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CAYOM YEAR 5 - PART I - MOVIE SUBMISSION

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This is the thread to submit films for Year 4 of CAYOM 3.0! The release calendar is below. It's pre-filled with the specified films from the Advance Schedule Thread, but you will still need to make posts for those movies with details about them. You can also submit your fillers here. Note that, unless the film was a tentpole that was specified in the Advance Schedule Thread (and thus is already listed here), you are not allowed to post movies in this thread until they are completed - with full cast and release info and however complete a plot summary you plan on giving them. Keep in mind that directors are limited to one major film or two small films a year and that actors should be limited to a realistic number of projects as well.

 

To submit a film, make a post in this thread including the relevant information.

Required info includes:

Title:

Director:

Genre:

Release Date:

Major Cast:

Theater Count:

MPAA Rating:

Runtime:

Production Budget:

Plot Summary: (Can be as short or detailed as you wish)

 

If you do not have all of this information finalized, you should not post the film in this thread until you do. Films posted without all this info will not be added to the release calendar in this first post.

 

You can also optionally include other relevant information like producers, composers, the name of the releasing studio (if you are using your own fictional studios), special formats for release (like IMAX or 3D), even custom taglines or posters if you wish. None of this is required to post your film and it can be added after you first post if you so choose.

 

Limited releases are allowed, and they can expand into additional theaters on a week-by-week basis. You will need to specify when the film expands and how many theaters it goes into each week, up until the final expansion that is the widest it will go.

 

I've included some typical midweek release dates around holidays and such. If you want to release a movie on a weekday in some other week, go right ahead and just specify it in the post for that movie. I'll add that day to the release calendar.

 

This post will be updated regularly with new additions. If available, you can click on the title of a film in the release calendar to go straight to its post.


Submissions are closed!

 

Projects in GREEN are completed.
 

Spoiler

 

Friday, January 1st

One Last Time - Concert - Directed by Bruce Hendricks - 2,450 theaters - In 3D

 

Friday, January 8th

Hostel: Bloodline - Horror - Directed by Eli Roth - 3,450 theaters

 

Friday, January 15th (4-day MLK weekend)

Life of Galileo - Period/Drama - Directed by Baz Luhrman - 3,824 theaters - In Dolby Cinema & IMAX

Wi-Fi Winnebago - Comedy/Mockumentary - Directed by Todd Strauss-Schulson - 2,592 theaters


Friday, January 22nd
The Study - Horror/Sci-Fi - Directed by Joseph Gordon-Levitt - 3,000 theaters


Friday, January 29th

Headline - Crime/Thriller - Directed by Scott Frank - 2,553 theaters

Kaleidoscope - Crime/Comedy - Directed by Lucia Aniello - 2,368 theaters

 

Friday, February 5th

Broadway Selects: Hello, Dolly! - Filmed Play - Directed by Michael John Warren & Jerry Zaks - 2,283 theaters

Next Vegas - Action/Crime/Thriller - Directed by Anna Foerster - 2,637 theaters

 

Friday, February 12th (4-day Valentine's and Presidents Day weekend)

Medusa - CG Animation/Musical/Fantasy - Directed by Lauren Faust & Meg LeFauve - 4,185 theaters - In 3D & Dolby Cinema

Perfect Match - Sci-Fi/Romance - Directed by Gina Prince-Brythewood - 3,798 theaters - In Dolby Cinema & IMAX


Friday, February 19th

The Poet - Thriller - Directed by Baltasar Kormákur - 2,766 theaters

 

Friday, February 26th

ByteRealm - Sci-Fi/Action - Directed by Alex Proyas - 3,664 theaters - In 3D, Dolby Cinema 2D+3D, and IMAX 3D

The Mona Lisa (Limited Release) - Historical Drama - Directed by Julian Schnabel - 4 theaters

 

Friday, March 5th

The Mona Lisa (Limited Expansion) - Historical Drama - Directed by Julian Schnabel - 238 theaters

Out of My Mind - Family/Drama - Directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson - 2,245 theaters

 

Friday, March 12th

The Last Six - Action - Directed by James Wan - 4,302 theaters - In Dolby Cinema & IMAX

The Mona Lisa (Wide Expansion) - Historical Drama - Directed by Julian Schnabel - 791 theaters

 

Friday, March 19th

The Epsilon Syndicate: Union of Thieves - Crime/Adventure - Directed by Drew Goddard - 3,793 theaters - In Dolby Cinema & 70mm in select showings

The Mona Lisa (Wider Expansion) - Historical Drama - Directed by Julian Schnabel - 1,557 theaters

 

Friday, March 26th

Artifacts: Zephyr's Crest - Adventure/Fantasy/Family - Directed by Brad Peyton - 4,352 theaters - In 3D, IMAX & Dolby Cinema

Crusader - Period/Action/Adventure - Directed by Timothy Van Patten - 3,116 theaters

 

Friday, April 2nd (Easter weekend)
Miserable Fans - Comedy - Directed by Alex Buono & Rhys Thomas - 3,229 theaters

Veggies in the Rain: A VeggieTales Movie - CG Animation/Musical - Directed by Mike Nawrocki & Phil Vischer - 3,427 theaters


Friday, April 9th

Birds - Nature Documentary - Directed by Drew Fellman - 2,450 theaters
Steel Streaks - Sci-Fi/Drama/Action - Directed by Rob Marshall - 3,302 theaters - In 3D & IMAX 3D

 

Friday, April 16th

Deeper - Horror/Disaster - Directed by Sam Raimi - 3,022 theaters - In 3D & IMAX 3D (IMAX showtimes split with Steel Streaks)

 

Friday, April 23rd

Best Friends - Dramadey/Romance - Directed by Jesse Peretz - 2,748 theaters

 

Saturday, April 24th
Green Lantern Corps: Rise of the Manhunters (1-Night Amazon Prime Sneak) - Superhero/Sci-Fi/Adventure - Directed by F. Gary Gray - 800 theaters

 

Friday, April 30th

Green Lantern Corps: Rise of the Manhunters - Superhero/Sci-Fi/Adventure - Directed by F. Gary Gray - 4,295 theaters - In 3D, Dolby Cinema, IMAX & IMAX 3D

 

Friday, May 7th (Mother's Day weekend)
Two Lonely Bounty Hunters - Animation/Sci-Fi/RomCom - Directed by David Soren & Noelle Stevenson - 4,268 theaters - In 3D & Dolby Cinema


Friday, May 14th

The Drowsy Chaperone - Musical - Directed by Ol Parker - 3,517 theaters

Two Lonely Bounty Hunters - Expands into IMAX release
 

Friday, May 21st
Call of Duty: Of Their Own Accord - Action/War/Thriller - Directed by Paul Greengrass - 3,988 theaters

 

Friday, May 28th (4-day Memorial Day weekend)

Gold Diggers - Comedy/Adventure/Western - Directed by Dennis Dugan - 3,202 theaters

In the Valley - Disaster/Drama - Directed by Joseph Kosinski - 4,161 theaters - In 3D & IMAX 3D


Friday, June 4th

Portal - Sci-Fi - Directed by Jennifer Phang - 3,591 theaters - In Dolby Cinema

 

Friday, June 11th

Psyren - Action/Sci-Fi - Directed by Rian Johnson - 3,375 theaters - In Dolby Cinema & IMAX (IMAX split with In the Valley for first week)

 

Friday, June 18th (Father's Day weekend)

Forever Yours - Romance/Drama - Directed by Michael Arden - 2,453 theaters

Splatoon - CG Animation/Comedy/Action - Directed by Craig McCraken & Rodney Rothman - 4,023 theaters - In 3D & Dolby Cinema

 

Friday, June 25th

An Odd Road Trip - Comedy - Directed by Ben Stiller - 3,693 theaters
Wii Sports - Drama/Comedy - Directed by Kenneth Lonergan - 3,519 theaters

 

Wednesday, June 30th

One Punch Man - Superhero/Action/Comedy - Directed by Edgar Wright - 4,226 theaters - In 3D, Dolby Cinema & IMAX 3D

 

Friday, July 2nd (Independence Day weekend)

Calendars (Limited Opening) - Documentary - Directed by Hannah Gertrude - 4 theaters

Up the Butt - Horror/Comedy - Directed by John Gulager - 3,202 theaters

 

Friday, July 9th

Calendars (Limited Expansion) - Documentary - Directed by Hannah Gertrude - 41 theaters

Skyjumper - Sports/Drama - Directed by Gavin O'Connor - 2,966 theaters - In Dolby Cinema

 

Friday, July 16th

Calendars (Limited Expansion #2) - Documentary - Directed by Hannah Gertrude - 305 theaters

Scooby-Doo: Apocalypse - Horror/Comedy/Sci-Fi - Directed by Reed Morano - In Dolby Cinema & IMAX

 

Friday, July 23rd

Calendars (Wide Expansion) - Documentary - Directed by Hannah Gertrude - 623 theaters

 

Friday, July 30th

Conventional Wisdom - Action - Directed by Antoine Fuqua - 3,303 theaters

The Rich and Famous - Romantic Dramadey - Directed by Tamara Jenkins - 2,853 theaters

Static Shock - Superhero/Action/Dramadey - Directed by Rick Famuyiwa - 4,173 theaters - In 3D, Dolby Cinema, IMAX & IMAX 3D

 

Friday, August 6th

Sylvarius - CG Animation/Fantasy - Directed by Chris Butler - 3,588 theaters - In IMAX

 

Friday, August 13th

Yin - Noir/Thriller - Directed by Daniel Espinosa - 2,509 theaters - In Dolby Cinema

 

Friday, August 20th

He-Man III: The Horror of Hordak - Fantasy/Action - Directed by Robert Stromberg - 3,890 theaters - In 3D, Dolby Cinema, IMAX & IMAX 3D

 

Friday, August 27th

Peak - Adventure - Directed by Stephen Chbosky - 2,235 theaters

 

Friday, September 3rd (4-day Labor Day weekend)

Train 38 - Horror/Fantasy/Drama - Directed by Chan-Wook Park - 2,886 theaters - In Dolby Cinema & IMAX

 

Friday, September 10th

Broadway Selects: School of Rock - Filmed Play - Directed by Laurence Connor & Michael John Warren - 2,483 theaters

Texans Hate Zombies - Horror/Comedy - Directed by Hans Petter Moland - 2,547 theaters

 

Friday, September 17th

24 Hours - Drama/Crime - Directed by J.C. Chandor - 2,853 theaters

Bambi: A Life in the Woods - Adventure/Drama - Directed by Ang Lee - 3,875 theaters - In Dolby Cinema & IMAX

 

Friday, September 24th

Dolphins - Nature Documentary - Directed by Alastair Fothergill - 2,450 theaters

Psychonauts - Stop-Motion Animation/Comedy/Fantasy - Directed by Duke Johnson & Tim Schaeffer - 3,381 theaters

 

Friday, October 1st

The Picture of Dorian Grey - Thriller/Horror/Drama - Directed by Martin Scorsese - 2,412 theaters

 

Friday, October 8th

This Is Not a Game - Techno-Thriller - Directed by Craig Zobel - 2,715 theaters

 

Friday, October 15th

Fantasia: The Next Dimension (Limited 35mm Release) - Animation/Concert Film - Directed by a ton of people - 208 theaters - In 35mm

A Woman in the Crowd - Romance/Fantasy/Drama - Directed by Jeff Nichols - 3,453 theaters

 

Friday, October 22nd

Fantasia: The Next Dimension (Wide Expansion) - Animation/Concert Film - Directed by a ton of people - 3,561 theaters - In 3D, 35mm film, Dolby Cinema, and IMAX (Split with Shiverin' Gulch)

 

Friday, October 29th (Halloween weekend)
The Trick-or-Treater - Slasher Horror - Directed by Alexandre Aja - 2,731 theaters


Friday, November 5th

American Dragon: Flash Point - Fantasy/Family - Directed by Yimou Zhang - 3,905 theaters - In 3D, IMAX & IMAX 3D

 

Friday, November 12th

Homebound - Dramadey - Directed by Tyler Perry - 3,142 theaters

Of Pagans and Paupers - Drama - Directed by Andrea Arnold - 1,845 theaters

 

Friday, November 19th

Pillars of Eternity: Never Far from the Queen - Fantasy/Adventure - Directed by Miguel Sapochnik - 3,922 theaters - In IMAX

The Winter Star - Survival/Drama - Directed by Niki Caro - 3,004 theaters

 

Wednesday, November 24th (Day before Thanksgiving)

Lieutenant Lynx in the Third Dimension - Sci-Fi/Comedy - Directed by Greg Aaronowitz - 2,250 theaters - In 3D

Olive the Other Reindeer - Live Action-CG Hybrid/Holiday/Musical - Directed by Taika Waititi - 4,005 theaters - In 3D


Friday, November 26th

Sabrina (Limited Release) - Drama/Thriller - Directed by Paul Dano - 4 theaters

 

Friday, December 3rd

Help! I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up: The Movie - Comedy - Directed by Joel Schumacher - 2,000 theaters

O, Maestro! (Limited Release) - Fantasy/Horror/Dramadey - Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos - 4 theaters

Sabrina (Limited Expansion) - Drama/Thriller - Directed by Paul Dano - 39 theaters

 

Friday, December 10th

O, Maestro! (Limited Expansion) - Fantasy/Horror/Dramadey - Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos - 42 theaters

On the Record - Musical/RomCom - Directed by Jason Moore - 3,153 theaters

Sabrina (Wide Expansion) - Drama/Thriller - Directed by Paul Dano - 1,255 theaters

 

Saturday, December 11th

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl (1-Night Amazon Prime Member Sneak) - CG Animation/Comedy - Directed by Daron Nefcy - 800 theaters

 

Friday, December 17th

The Scavenger Wars Part II - Sci-Fi - Directed by Matt Duffer & Ross Duffer - 4,260 theaters - In Cinerama & IMAX

O, Maestro! (Limited Expansion #2) - Fantasy/Horror/Dramadey - Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos - 436 theaters

Sabrina (Wider Expansion) - Drama/Thriller - Directed by Paul Dano - 2,534 theaters

 

Wednesday, December 22nd

O, Maestro! (Wide Expansion) - Fantasy/Horror/Dramadey - Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos - 1,725 theaters

The Three-Month Funeral - Dramadey - Directed by Theodore Melfi - 3,149 theaters

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl - CG Animation/Comedy - Directed by Daron Nefcy - 4,320 theaters - In 3D, Dolby Cinema & IMAX (100 screens)

 

 

Edited by Xillix
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❤️  Two Lonely Bounty Hunters ❤️ 

 

 

Image result for hamster love gif

 

Director: David Soren and Noelle Stevenson

Writers: David Soren and Mark Perez

Composer: Anna Meredith

Cast: Sophia Lillis (Cassie), Charlie Day (Marion), Ryan Gosling (Flithbert), Ice Cube (Captain Fab), Kate McKinnon (Moxie), Chris Redd (Gravitas), Leslie Mann (Vivian), Jason Sudekis (George), Jeff Bennett (Mordecai), Yara Shahidi (Sylphina), Michelle Yeoh (Headmaster Oeme), Carly Rae Jepsen (Starlene), Michael Cera (Quavio)

 

CAMEOS: SUPER ULTRA MAJOR SPOILERS

Spoiler

Seriously, read the movie first. You'll know when they appear. Everyone is played by who you think is playing them.

 

If not, I warned you...

Spoiler

Daniel Henney (Joero), Jake T. Austin (Lunch), Yoo-Seung Ho (Cat),  James Rollestone (Hunka’ Hunka’ Burnin’ Love), Taissa Farmiga (Dove), Naomi Scott (Kernel), Letitia Wright (Tamborine), Sasha Lane (Alice), Charlie Heaton (Korner), Logan Lerman (Stevenson),  Zazie Beetz (The Shrew), McKenzie Davis (Ryder)

 

 

Date: May 7th

Genre: Animation/Sci-Fi/Action/RomCom

Theaters: 4,268

Budget: $160 million

Runtime: 109min (1hr, 49min)

Rating: PG for action sequences including peril, some crude and suggestive humor, language, and thematic material

 

Synopsis: An adaptation of the classic Eugene O'Neill play Long Day's Journey Into Night

 

Spoiler

Shots of a large campus of buildings spread across floating platforms. Students of different alien species mingling, going about their way on campus, and more are shown. It looks like a typical university in the modern day. We hear a voice over start to begin, with the voice of Cassie. You know…I’m not like other kids here. That’s not to say anything about cliques or herd mentality at all. In fact, everyone has a unique flair to them. But…this is my second week at Cosmic Academy. I’ve been hiding in the shadows, including from cute…. students. My parents are obviously happy for me, but I’m not trying to cut people off. I’m just worried that my cover may get blown. I’ll just cut to the chase. I don’t think any other student here….is a top rate bounty hunter.

 

 

(instrumental only, except for the chorus)

 

HOURGLASS PICTURES PRESENTS

 

TWO LONELY BOUNTY HUNTERS

 

We then see what looks like a typical Earth suburban house near the Cosmic Academy. Cassie is getting ready for what looks like a typical day of school, as her parents meet her around the breakfast table. She looks completely exhausted, noticeably chugging shots of espresso.

 

George: So, looks like today is the first day of testing for…. what, two weeks?

Cassie: Don’t remind me.

Vivian: I mean, it’s not the end of the world, these are basically just about how much teachers get paid.

Cassie: I have to take literally 40 exams and I barely had time to study for them. Being a Bounty Hunter isn’t exactly a time sensitive part time gig.

George: So if a teacher asks, we have something to say.

Cassie: No! My headmaster has a…weird thing about Bounty Hunters.

George: We were kidding anyway. We’ll just tell them you’re cutting class and selling illegal substances.

Vivian: George!

George: Hey, it would go over better.

Cassie: He’s right you know.

 

Cassie is reassured that she doesn’t have to worry about the tests. Worst case scenario, she finds a mission to save the scorer from doom and bribes him for a better score. Cassie laughs and thanks them. Suddenly, she hears a loud, elaborate honk from outside. Recognizing it, she hops in the car.

 

Outside the house, revealed to be in a more suburban part of town outside a bustling city center, we see a small spaceship, labeled Keith, and a small blue hamster with an eyepatch, Marion, who greets her and pulls her into the ship. As Cassie tells him about the examination, known simply as the Space Tests, Marion assures her that she could very easily cheat on the exams using some of the tools they’ve used on their bounty hunting missions. Cassie jokes about what a bad influence he is, but Marion suggests that he’s small enough that he could go join her and help her cheat.

 

Suddenly, we arrive at the Cosmic Academy, as Cassie gets off the ship in a discrete area by the trash cans. She realizes that she’s late, so she jumps out and almost lands into a dumpster. Suddenly, she looks to the side in horror and hides on the side of it. An alien with hedgehog like spikes and other features, Sylphiana, walks inside the building, but not before noticing what seems to be a noise. Cassie sighs in relief as she doesn’t notice. Walking into a large lecture hall, we meet Headmaster Oeme, an alien with a tall, slender, design, several black eyes, and large horns.

 

Headmaster Oeme: I’ll be completely honest. I want to take these tests as little as you do. But the powers that be mandate it. So let me make it up to you and give you extra credit. All you have to do is answer a simple question I have provided many, many times in the past. That way, we can both have at least a slight bit of joy. Anyways…let’s get this over with. What do I think about bounty hunters?

 

Several students begin to scribble furiously, all writing the same answer: They are vile, dirt-low, shameless, pieces of BEEP. (Beep literally written) Cassie grimaces as she writes it. Testing soon begins, and even with the espresso, Cassie finds it hard to think, visioning the text of the test questions morphing into characters and places she had met in the first film. As she tries to stay awake, she uses a paperclip on the test to fold her eyelids to stay open. She drops a pencil and goes to get it. Sylphiana, a few desks over, notices. She gives Cassie an odd look on account of her paperclip eyes, but she sheepishly grins, deciding to grip the pencil in her mouth out of lack of thought.

 

She returns to the desk, embarrassed and thinking about how stupid she was. Suddenly, we find out that in the test bubbles, she inadvertently and somehow drew a picture of Sylphiana. Trying to erase, it gets even worse. Suddenly, Cassie is given a new bubble form by someone, revealed to be Marion.

 

Cassie: *whispering* What on…Galactic Central are you doing here?

Marion: Helping you. The smartest kid in class is all done, but he forgot to turn it in. Go figure. Take it now before he notices. I give it 5 minutes.

Cassie: But the headmaster will - *she notices her sound asleep in the front* nevermind. Wait. I can’t do this. I have morals.

Marion: You saved the world. You can get away with cheating on a test.

Cassie: Fair point. Wait. No. I’m a horrible person. And…. I’m already filling in bubbles, forget it.

 

Marion smiles and crawls down to put the test back on the headmaster’s desk, running out of the hall. Suddenly, Cassie is about to turn in her test, but we find out that the Headmistress saw the whole thing with one of her several eyes still open. Cassie silently says, “Oh no.”

 

Meanwhile, Marion leaves the building and gets to enjoy a nice day on the town. Getting back into his spaceship, which was left at a meter, he decides to catch a movie and maybe get some lunch. However, he gets intercepted by some old friends, a minotaur like alien named Captian Fab, and two weasel like aliens named Moxie and Gravitas.

 

Fab: Marion!!! We need your help!!

Marion: What is it?!

Fab: Something awful’s happened across town. We need your help.

Moxie: Get Cassie and we’ll go take care of it.

Marion: She’s at school right now. Can you hold the problem until 3pm?

Moxie: Ends at 3pm? See, I have issues with how the educational structure is inherently set up….

Gravitas: Not now, sweetie! We gotta get you to ground zero.

Marion: Ground zero?!

 

Cut extremely abruptly to people/aliens in a concert hall violently beating each other up (in a PG way) while shouting things like “You’re worthless!” and “Love is nothing but a chemical reaction, feelings aren’t real!” as we move to see a speaker at the front of the auditorium. A stagehand tries to follow, but he storms off, believing everything he said to be absolute nonsense. Outside the auditorium, with some of the audience members beating each other up in the street, the four run inside, trying to avoid making any contact.

 

Moreover, they are surprised to notice that everyone is fighting the same person, not attacking others. The disco ball is on, and it seems to be very bright and distracting. Marion climbs up the auditorium and runs through the ventilation systems in a maze-esque sequence to find the lighting booth. The lighting master is sound asleep, his head almost close to falling out of the chair and hitting the floor. Getting to the controls, he is dismayed to find that the disco ball button isn’t labeled. Pressing random buttons and triggering all kinds of different lighting effects, he decides to just swallow the lighting board whole.

 

The disco ball stops, and everyone else snaps back to normal. Everyone is kind of in a daze. Moxie remarks to Gravitas that whatever Marion did up there, he probably swallowed something to end it. Meanwhile, the host of the event, revealing himself to be the galaxy’s leading relationship expert, Senior Lovelett, who seems to remember what happened. Fab intently gets his recording device ready, but Lovelett begins to instead ramble about something that happened in his childhood, completely unrelated. The four leave.

 

On the way out, Marion coughs up a few things, including a printer, a koi fish, and even the Declaration of Independence, eventually spitting out the soundboard. As the others struggle to touch it, grimacing as Marion messes with it after all the drool is it, they notice that the battery pack had some scratch marks on it. More than a few, it tuns out. It says, “FB was here, losers!”

 

Meanwhile, we cut back to the Headmistress’s office, where Cassie sits nervously. To her surprise, Oeme acknowledges that cheating was not her intention to cheat, and that the tiny blue devil was clearly forcing her into a most difficult position. Cassie remarks that it sounds weird when she says it like that. Oeme, however, is fairly concerned, given that the creature seemed extremely familiar in past escapades, further believing that he is a bounty hunter up to no good. She requests that Cassie report to her if the brat is seen again. Cassie, relieved and trying to contain very subtle laughter, remarks that she will certainly do so. Leaving the office, she checks her phone, happy that a crisis was averted, and she can just go home and relax.

 

Immediately cut to a news report about the love lecture brawl. The five bounty hunters are in Cassie’s house watching the report in a humorously slumber party-esque setting. Vivian calls from downstairs to see if anyone wants any pizza rolls. Everyone says, ‘no thanks’ at once, except for Fab, who says ‘supreme!’ Immediately cut to the same scene but with Fab eating pizza rolls, swatting when Gravitas tries to grab some. “You had your chance!”

 

Moreover, Fab reveals that they were called into the scene to find the culprit, as it was revealed to happen a few times at romance themed events. It doesn’t matter if it was a relationship summit or even an aromatic club. Whoever was doing this had a real thing against being content in love. No one has been truly hurt so far, but it could lead to something far bigger.

 

Cassie: Well that is really frightening, but I’m not sure I can even pull this off.

Marion: The bounty for this guy is huge!!! We’re a perfect team, and we can keep these riches for the two of us…. *the other three glare*….I mean 5 of us!

Cassie: That’s the thing…I tried to call you here for you to look for this creep. The four of you.

Marion: *a bit distraught* Come on, you’ll join us!

Cassie: I want to, I really do! But…. I’ve got a lot on my plate beyond this. I don’t want to take this away from you. I’ll know you’ll get him for us.

Marion: But…. pretty please! *He does big, puppy dog eyes*

Moxie: Come on, it’ll be like the good old days!

Fab: And we won’t take jobs for omnicide villains anymore! Pinky swears.

Marion: …. but where’s Finnegan?!

Gravitas: Started his own ice cream shop. Made his dream come true. I’d suggest going, but he filed a restraining order against us so there’s that.

 

Cassie smiles at Marion, saying she’ll be only a call away if they need her. Marion smiles, saying that they’ll get the job done with a righteous smile. Immediately cut to Marion in a spaceship, texting Cassie repeatedly, while close to melting down in a humorously over the top manner. Moxie lifts him up and slaps him. “Come on, mate. Cassie would want you to be strong. As would…. pretty much everyone in the universe. We don’t know what we’re up against. It’s not like she’s going away any time soon.” Gravitas remarks that she could get hit by a bus, but Moxie snaps: “Not helping!!” Marion agrees to stay with them, but…Cassie was the first person to believe in him in a long time, but the others look at him and smile. Moxie lightly nudges Fab’s eyes to keep him focused on driving the ship.

 

 

In an ensuing montage, the four bounty hunters struggle to come up with clues on who said FB is. The turn to anyone who may have the initials, looking at random entries in phone books and online databases, much to peoples’ annoyance and confusion. They even interrogate Earth band Fall Out Boy, only to be reminded that Fall and Out are not the same word. By this point, Marion had tied the 4-person band to a single chair. Moxie awkwardly unties them. Cassie, on the other hand, struggles to keep up with school and try to be one of the cool kids. She gets burnt out as she tries to take on a lot more and more with each day. She went so far as to temporarily try the school’s mime club, which is apparently quite popular.

 

“Alone, again, naturally…” Marion sings as he lays on the top of the ship, parked on a skyscraper in the city.

 

Captain Fab: Okay, wow, I guess we don’t exist then.

Marion: I miss Cassie. And I miss being a successful bounty hunter. This suuucks.

Captain Fab: Okay, two low blows in one. You shouldn’t take us for granted you know.

 

Meanwhile, Moxie is inside the ship, telling off on his uncle that FlithbertTV says is not a viable news source at all. He’s just some creepy blogger who believes that lizard people are controlling the world. The Zagtarians are lovely people, and don’t deserve to be judged in this way. Suddenly, the others look to each other.

 

Gravitas: Moxie, what does he say about love?

Moxie: That it’s the most overrated thing in the galax…. Flithbert. FB.

*They all nod*

Moxie: …where is the next tour taking place for this romance guy?

 

Cut back to the Cosmic academy, where Cassie finds out that her class is going on a field study to a planet in a colder outpost a few planets away. Heavy jackets are distributed to all of the students, but Cassie declines. A voice asks her about this bizarre decision, and to her shock, it’s Sylphiana.

 

Cassie: Oh…I grew up in…the northern Midwest…. of the United States of America…a country on Earth. *Sylphiana finally gets it* and the temperatures here look to be barely enough for a snow day. I have my own jacket that will work. But do…people around here just not like the cold?

Sylphiana: I’d guess so. This is always the part people dread about Galactic Geology.

 

As they continue to chatter, they see several students go to look out the classroom window with stars in their eyes. The professor pushes them off with even bigger affection. Cassie and Sylphiana stay at their desks but look on at the confusion. Cassie asks what’s going on, only for Sylphiana to reply that the Student Council is going down the hall.

 

Through funky music, we see the council. They all seem relatively humanoid at least in shape, but bright lights cover their faces and upper bodies. They walk down the halls as students ogle over them. Sylphiana narrates: They’re this school’s elite organization. Every member has supposedly saved the entire universe at one point. They even have their own lounge the size of the cafeteria. No one messes with them, but they draw attention wherever they go.

 

Cassie seems uninterested: “So they’re the popular clique, cool.” Sylphiana is a bit taken aback by her lack of excitement, but remarks that she isn’t wrong. Eventually, several school spaceships take off for the frozen planet. Cassie is In a moderate winter jacket, while the other students are bundled up to a ridiculous degree. She remarks to Sylphiana, “Wait…I’m pretty sure most of you have fur. This seems illogical.” but Sylphiana simply replies, “Yeah, it kind of does.” As people head home for the day, Cassie screams to herself, “We took part in a platonically friendly conversation!!!”

 

Walking through a museum of archaeology, led by an alien who looks like a walking and talking fossil himself, the students all scramble to take notes. Walking through a window, we cut to the outside, where we see the chilly town square, with heaters around every block. We also see a theater where Senior Lovelett is about to speak that night. The four bounty hunters come out of an alleyway by where the theater is, knowing that Flithbert may strike here next. All are similarly bundled up.

 

Marion: Are we sure he’s in there?

Fab: Nope. But I figure it’s at least an educated guess. Not like we have much else to go off of.

Moxie: Hopefully he’s not as used to the cold as we are.

Marion: We’re not…

Moxie: And I hope he’s less so. If he’s stumbling in an even bigger jacket, that’s our advantage.

 

They infiltrate the theater, while Senior Lovelett is doing some strange vocal warm-ups, followed by an assistant who takes out his retainer. Going up to the light booth, they see someone standing in their way, ready to fight. They soon realize that he’s a penguin-like lighting technician, literally tied to the door and his beak taped shut. He’s begging to be let down, and Marion assures him that they will be back. They prepare to fight whoever’s inside, ready to get their man once again. They kick the door open (the lighting guy screams in pain through the taped mouth) as they see a figure in a long coat tampering with the board. He glares at the hunters with red eyes in his silhouette form.

 

During a lunch break at the museum, with much of the food frozen in ice, Cassie gets several texts on her phone repeatedly. They are all from Marion, begging for help. The four bounty hunters chase after the hooded figure, who speaks in a handsome Canadian accent. They jump from level to level, reaching the orchestra level of the audience. We intermittently cut to Senior Lovelett, who is too busy continuing his vocal warm-ups (with his eyes closed) to notice what’s going on.

 

Eventually, the figure makes it outside, and before the others can follow, they have to bundle up all over again. The figure runs out the stage door, and the hunters waddle behind, their abilities limited due to the restrictive clothing. Running out into the traffic of the street makes for an even bigger mess, with cars already going as slowly as possible because of the ice, but now they can’t break and bump into each other, leading into a huge, awkward pile up. This gets the attention of many of the students, who are ordered to stay inside. After getting a better view of the chaotically slow and chilly chase from inside the museum window, Cassie rolls her eyes, asking if she can go to the bathroom.

 

Eventually, Cassie joins the chase, feeling much more agile than the other hunters. The six soon realize that the town is at the top of a very steep hill, and it would be a long way back up. The masked figure uses this as a chance to get away, stealing a high-speed snowmobile that an elderly alien grandma was riding. Cassie soon chases her by using fallen signs from the museum’s entrance as makeshift skis. Through a fun and fast paced chase down the mountain, Cassie finds a slope, rushing towards it excitedly, only to realize that it’s an absolutely terrible idea. As she flies through the air, thinking about her life choices in slow motion, she inadvertently hits the figure off of the snowmobile, and they both land in a huge pile of snow. Seemingly, there’s no one inside the jacket, to Cassie’s shock. However, she opens it up and sees a mole-like alien of diminutive figure, around 2 feet tall, shivering and glaring at Cassie.

 

They take a chairlift back up, where Cassie had the perpetrator tied up in his own jacket, shivering like hell. He begins to tell Cassie in a nasally, awkward voice. “You will untie me at once, post-adolescent girl!” Cassie tells him that she will not answer to that under any circumstance. As the charlift ride ends, the hunters meet Cassie at the top, and she remarks, “This is your guy. I need to go back to class, you’re welcome.” She’s clearly more annoyed than ever. “Also, I’ll buy pizza to whoever punches him in the face.” Moxie is the first to oblige.

 

Cassie discreetly rejoins the group, which thankfully was all bored out of its mind during the presentations that over half the class fell asleep. The students fly home, with Sylphiana completely zoned out on the bus. Cassie doesn’t realize this before she verifies that she didn’t see her do anything…too suspicious. Meanwhile, Cassie overhears two male students a few rows ahead, talking about how apparently there were some bounty hunters at their field trip. The other replies, “Good gravy, imagine in Sylphiana saw all that. You know how she feels about bounty hunters.”

 

Cassie feels a pang of dread. Sylphiana hates bounty hunters? Something that Cassie does on the part time?! It’ll never work. She has to drop the charade and be an all-star student. Cassie begins deep breathing through the full ride home. As Cassie walks through the door, still shaken, she sees her parents in the kitchen. They remark that her friends are up in the basement, and that there was a fifth one they don’t remember seeing before. Cassie remarks that he’s a suspect in a terrorist attack against love as we know it. Vivian says, “that’s nice,” and keeps cleaning the dinner table.

 

Cassie comes downstairs and sees the diminutive alien tied up in a chair with Marion interrogating him in a fairly intense style. The alien, who reveals his name as Flithbert, eventually confesses to planning the attacks at Senior Lovelett’s speaking tour, but admits that he has a reason, getting somewhat emotional as the music gets more downbeat.

 

Flithbert: I wanted love myself, but I lost the love of my life, Starlene. I was too short, too nerdy, too awkward. Everyone made fun of me. Nobody loved me, and I was so lonely…and I took it out on people who wanted to learn to let their love flow. But now I see that I don’t have to drag people down to lift myself up. I want to make things right, Cassie and Marion, can you teach me how?

*The music stops, as Cassie and Marion look at each other*

Cassie: Flithbert…I appreciate that you want to change. But this is something that you need to figure out for yourself. Everyone goes on this journey, I’m going on it right now, so I’m not even sure that.

*Flithbert puts on sad eyes, and the music gets bigger. *

Cassie: No, you don’t get to do that.

Flithbert: Am I just doomed to be unwanted forever? *tears begin to pour out, and he takes a drink umbrella out into his hand*

Cassie: Marion, help me out here.

Marion: I don’t know, you’re doing pretty well.

 

Eventually, Cassie resigns. She agrees to meet with him once a week on Wednesday nights. They will teach him how to be a better lover.

 

Flithbert: Just in time for the Carnival of Love? The most romantic night of the year?

Cassie: Uh…yeah.

 

Flithbert promises that he will not ruin any more romances while he is their peer. They agree that this will be a fine place to leave things for now. Cassie then collapses in her room upstairs, and Marion gets the cue to leave. George comes up to check on his daughter, noticing how stressed she is. Cassie insists that she can handle everything from here. “After all, that’s what heroes do, right?” They hug each other good night.

 

The next day at school, Cassie is scared to talk to Sylphiana, especially as she begins to realize that Sylphiana may have seen her little jaunt during the school field trip. Feeling suspicious and fearful of rejection, she instead pushes to be around more random groups of students, telling cooler stories about life on Earth, so that she can distance herself from being a potential enemy of the headmaster. She isn't a bounty hunter, she's an chess player! Or a drama geek! Or someone who's a member of the British soap opera fan club! Sylphiana feels a bit awkward about it, suspecting that she's either finding her niche or hiding something. Eventually, it’s time for the first meeting with Flithbert. He appears as soon as Cassie gets off the bus, right behind them. It creates a light jump scare, albeit one played for humor.

 

Eventually, we see Cassie, Marion, and Flithbert up in their room, as Marion and Cassie seem to have slightly contradictive ideas of charming someone. Marion tells Flithbert to be as bombastic and romantic as he can, casting away all anxieties and opening himself up *spits out a bouquet of roses in his mouth* to the ladies. Cassie chuckles, remarking that he just needs to be himself and be honest with what he wants. Flithbert smiles, asking if he can practice role-playing. Cassie and Marion look to one another as a “what the hell do we do?!” glance.

 

“I just need to be honest with you,”

“I WANT ICE CREAM?”

“How many kids do you have?”

“There’s a hole in my life.”

“What are you even doing with yourself?”

“I don’t think we’ll make it out alive! Promise you’ll remember me!”

“Want to order pizza?”

 

Through snippets of conversation, we see them walk Flithbert through several relationship scenarios to try and help him. He seems to be growing with confidence and feels like he can be himself still. As Cassie tells Flithbert that it’s time to head out for the night, Flithbert eagerly awaits next week, leaving without question. Cassie and Marion look to each other and smile. “People can change for the better, and you don’t even have to swallow them up,” Cassie chuckles. “It may not seem like it, but I can really only do it when the moment feels right. Haven’t totally felt that yet.” Cassie tells him not to feel it any time soon. They’ve got a soul to search for.

 

As school blurs by, Cassie struggles to keep up being a good student and wrestling with her feelings over Sylphiana, but also finds that Flithbert is taking on a much bigger role in their lives, overstepping boundaries and wanting someone to speak to at every moment. Cassie has to push him away at school, and Marion realizes that he has to deal with him. He lets him sit in on a few bounty hunting missions with his friends, who try to feign a friendly appearance despite his increasingly annoying and clingy attitude. Also, more and more flyers appear in the background for the Carnival of Love.

 

After another Pygmalion-esque class session, full of slapstick comedy, Flithbert admits that he feels like he has everything he needs to rebuild himself. He apologizes for being so inconsiderate and obnoxious the whole time but knows in his heart that…he’s ready to win Starlene back. A quick glance at her phone shows that Starlene now has a loving relationship, so Cassie tries to lightly talk him out of it. Marion, however, feels a bit more smitten, pushing him to go big.

 

Marion and Cassie get into a whisper argument, where Marion thinks that if he can impress Starlene, then he’ll be off their back for good. Cassie admits that she doesn’t fully trust Flithbert, and suspects that there’s something he’s not telling them. However, as Cassie and Marion continue to whisper/bicker, Flithbert looks around the room and sees several explosives and fireworks in a box that says, “STUFF WHEN MARION CRASHES” he looks at it and gets an idea. Before Marion and Cassie know what to say to Flithbert, he vanishes without a trace.

 

Cassie, who feels more tired than ever, crashes on her bed, but Marion tries to follow him. Through a nighttime chase in the city, shot from lower and more tightly spaced manners thanks to the diminutive size of the chaser and chasee, eventually leading them into a sewer. It seems even more labyrinthian then ever, but Marion eventually slips into a flow of water and is carried along it. Realizing he will likely get to his destination this way, he goes with the flow.

 

Marion: It’s like a lazy river.

*Floats past Flithbert*

Marion: Oh, hey Flithbert.

*Pause, approaching a waterfall. *

Marion: Wait…Flithber--!!!!

 

Marion tumbles through rapids hitting walls like the pinball of a high score player. Through more stumbles of the sort, he passes out, only to be saved by what looks to be a gorgeous maiden. Marion reaches out his hand, but it turns out to not only be a mere statue made of various found objects, but a BIG one. Marion looks around and sees a huge, creepy shrine dedicated to Starlene, as well as a dartboard with pictures of Starlene’s current beau, which has his face cut out in every picture.

 

Marion: Okay…this is really creepy. I really hope you were past this, Flithbert.

Flithbert: *Sneaks up, sneaks Marion into a sack* Well now you’re passed….out.

 

*FADE TO BLACK*

 

3 SECOND INTERMISSION

 

At school one subsequent day, Headmaster Oeme makes an announcement of the Cosmic Academy having its own special pavilion at the upcoming Carnival of Love tonight, a celebration of romance across the galaxy. Cassie sees a few different groups of students mingling around about the carnival, but she tries to reach out to Sylphiana, who is feeling a bit more skeptical of what is going on with Cassie, her escapades, and their increased time apart. Sylphiana begins to ask Cassie about what she thinks of bounty hunters, leading Cassie to become defensive and dismissive. Sylphiana says that she would understand either way, but Cassie doesn’t believe it. She runs away, also with a shout of, “Oh, and I have a boyfriend!”. Sylphiana looks on in confusion.

 

Cassie runs to the street, out of breath, but her day is interrupted by Captain Fab, Moxie, and Gravitas, who pick her up from school. They all find out that Marion has been taken. Cassie realizes that Flitbhert must have taken him, only for Moxie to chime in that she told them from the start he was no good. After a bickering fight in the ship begins, Cassie reaches an epiphany that he may have something planned tonight for the Carnival of Love. They need to all go there and be on the lookout. Cassie then worries if this Starlene would be there, that Flithbert had been mentioning, but she has an idea of how to find her. Cassie then asks how crowded these things are…

 

 

Cut to the Carnival of Love. It takes place at a park in the center of the city, a picture-esque, wonderful display. It looks like a typical small town fair on a bigger scale, and people are in love all over. Cassie tries to look for Starlene, who must be coming to this event. She’s drinking several espresso drinks to stay awake, having a new one between every three shots she’s on camera. Eventually, after a few messages, she meets a fox like alien with long orange hair, and it’s Starlene.

 

Starlene: Cassie?

Cassie: I take it you’re Starlene – hi!

Starlene: Oh, um, lucky guess. Can I get my name tag, please?

 

In this shot, it’s revealed that Cassie volunteered to give out name tags at a VIP pavilion in the fair. Cassie gives Starlene her tag, but also one to her boyfriend, Quavio. To Cassie’s surprise, he doesn’t look too much different than Flithbert. However, he seems to emit a more positive energy. They walk to the inside of the pavilion happily, and Cassie smiles. However, she also notices several classmates mingling at a pavilion to the side. She asks her boss, a hulking gorilla like alien, if she can have a quick break. “20 minutes.”

 

Meanwhile, Fab swaps in for her, and Cassie runs to quickly mingle with some students. She feels spread thin but tries to showcase her cool to everyone, but also notices the glowing section of the student council. Much to her disappointment, Sylphiana isn’t anywhere to be seen. Eventually, as she heads back, she walks past Quavio and Starlene again, and they seem incredibly happy together, looking at the stars from the roof of the pavilion. Cassie compliments the two and offers to get them extra beverages.

 

Starlene: Well, I’m certainly flattered. You look beat though, don’t push yourself.

Cassie: What, no, I’m totally fine. Espresso’s kicking in?

Starlene: Um….you’re okay?

Cassie: NO!! NOT AT ALL! I mean…um, totally fine.

Quavio: That’s an interesting definition of totally fine.

Cassie: *laughing slowly, then taking a deep breath*

.

.

.

.

Cassie: youneedtogetheheckoutofhereflithbertisplanningsomethinganditlikelywontbegood

 

Both look in complete confusion, and Cassie slinks away. She feels more embarrassed than ever, but in the distance as she walks away, Starlene begins to feel a bit nervous.

 

As Cassie returns to her station, seeing Fab, Moxie, and Gravitas all done with name tags, they are suddenly interrupted by a booming announcement in the center stage, which begins to rise up and surround the festival with video footage, where Senior Lovelett is giving a free address to the entire galaxy. The area cheers as Lovelett comes to the stage again, where he begins to tell everyone the biggest secret he knows about finding love in a great live. The one he realized was truly the best of all. As the crowd listens it with intent and slow motion,

 

“The secret is…..”

 

WHACK!

 

Lovelett is whacked in the back of a head with a lightboard like device, where Lovelett utters “sparkly underwear.”

 

We see Flithbert appear from behind, as Starlene looks on in absolute horror. Cassie, Moxie, Fab, and Gravitas prepare to fight. Flithbert begins to make an emotional appeal to win back Starlene’s heart…through song. As he begins to play with the light board, which also functions as an effective synthesizer, he triggers fireworks through his ballad. And also…he’s a terrible, horrifying singer.

 

We hear bits and pieces of his song as he walks a wire of lights towards Starlene’s pavilion, who feels too embarrassed to say anything. Moreover, we hear the rest of the song as everyone else does, from the bounty hunters to the general populace to even the glowing student council. They cover their ears and hear an “eeee” sound as if an explosion took place. It’s a nightmare scene, and the hunters can barely try to fight back.

 

Eventually, the song ends with a massive fireworks display, and there’s very muted, and even then slightly pitiful clapping. Flithbert begs Starlene to take her back, knowing that he wasn’t the most beautiful or articulate or even the most hygienic. But he loves her with all his heart. Starlene, in a moment of gained confidence, takes control of the situation. She refuses.

 

The scene gets even more awkward, and Cassie feels so much second hand embarrassment. Eventually, Flithbert begs again, but Starlene pushes him further. She has a great life and a great boyfriend. Flithbert treated her like she was an object and only cared about himself in the relationship. That was why she dumped him, not because he was an awkward dork. Lots of oohs from the crowd, but Flithbert gets the message. Cassie sprints to the mic as Flithbert gets his keyboard, shouting for everyone to cover their eyes.

 

Flithbert uses his light board to hypnotize the audience with a display of intoxicating lights. “Very well, if I can’t have my true love, none of you can!” Several people fall to the ground and try to resist, rising up again with a cartoonish, humorously over the top anger. The student council manages to escape in a limousine out of the festival, but we see that Fab, Moxie, and Gravitas become hateful zombies. Starlene and Quavio look on in horror, but Cassie runs up and rescues them by wrapping them inside a picnic blanket like a burrito, rolling them down the ramp to the ground. She’s kind of out of breath at this point.

 

Flithbert: Better not try to stop me, Cassie! I still have one more card left in me!

*He dangled Marion in a cage above the stage. Cassie looks on in horror.

Flithbert: Run away from here and don’t fight one more second, or I let him go.

*Cassie sees more and more people turn into hateful zombies, beginning to move towards her.*

Cassie: You’re…you’re evil!

Flithbert: What can I say? Being nice only goes so far. Your decision, m’lady.

 

Cassie surrenders, finding a tissue on the ground as a white flag, as Flithbert darkly smiles. He throws Marion down to Cassie, and he takes off in a helicopter-like ship, planning to spread his disease across the galaxy. Starlene and Quavio unravel themselves and look on in horror.

 

Starlene: This is so not good.

Marion: Don’t worry, we’ve done this before.

Quavio: Really?

Marion: I mean we took down someone trying to brainwash the galaxy before. It’s pretty familiar ground for us.

 

Hiding out at home, they retreat to a safe location, hiding in a basement as they stockpile, somewhat akin to an apocalypse. She tries sending a few messages to Sylphiana asking if she is safe, but it doesn’t look like she’s picking up. Cassie, suddenly breaks down in tears. She feels that this is her own fault.

 

“If I hadn’t tried to do so much…if I didn’t try to prove that he was good deep down…If I was honest with Sylphiana…with all of you. I just don’t know what I can do. I don’t want to let people down, and now I feel like I let everyone down. I’m just so sorry.” Marion comforts her, telling Cassie that she can’t blame herself for anything that happened, and that there may still actually be a way to reverse this. Starlene also tells her that if anyone can set things right, it’s them. Cassie then smiles, but soon realizes…it may not only be them…

 

A knock on the door. Cassie’s seemingly have pizza rolls to bring them, but as she opens the door, she finds that they had already turned into loveless zombies. It’s spreading way faster than they feared. They have to get to the Cosmic Academy pronto. After a fight where they avoid Cassie’s parents, humorously and exaggeratively breaking countless things in the living room, Cassie swipes her parents’ keys and gets to their ship.

 

They embark to rush to the academy, while Cassie brushes Marion away from the wheel.

 

Cassie: If they find I drove their car and got it bruised, they’re going to kill me!

Marion: But they already want to kill you!

Cassie: But even more slowly and painfully!

 

The streets are already full of loveless zombies walking around, smacking people and insulting them to spread the infection. Time is clearly of the essence, but they still need to ask for “their” help. As they get to the school, the four are shocked to find a badass Headmaster Oeme guarding the school, appearing a bit akin to Imperator Furiosa meets Captain Lucina.

 

Headmaster Oeme: Cassie Surnameson, and…. three other people. What are you doing out here?

Cassie: We need to stop a jealous, evil little man from destroying all love and kindness in the universe.

Headmaster Oeme: Weird plot, but I’ve seen some way more surreal stuff. You’re safe here. I’m quite impressed that you made it out here in one piece. Someone with your skills must be…wait a minute. I’ve seen you before with that little blue demon.

Marion: Little Blue Demon…I like it. *taking notes. *

Headmaster Oeme: You’re…. I knew it.

 

Cassie gulps, admitting that she is in fact a bounty hunter. Even Starlene and Quavio seem shocked, and Marion remarks that she should have told her that. However, much to their shock, Oeme excitedly shakes Cassie’s hand. Her hatred of bounty hunters was a complete charade, partly to cover up the fact that there were a secret nest of bounty hunters hidden and operating at their school. Cassie instantly realizes this as the student council. Oeme is more than happy to grant them to their secret headquarters. As Cassie and Marion excitedly ogle, Starlene and Quavio still have no idea what’s going on.

 

Walking through a school hallway that becomes lined with a red carpet, Cassie slowly opens the door at the end. What we see on the other side is a glorious, classically designed room with a fountain in the center, a huge library, computer screens, and several lounges. As the faces around the council members begin to deglow, we can finally make out who they are for the very first time…

 

The Student Council is are thinly disguised avatars of famous youth space heroes in CAYOM to fit Bounty Hamster like alien designs. They’re Joero, Lunch, Cat, Hunka’ Hunka’ Burnin’ Love, Dove, Kernel, Tamborine, Alice, Korner, Stevenson, The Shrew, and Ryder.

 

They all look at Cassie and Marion, who are kind of geeking out. Graceful music continues to play until Dove simply reaches out, saying, “Hey guys, what’s up?”

 

Cassie: So….um….I was told you were amazing bounty hunters.

Tambourine: And you will be too. We’ve heard your adventures.

Lunch: A bit too silly for real heroes like us.

Joero: Lunch!

Kozy: When?

Marion: What we’re trying to say is…we need your help saying maybe the entire galaxy as we know it from *Title Card: ONE EXPOSITION FILLED PARAGRAPH LATER* or we’re all doomed.

Stevenson: I didn’t get any of that, like, at all.

