From Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License ===== The book follows Jason Worthing, also known as Jazz, who is a boy growing up on Capitol, the capitol planet of the Empire. Jas has "the swipe", which is a genetic trait that allows for telepathy. The swipe is feared in the Empire, so those who possess it are executed. After being found out as a swipe, Jas tries to escape, which leads to his capture by Abner Doon, who helps him rise to prominence as a space pilot. Eventually, Abner sends Jason away as the head of a colony so that the swipe would become more widespread, but when his ship reaches the planet, he is attacked, and the memories of all but one of the three-hundred eleven colonists are destroyed and two-thirds of the colonist are killed or damaged beyond awakening. Jason prevails, however, leading to the survival of the colony, which he visits every several years, being on Somec the rest of the time. Eventually, Abner Doon comes and sees how Jason has done, and after Doon leaves, Jason takes his ship to the bottom of the ocean. ===== The Mysteries of Udolpho is a quintessential Gothic romance, replete with incidents of physical and psychological terror: remote crumbling castles, seemingly supernatural events, a brooding, scheming villain and a persecuted heroine. Modern editors note that only about a third of the novel is set in the eponymous Gothic castle, while tone and style vary markedly between sections of the work, to which Radcliffe added extended descriptions of exotic landscapes in the Pyrenees and Apennines, and of Venice, none of which she had visited. For details she relied on travel books, which led her to make several anachronisms. The novel, set in 1584 in southern France and northern Italy, explores the plight of Emily St. Aubert, a young French woman orphaned by the death of her father. She is imprisoned in Castle Udolpho by Signor Montoni, an Italian brigand who has married her aunt and guardian Madame Cheron. He and others frustrate Emily's romance with the dashing Valancourt. Emily also investigates a relationship between her father and the Marchioness de Villeroi, and its connection to Castle Udolpho. Emily St. Aubert is the only child of a landed rural family whose fortunes are in decline. Emily and her father share a notably close bond in a shared appreciation for nature. They grow still closer after her mother's death from illness. She accompanies him on a journey from their native Gascony, through the Pyrenees to the Mediterranean coast of Roussillon, over many mountainous landscapes. During the journey, they encounter Valancourt, a handsome man who also feels an almost mystical kinship with the natural world. Emily and Valancourt fall in love. Emily's father succumbs to a long illness. Emily, now orphaned, is forced by his wishes to live with her aunt, Madame Cheron, who shares none of Emily's interests and shows little affection for her. Her aunt marries Montoni, a dubious nobleman from Italy. He wants his friend Count Morano to become Emily's husband and tries to force him upon her. After discovering that Morano is nearly ruined, Montoni brings Emily and her aunt to his remote castle of Udolpho. Emily fears she has lost Valancourt forever. Morano searches for Emily and tries to carry her off secretly from Udolpho, but Emily's heart still belongs to Valancourt, and she refuses. Morano's attempted escape is discovered by Montoni, who wounds the Count and chases him away. In subsequent months, Montoni threatens his wife with violence, trying to force her to sign over her properties in Toulouse that will otherwise go to Emily on his wife's death. Without resigning her estate, Madame Cheron dies of a severe illness caused by her husband's harshness. Many frightening but coincidental events happen in the castle, but Emily manages to flee with the help of a secret admirer, Du Pont, also a prisoner there, and of the servants Annette and Ludovico. Returning to her aunt's estate, Emily learns that Valancourt has gone to Paris and lost his wealth. Nonetheless, she takes control of the property and is reunited with Valancourt in the end. ===== Two sisters Zara (Shehnaz Sheikh) and Sanya (Marina Khan) go to Karachi to visit their maternal aunt Zubi (Badar Khalil) while their parents, back home, meet with an unfortunate car accident and die. After their death, the girls find out that their father was heavily in debt and they have to sell all their assets including their house which their father had so lovingly built. All their friends turn their backs on them and they move in with their aunt Zubi. In Karachi, while Sanya tries to adjust to their new life, Zara becomes obsessed with the idea to re-buy their house. She begins the pursuit to become rich. Here Saad Salman (Amir Hatmi) becomes her partner and together they start a garment factory. Sanya, on the other hand, soon befriends their landlord Faraan (Qazi Wajid) and becomes a pain for his secretary Qutbutdin (Behroze Sabzwari) whom she calls Qabacha (the name refers to Nasir ad-Din Qabacha who was the Muslim Turkic governor of Multan in 1203 AD). Farhan has a sister Apa Begum (Azra Sherwani) who lives in another house with her trusted servant Buqrat (Jamshed Ansari). Apa Begum is very keen on getting Farhan married and he impulsively proposes to Zubi. Zain (Asif Raza Mir), Zara's childhood friend, along with his fiancée Vida (Yasmeen Ismail), comes to visit them. Zara asks Vida to join in her factory as a designer and together the two start making brilliant designs which become very popular. However Zara’s quest for money takes her away from her family, especially from Sanya who feels neglected. Saad Salman proposes to Zara and even though the family disapproves, Zara accepts. Finally Zara's dream comes true and she has enough money to buy back her house. She goes to Lahore and finalizes the deal. However, when she enters her house, she is haunted by memories of the past and all the love that she has lost. In a flash, she realizes what she has achieved is an empty house, and in the process has distanced her family. Loneliness consumes her, she runs out of the house terrified and meets an accident. Zara awakens to find her family close by but she is not able to speak or move. Initially, the doctors explain that it might be due to her spinal injuries. Later on, doctors say that she has gone into shock and does not have the will to live; there is nothing wrong physically with her. It is implied to the viewer that she has lost the will to struggle as she realizes that she has pushed everyone away from her in pursuit of what she thought was important and was all alone when what should have been her biggest triumph of finally buying the parents' house back. Saad, her fiancé, prefers to have a very strong, smart and pretty wife to project success in life. Saad becomes unsure about Zara after her accident as the doctors are skeptical about her recovery. Zara notices that Saad has lost interest in her and decides to return the engagement ring, which she eventually throws away in the garbage. Saad leaves Pakistan and travels abroad. Zara's family try to reassure her regarding the love and affection they have for her. During this time, Zain is shown to be very concerned for Zara's well being. The closeness between Zara and Zain disturbs Vida (his fiancée); Zain's father senses this and insists that Zain marries Vida as he had promised her parents a long time back. Zain agrees to his father's wishes. Zain then meets Zara and tells her that he has to leave Pakistan and go to Canada after marrying Vida, and he wants to see Zara up and about before that. Upon hearing this, Zara takes hesitant steps and is able to walk. An overjoyed Zain recounts this to Vida, who comments that he must be the happiest man on earth. She tells him that she is happy for him and urges him to see clearly as he is madly in love with Zara. She tells him that she has explained the whole situation to Zain's father and would be flying off to Canada alone. The last sequence shows Zara sitting alone in a party surrounded by friends and family as if waiting for somebody; suddenly the sounds and surroundings dim as Zain walks in. They have an unspoken conversation across the room when she tells that she had been waiting long for him and where he had gone all this time? He is shown expressing that he was and always will be with her. In a quick transition, the music and surroundings come back into focus with every body crowding in a loud cheer around them. Zara finally fills the void of loneliness (Tanhaiyaan). ===== Andy Jones stars as Faustus Bidgood, a clerk in the Newfoundland provincial department of education who harbours secret dreams of becoming president of Newfoundland and leading the province to secede from Canada. The film contains several levels of what might be termed competing "realities, " oscillating between visions of mundane office work and sequences in which Bidgood accidentally leads a revolution, and containing a film within a film that narrates Faustus' real life and imaginary rise to power. In the film within a film, we learn that Faustus' paternal grandfather has predicted that a great man will lead the people of Newfoundland to glory. His name is the Reverend Dempster Peebles, although his son (Faustus' father) is named Bruce Bidgood and Faustus full name is Faustus Peebles Bidgood. ===== One year ago, Dr. Brown had created the World Heroes tournament in order to find out on who the strongest fighter of history is, but because of the unexpected arrival and interference of Geegus, Dr. Brown was unable to get his answer. Now Dr. Brown is prepared to hold the tournament once again, not only having to invite the eight original fighters back for a second round, but also having to bring forth six new fighters as well, each and every one of them seeking to prove themselves in being the strongest fighter of history. Dr. Brown hopes that this time around, a definite winner will truly come out of the World Heroes tournament and emerge as the strongest fighter of history without interference from Geegus or other threats. ===== The plot follows ski instructor Lili Heiser (Henie), who works at a local luxury hotel in the Swiss Alps. She falls in love with a man who goes skiing every morning (Power). She thinks he's an everyday tourist, not knowing that he's a prince trying to escape the pressures of royal life. The movie showcased Sonja Henie's skating talents. After winning gold in the 1928, 1932 and 1936 Winter Olympics, Henie became a professional film actress in 1936. The film also features Tyrone Power in the beginnings of his career. ===== Eun Jae (Han Chae-young) is a very stubborn and proud 20-year-old girl who has a passion for cooking. Because she does not have an interest in studying, she runs away to Vicenza in Italy before she graduates from high school to enroll in a cooking school. Her high school friend, who loves her dearly and shares her passion for cooking, comes along with her. Han Yi-joon (Jo Hyun-jae) is from a wealthy family who owns a large hotel and various restaurants. He travels to Italy in search of his mother that abandoned his family when he was young and there he runs into Eun Jae. Coincidentally, Eun Jae had also been seeking the mother, who happens to be a chef in Vicenza, to learn the secrets to making great pasta. Both chance upon the mother just as she was about to get remarried to an Italian. She comforts Yi-Joon, who is distraught over his mother's remarriage, and they spend the night together. She ends up pregnant and has to give up her dream - but does not tell Yi-Joon. Six years later, they have all returned to live in South Korea - Eun Jae working low paying cooking jobs, Yi-Joon taking over the operations of his family's restaurant, and Eun Jae's friend working as a chef for one of the restaurants owned by Yi-Joon and financially supporting Eun Jae's family, including the child born out of wedlock, because they have fallen on hard times. Yi-Joon still has feelings for Eun Jae and they run into each other just as he is looking for a new chef for his restaurant-with her in mind. Soon Hyeon who is a family friend of Yi-joon is in love with him and tries to confess her feelings to him ===== ===== Walter Koontz (Robert De Niro) is a highly decorated "local hero" officer of the New York police department who lives in a downtown apartment complex. Despite his locale and rampant run of drag queens in his building, he tends to keep to himself and still lives a life involved with lovely women, dancing and dining. One night, he hears gunshots upstairs, and while ascending to help suffers a stroke. He awakens with the right side of his body paralyzed resulting in poor speech and posture, and giving him an unrecoverable limp that requires him to use a cane to get around. He suffers a massive blow to his ego, and Walter becomes ashamed to be seen in public in such a fashion. Rusty (Philip Seymour Hoffman) is one of Walter's drag queen neighbors, and the two are at odds constantly due to their differing lifestyles. Rusty has a desire to undergo a sex reassignment surgery, but lacks the money to do so. When Walter comes to Rusty to use his musical talents for voice lessons to overcome his impediment, the pair, while at first argumentative and uncomfortable with each other, slowly become friends. Walter begins to gain confidence and make strides to return to a normal life. However, their friendship is marred when Rusty shows Walter a stash of money, hidden in the body of his dress making mannequin, which is enough to pay for his operation. When Walter inquires how Rusty got the money, Rusty says he stole it from a drug pusher, who was also responsible for the attack the night Walter had his stroke. Outraged by this, Walter and Rusty part ways angrily. One night, after returning from a drag beauty contest called "Flawless", Rusty is accosted by the criminals who had crept into his apartment to find the stolen money. Walter hears the commotion and runs up to save Rusty's life. Rusty locks himself in the bedroom, and when Walter comes in, the criminals turn their attention to him, prompting Rusty to return the favor. In the fight, Walter is shot by the criminals, but the pair are able to subdue them. While boarding an ambulance with Walter, Rusty gives the paramedics the stolen cash to ensure that Walter is okay. The pair again rekindle their friendship, setting their personal differences aside. ===== This animated movie depicts Hanuman's life from birth. The narrator is actor Mukesh Khanna. The movie relays how Hanuman was born to Anjani (a female Apsara) and Kesari, by the blessings of Vayu-Dev, the Wind God. Hanuman, who is the 11th rudra avatar of Shiva was blessed with supreme intelligence, strength and divine powers. As a baby, Hanuman was quite naughty and used his powers to pester the saints living in the nearby forest. Once when he was hungry, he leapt to catch the sun thinking it was a fruit. On the insistence of Vayu, Indra and the other Gods came together to bless Hanuman with immortal life. Hanuman's blessings include: no fear/harm from the Brahmastra, no harm could befall him from weapons, fire or water. He could overcome death and he could transform his body to take the smallest form or attain the biggest form of life. Blessed with divine powers Hanuman grew up to be powerful. He helped Lord Ram and Laxman in their search for Sita. Hanuman burned the golden city Lanka and with his super powers helped Lord Ram and Laxman defeat Ravana and secure the release of Sita. Seeing his devotion and love towards him, Lord Ram blessed Hanuman with the boon of immortality. ===== The tailcoat is custom made for renowned stage actor Paul Orman (Charles Boyer), who seeks to rekindle a romance with former flame Ethel (Rita Hayworth), who is receptive. However, she is now married, and her husband John (Thomas Mitchell) finds them together. John offers to show Paul his weapon collection, in particular his favorite hunting rifle. He deliberately loads it. Paul makes no move to escape and is shot by the jealous husband. As Paul feigns death, John claims to his wife, the sole witness, that it was an accident. Ethel finally realizes she loves John and tells him so; she agrees to support his story. Paul comes back to life, surprising the couple and telling them that John missed completely. Paul then leaves the couple, but later collapses in his limousine. He instructs his valet Luther (Eugene Pallette) to take him to the hospital to be treated. Later Luther offers the topcoat, complete with a bullet hole, as collateral for a $10 loan from his friend Edgar (Roland Young). Edgar is the butler of Harry Wilson (Cesar Romero), who is about to marry Diane (Ginger Rogers). However, Diane's friend Ellen (Gail Patrick), who is divorcing her husband for infidelity, dares her to examine the contents of Harry's topcoat. She finds a love letter from someone called "Squirrel" (Marion Martin) to her "passionate lion". Harry overhears and persuades his best man George (Henry Fonda) to pretend that he took Harry's topcoat by mistake after a party last night and that the letter is actually his. George, who has feelings for Diane himself, reluctantly agrees. Diane is completely fooled ... and begins to see George (whom she thought of as "dim") in an entirely different, much more romantic light. Diane learns the truth when Squirrel shows up. She dumps Harry and leaves with George. Afterward, Luther and Edgar pawn the topcoat for $10. It eventually ends up with Charles Smith (Charles Laughton), an unknown classical music composer. A friend arranges a meeting with famed conductor Arturo Bellini (Victor Francen), who is impressed with his composition. He is offered the opportunity to conduct the premiere of his work at Carnegie Hall. At the last minute, he is informed he must be properly attired. Elsa hurriedly buys the topcoat for him, but it is a very tight fit. When he conducts, it rips at both shoulders and the audience erupts with laughter. Charles is brought to tears. However, Bellini stands up in his concert box, pointedly removes his own tailcoat and asks him to continue; one by one, the "gentlemen" in the audience remove their own tailcoats. After the triumphant performance, Charles donates the topcoat to charity. Joe (James Gleason), who runs a mission for the poor, delivers a letter to alcoholic panhandler Larry Browne (Edward G. Robinson). It is an invitation to his 25th anniversary college reunion, held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Joe convinces Larry to attend, hoping it will help him rebuild his life. Larry manages to convince his former classmates that he is successful, even getting a job offer, but one of them, Williams (George Sanders), knows that Larry was a shady lawyer in Chicago who was disbarred. When one man cannot find his wallet, the group hold a mock trial, with Larry as the defendant and Williams as the prosecutor. In the end, Larry ultimately tells everything and leaves. The next morning, however, three of his classmates come to the mission to let him know the job is still his. The topcoat ends up in a second-hand shop, has an adventure with a tale featuring W. C. Fields, Phil Silvers and Margaret Dumont [see below]; where it is stolen by a thief (J. Carrol Naish). He wears it to get into an upscale illegal gambling parlor to rob the patrons. In his escape by plane, the jacket catches on fire and the panicked thief throws it out, with $43,000 of loot in the pockets. It lands by Luke (Paul Robeson) and Esther (Ethel Waters), a poor black couple. They take it to their minister (Eddie Anderson), and they decide to give it to their congregation to buy whatever they have prayed for. An old farmer (George Reed) tells Luke that the only thing he prayed for is a scarecrow, so Luke gives him the now ragged jacket to make one. ===== Teenager Jim Carroll is a drug-addicted high school basketball player who regularly gets into mischief with his friends Pedro, Mickey and Neutron. He writes in his journal regularly. Jim's best friend, Bobby, is dying of leukemia; Jim visits him in the hospital and takes him to a strip show. Later, Bobby dies, and Jim and his friends attend his funeral. Following the funeral, Jim and his friends go to the basketball court and reminisce about Bobby's life. Depressed over Bobby's death, Jim begins to use heroin. At basketball practice, Jim's coach Swifty sees Jim in the bathroom, gropes him, and offers to pay him for sex. Jim refuses and pushes Swifty headfirst into a wall. Jim imagines shooting his classmates. The next day, before a game, Jim, Pedro, and Mickey take pills from Pedro's hat, hoping they are uppers. Neutron refuses the pills and confronts Jim about his growing drug habit. The pills are downers, and they cause the boys to perform disastrously during the game. A teacher tells Jim and Mickey that they are suspended for a week, and Swifty tells Jim he will never play basketball for his school again. Jim and Mickey quit the team and drop out of school, while Neutron stays. Jim's mother kicks him out of the house after finding his stash of drugs. Jim, Mickey, and Pedro break into a candy shop for money. Mickey finds a gun in the cash register and takes it. Hearing sirens, Jim and Mickey escape, but Pedro is arrested. Jim passes out in the snow high on heroin. Jim's friend Reggie finds him, takes him to his apartment, and forces him to detox. Back on the street, Jim is desperate for drugs and resorts to prostituting himself at a public restroom. Later, Jim and Mickey buy heroin, but discover that the dealer ripped them off. Enraged, Mickey corners the dealer on the roof of an apartment building. He accidentally pushes him off the roof to his death. Mickey tries to escape, but is beaten by a gang and then arrested; he is later tried as an adult and convicted. After escaping, Jim goes to his mother's apartment and she reports him to the police. Jim is arrested, convicted, and sentenced to six months' incarceration at Rikers Island for assault, robbery, resisting arrest, and possession of narcotics and spends the time in jail getting clean. Jim approaches a stage door to give a poetry reading. He encounters Pedro, who has been released from reform school. Pedro offers him a bag of drugs, which Jim refuses. Jim recites his work before an audience and receives applause. ===== The story begins with a girl named Susanna English. She is the second child of three, Mary and her brother at sea, William. She desperately wants to join an inner circle of girls who meet every night at the Reverend's house. The leader of the girls, Ann Putnam, is going to set off a torrent of false accusations leading to the imprisonment of innocent people in Salem. She names people her mother disliked as witches, and the elders of Salem believe them. Ann tells Susanna everything about their plan, but if Susanna tells anyone, Ann will name Susanna's parents as witches. Susanna must choose between keeping quiet and breaking charity (that is, telling tales), risking her family being named as witches. Later on, the afflicted girls accuse Susanna's mother and father of being witches, even though she told no one about what Ann said to her. Susanna then starts to believe in witches until her future husband, Johnathon gets her to meet an accused witch so she can see they are fake. She finally tells Joseph, Ann's uncle, leader of the "non-witch 'believers" what she knows, and together, they put a stop to it with help from powerful people (like magistrates). Fourteen years later she returns to hear Ann Putnam apologize for all the innocent people imprisoned, or hanged. This story is based on true happenings of 1692. ===== The Sahara is being flooded to create a new sea when the protagonist of the novel, Mark Sunnet, crashes his private rocket plane into an island of what is currently little more than a large lake. He soon finds himself, his female companion, Margaret Lawn, and a stray cat they call Bast, sucked into a cavern where they are promptly captured by mysterious pygmies. The diet of little people is centred on large fungi; the captives speculate that stories which reached the surface of the little people and their giant mushrooms may have led to the myth of gnomes. Sunnet finds that a tiered community has evolved in the caverns — the pygmies inhabiting a large underground collection of natural and artificial caverns and tunnels, and the captured humans in a deliberately isolated subsection of the caverns. He is also surprised to learn that family life exists in the caverns — "natives", children of captured humans who were born and have lived all their lives in the caverns exist, and are generally happy with their life, and have no wish to escape. By virtue of being accompanied by Bast, the pygmies consider Margaret to be divine and keep her isolated in a separate area of the caverns. Most of the captured humans do wish to escape, and two different methods are being tried. Both are tunnels, one going up at an angle, to try and break through to the surface, and another on a level, hoping to intersect a pygmy tunnel or cavern, from where they will be able to make their way to the surface. The pygmies are distressed, and it is Sunnet's arrival that reveals why to the captives — the pygmies fear their environment will be flooded and destroyed by the newly formed Saharan Sea. Their fear is well founded, and the waters break through into the pygmy caverns, eventually flooding the entire ecosystem. Sunnet, Margaret and Bast, and a handful of others survive. The story finishes with sunburn after years of subterranean life, and the establishing of a new company based on primitive — but unique — technology the escapees brought with them from the caverns. ===== Set in a private mental institution, Chestnut Lodge in Rockville, Maryland, the film tells of a trainee occupational therapist, a troubled ex-soldier named Vincent Bruce (Beatty), who becomes dangerously obsessed with seductive, artistic, schizophrenic patient Lilith Arthur (Seberg). Bruce makes progress helping Lilith emerge from seclusion and leave the institutional grounds for a day in the country and accompanies her on other excursions in which she is alone with him. She attempts to seduce him, and eventually Bruce tells Lilith he is in love with her. Lilith also seduces an older female patient and enchants a couple of young boys on one of her outings. Bruce triggers the suicide of another patient (Fonda) out of jealousy over the patient's crush on Lilith. This brings up memories in Lilith of her brother's suicide, which she implies was due to an incestuous relationship that she initiated, and she goes on a destructive rampage in her room and winds up in a catatonic state. Bruce presents himself to his superiors for psychiatric help. ===== It tells the story of a nameless girl from rural Minnesota who works in a bar in St. Paul. Clara, a fellow waitress working as a prostitute on the side, takes the girl under her wing as she learns the rudimentaries of love and sex, but also of rape, prostitution, abortion, and domestic violence. Along with the bar-owner Belle and the labor organizer Amelia, Clara and the girl watch their unemployed men self-destruct one by one under the grinding conditions of the Depression. Impregnated by her lover Butch, the girl secretly defies his demand that she get an abortion, hoping that the money from a bank robbery will enable them to get married. However, Butch and three other men are shot and killed during the crime, and the girl, dependent on state assistance during her pregnancy, is forced into a relief maternity home where sterilization after delivery is routine. Amelia rescues the girl before she has her baby, but fails to save Clara from state-mandated electric shock treatments that shatter her health and her sanity. The novel ends with the climactic conjunction of three dramatic events: a mass demonstration demanding "Milk and Iron Pills for Clara," Clara's death scene, and the birth of the girl's baby. The novel closes as an intergenerational community of women vow to "let our voice be heard in the whole city" (130). Link text Originally completed in 1939, the book was blacklisted during the McCarthy Era for its alleged Communist ideas. In the 1970s, Le Sueur modified the story, making Girl's baby a girl instead of a boy, and the book was eventually published in 1978. Feminists' interest in the novel led to renewed attention for the author. ===== Set in 1898, the movie follows Ezra Lambert and his family as they travel from Sacramento to the Yukon gold country in search of riches. Problems arise when Ezra is injured by a grizzly bear, forcing his young son to set out in search of help. ===== An elderly couple tries to visit their deranged son in a sanatorium on his birthday. They are informed that he attempted to take his life and they cannot see him now. After their return home, the husband announces his decision to take him out of the sanatorium. The story concludes with mysterious telephone calls. The first two apparently misdialed calls are from a girl asking for "Charlie"; the story ends when the phone rings for the third time. In the course of the story the reader learns many details of the unnamed couple's life: they are Russian Jews who went into exile after the revolution; depend financially upon the husband's brother, Isaac; had a German maid when they lived in Germany; had an aunt, Rosa, and many other relatives who died in the Holocaust; and have a nephew who is a famous chess player. The elderly man is in bad health. The son suffers from "referential mania", where "the patient imagines that everything happening around him is a veiled reference to his personality and existence". "Everything is a cipher and of everything he is the theme". Real people are excluded from this paranoia, and the condition is worse the further he is away from familiar surroundings. The son's condition is based on a real condition—compare ideas of reference. ===== Painter Claude Lantier advocates painting real subjects in real places, most notably outdoors. This is in stark contrast to the artistic establishment, where artists painted in the studio and concentrated on mythological, historical and religious subjects. His art making is revolutionary and he has a small circle of like-minded friends equally intent on shaking up the art world and challenging the establishment. His best friends are his childhood comrades Pierre Sandoz, novelist and Louis Dubuche, an architect. Like Zola, Sandoz contemplates a series of novels about a family based in science and incorporating modern people and everyday lives. Dubuche is not half as bold as Claude and, he chooses a more conventional course, opting for the security of a middle-class life and a bourgeois marriage. Sandoz also pursues marriage – not for love but stability and to better understand what he is writing about. The outcry in the artistic community over the sidelining of new artists in favor of popular, established, traditional artists at the annual Salon of the Académie des Beaux-Arts leads to the creation of a Salon des Refusés for the rejected artists to display their work. No painting gathers more interest or generates more criticism than Claude's. Entitled Plein Air (Open Air), it depicts a nude female figure in the front center and two female nudes in the background, with a fully dressed man, back to the viewer in the foreground. (Zola deliberately invokes Le déjeuner sur l'herbe by Édouard Manet, which provoked outcries at the actual Salon des Refusés in 1863.) Claude moves to the country to soak up more of the 'Open Air' atmosphere he revelled in as a child and to create more masterpieces. Accompanying him is Christine Hallegrain, who served as the model for Claude's nude and they have a son. Claude is unable to paint much and grows more and more depressed. For the sake of his health, Christine convinces him to return to Paris. Claude has three paintings in three years rejected by the Salon before a spectacular view of the Île de la Cité captures his imagination. He