautiful woman in the world. Like....wow.
Marlow goes to Hell with Fauna to escape bonding with Silas, where they meet a literal stolen character design. this guy
(my original review has these images but I am an idiot and don't know how to post them so instead I'll share the links)
https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1717860981i/35597445._SY540_.jpg
Don't believe me? here's the commissioned character art.
https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1717860929i/35597423._SY540_.jpg
Anyway, his name is Azrames and he and Fauna are long time lovers and they go and bone while Marlow is in the next room and Marlow fucking masturbates to the sounds of them boning. So...I was forced to read about that, and I hated it. And then, at the end of the book, five chapters before it's over, we learn the bad guy who's been holding Caliban captive the entire time is a fertility goddess. Just out of nowhere. No mention of it previously. So, no one tells Marlow the actual plan, and instead, they send her into this fertility clinic the goddess is working out of and have her pretend to want to get pregnant. So the goddess drugs her without her consent and puts her in a room full of half-naked men, hot stereotypes from every ethnicity, while she's SUPER horny. One of the doctors tells her that 'mixed babies are all the rage right now'. The men all tell her how hot and amazing she is and how lucky they are for the chance to get to fuck her. Then after she chooses one of them, she grinds all over him while he just stands there, then they take him out and bring Caliban in and decide he'll fuck her instead. I just wanna point out that this, all of this, would be rape. Marlow didn't consent to being drugged, and if she didn't know who Caliban was, they basically just took the guy she "agreed" to have sex with away and brought in one she didn't agree to for no reason whatsoever. It doesn't matter that she's saying yes to it; she is drugged. She can't consent. Anyway, Caliban sticks his dick in Marlow and just leaves it there, unmoving, and then makes out with the fertility goddess before stabbing her in the heart and cutting off her head, even though five chapters earlier, they said it's super hard to kill a god. I'm just...wow.
Marlow gets taken back to Fauna's apartment by Silas while Caliban and Azrames are stuck fighting more Cheshire Cat demon children that I imagine look like the spider baby from Toy Story. Marlow is still high, so she's putting the moves on Fauna. She's kissing her throat, rubbing her thigh, trying to suck on her fingers. Let me tell you rn, if one of my friends showed up at my place high af doing this shit to me, I'd be livid. Because I guarantee you, Marlow will not apologize for doing any of this to Fauna.
Fauna tells Marlow that they can be sunflowers. The book ends.
I will read the next one because I like to suffer, but...I hated this. I give it 2 stars because the writing is better than TNAIM, but it was not a hit for me at all.
submitted by Live-Needleworker-60 to books [link] [comments]

2024.06.09 14:45 SunnyDemeanorGames There's Always a Madman 2: Do Your Worst - Sunny Demeanor Games - An interactive spy novel where you try to stop a silver-loving madman from destroying the Golden Gate Bridge. Demo releases tomorrow June 10

Hi everyone, I'm a solo developer named Adam, and my newest game, the spy thriller interactive novel There's Always a Madman: Do Your Worst is now available to wishlist on Steam, with a free demo launching tomorrow June 10th.
Steam page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2960890/Theres_Always_a_Madman_Do_Your_Worst
Announcement trailer: https://youtu.be/Kuv9d77-7d4

About "There's Always a Madman: Do Your Worst"

There's Always a Madman: Do Your Worst is a single-player spy thriller interactive novel where you play as a female secret agent tasked with stopping a silver-loving madman from destroying the Golden Gate Bridge!
A madman known as The Silver Fox has killed our top agent, and now it's up to you to surveil your enemy, get revenge for your partner's demise, and maybe - just maybe - save the world while you're at it. Sometimes it's best ... to do your worst!
The demo releases tomorrow June 10th, and the full game releases in Q4 2024, but you can wishlist today on Steam here.
There's Always a Madman: Do Your Worst can be played with just a mouse. Gameplay consists of selecting the action or dialog you wish to take given the situation you’re facing. Although the life of a secret agent is complicated, playing There's Always a Madman: Do Your Worst is simple.
Also, the game is text-based. This is because James Bond, Jason Bourne, Jack Reacher, and Jack Ryan all started off in text format with novels. And as they say, the book is always better, so I think a more book-like experience works for this game. That said, although the game is text-based like a novel, an emphasis is placed on visuals and music to set the appropriate mood for each scene, changing based on whether you're in a safe location or you're exposed to danger. And of course, YOU get to decide exactly how to handle each situation, unlike a book or film with a set path that you observe passively. Here, the success or failure of the mission is up to you and you alone.

Sequel or Standalone

There's Always a Madman: Do Your Worst is the second game in the There's Always a Madman series, but each game in the franchise is designed as a standalone experience, so you're free to jump in with whichever game premise speaks to you the most. However, the first game in the series, There's Always a Madman: Fight or Flight (on Steam here), is designed as the best entry point, so I would recommend starting with that one. It's also fully released, so you can play that whole game right now!

Why make this game

After releasing There’s Always a Madman: Fight or Flight about the male superspy Franklin Benjamin, I wanted to turn my attention to the female superspy Virginia West (only ever referred to as Virginia, no last name, in the first game). For too long, I have consumed stories about capable female spies who go overlooked because her male counterpart steals the limelight, whether that’s all the way back in Get Smart for Agent 99 or more recently in Marvel’s Secret Wars with Maria Hill.
Now, in the second game, There’s Always a Madman: Do Your Worst, I want to flip things on their head by doing the unthinkable - I am killing off Franklin Benjamin (the main character of the first game) as the inciting incident. From there, we focus on Virginia West and how she handles being the star of the show. This is not the story of a male main character where the female sidekick gets “fridged” as motivation for the main character. No, this is the opposite - the male main character is the one who gets “fridged” so that the female sidekick can become the main character. The way I see it, in a world full of spies, turnabout is fair play.
I should mention that there are plenty of great spy stories where a female agent takes center stage, such as Alias, Spy, Salt, and Atomic Blonde. And in the video game world, there are already female-led spy games like Perfect Dark, The Operative: No One Lives Forever, and Neon Struct. So I definitely see a place where I can switch from a male spy at the heart of the story in the first game to a female spy as the main character in the second game.

Similar games for reference

The upcoming There's Always a Madman: Do Your Worst is of course most similar to the already released There's Always a Madman: Fight or Flight, but if you're not familiar with this series yet, then here are some similar games to help you get a further sense for what the There's Always A Madman series is like: GoldenEye 007 (and other James Bond games like Everything or Nothing), Mission: Impossible N64, Alpha Protocol, The Operative: No One Lives Forever, Henchman Story, Agent A: A Puzzle in Disguise, Framed, I Expect You To Die, Batman Telltale Series, The Wolf Among Us
It also draws inspiration from non-video game sources such as: James Bond, Mission: Impossible, 24, Get Smart, Austin Powers, Archer, Kingsman, Jack Ryan, Jack Reacher, Alias, Chuck, Burn Notice, Danger Man, the “Threat Level Midnight” episode of The Office, and the “You Only Move Twice” episode of The Simpsons.

Stay Up To Date on "There's Always a Madman"

You can wishlist There's Always a Madman: Do Your Worst on Steam here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2960890/Theres_Always_a_Madman_Do_Your_Worst
To stay informed about future games in the There's Always a Madman series, please follow Sunny Demeanor Games on Steam or follow the company Twitter account (or follow both of them).
For any streamers or members of the press, the press kit has additional info on the game, as well as publicly available promotional assets like logos and screenshots.
I hope you have a great weekend. And please remember, agent - sometimes it's best ... to do your worst!
submitted by SunnyDemeanorGames to Games [link] [comments]

2024.06.09 04:59 healthmedicinet Health Daily News June 8 2024

DAY JUNE 8 2024
6-8-2024

‘WE CANNOT SIMPLY GO, GO, GO.’ WHAT IS ‘GIRL MOSSING,’ THE WELLNESS TREND THAT REJECTS HUSTLE CULTURE?

On TikTok and Instagram, people are “girl mossing”: lying on a forest floor, staring up at a leafy canopy or caressing moss. The United States National Forest Foundation even borrowed the term to kick off its 2024 Instagram account. Girl mossing recognizes a need to step away from the pressures of modern, urban life, promoting spending time in nature as a restorative practice. The fast pace and pressure of neoliberal capitalism take an enormous toll on well-being: not just personal, but social and planetary.
6-8-2024

FIVE WAYS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE CAN IMPROVE YOUR DATING LIFE

Artificial intelligence is going to transform how we date. The question is: will it be for better or worse? It’s already causing some real problems, especially related to “romance scams” and other fraud. But it’s not all doom and gloom. Used in the right way, AI can actually make dating better. It can help write profiles and find matches, provide dating advice and coaching and, if all else fails, become a date companion. I have spent the last few years studying the impact of technology, and especially AI, on our
6-8-2024

STUDY ASSESSES ‘THE DANCER PERSONALITY’

“Tell me if you dance and I will tell you who you are!” A study led by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics (MPIEA) in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, has shown that both amateur and professional dancers are less neurotic than people who do not dance. They are also more agreeable, more open, and more extraverted.
6-8-2024

ONLINE SHOPPERS BEHAVE DIFFERENTLY AFTER CHATTING WITH STAFF OF THE OPPOSITE GENDER, RESEARCH SHOWS

In a digital world where people are mere pixels on a screen, gender bias can show up in unexpected forms. When people are online, anonymity and physical detachment embolden them to behave in biased ways
6-8-2024

INVESTORS BET BIG ON SUNNY DAYS, STUDY FINDS

It’s often said we can’t control the weather. But what if the weather controls how and when we invest our money? More specifically, what if the skies control how much we’re willing to gamble in the stock market? New research by the University of South Australia has found a connection between pleasant weather conditions and higher investment in lottery-like stocks. Lottery-like stocks are cheap compared to other stocks and, like lottery tickets, they can be seen as an opportunity to make a substantial gain. However, the chance of a higher
6-8-2024

TEENS TREATED UNFAIRLY BY TEACHERS MORE LIKELY TO HAVE POPULIST ATTITUDES

Perceived unjust teacher behavior is strongly and positively associated with populist attitudes among children and adolescents. Populist attitudes consist of ideologies including anti-elitism, people-centrism, and a dualistic perception of good versus evil, and where the foundation of political decision-making should be based on the general will of the people. In contrast to the association with teacher behavior, the correlation between young people’s relationships with peers and the development of populist attitudes is less strong, and the correlation between young people’s relationships
6-8-2024

MICROINCLUSIONS IMPROVE WOMEN’S WORKPLACE BELONGING AND COMMITMENT

New research shows how “microinclusions”—brief instances of positive treatment, especially from members of the dominant group—help women feel valued at work. Imagine your first day at a new job. You probably feel nervous, wondering how you’ll fit in with the team. It’s natural to worry if your co-workers will be supportive, or if they’ll take your contributions seriously. This experience is amplified for women in technology companies, who often face underrepresentation and
6-8-2024

BURNT OUT? HOW YOUR EMPLOYER CAN HELP YOU RETURN TO WORK FOR THE BETTER

The working world can be a pitiless one, as competition in the marketplace can put significant pressures on employees. Relentless deadlines, shrinking resources and shifting priorities all take their toll on employees’ well-being and mental health. In my home country of Belgium, more than two thirds (66.4%) of individuals on disability for psychological reasons had cases related to depression or burn-out. These worrisome statistics reflect broader trends across OECD countries, where nearly half (47.6%) of workers with mental-health problems have been absent from the office in the past year, compared
6-8-2024

FAMILY-FRIENDLY WORKPLACES BENEFIT EMPLOYEES, BUSINESSES

Paid leave and employee well-being are the focus of a three-part policy series on family-friendly business practices put together by the Brown School’s Clark-Fox Policy Institute at Washington University in St. Louis. “Creating a family-friendly workplace benefits both employees and businesses,” said Gary Parker, associate dean for external affairs and director of the institute. “For employees, it enhances work-life balance and job satisfaction,” he said. “For businesses, it leads to higher retention rates, reduced absenteeism and improved productivity. Policies such as paid leave, flexible work arrangements
6-8-2024

HOW TRUMP’S DEFINITION OF A ‘REAL’ AMERICAN HAS GRABBED HIS AUDIENCE—WHAT OUR RESEARCH SHOWS ABOUT WHY

Donald Trump has recently doubled down on his derogatory depictions of undocumented migrants in his bid to win the 2024 presidential election. In an interview with Time magazine, published on April 30 2024, Trump referred to migrants as “criminals,” who “come in and they steal our jobs, and steal our wealth, and they steal our country.” Trump was especially disparaging towards migrants from China, who he said are a “major force that’s forming in our country.” In short, according to Trump, undocumented migration is “an invasion of our country.” Trump’s
6-8-2024

NEW STUDY SHOWS MARKETING A BRAND’S SIMPLICITY CAN BACKFIRE

Irritability is a common side effect of heat. When companies tout the simplicity of their products, they may unknowingly invite customer dissatisfaction, new University of Oregon research finds. For decades, “simpler is better” has been accepted as a universal truth in marketing. Nick Light, assistant professor of marketing at the UO’ Lundquist College of Business, has tested that assumption. He found that most consumers prefer offerings that appear to be easy to use and understand. However, trumpeting simplicity can have a hidden, costly downside. “When marketing convinces consumers that things
6-8-2024

RESEARCHERS CREATE WINNING STRATEGY TO COMBAT VACCINE MISINFORMATION ON X

A new in-depth analysis shows that users who reply to misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine on X, formerly known as Twitter, with a positive attitude, politeness, and strong evidence are more likely to encourage others to disbelieve the incorrect information. Researchers from three Georgia Tech schools found the most
6-8-2024

STUDY SHOWS DISENGAGED STUDENTS MORE LIKELY TO USE AI TOOLS FOR ASSIGNMENTS

A Swansea University psychology study has found that disengaged students are more likely to use AI tools—particularly ChatGPT—for academic assignments, raising questions about academic integrity and the need for proactive interventions. Launched in November 2022, ChatGPT is an AI program capable of answering questions in detailed, human-like ways. Researchers surveyed 160 undergraduate students, aged between 18 and 24, in March 2023 to assess their attitudes towards and past usage of AI tools such as ChatGPT in academic coursework. The study is published in The Internet and Higher Education journal. Thirty-two
6-8-2024

HUMAN CULTURE IS CHANGING TOO FAST FOR EVOLUTION TO CATCH UP—HERE’S HOW IT MAY AFFECT YOU

Research is showing that many of our contemporary problems, such as the rising prevalence of mental health issues, are emerging from rapid technological advancement and modernisation. A theory that can help explain why we respond poorly to modern conditions, despite the choices, safety and other benefits they bring, is evolutionary mismatch. Mismatch happens when an evolved adaptation, either physical or psychological, becomes misaligned with the environment. Take moths and some species of nocturnal flies, for example. Because they have to navigate in the dark, they evolved to use the moon
6-8-2024

YOUNG PEOPLE IN THE UK SAY THEY ARE LESS LIKELY TO VOTE IF THEIR PARENTS REPORT DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS

With a U.K. General Election approaching, new research has found that parental history of depression can predict whether a young person is likely to intend to vote. The research, led by the Department of Politics at the University of Liverpool, found that, at age 26, people were less likely to intend to vote if they had grown up with a parent experiencing high levels of depressive symptoms. Published in the journal Electoral Studies, the research used the British Cohort Study (BCS), which followed more than 16,000 babies born across a
6-8-2024

WHO GETS TO DECIDE WHAT COUNTS AS ‘DISORDER’?

As a scholar of urban governance and data policy, I viewed the responses to protests on U.S. campuses as about more than threats to academic freedom and freedom of speech. They are also threats to the fundamental rights of people in public spaces. The protesters’ tactics, particularly their use of tents in encampments, have brought debates around definitions of public order and disorder to the fore. Over the past couple of months, students in universities across the country, from the University of California, Los Angeles to the Massachusetts Institute of
6-8-2024

STUDYING VIOLENCE TOWARD WOMEN AND ANIMALS CAN HELP US DEVELOP STRATEGIES TO PREVENT BOTH

We live in a world where not everyone feels safe and respected, especially women. Sexual violence and abuse are significant global health issues. Intimate partner violence continues to be a problem in Canada. According to Statistics Canada, of the 117,093 victims of police-reported intimate partner violence in 2022, almost 80% were women and girls. More than half of women in the United States have experienced sexual violence involving physical contact. Given these high rates of sexual abuse, it is imperative that we improve upon what we currently know about violence
6-8-2024

WHY THE FUTURE OF DEMOCRACY COULD DEPEND ON YOUR GROUP CHATS

I became newly worried about the state of democracy when, a few years ago, my mother was elected president of her neighborhood garden club. Her election wasn’t my worry—far from it. At the time, I was trying to resolve a conflict on a large email group I had created. Someone, inevitably, was being a jerk on the internet. I had the power to remove them, but did I have the right? I realized that the garden club had in its bylaws something I had never seen in nearly all the
6-8-2024

NET ZERO IS NOT JUST GOOD SCIENCE—IT’S ALSO A GOOD DEAL FOR ORDINARY PEOPLE

As the UK moves into a general election, a misinformed debate over the country’s climate transition and legally binding net zero targets risks further dividing people. Much of this debate in the UK focuses on the “cost” of net zero. For instance, energy secretary Claire Coutinho recently stated the government did not want a “net zero leviathan” to crush the nation’s “brilliant enterprise economy,” while the Labor Party had to backtrack on its own headline climate investment pledge, citing “affordability” and “fiscal rules.” But the true “cost” is tricky to
6-8-2024

THE FASCINATING PSYCHOLOGY BEHIND ‘DINE AND DASH’ AND WHY IT’S ABOUT SO MUCH MORE THAN A FREE MEAL

Sometimes when I read the newspapers, I think that going to a restaurant and leaving without paying has become something of an epidemic. My research into lying has taught me that the psychology behind acts of deception is often deeply complex. Let me start with a confession. I was guilty of dine and dash a very long time ago before it had a catchy name. I was in a group that hung about a chip shop at the turn-of-the-road in north Belfast, a poor and troubled area. I had a
6-8-2024

YOU CAN NOW BE FROZEN AFTER DEATH IN AUSTRALIA. IF YOU’RE REVIVED IN THE FUTURE, WILL YOU LEGALLY BE THE SAME PERSON?

In recent weeks, Southern Cryonics—the southern hemisphere’s only cryopreservation facility, located in rural New South Wales—announced it had successfully cryopreserved its first patient. There are only a handful of cryopreservation facilities across the globe—two in the United States, and one each in Russia, China, Australia and Switzerland. If the claims made on their websites and in the press are accurate, these facilities likely have no more than 600 patients in cryonic storage in total. Media reports however suggest interest in cryopreservation has risen since the onset of the COVID pandemic,
6-8-2024

ENGINEERS HAVE A DUTY TO PROTECT PUBLIC WELL-BEING, BUT LESS THAN HALF LEARN HOW TO DO SO EFFECTIVELY

Engineers who received public welfare responsibility training in classes are more likely to consider the societal impact of technologies they design and to take action when concerns arise, according to a study by University of Michigan researchers published in The Journal of Engineering Education. While engineers are professionally obligated to protect the safety and well-being of those their technologies impact, the study found that nearly a third of U.S. practicing engineers have never received any training in public welfare
6-8-2024

HIRING PRESSURES TO DIVERSIFY ARE INFLUENCING PATTERNS OF DISCRIMINATION IN UNEXPECTED WAYS

In 2004, a pair of economists published a landmark study to measure discrimination in the labor market. In the study, the researchers applied to real job openings with fictitious applicants but changed the applicant names to reflect a different gender or race. They found clear evidence of discrimination: White men and women received 50% more callbacks than Black men and women. More recently, Berkeley
6-8-2024

STUDY FINDS RACIAL BIAS IN TRAFFIC STOPS BY CHICAGO POLICE

Black drivers in Chicago are significantly more likely than white drivers to be stopped by police regardless of where the drivers live or are going, according to a new study led by a Cornell city planning expert that maps the racial composition of roads by using mobile phone GPS data. The study confirms a racial bias
6-8-2024

DO WE HAVE MORE EMPATHY FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE SIMILAR TO US? NEW RESEARCH SUGGESTS IT’S NOT THAT SIMPLE

How do people successfully interact with those who are completely different from them? And can these differences create social barriers? Social scientists are struggling with these questions because the mental processes underlying social interactions are not well understood. One recent concept that has become increasingly popular is the “double-empathy problem.” This draws on research looking at people who are known to experience social difficulties,
6-8-2024

HOW CAN WE MAKE GOOD DECISIONS BY OBSERVING OTHERS? A VIDEOGAME AND COMPUTATIONAL MODEL HAVE THE ANSWER

How can disaster response teams benefit from understanding how people most efficiently pick strawberries together, or how they choose the perfect ice cream shop with friends? All these scenarios are based on the very fundamental question of how and when human groups manage to adapt collectively to different circumstances. Two recent studies on collective dynamics by the Cluster of Excellence Science of Intelligence (SCIoI) in Berlin, Germany, lay the groundwork to promote better
6-8-2024

OTHERS’ WORDS, NOT FIRSTHAND EXPERIENCE, SHAPE SCIENTIFIC AND RELIGIOUS BELIEF FORMATION, STUDY FINDS

Three proposals explaining the differential confidence. (A) Intuitively, one might assume that confidence in scientific entities (e.g., germs) is higher than confidence in religious entities (e.g., angels) because scientific entities are observable in principle whereas religious entities are not. (B) The Dual- Pathway Model proposes separate information pathways for scientific versus religious beliefs; belief in scientific entities is primarily driven by direct experience of causal outcomes whereas belief in religious entities is primarily driven by testimony. (C) Contrary to these two models, the Unified Model proposes that belief in both
6-8-2024

TRYING TO SAVE MONEY? RESEARCH SUGGESTS PAYING IN CASH—WHILE YOU STILL CAN

Cash is in crisis. In Australia, it’s now only used for 16% of in-person transactions, down from about 70% in 2007. The situation is so dire that on Monday, independent federal MP Andrew Gee introduced a private member’s bill that would force businesses to accept cash or else face big fines. The reality is that over the past decade, technological advancements have utterly transformed the way we pay for goods and services. Phones and smartwatches can now easily be used to pay by card, and buy-now-pay-later
6-8-2024

MESSAGES CAN TRIGGER THE OPPOSITE OF THEIR DESIRED EFFECT—BUT YOU CAN AVOID COMMUNICATION THAT BACKFIRES

The best graduation speeches dispense wisdom you find yourself returning to long after the graduation tassels are turned. Take the feel-good life advice in Baz Luhrmann’s song to a class that graduated 25 years ago. Only on a recent relisten did I realize it also captures one of the research-based strategies I teach for avoiding communication that backfires. The tip is hiding in plain sight in the song’s title, “Everybody’s Free (to Wear Sunscreen).” Communication aimed at promoting a certain behavior can have the opposite
6-8-2024

DIFFERENCES IN EDUCATION, VALUES BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN CAUSE MISMATCHES WHEN SEEKING A PARTNER, FINDS SPANISH STUDY

The educational expansion of women has led to changes in the differences in educational level of men and women when looking for a partner. Research conducted by the UAB Center for Demographic Studies (CED-CERCA) has examined for the first time the role of discrepancies in gender role values and education among potential spouses. According to the study, about a third of women in favor of gender equality and with a higher education would not be able to find a homogamous male partner. The work is published in the journal Perspectives
6-8-2024

‘FUZZY’ MAPS OFFER INSIGHT INTO LOCAL PERCEPTIONS OF THE VALUE OF VOLUNTEERING

In the global South, volunteer programs are framed by policymakers and scholars as an effective vehicle for empowering women living in poverty. But this narrative often rests on scant knowledge of the perspectives and experiences of a key set of local stakeholders: the volunteers. A new study co-authored by Yale anthropologist Catherine Panter-Brick addresses this knowledge gap by engaging with Syrian refugees and Jordanian women from poor households in Amman, Jordan,
6-8-2024

EXPERTS SAY USE OF POLITICAL MEMES ARE A PREDICTOR OF POLITICAL VIOLENCE

In a study of social media activity prior to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, researchers at the University of Notre Dame say a sharp increase in politically salient imagery online—visual content designed to influence, dehumanize, manipulate and motivate audiences—was a predictor of the conflict. With collaborators at Colby College and Kennesaw State University, the researchers collected post history from a select group of 989 Russian milbloggers—a term used for “military bloggers”
6-8-2024

PROGRAMS TO PREVENT SEXUAL VIOLENCE SHOW NO EVIDENCE OF CURBING ASSAULTS, ANALYSIS FINDS

Sexual violence prevention programs effectively change ideas and beliefs that underscore assaults, but show no evidence of reducing their actual occurrence, a new comprehensive analysis shows. The findings are published in Psychological Science in the Public Interest. Researchers led by behavioral scientist Roni Porat of Hebrew University challenge the assumption that changing people’s thoughts about sexual violence will change their actual behavior. They call on scientists to study more behavior-centered approaches to reducing sexual
6-8-2024

DIVERSE FRIEND GROUPS PROMOTE BETTER SOCIAL COHESION AND WELL-BEING, STUDY FINDS

New research featuring more than 24,000 people has found that having diverse groups of friends improves well-being and social cohesion, despite people’s tendency to gravitate towards people more similar to them. Led by researchers at the University of Birmingham and published in Psychological Science, the study used data from 24,726 adults from over 10,000 English neighborhoods to examine the composition of people’s social networks according to age, ethnicity, income, and education to understand the implications of homophily (preference for similar people) on social cohesion subjective well-being. Dr. Miguel Ramos, lead
6-8-2024

STUDY SHOWS JUSTICE FACILITY DOGS BENEFIT WELL-BEING FOR CHILDREN FACING COURT

A new Edith Cowan University (ECU) study has revealed that having a four-legged friend at Children’s Court significantly reduces stress and anxiety for young victims, witnesses, and their caregivers. ECU criminology researchers Dr. Suz Rock and Associate Professor Natalie Gately have published the first Australian study to evaluate the impact of introducing a justice facility dog to a Children’s Court. The study “Kids, Courts and Canines: Evaluating the Justice Facility Dog Program through a Therapeutic Lens
6-8-2024

SEXUAL MINORITIES EXPERIENCE MORE EXCLUSION IN EVERYDAY SITUATIONS, FINDS STUDY

Lesbian, gay and bisexual people experience exclusion more frequently than heterosexual people. This is the finding of a recent study published in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin by researchers from the University of Basel and the RPTU University of Kaiserslautern-Landau. According to the study, people who are perceived as less gender-conforming are more frequently socially excluded. This could also affect heterosexual people if they deviate from traditional
6-8-2024

STILL RIDING LA’S METRO AFTER THE PANDEMIC? YOU PROBABLY THINK IT’S SAFER THAN THOSE WHO DON’T ANYMORE

As Jon Regardie wrote last year in Los Angeles Magazine, “Metro’s raison d’etre is to get hundreds of thousands of people each day across Southern California.” But the COVID-19 pandemic sent the numbers of riders plummeting to a low of 13%, and ridership still hasn’t fully rebounded. The reason may now be clear, thanks to the latest USC Dornsife LABarometer survey, conducted by the Center for Economic and Social Research (CESR) at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. The survey found that although public transportation ridership in
6-8-2024

CAN VAGUE GO VIRAL FOR GEN Y?

Generation Y, Gen Y, is commonly referred to as the millennial generation. It usually includes individuals born between the early 1980s and the mid-to-late 1990s or early 2000s. This generation follows Generation X and precedes Generation Z. The millennials, it is said, grew up during the transition to digital technology and the rise of the internet, and this has shaped their perspectives, behavior, and the way they use technology and media. They are often characterized as tech-savvy, adaptable, and socially conscious, with a strong affinity for social media and digital
6-8-2024

ITALIAN MOMS WITH 3+ KIDS WORK FAR FEWER YEARS THAN DADS, WHILE FINLAND SHOWS EQUALITY

Over the past century, the number of working women in Western countries has steadily increased. However, numerous studies show that it is still primarily women who have to manage the balancing act between parenthood and working life. Compared to fathers and childless women, mothers often have a less straightforward career path and face greater hurdles to career advancement. Little research has been done on what happens to women’s employment trajectories from midlife when childrearing efforts are
6-8-2024

TOP IT INDUSTRY MANAGERS ARE DIVIDED ON THE NEED FOR FACE-TO-FACE COMMUNICATION IN THE WORKPLACE

Many managers are currently seeking a balance between digital and face-to-face communication. A recent study from the University of Eastern Finland published in Information Technology & People shows that top IT industry managers have different views on when and for what purposes face-to-face communication in the workplace is needed. “Some top managers felt that all work tasks can be performed remotely with the help of digital communication. According to them, face-to-face communication is only necessary for maintaining interpersonal relationships and a sense of community,” says Doctoral Researcher Lotta Salin of
6-8-2024

STUDY FINDS SIMPLE HEADLINES ATTRACT MORE ONLINE NEWS READERS

The competition for online attention in today’s news environment is fierce. High-quality news from credible sources must compete for attention with misinformation and a rapidly increasing amount of partisan content. How can a news organization stand out as a reputable and trustworthy outlet while driving readers to its site? The answer is simple: literally. According to research from Michigan State University, news readers engage more with simple writing, suggesting journalists should write simply—clearly and without ambiguity—to attract attention online. The study was published in the journal Science Advances. “Newsrooms want
6-8-2024

STUDY SHOWS BANNING FALSE INFORMATION TRAFFICKERS ONLINE CAN IMPROVE PUBLIC DISCOURSE

When Twitter banned more than 70,000 traffickers of false information from its platform in the wake of the violence at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, the impact went beyond the silencing of those users. A study co-authored by UC Riverside public policy and political science scholars published in the journal Nature on June 5, found that the crackdown by Twitter (now called X after it was acquired by billionaire Elon Musk in late 2022) also significantly reduced the number of misinformation posts by users who stayed on the
6-8-2024

YOUNG ADULTS SAY STEADY SUPPORT FROM CARING ADULTS MADE DIFFERENCE IN TRANSITIONING FROM CHILD WELFARE SYSTEM

Young people who have exited foster care generally fare better—in work, school and relationships—if they get consistent support from adults who care about them during their teen years. My research team reached these findings by interviewing 21 people, now in their late 20s, who had aged out of foster care when they turned 18, had spent time in foster care as children or grew up in families that had active child welfare cases. These young adults relayed the degree to which they received support from
6-8-2024

HOW THE 1901 DISCOVERY EXPEDITION’S POLAR EXPLORERS STAYED HEALTHY DURING THEIR ANTARCTIC JOURNEY

Antarctica is the most inhospitable continent on earth. It’s dry, cold, and completely dark for months of the year. Edwardian explorers were some of the first to brave the Antarctic winter, developing new knowledge still drawn upon by scientists today. The Discovery expedition (1901–4) played a key role in the history of polar exploration. It was led by the Royal Navy commander Robert Falcon Scott, a pioneering polar explorer who died in 1912 after attempting to reach the south pole. The expedition’s third lieutenant was Ernest Shackleton, who led three
6-8-2024

SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MODELS INFUSED WITH AGRI-INNOVATION SYSTEMS CAN REDUCE POST-HARVEST FOOD LOSS AND WASTE

developing sustainable business models that are multi-actor networked for integrating them with agricultural innovation systems initiatives can enable a systemic approach for reducing food loss and value loss at the post-harvest
6-8-2024

WILL THE 2024 OLYMPIC GAMES BECOME THE PLAYING FIELD FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE PROTESTS?

