Category Archives: New Utopia

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga's tuition is so high that students are turning to sex work in order to make ends meet. At least, this is the message conveyed in the UTC newspaper. A recent article titled, The Secret Life of the College Sex Worker written by a staff writer at the UTC Echo explains how some students are becoming sugar babies, amateur porn actors, and selling foot fetish pictures to pay their tuition.

The UTC Echo writer states, As tuition prices continue to rise, college students have begun turning to a certain stigmatized profession as a way to make 'easy money' while in school. It was also stated, with the rise of online platforms such as OnlyFans and Seeking Arrangements, students can participate in sex work from the safety of their own dorm rooms. Later the article defined sex work explaining sexual services are provided for compensation, including pornography, working phone lines, dancing, or becoming a sugar baby. In our current economy, there is no shortage of job openings. But there is a shortage of morality. Immorality is often encouraged by certain institutions, including the media.

An anonymous student apparently gave the University paper an inside scoop on their secret life. In the article, an ill attempt to tie sex work to capitalism is made. Jasmine stated, I think everyone is selling their body in one way or another for capitalism. She admittedly makes around $500 a week selling pictures, videos, and participating in video chats.

Furthermore, a sophomoreRachel is a so-called sugar baby who uses the online platform, Seeking Arrangements, to match young people to rich older men and women. As a sugar baby, Rachel was flown to New York by an older man, who provided her with round-trip airfare, an apartment, and spending money for a week. If this wasn't eye-opening enough, Rachel admitted she lied to her parents in order to go on the trip without even considering the risk of being kidnapped.

I wonder if UTC understands that parents, alumni, staff, and current students read the UTC Echo. This doesn't seem like an article that would be beneficial for the recruitment or retainment of students. It's clear that promoting prostitution, sugar babies and foot fetishes doesn't exactly promote women's rights or equality. Additionally, I'm sure capitalism is not the cause of college students turning to sex work. There are plenty of jobs available with increasingly higher wages, so stop encouraging immoral ideologies that will only harm women, families, and humanity in the long run. It's time to see through the smoke and mirrors and realize morality is failing and this is more apparent when reading this article in the UTC Echo.

Source: https://www.theutcecho.com/news/the-secret-life-of-the-college-sex-worker/article_87ea8e9c-5376-11ec-9803-e72f8b4642fd.html

Jeff Irvin Jr.

UTC Alumni Class of 2008

* * *

Thank you, John Wilson and crew, for the headline "UTC Instructor Who Is Top Expert On Polyamory Taking Students On Sex-Themed Amsterdam Study Trip" and the subsequent, really sad, illumination of the sex biz at UTC.

Now we all know that polyamory is "the practice of engaging in multiple romantic (and typically sexual) relationships, with the consent of all the people involved." Other correct definitions would be menage et trois or a sex orgy or eight naked drunks writhing in a greasy hot tub. Yep. Same thing.

It's very much none of my business what adults and adult consenters do in the privacy of their own relationships but polyamory sanctioned by a public institution that apparently glosses over economically forced (that's duress, not consensual) sex trading is not all la dee dah okay.

The intimate gift and reception of one's self to/from another is a most beautiful collaboration that is natural and not dirty until it's made that way, primarily by males. We don't live in Utopia where everybody is nice and my uneducated hunch is that polyamory is attractive to those who make sex not only dirty but wicked. Sorry but, although I have been rightly accused of being stupid before, I'm thinking the polyamorist segment of our species is significantly populated by people like Jeffery and Ghislaine, Harvey Weinstein, many Nazis, a couple of still living ex-presidents and that super creepy dude from New York who flew the child from UTC and gave her spending money while he had his disgusting way with her all week. What filth! Dear God, I feel for her and her Momma and Daddy.

Yes, I'm an old fart but guess what? I like sex just like everybody else! Unless you are a cheater or hurting somebody, I think sex ought to happen every day for those who have the love and stamina. That said, this Amsterdam study trip, I guess they get college credit for it too, and beautiful young people selling sex to absolute vermin out of college dorm rooms right here in Chatt town is maddeningly indefensible.

Somebody please explain why I'm in egregious error here. Don't worry, I do have tinder skin but it heals up pretty quickly.

Savage Glascock, Sr.

Read more from the original source:

UTC Student Sex Workers, Morality, And The Echo - And Response - The Chattanoogan

The early Amazon investor propels Seattle techs virtuous circle.

In the spring of 1995, as a favor for a friend, Tom Alberg started poring over 47 single-spaced pages. The subject? An online internet bookstore. It does a good job describing our vision, Jeff Bezos scribbled at the top of his typed business plan.

Alberg wishes he could say he knew what was to come. It wasnt brilliantly obviousat least not to methat Amazon would be as big as it is today, Alberg writes in his book Flywheels, published this fall.

Still, the McCaw Cellular Communications lawyer saw enough potential in the idea, and the founder, to eventually throw down $50,000 of his own money and become a full-time investor. Bezos named him an advisory director, beginning a 23-year run on Amazons board that gave Alberg a major say in the e-commerce giants rise.

Today, Alberg is a force of his own. Shortly after his angel bet on Amazon, he cofounded a venture capital firm, Madrona Venture Group, whose investments now make or break founders dreams. Name a successful Seattle startup, like Redfin or Rover, and chances are Madronas backed them.

In Silicon Valley, success begat wealth, which led to increased investment, which spurred new firms, and begat more success. Alberg wondered if he could create a similar economic flywheel here.

Such funding wasnt always available. When Alberg and company started the firm, they aimed to fill a critical financing gap in the local tech ecosystem. Despite Microsofts success, the area lacked the deep-pocketed risk-takers to foster a thriving startup scene. In Silicon Valley, success begat wealth, which led to increased investment, which spurred new firms, and begat more success. Alberg wondered if he could create a similar economic flywheel here.

He formed the Alliance of Angels to encourage more seed funders and direct pitches from entrepreneurs. Later, he raised money for the computer science school at the University of Washington. Madrona has invested in about 20 startups emerging from the program. Hes a guy that cant fail to see the future, Challenge Seattle CEO Chris Gregoire said during an interview with GeekWire last year.

So what does Alberg see next? While he hopes the citys tech and political leaders can move past their squabbles to help solve pressing housing and public safety problems, hes more confident about the economic developments to come: He believes biotech and artificial intelligence, especially autonomous vehicles, will drive our next period of technological growth. If history serves, entrepreneurs and investors will line up to join him for that ride.