becomes obsessed with this vision and constructs a massive canvas on which to paint his masterpiece. He is unable to project his ideas successfully or combine them into a meaningful whole. He begins adding incongruous elements (like a female nude bather), reworks and repaints until the whole enterprise collapses into disaster, then starts over. His inability to create his masterpiece deepens his depression. The slow breakup of his circle of friends contributes to his decaying mental state, as does the success of one of his confreres, a lesser talent who has co-opted the 'Open Air' school and made it a critical and financial triumph. Christine, whom he has at last married, watches as the painting – and especially the nude – begins to destroy his soul. When their son dies, Claude is inspired to paint a picture of the dead body that is accepted by the Salon (after considerable politicking). The painting is ridiculed for its subject and its execution and Claude again turns to his huge landscape. Christine watches as he spirals further into obsession and madness. A last-ditch effort to free him from Art in general and from his wished-for masterpiece in particular has an effect but in the end Claude hangs himself from his scaffolding. The only ones of his old friends who attend his funeral are Sandoz and Bongrand, an elder statesman of the artistic community who recognized and helped nurture Claude's genius. ===== Heat Guy J chronicles the adventures of a young Special Services officer named Daisuke Aurora and his android partner known simply as "J". The pair live and work in the fictional, futuristic Metropolis of "Judoh" (Jewde), where the understaffed and underfunded Special Services Division of the Bureau of Urban Safety has its headquarters. ===== Odo gets a coded message from Gul Russol and takes off to meet him, even though he considers the possibility that it could be a trap. In fact it is a ploy for Weyoun to meet with Odo. Odo distrusts Weyoun, not believing that he would turn his back on the Founders, and the situation takes a turn for the strange when another Weyoun hails their runabout. It transpires that the Weyoun they had come to know for the past few years was recently disintegrated in a transporter accident, and the version currently with Odo (Weyoun VI) is a "defective" clone that does not believe the Founders to be infallible and questions the necessity of the Dominion's war with the Alpha Quadrant powers. His replacement (Weyoun VII) tells Odo that he would be happy to have their runabout destroyed in order to prevent Weyoun VI's secrets from reaching the Federation, even if it means killing Odo. In fact, the female changeling appears, demanding an update. Weyoun VII is subservient but vague in his answers, not revealing Odo as their target. Damar is suspicious of the Founder's appearance. As they try to escape the pursuing Jem'Hadar, Weyoun VI reveals to Odo that an illness is spreading in the Great Link and all the Founders except Odo are dying. It turns out their meeting was a ploy to urge Odo to rebuild the Dominion according to his ideal. Under attack from dominion ships, Weyoun VI tells Odo he lives to serve him, hails the other dominion ships, and triggers his voluntary destruct mechanism. Seeing this, Weyoun VII stops his attack and offers assistance to Odo. Before dying, Weyoun VI asks Odo for a blessing. At about the same time Odo departed, Benjamin Sisko goes to a conference on Bajor, and orders Miles O'Brien to have the gravity fixed on the USS Defiant before his return. Sisko is unconcerned that O'Brien lacks the one crucial piece of equipment required to make the repair. Nog offers to help O'Brien by navigating "the Great Material Continuum", a Ferengi concept of economics and trade - described as "millions of worlds, all with too much of one and not enough of the other." O'Brien reluctantly gives Nog his authorization code, which Nog uses to make a long series of trades based on rumors, including loaning out Sisko's desk and selling General Martok's prized bloodwine. An increasingly alarmed O'Brien watches with dismay as the young Ferengi works deal after deal; meanwhile, the part he requires appears no closer to arriving. In the end, Sisko's desk is returned to its proper place; Martok's bloodwine is replaced with an even better vintage, a 2309, procured from Nog's cousin Gant; the Defiant is finally repaired; and Sisko himself returns to the station with no idea that it's been anything other than 'business as usual' on DS9. In his quarters, Odo ponders the blessing he gave Weyoun VI. ===== Celie is an African-American girl in early 20th century rural Georgia. By the time she is 14 years old, she already has two children, both of whom are given away by her sexually-abusive father, also the father of her children. When a man called Mister proposes marriage to Celie’s younger sister, Nettie, their father pushes him to take Celie instead, forcing her into an abusive marriage. Celie's loving younger sister, Nettie, runs away from the abusive father and seeks shelter with Celie. The sisters promise to write if they are separated. Mister sexually assaults Nettie and he kicks her out after she fights him off. Years later, Celie is meek from abuse. Mister's son Harpo marries Sofia, and Celie is shocked to find her running a matriarchal household. Harpo attempts to overpower and strike Sofia but he fails. Celie advises Harpo to beat Sofia. Sofia retaliates and confronts Celie, revealing her long history of abuse. She threatens to kill Harpo if he beats her again and tells Celie to do likewise to Mister. Harpo doesn't change, so Sofia leaves and takes their children. When Sofia leaves Harpo, he begins a relationship with Mary Agnes, whose nickname, Squeak, signifies her potential as another female victim. Physically Squeak is small and quite submissive, with a faint voice. She is also the only character expressly identified as mixed race, having both white and black ancestry. Mister and Harpo bring home the ailing Shug Avery, a showgirl and Mister's long-time mistress. Celie, who has slowly developed a fondness for Shug through a photograph sent to Mister, is in awe of Shug's strong will. She nurses Shug back to health, and Shug in turn takes a liking to her, writing and performing a song about her at Harpo's newly opened bar. Shug tells Celie she's moving to Memphis, and Celie confesses to Shug that Mister beats her. Shug tells Celie she's beautiful and that she loves her, and they kiss. Celie packs her things to follow Shug to Memphis, but gets caught by Mister. Meanwhile, Sofia has been imprisoned for striking the town's mayor after he assaulted her for insulting his wife. While in prison, Squeak comes to visit her. When she figures out she is the blood-relative of the white warden, Celie and the other women “dress Squeak like a white woman”. She goes to the prison to plead for Sophia’s release, only to return after having been raped by the warden. This event changes Squeak, causing her to realize her power and self- worth. From this point onwards, Squeak insists that she is called by her given name Mary Agnes. Reclaiming it symbolizes her new strength and shortly afterwards she begins a singing career in the juke joint. Sofia, now a shell of her former self, is released from prisononly to be immediately ordered by the judge to become a maid to the mayor's wife, Ms. Millie, for almost twelve years. Having not seen her children in eight years, Sofia is allotted Christmas to be with her family, and Ms. Millie tries to drive her, but panics and turns around after encountering a group of Sofia's friends, who were only trying to help her. Shug returns to Celie and Mister's home with her new husband, Grady, expecting to receive a recording contract. Shug gives Celie a letter from Nettie, who tells her that she's working for a couple that has adopted Celie's children. Celie and Shug realize that Mister has been hiding Nettie's letters from Celie; while he and Grady are out drinking, the two search the house and find a hidden compartment under the floor boards filled with dozens and dozens of Nettie's letters. Engrossed in reading, Celie does not hear Mister's calls to shave him and he beats her. Celie attempts to kill Mister with a straight razor, but Shug intervenes and stops her. At a family gathering, Celie finally speaks up against Mister to the delight of Shug and Sofia, who finds her old fighting spirit. Mary Agnes joins the other female assertions of independence by declaring that she is moving north to be a professional singer, with Shug’s assistance, while Sofia looks after Susie Q, the child that Mary Agnes had by Harpo. Shug and Grady drive away, taking Celie and Mary Agnes with them. Years later, Celie owns and operates a tailor shop. Mister is old, a drunk, and alone, and Harpo has made amends with Sofia; the two now run the bar together, and Shug still performs there. Mary Agnes leaves Grady and their plantation in Panama, succeeds in her singing career and ends up moving back to her family in Memphis with Susie Q. Celie's father passes away, and she finally learns from Nettie's letters that although he wasn't their biological father, when their mother passed, "his" property was legally inherited by Celie and Nettie. Mister receives a letter from Nettie addressed to Celie, takes money from his secret stash, and arranges for Nettie, her husband, and Celie's children to return to the U.S., where they finally reunite while Mister watches from a distance. ===== In a distant galaxy, a starship searches for the evil Count Zarth Arn (Spinell). Closing in on a planet, the ship is attacked by a mysterious weapon which drives the crew insane. Three escape pods launch during the attack, but the ship crashes into the atmosphere of the planet and is destroyed. Meanwhile, smugglers Stella Star (Munro) and Akton (Gortner) run into the Imperial Space Police, led by robot sheriff Elle (Judd Hamilton) and Police Chief Thor (Robert Tessier). Akton and Stella escape by jumping into hyperspace. When they emerge, they discover an escape pod from the attacked starship, and in it, a sole disoriented survivor. Before they can escape, they are apprehended by the police, who have tracked their hyperspace trail. Tried and convicted of piracy, they are each sentenced to life in prison on separate prison planets. Stella manages to escape from her prison, but Elle and Thor recapture her, only to inform her the authorities have canceled her sentence; she is taken to an orbiting ship, where she is reunited with Akton. They are contacted holographically by the Emperor of the Galaxy (Plummer), who thanks them for recovering the starship survivor. He informs them that Count Zarth Arn has a secret weapon of immense power hidden away on a planet somewhere. The Emperor orders Stella and Akton to find the Count's weapon. They are offered clemency if they help find two more missing escape pods as well as the mothership, one of which may contain the Emperor's only son. With Thor and Elle accompanying them, Stella and Akton set off on their quest. They quickly arrive at the location Akton computes for the first escape pod. Stella and Elle take a shuttle from the spaceship and land near the pod on a sandy, rocky beach. There are no living survivors. Stella meets an Amazonian warrior tribe and is escorted to their underground fortress. On arrival, Elle is ambushed, shot and left for dead, and Stella is taken captive. Stella is taken before Amazon Queen Corelia (Nadia Cassini), who is in league with Zarth Arn. Elle, revealed not to have died, makes his way to the throne room, taking Corelia hostage to secure Stella's release. They escape, but the queen activates a giant female robot which chases them until they are rescued by Akton and Thor. On an uninhabited, frozen planet, Stella and Elle investigate the mothership crash site. As with the first crash site, they find no survivors. Upon their return to the ship, Thor, who has ambushed and apparently knocked out Akton, reveals that he is an agent of Zarth Arn. Thor locks Stella and Elle outside on the planet's surface, where the temperature drops thousands of degrees at night, but Elle is able to preserve Stella's life by using his energy to keep her heart going while they freeze over in the snow. Meanwhile, Akton revives and battles Thor, killing him and subsequently rescuing Elle and Stella. Approaching the planet of the third escape pod, their ship comes under attack from the same weapon seen at the beginning of the film, but Akton steers the ship through it, saving them. Stella and Elle, inspecting the pod wreckage, are attacked by cavemen who smash Elle to pieces and abduct Stella, but a man in a golden mask arrives, firing lasers through his eyes, and rescues her. He is revealed to be the Emperor's son, Prince Simon (Hasselhoff). They are again attacked and overpowered by the cavemen, but Akton appears and fights them off with his laser sword; he then reveals that they are standing on the Count's weaponized planet. Arriving at an underground laboratory, the three are captured by the guards. The Count appears and reveals his plan to use them as bait to bring the Emperor to the planet and then have his weapon self- destruct, destroying the planet, the Emperor and all three of them. He leaves, ordering his two robot golems to keep the group there. Akton engages them in a laser sword duel and defeats the robots, but is mortally wounded and fades away. The Emperor arrives at the planet and fires a green ray from his flagship to "stop time" for three minutes, allowing them all to escape as the planet explodes behind them. A huge battle commences between the Emperor's armada and the Count's, with the Emperor's soldiers storming the Count's space station; however, the attack fails and the victorious Count gets ready to destroy the Emperor's home planet. With no further options left, the Emperor decides to ram a massive space station, the Floating City, into the Count's space station, destroying them both. Elle has been rebuilt by the Emperor's men. Stella and Elle volunteer to smash the City into the Count's station. They fly the City towards the space station and manage to escape together just as their station crashes into the Count's, finally winning the war. Stella and Elle are picked up by Simon and the two humans embrace. The movie ends with the Emperor delivering a short victory speech. ===== The novel is about 43-year-old Dr. Ernst Sebastian, a lawyer who works as an Untersuchungsrichter (investigating judge) in the fictional town of Sankt Nikolaus during 1927. One Saturday afternoon a middle-aged man called Franz Adler, who has been arrested for the murder of a prostitute, is brought before him. During the interview--a preliminary hearing during which the two men are alone in Sebastian's office-- Sebastian recognizes Adler as his old classmate, who attended the secondary school in Sankt Nikolaus, which was then in Austria-Hungary, for two years when they were both 16 and 17. Adler, however, who appears to him fearful and beaten by life, does not seem to recognize the judge, and Sebastian decides to postpone any private talk with Adler till the following Monday. As it happens, that same Saturday night Sebastian attends a class reunion (the Abituriententag of the title) occasioned by the 25th anniversary of his Matura (Class of '02), a meeting he knows he will regret going to as it will bring back both a plethora of unpleasant memories and a confrontation with the bourgeois self-satisfaction of his former classmates. That night, Sebastian does not go to sleep. Rather, upset by his chance meeting with Adler and the enervating talk at the class reunion, he sits down at his desk and writes down a confession in shorthand, which on the following morning turns out to be indecipherable to everyone including himself--except to the reader, who can read Sebastian's confession as the middle part of the novel). At the age of 16, Sebastian, on the command of his father, the highest-ranking judge in Austria-Hungary, has to leave the prestigious Schottengymnasium in Vienna due to poor grades and is forced to continue his education in the provincial town of Sankt Nikolaus, where he stays with two aunts of his. A mediocre pupil, he tries desperately to attract the attention of his new classmates, who turn out to be very reluctant to accept the new boy into their close-knit community. In the course of one school year, however, Sebastian succeeds in tempting, and eventually seducing, many of his classmates to truancy, stay up late on a regular basis, lie to their teachers and parents, drink excessive amounts of alcohol, and eventually associate with prostitutes. In particular, although he is aware of his mediocre performance at school and also of his own abominable character, Sebastian, rather than repent for his sins, sets out to conquer the intellectual superiority of his classmate Adler, a red-haired Jew who writes dramas and philosophical treatises, though he is only 17. To get rid of his rival once and for all, Sebastian pushes him into forging a document. The truth comes out, and before Adler can be expelled, Sebastian helps him escape to Germany, thus ensuring that his own part in the crime will never be revealed. On the Monday following the class reunion, Adler is again brought before Sebastian. This time the judge does reveal his identity to Adler, but on closer inspection of the file in front of him he finds out that the man's assertion that he has never gone to school in Sankt Nikolaus is true. ===== Bobby Johnson (Glenn Plummer) is a young black gang member of Hoover Street Deuces, or simply Deuce. He gets paroled from the Youth Authority, and he meets with his fellow gang members Ray Ray, Loco and Bear (Byron Keith Minns, Vincent Craig Dupree and Lexie Bigham, respectively). As it turns out, Bobby's girlfriend Carole (LaRita Shelby) gave birth to his son Jimmy (Christian Coleman) while he was incarcerated. The gang goes to Carole's apartment only to find out that she is not home. Ray Ray sees Carol outside the apartment of a heroin dealer named Genie Lamp. The two sides get into in altercation until Carole breaks up the argument. Later, Bobby and Carol embrace as they look forward to being a family now that Bobby is out of jail. Soon after, Ray Ray calls a meeting with the gang leaders from the other Deuce sets, in which he lays down the rules and introduces crack as means to financial gain for the gang. The Deuce gang attends a party at a small nightclub held by Genie Lamp. Genie is first reluctant to allow the gang inside until it is revealed by Ray Ray that Genie Lamp is running an illegal gambling establishment out back. As Bobby and Jimmy attempt to return home from the party, they are approached by Genie Lamp and his bodyguard, who force Bobby to come to Genie's apartment and snort a line of heroin. Genie threatens Bobby and the Deuce gang. Bobby and Jimmy return home in the morning to find Carole passed out on the couch from smoking PCP. Bobby seeks revenge, calling upon Ray Ray and the gang. The Deuces return to Genie Lamp's club and they shoot his bodyguard. Ray Ray talks Bobby into killing Genie with a pistol with a potato on the barrel as a silencer. Loco sprays the wall with a Deuce tag and the gang leaves. After, Ray Ray tattoos a black heart on Bobby's face as a badge of honor for killing an enemy for the progress of the gang. He is officially made an O.G. (original gangster). Bobby returns home and tells Carole that they have to move immediately. Bobby and Carole move into a small house. Carole is fed up with living in hiding and being broke. She complains to Bobby about Ray Ray benefiting from the drug trade while Bobby and the family are steadily broke. She leaves the house while Bobby and Jimmy stay behind. Soon after, two members of the Deuce gang pull up to Bobby's house in a brand-new red convertible. The guys ask Bobby to go for a ride and he reluctantly gives in. The gang drives down Hollywood Boulevard and encounters a suspected prostitute. Once the prostitute is in the car, Loco tells her that they are gang members and he shows her a vial of crack cocaine. The prostitute pulls out a gun and her police badge and informs the gang that she is an undercover Los Angeles police officer. The guys are taken to jail and Bobby is questioned by a detective for the murder of Genie Lamp. Bobby refuses to cooperate and the police allow him to see his son for the last time. Bobby gets a ten year prison sentence and is jailed for the murder he committed. Ten years later, Bobby's son Jimmy is a preteen hanging out with Deuce gang members. Jimmy is approached by Ray Ray, who informs Jimmy that he wants him to start stealing car stereos for him and Ray Ray will pay him for the stolen goods. Ray Ray then gives Jimmy some money and a marijuana joint. The next scene shows Bobby in prison lifting weights. Bobby, now a respected gang leader, sees some members of the Aryan Brotherhood cornering Loco. Bobby intervenes and saves Loco. Buddha (Tim DeZarn), the leader of the Aryan Brotherhood, informs Bobby that he now owes the Aryans 15 boxes of cigarettes. Over time, the film shows Jimmy stealing car stereos and selling them to Ray Ray for $20 a piece. Meanwhile, Loco tells Bobby that Ray Ray is betraying the gang by taking all of the gang's profits for himself and that Ray Ray has young Deuce members, including Jimmy, steal goods for him. Bobby is outraged further when Jimmy is shot in the back by a man named Willie Manchester (Ivory Ocean) while attempting to steal Willie's car radio. Bobby refuses to cooperate with the Deuce gang when they need his assistance, so the gang revokes his membership. This creates an open season on Bobby in prison because the gang was protecting him from attacks by the Aryan Brotherhood. One of the Aryans proceeds to steal Bobby's food during lunchtime, and Bobby beats the man to a pulp. Bobby is sent to solitary confinement. Meanwhile, Jimmy is seen recuperating in the hospital. He is taught how to play table tennis and is taken care of by a kind nurse. While in prison, Bobby is transferred out of solitary to a new cell in general population. He has a new cellmate, Ali (Carl Lumbly), who tries to reach out to Bobby. Soon after, the two get into an argument, and Ali tells Bobby that he lost his son to street violence by not being there for him as his father. Ali is serving a life sentence for killing the three men that murdered his son. Ali tells Bobby that the black man has to be there for his children and that Bobby has a second chance to do so since he is eligible for parole. The film switches over to Jimmy who tells an employee from child services that he had been abused and neglected by his mother Carole. He eventually is released from the hospital and taken to a juvenile halfway house. Bobby agrees to change his life for himself and his son, thanks to the efforts of Ali. Bobby is seen with Ali in the prison library, learning about figures from black history such as Marcus Garvey, W.E.B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington. Ali instructs Bobby to change his attitude because it is the key element to his getting parole and becoming a better man. Soon after, Bobby is granted parole and he thanks Ali for his help. Ali had a fellow prisoner remove Bobby's Deuce gang tattoo from his face and send him off with a decent haircut. Bobby tells Ali that he is no longer a Deuce gang member, that he is a man who will stand up alone as a man has to, and that he will give his life in order to save his son's life. Bobby sees Loco mopping the floors, and he gives Loco an African garment as a gift. Once released, he returns to the neighborhood that he and his former gang once controlled, South Central Los Angeles. Bobby comes home to find Carole asleep on the couch. He carries her to bed and he begins to read the mail on the kitchen table. He comes across a letter from the state that informs him that Jimmy has been taken away and Carole seems to not know or care. Bobby drives to the halfway house and speaks with a supervisor. The supervisor tells Bobby that he has to fulfill certain requirements in order to see Jimmy as well as get permission from his probation officer and state officials. However, the supervisor allows Bobby to see Jimmy because he has not seen his son in 10 years. The two begin to talk, and Jimmy is shocked that his father has denounced the Deuce gang and will not seek revenge against Willie Manchester, the man that shot Jimmy. Jimmy leaves the room in anger and insults Bobby for not being the proud Deuce gang leader that Jimmy thought his father would be. The next day, the police come to Bobby's house in search of Jimmy, who had escaped the juvenile halfway house. Bobby searches the streets in pursuit of Jimmy. He comes across a group of young teenage Deuce members and tells them that he is Jimmy's father, the "Original Gangster Bobby Johnson." The kids cooperate and tell Bobby that Jimmy is hiding out at Ray Ray's warehouse. Bobby goes to Ray Ray's warehouse and is greeted by Bear at the door. Bear reluctantly allows Bobby in, but only at the request of Ray Ray. Bobby and Ray Ray embrace and have a talk. Ray Ray is shocked that Bobby is a new man who wants no part of the Deuce gang. Bobby says that he only wants his son and that he is not interested in the benefits of the criminal lifestyle. Jimmy is seen in the warehouse wearing gang attire and refuses to go back to the juvenile halfway house. Bobby tries to console Jimmy, but Ray Ray interferes with them. Bobby says that Ray Ray does not care about the gang as seen by the way Ray Ray kicked Loco out. Bear attacks Bobby and knocks him out. Ray Ray opens up a door that reveals a kidnapped Willie Manchester. Ray Ray gives Jimmy a gun and tries to talk him into shooting Willie. Willie begs for his life and tells Jimmy that he did not mean to shoot him. Bobby wakes up and intervenes by beating up Bear and taking his gun. Bobby steps in front of Willie Manchester and threatens to kill Ray Ray. Suddenly, Bobby sees the look on Jimmy's face, and Bobby puts his gun down. Bobby talks to Jimmy about the mistake it would be if Jimmy killed Willie Manchester. Bobby states that Jimmy can replace goods that he steals from a man, but he cannot replace a man's life that he took. Jimmy lets go of the gun which Ray Ray holds. Bobby tells them that he loves his son and that he would give his life for Jimmy. Ray Ray lets go of Jimmy and Bobby, who then embrace one another. Ray Ray lets Willie Manchester leave and he runs out of the warehouse. Bobby tells Jimmy that they must start their lives over, but this time they will do it the right way. The scene fades to black as the two walk out of the warehouse together as father and son. ===== Set twenty years after the Bloody Mary Virus (released in the original Headhunter), Jack and his new partner Leeza X find out something is amiss when they try to stop Weapon Smugglers. The pair must face opposition from the Glass Skyscrapers filled and media controlled 'Above' and The Dregs & Criminal Infested colonies of 'Below'. Jack and Leeza must also face their fears as they try to redeem a world from chaos, especially Jack, whose son was taken away by forces from 'Below,' but might still be alive. ===== Rachel finds out that her ex-fiance, Barry, is engaged to marry Mindy, the woman who was to be Rachel's maid of honor. Ross still pines over Rachel, and is about to ask her out when he's interrupted by the rest of the gang. He asks Rachel to watch Marcel for him, but Rachel lets him escape. Not knowing that Ross' ownership of Marcel is illegal, she calls Animal Control for assistance. The responding Animal control agent, Luisa (Megan Cavanagh), is a former high school classmate of Rachel and the Gellers. Since Luisa was none too fond of Rachel, she isn't willing to cut any slack. She eventually relents when she accidentally shoots Phoebe's butt with a tranquilizer dart and Rachel threatens to report her. After they get Marcel back, Ross is about to tell Rachel of his feelings when Barry bursts in and tells Rachel he's still in love with her. ===== ===== In the year 2052, the planet Gotham, situated around 30 light years from Earth, was about to be destroyed when a roving black hole is about to engulf its sun and the entire planetary system. When all attempts to avert tragedy failed, the scientist named Leader Zytel (General Zee in the English dub) announced to all of Gotham that he was able to construct a space ship/satellite capable of housing 200 million people of Gotham (Gothamites) and save their species from extinction. This space ship/satellite was named Terror Star and is capable of traveling vast distances in order to search for a new home planet. Zytel asked for absolute power in order to be able to carry out this monumental task of saving their race. Hence, Zytel becomes the highest leader of the Gothamites survivors living in Terror Star. After thirty years of wandering endlessly in space, Terror Star crossed path with the planet Earth. Leader Zytel quickly ordered the scouting of the planet to determine its suitability to be the next home of the Gothamites. They sent fake meteorites with transmitters in order to scout the planet. The high generals of Gotham immediately noted that a civilization exists on Earth and even though the planet is not exactly suitable to house the Gothamites, it can be made hospitable by extensive terra-forming. Meanwhile, on Earth, scientists study the fake meteor fragments that landed on Earth and found out their real content. They were able to conclude that an intelligent alien species were conducting a study of the Earth and were anxious of the intentions of the aliens. The nine major scientific research centers around the world, named N1 to N9, were informed of the situation and the political, military, and scientific leaders of Earth were summoned to N1 – the headquarters of all the research centers to discuss the next steps. One of these scientist is named Dr. Cromwell Colins – head of the oceanographic research center affiliated with N1. Because of their spying capabilities, Gotham was made aware of this event and General Gulf decided to launch a preemptive attack on Earth in order to take advantage of the situation where all world leaders are vulnerable in one place. Gotham's space ships destroyed the Earth's extraterrestrial research facilities and attacked Earth – destroying much of the civilization on Earth including research centers N2 to N8. Only research center N1 and N9 was able to escape destruction. Dr Colins was one of those killed by the attack. Before he died, he gave his son – Colin Collins – a pendant and asked him to remember the word "Thundersub". He then asked Colin to proceed to research center N1 since the hope of humanity is in there. Colin and his high school classmates then met a mysterious young lady named Anna who cannot talk because she was in a state of shock during a brief stopover on one of Colin's classmates home. Colin and team then boarded a flying craft and decided to proceed to N1 to fulfill his father's wishes. Terror Star move to stay in orbit of the planet Earth. Because of the tidal forces brought about by the new satellite, the Earth's axis was shifted and geological and environmental disasters like tornadoes, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions occurred. Ninety percent of the Earth's population were wiped out in less than a day. The few remaining survivors of the human race escaped to the mountains. Within days, the Gothamite occupation has built a series of sea fortresses around the world that converts sea water to heavy water – the aliens main source of energy. Meanwhile, Colin and his other classmates arrived at research center N1. The team decided to go for a swim in the bay side of the island research center when suddenly they were pulled under by a whirlpool. They ended up in an underwater lake inside a cave at the bottom of research center N1. The pendant that Colin's father gave him suddenly started glowing and