Yannick Kluch, a professor of recreation, sport and tourism at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, studies sport as a platform for promoting social justice. Kluch has worked with the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee, U.S. Diving and the National Collegiate Athletic Association. He spoke with research editor Sharita Forrest about the history of Olympic athletes’ social justice protests and governing organizations’ efforts to avert them with Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter.
6-8-2024

STUDY FINDS WE SPEND MORE WITH CASHLESS PAYMENTS

A study found support for the existence of a positive “cashless effect,” which is when consumers spend more when using cashless payment methods in comparison to cash. The study suggests the cashless effect leads people to spend more when purchasing products that are typically used to signal status, such as jewelry. However, the
6-8-2024

LAWS MEANT TO KEEP DIFFERENT RACES APART STILL INFLUENCE DATING PATTERNS, DECADES AFTER BEING INVALIDATED

If you are single and looking for a romantic partner, chances are that you have used a dating app. But the likelihood that others will like, or even see, your profile may depend on your race. Studies have found that all people on dating apps, regardless of their own race, are more likely to contact white people using the app. And all people using dating apps are least likely to contact African American women and Asian American men. Until recently, some popular apps, including OkCupid, Match, Hinge and Grindr, provided
6-8-2024

VIRTUAL LABS IN PSYCHOLOGY RESEARCH BOOST DIVERSITY

University of Oregon psychologists are breaking down barriers to include underrepresented populations in research by bringing laboratories online. The researchers are trying to address a longstanding issue in psychology studies, which often rely on undergraduate students to volunteer as research subjects.
6-8-2024

ATTENDING LOCAL EVENTS STRENGTHENS NEIGHBORHOOD BONDS, SURVEY REVEALS

how often people visit and actively participate in local events and how this affects their sense of place or their connection to their community. A survey of almost 400 households in the state’s coastal council area of the City of Holdfast Bay found that people who frequently attend local events or participate as volunteers, organizers or exhibitors, have a stronger
6-8-2024

STUDY SHOWS ONLINE PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION WORKS FOR COMPLEX TOPICS

“COVID-19 forced educators to adjust their educational best practices to an unfamiliar virtual classroom, and professional development was no different,” said Karen Jo Matsler, assistant professor in practice for UTeach at UTA
6-8-2024

EYE-TRACKING STUDY REVEALS THAT SIMPLY LOOKING AT THE NATURAL WORLD IN URBAN AREAS CAN REAP WELL-BEING BENEFITS

Integrating more natural features into city landscapes can play a crucial role in enhancing the mental well-being of residents. A study by Bangor University and Technion- Israel Institute of Technology, published in the scientific journal People and Nature, involved city dwellers and showed how paying visual attention to greenery, rather than human-made structures, can alleviate anxiety and enhance restorative feelings. The 117 urban residents who took part in the study, were guided on a
6-8-2024

ADVERTISERS MAY BE INADVERTENTLY FUNDING MISINFORMATION

Companies in industries such as health care, technology and insurance have been found to advertise on misinformation websites, according to an analysis published in Nature. In a related experiment, consumers who were made aware that a company advertised on a misinformation website were likely to reject an offer of a gift voucher to spend with that company. The majority of digital advertisement placement on the internet is done via an algorithm-based distribution
6-8-2024

STUDY SUGGESTS EVOLUTIONARY BASIS FOR MALE RISK-TAKING BEHAVIORS

why we associate risk-taking with males rather than females, from an evolutionary standpoint. Study author Hannah Goodman, from UWA’s School of Human Sciences, said researchers found men engaged in riskier behaviors when crossing a busy traffic intersection, supporting growing evidence that risk-taking is predominantly an androcentric behavior. “Males
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2024.06.09 04:42 Sweet-Count2557 10 Kid Friendly Restaurants in Lower Westchester With Outdoor Dining

10 Kid Friendly Restaurants in Lower Westchester With Outdoor Dining
10 Kid Friendly Restaurants in Lower Westchester With Outdoor Dining Are you tired of the same old family dining experiences where the kids are confined to the indoors?Well, get ready to step back in time with us as we unveil the top 10 kid-friendly restaurants in Lower Westchester with outdoor dining options.These hidden gems not only offer delicious meals for both young and old, but they also provide a unique experience that will transport you and your family to a bygone era.So, if you're curious to know where you can dine al fresco while immersing yourself in history, flavors, and fun, then join us on this culinary adventure through Lower Westchester.Key TakeawaysTraditions 118 in Granite Springs is a must-visit for families looking for a memorable dining experience with an extensive Italian-American menu and dishes that are sure to please picky eaters.Sams of Gedney Way in White Plains offers a kid-friendly menu with options like mac and cheese and chicken fingers, as well as a wide selection of dishes for adults including burgers and seafood. They also have a gluten-free menu available.The Brazen Fox in White Plains caters to a wide range of tastes and preferences and has plenty of kid-friendly options.Lazy Boy Saloon in White Plains has a spacious patio area and a kid-friendly atmosphere.Harvest on Hudson - Hastings-on-HudsonHarvest on Hudson in Hastings-on-Hudson is a picturesque restaurant that overlooks the Hudson River and offers a small outdoor garden where guests can enjoy the view of vegetables and flora. The outdoor garden experience at Harvest on Hudson is truly unique, allowing diners to immerse themselves in nature while enjoying their meals. It provides a sense of freedom and tranquility, away from the hustle and bustle of the city.Aside from the beautiful outdoor setting, Harvest on Hudson also offers a variety of Italian dishes. Their menu showcases the rich flavors and culinary traditions of Italy, with options that cater to different palates. From classic pasta dishes like spaghetti carbonara and lasagna, to mouthwatering wood-fired pizzas topped with fresh ingredients, there's something for everyone to enjoy.The restaurant's commitment to using fresh, locally sourced ingredients is evident in every dish they serve. This dedication to quality ensures that each bite is bursting with flavor and authenticity. Whether you're in the mood for a hearty plate of homemade gnocchi or a light and refreshing caprese salad, Harvest on Hudson has you covered.The combination of the outdoor garden experience and the variety of Italian dishes makes Harvest on Hudson a delightful destination for those seeking a unique dining experience. Whether you're looking to enjoy a romantic date night or a family gathering, this restaurant provides the perfect backdrop for any occasion.Traditions 118 - Granite SpringsTraditions 118 in Granite Springs offers a delightful fusion of Italian and American cuisine, providing a diverse menu that includes pasta, meatballs, burgers, steak, and salads. At Traditions 118, you can enjoy a wonderful outdoor dining experience surrounded by the beautiful scenery of Granite Springs.Here are four reasons why you should consider dining at Traditions 118:Scenic Outdoor Setting: The restaurant boasts a picturesque outdoor seating area where you can enjoy your meal while taking in the natural beauty of Granite Springs. The serene ambiance adds to the overall dining experience, making it perfect for families looking to enjoy a meal in a peaceful setting.Extensive Italian-American Menu: Traditions 118 offers a wide variety of Italian-American cuisine options that cater to all taste buds. From savory pasta dishes to flavorful meatballs, you'll find something to satisfy every craving. Their menu also includes juicy burgers, succulent steaks, and refreshing salads, ensuring that there's something for everyone in the family.Family-Friendly Atmosphere: Traditions 118 welcomes families with open arms, providing a warm and inviting atmosphere for all. The friendly staff is attentive and accommodating, making sure that you and your little ones feel right at home. Whether you're celebrating a special occasion or simply enjoying a casual family meal, Traditions 118 is the perfect place to create lasting memories.Kid-Friendly Options: While Traditions 118 doesn't have a dedicated kids menu, they offer a range of dishes that are sure to please even the pickiest eaters. From classic favorites like pizza and pasta to tasty burgers and homemade meatballs, there's no shortage of choices for the little ones. The accommodating staff is also happy to accommodate any special requests or dietary restrictions.With its inviting outdoor dining experience and mouthwatering Italian-American cuisine options, Traditions 118 in Granite Springs is a must-visit for families looking for a memorable dining experience.Sams of Gedney Way - White PlainsAfter exploring the delightful fusion of Italian and American cuisine at Traditions 118 in Granite Springs, it's time to venture into the classic American bistro experience at Sams of Gedney Way in White Plains. Sams of Gedney Way is a renowned restaurant that offers a fantastic outdoor dining experience for families. With its charming patio seating and warm ambiance, it's the perfect place to enjoy a meal with your loved ones while soaking up the sunshine.To give you a better idea of what Sams of Gedney Way has to offer, take a look at the table below:Menu Options for KidsPrice RangeDescriptionMac and Cheese$8Creamy macaroni and cheese served with a side of fresh vegetables.Chicken Fingers$9Crispy chicken fingers served with french fries and a choice of dipping sauce.Cheeseburger$10Juicy beef patty topped with melted cheese, lettuce, tomato, and served with french fries.Grilled Cheese Sandwich$7Classic grilled cheese sandwich made with melted American cheese on toasted bread.As you can see, Sams of Gedney Way offers a variety of delicious and kid-friendly options that will please even the pickiest eaters. From the creamy mac and cheese to the crispy chicken fingers, there's something for everyone to enjoy.In addition to the great menu options for kids, Sams of Gedney Way also offers a wide selection of dishes for adults. Their menu features classic American bistro fare such as burgers, sandwiches, salads, and seafood. They also have a gluten-free menu available for those with dietary restrictions.The Brazen Fox - White PlainsThe Brazen Fox in White Plains offers a casual American dining experience with a wide variety of menu options and a vibrant atmosphere.Here are some reasons why you should consider dining at The Brazen Fox:Craft beer options: The Brazen Fox isn't just a restaurant, but also a craft beer bar. They offer an impressive selection of craft beers that will surely satisfy any beer enthusiast. From hoppy IPAs to rich stouts, their beer menu has something for everyone.Outdoor seating ambiance: One of the highlights of dining at The Brazen Fox is their outdoor seating area. When the weather is nice, you can enjoy your meal in the fresh air and soak in the lively atmosphere of downtown White Plains. The outdoor seating provides a relaxed and enjoyable dining experience.Variety of menu options: The Brazen Fox has a menu that caters to a wide range of tastes and preferences. Whether you're in the mood for a juicy burger, crispy chicken tenders, or a flavorful quesadilla, they've it all. The menu also includes options like flatbread pizza and nachos, perfect for sharing with friends or family.Kid-friendly favorites available: Although The Brazen Fox doesn't have a dedicated kids menu, they offer plenty of kid-friendly options that are sure to please even the pickiest eaters. From classic favorites like chicken tenders to cheesy quesadillas, there's something for every child's taste buds.Birdsall House - PeekskillBirdsall House in Peekskill offers a unique dining experience with a craft beer gastropub atmosphere and a variety of menu options to satisfy all tastes. Whether you're a craft beer enthusiast or looking for a fun outdoor activity, Birdsall House has something for everyone.With its extensive craft beer options and a bocce ball court, this restaurant provides a perfect setting for a relaxed and enjoyable meal. The craft beer selection at Birdsall House is impressive, with a wide range of options to choose from. From IPAs to stouts, they've something for every beer lover. The knowledgeable staff can guide you in selecting the perfect beer to complement your meal or simply enjoy on its own. With their commitment to offering quality craft beers, Birdsall House is a haven for beer enthusiasts in Peekskill.In addition to the excellent beer selection, Birdsall House also offers a unique outdoor activity for both kids and adults. The bocce ball court provides a fun and engaging experience that can be enjoyed by all ages. Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned player, the court offers a chance to test your skills and have a great time with friends and family. It's the perfect way to add some extra excitement to your dining experience at Birdsall House.Moderne Barn - ArmonkModerne Barn in Armonk offers a sophisticated dining experience with a diverse menu and elegant atmosphere. Whether you're looking for a special night out or a family gathering, this restaurant has something for everyone. Here are a few reasons why you should consider dining at Moderne Barn:Outdoor dining experience: Moderne Barn features a beautiful outdoor patio where you can enjoy your meal while taking in the scenic surroundings. The patio is spacious and well-maintained, providing a comfortable setting for you and your family to dine al fresco.Menu options for kids: One of the highlights of dining at Moderne Barn is the wide variety of menu options available for kids. From classic favorites like mac and cheese and chicken tenders to healthier options like grilled chicken and fresh vegetables, there's something to please even the pickiest eaters. The kids' menu is thoughtfully designed to cater to children's taste preferences while still offering nutritious choices.Chef-inspired dishes: The menu at Moderne Barn is carefully curated by talented chefs who take pride in creating unique and flavorful dishes. Whether you're in the mood for seafood, steak, or vegetarian fare, you'll find a selection of expertly prepared dishes that are sure to satisfy your cravings.Elegant atmosphere: The ambiance at Moderne Barn is sophisticated and inviting, making it the perfect place for a special occasion or a romantic date night. The restaurant's modern décor and warm lighting create a cozy yet upscale atmosphere that's both comfortable and stylish.The Patio - HartsdaleLocated in Hartsdale, The Patio offers a delightful dining experience with its charming outdoor seating and delicious menu options. This family-friendly restaurant not only caters to the taste buds of adults but also provides a range of outdoor activities for kids to enjoy. With its craft beer options, The Patio is a perfect destination for parents who want to relax and unwind while their children have a great time.The Patio in Hartsdale provides a welcoming atmosphere for families, with its spacious outdoor seating area where children can run and play freely. From the moment you step onto the patio, you are greeted with a vibrant and lively ambiance that is sure to make your dining experience enjoyable. The staff at The Patio are attentive and friendly, ensuring that families feel comfortable and well taken care of.In addition to its inviting atmosphere, The Patio offers a variety of craft beer options for adults to indulge in. Whether you prefer a hoppy IPA or a smooth stout, The Patio has a selection of craft beers that will satisfy even the most discerning beer connoisseur. While parents enjoy their drinks, children can engage in the outdoor activities provided, keeping them entertained and allowing parents to relax.To give you a better idea of what The Patio has to offer, here is a table highlighting some of its features:FeaturesDescriptionOutdoor activities for kidsPlayground area, games, and toys to keep children entertainedCraft beer optionsWide selection of craft beers, including local and seasonal brewsWith its outdoor activities for kids and craft beer options, The Patio in Hartsdale is a fantastic choice for families looking for a fun and relaxing dining experience. So, gather your loved ones and head over to The Patio where you can enjoy great food, refreshing drinks, and a lively atmosphere.The Wooden Spoon - New RochelleThe Wooden Spoon in New Rochelle offers a diverse menu and a cozy atmosphere for diners of all ages. Here are some reasons why you should consider dining at The Wooden Spoon:Outdoor play area for kids: The Wooden Spoon understands the importance of keeping little ones entertained while dining. They've a spacious outdoor play area where kids can have fun and burn off some energy. This allows parents to relax and enjoy their meal without constantly worrying about keeping their children entertained.Family-friendly menu options: The Wooden Spoon offers a menu that caters to the tastes and preferences of both kids and adults. From classic favorites like burgers and chicken tenders to healthier options like salads and grilled chicken, there's something for everyone in the family to enjoy. The portion sizes are also generous, ensuring that no one leaves the restaurant hungry.Cozy atmosphere: The Wooden Spoon has a warm and inviting ambiance that makes diners feel right at home. The rustic decor and comfortable seating create a relaxed and welcoming environment. Whether you're dining with your family or having a date night, The Wooden Spoon provides a cozy setting for a memorable dining experience.Friendly staff: The staff at The Wooden Spoon is known for their excellent customer service and friendly demeanor. They go above and beyond to ensure that every guest feels welcomed and taken care of. From recommending menu items to accommodating special dietary needs, the staff is always ready to assist and make your dining experience enjoyable.When looking for a family-friendly restaurant with outdoor dining in New Rochelle, The Wooden Spoon is a great choice. With its outdoor play area for kids, family-friendly menu options, cozy atmosphere, and friendly staff, it provides the perfect setting for a pleasant and relaxed dining experience.The Olde Stone Mill - TuckahoeThe Olde Stone Mill in Tuckahoe offers a historic dining experience with its charming atmosphere and delectable menu options. What makes the Olde Stone Mill a unique dining experience in Tuckahoe? Well, let's take a look at the table below for a deeper understanding:Unique FeaturesDescriptionHistoric BuildingThe Olde Stone Mill is housed in a historic building that dates back to the 1800s. The architecture and decor transport you to a different era, adding to the overall ambiance of the dining experience.Waterfront LocationSituated next to the Bronx River, the Olde Stone Mill provides a picturesque setting for outdoor dining. The sound of the flowing water and the view of the river create a serene atmosphere that enhances the dining experience.Seasonal MenuThe Olde Stone Mill offers a seasonal menu that showcases fresh and locally sourced ingredients. This ensures that every dish is bursting with flavor and allows guests to indulge in the best of what the region has to offer.Outdoor Seating AreaThe outdoor seating area at the Olde Stone Mill provides a unique dining experience. Guests can enjoy their meal while basking in the natural beauty of the surroundings. The calming sounds of the river and the gentle breeze add to the relaxed atmosphere.As you can see, the Olde Stone Mill stands out due to its historic building, waterfront location, seasonal menu, and inviting outdoor seating area. These elements come together to create a truly unique dining experience in Tuckahoe. Whether you're looking for a romantic dinner or a memorable family outing, the Olde Stone Mill is sure to exceed your expectations.Lazy Boy Saloon - White PlainsContinuing our exploration of unique dining experiences in Lower Westchester, let's now turn our attention to Lazy Boy Saloon in White Plains.Lazy Boy Saloon offers a fantastic outdoor dining experience, perfect for those looking to enjoy their meal in the fresh air. Here are four reasons why you should consider the outdoor seating options at Lazy Boy Saloon:Spacious Patio: Lazy Boy Saloon boasts a spacious patio area where you can sit back, relax, and enjoy your meal. With ample seating and a laid-back atmosphere, it's the perfect spot to unwind and enjoy the freedom of dining outdoors.Beautiful Views: As you dine on the patio at Lazy Boy Saloon, you'll be treated to beautiful views of the surrounding area. Whether it's a sunny day or a starry night, the scenery adds an extra touch of magic to your dining experience.Live Music: Lazy Boy Saloon often hosts live music performances on their outdoor patio. So, not only can you enjoy great food and drinks, but you can also groove to the tunes of talented local musicians. It's the ultimate freedom to savor good music and good food at the same time.Kid-Friendly Atmosphere: Lazy Boy Saloon is a family-friendly establishment, making it an ideal choice for those dining with children. The outdoor seating provides plenty of space for kids to move around and enjoy themselves, allowing both parents and children to have a fun and relaxing meal together.With its spacious patio, beautiful views, live music, and kid-friendly atmosphere, Lazy Boy Saloon in White Plains offers a delightful outdoor dining experience. So, next time you're in the area and looking for a place to enjoy a meal in the open air, don't hesitate to check out Lazy Boy Saloon.Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat Are Some Outdoor Activities Available for Kids at the Wooden Spoon in New Rochelle?At the Wooden Spoon in New Rochelle, there are outdoor activities available for kids. They've a playground with a variety of playground equipment for children to enjoy.In addition to that, they also offer outdoor games that kids can participate in.Does the Olde Stone Mill in Tuckahoe Offer a Gluten-Free Menu?Yes, the Olde Stone Mill in Tuckahoe does offer a gluten-free menu. Our restaurant understands the importance of catering to dietary restrictions and strives to provide options for all guests.In addition to offering gluten-free dishes, we also pride ourselves on creating a kid-friendly atmosphere where families can enjoy a meal together. Our staff is trained to accommodate the needs of families and ensure a positive dining experience for everyone.Are There Any Vegetarian Options Available at Sams of Gedney Way in White Plains?Yes, there are vegetarian options available at Sams of Gedney Way in White Plains. They offer salads, as well as a veggie burger made with black beans and quinoa.However, if you're looking for alternatives to Sams of Gedney Way for vegetarian families in White Plains, there are other great options in Lower Westchester.Harvest on Hudson in Hastings-on-Hudson offers a variety of vegetarian dishes, and Traditions 118 in Granite Springs has pasta and salad options.Does the Patio in Hartsdale Have a Dedicated Kids Menu?Yes, the patio in Hartsdale does have a dedicated kids menu. The menu offers a variety of kid-friendly options like chicken tenders, macaroni and cheese, and mini burgers.In addition to the delicious food, the patio also features an outdoor play area for kids to enjoy. They can have a great time playing and having fun while the adults relax and enjoy their meal.It's a perfect place for families to dine and have a wonderful time together.What Type of Cuisine Does Moderne Barn in Armonk Specialize In?Moderna Barn in Armonk specializes in contemporary American cuisine. They offer a diverse menu with options like seafood, steak, and vegetarian dishes.The restaurant provides a kid-friendly atmosphere, making it a great choice for families. Outdoor dining is available, allowing guests to enjoy their meal while taking in the fresh air and beautiful surroundings.With its focus on quality ingredients and innovative flavors, Moderna Barn is sure to satisfy both adults and children alike.ConclusionIn conclusion, Lower Westchester offers a variety of family-friendly restaurants with outdoor dining options. Whether you're looking for a scenic view, outdoor activities for the kids, or a relaxed atmosphere, there's something for everyone.One example is Harvest on Hudson in Hastings-on-Hudson, which not only provides a beautiful view of the Hudson River but also offers a playground for children to enjoy while dining.So gather your family and head to one of these kid-friendly restaurants for a memorable dining experience.
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2024.06.09 04:24 thekermitderp Gilgo Beach killings: How Rex Heuermann's 'manifesto' became road map for investigators

Gilgo Beach killings: How Rex Heuermann's 'manifesto' became road map for investigators
By Nicole MilleNewsday. Pasted here in case you hit a pay wall.
Suspected Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex A. Heuermann thought he had long deleted what prosecutors called a “manifesto” on how to kill and avoid detection, a two-paged document littered with bone-chilling references to a “dump site” and burning clothes.
Under the ominous subheading of “body prep,” prosecutors said Heuermann listed “remove head and hands” and “package for transport.”
The existence of the “manifesto” was publicly disclosed Thursday as Heuermann was arraigned on two more murder counts. Prosecutors say evidence, including DNA, links Heuermann to victims Jessica Taylor, a 20-year-old sex worker and Poughkeepsie native living in Manhattan, and Sandra Costilla, a Queens resident who was 28 when she was killed and her body dumped in a field in North Sea.
Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney on Friday called the “planning document” a major break in the case, telling Newsday in an exclusive interview that its contents prompted a second search of Heuermann’s home in Massapequa Park and the woods in Manorville where three of the victims were found.
The Microsoft Word document, created in 2000 and typed in all caps, was a “planning document” used by Heuermann to “methodically 'blueprint' and 'plan out' his 'kills,'” prosecutors said in a bail letter as part of a superseding indictment charging Heuermann with the killings of Costilla and Taylor, bringing the number of women whom Heuermann has been charged with killing to six.
“The Gilgo Homicide Task Force members believe that the totality of circumstances surrounding the HK Planning Document, including Heuermann's attempt to delete its existence, points to it as Heuermann's self-education and 'homework' on the topic of carrying out serial, sexual murder,” prosecutors said in the bail letter.
It was last July, after Heuermann was arrested outside the Fifth Avenue office of his midtown Manhattan architectural firm and charged in the killings of Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman and Amber Costello, that authorities found the hard drive during a two-week-long search of Heuermann's home. Heuermann was later charged with killing Maureen Brainard-Barnes, who along with Barthelemy, Waterman and Costello are known as “The Gilgo Four.”
With mountains of other potential evidence to process from the search of the home and two nearby storage facilities, authorities recovered the document, which was thought to have been deleted by Heuermann, from a hard drive found in the basement only recently — on March 7 — during a computer forensic extraction method called “file carving.”
Tierney on Thursday identified the 60-year-old former architect, who has been living in virtual isolation in the Suffolk County Jail since his arrest last July 13, as a suspect in the killing of another Gilgo Beach victim — Valerie Mack, a 24-year-old New Jersey woman who disappeared in October 2000.
The prospect of a suspect indicted on six of the killings was almost unthinkable in the years since authorities found the first remains on Dec. 11, 2010, near Gilgo Beach.
Police had been searching for Shannan Gilbert, a New Jersey woman who was working as an escort and had disappeared after seeing a client in nearby Oak Beach in May 2010. In the following months, the remains of 10 people were found — eight women, one man and a female toddler. Gilbert’s remains were later found, but authorities ruled her death accidental.
Until Heuermann's arrest last year, the mystery of who killed 10 people — mostly sex workers — and dumped their bodies along Ocean Parkway had confounded federal, state and local investigators.
With the indictment of Heuermann in the killing of Costilla, who had not until recently been identified as a possible Gilgo Beach victim, the timeline of the case has broadened significantly. The other five victims were killed from 2007 to 2010, but Costilla was killed sometime in November 1993, suggesting that Heuermann began his alleged killing spree much earlier. On Friday, Tierney said there was anecdotal evidence that Costilla was engaged in sex work.
Their killings are detailed in the bail letter unveiled last week.
Two hunters discovered Costilla’s remains in a wooded area of Southampton on Nov. 20, 1993. A native of Trinidad and Tobago, she was living on Long Island and in Queens and Brooklyn before her disappearance and killing.
Costilla was found lying on her back with her arms outstretched over her head, and her shirt was pulled up over her torso and head, exposing her breasts, authorities said. Her naked legs were spread apart. She had several “sharp force” injuries to her face, torso, breasts, left thigh and vaginal area, authorities said. Three hairs were recovered from her remains — one found on her right arm, and two others from tape-lifts of two shirts that were above her head.
Those hairs were earlier tested against the DNA of convicted killer John Bittrolff, long suspected in Costilla’s killing, but he was excluded as a match.
Recent DNA testing comparing Heuermann’s mitochondrial and nuclear profiles to the hairs, could not exclude Heuermann as the provider of the hairs found on Costilla’s body.
“It is significant that two forensic laboratories have now independently determined that male hair recovered from the mutilated remains of Sandra Costilla is substantially more likely to have derived from a personal genetically identical to defendant Heuermann’s mitochondrial and nuclear profiles,” prosecutors said in the bail letter.
Further testing showed, according to prosecutors, that another of the pieces of hair found on Costilla’s remains “shares a common base at all compared positions” with a DNA sample provided by a woman who had lived with Heuermann before Costilla’s disappearance and killing. The woman, who authorities referred to only as “witness #3” in the bail letter, said she could not be excluded as the contributor of the hair found on Costilla.
That woman, whose relationship to Heuermann at the time has not been publicly shared, had been living with Heuermann since 1991 and moved out of their shared residence in September 1993 — about two months before Costilla disappeared and was killed, prosecutors said. Heuermann’s late mother had moved out of the home before the woman, prosecutors noted, without giving a time frame on the mother’s cohabitation with her son.
Prosecutors noted that Heuermann would have been living alone at the time Costilla was killed, giving him “unfettered time to executive his plans” without worrying about anyone coming home to discover a crime in progress.
That’s a theme that prosecutors have said runs through Heuermann’s alleged killing spree: Heuermann’s family was always vacationing out of state when he allegedly committed the killings. In the case of Taylor, prosecutors said, phone records and other documents indicate that Heuermann’s now-estranged wife Asa Ellerup and children were vacationing in Vermont when the young woman was killed.
Someone walking a dog found Taylor’s remains on July 26, 2003, just west of Halsey Manor Road in Manorville and called 911. Lying on her back with her legs bent beneath her, Taylor was decapitated and both of her arms had been severed below her elbows. A tattoo on Taylor’s torso had been “severely obliterated by a sharp object,” prosecutors said, adding that they believe that act, along with the dismemberment of her body, had been done by Heuermann to “inhibit” authorities from positively identifying her remains.
It wasn’t until some eight years later — on March 29, 2011 — that authorities found Taylor’s skull, hands and forearm along Ocean Parkway, just east of Gilgo Beach. Her remains were located less than a mile from where the Gilgo Four victims’ remains were discovered.
Taylor was last heard from on July 21, 2003 — five days before her partial remains were discovered. Police interviewed a witness who said on July 25, 2003, at about 10:30 p.m. they had seen a dark-colored Chevrolet pickup backed into the same wooded area where Taylor’s remains were later found.
Heuermann had owned a dark green 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche pickup during that time, investigators have said. And it was key to Heuermann’s initial arrest.
A New York State Police investigator assigned to the Gilgo Beach Task Force, using a database that can search for vehicles by make and model, first identified Heuermann as the owner of an Avalanche and a potential suspect on March 14, 2022.
A witness in Costello’s disappearance — her West Babylon roommate — also described to police a similar vehicle being driven by a man who was seen with Costello shortly before she was last seen alive.
Costello got a call from a burner phone purportedly used by Heuermann on Sept. 1, 2010, authorities have said. A man that investigators think was Heuermann, described by the witness as appearing like an “ogre” and seeking a paid sexual liaison, came inside the house, but she and others there executed a ruse to take his money, authorities said.
A man posing as her boyfriend showed up and the client said he was only her friend and left. But that same prospective customer contacted Costello the next night and she left with him — the witness telling authorities he saw the dark-colored Chevrolet Avalanche drive away from the home. That was the last time she was seen alive, authorities said.
Police did not appear to act on the witness statements at the time in either sighting of the distinctive-looking vehicle.
After Taylor’s partial remains were found, authorities said, Heuermann searched online for a new Chevrolet Avalanche in bright blue and white and attempted to delete the search.
DNA testing, according to prosecutors, links Heurmann to Taylor’s killing. Heuermann cannot be excluded as the contributor of a male human hair that was recovered from a surgical drape found under Taylor's remains, although 99.96% of the North American population can be, the bail letter said, adding that DNA analysis conducted by two separate labs had reached similar conclusions.
Heuermann is not charged in the killing of Valerie Mack, a sex worker who went missing in 2000, but for the first time Thursday, authorities linked Heuermann to her killing, noting that an analysis of Heuermann's electronic devices revealed a significant collection of violent, bondage and torture pornography, dating to 1994.
The images showed various abuse and mutilation that prosecutors said “notably and largely coincide with how the remains of Sandra Costilla, Jessica Taylor, and Valerie Mack were discovered,” the bail letter reads.
Authorities found Heuermann’s extensive porn collection after seizing more than 350 electronic devices from his home after he was arrested last year.
The HK Planning Document was among the items that piqued prosecutors’ interest. It prompted authorities to search multiple wooded areas in the Manorville area in April, though no new remains were found.
Prosecutors have studied the document and laid out their theories of what it all means. The document lists “finger prints and gloves” and “hair & fiber” as “problems.” Prosecutors said that section of the document appears to be a guide to avoiding apprehension. A section on “supplies,” which lists tarps/drop clothes, medical gloves and saw/cutting tools, are the supplies needed to carry out the killings, prosecutors said.
In another section, Heuermann wrote, according to prosecutors, “REMOVE ID MARKS,” which they argue is consistent with Heuermann’s alleged attempt to obscure Taylor’s tattoo. The document’s “BODY PREP” section, which also notes to “REMOVE HEAD AND HANDS,” clearly relates to the condition of Taylor’s and Mack’s remains, as both victims were decapitated and dismembered at their arms below their elbows, prosecutors said.
Some of the HK Planning Document has origins in the 1996 book written by former FBI special agent and profiler John Douglas entitled “Mind Hunter,” which explored serial killer profiling, prosecutors said, specifically graphic passages on sexual torture.
When authorities searched Heuermann’s home after his arrest, they found another of Douglas’ books: “The Cases That Haunt Us.”
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2024.06.08 21:09 SanderSo47 Directors at the Box Office: Ang Lee

Directors at the Box Office: Ang Lee
https://preview.redd.it/3ey3xk1cce5d1.png?width=1920&format=png&auto=webp&s=013619527a9526a4c1a28fce38d2b1320c6e7192
Here's a new edition of "Directors at the Box Office", which seeks to explore the directors' trajectory at the box office and analyze their hits and bombs. I already talked about a few, and as I promised, it's Ang Lee's turn.
Lee's father, a respect principal, was hoping that his son would become a professor. But he was disappointed when his son failed his high school exam twice, forcing him to attend a less privileged university. Seeing Ingmar Bergman's film The Virgin Spring was a formative experience for him. After finishing his mandatory military service, he moved to the United States to complete his studies. He wanted to become an actor, but his struggle with English made him move into directing. After finally meeting a few contacts in the industry, he started working as a director.
From a box office perspective, how reliable was he to deliver a box office hit?
That's the point of this post. To analyze his career.

