Captain Archer tells Sub-Commander T'Pol that he had found a remote outpost on a planet a few light years off their current heading, and that he would like to visit this 3000-year-old Vulcan monastery, called P'Jem. En route, T'Pol describes it as an ancient retreat, a place for ''kolinahr'' and peaceful meditation. She also explains the strict visit protocols—they should not speak to anyone unless spoken to first, nor touch any relics. Arriving at P'Jem, a Vulcan elder tries to send the away team away, but Archer notices the reflected form of an armed intruder. Although they manage to subdue him, they are quickly captured by a larger group of armed Andorian Imperial Guards, led by Commander Shran.
Shran interrogates Archer, asking if they have brought more surveillance equipment for the Vulcans. The Andorians lock up the away team with the Vulcan monks, who explain that the Andorians, neighbors of Vulcan, believe that P'Jem conceals a long-range sensor array, and the arrival of T'Pol and ''Enterprise'' has unfortunately amplified their suspicions. When ''Enterprise'' attempts to contact the away team, Shran warns them not to interfere and destroys their communicators. During interrogation, wrongly disbelieving Archer's protestations of ignorance, the Andorians beat him.
Seeing Archer, the monks relent and take Commander Tucker to an ancient transmitter in the catacombs. After repairing the device, Archer manages to send a signal to ''Enterprise'' to tell them to wait. Soon, Lieutenant Reed and a security team transport into the tunnels, taking out most of the Andorians with explosive charges and phaser fire. Shran escapes into the Reliquary, where a firefight reveals a large modern door. Archer opens it, revealing a high-tech sensor chamber. With the Vulcan deception exposed, Archer lets the Andorians go with T'Pol's palm scanner as evidence of the installation. Shran remarks that he is now in Archer's debt.
''Enterprise'' is investigating a comet, and Sub-Commander T'Pol learns that the comet contains eisilium, a rare mineral which Vulcan chemists have not previously studied in detail. An away team consisting of Lieutenant Reed and Ensign Mayweather is sent to collect samples. Meanwhile, a Vulcan starship, ''Ti'Mur'', under Captain Vanik suddenly appears and, after Captain Archer suggests parties from each ship study the comet, Captain Vanik stated his members would just prefer to "observe." Captain Archer is not happy about Vulcans looking over his shoulders but, in the interest of cooperation, he agrees.
The Vulcans then send an encrypted message to T'Pol, which Commander Tucker intercepts, and Archer orders Ensign Sato to decrypt. Tucker is the only one to actually read it, and learns that it is not a message about ''Enterprise'', but learns that it regards her arranged marriage a personal item that no one else on ''Enterprise'' is aware of. Tucker apologizes to T'Pol for having read her message. She asks him to keep the contents of the letter confidential. Later, she confesses to Doctor Phlox that she has been having trouble sleeping, and he suggests that it might help if she confide in someone. She decides to consult Tucker, who does not share her views on Vulcan culture and customs, or even that she must leave pointing out that her seeking advice shows that she is open to choice over tradition. Eventually, she decides to forgo her Vulcan traditions and fulfill her duties aboard ''Enterprise''.
Archer decides to "break the ice" between their races and invites Captain Vanik for dinner aboard ''Enterprise''. It is not successful, as the Vulcan is unresponsive and dismissive regarding human behavior. Archer concludes the meal by accusing the Vulcan of spying on ''Enterprise'' and then asks him to leave. Afterwards, Archer notes that an explosion on the surface of the comet has altered the comet's rotational axis. When the sun rises, Mayweather and Reed begin to have difficulties as the ice begins to crack. They attempt to use the shuttlepod to leave, but it falls into a chasm. Archer eventually swallows his pride and negative feelings toward Vulcans by allowing Vanik to help rescue the shuttlepod.
Hovering just above Alaska in 1964, the TARDIS picks up some strange energy emissions of a type the Doctor and Nyssa cannot make head nor tail of. Before they can try, they are forced to dematerialise to avoid a collision with a light aircraft. But the TARDIS is apparently following a scent and takes them to the same place thirty years later. There they encounter a new kind of habitat, occupied by the obsessive Englishman Brett, Monica his interior designer and Tulung, the half-Inuit, brought up in America.
Something in the snowy wastes of Alaska doesn't seem to want this new intrusion, and before long it appears as if the local spirits, revered by the Inuit, scorned by Brett, may be making some drastic attempts to erase Brett's structure and the secrets it contains from the face of the planet. If the Doctor can discover exactly what Brett has been doing, he may find a way to halt the assault, but Nyssa seems to be "in tune" with the spirits – although she doesn’t entirely like what she sees...
The Seventh Doctor and Ace are on the trail of a monster that not only knows their every move but appears to be able to anticipate their actions too. The head of the far right New Britannia party survives an assassination attempt, but the Doctor suspects there is far more to the affair than the failed slaying of a politician. As he and Ace fight their way through the prejudices which blind everyone touched by a very particular monster, they face the prospect of the entire world being plunged into a bitter war of mistrust and mutual loathing...
The Sixth Doctor meets Evelyn Smythe and attempts to find out why she is disappearing by travelling back in time to the era of Queen Mary.
This episode addresses issues of freedom of religious expression.
Bev Tarrant and her salvage team arrive on the apparently uninhabited planet Kar-Charrat, in order to take possession of the mysterious and valuable Ziggurat. They soon discover though that there are Daleks on the planet, and maybe other creatures too.
In the TARDIS, Ace finds some overdue library books which the Doctor explains are from the library on Kar-Charrat. They travel to the planet in order to return the books. The Doctor enters the library where he meets an old friend, the chief librarian Elgin. Ace dislikes Elgin because he is not keen for people to actually touch any of the library's vast collection of books. She gets fed up and leaves to go back to the TARDIS. Elgin gives her a DNA tag which would allow her to re-enter the library. Elgin shows the Doctor the amazing technological development housed at the library — the wetworks facility. The Doctor is not particularly impressed until Elgin reveals to him that it contains all the knowledge in the Universe. The Doctor comments that not even the Time Lords had made such a break through using that technology, which is why the Matrix was built. Elgin mentions that aggressive aliens had been making threats against the library, and the Doctor eventually gets out of him that it is the Daleks.
The Daleks had used time corridor technology to deploy Daleks on every planet in the sector, and then waited hundreds of years to capture a time-sensitive Time Lord in order to penetrate the library's defences and allow them to seize the wetworks facility. Instead, the Daleks create a duplicate of Ace, which — replete with the DNA tag — will be able to get through the library's barriers.
The Doctor heads back to the TARDIS with Elgin, the only course of action left open to him is to send an emergency message to the Time Lords. However, they arrive at the TARDIS to find it surrounded by Daleks, including the Dalek Supreme, and are forced to surrender. The Doctor is vital to the Daleks' plan as they could not download the knowledge of the Wetworks into a Dalek mind without a Time Lord's neural buffers. They take him to the facility, and connecting him to the machinery, they successfully download the entire knowledge of the Universe into a Dalek test subject. After the download is complete, Elgin thinks that the Doctor has been killed by the pain of the procedure.
The test-subject is out of control and disoriented after the download and misses completely when it tries to exterminate Ace, Ben and Rappell. It shoots a hole in the wall of the library, through which Ace and Bev make their escape, but Rappell stays behind to cover them and is exterminated. However, when the Dalek pursues the women, a heavy fall of rain falls on the Dalek. The rain contains the native creatures of Kar-Charrat, and they are able to penetrate the casing and kill the Dalek.
The Doctor finds his consciousness still alive inside the Wetworks where he discovers to his outrage that the wetworks technology is based on the enslavement of the Kar-Charratians. The creatures are able to download the Doctor's mind back into his body, and he swears to free them. Soon reunited with Ace, Elgin and Bev, he plans to free the Kar-Charratians from the Wetworks by allowing Ace to use Nitro-9 on the library building. Elgin expresses remorse to the Doctor about the enslavement of the Kar-Charratians not realising that they were sentient, but the Doctor is not moved as the librarian and his people had not even tried to communicate with the natives.
Trying to allow the Doctor to re-enter the surrounded TARDIS, the Kar-Charratians kill the Daleks surrounding the time machine, but the duplicate Ace arrives. The duplicate is impervious to the rain unlike the Daleks, and threatens to kill Elgin. However, the chief cataloguer Prink rushes to his aid and attacks the duplicate, damaging it. Although Prink was killed by the duplicate, the damage allowed the Kar-Charratians to penetrate the duplicate's insides, and they succeed in destroying it.
The Doctor proceeds to the Wetworks with the intention of destroying it, using Ace to pretend to be her own duplicate to get past the Daleks. At the facility they encounter the Dalek test-subject and the Dalek Supreme arguing. Having obtained something of a conscience, the test-subject was refusing to destroy the Wetworks facility against the Supreme's orders. When Ace places Nitro-9 on the Wetworks facility, the test-subject fires at the Supreme to prevent it exterminating her. The Dalek Supreme retreats to its mother-ship leaving the Special Weapons Dalek to kill the test-subject, but the Nitro-9 succeeds in blowing up the machinery of the Wetworks, and the Kar-Charratians manage to escape. The remaining Daleks on the planet are drowned by the newly free natives.
The TARDIS returns to the ruins of the library, and Ace and the Doctor ponder on whether the test-subject Dalek with the complete knowledge of the universe and a moral consciousness could have heralded a new era for the Doctor. Elgin rues the destruction of his life's work, but out of guilt for his treatment of the Kar-Charratians realises it was a crime. Reporting its failure to the Dalek Emperor on Skaro, the Dalek Supreme is ordered to self-destruct. The Emperor is not totally despondent, however, as it has more plans to extend the Dalek Empire…
In the 1950s, the reserved, middle-aged bachelor C. S. Lewis is an Oxford University academic at Magdalen College and author of ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' series of children's books. He meets the married American poet Joy Davidman Gresham and her young son Douglas on their visit to England, not yet knowing the circumstances of Gresham's troubled marriage.
What begins as a formal meeting of two very different minds slowly develops into a feeling of connection and love. Lewis finds his quiet life with his brother Warnie disrupted by the outspoken Gresham, whose uninhibited behaviour sharply contrasts with the rigid sensibilities of the male-dominated university. Each provides the other with new ways of viewing the world.
Initially, their marriage is one of convenience, a platonic union designed to allow Gresham to remain in England. But when she is diagnosed with cancer, deeper feelings surface, and Lewis' beliefs are tested as his wife tries to prepare him for her death.
Miss Marple is taking a two-week vacation in London, at Bertram's Hotel, courtesy of her nephew Raymond West. In her youth, she had stayed at this hotel. Since the war, the hotel has been renovated to create a distinct Edwardian era atmosphere with the best of modern conveniences and the best staff. Miss Marple encounters a friend taking tea, Lady Selina Hazy. Selina is on the lookout for friends, yet often mistakes people who look like her old friends. Miss Marple sees the famous adventuress Bess Sedgwick, plus her daughter, the young and beautiful Elvira Blake with her legal guardian Colonel Luscombe. She also meets the forgetful clergyman, Canon Pennyfather. American tourists consider the hotel as really English. She sees race driver Ladislaus Malinowski stop at the desk, and several times notices his car. She sees him with Elvira Blake.
Elvira will inherit money from her father when she turns 21. Her mother is alive, but estranged by choice from Elvira. Elvira seeks to learn the size of her inheritance and who gets it if she dies. Lawyer Richard Egerton, one of her trustees, tells her about the great wealth awaiting her. She works a scheme with her friend Bridget to gain money to fly to Ireland to find some unspecified information, and goes there. It is unclear if she returns by train or by air.
On the same day that Elvira travels to Ireland, Canon Pennyfather is to attend a conference in Lucerne. He fails to go to the airport the day before, going on the day of the conference instead, with a now useless airline ticket. He returns to Bertram's around midnight, disturbing intruders in his bedroom. He awakens four days later in a house far from London, and near the location of a recent overnight robbery of the Irish Mail train. He recuperates with a family unknown to him. His concussion blocks his memory of events. In an odd coincidence, some witnesses of the train robbery report seeing him on the train. When Archdeacon Simmons arrives and Pennyfather is still not home, he calls the police. Inspector Campbell is assigned the case, and is soon joined by Chief Inspector Davy, who sees links to unsolved crimes.
After the sergeant questions everyone at the hotel, Davy comes to ask more questions. He encounters Miss Marple; her observations of the hotel having an ambiance not just of the Edwardian era but of unreality match his. She tells him of seeing Canon Pennyfather at 3 am after she thought he had gone to Lucerne. She also tells him what she overheard while sitting in a public part of the hotel. Bess Sedgwick spoke with the hotel commissionaire Michael Gorman about their mutual past in loud voices. They had once been married in Ireland, which her family ended by parting them. She thought the wedding was not a legal marriage. But it was genuine, and her four further marriages were unwittingly bigamous.
On Miss Marple's last day at the hotel, speaking with Davy, they hear two shots ring out, followed by screams outdoors. Elvira Blake is discovered next to the corpse of Gorman. Elvira says he has been shot dead while shielding her from the gunfire. The gun belongs to Malinowski.
Davy calls Miss Marple and Pennyfather back to London. She is in her room and he enacts his likely movements when she saw him in the hallway. She realises she saw a younger man, though with Pennyfather's appearance, and recalls the German term ''doppelganger''. This jogs Pennyfather's memory; he remembers he saw ''himself'' sitting on a chair in his own hotel room, just before he was knocked unconscious. The criminal gang was counting on his absence, and reacted violently on his appearance.
Davy and Miss Marple confront Bess Sedgwick as the orchestrator of these daring robberies, along with the ''maître d'hôtel'' Henry, and Ladislaus Malinowski when fast cars were needed. The hotel staff co-operated, and the owners handled the money side of the thefts. Bess confesses not only to this, but also to the murder of Gorman. Making a run for it, Bess steals a car and speeds away recklessly, crashing fatally. Elvira was the second person in that public room, overhearing the conversation between her mother and Gorman. She thinks it invalidates Sedgwick's marriage to Lord Coniston, and marks her as illegitimate and not the heiress. She wants to be wealthy so Ladislaus will marry her. However, her father's will names her explicitly, information she never learned.
Miss Marple is not convinced Bess killed Gorman. She believes that Elvira killed him. Davy agrees and will not let her get away with the murder.
The story revolves around Dr. Peter S. Murphy and his clinic El Healtho where he treats alcoholics.
The story follows a young man named Ryo Takatsuki, who at the beginning of the series believes that he was in an accident causing his right arm to be severed from his body. However, as the story progresses, it is revealed that he was actually a test subject for experiments involving genetics and an "ARMS" nanomachine implant, along with three other youths: Hayato Shingu, Takeshi Tomoe and Kei Kuruma. They all meet under strange circumstances and after many battles they set off on a journey to rescue Ryo's girlfriend Katsumi Akagi, who is kidnapped by the Egrigori, an immense organization founded by Keith White and Doctor Samuel Tillinghast, that operates in the shadows and has bases, research facilities, and agents all over the world, and are the creators of the ARMS technology.
Ray and Polly Cutler, on a delayed honeymoon at Niagara Falls, find their reserved cabin occupied by George and Rose Loomis. Rose tells them that George is asleep and has recently been discharged from an Army mental hospital after his war service in Korea. The Cutlers politely but reluctantly accept another, less desirable cabin, and so the two couples become acquainted.
George and Rose have a very troubled and volatile marriage. She is younger and very attractive. He is jealous, depressed and irritable. While touring the Falls the following day, Polly sees Rose passionately kissing another man, her lover Patrick.
That evening, the Cutlers witness George's rage. Rose joins an impromptu party and requests that a particular record be played. George storms out of their cabin and breaks the record, suspecting the song has a secret meaning for Rose. Seeing that George has cut his hand with the record, Polly visits his room to apply mercurochrome and bandages. George confides that he was a sheep rancher whose luck turned for the worse after he married Rose, whom he met when she was a barmaid.
What George does not know is that Rose and Patrick are planning to murder him at one of the Niagara Falls tourist sites. The next day, Rose lures George into following her to the dark tourist tunnel underneath the Falls, where Patrick is waiting to kill him. To let Rose know that George is dead, Patrick will request the Rainbow Tower Carillon play Rose's special song "Kiss". When she hears the tune being played on the carillon bells, Rose concludes George is dead.
In fact, it is George who has killed Patrick, thrown his body into the Falls, and collected Patrick's shoes at the exit instead of his own. This leads the police to believe that George is the victim. The body is retrieved and the police bring Rose to identify George's body. When the cover is lifted from the face and she recognizes the dead man, she collapses before saying anything and is admitted to the hospital.
The motel manager moves the Cutlers' belongings to the Loomises' cabin. George comes to the cabin looking for Rose but finds Polly sleeping there instead. She wakes and sees him before he runs away. She tells the police, who launch a dragnet. During the Cutlers' second visit to the Falls, George finds Polly alone for a moment. Trying to escape, she slips, but he saves her from falling over the edge into the waterfall torrent. He explains to her that he killed Patrick in self-defense and begs her to "let me stay dead". Polly leaves without answering. Later that day, she tells the police detective that she believes George is alive. George has the carillon play "Kiss" again to panic Rose, who flees the hospital, intending to cross the border back to the U.S. Finding George waiting at the border for her, she runs and tries to hide in the carillon bell tower. George catches her and strangles her beneath the bells, which remain silent. Realizing that he is locked in he sits down next to her. Remorsefully he says, "I loved you, Rose. You know that."
The Cutlers go fishing with Ray's boss and his wife in a launch on a section of the Niagara River above the Falls. When the boat moors in Chippawa for gasoline and other supplies, George steals it with Polly on board. She tells him to give himself up as it was self-defense, but he tells her he can't because he's killed Rose. The police set out in pursuit. The boat runs out of gas and drifts towards the Falls. As they near the edge, George scuttles the boat to slow it down and manages to get Polly onto a large rock before he goes over the Falls to his death. Polly is rescued from the rock by a helicopter.
The ''Enterprise'' enters the neutral zone, to investigate the distress call of a Talarian freighter. The freighter is badly damaged, and three life forms are detected aboard. An away team beams over and finds three Klingons: Korris (Vaughn Armstrong); Konmel (Charles Hyman); and Kunivas (Robert Bauer), who is wounded. The away team returns with them to the ''Enterprise'' before the freighter explodes. Kunivas is taken to sickbay and Korris meets with Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart). The Klingon explains that they were passengers when the freighter was attacked by a Ferengi ship; the Klingons took over the freighter to fend off and destroy the Ferengi ship, but the damage sustained left the freighter adrift and faltering. As Korris and Konmel are shown to quarters, they are surprised to hear about a fellow Klingon, Lt. Worf (Michael Dorn), who is serving within Starfleet.
Meanwhile, Kunivas' condition worsens; Korris, Konmel, and Worf are present when he dies. The three let out a fierce roar as per Klingon custom (a warning to the dead that a Klingon warrior is about to arrive). As they return to the Klingons' quarters, Konmel is disappointed that Kunivas was not killed by an enemy, leading Worf to question the nature of the attack on the freighter; Korris and Konmel quickly change the subject. Worf forces Korris to reveal the truth: the three had commandeered the freighter, in order to seek out a place they could live as true Klingons, and the damage to the freighter was a result of a battle with a Klingon ship. When the two are seen near the ship's battle bridge, hoping to steal the drive section and escape, they are placed in the brig.
The ''Enterprise'' is soon met by a Klingon battlecruiser, captained by Commander K'Nera (David Froman), who demands the return of the fugitive Klingons. Knowing that Korris and Konmel will be tried and executed if they are returned, Worf argues instead for their exile to a hostile planet, but K'Nera refuses. Korris and Konmel use parts secreted on their uniforms to assemble a disruptor pistol and escape from the brig; Konmel is killed as Korris takes over the Engineering deck. Picard and Worf race to Engineering, and Worf tries to reason with Korris who is threatening to destroy the warp core and take the ''Enterprise'' with him. Korris attempts to persuade Worf to come with him and conquer the galaxy as a true Klingon, but Worf retorts that a true Klingon fights out of honor and loyalty, and that Korris has demonstrated neither. Korris is enraged, and Worf takes the opportunity to shoot him dead. K'Nera is told of the deaths of the fugitives, and Worf declares that they "died well" when asked of their manner of death. Worf agrees to consider an offer to serve aboard the Klingon battlecruiser after his service aboard the ''Enterprise'' is complete, but when communications with K'Nera are broken off, he assures the bridge crew he was just being polite.
When the Chant children, Gwendolen and Eric (known as “Cat") are orphaned after their parents die in a boating accident, Gwendolen petitions Chrestomanci to let them live at Chrestomanci Castle where she can further her magical training under the tutelage of the world's most powerful enchanter. But when Chrestomanci fails to express interest or awe in her skill, spoiled Gwendolen devises a series of nasty tricks that result in Chrestomanci's removal of her magic. The next morning, Gwendolen has disappeared and a confused lookalike named Janet has taken her place.
Working to hide Gwendolen's disappearance, Cat and Janet are forced to contend with many complications Gwendolen left in her wake, and Cat must come to terms with his sister's abandonment and his denial of her exploitive nature. Adapting to her new and unexpected environment, Janet quickly realises the scope of Gwendolen's cruelty when she discovers a book of nine matches, five of which are already burnt. When Cat foolishly strikes a match and finds himself engulfed by flames, Janet's suspicions are confirmed: Cat, who has always believed himself utterly lacking in magical ability, is actually a nine-lived enchanter and is thus destined one day to take over the office of Chrestomanci, and Gwendolen has been leeching Cat's magic and wasting his lives to fuel her own magic.
When Gwendolen returns with a group of fellow magical insurgents intent on destroying Chrestomanci, Eric must face his sister and reclaim his powers to save himself and his friends.
The narrator of the story, Alexander Craigie, is a professor of logic who teaches at the University of Lahore in India, although he himself is of Scottish descent. He states that, since childhood, he has been fascinated by tigers, and when he hears of reports that a brilliantly colored blue tiger has been seen in the Ganges delta, he sets out to investigate.
The narrator arrives at a village in rural India where the reports seem to have originated. The village elders are at first suspicious of his presence, but when he explains that the purpose of his visit is to capture the blue tiger, they are relieved. That night, he is awakened by the villagers who claim to have spotted the tiger, but when they take him to the scene, it is gone. After this happens several nights in a row, the narrator realizes that the people of the village are inventing these stories of sightings for his benefit, and begins to wonder if the tiger even exists. He begins to sense that these people have some other secret which they are keeping from him.
One afternoon, the narrator suggests exploring the jungle-clad hill at whose foot the village is built. The villagers, in consternation, exclaim that the hill is sacred and terrible things will happen to anyone who sets foot on it. Craigie does not argue, but late that night, he leaves his hut and goes to climb the hill for himself.
By the time he reaches the summit of the hill, it is close to dawn, and although the sky is beginning to brighten, not a single bird is singing. Although by this point he doubts whether the blue tiger exists, he instinctively looks down at the ground for tracks.
In a crevice in the ground, he catches sight of a color: a brilliant blue color, the same one as the tiger of his dreams. Amazed, he looks more closely and finds that it is filled with small stones, all alike, so smooth and circular they seem more like buttons or coins than something natural. He puts a handful of the stones in his pocket and returns to the village.
Back in his hut the next morning, the narrator takes the stones out of his pocket, only to find that there are between thirty and forty of them, far more than he picked up initially. He piles them up on the table and tries to count them, but finds to his astonishment that this is impossible. The disks seem to multiply, so that when he tries to separate one from all the rest, it becomes many. No matter how many times he repeats this experiment, the "obscene miracle" keeps recurring; and finding himself seized by a sort of terror, he scoops them all up at once and throws them out the window, somehow realizing in the process that their number has dwindled again.
The villagers soon discover the stones, of whose existence they were aware (they call them "the stones that spawn"), and realize where Craigie has been. Some of them are superstitiously terrified, but others are curious, and for a time he shows them off, demonstrating how their numbers mysteriously multiply and dwindle. Soon, however, he too feels a sort of revulsion and ceases the demonstration, returning to his hut. The more time passes, the more he becomes obsessed, consumed with what he describes as the monstrousness of these stones that cannot be counted. He begins to wish that he was mad, since he feels that would be preferable to the discovery that the universe itself can tolerate this sort of irrationality.
Becoming fearful that the villagers may try to murder him for having profaned their secret, Craigie returns to Lahore, but finds no relief from his growing obsession with the blue stones, which begin to haunt his dreams as well as his days. He performs experiments that involve marking the stones by cutting holes or lines in them; the marked stones vanish when the quantity changes, sometimes reappearing later, sometimes disappearing forever. He performs countless experiments, dividing the stones into groups and trying to determine some pattern in the way their numbers vary, but his efforts are fruitless; there is no order to them that he can determine.
After a month he abandons his efforts, and during a sleepless night and dawn he walks through the gates of a mosque. Not knowing why, he dips his hands in the fountain and prays to be freed from his burden. He hears no footsteps, but suddenly a beggar is there, a blind man who asks for alms. Craigie says that he has no coins, but the beggar insists that he has many. Understanding, Craigie gives him the stones, and the beggar says that he will give him a gift in return: "You may keep your days and nights, and keep wisdom, habits, the world."
As silently as he appeared, the beggar vanishes into the dawn, taking the stones with him.
Mr. Wilson is an agent of the United Nations War Crimes Commission who is hunting for Nazi fugitive Franz Kindler, a war criminal who has erased all evidence which might identify him. He has left no clue to his identity except "a hobby that almost amounts to a mania—clocks."
Wilson releases Kindler's former associate Meinike, hoping the man will lead him to Kindler. Wilson follows Meinike to a small town in Connecticut, but loses him before he meets with Kindler. Kindler has assumed a new identity as "Charles Rankin", and has become a teacher at a local prep school. He is about to marry Mary Longstreet, daughter of Supreme Court Justice Adam Longstreet, and is involved in repairing the town's 400-year-old Habrecht-style clock mechanism with religious automata that crowns the belfry of a church in the town square.
Meinike attacks Wilson, leaving him for dead, and meets Kindler. Meinike is repentant and has become a Christian, and begs Kindler to confess his own crimes. Instead, Kindler strangles Meinike, who might expose him.
Wilson begins investigating newcomers to the small town. Due to Rankin and Mary's marriage, he does not suspect Rankin—until Rankin says conversationally that since Karl Marx was a Jew, he was not a German. Even so, not having witnessed the meeting with Meinike, he still has no proof. Only Mary knows that Meinike came to meet her husband. To get her to admit this, Wilson must convince her that her husband is a criminal—before Kindler decides to eliminate the threat to him by killing her. Kindler's facade begins to unravel when Red, the family dog, discovers Meinike's body. To further protect his secret, Kindler poisons Red.
Meanwhile, Mary begins to suspect her husband is not being honest with her. He admits to killing Meinike and Red, but claims Meinike was in town to blackmail her and her father. Mary still loves him and wants to protect him in any way she can; she helps by lying about Meinike. Then Wilson shows her graphic footage of Nazi concentration camps and explains how Kindler developed the idea of genocide. She is torn between her love and her desire to learn the truth. Meanwhile, Kindler tries to arrange a fatal "accident" for Mary, but she discovers the plot. Finally accepting the truth, she dares her husband to kill her face to face. Kindler tries, but is prevented by the arrival of Wilson and Mary's brother, and escapes from the house.
Kindler flees into the church belfry, followed by Mary and then Wilson. Meanwhile most of the town, hearing the repaired clock bell, has arrived outside the building. At the top of the tower, Kindler pulls a gun and a struggle ensues. Mary ends up with the gun and fires. The clock is damaged and begins running away; Kindler is shot. He staggers outside to the belfry's clock face, and is impaled by the sword of one of the moving clock figures. Weakened by his injuries, he falls to his death.
, right) interviews Dr. Nox (Jean Aymé, left) in "The Severed Head".
Philippe Guérande (Édouard Mathé), a reporter working for the newspaper "Mondial" who is investigating a criminal organisation called the Vampires, receives a telegram at work stating that the decapitated body of the national security agent in charge of the Vampire investigations, Inspector Durtal, was found in the swamps near Saint-Clement-Sur-Cher, with the head missing. Being turned down by the local magistrate (Thelès), he spends the night in a nearby castle owned by Dr. Nox (Jean Aymé), an old friend of his father, along with Mrs. Simpson (Rita Herlor), an American multimillionaire who desires the property. After waking up in the night, Philippe finds a note in his pocket saying "Give up your search, otherwise bad luck awaits you! – The Vampires", and discovers a mysterious passage behind a painting in his room. Meanwhile, Mrs. Simpson's money and jewels are stolen in her sleep by a masked thief, but Philippe is suspected of the crime. Philippe again visits the magistrate, who now believes his case, and they trick Dr. Nox and Mrs. Simpson into waiting in an anteroom. At the castle, Philippe and the magistrate find the head of Inspector Durtal hidden in the passage in Philippe's room. Back in the anteroom, they find that Mrs. Simpson is dead and that Dr. Nox has vanished. Her pocket contains a note from the Grand Vampire saying that he has murdered the real Dr. Nox and is now assuming his identity.
in "The Ring That Kills"
Grand Vampire in disguise as Count de Noirmoutier, reads that ballerina Marfa Koutiloff (Stacia Napierkowska), who is engaged to Philippe, will perform a ballet called ''The Vampires''. To prevent her from publicizing the Vampires' activities and to deter Philippe, he gives Marfa a poisoned ring before her performance, which kills her onstage. Amidst the panicking crowds Philippe recognizes the Grand Vampire and follows him to an abandoned fort and is captured by the gang. They agree to interrogate Philippe at midnight and execute him at dawn. Philippe finds that the Vampire guarding him is one of his co-workers, Oscar-Cloud Mazamette (Marcel Lévesque). They decide to work together and capture the Grand Inquisitor when he arrives at midnight. They bind and hood the Grand Inquisitor, and set him up for execution in place of Phillipe. At dawn the Vampires arrive for the execution, but the police raid the lair. The Vampires escape, but as they flee they mistakenly execute their own Grand Inquisitor, who turns out to be the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
) singing in the "Howling Cat" nightclub in "The Red Codebook". While faking illness to get off work, Philippe tries to decode a red booklet that he lifted from the Grand Inquisitor's body, which contains the crimes of the Vampires. He discovers that his house is under surveillance by the Vampires, so he leaves in disguise. Following clues in the booklet he arrives at "The Howling Cat" night club. Performing there is Irma Vep (Musidora), whose name Philippe sees is an anagram for vampire. After her act, the Grand Vampire assigns Irma to retrieve the red booklet. As Philippe returns home Mazamette arrives, along with a poison pen he stole from the Grand Vampire. A few days later, Irma arrives at their house disguised as a new maid, but Philippe recognizes her. She tries to poison him, but fails. His mother (Delphine Renot) leaves to meet her brother after receiving word that he has been in a car accident, but it turns out to be a trap and she is captured by the Vampires. While Philippe is asleep, Irma lets another Vampire into his home but he shoots them. They escape, however, because his gun was loaded with blanks. In a shack in the slums, Philippe's mother is held by Father Silence (Louis Leubas), a deaf-mute, and is forced to sign a ransom note, but she kills him with Mazamette's poison pen and escapes.
The Grand Vampire, under the alias of a real estate broker "Treps", meets Juan-José Moréno (Fernand Herrmann), a businessman, who asks for an apartment with a safe. The Grand Vampire puts Moréno into an apartment whose safe is rigged to be opened from the rear through the party wall of an apartment belonging to Irma Vep and the Grand Vampire. However, the case Moréno places inside contains the Vampires’ black attire. Later, in disguise as bank secretary "Juliette Bertaux", Irma learns that a man called Mr. Metadier has to bring ₣300,000 to another branch. In the event that he is unable to make the delivery, Irma will. Soon afterward, Mr. Metadier is murdered by the Vampires and his body thrown from a train. When Irma is about to take the money for him a spectre of Mr. Metadier appears and takes it instead. The Grand Vampire pursues the spectre, who escapes down a manhole. Later that day, Mme. Metadier appears at the bank, saying she hasn’t seen her husband in days. They also find out that the money hasn’t been delivered. Philippe learns of this and goes to the bank in disguise. Recognizing the secretary as Irma, he finds her address and a few hours later sneaks in, using Mazamette as a ploy. Irma and the Grand Vampire open the safe from their side, only to find Metadier's body and the money. Philippe tries to capture them but is knocked down and they escape. Philippe calls the police just as Moréno enters and finds his safe opened from the other side. He walks through and is caught by Philippe. Moréno is revealed to be another criminal in disguise, and claims not to have killed Metadier, but to have found his body by the train tracks where the Vampires had dumped it. Moréno found Metadier's letter of authority on his corpse, took Metadier's body home, disguised himself as Metadier, put the body in his safe, assumed Metadier's identity, took the money, and put it too in his safe. The upshot is that the money is now in the Vampires' possession. The police arrive and arrest Moréno.
The examining magistrate from Saint-Clement-Sur-Cher relocates to Paris and is assigned to the Vampire case and the Moréno affair. After being summoned to the magistrate, Moréno commits suicide using a concealed cyanide capsule. His body is left in his cell, but during the night he wakes up, very much alive. He kills the night-watchman and takes his clothes, escaping from the prison. He is noticed by Mazamette, who is suffering from insomnia. The following morning, Moréno is found to have escaped. While writing an account of the events, Philippe is pulled out of his window by the Vampires and whisked into a large costume box. He is driven away and the box is unloaded, but incompetently, and it slides down a large flight of stairs. The Vampires retreat and Philippe is let out by two bystanders. He visits the costume designer Pugenc whose name and box number (13) are on the costume box, just missing Moréno and his gang who have bought police uniforms for a scheme of their own. Philippe learns from Pugenc that the costume box was to go to Baron de Mortesalgues on Maillot Avenue, and realizes that "Mortesalgues" must be another alias of the Grand Vampire. Later, Moréno confronts Philippe in a café, but when Philippe calls for the nearby policemen, they turn out to be part of Moréno's gang and he is again captured. Meanwhile, Mazamette breaks into Moréno's hideout. Philippe is taken there to be hanged by the gang, unless he can give them means to revenge themselves against the Vampires. He tells them that Baron de Mortesalgues is the Grand Vampire, and they spare him, tying him up. Mazamette appears and frees him. That evening, the Grand Vampire, in disguise as Baron de Mortesalgues, holds a party for his "niece", who is Irma Vep in disguise. The party attracts many members of the Parisian aristocracy. "Mortesalgues" reveals that at midnight there will be a surprise; but the "surprise" is a sleeping-gas attack on the guests. The Vampires steal all of the guests' valuables while they are unconscious. The Vampires flee with the stolen items on the top of their car, but Moréno, forewarned by Philippe, robs the Vampires and sends Philippe a letter telling him that, for the moment, they are even. Mazamette visits Philippe; he is angry with their lack of progress and wants to quit. Philippe opens a book of ''La Fontaine's Fables'' and points to the line, "in all things, one must take the end into account", and Mazamette's resolve is renewed.
) confronts Irma Vep in "Hypnotic Eyes".
Fifteen days have passed since the events at Maillot. Moréno is looking for clues to lead him to the Vampires, and reads in a paper that a Fontainebleau notary has been murdered by them; as he happens to possess a gaze with a terrible hypnotic power, he takes control of his new maid, Laura, to turn her into his slave. Meanwhile, Philippe and Mazamette happen to see a newsreel on the murder inquest, in which they spot Irma Vep and the Grand Vampire. They cycle to Fontainebleau to investigate. En route they spot an American tourist, Horatio Werner, riding fast into the forest, and follow him. He places a box under one of the boulders, and they take it. The Grand Vampire, who is staying in the Royal Hunt Hotel under the pseudonym of Count Kerlor, along with Irma in disguise as his son, Viscount Guy, reads in a paper that George Baldwin (Émile Keppens), an American millionaire, has been robbed of $200,000. Whoever can capture the criminal, Raphael Norton, who has fled to Europe with the actress Ethel Florid, will be awarded the unspent balance of the loot. "Kerlor" notices that Mr and Mrs. Werner, who are staying at the hotel, are distressed by this notice, and concludes that Mr. Werner is Raphael Norton. Philippe and Mazamette arrive at the hotel and find that the Vampires are based there. In a different hotel they force open the box and find Baldwin's stolen money inside. Moréno comes to the Royal Hunt in disguise. While the Grand Vampire tells the hotel guests a story, Irma breaks into the Werners' suite, finding a map leading to the box in the forest. When she leaves, she is captured and chloroformed by Moréno, who takes the map. While his gang take Irma away, he dresses his hypnotized maid, Laura, as Irma and tells her to give the Vampires the map. Once one of the Vampires (Miss Édith) follows the map to get the treasure, Moréno's gang ambushes her, only to find that Philippe has already taken it. Moreno demands that the Grand Vampire ransom Irma Vep. In the early morning, the police raid the hotel and find that Werner is actually Norton, so Philippe and Mazamette win the money. Moréno falls in love with Irma and decides not to return her to the Grand Vampire. Instead, he hypnotizes her and causes her to write a confession of her involvement in the murders of the Fontainbleau notary (in this episode), Metadier (episode 4), the ballerina Marfa Koutiloff (episode 2), and Dr. Nox (episode 1). The Grand Vampire comes to meet Moréno, but Moréno by hypnotic command compels Irma to kill him. The episode ends with the now-wealthy Mazamette informing a dozen adoring journalists that "although vice is seldom punished, virtue is always rewarded".
Irma Vep and Juan-José Moréno in the "Happy Shack" cabaret in "Satanas" A mysterious man (Louis Leubas) arrives at Moréno's home, and shows that he knows that the Grand Vampire's body is inside a trunk. Moréno tries to get rid of him, but he is paralysed by a pin in the man's glove. The man reveals himself to be the true Grand Vampire, Satanas, and that the first was a subordinate. While at a cabaret called the "Happy Shack", Moréno and Irma receive a note from Satanas saying they will see proof of his power at two o'clock. At two he fires a powerful cannon at the "Happy Shack", largely destroying it. Meanwhile, Philippe decides to visit Mazamette, but he is out "chasing the girls." He hides as Mazamette arrives home, drunk, with two women and a friend, who he later chases out angrily at gunpoint. The next morning, Irma and Moréno go to Satanas’ home to surrender, and Satanas offers them the chance to work with him, informing them that American millionaire George Baldwin is stopping at the Park Hotel. Satanas wants Baldwin's signature. One of Moréno's accomplices, Lily Flower (Suzanne Delvé), goes to the Park Hotel and poses as an interviewer from "Modern Woman" magazine and through trickery gets Baldwin to sign a blank piece of paper. Afterwards, Irma enters and dupes Baldwin into recording his voice saying "Parisian women are the most charming I've ever seen, all right!" Lily Flower brings Baldwin's signature to Moréno's home, and Moréno writes out an order (over Baldwin's signature) to pay Lily Flower $100,000. Moréno's gang seize the hotel telephone operator of Baldwin's hotel; Irma takes her place by using a forged note. When the bank cashier calls Baldwin to confirm that he has given a very large draft to an attractive Parisian woman, Irma intercepts the call, and plays the recording she made of Baldwin's voice, and the cashier is persuaded. While Lily Flower is taking the money, Mazamette comes in, recognising her as his old squeeze from the "Happy Shack", and follows her, seeing her hand the money to a man in a taxi – Moréno! Moréno gives Satanas the money, but he is given it back as a present. Philippe and Mazamette capture Lily Flower at her home and make her call Moréno and tell him to come, but when he and Irma arrive they fall into a trap and are caught by the police.
in "The Thunder Master" Satanas (Louis Leubas) assembles a bomb in "The Thunder Master".
Irma, sentenced to life imprisonment, has been sent to St. Lazarus’ prison. A transfer order is sent to the prison to send Irma to a penal colony in Algeria. On the day of her departure, Irma finds out that Moréno has been executed. Satanas follows Irma's transportation route, stopping at a seaside hotel in disguise as a priest. At the port, he gives some religious comfort to the prisoners, but Irma's copy contains a secret message saying "the ship will blow up" and giving her directions on how to safeguard herself. Satanas destroys the ship with his cannon. Meanwhile, Philippe finds through the red codebook that the explosive shell that landed on the "Happy Shack" came from Montmartre, and Mazamette goes to investigate. His son, Eustache Mazamette (René Poyen), is sent home from school for bad behaviour, so they go to "investigate" together. They find some men loading boxes into a house, and notice one of the top hat cases contains a shell. Later, reading that no survivors have been found from the exploding ship, Satanas visits Philippe to avenge Irma's death. Satanas paralyses Phillipe with the poisoned pin in his glove and leaves a bomb in a top hat to kill him off. Mazamette arrives and throws the top hat out the window just in time. At Satanas’ home, Eustache is used as a ploy to hide Mazamette in a box, but Satanas sees this through a spy-hole. Satanas threatens Eustache, but Eustache shoots at Satanas, and the police raid the building and arrest him. After the action, they find that Mazamette's nose has been broken by Eustache's shot. Meanwhile, Irma is shown to have survived the blast on the ship, and is on her way back to Paris as a stowaway under a train. She is helped by the station staff and police, pretending that she is in "one of those eternal love stories beloved by popular imagination." She makes her way to the Vampire hangout, the "Howling Cat" nightclub, where she performs, and is rapturously greeted by the Vampires. Upon hearing of the arrest of Satanas, one of the Vampires, Venomous (Frederik Moriss), appoints himself the new chief. By Satanas’ orders, they mail him an envelope containing a poisoned note, which he eats to commit suicide.
Venomous (Frederik Moriss) plotting against Philippe in "The Poisoner" Irma Vep waiting for rescue in "The Poisoner" Irma is now a devoted collaborator of Venomous, who is set on getting rid of Philippe and Mazamette. He learns that Philippe is engaged to Jane Bremontier (Louise Lagrange), and the following day Irma and Lily Flower rent an apartment above hers. Irma's maid, a Vampire also, hears that Philippe and Jane's engagement party will be catered for by the famous Béchamel House. Venomous cancels their catering order, and on the day of the party the Vampires appear instead. Jane's mother (Jeanne Marie-Laurent) gives the concierges one bottle of the Vampires' champagne as a present, and just as dinner is served the male concierge, Leon Charlet, drinks it, is poisoned and dies. His wife stops the party guests from drinking their champagne just in time, and the Vampires make a hasty escape. A few days later, Mazamette and Philippe's mother pick up Jane and her mother in the night in order to take them to a safe retreat near Fontainebleau. Irma, who tries to fill the getaway car with soporific gas, is spotted by Mazamette, but Irma gasses him, and he is taken away asleep while Irma hides in a box on the car. Mazamette is dumped on the street and taken to the police station, believed to be drunk. When he wakens, he calls Philippe to warn him, but Irma slips out of the box and gets away in the car before Philippe can catch her. Irma jumps off the car near the Pyramid Hotel, and calls Venomous to meet her there, but Philippe has also arranged to meet Mazamette there. Philippe spots Irma at the Pyramid Hotel, captures her and ties her up. Philippe and Mazamette leave Irma in Mazamette's car and attempt to ambush Venomous, but Irma honks the car horn to warn him. Venomous saves Irma and drives off in Mazamette's car, so Philippe and Mazamette chase him in his. Venomous leaps off; Philippe chases Venomous on foot, following him onto the top of a moving train, but Venomous gets away. Mazamette, enraged at the police for not letting him help Philippe on the train, hits one of the officers, who arrest him. At the police station, Philippe and Mazamette carry on so dramatically that the police decide not to book Mazamette, who is after all a famous philanthropist. But the Vampires are still on the loose.
A few months have passed, and Philippe and Jane are now married. Augustine Charlet (Germaine Rouer), widow of the poisoned concierge, is hired by the Guérandes to be their chamber maid. Augustine, still tormented by the mysterious poisoning death of her husband, receives an advertising circular for a psychic, Madame d’Alba of 13 Avenue Junot, and decides to consult her. Madame d’Alba, a Vampire, hypnotises Augustine and instructs her to unlock the door of Philippe's apartment at 2 am. Mazamette, who has taken an attraction to Augustine, awakens that night and sees her descend the stairs to unlock the door. The Vampires enter, tie her up, and feed poisonous gas into the Guérandes’ room. Mazamette shoots at them and they flee, and Augustine explains her actions. As they go to the police, Venomous tries to break in through a bedroom window, but Jane shoots at him. When she looks out the window she is lassoed down and carried away. At daybreak, the police raid Avenue Junot; however Irma and Venomous escape through the roof and a bomb is left behind. Augustine is recaptured by the Vampires during their escape. Mazamette shoots at the getaway car, causing an oil leak. Philippe follows the trail to the Vampires’ lair and discovers Augustine and Jane, to whom he passes a gun before leaving. Returning at night, he sets up an escape during the celebration of Irma's marriage to Venomous. At daybreak, the police prepare for a massive raid as the party continues. The police burst in and a running gun battle ensues, ending when the remaining Vampires (save Irma) are driven out onto the balcony which Philippe earlier rigged and are killed in the fall. Irma prepares to kill Jane and Augustine, but Jane shoots her dead. A few days later Mazamette makes a proposal of marriage to Augustine, which she accepts. The film ends with the two couples (Philippe and Jane, and Mazamette and Augustine) standing side by side.
The plot follows Kirby, a resident of Dream Land. The Rainbow Bridges that connect the seven Rainbow Islands have been stolen by an evil force called Dark Matter, who has possessed King Dedede, intent on conquering Dream Land. Kirby sets out to defeat Dark Matter, accompanied by three new animal friends. After traveling through seven different islands, Kirby reaches the possessed King Dedede and defeats him.
If the player had previously collected all seven Rainbow Drops from each of the islands, they form into the Rainbow Sword and exorcise Dark Matter from the defeated Dedede. Holding the mystic object, Kirby follows Dark Matter in a final showdown. He defeats Dark Matter and uses the sword to create a new rainbow, thus restoring peace to Dream Land.
The Inquisition (The Holy Orders of the Emperor's Inquisition) is an organisation in the fictional Warhammer 40,000 universe. They act as the secret police of the Imperium, hunting down any and all threats to the stability of the God-Emperor's realm. In the first trilogy, the titular character is Inquisitor Gregor Eisenhorn, a member of the Ordo Xenos (a division of the Inquisition devoted to hunting aliens, though they also uphold the Inquisition's creed of prosecuting "enemies of the state"), as he begins his descent into radicalism and association with daemonhosts and dark sorcery. The second trilogy is focused around Eisenhorn's former student, Inquisitor Gideon Ravenor, also of the Ordo Xenos, as he battles a powerful nemesis and seeks to defeat a conspiracy involving high Imperial officials. The third trilogy will be centred around Alizebeth Bequin, an "untouchable" (anti-psychic, or psychic blank) who had been a long-time, trusted member of Eisenhorn's inner circle.
The ''Gaunt's Ghosts'' series follows Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt and the army of Tanith from the creation of the Tanith Regiment of the Imperial Guard and its abandonment of their planet before the destruction of it at the hands of invading Chaos legions. The stories follow the many adventures of the Tanith "First and Only" regiment as they seek to prove themselves. Things are complicated by dissension against their commander, Gaunt, for not letting them die alongside their brethren at the destruction of their planet.
The ''Space Wolves'' series follows the history of Ragnar Blackmane, a young warrior who has to prove himself in combat who later becomes a fierce leader of the Space Wolves. Not only does he battle against the enemies of the Imperium, he also battles against their fellow Space Marines, the Dark Angels, which stems from a long time feud about which is the superior army.
Captain of the Blood Angels, Leonatos was given a weapon called "Encarmine," the "Sword of Belarius," as a prize for his prowess as a warrior and for the accomplishments of his men on the battlefield. However, Garshul the Destroyer, an Ork, manages to capture the weapon, causing Leonatos to be dishonoured and then exiled. He wanders with his fellow soldiers as they try to regain their honour by hunting down the sword.
This takes them to the world of Eidolon, but they crash land on the wrong side. They are forced to battle the forces of Chaos that control the planet. They must battle against the armies of each Chaos god that control a separate continent in their path so they can finally regain their treasured weapon and their honour so they could be welcomed back once again amongst their brethren.
Ephrael Stern was a Seraphim ranked Sister for the Order of Our Martyred Lady. Mysteriously, she was the sole survivor out of 12,000 that was sent to the planet Parnis in order to battle a daemonic infestation. Inquisitor Silas Hand originally was sent to identify if she was tainted by Chaos and if that was the reason for her survival. While being locked up and awaiting the Inquisitor's arrival, Stern was attacked by possessed individuals. She removed the demons from the individuals, and these actions combined with Silas Hand's investigation's inability to psychically look through her mind and detect traces of daemonic taint upon her lead to no conclusion. Hand was forced to return with her to the planet Parnis in order to figure out her role in the destruction of her Sisters.
During the return, their vessel's navigator was possessed by Chaos destroyed their ship the "Hammer of Thor." Escaping, both Hand and Stern were able to land upon the surface, but they were the sole survivors. Shortly after landing upon the planet, they were soon confronted the Daemon Q'tlahsi'issho'akshami. Only Stern managed to live through the battle, and she is now hunted by the Ordo Malleus to be brought in for questioning. Only Stern knows what happened to Silas Hand, what happened to the Daemon, and what the forces of Chaos were doing on the planet.
The Imperial Guard's division titled the "10th Slavok Regiment" are abandoned on the ice-planet Shadrac, which is currently controlled by a Tyranid invasion. Sergeant Poul Marlin narrates the travels of the remaining squads of soldiers as they struggle against hunger, the elements, and the aliens who want to devour them. Joined by the Space Wolves led by Skold Greypelt, the Slavok 10th are able to stand against constant attacks and perform deeds of heroism.
Set in New Jersey during the Great Depression in 1935, the film tells the story of Cecilia (Mia Farrow), a clumsy waitress who goes to the movies to escape her bleak life and loveless, abusive marriage to Monk (Danny Aiello), whom she has attempted to leave on numerous occasions.
The latest film Cecilia sees is a fictitious RKO Radio Pictures film, ''The Purple Rose of Cairo''. It is the story of a rich Manhattan playwright named Henry (Edward Herrmann) who goes on an exotic vacation to Egypt with companions Jason (John Wood) and Rita (Deborah Rush). While in Egypt, the three meet archaeologist Tom Baxter (Jeff Daniels). Tom is brought back for a "madcap Manhattan weekend" where he falls head-over-heels for Kitty Haynes (Karen Akers), a chanteuse at the Copacabana.
After Cecilia sits through the film several times, Tom, noticing her, breaks the fourth wall, and emerges from the inner film's black-and-white world into the full-color real world on the other side of the cinema screen. He tells Cecilia that he is attracted to her after noticing her watching him so many times, and she takes him around her New Jersey town. Later, he takes her into the film and they have a great evening in the town within the film. The two fall in love. But between these two events, the character's defection from the film has caused some problems. In other copies of the film, others have tried to exit the screen. The producer of the film learns that Tom has left the film, and he flies cross-country to New Jersey with actor Gil Shepherd (Jeff Daniels) (the "real life" actor playing the part of Tom in the movie). This sets up an unusual love triangle involving Tom, Gil, and Cecilia. Cecilia must choose between them and she decides to choose the real person of Gil rather than the fantasy figure of Tom. She gives up the chance to return with Tom to his world, choosing to stay with Gil and have a 'real' life. Then she finally leaves her husband.
But Gil's professions of love for Cecilia were false— he wooed her only to get Tom to return to the movie and thereby save his own Hollywood career. Gil abandons Cecilia and is seen quietly racked with guilt on his flight back to Hollywood. Having been left without a lover, job, or home, Cecilia ends up immersing herself in the frothy escapism of Hollywood once again by going to the movies. The final scene shows Cecilla sitting by herself in a theater watching Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers dancing to "Cheek-to-Cheek" in the movie ''Top Hat'', ultimately losing herself in the charm of the film.
Jim Carter, a former stoker, takes over a fairground show, run by 'Pop' McWade, which depicts scenes from Dante's Inferno. He marries Pop's niece Betty and they have a son, Alexander. Meanwhile, the show becomes a great success, with Carter making it larger and more lurid. An inspector declares the fair unsafe but Carter bribes him into silence. There is a partial collapse at the fair which injures Pop. Recovering in hospital, he admonishes Carter and we see a lengthy vision of the Inferno. Undeterred, Carter establishes a new venture with an unsafe floating casino, only for disaster to strike again at sea.
The events of the novel take place in the days of 1963 before and on the day of Uhuru, Kenya’s independence from colonial rule. The novel also features flashbacks of the past of the Kenya Colony including the villagization in the 1950s.
Mugo, an introverted villager of Thabai, does not want to give a speech at Uhuru, even though town elders ask him to. The village thinks him a hero for his stoicism and courage while he was in detention during Kenya’s State of Emergency, but he labors under a secret: he betrayed their beloved Mau Mau fighter, Kihika. He is restless and can achieve no peace in the village. Kihika had joined the Mau Mau as a young man and attained fame for capturing the police garrison at Mahee and killing the cruel District Officer (‘DO’) Robson, but after Mugo betrayed him in secret, he was captured and hanged. Those planning Uhuru want to honor him. Mugo had betrayed Kihika because he was unsettled by the young man’s zeal and because of the reward offered for his head, but as soon as he betrayed him he felt remorse. Most people, including General R. and Koina, two Mau Mau soldiers, believe Karanja was the one who betrayed Kihika. They plan on executing him at Uhuru.
Mugo was not the only man from Thabai who spent time in detention camp. Gikonyo, a well-respected businessman and former carpenter, was also taken to a camp. Before the camp he was very much in love with his beautiful wife Mumbi, the sister of Kihika. He had won her love even though many, including Karanja, a friend of Kihika, sought her love as well. He dreamt of her while he was away, and was horrified to find out that Mumbi had borne a child by Karanja during his imprisonment. He does not believe they can ever repair their relationship, and he throws himself into his work.
Karanja works at Githima, a Forest Research Station founded by the colonial government. He tries to cultivate the approval of the DO, John Thompson, who is stationed there with his wife Margery. Thompson was once destined for an illustrious career, but it was derailed by a hunger strike and violence at Rira, the camp where Mugo was. Now Thompson is at Githima, but is preparing to leave Kenya forever because he does not want to be around when whites are no longer in charge. Karanja did not join the freedom movement but rather started to work for the whiteman, first joining the Kikuyu Home Guard and then becoming Chief during the Emergency. This incurred a lot of resentment from people; however, Karanja was simply looking out for himself.
Mumbi, distressed that her husband no longer loves her, comes to see Mugo. She confides in him the story of how she and Gikonyo fell in love, and how sad she was when he was away in camp. She only fell for Karanja’s advances when she heard Gikonyo was returning and became deliriously happy. She begs Mugo to come to Uhuru; on a second visit to him, she begs him again. Mugo becomes violent and says he betrayed Kihika. Mumbi is shocked, but she does not want any more blood shed for her brother.
Uhuru arrives, the day first rainy and then sunny. People are joyful and all of them want to see Mugo, even though he has said he is not coming. There are games and speeches. There is also a spontaneous running race, and Gikonyo and Karanja find themselves competing with each other (much as they competed in a race for Mumbi’s attention long ago). They stumble, though, and Gikonyo breaks his arm and has to go to the hospital.