points to a door. Using the pendant, they were able to open the door and walked their way through darkness right into Blue Noah's (Thundersub) bridge. They recognized a command input panel where Colin spoke the word "Thundersub". Blue Noah was activated and broke free of the island research center N1. Near where Blue Noah was drifting after being activated, Blue Noah's sister submarine – the Tempest Junior – was returning from a test being conducted by Ei Domon (Captain Noah in the English dub) and his crew when they spotted Blue Noah afloat. They discovered that a group of teenagers are aboard the submarine. After the Tempest docked at the bow of Blue Noah, the crew met the youngsters and the Captain learned that Colin's father was Dr. Cromwell Collins who designed the submarine. The Captain also saw Anna – who turned out to be his daughter whom he had bad relations with because she thinks that the captain abandoned her and her dying mother for the sake of duty. Colin and his classmates and Anna were allowed to be part of Blue Noah's crew by serving in Tempest Junior. After a couple of skirmishes with the Death Force – the military arm of Gotham headed by Colonel Jrgens (Colonel Lupus in the English dub), Blue Noah saw the wreckage of a fighter plane containing an unnamed pilot. They rescued the pilot from the wreckage and brought him to Blue Noah for medical treatment. After destroying a Death Force sea fortress using the anti proton gun, the pilot who was rescued from the wreckage came about and talked to Captain Noah. He told the captain that he is Flight Lieutenant Domingo from research center N9 and he was ordered to go to N1 to meet Blue Noah and inform them that they should proceed to N9 in order to upgrade Blue Noah with an Aero Conversion Engine which would make the warship capable of outer space flight. Captain Noah now embarks on a mission to reach research center N9 which is located in Bermuda. During the course of the trip, the Blue Noah encountered many skirmishes to save humans taken as slaves by the Death Force and also innocent people who were caught in the war. Because of the many successes of Blue Noah, Col. Jrgens held a personal vendetta with the warship and vows to destroy it one way or another. Among the people that were rescued by Blue Noah were Tara and Kapira – natives of a small island called Gypsy Atoll. The trip to Bermuda was deferred when Blue Noah learned of the construction of Gravity Control base in both the North and South poles. The Gravity Control base is designed to alter the gravitational characteristics of Earth in order to make it hospitable to the Gothamites. Once fully operational, they would change the living conditions on the planet and make it inhabitable by humans – thus causing their extinction. Captain Noah ordered to strike the two bases simultaneously – Blue Noah will strike the base at the south pole while Tempest Jr. will destroy the north pole base. Blue Noah was successfully able to destroy the south pole Gravity Control base. However, Tempest Jr. failed in its attempt to destroy the north pole base and was heavily damaged in doing so. Skipper Bergen sacrificed his life to save the Tempest from destruction when it was caught in an anti submarine net. The captain learned of the failure to destroy the north pole base and have rendezvous with Tempest Jr. They then set sail to N9 in order to upgrade the warship before making plans to destroy the north pole base. En route to N9, they destroyed the biggest Death Force sea fortress in the Panama Canal by using the Anti Proton Gun. After some sojourn in the Amazon, they were finally able to reach research center N9 in Bermuda. At research center N9, Blue Noah underwent extensive modifications in order to prepare it for space travel using the Aero Conversion Engine. Tempest Jr. was decommissioned and the crew were reassigned to various post among Blue Noah and its three new companion space ships. After 48 hours, the modifications to Blue Noah was complete and the crew prepared for an all out offensive against the Death Force. Now capable of flight, Blue Noah destroyed the Gravity Control base in the north pole while Lt. Domingo and his squadron destroyed the Death Force's center of operations on Earth in the Sahara desert – with Lt. Domingo sacrificing himself to complete the mission. Blue Noah along with its three companion space ships then flew to outer space in order to confront Terror Star itself orbiting above the planet Earth. Hegeler and Jrgens were pleading with Leader Zytel (General Z) in order to send more reinforcements to Earth in order to destroy Blue Noah when they learned that it is headed for Terror Star. Battle after battle ensued with Blue Noah firing the Anti Proton Gun in order to destroy all the enemy warships and damage Terror Star itself. Hegeler told Zytel that they should just look for a new planet since they will not be able to conquer Earth. Zytel vehemently rejects the idea. During this time, Hegeler learned through his scout that most of the 200 million Gotham citizens of Terror Star are dead because of a flaw in the design of the satellite causing the life support systems to fail. He then concluded that the reason why Zytel decided to stay on Earth and make it their new home is because the satellite can no longer go further to look for a new planet more hospitable to Gothamites because of this flaw in the design. Zytel intended to make Earth the dream planet in order to cover up for the flaw in Terror Star's design even if Earth was not the ideal planet for their people. Col. Jrgens went on a one on one duel with Blue Noah. Just when the duel is about to start, Hegeler discovered another treacherous plan of the leader Zytel. When Zytel discovered about the Terror Star's flawed design, he preserved the Gothamites in computer cells and had plans to escape the satellite with these cells to Earth. When Zytel was confronted by Hegeler, Zytel vehemently denied the accusations. Hegeler then ordered that they should now leave Earth. Zytel tried to stop him and in the struggle that ensued Zytel was stabbed by Hegeler to his death. Outside, Jrgens was defeated by Blue Noah and was killed when his ship was destroyed. On the other hand, Captain Noah was severely wounded by shrapnel on his chest and he expired a few moments later. Before the captain died, he asked Colin to take over command of the fleet and told him to do whatever is necessary in order to save the Earth. Hegeler took leadership of the Gothamites and he maneuvered Terror Star to sail out of the solar system by using Jupiter's gravitational force to slingshot the satellite outside the system. However, the engines are no longer functioning normally and the satellite was sent on a direct collision course to planet Earth. Blue Noah plotted an intercept course to ram Terror Star and place it out of Earth's path. However, calculations show that it is too late for anything to be done by Blue Noah. Just as when the Terror Star was about to impact Earth, Hegeler ordered that the engines be forced to start even with the risk of them exploding. In the nick of time, Terror Star was able to alter course to prevent collision with the Earth. The tidal forces brought about by this event forced the Earth's axis to be shifted back to its original position. As Terror Star makes its way to the outer realms of the solar system, Hegeler contacted Blue Noah and talked to Colins never to repeat the same mistakes they did by choosing a selfish leader. Terror Star's navigation systems and engines overheated and exploded, which caused the satellite to drift directly into the sun and its destruction instead of it escaping the solar system. That was the end of the Gotham civilization. The Earth was saved from the Gotham threat for good. In the aftermath, Captain Noah was given an honorable burial and his epitaph simply reads "The man who saved Earth". Colins and Anna got married and set up an organization that helped in the prevention of extraterrestrial invasion. ===== ===== Three Australian computer game champs, Tyler, Marty, and Alison and one Fijian computer champ, Kirra are forced to swap their game consoles for real swords when they are thrown into a virtual pirate island world in Fiji. They face the dreaded Captain Blackheart and his dangerous, seductive new First Mate, Lily and a band of fierce pirates for a hoard of treasure stolen from an Egyptian Pharaoh's tomb by the legendary pirate ship, Neptune's Revenge, and its captain, Salty Ben. Tyler, Kirra, and Alison befriend a local Fijian tribe and its leader, Sol, who takes a liking to Kirra, while Marty preferes the pirate lifestyle, becoming Captain Blackheart's cabin boy at one stage. Marty's allegiance is constantly questioned whether he's on Blackheart's side or his brother Tyler's side, after Lily, leads a revolt and takes over Blackheart's ship. This is a problem for Marty, as Lily is crueller, more suspicious and far cleverer than Blackheart, who is more there for comedy than fast-paced action scenes. Will Tyler, Kirra, and Alison find the three torn pieces of the treasure map and find their way home, or will the dreaded Captain Blackheart, Marty, Lily and the pirate crew find the Eye of Osiris, treasure of treasures, and live forever? ===== Outcast teen genius Peter Parker develops spider-like superhuman abilities after being bitten by a genetically altered spider created by Oscorp. He learns how to use his newfound powers in the form of an optional tutorial, narrated by Bruce Campbell. Peter then decides to use his powers for personal gain and competes in a wrestling match as "Spider-Man"; however, he is cheated out of his prize money by the fight promoter. The promoter is then robbed by a thief, whom Peter lets go out of spite. Shortly after, Peter is devastated when his Uncle Ben is killed by a man, whom the police identify as the leader of the Skulls gang. Peter tracks down and defeats the murderer at a warehouse where he is hiding from the police, only to learn he is the same thief he let go earlier, who then dies after accidentally slipping out of a window. Remembering Ben's words that "with great power comes great responsibility", Peter vows to use his powers to fight evil, and becomes the superhero Spider-Man. He also gets a job at the Daily Bugle as a photographer after selling photos of himself as Spider-Man. Meanwhile, Oscorp CEO Norman Osborn and his scientists are investigating the appearance of this new hero. Anxious to develop his Human Performance Enhancer "Super Soldier" serum, the main goals of which are already exhibited by Spider-Man, Osborn sends robots to capture him, but Spider-Man destroys them. Later, Spider-Man witnesses the Shocker and the Vulture robbing a jewelry store and escape separately. Going after Shocker first, Spider-Man pursues him through the sewers and into a subway station, where he defeats him. Not wanting to let the Vulture get away with his share of the loot, Shocker informs Spider-Man of his hideout in an old clock tower. Spider-Man climbs the tower, but the Vulture attempts to escape. After a chase through the city, Spider-Man finally defeats Vulture on top of the Chrysler Building, and leaves him and the stolen loot for the police. Later, Oscorp creates several spider- shaped robots to track down Spider-Man, but they pursue Scorpion instead, whom they had mistaken for the web-slinger due to him also having arachnid DNA. Peter runs into Scorpion after returning to the subway station to take photos of his battle site with Shocker, and, as Spider-Man, helps him fight off the robots pursuing him. However, an increasingly paranoid Scorpion then attacks Spider-Man, believing he is trying to take him back to the scientists who tortured and gave him his powers. Scorpion is defeated, but manages to escape. Meanwhile, Osborn is fired from Oscorp due to failing to complete the super soldier serum in time, and decides to test it on himself, leading to the creation of a psychopathic alternate personality: the Green Goblin. Sporting an experimental armor, glider, and arsenal of weapons, he attacks the yearly Oscorp Unity Day Festival to exact revenge on those who fired him. Spider-Man rescues his crush, Mary Jane Watson, from being collateral damage, who kisses him, and defeats the Goblin. He offers Spider-Man a chance to join him, but when the hero refuses, the Goblin reveals that he has planted bombs downtown, and escapes while Spider-Man goes to disarm them. In the Xbox version only, Osborn later hires Kraven the Hunter to capture Spider-Man. Luring him to a zoo, Kraven poisons with a lethal gas and forces him to make his way past corridors filled with traps, all the while he is hunting him. Ultimately, Spider-Man defeats Kraven and leaves him for the police, obtaining an antidote in the process. After studying a piece of the Green Goblin's gear that fell during their fight and learning it was manufactured by Oscorp, Spider-Man decides to investigate the company's connection with the Goblin. Infiltrating the Oscorp building, he avoids detection by the security as he makes his way to the secret labs, where he discovers chemical weapons, which he neutralizes. After a fight with a giant robot, Spider-Man arrives in Osborn's office and learns that the Goblin knows about Mary Jane kissing him and most likely kidnapped her to lure Spider-Man to him. Following a narrow escape from Oscorp, Spider-Man chases the Goblin to the Queensboro Bridge, where he rescues Mary Jane and defeats the villain. The Goblin then unmasks himself as Norman and, in a final attempt on Spider-Man's life, accidentally gets impaled by his glider. Afterwards, Spider-Man and Mary Jane share a kiss, preventing him from revealing his secret identity to her. Spider-Man then ends the game by saying "Looks like you're done now. Go outside and play.", breaking the fourth wall. ===== A flashback shows how Ellen (Loretta Young) met George (Barry Sullivan) in a naval hospital during World War II while she was dating his friend, Lieutenant Ranney Grahame (Bruce Cowling), a young military doctor whose busy schedule left little time for her. George was a pilot, and Ellen swiftly fell in love with him, although the flashback strongly hints he had some capacity for arrogance and selfishness. Nevertheless, they soon married and, after the war, wound up in a leafy suburban Los Angeles neighborhood. Unhappily, George is now confined to his bed with heart problems. There is a heat wave, and Ellen is spending most her time caring for him. George's doctor is their old friend Ranney, with whom George thinks his wife is having an affair. In response, Ranney suggests George may need psychological help. After Ellen tells her bedridden husband she dreams of having children, he becomes angry. Meanwhile, George has written a letter to the district attorney in which he claims his wife and best friend are killing him with overdoses of medicine for his heart. A little neighbor boy dressed as the movie and TV cowboy, Hopalong Cassidy, and wearing cap pistols (Bradley Mora) befriends the childless Ellen, who gives him cookies. He hands her a toy (fake) television set and asks Ellen to give it to George, which she does whilst serving her husband lunch in bed. He tells her an unsettling story about how, as a child, he had beaten a neighbor boy with a rake until he drew blood. Thinking the thick letter has something to do with insurance, Ellen gives it to the postman (Irving Bacon), who sees George in the upstairs bedroom window. When Ellen rushes up to find out why he has gotten out of bed, George lets her know what the letter says and who it is addressed to. George pulls a gun and is about to kill her when he drops dead on the bed. In her narration she describes George's death as "one of those awful dreams." Ellen panics over the letter and, as noted by a reviewer over 50 years later, throughout the film's second half seems "much more concerned with absolving herself from the blame of his death than missing her spouse."Tooze, Gary W. Cause for Alarm!, review. DVD Beaver, 2007. Accessed: May 17, 2020. Running from the house and shown the way by two teenagers (in the film's brief nod to Los Angeles' mid-twentieth-century jalopy culture), she chases down the overly talkative postman to whom she gave the letter; but he won't give it back to her without talking to George first, since he wrote it. The postman says she can ask the supervisor at the downtown post office, who has more authority. Ellen is frantic when she gets back to the house, only to find George's aunt Clara (Margalo Gillmore) climbing the stairs to see him and stops her barely in time. After the two talk for a while, Clara again heads up the stairs; but Ellen stops her once more, saying George told her earlier not to let his aunt see him. Clara leaves in a huff, telling her George was "rude, mean and selfish since he's been six... he's worse if anything." Ellen goes back up to the bedroom to change her clothes and sees the gun still in George's hand, narrating, "Somehow I knew I shouldn't leave it there." As she wrenches the pistol from his hand, it fires. Readying herself to leave the house, a polite but somewhat aggressive notary (Don Haggerty) rings the doorbell, telling her he has an appointment with George to go over some legal documents. She steadfastly says George is too sick to see anyone. Ellen desperately drives downtown to the post office to see the supervisor, who gives her a form for George to sign but then, nettled by Ellen's unhinged and uncooperative behavior, tells her he is going to allow the letter to be delivered. Defeated, she returns to the house and, as she gets to the front door, a kindly neighbor woman (Georgia Backus) offers to help Ellen, since she has seemed so upset all day. When Ranney shows up to check on George, Ellen is hysterical. Ranney tells her to be calm and goes up to the bedroom. Showing no apparent emotion for his dead best friend, he sees the bullet hole in the floor, finds the gun in a dresser drawer, methodically repositions George's body in the bed, and draws down the window shade. Back downstairs with Ellen, Ranney listens as she tells him what happened, saying "I did everything wrong, just like he said I would." The doorbell rings. She thinks the police have come to arrest her, but Ranney urges Ellen to open the door. When she does, it is the postman, returning the thick letter for insufficient postage. Ranney gives a sigh of relief; Ellen takes back the envelope and is overcome after closing the door. Ranney wordlessly rips the letter into narrow strips and burns these shreds in an ashtray along with a matchbook bearing the embossed names George and Ellen. ===== The film is a fantastical journey through the looking-glass of history into the darkest recesses of the mind of Adolf Hitler. In a dreamlike subterranean environment removed from historical time, Adolf Hitler (Norman Rodway) confronts the demons of his own psyche. As he dictates his memoirs, Hitler encounters apparitions of his confidant, Joseph Goebbels (Joel Grey), his enigmatic mistress, Eva Braun (Camilla Soeberg), Hermann Göring (Glenn Shadix), Sigmund Freud (Peter Michael Goetz) and the mysterious Woman in Black (Hope Allen). Through haunting images, Hitler's stream-of-consciousness soliloquies and exchanges with his phantom guests, The Empty Mirror presents a frightening primer on genius and psychosis, domination and destruction. The action unfolds amidst a streaming flow of archival film footage intercut with images from Leni Riefenstahl's masterpiece of Nazi propaganda, Triumph of the Will, as well as private home movies shot by Eva Braun. ===== Buffy notifies her poetry professor that she is dropping out of college so that she may take care of Dawn. Ben is fired from his job at the hospital, as Glory has been monopolizing the human form they share and he has not shown up for work in two weeks. Glory takes a bath while she demands that her blindfolded minions tell her everything they know about the Key. Dawn and Buffy are called into Dawn's principal's office where Buffy is informed that Dawn has been skipping school. At the magic shop, Anya expresses new found patriotism and how money ties into that. Buffy seeks Giles's advice about being Dawn's mother figure then takes her sister home, attempting an authoritative role with Dawn. Glory's minions provide her with enough information to conclude who the Key is and Glory leads the way to gather it. Meanwhile, Tara and Willow discuss their relationship and Willow's powers as a witch, but the discussion ends up angering Willow when Tara expresses first her concern about Willow's "frightening" power. Tara also reveals her fear that Willow may not be satisfied with dating a woman and go back to dating men. Buffy talks with Dawn about how Dawn's situation needs to improve in school or Buffy could possibly lose guardianship of Dawn. Depressed over her first major fight with Willow, Tara goes to a cultural fair, but finds herself sitting next to Glory on a park bench. Giles finds one of Glory's minions at the shop and questions him about Glory's plans. Willow goes after Tara who is in Glory's grasp, but can't get to Tara before it's too late. Glory discovers that Tara isn't the Key, and offers to let her go if she reveals the key's identity. Protecting Dawn, Tara refuses, and Glory drains Tara's mind of sanity. At the hospital, doctors look after Tara while Willow plans her vengeance against the evil god, Glory. Buffy arranges for Dawn to be kept safe by Spike in some caves while she takes care of the issues involving Tara. Blaming herself for all of the harm that Glory has caused the people of Sunnydale, particularly Spike and Tara, Dawn tearfully expresses a belief that she is evil and a "lightning rod for pain," while Spike comforts her and tries to convince her otherwise. Willow rages, going to the magic shop to gather dangerous magic supplies in preparation for her attack on Glory. Buffy thinks she's talked Willow out of any attempts to go after Glory, but Spike convinces her that one can't be talked out of something like that. At Glory's place, Willow makes an unexpected, but grand appearance, casting spells wildly, all in attempts to attack and destroy Glory. Although she manages to use a lightning strike to cause Glory some pain (something no one else, not even Buffy, was able to do), subsequent assaults have no effect; the goddess is far more powerful than the witch, and Willow is almost seriously wounded once her strength fades. Luckily, Buffy shows up in time to stop her from getting hurt. Buffy and Glory battle ferociously, until one of Willow's force fields allows Willow and Buffy to escape. The next day, Willow, Tara, Buffy, and Dawn sit down to eat. Willow spoon-feeds applesauce to Tara, who is still unstable after Glory's attack, while discussing the responsibilities she has to undertake in order to take care of Tara. When all seems peaceful, Glory makes a surprise appearance, tearing out an entire wall. Tara, distressed, describes Dawn as having "pure" energy, revealing that Dawn is the key. ===== With Glory now possessing knowledge that Dawn is the Key, Buffy and Dawn run for their lives, escaping thanks to Willow's magic and a large semi-truck slamming into Glory out on the street after which she transforms into Ben, ending the chase. The gang gathers in Xander's apartment to discuss possible plans of action, where Buffy surprises everyone by declaring that they will never be able to defeat Glory and the only way to stay alive is to leave Sunnydale, to which the gang reluctantly agrees. Spike solves their transportation problem by providing a sun-protected Winnebago, and Buffy allows him to accompany them. Though Giles and Xander are anything but pleased by this, Buffy informs them that she and Spike are the only ones who stand a chance at protecting Dawn in the event that Glory catches up to them, and makes it clear that the topic is not open for discussion. Ben talks to one of Glory's minions, who reminds him that he is just a human body encasing Glory's god form and that upon her full rejuvenation, he will die; Ben, knowing this, states that he will do anything in his power to keep his life, even destroying the Key (whom he knows to be Dawn). The Knights of Byzantium retrieve their crazed member from the hospital, who babbles that the Key is the Slayer's sister; their General, Gregor, orders the Knights to assemble for battle. Giles, driving the RV, talks with a motion-sick Xander about Buffy's state of mind. Depressed and worried about their future plans, Buffy is comforted by Dawn until the Knights attack (to the complete surprise of everyone but Buffy, who had never told the Scoobies about her earlier encounter with the Knights). A sword through the roof nearly kills Buffy, but Spike stops it with his bare hands. While Buffy battles the Knights from the top of the RV, one knight impales Giles with a thrown spear, causing the RV to crash onto its side. The Scoobies rush to an abandoned gas station, where Buffy fends off a siege by the Knights until Willow erects a barrier spell; General Gregor, having fallen during the siege, is also contained in Willow's forcefield with the others, making him an unanticipated prisoner of war. Meanwhile, at the hospital, all those left crazy by Glory repeatedly mutter, "It's time." Spike suggests to Xander that they run, with some (most notably himself) sacrificing their lives so the other can escape, but Buffy refuses to let anyone die. The now-revived Gregor taunts Buffy over the dissension in her ranks, but Buffy silences his mockery with a blow to the face, prompting him to be more cooperative. He provides the answers that have eluded the Scoobies since Glory's arrival in Sunnydale; one of three hellgods that ruled over one of the more horrific demon dimensions, Glory's fellow hellgods, fearing her lust for power would drive her to seize the dimension for her own, attacked first. After emerging victorious from the bloody war that ensued, but unable to destroy her, the other gods banished Glory to Earth, to wither and die as a mortal. The magic which would allow Glory to return to her dimension was embodied in the Key, which the Knights sought to destroy but which a sect of monks instead concealed from both Glory and the Knights, hoping to eventually uses the Key's power for good. In the intervening years, both Glory and the Knights have hunted for the monks or the Key, but Glory ultimately found the monks first, who before their deaths, converted the Key into the form of Dawn, confident Buffy would protect her. The Knights, arriving too late to prevent the monks' deaths, remained in Sunnydale, where they, like Glory, sought to wrest the Key from Buffy's control. Glory's goal is to use Dawn's blood in a ritual to open a portal, allowing her to return to her home dimension and reclaim power. Buffy is initially incredulous that Glory's plan is to simply depart Earth and presumably cease to be of any concern to humanity, but Gregor further explains that Dawn's power will, in opening the portal, dissolve the boundaries between dimensions, essentially causing the collapse of reality; Glory herself is well aware of these facts, Gregor adds, but she will gladly allow such chaos so long as she can return to gain her revenge. However, if Dawn dies before Glory finds her, Glory's plan is doomed to failure and the dimensional boundaries, including those that protect Earth, will remain safe, and it is for this reason the Knights seek Dawn's death. Although shaken by these revelations, Buffy remains dedicated to protecting Dawn's life and defeating Glory before she can use Dawn in her ritual. Gregor also informs Buffy that, upon Glory's banishment, she was bound to a newborn human male, who has served as her host body ever since and who is now an adult, whose identity the Knights, despite their best efforts, have yet to learn (but whom the audience knows to be Ben); if that man is killed while in mortal form, then Glory, within him, will also perish and, without the threat of Glory's ritual, Dawn herself will pose no further danger to the dimensional boundaries. Buffy is adamant that it is Glory, not Dawn, who will die. Realizing that Giles is seriously injured, Buffy, through Xander, arranges a deal with the Knights to allow Ben to safely pass and treat Giles' injuries in return for Gregor's guaranteed safety; Ben stabilizes Giles, and then is left alone with Gregor. Recognizing Ben as an outsider (although not as Glory's host body), Gregor tries to tempt him into killing Dawn, whose death will end the conflict as far as the Knights, who have no other quarrel with Buffy and the Scoobies, are concerned. Ben realizes that Glory is about to take over his body, but before he can get outside the forcefield, Glory comes forth, stunning the Scoobies and horrifying Gregor. Exuberant that Ben has "finally [done] something right," she kills Gregor, fights off the Scooby Gang to take Dawn, and bursts through the forcefield. By the time Willow releases the field, Glory has disposed of all the Knights and disappeared with Dawn. Knowing they have to move fast, everyone heads for Ben's car to chase after Glory. Having lost Dawn to Glory after going through so much to protect her—having in fact unknowingly guaranteed Glory's victory by extorting the Knights to allow Ben through the forcefield to begin with—Buffy suffers a nervous breakdown and collapses into a state of shock. ===== Glory prepares for the ritual to open the portal, talking to her minions and Dawn, who is tied up and gagged on a chair. Spike reports that he can't see Glory anywhere, but the gang has a new problem as Buffy has been reduced to a state of catatonia. Spike tries to violently shake Buffy back to normal, which only leads to a fight with Xander, and Willow forces them apart with magic. Willow takes command and quickly formulates a plan with both Buffy and Giles incapacitated: the Scoobies are to return to Sunnydale, with Xander taking Giles to the hospital, Anya looking after Tara, and Spike tracking down Glory while Willow helps Buffy. After mentioning that Ben and Glory share a body, Spike realizes that Glory's magic makes the humans forget that bit of information every time it's revealed to them. Glory first attempts to comfort a frightened Dawn, but starts to lose her cool as she realizes she's feeling guilty. With Anya looking after Tara, Willow performs a spell to enter the mind of the Slayer, where she finds herself talking to Buffy as a child. Willow witnesses Buffy's memory of baby Dawn being brought home by their parents Joyce and Hank. At the hospital where Giles was getting care, Xander fills him in on Willow's plans. Spike reports that Glory has left her apartment. Dawn reveals to Glory that she remembers the transformation from Ben; this really worries Glory, as it implies Ben is closer to the surface than before. She asks to have Ben taken out of her body, but it is the punishment she must face for her crime. In Buffy's mind, Willow watches Buffy (now adult) shelve a book at the magic shop, followed by Buffy's memory of the First Slayer telling her that "death is [her] gift." At her house, Buffy calmly acknowledges that death is her gift, before going to Dawn's room and smothering the young girl with a pillow, much to Willow's horror. Glory becomes Ben, who flees with Dawn. In Buffy's mind, the remembered scenes repeat endlessly. Spike and Xander visit Doc for information on Glory but, noticing his shifty attempts to hide a small carved box, quickly find that he's playing for the other team. With his super speed and long tongue, Doc has the guys at a disadvantage. He throws the box into the fireplace and attacks. Spike is able to recover the box while Xander stabs the reptilian creature with a sword. Thinking that the creature is dead, the two leave with the box, but after they've gone, Doc's eyes open. In Buffy's mind, before Buffy can go to kill Dawn again, Willow stops her and asks why. A good distance away from Glory's hideout, Dawn breaks away from Ben and knocks