Pushing Hands (1991)

His directorial debut. It stars Sihung Lung, Lai Wang, Bo Z. Wang, Deb Snyder and Haan Lee. It follows a Chinese tai chi master living in New York, who struggles to find his place in the world. The film shows the contrast between traditional Chinese ideas of Confucian relationships within a family and the much more informal Western emphasis on the individual.
Lee graduated from New York University Tisch School of the Arts in 1984, but had failed to find career opportunities since, working almost full-time as a house-father. During the intermediate six years, he became interested in martial arts, specifically tai chi, after reading the wuxia novel Jianghu qixia zhuan. This motivated him to write a screenplay, which brought the attention of Hsu Li-kong, a recently promoted senior manager in a major studio who had a strong interest in Lee's unique style and freshness. He invited Lee to make his directorial debut.
It had a very limited release, and it was reported that it made just $152,322 domestically. But it received acclaim in the United States and Taiwan. And that allowed Lee to finally get a chance to expand his horizon.
  • Budget: N/A.
  • Domestic gross: $152,322.
  • Worldwide gross: $152,322.

The Wedding Banquet (2023)

"You are cordially invited to a wedding where everybody wants to kiss the bride... except the groom."
His second film. The film stars Gua Ah-leh, Lung Sihung, May Chin, Winston Chao and Mitchell Lichtenstein. The story concerns a bisexual Taiwanese immigrant man who marries a mainland Chinese woman to placate his parents and get her a green card. His plan backfires when his parents arrive in the United States to plan his wedding banquet and he has to hide the truth of his gay partner.
Neil Peng approached Lee with the idea in 1986 by revealing to Lee that one of their mutual friends had moved to the United States and was in a same-sex relationship without the knowledge of the man's parents. Lee and Peng began writing the screenplay two years later and were soon joined by James Schamus. Schamus wrote that the film was "first drafted in Chinese, then translated into English, re-written in English, translated back into Chinese, and eventually subtitled in Chinese and English and a dozen other languages."
The film was critically acclaimed, and became a sleeper hit, earning $23.6 million against a budget of just $1 million. Lee was on the rise.
  • Budget: $1,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $6,933,459.
  • Worldwide gross: $23,633,459.

Eat Drink Man Woman (1994)

"It's hard to tell where sex stops and food begins."
His third film. It stars Sihung Lung, Wang Yu-wen, Wu Chien-lien, and Yang Kuei-mei. It follows four members of the Zhu family as they navigate the challenges of love, life, tradition and family. This film deals with the transition from tradition to modernity. It is Lee's first (and to date, only film) to be shot entirely in his native Taiwan.
Like his previous films, another critical and commercial success. Lee quickly made himself a household name.
  • Budget: N/A.
  • Domestic gross: $7,294,403.
  • Worldwide gross: $24,294,403.

Sense and Sensibility (1995)

"Lose your heart and come to your senses."
His fourth film. Based on the novel by Jane Austen, and it stars Emma Thompson (who also wrote the screenplay), Kate Winslet, Hugh Grant and Alan Rickman. The story follows the Dashwood sisters, members of a wealthy English family of landed gentry, as they must deal with circumstances of sudden destitution. They are forced to seek financial security through marriage.
In 1989, producer Lindsay Doran suggested adapting the novel to her colleagues. She was a lifelong fan of the novel, and vowed to make a film adaptation if she ever made it into the industry. Looking for a writer, Doran read screenplays by English and American writers until she came across a series of comedic skits, often in period settings, that actress Emma Thompson had written and decided that that was the direction she wanted for the film. As they were working on the film Dead Again, Doran hired Thompson to write the film, even though she never wrote a feature-length film before.
Thompson spent five years writing and revising the screenplay, both during and between shooting other films. Believing the novel's language to be "far more arcane than in [Austen's] later books," Thompson sought to simplify the dialogue while retaining the "elegance and wit of the original." Despite Doran's confidence, studios were reluctant to pick up the film, as Thompson never wrote a film. Columbia Pictures executive Amy Pascal supported Thompson's work and agreed to sign as the producer and distributor.
In 1993, Lee was hired to direct, basically for his work in The Wedding Banquet. Even though he was not familiar with Jane Austen, Doran felt that Lee's films, which depicted complex family relationships amidst a social comedy context, were a good fit with Austen's storylines. Viewing it as a "director for hire" job, Lee spent six months in preparing for the film, as it would have his largest budget ($16 million) by that point. Doran and Columbia asked Thompson to play Elinor herself.
The film received widespread critical acclaim, and was included on more than a hundred top-ten of the year lists, as well as one of the best Austen adaptations. It was a huge box office hit, earning $134 million worldwide. It received 7 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Actress. Thompson won Best Adapted Screenplay, making her the only person to have won an Oscar for both her writing and acting (she won Best Actress two years prior). However, Lee was not nominated for Best Director, a decision that was criticized by many as Hollywood's racism against Lee and Chinese cinema in general. Lee sought to avoid turning his omission into a scandal and specifically asked the Taiwan state media not to make it a "national issue", explaining that he endured more pressure when forced to act as his country's representative.
  • Budget: $16,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $43,182,776.
  • Worldwide gross: $134,582,776.

The Ice Storm (1997)

"The American Dream was over. But the hangover was just beginning."
His fifth film. Based on the novel by Rick Moody, it stars Kevin Kline, Joan Allen, Tobey Maguire, Christina Ricci, Elijah Wood, Katie Holmes, Glenn Fitzgerald, Jamey Sheridan and Sigourney Weaver. Set during Thanksgiving 1973, it follows two dysfunctional New Canaan, Connecticut, upper-class families who are trying to deal with tumultuous social changes of the early 1970s, and their escapism through alcohol, adultery and sexual experimentation.
The film ended Lee's winning streak at the box office, but it was still critically acclaimed.
  • Budget: $18,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $8,038,061.
  • Worldwide gross: $16,011,975.

Ride with the Devil (1999)

"In a no-man's land between North and South, you didn't fight for the blue or grey, you fought for your friends and your family."
His sixth film. Based on the novel Woe to Live On by Daniel Woodrell, it stars Tobey Maguire, Skeet Ulrich, Jeffrey Wright, Jewel, Simon Baker, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, James Caviezel, Thomas Guiry and Jonathan Brandis. Set during the American Civil War, it follows a group of men who join the First Missouri Irregulars, also known as the Bushwhackers — guerrilla units loyal to pro-Confederacy units of the state — and their war against Northern Jayhawkers allied with the Union army.
Despite commanding a $38 million budget, the film had a very limited three-day run, making less than $1 million. It also received mixed reviews from critics.
  • Budget: $38,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $635,096.
  • Worldwide gross: $635,096.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

"A timeless story of strength, secrets, and two warriors who would never surrender."
His seventh film. Based on the Chinese novel serialized between 1941 and 1942 by Wang Dulu, it stars Chow Yun-fat, Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi, and Chang Chen. Master Li Mu Bai, a warrior, is about to retire and gives his sword to his lover Yu Shu Lien to keep it safe. However, the sword is stolen and now an embittered Li embarks on a mission to find it.
The stunt work was mostly performed by the actors themselves and Ang Lee stated in an interview that computers were used "only to remove the safety wires that held the actors" aloft. "Most of the time you can see their faces," he added. "That's really them in the trees." The film specifically targeted Western audiences rather than the domestic audiences who were already used to Wuxia films. As a result, high-quality English subtitles were needed. Ang Lee, who was educated in the West, personally edited the subtitles to ensure they were satisfactory for Western audiences.
Whatever were the expectations for this, the film exceeded them by a large margin. After a limited release, it earned $8 million in its first wide domestic opening weekend. But the crazy thing was how insane were its legs; it didn't hit a sub $4 million weekend until its 12th wide weekend, and it even increased from some weekends. It closed with a colossal $128 million domestically, becoming the highest foreign-language film in United States, a record it still keeps, and it's twice as much as the second place, Life Is Beautiful. Worldwide, it earned $213.9 million worldwide, becoming a worldwide phenomenon and Lee's highest grossing film.
The film was widely acclaimed across the world, hailed as one of the greatest films of the century. The film led to a boost in popularity of Chinese wuxia films in the Western world, where they were previously little known, and led to films such as Hero and House of Flying Daggers, both directed by Zhang Yimou, being marketed towards Western audiences. It received 10 Oscar nominations (the most for a foreign film), including Best Picture and Best Director for Lee. It won four: Best Foreign Language Film, Best Art Direction, Best Original Score, and Best Cinematography. To this day, one of the most iconic foreign titles. Lee made history.
  • Budget: $17,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $128,530,421.
  • Worldwide gross: $213,978,518.

Hulk (2003)

"Unleash the fury."
His eighth film. Based on the Marvel Comics character created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, it stars Eric Bana, Jennifer Connelly, Sam Elliott, Josh Lucas, and Nick Nolte. The film explores Bruce Banner's origins. After a lab accident involving gamma radiation, he transforms into a giant green-skinned humanoid with superhuman strength known as the Hulk whenever stressed or emotionally provoked. The United States military pursues him, and he clashes with his biological father, who has dark plans for his son.
Since 1990, Avi Arad and Gale Ann Hurd were working on a Hulk film, but Universal was struggling in finding the right script. Hurd brought her husband Jonathan Hensleigh as co-producer the following year, and Universal hired Industrial Light & Magic to create the Hulk with computer-generated imagery. Joe Johnston was hired as director, but he eventually left to work on another film, while Zak Penn was brought to rewrite. Hensleigh subsequently rewrote the script with J. J. Abrams. Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski were also brought on board to rewrite, with Hensleigh deciding to direct the film himself despite not having directed before. By 1998, Universal put the film on hiatus due to its escalating $100 million budget and worries of Hensleigh directing his first film. $20 million was already spent on script development, computer animation, and prosthetics work. Hensleigh immediately went to rewrite the script to reduce the budget.
In 2001, Lee and his colleague James Schamus signed for the project, after Lee chose not to direct Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. He was dissatisfied with the script and commissioned Schamus for a rewrite, merging Banner's father with the Absorbing Man. Lee cited influences from King Kong, Frankenstein, Jekyll and Hyde, Beauty and the Beast, Faust, and Greek mythology to interpret the story. Schamus said he had found the storyline that introduced Brian Banner, allowing Lee to write a drama that again explored father-son themes. Schamus admitted to feeling pressure after the release of Spider-Man.
Eric Bana commented that the shoot was "Ridiculously serious... a silent set, morbid in a lot of ways." Lee told him that he was shooting a Greek tragedy, and that he would be making a "whole other movie" about the Hulk at Industrial Light & Magic. An example of Lee's arthouse approach to the film was taking Bana to watch a bare-knuckle boxing match. Bana would later disfavorably reflect on his experience making the film as the majority of the time he was working indoors while the rest of the cast interacted with a CGI recreation of the Hulk, somewhat limiting his screen time.
After the colossal success of Spider-Man, Universal mounted an extensive marketing campaign, which also highlighted Ang Lee's involvement. The film opened with a huge $62.1 million in its first weekend, the biggest June debut and the 16th biggest ever. However, the film had absolutely no legs at the box office. In its second weekend, it dropped a colossal 69.7%, which was the biggest for a film that opened above $20 million. In its third weekend, it fell another steep 56.3% and it kept falling until it left theaters, becoming the largest opener not to earn $150 million. It closed with $132 million domestically and $245 million worldwide. Good enough to be the 15th highest grossing film of the year and Lee's highest grossing film, but not a hit given its $137 million budget.
If Spider-Man was an immediate crowd-pleaser, Hulk was the exact opposite. It received polarizing reviews; while its ambition and style was praised, a lot criticized its CGI and very limited action ("too much talking and not enough smashing"). In subsequent years, some have praised the film as an ambitious film that deviated from the superhero formula, although it's still not widely considered as a beloved film. Lee admitted the challenges of the film, but stood proud of the film and its fans.
  • Budget: $137,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $132,177,234.
  • Worldwide gross: $245,285,165.

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

"Love is a force of nature."
His ninth film. Based on the short story by Annie Proulx, it stars Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway, Michelle Williams and Randy Quaid. Its plot depicts the complex romantic relationship between two American cowboys, Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist, in the American West from 1963 to 1983.
Screenwriter Diana Ossana discovered Annie Proulx's short story in October 1997, just days after its publication. She convinced writing partner Larry McMurtry to read it, who thought it was a "masterpiece". The pair asked Proulx if they could adapt it into a film screenplay; although she did not think that the story would work as a film, she agreed. The big challenge wasn't the script, it was about getting the film made in the first place.
Gus Van Sant attempted to make the film, hoping to cast Matt Damon and Joaquin Phoenix as Ennis and Jack, respectively. He also considered Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Ryan Phillippe and Josh Hartnett. Damon, who previously worked with Van Sant on Good Will Hunting, told the director, "Gus, I did a gay movie (The Talented Mr. Ripley), then a cowboy movie (All the Pretty Horses). I can't follow it up with a gay-cowboy movie!"
James Schamus, who was now the CEO of Focus Features, optioned the film rights in 2001. Pedro Almodovar was approached, but he felt he couldn't get his artistic freedom respected. At Ossana's request, Schamus showed the story and screenplay to Lee. Lee decided instead to make Hulk, and that film's experience left him exhausted, to the point that he considered retiring. When he was offered Brokeback, he changed his mind and agreed to direct. He was particularly drawn to the authentic rural American life and repression depicted in the story.
Ossana and McMurty suggested Heath Ledger, but the film studio thought he was not masculine enough. Regardless, Ledger got the script, who thought it was "beautiful" and put himself forward. Gyllenhaal reacted to the script positively and signed on for the role; he also did not want to miss the opportunity working with Lee and friend Ledger. Lee met with Mark Wahlberg for a role in the film, but Wahlberg declined as he was "creeped out" by the script. Gyllenhaal admired Ledger and described him as "way beyond his years as a human". Other actors were considered for the leads but Lee said they were too afraid to take on the roles.
You have to consider that while the world progressed a lot in the past years, 2005 was a very different era, so a film like Brokeback Mountain had a tough hill to climb. Some countries refused to play the film, while others censored it. LGBT films weren't big at the time, so it felt like there wouldn't be a big audience here.
And they were proven wrong.
The film debuted with $547,425 in 5 theaters, a huge $109,485 per-theater average. It had fantastic legs, eventually closing with a huge $83 million domestically. But the big surprise is that it was bigger overseas; it made $178 million worldwide, becoming Focus Features' highest grossing film. The film received universal acclaim on its release, touted as one of the greatest films of the century. It received 10 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. It won three: Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Original Score. In a shocking decision, it lost Best Picture to Crash, a decision that has been reviled ever since. We'd like to say it's a polarizing decision... but let's face it, there are no Crash fans nowadays. Or at least, none that prefer that to Brokeback.
But at the end of the day, it doesn't matter; Brokeback may not have won the Oscar, but it won over the general public.
It wasn't the first LGBT film, not even close. But it might have been the most influential and a huge landmark.
  • Budget: $14,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $83,043,761.
  • Worldwide gross: $178,064,141.

Lust, Caution (2007)

"The trap is set."
His tenth film. Based on the novella by Eileen Chang, it stars Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Tang Wei, Anupam Kher, Joan Chen, Wang Leehom and Shyam Pathak. The film is set in Hong Kong in 1938 and in Shanghai in 1942, when the city was occupied by the Imperial Japanese Army and ruled by the puppet government led by Wang Jingwei. The film depicts a group of Chinese university students from The University of Hong Kong who plot to assassinate a high-ranking special agent and recruiter working for the puppet government by luring him into a honey trap.
The actors who played university classmates, spent six months of preproduction in Hong Kong just to get into character and understand the period before filming. During this period the group of actors, including Tang Wei and Wang Leehom became very close friends. Both Tang Wei and Tony Leung Chiu-wai were asked whether the sex scenes in the movie were unsimulated. Tang Wei responded, "In the movie, we are just doing what we should do to have a baby." As for Tony Leung, he responded, "When the bodies collide with each other, it is indeed like a fake show!" The film was rated NC-17 in North America for its explicit sex scenes, and Lee made it clear he would not re-cut the film. Despite that, the version released in China was cut by about seven minutes (by Lee himself) to make it suitable for younger audiences, since China has no rating system.
The film won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, where it received critical acclaim. Due to the rating, it only earned $4 million domestically. But it was much bigger overseas, where it earned $67 million worldwide, becoming the highest grossing NC-17 film (a record it still keeps).
  • Budget: $15,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $4,604,982.
  • Worldwide gross: $67,091,915.

Taking Woodstock (2009)

"Take the trip."
His 11th film. Based on the memoir by Elliot Tiber and Tom Monte, it stars Demetri Martin, Paul Dano, Dan Fogler, Henry Goodman, Jonathan Groff, Emile Hirsch, Eugene Levy, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Imelda Staunton and Liev Schreiber. Elliot's parents own a motel in Catskills, New York. To overcome the family's financial crisis, Elliot offers the organisers of the Woodstock music and art festival boarding and lodging in the motel.
The film received mixed reviews, and bombed at the box office.
  • Budget: $30,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $7,460,204.
  • Worldwide gross: $9,975,737.

Life of Pi (2012)

"Don't lose hope."
His 12th film. Based on the novel by Yann Martel, it stars Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan, Tabu, Rafe Spall, Gérard Depardieu and Adil Hussain. The storyline revolves around two survivors of a shipwreck who are on a lifeboat stranded in the Pacific Ocean for 227 days. One is a sixteen-year-old Indian boy named Pi Patel and the other is a ferocious Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.
Fox 2000 Pictures executive Elizabeth Gabler acquired the film rights in February 2003. M. Night Shyamalan was attached to direct, and he was expected to film it after The Village. But he dropped to instead make Lady in the Water, "I was hesitant [to direct] because the book has kind of a twist ending. And I was concerned that as soon as you put my name on it, everybody would have a different experience." Other directors considered were Alfonso Cuarón and Jean-Pierre Jeunet, both of which declined.
In 2009, Lee was hired, but the film was stuck in development hell when he asked for a $120 million budget. But the revival of 3-D motivated Fox in greenlighting the film under Lee's terms. As Lee started casting, one of the actors involved was Tobey Maguire, who would play a reporter. But it was later reported that Lee chose to cut his scenes, feeling he wanted to emphasize an entirely international cast. His scenes were re-shot with Rafe Spall.
Fox mounted an extensive marketing campaign selling the film as "the next Avatar" in terms of visuals and 3-D. And it fucking killed it at the box office. It earned $124.9 million domestically, which was considered a soft performance. But the real money was in the rest of the world; the film broke records in countries like China, United Kingdom, India and Mexico. It earned a colossal $609 million worldwide, easily becoming Lee's highest grossing film. An absolutely insane performance.
The film also received critical acclaim, praised for its CGI and 3-D. It received 11 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. And it won four: Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects, Best Original Score, and then Lee himself won his second Oscar for Best Director, becoming the first Asian to win the award twice. And just like that, he cemented himself as one of the greatest filmmakers of our era. And here's how he celebrated it; going to In-N-Out.
  • Budget: $120,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $124,987,023.
  • Worldwide gross: $609,016,565.

Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk (2016)

"To walk the path of a hero, you have to see how it all began."
His 13th film. Based on the novel by Ben Fountain, it stars Joe Alwyn, Garrett Hedlund, Kristen Stewart, Vin Diesel, Steve Martin, and Chris Tucker. After a horrifying battle in Iraq, Private Billy Lynn and his fellow comrades are brought home for a victory tour. Soon, he recollects the harsh realities of the war and struggles to cope with life.
The film used an unprecedented shooting and projection frame rate of 120 frames per second in 3D at 4K UHD resolution, which Lee terms the "whole shebang". It is the first feature film ever to be shot in such a high frame rate, over twice the previous record (Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, shot at 48 fps) and five times the standard speed of 24 fps. Lee undertook such a bold step after reading the book since he wanted the film to be an "immersive" and "realistic" experience of the reality and emotional journey of soldiers.
Due to the complexity involved in shooting at a very high frame rate, Lee could not afford to do many takes even for a single scene. Every shot was difficult and at the same time precious. He would rehearse every scene beforehand and would conduct regular morning meetings with the key crew members to highlight things they needed to be alert on. Shooting close-up shots in 3D with such high resolution meant the cast could not wear make-up and could not deliver less-than-authentic performances. Since no make-up was allowed, make-up artist Luisa Abel spent months of preparation on their skin tones. Throughout filming, the production team had to rethink everything, including different approaches to lighting as the camera needed extra lights due to the higher frame rates.
Due to the complexity of the film's unprecedented high frame rate and the cost of installing equipment capable of projecting the film in its intended format, only five theaters globally were equipped to show it at its highest resolution and maximum frame rate: two in the United States (one at a theater in New York City's AMC Lincoln Square where the film had its world premiere and the other in Los Angeles's the ArcLight Hollywood), and one theater each in Taipei, Beijing, and Shanghai.
The film opened in 2 theaters (New York City's AMC Lincoln Square and Los Angeles's the ArcLight Hollywood's Cinerama Dome), which were the only ones in the country to play the film at 120fps and the ticket prices at both locations running $20 or higher. It made a pretty great $114,129, which made for a fantastic $57,064 per-theater average (the third best of the year). But when it hit wide release, the film was dead on arrival. It made just $901,062 in 1,176 theaters, which was one of the worst wide debuts ever. And then, despite having its second weekend fall on Thanksgiving, it collapsed by 77.3%. It closed after just 3 weeks with only $1.7 million domestically. It fared better overseas, where China made colossal $23.7 million. Worldwide, it made just $30.9 million, making it a box office flop. Reviews were mixed, and people were polarized over the high-frame rate; some deemed it immersive and impressive, while others found it distracting and flat.
  • Budget: $30,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $1,738,477.
  • Worldwide gross: $30,930,984.

Gemini Man (2019)

"Who will save you from yourself?"
His 14th film. It stars Will Smith, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clive Owen and Benedict Wong. The film follows a retiring Force Recon Marine scout sniper who is targeted by a much younger clone of himself while on the run from a corrupt private military company.
In 1997, Darren Lemke sold his pitch for Gemini Man after impressing Don Murphy with an unproduced spec script. Warner Bros. Pictures pursued the project, but Walt Disney Pictures ultimately won out and Tony Scott would become attached to direct. Complications soon arose when the studio were planning how to make the film. The producers toyed with the idea of an actor play both roles through the use of visual effects, but Scott moved on from the film before any progress could be made.
The project was stuck in development hell, and saw many actors considered, such as Mel Gibson, Harrison Ford, Chris O'Donnell, Nicolas Cage, Sean Connery, Clint Eastwood and Jon Voight. Many directors were also considered, before Lee finally signed in 2017, with Smith also joining. Like his previous film, the film was shot digitally at an extra-high frame rate of 120 frames per second (fps), modified for 3D, this time on modified ARRI Alexa cameras mounted on STEREOTEC 3D Rigs.
Again, due to the requirements needed, only 14 theaters in North America could show the film at a 120fps 2K 3D high-frame rate (two in Los Angeles, two in Chicago, and one each in Miami, Orlando, New Orleans, Denver, New York, San Francisco, Atlanta, Las Vegas, Baltimore and Houston). Even then, the film was shot at 120fps 4K 3D, which means no theater showed its intended vision. Lee said that 120fps 2K 3D felt like the necessary avenue to make “Junior,” Smith’s digital avatar, a soulful character who could also appear to beat the living crap out of a real actor in the film’s many fight sequences.
The film received negative reviews, particularly for its CGI and story. And like his previous film, the high-frame rate received polarizing reactions. Despite the presence of a big star like Will Smith, the film flopped with just $173 million worldwide, against its $138 million budget, and losing an estimated $111 million for Paramount. Lee's attempt at high-frame rate was just not clicking with the public.
  • Budget: $138,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $48,546,770.
  • Worldwide gross: $173,469,516.

The Future

His next film, as confirmed in November 2022, is a Bruce Lee biopic. The lead actor will be Mason Lee, Ang's son. And he suggested he's not done with the 120fps high-frame rate, claiming he would continue using it in his next film for action sequences.

MOVIES (FROM HIGHEST GROSSING TO LEAST GROSSING)

No. Movie Year Studio Domestic Total Overseas Total Worldwide Total Budget
1 Life of Pi 2012 20th Century Fox $124,987,023 $484,029,542 $609,016,565 $120M
2 Hulk 2003 Universal $132,177,234 $113,107,931 $245,285,165 $137M
3 Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon 2000 Sony $128,530,421 $85,446,864 $213,978,518 $17M
4 Brokeback Mountain 2005 Focus Features $83,043,761 $95,019,405 $178,064,141 $14M
5 Gemini Man 2019 Paramount $48,546,770 $124,922,746 $173,469,516 $138M
6 Sense and Sensibility 1995 Sony $43,182,776 $91,400,000 $134,582,776 $16M
7 Lust, Caution 2007 Focus Features $4,604,982 $62,486,933 $67,091,915 $15M
8 Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk 2016 Sony $1,738,477 $29,192,507 $30,930,984 $30M
9 Eat Drink Man Woman 1994 The Samuel Goldwyn Company $7,294,403 $17,000,000 $24,294,403 N/A
10 The Wedding Banquet 1993 The Samuel Goldwyn Company $6,933,459 $16,700,000 $23,633,459 $1M
11 The Ice Storm 1997 20th Century Fox / Disney $8,038,061 $7,973,914 $16,011,975 $18M
12 Taking Woodstock 2009 Focus Features $7,460,204 $2,515,533 $9,975,737 $30M
13 Ride with the Devil 1999 USA Films $635,096 $0 $635,096 $38M
14 Pushing Hands 1991 Lionsgate $152,322 $0 $152,322 N/A
Across 14 films, he has made $1,727,122,572 worldwide. That's $123,365,898 per film.

