Intro

Well…it’s official. After a ton of hours of watching and analyzing, 48 posts, linking many moments from YouTube, 2764 individual rankings determined, various calculations, and (most importantly) countless walls of text expressing my opinions…I AM FINALLY DONE WITH THIS SERIES!🥳 And it only took a bit more than a year and 7 months since my very first post regarding this🤪. Though with that being said, I would like to wrap this all up with one nice long final wall of text. It’s worth noting, this is especially long and probably extremely wordy. So I put headers on this post so y’all can skip around. But just to start, I’d like to give a runthrough of my whole experience doing this
Note: Yes, I took various inspiration from u/twofacedflyer and his finale post during the super dope series he did…more than two years ago now (Jesus Christ time flies)

Tangent on this series

Now if you know me pretty well, you’ll likely know almost ever since I got into TD, I really developed this obsession with trying to rank stuff, especially TD characters. I even remember the first days of me trying to make my own tier list ranking every character and had Noah and Cody as my hindsight top 2 (and no, I didn’t ship Noco at the time). However, my opinions have changed a lot throughout, and while I still love both characters, they don’t appeal to me quite as much as before. At this point, I’ve pretty much updated my character tier lists almost countless times. In fact, it even got to a point where I milked the fuck out of tier list posts before. There was even a period of time where I would post an update to the sub every week or two, and chances are I might’ve posted even more frequently if it wasn’t for the tier list trend rule, LOL. And for whatever reason, even to this day, I tend to start getting obsessive and nitpicky about trying to order each character and pinpoint my feelings on them as accurately as possible. There’s a reason why even before I started this series, I had a very nuanced continuous number system to further showcase exactly where each character falls on each category of my ranking system. Though nonetheless, this leads me to the one day where something just sparked within me. Essentially, I was like “Huh, I wonder what my opinions on each TD character would be if I average my opinion on them out episode by episode?”. I figured it would definitely be easier if I laid all of this out on Google Sheets. I originally just planned to try to calculate each average for each character based on a not as specific number scale based on my rankings with them. But after a bit of time, I figured the one way to really make this accurate is by actually making the number scale far more continuous than discrete. And then overtime, I also ran into other factors
There’s no doubt a lot of this series was done very spontaneously. Afterall, it didn’t even start with TDI originally. I wanted to try this whole ranking chart for TDA, and I don’t think I even planned on writing a review about the season either. But as time went by, I just figured “Hey, if I’m rewatching these seasons and trying to make something where I have to look into each episode enough to pinpoint my thoughts on each character there, why not express a bunch of thoughts I have while rewatching?”. And alas, as well as my initial review and rankings for TDA, my rewatch commentary episode by episode was born. After rewatching TDA, I then went back to TDI since at the time, I thought TDA and TDI were the seasons I wanted to rewatch the most. And that’s where I started just writing out various thoughts I had and things I picked up on or saw with more clarity as I rewatched the episodes. Though even then, I didn’t go through each episode that thoroughly at the time. In fact, my TDI commentary was literally only three parts. I did actually plan to make it just two, but then I divided the second part into two parts after some people told me it was too long. Then once TDA came, I divided my commentary into a bit more parts than before and started going through the episodes a bit more thoroughly. It wasn’t till WT and ROTI where I really started making extensive comments on a handful of moments throughout each episode. However, it got to a point where I felt like I was bringing up way too many minor moments that ‘stuck out’ to me in my commentary, and there was a certain point where I realized not much people will care about looking through every minor moment I found funny. So after my AS commentary rolled around (where I really hyped it up as a dark period of time filled with anger and ranting💀), I incorporated this feature where I separately linked moments from YouTube I deemed as more minor that I found amusing, just labeling the link as the name of the character(s) involved in said moment. However, even doing that proved to be too much for me eventually as RR rolled around, and I realized it was taking forever to be done with each episode. I feel like sometimes, I really fell under the trap of being excessively ‘detail-oriented’ and bringing up almost every moment I found even slightly amusing. Thankfully during the 5th part of my RR post, I decided to get rid of the feature of linking minor moments all together after I realized probably no one even bothers going through them anyways. And I just mainly kept commentary down to more major points regarding each episode, although I still took notes on various minor stuff, just for me to reference. I’m glad to say it worked very well, and I was able to power through each episode quite faster and pump out vast majority of the series before my recent winter break was over
Then there’s also the fact I took a huge break from this series for several months on end. As some of you might remember, around this time about a year and a month ago, after finishing up All-Stars, I loosely admitted I had to get my shit together in real life, namely with school. Though even aside from that, I think I was just heavily burned out from doing the series. In fact, it took WAY longer than I anticipated to find the motivation to start it up again. Hell, I even tried to start it back up during the summer, but ironically, I didn’t do so until sometime in fall. Ironically, when I took this extensive break from the series, I was finished with AS and only had two more seasons to go. But given just how burned out I was, it still took me more than a year to completely wrap things up. Though the most important part is, I FINALLY GOT IT DONE! And despite this, I would like to think I didn’t necessarily sacrifice quality a whole lot (despite the lack of planning behind this), even if it’s partially because this series has dragged out even longer than Derrie at this point LOL. If I have to be honest though, this certainly took a surprising amount of work. Like I kinda knew it would be a lot, but I didn’t expect it to be as tedious as it was at times. Even pumping out the very first post (my initial TDA review) was quite a drag and ended up taking longer than I wanted it too, and I remember being relieved when it was done. And that feeling just amplified after every season I tackled. And I can say after releasing this post, there is no other time I feel this as strongly as now. Oh yeah and on a side note, I’m happy to say I’m actually doing marginally better in real life now than before (and now that this series is done, I think I can especially be at a peace of mind and focus even more on other stuff)
With all of this in mind, do I regret doing this series? All things considered, not really. As I said, it got extremely tedious at times, and I definitely got very burned out. And I even admitted during my PI review that I had various doubts or anxious thoughts regarding this series (though despite this still decided to pull through). But I think as of getting this series done, this has solidified my opinions far more, and hopefully I won’t make a bunch of tier list updates in the future💀. On top of this, I did have quite a bit of fun typing out my thoughts at times, especially the rants. That and it was certainly satisfying seeing people appreciate my commentary a lot, especially with my huge SMS tirade I dedicated one single part for XD. With that being said, do I ever plan on doing this again? Absolutely not. Although it’s not necessarily a bad idea to take some notes when you are doing a rewatch if you want to remember more stuff, or actually have a stronger opinion on various things (especially good for when you want to geek out about TD with others, or debate with someone about something). However, I don’t think making a ranking chart is super necessary. Ultimately, I’d say only do this if you have a ton of free time and are super obsessed with ranking stuff, otherwise you will probably end up like me and be burned out from doing this series from time to time. In fact, I think easily the biggest weakness of this series (I reckon a lot of you probably agree with this as well) is how inconsistent I was 'momentum-wise' as far as getting it done. I feel like this would’ve been super great to pump out earlier on while the pandemic was still going. But as it stands, I happened to start this series towards the end of the summer of 2021 back when I was going into my freshman year of college, and unfortunately did not have as much time to pump these posts out super fast. I also have to admit, I do sometimes think maybe if I made it a review series, I wouldn’t have to worry as much about trying to ‘adjust’ and could comment on a lot of specific moments. But I feel like doing episode reviews would be kind of more redundant at this point, and doing it the way I did made things somewhat more efficient. With that being said, I could do an episode review series for once the new seasons come out👀. Aside from this, I realize I probably could’ve also tried to make things more interesting by adding some gimmicks to my commentary, similar to Ultranatic Productions or u/twofacedflyer and u/WOTWUZTHAT back in their respective series’ they did (or ongoing series in Ultranatic’s case). But bigger picture-wise, I’m pretty satisfied with how this series turned out
Overall this was a fun but incredibly long ride. In case I haven’t made it clear enough, I’m honestly extremely relieved to be done with this. But on top of this, I’m also incredibly grateful to everyone who has followed this series. Like I said, I didn’t even expect this to become a full-blown series, but I truly appreciate everyone who actually cared enough to read through my ramblings and comment on them. But with that in mind, there are certain people who has supported me through this series I would especially like to give a shout-out to

Shoutouts

Before I bring up the people who involved themselves in this series, I’d like to give a shout-out to two YouTubers in particular who I took some inspiration from time to time with my commentary, namely Ultranatic Productions and penguinz0 (or as a lot of you might know him as MoistCr1TiKaL), both of who are absolute legends. For starters, there’s Ultranatic Productions (AKA u/Ultranatic on Reddit) who is doing his own series of reviewing every TD episodes, except this time far more thoroughly and intricately compared to me. I mean, I thought doing this series was a lot, relatively speaking. But I can only imagine the work Ultranatic has to do what he does, from not only writing out a script where he articulates all his thoughts and points, but then also records himself saying everything he has to say and then even has to do a bunch of editing afterwards, along with various gimmicks he incorporates in his videos. I’d imagine it’s a ton of work, and Ultranatic’s dedication to this is honestly pretty admirable. On top of this, he brings a ton of really cool points, has a lot of unique and nuanced takes, and incorporates a lot of great gags. Next up is penguinz0, who doesn’t talk about TD, but is a commentary YouTuber I’ve grown to absolutely love. I really love his dry wit, along with his ability to absolutely roast terrible people on the internet. I think quite a bit of my commentary style was inspired by him, and I even took a few pages out of Ultranatic here and there
As for people who participated in this series I’d like to thank

• u/someTDfan1: A fellow MacArthur hater, he’s not all that active on the sub and hasn’t been for a while now, but we are very tight, and he also commented on my first couple posts in this series (and I believe some very occasional other ones), and left some very kind words per usual. He’s also generally a super cool dude who is fun to talk and banter with and he’s even good for boosting my ego, er I meant confidence, at times🤪
• u/chuck_is_dead_vay_aq: A stan of Lightning and Jacques and fellow Chris-hater, while he didn’t comment very religiously, he always had quite a bit of great things to say when he did, is also responsible for coining the awesome nickname “All-Derailments” for All-Stars, and appreciated my nicknames for All-Stars as well as my posts in general (especially my SMS rant💀). Even outside of this, he’s an especially amazing dude, and one of my closest online friends. There are also plenty of times I’ve been convinced I actually share a brain with him lol (seriously, it’s actually scary how similar we are in some ways). And on a side note, I also want to once again really thank him for policing this sub and doing our mods’ work for us half of the time💀
• u/reidstampede2021: A Duncan stan who we also share a handful of common ground as far as opinions go (especially on Duncan’s send-off🤪), despite not being a religious commenter, he gave a lot of appreciation for my massive tirade on Duncan’s send-off, even making multiple comments copying-and-pasting it. He also appreciated some other jokes I made, also incorporating them in some comments of his. And not only do I find that incredibly flattering, but on top of that, he had the courtesy to credit me whenever he did so. And also if you know me somewhat well, boosting my ego flattery is one great way to make me like you😉 (though ofc that is far from the only reason he’s a cool dude)
• u/Ok_Shirt_1574: A stan of Zoey, Cody and Scott, as well as a shipper of Scott x Zoey, he has commented a lot of great points throughout my series, and took various points I made to heart. On top of this, he also appreciated my commentary from time to time, especially my CHFIL rant😉. And aside from this, the dude also makes some pretty dope episode reviews himself where he also incorporates various funny commentary
• u/Glamouriffic: Resident Derrie and Trent stan, she appreciated my posts from time to time, or even even commented on more specific reactions I had that stuck out to her. And she especially appreciated my rants, even being one of the two people to give me an award for my penguinz0-styled rant on Paris Sierra during the third part of my WT commentary
• u/A_Snowy_Vulpix: She barely commented on my series, but is the second person who gave me an award for my Paris Sierra tirade, so thank you
• u/HungryDiscipline882: A Lindsay lover who also has a lot of similar ways of thinking as me, he occasionally comments on my posts. Though on top of this, he also took quite a bit of inspiration from my commentary when stating various points of his, and admitted he liked a lot of the points I brought up, which is ofc flattering😎. And on another note, he also has a lot of great ideas as far as improving canon goes
• u/YourFaveWasDerailed: Everyone’s favorite satire account subreddit user, they sometimes commented some great insight on my posts regarding just how bad the show really is, truly inspiring me to just hate on the show. They also really read me like a book when he asked me “Why do you keep torturing yourself” after I posted my PI reviewlast part being a half-joke as this series really did get tiring at times. And on a more serious note, they even gave my series some appreciation at one point and broke character during his AMA to openly admit they find me cool, even if they did comment on my poll series poking fun whenever I went on especially…passionate rants about things I don’t like🤪. And even aside from this, dude is just simply a legend
• u/Less-Ad-9927: A cinema nerd and major, as well as a stan of Emma, Izzy and Dwayne, she didn’t start commenting till my RR posts. But when she did, she was especially supportive of my series and often commented on my posts bringing up various points she had, all the while acknowledging various points I made. Overall an amazing contributor to the final stretch of my series even despite the very faltering momentum
• u/Uglyfense: A stan of Courtney, Chris and Ezekiel, and widely known for trolling people’s opinions with his “What-if” questions, he has made a handful of great and thorough comments on my posts throughout, even conjuring up a bunch of interesting points as well as unique ways to look at things that push the boundaries beyond things that fans have already said at least 100 times. Fuck, the dude even made some good rebuttals against my review (big euphemism btw💀) on not only my most hated episode, but one of the most universally disliked episodes in the series. And on a random note, he’s also just proof that you don’t need to have a bunch of really strong negative opinions to stick out (dude likes pretty much every character yet still manages to be a very interesting TD discusser)

Now, every one of you involved are great. But I think these two following people have contributed the most

• u/Particular_Being_269: The sub’s resident music nerd, and more or less simp stan of Zoey and Gwen, the dude made a lot of especially nice comments appreciating my posts and commentary. On top of this, he’s yet another one of the people who actually took time to look at my rankings more in detail. Though despite all his positive feedback, along with Fense, he also wasn’t afraid to challenge and question my opinions quite a bit, even making some points that I haven’t considered before. And in retrospect, as a more passive and non-confrontational person who doesn’t usually like debating people a lot (mainly on the spot), this is definitely a trait I admire
• u/Ace_TD: Practically the face of this sub at this point, and the man who truly lives up to his name, the dude not only commented on my series quite often, even at times leaving very in-depth comments regarding my points and even adding onto various points I made in various ways. Though he has also talked about and inadvertently advertised my series to the TD Discord. Plus outside of this, he’s just simply a all-around amazing dude. He preaches a ton of facts on the TD Discord server, and he's just generally very fun to talk to

Aside from them, I’d also like to give a couple honorable mentions to u/twofacedflyer and u/WOTWUZTHAT, both of which have done similar series before mine that consisted of talking about characters. And while I didn’t totally plan for this to become a full-on series, I think they partially inspired me for when it did become a full series if that makes sense. And as I said, the format of this post is pretty inspired by u/twofacedflyer in various ways. And I’ll admit even in general, there were times I referred back to posts of his series whenever I got lost on how exactly to structure various posts of mine (including this one). As of now, they aren’t active on this sub anymore for varying reasons, but I had a real blast with both of them during their time here
And lastly, I’d like to thank this whole subreddit in general. It’s generally filled with a lot of open-minded and accepting people who are genuinely caring and willing to acknowledge other people as they express their thoughts. Now granted, I’m aware Reddit is far from perfect and is a lot of times not usually held in high regard (although it isn’t as problematic as say, Twitter or TikTok). But I think this subreddit is really proof that there is good to Reddit. And the support I got throughout this series is proof of that
And that officially wraps up the very gushy part of this post🤪