The Intentionalist founder built a directory to help Seattle consumers find and support local businesses owned by women, people of color, veterans, or members of the LGBTQ community. Her companys next move to bolster a more inclusive local economy? Becoming a payment platform. It functions as a gift card intermediary, making it easier for customers to spend money at places that arent otherwise equipped for those types of transactions.

Hows this for a swerve: a tech company that might actually narrow pay gaps. The Smartsheet cofounder earned a GeekWire startup CEO of the year nom for her work at Syndio, which creates software to eliminate unlawful salary discrepancies due to gender and race. Salesforce and Nordstrom are clients.

While the former Washington governor still holds plenty of sway in the political realm, she helms an alliance of CEOs from the regions largest employersbasically a whos-who of our corporate elite. The Challenge Seattle leader wrangles collaboration from these competitive types, shaping our economic future in the process.

The Seattle establishment shivers every time Jeff Bezoss handpicked successor refers to Amazons HQ1 location as Puget Sound. Hes acknowledged that a rough relationship with city council means Seattles largest employer will increasingly look to grow in Bellevue, but his attachment to South Lake Union will ultimately determine the fate of many small businesses in its orb.

A lack of diversity in the tech world motivated this one-time Microsoftie to cofound a different kind of startup. For nearly 25 years, Technology Access Foundation has equipped children in historically underserved communities with the STEM skills to compete with other job applicants. Because, in this economy, workforce development cant start soon enough.

Self-awareness is hard to come by among the ranks of the Big Five, but Microsofts CEO has solidified the software giants place among techs elite by embracing its nerdiness. Cloud computing has driven the business back from the brink of irrelevance after mobile phone and search engine snafus. A TikTok deal recently falling through was only fitting.

The Gravity Payments CEO isnt bashful about his decision to pay all of his employees at least $70,000. Seven years later, its still right there in his Twitter bio. His credit-card processing company may not be the utopia he paints, but his criticisms of one-percenters and corporate America sound increasingly prescient as more and more workers quit during these Zoom times.

Satyas subordinate shapes Microsofts public image maybe even more than the man in charge. The companys president and de facto diplomat finesses relationships with bigwigs in DC and Silicon Valley while backing everything from journalisms role in democracy to local facial recognition bans. The boss must be happy: The lawyer added vice chair to his title this year.

See the original post:

The Most Influential People in Seattle Tech and Business - seattlemet.com

Netflix is a sea of fictitious worlds, each with their unique characters and settings, it often becomes hard to distinguish one bland story from another. Amongst the hundreds to thousands of fantasy stories out there, each determined to bring into reality a new idea or theme that hasnt been discovered before, standing out has never been more important to a storys success and fame. And yet, their dramatic, animated series Arcane, released on Nov. 6, continues to amaze its target audience many who just wanted a peek into its rich narrative.

Arcane, created by Christian Linke and Alex Yee, is based on League of Legends, a popular multiplayer online battle arena developed and published by Riot Games that has hooked the attention of the public throughout its journey. From its ridiculously popular music videos such as POP/STARS and Warriors to E-Sports gaming events, it is very apparent that one of the most notable reasons for its popularity is its excessive branding.

Riot Games promoted the launch of Arcane in many other ways, such as collaborations with other Riot games and different franchises such as Legends of Runeterra, Teamfight Tactics, League of Legends: Wild Rift, Valorant, PUBG Mobile, Fortnite, and even Among Us. Not only that, but the creators made sure to build this series in such a way that its viewers wouldnt need any prior knowledge of League of Legends, let alone video games, to understand and enjoy it. In the end, as well as releasing this show in a variety of languages all at once, it is without fail that Riot Games continues to stay on top with Arcane as it even surpassed Squid Game as Netflixs top most watched TV show only two days after its release.

The show is set in a fictitious fantasy city and follows the conflict between its two opposite sides: Piltover, the wealthy utopia of progress and innovation and its underground parallel Zaun, the poor society built in its shadow. The backstories of several League characters are explored but the main focus is on a girl named Vi, voiced by Hailee Steinfeld and her sister. Having grown up together in the undercity along with other orphans like themselves, the two were as close as they could be. But after a failed mission to steal scraps from a Piltover lab, conflicts between the two sides of this city worsened and their involvement in the theft caused the family of misfits to fall apart. Over the course of 9 episodes, a new layer of corruption in Piltover and Zaun unfolds and it becomes clear that the city is on the brink of a civil war.

One of the most evident aspects of Arcane that sets it apart from other video game based spin-offs, like Super Mario Bros. or Sonic the Hedgehog, is that it doesnt try to be a lighthearted comedy. In fact, it does the exact opposite. The story of Arcane is filled to the brim with anxiety-building action, heart wrenching emotional scenes, and just enough mystery to keep the viewers hooked until the end. There are many components that make Arcane feel so immersive and addictive but there are a few that make it worth a watch.

The most eye-catching part of Arcane is its unique art style, which has led many to say that any screenshot from this show could easily be turned into a screensaver. The team behind the design is a Parisian animation studio called Fortiche Productions, also known for animating League of Legends music videos. What makes this world so captivating is the seamless blend of two dimensional backgrounds and effects with three dimensional objects and characters, one of Fortiches trademarks. With this artistic style, characters, buildings and action sequences all look like they are hand painted because most of them actually are.

In addition, this animation studio also did a phenomenal job at portraying strong emotions which define the main characters and give them a touch of realism. In other words, scenes become relatable as each main character has their own defining backstory that makes them unique from the others and that adds depth to the progression of the plot. These characters are memorable, have unique designs that fit each individual personality and dont exist for the sole purpose to fill a trope.

While it is often said that its origin game deserves a completely different review, it is with no doubt that the six years of hard work put into the production of Arcane is beyond impressive and this show deserves the hype it received. It raises the bar to fantasy shows with its breath-taking backgrounds, nuanced characters, and exciting plot. It proves that fantasy worlds can be done right while not confusing its audience and it proves that it can stand well alone despite being a spinoff. Most importantly, it also proves to be a labor of love to its players and fanbase.

More:

Arcane delivers flawless animation and an exciting plot - The Tide

In a year where many of us couldnt get out and see the world, we relied on others to bring us perspective, distraction and recipes to help pass the time.

From cookbooks to kids books, fiction and non, the Your Weekend team, and some industry experts, have chosen their favourite books of 2021.

READ MORE:* Online bookstore helping share positive representations of LGBTQIA+ people* How I write: Children's book author and illustrator Ned Barraud* Buy local: A seaside bookshop's unique collection of children's books * Taika Waititi and Queen the subjects of new books by Hamilton researchers

A Passage North by Anuk Arudpragasam

Few recent books have devastated me as much as Arudpragasam's book. It tells the story of a young Tamil man's journey to the war-devastated north of Sri Lanka, to attend the funeral of his grandmother's carer. In precise, long, languid sentences, Arudpragasam creates a sharp contrast between the narrator's passive remembrance and the horrendous trauma of the inhabitants themselves. The novel was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, and comparisons to two of the twentieth century's great writers of horror, Primo Levi and WG Sebald, are not hyperbolic.