The Verdict

Despite his past two films getting two of the worst reviews in his career, Lee has proved himself to be a very reliable director.
Something impressive about him is the versatility in his resume. A comic book film, a survival film, a LGBT film, a wuxia film, a sci-fi film, a post-war film, a Jane Austen film, a noir film, an erotic NC-17 thriller, a Western, and some romantic comedies. Even if some don't fully work, there's still some good and interesting aspects in him. And of course, the first Asian director to win 2 Oscars for Best Director. So if he wants to continue with the controversial 120fps high-frame rate, let him cook. Hopefully in more and more theaters worldwide.
Hope you liked this edition. You can find this and more in the wiki for this section.
The next director will be Zack Snyder. Oh boy. This is where the fun begins.
I asked you to choose who else should be in the run and the comment with the most upvotes would be chosen. Well, we'll later talk about... John McTiernan and Rob Reiner. Whaaaaat? Two posts for the price of one? You're welcome! It was a very tight race, and it was tough to choose one or the other. The former has the dishonor of going to director jail and real jail, while the latter had an incredible run before completely crashing with one of Roger Ebert's most hated films.
This is the schedule for the following four:
Week Director Reasoning
June 10-16 Zack Snyder RIP Inbox.
June 17-23 Tony Scott Action films have not been the same ever since his death.
June 24-30 Roland Emmerich The King of disaster films.
July 1-7 John McTiernan & Rob Reiner The rise and fall of two once-great directors.
Who should be next after McTiernan and Reiner? That's up to you.
submitted by SanderSo47 to boxoffice [link] [comments]

2024.06.08 17:13 a_modest_espeon [H] Lots of Games, Please Look [W] Games(See Below)/Offers, Wishlisted Items, and Paypal

I am currently taking paypal for games, you always go first and cover fees
For game trades, you always go first and message me, usually it takes me about 1-2 days to get back to you at the latest
No reply means not interested
My Rep Page has not been updated in about 5 years, but I have a lot of trades finished
Bolded items are just the ones I would like to consider keeping so don't feel as though you need to offer more for the game
Wants
Oneshot
Subnautica
Stellaris (and dlc)
Fallout 4
Wishlist Items
Have
A Plague Tale: Innocence
ADOM (ANCIENT DOMAINS OF MYSTERY)
Bridge Constructor Portal
Chivalry 2 - Epic Edition
Deep Rock Galactic
Disco Elysium - The Final Cut
Doom Eternal
Elite Dangerous
Endless Space 2 - Digital Deluxe Edition
Ghostrunner
Honey I Joined a Cult
Lost Ruins
Mass Effect Legendary Edition (temporarily unavailable)
MONSTER TRAIN (FIRST CLASS - COLLECTORS EDITION)
OUTWARD + THE SOROBOREANS AND OUTWARD SOUNDTRACK
PATHFINDER: WRATH OF THE RIGHTEOUS
Rebel Inc: Escalation
REMNANT: FROM THE ASHES - COMPLETE EDITION
SCP:Secret Files
SHOTGUN KING: THE FINAL CHECKMATE
Songs of Conquest
Spyro™ Reignited Trilogy
Surviving Mars
THE OUTER WORLDS: SPACER'S CHOICE EDITION
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales
VALKYRIA CHRONICLES 4 COMPLETE EDITION
Yakuza 4 Remastered
20XX
7 Grand Steps
observer (x3)
A Good Snowman is Hard to Build
A Juggler's Tale
A Mortician's Tale
A New Beginning - Final Cut
Aaero
Aces and Adventures
AER Memories of Old (x2)
Age of Wonders III
Ageless
Agents of Mayhem
AI War: Fleet Command
Alien Spidy
Aliens:Fireteam Elite
Alina of the Arena
All You Can Eat
Aragami 2
Arcade Paradise
Army Men RTS
Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation (x2)
Assassin's Creed® Origins
Assault Android Cactus
Atom RPG Trudograd
Atomicrops
AUTONAUTS VS PIRATEBOTS
Backbone
Bad End Theater
Banner Saga Trilogy - Deluxe Pack
Banners of Ruin
Bastion (x2)
Batman Arkham Origins (x2)
Battle Chef Brigade
Beacon Pines
Beat Hazard Ultra
Bee Simulator
Before Your Eyes
BEHIND THE FRAME: THE FINEST SCENERY
Beholder
BENDY AND THE DARK REVIVAL
Beneath Oresa
Between the Stars
Beyond a Steel Sky
Binary Domain
Bioshock Remastered
BioShock: The Collection
Biped
Black Book
Blade Assault
Blasphemous
Blazing Beaks
Bleed 2
Bloodstained®︎: Ritual of the Night
Bone - Episode 1 & Episode 2
Boomerang Fu (x3)
Borderlands 3 Super Deluxe
Boreal Blade
Boyfriend Dungeon
Broken Age (x2)
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Brutal Legend
BUILDER SIMULATOR
Burly Men At Sea (x2)
Bury Me, My Love
Celeste
Chasm
Chicken Police
Children of Silentown
CHUCHEL Cherry Edition (x2)
CivCity: Rome
Coffee Talk
COMMAND & CONQUER REMASTERED COLLECTION
Company of Heroes 2 + Company of Heroes 2 - Whale and Dolphin Conservation Charity Pattern Pack
Conan Chop Chop
CONTROL STANDARD EDITION (Steam or Epic Games)
COOK, SERVE, DELICIOUS! 3
Coromon
Crowntakers
Crusader Kings Complete
Cultist Simulator (x2)
Curious Expedition
CURSE OF THE DEAD GODS
Cyber Hook
DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY: HOUSE OF ASHES
Darkside Detective
Darksiders Genesis
Darksiders II Deathinitive Edition (x2)
Darksiders Warmastered Edition
Dead In Bermuda
Deadly Days
Death Squared (x2)
Deathloop
Decieve Inc.
Deleveled
Desperados 3
Destroy All Humans!
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
Disciples: Liberation
Distance
DISTRAINT 2 + Soundtrack
Distrust (x3)
Drawful 2
DUCATI - 90th Anniversary
Duke Nukem Forever
Duke Nukem Forever Hail to the Icons
Duke Nukem Forever The Doctor Who Cloned Me
Dungeons 3 (x2)
Dusty Revenge: Co-Op Edition
Dwarfs!?
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1: Blood Storm + DLC
EarthNight
Eastside Hockey Manager
Elderborn
Eldest Souls
Elex
Ellipsis
Embr
Emily is Away <3
ENCASED: A SCI-FI POST-APOCALYPTIC RPG
Endless Space® - Collection (x2)
Epic Chef
Eternal Threads
Euro Truck Simulator 2
Europa Universalis IV
Evan's Remains
Evergarden
EVERSPACE™
Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy Remastered
Fallout 1
Family Man
Farmer's Dynasty
Fibbage XL
Fights in Tight Spaces
Figment
Finding Paradise
First Class Trouble
Five Dates
Fobia - St. Dinfna Hotel
Foretales
Fort Triumph
Founders' Fortune
Framed Collection
Framed Collection (x2)
Freddi Fish 2: The Case of the Haunted Schoolhouse
Freddi Fish 3: The Case of the Stolen Conch Shell
Freddi Fish 4: The Case of the Hogfish Rustlers of Briny Gulch
Freddi Fish 5: The Case of the Creature of Coral Cove
Freddi Fish and Luther's Maze Madness
Freddi Fish and Luther's Water Worries
Freedom Force
Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich
Friends Vs Friends
FTL
Full Metal Furies
Full Throttle Remastered (x2)
Fury Unleashed
Gas Station Simulator
Genesis Noir
Get In The Car, Loser!
Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy
God's Trigger
Golf Gang
Gonner
GRAV (Early Access)
Greedfall
GRID 2
Grime
Grow: Song of the Evertree
Growing Up
Guns of Icarus Online
Hacknet (x2) + Hacknet Labyrinths DLC (x1)
Haiku, the Robot
Hammerting
Hard Reset Redux
Hardspace: Shipbreaker
Heaven's Vault
Heavenly Bodies (x2)
Hell Let Loose
Hell Pie
Hello Neighbor Hide and Seek
Hellpoint
Hero Siege Complete + Cyberpunk Samurai + Demon Slayer Bundle + Extra slots & stash space + ClassShield Lancer + Shaman + Plague Doctor + Marauder + Amazon+Avenger Paladin DLCs
Heroes of Hammerwatch
Hexcells Complete Pack
Hidden & Dangerous 2: Courage Under Fire
Hidden & Dangerous: Action Pack
Hidden Folks
HITMAN™: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON (x2)
HIVESWAP: Act 1
Hokko life
Hollow Knight
Hot Brass
Hot Wheels Unleashed
Hotshot Racing
Hyper Light Drifter
I am not a Monster: First Contact
I'm not a Monster
If Found...
Impostor Factory
In Between
In Sound Mind
Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition (x3)
INK Deluxe Edition
Iris and the Giant
Iron Harvest
Jack Move
JumpJet Rex
Jupiter Hell
Jurassic World Evolution - Deluxe Dinosaur Pack
Just Cause 3 XXL Edition
Kerbal Space Program
KeyWe
Kill it with Fire
KillSquad
Kingdom Classic
Kingdom Two Crowns
Kingdom: New Lands (x2)
Knights of Pen and Paper 2
Kraken Academy!!
Late Shift
Later Alligator
Lawn Mowing Simulator
Legend of Keepers
Legion TD2-MULTIPLAYER TOWER DEFENSE
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Premium Edition
LEGO DC Super-Villains Deluxe Edition
LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game
LEGO® Batman 2 DC Super Heroes™
LEGO® Worlds
Let's Explore the Farm (Junior Field Trips)
Let's Explore the Jungle (Junior Field Trips)
Levelhead
Leviathan Warships
Life is Strange 2: Complete Season
Life is Strange: True Colors
Lone Fungus
Lords and Villeins
Lostwinds
Lovecraft's Untold Stories
Lumino City
Luna's Wandering Stars
Machinarium
Mad Max
Mafia: Definitive Edition
Mafia: Definitive Edition
Magicka
Maid of Sker
Majesty 2
Majesty Gold HD
Marooners
Masquerade: The Baubles of Doom
Massive Chalice
Meeple Station
Merchany of the Skies
Metal Hellsinger
Metro Exodus
Midnight Protocol
Mind Scanners
Mini Metro
MINIT (x2)
MirrorMoon EP
Monster Loves You
Monster Prom 2: Monster Camp
Moonlighter
Morbid: The Seven Acolytes
Morkredd
MOTHERGUNSHIP
Moving Out
Mr. Shifty
Mr.Prepper
Mushroom 11
My Memory of Us
My Time at Portia
Narita Boy
Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Strikers
NBA 2K20
NEBUCHADNEZZAR
Necromunda: Hired Gun
Necronator: Dead Wrong (x2)
Neo Cab
Neon Abyss
Neon Drive (Steam)
Newt One
Niche (x3)
NICKELODEON ALL-STAR BRAWL
Nimbatus The Space Drone Constructor
Ninja Pizza Girl
No Time to Explain Remastered
No Time to Relax
Not For Broadcast
Not Tonight
Oaken
Offworld Trading Company + Jupiter's Forge Expansion Pack (x2)
Old Man's Journey
OlliOlli World - Rad edition
OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood
Omno
One Step From Eden
Operation Flashpoint: Red River
OPERATION: TANGO
Opus Magnum
Orwell: Ignorance is Strength (x2)
Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You (x3)
Othercide
Otxo
Out of the Park Baseball 18
Overcooked! 2 - Surf 'n' Turf Pack
Overcooked! 2 - Too Many Cooks
Overgrowth
Overlord II
OZYMANDIAS: BRONZE AGE EMPIRE SIM
PAC-MAN™ CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION 2
Pajama Sam 2: Thunder And Lightning Aren't So Frightening
Pajama Sam 3: You Are What You Eat From Your Head To Your Feet
Pajama Sam's Lost & Found
Pajama Sam's Sock Works
Pajama Sam: Games to Play on Any Day
Pale Echoes
Panzer Corps 2
Paper Fire Rookie
Paperbark
Paradigm (x2)
Paradise Killer
Party Hard (x2)
Patch Quest
PayDay 2
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind
Pesterquest
Pesterquest
PGA TOUR 2K21
Pikuniku
Pinstripe (x2)
Plague Inc: Evolved
Planet of the Eyes
Planet Zoo
PlateUp! (x2)
Plunge
Police Stories
Police Stories
Portal Knights
Primal Carnage: Extinction
Prodeus
Project Highrise (x2)
Project Winter
Psychonauts
Putt-Putt® and Pep's Balloon-o-Rama
Putt-Putt® and Pep's Dog on a Stick
Putt-Putt® Enters the Race
Putt-Putt® Goes to the Moon
Putt-Putt® Joins the Circus
Putt-Putt® Joins the Parade
Putt-Putt® Travels Through Time
Putt-Putt®: Pep's Birthday Surprise
Puzzle Agent
Puzzle Agent 2
Q.U.B.E. 2
Q.U.B.E: Director's Cut
Quest of Dungeons
Quiplash
Railroad Corporation
Railroad Tycoon 3
Railroad Tycoon II Platinum
Rain World
Raji: An Ancient Epic
Rapture Rejects + Safari outfit
Realpolitiks
Rebel Cops
Rebuild 3: Gangs of Deadsville
RED SOLSTICE 2: SURVIVORS
Regency Solitaire
Regions of Ruin
Regular Human Basketball (x3)
Relicta
Remnants of Isolation
Resident Evil 0 HD REMASTER
Resident Evil 4
Resident Evil 5 Gold Edition
Resident Evil 6
Resident Evil HD REMASTER
Resident Evil Revelations (X2)
Resident Evil Revelations 2 Deluxe Edition
Retimed
Retro Game Crunch
Retrowave
Revita
Rime
Rise and Shine
Rising Dusk
Rituals
Road 96
Road to Ballhalla
Roadwarden
Robot Roller-Derby Disco Dodgeball
Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder™
Rocket Birds: Hardboiled Chicken
ROCKETSROCKETSROCKETS
Rogue Heroes:Ruins of Tasos
Roguebook
Rollerdrome
ROUNDS (x2)
Rustler
Rusty Lake Paradise
RÖKI
S.W.I.N.E. HD REMASTER
Saints Row: The Third
Sam & Max: Season 1
Sam & Max: Season 2
Satellite Reign (x2)
Scorn
Scourgebringer
Screencheat
Scribblenauts Unlimited (x2)
Secrets of Raetikon
Shadow Complex Remastered (Epic Games)
SHADOW TACTICS: AIKO'S CHOICE
Shady Part of Me
Shelter 2 (x3)
Shenmue I & II
shutshimi
Sid Meier's Railroads!
Sigma Theory: Global Cold War (x2)
SimplePlanes
SIMULACRA
Size Matters
Slipstream
Sniper Elite
Sniper Elite 3 (x2)
Sniper Elite V2
Snowtopia: Ski Resort Builder
Song of Horror
SOULCALIBUR VI
Souldiers
Speed Brawl
Spellcaster University
Spelunky
Spirit of the Island
Spirits
SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS: BATTLE FOR BIKINI BOTTOM - REHYDRATED
Spy Fox 2 "Some Assembly Required"
Spy Fox 3 "Operation Ozone"
Spy Fox in "Dry Cereal"
Spy Fox In: Hold the Mustard
Squad (Early Access)
StarCrossed
State of Mind
Staxel
Stealth 2: A Game of Clones
Stick Fight: The Game (x4)
Streamline Early Access
Streets of Rage
Stronghold Crusader 2
Subsurface Circular (x3)
Suchart:Genius Artist Simulator
Sudden Strike 4
Super Daryl Deluxe
Super Galaxy Squadron EX
Super Hexagon (x2)
Super House of Dead Ninjas: True Ninja Pack
Super House of the Dead Ninjas (x2)
Super Lesbian Animal RPG
Super Magbot
Super Time Force Ultra
SUPERHOT (x3)
Surgeon Simulator + Anniversary Ed. Content
Surviving the Aftermath
Swag and Sorcery
Sword Legacy Omen
SYNTHETIK: Legion Rising
System Shock 2
System Shock: Enhanced Edition
Tainted Grail: Conquest
Tales from the Borderlands
Tales of Berseria™
Tales of the Neon Sea
Tangledeep + Soundtrack
Tank Mechanic Simulator
Team Indie
Teleglitch: Die More Edition
Telltale Texas Hold'em
TemTem
The Adventure Pals
The Ambassador: Fractured Timelines
The Ascent
The Ball
The Battle of Polytopia
The Blackout Club
THE DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY: LITTLE HOPE
THE DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY: MAN OF MEDAN
The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk: The Amulet of Chaos + Goodies + OST
The Dwarves
The First Tree (x3)
The Forgotten City
The Gardens Between
The Henry Stickmin Collection
THE INVISIBLE HAND
The Journey Down: Chapter Three
The Legend of Tianding
The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante
The Quarry Deluxe Edition
The Red Lantern
The Serpent Rogue
The Stillness of the Wind
The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead - 400 Days
The Walking Dead: A New Frontier
The Walking Dead: Final Season
The Walking Dead: Michonne - A Telltale Miniseries
The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners
The Walking Dead: Season Two
The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series
The Wild Eight
The Witness (x2)
theHunter: Call of the Wild
Them and Us
There is No Light:Enhanced Edition
Think of the Children
Thirty Flights of Loving
This is the Police
This War of Mine
This War of Mine: Final Cut
Throne of Lies® The Online Game of Deceit (x3)
Tilt Brush
TIMEframe
Tin Can
Titan Quest Anniversary
Titan Quest Anniversary Edition
ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove (x2)
Tokyo 42
Tooth and Tail (x2)
Torment: Tides of Numenera
Total Tank Simulator (x2)
Tower of Guns (x2)
Train Simulator 2017 + Platform Clutter + Town Scenery
Train Station Renovation
Tribes of Midgard
Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince
Tropico 4
Turbo Gold Racing
Twin Mirror (x2)
Two Point Campus
Ultimate Chicken Horse (x3)
Undertale
Unmetal
Unpacking
Valfaris
Vampire: The Masquerade - Shadows of New York
Vane
Vault of the Void
Verdun
Vertiginous Golf
Vikings - Wolves of Midgard
Visage
Void Bastards
Volgarr the Viking
Wandersong
Wargroove
Waking Mars
WARHAMMER 40,000: CHAOS GATE - DAEMONHUNTERS
Warhammer: Chaosbane
Werewolf: The Apocalypse Heart of the Forest
West of Dead
Westerado: Double Barreled
Where the Water Tastes like Wine
WHO PRESSED MUTE ON UNCLE MARCUS
Wildfire
WINDJAMMERS 2
Windward
Wingspan
Wizard of Legend (x3)
World of Goo
Worms Revolution
WORMS RUMBLE + LEGENDS PACK DLC
Wuppo (x2)
WWE 2K Battlegrounds
WWE 2K Battlegrounds + Brawler Pass
WWE 2K23
XCOM: CHIMERA SQUAD
XCOM: ULTIMATE COLLECTION
Yes, Your Grace
Yooka-Laylee
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK HEADRUSH
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK SPORTS
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK TELEVISION
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 1 XL
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 2
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 3
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 4: The Ride
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 6 The Lost Gold
Ziggurat
Zombie Night Terror
Others GameMaker Studio Pro
Ashampoo BackUp Pro 14
Ashampoo Photo Optimizer 7
Ashampoo WinOptimizer 18
Battleborn Starter Skin Pack
Darkest Dungeon Shieldbreaker DLC
Double Fine Adventure Documentary
GWENT - Ultimate Starter Pack
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 1 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 2 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 3 DLC
Mage and Minions - $10 In-Game Currency
Music Maker EDM Edition
Music Maker: Hip Hop Edition
PAYDAY 2: Sydney Mega Mask
Starfinder: Pact Worlds Campaign Setting
XCOM® 2: Reinforcement Pack
XCOM® 2: Resistance Warrior Pack
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK MOVIES
submitted by a_modest_espeon to SteamGameSwap [link] [comments]

2024.06.08 17:13 a_modest_espeon [H] Lots of Games, Please Look [W] Games(See Below)/Offers, Wishlisted Items, and Paypal

I am currently taking paypal for games, you always go first and cover fees
For game trades, you always go first and message me, usually it takes me about 1-2 days to get back to you at the latest
No reply means not interested
My Rep Page has not been updated in about 5 years, but I have a lot of trades finished
Bolded items are just the ones I would like to consider keeping so don't feel as though you need to offer more for the game
Wants
Oneshot
Subnautica
Stellaris (and dlc)
Fallout 4
Wishlist Items
Have
A Plague Tale: Innocence
ADOM (ANCIENT DOMAINS OF MYSTERY)
Bridge Constructor Portal
Chivalry 2 - Epic Edition
Deep Rock Galactic
Disco Elysium - The Final Cut
Doom Eternal
Elite Dangerous
Endless Space 2 - Digital Deluxe Edition
Ghostrunner
Honey I Joined a Cult
Lost Ruins
Mass Effect Legendary Edition (temporarily unavailable)
MONSTER TRAIN (FIRST CLASS - COLLECTORS EDITION)
OUTWARD + THE SOROBOREANS AND OUTWARD SOUNDTRACK
PATHFINDER: WRATH OF THE RIGHTEOUS
Rebel Inc: Escalation
REMNANT: FROM THE ASHES - COMPLETE EDITION
SCP:Secret Files
SHOTGUN KING: THE FINAL CHECKMATE
Songs of Conquest
Spyro™ Reignited Trilogy
Surviving Mars
THE OUTER WORLDS: SPACER'S CHOICE EDITION
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales
VALKYRIA CHRONICLES 4 COMPLETE EDITION
Yakuza 4 Remastered
20XX
7 Grand Steps
observer (x3)
A Good Snowman is Hard to Build
A Juggler's Tale
A Mortician's Tale
A New Beginning - Final Cut
Aaero
Aces and Adventures
AER Memories of Old (x2)
Age of Wonders III
Ageless
Agents of Mayhem
AI War: Fleet Command
Alien Spidy
Aliens:Fireteam Elite
Alina of the Arena
All You Can Eat
Aragami 2
Arcade Paradise
Army Men RTS
Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation (x2)
Assassin's Creed® Origins
Assault Android Cactus
Atom RPG Trudograd
Atomicrops
AUTONAUTS VS PIRATEBOTS
Backbone
Bad End Theater
Banner Saga Trilogy - Deluxe Pack
Banners of Ruin
Bastion (x2)
Batman Arkham Origins (x2)
Battle Chef Brigade
Beacon Pines
Beat Hazard Ultra
Bee Simulator
Before Your Eyes
BEHIND THE FRAME: THE FINEST SCENERY
Beholder
BENDY AND THE DARK REVIVAL
Beneath Oresa
Between the Stars
Beyond a Steel Sky
Binary Domain
Bioshock Remastered
BioShock: The Collection
Biped
Black Book
Blade Assault
Blasphemous
Blazing Beaks
Bleed 2
Bloodstained®︎: Ritual of the Night
Bone - Episode 1 & Episode 2
Boomerang Fu (x3)
Borderlands 3 Super Deluxe
Boreal Blade
Boyfriend Dungeon
Broken Age (x2)
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Brutal Legend
BUILDER SIMULATOR
Burly Men At Sea (x2)
Bury Me, My Love
Celeste
Chasm
Chicken Police
Children of Silentown
CHUCHEL Cherry Edition (x2)
CivCity: Rome
Coffee Talk
COMMAND & CONQUER REMASTERED COLLECTION
Company of Heroes 2 + Company of Heroes 2 - Whale and Dolphin Conservation Charity Pattern Pack
Conan Chop Chop
CONTROL STANDARD EDITION (Steam or Epic Games)
COOK, SERVE, DELICIOUS! 3
Coromon
Crowntakers
Crusader Kings Complete
Cultist Simulator (x2)
Curious Expedition
CURSE OF THE DEAD GODS
Cyber Hook
DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY: HOUSE OF ASHES
Darkside Detective
Darksiders Genesis
Darksiders II Deathinitive Edition (x2)
Darksiders Warmastered Edition
Dead In Bermuda
Deadly Days
Death Squared (x2)
Deathloop
Decieve Inc.
Deleveled
Desperados 3
Destroy All Humans!
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
Disciples: Liberation
Distance
DISTRAINT 2 + Soundtrack
Distrust (x3)
Drawful 2
DUCATI - 90th Anniversary
Duke Nukem Forever
Duke Nukem Forever Hail to the Icons
Duke Nukem Forever The Doctor Who Cloned Me
Dungeons 3 (x2)
Dusty Revenge: Co-Op Edition
Dwarfs!?
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1: Blood Storm + DLC
EarthNight
Eastside Hockey Manager
Elderborn
Eldest Souls
Elex
Ellipsis
Embr
Emily is Away <3
ENCASED: A SCI-FI POST-APOCALYPTIC RPG
Endless Space® - Collection (x2)
Epic Chef
Eternal Threads
Euro Truck Simulator 2
Europa Universalis IV
Evan's Remains
Evergarden
EVERSPACE™
Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy Remastered
Fallout 1
Family Man
Farmer's Dynasty
Fibbage XL
Fights in Tight Spaces
Figment
Finding Paradise
First Class Trouble
Five Dates
Fobia - St. Dinfna Hotel
Foretales
Fort Triumph
Founders' Fortune
Framed Collection
Framed Collection (x2)
Freddi Fish 2: The Case of the Haunted Schoolhouse
Freddi Fish 3: The Case of the Stolen Conch Shell
Freddi Fish 4: The Case of the Hogfish Rustlers of Briny Gulch
Freddi Fish 5: The Case of the Creature of Coral Cove
Freddi Fish and Luther's Maze Madness
Freddi Fish and Luther's Water Worries
Freedom Force
Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich
Friends Vs Friends
FTL
Full Metal Furies
Full Throttle Remastered (x2)
Fury Unleashed
Gas Station Simulator
Genesis Noir
Get In The Car, Loser!
Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy
God's Trigger
Golf Gang
Gonner
GRAV (Early Access)
Greedfall
GRID 2
Grime
Grow: Song of the Evertree
Growing Up
Guns of Icarus Online
Hacknet (x2) + Hacknet Labyrinths DLC (x1)
Haiku, the Robot
Hammerting
Hard Reset Redux
Hardspace: Shipbreaker
Heaven's Vault
Heavenly Bodies (x2)
Hell Let Loose
Hell Pie
Hello Neighbor Hide and Seek
Hellpoint
Hero Siege Complete + Cyberpunk Samurai + Demon Slayer Bundle + Extra slots & stash space + ClassShield Lancer + Shaman + Plague Doctor + Marauder + Amazon+Avenger Paladin DLCs
Heroes of Hammerwatch
Hexcells Complete Pack
Hidden & Dangerous 2: Courage Under Fire
Hidden & Dangerous: Action Pack
Hidden Folks
HITMAN™: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON (x2)
HIVESWAP: Act 1
Hokko life
Hollow Knight
Hot Brass
Hot Wheels Unleashed
Hotshot Racing
Hyper Light Drifter
I am not a Monster: First Contact
I'm not a Monster
If Found...
Impostor Factory
In Between
In Sound Mind
Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition (x3)
INK Deluxe Edition
Iris and the Giant
Iron Harvest
Jack Move
JumpJet Rex
Jupiter Hell
Jurassic World Evolution - Deluxe Dinosaur Pack
Just Cause 3 XXL Edition
Kerbal Space Program
KeyWe
Kill it with Fire
KillSquad
Kingdom Classic
Kingdom Two Crowns
Kingdom: New Lands (x2)
Knights of Pen and Paper 2
Kraken Academy!!
Late Shift
Later Alligator
Lawn Mowing Simulator
Legend of Keepers
Legion TD2-MULTIPLAYER TOWER DEFENSE
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Premium Edition
LEGO DC Super-Villains Deluxe Edition
LEGO Ninjago Movie Video Game
LEGO® Batman 2 DC Super Heroes™
LEGO® Worlds
Let's Explore the Farm (Junior Field Trips)
Let's Explore the Jungle (Junior Field Trips)
Levelhead
Leviathan Warships
Life is Strange 2: Complete Season
Life is Strange: True Colors
Lone Fungus
Lords and Villeins
Lostwinds
Lovecraft's Untold Stories
Lumino City
Luna's Wandering Stars
Machinarium
Mad Max
Mafia: Definitive Edition
Mafia: Definitive Edition
Magicka
Maid of Sker
Majesty 2
Majesty Gold HD
Marooners
Masquerade: The Baubles of Doom
Massive Chalice
Meeple Station
Merchany of the Skies
Metal Hellsinger
Metro Exodus
Midnight Protocol
Mind Scanners
Mini Metro
MINIT (x2)
MirrorMoon EP
Monster Loves You
Monster Prom 2: Monster Camp
Moonlighter
Morbid: The Seven Acolytes
Morkredd
MOTHERGUNSHIP
Moving Out
Mr. Shifty
Mr.Prepper
Mushroom 11
My Memory of Us
My Time at Portia
Narita Boy
Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Strikers
NBA 2K20
NEBUCHADNEZZAR
Necromunda: Hired Gun
Necronator: Dead Wrong (x2)
Neo Cab
Neon Abyss
Neon Drive (Steam)
Newt One
Niche (x3)
NICKELODEON ALL-STAR BRAWL
Nimbatus The Space Drone Constructor
Ninja Pizza Girl
No Time to Explain Remastered
No Time to Relax
Not For Broadcast
Not Tonight
Oaken
Offworld Trading Company + Jupiter's Forge Expansion Pack (x2)
Old Man's Journey
OlliOlli World - Rad edition
OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood
Omno
One Step From Eden
Operation Flashpoint: Red River
OPERATION: TANGO
Opus Magnum
Orwell: Ignorance is Strength (x2)
Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You (x3)
Othercide
Otxo
Out of the Park Baseball 18
Overcooked! 2 - Surf 'n' Turf Pack
Overcooked! 2 - Too Many Cooks
Overgrowth
Overlord II
OZYMANDIAS: BRONZE AGE EMPIRE SIM
PAC-MAN™ CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION 2
Pajama Sam 2: Thunder And Lightning Aren't So Frightening
Pajama Sam 3: You Are What You Eat From Your Head To Your Feet
Pajama Sam's Lost & Found
Pajama Sam's Sock Works
Pajama Sam: Games to Play on Any Day
Pale Echoes
Panzer Corps 2
Paper Fire Rookie
Paperbark
Paradigm (x2)
Paradise Killer
Party Hard (x2)
Patch Quest
PayDay 2
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind
Pesterquest
Pesterquest
PGA TOUR 2K21
Pikuniku
Pinstripe (x2)
Plague Inc: Evolved
Planet of the Eyes
Planet Zoo
PlateUp! (x2)
Plunge
Police Stories
Police Stories
Portal Knights
Primal Carnage: Extinction
Prodeus
Project Highrise (x2)
Project Winter
Psychonauts
Putt-Putt® and Pep's Balloon-o-Rama
Putt-Putt® and Pep's Dog on a Stick
Putt-Putt® Enters the Race
Putt-Putt® Goes to the Moon
Putt-Putt® Joins the Circus
Putt-Putt® Joins the Parade
Putt-Putt® Travels Through Time
Putt-Putt®: Pep's Birthday Surprise
Puzzle Agent
Puzzle Agent 2
Q.U.B.E. 2
Q.U.B.E: Director's Cut
Quest of Dungeons
Quiplash
Railroad Corporation
Railroad Tycoon 3
Railroad Tycoon II Platinum
Rain World
Raji: An Ancient Epic
Rapture Rejects + Safari outfit
Realpolitiks
Rebel Cops
Rebuild 3: Gangs of Deadsville
RED SOLSTICE 2: SURVIVORS
Regency Solitaire
Regions of Ruin
Regular Human Basketball (x3)
Relicta
Remnants of Isolation
Resident Evil 0 HD REMASTER
Resident Evil 4
Resident Evil 5 Gold Edition
Resident Evil 6
Resident Evil HD REMASTER
Resident Evil Revelations (X2)
Resident Evil Revelations 2 Deluxe Edition
Retimed
Retro Game Crunch
Retrowave
Revita
Rime
Rise and Shine
Rising Dusk
Rituals
Road 96
Road to Ballhalla
Roadwarden
Robot Roller-Derby Disco Dodgeball
Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder™
Rocket Birds: Hardboiled Chicken
ROCKETSROCKETSROCKETS
Rogue Heroes:Ruins of Tasos
Roguebook
Rollerdrome
ROUNDS (x2)
Rustler
Rusty Lake Paradise
RÖKI
S.W.I.N.E. HD REMASTER
Saints Row: The Third
Sam & Max: Season 1
Sam & Max: Season 2
Satellite Reign (x2)
Scorn
Scourgebringer
Screencheat
Scribblenauts Unlimited (x2)
Secrets of Raetikon
Shadow Complex Remastered (Epic Games)
SHADOW TACTICS: AIKO'S CHOICE
Shady Part of Me
Shelter 2 (x3)
Shenmue I & II
shutshimi
Sid Meier's Railroads!
Sigma Theory: Global Cold War (x2)
SimplePlanes
SIMULACRA
Size Matters
Slipstream
Sniper Elite
Sniper Elite 3 (x2)
Sniper Elite V2
Snowtopia: Ski Resort Builder
Song of Horror
SOULCALIBUR VI
Souldiers
Speed Brawl
Spellcaster University
Spelunky
Spirit of the Island
Spirits
SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS: BATTLE FOR BIKINI BOTTOM - REHYDRATED
Spy Fox 2 "Some Assembly Required"
Spy Fox 3 "Operation Ozone"
Spy Fox in "Dry Cereal"
Spy Fox In: Hold the Mustard
Squad (Early Access)
StarCrossed
State of Mind
Staxel
Stealth 2: A Game of Clones
Stick Fight: The Game (x4)
Streamline Early Access
Streets of Rage
Stronghold Crusader 2
Subsurface Circular (x3)
Suchart:Genius Artist Simulator
Sudden Strike 4
Super Daryl Deluxe
Super Galaxy Squadron EX
Super Hexagon (x2)
Super House of Dead Ninjas: True Ninja Pack
Super House of the Dead Ninjas (x2)
Super Lesbian Animal RPG
Super Magbot
Super Time Force Ultra
SUPERHOT (x3)
Surgeon Simulator + Anniversary Ed. Content
Surviving the Aftermath
Swag and Sorcery
Sword Legacy Omen
SYNTHETIK: Legion Rising
System Shock 2
System Shock: Enhanced Edition
Tainted Grail: Conquest
Tales from the Borderlands
Tales of Berseria™
Tales of the Neon Sea
Tangledeep + Soundtrack
Tank Mechanic Simulator
Team Indie
Teleglitch: Die More Edition
Telltale Texas Hold'em
TemTem
The Adventure Pals
The Ambassador: Fractured Timelines
The Ascent
The Ball
The Battle of Polytopia
The Blackout Club
THE DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY: LITTLE HOPE
THE DARK PICTURES ANTHOLOGY: MAN OF MEDAN
The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk: The Amulet of Chaos + Goodies + OST
The Dwarves
The First Tree (x3)
The Forgotten City
The Gardens Between
The Henry Stickmin Collection
THE INVISIBLE HAND
The Journey Down: Chapter Three
The Legend of Tianding
The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante
The Quarry Deluxe Edition
The Red Lantern
The Serpent Rogue
The Stillness of the Wind
The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead - 400 Days
The Walking Dead: A New Frontier
The Walking Dead: Final Season
The Walking Dead: Michonne - A Telltale Miniseries
The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners
The Walking Dead: Season Two
The Walking Dead: The Telltale Definitive Series
The Wild Eight
The Witness (x2)
theHunter: Call of the Wild
Them and Us
There is No Light:Enhanced Edition
Think of the Children
Thirty Flights of Loving
This is the Police
This War of Mine
This War of Mine: Final Cut
Throne of Lies® The Online Game of Deceit (x3)
Tilt Brush
TIMEframe
Tin Can
Titan Quest Anniversary
Titan Quest Anniversary Edition
ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove (x2)
Tokyo 42
Tooth and Tail (x2)
Torment: Tides of Numenera
Total Tank Simulator (x2)
Tower of Guns (x2)
Train Simulator 2017 + Platform Clutter + Town Scenery
Train Station Renovation
Tribes of Midgard
Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince
Tropico 4
Turbo Gold Racing
Twin Mirror (x2)
Two Point Campus
Ultimate Chicken Horse (x3)
Undertale
Unmetal
Unpacking
Valfaris
Vampire: The Masquerade - Shadows of New York
Vane
Vault of the Void
Verdun
Vertiginous Golf
Vikings - Wolves of Midgard
Visage
Void Bastards
Volgarr the Viking
Wandersong
Wargroove
Waking Mars
WARHAMMER 40,000: CHAOS GATE - DAEMONHUNTERS
Warhammer: Chaosbane
Werewolf: The Apocalypse Heart of the Forest
West of Dead
Westerado: Double Barreled
Where the Water Tastes like Wine
WHO PRESSED MUTE ON UNCLE MARCUS
Wildfire
WINDJAMMERS 2
Windward
Wingspan
Wizard of Legend (x3)
World of Goo
Worms Revolution
WORMS RUMBLE + LEGENDS PACK DLC
Wuppo (x2)
WWE 2K Battlegrounds
WWE 2K Battlegrounds + Brawler Pass
WWE 2K23
XCOM: CHIMERA SQUAD
XCOM: ULTIMATE COLLECTION
Yes, Your Grace
Yooka-Laylee
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK HEADRUSH
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK SPORTS
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK TELEVISION
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 1 XL
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 2
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 3
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 4: The Ride
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 6 The Lost Gold
Ziggurat
Zombie Night Terror
Others GameMaker Studio Pro
Ashampoo BackUp Pro 14
Ashampoo Photo Optimizer 7
Ashampoo WinOptimizer 18
Battleborn Starter Skin Pack
Darkest Dungeon Shieldbreaker DLC
Double Fine Adventure Documentary
GWENT - Ultimate Starter Pack
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 1 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 2 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 3 DLC
Mage and Minions - $10 In-Game Currency
Music Maker EDM Edition
Music Maker: Hip Hop Edition
PAYDAY 2: Sydney Mega Mask
Starfinder: Pact Worlds Campaign Setting
XCOM® 2: Reinforcement Pack
XCOM® 2: Resistance Warrior Pack
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK MOVIES
submitted by a_modest_espeon to indiegameswap [link] [comments]