Thoughts on Total Drama

If you’ve followed my series or even generally read through enough things I’ve pumped out throughout my time on Reddit, you’ll likely know I’ve typed many rants on various facets of this show. Though despite this…it’s still quite good overall, and maybe even great. Granted, it has a lot of flaws and even some writing decisions that will forever baffle me (one of the most noteworthy examples being the winners losing their money at the end in ironically the widely regarded two best seasons). And I remember binge-watching 6teen a long while back thinking it was overall a lot more clean written than TD, which I think kind of gives the idea that there are probably many better handled shows overall. But at the same time, TD has way too many awesome highs for me to not like it. And outside of the two infamous seasons (AS and PI), I can safely say the positives will always outweigh the negatives. And if anything, even the various flaws the show has just makes it more fun to talk about sometimes. IDK what it is, but I low-key find ranting on things a guilty pleasure. I’ve said this before, but there’s a reason whenever I talk elaborately about something negatively, my walls of text will usually be longer than when I actually write about something positive. And there’s just a certain type of satisfaction I get from trying to find various ways to express and intricately word my distaste for stuff I don’t like, especially when it’s stuff that makes me passionately angry. So IG in a way…I have to give a thank you to aspects of the show like YRBKM, SMS, the Gwent breakup aftermath, CHFIL Sierra, Feral Zeke, MacArthur, Amy, the joke of the winner losing their money or especially PI Chris💀
Now for a runthrough on what I think of every season, Island was a solid start to the show and overall a great season. It isn’t without its problems such as various inconsistent or weird moments, the main antagonist being rather lackluster (mainly in the gameplay department), or especially Gwen’s treatment as a finalist and the fact it’s one of the two seasons with easily one of the absolute worst “jokes” in the entire series. But despite this, it still has many great things about it, and a generally chill atmosphere
Next came Action which was also good overall, but has quite more noteworthy flaws, especially the aftermath of the Gwent fallout, along with Beth’s character-assassinating romance plot. However, it is the best season as far as challenges go, and I happen to prefer the antagonist over the one in TDI…well, at least once Courtney comes into the picture (we don’t talk about Justin). The finalist pairs are also one of the weaker ones overall, but even then, their interactions and the finale itself actually worked surprisingly well, despite the very ending also leaving a fair amount to be desired
Then came World Tour, which at best was a very epic and adventurous change of pace from the first two seasons. And it even implemented musicals as a unique feature of this season (which included a lot of bangers albeit a few flops), and on a side note, introduced this truly amazing piece of background music I really wish there was an extended version of that I could download and listen to for hours on end😭. The antagonist is easily the best in the entire series, both gameplay and character-wise. And the finalist choices were practically perfect narratively, despite both having some more glaring flaws gameplay-wise here and there. And the finale was shaping up to be absolutely amazing…but unfortunately ended on a really sour note. Aside from this, there are a few other controversial plots and writing decisions I don’t like. However, one thing I especially respect about WT is how high the stakes were. This season really feels like you had to actually play the game in order to get far, rather that just being nice. In fact, this might just be one of the best and most intriguing seasons for those who especially care more about the strategic aspect of TD. Overall, I feel like WT is one of those seasons that just went especially ballsy with its writing and actually did really well with the execution at times. Though at the same time, there are multiple areas really lacking in execution and some especially terrible lows. Despite this, it is overall a better season than TDA, but there had yet to be a season that topped the quality of Island
That is until Revenge of the Island came along. After spending 3 seasons getting to know the first generation cast, we then got introduced to a set of new characters, and a really great one at that. Personally, I think this is easily the peak of the series. Generally speaking, pretty much almost every character is utilized really well (barring Staci). And it also has a lot of especially epic moments along with an adventurous feel. The pacing is also really good, and there are many great jokes. Scott as an antagonist is also amazing, even though he also isn't without flaws and doesn't quite top Alejandro. On top of this, I think this season does a great job of balancing both drama and friendships, and handling both really well. There are various conflicts that are surprisingly complex, engaging, or also entertaining. But mixed with that are still a lot of wholesome and interactions. And even generally speaking, it just seemed to be able to handle and balance most aspects of the show really well. That and it also has easily my two favorite episodes in the entire series. Really, ROTI is a masterpiece all-around, and I could gush about it all day if I wanted
Though unfortunately, the very season after ROTI did NOT hold up to its quality, as the worst season coincidentally happened right after the best season😭. I know I’m not being brave when I call this the worst season. There’s just so many bad writing decisions, and it also has easily two of my least favorite episodes in the franchise, which funny enough both happen to be responsible for screwing over two very prominent characters who had a lot of development potential. And on that topic, it does that a lot. It feels like at least half of the cast loses a ton of brain-cells during their elimination episode…or in various other episodes outside of that too. And part of it ties to what has to be easily my least favorite antagonist yet, who also happens to be tied with probably ‘objectively’ (I used this word loosely tho) one of the worst protagonists in the series as well (Mike vs. Mal). And yeah, on that topic, the main plot is also just atrocious and ends on one of the worst notes possible. But even despite this, it still has its good moments and enough positives for me to not hate it. There are a handful of characters I actually like, and I’d say Zoey was still good this season despite her flaws, and not a bad finalist. Though generally speaking, it’s just such a huge disappointment in many ways and easily the lowest point of the franchise
After this disappointing trainwreck came Pahkitew Island, where the writers decided to go completely balls to the wall with the cartoonish aspects of the show. I will say, it is better than AS overall, but…only because it has better highs (including my absolute favorite character in the series). On the contrary, I think it actually has worse lows. Funny enough, it just so happens that this season has some of the highest highs of all time, but also some of the absolute lowest lows, including my two absolute least favorite season-by-season character appearances in the entire series. It especially doesn’t help that while LCAOBP isn’t my least favorite episode overall, it ends ‘regular’ Total Drama in one of the worst ways possible
Thankfully though, the one spin-off that came after this happened to actually be quite good, and definitely a big step up from the previous two seasons. Not only did it start new with the game format, but it also started fresh in terms of writing-quality. Granted, even then it is far from perfect. There are quite a few glaring flaws for me as far as characters go, especially including the existence of my least favorite protagonist in the entire series (even worse than AS Mike). But even then, the season had the advantage of screen-time being distributed especially more evenly, to where even if some characters sucked, it wasn’t always enough to drag the episode down. In fact, aside from ROTI, it’s the one season that has no full-on bad episodes for me. And the fact I find the host vastly superior and that it’s responsible for the existence of my TD waifu, both especially give it an edge. Overall, I think this season was quite refreshing and satisfying after the previous two seasons, and I’m proud to call it yet another higher point of TD and quite a good end to the franchise
And then lastly there’s Total Dramarama, although I haven’t watched it in a fat minute and don’t plan on covering it as of this series. Though from what I remember from watching it a long while back, I actually liked it for the most part. There were some occasional moments I really didn’t like, and the Chef torture could sometimes go too far for my liking. But for the most part, it’s pretty entertaining and has some plots I really like. All I’ll say is my favorite episode is definitely “Having the Timeout of our Lives”, with my least favorite being “Total Eclipse of the Fart” like many others
So overall, Total Drama is a pretty great and iconic series despite its flaws, and I am proud to call myself a fan of the show. I mean, there’s no other reason I would be this dedicated to talking about it. It would be awkward and a waste of time if I looked into and discussed this show for so long, only for the end result to be that I don’t like it (and I know YFWD would absolutely decimate me LMFAO). Fresh TV, you are awesome, and I really look forward to the upcoming new seasons

Final Show Rankings

Now it’s time for my general ratings regarding Total Drama, and this time on a scale of 100. I should also say, I’ve always had a hard time fully deciding my season rankings, so I figured I’d make a more intricate attempt to gauge my exact opinions on each season. And through this, I made a ranking table, where I rate multiple different facets of the show from 0 to 100. Now it’s worth noting I made more specific calculations for the episodes and character portion, and some rougher calculations for the romance and finalists categories. I also based the finale category mainly on my ranking of each episode of said finale. And the rest are more rough estimates. And on a last note, I stuck with the 147 season-by-season character incarnations when determining the scores for the characters category (so no background characters, cameos, or Mike’s personalities other than Mal). So these are likely not 100% accurate, but considering I’m mainly just using this to try to order my seasons, I don’t think it’s too big of a deal. Not to mention the scores are rounded by 0.5 increments
Season ranking chart
NGL, the Reddit table feature is kind of pain to use, so instead, I opted to just put the table in another Google Doc for me to link here, along with an explanation of how it works
Just a couple additional factors I included for seasons (adds or subtracts 35 on the 700 scale)

• Winner loses money: -5.0 points
• Contains a top 5 season-by-season character incarnation: +5.0 points

Overall ratings
Seasons

• TDI: 77.0 - 5.0 + 5.0 => 77.0/100
• TDA: 59.5 + 5.0 => 64.5/100
• WT: 71.0 - 5.0 => 66.0/100
• ROTI: 91.0 + 5.0 => 96.0/100
• AS: 37.5 => 37.5/100
• PI: 45.0 + 5.0 => 50.0/100
• RR: 69.5 + 5.0 => 74.5/100

Each facet of the show in general

• Drama: 60.0
• Friendships: 76.0
• Finalists: 71.0
• Finales: 46.0
• Characters: 70.5
• Episodes: 65.0
• Romance: 61.5

Final Season Rankings
#7: TDAS
#6: TDPI
#5: TDA
#4: TDWT
#3: TDPTRR
#2: TDI
#1: TDROTI
My personal rating of the show
Actual average: 3256/4900 => 66.5/100
Tho wait, ROTI exists (and ofc the show is super fun to talk about and look into in general😉)
Final rating: 75/100 => 7.5/10

Other stats and a bunch of Top 5’s

Now that I showcased my general thoughts on this series, we are one step further before I reveal all my final rankings. But beforehand, I want to showcase a list of a bunch of mini rankings (yes once again, this is inspired by u/twofacedflyer). It’s also worth nothing the HM’s/DHM’s are not necessarily in order
Funniest Characters
#5: Noah (WT)
#4: Izzy (TDA)
#3: Lightning (AS)
#2: Dwayne (RR)
#1: Spud (RR)
HM: Max (PI), Owen (WT), Owen (RR), Harold (TDA)
Best character arcs
#5: Gwen (TDI)
#4: Cameron (ROTI)
#3: Zoey (ROTI)
#2: Emma (RR)
#1: Shawn (PI)
HM: Dwayne & Junior (RR), Heather (WT), Brick (ROTI), Lindsay (TDA), Spud (RR)
Best lines
#5: "I work best under pressure. Hah! Get it? Water pressure" -Harold (Masters of Disasters)
#4: (Chris: "The camper...) "...who does not receive a marshmallow must immediately return to the dock of shame catch the boat of losers and leave, can't we just get this over with?" -Gwen (Paintball Deer Hunter)
#3: “Of course you can, you’re an EXPERT at turning people off!” -Alejandro (Planes, Trains, and Hot Air Mobiles)
#2: “No one can touch my tomatoes!” -Lindsay (Million Dollar Babies)
#1: “I love Chef because he is very very very very very very very…” -Duncan (Basic Straining)
HM: “There’s no nice way to say this…I’D RATHER GET EATED BY A ZOMBIE!” -Shawn (This is the Pits), “Last time I thought zombies were here, I was too scared to try and save Jasmine. I’M NOT MAKING THAT MISTAKE AGAIN. NOT AGAIN!” -Shawn (Hurl and Go Seek), "🎵THIIIIIS SUUUUUUUUUUUCKS!🎵" -Duncan (Walk Like an Egyptian Part 1), “You’re like Albert Einstein, with better hair, and ✨girly bits✨” -Harold (The Sand Witch Project)
Best couples
#5: Ozzy (TDA)
#4: Nemma (RR)
#3: Duncney (TDI)
#2: Aleheather (WT)
#1: Shawsmine (PI)
HM: Samkota (ROTI), Aleheather (AS), Gidgette (TDI), Zoke (ROTI), Ryphanie (RR) and Ozzy (TDI)
Best rivalries
#5: Duncan vs. Courtney (WT)
#4: Brick vs. Jo (ROTI)
#3: Duncan vs. Alejandro (WT)
#2: Gwen/Leshawna vs. Heather
#1: Zoey vs. Scott (ROTI)
HM: Duncan vs. Alejandro (WT), Geoff vs. Blaineley (WT), Lightning vs. Jo (ROTI), Cameron vs. Lightning (ROTI) and Duncan vs. Harold (TDI/TDA)
Best friendships
#5: The Rockers (RR)
#4: Gwen & Leshawna (TDI)
#3: Harold & Heather (TDA)
#2: The Surfers (RR)
#1: Zoey & Cameron (ROTI)
HM: Gwen & Geoff (TDI), Noah & Owen (WT/RR), Owen & Kitty (RR), Owen & Gwen (TDI), Harold & Heather (TDA), the friendship trio (ROTI), Gwen & Cameron (AS), Ryan & Carrie (RR), Lindsay & DJ (WT), Duncan & Zoey (AS), and Jasmine & Sammy (PI)
Best moments
#5: Zoey riding the mutant goats (S4E10)
#4: Kitty’s payback to the Cadets and Ice-Dancers (S7E24)
#3: Harold saves everyone’s lives (S2E10)
#2: Kitty making it back up to the surface with her mad breath-holding skillz (S7E25)
#1: Shawn goes full giga-chad on the Chris bots (S6E10)
HM: Lindsay cursing Heather out (S1E18), Surfers in the Dude Buggies challenge (S7E19), Heather’s (implied) clam-chowder soup prank on Alejandro (S3E10), Duncan’s essay to Chef (S1E12), Iron Cam (S4E13), any moment Chris gets his ass kicked, and many more I’m too lazy to list
Worst moments
#5: Feral Zeke vs. Heather (S3E26)
#4: Gwen having her money taken against own will after her ending (S1E27)
#3: Courtney’s sendoff (S5E11)
#2: Duncan’s sendoff (S5E8)
#1: The ending of the finale in general, though with a big emphasis on Chris’ departure… (S6E13)
DHM: The Cody and Sierra subplot resolution (S3E9), MacArthur taking advantage of Brody (S7E26), the Reset Button (S5E13), CamCourtney (S5E9/S5E10), and the intern “gag” in general
Worst derailments
#5: Courtney (S5E11)
#4: Gwen (S3E16)
#3: Jasmine (S6E8)
#2: Duncan (S5E8)
#1: Cameron (S5E9)
DHM: Beth (S2E10 & E23), Trent (S2E26-E27), Scott (S5E9-E10), Leshawna (S3E7), and at least half of the AS cast in their elimination episodes
And now, here are my top and bottom 30 episode by episode appearances for each character throughout the series and no im not dedicated enough to make a ranking of EVERY episode by episode appearance. It’s worth noting, some of the scores are the exact same. Usually to determine which goes higher, I decided by which appearance had more relevance that episode. Though there are even some cases where multiple appearances have both the exact same score and relevance. In that case, I just went with my gut feeling on which I prefer ever-so-slightly
Top 30
#30: Gwen (S2E27) - 17.55
#29: Gwen (S1E5) - 17.55
#28: Heather (S3E25) - 17.55
#27: Emma (S7E25) - 17.55
#26: Shawn (S6E9) - 17.60
#25: Gwen (S1E21) - 17.60
#24: Spud (S7E14) - 17.60
#23: Cameron (S4E11) - 17.60
#22: Alejandro (S3E25) - 17.60
#21: Noah (S7E11) - 17.60
#20: Owen (S7E11) - 17.61
#19: Geoff (S7E17) - 17.65
#18: Duncan (S1E12) - 17.65
#17: Heather (S3E26) - 17.65
#16: Cameron (S413) - 17.65
#15: Alejandro (S3E11) - 17.70
#14: Kitty (S7E19) - 17.70
#13: Harold (S2E27) - 17.75
#12: Brody (S7E19) - 17.75
#11: Heather (S3E10) - 17.75
#10: Zoey (S4E12) - 17.75
#9: Gwen (S1E19) - 17.75
#8: Heather (S3E20) - 17.80
#7: Geoff (S7E19) - 17.80
#6: Lindsay (S1E18) - 17.80
#5: Zoey (S4E10) - 17.85
#4: Kitty (S7E24) - 17.90
#3: Harold (S2E10) - 17.93
#2: Kitty (S7E25) - 17.95
#1: Shawn (S6E10) - 17.97
Total amount of top tier episode by episode incarnations: 92 (34 of them being 17.5 or higher)
Below 17.50: 7 (TDI) + 8 (TDA) + 15 (WT) + 9 (ROTI) + 3 (AS) + 3 (PI) + 13 (RR) = 58 (emit)
Bottom 30
#30: Katie (S2E12) - 0.80
#29: Chris (S5E11) - 0.80
#28: Chef (S6E11) - 0.75
#27: Chris (S6E6) - 0.70
#26: Izzy (S3E11) - 0.70
#25: Amy (S6E5) - 0.70
#24: Beth (S2E10) - 0.65
#23: Chef (S3E26) - 0.60
#22: Sugar (S6E6) - 0.60
#21: Heather (S1E9) - 0.55
#20: Chris (S6E7) - 0.53
#19: Chris (S6E5) - 0.53
#18: MacArthur (S7E19) - 0.50
#17: Amy (S6E2) - 0.40
#16: Chef (S3E2) - 0.35
#15: Chris (S3E26) - 0.35
#14: Chris (S1E26) - 0.30
#13: Chris (S3E2) - 0.30
#12: Mal (S5E13) - 0.30
#11: Chris (S6E8) - 0.27
#10: Sierra (S3E9) - 0.25
#9: Chris (S6E10) - 0.21
#8: Chris (S3E14) - 0.20
#7: Chris (S6E11) - 0.19
#6: MacArthur (S7E26) - 0.18
#5: Ezekiel (S3E26) - 0.15
#4: Chris (S3E13) - 0.15
#3: Amy (S6E1) - 0.10
#2: Chris: (S1E27) - 0.03
#1: Chris: (S6E13) - 0.00
Total amount of bottom tier episode by episode incarnations: 37
And that wraps up the long wall of text along with all my mini rankings. I figured this post would be too long if I included all of this just in one post, so I decided to make this 2 parts. Next part is the real deal, where I show off a few different ranking lists, and then finally my character rankings (you can find it via this link)

tldr; do I need to tweak my new purchase to achieve best endurance under 250g? Specs and my noob questions are below:
I'm a relatively new FPV whoop pilot (4 months flying a Mobula 7 ELRS) and I've picked up my first FPV wing a Zohd Dart 250g.
I wanted a nano goblin, but the dart 250g model was RTF for £20 cheaper than a bare nano goblin airframe.
I want to have a play with inav waypoints etc. As well as have a relaxed fpv / LOS park cruiser.
I'm therefore leaning towards long range / long endurance type builds, as best I can under 250g.
The model is basically RTF and has been mainatined / upgraded by the nice chap who previously owned it. However, I'm a noob and have many questions.
Specs of the dart as-is:
Xm+ rx Foxeer razer micro cam 200mw VTX Momoda CP VTX antenna Beitan BN-185 GPS Upgraded motor to GR1408 4100kv 3052 prop 20a esc Matek 411WSE FC Custom 3d printed rear cover Micro 'lucky box' lipo beeper Standalone BEC
Tatu 4s 650mah pack x2 THE 3s 850mah pack x2
AUW with the above packs is 270g-ish
Being under 250g is very important to me. I need to do that to fly legally in the spaces I have available.
I also have some 18650s, 13400s and some smaller (360mah) 2s packs, I could try in it.
I fly FPV with a Jumper-T-pro and FS scout goggles ‐------------------------
My TX is ELRS, so I be replacing the RX with something like an RP1 or EP1.
So my questions are:

1. If I'm going for cruising / LR, is this build in its current form slightly over-motored? The motor in the model is twice the KV of the stock motor
   
2. If 1 is true, using less throttle is presumably not the answer as there will be inefficiencies by having too high a KV?
   
3. I can't see how to reduce the model's weight, so presumably I just need to pay attention to choosing / making a light battery pack?
   
4. Is the "vertical stabiliser bracing" mod I've seen online worth the extra weight penalty for improved stability?
   
5. Similarly, is extending the motor aftwards for better efficiency like I've seen online a good idea?
   
6. I'm a whoop pilot! Anything else I need to know before I try to maiden this thing?
   

Legal liability question:
As an Australian, how can we get liability insurance when hiring a car in U.S.A. or Canada? None of the travel insurance policies available to Australian residents for overseas travel offer liability insurance to cover motor vehicle operation. They all have a liability exclusion that reads similar to (RACV PDS):
“A claim against You arising out of ownership, custody, or use of any motor vehicle or mechanically propelled vehicle, any aircraft, watercraft, firearms, drone, or radio-controlled/remote-controlled model car, vehicle, plane, boat and the like.”
Purchasing liability insurance directly from the car hire company seems to vary significantly from location and hire company, and frequently the maximum coverage offered is $250K.
Does anyone have experience in successful purchasing liability coverage for overseas car hire that is in the $5M-$10M liability range?