Rangikura by Tayi Tibble

This is Tibble's second collection of poetry, after her wonderful debut Pokahangatus. Tibble has the brashness and humour to match many of Aotearoa's best young poets. However, the thing that really sets her apart from her peers is the sheer craft of her work and its devastating emotional core. Her collections are about to get a major US release, so hopefully the rest of the world can soon catch up on her brilliance.

Aljce in Therapy Land by Alice Tawhai

This is Tawhai's debut novel, and first book for some time, following three stellar collections of short stories. Tawhai manages to be both funny and pointed, while depicting workplace bullying and power hierarchies. But it's also sad, and gloriously unpredictable she's a one of a kind writer.

Moon Musings by Ronia Ibrahim and Khadro Mohamed

My reading for 2021 has been pretty dark, so it was a genuine joy to read a collaborative, thoughtful zine by Pneke poets, Khadro Mohamed and Ronia Ibrahim (the poems are also great heard live). They each wrote a poem a day over the course of Ramadan. It's a demonstration of some of the great poetry bubbling up in the city and the ingenuity many creatives resort to, to get their voices out in the world. They're two poets definitely to watch in the future.

Greta and Valdin by Rebecca K Reilly

This is Aotearoas answer to Schitts Creek in literature form thanks to its outrageous sense of humour, diverse range of characters, one very loveable family, and its exploration of fluid sexuality on multiple fronts. This story showcases diversity as it should be, not as a central conflict but just as a part of the characters life. We should count ourselves lucky to have someone so talented as Reilly right here in Aotearoa.

The Panic Years by Nell Frizzell

Nell Frizzell is a British journalist, who after her own rollercoaster, has decided to lift the lid on what she calls The Flux: The Flux is the gap between adolescence and midlife, during which women lose that constructed artifice of control over their lives, confront their fertility and build themselves new identities. Candidly walking us through her own Flux, to finding her feet as a new mother, and everything in between. Frizzells need to make sense of her own Flux serves as a potential help for us all. Whether youre still pondering the big Q, or youve already had kids, even if you never want them, this book has something for everyone.

Pony by R.J. Palacio

An epic hero journey story set in the Wild West US. This beautiful story follows Silas and his ghost friend Mittenwool as they ride into the unknown on a quest to save Silas' father. Although they encounter many dangers, they also meet people with heart and kindness and come to imagine a previously unimaginable future.

Bumblebee Grumblebee by David Elliot

Elephant, Ballephant - Buffalo, Fluffalo - The wonderful David Elliot has created a fun, rhyming, whimsical board book which plays beautifully with words and pictures makes us laugh out loud and brings us to an exuberant ending - perfect book for under twos!

Plum by Brendan Cowell

A heros redemption story, but this hero is a lager-drinking, gambling ex-rugby league player that is very Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, oi, oi, oi. The book is joyous and heartbreaking and all about the contours of life. It made me think a lot about the retentive way many Antipodean men feel like they have to live their lives.

Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr

Im not going to lie, it took me about 80 pages to get into this - so epic and interwoven it is - but once I was in, I was really in. A genre-bending, millennia-traversing novel, it hones in on five characters, and is about Greek mythology, terror, hope and, ultimately, the power of storytelling. Im very glad I read it, even if it is 500+ pages.

The Republic of False Truths by Alaa Al Aswany

Al Aswanys The Yacoubian Building is up there in my favourite novels of all time, and his latest is just as layered and dynamic. Al Aswany makes you root for his characters so much as they bump up against corruption and frustration at every turn. The novel centres on the uprising in 2011, and Tahrir Square, and paints a fictional picture of a fractured, complicated country full of wonderful people. (Note: it was actually released in Arabic a few years ago, but was only translated into English this year).

Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri

Another book from a few years ago that was only released in English this year - the translation from Italian to English was done by Lahiri herself (shes such a genius). Her other well known novels are all about India and then Indian diaspora - such as The Namsake - but this one is about a middle aged Italian literature professor who lives alone in an Italian city. Ruminative (rather than plot driven) and slight, its a study of urban loneliness.

Uprising: Walking the Southern Alps of New Zealand by Nic Low

This incredible book is the result of many years of research, adventure, discovery, and conversation. Nic Low grew up knowing K Tiritiri-o-te-moana the Southern Alps through mountain stories from his European side. This book is his journey to discover the stories of the same landscape from his Mori ancestors. Low beautifully and generously weaves adventure with reflections on history and place, and offers fascinating and well-researched pre-colonial stories of Te Waipounamu

The Uprising: The Mapmakers in Cruxcia by Eirlys Hunter

The long-awaited sequel to The Mapmakers Race! This is the rip-roaring adventure of Sal, Joe, Francie and Humphrey Santander, as they travel to Cruxcia searching for their famous explorer and mapmaker father who has disappeared. The citizens of Cruxcia are trying to protect their land from the all-powerful GTC and its evil, greedy overlord. The mapping skills of the four siblings may be just be what Cruxcia needs to save their land and way of life.

Orwell's Roses by Rebecca Solnit

Hot off the press, Orwell's Roses is the perfect non-fiction gift this Christmas. Solnit investigates George Orwell's love of gardening, particularly roses, while providing a deep and thorough context of the time. Politics, activism, war, privilege, climate, art and science are astutely researched and observed. Solnit's creative voice and personal touch makes for rich reading, letting the reader soak into a fascinating insight into one of the world's most famous writers.

Atua by Gavin Bishop

Atua tells the tale of Aotearoa's creation in a wondrous pukapuka (book) of prkau (myth.) Extraordinary illustrations punctuate each krero (story), a glossary is dotted throughout, to grow your knowledge of te reo kupu (words) and facts. A companion in style and size to Bishop's award-winning Aotearoa, Atua is a must for every child's (and adult's) bookshelf.

Still Life by Sarah Winman

This is one of the loveliest books Ive ever read: an exquisite waltz through 35 years of Florentine history with a cast of characters not limited to a parrot, a globe maker and an art-historian / spy. Its a novel about friendship, family and place - Florence is as much a character as any of the people, filtered through the vicissitudes of history - it is completely lovely, heartwarming and delightful.