General R. gives a speech instead of Mugo and calls for the traitor to step forward, assuming it will be Karanja. Mugo comes out of the crowd and says it is he who did it; he feels a sense of freedom at first, quickly followed by terror. No one accosts him, and the confused crowd parts and lets him go.
Later, General R. and Koina come to arrest him and tell him he will have a private trial. Mugo makes peace with this, deciding he will accept his punishment.
Some of the village elders feel that Uhuru did not go well, and that there is something wrong.
Karanja heads back to Githima. He is unhappy and considers killing himself in front of a train. Ultimately, he decides against this.
Gikonyo wakes in the hospital and finds himself ready to make amends with Mumbi. When she visits him, he tells her he is ready to speak of the child he has assiduously ignored since he came back. She tells him it must wait until they can have a serious and heartfelt discussion of their wants and needs. He is happy, and plans to carve a stool featuring an image of a pregnant Mumbi.
Source documents compiled by insurance investigator Ralph Henderson are used to build a case against Baron "R___", who is suspected of murdering his wife. The baron's wife died from drinking a bottle of acid, apparently while sleepwalking in her husband's private laboratory.Staff writer (8 January 2011). [https://www.npr.org/2011/01/08/132760328/Who-Wrote-The-First-Detective-Novel "Who Wrote The First Detective Novel?"]. NPR. Retrieved 10 January 2011. Henderson's suspicions are raised when he learns that the baron recently had purchased five life insurance policies for his wife. As Henderson investigates the case, he discovers not one but three murders. The plot hinges on the dangers of mesmerism, a subject explored in fiction earlier by Isabella Frances Romer. Although the baron's guilt is clear to the reader even from the outset, how he did it remains a mystery. Eventually this is revealed, but how to catch him becomes the final challenge; he seems to have committed the perfect crime.
In September 1944, in the final moments Continuation War against the Soviet Union, Veikko (Ville Haapasalo), a Finnish soldier, is turned in by his German compatriots for being, in their eyes, a would-be deserter. As a punishment, the young man is placed in shackles, chained to a rock outcrop in a remote Lapland forest, left with nothing but a few supplies, a Karabiner 98k rifle and ammunition - effectively made a forced Kamikaze ''kukushka'' sniper. To ensure his willingness to fight, they dress him in the uniform of the German Waffen-SS, as Soviet soldiers felt little mercy towards SS men. Days pass, and after several failed attempts, Veikko succeeds in freeing himself and heads for safety, shackles still attached.
Meanwhile, Ivan (Viktor Bychkov), a captain in the Red Army accused of anti-Soviet correspondence, is arrested by the NKVD secret police. En route to his court martial, Soviet planes accidentally bomb the vehicle carrying the disgraced captain, killing the driver and Ivan's guard. Veikko, at this stage still chained to the rock, witnesses the bombing through his rifle scope.
Not far away is the farm of Anni (Anni-Kristiina Juuso), a Sámi reindeer farmer whose husband was taken away together with their whole reindeer herd by Germans four years earlier, never to return. Hungry and alone, the young and resourceful widow locates the bodies of Ivan and his captors while foraging for food. As she begins to bury the dead, Anni discovers that Ivan is still alive, but seriously hurt. She carries him to her wooden hut and nurses him back to health. Meanwhile, Veikko, in search of tools to remove his shackles, stumbles upon Anni’s farm.
Comic, and sometimes tragic, misunderstandings soon arise, resulting in a passionate and very human three-way relationship. Unable to communicate with the others and unaware that the war between the USSR and Finland is over, Ivan is convinced that Veikko is a German soldier gone astray. To Ivan, the German uniform the Finnish soldier was forced to wear is further proof. Ivan even refuses to tell his name to Veikko, answering only "''Poshol ty!''" («Пошёл ты!» "Get lost!") — as a result, the two others think his name is "Psholty". Veikko is unaware of Ivan’s hatred and just wants to cut off his shackles, return home and put the war behind him, but opts to stay on Anni's farm to avoid falling into enemy hands. The earthly and sensuous Anni, who has not been with a man in four years, could not be more delighted with her good fortune, disregarding the language barrier between them.
For Anni, Veikko and Ivan are not enemies, but just men. An uncommon and touching bond develops, as the three unlikely souls begin a domestic routine of hunting and gathering in preparation for the long Lapp winter. The two men do what they can to contribute to Anni’s well-being. Veikko builds a sauna and Ivan picks mushrooms. Veikko, Ivan and Anni communicate only with gestures. Starved for love and physical touch, Anni seduces young, strapping Veikko, much to the chagrin of jealous middle-aged Ivan.
Not long afterwards a Soviet biplane crashes in the forest near Anni’s hut, spilling leaflets announcing an armistice between Finland and the USSR. Veikko thinks he can finally return home safely, but Ivan – who does not understand Finnish – manages to find a pistol in the wreckage and, still convinced that Veikko is an enemy, shoots him when he seemingly tries to attack Ivan, really only trying to destroy his rifle. When Ivan reads the last line of the leaflet the plane was dropping (written in Russian and instructing Soviet soldiers to allow the Finns to return home unharmed), he realizes that the war is over. Ivan is torn with remorse and, stumbling, carries Veikko back to the farm.
The nurturing Anni brings Veikko back from the brink of death through a series of ancient Sami magic rituals. With Veikko bedridden, Anni’s needs for companionship and sexual longing draw Ivan into her bed. Gradually, Ivan and Veikko, no longer separated by ethnic hate nor rivalry for the affections of Anni, become friends. As winter arrives and the two men head back to their respective homes in opposite directions, Anni is left behind with memories –and much more– of her two unlikely comrades in war and peace. In the final scene, she narrates the story to her children, whom she named after their fathers: Veikko and Psholty.
In Calcutta, India, Catholic priests promote the adoption of Indian children by those back in Belgium as a form of charity. When the Belgian government realizes that the number of Indian children raised in Belgium has reached 40,000 in just five years, an emergency policy attempts to halt the migration. Desperate for the chance to send their children to what they call a "land of plenty", a mob of desperate Indians swarms the consulate. As a Belgian aid worker works through the crowd, an Indian gong farmer known only as "the turd eater", carrying aloft his monstrously deformed child, begs him to take them back to Europe, to which the worker agrees.
The worker and farmer bring the crowd to the docks, where there are hundreds of ships once owned by European powers, now suited only for river traffic. Nevertheless, the crowd boards, and a hundred ships soon leave for Europe; conditions on board are cramped, unsanitary and miserable, with many passengers including children publicly fornicating. As the ships pass "the straits of Ceylon", helicopters swarm overhead, capturing images of the migrants on board to be published in Europe. Meanwhile, on the Russian Far East, the Soviet troops see masses of Chinese ready to enter Siberia but are reluctant to fight them.
As the fleet crosses the Indian Ocean, the political situation in France becomes more charged. At a press conference about the crisis, a French official who offers a speech in praise of the migrants is confronted by a journalist who claims he is merely trying to "feed the invaders" and demands to know if France will "have the courage to stand up to" the migrants when they reach France. The official decries this question as morally offensive and threatens to throw the journalist out when he continues to yell. Other journalists seek to inflame tensions between the French and Africans and Arabs already living in the country. Over time, these journalists begin to write that the migrant fleet is on a mission to "enrich, cleanse and redeem the Capitalist West". At the same time as the fleet is praised by those in Paris, the people of Southern France, terrified of the migrants' arrival, flee to the north.
As the fleet approaches the Suez Canal, Egyptian military forces fire a warning shot, causing the fleet to steer south, around the Cape of Good Hope. To the surprise of observers, the apartheid regime of South Africa floats out barges of food and supplies, which the migrants throw overboard. The international press is thrilled, believing the rejection of these supplies to be a political statement against the apartheid South African regime. Western leaders, confident the migrants will accept supplies from their "more virtuous" nations, organize a supply mission, funded by governments, charities, rock stars and major churches, to meet the migrants off São Tomé. However, the fleet does not stop for these barges either, and when a worker from the Pope's barge attempts to board one of the ships, he is strangled and thrown overboard. The press attempts to contain coverage of the murder.
When the migrants pass through the Strait of Gibraltar, the French president orders troops to the south and addresses the nation with his plan to repel them. However, in the middle of the address, he breaks down, demanding the troops simply follow their consciences instead. Most of the troops immediately desert their posts and join the civilians as they flee north, and the south is quickly overrun by the migrants. Some of the last troops to stand their ground take refuge in a small village, along with Calguès, an old man who has chosen to remain at his home, and Hamadura, a Westernized Indian who is terrified of his "filthy, brutish" countrymen and prides himself on having more in common with whites than Indians. The troops in this village, a total of nineteen Frenchmen and one Indian, surrounded by what they deem "occupied territory", remain the last defense of Western values and "Free France" against the immigrants.
The immigrants make their way north, having no desire to assimilate to French culture, but continuing to demand a First World standard of living, even as they flout laws, do not produce, and murder French citizens, such as factory bosses and shopkeepers, as well as the ordinary people who do not welcome them. They are also joined by the immigrants who already reside in Europe, as well as various left-wing and anarchist groups. Across the West, more and more migrants arrive and have children, rapidly growing to outnumber whites. In a matter of months, the white West has been overrun and pro-immigrant governments have been established, while the white people are ordered to share their houses and flats with the immigrants. The village containing the troops is bombed flat by airplanes of the new French government, referred to only as the "Paris Multiracial Commune". Within a few years, most Western governments have surrendered. The mayor of New York City is made to share Gracie Mansion with three African-American families from Harlem; migrants gather at coastal ports in West Africa and South Asia and swarm into Europe, Australia, and New Zealand; London is taken over by an organization of non-white residents known as the "Non-European Commonwealth Committee", who force the British queen to have her son marry a Pakistani woman; millions of black Africans from around the continent gather at the Limpopo River and invade South Africa; and only one drunken Soviet soldier stands in the way of hundreds of thousands of Chinese peasants as they overrun Siberia.
The epilogue reveals that the story was written in the last holdout of the Western world, Switzerland, but international pressure from the new governments, isolating it as a rogue state for not opening its borders, along with internal pro-migrant elements, force it to capitulate as well. Mere hours from the border opening, the author dedicates the book to his grandchildren, in the hopes they will grow up in a world where they will not be ashamed of him for writing such a book.
Quentin narrates the story in the turn of the century, presumably at age twenty-four (although in ''The Sound and the Fury'' he commits suicide at age nineteen), telling of events that took place fifteen years before. Nancy is an African-American washerwoman working for Quentin's family since their regular cook, Dilsey, is taken sick. Jesus, Nancy's common-law husband, suspects that she is pregnant with a white man's child and leaves her. At first Nancy is only worried about going home at night and running into Jesus, but later she is paralyzed with the fear that he will kill her, having delusions of him being hidden in a ditch outside her house.
Quentin and his siblings witness all of this, given that they are present for every major conversation between their father and Nancy. Mr. Compson tries to help her up to a certain extent, first by taking her home at night despite the fact that Mrs. Compson feels jealous and insecure that her husband is more worried about protecting some "Negro woman" than herself. He puts her up one night at Quentin and Caddy's room when she is too afraid to stay alone in the kitchen. The kids, however, have no idea of what's going on, and cannot understand Nancy's fear.
As the narrative progresses, Nancy becomes crippled by her fear. One night she feels so impotent that she talks the kids into going home with her. There, she is not able to attend to them, tell them proper stories or even make them some popcorn. Jason, the youngest, starts to cry. Their father arrives and tries to talk some sense into Nancy, who fears Jesus will come out of the darkness of the ditch outside as soon as they go away. The story ends as the father walks the children back—not the least bit affected by Nancy's situation, the kids still teasing each other and the father scolding them.
It is left ambiguous as to whether Nancy survives the night. However, in ''The Sound and the Fury'', Benjy refers to Nancy's bones lying in the ditch, although she was "shot by Roskus" and it is implied that Nancy is the name of a horse.
In 1948 Los Angeles, businessman Julius "Jake" Berman hires seasoned private investigator J. J. "Jake" Gittes to catch his wife, Kitty, committing adultery. During the sting, Berman unexpectedly kills his wife's lover, Mark Bodine, who is also his partner in a real estate development company. Gittes, unaware of this, suddenly finds himself being scrutinized for his role in what appears to be a premeditated murder; the key piece of evidence is the wire recording that Gittes set up. It audio taped the illicit encounter, the confrontation, and Bodine being killed. However, the audio makes it unclear whether Berman intended to kill Bodine before confronting him, making it murder, or if the killing was a spontaneous act of jealousy, possibly qualifying as "temporary insanity", which is a defense of murder.
Gittes is forced to convince his old acquaintance, LAPD Captain Lou Escobar, that he should not be charged as an accomplice. Oddly, Berman seems unconcerned that he may be charged with murder. Gittes has the recording, which Berman's attorney, Cotton Weinberger, and mobster friend Mickey Nice, both want and is locked in a safe in Gittes L.A. office.
Earthquakes have recently rocked the area, including Berman's housing development in the Valley. Gittes is nearly killed in a gas explosion, waking to find Berman and Kitty standing over him.
Gittes has a confrontation, and a later sexual encounter, with Lilian Bodine, the dead man's angry widow. He is presented with proof that Earl Rawley, a wealthy and ruthless oil man, may be drilling under the Bodine and Berman development, though Rawley denies doing so. Gittes focuses his attention on determining who owns the mineral rights to the land. Gittes eventually discovers the rights are owned by Katherine Mulwray, daughter of the late Evelyn Mulwray, his love interest from eleven years prior. He also discovers that the deed transfers were executed in a manner to attempt to hide Katherine Mulwray's prior ownership and continued claim of the mineral rights. Furthermore, he also discovers that Katherine's father (and grandfather) Noah Cross, has since died and left her all his financial assets.
Gittes receives word from his associates that Berman has been seen with a blond woman, along with Mickey and a bodyguard. Gittes determines that the woman is an oncologist and is treating Berman for cancer. Gittes confronts Berman with this knowledge and gets a full confession: his cancer is terminal and will die soon. He has taken steps to ensure that Kitty will be financially secure once he dies.
To persuade Kitty to talk to him, Gittes works to prove that her husband did set out to kill his partner. Once accomplished, Kitty agrees to meet Gittes and tell him what she knows about Berman. In the process of discussing Berman's possible motivations, mineral rights, and the possible whereabouts of Katherine, it is revealed that Kitty and Katherine are the same person. Kitty reveals that she never suspected that her husband was dying.
Gittes holds onto the recording, refusing to let anyone hear it until the inquest. Gittes edits the recording, omitting Kitty's name and making other alterations to indicate Bodine's death was not premeditated. The court quickly drops all charges against Berman. Realizing Gittes is aware of his terminal illness and knowing the model house he is in is filling with natural gas, Berman asks Gittes and Mickey to leave so he can "have a smoke." As they drive off, the house explodes. With no remains left to recover, the police make no attempt to investigate his death and Kitty inherits a substantial sum from her late husband.
The story ends with Kitty and Gittes in his office. They speak of regrets, and Kitty kisses Gittes, who rejects her advances. She leaves, telling him to occasionally think of her. Gittes responds that the past never goes away.
''Final Fantasy XIII'' is set on the world of Gran Pulse (often simply called Pulse). Central to the story is Cocoon, a massive artificial sphere that floats above Pulse's surface and is ruled by the Sanctum, a theocratic government. The two worlds are controlled by fal'Cie , mechanical beings with godlike power. The Cocoon fal'Cie are responsible for keeping Cocoon floating, as well as providing light and water to the people that live inside. Each fal'Cie handles a specific task. The fal'Cie have the capability of marking the humans that live in Pulse and Cocoon as their servants. These servants, called l'Cie , are branded with a symbol representing either Pulse or Cocoon and are given a "Focus"—a task to complete. If the l'Cie complete their task in time, they are transformed to crystal and according to legend gain eternal life; otherwise they become mindless monsters called Cie'th . The l'Cie are not explicitly told their Focus, but are instead given visions that they must interpret.
Several hundred years before the events of the game, a battle known as the War of Transgression took place between Pulse and Cocoon. During the battle, l'Cie from Pulse attacked and ripped a large hole in Cocoon. Eventually, the l'Cie completed their focus and were turned to crystal. The hole was patched with material lifted from Pulse, and Cocoon's citizens have since lived in fear of another invasion; this fear is used by the Sanctum to remain in power. The Sanctum oversees two military branches: the Guardian Corps, responsible for keeping order on Cocoon, and the Public Security and Intelligence COMmand (PSICOM), the special forces in charge of dealing with any threat related to Pulse. The fal'Cie have given the humans advanced technology, including flying airships and mechanical creatures, and a form of magic also exists. This magic is normally only accessible to l'Cie, fal'Cie, and various monsters in Cocoon and Pulse, though distilled chemical forms can be used by normal humans through the use of Manadrives.
The six main playable characters of ''Final Fantasy XIII'' are Lightning (Ali Hillis/Maaya Sakamoto), the main protagonist of the game, a former soldier and older sister to Serah; Snow Villiers (Troy Baker/Daisuke Ono), Serah's fiancé and leader of NORA, a paramilitary group; Oerba Dia Vanille (Georgia van Cuylenburg/Yukari Fukui), the game's narrator and an exile who is later revealed to be a l'Cie from Pulse; Sazh Katzroy (Reno Wilson/Masashi Ebara), a civilian pilot and father to a young boy, Dajh; Hope Estheim (Vincent Martella/Yūki Kaji), a young boy who is struggling within the relationships he shares with his parents; and Oerba Yun Fang (Rachel Robinson/Mabuki Andou), a l'Cie from Pulse who is working with the Sanctum's Cavalry branch. Other characters include Galenth Dysley (S. Scott Bullock/Masaru Shinozuka), the ruler of the Sanctum and main antagonist; Cid Raines (Erik Davies/Yuichi Nakamura), a Sanctum Brigadier General in the Cavalry who does not trust the government; and Serah Farron (Laura Bailey/Minako Kotobuki), Lightning's younger sister and Snow's fiancée.
In Cocoon, the citizens of the town of Bodhum are being evicted, or Purged, after coming in contact with something from Pulse. Over the course of the game, the player is shown flashbacks of the events of the previous thirteen days, which began when a fal'Cie from Pulse was discovered near Bodhum. Lightning's sister Serah had found the fal'Cie from Pulse and been changed into a l'Cie by it. Lightning and Sazh derail a Purge train bound for Pulse in an attempt to save Serah. As Snow leads his resistance group NORA to rescue the Purge exiles, several of them are killed. Heading to the fal'Cie Anima to save Serah, Snow is joined by two of the exiles: Hope and Vanille. The two parties meet at the fal'Cie, and find Serah just as she turns to crystal. Anima then brands them as l'Cie and they are cast out into a different part of Cocoon. During this transformation, the newly crested l'Cie all have the same vision: a monster called Ragnarok. Arguing over the ambiguous nature of the dreamed Focus, the party finds Serah in her crystallized form; Snow remains with her as the others leave.
Snow meets Cid and Fang, two members of the Cavalry, after he is captured and detained aboard the airship ''Lindblum''. Meanwhile, the others flee from PSICOM before getting separated by an airstrike; Hope and Lightning travel to Palumpolum, while Sazh and Vanille travel to Nautilus. In Lightning's scenario, she unintentionally supports Hope's goal of killing Snow to avenge his mother's death. In Vanille's scenario, Sazh discusses how his son Dajh was turned into a l'Cie by a Cocoon fal'Cie and was taken by PSICOM to discover his Focus. In Palumpolum, Lightning attempts to dissuade Hope from going through with his revenge and meets Snow and Fang. Fang reveals that she and Vanille were l'Cie from Pulse who were turned into crystals; they were turned back into humans 13 days earlier, sparking the Purge. Hope attempts to murder Snow, but after being rescued during an airstrike, he decides not to go through with it. The four then flee the city with Cid's aid. In Nautilus, Vanille reveals herself to Sazh as a l'Cie from Pulse, and indirectly the reason that Dajh was turned into a l'Cie. Sazh and Vanille are then captured and detained on board the airship ''Palamecia''.
On the ''Palamecia'', the other members of the party reunite with Vanille and Sazh before they confront Galenth Dysley, the Sanctum's Primarch, who is the Cocoon fal'Cie ruler Barthandelus in disguise. Barthandelus tells the party that their Focus is to transform into the beast Ragnarok and slay the sleeping fal'Cie Orphan, who keeps Cocoon afloat above Pulse. Slaying Orphan will result in the destruction of Cocoon. The party flees and learns from Cid that the fal'Cie believe that Cocoon's destruction will summon the Maker, the creator of the worlds. The fal'Cie cannot harm Orphan themselves. Vanille and Fang reveal to the party that they were involved in the War of Transgression centuries earlier, and that their Focus then had been the same: to transform into Ragnarok and attempt to destroy Orphan. The party flies away to Pulse and journeys to Oerba, Vanille and Fang's hometown, where they hope to learn how to remove their l'Cie marks. The town is deserted, and they find no living people on the surface. The party is unsuccessful in removing their marks, and Barthandelus confronts them again. The party learns that Barthandelus has made Cid the new Primarch to create chaos in Cocoon to force the Cavalry to attack Cid and Orphan in a coup d'état.
The party infiltrates Cocoon and heads towards Orphan but soon discover that the Cavalry have been turned into Cie'th. The party defeats Barthandelus, but Orphan awakens and merges with Barthandelus, then compels Fang to finish her Focus as Ragnarok while the others are seemingly transformed into Cie'th. The party reappears in human form, preventing Fang from transforming. The party defeats Orphan and escapes Cocoon, which is now falling towards Pulse. As the rest of the party turns to crystal for completing their Focus, Vanille and Fang remain on Cocoon and transform into Ragnarok together to prevent a collision between Cocoon and Pulse. The rest of the party awaken from their crystallization on Pulse and find their l'Cie brands gone; Lightning, Hope, Snow and Sazh reunite with Serah and Dajh.
The ''Enterprise'' has been sent to the Lorenze Cluster to search for the USS ''Drake'' after it vanished while surveying the planet Minos, which many years ago became wealthy by selling weapons. When the ship reaches the planet, they are met by a recorded holographic figure (Vincent Schiavelli) advertising "The Arsenal of Freedom", which invites the crew to the surface. Commander William Riker (Jonathan Frakes), Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner) and Lieutenant Tasha Yar (Denise Crosby) beam down to the surface to investigate. Riker is met by Captain Rice of the ''Drake'', but determines the captain is an imposter and feeds him false information. After further questions, the "captain" disappears, revealing a floating sentry probe, which fires a stasis field around Riker before Data and Yar can destroy it.
The ''Enterprise'' cannot beam Riker through the stasis field, so Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and Doctor Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden) travel to the surface, and Lt. Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton) is left in command of the ''Enterprise''. As Picard and Crusher attempt to free Riker, another sentry probe appears and fires on them. Picard and Crusher are separated from Data and Yar in the skirmish and fall into a pit, severely injuring Crusher. Meanwhile, Data and Yar discover that the second probe is more powerful than the first and requires their combined power to destroy it. While Picard tends to Crusher's injuries, Data manages to release Riker from the stasis field. Riker, Yar and Data are again attacked, with this new probe requiring even more phaser power to destroy it. Data deduces that each probe learns from the previous probes' experiences and adapts to become stronger, and that the next probe might be unbeatable.
Meanwhile, the ''Enterprise'' is fired upon by a cloaked attacker, with each subsequent attack stronger than the last, straining the ship's shields. Chief Engineer Lt. Logan (Vyto Ruginis) goes to the bridge to demand that the ''Enterprise'' flee the planet and attempts to take command, as he outranks La Forge, but La Forge refuses, pointing out that Logan lacks the authority to remove him, and orders him to return to Engineering. As the attacks continue, La Forge recalls Logan to the bridge and orders a saucer separation, leaving Logan in charge of the saucer, and taking command of the star-drive section from the battle bridge himself to return to Minos.
Still underground, Picard discovers a computer terminal, which he activates, causing a hologram of the salesman to appear and explain that they are witnessing a demonstration of an intelligent weapon system which is able to upgrade itself in response to any enemy threat. Picard surmises that the Minosians and the ''Drake'' were destroyed by the weapons. He unsuccessfully attempts to coerce the hologram to end the demonstration. Data is able to locate Picard, and determines that while the sentries could be set to destroy their own power source, the resulting explosion would probably take out the whole area, including the away team. Picard finally tells the salesman he will buy the system, causing the salesman to disappear and the probes on the planet to shut down. Meanwhile, La Forge uses the planet's atmosphere to reveal the location of the space-borne probe and destroys it. The away team returns to the star-drive section, where Picard allows La Forge to stay in command until they rendezvous with the saucer section, remarking that he left him with the ship intact and would like it returned in the same condition.
Homer sees a television commercial for the Superstar Celebrity Microphone — which can broadcast anyone's voice over AM radio — and impulsively buys one for Bart's birthday. At his party, Bart is crestfallen when he receives gifts such as a cactus, a label maker, and a new suit. At first, Bart dislikes the microphone, but he later uses it to play practical jokes, such as tricking Ned's sons, Rod and Todd, into believing that God is talking to them, eavesdropping on Lisa and Janey's conversations about boys, and convincing Homer that Martians are invading. He also uses the microphone to make it look like Mrs. Krabappel made flatulent noises.
Bart ends up losing the radio down the well, but plays this to his advantage, tricking the townspeople into thinking an orphan named Timmy O'Toole has fallen down the well. Although they are unable to rescue Timmy, since the well is too small to accommodate an adult, the entire town offers its love and moral support. Krusty persuades Sting to join other celebrities in recording a charity single, "We're Sending Our Love Down the Well".
Lisa catches Bart imitating Timmy's voice and reminds him that the townspeople will be angry at him for being duped, while correctly assuming that he put a "Property of Bart Simpson" label on the radio. For fear of reprisal, Bart tries to retrieve the radio after nightfall but falls to the bottom when policemen Eddie and Lou undo the rope Bart used to lower himself down the well. When the townspeople find Bart trapped there, he admits Timmy does not exist. Angry at being tricked, the townspeople refuse to rescue him.
After a tearful speech by Bart saying that there would be many things he would miss out on including what would happen in the family, Homer has finally had enough and decides to dig a tunnel and rescue Bart himself. Groundskeeper Willie helps Homer dig and soon several other residents join the excavation, finally rescuing Bart with help from Sting. The next day, Willie posts a warning sign near the well to prevent future accidents.
Aging Julius Caesar takes possession of the Egyptian capital city of Alexandria and tries to resolve a feud between the young princess Cleopatra and her younger brother Ptolemy. Caesar develops a special relationship with Cleopatra and teaches her how to use her royal power.
ACT I, Mogador, Morocco. Sir Howard Hallam, a judge, and his sister-in-law, Lady Cicely Waynflete, a well-known explorer, are at the home of Rankin, a Presbyterian minister. Rankin knows Sir Howard as the brother of an old friend, Miles Hallam, who moved to Brazil after marrying a local woman. Sir Howard tells Rankin that his brother's property was illicitly seized after his death by his widow's family, but Sir Howard has now recovered it. Lady Cicely decides to explore Morocco with Sir Howard. They are advised to take an armed escort. This can be organised by Captain Brassbound, a smuggler who owns a ship called ''Thanksgiving''. When Brassbound arrives, he warns Sir Howard that in the mountain-country justice is ruled by codes of honour, not law courts.
ACT II, A Moorish castle occupied by Brassbound. Marzo, an Italian member of Brassbound's crew, has been wounded in a feud. Lady Cicely is tending to him, initially to Brassbound's irritation, but she wins him over. Sir Howard complains that Brassbound is behaving more like a jailer than a host; Brassbound says that Sir Howard is his prisoner. Brassbound explains that he is the son of Sir Howard's deceased brother, Miles. He blames Sir Howard for the death of his mother and for tricking him out of his inheritance by legal technicalities. He intends to hand over Sir Howard to a fanatical Islamist Sheik. He tells Sir Howard that he presides over an unfair justice system that punishes the poor and weak. Now that Sir Howard is powerless he will receive the justice of revenge. Lady Cicely intercedes and argues with Brassbound that his own code of honour is at least as brutal as the legal system he condemns. Brassbound wavers, and eventually agrees to give up revenge. When the Sheik arrives he offers to buy back Sir Howard, but the Shek will only accept one price – Lady Cicely. Cicely agrees, but at this point the local ruler appears, having learned of the transaction. He frees Sir Howard and arrests Brassbound.
ACT III, Rankin's house. Commander Kearney is to preside over a court of inquiry into Brassbound's actions. Sir Howard says he cannot interfere, but Lady Cicely persuades him to let her tell the court all that happened on the trip. She uses all her powers of persuasion to convince Commander Kearney that Brassbound is innocent of any crime. Kearney agrees to release Brassbound. The liberated Brassbound declares his devotion to Lady Cicely, and says he wishes to marry her. Lady Cicely is powerfully drawn to Brassbound, and fears that she may succumb to his charisma. As she is about to agree, a gunshot is heard. It is the signal from Brassbound's crew that his ship is ready to depart. He leaves immediately, leaving Lady Cicely to say "What an escape!"
Hedgehog (voiced by Maria Vinogradova) sets off for his evening visit to his friend Bear-Cub. Every evening, the two meet to have tea and count the stars. This evening, Hedgehog is bringing Bear-Cub some raspberry-jam as a special treat. As Hedgehog heads out, a sinister-looking eagle-owl begins to stalk him.
As he walks through the woods, Hedgehog sees a beautiful white horse. As Hedgehog watches, the horse disappears into the heavy fog. Curious as to whether the horse will drown in the fog, Hedgehog decides to explore the fog for himself. As he travels into a valley, the fog is soon so thick that Hedgehog loses his way.
Believing that he has spotted the white horse, Hedgehog instead discovers a leaf floating down with a snail riding on it. Hedgehog tries to touch the snail, but it floats away and disappears. Another shadowy creature resembling an elephant appears. It is so large and frightening that Hedgehog runs away, only to be startled by a black bat. All the while, the white horse is seen in glimpses.
Finally, Hedgehog spots the largest shape of all. Setting down his jam, he picks up a stick and pokes at the large shape to find that it is a hollow tree. Suddenly, he realizes that he has lost his jam and searches frantically for it, only to find himself surrounded by the owl, the bat, and the shadowy elephant. He becomes more and more confused and frightened until a friendly dog emerges from the fog and returns the jam to Hedgehog.
Hedgehog attempts to find a way out of the fog, but falls into a river. He is resigned to let the river take him where it will, but a mysterious voice asks what is wrong. The voice (implied to belong to a fish) takes Hedgehog to shore, where Hedgehog finds himself back in the woods, free from fog. Hedgehog thanks his rescuer.
Resuming his journey, Hedgehog runs into Bear-Cub (voiced by Vyacheslav Nevinny), who has been searching for his friend. At first, Bear-Cub scolds Hedgehog for being so late that the tea has gone cold and the fire has burned down, but eventually, Bear-Cub admits that he was worried that something ill had become of Hedgehog and that there would be no-one with whom to watch the stars.
The two friends sit by the fire and drink their tea. Bear-Cub talks on and on about how glad he is to have found his friend, but Hedgehog stares in silence at the stars, wondering what became of the white horse.
''Wild West C.O.W.-Boys of Moo Mesa'' dealt with a mutation of some kind; an irradiated comet struck the late 19th century Western plains creating a miles high mesa shrouded in clouds. Everything trapped on top of the mesa was "cow-metized" by the light from the "cow-met" and "evolved" into a "bovipomorphic" state. Inspired by old tales of the Wild West, this new bovine community developed to the point where they emulated that era's way of life, including the requisite ruffians and corrupt sheriffs. However, their knowledge of Wild West living was limited, and as such, many things about their culture had to be improvised to 'fill in the blanks'. The concepts of steampunk and Weird West were utilized throughout its run.
The series focuses on trying to keep justice in the frontier territory. The lawbreakers were too much for the corrupt regulators of Cowtown (namely Mayor Oscar Bulloney and Sheriff Terrorbull) to handle by themselves. Helping them out, whether they wanted it or not, were a group of peacekeepers known as C.O.W.-Boys (the C.O.W. part is short for "Code of the West") led by Marshal Moo Montana, the C.O.W.-Boys also included the Dakota Dude and the Cowlorado Kid. Marshal Moo Montana and his deputies had their hands full with several ruffians and outlaw gangs that plagued the otherwise peaceful town.
The player starts as a recruit who undergoes Rifleman training, and has his convoy ambushed in National Tunnel. With the help of his squadmates, the recruit helps them escape Old Town.
After this, the player works on Grenadier training. Shortly after training, the player is thrust into aiding the 10th Mountain Division's convoy from attackers. The remaining three missions in a mountain trying to prevent enemy forces from escaping with supply crates dropped by C-130 transports.
The player is assigned as the Automatic Rifleman, which involved defending their established base in the oil fields, and bringing the fight to the attackers. They eventually find a supply of money funding the terrorists inside a radio station's tunnels.
The player is assigned as a sniper. After training, the player is sent into arctic regions to kill high-ranking officers, capture enemy territory and hold the line.
After sniper training, the player is a Ranger Fireteam Leader, in which the player has an M4 carbine with pre-chosen modifications. The Fireteam Leader goes through MOUT training again with the ability to give limited orders to squadmates. After training, the Rangers raid a drug processing base and defend it from ambushing OPFOR members, and heads to a desert base to capture a high-ranking officer, as well as defending the base from enemy attack.
The player becomes a Special Forces member, in which the player can modify his M4 carbine and lead indigenous forces. The two remaining campaigns has the player leading the forces to capture the main leaders behind the attacks, as well as helping the local allied forces protect Old Town. The campaign ends after Old Town is successfully protected, with the player and fellow Special Forces members returning home.
'''Act I: 1960s'''
In 1962, The Dreamettes, a hopeful black girl group from Chicago, enter the famous Amateur Night talent competition at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York ("I'm Lookin' for Something", "Goin' Downtown", "Takin' the Long Way Home"). The group is composed of full-figured lead singer Effie White and best friends, Deena Jones and Lorrell Robinson. For the contest, the Dreamettes sing "Move (You're Steppin' on My Heart)", a song written by Effie's brother, C.C., who accompanies them to the talent show. Unfortunately, they lose the talent show, but backstage, the girls and C.C. meet Curtis Taylor Jr., a car salesman who becomes the Dreamettes' manager.
Curtis convinces James "Thunder" Early, a popular R&B star, and his manager, Marty, to hire The Dreamettes as backup singers. Though Jimmy Early and the Dreamettes' first performance together is successful ("Fake Your Way to the Top"), Jimmy is desperate for new material. Curtis convinces Jimmy and Marty that they should venture beyond traditional rhythm and blues and soul audiences and aim for the pop market. C.C. composes "Cadillac Car" for Jimmy and the Dreamettes, who tour ("Cadillac Car (On the Road)") and record the single upon their return ("Cadillac Car (In the Recording Studio)"). "Cadillac Car" makes its way up the pop charts, but a cover version by white pop singers Dave and the Sweethearts ("Cadillac Car" (Reprise)) steals the original recording's thunder. Angered by "Cadillac Car"'s usurpation, Curtis, C.C., and Jimmy's producer, Wayne, resort to payola, bribing disc jockeys across the nation to play Jimmy Early and the Dreamettes' next single, "Steppin' to the Bad Side". As a result, the record becomes a major pop hit. Conflict arises between Marty and Curtis when Curtis moves in on Marty's turf: Jimmy Early. Things become more complicated when Effie begins dating Curtis, and Jimmy, a married man, begins an affair with Lorrell ("Party, Party").
Curtis replaces him, strongly determined to make his black singers household names. Curtis attempts to transform Jimmy Early into a Perry Como-esque pop singer ("I Want You Baby"), and concentrates on establishing the Dreamettes as their own act, renaming them ''The Dreams'', changing their act to give them a more sophisticated and pop-friendly look and sound. The most crucial of these changes is the establishment of Deena as lead singer, instead of Effie. Effie is resentful of her change in status within the group. C.C. convinces her to go along with Curtis's plan ("Family"). After a fight between Marty and Curtis, Marty quits as Jimmy's manager and Curtis takes over. The Dreams make their club debut in the Crystal Room in Cleveland, Ohio, singing their first single ("Dreamgirls"). After a triumphant show, the press is eager to meet the newly minted stars ("Press Conference"). Curtis declares to Deena, "I'm going to make you the most famous woman who's ever lived," as the slighted Effie asks "What about me?" ("Only the Beginning"). Over the next few years, the Dreams become a mainstream success with hit singles ("Heavy"). As Deena is increasingly feted as a star, Effie becomes temperamental and unpredictable. She suspects Curtis and Deena of having an affair. Lorrell attempts to keep peace between her bandmates, but the task seems difficult.
In 1967, the group – now known as "Deena Jones and the Dreams" – is set to make their Las Vegas début. However, when Jimmy stops by to visit the girls ("Drivin' Down the Strip"), he learns from the others that Effie has been missing shows because of illness (it is later revealed that she was pregnant with Curtis's child). Curtis and Deena are convinced that she is trying to sabotage the act. Curtis replaces Effie with a new singer, Michelle Morris, a change about which Effie learns before anyone has a chance to tell her. Effie confronts Curtis, C.C., and the group ("It's All Over"), but despite her personal appeal to Curtis ("And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going"), the heartbroken Effie is left behind as Deena Jones and the Dreams forge ahead without her ("Love Love Me Baby").
'''Act II: 1970s'''
By 1972, Deena Jones and the Dreams have become the most successful girl group in the country ("Act II Opening"1). Deena has married Curtis, and C.C. is in love with Michelle. Jimmy has gone years without a hit. Curtis shows little interest in updating or revitalizing Jimmy's act because of Curtis's preoccupation with Deena and because of Jimmy's habit of sneaking funk numbers into his repertoire of pop-friendly songs. Effie is back in Chicago, a single mother to her daughter, Magic (or Ronald in other versions), struggling to get another break. Marty, who is now her manager, compels her to rebuild her confidence and give up her "diva behaviors." Once she does, Effie is able to make a show business comeback ("I Am Changing"). In contrast to Effie's struggling return to her musical career, Deena wants to stop singing and become an actress. Deena informs Curtis of her career plans during a ''Vogue'' photo shoot ("One More Picture Please"), but Curtis refuses to let her go ("When I First Saw You"). Deena is not the only one chafing under Curtis's control: C.C. is enraged by Curtis's constant rearrangements of his songs, including an emotional ballad, entitled "One Night Only", which Curtis wants instead recorded to reflect the "new sound" he is inventing.
Deena Jones and the Dreams and Jimmy Early perform at a National Democratic fundraiser, on a bill featuring such groups as The Five Tuxedos ("Got to Be Good Times"). While waiting backstage to go on, Jimmy finds himself in another argument with Lorrell as to the nature of their relationship and when, or if, Jimmy will tell his wife about their affair ("Ain't No Party"). Lorrell is in tears as Jimmy takes to the stage to perform, and turns to Deena for support. As Jimmy pleads to Lorrell through his music ("I Meant You No Harm"), Deena tries to help Lorrell successfully resolve her situation, and Michelle convinces the artistically frustrated C.C. to go find his sister and reconcile with her ("Quintette"). Midway through "I Meant You No Harm", Jimmy falls apart and decides that he "can't sing any more sad songs." Desperate to keep his set going, Jimmy launches into a wild, improvised funk number ("The Rap"), dropping his pants during the performance. An embarrassed Curtis fires Jimmy as soon as his set concludes ("Firing of Jimmy"). Lorrell ends her affair with Jimmy as well. The heartbroken Jimmy fades into obscurity, refusing to "beg" for Curtis' help.
Marty arranges for C.C. to meet and reconcile with Effie at a recording studio ("I Miss You, Old Friend"). C.C. apologizes for his role in handicapping her career, and Effie records C.C.'s "One Night Only" in its original ballad format. "One Night Only" begins climbing the charts, causing an enraged Curtis not only to rush-release Deena and the Dreams' version, but to use massive amounts of payola to push Deena's version up the charts and Effie's version down ("One Night Only (Disco)"). Effie, C.C., and Marty discover Curtis's scheme and confront him backstage at a Dreams concert, threatening legal action ("I'm Somebody", "Chicago/Faith in Myself"). As Curtis makes arrangements with Effie's lawyer to reverse his wrongdoings, Effie and Deena reconcile, and Deena learns that Effie's daughter Magic is Curtis's child. Realizing what kind of a man Curtis really is, Deena finally finds the courage to leave him and live her own life. Effie's "One Night Only" becomes a number-one hit, as the Dreams break up so that Deena can pursue her movie career ("Hard to Say Goodbye, My Love"). For the final number of the Dreams' farewell concert, Effie rejoins the group on stage, and all four Dreams sing their signature song one last time ("Dreamgirls (Reprise)").
One night, Caleb Colton, a young man in a small town, meets an attractive young drifter named Mae. Just before sunrise, she bites him on the neck and runs off. The rising sun causes Caleb's flesh to smoke and burn. Mae arrives with a group of roaming vampires in an RV and takes him away. The most psychotic of the vampires, Severen, wants to kill Caleb but Mae reveals that she has already turned him. Their charismatic leader, Jesse Hooker, reluctantly agrees to allow Caleb to remain with them for a week to see if he can learn to hunt and gain the group's trust. Caleb is unwilling to kill to feed, which alienates him from the others. To protect him, Mae kills for him and then has him drink from her wrist.
Jesse's group enters a bar and kills the occupants. They set the bar on fire and flee the scene. All except Mae want to kill Caleb after he endangers them by letting the only living occupant escape, but after Caleb endangers himself to help them escape their motel room during a daylight police raid, Jesse and the others are grateful and temporarily mollified. A camaraderie commences, with Caleb asking Jesse how old he is and Jesse responding that he "fought for the South" (during the American Civil War, 1861-1865), making him about 150 years old (Severen had earlier suggested he and Jesse started the Great Chicago Fire of 1871).
Meanwhile, Caleb's father has been searching for Jesse's group. A child vampire in the group, Homer, meets Caleb's sister, Sarah, and wants to turn her into his companion, but Caleb objects. While the group argues, Caleb's father arrives and holds them at gunpoint, demanding that Sarah be released. Jesse taunts him into shooting him, then regurgitates the bullet before wrestling the gun away. In the confusion, Sarah opens a door, letting in the sunlight and forcing the vampires back. Burning, Caleb escapes with his family.
Caleb suggests they try giving him a blood transfusion. The transfusion unexpectedly reverses Caleb's transformation. That night, the vampires search for Caleb and Sarah. Mae distracts Caleb by trying to persuade him to return to her while the others kidnap his sister. Caleb discovers the kidnapping and his tires slashed but gives chase on horseback. When the horse shies and throws him, he is confronted by Severen. Caleb commandeers a tractor-trailer and runs Severen over. The injured vampire suddenly appears on the hood of the truck and manages to rip apart the wiring in the engine. Caleb jackknifes the vehicle and jumps out as the truck explodes, killing Severen. Seeking revenge, Jesse and his girlfriend, Diamondback, pursue him but are forced to escape in their car as dawn breaks.
Attempting to save Sarah, Mae breaks out of the back of the car with her. Mae's flesh begins to smoke as she is burned by the sun but she carries Sarah into Caleb's arms, taking refuge under his jacket. Homer attempts to follow, but as he runs he dies from exposure to the sun. Their sunproofing ruined, Jesse and Diamondback also begin to burn. They attempt to run Caleb and Sarah over but fail, dying as the car blows up. Mae awakens later, her burns now healed. She too has been given a transfusion and is cured. She and Caleb comfort each other in a reassuring hug as the film ends.
In 1971, at a fraternity house on the University of Texas campus in Austin, Texas, Gardner Barnes (Kevin Costner) is throwing darts at a picture of himself and his ex-girlfriend Debbie (Suzy Amis). He rejoins the graduation party going on downstairs, but not before tearing the picture in half. Gardner is a member of a clique called the Groovers, whose other members include Kenneth Waggener (Sam Robards), engaged to be married, and ROTC geek Phil Hicks (Judd Nelson). Phil's parents arrive at the fraternity house just in time to see another Groover named Lester (Brian Cesak) pass out (and remain unconscious for most of the film). They also meet the strong, quiet seminary student Dorman (Chuck Bush).
Kenneth interrupts the festivities by announcing his student deferment has expired and he is now to be drafted into the Vietnam War. Gardner is not surprised: his own notice came weeks before. Kenneth also reveals he has decided to call off his engagement to Debbie on account of being drafted. Gardner reacts with some joy and relief. The Groovers decide to celebrate their last days before the draft by going on a road trip, intending to visit a notorious roadhouse, then "dig up" someone - or something - named Dom near the Rio Grande. They drive all night before making a rest stop. Some, including Phil, resist continuing, but Gardner presses them on.
Phil's car runs out of gas and the Groovers must decide whether to walk to the nearest town or hitch. Phil is adamant about not leaving his car behind, when someone gets the idea to lasso a train passing on the railroad track parallel to the road. Dorman successfully attaches the front bumper with some fence cable to the back of the train, but the car's front end is pulled off, leaving the car in place. The Groovers push the car to a garage in the nearest town and eat at a Sonic Drive-In. They meet up with some townie girls (one of whom is played by Elizabeth Daily) and eventually end up playing in a cemetery operated by one of the girls' undertaker father, where they come upon a fallen Vietnam War soldier's tombstone. They sleep at the former movie set of ''Giant''.
The next morning, with the car repaired with a front end from a different make and model, the Groovers continue. Phil wants to go back, prompting Kenneth to shout angrily at him. Gardner confesses they only let Phil hang with them because they felt sorry for him. Humiliated, Phil retorts that he will take on any challenge. The group sees a sign for a parachute school giving jumping lessons. Gardner cons the hippie-ish instructor Truman Sparks (Marvin J. McIntyre) into giving Phil a free lesson. Phil is terrified but goes up into Truman's aircraft. However, he is carrying Truman's dirty laundry instead of a parachute. The boys try desperately to warn him from the ground without success. Fortunately, Phil is able to open the emergency chute on his stomach with much prompting from Truman by walkie-talkie. The Groovers get a picture for their efforts; Phil gets some of his wounded pride back.
After discovering the charred, abandoned remains of the roadhouse, the Groovers press onward. At last they reach a bluff overlooking the Rio Grande and dig up Dom – which turns out to be a magnum of Dom Pérignon champagne. Each takes a drink before Gardner toasts to "freedom and youth." Kenneth is disheartened, having second thoughts about calling off the engagement. Pondering on the nature of love, Gardner decides to make things right. He calls Debbie, gets her to re-accept the engagement, and arranges for Truman Sparks to fly her from Dallas to the border town and back. Through some trickery, reminiscent of stone soup, he sets up a beautiful wedding for Kenneth and Debbie. Debbie and Gardner share one last dance after the wedding.
After the ceremony, Phil gives Kenneth and Debbie his car as a wedding present. Lester goes to hitch a ride "anywhere" and Phil and Dorman shake hands before leaving. Perched atop a cliff overlooking the town and watching the wedding reception, Gardner lifts a beer in salute to his friends.
The main character of the story is a playwright named Jaromir Hladík, who is living in Prague when it is occupied by the Nazis during World War II. Hladík is arrested and charged with being Jewish as well as opposing the Anschluss, and sentenced to die by firing squad.
Although he at first experiences simple terror at the prospect of death, Hladík's main concern soon turns to his unfinished play, titled ''The Enemies''. His previous works he feels to be unsatisfactory, and wants to complete this play, which he feels to be the one by which history will judge and vindicate him. With two acts left to write and his death sentence to be carried out in a matter of days, however, it seems impossible that he could complete it in time.
On the last night before his death, Hladík prays to God, requesting that he be granted one year in which to finish the play. That night, he dreams of going to the Clementinum library, where one of the books contains God within a single letter on one of the pages, which the old, bitter librarian has been unable to find despite looking for most of his life. Someone returns an atlas to the library; Hladík touches a letter on a map of India and hears a voice that says to him, "The time for your labor has been granted".
The next day at the appointed time, two soldiers come for Hladík, and he is taken outside and the firing squad is lined up before him. The sergeant calls out the order to fire, and time stops. The entire world freezes motionless, including Hladík himself, standing in place before the firing squad; however, although he is completely paralyzed, he remains conscious. After a time, he understands: God has granted him the time he requested. For him, a year of subjective time will pass between the sergeant's order and the soldiers firing their rifles, though no one else will realize that anything unusual has happened – hence, the "secret miracle" of the story's title.
Working from memory, Hladík mentally writes, expands and edits his play, shaping every detail and nuance to his satisfaction. Finally, after a year of labor, he completes it; only a single epithet is left to be written, which he chooses, and time begins again and the volley from the soldiers' rifles kills him.
The plot after the destruction of Earth became more storyline based. Instead of many, disjointed topics that left very little permanent change to the Goats multiverse, the topics began to build off each other. The problems between Fish/Fineas and Toothgnip escalated during the Space Wizard series. Diablo and Toothgnip's relationship remained strained but also grew to include Oliver. Oliver and Fineas had a limited respect for each other and began to cooperate against their common enemy.
This transitional phase was primarily a way for Rosenberg to move the Goats strip away from brief one-liners into a more mature, storyline based strip. He has stated on several occasions that he is finally moving the comic in the direction that had always been at least a primary idea for his creation.
''Enterprise'' locates a planet inhabited by pre-industrial humanoids called Akaali. Scanners also detect technology which does not correspond with the planet's technological level. Against Sub-Commander T'Pol's recommendation, Captain Archer decides to visit. Going in disguise, T'Pol suggests a distant rural landing site. Once in the Akaali city, Ensign Sato notices inhabitants that appear sick. Scans lead them to an old curio shop, but they encounter a force-field blocking the way. They are then confronted by a local apothecary, Riann. T'Pol stuns her, and when she awakens, Archer convinces her that he is an investigator from another city.
Archer and Tucker revisit the shop during the day posing as antique collectors. They confront Garos, asking him why his DNA is not Akaali. After confirming Tucker and Archer are not natives either, he freely admits his origins: he is part of a survey mission from Malur, and the power source is merely a fabrication unit to provide food and clothes. Archer tells him about the illness, but he claims it is an incurable indigenous virus. Doctor Phlox discovers that the water near the shop has been contaminated with a highly toxic chemical, tetracyanate 622.
Archer and Riann observe the shop at night to try to see what is being delivered to Garos. They follow a man leaving the shop with a delivery. He leaves the crates in a forest clearing, and Archer is then attacked by a Malurian. Under the shop, Archer and Riann then discover that Garos is mining a veridium isotope, and the poisoned water is a by-product. Archer orders the reactor beamed up by ''Enterprise'' but the Malurians now have a warship in orbit. T'Pol beams the power plant into the alien ship's path, using torpedoes to detonate it and crippling their shields. On the planet, Archer provides Riann with the antidote, and assures her that the Vulcans will monitor the planet to ensure the Malurians do not return.
An Earth freighter with a crew of twenty-three, ECS ''Fortunate'', is attacked by Nausicaans and ''Enterprise'' is sent to help. When they arrive, the freighter is relatively unharmed apart from Captain Keene, who is lying unconscious in the ship's infirmary, but the rest of the crew are secretive and reluctant to provide explanations. While helping repair ''Fortunate'', Sub-Commander T'Pol detects a Nausicaan bio-sign. It transpires that Commander Matthew Ryan and his men are secretly torturing the captive for his shield access codes. Ryan admits the Nausicaan pirate is their prisoner, but refuses to let the Starfleet personnel see him, and Captain Archer threatens to retract his assistance to ''Fortunate''.
Ryan seemingly relents, but as Archer and his away team enter a cargo section of the freighter, the cargo pod is suddenly jettisoned with the away team inside. Before ''Fortunate'' warps away, it attempts to damage ''Enterprise'' in order to delay pursuit. ''Enterprise'' recovers its people and begins pursuit of the rogue freighter. Meanwhile, ''Fortunate'' arrives at the asteroid used by the Nausicaan pirates, but discover the acquired shield codes are useless. The pirates attempt to board the freighter and rescue their captured crewman just as ''Enterprise'' arrives and begins to engage the Nausicaan ships.
Archer is soon able to broker a temporary truce: if they can return the Nausicaan captive, the boarding party will stand down. Ryan is uncooperative until Ensign Mayweather intervenes, saying that Ryan's motivations are not about preventing future attacks on Earth ships; they are about personal revenge, and doing so simply exposes other freighter crews to revenge attacks as well. Ryan relents. Later, Archer and Captain Keene of ''Fortunate'' discuss Ryan's actions and his demotion to Crewman 3rd class. They agree Ryan acted rashly, but Keene also muses that acting on their own is the primary motivation his people are out here — to both challenge and prove themselves.
Chuck Tatum (Kirk Douglas) is a fiercely ambitious, newly sober alcoholic reporter whose career in New York City has fallen into notoriety and decline. He has come west to New Mexico in a broken-down car, out of money and options. Tatum visits the office of the tiny ''Albuquerque Sun-Bulletin'' and asks the publisher, Boot (Porter Hall), if he would like to make $200 a week: "Mr. Boot, I'm a $250-a-week newspaperman. I can be had for $50." Boot says, "In this shop we pay $60", and brings Tatum on. However, he remains skeptical of his new hire.
For a year Tatum stays sober and works there uneventfully and unhappily. One day he and the newspaper's young photographer, Herbie Cook (Robert Arthur), are assigned to cover a small-town rattlesnake hunt. Stopping for gasoline, they learn about Leo Minosa (Richard Benedict), a local man who has become trapped in the collapse of a cliff dwelling while gathering ancient Indian artifacts. Tatum and Cook go in after the man and find they can get close enough to talk to him and pass him food and drink. Cook photographs him as Tatum tries to cheer him up.
But Tatum has sensed a golden opportunity to manipulate the rescue effort for publicity. After filing an initial report on the accident, he persuades the unscrupulous local sheriff, Kretzer (Ray Teal), to give him exclusive access to Leo in return for reportage that will guarantee Kretzer's reelection. When the construction contractor, Smollett (Frank Jaquet), says it will take 12–16 hours to shore up the existing passages and safely get Minosa out, Tatum and Kretzer convince him to drill from above instead, which will take a week, keeping Tatum on newspaper front pages nationwide.
Lorraine Minosa (Jan Sterling), the victim's wife, is eager to leave Leo and their struggling business, a combination trading post and restaurant in the middle of nowhere, but as tourists begin flocking to the rescue site, she experiences a financial windfall, and goes along with Tatum's scheme. Cook also begins losing his idealism as he envisions himself selling pictures to ''Look'' or ''Life''. Tatum and Cook quit the ''Sun-Bulletin'' and Tatum talks a New York editor into hiring him to report exclusively from the scene for $1,000 per day—and, more importantly, his old job back afterwards.
As days pass, the rescue site literally becomes an all-day carnival with rides, entertainment, games, and songs about Leo. Tatum begins drinking again. He takes up with Lorraine and is greeted heroically by the crowd each time he returns from visiting Leo. But, five days along, Leo develops pneumonia and the doctor gives him 12 hours to live without hospital treatment.