2024.06.08 17:12 _heidster Timeline and Theorizing

I've been a long time lurker on this sub and following the identification of the Does. We know that many serial killers took a break, BTK is probably the most famous, and he did so to raise his daughtebe a family man.
I believe that the rapid increase in location of bodies and extremeties in 2011 spooked Rex and he either stopped killing all together or changed his dumping grounds. We know that in 2000-2002 when working on his HK document he was being careful about identification, trying to stay ahead of LE, and planning. However, we also have to consider that as he continued killing he became in less control of his urges. He tried very hard to appear disorganized, but his planning and prep shows he was very organized. Organized serial killers "know right from wrong, are not insane and show no remorse. Based on historical patterns, organized killers are likely to be above average to average intelligence, attractive, married or living with a domestic partner, employed, educated, skilled, orderly, cunning and controlled. They have some degree of social grace, may even be charming, and often talk and seduce their victims into being captured."
There are a lot of comments on this sub and all over the internet about his lack of emotions and his piercing eyes, but we are seeing him with the pre-determined impression that he is going to be a gross man because he allegedly killed all of these women in grotesque ways. He may have appeared educated, attractive, and intelligent to those around him who did not have this pre-conceived notion.
He appeared to have some capability to control his urges between his family's trips or there are less extensive murders out there. I'm thinking of the blunt force trauma, no dismemberment bodies that have been found in surrounding areas. Also there are many times people stop killing or committing crimes due to new sexual relationships, family time, etc... so the 1993-1996 when he was dating Asa may have explained that small gap, then I think there's a much smaller gap between 1996 and 2003 than he's currently charged with.
Or he could be like Joseph James DeAngelo and simply have stopped.
submitted by _heidster to LISKiller [link] [comments]

2024.06.08 15:55 Repulsive_Ant3922 Celebrating narcissism on RuneScape

For the last few years, Jagex has been inflicting, on front page headlines, a disastrous sexually perverted movement called pride. This has certainly caused huge uproar and backlash from a large amount of players, many who quit ultimately from these circumstances. ; Incorporating the pride movement on front headlines, which forces majority of players to see this, for what is an entire month, demonstrates how far off, callous, and inevitably triggering our entire social culture has become. The entire subject itself, continuously remains wasted time, but yet there must be an enraging retaliation regardless, because what is celebrated publicly, innately accompanies a criminal predatory assertion.
There is an irony now on this video game, which was supposed to provide a human beings pursuit for strength, fighting, and repetitively applying oneself while representing accomplishment. Now, the entire aura on RuneScape, which not only abandons moral value, integrity, and peace, but proves a disruption, reminder how family values are annihilated, children being neglected, normalized sexual behaviors transitioned to its lowest third party form, and nonetheless interconnected inescapable intrusions of sexual assault / pedophilia promotion all in one movement. Nothing is okay whatsoever about putting "pride" on RuneScape, (nonetheless SSA) and I will not be surprised if even more players decided to boycott or quit entirely as a result of Jagex stubbornly, without any remorse or mercy, brandishing their evil propagandist agenda. ; Below, I have put together several quotes from varying YouTubers, protestors on what has clearly been a huge shift in our social culture, devastating degradation of something, which should have never received any name to begin with, and slowly manipulating the power of media to prompt major disruption on innocent people playing their previously enjoyed video game.
Reminder- these are from other users voicing their justified protest and all credit goes to them
People's sexual preference SHOULD NOT HAVE A PLACE in a game my children play

The irony of the march being led by a giant demon

Where is Durial321 when we need him most

A whole month to celebrate pride and only one day to celebrate the victims of the Falador massacre.

all dying companies fiend over this stuff, publicity.


pride march. Literally the only time J mods log in. What a joke

Imagine a world, where you just want to play video games and ignore politics and the economy, and that world doesnt exist.

Celebrating sexuality is actually weird

If you feel the need to shout out and shove it in everyones faces about how proud you are, is it something you should really be proud of?

I dont care that I've spent 9 thousand hours on my account..I'm not associating myself with a game that panders or relates itself with lgb

We need to have a march for Jesus

No political bs In video games solves it all.

We pay no g@y

The soldiers of Dday should be remembered this month not this crap.

Pride is a sin and so is virtue signaling.

So pride gets a whole month yet our veterans thought fought for our lives and freedom only get one day

Evil growing stronger brothers, make yourselves strong.

what a joke

I've been learning about Dante's divine comedy and the 7 deadly sins. Turns out pride is the worst sin of all. As a non Christian but someone interested in western culture I find this ironic.

It's from christ, not just western culture man.

I lost my legs and testicles in Iraq... Where's my month.. if anything this is just offensive

Jagex is out of control

this was the final straw for me to quit this run down dog water game. god bless.

I’m so sick of this shit being everywhere

This is the reason I quit runescape two years ago.

Did you know that the Pride flag is a reversed chakra's order? Meaning that they're disconnected from their mental and physical state.

I quit last year when they did this crap. Haven't resubbed since. Glad I made it a year

groomers event

all my homies hate groomers

P R I D E The worst of the "Seven Deadly Sins"

sigh.. what is the world coming to


I completely agree with you. As I said earlier i can't believe that we live in a society where people think it's okay for 2 men to have sex. Im very disgusted this same people would call you prejudice if you disagree with them. How can a guy call himself a transgender and people think his a normal person. Makes me sick to my stomach


The time for talking is over. It is time to fire up the bulldozers, and push back on these movements that soften America. These agendas are leading a lot of souls to hell. This guy should run for President

our generation is doom

Im 15 when I have children i plan on raising them and being a man they can look up to

Feminine men nowadays make it hard for a feminine woman like myself to date. I want a masculine man in my life

NOBODY IS TALKING ABOUT THIS!!! I’m a single father, and I’m FIGHTING FOR MY LIFE TO GET 50/50 parenting rights to raise my son. It’s NOT OKAY FOR MEN TO HAVE LESS RIGHTS THAN WOMEN IN FAMILY COURT. Its disgusting. A LOUD VOICE NEEDS TO TALK ABOUT THIS ALSO!

Don't forget in June we celebrate Fathers Day and Let's be clear, none of us exist without man and woman


it should be called Veterans Month. Period, remember the event on June 6th 1944.


It's ironic that "Pride" month is celebrating everything we should be ashamed of.

PRIDE MONTH is a sick testimony to just how low our culture has fallen.

The biggest thing your missing is, why do they need to affirm their identity?

Having pride in deviancy for a whole month is ridiculous.

I prefer to call it debauchery month

It's wrong, it's a sin, and nothing they could do would change my mind!!!!

Legalizing sin is the path to downfall of society. Unfortunately too many people don't understand that. We are not allowed to judge people, however we are allowed and it is our duty to oppose and fight back, when they want to legalize sin

A behavior that is a deadly sin. A direct line to Hell. Not hate, but truth!

Narcissist month

Brave video by both Peterson and fox for airing it right as degenerate month begins.

I want to thank all the hard working men out there. We built this society. And we can change it back to how it should be

The love that dare not speak it’s name has become the love that won’t shut up.

Tolerating the devil is bad, actually.
submitted by Repulsive_Ant3922 to OSRSDJones [link] [comments]

2024.06.08 13:47 wiklr Oral History of All That (2014)

Originally From: https://myspace.com/discovetrending/2014/04/14/all-that-oral-history-season-one/

How ‘All That’ Became the ‘SNL’ for the Next Generation

By Steven J. Horowitz and Jill Menze • April 14, 2014
Twenty years ago, Nickelodeon took a chance by airing a one-off special that stretched into 10 seasons of sketch comedy. To commemorate the milestone, the show's executives, actors and guest musicians reflect on the first season of what would become an iconic series.
"Now it's just an introduction, before we blow your mind / The show is All That, and yes we do this all the, time." So went one of the opening lines of All That's unshakeable theme song, as delivered by Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes alongside TLC group members Rozanda "Chilli" Thomas and Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins. It was an introduction on Nickelodeon, a cable TV station that was taking a chance with one of its first sketch comedy shows, that set the precedent for a series that, over the next 10 seasons, would shift the course of television history.
Since its debut as a one-off special on April 16, 1994, All That continued on to become one of the only sketch comedy shows aimed at a younger generation. Series like Saturday Night Live and In Living Color found an audience in adults, but there weren't any shows that solved the riddle of what kids should be watching on Saturday nights.
In turn, All That became more than just a weekly ritual—it was a destination for kids, a virtual hangout dotted with familiar faces and recurring characters including Ear Boy, Miss Fingerly and Superdude. Created by Brian Robbins and Michael Tollin, the show first aired with a core cast—Angelique Bates, Alisa Reyes, Kenan Thompson, Kel Mitchell, Katrina Johnson, Josh Server and Lori Beth Denberg—that rotated in the years to come. Before the show closed up shop on October 22, 2005, it served as a breeding ground for future stars including Nick Cannon, Amanda Bynes and Thompson, who has been on Saturday Night Live since 2003.
Following the show's debut, it was picked up for a full season that began in December 1994 and became a staple on SNICK, a two-hour block of programming that also included Are You Afraid of the Dark? and The Secret World of Alex Mack. All That was a hit: It spawned the spinoff series Kenan & Kel, and later helped usher Nickelodeon into feature films with Good Burger, which starred Thompson and Mitchell as characters from the show.
But beyond that, All That was crucial in introducing kids to hip-hop and R&B, booking acts that parents would often consider too risqué for the preteen set. The first season featured an all-star roster of musicians who acted in and performed on the show including Brandy, Usher, Aaliyah, Da Brat, Coolio and much more. Throughout the years, its stage hosted A Tribe Called Quest, Destiny's Child, Britney Spears and N*SYNC. It became a conduit for musicians hoping to crack the youth market, and reciprocally educated viewers on the music that was soundtracking the nation.
Though it stopped producing new episodes almost a decade ago, All That left shoes behind that are yet to be filled. It takes a network to produce a lasting show, but it takes creativity and talent to cement its legacy. In honor of All That's 20th anniversary, a comprehensive oral history of the show's first season featuring the cast, executives and musicians who made the series come alive.

THE PLAYERS

Angelique Bates (Cast Member): Known famously for her Steve Urkel impression, Angelique Bates opened the door for young black women in sketch comedy.
Chauncey Black of Blackstreet (Musical Guest): The namesake behind New York’s Blackstreet, Chauncey Black helped lead the R&B group to early ‘90s success with hits like “Before I Let You Go” and “No Diggity.”
Coolio (Musical Guest): The Compton rapper was riding on the success of his breakout single “Fantastic Voyage” in 1994. After Nickelodeon liked his appearance on All That so much, they kept him around to record the theme song to All That spin-off Kenan & Kel.
Da Brat (Musical Guest): The Chicago-bred rapper has released four studio albums, two of which went platinum, including her 1994 debut Funkdafied. With numerous hits and standout features under her belt, Brat appeared on the second episode of All That as an actress and performer, and later returned for two episodes in seasons two and four.
Lori Beth Denberg (Cast Member): As part of the original cast, Lori Beth Denberg appeared on four seasons of All That as well as Figure It Out and The Steve Harvey Show. In addition to acting, Lori Beth is an ordained minister and officiates weddings.
Katrina Johnson (Cast Member): An original cast member, Katrina Johnson stayed on the show for two-and-a-half seasons. While her acting roles have been few since her appearance on All That, she is currently a host on UnCensored Radio.
Kel Mitchell (Cast Member): A five-season veteran of All That, Kel Mitchell parlayed his success on the show into the breakout series Kenan & Kel and film Good Burger. He has since appeared on Sam & Cat and starred in the 2011 movie Dance Fu, which he also co-wrote and co-produced.
Alisa Reyes (Cast Member): During her three seasons on All That, Alisa Reyes made a lasting impression with her characters Kiki the Island Girl and Tinsel Teeth. Since then, she's continued acting with appearances on Six Feet Under and Boston Public, and is currently writing a children's book in honor of her mother.
Brian Robbins (Co-CreatoExecutive Producer): With a résumé dotted with acting roles prior to All That, Brian Robbins later worked on television shows including Smallville, One Tree Hill and Sonny With a Chance, as well as films including Varsity Blues, Hardball and Good Burger.
Dan Schneider (Executive Producer): After finding major success writing and producing All That, Dan Schneider has maintained a high-profile name in kids programming for shows such as Drake & Josh, Zoey 101 and iCarly.
Josh Server (Cast Member): The only cast member to remain on the show for all original six seasons, Josh Server went on to act on Drake & Josh and Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide. He recently returned to acting after taking a hiatus from the entertainment industry.
Rozanda "Chilli" Thomas of TLC (Musical Guest): As one-third of the multiplatinum group TLC, Chilli contributed to All That's theme song in addition to acting in a skit and performing on the series' first episode. The group would later close the first season with another appearance.
Kenan Thompson (Cast Member): Arguably the most famous of All That alum, Kenan Thompson went from the show to the Kenan & Kel/Good Burger franchise to Saturday Night Live, where he’s appeared since 2003.
Michael Tollin (Co-CreatoExecutive Producer): Alongside Brian Robbins, Michael Tollin debuted the first sketch comedy for kids on Nickelodeon. Additional credits include Kenan & Kel, The Amanda Show, Coach Carter and Varsity Blues.

THE GENESIS

Brian Robbins: Albie Hecht, then-President of Nickelodeon, asked me if there were any shows that I wanted to make. I knew that making a kid-version of SNL would be incredibly fun.
Dan Schneider: In 1993, I got a call from my friend Brian Robbins. Brian and I had been actors together as high school kids on a TV show called Head of the Class [ABC, WarnerBros., 1986–1991]. Brian had started his own production company, and he'd been talking to a friend of ours named Albie Hecht. Albie had recently become the head of development at Nickelodeon and had been talking with Brian about creating a new show.
Michael Tollin: Brian and I had a started our partnership with a handful of documentaries. We were lucky enough to win a few awards and get invited to festivals. We’d kind of been put together indirectly through Albie Hecht, whom we were both friends with and with whom my wife had done a TV series. I got married and moved to L.A. in the early ‘90s and Brian was making a transition. Famously, Albie called [my wife] and said Brian is looking for a producer. She said, “Right house, wrong spouse,” and put me on the phone.
That led to the show Magic Johnson’s All-Star Slam 'N Jam, a piece of sports TV trivia for sure, but it gave us an opportunity to work together. I had an idea for a documentary film which we sold to FOX with Wesley Snipes narrating, Hardwood Dreams. We were doing the show together in a very ad hoc seat-of-the-pants way, which became our style. When we landed Wesley Snipes, The Hollywood Reporter called and said, “We want to do a story,” and wanted to know the name of the company. We said, “Call back tomorrow.” [The production company became Tollin/Robbins Productions.]
We had made a few documentaries. Albie, who now I refer to as the Godfather of Tollin/Robbins Productions, called and asked us to do a mini Nickumentary. It was a half-hour documentary on a Nickelodeon touring road show with Mike O’Malley and Phil Moore as co-hosts, driving around the country on a bus. We had two days to shoot a half-hour show and make it look like we traveled all over the country. [We were in] Topeka, Kansas, for a full shoot. We’d say, “Hello, Topeka,” say cut, and they’d go backstage and change the show and say, “Hello, Rochester,” “Hello, Minneapolis.” We went all out. That was kind of a progression of things, Albie giving us a trial, seeing if these guys can pull it off. That show worked and it was kind of a chance to work together. [Then] Albie said, “I have an idea of a sketch show.”
Dan Schneider: Brian thought it would be a good idea to bring me in, and Albie agreed. At that time, I had solid acting career going, but I was between gigs, and when Brian talked to me about the idea creating a TV show for Nickelodeon, I thought it sounded like a fun "side job,” just to keep my busy for a while.
So, Brian and I started talking creatively about creating a sketch comedy show. I was a huge fan of Saturday Night Live, and as a younger kid I had also loved watching The Carol Burnett Show with my dad. I even had seen reruns of a show called Laugh In, which was popular in the late 1960s. I really loved sketch comedy, so the idea of creating a new sketch comedy show was exciting for me. The fact that it was going to be for a kid audience just made it a bit more challenging.
The idea was basically to produce a half-hour show that would usually feature three sketches, a couple of "runners" (short little sketches), and then at the end of the show, there would be a performance from an established music act. That was our plan, and that's pretty much how the show was for all 10 seasons. But we never had a rigid format for the show. We'd change it up a little, from episode to episode. That was one of the cool things about All That—there were no real rules. We could mix things up make the show however we wanted.
Brian Robbins: When we set out to make the show, we had no idea whether or not we would be able to find kids who would be talented enough to be the next generation of sketch comedians—Eddie Murphy, Gilda Radner or John Belushi. Our expectations were blown away by the talented kids who came to star on the show.
We did a national talent search and looked in different places and locations. We found Kel at an open call in Chicago, Lori Beth at a high school talent showcase and, later, Amanda Bynes at a kids' stand-up comedy night.
Michael Tollin: The great thing about the way that it was set out, we all realized casting was critical. Albie being very a producer-friendly executive, creative by nature, we were given the resources to have a very expensive casting period. Months and months of bringing in kids from all over the country. It’s kind of wonderful to especially see Kenan on SNL every week. Obviously Amanda [Bynes] has had a very interesting career. That was a really deep dive to sit there day after day, week after week, and try and discover kids and figure out the right chemistry.
I think it was always: find great kids who are winning, talented or funny, and build characters or sketches around them. I’d be lying if we had a vision of a certain number of these characters or that characters. We had a great writing staff, and the kids were so fertile and such a great source of humor.
Dan Schneider: We knew that casting was extremely important. In fact, we viewed casting as so crucial that we decided that I would not write the pilot script until we had our cast in place. That's very unusual in television. Almost always, you write the first show and then you cast it. But with All That, we wanted to hire the best kid comedy actors we could find. We decided that we'd do a nationwide talent search, find the best ensemble cast we could and then I would write the script, tailoring the sketches to the specific actors' strengths. I wanted to create characters that would be perfectly suited for the actors.
As for the kids we cast, they were all unknown at the time. Well, Kenan Thompson had appeared in one movie [The Mighty Ducks], but he was still pretty new, like the others.
Michael Tollin: [An important date was] January 17, 1994. We had dinner [at home] and I said goodbye and took the red eye [from Los Angeles] to Orlando, and I got to the hotel at eight something in the morning Eastern Time and didn’t have a cellphone. I got the sleep that I could and woke up and stumbled to a taxi. [I received a] message when I checked in [to the hotel] that was said your wife called to say she and your daughter are fine. That’s a pretty scary message. The Northridge earthquake had happened at 4:30 a.m.; it had been in the hour we were arriving. We were pretty close to it [in Southern California], as was Brian. The morning was spent figuring out how bad was the damage both physical and psychological. Should we postpone [the pilot shoot?]. I was trying to do the right thing. [My wife] was trying to do the right thing. Aftershocks ensued. She said, “I can’t believe you didn’t come home.” The show went on.
We took a while, we were really proud of it. [The show] went through testing, it went through conversation. It was a departure for Nickelodeon. There was no prime time Nickelodeon yet. It all sort of worked in the coming years. Nick put together a Saturday night block, [SNICK]. All That was kind of the flagship. [Eventually] we had pretty much the whole two-hour block: Kenan & Kel and The Amanda Show. A lot of stuff started happening, it was kind of amazing.
Dan Schneider: I didn't have any big expectations for All That because, at the time, I knew almost nothing about the world of kids TV. Creating All That was a ton of fun and I gave it my best because I wanted it to be good and successful. But I just considered it a temp job. I was an actor. I never thought becoming a writeproducer would turn into a full-time thing for me.
Anyways, after we made the All That pilot, about six months went by and I didn't hear much of anything from Brian or the network. At some point, I called Brian and asked him if the network was planning to pick up the show. He wasn't sure. Then I heard that the pilot "hadn't tested great." You see, whenever you make a new TV pilot, the network tests the show with focus groups. So, for All That, they got a bunch of kids—boys, girls, different age groups—and they let them watch the show, and then moderators ask them questions, sort of like a group review. I actually still have the results from those tests. Basically, the people who ran the testing wrote a report—a summary—and they said that while kids might like some aspects of the show, overall, kids wouldn't like All That. I think that's why nothing happened for six months. The pilot only tested "so-so,” so the network was nervous about picking it up.
Then, if I recall correctly, I heard that the president of Nickelodeon (at the time), a woman named Geraldine Laybourne, watched the All That pilot and loved it. She said something like, "This show is great. Why haven't we picked this up yet? Let's make it." Next thing I knew, we were back in Orlando, where we'd shot the pilot, and we were making a bunch of episodes of All That. It was a blast. I loved every minute of it.
Michael Tollin: Albie gets a lot of credit for the vision and the persistence. Kevin [Kopelow] was also the Nick executive assigned to the show, a third producing partner. [He was] very smart, very creative, got the show, was invested in the show. I look back very fondly and feel very grateful.
(... Continued in the comments, maxed reddit character limit)
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2024.06.08 13:45 Hyper_Mental Daily Status of Kaspa Revenue through Dual Mining(June-07-2024)

Hello, miners. I am sharing the daily revenue status of my Kaspa mining through FoxPool's dual mining. Miners who are interested in joining or are concerned about declining profitability are always welcome. If you have any questions, please feel free to reply.
*Important information : FoxPool will support quad mining on July. This means that you can simultaneously mine 4 coins, BTC+Fox2+Pop2+Dwarf meme coin.
Date : June-07-2024
Miner : KS5 PRO 21T
Pool : FoxPool
Coin : KAS and FOX2
Price : KAS $ 0.1629 / FOX2 $ 0.01955
Earnings : 548 KAS / 565 FOX2
$Conversion : KAS $ 89.26 / FOX2 $ 11.04(+12.36%)
Comment : The current network hashrate has soared to 322 PH/s. Dual mining with Foxpool has improved profitability by 12.36%.
If you are interested in the previous revenue status update, please refer to the post below.
https://www.reddit.com/kaspa/comments/1d2fssb/comment/l60668o/
* This post is not a recommendation to buy, sell, or invest in any specific coin.
submitted by Hyper_Mental to kaspa [link] [comments]

2024.06.08 13:38 Hyper_Mental Daily Status of BTC mining Revenue through Dual Mining(June-07-2024)

Daily Status of BTC mining Revenue through Dual Mining(June-07-2024)
Hello, miners. I am sharing the daily revenue status of my BTC mining through FoxPool's dual mining. Miners who are interested in joining or are concerned about declining profitability are always welcome. If you have any questions, please feel free to reply.
Important information : FoxPool will support quad mining on July. This means that you can simultaneously mine 4 coins, BTC+Fox2+Pop2+Dwarf meme coin.
Date : June-07-2024
Miner : Bitmain's 120T
Pool : Foxpool
Coin : BTC and FOX2
Price : BTC $ 69355 / FOX2 $ 0.0195
Earnings : 0.000147 BTC / 19.65 FOX2
$Conversion : BTC $ 10.19 / FOX2 $ 0.3831(+3.75%)
https://preview.redd.it/xn4isa964c5d1.jpg?width=1229&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d4c7ae93fded1ccbd281b783c6078815f57ccb48
Comment : Dual mining with Foxpool has improved profitability by 3.75%. I was able to earn an average of 15% additional income through dual mining, but recently the fees on the BTC network have surged. Please take that into consideration.
If you are interested in the previous revenue status update, please refer to the post below.
https://www.reddit.com/BitcoinMining/comments/1d4pen2/daily_status_of_btc_mining_revenue_through_dual/
* It is not a recommendation to buy, sell, or invest in any specific coin.
submitted by Hyper_Mental to BitcoinMining [link] [comments]

2024.06.08 08:00 Fearless-Science-825 My alien yandere girlfriend part 3 of ?