Matrix by Lauren Groff

This tells the story of Marie of France, expelled from Queen Eleanors court in the 1100s and sent to an abbey in the English countryside. Descending from a long line of viragoes and crusaders but stuck in the abbey for the rest of her life, Marie becomes prioress and sets about making the medieval nunnery a female utopia. Groff does for Marie of France what Mantel did for Cromwell, and it is an explosive exploration of power and womanhood. Matrix is epic, spare, brutal and utterly divine.

Things I Learned at Art School by Megan Dunn

This collection of essays is everything you didnt realise you wanted from a bright orange book. Dunn recalls growing up in New Zealand, that strange and special thing, with such acute insight. Her ability to make the reader snort-laugh and then cry deserves a medal. Things I Learned at Art School is a sexy winking mermaid swimming in a sea of pathos and nostalgia and has a permanent place in my medium-sized Kiwi heart.

Times Like These: On Grief, Hope and Remarkable Love by Michelle Langstone

Many of us know Langstone as an actress, with roles in McLeods Daughters and 800 Words. But in this book of essays, her first, she bares her soul in another way. Writing about the big things - death, love, memories - and the smaller, everyday moments, Langstone surprises and delights, tearing out the readers heart on one page, and putting it back together the next.

Cook This Book by Molly Baz

Want to be a better cook, but recipes bore you? The Internets favourite chef Baz knows tasty food and how to make following along at home easy on us. With clever QR codes linking to video tutorials, and stunning photos, slaving over a hot stove was never so fun.

Taste: My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci

Did I listen to the audiobook version of this? Absolutely yes, and for very good reason. Everyones favourite cocktail maker and actor, Tuccis retelling of his life through food is a beautiful thing to hear direct from the horses mouth. An Italian-American (New Jersey!) childhood around the dinner table, losing his sense of taste after a battle with cancer, and new love all shared through the lense of food, like a meal with a mate.

Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for an Endangered Planet by Jane Goodall and Douglas Adams

A pioneering environmentalist, feminist and a wonderfully down-to-earth person. This beautifully packaged hardback is presented as one long interview by Douglas Abrams. An important book for our times and will appeal to all ages groups, including younger people.

Beautiful World Where Are You by Sally Rooney

Irish author, Sally Rooneys latest book was so hotly anticipated Millennials were sporting #BWWAY bucket hats and uncorrected proofs were popping up on Ebay for huge sums before its release. Of course Rooney hasnt disappointed them, bringing all the emotion, tension and insight into modern life that has become her trademark. A particularly great read for women in their 20s and 30s.

Under the Wave at Waimea by Paul Theroux

As a third generation family-owned business, we love that we also have books from three authors of the same family in store right now Louis Theroux, his mother Anne and this beautifully written and atmospheric novel from Paul Theroux. Under the Wave at Waimea traces the life of a big wave surfer in Hawaii as he confronts ageing, privilege, mortality and whose lives we choose to remember.

Joy of Gardening by Lynda Hallinan

As the title suggests, this is a joyous book and an ode to the power of gardening and growing food to connect us with nature, relieve stress and improve our mental and physical well-being. A book that should be on every gardener's (or want to be gardener's) bookshelf.

Get Back by The Beatles

Is there anything new to say about The Beatles? It appears so. In fact, it seems that what we thought we knew about the breakup of the worlds biggest band was not necessarily true. Through unseen photographs and conversation transcripts this official companion to the Peter Jackson-directed docuseries shines new light on the Let It Be recording sessions.

The Greatest Haka Festival on Earth / Mokopuna Matatini by Pania Tahau-Hodges, illustrated by Story Hemi-Morehouse

It's all whitebait fritters, glittery moko and excitement as Nan and the mokopuna attend Te Matatini all the more exciting as the real festival is now postponed until 2023. Available in both te reo Mori and te reo Pkeh, and great for those ages 4-7.

Kaewa the Koror by Rachel Haydon, illustrated by Pippa Keel

A penguin-y mystery set at the National Aquarium in Napier and based on the real koror who live there. It's both a great story and an excellent introduction to the important conservation work of the aquarium (good for ages 4-7).

Takah Maths by Julie Ellis, illustrated by Isobel Te Aho-White

An unusual and innovative picture book combining history, conservation and maths as we explore the story of the takah over the past million years by adding, subtracting, dividing and hopefully multiplying these birds, which were once thought to be extinct (great for ages 6-10).

Kia Kaha: A Storybook of Mori Who Changed the World by Stacey Morrison & Jeremy Sherlock

From the creators of the Mori Made Easy series and beautifully illustrated by 12 Mori artists, this collection of true stories features inspirational Mori from all walks of life, from Dame Whina Cooper to Stan Walker. Its a brilliant gift for all ages.

Donovan Bixley's Draw Some Awesome by Donovan Bixley

Full of ideas and easy breakdowns of his processes, Draw Some Awesome is great for budding artists, as Bixley creates a jumping-off point for kids to learn how to draw, not like him, but like themselves. Lots of inspiration and insights into his previous work. 9+

Whet Toa and the Hunt for Ramses by Steph Matuku, illustrated by Katharine Hall

In the second story about Whet Toa, she travels through alternate realities on a starbeam, fighting robots with Tori the cat, after Ramses the golden ram goes missing. An exciting and funny action-adventure that deals with themes of bullying and anxiety for ages 7+.

Falling Into Rarohenga by Steph Matuku

Fourteen-year-old twins Tui and Kae are pretty sick of each other, but when their mum disappears, and a portal sucks them down into Rarohenga (the Underworld), will the twins be able to stop bickering long enough to rescue her? Grounded, realistic YA fantasy for age 12+.

Treasure in the Lake by Jason Pamment

Secrets float up from under the lake when Iris and Sam stumble upon a hidden city lost in time. Graphic novels are super popular right now and this one is a beautifully drawn and heartfelt tale of mystery and friendship for fans of Amulet and Lightfall. Ages 9+.

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult

While I like Picoults writing, I sometimes feel her admirably substantial research can be too obvious on the page. I thought this book was suffering from that - until a shocking twist put all Picoults research into Covid-19 into context and turned it into a totally different novel altogether. A page-turner, and a top-notch entry in the new genre of Pandemic Lit.

Magpie by Elizabeth Day

A psychological thriller about the lengths women will go to to have children, and how much they are prepared to sacrifice to protect them, Magpie is a novel of taut suspense and twists and turns that make the reader constantly reevaluate their views on each of the three protagonists. Smart, savvy and insidiously creepy.