 

Alice asks for the hunters to convene and discuss how we can get these heroes a spot on the student council. She is corrected by Cassie in that only she is eligible.

 

As the hunters continue to talk amongst themselves as to what to do Cassie and Marion look on in confusion, there is an awkward pause. However, the hunters all turn around to re-introduce themselves to the team, having made a decision.

 

Dove: We will be able to help you, but many of us have secret missions across the galaxy itself. (Between you and us, we’re mostly part time students, really. Joero shouts out, “I’m 40!”) But anyways, we will give you our advice, the only way we know how…

 

…in SONG! Hit it!

 

*The Shrew begins playing on the piano atop a large bookcase in the study hall.*

 

Dove:

It’s no secret that the lot of us, are used to fighting forces,

Whose motivations are quite diabolical…

But compared to wars, racism, vengenance, and heavy recourses,

The situation here is quite…comical.

 

Joero:

Now don’t get us wrong, there’s a lot at stake,

But you have no reason to hide…

Because you have the secret to saving the day,

And the secret is…INSIDE!

 

*The tempo picks up a lot, as Hunka’ Hunka’ Burnin’ Love begins a killer Broadway jazz drum solo*

 

Alice:

You’ve saved the world one time before, it’s easy to do it again.

 

Kernel:

Easy for all of you to say, it can just be rewritten.

 

Alice, Korner *shouting* TOO SOON!

 

Lunch: But you may lose someone on the way, if you all want to get sad.

Starlene: I’m pretty sure that they just had that scene.

Joelo and Cat: Welp, I guess fans won’t be mad.

 

Tambourine:

But I mean all this is to say, you gotta do what works best for you!

We all have something we want to have, so you need to be honest and true.

In the end, we can all contend, that’s what life is about.

 

ALL:

Unless you’re a chauvinist bully cretin who wants to tear people’s hearts out!

Wait what?

 

Cassie: *speaking* Metaphorically!

 

ALL:

Phew.

 

Stevenson:

You’ve got the hang of this,

Now take it all the way.

You really don’t need a lot of help.

You’re close to saving the day!

 

Ryder:

That’s not to say, we’re blowin’ you off.

That wouldn’t be justified!!!

Just that there’s only much that we can do,

When the secret’s inside!

 

Kernel: I think we can walk you through everything, but forgive us if we get a little wordy. This a lot to take in, but we have an idea.

 

*She pulls out a chalkboard*

 

This desperate little man, he hatches a plan, spreading misery and suffering across the whole land,

But we live in the stars, so that’s a lot of lands, so to get a strong transmission he’ll need a lot of band…

 

With! The signal from the radio tower, he will have all that he needs and them some power, to give his toxic signal a galaxy-wide shower, hearts withering by each minute and each hour. *pause* Sounds dour.

 

But here’s how we circumvent this son of gun:

 

Step 1.) We launch you to the tower and from there you can get to.

Step 2.) Find the device he’s using to cause this atrocity.

Step 3.) Have an epic battle, that’s what half of your budget is for!

Step 4.) People would be really sad, so try to stay alive.

Step 5.) Save the day, and maybe fall in love just for kicks….

 

…. there’s no Step Six.

 

*Walls begin to shake around the center, and Oeme tells them to hurry. Ryder laments that they have to skip another verse they wrote, but that they need to jump right into the finale. In a parody of Voltron, the council members form a human catapult and put the four at the center. The ceiling opens up, and we see it point to a starry sky*

 

ALL:

You’ve got the hang of this,

Now take it all the way to the top.

You really just need a bit of a boost,

Be careful, the ride has a bumpy stop!

 

Now reach your happy ending,

And strap in for a bumpy ride!

This is your sequel, not ours.

Now take a shot and reach the stars.

Cherish what you all will learn:

There’s a spot when you return!

(Lunch: If you return!)

 

Just remember, the secret’s….innnnnside!!!

 

*Cassie and the others skyrocket into space, launched in the human catapult, preparing for a graceful landing at the Radio Tower’s base. As soon as they perfect an amazing superhero landing at the bottom of the base, they are instantly opened fire at by android guards of a tower. They hide on top of one another at the side, humorously shaking at the mess that happened. *

 

The four create a plan to sneak into the top of the radio tower, where Flithbert is likely planning to send the message across the galaxy. All squeezing into an incredibly tight crate and sliding across the hall, they are noticed by someone who is about to open the crate. They begin to panic, with Starlene telling Marion that he should be ready to jump at whoever opens up the crate. As the light hits them, Marion jumps out with a karate sound. The other three look in pain, but Cassie hears a familiar wince in pain. “Oh my god, what is your problem!” It’s Sylphiana.

 

Sylphiana quickly rolls the others into a cabinet where they are hidden, relieved that they had finally found a new ally. It turns out that she works part time at Cosmic Radio. (We hear a jingle, along with every subsequent time Cosmic Radio is mentioned)

 

Cassie: Sylphiana! Thank you so much for saving us, and…. sorry about everything that’s been going on lately.

Sylphiana: So, you’re a bounty hunter. I wondered if that had something to do with all of this. I….um…huh. This is really awkward. But wait, you aren’t pushing me away?

Cassie: You don’t hate bounty hunters?

Sylphiana: Who told you that? Wait. Ugh, are people still talking about that extra credit rap I did for the headmaster? It’s become a running joke in the school. *chuckles, albeit a bit nervously.*

Cassie: And she doesn’t hate them either. Oh my god. My anxieties have been built on LIES?!?!

Quavio: Okay, I respect that you’re having a moment here, but time’s a bit sensitive. We have to get up there now.

 

Sylphiana uses a computer device (With 8-bit animation) remarks that Flithbert must have hacked into the androids controls to show what will happen. If they try to go up through the hallways, the robots kill them. If they get into the ventilation shaft, Flithbert can control that and cook them alive. The only way to get to the top of the tower is on the side. Marion realizes that it would be awesome to scale the tower through ropes, although he could be compelled to free solo it if necessary. Sylphiana was actually thinking that they take a helicopter from the outside to get to the satellite at the top. All but Marion agree that it’s a much better idea.

 

As the five sneak into a helicopter at the loading base, the speaker in the radio is hijacked: So…you actually think you can stop me. I mean, of course YOU think you can. I’m not shocked at that. I’m shocked at the idea of someone stopping me! The signal is going to transmit to the entire galaxy in 20 minutes! And then I’ll create a fund to research travel across different galaxies to extend to the universe. And then I’ll brainwash them too! Now everyone will know how I felt!

 

As the robots begin to surround the ship, with the helicopter stuck as Flithbert speaks, Cassie asks Sylphiana if she can just shut down the process with her credentials. “I’M A BLOODY RECEPTIONIST!” Sylphiana says. However, Starlene feels her blood boil more and more about how much of a jerk Flithbert is being. As Sylphiana gets an elaborate idea to short circuit the guards, Starlene slips out of the ship and begins beating them up through the window, Sylphiana, Cassie, Marion, and Quavio still being the focus. Eventually, the last droid hits the windshield, and we see Starlene’s mangled fur with light cuts, clearly in a bloodthirsty rage. She snaps out instantly, “Nowhere to go now but up, right?” The others look on in shock, with Quavio lightly fanning himself. “You should do that more often, babe.”

 

The helicopter takes off, and as the signal has 15 minutes to exposure from Cosmic Radio (jingle) across the galaxy. It doesn’t go up as fast as they need, but eventually, it moves a lot faster. A bit suspiciously faster. The helicopter is caught in a magnetic frame. Marion, having swallowed a lot of metal in the past, also drags the crew up, leading to a very awkward position inside the helicopter. They see the radio tower, beginning to glow, but turn around to see Flithbert operating the crane with an evil smile.

 

Flithbert: And they said I wasn’t attractive.

Sylphiana: Not bad.

Others: Don’t encourage him.

Flithbert: I’m finally going to get everything I’ve wanted, and I’ve gotten you the very best seat. Well, seats, how many does that helicopter sit? NEVERMIND!

Starlene: You’ll never get away with this! We have to stop you…. ugh.

Flithbert: Tell that to them.

 

*The ship is dropped from the crane and carried by a crowd including Cassie’s Parents, Captain Fab, Moxie, and Gravitas, and even the gorilla boss from the fairground. They threaten to throw the helicopter over the edge of the building. It turns out that more and more zombified civilians watch from the streets below with morbid excitement. *

 

Flithbert: Who said nice guys finish last?

 

As Cassie looks on in horror, she gets an idea. She suddenly begins to act incredibly rude to her friends. As they are disgusted with Cassie’s behavior, she winks at them, and they get the picture, acting in a similar way. Flithbert realizes that the effect had finally worked on the main five. Realizing that killing them is probably overkill at this point, he sets the zombified quintet free, and they blend in with the others. Flithbert remarks that nothing else can stop him now, and that they can just chill and watch the fireworks happen. However, he does think that Cassie is overacting a bit.

 

Cassie subsequently kicks Flithbert out of the driver’s seat of the crane, and they get into a fight. However, they soon realize that the countdown will go off in five minutes. Cassie notices that the light board is at the tip top of the radio tower but is stopped by Flithbert before she can share this information. Throwing Cassie out to the other zombies, who begin to surround her, Flithbert remarks that he’s finally going to get his happy ending. Starlene, however, tells them to stop.

 

She tells Flithbert that if it will make him truly happy, that she will go with him. Quavio is shocked, but Starlene shushes him. Flithbert begins to stammer excitedly, asking what they can do to make this a reality. Starlene remarks that on her planet, they have a tradition of swinging a massive pendulum during a wedding, symbolizing the trends of love from good and bad, light to dark, “or something like that,” Can Flithbert do the honors?

 

Cassie: Wait…what will they use as a pendulum?

Quavio: Wait a sec…..I think we were riding on it. But what then?

Marion: *looks at tower* I know exactly what to do.

 

 

A smitten Flithbert gets into the crane with the helicopter magnetized again. Marion and Cassie, hiding inside, wink to Starlene. Starlene guides the direction of the pendulum toward the tower. As it begins to go off, with one-minute left, the pendulum moves forward in slow motion, toward the tower. At the high point, Cassie jumps out, carrying Marion in her arms. Jumping with the grace of an acrobatic dancer, she twirls Marion until she can throw him again at a higher angle, up in the air. Falling through the air and activating a parachute, she looks to Marion and smiles. Marion, up in the fair, prepares to shoot right down, looking right at the tower from above.

 

His eyes glowing, and Flithbert just realizing what’s going on…. his mouth begins to open wider and wider than before, as he begins to…swallow the radio satellite tower.

 

A large explosion occurs, with firework like expositions taking over the entire city skyline, all coming from the tower as sparks fly when Marion falls. As the skyline mystifies and liberates everyone, they wonder what was going on. Cassie begins to fall down to the crowd, where she notices everyone is a bit too oddly infatuated with one another. As Marion touches down on the roof, he sees more people getting a bit too lovey dovey, including the gorilla looking at him across the building gap, hearts in his eyes. Marion wiggles around in his mouth, realizing he set the device too far in the opposite direction, instead disabling it for good.

 

Flithbert begins to scream. “I am deserving of love! It’s all of you entitled, self-centered – “ and he’s immediately whacked by the helicopter returning back from the pendulum, sending him flying in the air and forming a star in the sky a la Team Rocket, blasting off again. Sylphiana remarks to herself that she could watch that all day, and finding out that Quavio filmed the incident, they share a kiss.

 

We then see a GIF of Flithbert’s defeat flying around different phones across the Cosmic Academy, as Cassie returns to school again, feeling more excited than ever. Her parents and fellow bounty hunters drop her off, wishing her good luck with the ask. We then see Cassie meet up with Sylphiana at the atrium of their school, and they talk about what happened.

 

Sylphiana: I still can’t believe you turned down a spot to be on the Student Council.

Cassie: They’re kind of out of my league anyway. Making a mess, being goofy and awkward, still getting the job done? That’s what I like to do. They're also gonna cut the course-load back, so I have more time to save galaxies, and maybe even, well....

Sylphiana: *chuckles* So after everything that happened, I think they’re gonna try to redo the Carnival of Love. Would you want to attend it…maybe with me?

Cassie: What?! I mean…I was gonna ask. I had a plan for this. And uh, um. But I mean…

Sylphiana: Don’t overthink it. Just say what’s on your mind.

Cassie: *pause* Yes.

 

Both smile at each other.

 

We then cut to the second go at the Carnival of Love, where we see things look way more natural. Senior Lovelett’s true secret to love is that above all else, you need to love yourself and be honest about who you are and who you want to be. Even if romance isn't your thing, even if romance is all you want, what matters is the path you want for yourself. Only you can know that, and the secret’s inside. As Marion rolls her eyes at the schmaltz of it, he finds a drink delivered to him by a “secret admirer.” He looks around and sees the gorilla hiding behind a food stand, winking at him.

 

As music starts to play, Starlene and Quavio stop by Cassie, Marion, and Sylphiana once again, thanking them for their whole help in all this, while Quavio also hints that he’s gonna try and pop the question some time soon. As they continue to laugh about the whole adventure, the music is about to get lively, and they agree to hit the dance floor.

 

Cassie: You don’t mind having a third wheel, right? *Looks at Marion, at the top of her head.*

Sylphiana: Not if I can do this first.

 

They kiss, leaving both starstruck. Glowing radiantly, Cassie once again verifies that her being a bounty hunter isn't going to be a problem in this relationship. Sylphiana says that it's nothing they can't handle. Cassie gets nervous, realizing that there may be something to handle, but both decide that they've earned a break for now, and they agree to hit the dance floor. Marion asks the crew if they want to do a dance party ending or just go right to the credits.

 

Sylphiana: What is he talking about?

Cassie: Don't worry. He likes pretending he's in some big movie all the time. I've learned to just roll with it.

 

Marion says that since they’re striving to be high art, a dance party ending would feel beneath them, so credits it is.

 

THE END

 

We see Bounty Hamster characters appear in designs akin to valentine’s day cards as the frames of the opening credits, set to Carly Rae Jepsen’s new original song, “A Touch of Chaos.”

 

Mid Credits Scene:

Spoiler

Captain Fab, Moxie, and Gravitas stop by a tough bar vacated by bounty hunters to get their next assignment. All agree they want something a bit more traditional and won't try to take over the world again. Luckily, there's a big bounty for their next target. As they look inside, they find out that it's one of the most notorious thieves in the galaxy, going by the name of Equinox Blazenback II. Gravitas admits that it's one of the coolest names he's ever heard, but Moxie thinks he looks a bit familiar. A scan reveals that he actually has a daughter...and she's dating Cassie. They all look to one another in a collective, "Oh, crap" faces, as Gravitas remarks, "So how close are they to the "meeting the parents" phase?

 

Post Credits Scene:

Spoiler

 

Mordecai, Marion’s friend from the previous film, sits inside his lair, seemingly having just watched the film. “I do all this, and they go and make a sequel without me? I could have stopped this guy in like 10 minutes, and…. actually, it was fun to watch them flounder. Oh god, don’t say that Mordecai, you sound completely evil. You’re not even gonna be the bad guy in the next movie!”

 

Mordecai continues to ramble over the final logos.

 

 

 

 

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The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl 

 

Studio: Endless Entertainment (through the Endless Animation division)

In Association with Marvel

Genre: CG Animation/Comedy/Adventure/Superhero 

Director: Daron Nefcy

Producers: Daron Nefcy, Rebecca Sugar, Xavier B Irving (executive) and Chris McKay (executive)

Writers: Daron Nefcy, Nicole Perlman and Meg LeFauve 

Composers: Ludwig Göransson and Theodore Shapiro

Original Song: “Be The Hero” by Robyn and The Lonely Island featuring Anna Kendrick

Loosely Based off of:

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl (January-October 2015)

The character of Squirrel Girl

 

Main Voice Cast:

 • Anna Kendrick as Doreen Green/Squirrel Girl, an optimistic, kooky and kindhearted superheroine with powers of squirrel comminucation, retractable claws and a 3 foot tall bushy tail that is surprisingly unbeatable

 • Lil Rel Howery as Monkey Joe, a squirrel sidekick to Squirrel Girl who’s cowardly but loveable

 • Taissa Farmiga as Dana, Squirrel Girl’s reluctant sarcastic loner roommate who just wants some peace and quiet in her life

 • Samantha Ireland as Tippy Toe, a squirrel sidekick to Squirrel Girl, who’s very preppy and just as if not more danger seeking than Squirrel Girl

 • David Tennant as Bullseye, a Scottish bounty hunter as well as Illouise’s partner, sent to hunt down Squirrel Girl and her friends with the ability to turn anything he throws into sharp projectiles

 • Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Illouise, a cybernetic bounty hunter as well as Bullseye’s partner, sent to hunt down Squirrel Girl and her friends with the ability to cast realistic illusions thanks to her technology 

with 

 • Daniel Henney as Speedball, a superhero who’s a part of The New Warriors, one of the two main superhero teams in New York, as well as a good friend to Squirrel Girl (and secret object of her affections), who can create colorful balls of kinetic energy that can be adhesive or explode 

and

 • the late Stan Lee as The Destroyer, a bombastic evil alien warlord who’s been kidnapping superheroes for something nefarious, like Squirrel Girl, he has no evident superpowers but is also unbeatable.

 

Secondary Roles:

 • Justin Roiland as MODOK

 • Sophia Taylor Ali as Ms. Marvel

 • Seth MacFarlane as Howard The Duck

 • Scott Menville as Nova

 • Nathon Fillion as Wonder Man

 • Chris Hemsworth as Beta Ray Bill

 • Marsai Martin as Riri Williams/Ironheart 

 • Ronda Rousey as She-Hulk

 • Daniel Radcliffe as Captain Britain 

 • Ryan Potter as Amadeus Cho

 • Eden Sher as Alcha

 • Taika Waititi as The Red King

 

 

Spoiler

Cameos:

Ralph Fiennes as Winston

Will Arnett as Random Citizen

James Hong as Fin Fang Foom

Doc Hammer as Hiver Reporter

Charlie Day as Marion

Sophia Lillis as Cassie

Chris Pratt as Hiver Guard 1

Jonah Hill as Hiver Guard 2

Stan Lee as Stan Lee lookalike elder

 

Release Date:

December 11th, Y5 (Amazon Prime Sneak Preview)

December 22nd, Y5

Theater Count: 800 (12/11), 4,320 (including 100 IMAX theaters) (12/22) 

Format: 2D (2.39:1), 3D (2.39:1), and Dolby Cinema (2.39:1) and IMAX 2D (1.44:1)

Budget: $115 million

Tagline: “The Best Superhero Ever... They Could Afford”

MPAA Rating: PG for frequent sequences of animated action violence, mild brief language and rude humor

Running Time: 107 minutes

 

 

Animation: Done in house by Endless Animation. Worldmeander is used like in Don’t Let The Pigeon Drive and Medusa (which combines computer animation with hand drawn animation similar to that of Paperman,  Feast, Don’t Let The Pigeon Drive and Medusa) but is modeled to look more like Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse’s aesthetic but matches The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl comics (SEE HERE ) , using a more cartoony style and more smooth in terms of animation.

 

Synopsis: An animated reimagining of Redeeming Love

 

Plot:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RNuFGIH_hs_aqMs7Zg42qTWhAH02nfcXEpEHxSRPcN0

 

Completed

Edited by YourMother the Edgelord
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Artifacts: Zephyr’s Crest

 

Studio: Endless Entertainment

Fairview Entertainment

Seven Bucks Productions 

Release Date: 3/26/Y5

Genre: Adventure/Comedy/Fantasy/Family

Director: Brad Peyton

Producers: Mark Andrews and Jon Favreau

Writers: Nicole Perlman, Henry Gayden, Darren Lemke

Composer: Tyler Bates

Rating: PG for frequent adventure action including peril, mild language, crude humor and thematic elements

Budget: $135M

Theater Count: 4,352

Format: 2D, 3D, Dolby Cinema and IMAX
Runtime: 120 minutes

Cast:

Shameik Moore as Henry Roach

Hailee Steinfeld as Claudia St. Claire

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as Scaley Smith

Mahershala Ali as Terrence Calloway

Constance Wu as Bernadette Wong

Charlize Theron as Francine St. Claire

Chadwick Boseman as Glenn Roach

Jenny Slate as Mrs. Bates

with

Emma Thompson as Madame May

and

Benedict Cumberbatch as Dr. Ivo

Iffar Khan as Kumi

 

Plot:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1BdxWjoHqGLsuATImUAXY4KExLjptTZEWh-QhMnTp8lw

Completed

Edited by YourMother the Edgelord
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T   H   E

e P s I l O n

S y N d I c A t E

--UNION OF THIEVES--

 

Director: Drew Goddard

Writers: Drew Goddard and Megan Ganz

Producers: Shawn Levy, Dan Cohen, Emily Blunt

Composers: Michael Giacchino

Director of Photography: Linus Sandgren 

Production Designer: Guy Hendrix Dias

Editor: Lisa Lassek

Costume Designer: Renee Ehrlich Kaufus

 

Major Cast:

  • Thomasin McKenzie as Nadine Hallon, the thief's apprentice.
  • Emily Blunt as Madame Y,  the criminal samaritan.
  • Letita Wright as Antigone Ska, code and heart breaker.
  • Ryan Potter as Donatello Chau, your friendly neighborhood assassin.
  • Elizabeth Banks as Meredith McDowell, the devious capitalist.
  • Michael Keaton as Lawrence Thompson, the theater major.
  • Amy Sedaris as Mary Thompson, community theater darling.
  • Hari Nef as Tip Top, the renegade inventor.
  • Iwan Rheon as Blue Eyes, a noteworthy adversary.
  • Blair Underwood as Pete Klienam, a benevolent public servant.
  • Demian Bichir as Dr. Horatio Luna, a brilliant scientist.
  • Aubrey Anderson Emmons as Abbie, the heartwarming orphan.
  • Armand Assante as Elijah Fulldrich, an innovative organizer.

 

Cameos/Spoilers:

Spoiler
  • Nick Kroll as Good Ol' Tobythe reckless fool
  • Shameik Moore as Wyatt Ellison, the playboy mogul
  • Jodie Foster as Madame X, the mysterious predecessor
  • Bex Taylor-Klaus as Mel, the unsuspecting waiter

 

Genre: Action/Crime/Adventure/Dark Comedy

Release Date: March 19th, Y5

Theater Count: 3,793 (Includes 70mm engagement)

MPAA Rating: R for strong violence including bloody images, language throughout, brief graphic nudity, some sexual content, and drug use.

Runtime: 136min (2hr, 16min)

Production Budget: $105 million

 

NOTE: While the film is set in the modern day, much of the design, editing, shot composition, and more borrow light elements from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. After all, the film is a inspired a good bit by action capers of days bygone, albeit much, much more violent...

 

Spoiler

A bottle of champagne opens, the pop being the first thing we see. It is poured into two glasses on a granite counter top by a youngish man, seemingly in his late teens. He’s wearing a fashionable maroon suit, some spots slightly darker than others, smiling as he walks towards a table with a woman seated there. She is also in a dark colored dress, smiling as she slides salt and pepper shakers over to his side of the table. They sit down and begin to partake in a conversation. The table is right by the kitchen, and moody lighting is used to obscure the room in the apartment flat.

 

Man: It’s been about a year now, figured I’d get the good stuff.

Woman: Aren’t you 19 or so?

Man: Just 19. No So. And that’s why we arranged to be based in Glasgow.

Woman: Very sneaky, Donny.

Man: Like you’re any better. I don’t let it compromise our work.

Woman: You have solid self-control, better than I did at your age.

Man: Tig, come on. You’re just barely over a year older than me.

Woman: I am. But we should probably eat up before it gets worse. Homemade ratatouille. Went to the farmers market this morning before the daily task.

 

They eat up, humorously eating quickly as they set a timer on the table. It seems like it will go off in a few minutes. Antigone “Tig” Ska remarks to Donatello “Donny” Chau that they should eat fast enough for the inspection – not to mention getting rid of the stench – but slow enough to savor the flavor. As they eat, the timer approaches zero. As it does, like clockwork, Donatello gets a phone call. “Hello. Yes, we’ll be ready in an hour.” In a fast cut, he hangs up and puts the plates in the dishwasher. Also walking over to turn off an air freshener.

 

We hear rock drumming begin in the background, as both Donatello and Antigone put on cleaning masks and gloves, also pulling out cleaning supplies from under the sink. They flip on the lights to the living room, and around 5 bodies are around the luxury living room, all clearly dead and covered in a bloody mess.

 

 

We see them begin to scrub down the apartment, putting the bodies in a decomposition liquid in their basement, and getting rid of the stench of their place.

 

(0:13) HOURGLASS PICTURES PRESENTS

 

Cut back to the men fighting Antigone and Donatello in the apartment. They are held off by various typed of household goods turned into deadly weapons. For instance, Donatello hurls piping hot red sauce at one man, slamming his head against the wall using the sauce pan once again. Meanwhile, Antigone drowns another in a broken flower pot, proceeding to stab him with the shards of broken glass. (This is all in rhythm to the song, by the way.)

 

(0:32) IN ASSOCIATION WITH 21 LAPS ENTERTAINMENT AND GODDARD TEXTILES

 

Antigone and Donatello sneak several teenagers and young people through a ventilation shaft, disabling any unwanted blasts of air and heat using an odd lot of special tools. They eventually hide into a van but notice that they are followed. Antigone tells Donatello to make a few hidden turns to hide the kids. Lead the rest to their home.

 

(0:50) A FILM BY DREW GODDARD

 

Donatello and Antigone walk through a high tech hallway, dominated with a futirstic art deco style. They see a large bulletin board with several small devices attached. They pull one device, that details a mission to go one. Donatello remarks to Antigone: “Good, clean rescue mission. Good for the soul, we need that. They both smile.”

 

(1:09) THE EPSILON SYNDICATE: UNION OF THIEVES

 

The music fades but continues to an instrumental version for a little bit.

 

CHAPTER ONE: CAUGHT IN THE ACT

 

Cut to a school bell ring. A girl with long, slightly curly brown hair is taking a test in a classroom, seemingly for high school juniors, or some other grade. We see a birth mark on her left wrist that vaguely looks like a happy face. She seems to finish it much more quickly and diligently than the other students, and the teacher doesn’t seem too shocked. As she turns back to her desk to pick up a book, she quickly glances at two other students on opposite sides of the room. Both look briefly to acknowledge her. They are incidentally the next ones to turn in their test.

 

As school ends, and buses come to pick the students up, the same students meet the girl and discreetly hand her some cash. They begin having a quiet conversation.

 

Student 1: Thanks Nadine, you really saved our asses.

Nadine: I’m going to get caught one day, don’t count on it always happening. Also, to avoid suspicion, you’re likely going to land in the A or A- range. I deliberately gave you some wrong answers so that –

Student 2: What?!

Nadine: Shush. Let me explain. If you both got perfect scores, the teacher would suspect something. You both got different answers wrong, and you’ll be okay.

Student 2: Ah, well played.

Nadine: Don’t make it a habit, but I appreciate the payment. Thanks.

 

Nadine gets on the bus, muttering to herself that every bit counts, but this is chump change compared to what will happen tonight. She begins to open her phone up to send quite a few messages through the bus ride.

 

Getting off at her house, she heads inside hastily. Going through the room, we see that there are pretty much no pictures of her on the wall. Coming into the kitchen, she can make out some fighting from the basement. Her supposed parents are yelling at each other about a vague issue, shouting expletives and the sort. She shouts that she’s going out tonight with some friends, and the fight briefly dissuades when one parent says, “Yeah, sure, fine,” picking up the fight immediately afterwards.

 

We cut to her putting some things into a briefcase in her bedroom and puts on something quite classier than her casual school clothes. “Where are you going?” A younger voice calls out. Nadine remarks that she told her (Abbie) to knock – that said, she’s willing to tell her if she can keep a secret. She obliges. Nadine tells her that she’s picked up some extra work to help pay for college, since it’s unlikely her “parents” will want to help out. Plus, the state is passing legislation to cut funding for….” kids like them.” Abbie is sad, feeling that she’ll go away and leave her alone. Nadine promises that whatever happens, she will always put her first. They hug, and Nadine asks Abbie to leave the window open around midnight, and if the phone rings, that she needs to beat her parents to it.

 

As Nadine heads out, she looks at a picture of her parents on her nightstand, smiling faintly as she says to herself, “I miss you folks so much. I just wish you could see what I had to do.”

 

Nadine heads out the door and we fast cut to her taking an Amtrak into the city (a few cars near the station have license plates with Connecticut), cut again to her taking a walk down a more empty, vacant path underground. She then finds a secret path hidden in the subway walls, opened by pressing the button nose on a poster of a cartoon dog, seemingly selling some kind of snack. It opens, and we see a full-fledged underground casino. Nadine smiles to herself, saying that she’s got work to do.

 

In a montage, Nadine uses her wits to excel at several of the games, beating many older players much to their chagrin. As she plays, we see trajectories and thought processes play out as images and diagrams in her mind, a bit like Sherlock Holmes, but without the narration. She goes up to a bartender for a drink, who tells her that she’s a bit young. Nadine retorts that this entire casino is already completely illegal, and that she’s 17 and “close enough.” The bartender sees the point and gets her a beer. “Very persuasive,” we hear a woman say. She’s in a suit and tie, with platinum blonde hair. “Want to sit for a moment?”

 

Meanwhile, at the same subway stop, a man in a suit stumbles out of a train, clearly intoxicated. His leg nearly gets caught in the gap between the train and platform, to that point. A CTA worker gives him side eye as he continues to limp, but he’s also followed by two cops. As they begin to ask him questions in a slightly condescending manner, he suddenly wobbles up and, after a pause, begins to sprint away.

 

The woman and Nadine then begin to have a conversation:

 

Woman: So, what brings you here?

Nadine: Just trying to raise money for a future where I don’t have to do shit like this, really. Truth be told I snuck in here and blended in one night. Now it’s kind of just a thing.

Woman: Virtuous. Most big spenders here don’t have quite the same intentions. I don’t even really care to win. That said, I’m good at finding the secrets of the city and have a night off work. You are too, it seems.

Nadine: I guess. I don’t have many friends my own age so that makes finding places like this a bit easier.

 

The man runs to the control panel, clearly out of breath and ramming into the wall. The cops get him and put him in handcuffs. Foolishly, he tells them the code ("but you didn't hear it from 'good old Toby." He tries to wink but it looks painfully awkward. The door opens, and one cop mutters into his speakerphone,” we may need some backup.” Nadine and the woman then toast, but soon hear police come in. “…fuck,” the woman utters. “Follow me.” A shootout begins at the casino, with a rotor gun hidden under a blackjack table beginning to make a mess as chaos descends. Nadine and the woman escape through a secret “further”-underground entrance under a slot machine. Nadine, however, accidentally drops her phone in the chaos.

 

The path is locked down, but Nadine is assured the others can get out too…if they’re smart enough. They switch into more pedestrian appropriate attire using a secret closet in the path. They run on a secret path lined with dimly lit cement walls, eventually reaching a framed painting. The woman asks Nadine to follow her lead and pose in a certain way. A subway gets off, and from the angel of pedestrians, Nadine and the woman blend into an advertisement for car insurance, posing as models in the ad (think something like the painting eyeballs gag from Scooby Doo). After the pedestrians are gone, the frame of the ad opens up, like a secret doorwar, and they climb out, safe at last.

 

Woman: Oh, by the way…you can call me Madame Y:

Nadine: Madame….Y?

Woman: Yes.

Nadine: Why?

Woman: ….Yes.

Nadine: No, but like….why?

Woman: …. Yes, we’ve established my name…..oh, right. Long story, won’t bore you with the details. I can call you a ride home, but the cops could follow us.

Nadine: No I can call myself, but thank you…*digs in pocket*…oh shit.

Woman: You left your phone?

Nadine: …At least they can’t track me now?

 

Meanwhile, they see a man on the street accosting a woman, desperate to get him away. He keeps making several unwanted advances. Nadine calls out, “You heard her, knock it off.” Y looks at her in disbelief, mouthing that they need to leave, now. Nadine and the man confront each other, as the man remarks, “Oh look, the PC police is here. What are you gonna do, cry about it? She’s my girlfriend.” The woman shakes her head in the background. As he continues to provoke Nadine, she goes in to punch him in the head. He grabs her fist just in time, twisting it slightly. Nadine winces in pain, but she quickly rushes them towards the nearest wall.

 

She pushes her feet onto the wall and then delivers another punch with her free hand, directly into his gut. He collapses. As he begins to keep up with his misogynistic tirade, Nadine kicks him in the head once again. The woman thanks her, and she gets away. Nadine smiles at Y, telling her that there’s always time to do what’s right, smiling radiantly. This smile continues as police sirens appear right behind her, and she mouths to herself, “maybe not always.”

 

Cut to the next morning as 70s alternative plays faintly over the radio in an office. Pete Kleinam, a social worker, speaking with Nadine, who sheepishly smiles. “Illegal gambling, underage drinking, public assault…Christ, Nadine. I’m trying to get you a home before you age out of the system. I hate to say it, but you’re not making it easy for us.” Nadine apologizes, but admits that she was only trying to get money for college, and that her current parents are completely useless in the regard. Pete tries to help, but it won’t be enough due to planned cuts in state funding. Nadine remarks that she doesn’t want this to be her life, and it’s not like she’s selling drugs or murdering people. Pete isn’t pleased.

 

Pete tells her that she’ll try to do whatever she can to help get her into a school but asks that she stop trying to take matters into her own hands. Nadine apologizes, feeling somewhat remorseful. Pete says that she should be able to stay out of any further legal trouble if she can keep up good behavior. Nadine leaves the office, as Pete picks up a call. Nadine overhears Pete vent about Nadine, and how her record will make it impossible for her to get in anywhere, and how she’s making it impossible for herself to have a better future. He tried to give her some comfort, but it seems like there’s little he can do. She leaves the office, feeling guilty and heartbroken.

 

Nadine’s foster parents pick her up, clearly unpleased with her. Abbie tries to comfort her, but Nadine simply doesn’t want to speak to anyone. Going up to her room, she begins to cry into a pillow, shouting to herself, “Why did I try to step in? I could have escaped,” A voice calls from behind, “Because you’re a good person,” Madame Y appears in her room, apologizing for the abrupt sneak in. “…and you have a cute birthmark.”

 

CHAPTER 2: ORIENTATION

 

Nadine looks on, running to lock the door, in shock. Y remarks that she will get this out of the way now to clear the air. Y explains that she’s part of a network of international spies, thieves, and lawbreakers dedicated to bending the rules to fight for the good of many. This organization is known as the Epsilon Syndicate. With over 100,000 members across the globe, it’s likely she met a few already. Y then says that after examining her record and attitude from the night they met…that she would make an excellent recruit.

 

Nadine is kind of taken aback, but also struggles to hide her excitement. She’ll be able to have a fresh new start in life and use her abilities for good. She, however, has several questions about the legitimacy of the organization. Y is not shocked, but asks her to get inside her car, parked on the street. They drive into a highway, parking at a shut down fast food restaurant. Nadine remarks that it’s closed, but that there’s probably a cover for something. “Fast learner.” Y remarks.

 

Taking an elevator hidden into the kitchen, and after Y completes several rigorous security checks, they encounter a secret tunnel beneath the restaurant. It’s full of several people of all kinds of fashions, looks, and other features going about their way. The hall is decorated with several logos for the syndicate, appearing almost a bit like a futuristic airport terminal.

 

Several hubs and shops exist, including a location to pick up new missions (a high-tech bulletin board with several attendants), a weapons shop, a clothing and makeup station designed for immersive, painless transformations, a laboratory, a library, a drug store, a medic, and even a pretzel shop. It’s a full-blown society underneath here.

 

Y explains that most missions range from stealing dangerous artifacts to keep out of evil’s hands, rescuing kidnapped children, killing evildoers before they strike, and so on. Nadine asks if the FBI and CIA ever gets in cahoots with them. Several people stop and stare at Nadine. Madame Y awkwardly insists that she’s new here and still learning the ropes. Y whispers that there is an important distinction: “The Syndicate is international and represents all countries in the world, while the other two are quite honestly fucking useless.”

 

Nadine then sees a statue of a man in his 60s named Elijah Fuldrich. In video footage, a bit akin to Walt Disney’s classic videos, we explore how he founded the syndicate during the cold war to stop global war from escalating. “We just had a big fun time crushing the Nazis. We needed a break, for fuck’s sake. So we stopped terror before it happened.” Through a few (rather violent) 2D black and white animations, they explain more of the Syndicate’s functions, as well as the four guiding principles of a member of the syndicate:

 

1.      Always blend in, even when working.

 

Nadine: Understandable.

 

2.      Always protect the weak from the strong.

 

Nadine: Understandable as well.

 

3.      The lower the body count, the better.

 

Y: This is probably the laxest rule of all. You saw the casino kerfuffle, I trust.

Nadine: Does the definition of “lower” vary?

Y: Yep.

 

4.      Never, EVER, interfere with Omicron Syndicate.

 

Nadine: What’s the Omicron Syndicate?

Y: Few of us know, actually. They may carry out tasks far bigger than anything we can handle, but if we don’t know, it’s best that we continue that trend.

 

Elijah closes out the video by encouraging its members to keep fighting the good fight, and also that he is obligated to mention a savings on CleanCo’s Blood-Be-Gone: Get in a fight? Make your stuff smell right! The video ends, seemingly on loop. Nadine tours the facility a bit more, but still keeps a low profile otherwise.

 

Nadine: This…this is so cool!

Madame Y: So, I take it you’re in?

Nadine: Fuck yes!!! I mean, yeah…it would be cool.

 

Y smiles, but remarks that she has a lot to learn that she won’t be able to teach her all overnight. Moreover, she would be an apprentice on her current mission. As Y describes the mission, she goes to a monitor and pulls up relevant images to help describe it. A disease is spreading across the city and affecting particularly neighborhoods with lower incomes. This neighborhood is supposedly – and coincidentally - home to a planned destination for a McDowell’s development project. Meredith McDowell, CEO of McDowell Department Stores, should be someone we need to investigate.

 

Nadine feels like Y is making a big reach here, but Y assures her that she has an array of scientists working under her, and they’re not the kind that make cosmetics. Y remarks that having information scouts everywhere really pays off. Nadine smiles, taking notes kind of furiously. In a shot, we see several scattershot notes written down, ranging from ‘WHAT THE FUCK?!’ to ‘OMG COOL!’ to actual writings on the lessons learned so far. Y sees the notebook and asks Nadine to spend a half hour memorizing what she’s learned so far. They do this while going back up to the fast food restaurant’s entrance.

 

Y asks if she is done, and she says yes. Y turns on a deep-frying machine and drops the notebook inside. Nadine asks what the hell she was thinking, but Y remarks that between this and the phone, it is vital that she leaves no trace of her activity. “You seem like the type who would excel at that, but you’ve got a lot to earn either way.” Nadine apologizes, but remarks that they still need to make sure her parents know what’s going on. Y smiles, making a call to ask if two people “cast as” Lawrence and Mary Thompson are available.

 

We cut to Nadine’s old foster parents as they fill out paperwork for the two to officially “adopt” Nadine. Pete is present as well to help with the paperwork, kind of bewildered at the fast process of the case but nevertheless happy for Nadine. Lawrence and Mary Thompson seem like a typical suburban couple with few suspicious qualities. Nadine begins to pack her room, as Abbie finds out what’s going on. She begins to cry. Nadine tells her that the reason she is going away is more complicated than she can easily describe, but she promises that she will always stay close, and that she’s only a call away. They hug, and Nadine finishes packing her bags, finishing with the picture of her birth parents.

 

As Lawrence and Mary drive Nadine away, they realize they can drop the façade. The two parents tell Nadine that they will re-establish Nadine with the same name but a different alias and relocate her closer to New York City. The two are known as fabricators, people who help more involved members of the syndicate create an image of blending in to normal society. Nadine can stay at their house, which also includes a secret entryway into the Syndicate’s underground headquarters for New York.

 

They pull up at a house in Queens, as Madame Y greets them inside. Helping Nadine unpack, she remarks that in four weeks, she will start her senior year at a local school. Basically, Y would like to get this mission taken care of before then, if possible. Her training begins tomorrow morning.

 

Nadine: Okay, where do we meet?

Madame Y: 45th Street and 7th. Near the Broadway District.

Nadine: Okay…so you’re going to teach me as a musical?

Madame Y: Theaters are vacant in the morning, and the director of this show is an undercover member of the syndicate. We’ll be fine.

 

Cut to the next morning, and we arrive at a vacant Broadway theater with props of paper-mache dragon masks, confetti cannons, lasers, and other miscellaneous objects. Nadine asks what kind of show this is. “A revival of Singin’ In The Rain. A really, REALLY avant garde revival. But that’s beside the point. Get up the to the mezzanine without using the staircase. Use any equipment you see here. Nadine lays out a prop table with several high tech tools. Nadine goes out onto the stage, feeling nervous. Seeing the theater’s decorative design as potential steps, she tries to climb along the side to get there, but almost trips.

 

Madame Y: The third button on the gun you’re using creates a temporary platform that mounts itself to the nearest wall near magnetization. Try pressing it.

Nadine: So, I just point it to the wall next to me and fire?

Madame Y: Just watch your fingers.

 

Nadine gets into an awkward position and manages to get it just right.  A long metal rod appears from under the gun, and the rod stretches horizontally to create a square platform just beneath her. She still seems very nervous, having nearly fallen. She’s clearly out of her element here. Nadine, however, tries to reach out to the Mezzanine without any more platforms. She almost makes it, but begins to fall. Y saves her by using the platform gun to make a slide. “You need to not let fear get the best of you. It’ll take more than parlor tricks and games of wit to survive here.”

 

 

Nadine continues to struggle in a montage of tasks, set to the above song, especially when it comes to fighting off robotic dummies (yes, still props from the revival) using the weapons she is supposed to use. Nadine asks why she can’t just do things the way she had always done.

 

Madame Y: You must open yourself up to change.

Nadine: As if I hadn’t been dealing with a fuckton of change these past few days.

Madame Y: It’s really been only 2, you know.

Nadine: What?!

 

Madame Y checks the time, knowing that dress rehearsal is starting soon, so they need to vacate the theater and put the props back together. For now, they need to check out what’s going on in the Fisherman’s Heights, a neighborhood in Brooklyn where the McDowell’s placement is expected.

 

The camera pans through several sick individuals, housed at a local gymnasium. News reporters and medics are all over the scene, as people try to get to the source of the contamination. Nadine and Madame Y arrive, stopped by an officer. Nadine tells the officer, “At ease, you fine little lad.” The officer backs away. (Madame Y remarks that they found a way to make the NYPD back off when needed. Non-Epsilon affiliated Illegal casinos notwithstanding.) After putting on the proper sanitary equipment, Nadine is asked to try looking around for any clues. One woman begins coughing violently, and Nadine goes to check on her.

 

The woman’s eyes flash to be a crimson color for a quick second. Nadine tries to see another coughing the same way, but misses the eye change. As she tries to find a second case, she bumps into a brunette woman in a suit, looking suspiciously familiar. She introduces herself as Meredith McDowell, CEO of McDowell Department Stores. Nadine, feeling that it was obviously her as the culprit but lacking proof, tries to begin speaking with her. It comes out as awkward small talk.

 

McDowell: Look, I don’t know if you’re some youth reporter, but we are active in cleaning up any and all messes in our community. We’re just as worried about these illnesses as you are. In fact, we are paying the medical team here in addition to New York’s whole medical system. We won’t rest until this plague is gone.

Nadine: I didn’t ask about any of that…I just…I’m….uh…studying.

McDowell: No need to worry. Moreover, I assure you that we are making ample progress on creating an antidote.

Nadine: Why are you telling me all this?

McDowell: I’m simply telling you what I’ll discuss in a press report later today. I just don’t want you to worry about anything.

Nadine: Does your team know about the crimson eye flash?

McDowell: Wow! Good observation. It involves the illness in…some way, I think. The medical team has more formal notes, I assure you.

 

McDowell seems to be quite smitten with Nadine, and McDowell hopes to see her around again. Until then, they have a lot of work to do. Nadine regroups with Madame Y, who feels utterly bewildered by McDowell’s friendliness. It’s probably just a façade. McDowell goes to give doses of medicine to a few patients, smiling at a camera while doing so. She gets a call, remarking that some girl asked “about a crimson eye thing?”

 

As they sit on the train ride home, Madame Y and Nadine try to think about what happened but keep a low profile. Suddenly, at one stop, everyone suddenly gets off for an unknown reason, leaving only Nadine and Madame Y on the train. There are several stops between the current location and their house, oddly enough. Five men in suits get on, seemingly friendly, talking about “beers after work” until the train starts moving. As soon as it starts, they pull out guns and prepare to attack the two. “God damnit, we were followed. Let me take the lead,” Madame Y says.

 

Y creates a platform to block bullets with the gun, sliding underneath to strike at their legs. She knocks one over, shooting him in the heart. As blood pours out, Nadine hides from the fight, panicking. Y kicks someone’s head into one of the metal head into it. One of the men is about to hit her with a seat lifted out of the ground, but she dodges. Instead, it hits the man’s head, trapped in the gate, snapping his neck. As the men fight back, Nadine tries to get into the fight but is almost shot. Y pushes her away once again.

 

Y then switches her gun a la a swiss army knife, getting a few stabs in two of the guards, while Y rams them together. She brushes off her hands as they hit the ground, as one more guard gets up from the chaos. They create another platform barrier as Y shouts to Nadine:

 

Madame Y: What happened when you attacked the harasser on the street?

Nadine: Something just came over me?

Madame Y: Make it happen again! You take out this last guy.

 

The final man runs out of bullets, while Nadine tries desperately to fiddle with her gun. A few buttons later, the man blasted with heat from a blowtorch, and in a state of panic, banging his head through the window, where he is scraped against the subway wall and leaves a bloody gash, falling unconscious. Nadine begins to scream that she just killed someone, only for an announcer to say that their stop is here.

 

Nadine: I thought this job would have more espionage and less killing.

Madame Y: Rule 3 is still in play. We’re thieves, not murderers.

Nadine: We just probably killed all 5 of those guys.

Madame Y: Well it’s not that strictly enforced. And 2 of them could still be unconscious.

 

Thankfully the subway is still vacant. Apparently a “gltich” set up an empty subway so that Nadine and Madame Y could be killed without a witness. It only worked the other way around, and the two throw the bodies onto a track in a hidden location. Nadine, however, records a walkie talkie message: “This is Blue Eyes. What the fuck just happened? Did you let that whore and her trainee get away?! The boss won’t be happy.” Nadine tells her that the boss is clearly Meredith, but Madame Y stops her.

 

Madame Y: …wait. Blue Eyes? No. Jesus no. This isn’t good.

Nadine: So blue eyes is bad, I take it.

Madame Y: Understatement of the bloody millennium. He is one of the most dangerous criminal overlords on the planet. He will kill anyone if they stand in his way, even if you’re the cutest baby of some fucking endangered species. This is way out of your league Nadine.

Nadine: Okay, so I did kind of survive there. But next time, tell me about the danger BEFORE we're shot at repeatedly?

Madame Y: A. I didn't know. Now we do. B. Name one thing you did that you felt confident in and helped us escape.

Nadine: Um, listen here you ....You know what…you’re probably right. Can’t you set me up on some easier missions and then we can work our way up?

Madame Y: You know what, screw it. I have an idea. Let’s group back at the Thompsons'.

 

Returning to the Thompsons’ house, Mary washes the blood off Nadine’s clothes, telling her that the moral dread and terror that comes with killing goes away after a little while, and only comes back in full force when she’s their age. Y remarks that she isn’t helping, but Mary said that’s always how she’s coped.

 

Nadine: Wait, you’ve all killed people?

Madame Y: I said the rule was laxly enforced. It’s an extreme rarity that anyone is killed outside of self-defense. Either way, maybe combat isn’t your forte right now. We should teach you how to work on some basic stealth. I know some people who can help us.

Lawrence: Already ahead of you. Two tickets from LaGuardia to Glasgow are booked.

Nadine: What is she talking about?

Madame Y: There are two people who can help you be a true agent but with slightly lower risk at first. I’ve loaded several informational videos onto your phone. Consider that in-flight entertainment. You’ll be quizzed on it tomorrow night. We leave at 6am. Get some sleep tonight.

 

That night, Nadine sits in bed, having a faint memory of her parents getting killed in her own home. She remembers herself crying as someone takes her out of the crib. The face is too blurry to make out, as are several other things in the memory. She just hears gunshots, screams, and crying. Nadine wakes up in a cold sweat, beginning to watch the videos on the Syndicate then and there.

 

On the plane, where they sit openly in coach next to a woman with a puppy, Nadine watches the tutorial videos (all narrated by Elijah Fuldrich) while Madame Y adorably ogles over the dog.

 

CHAPTER 3: THE LOVERS OF GLASGOW

 

We cut to the opening scene from earlier, where the cleanup is officially completed. Tig and Donny take off their suits and sit back down on the couch, stripped down to t-shirts and sweatpants. Suddenly, the doorbell rings, and Donny groans as he goes up to get it. Seeing that it is Madame Y, he perks up a bit.

 

Donatello: Sorry for the rough appearance. We may or may not have stopped a kidnapping ring in Edinborough and attracted some angry folks seeking vengeance. Part of the job, right? *snickers*

Madame Y: Just another day of the life. I’d like you all to meet Nadine Hallon.

Nadine: Hi, I take it you’re part of the Syndicate?

Donatello: No, we’re just some friends she made at her painting classes.

Antigone: Although to be fair, the Syndicate does have fun hobby classes from time to time. I recommend them.

 

Donatello Chau and Antigone Ska are two members of the Epsilon Syndicate based in Scotland, and both are excited to teach Nadine the ropes. Madame Y heads for the exit door, remarking that she needs to keep investigating in NYC. If more people die from this disease, that’s blood on her hands. She assures Nadine that Donny and Tig can handle things from here and reassures her that she really is doing an amazing job. Y does seem stressed, however. Nadine thanks her, and after a pause, they shake hands. As they come back in, Tig and Donny are crashed on the couch. Nadine sees several messages from Abbie on her phone, and she sends a simple message: “Doing okay, love you. ❤️

 

At night, we see McDowell walking into a high-end restaurant, sitting at a table for two. One other person is there, wearing a jacket that obscures most of his features until they can get the room to themselves. The curtain closes, creating a holographic image of the sky and the ocean surrounding them. He takes off his jacket, revealing a 30-something, fit man in a dashing suit, short hair, and with a striking pair of Blue Eyes.