They woke up in an old shack in the middle of Boney Island.
"Darn, we should've been on guard for shenanigans" said Jason.
"Is it really just us left?" asked Sasha in wonder.
"Yep, we're the Final Four, I guess" said Amethyst.
​
Amethyst: Wow, the Final Four. I can’t believe it, I’m so close!
Jason: I think I’m pretty much in the clear now. I just have to steel myself for any squeamish challenges, and that one million dollars is as good as mine!
Mabel: This is all so exciting! I bet Dipper and the others are going crazy seeing me here in the finale!
Sasha: Everybody left earned their place here in the Finale. Now, I’ve gotta give it my all and earn that one million dollars!
They stretched and warmed up, and met up on the beach. Jason figured out by flying up that they were on Boney Island. Jason tensed as he heard movement in the bushes.
Chef emerged in warpaint. "Campers! I am proud to say you have made it to the Final Four! Your most grueling challenge will now commence, and here's how it all starts: The first leg is a race back to Wawanakwa, but there's only one canoe here on Boney Island: A map of the island shows where the canoe is and I have the only copy. You have to beat me before-"
Mabel knocked him out cold with the grappling gun. Sasha shook her head in amusement. "Kakashi-sensei, you're not, Master Chief, but we will not fail you or your training. Sasha grabbed the map, scanned it and then ran off into the jungle, her gear letting her glide among the trees.
Chef had to smile as Sasha disappeared into the jungle. The other three finalists quickly gave chase. Jason and Amethyst, with their powers now back at full, raced away into the thickets, while Mabel used her grappling gun to make like Tarzan and glided from tree to tree.
Sasha found the canoe first, but she realized it was too big for her to carry alone onto shore, so she thought of a plan. Jason and Mabel arrived soon after, and Sasha thought of a plan.
“Guys, with her powers, Amethyst is the one to beat. We’ve gotta team up against her or else she’ll flatten us!”
Jason nodded. “That makes sense, Sasha. Alright, it’s three against Amethyst”
“Hooray for conniving!” yelled Mabel.
Sasha: I needed to know if I was as good at manipulation as my fellow Corpsmen. I needed to see if I was powerful enough to twist their minds and make them fight each other. Especially Jason and Amethyst. They’re practically gods compared to Mabel and me.
They made it to the shoreline. Mabel hopped on as Sasha and Jason pushed the canoe into the water.
“Aren’t you guys forgetting someone?” asked a voice behind them.
Sasha froze. Even Jason was tense. They were not fighting some villainous enemy, either of them. They were conniving against someone who had been a friend to them.
No! yelled Eren’s voice in her head. This is a competition!
Amethyst laughed. “Oh, I get it. Welp, it was fun pretending we were all in this together, but I guess now it’s time to let the rocks tumble”
“We don’t wanna fight you, Amethyst!” Sasha yelled.
“Oh, I wouldn’t want to fight me, neither!”
Amethyst morphed into a gigantic wrestler, and sucker punched Jason just as he flew in to try and poof her. He sailed backwards into the sand and landed with a sickening thud. Sasha screamed, but Mabel was quicker. She aimed and fired her grappling hook at Amethyst’s leg, entwining it in its cord. Sasha grabbed onto the gun and pulled with all her might, sending Amethyst tumbling over them, pushing the canoe into the water.
The canoe drifted away back to Wawanakwa, leaving Jason and Amethyst behind.
“Whew. I’m glad it’s just the two of us, Mabel! We were screwed if those two got a foothold on us.”
“Yeah. Thanks a lot, Sasha!” They paddled as hard as they could towards Wawanakwa.
Chris: Wow! Our underdogs are really kicking it in all cylinders! I’m here at Wawanakwa with the families and friends of our four finalists. They’re here to give them all the cheering and support they’ll need to win! Let’s start with Amethyst’s family from Beach City. Sierra and Topher, you’re on!
Sierra: Thanks, Chris! We’re here with the Gem Community from Beach City here by the campfire!
Topher: That’s right, Sierra. Pearl, we know you didn’t expect Amethyst to win the Wildcard, let alone make the Finals. What do you and the rest of Beach City have to say?
Pearl: Oh, Amethyst, we are so proud! You held your tongue and got by using your wits! Now, there’s only four of you left and I know they don’t stand a chance against OUR Amethyst!
Garnet: Show them the might of the Crystal Gems
Peridot: GET ‘EM, AMETHYST, YOU CAN DO IT!
Bismuth: You got ‘em on the ropes, Deep-Cut! Knock them out!
Steven: Everybody at the Kindergarden’s cheering for you, Amethyst!
Carnelian: Go, sis!
Skinny: You rock!
Holly Blue: Go, Earth Team! Ugh, what am I even saying?
Jasper: SHOW THEM WHAT EARTH GEMS ARE MADE OF, AMETHYST!
Blue Diamond: (on a holoscreen) Do us proud, Amethyst!
Yellow Diamond: Divide and conquer them, that’s the way to do it!
White Diamond: Is this some sort of Earth entertainment activity? How delightful. Go for it, Amethyst!
Spinel: We’re sending you virtual hugs from light-years away!
Ronaldo: I knew you were a lock on for the finals, Amethyst! All the theories were pointing at you!
Beach City Citizens: AMETHYST! AMETHYST! AMETHYST! AMETHYST!
Topher: Wow, what a crowd! Let’s go see Jason’s demigod comrades from Berkeley, California! The floor’s yours, Brick. Jo and Dawn!
Brick: Oh, we’re on? I was busy looking at those cool Roman phalanx formations!
Dawn: Can’t we settle this peacefully?
Jo: Speak for yourself, Granola Girl. I want to sign up with these guys. They’ve got gyms, tracks and hot baths! Say, I’m pretty sure I’ve got the bloodline of some Roman god in me, could I join you?
Hazel: I can certainly see Victoria or Mars in your blood. We can talk about your application after this
Brick: I’m losing my mind over these formations
Frank: Thanks! I drilled them myself
Dawn: What would you like to say to Jason? I can hook you up telepathically
Hazel: All we want to say is we’re proud and honored by our great former praetor, and it’s great to see him again so… er… full of life
Percy: You’ve got this bro!
Annabeth: Winning this silly TV show is a cakewalk for the hero who toppled the giants!
Leo: ZAP THEM, MAN, YOU’VE GOT THIS!
Piper:…
Nico: Give her some room, people….
Coach Hedge: Man, what a bunch of delinquents! Put them in line, Grace!
Piper: No matter what, you’ve already won in our book (literally), Jason.
Roman demigods: intense cheering
Jo: Yeah, now that’s a cheer! Spartans! Awoo! Awoo!
Dawn: Back to you, Chris
Chris: Thanks, Dawn. Up next is Mabel’s Gravity Falls family. Dakota and Sam, take it away!
Dakota: I’m here with my friend at the Future Celebrities Club Pacifica Northwest! What do you have to say to Mabel?
Pacifica: Omigosh, bestie, I’m so proud. Once you win this thing, you’re gonna be a flipping star! We are so getting ourselves a TV talk show after this! We’ll invite cute boybands from Korea and prank them with Soos in a monster suit hiding behind the sofas!
Dakota: That show concept is so fetch!
Sam: I already knew Soos from the online gaming circuit! Man, Mabel’s awesome! Got any words of inspiration?
Soos: Mabel! Don’t be scared to be nice! Be yourself! Don’t change your strategy now! That’s my takeaway from all the reality TV shows I watch
Grunkle Stan: That’s my granddaughter! She’s on TV!
Dipper: I knew you could do it! Just stay true to yourself, Mabel! You’ve got this!
Gideon: We won’t stop looking for a way to get Grunkle Stan’s memories back, baby! Winning this contest will go a long way!
Bill: is a statue
Dakota: How did that get there…
Bill: manifesting from the void. You call this entertainment? Where’s the fire? Where’s the dead contestants? Where’s the {REDACTED]? Come on, Chris McLean, they told me this was the craziest reality show in the multiverse, let’s get sickening! Oh no wait, I still can’t do anything. Oh well, those other campers don’t stand a chance against Mabel. She’s embraced chaos and it’s her weapon now. She’ll get the drop on them. Buy cryptocurrency! Bye! Dissipates
Dipper: Huh, even Bill had something nice to say
Wendy: That’s why Mabel’s gotta win!
Sam: Back to you, Chris!
Chris: Now, we turn to Sasha’s Survey Corps family!
Duncan: We’re here with the totally-rad Survey Corps to get their scoop on Sasha and why she should win this season
Courtney: If I had my way, we could totally turn this into a succinct discussion on social conditioning and the horrors of child conscription, but given the limited time, we can only ask the Corps on Sasha and her journey so far
Mikasa: I speak for everyone when I say Sasha got all the way to the finals because of her combination of strength in body and strength in heart. Even when her strength fails her, the friends she’s made along the way always have her back. That’s why she will win this
Connie: I know, right?! Either Sasha wins, or it’s rigged!
Levi: Just remember your training
Jean: We've got faith in you, Sasha. Go for it!
Zoe: The odds are in your favor, Sasha. This time, the Corps won't have to settle for defeat!
Courtney: Sasha's lucky to have such faithful friends! We now bring you back to the ongoing race back to Wawanakwa!
​
Sasha was flying in the air. She saw pieces of roast meat flying along with her, with smiley faces, beckoning her to take a bite. She gladly bit in, savoring the juices
“Ouch!”
Sasha shook her head. She was still flying, but not of her own power, but because Jason was carrying her. Then she had bit his arm.
“What in the Three Sisters?! Jason, where’s Mabel?!”
“She tricked you. Amethyst and Mabel have had an alliance since the Merge.”
Amethyst shapeshifted out of boat form as soon as she hit the shore. “Oh man! The look on Sasha’s face when she wakes up!”
“I almost feel bad,” said Mabel. “But I don’t wanna face Sasha in the Triple Dog Dare Challenge. She’ll cream us for sure”
“Oh, I’m winning that, through and through, but Sasha might threaten your spot in the Final Two, so we had to cut her loose”
Chris nodded. “Amethyst and Mabel, congratulations! You’re in the Final Three! It’s Jason vs. Sasha for the third spot!”
Sasha saw her prospects were grim. “Drop me, Grace. You deserve the final spot”
“I won’t do that. Romans fight fairly”
“OK, then I’ll duel you on the beach for the final spot. Corpsmen fight to the end”
“Deal”
They landed and squared off meters away from the shore, knee-deep in the water. Jason drew his coin and flipped it, and a sword materialized from it. Sasha drew her twin blades and squared off. Everyone on the beach was silent as the two giantslayers began their duel.
Both were speedsters in combat, but Jason had the advantage of having the power of the wind itself. He ran circles around Sasha, who was forced to parry and keep on the defensive. Demigods cheered for Jason while the Corpsmen urged Sasha to fight on. Sasha’s dual blades afforded her the opportunity to attack and block at the same time, but Jason gave her few openings. Jason’s advantage was that his blade carried his full force, while Sasha’s dual swords halved her attacking power at the benefit of raising range and versatility. Still, Sasha pressed on, forcing herself to lunge in and try to turn the tide on Jason. Steel clashed against bronze and sparks flew. Jason nicked Sasha in the arm.
Suddenly, something awoke within Sasha. Her grip tightened and she began to move much faster, with more force in her strikes. She began pushing Jason back. She began to flip, turn, feint and tumble in the air, the grace of her Corps training coming into full display. Jason began to betray signs of tiring. Sasha twirled, describing a helicopter in the air, blades teetering towards Jason, who parried with his sword.
This time, Sasha nicked Jason on the cheek.
“She’s doing great! She’s gonna win this for sure!” said Connie
Levi shook his head. “It’s over”
“What?!”
Annabeth Chase nodded in agreement. “Sasha was never going to win”
Leo scoffed. “I’m all for Jason winning, but how come you counting Sasha out like that?”
Annabeth rolled her eyes. “It’s so obvious”
Zoe nodded. “Look at them. Look at where they’re standing. A rather brilliant application of simple physics, really”
Leo scanned the area around them. The lake shone blue against the white sand.
The lake.
“Oh,” said Leo.
“Oh, shit,” said Connie.
Jason grinned. “You’ve given it everything you’ve got, Sasha, well done! Now, it’s my turn.” He stabbed the waters with his sword, wincing as the act reminded him of Caligula, and called down the lightning.
Sasha had no time at all to process what happened as the jolts of electricity raced across the lake and into her.
When she awoke, her friends were all around her, grinning and cheering.
“Oh, guys, I had the weirdest dream! I was on a reality TV show and I made it all the way to the finals, until someone fried me…”
Connie sobbed. “Oh, but you did! You did all of that, baby, you made it to the first ever finals of Total Drama Fandom Island and we are freaking proud of ya!”
“Well done!” Jean was overjoyed.
Zoe beamed, “You showed them the Corps are not to be underestimated”
Chris McLean entered the tent, and beamed at Sasha. “Sasha Braus, you are this season’s third runner up! Thanks to the ton of sponsors we gotten since going multiversal, we can actually afford to give ALL our finalists cash prizes! You’re taking fifty thousand dollars home!”
“Fifty thousa-“ Sasha was dazed. “Whatever are we gonna do with fifty grand?!”
“I’ll tell ya what we’ll do,” said Connie. “There’s like restaurants in this wonderful country where you can eat all the meat you want at a price! As soon as this show’s over, we’re hitting one of those restos!”
“Canada is so beautiful,” murmured Mikasa. “Even the Titans here are friendly, and covered in soft fuzzy fur”
“Hyperboreans are harmless unless you mess with ‘em” said Frank Zhang, peeking in from outside.
Three contestants remained. Jason joined Mabel and Amethyst and headed for the special stage erected by the staff.
“History repeats itself,” said Heather. “Three Gophers remain, and the last Bass places fourth”
“Who do you think will win the Dare?” asked Owen.
“Amethyst and Mabel are pretty unhinged,” said Gwen. “If I were Jason, I’d be very worried”
“The dude shoots lightning like a freaking Sith Lord. The Triple Dog Dare isn’t fazing Jason” countered Duncan.
“Campers, congratulations on making it this far” said Chris. “For your next challenge, we bring you the Triple Dog Dare! Your fellow contestants, even Sasha just now, have written down dares that you must beat, from Patrick to Sasha. Now, instead of a roulette, we’ll just run them down from Patrick to Sasha. Ready?”
“Ready!” said the three in unison
​
Amethyst: They’re in for it now, I didn’t come all this way to lose
Jason: I’ve been memory-wiped, hit by flying bricks and skewered in the back. Nothing is going to hold me down now
Mabel: No dare is too squeamish for Mabel Pines!
​
“Alright, who goes first?” Chris asked.
“Ladies first,” said Jason.
“I’m non-binary,” said Amethyst. “So Mabel’s going first”
Mabel bit her lip. Patrick was the first eliminated and his challenge was either going to be stupidly easy or stupidly impossible.
She shrugged. I’ve done both. “Bring it, Patrick!”
Patrick Star stepped forward from the Peanut Gallery. “Mabel, I dare ya to eat a Triple Patty Deluxe in one bite!”
“I’ll do it!” Mabel saw the juicy burger and realized how hungry she was. She opened as wide as her jaw would allow, crushing the burger a bit to shrink it, and shoved it in her mouth. She chewed hungrily, and swallowed.
“Good job! Here’s your present!”
“Thanks, Pat!”
Chris clapped. “Alright, Mabel. Now you get a freebie, and the next time you can use it to pass a challenge to someone else. The first to back out is ELIMINATED.”
“Cool”
“Now, pick who goes next!”
“Go, Jason! I know Bakugou has a special challenge for you”
Jason: Now why on Earth would Bakugou have something in mind for me?
Bakugou stepped forward. “Alright, discount Pikachu, I bought my friend Denki with me. The challenge is to short-circuit him before he does it to you.
Denki Kaminari stepped into the fray. “Hiya, I heard you can fly, too, on top of using lightning. Man that is so unfair!”
“Alright, let’s do this”
The two squared off and fired bolts of lightning at each other. The sparks flew in all direction, even making Amethyst’s hair puff up and Mabel’s braces to glow”
“Cool!” said Mabel.
“I needed the new hairstyle,” admitted Amethyst.
They both strained as the lightning surge moved back and forth.
Deku gasped in the audience. “Wow, Denki could actually match a demigod in electrical output!”
“That’s our friend right there, get ‘em, Denki!” yelled Yaoyorozu.
An explosion sent smoke billowing all over the stage. When it settled. Jason was still standing, while Denki had folded.
Bakugou smirked. “Nice job, punk. Here’s your freebie” Jason caught the party favor as Bakugou flung it to him.
“Jason, pick the next challenger,” said Chris.
“Amethyst? It’s your turn”
LSP flew in with a yellow, sour-faced creature. “Amethyst, baby, your challenge is simple. Kiss the Earl of Lemongrab!”
“A’ight, here goes nothing” She kissed him and felt her lips burn. “Oof, boy, you’re better than Fire Salt!”
“Mmmm, you have proven acceptable” said Lemongrab. “Accept this favor”
“Mabel! Your turn again!”
“Next round, we both pass it on to Jason. We have to force him to quit so it’s us girls for the Finale!” “Got it, Amethyst!”
Mabel watched Brian Griffin walk onto the stage. “Mabel, my challenge is this. Say something nice about my novel, Faster than the Speed of Love”
Mabel felt a shiver down her spine. “It’s nice you thought of the needs of the mentally-challenged in writing this novel”
“Why, thank you, I- HEY!”
Stewie Griffin ran up to the stage. “Yass, Mabel, slay! Drag his arse, okay, here’s your favor”. He dragged Brian back to the seats by the ear.
Mabel turned. “Jason!”
Hermione Granger stepped up. “Jason Grace. I have but a riddle for you. Three students sit at Argus Filch’s detention room. They are either Gryffindors, who always tell the truth, or Slytherins, who tell naught but lies. Student One says “All of us are Slytherins”. Student Two is mum. Student Three says “Exactly one of us is a Gryffindor”. Who is who?”
“I’ve heard this riddle before,” said Jason. “Student One is a Slytherin, since if he were Gryffindor, he would be lying, which he cannot. Since he is a Slytherin, they are not all Slytherins, otherwise he’d be telling the truth. Student Two is mum, which is suspicious, and Student Three can be lying or no. They cannot be all of either. If Three is a Gryffindor, that means Two is a Slytherin, since Three’s statement must be true if he is Gryffindor. If Three is a Slytherin, then Two must be Slytherin also, since if Two was Gryffindor then Three must be telling the truth, but then all three would be Slytherin, making One’s statement true, when we already know it’s a lie. Therefore. One and Two are Slytherin, and Three is a Gryffindor.”
“Brilliant! And well-reasoned. Alright, Jason, here’s your favor”
“My brain fucking hurts,” said Amethyst.
“You don’t have a brain, silly, you got some sorta microchips,” said Mabel.
“Can I eat ‘em? All that logic made my head hurt”
“Alright, Amethyst, you’re up again,” said Jason.
“I just said my head hurts! Sheesh”
Cyborg entered the fray. “Yo, Amethyst! BB over here wants to challenge your shapeshifting skills!”
“Bring it on, BB! I’m ready for ya, anytime!”
“Oh, word, Amethyst? Get ready, coz I am kicking your butt across the animal kingdom!”
The green and the purple squared up. They began slowly, mouse, cow, tiger, rabbit, then picked up the pace, to owls, ravens, peacocks, dinosaurs, onto more complex animals, insects and fantastic creatures. Then Amethyst started morphing inanimate objects, to which Beast Boy threw in the towel.
“Man, I shoulda known better than to challenge you, sis! Here’s your favor!”
“Jason, next!”
Jason: I knew the girls were gonna gang up on me sooner or later. Welp, bring it!
Jett flew in. “Jason, think fast!” She dashed past him, and grabbed Piper and Leo from the audience.
“What the fuck?!” Amethyst gasped.
“What the heck is she thinking?!” said Mabel. “You can’t be lifting up demigods!”
Jett flew to the ceiling of the really-high circus tent, and flung Piper and Leo to the ground in opposite directions.
Jason’s calm smirk shocked everyone. Instead of making like Superman and flying to either of them, he willed the spirits of the winds to catch both of them and land them safely.
Jett beamed at Jason, though Leo tried to throw hands at her, and was intercepted by fellow pyro Phoenix (“Chill, fam, it was all planned out!”).
“I know when to cut my losses, but I’ll damn well try before I do any cutting”
Brimstone smiled in the audience. “That kid’s got potential”
Sage nodded. “He has the calmness and power of a storm”
“Mabel? Your turn”
Mabel breezed through Ponyhead’s Tiktok challenge, while Jason took Gray’s stripping challenge pretty well (“Walking around naked is a literal rite of manhood in Rome”), though several girls had to be restrained from throwing themselves at Jason and Piper had to be restrained from stabbing them. Jason passed it back to Mabel, who found the bugs Raymond challenged her to find. Mabel passed it back to Jason, who solved Lisa’s calculus problem pretty well (“I went to math college!”). Jason passed it back to Mabel, who had to outpun Sans, and took him down a notch with her keen wit. She passed it back to Jason, who did Seraphine’s KPOP song-and-dance number challenge (and once again made the girlies scream). Jason passed it to Amethyst, seeing Mabel could not be fazed. Amethyst nearly floundered on Baljeet’s trigonometry question, but luckily, her Gem did the math for her. Amethyst threw it back to Jason, and Gaara challenged him to a chess match, which he narrowly won. Jason went back at Amethyst, who beat Darcy at her own game when she challenged her to a makeover competition, to which Amethyst simply shapeshifted into what Darcy was wearing, but purple and sparkly. Amethyst passed back to Jason, and Jason beat Barry at a randomized 3v3 on Pokemon Showdown. Jason passed to Mabel, and Mabel had to beat Arthur in a jig-off. Mabel trounced Arthur and passed it back to Jason. Sasha’s challenge was simple: “Jason, Catch!”
Jason caught whatever it was Sasha threw. It was heavy, darned heavy, and it was pretty hot, so he dropped it, but quickly caught it again and again. Finally, Sasha said “OK! Timer’s up! You win!”
Jason unwrapped the heavy, hot object and frowned.
It was a hot brick with a smiley face and a note that said “Oh, kiss me again, Jason-senpai!”
Percy Jackson was cackling in the audience.
“Campers, you worked the house DOWN!!!” said Chris. “Not a single challenge passed off, so now, we gotta base it on how many favors you have!”
Mabel and Amethyst gulped. Their plan to take down Jason had backfired.
“Jason, you got nine favors! Congratulations, you’re in the final two!”
“Mabel, you got five favors, Amethyst, you got four. Congratulations, Mabel, join Jason for the final leg of the Finale!”
“Amethyst, congratulations on being the first wildcard contestant to ever make it to the final three! Well, unless you count Courtney in Action as a wildcard, (which she’s NOT, according to her own lawyer’s affidavit!). You are the second-runner up and you get to take home fifty thousand dollars!”
“Wow, awesome! This’ll help add new stuff at the Kindergarden! We can buy PS5s, or even-“
“Let’s do the budgeting at home, Amethyst,” said Pearl. “Congratulations, we’re so proud of you!”
“AMETHYST, YOU ROCKED!” yelled Steven.
“That’s my Gem in the rough! C’mere,” Sans joined them and proceeded to make out with Amethyst.
“I may have lost the season, but I got the skeleton of my dreams, baby!”
Heather gagged. “Ugh, get a room, you two!”
Alejandro countered. “Oh, but mi amor, you are the same! Third placers who bagged the perfect man for them!”
Heather scoffed. “I’m the lucky one in the relationship? You wish, Burromuerto!” Then she tackled him into a kiss on the floor.
Piper was next to gag. “Are you guys trying to summon my mom?! Please don’t, if she sees me with Jason, she’s gonna freak”
“Your mom’s already here in a way, pumpkin!” Chris said. “We often have coffee together as in-laws. She gives me juicy tips on how to milk all that lovey-dovey drama for all the ratings it’s worth! You guys, the Courtney-Duncan-Gwen love triangle drama was Aphrodite’s whole idea!”
Duncan gasped, Gwen’s eyes bugged. Courtney looked like she was ready to go full-on God of War, scale Olympus and strangle Aphrodite.
Sierra gasped. “What a twist! The fans are gonna go crazy”
“Well, Mabel? It’s down to you and me”
“Uh-huh. Ready to get pummeled, Sparky?”
Jason stopped a laugh. “Sure am. If I remember correctly, the last challenge is a footrace”
They stood there, facing the long obstacle course designed by the fallen twenty campers.
​
Jason: I am shaking. I never thought it would come down to Mabel and me. But I really want to win this whole thing for the Legion back home, so, sorry Mabel. I’m going all out.
Mabel: I can’t breathe right now. I can’t even move. Why did it have to come down to me and that ridiculously cute guy from California? I’m entering fight-or-flight mode but I know I have to choose to fight
​
“Campers! This is your last chance to win the one million dollars! Jason, you can take your coin and Mabel can take her grappling gun with her! The obstacle course is the final challenge and the first to reach the finish lines takes all. One last time, you two. DO YOU WANNA BE FAMOUS???!!!!”
They shot off into a sprint. Jason waded through jellyfish. Mabel dodged mini-landmines. Jason bounced off floating pink clouds, Mabel rode a muscular, genetically-enhanced pig, Jason rode a broomstick, Mabel dodged Batarangs, Jason grabbed a gun and mowed down training robots and defused the Spike and Mabel used Dimensional Scissors to get around a chasm. Jason dodged magical attacks, while Mabel swam like an otter across a pond.
They were neck and neck. Piper clutched her blade. Dipper hugged Waddles tight.
Jason rode a skateboard as nuclear waste dripped from the trees, Mabel dodged lasers and bones and skulls flying at her, Jason danced his butt off to activate a hovering bridge. Mabel activated a giant baking soda volcano, propelling her forward, Jason ran through quicksand, Mabel dodged shadows, Jason ran away from Beedrills, and Mabel climbed a mountain of burnt scones, Jason grabbed some Corps gear and rappelled down Sasquatchanakwa’s back. Mabel rode a pink Lion across the lake, punching Fang in the face as she passed.
Jason used his lightning to scare Lion off, throwing Mabel to the ground. Jason jogged past her, towards the finish line. Mabel pulled out her grappling gun and shot for the finish line’s pole. It latched on and she rocketed to the finish line, passing Jason at the last second.
“WE HAVE A WINNER!!!!” Chris boomed. “MABEL PINES, OF GRAVITY FALLS, YOU ARE TOTAL DRAMA FANDOM ISLAND’S FIRST EVER CHAMPION!!”
Jason Grace beamed at Mabel. “Great job, Mabel! You won against all odds. New Rome salutes you!”
Waddles ran up to Mabel and she caught him in a big hug. “Oh, we did it, Mr. Waddles! We won Total Drama Island!!!”
The other campers cheered.
“A jolly good show, Mabel!” said Arthur
“I knew you could do it, Mabel!” said Baljeet
“Mabel, that was awesome!” said Seraphine
“Not bad at all!” said Barry
“Impressive, and here I thought you’d be an early boot,” said Darcy
Demigods and the Gravity Falls citizens cheered wildly. Even the Survey Corps and the Beach City community hooted all around. All the audience from all across the Multiverse clapped in adulation.
“Jason Grace of New Rome, congratulations for being our First First Runner Up! You’ll be taking home one hundred thousand dollars!”
“We can finally afford those Temple renovations I was planning… well, I was planning until I died, so…”
Piper and Leo and the rest of the Seven ran up to hug Jason, or rather pile onto him.
“I’m so glad I came,” said Piper. “When I heard you got brought back from the dead just to compete in some reality show, I cringed. I really didn’t know how to react, where to start. I owed you, Jason, I-“
“You don’t owe me anything, Pipes. I’m happy for you. I want nothing more but for you to keep on being happy with your new life”
They hugged awkwardly, but sweetly.
“Hey, McLean! How about casting me for Season 2, eh?” said Leo Valdez.
“Or me, I really loved this whole season!” said Connie, hugging Sasha.
“Count me in if you’re casting Season 2 now!” said Peridot
“I’m open for participation, Mr. McLean” said Pacifica.
“Me too!” said Squidward Tentacles.
“And me!” said Natsu Dragneel
“What about me?” asked Ron Weasley
“You can’t have a season two without me!” yelled Jessie of Team Rocket.
“Chill out dudes! I’ve got Season 2 greenlighted and you can all email your audition tapes starting tomorrow!”
They all cheered. The Gravity Falls community carried Mabel atop them like a parade float, towards the lake. Percy Jackson smiled. “Think they’re gonna dunk her in?”
Annabeth Chase winced. “I hope not! It’s only fun when, well, you’re with that special someone”
“I wonder who’ll be in Season Two?”
“Wanna file for an audition, Seaweed Brain?”
“It’s one crazy show, but I like crazy sometimes”
Mabel thanked everyone for their support. “I’d never have won without all of you guys. My Screaming Gophers family, and the nice guys at the Killer Bass. Sasha, Arthur, Cyborg, Sans. All of you. I’m so happy I got to meet you all!”
“Oh, I almost forgot!” Chris cleared his throat. “We got the contestants to vote our Mr. and Ms. Congeniality for this season! Congratulations to Gaara and Seraphine!”
“I am honored. No one would’ve believed this ten years ago,” said Gaara, tearing up.
“Oh, you deserve it!” said Seraphine. “You’re a very sweet guy. Thank you, guys, for voting me!”
“You guys get fifty grand each! And that’s not all, everyone not in the Finals is taking home one thousand dollars TIMES the number of challenge wins you got in your entire run!”
Squidward laughed. “Patrick’s STILL not getting anything”
“He won the gift of friendship,” said Spongebob. “Didn’t ya, Pat?”
“That’s true!” said Sasha Braus. “Patrick, we’ll all fondly remember you and each other as we go back to our everyday lives!”
“There’s still one question that’s bugging me,” said Grunkle Stan. “Mabel, what do ya plan to do with your one million dollars?”
Mabel took the giant check from Chris McLean and thought deeply. “I’ve always wanted to expand your gift shop, Grunkle, and- WAIT A MINUTE, GRUNKLE, YOUR MIND-“
Grunkle Stan laughed. “It’s amazing what these Survey Corps scientists can cook up from the spit of a human-Gem hybrid and nectar from those demigods”
Mabel stared at her fellow finalists. “You guys, I…”
“It was horrible when we found out the price he paid to save you and the world from Bill Cipher” said Sasha. “So when we realized we had all the pieces to the puzzle of restoring lost memories, we jumped right at it!”
“Take it from someone who knows, Mabel. It’s a living hell knowing you should know about someone and not remember them” said Jason.
“Think of it as a prize from us for winning!” said Amethyst.
Mabel spent the rest of that day hugging everyone out of sheer joy.
Raymond purred. “Ah, all’s well that ends well, eh?”
Ponyhead beamed. “You bet, baby! Hey, Gorillanakwaz, hit it!”
Arthur Kirkland, Cyborg, Jett, Seraphine and Gaara hit the stage.
Arthur took up the bass, Jett the keyboard, Cyborg the drums and Gaara and Seraphine took the mikes, and an old, familiar tune began.
You never ever leave my mind
My sweet, sweet Caroline
Every time I look into your eyes, I feel like I’m alive
The whole island was vibing to the song and rocking to its melody
Every time I want to say hello, every time I want to stay, I go
Could never find the words to let you know, sometimes
You play my mind a million times
Mabel danced with all her friends, switching from Dipper, to Waddles, to Soos, Wendy and Pacifica, even Gideon. Sasha danced with Connie. Gems, Survey Corpsmen and demigod legionnaires joined hands in a circle and danced around the campfire. Jason waved as Piper danced with her girlfriend Shel, and suddenly, Jett came along and they began to dance, too.
Chris Mclean waved one last time at the camera. “Thanks for joining us here on Total Drama Fandom Island. Stay tuned for Season Two coming to you in May! Eighteen new contestants from all over the fandom multiverse will compete for the crown at TOTAL DRAMA FANDOMS SEASON TWO: FANDOM ACTION!

