Why lines are continuous

In any other cultural moment, the satire embedded in Amazon Prime’s endlessly entertaining, blood-spattered superhero show The Boys might seem heavy-handed. But in 2022, its near-nihilist depiction of a deluded public rooting for an all-powerful class of elites who couldn’t care less about them almost feels like a documentary, albeit with superpowers, eviscerations, and really weird sex stuff thrown in. In the show (based on, and vastly improving, an indie comic series co-created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson) , the sinister Vought International dominates both pop culture and the wider world with actual, real-life superheroes (almost none of whom are actually heroic), created with a power-generating serum known as V. The titular Boys are a group of powerless supe-haters, led by William Butcher (Karl Urban), fighting against grim odds to take the “heroes” down. In Season Three, with new episodes currently streaming on Fridays, the most terrifying of the supes … [Read more...] about Yes, Homelander on ‘The Boys’ Is Supposed to Be Donald Trump

Riley Cote ’s journey to enlightenment began in earnest when a hulking man punched him in the face. Cote, now 40 and retired from professional hockey, remembers the moment with a dark laugh. He’d gotten into this particular bust-up one night during the 2009 season with one of the NHL ’s most vicious fighters, and took the worst of it, waking the next day with his left eye blackened shut. “What,” he asked himself, “am I doing?” He drove to the Philadelphia Flyers training facility and got into the shower. Feeling congested, he reached for a tissue. He didn’t realize he’d suffered a cracked sinus, so what happened next was physics. When he blew his nose, the air — rather than coming out of his nostrils — inflated his face. The pressure surged instantly behind his good eye and closed it tight. Team trainer Derek Settlemyre heard Cote scream. “His whole face had swollen up,” Settlemyre recalls. “We tell them, if they think they have a fracture, ‘Don’t blow your nose’ — and he … [Read more...] about How an NHL Enforcer Broke His Body — and Turned to Psychedelics to Heal His Brain

Russian bombs brought Stepan and Maxim together. Now Russian bombs have driven them apart. The men, now both in their early thirties, were living almost 20 miles apart in the eastern Ukrainian region called the Donbas, where Russian-backed separatists went to war in 2014. They likely would not have met if not for a bomb that exploded in Maxim’s yard, blowing all the windows out of the house he shared with his parents. The family scraped by for a month sheltered in the basement without water or electricity. But they finally decided to leave until peace returned. (Stepan and Maxim requested their real names and other identifying information be withheld for the safety of themselves and their relatives.) That’s how Maxim wound up close enough to Stepan that they could see each other on Hornet, a gay hookup app. “He was looking for sex. Like me,” Stepan tells me. But a quick fuck was out of the question because they both lived with their families. They took long walks … [Read more...] about Gay Couple Struggles to Stay Together as War in Ukraine Rages On

The power of the Trump endorsement is waning and nowhere was it more apparent than last night’s Georgia Republican primary runoffs. The former president has struggled to translate his endorsements into victories for a GOP seeking electoral gains in the 2022 midterm elections. Trump’s endorsement has been a boon for some primary candidates — most notably J.D. Vance in Ohio — but it’s far from a golden ticket as the party works to find common ground between factions bitterly divided over the future of American conservatism. In Georgia, Trump-backed candidates floundered in their runoff elections. In GA-10, former Democratic state representative-turned Trump Republican Vernon Jones was trounced by Mike Collins, suffering a nearly 50-point loss. In GA-06, the Trump endorsement more than failed to pull Jake Evans across the finish line. He lost by more than 40 points to Rich McCormick. In Alabama’s Republican primary runoff, former lobbyist Katie Britt defeated … [Read more...] about Trump-Endorsed Candidates Can’t Stop Losing Primaries

SPOILER ALERT: This post contains details about the Season 1 finale of Disney +/ Lucasfilm ’s Obi-Wan Kenobi . The season finale of Disney+/Lucasfilm’s Obi-Wan Kenobi wrapped its six-episode arc at what was in its entirety 4 hours and 40 minutes since its debut May 27. You could essentially say that’s a very long Star Wars movie; 2017’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi being the longest at 2 hours and 32 minutes. Yes, hands down, this was a substantially improved series compared to The Book of Boba Fett, which had all its mojo stolen by The Mandalorian, living in that series’ shadow. And there were some intriguing elements occurring here in the franchise post 2005’s Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. But overall, was Obi-Wan Kenobi good enough? How did it elevate the Star Wars canon? Half of the time it wasn’t doing that, and half of the time it was. The early swashbuckling days of little Princess Leia Organa was quite charming, though … [Read more...] about ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’ Cameo-Filled Season Finale Jostles With George Lucas Canon