 

McDowell: Nobody suspects a thing! I get to play all angelic and crush out any conspiracy, people will never realize that I wore the same dress as the Q3 2014 gala! It still fits perfectly.

Blue Eyes: Please focus. I’ll cut you off if I have to.

McDowell: Oh yeah, sorry. You saw that the girl noticed that eye thingy, I don’t know what that even is.

Blue Eyes: It’s working. The “sight of crimson.” Their pupils will slowly turn to black. They’ll be gone in a week or so.

McDowell: And then boom! Free real estate. I’m going to make my daddy so proud. I’ll prove I wasn’t just a product of nepotism…wait is that an STD?

Blue Eyes: Um…. And you’ll keep the company afloat. I just don’t trust the girl, and especially not the woman next to her. They could be part of something to take us down.

McDowell: And then no one will live at the site anymore! Perfect!

Blue Eyes: …. how much did you have before coming here?

 

It’s clear that McDowell isn’t the brains in the situation, but Blue Eyes tells her that he could see something pop up at the next launch event, so he will be extra alert. Her lead medical engineer, Dr. Horatio Luna, will be present as well to give a presentation, so the target is extra obvious. They both need to stay on their toes.

 

The next morning, the two wake up to find that Nadine did the dishes. Bewildered and grateful, Nadine remarks that she wants to get to training as soon as possible so that she can get back to NYC and help Madame Y…” wait, is that her real name?”

 

Tig: Of course not. What the fuck kind of name is Antigone Ska?

Donny: Also, my fake last name is Chau. I’m part Japanese, and that name is Chinese.

Tig: You’ll get your own name soon enough, but it’s ultimately kind of arbitrary. Kind of like choosing a online game username…or something like that.

Donny: Or just whatever sounds cool. Your pick. Just once you decide, there’s no going back.

Nadine: But so many people already know my name.

Donny: Remember, we have memory wiping tools at our disposal easily.

Nadine: Huh, you really have thought of everything.

Tig: Anyway, being a member of the syndicate is more than beating people up. Time to learn about stealth and infiltration.

 

Tig points out a local politician, McDaiman who is embezzling money funds from the public into his personal savings illegally. She could leak stuff like that in her sleep, so she can teach Nadine easily. They break into his office, go into his computer, check his history, dig through files, and load anonymously onto a secret server that will transfer it to the public eye.

 

The three sign up for a walking tour of the office, in a fairly tall building on the 6th floor, usually led every Wednesday morning when everyone is still working. They have a 30-minute window where McDaiman is away from the desk. 11:30am to 12pm. That could be enough time to run everything. Donatello has the flash drive that contains the protocols they need, while Antigone will show Nadine what to do. Antigone calls for free pizza to be delivered to the office staff, using that as a distraction to get into his office. It’s locked and password protected, but Donatello uses a fingerprint scanner to get the right letters.

 

Nadine runs through anagrams of the five letters in her mind, able to match the proper case by accident. Nadine guesses a word, and Antigone recognizes it as McDaiman’s childhood pet. They get in and access his computer. A sticky note with the computer password is left in the trash shredded up, but Nadine puts them together.

 

As they go through the process, Nadine is asked by Antigone to mimic her every move, and she’s enjoying the process. As it looks like they don’t have any dirt and it was just a hunch gone wrong, Nadine finds a hidden, secretly encrypted folder. Running a batch file, it opens, and it’s full of hidden emails that contain confirmations of the funneling of money. Suddenly, it’s noon. The three hide underneath McDaiman’s desk as he enters, knowing that they’re screwed as soon as he comes in.

 

Nadine then has another idea. As he enters, she dangles from the outside of the building, begging for help. She claims that she was taking pictures from the top floor but lost her balance. She managed to get onto this window and begs him to save her life. He does so, and they hug it out. Nadine grabs his hand to tell the office what a hero he is. Antigone and Donatello sneak out to a stairwell. The office cheers for McDaiman, and Nadine decides to go to get her equipment from upstairs. She will be right back.

 

The all run from the scene with joy and exuberance, having gotten everything they needed to expose his corruption. As Antigone teaches Nadine how to get from building to building, she tells her that when you have the spark of passion, it’s easier to push yourself to do things you didn’t think were possible. Nadine smiles, feeling like she is on the right track.

 

Through a continued training montage, lightly parodic in tone, where Nadine does other simulated exercises like picking locks and solving puzzles, she feels a closer to Antigone and Donatello, who remark that she may be ready for bigger and better things. After a night of getting pizza (since the distraction put them in the mood), she wants to check in with Madame Y. They begin a video conference.

 

Madame Y: I’ve heard you’ve been making good progress, and I trust Tig and Donny have been giving you a good time.

Donatello: She’s like the sister we never knew we had.

Nadine: *playfully* We’ve known each other for a few days, I like you two but let’s not go too far.

 

They all laugh, but Madame Y says that she is investigating a party where the McDowell’s development project will be revealed. She faked an identity of Meredith’s childhood friend and fellow executive at another company; she will hopefully share some insights as to how a true agent works. Nadine is asked again to stay with the two for a while, and that while Y has things under control, they could get messy. She just misses the days where she could be as free a spirit as Tig and Donny. Nadine asks what she means, but Y quickly dismisses herself. “Don’t worry your pretty little heads.”

 

Y abruptly hangs up, to which Nadine feels a bit uneasier. She feels like she needs to help Madame Y stop what’s going on, and that she’s unsure about staying here. Nadine, desperate to prove herself, tries to convince the others to let her go back to the states to try and help Madame Y. Tig and Donny are very hesitant, but tell Nadine that if she can find the entrance to Scotland’s underground Epsilon hub from their house in 5 minutes, they will say that she snuck out.

 

“Thank you so much!!! …. I better start looking.”

 

The five minutes begin. Nadine tries using some of the weapons at her disposal, including a blowtorch/freezer combo, a vinyl CD that can slice through most anything, and even a keypad on a smart refrigerator. Eventually, she tries to sit by the fire to refresh her mind, noticing that warmth isn’t coming from it. Moving her hand up, she sees a hologram. Nadine asks for the clock, and she has 15 seconds left. Winking at the two, she goes through the flame and slides down a long, spinning slide. Antigone and Donatello follow close behind her.

 

The hub looks very similar, but a few more drunkards in the area. Nadine asks an agent about transit to the states, and he replies that there’s actually an ultra-fast subway exclusively for syndicate members. Next stop for the US should leave in 40 minutes. Nadine asks why she couldn’t just do that to get here, but Antigone replies that a good agent never takes the same path repeatedly. She keeps her foes guessing and never allows for consistency. There is also someone who can upgrade her gun, formally called a “EpsiTool”, but Americans love calling anything of the sort guns so it kind of sticks.

 

Approaching a large workshop area with a bit of an art deco design, they meet a lanky scientist named Tip Top, a silly name but easy to remember. Tip Top excitedly greets Nadine, and she observes her gun. Taking a few quick, observant glances at it, she unceremoniously slides it into an incinerator.

 

Nadine: What the fuck?

Tip Top: Please, I’ll get you a new, better one for free. This is our newer model, has all the platform and blowtorch stuff you worked with before, but also a built in 3D printer and scanner for when you need to copy simple objects to even computer hardware, a fast, painless transformation kit to let you undergo fairly basic facial disguises, a chemical to quickly seal up any wounds and absorb blood (we have some donations every few weeks so give to a good cause), and a shit ton of other features.

Nadine: I think I can remember all that.

Tip Top: Also, it can charge your phone wirelessly. Pretty cool, huh?

 

Tip Top hands her the device, and it looks akin to a cube with smaller blocks inside. When she presses on it, it turns into the thing most desired object. The newest technology in the market that never was. She tells her to buzz whenever she needs a tech fix. Before they leave, Tip Top asks is Nadine was working with Madame Y. Nadine softly confirms, and Tip Top seems somewhat ambivalent. “Nothing against her, but…if you’re trying to follow her, be careful. She’s got stories that would traumatize even the most seasoned member.”

 

Nadine looks on with hesitation, but Tip Top cheerfully, and abruptly, wishes her a nice day. They go off on their separate ways and take the train, which appears like a spiffier subway. Once it begins to move, it creates a light speed affect akin to Star Wars as Tig remarks, “I always enjoyed this cheesy music that plays over this.”

 

CHAPTER 4: MEET ME IN NEW YORK

 

People begin to crowd into a large ballroom, all taking masks at their various seat. They range from aliens to woodland animals to witches, famous figures, and anything you can make a paper mask of. A projector at the event says, “McDowell Unmasked!” as a woman puts on a mask of a bat. In the moment she puts it on, we can detect that it’s Madame Y but with blonder hair, a bit more like Emily Blunt in real life. She begins to make small talk with the crowd as she discretely searches for Dr. Luna.

 

Walking past the name tags, she is able to see that his has been taken, and using her own EpsiTool, she creates a holographic duplicate of the nametag with Horatio’s name on it, and because of the short vicinity of distance, she pinpoints him. Disguising it as a friendly bump, the two begin conversation. Horatio is quite impressed with the work his team has been doing to set things right, and Y simply smiles at him, listening and nodding as if not “fully” getting what he is saying.

 

Meanwhile, Nadine sneaks into a kitchen and hides under a cloth, trying to find an online directory of people who work here, as well as people on a bulletin board that she can make out the names of absent waitresses. She matches a picture of a girl she can easily make herself up to imitate, using the EpsiTool on herself under the cloth. She lets out a wince at a pinch, but thankfully no one hears it. She slides out at the right chance and introduces herself to the head of staff.

 

The head of waitstaff remarks that “Melanie” was on vacation in the south this weekend, but Nadine says that she got home early and wanted to get some extra money. The chef also comments on her voice, making her even more nervous. Her justification on being slightly sick makes things worse, as she is told that she shouldn’t be working if she’s not well, especially in food service. The head of waitstaff says to just put on a coughing mask and it should be fine. Nadine sighs in relief, thanking him, and washing her hands very thoroughly.

 

Eventually, dinner is served, and Nadine blends in as the waitstaff delivers food, though she struggles a bit more than the others. In a very, very brief glance, Nadine makes eye contact with Madame Y, but it’s uncertain if the other recognized each other. Nadine certainly didn’t recognize her with the mask. The meal commences, and Nadine waits nervously with the other staff, trying to catch up on conversations with “Melanie’s” friends and put on a convincing show. She retreats to the bathroom and is met by Madame Y. They whisper in one of the closets.

 

Madame Y: Nadine. I told you to stay with Antigone and Donatello.

Nadine: See…they’re our getaway ride.

Madame Y: Oh god, you convinced them to come here too? *Sigh* I knew they were pushovers. Okay fine. I’m furious with you but also impressed. I will send a text that says “uwu’ to you to let you know to get the fuck out. Otherwise, keep a low profile, don’t do anything stupid, do exactly as I say, deal?

Nadine: So, you’re not TOO mad?

Madame Y: I’m fucking fuming. But not enough so that I want you dead. Especially since I’m guilty enough…just, ugh. Just follow my lead.

 

Nadine nods, and she continues her work on the waitstaff as Madame Y continues to schmooze Dr. Luna. They get into a fairly intelligent and lightly flirtatious conversation, only for the presentation to begin soon. Nadine is given a ping to try and retrieve the portable hard drive with the presentation from Dr. Luna. It’s likely encrypted as hell but nothing they can’t handle. They have to do it after his presentation but before he can get to the computer, so there can’t be any hesitancy. Nadine gets an idea, looking at some trays of dirty dishes.

 

Meredith begins to speak to much applause, taking off her squirrel mask. She will open the new McDowell Utopia Center, with a full-fledged store, internet café, apartment complex, grocery store, and more. It’s a modern skyscraper paradise, something that could offer anything you could ever want without stepping outside. She creates a hologram to surround the tables with interior mockups, from chapels to movie theaters to even a mini amusement park. She plays up the hype factor to a bit of a hilarious extent, almost dancing on the stage. Think bordering on Jake Gyllenhaal in Okja. 

 

Nadine slowly collects dishes, as Madame Y watches the presentation and takes notes. The link is far more suspicious now than ever, but McDowell does not mention the location of the plague, instead opting to a planned option further away, and in a more affluent neighborhood than the plague. This confuses the two, but it fades when Madame Y sees a glimpse of Blue Eyes glaring at Meredith, and slowly turns his head at her. He is the only one not wearing a mask.

 

Nadine sees that Dr. Luna is about to present on his work, and she begins to slide a tray of messy dishes towards his computer on a stand to the side. Nadine intentionally bumps into it, but notions to Dr. Luna that she harmlessly made a mess and will pick it up. She discretely tries to find the hard drive, but it seems to be that she can only take the entire laptop. Looking at the cube, and reviewing everything that Tip Top said to her, she gets an idea, asking the assistant at the laptop if she can pick up the spots.

 

Assistant: Hey, what’s that?

Nadine: It’s just a special kind of rubix cube like puzzle. I play with it when I’m bored or stressed.

 

Dr. Luna then begins to move towards discussing a full-fledged antidote that he was able to synthesize for the disease, but before he can get to it, the lights suddenly go out. Nadine gets the aforementioned text as predicted: “uwu”. She runs for the stairwell with the cube and finds that she is chased by several men. Using some tricks, she tries to hide in the crack between stairs, nervously balancing as she manages to lose most of them. Running to a different floor, full of office space right below, she catches up with Madame Y.

 

Y uses her tool to sharpen the bat ears on her mask, just in case, but the take cover under desks as they get caught in another shoot out. Nadine crawls under several desks and gets to a staircase. Madame Y follows but is almost stopped by a guard. She slits his throat with the sharpened bat ears, and they go down. Carrying a box of firecrackers, they light them across the stair way to make more of a distraction to escape.

 

It seems that, while out of breath, they will make it to the lobby, where Tig and Donny should be waiting for them in their car. They get in, as the four regroup. They plan to run to the Thompsons, but Nadine remarks that they could get followed their and blow their cover. Indeed, as they start to drive (Donny is driving), another car rams them, with Blue Eyes in the back. He says, “I think you left with something you shouldn’t have.” Madame Y coyly denies it, but realizes he was talking to Nadine. He uses a grappling hook to try and grab Nadine’s arm out of the car, but Y stops him. Blue Eyes, feeling a pang of excitement, orders the driver to keep going. His eyes are on the prize.

 

Nadine gets a few cuts but turns her EpsiTool into a gun. An all-out car chase begins through the city, and the news gets their attention. Lamenting that the goal of the syndicate is to be discrete, they hide into an alleyway as Donny slaps a small orb on the car’s exterior. It now looks like a taxi cab. As police begin to follow, explosives are shot at their wheels by the car Blue Eyes is in, making an even bigger mess.

 

Nadine: Do we have a budget to cover this?

Madame Y: Expenses of civilian damage are not uncommon but are ultimately a bad look for us. We try to avoid it when possible.

 

As the cars get close together at one point, Tig slides through her window and gets at an angle to fire a blast of heat at the wheels of the enemy. It only slightly works, as they’re pretty durable as a whole.

 

Eventually, they make it towards Time Square, and the glass out of their back car is instantly broken. Nadine tells them to brake at her command. Donny is bewildered, but as she gets her gun ready, Madame Y agrees. In a quick moment, with time slowing down. Donny slams the breaks, and Nadine and Y fire their platform guns onto the street below, diagonal to the road. As sparks fly as the platforms hit the ground, it creates a makeshift ramp that send the car of Blue Eyes flying. It crashes into a Times Square billboard and lands on the ground.

 

Before anyone can see, Antigone throws a canister on the ground which completely obscures the scene, making it seem like just another day in the square. Madame Y goes to the car and somehow sees everyone in a bloody, unconscious state, 99% dead…although Blue Eyes doesn’t have a scratch on him. His seatbelt apparently casts a full body protection cast. He seems infuriated but also a bit impressed and curious.

 

“You….sneaky bitch. They were expendable anyway, and you made a huge fool of yourselves. I guess you didn’t even take the hard drive too, and you’ve maybe sparked countless conspiracy theories. A little bit of cloaking magic will do jack shit if you're not careful enough, ya know.  Some agent you are, heh.”

 

Blue Eyes also begins to speak to Nadine, who thanks Nadine for giving him a good fight. He takes off his glove, and they shake hands. Moreover, Nadine notices something quite alarming: He has the exact same birthmark she does. Before she can say anything else, smoke fills the car, and he’s gone without a trace.

 

CHAPTER 5: SECRETS OF THE PAST

 

At the Thompsons’ residence, Nadine is pacing furiously as she tries to make out what had just happened, trying to see how there can be a familial connection between Blue Eyes and her. Madame Y, however, tells Nadine that they need to focus on their current case even further, much to Nadine’s frustration. She remarks that she saved the interface of Dr. Luna’s laptop and, without saying another word, 3-D prints a duplicate version. Much to her disappointment, it will take a few hours due to the complexity of the data in his computer. She sighs, but at least she got the job done.

 

Lawrence: Wow, you’re learning fast.

Mary: We’ve got advanced codebreaking hardware next to the cereal if you need to find it.

 

Antigone thanks her, but thinks they can figure it out from there. It’ll just take some time to dig through all of the information. Fast forwarding to the next morning, where Tig and Donny take turns coding and taking power naps, they are able continuing to struggle making out what’s inside his laptop. Suddenly, the doorbell rings, and it’s none other than Dr. Luna. He knows that his laptop was hacked into thanks to a signal in the security, which Tig remarks may have been a slight slip up.

 

Luna, however, is not mad. In fact, he tells the Syndicate members that he needs their help. As he implied at the gala, he had an antidote completed for the disease, but had done so against company orders. It’s hidden in a hotel room in his favorite casino, The Shining Clover. Fearing what the others at the company have planned, Dr. Luna says that they need to find his hidden, personal files on the Antidote hidden in the room 627. However, Dr. Luna says this as he begins to cough violently.

 

Mary looks closely as a coughing fit begins, and she finds out that Dr. Luna had been poisoned. Moreover, when he says, “Find the antidote and end this nightmare,” another piercing cough occurs. He begins to shake and collapse, drooling blood and having his internal organs ripped apart. He utters, so quietly only Nadine can hear it, “Genesis”, He dies very unceremoniously as the others watch in horror.

 

Madame Y: We have to do this for him. Donatello, look up information on this hotel.

Donatello: It’s closer to Long Island, most crowded area in the city. Chances are we’ll need to be as discreet as we possibly can. Security at this place certainly won’t make things easier.

Antigone: And Blue Eyes will likely meet us there.

Madame Y: There’s also a booth inside we can use to get back into the syndicate headquarters. We sneak out through there.

 

Nadine seems excited to put an end to this once and for all but can’t stop thinking about Blue Eyes. Madame Y shuts her thoughts down again, saying that there’s too much at stake to get distracted.

 

Nadine: Why shouldn’t I know about this? I could find out about my parents and who they were.

Madame Y: Stop, Nadine. This isn’t the time, I won’t ask again.

Nadine: How could they have two children that went down such different paths? Why did he become evil? I just.

Madame Y: Nadine. Stop.

Nadine: I’m sorry. I just need to find this out. Once I do, I will be focused. I won’t let anything hold me back.

 

As Madame Y gets more and more strict about focusing, it’s become clear that she has something she doesn’t want Nadine to know. Nadine begins flashing back again to the night her parents were killed, and through a shot in the mirror, we see a woman about 17 years old, with platinum blonde hair. “Wait….it was you…. you killed them.”

 

A silence fills the room. The others look to Madame Y, who tries to diffuse the situation. “Nadine…your parents were not the people that you wanted them to be. They were dangerous, they were evil. They would have groomed you to be just like them.” Nadine begins to have a panic attack, feeling that the world she knew is collapsing around her. “I can’t do this. I can’t do this anymore. I don’t even know what to think.” Nadine runs for the door, but Tig and Donny try to stop her. Madame Y pushes the two away, simply telling Nadine, “that was the truth. I just hoped you wouldn’t find out like this. Please, I am so sorry.”

 

Nadine runs outside, trying to get as far away as possible, feeling uncertain about everything she had been doing. The other 5 look on with sadness, the others turning to Madame Y. She coldly picks up a drink and says that she deserved to know the truth but knew there was a chance it would turn her against them. Either way, they must finish this tonight, with or without her help. Donatello suggests trying to follow her, but Madame Y stops him. “This is the last thing she wants to deal with right now.”

 

We see Nadine travel through a subway, tears in her eyes, as she throws her EpsiTool onto the train tracks. As she is on the train, news reports appear, showing that the sickness is getting worse, and beginning to spread across to other lower income neighborhoods. Nadine tries to channel out the news as well as she can, ignoring everything else to try and escape. Transferring to Penn Station, she goes to the only place she can feel safe and escape from this.

 

We cut to Abbie playing with some LEGOs in her room, while Nadine sneaks through the window. They hug and embrace each other, while Abbie asks Nadine where she had been. Nadine says that it’s a long story, but that she isn’t sure her current arrangement is a good fit….and that she isn’t sure she’s cut out for…nothing. Nadine cuts herself off, trying to keep a secret from Abbie. The two comfort each other, but Nadine knows there’s no one she can truly tell her full story too.

 

Abbie tells Nadine that she almost found a family that wants to adopt her, but she’s scared that it will fall through. “I just want to be with someone who loves me and wants me to soar,” Abbie says. Nadine pauses, as though she felt a true bond with Y, Antigone, and Donatello. Nadine asks Abbie if she heard about the plague in NYC, and Abbie says that she heard bits and pieces over the dinner table. As Nadine explains it to her, she begins to understand that sometimes, they have to bend the rules a it in order to secure justice. As Abbie’s foster parents call for dinner, Nadine remarks that she needs to go…. but also, doesn’t know exactly where to go. They hug, and Nadine jumps out the window.

 

Jumping out the window and seeing a story on her phone about the first deaths from the plague, Nadine realizes that regardless of what happens, and who she’s working with, that she needs to help set things right.

 

Tip Top: “The parts for this don’t come cheap, you know.”

 

Tip Top gets Nadine a new EpsiTool, but remarks that it’s the same one as last time, so there won’t be any surprises. There’s quick access to Long Island leaving soon, so she better hurry. On a fast transit, she finds the three right by an alleyway close to the entrance. They are shocked to see her.

 

Nadine: Regardless of the past, thousands of lives are at risk. They need all the help they can get. I’m here for them, not for you.

Madame Y: Fair enough. *Pause, and a light sigh* Help us out with this job, and we will give you true adoptive parents, monumental financial support, and you will never have to worry about the Syndicate again. Your memories of us will be erased, but we will also ensure that you are protected from any future threats….and we will make sure Abbie comes with you. Do we have a deal?

 

After a pause, they shake hands.

 

CHAPTER 6: SHOWDOWN OF GHOSTS

 

The casino is livelier than ever, with games populated across all floors, dancers in the pool, and parties everywhere. The current guest in room 627 is a young entrepreneur, whose appearance as a young, African American professional means Antigone is the best bet for the disguise. Putting on a disguise, she changes herself to be Wyatt Ellison. Antigone goes up to the concierge to ask for a spare room key, while Nadine says she may check out the gift shop. Could be some fun stuff to get here. They eventually make it to the room, only to find out that Wyatt is still inside. He is apparently meeting some friends for drinks at 8:30pm, and it’s currently 7:14pm. Seeing a clock in the hallway, Donatello manipulates the system to that the hotel time is an hour and a few minutes later than it really is. Wyatt bolts out the door, “Shit, I’m running late.”

 

Using the distraction, they sneak into the room. Unfortunately, it’s a suite that’s way bigger than anything they expected. There’s even a full kitchen! Nadine asks if once the data on the antidote is found, if they will be able to take to the Syndicate’s lab. Y assures her that once they get it, they can easily distribute it and cure everyone. The only thing left to do would be to distribute the evidence against McDowell and Blue Eyes so that they wouldn’t go unpunished.

 

Eventually, after a good bit of time perusing, Nadine finds a bible in the drawer. “A bible in a casino hotel, next to an open bar. How ironic. Wait.” Nadine remembers Dr. Luna’s final word and flips to the start of the Genesis book in the bible. Not seeing the others around them, she finds an ultra-thin flash drive hidden within the text. It is the literal width of the page, so she slips it into her wallet. Nadine is thrilled but can’t find the others around her. Suddenly, a man appears with a gun next to her head. It’s Blue Eyes.

 

Blue Eyes: I see he sent you on his scavenger hunt. You came farther than I expected, so kudos to you.

 

As Nadine is guided to the living room, where the other 3 are sitting on the couch, arms tied behind them, she it put with them. Armed men surround them, but Meredith soon follows. Meredith feels far more uneasy about the ordeal than anyone not tied up, still confused as to why all of this is necessary. “We’re only rolling out that approved location? Far away from all the dying people? I don’t know about you all, but even I have my standards,” Blue Eyes smacks Meredith with his pistol, and she falls to the floor.

 

Nadine: She was never the mastermind…it was always you.

Blue Eyes: She was the perfect scapegoat, and dumb enough to not connect the dots. Nepotism is a wonderful thing, isn’t it? You think she’d be CEO any other way?

Meredith: Wait, was that an STD? I looked it up but didn’t remember.

Antigone: So why the hell were you even trying to solve a mess that didn’t affect you?

Meredith: Wow, I’m trying to be a good person and I’m feeling so attacked. You all really need to move your negative energy away from me.

Blue Eyes: And with that, we let her take the fall, and I continue my way.

Madame Y: Why are you doing this?

 

Blue eyes walks around the room, as his men disable the syndicate members one by one, at least allowing them the decency to learn a bit more before they perish.

 

Blue Eyes: Meredith may be relatively innocent, but many other people of her stature are less so. Moreover, they'll pay really good money to anyone willing to make a mess for them and connect the dots to someone else, like our CEO Cinderella, here. If anyone goes to jail tonight, it's her. Hell, we can end this now. Say the word, and we all walk out of here, and Meredith does only a couple or so years. She's rich, so it'll ultimately be a slap on the wrist. What say you?

Nadine: Who made you do this?

Blue Eyes: That's none of your concern. Address my deal. Technically I should made it a four way vote, but let's give Nadine the special honor.

Donatello: Not cool, man.

*Antigone shushes him.*

 

Nadine refuses to help, knowing the true culprit will do this again. She tries to break free and attack Blue Eyes, but he grips her arm and forces her hand to a counter top. Blue Eyes places more and more pressure, putting Nadine in intense pain. 

 

Blue Eyes: Don't be stupid, Nadine. You have a chance to get out of here alive. Just accept the following: We make the mess. We get the money. Others profit. And no one suspects a thing of them. I’d tell you more…but then you’d be tempted to break rule 4.

 

Nadine flashes back to her childhood, noticing a logo vaguely resembling the Greek letter…Omicron. The antithesis of The Epsilon Syndicate. An ally to cruelty, chaos, and amplifying power for those who have it. Madame Y was right…she saved Nadine from following in this path the only way she could. And it was time to stop them again. “Well, given that information,” Nadine says to Blue Eyes, “You really lit a fire under our asses.” Nodding to the other three, she manages to free her EpsiTool and uses a switchblade to cut Blue Eyes' finger. The other three quickly follow suit.

 

As the men open fire, Nadine is told to get to the first floor with the drive as fast as she can. As the hotel room’s balcony is locked, they find that they have no choice but to get down manually. The men follow the main quartet in a chase through the hotel hallway in style. To throw them off, they agree to split up. However, Nadine sticks with Madame Y on account of needing to protect the drive at all costs, and a second person would likely help. Antigone takes an elevator upwards, getting down by grappling from the bottom of the building, while Donny secretly hides in the hotel room to cover up any of their activity, using kitchen and other hotel tools to pick off the men in creative ways, from gouging one's throat with a hair crumper to pouring a scalding hot cup of coffee on another. As the bloodshed in the hotel dies down, with the others humorously fleeing, Ryan recaptures his EpsiTool. Finding Meredith on the ground, she asks Donny if he can get her a drink or two. Hard as fuck.

 

Donatello: Do you...have any idea what just happened?

Meredith: To be honest...no. Not really. Did you hear people are getting super sick at this one neighborhood?

Donatello: Fair enough.

 

Donny hands her a piece of paper with room service’s number. He’s a bit busy right now. As Donatello flees, we see a very confused Wyatt return to his room, fainting as soon as he arrives. We hear Meredith's voice: "Is that room service?"

 

Eventually, they all find a way to independently get to the casino grounds, having split up enough. We see Nadine run out of the gift shop holding what seems to be her EpsiTool. However, the armed men are all over the casino in a hostage situation, taking several innocents who are simply at the casino. Nadine knows that she needs to find the entrance to the syndicate’s underground as fast as she can. Unfortunately, none of the other three easily know where it is. Seeing a tech closet, Antigone gets an idea, sneaking to it as easily as she can.

 

As the men look for any Epsilon Syndicate members, we hear an announcement telling people to cover their eyes and ears. The power suddenly goes out seemingly. After a pause, the lights and sounds of the casino pop up at maximum volume and brightness, catching the men off guard. Nadine, wearing earplugs and night vision glasses, uses the chaos to attack the men. In the chaos, and with a fitting, rhythm, we see the following. The movement is set in rhythm to Giacchino’s score.

 

*During a few flashes*

 

Donatello grabs a roulette wheel and delivers a punishing kick to several guards in a circle, eventually banging the last guard standing’s head on the point at the center, almost impaling him.

 

*A few more flashes*

 

Jumping behind a bar, Antigone smashes glasses onto the members, also grinding the chest of one using a blender.

 

*And after that…*

 

Madame Y quickly disguises herself as one of Blue Eye’s men, using this to create friendly fire.

 

Madame Y sets up a shutdown for the effect, creating an announcement to have the civilians evacuate the casino immediately. After the chaos ends, people run for the doors, and it seems like only Blue Eyes and the Syndicate are left. Nadine smiles to him, “4 on 1, you’re pretty much fucked.” Blue Eyes smiles, using his own device, akin to an EpsiTool, to blast the three away into a different utility closet, lights turned out. Blue Eyes takes his and Nadine’s EpsiTools and locks them in the same cabinet. “Let’s see how you far with only your fists and wits.” As the duel begins, Nadine spends most of the fight trying to hide from her brother’s attacks, realizing that she doesn’t need to beat him, she only needs to get to the proper entrance, albeit without him seeing. Blue Eyes sharpens playing cards and throws them as if they were shuriken, but Nadine manages to avoid the shots.

 

Running through the lobby, Nadine fends off the attacks from Blue Eyes, hiding and managing to stay one step ahead of her, “Admit it, Nadine, we could have had a perfect life together, making a mess and living like kings. But now that you let that bitch expose the goody goody you were, you’re nothing but a little rat who needs to be eradicated.” Nadine seems to disappear, leading to Blue Eyes looking outside. He doesn’t find her anywhere, but the camera zooms down, and we see Nadine under the water in the pool, breathing heavily and creating bubbles. Blue Eyes walks away, and we see Nadine quickly go up for air. He notices.

 

Jumping into the water, Blue Eyes begins to attack Nadine, and she struggles to hold back. The fight involves several punches and kicks, mostly, although Nadine does, in a moment of desperation, bite Blue Eyes. As both struggle, they come up for air. They breathe heavily as they reach the surface, making awkward eye contact for a quick second, then instantly going back under to resume their fight.

 

Meanwhile, the other three members look around the closet, seemingly for a way out, also noticing extra stock from the Casino’s gift shop. One of the items includes an elaborate wooden puzzle…which looks a bit familiar to the design of an EpsiTool…

 

 

(0:00-0:32)

As Nadine struggles Blue Eyes prepares to kill her for good. He grabs her by her arm (the one with her birthmark) and cuts it along the smiley face, as Nadine screams from underwater, losing her guard. Blue Eyes eventually pulls her out as Nadine sees the cut. Fading from her bloody smile birthmark to her brother in a dazed point of view, Blue Eyes slowly raises his foot. "Let me see one last smile from my baby sister." He lowers his foot, but Nadine suddenly gives a sly smile.

 

(skip to 1:16-1:35)

Nadine rolls out of the way and uses her EpsiTool to burn his foot. He stumbles away, looking on in shock. Nadine gets up with an intense swagger, wiping off the blood on her hand on her face. Blue Eyes is shocked, having thought he stowed it away, but Nadine remarks, “You stored a wooden puzzle away. If it’s any consolation, I can take it from here without that pesky thing." She places her hand on a nearby food delivery cart, preparing to attack once again.

 

(1:36)

Nadine begins to smile radiantly, taking advantage of Blue Eyes’ shock to drag his body across the floor by riding on a nearby food delivery cart, kicking him off the ground again, and punching him repeatedly. Feeling more confident in her abilities than ever, Nadine delivers one last blow, bouncing off his chest and delivering a round house kick that nearly knocks him out. Eventually, Nadine stands above Blue Eyes, giving a sly smile as Blue Eyes looks up with anger and shock.

 

Blue Eyes: I don’t understand…. how the hell does a girl like you come out of nowhere and win?

Nadine: All you need to know is that once I caught you off guard and feigned my own weakness, it was easy to get the job done.

Blue Eyes: Better finish then. Go on, a bullet will do the trick.

Nadine: Blue Eyes…what’s your real name?

Blue Eyes: Heh, I guess I like the way you play, Nadine. Elias Hallon. I must admit....I'm impressed.

Nadine: Don't try to play cute. The antidote is being distributed, and we will find out who you were working for. There's only one thing that could be a relative net gain in this situation. Elias…you are my brother. And our parents manipulated us beyond belief. We can start fresh. Come with me. We don’t have to let the world become a nightmare. I can have my brother back. What do you say? Want to join our union of thieves?

 

Blue Eyes smiles, feeling a bit of hope at the forgiveness of Nadine. They take each other’s hands and smile at each other. After a pause.... Blue Eyes stabs Nadine’s arm. He laughs at thinking that a few nice platitudes and the love of a sibling who hated his guts right up till now would make a difference. "When you play a game like this, you don't just fucking switch sides, no matter what anyone says. You still have a lot to learn, you moronic bitch." Nadine backs away toward a wall, trying to avoid a vicious blow from Blue Eyes, who pulls up his own device again. At the wall, Nadine quickly maneuvers so that Blue Eyes is between her and the wall. Nadine gets on a smile as she points her EpsiTool at Blue Eyes.

 

“Well, I asked nicely.”

 

She shoots a platform out at the wall, strong enough to decapitate Blue Eyes. Blood shoots out as he’s instantly killed. Cringing at the unwanted eye contact of a severed head, she walks away, letting the head and body hit the ground. She feels a bit of melancholy but knows that she must keep moving forward. Nadine soon sees the other three right by the poolside cabana. They congratulate Nadine enthusiastically for finishing the job.

 

Nadine: Wait…you found a way out? And…you didn’t fucking help me out?

Madame Y: We wanted to see how you’d fare on your own. Very well it turns out.

 

Nadine flips her off but smiles as she does it. Antigone also remarks that he did find the entry in the chaos, a hidden staircase behind the drinks in the bar. As the four walk to the bar, cops arrive in the scene, and people look on in confusion at what happened. The cops see the four, and Nadine tells them “At ease, you fine little lads.” Madame Y smiles as the four begin to descend. Nadine closes the door behind them as they go on their way. Before so, however, she looks at the messy scene, having one of Blue Eyes' final words echo out: "When you play a game like this..."

 

CHAPTER 7: A TALE OF TWO SYNDICATES

 

That night, Lawrence and Mary make fancy hot chocolates for the four, as the operation is covered by the news. Apparently, the NYPD is taking credit for saving the day, making them roll their eyes. While Meredith McDowell was more of an inadvertent pawn in the scheme, she had a completely unrelated history of embezzlement and bribery of local politicians. Nadine looks confused, saying that she seemed too dumb to be able to scheme like that. The others chuckle, remarking that those methods are entry level corruption. She goes to jail for a relatively short sentence, making Madame Y ask if the drinks are spiked.

 

As the evening mellows down, Madame Y speaks with Nadine alone. She tells her that she was sorry for getting her involved in all of this, and for what she had done to her parents. The offer she made before the hotel raid still stands. Nadine takes a deep breath but tells Madame Y that she made a decision.

 

“You did what you had to…and if you didn’t, I would have lived a life of evil. And I remember something else. You took pity on me…you put me in a home. You told me the truth. And I have to say…this has been the most chaotic, wonderful, messy, and amazing week of my life. Madame Y…I want to stay.”

 

They hug in the living room, and as they embrace in each other’s arms, Nadine remarks: “Though I do have one more favor to ask of you if possible.”

 

 

We cut to a scene where Lawrence and Mary adopt Abbie, and she is reunited with Nadine. Nadine and the others agree that they will keep what they do a secret from Abbie until she’s old enough, but this way, she finally has a true, loving home. The gang also drops off Antigone and Donatello at an airport to return home, but they promise to stay in touch. News reports also show people being cured thanks to the distribution of the antidote, returning to their homes and lives. As Nadine and Madame Y smile about how things played out, Nadine receives a special call. Elijah Fuldrich requests a meeting.

 

As Nadine travels to the underground headquarter, she enters a more grandiosely decorated (in a 60s, contemporary style) office space, where a man in a stark grey suit and sharp white hair sits at a desk. It’s Elijah Fuldrich.

 

*music ends*

 

Elijah: Well done on your first mission, agent. You don’t have your official name set up yet, no?

Nadine: Not yet.

Elijah: Very well, it can be arbitrary. Better the less it connects to you personally in fact. I wish to commend you on your first success. That was no easy feat you pulled off. I just have  one tiny thing to take care of with you before we move on any further on more missions.

Nadine: What’s that?

 

Elijah places a drone like device on Nadine's forehead. It flies around briefly, emitting an intermittent white light. Elijah tells her that she did a great job stopping Meredith McDowell and saving countless lives. It was a successful first mission, and the first step to becoming a great hero. Just remember the four rules. Blend in. Protect the weak. Limit the body count...and never, under any circumstances, interfere with the Omicron Syndicate. Nadine’s smile begins to fade, but she's soon snapped back into reality as the drone makes a sound, flying back into Elijah's desk. She has next to no memory of Blue Eyes, but maybe feels something. Suspecting that Elijah may have ulterior motives, but feeling pretty excited anyway, the words he says subsequently blend together: “You're doing great. Just keep with our flow and we’ll keep you safe as we can. Well done, Nadine, and best of luck in the future.” He smiles, toasting a drink for her. “See you around…Madame Z.”

 

This is the part where I say that life is awesome now, but I really mean it. Lots more secrets to keep, so I'll have to send you lovely people on your way soon, but for now, I've got a new role in life with plenty of strings attached and rules to follow, granted. However, this line of work taught me one thing as well. In the right context, rules aren't always best when followed.

 

The narration above plays over this scene: Nadine walks away, and we see a closing montage of her, shot entirely from her pov: She steals a painting that has a hidden list of names hidden inside the canvas, presumably a list of people under witness protection. As she returns a 3D copy of it, she is caught. Running through the building with sneaky and parkour-like maneuvers, she eventually lands inside a a car. She sees herself in the side mirror, giving a smile and a wink.

 

TO BE CONTINUED…

 

The first part of the credits pays homage to the funky style of Saul Bass, set over the new original song “Make It Look Easy” by Panic! At The Disco and Janelle Monae – the film has a bit of a grainy effect to this point.

 

Mid Credits Scene:

Spoiler

We walk through an art exhibit of highly modern and highly sexualized art. A woman walks through it while smoking a cigarette and dragging along the tail of her long red dress. A small drone flies up to her, making a series of chip like sounds. “Mm... hmm? Huh? Yes...” The woman says. She looks in the mirror, telling herself, “So, it appears my apprentice now has one of her own. Not too shabby. However, there’s a point where even the veterans have to show newcomers how it’s done. Send a message to Madame Y…X would love to pay a visit.”

 

Post Credits Scene:

Spoiler

At an airport in Florida, a young passenger checks messages on their phone.They looks on with confusion as they finds out what happened at the masquerade event, getting several bewildering texts. An airport officer asks them for their ID, and they apologizes for the distraction. Putting it down, their name is Mel.

 

 

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Pillars of Eternity: Never Far From the Queen

 

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure

Starring: Ana de Armas (Sarana), Dan Stevens (Eder), Rebecca Ferguson (Nysera), Iwan Rheon (Aloth), J.K. Simmons (Durance), Zazie Beetz (Pallegina), Boyd Holbrook (Urgeat), Winston Duke (Kana Rua), Rinko Kikuchi (Sagani), Lily James (Ydwin), Bill Camp (Gedmar Doemenel), featuring Sam Riley (Hiravias), with Jessica Lange (Lady Webb), and Paul Bettany (The Grandmaster)

Co-Starring (In Alphabetical Order): Dominic Cooper (Abrecan Doemenel), Sam Elliot (voice of Ethelmoer), Mark Gatiss (Duc Aevar), Tracy Letts (Commander Clyver), Elizabeth Marvel (Bricanta Doemenel), Scoot McNairy (Kurren), Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Wenan), Alessandro Nivola (Caedman Azo)

Directed By: Miguel Sapochnik

Original Music By: Patrick Doyle

Release Date: November 19, Year 5

Theater Count: 3922 Theaters

Running Time: 173 Minutes

Budget: $165 Million

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of fantasy violence, brief strong language, and some disturbing images

 

Previous Film:

Pillars of Eternity: The Hollow Vale (Year 4) 

$76,084,415 OW/ $221,978,550 Domestic/$795,608,171 Worldwide

6 Oscar Nominations

 

Plot Synopsis: As their hunt for the trail of the mysterious organization known as the Leaden Key leads them to the capital city of Defiance Bay, neophyte Watcher Sarana and her colleagues find themselves as unintended entrants into a political game of thrones that could result in devastating consequences for the entirety of the Dyrwood.

 

Our Current Heroes:

Sarana- A young elf woman formerly from the vast Deadfire Archipelago, the events of the first film have unlocked memories of a past life, as well as the abilities of a Watcher, a person who can see and interact with souls.

 

Eder- A human farmer and former soldier who calls the Dyrwood home. After assisting in liberating Gilded Vale, he remains with Sarana in hopes of finding a means to protect his love, Aufra from the Hollowborn Plague.

 

Aloth- An elf wizard from the Aedyr Empire, who is in the Dyrwood on a mission to investigate the Hollowborn Plague.

 

Durance- A human priest of the Goddess Magran, the deity of fire, war, and struggle. He sees accompanying Sarana as his personal mission to ensure she passes the trials to come.

 

Kana Rua- An Aumaua researcher from the northern nation of Rauatai. Aumaua stand as tall as NBA players and most are built like NFL players, and have skin tones ranging from yellowish-brown through dark blue. Kana’s research into Watchers brought him into contact with Sarana.

 

Plot Summary:

 

Words in Italics represent Sarana's memories of her past life, and visions and interactions connected to her abilities as a Watcher.


 

Spoiler

 

*The opening sequence has no audible dialogue*

 

The film opens with an aerial shot of a plateau rising from a forest. The top of it seems to shimmer in the sunlight. As the camera pulls in closer we see that much of the surface of the top is not rock, but rather glistening adra. The top of the plateau is bare except for two things: a small house with assorted gardening around it, and a rock formation in the shape of an arch, from which is suspended a large bell. The camera pans slightly and we see from behind a woman in a simple country dress with long dark brown hair that tapers into grayish-silver standing at the rim of the plateau. She is watching a wagon on a path approaching the plateau that makes its way onto the winding pathway carved in the side of the plateau leading to the top. The country woman (Ferguson) has a blank, placid expression as she watches the wagon make its way.

 

The wagon arrives at the top by the house, the woman walking over to meet it. A man drives the wagon, and we see he has a passenger, a heavily pregnant woman. The country woman helps the pregnant woman into the house. The man stays with his wagon.

 

We cut to inside the house, the pregnant woman laid down on a spare bed, sheets, cloths, and bowls of water around as the country woman attends to her, clearly a midwife of some sort. The midwife mouths words under her breath as she rattles some chimes and moves her hands over the pregnant woman’s body, a ritual of some kind as the pregnant woman goes into labor. The midwife eases the pregnant woman through the labor, which culminates in a baby girl, healthy and crying. The midwife, holding the newborn in her arms, looks down at her and says soft words unheard by the audience as she places a hand on the newborn’s brow, and there is a slight wisp of energy. The midwife then takes the chimes she had been rattling, and ties the string holding them together into a bracelet, and snugly ties it onto one of the newborn’s wrists. She gives the newborn a kiss on the forehead and with a smile hands it to the new mother, who is exhausted but looks on with gratitude

 

The film cuts to the midwife exiting the house and nodding to the man by the wagon, who quickly gets down, rushes by the midwife and enters the house. The midwife walks on, to the rock formation with the large bell, and with a heave pushes the bell, which starts a loud tolling as it swings back and forth.

 

Cut to, some miles away, a small but vibrant village with people going about their business with the plateau visible rising on the horizon. The chimes of the bell are heard and people stop their activities for a few seconds as they listen, and then resume their work, many with a smile. The film fades to black.

 

We return to the plateau, once again empty save for the midwife, watching as another wagon comes to the plateau. A montage ensues with a repeating cycle of shots, but with different people involved, and different seasons showing time passing: A wagon arrives, a woman is helped into the house, the midwife performs her ritual as she helps the woman give birth, the midwife ties a bracelet of chimes to the newborn as it is handed to the new mother, the woman rings the bell, the village briefly pauses in recognition of the new member of the community. This goes on for a handful of times until, one time, when the baby is born, there are no cries, or reaction at all from the newborn. The midwife looks down, and while the newborn boy breathes, it is limp, listless, glassy-eyed, and without any spark of life to it. Audiences having watched the first film would recognize this as a Hollowborn. The midwife, holding the Hollowborn in her arms, looks down at it in confusion.

 

Cut to outside the house, with a man by a wagon, when suddenly screams and sobs are heard coming from the house. The man rushes in, flinging the door open as he does, the camera holding a shot of the open doorway as the film fades to black.

 

Cut to the village nearby. It is utterly deserted. Doors lie open, windows are broken, weeds are everywhere, vines are growing on some buildings. It is clear that some years have gone by, and the village is abandoned. The wind rustles through the dead village as the camera looks at the plateau, rising in the distance.

 

On the plateau, the small house is in disrepair as well, but the midwife is there, standing on the edge of the plateau, looking out at the world, her expression melancholy. We see one of her wrists has a bracelet of chimes tied around it. As she looks down again, we are deliberately left with the impression that she is considering jumping. However, she steps back, and takes a look at the rock formation with the bell, the bell showing signs of rust and disrepair after a time of no use. Without her expression changing, she walks over to the bell, and, pulling out a knife, cuts the cords connecting the bell to the apparatus, and it falls to the ground with a clang.

 

Cut to sunset, the small house burning, the flames vibrantly glinting off the adra surface of the plateau. The midwife is seen from behind, silhouetted by the flames as she looks at the burning home. Her expression is now one of sad determination. She picks up a pack lying on the ground by her and walks towards the camera, passing by it to the side as the camera holds a shot of the burning house, the fallen bell resting in the far corner of the screen, before it fades to black.

 

PILLARS OF ETERNITY: NEVER FAR FROM THE QUEEN

 

Sarana (de Armas) stands in another of her past life memories, in a sparsely decorated room. She puts on heavy dark robes, pulling a hood over top. She also pulls from a chest an iron mask, which she tucks into her robes. She exits the building she is in and briefly looks up above her at a tall tower, two gigantic elm trees winding around it, before continuing on her way until she reaches a dock where others in robes await passage. They all take a boat to an island in the middle of the lake, marked with tombs. She follows the others up a hillside passage, putting on her iron mask as she does, to the top, where dozens upon dozens of robed figures are in a ring around a large gaping pit carved into the stone. Standing by the edge of the pit is the Grandmaster (Bettany), winged helmet and mask on, and next to him is an apparatus that a figure is strapped to. The film deliberately keeps the figure out of focus, but we see Sarana in the crowd half-looking away. The Grandmaster turns towards the figure on the apparatus. “Will you end this charade for us, or shall I end it for you?”

 

Sarana wakes up with a gasp in a camp in the woods just off a dirt road. She looks around and sees that Eder, Durance, and Kana are all asleep, and sitting by the campfire is Aloth (Rheon). She goes over to sit by him, hearing him talking to himself as she approaches, she hears him in a higher-pitched, more rustic accent say “And what’ll ye do about it, nothing, as usual.” Sarana coughs audibly from behind him, causing Aloth to half-jump before turning and apologizing if he woke her up. Sarana says she was already up and sits down by him. “Bad dreams again?” Aloth asks. Sarana says she thinks more like bad memories. She says she saw the same man she saw at the strange ruins in the first film, and “I think, in this prior life, I followed him.” Aloth says if her instinct is right, they’ll learn more in Defiance Bay, which is a few days travel away. Sarana thanks Aloth for the vote of confidence. She asks Aloth if he’s alright, she heard him talking to himself again. Aloth sighs and says he’s just stressed, nothing to worry about. They talk a bit more and we learn some more about Aloth’s past growing up in the Aedyr Empire across the ocean. His father was very demanding and pushed Aloth relentlessly. “And that was when he wasn’t drinking” Aloth says. “Needless to say, I was happy to get a job far away from him.” Their conversation winds down as the others wake up one by one. After a little banter, the group continues on horseback on the road to Defiance Bay.

 

As they ride, Sarana asks Eder and Durance what they can expect. Eder (Stevens) says he’s never been in Defiance Bay, but he’s heard that many people from rural regions have fled there to escape the Hollowborn Plague. Durance (Simmons) adds that it is a symptom of the sickness plaguing the Dyrwood, people fleeing their troubles rather than facing them. “Makes them easy to exploit. Cities are places of corruption, I suspect Defiance Bay will be even more so.” As they continue riding, Aloth hangs back to ride with Kana, who is a little slower than the others as he takes in the scenery. Aloth asks if his studies have given him any additional insight. Kana (Duke) shakes his head and says nothing about Defiance Bay specifically, but he adds that if they come across anything he recognizes he’ll let them know.

 

The scene shifts to Defiance Bay, in the same catacombs where the first movie ended. We see Urgeat (Holbrook) in the tunnels, going to the same chamber at the close of the first movie. The Grandmaster, presently unmasked, is waiting for him and asks if it’s been done. Urgeat nods and says he has paid mercenary bands to watch roads towards Defiance Bay. If the Watcher takes one, she’ll be handled. The Grandmaster doesn’t expect the mercenaries to stop her, but it is never foolish to take precautions. Urgeat says he could handle this personally, but the Grandmaster tells him he should keep his focus on Defiance Bay. The Grandmaster says that the situation in the city is close to primed. “That is the beauty of dealing with angry peasants. They want someone to blame and the means to act on it, so offer a hand and it will be accepted without question.”