Remorseful, Tatum sends a news flash: Leo will now be rescued within 12 hours. But when he tells Smollett to stop drilling and shore up the walls, he learns that the vibration from drilling has made this impossible. Tatum now fights verbally and physically with Lorraine, and she stabs him in self-defense with a pair of scissors. Tatum gets the local priest, and takes him to Leo to administer the Last Rites. Leo subsequently dies.
Tatum orders the crew to stop drilling, then announces to the crowd that Leo has died, telling them to pack up and leave. Other reporters get on their newswires and report Leo's death. As the carnival breaks down, the public packs up and moves out en masse, Lorraine among them.
During all this, Tatum has neglected to send copy to his New York editor. Tatum is fired and the other reporters gloat over his comedown. Drunk and slowly dying from the stab wound, Tatum calls the editor and tries to confess to killing Leo by delaying the rescue, but the editor hangs up on him.
Tatum corrals Cook into driving back to Albuquerque. Tatum makes a dramatic entrance into the ''Sun-Bulletin'' offices, calling for Boot. Tatum says: "How'd you like to make yourself $1,000 a day, Mr. Boot? I'm a $1,000-a-day newspaperman. You can have me for nothin'." He then falls to the floor dead.
Bobby had grown up in a home in suburban Cleveland, Ohio during the 1960s and 1970s where partying and drugs were a recurring theme. He has already witnessed the death of his mother and beloved older brother by the time he befriends Jonathan, who comes from a sheltered family. After Bobby finds his father is dead, Jonathan's family takes him in.
Bobby and Jonathan become best friends, and also experiment sexually. The two eventually lose touch, but meet up again in their 20s in 1980s New York, where Bobby moves in with Jonathan and his eccentric roommate Clare. Clare had planned to have a baby with Jonathan (who is openly gay), but Bobby and Clare become lovers, while Jonathan still has feelings for Bobby. Clare and Bobby have a baby and move to a country home together with Jonathan.
The trio form their own family, questioning traditional definitions of family and love, while dealing with the complications of their polyamourous relationship.
Giles Gosling, the innkeeper, had just welcomed his mischievous nephew Michael Lambourne on his return from Flanders. He invited the Cornishman, Tressilian, and other guests to drink with them. Lambourne made a wager he would obtain an introduction to a certain young lady under the steward Foster's charge at Cumnor Place, seat of the Earl of Leicester, and the Cornish stranger begged permission to accompany him. On arriving there Tressilian found that this lady was his former lady-love, Amy. He would have carried her back to her home, but she refused; and as he was leaving he quarrelled with Richard Varney, the earl's squire, and might have taken his life had not Lambourne intervened. Amy was soothed in her seclusion by costly presents from the earl, and during his next visit she pleaded that she might inform her father of their marriage, but he was afraid of Elizabeth's resentment.
Warned by his host against the squire, and having confided to him how Amy had been entrapped, Tressilian left Cumnor by night, and, after several adventures by the way, reached the residence of Sir Hugh Robsart, Amy's father, to assist him in laying his daughter's case before the queen. Returning to London, Tressilian's servant, Wayland Smith, cured the Earl of Sussex of a dangerous illness. On hearing about this from Walter Raleigh, Elizabeth at once set out to visit Leicester's rival, and it was in this way that Tressilian's petition, in Amy's behalf, was handed to her. The queen was agitated to learn of this secret marriage. Varney was accordingly summoned to the royal presence, but he boldly declared that Amy was his wife, and Leicester was restored to the queen's favour.
Tressilian's servant then gained access to the secret countess Amy as a pedlar, and, having hinted that Elizabeth would shortly marry the earl, sold her a cure for the heartache, warning her attendant Janet at the same time that there might be an attempt to poison her mistress. Meanwhile, Leicester was preparing to entertain the queen at Kenilworth, where she had commanded that Amy should be introduced to her, and Varney was, accordingly, despatched with a letter begging the countess to appear at the revels pretending to be Varney's bride. Having indignantly refused to do so, and having recovered from the effects of a cordial which had been prepared for her by the astrologer Alasco, she escaped, with the help of her maid, from Cumnor, and started for Kenilworth, escorted by Wayland Smith.
Travelling thither as brother and sister, they joined a party of mummers, and then, to avoid the crowd of people thronging the principal approaches, proceeded by circuitous by-paths to the castle. Having, with Dickie Sludge's help, passed into the courtyard, they were shown into a room, where Amy was waiting while her attendant carried a note to the earl, when she was startled by the entrance of Tressilian, whom she entreated not to interfere until after the expiration of twenty-four hours. On entering the park, Elizabeth was received by her favourite attended by a numerous cavalcade bearing waxen torches, and a variety of entertainments followed. During the evening she enquired for Varney's wife, and was told she was too ill to be present. Tressilian offered to lose his head if within twenty-four hours he did not prove the statement to be false. Nevertheless, the ostensible bridegroom was knighted by the queen.
The Elizabethan Gardens at Kenilworth Receiving no reply to her note, which Wayland had lost, Amy found her way the next morning to a grotto in the gardens, where she was discovered by Elizabeth, who had just told her host that "she must be the wife and mother of England alone." Falling on her knees the countess besought protection against Varney, who she declared was not her husband, and added that the Earl of Leicester knew all. The earl was instantly summoned to the royal presence, and would have been committed to the Tower, had not Amy recalled her words, when she was consigned to Lord Hunsdon's care as bereft of her reason, Varney coming forward and pretending that she had just escaped from a special treatment for her madness. Leicester insisted on an interview with her, when she implored him to confess their marriage to Elizabeth, and then, with a broken heart, told him that she would not long darken his brighter prospects. Varney, however, succeeded in persuading him that Amy had acted in connivance with Tressilian, and in obtaining medical sanction for her custody as mentally disordered, asking only for the earl's signet-ring as his authority. The next day a duel between Tressilian and the earl was interrupted by Dickie, who produced the countess's note, and, convinced of her innocence, Leicester confessed that she was his wife. With the queen's permission he at once deputed his rival and Sir Walter Raleigh to proceed to Cumnor, whither he had already despatched Lambourne, to stay his squire's further proceedings.
Varney, however, had shot the messenger on receiving his instructions, and had caused Amy to be conducted by Foster to an apartment reached by a long flight of stairs and a narrow wooden bridge. The following evening the tread of a horse was heard in the courtyard, and a whistle like the earl's signal, upon which she rushed from the room, and the instant she stepped on the bridge, it parted in the middle, and she fell to her death. Her murderer poisoned himself, and the skeleton of his accomplice was found, many years afterwards, in a cell where he secreted his money. The news of the countess's fate put an end to the revels at Kenilworth: Leicester retired for a time from Court, and Sir Hugh Robsart, who died very soon after his daughter, settled his estate on Tressilian. Leicester pressed for an impartial inquiry. Though the jury found that Amy's death was an accident (concluding that Lady Dudley, staying alone "in a certain chamber", had fallen down the adjoining stairs, sustaining two head injuries and breaking her neck), it was widely suspected that Leicester had arranged his wife's death to be able to marry the Queen.
The show was based in the mining town of Orkney, near the city of Klerksdorp (and not too far from Johannesburg), and followed the exploits of an Afrikaner family named ''Van Tonder'', a common Afrikaans surname.
The head of the household, Hendrik (played by Zack du Plessis), worked on the mines and his wife, Maggie (Annette Engelbrecht), was a housewife. They had four children (oldest to youngest): Ouboet, Bennie, Hester and Wimpie. Ouboet (Frank Opperman) was a car mechanic. He and his wife, Yolanda (Sally Campher), had a little baby of their own, named Hendrik after his grandfather. "Ouboet" is an Afrikaans term of endearment meaning "older brother", his name really being Neels. Hester (Clara Joubert) and Wimpie (Anrich Herbst) were both at school. The character of Bennie (Charl van Heyningen) was rarely seen as he first was in the army and later left the town of Orkney. Wimpie had an on and off relationship with a girl named Sonja (Carien Wandrag), and his best friend was named Koert (Rinus van Niekerk).
From time to time other family members, such as grandfathers and grandmothers would stay over with the family and cause all sorts of mischief. Later the family also adopted two orphans, a young Afrikaner girl named Riekie (Bernice Du Plessis) and a coloured boy named Neelsie (Eugene Martin).
One Thursday afternoon, Professor Brade goes to visit his graduate student's laboratory. He finds Ralph Neufeld dead, having inhaled hydrogen cyanide. In his experiment, he had somehow used sodium cyanide instead of sodium acetate, both white powders. Later, Brade is questioned by Detective Doheny, who is in charge of Ralph's case. When he gets home, he reveals to his wife his suspicions that Ralph's death was murder. She cautions him not to tell this to anyone, as he would destroy any chance of getting an associate professorship and tenure.
The next day, Brade meets with emeritus professor Cap Anson, who seems to blame him for Ralph's death. They visit the zoo together, and Anson encourages Brade to go into comparative biochemistry. Brade refuses, saying he wants to continue Ralph's work in chemical kinetics. Anson tells him that Professor Littleby (head of the chemistry department) has decided not to renew Brade's contract.
On Sunday, Brade reads through Ralph's research notebooks and realizes that Ralph's data had been faked, a cardinal sin in science. When Doheny returns, Brade tells him about the faking, suggesting it as a possible motive for suicide. Doheny, however, twists it around and says that Brade might have been trying to protect his own reputation by hiding the fraud.
The next day Brade again meets with Cap Anson, and immediately afterward in the lab, is almost killed by an oxygen cylinder which has been sabotaged. Now resolved to solve the mystery, he questions Ralph's fiancé Roberta Goodhue in the presence of Doheny. She admits that she and Ralph had had an argument about the faked data. The only person who could have overheard was Cap Anson. Brade accuses Anson of killing Ralph to prevent him from publishing the faked data (but does not mention the attempt on his own life). Anson denies the murder, but Doheny then tricks Anson into revealing that he knows about the attempt on Brade's life. Anson confesses to murdering Ralph and attempting to murder Brade.
This episode, like many routine Christmas specials, has an anapestic rhyming narration akin to a storybook. It begins in the forest, where Stan discovers a group of talking animals building a Christmas tree. They convince a surprised but apathetic Stan to help make a star for it, after which he goes home. That night, they wake him in his room and explain that one of the animals, a porcupine named Porcupiney, is pregnant with the creatures' savior. Though drowsy and annoyed, Stan agrees to help them build a manger for the baby. As he finishes, however, another problem appears in the form of a mountain lion, which apparently eats every pregnant Critter to prevent their Savior's birth. Exasperated, Stan goes to its mountain home and manages to kill the beast, but is dismayed to find that the lion was the mother of three talking, now-orphaned cubs. He is further horrified to learn that the Woodland Critters are actually Satanists and that their "Savior" is the Antichrist. They celebrate Stan's victory by sacrificing Rabbitty the Rabbit, devouring his flesh and having an orgy in his blood.
Stan tries to ignore the impending apocalypse, only to be wheedled by the narrator into trying to stop it. Unfortunately, the Critters are able to rebuff him with their Satanic powers, which will apparently grow stronger as the Antichrist's birth approaches. Since the Critters claim that only a mountain lion can prevent that, Stan (heeding the narrator's instructions) returns to the mountain to enlist the orphaned cubs. Since they're too small to take on the Critters, they can only stop the birth by learning to perform abortions; the narrator forces Stan to take them to an abortion clinic for lessons, despite his objections. Meanwhile, the Critters are searching for an unbaptized human host for the Antichrist to possess once it's born. They discover Kyle, who is Jewish, and kidnap him.
Stan and the cubs return to the forest in time to discover that the Antichrist (a hairless, jabbering little creature) has already been born, with Kyle tied to a Satanic altar. Santa Claus arrives and, when he learns what is happening, pulls out a shotgun and shoots all of the Critters. He explains that the Antichrist will die without a human host to inhabit, but Kyle, having been freed, suddenly decides to allow the Antichrist to possess him. He announces that he will conquer the world in the name of the Jews, allowing them to finally take control of Christmas once and for all.
The scene suddenly cuts to Mr. Garrison's fourth-grade class, revealing that the entire episode up until now has been a story narrated by Cartman for a school assignment. Kyle objects to its obvious anti-Semitism, and Mr. Garrison, fearing complaints from Kyle's mother, forces Cartman to stop reading. However, the rest of the class wants to hear the ending and plead with Kyle to let Cartman continue. Kyle objects that the ending is obvious---Santa Claus will simply kill him, thus saving Christmas. Cartman insists that the ending is different. Begrugdingly, Kyle gives in to the others' pleading and allows Cartman to continue.
Back in the story, Kyle begins to react with horror at how evil the Antichrist feels and begs the others to exorcise it before it takes control of him. Thinking quickly, Stan has the lion cubs perform an abortion through Kyle's anus; once removed, Santa unceremoniously smashes it with a sledgehammer. Santa gives Stan a special Christmas wish, which he uses to resurrect the mother mountain lion, to the cubs' obvious joy. Everyone then goes home to a happy Christmas. Cartman concludes, "they all lived happily ever after...except for Kyle, who died of AIDS two weeks later," with an image of a sickly Kyle dying in the hospital. The episode ends with "The End" while Kyle can be heard shouting "Goddamn it, Cartman!"
Aqueduct, the "Canal Bridge" near which Tarka was born
The book is separated into two main parts, "The First Year" and "The Last Year". It begins shortly before the birth of Tarka in an otter holt on the River Torridge, near the Rolle Canal aqueduct on the Beam estate. After a period learning to swim and hunt, and losing a sibling in a trap, he is separated from his mother and wanders around North Devon alone. His first mate is an elderly otter called Greymuzzle, who is killed during Tarka's first winter, which is unusually harsh. In his second year, he fathers a litter of cubs with his second mate, White-tip. Throughout the book Williamson juxtaposes Tarka with his main enemy, the local otter hunt, and particularly the pied hound Deadlock, "the truest marking-hound in the country of the Two Rivers" (p. 23). The book ends with a climactic nine-hour hunt of Tarka by the pack, and a confrontation between Tarka and Deadlock. Williamson's attitude to the hunt is somewhat ambivalent: while admiring them for their own regard for and knowledge of the otter, and despite being personally friendly with his local hunt, the violence and cruelty of some of his descriptions of hunting is clear.Gavron, 2009, xi
Locations featured in the book include Braunton Burrows, the clay pits at Marland, Morte Point, Hoar Oak Water and the Chains. The book begins and ends in the vicinity of Torrington.
Williamson wrote with a descriptive style which some, such as Ted Hughes, have characterised as poetic: in his memorial address for Williamson, quoted by Roger Deakin in his book ''Waterlog'', Hughes described him as "one of the truest English poets of his generation".Quoted in Deakin, R. ''Waterlog'', Random House, 2009, p.84 His writing is also characterised by a lack of sentimentality about the animals it describes; Williamson is generally careful to avoid anthropomorphising them and rarely attempts to present any but their most basic or instinctual mental processes.Hogan, W. ''Animals in Young Adult Fiction'', 2009, p.7
Rudy Russo is a young and cunning car salesman in Mesa, with aspirations of running for the state senate. He works at the struggling New Deal used car lot owned by the elderly Luke Fuchs, who agrees to help invest $10,000 in Rudy's campaign if he promises to keep the business alive. Meanwhile, across the street, Luke's twin brother and arch-competitor Roy L. Fuchs (also played by Warden) is desperate to keep his used-car lot from being demolished and replaced by a proposed freeway exit. Wanting to collect life-insurance money and New Deal from Luke, Roy hires his mechanic, demolition derby driver Mickey, to recklessly drive Luke's 1957 Chevrolet Two-Ten around the block with Luke in the passenger's seat. After the car crashes back into the lot, Luke dies of a heart attack, but leaves Rudy with evidence that Roy staged the "accident". In an attempt to prevent Roy from gaining any inheritance, Rudy has his superstitious co-worker Jeff and mechanic Jim help him bury Luke in the lot's backyard in an Edsel that was once New Deal's sign ornament. When Roy comes looking for Luke the next day, they explain that Luke took the Edsel on a vacation to Miami.
The following night, Rudy and his friends make a live broadcast of their commercial in the middle of a football game, but it goes awry when Jeff finds out the car on display is red (which he believes is bad luck) and female model Margaret (Cheryl Rixon) has her dress stuck on the hood ornament, which rips and exposes her when the hood is popped open. The commercial results in New Deal receiving a massive number of customers the next day. In one deal, Jeff cons a family into buying a station wagon by having the lot's mascot dog Toby fake being run over during a test drive.
When Roy lures customers in his lot by hiring circus animals, Rudy counters with a live stripper show. Luke's estranged daughter Barbara Jane (Deborah Harmon) visits the lot in hopes of reuniting with him after more than 10 years when she dropped out of college to live on a hippie commune, but Rudy conceals the truth about her father by taking her out on a date, and inadvertently convinces her to stay in town.
Rudy's gang broadcasts another commercial in the middle of Jimmy Carter's presidential address, destroying some of Roy's used cars in the process, most notably his prized Mercedes SL. In retaliation, Roy storms into New Deal and attacks Jeff before discovering Luke's resting place buried in the lot. Roy brings the police to New Deal to dig through the backyard the next day, but Jim has taken the Edsel out of the pit, placed Luke's corpse in the driver's seat and has rigged it to crash into a power transformer and explode. Everyone believes Luke was killed in the fiery accident, and the evidence is destroyed. Roy believes he now has possession of New Deal, but Rudy points out that Barbara, as Luke's daughter, is effectively the new owner.
Eventually, Barbara discovers the fiasco over her father's death and fires Rudy, Jeff, and Jim for their scheme. As a final means of shutting down New Deal, Roy has his connections in local television station KFUK change Barbara's commercial to imply that she has "a mile of cars", and pushes a trumped-up charge of false advertising.
Rudy's luck changes when he wins a bet on a football game, guaranteeing him enough money for his campaign. Once he discovers that Barbara has been sued for false advertising, Rudy convinces her to tell the court she has a mile of cars. To avoid a charge of perjury, she must prove it in front of the judge by having over 250 cars on her lot by 2:45 pm. Rudy spends his senate-run investment on 250 cars bought from Mexican dealer Manuel and having 250 student drivers deliver them to New Deal in less than two hours. After overcoming Roy's attempt at disrupting the resulting convoy and Jeff's superstition of driving a red car, the drivers arrive in time. The total measurements are just long enough to equal a mile, saving the used car lot. Roy's former attorney informs Rudy and Barbara that once the freeway ramp across the street is constructed, New Deal will become the largest dealership in town.
An undercover cop, Chan Kam-wah, who is investigating a group of jewellery thieves, blows his cover and is stabbed to death by three attackers in a street market. His superior, Inspector Lau, orders Ko Chow, another undercover policeman, to resume the investigations. Ko Chow accepts reluctantly because during his previous undercover mission he had to arrest someone who had trusted him as a friend.
The robbers are holding up a jewellery factory, but someone manages to alert the police. One of the robbers, Fu, kills a policeman, starting a firefight with the approaching policemen. The gang barely escapes. The police commissioner sets up a dedicated task force to investigate the gang, under the leadership of the young inspector John Chan. A strong rivalry develops between Lau and Chan; Chan considers Lau old-fashioned and out of his depth, while Lau considers Chan inexperienced and arrogant.
To reach out to the gang, Chow offers them weapons for sale through the middle-man Tai Song. During the first meeting with gang member Fu they are tailed by members of the Criminal Investigation Department under the command of Chan (who is unaware that Chow is an undercover policeman). After the funeral of Chan Kam-wah, Chow meets with Lau who hands him a key to a locker in a bowling alley where the weapons will be stashed. Chow advises against handing out real guns, but Lau insists so as not to lose track of the gang.
Chow meets with his girlfriend Hung, to whom he made a marriage proposal shortly before. When Chow asks her to postpone the marriage until his case is closed, she leaves the room hysterically.
Prior to the handover of the guns, Chow tapes a recorder around his waist. He meets with three of the gang members. Chow is patted down, but manages to distract them from the tape recorder. Fu is satisfied with the sample gun and instructs Chow to meet him again in two days at noon to buy additional guns and ammunition.
The next day Chow meets with Lau and asks him for additional weapons. Lau needs time to get them, but assures Chow he will deposit them two hours before the arranged handover to Fu in the bowling alley. Meanwhile Hung packs her bags to take a flight to Canada with Tso, an older business man who had offered before to leave his wife for her. When Chow learns about that on the telephone, he asks her to marry him immediately to change her mind. Hung tells him to prove he's sincere by showing up at the register office at 10:00 am the next day, but the following day she waits there in vain with her friend Rose.
On his way to the bowling alley, Chow is tailed by policemen. When he realises this (and since having the guns is a crime) he calls Lau. Lau tells him that the policemen are from Chan's department and orders him to proceed while he would sort out the situation with Chan. When talking to Chan he mentions Chow as an informer, but keeps his status as an undercover cop a secret. Chan refuses Lau's request to call off the tail on Chow.
Now on his own, Chow shakes off his police pursuers at an MTR station by boarding a departing train. While getting the bag with the guns, he notices Fu at the bowling alley. As he leaves the building, the police arrive. Chow manages to escape by jumping from a window and is picked up at street level by Fu who's approaching in a car. They drive to the gang's hideout since their leader wants to meet Chow. He offers Chow the chance to participate in an upcoming big holdup.
Fu drives Chow to the airport where he meets Hung, who's about to board a plane to Canada with Tso. Chow tries to change her mind, but is arrested by the police for selling weapons (while Hung boards the plane). At the police station, Chow is beat up and tortured by Chan's men who want to know the buyer of the weapons. Chan's superior enters the room, orders Chan's men to release Chow and calls Chan and Lau into his office. Lau admits to having given Chow the weapons for the weapons deal, but keeps quiet about Chow being an undercover cop. Since illegal possession of a firearm is a minor offense, Chan proposes that Chow participates in the holdup to catch the robbers red-handed. Lau considers that too much of a risk, but ultimately the police chief orders Chow's participation in the planned robbery.
There are four possible jewelry stores the gang might rob. All have weak security measures, valuable merchandise and are located at busy roads. After the robbery, the gang plans to drive to a hideout in the harbour area where a boat will pick them up the following day. The police is unaware which store will be targeted, but plans to keep several police teams on standby nearby.
On the eve of the robbery, the gang leader orders the participants to gather at an apartment. For security reasons, they need to spend the remaining time before the holdout together and hand in their pagers. Chow writes the address of the hideout on a piece of paper, but is unable to pass it on to his police colleagues. Chow and Fu share a room and talk about their history and future plans – Fu's wife left him and he never saw his son again, to which Chow tells him that his wife also left him and the men become increasingly close. During the night Chow reads a letter from Hung who tells him that she didn't go to Canada with Tso, but is waiting for him in Hawaii.
The next morning the police leadership orders the police teams out of standby since they don't expect the robbery to happen soon any longer. This is a misjudgment, as the gang leader calls his men together and designates the ''Tai Kong'' jewellery store as their target. Since the special police teams stood down, the store is only guarded by two plainclothes policemen in a patrol car. The holdup starts when four of the robbers enter the store, draw their guns, and request the jewellery. Fu and Chow wait at the entrance to keep an eye on the street while the gang leader waits in a getaway car. There Chow realises that it was Fu whom eyewitnesses described as the cop killer who started the firefight during the jewellery factory heist.
When the store alarm is triggered, Big Song (one of the robbers) shoots a saleswoman. While they are trying to escape to their cars, the two policemen guarding the store open fire, wounding gang member Bill. One of the getaway cars is stopped by the police. Fu, Chow, Joe, and Big Song need to leave Bill behind under heavy fire. Joe is killed by police while Big Song tries to hot-wire another getaway car. In an audacious maneuver Fu confronts an approaching police car and kills the four policemen inside, although he gets shot into the shoulder. Chow saves Fu's life by killing the policeman who shot at Fu.
Fu, Chow, Big Song, and Bony (the fourth surviving gang member) escape with the stolen car to the hideout at the harbour, where they meet the gang leader who was already awaiting them. Meanwhile, the police find Chow's note with the address of the hideout at the scene of the firefight.
The leader suspects a traitor among the gang since the police arrived too quickly at the crime scene. He incriminates Chow since he only recently joined their ranks. Big Song and Fu defend Chow and a Mexican standoff emerges.
The police arrives and surrounds the hideout with dozens of men. When Chan requests the men to surrender, Big Song shoots at the police. They open fire and kill him. Bony tries to surrender and is shot by the gang leader for cowardice. When the boss also tries to shoot Chow and Fu, they kill him instead. Chow is wounded by a police bullet and realises his injury is fatal. He confesses to Fu that he's a cop and asks for a quick death, but Fu feels unable to kill Chow. While the police storms the hideout and arrest Fu, Chow dies next to him. Lau is furious about his death and smashes a brick on Chan's head (who's already boasting to a superior about his success) and storms off.
Jay Trotter and his best friend Looney are cab drivers. Looney records his passengers' private conversations with a hidden microphone. Looney has a new tape of two men talking about an upcoming horse race and how one of the race horses, due to unethical practice by its owner and trainer, ("they were holding the horse back") is a sure thing to win big. Trotter and Looney go to the track to place a $50.00 win bet on the horse, despite the fact that Trotter told his wife Pam the day before that he would quit betting forever and stay home to "start their marriage over" at noon. In the restroom of the bar next door to the racetrack, he prays to God, saying, "just one big day, that's all I'm asking for, one day, I'm due." A man exiting the bathrooms overhears him, and says "Yeah? So's Jesus. Let it ride." Trotter promptly places a $50 bet on the tipped horse. Looney refuses to bet the tip, instead betting on a horse named "June Bug" - the same name as a cat Looney once owned. Trotter's horse wins the race in a photo finish and pays $28.40 to win (earning Trotter $710).
Armed with a newfound sense of confidence, after cashing his winning bet, Trotter approaches the two men from Looney's cab ride and generously gives them the tape of their taxi conversation. Out of gratitude, they give Trotter a good tip for the next race. He places a large bet and wins again.
Sensing that this could be his "lucky day," Trotter intends to "let it ride" (parlaying all of his track winnings on every race). Just before the next race, before he can make another bet on a horse suggested by someone else, Trotter is suddenly arrested in a case of mistaken identity. After he is released, he realizes the horse he was going to bet has lost. Now, he really feels this is his "lucky day". After being released, Trotter resumes his lucky wagering streak. As he accumulates more money, and uses his new clubhouse friends' membership in the track's exclusive clubhouse dining room, he starts meeting other well-to-do gamblers, including the wealthy Mrs. Davis and a sexy vixen named Vicki. Trotter soon becomes a hero to the ticket seller, whose window he uses to wager every time, and to the customers of the track's bar. He also hires a track security guard to protect him.
However, Trotter has neglected his wife Pam, who realizes he must be at the racetrack. She confronts him at the track clubhouse and flies into a rage. Trotter calms her down a bit, and tells her of his hot streak. Unable to decide on a horse in the next race, Trotter takes a survey of the track patrons and, eliminating any selection they give him, bets on the remaining horse, Fleet Dreams, who wins. Trotter decides to call it a day and goes home to Pam, buying her a diamond necklace on the way. At home he finds Pam intoxicated and passed out.
He heads back to the track to help the patrons of Marty's bar across the street, but when he suggests sharing his luck by betting their money together, they all balk at the idea. Disconcerted, Trotter goes for a walk around the track. Vicki suddenly offers to go to bed with him. Trotter breaks the fourth wall by saying to the audience, "Am I having a good day or what?" Ultimately, he turns down Vicki by professing his love for his wife.
Trotter makes a final bet of $68,000 (his total winnings for the day) after Looney advises him not to bet on Hot to Trot. As the race begins, Looney and Trotter argue over everything, and the main characters all make resolutions. Vicki vows to give up rich guys and consider a poor one, looking at Looney. The race comes down to a photo finish. While everyone awaits the result, Pam shows up to thank Jay for his lovely gift and to tell him not to worry about the money, when the announcer reports the winner: Hot to Trot. The entire racetrack erupts in celebration, and Pam asks, "Why is everyone cheering?" Jay replies, "Because I'm having a very good day."
''Shin Megami Tensei II'' is set in the year "20XX", decades after the events of ''Shin Megami Tensei'', where a war between angels and demons was fought. Opposing both sides, a man called the Hero created a world where both Law and Chaos could co-exist, where people had freedom to choose and believe what they wished. In the time between the two games, the world was plagued by disasters, and the air became unbreathable. People flocked to the encapsulated city Tokyo Millennium, which was built atop the ruins of Tokyo, where mutants, fairies and demons live. The city is ruled by followers of the Messian religion in a central unit called the Center, and is divided into districts; the largest one is Valhalla, where people can compete in a gladiator tournament, with the winner gaining citizenship in the luxurious Center, which is out of reach from demons.
The game follows Hawk, an amnesic Valhalla gladiator who trains at his mentor Okamoto's gym. Among other recurring characters are Hiroko, a rebellious temple knight; Beth, a woman from the center who vows to always stay by Hawk's side; Daleth, who claims to be the Messiah, and fights Hawk multiple times; Zayin, a temple knight; and Gimmel, a man from the Arcadia forest, who knows Hawk from somewhere. Early in the game, Hawk meets a man named Steven, who grants Hawk the "Demon Summoning Program" for Hawk's arm terminal, allowing him to summon demons.
Hawk wins the gladiator tournament in Valhalla, gaining citizenship in the Center, and is asked by Hiroko to help her find a boy who has gone missing. Upon their failure to find him, they are escorted by Zayin to the Center, where they meet the Messian bishop. He reprimands Hiroko for acting independently and tells Hawk that his true identity is Aleph, the Messiah, who will save mankind and bring about the paradisiacal "Thousand-Year Kingdom", and that Beth was sent by God as the Messiah's partner. The Center sends Aleph and Beth on missions across Tokyo Millennium to eradicate demons and prepare the world for the Thousand-Year Kingdom. They meet with Gimmel, and are shown Arcadia, a prototype of the Thousand-Year Kingdom. Returning to the Center, they learn that demons have invaded and that someone the bishop calls the Anti-Messiah is proclaiming to the people that he is the true Messiah. Aleph and Beth are sent to stop him, and learn that he is a man named Daleth. During the ensuing fight, Daleth nearly kills Aleph, but Beth sacrifices herself, allowing Aleph to regain the upper hand. Honoring Beth's dying wish, he spares Daleth, and is considered the true Messiah.
Together with the demon Nadja, Aleph travels through the underground, finding a brainwashed Hiroko in a concentration camp. Her cell is guarded by Zayin, who admits to having doubts about the Center's action and lets Aleph free Hiroko; she refuses to leave, but Nadja frees her from the brainwashing by fusing with her. On their way back, Aleph and Hiroko learn that the Center has released the demon Abaddon to swallow the entire Valhalla district, and that the Center only plans to let those they deem worthy be allowed to live in the Thousand-Year Kingdom; everyone else would be abandoned and left to die. Zayin starts a revolt against the Center, who threatens to cut off the air supply to the Holytown district if he does not surrender; he, Aleph and Hiroko go to the Center to confront the four elders leading it. Aleph and Hiroko learn that the elders are actually the archangels Michael, Raphael, Uriel and Gabriel; Aleph and Hiroko fight and kill the first three archangels, after which Gabriel reveals that YHVH, the creator god, had ordered the archangels to watch over the creation of Tokyo Millennium and wait for the Messiah, but that Michael, Raphael and Uriel, unable to wait any longer, created Aleph as an artificial, false Messiah, leading YHVH to abandon them; he was the boy Hiroko was searching for, aged unnaturally fast to take on the role of Messiah. Similarly, Beth was artificially created as the Messiah's partner, Zayin as his bodyguard, Daleth as a false savior intended to be defeated by the Messiah so that Aleph would win the people's favor, and Gimmel as a trial Messiah for the Arcadia prototype.
Suspecting that Aleph is Satan, Lucifer summons Aleph and Hiroko to his castle in the Expanse; he is relieved to learn that Aleph is not Satan, but says that Satan's revival is only a matter of time. He tells them that Satan is an instrument of God's wrath, to be used to judge and eradicate humanity, and that he wants Aleph and Hiroko's help in fighting Satan. Leaving Lucifer's castle, Aleph and Hiroko meet Gabriel, who takes them to the garden of Eden, located on top of the Center, where they meet Zayin – revealed to be Satan (after Zayin merges with the demon Set) – who wants to ally with Aleph and Hiroko and fight Lucifer, destroy Tokyo Millennium, and create the Thousand-Year Kingdom. If the player joins Gabriel and Zayin, the Thousand-Year Kingdom is created through Eden — revealed to be a vast spaceship carrying the chosen ones — and the destruction of all life on Earth. YHVH appears aboard Eden, and Zayin, Aleph and Hiroko fight and kill him for having committed genocide, after which Zayin declares Aleph the true savior, and Hiroko the holy mother, and then crumbles to dust. If the player instead allies with Lucifer or stays neutral, Aleph and Hiroko kill Zayin before he can activate the destruction; Aleph is dubbed a false Messiah and commits the "ultimate sin" by killing YHVH, freeing humanity.
The setting is post-Russian Civil War, during the reconstruction of the young Soviet republic. During the war, Shilov, Sarichev, Kungorov, Zabelin and Lipyagin had become great friends.
There are two main plots in the film, the first involving the theft of gold by outlaws just after the Russian civil war. Though the cannons are now silent, the enemy continues to harass the Soviets. The regional committee sends a precious shipment of gold by train to Moscow, and a group of demobilized Red Army soldiers — now Cheka officers — led by Shilov are entrusted with the responsibility of guarding it. The gold is needed to buy bread from overseas to feed the starving population. The Cheka guards are attacked and killed by a group of assassins, and the briefcase of gold is stolen. The group then hops onto another train, only to face a reversal of their own when their train is attacked by bandits. All the assassins are killed except their leader, who discovers that a bandit has secretly stolen the gold. He then joins the bandits in an effort to learn where the gold is, and to escape with it. In the meantime, Shilov was kidnapped and drugged before the train sets off, and is dumped in the street after the attack and framed as the inside man. He is suspected of treason, partly because his brother was a "White", which is where the second plot comes in. Shilov must infiltrate the enemy bandit camp to find the gold, hence the title. The second plot involves the Shilov's desire to clear his name of murder, and he must find out who killed his friends. During his efforts, Shilov uncovers a web of deceit and treachery, which allowed the robbery to succeed. The story of a hero battling against corruption and greed echoes the cattle baron or railroad Westerns.
Police informant Michael Marks awakens in a room with a spike-filled mask locked around his neck. He refuses to retrieve the key from his eye and is killed when the mask closes. At the scene of Michael's murder, Detective Allison Kerry finds a message for her former partner, Detective Eric Matthews. Matthews joins Kerry and Officer Daniel Rigg in leading a SWAT team to the factory which produced the lock from Michael's trap. There they apprehend John Kramer, the Jigsaw Killer, who indicates computer monitors showing eight people trapped in a house, including his only known survivor Amanda Young, Matthews' son Daniel, and six other victims: Xavier Chavez, Jonas Singer, Laura Hunter, Addison Corday, Obi Tate, and Gus Colyard. A nerve agent filling the house will kill them all within two hours, but John assures Matthews that if he follows the rules of his own game, he will see Daniel again. At Kerry's urging, Matthews agrees to buy time for the tech team to arrive and trace the video signal. During their conversation, John reveals to Matthews that one of his main motivations to become Jigsaw was a suicide attempt after his cancer diagnosis, which led to a newfound appreciation for life; his games' purpose is to help his victims develop the same appreciation.
The group is informed by a microcassette recorder that antidotes are hidden throughout the house; one is in the room's safe, and the tape provides a cryptic clue. Gus ignores a warning note and uses the key provided with the cassette on the door, which triggers a gun through the peephole that kills him. Once the door opens, they search the house and find a basement, where Obi, who helped with abducting the other victims, is killed in a furnace trap while trying to retrieve two antidotes. In another room, Xavier's test involves digging through a pit filled with syringes to retrieve a key to a steel door in two minutes, but he instead throws Amanda into the pit. She retrieves the key, but Xavier fails to unlock the door in time. Throughout the game, the group discuss connections between them and determine that each has been incarcerated before except Daniel. During his father's test, John reveals their affiliation to Matthews who was a corrupt police officer framing his suspects in various crimes recently.
Xavier returns to the safe room and finds a number on the back of Gus' neck. After realizing the numbers are the combination for the safe, he kills Jonas and begins hunting the others. Laura succumbs to the nerve agent and dies, after finding the clue revealing Daniel's identity. Incensed by the revelation, Addison leaves on her own and finds a glass box containing an antidote, but her arms become trapped in the openings which are lined with hidden blades. Xavier enters the room and leaves her to die after reading her number. Amanda and Daniel find a tunnel from the first room leading to the dilapidated bathroom. After Xavier corners them, Amanda taunts him by implying that he will not learn his number because nobody will read it to him. Xavier responds by cutting off a piece of skin from the back of his neck to read his number. Xavier charges them, and Daniel slits his throat with the hacksaw.
Having seen Xavier chasing his son, Matthews assaults John and forces him to lead him to the house. The tech team tracks the video's source and while Rigg's team searches the house, Kerry realizes that the game took place days before they captured John until the timer for Matthews' game expires to reveal Daniel inside a safe, bound and breathing in an oxygen mask. Unaware of these events, Matthews enters the house alone and makes his way to the bathroom, where he is subdued by a pig-masked figure. He awakens shackled at the ankle to a pipe and finds a tape recorder left by Amanda, who reveals she had become John's accomplice after surviving her first trap and helped him set up Matthews' test during the game at the house, intending to continue John's work after he dies. Amanda then appears and seals the door, leaving Matthews to die as John hears his screams outside and smiles.
During NASA's first crewed mission to Mars, the Fifth Doctor and Peri encounter one of the Doctor's old adversaries — the Ice Warriors.
This episode addresses issue of scientific and industrial ethics.
The Sixth Doctor and Evelyn team up with the Brigadier to defeat an ancient evil in Cornwall.
The Fifth Doctor and Nyssa investigate the mystery of a malevolent poltergeist in a Swiss girls' finishing school.
This episode addresses issues of religious extremism.
At a conference on Archetryx between major temporal powers, the Sixth Doctor and Evelyn discover that Romana has been missing for twenty years and that the Daleks' newest weapon — the Apocalypse Element — threatens not only the Time Lords but the entire galaxy.
'''Taft:''' Watching John F. Kennedy’s inauguration on television, Lillian Rogers Parks (Leslie Uggams) recalls the times she and her mother, Maggie Rogers (Olivia Cole), spent working as domestic staff in the White House. In 1909, Maggie supports her two children as a maid and hairdresser because her absentee husband Emmett Rogers (Paul Winfield) cannot be depended on to support them. She secures a job at the White House during the administration of William Howard Taft (Victor Buono). Mrs. Elizabeth Jaffray (Cloris Leachman), the Head Housekeeper, informs Maggie that she will be hairdresser for First Lady Helen “Nellie” Taft (Julie Harris) and is the first black woman to serve in the First Family’s living quarters. Chief Usher Ike Hoover (Leslie Nielsen) introduces Maggie to the White House staff including Houseman Levi Mercer (Louis Gossett Jr.) and Doorman & Presidential Barber John Mays (Robert Hooks). They all instruct her in the etiquette of keeping the First Family’s private lives from the outside world, though not necessarily from gossip among the White House staff. Mrs. Taft is pleased with how Maggie does her hair. Maggie first meets President Taft when she discovers her ten-year-old daughter Lillian Rogers (Tania Johnson) eating ice cream with him. When Nellie has a stroke, President Taft and Maggie help her learn to speak again. Lillian (Leslie Uggams), older now and crippled in one leg from polio, takes in work as a seamstress. Maggie keeps her busy and employed with small work orders from the White House.
'''Wilson:''' In 1913, President Woodrow Wilson (Robert Vaughn) is elected and his family moves into the White House. First Lady Ellen Wilson (Kim Hunter) declares herself to be a "crusader for Negroes" and even visits Maggie at her small apartment. Mrs. Wilson dies in 1914 and the President is grief stricken. Eventually, he marries Edith Bolling Galt (Claire Bloom) to the relief of the White House staff who are worried by his depression. Lillian begins working in the White House as a seamstress but is not allowed to work as a domestic servant due to her disability. When the United States enters World War I Maggie's son Emmett Rogers Jr. (Kevin Hooks) enlists and fights on the Western Front in Europe. He returns home permanently injured by a poison gas attack. The family is distraught when news arrives that Emmett Rogers Sr. has died. When President Wilson suffers a debilitating stroke in 1919, Senator Albert B. Fall (John Randolph) tells him the Senate is praying for him. “Which way?” replies Wilson. The First Lady takes over and manages the Executive branch for the remainder of his second term.
'''Harding:''' President Warren G. Harding (George Kennedy) and First Lady Florence Harding (Celeste Holm) are briefly introduced at the end of Part 1. President Harding orders spittoons for every room of the White House while Mrs. Harding (an avid mystic) tells Maggie she feels Maggie can be trusted because she has “good vibes.”
'''Harding (continued):''' Gullible President Harding is manipulated by the scheming Ohio Gang in his cabinet led by Attorney General Harry Daugherty (Barry Sullivan). His administration is plagued by corruption, eventually leading to the Teapot Dome Scandal. The staff keeps to itself the knowledge of his multiple mistresses and the liquor smuggled into the White House during Prohibition. Maggie, as always, refuses to believe any bad rumors about the First Family. Problems mount when Vice President Calvin Coolidge (Ed Flanders) refuses to tell the President how he will vote in an upcoming Senate showdown. Two administration aides commit suicide when implicated in the corruption scandals. The staff is cleaning the White House when they hear that President Harding has died in San Francisco while he and the First Lady are on a western coast goodwill tour.
'''Coolidge:''' Calvin Coolidge and his wife, Grace Coolidge (Lee Grant) arrive at the White House in 1923. President Coolidge introduces the staff to his stringent cost-cutting ways as he micro-manages the household expenses, including how and what to prepare in the kitchen. Due to staff retirements, Maggie has now moved up to the position of First Maid. Lillian begins buying things for the apartment on credit (as everyone else in the country is also doing).
President Coolidge may be tight-fisted when running the household, but he is a loving family man to his wife and two sons. When their younger son dies of blood poisoning, Coolidge and Grace are grief stricken for more than a year. Mrs. Jaffray, who has tormented Maggie over the years, is fired when the President catches her verbally abusing the staff. Coolidge confides to Grace that he fears the economy is over-heated and leading to a depression, but he is unwilling to force his policy of personal frugality on the rest of the nation. Maggie worries about Lillian dating a string of men and frequenting speakeasies. Lillian rejects Maggie’s offer to find her a job at the White House. Coolidge chooses not to run for a new term and Herbert Hoover (Larry Gates) is elected president.
'''Hoover:''' President Herbert Hoover (Larry Gates) and First Lady Lou Hoover (Jan Sterling) take up residence in the White House. The Great Depression has dealt a death blow to the economy. Emmett Jr. has moved to Arizona for his health. Lillian loses her jobs at the dress shop and movie theatre, and the household items she bought on credit are repossessed. Swallowing her pride Lillian takes a job as a maid at the White House where First Maid Maggie indoctrinates her on how to behave in the White House. She makes Lillian work harder than the rest of the staff to dispel suspicions of nepotism. The Hoovers communicate as little as possible with the staff, with the First Lady using her fingers to signify “Come,” “Quiet,” and “Go.” Lillian is instructed by the First Lady to perform only “light work” from now on.
'''Hoover (continued):''' Maggie continues to work Lillian especially hard. Lillian resents it, but Maggie tells her times are hard and many people would be glad to have her job. Times get harder when the staff is informed they are all going to have their pay cut. Despite Hoover’s efforts, the banks close their doors and Maggie loses her life savings. After an attack on the President, the staff is informed they now must keep out of sight whenever the President or the First Lady walks through the White House. Maggie takes in fellow staff member Houseman Fraser (James A. Watson Jr.) as a boarder for extra income. The Bonus Army of World War I veterans descend on Washington and are referred to by the First Lady as “communists fomenting revolution.” Roy Clayton (James Crittenden), an army buddy of Emmett Jr.’s, describes the deplorable conditions in the Bonus Army encampment to Maggie, Lillian, and Fraser. On President Hoover’s orders, the Army attacks and drives out the men, women and children in the Bonus Army camp before burning it and all their possessions to the ground. Maggie collapses from the increased work load at the White House. The staff does not regret to see the Hoovers depart without fanfare.
'''Roosevelt:''' The loud and boisterous family of President Franklin D. Roosevelt (John Anderson) and his wife Eleanor Roosevelt (Eileen Heckart) are greeted by the staff in 1932. The staff is impressed with the First Lady’s energy and openness, a complete reversal from the Hoover administration. When President Roosevelt discovers Lillian is also a victim of polio, he tells her to take the elevator from now on, even if he is riding it. While Maggie recuperates at home Lillian tells her gossip about the First Family. Maggie disapproves and reminds her that the First Family’s private lives are strictly confidential and not to be repeated.
Howell Crim (Richard Roat) is now Chief Usher. Housekeeper Nesbitt (Louise Latham) is also new to the staff, replacing Housekeeper Long. She assigns Lillian the task of breaking in the new maids. Lillian meets and secretly marries Wheatley Parks (Harrison Page). They do not tell Maggie until they move into her apartment. The White House becomes so crowded with guests that the First Lady moves into Lillian’s upstairs sewing room. Relations between Lillian and Wheatley become strained due to the long hours she is putting in preparing for a visit from King George VI and Queen Elizabeth of England. Maggie retires in March 1939 and is given a gold watch in recognition for her thirty years of service in the White House. Mercer offers to walk her out, but she replies, “No, I want to go out the way I came in; by myself.” The staff listens to the radio broadcast of President Roosevelt declaring war on Japan after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Lillian is soon making blackout curtains for the White House. Wheatley enlists in the army and tells Lillian he will be leaving her when he gets back from the war. Just like her mother, Lillian is married to the White House. Houseman Fraser also enlists and stops by the apartment to say good-bye to Maggie and give her his ration stamps. The episode concludes with President Roosevelt discussing Japanese victories in the South Pacific.
'''Roosevelt (continued):''' Many of the staff are showing the mental and physical signs of old age. Eleanor Roosevelt summons Maggie out of retirement to help with the visit of Madame Chiang Kai-Chek. Maggie comments to Mercer how rundown the White House is looking but he tells her there is no money for repairs. Lillian pleads with her mother to rest more but Maggie refuses. When she collapses on the stairs Maggie asks to be taken home. Maggie tells Lillian, “Don’t let that White House swallow you.” Chief Usher Crim informs the staff that Fraser has been killed in a London air raid and adds his name to the list of staff members who have died for their country. President Roosevelt’s health is declining. He discovers Lillian in his bedroom repairing the curtains and they discuss the deterioration of the White House. Roosevelt says he may come back as a ghost for a visit when his time comes.
'''Truman:''' President Roosevelt is dead. Lillian sternly scolds the staff for making fun of newly-sworn-in President Harry Truman (Harry Morgan) and First Lady Bess Truman (Estelle Parsons), just as her mother would have done. To cut down expenses, the Trumans reduce staff meals to one a day. The elderly mothers of both the President and First Lady move into the White House and require special treatment. Housekeeper Nesbitt is fired by the First Lady for refusing to give her a stick of rationed butter. She is replaced by Housekeeper Walker (Marged Wakeley). Hitler dies in Berlin and two nuclear bombs on Japan bring World War II to an end. Lillian is concerned that Maggie is not taking proper care of herself, spending too much time working on her White House scrapbook. The First Family moves to Blair House when the White House starts to collapse from lack of repairs. While repairs are in progress only Mercer and Mays are kept on while the rest of the staff are let go. Lillian is re-hired by First Lady Bess as a seamstress after the President narrowly wins the election. From the window of her upstairs sewing room she witnesses an assassination attempt on President Truman. The President shows his courage by refusing to cancel his scheduled speech at Arlington despite the assassination attempt. As Truman leaves the White House on the last day of his term Mercer tells him, “Mr. President, sir, you’ve got class.”
'''Eisenhower:''' Dwight D Eisenhower (Andrew Duggan), in total disrespect of tradition, orders the portraits of President Roosevelt and President Truman removed from the main entrance hall. The President and First Lady Mamie Eisenhower (Barbara Barrie) refuse to speak directly with staff and communicate with them through intermediaries. The First Lady prefers fashion designers for making her dresses, so Lillian is demoted to repairing linens and curtains. At times the Eisenhowers can be personable; the President asks Lillian to sample his home-made soup and the First Lady throws a surprise birthday party for her, but most of the time the old guard of Lillian, Mercer, and Mays feel unnoticed and underappreciated. Before she dies, Maggie tells Mercer, “You see that Lillian writes my book now.” Mercer and Lillian retire before the Kennedy administration takes office. On Lillian’s last day Housekeeper Walker asks what she is going to do now. Lillian replies, “I’m going to write a book.”
The cartoon begins with Elmer tiptoeing around and telling the viewer his famous line, "Shh. Be vewy, vewy quiet. I'm hunting wabbits." Elmer then approaches one of Bugs' warrens, puts down a carrot, and hides behind a tree. Bugs' arm reaches out of the hole, feels around, and snatches the carrot. He reaches out again and finds Elmer's double-barreled shotgun. His arm quickly pops back into the hole before returning to drop the eaten stub of Elmer's carrot and apologetically caress the end of the barrel. Elmer shoves his gun into Bugs' burrow, and thus causes a struggle in which the barrel is bent into a bow.
Elmer frantically digs into the hole while Bugs emerges from a nearby opening with another carrot in his hand, lifts Fudd's hat, and taps the top of his head until Elmer notices; then chews his carrot and delivers his definitive line, "What's up, Doc?". When Elmer replies that "[he's] hunting 'wabbits'", Bugs chews his carrot and asks what a rabbit is; then teases Elmer by displaying every aspect of Fudd's description until Elmer suspects that Bugs is a rabbit. Bugs confirms this, hides behind a tree, sneaks behind Elmer, covers his eyes, and asks "Guess who?".
Elmer tries the names of contemporary screen beauties whose names exploited his speech impediment, before he guesses the rabbit. Bugs responds "Hmm..... Could be!", kisses Elmer, and dives into his burrow. Elmer sticks his head into the hole and gets another kiss from Bugs; whereafter he wipes his mouth and decides to set a trap. When Bugs puts a skunk in the trap, Fudd blindly grabs the skunk and carries it over to the watching Bugs to brag; and when Elmer sees his mistake, Bugs gives him a kiss on the nose, whereupon Fudd looks at the skunk, who winks and nudges Elmer. Fudd winces and gingerly sends the skunk on his way.
Bugs then offers a free shot at himself; fakes an elaborate death; and plays dead, leaving Elmer suffering with remorse; but survives the shot and sneaks up behind the distraught Fudd, kicks him in his rear, shoves a cigar into his mouth, and tiptoes away, ballet-style. Finally, the defeated Elmer walks away sobbing about "wabbits, cawwots, guns", etc. Bugs then remarks, "Can ya imagine anybody acting like that? Ya know, I think the poor guy's screwy", and begins to play his carrot like a fife, playing the tune ''The Girl I Left Behind Me'', and marches with one stiff leg towards his rabbit hole (recalling ''The Spirit of '76'').
A group of friends share a few drinks, when an eminent doctor, Wolfe Macfarlane, enters. One of the friends, Fettes, recognizes the name and angrily confronts the new arrival. Although his friends all find this behaviour suspicious, none of them can understand what might lie behind it. It turns out that Macfarlane and Fettes had attended medical school together, under anatomy professor Robert Knox. Their duties included taking receipt of bodies for dissection, and paying the pair of shifty and suspicious men who supplied them.
On one occasion, Fettes identifies a body as that of a woman he knew, and is convinced she has been murdered. But Macfarlane talks him out of reporting the incident, lest they are both implicated in the crime.
Later, Fettes meets Macfarlane at a tavern, along with a man named Gray, who treats Macfarlane in a rude manner. The following night, Macfarlane brings Gray's body along as a dissection sample. Although Fettes is now certain that his friend has committed murder, Macfarlane again convinces him to keep his silence, persuading him that if he is not courageous enough to perform such manly deeds as these, he will end up as just another victim. The two men make sure the body is comprehensively dissected, destroying any forensic evidence.
Fettes and Macfarlane continue their work, without being implicated in any crime. However, when a shortage of bodies leaves their mentor in need, they are sent to a country churchyard to exhume a recently buried woman. As they are driving back with the body seated between them, they begin to feel nervous and stop to take a better look. They are shocked to discover that the body between them is that of Gray, which they thought they had destroyed.
Graham Young has been obsessed with death and the macabre since childhood. He is highly intelligent, with an aptitude for chemistry. He also dreams of poisoning as many people as he can. In his teen years, he poisons a schoolmate—making him ill rather than killing him—in order to date a girl his schoolmate was seeing. His conversation with his date involves vivid, graphic descriptions of deadly car accidents. He also reads a comic book account of an event in which the Dutch Resistance killed a whole German army camp in the occupied Netherlands during the Second World War by poisoning their water supply with thallium.
Graham is arrested at the age of 14 outside his home in Neasden after poisoning his father and stepmother with thallium, killing his stepmother and leaving his father seriously ill. During the struggle with police, he drops his "Exit Dose" of thallium, which he intended to use to commit suicide should he be caught. He is hospitalised for nine years in an institution for the criminally insane, during which time a psychiatrist works with him in the hopes of rehabilitating him.
Graham's dishonesty becomes evident to the doctor, who can see that Graham is trying to deceive him. Graham apparently has no dreams to share with the psychiatrist so he "borrows" a fellow prisoner's dreams. This source is shut off to him, however, once the fellow prisoner commits suicide. Despite the initial evidence of Graham's deceitfulness, the doctor eventually gets him released.
Graham then goes to work in a camera factory and is shown the secret ingredient used in the company's shutter system—thallium. It is not long before Graham starts poisoning people again. He kills two of his workmates by poisoning their tea with thallium stolen from the laboratory, and makes many others ill. For months, the source of the "bug" afflicting the workers at the factory remains a mystery until one unforeseen event leads to Graham's being found out. As a hygiene measure, all the personalised teacups are replaced with uniform ones, leaving Graham unable to poison people selectively. His efforts to memorise which cup is going to which person give him away and his workmates finally realise what is going on.
Graham is arrested soon afterwards and he is later sentenced to a lengthy custodial term, this time in an ordinary prison. He commits suicide by poisoning himself with the "Newton's Diamond" he made in the psychiatric hospital.
''Anansi Boys'' is the story of Charles "Fat Charlie" Nancy, a timid Londoner devoid of ambition, whose unenthusiastic wedding preparations are disrupted when he learns that his father (Mr. Nancy) has died in Florida. The flamboyant Mr. Nancy, in whose shadow Fat Charlie has always lived, died in a slightly embarrassing manner by suffering a fatal heart attack while singing to a young woman on stage in a karaoke bar before falling from stage and accidentally pulling down the woman's top.