It’s around 8:00 in the morning when you get to the small marina. It’s right off the highway that runs down the Florida Keys, with sand flats and mangrove shoots and gnarled rocky banks just a few yards off the side. At some points it looks like a strong high tide might just flood the road. Videos of salmon crossing flooded roads in Alaska come to mind, except now they’re bonefish, or maybe tarpon or mangrove snapper. The lack of sleep must be getting to you, and you shake your head slightly to re-focus your mind. You shut off the GPS on your phone as you pull into the gravel parking lot and find a spot in the shade of the small white shack that offers food, beer, live bait, and all kinds of smells foreign to your midwestern nose. You shove the wrapper from your breakfast into a rental car cup holder, and step out into the warmth. Your brain, used to the dull winter sights and sounds at this point of the year, feasts itself on the surroundings for a moment. The bright green mangroves, the palms rustling in the steady wind, the sound of a boat bumping against a dock.
This is why you are here.
You scan the dock as you grab your stuff from the trunk. Not much going on, but you see someone rustling around in a skiff behind some equipment, so you shuffle over. Are you the guy I’m looking for? Sometimes they’re old and crusty and wise looking, even sage-like. Sometimes they’re young, strapping, and serious looking. This guy is somewhere in between, but seems friendly enough. “As long as he can get me on some fish” you think. You talk briefly about the conditions, and he probes, trying to gauge your experience and get a feeling as to how much he’ll have to spoon feed you. You know the drill though, and without being too cocky, you’re moderately confident that with access to a boat and some local wisdom, you can make something happen.
10 minutes later you’re bouncing across a flat, clothes wrapped tight around your frame in the wind, hoping you don’t lose teeth as your bottom gets repeatedly slammed against the seat. A couple hundred yards or so to the right is an island, and you spot a small park as you zoom by. To the left, nothing but open sea. After a seemingly long ride, the guide cuts the throttle down to idle, then nothing. You feel relieved to not be in the high winds anymore, and can more thoroughly absorb your surroundings. The entire area seems to be waiting expectantly. It feels fishy. That means something, right? You stand up, quickly having to get used to the rock of the boat.
This is why you are here.
The guide grabs your rod from the storage spot on the side of the boat, and begins to rig it up to his liking. You pay close attention like an attentive student. “You’re gonna need to replace this line soon, the core is exposed at the loop” he says. You know, and you mention that you’re planning to replace it soon. He ties on a generic looking tan pattern. It could be a crab or a shrimp, you just hope it looks like breakfast to a hungry bonefish.
Soon you’re hunting. And that’s what it is out here on the flats. The guide poles along, you get used to the steady push provided by his effort. You know that at any moment, he might call out a fish. You remind yourself that 12 o’clock means straight ahead, 3 means right, and 9 means left. Once while out for redfish, you got so flustered after missing easy shots that you started looking the wrong way as the guide called out new opportunities for humiliation. You shudder at the thought, and refocus your mind on scanning the water. Speaking of, it is clear today, and about 3 or 4 feet deep on the flat you’re fishing. The bottom is split between large deserts of sandy bottom, and dark jungles of turtle grass. You hope that your bonefish comes on the sandy part, cause you can’t see jack in that grass. “There’s one, one o’clock, 40 feet moving right to left” comes the call out. You look (straight and a little right) and sure enough, a small dark shape is moving across the sand, coming slowly toward you. Your entire world shrinks down to this one moment.
This is why you are here.
You feel yourself going through the motions of casting, but your brain is in the water with the fish, willing him to eat as hard as you can. Strip, strip, strip, the fish is on it, following close behind. You keep stripping quickly in short bursts, trying to channel all your being into emulating a panicky crab on the end of your line. It’s right at the boat now, and the fish suddenly darts forward and turns, within a moment he is 30, now 40 feet out. Your finger burns, a new mark you will quietly admire later is scorched into you as the fish sears across the flat. The feeling of being attached to such a quickly moving creature cannot be described. Once you feel like you have a good shot at landing him, you break into the biggest smile you can remember ”…living as never before” is a line you recall from a Thomas McGuane chapter, and that seems about right. After several impressive runs, the fish is in the net, your first bonefish. You hold him up for a quick picture, feel his surprising weight and admire the dark banding on his back that makes them so hard to spot. In a moment held under the water the fish kicks off, disappearing almost immediately into a patch of grass. All is right with the world.
This is why you are here.