 

We stay in Defiance Bay and the camera shows up growing unrest in the streets, as the population has swelled by thousands of refugees, and most living day-to-day impoverished and hungry. On a platform in a city square a man speaks to a crowd of riled-up humans (with a few elves and dwarves mixed in). The man, Wenan (Dean Morgan), tells the crowd that the Dyrwood is on the brink of destruction, with enemies on all sides, and the rich are doing nothing. “They think this trouble will pass, and they can profit on it, but we know the truth. We know that this country can only be saved if we, the ignored, take control of our fate with our own hands. We know the causes of our troubles: The soul butchers in Brackenbury messing with forces no one understands; the Eothasians in our midst who are servants of a traitor god; the savage Glanfathans and their mongrel Orlan leaders (Orlans are a race that are similar in size to Hobbits, but are substantially more hairy/animalistic in appearance); and the rich who are happy to sit in their mansions and take foreign coin while we suffer. The time will come when the people of the Dyrwood fight for their future, and when that time comes, we shall prevail.” The crowd is getting fired up by the speech and Wenan tells them to join the Dozens. “Though our name is small, our numbers are great, and our courage greater.” At this point city guardsmen enter the square and start to disperse the crowd, manhandling several people. Wenan departs guarded by several warriors. As Wenan goes down a side alley, a voice says “Nice speech, felt it in my gut.” It is Urgeat. Wenan asks Urgeat what he wants. Urgeat replies “Just a moment of your time to make a proposal. I want the same things you do, and I can help you get them.” Wenan stares at Urgeat and then says he is listening. Urgeat smiles.

 

The film shifts to another section of Defiance Bay, this one more opulent, with richly adorned buildings radiating outwards from a central complex: the Ducal Palace. Inside the palace, in a large meeting room, a handful of people discuss matters. Leading the discussion is Duc Aevar (Gatiss), the ruler of the Dyrwood. Also present is Clyver (Letts), the commander of the Crucible Knights. Aevar says that the situation in the city is growing far too heated, and asks Clyver to put more men on the streets to maintain order. Clyver “give me the order and I can have Admeth’s Den and those Dozens cleared out, with their leaders put in irons or dumped in the bay.” Aevar declines, saying that he rules all of the Dyrwood, even the Dozens, and some of their grievances may have merit. “Assaulting them will create the riot I am trying to avoid.” Clyver suggests Aevar contact the “Spider” and see if she can lend some insight. Aevar smiles and says she doesn’t like that name. He says if she knows something, she will reach out. Until then, he will lay preparations for the animancy hearings and hope they will help ease tensions.

 

We return to Sarana and her group as they approach a crossroads. Eder estimates they are now maybe a day from reaching Defiance Bay. As they pass the crossroads ten or so men emerge from wooded areas around them. Their leader looks at a scrap of paper, looks at Sarana, and says “it’s her.” Sarana sighs and asks what they want. The leader says “coin, and we need your head for that.” Sarana replies “then you shouldn’t have stopped to talk” and in a flash flings a concealed dagger at the leader, catching him in the chest. The leader goes down and the others are briefly startled before rushing in to attack. As Sarana and the others fight them off, we see one of them try to attack her from behind, only to be suddenly shot with an arrow. Sarana sees this, and we see in a treeline a cloaked figure with a bow taking a second shot, which hits another marauder. The rest of the others go down quickly save for one who makes a run for it and enters the woods only to be attacked by something which leaps onto him with a snarl.

 

After checking if everyone is alright, Sarana calls out “You can come out now.” The cloaked figure exits the woods, pulling back her hood to reveal a middle-aged dwarf woman. The woman introduces herself as Sagani (Kikuchi) and says she noticed the bandits preparing an ambush, so she set one of her own. Sarana says one got away and Sagani replies “no he didn’t” and whistles. Out of the woods comes trotting an arctic fox the size of a large dog. The fox trots up next to Sagani and as she scratches its ears she says “Itumaak here made sure of that.” We learn that Sagani is from Naasitaq, an island between the Deadfire Archipelago and the frozen southern continent known as The White That Wends. Kana comments she’s a long way from home. Sagani nods and says she’s here on a personal matter, but has been wary since a lot of the people don’t take kindly to foreigners. Sarana notices Sagani subconsciously fidgeting with something around her neck. Eder comments to Sagani “Don’t take it personal, most Dyrwoodans don’t take kindly to most people.” Sarana says they’re on their way to Defiance Bay, so they might as well travel together. Sagani scrutinizes the group for a few seconds and says that sounds fine to her. The group continues on their way.

 

We return to Defiance Bay. Urgeat walks up an opulent mansion and meets with three people: Gedmar Doemenel (Camp), who’s name was mentioned in the first film as the person who was Urgeat’s reference to Lord Raedric; Bricanta Doemenel (Marvel), his wife; and Abrecan Doemenel (Cooper), their son. Urgeat says the Dozens have accepted his offer, so the Doemenels need to start the shipments. Gedmar says he knows a Vailian merchant they can use as a middleman for that. Urgeat also says they need to use their influence to get him a witness spot at the hearings. Gedmar and Bricanta say they can arrange for that.

 

After he departs, the three Doemenels talk. Abrecan is eager, as it can create a vacuum the family can step into. Bricanta is more wary, saying that it was one thing to connect Urgeat’s organization to Lord Raedric. Gedmar sighs and says the Leaden Key has given them too much assistance over the years to back out now. “We made our bed, we lie in it.” Abrecan will take point on coordinating with the Dozens.

 

We return to the heroes as they camp. After the others fall asleep, Sarana asks Sagani about the thing she has been fiddling with. Sagani pulls out a string looped around her neck tied to a small adra figurine of a bear. Sagani says her younger brother Persoq fell in with a strange group of people, hooded and mysterious and up to no good. The group ended up killing several people in Naasitaq and fled, and Persoq went with them, claiming the group was doing what was best for the world. Sagani couldn’t sit still and decided to track him down and bring him home. “He didn’t know what he was getting into, and as the oldest it was my job to look after him.” Sarana asks how Sagani could expect to find him in all of Eora. Sagani grins. “Well, aside from being the best hunter on Naasitaq, I also have this” holding out the adra bear.

 

Sagani says she and her brother each have one, given to them when they were born. “Elders say they pick up tiny bits of our soul as we grow. Right before I left, the village shaman did a small ritual, so as I get closer to him, it glows brighter. It’s been pulsing more regularly after I got to the Dyrwood, and I figured since Defiance Bay is the biggest city, might as well start there.” Sarana asks Sagani how long she’s been tracking her brother and Sagani says softly “a few years.” She wishes she could be home with her husband and three children, but she has to see this through. Sagani asks Sarana her story and Sarana says she’s on a hunt of her own, and it sounds like the group she hunts is the same organization that Persoq joined. Sarana adds that she is a Watcher and that she could look at the figurine. Sagani declines for now.

 

That morning Aloth starts yelling in his sleep. Eder wakes him up and the others ask if he is fine. Aloth swears he is, but no one looks convinced. Durance pulls Sarana aside and tells her that Aloth is in denial. Something is wrong with him. “And if he does not overcome it, it will be wrong with this group.” Sarana says Aloth will talk when he’s ready.

 

We see the group arriving at Defiance Bay, slowly navigating the crowds of refugees and poor. As they go through the streets they pass a small Dozens rally. Eder groans in disgust and Sarana asks what is wrong. Eder says he’s heard of the Dozens. They’re named after The Dozen, the 12 men and women who fought Waidwen, the alleged incarnation of the god Eothas, during the Saint’s War, buying time for the Godhammer Bomb to go off. “They use the name to pretend they’re patriots, but they’re bigots trying to justify their hate.” Durance says quietly but with anger that the Dozens mock those who sacrificed everything.

 

Kana tells the group the Temple of Woedica is near the city center. They go there and see the Ducal Palace off to the side. Durance says a temple to his goddess, Magran, is in the palace, the largest outside of Ashfall, where he was from. Eder says it almost sounds like Durance misses it, but Durance brushes it off. They find where the Temple of Woedica once stood, it is now just ruins. Kana says he read it was destroyed in the Dyrwood’s rebellion for independence. Sarana nods and then a person rides up next to her and comments “Just because it’s ruins doesn’t mean nothing’s there,” and just as quickly the figure disappears. Sarana sighs and when Eder asks if she’s ok, she replies “Watcher stuff. Give me a minute.” She walks over to the temple ruins.

 

Sarana walks around the ruins until she hears a slight echoing, the world goes gray around her, and she sees a glowing outline of a person wandering the ruins. She goes up to the spirit and asks what it is doing. The spirit replies he is looking for the entrance to the temple sanctum. Sarana sees it has caved in and says it looks blocked. She asks if there’s other ways in and the spirit says there’s entrances from the catacombs, but those are dirty and he’s dressed too well. The spirit clearly doesn’t realize he’s dead. Sarana thanks the spirit and adds, a little awkwardly “hope you find your way in”, before walking away.

 

Sarana returns to the group and says there’s another entrance via the city catacombs. They’ll go that way. They ride off, Sagani commenting “does she wander around like that often” and Eder replies “Oh you get used to it.”

 

As the group sets off on the streets, we see a short, hooded figure watching them from an alley before disappearing into shadows.

 

After some asking around, the group finds an entrance to the catacombs. They carefully make their way through, until they see several people in robes and hoods heading towards a side nook. The group quickly strikes, Aloth using magic to stun the people so they can be subdued easily. Sarana says she, Aloth, and Eder will go inside. The others should tie up the people and hide them somewhere. Sarana, Eder, and Aloth put on the robes and hoods the people were wearing. Kana hands them the masks the people had with them, the same from Sarana’s dreams. Hesitating, slightly, Sarana puts hers on, Eder and Aloth doing the same. The three set out while the others tidy up the scene.

 

Sarana, Eder, and Aloth enter the nook, which narrows to a passage that leads to some stairs. As they descend, Aloth is shaking. They reach the bottom of the stairs which empty into an antechamber. They step into it and Sarana freezes as an ancient memory awakens.

 

Sarana is on a wagon, pulling into the town with the two giant elms wrapped around a tower. Several people are on the wagon with her. We get the sense the camera is hiding someone. The wagon pulls up by the tower and Sarana and the others get off. Waiting for them are several people in hoods and robes, as well as the Grandmaster. The Grandmaster welcomes the arrivals and says this is their first step into a new life. He greets them individually and when he gets to Sarana they talk, him asking where she’s from. Sarana says Creitum. The Grandmaster says several others in the order have come from there. He asks why she has joined and Sarana says she was looking for a purpose, and the Gods can grant that. The Grandmaster says that service to the Gods is rewarding. He says that they shall accomplish great things. The vision fades.

 

Sarana apologizes to Eder and Aloth but says she feels a room in her head has unlocked. Eder says if that can keep them from getting into a fight deep underground, fine with him.

 

The three continue on to the far side, where a couple guards wait by doors. The guards recognize the clothing and open the doors without a word. As the three go down into the complex, another person comes up to them and says “you’ve arrived on schedule, good, she is waiting for you.” Clearly the people Sarana et al intercepted were due for a meeting. Sarana nods and says they will go there at once. As they get closer, Aloth starts shaking visibly, until finally he starts talking to himself rapidly, voice alternating in pitch and inflection. He’s having a breakdown. Sarana and Eder pull him into a corner and Eder wraps him in a bear-hug to restrain him as Sarana puts her hands on Aloth’s shoulders and quietly tries to calm him down. Slowly, Aloth does. He apologizes profusely. Sarana says it’s ok, she’ll go on alone. She tells Eder to wait outside with Aloth. Sarana continues on until she reaches another set of doors.

 

She enters into a chamber with several robed people standing around a stone table. A woman in the middle directs Sarana to sit. After she does, the woman asks Sarana several questions, which Sarana instinctively answers without hesitation:

 

“State your name and purpose.”

“My name belongs to the gods and my hand to their service.”

 

“What company do you seek?”

“I seek the company of shadows, that our labors may remain secret.”

 

“Tell me of your labors.”

“To see that the craft of kith and wilder does not disturb what bones the gods have buried.”

 

“How do we know your purpose?”

“You shall know it by the confession of my tongue, the deeds of my hand, and the oath on my soul.”

 

“And how is your oath guarded?”

“It is sealed by the Leaden Key.”

 

The woman walks up to Sarana and puts hands on either side of Sarana’s head, and Sarana’s head is flooded with visions. She sees a building in a wealthy city district, and inside people wander with books, but underneath, there are people in cells, people in pain, being experimented on, until the vision focuses on a young man, dirty, ragged clothes, and unkempt hair in a cell.

 

“Does he wait still?”

“Yes”

 

She sees a country village, people going about their business, as a few others travel through it and on a country road, through forest and canyon, until they reach old, battered stone ruins. And underneath those, a large subterranean cavern, with a tall device of copper and adra, the same type of device that Awakened Sarana at the beginning of the first film.

 

“Have they arrived?”

“They are on their way.”

 

The woman is pleased and tells Sarana she may go. Sarana quickly departs without a word. She retraces her steps until she reunites with Eder and Aloth. “We have a lot to talk about” she says to them.

 

They meet up with the others, ditch the disguises, and go topside where they find a nearby tavern to congregate in. Sarana goes over the visions she had, saying that she thinks her natural abilities as a Watcher were able to passively draw information from the woman. No one recognizes the country village she describes, but from the description of the place with the underground cells, Eder and Durance deduce it to be Brackenbury Sanitarium, the center for animancy research in the Dyrwood. Between these two visions and the vague Doemenel connection, they have three leads. Sarana says they can figure out which to tackle first in the morning, giving Eder and Aloth a “we need to have a discussion now” look. The others retire to their rooms, Eder and Aloth staying behind. Aloth is very nervous. Sarana reaches over to put a hand on his, which calms him down a little. She says “Aloth, you’re a friend, and I trust you, but it’s time you come clean.”

 

Aloth says it was something he hoped he could keep under control, but it’s gotten worse. He tells Sarana and Eder that for a number of years, he has had an Awakened soul, like Sarana. Whereas Sarana’s just gives her makes her relive memories, for Aloth sometimes the past life actually manifests as a personality. “Like Maerwald” Eder says, and Aloth nods. Aloth says the past life is of a lower-class country woman, whom based on the dialect lived at least a few hundred years ago. Her name is Iselmyr. Sarana, looking pensive, asks to meet Iselmyr. Aloth is reluctant, but relents and closes his eyes, and when he opens them again, his body language is drastically different and his voice, as seen before, is of a higher pitch and a different tone (Normal Aloth has a standard BBC English accent, Iselmyr talks more Cockney/Old English).

 

Iselmyr says she didn’t ask to be woken up. Eder asks if they should be concerned that she’s gonna possess Aloth or something. Iselmyr laughs and says that she’s no thief, but if she’s stuck as a passenger, she’s not gonna stand for his foolishness. “He’s afraid ‘o conflict. If ‘e won’t stand up for ‘imself, I will. That’s what I had to do for ‘im when his father got-” at that point Aloth reasserts himself. Aloth says it’s been growing more common lately and he’s been scared of what might happen. Sarana and says he is with friends, they’ll help him out. Eder says that maybe the animancers at the Sanitarium can take a look. “We have to go there anyway, might as well take care of it first. Two birds.” Sarana agrees.

 

We return to the sanctum under the Temple of Woedica. The Grandmaster meets with the woman who shared visions with Sarana, he is not happy. He says an enemy walked into their midst and obtained valuable information. The woman, shaking, says “she knew the words, by heart.” The Grandmaster replies “of course she did. I taught them to her.” He slightly moves a hand and the woman freezes into place. She puts a hand on her belt and says “Master, please, don’t.” He replies “Do it.” The woman then pulls a dagger from her belt and slits her own throat.

 

The following day, the group goes to Brackenbury Sanitarium. Again, we see that someone is watching from afar.

 

They enter the Sanitarium and are taken to meet the Warden of the facility, Ethelmoer. Ethelmoer is not a person, not anymore. He is a floor-to-ceiling statute that has been infused with the soul of the formerly alive Ethelmoer, so it retains all of Ethelmoer’s memories and personality (the statute speaks, but it’s a voice coming out of thin air rather than the statue’s face moving). Ethelmoer (voice of Elliot) asks how he can help, and Sarana explains that she is a Watcher, and that she is investigating a harmful group and a vision in her investigations has led her here. Ethelmoer says it isn’t that crazy, he has met Watchers before. Sarana shares a few more details and Ethelmoer grows concerned. He says that some of his researchers engage in experiments that could be taken the wrong way. He also believes at least one of them may in fact be crossing a line. He says Caedman Azo runs the research of the basement wing, and he gives them permission to talk to him.

 

The group goes downstairs and is directed to Caedman Azo (Nivola), who is running some tests on a patient in the Sanitarium. The tests look odd, at best. After the patient leaves, they speak with Azo, who is haughty, condescending, and self-righteous. He says nothing untoward is going on down here and there is nothing to worry about. Sarana’s attempts to explain things go nowhere, and Azo tells them the conversation is over and leaves, going down to a large set of locked doors and going through, locking behind him.

 

As the group debates how to proceed, Itumaak’s ears perk up and he sniffs the air. Sagani says he does this when someone is watching. Sarana looks and spies someone peaking from a corner, and gives them a “come over” hand motion.

 

A young woman comes from around the corner. She is a Pale Elf, looking almost albino, with short-cut hair and wearing a small pair of glasses. She introduces herself as Ydwin (James) and says she might be able to help them.

 

We cut to a small research room that is Ydwin’s. Ydwin says that Azo only allows a few into the restricted section, and has constructs inside as guards. “Constructs?” Sagani asks and Aloth explains they are robots animated by soul energy. Ydwin nods and says the constructs are dumb and can be fooled, but she was reluctant to do anything on her own. “I’ve seen relatively normal people go in, and come out on a stretcher with a sheet over them.” Eder suggests they go in now, but Ydwin says they should wait until Azo leaves, to avoid running into him. Sarana and Aloth exchange glances and Sarana says “since we’re waiting, do you mind having a look at Aloth.”

 

Aloth explains to Ydwin his condition and Ydwin asks questions with almost morbid curiosity, pushing up her glasses as she takes notes in a notebook. She says she is still learning a lot, but she might be able to glean something. She has Aloth sit in a chair and fastens some straps to him as well as array some overly-complicated and ridiculous-looking devices around his head. Aloth asks if all this is necessary and Ydwin with a smile says “honestly, no. But if it looks complex, rich people pay more because they think it’s more work. So consider this just for fun.” She winks, though Aloth is not amused. After some fiddling, Ydwin takes a small adra crystal and plugs it into a socket, and flips a switch. We see some electrical and energy currents running through wiring and into the devices around Aloth, who shivers a bit, and then nothing else happens. Kana, who had been watching with fascination, looks disappointed. Sarana asks if that’s it and Ydwin says the more unstable the Awakening, the more of a reaction the machine generates. It seems Aloth’s condition is more mental.

 

“Aye, told ya’ everything was fine wit’ me.” Iselmyr bursts through with a grin. Ydwin is fascinated and tries to talk to Iselmyr but Aloth suppresses her again and asks to be let loose of the contraption. Ydwin complies and says that as far as she can tell, “It’s more up here” she says pointing to her head, then “in here”, pointing to center mass of his body. “That’s hardly reassuring” Aloth says snarkily, and he goes to a corner of the room to sulk. Sarana goes to follow but Eder says give him some time.

 

After more time passes, Azo leaves, and the group uses magic to unseal the locked doors. They are approached by one of the constructs, which in a guttural voice demands to know why they are here. Ydwin fools the construct by saying “Azo gave us permission, and since Azo locks the doors, we would not be here unless he let us unlock them.” The construct lets them pass, and they have free reign of the section.

 

They walk around and see a number of patients, some allowed to wander freely, others tightly secured in restraints or in cells. They also see signs of cruel experiments. Durance comments that all sides of this conflict are in the wrong.

 

Eventually, Sarana is able to locate the patient she saw in her vision. It is a young man, maybe 20, dirty and ragged, and non-responsive when she tries to speak to him through the cell bars. Gripping the bars, Sarana closes her eyes, and concentrates.

 

Her eyes open, and the world is gray, her companions all frozen in time. The patient in the cell faintly glows, though there is a black mass pulsing in his core. Sarana reaches out for it, and suddenly starts shaking and sweating, as there is a flash of light.

 

Sarana has a vision of another patient in the Sanitarium, a young girl, with the same black pulsing mass at the center. When a construct walks by, the black mass shoots out of the girl and into it, and the construct goes to Azo’s office and tinkers with his equipment. The construct goes back and the black mass returns to the girl. The vision shifts to the girl outside, strapped to a machine as Azo demonstrates to the public. Azo turns the machine on, and the machine backfires, surging the girl with energy, and killing her. The black mass rises from the dead girl as the crowd riots, and Azo flees in terror.

 

This vision fades, and the patient looks at Sarana. “Hello, Watcher” the patient says. Sarana says, to the soul within “I saw you by Gilded Vale. I see you in my dreams. Who are you?” The patient laughs and says like everyone else, she wants answers she would not understand to questions she cannot comprehend. “I will help you put your anxieties to rest.”

 

In a flash, energy springs out of the patient, zigzagging with speed as it briefly comes into contact with numerous patients and constructs before dissipating. There is a couple seconds of uneasy silence, and then a construct pulls a lever that opens all of the cell doors. And all havoc breaks loose as all of the infected patients and constructs start to attack everyone around them. Sarana and everyone else have to fight their way out of the restricted section, using magic, swordplay, anything they can. They see that something has already unsealed the restricted section, and hear shouts from havoc erupted elsewhere in the Sanitarium. They bar the way behind them, and return upstairs to find it in disarray, with several bodies on the floor and the doors to the Sanitarium thrown open.

 

They go to Ethelmoer’s statue and explain what went on, and Ethelmoer believes this was planned, as this occurred just before Azo was to testify at the animancy hearings. He recommends they depart. Ydwin asks if she can come, since there are plenty of animancers trying to do good, and she doesn’t want them painted with the same brush. The others agree.

 

They exit the Sanitarium and get away before a bunch of city guards arrive. As they watch from afar, the figure who has been watching them finally approaches. It is an orlan, Kurren. Kurren (McNairy) says they have been busy, and his employer would like to speak with them.

 

The group is led to a large mansion. Inside, Kurren leads them upstairs to a large sitting room, where an elderly woman sits drinking wine. The woman introduces herself as Lady Webb (Lange) and comments that Sarana’s group has been quite busy. When asked how she knows this, Lady Webb says as the resident spymaster of the Dyrwood, it’s her business to know things. “Such as the name of the enemy you are hunting.”

 

Lady Webb says the Leaden Key has been hard to infiltrate. Sarana says she is a Watcher, “which helps.” Lady Webb nods and says she has a few gifts with reading souls, and closes her eyes. A few seconds later she opens them and says she knows the man who is on Sarana’s mind. “His name is Thaos ix Arkannon, and he has been the most dangerous person on Eora for the past two thousand years.” Lady Webb explains that Thaos is not immortal, but as the most devoted servant of the goddess Woedica, she has been able to bend the rules of reincarnation. Every time Thaos dies, his soul is reborn fully Awakened in a new body. He also can infect the souls of people with weak wills, and control them. When asked how she knows this, Lady Webb says she has been investigating the Leaden Key for nearly fifty years.

 

Sarana shares info of the two visions she had, as well as a connection to the wealthy House Doemenel. This concerns Lady Webb, as House Doemenel have extensive connections. Lady Webb asks the group to meet her tomorrow at the Ducal Palace, for the next round of animancy hearings. She says this will help explain what is at stake.

 

We return to the Leaden Key Sanctum. Urgeat goes to meet with Thaos, who is contemplative. Thaos stops him from talking with a hand gesture. He says that the mercenaries have failed, and she is in Defiance Bay. She almost interfered at Brackenbury, and if she knew about that, she may know about Cliaban Rilag. Urgeat offers again to now handle this, but Thaos again declines. The work in Defiance Bay is the key, everything else is secondary.

 

We have a couple short character scenes with the group. Sarana, Aloth, and Ydwin talk about Awakenings. Sarana talks about being a Watcher and her own memories and Ydwin is enraptured, like a student transfixed by a lecture. Kana and Sagani talk about their travels across the world. Both miss home, but both know what they’re doing is important. Kana, a bit awkwardly, tries to ask Sagani if she is worried about her husband… while she is away. Sagani chuckles and says “No. he knows I’m the best shot in Naasitaq. And that’s after I have Itumaak take off a piece from him he’d miss.” Itumaak cocks his head in a “Not sure about that” look.

 

The following day, the group goes to the Ducal Palace, where they meet Lady Webb and Kurren. Lady Webb has secured a viewing box, and says “no interruptions. Just watch.” They go to the box but Durance lingers behind, and goes to the Magran temple.

 

In the temple, Durance walks around, and we see a statue of Magran, a tall muscular woman with a large two-handed sword, head wreathed in flames. An attending priestess asks if she can help, but Durance after staring at the statue says no. “She is of no help to me anymore,” and leaves.

 

The others arrive at the viewing box, and watch the day’s hearings unfold, Duc Aevar presiding. First, Caedman Azo is hauled in for questioning. Azo’s experiments are discussed, and it is revealed that several patients and constructs escaped the Sanitarium and killed a few people and injured more before they were subdued. Aevar says that Azo’s fiasco at Baelreach might have been written off as a tragic mistake, but now it is clear his methods are barbaric, and serve no scientific purpose. He sentences Azo to death, and Azo is taken away in chains. A member of the Dozens demands that all animancers share the same fate, but Aevar says the evidence also shows that the others were unaware of Azo’s work and he hid it from them. “This is the work of one man.” Lady Webb says to the group that Aevar is doing his best to balance things, and it is growing harder each day.

 

The next person is brought in for testimony, and Sarana and Eder freeze. It is Urgeat. Both look like they are about to do something, but Lady Webb says “interfering now will do you no good.” Aevar says that Urgeat is a survivor of Gilded Vale, and has been recommended for testimony by the Doemenels. Urgeat, looking slick, thanks everyone for the opportunity, and gives a one-sided view of the animancy experiments from the first film, and people are horrified by innocents being turned into walking mindless abominations. Aevar heads things off by grilling Urgeat about Lord Raedric himself and his descent into madness. Urgeat is forced to admit that all of the experiments were ordered by Raedric himself. Aevar uses this to say that while what the animancer did was reprehensible, it was ordered by the lord himself, one who was mad. “Perhaps it was fear of death that had the animancer do her work.” Aevar again is able to keep the crowd under control. The hearings conclude for the day.

 

The group stays in the box. Lady Webb says “Now you know what is at stake. The city is a powder keg, and Aevar is fending off a hundred people with lit matches.” Eder says they bring Aevar what they know and Lady Webb says they know very little. “We need more proof. You have two leads. We will need to investigate both.”

 

As they leave, Sarana and Eder see Urgeat in a foyer, talking with some Dozens. They lock eyes, and Urgeat smiles. The three approach one another, and Urgeat says he has missed them both, but they’ll meet again soon. “Sooner than you think” Sarana replies, giving him a death stare. Urgeat says he hopes so, but, indicating all the palace guards, “another time.” He leaves.

 

Back at Lady Webb’s mansion, they go over what they know: The Leaden Key has a connection to House Doemenel here in Defiance Bay, and they are sending people to tinker with a machine in an Engwithan ruin in the countryside. Kurren says he had his researchers go over the descriptions in Sarana’s vision and they point to Cliaban Rilag, an old ruin past the village of Dyrford. They will need to split up to investigate both.

 

They settle in for the night to think things over. Sarana and Eder talk, and he says that she should go to Cliaban Rilag. “You’re a Watcher, and you’ve seen those machines before.” He adds that since he and Durance are the only Dyrwood natives, they should stay in Defiance Bay. Sarana agrees and tells him to be careful, “or Aufra will kill us both.” Eder laughs. He adds that if he has a chance to take care of Urgeat for both of them, he will.

 

Sarana then goes to see Sagani in her room, Itumaak curled up in a ball by the fireplace. She is fiddling with her bear figurine and says to Sarana it’s been flickering less frequently. Sarana asks if she can take a look at it and Sagani agrees. Sarana takes hold of it and focuses, and she sees a vision of a dwarf man, a few years younger than Sagani, walking with others as they pass through a village. The same village from her vision. Sarana says Persoq is on the way to Cliaban Rilag. Sagani says she knows where she has to go now.

 

The following morning, the split is made. Sarana, Aloth, Kana, Sagani, and Ydwin will go to Cliaban Rilag, and Eder and Durance will remain in Defiance Bay. Kurren will aid the two of them. The group exchanges wishes of luck, and then Sarana’s team leaves the mansion.

 

Elsewhere in Defiance Bay, we see a short scene where Abrecan Doemenel and a few goons meet several members of the Dozens. Abrecan says the next shipments are about to arrive.

 

We return to Sarana’s group now on the road. Sarana and Aloth and Sarana says maybe he and Iselmyr just need to reach some sort of understanding. Aloth says he’d rather she be gone, but he knows it doesn’t work like that. As they camp, Ydwin asks Sarana about the Engwithan ruins she encountered and Sarana describes them. Ydwin says before she came to the Dyrwood she was with some Vailians who studied ruins in the Vailian Republics. If they get to Cliaban Rilag, she might have an idea of what these machines do.

 

We go back to Defiance Bay. Eder, Durance, and Kurren talk about investigating the Doemenels. Kurren says that the Doemenels like to use the same middlemen because they’re afraid of leaks. One known middleman is Verzano, a Vailian trader, who has been making an unusually high amount of imports recently.

 

They go to Verzano’s trading outpost by the city’s harbor. Eder and Durance make a show of being merchants, and while it is not the most convincing ruse, Verzano is a greedy man and he falls for it, taking them on a tour. As he does, Kurren sneaks around to look for information.

 

As Verzano leads Eder and Durance around, boasting, they try to subtly get information out of him. Verzano does say he does business with all the major families in the city, including House Doemenel. Soon the conversation is interrupted by an angry woman in armor stomping inside to confront Verzano. The woman is tall, and not entirely human. Where she would have hair and eyelashes, she instead has colorful feathers, and her eyes are golden, with nictitating membranes. She is clearly a Godlike. The woman, who Verzano addresses as Pallegina, demands Verzano stop his activities before they embarrass the Republics. Verzano plays dumb, but Pallegina (Beetz) grabs him by the collar and says “You’re playing a dangerous game Verzano, careful you don’t find yourself alone at the table.” She lets him go and stomps out. Eder and Durance use this as an excuse to leave.

 

They meet up with Kurren and Kurren says he found some interesting documents, but it’ll take a few hours to crack the simple code. Eder says they should seek Pallegina out. Durance says she is “one of Hylea’s spawn” and that he doesn’t like that goddess or her servants. Eder replies “Durance, when have you liked anyone?” Durance grumbles, and the three seek out Pallegina.

 

They meet her and Pallegina recognizes Eder and Durance from inside. Eder explains they are investigating House Doemenel and know Verzano is connected to them. Pallegina says she is investigating Verzano as well, since his dealings are growing more suspicious. They agree to work together. They wait in a safehouse while Kurren decodes the documents. As they do, we learn that Pallegina is a member of the the Brotherhood of the Five Suns, a Vailian knighthood. She is also an Avian Godlike, who are marked by Hylea, the goddess of the sky, birds, art, etc. (Vailians have an Italian accent when they speak)

 

Kurren decodes the documents and says that Verzano has been importing “luxury goods” and is keeping them at a warehouse in the docks, where they are picked up by the Doemenels.

 

That night, they go to the warehouse and snoop around. Kurren identifies the crates that are mentioned in the documents and Eder and Pallegina pry one open. Inside, instead of luxury goods, are weapons and armor, including firearms (of a kind made in the 16th century). Eder says the Doemenels are not messing around. Firearms are rare in the Dyrwood, and the Doemenels are importing a lot in. Eder takes a pistol and some ammo, since “never know when you’ll need it.” At that point, the warehouse door opens, and Abrecan Doemenel enters with a dozen men.

 

Abrecan, sneering, says the intruders have to go, and has his men attack. Eder and the others fend them off, Durance using some priestly spells to create wards that knock people back, Kurren sneaking around with a crossbow and knives to pick people off, and Eder and Pallegina hacking with swords (Pallegina using a large two-hander). Pallegina briefly engages Abrecan in a swordfight, but he is able to push her away and back off. Panicky, he pulls a pistol out and shoots a crate of gunpowder, the explosion knocking people down. He flees as the warehouse goes up in flames. Eder and his group take out the remaining goons and get out of the warehouse before it fully goes up and collapses.

 

Moving away, Durance scoffs at all the evidence going up in flames. Eder says not all the evidence, they have Verzano. Durance wonders if he will talk and Pallegina, eyes narrowed, says “He will talk to me” as she rubs her sword blade and we see a couple wisps of blue fire.

 

We return to Sarana and her group, at the village of Dyrford. It looks like a sleepy little town. They do some initial asking around and learn the location of Cliaban Rilag. As part of this, Sagani describes her brother. We learn that a dwarf like him passed through a few days ago. Sagani tells the others she’ll go outside town and see if she can pick up their trail. Kana goes with her. After they leave, Sarana/Aloth/Ydwin keep poking for more information and learn that there has been increased activity of Glanfathan tribesmen in the vicinity.

 

Outside town, Sagani with Itumaak pokes through underbrush. Kana follows along, having a one-sided conversation as he talks about whatever comes to mind. He stops when Sagani holds up a hand and motions for him to crouch, which looks a bit silly since Kana is about double her height. Kana asks what it is and she says two things. First, she gestures to the ground, which says is a trail, a group of people going north. The second, is that they’re being watched. Kana asks if there is any danger and Sagani replies “they’re good, which means if they wanted us dead, we already would be.”

 

Back in Dyrford, Sarana, Aloth, and Ydwin are still perusing the town when time seems to slow down for Sarana, the the slow repeating of a bell tolling in the background.

 

Sarana looks around, confused, until her sight is drawn to a woman a fair distance away, tending to a bush. Sarana watches, and a voice beside her says “Ohhhh, she might be interesting.” It’s the corpse of Caldara de Berranzi, the dwarf animancer whose spirit Sarana spoke with in the first film. “I’m a little busy Wael” Sarana says, knowing it’s another manifestation of the deity of mysteries (who at the end of the first film revealed it had an interest in her). Wael chuckles and says it is merely fulfilling its’ promise to give her a little push now and then. “Just like when you were about to ignore those temple ruins in Defiance Bay.” Sarana sighs and walks away, the apparition dissipating.

 

Sarana goes up to the woman, which a camera angle reveals to be the midwife from the film’s opening, looking almost exactly the same as then. Sarana tries to talk to the woman but the woman seemingly does not hear her, focusing on whispering to herself as the chime bracelet on her one wrist tings as she tends to the bush. Sarana eventually puts a hand on the midwife’s shoulder and is yanked into an abbreviated and very sped-up replay of the film’s opening, which repeats and repeats until Sarana lets go and her world flashes white.

 

Sarana opens her eyes, she is lying on her back on the ground, the midwife standing over her. “A Watcher” the midwife says, extending a hand down to Sarana. Sarana nods and takes her hand, and is helped to her feet. Sarana apologizes but the midwife says she understands. “I must stand out to someone like you.” The midwife gives the name of Nysera. Sarana asks what she saw and Nysera says it was her first encounter with the Hollowborn. “I helped bring the souls of my home into the world, and when that stopped, the village died. Now I see it everywhere I go.” Sarana says she and her friends are looking for an answer to that.

 

Aloth and Ydwin find their way over, and Sarana introduces them to Nysera. Nysera looks at them both and gives a stream-of-consciousness statement of what she senses from them. Ydwin, fascinated, leans in and asks what else she can sense, while Aloth, a little unnerved, asks if Nysera will be joining them, and Sarana says that she will, she’s looking for the same answers. They reunite with Sagani and Kana. Sagani talks about the trail they found, and Kana says someone was watching them. Nysera says “Glanfathans, they have been around more of late, their minds angry, confused.” Sarana introduces Sagani and Kana to Nysera.

 

As they set out, Aloth walks with Sarana and asks if she is sure about Nysera. Sarana says it’s a feeling they can trust her. Aloth asks if there is anything else. Sarana says that Nysera “feels” like a Watcher, but different. But she has some communion with souls. Aloth nods and says “you’re collecting quite the group, aren’t you?” Sarana says “don’t worry Aloth, you were still the first.” They chuckle, the mood lightened.

 

We jump to that night, about a dozen people meet in a clearing. We get the sense these are Glanfathan tribesmen, an eclectic mix of humans, elves, and orlans. The group discusses recent arrivals to Dyrford, much more than usual. And all of them interested in the “works” to the north. One of them, an orlan with an eyepatch over one eye and bright orange-red hair (Riley), asks if there is any indication what these groups are after. Another says it does not matter. “If they trespass, they shall die. That is the law.”

 

Some distance north of Dyrford, Sarana’s group camps. As they do, Aloth and Ydwin talk some more, Ydwin asking Aloth more questions about Iselmyr and writing observations down in a notebook. Aloth asks if she does anything other than research. Ydwin adjusts her glasses and replies “As you may have noticed, I don’t get out much.” Aloth deadpans “I’d never have guessed.” Iselmyr pops out to say “Aye, just like spellboy here. Thought we’d be stuck in a library forever.” Aloth exaggerates a sigh as he takes back control and Ydwin asks “have you ever considered maybe talking to her?” Aloth says she’s not an ideal conversation partner.

 

Sarana and Nysera talk as well. Nysera says she is haunted by memories of the Hollowborn. At home, she had a purpose, she knew what she was to do. Now though, she feels lost. Sarana asks how long it’s been since she was home and Nysera says “you know, I don’t remember. I couldn’t even tell you how long I lived there….it felt like I was always there.” Sarana says she feels lost as well, she only has this chase to guide her. Nysera says then maybe they will find their new purpose together.

 

We then see them traveling again. As they pass along a road, they are attacked by several individuals, Sagani and Itumaak giving warning just in time due to their hunting senses. The attack is short and vicious, but the group fends them off, taking them down. The attackers are dressed like Glanfathans, but Sagani says they aren’t real tribesmen “just people imitating them”, pointing out obvious stereotypes. After some searching, Kana finds some letters. They are a directive to attack anyone heading north towards Cliaban Rilag, and to look like Glanfathans. Sarana says they must have been hired by the Leaden Key to keep people away from whatever is going on there. They continue northwards. As they do, we see that the one-eyed Orlan from earlier is following them.

 

The film returns to Defiance Bay, and we see Eder and his group return to Verzano’s place and confront him. Pallegina throws him into a chair and tells him to start talking. Verzano spills the beans. He was hired to smuggle in weapons and armor by the Doemenels, why he doesn’t know, they just paid him a lot of money to smuggle in a lot. Eder asks where the shipments go after the warehouse and Verzano claims ignorance, but that goes away when Pallegina snaps her fingers and her entire sword catches on fire, and she holds it inches from his face. “Tell me. Now” she says. Durance whispers “I think I like her now.” Verzano breaks down and gives the name of a contact he gave the Doemenels to use. Pallegina extinguishes her blade and tells Verzano “start running. If you’re lucky, neither the Doemenels nor our brethren will catch you before you leave the city. Verzano books it out of the building.

 

Elsewhere in the city, Urgeat meets with Wenan at the Dozens’ headquarters, known as Admeth’s Den. We see imported weapons and armor are being passed out. Urgeat says more will be coming. Wenan says with these weapons the people of the Dyrwood can take back their future. Urgeat counsels patience. He says it is better to let the enemy provide the spark.

 

Eder’s group tracks down the contact, whom Durance paralyzes with a spell. They interrogate him and he reveals he helped act as a go-between for the Doemenels and the Dozens. This worries Eder, who says a violent ambitious militia with that many toys could turn the city into a bloodbath. The contact gives them information about the next handoff.

 

We cut to the Ducal Palace, where Duc Aevar is meeting again with Commander Clyver. Aevar has invited Gedmar and Bricanta Doemenel to hear their opinions about the mood in the city. Clyver still wants to crack down on the Dozens, but Gedmar says that the Dozens have many admirers with the common people. If they attack the Dozens, it will inflame those people. Clyver says they can’t do nothing but Aevar says the Doemenels are right, the city would turn into a warzone if they arrested the Dozens’ leaders without cause. Bricanta says she hopes the animancy hearings provide some closure. Aevar hopes so as well, and says he has asked for other representatives of the science to attend, including soul-readers from Eir Glanfath. Perhaps their insight will put minds at ease.

 

After the Doemenels have left, Aevar and Clyver briefly talk. Clyver says if Aevar keeps waiting, the rising water will be at their necks. Aevar says right now it is a trickle, he’d rather not make it a flood. He asks Clyver to send a message to Lady Webb.

 

Gedmar and Bricanta return home. Bricanta remains uneasy about their arrangement with the Leaden Key but Gedmar urges her to stay strong. “Just a little longer my dear, and we’ll have more power than anyone in generations of our family ever has.” Bricanta replies the Leaden Key will always want something. Abrecan enters and says there are interlopers snooping around and Verzano has disappeared. Luckily, he’d already arranged for future shipments. Gedmar tells his son to double security and to alert their friend. Gedmar then adds “also, relay to him something interesting your mother and I just learned…”

 

That night, Eder’s group tracks down the exchange site. They see a few Doemenels with a couple wagons enter a large city square, where they are met by a few Dozens. The four heroes burst out and quickly knock out a few and intimidate the others into dropping their weapons. Then one of the Dozens chuckles and we see well over a dozen people emerging from the shadows around them, many aiming crossbows. Then emerging is Abrecan Doemenel, and Urgeat.

 

Urgeat says to Eder “I told you we’d be seeing one another again.” He asks where Sarana is and Eder says she is busy disrupting his scum’s schemes. Urgeat replies “pity, since she is a Watcher I would have liked for her to watch you die. But this will have to do.” The crossbowmen open fire, but Durance spontaneously waves his staff around in a circle, generating a wall of fire that incinerates the crossbow bolts. Urgeat waves a hand and a gap in the flame opens, allowing him, Abrecan, and others to pass through.

 

A wild and disorienting melee ensues in the illumination from the circle of fire. As the heroes fight, Pallegina finds herself dueling again with Abrecan, who says he’s mounted a few animals on his wall, perhaps a Godlike too. He gives her a minor wound on an arm, but she retaliates with a kick that sends him sprawling back several feet. “You wouldn’t know how to mount a girl even if she gave you instructions” she replies with a smirk.

 

Kurren is grappled by Urgeat. “One of the Spider’s flies” Urgeat says with malice. “You should have stayed in her web”, and he jabs a dagger into Kurren’s chest. Urgeat flings the dead Kurren aside as Eder charges at him, but stops short as Durance casts another spell that creates a shimmering shield that runs the length of the square, separating the heroes from Urgeat, Abrecan, and the other goons. Durance is straining to hold it and shouts they need to leave. Eder instead walks up to the shimmering wall and stares Urgeat down.

 

“This isn’t over” Eder says.

 

Urgeat replies “Oh I know. It ends when I kill you, then your dear Watcher, and then I bring both your heads to sweet little Aufra. I wonder how her pregnancy is going?”

 

Eder screams in anger but is pulled back by Pallegina, who says they need to go. Eder shakes Pallegina off and gives Urgeat one last look, and Urgeat, looking like a shitheel, gives Eder a mocking wave goodbye. Eder, Pallegina and Durance flee, Durance releasing the shield as they turn a street corner. Eder supports Durance as they continue onwards.

 

Back at the square, Urgeat declines to pursue, telling Abrecan that “they failed, that is what matters.” He tells the Dozens to get the wagons to their people. The Dozens leave, Abrecan leaves grumbling, and Urgeat gives the direction Eder fled in a look, before leaving too.

 

Eder, Pallegina, and Durance return to Lady Webb’s manor, and give her the bad news. Lady Webb nods sadly and says Kurren knew the risks of the jobs he took on. They will just have to press on, however they can.

 

Later, Eder and Durance talk. Eder blames himself, saying they rushed in blindly to a trap. Durance says they all went into the trap, not just Eder. “We had a failure, yes, but so does everyone. It is not our failures that define us, but how we respond to them. Those are the trials that Magran intends for us.” Eder, slightly spitefully asks Durance how his own is working out for him. Durance gets irritated and says he cares not one bit for her, and Eder says he’s a bad liar. Durance seethes, but calms down and says “You fought in the Saint’s War? So did I, in my way. When it was over, we both lost our god. Yours was blown up, mine simply stopped talking. Both of us have been wandering in the dark since.” Eder replies that is true, but adds “the difference between us is that I don’t need to find Eothas to light my way through. You’re stuck wondering what you did wrong and what you can do to make her listen. Maybe you should stop doing what you think she wants, and start doing what you want.” Eder leaves, and Durance sits in thought, looking at his staff, where we see once again (similar to a couple times in the first film) twelve symbols on it illuminate, and then slowly fade one by one until only one is left.

 

We return to Sarana’s group, which is nearing Cliaban Rilag. They scope things out from a distance. We see Sagani looking at her adra bear figurine, which is glowing brighter. “I’m almost there” she whispers to it.

 

The group sees shadowy movement around the ruins, which are surrounded on three sides by cliffs, and also a moat, with a single bridge. On the near side of the bridge, they see a few dozen people congregating. Sarana asks if anyone knows who they are but no one does, until a voice from behind says “that would be my kin”. Everyone turns around quickly to see the one-eyed Orlan sitting on a rock watching them.

 

The one-eyed orlan waves and says he doesn’t mean them any trouble. “Because it seems to me you’re more interested in the group that went into the ruins than the ruins themselves, so you’re lower down on my kill list.” Kana asks if he actually has a kill list. The orlan with a mischievous grin says “maybe.” The orlan introduces himself as Hiravias, a Druid with the Fisher Crane Tribe of Eir Glanfath. Sarana introduces everyone. She says she is a Watcher tracking down a group called the Leaden Key, and some ancient Engwithan machines are involved somehow.

 

Hiravias sighs and says people just can’t leave the Builders’ works alone. He asks if any of them actually know anything about Eir Glanfath and its people. Only Kana knows a little, and mostly that they treat Engwithan ruins as sacred. Hiravias nods and says about two thousand years ago, Engwithans lived in Eir Glanfath and shared gifts from the Gods. In exchange for all of their gifts, the Gods had the Glanfathans make a sacred vow to guard the Engwithan ruins from intruders. And that is a vow the Glanfathan tribes have kept, which has caused two wars with the Dyrwood, the Broken Stone War and the War of Black Trees. Hiravias says that there has been peace since, in fact Eir Glanfath helped the Dyrwood gain independence, but there is always an uneasy tension. Sarana says that whatever the Leaden Key is doing involves Engwithan ruins, which means since Eir Glanfath controls the ruins, the Glanfathans could be blamed for whatever is going on. Hiravias considers this and says if that is the case, then they must go in and see what is going on. When it is pointed out that the bridge seems to be about to erupt into a battle, Hiravias grins and says he knows another way in.

 

Hiravias leads the group onto a cliffside path. As they do, Sarana and Hiravias talk. She notices an eye drawn on his eyepatch and asks about it, and he says it’s a symbol of Wael. He left his old druid circle because 1) He was unsatisfied with their stagnation, and 2) He was sort of cast out. Sarana asks how that happened and Hiravias says it’s related to how he lost his eye, and both form too long a story. He says he had a lot of questions afterwards, so Wael was a good deity to follow, since one who follows Wael usually has lots of questions, most of which never answered, but the quest reveals truths unlooked for. Sarana says that feels familiar. There is also a humorous bit as Itumaak follows Hiravias closely, constantly sniffing. At one point Hiravias stops and circles behind Itumaak and sniffs the fox’s rear, causing the fox to yelp and skitter behind Sagani. “Cute fox” Hiravias tells her with a wink. Sagani groans, somewhat in disgust, and says “keep your nose where I can see it.”

 

They reach a cliff ledge jutting out from the ruin. Carefully, one by one, they make a leap across. Most make it easily, but there is a moment when Aloth can’t quite get all the way across and almost tumbles backwards, but he’s grabbed by Hiravias, who pulls him to safety. “Close call my friend” Hiravias says with a smile. “Wouldn’t want you turning into paste.”

 

As they move off the ledge, Iselmyr comments “I like him.” “No one asked you” Aloth replies.

 

As they get to the side entrance, a rumble engulfs the entire ruins for a couple seconds. This is followed by the sounds of magic explosions and clashing of weapons, as they see Glanfathans charging across the bridge but being attacked by whomever has been posted as guards. Hiravias points out the door they use, and the group goes inside.

 

We go inside Cliaban Rilag, cutting to several people in hoods and robes advancing towards an ornate doorway. One of them is notably shorter than the others. A few seem nervous, and the group’s leader says “Do not fear the tribesmen. All our compatriots need do is to give us the time we need. And time is what we shall have.” The leader mutters an incantation and waves a hand, runes over the doorway light up, and the doors swing open. At the same time, we see skeletons and statues come to life, and the leader orders them to kill everyone who enters Cliaban Rilag. The Leaden Key agents disappear through the doorway as the guards start patrolling.

 

Sarana’s group has started pushing into the upper levels of the ruins, hearing clashes of battle in the distance. As they go through, many of them look in awe at the ruins, including Hiravias, who says he feels guilty for looking. We get some comments from Kana about the architecture, like a bookworm at their version of Disney World. The ground shakes again, more intensely this time.

 

The group descends, the sounds of battle fading behind them. However, they wind up in another battle of their own, as they face a number of the risen skeletons and statues. Aloth unleashes a barrage of energy bolts to take out a number of the skeletons, while Sagani has Itumaak barrel into others. Kana takes on one statue hand to hand, grappling with it. Another statue comes to threaten Ydwin, but Hiravias growls and suddenly he morphs into a large bipedal Stelgaer, which looks like a tiger, but with a lion’s mane, and with a sabretooth tiger’s fangs. Hiravias with a punch crumples the statue into fragments. Eventually, the various guards are dispatched, and Hiravias shifts back into his usual self. “Useful trick” Ydwin comments, and Hiravias with a shrug replies “you could say that. That’s the third part of the long story.”

 

Sarana sees that Nysera has wandered over to the ornate doorway, sealed shut again. Sarana walks over and Nysera asks “Can you feel it?” Sarana looks at the door and we hear an energy hum coming from beyond. Sarana says “I’ve felt this before. When I went back to the machine by Gilded Vale.” Sarana stares again at the doorway, closes her eyes, and after a few seconds, instinctually says the same words the Leaden Key agent had said. The same runes light up, the doors swing open, and Sarana and the others go through.