Prologue part 2
Chapter 1: Song of rainfall, and snow part 1.
Date: Feb 12th, 2046 9:23 AM/PCT Location: Proxima Centauri B, Outskirts of Kashuna, Capital of Proxima Centauri
“Hey! hey! Your local Global occult defense initiative recruiter here. The world is gonna get worse before it gets better. No seriously look around you. Around you, you are surrounded by Aliens, the occult, and things beyond comprehension that God made just for fun. It's our job to protect humanity from these world ending threats.” The video cuts to an event where the skies suddenly turn blood red mixed with an aurora borealis, fissures appear in the crimson skies, and azure liquids falling from the skies. When the droplets of the azure liquids drop into the ground they turned into horrific amalgamations of flesh, and liquids. The video cuts to a person being engulfed by the azure entities, and after a while the azure liquids suddenly disappears and the person who was engulfed by it started to laugh.
A moment later the body started to morph into another form, and was immediately lit up by humanoid robots with cold azure eyes. Some parts looked human. Mainly the head, and the body. The ears looked like headphones, the limbs looked so robotic or something akin to that of a prosthetics, and the eyes… Looks akin to that of the creature from the azure liquid. Seeing that sent shivers down my mind. Suddenly I felt like wanting to run away but didn't because I didn't want to fall off a jeep running at 60 miles per hour. But a second later I felt like my body was being broken apart. I don't know why but I just felt that way. In some part of me I felt somewhat disgusted at myself. Seemingly seeing myself as one of them.
A tear appeared on my face, making me feel dread as the video played. I don't know why… But it both made me sad, and angry. Like how I felt when I lost both mom, and dad. I shook my head and tried my best to ignore it. It's probably just my imagination or my mental instability. Yet something nagged at me like it wasn't. “Whether domestic or international. Do you really think we haven't suffered through the stars just to get here? Well if you know history then your answer is no, and you would be perfect for joining our local mobile task forces. Such as MTF Fox-2 The sneaky bastards.” Suddenly the screen cuts to footage of robotic soldiers in full optical camouflage uniforms gunning down some sort of ghost like apparitions. One of the apparitions looked like a giant orangutan that was given steroids, and was gunned down by a 70mm canon fire from a robotic construct that looked like a giant mechanical spider armed to the teeth with machine guns, and a main 150mm Howitzer, and a secondary 70mm flak. It's eyes glowed azure blue as it continued to gun down more of these apparitions.
“Um… Nau? Why does the local internet have military recruitment adds for humans? Like I bet the only people sent here are probably military personnel mostly, and some are researchers. So why is there military recruitment ads?” I asked curious about the reason this kind of ad was playing in this side of human controlled territory to try and distract myself from what I just saw and felt. If the UN was a conventional military then hiring soldiers from other nations or species would be out of the question.
“Well honestly K, you humans have been fighting off incursions for the last 5,000 years albiet in such smaller scales than what your normal species outside of the Orion arm does. It takes up a lot of man power to fight a prolonged war against wave incursions, and mutants from BEAR zones. To why you are fighting such draining conflicts? Well if I remember correctly a lot of these zones contain a lot of valuable resources to the point that fighting a large scale guerilla war would be worth the sacrifices. Not to even mention the main directive of the global occult defense initiative. To fight the things that bump in the night, and kill whatever things that threaten the safety, and veil of normalcy.”
“Their main motto is ‘We cull the things in the dark in order to live a normal life. We fight not for glory, profit, nor borders. We fight to keep normalcy.’ and sometimes this is just what they do. It takes a lot of manpower to contain things that can't be killed, to contain threats that might prove useful, to cull incursions, and to keep the veil of normalcy you know. Sometimes you need to outsource your recruiting from your target demographic. Think of it as a large scale version of the french foreign legion.”
Defragmentation complete.
Neural cloud status: Somewhat stable
Main cause of crash: Gravitational forces, and Thawing.
Reverting memories…..
Welcome. Recreatant 01.
Project Snowfall. ⁠_⁠^ :⁠-⁠P
-P.S remember. Mommy loves you K. Remember. Keep on living. No matter what happens. Even if the world drowns in rainfall.
A message appeared on my vision before quickly disappearing. I shrugged it off, thinking of it as some sort of hallucination, and a side effect of being thawed out which probably messed with my neurons.
Suddenly my mind started to feel light as it something has been lifted from my conscience.
“Kyruger you okay? You've been spacing out.”
“Yeah….. I'm fine.”
“What did I tell you?” She asked me.
“Umm….”
“Honestly I don't remember.”
“Well it's not like I'm letting you join them. Plus I wouldn't want you to disappear again.”
“We'll let's start to talk first. What do you remember?” I offered.
“How have you been Nau?” I smiled and looked at her, and I could faintly see her start to tear up as she stared back at me. For an honest second there I wanted to hug her but didn't because I wouldn't want us to both die. She's driving a buggy after all.
“Sure.” She said as she looked at the azure horizon whilst sighing. Currently the road we are driving is nothing but dust, and empty desert. As said by Nausica it would take 30 minutes to commute from the port to the capital. And currently we're traveling 80-90 miles per hour.
“Well. How do I put it…”
“I miss you Kyu. It's been lonely since you left.” She said whilst trying not to tear up. So.. your lonely. Just like me huh?
“How long has it been since I had…. a sincere connection….” She sighs before continuing.
“The past…. Twenty years has been rough to say the least. Everyone I met either hated me just because of my species or how I looked. Despite me trying my best to adapt….”
“People…. Still hated me….”
“Just like when we were kids…. “
“Just like when the neighbor’s kids used to belittle me just because of my hair color, and my eyes.”
“Despite me doing my best to be a good person, people still hated me for what I am. When I brought it up, or if someone knew they would avoid me. The only people that don't do that is people from my race, my sisters, and my S.T.A.L.K.E.R colleagues. Thanks to my race I couldn't get any job other than being a field agent outside of my species territory since the other species were reminded of the entities that came from the rainfall events everytime they saw us. Thus I worked for research institutes or secret societies as a freelance survey agent/S.T.A.L.K.E.R in B.E.A.R zones because of my species tolerance to Borsch radiation, and high survivability.” When I heard that, it made me feel bad for her. And quite honestly made me want to stick with her more out of pity.
“Want a hug?” I offered. She laughed.
“Sure after we arrive at the city.” She humored me.
“So how about you? What happened after you left?” She asked me. Now that I think about it. 4 years were a blur to me. All I remember was studying, and being alone most of the time. Other than that. The 4 years were basically trips.
“Well. My life went downhill. I followed my dream to be an astronaut and become an adventurer of the stars yet I failed. Everytime I tried to apply to NASA, they always rejected me. Years after years of applications rejected. Even though I both excelled in academics and physical fitness the agency still chose other candidates. After that I gave up. My heart couldn't bare it anymore. So I tried to work for other corporations. But was turned down every step of the way since I was either too good or my expectations were too high for what they were willing to pay for me. Most companies even tried to guilt trip me despite them offering me wages that would've barely keep me afloat. Thus I had no where else to go than to work at a government agency since it was the highest paying job, with great benefits I could find. Thus I worked at the FBI. The department of unusual incidents. Though my work was mostly doing debugging, fixing vulnerabilities, and sorting out papers every once in a while.”
“But everytime I sorted out papers they would give me some sort of pill that would make time fly for me. Honestly I don't remember much from those paper filings but it took a lot of time, and drained the hell out of me. It was tedious, with very strict deadlines. Eventually making me hate the bureaucracy since it wasn't in my pay grade to sort things out for them. There was a dedicated division for that but was severely understaffed. Even my division was severely understaffed. The only division that was fully staffed is the counter terrorism division which handled field operations. I don't really know much about the counter terrorism division, and the things I remembered are mostly they make arrests or investigate unusual incidents too unusual for even the other FBI departments.” I told her. Honestly thinking about it, the more I remembered the more I think I was miserable there. I couldn't help but sigh, and look at my hand.
“So that's why you posted those posts about your frustrations. You couldn't find any outlet, and decided to scream into the void.” She's….. right…..
I couldn't help thinking that I felt like my self deprecating humor was a way to cope. A way to voice out my frustration in humor.
“Heh…… your right…..”
“I couldn't find someone to talk to so I coped by other means. Making myself laugh whilst internally I was in turmoil at how frustrating my life was. Always burnt out, and devoid of the passion I wanted to work with.” Saying that made me feel… vulnerable…. Emotions of sadness, rage, and yet… happiness.
Sad about how my life was wasted, spiteful and rageful at how everything turned out, and happy that I had someone to be vulnerable with. Happy to talk it out without having a person to shove my self esteem out like some of the therapists I talked to. Happy that someone understood, and didn't immediately start to chew me down. Blaming me for the life I've lived even though I had no say with most of my life. In some ways some parts of therapy made me feel even worse.
Some part of me wanted to hug her…. yet I feel like it would be inappropriate. Hmm .. Now that I think about it…
I never opened up like this before. Some part of me was relieved that i was heard, another was insecure, seemingly paranoid that she'll just use me, and discard me the moment I had no use to her anymore. I don't know why that is… but it feels… just like it. Like I was some sort of doll being repaired over and over again by it's owner.
I shrugged. No point in dwelling in that. I have nothing waiting for me at home. No family, no friends…
Just crippling loneliness only alleviated by endless distractions, manic humor, and fake people hiding behind consumerism to alleviate the sense of meaninglessness brought by the modern world. God it feels so absurd. I feel like a stranger brought into another world where things are the same yet so different at the same time. I wonder. How whimsical are the other worlds? How is it different from the world I came from?
Aliens, humans all the same things. These are just people. Of a different species with different aspects, yet one aspect unites them all.
Self awareness, and sentience.
A deafening silence lingered in the air. Caused by my own words.
“I feel you. Despite the universe being filled with whimsy, and the occult. It's mundane. Absurd even in it's irony. Despite being whimsical, people want a mundane life. Makes you want to side with the anarchist coalition. But those are just idealists. Thinking that people want whimsy and freedom rather than safety, and stability.”
“I want to live in a world where I'm free. Free to choose whimsy, and fantasy rather than depressing, and devoid of passion replaced by the mundaneness of the modern world where the magic of reality is hidden behind secret societies, and where it only benefits the few. Where the anomalous become a part of life, and things or people like me aren't hated for what we couldn't choose.” Nau said, seemingly agreeing with what I said. A moment later she laughs in a way similar to that of someone who's lost it all. She sighs, and suddenly begins to hum a tune.
“La, lala, lala, lala, La, lala, lala, lala.” Suddenly snow began to fall as she continued to hum the tune. Whilst humming the tone, she looked upon the skies only to see snow began to fall.
“Beautiful isn't it?” she said, before continuing to hum the tune. I looked upon the snowfall. Whilst looking at it, it reminded me of my childhood. It felt whimsical. Reminding me of a nostalgic time. Made me feel like a kid again. I chuckled. I then took off my mask temporarily. Out of habit I stuck out my tongue, jokingly yet seriously wanting my life to return to a more nostalgic time. Right after that wore it back on.
“That's magic. Specifically sympathy magic. Where music is a part of the casting process of magic. Where it uses emotions from music to cast magic and embues the emotions on reality. Often it is called another thing.”
“The magic of the scene.” I then swallowed the snow, making me feel somber, and carthertic.
“You can feel it too. The magic can make you feel…..”
“What the caster feels.”
“To why God made it as it is. He only said to us is experience without emotion is hollow and refused to elaborate. To this day we still don't know what that means. The living reality is really cryptic. The eternal monarch. Often he explains things through poetry, and references in history. Even if we only knew that history thanks to him. He oftens say the sweetness of reality is found in the sobering and emotional experiences.”
“Is there really a God? If so why didn't he just try to fix it all? Isn't God supposed to be benevolent?” She laughed at my words.
“More like a spectator. He tried to be benevolent but it only led to more problems. So he let it all be. When he tried to fix everything it only led to more suffering.”
“No matter what he did, the old civilization he so cherished so much crumbled to dust. In a world where God exist he is powerless to the consequences of his actions. Everything has consequences. Whether he liked it or not. That's just how reality is. Despite having sway on reality, it still had some consequences that one cannot undo lest more consequences come. The story of the eternal monarch, and the God inside the machine is quite tragic. Two lovers broken by the world that cared nothing about them.” She laughs again whilst trying not to cry.
“tsk. Hahahhaahha!”
“What's so funny?”
“It's so ironic. Gods who symbolized omnipotence towards reality broken by the thing they lorded over. They are the embodiments of concepts. Yet the concepts they embodied and lorded over still held sway on their lives.”
“No matter who you are. Reality shows no mercy.” Suddenly she started to cry, and laugh at the same time. Seeing her like this made me feel bad for her. What made her into this? What broke her to this point? The whole thing was both awkward and cathartic.
“Want a hug?” I offered.
“Sure…. Hahahhahah!” She said whilst laughing, and crying. I hugged her. When Nau noticed it, she caressed my hair. It was an awkward two minutes before she talked normally again.
“Um…. I'm sorry…. I kinda said too much…” tears fell on my head, and I let go.
“Feel better?” I asked, and she nodded whilst snickering to herself similar to that of someone laughing to seeing something so absurd.
“If you want you can always cry on my shoulders.” I offered her. She smiled, and looked upon the azure skies.
“Fine…” She smiles, she then jokingly leaned on my shoulder whilst driving. I started to sweat bullets from it. Nau quickly lifted her head from my shoulders, and focused on the road, smiling as she did it. For the next 13 minutes we sat there in silence until we arrived at Kashuna.
Towers adorned the horizon. Towers that would dwarf the burj khalifa adorned the surrounding. Shops littered the streets selling food, appliances, etc. And people of multiple species walked around side by side, along with humans and humanoid constructs. Robots that looked human but clearly distinct by the way their body is constructed. Some had prosthetic looking bodies akin to that of something you'd see in cyberpunk or the original ghost in the shell. There's also some constructs that had ears or limbs similar to that of earth animals. Most I'd see was ears and tails similar to that of fluffy animals. Some even had prosthetics with sharp looking nails. The attires were even more of a hodgepodge of different cultures, and ethnicities. Some wore traditional Chinese attire, some Hindu, some east Asian, some south east Asian, some Russian, some European, and some modern American. The sight in front of me was interesting.
“What's with them?” I asked, finally breaking the 13 minute long silence.
“Oh the constructs? Those are humans put into homunculus. Souls who has been extracted from their body using magic to be put in bodies they desired. They're often called transhuman but are generally used for warfare or fun. Often homunculi are used in order to kill those who are immortal in a sense. Even if their body dies the soul escapes, and basically makes a new body within days thus causing the perpetrator to live Scot free. Basically just executioners in a law enforcement sense. Only something dead is allowed to kill or shatter a soul to the point of destruction. These people are either dead nor alive but technically dead. Biologically speaking they are just echoes. Echoes of memories of those that died. Lingering spirits who's will is strong enough to linger and have a sentience of their own akin of that of the living. That's just how the world works. It's the reason why could even fight against incursions and rainfall events in the first place. But those who die in these events generally have their souls shattered. Unable to be retrieved or pass on into the dark forest. The after life where the dead lie stuck in a world where they can experience the life they couldn't experience for eternity. But sometimes it causes the soul to go insane. Thus tries to break out but loses their humanity or sentience in the process.”
“But if that exists why didn't just anyone try to destroy it?”
“God doesn't want to. The story of the broken God explains why he doesn't want to. He keeps clinging into the past. Whenever damage is caused to that plane he would always try to repair it. Even if it's completely destroyed he still recreates it. Even caused the destruction of that species. Historically speaking that has happened three times. Three species wiped off.”
“Why don't we just kill him?” She laughed before pausing, and answering my absurd question.
“A species tried that only for him to come back, and destroy said civilization.” Oh….
“Yet we still respect him. Despite him creating a place where we all end up, and go insane eventually it's not entirely a bad thing. It's just people generally go insane if stuck there in a long amount of time. It's just an unfortunate side effect. It's all for a good cause. It's not his fault for that. No matter what he did. He even modified souls multiple times yet everytime they would go insane sooner or later. It's just the consequences. But the means justifies the ends for him.”
“We have no say on what he does just as he has no say on what we do.”
“The monarch was always a tragic figure. An idealist, and an idiot. And we love him for it.” She snickered whilst saying that last line. A few moments later she stopped, and parked the car. Nau then pulled out her phone, and started to do something with it.
“Well let's go the venue. You'll love what your going to see.” She said, smiling at me as she said that, it made my heart melt. I left the car, and she held my hand making me flustered. The both of us walked towards the parade whilst holding hands. When we finally arrived there, a large amount of people gathered around guard rails. Five minutes later the sound of drums, and people singing echoed around the block.
“Why can't we be friends?” <4x!> The sound of multiple accents singing echoed through the air. Suddenly on the skies a rainbow appeared. Is this the same magic Nau described and used?
Also are they singing why can't we be friends?
“I seen you around for a long, long time I remembered you when you drank my wine!” Humans wearing cloaks, and gasmask wearing UN insignias and another faction with an insignia of a flaming torch sang together laughing and smiling under the masks. Something you can notice by the way their eyes look.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!> The people around me smiled, and laughed enjoying the parade.
“I seen you walking down in Chinatown I call you but you could not look around!” A bunch of people with thick Chinese accents sang together.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“I pay my money to the welfare line I see you standing in it every time!” Some soldiers with thick Louisianian, Texan, and New Yorker accents sang together making me chuckle. The differing accents made it so funny for me.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“The color of your skin don't matter to me As long as we can live in harmony!” People with Russian, Chinese, British, Indian, French, and American accents sang together.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“I'd kinda like to be the president So I can show you how your money's spent!” A bunch of American soldiers sang together, trying their best not to laugh.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“Sometimes I don't speak right But yet I know what I'm talking about!” A bunch of soldiers with thick Russian accents sang making the scene even more funnier.
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“I know you're working for the CIA They wouldn't have you in the mafia!”
“Why can't we be friends?” <16x!>
“Why can't we be friends? I want to be your friend. Why can't we be friends? I want to be your friend.”
“Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends? Why can't we be friends?”
“WOOOHOOOO!!!” The crowd around me cheered with a round of applause. Seemingly enjoying the performance of the army. Next above us a squadron of giant mechs flew by, seemingly partaking of the festivities. A moment later the squadron of high flying mechs fired a barrage of confetti. A moment later another squadron dropped a few mechanized spider unit with artillery strapped to it. Some sort of robotic quadrupedal tank. It's eyes glowed blue as it activated.
“Yes! Chaikovsky baby!” An alien speaking English said. The crowd cheered on. A moment later a symphony started and a bunch of constructs holding instruments gathered on the streets and started to play chaikovsky’s 1812 overture. The constructs marched to the beat for the whole durations. The people enjoyed their performance.
Suddenly the guns on the mechanized units fired as the iconic part of The 1812 overture played. The sound of artillery echoed as the units fired their guns. Thankfully it was just blanks, and didn't shower us with broken glass shards. The people cheered even more as they saw the artillery on the mechanized spiders fired.
The sound of people cheering drowned my ears with tinnitus almost deafening me. Right beside me Nau was enjoying the show. A genuine smile plastered on her face. Right after this the performance marched further, and further into the city. She tugged on my hand, wanting me to come with her to follow the parade.
The next performance was another song. But unlike the last songs it was sobering.
“This one is for our fallen. To those who've died in our war against those that threaten our ways of life.” A moment later a piano, and violins started to play.
A beautiful looking construct appeared amidst the formation of musicians. “It only takes one lone soul, it only takes one in a thousand.” Oh.. oh I remember this song! This was tranquility! I heard it from an anime I used to watch during my teenage years. Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu: Die Neue These. The legends of the galactic heroes. Gosh. That's a throwback….
“No, that's not bravery
As children we learn it's wrong
To put out the light of another
Our innocence lost over time
A means to an end” Hearing those words felt so healing. It put me both in a good and cathartic mood. It felt like my soul was being soothed.
“It's hard to hold your head up high, But we must try” suddenly the banging of bass dropped. Two beats, next one beat. It repeated.
“Sway together in the dark It's supposed to be,
'Cause I want to know the end And you never ever need to fight
But you're fighting everyday And I don't know when your light will go out
Innocent crying child, The heart of your enemy”
“My heart to heart with the light And we always get along
Counting the stars in the sky Thinking why they have to die!
Just face to face we can hear A voice telling us it's wrong.
Counting the stars in the sky It was like a lullaby.”
“For sunsets I'll break the rules We learnt playing down in the heather
The secrets behind all the veils We just use other words
For freedom we make our charge For friendship we bare down on others
Can't one of you just calculate Tranquility?”
“It's hard to hold your head up high But we must try”
“Ah, ah, Ah, ah, Ah, ah”
“Sway together in the dark It's supposed to be
'Cause I want to know the end And you never ever need to fight
But you're fighting everyday And I don't know when your light will go out
Innocent crying child The heart of your enemy”
“Sway together in the dark It's supposed to be
'Cause I want to know the end And you never ever need to fight
But you're fighting everyday And I don't know when your light will go out
Innocent crying child The heart of your enemy”
“My heart to heart with the light And we always get along
Counting the stars in the sky Thinking why they have to die!
Just face to face we can hear A voice telling us it's wrong
Counting the stars in the sky It was like a lullaby….” The crowd cheered at the performance given to them. The performer bowed, smiling doing so. I was left speechless as the music made me feel so emotionally vulnerable. Yet it felt so good. It's a paradox. I then looked at Nau who was shedding tears at the performance. Right after this the music changed, and they started to march towards the final destination. Right now they were singing uptown funk and it started raining moonshine, and booze. The surrounding felt so funky, and lively whilst the song played. I took off my mask quickly, and gathered some drops of rain to taste. It literally tasted like beer, and a bit of moonshine.
Nau then pulled my arms, and followed the parade. Under the mask I smiled. I followed her. Whilst following the parade I saw one of the hatches of those spider mechanized units open only to see a person crawl off it. The person eerily looked like my father but the difference was his more grizzled face, and a scar on the left eye. He wore some sort of general or officer's uniform with a patch similar to those people wearing the torch insignia's. Looking closer the doppelganger had a more robotic body so it can't be him. He's probably just a look a like. Suddenly the person looked around, and eyed me directly. Looking surprised when he saw me. Suddenly his face turned to both anger, and pity. Like I just pissed him off like I reminded him of something. When our eyes locked at each other I could see his eyes burn with a fiery azure passion when he saw me. He then tried to pull something out of his pocket but stopped. Suddenly he muttered something. He then looked away, and crawled back into the unit.
After a while the parade finally arrived at the destination. The press gathered around the venue seemingly like someone important was going to make an appearance. Currently we were in front of an arena. But unlike your normal arena this one dwarved even the Olympic stadiums. It looks like some sort of simulation arena for wargames. Something akin to the tank triathlon which is held in large open fields where tank crews and commanders outmaneuver each other with their expertise, and tanks. NATO holds them, even the Northern Russian Artic Parliament (N.R.A.P) holds them.
“Hey! Nau! Over here!” Someone shouted amidst the crowd. I looked around only to be dragged by her. When she finally stopped someone greeted me.
“Well if isn't Kyruger. Long time no see.” A woman a little higher than Nau, and much more younger greeted me. She had light green hair, pristine almost gemstone looking skin that was almost transparent, with the same greenish eyes, but unlike her sister she was quite petite.
“Who are you?” I asked.
“Oh yeah you must've forgot. Well I'm Catherine. You used to hang out with my older sister back in the day. You're quite a lucky guy. Big sis over here wai-” suddenly Nau covered her mouth.
“Shut it.” Cath gulped, and slowly nodded seemingly afraid of her older sister.
“Well How long have you, and my sister been dating?” She asked, and suddenly Nau elbowed me in the side. Ow that hurt.
“Well… For 5 months before she brought me here.” I lied, and Nau smiled maliciously. Oddly enough I was turned on by that smile. A moment later the speakers roared to life as someone was trying to make a speech.
“Hello our galactic neighbors. Hello, I Am G-4 Able. I'm quite honored to talk to you today. It's our 57th year since we were able to colonize a place, and our debut as regional power and a year after the armistice between the coalition, and the initiative. As you know the current affairs in human controlled territory between the coalition, and the initiative has warmed up. This parade has shown despite our differences we can still arrive at an agreement. Although in recent times the directive of the initiative has slowly changed. From multiple Borsch reactor meltdowns in Kazakhstan, and some parts in the Caucasus due to governmental mismanagement. I hereby rewrite the main directive of the initiative. Alongside the coalition our main directive has changed. From protecting the veil, to protecting what normalcy is left. I know. I know.” The people around us talked seemingly enamored by the local geopolitics of humans. I was also interested since this was world charging news.
“Humanity has always tried to suppress the knowledge of the anomalous but right now there are pressing matters. Keeping the veil is useless especially in the current information age that we found ourselves in. You already know that considering the Serpent's Maw leaks information about the anomalous. Currently A.I can't stop the spread of information, and unfortunately it has caused widespread confusion, and chaos in Earth. The Artic Parliament has already started to show signs of collapse, and eastern Europe has already fallen to widespread protests calling for freedom of information acts. To the foreign dignitaries I must ask you all for assistance in speeding up Project Dawn. Currently Project Dawn is nearly complete but it would take 3 more months for the civilian ships are made. And the other G-11 council members are currently worried that if we tried evacuating some parts of earth using military craft it would cause widespread chaos. Essentially causing confusion, and riots as barely anyone knows what's happening causing more casualties than needed.” Suddenly more people around me started to get worried.
“Shit. That's a bad thing….. the more people killed the more likely another large scale rainfall event happens.” I heard one of the people on the crowd say.
The skies suddenly reddened, and an unnatural aurora borealis appeared amidst the former clear skies.
“SHIT! RAINFALL EVENT!” The crowd panicked, and a stampede happened. People pushed each other killing some civilians in order to hide themselves from this ‘Rainfall event’.
“ATTENTION ALL INITIATIVE PERSONNEL! ACTIVE RAINFALL EVENT HAS BEEN DETECTED. CULL THE SIRENS! I REPEAT CULL THE SIRENS!” G-4 shouted through the speakers.
Around me, people pushed each other, afraid of what's to come. Some kept shouting, others crying, whilst some were trampled to death. Nau, and her sis were separated from me, whilst I was trampled.
My consciousness started to fade as people trampled over my body. Faintly I could hear the faint breaths of those who are being trampled to death. Some gasped for help, some cursed at the people that trampled them.
“Remember. Don't try to let yourself be seen by the sirens. Hide. Don't make a sound. Remember. Daddy loves you…” Dad ruffled my hair, and quickly rushed outside to distract the monsters outside. Before he left he locked the attic trapdoor. Gunshots echoed through the air.
"COME AT ME YOU SUICIDAL ECHOES! FUCK YOU!” Dad shouted.
Outside my father tried to fight off the creature made of azure liquids. Outside the demonic sounds of tormented souls screeching echoed. I looked out at the attic window, only to see him being swarmed by the azure monsters. Gunshot after gunshot he tried to fight them off.
"KILLL UUSSSSSSS!!!! PLEAAAASSSSEEEEEE!!!” When the gun finally ran out of ammo he quickly ran to try, and divert the monsters away from the house. But right after he tried this, the monsters lunged at him, and pinned him down, bludgeoning him. After a minute of struggle dad’s body went limp. Right after that happened the monsters threw up a viscous blue liquid, and shoved it to his throat. The moment this happened, his body convulsed, and he woke up. But unlike how he normally is, his eyes looked so depressed. He then laughed, and started to smash his head on the pavement only for him to heal the wounds. Suddenly he made a guttural roar.
“GRAAAAAHHHHHH!” A monster in the shape of my father screamed. Suddenly the monster that was formerly my father noticed me from the window, and made a B line towards me. I pointed a gun at the trapdoor. Footsteps echoed through the house. I stayed my best to stay silent but was found. The trapdoor shook as something tried to forcibly open it up. After a while of loud shaking the trapdoor finally broke. A bloodied head came through the door. The thing that was once my father now looked at me with a homicidal gaze. Both of our eyes locked with each other. He then made a guttural screech.
“D-don't come closer!” I shouted, my hands trembling. My child like hands shook as I was afraid, and didn't know what was happening. The figure’s eyes locked on to me, smiling creepily. A moment later the creature lunged at me. I pulled the trigger multiple times but the creature still mauled me even if it had taken lethal amounts of damage.
“Help….. me…..” As I was nearing my death, azure liquids leaked from the roof, and some of the liquid dropped into my mouth. The last thing I heard was something akin to glass shattering. Right after that my mind blacked out.
“When humans doubt God, they are considered to have independent selves...but what happens when a doll doubts its manufacturer?” I looked directly at the CCTV maliciously smiling at the fact that when mom sees this she would be distraught. She deserves it. She deserves all of the pain…. It was agonizing having your soul recreated. It was like being put together, and broken again. Over, and over. In the span of months. I was nothing but a doll to her. A doll to relive her nostalgia of the past. To relive a tragedy…
My dad pointed a gun on my jaw as per my request.
“Pull it.” I smiled as he pulled the trigger. A gunshot rang through the air. The last thing I saw was dad running away. His Human yet robotic like visage ran farther and farther from me. Smiling as the nightmare finally ended.
“I should've killed that bitch when I had the chance. Tsk. I should've known this would happen.” I groggily opened my eyes only to see the doppelganger of my dad pointing a gun at my head. He looked like he was ready to pull the trigger. I quickly got up, and tried to disarm him only to get shot in the liver. The parts of the gas mask I was wearing fell to the ground as what was left essentially is shattered from the stampede.
To my surprise I didn't bleed. He quickly grabbed a knife from a compartment in his arm, and tried to stab me in the neck. What the fuck.
My body quickly moved by its own, and disarmed him. I then tried to dislocate his arm. His metallic prosthetic arm showing cracks as I forcefully elbowed the prosthetic. He frowns.
Suddenly a gunshot rang through the air, and his shoulder fragmented.
“WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU! WHY ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL A CIVILIAN?! THERE'S SUPPOSED TO BE A SIREN ATTACK! WHY ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL A CIVILIAN?!” I looked behind me only to see Nau holding a dragonov. She quickly fired another shot but was blocked by his knife.
“Tsk. You have nothing to do with this. Stop this foolishness.”
“What are you talking about?” He laughs. Whilst he was distracted I tried to get his gun but was quickly elbowed on the neck, numbing it, and making me feel nothing and unable to move. Nau clicked her tongue, and started to shoot him.
“Fine… I'll finish this later…”
“I'll free you from the nightmare….”
“Son.” He quickly ran away, but before he fully retreated he shot me in the left eye. Plastic, glass, and metal shattered, and scattered as the bullet ricochet. A large steel ding was heard because of this. Similar to that of a bullet hitting a steel target and ricocheting.
“Are you o-” she paused as she noticed the glass shards that shattered as my eyes were hit by the bullet fragments.
“I should've known…. Something wasn't right when I slipped some part of me inside of you.”
“Say what now?”
“Nothing.” She quickly tried to carry me but temporarily put me down to put the gun away. She quickly consumed the gun. Oddly enough I thought that was hot. I wish I was the gun….
God I'm starting to develop a vore fetish aren't I? Right after that she grabbed my shoulder, and piggyback carried me.
“Try your best to hang on to dear life, okay?” I faintly nodded. But as I nodded some sort of fluid flowed out of my left eye hole. Right after that my body started to heat up even more.
“Crap you're leaking coolant.” She quickly ripped part of her clothes and shoved those onto my left eye.
“Hang on. I'll try my best to get to a nearby evac zone.” Suddenly in the distance the same screams of the damned echoes through the air. She gritted her teeth, and started to run whilst carrying my body. Whilst she was running. I noticed it started to rain.
“Shit! Another rain!” She quickly threw something up, and grabbed it. Some sort of weapon’s case.
She continued running, but faintly you could almost hear the sound of flowing water akin to that of a flash flood.
“Crap!” She quickly let go of me, and opened the weapons case. When she opened it a giant slab of steel with a muzzle akin to that of a miniature railgun prototype I read about in some article by the BBC back in 2041. Out of her hand, a large cancerous growth appeared. A reddish growth that when it bursted, chunks of reddish mold, and liquid popped like a balloon covering me with what looks to be mucus or blood.
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2024.06.08 07:48 Fit-Bit2907 Starfruit Books Upcoming Releases & Recent Licenses