Ottolenghi Test Kitchen: Shelf Love by Yotam Ottolenghi and Noor Murad

Star chef Ottolenghis recipes famously require a laundry list of ingredients, and while that number isnt always lower here, hes sourced them from a different place: his own pantry, fridge and freezer. And while the contents of yours might not exactly mirror his, these 85-odd recipes will give you lots of new ideas for what to do with that sad tin of chickpeas or nearly-turned cauliflower.

My Elephant is Blue by Melinda Szymanik Illustrated by Vasanti Unka

A picture book about big heavy feelings, told with a light touch and sensitivity, whilst not avoiding the reality of having the blues, which can happen to anyone, young or old. A child wakes to find an elephant sitting on their chest, making it hard to do anything very much. The whole family offers suggestions and support calling up an elephant specialist, offering tasty things to eat. Eventually a walk outside helps, and soon they are out with the whole family, enjoying a picnic in the park. Illustrations reflect the changes, blossoming gardens and sunshine in the finale, whilst acknowledging that the elephant is part of the family for good.

Exit Through the Gift Shop by Maryam Masters Illustrated by Astrid Hicks

Anahita (Ana) is dying of cancer, but her bigger problem is a nemesis school bully (dubbed Queen Mean). We accompany Ana as she navigates a roller-coaster of school life, family life and life with the knowledge of a year to live. But she is fierce and sassy, with a no holding back attitude, which helps deal with the theme of illness, death and bullying in a way that is funny/sad all at once. This is a resoundly life-affirming and perfectly pitched novel for pre-teens (or anyone).

While I Was Away by Waka T. Brown

A wonderful middle grade memoir that follows the journey of 12-year-old Waka, a Japanese girl living in 1980s USA, whose life is uprooted when her parents decide to send her back to Japan to reconnect with her family, culture and language. The novel deals with the issues that come from navigating the complexities of ones identity when growing up.

Read more here:

Your Weekend's best books of 2021 - Stuff.co.nz

Five-time Oscar winner Francis Ford Coppola has joined Freda the Haitian Oscar entry marking the narrative feature debut of actor, singer and documentarian Gessica Gnus as an executive producer. He will spearhead an awards-season push for the pic, which is only the second Haitian film to be submitted to the Academy Awards International Feature category.

Freda is the kind of cinematic experience I value most: a journey into a way of life not normally accessible to me, providing insight about the real people who live in it. Gessica Gnus film is an unforgettable jewel told with simple eloquence, beautifully memorable performances, and genuine feeling that few films ever achieve, said Coppola. This glimpse of contemporary life in Haiti shows a people who refuse to be defined by their tragic moments and who thrive with good hearts and best intentions. It is my humble honor to serve as the executive producer of Freda in support of Gessica and the wonderfully creative and artistic film community in Haiti.

The Creole-language film centers on the title character, who lives with her family in a poor yet vibrant neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, where they make ends meet thanks to their small street shop. Freda wants to believe in the future of her country, but when faced with precarious living conditions and the rise of violence in Haiti, she and her family wonder whether to stay or leave.

It made its world premierein the Un Certain Regard section of this years Cannes Film Festival.

Nhmie Bastien, Djanana Franois, Fabiola Rmy, Galle Bien-Aim, Jean Jean, Rolaphton Mercure and Cantave Kerven star in the pic, which was produced by Ayizan Productions Gnus, SaNoSi Productions Jean-Marie Gigon and Merveilles Productions Faissol Gnonlonfin. SaNoSi Productions is handling the films international sales rights, with Nour Productions distributing it in France, Belgium and Switzerland.

Coppola is a longtime advocate of Haitian cinema and a patron of the Artists Institute of Haiti, a private foundation that looks to educate youths in the cinematic arts, and to empower the countrys film and music industries, both at the national level and on the international stage. The renowned filmmaker was among the organizations original donors when its Cin Institute film school first opened in 2008, and has remained committed to supporting it annually.

I have long held faith in Haitis creative community as an early supporter of its Artists Institutes film school in 2008. While the country has suffered a very tough year, Freda showcases the wealth of talent which exists there and Im proud for them and what they have accomplished with this beautiful film.

Up next for the director behind such classics as The Godfather and Apocalypse Now is Megalopolis, his sci-fi epic centered on an architect who looks to rebuild New York City as a utopia following a devastating disaster.

Link:

Francis Ford Coppola Boards Haitian Oscar Entry Freda As Executive Producer, Will Spearhead Awards Push - Deadline

Instead of his traditional Yuletide techno tale, Vitali recounts a reallife story of a forgotten Utopian community.

Even Paris ends somewhere, or so they say in France...

Year 2021, which is now on its last Covid-affected legs, felt endless due to the lockdowns.

But here we are, nearing Christmas, and here I am triple, or, if to count the annual flu injection, quadruple jabbed, and travelling again!

Yes, I spent the second half of 2021 searching for a ... Utopia. Not any kind of Utopia, but conveniently for the time when foreign travel was all but banned a domestic, read: British, one, for that is what my next book is going to be about the Utopian, i.e. (in my own definition) both idealistic and ideal, settlements of Britain.

In a specially acquired second-hand campervan, Ive managed to trace down and/or to visit about 50 of the above, with the most revealing discovery made last November.

I want to share this last one with you today.

So, my traditional yuletide techno-tale this time around will be neither a thriller (like last year) nor a fairy tale (like in 2019), nor even a new Icelandic saga, like several years ago, but an entirely true story of a fascinating technology-obsessed Utopian community, which existed for just a couple of years but had managed to leave an interesting legacy, as well as to teach a good lesson to the whole of humankind a lesson that, sadly, has not been properly learned until now.

I am talking about the Manea Fen Colony, which existed in Cambridgeshire between 1838 and 1841.

As it often happens, I first came across it accidentally while gathering material on Octavia Hill, a Victorian reformer and founder of the National Trust. Her former house (now a museum) in Wisbech contained, among other relics, a scale model of the Manea Fen Community, about which I hadnt heard a thing until then.

My curiosity was sparked. From the substantive and hard-to-obtain volume Utopia Britannica compiled by Chris Coates, I grasped the following:

Manea Fen (1838-41) Founder/Leader William Hobson. Unofficial Owenite community on 200-acre fenland estate. Built cottages, school, pavilion and their own windmill [they actually built many more than that, as I discovered later VV]. Was the most radical and notorious of the Owenite communities in the UK [sic]. Issued its own newspaper, The Working Bee, and had a uniform of Linkoln Green suits, which gave the men the appearance of being part of Robin Hoods merry men. Failed to find markets for its goods and collapsed...

That was all.