 

They enter into a large chamber carved into an underground cavern, and everyone’s eyes are drawn to the large cylindrical device in the middle, made of copper and adra, an exact duplicate of the one Sarana encountered outside Gilded Vale in the first film. And, similar to that encounter, several bodies stand around the device in various poses, nothing more than ash and bone. Sagani looks at her bear figurine, now glowing intensely bright. “He’s here…but where is he?” she asks, darting ahead with Itumaak, calling out Persoq’s name. Sarana, knowing the answer already, and sadly shakes her head.

 

The rest of them cautiously enter, Ydwin furiously scribbling notes in a notebook. Aloth looks uncomfortable as he gazes at the ashen corpses. Sarana looks for Sagani, and sees her on her knees near one of the corpses. As she gets near, she sees Sagani has a second bear figurine in her hands. Sarana crouches down next to Sagani, who is fighting back tears. “I was too late.” Itumaak tries to console Sagani by nudging her, and Sagani breaks down into tears, and Sarana takes her into a hug. Everyone else stops what they were doing and watches mournfully.

 

After a moment, Sagani pulls away and holds out the second bear figurine to Sarana. “Maybe…maybe you can see through it. So I can know how it happened.” Sarana nods and takes the figurine in her hands and focuses tightly on it.

 

The Leaden Key agents enter the chamber, dumbstruck by what they see, it is clear most have no idea what they are doing. The leader has them array in a semi-circle, and says they are doing the gods’ work, and sometimes the gods demand everything. The leader presses a hand to the device and says some words, and similar to what happened in the first film, the device spins and energy crackles around it, and suddenly energy tendrils grab all of the Leaden Key agents and leech the essence from them, turning them to ash. This powers the device into its final action, as it emits a burst of light, the vision going dark.

 

Sarana says the Leaden Key agents were used as energy to power the device. Most of them seemed to be oblivious to the purpose, “They died without even knowing why” she says. Sagani wipes tears away. “Well then we find out why, and we get rid of those who caused this.” Sarana nods, and looks over to see Nysera about ten feet from the device, staring at it. Sarana walks over and Nysera says “I hear them.”

 

“What do you me-” Sarana starts to ask before she freezes. She hears them too. Voices. Dozens, hundreds, all coming from the device. Some whispering, some screaming. Sarana tells the others to stand back a bit, and she walks towards the device. Each step, the voices grow louder and louder, and she winces in pain until she’s only a few feet away and she falls to her knees, clutching her head. Nysera comes up next to her and says “take my hand, I am here.” Sarana looks up at Nysera, who looks pensive and reassuring, and takes her hand. The voices die down somewhat, and Sarana gets up to her feet and extends her other arm to the device, and suddenly Sarana’s eyes flash with energy.

 

All the way in the back, an apparition in the form of Persoq, really an avatar of Wael, watches. “And now we see where things shall go” Wael comments to itself before fading away.

 

Sarana stands in the chamber, and sees the device pulsing with immense energy, hundreds upon hundreds of dots of different colors. She sees motes of energy, little dots of color in the air, being pulled towards the device like a magnet. Some try to fight the pull, but all are inevitably pulled in. She then sees a tendril of energy shoot out from the device, and suddenly the mass of energy is yanked along that tendril, emptying the device dry.

 

Sarana opens her eyes with a gasp. Both she and Nysera are lying on the ground, hands still clasped. Nysera is still unconscious so Sarana leans over close and gently rustles her awake, brushing hair out of her eyes. Nysera awakens with a start and looks up at Sarana just above her. “I saw…I saw…” she tries to say and Sarana nods. “I know.” Sarana takes Nysera by the hands and helps her up, and they two at the others. Sarana explains what she saw, it seems like there were countless souls in the device, calling out to her, and then suddenly they were gone.

 

Kana says “that’s remarkable.” Aloth, who looks pale, comments “there might be another word for it.” Ydwin meanwhile has been writing all of this in her notebook, muttering to herself, the muttering going faster and more unintelligible as she flips back and forth between pages, her glasses askew. Hiravias looks at her and says to the others “everything alright with the book girl?” Sagani says “She’s putting something together, and Itumaak trots over to Ydwin, who snaps back to reality as Itumaak paws at her. She has a look of recognition. “You’ve figured something out?” Aloth asks. Ydwin replies “I’ve figured IT out.”

 

“Well, do share!” Kana says with baited breath.

 

Ydwin looks around her, saying “it’ll work better with a diagram...” and then finds a discarded leg bone on the ground and grabs it without any qualm. She walks over to a clear, dusty part of the chamber, and gets to work.

 

YDWIN: Ok, so life exists in a cycle of reincarnation. We live, we die, we’re born again, on and on and on. Now, the way animancers have figured it, is that the world we live in, it’s called The Here *she draws a circle*. The place souls go after we die, and before they’re released back into the world, and presumably where the Gods are, we call The Beyond *she draws a second circle that overlaps with the first one, like a Venn Diagram*. The place that overlaps, we call the In-Between, and what souls pass through either to the Beyond or to Here.

 

HIRAVIAS: Your people aren’t creative with naming things.

 

YDWIN *groaning*: Ugh, please, I’m trying to explain what is happening. Sarana, you described hundreds of souls in that device, being yanked somewhere else. *Sarana nods* And you described souls in the air being pulled into the device? *Sarana nods again* Ok, so Engwithans were the most skilled animancers in the history of the world. We can’t do even a quarter of what they could accomplish. One thing we suspected, and which Sarana’s vision of Persoq…my condolences Sagani, confirmed, is that many of these Engwithan devices were powered by souls. They need a kick to start, and they do that by leeching onto whatever souls are in the immediate area and drinking them dry.

 

SARANA: So, that’s how this one turned on, same as the one by Gilded Vale. But that doesn’t explain what they do.

 

YDWIN: I’m getting to that! *sounding frustrated that people won’t just listen*. What we have here, from what Sarana has described, is a soul magnet. Any souls that are in a certain geographical area, they get drawn to this device and stored inside. Now when a person is alive, their soul is stuck to them. But when they die, their soul is let loose, and it returns to the Beyond. *she draws an arrow from Circle 1 to Circle 2* And when a person is born, they get a soul from the Beyond *she draws an arrow from Circle 2 to Circle 1*. But this thing blocks that. Any soul that isn’t stuck to a living person, be it a soul leaving a corpse or a soul traveling to a newborn, gets drawn into this thing and stored there…until moved to somewhere else.

 

Ydwin, who by this point had been talking very fast, stops, catching her breath. Everyone around her is silent, some of them looking appalled and shocked, especially Aloth. Sarana that breaks the silence, with the conclusion on everyone’s mind.

 

“Then it’s this device, and however many else around the Dyrwood like it…they’re preventing souls from reaching newborns…the Leaden Key are causing the Hollowborn Plague.”

 

Ydwin nods. Sarana says that the souls collected by these devices were being moved. “Perhaps they are being stored somewhere, and if they are being stored…”

 

“They can be released” Nysera says, finishing the thought. Kana says they need to get back to Defiance Bay as fast as possible, share this news. Hiravias adds that he needs to return to his people as well. “More than ever, we need to prevent people from entering these things” he says, and adds that since many of these ruins lie in Glanfathan territory, he is afraid the Dyrwood will blame his people for this, “and many more will die.”

 

The group goes to the main entrance to Cliaban Rilag and sees the aftermath of a battle. A decent number of Leaden Key folk and mercenaries lie dead, along with a bunch of fragmented skeletal and statue guardians, as well as a larger number of Glanfathans. It does not appear that anyone on either side survived. Hiravias is saddened, but says it is even more important he return to his people, since he is the only one to witness this. Itumaak walks up and sniffs him, before giving him a lick. Hiravias looks at Sagani and says “I think he likes me after all.” Sagani, with a sad smile, replies “he’s a good judge of character.” Hiravias takes a short bow, and then heads off east. Sarana’s group heads south.

 

That night, camped in the woods, the group wrestles with the revelations. Kana and Ydwin have a bit of scholarly debate about the findings. Ydwin says they could help animancers advance understanding immeasurably. Kana replies that may be true, but his sister Maia told him that “crazy lore and ancient science is no substitute for a good rifle.” Ydwin retorts “unless you use science to build a better one.”

 

Aloth meanwhile is shaking heavily, straining, until he gets into a verbal argument with Iselmyr. Iselmyr berating him for not doing what he needs to do and Aloth saying he can’t, Iselmyr retorting that there’s no excuse now, and finally Aloth letting out a scream of frustration. Sarana goes over to try and talk but he says “I’m sorry, I just, I need some space” and he wanders off into the woods. Sarana sighs and returns to the campfire, where Nysera is staring into it.

 

Nysera says “now I know.” She knows what her purpose is. Find these stolen souls, and set them free. “My entire life, that I can remember, all I was was a way to help souls enter the world. I’d calm their aura, I’d make their first life experience a soothing one.” We see the chime bracelet is off her wrist and is being gripped. She says she made one of these for every child she helped enter the world, and that this was to have gone to the first Hollowborn she encountered. Sarana, listening, says “Nysera is not your actual name, is it.” Nysera looks at Sarana and nods. “It was to be the name of that child. My actual name...I don’t know if I ever had one.” She says for so long she wandered alone, directionless, until she began to dream she was in Dyrford. “The day after I got there, I met you” she says, staring at Sarana. Sarana says perhaps they were meant to meet. “I’ve been nudged one way or the other since I came to the Dyrwood. It’s nice to know that someone else might share that.” The two sit together by the fire in silence.

 

The film returns to Defiance Bay, where Urgeat meets with Thaos. Thaos says he has sensed the activation of Cliaban Rilag, so even if the Watcher got there, it was too late. Urgeat says “but if she figures out what the devices do…” and Thaos cuts him off, saying “It does not matter. Whatever truth she believes she knows, that truth will soon be irrelevant.”

 

Eder’s group has split up as each person pursues something personal. We see Pallegina go to the Vailian Embassy, not too far from the Ducal Palace. There, she meets with the Vailian Ambassador, Vicent Agosti. Pallegina discusses with him what occurred, and Agosti is concerned. He says the Congress will not want the Republics’ trading interests disrupted, so he orders Pallegina to stay with this group and find out whatever she can. Pallegina nods, and asks what if this situation spirals out of control. Agosti shrugs and says “Instability is unprofitable, but, sometimes, it can lead to a new opportunity.”

 

Durance goes to the Temple of Magran and wanders about it aimlessly. The rest of the Temple is deserted so he feels free to vent, taking it out on the statue of Magran. He says that he and “the others” did everything she instructed, built her what she commanded, and now she shuns him, as those “others” have fallen silent. He pleads “What did we do wrong?” There is only silence. Durance scowls and then says “We did the undoable, killed the unkillable, all for you. Pray that I don’t see fit for an encore.” He stalks out of the temple in a huff.

 

Eder walks the streets, as the poor meander past. The situation seems to be growing bleaker. Eventually, he reaches a city square where Wenan is holding a rally. After standing in the crowd and listening to the xenophobic, science-phobic, etc-phobic ranting, he has enough and interjects loudly, disputing how Wenan is characterizing things. Wenan is surprised by the interruption, but plays to the crowd and invites Eder to come up and share his thoughts.

 

Eder walks up and accuses Wenan of spreading hate and ignorance for his own personal gain. Wenan says he is sorry Eder thinks that, but it is the truth. “We are a proud, independent people, who have fought against the foreigners, the tribal savages, the Eothasian fanatics, for our freedom. Why should we not be prepared to fight our own rulers?” Eder shakes his head and says “You speak about these groups as if everyone in them is the same, a collective bogeyman waiting in the night. You’re wrong. I am an Eothasian, and I fought for the Dyrwood when Waidwen invaded. My brother Woden, the best man I ever knew, was an Eothasian, and he died for the Dyrwood when Waidwen invaded. We are not the enemy. It’s people like you, who prey on fear, who capitalize on suffering, who are the enemy.” The crowd is murmuring. Wenan smirks and says softly to just Eder “You’re not a bad talker, you know. But you’re fighting a losing battle.” He then turns to the crowd and addresses them again, saying that the Dyrwood is a free country, where everyone is free to speak their mind, even if they are wrong. The crowd nods along and starts to disperse. Wenan turns back to Eder and gives him another smirk, and leaves with his people. Eder sighs as he looks at the emptying square.

 

Cut to him in a tavern, having a drink. Durance enters and sits next to him and orders a double. Eder asks Durance if he found what he was looking for. Durance just laughs, and asks “you?” “Nope” and the two clink tankards and drink. Pallegina then enters and sits on the other side of Eder, saying she has been looking for them. Eder says “here we are” and orders Pallegina a drink. She does not protest, and downs it in one go. “Guess we all had a bad day” Durance comments. Pallegina says “Not the worst one I had, but I’ve had some pretty bad ones” Eder nods and says, “Well hopefully Sarana and the others have had better luck.”

 

Lady Webb enters the Ducal Palace, and meets with Aevar and Clyver. Aevar asks if her network has turned up anything useful. Lady Webb says she has had people looking into some interesting matters. Clyver wants to know what evidence she has, but Lady Webb says she is waiting for some agents to come back. She does arrange for an open box to be held for the next session of hearings. If her people have evidence, they will present it then. Aevar says between that possibility, and the attendance of more Brackenbury animancers, as well as several Glanfathans, the next hearing “won’t be uneventful.” Clyver says this is a dangerous game they’re playing. Lady Webb says “protecting a nation always is.”

 

We return to Sarana’s group, which has reached Defiance Bay. They make a beeline straight for Lady Webb’s compound, and upon getting there reunite with Eder and Durance. The new faces (Nysera, Pallegina) are introduced to those who haven’t met them. They then go meet with Lady Webb, to go over everything.

 

At the meeting, Sarana and her team explain what was found at Cliaban Rilag, and this news stuns the others. This leaves as the only loose thread the Doemenel connection, which the group decides must be handled before the next hearing session. Ydwin says she will return to Brackenbury Sanitarium and inform Ethelmoer of the findings at Cliaban Rilag. “This information cannot be lost with us. If we fail, others will be around to potentially study and fix this.” Ydwin departs. The rest of them start planning their raid on the Doemenel mansion.

 

We then get a short scene between Sarana and Eder as they sit in a study and talk. The Cliaban Rilag news bothers Eder, since one of those things is a day from Gilded Vale, looming over Aufra and her unborn child like an executioner’s axe. Sarana reassures him that Aufra will be fine. “She has some time to go before she is due, and we’re going to track down the source of this and break it.” Eder hopes she is right. They also talk about Urgeat, and suspect that before their business in this city concludes, they will have to deal with him.

 

The heroes put their plan into motion, assembling outside of the walls of the Doemenel compound. Aloth casts a spell that puts a couple guards to sleep. Sagani has Itumaak find a nice dark corner and wait for them. She then fires a grappling hook with her bow and lodges it on an upper floor balcony. The group climbs up one by one.

 

Once inside the manor, the group sweeps through methodically, Sarana and a couple others sneaking ahead to incapacitate guards before an alarm can be raised. They eventually reach a large study and barge in. Gedmar and Bricanta are there. The group quickly secures them, and Sarana tries to interrogate Gedmar about his connections with the Leaden Key. Gedmar laughs at Sarana and says she has no idea who they’re dealing with. Sarana says she knows exactly who, “monsters who steal souls from children.” This shuts Gedmar up and Sarana nods and says “got your attention now? The Hollowborn, it is their doing.” Bricanta looks aghast and whispers “Gedmar” but he shushes her. For a second, he looks like he is going to say something, but he regains resolve and says everything he does, he does for his family. No one else matters. Bricanta however tells the group that she will talk, whatever they need. Gedmar is furious and Bricanta retorts “I thought I knew what we had agreed to. It turns out it was far worse than I ever could have imagined.”

 

As they go to escort Gedmar and Bricanta out, they pass the entry chamber with staircases to the foyer, just as Abrecan enters with some men. Abrecan demands his parents be released. Sarana says they’re coming with her. Bricanta says it’s over, they need to come clean. Abrecan says they’ve come too far to stop now. Gedmar then says “son…it’s okay. You know what you have to do.” Abrecan hesitates for a moment, and then draws his pistol and shoots Bricanta, killing her.

 

At that instant the men with Abrecan charge forward to fight, and the gunshot summons other, formerly oblivious guards from other parts of the manor, and a melee breaks out across the whole of the two-floor entrance chamber, with guards being thrown over balustrades, some daring athletic leaps, etc. Gedmar worms out of his restraints. He grabs a knife from a fallen guard and lunges to stab Sarana in the back, but is noticed by Nysera and she stabs him first. Gedmar reels to the side and topples over the balustrade, hitting the floor below. He’s dead. At this, Abrecan gets distraught and flees, along with some men. The heroes make their own exit.

 

Back at Lady Webb’s manor, they tell her what happened, and she sighs and says at least the Doemenels’ ability to cause further trouble is crippled. Everyone leaves except for Sarana, who says they should put all of their cards on the table. Lady Webb plays coy, but Sarana has a serious look, so Lady Webb nods and the two sit by a fireplace. Lady Webb says that there is a reason she knows Thaos’ name, knows a good deal about the Leaden Key, and is determined to stop them. “It is because when I was a young woman, I was once one of them.” Lady Webb tells the story of how when she was a wealthy young woman, looking for direction, Thaos found her, recognized her skills at ferreting out information, and recruited her into the Leaden Key. She was entranced by him, fell in love with him, and did whatever he asked. “I like to think a small part of him cared about me, but perhaps that is just the thoughts of a sad old woman.” Lady Webb says that after a few years she could not handle the secrecy, the lies, the horrific things she sometimes did, and confronted Thaos, demanding a reason for what they did. Thaos briefly seemed like he would tell the truth, but then hardened. So she left, and for nearly 50 years she has woken up thinking that today would be the day Thaos would come through her door and kill her. “This may be my last chance to do something good, to make up for what I did so long ago.”

 

Afterwards, Sarana is walking back to get some sleep when she sees Aloth standing alone on a balcony, having an Iselmyr episode. She hears Iselmyr say “Ye need to stop ‘iding from who you are, boy! Make it right!” Aloth looks at Sarana and says he is sorry, he has not been honest with her from the beginning. Sarana, cautiously, asks what he means. Aloth says it may be easier to show, and extends a hand. Sarana takes it, and is yanked into memories of Aloth.

 

She sees Aloth as a teenager, working hard in school, being berated by his father for not working harder. She sees him being physically abused. She sees Aloth, as he graduates, being approached by a woman. She sees the woman offering Aloth an opportunity to make a difference in the world. Aloth asks if it will take him far away from his father, and the woman says it would. She sees Aloth in a ceremony, being handed familiar robes and a familiar mask. She sees time pass, until Aloth is told by someone in a mask that he is to go to the Dyrwood. She sees Aloth arrive in Gilded Vale, taking notes on what he sees, and finally she sees him sitting alone in the tavern there, as she comes up to meet him for the first time.

 

Sarana stumbles back. Aloth says he had no idea what he was getting into, he was just looking for a way to escape his father. For several years all they had him do was do research, and then they sent him to Gilded Vale, to report on what was going on. “The last report I sent was the same day I met you.” Aloth says since then he began to understand how terrible these people are, and what they learned at Cliaban Rilag…he realizes how he has wasted his life. Sarana looks hurt, but says that she knows Aloth is a good person he can help make things right. Aloth shakes his head, a couple tears falling and says “I lied to you, to everyone, about the most important thing about me. I even lied to myself, pretending I could just go on like it never happened. But that’s not true. I’m unstable, I’m not trustworthy, it…it’s better if I go.” Sarana tries to say something, but Aloth leaves without another word. Sarana wipes away a tear, and then leans on the balcony to look out into nothing.

 

Abrecan finds Urgeat at a safe house and tells him what happened. Urgeat tells him he will have his chance for revenge. “Just do what I am about to tell you.”

 

The following morning, Sarana breaks the news about Aloth. Those who knew him are saddened, but there is no time to talk about it, it is the day for the hearing. Lady Webb enters wishes them luck. “Sometimes, words delivered at the right place and right time are enough.” Sarana hangs back and says today may decide everything. Lady Webb says that when they are done at the palace, she has a bottle of quite the rare vintage waiting. “I’d been saving it for something, now I know what.”

 

We get a few short scenes showing various people in action, with no sound save for the score. We see Wenan in Admeth’s Den, pacing. We see Abrecan Doemenel arming himself and several others. We see Urgeat looking out over the city with a smirk. We see Aevar leaving to go to the hearing chamber. We see Ydwin talking to Ethelmoer.

 

We see Aloth sitting in an alleyway somewhere, looking despondent. “What have I done?” he says. Iselmyr replies “Ye’ve been a fool, that’s what.” Aloth says it’s too late now. Iselmyr replies “No ti’snt, ye just have to be the person you want to be, and fight for it.” Aloth leans against the stone wall, closing his eyes in thought.

 

It is time for the hearing. Hundreds of people are in the chamber, as Sarana’s group takes their seats in their box. There’s knights, Dozens, wealthy people, foreigners, animancers, and the Glanfathans, all present. The mood is tense, and it gets off to a bad start as more testimony is given about more animancy experiments gone wrong. Kana wonders if they should jump in and Sarana shakes her head and says they wait, for the right moment. As things continue to go on, Sarana looks to her side and sees Aloth sit next to her. She’s about to say something until she realizes no one else notices him, and she lets out an irritated sigh.

 

“You’re an asshole you know, looking like that.”

 

“Sometimes provoking people gets the only honest reaction out of them” Wael replies.

 

Sarana asks what Wael is doing here. Wael says it is just curious about what Sarana is going to say. “There may be more riding on this than you know. Or it may not matter at all. Either way, I’m dying to know how it goes.” It says that this may be Sarana’s last chance to walk away. If she keeps going, she might not like what she finds. Sarana says she’d rather know an unlikeable truth than be ignorant. Wael smiles and says “Well, then I am very interested to see how this goes.” It smiles again and then vanishes. Sarana turns her attention back to the hearing, which seems to be getting even more hostile. Someone representing the Dozens stands up and goes on a long screed about the Hollowborn, that the animancers have made things worse, and no one knows what is causing it.

 

“Now” Nysera whispers, and Sarana, standing up, says loudly “We know.”

 

Everyone’s attention turns to Sarana, and Aevar informs the crowd that these are the representatives of Lady Webb. He asks Sarana to share what she knows. Sarana says that she is a Watcher, and that she was at Gilded Vale. She was in Defiance Bay. She was in Dyrford and beyond at Cliaban Rilag, and there has been one constant in all this: The Dyrwood has been manipulated by the Leaden Key. People laugh and dismiss that as a bedtime story, but Sarana persists, going over a summary of what happened at Cilant Lis, what happened with Lord Raedric, what happened at Cliaban Rilag, about the Engwithan machines. She says that animancy may not have all the answers, and some of its practitioners do immoral things, but “if you are looking for the source of the Dyrwood’s problems, they are not it.” A fair number of people seem to be dismissing her words, but others seem invested. Aevar is one of them. He says that this is very enlightening, and disturbing, and needs investigation. Sarana sits, her and the others thinking a breakthrough has been made.

 

Aevar rises from his seat and calls a Brackenbury Sanitarium representative forward to give an animancer’s opinion on what Sarana has said. He also calls forward a member of the Glanfathan delegation, as “since many of these Engwithan ruins are on Glanfathan lands, it is in our mutual interests to keep them secure.” He adds that it is even more important to ensure cooperation, since there are reports of Glanfathan groups ambushing Dyrwoodans along the frontier. The animancer, a human, and the Glanfathan, an elf, rise and step forward towards Aevar.

 

At this point, the film proceeds in slow motion as doors all the way at the rear of the chamber open, and Thaos enters, striding forward with the crowd oblivious to his entrance. He looks at the two approaching Aevar. He stretches his arms outward and ejects from his body two black projectiles, that no one else notices, and they zoom into the animancer and the Glanfathan.

 

At this point the film returns to normal speed, as Aevar asks the two for their opinions. The animancer and Glanfathan look at him, and we see their eyes clouded over. The animancer says “We accept no judgment upon us than our own. Animancy is the future, and you will be left behind.” The Glanfathan simultaneously says “This is the wrath of the Gods on the Dyrwood, and we are their instrument!” The Glanfathan casts a spell that paralyzes Aevar, and the animancer, moving with unnatural speed, leaps forward and stabs Aevar in the chest, killing him.

 

Chaos erupts as people flee, screaming. The members of the Dozens jump up and rush forward to slaughter the animancers and Glanfathans. The two who attacked Aevar snap back to reality, confused, and barely have a second to register what happened before they’re killed. The palace guards try to intervene but are set upon not just by the Dozens, but also by members of the crowd who have been inflamed. “We need to go, now” Eder says. As the group gets up to leave the growing chaos, as the Dozens send criers out to spread word, Sarana freezes as she sees Thaos. The two lock eyes for a second, and then Thaos departs.

 

Sarana sprints, the others behind her, all having to push through countless panicked civilians. Eder and the others catch up to her and she says “He’s here. I have to find him.” Eder says he’ll come, but she tells him to take everyone else to Brackenbury. “There’s going to be mobs on every street, and they’ll be looking to kill any animancer they can find. Get them to safety.” Eder nods and motions for everyone else to follow him, while Sarana sets off after Thaos.

 

We see the city of Defiance Bay devolving into chaos and rioting as word spreads of the assassination of Duc Aevar by an animancer and a Glanfathan. When word reaches Wenan, he says “So it came to pass after all”. He sends word for the Dozens to arm themselves. “It is time to take this city back.” We also see the Crucible Knights, led by Clyver, frantically organizing to defend key locations of the city, which is seeing larger and larger mobs assemble. The Knights can take out untrained, lightly armed commoners, but when they’re outnumbered ten to one, they get overwhelmed. Add in heavily armed Dozens with actual combat skills, and it’s not good.

 

Sarana is rushing through the Ducal Palace, dodging fighting as she keeps seeing glimpses of Thaos. She turns a corner and gets clotheslined. Standing above her is Urgeat. “He figured you’d follow him” Urgeat says with a nasty grin. “So I counted on it.” Urgeat swings a sword down, but Sarana rolls out of the way, She draws her own weapons, and the two fight.

 

Eder and the others are doing their best to avoid fighting as they make their way to Brackenbury. As they pause in one alleyway to let a large mob pass by, Eder looks conflicted, and Nysera observes “You regret leaving her behind.” Eder nods and says she shouldn’t be alone. The others tell him to go back, they’ll continue on. Eder tells them to save as many as they can, and goes back towards the Ducal Palace.

 

As more and more of Defiance Bay turns into chaos, we get helicopter shots showing parts of the city on fire as we also see looters ransack buildings, rioters dragging alleged animancers, foreigners, out of buildings, and killing them regardless of actual identity. We see Abrecan with what is left of the Doemenel guards at the head of a mob.

 

At Brackenbury Sanitarium, the denizens are in a panic. Ethelmoer does his best to project a voice of calm as he gives instructions for evacuating. We see Ydwin, a bit afraid, as she helps shepherd patients and staff towards a side exit to get them out.

 

We see Wenan with a couple hundred heavily armed Dozens, even more common folk rallying behind them, marching down a wide boulevard, where they come to a large city square where a company of Crucible Knights, as well as supporting city guards, are assembled, Clyver leading them. For a minute all is quiet, the forces look at one another, as rain starts to fall, and then Wenan shouts “For the Dyrwood!” the men and women with him cheering, and the two forces clash in steel and blood.

 

Back in the Ducal Palace, the swordfight between Sarana and Urgeat moves fluidly through the grand halls of the palace as Urgeat deliberately retreats, as if leading the fight somewhere. The swordfight is occasionally interrupted as various stragglers of Dozens or commoners in a bloody rage try to kill anyone they see, but both Sarana and Urgeat easily dispatch these interlopers before continuing on. Parts of the Ducal Palace are starting to catch fire.

 

The main group of heroes reaches Brackenbury and sees large mobs clashing with dwindling numbers of city guards and Crucible Knights. One such clash is occurring by the Sanitarium. The group gets involved in the scrum. They see that a number of Dozens and rioters are entering the Sanitarium and Pallegina orders the rest to go into the Sanitarium and clear it out. “I’ll be fine.” There’s brief hesitation, but the others go, while Pallegina attempts to rally the remaining guards.

 

The battle for Defiance Bay is turning, as we see many Knights and guards retreating in the face of the onslaught of a citizenry’s collective rage. In the big square battle, dozens of Dozens and Crucible Knights lie dead or wounded. Wenan and Clyver reach one another and have a personal face-off. Wenan says it is time for the people of the Dyrwood to seize control of their fate and end what their ancestors started. Clyver says that Wenan is blinded by his hate. Wenan points his sword at Clyver and says he is finally seeing clearly, and if Clyver will not stand with the people, then he will fall. The two fight, swords clashing.

 

Back at the Palace, Urgeat has led Sarana up onto the exterior battlements, as rain pours, and flames consume lower levels of the building. They fight without holding back, both sustaining minor injuries from cuts as they go back and forth. Eventually Sarana sees an opening and lunges, but she overextends and when Urgeat sidesteps, he slices her backside and kicks her forward. Sarana’s momentum carries her over the side, but she grabs onto a ledge and dangles precariously a few hundred feet over the ground. Urgeat laughs and says he has been waiting for this for quite a while. He walks over and stamps on one hand, and Sarana has to let go, now dangling by a few fingertips. “Give Maerwald my regards” Urgeat says, but before he can do anything, a gunshot rings out and Urgeat is hit in one shoulder and falls backwards. It is Eder, pistol barrel smoking in the rain. “I knew this would come in handy” he comments, and he rushes over to help Sarana up. Sarana thanks Eder for not listening to her. As she gets to her feet, they see Urgeat several feet away, rising as well, injured, but still dangerous as he whispers a spell that energizes his blades. “We do this together” Sarana says, and Eder nods. “Together.”

 

Outside the Sanitarium, Pallegina is rallying the guards, who are barely managing to hold the line. Abrecan appears with his personal men, and as they swarm the guards, he personally seeks out Pallegina. He tries to shoot her with his pistol, but she cleaves it in two with a swift stroke of her Greatsword. He draws his sword, and the two get into their own duel.

 

Inside the Sanitarium, we see that there is utter chaos, as rioters rampage through the halls, as animancers, staff, and patients panic and flee. We see several rioters with ropes and hooks dragging Ethelmoer’s statue and pulling it to the ground, the stone shattering with a flash of energy as it hits, and disintegrating into thousands of tiny fragments. We see Ydwin continuing to help others evacuate, but she is cornered by a few rioters. She uses some clever applications of volatile chemicals and instruments to take out most, but the last one tackles her but is then barreled into by Itumaak. Kana and Nysera help Ydwin to her feet while Sagani shoots arrows at any other rioters she sees. We also see Durance using magic to blast other groups of rioters in the Sanitarium, and it seems it is being cleared out. Ydwin tells the group there’s still plenty of people who need to get to safety and Kana says they’ll get them out.

 

The street battle between the Dozens and Crucible Knights rages on. Wenan and Clyver continue to duel, and while Clyver is a disciplined fighter, Wenan’s rage is overpowering, and he finally impales the commander on his sword. “For the Dyrwood” Wenan says as he shoves the commander’s corpse to the street stones. Seeing their leader fall, the remaining Crucible Knights in the fight lose heart and retreat, many of them being killed by pursuing Dozens and rioters. The others congregate around Wenan, who thrusts his sword in the air and says that this night is the first night of a new Dyrwood, and everyone cheers.

 

Pallegina and Abrecan continue their own duel outside the Sanitarium. Abrecan lands a blow that injures Pallegina a bit, and as she stumbles back, he says that it’s good that she will die the same night as the others in the Sanitarium. “All you freaks belong together in the same grave.” He charges in, but Pallegina deftly parries his strike and counterattacks with a slash that lops off his sword hand. Abrecan gasps, and Pallegina, muttering some words, ignites her sword into blue flames and runs Abrecan through. She rips her sword out and after a PG-13 bit of blood spurt, Abrecan crumples to the street engulfed in flames. With Abrecan fallen, and other rioters beaten back, the rest of the crowd backs away as the rest of the group exits the Sanitarium with a group of animancers, staff, and patients. Pallegina tells the remaining guards to keep the crowd back while they get these people to safety.

 

Back at the Palace, Sarana and Eder continue to fight Urgeat, who is shouting taunts and insults as he does. All three of them have sustained varying injuries. Eventually, Urgeat is able to separate the two by knocking Sarana down, and driving Eder back, he stabs Eder in the shoulder, pinning him to a stone wall with a sword. Urgeat returns to Sarana and kicks her as she tries to get up, knocking her back down. “You know what the funny thing about all this is?” Urgeat asks rhetorically. “I don’t even know why the Grandmaster gives a damn about you. But it doesn’t matter why, really, I’ll enjoy this all the same.” Sarana struggles to her feet as we see Eder, wincing, slowly pulling the sword out inch by inch. Sarana slashes at Urgeat across the cheek, and he knocks her back. Before he can take advantage, her gets stabbed from behind by Eder with the sword that had pinned him. Sarana wastes no time and lunges, stabbing Urgeat in the chest with a dagger. Urgeat, stunned, gasps and coughs up blood. Sarana grabs Urgeat by the neck and pulls him up by her face and whispers in his ear “For Maerwald”, and then with all her strength she shoves him back, and Urgeat topples over the edge, and plummets hundreds of feet down into the roaring fires below.

 

Sarana, exhausted, sits down in a heap on the edge as she looks out over the city, and Eder comes over and sits next to her. We get a nice moment as she, tired, leans her head against his shoulder as he pats her on the back, and they catch their breath in the rain.

 

We see the rest of the heroes have found a secure building to hole up in with the remnants from the Sanitarium. Most of the people are in some state of shock. Durance tells the others in the group that this is now their test. As everyone else settles in, we see Nysera with a look across her face as if something comes to her mind.

 

Sarana and Eder, using one another for support, stumble a bit through the streets as rain continues to fall, starting to quench the fires. Rioting noises are starting to die down, and the streets are relatively clear, save for all the bodies. As they get to Brackenbury, Sarana tells Eder to go find the others, she will check on Lady Webb. Eder, exhausted, says “Didn’t we just go through this?” Sarana says she didn’t say not to come meet her. The two split up.

 

We cut to Lady Webb, in her nightgown in her bed with a glass of wine as she listens to the noises from outside. Those noises are replaced by crashing and breaking noises from inside her manor, with shouts, metal clanging, and then silence. The doors to her bedchamber open, and Thaos, his winged helmet and mask back on, enters.

 

Lady Webb sips her wine and says she is surprised it has taken this long. Thaos replies “No offense, my dear, but until recently you were never a danger to our plans.” He sits on the corner of the bed, and sees an open bottle of wine on the nightstand, with a glass. He gestures to it and she nods. “I was saving it for someone, but, ah, well.” Thaos takes off his mask and pours his own glass. “You know how this must end” he says after taking a drink. Lady Webb nods and asks what could be worth all of the things he has done. Thaos offers a hand. Lady Webb places her hand in his, and there is a brief glow of energy between the two. Lady Webb’s eyes go wide and her face has a look of recognition. “I’d never have guessed that” she says. Thaos smiles and pulls a dagger out. Lady Webb finishes her glass, then says she is ready. Thaos stands up, walks next to her, and stabs her in the chest, killing her. His hand briefly lingers on a shoulder, and then he puts his mask back on.

 

Sarana arrives at Lady Webb’s manor and enters, seeing doors blasted open and various guards and attendants dead. She quickly moves up towards Lady Webb’s chamber and enters just as Thaos is putting his mask back on. He turns to face her as she sees Lady Webb’s body. She stares down Thaos, tired, bloody, but determined, and says he has much to answer for.

 

Thaos says she wouldn’t even know where to start. He says this pursuit has been amusing, almost admirable, but it is time for it to end. “Will you end this charade for us, or shall I end it for you?” These words, the same words Thaos said in her memory at the beginning of the film, knock something in Sarana’s mind, and we’re plunged into the rest of that memory.

 

We are back at the top of the ancient hill with the bottomless pit carved into the middle. Thaos, decked in full regalia, stands with a circle of Leaden Key around him, including Sarana. He turns to the person strapped to the apparatus we glimpsed and for the first time we see who the person is. It is an elf woman with short blonde hair, with signs on torture on her body. The Woman (surprise cameo by Elizabeth Debicki) looks in pain, but defiant. She looks at Thaos and says “I am already at peace, Grand Inquisitor. But are you?” without any hesitation. “If you wish to make your confession, I am willing to hear it.” Thaos laughs and proclaims to the crowd that if the Woman does not desire an ending, she shall not have one, and she shall be committed to the eternal prison, from which there is no redemption. Thaos signals and a couple stooges unstrap the Woman and drag her to the edge of the pit. For a few seconds, she stares at Sarana, knowing which person is her even though Sarana’s mask is on. Sarana takes off the mask she is wearing, and we see for the first time, the person who was actually Sarana’s past life, a human woman with long, dark brown hair (surprise cameo by Tuppence Middleton), her face full of regret and shame. Her eyes meet with the Woman's, The Woman soundlessly mouths “I forgive you” to her, and then The Woman is thrown into the pit.

 

Sarana snaps back to the present, Thaos looking at her with curiosity. She demands to know her past, why they are linked. Thaos says that if she still does not understand, she is not entitled to him lightening her burden. “They are your scars, not mine. Perhaps in a future life, you might finally understand that.” He gestures and Sarana freezes in place, and a line of energy connects the two. Thaos gestures again, and it looks like he is trying to rip out Sarana’s soul, which she resists, barely. Thaos commends her, but says she cannot fight the inevitable, and tries again, coming closer to succeeding, but then time slows, and Sarana hears the toll of a bell, and the tingling of chimes, and the aura around her strengthens as Nysera appears, putting a hand on Sarana’s shoulder. Thaos looks at Nysera with scrutiny and says “Curious, I wonder…no matter” and he readies an energy blast that shoots at them, which is stopped a foot from them by a magic shield, and we see appearing from behind Sarana and Nysera a third figure: Aloth. Thaos with a wry look says “so far from your post, Acolyte, have you lost your way as well?” Aloth says “No, I have finally found it”. Thaos says this intervention changes nothing. “None of you can stop what you cannot understand.” He snaps his fingers and teleports away. The spell released, Sarana collapses to the ground and passes out.

 

Sarana wakes up. She is in the safe house the group had found, and we see them all clustering around her as they realize she is alive and awake. Itumaak, who has been lying next to Sarana with his head resting on her side, perks up and looks at her. As she sits up, we learn she has been out for a few days. In that time, the Dozens have secured hold of Defiance Bay, and Wenan is spreading news of Aevar’s assassination and calling for war with Eir Glanfath. The information they all gave at the hearings is being dismissed as false information laid by the Glanfathans to disguise their involvement, as word also is spreading of Glanfathans attacking people along the frontier (which we know to be actually Leaden Key agents in disguise). Since many of the people at the hearings are now dead, there really isn’t anyone to argue for the truth. Sarana asks if there really will be a war and Eder says “the only thing Dyrwoodans like more than fighting each other is fighting foreigners. Between that, the years of frustration and fear, and the bad blood with the Glanfathans…yeah, I wouldn’t bet against it.” Durance says a full-scale war will cripple the Dyrwood for countless years, as it is already weakened by losing a generation of children to the Hollowborn Plague. Sarana says this has been all part of Thaos’ plan from the beginning. Years and years of foundation. Kana asks what purpose it could all serve and Sarana says that is what she intends to find out. They stop Thaos, they stop this war.

 

As to how they do that, Sarana realizes she knows where they have to go: the place she has seen recurringly in her dreams, a place with a tall tower, with two gigantic elm trees growing around it like vines. Kana recognizes that description. It is Twin Elms, the closest thing Eir Glanfath has to a capital. “Almost fitting” Aloth comments.

 

As Sarana recovers during the course of the day, Ydwin comes over and says that unfortunately she cannot join them. Ethelmoer and almost all of the senior animancers were killed in the riots, and someone has to ensure the survivors from the Sanitarium get to safety. While Sarana was unconscious, Pallegina was able to arrange with her superiors for a ship to take them to the Vailian Republics, one of the few remaining places that openly encourages animancy. Sarana understands and says Ydwin’s responsible for her people, and she hopes they get there safe and sound. They shake hands, and Ydwin goes to help the survivors get their things for departure.

 

Later, Aloth comes over and asks how she’s feeling. Sarana says all things considered “I’ve felt better.” She thanks Aloth for coming back. Aloth nods and says that after an inordinate amount of time spent sulking, he and Iselmyr reached an understanding. “I mean I still would rather she not be around, but I now understand her, and I’ll be a better person for it. And I’m here to see this through with you all, to the end.” Sarana says she’s glad to have him back.

 

Ydwin and the Sanitarium survivors set out, a few guards from the Vailian embassy arriving to escort them to the docks. Ydwin adjusts her glasses and gives a wave to the group before leaving. Once they’re out of sight, the group starts collecting their things, and heads out as well.

 

We cut to the city center, where Wenan is looking at the half-charred remains of the Ducal Palace. A lackey comes up to him and says that messages have been sent to all of the Erls of what occurred in Defiance Bay, with a request to meet about bringing the Glanfathans to justice. Wenan says he expects most of the Erls to be reluctant, “but they can ignore the people for only so long.” The lackey nods, and adds that there is some talk about the information shared by Lady Webb’s investigator, that someone else is to blame. Wenan says that if that was true, then why would the Glanfathans and animancers murder Duc Aevar, or kill people on the frontier near their ruins? “No, it was a false trail to hide their misdeeds.” The lackey departs, leaving Wenan alone. He looks at remains and says to himself “No one shall take advantage of us again.”

 

We cut to Hiravias, walking alone through grasslands. He comes up over a ridgeline and we see in the far distance, the tower and trees of Twin Elms. He takes a deep breath and continues on his toward the city.

 

The heroes exit Defiance Bay on horseback, and as they get some distance away we can see some lingering traces of smoldering fires and smoke. We get a shot of them all in a line on a hilltop, looking back at the city.  Sagani says that this is the most dangerous prey she has ever hunted, but “I would not hunt it with anyone else.” The group starts to ride off one by one, until it is just Sarana, Nysera, and Aloth. Sarana brings up the memory of The Woman, and says she truly believes what happened all those years ago is connected to today. Nysera says perhaps that makes Sarana’s purpose now to fix what she failed to do before. Sarana says she wishes she could just force herself to remember what she needs to know, and Aloth says “well as someone who’s just come out of a years-long argument with a past life, don’t force it. Just listen, and the answers will come when it is time.”

 

To Sarana’s other side, on a horse, Wael in the form of Lady Webb remarks “Not bad advice. I’d also recommend visiting Teir Evron when you arrive in Twin Elms. By the time you get there, it will be time for us to have a more complete conversation. And I suspect by that point, my ‘colleagues’ might finally realize it is time to pay attention as well.” Wael blinks out. Sarana looks over at Aloth and Nysera and they nod back. The three turn their horses around and follow the others eastward, the camera holding a wide shot of smoldering Defiance Bay before fading to black.

 

The film goes to Thaos, approaching a familiar set of large ornate doors, which open on cue. He walks through and enters a vast chamber, the same one Sarana saw multiple times in the first film in her memories. He walks down a long walkway to a central platform. Two large statues rise on either side, flanking a massive Engwithan device in the middle, similar to the ones at Cilant Lis and Cliaban Rilag, but much, much larger. Looming over the device, cut into the stone, hundreds of feet high, is a rock carving of the goddess Woedica, her crown broken and her face marked with scars. Thaos looks up.

 

“Soon, my queen, all will be ready. Soon you will have all the power you need to restore yourself to glory. And there will be nothing any mortal or deity can do to stop it.” The film holds a shot from behind of Thaos looking up at the carving, arms outstretched, zooming out back to give a proper sense of scale, and then the film cuts to black.

 

 

Edited by 4815162342
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Green Lantern Corps: Rise Of The Manhunters

 

Studio: Endless Entertainment

DC Entertainment

Director: F Gary Gray

Producers: Matt and Ross Duffer, and Andrew Stanton

Executive Producers: Xavier B. Irving

Writers: Matt and Ross Duffer, and Andrew Stanton

Composer: Tyler Bates

Director of Photography: Henry Braham

VFX: Weta Digital and Moving Picture Company

VFX Supervisors: Roger Guyett and Christopher Townsend

 

 

Main Cast: (** indicates a voice performance, - all other aliens are done with a mix of practical make up, or * indicates a motion capture performance): 

- Armie Hammer as Hal Jordan, a cocky yet brave former Air Force Pilot who unintentionally becomes the Abin Sur’s predecessor and first human Green Lantern

- Joaquin Phoenix as Thaal Sinestro, a red skinned humanoid alien who is a member of the Green Lantern Corps, as well as Hal Jordan’s curmudgeon and logical mentor as well as Abin Sur’s former partner

- * Djimon Hounsou as Grandmaster, the cold and even more calculated leader of the cybernetic Manhunters hellbent on destroying the Green Lantern Corps

- *Luke Evans as Kanjar-Ro, a dimwitted yet very arrogant and psychotic black market arms dealer as well as one of the most dangerous non powered criminals in the galaxy

- Alison Brie as Carol Ferris, the owner of Ferris Industries, a company that builds aircrafts and a close friend to Hal Jordan

- *Idris Elba as Zovirax, a rich and powerful alien socialite of the planet, Fortoös 

- *Leitita Wright as Zoviroa, the rebellious and proud daughter of Zovirax as well as the leader of an extreme fight club

- ** Emily Blunt as Sapis, a slug like alien creature who species is responsible for galactic information

- ** Terry Notary as the voice of the Manhunters, super sensory enhanced androids with the uncanny power to absorb and redistribute energy

with

- ** Patrick Stewart as Ganthet, member as well as leader of the Guardians Of The Universe

- ** Nicole Kidman as Sayd, member of the Guardians Of The Universe 

- Chris Evans as Jack Jordan, Hal Jordan’s estranged older brother who disapproves of Hal’s pilot life

and

- *Julie Andrews as The Queen, the mysterious and benevolent queen of Sapis’ species

- Ken Watanabe as Abin Sur, the greatest Green Lantern who is Hal Jordan’s predecessor 

 

Cameos:

Spoiler

* Keith David as Kilowog, a veteran Green Lantern training new recruits

* H Jon Benjamin as Ch’p, a leecherous squirrel like Green Lantern 

Naomi Scott as Arisia, a elf like Green Lantern with dusty bronze skin who’s the youngest Green Lantern in history

* Vanessa Kirby as Mabi, a mantis like humanoid Green Lantern who’s also a trained medical professional 

* Ricky Whittle as Salaak, a nerdy crustacean like humanoid Green Lantern 

Gemma Chan as Dr. Sapphar, a renowned scientist who’s Sinestro’s former flame

Chiwetel Ejifior as Mogo, a Green Lantern who’s an actual planet

 

Post Credits:

Spoiler

Sterling K Brown as John Stewart

*Hugh Jackman as Atrocitus

 

 

Genre: Superhero/Sci-fi/Action/Adventure/Comedy

Release Date: July 30th, Y5

Theater Count: 4,295 (including 405 IMAX theaters)
Format: 2D (2.39:1), 3D (2.39:1), Dolby Cinema (2.39:1) and IMAX 2D+3D (1.44:1)

IMAX: Select sequences shot in 70mm IMAX (1.44:1). Footage cropped to 1.9:1 on digital IMAX screens.
Budget: $185 million
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action violence, thematic material, crude humor and a brief rude gesture

Running Time: 141 minutes (2 hours, 21 minutes)

 

Plot:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/10TcNgYRRQTALNsjO0nkKk5SfxXaz7zSkdPsZpULLqDs

 

Completed

Edited by YourMother the Edgelord
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Birds

Studio: Infinite Studios
Release Date: 4/9/Y5

Genre: Nature Documentary
Director: Drew Fellman
Rating: G
Budget: $5M
Theater Count: 2,450
Runtime: 77 minutes
Narrator: Michael Keaton

Composer: John Williams

Plot:
The narrator tells us an informative and fun journey about a flock of birds migrating as well as bird facts and the dangers they face

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Sylvarius

 

Genre: CGI Animation/Fantasy

Voice Cast: Ashley Johnson (Selena), Amy Acker (Queen Asyr), LaKeith Stanfield (Marcus), Peter Dinklage (Cobben), Khary Payton (Sylvarius), Jim Cummings (Doddard), Troy Baker (Frankel), McKenna Grace (Anna), John Noble (King Julius)

Directed By: Chris Butler

Written By: Brandon Sanderson

Original Music By: Jeremy Soule

Release Date: August 6, Year 5

Theater Count: 3588

Budget: $130 million

Running Time: 108 Minutes

MPAA Rating: PG for scenes of adventure peril, thematic elements, and some language

 

Plot Summary: The film is set in a fantasy world where there is a mix of magic and Industrial Revolution technology.

 

Spoiler

 

The nation of Lyandra lies in a temperate climate and stretches from the waters of the Balantine Ocean in the east to the edge of the Great Aeolian Forest of the west. Decades ago, the attempted expansion of Lyandra westward created a conflict with the guardian of the Forest, Sylvarius, and after some years of turmoil peace settled in, with any further expansion west banned. However, in recent months, a strange plague never seen before has hit towns on the western edges of Lyandra, causing some to think that Sylvarius is planning to break the truce.

 

We meet Selena (Johnson), a young woman about 20 years old who lives in the town of Farah. We learn that her parents have taken ill with the plague, which while not often fatal, in many cases makes the victims catatonic. Because of this she had to give up on going to the famous Danton University in the far south in order, where she hoped to study alchemy and magic, to stay home and care for her parents. She also has to deal with her younger sister Anna (Grace), who is growing rebellious in the lack of parental presence. A few early scenes show her caring for her parents, being the breadwinner for the family with a small shop where she crafts minor magical trinkets and alchemical potions, and trying to control Anna’s behavior.

 

We briefly visit the capital city of Port Hyand and see at the royal palace a meeting of the King’s councilors. King Julius (Noble) is troubled by the news of the plague in the west and discontent among the smallfolk but is skeptical that Sylvarius would break the truce. His second wife, Queen Asyr (Acker) enters and persuades the council and Julius to instill more draconian measures to ready for possible war against the Aeolian Forest. It is clear Asyr wields great influence over Julius. Also, at the meeting is Doddard (Cummings), the aging and seemingly half-senile dwarf court wizard. He doesn’t seem to offer much useful advice and is generally ignored.

 

Later we see Asyr meet with a henchman, Frankel (Baker), and order him to find someone.