Fat Charlie is forced to take time off from the talent agency where he works and travel to Florida for the funeral. Afterwards, while discussing the disposal of Mr. Nancy's estate, Mrs. Callyanne Higgler, a very old family friend, reveals to Fat Charlie that the late Mr. Nancy was actually an incarnation of the West African spider god, Anansi, hence his name. The reason Charlie had apparently not inherited any divine powers was because they had been passed down to his hitherto unknown brother, who Mrs. Higgler explains could be contacted by simply sending an invitation by talking to a spider. Charlie is skeptical, and on his return to England largely forgets what Mrs. Higgler had told him, until one night when he drunkenly whispers to a spider that it would be nice if his brother stopped by for a visit.
The next morning the suave and well-dressed brother, going under the name of "Spider", visits Charlie and is shocked to learn that their father has died. Spider then magically steps into a picture of their childhood home and Charlie goes off to work, rather puzzled by Spider and his sudden miraculous disappearance.
Spider returns that night, stricken with grief that Anansi had died and that he had been thoughtless enough not to notice. At Spider's recommendation, the two brothers attempt to drown their sorrows and become uproariously drunk on the proverbial trio of wine, women, and song. Although Charlie is not involved in most of the womanising or singing, he is drunk enough to sleep through much of the next day. Spider covers for Charlie's absence from his office at the Grahame Coats Agency by magically disguising himself as Charlie. It is explained that although the two brothers are not identical, Spider is able to use his divine powers to appear to others as Charlie's twin. While at work, Spider discovers his boss Grahame Coats's long-standing practice of embezzling from his clients and also steals the affection and virginity of Charlie's fiancée, Rosie Noah.
Spider, in the guise of Charlie, reveals his knowledge of the financial improprieties to Grahame Coats during a meeting in which Grahame had planned to fire Charlie and, as a result, Grahame delays firing him. When Grahame meets him next, he gives the real Charlie a large cheque and a holiday from work. With Charlie out of the office, Grahame Coats proceeds to alter the financial records to frame Charlie for the embezzlement. Embittered by the loss of his fiancée, Charlie uses his holiday to return to Florida and requests help from Mrs. Higgler and three of her equally old and eccentric friends to expel Spider. Being themselves unable to banish Spider, they instead send Fat Charlie to "the beginning of the world," an abode of ancient gods similar to his father, each of whom represents a species of animal. There he encounters the fearsome Tiger, the outrageous Hyena, and the ridiculous Monkey, among others. None are willing to help the son of the trickster Anansi, who had embarrassed them all at times in their lives. Finally, Charlie meets Bird Woman, who agrees to trade him her help, symbolised by one of her feathers, in exchange for "Anansi's bloodline".
Meanwhile, in London, a swindled client, Maeve Livingstone, confronts Grahame Coats directly, having learned of the theft of her late husband's royalties. Grahame Coats murders her with a hammer and conceals her body in a hidden closet.
When Charlie returns to England, events begin to escalate. Charlie quarrels and scuffles with Spider, Charlie is taken in for questioning by the police for financial fraud at the Grahame Coats Agency, Spider reveals the truth of his identity to Rosie, who is angered by his treatment of her, birds repeatedly attack Spider, Grahame Coats escapes England for his estate and bank accounts in the fictional Caribbean country of Saint Andrews, and Maeve Livingstone's ghost begins haunting the Grahame Coats Agency building.
Maeve is contacted by her late husband, who advises her to move on to the afterlife, but she refuses in favour of taking vengeance on Grahame Coats. Later, she meets the ghost of Anansi himself, who recounts a story to her. Once, Anansi reveals, the animal god Tiger owned all stories, and as a result, all stories were dark, violent and unhappy. Anansi tricked Tiger into surrendering the ownership of stories to him, forever allowing stories to involve cleverness, skill and often humour rather than strength alone.
After he is attacked by flamingoes, Spider realises that something Charlie did is causing these attacks and that he is in mortal peril. Consequently, Spider magically breaks Charlie out of prison. The two discuss matters in the course of fleeing from birds from around the world, realising that giving away Anansi's bloodline implicates Charlie as well as Spider. Charlie is then returned to prison and is eventually freed. He mentions a hidden room in Coats's office to the police, who find Maeve Livingstone's body there.
Spider is swept away in a storm of birds, after which Bird Woman removes his tongue to prevent his use of magic. The Bird Woman delivers Spider to Tiger, Anansi's longtime enemy, who imprisons him. In spite of his helplessness, Spider manages to form a little spider out of clay, instructing it to go find help in the spider kingdom that Anansi and his descendants command. Despite not being as strong as Tiger, Spider still manages to fend him off for some time while Tiger prolongs killing him, preferring to savour his long hoped-for revenge on Anansi and his brood.
Meanwhile Rosie and her mother have taken a consolation cruise to the Caribbean, where they unexpectedly meet Grahame Coats, who offers them a tour of his home. The two have not heard of the events in England and thus unsuspectingly walk into a trap at his home where they are locked in his basement.
Charlie goes searching for Callyanne Higgler to help him solve his problems. He looks for her in Florida, but Anansi's old friends tell him that Mrs. Higgler has returned to the Caribbean country of Saint Andrews. These friends reveal to him that it was another old lady, Mrs. Dunwiddy, who was annoyed with the young Fat Charlie and made a spell to separate his good side from his bad side, which then became Spider, separating the one person into two. Fat Charlie finally finds Mrs. Higgler after a long search in Saint Andrews and is sent again, via seance, to the beginning of the world where he forces the Bird Woman to give back Anansi's bloodline in return for her feather. Meanwhile, Spider has managed to survive as an overconfident Tiger continues to prolong devouring him. When Tiger attempts a killing strike, a massive army of spider reinforcements summoned by Spider overwhelm him and force his retreat. At this point, Charlie rescues Spider and gives him back his tongue.
Tiger now takes possession of Grahame Coats's body and uses his bloodlust to manipulate him, intending to get revenge on Spider by killing Rosie and her mother. The possession by Tiger, however, makes Grahame Coats vulnerable to attacks from other spirits and Maeve Livingstone, having found Grahame Coats with the aid of Anansi's ghost, eliminates Coats in the real world and, satisfied, moves on to her afterlife.
Meanwhile, still at the beginning of the world, Charlie, having discovered his power to alter reality by singing a story, recounts the long tale of all that has gone before and humiliates Tiger to the point of retreating to his cave. Spider then collapses the cave entrance, sealing Tiger inside. Charlie weaves this event into his song, reinforcing it with his powers, such that Tiger is securely trapped. Coats, turned into a stoat, remains with Tiger as an unwelcome guest that can be perpetually eaten for eternity.
In the end, Spider marries Rosie and becomes the owner of a restaurant. He is put constantly under pressure by Rosie's mother to have children, but (possibly to annoy her) never does. Charlie begins a successful career as a singer, marries police officer Daisy Day and has a son (Marcus). Old Anansi, resting comfortably in his grave, watches his two sons approvingly as he contemplates resurrecting himself in 20 or 25 years.
In 1968, as an audience of inmates at Folsom State Prison cheer for Johnny Cash, he waits backstage near a table saw, reminding him of his early life.
In 1944, 12-year-old Johnny is raised on a cotton farm in Dyess, Arkansas, with his brother Jack, abusive father Ray, and mother Carrie. One day, Jack is killed in a sawmill accident while Johnny is out fishing; Ray blames Johnny for Jack’s death, saying that the Devil "took the wrong son".
In 1950, Johnny enlists in the U.S. Air Force and is stationed in West Germany. He purchases a guitar, and in 1952, finds solace in writing songs, one of which he develops as "Folsom Prison Blues".
After his discharge in 1954, Cash returns to the United States and marries his girlfriend, Vivian Liberto. The couple moves to Memphis, Tennessee, where Cash works as a door-to-door salesman to support his growing family, but with little success. He walks past a recording studio, which inspires him to organize a band to play gospel music. Cash's band auditions for Sam Phillips, the owner of Sun Records. Phillips signs them after they play "Folsom Prison Blues", and the band begins touring as Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two, alongside fellow rising stars Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis.
On tour, Johnny meets June Carter, with whom he falls in love. They become friends, but June gently rebuffs his attempts to woo her. As Johnny’s fame grows, he starts abusing drugs and alcohol.
Over Vivian's objections, Johnny persuades June to go tour with him. The tour is a success, but backstage, Vivian becomes critical of June's influence. After one performance in Las Vegas, Johnny and June sleep together. The next morning, she notices Johnny taking pills, and doubts her choices. At that evening's concert, Johnny, upset by June's apparent rejection, behaves erratically and eventually passes out on stage. June disposes of Johnny's drugs, and begins to write "Ring of Fire", describing her feelings for him and her pain at watching him descend into addiction.
Returning to California, Johnny travels to Mexico to purchase more drugs and is arrested. Johnny’s marriage to Vivian implodes; they divorce and he moves to Nashville in 1966. Trying to reconcile with June, Johnny purchases a large house near a lake in Hendersonville. His parents and the extended Carter family arrive for Thanksgiving, at which time Ray and an intoxicated Johnny get into a bitter argument. After the meal, June's mother encourages her daughter to help Cash. He goes into detox and wakes with June; she says they have been given a second chance. They begin a tentative relationship, but June rebuffs his marriage proposals.
Johnny discovers that most of his fan mail is from prisoners. He proposes to skeptical Columbia Records executives that he will record an album live inside Folsom Prison. The performance is a success, and Johnny embarks on a tour with June and his band. He later performs "Ring of Fire" on stage. After the song, Cash invites June to a duet and stops in the middle, saying he cannot sing "Jackson" any more unless June agrees to marry him. June accepts and they share a passionate embrace on stage. Johnny and his father reconcile their relationship.
The series' main character is Vicky, son of Halvar, chief of the Viking village of Flake. Unlike his village fellows - including most of the other boys of his age - Vicky has a sharp and imaginative mind which helps his fellow Vikings out of many tight situations, including rival Viking lord Sven the Terrible. Certain results of his intellectual approach shown in the series and the film adaptation include building a makeshift catapult to beat his father in a stone-ferrying contest, fitting their longship with kites to make it glide through the air, and using a small sawfish to cut an escape hole through a wooden door.
Loki, the Norse god of mischief, has been exiled to the human world by the god Odin for reasons that he doesn't understand. Along with being exiled, Loki is forced to take the form of a human child, and the only way he can return to the realm of the gods is by collecting the evil auras which take over human hearts. In order to do this, he starts a detective agency which specializes in the paranormal. Loki is assisted by his loyal companion Yamino and the pair are soon joined by a human girl named Mayura Daidouji who is manic for mysteries and often unwittingly assists him in catching the auras. As time passes, however, other Norse gods and characters appear; some befriend Loki and others are intent on assassinating him.
In 1980, Lee Strobel is an atheist journalist and investigative reporter for the ''Chicago Tribune''. He and his wife Leslie have a daughter named Alison and are expecting their second child. After getting a very special recognition, Lee and his family go out to celebrate with dinner, where Alison chokes on a piece of candy. One of the patrons, a nurse named Alfie, intervenes and saves Alison. She credits the event to God's will, which Leslie takes to heart.
Leslie and Alfie become friends and start attending a Christian church together; irritated, Lee unsuccessfully tries to dissuade Leslie. Due to an advice from his mentor, Lee sets out to find evidence that proves that the resurrection of Jesus did not happen. Meanwhile, Leslie gives birth to a son, Kyle.
Lee starts gathering information and evidence. Next, he tries to prove that the witnesses were hypnotized, but a psychologist proves him wrong. Lee then tries to gather evidence that Jesus may have not died or was taken off, but again, a physician proves him wrong, saying Jesus had to have died on the Cross.
Meanwhile, Lee's estranged father tries to reconcile with him, but Lee brushes him off. His father dies soon after, and then Lee learns that his father truly loved him, which surprises Lee.
Lee is also investigating a case of a shooting of a police officer. At first, it looks like the convicted man is guilty and an informant for a gang, but Lee proves that the cop had shot himself with a secret gun disguised as a pen, and the convict is freed.
Lee tries to get more evidence for his religious investigation, but his mentor explains that whether he chooses to believe or not believe, the last part of proving His real existence is faith. When a colleague gives him a speech, Lee decides to take the leap of faith and believe. When he tells Leslie about it, they have a happy reconciliation and pray together.
In 1880 South Africa, young Betsy has an adventure involving Zulu tribesmen, Dutch settlers, the Voortrekkers, and her older brother's romance of Katie Snee.
In The Fallon Blood, escaping brutal English overlords, 1760s Irishman Michael Fallon becomes an indentured servant to Charleston, South Carolina merchant Thomas Carver, where his infatuation with Carver's sensual daughter Elizabeth causes life-changing complications.
His father died in the Battle Of Culloden. The threat of Irish Pickets forced Michael and his mother in both hiding and poverty. His mother sacrificed her own health to keep Michael fed for three years, when she died of malnutrition. Grogan "adopted" Michael and abused him in child labor. Michael ran away at the age of fifteen, vowing that none of his children would suffer the tragedy of poverty.
Sometime later Michael became a soldier, and was taught the sword by Timothy Cavanaugh. His time with the army was a full seven years, after which he managed to own land in Ireland. Michael's prospects seemed fruitful until the day he killed an Englishman colonel by accident. Since the punishment of killing an Englishman was death, Michael was left no choice but to flee Ireland to the American colonies, where he became an indentured servant to Thomas Carver. This was the "most fateful moment of his life." He fell instantly in love with Carver's daughter Elizabeth.
Elizabeth did not return Michael's feelings until he dueled with Justin Fourrier, scion of Fourrier family. Although Justin was of high blood, his sword skills paled next to Michael's, who won easily. This was the beginning of Justin's hatred for Michael, and in turn, Elizabeth's desire of Michael.
Elizabeth's desire was not love, however. She originally wanted a flirtation with the bound man to instill jealousy in Justin. It was her hope that the jealousy would make Justin a lover, instead of a distant man who cared only for her inheritance.
Elizabeth's plans culminated in a night of seduction, which hopefully would force Michael into marriage. However, Michael wanted to "set her up as a queen, not as a destitute." Michael's actions towards building their future left Elizabeth alone with child. Horrified of the shame of wedding with child, she manipulated Justin into raping her so that he would give her his hand in marriage.
Michael buried himself in working his plantation Tir Alanin to forget Elizabeth, and dabbled in aiding American resistance for the same purpose. He became good friends with Justin's brothers Louis and Henri, who then introduced him to their sister Gabrielle. Sometimes later Fourrier leaked news of Michael's slaying of the Englishman colonel and he was quite close of rotting away in prison. Saved by Gabrielle's plan, the two married.
The American Revolution separated Michael and Gabrielle for years, though the two mended the damage between them in raising their family. Twenty years pass, finding Michael with son James and daughter Catherine. On constant guard from Justin's assassinations, Michael met his son Robert Fallon (from Elizabeth). His presence tore a rift in the Fallon family, who more or less hate Robert for his status as a bastard. Gabrielle made the first step towards bridging that chasm when Fourrier assassins set the Fallon house on fire and subsequently killed both Gabrielle and James.
In The Fallon Pride, Michael Fallon's son Robert Fallon survives years at sea fighting Barbary pirates and enduring the siege at Tripoli. He then returns to America with an Irish wife, Moira McConnell, and goes into business in Charleston where he raises a somewhat troublesome family.
In the eve of the Revolution, the Fourrier family is forced out of the colonies because their centuries-worth of power has no place in the new nation. It is then that Elizabeth accidentally reveals Robert's true heritage. With all of his hatred on the Fallon line, Justin spent years abusing Robert just to see the look on Elizabeth's face. "She fought for food, clothes, an education . . ." Years of spousal abuse had ground Elizabeth's will until she died. Her last words to Robert was the name of his real father.
Robert flees to the safety of the sea. During that time he has ventured to Charleston, though forcibly avoids his father, as he does not wish to be a burden to the Fallon family. His luck runs out when his name is casually offered to Michael, who then confronts him. The two try to make amends with Michael's family, though Gabrielle is livid and refuses to give Robert the benefit of the doubt. James takes this one step further, slugging Robert and warning him not to come back. A spoiled noble, James thinks him invincible due to his "noble" bloodline, and is thus astonished that he is beaten by a bastard.
At the end of the Fallon Blood, Robert kills Henry Tyree to save his father, and leads Michael from his grief over Gabrielle's death with a question of sizing a boat Robert wants to purchase. This attempt works, coaxing Michael out of his misery and allows Michael to move on with his life.
Sometime before the Fallon Pride, Robert develops incestuous feelings towards his half-sister Catherine. Like his father Robert buries himself in the arms of another woman, a French girl by the name of Louise de Chardonnay. Despite the stalker-like intents of powerful sea mogul Murad Reis, Robert takes Louise as a mistress, who eventually bears his first son James. Before they can marry, however, Robert falls victim to Murad's revenge and is shipped to North Africa. For three years Robert fights Tripoli forces under the command of a Colonel Eaten, only to find upon his return that his father is dead, and Louise marries a Thomas Martin.
Drunk on both grief and alcohol, Robert succumbs to his passion and sleeps with Catherine. The incest continues for years until finally a child named Edward is born. Edward's birth snaps Robert out of his passion for Catherine. He charges his niece Charollete to protect her new brother, and retreats back to the sea.
Years pass. Robert falls in love with Irish girl Moira McDonnel, and returns to America with her as his wife. Like his father before him, war looms on the horizon, drawing Robert away from his family. After the war Robert is content with the hope of both rebuilding his family's wealth and raising his family.
Robert has a minor role in the third volume, the Fallon Legacy. There are two pivotal moments that involve him. First he takes another French mistress named Lucille Gautier. This only exasperates the situation with his wife Moira, who is waging war with Robert over allowing his bastards into his household and the defense of his incestuous son Edward, who has grown up a spoiled noble much like his deceased half-uncle James. Robert breaks his defense for Edward when Edward arranges the kidnapping and rape of his half-sister Elizabeth by Lucien Fourrier's son Edouard.
Robert Fallon is a source of ironic circumstance. His life of survival and the dangers he has endured makes him a close parallel of his father, who possesses the same will and determination. James, on the other hand, grows up a nobleman with the blind faith of wealth through breeding. He lacks Michael's endurance, thus aligning James more towards his uncle Justin Fourrier than Michael Fallon.
In The Fallon Legacy, James Fallon, the last scion of the Fallon line, strikes south and west, adventuring in New Orleans, Missouri, and finally Texas (then still part of Mexico). He loves and loses women, ranches and breeds horses, and becomes entangled in the schemes of shady men and women. Enemies made by Michael and Robert during their lifetimes converge upon James, who must find out if he has strength enough to stand against them.
The story takes place in a fictional land known as the Crystal Kingdom, where a wizard rules from his large castle known as the Crystal Castle, which is surrounded by six portals leading into other worlds, including the lost city of Atlantis, a circus park, a pirate's domain, a prehistoric era, a horror-themed fortress and outer space. The life force of the kingdom is maintained by seven magical crystals that rest atop the spires of Crystal Castle. The wizard himself is accompanied by a pair of magical, sentient gloves named Glover and Glovel to aid him in creating strange potions and spells.
Then one day, the wizard accidentally mixes the wrong batch of potions in his cauldron, causing a large explosion that turns wizard into a statue and sends his gloves flying. The left glove, Glovel, lands in the cauldron while the right glove, Glover, flies out the window and lands safely onto the ground. The explosion also shakes the crystals from the spires, causing the land to become dark and foreboding. Before they could shatter upon impact, Glover quickly casts magic to turn the crystals into rubber balls. One of the balls remains in the kingdom while the other six fall into each of the portals. Glover realizes that in order to bring the wizard back to life and restore the kingdom's beauty, he must enter these worlds, find the crystals within them and bring them back to the castle. However, Glovel had been corrupted by the cauldron's chemicals and becomes "Cross-Stitch", a malevolent trickster who is determined to destroy Glover and rule the Crystal Kingdom forever.
Glover traverses from realm to realm and must protect the rubber balls at all costs while bring them back home. As he does, Cross-Stitch attempts to thwart him by setting traps and creating monsters, but Glover is able to overcome these obstacles with his magical skills and retrieve the crystals. He is also aided by a living hat named Mr. Tip, who offers hints during Glover's quest. The Crystal Kingdom is gradually restored to its former state with each crystal returned to the castle. In the final realm, Glover fights Cross-Stitch in a giant robot fight and emerges victorious, sending Cross-Stitch flying.
After the last crystal is brought back, they all return to the castle spires where they belong. Thus, the wizard is finally returned to flesh and the kingdom is fully restored to normal. As he and Glover take in the sights, Cross-Stitch lands right in front of them. Glover then jumps back onto his master's hand and beckons Cross-Stitch to do so as well. Cross-Stitch attempts to run away, but the wizard casts a spell that turns him back into Glovel. He then puts Glovel back on and all three of them celebrate with a double thumbs up.
The song centres on the main character, Pink, who having lived a life filled with emotional trauma and substance abuse has reached a critical psychological break. "The Trial" is the fulcrum on which Pink's mental state balances. In the song, Pink is charged with "showing feelings of an almost human nature." This means that Pink has committed a crime against himself by attempting to interact with his fellow human beings, defying the mission towards self-isolation that defined much of his life. Through the course of the song, he is confronted by the primary influences of his life (who have been introduced over the course of the album): an abusive schoolmaster, his wife, and his overprotective mother; in the animated sequence, they are depicted as grotesque caricatures. Pink's subconscious struggle for sanity is overseen by a new character, "The Judge." In ''Pink Floyd -- The Wall'' and the concert animations, the Judge is a giant worm for most of the song until his verse, at which point he transforms into a giant anthropomorphic body from the waist-down (bigger than the marching hammers in "Waiting for the Worms"), his face constructed from various elements of the buttocks and genitals. A prosecutor conducts the early portions, which consist of the antagonists explaining their actions, intercut with Pink's refrains, "Crazy/Toys in the attic, I am crazy,/Truly gone fishing" and "Crazy/Over the rainbow, I am crazy,/Bars in the window." The culmination of the trial is the judge's sentence for Pink "to be exposed before your peers" whereupon he orders Pink to "Tear down the wall!"
As Waters sings the dialogue for each character he transitions into different accents including: Cockney accent (the prosecutor and judge), Scottish accent (the schoolmaster) and Northern English accent (Pink's mother). For the character of Pink's wife he used his normal voice on the album and the original 1980-81 tour. However, in his solo 2010-13 tour of ''The Wall'' he portrays the wife with a distinctively French accent.
This and the following song, "Outside the Wall," are the only two songs on the album which the story is (partly) seen from an outsider's perspective, most notably through the three antagonists of "The Trial," even though it is all in Pink's mind. The song ends with the sound of a wall being demolished amid chants of "Tear down the wall!", marking the destruction of Pink's metaphorical wall.
In May 1944, five years after the declaration of World War II, three Royal Homing Pigeon Service war pigeons are flying across the English Channel with the White Cliffs of Dover in sight, carrying vital messages to Great Britain. Despite the poor weather conditions the pigeons have nearly reached their destination. They are, however, suddenly ambushed and attacked by a Nazi German enemy peregrine falcon named General Von Talon; two of the pigeons are instantly killed, yet the third, Mercury, is taken as a prisoner of war.
Elsewhere, a small wood pigeon named Valiant is watching an Allied forces propaganda film in his local bar (an overturned rowing boat) in West Nestington. He is best friends with Felix, an old seagull with a peg leg and the local barman. Wing Commander Gutsy, a war hero, flies into the bar, informing everyone that signups are scheduled the next day in Trafalgar Square, London. Valiant flies off to London, bidding his mother and Felix goodbye. In London, Valiant meets an unhygienic slacker pigeon named Bugsy, who is being hunted by two magpie thugs, after having tricked them at a shell game. In order to escape the thugs, he signs up with Valiant.
The recruits, Valiant, Bugsy, Lofty, an intellectual red pigeon, and Toughwood and Tailfeather, two muscular but dim-witted twin brothers, form Royal Homing Pigeon Service Squad F, and are sent to a recruit training facility. Under the command of Sergeant Monty, who declares that he will toughen them up for the RHPS, the training begins. Meanwhile, Von Talon and his henchmen, Cufflingk and Underlingk, try numerous attempts to discover the message's departure location. However, Mercury refuses to tell, despite the tortures inflicted upon him, such as irritating him with yodeling music and injecting him with truth serum, before Mercury accidentally reveals the location: Saint-Pierre.
Valiant develops a crush on Victoria, the camp's nursing dove. Eventually, Gutsy arrives and tells the Sergeant that the recruits need to leave the next morning, despite their training being vastly incomplete. Bugsy, however, decides not to go on the "highly dangerous" mission and flees the camp that night. Next morning Valiant and the others prepare to leave, and start to board a Handley Page Halifax bound for occupied France, but not before Bugsy shows up at the last second. The journey quickly becomes dangerous, as the plane is caught in an anti-aircraft attack. Their plane sustains heavy damage and the pigeons soon have to bail out, in boxes equipped with parachutes. The pigeons are dropped from the plane; however, a technical malfunction causes Gutsy's box to fail to deploy. The plane crash-lands nearby, but then explodes, presumably killing Gutsy.
In France, the pigeons meet Charles de Girl and Rollo, two mice from the French Resistance, Mouse Division, who lead them to Saint-Pierre, where they receive the message they have been ordered to deliver. They soon come under attack by Von Talon's henchmen, resulting in Bugsy and the message being captured. Von Talon takes the message from Bugsy and decides to lock him up and kill him later, planning to personally deliver the message to Der Fuehrer himself. Valiant and the troops follow Bugsy to the falcon's bunker, where they discover that Gutsy has survived the plane crash. Valiant takes advantage of his small size and sneaks into the bunker through the gun barrel, retrieves the message, and frees Bugsy and Mercury. Unfortunately, the falcons witness the escape and give chase. As Gutsy, Bugsy, Mercury, Toughwood, Tailfeather and Lofty fight off Cufflingk and Underlingk, Valiant flies to London to deliver the message, followed by Von Talon.
After a climactic chase, Valiant hides until he is caught by Von Talon. With the help of Felix and the resident pigeons, Valiant outwits Von Talon by getting a giant hook caught on his medals, leaving him to be beaten by the water wheel. Valiant delivers the message, and upon its arrival in the war room, a change of plans is made; the Allied fleet will land in Normandy. After receiving the Dickin Medal, Squad F returns to the local bar in West Nestington, where Valiant reunites and shares a romantic kiss with Victoria. A message is then displayed commending the animals that saved thousands of lives during World War II.
London, 2009. Voter apathy is at an all-time high in the United Kingdom, and a new right-wing political party, The Democratic Consensus Party, led by Richard Wheeler, have just been voted into office. Unbeknownst to the public, the DCP have a sinister hidden agenda to do away with democracy and turn the country into a police state. John Speers panics when just days after being appointed as Wheeler's right-hand-man and spin-doctor, his laptop is stolen by Tariq, a young tearaway. Concerned that the laptop contains potentially sensitive and confidential information, Speers sets about trying to recover it. Meanwhile, Tariq's best friend, Max is concerned when he suddenly disappears without trace. Max finds himself unwittingly drawn into a dangerous world of corruption and political conspiracy as he goes in search of his missing friend. Max subsequently discovers information which threatens to ruin the government's plans, but will he realise its significance in time?
Terry Scott is a lovable rogue who wants to achieve wealth without working. The cunning Terry lives with his mother at 33, Lobelia Avenue in Tooting, South London. They have a gullible and dull-witted lodger, Hugh Lloyd, who works at a local aircraft factory. The two often try to make money through one of Scott's get-rich-quick schemes. Their next door neighbours, the Crispins and the Wormolds, also make frequent appearances. Mr Crispin is a thug who thinks violence will solve a problem, Mrs Crispin is a snob and their daughter Norma is constantly being stalked by men. On the other side, the Wormolds are an old couple; Harold is very clumsy. In the last episode of the fifth series, Hugh won £5,000 on the Premium Bonds and the following series showed the two of them undertaking a world cruise. The neighbours and mother had left the show.
William Porter (Will Hay) is an inept railway worker who – due to family connections – is given the job of stationmaster at a remote and ramshackle rural Northern Irish railway station in the (fictitious) town of Buggleskelly, situated on the border with the then Irish Free State.
After taking the ferry from England to Northern Ireland, Porter is aghast when he discovers how isolated the station is. It is situated out in the countryside, two miles cross-country from the nearest bus stop. To make matters worse, local legend has it that the ghost of One-Eyed Joe the Miller haunts the line and, as a result, no-one will go near the station after dark.
Porter's co-workers at the station are the elderly deputy stationmaster, Harbottle (Moore Marriott), and an overweight, insolent young porter, Albert (Graham Moffatt), who make a living by stealing goods in transit and swapping railway tickets for food. They welcome Porter to his new job by regaling him with tales of the deaths and disappearances of previous stationmasters – each apparently the victim of the curse of One-Eyed Joe.
From the beginning, the station is run very unprofessionally. Porter is woken up by a cow sticking its head through the window of the old railway carriage he is sleeping in (the cow has been lost in transit and is being milked by Harbottle), and the team's breakfast consists of bacon made from a litter of piglets which the railway is supposed to be looking after for a local farmer.
Determined to shake things up (particularly after he is forced to deal with the irate farmer when he comes to collect his pigs), Stationmaster Porter tries to renovate the station in several ways, most sensibly by painting the entire station, but also by less conventional means – including stopping the passing express and organising an excursion to Connemara.
Porter attempts to drum up business among the local people in the pub by offering tickets to this excursion, but as the locals begin to argue about where the excursion should go a fight breaks out. Porter crawls to safety in the landlord's rooms next door, where he meets a one-eyed man who introduces himself as Joe and offers to buy all of the tickets for an away game that the village football team, the Buggleskelly Wednesday, are playing the following day.
But Porter is unaware that he has really agreed to transport a group of criminals who are involved in running guns to the Irish Free State. The 'football' train leaves at six a.m. the following morning, rather than the scheduled ten a.m., at the insistence of Joe and although Porter questions some of the odd packages being loaded onto the train, he accepts Joe's claim that these are in fact goalposts for the game.
The train disappears as the smugglers divert it down a disused branch line near the border, and with everybody claiming that Porter has lost his mind (there is no such team as Buggleskelly Wednesday, and Harbottle points out that the local team wouldn't leave without him as he is their centre forward). Unfortunately this huge misunderstanding causes Porter to lose his job, since no one has seen the train. Then after his co-workers talk about a tunnel on a nearby disused branch line, Porter decides to head off to track down the errant engine (in hopes of getting his job back).
The trio find the missing train inside a derelict railway tunnel, underneath a supposedly haunted windmill. They investigate and are briefly captured by the gun runners, but escape and climb progressively higher up the windmill until eventually they are trapped at the top.
Using the windmill sails, they contrive to get down where they hatch a plan to capture the gun runners. Coupling the carriages containing the criminals and their guns to their own engine, ''Gladstone'', they carry them away from the border at full speed, burning everything from Harbottle's underwear to level crossing gates they smash through in order to keep up steam. To keep the criminals quiet, Albert climbs on top of the carriage and hits anyone who sticks their head out with a large shovel.
Porter writes a note explaining the situation and places it in Harbottle's empty 'medicine' bottle. When they pass a large station, he throws the bottle through the window of the stationmaster's office, alerting the authorities to their plight. The entire railway goes into action, with lines being closed and other trains re-routed so that Gladstone can finally crash into a siding where the waiting police force arrest the gun runners.
After a short-lived celebration, in which Harbottle points out that ''Gladstone'' is ninety years old and Porter claims it is good for another ninety, the engine explodes after its hectic journey, and Porter, Harbottle and Albert lower their hats in respect.
In the Southern African country of Matobo, rebel leader Ajene Xola drives two men, Simon Broome and Philippe, to the abandoned Centennial Football Stadium. They discuss how President Edmond Zuwanie's regime has ruthlessly exterminated most of the population, and intimidated the survivors into silence. Upon their arrival at the stadium, they discover that the informants are schoolboys, who point Ajene and Simon in the direction of corpses left by Zuwanie's security apparatus, while Philippe stays in the car.
Shouting lures Ajene and Simon back to the field, where they are promptly executed by the boys, who are revealed to be willing accomplices of Zuwanie's secret police. Upon hearing the gunshots, Philippe clambers out of the car and hides, taking pictures of a car arriving carrying Matoban officials, and then escapes the vicinity.
Meanwhile, Simon's sister Silvia Broome is working as an interpreter for the United Nations in New York City. A white African born in the United States to a British mother and white Matoban father, she spent most of her life in Matobo, and is a dual citizen of both Matobo and the United States. Her diverse background leads to UN Security Chief Lee Wu wryly describing her as "being the UN".
The UN is considering indicting Zuwanie, to stand trial in the International Criminal Court. Initially a liberator, over the past 20 years he has become as corrupt and tyrannical as the government he overthrew, and is now responsible for ethnic cleansing and other atrocities within Matobo. Zuwanie is soon to visit the UN and put forward his own case to the General Assembly, in an attempt to avoid the indictment.
A security scare caused by a malfunctioning metal detector forces the evacuation of the UN building, and, as Silvia returns at night to reclaim some personal belongings, she overhears two men discussing an assassination plot in Ku (the Matoban lingua franca). Silvia runs from the building when the men become aware of her presence. The next day, Silvia recognizes words in a meeting, where she is interpreting, from phrases she overheard the night before, and reports the incident to UN security; the plot's target appears to be Zuwanie himself.
They, in turn, call in the US Secret Service, which assigns Dignitary Protection Division agents Tobin Keller and Dot Woods to investigate, as well as protect Zuwanie when he arrives, as well as Zuwanie's personal head of security, former Dutch mercenary Nils Lud. Keller, whose estranged wife was killed in a car accident just weeks earlier, learns that Silvia has, in the past, been involved in a Matoban guerrilla group, that her parents and sister were killed by landmines laid by Zuwanie's men, and that she has dated one of Zuwanie's political opponents. Although Keller is suspicious of Silvia's backstory, the two grow close, in part because of their shared grief, and Keller ends up protecting her from attacks on her person.
Philippe calls Silvia to meet and informs her of Xola's death, but, unable to bear her grief, lies and says he doesn't know what happened to Simon. Silvia attempts to obtain information by way of Kuman-Kuman, an exiled Matoban minister living in New York, only to almost be killed in a bus bombing perpetrated by Gabonese national Jean Gamba, Nils Lud's right-hand man, and part of the opening scene's coterie.
Philippe is later found dead in his hotel room, and Silvia finds out that her brother was killed along with Ajene Xola. She narrowly avoids an assassination attempt by Gamba (whom Keller kills) and leaves a voicemail on Keller's phone saying she's going back home. Keller takes this to mean she's returning to Matobo, and dispatches an agent to intercept her at John F. Kennedy International Airport.
The purported assassin is discovered and shot to death while Zuwanie is in the middle of his address to the General Assembly, and security personnel rush Zuwanie to a safe room for his protection. Silvia, anticipating this, has been hiding in the safe room, and confronts Zuwanie and intends to kill him herself. Keller determines that the assassination plot is a false flag operation created by Zuwanie to gain credibility that his rivals are terrorists and to deter potential supporters of his removal. Keller realizes that Silvia returning home means going to the UN, and rushes to the safe room, just in time to prevent her from murdering Zuwanie. Zuwanie is indicted, and Silvia reconciles with Keller before leaving for Matobo.
As originally written, the character list included Floyd Collins, Homer Collins, Nellie Collins, and Johnnie Gerald; as rewritten the role of Johnnie Gerald was merged with that of Homer Collins. As currently performed, the roles include Bee Doyle, Dr Hazlett, three reporters, a Con Man, Lee Collins, Homer Collins, Floyd Collins, Clif Rony, Jewlle Estes, Nellie Collins, Skeets Miller, Miss Jane, H. T. Carmichael and Ed Bishop.
Floyd Collins, exploring Sand Cave, uses the echoes of his voice to sound out the region, and falls through a tight passageway when his foot became trapped, wedged in position by a small rock. His family and his fellow cavers try to free him; when it becomes clear that his rescue will not be easy, his brother Homer spends the night in the cave with him. William Burke "Skeets" Miller, a small man, is able to squeeze through and visit with Floyd, relaying stories which were printed in the news. Despite efforts by miners, the National Guard and the Red Cross, attempts at rescue fail, and the crowd grows outside the cave as a media circus ensues.
Seventeen days after Floyd had entered the cave, a shaft finally reaches him. He had died three days earlier.
The play's musical style is drawn from bluegrass, Americana, and "more complex musical forms that have their antecedents in the likes of Bartok, Janacek and Stravinsky".
Shaw characterised ''Saint Joan'' as "A Chronicle Play in 6 Scenes and an Epilogue ". Joan, a simple peasant girl, claims to experience visions of Saint Margaret, Saint Catherine, and the archangel Michael, which she says were sent by God to guide her conduct.
Scene 1 (23 February 1429): Robert de Baudricourt complains about the inability of the hens on his farm to produce eggs. Joan claims that her voices are telling her to lift the siege of Orléans, and to allow her several of his men for this purpose. Joan also says that she will crown the Dauphin in Reims Cathedral. Baudricourt ridicules Joan, but his Steward feels inspired by her words. Baudricourt eventually begins to feel the same sense of inspiration, and gives his consent to Joan. The Steward enters at the end of the scene to exclaim that the hens have begun to lay eggs again. Baudricourt interprets this as a sign from God of Joan's divine inspiration.
Scene 2 (8 March 1429): Joan talks her way into being received at the court of the weak and vain Dauphin. There, she tells him that her voices have commanded her to help him become a true king by rallying his troops to drive out the English occupiers and restore France to greatness. Joan succeeds in doing this through her excellent powers of flattery, negotiation, leadership, and skill on the battlefield.
Scene 3 (29 April 1429): Dunois and his page are waiting for the wind to turn so that he and his forces can lay siege to Orléans. Joan and Dunois commiserate, and Dunois attempts to explain to her more pragmatic realities of an attack, without the wind at their back. Her replies eventually inspire Dunois to rally the forces, and at the scene's end, the wind turns in their favour.
Scene 4 (June 1429): Warwick and Stogumber discuss Joan's stunning series of victories. Joined by the Bishop of Beauvais, they are at a loss to explain her success. Stogumber decides Joan is a witch. Beauvais sees Joan as a threat to the Church, as she claims to receive instructions from God directly. He fears she wants to instill national pride in the people, which would undermine the Church's universal rule. Warwick thinks she wants to create a system in which the king is responsible to God only, ultimately stripping him and other feudal lords of their power. All agree that she must die.
Scene 5 (17 July 1429): the Dauphin is crowned Charles VII at Reims Cathedral. A perplexed Joan asks Dunois why she is so unpopular at court. He explains that she has exposed very important people as incompetent and irrelevant. She talks to Dunois, Bluebeard, and La Hire about returning home. Charles, who complains about the weight of his coronation robes and smell of the holy oil, is pleased to hear this. She then says to Dunois "Before I go home, let's take Paris", an idea which horrifies Charles, who wants to negotiate a peace immediately. The Archbishop berates her for her "sin of pride". Dunois warns her that if she is captured on a campaign he deems foolhardy, no one will ransom or rescue her. Now realizing that she is "alone on earth", Joan declares that she will gain the strength to do what she must from the people and from God. She leaves, leaving the men dumbfounded.
Scene 6 (30 May 1431): deals with her trial. Stogumber is adamant that she be executed at once. The Inquisitor, the Bishop of Beauvais, and the Church officials on both sides of the trial have a long discussion on the nature of her heresy. Joan is brought to the court, and continues to assert that her voices speak to her directly from God and that she has no need of the Church's officials. This outrages Stogumber. She acquiesces to the pressure of torture at the hands of her oppressors, and agrees to sign a confession relinquishing the truth behind her voices. When she learns she will be imprisoned for life without hope of parole, she renounces her confession:
Joan: "You think that life is nothing but not being dead? It is not the bread and water I fear. I can live on bread. It is no hardship to drink water if the water be clean. But to shut me from the light of the sky and the sight of the fields and flowers; to chain my feet so that I can never again climb the hills. To make me breathe foul damp darkness, without these things I cannot live. And by your wanting to take them away from me, or from any human creature, I know that your council is of the devil."
Joan accepts death at the stake as preferable to such an imprisoned existence. Stogumber vehemently demands that Joan then be taken to the stake for immediate execution. The Inquisitor and the Bishop of Beauvais excommunicate her and deliver her into the hands of the English. The Inquisitor asserts that Joan was fundamentally innocent, in the sense that she was sincere and had no understanding of the church and the law. Stogumber re-enters, screaming and severely shaken emotionally after seeing Joan die in the flames, the first time that he has witnessed such a death, and realising that he has not understood what it means to burn a person until he has actually seen it happen. A soldier had given Joan two sticks tied together in a cross before the moment of her death. Bishop Martin Ladvenu also reports that when he approached with a crucifix to let her see it before she died, and he approached too close to the flames, she warned him of the danger from the stake, which convinced him that she could not have been under the inspiration of the devil.
Epilogue: 25 years after Joan's execution, a retrial has cleared her of heresy. Brother Martin brings the news to Charles VII. Charles then has a dream in which Joan appears to him. She begins conversing cheerfully not only with Charles, but with her old enemies, who also materialise in the King's bedroom. The visitors include the English soldier who gave her a cross. Because of this act, he receives a day off from Hell on the anniversary of Joan’s death. An emissary from the present day (the 1920s) brings news that the Catholic Church is to canonise her. Joan says that saints can work miracles, and asks if she can be resurrected. At this, all the characters desert her one by one, asserting that the world is not prepared to receive a saint such as her. The last to leave is the English soldier, who is about to engage in a conversation with Joan before he is summoned back to Hell at the end of his 24-hour respite. The play ends with Joan ultimately despairing that mankind will never accept its saints:
O God that madest this beautiful earth, when will it be ready to accept thy saints? How long, O Lord, how long?
In 1456, Charles VII (Richard Widmark), experiences dreams in which he is visited by Joan of Arc (Jean Seberg), the former commander of his army, burned at the stake as a heretic twenty-five years earlier. In the dream he tells Joan that her case was retried and her sentence annulled. He recalls how she entered his life as a simple, seventeen-year-old peasant girl; how she heard the voices of Saints Catherine and Margaret telling her that she would lead the French army against the English at the siege of Orléans and be responsible for having the Dauphin crowned king at Reims cathedral. When Joan arrives at the Dauphin's palace at Chinon she discovers that he is a childish weakling with no interest in fighting. After being tested by the members of the court, who conclude that she is mad, Joan imbues the Dauphin with her belief and fervor and he gives her command of the army.
Shortly thereafter, Joan witnesses the coronation of Charles. Although her military triumphs have made her popular with the masses, her voices, beliefs, self-confidence and apparent supernatural powers have given her fearful enemies in high places. Charles, who has no further use for her services, expects her to return to her father's farm. When Joan challenges Charles to retake Paris from the English, he tells her he would rather sign a treaty than fight. All refuse Joan's plea to march on Paris, and the archbishop warns her that if she defies her spiritual directors, the church will disown her. Nevertheless, Joan puts her faith in God and appeals to the common people to march on Paris. She is captured and handed over to the English. To assure that Joan will never again become a threat to England, the English commander hands her over to the Catholic Church to be tried for heresy. Joan spends four months in a cell and is visited frequently by the Inquisitor (Felix Aylmer). The English become impatient with the delay in her prosecution and press for the trial to begin. Joan holds to her faith, as always, refusing to deny that the church is wiser than she or her voices.
In a moment of panic when she learns she is to be burned at the stake, and worn down by the constant pressures applied by the Inquisitor, Joan signs a document of recantation in which she confesses that she pretended to hear revelations from God and the saints in the belief that this will result in her freedom to return to her life as a peasant girl. When she learns that the sentence of the Inquisition is her perpetual, solitary imprisonment, Joan destroys the document, refusing to face a life away from nature, the life that opened her spirit to hear God and the saints. She now believes that God wants her to come to him through the ordeal of being burned at the stake. After Joan is excommunicated, the English commander, weary of the Church's endless and delaying rituals, decides that Joan can be executed long before the Vatican learns about it, and so orders his soldiers to drag her to the square to be burned. The Inquisitor chooses to look the other way and let the English burn her. Those who witness Joan's death are stricken with remorse. The King's dream continues as he and Joan are visited by other significant figures from her life. Growing weary of all the spirit visitors, Charles tells Joan he has dreamed of her long enough and returns to his bed and his troubled sleep.
The film is centered on two men in a bathtub; it is implied that they are veterans of some past conflict but revealed that they are currently in a mental institution. The first man is paranoid about the drain of the tub, the second indifferent to it. After the conversation between the two men progresses, a vine-like tendril emerges from the drain to strangle the first man. The second shows no emotion to this sudden turn of events and the film ends.
The story begins with the standard version of ''Little Red Riding Hood'' (with the wolf from ''Dumb-Hounded'', the cartoon which saw the debut of Avery's Droopy). Little Red Riding Hood, the Big Bad Wolf, and Little Red Riding Hood's grandma rebel at this stale and derivative staging of the story and demand a fresh approach. The annoyed narrator accedes to their demands and starts the story again in a dramatically different arrangement.
The story begins again, now told in a contemporary urban setting. The narrator explains that Little Red Riding Hood (now portrayed as an adult) is an attractive performer in a Hollywood nightclub under the stage name "Red Hot Riding Hood", and the Big Bad Wolf, now a Hollywood swinger, follows Red to the club where she is performing. Red performs onstage (a rendition of the 1941 classic hit song "Daddy" by Bobby Troup) and the wolf goes mad with desire. He brings her to his table and tries wooing her, but she wants nothing to do with him. Red escapes the Wolf, saying she is going to her Grandma's place, but nevertheless the Wolf manages to get there first. Grandma's place is a penthouse at the top of a skyscraper. Red's grandma is an oversexed man-chaser who falls head over heels for the Wolf.
The Wolf tries to escape, but Grandma blocks the exit and comes onto him. She locks the door, drops the key down the front of her evening gown, and poses provocatively for him. She dons a bright red shade of lipstick and a chase scene ensues. Whenever the Wolf attempts an exit, Grandma waits behind the door with puckered lips. He finally makes his escape by jumping out a window, severely injuring himself on the pavement many floors below.
He makes his way back to the nightclub, covered with bandages and bruises, swearing he is done with women and would kill himself before looking at another woman. Immediately, Red takes the stage and begins another performance. The Wolf pulls out two guns and commits suicide, but his ghost rises from his dead body and howls and whistles at Red as he did earlier.
One evening, Cleveland Heep, who became the superintendent of a Philadelphia apartment complex after his family was murdered, discovers Story, a Narf (a naiad-like being) from the Blue World, in his building's pool, immediately rescuing her from an attack by a Scrunt, a grass-covered, wolf-like creature that hides by flattening its body against the turf.
Story explains she has arrived to find the Writer, the "vessel" who will be magically awakened when he meets her, and then write a book that will save humanity in the future. When Heep mentions the word "Narf" to tenant Young-Soon, she recognizes it from stories told by her mother, Mrs. Choi, then summarizes the stories for him.
After questioning residents Farber, Bell, Dury, and five nameless smokers, Heep discovers the Writer is tenant Vick Ran, who is struggling to complete ''The Cookbook''. Heep brings Vick to Story; their meeting eliminates his fear and sharpens his inner voice. She later explains that ''The Cookbook'' will contain views and ideas so significant they will inspire a future President, a great Midwestern orator, to greatly change the world for the better. Vick later deduces, and Story confirms, that he will be killed because of the controversial nature of his ideas.
As Mrs. Choi remembers more details of the Narf legend, Heep better understands the situation. The Tartutic, an invincible simian-like quartet that serve as the Blue World's peacekeeping force, have forbidden any attack on Story while she travels home. Nonetheless, the Scrunt does just that because they know that Story is destined to be a great Narf leader, the once in a generation Madam Narf who will let all of humanity know they are on the right path.
For Story to recover from her wounds and return safely, she foresees that she will need the help of a Guardian, a Symbolist, a Guild, and a Healer. Story believes Heep to be her Guardian; Heep asks Farber, an abrasive film critic, to help him figure out the others' identities. Working off movie tropes, Farber misadvises Heep, leading him to a flawed conclusion that a resident named Dury is the Symbolist, the smokers are the Guild, and a kindly woman named Bell is the Healer.
Heep confronts the Scrunt, but nearly dies in the process, convincing him he is not the Guardian. The next night, Farber's bad advice leads to their plan's immediate failure. In the confusion, Farber is killed and Story is mortally wounded by the Scrunt. Dury suddenly realizes his son Joey is the real Symbolist. Interpreting the information on cereal boxes, Joey deduces the true Guild is composed of seven sisters, that two new men must be present, and that the Healer is a man, soon revealed to be Heep. Heep goes about healing Story by bringing forth his repressed grief: Story's wounds heal when he confesses to her that he does not want to lose her too.
Story again prepares to depart, but the Scrunt attacks. It is stopped by the gaze of Reggie, a lopsidedly muscled tenant who clearly is the Guardian. Reggie's intense stare and stalking approach intimidate the Scrunt into a slow retreat, but Reggie is distracted by the cry of the giant eagle arriving to transport Story back to the Blue World. When Reggie momentarily breaks eye contact, the Scrunt leaps, but the concealed Tartutic leap out of hiding, grab it, and drag it away.
Story hugs Heep goodbye; he thanks her for saving his life. The eagle lands, enfolds Story in one of its wings, and as the residents gaze on, it carries Story up into the night sky.
Jesus Shuttlesworth (Ray Allen), the top high-school basketball player in the United States, is being pursued by the top college basketball programs in the nation. His father, Jake, is a convicted felon serving time at Attica Correctional Facility for accidentally killing his wife, Martha, Jesus' mother, six years earlier. Jake is temporarily released by the governor, an influential alumnus of "Big State," one of the colleges Jesus is considering, so that he might persuade his son to sign with the governor's college. If successful, he'll get an early release from prison.
Upon his first moments outside of prison, Jake contacts his daughter, Mary Shuttlesworth (Zelda Harris), who is happy to see him. When Jesus returns home from school, he refuses to look his father in the eye, and tells his sister to get rid of the "stranger" in their living room. Jesus later agrees to meet with his father at an alternative location away from Mary. Throughout the movie, Jake tries to persuade Jesus to attend Big State with seemingly no success. Eventually, he divulges the deal set up by the governor. However, Jesus appears to be unsympathetic to his father's situation.
Flashbacks illustrate the younger Jesus' grueling basketball training under his father, and the night an argument between Jake and Jesus escalated into violence, resulting in Jake accidentally killing Jesus' mother after she intervened.
Intertwined with the story of the Shuttlesworth family is the sub-plot of Dakota Barns (Milla Jovovich), a prostitute who stays in the room next to Jake in the run-down hotel, which the warden has booked for him. Dakota is being abused by her procurer and companion, Sweetness, which Jake overhears through the thin walls. Throughout the film, Jake is seen helping Dakota by cleaning her wounds and giving her some of his money to be used for his expenses during his week out of prison. He also develops a romantic relationship with her. Dakota is seen in one of the final scenes of the movie taking a Greyhound bus away from New York City.
Jesus is tempted with offers of cash and women on recruiting visits to big-time basketball programs. He also considers entering the NBA in order to play professionally sooner and immediately lift himself and his sister out of poverty. Jake finally challenges Jesus to a game of one-on-one basketball. If Jake wins, Jesus will sign a letter of intent to play for Big State and if Jesus wins, he can make his own decision. After a competitive start, Jake tires during the course of the game and Jesus wins. As Jake is collected for transportation back to Attica, he turns to Jesus and says, "Let me tell you something, son: You get that hatred out your heart, or you'll end up just another nigga ... like your father."
Ultimately, Jesus decides to sign to play for Big State and gives Jake his blessing. However, the governor does not give Jake the promised reduction, as Jesus did not sign the letter of intent, and Jake's work-release is fabricated in the media as an escape from prison before being recaptured. Jake ultimately finds freedom by casting away his dreams and burdens to his son, Jesus, symbolized by the throwing of his old basketball over the prison wall and magically onto the Big State court where Jesus is practicing alone. Jesus clutches the ball, knowing it is a message of hope from his father.
Paul, a young idealist who recently fulfilled his military service, is looking for a job. In a café, he meets Madeleine Zimmer, a young singer who wishes to make a record. They witness a woman having an argument with her partner, which culminates in the woman drawing a gun and shooting him. Paul goes to meet with his friend Robert Packard, a journalist who has Paul sign a petition to free a group of artists and writers in Rio de Janeiro accused of voicing their opposition to state policy.
Paul begins working for a magazine. In a bathroom, Paul confronts Madeleine, saying that she promised him that they would go out that night. She asks him if "going out" means "going to bed", and he falls silent. She tells him that her promise was a lie. As the French presidential election of December 1965 approaches, Paul turns 21 years old and becomes romantically involved with Madeleine. Madeleine introduces him to her roommate Elisabeth Choquet. Also present is Catherine-Isabelle, whom Robert likes. Paul helps Robert put up posters around Paris and paint the phrase "Peace in Vietnam" along the side of a U.S. Army car. On a train, Paul and Robert witness a white woman and two black men antagonizing each other, which results in the woman firing a gun.
Madeleine is to have her first single released by RCA. On the day of its release, Paul brings her to the café and attempts to propose to her. Madeleine, anxious to see the release of her record, says they will discuss the matter later. Paul records a message for Madeleine in a coin-operated record booth. He is then approached by a man with a knife, who stabs himself. In a laundromat, Paul recounts to Robert his experience of feeling that he was being followed. Robert, reading a newspaper, tells Paul about Bob Dylan, whom Robert says is a "Vietnik" (a portmanteau of "Vietnam" and "beatnik").
Paul starts living with Madeleine, Elisabeth and Catherine. He leaves his job at the magazine to become a pollster for IFOP. He interviews a young woman named Elsa, asking her about subjects such as politics and love. At the café, Paul tells Elisabeth that Madeleine is pregnant, but Elisabeth is skeptical. Madeleine arrives and sees the woman who shot her partner, now a prostitute. They also see a theatre director giving instructions to an actress. Paul, Madeleine, Elisabeth and Catherine go to a cinema to watch a film. During the screening, Madeleine tells Paul that she loves him. He leaves the theatre temporarily to spray-paint a slogan critical of Charles de Gaulle on a wall outside. Later, Robert has a conversation with Catherine, during which he asserts that she is in love with Paul.
One day, a man borrows a box of matches from Paul, and uses them to self-immolate, leaving behind a note that says "Peace in Vietnam". Paul and Catherine visit Madeleine in a recording studio, where she is recording a new song. She acts distant towards Paul, and after encountering a reporter, asks Paul to fetch a car for her. Paul calls the war ministry and, impersonating a military general, demands a car. One arrives, and he, Madeleine and Catherine depart the premises in it.
From January to March 1966, Paul continues conducting opinion polls about politics, love, and other topics. He determines that his lack of objectivity, even when unconscious, resulted in a lack of sincerity in the answers from those he polled. At a police station, Catherine recounts to an officer that Paul purchased a high-rise apartment. Madeleine wanted to move Elisabeth in with them, which Paul opposed. Paul reportedly fell from a window, which Catherine asserts must have been an accident rather than a suicide. Madeleine, still pregnant, tells the officer that she is not sure what she will do next.