him out with a chain; but this only allows Glory to re-emerge. Ben and Glory battle for control of the body until Glory strikes up a deal: if Ben cooperates in sacrificing Dawn, Glory will grant him immortality and an independent existence from her. Out of self-preservation, Ben agrees, and hands Dawn over to Glory's minions. Willow asks Buffy what is the significance of the seemingly mundane scene of placing a book on a shelf. Buffy explains that was the exact moment when, in her heart, she gave up hope of defeating Glory. Buffy blames herself because she thinks that she is the reason Glory has Dawn and Dawn will soon die. Willow tells her that it's not over yet and she can still do something to stop it. Buffy then returns to reality, crying and collapsing into Willow's arms. As they return to the magic shop, Xander tells Buffy that Ben and Glory are one and the same. After reviewing the information Spike stole from Doc, Giles reveals that a bloodletting ceremony will occur to open the portal, and once it begins there is only one way to stop it: Dawn must be killed. ===== The Scooby Gang rushes to find Buffy and figures she is at her house. The bikers are on the run now that Razor has been destroyed. At the house, Buffy is confused and acting strangely as she surveys the changed scenery of her house and is told by Dawn that Giles has left. Spike arrives, angry and looking for Dawn, though when he realizes the real Buffy is back he softens and helps to clean up her wounded hands. They talk about how long she's been gone; Spike has counted the days, all 147 of them. When the Scooby Gang arrives and focuses on the Slayer, Spike slips out. Unable to stand all the concern, Buffy goes upstairs while Xander and Anya leave for food. Outside, the two find a hurt Spike who's furious that he wasn't told about the plan to resurrect Buffy, despite having helped the gang all summer. He realises that his love of Buffy would have made him an obstacle if Buffy had returned as something that would have had to have been destroyed. He warns Xander of the consequences they'll have to face, because they always exist with magic. After notifying Giles of Buffy's return, Willow and Tara go to bed and talk about the spell and changes in Buffy. In her room, Buffy looks at the pictures surrounding her and they briefly turn to pictures of skulls. During the night, Willow and Tara are visited in their room by a Buffy who yells at them and hints at Willow killing the deer in "Bargaining, Part One". When the girls get up to investigate, Buffy's asleep in her room and neither knows the source of the incident. A moving lump appears in the ceiling, motivating Willow to call Xander. In the background while Xander talks, Anya enters the room with a knife and smokey eyes, slitting her cheek before collapsing as the lump travels across the floor. The gang gather the next day for brainstorming, but no one is sure what this thing is and Buffy is still very closed off. At the Magic Box, Buffy still seems out of place and leaves to patrol alone. With Buffy gone, the demon has taken over Dawn who shouts at her friends and breathes fire before collapsing. Buffy finds Spike at his crypt and the two talk, rather awkwardly at first. Spike opens up to her, expressing his guilt for not saving her or Dawn. He explains that every night afterwards, he thought up better ways to rescue her and he wishes so much to have been able to do it for real. Led on by Spike's hinting that Willow knew her spell might do something bad, Xander questions whether either of the witches knew the dangers but is quickly quieted. Willow reveals that this creature was created by the spell that brought Buffy back. The demon currently does not possess a body, which is why it has been possessing members of the gang. A reversal of the spell will cancel out the creation of the demon, but it can't be done without also reversing Buffy's resurrection. After Dawn panics about the idea of losing Buffy again, Willow discovers that the demon can only survive if Buffy is killed. The demon, which had been housed in Xander's body while Willow shared this information, thanks Willow for the tip and heads for the Slayer. Buffy is attacked by the formless demon which she can't hurt, but which she can be hurt by. Willow and Tara cast a spell to make the demon solid. Buffy kills the demon with an axe. Normality is somewhat resumed as Dawn heads to school the next day and Buffy sees her off. Buffy visits her friends at the shop and tells them that she was in Hell and she appreciates that they brought her back. Buffy goes outside behind the shop to be alone, and finds Spike hiding in a patch of shade. He tries to talk to her and offers to help her in any way he can. She admits to him that although she wasn't initially sure where she was, she knows that she wasn't in Hell. She was in Heaven and was happy, yet her friends pulled her out. Spike is shocked as she tells him that this reality is her Hell, having been forced to live again on Earth but feeling the loss of Heaven where she felt safe, loved and complete, and she stresses that her friends can never know the truth. ===== Buffy returns from her visit with Angel, but doesn't want to talk about it. Instead, the Scoobies discuss Buffy's future plans. Not knowing what she wants to do in life, Buffy agrees to audit the classes Willow and Tara are taking until the next semester starts. The Trio prepares for its competition to test Buffy, setting up their van with high-tech monitoring equipment. At school, Buffy finds herself overwhelmed by a class she takes with Willow. Buffy later meets up with Tara for Art History, but before class begins Warren tags her with a tiny device that causes time to fast-forward. Buffy is dazed as the world whizzes around her; when she finally notices the device Warren planted on her, it self-destructs and puts Buffy back in normal time. Buffy works with Xander at his construction job, telling him about the time situation at school before she is introduced to Tony, the boss. Andrew summons demons from the van, which trash the construction site before Buffy kills them. Unfortunately, Buffy knocks Tony unconscious and the construction men she saves refuse to admit they were saved by a girl. Xander gets mad at Buffy for bringing slaying to his work place but understands that something is happening. However, he is still forced to fire her. Buffy learns about working at The Magic Box from Giles and Anya as Jonathan begins a spell to loop time until Buffy satisfies a customer. Buffy assists a man with a candle sale and then goes downstairs to fetch a live mummy hand for a female customer, but the hand attacks her and she is forced to kill it, which also kills the sale. Events start to repeat as Buffy must help the customers and fight the mummy hand over and over again, being reduced to tears out of frustration. She is stuck in an unsolved dilemma, but soon Buffy is able to end the spell by telling the woman she will order the hand instead of going downstairs to fight with the one they already have. Stressed out by the repeating time and the job itself, Buffy walks out. All the while, the three villains keep scores on their Buffy attacks. Later that night, Buffy gets drunk with Spike at his crypt. Completely hammered, Buffy goes with Spike to a bar where he plays poker (using kittens as currency) and searches for information. After the poker game ends badly, Buffy rants to Spike about the new low her life has reached with her inability to understand school or get a decent job. Buffy and Spike notice a black van; the Trio notices Buffy approaching with alarm. A fake demon appears from behind the van and threatens Buffy, but it is beaten down while the van drives away. With the use of smoke to confuse the slayer and vampire, the demon (Jonathan in disguise) runs away and complains to the Trio who realize they now have much information on Buffy's fighting style that can be used against her. Buffy begins to recover from her drunken state and complains to Giles about her life. He consoles her and offers her a cheque to help pay for all the expenses. Buffy says she is happy that Giles will always be there, but the look on Giles's face suggests that he might not always be. ===== Willow, sad and lonely without Tara, figures out a way to turn the metamorphosed Amy from a rat back into human. Feeling newly liberated, they decide to go out and have some fun. At The Bronze, a couple of guys try to intimidate them. They perform a spell on the boys to make fun of them, but soon they begin to perform more and more complex spells, filling the Bronze with strangely dressed people, sheep, mutations and so on. Willow is beginning to have a taste of her real power and she likes it. Warren, Jonathan and Andrew steal a large diamond from a museum, in a comical scene resembling a famous sequence from the Mission: Impossible films, leaving its sole guard frozen by their freeze-ray. Spike discovers that the chip in his head gives him no pain when he punches Buffy. After verifying, with Warren's help, that the chip appears undamaged and still causes him agony when he harms humans, Spike tells Buffy that she "came back wrong" and that she "has a little demon" in her. In furious disbelief, Buffy assaults Spike and they battle until Buffy unleashes her desire and kisses him, initiating such passionate sex that the abandoned house in which they were fighting collapses around them. ===== Tara and Dawn wake on the couch and find that neither Buffy nor Willow returned home the night before. Buffy wakes up naked with Spike to find that the building around them fell down as she remembers what they did. Spike tempts Buffy as she tries to leave and reminds her of everything they did the night before. He angers and disgusts her, but while she searches for her clothes Spike asks her to stay. Buffy appears on the verge of agreeing before Spike makes a comment about their night together, and she leaves, threatening to kill him if he tells anyone about what happened between them. Amy returns home with Willow and rambles about Willow's amazing magic – in front of Tara and Dawn. Tara leaves as Buffy returns, and after a chat, Amy leaves and Buffy and Willow go to bed after their long nights. Willow tries to shut the drapes of her room with magic, but she is too exhausted to manage it. Anya reads bridal magazines instead of researching the freezing demon. Xander gets frustrated, finding bridal magazines in every research book he checks. At the magic shop, Xander, Anya and Buffy discuss Willow's behavior and Buffy comes to Willow's defense. Amy suggests that she and Willow visit a warlock, Rack, who can give them great spells that last without any recovery time. The house is cloaked and filled with the magically addicted, seeking a fix. Rack takes a "tour" of Willow's body before giving her what she came for. Amy spins about the room wildly as Willow hangs out on the ceiling, seeing spots and weird images. The next morning, Willow wakes in her own room and cries in the shower. She manipulates some of Tara's clothes to form an invisible body and curls up against it. Dawn plans to see a movie with Willow. Buffy returns home to find Amy stealing some of Willow's magical supplies. Buffy scolds her as Amy behaves obsessively about the supplies and tells Buffy about Willow's whereabouts. Willow and Dawn talk about food and Tara, then take a detour to Rack's place so Willow can get a fix. Dawn waits impatiently in the waiting room with a freaky man. Meanwhile, Willow floats in Rack's room and sees herself flying in space before a demon holding a limp body makes her scream. Buffy wakes Spike and demands his help in finding Willow and Dawn. Dawn is mad that Willow left her for so long, and Willow's carefree attitude makes Dawn nervous and eager to return home. Buffy refuses to admit she likes Spike and he again reminds her how much she really wants and needs him. A demon confronts Willow, claiming that she summoned him with her magic. The demon cuts Dawn and the girls run. Willow uses magic to take over and drive a car, but it crashes and both are wounded. Dawn has a broken arm. Willow is knocked out against the steering wheel. The demon catches up with their wrecked car and Dawn tries desperately to fight it off. Spike and Buffy, who heard Dawn scream, come to the rescue. Buffy fights the demon while Spike takes care of Buffy's wounded younger sister. Suddenly the demon explodes into flames as a result of a killing spell cast by Willow. Despite Willow's sincere apology and tearful regret, Buffy tells her to stay back and Dawn slaps her away in anger. Spike takes Dawn to the hospital and Buffy confronts a devastated and remorseful Willow who is now finally able to ask for help. At the house, Buffy talks with Willow about her abuse of magic and the consequences. Willow says she's giving up magic for good and Buffy agrees with that. She also senses the similarities between Willow's magic use and her own situation with Spike. Later, Willow fights the symptoms of withdrawal in her bed while Buffy hugs a cross and surrounds her bedroom with garlic. ===== Willow reports to Xander and Anya that the supervillains seem to have abandoned their basement lair. Meanwhile, Buffy, having found out that she is deeply in debt, gets a new job working at a fast food restaurant called Doublemeat Palace. She soon believes something strange is going on. Buffy is offered the Doublemeat Medley, a burger consisting of typical ingredients and layers of beef and chicken. She reluctantly takes a bite, then questions what the secret ingredient in the meat is, but gets no clear answer ("It's a meat process."). Buffy watches as a coworker, Gary, waits on a woman wearing a wig who is a regular at the Palace. After his demonstration, Buffy takes the next customer, but is lost quickly in the process as the family's order is too complex for her to follow. During her break, Buffy sneaks around in the back rooms, searching for the truth behind the secret ingredient, but is caught by Manny. At the counter, Buffy finds her friends have come by to visit her and she treats Xander to a Doublemeat Medley. Anya goes on a rant about how behind the wedding plans are, partially blaming Willow for the complications. Later, Buffy receives a surprise visit from Spike at the restaurant. He teases her and tries to persuade her to leave the job and be with him, warning her that this job could kill her. He offers to do everything in his power to take care of her and help her with her money problems. She remains determined and turns away. Gary goes out to the alley behind the restaurant and encounters someone/something that he recognizes; then that someone or something attacks him. The next day, with Gary not there to work, Buffy is assigned to the grill. As Timothy demonstrates the process, Buffy asks again about the secret ingredient, but still can't get an answer from anyone. Manny then assigns Buffy to a double shift because of the reduction of employees. At the apartment, a vengeance demon appears suddenly before Xander, threatening to tear him into pieces. Anya enters the room and recognizes the vengeance demon as her old friend Halfrek, and the girls greet each other gleefully. Anya clears up the confusion, explaining that she invited Halfrek to the wedding, not to seek vengeance on Xander. Xander quickly gets out of their way. At the Doublemeat Palace, Buffy spots Spike outside through a window and they look at each other wistfully. She spends her break having sex with him in the alleyway out behind the restaurant. Amy pays Willow a visit, wanting her rat cage as a souvenir, and talks with Willow about her progress with avoiding magic, something which Amy isn't very encouraging about. Wishing to get Willow back on to magic, Amy gives her an unasked-for gift that provides Willow with uncontrollable magical powers. Buffy watches the grinder grind meat, but discovers a human finger in the processed meat. Appalled at the idea of human meat being the secret ingredient, Buffy confronts Manny about it, but he doesn't agree with her suspicions. Buffy charges out into the dining area, attempting to stop all the patrons from eating while shouting that the meat is made of humans. The outburst gets her fired. Over drinks, Anya and Halfrek talk about Anya's relationship with Xander and Anya begins to reevaluate her situation with Xander after Halfrek repeatedly insists on addressing the issue. Buffy brings the severed finger and a Doublemeat Medley to The Magic Box, but Xander eats the burger before Buffy explains her concerns. Willow arrives late, ready to begin researching, although she's still under Amy's gift spell and lacks control over her use of magic. Buffy leaves to investigate Doublemeat Palace after hours, while Willow uses chemistry to test a leftover piece of meat from the Doublemeat Medley. Buffy breaks into the Palace and finds clues: blood and Manny's severed foot. Willow struggles to avoid using magic while Dawn and Xander talk about the kind of future life Buffy will have because she's the Slayer. Anya shows up late, after Halfrek's departure, and a tense argument develops between her and Xander over the less-than-attractive appearance of a vengeance demon. Willow's analysis reveals that the "meat" is mostly cellulose (vegetables treated with beef fat). While continuing to snoop, Buffy encounters the regular customer, "Wig Lady", without her wig. A demonic lamprey emerges from the lady's head and sprays a paralyzing liquid at Buffy. The lady advances on Buffy and talks about eating Doublemeat employees as the Slayer struggles to escape. Willow shows up and tries to inform Buffy of the Doublemeat Medley which is not made of humans, but processed vegetables, then begins to confess to her about Amy's magical gift. Buffy is unable to respond to the information as she continues to try to get away from the lamprey, which manages to latch onto her shoulder and start to feed. Inside, Willow tries to stop the woman/lamprey and uses a large blade to cut the lamprey from the woman's body. That doesn't immediately kill the lamprey and Willow quickly shoves it into the meat grinder. The next day at the Summers' house, Amy pays Willow a visit, needing to borrow a few necessities. Willow denies her entrance into the house and pointedly suggests that Amy stay away from her. Amy accuses Willow of taking much too long to reverse a spell gone wrong that changed her into a rat. The former friends exchange piercing glances, then Amy turns and walks away. Buffy returns to the DMP to return her uniform to the new manager, Lorraine. After revealing her knowledge of the Doublemeat Medley's composition, she is sworn to secrecy. She gets her job back and resigns herself to working there, at least for the present. ===== Buffy searches newly rented houses for the Trio's hideout, and the three discover her on their surveillance equipment when she gets a bit too close. While they hide in the basement, Andrew Wells calls on a demon that attacks Buffy and starts a fight. The demon grabs Buffy and stabs her with a needle-like skewer from his forearm (similar to the Polgara in season 4). Buffy flashes to a scene in a mental hospital where as a patient she cries out as she's held by two orderlies and stabbed with a needle. Buffy wakes up alone outside the Trio's house with no demon to be seen; hurt and confused, she walks home. Willow prepares herself for talking to Tara, but spots Tara greeting another woman with a quick kiss (on the cheek) and Willow walks away, wounded. Tara notices her retreating, but it is too late to chase after her. At the Doublemeat Palace, Buffy works like a zombie, and flashes back to the mental hospital, where a doctor announces it is time for her drugs. Willow and Buffy talk about Xander's disappearing act after his aborted wedding and Willow's attempt to talk to Tara. Xander surprises the girls by showing up at the house, and wonders about Anya and how to repair his relationship with her. The girls tell him Anya left a few days ago and try to reassure him that everything will work out in time. Buffy runs into Spike at the cemetery and they talk about the events of the wedding that didn't happen. A confrontation begins between Xander and Spike, and as Willow tries to break it up, Buffy gets weak and collapses. Xander manages one punch to Spike before his attention is drawn by Buffy. Back in the 'reality' of the mental hospital, a doctor informs Buffy that she's been hallucinating in the hospital for the past six years and everything she knew to exist in Sunnydale isn't real. She's shaken and confused — especially when both of her parents appear together (with Hank having abandoned his family years earlier and Joyce having subsequently died in the Sunnydale world). Buffy falls back into the Sunnydale world, finding herself surrounded by her concerned friends. Willow and Xander get Buffy home, and she recounts what she saw and was told at the mental hospital; Dawn is hurt when told she doesn't exist in Buffy's 'ideal' alternate reality. While Willow organizes a plan to research, Buffy falls back to the 'reality' of the mental hospital, where her doctor explains to her parents that she has been catatonic from schizophrenia for all of the past six years (except for the brief period of lucidity Buffy dimly remembers as her time in "heaven") and that her life as the Slayer has been an elaborate improvised hallucination she has constructed for herself in her mind, explaining what Buffy realizes is its extreme improbability and illogicality compared to the 'mental patient' scenario. In Sunnydale, Warren Mears and Andrew Wells return to their hideaway with boxes after leaving Jonathan Levinson alone. Leery of their secretive behavior, Jonathan suspiciously questions the contents of the boxes before trying to leave the house himself. Warren doesn't agree with that idea and convinces Jonathan to stay in the basement. Willow shows Buffy a picture of the demon that stung her. It is a Glarghk Guhl Kashmas ‘nik. Willow tries to comfort her friend but Buffy confesses to Willow that, in the beginning of her Slayer life, she told her parents about vampires and was put in a clinic for her supposed insanity. Buffy wonders if she's still there and therefore Sunnydale really doesn't exist, but Willow assures her that isn't true. Xander and Spike patrol for the demon that hurt Buffy; Spike recognizes it and they capture it. Dawn comforts Buffy, who dazedly notes that Dawn has been misbehaving, and the problems need to be dealt with before 'coming to' in the hospital, where her mother reminds Buffy that Dawn does not exist. Dawn realizes through Buffy's babbling that she's considering this, and rushes from the room. Xander and Spike manhandle the demon into Buffy's basement chaining it while Willow breaks off its stinger to make the antidote, which she must synthesize without using magic. Later, Willow presents the antidote to Buffy in a mug and leaves her to drink it as Spike delivers a monologue urging her to abandon the life that's grown so hellish for her and choose peace with him. This misfires, convincing Buffy to reject the antidote (which she pours unnoticed in the trash) and with it, the 'delusion' of being a Vampire Slayer. In the hospital, Buffy tells the doctor and her parents that she wants to be healthy and rid of thoughts about Sunnydale. The doctor tells her that she has to do what is necessary to destroy the elements that draw her back there, like her family and friends, in order to truly be healthy. Willow and Buffy are talking in the kitchen. Xander arrives at the house and finds Buffy alone in the kitchen. He talks to her about Spike, but she knocks him out cold and drags him into the basement, where Willow is already bound and tape gagged. Buffy finds Dawn upstairs. Dawn again says she is going over to Janice’s. Buffy chases her through the house as Dawn pleads that she is real. Dawn is bound and tape gagged in the basement with the others and with the chained demon. In the mental hospital, the doctors urge Buffy to make her task easy on herself, so in Sunnydale Buffy unchains the demon in the basement to kill her friends for her. Xander pleads with Buffy to free his hands, but she retreats under the stairs. Meanwhile, Tara shows up at the house and finds everyone in the basement. She uses magic to free Willow and Dawn and attack the demon, but the demon is too strong for them; Buffy grabs Tara's feet through the stairs, making her fall and knocking her unconscious. At the hospital, Joyce encourages Buffy to fight against the Sunnydale reality, telling her that she has the strength to fight against the harshness of the world and must fight it because she has people who love her. Buffy, inspired by her mother's mis-chosen words, takes her advice to "believe in" herself literally, thanking her mother and saying goodbye to her as she chooses a life of suffering in the nightmarish Sunnydale reality over the much less arduous world represented by the mental hospital. Buffy wakes up in Sunnydale to save her friends. She kills the demon and then reconciles with her friends, urging them to quickly make her the antidote while she stays on guard against relapsing again. Back at the hospital, Buffy is still sitting in her corner of the room, now completely unresponsive as the doctor shines light into her pupils. He tells Buffy's heartbroken parents that she's "gone"; Buffy has succumbed to her illness. ===== Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy are two hobos roaming the Arizona countryside. After being arrested for loitering, they spend a night in jail in town. When they are released the day after they are ordered to leave town immediately. Since the men lack every kind of transportation, they come up with the desperate idea of traveling as escort to a coffin and an undertaker's railroad transport of a corpse out of town to Dayton, Ohio. The corpse will still be in the coffin, of course, but they at least get the transport for free. Stan and Oliver are happily unaware that the men who has hired them, Frank Lucas and Joe Morgan, are gangsters, working as henchmen for their boss Darby Mason, who is wanted by the law. Mason's real name is Norton, but this name is known to the police. Mason has seen in the newspapers that a search for an heir to a very large fortune has started in Dayton. The heir's name is Egbert Norton, and Mason plans to sneak unseen into Dayton and pretend to be the heir once he is inside the city limits. Mason has planned to hide at a sanatorium, run by the dubious doctor Lake, until he can re-surface and collect the inheritance from the attorney, Malcolm Kilgore. Stan and Oliver are trusted with loading the trunk, with Mason in it, onto the train. They manage to mix the trunk up with another, similar one, belonging to Dante the magician, a stage magician, who transports his stage trunk on the train. Once aboard the train, Stan and Oliver also manage to be tricked by two con-men, Phillips and Parker. For their last dollars they buy a fake money-making machine from the con-men. They are so poor they can't even pay for dinner on the train. Dante the Magician picks up their bill for them, and they promise to repay the artist once they get to Dayton, where the magician is to perform on stage. Arriving in Dayton, the trunk with Mason in it is sent to the theater where Dante will perform, while the magician's trunk is sent to the sanatorium, where Lake awaits its arrival. Lake opens the trunk and realizes that there has been an accidental switch of trunks. He contacts the attorney, Kilgore, telling him that Norton isn't available for an interview that day. Stan and Ollie go to the theater and pay back what they owe to Dante. They are so silly and Dante finds them very amusing. He hires them on the spot, as assistants and comic relief added to his magic act that very night. Lake finds out that the trunk with Mason has been sent to the theater, and goes there to collect it. Lake is tailed by henchman Morgan and another guy named Dixie Beeler. They suspect Lake of trying to double-cross them in some way. Kilgore goes to the sanatorium to talk to Lake about his patient Norton, and finds the magician's trunk, full of handbills. Confused by this, he also goes to the theater to see if he can find out what is going on. He arrives to the theater just as the show begins. Stan and Ollie has been given orders from Morgan to find Mason, who they have lost. They run around the theater as best they can in search of the right trunk. As the show begins they discover the trunk involved in the first trick, standing directly in front of the audience, where they can't reach it without making a commotion. Dante performs his trick, and discovers Lake's dead body in the trunk when he opens it. Stan and Ollie are separated from each other in the theater. Ollie starts searching for Stan. A police officer, Lt. Foster, arrests the stage manager Tommy White and Dante for the suspicion of murdering Lake. Ollie finds attorney Kilgore knocked out on the floor of the theater. Mason knocked him out when he was suspiciously wandering around the theater. Ollie explains to Kilgore how the three men he works for are looking for the coffin, and that he told them to exit the theater unnoticed. Tommy finds out about the mishap and explains that the exit Ollie showed the three men leads to a trap door into the lion cage in the basement. They realize that the gangsters have fallen into the lion cage. They rush down to the basement and find Mason and his men trying to get escape the lions. Kilgore reveals that he is in fact a federal investigator by the name of Steve Barnes, and that the inheritance was only a sugar trap to flush out Mason from his hiding and catch him. Trapped in the lion's cage, Mason confesses to killing Lake and putting him in the trunk. The gangsters are all arrested. Ollie continues his search for Stan. He finally finds him inside what he believes is a giant egg. He then realizes that he has been shrunk by magic.http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/66923/A-Haunting-We-Will-Go/ ===== The longstanding estate battle of Jarndyce v Jarndyce hangs over the heads of many conflicting heirs, confused by multiple wills. Possible beneficiary John Jarndyce of Bleak House welcomes orphaned cousins Ada Clare and Richard Carstone—also potential heirs—as his wards, and has hired Esther Summerson as a housekeeper and companion for Ada. Honoria, Lady Dedlock, the wife of the imperious baronet Sir Leicester, is also a possible beneficiary of the estate. The Dedlocks' lawyer, Tulkinghorn, sniffs out a connection between Lady Dedlock and a newly deceased man called Nemo; as he tries to discover Nemo's true identity, Lady Dedlock secretly seeks information about the dead man herself. Meanwhile, Richard and Ada are falling in love. Richard keeps changing his mind on which career to pursue—first a physician, then a lawyer and then a soldier—but the prospect of his inheritance from the ongoing litigation begins to consume him, despite warnings from John, now his formal guardian. Esther and the young doctor Allan Woodcourt are attracted to each other, but Esther feels unworthy and Allan accepts a commission as a navy physician. The law clerk Mr. Guppy, enamoured of Esther, hopes to win her affection by helping her discover the identity of her parents. He finds connections to both Lady Dedlock and the deceased Nemo, who has been identified as Captain James Hawdon, and is eventually alerted to the existence of letters left behind by Hawdon but kept by his drunken landlord, Krook. Realizing that Esther is her daughter whom she was told had died—fathered by Hawdon before her current marriage—Lady Dedlock confesses to Esther but swears her to secrecy. Esther is stricken by smallpox and nearly dies; she recovers but is terribly scarred. John proposes marriage to Esther, but though she accepts, he convinces her to keep it secret until she is sure it is what she wants. While amassing other enemies, Tulkinghorn deduces Lady Dedlock's