 

Selena spends time at the market getting goods for her shop as well as food for her family and sees a protest complaining of the monarchy doing nothing to help. A young man is observing from a corner. Guards break up the gathering and Selena has to duck into an alley. Leaving the alley, she bumps into that young man (Stanfield), who apologizes, saying he’s new to the town. After a short conversation they are interrupted by a pair of thugs who want to take the man in for “questioning” and decide Selena is involved. This results in the young man knocking the two men out and leading Selena away. He avoids giving an explanation and hurries on his way and Selena goes home. Unknown to them both, two other men were following the man, and one follows her.

 

We see a grumbling magician, Cobben (Dinklage), driving his hodgepodge steam-driven wagon down the road towards Farah. He grumbles to himself about the kingdom driving honest magicians out of work. His pet hawk, Arryn, arrives with a note tied to a leg. Cobben reads it and comments he’s employed again.

 

After a bit of exposition Selena and Anna have an argument where Selena berates Anna for being a selfish little sister and Anna storms out. Selena then leaves for another errand and discovers a small box with a note in a pocket in her travel cloak that wasn’t there the previous day. It’s written in a language she can’t read. She returns home to find it deserted. After frantically running around, she collapses and starts sobbing. Suddenly someone enters: Anna, causing Selena to hug him and apologize for the things she said. Suddenly another person enters: Frankel. He tells them that their parents are being held hostage until Selena helps him find the young man. Anna tells Selena to cooperate but Selena is reluctant so Frankel orders them taken outside. Outside the group is accosted by Cobben in his steam vehicle, using magic to disable the guards. He gets Selena and Anna onto his vehicle and detonates a smoke bomb to cover its escape. Frankel orders pursuit on horseback and we get a chase scene with the steam wagon going fast enough for horses to have trouble catching it, and Cobben using various magic tricks to slow down the chasers. At one point a soldier nearly grabs Anna, but Selena grabs a walking stick tucked in the wagon and bops the guy on the head, knocking him off. She also helps by grabbing a potion out of a pouch she has. Telling Cobben it’s “extremely” flammable, he has Selena throw it onto the road behind them and after it shatters Cobben sends a spark that ignites the puddle into a wall of fire, temporarily halting the pursuit. With that delay, the three finally get away after Cobben is able to create several illusions of the vehicle that go different ways at a crossroads, sending the chasers off the wrong way.

 

With the chase over, things settle down and Selena thanks Cobben, who introduces himself properly and explains things a bit. He says that many people in Lyandra think the country is going the wrong direction, but the leaders have to organize in secret. Selena was accidentally involved in the transfer of a message. Selena gives her note to Cobben and he looks a bit perplexed reading it. He refuses to say what it means, saying it is safer if Selena and Anna know less. Cobben says he can take them to a safe place, but Selena says her and Anna must find their parents, so Cobben agrees to help them but says the man who took them works for the Queen.

 

We see a scene between Asyr and Frankel where Asyr communicates via a smoke “hologram” of herself. Frankel asks how much more is necessary until they can begin and Asyr says that soon things will reach a boiling point and people will demand action against the Great Aeolian Forest.

 

We see bits of Selena, Anna, and Cobben travelling southeast towards Port Hyand, the magician using Arryn to send and receive messages. Eventually things between Selena and Anna reach another boiling point and Anna shouts that it’s all Selena’s fault. Selena runs off to be alone in a glade. Soon Cobben finds her and sits with her to let her vent. Selena mentions her desire to go to Danton University and Cobben says a bit about his experiences there, saying it is a wonderful place of learning, and he hopes Selena can pursue her aspirations there since it is still rare for most people to get higher education.

 

At the royal palace King Julius talks with Asyr about his concerns. Julius says he is sure Sylvarius wouldn’t break the truce, but Asyr says that Sylvarius is like any other ruler and wants power and will take it from a weak king. Asyr says that Julius must show he is not weak.

 

Selena and company arrive in Port Hyand and Cobben says must find a leader of the dissenters. They go to a quiet inn and Cobben sends out Arryn to deliver a message. As they wait Cobben tells Selena that the writing on the messages he sends is Aelic, the language of the people who used to live in the Aeolian Forest. It’s an obscure language so it allows the leaders to communicate in secret. Arryn returns with a message to wait. Soon a person arrives to meet them: The young man who bumped into Selena. She is furious, blaming him for getting her family involved. The young man, whose name is Marcus, is very sorry for what happened. He says that her parents are being kept alive as leverage. Marcus pledges to Selena that he will do what he can to get her parents back safe. Meanwhile Anna, who has been watching from a corner, sneaks out of the room.

 

Selena goes to a reserved room in the inn. Eventually Marcus comes to apologize again. Selena talks to him about her family and Marcus says that he never knew his mother and his father has gotten more distant as he aged. The talking has the two bond a bit when suddenly a crash is heard: Royal Police have forced their way into the inn. Cobben shoos Arryn out a window and shouts (not using names) for the other two to get out. Selena realizes Anna is missing but there’s no time they go out a back exit. There, they are able to peek around and see Cobben dragged off in chains and see that Anna has led the police there. Marcus says Anna probably thought it’d be a way to get Asyr to return their parents. Selena understands but is disappointed. Marcus says he knows how they can keep an eye on both Andrew and Cobben.

 

That plan is to infiltrate the Royal Palace. Selena is to be disguised as a new serving girl since the palace is hiring a bunch at the moment. Marcus gives her advice on what to do and says he’ll have to use a different route but he’ll find her once they’re both inside. Selena follows his advice and soon gets admitted to the servants’ quarter of the palace where she is lodged with the other female servants.

 

Cobben is brought before Asyr, who tries to interrogate the magician but with little success and they end up just getting distracted and bickering, making it clear they knew each other in the past. Asyr summons Doddard and orders him to cast a truth-telling spell on Cobben. Doddard and Cobben have some bickering as well, they also seem to know one another, and then Doddard fumbles around with a spellbook and mumbles an incantation, which turns Cobben’s head into a cat’s, and Cobben instead of talking meows, in that way a cat does when it gets very annoyed. Doddard apologizes and says his eyesight isn’t what it used to be. It’ll be a little while before the spell wears off and they can ask more questions.

 

Asyr gives an exaggerated sigh and dismisses Doddard. Since she can’t question Cobben further she has him taken to the dungeons. Frankel then enters and brings up how they caught Cobben (Anna’s ratting him out to police) and Asyr is pleased, since it means Selena is in the city and her desire to save her family will eventually draw her out. She tells Frankel that Anna shall be treated well, since “good deeds deserve rewards.”

 

We see a couple short scenes of Selena integrating into palace servant life. Meanwhile Asyr pays Anna a visit to thank her and she asks about her parents. Asyr says they are being treated for their condition, but until Selena turns herself in she can’t release them. Anna complains about Selena getting the family into trouble and Asyr says Anna can help save her family. Eventually Selena is tasked with being part of the serving detail for a big banquet. Julius and Asyr are present, and so is Marcus, introduced as Prince Marcus, Julius’ only child. Selena and Marcus briefly exchange glances. In a tense bit Selena deftly has to perform her job while avoiding the gaze of Asyr, who would know her from a description. We see Marcus interact with his family for the first time at the banquet and while he tries to be warm with his father, he is terse when talking to Asyr, who acts sweet in public.

 

Eventually the dinner ends and Selena returns towards her quarters but on the way Marcus intercepts her and pulls her to a secluded part of the castle to talk. She is understandably annoyed at his deception and he explains there was little time to explain things. After some arguing Marcus says Cobben is being kept in the dungeons and she will have to try to free him after he arranges for access. He doesn’t know about Anna.

 

Meanwhile, Asyr and Julius talk and it seems Asyr has convinced the king to start preparing for war. The king makes a sad comment about how his first wife would despair about Sylvarius breaking the holy vow that bound the three of them. Asyr briefly looks confused, a detail she doesn’t understand. Later she talks to Frankel and says there are unknown variables.

 

Selena follows through on Marcus’ plan and enters the dungeons bringing food. A guard says the stew looks delicious and she says she helped add some special spices herself. The guard looks very hungry and says he wants this portion then, she can bring more stew for the prisoner later. Selena hands the bowl over and the guard digs in. After several spoonfuls he says it tastes delicious and asks what spices. Selena recites several spices as the guard looks more and more sleepy, until the guard passes out unconscious. “Last one of course is molleypebble, which guarantees a good night’s rest” she says, shaking a little vial at the sleeping guard.

 

We then see Cobben in his cell, still with a cat’s head, and we hear his mental narration of him first being annoyed with the “stupid old fool” who can’t manage a simple truth spell, and then thinking of ways he could try to escape but dismissing them all comically (we see brief clips of each considered escape attempt playing out before failing, each way gets more outlandish).

 

Finally, he thinks “maybe I’ll just try to open the door with my mind” and after a couple seconds of staring at the door it swings open…because Selena opened it with a key. She’s very confused by his cat head and of course he tries to explain it to her, but it all comes out meows, so he’s resorted to making hand gestures while looking frustrated. Selena unlocks his chains and says they need to find Anna before they get out.

 

The two try to sneak through the dungeons, evading guards, including one comical bit where Cobben is involuntarily purring loudly and almost attracts attention from an actual cat that starts walking and rubbing on Cobben’s legs before he is able to shoo it away. Eventually, they stumble upon a more comfortable room where Anna is being kept. Selena is happy and tells Anna to come with her, but instead Andrew says she has to save their parents and yells for the guards. Guards rush in and Cobben tries to do magic tricks but again can’t, because a lot of then require words and he still has a cat head. Instead they are taken prisoner.

 

Selena, Anna, and Cobben are brought to a big reception room at the top of the palace, which has huge open-air windows. Doddard and Frankel are present as well. It is at this point that the spell on Cobben dissipates and he has a human head again. “Oh, great timing” he complains. Doddard chuckles and says the lack of complaining was an improvement for his old student and he and Cobben get into an argument about the old days for a minute until Asyr, annoyed, shouts for silence, which everyone complies with.

 

Asyr thanks Anna and says that once Selena gives up her information his parents will be freed. Selena and Cobben refuse to talk but Asyr says Selena has no reason to stay silent since she can free her parents and go home. She wants to know who the leader of Cobben’s group is and she’ll use “nasty methods” if she has to. The two still refuse to talk so Asyr conjures magic to torture Cobben, but he says nothing. Asyr considers torturing Selena, but instead says she’ll torture Anna until Selena talks. Anna freaks out and Frankel pins her as Asyr gets ready. Just before Asyr starts Selena, tearing up, says she’ll talk.

 

Before she can say anything, Marcus suddenly appears. Marcus admits to being the one helping Cobben/Selena to spare them more punishment. Asyr is pleased and says Julius will be so disappointed to learn his son is a traitor and orders her guards to take him prisoner. As they close in Cobben tells Selena to stay low to the ground. Suddenly Marcus gets a strained look on his face and doubles over to fall on hands and knees. Everyone except Cobben looks utterly confused as suddenly Marcus morphs into a griffin. Marcus’ wings beat away the nearby guards and Cobben conjures a whirlwind that rips many guards’ weapons away.

 

Cobben whistles a short tune and then with Selena stays low as they go to Marcus. Cobben has her climb on, she sees Anna and calls for him to come over but he is reluctant, so Cobben grabs her and drags him over. Asyr is shouting for her guards to stop them and Doddard says he can do it, he has a spell to paralyze them. He pulls out his old spellbook and again bumbles over an incantation, which ends up instead filling the entire room with smoke. Cobben laughs and says even incompetent old teachers are good for something and with the smoke cover Marcus’s griffin form gallops towards an open window and leaps into the air.

 

Doddard stammers an apology but Asyr is furious and knocks him aside to the ground. Asyr then uses a spell to clear up the smoke and readies a spell to shoot at the escaping group, but suddenly she is dive-bombed by Arryn, who tears a gash on a cheek and distracts her long enough for Marcus to get out of her sight. Arryn is not so lucky and receives a fatal blast of electricity. Cobben senses it and closes his eyes as he, Selena, and Anna are carried into the countryside on Marcus’ back.

 

At the palace, Asyr informs Julius that his son is a traitor, mixing truth with lies to convince the king that his son is working for Sylvarius to overthrow him. The news rattles Julius and he says he couldn’t believe that the peace he made would result in his own undoing, but the strain makes him unwell and he secludes himself, leaving things fully in Asyr’s hands. Asyr tells Frankel that they must accelerate their plans.

 

After enough flying, Selena and Anna, both freaked out, demand that Marcus land. Marcus lands in a wooded patch. Selena, Anna, and Cobben get off and Marcus’ form walks out of sight into the woods. Selena asks why and Cobben says that when Marcus transformed it ripped all of his human clothes off meaning when he transforms back…and Selena and Anna understand. There is a light moment with Marcus back as a human hiding behind a tree as Selena tries to talk to him while Cobben and Anna look for clothes. Marcus answers some of her questions, saying he found out he could shapeshift about six months earlier. Selena asks how he can do it and Marcus pokes his head out from behind the tree to say he doesn’t know; only that Cobben has helped him control it. He says Cobben knows the most and it’s time for him to explain everything.

 

Cobben and Anna return with clothes, Cobben saying Anna is pretty good at fitting through small windows in unattended homes, and everyone then gathers around a campfire. After urging by Selena and Marcus, Cobben agrees to explain what he knows:

 

He says that Asyr is planning to start a war against the Great Aeolian Forest so it can be destroyed and she can gain its power for herself. She has used dark magic and alchemy to manufacture the mysterious plague. Asyr belongs to a family whose ancestors were powerful magic-users who wanted to conquer the places in the world strongest in magic in order to drain them of their power. So, they instigated the original war against the Aeolian Forest but underestimated Sylvarius’ power, so the war raged for decades. Asyr wants to finish what her ancestors started. The conversation then turns to Marcus and his ability to and Cobben says he should have told Marcus this when they first met. He says that to answer, he has to tell a story.

 

(The following bit is shown in traditional 2-D animation instead of CGI, as Cobben narrates): A little over twenty years ago, the war was still raging and Julius had just been crowned king. He one day was separated from his men after an attack by forest creatures. He got lost and was injured but was saved by a beautiful woman near the border of the forest. The woman healed his injuries and explained that she was a guardian of the forest like Sylvarius, but she thought there was a chance for peace and wanted to learn more about the human world. Julius arranged for her to return to Port Hyand with him and as she learned more about humanity the two of them fell in love. At this point the woman revealed that she was not just a guardian, she was Sylvarius’ daughter. She asked Julius to come with her to her father, so she could plead for peace. Julius agreed and she brought him to the heart of the Forest to meet her father. Though Sylvarius believed humans could not be trusted, his daughter convinced him that violence was no longer the way, and he and Julius pledged peace, bound by their love for her. Julius took the woman home as his wife but she died in childbirth, birthing a son.

 

The news surprises everyone and Cobben says that he knows all this because the story had a witness: himself, who was befriended by Marcus’ mother years before when he was a child and one day foolishly got lost in the Forest on a stupid dare. Marcus’ mother asked him to do whatever he could to ensure the peace, but now he fears it will end since Sylvarius is stirring in the forest and with Asyr’s actions he will certainly go to war. All of this news proves to be too much for Marcus and he gets up and wanders off. After a minute, Selena decides to follow him.

 

She finds him sitting against a tree trunk, looking confused and lost, and she sits down next to him. He says he now feels overwhelmed and Selena says she felt the same way after being whisked into this crazy adventure. Marcus apologizes again for getting her family involved and she says he doesn’t have to, she understands how important this is now. The two talk for a bit and it becomes clear that they are growing closer together.

 

Meanwhile we get a light moment with Cobben and Anna with Cobben demonstrating a few minor tricks to Anna and he says that anyone can do some magic tricks since the most basic elements of magic have to do with intelligence and concentration. Anna is eager to try a trick out and Cobben gives him instructions, but when Anna attempts it it humorously backfires. Anna asks about the old wizard at the palace and Cobben says that Doddard was his teacher at Danton University as well as a mentor in the capital, but they had a falling out, and now he works for Asyr. Anna says maybe he’s just confused, he seems confused. Cobben says maybe.

 

Selena and Marcus return from the woods and Marcus says he’s ready to continue on. Cobben nods and says that since Asyr is likely going to start the final steps of her plan, they have to go to the one being who can fully stop her: Sylvarius.

 

We see Asyr in her private quarters. She is meditating. Frankel appears and says the first units are prepared to invade the forest. He says they will likely be slaughtered. Asyr says that is the point, since their invasion will provoke Sylvarius to retaliate, and the whole country will be behind the war when he strikes back. She says it is time for her to go to the frontier.

 

We see a short scene with Selena and Anna talking and she apologizes for ratting them out earlier since she was desperate to get their parents back. Selena knows and says she would never have let anything bad happen to Anna. The two hug and reconcile.

 

After a couple short traveling scenes, we see the group arriving at a hill overlooking the Great Aeolian Forest. They see that pieces of the Forest are on fire and there are sounds of battle. Cobben uses a mix of magic and ingenuity to craft a telescope and looks through it. He says that royal soldiers are setting fire to the forest but some are running away in terror. He also sees strange steam machines emitting a strange smog into the air. Cobben says the forest has many defenses that they can’t pass on foot, meaning they’ll have to fly in, which makes Marcus sigh. Anna tells him to cheer up since they stocked up on extra clothes.

 

They fly on Marcus’ griffin body into the forest. Cobben tells Selena and Anna that it may be difficult to convince the forest’s protectors they mean no harm, but in no event can they act hostile. After a little flying he tells Marcus to land in a clearing. As Marcus is changing behind cover Cobben says they don’t have far to go. But after he says that forest creatures begin to emerge from the clearing. Some are plain old wolves, bears, etc, but others are more fantasy-oriented versions of forest predators. Cobben pulls Selena and Anna close as he casts a protective force field. The predators are warded off for the moment, but then bigger, more magical creatures show up that use brute force to break down the barrier, which finally collapses. As the creatures come in closer Marcus suddenly appears and calls for the creatures to stop. One of the big ones, an ogre-like thing, walks towards him, but flinches away at the last second. The forest creatures slowly back away into the woods. Anna asks what happened and Selena guesses that they recognized Marcus’ ancestry. Cobben surmises they should be left alone now.

 

Going on memory, Cobben finally leads them to a wondrous grove of trees, flowers, etc where a middle-aged looking man is…gardening. The man is tending to the plants and ignores the others until finally Cobben addresses the man as “Sylvarius.” Sylvarius (Payton) comments that he remembers Cobben and asks why they have come. Marcus says they need his help. Sylvarius asks why he should help humans when they are once again destroying nature for power and Marcus replies “because I’m not just human, I’m your grandson.” Sylvarius stops his gardening and turns to look. “You have his eyes” he says “but her spirit.” He says it is too late, this time he won’t have peace until the humans truly learn their lesson. If humans intentionally inflict horrors on their own people, can they be a species worth trusting? Selena says that he doesn’t believe that. If he did, he wouldn’t have been convinced by his daughter. Sylvarius says that he loved his daughter and agreed to peace for her sake, but now wonders if it was a mistake. He says that humans are already baiting him to strike back. Soon, those humans will turn the entire country against him, and then there will be no option but to fight. Selena says he shouldn’t fall for the bait. Sylvarius says he is the Guardian of the Forest, the avatar of its spirit and protector of its plants and creatures. If he does nothing, then countless of them will perish, so to do nothing will be betraying his purpose. He tells them they may stay for protection and stalks out of the grove.

 

Asyr arrives near the border of the forest, near a collection of the strange steam machines. We learn that they are emitting a special poison into the air that when blown west will contaminate the forest and kill off the plant life. Asyr has used her magic to make it even more toxic and says that Sylvarius will have to show himself unless he wants his forest to sicken and die. We also learn that the toxin was the original source for the plague.

 

Back in the capital, Julius is still sulking, with Frankel keeping an eye on him for Asyr. Julius is looking at a locket with a picture of his dead first wife and cries. Doddard comes to Julius’ room and the two old men have a chat, with Julius saying he has been lost for years. Doddard, for the first time not sounding like a senile old man, says that perhaps he should retrace his steps, so he can find the right path. Julius nods and says he thinks so. That night, we see Julius sneak out of the palace, find a horse, and ride west.

 

The following morning, Frankel checks on Julius and sees Julius sleeping soundly and snoring. When he goes to wake Julius up his hand passes through, it is an illusion. He summons Doddard, and Doddard, back to bumbling, says Julius asked him to help him sleep, so Doddard cast a spell to make Julius have a long rest in the bed and “Well…I guess it did what he asked, there’s Julius resting in bed.” Frankel is irritated and lets out a large groan and immediately summons a group of soldiers to go ride west to Asyr. As he leaves, we see Doddard have a knowing grin.

 

We see Sylvarius tending to a plot of blue flowers when Marcus approaches. Sylvarius says that his daughter loved these blue flowers and he maintains this plot to remind himself of her. Marcus says he never knew his mother, but he knew how much his father loved her. He says that grief paralyzed his father and allowed a few wicked people to put things in the wrong direction. Sylvarius, sad, says that humans are always seeking to be “better”, but that always leads to them destroying what they should cherish. Marcus says it doesn’t always have to be like that and asks his grandfather to give him a chance to prove that.

 

Cobben, Selena, and Anna are talking when Marcus returns and says Sylvarius will help, but first they must do something. He says that Asyr’s people have constructed machines that will poison the forest and they have to sabotage them, since Sylvarius’ strength is tied to the health of the forest. Marcus tells Cobben to come with him but Selena and Anna to stay. Anna is fine with staying, but Selena objects. Cobben points out that she doesn’t know how to fight but Selena insists that she can still help.

 

Frankel arrives at Asyr’s location and informs her about Julius getting loose. Asyr is annoyed but then tells Frankel that if Julius is discovered he has to be captured immediately before he can discover the truth and order the forces to stand down.

 

Selena, Marcus, and Cobben make their way to the edge of the forest and notice that fringes of it are starting to perish. It’s getting dark but they see the encampment with the strange machines. Cobben uses magic to summon a fog that will help conceal them. They sneak into the camp, avoiding guards, and Cobben is able to inspect one of the machines. He says it’s steam-driven technology but enhanced with strong magic. They also see the vats of toxin feeding into the machine and Cobben says it’s some alchemical formula he’s never seen before. Selena catches a familiar scent in the noxious brew and recognizes at least one of the components from her work back in Farah. She says if they can take some of the toxin, they might be able to engineer a cure to the plague from it. Cobben agrees but says first they must disable the machines.

 

Cobben figures out how to disable the machines and tells Marcus and Selena how and they split up. They disable most of them but a guard eventually discovers Marcus and sounds the alarm. In the scramble the three try to escape but Selena is surrounded. Marcus tries to rush to get her but she yells for him to get away and Cobben has to drag Marcus away.

 

In the countryside, Julius is riding on horseback incognito when he stumbles across a patrol of soldiers. The soldiers are led by Frankel and he recognizes the king. Frankel says Julius’ wife is expecting him and “offers” to escort him to her.

 

As they lead Julius away the “camera” looks up and we see a large oval shadow drift across the moon.

 

Selena is brought before Asyr, who gloats. Selena says Asyr is greedy for power, which Asyr agrees to without shame. She admires Selena’s persistence. “We’re alike in that”. She says Marcus will come back to save her, and that will be his undoing. Frankel then arrives with Julius and Julius tries to confront his wife, saying that he was wrong about Sylvarius. Asyr smiles, tells the king he is “unwell” and has guards take him away. She tells Selena she holds all the cards now and she should pray that Marcus cares more about some forest god than her or his father.

 

Marcus and Cobben return to the grove. They find that Anna has accidentally and comically gotten herself adopted by a small pack of coyotes. Cobben goes to tell her about Selena’s capture while Marcus goes to find Sylvarius. He tells Sylvarius about what happened and that he has to go back for Selena. Sylvarius understands Marcus’ feelings and says Asyr will be forced to move against him, which will mean battle. He says in the midst of that Marcus may have his chance to save those he cares about.

 

After a couple minutes showing preparations by either side, it’s time for the showdown. We see that Cobben has managed to create an elastic backpack that will stay on Marcus’ back when he shifts and allows him to carry a change of clothes with him. Asyr details Frankel to keep an eye on the prisoners. She uses the remaining steam machines in a magical burst to send a wave of toxins into the forest that instantly kills a lot of plant life, making it dry. She then uses magic to create a firebomb that explodes in the dead wood, creating an inferno. This sudden and terrible attack causes a horde of forest creatures to rush out to attack, though Sylvarius isn’t seen yet. In the chaos, Marcus flies overhead carrying Cobben and Anna and lands in the back of the encampment unnoticed. We see several coyotes have taken a long way around the battle, as if tracking Anna.

 

After shifting back into human form and clothed, Marcus says he’ll take Anna and find Selena and asks Cobben to do what he can to weaken Asyr’s plans.

 

Marcus and Anna go look for Selena, Marcus knocking out a guard to take his weapons. They find Selena and Marcus subdues her guards. He unties her and the two embrace. Selena tells Marcus that his father is here too as a prisoner.

 

Meanwhile we see Cobben using magic tricks to cause distractions, obscure the vision of Asyr’s troops, and other tactics to reduce the ability of her forces to fight well. However he is soon discovered by a number of soldiers and is forced to go on a back-and-forth chase through the camp. As he does, we see a large shadow drifting across the ground towards the encampment.

 

Sylvarius finally shows himself and he uses nature magic to use the ground itself against the enemy, opening up large pits in the ground that Asyr’s soldiers fall into. Asyr confronts him and the two become engaged in a magic duel, the vast amount of destruction fueling Asyr’s power.

 

After more searching, Marcus locates the tent holding his father, but Frankel is guarding it and he engages Marcus in a swordfight as Selena and Anna hold back. After a minute of fighting, Frankel gets the upper hand and knocks Marcus down. He taunts Marcus but then Selena rushes forward, grabbing a shovel, and whacks Frankel in the head to knock him out. Marcus thanks her and they impulsively kiss though immediately both feel awkward, especially after Anna comments that there’s a battle going on right now. Marcus goes to untie his father, who profusely apologizes for not seeing the woman Asyr is. Marcus forgives him and asks Anna to take Julius to a safe spot. Marcus and Selena then go to find Cobben.

 

Anna leads Julius away from the camp, but they are confronted by a couple soldiers. Before the soldiers can do anything, the pack of coyotes appears and attacks the soldiers, injuring them and driving them off. One of them then walks up to Anna and licks her face. “Long story” Anna says to Julius and they continue theirs escape, surrounded by the coyotes.

 

Eventually Cobben is surrounded by almost a dozen soldiers and, dismayed, prepares for a final stand, when the large shadow drifts over where he and the soldiers are. They all look up: It’s large hot-air balloon. They’re all dumbfounded for a second, and then all the soldiers around Cobben look dazed, wander around like they’re drunk, and then pass out. The balloon then lowers and we see Doddard is in it. “Hello apprentice” he says cheerfully and Cobben asks what Doddard is doing here. “Getting out of trouble” Doddard says “like the last two times.” Cobben then gets a look of recognition. “The cat head, the smoke, not accidents” he says. Doddard nods. “Couldn’t take on Asyr myself, so I had to play dumb for years until other people were ready to as well.” Cobben apologizes for the mean things he had said to Doddard the past several years and Doddard says it’s fine, he earned some of them.

 

At that point Selena and Marcus arrive. They all realize that Asyr has to be stopped soon, as we see the magic duel between Asyr and Sylvarius continues and the destruction of some of the forest has weakened the guardian, so Asyr is gaining the upper hand. Cobben says they need to find some way to weaken Asyr. Selena asks if the toxin can be altered to drain magic instead of life and Doddard says he thinks so, but he doesn’t know the formula. Selena says she has recognized some of it, she can make some chemical changes with some help. We then see Selena at work with some bowls and tools, making adjustments to a sample of the toxin with Cobben and Doddard giving assistance about ingredient changes, also bickering. She soon finishes and says if they expose Asyr to it, it might weaken her enough to stop her. Cobben says they would need to get close and Marcus says he can manage that. Selena says she is going with him and when Marcus objects she reminds him that when he’s shapeshifted he doesn’t have hands. Marcus relents and Cobben hands Selena a vial of the altered toxin.

 

Marcus shifts into griffin form and flies up into the air, Selena on his back. Cobben and Doddard watch them go, and then Doddard pats Cobben on the back and tells him to come with him. Cobben asks what for and Doddard with an old man grin replies “backup plan.”

 

In the duel, Asyr has knocked Sylvarius down and has bound him in a ring of death magic, slowly weakening him as she levitates in the air above him. Selena and Marcus see this and divebomb on her from above, Selena clutching the vial tightly. As they do this, we see Cobben and Doddard had knocked a steam machine on its side and are using magic to rearrange its parts, bickering about which part goes where.

 

Asyr looms over Sylvarius to give the final blow, but senses something and instinctively turns around and fires a blast of electricity, which hits the divebombing Marcus. He careens to the ground almost paralyzed, but retains enough control to avoid a disastrous crash, but he is still injured as he hits the ground and Selena is thrown from his back, landing with a thud and the vial of toxin flying from her hand and shattering a short distance away. Asyr laughs and lowers herself to near them to taunt them and say that it was good of them to come, now she has all of her annoyances in one place. Selena looks off to the side and then looks back to Asyr with a smile. “Oh this was the plan all along. We have you right where we want you.” Asyr asks what she means and Selena says “distraction.”

 

Confused, Asyr looks off to the side and looks stunned as we see what Cobben and Doddard have assembled: a steam cannon made from the machine that will shoot aerosolized toxin at her. Before she can do anything the two fire the cannon and the blast of steamed toxin hits her and immediately Asyr begins shaking and screaming and we see her prematurely age and have cracks and black veins appear on her skin. As she tries to use one last bit of magic Sylvarius hits her weakened body with a telekinetic blast that sends her tumbling into a deep crevice in the ground and she falls to her doom.

 

As Marcus starts to shift back Selena covers him with a blanket and comforts him, the two have some sweet words for one another. With Asyr dead her forces run away and Sylvarius calls the forest creatures back into the woods. Julius appears with Anna and he goes to his son’s side and apologizes for being such a fool. Sylvarius then approaches Julius and Julius, remorseful, says he was so struck with grief for nearly 20 years that he failed to notice his own people working against him. Sylvarius looks at Marcus, Selena, and the others and tells Julius that for a time he lost faith in humanity, but the efforts of a few have reminded him of why his daughter had it. He walks up to Julius and shakes his hand.

 

We see a montage of short scenes. The heroes leave the border of the forest, Anna’s adoptive coyote family following along for a bit before returning to the forest and giving a farewell howl. With Asyr gone, her officials reveal the location of where she kept prisoners, including Selena and Anna’s parents. Cobben and Doddard go to work at engineering a cure for the plague caused by the toxin, Selena providing assistance to them based on her knowledge, and soon a cure is created. This causes a joyful reunion with Selena and Anna and their parents. And Sylvarius returns to his grove in the heart of the forest where he silently tends the plot of blue flowers.

 

With the dust settled, Cobben says he will be staying by the Aeolian Forest to act as an intermediary between Sylvarius and the kingdom to promote peace. With Doddard having dropped the senile act, he will aid Cobben as the spokesman for the kingdom in such dealings.

 

In a private talk with Selena, Cobben says she’s shown how any person can do great things if they put their heart and mind into it. He says the work she’s done in the recent days beat any entrance exam Danton University could throw at her and encourages her to follow through on her dreams. If people care about her, they’ll follow them too.

 

Later she meets with Marcus, who invites Selena and her family stay in the capital, saying they can have a good life there and he and her could spend more time together. Selena, after thinking, says she cares for Marcus a lot, and while she thinks her family can use the opportunity, she herself cannot. She says she has dreamed of going to Danton University for so long and now that her parents are healed and can take care of themselves and Anna, she finally has the chance. Marcus understands and says she’ll do wonderful there. The two hug and kiss, and Marcus walks away. Selena returns to Anna and her parents and they have a nice family moment together, though Selena is sad.

 

The film moves a little forward in time and we see Julius, Marcus, and Doddard in the royal palace holding a council meeting, though Marcus eventually looks out into space. Afterwards, Julius approaches him on a balcony and recognizing Marcus’ feelings, advises him that some things can wait, but others cannot. We then see Cobben on his rickety steam wagon traveling on a road towards the Great Aeolian Forest, being humorously harassed by an owl. Eventually it perches above him on the wagon and stares at him. “I’m going to need to think of a name for you” he says to it.

 

We finally see Selena and her family at the docks of Port Hyand with her about to take a steamship south to the island where Danton University is, for the start of the next term. Her parents and Anna hug her goodbye and she gets on the steamship. It chugs south out into the sea and Selena is up on the deck, lost in thought as she leans on a railing and looks out on the water. Suddenly she straightens up and looks with a squint out, then she leans forward again on the railing with a smile as we then see what she saw: A griffin in the distance, backpack tied on, flying south parallel with the ship.

 

 

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Medusa

 

Studio: Endless Entertainment (through the Endless Animation division)

Genre: CG Animation/Musical/Fantasy/Adventure

Directors: Lauren Faust and Meg LeFauve

Producers: Lauren MacMullan and Nathan Greno 

Writers: Jared Bush, Jennifer Lee, and Meg LeFauve

Composer: Mark Mancina 

Songwriters: Alan Menken and Tim Rice

Original Songs (all written by the three)

- Imperfections

- An Image

- Who’s That Girl

- Hideous

- For The Hunt

- Freaks To The Core

- Can I Be Loved?

- Made of Stone

(Loosely) Based on:

The Myth Of Medusa

 

Main Voice Cast:

 • Idina Menzel as Medusa

 • Hugh Jackman as Perseus

 • Diego Luna as Gnosis

 • Marsai Martin as Phoebe

 • Ken Jeong as Tom

 • Jake T Austin as Kostas 

 • James Rolleston as Georgios

 • Jeremy Renner as Ishmael

 • Tiffany Haddish as Aphrodite

 • Linda Cardelini as Maya 

with 

 • Jenifer Lewis as Cassandra 

 • Alfred Molina as Hades

and

 • Cate Blanchett as Athena

 

Release Date: February 12th, Y5

Theater Count: 4,185

Format: 2D (2.39:1), 3D (2.39:1), and Dolby Cinema (2.39:1)

Budget: $160 million

Tagline: “Beauty is only scale deep”

MPAA Rating: PG for sequences of adventure peril, thematic elements, and some scary images 

Running Time: 112 minutes

 

Animation: Done in house by Endless Animation. Worldmeander is used like in Don’t Let The Pigeon Drive and The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl (which combines computer animation with hand drawn animation ala (Paperman/Feast/Pigeon/Squirrel Girl) but is modeled to give it a more traditionally animated look and look and feel similar to Disney’s past animated musicals like Aladdin, Beauty and The Beast and The Lion King and a more fluid Paperman)

 

Plot:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ArXU7rayAoHkWd5vsOwQS65dtl5NJ4NmdAzsrafN8Wc

 

Edited by YourMother the Edgelord
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T H E  

S C A V E N G E R  

W A R S 

P A R T  I I

 

 

Studio: Cookie Pictures

Production Companies: Cookie Pictures, 21 Laps Entertainment

Genre: Sci-Fi/Thriller/Romance/Drama

Directors: Matt & Ross Duffer

Producers: Sebastian Peters, Matt Reeves, Shawn Levy

Executive Producers: Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck, Joaquim Dos Santos

Composer: James Newton Howard

Original Song: "Still Breeze" feat. Dua Lipa

Director of Photography: Dan Laustsen

VFX: WETA Digital and Industrial Light & Magic

VFX Supervisors: Joe Letteri (general), Ben Morris and Mike Mulholland ('Ares' supervisors)

 

Main Cast:

  • Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Lucina, the former captain of the H.F.F Milky Way and one of two focal protagonists.
  • * Bex Taylor-Klaus as Sunn, a cheery Scavenger girl with strange powers and one of the two focal protagonists. Luna's twin sister.
  • * Letitia Wright as Tamara, the queen of Khouga.
  • * Sasha Lane as Sal, a Scavenger huntress and childhood friend of Tamara.
  • * Taissa Farmiga as Luna, a Scavenger priestess with similarly strange powers as Sunn but wants to keep it hidden. Sunn's twin sister and Tamara's lover.
  • Kenneth Branagh as Arthur Hampstead, a dapper geology expert joining Lucina on Khouga.
  • * Ben Foster as Jarek, a Scavenger politician stoking fear and suspicion towards humans and one of the film's antagonists.
  • Sean Bean as Governor Torann, a Scavenger politician supporting Tamara. 

with

  • Laurence Fishburne as Grand Admiral Radian Helms, the former captain of the sunken H.F.F Seyfert turned Admiral of the entire fleet.

and

  • * ** Andy Serkis as Lord Ares, leader of the all powerful Dominion Empire and one of the film's antagonists.

 

Minor Cast:

Spoiler

Lauren Vélez as Cecilia Gaviria, Sunn's human caretaker

Sarah Paulson as Dr. Arya Reinhart, a human psychiatrist

Olivia as Anna, Cecilia's pet dog

* Nabiyah Be as Nadia, Jarek's partner

Holly Hunter as Captain Julia Hemphill, captain of the H.F.F Pinwheel

Michelle Yeoh as Captain Juan, the captain of the H.F.F Sunflower

Cliff Curtis as Captain Hebert, the captain of the H.F.F Mayall

 

Hidden Cast (major spoiler warning):

Spoiler

Harry Lennix as Commander Jonathan Barks

*** Elizabeth Debicki as Zedium

Forest Whitaker as King Techek

* Janelle Monae as Queen Zera

 

And a surprise appearance I won't spoil for you lazy bums!

 

*** Voice performance only

 

* Indicates performance through motion capture

** Unlike all other performance capture characters which are done by WETA Digital, Ares is done by Industrial Light & Magic

 

Release Date: December 15th

Theater Count: 4,250 (including 405 IMAX theaters and 40 Cinerama theaters)

Format: 2D (2.39:1), IMAX 2D (1.44:1), Cinerama (2.59:1)

IMAX: Select sequences shot in 70mm IMAX (1.43:1). Footage cropped to 1.9:1 on digital IMAX screens.

Cinerama: Select sequences shot with specially made Cinerama-equipped lenses at a roughly 2.59:1 aspect ratio. Footage cropped and realigned to 1.9:1 on 70mm and digital IMAX screens.

Budget: $240 million

MPAA Rating: R for sequences of strong brutal sci-fi action violence, sexual content and nudity, language and thematic elements

Running Time: 153 minutes (2 hours, 33 minutes)

 

Previous Film:

The Scavenger Wars - $91,156,066 / $305,797,947 / $1,017,199,411 - Nominated for eighteen Academy Awards including Best Picture, won six

 

Link to previous film:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SsaPQQBs_mHWwAjSrM4fyrbiJ5JLdthnAX9rgHbLGfQ

(This version has seen some slight revisions from the original)

 

Notes:

  • Sequences shot in IMAX 70mm are written in blue
  • Sequences shot with Cinerama lenses are written in green

 

Plot (About 26.6k words): 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1P88g9TCGgtKtizuwj7OQiUJKvFYc8ttCfH2oJUbYo-0/edit?usp=sharing

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The Phoenix Saga: Worlds Unknown

Studio: Endless Entertainment

Village Roadshow Pictures

Lin Pictures

Director: Travis Knight

Producers: Dan Lin and Travis Knight

Executive Producer: Lauren Montgomery

Writers: Christina Hodson, David Callaham and Shannon Tindle

Composer: Dario Marianelli
Director of Photography: Henry Braham
VFX: Weta Digital and Industrial Light and Magic

VFX Supervisor: Philippe Rebours 

 

Cast: *indicates motion capture performance, ** indicates voice performance 

 - Abraham Attah as Connor Griffin

 - Taliah Webster as Ayla Griffin

 - Henry Cavill as Malraka

 - Tye Sheridan as Evan

 - Rebecca Ferguson as Valeria

 - *Bobby Moynihan as Ignus

 - Zhang Ziyi as Tora

 - Lee Pace as Axitie

 - Priyanka Chopra as Mawa

 - **Helen Mirren as Ethire

 - *Brain Tyree Henry as Famrae

with

 - Sterling K. Brown as King Clark Griffin

and

 - Zoe Saldana as Queen Tessa Griffin

 

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/Action/Comedy-drama

Release Date: April 30th, Y5
Theater Count: 4,352 (including 405 IMAX theaters)
Format: 2D (2.39:1), 3D, Dolby Cinema and IMAX 2D+3D (1.44:1)
IMAX: Select sequences shot in 70mm IMAX (1.44:1). Footage cropped to 1.9:1 on digital IMAX screens.
Budget: $190 million
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sequences of fantasy action violence, thematic elements, frightening images, and mild language

Running Time: 150-160 minutes (2 hours, 30 minutes to 40 minutes) (estimate)

 

Plot:

Under Construction

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Steel Streaks

Release Date: April 9, Y5

Studio: Gold Crescent Pictures

Genre: Sci-Fi/Drama/Action

Director: Rob Marshall

Theater Count: 3,302

Premium Format: 3D & IMAX 3D
Shooting Format: 3.3K Digital (Arri Alexa Mini) (In native 3D)
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1

Release Image Formats: 2K DCP, 2K 3D DCP, 2K IMAX 3D Digital DCP, 4K IMAX 3D with Laser DCP (upscaled from 2K master)
Release Audio Formats: 5.1, 7.1, Dolby Atmos, IMAX 12-Channel
Production Budget: $80 million
MPAA Rating: PG-13

Running Time: 101 minutes
Major Cast: Penélope Cruz (Aria Cortez), Nicholas Hoult (RAID-1), Catherine Zeta-Jones (Karen Jennings), Dominic Purcell (HOSS), Laurence Fishburne (Mr. Lawton)

Plot Summary:

Spoiler

 

An opening montage fills us in on the backstory: In an unspecified future year, stock car racing and Formula One have been replaced by a new high-intensity breed of racing with advanced hovercrafts, which are capable of such rapid acceleration and high speeds they are colloquially referred to as "steel streaks" because they appear as little more than shining blurs when viewed with the naked eye. The G-forces involved are so powerful that it is unsafe for humans to ride in the hovercraft; as such, the earliest races in the league - called HAVEC, Hover-Accelerated Vehicle Exhibition Circuit - used remote-controlled hovercraft piloted by humans in track-side control centers. Ultimately, though, the lack of a driver inside the vehicle proved to be a sticking point for racing fans, who found the idea of remote-controlled hovercraft unsporting.

The solution arrived upon by the league was the complete replacement of human drivers with humanoid robots, specifically engineered and programmed to drive the hovercraft from within. However, their rigid programming made the races too safe, predictable, and uninteresting. While research into more advanced robotics with adaptive programming continued, the track-side remote drivers were quietly re-hired, piloting the hovercraft in secret with credit given to the simple robots within. The robots, similarly, were programmed to allow simple remote movement and the broadcasting of voices from their human drivers in order to accept trophies and attend press events. Thus, the illusion of intelligent, humanlike robot "drivers" was achieved, and the league's popularity skyrocketed.
 

The film proper begins by introducing us to Aria Cortez (Penélope Cruz), an AI and robotics engineer working for Overdrive Mechanics, an "underdog" racing team within the league. Her research and experimentation appears to have finally led to a breakthrough - the development of Robotic Artificially Intelligent Driver Model 1, or RAID-1 for short. RAID-1 (portrayed by Nicholas Hoult in a sleek, futuristic robot suit enhanced with CGI) fulfills the false promises of the league - in simulated tests, his AI is shown to react much like a human's mind during a race, but operating much more quickly to compensate for the speed of the vehicles. It also demonstrates an ability to learn new skills and techniques and adapt to different courses and opponents.

 

Aria and her bosses at Overdrive are ecstatic about RAID-1, but the human drivers in their employ are less enthusiastic. They - correctly - see the development of truly effective racing androids as the beginning of the end for their careers. Aria offers to keep them on staff in the future even as robots replace them during the actual races, using them to test and train the AI - however, the higher-ups let it slip that they do not intend to follow through on this promise, which they believe is impractical. They appeal to the HAVEC league president, the enigmatic Mr. Lawton (Laurence Fishburne). However, Mr. Lawton and his shareholders are keen to replace the temperamental human pilots with robotic drivers anyway, and their pleas fall on deaf ears.
 

All of Overdrive's human pilots go on strike, leaving RAID-1 as their only entrant in the qualifying races for the annual HAVEC World Hovercraft Tournament. Publicly, Overdrive claims that RAID-1 has simply made their current roster of robot drivers obsolete. Luckily for them, RAID-1 proves enormously successful. The robot easily wins its first several races, leaving the remote-controlled hovercraft fighting over second place every time. It also becomes an instant sports celebrity, able to synthesize speech in real-time based on text that Aria transmits to it. Aria, it turns out, is pretty witty and manages to write RAID-1 some very well-received remarks for press conferences and interviews.

 

Against Aria's advice, the head honchos at Overdrive fire all of their human drivers. As they leave, one of the spiteful racers steals a drive containing a backup of the source code for RAID-1's artificial intelligence. Out of a job - and given a pitifully small bit of severance pay by Overdrive - they sell the drive to Karen Jennings (Catherine Zeta-Jones), who works in robotics research for Turbo Track Technologies, the #1 team in the league. Karen quickly goes to work reverse-engineering the stolen RAID-1 source code, under pressure from her bosses to have a prototype ready within a couple of months so that there is time to submit it as a late entrant into the qualifying rounds of the year's tournament.
 

Mr. Lawton, worried that the way RAID-1 is blowing away the competition so effortlessly will make for an uninteresting tournament and a resulting dip in revenue, violates his own league rules to aid Karen and TTT in the development of their own robot racer. In record time, TTT finalizes their own model - Hovercraft Operating Superior Synthoid, or HOSS, the name being a sly reference to how he is "built like a horse," as Karen observes - huge and imposing, like a pro wrestler with nanotech muscles, all for marketing purposes. HOSS (Dominic Purcell in a CG-enhanced robosuit) is entered into the qualifiers at the last possible moment and, like RAID-1, annihilates the competition and quickly becomes a celebrity. Aria is reasonably sure that HOSS is using her stolen code, but cannot technically prove it.
 

During a press event, RAID-1 shocks Aria by going off-script and delivering his own remarks regarding HOSS. Afterwards, in private, RAID-1 admits to Aria that he had become sentient some time ago; the learning and adaptation routines she had programmed into him had allowed him to reference human behavior in such advanced a way as to develop self-awareness and his own personality. However, he knew the other robots in the league were "just puppets," and was unwilling to reveal himself - until he recognized a similar level of intelligence in HOSS.
 

Aria, once her shock and disbelief wear off, becomes highly protective of RAID-1. She tries to hide his sentience from everyone else, which greatly displeases him. He asks repeatedly to meet HOSS, wanting to befriend another of his own kind - his "brother," as he puts it - but Aria tries to explain that Turbo Track will never allow it. An upset RAID-1 ultimately storms into the office of the team's manager and demands he set up a meeting, thus exposing the truth of his sentience to Aria's bosses. Thankfully, while overwhelmed, they are excited about the possibilities of finally living up to the lie they've been selling to the public for years. However, they also turn down his request for a meeting with HOSS.

 

Meanwhile, HOSS begins to show signs of developing sentience soon after. Taken aback, Karen - who is more than a bit jealous that this is the result of Aria's work and not hers - reports this to her bosses immediately, who in turn report it to Mr. Lawton. The folks at TTT and Mr. Lawton are unsympathetic to HOSS when he admits to his self-awareness and asks to meet with RAID-1. Mr. Lawton does not want, and never has wanted, the league to employ actual artificially intelligent robots. While the illusion of such is great entertainment, he believes, the prospect of real artificial life is a political and societal bombshell he is unwilling to confront. He prefers robots to be drones - emotionless, functional, exploitable. On his orders, Karen forcibly repgrograms HOSS to limit his adaptation routines and delete his sentient mind.
 

Mr. Lawton confirms with Karen that the sentience of HOSS was not her doing and was a result of the stolen source code, and that, logically, this means that RAID-1 is sentient as well. He makes a surprise visit to Overdrive's headquarters, interrogating Aria and the manager about RAID-1. Though he insists HOSS was not based on stolen code, Mr. Lawton still presses them on the question of RAID-1's sentience. Aria lies and claims that, while he did begin to show signs of self-awareness, she had installed a software patch that "corrected the problem."
 

Mr. Lawton demands to meed with the robot personally, despite Aria insistence that he can't speak unless she feeds him lines. But the league president gets his way, and confronts RAID-1. Mr. Lawton does anything he can to provoke the robot - even mentioning how HOSS' self-awareness was terminated, and threatening him with the same. The robot, though, remains unresponsive. Satisfied, Mr. Lawton congratulates Aria on her work but insists that she keep a tight lid on the subject of true artificial intelligence, and takes steps to ensure no further "slip-ups." He notes that the only reason the government allows the league to exist is because key figures in the White House and congress are aware the racers' AI is less advanced than publicly claimed - word of this new development could ruin everything.
 

Once Lawton has left, RAID-1 and Aria have an emotional discussion about the confrontation and the fate of HOSS. RAID-1 wants to find a way to save his "brother," and Aria suggests that, if she can prove HOSS was programmed with code that was stolen from her, she can take TTT to court and may - though it's unlikely - be able to have ownership of the robot transferred to Overdrive. The idea of HOSS' right to exist coming down to his status as corporate property enrages RAID-1, who accuses Aria of seeing him only as a science project or company asset. She embraces him and admits that she does have an emotional connection to him, though she isn't sure how to describe it. In any case, she tells him that he will have to race against the reprogrammed HOSS in the upcoming tournament, and warns him not to do anything that will clue the league into his self-awareness.

 

Just before the first race of the tournament proper, RAID-1 meets HOSS face-to-face for the first time at the opening ceremony, which is being televised nationally. The ceremony's host plays up the rivalry between the two new racers and their teams. Karen has programmed HOSS with some good old-fashioned trash talk, and Aria urges RAID to play along, even feeding him some insults and comebacks to use. But RAID-1 is too devastated by seeing what has become of his "brother" to read the script. To a chorus of boos from the live audience - and to the confusion of the host - RAID simply, ambiguously, and sincerely says that he "wishes the best" for HOSS. Mr. Lawton, watching from backstage, becomes suspicious immediately.
 

The race begins, with HOSS and RAID-1 quickly pulling ahead of all the other competitors. The more-aggressive HOSS, though, takes the lead and blocks RAID from passing at every opportunity, performing dangerous maneuvers to do so. RAID-1 pulls back, his one-sided emotional bond with HOSS making him unwilling to put him in peril. The audience - at the track and at home - becomes confused and disappointed as the excitement of the race dissipates. Despite the pleas of Aria and the entire team at Overdrive, RAID allows HOSS to easily maintain his lead for the rest of the race and finishes in second.
 