The introduction compares two types of journeys: one that aims to reach a place within the shortest time, and another that begins without regard to speed and without a destination in mind. Balloon travel is said to be ideal for the second kind.
The main story begins with the rescue of Professor William Waterman Sherman, who is picked up by a steamship while floating among a strange wreck of twenty deflated gas balloons in the North Atlantic. Sherman, a recently retired schoolteacher, was last seen three weeks earlier leaving San Francisco on a giant balloon, determined to spend a year drifting alone, relaxing on the balloon basket house. The world waits breathlessly to find out how Sherman could have circumnavigated the globe in record time and landed in the ocean with twenty balloons rather than the one with which he began his journey. After several days' rest and a hero's welcome, the professor recounts his journey before a captivated audience.
Sherman's flight over the Pacific Ocean was uneventful until an unfortunate accident involving a seagull puncturing his balloon forced him to crash land on the volcanic island of Krakatoa. He discovers from Mr.F that the island is populated by twenty families sharing the wealth of a secret diamond mine - by far the richest in the world - which they operate as a cartel. Each year, the families sail to the outside world with a small amount of diamonds, to purchase supplies for the hidden and sophisticated civilization they have built on the island (they explain that introducing too many diamonds into the market at once would drive down their value to "a shipload of broken glass"). Each family has been assigned one of the first twenty letters of the alphabet, and lives in its own whimsical and elaborate house that also serves as a restaurant. The Krakatoa society follows a calendar with twenty-day months. On "A" Day of each month, everyone eats in Mr. and Mrs. A's American restaurant; on "B" Day, in Mr. and Mrs. B's British chop house; on "C" Day, in Mr. and Mrs. C's Chinese restaurant; on "D" Day, in Mr. and Mrs. D's Dutch restaurant, and so forth. Sherman's first friend on the island, Mr. F, runs a French restaurant containing a replica of the Hall of Mirrors. The houses are full of incredible items, such as Mr. M's Moroccan house, which has a living room with mobile furniture that operate like bumper cars. The children of the island invented their own form of amusement that combines elements from merry-go-rounds and balloon travel.
When the volcano on Krakatoa erupts, the families and Sherman escape on a platform held aloft by twenty balloons. As the platform drifts westward around the world, the families parachute off to India and Belgium to start their new lives. Sherman remains on the platform and finally descends onto the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, where he is rescued. The professor concludes his speech by telling the audience he intends to build an improved balloon for a year of life in the air, financed by the diamond cufflinks he obtained in Krakatoa.
Each of the book's chapters contains three sections: a story chapter, which acts as a framing device for the otherwise unconnected short stories; a poem about a particular writer on the tour, its author being unspecified; and the short story written by that writer.
The main story centers on a group of seventeen individuals (all of whom go by nicknames based on the story they tell) who have decided to participate in a secret writers' retreat, frequently compared by characters to the Villa Diodati retreat of 1816. After having noticed an invitation to the retreat posted on the bulletin board of a cafe in Oregon, the characters follow instructions on the invitation to meet Mr. Whittier, the retreat's organizer. Whittier tells them to each wait for a bus to pick them up the next morning and bring only what they can fit into one piece of luggage (in particular, only what they feel they need most).
The next day, the seventeen characters, Whittier, and his assistant Mrs. Clark are driven to an abandoned theatre. Whittier locks all of them inside the theatre, telling them they have three months to each write a magnum opus before he will allow them to leave. In the meantime, they will have enough food and water to survive, as well as heat, electricity, bedrooms, bathrooms, and a clothes washing and drying machine provided.
The characters live under harmless conditions at first. However, the group (not including Whittier or Clark) eventually decide that they could make a better story of their own suffering inside the theatre, and thereby become rich after the public discovers their fate. They then begin to individually sabotage the food and utilities provided to them, with each character trying to only destroy one food or utility to slightly increase the drama of their stay. Since the characters are not co-ordinating their plans, they end up destroying all their food and utilities, forcing all of them to struggle to survive starvation, cold, and darkness.
With Whittier accidentally dying from a stomach rupture, the writers find themselves trapped without him. Believing a great increase in their suffering will provide a better story for when they're rescued, several writers start to willingly engage in self-mutilation and cannibalism, doing so to give the pretense Whittier tortured them. With numerous characters committing suicide, killing one another, or succumbing to their ailments, they continue to formulate their story whilst the theatre somehow repairs its broken utilities.
With numerous people dead, Mrs. Clark included, the writers continue to sabotage themselves, such as destroying the lighting and wasting any additional food supplies they find. The eleven remaining writers eventually group in the main theatre, only for Whittier to appear and reveal he faked his death (with Clark's help) and has been observing the writers through hidden cameras. Informing the writers their three months have passed and that they are free to leave, Whittier notes that, by continuing to blame him for everything and playing the victim to extreme extents, they haven't acted any differently from the other groups. Whittier unlocks the exit and leaves with Miss Sneezy, choosing her as the person he saves and offering her a new life. Mother Nature, objecting that they need to wait a little longer for other writers to die and for someone to rescue them, stabs Miss Sneezy. To prevent Whittier from leaving with her, they drag Miss Sneezy back inside and break the lock, and continue to wait for rescue.
"Guts" begins with the narrator, aptly named "Saint Gut-Free", telling the reader to hold their breath for the duration of the story.
The narrator then describes three stories of male masturbation gone horribly awry. In the first story, an adolescent boy inserts a Vaseline-lubricated carrot into his rectum to stimulate his prostate, then, in haste, stashes it in a pile of laundry when he is called to dinner. Later, his mother takes the laundry away and presumably discovers the used carrot, but never mentions the incident. Next, the narrator tells the tale of a young boy who, having heard that it enhances masturbatory pleasure, inserts a thin stick of candle wax into his urethra. The wax unexpectedly slips back into the boy's bladder, thereby blocking his urine flow and causing blood to seep from his penis. Because he requires expensive surgery, his parents are forced to pay to repair his bladder with the boy's college savings. Finally, the narrator explains how he himself suffered a sexual injury, when sitting on the water-intake valve at the bottom of his home swimming pool while masturbating. While swimming down to the bottom of the pool to stimulate his prostate before coming up for air—a repetitive process he refers to as "pearl diving"—the suction from the valve causes his rectum and lower intestines to prolapse and become tangled in the filter. Ultimately, he finds himself stuck on the bottom of the pool and must gnaw through his own innards to free himself and avoid drowning. When Saint Gut-Free's sister later becomes pregnant, he falsely believes that he is the father of an incestuous child, since he thinks his sister has encountered the semen he leaves in their family swimming pool on that fateful day (she is actually pregnant by her boyfriend and decided to have an abortion).
In between the main stories, Saint Gut-Free muses over families who cover up their loved ones' accidental deaths by autoerotic asphyxiation. In doing so, he highlights the theme of sexual repression throughout the tale. For example, in all three cases of sexual trauma, the parents are aware of the erotic nature of their son's accidents, but never discuss them afterwards. As a result, their sons are forced figuratively to "hold their breath" in the silence that lingers. Saint Gut-Free refers to these moments of sexual repression as the "invisible carrot," referring to both the mother in the first story and to the total denial of all the parents involved. At the end, the narrator tells the reader they can now take a breath, as he still has not taken one himself.
Purportedly all three of these incidents are based on true stories. According to Palahniuk, the first two tales came from his friends' experiences and the third he heard while shadowing sexual addiction support groups as research for ''Choke''. In one of these groups, he met an extremely thin man. When Palahniuk asked him how he stayed so thin, he told him "I had a massive bowel resectioning." When Palahniuk asked what he meant, he told him the story which was the basis for the third episode in "Guts".
The film centers on the relationship of exotic dancer Angéla and her lover Émile. Angéla wants to have a child, but Émile is not ready. Émile's best friend Alfred also says he loves Angéla, and keeps up a gentle pursuit. Angéla and Émile argue about the matter; at one point they decide not to speak to each other, so continue their argument by pulling books from the shelf and pointing to the titles. Since Émile stubbornly refuses her request for a child, Angéla finally decides to accept Alfred's plea and sleeps with him. This proves that she will do what she must to have a child. She and Émile finally reconcile, so he has a chance to become the father. The two have sex, then engage in a bit of wordplay that gives the film its title: an exasperated Émile says "''Angéla, tu es infâme''" ("Angela, you are horrid"), and she retorts, "''Non, je suis une femme''" ("No, I am a woman").
On September 28, 1998, 24 hours prior to the events of ''Resident Evil 2'', former Special Tactics And Rescue Service (S.T.A.R.S.) member Jill Valentine attempts to escape from Raccoon City. Most of the population has been transformed into zombies by an outbreak of the T-virus, a new type of biological weapon secretly developed by the pharmaceutical company Umbrella. On her way to the Raccoon City Police Department, Jill runs into fellow team member Brad Vickers, who is killed by a new enemy. This creature, Nemesis-T Type, is a bio-organic weapon programmed to target surviving S.T.A.R.S. members, witnesses of Umbrella's experiments. As she evades Nemesis, Jill encounters three surviving members of the Umbrella Biohazard Countermeasure Service (U.B.C.S.): Carlos Oliveira, Mikhail Victor, and Nikolai Zinoviev. Nikolai explains to Jill and Carlos that a rescue helicopter can be contacted if they manage to reach the city's Clock Tower and ring the bell.
As they make their way to the tower, Nikolai is presumed dead, while Nemesis corners the remaining members of the group on the cable car headed to the tower. Mikhail sacrifices himself with a grenade, causing the car to crash into the tower's main courtyard and separating Jill and Carlos briefly. At the Clock Tower, Jill summons the helicopter by ringing the Clock Tower's bell before being confronted by Nemesis, which destroys the helicopter and infects Jill with the T-virus. Jill manages to temporarily defeat Nemesis but falls unconscious due to the T-virus. Carlos finds Jill and takes her to safety within the Clock Tower. Three days later, he finds a vaccine for Jill's T-virus infection in a nearby hospital. He then returns and administers it to Jill, saving her.
After she regains consciousness, Jill proceeds towards the Raccoon Park and enters the park caretaker's cabin. There, she runs into Nikolai, who reveals that he is a "supervisor" sent into Raccoon City to gather combat data of Umbrella's bioweapons. Nikolai retreats, and Jill is confronted by a massive worm-like creature. Jill defeats the creature and escapes to an abandoned factory at the rear of the park. Inside the factory, Jill meets up with Carlos, who tells her that the U.S. government is planning to launch a nuclear missile into Raccoon City to eradicate the T-virus infestation. After confronting Nemesis and grabbing a keycard needed to escape, Jill learns from the factory's control tower that the missile attack on Raccoon City has begun, with only a short time left before the city is destroyed.
Depending on the path taken by the player, Jill's final encounter with Nikolai will differ. In one version of the events, Nikolai will attempt to start a gunfight with Jill, only to be taken by surprise by Nemesis and killed. In another event, Nikolai will hijack Jill's intended escape chopper, and the player must choose to either reason with Nikolai or destroy the helicopter. If Jill negotiates with Nikolai, he reveals that he has killed the other supervisors and boasts about collecting the bounty placed on Jill by Umbrella before escaping. Regardless of Nikolai's fate, Jill makes her way to the rear yard and confronts Nemesis one last time. After an intense battle, Jill defeats Nemesis with the help of a prototype railgun before meeting up with Carlos and escaping the city via a helicopter. If the previous escape chopper was stolen by Nikolai, Jill and Carlos will instead meet up with S.T.A.R.S. Alpha Team's weapons specialist Barry Burton, who helps them escape in his helicopter. The nuclear missile vaporizes Raccoon City, and Jill swears revenge on Umbrella. A newscast then briefly details the destruction, and offers condolences for the lost lives.
The story of ''Hell House'' concerns four people – Dr. Lionel Barrett, a physicist with an interest in parapsychology, his wife Edith, and two mediums (Florence Tanner, a spiritualist and mental medium, and Benjamin Franklin Fischer, a physical medium who had been to the haunted house 30 years earlier.). Barrett, Tanner, and Fischer are hired by dying millionaire, William Reinhardt Deutsch, to investigate the possibility of life after death and to solve with a time limit of one week. To do so, they must enter the infamous Belasco House in Maine, regarded as the most haunted house in the world. The house is called "Hell House" due to the horrible acts of blasphemy and perversion that occurred there under the silent influence and supervision of Emeric Belasco. Meanwhile, there are other mysteries to be found in Hell House, such as the supposed murder of Emeric Belasco's son, Daniel Myron Belasco, and the puzzle as to why a majority of people who enter the home are dead by the end of their visit.
The novel combines supernatural horror with mystery as the researchers attempt to investigate the haunting of the house while their sanity subtly is undermined by its sinister supernatural influence. The home exploits its guests' deepest desires and attempts to turn people against one another during the course of their visit.
During the investigation, various influences begin to affect each character's personal weaknesses: Florence through her belief in spiritualism and her over-eagerness to rid the house of its evil; Dr. Barrett through his almost-arrogant disbelief in/disregard for spiritualism, his debilitated physical condition (having suffered from polio when young), and his belief in science and the power of the Reversor machine he has built to rid the house of its haunting; Edith through her personal fears, insecurities, and pent-up sexual desires; and Fischer through his deliberate inaction (which he calls "caution"). Hell House's potency comes from its apparent ability to corrupt those who enter its walls, before bringing about their destruction, both mental and physical.
As Homer clumsily attempts to build a spice rack for Marge, Maggie suddenly knocks him out by hitting him on the head with a mallet. Puzzled why Maggie would attack Homer, Marge notices that she imitates the violence depicted on ''The Itchy & Scratchy Show''. She blames the show's producers for inspiring senseless violence and forbids Bart and Lisa to watch it; Bart and Lisa continue watching the show at their friends' homes. Marge writes a letter asking the cartoon studio to tone down the show's violence, but chairman Roger Meyers, Jr. writes a dismissive reply, goading Marge into forming a protest group.
Marge organizes Springfieldians for Nonviolence, Understanding, and Helping (SNUH), and forces her family to picket outside the studio. SNUH gains momentum and residents boycott ''The Krusty the Clown Show'', which airs ''Itchy & Scratchy'' cartoons. After Marge appears on the panel discussion show ''Smartline'', concerned parents send thousands of angry letters to Meyers. He agrees to eliminate violence from ''Itchy & Scratchy'' and solicits story ideas from Marge. The children dislike the rather schmaltzy format change and abandon the cartoons to play outside instead.
Some time later, a traveling exhibition of Michelangelo's sculpture ''David'' schedules a stop in Springfield. Other SNUH members urge Marge to protest the exhibition due to its nudity, but Marge, an artist herself, considers ''David'' a masterpiece. During another ''Smartline'' appearance, Marge concedes it is hypocritical to censor ''Itchy & Scratchy'' and not ''David'', realizing that her protests have done more harm than good.
Now free of public negativity, ''Itchy & Scratchy'' quickly returns to its old format after SNUH disbands, prompting the town's children to stop going outside and resume watching the show. While Marge and Homer view ''David'' at an art museum, Marge laments that the children would rather watch violent cartoons than see a work of great art. Homer cheers her up by revealing that the school is forcing students to see the sculpture on a field trip to the museum.
The game takes place in a fantasy world, where humanity exists along strange symbiotic creatures known as Seru who aid humanity with their supernatural powers. However, a mysterious Mist appears and the Seru become rampant, opposing humanity and causing the collapse of civilization. The story follows Vahn, whose village is unaffected by the Mist outside and protected from Seru by a large wall. The town is attacked by an enormous Seru named Juggernaut, destroying the wall from the town and unleashing the rampaging Seru onto the villagers inside. While defending the village, Vahn discovers a rare kind of Seru known as a Ra-Seru named Meta, which is both intelligent and capable of merging peacefully with a human. He awakens the power of the tree in the center of his village known as a Genesis Tree and removes the Mist and the Seru from the village. With his newfound power, he travels across the world to restore Genesis Trees and stop the Mist.
The ''Enterprise'' attempts to rescue the freighter ''Sanction'', which has been disabled by a star's magnetic field and is about to collide with a planet. An agreement is reached to transport over the crew of the freighter, but they surprisingly send over cargo barrels first. The ''Enterprise'' crew attempts to transport the freighter's crew, but is only successful in recovering four of them before their ship is destroyed. Two, T'Jon (Merritt Butrick) and Romas (Richard Lineback), are scruffy and unshaven, while the other two, Sobi (Judson Scott) and Langor (Kimberly Farr), are groomed and well dressed. They all show relief that the barrels made it over, and little remorse for the lost ship and crewmen. Both groups start to fight over the ownership of the barrel using some form of electrical shock attack from their bodies and are escorted to the observation lounge under guard.
The two pairs come from different planets within the same system. It is explained that the barrels contains felicium, a medicine for a plague which is ravaging the planet Ornara. The medicine is produced on the planet Brekka, but the Ornarans are the only race in the system with the means of space travel; however, the two remaining Ornaran ships were all built long ago and are beginning to fail due to overuse and lack of maintenance – and the Ornarans no longer know how to repair them. Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) offers to return them each to Ornara and provide replacement parts for the remaining freighters. The Brekkans, Sobi and Langor, argue that they retain ownership of the felicium, as the items the Ornarans offered in payment were lost on board the freighter. T'Jon and Romas, of Ornara, are suffering from the effects of the plague, and are sent to sickbay where Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden) can find no reason for their symptoms.
In a gesture of goodwill following the demand of compassion from Crusher, the Brekkans offer two doses of felicium for T'Jon and Romas's immediate needs. Langor explains that the entire Brekkan economy and industry is devoted to producing the medicine for Ornara, whose inhabitants provide Brekka with the necessities of daily life in return. After T'Jon and Romas take their doses, Dr. Crusher realizes that felicium is actually a highly addictive narcotic, and the plague itself was cured long before, so the symptoms believed to be attributed to the plague are actually withdrawal symptoms. Crusher wants to offer assistance to aid the Ornarans in breaking free of their addiction, but Picard warns that the Federation cannot intervene due to the Prime Directive. He and Dr. Crusher later question the Brekkans alone and confirm that the Brekkans know the truth regarding the plague being eradicated, and the addictive nature of the medicine, and are consciously exploiting the Ornarans because Brekka's economy would collapse if the Ornarans no longer needed felicium.
The ''Enterprise'' arrives at Ornara, and Sobi and Langor have agreed to provide the felicium to the Ornarans for later payment. However, Picard announces that as the Prime Directive prevents him from interfering in the transactions between the two planets, it also prevents him from providing any replacement parts for the aging freighters. T'Jon and Romas are furious at the decision as it means that the trade between Ornara and Brekka will stop because the freighters can no longer make the trips without the parts. After the four are transported off the ''Enterprise'', Picard confides to Dr. Crusher that while the Ornarans may suffer from withdrawal symptoms in the short term, this will be an opportunity for both races to advance in their own ways.
Los Angeles private detective Philip Marlowe is summoned to the mansion of General Sternwood, who wants to resolve "gambling debts" that his daughter Carmen owes to bookseller Arthur Geiger. As Marlowe is leaving, Sternwood's older daughter Vivian stops him. She suspects her father's true motive for hiring a detective is to find his protégé Sean Regan who had disappeared a month earlier.
Marlowe goes to Geiger's shop, which is minded by Agnes Louzier, and then follows Geiger home. Hearing a gunshot and a woman's scream, he breaks in to find Geiger's body and a drugged Carmen, as well as a hidden camera empty of film. After taking Carmen home, he returns and discovers that the body has disappeared. During the night, Marlowe learns that Sternwood's driver, Owen Taylor, has been found dead in a limo floating off the Lido Pier, having been struck on the back of the head.
Vivian comes to Marlowe's office the next morning with scandalous pictures of Carmen that she received with a blackmail demand for the negatives. Marlowe returns to Geiger's book store and follows a car to the apartment of Joe Brody, a gambler who previously blackmailed General Sternwood. He then finds Carmen in Geiger's house, where she insists that it was Brody who killed Geiger. They are interrupted by the landlord, gangster Eddie Mars.
Marlowe goes to Brody's apartment, where he finds Agnes and Vivian. They are interrupted by Carmen, who wants her photos. Marlowe disarms her and sends Vivian and Carmen home. Brody admits that it was he who was behind the blackmailing, having stolen the negatives from Taylor but then has to answer the door and is shot. Marlowe chases the killer and apprehends Carol Lundgren, Geiger's former driver, who believes Brody is swindling him. Marlowe calls the police to arrest Lundgren.
Marlowe visits Mars' casino where he asks about Regan, who is supposed to have run off with Mars' wife. Mars is evasive and tells Marlowe that Vivian is running up gambling debts. Vivian wins a big wager and then wants Marlowe to take her home. A stooge of Mars' attempts to rob Vivian but Marlowe knocks him out. While driving back, Marlowe presses Vivian on her connection with Mars but she admits nothing. Back at home, Marlowe finds a flirtatious Carmen waiting for him. She says she did not like Regan and mentions that Mars calls Vivian frequently. When she attempts to seduce Marlowe, he throws her out. The next day, Vivian tells him he can stop looking for Regan; he has been found in Mexico and she is going to see him.
Mars has Marlowe beaten up to stop him investigating further. He is found by Harry Jones; an associate of Agnes and besotted with her. Jones conveys her offer to reveal the location of Mars' wife for $200. When Marlowe goes to meet him and be taken to where she is hiding, he spots Canino, a gunman hired by Mars, who is there to find Agnes. As Marlowe watches from hiding, Canino threatens Jones until Jones tells him Agnes's location. Canino then forces Jones to have a "drink" which turns out to be poison. Afterward, Marlowe discovers that Jones lied about Agnes's location.
Agnes telephones the office while Marlowe is still there and he arranges to meet her. She has seen Mona Mars behind an auto repair shop near a town called Realito. When he gets there, Marlowe is attacked by Canino. He awakes tied up, with Mona watching over him. Vivian is there too and frees Marlowe, allowing him to get to his gun and kill Canino. They drive back together and Marlowe calls Mars from Geiger's house, pretending to be still in Realito.
Mars arrives with four men, who set up an ambush outside. When Mars enters, Marlowe reveals that he has discerned the truth: Mars has been blackmailing Vivian, as her sister Carmen had killed Regan. He then forces Mars outside, where he is shot by his own men. Marlowe then calls the police, telling them that Mars was the one who killed Regan. He also convinces Vivian that her sister needs psychiatric care.
In 1970s England, private detective Philip Marlowe (Robert Mitchum) is asked to the stately home of General Sternwood (James Stewart), who hires Marlowe to learn who is blackmailing him. While at the mansion, he meets the general's spoiled and inquisitive daughter Charlotte (Sarah Miles) and wild younger daughter Camilla (Candy Clark).
Marlowe's investigation of the homosexual pornographer Arthur Geiger (John Justin) leads him to Agnes Lozelle (Joan Collins), an employee of Geiger, and to Joe Brody (Edward Fox), a man that Agnes has taken up with. He also discovers Camilla at the scene of Geiger's murder, where she has posed for nude photographs, and takes her home safely to a grateful Charlotte.
Returning to the crime scene, Marlowe is interrupted by gambler Eddie Mars (Oliver Reed), who owns the house where Geiger's body was found. Mars' wife Mona hasn't been seen in a while and may have run off with Rusty Regan (David Savile), Charlotte's missing husband. Due to Charlotte Regan's gambling debts, Mars appears to have a hold over Charlotte as well.
Camilla tries to get her pictures back from Brody, who is now in possession of them. Marlowe intervenes but Brody is shot and killed by someone unseen.
A man named Harry Jones (Colin Blakely) comes to Marlowe with a proposition. He is working with Agnes now, and she is willing to sell information as to Mrs. Mars' whereabouts. But on the night Marlowe shows up for their meeting, Harry is poisoned by Lash Canino (Richard Boone), a hit man working for Eddie Mars.
Marlowe pays Agnes for the address. He tracks down Canino at a remote garage, where he is overpowered and taken prisoner. Mars' supposedly missing wife Mona (Diana Quick) is there as well. At a moment when Canino is out, Marlowe persuades her to set him free. In a shootout, he then kills Canino.
Camilla Sternwood appears to be grateful to Marlowe and asks him to teach her how to use the gun he just returned to her so that she can protect herself. He takes her to a wooded area so she can learn. After he sets up an empty can on the ledge of a wall of the ruins of a Roman castle for her to use as a target, she points the gun at him and begins pulling the trigger repeatedly. Marlowe was prepared for this and had given her the weapon loaded with blanks. She becomes hysterical at the ruse and he takes her home. It turns out that the emotionally disturbed Camilla had murdered her sister's husband Rusty and that Charlotte had covered everything up with Eddie Mars' help.
After confronting Charlotte with the facts, Marlowe tells her to have Camilla hospitalized. He then drives away from the Sternwood residence the same way he came in, hoping that the gravely ill general will never know the complete truth.
Karen Page, the former secretary of the Nelson & Murdock law offices in New York City and ex-girlfriend of Matt Murdock, had left years earlier to pursue an acting career. After a brief period of success, she became a heroin addict and was reduced to starring in pornographic films in Mexico. Strapped for cash, she sells the information that Matt is Daredevil for a shot of heroin. This information is sold upward to the Kingpin. Over the next six months, the Kingpin uses his influence to have the IRS freeze Murdock's accounts, the bank foreclose on his apartment, and police lieutenant Nicholas Manolis testify that he saw Murdock pay a witness to perjure himself. By coincidence, Murdock's girlfriend Glorianna O'Breen breaks up with him and turns to dating his law partner and best friend Foggy Nelson on the rebound.
Daredevil's initial investigations uncover that Manolis is helping to frame Murdock in exchange for medical treatments for his son, but he is unable to find who is behind the frame-up and unwilling to turn Manolis in to the authorities. An exceptional legal defense by Nelson saves Murdock from a prison sentence, though he is barred from practicing law. His initial plan foiled, the Kingpin has Murdock's apartment firebombed. He also gives out the order to have anyone else who handled the information on Daredevil's identity killed. Karen eludes the Kingpin's assassins and makes her way to New York to find Murdock.
Now homeless, suffering from paranoia and growing increasingly aggressive, Murdock is continuously followed by the Kingpin's subordinates, providing the Kingpin with frequent updates on Murdock's mental state, as he has become obsessed with the fruits of his scheme to destroy Murdock. Driven by thoughts of revenge, Murdock confronts the Kingpin in his office and is brutally beaten by the crime lord. To avert investigation into his death, the unconscious Murdock is drenched in whiskey and strapped into a stolen taxi cab, which is then pushed into the East River. Murdock regains consciousness, breaks out of the cab, and swims to safety. Badly injured, he stumbles through Hell's Kitchen, eventually finding his way to the gym where his father trained as a boxer. There he is found by his mother Maggie who, having not been in Matt's life for decades, has become a nun at a local Catholic church. She nurses him back to health.
Meanwhile, ''Daily Bugle'' reporter Ben Urich is investigating his confidant's plight and stands vigil with Manolis as his son is taken in for surgery. When his son dies, Manolis confesses to Urich about the frame-up and his suspicions that the Kingpin was behind it. Nurse Lois, an enforcer assigned by the Kingpin to monitor Manolis, responds by breaking Urich's fingers and beating Manolis nearly to death. The unintimidated Manolis calls Urich from his hospital bed, however, Lois breaks into his room and strangles him, laying the receiver on his bed so Urich can hear his murder. Rather than cowing him, this goads Urich to come forward with his investigation, alerting his paper and the authorities of the situation.
Karen arrives in New York, having hitched a ride with pornography fanatic Paulo Scorcese who supplies her with heroin in exchange for sexual favors. She contacts Foggy to ask about Murdock's whereabouts. When he realizes that Paulo has been beating her, Foggy insists on taking her into his home.
Increasingly obsessed with killing Murdock, Kingpin uses his military connections to procure America's super soldier Nuke. To draw Murdock out of hiding, he arranges for a violent mental patient to be released from an asylum, dress up as Daredevil, and kill Nelson. Nurse Lois is ordered to relocate so that she cannot be implicated, but she rebels and attempts to kill Urich. Murdock, who has been shadowing Urich since hearing of the articles he is writing on the Kingpin, knocks out Lois and leaves her for the authorities. He then overhears a phone call that tips him off to the plot to kill Nelson. Meanwhile, Page spots Scorcese stalking Nelson's apartment building. While she tries to prevent him from killing Nelson, the two are attacked by hitmen who the Kingpin has ordered to kill anyone who emerges from the building. Murdock bets up the impostor Daredevil and saves Page, who confesses to be the one who gave away his secret identity. Murdock forgoves her. Now back together, they move into a derelict apartment, where Murdock helps her through heroin withdrawal while supporting them as a diner chef.
Nurse Lois offers to testify against the Kingpin in exchange for a reduced sentence, but he has her killed by a ''Daily Bugle'' reporter sent to interview her. Having failed to draw Murdock out of hiding, the Kingpin orders Nuke to fly to Hell's Kitchen and make a general assault. From a helicopter, Nuke shoots dozens of civilians and destroys the diner where Murdock works. Appearing as Daredevil for the first time since his apartment was destroyed, he is left with no choice but to kill both Nuke and his pilot to avoid further civilian deaths. However, Nuke survives his attack, and the Avengers take him into custody.
Captain America, disturbed that Nuke has a U.S. flag tattooed on his face, investigates his background. When the military authorities give him evasive answers, he breaks into top-secret records and discovers Nuke is the only surviving test subject of several attempts to recreate Project: Rebirth, the project that enhanced the Captain's own body. Nuke breaks free from custody in the same base. He is stopped by Captain America, but the Kingpin gives the order to kill Nuke. Nuke is shot by the military. Having heard word of Nuke's escape while stealing money from Kingpin's drug importers to rebuild the diner, Daredevil grabs Nuke from Captain America and takes him to the ''Daily Bugle'', hoping to get him to testify about the Kingpin. He is not fast enough, and Nuke dies before he can provide any evidence.
Trying to get Nuke back from Daredevil, Captain America stumbles upon one of the hitmen sent to kill Nuke. The hitman names the Kingpin as being behind Nuke's assault on Hell's Kitchen, setting off a wave of lawsuits. Although the Kingpin is able to fight off most of the charges, his public image as an honest and respectable businessman is shattered, and his lieutenants lose confidence in him. His obsession unabated, he disregards Captain America's role and plans for revenge on Murdock instead. As for Murdock, he lives happily in Hell's Kitchen with Karen and continues to fight for justice in his neighborhood.
There is a villain called the Dark King. He was sealed away until an unsuspecting treasure hunter releases him by attempting to get the "treasure". Now Red, Blue, Rain, and Ponga have to stop him.
Upon hearing that Tolkien has won a contest that will allow him to sing at a Colorado beauty pageant and receive $200, Stan, Cartman, Kyle and Kenny decide to set up the "Super Awesome Talent Agency" and obtain 10% of his earnings by becoming his agents. They lose him to Creative Artists Agency, however, only to land a singer named Wing, who is the wife of the City Wok owner, Tuong Lu Kim. Recently smuggled into the United States by the Triads, Wing has been set to audition for ''American Idol'', and the boys agree to bring her to Los Angeles for the competition. This venture does not go as planned, and the boys instead enter her into The Contender, a television series about boxing. Sylvester Stallone is impressed with her singing, even as she is beaten, and gives her a chance to sing at his son's wedding, which will give the boys a 10% share of $4000.
However, by this time, Wing has been kidnapped by the Triads for not paying the $10,000 owed to them for getting her into the States. The boys go after Wing to get back their client. Both the Triads and the boys are unaware of the other's intentions; the boys mistake the Triads for the Creative Artists Agency, the agency that stole Tolkien, while the Triads think the boys are a rival group. In a shootout at the Triads' headquarters, Kenny is killed, and Kyle inadvertently manages to kill two Triad guards. Stan concludes with a monologue about how Wing is a human being and that people's lives should not be sold as commodities which makes the boys and the Triads realize that their businesses are dirty and exploit the hopes of others. They all decide to quit and go to listen to Wing sing at the wedding, only to find Tolkien waiting tables, trying to earn enough money to get back home as CAA did nothing for him.
Lou Jean Poplin visits her incarcerated husband, Clovis Michael Poplin, to tell him that their son will soon be placed in the care of foster parents. Even though he is four months away from being released from prison, she convinces him to escape to assist her in retrieving their child. They hitch a ride from the prison with a couple, but when Texas Department of Public Safety Patrolman Maxwell Slide stops the car, they take the car and run.
When the car crashes, the two felons overpower and kidnap Slide, holding him hostage at the head of a slow-moving and growing caravan, initially of police cars but eventually including news vans, private citizens' vehicles, and helicopters. The Poplins and Slide travel through Beaumont, Dayton, Houston, Cleveland, Conroe and finally Wheelock, Texas. By holding Slide hostage, the pair are able to continually gas up their car, as well as get food via the drive-through. During the lengthy pursuit, Slide and the pair bond and develop mutual respect for one another.
The Poplins bring Slide to the home of the foster parents, where they encounter numerous officers, including the DPS Captain who has been pursuing them, Captain Harlin Tanner. A pair of Texas Rangers shoot and fatally wound Clovis, and after another car chase, the Texas Department of Public Safety arrests Lou Jean. Patrolman Slide is found unharmed.
An epilogue preceding the closing credits explains that Lou Jean subsequently spent fifteen months of a five-year prison term in a women's correctional facility. Upon getting out, she obtained the right to live with her son, convincing authorities that she was able to do so.
The prologue of the film acknowledges the events of the first ''Godzilla'' film (using the 1954 Godzilla monster rather than a successor Godzilla), while inventing its own timeline, explaining that the Oxygen Destroyer was never used here and that the capital of Japan was moved from Tokyo to Osaka. In 1966, Godzilla attacks the first Japanese nuclear plant in Tokai, Ibaraki Prefecture. After this, the G-Graspers, a section of Japan Self-Defense Forces, is dedicated to combating Godzilla. In 1996, clean plasma energy replaces nuclear energy, but this does not deter Godzilla from attacking the original plasma energy reactor. As a result, plasma energy is banned in the country.
In 2001, an experimental satellite-based weapon that fires miniature black holes, called the Dimension Tide, opens a wormhole through which a prehistoric dragonfly enters the present and deposits a single egg before exiting through the wormhole. A boy named Jun Hayasaka finds the egg and takes it with him when he moves to Tokyo. The egg starts oozing a strange liquid, so Jun throws the egg in the sewer. The egg, actually a mass of hundreds of eggs, splits up and starts growing when exposed to water, hatching into large dragonfly larvae called Meganulon that come out of the sewer to feed. They flood a portion of the city and molt on the sides of buildings, becoming adult Meganula.
Meanwhile, Godzilla appears in search of a source of nuclear energy, despite the edict shutting down all such attractants after its three previous appearances. While Godzilla is fighting the G-Graspers, who are assisted by rebellious scientist Hajime Kudo, the swarm of Meganula are attracted in turn to Godzilla's energy, and attack it. During the course of the battle, the Dimension Tide is launched, but Godzilla survives the attack. Most of the Meganula are killed by both Godzilla and the Dimension Tide, but a few manage to drain off some of Godzilla's energy and return to the sewer, with Godzilla seemingly following them. With the last of their strength, the Meganula inject Godzilla's energy into a huge, sleeping larva that is in a giant, pulsating cocoon. It molts and appears from the water as Megaguirus, the queen of the Meganula.
After destroying part of Shibuya with shock waves generated by her beating wings, Megaguirus heads to the waterfront and faces Godzilla. As they engage in a lengthy battle, she uses her speed to avoid Godzilla's attacks, but Godzilla eventually uses its own speed against her. As she flies toward Godzilla, it lunges forward with its dorsal fins in her path. She flies into the fins, and one of her arms is severed. Megaguirus, having been mutated by Godzilla's energy, generates a blast similar to Godzilla's atomic breath and knocks Godzilla down. Megaguirus speeds forward with the stinger on its long tail lowered, trying to stab Godzilla between the eyes. In a climactic moment, Godzilla catches the stinger in its mouth and crushes it in its jaws. Godzilla finally blasts Megaguirus with atomic breath, causing it to burst into flames and die.
It is revealed that Godzilla was attracted to a secret plasma energy project housed at the Science Institute, in violation of the ban. The G-Graspers continue their mission to destroy Godzilla, but with the Dimension Tide falling out of orbit they are unable to get a lock on it. The vengeful Major Kiriko Tsujimori pilots a ship towards Godzilla, ejecting only at the last second. The Dimension Tide is able to lock on to the craft and fires just before burning up on reentry; Godzilla blasts at the approaching black hole with its atomic heat ray, but vanishes. In a postlude, however, Tsujimori again enlists Kudo to investigate suspicious seismic activity; then in an after-credits scene at Jun's school, an earthquake happens and Godzilla's roar is heard again.
The storyline in ''Bravoman'' is told through the game's attract mode sequence, alongside various pieces of promotional material. When Japanese car insurance salaryman Hitoshi Nakamura is walking home one day, he encounters a strange, humanoid-like alien named Alpha Man, who claims to be from the planet Alpha. He informs Nakamura of a mad scientist named Dr. Bomb, who plans to destroy Earth and enslave the human race through his army of robots and a deadly superweapon. Alpha hands Nakamura three items; a metal rod, a tuning fork, and a ¥100 coin, which transforms him into Bravoman, a bionic tokusatsu superhero who possesses telescopic limbs. Bravoman and Alpha Man set out to stop Dr. Bomb and prevent him from taking over the world.
Four people die separately in four different accidents in four different places across the world - Richard Stevens in New York, Mark Harris in Paris, Franz Verbrugge in Berlin and Gary Reynolds in Denver. The four dead share a crucial link: they work for a powerful think tank, headed by Tanner Kingsley. Two women Diane Stevens and Kelly Harris - the widows of Richard Stevens and Mark Harris respectively, run into each other in New York. They both had just met with Tanner Kinglsey to discuss about their husbands death. To know more about Kelly and her husband's case, Diane invites her to a cafe to talk. In the cafe they are attacked by goons and they flee to Diane's apartment. They soon realise that even the apartment is not safe, so they escape to a hotel.
Soon, the two find themselves under ruthless attack wherever they go. They deduce that Tanner Kingsley is behind all this. It turns out that there is a connection between the death of their husbands and that of Gary Reynolds and Franz Verbrugge. Prior to their death, they had been working on a project Prima - a machine that could control the weather. Upon realizing the threat that it could pose to the world, they decide to meet a senator to talk about it. Tanner Kinglsey gets to know of this plan and has the four of them killed, making it look like accidents.
Armed with this knowledge, the two women travel to Long Island to meet with the senator. Upon reaching, they realise that the senator who is an ex-lover of Tanner, was in on the whole plan of killing the four men and also knew about Prima. Tanner orders his bodyguard Flint to kill the two women, but Kelly gets the better of Flint and kills him. The two women hide in an inn run by an old acquaintance of Kelly, Grace. To make the whole world know of Tanner's plan to control the weather, Diane and Kelly inform various newspaper agencies about it, in the pretense of an invitation to the 'Prima Unveiling Party'. Not wanting any media attention on his machine, Tanner plans to have it destroyed by his once brilliant, now deranged brother Andrew. Tanner has another version of the machine - Prima II hidden in the Tamoa Island in the South Pacific. Tanner plans to operate it discreetly and control governments across the world.
When Tanner and the senator are on a flight, they are caught in an unexpected electrical storm which kills them. It is later revealed that the storm was created by Andrew, who ultimately destroys Prima and dies in the process. Upon learning of this news, the two women decide to go together to Washington to the FBI, to tell them what they know. The book ends with Diane and Kelly who have grown close in the sequence of events, getting closure for their husbands death.
The ''Fear Street'' books take place in the fictionalized town of Shadyside and feature average teenagers older than the typical ''Goosebumps'' preteens, who encounter malignant, sometimes paranormal, adversaries. While some of the ''Fear Street'' novels have paranormal elements, such as ghosts, others are simply murder mysteries. Whereas the ''Goosebumps'' books have a few tamed deaths, the deaths presented in ''Fear Street'', particularly the sagas, are far more gruesome, with more blood and gore.
The title of the series comes from the name of a fictional street in Shadyside, which was named after the Fear family. Their name was originally spelled as Fier; after being told that the family was cursed and that the letters could be rearranged to spell "fire", Simon Fier changed it to Fear in the 19th century. Despite the family renaming, the curse survived, and Simon and his wife, Angelica, brought it with them when they moved to Shadyside sometime after the Civil War.
The curse started in Puritan (17th-century) times when Benjamin and Matthew Fier sentenced an innocent girl and her mother, Susannah and Martha Goode, to be burned at the stake for allegedly practicing witchcraft. The father and husband, William Goode, put the curse on the Fiers to avenge their deaths, bringing misery and death to the family. Although a fire allegedly burned the last of the Fears, the series features some surviving Fears and suggests that one of the brothers survived. These events are described in the Fear Street Sagas, a spinoff of the main series.
Similar to the ''Goosebumps'' series, the characters change in each book, although some characters still live on and are mentioned (or show up) multiple times. Some of the previously-released novels' plots are also mentioned in later books, and some characters appear in multiple stories (for instance, Cory Brooks, hero of ''The New Girl'', is mentioned and shows up several times during the later novels). The plot for the books occurs between the late 1980s and early 1990s, although multiple novels occur within the same chronological year.
As ''Voyager'' enters a nebula, the crew begins to suffer from intense pain, and one crewmember dies from burns on his skin; only Seven of Nine is unaffected. Realizing that they cannot withstand the radiation emanating from the nebula for the month it would take to cross, the Doctor proposes placing the crew, save for himself (a holographic artificial intelligence) and Seven, in stasis, allowing them to cross the nebula safely. Captain Janeway agrees, and soon, the crew is safely stowed into stasis chambers.
Seven adopts a daily cycle to assure the ship maintains its course and the crew remains healthy while in stasis, at times dealing with Tom Paris's fear of small spaces and placing him back in stasis with the Doctor's help. The Doctor attempts to engage Seven in human activities such as a simulated party on the holodeck, but Seven continues to try to keep working during these times. The ship's computer begins malfunctioning as it is affected by the nebula's radiation, generating a false-alarm report of an anti-matter storage failure. The Doctor discovers his mobile holographic emitter has started to fail as well, and is forced to stay in sickbay until the journey is complete.
As the ship nears the edge of the nebula, Seven begins feeling the effects of prolonged isolation, experiencing disturbing dreams. Another ship appears, helmed by Trajis Lo-Tarik, looking to trade for supplies. After Seven brings him aboard, he disappears into the ship and seems intent on destroying ''Voyager''. Seven continues to suffer intense hallucinations, including Harry Kim and Tom Paris bursting into flames. The Doctor temporarily repairs his mobile emitter to try to help Seven, assuring her there is no one else on board—Trajis himself was a hallucination—before his emitter dies out.
As the hallucinations worsen for Seven, visions of the Borg tell her she cannot survive on her own. When the ship's engines begin to fail, she briefly cuts power to the stasis chambers to maintain propulsion, but thinks better of it and opts to route power from life support instead. Soon, she passes out.
Seven regains consciousness in sickbay, where the crew congratulate her on successfully getting the ship out of the nebula. Later, Seven observes Paris, Kim, and Torres at the mess hall. She asks to join them, feeling the need for companionship after her ordeal, and they invite her to sit down.
As a young boy growing up in a Spanish family with a long and very distinguished maritime tradition, Ulysses Ferragut is regaled with tales of the sea by his retired uncle, the "Triton" (Apollon), and is particularly fascinated by his claim to have once seen the sea goddess Amphitrite. Though his lawyer father, Don Esteban, wants him to follow in his footsteps, Ulysses becomes a sailor.
When he is a grown man (Antonio Moreno), Ulysses uses his life savings to purchase the ''Mare Nostrum'', a fast, modern freighter, and prospers. However, he finally gives in to his wife, Doña Cinta, for the sake of their son Esteban, and agrees to sell his ship. With the outbreak of World War I, however, the enormous profits to be made from the sudden demand for shipping ends this plan.
On a stop in Italy, Ulysses visits the ruins of Pompeii, and meets Freya Talberg (Alice Terry) and the learned Doctor Fedelmann. He soon falls in love with Freya (who looks exactly like his uncle's painting of Amphitrite). Though she later informs him that she is an Austrian spy (as is Fedelmann), Spain is neutral and his ardor is undiminished. He agrees to transport Count Kaledine to a secret rendezvous in the Mediterranean. The U-boat ''U-35'' surfaces, takes on fuel from Ulysses' ship, and departs with Kaledine.
Meanwhile, young Esteban leaves home without permission to find his father. After a week waiting for Ulysses at his lodgings, Esteban goes back to Barcelona aboard the ''Californian'', a British passenger ship. However, the boy is killed when the ''Californian'' is sunk by the ''U-35''. Ulysses learns of his son's fate from a survivor, and realizes to his grief his role in the tragedy. He vows to avenge his boy.
Upon hearing of the death, Freya sends Ulysses a letter denouncing the barbarity of the act; it is intercepted by Doctor Fedelmann. That, along with Freya's admission she has fallen in love with Ulysses, convinces Fedelmann that her subordinate can no longer be trusted. She sends Freya to Marseilles, intending to betray her to the French. Freya suspects as much, and begs Ulysses to take her to safety aboard his ship. Ulysses is torn, but a vision of his son shaking his head makes him refuse. Freya is later captured, convicted, and shot by a firing squad at dawn.
As he is leaving Freya's apartment, Ulysses encounters Count Kaledine. After a brief struggle, he chases Kaledine through the streets, gathering a mob. Kaledine is caught and taken into custody.
Ulysses then employs the ''Mare Nostrum'' in the service of the Allies, arming her with a deck gun, replacing his crew with French military sailors, and transporting munitions to Salonica. Only longtime family friend and sea cook Caragol refuses to leave him. On the voyage, they are intercepted by the ''U-35''. With the ''Mare Nostrum'' torpedoed and doomed, Ulysses mans the abandoned deck gun and sinks the ''U-35''. As Ulysses descends into the ocean depths, Amphitrite rises to embrace and kiss him.
The plot revolves around a party of assorted railway travellers who find themselves stranded in the waiting room of an isolated country station in the evening. The station master tries to persuade them to leave the site as he is closing the station for the night. They refuse to leave, citing the lack of alternative accommodation for several miles around. He warns them of the supernatural danger of a spectral passenger train, the ghost of one that fatally wrecked in the locality several years before, that sometimes haunts the line at night, bringing death to all who set eyes upon it. Incredulous of his story, they still refuse to leave, and he departs leaving them facing a night at the station.
The main body of the play is then taken up with the interaction of the varied assortment of the passengers: strangers thrown randomly together in the odd social intimacy of happenstance that rail travel involves, representing a cross-section of English 1920s society. There are a variety of escalating dramatic incidents combined with a heightening tension as the latent threat of the spectral train's possible appearance is ultimately dramatically realised, bringing disaster and death to the group as foretold.
The story then resolves from a socio-suspense drama into a spy adventure, when it is revealed that the "ghost train" is quite real and is being used by communist revolutionaries to smuggle machine guns from the Soviet Union into England, and the story of the "ghost-train" has been concocted to scare potential witnesses away from the scene of the operation. A British Government secret agent incognito in the stranded passengers' midst is then revealed; the agent confronts the revolutionary gang in a gun battle on the station, and the revolutionaries' covert operation is defeated.
The eponymous dilemma of the play is that of the newly honoured doctor Sir Colenso Ridgeon, who has developed a revolutionary new cure for tuberculosis. However, his private medical practice, with limited staff and resources, can only treat ten patients at a time. From a group of fifty patients he has selected ten he believes he can cure and who, he believes, are most worthy of being saved. However, when he is approached by a young woman, Jennifer Dubedat, with a deadly ill husband, Louis Dubedat, he admits he can, at a stretch, save one more patient, but that the individual in question must be shown to be most worthy of being saved. However, the situation is complicated when an old friend and colleague reveals, he too, needs treatment. Sir Colenso must choose which patient he will save: a kindly, altruistic poor medical colleague, or an extremely gifted but also very unpleasant, womaniser, bigamist and amoral young artist. Sir Colenso falls instantly in love with the young and vivacious Mrs Dubedat and this makes it even harder for the doctor to separate his motives for the decision of who shall live.
Welles, playing himself taking a break from the filming of ''Othello'', is driving in the Irish countryside one night when he offers a ride to a man with car trouble. The man relates a strange event that happened to him at the same location. Two women flagged down his car one evening, asking for a ride back to their manor. They invited him in for a drink. The daughter, Lucy Campbell, was apparently the long lost love of the mans uncle by the inscription read in the cigarette case she admired. After leaving, he went back for his cigarette case. He found the manor deserted and decayed. In Dublin, a real estate broker told him the mother and daughter had died years ago. Welles, sufficiently spooked, drops the man off at his home and leaves in a hurry when the man asks him in for ''a cup of tea or something stronger'' as the ghostly women had earlier invited him into Glennascaul. As Welles drives off he passes two other stranded women who wave for a ride, flesh and blood women who recognize the famous actor behind the wheel.
'''Prologue''': In a country house, Fanny O'Dowda, the daughter of the Count O'Dowda, is putting on a play she has written. She has hired professional actors and invited major critics. Fanny, who has studied at Cambridge, is keeping her authorship secret. She expects that her father the Count will disapprove of the play, as he hates the vulgarity of modern life. He has only just returned to Britain from living in Venice.
'''Fanny's play''': Act I. The Gilbeys, a genteel couple in Denmark Hill, are worried about their missing son Bobby. A vulgar street-girl called Dora Delaney (known as "Darling Dora") enters. She tells them that she and Bobby had been sent to prison. They were arrested for drunk and disorderly behaviour and assaulting a police officer. The Gilbeys are mortified. What will they say to Mr Knox, Gilbey's business partner, and his wife? The Knoxes' daughter is betrothed to Bobby. Act 2. The Knoxes learn that their daughter Margaret has been in prison when she returns home after being away for a fortnight. On the night of the Boat Race she and a young French officer called Duvallet she was with got into a fight with the police. Margaret feels liberated by the experience and wishes to tell everyone about it. The Knoxes are mortified. What will they say to the Gilbeys? *Act 3. At the Gilbey household Bobby asks Juggins the footman how he can break up with Margaret without hurting her. Since his arrest he finds Margaret's dull respectability stifling. Margaret arrives and tells him of her imprisonment. Bobby is shocked, saying "It's not the same for a girl". Dora and Duvallet appear, to Bobby's embarrassment. When Margaret realises that the woman Bobby was with was Darling Dora, she is outraged. She had shared a cell with Dora, and now Bobby is treating her like she should be excluded from polite company. The Knoxes are announced. The four youngsters hide in the pantry with Juggins. The older couples, realising that they no longer need to keep up a facade of respectability, start to relax, though the pious Mrs Knox says that if they change the manners in which they have been brought up they will soon have nothing left. Meanwhile Margaret decides she no longer has any interest in Bobby. She really loves Juggins, the footman. Juggins reveals that he is the son of a Duke. He became a footman to atone for once mistreating an honest servant. Now that he has proven himself to be an honest working man, he feels worthy to marry Margaret.
'''Epilogue''': Fanny's father is shocked by the play saying that it "outrages and revolts his deepest, holiest feelings". The critics have a variety of views, but wonder who the author may be. The aesthete Gilbert Gunn insists that's so full of tired clichės "as old and stale as a fried fish shop on a winter morning" that it must be by Harley Granville-Barker. Another critic, Vaughan, is convinced that only Arthur Pinero could have written it, since it betrays "the author's offensive habit of saying silly things that have no real sense in them when you come to examine them". Flawner Bannal, a critic from a tabloid, thinks it was written by Bernard Shaw, as the paradoxical statements about the English by the French character are a dead giveaway. Vaughan dismisses this because the characters are too believable: "That proves it's not by Shaw, because all Shaw's characters are himself: mere puppets stuck up to spout Shaw." One critic, Trotter, realises the truth. Fanny admits that she was the author, and the critics all join in praise of her. Trotter thinks that the account of imprisonment has an air of authenticity to it. Fanny confesses that, yes, she has been in prison, for her activities as a militant suffragette. Fanny's father now has to adjust to the fact that his daughter is both a malefactor and a playwright.
Louis Mahé (Jean-Paul Belmondo), a wealthy tobacco plantation owner on Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean, awaits the arrival of his bride-to-be, Julie Roussel (Catherine Deneuve), whom he has never met. They became acquainted through the personals column of a French newspaper and have been corresponding. At the Hotel Mascarin, he meets his business partner Jardine who accompanies him to pick up the ring. Louis drives to the dock to greet Julie who is arriving on the steamer ''Mississipi'' (spelled with one p according to the French spelling of the river at the time) from Nouméa, the capital of New Caledonia. When they meet, he is surprised by her beauty and does not recognize her; she is not the woman in the photo that she had sent him. She explains that she sent the photo of a neighbor to ensure his sincerity. He confesses that he too has not told the complete truth, having hidden that he was wealthy.
They quickly marry, and his adoration makes him overlook inconsistencies between her comments and her letters. He gives Julie access to his bank accounts and prints her image on the cigarette packs his company manufactures. After receiving an angry letter from Julie's sister, Berthe Roussel (Nelly Borgeaud), demanding to know Julie's whereabouts, Louis returns home to find that Julie has gone with nearly 28 million francs, all but emptying his bank accounts. Soon after, Berthe arrives and informs him that his wife was not Julie and that she saw her sister board the ''Mississipi''. They hire a private detective, Comolli, to track down the impostor.
On a flight to Nice, France, Louis collapses from exhaustion. While recuperating in the Clinique Heurtebise sanitarium, he sees Julie('s impostor) on television, dancing at a nightclub in Antibes. He buys a gun and travels to Antibes where he breaks into her room at the Hotel Monorail, intent on killing her. When she returns and is confronted by Louis, she offers no resistance. Explaining that her real name is Marion Vergano, she tells him of her sordid past; of her years in prison and association with a heartless gangster, Richard, who was with her on the ''Mississipi''. She recounts that when they met Julie Roussel and learned of her forthcoming marriage, Richard fabricated a plot to kill Julie and send Marion in her place to rob Louis. Afterwards Richard forced her to go through with the robbery and then abandoned her. She tells Louis that she loves him, and Louis forgives her.
They buy a convertible and drive to Aix-en-Provence, where they move into a house and spend their days traveling the region and making love. Their happiness is interrupted by Comolli, who has arrived in Aix on the trail of the impostor. After failing to bribe the detective to drop the case, Louis shoots him dead and buries him in the wine cellar. Louis and Marion flee to Lyon, but she grows dissatisfied with their fugitive existence and longs for a life of luxury in Paris. Louis returns briefly to Réunion and sells his share in the plantation to his partner, Jardine. Upon his return he finds the police on their trail. Again they are forced to flee, leaving most of his money behind.
They head into the mountains where they find an isolated cabin. They hope to cross into Switzerland, but Marion is unhappy with their life on the run. Louis becomes increasingly ill and, after nearly collapsing, suspects that Marion has been poisoning his coffee. He attempts to escape, but Marion brings him back. As she pours him another glass of coffee, he reveals his knowledge of her plan, accepts his fate with no regrets, and expresses his love for her. Ashamed at her actions, Marion knocks the glass from Louis' hand and vows to make amends. She acknowledges that no woman deserves to be so loved, but assures him that she loves him, too, and that they can still go away together. Crying in his arms, Marion tells him, "I'm learning what love is, Louis. It's painful." After Louis regains his strength, they leave in a snowstorm and head toward the border.