secret and tries to use it to keep her in line. Tulkinghorn is murdered, with no shortage of suspects. Lady Dedlock is implicated, but Inspector Bucket reveals that her former maid Hortense is the murderess and had tried to frame Lady Dedlock. Richard and Ada are secretly married, but he is obsessed with the lawsuit, encouraged by John's unscrupulous friend Harold Skimpole and the conniving lawyer Vholes. As a result, Richard is penniless and his health is failing. Hawdon's letters—written by a young Lady Dedlock and revealing her secret–find their way back into the hands of the moneylender Smallweed, who sells them to Sir Leicester. Guilty over her deception and not wanting to bring ruin to her husband, Lady Dedlock flees into a storm before Sir Leicester is able to tell her he does not care about her past. He has a stroke but sends Bucket after her. Bucket eventually realizes where she must be—the graveyard where Hawdon is buried—but Esther arrives to find her mother dead from exposure. A final Jarndyce will is found that closes the case in favour of Richard and Ada, but the estate has been consumed by years of legal fees. Richard collapses, overcome by tuberculosis, and soon dies. Allan professes his love for Esther, who rebuffs him out of obligation to John, and a pregnant Ada returns to Bleak House. John releases Esther from their engagement, knowing that she really loves Allan. Esther and Allan marry, with all in attendance. ===== In the beginning of the story, an elven girl named Elwyn finds Xion washed up on the shore of a river. She checks if he is still alive and as she looks, a ring falls by the water. As Elwyn tries to take it, she sees that Xion is on the verge of death so she takes him quickly to the village doctor, Pios. When Xion wakes up, he finds himself in The Heroes' Hearth, the tavern of the town Heroes' Way. He is then confronted by Pios and Elwyn, questioning him on what happened. He says he cannot remember and only vaguely remembers his name. The two introduce themselves to him and he finds both his hands have two strange rings. They will not come off his hands as Pios tries to investigate the rings. The two then explain that the rings could possibly be the Twin Dragon Rings, the legendary rings of power. Discarding the thought, Pios investigates more on the rings as Xion falls asleep. A feature of this game is that there is a unique ending involving each of the eight characters that Xion can team up with, making up a total of eight endings. The ending is determined by the character that Xion has developed the highest relationship with. ===== Tyrone Power and Cécile Aubry Two hundred years after the Norman Conquest, during the reign of Edward I, Saxon scholar Walter of Gurnie, the illegitimate son of the lately deceased Earl of Lessford, returns from Oxford and hears the reading of his father's will. He receives only a pair of boots, but Walter recognizes it as a token of his father's love for him. The earl's Norman widow takes Saxon hostages against possible unrest. Walter joins a group of Saxons who free them, but is forced to flee England when he is recognized. Walter, accompanied by his friend Tristram Griffen, a Saxon archer, sets out to make his fortune in Cathay (an alternative European historical name for China) during the time of the Pax Mongolica. The pair join a caravan of gifts being sent by the merchant Anthemus to Kublai Khan, who is preparing to invade China. The caravan is under the protection of Mongol general Bayan of the Hundred Eyes. Impressed by Tristram's archery skill and his English longbow and Walter's scholarship, Bayan takes an interest in the Englishmen. Lu Chung, the head of the caravan, blackmails Walter into assisting the escape of Maryam, Anthemus's half-English sister, nicknamed the "Black Rose", being sent as one of the gifts. Maryam loves Walter, but he is too interested in his adventure to pay her any attention. Tristram does not like all the killing and decides to get away. He takes Maryam with him because she wants to go to England. Bayan sends Walter on a mission to see the Song dynasty Empress of that part of China not yet under Mongol rule. When he arrives, he is told that he must stay in China as a "guest" for the rest of his life. Then he finds Tristram and Maryam had also been captured and imprisoned. During this time, Walter realizes he loves Maryam. The three of them decide to escape. Tristram dies. The small boat in which Maryam is waiting for Walter in drifts away before Walter can catch her. Walter returns to England alone. Walter is welcomed back by the Norman King Edward because of all the cultural and scientific knowledge (including gunpowder) he has brought back from China. The king knights Walter and grants him a coat of arms. Two Mongol emissaries from Bayan show up. They have brought the Black Rose to England to join Walter there. ===== Lizzy Ender's father dumps her at a Santa Fe convent after her mother died on the Santa Fe Trail. A Methodist, Lizzy is an outcast in the school who can't comprehend the dedication to Catholicism. She thinks the nuns who pray to Saint Joseph for help to finish their choir loft (which doesn't have a staircase) are crazy. She befriends an unemployed carpenter and suggests he build the staircase. Her classmates are furious as they were waiting for a miracle to occur. The carpenter, named Jose, proceeds to build the staircase in a matter of weeks armed with three simple tools and his faith. After building the staircase, Jose disappears and Lizzy decides to leave the convent to live with her father, who was currently living on a ranch in Texas. This story is based on the real legend of the miracle occurring at the Loretto Chapel in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where an unnamed man (said to be Saint Joseph) built a staircase. The circular staircase made two complete revolutions lacking both nails and a center support. A version of this story was done as the 1998 television movie The Staircase starring William Petersen (as Joad), Barbara Hershey (as Mother Madalyn), and Diane Ladd (as Sister Margaret). Category:Novels by Ann Rinaldi Category:Historical novels Category:2000 American novels ===== ===== Dr. Guy Luthan (Hugh Grant) is a New York emergency room doctor who one night comes across a strange patient: a homeless man who has a wristband from a hospital he's not familiar with, mentioning a drug he's never heard of, and with strange symptoms, including a wildly fluctuating heart rate. When the man dies, Guy attempts to follow up and find out more about the patient - only to find that the body and all records have disappeared, and he's told by his superiors to drop the case. As he continues trying to find out what happened, Guy's personal and professional life get suddenly sidetracked. His home is ransacked and cocaine is planted near his bedside. The police arrest him and he is convicted and in the process he loses his job, his license to practice medicine and all of his friends. In desperation, he manages to get the help of some homeless men who lead him to their underground home. His ER patient who died also had lived there. Through them he's led to an organization, led by neurosurgeon Dr. Lawrence Myrick (Gene Hackman), that performs spinal experiments on the homeless people, all of whom have died thus far, in an attempt to find a cure for paralysis. Myrick attempts to sway Guy to join his team, telling him that his “test subjects” are heroes, and that killing one to save millions is worth the sacrifice. Guy admits that while there is some truth in what Myrick says, Myrick’s victims did not choose to give up their lives, which makes Myrick a murderer. Myrick is accidentally shot and killed by rogue FBI Agent Frank Hare (David Morse). Later, Myrick’s widow hands the discs and documentation regarding the research to Guy telling him "my husband was trying to do a good thing, but in the wrong way". He opens the package, views the materials and proceeds towards the neurology building where he is now working. ===== Bulldog Drummond (Atholl Fleming) is injured when his car that has been sabotaged is involved in a crash. When Jack Pennington (Jack Hulbert) agrees to masquerade as the sleuth, he is enlisted to help Ann Manders (Fay Wray) find her jeweller grandfather who has been kidnapped by a gang of crooks who want him to copy a valuable necklace they want to steal. Their plan backfires in the British Museum and the film climaxes in a chase on a runaway train in the London Underground. ===== Joey participates in a fertility study at NYU. Part of the study requires that he abstain from sex for two weeks, impacting his relationship with new girlfriend Melanie (co-owner of a fruit basket company). The gang holds a barbecue to celebrate Rachel's birthday; Ross finds out he has to go to China at the last minute for an important paleontology find. He drops off a present for Rachel before he leaves. While opening her presents (Chandler got her Travel Scrabble; Joey got her an Oh, the Places You'll Go! by Dr. Seuss), Rachel finds Ross gave her a cameo pin she had admired several months ago. Chandler accidentally lets slip that Ross is in love with her. Rachel rushes to the airport to talk to Ross, but is unable to reach him before he gets on his flight. Rachel then spends the next few days deciding what to do, and on the night Ross is due to arrive back from China, even tries going on a date with another man to take her mind off it. However, when she keeps fantasizing about Ross during the date, she finally decides to give their relationship a chance and rushes off to greet him at the airport. Unbeknownst to her, Ross has started dating another woman while in China. ===== Aspiring comic book artist Josh Baker (Eric Roberts) meets a young woman named Cheryl (Janine Turner) on the streets of New York City, who proceeds to collapse and is rushed to a hospital by an ambulance. When Josh arrives at the hospital, he is shocked to find that there is no record of Cheryl ever being admitted and he soon learns another startling discovery, Cheryl's roommate also vanished after being picked up by the same ambulance. Convinced that there is some sort of conspiracy going on, Josh proceeds to investigate the disappearances, despite the overt disdain and discouragement from Lt. Spencer (James Earl Jones). ===== The Aztec god Quetzalcoatl, a winged, dragon-like, female lizard, takes up residence in the art-deco spire of the Chrysler Building, with frequent jaunts in the midday sun to devour various helpless New Yorkers on the rooftops. The resulting bloody mess confounds detectives, Shepard and Powell, who are already occupied with a case involving a series of bizarre ritual murders linked to a secret neo-Aztec cult. Meanwhile, Jimmy Quinn, a cheap, paranoid crook who wishes to be a jazz pianist, takes part in a botched diamond heist. Attempting to hide from police after the heist, he stumbles upon the creature's lair atop the Chrysler building. Quinn abandons his attempts to settle down and leave his life of crime, deciding to extort from the city an enormous amount of money in exchange for directions to the creature's nest, which houses a colossal egg. Quinn makes a deal with the city--$1 million for the location of the nest. He leads Shepard and a paramilitary assault team to the top of the Chrysler Building where they shoot the egg, killing the baby inside. However, because the creature itself was not present in the nest, the city reneges on its offer to Quinn, taking back the $1 million and leaving him broke once again. Later, after killing Powell, the creature comes to the tower. After the showdown, the creature, riddled with bullets, falls onto the streets of Manhattan. Finally, Shepard shoots the Plumed Serpent's crazed priest (who had been committing the ritual murders) as he tries to kill Quinn to resurrect his "god". Ultimately, a second large egg hatches in a different location in the city. ===== The plot follows Heidi Holland from high school in the 1960s to her career as a successful art historian over 20 years later. The play's main themes deal with the changing role of women during this time period, describing both Heidi's ardent feminism during the 1970s and her eventual sense of betrayal during the 1980s. ===== A young drifter named Hall has been working at a decrepit textile mill in a small town in Maine when the cruel foreman, Warwick, recruits him and others to assist with a massive cleaning effort. The basement of the old mill has been abandoned for decades, and over the years, a monumental infestation of rats has taken hold. This rat empire, cut off from the rest of nature, has allowed the animals to evolve into a strange and varied combination of creatures; complete with its own bizarre, self-sustaining ecosystem. There are large, armoured rats, albino, weasel-like rats that can climb up walls or burrow through the ground; and bat-like rats that have evolved to pterodactyl-like sizes. The men eventually come across a sub-basement, locked from the inside. Warwick then enlists Hall to go down and investigate the sub-basement and that he may take who ever he likes. Hall chooses Warwick who, despite trying to prevent them from entering, is forced to press on. As they make their way through the sub-basement, Hall and Warwick discover that it harbors something more terrifying and hideous than any of them could have dreamed—a cow-calf sized queen rat with no eyes or legs, whose only purpose is to endlessly breed more rats. Hall sprays Warwick towards the queen with a hose they were using to attack the rats. As the queen devours Warwick, Hall makes his way towards the exit while spraying the rats. However, he is overwhelmed and eaten alive by the hordes of mutated rats. Meanwhile, the other team of workers on the surface wonders what has happened to them and, with no idea what kind of horror awaits them, prepares to descend into the basement. ===== Chandler Smythe (Clayton Rohner) is murdered on his 35th birthday. He is then recruited as an agent of the Corps and becomes a partner to Henry McNeil (Richard Brooks). Henry was killed in the 1970s and still dresses like Shaft. The Corps, best described as God's police force on Earth, has the mission of locating citizens who have made a Faustian-style bargain with the agents of evil. When the Corps find a lost soul, they must decide whether to rehabilitate them or eliminate them from existence if they are beyond redemption. Overseeing their patrols are Decker (Googy Gress) and Ford (Marshall Bell), who give the weekly assignments. Deacon Jones acts as series narrator and appears on screen as "the Deacon". The Deacon is the head of the corps as shown in the last episode and all corp agents are ranked beneath him. However he is not god. God is never seen on the show. Chandler's teenage son Ben, played by Tony Denman, occasionally appears. Chandler guides him in subtle ways. The Corps itself functions much like any police force does, with various departments and a city-based structure. Paramedics, supply officers, spies, intelligence agents, forensic specialists, therapists, and munitions experts are all on hand to help with cases. They operate throughout the world in various cities. Chandler and Henry work out of the Hollywood station. They are based at Ravenswood, a high-rise art-deco establishment, which also doubles as purgatory. All the agents of the Corps have gone through a violent, mortal death, but merely being alive again does not render them immortal. They can "die" again, and they face immediate judgement upon dying, which may be a problem for those who have not completed their redemption. Injury can happen to them, as can all the usual mental anguish that mortals suffer. Corps agents have no magical powers to give them an advantage over the opposition. Another limitation is that agents of the Corps are not allowed to have sexual relations with others, due to the fact that sleeping with a Morlock will turn an agent into one. They also cannot overtly contact their friends and family from before they died. The Corps battle with two types of foes: Faustians and Morlocks. The Faustians are ordinary people who have made a deal with the forces of evil and bask in the fortunes that such a deal allows them on Earth. The Morlocks are Faustians who have died their mortal death and are now the ground troops for the dark side, evil's equivalent to the Corps. They are identifiable as people who have suddenly become sarcastic and courageous to extreme degrees. In addition, mirrors reveal the true nature of Morlocks; their reflections are twisted and demonic. Unlike Corps agents, Morlocks have superhuman resilience, and they cannot be easily killed. Both Morlocks and the Corps have double agents planted in each other's ranks. ===== Mighty Final Fight follows the same premise as the original Final Fight. The Mad Gear Gang, the dominant street gang of Metro City, have kidnapped Mayor Haggar's daughter, Jessica. After Haggar is informed of her kidnapping, he sets out to rescue her along with his two friends: Cody, Jessica's boyfriend; and Guy, Cody's training partner. The story is presented in a more comical fashion compared to the original game due to its satirical nature. For example, Belger's motive for kidnapping Jessica in this version is to force her into marrying him, having become infatuated with her. ===== From his room in an 8-story building belonging to the “Bird- Watchers' Society”, Sylvester employs binoculars to focus on the window opposite him, containing Tweety's cage. Tweety does the same (we see Sylvester's dark green eyes magnified enough to see the blood vessels in them, then Tweety's blue eyes--but lacking blood vessels). Tweety puts his binoculars down and says his usual catchphrase, “I tawt I taw a puddy tat!” Then he replaces his binoculars to confirm and, indeed, “I DID! I DID taw a puddy tat!” Sylvester jumps for joy and runs to the building Tweety is in (the 10-story Broken Arms Apartment Building), but fails to notice the sign banning cats and dogs from the building. This results in a confrontation with the guard just inside the door, who kicks Sylvester out. Next, Sylvester climbs up the drainpipe of the Broken Arms Apartment Building while Tweety sings the song "When Irish Eyes are Smiling". Behind Tweety and off-camera, Sylvester swings a paw in metronome rhythm to his "berry's" song. Only then does Tweety realize that Sylvester is watching him. He calls for help and jumps out of his cage; Sylvester chases him through the room. However, Tweety's owner, Granny is ready for him. She throws him out the window and, looking down on him, snarls: “Yeah that'll teach ya! Next time I'll give you what for!” Tweety joins in the scolding: “Bad ol' puddy tat!” Sylvester paces around the door, then gets an idea: to climb up in the drainpipe. Instead of getting scared again, Tweety now drops a bowling ball into the drainpipe. The heavy ball collides with Sylvester – and he swallows it! He frantically attempts to stop himself from rolling into “Champin's Bowling Alley” (a reference to animator Ken Champin), but to no avail. Sounds of bowling pins dropping emanate from said building. Now Sylvester attempts to come up with a new plan for consumption of Tweety. He then notices a street busker with a monkey across the street. He slips across the street and then, after luring the monkey away from his master with a banana, hits him (off-screen) in the head and manages to pass himself off as said monkey to the busker. Tweety isn't fooled, though, realizing that “OH! Here tum dat puddy tat adain!” Sylvester enters Granny's room chasing Tweety, but has to stop running after him outright when Granny notices him. He now tries (without much success) to surreptitiously look for and eat Tweety. His attempt to pass himself off as a monkey is ruined when Granny gives him a penny and he can't resist tipping his hat politely to her. Granny smacks him in the head with an umbrella and then exposes that she was actually fully aware that he was a deliberately intruding cat who wanted to eat her canary rather than a legitimately in-business monkey whose busker master was trying to make a living. Sylvester, who now has a lump on his head, staggers out of the room, tipping his hat at the angry Granny on his way out. Next, Sylvester manages to gain access to the desk clerk's office undetected (how he did so is unknown) and hears the telephone ring. Frustratingly, the desk clerk picks it up, but is professionally calm and polite when talking to Granny. Eavesdropping on them, Sylvester hears that Granny is checking out of Room 158, and that she wants someone to pick up Tweety and her luggage. That gives Sylvester the idea he wants: cut to a shot of Sylvester knocking on Granny's door. Granny opens it a crack and asks Sylvester what he's doing, to which Sylvester replies in his lisping voice, “Your bags, Madame.” Granny answers, “OK, they're behind the door. I'll see you in the lobby.” Sylvester enters Room 158 and picks up Granny's suitcases and Tweety's cage. He carries them all out into the hall, then discards the suitcase and carries the cage down the stairs to the rear of the apartment building. There, he walks into the alley and opens the cage, expecting to enjoy Tweety – but Granny is in the cage! She hits Sylvester with her umbrella several times in rapid succession. Next, Sylvester drags a box, a plank and a 500-pound weight to the point at the base of the apartment building that is in a direct vertical line with Tweety's window. He supports the plank with the box in the middle, stands on one end of the plank and heaves the weight onto the other end. This propels him up to Tweety's level and enables him to snatch the tiny bird. However, as he runs off, the weight lands hard on his head, freeing Tweety. Sylvester next tries to swing over to Tweety's window (Granny had obviously opted to stay), and uses all manner of scientific methods to ensure that he doesn't let Tweety slip by him again. However, he misjudges something that forces him to crash into the wall next to the drainpipe. Tweety remarks, "That puddy tat's gonna Hurt himself is he's not more careful!" Finally, Sylvester's pacing stops quite abruptly when he notices the electric air cable wires over his head. He crosses the street, climbs the supporting pole and walks the wires across to the Broken Arms Apartment Building. However, Sylvester has to get out of the way when he hears the bell ringing to signal the approach of a trolley. His feet aren't quick enough to evade the trolley, and he is electrocuted several times as the trolley pursues him! The driver is shown to be: Tweety, who again says, “I tawt I taw a puddy tat!” and Granny, who is sitting next to him, agrees with him, “You did, you DID! You DID taw a putty tat!”. The cartoon irises out as the trolley shocks Sylvester three times and the film ends. ===== The story takes place in the early years of the Cold War and centers on U.S. Army Colonel Bryan Kelly, whose plane has crash-landed on the Asiatic mainland. With him are his two sons, his wife, the pilot and co-pilot, and ten enlisted men. The sixteen prisoners are held captive by the Communist guerrilla chief Pi Ying, who forces Kelly to play a game of chess using his family and men as the white pieces, and himself as the king. Any American pieces that Pi Ying captures will be executed immediately; if Kelly wins, he and his surviving pieces will be freed. A Russian military officer, Major Barzov, and Pi Ying's female companion are present to watch the game. Pi Ying takes a sadistic pleasure in pointless exchanges of pieces meant to wear down Kelly, who begins to doubt himself over every move he makes. Eventually, he realizes that his only chance to win involves sacrificing one of his knights, played by his sons. Pi Ying captures the piece; before he can order the boy's execution, though, his companion stabs him and herself to death. Barzov then takes over for Pi Ying, but is defeated by Kelly's trap. He spares the captured son's life and offers to transport the twelve surviving group members to safety, saying that since the United States and USSR are not officially at war, he would have let them go even if Kelly had lost. Not wanting Kelly to leave thinking he is a better chess player, Barzov suggests a rematch with no lives at stake. Kelly declines, but says he will play at a later time if Barzov insists on it. ===== Tyson Bucum (Ice Cube), a maverick bounty hunter, is out to capture a petty drug dealer, Lil J (Anthony Michael Hall). Bucum confronts Lil J in his trailer home and nearly handcuffs him, but Lil J's girlfriend, who wields a shotgun, recklessly shoots at Bucum. Bucum manages to tackle Lil J's girlfriend and arrest Lil J. Bucum's boss Martinez (Anthony Giaimo), however, is not pleased with Bucum and pays him less than expected. After a brief conversation about the lottery with his attractive co- worker Pam (Valarie Rae Miller), Bucum learns from Martinez that he must capture a con man named Reggie Wright (Mike Epps), whom Bucum has captured three times prior. Bucum sees Reggie at a convenience store but fails to catch him after a long chase through Miami. Meanwhile, during a photoshoot, diamond thieves Julian (Roger Guenveur Smith) and Ursula (Carmen Chaplin) are posing as a photographer and model until a Mr. Barkley arrives. The duo murder the co-photographer, the makeup artist and Barkley's bodyguards, much to Barkley's surprise. Barkley is then shot in the head after a brief dialogue with Julian for murdering the witnesses. They then retrieve diamonds from the shoot. Bucum tracks down Reggie again and chases him until he remains unnoticed since he is hidden in a van. The thieves comes down, upon running into him instantly by accident, shoots at Bucum, who shoots back in response, and escapes, unbeknownst to them that Reggie is hidden. In a boatyard, the thieves finds Reggie in the van and shoot at him when he escapes, leaving his wallet behind, which is picked up by Juilian. At the crime scene, Martinez is fed up of Bucum's attempts and orders him to stay away from Reggie. In Reggie's apartment, Reggie and his girlfriend Gina (Eva Mendes) eventually win the lottery, only to find out that Reggie lost the latter, which was in Reggie's wallet. In the boatyard, Julian and Ursula are yelled at by their boss Williamson (Tommy Flanagan), having told him that the diamonds they retrieved from the shoot were fake. Out of frustration of not getting the diamonds, Williamson responds by shooting Julian in the arm, severely wounding him, which is later enclosed in an arm brace. Reggie is soon captured by Bucum during an attempt to retrieve his wallet and while in the car, Reggie manages to convince Bucum to find his wallet and find the thieves. At the boatyard, Bucum and Reggie realizes that the van is unclear of its location, so Bucum tries to look into the connection of the photo shoot and the van, while Reggie is handcuffed to his bed with Gina. Julian, in a psychopathic state, goes after Reggie. He arrives at the apartment, and is knocked unconscious by Bucum, having anticipated him coming after Reggie. The duo then decides to torture Julian into answers by pending a screwdriver into Julian's arm brace, which can rip through his skin. Julian then reveals Williamson's name. Bucum awaits in the boatyard of Williamson's boat dealership and poses as a customer. This soon fails, so the duo decides to go to the Barkley residence. At the house, they find a dead Mrs. Barkley, a man named Roscoe who was the one who murdered Mrs. Barkley, and attacks Bucum (only to be knocked out by Reggie), eventually finding the diamonds in a fish tank. They return to Bucum's apartment and discover that Williamson has kidnapped Gina. In response, they roll a car into Williamson's boat dealership with Julian and Roscoe unconscious in the cab. Willamson finds a tape recorder that informs him to meet Reggie and Bucum at a dog track with Gina to exchange for the diamonds. This goes successful with Pam posing as a janitor, Reggie revealing the diamonds, and Bucum taking position as sniper in a dog tracksman disguise to take out a sniper working for Williamson until Reggie flips the diamonds off of Williamson's hands leading to a shootout and chase. During the chase, Williamson pulls out a bazooka and opens fire, missing Bucum, Reggie, Gina and Pam but instead blowing up a nearby fish truck. He escapes, and Bucum and Reggie are so fed up with the plan that they decide to break up their partnership . Pam convinces Bucum to talk to Reggie and they make up again. The duo tracks Williamson to a boat dock in which Gina and Pam await behind them in the car. Bucum gives Reggie a taser since Reggie accidentally dropped one of Bucum's guns into the ocean. On the boat, as Bucum leaves, he sees Pam and Gina running away, having knocked out two henchman by pushing a lifeboat in their direction. Meanwhile, Reggie finds his wallet and recovers the lottery ticket, but is soon caught by Williamson and Ursula and he even forces Reggie to take his money on the boat. Bucum, taking Ursula as a hostage, catches up with them. Williamson, in response, kills Ursula by shooting her in the head and wounds Reggie, leading to a fight as the boat speeds up. Williamson is knocked out by the boat's speed and the boat crashes onto shore. Bucum and Reggie reunite until Williamson, badly injured, attacks Bucum. Reggie tases him and Bucum shoots Williamson to death multiple times. Later, Bucum and Reggie are figuring out what to do next but the coast guards are coming, and Bucum is forced to handcuff Reggie and hide the money. Six weeks later, Reggie is released from prison. He initially believes that his friends have abandoned him until Bucum finally arrives, along with Gina and Pam. Bucum, who has a new car and spending money, reveals the winning ticket. The film ends with Reggie celebrating his new wealth with Bucum, their women, and the two elderly friends of Reggie, skiing on the boat through the ocean. ===== In the first book, a wealthy arms manufacturer, Dr. Baines, comes to a black magician, Theron Ware. Initially Baines tests Ware's credentials by asking for two people to be killed, first the Governor of California, Rogan (Reagan was governor at the time of writing) and then a rival physicist. When this is accomplished to Baines' satisfaction, Baines reveals his real reason: he wishes to release all the demons from Hell on Earth for one night to see what might happen. The book includes a lengthy description of the summoning ritual and a detailed (and as accurate as possible, given the available literature) description of the grotesque figures of the demons as they appear. Tension between white magicians (who appear to have a line of communications with the unfallen host in Heaven) and Ware is woven over the terms and conditions of a magical covenant that is designed to provide for observers and limitations. Black Easter ends with Baphomet announcing to the participants that the demons can not be compelled to return to Hell: the war is over and God is dead. The Day After Judgement, which follows in the series, develops and extends the characters from the first book. It suggests that God may not be dead, or that demons may not be inherently self-destructive, as something appears to be restraining the actions of the demons upon Earth. In a lengthy Miltonian speech at the end of the novel, Satan Mekratrig explains that, compared to humans, demons are good, and that if perhaps God has withdrawn Himself, then Satan beyond all others was qualified to take His place and, if anything, would be a more just god. However, the defeat of Satan is complete. He cannot take up this throne and must hand the burning keys to man, as this is the most fell of all his fell damnations. He never wanted to be God at all, and so having won all, all has he lost. ===== In the novel, a new form of endogenous retrovirus has emerged, SHEVA. It controls human evolution by rapidly evolving the next generation while it is in the womb, leading to speciation. The