Periodically, I need to charge a 100AH lithium battery I use with a trolling motor. I have an AC charger for it.
Currently I use 2x100W panels to charge my 200AH AGM house batteries. I run a fridge on this.
I can think of three ways to charge the trolling battery:

1. DC to DC charge. I could get a DC to DC charger and go from th house bank to the lithium. The slowest charger I can find charges at 20amps which seems a bit much for my house bank. Periodically I have loads of about 7 Amps on my house batteries and adding another 20 amps seems excessive.
2. Use an inverter. I continue to charge the house bank with solar and then plug the inverter into the house bank and charge the spare battery off the inverter. I'm concerned this will be wasteful. How much energy do I lose going through the inverter? The charger draws about 8 amps at 12V.
3. Periodically unplug the house bank and plug the solar into the lithium battery. This might be more efficient than option 2.

Too late we were already invaded... Earth has already been hijacked.
😉We need to be liberated from this slave planet and from our captors... Unfortunately most of the inhabitants of this planet is suffering from cognitive dissonance and Stockholm syndrome.
The Moon is a Draco Reptilian Space Station...
Ask yourself why is there 34 Dragon statues that surround the City of London. Why is there also a Obelisk in every city on the planet. It's the phallus of the Dragon, the actual word is derived from Basilisk. Which means King of the Serpents. In the Vatican they have St. Peters Basilica where there are three Dragon statues and Obelisks.
Why did every ancient culture in antiquity worship the dragon?
The pharaohs of Egypt were the refugees of Atlantis!
ALIEN ARCHONS HAVE BEEN RULING THE SURFACE OF PLANET SINCE BEFORE THE "BUY BULL" The IllumiNazis are but a predecessor of an older and even more cruel order. They've been running this planet since the dawn of time...Dragons aren't some mythological being...The Draco Reptilians came from the Alpha Draconis star system out of the Draco Constellation... They were know as the Atlanteans, Satan, Baphomet, Archons, Draconian's, in the bible they were known as the Seraphim, the Burning Ones/Serpents also the Nephilim or Elohim, the fallen angels, those who were casted out from the heavens. Both words are plural and feminine, meaning there were many gods and were androgynous. The Sumerians knew them as the Anunnaki... Anakim in Hebrew means giant...Because they are very tall 7ft-15ft and have shapeshifting abilities. In the Indian culture they were known as the Naga. Dracula in Latin means Dragon, The Order of the Dracul able to shift physically into other creatures or into the aether via the quantum field.
Earth is a farm we are all cattle and humanity lives in a contrived reality!
Freemasons are the minions of the Draco Reptilian Empire!
The Mayans called them Quezatcoatl, and Kukulcan the Feathered Serpent King and incorporated their images of dragons in their pyramids ... There are dragon statues all over the world, throughout the ages... The coat of arms for the city of London is two Dragons holding a red shield, which in German is Rothschild. There are 33 Dragon statues in the City of London to quell consciousness. The slaying of a Dragon by St. George. The Muslims knew them as Dajjal or Djinn or Genies... After your three wishes your soul is theirs to keep... They were also known to the Buddhist monks as the Brotherhood of Two dragons... The Red Dragons in the east and the Yellow in the west... Same goes for the native American Indians all the Aboriginals knew them as the Brotherhood of the Snake... The Egyptian knew them as Horus, Anubis and Amen Ra.... That's why every religion says amen after every prayer cause they are paying homage to Satan Baphomet/ Draco Reptoids... Santa Claus is actually Satan's Claws both wearing red, both come from the fire, both have minions working feverishly. All religions and holidays are based on satanic doctrines and pagan dogmas. And if you don't believe me than you're being quite draconian about it.
Basilisk in Latin means King of the Serpents, as in St Peters Basilica where there lies two Dragon Statues in the Vatican as well as Obelisks, the phallus of the Dragon that is why there is at least few obelisks in every city on the planet the Freemasons put them there throughout history in order to control consciousness...The Chinese, Japanese, India, Indonesians, Mayans, Aztecs, Incas all worship the Dragon in antiquity... There are Gargoyles adorn every church and cathedral.... The Egregores the Watchers... The biggest trick the D-Evil can play is making humanity believe that he does not exist :/
Hollow Earth True HISTORY , HITLER & NWO ( GOTTA SEE THIS !!! ) Documentary https://youtu.be/lOXjxq3r69Q
There are over 10 thousand pyramids that align with each other on a global grid system with gps accuracy to the millimetre. In the Aegean Sea there are 13 ancient Megalithic sites that represent the 13 Illuminati Families that control the world, that when you connect them dot to dot, over 1000km area makes a perfect Maltese Cross. This is the symbol of the Monarchy, Freemasonry, Vatican, Jesuits, Knights of Malta and Templars, even Hitler's Germany. Megalithic architecture on geomantic energy sites, in conjunction with an occult esoteric satanic Freemasonry religion of Kabbhalism, aka the Lucifer experiment in order to control humanities consciousness and why there is an obelisk in every major city on the planet... The pyramids also create dimensional portals into Agartha/Hollow Earth, hence disappearance of boats, planes in the Bermuda Triangle and Dragon's Triangle...
http://chani.invisionzone.com/uploads/monthly_08_2013/post-248-0-56239100-1376895880.jpg.
Dragons see humanity as a resource for the simple fact that they are not vegetarians! 1 million people disappear in the United States every single year. 8 million children globally disappear annually off the globe.
The Legend Of Atlantis https://youtu.be/pihxOs-pVRA
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lOXjxq3r69Q&t=4s Hollow Earth True HISTORY , HITLER & NWO ( GOTTA SEE THIS !!! ) Documentary - YouTube
Secrets Of The 3rd Reich Secret Nazi Research in Alien Technology https://youtu.be/B0uEvZsQAV8

Hello fellow audiophiles and normal people who like headphones!
Just to quickly introduce myself, I am a lover of older Nintendo games, hobbyist photographer, super tacticool airsofter, guitarist, and now, upcoming audiophile.
My previous headphones were a pair of Hyper X (unknown model) and Sennheiser Momentum 4s...and that's about it. But I now want something more.
Hope you guys are cool with my credentials and background. Anyways!
I got a question that I have been grappling with for the past few weeks, and decided to turn to like minded individuals like you to help out myself, but also others in the same boat as I am.
So, what would be the overall the most pleasing sounding open back headphones at $1500 to $2500? I personally am looking for a hp that has:

• Bass: Has warm but not ear flapping and super thumpy bass
• Mids: Maybe forward mids, but not sure if that is an priority, don't have enough listening experience
• Treble: Nicely defined and clear highs, but not to bright or analytical, more nicely smoothed out
• Stage/Imaging: Wide soundstage with good layering and and accurate imaging with clear, but not ear piercing detail (like the HD800S)

Overall, warm neutral.
(I know this is a big price gap but that is because I am comparing two ZMF headphones that are very similar.)
As mentioned from the title, I primarily listen to Jazz, Classical/Orchestral, and ironically Lo-fi. I think both jazz and classical/orchestral would benefit from a wider soundstage, accurate imaging, and high detail. Lofi would benefit from thumpier bass. But my focus would be more on Jazz/Orchestral.
So with that said, I thought the overall best hp option(s) that has those overall sound characteristics would be the ZMF Atrium, ZMF Auteur Classic, and the Rosson Audio RAD-0 (limited sound stage?).
But, it seems like a lot of people mention that the Auteur Classic is like a Atrium Jr, with more limited soundstage and less bass(?). Thus, the seemingly larger soundstage on the Atrium does attract me, but I don't know if that is worth it for SO much more, especially if there is a minimal difference.
Besides for that, what Amp/Dac combo would be ideal for any of these two headphones under $400 if these two headphones ARE for me?
So I would like to hear what your guys opinions are on these two hp's, especially if you own both, and what you think in general would be the best sound signature and characteristics/ other hp for Jazz, Classical, and even lo-fi.
I would appreciate any advice regarding this and hope this helps anybody in the same boat as I am in the future months or even years.
Thank you!

