Pattern Ghost

If we consider it one big story, then the end of Ep. 3 would be the end of the first act under a three act structure, being the first big plot point introduced. I think we're a little shy of having a clear cut inciting incident, but I think the conversations that Wanda and Vision had near the end of the episode should count. Episodes 4 through 8 should give enough room for a meaty second act, with the last two episodes rounding out the third act. So, it works as far as timelines go. I wouldn't have minded if they'd combined episodes 1 and 2 into a more concise episode and gotten to that reveal an episode earlier, b/c I thought those first two dragged on a bit too long, but I think they still have room to pick up the pace and deliver something interesting.

If you want to get consistent output, there are two steps: 1. Commit to either a daily word count goal or a time goal. Starting small is fine. 2. Apply ass to chair and turn off your filters and write whatever comes out. Of course, both of these are devilishly hard to do. Simple isn't always easy. Turning off your filters and resisting the urge to self edit as you go is especially difficult. One thing that makes it really hard is when you have a project built up in your head as "the big one" or "my best idea yet" or whatever. Then you're afraid to screw it up. The truth is, ideas are cheap and practice makes perfect, or at least moves you closer to perfect if it's good practice. So, don't elevate any bit of writing over the next, and don't psyche yourself out. You can always go back and edit, preferably after you've finished the next couple of projects.

You can clear their whining pop ups and browse without the ads, or you can suffer through the ads. If you get a site that doesn't load when it detects an ad blocker, you can either do what I do and surf a safer site, or you can disable the blocker temporarily. Ublock Origin also lets you selectively remove elements from the page, including peeling back the upper layers of the Z-axis for some sites that are paywall-locked or subscription-locked. (Doesn't work everywhere, as some sites are loading actual alternate pages instead of putting CSS elements on top of the article now.) The element zapper can also take out annoying ads with flashing or animated text on the page as well. Or eliminate other bad design elements. It's a useful add on.

Hmm, I didn't think of a title. Maybe . . . Library Patrol That lines up with the episode titles of the TV series.

The first thing you install on your shiny new Chromebook (and any web browser) is Ublock Origin plugin for Chrome (or Firefox if you're using it on your Windows machine). Another advantage of Chrome OS over Android/iOS, the availability of an ad blocker and standard browser plugins. This is why I suggested the $200-300 range, and a minimum of a Celeron N4000 CPU. The really bargain Chromebooks just aren't worth it in the long run. Or the short run.

Current generation budget Chromebooks seem to be running a Celeron N4000. The last gens are running an N3350. The N4000 is about 20% faster and the pricing I'm seeing is about the same on both, so if you do go with a Chromebook, that's something to be aware of. Don't go for the Mediatek The Acer Chromebook Spin 311 is a pretty popular model that's reasonably priced. (About $260 on Amazon) It's only an 11.6" screen, and the screen flips all the way around to go into tablet mode. It should be small enough to make tablet mode practical. Usually, I say friends don't let friends buy Acer, but their Chromebooks are usually pretty highly reviewed, and they made decent Netbooks back when that was a thing.

Running Windows rules it out as a Chromebook. HP does make Chromebooks, though.

The $400 one is, pretty much, looking at the specs. The middle to high end ones are reasonably-specced, if a bit expensive. ------ ------------- ---------- ------------------------------ -------------------- --------------------- -------------------------- They have about a six year* expiration date, based on Google's Auto Update policy: https://support.google.com/chrome/a/answer/6220366 Something to be aware of if buying used. *I checked my current Chromebook, a 2019 model, and it expires in 2026, so this varies. -----------------------------------------------------------------yourreplieshavebeenmerged----------------------------------

I'd go with the Chromebook. I have several Chromebooks, and a couple of Kindle Fires. The Kindles are only good if you are consuming Amazon content: Kindle Books, Prime Video, Prime Music, etc. They have the best hardware available at their price point, but that isn't saying much. They run slow, and they have poor screens. The Fire OS is a crippled version of Android OS without the Android store, with the Silk (garbage) web browser instead of Chrome, and the UI serves you crap to buy over prioritizing showing you the content you actually own. It is not customizable. If you go in knowing what you're getting and why, they're a good deal. For an older user, I'd advise going with the Fire 10 as a minimum, because the smaller ones have crap screens. For Chromebooks, do your homework. Search for reviews on any models you're interested in, on YouTube and on the internet. Make sure you look at multiple reviews if possible. Try to get the model with the best-looking (resolution, brightness and color gamut) screen possible. If you can, look at the model you're interested in in person or buy one from someone with a good return policy. If you have a Costco membership, they have by far the best return policy on electronics, so consider taking advantage. You'll probably want to budget in the $200 to $300 range for a decent budget Chromebook, but you can find decent models for a bit less. Chrome OS has the advantage of being secure, booting quickly, and a good variety of apps available, both native Chrome OS apps and on some newer models, Android apps.