novel follows several characters as the "plague" is discovered as well as the panicked reaction of the public and the US government to the disease. Built into the human genome are non-coding sequences of DNA called introns. Certain portions of those "non-sense" sequences, remnants of prehistoric retroviruses, have been activated and are translating numerous LPCs (large protein complexes). The activation of SHEVA and its consequential sudden speciation was postulated to be controlled by a complex genetic network that perceives a need for modification or to be a human adaptive response to overcrowding. The disease, or rather, gene activation, is passed on laterally from male to female as per an STD. If impregnated, a woman in her first trimester who has contracted SHEVA will miscarry a deformed female fetus made of little more than two ovaries. This "first stage fetus" leaves behind a fertilized egg with 52 chromosomes, rather than the typical 46 characteristic of Homo sapiens sapiens. During the third trimester of the second stage pregnancy, both parents go into a pre-speciation puberty to prepare them for the needs of their novel child. Facial pigmentation changes underneath the old skin which begins sloughing off like a mask. Vocal organs and olfactory glands alter and sensitize respectively, to adapt for a new form of communication. For over a year after the first SHEVA outbreak in the United States, no second stage fetus was recorded to have been born alive. The new human species was highly sensitive to all varieties of herpes and could not be viably born to a mother who had ever been infected with any of the virus' many forms, including Epstein-Barr and the chickenpox, thus eliminating 95% of the female population. Anesthetics and pitocin administered during childbirth were also lethal. So while many women would contract activated SHEVA that few would manage to give birth, making the transition from Homo sapiens sapiens to the new human species very gradual. The international response to the threat of SHEVA was to form a special task force that would work alongside the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to find a vaccine. Because the "disease", called "Herod's Flu", was already in the genome of every person on Earth, the only two options were to inhibit the activation of the SHEVA gene by discovering the signal it used or to abort the second-stage fetus. Due to the rapid mutation rate of the missing-link signal molecule, preventing the activation of the gene was infeasible. The second option, abortion, was already a controversial issue and the proposal of handing out free RU 486 was met with social upheaval, adding to the already-chaotic social scene. The general public believed that the government was not placing due importance on the death of countless fetuses or that it already had a cure and refused to release it. In response, government research facilities were forced to test prospective treatments prematurely and could not pursue explanations for SHEVA outside of the "disease" category because of the potential reactions from the masses. It was not until viable second-stage fetuses were born that the idea of SHEVA being a part of evolution rather than a disease began to grow from a few isolated sources. ===== Small-time Boston crook Tony Pino (Peter Falk) tries to make a name for himself. He and his five associates pull off a robbery whenever they can. Tony stumbles across the fact that the Brink's security procedures are incredibly lax. He and his gang easily rob over $100,000 in cash from an unlocked, parked Brink's armoured car. To find out more, Tony disguises himself as a spark plug salesman to get an inside look at Brink's large and so-called "impregnable fortress" headquarters in the city's North End. The company had been thought to have unbreachable security as a private "bank" throughout the East Coast. Once inside, Tony realizes that Brink's is anything but a fortress and that employees treat the money "like garbage." Still wary of Brink's public image, Tony breaks in one night after casing the building. He finds that only two doors in the building are locked, and one is easily bypassed by leaping a gate. The only thing locked in the building is the vault. Tony also realizes that despite what Brink's claims, there is only a 10-cent alarm in the vault room itself, almost impossible to set off. It appears that Brink's had relied so much on its reputation that it had not even bothered locking the doors. Pino begins to plan a robbery, using the rooftop of a neighboring building as a watch tower. Tony and his dim brother-in-law Vinnie (Allen Garfield) put together a motley gang of thieves. They include the debonair Jazz Maffie (Paul Sorvino) and an Iwo Jima veteran, Specs O'Keefe (Warren Oates), who is taken aboard before they realize how unbalanced he is. Over the crew's objections, Pino also invites the arrogant fence Joe McGinnis (Peter Boyle) to be in on the job. The robbers on the night of Jan. 17th, 1950 make off with more than a million dollars in cash, along with another million-plus in securities and checks. Brink's, a company that prides itself in the safekeeping of money, is nationally embarrassed by what the press is calling "the crime of the century." Even FBI director J. Edgar Hoover (Sheldon Leonard) takes a personal interest in finding the culprits, even so much as creating a makeshift FBI office in Boston. Law enforcement agents begin rounding up suspects. They come to the home of Tony and Mary Pino, as they often do for crimes in the area. Mary (Gena Rowlands) is so familiar with them by now, she makes the cops dinner. Tony is brought in for questioning, but reacts with indignation at being accused. The crooks begin to crack, however. McGinnis infuriates them by destroying a large sum of the hold-up money, claiming the bills could be traced. He also hangs onto the rest, defying threats by Pino and his cohorts to hand over their shares. Specs and another of the gang, Stanley Gusciora, go on the road to meet his "sugar doughnut" in Pittsburgh. They are picked up by Pennsylvania State Police on a burglary charge en route at Bradford, Pennsylvania and are each handed a long jail sentence, Gusciora at the Western Penitentiary-Pittsburgh. Specs grows more and more disturbed behind bars, demanding that money from his cut be sent to his ill sister. In interrogation, Specs and Stanley are pressured more each day to reveal whatever they might know about the Brink's job. Specs ultimately confesses. One by one, the rest of the gang is apprehended, mainly by the Boston Police Department. Tony is on his way to jail in Boston and so is Vinnie, but they unexpectedly find themselves hailed as heroes by people on the street for having pulled off one of the great crimes of all time. One teen remarks to a clearly pleased Pino, "You're the greatest thief who ever lived! Nobody will ever do what you did, Tony!" ===== When a dysfunctional family gathers for Thanksgiving at their New England home, past demons reveal themselves as one son returns for the first time in three years. ===== Jing Koo or Koo Jing (Stephen Chow) is a self- proclaimed Trick Expert who has a wide range of tricks at his disposal, including many practical jokes and some more serious tricks which are even capable of driving a person insane. He uses such tricks to accomplish whatever requests his clients give him. When he is hired by Macky Kam (Waise Lee) to ruin the relationship between Che Man-kit (Andy Lau), an honest employee who works at the same company as Macky, and Lucy Ching (Rosamund Kwan), the company president's daughter whom Macky is romantically interested in, Jing sets up an act to get in the Che household as Kit's long lost younger brother Che Man-jing. Kit is suspicious of Jing at first, but is later convinced that Jing really is his brother and decides to treat him better. He gets Jing to work in the same company and introduces him to Lucy and her friend, Banana Fung (Chingmy Yau), who later on becomes interested in him. From here Jing attempts to embarrass Kit in front of Lucy at every turn, which includes having Kit drink a cola can dosed with 'irresistible aphrodisiac', a medicine that makes the victim unable to control his sexual desires, but Kit cleverly avoids all of Jing's tricks (without suspecting him). It isn't until a contract-signing event which Kit is responsible for that Jing succeeds, in which he makes everyone from his company leave the room and assaults the other party. As a result, Kit is fired. Seeing this, his father Yan Che (Ng Man-tat) also quits the company despite his retirement only a few months away. That night, Jing prepares to leave the house, but is given a surprise 'birthday' party by his 'brother' and 'father', which moved him deeply. When Macky contacts Jing and asks him to target Kit yet again, he flat out refuses. Banana overhears the conversation and seeks out the Trick Expert who is actually Jing's true identity. She insists that he target Macky to avenge Kit, and promises that she would marry him in return. Jing and Banana go to meet Kit and his father and tell them the truth. They are furious at first, but eventually accept Jing's help. Jing takes Yan to his office to discuss plans, but they are confronted by a man who claims himself to be the Ultimate Trick Expert. He is hired by Macky to guard his party where he would propose to Lucy. Kit, Jing and Yan infiltrate the party and search for Lucy. They manage to have Kit propose to Lucy before Macky's men find and pursue them. Jing has an intense showdown with the Ultimate Trick Expert using tricks and comes out victorious by blowing him away with a paint bazooka. Meanwhile, Kit is seized and forced to drink a whole bottle of 'irresistible aphrodisiac', however the overdose causes him to become incredibly strong and muscular instead. He easily subdues Macky and his men, then proceeds to ask Lucy's father for permission to marry her, which he readily agrees. As Jing and Yan happily watch the scene of Kit and Lucy kissing, Banana approaches Jing and reminds him of their promise. Jing takes Banana to his mother, who was waiting outside, but Yan recognizes her as Man-yuk, a one-night stand of his many years ago. The last plot twist is revealed that Jing is, in fact Yan's son and Kit's brother, before the credits roll. ===== ===== 190px The game is set an undisclosed amount of time after the first installment in the series, Jumping Flash!. After Robbit denounces Baron Aloha's plans to take over Crater Planet (events from the first game), Aloha flees for his life and returns to his home planet, Little Muu. While planning his revenge, however, Aloha's turn to face the fear of having his planet attacked comes. A hostile alien invader known as Captain Kabuki (voiced by Lorelei King) descends upon Little Muu and starts taking it apart, piece by piece, contrasting on what Aloha himself had once tried to do to Crater Planet in the first game. Aloha flees the onslaught in his space pod, and lands on an asteroid far away from Little Muu, where he calls for help from his sworn enemy, Universal City Hall. Once again, Robbit is dispatched to help, and manages to free the parts of Little Muu which Kabuki has taken, and ultimately faces Kabuki one-on-one in mortal combat. Robbit defeats Kabuki, resulting in the latter escaping. Still carrying a grudge against Robbit, Aloha seeks Kabuki and convinces him to form an alliance so that they can destroy Robbit together. In exchange, Aloha will pay Kabuki a large amount of money, and Kabuki, also desiring revenge against Robbit, agrees. Aloha and Kabuki attack Little Muu together, prompting Robbit to take action again. Eventually, Robbit and Kabuki battle each other one last time, and Robbit manages to destroy Kabuki once and for all while Aloha flees for his life once again. At the end of the game, Aloha returns to Little Muu, but is disowned by all the MuuMuus, who now resent him for teaming with Kabuki (who had tried to destroy them all) and trying to destroy Robbit, who had saved their lives. They throw him out of the bar and tell him to never come back. ===== Julie Barnes (Claire Danes), Pete Cochran (Giovanni Ribisi) and Lincoln Hayes (Omar Epps) are three minor delinquents who choose to become undercover cops in place of serving their jail terms. When their superior Capt. Adam Greer (Dennis Farina) is murdered, the trio set out to find the real culprits. ===== Michael Moriarty plays an amoral anthropologist who has been lumbered with his dysfunctional adolescent son (Ricky Addison Reed). He returns to Salem's Lot, the town of his birth, to find that it has been taken over by the undead. A few living people are kept around to provide blood for the vampires and to operate the gas station and shops in the daytime. Knowing of the anthropologist's refusal to moralize about other people's lifestyles (in the opening scene he is seen refusing to interfere in a human sacrifice and concerned only for the quality of the film he is shooting), the vampires employ him to write their story. As the vampires' evil nature becomes clear, the anthropologist is joined by a Nazi hunter (played by Samuel Fuller) who helps him save his son, and at the climax the master vampire is impaled on the American flag instead of the traditional stake. As the trio escapes Salem's Lot, the vampires are left in the sun to burn along with their homes. ===== In the late 1960s, 19-year-old Janice McAllister runs away from her home in Indianapolis after an argument with her parents about her future and comes to New York City, where she's taken in by Luther, a playful con artist and bohemian. Renaming Janice "Tiger," Luther becomes both her boyfriend and mentor, schooling her in the art of con games and petty crime. The two prove to be an effective pair and they successfully live from the food and money that they steal or con. As the story progresses, it becomes apparent that Luther is the beneficiary of an enormous trust fund set up by his wealthy parents, and that his lifestyle is a result of boredom rather than necessity. Although the two enjoy one another's company, Tiger is constantly frustrated by Luther's habit of role playing multiple personas-- including Dracula and a terrorist called "The Mad Bomber of London"-- even when not engaging in con schemes, a habit she believes is an attempt to emotionally distance himself from her. Even after living with Luther for an extended period, Janice realizes she knows more about Luther's personas than she does him. Luther responds to her attempts at emotional intimacy by claiming he has no need to mature any further in life. One afternoon, on a whim, Luther invites a pair of pornographers to move in with him and Janice so that they can focus on building a phone sex operation. One of them, a morbidly obese man named Chance, overdoses on drugs and nearly dies in their living room. The experience startles Janice enough to end her relationship with Luther. At this point in the novel, the narration begins alternating between third-person accounts of Janice's life and italicized, first-person segments narrated by Luther, who appears to be steadily losing his mind. Luther's segments take the form of letters, journal entries, and even direct addresses to the reader, as he documents his attempts to win back Tiger's affections. Tiger becomes a secretary at a law firm, where she befriends several of her coworkers and is briefly promoted to the personal assistant of a prominent attorney, who demotes her after she rebuffs his sexual advances. Luther, meanwhile, tries to convince Tiger to move back in with him; Luther's attempts at regaining Tiger's love take the form of a number of comic set pieces that take on more and more sinister undertones as the book progresses. In his first-person accounts, Luther indicates that the two pornographers have moved out of his apartment and that his electricity has been shut off, and he begins to obsess over his sudden tendency to wet the bed. One of Janice's coworkers sets her up on a blind date with an optometrist. Although the date begins successfully, Luther shows up at the restaurant where they are having dinner, in character as one of his old personas, a Russian waiter. After refusing the manager's request to leave, Luther sparks a small riot after he begins rapidly switching personas and starts throwing patrons' food at them. Luther later wonders why he didn't simply leave the restaurant after being found out by the manager, per his grifter's code of always escaping a bad situation when caught. Deciding that he must really be part Russian, Luther travels to the Soviet Union embassy in New York City requesting asylum, but he is denied. Tiger is promoted at work and continues to date the optometrist. Luther becomes more aggressive in his pursuit of Tiger, ultimately stalking her at work and breaking into her room at the YWCA. After catching Luther in her room one night, Tiger and Luther discuss their life philosophies; Luther sadly acknowledges that he and Janice are incompatible and agrees to leave her alone. The next day, Luther phones Janice's office in his "Mad Bomber of London" persona, threatening to blow up the building. Although the rest of the staff evacuates the building, Tiger assures them that it's simply a prank and remains at her desk. In his final address to the reader, Luther's narration deteriorates into incoherent rambling, rants against Christianity, and an anecdote about once breaking his nose on New Year's Eve. Sitting at her desk, Janice has a sudden revelation and attempts to leave the building. Before she can, a bomb on her floor detonates, killing her and burning down the office. On the street, Luther watches the rubble burn and has a vision of finding a young Janice on the beach and taking her home. ===== In this novel Burroughs shifts the focus of the series for the second time, the first having been from early protagonists John Carter and Dejah Thoris to their children after the third book. Now he moves to a completely unrelated hero, Ulysses Paxton, an Earthman like Carter who like him is sent to Mars by astral projection. Original 1927 magazine publication On Mars, Paxton is taken in by elderly mad scientist Ras Thavas, the "Master Mind" of the title, who educates him in the ways of Barsoom and bestows on him the Martian name Vad Varo. Ras has perfected techniques of transplanting brains, which he uses to provide rich elderly Martians with youthful new bodies for a profit. Distrustful of his fellow Martians, he trains Paxton as his assistant to perform the same operation on him. But Paxton has fallen in love with Valla Dia, one of Ras' young victims, whose body has been swapped for that of the hag Xaxa, Jeddara (empress) of the city- state of Phundahl. He refuses to operate on Ras until his mentor promises to restore her to her rightful body. A quest for that body ensues, in which Paxton is aided by others of Ras' experimental victims, and in the end he attains the hand of his Valla Dia, who in a happy plot twist turns out to be a princess. ===== Hélène and Jean have pledged their love to each other, but are not engaged to marry. Their love affair allows dalliances with others, but they have promised to put each other first above all others. Hélène has been warned by a friend that Jean's love for her has cooled and fears this is correct. She tricks him into confessing, by pretending her own feelings for him have cooled to a friendship. She hides her shock and dismay when he enthusiastically accepts her as now just a friend instead of a lover. After he leaves her apartment, it is clear that she is devastated. But instead of mourning her love, she decides to exact a cruel revenge on him. Young Agnès is a cabaret dancer. Her ambition was to become a ballerina at the Opera, but hard times have fallen on her, and in order to support herself and her mother, she has resorted to dancing in nightclubs and earning money as a prostitute. Hélène, in a pretense of compassion, offers to pay off Agnès' mother's debts and move them into an apartment, allowing Agnès to quit the nightlife. Hélène sets a trap using Agnès to entice Jean into falling in love with the young woman. She assures him that Agnès and her mother are of an "impeccable" background. He is already smitten as soon as he sees Agnès in the Bois de Boulogne, and makes no attempt to learn anything about her, instead relying on Helene's false information. Agnès suspects they're being manipulated by Hélène but feels powerless to escape the trap. Jean does not relent in his advances, and finally Agnès agrees to marry him. Hélène advises her not to breathe a word to Jean about her past until after they are wed, and insists to Jean that he allow her to plan a lavish wedding for the two of them. Immediately after the ceremony, Hélène first hints to Jean that something is amiss. Agnès had assumed that Hélène had already told Jean the truth, and learning she was tricked, falls in a faint. Jean confronts Hélène, who now divulges triumphantly that she maneuvered him into the marriage, and that all of the guests know the truth. Jean, filled with shame, bewilderment and rage, drives off leaving his new bride, still in an unconscious state. Later that evening, Jean returns. Agnès' mother warns that the girl's heart is weak and that she could die. Jean walks into the room, stone-faced. Agnès, barely conscious, whispers that she hopes he will forgive her, but it's clear that she will free him by giving up her life. Agnès sighs, and appears to stop breathing. Jean is filled with love for her and begs her to be strong and to hang on to life. Although weak, she hears him and her faint smile assures him that she will live. ===== Hazel Aiken (Carroll Baker) is a Queens housewife and hairdresser who runs an electrolysis parlor in her home. Hazel shares a home with her sister- in-law and infant child and flicks lit cigarettes at her ineffectual husband. She makes extra money by operating a dirty deeds service, connecting clients with sociopaths who perform the jobs. Hazel only hires women, but when one of them can't do a high paying job, she agrees to interview a drifter L.T. (Perry King) recommended by one of the girls. Hazel also receives unwanted attention from Detective Hughes (Charles McGregor), a corrupt cop who wants her to surrender one of her employees so he can make an arrest. Hazel's female employees like P. G. and R.C. wander in and out of the house and occasionally torture her sister-in-law with mean comments about her weight and absent husband. L.T. delights in this and does nothing to prevent it. When it comes time for L.T. to do his job, which is to smother an autistic child in his bedroom while the knowing parents pretend to sleep, things do not go according to plan. L.T. becomes frustrated when the kid does not respond to him and stares inert into space. Feeling sympathy for the child, he brings him to the parents' bedroom and yells, "Do it yourself!" When he returns to Hazel's to explain that he did not do the job, Hazel calls him "sensitive" and demands her rent money. Detective Hughes is also in the house, to Hazel's surprise, and they argue over their agreement. Hazel calls Hughes a racial epithet, which enrages him and he drowns her to death in the kitchen sink. The sister- in-law walks into the kitchen and dispassionately takes Hazel's key to the dial phone's lock and unlocks it. ===== In 1792, Spain suffers amid upheaval from the French Revolution. Francisco Goya (Stellan Skarsgård) is a renowned painter who does portraits as the Official Court Painter to Spain's royalty, among others. The Spanish Inquisition is disturbed by some of Goya's work. Brother Lorenzo Casamares (Javier Bardem) defends him and later hires him to paint his portrait. Lorenzo says that his works are not evil, but simply depict evil. He recommends that the Church/Inquisition step up against anti-Catholic practices, and he is given power to intensify the Inquisition. While posing for Goya, Lorenzo sees a painting and asks about the model he uses, Inés (Natalie Portman), the daughter of rich merchant Tomás Bilbatúa (José Luis Gómez). Later, Inés is spotted in a tavern by Holy Office spies (trained by Lorenzo) declining a dish of pork. She is summoned by the Inquisition and arrested on charges of "Judaizing" by refusing pork. She is stripped naked and tortured by strappado (put to The Question) into a confession and then imprisoned. Her father begs Goya for help, who in turn asks Lorenzo to learn about Inés's situation. Lorenzo visits her in the dungeon, feigning to help her and pass a message to her family. He offers to pray with her, but struggles with his desire for her. Left naked, she prays with him at his request. Later, at a dinner in Bilbatúa's home where he and Goya are guests, Lorenzo defends strappado(The Question): He argues that if the accused is innocent; God will give him or her the strength to deny guilt, therefore; A person who confesses under duress must be guilty. Bilbatúa does not agree and argues that people will confess to anything under torture, to which Goya also agrees. Bilbatúa then draws up a document which says that Lorenzo confesses to being a monkey, and with the help of his sons, tortures Lorenzo in the same manner, causing him to break down and sign it. Bilbatúa promises to destroy the document if Inés is released. He gives Lorenzo a large gold 'donation' for the Church in the hopes it may persuade the Holy Office to release her. Lorenzo pleads for Inés, and the Inquisitor-General Father Gregorio accepts the money, but refuses her release, since she has confessed. Lorenzo again visits Inés, offering to pray with her, but instead rapes her. Later, her father brings the document to the king, Charles IV (Randy Quaid) who is amused at reading it and promises to look into Inés' situation. The document is an embarrassment to the Holy Office, and Lorenzo flees when they come to arrest him. His portrait is confiscated and publicly burned in effigy. Fifteen years pass, and a now deaf Goya is at the height of his creativity. The French army invades Spain, abolishes the Inquisition and sets the prisoners free. Lorenzo had fled to France, and is now a fanatical adherent of the French Revolution. He has become Napoleon's chief prosecutor against his Inquisition ex-colleagues. (This twist in Lorenzo's allegiance may have been inspired by Juan Antonio Llorente.) A French show trial court convicts and sentences the Inquisitor-General to death. Left in the dungeons over the years, Inés has been losing her sanity. She's had a daughter (fathered by Lorenzo) whom was taken away at birth. Upon returning home and finding her family dead, Inés turns to Goya for help in finding her child. Lorenzo is the father, which is embarrassing for him, and he sends Inés to an insane asylum. Lorenzo questions the condemned Inquisitor-General, who tells him that a child born in the dungeon would've been placed at an orphanage. Lorenzo finds it and learns from the nuns that his daughter, Alicia, had run away several years prior. While sketching in Garden Park, Goya notices a prostitute named Alicia (also played by Portman) who looks just like Inés. He goes to Lorenzo and asks for Inés, so he can reunite her with her daughter. Lorenzo becomes worried and secretly visits Alicia at the park, offering to pay her passage to America if she leaves Spain. She refuses, calling him insane. Meanwhile, Goya visits the asylum where Lorenzo had stashed Inés and bribes the director to release her. He attempts to bring her to see Alicia at a tavern where prostitutes gather. As he tries to persuade Alicia, soldiers (on Lorenzo's orders) raid the place and arrest all the prostitutes. Goya learns that Lorenzo plans to sell them as slaves to America. Soon after, the deluded Inés wanders into the tavern and finds a baby left by its mother, who was taken in the raid. She is elated and steals the baby away thinking it's her lost child. The British are easily defeating the French with help from the Spanish populace. They come over a hill and charge the wagons transporting the prostitutes. The French escort abandons the wagons, and Alicia catches the eye of a British officer. Lorenzo is caught fleeing the invasion, and Spain has reinstated the Inquisition. Lorenzo is sentenced to death, with the Inquisitor-General reversing their earlier roles. He urges Lorenzo to repent as he is taken to the execution wearing a sanbenito with painted flames, indicating that he is sentenced to hell. On the scaffold, Lorenzo sees Alicia, next to the British officer, scoffing at him. He also sees Goya sketching the scene at a distance. Inés is also in the crowd, and she calls to Lorenzo, showing him the baby she thinks is their daughter. Refusing to repent despite pleas from his former colleagues, Lorenzo is garroted. The film ends with a cart taking Lorenzo's body away, escorted by Inés still carrying the child, with Goya following behind and calling for her. She glances back with a smile, but continues to accompany Lorenzo's body. ===== The Hipster Squirrel is on vacation in the north woods, and decides to get some sleep, but his sleep is disturbed by what he thinks is a woodpecker, but finds out that "lumberjackson" Porky Pig is chopping his own tree. The squirrel zips open a door at the base of the tree and removes the blade off of Porky's axe then tosses it on Porky's head. While Porky goes away to get more axes, the squirrel covers the base of the tree with a sheet of metal, riveting it in and painting it to look like the tree. Porky comes back a lot of axes, and proceeds to chop, but the blades keep breaking. Unknown to him, the squirrel is handing Porky every available axe until he himself (the squirrel) becomes one, but he manages to stop Porky and demands he stops chopping that tree. But Porky's not through yet. The squirrel is reading a newspaper, but he hears a sawing noise, looks outside, and sees Porky sawing the tree down. The squirrel pulls the saw to a smaller tree, and when Porky tries to saw back, he is sandwiched through the crack and launched in the air, landing in a pond. Porky then chases the squirrel up the tree, but is stopped by a limb placed by the squirrel, who then cuts the pig's suspenders making him fall. Almost immediately after, Porky is on the other side of the tree with a shotgun, and fires. He shoots the branch he's standing on, while the squirrel runs inside and hands him a fruit basket. Porky then falls due to the weight of the basket. The squirrel then runs down with a mattress, but intentionally places it next to where Porky ends up crashing. Porky is disoriented, and the squirrel squeezes two bananas he's holding in his face, giving him a funny- looking mustache. The squirrel is convinced Porky is defeated, but is met by the shotgun held by the pig. A chase down the tree ensues, with Porky firing. Porky then shoots inside the log, but is met with some fierce growling, scaring him. Those growls turned out to be the squirrel imitating a bear, who scares Porky up a branch. The squirrel then goes back inside, laughing. Porky tries one last scheme. He brings over a supply of dynamite sticks, which he places inside the tree, which the squirrel then puts into a log nearby. Porky lights the fuse, and it ends up blowing the hollow log, awakening a real bear, which scares both Porky and the squirrel. They both run away, allowing the bear to occupy the squirrel's tree, wearing his pajamas, and reading the newspaper. ===== * Introduction: The title sign is shown first, and the card is blown away when the Road Runner whips by. The pair whip past the camera to change the credits. The camera zooms to the Road Runner and the scene shows the Latin name he keeps for the first three cartoons: ROAD RUNNER: Accelleratii Incredibus. He moves into superspeed and briefly pulls up the road. Meanwhille hungry Wile E. Coyote, on a cliff, watches with binoculars as the Road Runner tears across the roads. He licks his lips as his name is shown: COYOTE: Carnivorous Vulgaris. The coyote puts on a napkin, grabs a