We had been checking weather reports tirelessly for two weeks, until we finally found our spot. The following week should be nothing but sun and smooth winds, so we tentatively decided that to be our slot. Our small crew consisted of me and my friends Josie and Frank. Josie’s dad owned the boat (and he still needed to sign off on our plan), so we had to reserve it ahead of time, and make sure that we got it back in pristine condition, on the dot, and preferably with a nice coating of wax or whatever they use to make boats shine like candied apples.
Monday arrived and the weather was still solid, and Josie’s dad had reluctantly signed off on our plan, so we decided not to wait any longer and take it out the next day. The idea was to have a two day mini-cruise; just us hanging out on the boat and maybe docking it for the night at a nearby town. Although Josie’s dad was a hardass, he had taught her how to drive and maintain the boat since she was a kid, so really, the worst thing that could happen is that we wouldn’t have enough snacks.
Me and Frank met at the parking lot, and saw Josie standing on the boat at the end of the dock. Her dad was with her, lecturing her about some winch or other, Josie rolling her eyes next to him, barely maintaining her attention.
“He really can’t leave her alone even for a couple days, can he?” Frank asked, keeping his voice low as we stepped on the long dock.
“Josie or the boat?”
Frank chuckled, then quickly returned his resting poker face as we reached the boat, Josie’s dad turning around as he heard the planks creaking under our feet.
Before he could say anything, Josie ran up from behind him and said “Hi boys! You brought the food and snacks and the five gallons of vodka, I assume?”
“Aye aye, Captain!” we replied in unison. It was Josie’s dad’s turn to roll his eyes.
“Well, I’ll leave you to it,” he said to Josie, starting to walk down the small ramp down to the dock. “And remember, two days, no more. I expect you to bring her back in one piece.”
“Sure thing, dad!” That was Josie’s way of saying yes, yes, yes, I get it already.
Josie’s dad gave us a stern look followed by a slight nod as he walked past us. He never really liked me or Franki, a bunch of hooligans, as he’d once called us when we were kids. For the record, me and Franki didn’t like the guy either, so at least the feeling was mutual.
After her dad was out of earshot, Josie yelled “Are you ready kids?!” putting on her damndest pirate voice.
“Aye Aye Cap-TAIN!” we screamed and sprinted up the ramp and into the boat.
After an exchange of hugs we unloaded our groceries into the mini-fridge below deck, then met up with Josie, who was already sitting inside the helm. “Ready to leave, crew?” she asked. “Let’s rock this boat,” Frank replied. The amount of bad jokes this early in the morning was surely a great indication for what the rest of the day held.
It wasn’t long until the shore behind us was gone, the tranquil open sea spreading out in all directions. Josie seemed to know where we were going, but at that point I could no longer discern what direction we had even come from.
Me and Frank sunbathed and joked around on the deck until Josie emerged from her cocoon-like cockpit. “Sorry to interrupt your hi-LARIOUS hijinks, but I’d propose we have some lunch soon.”
Like destiny, the word lunch produced a unified grumble from both me and Frank’s stomachs - the universal horn of yes please, food please, now please.
“We can stay here for a while, then we could start heading towards the town,” Josie said.
Feeling bad that she was doing all the heavy lifting, I asked her “You need any help? It’s your boat, and us your honored guests, so don’t be afraid to command us, cap’n!”
“Please,” Josie replied, “when I get a chance to drive this boat, I take it. Dad’s been hogging it like crazy all summer. Besides, it’s not like you guys even know what half of the things on this boat are called, let alone what they’re used for.”
“Well, that’s the driver’s seat,” Frank said, pointing at the helm.
“That’s called a helm, my dear. Frank - you just earned yourself the honorary job of heating up our lunch.”
“This ain’t no Ford Prius, I see,” he replied as he got up and started to take lazy strides towards below deck.
“Toyota,” I said.
“What?”
“Prius is Toyota. Not Ford. Come one, let’s go make lunch for the captain.” I got up to follow Frank, nodding approvingly to Josie.
We had cheap microwave meals for lunch, seeing as the boat didn’t have a stovetop or an oven. For some reason - maybe it was the soothing sounds of the ocean lazily slapping the boat, or the warm afternoon sun - the food defied its low expectations and tasted great.
Afterwards we had a little siesta where I almost fell asleep until Josie said “Shall I take course towards the town, then?”
Through a straw hat laid across his face, Frank mumbled “Aye aye.”
“You sure you don’t need any help?” I asked Josie once again, but she was already jumping into the helm, excited to get back at it. “You guys just take a chill, I’ll get us where we need to.”
As the motor’s soothing hum returned, I got myself a bag of chips and sat on the deck, watching the horizon. Frank still had the hat on his face, which either meant that he didn’t want to be bothered, or that he’d fallen asleep. Either way, I was happy to just sit under the sun as the boat slowly rolled towards our destination, cutting a line into the flaccid water behind us.
“Shit, Shit SHIT!” Josie screamed. I must’ve fallen asleep, and as I got up the half eaten bag of chips crushed under my foot.
“What, Josie? What’s wrong?”
“What’s going on?” Frank parroted as he stood up, the hat falling beside him.
“There’s a fucking storm coming,” Josie said as she frantically pressed buttons, her eyes darting across the dashboard of the helm.
I turned around and looked at the horizon. Dread filled me as I saw an infinitely wide wall of dark clouds spread across the sky, making contact with the water in a misty gray curtain. I noticed that the ocean was no longer level, for it was rippled with small waves that thumped the sides of the boat in eager anticipation.
“I thought it was supposed to be nothing but clear skies,” Frank said. He’d walked beside me, taking in the horror beyond the horizon.
“Ex-fucking-actly, Sherlock. It came out of fucking nowhere,” Josie snapped, holding the wheel tightly in her right hand as she fiddled something with her left.
“Okay, Josie, I know this might sound stupid, but bear with. Why are we going towards the storm?” I asked, trying to not seem disingenuous as I turned around to face her.
She gave a sigh, stopping what she was doing and looked me in the eyes. “That’s where the town is. It’s the closest place to dock right now, and the storm’s moving faster than any I’ve ever seen. If we go back it’ll catch up to us and we’re fucked. If we go through it, we’ll spend the least amount of time inside it, giving us at least a chance.”
“A chance at what?” Frankie asked.
“A chance at getting out of here.”
“Any port in a storm, I guess,” I said, trying to lighten the mood, to which Frank gave me a concerned look.
The air had turned cool, so I went and changed to warmer clothing, Frank doing the same. Coming back up to the deck, I saw that the storm had moved closer. A lot closer. Josie instructed us to put on life jackets and to stay below deck, not to come out unless she asked us to. We put on the puffy orange jackets and promptly hunkered down below deck. The increasing waves were already rocking the boat uneasily.
“Are we gonna die?” Frank asked, his voice whimpering as he looked up at me from the opposite bench.
Although the question had already burrowed itself into my mind as well, I replied “No, NO, man, we’re not gonna die. Like Josie said, it’s just a quick ride through and then we’re back on dry land,” hoping that my words held even a sliver of truth.
In a matter of minutes, the sky turned dark and the boat started jumping on waves, like a rollercoaster rapidly going up and down and up and down. The rain tore into the boat like a machine gun as thunder sounded from across the way, lightning flashing the sky white erratically. Frank’s lunch quickly escaped his stomach, coming out in an arc of brownish green vomit that splattered across my legs and the floor. I was too scared to care, and he was too frightened to apologize.
The storm kept getting worse, the waves becoming larger as evidenced by the deeper dives and longer ascensions. Water was constantly slamming the deck, some of it trickling down to our feet. Through the two small windows the cabin had, it was near impossible to know whether we were on top of the water or under it, or which way was up or down. Although the storm was loud, I could still hear Josie cursing and screaming as she battled the waves and tried to keep us afloat, which was the only indication that she hadn’t been swallowed into the depths below. Frank was sweating bullets, his face a pale white. I wasn’t doing much better either, the words it’s gonna be ok it’s gonna be ok repeating in my mind.
Slowly the storm started to ease up, the waves thinning out and the rain becoming only a slight patter. Neither Frank or me said anything, though, not wanting to jinx it before we were safely back on land. Soon, the boat’s rocking lessened severely, and I could see sunshine coming through the windows.
“Hey guys, you okay? You can come up now,” Josie yelled, her inflection hesitant but calm.
Frankie apologized for the vomit as we got up and made our way up the steps. Josie was standing at the front of the deck, tumbling through her soaking wet hair with her fingers.
“Ho-lee shit, did we just survive the fucking apocalypse?” Frank asked rhetorically, his eyes darting between me and Josie.
“Josie! You okay?” I asked.
“Yeah, yeah… I’m fine,” she replied, waving her hand like nothing abnormal had happened at all.
I walked up next to her and said “We got through it, didn’t we? Now just let’s get ourselves back on land, eh?”
“Yeah, well, that’s the problem.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, look,” she said, holding her hand out at the pale horizon, like she was presenting it on an invisible platter. “Where’s the town?”
“What do you mean where’s the town? We got through the storm, so shouldn’t we be able to get through to it now?”
“That’s the thing. It should be right in front of us.”
“Where’s the storm?” Frankie yelled from the back of the boat.
“What do you mean ‘where’s the storm?’ We just went through it” Josie yelled in annoyance, still peering at the horizon.
“For fuck’s sake, come here,” Frank replied.
Josie looked at me and rolled her eyes, then started walking towards Frank as she gave a long sigh. I followed tepidly behind her.
As we reached the back of the boat, I realized what Frank had meant. There was no storm, nor clouds, or even residual waves. “What the fuck,” I exclaimed under my breath, right as Josie started sprinting around the boat, looking in all directions, her head swiveling in frantic motions, her hair throwing beads of water around like a dog drying up after a swim. A minute later she joined us, panting, and said “It’s all just water. There’s nothing on any side. We’re in the middle of the fucking ocean, the storm’s gone, there’s nothing.”
“Shit, shit, shit…” Frank muttered as he started to tap his foot on the deck, holding himself in a tight hug as he shivered in his wet clothes.
I turned to Josie. “Well we shouldn’t be far off from something, right? It’s still day, and even with the storm we couldn’t have gone too far.”
I could see that Josie was tired. She looked like she had aged about ten years in the last twenty minutes. “Okay, okay, you’re right. Let me just check some things and figure out where to go.”
Josie left for the helm, leaving me and Frank to stare in silent horror at the lazy, blue ocean that seemed to stretch infinitely in all directions.
After a long minute Josie called to us “Guys… you better come check this out.”
She was staring intensely at the dashboard of the helm as we arrived.
“Okay, so good and bad news. Which first?”
“Good, please.” Frank replied, recovered from the worst of the shivers.
“Okay, so the good news is, uhh,” she began, still fiddling with controls as if to double check her suspicions “the boat seems to be in running condition. There’s no damage to anything that would prevent us from going forward.”
“So what’s the problem then?” I asked.
“Check your phones.”
“What?” me and Frank said in unison.
“Check if you have a signal, internet, anything.”
“Shit,” Frank said. “Yeah, mine too,” I replied as I looked at my phone and saw that there was absolutely no signal or internet.
“Yeah, I don’t have a signal either - just had to check. And it doesn’t stop there,” Josie said, “compasses, readings, all of that - it’s shot. I can’t navigate us anywhere, and I have no idea where we are.”
Frank started to freak out and walked towards the front of the boat, his wet shoes squishing as he stomped angrily. “Fuck, fuck, FUCK. What the fuck do we do?”
“Well, as I said, we can still move. The only question is where. I have a faint idea of where the sun was when we first headed out, and I suggest we try to mimic its movement back to the dock,” Josie said to me while keeping her eye on Frank.
Frank was now squatting on the deck, his hands gripping his neck as he stared down at his feet.
“That sounds smart. Then if we see the storm again, we can recalibrate. We should probably be hitting land at some point, right?” I said to Josie.
“That’s my logic, at least.”
“You with us Frank?” I asked, turning to him.
“Yeah, yeah. I guess that sounds smart,” he replied in a solemn voice under his breath.
“Need any help?” I asked Josie.
“Take care of Frank,” she said quietly. “The best thing we can do is stay calm.”
Josie revved up the engine and turned the boat around carefully as she mapped out our approximate direction, and then we left towards a horizon that was no different from the others, guided only by the sun’s approximate movements.
As Josie manned the wheel, me and Frank cleaned up below deck and dried our clothes. As we were finishing up, he said he’d stay below deck, as he needed some time to think.
Looking at the sun, the day was slowly turning to evening. It was summer, so we still had daylight for a few more hours. I went up to Josie to see how she was doing.
“Frank’s below. Said he needed some time to think. I don’t blame him - this is indeed a bit fucked up, isn’t it?”
“Logically, we should hit land at some point,” she replied, her eyes fixed on the horizon, her presence distant.
“How are you doing, Josie? You just pulled us through hell. I know you don’t need help with the boat, but I’m just saying -- I’m here if you wanna talk.”
Josie sighed and turned to me. “Thanks. I think right now what I need is to get us safely back home. Once we’re back you can buy me a beer and then we can talk.”
I nodded, and then turned my head to look at the horizon. Noticing something in the distance, I said “Josie, uhh, what’s that?”
She turned her head back to survey the ocean.
In the distance there were small, dark peaks rising from the ocean, like the tips of underwater mountains rising above the water. They’d appeared seemingly out of nowhere.
“I -- I don’t know. But I think we’re gonna see soon enough.”
I stayed with Josie as we approached the peaks. As we got closer, it was obvious that there was no land between them. Instead, they shot up from the water in thick spirals that tapered off the higher they reached. As we got closer we could finally realize their true size. Although some were smaller than others, most were the equivalent of tall office buildings, some reaching even higher. They spiraled and twisted in the air, arcing like blades of grass in the wind, and it seemed like they could fall down at any moment, but they did not move or shake in the slightest. There must have been twenty or so, and they all looked similar despite their differences in size; dark, mostly smooth yet also scratched, like charred meat on a grill.
“You have any idea what these are? They look like… trees or something, except they don’t have leaves or branches,” I said to Josie.
“Never seen anything like it. Must be some rock formations or something. Maybe there’s an underwater volcano that bursted lava out and it solidified -- I really don’t know. But those should only happen deeper in the ocean, far away from land.”
I heard Frank coming up the stairs. He looked better than he had before, his step lighter. Although I’d been afraid he’d been brooding, I guess having some time to think really did help.
As he saw the spiraling towers, his face turned into a twisted and confused half-frown as he said “What the fuck are those?”
“We don’t know,” I replied, “but it’s the only thing we’ve seen so far.”
Soon the closest spiral towered just a mere two hundred yards away, its wide shade casting upon the boat. From a distance it had been hard to decipher the dark structures, but upon closer inspection, it was clear that their anatomy was… abnormal. Stretches of surface material were mostly smooth, but all of the spirals seemed to have slight craters that were formed above the rest of the exterior. It looked like they had been bombarded by meteors of differing sizes, although even if this had been the case, how had they not been immediately broken, I do not know. They were beyond any logic I could muster.
“So, anyone know what we’re looking at?” Josie askied, surprising both me and Frank - she was usually the one to know things, us just tagging along for the ride.
“No clue, captain,” replied Frank as he stared upwards in dismay at the towering spiral.
“Still no,” I said.
Suddenly the boat’s end shot up, followed by the front, ascending us a good ten yards in mere seconds. Frank and I were knocked down on the deck, but Josie managed to hold onto the walls surrounding the helm. The boat kept rocking as waves hit us from behind. I slowly stood up with my knees bent for support, and went to help out Frank who was still laying on the deck, his eyes wide in panic.
Once I’d gotten Frank up, Josie had already managed to make her way to the back of the boat. We held onto the railings along the boat’s edge and walked as fast as we could through the oceanic turbulence to catch up with her. Once I saw what had produced those waves, I wanted to get back to land more than I ever had before.
In the distance tens more of the spirals had emerged from the ocean, some even larger than the ones we’d seen. They dripped with water, and some were covered in green algae. Somehow they’d been quiet, merely disturbing the water as they’d shot up.
“We need to move! One of those things could shoot up under the boat and sink the whole fucking thing!” Josie screamed, running back inside the helm as the waves slowly calmed down and became smaller. I leaned on the railing to see if there was something underneath us - not that there was much I could do, even if I saw a gigantic spiral shooting up from the depths.
The water beneath the surface was unmoving, holding an abyssal darkness. It seemed as if the light penetrated less than it had before, and what was deep below was nothing but pitch black shadowlands.
Just as I was about to disembark and head towards Josie, something moved in the water. I craned my neck farther over the railing to get a better look. It looked like two large masses were separating from each other, unearthing a ravine.
Josie had gotten the boat moving, and we were starting to turn towards an opening between two of the spirals. As the boat circled, I got a better view of what lay below. The ravine widened, and inside it I could see a dark, whitish yellow mass peeking through. As Josie cranked us up to speed the yellow mass had opened up into a large, oval shape that seemed to span across the ocean floor. Its center held a deep, dark circle that sucked in light as if it were a black hole, twisting all things inside of it.
Then it closed up. I sighed in relief, hoping that no more spirals would emerge.
Suddenly it opened up again in a furious motion, wider than before, into a perfect circle. Then it hit me - it was an eye, larger than anything I could think of. Although we were moving at full speed, it was so gargantuan that we weren’t making any headway.
It had blinked.
“Josie? Frank?” I screamed as I turned around and saw Frank on the opposite railing looking down at the water, witnessing the same thing I was seeing.
Frank turned to me, his face a washed white, and his mouth slightly agape. “They’re tentacles. They’re fucking tentacles, look!” he pointed at one of the bigger spirals. “They have fucking suction cups and all! Shit, SHIT!”
As if on cue, the tentacles started to return to the water, splashing as they did so, producing strong currents in the water. The boat was immediately caught up in the chaos, going up and around huge waves and being dragged by the water’s shifting volume. Frank sprang below deck, and I followed him. From the small round windows I could see one of the gargantuan tentacles dropping back into the water, the boat just barely missing its tip and almost sunk by the shifting ocean.
Josie ran inside with us and exclaimed “The storm is back! It’s fucking back! I can’t maneuver the boat worth shit!”
As she closed the door behind her, we were flung to the side, my ribs hitting one of the cabinets, producing a painful crack. I could hear the rain start to scratch at the boat, and soon we were engulfed in darkness, the rain gunning down on us through the waves. The boat rocked and swayed worse than it had before, and at some points I was sure we’d gone under, buried into the deep sea, never to see the sun again. We held on to whatever we could as water trickled through the sealed door and started pooling up on the floor.
Slowly, but steadily, the storm started to pass, the boat regaining its level status along the water. The darkness outside faded into a dark red. Once it was possible to stand with relative ease, we emerged from the cabin and walked up to the deck.
“Everyone okay?” Josie asked.
“I think I’m gonna --,” Frank replied, and promptly ran to grab the edge of the railing and vomited yellow bile into the water, his stomach empty of food from before.
“My ribs got a beating, but I don’t think anything’s broken, “ I said. “What about you?”
“I’m fine. Just some bruises. Look,” Josie said, walking to the other side of the boat.
On the horizon, we saw the evening sun illuminating a crimson glow behind a small town some 500 yards away.
“Frank?” Josie called out.
“Yeah?” he replied through thick phlegm that sounded like it was stuck to his throat and running down his nostrils.
“We made it.”
We docked at the unfamiliar town and found a small hotel - probably the only one there - just a quick walking distance away. Once we got our phones dried off, Josie’s seemed to be the only one that still worked. As she looked up our location she nearly dropped the phone on the ground.
“I -- I don’t know how, but we’re quite far from home,” she said, her voice produced in quick breaths.
“How far?” Frank asked.
“Some 480 miles away.”
We checked and double checked her phone, but she was right: somehow we’d ended up nearly 500 miles down the coast into a small fishing town.
We were so tired that we decided to get some sleep before giving the bad news to Josie’s dad. The next morning Josie called him up and explained the situation, giving him the simple version: a storm had hit us, and after we got out we’d arrived here. I could hear the screams he gave her through the phone - apparently he was sure we’d driven the boat all the way to this ghost town in the middle of nowhere and docked it here, just to spite him. Josie didn’t respond to him much, only apologizing and telling him to come pick us up.
A day later he arrived, furious with us - and especially Josie. Once we showed him the boat I thought he was going to burst into a thousand tiny pieces, for I’d never seen a man so angry before. Although I think he overreacted, it was true that the boat was in shambles. There was water damage throughout the interiors, most of the equipment was shot, and large scratches were present along the exterior’s white paint.
Josie begged him not to drive the boat back home, but he insisted, not hearing a word her daughter was saying. We drove his car and arrived home that night.
As promised, me and Josie went out for a beer a few weeks later after her dad had settled down enough to let her out of the house. We went through the events of the trip in great detail, confirming to each other that it really did happen - although we disagreed on one thing.
Josie still thought that the spirals were just magma turned rock, and the whole thing was just extremely bad luck. According to her, we got held up by a superstorm or hurricane that moved our boat on top of an active underwater volcano, and then got hit by that same storm later as it moved across the ocean at miraculous speeds. Her theory was that the storm moved us along with it, making it possible to traverse such tremendous lengths with ease.
But Josie didn’t see what had been underneath us. Her theory was that the ‘eye’ I saw was simply lava cooling down as it emerged from the ocean bed. But she hadn’t seen it blink.
Frank of course seen it as well, but I haven’t heard from him much after the incident. According to his mom, he’s been cooped up in his room, drawing yellow circles on black pages. He’d told her that he needed some time to think.

I've been having some issues with my GPS tracker from Monimoto for my Triumph Bonneville Bobber after a recent crash on a MTO3. I finally recovered enough to ride again and transferred over my GPS to my new bike. It's been having issues connecting and I reached out to the money motor support team through the app.
Learned some interesting information that apparently the US is shutting down it's 3G network that my Monimoto 6 uses. Since I hadn't heard anything about this, I figured I'd post it here so that anybody else at the Monimoto tracker that isn't the newest version knows before something happens and they're not able to track their bike.
The Monimoto team member helping me has been awesome and gave me an amazing offer to upgrade to their new model! Fantastic customer support from the team and if you haven't got one I highly recommend. It's great peace of mind.
TLDR: THE USA IS SHUTTING DOWN ITS 3G NETWORK. MOST MONIMOTO UNITS USE 3G FOR ITS TRACKING .

Image compilation: https://i.imgur.com/Tm4Uuiu.jpeg or https://i.ibb.co/T896nKm/721d5fabfeeb.jpg
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Found a 1973 Columbia Coronado liveaboard sailboat for $3.5k. Called the owners and they said it floats, motor runs but needs a bit of work (new gel coat, new wiring and gps system, needs hot water work and new plumbing system) but the sails are good, there’s running water and the bilge pump works.
I can’t get out there to see it before they need to sell it, and they said they’ve had a lot of interest but I was the first to reach out. Honestly, my budget was $15k even for a fixer upper. Should I pull the trigger on this without seeing it?
My friend is a contractor and will live on it while fixing it up for free if that helps with cost break downs and stuff.

I am About to pull the trigger on an X3. I am intending to use it almost exclusively on my bass boat. I am thinking of getting the motorcycle kit as I think I can make that mount work on the boat. What accessories do you all suggest that I should be looking at for my application. I have used GoPros on the boat several times. Water issues are not a big concern, meaning I don’t see a need for a dive case unless it is highly recommended.
Thanks!