I think after the ending of 3, that 4 almost certainly has to pick up the pace.

There's only been one and a half hours of screen time. Some folks are impatient. The end of Episode 3 had a significant reveal.

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It's the percentage change I'd be concerned about rather than the raw number.

Which I clearly called out in that post. I just picked that one because the cuts to his reactions were funny. That video also leaves out several more obvious kills. Point is, MCU Cap isn't as shy about applying lethal force as his mainstream comic book counterpart.

Yeah, and they left a few actual kills out. But it was still pretty funny cutting back and forth to Cap and Widow "reacting" in Zola's lab/bunker thing.

Option Number 1: Beth Harmon (The Queen's Gambit. Netflix) The University's mathematics professor and Chess Club sponsor, Beth looks surprisingly young for a woman in her mid-60s. Thus, she is another mystery the Chief seeks to solve. He believes her to be too preoccupied with her work, her avocation, and her intoxication to notice what he's up to. How shocked he was, when she walked into his office one day and asked him just what a Dalek was, and why were they planning to invade the Neitherlands, "wherever the flying f*** that is." Option Number 2: Miskatonic University (The Mythos, H.P. Lovecraft) What sort of institution of higher learning would accept someone with as checkered a history as Niles Caulder into its ranks? What was that Groucho Marx quote? Ah, yes . . . “I don’t want to belong to any club that would accept me as one of its members.” But it was the very "members" that drew in Niles like a moth to a flame . . . or a fly to a Venus flytrap. Option 3: "Mary Wardwell" (aka Lilith, Madame Satan) (The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Netflix) Headmistress Wardwell has recently taken over affairs at Miskatonic U. She's asked Niles to do her just a few innocuous, if somewhat morally gray, favors in exchange for his tenure. And now the time has come for the big favor, for the big prize: An introduction to the Librarians of the Neitherlands. What will it be? Perhaps Niles will find out if he survives the oncoming Dalek onslaught. Perhaps that onslaught will present Niles the opportunity to reverse the power dynamic between himself and Madame Satan. If only he'd realized who he was dealing with going into this, things would be so much simpler . . .

This. And this is more in alignment with his Ultimates version showing him more in the light of the soldier he was in WW II. In one comic storyline, Cap was left with no choice but to take some hostage takers out with a rifle he borrowed, and a big deal was made of how reluctant he was to kill. MCU cap will pick up a gun and use it to full effect when called for, without any angst involved. ----------------------- These aren't all clear kills, but many of them are. The way it was edited was pretty funny, though:

I'm guessing the highest bidders.

I wasn't comparing Ultimates Thor to Lebowski Thor. I'm talking about the baseline. They grafted on some Ultimate Thor personality traits to 616 Thor, which he mostly is. Same with Cap being so willing to kill in the MCU, but still maintaining most of his original traits from the comics. Anyway, I don't think either of us liked the end result much, so no point in beating a dead horse.

Maybe. There are a lot of overlapping wolves. Fenrir was beaten by Hulk in the comics, apparently. They never really name it in the movie.

That's your expectations messing with you. The name was meant to be ironic, since they'd saved the galaxy a couple of times, but had started out as rogues. By Endgame, they're still rogues learning how to be -- maybe even toying with the concept of becoming -- heroes. They haven't quite got it down to a science yet at that point. Also, Starlord was always an impulsive idiot in the MCU. Being powerful doesn't preclude character flaws. Again, pretty much the point of Marvel characters. And MCU characters are for the most part an amalgam of their 616 and Ultimates counterparts. MCU Thor leans more toward Ultimates Thor personality-wise, and always has. That's a very valid point.

But this is literally the foundation of Stan Lee's Marvel. I don't like some things that movies and TV do with supers to "ground" them -- like turning costumed supers in to street-clothed "people with powers" -- but flawed, relatable heroes have been paying the bills for Marvel for many decades now. Even Garm (presumably) in Ragnarok. Yep. A giant wolf had more tactical sense than Hulk.

Marvel Thor starts out as selfish. It's a fundamental part of his character, and why he's been exiled to Midgard by Odin. From the very start. Heck, even in the actual stories, the gods all have their foibles. They aren't perfect, and are often petty and brutal, including Thor. So... 😁 I do agree the execution could have been better. But my issue isn't that Thor turned inward, and backslid a lot in his growth because of his self loathing at not going for the head. It's that I don't think it should have been handled in quite the comedic tone that it was. The comedy there should have been tonally darker. But that's a subtle thing, and a very highly subjective thing.

I'll be making a triple pick tomorrow for my Options.