knife and fork, and rushes down the mountain and onto the road behind the road runner. As soon as he catches up, he tries to strike the Road Runner with his knife and fork. However, the bird just beeps and dashes off. Wile E. slows to a stop, drops his jaw in disbelief, then paces as he thinks of a new scheme. # As the Road Runner approaches, Wile E. is hiding between large rocks with a steel trash can lid. He holds it out and the Road Runner stops just short, causing the Coyote to wonder why he didn't hit it. Wile E. moves the lid while glancing at the Road Runner, who promptly sticks his tongue out and speeds away. Wile gets ready to follow him, but the Road Runner returns as quickly as he left and holds out the lid, which the Coyote runs into. The Road Runner runs off again. # Wile E. takes delivery of a boomerang and throws it over its hiding place, but is quickly hit by another boomerang, thrown by the Road Runner directly behind him. Wile E. steams with rage and is about to chase his opponent but his own boomerang come back and hits him before he can move. # The Coyote paints white lines on the gravel and brings out a SLOW School Crossing sign. Wile E. imitates a schoolgirl and prances in front of the sign, but the Road Runner blasts by, resulting in Wile E. holding onto the sign with his arms. The Road Runner returns with the wig he was wearing and a sign that says "ROAD RUNNERS CAN'T READ". # The Road Runner is now spiraling up another mountain, while Wile E. is preparing a rocket-launcher contraption, but he launches into a rock instead of the Road Runner. # The Coyote now tries to squash the passing Road Runner with a gigantic boulder. When Wile E. pulls the string out from under the boulder, its massive weight causes the boulder to reverse its center of gravity in mid-fall and squash its owner. # Having had enough of directly trying to defeat the Road Runner, Wile E. draws a curve in the right lane of the desert's main road, and continues it across into a rock face. He then paints a lifesize painting of a tunnel on the face. The bird runs directly through it. Then, Wile E. tries to follow, but flattens himself against the rock. He gears up for a 2nd attempt, but the Road Runner runs back out and knocks the Coyote down again. # Wile E. leaves a stick of TNT covered in dirt in the middle of the road and connects it to a detonator. When he pushes down on it, the detonator explodes on himself. # Resorting to the Acme Corporation, the Coyote hopes that his ACME Super Outfit will give him the ability to fly, but he drastically fails to defy gravity and instead drops straight to the ground. # Wile E. now puts together a meat grinder, a refrigerator, and an electric motor (the motor turns the grinder, grinding the ice cubes the refrigerator is spitting out, creating a path of snow), and skis towards the road, narrowly missing the bird. The Coyote continues across the desert floor and off the edge of another cliff. The Coyote's expression changes slowly as the power begins to run out of the refrigerator, and then he falls to the ground. The motor automatically turns on and snow forms on top of the coyote, who holds up a "MERRY XMAS" sign. # Having tried most everything, Wile E. now puts on a pair of Fleet Foot's jet-propelled tennis shoes, and discovers he can now move at the speed of the Road Runner. Happy with himself, Wile E. returns to his attack base, but then the Road Runner turns up directly in front and beeps. A chase ensues, but when the dust clears, it is revealed that the Road Runner didn't even move! Wile E. turns around and returns to the Road Runner, infuriated. Both of them start on the "dragstrip" a second time and it is Wile E. who accidentally initiates the false start. The Coyote's eyes pop out and he initiates the chase again. As Wile E. is gaining on the bird, both rivals come to a highway 'cloverleaf', where they circle around and around, constantly changing directions to the tune of "I'm Looking Over A Four Leaf Clover", until they meet in the center stretch. The chase continues down the road until the tennis shoes run out. Wile E. sees a sign displaying "SHORTCUT" and follows it, looking to intercept the Road Runner. # Wile E. hears the beeps then steps out into the middle of the road with an axe, but it is a bus that approaches and flattens the Coyote. The bird, perched in the back window of the bus, pulls down a shade emblazoned with "The End". A major running gag throughout the cartoon series is the fact that Wile E. Coyote (an ironic pun on "Wily") continuously gets defeated by his own gadgets, often obtained through a fictitious mail-order company called "ACME". The name of the company is ironic because of its meaning the best or the highest in quality. A commentator in the Looney Tunes Golden Collection pointed out that what keeps Wile E. going is his perception that the gadgets typically almost work. ===== Fuminori Sakisaka is a young medical student whose life changes when he is involved in a car accident along with his parents, killing them and wounding him. He wakes from an exaggerated form of agnosia that causes him to see the world as covered in gore and people as hideous monsters. As he contemplates suicide in the hospital, he meets Saya, who he sees as a beautiful young girl, however, in reality, she is a horrific extraterrestrial monster whose appearance drives people mad. Due to their circumstances, the two become close and move in together, becoming lovers and incredibly dependent on one another. Fuminori's cold attitude toward his friends (whom he also sees as hideous monsters) worries them. After Yoh, who has a crush on Fuminori, attempts to confess her feelings, her friend Omi goes to confront Fuminori--and promptly becomes food for Saya. It is with this incident that Fuminori unknowingly tastes human flesh, finding it delicious due to his warped senses. As Koji investigates Fuminori's strange actions, Saya visits Fuminori's neighbor, Yosuke, and changes his brain into the same as Fuminori's as an experiment. Yosuke, driven insane, kills his family and assaults Saya before being killed by Fuminori. From here, Saya offers to mend Fuminori's brain. If Fuminori accepts, his misperception disappears, but Saya leaves him, as she wishes for him not to see her pure form. Fuminori is arrested and confined in a mental hospital. Saya goes to look for her missing "father," Professor Ogai, while Fuminori swears to wait forever for her return. If Fuminori declines Saya's offer, he will learn that he has killed his neighbor and has been eating human flesh. Fuminori decides to take care of the suspicious Koji, driving him to Ogai's mountain cabin and attempting to kill him by pushing him into a well. Saya assaults Yoh before mutating her into the same being as Saya as part of a plan to give Fuminori a "family." This act puts Yoh through hours of torturous pain, and she is reduced to a sex slave for Fuminori's and Saya's desires. Fuminori's surgeon, Doctor Ryoko Tanbo, saves Koji from the well, aware of Saya, and already investigating Ogai. The two discover a secret chamber in the well and find Ogai's corpse as well as his research of Saya and her species. Koji goes to Fuminori's home and discovers Omi's and the Suzumi family's flesh in his refrigerator. From here, Koji can either call Ryoko or Fuminori. If Koji calls Fuminori, the two confront each other at an abandoned sanctuary. Koji attempts to kill Fuminori but instead finds Yoh, who begs for him to kill her and end her pain. Koji, driven insane by her monstrous appearance, shoots her and beats her to death with a steel pipe before engaging in battle with Fuminori. He overpowers Fuminori but is killed by Saya before he can deliver the fatal blow. Saya then collapses and reveals that she is pregnant. She releases her spores as her "last gift" to Fuminori, who looks on in joy as the spores target humanity, changing all of them into the same beings as Saya. Ryoko, hiding in Ogai's mountain cabin, finishes transcribing his research and learns all she can about Saya and her race before resigning herself to her fate of mutation. If Koji calls Ryoko, the two confront Fuminori. During the fight, Koji still kills Yoh, but before Saya can kill him, Ryoko arrives and gives Koji liquid nitrogen which he proceeds to throw on Saya, freezing her. Despite being mortally wounded by Fuminori, Ryoko manages to shoot Saya and shatter the ice. Fuminori then commits suicide, with Saya dying alongside him. Koji is left as the only survivor of the story, unable to live as he did before now that he knows the "truth" of the world; he is haunted by nightmares and the thought that more beings like Saya exist. He purchases a single bullet for his revolver, in the hopes that when he is unable to carry on anymore, he can commit suicide, and find salvation in death. ===== The owner of a perfume shop in Paris is horrified to find a skunk, Pepé Le Pew, testing the wares inside his store. A strong and powerful gendarme, also repelled by the odor, is of no help. The perfumer notices a mostly black female cat (retroactively named Penelope Pussycat), and flings her into the store, with the demand to "Remove that skunk, that polecat pole from the premises. Avec!". ('Avec' is French for 'with' but sounds similar the Yiddish word for 'away.') The cat slides into the shop, hitting a bureau and causing a bottle of white dye to spill and run down her back and tail (Penelope acquiring a white, skunk-like stripe is a running gag in Pepé Le Pew shorts). Pepé Le Pew sees her and immediately mistakes her for another skunk. The cat smells Pepé's odor and immediately tries to run away, chased by Pepé. As she attempts to wiggle free from Pepé's embrace, he makes comments like, "It is love at sight first, no?" and "We will make beautiful music together." She breaks free and attempts to wash the stripe and the smell off but is unsuccessful. She runs to a window and tries to open it, but it is stuck. She finally takes refuge inside a locked glass cabinet, much to Pepé's chagrin. Pepé first tries to lure her out sweetly, then demands that she come out of the cabinet. She refuses, indicating that it is due to his odor. Pepé Le Pew becomes saddened, pulls out a gun, walks out of sight and fires the weapon, presumably killing himself. Panicked, the cat rushes out only to run directly into Pepé's arms. He tells her, "I missed, fortunately for you." The chase continues until Pepé finds the cat on the windowsill. He believes she is trying to prove her love for him by committing suicide, and declares that he will save her. Pepé grabs for her, but she slips through his arms. Pepé then calls out: "Vive l'amour, we die together" and steps off the window ledge. The cat falls into a barrel of water under a rain-spout off-screen, while Pepé lands in a can of blue paint. The water washes the white stripe off the cat, and also gives her a cold. When Pepé climbs out, he is blue. He sees the ragged-looking, sneezing wet cat but does not recognize her. He wanders off to find the "beautiful young lady skunk." The soaked black cat watches his blue form walking away and she falls for him. When Pepé goes back into the perfume shop to look for the female skunk, he hears the door shut and the lock click behind him. When he turns, he sees the drenched female cat leering at him and begins to panic, realizing that he is now the victim of love. She drops the key to the lock down her neckline as the startled Pepé says, "Oh, no!" and runs away. As Pepé runs as fast as he can, the cat follows using Pepé's familiar hopping pace. The short ends with Pepé telling the audience: "You know? It is possible to be too attractive," while continuing to run. ===== Set inside a "Quake" like video game, one of the game's cannon-fodder grunts falls for the Lara Croft-inspired heroine and, in a constantly looping game level, tries time and again to catch her attention before she can "chain gun" him. ===== A wrestling match pits professional wrestler Ravishing Ronald, "the de-natured boy" (a parody of Gorgeous George and "Nature Boy" Buddy Rogers) against current champion the Crusher. Bugs, the mascot of Ravishing Ronald, watches from a corner as the Crusher uses Ronald, tied up in his own hairnet, as a punching bag. Worried that he will soon be defeated, Bugs enters the match as "The Masked Terror", wearing a mask over his face, to save him. The Crusher sees the new opponent as "fresh meat," disposes of Ronald and goes after Bugs. Bugs using a little "stra-geetee" to gain the upper hand on the Crusher. Bugs tries to wrestle Crusher, but Crusher is unfazed and literally sends Bugs flying into the audience. When he is caught in Crusher's leg-scissors hold, Bugs then tears his mask apart, which Crusher thinks is a rip in his trunks. Bugs comes back from off-screen wearing a sandwich board advertising his services as "Stychen Tyme," a tailor. Bugs then jabs a needle in Crusher's backside, causing him to fly screaming through the audience. Crusher then comes charging back, but Bugs opens a safe door, letting Crusher run through it and bounce off the ring ropes before being slung back into the now closed door. A now disoriented Crusher is able to be pinned. When the match ends and Bugs is declared the new champion, Crusher snaps out of it. He offers his hand to shake Bugs' hand, despite the crowd's objections (Crusher merely growls them into silence). Bugs relents, but when Crusher tries to bite Bugs' arms he find he is instead biting through a stick of dynamite, which blows up in his face. As Bugs was showing off his muscles, it flops. ===== The planet AR-558 is notable only for being the site of a major Dominion communications relay. It has already been seized by Starfleet soldiers, and paid for in blood; of the 150 sent to the planet, 43 still live. They have not been rotated off-duty for over five months; a contravention of Starfleet regulations which insist that infantry be rested every 90 days. The USS Defiant arrives carrying supplies and replicator rations. Captain Benjamin Sisko commands, with Worf as executive officer, Ezri Dax and Dr. Julian Bashir along as tech and medical support, Ensign Nog as a crewmember, and Quark, sent on a "fact-finding mission" by the Grand Nagus. After an abortive error involving friendly fire, Sisko lands on the planet and begins to assess the situation. The Jem'Hadar are interested in regaining their communications relay; Lt. Nadia Larkin, ranking officer, is just as insistent that Starfleet keep it, but with the Dominion supplying fresh troops and Starfleet doing no such thing, the odds are poor. Furthermore, Bashir's professional medical opinion is that the soldiers are badly in need of relief, a fact simply not logistically possible. Ezri becomes an ad hoc assistant to the garrison's engineer, Kellin, in helping him decode and decipher the comm relay. Nog looks up to the battle-hardened veterans as heroes, to Quark's consternation; the elder Ferengi has seen the brutal, nastier side of these "hoo-mans," and he warns Nog not to become too enamored of them. Finally, Sisko is pushed into a decision when the Defiant comes under attack. He orders Worf to take the ship to safety; he and his men are staying to fight. Sisko begins by fortifying the garrison's defenses. The Dominion have left a set of booby-traps: "Houdini" anti-personnel mines that can pass in and out of subspace at random. Kellin and Dax work out a way to force them into normal space, so that they can be moved out of the camp and used to halt attacking Jem'Hadar. He also sends out a scouting party to locate the Jem'Hadar base; Lt. Larkin leads, with Reese as survival expert and Nog as talent: his Ferengi ears will work where jammed tricorders will not. Quark naturally objects. The party gains the needed intelligence but is ambushed; Larkin is killed, and Nog is shot in the leg, which he ends up losing. The remaining Starfleet personnel prepare for the upcoming fight. Quark guards Nog in sickbay. Bashir sets up an audio broadcast of holosuite singer Vic Fontaine as Houdinis begin exploding. In the ensuing battle, many Starfleet personnel are killed, including Vargas and Kellin, and even Quark has to kill a Jem'Hadar threatening Nog. In the aftermath, most of the Federation personnel are dead but the station is held and the relay is tapped. New supplies of troops arrive via the USS Veracruz, as well as a dedicated tech crew to commandeer the relay station; the Veracruz is also evacuating the wounded, including Nog, who will be fitted with a prosthetic limb (Nog's recovery is detailed in the episode "It's Only a Paper Moon"). With control of the comm relay, Starfleet will be able to tap into Dominion communications throughout the entire sector. ===== A bee flies into the character's sleeping mouth one month after an occult terrorist attack in Tokyo subways. In dreams the character is offered survival of the fast-approaching End of Days in return for service to an Elder God, while a good and bad angel advise the player to defy the god or else make wary use of it. The character awakes with magical powers which the character spends a week learning to control before being recruited as an agent either politely by the Templars, menacingly by the Illuminati, or incomprehensibly by the Dragon. The character then travels to London, Brooklyn or Seoul to receive training and endure a variously-induced hypnotic flashback of the Tokyo disaster. After choosing weapons they are sent to the first of several supernatural disaster zones around the world to advance their society's interests. The first three playfields are on fictional Solomon Island, Maine, walled off by occult fog and besieged by zombies, with heavy influences from H.P. Lovecraft and Stephen King (references to horror writings such as Edgar Allan Poe's and King's include "Flagg's Pharmacy", the "Overlook Motel", "Jack & Wendy's Bed & Breakfast," and an occupation of the town by ravens with unpleasant habits. NPC have Kingian names like "Creed" and "Bannerman"). Scandinavian "Draug" undead and ancient Mayan invaders, some human, begin to reveal the legacy of an ancient war fought on the mountain to control what is beneath it. A black liquid called the "filth" bubbles up from beneath the mountain, rapidly corrupting the minds and bodies of all creatures who contact it and gradually revealed to consist of the dreams of old gods. The player's investigation centers upon a man calling himself Beaumont who is working with the world's most popular New Age cult, Morninglight, actually bent on feeding the world to eldritch beings. Also present on the island are the Order of Phoenician Sailors, a resentful global pirate/mercenary army, and the in-house soldiers and scientists of Orochi, the world's largest tech conglomerate. The player gradually discovers the legendary identities of both Beaumont and of a sword which, brought by fishermen to the island, initiated the horrors there. Forging an alliance with the island's Native American community, the character enlists ancient powers to defeat Beaumont. Dungeons accessible from the island include: the site of a capsized tanker further offshore haunted by a small Cthulhu avatar; a part of the Hell Dimensions where a human bent on redeeming Hell is held captive; and the island's ancient past where the war over the mountain is fought. After facing Beaumont, the character is sent to the Valley of the Sun God, a fictional tourist area in Egypt. One map in the area hides a hidden ancient city built to worship an evil god, while the other boasts a small modern town situated above the as- yet-undiscovered ruins of ancient Thinis. Recently, blights resembling the "seven plagues" of Egypt have manifested, along with a Filth eruption associated with the return of the cult of historic sun-god Aten and, indeed, of the historical pharaoh Akhenaten, father of Tutankhamen and initiator of Ancient Egypt's short-lived experiment with monotheist Aten worship. The player is assisted by a mafia of black-marketeering mummies, by a millennia- old paramilitary resistance movement named the Marya, by a cagey eyewitness of old-testament events wielding what seems to be Aaron's Rod, and by Akhenaten's rebellious high priest and the seven of his own children he sacrificed in order to create seven avatars of the Egyptian pantheon, in the form of giant Sentinel statues. Dungeons include another Hell Dimension and an ancient Aten temple teeming with what's left of some very unwise Orochi scientists. The next location the character visits is Bacaş County, Transylvania, where an ancient human-fairy truce has been broken by an army of vampires besieging the local town. The plot reveals this siege is at the request of their queen Mara, concealing her work to exploit another Filth source and gateway into other dimensions originally opened by the Orochi Group using Emma, a captive teenaged psychic. The vampires are being opposed by the Drăculești, a group founded by Vlad Dracula to hunt and fight supernatural creatures. The Filth is also present in the Bacaş County and it is corrupting the land and its inhabitants. The character later revisits the three main locations, and they slowly learn that all three major catastrophes are heavily linked to the Orochi Group and its mysterious leaders; Samuel Chandra and Lily Engel. The player faces Lily in Transylvania and her true identity-Lilith-is revealed. Lily manages to escape to Kaidan and the character is sent to Venice by their handler. In Venice they discover that the group known as the Council of Venice, responsible for keeping the peace in the secret world, has been corrupted. Finally the character goes to Kaidan, which is located in Tokyo, Japan. A bomb was released in the Kaidan subway, which started the spread of the Filth and the destruction of the world. The headquarters of the Orochi Group is also located in Kaidan, as is the Black Signal, the digital mind of a Filth cultist who now directs the Filth creatures in Kaidan. Several groups are fighting for control of Kaidan and it is up the player character to discover the mysteries of Tokyo, find out who released the bomb, and face Lily and the Orochi Group. The Tokyo areas utilize many Japanese legends, such as the Namahage. ===== When Lisa complains to Marge that Homer does not share her interests, Marge suggests doing something he likes, so Lisa watches a televised football game with him. After being cheated by a premium rate betting advice hotline, a desperate Homer asks Lisa to pick a winner. She picks the Miami Dolphins, so Homer calls Moe's Tavern to place a $50 bet. Homer and Lisa celebrate the Dolphins' victory. Since Lisa is adept at picking winning teams, Homer declares every Sunday during football season Daddy-Daughter Day. Lisa sustains her winning streak for eight weeks, earning her father more money as the Super Bowl approaches. Homer buys his family expensive gifts and meals with his gambling earnings. When Lisa asks Homer if they can go hiking the Sunday after the Super Bowl, he tells her that Daddy- Daughter Days are over until next football season. Lisa realizes that Homer only wanted her to help him gamble and does not treasure her company. After a nightmare in which she dreams that her childhood sports betting with Homer caused her to grow up to become a three times divorced chain smoking, casino hopping compulsive gambler, Lisa, completely heartbroken, gives away all the toys Homer bought her with his betting stash, including several deluxe Malibu Stacy accessories. Homer tries to make amends with her, but she is too hurt to even talk with him (especially when he asks her who might win in the Super Bowl). She agrees to tell Homer who will win the game, but she warns him that she is so distraught she might unconsciously want him to lose. She makes a cryptic prediction: if she still loves him, Washington will win; if she does not, then Buffalo will prevail. As Homer anxiously watches the game at Moe's, Washington scores at the last second and wins. Overjoyed that his daughter still loves him, Homer cancels his bowling date with Barney and goes hiking with Lisa the very next weekend. In the subplot, Marge arranges a Mother-Son Day with Bart by taking him clothes shopping. She forces him to try on unfashionable clothes and humiliates him by flinging open the fitting room door, causing Sherri and Terri and the other customers to laugh at him in his underwear. Bart spends the rest of the day locked in the car to avoid getting beaten up by bullies for his poor fashion choices while Marge remains oblivious. ===== The film centers on the aristocratic family of the Dukes of Bournemouth (England), upon which misfortune has fallen throughout history, leading its members to believe that the family is cursed. The most recent heir, Thomas Henry Butterfly Rainbow Peace, was left in a restaurant as an infant in the 1960s; by the time his parents remembered him, he had disappeared. Meanwhile, in the 1990s Tommy Patel has grown up in an Asian/Indian family in Southall, never doubting his ethnicity despite being taller than anyone else in the house, fair-haired, blue-eyed, light-skinned—and not liking curry. From the family corner shop he commutes to the City where he works for the Bournemouth family's stockbroking firm, handling multimillion-pound deals. Tommy is given the job of acting as host to the visiting American representative of the firm, Henry Bullock, who turns out to be the son of the head of the firm, the present Duke. They become friends and the friendship survives Henry becoming the new Duke when his father dies. Circumstantial evidence shows that the true Bournemouth heir is actually Tommy; we see a series of family portraits each of which captures something of Tommy's facial characteristics, and his Indian mother tells him the story of his adoption. He consults the lawyer who dealt with his adoption, Raoul P. Shadgrind, who says Tommy has no hope of proving his claim, but plants the idea of him obtaining his rightful place in the family by getting Henry out of the way; Shadgrind himself then engineers a variety of 'accidents' in the belief that he will share in the spoils as Tommy's partner. The delightfully-complicated love interest comes with Tommy's and Henry's (shared at the same time) lover, later the new Duchess and their (shared at different times) mother, the dowager Duchess. As befits a classical comedy of errors, the final resolution of everyone's doubts and misconceptions leaves everyone living "happily ever after - "well, for a bit, at least..." ===== ===== The story is narrated by Sonoko Kakiuchi, a young woman from Osaka. At the start of the novel she lives comfortably with her husband Kotaro, and attends art classes at a local women's school. Rumors spread around the school that Sonoko is having a lesbian affair with another student, the beautiful young Mitsuko. Sonoko finds herself drawn to Mitsuko, though she barely knows her, and she proceeds to forge a friendship with her. Soon, she invites Mitsuko to her house to pose nude for her figure drawing. Mitsuko agrees, but insists on covering herself with a sheet. The sexual tension comes to a head when Sonoko rips the sheet away, thus sealing her infatuation. The two begin a fiery affair. Things are complicated by the arrival of Watanuki Eijiro, Mitsuko's sometime fiance. The effeminate, impotent Watanuki reveals that Mitsuko had intended to marry him, but now refuses unless he allows her affair with Sonoko to continue. Sonoko begins to sense that Mitsuko has been manipulating them both, but is far too mired in her infatuation – the quicksand of the title – to back out. Meanwhile, Sonoko's husband Kotaro has taken notice of her infatuation with Mitsuko. He attempts to put an end to it, but Sonoko will not be dissuaded. After a few chance meetings, Kotaro falls under Mitsuko's spell as well, and attempts to get closer to her. One evening when all three are sleeping in bed together, Sonoko awakens to find Kotaro having intercourse with Mitsuko. Knowing that their ménage à trois is doomed, Sonoko, Kotaro, and Mitsuko form a suicide pact, in which they will kill themselves with poison-laced sleeping powder. In the event, however, Sonoko wakes up, realizing that Kotaro and Mitsuko have withheld the poison from her dose, a final betrayal. ===== SpongeBob and Patrick attend a jousting tournament at the Medieval Moments restaurant. Both accept an invitation for members of the audience to participate in the tournament. They are put on seahorses and given lances. The seahorse's charge without warning and SpongeBob and Patrick are thrown out of the building into 11th-century Bikini Bottom. A group of knights surround and imprison them, with Squidward's ancestor, Squidly the jester, locked in the dungeon for telling a bad joke that causes the king to have a stroke. Eventually, the king, Mr. Krabs' ancestor, King Krabs, orders SpongeBob, Patrick, and Squidly to the throne room. They are to be executed for insulting him with a song but Princess Pearl, the 11th-century ancestor of the present-day Pearl, reminds King Krabs of the prophecy that two brave knights, having fallen from the sky, will be sent by the king to defeat the evil wizard, Planktonimor, Plankton's ancestor, who terrorizes the kingdom with his dragon jellyfish. During the princess's story, Planktonimor's dragon jellyfish kidnaps her. King Krabs then begs SpongeBob and Patrick to rescue her. The two gladly accept with Squidly in tow. As SpongeBob, Patrick, and Squidly near Planktonimor's tower, the guard, ancestor of Sandy Cheeks, the Dark Knight, blocks them. SpongeBob outwits the knight in a karate duel but spares her. In return, the Dark Knight accompanies them on their quest. On reaching the top of the tower the dragon arrives. As the dragon is about to destroy him SpongeBob pulls out a Krabby Patty which the dragon eats, becoming subservient to SpongeBob. The dragon destroys Planktonimor and the heroes return to the kingdom to celebrate. The seahorses again become aggressive, tossing SpongeBob and Patrick and they land on the ground. They find themselves waking back up in present-day Bikini Bottom at the joust. SpongeBob believes it was a crazy dream, but the fact that Patrick landed on Squidly suggests that they weren't entirely dreaming. ===== A young woman (Helen McCrory) tearfully leaves her son (Eugene Simon) to live with his grandmother and promises to return for him someday. Several years later, in 1753, in Venice, Casanova (Heath Ledger), is notorious for his promiscuity with women, his adventures being represented in puppet theatres around the city. The Doge (Tim McInnerny), the ruler of the city, is a friend to Casanova, but cannot be too lenient on him as he wishes to avoid trouble with the Church. He warns Casanova to marry soon, or he will be exiled from the city. Casanova gets engaged to Victoria, famous for her virginity, to save himself from exile. Casanova later meets and falls in love with Francesca Bruni (Sienna Miller), who writes illegal feminist books under the pseudonym of a man, Bernardo Guardi, and also argues for women's rights as Dr. Giordano de Padua. Francesca mistakes Casanova's name for Lupo Salvato (Casanova's servant) and Casanova humors her, since she hates the ill-reputed Casanova. Francesca and her mother are heavily in debt, however, so her mother (Lena Olin) pressures her to marry rich Paprizzio (Oliver Platt), from Genoa, a union arranged by her late father. When Paprizzio arrives in Venice, Casanova lies to him and says that the hotel he booked is closed and he persuades him to stay at his house. Casanova also lies and says that he is indeed Bernardo Guardi. While Paprizzio asks his advice on how to impress Francesca, Casanova lures him to stay at home while receiving treatment for weight loss. Casanova visits Francesca, pretending to be Paprizzio and tells her that he lied to her before to make sure she is not in love with someone else and marrying him only for his money. Francesca initially distrusts him but starts gradually to trust him. Piazza San Marco, Francesco Guardi, 18th