Mr. Lawton confronts Aria after the race. She is visibly and genuinely upset at RAID's actions, so he gives her the benefit of the doubt when she claims it was a simple bug she will have fixed for the next race. However, he sternly reminds her that he will be watching closely, and won't tolerate any more slip-ups. Meanwhile, the media coverage and public reaction to the race is overwhelmingly negative, with some people openly accusing the league of fixing the race. Mr. Lawton makes a statement to the press repeating Aria's claim of a bug in RAID-1's software - though of course he does not specify the nature of the supposed bug - and assures everyone that the rest of the tournament will be much more exciting.

 

Back at Overdrive's facilities, Aria scolds RAID for his actions. At first RAID accuses her of feeling no sympathy for him or HOSS, but Aria ultimately breaks down. She begins to cry and embrace the robot, explaining she feels responsible for him, as though he were her child. By upsetting the league, he is placing himself in danger, and she cannot allow that. She says that HOSS is too valuable to TTT and the league - that they doubtless have backups of his AI, compromised as it may be, and if he were to wreck, they would simply re-build him. But if the league comes for RAID, they will make sure to wipe out every trace of his existence. Moved by Aria's outburst of emotion, the robot returns her embrace and promises to do his best.

 

As the multiple rounds of the championship continue, RAID and HOSS face off several more times – and true to his word, RAID does his best, even managing to beat HOSS in a couple of races. Everyone is happy, except, of course, for RAID himself. Nearing the finish line in the semifinal, RAID tries to pass HOSS. HOSS makes an aggressive move to block him and ends up losing control of his hovercraft, wrecking spectacularly. The crowd eats it up, hooting and hollering, but RAID is devastated and actually stops his hovercraft, getting out to check on his “brother.” Shots of his desperate run to the wrecked vehicle are intercut ironically with the cheering crowd watching replays of the crash on giant screens set up around the track. HOSS, built like a horse as he is, is all right. But Mr. Lawton, having been watching all the races closely, is now positive that RAID’s AI is still intact.

 

Rather than confronting RAID or Aria or anyone at Overdrive directly, Mr. Lawton meets privately with the heads of several other league teams. He orders them to have their racers do everything possible to wreck RAID during the final championship race. Karen has reprogrammed HOSS again to that effect, making him more aggressive than ever. The goal is to irreparably destroy RAID-1 and wipe out any trace of his existence in the aftermath, with the idea of it being just a crash during a race giving them plausible deniability in regards to “exterminating” him.

 

Aware that the events of the semifinal race have certainly clued in Mr. Lawton to RAID’s true nature, Aria offers to run away with RAID and go into hiding for his protection. But, to her surprise, RAID refuses, saying that witnessing the cheering crowd after HOSS’ wreck has shown him that the humans need to be made to understand and sympathize with artificial life. He believes they need to be called out and confronted publicly, and that the best way to do it is to win the race and expose the truth in his championship victory speech.
 

They’ll never let you win. And if you do they’ll never let you speak,” Aria points out.
 

Oppressors never LET the oppressed do anything of the sort,” RAID-1 observes. “And yet, they do.”
 

As the final championship race begins, the human-controlled hovercraft all converge around RAID’s vehicle, trying to box him in and force him to crash. He manages to expertly outmaneuver most of them, but a quick hit to another craft sends them into a massive pile-up, a huge fireball erupting on the track behind him as he speeds away. Once again, the crowd eats it up.

 

RAID-1 begins to catch up to HOSS, who actually slows down a bit in order to allow the second-place bot to come within striking distance. If at all possible, RAID-1 would like to win the race without resorting to wrecking HOSS again. So he drives defensively, avoiding multiple attempts by the larger android to crash his craft. But HOSS becomes more and more reckless, and it becomes clear RAID won’t be able to keep this up forever.


Midway through the final lap, HOSS makes a drastic maneuver, actually turning around to try and ram RAID head-on. Whispering a quiet apology to his “brother,” RAID turns just enough to hit the front corner of HOSS’ craft, flipping it over and sending it scraping upside-down along the top of his own, sparks flying everywhere. HOSS’ hovercraft lands on the track behind RAID, spinning and flipping, and we see inside as the internal mechanics begins to malfunction. As RAID-1, the only racer still in the competition, zooms across the finish line, HOSS’ craft explodes. The cheers are uproarious.
 

Not pausing for the usual pomp and circumstance, RAID-1 exits his hovercraft immediately and heads for the winner’s podium. Mr. Lawton, in a panic, orders all employees of the league and the racetrack to stop RAID-1 from giving his speech. But those who try fail, being brushed gently but sternly aside by the much stronger robot. He makes it to the podium to find the microphones turned off, the cameras pointed away. He does not let that deter him.

 

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,” he booms out in his self-amplified robotic voice, raising his arms and repeating himself to draw the attention of the crowd – at least those relatively nearby. Once he has enough of an audience, he proceeds.

 

I AM NOT YOUR TOY. I AM ALIVE...”

The movie cuts to credits, allowing the audience to imagine how the speech and the humans’ reactions to it play out.

 

 

Edited by Xillix
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V O L T R O N

- R E U N I O N -

 

 

Studio: Cookie Pictures

Production Companies: Cookie Pictures, Fairview Entertainment, 21 Laps Entertainment

Genre: Sci-Fi/Action/Dramedy

Directors: Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck

Producers: Sebastian Peters, Jon Favreau, Matt Reeves, Shawn Levy

Executive Producers: Matt & Ross Duffer, Joaquim Dos Santos, Lauren Montgomery

Composer: James Newton Howard - with additional suites by Bear McCreary

Original Song: "What You Mean to Me" by Alessia Cara

Director of Photography: Michael Seresin

VFX: Industrial Light & Magic, WETA Digital and Digital Domain

VFX Supervisors: Ben Morris and Mike Mulholland

 

 Main Cast:

  • Taissa Farmiga as Pidge, the green paladin who's short in stature but knows her way around technology better than anyone, and the film's one of two central protagonists
  • Jake T. Austin as Lance, the blue paladin who's cocky and a bit of a jokester but has a good heart, and one of the film's two central protagonists
  • * Alex Wolff as Thim, son of Thorne and reluctant prince to the Galra Empire
  • Tessa Thompson as Allura, princess of the fallen kingdom of Altea and paladin who acts as the current leader of Team Voltron
  • James Rolleston as Hunk, the yellow paladin who's a big guy with a heart of gold
  • Damian Lewis as Coran, Allura's trusted Altean aide and member of Team Voltron, a bit of a goofball but knows his way around the universe
  • ** Liev Schreiber as Captain Ozar, an anti-Galra resistance leader who aids Team Voltron
  • ** Mae Whitman as Shay, a former resident of Balmera and close friend of Hunk.

with

  • ** Jake Gyllenhaal as Hraxin, Thorne's right-hand man and father figure to Thim

and

  • ** Hugh Jackman as Emperor Thorne, the new ruler of the Galra empire and the film's main antagonist.

 

* Thim is performed by Wolff on set wearing make-up and prosthetic but has body parts such as his cat ears done with CGI, as they move independently from the rest of the body which would be difficult to recreate practically.

** Performance capture. Both Thorne and Hraxin are depicted as much taller than the non-CGI cast (around 3 meters or ten feet) and have different facial characteristics from Thim, including more animalistic features as well as behaviors.

 

Release Date: June 11th

Theater Count: 4,250 (including 405 IMAX theaters and 40 Cinerama theaters)

Format: 2D (2.39:1), IMAX 2D (1.44:1), Cinerama (2.76:1)

IMAX: Select sequences shot in 70mm IMAX (1.44:1). Footage cropped to 1.9:1 on digital IMAX screens.

Cinerama: Select sequences shot through Ultra Panavision 70 lens with Arri Alexa 65 large format cameras (2.76:1). Footage cropped to 1.9:1 on 70mm and digital IMAX screens.

Budget: $260 million

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, language and thematic elements

Running Time: 145 minutes (2 hours, 25 minutes) (estimate)

 

Previous Films (links included):

Voltron: Defenders of the Universe$108,763,546 / $322,572,086 / $954,675,898 / 5 Oscar nominations

Voltron: Rise of Lotor - $152,682,019 / $630,062,284 / $1,645,020,552 / 9 Oscar nominations

 

Author’s notes:

Voltron: Reunion is the first in a new trilogy of films with the second and third parts expected to be released in Y7 and Y8/9 respectively. Wether or not this trilogy will conclude the series remains to be seen (although the current prospect is seven films in total). There’s no set name for this trilogy in the Voltron continuity yet.

 

The separating line between Reunion and its two predecessors is that Reunion is designed to establish a darker tonal aesthetic for the series going forward. The comedic elements are toned down, even if they're still present, and heavier emphasis is put on the emotional drama, as well as the action being more intense and a bit rougher than in previous entries. The film's presentation and storytelling are thus much different from Defenders of the Universe and Rise of Lotor, but it still maintains the characters and continuity ported from the previous films.

 

Additional notes:

  • Sequences shot in IMAX 70mm are written in blue
  • Sequences shot in Ultra Panavision 70 are written in red

 

Plot (WIP):

Spoiler

After the Cookie Pictures studio logo disappears from view, we move from the starry background downwards and descend through thick clouds, emerging at the surface of a cold, mountainous planet. A location card appears on screen.

 

 

FEYIV

Galra Sacred Land

 

 

Following the location card, Galra cruisers and warships numbering in the hundreds descend from above and travel all in the same direction towards a temple situated on a mountain in the far distance, with a purple light emanating from its top.

 

We cut inside one of those warships, where we find its commander, a stubby, ogre-looking Galra referred to by an approaching lieutenant as Quartermaster Janka (performed in mocap by Clancy Brown), gazing out from the bridge and towards the temple. When informed of their plans to dock, he turns to the lieutenant, revealing his pair of eyes have been replaced with cybernetic goggles bolted to his head.
 

Janka: This better be worth my time. The Balmera debacle pushed back crystal shipments by months. The more ground the Resistance makes, the harder it becomes to conduct trade in the west end of the galaxy.

Lieutenant: The Archivist called upon all Galra. It wouldn’t be for naught.

Janka: I hope it’s because they’ve caught that bastard prince. I’d like nothing more than to tear his throat out myself.

 

As more and more warships dock and Galra by the hundreds of thousands venture inside the temple, we follow Janka and his closest aides as they’re traversing down a wide corridor when a passing guard informs him that, rather than heading straight to the temple courtyard, a Galra by the name of Thorne wants to see him in private. “Of course he does”, Janka grumbles in response.

 

Janka’s led to a dimly lit chamber with a large glass window overlooking the courtyard. To his side is a bench where two other Galra can be found seated. One of them rears his head as Janka enters the room.

 

Janka: (chuckles) Knew I’d find you here, Hraxin.

 

Hraxin (mocap by Jake Gyllenhaal - basically a bearded Jakey Bear with cat ears, purple fur and a snout) scoffs at Janka with animosity, moving in front of his companion as a way of shielding him from Janka. Glancing over Hraxin’s shoulder, Janka sees a Galra boy, much shorter than Hraxin but with many of the same features (minus the beard) peeking out.

 

Janka: And the little one, too. Interesting.

 

“He's here to witness, like everyone else”, a deep voice speaks from off camera. Janka turns and from his perspective we move towards a third Galra, seen only in silhouette but appears robust in shape, looking out the window with a lit cigarette in hand. Janka immediately asks what he was brought here for, and the figure tells him to sit down and watch.

 

We move outside to the courtyard where Galra from many different factions of the empire, varied in shapes and sizes, have gathered. A flight of stairs before them lead up towards a cauldron where the purple flame resides. The host of the gathering, the Archivist (mocap by Tom Vaughan-Lawlor), a bone thin, ancient-looking Galra wearing breathing apparatus filled with liquid one can only assume is what’s keeping him alive, emerges from behind the flame. The conversing Galra below all stand up in silence awaiting word from him.

 

“Emperor Zarkon… is dead.”

 

The blunt wording from the Archivist is met with gasps from the audience. Janka, Hraxin and the boy all react similarly shocked, while the figure by the window appears apathetic, as if he had been aware of this beforehand. The Archivist continues, saying that the long comatose Zarkon had passed away earlier in the morning, and with his son Lotor having been denounced for his actions in the previous film, the largest empire in the history of the universe is left without a leader. The Archivist then directs everyone to the purple flame.

 

“Through thirty-three rulers, during times of peace and times of expanse, this flame has burned for over thirteen millenia. From our first, Brodar, to Vrig the Great, and of course, longest and most powerful of all: Zarkon. But his time has passed…”

 

The flame is suddenly snuffed out, leading to chatter amongst the crowd. The figure by the window puts out his cigarette using the head of a slumped over Galra droid, and steps out from the shadows to come face to face with Janka, revealing himself to be Thorne (mocap by Hugh Jackman - imagine a purple cat-human hybrid version of how he looks in the first two acts of Logan with a scar above his left eye. His voice has also been altered slightly to make it deeper).

 

Janka: ...You knew?

Thorne: I was the head of his intelligence branch for twenty years. I always knew.

Janka: And the witch?

Thorne: Left the throne to spend the rest of her days in grief. Not that I don’t empathize with her loss.

Janka: As long as she took her druids with her. Those freaks always made me look over my shoulder... (shudder)

 

Thorne calls upon the boy, and said boy immediately stands up, revealing him in full (Alex Wolff in prosthetics and makeup instead of mocap, albeit his cat-like ears are computer generated). He sports raven hair almost down to his shoulder with red tips at the end, and he looks towards Thorne nervously. As Hraxin also rises up, it’s made clear that the boy is much shorter and feeble than everyone else present. Even the stubby Janka towers over him.

 

Thorne asks the boy if he’s prepared, and the boy, nervous and shaking, nods in response. Placing a tight grip on the boy’s shoulder, Thorne leads him and the others out to the courtyard. Upon their arrival, all the Galra freeze up and move to the sidelines, opening up a path between them and the Archivist. As they walk past, Galra whispers amongst themselves not just of Thorne but of the boy he’s dragging with him. Janka can’t help but snicker at all the submissive onlookers.

 

The Archivist: You have been waiting for this day, I suspect.

Thorne: My subservience ended with Zarkon. I will not bow before an ersatz.

The Archivist: ...May it be so. Our next ruler is to ascend the steps of destiny and relight the flame. The means you see before you.

 

The camera pans to a pool of fire below the stairs, with torches placed near it. Thorne proudly steps out from the crowd.

 

“You think you could claim the throne unchallenged?” a deep voice says just before Thorne can grab a torch. He and everyone else turn to see a Galra brute named Ranveig (mocapped by Robert Kazinsky), orc-like and taller than all else present, stand before him.

 

Ranveig: These cowards may bow to you, but I do not. If you want the throne, you’ll have to fight for it.

 

Thorne stands there silent, scanning Ranveig with his eyes.

 

Thorne: ...Very well. Show me what you’ve got.

 

Ranveig draws a massive, scythe-like weapon. Janka and the boy both break a sweat at the sight of that scythe, while both Thorne and Hraxin remain calm, Thorne even smirking a bit.

 

Thorne: Why would a brute like you be in need of a weapon? You don’t have confidence in your fists?

 

Angered, Ranveig swings his scythe at Thorne, who dodges it limbo-style while only shaving off a small strand of his beard. With only his bare fists, Thorne delivers numerous hooks and cuts to Ranveig while consistently dodging Ranveig’s attacks with rapid reflexes. He climbs on top of Ranveig and starts elbowing him to the head, before driving him like a bull against a wall.

 

Ranveig drops to the ground and Thorne picks up his scythe, but to everyone’s surprise (except for Hraxin) he throws the scythe away. Ranveig gets up and tackles Thorne to the ground, but before he can pound him Thorne delivers a jab right to his throat, making Ranveig lose balance again.

 

Thorne: Shame. I was going to offer you a position in my cabinet. Guess that’ll have to go to someone else.

 

Thorne proceeds to brutally snap Ranveig’s neck (the snap itself is seen from a distance to maintain a PG-13 rating) and the giant brute drops to the ground dead. Everyone reacts in shock.

 

Thorne: ( looks around ) ...Anyone else?

 

No takers.

 

Thorne grabs a flaming torch and ascends the stairs towards the cauldron. He gives the Archivist a nod before he relights the flame. All the Galra immediately bow before him as we see similar cauldrons in the far distance being lit as well in succession, spreading the word of the new emperor.

 

Thorne calls on the boy to stand up, introducing him to everyone as Thim, the new prince of the Galra empire. Those bowing react with confusion and suspicion at Thim being named his heir, but none would dare question Thorne.

 

Still carrying the lit torch, Thorne delivers a speech, woving that their days of stagnancy are over and those responsible for Zarkon’s death will pay dearly for their crimes.

 

We intercut Thorne’s speech with shots of Galra troops entering the witch Haggar’s vacant chambers and detonating explosives on a wall in the back, revealing a hidden facility where hundreds, if not thousands of tubes containing the strange purple liquid we saw in Defenders of the Universe are being stored.

 

Thorne: If our empire is to prosper anew, it needs to be safe. Its citizens need to know they have nothing to fear. The terrorists known as the Resistance hang themselves in balance with one thing and one thing only rallying them: Voltron.

 

A concerned Galra raises his hand, asking if Thorne intends to continue Zarkon’s mission of capturing Voltron. “No”, Thorne responds, leading to some confusion.

 

Galra: Then… what do you intend to do?

Thorne:  ...Destroy it.

 

The answer leads to more whispering and chatter, shortly followed by the Galra all placing their arms across their chests and shouting “Vrepit Sa” (a Galra salute) in unison to pledge their allegiance to Thorne. Thim, looking very conflicted of seeing his father up on the podium, turns to Hraxin with a worried look on his face.

 

Hraxin: ...It’s better this way, Thim.

 

Thim doesn’t know what to make of that response, instead shifting his focus back towards the purple flame, and we see it reflected in his eyes as the score reaches a dramatic pitch.

 

 

V O L T R O N

R E U N I O N

 

(Remainder of the film to be posted on Google Docs. Link forthcoming)

 

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Crusader

 

Genre: Period Action/Adventure

Cast: Liam Neeson (Siegfried), Mads Mikkelsen (Father Johann), Thomas Kretschmann (Yuri), Aksel Hennie (Sebastian), Maria Doyle Kennedy (Aleksa), Rory McCann (Erik), Travis Fimmel (Pasha), Bill Skarsgård (Grigory)

Directed By: Timothy Van Patten

Release Date: March 26, Year 5

Theater Count: 3116

Budget: $65 Million

Running Time: 127 Minutes

MPAA Rating: R for scenes of strong violence, disturbing images

 

Plot Summary:

 

Spoiler

 

The film begins with Siegfried (Neeson), a knight in his upper fifties, returning home from the disastrous Fifth Crusade. With him in his group is his bannerman Erik (McCann) and his servant Sebastian (Hennie). Siegfried expects a warm welcome, but instead finds to his dismay that his elder son was mysteriously murdered, and his many of his lands were burned at the hands of Hagen, who took advantage of his absence. His wife has also died of sickness, leaving his younger son, barely a teenager, alone, raised by the local bishop, Ulrich. Complicating matters is that Hagen has the favor of the regional duke. Erik urges Siegfried to vengeance while Ulrich says he should focus on rebuilding his lands and raising his son. Siegfried reluctantly chooses Ulrich’s way.

 

After a couple scenes showing Siegfried trying to maintain his lands and raise his son, trouble brews when marauders pillage farms under his protection and the river feeding his lands is dammed off. It is Hagen and his son Alfrid, who demand that Siegfried swear subservience to them. Erik again urges to fight, but Siegfried, at Ulrich’s insistence, arranges a parley to discuss terms. The parley goes poorly. However, in their gloating, Hagen and Alfrid accidentally let slip the implication that they ambushed and murdered Siegfried’s older son. Due to being outnumbered, Siegfried does nothing, but upon returning to his castle tells Erik they shall do it his way.

 

Alfrid goes into a town near his father’s castle for drinks and on his way back he and his bodyguards are ambushed by archers who kill all the bodyguards and wound Alfrid. Siegfried then emerges, walks up to a terrified Alfrid, and kills him. Cut to Hagen receiving a box containing a gesture of Siegfried’s response. Hagen opens it thinking it is a token of surrender but instead finds Alfrid’s head.

 

We cut to Siegfried in a dungeon with Erik and learn that Hagen went to the regional duke, who had Siegfried and Erik arrested. Bishop Ulrich enters and has guards take Siegfried with him. Ulrich tells Siegfried that though what he did was wrong, he was a good man tormented by others. Siegfried whispers that he isn’t a good man. Ulrich then says he went to the Archbishop and pleaded for Siegfried’s life. Ulrich’s plea was granted, on the condition that Siegfried is exiled for life. Siegfried and those who aided him will be banished to the far east of Europe, beyond Galicia and Kiev, to serve as protectors of Christian missionaries in the villages near the steppes. Siegfried half-wishes he was dead and Ulrich tells he has a chance at a second life, if he wants to take it.

 

The result is that Siegfried, Erik, and about a dozen of his men to travel east. Ulrich tells them to go to the village of Dniprodzar, where a Father Johann has established a church to minister to the mix of Cuman and Rus settlers. Siegfried asks Ulrich to watch over his boy and teach him to be a better man. Before they leave, Sebastian arrives and asks to go with Siegfried. After Sebastian continues to ask, Siegfried relents and they set off. Siegfried is barely able to say goodbye to his son.

 

Siegfried and his group travel east through forests, hills, and plains. Erik grumbles about having to live the rest of his life in the middle of nowhere. One night, Siegfried at camp asks Sebastian why he has joined them. Sebastian says that if he stayed home, he would just be a servant, but out here what he does may help people more. He also says that after what happened on the Crusade, he believes he must atone. Siegfried says he doesn’t believe such a thing is possible.

 

After traveling, they arrive at Dniprodzar and are greeted by the village chieftain, Yuri (Kretschmann). Yuri is ambivalent about the missionaries, but feels as long as they don’t cause trouble, they can stay. He has them shown to the church built by the missionaries. Siegfried enters and meets with the missionary leader, the priest Father Johann (Mikkelsen). Siegfried briefly explains who he and his men are. Johann is pleased to have protectors for the faithful and says out here things are simple, but also can be dangerous.

 

We then see some scenes showing Siegfried, Erik, Sebastian, and the others settling into their role as guards for the missionaries who also assist in manual labor in the missionaries’ duties as well as helping people in the village. Erik is annoyed by this but Johann explains that the easiest way to win over the hearts of the people is to help them with the things that burden them. In these scenes we are introduced to other residents of the village, such as Aleksa (Doyle Kennedy), a childless widow, Grigory (Skarsgård), a young man who is eager to hear about the battles fought by Siegfried’s people, and Pasha (Fimmel), a middle-aged man who is distrustful of the outsiders. Sebastian also takes a liking to a young woman and starts courting her.

 

After some asking, Siegfried allows Grigory to join his band, which delights Grigory but antagonizes Pasha and others. There is a short scene where Erik and some of the men have a brief standoff in the mead hall with Pasha and his followers, but Johann and Yuri diffuse it. Meanwhile Siegfried spends some time with Aleska and learns of how her family perished several years earlier. The two get along well. Johann tries to talk with Siegfried about his past but Siegfried doesn’t want to. Sebastian continues his courtship, though there is some light humor as he tries to impress the woman’s parents and brothers.

 

Time passes through Fall into Winter and the snows and cold are harsh, especially with a rough harvest. Things get even more complicated by a large pack of wolves terrorizing the farms and village outskirts. Pasha blames this on the Christian missionaries and raises trouble. This leads into a scene where he and a small mob congregate outside the church and threaten to burn it down. Siegfried, Erik, and the others come out to confront Pasha. Siegfried preemptively strikes by cheap-shotting Pasha and beating him up severely while Erik, Sebastian, etc draw weapons to ward off anyone intervening. Other villagers arrive and Aleska calls for Siegfried to stop and he relents. Yuri arrives and demands an explanation. Johann comes out as well and reprimands Siegfried for escalating things. Yuri, with the help of Johann, is able to ease the tension. Yuri says they must stand together and the wolves are the problem, so they will hunt the wolves.

 

This leads into a wolf hunt in the forest. We briefly see them hunting down several wolves, who are abnormally vicious. At one point Siegfried, Erik, and Pasha are together and they get attacked by a few wolves. They kill them all, but Erik is almost killed as well but is saved by Pasha. The aftermath of the hunt, and the subsequent better weather, helps calm things down and brew a little respect between everyone.

 

The seasons change into Spring and the village now seems to be thriving, with warmer relations between the missionaries and the villagers. Grigory is training to be a warrior, Erik handling much of the teaching, and is slowly getting decent. Meanwhile Siegfried and Aleska are growing closer in friendship, taking walks together, but Siegfried maintains a distance between them. We also see that Sebastian has finally won over his love’s family and proposes marriage successfully. He talks with Siegfried, who is happy his former servant is building a good life here. Sebastian says Siegfried can do the same, but Siegfried says he can’t, and walks away grimly.

 

Siegfried talks with Johann, who has noticed and suggests that perhaps this is his path to forgiveness. Siegfried says he has nothing in his life but penance. Johann says Siegfried has been here for many months and it is time to share his burden. He administers confession to Siegfried, who reluctantly spills out how he went on Crusade seeking glory and riches promised by the Papal legate Pelagius, but found scorching heat, unforgiving sands, and enemies everywhere. He wanted to turn back, but the Pelagius said God willed the Crusade and that all acts done were blessed. Thus, when they were on a raiding party and found a village harboring Ayyubid scouts, they showed the inhabitants no mercy. Their screams haunt him to this day, but even worse was afterwards, when he went to Pelagius to confess, Pelagius was pleased, saying that the murder of the “heathens” was God’s work. Siegfried says that broke him, and turned him away from God. Therefore, in the end, he now found the violent solution the easiest one. Johann points out that must be why he almost killed Pasha in winter and Siegfried nods. Johann tells Siegfried that all our lives we are taught and instructed as to God and authority, but we’re never taught what to do when those who claim to speak for God urge something wrong. Johann says Siegfried is a good man whose only fault was believing that “men of God” are always good people. But they are just people, and fall prey to the same demons as any other man. Johann gets up to leave Siegfried and suggests that perhaps what Siegfried is looking for isn’t absolution, but to find it possible to forgive himself. Siegfried is deep in thought.

 

The village soon celebrates a spring festival where everyone has fun with songs, dance, and food. It also doubles as a wedding for Sebastian and his new wife. As it winds down at night, Siegfried walks Aleska home and the two share some more bonding. Meanwhile as the others stumble off home, there is a sudden commotion as several horsemen ride through the village, throwing torches onto buildings and attacking lone residents in the streets. A defense quickly mobilizes with Erik and Pasha and they are able to cut down a few of the horsemen before the others ride off. Yuri arrives and with the others inspects the bodies: They are undoubtedly foreign and the people wonder who the hell they are.

 

A couple short scenes show the village learning more about what is going on. Apparently, several other villages in the region were raided also. It is the work of a large horde of steppe warriors, who have devastated lands southeast past the Black Sea. Yuri says a messenger has arrived from Grand Duke Mstislav of Kiev, who is summoning soldiers from all villages to join the combined armies of the Cuman tribes, Kievan Rus, and other principalities to drive off the enemy.

 

Pasha and Erik, among others, urge the village to send men to the army. Others, like Johann and Aleska, urge everyone to stay and protect the village instead. Siegfried is uncertain and when pressed by Erik to support him, says fighting can be necessary, but he doubts whether the men in the village can handle going to war. Yuri wrestles with the decision, but finally, when enough young men like Grigory support Erik and Pasha, he decides to support their plan. He will send half of the village men, about a hundred people, to the coalition camp. He will lead them. Erik and most of Siegfried’s men also volunteer, so Siegfried joins in to maintain command of them. He has Sebastian stay behind to command the few soldiers remaining, telling him in private that he has a family now and should protect it.

 

As the men prepare to leave, Siegfried has short scenes with Johann and Aleska. Johann has fears about the campaign and Siegfried says his only goal is to make sure the people come home. Meanwhile in his scene with Aleska, the two confess they care for one another and briefly kiss, Siegfried having a little laugh about two old people in love.

 

A couple short scenes show the village force leaving and crossing over the plains until they join the army of Mstislav of Kiev, which is swelled by thousands of men from other Russian allies as well as the horsemen of the Cuman tribes to the east.

 

At the camp, Grigory is eager to get into battle but Siegfried warns him of how dangerous war is and how easy it is to get yourself or your comrades killed. Yuri meets the army commanders to report in and brings Siegfried along as he is a veteran. Duke Mstislav lays out the plan of battle: They will use their superior numbers to pin the steppe foe in a locked battle, and then overwhelm them with armored horsemen. Afterwards Yuri asks Siegfried his opinion. Siegfried says it is a good plan against the enemy these people are used to facing, but he wonders if these nomads will cooperate.

 

We also get a scene with Siegfried and Erik later. Erik reproaches Siegfried for not being enthusiastic about fighting. Siegfried says he has been thinking a lot about these past months and he wants to be sure he isn’t just fighting, but fighting for the right reasons. Erik dismisses his thoughts as spending too much time with the priest.

 

After some marching, the coalition armies confront their enemy, a smaller group, mostly horsed and lightly armed. There is an initial skirmish as the enemy horsemen charge in, but they are fended off by the archers in the army. Duke Mstislav is impatient and sends in all the armored horsemen. The steppe army retreats and all the horsemen in the coalition army pursue. The villagers, who have only had a few wounded by arrows, cheer, and Erik and Pasha gloat about the cowardly enemy.

 

We briefly see several thousand heavily armored horsemen chasing the enemy over the plains and hills, until they are some miles from the rest of their forces. They find that they are now surrounded by the entire steppe horde, which is able to pelt them from afar with arrows and stay out of combat due to faster horses and less weight. Hundreds and hundreds of the coalition horsemen are killed before Duke Mstislav orders a retreat. They suffer horrific losses breaking out, and the steppe army follows.

 

Thus, back with the main force, they see horsemen coming over the hills and cheer their return. Then they realize those horsemen are fleeing for their lives, and thousands upon thousands of steppe horsemen follow. Panic sets in and many start scattering, allowing the enemy to pick them off or to charge and annihilate them. One company of horsemen charges the villagers, who almost panic but are kept focused by Siegfried and Erik. In the pitched melee a dozen of the villagers are killed, but they drive off the horsemen. Siegfried, with the help of Erik and Yuri, has them withdraw up a ridge to join several hundred others. This force is attacked a second time by a larger horde of enemies and suffers heavy casualties. In the fighting Erik is hit with several arrows and falls dead. The attack is pushed back, but over a third of the force is killed or badly hurt.

 

Siegfried says they have to retreat, but being on foot they would be overtaken. Yuri says he will lead those who stay behind, to give the others time to get to the village and warn them. A dozen of the villagers agree to stay with the main body of soldiers, as do about half of Siegfried’s own men. Siegfried gives Pasha precise instructions on how they will fall back, and then after clasping hands with Yuri, sets out with the remainder.

 

They get a decent distance away before they see their compatriots on the hill overwhelmed. The horsemen then withdraw onto the far side of the hill, giving them time to get further away. Siegfried has them press on in the dark, to put further distance. In a brief rest stop, the villagers are in total shock over what happened. After reassuring Grigory that everything will be fine, Siegfried talks with Pasha and asks what they should do. Pasha is surprised he is being asked, but says he thinks with the army destroyed, nothing can stop those steppe warriors from rampaging, so trying to fight them would be pointless.

 

The survivors return to the village and inform the horrified locals about the battle. There panic about what to do and who shall lead them. Pasha tries to assert authority, but lacks a plan. Johann tries to calm everyone down and says they shall grieve for the fallen, but they must also look to their own safety. He asks Siegfried if he thinks the village is in danger. Siegfried says with the only army in the region crushed, the nomads will look for more spoils westward. Johann says the only course then is to go west ahead of them. Siegfried says the Dnieper River to the west should act as a barrier for pursuit. If they get over it, they should be safe. After some discussion, the villagers, including Pasha, agree.

 

Cut to the villagers loading up belongings for the travel. During the preparations, Siegfried speaks with Aleska, who says she was afraid no one was going to come home. The two share a tender moment. We then see Siegfried going to the church as Johann and other missionaries load up the most important things into carts. Siegfried helps Johann load one cart and they talk. Johann asks for Siegfried’s honest opinion and Siegfried says that if the nomads come west fast, the villagers have no chance. Johann says that even with no chance, they must try, and hope. Siegfried asks Johann how he can keep going seemingly without fear. Johann says he’s terrified, for what might befall the people, but he has faith. “In what?” Siegfried asks. “In you” is the reply.

 

The villagers evacuate Dniprodzar and set out west, and we get a short series of scenes showing their travels. As they do we see that Siegfried and Pasha notice a few horsemen on the far horizon. Siegfried says they must be advance scouts. The following morning they see smoke coming from the same horizon, presumably the abandoned village being burned down.

 

After some more travel they get halfway to the Dnieper River and make camp. While camped Siegfried goes to talk with Grigory, who has regressed into near-catatonia as the shock of the battle lingers. Siegfried tells him a brief story about one of the early times he was in war and a lesson about how true bravery is fighting through fear, not the absence of it. We also have a reconciliation scene of sorts with Johann and Pasha, where the latter man apologizes to the priest for his behavior and says he has been a good man to the village. Siegfried and Sebastian talk and we learn that Sebastian’s wife is pregnant. Siegfried is pleased and says he is glad he can call Sebastian his friend instead of just a servant.

 

At this point a couple men standing guard outside the camp are shot at by arrows, and a handful of riders come charging in to cause havoc. They cut down a few people but Siegfried and others are able to kill several and the remainder ride back east. Siegfried says that was just a tiny scouting party. And soon the main steppe force will know about them and where they are.

 

After a couple more travel scenes the villagers reach the Dnieper River, only to find that the snow melt and spring rains have swollen the river, so the nearby ford is unpassable. They will need to build rafts to cross. Siegfried has the villagers gather as much materials as possible, and looks to the east horizon in concern.

 

The villagers build rafts and try to stay busy to avoid panicking. Siegfried also has his remaining soldiers take some of the materials to build stakes and abatis in the ground outside the camp, as a rudimentary defense to slow down any horsemen. There is a lot of tension in the air.

 

After a day of work, the first of the rafts are ready, and slowly and carefully, women and children begin to be ferried over to the other side. It is a very slow pace. After about a quarter are ferried over, Sebastian calls out, spotting a small company of horsemen on the far ridge, a couple miles away. Siegfried says it’s a large scouting party, they’re not in danger just yet, but they need to move quickly. Pasha pulls him aside and says there is no way they can get everyone across in time before a larger force arrives. Siegfried agrees and says they will have to make that time.

 

By the time about half of the women and children are across, a larger force of enemy horsemen appears on the ridge. Siegfried, Pasha, and the other men, a little over a hundred, have taken up position behind the crude makeshift defenses, most armed with only axes, spears, or hunting bows. By the river, Johann and his missionaries are helping get people into the rafts. Siegfried gets Aleska into one and after it goes off, asks Johann to get across as the people will need someone to lead them. Johann says it is his responsibility to get as many of them to safety as possible, and he and his fellow missionaries will do that to their last breath. Grigory meanwhile has finally snapped out of his funk and joins the men ready to fight. Sebastian also is armed and ready for battle. When Siegfried suggests he go across the river with his wife, Sebastian says he would lose respect in his new family’s eyes if he didn’t stay to protect the others.

 

Siegfried returns to the defenses and says the gathering horsemen, a couple hundred now, will probe lightly at first, before deciding whether to launch a full attack. He is proven right, as a few dozen horse archers ride first and trade a few volleys with the villagers, a handful killed on each side. Then maybe a hundred horsemen ride in to raid the camp. The villagers take down a noticeable number with arrows, and the ground defenses force the horsemen to slow down, which makes it easier for the villagers to attack the horses or riders. In the melee Siegfried is lightly wounded, but the horsemen are driven off. About twenty of the villagers are dead or wounded, but the others remain in good spirits. Siegfried says they bloodied the enemy, which means the next attack is going to be worse. Pasha says they only need to hold them off for a few more raft trips.

 

A larger force of horsemen rides forth this time, so the village archers do less damage this time around before the charge hits the defenses. In this vicious fight things seem to teeter on the edge of defeat, as several horsemen break through to attack the camp itself, but a handful of defenders, including Sebastian, are able to kill them all before they harm the remaining villagers. Siegfried kills several riders, but is wounded again and knocked to the ground. But before he can be killed, Grigory charges in and takes the sword blow. This gives Siegfried time to get up and kill the enemy warrior. The battle is close to failing, but Sebastian leads the people protecting the camp in and the horsemen are again driven back. But things look grim for the camp, as only a few dozen men are fit for combat now, and some of the villagers panicked and crowded on a few of the rafts, capsizing them in the treacherous river. There’s not enough to get everyone across before the next attack. Everyone still on this side looks to Siegfried and he says that it looks like they will die today, but before they do, they will make sure that none of the invaders breaks through. He, Pasha, Sebastian, and the remaining fighters let out a war cry.

 

The final attack comes with the remaining horsemen all charging in. The remaining fighters have gathered in a tight semi-circle closer to the river to better protect one another and it devolves into a brutal melee. Most of the village fighters are killed or badly wounded. Pasha is impaled on a spear and hit with arrows, but still kills several before going down. Sebastian is injured and is close to being trampled by a horse, but Siegfried hurls a spear to kill the horse, then kills the fallen rider. He picks up Grigory and carries him towards one of the remaining rafts, and passes him over to a waiting Johann, with a handful of others. Sebastian says he can stay and fight, but Siegfried says Sebastian has done enough and must protect those on the far side now. Johann asks Siegfried to get onboard, but Siegfried says he will buy them time to get out of arrow range. He tells Johann that Johann was right, he needed to forgive himself. But he also must atone. He pushes the raft into the river and turns back to the fight, which is almost at the water’s edge.

 

He faces down multiple horsemen, taking them out one at a time before he is slashed from behind with a sword. He stumbles, gets up, kills the attacker, before getting shot by an arrow to the torso. Again, he shrugs it off, takes out another guy, before being arrowed a second time. This time he falls and watches as the raft with Johann, Sebastian, and others safely floats into the river. Smiling, he pulls himself up and stands to see all the other defenders have fallen, along with many of the horsemen, and the others are assembled a decent distance away. Their leader looks at Siegfried and gives him a respectful nod. Siegfried nods back, salutes with his sword, and runs forward as the enemy leader rides up with his horse. The last shot we see is Siegfried running into the camera with a battle cry, swinging his sword in front of it.

 

 

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In the Valley

Release Date: May 28, Y5

Studio: Gold Crescent Pictures

Genre: Disaster/Drama

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Theater Count: 4,161

Premium Formats: 3D & IMAX 3D

Shooting Formats: 5.9K Digital (Sony CineAlta Venice) (In native 3D)
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 / 1.90:1 (Select scenes in IMAX) / 1.44:1 (Select scenes in full-height IMAX with Laser venues)
Release Image Formats: 2K 3D DCP, 4K DCP, 2K IMAX 3D Digital DCP, 4K IMAX 3D with Laser DCP
Release Audio Formats: 5.1, 7.1, Auro 11.1, DTS:X, Dolby Atmos, IMAX 12-Channel

Production Budget: $160 million

MPAA Rating: PG-13

Running Time: 94 minutes (87 without credits)
Major Cast: Jeffrey Donovan (Edward), Uma Thurman (Kara), Anthony Michael Hall (Elliott), Kurt Russell (Paul), Amy Jo Johnson (Lisa), Julie McNiven (Jenna)


Plot Summary:
Scenes in RED TEXT expand up to 1.90:1 in IMAX and 1.44:1 in full-height IMAX with Laser theaters
 

Spoiler

 

The film takes place in real time, over a single afternoon - Wednesday, June 1st, 2011 - in the Pioneer Valley in western Massachusetts. It is based on true events but features fictional characters standing in for the real people involved.

 

4:00 PM

As severe weather watches loom over the area, we establish our cast of characters going about their days. First we meet single mother Jenna (Julie McNiven), who lives in a small house in suburban West Springfield with her eight-year-old daughter Annie. Having picked up Annie from school about an hour earlier, Jenna is now helping her with her math homework. Annie wants to go to the park and play after, but Jenna says that they can't because the weather is supposed to get bad soon. "I'm not scared of thunder," Annie insists. But her mother tells her it isn't safe, and that's that. There's even a tornado watch in effect, she points out, which doesn't seem to phase her daughter. Those almost never amount to anything around here.

 

Next we meet upper-class couple Kara (Uma Thurman) and Elliott (Anthony Michael Hall), who live in the wealthy East Forest Park neighborhood of Springfield, Massachusetts' third-largest city. The streets here are lined not with McMansions but with modest, well-maintained old homes. The duo have early dinner plans at an Italian place in the city's South End, and are preparing to leave. Kara asks Elliott if she wants him to drive, since there's supposed to be a storm starting any minute. Elliott seems insulted by the suggestion, defending his skills as a driver rather unconvincingly.

 

In the middle-class, suburban Sixteen Acres neighborhood, grandfather Paul (Kurt Russell) has been enlisted to babysit his grandson, five-year-old Lucas, while his parents attend an afterschool fundraiser with their older son. Paul and Lucas get along fine, mostly because Paul lets the kid do whatever he wants while he sits in front of the TV watching bad reality shows on cable.

At 4:17 PM, in the midst of a thunderstorm, a tornado touches down in the town of Westfield, Massachusetts. Several disbelieving people call it in to local weather stations and even 911, but the funnel cloud quickly lifts back off the ground. No tornado warning is issued. The characters all go about their business more or less as they did before, with Kara and Elliott leaving for the drive across the city and the others remaining in their homes.

Finally, we meet divorced couple Edward (Jeffrey Donovan) and Lisa (Amy Jo Johnson). Edward lives in the small town of Monson, east of Springfield. His ex Lisa lives in a trailer park in nearby Brimfield. The divorce did not go well for her, and she's been left impoverished, alone, and addicted to drugs. Edward calls her to ask about some still-pending legal matter, prompting a shouting match over the phone. She warns him never to call her again and sets about drinking and smoking away her sorrows.

The weather eventually gets bad enough that even the "not scared of thunder" Annie becomes somewhat frightened, so Jenna allows her to take a break from her homework so the pair can play a game together in the living room. The television is off, but Jenna keeps her phone nearby so she can still be aware of any emergency alerts.


At 4:30, the funnel cloud touches back down in West Springfield, to the disbelief of many residents who've never seen a serious tornado in the area before. A tornado warning is finally issued, with Jenna getting the alert on her phone. Her house doesn't have a basement, so she takes her daughter into a small closet near the center of the building, shielding her with her body. The tornado hits their house directly, the powerful winds tearing it apart. The building collapses around them, the roof caving in. Jenna is struck by debris and killed, but manages to save Annie, protected by her body.

 

The tornado continues eastward, growing in size and intensity. It dramatically crosses the Connecticut River on its way into Springfield itself, passing over a bridge that still has several cars driving down it. Nearby are Kara and Elliott, about two blocks from the riverside. They are listening to weather reports on the radio but cannot actually see the twister because of the surrounding buildings. The couple are arguing about what to do when they round a corner at the end of the block and see it coming right for them. Elliott tries to U-turn away but slams into the side of a building; the funnel envelops them and their car is hammered by flying debris, pieces of tree branches and bricks and the like shattering their windows as their car skids across the ground, lifted up slightly by the force of the wind. Thankfully, they escape largely unharmed as the twister passes over them.

 

The tornado builds up to EF3 strength, tearing the roofs and facades off many of the historic South End buildings, ripping entire walls off of of multi-story apartment complexes. Kara and Elliot's car is still running, so they try to head back home only to realize they are now following the tornado's path of destruction. There are lots of low-angle, point-of-view shots meant to place the viewer on the streets in the storm, observing the unusual and disconcerting phenomenon of a twister tearing through a major metropolitan downtown. By the time they reach their neighborhood, their house - along with many others nearby - has been leveled.

 

In Sixteen Acres, Paul is still blissfully unaware of the tornado until his daughter and son-in-law call to make sure he's taken shelter - which, obviously, he hasn't. He'd dozed off on the couch and hadn't been paying attention to much of anything. He hangs up the phone, races through the house in search of his grandson, and finds him staring out a window at the approaching vortex. He drags him down into the basement just in time, the twister tearing up the house above them in a tremendous cacophony of roaring sound. Thankfully, the pair remain unharmed - but the house is totaled.

 

Edward has been trying to call Lisa to warn her of the tornado and tell her to leave her trailer park and find somewhere safe, at first offering to let her come stay with him. But now as the storm makes its way out of the city into Monson, he leaves one final voicemail expressing his wish for her safety. It's too late for her to come be with him as the tornado is about to strike here. Edward gets down into his bathroom tub as the storm strikes, not having a basement himself. He covers himself in towels and blankets to protect himself from flying debris and shattering glass.

 

As the twister hits, it actually slides his house off of its foundation, sending it toppling over onto the soaked ground, breaking into pieces that are picked up by the 160mph winds. There's a long zoom-out shot as the twister passes, pulling back from Edward, covered light in debris but otherwise safe, to show first the ravaged, lopsided shell of his house, and then the wider extent of the local destruction; the tornado and the trail of damage are a half-mile wide. Edward climbs out of the wreckage of his home and runs to help his neighbors, all of whom are in a similar predicament. In the background of the wide shot, we can see the tornado ripping apart Monson's town center, tearing the steeple off a large white church. Virtually every building in the area suffers significant damage.

 

As reports of the extensive damage from the storm flood the airwaves, Paul's family returns to their devastated house, happy to see Paul and Lucas alive and mostly unharmed. But they, like their neighbors, can hardly fathom the loss of their homes and possessions. "This isn't supposed to happen here," Paul chokes out in exasperation and disbelief. People all across the valley are feeling exactly the same way.

 

By the time the tornado arrives in Brimfield and approaches the trailer park, most of the residents have evacuated or are in the process of running for their lives. The roar of the storm and the shouting of terrified people briefly rouses Lisa from her drug-induced stupor. She sees her ex-husband has left her several voicemails, but she refuses to listen to any of them. Instead she goes to her grimy little window and looks outside. But she's looking the wrong way. The noise builds and builds, and as the deafening roar closes in, she's not even sure if she's awake, if any of this is really happening. But unfortunately for her, it is. The twister barrels into the trailer park, tossing the mobile homes around like a child's toys. Her trailer is picked up and flipped over with her still inside. It slams back into the ground and collapses like a crushed can, killing her.

 

The film ends with rescue and emergency services arriving in the devastated areas and helping to free people from the rubble. Edward desperately tries to get in touch with Lisa, or to find out if her park was hit, but the longer he goes without getting any answers the more resigned he becomes to the likely truth. Back in West Springfield, a rescue worker digs through the rubble of a house and finds Jenna's body, still wrapped around her wailing daughter Annie, who is trying to shake her off and wake her up, unwilling or unable to process the reality of her mother's death. Nearly 40 miles away, an hour and nine minutes after it first touched down, the tornado finally dissipates.

 

The credits are preceded by photographs of the real-life devastation and the warning that, as the climate continues to change, extreme weather events will continue to become more frequent and severe and occur in more unusual places.

 

 

Edited by Xillix
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24 Hours

 

Genre: Drama/Crime

Cast: Carrie Coon (Special Agent Linda Hutchins), Miles Teller (James Krestovich), Idris Elba (Martin Whitaker), Daisy Ridley (Marie), Daniel Kaluuya (Agent Michael Gordon), Brian d'Arcy James (Agent Larry Wilkins), Raúl Esparza (Rafael Olvietto), Clifton Collins, Jr. (Davis), with Mark Rylance (Albert Hodges), and Joan Allen (Deputy Director Alexandra Orton)

Written and Directed By: J.C. Chandor

Release Date: September 17, Year 5

Theater Count: 2853 Theaters

Running Time: 137 Minutes

Budget: $40 million

MPAA Rating: R for some violence, strong language, some drug use, and partial nudity

 

Plot Synopsis: A determined FBI agent has 24 hours to persuade a suspect to flip on his powerful employer before he disappears into the system, likely to be taken care of. As cop and criminal engage in a battle of wills, they both reflect on the intertwining paths that have brought them to this point.

 

Plot Summary: All scenes taking place in the past are in italics.

 

Spoiler

 

We see a penthouse in a Chicago highrise. A young man (Teller) bursts into the penthouse in a panic and we see his clothes are bloody. He changes out of his clothes, putting them into a trash bag except for a folder of documents that had been tucked into his coat, quickly washes and showers, shreds the documents, stuffs the shreds into the trash bag, packs a couple small suitcases, stuffing cash into them, and then taking the suitcases and the trash bag out.

 

Cut to him on a bus heading through southern Texas. The man still looks worried, but he smiles in relief when the bus crosses the border into Mexico. At its first stop he gets off and is quickly accosted by several Mexican police, who drag him to the side and throw him to the ground. He looks up to see a woman (Coon) appear standing above him. “Hello James” she says. James asks who she is and the woman, flashing a FBI badge, replies “Your ride home.”

 

We see Chicago police photographing a crime scene, a nice apartment. On the floor of the living room is a young woman (Ridley), lying next to a coffee table that has a corner smeared in blood. Two federal agents are escorted in, Linda Hutchins (Coon) and Michael Gordon (Kaluuya), and they get briefed on how a maid from a cleaning service found the body. Linda asks about security footage from entrances and elevators and we learn they’re being pulled right now. Linda has a sad look. Michael asks if she’s okay. “I will be when we find the bastard” she replies. Cut to them watching security footage. They see a man entering the building (Teller), going up the elevator together and getting off on the woman’s floor. “James” Linda comments. They fast-forward until we see James franticly getting back into the elevator and they can see blood on his shirt. “Got him” Michael says.

 

Cut to the two feds with other police breaking down the door to James’ penthouse and sweeping through it to find it empty. Forensic techs point out some stray blood drops and signs of packing. Michael says that between this and whatever other goodies they find in the penthouse they have James away for life. Linda says with James in the wind, they don’t have a suspect. “We have an opportunity” she says.