Starfruit Books Upcoming Releases & Recent Licenses
(Updated June 7, 2024)
Starfruit Books is a very small publisher, so their pre-orders and release dates suffer extreme delays, none of the titles mentioned will have fixed release dates for that reason.
Please Note- this post does not include all upcoming releases, it only includes new starting manga with volume 1 or one shots that are yet to come out.

Yogo Yuuki and Yoshiaki Tabata - TRIBALS - Remaster - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/b9q7o7y0z95d1.jpg?width=1358&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c0288dac9ed4ec5b488a9208ff84dbc2a62a4e0e
School girl by day, hitman by night. A badass babe who beats up Yakuza at the R-18 landfill in Tokyo.

Noroi Michiru - The Horrors of Noroi Michiru 1 - TBD (Total 2 Volumes)

https://preview.redd.it/3u6uogiwz95d1.jpg?width=1871&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=03aa8835bcc0850fa69d50c76acf7f0493e396e7
For the first time ever, the master of horror Noroi Michiru will be available in English. The collection the two volumes will comprise of his one-shots and each page will be rendered in exquisite detail to showcase his splendid artwork - each panel worthy of being framed. Noroi Michiru's aesthetic is impressive in that it conforms to Western expectations, both amongst illustrated covers and also pages of narrative - focused, realistic anatomy opposed to more exaggerated, fanciful forms. His concepts, artwork and narratives are admirable as the efforts of Junji Ito, but his circulation, and consequently his fanbase, has mainly been exclusive to Japan.

Stephan Lapin and Naoto Tsushima - Handyman Quincy - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/9bqc8p190a5d1.jpg?width=1750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=45891361e045d69f4741acaa9daceeda77c7667d
Quincy, a boy with prosthetic limbs, starts as a handyman to support his family. But buying a second-hand phone from a thrift shop accidentally connects him to hitman requests. Can the kind-hearted Quincy fulfill these requests for murder?

Hideshi Hino - Occult Detective Club - Graveyard of the Death Dolls - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/xy7ts40r0a5d1.jpg?width=1507&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=15eb5ebcdbd6ee51f8dff8fb55e0cab36a8914c8
Visions of discarded dolls plague Chika's nights after a foreboding encounter with a possessed doll sitting among a collection of occult curiosities...
Only with help of Shiratori Fuyumi, president of the Occult Research Club, will Chika be able to solve the mystery of these deadly dreams.

Toshiko - Netami-kun - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/20hwa0602a5d1.jpg?width=724&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e9a70b62b266127151b59f21e313ca0368e963d6
A series of creepy, yet also goofy stories about Netami, a very jealous teenager who believes that everything is someone else's fault.

Miyako Cojima - Virginia Inferno - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/3mshlxef2a5d1.jpg?width=1660&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4c39a1f05218baa4a44a4f825419a53719605450
A collection of short works by Miyako Cojima, who pioneered Otome horror with the keyword Guropop Horror!
A collection of strange, fantastical, and hilarious works woven by retro, adorable, and pure girls! Enjoy a mysterious world view like no other!
Published works: “Misato's Strange Disease'', “Bullying Hell - The First part”, “Meat Hell - Causal Diet'', “Adult Hell”, “Ball Ghost Story'', “Mysterious! Bandaged Girl'', “The Girl Who Can See'', “That Woman is Inside a Wall” “Futari Jigoku ~ Marina and Leona’s Mysterious Incident”

Juan Albarran - Play Ball - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/fh0cty763a5d1.png?width=2339&format=png&auto=webp&s=6296d4c1c7ddd740dd45df1fa0adf89c40621d9c
The Koshien baseball tournament creates big stars out of teenage high school students in Japan every year but are they ready to handle that type of pressure?

Taro Kanafuro - Suburban Hell - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/qfkrwisu3a5d1.jpg?width=1453&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d5bc1a3769da9931e91b5031158eb49877611c60
A collection of seven short stories focused on human decay and corruption in everyday suburban settings.

Youichi Abe - PRISM - Short Story Collection - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/gght3v284a5d1.jpg?width=1446&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=31249ae0cfb20a078d48acbc408180c9bb7bcffc

Tatsuya Ihara - Toki - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/j84xmwxv4a5d1.jpg?width=974&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=388e2327fabc51abbeaaae212211bb0b91f32d34
Toki is set in 1959, and follows the story of a midwife named Toki Ihashi, living in Yashio village, Saitama.
She has been providing childbirth assistance to the village for many years. However, in 1948, after the war, the GHQ promoted American-style hospital births. This put midwives, whose livelihood was home birth, in danger of going out of business.

Fujiwara Kamui - H2O Image - TBD (Total 3 Volumes)

https://preview.redd.it/gr9tqqcp5a5d1.jpg?width=1918&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b67b819e94935d903ae47da2c95396dd394b452c

Yamazaki - Let's Meet in the Next Life - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/p98lhfzm6a5d1.jpg?width=705&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=dcf956bb4320a2f93462d8bb29fe6a3bc1d01298
An ex gang member moves into a new place that he seems to be sharing with a ghost of an old classmate.

Hideshi Hino - The Red Snake - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/13d8201e7a5d1.jpg?width=1046&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2694b5de022060da500c235ae09e64d5413d33e0
The boy tries to escape from his house, his strange family, and the evil he knows is present, but the red snake unleashes the evil and the mayhem begins.

Konoha Kizima - I'll Quit Traveling... - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/eod80yvz7a5d1.jpg?width=1209&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=634cba1eb568442f1de9ff92fe45603c9c7bc29f
A 30-page manga for fans of slow fantasy.
A short story about a young girl who has been a traveler since birth and her wish to end her journey.

Tsukimori Masako - Clan Under The Moon - TBD (Total 2 Volumes)

https://preview.redd.it/z15oum338a5d1.jpg?width=990&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7aedec0a213e6ac5909c2ebff7e64530995d6b86
I come from a family of shrine maidens who served the fox deity Inari Myoshin from ancient times. Of course, I am a shrine maiden too. However, I just helped an injured fox in front of Mount Inari when I was a child, and I became a possessed by a fox!

Kuro Nohara - His Ankle - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/6b0wotlj8a5d1.jpg?width=1240&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=29c101c734cb5b1bc192a3ef46d27b479afd17e5

Tatsuya Ihara - IL MANGA MILIONE - TBD (Ongoing?)

https://preview.redd.it/np768jl19a5d1.png?width=600&format=png&auto=webp&s=93bed4963be27a6f338da652c78a63b6f2cb78c4
A story about a young otaku from Italy who travels to the ultimate sanctuary of manga: Japan.

Sangatou - GRIN GRIN GRIN - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/2h2s7xx79a5d1.png?width=582&format=png&auto=webp&s=b1cfe8e539614a8ec80406b0250f113b8fe12e2c
The child of morning and night, the thunder bird, the great tree, the spirit...An anthology spun from beautiful, strange, and slightly eerie lives.

Takayama Tatari - TATARISM ~ TAKAYAMA TATARI'S SELECTED WORKS~ - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/mtgy5jf9aa5d1.png?width=440&format=png&auto=webp&s=3157aa433c89fd1c0d96399c9681f456ab8734e5
A oneshot collection of choice works by Sci-Fi Horror mangaka and DJ, Tatari Takayama! Author of "The Fear of Mouth Eyes Woman" and "G-Pen Magic"

Makoto Aizawa - Transit - TBD

https://preview.redd.it/7ycz3s1haa5d1.jpg?width=1448&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8bb078fe0dbdc47ba930d548c0e04f2c0aeed87a
Life is just a repetition of encounters and partings, and where we are now is in any case a transit point. A series of coming of age stories about the days we go through feeling lost.

nacolat - GREETINGS, SMILES AND SPARKLES - TBD

https://starfruitbooks.com/cdn/shop/products/ScreenShot2021-11-10at6.32.34PM_1024x1024@2x.png?v=1636587339

Mizuyama Kako - From far, far away - TBD

https://starfruitbooks.com/cdn/shop/products/thumbnail-001_1024x1024@2x.png?v=1621086467
A collection of early short stories from Mizuyama Kako that depicts a variety of characters experiencing many different unique facets of life.
  • HOLLYWOOD
  • Insectornal Green
  • I'm Fine Being #2
  • How to Make an Android
  • Your Shortcakes
  • A Story for You
The above six tales are included, as well as new illustrations drawn for the Japanese release.

zaki - DOOMSDAY CLEANING - TBD

https://starfruitbooks.com/cdn/shop/products/1_1024x1024@2x.jpg?v=1659879499
The story about a robotic vacuum that keeps cleaning after the apocalypse, and a mysterious life forms called pig. After collecting a lot of garbage, something begins to happen to the robot…

Minami Q-ta - Birds of Passage - TBD

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GFLVP5uaQAAzfR-?format=jpg&name=large

Miyako Yoko - Into My Eyes - TBD

https://starfruitbooks.com/cdn/shop/products/LookIntoMyEyes00a_1024x1024@2x.jpg?v=1620964946
A oneshot by Miyako Yoko. 38 pagesFollowing the decision of the pop idol group to disband, the manga focuses on the struggle of one member who is reliant on the group to bolster her own self-esteem and keep her personal demons at bay.

Kuraibe Keishi - VASILISA! THE WISE PRINCESS AND OTHER CLASSIC FOLKTALES - TBD (Crowdfunding Campaign?)

https://starfruitbooks.com/cdn/shop/products/vasilisa-newcover_1024x1024@2x.jpg?v=1629573761
A one volume series by Kuraibe Keishi. The Golden Apples have been stolen! Follow Vasilisia through a tale of epic adventure, Full of friendships, tears and laughter. Set in a fantasy world full of Slavic, Scandinavian, and other Eastern European folklore.

Minami Q-ta - Below the Ceiling - TBD

https://cdn.animenewsnetwork.com/thumbnails/max450x450/cms/news.5/189936/fddngi5xgairv8r.jpg
This book follows the footsteps of four women and the romances that they pursue. Each story is filled with a mix of emotions that are beautifully presented by Minami Q-ta.
For posts about other publishers, feel free to check out this https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Cm-Z7g2AE1zP4vuF8QwEqlNRNpnYH-KDbbZiGaICfII/edit#heading=h.11tq73xlid8b
submitted by Fit-Bit2907 to MangaCollectors [link] [comments]

2024.06.08 07:23 ScribblingFox98 The Survivor Becomes a Dungeon (Chapter 163)

First
Krys POV
Krys and his team were led along a winding path through a seemingly messy array of corridors with multiple left and right turns in a row, which, if Krys' mental map were anything to go by, would have made them walk the same corridors more than once.
After a near-silent seven minutes of walking, the hooded figure approached a rather ornate-looking carved wooden door that looked distinctly out of place in the stone corridors they had been walking through until now.
"The Guild Master awaits." The short, hooded figure said simply before turning and walking down another corridor.
Not sure what else he could say or do, Krys watched after their guide as they disappeared around a corner before looking to the door in front of them. After another moment of hesitation, he reached for the door handle and pushed the door open.
While his eyes had thoroughly adjusted to the cool light of the crystals that illuminated the underground passages, he couldn't help but instinctively wince at the afternoon sunlight that filled the room he led his team into.
Stepping further into the room, he was greeted by what appeared to be a rather cozy, if not almost mundane, office space on the second or third floor if the rooftops outside were anything to note. A bookish older human woman sat patiently at a large desk covered from end to end with papers and books strewn about in an almost haphazard way.
She had pale skin that looked rarely touched by direct sunlight, vibrant blue eyes that seemed somehow inviting yet sharp like carved ice, and long silvery white hair that was neatly kept together with a simple black silk ribbon.
The woman in question flashed an amused smile as she brushed some hair from her face with an ink-stained hand before speaking up. "Not quite what you expected?" She mused, sitting up and leaning back in her seat. "Well, don't be shy; take a seat."
Krys didn't realize he had been staring until Sera pushed him forward out of the doorway. Ren and Zax soon followed, with Zax shutting the door behind them. There were only two other chairs in the Guild Master's office, so Krys settled down in one as Sera sat on the arm of his chair while Ren sat in the other chair while Zax just leaned forward on the back of it as his eyes curiously scanned the shelves of their books and knick-knacks.
After a somewhat uncomfortable silence settled in the room for a good minute or so, the Guild Master finally spoke up as she leaned forward on her desk, resting her forearms against the desk and interlocking her fingers together. "So... Krys, Sera, Zax and... Ren." She said as she listed out everyone in front of her while giving them an appraising gaze, "I'm glad to see that you've made it safely to our fair city, especially considering the events that occurred at Lucfan's Rest."
Krys still wasn't exactly sure what to say, glancing over at Sera for a moment before finally finding his words and responding. "Well, the situation was actually resolved by the time we arrived at Lucfan's Rest, so we weren't in any real danger if I'm being honest." He said with silent nods of agreement from the others.
"Right, of course... Because the sudden siege of a foreign army was a matter to be merely 'resolved' in a somewhat timely fashion." She deadpanned before leaning back against her seat, resting her hands in her lap as she mustered a withering stare at Krys and his team. "What exactly have you brought into my city, and how can we get him to leave in a timely fashion?"
"We, uhh... Don't know," Krys admitted as his ears flattened against his curly orange hair. "Vito hired us for some job, but he's kept us in the dark about the details. He uh... Made it hard to say no, and we're not exactly in a place where we can back out of our agreement to work for him at this point."
To say the Guild Master didn't look pleased was an understatement. She began studying Krys more intently with a soft huff before sitting a little straighter. "I need you to understand just how precarious our situation is right now. The whole reason you and your team are even meeting with me directly rather than some handler is simply due to the fact you have a semblance of an association with that eccentric you've been traveling with."
Krys bobbed his head at that comment; what little he knew of Vito marked him as an extremely dangerous man to all those who were against him but also a great boon for those he aligned himself with. "I have no illusions that we'd been granted this audience with you for any other reason than the fact that we just so happened to be acquainted with Vito." What little he knew of the Guild Master made them out to be an especially secretive sort who only makes direct contact with a very select few. So, for some thieving pickpocket from a frontier fort town like him to suddenly be meeting with the Guild Master is nothing short of unlikely.
The Guild Master made a vaguely amused face as she nodded slowly. "I'm glad you're at least aware of that much. Now, back to the main topic at hand... Vito," she said simply before gazing into Krys' eyes. “I know you said he's kept you all in the dark, but what can you tell me about him and his plans here?"
Krys glanced over at Ren before looking between Sera and Zax. Of course, he had commitments to the Thieves Guild, but he now had to be mindful of his pact with Vito and the familial bond he and Ren share with the man. Having given himself a few necessary moments to gather his thoughts, he turned back to the Guild Master before sitting a little straighter in his seat. "Vito is here to meet with his partner, the mother of his children, for a date."
The Guild Master blanched at that, leaning into her desk again as she rested her elbows against it. “That’s it? Seriously?”
Krys bobbed his head intently. “He also plans on running a shop and playing at being some sort of art merchant,” he said, his ear flicking in contemplation. “I mean, he obviously has some underlying motive that brought him here, but that’s all he’s talked about during our travels.”
The Guild Master hummed in thought before plucking a seemingly random folder amidst the mess of papers spread across her desk. “A shop, you say?” She mentioned before flipping through the papers within. “So that explains why that Tilzim fellow had that building rented under his name.”
Krys perked up as he noticed the folder in the Guild Master’s hand before tilting his head ever so slightly. “Wait, you actually have a file on Vito? When I last made a request to the information brokers, they turned up nothing about him.”
The Guild Master looked up from the folder before considering it again. “Well, that’s because everything we have on him is less than a few weeks old. We have absolutely nothing on this particular fellow besides what he has done since arriving in our country.” She explained before flipping back to the beginning of what was evidently a sparse collection of reports. “By looking at who he is currently associated with, we were able to find his trail and learn more about him.” Though even as she said that, she did shrug a bit. “Admittedly, the broker’s investigators had to work with more hearsay than usual, but that’s the risk we have to contend with when it comes to an unknown eccentric.”
Krys couldn’t help but sit a little straighter as the Guild Master spoke; sure, he had seen displays of Vito’s magic and even the aftermath of the morning siege of Lucfan’s Rest, and Vito had enough power to somehow give both him and Ren a manaheart… But is that enough to make even the Under Council nervous about his presence here? “I can understand being cautious, hell I’m the one who initially submitted the report about him after he suddenly killed my team’s last contractor, but is Vito a noteworthy enough figure to be this stressed about?”
"That's the question, now, isn't it?" The Guild Master said as she set the folder down before turning it towards Krys and his team. Sera was the first to react, plucking up the folder and peering at the contents while Zax came over and followed along from over her shoulder. "Tracing his path from the moment he entered Sunspot Keep and then left with that caravan was the easy part, but what he did and the outcomes of his actions are what we need to look at, and that's not even considering the events of Lucfan's Rest."
"So what did he do?" Ren piped up curiously, scooting closer to the edge of her seat while looking the Guild Master in the eyes.
The Guild Master mustered a small smile as she looked Ren over before leaning back in her seat. "Well... Besides going around and spending enough gold to feed and clothe a small army for a week or perhaps an even smaller strike team for a month or two. He visited the Forge Master of a mining guild known to be on his deathbed due to the foul growth; a few days ago, said Forge Master was seen walking the streets with his family looking thin, if not rather healthy."
Krys spared a glance at Ren as the Guild Master spoke; if Vito was powerful enough to change Ren's life, then it shouldn't be a stretch that the man knew how to cure the foul growth as well.
The Guild Master carried on talking as she began organizing a section of her cluttered desk. "The following night, Vito was spotted walking to the foundry with Tilzim, and that next morning, the Mining Guild was able to fulfill all their outstanding orders for wolfram. Based on that information, it would seem Vito has either an expansive mana capacity or an extraordinary affinity for fire magic, among his other abilities."
Krys nodded as he considered the massive pillar of flames he had witnessed on his way to Lucfan's Rest. "I actually had the opportunity to eavesdrop while Vito was discussing magic with the Steel-Ranked mage escorting the caravan... Vito had said that his mentor had often compared him to dragons when it came to his mastery of flames. The mage had also mentioned that Vito had three rings around his manaheart." If the guilds now had info on Vito, then it was better to paint him as a clearly powerful figure with his more accurate information, even if Krys didn't have much more to tell.
The Guild Master looked clearly surprised by Krys' words, plucking up a fountain pen and a fresh sheet of paper. "Like a dragon? Three rings?" She echoed while scribbling the words down. "That would put him on par with the Head Master of the Academy in terms of raw power..." She sighed softly, setting the fountain pen down and massaging her forehead with her freshly ink-stained hand, which left a smudge over her right eyebrow. "All that, and he's a necromancer with unique, highly aggressive undead that he can basically store in his back pocket thanks to his impressive command of spatial magic."
It was then that Ren decided to pipe up, a concerned look on her face as she scooted back into her seat to seemingly get comfortable. "Umm... Miss Guild Master, I don't mean to interrupt, but... I think you need a new pen."
The Guild Master blinked at Ren's comment before looking at her hand, noting the still damp ink as it seemingly dawned on her what may have just happened as she sighed again. "It seems you're right, little Ren; I'll just have to add it to the list." She says while leaning back into her seat as well.
Sera snapped the folder shut, apparently done with reading its contents as she looked to the Guild Master before studying the messy desk between them. "It seems like there's a lot going on in the Capital. Is Vito's arrival the only thing troubling you, or is there something else that we should be getting clued into?"
The Guild Master twisted her lips in consideration before nodding slowly. "Aside from making sure nobody gets overzealous in their efforts with the sudden uptick of Elites coming into town thanks to the meeting a couple of weeks from now... We're also in the middle of an internal audit since we've had reports from the information guild's beggar faction that a number of their younger members have gone missing. On top of that, a few uh..." She starts to say while glancing at Ren for a moment before looking back at the others. "'Companions of the night' have also gone missing from the entertainment districts in a couple of sectors."
Krys' ears perked at the notion of people going missing as he sat straighter in his seat. "How many have gone missing? How long has this been happening?"
"The last few weeks, as far as we can tell... They didn't start reporting their missing members until after several days had passed, considering they could have just been hiding. But once the first reports came in, more started to follow with a total of nineteen reported disappearances. Currently, none of the other guilds or their factions have claimed credit for these missing individuals, so it's likely we're dealing with an outside group, but we can't be sure." She admitted as she rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "With that said, I don't have the resources to commit to keeping a close eye on the eccentric you're traveling with, hence our meeting." She said while gesturing at Krys and his team before pulling out a couple of scrolls and setting it out on the desk. "Here are a couple of maps; one is for guild resources and hideouts in the area, and the other marks the part of town you're allowed to operate in. On a hunch, I had it centered around that shop Tilzim had arranged for Vito."
Krys took up the scrolls, unfurling them, checking their contents for a moment, and passing them off to Zax and Sera. The Guild Master then procured a palm-sized medallion on a chain with a small blue sapphire embedded in the middle and set it in front of Krys. The medallion itself appeared to be made of silver, with what appeared to be a coin purse wrapped up in vines imprinted on it. "What's this?" Krys asked before the Guild Master could explain, plucking the medallion from the desktop to look it over.
"It's my token," She said while gesturing at the medallion in his hand. "For all intents and purposes, you lot are just another bunch of normal thieves, nobody special or important." She mused with a smirk. "But with that token, you'll be able to call upon my door in the underground corridors if I'm in my office. You'll also be able to use it to meet with any of the faction leads or even the other Guild Masters in the Under Council. I'm sure I don't need to stress just how much authority that token can wield, so don't go flashing it everywhere, understand? Use it when you need to report any kind of important information to me in regards to the eccentric Vito or if it somehow pertains to our missing fellow rogues."
Krys felt a little apprehensive about having such an item in his possession, but after a moment, he simply nodded before meeting the Guild Master's gaze. "I understand... Was there anything else?" He asked while pulling the medallion on and tucking it away under his armor and clothes.
The Guild Master just hummed for a moment before smirking again. "If you see me on the streets? No, you didn't." She mused while gesturing to the door. "May your fingers be light and the coin be plentiful."
"Thank you, Guild Master." Krys replied respectfully before standing and waving Ren along as Sera and Zax fell in behind him. Approaching the door, he felt something in the air vaguely shift as he twisted the knob and pulled it open.
In the next moment, Krys and his team were suddenly greeted by the hustle and bustle of the afternoon crowd on the busy capital city streets when the Guild Master's door shut behind them. Krys couldn't help but instinctively whirl around on the door, looking it over, only to find the door to the cobbler's shop they were in not too long ago.
"Wow... We sure don't have anything like that back in Sunspot Keep." Zax commented simply, not having all too much else to say as Krys and the others nodded at his words.
"No kidding..." Krys said as he looked from one end of the street to the other before waving his team along and falling into the flow of the people around them. "Come on guys, let's go meet up with Boss Vito... Whatever he has planned here, I'm sure he'll want to know what we've learned about the situation in the Capital."
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submitted by ScribblingFox98 to HFY [link] [comments]

2024.06.08 07:00 lethal-femboy My Dad chimped out in public

Im very lucky that im in the stage of my transtion that workmates who I introduce myself too as a male still call me she on accident a lot. a lot of people are just semi struggling to see me as a man which is amazing.
recently I went to a bar that My dad owns with another guy, Dad is always reinforcing that im the manliest man ever etc, "you should join the army, you're massive!!!, wow have you been hitting the gym????"
but at his poiny his co owner came in and we talked for a little, I decided to leave early because my Dad is insufferable and I'm only with him at all because of inherentence.
I heard from my mum that dads friend who is an ex cage fighter and dates a stripper confronted my Dad saying "I think they're trans? they seem, really feminine, why don't you just accept them"
Well Dad started screaming in public about how "THEY ARE JUST A GAY MAN, THEY ARE A GAY MAN TRYING TO REPRESS THERE GAYNESS BY PRETENDING TO BE A GIRL, THEY CANT ACCEPT BEING A MAN BECAUSE THEY CAN'T ACCEPT BEING A GAY MAN, MY SON IS NOT A TRANNY"
I find it pretty funny my dads cope is that I would genuinely rather be seen as a tranny then a regular man or something weird like that.
Just really heart wrenching that even when his own pretty conservative friends confront him he just doubles down on treating me like a man.
I hate American brainrot, dudes never been to the usa but can't stop coonsuming fox news and the daily wire, mumbling how trump will win and trannys are grooming the kids.
submitted by lethal-femboy to 4tran4 [link] [comments]

2024.06.08 03:48 Isaachwells 2024 Hugo and Nebula Nominees, Ranked

This years Nebulas are being awarded tomorrow night, so I thought I’d give my rankings of the Hugo and Nebula nominees. The Hugos are awarded on August 11th. Obligatory mention of how the Hugos appear to have been fixed last year, but that has been thoroughly discussed elsewhere, so I don’t really want to rehash it. And this year appears to be completely transparent, and I’m guessing and hoping will include efforts to prevent any similar corruption again.
For those who don’t like the Nebulas or Hugos, or don’t find them useful ways to find things you like to read, that’s certainly understandable. I’d love to hear your thoughts on any nominees you did read, or on works from 2023 that you enjoyed and feel are award worthy!
Notable things from this year: Martha Wells declined Murderbot nominations, a classy move for an already well awarded series. Lot’s of our usual nominees, while the only notable absence I caught was Seanan Mcguire’s Wayward Children novella, which is a bit of a shame as #8 is easily the best of the series, and it functions as a stand alone like all of the even numbered ones. But also, once you’re 8 books in, it does seem past due to start nominating other things. I’ll be curious to see if it was the Chinese works that edged it out.
A couple last things. Fantasy is doing their Hugo read, and it has some great commentary. u/brent_323 put out his rankings and comments on the Nebula novel nominees, and they differ from my somewhat if you want a different perspective. Lstly, I’ve added Goodreads ratings (out of 5 stars) for novels and novellas to give some context on how generally liked and how widely read each book is.