The play revolves around mother Helen Curtayne and her daughter Millie. The father is terminally ill with cancer.
One night the television news broadcasts reports that there has been an accident in a nuclear power station in the United Kingdom. (The station is not named but it is likely a reference to Sellafield.) The rain contaminates most of Ireland leaving only parts of Munster unharmed. Helen and her daughter fight against civil unrest to get to safety.
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In 1926, Larita Filton (Isabel Jeans) testifies at her divorce. In a flashback, her husband, a drunken brute named Aubrey Filton (Franklin Dyall), is getting drunk in an artist's studio, as Mrs. Filton's portrait is being painted. The painter, Claude Robson (Eric Bransby Williams), is smitten with Larita. He sends her a letter asking her to leave the physically abusive Mr. Filton, and marry him. She rejects Claude's advances and is pushing him away when Aubrey walks in on them. She appears to be embracing Claude. Aubrey confronts Claude. Claude fires a gun, but misses Aubrey. Aubrey begins to beat Claude severely with his walking cane. In the struggle, Claude shoots Aubrey. Two servants enter and, seeing Claude with the gun, run for the police. In the next frame, the police are kneeling over Claude's lifeless body. Larita is holding her wounded husband lovingly in her lap. He picks up the letter from Claude.
Aubrey files for divorce on the grounds of adultery. The jury rejects Larita's testimony and instead decides in Aubrey's favor, in large part because Larita is quite attractive, and Claude had written a will leaving her his entire fortune "to another man's wife!" As Larita leaves the courtroom, she hides her face from photographers trying to take her picture.
Larita leaves for the French Riviera to avoid continued unwanted attention. As she registers at the hotel, she remembers all the media frenzy around her, and at the last second, changes the name she registers under to Larita Grey.
She is happy there, living anonymously. One day, at a tennis match, she is struck in the eye by the tennis ball of a rich younger man, John Whittaker (Robin Irvine). He apologises profusely and takes her for medical treatment. He soon asks Larita to marry him. She protests that surely he must want to know more about her first. He responds that all he need know is that he loves her. They marry and return to England to meet his family. While John's father likes Larita very much, his mother strongly disapproves even before meeting her. John's mother believes she recognises Larita, but cannot place her. She questions John about Larita and chastises him for marrying someone about whom he knows nothing. John begs his mother to be kind to her for his sake. However, she is only kind to Larita in public. Privately, she tries to turn everyone against Larita.
As John's mother continues to make her life miserable, Larita begs John to return to the South of France where they were happy. He asks why she cannot be happy in England. She tells him his family hates her, and that they are teaching him to hate her too. Later that day, John admits to his old girlfriend that his mother has helped him see that he made a huge mistake marrying Larita. Unknown to him, Larita overhears him.
John's sister sees Larita's picture in the papers. In the caption, Larita is identified as the former Mrs. Filton. John's sister shows her mother. Mrs. Whittaker confronts Larita in front of the family, stating, "In our world, we do not understand this code of easy virtue", as she thrusts the magazine under Larita's nose. Larita responds that indeed they do not understand much of anything.
Mrs. Whittaker, fearing scandal and gossip about her family, tries to intimidate Larita into staying in her room during the party the family is hosting that same evening. Instead, Larita makes a grand entrance. However, Larita confides to a friend that she will leave John so he can obtain a divorce. Before leaving, she tells the old girlfriend, Sarah (Enid Stamp Taylor), whom his mother had thought a suitable match for John, and who has been quite kind to her, "Sarah - YOU ought to have married John."
Larita sits anonymously in the court gallery, weeping, as she watches John's uncontested divorce. A reporter recognises her. As she exits the court, photographers are waiting for her. This time, she does not flee. Instead, she exclaims to the throng of photographers, "Shoot! There's nothing left to kill."
Betty (Betty Balfour), an heiress, draws the ire of her father after using his aeroplane to fly to her boyfriend (Jean Bradin) who is on an ocean liner headed to France. Once reunited, they arrange to meet for dinner but Betty's boyfriend is unable to dine with her due to seasickness. When seated, Betty notices a man watching her, who then comes over to talk to her. Betty receives a telegram from her disapproving father who warns that her boyfriend is not going to be admired by her friends. To prove her father wrong she asks her boyfriend to marry her, but her boyfriend has grown to resent how controlling she is of their relationship. A quarrel ensues between them and the two part company when it's over.
The boyfriend regrets the fight and goes to Betty to apologise. He is surprised to find her adeptly playing a game of chess with the mysterious man. Another quarrel between the two is interrupted by the arrival of Betty's father (Gordon Harker). He tells Betty the family fortune, earned in the Champagne business, has been wiped out by a falling stock market. The boyfriend leaves after hearing the news of their fortune and the father sees this as proof the boyfriend is only after money.
In France, Betty decides to sell her jewellery but is robbed en route to the jewellers. Now penniless, Betty and her father move into a small, rundown apartment. Unbeknown to Betty, her father sneaks out to eat at an expensive restaurant after her cooking proves to be terrible. Once again Betty's boyfriend tries for a reconciliation but she rebukes him as she now thinks her father is right about him, and vows to get a job.
Betty finds work at an upmarket restaurant. The mysterious man shows up again and invites Betty to his table. She becomes uncomfortable with the stranger and is relieved when her boyfriend arrives on the scene. The mysterious man leaves after handing her a note that advises her to call him if she ever needs any help. The boyfriend openly disapproves of Betty's job. He leaves after a still-angry Betty dances wildly to provoke him.
The boyfriend soon returns with Betty's father. He is outraged at Betty's lowly job and confesses he lied about the loss of their fortune to teach her a lesson. Rather than being pleased, Betty is further angered by both her father and boyfriend. She turns to the mysterious man who offers to take her back to America. Betty gladly accepts but is later horrified to find she has been locked in her cabin. She imagines the worst about the mysterious man's intentions and is both relieved and delighted when her boyfriend arrives and releases her from the cabin. They soon reconcile.
The boyfriend hides in the bathroom when they hear the mysterious man approaching. He enters with her father who confesses he hired the man to follow and protect her. The boyfriend is furious and misunderstanding the situation, bursts from his hiding place to attack the man. Betty's father pacifies the boyfriend's anger by telling him he no longer disapproves of their wedding. The reunited couple start discussing the wedding, but soon start bickering over the arrangements.
The story opens up in early March as Anil arrives in Sri Lanka after a 15-year absence abroad. Her visit comes as a result of the increasing number of deaths in Sri Lanka from all the warring sides in the 1980s' civil war. While on an expedition with archeologist Sarath, Anil notices that the bones of a certain skeleton do not seem to be 6th century like the rest which leads her to conclude that the skeleton must be a recent death. Unsure where Sarath's political allegiance lies, Anil is skeptical of his help, but agrees to it anyway.
Along their journey to identify the skeleton, nicknamed Sailor, Anil becomes increasingly suspicious of Sarath. She begins to question his motives and sees his comments as a hint for her to censor herself since their discovery would implicate the Sri Lankan government in the death of Sailor. Later, Anil and Sarath visit his former teacher, Palipana, hoping to have him confirm their suspicions. Palipana then suggests having a reconstruction of the face done so that others might identify him. They agree to do so and head on to a small village named Galapitigama.
There Anil meets Sarath's brother, Gamini, an emergency doctor. She discovers that he is intricately involved in the country's affairs and daily struggles to save the lives of numerous victims. Gamini helps them with a fellow Sri Lankan whose hands have been nailed to a road, and tells them about the various atrocities citizens face as a result of the civil war. Later Anil and Sarath meet with Ananda, on the advice of Palipana, hoping that he will be able to reconstruct the face of Sailor for them. Ananda does so after some days, despite Anil's impatience and skepticism, and then almost immediately attempts suicide, only to be rescued by an intuitive and quick-thinking Anil. Anil and Sarath eventually are able to identify Sailor in a small village.
As Anil prepares a report to present to the authorities, claiming the skeleton as a recent death, and therefore evidence of state or state-sponsored terrorism, the skeleton of Sailor disappears. Frustrated, she goes on with her presentation, using another skeleton, but is upset when Sarath arrives after a lengthy and mysterious absence to ridicule her efforts and claim that she cannot back up her claims with the skeleton she has. Angry and betrayed, on her way out Anil is frequently stopped and inspected, and her belongings and research seized, such that by the time she leaves the building she is left with nothing. Outside, she meets Sarath, who surprises her with the body of Sailor that he has placed in a van. Sarath instructs Anil to prepare a fake report for the government and then leave the country the next morning on a plane that he arranged. Relieved, Anil does so in the hope that the evidence will be sufficient. Sarath's actions, however, have severe consequences, leading ultimately to his death. The novel ends with Ananda sculpting the eyes of a Buddha statue.
The film consists of five main sections: The Creation, Garden of Eden, Cain and Abel, Noah's Ark, and the story of Abraham. There are also a pair of shorter sections, one recounting the building of the Tower of Babel, and the other the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. The sections vary greatly in tone. The story of Abraham is somber and reverential, while that of Noah repeatedly focuses on his love of all animals. Cats (including lions) are shown drinking milk and Noah's relationship with the animals is depicted as harmonious. It was originally conceived as the first in a series of films retelling the entire Old Testament, but these sequels were never made.
Oatsie Manglehand discovers the body of a young man, badly bruised and near death, by the side of a road in the Vinkus and brings him to the Cloister of Saint Glinda. The Superior Maunt recognizes the young man as Liir, the young boy who left the Cloister with Elphaba a decade or so ago. The Maunt appoints Candle, a young Quadling girl, to watch over Liir. While he recovers, Liir tells Candle the following story:
After Elphaba's death, Liir accompanied Dorothy Gale and her friends back to the Emerald City. The others went off to receive what they were promised by the Wizard, leaving Liir alone. Liir spent some time unsuccessfully searching for Nor, Fiyero's daughter who went missing during the events of ''Wicked''. After living on the streets of the Emerald City for a time, Liir enlisted in the Home Guard. During his service, he was deployed on a peacekeeping mission to Quadling Country. After being forced to participate in the destruction of a Quadling village, Liir deserted the Home Guard and returned to the castle of Kiamo Ko. Later, the Quadlings attacked and killed most of the soldiers and dragons were then sent to punish them.
One day, the Princess of the Swans landed at Kiamo Ko, having been attacked by a predator. Before she died, she asked Chistery the flying monkey to take her place at the Conference of the Birds. Chistery declined and Liir decided to go in her stead. While flying on Elphaba's broom to reach the Conference, Liir was attacked by dragons, who took the broom. Liir fell to earth, where Oatsie Manglehand found him.
After Candle hears Liir's story, the two run away together and settle in a deserted farmhouse, which Candle names "Apple Press Farm." Liir goes to the Conference of the Birds, where he learns that the Birds are under attack. The new Emperor of Oz is afraid of the Birds' power to spread news throughout the land and has sent the dragons to attack them. Liir agrees to help the Conference destroy the dragons and recover the broom.
Returning to Apple Press Farm, Candle tells Liir she is pregnant, explaining that she had sex with him while he was unconscious. Liir meets with his old military friend Trism bon Cavalish, who he discovers is responsible for training the dragons to perform their killing missions. Liir convinces Trism to help him kill the dragons by poisoning their food. They recover Elphaba's broom and cloak and flee the City.
During their flight, Liir and Trism become lovers. They end up at the Cloister of Saint Glinda, where the Home Guard besiege them. The mauntery is spared from attack because Glinda is staying there on retreat. With her help, they come up with a plan for the pair's escape: Liir will fly away on his broom, while Trism will leave with Glinda, disguised as her servant. Liir flies about Oz, collecting and training a huge flock of Birds, which he leads to the Emerald City. Over the City, they fly in formation as a huge representation of the Witch.
When returning home, it dawns on Liir that the "ELPHABA LIVES!" graffiti he has seen in the Emerald City is in Nor's handwriting. When he arrives at Apple Press Farm, Candle is gone, but he finds wrapped in Elphaba's cloak a newborn baby who he initially thinks is dead but revives under his care. Holding the baby up to the rain to wash away the birth blood, she "cleans up green."
In a subplot, Liir meets the Scrow people and their leader Princess Nastoya, an Elephant who took human form in order to hide from the Wizard. Now dying, Nastoya asks for Liir's help in finding a way to change back.
In January 1793, 17-year-old Horatio Hornblower, a newly-appointed midshipman, joins a ship of the line, HMS ''Justinian''. Hornblower is introduced to his shipmates, including Jack Simpson, a bully who rules the midshipmen's quarters. Hornblower embarrasses himself when he becomes seasick while the ship is at anchor in calm waters.
Hornblower considers suicide because of Simpson's persecution, then finds an opportunity to challenge him to a duel, even though Simpson is an experienced duellist. Midshipman Clayton feels guilty that he has not previously stood against Simpson. He knocks Hornblower unconscious, takes his place in the duel and is killed. Simpson is wounded but survives.
Hornblower is transferred to the frigate HMS ''Indefatigable'', under the command of Captain Pellew. Midshipmen Kennedy, Hether, and Cleveland go with him, as well as Simpson's old division which, due to Pellew's ire over the duel, becomes Hornblower's. Hornblower's decision to place his trust in them while encouraging them to improve their performance, as well as his conduct in battle, wins him their respect and loyalty.
Pellew orders Hornblower to assume command of a captured French ship, ''Marie Gallante''. Hornblower discovers the ship has a hole in the hull beneath the water line and is sinking fast. His men and he, along with the French captain and crew, abandon the ship for a lifeboat. Outnumbered, Hornblower and his men are soon overpowered. The French captain orders Hornblower to hand over his compass and navigation chart. Hornblower surrenders the chart, then tosses the compass overboard. He later informs Matthews that in anticipation of the French prisoners gaining the upper hand, he deliberately mispositioned their location on the chart. The French captain attempts to reverse course 180 degrees to return to the French coast, but sails parallel to the coast without ever sighting it. The French crew becomes mutinous, allowing Hornblower and his men to regain control. Shortly afterwards, they are recovered by ''Indefatigable'', where Hornblower receives the accolades of the crew.
Simpson joins ''Indefatigable'' (known by her crew as the ''Indy'') after ''Justinian'' is sunk by a French ship, ''Papillon''. Pellew commands a detachment including Hornblower and Simpson to enter the Gironde estuary and board and capture ''Papillon''. During the battle, Kennedy is incapacitated by a seizure and left in the boarding party's boat. Simpson takes advantage of the confusion to cut Kennedy adrift. When Hornblower attempts to lower ''Papillon'''s main topsail, Simpson shoots at him. The bullet grazes his head and he falls unconscious from the mast into the water, where he is rescued by Seaman Finch.
''Indy'' is attacked by three French ships. ''Papillon'', now in British hands, comes under fire from French shore batteries, and Lieutenant Chadd is killed. The senior officer, Lieutenant Eccleston, is mortally wounded, but before he succumbs he orders Hornblower to take command. As the senior midshipman, Simpson attempts to take charge, but Hornblower asserts his new authority and tells Sailing Master Bowles that if Simpson resists, Bowles has permission to shoot him. Simpson is detained under guard while ''Papillon'' sails to ''Indy'' s rescue.
Hornblower orders ''Papillon'' s French colors to remain flying. Through this ruse of war, he launches a surprise assault on the French ships that are attacking ''Indefatigable''. After the British victory, Hornblower accuses Simpson of attempted murder. Simpson issues a challenge, causing Pellew to retract his order that Hornblower not participate in duels. Freed from this constraint, Hornblower accepts.
In the duel, Simpson shoots before the command to fire and falsely claims it was an accident. Hornblower is not badly injured and prepares to return fire. Simpson tries to end the proceedings, but the seconds order him to stand his ground and await Hornblower's shot. Simpson begs for his life, revealing himself a coward. Hornblower fires into the air, stating that Simpson is "not worth the powder". Infuriated at this insult, Simpson attempts to stab Hornblower in the back. Pellew who was watching from a nearby rise, uses a rifle to kill Simpson just before he reaches Hornblower.
Back aboard ''Indefatigable'', Pellew tells Hornblower how impressed he has been by Hornblower's actions and states that Hornblower has a great career ahead of him if he continues as he has begun.
In 1976, Larry Weller is twenty-six years old and employed as a florist in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He accidentally takes a stranger's identical Harris tweed jacket from a coffee shop. This prompts thoughts about his girlfriend Dorrie Shaw and his parents Stu and Dot.
In 1978, Larry marries Dorrie, and they honeymoon in the UK, where he discovers a love for garden mazes when he becomes lost in one. On his thirtieth birthday in 1980, Larry invites his family over for a picnic. He and Dorrie have bought a house and have a son, Ryan.
By 1983, Larry is spending all of his spare time working on a maze around his house, and it now takes up both the front and back yards. A frustrated Dorrie calls in a bulldozer to tear down the entire front section of the maze. This leads to the couple's divorce. Larry remarries, to a scholar of ancient Catholic saints, named Beth Prior. Their marriage is, for the most part, happy, though Larry realizes how much he loved Dorrie when they were married.
By 1988, Larry has moved to Chicago and become one of only a handful of professional maze designers in the world. He thinks back to the maze at his old house in Manitoba and how Dorrie is keeping what is left of it alive. Larry's father dies of colon cancer that year.
In 1991, Larry's son, Ryan, is twelve and visits him in Chicago. Ryan is a good artist and can speak French fluently. In 1992, Beth publishes her first book, and the couple begin to quarrel. In 1994, Larry wins the State of Illinois award for creative excellence for his mazes, but a few months later he and Beth are separated after she accepts a teaching position in the UK, and they get divorced.
In 1996, Larry collapses and falls into a coma for twenty-two days. Beth does not visit him, but Dorrie and Ryan do. The following year, Larry decides to throw a dinner party. He invites his friends, his girlfriend Charlotte, and both of his former wives. As the party is winding down, he experiences a vision of another reality in which he and Dorrie settled their quarrels and never divorced. Dorrie stays behind to help Larry clean up, Charlotte takes a liking to one of Larry's guests, and Beth recognises that Larry still loves Dorrie. Larry and Dorrie say they have always loved each other.
The year is 1929 and talking films are coming in. Once a great star of silent film, Jolly Grimm has wealth, a mansion, a manservant, Tex, and a beautiful and faithful mistress, Queenie, but no longer has Hollywood's interest. He desperately tries to get studio executives interested in his latest project, which he has financed himself, so he decides to throw a huge party at his house and show the film footage to those who come.
The party turns into a loud, alcohol-fueled orgy. Jolly is unable to impress a Hollywood mogul, eager to move on to a more important social engagement, with the outdated humor and pathos of his movie. The more he drinks, the more angry Jolly becomes. The arrival of an underage girl brings out a protective, possibly perverted interest on Jolly's part, while the attention paid to Queenie by the virile young actor Dale Sword ignites a jealous fury in the sad comic that leads to violence and tragedy.
Set some time after the Frankenstein story, the titular Monster returns from the dead, leading a supernatural army - by way of magic. He razes several villages and kidnaps a beautiful maiden named Emily, with the intent on making her his bride. The Monster even manages to use his magic to subdue several mythical entities such as Death and Medusa as well. The player is a young swordsman of the village determined to stop the supernatural army, rescue Emily, and slay the Monster once and for all.
''Too Human'' is set in a science fiction reimagining of Norse Mythology, wherein the Norse gods are cybernetically augmented warriors worshipped by so-called mortals, which are non-augmented humans.
Before the Dawn of the Æsir, the great machines called the "Children of Ymir" stalked Earth, bent on destroying humanity. As the war escalated, man and machine exchanged nuclear and anti-matter weapons, leaving a once-lush world frozen in a thousand-year winter. Humanity now teeters on the brink of extinction. Earth's population is now only a few million sheltered in the walled enclave of Midgard. The great sentient machines have prospered in the eternal winter. Humanity, however, is not alone. They pray to the Æsir and faithfully worship the great Organically Distributed Intelligence Network or ODIN for short. As protectors, it is the Æsir's duty to ensure humanity survives. Their cybernetically-enhanced bodies and minds make them far more powerful than mortals, and they are properly revered as gods.
The setting is the fictional frontier town of Dawson's Landing on the banks of the Mississippi River in the first half of the 19th century. David Wilson, a young lawyer, moves to town, and a clever remark of his is misunderstood, which causes locals to brand him a "pudd'nhead" (nitwit). His hobby of collecting fingerprints does not raise his standing in the eyes of the townsfolk, who consider him to be eccentric and do not frequent his law practice.
"Pudd'nhead" Wilson is left in the background as the focus shifts to the slave Roxy, her son, and the family they serve. Roxy is one-sixteenth black and majority white, and her son Valet de Chambre (referred to as Chambers) is 1/32 black. Roxy is principally charged with caring for her inattentive master's infant son Tom Driscoll, who is the same age as her own son. After fellow slaves are caught stealing and are nearly sold "down the river" to a master in the Deep South, Roxy fears for her son and herself. She considers killing her boy and herself, but decides to switch Chambers and Tom in their cribs to give her son a life of freedom and privilege.
The narrative moves forward two decades. Tom Driscoll (formerly Valet de Chambre) has been raised to believe that he is white and has become a spoiled aristocrat. He is a selfish and dissolute young man. Tom's father has died and granted Roxy her freedom in his will. She worked for a time on river boats, and saved money for her retirement. When she finally is able to retire, she discovers that her bank has failed and all of her savings are gone. She returns to Dawson's Landing to ask for money from Tom.
Tom responds to Roxy with derision. She tells him the truth about his ancestry and that he is her son and partially black; she blackmails him into financially supporting her.
Twin Italian noblemen visit Dawson's Landing to some fanfare, and Tom quarrels with one. Desperate for money, Tom robs and murders his wealthy uncle, and the blame falls wrongly on one of the Italians. From that point, the novel proceeds as a crime novel. In a courtroom scene, the whole mystery is solved when Wilson demonstrates, through fingerprints, both that Tom is the murderer and not the true Driscoll heir.
Although the real Tom Driscoll is restored to his rights, his life changes for the worse. Having been raised as a slave, he feels intensely uneasy in white society. At the same time, as a white man, he is essentially excluded from the company of blacks.
In a final twist, the creditors of Tom's father's estate successfully petition the governor to have Tom's (Chambers) prison sentence overturned. Shown to be born to a slave mother, he is classified as a slave and is legally included among the property assets of the estate. He is sold "down the river", helping the creditors recoup their losses.
Moscow, 1924.
While foraging for trash one winter day, a stray dog is found by a cook and scalded with boiling water. Lying forlorn in a doorway, the dog awaits his end awash in self-pity. To his surprise, a successful surgeon, Filipp Filippovich Preobrazhensky (whose name is derived from 'transformation' or 'transfiguration'), arrives and offers the dog a piece of sausage. Overjoyed, the dog follows Filip back to his flat, where he's given the name of Sharik. The dog finds it ironic, as he sees 'Sharik' fit for a pampered fat dog (it means 'little ball').
At the house, Sharik gets to know Dr. Preobrazhensky's household, which includes Doctor Ivan Arnoldovich Bormenthal (the professor's student and protégé) and two female servants: Zinaida Prokofievna Bunina and Darya Petrovna Ivanova. Despite the Professor's vocal anti-communism, his frequent medical treatment of the RCP(b) leadership makes him untouchable. As a result, he refuses to decrease his seven-room flat and treats the Bolsheviks on the housing committee, led by Schwonder, with unveiled contempt. Impressed by his new master, Sharik slips easily into the role of "a gentleman's dog".
After several days, one of the servants begins taking Sharik for walks through Moscow. Preening in his new collar, Sharik is unmoved by the taunts of a passing stray. After his health improves, the Professor at last reveals his real intentions for taking in Sharik. As Filip's laboratory is prepared, he locks Sharik in the bathroom.
As a seething Sharik plots to again destroy Filip's stuffed owl, the door opens and he is dragged by the skin of his neck into the lab. There, he is sedated and an operation begins. As Bormenthal assists, the Professor trepans Sharik's skull and gives him a human pituitary gland. Sharik's torso is also opened and he is given human testicles. These organs were cut from Klim Grigorievich Chugunkin – killed in a brawl – thief-recidivist, an alcoholic and a bully. Only repeated injections of adrenaline prevent the dog from dying on the operating table.
It is after this point that the story shifts from being told from the perspective of Sharik to being told from the perspective of Bormenthal, via his notes on the case, and then finally to a third person perspective.
During the weeks after the operation, the household is stunned as Sharik begins transforming into an incredibly unkempt and, at first, primitive human. After building an alliance with Schwonder, the former canine is granted papers under the absurd name "Poligraf Poligrafovich Sharikov". Preobrazhensky wanted to pick a name from his Orthodox Christian calendar and Sharik instead picked the publisher name – "Poligraf" (which in Russian is the root of several words related to printing art and technology).
In the aftermath, the Professor and Bormenthal patiently attempt to teach Sharikov basic etiquette. Instead, Sharikov mocks manners as a relic of Tsarism. He insists that it's better to behave "naturally". As a result, Sharikov curses in front of women, refuses to shave, dresses in unwashed clothing, and eats like a complete slob.
Meanwhile, Sharikov progressively turns the Professor's life into a living hell. One day, he accidentally turns on the spigot while chasing a cat. With the bathroom door locked and Sharikov unable to unlock it, the entire apartment is flooded. Later, he is caught attempting to sexually assault one of the female servants. Enraged, Bormenthal repeatedly hits Sharikov and forces him to apologize. Infuriated, Sharikov leaves the apartment and remains gone for several days.
Later, Bormenthal begs the Professor for permission to dose and kill Sharikov with arsenic, calling him a "man with the heart of a dog". The Professor is horrified and orders Bormenthal not to "slander the dog". He explains that the human body parts, which came from a homeless drunkard with Bolshevik sympathies, are responsible for all of Sharikov's defects. Bormenthal then suggests that they redo the operation, using the body of a genius. Again the Professor refuses, explaining that the operation was meant to improve the Human race. Breaking with his former beliefs, the Professor admits that any peasant woman could give birth to a genius and that eugenics are therefore a waste of time. In conclusion, the Professor refuses to permit Sharikov's murder or to undo the operation, which could easily kill him as well.
Soon after, Sharikov returns, explaining that he has been granted a job by the Soviet State. He now spends his work-day catching and strangling stray cats. The Party, he says, is turning them into cheap fur coats for the working class. Soon after, Sharikov brings home a female co-worker, whom he introduces to the Professor as his common law wife.
Instead of giving them their own room as Sharikov demands, the Professor takes the woman aside and explains that Sharikov is the product of a lab experiment gone horribly wrong. The woman has been told that Sharikov was maimed fighting Admiral Alexander Kolchak's White Army in Siberia. Upon learning the truth, she leaves the apartment in tears. Seething with hatred, Sharikov vows to have her fired. Again Bormenthal beats up Sharikov and makes him promise not to do anything of the sort.
The following day, a senior Party official, patient and good friend of Professor Preobrazhensky, Pyotr Alexandrovich, arrives and informs the Professor that Sharikov has denounced him to the secret police or CHEKA. Explaining that nothing is going to happen to him due to the State's distrust of Sharikov, the Party official departs. When Sharikov returns, the Professor and Bormenthal order him to leave the flat permanently. Instead, Sharikov refuses and draws a revolver. Enraged, the Professor and Bormenthal pounce upon him.
That night, an ominous silence reigns in the flat and the lights are left on for many hours after bedtime. Over the days that follow, the Professor and Bormenthal look far more relaxed than at any time before Sharikov's arrival. Eventually, the police arrive escorted by a beaming Schwonder.
Bearing a search warrant, they demand that the Professor and Bormenthal produce Sharikov on pain of immediate arrest. Unintimidated, the Professor orders Bormenthal to summon Sharikov, who is changing back into a dog. The Professor explains the change as a natural phenomenon, although it's obvious to the reader that he and Bormenthal have simply reversed the operation. Followed by the now apoplectic Schwonder, the police depart.
In the aftermath, the fully canine Sharik blissfully resumes his status as a gentleman's dog. However, in the ending of the book, he describes the Professor bringing home a human brain and removing the pituitary gland. This perhaps shows that Sharik retains some memories of his time as a human, or that Filip intends to carry out a similar experiment.
Set in the early 1980s, ''Scandal'' is about Derek Blore, an MP who, as a public figure, pays lip service to traditional values such as marriage, family and religion while at the same time paying for kinky sex with a young prostitute who is too stupid to realize who he really is. A few years earlier that girl, Bernadette Woolley, left her home town of Bognor Regis after an argument with her mother, went to London, advertised her services in a sleazy shop in Notting Hill, and had her first sexual intercourse, at 17, with her first customer.
Now Bernadette has her own flat in Hackney where she can work undisturbed, and a pimp looking after her, Stan Costigano. Without Bernadette knowing let alone caring about it, her apartment has been equipped with video cameras and microphones which can be used to compromise, and eventually blackmail, her customers. Soon the people who pull the strings behind the scenes have Blore on tape—a long-term victim of his public school education, in shorts, on his knees, begging to be caned by his "teacher", Bernadette. As it happens—this is the time of the Cold War—Costigano's employers have a direct link to the Soviet embassy, where each of the politician's clandestine visits to Hackney is secretly registered. When he becomes a secretary of state in the new government Blore finally stops seeing Bernadette because it dawns upon him that now the risk of being found out is just too high.
However, Derek Blore's downfall does not come about through Soviet intervention or through a political opponent seeing him enter or leave Bernadette's flat. Rather, it is his beautiful and absolutely loyal yet promiscuous wife Priscilla whose indiscretion towards her current lover, a journalist called Henry Feathers, triggers the "Blore Affair". ("Priscilla did not sleep with every man in London. When Feathers seduced her, it was a whole eighteen months since she had been unfaithful to Derek.") One day, after their lovemaking, she casually tells the journalist about the morning when her husband's "whore" came to see him at home. Reckoning that the story will be a scoop, Feathers composes a series of articles which finally appear in mid-summer, while the Blores are on a family holiday in France.
Denying all allegations, Derek Blore is intent on sitting out his ordeal ("I've been in politics now for twenty-five years. And I hope I'm going to be in politics for a further twenty-five years.") and also announces that he is of course planning to sue Feathers and his newspaper. However, the prime minister is informed of the true state of affairs, knows that Blore is lying, and has him arrested while he is taking part in a rural pageant in his capacity as a church warden.
''The Sixth'' is a parable about lawlessness and bureaucracy in the aftermath of the Great October Revolution. The film could be categorized as an "Ostern" type of movie, with a lawman hero who faces up to corruption against the odds, although no one around has any faith in his abilities.
It is set in 1923 and the Russian Civil War has come to an end, although the situation is still dangerous in some regions. An elusive band of White guards is hiding in the mountains, raiding Soviet institutions and making short work of the representatives of local government. Five chiefs have already been killed by the "whites" and the intimidated townsfolk believe the sixth one is also doomed. The protagonist is the sixth militia chief, but he is shrewder than his predecessors.
Recognizing the superior firepower of his well-armed and zealous enemies, he attempts to mobilise the people in the towns and help them regain faith and hope. He learns that there is a leak in his organisation and that someone is informing the band of all planned operations. He decides to use this very leak against the bandits.
Sixteen-year-old Sey wakes up to the sounds of people in her bedroom. Moving men are packing up her things and her mother tells her, "I'm going to Italy for five years," and leaves her in the care of her friend from college, Meja Kang. They are complete strangers to Sey and have a son named Terry her age. It turns out the family has some issues of its own since Terry is actually their daughter Hali, who is pretending to be her dead brother to prevent her mother from having a mental break-down.
Deciding that she wants to be self-sufficient, Sey looks for a job and finds one at a gas-station. However, in order to work there she is forced to learn how to skate. Siho Lee, a classmate who happens to be dating her friend Ria Yoo and is the one who got her the job, offers to teach her. It is later revealed that Siho owns the gas-station when Sey gets in trouble with a customer and Siho has to pay for the damages. Not wanting to be in debt to him, Sey begins tutoring him after school for mid-terms. Sey is uncomfortable being around Siho because he is a boy. Due to her mother's many lovers and the tell-all autobiography her mother published when Sey was in middle school, her male peers thought "like mother like daughter". Sey has never dated and is known as an ice queen who hates men. The fact that Siho lives alone is not a bonus to the situation. Siho later reveals to Sey that he and Ria broke up because he likes someone else. A conversation between Ria and Sey reveals that it was Sey he was talking about.
Despite everything, she and Siho end up culminating a strange friendship. While giving him notes one day, she experiences her first kiss, but that is interrupted by a door slamming her head. She refuses to acknowledge the kiss because it was "stolen" from her and because it happened with Siho, who is known for his "wandering hands". At the end of book three, Siho manages to win a date with Sey based on a bet on how high his score would be on his midterm. The date turns out to be a disaster since they were being stalked by Siho's ex and Sey got Siho's birthday cake in her face. After trying to escape from Siho, he manages to catch up with her and kiss her. Despite seeming to enjoy the kiss, she hits him and runs away but forgets her cellphone. At school, as she tries to get it back from him, they accidentally set on the speakers and are forced to hide from the principal. A stressed out Sey tells Siho to leave her alone and that he always makes her do things she doesn't want to do. An angry and hurt Siho apologizes for butting into her life and that he will leave her alone.
After school, Sey turns up at Sihos apartment to get her phone. Hurt from Sihos cold attitude towards her, she tells him that he has no consideration to other peoples feelings and rushes of to the elevator. Siho sneaks up behind her and asks her if she is afraid of him. Sey confesses that she is afraid of the situation since it was all new to her and that Siho did not make it better by doing what he wanted. Placing his chin on the top of her head, Siho apologizes to which Sey tells him he is heavy.
In volume 5, Siho and Sey have yet another argument, where Siho finds out that he isn't as far up on Sey's priority list as he thought. When Sey is at the hospital to give Mrs. Kang some change, she runs into him and his mother. It is revealed that Siho's mother suffers from brain damage, caused by a car accident. She and Siho had been hiding in the USA from his father at the time and Siho suspects that his father was behind the accident. In return for going with his father back to Korea, his mother receives medical care. Realizing that she and Siho are both very similar, she takes his hands as she tells him so. How their relationship develops is to be seen in volume 6.
Late in the 21st century, advancements in medical and computer technology allow for linear connectivity of human minds to computer networks, causing an unprecedented boom in computer hackers. The game takes place inside a virtual reality military training simulator named "AIDA" which has since been long-abandoned. However, the program continues to run, generating enemies and levels for the no longer present soldiers-in-training. The player takes the role of one of the many hackers attempting to break the codes of the simulator and extract the most valuable data possible for fame and profit. To do this, the player must explore several "sectors" that are infested with various kinds of enemies, including soldiers, security bots, giant bugs and other insect and plant-like creatures. The only way to survive and reap the greatest rewards is by reaching the Kernel database, destroying the enemies and the bosses at the end of each sector. The game's intro cutscene informs the hacker/player that hacking too deeply into unknown non-civilian protocols with what seem to be homebrew hacking tools carries the risk of contracting a medical condition called the "Achiba Syndrome", and warns them that upon infection that they 'will not be able to return' - presumably meaning their consciousness will become corrupted or otherwise lost and their minds will not be able to return to their bodies in the real world.
The ''Enterprise'' receives a distress signal from a shuttlecraft returning Deanna Troi from a conference. They find that the shuttle has crashed on a desolate planet, Vagra II, and while they can find the life signs of Troi and the pilot, Lt. Ben Prieto (Raymond Forchion), they are unable to beam the two to the ship. An away team beams down and discovers an animated pool of a tar-like substance, a malevolent life form that calls itself Armus. When Lt. Yar attempts to approach the shuttle, Armus hurls her back with a psychokinetic blast, killing her instantly. The away team is brought back to the ''Enterprise'' but the damage to Yar is too great for Dr. Crusher (Gates McFadden) to repair, and they are unable to resuscitate her. A second away team is sent to the planet. Armus taunts the crew members and maintains his grasp of the shuttle. During this time, Troi has communicated with Armus and learned that it is a physical manifestation of evil from the bodies of an ancient race, abandoned on Vagra II.
The away team scans Armus' energy field, finding that when Armus engulfs the shuttle and speaks to Troi, expressing his remorse and pity, the field disrupting their transporter signals is weakened which could allow them to beam Troi and Prieto out of the shuttle. After Armus toys with Troi by completely engulfing Commander Riker (Jonathan Frakes), Captain Picard beams down to speak to Armus directly, sending the rest of the away team to the ship. Picard engages Armus in a heated discussion to discover its motive, which is to seek revenge on those that abandoned it on Vagra II. Armus is riled to a point where the energy field is dissipated enough, allowing for Picard, Troi and Prieto to be safely beamed back to the ''Enterprise'', leaving Armus wailing in fury and alone once again. After destroying the shuttlecraft from orbit, Picard orders a permanent quarantine on Vagra II.
As they leave Vagra II, the crew holds a memorial service for Lt. Yar, with a pre-recorded simulation of Yar addressing each of the senior crew members telling them what they meant to her and what she learned from each of them. After the service, Data (Brent Spiner), who had previously become close to Yar, tells Picard that he is confused as to the purpose of the service. He says that his thoughts are not for Tasha, but for himself, because he can only think of how empty his life will be without her. He asks if he has missed the point, but Picard assures him he got it.
The Ninth Doctor and Rose land in Cardiff on Christmas Eve, 1869. At a nearby funeral parlour, run by Gabriel Sneed and his servant Gwyneth, the corpse of the late Mrs. Peace has been taken over by a blue vapour. She kills her grandson Mr. Redpath and escapes from the parlour. Gwyneth, a clairvoyant, senses that the corpse is going to see Charles Dickens at a nearby theatre. In the middle of Dickens' performance, the blue vapour leaves Mrs. Peace and scares the audience away. The commotion attracts the attention of the Doctor and Rose, who rush to investigate. Sneed and Gwyneth arrive and capture the corpse, but are confronted by Rose and end up kidnapping her as well.
At the funeral parlour, Rose wakes up along with the newly-reanimated corpses of Mrs. Peace and Mr. Redpath. The Doctor and Dickens arrive and break into the parlour just in time to rescue Rose. The Doctor convinces Gwyneth to help him hold a séance to attempt to communicate with the corpses. The blue vapours fill the room and reveal that they are the Gelth, a once-corporeal alien race until they were devastated by the Time War. They plead with the Doctor to open the rift that exists in the morgue and allow them to cross over. The Doctor offers the Gelth temporary use of the corpses until he can transport them to a place where they can build new bodies, using Gwyneth as a bridge to cross the rift.
Gwyneth stands in the middle of an arch and opens the rift, allowing the Gelth to cross over. The number of Gelth is much greater than anticipated, and their true motive is revealed: they intend to kill the living to give themselves more hosts and take over the planet. Sneed is killed and his body is possessed by the Gelth. Realising the Gelth are affected by the gas, Dickens extinguishes the gaslights and turns the gas on full, pulling the Gelth out of the bodies. The Doctor tells Gwyneth to send the Gelth back and close the rift, but she cannot close it or leave. Instead she takes out a box of matches, intending to ignite the gas and hold the Gelth in one spot with the explosion. The Doctor determines that Gwyneth is already dead, and that by opening the rift, she had doomed herself. The Doctor, Rose, and Dickens flee the parlour just before it explodes and burns, trapping the Gelth and closing the rift.
The Doctor and Rose prepare to leave in the TARDIS where the Doctor confesses to Rose that Dickens will unfortunately die in the following year. Dickens watches in wonderment as the TARDIS fades away before his eyes and he heads off into the city of Cardiff, now fully content to continue his work.
The novel concerns Noel Holcroft, New York City architect and secretly the son of Heinrich Clausen, chief economic adviser to the Third Reich. At some point in the 1970s, Holcroft is contacted by the Grande Banque de Geneve, concerning his father's will and testament. The testament says that in the last half of the war, Clausen found out about the Holocaust. Horrified and desperate to make amends, he and his two friends stole vast amounts of money from thousands of individual sources throughout the Reich and funneled them into a secure account in Zurich, Switzerland. Now, if Holcroft will contact the children of the two friends, they can form a group to distribute the funds and alleviate some of the pain of the Holocaust.
Ranged against him in this noble endeavor is the last trace of the Third Reich: the children of Projekt Sonnenkinder. In the dying days of the war, a vast search went out throughout Germany. The children of Germany's finest, those without physical and psychological frailties, were sent to isolated hamlets all over the world by airplane and U-boat. They were raised, provided for, and indoctrinated. Those who showed promise were inducted into the conspiracy by their elders; those that weren't were "removed." They have waited thirty years for the funds so as to finally take over the world. Their leader, the Tinamou, is the world's deadliest assassin.
As Holcroft attempts to carry out what he believes to be the noble, secret mission of his biological father, he is continuously blindsided as good guys turn out to be bad guys, bad guys turn out to be good guys, and Holcroft, who has no training whatsoever in intelligence, is forced to learn on the job.
Middle-aged photographer and businessman Robert "Bobby" Garfield returns to his old hometown upon learning that his best friend, decorated soldier John "Sully" Sullivan, has died in a traffic accident and begins recollecting his past when he visits an abandoned house where he used to live. During a summer in the 1960s, an eleven-year old Bobby lives with his widowed mother, self-centered Liz Garfield, and has two friends, Carol Gerber and Sully. They experienced many things together, the most mysterious of which was meeting an older gentleman named Ted Brautigan, whom Liz takes in as a boarder.
Ted takes the lonely Bobby under his wing, while his mother is busy with her job. The two form a father-son bond, and it slowly becomes evident that Ted has some psychic and telekinetic powers, which are the reason he has come to this sleepy town. In due course Ted explains that he has escaped the grasp of the "Low Men", strange people who would stop at nothing to get him back in their control.
After reading Bobby's mind and realizing that the boy dreams of owning a bicycle, Ted kindly offers Bobby $1 a week in exchange for his reading a newspaper out loud. Bobby quickly figures out that Ted has some other purpose in mind. Mysteriously, Ted asks Bobby to keep an eye on the neighborhood looking for any signs of the "low men", like announcements about missing pets. Bobby sees one, but does not tell Ted, afraid to lose his new friend.
Bobby, Carol and John have frequent conflicts with the local town bully, Harry Doolin, whom Ted scares away by looking into his mind and finding out that his violence is used to cover up his secret cross-dressing. However, at one point, Harry harasses and injures Carol, and when Ted manipulates her dislocated shoulder into place, Liz arrives, after being raped by her boss, and mistakenly believes that Ted is a child molester. She is confronted by Ted's ability to tell her the truth about what she has been through, and how her behavior is affecting her relationship with her son, providing another reason that Ted must leave.
Ted is eventually captured with the help of a tip from Liz. As some form of closure, Ted yells to Bobby as he is being driven away that he wouldn't have missed a moment "not for all the world", and later Bobby mirrors the same feelings. Bobby is later confronted by Harry but Bobby grabs the latter's baseball bat and beats him with it. Liz finds a new job in Boston and moves the family there. Before he leaves, Bobby and Carol say their goodbyes and share a final kiss.
Returning to the present, Bobby turns to leave his old home wherein he meets a young girl named Molly. The two strike up a conversation wherein Molly reveals that she is Carol's daughter and that Carol died in recent years. Bobby gives Molly a photograph of a young Carol and the two become friends.
The film opens with an unnamed British veteran gangster attending a boxing match with friends. Hearing in conversation that another gangster, Freddie Mays, is to be released from prison after 30 years, he falls silent and leaves the table to recover his composure.
The narrative flashes back to the 1960s, showing a younger Gangster. He comes to the attention of an influential London gangster, Freddie Mays (Thewlis), who recruits him as an enforcer. The Gangster is eager to please; his violence impresses Mays and he proves his loyalty with creative methods of murder. However, the Gangster from the start is obsessed with and jealous of Mays' success and glamorous lifestyle, demonstrated in his luxury clothing and plush flat.
The Gangster discovers that Mays' rival, Lennie Taylor, is planning to kill Mays. Instead of warning him, the Gangster decides to let the attack take place, and kills the only other member of his gang who is aware of the plan. The Gangster watches as Taylor and his gang shoot and stab Mays, and slit the throat of his fiancée, Karen. Later that night, the Gangster goes to Taylor's flat, shoots him in the leg and tortures him to death.
The Gangster discovers the following day that Mays did not die but was hospitalised. Mays is unjustly convicted of ordering Taylor's murder and sent to prison for 30 years. With Mays out of the way, the Gangster assumes leadership of the gang and consolidates his position. In a sequence spanning the years between 1968 and 1999, he is shown organizing a bank heist, opening a casino, fixing horse races, and building his gang to over 300.
The narrative returns to the aged Gangster at the boxing event, where he discovers that Karen also survived and is due to marry Mays, who has left prison a changed man. The Gangster summons Mays to his old flat, which the Gangster took over. The Gangster, seeking to resolve any threat and his own demons, offers Mays money and the flat. However, Mays seemingly has no fight left in him, wanting only to marry Karen and retire in peace. The Gangster threatens Mays with a gun, then gives Mays the gun, confesses his silence over the attempted murder and Taylor's death and begs Mays to kill him; Mays leaves, acknowledging how empty and pathetic the Gangster's life is.
The film closes with the Gangster, having apparently lost his mind, committing suicide by stepping off the top of a building. His last words: "I'm number one".
Helen Quilley gets fired from her public relations job. As she leaves the office building, she drops an earring in the lift, and a man picks it up for her. She rushes for her train on the London Underground but misses it as the train doors are closed; but the film then rewinds, and the scene is replayed, except that now she manages to board the train. The film continues, alternating between the two storylines in which different events ensue (but with occasional intersections of the two).
In the storyline in which she boards the train, Helen sits alongside James (the man in the lift) on the Underground, and they strike up a conversation. She gets home to catch her boyfriend, Gerry, in bed with his American ex-girlfriend, Lydia. Helen leaves him and moves in with her friend Anna, and, at Anna's suggestion, she changes her hairstyle to make a fresh start.
James continues to serendipitously pop into Helen's life, cheering her up and encouraging her to start her own public relations firm. She and James fall in love despite her reservations about beginning another relationship so soon after her ugly breakup with Gerry. Eventually, Helen discovers that she is pregnant. Believing it is James's child, she goes to see him at his office. She is stunned to learn from James's secretary that he is married. James finds her on a bridge and explains that he ''was'' married but is now separated and planning a divorce, but he and his wife maintain the appearance of a happy marriage for the sake of his sick mother. After she and James declare their love, Helen walks into the road and is hit by a van.
In the storyline in which Helen misses the train, subsequent services are delayed, so she exits the station and hails a taxi. A man tries to snatch her handbag and injures her, so she goes to the hospital. She arrives home after Lydia has left, and she remains oblivious to Gerry's infidelity. Unable to find another PR job, she takes two part-time jobs to pay the bills. Gerry continues to juggle the two women in his life. Lydia, wanting Gerry for herself, resorts to dropping clues to Helen of their affair. Helen suspects Gerry of infidelity but later discovers that she is pregnant. She receives a phone call, allegedly, for a job interview with an international PR firm. She tells Gerry the news but does not manage to tell him of her pregnancy. Lydia calls Gerry to her apartment, apparently to break up. Thinking Helen is at her interview, Gerry goes to see Lydia. While at Lydia's, Gerry answers the doorbell and sees Helen standing at the door, her interview being with Lydia, having arranged both meetings for the same time to expose their affair. Helen is stunned to see Gerry, and Lydia drops the news of her own pregnancy to both. Distraught, Helen runs off and falls down the stairs.
In both storylines, Helen is taken to the hospital and loses her baby. In the storyline where she originally boarded the train and met her new-found love, James, she dies in his arms, right after he says he will make her very happy.
Where Helen missed the train, she recovers and tells Gerry to leave for good. Then, as Helen enters the lift to leave the hospital after recovering, she drops an earring. As in their brief encounter at the beginning of the film, James picks up the earring and gives it to her, and then he begins the same cheer-up joke as when they first met in the other storyline. But this time, Helen correctly quotes the punch line, and they turn and look at each other.
''A Generation'' is set in Wola, a working-class section of Warsaw, in 1942 and tells the stories of two young men at odds with the German occupation of Poland. The young protagonist, Stach (Tadeusz Łomnicki), is living in squalor on the outskirts of the city and carrying out wayward acts of theft and rebellion.
After a friend is killed attempting to heist coal from a German supply train, he finds work as an apprentice at a furniture workshop, where he becomes involved in an underground communist resistance cell. He is guided first by a friendly journeyman there, who in turn introduces Stach to the beautiful Dorota (Urszula Modrzyńska). An outsider, Jasio Krone (Tadeusz Janczar), the temperamental son of an elderly veteran, is initially reluctant to join the struggle but finally commits himself, running relief operations in the Jewish ghetto during the uprising there.
Daizaburo "Eddie" Ban, a Japanese-American police officer, joins New York City's toughest precinct, the 34th. On his first day he is partnered up with John Estes, nicknamed "Sleepy" by his friends and "Mad Bull" by his enemies, a cop who stops crime with his own violent brand of justice. Mad Bull makes no qualms about executing common thieves with shotgun blasts, even if they pose a minor threat. He often steals from prostitutes and does incredible amounts of property damage while fighting crime. Mad Bull's un-policeman-like behavior often puts him in hot water with his partner Daizaburo and the 34th precinct. However, despite how reckless and illegal these acts are, a good cause is always revealed (for example, Sleepy uses the money he steals from prostitutes to fund a sexual health clinic and domestic violence shelter). Perrine Valley, a police lieutenant, joins Daizaburo and Sleepy later on to help them tackle more difficult cases involving the mafia and drug-running.
Set in the Wild West in the year 1879, a slick gambler named Russell Donovan (Bill Bixby) comes to the town of Quake City en route to open a casino in New Orleans. In Quake City, Donovan meets his old associate, John Whintle. Whintle is leaving for San Francisco that night and asks Donovan to sign for valuables coming in on tomorrow’s stagecoach. Donovan accepts a down payment and promises to pick up the valuables. The next day, Donovan realizes he has been duped into taking care of three little orphans, Bobby, Clovis, and Celia Bradley. The stagecoach driver Magnolia “Dusty” Clydesdale (Susan Clark) explains that Whintle is in fact the children’s relative and their de facto legal guardian. With their relative gone and Donovan promising to care for the “valuables”, they are now wards of Donovan.
The town's sheriff, barber, Justice of the Peace, and judge Homer McCoy (Harry Morgan) tells Donovan that he is legally obligated unless he can have someone else take custody of the children. The children inadvertently cause Donovan much grief by offending all prospective new guardians. The Bradleys wreak havoc in Quake City while riding in an old mine cart destroying much private property. The town’s citizens demand that Donovan pay for the damages, losing him most of his funds for his trip to New Orleans.
As soon as Donovan arrived in Quake City, he is the target of the “Hashknife Outfit”. The Outfit consists of two ne’er-do-well former members of the Stillwell Gang, Amos Tucker (Tim Conway) and Theodore Ogelvie (Don Knotts). They were once very threatening, until they were ousted by their former boss, Frank Stillwell (Slim Pickens), for shooting him in the leg. Amos and Theodore continuously try to rob Donovan during his stay in town to miserable results.
Bobby, Clovis, and Celia decide to help their guardian make money by going to the gold mine that they inherited. They come across Amos and Theodore at their hideout and become acquainted. They direct the kids to the mine after mistaking them for a posse. Despite the gold veins drying up years previously, the Bradley children end up finding a massive gold nugget. This incentivizes many people to adopt the children as it would give them access to the gold. Fearing that the people would not have the children's best interests at heart, Donovan has arranged a sham marriage with Dusty so she can keep custody of the Bradley children while he goes to New Orleans. However, things become complicated when Whintle returns. Whintle has heard of the gold and schemes to get the children back. His attorney has a court order demanding immediate return of the Bradleys. McCoy is forced to adhere to Whintle’s demands.
At the same time, Amos and Theodore attempt to steal the Bradleys' gold from the local bank and escape to Mexico. The Hashknife Outfit proves unsuccessful when they try to enter the skylight and wrap themselves up in their rope used for rappelling down. McCoy finds them guilty for attempted robbery and sentences them to hang to scare them out of town. The two men flee to their hideout.
The Stillwell Gang enters town and plans to steal the nugget. Frank impersonates a priest to gain more information about the transportation of the gold from Colonel T.R. Clydesdale (David Wayne). Frank is able to coerce Colonel Clydesdale into disclosing the time and place the nugget will be moved. The children, who have grown attached to Donovan and Dusty, go to Theodore and Amos and give them permission to steal the gold. If the gold goes missing, Whintle will have no more desire for the children and will return custody.
The next day, the Stillwell Gang enters the bank and takes the nugget. Simultaneously, the kids help the Hashknife Outfit rob the bank. Amos and Theodore are recognized by Frank and are almost killed. They are saved when one of the Stillwell Gang starts a shootout with the lawmen and distracts Frank. Frank decides to leave the gold and escape, taking Celia as a hostage. Donovan saves her from Stillwell with the help of Dusty and they realize their love for one another and embrace. Amos and Theodore retreat to the bank’s safe to escape gunfire. Their dynamite is shot by one of the townsfolk, obliterating the bank and the gold nugget gets blown into many smaller nuggets. Whintle renounces his guardianship and leaves town. Stillwell’s bounty is awarded to Donovan, giving him enough money for his casino in New Orleans. He instead buys a ranch for himself, Dusty, and the Bradley children. While on their way to the ranch, a reformed Amos and Theodore catch up with the newfound family asking for work as farmhands, to which Donovan agrees.
The ''Enterprise'', under the command of Captain Jean-Luc Picard, is ordered by Starfleet Command to take part in simulated combat exercises to prepare for the Borg threat. A renowned Zakdorn strategist named Sirna Kolrami (Roy Brocksmith) is sent to serve as observer and mediator of the exercise. Commander Riker challenges Kolrami to a game of Strategema, knowing he has no chance to win, just for the honor of playing a grandmaster. Doctor Pulaski pushes Data to challenge the arrogant Kolrami, assuming Kolrami will be no match for Data's android reflexes and computational ability. When the two later play, Data is also soundly beaten, causing him to become convinced he is malfunctioning and remove himself from duty.
The combat exercise pits the ''Enterprise'' against an 80-year-old retired Federation ship ''U.S.S. Hathaway'', which is in orbit around a nearby planet. Picard is to command the ''Enterprise'', while Riker is to choose a crew for the ''Hathaway''. Riker recruits Chief Engineer Geordi La Forge, Lt. Worf and Acting Ensign Wesley Crusher as his senior staff, and the team begins their efforts to restore the old ship to working order. The ''Hathaway'' is easily outclassed by the ''Enterprise'', and has no antimatter, making warp speed impossible. Wesley, returns to the ''Enterprise'' under false pretenses and surreptitiously beams a school experiment containing a small amount of antimatter to the ''Hathaway'', which would allow them a very short warp burst, though they are uncertain it will work.
Pulaski and Troi are unable to persuade Data that he is not malfunctioning, but Picard reminds him of his duty, and advises him "It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness; that is life." Data's confidence is restored, and he returns to the bridge.