Not hoping to find many traces of the long-gone Owenite (i.e., following the Utopian socialist philosophy of the 19th-century Welsh social reformer Robert Owen) community, I duly drove through the unremarkable Manea Village of today, where the only reminder of the Colony was a solitary, as if accidentally dropped off the cart and left behind in haste, toponym Colony Farm a chunk of ordinary farmland with grazing cattle on it.

I was able to find out more at the Cambridgeshire Collection a section of the Cambridge City Library sitting right on top a busy shopping centre. There I sat for several days, leafing through the faded issues of The Working Bee newspaper, and trying to teleport myself 183 years back in time, to the muffled din of the jolly pre-Christmas 2021 shopping mall reaching me from below.

Robert Owen (1771-1858) sincerely believed that a brave new world could be built with the help of two main components: end of poverty due to the advances of technology, plus rational thought. From the early 1820s, he encouraged the creation of new small communities all over Britain, the number of which was soon well over a hundred.

One of Owens most devoted followers was Fenland farmer William Hodson, who publicly vowed to build an exemplary Owenite community a union of working classes on 200 acres of his own land in the Cambridgeshire Fens. In that community, he promised, there would be no social distinctions, no classes, and no private property. Everything will be shared equally among the colonists. There were also rather vague promises of freer sexual unions and joint childcare a new moral order of sorts.

Hodson, just like Owen himself, was a convinced technocrat and a firm believer in the transforming power of new technologies. In his declaration 'I will Endeavour', published in The Working Bee, he wrote:

The food will be cooked by a scientific apparatus thus saving an immense labour to the females... Machinery, which has hitherto been for the benefit of the rich, will be adopted in the colony for lessening labour. A steam engine will be erected for thrashing and grinding corn, as well as steaming food for cattle and many other purposes.

Invited by Hodson, the first colonists started trickling in in 1838, and the initial progress was encouraging. Working days at Manea were much shorter than anywhere else, yet the villagers from outside the community complained that the colonists did not observe Sabbath (i.e., carried on working on Sundays) and were therefore often branded infidels.

The drainage work at Manea, which many colonists were supposed to do, was made particularly difficult by the presence of a buried pit band, or rodham in the Fens dialect (nothing to do with Hilary Clinton), formed from the Old Bedford River silt deposits, right underneath the village.

In line with Hodsons promises, money was abolished in Manea Fen, but only for a short while. A public library, a school and a kindergarten were opened a unique scenario for the early-Victorian villages.

Womens dress was also that of Robin Hood foresters; they wore trousers under the skirts.

A letter in The Working Bee describes the colonists diet:

... We have pork, mutton and beef, cabbages, beans and peas... we shall have plenty of excellent potatoes. We bake our own bread and biscuits, as we keep a baker... we have four meals a day...

Hodsons new technology ideas had also been implemented little by little. All colonists homes were well-heated and ventilated. An observatory, which doubled as a dining room with a view for 40 people and a Union Jack on the roof, was erected, and so was an impressive windmill, used by the hodsonians not just for making flour but also rather ingeniously for cleaning their boots and shoes of the sticky fenland mud with the help of special rotating brushes!

It all went well for over a year, and in the summer of 1840 Hodson announced in The Working Bee his intention to produce agricultural machinery those implements which are made by the better order of mechanics, such as thrashing machines, drills, etc... Typically for any Yuletide Tale invented or real here comes the anti-climax.

There was no one to operate Hodsons sophisticated machinery. The new settlers were not vetted for their work experience and qualifications, and half of them were illiterate (Samuel Rowbotham, the communitys Secretary, one of the top positions in the Colony, was ignorant to the point of believing that the Earth was flat the fact that he tried to prove using as an example the Old Bedford River, which flanked the village). The other half were hedonistic or plain lazy. They were enjoying the good life and were less and less inclined to work, instead spending their days in drunken orgies.

In short, working bees mutated into sad sacks, and the Colony became a neighbour from hell (in modern-speak) for the nearby towns and villages, whose disapproving dwellers were no longer eager to buy Maneas agricultural and other products. Wild rumours (both true and false) about the colony were spreading all over England and had reached Owen himself, who was furious to see his principles distorted by ignorance and dissipation. Soon, Hodsons considerable personal resources petered out, and the local bank, which used to willingly invest into the Colony, refused to support him.

Thus, Maneas Utopia came to an end, ruined by its own main asset the people, who, as it turned out, were simply not up to the task spiritually, educationally, and morally.

If to the convinced reformers and socialists, like Hodson, the Manea experiment was an opportunity to put their idealistic theories into practice, most of the colonists saw it as a chance of an easier life, having undermined the old Biblical principle, He who does not work, he shall not eat, which Hodson made the Colonys main motto.

Maneas collapse was a precursor of a number of similar failures of much larger socio-political experiments, including that of the USSR, whose totalitarian rulers, while expressing some good ideas and showing considerable achievements in the spheres of industry and science (not limited to the shoe-polishing windmills), failed to create the so-called new person of high morals one of the cornerstones of Marx and Engels Communist Manifest and the Soviet Unions Moral Code of the Builder of Communism.

As Russias proletarian poet Vladimir Mayakovsky once wrote (for a totally different reason): The boat of love has crashed against the rock of reality.

Very little had been written on the Manea Colony during the 150 odd years since its collapse (in 1841) until a couple of years ago when Cambridgeshire Live published an article with the attention-grabbing headline Archaeologists uncover Cambridgeshires long-lost wife-swapping colony.

I was saddened that the supposed wife-swapping (I was unable to find any convincing proof of it in The Working Bee pages) was chosen to denote the Colonys most distinctive feature, and not its unquestionable technological and social achievements.

With the excavations still in progress, lets hope that the team of Cambridge archaeologists, led by Dr Marcus Brian, will be able to dig up some more positive and life-affirming relics at Manea.

Why? Because we all need a little bit of Utopia in our lives (which due to the continuing pandemic have been fairly dystopian of late). Particularly in the run-up to Christmas and on the eve of the New Year, 2022, which, I hope, will be beautifully Utopian for us all!

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After All: The 'merry men' who used windmills to polish shoes - E&T Magazine

The new law would give the EU the ability to impose counter-sanctions on individuals, companies and entire countries. Effectively, allowing the EU to fight back as an entity against or for one of its members if they should find themselves in a difficult position.

The highly sensitive draft law would give the EU the power to act as a foreign policy determiner. It grants Brussels the legal right to fight if one of its members feels threatened.

The move by Brussels will be being monitored very carefully by China, Russla and the USA as the three major power players will have to think twice before imposing sanctions on the EU or any of its nations.

The proposal is currently being put through the legislative process and is likely to be approved as both Germany and France have backed the idea.

Germany has said the move would be an evolution of the EU towards a European federal state. It would be the biggest gain for the EU in foreign policy powers in decades.