We have arrived here at the non-English language tournament, FG. This will be a long tournament, as we had nearly 300 movies nominated from all over the world (though as to be expected from the history of cinema the most nominated countries were France, Italy, and Japan), so this will take us over the next few months. As always, the polls will last for one day, so get your votes in and come back tomorrow for the results and the next battle.
Letterboxd list of all the participating movies: https://boxd.it/lOu1o
Results of Round 1
8 1/2 (1963) - Italy (48) beat Martyrs (2008) - France (26), Elevator to the Gallows (1958) - France (11), and The Aviator’s Wife (1981) - France (5)
The Battle of Algiers (1966) - Italy/Algeria (28) beat 3-Iron (2004) - South Korea (7), Embrace of the Serpent (2015) - Colombia (5), and Massacre Time (Tempo di massacro) (1966) - Italy (2)
The 400 Blows (1959) - France (34) beat Memories of Murder (2003) - South Korea (32), Battleship Potemkin (1925) - Russia (21), and Eyes Without a Face (1960) - France (12)
Metropolis (1927) - Germany (51), beat Fanny and Alexander (1982) - Sweden (32), 5 Centimeters Per Second (2007) - Japan (16), and The Bothersome Man (2006) - Norway
Fantastic Planet (1973) - France (23) beat Minari (2020) - USA (16), A Brighter Summer Day (1991) - Taiwan (14), and The Conformist (1970) - Italy (13)
Mirror (1975) - Russia (21) beat Farewell My Concubine (1993) - China (10), The Cranes Are Flying (1957) - Russia (10), and A City of Sadness (1989) - Taiwan (6)
Fists of Fury (1972) - Hong Kong (21) beat A Man Escaped (1956) - France (15), The Cremator (1969) - Czech Republic (9), and Moolaade (2004) - Senegal (5)
My Neighbour Totoro (1988) - Japan (44) beat A Separation (2011) - Iran (22), Fitzcarraldo (1982) - Germany (20), and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007) - France (12)
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (1984) - Japan (25) beat The Double Life of Véronique (1991) - Poland (22), A Short Film About Love (1988) - Poland (11), and Gangs of Wasseypur (2012) - India (6)
Night and Fog (1956) - France (14) beat A Very Long Engagement (2004) - France (8), The Emigrants (1971) - Sweden (6), and Girlhood (2014) - France (4)
Nosferatu (1922) - Germany (39) beat Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972) - Germany (26), Godzilla (1954) - Japan (24), and The Exterminating Angel (1962) - Mexico (10)
Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht (1979) - Germany (36) beat Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974) - Germany (21), Goodbye Lenin (2003) - Germany (12), and The Foreign Duck, The Native Duck and God in a Coin Locker (2007) - Japan (5)
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2009) - Sweden (17), beat All About My Mother (1999) - Spain (16), Grand Illusion (1937) - France (16), and O-bi, O-ba: The End of Civilization (1985) - Poland (3)
Grave of the Fireflies (1988) - Japan (33) beat Amarcord (1973) - Italy (14), One Cut of the Dead (2017) - Japan (10), and The Green Ray (1986) - France (9)
Amelie (2001) - France (79) beat The Handmaiden (2016) - South Korea (40), Only Yesterday (1991) - Japan (10), and Hamlet (1964) - Russia (6)
Harakiri (1962) - Japan (33) beat The Hidden Fortress (1958) - Japan (22), Amour (2012) - Austria (12), and Ordet (1955) - Denmark (10)
Andrei Rublev (1966) - Russia (29) beat The Holy Mountain (1973) - Mexico (26), Headhunters (2011) - Norway (10), and Obsession (1943) - Italy (4)
The Host (2006) - South Korea (30) beat Another Round (2020) - Denmark (29), Hedgehog in the Fog (1975) - Russia (7), and Out 1 (1971) - France (7)
High and Low (1963) - Japan (33) beat The Hourglass Sanatorium (1973) - Poland (10), Pale Flower (1964) - Japan (5), and Any Number Can Win (1963) - France (2)
Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) - Mexico (85) beat Apocalypto (2006) - USA (42), Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959) - France (19), and The House is Black (1963) - Iran (5)
Parasite (2019) - South Korea (106) beat Holy Motors (2012) - France (16), The Human Condition I: No Greater Love (1959) - Japan (16), and Army of Crime (2009) - France (1)
Hour of the Wolf (1968) - Sweden (16) beat Army of Shadows (1969) - France (13), The Human Condition III: A Soldier’s Prayer (1961) - Japan (9), and Pastoral: To Die in the Country (1974) - Japan (3)
The Hunt (2012) - Denmark (42) beat I Saw the Devil (2010) - South Korea (25), Ashes and Diamonds (1958) - Poland (9), and Pater Brown – Das schwarze Schaf (1960) - Germany
Ikiru (1952) - Japan (34) beat The Killer (1989) - Hong Kong (25), Au Hasard Balthazar (1966) - France (10), and Pater Brown – Er kann's nicht lassen (1962) - Germany (4)
The Lives of Others (2006) - Germany (42) beat Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987) - France (27), Pauline at the Beach (1983) - France (11), and Il compagno Don Camillo (1965) - Italy (1)
Il Decameron (1971) - Italy (14) beat Pépé le Moko (1937) - France (13), The Man Without a Past (2002) - Finland (11), and Baahubali 2: The Conclusion 2017) - India (10)
Battle Royale (2000) - Japan (76) beat Persona (1966) - Sweden (36), The New Land (1972) - Sweden (7), and Il ritorno di Don Camillo (1953) - Italy (4)
Beauty and the Beast (1946) - France (19) beat Phoenix (2014) - Germany (14), The Platform (2019) - Spain (11), and In a Year with 13 Moons (1978) - Germany (5)
In the Mood for Love (2000) - Hong Kong (42) beat The Raid (2011) - Indonesia (30), Belle de Jour (1967) - France (16), and Pixote (1980) - Brazil (10)
The Red Balloon (1956) - France (23) beat Playtime (1967) - France (22), Inside (2007) - France (12), and Belle Époque (1992) - Spain (10)
Bicycle Thieves (1948) - Italy (39) beat The Rules of the Game (1939) - France (14), Intouchables (2011) - France (6), and Port of Shadows (1938) - France (2)
Ip Man (2008) - Hong Kong (37) beat The Saragossa Manuscript (1965) - Poland (11), Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis (2008) - France (6), and Pratidwandi (a.k.a. The Adversary) (1970) (India) (2)
Princess Mononoke (1997) - Japan (73) beat Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (1983) - India (47), The Sacrifice (1986) - Sweden (17), and Black Girl (1966) - Senegal (13)
The Seventh Seal (1957) - Sweden (53) beat Blue Is the Warmest Color (2013) - France (18), Jauja (2014) - Argentina (6), and Pushpak (1987) - India (3)
Raise the Red Lantern (1991) - China (28) beat The Skin I Live In (2011) - Spain (23), Bob Le Flambeur (1956) - France (14), and Jean de Florette (1986) - France (6)
Ran (1985) - Japan (32) beat Breathless (1960) - France (14), Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975) - Belgium (9), and The Tin Drum (1979) - Germany (2)
Johnny Gaddaar (2007) - India (45) beat Rare Exports - Finland (17), The Turin Horse (2011) - Hungary (15), and Cairo Station (1958) - Egypt (13)
Rashomon (1950) - Japan (37) beat Castle in the Sky (1986) - Japan (23), The Twilight Samurai (2002) - Japan (7), and Joyeux Noël (2005) - France (4)
Raw (2016) - France/Belgium (35) beat Jules and Jim (1962) - France (32), Celine and Julie Go Boating (1974) - France (19), and The Ugly Swans (2006) - Russia (3)
The Virgin Spring (1960) - Sweden (25) beat Red Beard (1965) - Japan (20), Katyn (2007) - Poland (4), and Cemetery of Splendour (2015) - Thailand (3)
Rififi (1955) -France (27) beat Kin-dza-dza (1986) - Russia (8), Children of Heaven (1997) - Iran (6), and The Warped Ones (1960) - Japan (3)
Chungking Express (1994) - Hong Kong (25) beat Three Colors: Blue (1993) - Poland/France (24), Roma (2018) - Mexico (18), and L’avventura (1960) - Italy (17)
Cinema Paradiso (1988) - Italy (23) beat Three Colors: Red (1994) - Poland/France (15), Rome, Open City (1945) - Italy (10), and La Belle Noiseuse (1991) - France (6)
City of God (2002) - Brazil (63) beat La Dolce Vita (1960) - Italy (31), Run Lola Run (1998) - Germany(27), and Three Times (2005) - Taiwan (5)
Throne of Blood (1957) - Japan (42) beat La Femme Nikita (1990) - France (25), Cold War (2018) - Poland (14), and Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962) - India (5)
Come and See (1985) - Russia (50) beat La Haine (1995) - France (27), Through a Glass Darkly (1961) - Sweden (24), and Samurai Rebellion (1967) - Japan
La Jetee (1962) - France (26) beat Cries and Whispers (1972) - Sweden (19), Sansho the Bailiff (1954) - Japan (18), and Time Regained (1999) - France (3)
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) - Taiwan (80) beat La Notte (1961) - Italy (21), Tokyo Godfathers (2003) - Japan (14), and Santa Sangre (1989) - Mexico (13)
Tokyo Story (1953) - Japan (31) beat Satantango (1994) - Hungary (11), La Vie de Bohème (1992) - Finland (5), and Daens (1992) - Belgium (1)
Das Boot (1981) - Germany (47) beat Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India (2001) - India (7), Tokyo Tribe (2014) - Japan (5), and Satya (1998) - India (1)
Scenes from a Marriage (1974) - Sweden (21) beat Day of Wrath (1943) - Denmark (11), Lakshya (2004) - India (6), and Touchez Pas Au Grisbi (1954) - France (4)
Seven Samurai (1954) - Japan (90) beat Train to Busan (2016) - South Korea (51), Death Rides a Horse (1967) - Italy (4), and Landscape in the Mist (1988) - Greece (3)
Sholay (1975) - India (74) disqualified, Troll Hunter (2010) - Norway (36) beat Dekalog (1989) - Poland (33), and L'atalante (1934) - France (17)
Solaris (1972) - Russia (40) beat Delicatessen (1991) - France (22), Late Spring (1949) - Japan (13), and Ugetsu (1953) - Japan (12)
Umberto D. (1952) - Italy (16) beat Le Cercle Rouge (1970) - France (14), Soy Cuba (1964) - Russia (11), and Departures (2008) - Japan (8)
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter…and Spring (2003) - South Korea (19) beat Victoria (2015) - Germany (9), Le Doulos (1962) - France (5), and Der Mann, der Sherlock Holmes war (1937) - Germany (4)
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My friend aka Birk and I aka Ronja have started a new world and we are trying a Follow The Progress Speed Run. Our rules are: lay all the bosses as fast as possible with new characters, but work through the important steps provided by the game. Lay the bosses in the right order.
1st session:
Our starting point is in the middle of the forest and the first thing we do is look for a coast to build our first base. After a short search, we find a nice spot near a black forest that seems convenient. Because we forget the time with building and searching, we have no beds in the first night. Of course, 2 shamans come from the nearby black forest.... Somehow we make it through the night, but the first tombstones mark our map. After that it goes very well and after a few days we can lay the first boss, which causes us less problems than the first troll, which we meet a short time later in the Black Forest. The biggest problem, however, is caused by two 1-star skellets, which whiped us for the first time. With a little more caution, however, we get back to our equipment and can slay the skeletons. At the end of the first session (about 4h real time), I have a copper sword and Birk the first parts of the troll armor. The base is set and has a mout around it. To be continued...
2nd session:
After some more copper and troll farming, I have a 1-time upgraded copper armor and my friend has a complete troll armor. We also now know where the Elder is, though this requires a sea voyage. But before that we have to prepare some food. Since we don't feel like waiting for the carrots, we end up leaving with a single carrot soup. But we could pick up a fish at the shore, which gives us strong food. So with a newly built boat we set off for the Elder. After an uneventful journey, we soon arrive at the boss spawn. There's even swamp nearby... but more on that later. The boss fight was surprisingly easy. I shoot about 40 arrows and my friend dodged without any problems. Ingame we are now at day 10. To be continued...