As the battle begins, Worf accesses the ''Enterprise'' s sensors, generating a fake image of a Romulan warship attacking, and while the ''Enterprise'' is distracted, the ''Hathaway'' scores the first hits. Kolrami, who was initially dismissive of Riker's ability, is impressed. The ''Enterprise'' regroups and prepares to attack the ''Hathaway'' when sensors report another intruding ship – a Ferengi marauder. Picard realizes too late that this ship is not a sensor trick, and the Ferengi attack leaves the ''Enterprise'' s phasers locked in simulation mode and unable to return fire.
The Ferengi commander, DaiMon Bractor (Armin Shimerman), is unaware of the wargames and suspicious of the behavior of the two Federation ships, concluding the ''Hathaway'' must be valuable, and demands that Picard surrender it to him. Picard and Riker devise a risky plan, where the ''Enterprise'' fires photon torpedoes at the ''Hathaway'', with the ''Hathaway'' using their short warp burst to jump to safety an instant before the torpedoes detonate. The Ferengi, believing their prize has been destroyed, turn their attention to the ''Enterprise'', but Worf tricks their sensors into detecting another Federation ship approaching, and the Ferengi flee.
With the wargames over, Data challenges Kolrami to a Strategema rematch. This time, Data is able to hold Kolrami in check; Kolrami grows more and more frustrated as the match progresses, ultimately throwing down his controls in disgust and storming off. Data explains that he altered his strategy, giving up opportunities for advancement in order to maintain a stalemate, which he believes he could have maintained indefinitely. He initially regards the result as a draw, but after prodding from Pulaski, admits his success.
Ida lives hard and fast with too much drinking and a string of boyfriends, Sandor has very few friends and his mother insists that he practice ballet. They meet in a chat room and despite appearances they discover they have much in common. Sandor and Ida lives in different cities and when Sandor unexpectedly visits her it ends with that Sandor feels betrayed because Ida had gossiped about Sandor to her friends, which they in a drug-induced state reveals to him.
Sandor tells Ida he never wants to see her again, and returns home. After Ida's mother overdoses a few weeks later, Ida calls Sandor for consolidation and comes to visit him. Ida and Sandor again start an argument, because Ida feels mistreated by Sandors mother, and goes home again. Later she visits Sandor on his premiere ballet performance, they become reconciled, and presumably go on to live happily ever after.
During a geological survey on Surata IV, Commander William Riker is struck by a thorn growing on a motile vine plant. The away team immediately beams back to the ''Enterprise'', where Dr. Katherine Pulaski finds out that the thorn has released a deadly virus into Riker's body. Within a matter of hours, the virus will reach Riker's brain, killing him. To try to save Riker's life, Pulaski puts him into a machine that will artificially stimulate his brain neurons, keeping them active and resisting the virus. This causes Riker to dream of his past adventures aboard the ''Enterprise''. Riker's first dreams are of reasonably neutral occasions, such as his first meeting with Lieutenant Commander Data. He soon moves on to more passionate and even erotic dreams, such as meeting the cheerful young Edo women on Rubicon III, the matriarch Beata on Angel One, or the computer-generated holodeck woman Minuet (Carolyn McCormick from "11001001").
However, while pleasing to Riker's mind, the passionate dreams only worsen Riker's condition, as the virus feeds on the positive endorphins his brain is creating. Pulaski and Counselor Deanna Troi therefore agree to try to make the machine evoke negative dreams instead. Thus Riker dreams of Lieutenant Tasha Yar's death, or the apparent death of Deanna Troi's child. This has the desired effect, as the negative endorphins drive the virus away, but the endorphins are not strong enough. As a last resort, Pulaski uses the machine to evoke dreams of raw, primitive feelings of fear and survival. Thus Riker dreams of fighting the tar creature Armus, the alien-controlled Admiral Gregory Quinn, and the Klingon officer Klag on board the warship ''Pagh''. Seeing that the raw emotions work best, Pulaski intensifies the dreams to come at a more rapid pace. This finally kills the virus and Riker recovers.
King Rufus, the leader of a furry race of creatures called the Gobbos, is watching the sunrise over Gobbo Valley when he sees a large, woven basket carrying a baby crocodile floating down the river. Initially suspicious of the young crocodile but ultimately won over by its innocence, King Rufus and the Gobbos decide to raise it as one of their own and teach it in the ways of the Gobbo. The crocodile, named Croc, grows bigger over time, eventually becoming much larger than the Gobbos.
One day, Baron Dante and his band of villains known as the Dantinis invade Gobbo Valley and begin terrorizing the Gobbos, capturing them and locking them in steel cages. Amidst the chaos, King Rufus summons a magical yellow bird named Beany, who uses her magical abilities to transport Croc to safety, immediately before Rufus is snatched by Baron Dante.
By the time Croc has been brought to safety, the Dantinis have completely taken over all of Gobbo Valley, locked up all the Gobbos, and turned innocent creatures all across the valley into monsters to act as their minions. Croc sets out on a quest to free the Gobbos and defeat Baron Dante.
The government of the new Dominion of Canada (established 1867), under Prime Minister John A. Macdonald, has made a deal with the Hudson's Bay Company to purchase Rupert's Land—vast tracts of land in northern North America. The French-speaking Métis people, who are of both Indigenous and white ancestry, and inhabit parts of Rupert's Land—dispute that their land can be sold to the Canadians without their consent. In the Red River settlement, the Métis, led by Louis Riel, dodge political manoeuverings on the part of Lieutenant Governor William McDougall and some of the English-speaking settlers, while seizing Fort Garry. After an armed standoff at English-speaking settler John Schultz's home, the Métis declare a provisional government and vote Riel their president, with an even number of French and English representatives. Schultz escapes from prison and rounds up a number of men with the intention of freeing the prisoners from Fort Garry, but when Riel lets the prisoners go, Schultz's men set out for home. On the way, a number of them pass Fort Garry, where they are captured and imprisoned. One of the prisoners, Thomas Scott, relentlessly quarrels with the guards, showering them with racial epithets. Eventually, the provisional government convicts him of treason and executes him by firing squad. The remaining prisoners are released, and the provisional government enters into negotiations with Ottawa, which results in the founding of the province of Manitoba. They are unable to get an amnesty for the execution of Scott, however. The Canadian army arrives, ostensibly to keep the peace. Riel flees to the U.S., and the anglophone population assumes governance.
Schultz takes control of Manitoba, and the government of Ontario offers a cash reward for Riel's capture, dead or alive. Macdonald secretly sends Riel money to disappear, as his death would lose him votes in Quebec but allowing him to live would cost him votes in English Canada. Riel flees from town to town in the U.S. as bounty hunters try to track him down. In 1873, he returns to the Manitoba and wins a seat in the federal Parliament in a by-election. He fears actually sitting in parliament because there is still a bounty on his head, and continues to live in hiding. In 1874, he wins his seat again. Schultz wins a seat in the settlement as well, however, and Alexander Mackenzie has become Prime Minister, running on promises not to grant the rebels an amnesty. Riel is expelled from Parliament for failing to sit, but wins his seat again in the next by-election. The frustrated government finally extends an amnesty to the rebels—all except Riel, whose amnesty is conditional on a five-year banishment from Canada. During his exile, he has a visionary experience on a hilltop in Washington, D.C., in which God names him David, the Prophet of the New World, and tells him to lead the Métis to freedom. In 1876, Riel is secretly committed by a friend to a lunatic asylum near Montréal under a false name.
Over the next several years, the Métis, unhappy with the Canadian government's handling of their land rights, move farther west across the Prairies. There as well, they see their petitions to the government repeatedly ignored and their rights trampled on. Finally, after being ignored for too long, the Métis search for Riel in Montana, in the hope that his return will force the Canadians to take their claims seriously. He is reluctant at first, as he has started a family and settled down as a schoolmaster. In the hopes that he will get money from the Canadian government for his tenure administering the Red River settlement (by this time known as Winnipeg), he moves his family to Batoche (now in Saskatchewan) in mid-1884. Macdonald has returned to the prime ministership and conspires with George Stephen, president of the financially burdened Canadian Pacific Railway, to use the situation to gain support for finishing the railway. By inciting a violent revolt amongst the Métis, the government can justify funding the railway to move troops to the Prairies. The Métis under Riel respond with arms as intended. Riel declares "Rome has fallen!" and breaks from the Catholic Church. He breathes the Holy Spirit into his followers, thereafter known as the Exovedate. Tensions build until the bloodshed at the Battle of Duck Lake, where Riel and his followers drive back the North-West Mounted Police. Macdonald takes this as a cue to send two thousand troops to the area. At the Battle of Fish Creek, the outnumbered Métis manage to drive back the Canadians, but at the Battle of Batoche, while Riel is increasingly immersed in religious activities, the Métis finally suffer defeat. In the hope that his trial will provide an opportunity to get the Métis' story to the public, Riel surrenders instead of fleeing.
In July 1885, Riel is put on trial in Regina for his role as leader in the North-West Rebellion. Against his will, Riel's lawyer tries unsuccessfully to defend him on grounds of insanity. He is found guilty of high treason. Though the jury pleads for mercy, he is sentenced to hang. In response to the pleas of Quebeckers to pardon Riel, Macdonald responds, "He shall hang though every dog in Quebec bark in his favour". After reconciling himself with the Church, Riel is hanged in Regina on 16 November 1885. In the aftermath, the remaining rebels receive a pardon, Macdonald and Stephen continue in their success, and Riel's wife dies.
The tiger recounts his story of capture by a circus owner, but he never tried to escape. He lived freely in the wild jungles of India in his youth. He mates and has a litter with a tigress, and raises a litter until one day he finds that hunters have captured and killed his entire family. He exacts revenge by attacking and eating the cattle and livestock of nearby villages, but is captured by poachers. He is sent to a circus in Malgudi, where a harsh animal trainer known only as "the Captain" starves him and forces him to do tricks in the circus. He lives in captivity successfully for some time, but eventually his wild instincts overcome him and he mauls and kills the Captain. After an extended rampage though town, he is recaptured, but this time voluntarily by a monk/renunciant with whom he befriends and finds peace on the hills. The monk, called the Master, later realizing his own days are coming to an end, donates the elderly tiger to the local zoo, where he is cared for, admired by onlookers, and passes his days. He is looked at by many children and realizes that he is done something to make humans happy.
The games follows Harry Potter (voiced by Tom Attenborough and Harry Robinson) along with Ron Weasley (voiced by Gregg Chillin) and Hermione Granger (voiced by Harper Marshall) as they return to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Prisoner Sirius Black has escaped the wizard prison Azkaban, and is supposedly ready to attack Harry in Hogwarts. The game begins on the Hogwarts Express, ignoring the events at Harry's home. Upon reaching Hogwarts, the trio follow the events of the novel, and learn magic by attending classes.
The spells that can be learned include ''carpe retractum'', a spell that allows an object to be pulled towards the caster, or the caster be pulled towards the object; ''Steleus'', a spell that causes sneezing and ''expecto patronum'', a spell to defend against dementors. Using their skills, the trio, along with Remus Lupin (Jamie Glover) investigate Black. Finding that Black is innocent of all crimes, and looking out for Harry, the team defend Black from a horde of dementors, allowing him to escape.
When the novel opens, a pedophile and child murderer – identified only as "Chappy" – has been in prison for 23 years. (He narrates most of the novel, including accounts of his treatment by his unstable, emotionally and sexually abusive mother.) Now in his 50s and with a parole hearing approaching, Chappy tells of receiving a letter from an unnamed 19-year-old girl who takes a morbid interest in his case. She tells him that she is on summer holiday from college and plans to seduce a 12-year-old boy named Matthew, who lives in her neighborhood.
As the girl corresponds with Chappy, he recounts his past, contrasting events in his life with the explicit details given by the girl of how she seduces Matthew. The boy is portrayed as typical, with many of the unattractive habits a 12-year-old can have, plus a few uniquely disgusting ones. Chappy encourages the girl, and she soon accomplishes her goal. First she gives Matthew tennis lessons. On another occasion, while caring for him as a sitter, she strips naked and gives him a quick hands-on lesson in feminine biology. The pair soon have sex and continue to do so on regular occasions.
Chappy eagerly reads the girl's letters as she describes her successes. He berates her for her poor grammar and for her liberal use of exclamation points. He recounts several scenes of prison sex.
During the novel, Chappy refers frequently to "Alice," his 12-year-old victim, with whom he had a sexual relationship. He provides more details about the girl only toward the end of the book. At the very end of the story, during his parole hearing, it is revealed that the convict brutally murdered and decapitated the girl after they argued. She blamed him for bleeding; it was the start of her period. He tried to explain to her what was happening to her, but she kept threatening to kill him, and he finally overpowered her.
The girl's "relationship" with Matthew ends when she goes to Europe for an end-of-summer trip. While traveling, she receives a letter from her parents, who have found a letter from the narrator and know what she has done; they write that she will need to "see someone" when she returns home.
Rubeus Hagrid, a mysterious giant, leaves an orphaned Harry Potter, whose parents were murdered by the evil Lord Voldemort, on the front door step of his bullying relatives, The Dursleys. For ten years, Harry has lived with the Dursleys, not knowing that he is a wizard, and famous in the wizarding world for being the only one to survive the attacks of Voldemort, whose name no one dares to say. Harry receives a letter inviting him to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and is told who he really is. After buying his school supplies at Diagon Alley, he boards the Hogwarts Express on platform 9¾ with the other students. Once they arrive at Hogwarts, the students are sorted into houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Harry is sorted into Gryffindor, after pleading with the Sorting Hat, a talking witch's hat, not to place him in Slytherin, notorious for being the house of darker witches and wizards, as well as Lord Voldemort. Once sorted, Harry meets Ron Weasley, a poor boy from a large, pure-blood, wizarding family and Hermione Granger, a witch born to Muggle parents.
At school, Harry begins his training as a wizard and learns more about his past. After retrieving a remembrall while riding on a broomstick, for his classmate Neville Longbottom, Harry is appointed seeker of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.
Harry, Ron and Hermione believe that one of their teachers, Professor Snape, is planning to steal the Philosopher's Stone, a magical object which grants the user immortality, and set out to stop him. The three face a series of obstacles that protect the stone, including a three-head dog, surviving a deadly plant, catching a flying key, playing a life-sized game of Chess and choosing the correct potion to get through a magical fire. Harry, now alone, expects to face Snape but instead finds Professor Quirrell, the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. Quirrell removes his turban and reveals that Voldemort was living on the back of his head. Harry retrieves the stone and Voldemort tries to get it from him but touching him burns Quirrell's skin. Harry passes out from the struggle of the battle.
He awakens in the school's hospital wing with Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster, by his side. Dumbledore explains that the stone has been destroyed but that its loss will not stop Voldemort from returning. He reassures Harry that if their battles do no more than slow Voldemort's return then he may never come back.
During the end-of-year feast, Gryffindor wins the House Cup. Harry sees it as the best evening of his life and one that he will never forget.
On the planet of Quintenix (Paradise Star in Japanese), where the situation has long been peaceful, a group calling themselves "The Hackers", headed by Blackmore, suddenly starts an uprising against the population by disrupting the peace of the town of Rococo (and elsewhere). The main character (who appears to be nameless) is the son of a famous inventor, Dr. Akihabara, who decides to move to Rococo. The main character soon sets off to find out that The Hackers want Dr. Akihabara for a sinister purpose, as Akihabara refuses an offer to join them. The story unfolds to the point where The Hackers' ultimate goal is the Tetron, a mysterious stone that allows viewers to observe events past and future and travel through time.
The Tetron is later found out to be an invention of the main character's ancestor Rask (Rusk) and one of his friends, Gateau, finds the Tetron's potential as the key to controlling the universe by controlling time. Rask disregards that potential and hides the Tetron in shards throughout Quintenix. Gateau, who — presumedly — formed The Hackers later on, obtains the Tetron and attempts to proceed with his plan for universal domination, starting with Rask's home planet of Choco (Chocolate Star in Japanese). It is up to the main character to stop Gateau in his space fortress.
The Fifth Doctor and Nyssa are arrested on a planet generations after an ecological disaster that has led to disfiguring mutations.
The novel comprises two phases in the same space that are separated by 220 years of time. Its central conceit is that Humans evolved from the juvenile stage of the Pak, a species with a distinct adult form ("protectors") that has immense strength and intelligence and cares only about younger Pak of their bloodline. A key plot point is that transition to the protector stage is mediated by consumption of the root of a particular plant called Tree-of-Life, which cannot be effectively cultivated on Earth.
The first half of the book follows the path of a Pak named Phssthpok who has travelled from the Pak homeworld in search of a colony of Pak in the distant system of Sol (our Solar System). Upon his arrival, he captures a Belter (a worker from the asteroid belt) named Jack Brennan, who is infected by Phssthpok's store of tree-of-life root and is transformed into a protector (or at least a Human variant). They land on Mars where Brennan kills Phssthpok and is rescued by two Humans, Nick Sohl and Lucas Garner, who had set out to meet the alien. The first half of the novel ends with Brennan telling his story to the Humans before he heads for the outer reaches of the solar system.
The second half of the book follows the path of a Human named Roy Truesdale who has been abducted with no memory of the event. While searching for his abductor, he befriends a Belter named Alice Jordan who helps him figure out that the man he has sought is none other than Jack Brennan. Truesdale and Jordan find Brennan in the outer solar system on a fabricated world of Brennan's design called Kobold. Brennan discovers that a Pak invasion fleet is headed towards human space and takes Truesdale to a Human outpost colony called Home in an effort to divert attention away from Earth. During their journey they battle with scout ships from the Pak fleet. Brennan and Truesdale arrive at Home only to have Truesdale realize that Brennan plans to convert the colony into a defensive Human Protector army. Truesdale kills Brennan and lands on Home, but is himself infected with a mutated strain of the Tree-of-Life virus that quickly spreads to a number of other colonists, thus carrying out Brennan's plan despite Truesdale's initial attempts to thwart it. Upon his conversion to protector form, Truesdale immediately comes to view Brennan's plan as necessary and completes it by breaking out of hospital confinement and infecting the entire population of Home. The modified virus either kills or converts the remaining inhabitants, resulting in an army of childless protectors. The new protectors think that they absolutely must act quickly to save the rest of Humanity, and start preparing for battle with the Pak invasion fleet.
As an aside, it is mentioned that during his sojourn in the outer Solar System Brennan had engineered a genocide on Mars, sending a large ice asteroid to crash into the planet in order to raise the water content of its atmosphere. Water is lethal to the Martians' metabolism, thus this effectively wiped out the species. This incident serves to underscore the Pak Protectors' inherent xenophobia and utter ruthlessness in pursuing their ultimate goal of protecting their descendants.
The events which impelled Brennan to this action are those narrated in ''How the Heroes Die'' and ''At the Bottom of a Hole'', two short 1966 stories which Niven originally published in ''Galaxy Science Fiction'' and later collected in ''Inconstant Moon''. As depicted in these stories, there were two incidents in which Martians killed some humans who landed on their world, after which humans just left Mars alone. In the mind of the Protector Brennan - committed to defending humans and having no consideration whatever for others - that was sufficient reason to exterminate the entire species.
The plot concerns an American astronaut, Frank Douglas, who mysteriously disappears from his spacecraft as it parachutes to Earth. The policemen in one scene inspect the landing site of Douglas's capsule and notice a burned patch, only to dismiss it as a prank. The vanished astronaut is apparently replaced by or turned into a large, radioactive, humanoid monster. This is revealed when it comes into the scene and kills off Dr. Logan. A team of scientists and military men also attempts to capture the monster – and at one point succeed and imprison it in the lab, only to have it escape. Neither the capture nor the escape is ever shown, and both are simply mentioned by the narrator.
At the end of the film, the scientists corner the monster in a sewer under Chicago, but the monster suddenly disappears. The scientists receive a telegram stating that Douglas is in fact alive and well, having been rescued in the North Atlantic, perhaps implying the monster was an alien impersonating Douglas. The narrator provides the film's closing dialogue:
As if a switch had been turned, as if an eye had been blinked, as if some phantom force in the universe had made a move eons beyond our comprehension, suddenly, there was no trail! There was no giant, no monster, no thing called "Douglas" to be followed. There was nothing in the tunnel but the puzzled men of courage, who suddenly found themselves alone with shadows and darkness! With the telegram, one cloud lifts, and another descends. Astronaut Frank Douglas, rescued, alive, well, and of normal size, some 8,000 miles away in a lifeboat, with no memory of where he has been, or how he was separated from his capsule! Then who, or what, has landed here? Is it here yet? Or has the cosmic switch been pulled? Case in point: The line between science fiction and science fact is microscopically thin! You have witnessed the line being shaved even thinner! But is the menace with us? Or is the monster gone?
At a sushi bar Homer orders sushi made from fugu, a deadly venomous pufferfish. While the master chef is making out with Edna Krabappel behind the restaurant, an apprentice prepares the fish to remove its toxic organs. After Homer swallows the sushi, the waiter Akira warns him he may have been poisoned.
At the hospital Dr. Hibbert informs Homer and Marge that Homer likely has only 22 hours to live. That night Homer tells Marge he will refrain from telling Bart and Lisa the bad news. He makes a list of things he wants to do before he dies.
After oversleeping on his last day, Homer attempts to tackle the things on his list. He has a man-to-man talk with Bart, listens to Lisa play her saxophone, and borrows Ned's camcorder to make a video of himself for Maggie to watch when she is older. Homer reconciles with his father, Abe, which takes up far more time than he expects and forces him to skip some of the other things on his list.
When arrested for speeding, Homer demands officers Lou and Eddie write him a ticket, thinking he will avoid the fine by dying. The officers are rankled by Homer's snarky attitude and throw him in a police cell. After Barney pays his bail to Chief Wiggum, Homer insults his boss, Mr. Burns, and has a last drink at Moe's Tavern, causing him to miss dinner with his family. He hurries home in time to say goodbye to his children and "snuggle" with Marge.
At midnight, Homer quietly leaves his bed and bids each family member goodbye while they sleep. He sits glumly in the living room listening to Larry King read the Bible on tape. The tape plays out, his head drops, and it appears he has succumbed to the toxin. The next morning Marge is panicked that Homer is not by her side. She finds him collapsed in the armchair, realizes that his drool is still warm, and wakes him to joyfully inform him he is still alive. Homer celebrates and vows to live life to its fullest. He resumes his life, watching a televised bowling tournament while eating pork rinds.
David Basner, a shallow, self-serving yuppie recently promoted at his Chicago ad agency, returns to work from a vacation. His parents have separated after 36 years of marriage and he must care for his aging, bitter father, Max, and support his emotionally fragile mother, Lorraine. His father has just been fired after 35 years in the garment industry.
Although his ex-girlfriend, Donna, is sympathetic, she tells him he needs to "grow up". David fears that if he tried to be less child-like, his advertising work could be adversely affected. David is developing a commercial for Colonial Airlines, owned by the rich and bullish Andrew Woolridge. A successful ad campaign would likely gain David a partnership in his company. David develops a relationship with Woolridge's daughter, Cheryl Ann Wayne. His father is well aware of David's playboy nature, and is critical of his frivolous lifestyle.
His parents each begin to rely more on David. His mother needs help moving to a new apartment. His father needs to be driven to an eye doctor. David is awakened late one night when his mother's date ends badly, and she reveals that Max humiliated her sexually and was unfaithful. David confronts his father, telling him, "Tomorrow I'm shooting a commercial about a family who loves each other, who cares about each other. I'm fakin' it." David becomes distracted and his deteriorating relationship with Max affects his work. As a peace offering, David takes Max to a nightclub to hear some of his favorite jazz music. He discovers that Max is severely diabetic but hasn't been following his doctor's advice.
Max's toes require amputation. He and Lorraine discuss their life together, and she condemns him for his abuse. Privately, Max is overwhelmed by regret.
Woolridge insists that David accompany him to New York to promote the new ad campaign, which would prevent David from being present for Max's surgery. David refuses and loses the account. His boss Charlie is sympathetic and assures David that he will intercede with Woolridge, giving David time to be with his father.
David brings Max home from the hospital. Max tells him, "You were the last person I thought would ever come through for me." When David returns to his job, he tries to show Max how important his work is.
The book tells the story of a murder trial in Rome in 1698, whereby an impoverished nobleman, Count Guido Franceschini, is found guilty of the murders of his young wife Pompilia (Comparini) and her parents, having suspected his wife was having an affair with a young cleric, Giuseppe Caponsacchi. Having been found guilty despite his protests and sentenced to death, Guido then appeals—unsuccessfully—to Pope Innocent XII to overturn the conviction. The poem comprises twelve books, ten of which are dramatic monologues spoken by different characters involved in the case (Count Guido speaks twice), usually giving a different account of the same events, and two books (the first and the last) spoken by the author.
The game begins with a Navy SEAL team deploying on a Russian whaler, the ''Eastern Spirit'', in the Bering Strait. As the team explore the deck, they are attacked and killed by unseen beings that literally rips them apart. Seeing his team is gone, CIA Special Agent Jason Bennett, who is supervising the mission from another location, orders any other government vessel in the vicinity to investigate. His call is picked up by the US Coast Guard ship, the ''USCGC Ravenswood'', which heads to the ''Eastern Spirit''. The crew of the ''Ravenswood'' split into teams, but within moments of boarding, only one remains; Tom Hansen, a former U.S. Army Special Forces soldier, currently serving in the United States Coast Guard, who hears his shipmates being killed over the radio. He sets out to explore the ship and determine what is happening.
As soon as he enters the interior of the ''Spirit'', however, he is attacked by two frightened Russians, who he is forced to kill. As he continues to explore, he encounters a multitude of panicking Russians, all of whom attack him. He also finds several horrifically mutilated bodies, including that of the ''Ravenswood'' s captain, Lt. Lansing. Hansen soon learns of a creature known as an "exocel", which was accidentally discovered by the crew of a Russian oil rig, the ''Star of Sakhalin'', owned by Colonel Dmitriy Yusupov, a member of the Russian mafia, and staffed by Major Yuri Anischenko and his team of mercenaries. Yusupov came to realize the exocels were parasitic organisms, which used other living organisms as hosts, and as such, he brought Dr. Viktor Kamsky to the ''Sakhalin'' to begin experimenting with infecting various species with exocel serum. These experiments led to the discovery that exocels could re-animate recently deceased humans, and the creation of an antidote to counter infection. Hansen heads to the radio room to request help, but instead he is answered by Bennett, who tells him that Yusupov is on board and must be captured for questioning. Bennett tells Hansen that if he finds Yusupov, the CIA will get him off the ship.
Hansen locates Yusupov, who tells him that Anna Kamsky, Viktor's daughter, is onboard and must be saved. Yusupov had brought her to ''Sakhalin'' to blackmail Viktor into turning the exocels into biological weapons. Eventually, Viktor and his colleague, Dr. Pavel Bakharev, began to experiment on live human infection, and the ''Eastern Spirit'' was on its way from the ''Sakhalin'' to collect the next batch of human specimens supplied by the Mafia when the exocel outbreak occurred. An exocel then bursts out of Yusupov's chest, killing him. Hansen finds Anna, who tells them they must go to the radio room and contact her father. They contact the rig, but Bakharev tells Anna that Kamsky is missing and pleads with her not to return. She says no, telling Bakharev she will see him soon. They turn the ship back towards the ''Sakhalin'' but because the seas are so rough, they are unable to dock with the platform. As such, they head to the crow's nest and jump from the ship when it collides with the rig. Hansen makes the jump, but Anna falls into the sea.
Hansen soon finds Bakharev, who tells him that to disable the radio jammer around the rig so he can contact Bennett, he will need Anischenko to get him past a retinal scanner. Bakharev is then dragged into an air duct and killed. Hansen learns that Kamsky and Bakharev were under orders to make the exocels as dangerous as possible, which they had succeeded in doing, but without any way to control the resulting creatures. Hansen finds and kills Anischenko, removing his eye and using it to deactivate the radio jammer. Once back in touch with Bennett, Hansen is told he must find Kamsky's laptop and transmit the exocel research. Meanwhile, Anna is rescued from the sea by a large creature and left in a lab, where she is infected by an exocel. Seeing this take place on a security monitor, Hansen races to the lab to give Anna the antidote.
He makes it to her in time and administers the antidote before the infection can take hold. Bennett then contacts him and Hansen makes him promise that if he gives Bennett the research, Bennett will save Anna. He soon discovers that Kamsky infected himself with a strain of exocel DNA, and now wishes to do the same to Anna. Hansen finds Kamsky's laptop and transmits the antidote data to Bennett, but nothing else. As a furious Bennett berates Hansen, he and Anna agree to blow up the rig using C4. As Hansen plants the charges, he learns Kamsky had gone completely insane; after infecting himself with exocel serum, he released the imprisoned exos on the rig and planted a group of exocels on the ''Eastern Spirit''. He then went into hiding to await his metamorphosis. When Hansen has planted all of the charges, he heads to the heliport to meet Anna. Before they can take off however, they are attacked by a mutated Kamsky; the same creature who rescued Anna from the sea. Kamsky is desperate for Anna to remain with him on the rig, but Hansen is able to fight him off and kill him. He and Anna then escape in a helicopter as the rig explodes below them.
In Spring City, Pearl Penalosa is one of several superheroes. Most superheroes, including Pearl, have public identities and are treated like celebrities. They have agents, product endorsements, and a bureaucracy that schedules their working shifts to ensure proper coverage. Because she has been single for five years after a public relationship with popular superhero Captain Steel, she has been adopted as a model of abstinence. Partly because of this image, Pearl has been nominated for "Best Heroine of the Year" in the 77th annual Superhero Awards. On Thursday night, one week before the award ceremony, Pearl is out with her friends and fellow superheroes Olivia Arancina and Jennifer Janus. At Olivia’s insistence, the three women visit a fortune teller who tells them that within seven days, Jennifer will "receive what she has given" and Pearl will "find true love". The final prediction excites Olivia and Jennifer, but Pearl dismisses it as a scam.
Pearl decides her fortune was real after a man in a restaurant gives her his phone number. Her friends help her to dress sexy for the event, which causes Pearl particular embarrassment when the paparazzi find them and begin taking pictures. Pearl and her date escape to his apartment, where they have sex. She begins telling her friends that she is in love. When she returns to work, she learns that while she was sleeping after sex, her date took several selfies with her and sold them, along with his story of what happened, to a tabloid.
When Pearl is called to assist with an attack by a super villain, she is unable to prevent the death of several police officers. Distraught, Pearl seeks solitude, but Jennifer finds her and tries to lift her spirits. Jennifer reminds Pearl about her own fortune, and claims that their two fortunes are related. Jennifer reveals her romantic feelings for Pearl and kisses her. Pearl is too shocked to respond.
Pearl receives an emergency call when another super villain attacks. During the fight, Pearl sees Olivia caught in an explosion. Believing her friend dead, Pearl attacks the villain directly and suffers serious burns to her hands and face. She faints after she subdues him. She awakens in a hospital and finds herself healed except for her hair.''Ultra'' #6 (January 2005) (w) Joshua Luna (a) Jonathan Luna (p) Image Comics
Despite the terrible attack, Pearl learns the Superhero Awards will still proceed as planned. When she arrives, she is booed by the crowd and mocked for her "new haircut". One member of the audience defends her and shames the crowd for its behavior. As Pearl enters the ceremony, the crowd has begun chanting her name, but the award she was nominated for goes to Jennifer. At the after party, Jennifer tells Pearl that this award must have been her fortune.
Pearl returns to her penthouse apartment. She is visited by Captain Steel, who says he has been thinking about her recently and regrets their breakup. When he says that he still loves her and would like to have a relationship with her again, Pearl declines. The next night, she goes to a nightclub with Olivia and Jennifer. They have fun joking about the fortunes, and Pearl admits she is a little sad hers did not come true. Pearl goes to a coffee house and cries when the fortune's deadline passes without anyone talking to her. Friday morning, Pearl is leaving for work when she meets a man who is about to knock on her door. He says he works at the coffee house she visited, and that she left her wallet behind. After a conversation, Pearl and the man arrange a date.
In-su and Seo-young meet in a hospital after their respective spouses were both seriously injured in an accident while traveling in the same car. This leads them to discover that their spouses had been having an affair. As In-su and Seo-young stay at the same motel near the hospital to care for their comatose partners, they grow closer while sharing their grief, anger and fear for their loved ones' recovery. Gradually, they find themselves falling in love with each other. But when In-su's wife Su-jin regains consciousness, she tells him that she regrets her past actions, forcing him to make a decision.
The film revolves around four friends and their relationships with women. Set to the background of upscale Manhattan bars, lofts and apartments, the guys engage in sharp banter and one-upsmanship.
The men spend much of their time trying to decipher the word "pompatus," from the Steve Miller song, wondering whether they are mis-hearing the lyrics: "Prophetess"? "Impetus"? "Profitless"? "Impotence"? "Pompous Ass"? "Pom-pom tits"? "Poconos"?
The characters, Mark, a therapist (Jon Cryer); Runyon, a playwright (Tim Guinee); Josh, a playboy (Adrian Pasdar) and Phil, a plumber (Adam Oliensis), try (generally unsuccessfully) to sort out their troubled love-lives.
Mark and his girlfriend Natasha (Kristen Wilson) who met on a blind date, are hung up over moving in together. They go to apartment after apartment, never agreeing on one they simultaneously like. She is getting more and more claustrophobic, having a dream that she is a field mouse that a bird of prey with Mark's face is closing in on her. They close on a half-finished house, and Tasha bails on him.
Runyon is hung up over his old girlfriend Kathryn (Dana Wheeler-Nicholson), who has moved to Los Angeles. He flies there, with the excuse of seeking a producer for his screenplay. He goes so far as to sneak into her bedroom in the middle of the night to see her. He at least has a dinner date with someone new for Friday
The womanizing Josh is hung up on Phil's sister, Gina (Paige Turco), who has an abusive husband. He meets Cynthia, single woman (Mia Sara) who he bumps into while going down a staircase. After a nice lunch he seems to genuinely like her so offers to make her dinner. Even though they have good chemistry, when Gina shows up earlier, they end up in bed together and he blows Cynthia off. He contacts Cynthia again and says he wants to go slow.
Phil, who is married with children, finds himself attracted to an older English interior designer (Kristin Scott Thomas) who is coming on to him regularly. He finds out about Gina and Josh, so storms by Josh's to pick her up. He confronts the designer, telling her he can't cheat on his wife.
The film finishes with the four friends again discussing the meaning of the Steve Miller song. Mark's relationship is over; Runyon has closure; Josh for once is going to try to have a relationship; and Phil is maintaining his marriage.
Reiji Ozora is a chronic quitter who never completes what's assigned or handed to him, but one day Maiko, his closest friend, walks him to a local arcade where the latest game craze is happening: Dragon Drive. After meeting Chibi, a seemingly meek dragon, Reiji wants to make himself and Chibi stronger. To obtain this strength, both are taken to a secret training room in the "D-Zone", the same room Maiko and Daisuke snuck in earlier upon seeing a strange dragon appearing in the sky. The dragon suddenly absorbs them into another Earth known as Rikyu, where they meet Meguru, a girl who was also transported to Rikyu. There, the elder of the village reveals the intentions RI-ON, the group behind Dragon Drive, have trying to obtain the Jinryuuseki stone, which grants its welder the power to control all dragons in Rikyu.
RI-ON conspires the children to be used as their soldiers. Should they succeed, both Rikyu and Earth will be destroyed. This is where Chibi, who is actually the legendary dragon Senkoukura, the savior of Rikyu, and Reiji become important to both worlds. In order to protect both worlds, Reiji and Chibi must enter the Dragonic Heaven tournament, where RI-ON has already sent for an agent to enter, and win the Jinryuuseki stone. Remembering that Agent L is an employee of RI-ON, the one who helped him through his first few games, Reiji is polarized between both sides, believing the elder and Meguru's testimonies while skeptical of the alleged foul intentions of Agent L or the employees of RI-ON. In the end, he doesn't truly chose either side but instead resolves to fight in order to learn the truth about RI-ON, Rikyu and Dragon Drive.
Several years later progress and Maiko's little brother, Takumi, receives severe warnings to never play Dragon Drive. One day while hiding from a storm, he obtains his first set of cards from a strange old man he meets. After receiving his cards, Takumi finds his new calling by showing strong determination and the mysterious ability to talk to dragons, forming a strong friendship with his strongest dragon Raikoo, as he works to help him gain his memories back.
After a dream one night, Takumi discovers his dragon is one in ninety-nine special dragon cards, all of which are called Raikoo, that were given to certain players of the game called Raikoo masters. Soon a group going by the name of RI-IN enters the scene, and all the players, with the exception of the ones in the gaming stores vanish, leaving the world in ruins and dragons in their place. Left behind in this rapidly changing world, Takumi, Raikoo, and their new friends must rally the remaining Raikoo masters together in hopes of restoring Earth and bringing the people back. In order to save the world, Rikyu and Earth join to become one, and the dragons disappear completely to become spirits. Twenty-seven years later, the game resurfaces to a new audience while Reiji, Takumi, and their friends live out fruitful lives.
''Roujin Z'' is set in early 21st-century Japan. A group of scientists and hospital administrators, under the direction of the Ministry of Public Welfare, have developed the Z-001: a computerized hospital bed with robotic features. The Z-001 takes complete care of the patient: it can dispense food and medicine, remove excretory waste, bathe and exercise the patient lying within its frame. The bed is driven by its own built-in nuclear power reactor—and in the event of an atomic meltdown, the bed (including the patient lying within) would become automatically sealed in concrete.
The first patient to be "volunteered" to test the bed is an 87-year-old dying widower named Kijuro Takazawa. He is an invalid who is cared for by a young nursing student named Haruko. The electronic elements within the Z-001 somehow manage to transcribe Takazawa's thoughts through Haruko's office computer, and he uses the communication to cry for help. Although she objects to such treatment of elderly patients, Haruko begrudgingly seeks the aid of a group of computer hackers in the hospital's geriatric ward to create and install a vocal simulation of Takazawa's deceased wife in the Z-001. However, once Takazawa wishes to go to the beach, the Z-001 detaches itself from its moorings and escapes from the hospital with the man in its grasp. Haruko's fears are then justified, as it is discovered that the bed is actually a government-designed, experimental weapons robot.
Theresa Jones (Zoë Saldaña) takes her boyfriend, Simon Green (Ashton Kutcher), to her home to meet her parents on the occasion of her parents' 25th wedding anniversary, planning to reveal that they are engaged. However, Theresa has neglected to mention that Simon is white. Theresa's father, Percy (Bernie Mac), dislikes Simon almost immediately because of his race. Wishing to impress Percy, Simon lies to him about being on the NASCAR pit crew for Jeff Gordon, not realizing that Percy is one of Gordon's biggest fans. After catching Theresa and Simon in a compromising position, Percy tries to force Simon into a hotel, but all the hotels in town are booked. Instead, Percy allows Simon to sleep in his basement on the couch, where Percy also sleeps.
With the help of his personal assistant Reggie (RonReaco Lee), Percy tries to learn as much information on Simon as he can as well as creating the ideal black boyfriend for Theresa instead of revealing her boyfriend is white. He manages to convince Simon to reveal that he lied about being a NASCAR driver and also that he needs a $50,000 loan. Simon discovers Percy's lies just as Reggie reveals that Simon quit his job. Immediately, Percy goes to tell Theresa this new information; however, Simon claims he was not fired and instead quit. Furious that he did not tell her the truth, Theresa leaves while Percy's spying and plagiarism of his vows temporarily strains his relationship with his wife, Marilyn (Judith Scott).
The next morning, Percy and Simon find Marilyn and Theresa to apologize. While Marilyn and Percy reconcile, Simon and Theresa break up and he leaves. On the day of his anniversary, Theresa tells her father that she and Simon were intending to marry. After wondering why a man intending to get married would quit his job, Percy realizes that Simon quit his job due to his boss' disapproval of interracial relationships. Percy pursues Simon and brings him back to Theresa, and they reconcile.
In a futuristic Britain, Alex DeLarge is the leader of a gang of "droogs": Georgie, Dim, and Pete. One night, after getting intoxicated on drug-laden "milk-plus," they engage in an evening of "ultra-violence," which includes a fight with a rival gang. They drive to the country home of writer Frank Alexander and trick his wife into letting them inside. They beat Alexander to the point of crippling him, and Alex violently rapes Alexander's wife while singing "Singin' in the Rain." The next day, while truant from school, Alex is approached by his probation officer, PR Deltoid, who is aware of Alex's activities and cautions him.
Alex's droogs express discontent with petty crime and want more equality and high-yield thefts, but Alex asserts his authority by attacking them. Later, Alex invades the home of a wealthy "cat-lady" and bludgeons her with a phallic sculpture while his droogs remain outside. On hearing sirens, Alex tries to flee, but Dim smashes a bottle in his face, stunning Alex and leaving him to be arrested. Deltoid brings word that the woman has died of her injuries, and Alex is convicted of murder and sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Two years into the sentence, Alex eagerly accepts an offer to be a test subject for the Minister of the Interior's new Ludovico technique, an experimental aversion therapy for rehabilitating criminals within two weeks. Alex is strapped to a chair, his eyes are clamped open, and he is injected with drugs. He is then forced to watch films of sex and violence, some of which are accompanied by the music of his favourite composer, Ludwig van Beethoven. Alex becomes nauseated by the films and, fearing the technique will make him sick upon hearing Beethoven, begs for an end to the treatment.
Two weeks later, the Minister demonstrates Alex's rehabilitation to a gathering of officials. Alex is unable to fight back against an actor who taunts and attacks him and becomes ill wanting sex with a topless woman. The prison chaplain complains that Alex has been robbed of his free will; the Minister asserts that the Ludovico technique will cut crime and alleviate prison crowding.
Alex is released from prison, only to find that the police have sold his possessions to provide compensation to his victims, and his parents have let out his room. Alex encounters an elderly vagrant whom he had attacked years earlier, and the vagrant and his friends attack him. Alex is saved by two policemen but is shocked to find they are his former droogs, Dim and Georgie. They drive him to the countryside, beat him, and nearly drown him before abandoning him. Alex barely makes it to the doorstep of a nearby home before collapsing.
Alex wakes up to find himself in the home of Mr. Alexander, who is now using a wheelchair. Alexander does not recognise Alex from the previous attack but knows of him and the Ludovico technique from the newspapers. He sees Alex as a political weapon and prepares to present him to his colleagues. While bathing, Alex breaks into "Singin' in the Rain," causing Alexander to realise that Alex was the person who assaulted his wife and him. With help from his colleagues, Alexander drugs Alex and locks him in an upstairs bedroom. He then plays Beethoven's Ninth Symphony loudly from the floor below. Unable to withstand the sickening pain, Alex attempts suicide by jumping out of the window.
Alex survives the attempt and wakes up in hospital with multiple injuries. While being given a series of psychological tests, he finds that he no longer has aversions to violence and sex. The Minister arrives and apologises to Alex. He offers to take care of Alex and get him a job in return for cooperating with his election campaign and public relations counter-offensive. As a sign of goodwill, the Minister brings in a stereo system playing Beethoven's Ninth. Alex then contemplates violence and has vivid thoughts of having sex with a woman in front of an approving crowd, thinking to himself, "I was cured, all right!"
The story takes place on the world of Draconis, where 2000 years ago a huge Dragon-Human War erupted. The golden Dragon of Legend chose a human rider, the Dragon Booster, to bring peace and show that dragons and humans can coexist.
In the present day humans have been commanding dragons, the very thing the original Dragon Booster sought to prevent, and another war is looming. However, Connor Penn breeds back into existence one last gold dragon of legend, Beau. Beau chooses a stable boy, Artha Penn to be the Dragon Booster. Artha seeks to protect the world from the impending Dragon-Human war by defeating villains such as Moordryd Paynn and his father Word.
The series follows a bottlenose dolphin named Flipper that is the wild pet of Porter Ricks, a park warden, and his sons, Sandy (15) and Bud (10). Flipper lives in a lagoon near the Ricks cottage at Coral Key Park and Marine Preserve. With the Ricks family, Flipper helps protect the park and preserve and its wild inhabitants. He is also instrumental in apprehending criminals and thugs in the park. Flipper is generally recognized by the characters in the show (and the theme song) as being a particularly intelligent and capable dolphin. Flipper is the special companion of the youngest member of the Ricks family, Bud, and several episodes feature Flipper rescuing Bud from dangerous situations. Flipper is able to somehow communicate through different chatter-like tones, head nods and shakes, and other attention-seeking antics with Sandy and Bud, and draw their (and Porter's) attention to danger or in the direction of people needing help. Few women are in the lives of the Ricks males, but in the first season, Porter does have a date while Sandy falls for the girl operator of a floating zoo, who appears in four episodes. A female oceanographer enters the series in the second season to add a feminine touch to the proceedings, but little more than mild flirtations and fondness between Porter and her ensues. Promotional material for the third season announced a new girlfriend for Sandy, although she only appeared in one episode, and he has an innocently flirtatious scene with another girl in a separate episode. The series is distinguished for its lush photography of subtropical Florida and its colorful underwater sequences.
The series follows the life of Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), the daughter of the famous general surgeon Ellis Grey (Kate Burton), starting from her acceptance into the surgical residency program at the fictional Seattle Grace Hospital (later named Seattle Grace Mercy West and finally, Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital). During her time as an intern, Grey works alongside fellow physicians Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh), Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl), Alex Karev (Justin Chambers) and George O'Malley (T. R. Knight), who each struggle to balance their personal lives with hectic schedules and stressful residency requirements. During their internship, they are overseen by Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson), a senior resident, who works with attending physicians Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey), head of neurosurgery and Meredith's love-interest, and Preston Burke (Isaiah Washington), head of cardiothoracic surgery, who becomes Yang's fiancé. Richard Webber (James Pickens Jr.), Chief of Surgery and attending general surgeon, is the former lover of Ellis Grey. During the first 6 seasons, Burke, O'Malley, and Stevens all depart the series.
The series also shows drama and emotions focused on Meredith's life. In addition to Webber, Burke, and Shepherd, the surgical wing is primarily supervised by Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh), Shepherd's ex-wife and the head of OB/GYN, neonatal and fetal surgery who leaves for Los Angeles at the end of season 3; Mark Sloan (Eric Dane), head of plastic surgery; Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez), a resident who later becomes head of orthopedic surgery and leaves Seattle for New York at the end of the 12th season; Erica Hahn (Brooke Smith), as head of cardiothoracic surgery, who leaves Seattle Grace in season 5 after a disagreement with Torres, with whom she shared a brief relationship; Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd), as head of trauma who later marries and divorces Yang; Arizona Robbins (Jessica Capshaw), as head of pediatric surgery, and later head of maternal / fetal surgery who marries Torres; Teddy Altman (Kim Raver), as head of cardiothoracic surgery who departs at the end of season 8 but returns in season 14; and Amelia Shepherd (Caterina Scorsone), Derek's sister, who is hired to replace him as head of neurosurgery.
Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh), Meredith's paternal half-sister, joins the residency program in season 4 until her death with her love-interest Mark Sloan in the plane crash at the end of season 8, after which Seattle Grace is renamed Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital in their memory. Former Mercy-West residents April Kepner (Sarah Drew) and Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams) join Seattle Grace following an administrative merger in season 6. Other additions include Leah Murphy (Tessa Ferrer), who departs at the end of season 10 but returns during season 13; Shane Ross (Gaius Charles), who leaves with Yang for Zurich, Switzerland in the season 10 finale; Stephanie Edwards (Jerrika Hinton), who resigns at the end of season 13; Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington), who marries Karev; Andrew DeLuca (Giacomo Gianniotti), the former love-interest of Meredith's maternal half-sister Maggie Pierce (Kelly McCreary), who also serves as head of cardiothoracic surgery; and Ben Warren (Jason George), an anesthesiologist-turned-resident-turned-firefighter, who marries Bailey. Season 11 sees the death of Derek Shepherd, and in season 12, attending cardiovascular surgeon Nathan Riggs (Martin Henderson) joins the show. In the early episodes of season 14, Thomas Koracick (Greg Germann), an attending neurosurgeon, begins making appearances and Riggs leaves the series to start a life with Owen's long-lost sister Megan (Abigail Spencer); by the season finale, Robbins, Kepner and Warren also depart the show. Midway through the 16th season, Cormac Hayes (Richard Flood) becomes the new Chief of Pediatric Surgery and Karev made his final appearance on the series. During the 17th season, DeLuca is stabbed while chasing a child abductor and despite efforts of Hunt and Altman, he dies. Avery and Koracick also depart in season 17 as Avery moves to Boston to take over his family's Foundation, whilst Koracick leaves to assist Avery. Hayes leaves the series in its 18th season when he moves back to his home country.
The player plays the part of the current owner of Meldrew Hall. In the course of searching the attic for an old tourist map of Paris, the protagonist steps into a surreal adventure to uncover a centuries-old curse that has been placed on the Meldrew family. The goal of the game is to find the missing map, and thus annul the curse.
Alfalfa's Aunt Penelope sends the Switzers a telegram that says that she's coming to visit. She has given up her pursuits of being a sculptor and has turned to writing murder mysteries. Just before Alfalfa's parents leave to attend a meeting that night, Penelope reads Alfalfa's father John a page of her story, which is written in the form of a letter:
''"Dear X,
''I have discovered that only my nephew stands between me and the Switzer millions! So like the others, he shall die in agony - tonight - at the stroke of nine!"''
After John and his wife Martha go out and leave Alfalfa in Penelope's care, Alfalfa stumbles upon the page that Penelope read to John. He becomes horrified, believing that his own aunt is plotting to murder him. He tells Penelope that he is going to bed and then summons the gang to help prevent him from being murdered. While dumping out poisons in the bathroom, Porky causes a sudden loud, long noise, which leads Penelope to believe that the house is being burglarized.
Eventually, Alfalfa's parents return home and the gang proudly tell the adults that they saved Alfalfa from being killed by his aunt. Angered by the insanity and misunderstandings, Penelope decides to pack up and leave immediately ("How can an author write in a madhouse like this?!"). The entire situation is explained and all the misunderstandings are cleared up. Before Alfalfa is given a chance to apologize to his Aunt Penelope, John rewards him with a dollar bill just for getting rid of her.
The plot involves a ''Rashōmon''-like investigation into the life of a man who has been found dead after having been hurled from a train. As security agents, police and a medical examiner piece together his identity, three accounts emerge: one set during World War II, one in the immediate aftermath of the war, and one in contemporary Poland. In each account, the victim seems to have been a mysterious, ambiguous presence, of shifting loyalties and suspicious connections, who set himself against the powers that be.
Critics attacked the film for its depiction of a world rife with secret agents and hidden enemies—a favorite Stalinist theme—while the film seems, rather, to demonstrate how heroism and villainy are often matters of point of view and timing.
During the Vietnam War in 1968, Green Beret Captain Sam Cahill (Danny Glover) has been working hard to create good relations between the United States and Montagnard Vietnamese in the village of Dak Nhe, which occupies an important observation point near the clandestine Ho Chi Minh trail. Cahill is coming close to his discharge, and explains to his successor, Captain T.C. Doyle (Ray Liotta), the delicate nature of Vietnamese customs as well as the counterintelligence involving covert enemy activity.
In a lapse of judgment with surrounding village children, a child steals a Nestlé Crunch bar from Doyle's backpack; the wrapper, when found, lets the NVA know of the local villagers' cooperation with the Americans. As punishment, Brigadier Nguyen (Hoang Ly) of the NVA, orders his subordinate, Captain Quang (Vo Trung Anh), to kill the villagers' elephant right before a spiritual festival. To aid the villagers, Cahill promises to replace the slain elephant before their upcoming ceremony while Doyle (whom the villagers blame for the elephant's death) reluctantly agrees to help.
At camp, Major Pederson (Marshall Bell) assigns Cahill and Doyle, with Doyle in command, to secure and deliver a new elephant to the villagers, as well as two soldiers, Specialist 4 Harvey Ashford (Doug E. Doug) and Specialist 5 Lawrence Farley (Corin Nemec). Cahill blackmails Chief Warrant Officer 3 David Poole (Denis Leary) into helping as well. They purchase an elephant known as Bo Tat from a local Vietnamese trader (James Hong). They also agree to take along Bo Tat's child handler, Linh (Dinh Thien Le), who has experience with verbal commands in guiding the elephant. Along the way, NVA soldiers attempt to stop them. Following a failed air transport, the soldiers use a combination of methods to reach Pleiku Air Base before the final stage of their journey to Dak Nhe.
At Pleiku Air Base, Major Pederson notifies the captains that the mission has been cancelled. The Ho Chi Minh Trail has changed direction, and they no longer need the support of the local village. A CIA airstrip near Dak Nhe has already been destroyed by the NVA, making a landing by plane impossible. Against regulations, they commandeer a cargo aircraft, intending to parachute themselves and Bo Tat into Dak Nhe. The aircraft comes under enemy fire, forcing them and Bo Tat to parachute out early. Quang, having been ordered by Nguyen to kill Bo Tat, refuses to do so this time, explaining "I did not join this army to shoot elephants, especially ones that fly."
The soldiers land unharmed in and around the village, except for Ashford, who gets stuck in a tree and becomes separated from the rest.
NVA forces suddenly appear, threatening to take the remaining soldiers hostage and kill the elephant. Ashford, however, is able to free himself and create a diversion long enough to distract and incapacitate the NVA troops. The villagers hold their festival with Bo Tat in the place of honor. When Cahill radios the air base, he is informed that the supply route has changed direction again, back to the village. That fact, combined with their capture of high-ranking enemy officers, has prompted the U.S. Army to sanction their relief mission ''post-facto'', and confirm Doyle's original mission, to replace Cahill as liaison officer in the village.
Norwegian millionaire Ostgaard (S.Z. Sakall) and his niece Nora (Sonja Henie) believe they will be staying at a posh resort in Canada, but it turns out owner Skip Hutton (Jack Oakie) and partner Freddy Austin (Cornel Wilde) are in debt and barely holding off foreclosure.
Nora schemes to get her uncle to invest in hotel improvements. She also falls for Freddy, although he's busy spending time with magazine photographer Marion Daly (Helene Reynolds), trying to gain publicity for the resort.
When more money is needed, Nora is offered a chance to skate in New York in a revue. But due to a legal technicality, she cannot enter the United States unless she is married to an American citizen, so handsome Brad Barton (Cesar Romero) gladly volunteers.
Adrian Monk was a San Francisco Police Department investigator, but the death of his wife, Trudy, exacerbated his obsessive–compulsive disorder and led him to develop depression and multiple phobias. Now, as a private detective, Monk investigates the murder of Nicole Vasquez. A shooting occurs during a campaign rally, resulting in the death of mayoral candidate Warren St. Claire's bodyguard. The incumbent mayor orders Monk's former supervisor, Captain Stottlemeyer, to bring Monk in on the case, and reluctantly, he does.
Monk meets St. Claire, his wife Miranda, and their advisor Gavin Lloyd, and walks to the site of the assassination attempt. He discovers Vasquez was a volunteer for the St. Claire's campaign. He goes to St. Claire campaign headquarters and questions a volunteer about Vasquez. That volunteer later dies under suspicious circumstances, enhancing Monk's suspicion about a link between the Vasquez and St. Claire cases.