The plan will allow Brussels to impose economic pain on any country that seeks to economically blackmail the EU.

The EU has been planning for the so-called United States of Europe in recent weeks even holding an event to discuss the plan on Friday.

Brussels has felt continually hamstrung in recent years, particularly by America and the former US President Donald Trump who threatened a trade war with Europe - a sentiment Biden has maintained. The threats have now prompted the EU to toughen up its powers of retaliation.

The federalist EU 'superstate' has also become more of a reality since Brexit freed Brussels bureaucrats from UK blockers - but not every member state is in support.

Speaking at the How to reform the (European - PAP) Union for the future of Europe?" event on Friday, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki made clear his feelings towards the suggestion labelling it as a "dangerous utopia".

Mr Morawiecki said: "We say that the creation of a single European state, 'the United States of Europe' is a kind of utopia, a dangerous utopia that cannot be constructed solely on the basis of legal assumptions and the extended competences of individual institutions.

"Here our voice may be weaker or stronger, but the more we speak to common sense and show that these differences not only cannot and should not be 'equalised'."

He added this "would impoverish the European heritage" and would lead towards "a very dangerous experiment with many utopian features."

The Poland PM also took a swipe at the common currency project which was introduced by the EU.

READ MORE:Army swoops to evacuate 50 homes over explosion fears

A number of MEPs have also vowed to take on the new German coalition Government should they choose to speed up plans for the proposed super-state.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, French far-right leader Marine Le Pen and Jaroslaw Kaczynski, head of Poland's ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, all came together at a joint conference to speak about the proposal.

Ms Le Pen explained the alliance is "all the more necessary now that we are faced with a German coalition which has made federalism a priority and will definitely also increase migration pressure".

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki joined Ms Le Pen in unity tweeting they agree in a wish for "a Europe of nations to give back to the peoples of Europe their freedom and their sovereignty".

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said: "We want to change the politics of Brussels."

Following the joint conference on Saturday, the alliance released a joint statement in defiance against the proposal.

They said they would not support "a Europe governed by a self-appointed elite".

The alliance added that "only the sovereign institutions of the states have full democratic legitimacy".

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EU just gave itself a sledge hammer with new law that makes it as powerful as USA & Russia - Daily Express

LCD Soundsystems extensively hyped, painstakingly documented farewell concert in 2011 turned out to be far from its final chapter. Since then, the Brooklyn-based dance punks have reunited to headline festivals, tour internationally and release the 2017 album American Dream, which expanded their repertoire of self-conscious yet body-friendly bangers. Still, the bands history of self-termination produces a nagging sense that when the frontman James Murphy sings, This could be the last time, in their hit All My Friends, he might finally mean it.

As of now, there are at least 15 more opportunities to see LCD Soundsystem live. The band is posting up at Brooklyn Steel for their first New York shows in four years a 20-date residency that began on Nov. 23 and continues this weekend. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the concert begins at 8 p.m.; verified resale tickets are available (for a pretty penny) at bowerypresents.com.OLIVIA HORN

Theater

The duos touring show, their biggest yet, makes a stop at the Town Hall on Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. (tickets start at $27). It features some of their beloved songs and fabulous costume changes, as well as their irreverent commentary on surviving the apocalypse just in time for the holidays.

The show, co-written by DeLa and Jinkx, highlights what they do best: dissect and subvert popular culture and tradition in order to create a fresher, more inclusive sense of community. DeLas caustic Donna Reed-ness and Jinkxs Joan Crawford-meets-Rosalind Russell quips are sure to lift your spirits and make you howl with laughter. Expect more naughty than nice.JOSE SOLS

Dance

The shopping season is upon us, that grueling holiday tradition. Thankfully, a potent antidote arrived this week in Brooklyn in the form of Big Dance Theaters The Mood Room, created by Annie-B Parson. The new hourlong work, presented by Brooklyn Academy of Music in association with the Kitchen, features an all-female cast and takes inspiration from Guy de Cointets 1982 play, Five Sisters, a critique of consumerism filtered through Reagan-era California wellness culture.

Parsons inventive movement at once surprising and relatable is currently on display on Broadway as a crucial and celebrated ingredient in David Byrnes American Utopia. In The Mood Room, that pointed physicality anchors her storytelling, which also mixes in spoken text from Chekhovs Three Sisters and soap operas, as well as an electronic score by Holly Herndon. The remaining shows through Sunday at BAM Fisher have sold out online, but the box office will be releasing a block of tickets each day. Call 718-636-4100 for availability. Also, a standby line will form 90 minutes before each performance.BRIAN SCHAEFER

Whether shes playing in a free-improvisation duo or notating compositions like Eight Pieces for the Vernal Equinox, the pianist Kris Davis has proved to be a reliable bet in recent seasons. Her latest project is the multimedia effort Suite Charrire. It introduces a new Davis-led ensemble as well as fresh works from the composers pen all in response to excerpts from films by the artist Julian Charrire.

The suite will be performed this Saturday along with its cinematic accompaniment at 8 p.m. at Roulette in Brooklyn. (Tickets start at $20; the concert will also be livestreamed free on the clubs website.) Daviss recent track record is not the only aspect that is promising; her chosen collaborators for this date are, too. In addition to the composer herself on piano, her septet includes Angelica Sanchez on a Moog synthesizer, the violist Mat Maneri and the trumpeter Taylor Ho Bynum all of whom possess distinctive profiles as interpreters.SETH COLTER WALLS

KIDS

Hanukkah commemorates finding a small amount of oil, which the Jewish Maccabees used to rededicate the temple in Jerusalem after they defeated the Syrian Greeks in the second century B.C. Sufficient for only one day, the oil miraculously burned for eight.

On Sunday (Hanukkah ends Monday evening), children visiting the Jewish Museum in Manhattan will also go on a faith-related quest, not for oil but for intriguing menorahs. This experience will shed light, too.

Included in museum admission (free for ages 18 and under), the Hanukkah Hunt drop-in gallery program runs from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Timed-entry tickets, however, are required.) Participants will receive an information sheet with photographs of four lamps in the exhibition Accumulations: Hanukkah Lamps. They range from an 1885 Eastern European model consisting of eight dollhouse-size lead chairs to the artist Karim Rashids 2004 silicone and stainless-steel Menorahmorph, which resembles a series of hot-pink volcanoes.

Little visitors will also search for an early-20th-century silver lamp, resplendent with carved lions and turquoise and carnelian stones; and Peter Shires 1986 Menorah #7, a painted-metal creation that doubles as a modernist sculpture.