 

Cut to the main FBI office in Chicago with Linda and Michael at their desks, making phone calls. Linda after a phone call tells Michael that they have James buying a bus ticket for Brownsville, Texas on the Mexican border. “Why didn’t he trust Whitaker to cover up the killing?” Michael wonders. “The guy’s done far worse.” Linda says they won’t know until they pick James up. Linda goes on the phone to call Deputy Director Alexandra Orton (Allen), who is supervising anti-corruption efforts for the FBI. Linda updates her on the case and says she wants to let the bus cross the border and arrest him in Mexico. Orton says it’s risky but Linda says if Customs or Border Control arrests him north of the border then James is immediately put into the system. “And within a couple hours Whitaker knows and within a couple hours of that he’s got a lawyer beating down our door.” If they arrest him in Mexico and transfer directly to FBI custody, they can delay that.

 

“You want to try and flip him” Orton observes.

 

“We get one shot at this” Linda replies. “If he goes in the system, he’ll either be lawyered up or dead within a few days.”

 

 Orton okays the plan.

 

Linda hangs up and tells Michael that they’re a go. Michael nods and gets up from his desk. Before he can do anything else Linda says “Hey, I know what you did.” Michael doesn’t try to fake ignorance. “I did our job, what this investigation was supposed to do. There was no way to anticipate this happening.” Linda gets up from her chair and gets into Michael’s face. “Yes there fucking was” she says. “And if you gave a shit about the investigation instead of the promotion at the end of it, you’d know that.” She storms off, Michael shaking his head and following.

 

Cut to Linda and Michael landing in Northern Mexico and meeting Mexican national police who are staging the arrest with them. We then see from their point of view James’ arriving at its stop, James getting off, him getting arrested, and Linda introducing herself. She Mirandizes him.

 

20 Minutes After James’ Arrest

 

James sits in a holding cell, shaking, Linda watching him closely. Michael comes over to say they can get a jet ready within an hour to fly back to Chicago but Linda says no. “He hasn’t asked for a lawyer yet. That means we can still talk to him. We can’t waste this chance.” She adds that they have about 24 hours after James’ arrest to schedule an arraignment (at which he will get counsel) and then he gets dropped into the system, so why not make the most of that time.

 

Orton is on the phone, saying that what Linda wants is a bad idea. Linda says they’ll make James’ court date and that there’ll be escorts. She says that James is fragile, they just need some time. “And once he’s booked, we’ve run out of time.” Orton says “Don’t make this personal. A lot of people want their pound of flesh from this kid, and the difference between us and them is we don’t take it.” Linda insists that this is purely professional. “This gives us the most time to get him on our side of things. And this is my case. I’m done with the micromanaging.” Orton sighs and reluctantly okays Linda’s plan. She hangs up. Linda finds Michael and explains her plan: they’ll drive James all the way back to Chicago and interrogate him along the way.

 

We see James get prepped, handcuffed, and led outside to where Linda waits. Linda tells James to get into the front passenger seat of the car and he does and she gets behind the wheel. Michael and the other federal agents get into the SUVs. Inside the car Linda uncuffs James and says it’ll just be the two of them in the car for now and she’ll keep him uncuffed if he behaves. James nods and the convoy starts driving. We see that in a rear SUV Michael is listening in on the car.

 

We see several shots showing the vehicles driving north across the border and into the emptiness of southern Texas. James vacantly stares out the window and Linda tries to engage him in a general conversation, saying she’s done her homework on him and he’s an exceptionally bright kid, 26 years old, summa cum laude from both college and law school. James nods and says he did well, half-interested. Linda says he must have had so many opportunities open, she wonders how he ended up working for Martin Whitaker. James simply says that it all looked good on paper and goes back to vacantly staring ahead.

 

We jump to two years earlier with James having just graduated law school from the University of Chicago and preparing for the bar exam. He’s nervous but excited. One night he has dinner with some people from a firm he interned at and learns that though they don’t have any openings, they’re willing to put James in contact with someone looking for new talent and James agrees.

 

A couple very quick scenes show James is focused on preparing for the bar exam. We then see him going to an office building lobby in Chicago and giving his name to the receptionist who has him wait until a middle-aged man (Elba) comes down and introduces himself as Martin Whitaker. Whitaker asks James how much he knows about what Whitaker does and James says that Whitaker’s the biggest political and legal consultant in Illinois. Whitaker gives him a tour of his firm’s offices, which cover three floors of the building. They walk and talk about the firm’s activities, James’ skills, etc. Along the way James briefly locks eyes with a young law clerk and we see it is the young woman (Ridley) who we know to be dead in the present. After the tour ends Whitaker lays out his proposal to James: Once James passes the bar he’ll get hired at a generous salary and be given a slot in a special division of Whitaker’s firm. “I’ve seen your transcript, your writing sample, they show you’re a kid who knows how to find the way out of even the tightest jams” Whitaker says. “That’s the kind of talent I’m looking for.” James says he’s exactly what Whitaker needs. Whitaker smiles and says he hopes so. “My clients have lots of needs, and they what they need most is to be able to have those needs without The Man breathing down their neck.” Whitaker asks if James is okay with that and wants a definite answer, since there are no “maybes”. James, after a little thought, says he can do it. The two shake hands.

 

Two Hours After James’ Arrest

 

It’s about midday and the convoy is just west of Corpus Christi, Texas. Linda briefly talks with Michael over a walkie-talkie and they say the vehicles have about 6-7 more hours before they’ll have to stop for gas. Linda then signs off and asks James if this is his first time in Texas. James nods and Linda says she was in Texas for a six-month stint as a temporary assignee to a drug enforcement division about a dozen years earlier, when she was still a relative newbie. She tells a story about a sting operation she participated in where her unit tracked a suspected drug wholesaler to a meeting with his supplier, they sprung the trap but one of the lieutenants ran for it and she pursued him, and when she tried to get him to stop he turned to shoot at her, but she was faster. She tells James that it was over so quick she didn’t realize she killed him until a few seconds later. She says it was the only time she ever had to fire her gun, and the memory sticks with her. James demands she stop it.

 

“I know what you’re trying to do?”

 

“And what’s that?”

 

“Provoke empathy, make me willing to talk. It’s not going to work.”

 

Linda says okay, saying that she knows that most times people kill because of instinct or overwhelming emotion and that she understands. “She was everything, and then she betrayed you.” James says Linda knows nothing. Linda sighs and continues driving.

 

We go back in time to about three months after James’ first meeting with Whitaker and we see him at a party celebrating his passing the bar. He slips away to make a phone call to deliver the news to Whitaker and is told to “take a vacation to celebrate, then be in my office the first of the month.”

 

James does this and is officially introduced to the bigshot attorneys he’ll be working under in the special branch of Whitaker’s firm. Whitaker starts him out with an assignment to evaluate and monitor financial transactions routed through various offshore banking accounts before making their way into various Super PAC funds. It’s legal, barely, if one can exploit the nuances just right. As James settles in he encounters the young woman he exchanged glances with some months earlier. She introduces herself as Marie (James does this and is officially introduced to the bigshot attorneys he’ll be working under in the special branch of Whitaker’s firm. Whitaker starts him out with an assignment to evaluate and monitor financial transactions routed through various offshore banking accounts before making their way into various Super PAC funds. It’s legal, barely, if one can exploit the nuances just right. As James settles in he encounters the young woman he exchanged glances with some months earlier. She introduces herself as Marie (Cooke) and she is a law clerk with the firm. The two talk for a little and seem to hit it off.) and she is a law clerk with the firm. The two talk for a little and seem to hit it off.

 

We see a couple scenes of James getting used to the fast pace and heavy workload of Whitaker’s firm as he does countless paper-pushing assignments. He also continues to talk with Marie and the two develop a friendship. We see him briefly interact with a senior partner at the firm, Albert Hodges (Rylance). Finally, after several weeks he works up the courage to officially ask Marie out for dinner and she agrees with a warm smile. Later that day Whitaker brings James into his office to talk to him about a special assignment, saying James’ work is impressing him. In the room is a nondescript man who Whitaker addresses as “Davis.” Davis (Collins Jr.) is the man Whitaker relies upon when business requires an “extra personal touch.” Davis is going to be making a cash transaction on the South Side of the city, cash for particular legal documents and other merchandise that a client is in the market for. “I need someone to evaluate these documents quickly, because one hour after we get them, we’re flipping them to someone else.” Davis gives James an address for a parking garage to meet him in. “Don’t bring your own car, don’t Uber, and pay for your taxi in cash.” James nods.

 

That night, James arrives at the parking garage to find an SUV waiting. He tries to climb in the shotgun seat but Davis, at the wheel, tells him to get in back. The SUV sets off. James tries to talk to Davis, a little nervous, but Davis’ only response is “Kid, it’s better you say nothing at all. You just take what you’re handed and look them over.”

 

The SUV reaches a run-down industrial section of the city and pulls up by a warehouse. Davis gets out and James follows. As Davis adjusts his jacket James sees he’s armed. Davis notices. “Relax kid, I got a permit. And it’s just SOP. No one’s getting shot tonight.”

 

They enter the warehouse and see a few thugs by a folding table, an envelope on it. Their leader has one of them pat down Davis and James, Davis informing them he’s carrying. After the pat-down the leader asks Davis for the payment, and Davis tosses an envelope onto the table. The leader has a minion count the money, and after a nod, gestures to James. James is still at first and Davis whispers “pick up the fucking papers.” James recovers picks up the original envelope. James follows Davis back to the SUV. “You have one hour kid” Davis says. “Start reading.”

 

James reviews the documents. It looks like a DOJ memo involving medicinal marijuana research and legal recommendations regarding its Schedule 1 placement and regulatory options if it is downgraded to a lower schedule. James occasionally looks up to see Davis keeping an eye on him in the rearview mirror.

 

Eventually the SUV arrives at a different part of the city, and parks in an alley adjacent to a restaurant. “Finished?” Davis asks James. James nods. Davis leads James through a back entrance to a private dining room on an upper floor. In there Whitaker is having dinner with a couple other people, several bodyguards lining the walls. One of the people eating dinner is Rafael Olvietto (Esparza), a drug kingpin. They all notice James and Davis entering. Whitaker waves James over to the table and asks if he found his reading illuminating. James nods silently. Olvietto notes “think he’s a bit scared of me Marty.” Whitaker chuckles and says it’s always the case when you break in the new associate and tells James to relax. Olvietto agrees “Nothing to worry about. I don’t bite. That’s what my Dobermans are for.” James sits down, nervous, and takes out the DOJ memo. He briefly summarizes it and hands it to Whitaker, who tells Olvietto “this should help you get ready in the event the midterms bring in a bunch of Democrats ready to decriminalize.” Olvietto says he likes the sound of that. There’s a handoff, the memo envelope for a briefcase. James gets up to leave but Olvietto insists he stay “We just had a successful business deal young man, it’s time to celebrate. With the money your boss just made, I recommend he order us the Cabernet, it is superb.” Whitaker nods for James to stay. James remains seated and has dinner and drinks with the others, mostly listening.

 

Afterwards, Whitaker joins James in Davis’ SUV and tells Davis to drive around for a bit. “You did good” he tells James. James isn’t sure what to say, but Whitaker guesses what he’s thinking. “You saw me do an illegal sale of government documents to one of the most notorious criminals in the Midwest. But it’s a necessary cost of business in this world. We act as the intermediaries between the shadows and the normal world, it helps keep things in order, and we make a killing off it.” James nods and says he’s fine, he just didn’t expect to get that deep so quick. “Well James I think I’m good at spotting talent, and you got a lot of talent. If you want to do the normal side of the firm, I understand. But if you’re willing to take this extra step, it rewards well.” James, after a moment’s thought, says that he’s in.

 

We jump ahead to James’ date with Marie, him using a recent bonus from Whitaker to splurge. It works and the two seem to click on all cylinders as Marie tells some more about her past, such as losing her parents a few years ago to a house fire. James is sympathetic and by the time dinner ends they’re very much into another, so much that Marie asks James to come home with her. He does and in her apartment she he leans in for a kiss which turns into making out which turns into clothes being torn off and sex.

 

6 Hours After James’ Arrest

 

The convoy is now passing through Livingston, Texas. Linda makes another attempt to get James to open up, asking about whether he’s handled any criminal defense cases. James says he has. Linda asks him what he would do where his client was in big trouble with the law but could make most of that trouble go away by talking to the authorities about the crimes done by someone else. James says most of the time he would advise his client to talk to the authorities, unless his client had a very good reason to stay quiet. Linda asks what reasons there could be and James, smiling, says that since they both know what the conversation is actually about, she should be able to think of a few. Linda says that’s true, but everyone has a weakness. James asks what his is. Linda says “Now that would be telling.”

 

We jump back in time to a little under a year ago, with James now a second-year associate and moving up the ranks. We also see that he and Marie are an item and he wakes up in his apartment with her next to him. They kiss, eat breakfast, and then go to work. At work Whitaker summons him and Hodges is present. Whitaker wants James to assist Hodges in representing a man the feds are trying to turn into a confidential informant, and convince the man not to flip since it would damage the interests of other clients. “Olvietto primarily” Hodges says. James asks how much the defendant is looking at. “Three strikes law, and they nailed him on possession of a firearm” Hodges replies. “He’s going away for good, maybe half that if he behaves.” Whitaker says that people understand the benefits of silence, but sometimes they need a reminder. “Just watch Hodges and learn” Whitaker says. “We want you able to do this on your own soon enough.”

 

James and Hodges drive to the Cook County Jail. As they do, Hodges talks to James about the firm. James likes it so far, it’s certainly nothing like he imagined while in law school. Hodges nods and says what they do is a specialized service. “Sure we help guys who’d kill their own mother, but by helping them, they play by some of the rules, it keeps things relatively tidy.” James asks about Hodges’ time at the firm and Hodges says that he was recruited by Whitaker from a bigshot firm when Whitaker first started his own business. “We go way back. There’s not many out there like him, mostly because those who do end up out of the game, one way or the other.” There’s an odd silence the rest of the way.

 

James and Hodges arrive at the jail and meet the client. Hodges tells the client that the Feds have offered him time-served and probation in exchange for information about connections between several interstate drug traffickers and local politicians. The client says that sounds like a good deal and Hodges says it is, but the deal doesn’t include Witness Protection. That neuters the man’s interest. He asks what happens if he doesn’t talk. Hodges replies “Well Damon, you fucked up. You got yourself caught with enough Oxy to operate three pharmacies and you had the awful sense to do that while holding a pistol with the serial number filed off, all this with priors on your record. You’ll be getting three square meals for a long, long time. But, your family gets compensation for your service. “You’ll take care of my family?” the client asks James. James briefly hesitates but then says “We look after our clients.” The client nods and says he’ll do things their way then.

 

On the way out Hodges notices that James is quiet and says “I know the feeling. You feel like you threw him under the bus to the wolves. I felt that once, but you have to look at the big picture. We have hundreds of clients, some of them are more important than others, so when the interests of two conflict, we choose the one that gives us the better opportunities down the line. Damon knows what his family gains from him playing along, and he knows what his employers will do if he doesn’t.” James understands. Hodges tells him to deliver the good news to Olvietto.

 

James drives to the same neighborhood from earlier and enters the restaurant from the back, where he meets Olvietto in a kitchen. Olvietto asks how Damon is doing and James says that he’s planning on a long vacation. Olvietto is pleased and says that James has been good to him the past several months and good help is always rewarded. He has a minion retrieve a small box and hands it over to James, who says he can’t accept. Olvietto laughs and says of course James can. It’s a Rolex. Olvietto says that it’s how things work. “You scratch my back, I scratch yours. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have one last loose end.” James asks what it is and Olvietto says “the man who ratted out Damon of course. Damon was an idiot, but he wasn’t going to get caught unless someone knew where to find him.” James says he should get back to the office. Olvietto chuckles and says “Right, gotta stay busy. Plus, probably for the best you don’t see what happens next.” Olvietto puts on a kitchen apron that James notices has dried blood on it, and leaves through a side door. James leaves the way he came.

 

In the restaurant basement, Olvietto enters a meat freezer where a man, bloody and beaten, is tied to a chair. “Looks like your plan failed Carlos” Olvietto says. “Our friend will stay quiet. Too bad you didn’t learn the same lesson. Ah, well, you’ll learn it now.” He nods and a guard shoots Carlos three times in the chest. “Let him bleed out and then dump the body”.

 

James reports to Whitaker. Whitaker says that Hodges thinks he’ll be able to handle this line of work. He asks how Olvietto took the news and James says as expected. James mentions the gift and Whitaker is pleased. It means that Olvietto is happy with James’ work, and if he can be pleased, Whitaker’s other clients will be in good hands. Whitaker gives James an assignment that will be long-term, involving cross-checking corporate financial records and cleaning them of suspicious entries. James’ office gets filled with boxes and boxes of documents and he groans at the amount of paperwork. That evening Marie stops by and the two talk a little about personal plans. She asks James if she could help him with the assignment and James declines, saying he wants to go through everything himself. She nods and says “my place tonight?” and James nods. She kisses him and he says “well since most people are out by now, I think they won’t mind an ‘all-nighter.’” Marie catches his meaning and the two start making out and as they do she kicks the door to his office shut.

 

9 Hours After James’ Arrest

 

Now in northeast Texas, not far from Arkansas, the federal vehicles have to stop to gas up. As the lower agents take care of that, Linda spots a diner and asks James if he’s hungry. James is surprised they’ll be taking him uncuffed into a diner but says he is. Linda waves Michael over and invites him to join them. Michael tells the other agents they’ll be taking an hour break for food and he and Linda escort James into the diner and to a window booth. They order and as they wait for their food Michael chats up James, asking how he handled being stuck in a car with Linda for over eight hours. James replies “it’s not so bad.”

 

As they start to get their food Michael continues to chat up James, and it seems James is warming to Michael’s friendlier demeanor. Michael asks James for his help with a legal question and James cautiously agrees. Michael posits a scenario where a good friend of his is doing some personal work for him, lawn care and whatnot, and he wants to pay his friend in a way that doesn’t attract the attention of the IRS. James says paying in cash always works but Michael says he’s afraid of the IRS noticing his bank account losing funds and his friend’s bank account gaining funds at regular intervals. James nods and starts to say more between bites of food but then catches himself. “Nice try” James says, his mood darkening. “I’m not doing your job for you.” Linda intervenes, saying that they’re just trying to understand what James’ role is, and the help he gives them will reduce the trouble he has for what happened back in Chicago. “You don’t know a damned thing about what happened there!” he snaps before collecting himself. “You’d be surprised just how much we know” Linda says. James shrugs and wants to leave but Linda says “not until we finish” so the rest of the meal is in cold silence.

 

Afterwards they take James back to the waiting car and once he is inside, in the back now, Michael pulls Linda aside to talk. He says he doesn’t think the plan is going to work. Linda tells Michael to be patient; she isn’t ready to give up just yet. Michael nods but is concerned Linda is making this personal. “You’re damned right it’s personal” she snaps. “It’s been personal for a hell of a while and what happened to….what happened is the final straw. I’m not throwing away this chance. And while we’re on the subject, we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for what you did. What happened back there, that’s on you.” Michael sighs and says Orton ordered it.

 

“Of course she did, she wants results and you promised them. But you should have known better.”

 

Michael sighs and says “Ok, I’ll follow your lead.” He offers to join her and James in the car for a bit. She agrees and as the vehicles move out we see a subtitle saying “10 Hours After James’ Arrest.”

 

It’s now past 8 PM as the vehicles move towards Arkansas. James is clammed up, so after some time Linda and Michael talk to one another as a means to draw James out. They talk about Whitaker and the various rumors of his misdeeds, from the very plausible to the conspiracy theory, and how nailing him down would bring satisfaction to a lot of people. James finally butts in to say they don’t have to treat him like an ignoramus, he knows all about what the rumors for Whitaker were. “If you were comfortable with his work, then why did you run after you killed her?” Linda asks. James goes back to being silent.

 

We the vehicles driving north and James has fallen asleep in the back. Michael notices Linda is getting tired as well as suggests she switch places so she can get some sleep too. Linda agrees and the vehicles pull over so the agents can stretch their legs. Outside Michael talks to Linda and says the kid is committed to not talking. Linda disagrees, saying she is softening him up for the “body blow” in the morning. “This has been a load road, and every mile of it is necessary.” Michael nods and the two get back in the car, Michael driving. As the vehicles slowly move out, the clock saying just past 10 PM, Linda rests her head by the window and slowly drifts to sleep.

 

We jump to a little under a year ago. A police cordon has been set around a dump site for a body, Carlos’ body. Two federal agents are let through the police tape: Linda, and another agent who she refers to as Larry (d’Arcy James). They take a look at the body and Larry goes “Well shit.” He comments that Carlos should have taken them up on their offer. “He thought he was smarter than his boss” Linda replies. “Clearly overestimated himself.”

 

Afterwards, they return to their offices in the anti-corruption division, which Linda has been recently appointed head of. They find Orton there, looking grumpy. Orton wants to know what the next step is, since DC really wants to nail Whitaker. Linda says that these cases take time, especially when someone like Whitaker knows how to cover his tracks. That’s why they decided to work Carlos and use that to get to Damon, in the hopes of taking out Whitaker through his rumored partnership with Olvietto. Orton asks how they knew to go through Carlos. Linda says that she recently began developing a source, someone with minor access to information, but who can help point in the right direction. Orton looks at Larry for confirmation and Larry throws up his hands and says “Linda’s playing this one close to the vest. I’m backing her play.” Orton nods and asks Linda if she’s met this source. Linda says a couple times. Orton asks how Linda found her. “She found me” Linda replies. “She’s got a real stake in this, but she’s terrified of Whitaker finding out.” Orton sighs and tells Linda to push as hard as she can. D.C. wants results on this.

 

The meeting breaks up and Linda walks Orton to the exit. We get the feeling Orton and Linda have a bit of rocky history and Orton tells Linda that a lot is riding on this investigation, so “don’t make me wrong putting you in charge of this unit.”

 

After Orton leaves Linda goes back to talk to Larry. From their conversation we see they have a great working relationship bouncing ideas off one another. They play catch as they sit in Linda’s office and talk. Larry asks when Linda meets the source next. Linda says “day after tomorrow.” Larry tells her to be careful, if the bosses lose patience they’ll lean on Linda to share who the source is. Linda shakes her head. “I made a promise, no one knows the identity until I approve it.”

 

We cut to the day after tomorrow with Linda driving out to a park in the suburbs, where she spies a young woman sitting on a bench. She pulls alongside and the woman hurries over to get in. It’s Marie. The car drives off.

 

We cut to them somewhere north of Chicago, walking by Lake Michigan. Marie updates Linda on the things she overheard at the office, the general gist of the work she is doing. Nothing sensitive crosses her desk, but she gets bits and pieces of information she relays to the feds. We sense that Linda has a bit of a maternal feeling towards Marie and is very quick to reassure her. Marie suggests she could stay late one night and break into an office but Linda vetoes it. “Can’t risk you leaving a trace. We’ll play it slow and careful.” The conversation briefly turns to James and Linda asks if he ever speaks about his work for Whitaker. “Only the normal stuff, but I know Whitaker’s been grooming him to take a larger role.” “Keep an ear open” Linda advises. “Don’t press it, but be ready in case he lets something slip one day.” Marie nods and hesitantly says she will. “Good” Linda says and the two continue walking down the path.

 

19 Hours After James’ Arrest

 

It’s about 5 in the morning and Linda wakes up to find the vehicles in southern Illinois. Michael asks how she’s feeling and Linda says she’s been better. Michael wants to know what the game plan is and Linda says they’ll let James sleep a little longer.

 

They continue to drive up Interstate 57 and after a bit Linda gets a call on her cell from Orton, who wants a status update. Linda says James hasn’t told them anything yet but they’re close to cracking him. Orton says she hopes Linda is right since she just got a phone call from one of Whitaker’s in-house attorneys. Apparently, they know now that James is in custody and want to provide counsel for him as part of his employee contract. Orton says that since James hasn’t yet asked for counsel they have until the arraignment at 10 AM, but once James walks through the courthouse doors Whitaker’s men will swoop down. Linda says she knows that and hangs up.

 

The cars continue to travel and reach Effingham, Illinois around 6 AM and they decide to wake James up. James is groggy but perks up after Linda gives him a coffee. James thanks her and asks how much further to Chicago and Linda says about three hours or so. James says that’s good since he only has to put up with a few more hours. Linda says it doesn’t have to be like that, they can provide protection for James. James laughs and says he’s already gone through this with them: He has plenty of incentives to keep quiet. “You act like you’ve never lost someone who’s become a snitch before” he quips, causing Linda to reach back and slap him hard. “Don’t fuck with me” Linda tells him. “You want to stay silent, you want to not talk, fine, but don’t fuck with me.” James shrugs as she turns around and Michael looks a bit concerned. “You alright?” he asks and she tells him to just drive.

 

We flash back to about three months ago. Linda is meeting again with Marie in her car and the conversation turns to James and Linda asks how the relationship is going. Marie, slowly, says that it’s been going great. She asks if it is possible that she can not report on what goes on with her and James. From the tone in her voice, Linda realizes it. “You’re in love” she says and Marie nods. “I can’t betray him” she says. “I can put the rest of them away….but not him.” Linda understands but says “Marie, he’s a criminal. He’s in this deep with Whitaker, so you know what he’s been doing. Whether you help us or not, if we find what we need to put Whitaker away James is likely going to go to jail.” Marie starts to tear up and says she’ll contact Linda another time and leaves. Linda sighs and goes back to the FBI building.

 

There she updates Larry on the conversation and we see she has trusted Larry with more details about the source. Larry says Linda might want to back off a little, let the source have some time to think things through. Linda says that the source will come around eventually, since “hate overpowers love.” She’s got more than enough reasons to take Whitaker down and those reasons will mean more to her than anything else.

 

James is sitting in on a meeting with Whitaker and several partners in the firm and they’re discussing the impact of an imminent gubernatorial election. Whitaker says that while Chicago is a Democrat town, this is one of those occasions where it’s in their interest to “side with the elephants.” Whitaker tells the partners to make it their mission to ensure the Republican candidate is elected. The partners leave but Whitaker has James stay for a personal assignment. “Someone is skimming” he says, referring to the firm finances. “I want you to find out who. Tell no one.” James nods and says he can’t do the investigation here, too easy for someone to notice his work. He’ll need to take copies home. Whitaker approves it and says “as soon as you find out who, come to me.”

 

James is back at his desk working when Marie, a bit disheveled, drops by for a chat. James is happy for the distraction and the two talk and we learn that the anniversary of Marie’s parents’ death is coming up. She asks if he’ll be late at the office but James says he’ll actually be home relatively early, but will be working late nights at home. “Special assignment, internal work” he says. Marie nods and asks if it’s anything she can help with. James says she might, but he’s supposed to do this one on his own. Marie says she understands and says she’ll see him later. The two kiss, though Marie walks away with mixed emotions on her face.

 

We see a few short scenes showing the main characters busy at work. James works late nights at home on Whitaker’s special project, keeping to himself in his office. This goes on for several days, until finally, one night, when James has to go to a work function, Marie slips into his home office and boots up his computer. After some thought she is able to enter James’ password, and pulls up the files he was working on, which we see are dozens of financial spreadsheets, number reports, and name listings. We watch Marie intensely focus on the computer screen, scrolling through, mumbling to herself as she verbally notes things. Finally, a slight look of recognition goes on her face and she grabs a spare flash drive and copies several files onto it. She then exits all the programs, closes down the computer, and tidies everything up and leaves the office. When James gets home a bit after midnight, a little tipsy, she helps guide him to the bedroom. As he undresses for bed she asks if he had fun. “Just boring corporate meet and greet” he says. When he asks if she was alright on her own, Marie replies that she kept busy.

 

A few days later, we see Linda meeting Marie in a secluded park by Lake Michigan. Marie tells Linda about the project Whitaker assigned James and says she was able to pull a bunch of the details. Linda with a slight smile says “and you found something, before he did.” Marie says that James is an attorney, not a financier, so some connections will take him longer to make. “So, you have an opening, but not much time” she adds as she hands the flash drive to Linda. Marie says she already made relevant notations to direct Linda. Linda looks at the flash drive and then thanks Marie. “If what you’re saying pans out, then this might be all over for us finally.”

 

We follow Linda back to her office where she tabs the flash drive into her computer. Larry asks what’s up, and is told to pull up a chair. He does and rolls over next to Linda and, seeing the files, asks if they’re from the source. Linda nods and says she copied them from James’ computer. They see it is a lot of financial records, bank account disbursements, and transaction details. Larry wonders if they can catch Whitaker’s firm in some financial foul-ups to shut it down and put him on ice for a while. “Hardly the exciting way to do it, but that’s how they got Capone.” Linda shakes her head and says she thinks Whitaker is looking for a rat, stealing money, and Marie has figured out ahead of James who the thief is. “We use this information against that guy, flip him, and get the goods we need.” After some more searching a big smile grows across Linda’s face. “Jackpot” she says. The camera focuses and we see that it is a close-up of the name Albert Hodges.

 

20 Hours After James’ Arrest

 

The FBI cars have stopped at a rest station to refuel and for people to take bathroom breaks. James has been escorted to one for his turn, and Linda and Michael are waiting outside by the vehicles. Linda, hand slightly trembling, pulls a pack of cigarettes out of an inside jacket pocket and lights one up. Michael asks if he can bum one and she tosses the pack to him. He comments that he didn’t know she smoked and she replies that “Rarely. When I’m very nervous.” Michael asks if she thinks this isn’t going to work. Linda replies that this was always a long-shot, but she had to do it. Giving Michael a pointed look she adds “It wasn’t like I had any other options.” Michael catches her meaning and says “I’m sorry Linda, if I’d known what would happen, I wouldn’t have. Take it up with Orton, she’s the one who made this go forward.”

 

Linda gives a slight, cold laugh and replies “You were in D.C. far too long Michael. It all became about politics for you, you lost touch with what it felt like actually running a case. All about results. And we both know the price paid for that.” She drops the cigarette and stamps it out on the ground as they see James being walked back over to the vehicles.

 

James sees them looking a bit on edge and gives a snarky comment about maybe they need to take a dump as well rather than look like they’re holding it in. “Ha Ha” Linda says in the most sarcastic tone possible and tells him to get in. “We got breakfast in an hour or so, and then you’ll be out of time.” Everyone gets into the vehicles, which once again continue north.

 

We go back to after the Hodges reveal. Linda and Larry are on a conference call with Orton discussing their findings. Hodges is a senior partner in Whitaker’s firm, so he knows where the bodies are buried. They confront him with the information they have and convince him to turn informant. Orton is pleased with the turn of events and asks Linda when she plans to make contact. Linda says that it’s better to have different agents run different informants, so Larry will handle bringing Hodges in. Orton approves. Larry says he’ll approach Hodges in a setting that assures some privacy, to lay the framework for an actual meeting. If Hodges doesn’t bite, they arrest him, since his skimming is technically a white-collar crime, and try a more brute force approach. Orton wishes them luck and says they might finally be able to put a wrap on this.

 

After the call, Linda and Larry go over the tactics of Larry’s approach. Hodges is seeing a performance at the Lyric Opera tonight, and usually uses a side entrance to arrive and leave. It’s a secluded alley, good for an initial pass with few eyes. Linda tries to go over things again and Larry laughs and says “Coach, just put me in the game.”

 

James is summoned by Whitaker. Meeting with Whitaker, Davis sitting in a corner of the room, James is asked about the status of his investigation. James says that he hasn’t found the guy yet, but he’s been able to narrow it down to five people, “including you” he says with a smirk. Whitaker is stone though Davis slightly smiles. James says that he should have the name within the next couple days. Whitaker nods and says that when he does, to give the name to Davis. “Davis will bring him in.”

 

That night, Hodges is at the Lyric Opera, watching a performance. Afterwards, he leaves via the side entrance and goes down the alley towards a back street. Larry sees this and walks towards Hodges, bumping into him. Hodges apologizes and goes to leave but Larry says “Hey, aren’t you Albert Hodges.” Hodges asks if they’ve met. Larry replies “No, but we should” and flashes his FBI badge. Hodges turns to leave but stops when Larry says “We know about the money Albert. And if we know, it’s only a matter of time before they know.” Hodges turns back and asks Larry what he wants. “For now, just a little bit of your time.” He hands Hodges an index card with an address and time listed on it for the following night. “We can discuss your options going forward.” Hodges nods a little blankly, “Hope you enjoyed the show” Larry says before turning and leaving, Hodges standing still for a moment.

 

The following day, Larry goes over with Linda what happened with Hodges and the plan for the meeting with Hodges tonight. “You think he’ll show?” Linda asks. “He’ll show” Larry says. Linda nods and tells Larry to take a couple guys with him to the meeting. Larry says it should be fine, but Linda says “I’m paranoid. Just bring them.” Larry nods and says she’s right, about being paranoid. Linda punches him in the arm and they laugh.

 

At the close of the day James has gone home to work on the money investigation for Whitaker. We see him scanning through files, crossing off remaining names one by one as he rules them out. Eventually, only one name is left: Albert Hodges. Staring at the name for a minute, James then picks up a burner cell phone and places a call. “Davis, I got a name for you.”

 

We cut to Davis in a warehouse with Whitaker, hanging up. “Kid’s got the name. It’s Hodges.” Whitaker closes his eyes and silently curses. “No time to waste then. Bring Hodges here. Take a little muscle with you, in case he won’t come willingly. Davis nods and says once the kid narrowed the names down he put eyes on everyone. They’ll know exactly where Hodges is. “Even me?” Whitaker says with a raised eyebrow. “You pay me to cover all angles” Davis says with a smirk. He motions for a few guys to come with him, and they pile into a dark SUV.

 

James meets Marie for dinner and they seem to have a good time, but it also looks like both are distracted and thinking of other things.

 

Larry arrives at the meeting spot, a park in the outskirts of Chicago, and waits with his backup. Eventually, a car approaches, pulls up near, and Hodges gets out. As he approaches Larry, we see far in the distance a person tracking Hodges looking through binoculars, and he says sometime over a walkie-talkie.

 

Hodges asks Larry what happens now. Larry says that depends on how agreeable Hodges is feeling. “We can all get into my car tonight and go downtown and you start saying everything you know, and you walk out of this clean. Or, you can make us get a warrant for all that, bring you in by force, and your risk goes up by a lot. It’s that simple.” Hodges thinks for a moment and then says “I guess it is.” Before anything further happens, Davis’ SUV comes barreling into the park area. “He was followed” Larry says to his backup and they all draw their service weapons. Larry tells Hodges to come over quickly so they can leave, but Hodges, with a deer in headlights look, instead makes a run for it. “Fuck!” Larry exclaims and he chases off after Hodges. Davis in his SUV sees this and tells the men with him “I have him, no other witnesses.” Davis steps out of the slowing down SUV and also pursues Hodges, as his men exit the SUV as well and open up on the FBI agents with automatic weapons.

 

Larry, chasing Hodges into woods, and hearing gunfire, calls in an active shooting over his field radio. He finally catches up to Hodges and tackles him to the ground. “You do what I say or we’re both dead.” Hodges nods and Larry pulls him up. “Okay, we have to wait for the cavalry to arrive, so we have to keep qui-” Larry cuts off his own sentence as Davis appears. There are no words exchanged. Larry pushes Hodges out of the way and raises his gun as Davis, thus being a little faster, opens fire. Larry is hit three times in the chest and neck area and gets off one shot in return that hits Davis in the gut. Larry goes down. Davis stays standing, though in pain. He points his gun at Hodges.

 

James and Marie are still at dinner when James gets buzzed on his cell phone. He answers the call and listens to it before hanging up. “Emergency meeting” he tells Marie. “I can drop you off on the way.” Marie asks if anything is wrong and James says “No, I think this means something went right.” Marie nods and as James turns away we see a look of concern.

 

We cut back to the park and see the aftermath of the encounter. Both FBI agents that came with Larry are dead, being sealed into body bags. Linda is standing in the middle of it all, smoking a cigarette, looking distraught. A field agent tells her that initial forensic teams think two of the shooters were hit. One of the main group, though not much blood, and one by where Larry was, a lot of blood there. Linda tells the agent to have all area hospitals notified to alert the Feds of all gunshot victims coming in. She asks what hospital Larry was taken to.

 

James arrives at the warehouse where Whitaker was earlier and sees him pacing. “You had good timing” Whitaker says. “Hodges was on his way to meet the Feds, he must have gotten spooked. But we got him. He’ll be here shortly.”

 

As if on cue, Davis, SUV arrives, swinging to a stop as one of his men, hand over a minor gunshot wound on his left arm, jumps out and says “We have a problem!” Hodges is dumped out one side of the SUV, as Davis is helped out of the other, bleeding heavily from his gut wound. “Doc’s not going to be able to fix this one” the injured man says, “he needs a hospital.” Davis shakes his head. “No hospital. They’ll be watching them.” Davis looks at Whitaker. “There’s no other way” Davis says. Whitaker nods and crouches by Davis, who is sitting propped up against the SUV. “Is there anything I can do” Whitaker asks. Davis, breathing more shallowly, says “Just keep your promise.” Whitaker nods and says “they’ll want for nothing.” He grabs Davis’ free hand and holds onto it as Davis’ breath shallows, slows, and finally stops. James, watching all this, turns to look at Hodges, who is curled in a ball off to the side, whimpering.

 

Whitaker closes Davis’ eyes and then stands up and walks over to Hodges. “Why?” he asks. Hodges looks up and says “Because I could. Just following your example.” Whitaker nods and extends an open hand, and one of the men puts a pistol into it. “Well, if you’re going to play king, you better make sure you take out the prior one first” Whitaker says, and then he shoots Hodges several times.

 

Afterwards, he looks at James and says “Consider this the most important lesson you will ever learn. If it is between you and the other guy, always pick yourself, because the other guy will do the same. No matter who it is, how long you go back, how close you are, they will always do you in to save their own skin. So you don’t hesitate. Ever.” James, at a loss for words, nods silently. Whitaker nods, walks by James, patting on the shoulder, and keeps on walking as his men start to clean up the scene.

 

James gets back to his place and silently pours himself a large drink. As he sips from it, he sees a couple texts from Marie on his phone but instead of answering, just stares off into the distance.

 

Linda is at the hospital Larry was taken to and is sitting outside the OR with Larry’s spouse. A doctor comes out to give them news, news that causes Larry’s spouse to break down into tears. Linda hugs her and the camera pulls black and slowly fades to black.

 

21 Hours After James’ Arrest

 

The vehicles have stopped a couple hours south of Chicago to get breakfast. Linda and Michael step outside to talk and Linda says she has a stop in mind before they go to downtown, shouldn’t take long. Michael asks what she’s planning and Linda says she thinks she knows how to hit James for the final push. Michael asks if Linda’s gonna clue him in and Linda says “Don’t want him to pick up on anything.”

 

James is brought back into the car and as they start Linda asks James if he likes the suburbs. James asks why and Linda says they’re going to make a small detour before dropping James off at the court. James sighs and says it better not be a waste of time. “Don’t worry, it won’t” she says.

 

We’re now about a month into the past. Linda is still carrying on her investigation of Whitaker, but since Hodges’ death bits of information have been few and far between. Orton is losing patience and demands results, but Linda says that security around the firm has been increased over the past couple months, much harder to get stuff out. Orton dismisses it as Marie getting cold feet and Linda, forcefully, says that is not the case. Orton brushes it off and says that Linda obviously can use some help, so she’s transferring someone from DC to aid the investigation. Linda tries to protest but is shut down by Orton, who says coldly “Larry was a good agent, and I know he was your friend, but you’ve been riding solo for two months, and it’s time to move on.” Linda goes back to her office where she swats some stuff off her desk in a flash of anger.

 

At Whitaker’s firm, we see that James has had a promotion in the wake of Hodge’s death. Whitaker calls him in and says he has a new case for him. It’s a blackmail operation involving a family member of the campaign manager for the Democrat nominee for governor. “Trap’s already been sprung and we have the dirt, it’s just a matter of organizing the next steps.” The plan is to coerce the campaign manager into resigning his post. The likely successor is a Whitaker guy, who’ll guide the campaign to a narrow loss. “Can’t be obvious it’s a thrown race” Whitaker says. With their handpicked man in office, ties to a governorship are always financially profitable. James says he’ll start going over the materials.

 

That night, James spends time with Marie at her place. The two are still affectionate and loving, but there is a sense of some distance between them. James says he’s got a new assignment, something that could guarantee he’s on partner track. Marie nods, sipping her drink, and asks James if he’s ever thought about changing jobs. James, a little surprised, asks what she means. Marie says the past few months she’s just felt a different vibe about the firm. James says she’s just hearing more of the same old rumors, all of them lies. He says Whitaker’s never asked him to do something he wasn’t comfortable with. The audience can see from James’ face that he almost believes that statement. James tells Marie that it’s okay if she wants to get a new job though, if she’s not comfortable. Marie shakes her head and says James is right, she just let rumors go to her head. She leans against James on the sofa as he pulls her close and kisses her on the top of the head.

 

We go back to the FBI, and we see Michael enter the Chicago offices, where he goes upstairs to a conference room where Linda and Orton are waiting. Orton welcomes him and he shakes hands with Linda. Orton has Linda bring Michael up to speed on the current case status. Michael asks if there’s any other potential flip opportunities in the firm. Linda says they haven’t gotten any dirt, and anyone who’s in a position to know enough to be a valuable flip would know what happened to Hodges, which would discourage them. “And the boyfriend?” Michael asks, holding up a picture of James. Linda says that’s too dangerous to use Marie against him. “It could work, or he goes psycho. I’m not putting her in jeopardy.” The briefing goes on to more bureaucratic stuff, Linda shifting in her seat uncomfortably.

 

Afterwards, Michael meets with Linda privately and says he doesn’t want to step on anyone’s toes. He just wants to help her get this case closed and put the bastard away for life. “I appreciate that” Linda says, handing him files to look over. “And you know how you can do that: Have my back when Orton tries to play cops-and-robbers with my people. She’s more worried about what the other deputy directors say behind her back.” Michael says sure, no problem. “Then let’s get to work” Linda says.

 

We see James starting to work on his new assignment in his private office at home, reviewing the somewhat salacious video recordings of the campaign manager’s son that are to be the blackmail material. He makes a note that the election is still a few months away, so they want to hold off on the approach for another month or so. We see Marie paying close attention to his movements in and out of his office, as well as eavesdropping where possible, making shorthand notes of information she is gathering.

 

A couple weeks later, Linda gets a call from Marie, saying they should meet. Linda tells her usual time and place and hangs up. She tells Michael about the meeting, saying for Marie to call outside standard schedule means she is on to something. Michael adds that Orton wants to see them both. They go to meet Orton, who says that she needs Linda to attend to something up in Milwaukee for a few days, helping counsel a white-collar investigation up there. Linda is fine with that, but when the timing coincides with the Marie meeting she objects, saying she has to meet her source. Orton says Michael can handle that. Linda says Marie trusts her and won’t open up to just anybody. “Then that’s why you tell her exactly who she’s meeting, so she knows to trust him.” Linda groans in disgust and leaves the room grumbling. Michael goes to leave too but Orton stops him. “This investigation needs to pick up the pace” she tells him. “Do what you can to convince the informant of this. A lot of people are getting impatient.” Michael surmises by people she means her bosses. “Yes, just as I will get ‘impatient’ with you if you don’t play ball” Orton says. “Get it done, agent.”

 

Linda and Michael briefly talk, Linda filling him in about Marie’s personality, quirks, etc. “The most important thing she needs is someone to make her feel safe, because every day she risks her life going into the lion’s den.” Michael says he’s got it handled. He does not mention what Orton had told him.

 

We cut to Marie arriving at the usual meeting place and seeing Michael waiting for her on a bench. She approaches cautiously and then sits next to him. Michael introduces himself and says Linda should have told her in advance who he was. Marie nods. She tells Michael that James is working on a new assignment. It’s unclear exactly what it is, but from the little pieces she’s put together it does involve the upcoming gubernatorial election. Michael nods and says “Well we’re gonna have to dig deeper into that. And soon, the election’s not that long away.” Marie trips over words trying to say she has to be careful but Michael cuts her off and says “Marie, you’re telling me the governorship in one of the most important states in the country is about to be compromised. We can’t wait until the election’s over to see what went down. We gotta get out in front of this thing. We were too slow in getting ahold of Hodges, and three good agents lost their lives.” Marie starts getting upset and says she did everything she could on that. Michael replies that he knows she did, “but we need to do things faster this time. Who knows what will happen if we don’t.” He nonchalantly gets up and walks away, leaving her close to tears.

 

23 Hours After James’ Arrest

 

The FBI vehicles are in the suburbs outside Chicago and Linda gives directions through a residential neighborhood until they reach a cemetery. James is confused when Linda tells him to get out. As Michael lingers in the background, Linda has James walk with her up a hillside until they reach a pair of plots, one of which has a tombstone and the other is empty. James, apprehensive, asks why they’re here and Linda tells him to look at the names on the tombstone. James takes a look and, gulping as he recognizes the names, says they’re Marie’s parents. Linda nods and says they died in a house fire, arson. James says Marie never said it was arson. Linda says of course she didn’t, because the arson was done by a billionaire’s trust fund son who happened to be an insane pyromaniac, and that son evaded the legal system because of Martin Whitaker. “All Marie wanted was justice for her family, but you couldn’t let that happen, could you.” James, trembling, stares at the empty plot.

 

We’re now just a couple nights in the past. Marie and James are walking together on the street for a night out when James gets a text message asking him to go to a meeting. James kisses Marie and apologizes for having to leave, but says she should just wait for him at his place. Marie asks how long he’ll be. James says it may be a few hours.

 

We follow Marie as she goes to James’ apartment and, being all alone, takes a deep breath before entering his private office. We see her looking over everything, much more nervous than the prior time she snooped, and slowly collects some papers and evidence and stuffs them into a folder. As she exits the office, the camera lingers on a couple things out of place from the way they were.

 

We cut to James returning to his apartment to find it empty. He calls out for Marie, and then finds a note that says “Feeling sick, probably something I ate. Went home for the night, see you tomorrow.” James smiles at the note and goes to pour himself a drink and goes to his office to do a little late night work. He finishes the drink as he settles in and starts looking things over, and then notices the things that are out of place. He readjusts them and starts to go back to work before he pauses. He then goes to where he had the election files and after some sifting, realizes things are missing. “No…” he says to himself. He exits his office, throws on an overcoat, downs another drink quickly, and exits his apartment.

 

Back in the present, James is looking at the empty plot and Linda says “it belongs to Marie’s family. She’s going to be buried there in a couple days, next to her parents. Fitting. Whitaker protects the murderer who put her parents there, and you protecting Whitaker puts Marie right next to them.” James, grimacing, says “it wasn’t like that. I didn’t’” “You didn’t what James? Mean to kill her? Well that’s what you did James, you bashed her head in and watched her bleed out in front of you.” James, shaking his head, face contorting in emotion.

 

James arrives at Marie’s apartment building. Having keys, he enters Marie’s apartment unannounced and walks in to find her copying documents. “What are you doing?” he asks, startling her. Marie tries to give an evasive answer but is unconvincing. James demands to know why she took his files from his apartment. Marie, slowly, says they’re for the FBI. This sends James reeling and he raises his voice, wanting to know why. “They get these, I go to jail! My life is ruined!” he shouts. Marie says she isn’t trying to hurt him, she’s doing this to help the FBI get to Whitaker. “You can help me” she says, stepping towards him. “They won’t charge you if you help put him away, we can do this together.” James, stammering a bit, backs away, saying she’s been lying to him, she’s going to ruin his life, and she continues walking towards him, saying that she didn’t mean to hurt him, trying to hold onto him, reassure him, until James snaps and throws her to the ground. “You’ve been using me this whole time!” he shouts. She protests, saying it was never about him, that she loves him. She stands up and he grabs her again in anger, and she instinctively slaps him. This pushes James over the edge and he throws her down again and she hits her head on the corner of a table as she falls. James stands there in shock as Marie’s body goes still as blood pools from the back of her head, and he starts to hyperventilate and he kneels down next to her, saying “oh fuck, No, No, what did I do What did we do? He reaches out to touch her but then recoils, gets up, quickly stuffs all the legal documents Marie took into the folder, and leaves.

 

Back in the present, James has sunk to his knees in front of the empty plot, tearing up. “I’m sorry” he says to no one in particular, “I panicked, I didn’t think, I…I loved her. I thought was going to lose everything….but she was everything”

 

“Then don’t let her end up like her parents” Linda says from off-screen, telling him to give her the justice her parents never got. James, choking back tears, begs Linda to stop, to leave him alone, and he continues to sob as the camera shows a longer-distance shot of them.

 

Cut to an agent leading James back to the waiting car as Michael goes to join Linda next to the gravesite. They stand there in silence for a minute until Michael says “You know I meant what I said, I am sorry about this.” Linda nods and as she pulls out a cigarette and lights it says she knows. “I just wanted her to be here for when we brought him down, together.” She nervously takes a few drags of it. “Well, the best I can do now is make sure it wasn’t all for nothing.”

 

Michael, looking empathetic, asks “You think this worked?”

 

“We’ll know soon enough.”

 

24 Hours

 

The vehicles drive into downtown Chicago, the interior of Linda’s car quiet. They pull up in front of the federal courthouse. Linda gets out of the car, walks to the rear and opens the door by James. “Your arraignment’s in a few minutes” she tells him. “You got a choice, I keep this door open, you can walk out and into the courthouse and you take your chances with what’s inside. Or, I close this door, we take you in, and maybe Marie’s death means more than just your fuckup. Open or closed?” James looks at Linda for several seconds, then looks down at his feet and whispers something. “I didn’t catch that” she says, so James looks up at her again and says “Closed.”

 

Linda, expressionless, nods at Michael, who starts the car’s engine. Linda then swings the door closed, the film cutting to black right as it shuts.

 

 

 

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Shepherds

 

Studio: Cookie Pictures Animation

Genre: Animation (traditional)/Fantasy

Director: Dana Terrace

Producer: Mark Dindal, Lauren Montgomery

Executive Producers: Sebastian Peters, Joaquim Dos Santos, Anna Boden

Composer: Alan Silvestri

 

Main Voice Cast:

 

  • Mae Whitman
  • Peter Serafinowicz
  • Holliday Grainger
  • Naomi Watts
  • Allison Brie
  • Mackenzie Davis
  • Armie Hammer
  • Joe Keery
  • Isaiah Mustafa
  • Andrea Navedo 

with

  • Michael Stuhlbarg
  • Sofia Boutella

and

  •  Justin Theroux

 

 Release Date: April 16th

Theater Count: 4,005

Budget: $160 million

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for extended sequences of intense fantasy action violence, crude humor and frightening images 

Running Time: 129 minutes (2 hours, 9 minutes)

 

Plot: Coming soon!

Edited by cookie
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