Billy Strings backs his black Jeep Gladiator down to the lip of Nashville’s Percy Priest Lake and hops out to unhook the tricked-out bass boat he’s towing behind him. The heavy sounds of Primus, one of his favorite bands, spill loudly out of the cab, where old Combos wrappers, cigarette butts, and fishing lures are strewn about. Strings, in a Dickies work coat with “Boomer” embroidered over the heart and a “Billy Strings” patch on the opposite side, lets his cigarette dangle from his mouth while he frees the boat from the trailer in a pair of white fishing gloves. “I love this little fucker,” he says, tossing me a line attached to the boat before jumping back into the Jeep to park it nearby. “Just walk it into the water like a dog — and don’t let it float away.” Soon, Strings is bounding back down the parking lot, onto the small dock, and behind the wheel of his boat, a 16-foot Tracker he bought as a birthday gift to himself a few years ago. On board, there’s about a dozen … [Read more...] about Drugs, Bluegrass, and Bass Fishing: How Billy Strings Outran His Past and Infiltrated the Mainstream

Prior to the release of her 2008 debut, Santogold , Santi White left her A&R job at Epic Records to pursue her solo music career as Santigold . Now, three albums later, she’s taken the experiences she’s had on both sides of the industry and filtered them into her latest record, 99¢ . The album focuses on our culture’s fascination with consumption — a theme that’s become so prevalent in White’s life that she even put a price tag on herself for the 99¢ artwork. “You work so hard, and it’s just interesting to put yourself out there as a product: to put a price on all of your hard work,” says White. Collaborating with TV on the Radio’s Dave Sitek, ex–Vampire Weekend member Rostam Batmanglij and ILoveMakonnen on the album allowed White to realize a fun, funky sound — a deliberate break from the darker themes of her previous records. (The interactive video for “Can’t Get Enough of Myself” exemplifies Santigold ’s turn toward the playful.) Before the release of 99¢ , … [Read more...] about Santigold on Consumption-Themed LP: ‘I Decided to Put Myself on Sale’

Jake Paul is over Tommy Fury duckin' him ... giving Tyson 's little bro an ultimatum -- fight me now or fight me NEVER -- and it appears to have worked! "Tommy Fury, you pulled out last year. Then you agree to fight me now but your dad is trying to pull you out again? We've given you everything you asked for," Jake wrote, listing out the so-called demands. "$2M purse ✅ Paul's alluding to their 2021 fight that never came to fruition ... after Tommy sustained an injury. Tyron Woodley ultimately took his place, and was knocked out . Now, Jake says Tommy's running out of time, and must sign on the dotted line ASAP ... so they can fight August 6 at Madison Square Garden. Getty To hammer home the point, Jake went on Instagram and said, "We're 45 days away from the fight," continuing ... "We agreed to his 2 million dollar purse, we agreed to VADA testing, extra flights, extra rooms, extra tickets to the fight." Paul added, "It … [Read more...] about Jake Paul Gives Tommy Fury An Ultimatum, Fight Me Now Or Never!

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was grilled on Wednesday by a U.S. Congressman over his apparent beef with Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy ... and the whole interaction was both contentious and awkward. Goodell -- testifying in front of Congress during a hearing on the alleged misconduct within the Washington Commanders' organization -- was blasted by a series of hard-hitting questions from Rep. Jim Jordan , a member of the Republican Party. Jordan, in his line of questioning, specifically wanted to know about the apparent ban the NFL has placed on Portnoy over the past few years. Getty "Commissioner, you believe in the First Amendment, don't ya?" Jordan asked Goodell, who appeared at the meeting via teleconference. "I do," Goodell answered. "Why do you ban Dave Portnoy from NFL games?" Jordan continued. "He's a journalist, in fact, he's a sports journalist. Why is he banned?" Goodell said he wasn't familiar with the issue … [Read more...] about Congressman Grills Roger Goodell Over Dave Portnoy Feud At Hearing

Douglas Mackinnon , director and exec producer of Amazon series Good Omens and Anansi Boys , has urged the upkeep of a “chain of productions” in Scotland, as landmark research finds the Scottish screen sector generated more than £500M ($613M) and created 10,000 jobs in 2019. Mackinnon, who has also directed episodes of Line of Duty and Doctor Who, issued a word of warning that a “boom and bust” effect will infect Scotland’s TV and film industry unless producers keep up a pipeline of projects. He has “confidence” that the nation’s skills base has improved greatly over the past few years and skilled execs who had initially left the country are returning to work on projects, while a wealth of training schemes are bringing the next generation through. “We need to keep spinning plates to make sure there are a chain of productions coming into Scotland in the future, giving continuity for cast and crew,” he told Deadline. “We’ve got world class crews in Scotland … [Read more...] about ‘Good Omens’ Director Douglas Mackinnon Urges “Chain Of Scottish Productions” As Research Shows $700M Generated In 2019 In The Nation