Best Novel

9: (Nebula Nominee) Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon, Wole Talabi (DAW, Gollancz)
Stars: 3.70
Number of ratings: 633
Thematically, Shigidi is pretty similar to American Gods but with an emphasis on the Yoruba religion. My apologies in advance for any potential inaccuracies, my knowledge of Yoruba is based on this book, and some cursory Wikipedia reading. Different creators or gods have their own corporate structure, with minor sub-deities as employees. Olorun is the creator in Yoruba, with Orisha’s being lower level gods. One of these, Shigidi (a nightmare god in the book, although Wikipedia lists him as Guardian of Home and Environment), is trying to split from the Yoruba corporation and be an independent entity, along with his lover, the succubus Nneoma (based on Naamah, a demon from Jewish mysticism). To pay off his debt to the company, Shigidi has one last job.
It’s an interesting world, but despite the thematic American Gods comparisons, it feels nothing like that and has little else in common, and its structure ultimately makes it a much less successful book. Approximately a third of the book is the present day story, but most of that is in the second half of the book. The first half is brief tastes of the present in between longer chapters of background events. Those events are telling a single secondary story, just filling in the info you need to understand how we got to the present situation. Everytime we finally had some momentum, that thread would be done and I’d have to ‘get into’ the book all over again. If it wasn’t so broken up, I think I would have really enjoyed it, but as it is I was pretty done with the book by the time I got to where the bulk of the present day heist story was, and ended up skimming the last 50 to 100 pages.
8: (Nebula Nominee) The Terraformers, Annalee Newitz (Tor; Orbit UK)
Stars: 3.38
Number of ratings: 5,213
I loved The Future of Another Timeline, and on that alone will read any future Newitz novels, but so far nothing else of hers has come close to the same heights. The Terraformers is a set of 3 novellas set around 500 years apart, watching the terraforming of a planet over time through the eyes of the workers owned by the corporation terraforming the planet. Most of the plot is focused on terraforming, the corporation’s shenanigans, civil engineering, and civil rights, as the populace works to win the freedom to enjoy their home.
Very interesting, but it definitely drags at times. I loved the themes explored, although the civil engineering could be a bit much at times (said as a Kim Stanley Robinson fan). I did love the sentient buses, naked mole rats, and the cat reporter! Ultimately, more interesting than it was enjoyable.
7: (Hugo Nominee) Starter Villain by John Scalzi (Tor, Tor UK)
Stars: 4.18
Number of ratings: 43,367
I really enjoyed Starter Villain! There was some criticism of The Kaiju Preservation Society for being ‘light’, and that seems somewhat fair, although I likewise enjoyed it. People have leveled similar criticism at Starter Villain, but that seems less true. It’s quippy, a bit light hearted, but so are the other Scalzi books I’ve read (Redshirts, The Android’s Dream) it’s not exactly dealing with light topics despite that. It’s a critique of capitalism, and how wealth can become entrenched to both oppose what’s good for society, and oppose innovation. That said, I found the ‘villain’ idea pretty silly, as it’s essentially being used as a shorthand for disruptive technology, not for anything actually villainous or bad. I probably wouldn’t vote for it for a major award, but it was a fun and thoughtful novel.
6: (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Witch King by Martha Wells (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.71
Number of ratings: 16,432
While Martha Wells declined nominations for Murderbot, she did accept them for Witch King! It’s really imaginative and interesting world, and I’m hoping we get more of it (I hear she’s working on another book in the setting, so I trust we will). It has two narrative threads, the present day, where the main character Kai has been held prisoner during a pivotal political moment. The story focuses on his escape and the efforts to figure out what’s going on. The second thread tells the backstory of Kai’s life, and how the world came to the current situation.
I loved the world, and really enjoyed the book! It seems like quite a few of the people who didn’t disliked it because they thought the back story was a lot more interesting than the present day story, which I have to agree with, honestly. I wish they were told as two separate books, or in a way where splitting them contributed to the story. For example, a historian character that wheedled Kai about what has actually happened in the past could have been a vehicle for exploring the past events. Regardless of these qualms, I still enjoyed the book and look forward to more.
5: (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Translation State by Ann Leckie (Orbit US, Orbit UK)
Stars: 4.11
Number of ratings: 9,848
Translation State is yet another book set in Leckie’s Raadchai universe. It’s not necessary to read the Ancillary books first, although I think it would help (and they’re awesome). Not sure how much Provenance relates, as I didn’t enjoy it and DNFed. Translation State is really good though, looking at the life and society of the Presger translators (as you might imagine), and giving some glimpses of what’s going on in the broader setting. I have enjoyed the books giving hints of that bigger picture, but would love one like Ancillary Justice where that’s more of a primary focus. I’d say this book is award worthy (as are all the ones I ranked higher), but I also feel like it’s linked enough to the setting that it’s fair to treat it more like a sequel, and I’m less inclined to award sequels major awards.
4: (Nebula Nominee) The Water Outlaws, S.L. Huang (Tordotcom; Solaris UK)
Stars: 3.82
Number of ratings: 2,326
The Water Outlaws is a queer, gender bent retelling of the Chinese classic Water Margin. And by classic, I mean in the sense that Don Quixote or Middlemarch is classic. It’s (probably) a 14th century novel, set around 1120 and following the rebellion of the outlaws at Mount Liang against the Northern Song dynasty. It is one of the 6 classics of pre-modern Chinese literature. At least, that’s what Wikipedia says, and it sounds like retellings and adaptations are pretty common.
I really enjoyed The Water Outlaws, and it’s the first that I would actually be happy to see win. It was fast paced and fun, but also had quite a bit of interesting insight into gender. It was also interesting to see how more Eastern values played into the story. I’m not necessarily very attuned to that, although it sounds like other readers can attest that it felt both like a Western and an Eastern novel. But I definitely noticed that the outlaws weren’t rebelling against the Emperor or the Empire really, just the corrupt people just under the top who were managing it. To me at least, it seemed to reflect the Eastern collectivism over Western individualism. S. L. Huang also has a great AMA on Fantasy from a month ago that’s worth checking out. This and the following novels are the ones I’m really hoping win.
3: (Hugo Nominee) The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty (Harper Voyager, Harper Voyager UK)
Stars: 4.28
Number of ratings: 44,645
A 12th century century Muslim lady pirate comes out of retirement for one last job. It’s fantastic! It’s also apparently set in the same world as Chakraborty’s Daevabad Trilogy, albeit some centuries earlier. I appreciated the obvious effort that went into research and world building, and writing that made it a lot of fun even when it was dealing with heavy subjects. And I loved when things finally got on the weird side, and supernatural entities took over the story. I also thought that it was pretty interesting to see how Chakraborty was able to incorporate quite a lot of diversity and modern ideals in a way that genuinely felt authentic and believable. Related, but perhaps a bit different, it was interesting to see Amina as a devout Muslim, despite not always being a great person (she is a pirate after all). So often, religion is portrayed in pretty uncompelling ways, either as bad or dumb (sometimes in ways that feel accurate and sometimes in ways that feel like caricatures), or in ways that are very pro-religion such that some big bias is showing. In Amina, it was a significant part of her life, but didn’t feel in your face. It felt lived in, if that makes sense, but well balanced with the other aspects of her life.
I’m very much looking forward to the next two books!
2: (Hugo Nominee) Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh (Tordotcom, Orbit UK)
Stars: 4.06
Number of ratings: 7,957
This book appears to be pretty well regarded, but also a bit divisive. The main character, Kyr, lives on Gaia Station, the last outpost of (real) humanity in the fight with the broader galactic society of aliens and their reality warping AI, the Wisdom. Despite losing the war and most other humans moving on and integrating with galactic society, Gaia Station is still fighting. The book is ultimately an exploration of indoctrination, how your upbringing and surroundings shape your worldview, and what can later shake you into new perspectives. It reminds me of a scene from the book, Touching Spirit Bear, where a counselor demonstrates that people change from slow, steady pressure that pushes them off the course they’re on, or by a single big push that jolts them out of their path. Some Desperate Glory is several of those large pushes. In some ways, that does make it feel a little less authentic, as we don’t see Kyr really change over time, just have some pretty abrupt shifts (the first of which very much was unexpected, although the second not so much), but it also makes those changes much more accessible, since that time could be pretty hard to show. Despite that, it’s a really interesting look at indoctrination and deprogramming. As someone who grew up in and subsequently left what could be called a ‘high demand religion’, albeit one that is much, much milder than Gaia in the book or Jonestown in real life on the cult-o-meter, there’s a lot of resonance.
It seems like the main reason people didn’t like the book is that Kyr is a pretty unlikeable character. To be honest, that isn’t a thing that normally affects me, at least not for main characters. I tend to be in their headspace, as that’s what’s presented, so I’m usually not seeing them as unlikeable. Some obvious exceptions if they’re really annoying, and of course it became pretty clear over time that Kyr wasn’t exactly a considerate or kind person, but Kyr’s growth throughout the book is pretty specifically the point, so that wouldn’t really bother me either, honestly. The other issue is a scene towards the end where Kyr is touching (with consent) an alien’s feathers as a show of acceptance that he’s a person too, but some people have felt it comes off racially coded and offensive. I feel like that is pretty clearly not the author’s intent, and it’s a bit overblown, but I’m also not from a group where that would be triggering. Someone on the publishing team definitely should have seen that this would come off wrong, and changed it to something else that got the idea across in a way that wouldn’t be offensive.
I do hope that we get more of the world. It’s an interesting setting, and I would love a book exploring how the Gaians integrate into society. And also looking at Kyr’s dynamics with her group now that she has a broader perspective, and isn’t always a well meaning asshole, as we didn’t get a whole lot of that once she had grown out of it.
1: (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.71
Number of ratings: 2,056
My wife bought this for me as a birthday present, thinking I’d like it based on the description. And I did! He is now on my must read list, and I’m pretty excited for Rakesfall, which comes out this month. I had never heard of The Saint of Bright Doors, or Chandrasekera, but I absolutely loved it. Then I was surprised to see people periodically mentioning it on reddit, and then I was thrilled when it was nominated for both the Hugo and Nebula. This is easily the most daring and innovative book on this list, mostly because it’s pretty atypical. Honestly, the closest thing I can think of to it is Some Desperate Glory due to reality warping, but they’re mostly nothing alike. The Saint of Bright Doors follows Fetter, with a brief bit of his childhood, and then a jump to his 20’s or so. Fetter appears to be based on Rāhula, the son of Siddhārtha Gautama (the Buddha), with Rāhula meaning fetter, as he was a fetter on Gautama’s path to enlightenment. The book also appears to engage quite a bit with Sri Lankan politics, particularly surrounding Buddhism. I’m not super familiar with any of that, although some Wikipedia reading gives some clear parallels. Even without that added depth, the story was fascinating. The world is complicated and at times pretty opaque, and it has a tendency to shift and change as the story progresses. There’s a pretty deep sense of mystery with the bright doors, but they ultimately end up becoming just another part of the world for most people in the setting. Fetter ends up being part of a support group for ‘Unchosen Ones’ from different religions that, for whatever reason, were meant to be ‘Chosen’ but ultimately weren’t. Interestingly, each of the religions appears to be true. We don’t get nearly as much of the other members of the group as I would have liked, but maybe some day we’ll hear about their stories. I hope so.
The primary complaint I see is that the story meanders a lot and is quite aimless, and that’s mostly because Fetter doesn’t really act. He has little agency, and instead things just happen to him. When he does make choices, it’s pretty unclear why. That’s a pretty fair assessment, but again, not something that bothered me at all. I loved how I never knew where the book was going. I’d get comfortable with where it was at and what was happening, and then it’d shift pretty quickly. I can see why that could bother some, but it worked for me in this book, and kept me interested. The other aspect of that is how the story is told. There’s a big reveal towards the end that I won’t spoil here. We get a few hints of it along the way, some that if you catch it you definitely know something is going on, even though you don’t know what. But it goes a long way towards explaining why the story has jumps in time, why we don’t get much view into Fetter’s mind and decisions, and just how the story is told. The one downside is that the story ends a bit abruptly, and while it makes sense in context, it’s also less satisfying. But it makes me think about what I want from a story, and the place the storyteller has in it. Sometimes things being unsatisfying can stir more thought, and maybe that’s worth it. Should a storyteller always give us everything? It makes me think of a song from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, The End of the Movie (some spoilers for that show). It captures some of the ambiguities in Bright Doors, but that ends up just adding to why I like it, whereas for some it definitely seemed to detract.

Best Novella

9. (Hugo Nominee) Rose/House by Arkady Martine (Subterranean)
Stars: 3.76
Number of ratings: 1,850
I really didn’t care for this story. I admittedly listened to it as an audiobook, rather than read it, and that isn’t usually as good an experience for close readings for me. Plus the only place I could find it was Hoopla, my least preferred app for audiobooks, because it’s pretty glitchy on the audio. My library has it on order, so I’ll give it another shot when I can do so in print, but all of that speaks to the larger issue that this novella was really hard to get a hold of, which is maybe not ideal if people are going to vote for it.
Anyways, on the story itself, it seemed a bit ambiguous. I couldn’t always tell what was going on, and on looking at reviews, that wasn’t just my listening experience, that was other people’s experiences as well. I didn’t feel like it added much to the AI discussion, although I did enjoy the house being convinced that a police detective was not in fact a person, but rather a police precinct. The story wasn’t all that interesting. All around, not a great read, with the above caveat on the listening experience, which is a shame since I loved the Teixcalaan books.
8. (Hugo Nominee) “Life Does Not Allow Us to Meet”, He Xi / 人生不相见, 何夕, translated by Alex Woodend (Adventures in Space: New Short stories by Chinese & English Science Fiction Writers)(Originally published in 2010)
This was a bit of a frustrating story. Some of the setting was interesting, but the insistence on both modifying humans to adapt them to other worlds, and that those modifications can’t be too much not human, because then they’re aliens, and humans can’t cultivate alien intelligences because they may at some point turn on us. The story is a bit more complicated than that, but it has quite a few things that just don’t make a lot of sense.
7. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher (Tor, Titan UK)
Stars: 4.01
Number of ratings: 25,644
I loved What Moves the Dead and Nettle and Bone! As did many others, given the nominations they received. It’s starting to look like Kingfisher might join the ranks of the usually nominated at this point. And I definitely look forward to more of her work, with What Feasts at Night one of my next several reads. That said, Thornhedge was not my favorite. I loved Toadling, pretty much everything about her and her life, and the twist on Sleeping Beauty was interesting, but the story just doesn’t shine the way the others of hers that I’ve read do.
6. (Nebula Nominee) “Linghun,” Ai Jiang (Linghun)
Stars: 4.00
Number of ratings: 1,594
A thoughtful meditation on grief, and what it looks like if we could be haunted by those we’ve lost. In some ways it feels a little unrealistic, as people are more or less fighting to the death to get access to the houses where said hauntings can actually happen, but I can see how society might not have the will to ban such obviously harmful things if they also offered the chance to see your loved one again. The one and only reason this isn’t one of my top picks is because it falls apart in the last third. There’s a second story element that is introduced early on, but doesn’t take on much prominence until towards the end, and it doesn’t really fit. It’s another character whose story is relevant, and does add nuance to the themes, but it just feels like an insertion that distracts from the rest of what’s going on in the story. Linghun would ultimately work better if that character was stripped out.
5. (Nebula Nominee) The Crane Husband, Kelly Barnhill (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.89
Number of ratings: 6,326
This is an odd book, to say the least. It's a retelling/subversion of the Japanese folktale, The Crane Wife. The main character is a 15 year old girl telling us the story years later. The setting is a pretty normal, slightly dystopian near future, with elements of magical realism when the girl's mother brings home a crane to be her new husband, and horror as that relationship turns (more) bizarre and abusive. It’s a symbolic exploration of both abuse and generational trauma, and it’s pretty interesting, but I’m still not sure how I feel about it. It definitely feels like the most ‘out there’ of the novella nominees, but this is the first I’d be happy to see win.
4. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.64
Number of ratings: 5,689
I rather liked this story, and I'm pretty excited for when I get around to reading the sequel! While I've seen complaints about the language and style, that's a large part of what I like. More than almost any book I've read, besides ones by Gene Wolfe, every word Older uses feels specifically considered and used intentionally. And unlike in academic texts, the other main place that writing feels like this, this doesn't makes the meaning confusing or hard to sort through. Older uses complex, nuanced sentences with quite a bit of clauses and qualifiers, but it illuminates rather than obscures. It feels like the way I think (or at least the way I think I think), so I appreciate that. There's also a story and characters and such, and those are pretty nifty. One of the things I love on that front is how deftly words are used; without explicitly telling us things, the setting, characters, and world really come clear. While there is a story, the driving force really is the interactions between the two main characters, particularly as the viewpoint character deduces that thoughts and intents of the other main character through subtle signs. Anyways, more than any other element, the writing for this story really worked for me!
3. (Nebula Nominee) Untethered Sky, Fonda Lee (Tordotcom)
Stars: 3.90
Number of ratings: 8,153
Another book about birds, where the main character is a ruhker, someone who trains with rocs so they can be used to fight manticores. The book feels quiet, with the primary relationship being two humans who are both quiet introverts, and their birds who of course don’t talk. There’s action and violence and terror , but on the whole, it feels like a quiet meditation. This book is one of the reasons I’ve grown to love novellas. It could easily be a novel, but instead it just tells its story and is done. There’s a power in limiting your scope like that, a purity, and I feel like this book has that more so than any other novella on this list.
2. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) Mammoths at the Gates by Nghi Vo (Tordotcom)
Stars: 4.25
Number of ratings: 4,478
My comment from the Fantasy Hugo discussion of Mammoths at the Gates:
Each of the 4 books to date have Chih take on a greater role in the story.
In the 1st, they mostly seem like the context of the frame narrative, and not really a main character.
In the 2nd, the framing has its own story with the tigers that's as significant as the story being told by Chih and the tigers.
In the 3rd, the story told merges with the framing story, and they become one at the end.
In the 4th (Mammoths at the Gate), the framing story is the story, dealing with the grief of Cleric Thien passing, with the other smaller stories about him within adding or illuminating but never really being separate from the framing.
It seems that over time, it's shifting from Chih and Almost Brilliant being a means of telling different stories to Chih and Almost Brilliant being the story. It makes me curious what book 5 and beyond will be, because I can only imagine one more book of following that trend before I'm out of ideas on how they could be more of the story.
At the same time, it shifts the focus from what a story is and how we tell it, how we know what the 'right' version is, and makes it more and more personal. Book 1, the historical figures had different understandings of what was happening, to the detriment of the overthrown kingdom. Book 2, Chih and the tigers had different understandings, and together told a fuller story by sharing that. Book 3, the story becomes much more complicated when you actually meet the characters. Book 4, a person you know becomes more complicated and nuanced when you learn from others their experience with the person. There's more to the story of who a person is than your personal experience of them.
All that's super interesting to me. Each of the books really does function fine as a stand alone, and I'm not sure that there's a clear overarching storyline outside of Almost Brilliant's having a kid, but there's a thematic evolution that seems to be following a specific path. I'm pretty curious to see where it's headed. (In the Fantasy Hugo read along, u/tarvolon confirmed that book 5 is thoroughly The Adventures of Chih, so I guess that trend is accurate, and u/Nineteen_Adze thought that perhaps later books could have Chih hear stories where he featured as a main character, an idea I really like).
1. (Hugo Nominee) “Seeds of Mercury”, Wang Jinkang / 水星播种, 王晋康, translated by Alex Woodend (Adventures in Space: New Short stories by Chinese & English Science Fiction Writers)(Originally published in 2002)
This was ultimately my favorite of the stories. It’s about secretly seeding life on Mercury. Sometimes the language is clumsy, and I’m not sure if that’s the original writing or the translation, but ultimately it’s not too much of an issue. I loved the look at the alien life and their society!

Best Novelette

10. (Nebula Nominee) “Imagine: Purple-Haired Girl Shooting Down The Moon,” Angela Liu (Clarkesworld 6/23)
This is a weird story, and one I really didn’t care for. It deals with memory and how that shapes who we are, and quite a bit with people being used. Oh, and purpose haired girls. But if it was trying to say something in particular, I missed it.
9. (Nebula Nominee) “A Short Biography of a Conscious Chair,” Renan Bernardo (Samovar 2/23)
The story of a chair, as you might guess from the title, but just as much it’s the story of the family that owns the chair. It has an interesting family secret that’s eventually revealed and which hinges on the chair, but ultimately, this was a more interesting idea than story.
8. (Nebula Nominee) “Saturday’s Song,” Wole Talabi (Lightspeed 5/23)
This is the sequel to Wednesday’s Story. Like Talabi’s novel nominee this year, Saturday's Song features Shigidi as a nightmare god again, but also Hausa spirits. Both stories feature a frame narrative, with a story within a story similar to Vo’s Singing Hills noellas. I enjoyed it, and Saturday’s Song does tell you what you need to know from Wednesday’s Story, but it works better if you read them in order, as it functions more as a resolution than anything.
7. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) I AM AI by Ai Jiang (Shortwave)
This is a decent story, looking at capitalistic dystopias. Specifically, the pressure to be better while competing against AI, to the point where the main character is slowly morphing into a machine to catch up but in doing so loses what makes them unique and human. I don’t know that it adds a lot to the conversation exactly, but it makes some good points and summarizes some common concerns pretty well. I would have likely ranked it higher, but there were quite a bit of plausibility issues in the setting that I couldn’t really get past, and which made it much more dystopian than it would otherwise be.
6. (Hugo Nominee) “Ivy, Angelica, Bay” by C.L. Polk (Tor.com 8 December 2023)
This is a sequel to St. Valentine, St. Abigail, St. Brigid. And it was pretty good! I wouldn’t say there’s anything super special about it, but I enjoyed it. The lead of the previous story has grown up and taken on her role keeping her area of the city safe through small magics, but trouble is stirring. This story onwards are ones I’d feel comfortable voting for.
5. (Hugo Nominee) “One Man’s Treasure” by Sarah Pinsker (Uncanny Magazine, January-February 2023)
Our only Pinsker nominee this year! And while it’s pretty good, it doesn’t seem like a top contender to me. It reminds me of Wiswell's DIY from last year, thematically. It’s about several garbage collectors who remove magical items once a month, and the rich people who don’t particularly care about basic safety. Like DIY, it focuses on finding common person solutions since the rich don't care, something I can sympathize with. It’s a well told and interesting story, but that’s hardly a surprise from Pinsker.
4. (Nebula Nominee) “Six Versions of My Brother Found Under the Bridge,” Eugenia Triantafyllou (Uncanny 9-10/23)
This is a story about the bargains and sacrifices we make for grief, and how they can further harm and traumatize us. Also, it’s about how the devil exploits our grief and trauma to mess with us. It turns out when you go under the Devil’s bridge, you really ought not to make deals. This story and the following are the ones that I actually hope win.
3. (Hugo Nominee) “On the Fox Roads” by Nghi Vo (Tor.com 31 October 2023)
This story was pretty light on magical or sf elements, at least until the end, much like Vo’s other early to mid 1900s books (The Chosen and Beautiful, Siren Queen). This one is about finding yourself, and how relationships with others can help you do it. Even when those others start as complete strangers. Oh, and it’s about heists. I really enjoyed this one, and the ambiance Vo summons with her more real world settings.
2. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) “The Year Without Sunshine” by Naomi Kritzer (Uncanny Magazine, November-December 2023)
On the Fox Roads was pretty light on the magical elements, but they were there, and they were integral to the story. The Year Without Sunshine could pass as non-genre fiction just as well as it could as SF. The only element is an unspecified calamity that temporarily put a bunch of ash in to the air. THe story itself focuses on community working together when social safety nets are only semi functional, and resources become pretty scarce. I really enjoyed the the characters and how people worked together. It felt genuine and realistic, if optimistic, and seems much more helpful for real world disasters where things start to break down but aren’t post-apocalyptic. I would say it’s a very inspiring story.
1. (Hugo Nominee) “Introduction to 2181 Overture, Second Edition”, Gu Shi /〈2181序曲〉再版导言, 顾适 translated by Emily Jin (Clarkesworld, February 2023)(Originally published in 2020)
This is science fiction is the most classic sense, and done well, in that it looks at a technology (cryosleep) and extrapolates what kind of impact it would have on society. The closest comparison I can think of to it would be Stephen Baxter and Arthur C. Clarke’s The Light of Other Days. But of course, this is completely different in that it’s written as an introduction to a fictional nonfiction book, which gives Gu Shi a lot of freedom to tell the story in a unique way, with fictional quotes with commentary from fictional people who are important to the history of cryosleep. Towards the end, it gets into the personal story behind that history, the creator of the book, and the person writing the introduction, and that allows the technical and sociology exploration to add a really touching emotional component. While I don’t agree with all of the extrapolations (hardly a surprise for a story like this), this is easily the best of the translated nominees this year, and one of my absolute favorites overall from this year.

Best Short Story:

(Hugo Nominee) 美食三品 (“Tasting the Future Delicacy Three Times”), 宝树 / Baoshu (银河边缘013：黑域密室 / Galaxy’s Edge Vol. 13: Secret Room in the Black Domain)
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to read this story. It appears to have only been translated into English for the Hugo voter packet. Since I’m not actually a member of the Hugos (maybe one day, if I can attend the actual convention), I don’t have the packet.
9. (Hugo Nominee) “Answerless Journey”, Han Song / 没有答案的航程, 韩松, translated by Alex Woodend (Adventures in Space: New Short stories by Chinese & English Science Fiction Writers)(Originally published in 1995)
Easily the worst of the translated fiction this year, or really just the worst nominee. The writing is stiff and clumsy, and it’s not just the translator as we have 2 other nominees to compare it with that were also translated by Alex Woodend. Minimal plot. The main character, who is human, is called ‘Creature’, presumably because amnesia has made him forget his name. It just doesn’t make a ton of sense all around.
8. (Hugo Nominee) “The Mausoleum’s Children” by Aliette de Bodard (Uncanny Magazine, May-June 2023)
This feels like an interesting story, except I can’t really tell what's going on. The setting isn't particularly clear, despite seeming pretty interesting. The story was ok outside of that, but not amazing, and it’s hard to come back from not really getting what’s happening.
7. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) “The Sound of Children Screaming” by Rachael K. Jones (Nightmare Magazine, October 2023)
This piece has some insightful comments on gun violence, but those make up approximately 2 or 3 paragraphs. It goes from a somewhat generalized description of a shooting to a specific one to a portal fantasy to a world with evil mice. Interesting, but it doesn't make a ton of sense and doesn't really all fit together.
6. (Nebula Nominee) “Bad Doors,” John Wiswell (Uncanny 1-2/23)
I didn’t care much for Wiswell on first reading him, with The House on Haunted Hill. I mean, I liked that and thought it was a cute story, but it wasn’t something I’d vote for. But his writing has grown on me, with each year getting better and better. Bad Doors breaks that trend though. It’s not a bad story, it just wasn’t that interesting to me. Not much happens besides a family falling out over political drama, and honestly that is a bit too much like real life to be worth reading unless it’s going to give some good insight or be really good.
5. (Nebula Nominee) “Window Boy,” Thomas Ha (Clarkesworld 8/23)
A strange story about the anxieties around the other, set mostly in post apocalyptic underground bunkers. It looks a lot at the relationship between the haves and the have nots, and the imbalance around friendships in that context. Are have nots always only friends to take advantage of the haves? Is that actually unreasonable if it is the case? But also maybe they have nots are actually weird 20 foot grackle bird things. The reality filters on the cameras to see outside the bunkers make it hard to tell.
4. (Hugo Nominee) “How to Raise a Kraken in Your Bathtub” by P. Djèlí Clark (Uncanny Magazine, January-February 2023)
This is where I’d really start voting for the nominees. How to Raise a Kraken is a funny story about an ambitious idiot who gets a newspaper ad kraken, one that is actually real, and the fall out from doing so. It addresses colonialism and hubris in a pretty amusing and satisfying way.
3. (Nebula Nominee) “Once Upon a Time at The Oakmont,” P.A. Cornell (Fantasy 10/23)
This is a thoughtful story about time. It’s set in an apartment building with tenants from different points in time going about their normal lives. Because of that, there are lots of rules to prevent info being transmitted to the past and to stop any harm from foreknowledge. The story centers on a lady from the present in a relationship with a man from the 1940's. It’s one of the more interesting ways of playing with time that I’ve seen.
2. (Nebula Nominee) “Tantie Merle and the Farmhand 4200,” R.S.A Garcia (Uncanny 7-8/23)
This is set in Tobago, with the local vernacular, and tells of a robotic farmhand trying to take care of an old lady's goat, and gaining further intelligence in the process. It’s a powerful, moving story. It’s occasionally a little unconvincing, in that the old lady used emojis in her youth but seems unfamiliar with what would be basic tech from her childhood, but also old people do frequently tend to struggle with technological things, so perhaps that’s unfair of me. It does a really good job looking at the social isolation of the elderly though. Tantie Merle and the following story are both the ones that I’d really hope win.
1. (Hugo & Nebula Nominee) “Better Living Through Algorithms” by Naomi Kritzer (Clarkesworld May 2023)
The second Naomi Kritzer story, this one is about an AI app that directs people on what to do to make them happy. It’s a nifty idea, well executed, and something I could actually see lots of people being interested in in real life if it worked as described. It also has well written, interesting, and relatable characters. I’ve only read the CatNet books by Kritzer, and while I liked them, it didn’t have me searching her out. After Better Living and The Year Without Sunshine though, I’ll have to check out the rest of her work.
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