Recently Łukasz Olkowicz from Przegląd Sportowy made an interview with Łukasz Skorupski. Here's original: https://przegladsportowy.onet.pl/pilka-nozna/reprezentacja-polski/wszystko-wyplynelo-tak-sie-klocilismy-o-premie-ze-nie-gadalismy-z-pewnymi-zawodnikami/ys6v8bj
And here’s translation:
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Łukasz Olkowicz: You know what interests people.
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Lukasz Skorupski: Bonus?
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Bonus. Didn't it occur to you that people would be furious when they found out about it?
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Łukasz Skorupski: We knew. We were talking to each other and we knew they could be fucking furious.
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And that didn't stop you?
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Łukasz Skorupski: It wasn't our idea. The prime minister promised a bonus. In words, nothing on paper.
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But you agreed.
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Łukasz Skorupski: There was a chat between us: We'll get it - nice. We'll not get it? We didn't go crazy about it. You understand? The bonus was too much because it was too big.
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You negotiated part of it yourself. At dinner with the prime minister, you got ten million more.
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Łukasz Skorupski: I was talking about something, but it was for funnies. And the prime minister accepted it. In my opinion, at such tournament, we should not talk about the bonus at all, everything should be settled on paper before the World Cup. There was little we could do. They told us about it just before leaving to Qatar, we were goiing to the airport right away. Normally, we would have arranged this beforehand.
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When did you start talking about the bonus in Qatar?
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Łukasz Skorupski: After promotion from the group. Some things journalists wrote were true, some things not. Arguments started between us, talks with the coach. We've all been so excited in the team, I'll be honest: bonus, bonus, when is the bonus?
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And you know what's best?
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That you didn't get it?
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Łukasz Skorupski: No, that the team had a great atmosphere at the tournament. For example, we would come back from training and sing songs. We laughed that we are like Brazil. Because this Brazil was having fun after each training on drums, and we would come back and sing songs from the 90s, 2000s. We had our loudspeaker in the back, everyone chose, and then the rest picked up. Great stuff. Same music at the gym. It was fucking awesome, really. After the games we went out for dinner, we took care of the atmosphere. We were a good group, we were close. The atmosphere was fantastic and then it all went downhill.
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Money ruined it. You had an argument over the distribution of the bonus.
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Łukasz Skorupski: We are promoted fromt the group and instead of being happy, we suddenly started arguing about this bonus. You'll have so much, others so much. But we were arguing so much that we didn't talk to certain players. And the day before we sang together. The match against France was approaching. "Lewy" says, the team council: "Gentlemen, let's make a deal. We can't think about the bonus, only about the match." We agreed not to talk about this bonus anymore. With all due respect to money, but no one on the team lacks it. Calm came back, we played the game.
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The best in the tournament.
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Łukasz Skorupski: And then the story began in the newspapers.
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Did you follow this?
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Łukasz Skorupski: I read something, but you know more... They promised us an exaggerated bonus, but instead of being happy that we were promoted from the group, they started to shit on us.
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You have exposed yourself. Wouldn't you be better off if you said, "We got lost in this, we lost our heads for a moment"? You said yourself the bonus was exaggerated.
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Łukasz Skorupski: The media live off such information.
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The media mainly shot at Czesław Michniewicz (NT coach) because of the bonus.
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Łukasz Skorupski: I'll tell you that I felt a bit sorry for him. I had a good relationship with him.
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Why didn't you answer?
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Łukasz Skorupski: To whom?
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To journalists. In his defense, if you wanted him to stay.
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Łukasz Skorupski: We have agreed internally that we do not talk about it with the media. I guess "Lewy" later gave an interview about it, right?
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And Grzegorz Krychowiak.
Łukasz Skorupski: Later, when we got along and the match against France was over, we sat down for dinner, drank some wine and everyone got over it.
Has the tension released?
Łukasz Skorupski: We didn't talk about the bonus anymore. A lot of people left immediately after the game. But let me tell you in general - the atmosphere was great. It was beautiful in that respect. Beautifully.
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Have you heard discussions from Poland about the style of the national team's play? That people have doubts?
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Łukasz Skorupski: We sometimes talked among ourselves that the style was average.
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The team was successful, but people turned up their noses. Did you understand the criticism? Objections from fans and journalists?
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Łukasz Skorupski: We understood, but we kept telling ourselves that the result is the most important thing. And the results were good?
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Were.
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Łukasz Skorupski: The game wasn't beautiful, everyone said it was ugly, but it delivered results. Why are you looking at me like that? We advanced from the group? We advanced.
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Did you like this game?
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Łukasz Skorupski: Damn... I don't want to criticize Czesio like that either. The coach sets the tactics. He wanted us to play that way, so we did what he told us.
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Did you believe in this tactic?
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Lukasz Skorupski: What? It woked. We advanced from the group. At the club you play quite differently, more football. On the other hand, I understand Czesio a little. When was he supposed to train it? Like in the World Cup, we played every three days.
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Others played differently.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Fuck, who were we playing with? With Argentina. They are the best players in the world, they set their own tactics.
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And with Mexico?
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Łukasz Skorupski: And what, did Mexico play well with the ball? Better than us?
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You and they played not to lose. There wasn't too much risk.
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Łukasz Skorupski: After all, we wanted to win. If we had scored a penalty, we would have won. What... We played so poorly?
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The match against Mexico was considered the worst at the World Cup. Skorup, teeth hurt.
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Lukasz Skorupski: Really? I do not know what I can say. But what, in total we drew 0-0. Should I criticize the coach now?
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No, just don't get off topic. Tell me how did you react?
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Łukasz Skorupski: We were aware that the fans were attacking us. On the other hand, such a tournament is the biggest in life, you don't want to spoil anything. And you can't go wrong. You understand? One mistake and it's over. You know you can't lose the first game. You play tournaments differently than you play qualifying. We wanted to leave this group, for us it was a success, wasn't it? When was such a success last time?
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36 years ago.
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Łukasz Skorupski: And why is it not talked about at all? There was talk about the bonus and style, and the fact that Poland went to the World Cup and left the group after 36 years and there was silence. Did we play badly against France?
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Well.
Lukasz Skorupski: You see. We lost, but individually we were blown away by players who are the best in the world. Why do you think we played like that in Qatar?
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Because that's what the coach chose. I think he thought the result would cover everything. It did not cover. The first such a long discussion about style has begun in Poland, in which both sides have arguments.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Exactly, everyone has their own opinion. I'm interested in winning matches, points. I'm out for the rest. For me, the most important thing is the result.
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You don't care about style?
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Lukasz Skorupski: No. I don't care when someone says that the national team or Bologna play badly. There are three points? There Are. Thank you. Who will remember in ten years how we played. They will remember our results.
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Or that in the match against Argentina you ran to survive and lose as little as possible.
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Łukasz Skorupski: It was our match for everything. It is known that this Argentina eats us with talent, right? We were there more with such working our assess off, we chose the simpliest football. We were tried to stay in the tournament. We couldn't risk anything. Nothing. That's the truth.
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But then it goes out into the world that one of you ran around asking them not to shoot again.
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Łukasz Skorupski: But is it true?
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You tell me.
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Łukasz Skorupski: I don't know if anyone asked for it. Any Argentinian could say that. Honestly, I haven't heard anything like that.
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You are the goalkeeper. Don't you think outfield players want to have some fun with the ball so it doesn't fly over their heads?
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Lukasz Skorupski: Points. Result. That's the most important thing for me.
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Maybe you don't get tired, but such Piotr Zieliński for sure.
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Lukasz Skorupski: Ha, ha. Well, I think he was struggling in Qatar. He played somewhere on the right or left side. We used "Zielu" wrong, and he has such skills.
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What is the problem?
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Łukasz Skorupski: See how he plays for Napoli. You pass him the ball, he has three players on his back and he won't lose it.
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Why can't this be applied to the national team? Not only with Michniewicz, it was there before.
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Lukasz Skorupski: I don't know. I think the defenders and the goalkeeper also have to play well.
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We don't have players so weak to play so badly.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Well, no, I think the same. It'll be all right.
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With Santos?
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Lukasz Skorupski: I don't know him. I mean I know him as a coach, but I don't know what the style will be.
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He said defense is the most important thing.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Do you know what Allegri was saying? You know what Chiellini and Bonucci were talking about? That the Italian championship is won by those who concede the fewest goals.
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In the national team, you got in touch with Jacek Góralski. You have a similar past.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Maybe he has even worse.
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Downtown. Bydgoszcz.
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Lukasz Skorupski: Oh Jesus. We talked about it. He told me a lot, had a few actions.
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Did you like each other right away?
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Lukasz Skorupski: Right away. "Góral" is direct. Fucking great dude.
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Dude, buddy or friend?
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Lukasz Skorupski: A friend. From the national team he and "Zielu". The best.
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But with Piotr Zieliński, you are fire and water.
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Łukasz Skorupski: We get along. He is also so…
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What?
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Łukasz Skorupski: Not as much of a psycho as me, but a similar mentality.
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What do you mean?
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Łukasz Skorupski: Also such a fox, he had some actions when he was young.
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I've seen his posts on the internet.
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Lukasz Skorupski: Not that. Some fights, no fights. "Zielu" is fucking great. First of all, helpful, if you need something, it's right away. You know, he plays for Napoli, the Champions League and doesn't try to be a star at all.
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In the movie "Transsiberian" one of the characters utters the phrase: "Do not kill my demons, because the angels will die too." What about your demons today?
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Łukasz Skorupski: Sometimes they are… But I hide it well. In Italy they don't even know I'm like that.
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Are you or have you been?
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Lukasz Skorupski: I was. I don't want to go back to that life at all.
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Do you control your demons?
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Lukasz Skorupski: I control. I am 31 years old, I have a child, a wife. I play football professionally, for ten years in Serie A. I earn good money, damn. You know how it is. I can't be stupid anymore.
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Do you think you're securing the future right now? Not only yours.
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Łukasz Skorupski: I'll make a living from it, so I have to make the most of it. I have to. I can't play the clown, risk to go out or something. I'll tell you, I don't even want to anymore. See how cold it is in Bologna today.
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Minus one.
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Łukasz Skorupski: In such weather, when I was 20, I would put on a T-shirt, a leather jacket over it and go to the city.
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Now you're constantly complaining that you're cold.
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Łukasz Skorupski: You don't even want to leave the house. Do you understand how it all changes?
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You said yourself you'd rather invite your friends over to your house than spend the night at a party.
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Łukasz Skorupski: The family is there, the kid is here. Everything worked out well. And I really prefer the way we sat down yesterday - we talked, watched the match, drank a glass of wine. Why the fuck would I go somewhere. Everyone knows each other in Bologna, right.
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I think even if they didn't know you, you wouldn't go out.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Well, I don't want to anymore. I guess it's age, huh?
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I already told you. We are getting older.
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Łukasz Skorupski: When I think about what I did in Górnik… Parties until eight in the morning, and training at nine. The body has changed too. If I did that now, I'd be walking backwards for three days. No discos at all. I will go out with my wife to a restaurant for dinner, sit, talk and go home. Where should I go? Of course, I can afford more during the holidays, then you can make something.
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I like the custom in Italian teams that you and your teammates go out for dinner every week.
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Łukasz Skorupski: They have, We have such a custom in Italy.
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In Empoli you went out on Wednesdays.
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Łukasz Skorupski: And today Stefan Posch was punished for being late for training. We were already training and he came in after ten minutes. The day before we came back late from the match, he couldn't sleep, and in the morning he overslept. The punishment was to buy dinner for everyone. He paid today. It might have cost him a bit.
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At least the team is connecting.
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Lukasz Skorupski: Yes, yes. There's a punishment or something and a supper.
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Did you pay fines in Bologna?
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Łukasz Skorupski: It wasn't a punishment, but after signing a new contract with Bologna, I bought dinner for the whole team. I'm not getting fines now. I'm not late, never happened to me. Sorry, I came too late at Nawałka's (former Polish NT coach and Skorupski's coach in Górnik) once.
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In Górnik or in the national team?
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Łukasz Skorupski: In Górnik. Imagine that we went to a party after practically every game. Once we lost to Polonia Warszawa 0:4. I don't know if you remember this game.
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No.
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Łukasz Skorupski: We lost and I say: "Fuck it, I'm not going anywhere". I didn't go and… I overslept. Dropping in for briefing, man... 10,000 fine from the coach.
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He probably thought about Katowice at night.
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Łukasz Skorupski: I didn't even say anything to him, I didn't explain myself. He wouldn't have believed it anyway. And that's the only time I haven't gone anywhere and I've missed my check-in. Jesus. That's how it stuck in my head that I've been vigilant ever since. Coach Nawałka used to look deep into your eyes. He greeted us, passed his hand and approached within five centimeters. Do you know why?
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Did he want to emphasize his sincerity?
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Łukasz Skorupski: He was getting closer like this, give me your hand, the left one, because my right one hurts. He brought his nose close to your face and sniffed. He knew some people were drinking.
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Ha, ha.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Well, I promise you.
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I was told by the players of Świt Krzeszowice, the first club where Nawałka started as a coach, how he checked them to see if they had drunk anything. During the camps he visited them in their rooms. "What's up gentlemen?" How do you feel? - He was asking. "All right, coach," they replied. - Oh, I found some lint - he picked up a crumb from the carpet and carried it to the bin. He looked for beer caps.
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Lukasz Skorupski: You see. With us, he would look at you and say, "Okay? Are you okay? Are you ready?" He knew that when there was a match, there could also be a party. He is sly. He wanted to introduce professionalism to Górnik. Because in order to achieve something with the team he had, he had to do it.
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If you hadn't met Nawałka, would we be talking in Italy now?
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Lukasz Skorupski: I don't think so. I'm afraid that I would not play in Italy and I would stay in Poland and play in Ekstraklasa. I had talent, but without the discipline and working us to the ground he unleashed in me, I wouldn't have excelled.
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The perfect coach at that moment for someone as defiant as you?
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Łukasz Skorupski: I was tough, I had it in me, because it's family with us. We don't cry, we don't feel sorry for ourselves. Something really serious had to happen to go to the doctor. If you cut something, it's no big deal. For them, it was such a shame to cry at the doctor's office because something hurt. We grit our teeth and say hello. That's my whole family. What, I also did not go to coach Nawałka with such trifles. It was so with him that if there was a foul in training and someone was lying down, he would approach with a clear message: "You get up or it's time to leave training". Really. He was still asking. "What, an ambulance?! An ambulance?! Are we calling an ambulance or are you getting up?" And suddenly everyone got up. "And yet it doesn't hurt," he triumphed.
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Did he end pretending?
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Łukasz Skorupski: Everyone in the team finished. You know, when there was a perfidious tackle, then the coach would get angry and admonish: "Too much." But some kind of slide, a sharp entry, without crying. And man, at one point, no one cried anymore. Everyone got up immediately and developed a character on it. We were fucking going and we rode this rhythm. We walked like soldiers. I really appreciate it. Thiago Motta in Bologna also has such a character. It's like, "Something hurts? Okay, then get off the field." He doesn't care if it's me or someone else. For him, the most important thing is who works in training.
​
Once I talked to the referees, they said that Górnik was the easiest to ref. Because the players did not pretend, they did not argue with the referees. There was a ban from the coach.
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Łukasz Skorupski: The coach threatened that if we get a yellow card for talking, we will be punished immediately. I'll tell you he was right about that. He showed how important details and discipline are. He gave me my debut in Ekstraklasa in Wrocław with Śląsk together with Milik and Olkowski. I owe him a lot, he developed my character, he taught me discipline.
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And hard work in training.
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Łukasz Skorupski: He was famous for working hard.
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Only four workouts a day.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Just so you know that we really at the camps practiced three or four times a day. I remember the camp in Grodzisk Wielkopolski, where we started at six in the morning - oxygen, i.e. running. Honestly? I'll tell you, we complained, complained, and now I appreciate it. I'm in Italy and I'm not at all scared of their work here.
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Thanks to working with Nawałka, was it easier for you to find yourself in Serie A?
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Łukasz Skorupski: The approach I got to know thanks to him in Górnik, I met after coming to Italy. In my opinion, it has been abroad for a long time, but not yet in Poland at that time.
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You said that you and Nawałka keep in touch and write text messages.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Sometimes the coach will talk after the match. At the World Cup, he wrote to me in his style: "Congratulations, we keep fighting." When I defended against the Netherlands or Chile, he texted me that it was a good match.
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You sent back longer responses to show him you'd changed. No "Thank you", but a few lines.
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Łukasz Skorupski: I have to let him know that this is another Łukasz Skorupski. Because you know, I changed with him, I was a bit of a boor. I grew up with Górnik fans, we were all the same in Zaborze.
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Were you rude?
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Łukasz Skorupski: You know that, well... When I met Nawałka in Górnik, man, he also started teaching me such kindnesses. "Thank you, please, why don't you talk like that?" he pointed out. And so to all players, not just me. Thank the lady at the laundry. Thank the lady in the kitchen.
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"Good morning" must be said.
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Łukasz Skorupski: I didn't always say before. I will remember coach Nawałka well. In national team we talk about him a lot.
And what are you talking about?
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Łukasz Skorupski: That "Nawala" was fucking awesome. Everyone knows that we worked hard and everything was arranged like in the army. But man... There was no money in Górnik, but he was able to arrange everything in such a way, to wind up the president of Zabrze that she paid us salaries every month. Because earlier in Górnik they paid once every six months. The coach came and we came to him to help with these payouts. He met with the president and they started paying monthly. We didn't have rarities, but some fruits appeared after training.
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The fields had to be even.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Bartek Spałek, our masseur, I remember that he took creatine, some other supplements, conditioners. Everything was coming in.
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Was it Nawałka who introduced it?
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Lukasz Skorupski: Yes! Earlier, come on, and he introduced such a greater professionalism - breakfasts in the club, dinners in the club. He was trying to put it all together. Although I remember, honestly, that sometimes we complained about it.
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You called him Fidel.
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Łukasz Skorupski: It was like that, we were exercising at the gym. He was looking one way and you did eight reps instead of ten. Right away he would be angry with you: "How much have you done?! Eight! Two more!". I don't know how he saw it, but he didn't miss a thing man, he saw it all. At one point, the team thought, "Well, there's no resisting and there's a ride. We're going this way." We didn't have any outstanding players, and we were standing well in the table, even in sixth place.
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And many got promoted: you, Paweł Olkowski, Arek Milik.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Each of us has gone abroad. It was so that when Nawałka started, I did not believe in such things at all. He brought Remek Rzepka to the club, I think he studied in America. And he introduced what the entire Ekstraklasa is doing now. And yet we are talking about what happened ten years ago in Poland. They were the first to introduce rollovers.
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How did you react?
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Łukasz Skorupski: I did it, but with the thought - what the fuck is this? Shall I roll some muscles? Some rubber, extra work? Give me the ball and the games. And they began to notice that motor skills are improving, that injuries are prevented. In Górnik, everyone had to be at the gym half an hour before training.
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And you are doing it in Bologna now.
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Łukasz Skorupski: It's normal abroad. In Poland, it came with coach Nawałka. You know how it was in Ekstraklasa. Earlier, probably with coach Wieczorek... Although I don't remember. Okay, never mind. I was already playing in the first team, and I would arrive at the club at 10:50. Five minutes to get changed and at 11 I left for training. End of training, bath and departure.
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This would not work for Nawałka.
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Łukasz Skorupski: You had to be in his locker room 45 minutes before training. Let me tell you, I really appreciate it now. The best coach I had in Poland. I always talked when I was playing for Górnik that coach Nawałka should join the national team. He's gonna make all these rules, damn it. And you see - he did some result.
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Quarterfinals of the European Championship.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Damn, well... But let me tell you that at the national team it was a bit different. Lighter.
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At the first team training camp in Grodzisk Wielkopolski there was also a similar drill, only the players told him to let it go.
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Łukasz Skorupski: I wasn't there yet. He was so much more laid back after that. And you can't go like that during training sessions with the national team, because you play two matches a week. You come prepared from the club, you work on tactics without great strength and so on, because the match is coming soon. This is what it looks like in the national team. More could be done when it was EURO, where we had two weeks of preparation. Now at the World Cup, we didn't live in training either. All the time tactics and matches. But, you know, you've been in form because you're coming mid-season.
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I always remember Coach Nawałka well. I don't know how he did it, because there was poverty in Górnik, but at some point we had everything I said - nutrients, some fruit after training. We were paid our salaries every month. We went to Zakopane for the camp. Oh Jesus. We stayed in one of the best hotels. And what the fuck, how much we ran. But let me tell you - I have respect for the fact that he developed such a character for me.
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A lot of coaches could kick you out of the club for "Lorneta and Medusa", where you fought with other customers and trashed the place.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Well fuck, that's why I'm telling you. He gave me a second chance, he did a great job. After it happened, I had a meeting with him at the club. I entered the coach room without knocking. I sat down on the sofa right away, I remember that. The coach looked at me strangely: "What are you doing?! Get up, leave and come back like a normal person." So I went out, this time I knocked. I sat down and told him everything how it was.
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How did he react?
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Łukasz Skorupski: Nice, because he said that he also did stupid things in his youth. It happens to young people, you know you have to go crazy. The most important thing for him was not to do it again. And I didn't repeat it. I didn't play in the first match after this action, but in the next round I was again in the lineup. I had a good season, my best in Ekstraklasa. Because you know, damn, I wanted to repay him a little.
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Well, but he gave up on your brother.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Not him, but club's board.
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Michał was after a serious injury and trained as a guest with the first team of Górnik. He had a chance to stay.
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Lukasz Skorupski: Exactly. He was injured, he did not have a contract with Górnik, but he could train with us. We just did this action in "Lorneta and Meduza" and they thanked him right away.
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As the first.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Earlier there was an idea to offer him a contract. I got a penalty, Olo Kwiek got a penalty, Adam Danch got a penalty.
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How did the 20-year-old, promising player in Ekstraklasa felt arrested?
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Łukasz Skorupski: Four of us were in arrest - me, Adam Danch, Olek Kwiek and my brother. Each in a different cell. And man, what's going on down there? You sit and sleep with a break for food.
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Although good?
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Łukasz Skorupski: A piece of bread and tea in a metal mug. Jesus. The worst days of my life. I promise you. The worst three days of my life! I had everything ruffled, you're lying in the same clothes. Nor bathe, only pee somewhere next to people.
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Who were you sitting with?
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Łukasz Skorupski: With a guy who sold drugs to someone else who died. You understand?
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With a dealer.
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Lukasz Skorupski: Yes. Life is like that. I don't know how in Italy they will read it and ask: what the...? Even though it was ten years ago, write that it was ten years ago.
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You had a black eye then.
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Łukasz Skorupski: We sat in the same clothes and waited for them to take us out. We left after three days. We were pulled out by the late Krzysiu Maj with Bartek Laburda. Before that, there was also a sobering-up room. You go, you strip down to your panties and you sleep like that. Just so you know, because there are some psychos... They take their belts off, everything. You are lying on a mattress on the ground, and the worst thing is that there are twenty people in the room and there is no toilet.
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How did Matilde react to all this when you told her what you were like?
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Łukasz Skorupski: Well, she was in shock. But she also knows that I have changed. Also thanks to her. She appreciates that I was able to leave Zaborze and take care of myself, and you know what a difference it makes.
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Big?
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Łukasz Skorupski: Man, no... Compared to my life in Poland, it's a gulf. She appreciates that I was able to adapt to another. This in Italy. You know how they live here, you've seen it - coffee, cappuccino. Although there is also crime in Italy.
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You, for example, were robbed in Bologna.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Sometimes when I think about it, it still makes me furious. We lived on the ground floor in an apartment with a garden. I was playing at home against Napoli, Matilde left the house half an hour after kick-off. They had to watch her. After the match with my young and "Zielu" we still kicked the ball in the gym at the stadium. Leo knows his uncle, likes him. Everything's fine, we go home, and there's like a bomb went off. Everything is broken, lying on the ground. I felt fucking bad.
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Matylda was in Zaborze?
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Lukasz Skorupski: She was.
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Did she like it?
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Łukasz Skorupski: These were our beginnings, and you know how it is in a relationship - deeply in love, you won't say anything bad. Today, as she recalls that visit, she admits that she was shocked.
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What shocked her the most?
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Łukasz Skorupski: That Silesia is still so gray. And she's from Sardinia. For her, the strangest thing was that every block in Zaborze is the same. Only the number changes. She shook her head: "All the blocks are the same. Only the hospitals are different, and there is no difference." And what, well, I took her to Auschwitz, I remember. She insisted on going there. For Italians, this is a moving story, they take the history of the concentration camps seriously. She wanted to see, so we went. Today, when Matilde is in Poland, we mainly visit my family in the countryside. We will also go there this June.
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Where?
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Łukasz Skorupski: To my mother. It's a village, 50 kilometers from Brodnica. It takes an hour and a half to get to Toruń. Lakes, we have a boat, fish, bonfires in the evenings. It's fucking great there. Matilde likes it too, she loves nature. Boy, we're walking somewhere in the fields, and she raves about the cows. She's in love with animals, right. Cows, chickens, it doesn't matter.
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The whole family from mother and father - cousins, aunts - lives there. They all live 15 kilometers next to each other. One family from mom, the other from dad. Here is one village, here is another, and there was a disco between them. My parents met there. Later, my father went to Silesia to work in a mine, and my mother with him.
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Your dad wasn't interested in football.
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Łukasz Skorupski: He was from the countryside, he had nothing to do with football. He didn't play it at all. The old man was a boxer. You know, he trained himself and boxed himself.
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Did he go to your games?
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Lukasz Skorupski: No. Rarely. I don't blame him. I never wanted to be daddy's boy. When I was young, he used to come to a game.
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And when have you already played in Ekstraklasa?
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Łukasz Skorupski: I don't think he came to Ekstraklasa even once. My old man wasn't a Górnik. He watched on TV.
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When I started training in Zaborze when I was young, I jumped over the fence and was already on the pitch. Nobody had to see me off. When I was ten years old, times were different, I would get on a tram and drive an hour to training. Two transfers from Zaborze and you had to walk there too.
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You were ten years old and you were already driving alone?
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Łukasz Skorupski: We traveled from Zaborze in two or three. We had a training group where parents of other coaches licked ass, and I was always alone. I don't blame the old man for not coming. I know he worked hard and had to rest after the mine. Those who had more money, some business of their own, could come to their son whenever they wanted. They were sucking up to the coaches, giving gifts so that only the kid would play. I was the only one who didn't care about it. I was fucking great keeper in the youngsters and the coach loved me. His name is Jerzy Urban. Write it, write it, he will be happy. Sometimes we text each other. He treated me fairly even though I came without my parents and I didn't suck up to anyone. I was good and that was it, and he let me play. Other parents were furious: "Why doesn't my son play, I bought shirts for the team." The coach liked me so much that he would take me home after training and drink tea with the old ones.
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Two years older brother, Michał, also played football.
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Łukasz Skorupski: I think that as a goalkeeper I feel so good and agile because I had a different childhood. I would go outside with the boys and jump from tree to tree, doing some flips in the bushes. And train to add to that. Mom would let us out at nine o'clock in the morning, we would come back at 11 pm, when she was screaming from the window: "Come home!". That's how I grew up, huh.
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I would never trade my childhood for anything. I went crazy. Jesus, you went to the lake, no matter if the water was warm or cold. When I was young, I spent my summers in the countryside. We drove tractors, I went to work to pick strawberries or potatoes.
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Did they pay well?
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Łukasz Skorupski: Tenner in an hour. We earned about 50pln a day. In the evening we met at the fire station and played a match, and at the end a shop and ice cream. The next day the same. Oh, I slept in the barn too.
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Idyllic, carefree.
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Łukasz Skorupski: Like in the countryside. It was a little different in the city. Although I played football everywhere - in the countryside and in the city.

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