Monk's assistant Sharona Fleming suspects that St. Claire's wife Miranda ordered her husband's assassination. Sharona's theory is supported by the fact that St. Claire is worth $150 million, but Monk thinks about other hypotheses, including one in which Miranda is having an affair with one of St. Claire's assistants. Things become clearer in Monk's mind when he watches a news report on the assassination attempt. Monk regroups everyone at the place of the campaign rally to recreate what happened that day.
He explains that the assassin was not hired to kill Warren St. Claire, but to kill the bodyguard instead. When Vasquez had discovered that Lloyd was embezzling campaign funds, he approached the bodyguard about murdering Vasquez. As the bodyguard refused to carry out the murder, Lloyd had him killed. To prove his theory, Monk shows a photograph of Lloyd looking at the direction of the shooter just after the shots were fired. Monk proves that Lloyd's sight line was obstructed, and that the gunshot's echo would have masked the direction of the shot. As such, it was impossible that Lloyd could have known where the shots were coming from unless he already knew where the gunman would be.
Drew Baylor is a shoe designer for Mercury, a global sportswear company. When his latest shoe, meant to be his great life accomplishment, is found to have a flaw, it costs the company $972 million, and Drew is shamed by his boss, Phil, before he is asked to speak to the press—his future unknown and likely finished at Mercury.
Disappointed in his failure, and the subsequent breakup with his fair-weather office girlfriend, Ellen, Drew stacks his expensive clothes and other valuables on the street for scavengers to take, then prepares to commit suicide. He stops at the last moment to answer a persistent phone caller, who turns out to be his sister, Heather, telling him that his father, Mitch, has died while visiting family in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. When his mother, Hollie, refuses to go because of a long-time dispute between her and the Kentucky Baylors, who are bitter about Hollie and Mitch moving to the West Coast, Drew volunteers to retrieve his father's remains and plans to go through with the suicide upon his return. The Kentucky family has been bitter about Hollie and Mitch moving to the West Coast.
On the flight to Kentucky, Drew meets flight attendant Claire, who is managing the almost completely empty 747. To make her shift easier, she strikes up a conversation with Drew and invites him to move up to first-class seating. Depressed about his work failure, he tries to ignore the bubbly, quirky Claire who has nothing to do on the flight except talk to him incessantly about Kentucky and alludes to her boyfriend, "Ben", who is a workaholic. At the end of the trip, Claire gives him a paper with directions, helpful tips, and her phone number to help him get to his destination before they part. Drew dismisses Claire, who seems to be trying to get the last of his attentions as he seeks the airport exit.
Arriving to Elizabethtown, Drew is met by the family. He makes arrangements for cremation at his mother's request, despite the family's objections. While staying at a hotel, where a raucous bachelor party and wedding reception is being held, Drew calls his mother and sister, then his ex, Ellen, as he struggles with boredom and depression. Finally, he calls Claire, who is also alone because Ben is away working, and they talk for hours. She impulsively suggests they meet at sunrise, before she has to depart on a flight to Hawaii. They have a quiet, platonic moment, and then they part ways as she leaves for her trip.
Drew struggles between the family members and his mother's demands regarding burial arrangements. His mother is manically attempting self-improvement to compensate for the loss of her husband. Claire suddenly appears at the hotel, claiming Drew's needs for help outweigh her needs for a tropical vacation. They tour various parts of Kentucky and she helps him at the funeral home, picking out the urn and keeping Drew emotionally on track.
During a post-dinner discussion with the older family, Drew sees the stovetop flame and panics about the cremation. Rushing to the funeral home, he is too late to stop his father's cremation. Solemn, he takes the urn back to the hotel, where Claire has crashed the bachelorette party. Things lead to their obvious physical conclusion in his hotel room, but Drew is still wrapped up in his job and self-pity and they part on strained terms.
Hollie and Heather arrive for the service, and Hollie, with newfound self-confidence, makes a breakthrough with the family with a standup comedy routine and a farewell tap dance to Mitch. Claire arrives, and tells Drew to take a final trip with his father, giving him a binder box with customized itineraries and mix CDs for the road trip. Drew follows Claire's map home, spreading his father's ashes at memorable destinations along the way until he reaches the "World's Second Largest Farmer's Market" in Nebraska. There, a series of notes and clues gives him a choice: to either follow the map home or to go in a new direction, searching for the "girl in the red hat." He finds Claire, they kiss, and Drew realizes he loves her.
"The Man in the Black Suit" recounts the tale of Gary, a nine-year-old boy, whose brother has died, not long ago, due to a bee sting. One day, Gary goes out fishing and falls asleep. When he awakens, he's startled to discover a bee sitting on the edge of his nose. Although Gary doesn't share his brother's allergy to them, he is still scared. Suddenly, he hears a clap and the bee is dead. Turning around, Gary discovers a man with burning eyes looming over him. Dressed in a black three-piece suit, the man has pale skin and claw-like fingers. When he grins, his mouth exposes horrible shark-like teeth. The man—whose body odor smells like burnt match heads—tells Gary terrible things: that his mother has died while he was away, that his father intends to molest him, that he (the man) intends to eat him. At first, Gary doesn't believe him. However, he soon realizes that the man is actually the devil. Throwing a fish he caught at the man, he makes his escape. However, the man in the black suit swallows the fish whole and pursues Gary to the outskirts of the forest. When Gary thinks he lost him, he sees the man right behind him. Throwing his fishing rod at the man, Gary runs deeper into the forest. At home, Gary finds his father and makes up a lie about what happened while he went fishing. Gary believes the man's claim until seeing his mother in the kitchen. Gary realizes that the things the man said were false. Even so, he's haunted by the incident for the rest of his long life.
The story is narrated by Gary, looking back from his perspective as an elderly man. He is haunted by his belief that he escaped from the devil by sheer luck or his own wits. As the story draws to a close, we learn that he's frightened by the thought of his approaching death and the possibility of a second encounter with the man in the black suit. Gary knows that he won't be able to outwit him or outrun him in his old age.
Neron dupes five of the "Rogues" who typically battle the Flash: Captain Boomerang, Captain Cold, Heat Wave, Mirror Master II, and Weather Wizard. He promises them a chance to go down in history as five of the greatest villains, if they each engage in a specific destructive act. He does not tell them that it will cost them their lives and unleash him onto the Earth. Lex Luthor, the Joker, Circe, Doctor Polaris and Abra Kadabra become his five lieutenants.
Neron sends magical candles to many villains. When they are all lit, they transport the villains to Neron's underworld realm. Many villains accept his offer, but some do not. The newly empowered villains are sent back to Earth to wreak havoc while Neron turns his attention to the heroes. Along the way, the Trickster comes to Neron, but does not make a deal with him. Instead, he helps Neron betray his five lieutenants.
When the heroes come to Neron's realm looking to defeat him, they are corrupted by the influences of that realm. Trickster works out how Neron can be stopped, and instructs Captain Marvel to beat Neron at his own game by offering the demon his soul for purely selfless reasons. Unable to even touch the offer, Neron's work is reversed: breaking that one deal also broke all his others.
Tiffany Aching, now 13 years old, is training with the witch Miss Treason. But when she takes Tiffany to witness the secret "dark morris", the morris dance (performed wearing black clothes and octiron bells) that welcomes in the winter, Tiffany finds herself drawn into the dance and joins in, despite being warned earlier by Miss Treason not to do so. She finds herself face to face with the Wintersmith—the personification of winter—who mistakes her for the Summer Lady—the personification of summer. He is enchanted by Tiffany, mystified by her presence.
Unknowingly, Tiffany drops her silver horse pendant (a gift from Roland, the Baron's son) during the Dance. The Wintersmith uses the pendant to find Tiffany and give her back the pendant during their second encounter. From then on, he uses the pendant to find her and deliver his gifts. The elder witches, including Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg, discover that the Wintersmith has been tracking her. Granny Weatherwax demands that she throw her silver horse pendant into Lancre Gorge.
Things get trickier for Tiffany when she discovers she has some of the Summer Lady's powers—plants start to grow where she walks barefooted, and the Cornucopia appears, causing problems by spurting out food and animals.
Before the problem with Tiffany and the Wintersmith is resolved, Miss Treason dies. The young witch Annagramma acquires Miss Treason's cottage, but she needs help from Tiffany and the other young witches before she can learn to cope on her own. Tiffany goes to live with Nanny Ogg.
The Wintersmith decides that the reason Tiffany will not be his is that he is not human. Learning a simple rhyme from some children about what basic elements comprise a human body, he sets off to gather the correct ingredients. He makes himself a body out of these elements and pursues Tiffany, but without truly understanding what it is to be human.
Granny Weatherwax instructs the Nac Mac Feegles, who watch Tiffany closely to protect their "big wee hag", to find a Hero, namely her childhood acquaintance and incipient love interest, Roland. Roland must descend into the underworld, guided by the Nac Mac Feegles, and awaken the real Lady Summer from her storybook slumber. But first the Feegles help Roland train to use a sword by providing him with a moving target (themselves inside a suit of armour). Roland and the Nac Mac Feegles go into the underworld where Roland fights creatures that feed on memories. He rescues the Summer Lady, who looks much like Tiffany and they flee back above ground.
Meanwhile, the Wintersmith continues to cover the land with Tiffany-shaped snowflakes. The harsh, prolonged winter starts burying houses, blocking roads, and killing off the sheep of the Chalk. Hiding inside her father's house, Tiffany is surprised to find her silver pendant inside a fish that her brother, Wentworth, has caught. This allows the Wintersmith to discover where she is, and he takes her to his ice palace, where she ultimately manages to stop him, melting him with a kiss, and fulfilling the Dance of Seasons, in which Summer and Winter die and are reborn in turn.
Tiffany is working as the Chalk's only witch in a climate of growing suspicion and prejudice. When the local Baron (for whom she had been caring) dies of poor health, she is accused of murder. Tiffany travels to Ankh-Morpork to inform the Baron's heir, Roland, who happens to be in the city with his fiancée Letitia. On the way Tiffany is attacked by the Cunning Man, a frightening figure who has holes where his eyes should be.
In the city she meets Mrs Proust, the proprietor of Boffo's joke shop, where many witches buy their stereotypical witch accoutrements. When they find Roland and Letitia the Nac Mac Feegles, who have as usual been following Tiffany, are accused of destroying a pub. Tiffany and Mrs. Proust are arrested by Carrot and Angua, and (nominally) locked up – although it is mostly, in fact, for their protection as people start to resent witches.
When they are released the next day, Tiffany meets Eskarina Smith (not seen since the events of the third ''Discworld'' novel, ''Equal Rites''), who explains to her that the Cunning Man was, a thousand years ago, an Omnian witch-finder, who had fallen in love with a witch. That witch, however, knew how evil the Cunning Man was. She was eventually burnt to death, but as she was being burned she trapped the Cunning Man in the fire as well. The Cunning Man became a demonic spirit of pure hatred, able to corrupt other minds with suspicion and hate. Eskarina announces that the Cunning Man is coming. Tiffany and the Feegles return to the Chalk, where they find the Baron's soldiers trying to dig up the Feegle mound. She stops them, and goes to see Roland, who throws her in a dungeon (which she locks on the inside, and where she is brought bacon, eggs, and coffee in the morning). It is later learned that the Cunning Man was responsible for these actions.
Tiffany escapes, however, and goes to see Letitia, who she discovers is also an untrained but talented witch. She sees the Cunning Man twice while at Letitia's home, and as guests begin to arrive at Roland and Letitia's wedding, the other witches start to arrive, so that if the Cunning Man takes over her body, they can kill her. The night before the wedding, Tiffany, Roland, Letitia and Preston (a castle guard whom Tiffany has befriended) meet at one of the fields that needs to be burned to clear it of stubble; Tiffany lures the Cunning Man into the flames and defeats him.
After some discussions, the story then jumps forward a year where she is offered a beautiful black dress by Amber. Preston, who is about as smart as Tiffany, shows his love for her, which Tiffany reciprocates.
During the closing days of the Second World War, six members of the Royal Canadian Air Force fighter squadron led by pilot Ted Stryker are killed because of a command decision made by him. Years later, in civilian life in Winnipeg, Manitoba, a guilt-stricken Stryker goes through many jobs, and his marriage is in trouble.
Stryker finds a note at home: his wife Ellen has taken their young son Joey and is leaving him, flying to Vancouver. He rushes to Winnipeg Airport to board the same flight, Cross-Canada Air Lines Flight 714. He asks his wife for one last chance, but Ellen says that she can no longer love a man she does not respect.
Stewardess Janet Turner begins the meal service, offering meat or fish as the choices. When a number of passengers and the co-pilot begin feeling sick, a doctor aboard determines that the fish is the cause. The pilot also become seriously ill and cannot fly the airplane. Before he passes out, he turns on the autopilot.
The stewardess determines that Stryker is the only passenger with flying experience, but he has not flown in 10 years and has never piloted an aircraft of this size. Owing to dense fog, Flight 714 cannot land at Calgary and any other airport east of the Canadian Rockies, but must continue on to Vancouver.
Stryker's superior in the war, the tough-minded Captain Treleaven, is summoned to Vancouver Airport. Treleaven blames Stryker for the wartime deaths and has no faith in him. However, he has no choice but to work with him, getting him familiarized with the airplane and teaching him how to land. Ellen joins her husband in the cockpit to handle the radio.
As they approach Vancouver, it is shrouded in fog. Treleaven orders him to circle, for hours if necessary, in the hope that it will lift, but Stryker decides to try to land immediately because passengers will die if they do not get medical treatment soon. Stryker makes a rough landing, but none of the passengers are injured. He has conquered his demons and regained the respect of both Ellen and Captain Treleaven.
The story takes place in the year 2025, in a world where the British Empire, now centered in India, remains the dominant world power. A series of environmental disasters in the 1870's has stopped the advancement of technology and forced the great empires to move south.
Athelstane King, a cavalry officer in the Peshawar Lancers, and his friend, Sikh Daffadar Narayan Singh, are ordered to go on medical leave after being wounded in battle. Russian agent Vladimir Obromovich Ignatieff and psychic Sister Yasmini are on their way into the British Raj to kill both King and his sister, Cassandra, a brilliant scientist. Ignatieff, disguised as an impious Muslim, makes a contract with Bengali separatists to kill Cassandra. After escaping one attempt on his life, King decides to leave for Oxford in disguise, but on the train, he is nearly killed again by the Pashtun assassin Ibrahim Khan. When King confronts Khan over who hired him, he makes the connection that a Russian has been sending the assassins. Khan, upon hearing this, swears vengeance at being misled and agrees to follow King.
King returns home, where Singh's father, Ranjit, tells King the truth behind his father's death. King's mother sends him to Delhi to find Elias bar-Binyamin, a Jewish financier who owes the King family a favor, to gain further information. To ensure Cassandra's safety, King's friend Sir Manfred Warburton arranges for her to be hired by the royal palace as tutor to King-Emperor John II's daughter, Princess Sita. While there, Cassandra meets Sita's brother, Prince Charles, and finds herself interested in him.
In Delhi, on his way to the bar-Binyamin residence, King is attacked by assassins and the fight spills over into Warburton's residence. Meanwhile, Warburton has been critically injured by Ignatieff and a traitorous British agent, Richard Allenby. Ignatieff and Allenby escape, and Allenby summons the police. In order to help his friends escape, Narayan Singh stays behind to face the police. Allenby orders Singh taken to his own house for interrogation.
The group finds bar-Binyamin and his son David. They go to Allenby's residence to expose him as a traitor and rescue Narayan Singh. Unknown to them, French agent Henri de Vascogne is leading a second group to do the same thing. This second group includes Cassandra, Charles, Sita, and Sita's bodyguard. Both groups catch Allenby, Ignatieff, and a cult of Kali worshippers in the middle of a cannibal sacrifice. Sita's bodyguard is killed defending them, and David bar-Elias destroys Allenby's home with a homemade explosive. Sita and her group are confronted by the King-Emperor himself. He is also making plans for a state visit to France on the Imperial zeppelin ''Garuda''. King's group makes a secretive journey to Bombay and kills Allenby, while Cassandra's group escort the King-Emperor to his zeppelin.
As the ''Garuda'' prepares to take off, King's group sneaks on board. The captain takes the King-Emperor hostage and reveals that he has planted evidence implicating other governments in the assassination attempt, in order to trigger a major war. He blows himself up, killing himself and King-Emperor John and damaging the ''Garuda'' critically. King kills Ignatieff in a brutal sword duel, with help from Ibrahim Khan.
Air pirates force the ship down. As the guards hold off the raiders, Ibrahim Khan and Sir Manfred are sent to get help. The Peshawar Lancers arrive to drive away the raiders and guide the survivors to safety. Prince Charles marries Cassandra, and Yasmini marries King.
Ex-boxer Kevin "Kid" Collins is a drifter and an escapee from a mental hospital. In a desert town near Palm Springs he meets widow Fay Anderson who convinces him to help fix up the neglected estate her husband left and lets him sleep in a trailer out back, near her dying date palms.
Her acquaintance "Uncle Bud" shows up. Calling himself an ex-cop, he has long been hatching a scheme to kidnap a rich man's child and needs somebody like Collins to help carry it out.
Reluctant in the beginning, Collins tries to leave and encounters Doc Goldman, who immediately can tell the young man needs to be under medical observation. Doc takes a personal interest in Collins that might include a physical attraction as well. He intrudes on Collins' relationship with the alcoholic Fay.
Collins is persuaded by Uncle Bud to execute the kidnapping plan.
Lemnear, a young warrior girl, arrives at a city ruled by the corrupt warlord Vuan. She seeks revenge on the evil wizard Gardin, Vuan's master, who slaughtered Lemnear's people when she was a child, in his search of a mysterious, prophesied, Champion of Silver. Eventually, Lemnear confronts Gardin, but she is knocked out by a magic blast and sent to the city's dungeons, where young girls are retained for Vuan's harem. There, an old mage tells Lemnear a prophecy: that the Champion of Silver will turn a Champion of Bronze into Gold, and destroy the evil Barol, the ultimate mastermind behind Gardin and Vuan.
In order to rescue a friend from the dungeons, Lemnear infiltrates the harem, but Vuan brainwashes her into becoming another slave. Thanks to her magic choker, she breaks out, kills Vuan, and hears from Gardin that Barol challenges her from his Castle of Valquisas. Upon reaching the castle, she learns of another survivor of her people, Mesh, whom Gardin had believed to be the Champion of Silver but who is actually the Champion of Bronze.
She fights and kills Gardin, but he turns out to be just the enchanted right arm of Barol. The villain reveals that he is a Champion of Gold himself. He was raised up by dark powers, after his village kicked him out for being a human hybrid. Lemnear and Mesh fight him, defeating both his human and dragon form, but he then turns into a stone giant and moves on to conquer the world. Realizing the prophecy, Lemnear awakes her power through her choker, turns Mesh into a Champion of Gold, and they together destroy Barol's weak spot, killing him.
The main character of ''Plastic Little'' is Tita Mu Koshigaya, a young woman who captains a ship, the ''Cha-Cha Maru'', whose business is capturing exotic creatures in the 'sea of clouds' of the planet Ietta, apparently a gas giant of some kind, and selling them to collectors and zoos. By chance, she saves Elysse Aldo Mordish, a young woman of her own age, from a rogue faction of Ietta's own military forces, led by the armored commander Guizel, who already killed Elysse's scientist father. As the military conducts a vicious chase for Elysse, it becomes apparent that she holds the key to a secret that could determine the fate of the entire planet's independence.
Although the anime's overriding goal is of course that of saving the world, an almost equal amount of time is spent on character interaction. Much of Tita's crew once served under her father, and Tita has inherited much of the respect and devotion that he earned from them. Tita and Elysse's relationship is the focus of much screen time; Tita risks life and limb for Elysse seemingly on a whim, later explaining that she felt it was impossible to stand by and watch her capture. In a small heartfelt speech delivered during a sunrise breakfast, Elysse speaks of feelings for Tita that could be interpreted as being "like love at first sight". Tita has also shown some fondness for Nichol Hawking, a somewhat bumbling young man on her crew who has a long-term crush on her. Tita's feelings for Nichol are shown in much less detail, restrained to a small, chaste kiss on his forehead after Nichol has fallen asleep beside her sickbed. Tita never makes romantic feelings clear for either of the possible love interests.
In a short miniseries of comics that followed the OVA, this tendency to use action and adventure mostly as a vehicle for character interaction continues. Elysse and Tita are not together physically, but apparently keep in very regular communication via videophone. (For which communications, Tita does not seem particularly inclined to wear clothes.) Other issues see Tita searching the Cloud Sea in the vain hope her father might somehow still be alive, and helping Nichol to win a race he has been attempting for years. Much is made of a family dynamic among the crew, with Balboa an obvious father figure for Tita, Mei as mother, and Mikhail as gruff grandfather.
David Burke is a former policeman who was ruined when he refused to cooperate with state crime investigators. He asks Earle Slater, a tough ex-con and racist, to help him rob an upstate bank, promising him $50,000 if the robbery is successful. Burke also recruits Johnny Ingram, a nightclub entertainer, who doesn't want the job but is addicted to gambling and is deeply in debt.
Slater, who is supported by his girlfriend Lorry, learns that Ingram is black and refuses the job. Later, he realizes that he needs the money, and joins Ingram and Burke in the enterprise. Tensions between Ingram and Slater increase as they near completion of the crime.
On the night of the robbery, the three crooks are able to enter the bank and abscond with stolen money. Burke is seen by a police officer when leaving the scene of the raid and is gunned down in the ensuing shootout. He then shoots himself to avoid capture. Slater and Ingram fight each other while evading the police. They escape and run to a fuel storage depot, chasing each other onto the top of the fuel tanks. When they exchange gunfire, the fuel tanks ignite, causing a large explosion. Later, when police survey the scene, Slater's and Ingram's burned corpses are indistinguishable from each other. The film ends with a shot of a sign at the entrance of the depot reading "STOP—DEAD END."
''The Edge of the Cloud'' is set in London where, after Will and Christina elope, Christina briefly stays with their Aunt Grace. Will finds a job as a mechanic and later as an instructor at a flying school, and Christina finds employment at a nearby hotel to be close to Will. Uncle Russel and Mr Dermont both die during the course of the story. One death fills Will with pain; the other indifference. Will and Christina become close friends with Sandy, another flying instructor, and his girlfriend, Dorothy, the spoiled daughter of Christina's employer. Will gives exhibition flights to make extra money and designs and builds his own airplane. Mark joins the army. At the end, Will becomes famous as a stunt pilot and is thinking of joining the army, which—on the eve of their long-awaited wedding—worries Christina.
The final novel in the original Flambards trilogy opens in the middle of the First World War with Christina, now a widow, returning to Flambards. Flambards has greatly deteriorated since she left with Will, and is almost in ruins. As distraction from her grief over Will's death and the news that his brother Mark has been reported missing and presumed dead, Christina sets herself the tedious and difficult task of restoring the farm. She not only wishes to restore the house and grounds but also a semblance of her old life, the people, horses and hounds.
Finding she is pregnant with Will's baby, Christina adopts Mark and Violet's six-year-old son 'Tizzy' Thomas, along with an original Flambards bitch called Marigold and a nervy five-year-old bay thoroughbred called Pheasant. Eventually she persuades Dick to come back to work on the farm and things slowly begin to go smoothly, until the reappearance of Mark. Christina's joy quickly turns to anxiety and apprehension as Mark tells her that if she wishes to remain at Flambards, she must marry him. But Christina fears Mark will become like his father, and when she finds she has feelings for Dick, her confusion increases as she still loves Will.
A dead man tumbles down a flight of stairs. When the police arrive at the top-floor apartment of Joe Adams (Henry Fonda), he shoots at them through the door.
The sheriff calls in reinforcements and sets up snipers on nearby rooftops. Adams, in his room, begins a recollection of the events leading up to this, beginning with his first chance encounter with Jo Ann (Barbara Bel Geddes), who works in a flower shop. It turns out they had been raised in the same orphanage.
The story unfolds in a series of flashbacks, and even a flashback within a flashback, as Joe recalls what Jo Ann told him about her life before they met.
Finding her behavior suspicious, he follows her to a nightclub where Maximilian the Great (Vincent Price) is performing a magic act on stage. At the bar, Joe gets to know Charlene (Ann Dvorak), who recently quit as Max's assistant.
Max claims to be Jo Ann's long-lost father. She was picked out of the audience one night by Charlene and brought on stage to take part in the act, then continued a relationship. Jo Ann fiercely denies to Joe, however, that Max is related to her. In fact, she insists that she had to physically fend off Max's romantic advances to her.
The two women have feelings for Joe but leave him mystified, particularly when both appear to have received exactly the same brooch from Max as a gift. Jo Ann naively believes that hers is a rare antique that once belonged to Montezuma's daughter. The more worldly-wise Charlene suggests she believed Max's line at first too, but she now has a whole display card of them marked at a price of 85 cents each. He is not sure whom to trust, and when Max comes to his apartment to kill him, Joe shoots first, sending Max falling to his death.
When Max first arrives at Joe's shabby boarding house room, he demands that he leave Jo Ann alone. In the ensuing argument Joe pushes Max halfway out of the window but cannot bring himself to kill his rival. Max observes that it is not so easy to kill a man, and shows Joe the pistol he brought with the intention of shooting him.
Max, who has always been pretentiously snobbish, begins to taunt Joe. He tells him that he thinks Joe is beneath him, and then begins to insinuate that he and Jo Ann had a sexual relationship. Joe becomes enraged and shoots Max.
Police are about to smoke him out with tear gas when Jo Ann arrives. She manages to talk Joe into giving himself up, promising to wait for him if he is sent away to prison. Joe had considered himself friendless, but most of the assembled crowd, including Joe's coworker and neighbor Bill Pulanski, and Frank Dunlap, a blind man who lives in the neighborhood, support him.
The film is based on the true story of the 1950 U.S. soccer team which, against all odds, beat England 1–0 in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil during the 1950 FIFA World Cup. The story is about the family traditions and passions that shaped the players who made up this team of underdogs. One group of teammates were from The Hill neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri. Another group came from the Corky Row district of Fall River, Massachusetts.
''David Starr, Space Ranger'' introduces the series' setting and main characters. The novel is set around A.D. 7,000 (five thousand years after the first nuclear bomb, as stated at the beginning), when humanity has founded colonies on the inner planets of the Solar System, as well as spreading to other planetary systems with separate and sometimes hostile governments. The most powerful organization in the Solar System is the Council of Science, which uses scientific expertise and intrepid field agents to counter political and military threats to Earth's government.
Protagonist David Starr is a young biophysicist orphaned as an infant and raised by his guardians Augustus Henree and Hector Conway, high-ranking Council members who send David on his missions for the Council. They tell him of some 200 recent victims fatally poisoned by produce imported from Mars. Fearing a conspiracy to start a food panic and wreck interplanetary trade, they send Starr undercover to Mars.
There Starr meets John "Bigman" Jones, a short but pugnacious Martian farmboy blacklisted by the Martian Farming Syndicates after witnessing underhanded dealings. When his former boss Hennes orders Bigman out of the Farm Employment Building, Starr stands up for him and gains positions for both himself and Bigman. The humiliated Hennes subsequently has Starr and Bigman knocked out and brought to the farm owned by Hennes' boss, Mr. Makian, who apologizes and appears friendly.
Starr says his name is Williams and he came from Earth to investigate his sister's death from food poisoning. Makian sends him to the farm's agronomist Benson, who explains that the poisoned food came from several Martian farms and was exported through the domed Wingrad City. Meanwhile Makian and other farm owners have been pressured to sell their farms for ridiculously small sums. Benson also suggests that intelligent native Martians living below the planet's surface are poisoning the food to drive off the human colonists.
Makian sends Starr and Bigman on a survey of the farmlands led by Hennes' friend Griswold. Unfamiliar with Martian gravity, Starr nearly skids his sand-car into a crevasse. After Bigman discovers the car is missing the required ballast-weights, Starr accuses Griswold of trying to kill him. They fight, and Griswold falls into the crevasse.
The next day, Benson makes Starr his assistant, to keep him from the vengeful Hennes. Bigman receives his references from Hennes and takes his leave, but returns that night to the farm to meet Starr, and tells him he has recognized him as belonging to the Council (whose members are publicly listed, though they try to minimize publicity).
Starr tells Bigman that he believes in Benson's Martians, and that the crevasse into which Griswold fell is an entrance to their caverns. Starr descends into the crevasse and is captured by Martian aliens — disembodied intelligences curious about the Earthmen on the surface. They know nothing of the poisoned food – although, according to them, any organic matter of Martian origin is poison for Earthmen. They give Starr the name "Space Ranger", and present him with an immaterial mask producing a personal force field that can protect and disguise him.
Starr uses the mask to shield himself from a Martian dust storm as he returns to Makian's farm, where he is questioned on how he survived the storm and answers that he was rescued by a masked man called the Space Ranger. Benson tells him the farm owners have received an extortion letter from the poisoner, threatening to a thousandfold increase of poisoned food unless they sell out to him within 36 hours.
After again trying to kill Starr, Hennes accuses Starr of being the poisoner. Bigman enters, having brought from the city Dr. Silvers of the Council, who announces that the government has declared a System Emergency and that the Council will take control of all farms on Mars. If the mystery is not solved by the deadline, all Martian food exports to Earth will stop, forcing food rationing.
Disguised by his Martian mask, Starr confronts Hennes, who blinds himself firing a blaster at the protective field. Starr searches Hennes and finds incriminating evidence. The next day, at a meeting with Silvers, Makian, Hennes and Benson, Starr again appears as the masked Space Ranger. He reveals that it was Benson who poisoned the food while pretending to take samples of it, while Hennes was his accomplice in contact with criminal syndicates in the Asteroid Belt; the distraught Benson confesses. Afterward, Bigman confides to Starr that despite the disguise, he recognized him by his black-and-white boots, too plain for any Martian.
Ashley Albright works at Braden & Co. Public Relations and has an extremely fortunate life, experiencing recurring strokes of good fortune since childhood. In contrast, Jake Hardin experiences bad luck on a daily basis.
She is popular and works with her best friends, he annoys most people he encounters. His friends are his Aunt Martha, who lives across the hall, and her granddaughter Katy, who also has bad luck and who he babysits. Custodian at a bowling alley, he is also the unpaid US manager of the British band McFly. For weeks, he tries to get their demo CD to record label owner Damon Philips, hoping to get them discovered and become a music producer.
Meeting with Phillips, Ashley pitches a PR strategy that includes a masquerade ball charity fundraiser where his clients can perform. He loves the idea, pleasing her boss Peggy Braden, who gives her her own office and puts her in charge of the ball. Meanwhile, Jake invites music producers to watch McFly perform but then accidentally causes the sound equipment to malfunction, driving them away.
Jake hears about the masquerade ball and gains entry by posing as a hired masked dancer. During the ball, a fortune teller tells Ashley her luck will change. Failing to get Phillips' attention, Jake notices Ashley and asks her to dance. Drawn to each other, they kiss, somehow switching their luck in the process. Jake sees Phillips leaving the ball and runs after him. As she waits for him to return, Ashley's heel breaks and her dress rips.
Outside, Jake saves Phillips from being hit by a car. To repay him for saving his life, he takes the McFly demo and invites the band to his studio. Surprised by his good luck, Jake looks for Ashley but can't find her, not realizing she's been arrested. The neighbor she invited to be Peggy's date, Antonio, is a prostitute which also gets her arrested. Ashley is fired by Peggy who is bailed out and spends a night in jail.
The next day, Ashley's learns her apartment is condemned due to a flood and mold. Staying with her friends Dana and Maggie she experiences more bad luck. She tracks down the fortune teller, who suggests someone needed her luck more. Ashley realizes the stranger she kissed has her luck.
Phillips is impressed with McFly and signs them. Ashley tracks down every male dancer hired to work the ball, kissing each of them. After this fails to restore her luck, hungry and overwhelmed, Ashley has a public breakdown at a diner where Jake is. Not recognizing her, he sympathizes with her frustration at constant bad luck, offering to find her a job. She takes his former job at the bowling alley, developing a friendship with him. When Jake is worried McFly doesn't have enough material for an upcoming gig at the Hard Rock Cafe, she introduces him to singer/songwriter Maggie. Impressed, he decides to use her song.
During a recording session, Ashley overhears Jake say he's been lucky ever since the masquerade ball. Realizing he was the masked dancer, she kisses him and leaves, finding her luck is back. She runs into Peggy, who is now engaged to Antonio and offers to rehire Ashley as the Vice President of Braden & Co. if she helps with a meeting that very night. Ashley then learns Maggie's song will no longer be performed at the concert.
Looking at a mirror she broke earlier, Ashley reflects on the cost of her good luck. Deciding to forego Peggy's rehiring offer, she goes to the concert where Jake and the band are having bad luck and may have to cancel the concert. Ashley kisses Jake and circumstances change, leading to a successful concert where Maggie's song is performed. Ashley realizes she's in love with Jake but doesn't wish to give him bad luck again. She decides to leave and live with her parents for a while.
Jake finds Ashley at Grand Central, realizing she is the woman from the ball. Since he used good luck to help others, Ashley argues she doesn't want to take it away. He points out she experienced good things even with bad luck and says he is willing to experience bad luck again if they are together. They kiss, switching their good and bad luck back and forth. Katy arrives and they simultaneously kiss her on each cheek, causing another luck transfer. She then wins a $25 lottery ticket. Jake and Ashley walk hand-in-hand, wondering if they will get used to living without luck and debating karma. Outside a construction crew accidentally break a pipe and water rains down on the two just as the movie ends.
In Southern California, while Virginia Wilson is taking an outside beach shower, an escaped madman from a sanitarium arrives. He stabs her dog, attacks her and is shot to death by her stepbrother, Charlie, with a rifle.
After the attack, Virginia is committed to a sanitarium. The psychiatrist falls in love with her. He fakes her death, and they go on the lam. Virginia ends up dancing at El Madhouse night club run by Gypsy Rose Lee. Lee performs "Put the Blame on Mame," the classic ''noir'' theme from the 1946 film ''Gilda''.
All the while, Virginia is being stalked by a serial killer.
Molly (Hoffs), Val (Pfeiffer) and Gina (Cusack) are graduating college, but on their final night, frustrations are aired. Molly is still looking for real love and Val is beginning to doubt if that is what she has found. Gina is too busy videotaping everything to really notice. When the final party at Pacifica College kicks off, things do not go exactly as planned.
In the year 2100, Mega-City Two, on the West Coast of North America, becomes infected with the virus 2T(fru)T (a play on tutti frutti), which drives people violently insane before a painful death. Scientists in Mega-City One manage to develop a vaccine, but authorities find it impossible to safely land at Mega-City Two's airports. The only option is to send a land expedition of Judges across the "Cursed Earth"–the remnant of Middle America that multiple nuclear (and conventional) wars have reduced to a barren wasteland.
As one of Mega-City One's most active and celebrated lawmen, Judge Dredd is assigned to lead the mission, equipped with a heavily-armed "Kill-Dozer" battle-tank and two state-of-the-art "Quasar" motorbikes. Accompanying him are three other Judges, a convoy of androids, and–at Dredd's own insistence–Spikes Harvey Rotten, a violent and unrepentant outlaw who is nevertheless the best motorcyclist in the nation. Though despising Dredd and all he stands for, Spikes accepts the mission from a combination of physical "persuasion" and the promise of a full pardon for his criminal record.
The bulk of the story is episodic, detailing the many savage–and bizarre–perils Dredd's party encounters along the Cursed Earth, among them: The "Death Belt"–an unpredictable air current that periodically flings swarms of huge, mutated rats at human settlements. A clan of mutants in the Appalachians (which now also contain Mount Rushmore), who have sworn violent revenge on all "normies". A trio of "vampires"–ultimately revealed to be medical robots preserving the suspended body of President Robert L. Booth, the last president of the United States (and instigator of the wars that created the Cursed Earth). A set of Mississippi plantations using enslaved extraterrestrials, which Dredd's party ultimately liberate–in the process gaining an aardvark-like alien named Tweak as a new companion. A region of Kansas where the local McDonald's and Burger King franchises have mutated into fiefdoms, routinely waging gang wars over new "customers". A mountain range (implicitly the Rockies) infested by the cloned dinosaurs that once populated a defunct amusement park–chief among them a particularly oversized and vicious ''Tyrannosaurus'' named Satanus. An agricultural laboratory in Utah where the sole remaining scientist (a caricature of Colonel Sanders) has created an army of creatures based on various corporate mascots, such as the Green Giant and the Michelin Man. The "Judges" of Las Vegas, now completely corrupted by the Mafia and running the entire city on literal life-and-death gambles.
After fourteen days (and many deaths), Dredd's party reaches Death Valley, where Tweak reveals that he is not only sapient and fully capable of human speech, but the leader of his home planet. This planet, rich in diamonds and other valuable minerals, had been discovered by human astronauts many years ago; through their innate precognitive abilities, Tweak and his fellows had determined that any human interest in the planet would mean exploitation and disaster, and resolved to hide themselves. When a fluke allowed the astronauts to capture Tweak's own children and mate, Tweak surrendered himself, all the time pretending to be an unintelligent animal to minimize their interest; while this successfully saved his planet from further human contact, it resulted in his family being sold into slavery, and ultimately being killed.
While sympathetic, Dredd is also suspicious of Tweak's motives in relating all this; privately, Tweak explains that he trusts in Dredd's integrity, while foreseeing that Spikes (who has eagerly contracted himself Tweak's "agent", owning half of his planet's resources) will not live much longer. This prediction quickly proves correct, as Death Valley holds the greatest peril of all: the remnants of President Booth's robot armies, badly-decayed but still heavily-armed, and programmed to kill any and all Judges. Under the robots' onslaught, the last of the assisting Judges psychologically breaks, and "surrenders" himself to be killed; subsequently, Dredd, Spikes, and Tweak barricade themselves in a nearby Spanish fortress, just barely staving off further attacks.
Eventually, the robots' commander voices a parley: as long as Dredd dies, the non-Judges are free to go. Though Dredd is willing to sacrifice himself to ensure the vaccine will reach Mega-City Two, both Tweak and Spikes refuse to abandon him. Soon after, Spikes is dealt a fatal wound, and–encouraged by Tweak's accounts of his planet's riches–uses his last strength on a suicide attack against the robots, proudly dying as "the world's first punk billionaire". Meanwhile, Dredd unloads the vaccine from the Kill-Dozer, then dresses Spikes' corpse in a spare Judge uniform to serve as a decoy of himself; "Judge Spikes", placed on a Quasar bike, is used to lure the remaining robots to the Kill-Dozer, which has been set to self-destruct.
After the exploding tank destroys the robots, Dredd and Tweak carry the vaccine through the rest of the Mojave Desert on foot. Though a sandstorm quickly separates them, each manages to reach Mega-City Two, just barely alive. Uninfected authorities soon receive and reproduce the vaccine, bringing the plague under control in a matter of weeks, while also recuperating Dredd from his many injuries and exhaustions.
Once recovered, Dredd extols Tweak's heroism, only for the alien to beg that it be kept secret, lest humanity discover his intelligence and reexamine his planet. Reluctantly, Dredd concedes that Tweak is right to fear his planet being exploited by human greed and callousness, and returns him to his planet–as an "animal"–via freight-ship.
It has been a year since the events in ''Lucky Starr and the Oceans of Venus'', and in that time a government-funded research project, Project Light, is built at the astronomical observatory on Mercury's north pole to conduct research into the newly discovered sub-etheric optics in hope of transmitting solar energy through hyperspace. The head of Project Light is the leading scientist in sub-etheric optics, Scott Mindes. A series of accidents has plagued Project Light, which David "Lucky" Starr and John Bigman Jones have come to investigate. Shortly after meeting Starr and Bigman, Mindes takes them onto the surface of Mercury and explains his worries; but works himself into a frenzy and fires a blaster at Starr, whereupon Bigman tackles him and he is brought unconscious into the observatory.
Starr and Bigman meet Mindes' friend Dr. Karl Gardoma, the observatory's physician; Jonathan Urteil, who works for a political opponent of the Council of Science named Senator Swenson; Dr. Lance Peverale, the head of the observatory; and Dr. Hanley Cook, Pevarale's chief assistant, who wants to succeed Peverale. The next day, at a banquet in Starr's honor, Peverale states his belief that the Sirians are behind the troubles plaguing Project Light; whereupon Starr replies that the Sirians' most likely locations are the abandoned mines located beneath the observatory, and proposes to search them.
Speaking to Cook after dinner, Starr learns Cook's opinion Peverale has become obsessed thinking of the Sirian threat. While Bigman prepares for the trip into the mines, Starr obtains two micro-ergometers, whereby to detect atomic power sources at a distance. In the mines, Starr tells Bigman that his suggestion of Sirians in the mines was a ruse, and that he intends to investigate the sunside while Bigman remains in the mines and maintains the pretense of Starr's presence there. After Starr leaves, Bigman is attacked by Urteil, and both are attacked by a heat-seeking native organism. Bigman distracts the latter with Urteil's blaster, then calls the Dome for help. On the sunside, Starr finds the source of the sabotage in a Sirian robot, driven by solar radiation to forego the Three Laws of Robotics, so that it attacks him before he can question it.
In the Dome, Bigman challenges Urteil to a fight in Mercurian gravity. Dr. Cook reduces the artificial gravity in the Dome's power room to Mercurian levels to accommodate them; but during the fight, the gravity suddenly returns to Earth-normal, and Urteil dies in a fall.
When Starr returns to the dome and learns of Urteil's death, he asks to be present when Peverale conducts an official inquiry, at which Bigman reveals that it was Cook who caused Urteil's death and reveals that only Cook knew where he and Starr would be in the mines, wherefore Urteil must have gotten the information from him. Cook then admits that Urteil had blackmailed him, and was killed to save Cook's career. Starr then reveals that the robot was brought from Sirius by Peverale in hope to use it to implicate the Sirians in the sabotage of Project Light. Starr has Peverale and Cook placed under arrest, and assumes control of the Dome in the name of the Council of Science.
On the return journey to Earth, Starr admits to Bigman that the present quarrel between Senator Swenson and the Council of Science was a draw, in that Jonathan Urteil was not able to manufacture any scandal against Project Light, but the two top men at the Mercury observatory were exposed as felons. Although Swenson is ruthless and dangerous, he is the sort of critic the council needs to keep it honest.
For six years, Jupiter IX has been the site of a secret project to develop an antigravity, or Agrav, space drive; but the Council of Science learns that information from the project is released to the enemy Sirians. A month after returning from Mercury, protagonists David "Lucky" Starr and John Bigman Jones are sent to Jupiter IX to investigate, bringing a V-frog to aid the investigation.
Upon reaching IX, Starr and Bigman are warned away by the head of the project, Commander Donahue, who argues the men on the project are angry at investigation and may threaten Starr's safety. Starr and Bigman land nevertheless, and are met by a large group of workers led by a man named Red Summers, who insists that Starr take part in a duel in an Agrav corridor against a much larger man called Big Armand. During the duel, Bigman realizes Summers is sabotaging Starr's Agrav harness and forces Summers to stop at gunpoint, whereupon Starr wins the duel and gains Big Armand's friendship.
At their quarters, Starr and Bigman are met by their neighbor, a blind man named Harry Norrich, who tells Starr that Summers is a convict on Earth, but has earned responsibility on the project, and is hostile to Starr for fear of having his past crimes revealed; whereas when Norrich's seeing-eye dog died, Summers obtained another, a German Shepherd named Mutt, and has done similar favors for other workers on the project. Starr assures Norrich that he has no intention of getting Summers in trouble for the duel.
The next morning someone kills the V-frog while both men are distracted; whereafter Starr and Bigman tell Donahue and James Panner, the chief engineer on the project, that because the V-frog telepathically induced affection in all whom it met, only a robot, immune to emotion, could have killed it. It is then suggested that the Sirians are using android spies throughout the Solar System.
Donahue, unconvinced, orders the launch of an Agrav ship, the ''Jovian Moon'', to Io the following evening, and forbids Starr to conduct his investigation until after it returns. The ''Jovian Moon'' lifts off on schedule, its crew of seventeen including Donahue, Panner, Summers, Norrich, Mutt, Starr, and Bigman; the latter included because Starr believes the spy is on board.
On Io, Bigman falls into an ammonial river, and is rescued by Mutt. After lift-off from Io, the Agrav drive fails, leaving the ''Jovian Moon'' falling towards Jupiter. Starr manages to land the ship on Amalthea, where they find that Red Summers is missing. An investigation reveals that Summers tricked Norrich into reporting him present on the ship while he was still on Io, whereupon Starr realizes that the Sirians had two agents planted in the Agrav project: the still-hidden robot spy, and the Earthman traitor Summers.
Panner repairs the Agrav, and the ''Jovian Moon'' returns to Io, where Starr and Bigman locate Summers. Summers admits to working for the Sirians, but kills himself before revealing the identity of the robot spy. When Norrich helps bury Summers, Starr accuses him of being the robot, and Bigman threatens to shoot him; whereupon Mutt, coming to defend Norrich, is revealed as the robot himself.
With the exposure of Mutt, Starr discerns that the Sirian spy ring on Earth must be the people who supplied Summers with Mutt, and who may be giving canid robot spies to others on Earth, and sets out to prevent them.
Shortly after returning from the Asteroid Belt, David "Lucky" Starr learns that his Science Academy roommate Lou Evans had been sent to investigate trouble on Venus, but the Council of Science office on Venus has requested that he be recalled and investigated for corruption.
As Starr and John "Bigman" Jones are shuttled to Venus, their pilots suffer an episode of paralysis, and Starr is required to keep their craft from smashing itself against the surface of the Venusian ocean. Afterwards, the pilots have no memory of the event.
Upon reaching the Venusian city of Aphrodite, Starr and Bigman meet Dr. Mel Morriss, head of the Council of Science on Venus, who explains that Venusian scientists are perfecting strains of yeast that can be processed into luxury foods for export; whereas for six months there has been a growing series of incidents of bizarre behavior among the human colonists, often followed by amnesia. Morriss believes they are being telepathically controlled by an unknown enemy. Evans was sent to Venus to investigate, but was found with stolen data concerning a secret strain of yeast, and is under arrest. When Starr confronts him, Evans admits to having stolen the data, but refuses to explain further. While Starr is questioning him, word reaches them that a man is threatening to open an outside airlock, which will allow the ocean to flood Aphrodite.
Starr, Bigman, and Morriss go to the airlock to deal with the crisis, where they meet the city's chief engineer, Lyman Turner, the inventor and owner of a laptop computer carried with him. While Bigman goes through the ventilation ducts to cut power to the airlock door, Starr realizes that the airlock crisis is a feint and hastens to Council headquarters, to find that Evans has escaped custody and left Aphrodite in a submarine.
Starr and Bigman pursue Evans in another submarine, eventually finding him and learning that the V-frogs are the source of the telepathic incidents; Evans having tested this hypothesis by stealing the secret data on the yeast strain, and interesting the V-frogs therein with the result of an accident involving that strain. Evans further reveals that the V-frogs have trapped himself and the other protagonists beneath an enormous deep-sea orange patch, which will attack them if they attempt escape.
Starr, in response, leaves the submarine and uses an electric shock to destroy the orange patch's heart, killing it. He then returns to the submarine, and pilots this to the surface of the ocean, where he intends to communicate his findings to an orbiting space station to be relayed to the Council on Earth.
On the surface, the V-frogs communicate telepathically with him, telling him they intend to take over the minds of the humans on Venus. Initially they keep him away from the radio; but he is able to distract them and transmit his message. Returning to Aphrodite, Starr explains to Morriss that the V-frogs' telepathy is used by a human individual to attempt control over the rest of humanity, and that the means of doing so is Lyman Turner's computer. Bigman destroys the computer and Starr captures Turner, hoping to re-create his computer in the interest of reforming Turner himself.
Six weeks after returning from the Jovian system, David "Lucky" Starr learns that Jack Dorrance, the chief of a Sirian spy ring uncovered by Starr in the Jovian system, has escaped from Earth.
Starr and his sidekick Bigman Jones follow Dorrance to the Saturnian system, where Dorrance tries to lose them in Saturn's rings, but his ship is destroyed by a ring fragment. A Sirian ship then contacts Starr and informs him that the Sirians have built a colony on Titan and claimed it for Sirius, contrary to the traditional principle that inhabitants of one world in a stellar system have sovereignty over the entire system, even those parts without permanent settlements. Starr orders the pursuing Terrestrial fleet back to Earth; but returns with Bigman and Councilman Ben Wessilewsky to the Saturnian system.
When several Sirian ships pursue the ''Shooting Starr'', Starr conceals himself and his ship in the interior of Mimas; leaves Wessilewsky below the surface with enough supplies to maintain himself for several months; then takes the ''Shooting Starr'' back into space, where they are captured by the Sirians and taken to the colony on Titan. There, Sirian commander Sten Devoure threatens to have Bigman killed unless Starr agrees to testify at an upcoming interstellar conference on the asteroid Vesta that he entered the Saturnian system to attack the Sirians. When Bigman endangers himself by defeating Devoure in a duel, Starr makes a deal with Devoure: if he spares Bigman's life, Starr will testify that he entered the Saturnian system in an armed ship, and will lead the Sirians to Wessilewsky's base on Mimas.
As delegates assemble for the conference, Agas Doremo, the leader of the neutralist forces of the Galaxy, tells Conway they should let the Sirians stay. While he supports the idea of stellar systems being indivisible, Doremo cannot see a way to get the Sirians out of the Solar System without a war, given the other worlds' distrust of Earth. However, should the Sirians remain, they might eventually overplay their hand, allowing for a new conference under more favorable conditions. However, he agrees to do what he can to support Earth's view should the opportunity arise.
Doremo is elected to preside over the conference; the one thing both sides agree upon. Devoure admits that the Sirians have established a base on Titan, but insists that the fact that Saturn and its moons are part of Earth's stellar system is irrelevant: "An empty world is an empty world, regardless of the particular route it travels through space. We colonized it first and it is ours". Devoure then brings out Starr, who admits to having re-entered the Saturnian system after being warned off, and also that Wessilewsky established a base on Mimas. Conway then receives permission to cross-examine Starr.
When asked his reasons, according to a secret plan of his own, Starr replies that Wessilewsky was placed to establish a colony on Mimas. At this, Conway states that by removing Wessilewsky from Mimas, the Sirians violated the very principle they attempted to establish - Devoure has stated earlier that the Sirians have never even approached Mimas earlier, so it is Earth's regardless of whose point of view is taken. Seeing the opportunity, Doremo points out the demonstrated implications of accepting the Sirian view; a war can start literally over every single rock. Then he manipulates the delegates into a vote before Sirius can work out a proper response. The conference ends with three client worlds voting with the Sirians, and the rest voting with Earth, with the result that the Sirians are ordered to leave Titan within a month – the principle of "Indivisibility of Stellar Systems" being firmly established, which the protagonists consider a positive and desirable outcome.
A year has passed since the events in ''David Starr, Space Ranger''. In that time the spaceship TSS ''Waltham Zachary'' has been taken and gutted by pirates based in the asteroid belt. Because David "Lucky" Starr harbors a personal dislike of the pirates for their murder of his parents, he has devised a plan whereby the unmanned survey ship ''Atlas'', as soon as the pirates capture it and bring it to their hidden base, will explode. Unknown to anyone, Starr has leaked the plan to the pirates and sneaked aboard the ship, believing an infiltration will be a more efficient way to bring down the pirates.
When captured, Starr tells the pirate leader, Captain Anton, that his name is Williams (his alias from ''David Starr, Space Ranger''), and offers to join the pirates; whereupon Anton has Starr fight a duel in open space to prove himself worthy. Starr wins the duel, but remains a prisoner aboard ''Atlas'' while it is brought to an anonymous asteroid.
The asteroid is home to a hermit named Joseph Patrick Hansen, and the pirates leave Starr in Hansen's care. Hansen tells Starr that he purchased the asteroid as a vacation site, and gradually made it more comfortable over the years, but now depends on the pirates for supplies, and later recognizes the pretended "Williams" as Lawrence Starr's son. Starr admits his true identity, and Hansen convinces him to pilot them to Ceres.
On Ceres, Starr plans to send his friend Bigman to infiltrate the pirates, but realizes that Hansen's asteroid is not where it should be. Starr and Bigman take their own spaceship ''Shooting Starr'' to search for it and eventually land on its surface, where Starr is captured by Dingo, the pirate he beat in the duel. Dingo takes him inside the asteroid, revealing a hyperatomic engine used to move it. A fight with Dingo ends when Starr is struck with a neuronic whip and loses consciousness.
Starr wakes to find himself in a spacesuit on the surface of the asteroid; whereupon Dingo straps him to a catapult and flings him into space. He uses his oxygen reserve to reverse his course and return to the asteroid, where he and Bigman defeat some of the pirates. As they leave the pirates' asteroid, they learn that a pirate fleet is attacking Ceres.
Returning to Ceres, Starr realizes that the pirates' real object was to capture Hansen, which they have accomplished, and learns that Captain Anton's ship is taking Hansen to a secret Sirian base on Ganymede, whence the Sirians plan to attack Earth while Earth's fleet is occupied fighting the pirates in the Asteroid Belt. Although Anton has a 12-hour head start, Starr passes him to Ganymede by skimming the ''Shooting Starr'' past the Sun, wearing the Martian "Space Ranger" mask to ward off the heat and radiation.
When Anton makes for Ganymede, Starr threatens to ram his ship, and accelerates toward it, all the while talking to Anton. The ships are ten miles apart when Hansen kills Anton and orders Anton's crew to surrender to Starr.
When the Terran fleet arrives to take custody of the pirate ship, Starr convinces the commanding admiral to concentrate on the asteroid pirates and leave the Sirian base on Ganymede alone, revealing that Hansen is the leader of the asteroid pirates. It is then revealed that while Starr was intercepting Anton's ship, the Council of Science, on Starr's orders, captured the base and achieved the wherewithal to terminate the asteroid piracy. Hansen is coerced to have the Sirians leave Ganymede, and is sent to incarceration on Mercury. Afterwards, Starr reveals that the matter between him and Hansen was not just about the latter being the pirate mastermind, but a far more personal one. Hansen claimed to have met David's father, but didn't recognize his two close friends (despite the three being all but inseparable), and claimed that David resembles his father the most when he is angry, despite Lawrence hardly ever being in that state. From that, David states that within an hour after meeting Hansen, he knew he was facing not his father's acquaintance, but his parents' murderer.
Two strangers, Jerzy (Leon Niemczyk) and Marta (Lucyna Winnicka), accidentally end up holding tickets for the same sleeping chamber on an overnight train to the Baltic Sea coast; and reluctantly agree to share the 2-bed single-gender compartment. Also on board is Marta's spurned lover Staszek (Zbigniew Cybulski), unwilling to accept her decision to break up after a short term affair, and leave her alone. When the police enter the train in search of a murderer on the lam, rumors fly and everything seems to point toward one of the main characters as the culprit.