In addition, the museum will dispense fuel for young imaginations: art kits with materials for children to sketch, collage and sculpt their own menorahs.LAUREL GRAEBER

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5 Things to Do This Weekend - The New York Times

Looking to celebrate the new year in style this month?

There are plenty of eclectic choices to dig into that will kick off 2022 with a bang.

Take a look at some of the best events, parties and fireworks displays happening in Leeds on New Year's Eve.

New Year's Eve at The Domino Club

The popular Domino New Year's Eve shindig is back and is set to be bigger and better than ever this year.

A collection of Domino favourites will play the event, with in-house band The Domino Funk and Soul Band joining them on stage for a night of funky favourites.

Reverend Cleve Freckleton is set to host the party, with each ticket sold including a complimentary drink on the house.

Leeds legendary club night Casa Loco returns to Warehouse to see out the year in style with 3 rooms of bassline classics.

Headlined by Joe Hunt and Mark Howarth, the New Year's Eve extravaganza is set to be a sell-out event with tickets costing 25.25 for their fifth release.

Utopia presents New Years Eve

This New Year's Eve, Utopia will be delivering a creative vision of the ultimate immersive nightclub experience at Pryzm.

Expect a full venue decor transformation, LED wall graphics, festival style production and some of Leeds' best DJs soundtracking the night.

Midnight Modern Art Madness

Midnight returns to Sheaf Street this New Year's Eve for a night of feral fun and dance music on demand.

This year's theme is Modern Art Madness - come dressed as a masterpiece, whether that be minimal, cubist, expressionism or futurism.

Beaver Works hosts their seven room underground party for New Year's Eve, with circus performers, live bands, firework displays and a bonfire all included.

New Year's Comedy Special

Celebrate the end of 2021 at the HiFi Club with their New Year's Eve Comedy Session special starring Justin Moorhouse, Eddy Brimson, Lou Conran and Alex Boardman.

The show starts at 7.30pm and finishes at 10pm, giving attendees plenty of time to party afterwards.

Support the YEP and become a subscriber today. Enjoy unlimited access to local news and the latest on Leeds United, With a digital subscription, you see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Click here to subscribe.

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New Years Eve in Leeds 2021: best events, fireworks displays and parties to celebrate the start of 2022 - Yorkshire Evening Post

[WARNING: The following contains MAJOR spoilers for AMCs The Walking Dead: World Beyond Season 2 episode 10, The Last Light and Fear The Walking Dead Season 7 episode 8, Padre.]

First, we had walkers. Now, with World Beyonds last post-credits scene, it seems the Walking Dead franchise is giving us a new spin on the undead: Runners. And thats exactly what they do they dont walk, they run. Fast. More than that, they exhibit signs of having short-term memory, and they have decent strength, too. Uh-oh!

While this is the first time weve seen speedy zombies in the TWDU, it isnt necessarily the first time weve seen the undead as smart. Early in Season 1, walkers appeared to be capable of remembering and even had semi-advanced motor function; Morgans (Lennie James) zombified wife not only remembered where her family was, but she was also capable of climbing the stairs and turning the doorknob to get into the house. Terrifying? Sure. A sign of brain functioning or instinct beyond feeding? Almost certainly.

Steve Swisher/AMC

But as the show went on, whether due to walker decomposition or behind-the-scenes changes, those glimmers of walker intelligence faded. Zombies, for the most part, existed as a straightforward threat; they were slow, their only motivation was to feed, and they were easily killed with a bullet, knife, boot, tire or screwdriver to the head.

The French zombies are completely different. Were guessing their chief motivation is still to munch on the flesh of the living (they are zombies, after all), but theyre capable of memory (the French zombie remembered where her attacker left the room and started to break down the door), they reanimate horrifyingly quickly (the scientist was only down for a minute at most before getting up again as a walker), and theyre strong enough that their blows can dent steel. Let that sink in.

In that scene, we also get a few hints about how the outbreak started. Its implied that a group of French scientists called the Primrose team either created the walkers (which the graffiti on the wall, reading the dead were born here, supports), or they tried to cure them and ended up making everything worse, or both. Those scientists left for a conference in Toledo, Ohio, before the outbreak, and they never came back. Ohio is an interesting location for the franchise to choose, given that the Commonwealth is located there in the comics; on the show, however, its in West Virginia.

How the franchise uses these zombies and ideas remains to be seen, but there are several theoretical options. The first and most immediate would be to incorporate the zombies into The Walking Deads last 16 episodes as a new threat, but given that the Reapers havent yet been dealt with and the Commonwealth storyline is just taking off, introducing a new kind of zombie there would be tricky and might make the last season feel overstuffed.

The second option would be to fold this storyline into Fear The Walking Dead, which seems slightly likelier. We still dont know what Padre is or where it is, so its possible some of the scientists from the Primrose team made it there and are continuing to work on a cure. Maybe there are runners there or maybe there arent, but we do know the Primrose scientists were in the United States and presumably, if they survived, they continued their experiments. So, the potential for variants still existsand wouldnt it make Padre more interesting if its not the perfect utopia its rumored to be? Its also possible Alicias (Alycia Debnam-Carey) mysterious illness is tied to the variants somehow: If she was bitten by a regular walker, she really should be dead.

Jackson Lee Davis/AMC

Other options are farther out and less certain. Depending where Daryl (Norman Reedus) and Carol (Melissa McBride) go in their spinoff, they could run into these new walkers and wind up in a storyline that involves the scientists. Putting two original franchise characters in a scenario where walkers are scary again would make for interesting television, and it could definitely generate interest in the spinoffas of now, plot details have been kept under wraps. Theres also the possibility that these walkers or the scientists fuel an episode of Tales of the Walking Dead, although it would be a pity for them to show up only briefly in an anthology show.

The last, and maybe most likely, option would be for these runners to spice up the action in the Rick movies. We still dont have a release date for the first of the planned trilogy, but since this scene takes place overseas, its unlikely anyone without access to a helicopter is getting there. It would certainly keep Rick from his family if he was flown over to France and he then had to deal with fast, strong, smart zombies.

However theyre factored into the franchise, itll be intriguing to see how this bit of world-building expands the TWDU. Were looking forward to learning morebut if we were in the survivors shoes, wed definitely rather deal with good ol garden-variety walkers.

The Walking Dead, Returns February 20, AMC

Fear The Walking Dead, Returns April 17, AMC

Tales of the Walking Dead, Premieres Summer 2022, AMC

Untitled Daryl & Carol spinoff, Premieres 2023, AMC

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How That World Beyond Post-Credits Scene Changes The Walking Dead Universe - TV Insider