century. During the Venetian Carnival, Francesca recognizes the real Paprizzio from his publicity posters which force Casanova to confess his true identity making her angry. Casanova is arrested by the Venetian Inquisition for crimes against sexual morality, such as debauchery, heresy, and fornication with a novice. He saves Francesca by pretending to be Bernardo Guardi, which cools her anger. At his trial, Francesca confesses that she is the real Bernardo Guardi, and both are sentenced to death. Meanwhile, Francesca's mother and the real Paprizzio fall in love. Just as Casanova and Francesca are about to be hanged in the Piazza San Marco, they are saved by an announcement that the Pope gave amnesty to all prisoners who were to be executed on that day, as it was the Pope's birthday. It is later discovered that the "Cardinal" who gave the announcement was actually an impostor who happens to be Casanova's stepfather, wedded to his long-lost mother who came back for him just as she promised when Casanova was a child. As they all escape on Paprizzio's boat, Francesca's brother, Giovanni (Charlie Cox), stays behind to marry Victoria and to continue Casanova's legendary womanizing. The real Casanova spends the rest of his life as a stage actor touring with his family and the Paprizzios. ===== The Ten Commandments The film is divided into two parts: the Prologue, which consists of the epic tale of Moses, and the Story, set in a modern setting and involving living by the lessons of the commandments. ===== Greenleaf's first novel Time Jumper is a coming-of-age novel set in Earth's distant future. The story revolves around two contrasting characters: a dwarf named Erin and an adolescent boy named Randi. Erin lives in a city sealed beneath a protective shield, where everything is artificially engineered, even the birds in the trees. The citizens isolate themselves in their crystal towers, caring only about wealth and status. In stark contrast, Randi lives with his tribe in a much different and more primitive environment: the wilderness outside the domed city. Erin, a loner and something of a freak in a society which values perfection, wants more out of life and spends his time secretly working on his passion, a time-traveling machine like the one built thousands of years ago by the legendary Joc-Sindor. However, Joc-Sindor's attempt to jump through time failed catastrophically, killing thousands and obliterating an area of the city now known as the Black Plain. Erin's task is to find the piece of the puzzle that Joc-Sindor missed and avoid making the same mistake. The story begins when Erin receives a message telling him that the solution to his problem lies in the city's library, a forgotten room hidden in the cavern beneath the city. Books are no longer produced, for nobody reads them. Erin's discovery of a book containing Joc-Sindor's handwritten notes sets off a series of mysterious and frightening events. It appears that someone has taken an interest in Erin's secret development of the time jumper, but whether this individual wants him to fail or succeed is not clear. In the process of pursuing answers, Erin learns surprising truths about his heritage, Joc- Sindor, and the priesthood that rules the city. Meanwhile, in his village beyond the city's shield, Randi wonders about the giant golden bubble and the city inside it, known as Chalmarene, or "place of death". Years ago, his brother died when he dared to touch the surface of the impenetrable shield. Despite the rules in his village discouraging any interest in the bubble, which has existed unchanging for as long as his people can remember, Randi becomes determined to enter it somehow. In the end, Erin becomes the captive of a rogue priest seeking to sabotage the time jumper in his bid for power and revenge. Intending to kill Erin, the priest leads him through a hidden passageway to the outside, and for the first time, Erin sees the wilderness beyond the shield. By chance, Randi comes upon them while visiting the bubble, accompanied by his dog. The dog—the first real animal Erin has ever seen—attacks the priest, saving Erin's life. Erin and Randi then become unwitting ambassadors for their two cultures, and they embark on an effort to prepare their people for future encounters. ===== Muskaan (Kajol) is an orphan girl living on a farm run by her overly-protective older brother, Vishal (Arbaaz Khan) and their 'Chachu' (Dharmendra). Muskaan's childhood friend, Ujaala (Anjala Zaveri), has been carrying a torch for the brooding Vishal since childhood, but he won't give her the time of day. Later on, Muskaan decides she wants to go to a university in Mumbai and has to persuade her brother to let her go. Once in the big city, Suraj (Salman Khan), an underachieving student, who does not get along with his stepmother and is estranged from his father, falls in love with Muskaan. After a few attempts at messing with Muskaan and trying to get her attention, Suraj finally succeeds and Muskaan falls in love with him. One day, when Vishal comes to visit Muskaan, he is mistakenly considered her boyfriend by Suraj and his group of friends. They consequently try to fight Vishal but instead get beat up. Suraj later learns from Muskaan that Vishal is her brother and he apologizes to Muskaan and Vishal for beating him up. But Vishal does not like Suraj because his terms and conditions of his future brother-in-law are very strenuous physically and he thinks Suraj is neither competent nor a man to be taken seriously. And he decides to bring Muskaan back to the farm sensing Suraj's bad influence on her studies. Suraj pursues her and starts working on the farm as a stable boy after a chance meeting with 'Chachu' in which he saves Chachu's life. Vishal decides to give Suraj another chance and puts him to the test; however, he is rejected. Vishal wants Muskaan to marry the brother of Thakur Vijay Singh (Nirmal Pandey), not knowing that Thakur Vijay Singh is doing this to merely exact vengeance against the Thakur family for a previous humiliation his own family received. So Suraj must now prevent this from happening and he must also be able to win Vishal's heart if he is really interested in marrying Muskaan. Chachu's half-shocked to know the reason why Suraj came to this village. Eventually, Suraj's friends told Suraj's family about this village. Suraj's family comes. Suraj's stepmother insults Muskaan, who runs away but she accidentally runs into the Singh family & their henchmen. Suraj, Suraj's father, Vishal & his Chachu arrive rescue Muskaan. Despite injuries, Suraj's stepmother calls the Police because she now cares about Suraj. Vishal accepts Suraj as his future brother-in-law. ===== The story loosely follows the life of Wyatt Gwyon, son of a Calvinist minister from rural New England; his mother dies in Spain. He plans to follow his father into the ministry. But he is inspired to become a painter by The Seven Deadly Sins, Hieronymous Bosch's noted painting which his father owned. Gwyon leaves New England and travels to Europe to study painting. Discouraged by a corrupt critic and frustrated with his career, he moves to New York City. He meets Recktall Brown, a capitalistic collector and dealer of art, who makes a Faustian deal with him. Gwyon is to produce paintings in the style of 15th-century Flemish and Dutch masters (such as Bosch, Hugo van der Goes, and Hans Memling) and forge their signatures. Brown will sell them as newly discovered originals. Gwyon becomes discouraged and returns home to find that his father has converted to Mithraism and is losing his mind. Back in New York, Gwyon tries to expose his forgeries. He travels to Spain where he visits the monastery where his mother was buried, works at restoring old paintings, and tries to find himself in a search for authenticity. At the end, he moves on to live his life "deliberately". Interwoven are the stories of many other characters, among them Otto, a struggling writer; Esme, a muse; and Stanley, a musician. The epilogue follows their stories further. In the final scene Stanley achieves his goal by playing his work on the organ of the church of Fenestrula "pulling all the stops". The church collapses, killing him, yet "most of his work was recovered ..., and is still spoken of, when it is noted, with high regard, though seldom played." The major part of the novel takes part in the late 1940s and early 1950s. ===== Elmo stays up on Christmas Eve to meet Santa Claus. He falls asleep, but is awakened by Santa stuck in the chimney, helps him out, and gets to choose a soft toy or a magical snow globe as his gift. He chooses the globe and is granted three wishes, wasting his first wish on a glass of water. On Christmas Day, Elmo, excites by all the joy and cheer, wishes for it to be Christmas every day. Everyone is excited, but Santa arrives and explains that Christmas would no longer be special if it is every day. Lightning, a reindeer in training, takes Elmo to the future to see the effects of his wish. Big Bird is still sad that Snuffy is in Cincinnati, the Fix-It Shop is closed, Santa’s elves are annoyed due to lack of vacation, and the other holidays did not come. Oscar the Grouch enjoys all the misery, declaring it as a “bah, humbug Christmas everyday". By next Christmas, Sesame Street is ruined: the Count is "all Christmassed out,” the carolers have lost their voices, Christmas trees are an endangered species, Big Bird cries about missing Snuffy, the shop is permanently closed, and Santa has retired to Florida. Elmo uses his last wish to make it Christmas how it used to be, but his snow globe breaks before making the wish. So he and Lightning go back in time to the Christmas Eve when Elmo first pulled Santa from the chimney and Elmo chooses the soft toy. Snuffy returns, saying his grandmother had come to Sesame Street instead. In the end, Elmo learns that although Christmas cannot be every day, everyone can still keep their Christmas spirit alive all year. ===== Ellie goes out camping in the bush for a week with her friends Homer, Lee, Kevin, Corrie, Robyn, and Fiona. They find a way into a large, vegetated sinkhole in a remote area of bush the locals call "Hell", and camp there for the week. During this time they see large numbers of planes flying through the night without lights, and though it is mentioned in conversation the following morning, they think little of it. When they return home they find that all the people are missing and their pets and livestock are dead or dying. They come to realise that Australia has been invaded and their family and friends have been taken prisoner. Avoiding capture by enemy soldiers, as well as retrieving Robyn and Lee who were stuck in the town and picking up one of their school friends Chris, the group return to Hell. After short period of recovery they start making plans to fight back. Over the course of the first three books in the series, the group succeeds in destroying a bridge that leads into Wirrawee, an enemy convoy, several houses that are being used by the enemy as a center of operations, and a nearby strategic harbour. After the harbour raid, the surviving members of the group are eventually captured and placed in a maximum security prison in Stratton. During an air-raid by the Royal New Zealand Air Force the group escapes but loses yet another member while doing so. They encounter a downed RNZAF pilot and arrange to be evacuated to New Zealand. Book four, Darkness, Be My Friend, takes place several months later. The group is trying to live a normal life in New Zealand with other refugees, but are haunted by their memories of the war (which is still ongoing). They are approached by the New Zealand Defence Force, who are seeking Australian guerrillas to act as guides for saboteur units that are being dropped into occupied Australian territory. The group returns to Wirrawee, their hometown, accompanied by a platoon of New Zealand troops. However the New Zealanders go missing while on a mission to destroy Wirrawee Airfield (which is being used as a major military airbase). Alone behind enemy lines once more, the group decides to attack the Airfield themselves but a combination of poor planning and bad luck causes them to fail. They return, depressed, to Hell. Soon after, through sheer luck, the group find themselves perfectly positioned to attempt another attack on the Airfield. This time they succeed and manage to destroy a majority of planes on the airfield. After the attack, the group find their way to the nearby city of Stratton. There they encounter a tribe of feral (and hostile) children, who have been living on the streets and hiding from enemy troops since the war began. The group rescue five of the children who have been captured by an enemy patrol and escape back to Hell. For a time the group looks after the children. During this time strained relationships are mended and the soul- destroying effects of the war are tempered by a chance to do something positive. However, this period does not last. A patrol ambushes the group near their base and after defeating their attackers in a prolonged firefight the group realises that they are no longer safe in Hell and make contact with New Zealand immediately. They discover that the war is entering its final days and that groups of partisans like themselves are being asked to cause as much chaos behind enemy lines as possible while New Zealand and its allies launch an all-out offensive. The group arranges for the feral children to be evacuated to New Zealand and are provided with plastic explosives to carry out their task. The group attacks a service station frequented by enemy convoys and are separated in the aftermath. Ellie is shot in the leg and taken prisoner. While interned, she discovers the location of her mother and father. She escapes and is reunited with her mother whom she stays with until news breaks that the war is over – Australia signs a peace treaty with the occupying power, resulting in the formation of a new nation on the continent for the invading forces and settlers. It transpires that Wirrawee is on the Australian side of the border. Ellie, her mother and her father return to their farm and, like all the other survivors of the war, begin picking up the pieces of their lives. ===== Data, an android, and Jenna D'Sora are in the torpedo room configuring several probes with which the Enterprise will explore a nearby nebula. D'Sora explains that she just split up with her boyfriend and Data attempts to comfort her. Later they play together in a chamber concert along with Keiko O'Brien (Rosalind Chao). D'Sora complains of her abilities as a musician, but Data insists that he could not hear anything wrong. Later on the bridge, Data is reviewing the information from the probes sent into the nebula. He theorises that life might have evolved differently in the nebula because of the volume of dark matter detected. Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) orders the ship to the nearest planet within the nebula. Data and D'Sora configure further probes, when she kisses him on the cheek and then on the lips, before leaving the room. Data seeks the opinion of his friends, including Picard, Guinan (Whoopi Goldberg), Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton), Commander William Riker (Jonathan Frakes), Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) and Worf (Michael Dorn). Data decides to pursue the relationship and goes to D'Sora's cabin with a bunch of flowers, where he informs her that he created a romantic subroutine for the relationship. Meanwhile, the Enterprise is approaching the planet. Picard enters his ready room and finds his belongings scattered on the floor. He calls in Worf, who cannot explain their displacement. D'Sora arrives at Data's cabin where he is painting. She tells him to continue, but is then annoyed when he does so, causing him some confusion. The ship arrives at the coordinates for the planet but finds nothing there. Then it suddenly appears as the ship's computer warns of a depressurization in the observation lounge. The crew investigate and find all the furniture piled in one corner of the room. Data is visiting D'Sora, but she seems unhappy and he is acting erratically in order to find an appropriate response to make her happy. It becomes evident to the crew that the nebula is causing distortions in space; Picard orders the ship into warp to leave the nebula as quickly as possible but this speeds up the distortions. Whilst investigating them, Lieutenant Van Mayter (Georgina Shore) is killed when a distortion embeds her into the deck. Data discovers that dark matter is causing the distortions. The ship can detect the pockets at short range, but not in enough time to move out of the way. Worf proposes using a shuttle to lead the Enterprise out, and Picard insists on piloting it alone. Picard pilots the shuttle through the field of distortion pockets. Chief Miles O'Brien (Colm Meaney) transports the Captain back to the ship before the shuttle is destroyed. The approach resulted in the Enterprise nearing the edge of the nebula, and they quickly depart. Afterwards, D'Sora reveals to Data over a romantic dinner in his quarters that she broke up with her boyfriend because he was emotionally unavailable and then pursued him because he was the same. Data realises that she is breaking up with him and explains that he will delete the subroutine. D'Sora departs and Data is seemingly unperturbed, although his cat, Spot, jumps into his lap as if to comfort him. ===== After unfair treatment by his older siblings Linus and Lucy and getting in trouble at school, Rerun thinks that having a pet dog will cheer him up. He writes a letter to Santa Claus asking for a dog, but is later discouraged by the expensive costs of owning a pet and his mother's objections. Watching Snoopy dance to Schroeder's music, Rerun asks Charlie Brown if Snoopy has any siblings, and Charlie Brown shows him pictures of Snoopy's brothers and sisters. Rerun asks Charlie Brown if he can play with Snoopy sometime. Rerun has fun playing with Snoopy, but in the following days, Snoopy is busy and refuses to play. Rerun again searches for a dog, and Lucy argues that Rerun would not know how to take care of a dog if he got one. Rerun learns by watching Snoopy, who gets a letter from his brother Spike, who lives in the desert. Rerun wants Spike as a pet and has Snoopy write him a letter. After Spike visits, Rerun has fun with him, but his mother does not allow Spike to stay. Charlie Brown tries to get Spike re-adopted, but fails and has to send him back to the desert. Noticing that Rerun is upset over Spike leaving, Lucy signs him up for a Christmas play, in which he forgets his line. Rerun then asks to play with Snoopy, who wants to be pulled on a sled; Rerun comments, "Maybe a dog is too much trouble!" ===== The film centers around the life of fictional character Michelle Jordan. The film's narrative is set in present day where Michelle is currently in prison and is telling her life story to Bishop T.D. Jakes. Michelle is a young woman who we find early on has been previously released from prison after serving time due to her lifestyle of prostitution and drugs, and put on probation with strict guidelines. Michelle moves into a halfway house with her friend Nicole who is also trying to clean up her life after her husband left with their daughter due to Nicole's lifestyle. Michelle tells Bishop Jakes that her history of drug abuse and prostitution dates back to her childhood, as her mother (Cassey) was not very affectionate and caring to Michelle, and that would always bring home new boyfriends that Michelle would have to refer to as "uncle". One night while her mother is out, Michelle is raped by her mother's newest boyfriend, Reggie. Flashbacks show that Cassey found Michelle crying and bloodied in her closet a short time after the incident, but she refuses to believe Michelle's story. Michelle is sent to stay with Cassey's friend Twana that night, and Cassey confronts Reggie, who denies the incident and threatens to leave Cassey, who then allows Reggie to stay. Her mother's disbelief has caused a riff between her and her mother, and Michelle grows up to get involved with a pimp named Pervis who abuses her even further. After Michelle settles at the halfway house, she begins to attend Revival, as part of a necessary activity she has to complete as part of her probation. She runs into old friends including Twana, and an old friend from childhood named Todd. Todd is a father recently divorced from a woman named Keisha, who everyone in high school stated had an odd physical appearance to Michelle. When the Bishop questions Michelle on Cassey's intentions, Michelle states she is unsure, and separate flashbacks show Cassey's life has not been pleasant either. Reggie is an alcoholic and drug addict who owes money to a local dealer, and constantly criticizes Cassey for going to Revival. After Reggie comes clean about his drug addiction, Cassey again asks if the incident with Michelle ever occurred, to which he continues to deny. After a negative run-in with Pervis at the halfway house, Nicole gives Michelle a handgun, should she ever run into trouble again. In the meantime, Todd reveals to Michelle that he has always had feelings for her. One day, Michelle leaves to go to Revival. After arriving, she sees Reggie has accompanied Cassey to the service. Reggie claims he is there to apologize to the Lord for his sins, and as he tries to apologize and come toward Michelle for a hug of sorrow, Michelle (who is very enraged), shoots him with the handgun. We cut back to present day where it is revealed that Michelle is actually serving a death sentence for his murder. She admits to the Bishop that what she did was wrong, and asks the Bishop to tell her mother that she loves her, despite everything that has happened. The Bishop tells Michelle that he has been praying for her, and he says that she will be alright before he leaves. Throughout the film, when the flashbacks are cut back to present day, we see Michelle designing a small wooden house out of popsicle sticks. This house is a representation of Michelle as an individual. She initially questions putting a window on the house, but the Bishop gives her the symbolic nature of the window as an opportunity. He then questions where the door is, although Michelle had not placed one. After the Bishop's departure, it is shown in a new present day that Michelle's cell is now empty. This is to imply that Michelle's death sentence had been carried out. However, the film ends with a shot in the cell of the house, which now has a door on it as well. The credits also begin stating that although Michelle was a fictional character, this type of story does actually happen, and a website (www.womanthouartloosed.com) is displayed. ===== Set in a fictitious version of the Spanish court of 1519, it is based on courtly romance and intrigues. Three men — two noblemen and a mysterious bandit — are in love with the same woman. What follows in the ensuing chaos of action prompted the biographer of Hugo, J.P. Houston, to write "... and a résumé [plot synopsis] will necessarily fail, as in the case of Notre-Dame de Paris, to suggest anything like the involution of its details". ===== Kao Challengers has the same storyline as Kao the Kangaroo: Round 2. ===== Brigadier General William Mitchell (Gary Cooper) tries to prove the worth of the Air Service as an independent service by sinking a battleship under restrictive conditions agreed to by Army and Navy. He disobeys their orders to limit the attack to bombs under 1,000 pounds from an altitude of greater than 5,000 ft. and instead loads 2,000 pounders. With these, Mitchell directs his aircraft to fly at 2,000 ft. and proves he can sink the ex-German World War I battleship , previously considered unsinkable. His superiors are outraged. Politically vocal, Mitchell is demoted to colonel and sent to a ground unit in Texas. A high-profile air disaster occurs in which his close friend Zachary Lansdowne (Jack Lord) is killed, the crash of the dirigible . This is followed by a second disaster in which six aircraft flying from a base on the California coast to Fort Huachuca, Arizona, crash. They were poorly maintained because of lack of funds. Mitchell at this point calls a press conference in which he harshly criticizes the Army. He is then court-martialed. The trial goes slowly for Mitchell's attorney and friend, Illinois Congressman Frank R. Reid (Ralph Bellamy), who tries everything, until he subpoenas President Calvin Coolidge. The court, consequently, decides to adjourn. Clearly the military wants out of the limelight, but Mitchell refuses to sign a paper Reid has presented him in which he withdraws his criticisms in return for saving his career as an Army officer. Margaret Lansdowne (Elizabeth Montgomery), widow of Mitchell's dead friend from the Shenandoah, then appears in court. The previous barring of evidence demonstrating a justification for Mitchell's criticisms of his superiors failure to develop air power is repealed. Many witnesses are then called forward to corroborate Mitchell's criticisms, including Eddie Rickenbacker (Tom McKee), Carl Spaatz (Steve Roberts), Henry H. Arnold (Robert Brubaker) and Fiorello LaGuardia (Phil Arnold). Finally Mitchell testifies and is cross- examined by Maj. Allen W. Gullion (Rod Steiger), a prosecutor specially brought in for the job. He stresses that Mitchell had disobeyed his superior officers. Gullion also ridicules Mitchell's attempts at foresight, even when accurately predicting both the Philippines and Hawaii would be attacked by Japan in 1941. The court finds Mitchell guilty, but he has accomplished his goal of making the public aware of the state of American air power. As his pilots salute him, Mitchell steps out and looks up to see a squadron of four biplanes in flight. ===== Deenie chronicles the life of 13-year-old Wilmadeene "Deenie" Fenner, whose mother, Thelma, is determined to have her become a model. At the same time, Deenie's 16-year-old sister, Helen, who is academically proficient, is being pushed by Thelma to keep her grades up so that she can eventually become a doctor or a lawyer. One day, Deenie is diagnosed with scoliosis, and is prescribed a body brace to wear for the next four years. At the same time, Helen has fallen in love with Joe, a charming and romantic young gentleman who works for the Fenners' family business, a gas station. Thelma, upset that her plans for her daughters are coming undone, has Joe fired and exhorts Deenie to resume the pursuit of a modeling career once she stops wearing the back brace. Fearful that Helen hates her because Thelma's excuse for letting Joe go was because of the family's doctors' bills, Deenie is astonished to learn that Helen refuses to blame her for Joe's departure, and the sisters close ranks. Though initially upset at having to wear the body brace, Deenie eventually resigns herself to her fate. She finds herself at peace with the idea of not becoming a model, and, inspired by her experience, begins to ponder a future career as an orthopedist, concluding that she never really wanted to be a model anyway. In the final chapter, Deenie takes off her brace and puts on an old favorite outfit in anticipation of attending a party at her friend Janet's house. She asks her father, Frank, for permission to not wear her brace to the party. Though Thelma gives her consent, Frank, who, until then, was rather mute about everything, firmly refuses, rightfully pointing out that Deenie would want to not wear the brace for every special occasion thereafter, if he gave in that night. In defiance, Deenie brings her old outfit to Janet's house, intending to remove the brace and change clothes once there, but she changes her mind; she leaves her brace on and her old clothes in Janet's room, where they stay for the duration of the party. Other story arcs include Deenie's friendship with Barbara Curtis, a girl whose eczema alienates her from her other classmates, and Deenie's anxiety over whether her crush will still like her in spite of her back brace. Deenie is named after the character Natalie Wood played in Splendor in the Grass. The movie itself was mentioned in description in the book, though the name of the movie was not. ===== A film director and his son start a journey towards Koker, where approximately half of Where Is the Friend's Home? took place. During the first half, they search for a highway to the village, as most of the roads have been damaged or blocked by the earthquake; meanwhile, the two cross paths with several locals (who were also witnesses of the earthquake) and often ask directions. After changing his route several times, the two finally reach one of the villages in which the aforementioned movie was filmed. They visit one of those who acted, and accompany him for a little while. The director and his son visit the destroyed village and hear additional stories of those who survived, among them a young married couple that lost many relatives in the disaster but decided to marry anyway (since the dead did not foresee their demise). One scene featuring this couple is a focal point of the third film in Kiarostami's Koker trilogy, Through the Olive Trees. Later, the director and his son find another child who acted in the movie and take him to the tents, where most Koker inhabitants whose houses have been destroyed stay. The son of the director wants to watch the final match of the Football World Cup with the other kids, so his father leaves him there and comes back later to pick him up. He talks with other witnesses of the earthquake and admires the spirit they have had to move on with their lives. The film's last shot is several minutes long; the director is struggling to reach the town in his car. He passes a man carrying a tank and drives up a hill until the engine begins overheating and he is unable to continue. The man with the tank helps him restart the engine. The director seemingly leaves as the man with the tank goes walking uphill. The director's car races several meters before trying to climb the hill again and after he makes it, the director picks up the man with the tank. Following this scene, the credits roll. ===== The game's story continues where the first game left off. Three years after the VCD repelled the invasion of the Crystals, the remnants of the machines controlled by the Crystals regroup to form another army to resume taking over the Earth. To combat this Crystal resurgence, a new weapon is developed for the Fighting Thunder—designed from Crystal technology—to stop the Crystals again. ===== The king of Egypt wakes up, dresses himself in a royal towel and goes for a stroll, but a camel eats his towel. The naked king then returns to the palace but is stopped at the entrance by his two palace guards who don't recognize him, and he leaves when they throw away his crown. As the naked king is mocked by two woman and a group of children, the camel has fallen in love with the king and chases after him. The king eventually makes his way to a shop, but he does not have enough money to buy underwear and buys a cigarette instead. After a brief fight with the group of children, the camel rescues the king by eating one of them. Meanwhile, the two women have a threesome with one of the guards in a giant flowerbed. Darkness falls as the camel carries the unconscious king to safety, where they make peace. After some cactus-induced hallucinations visualized with 3D computer graphics, the king finds his crown back. The characters all go to sleep and dream about the events of the day. The next morning, the king retrieves the contents of the camel's intestines, including his royal towel, and goes back to his palace, where he takes a flower from the guard standing duty. The guard and camel then get together. The two women try to have a second threesome with the same guard as before, but are killed by giant bees while in the flowerbed. Chapter One, Episode Three – The King meets The Camel. ===== Lisa Walker (Mary Stuart Masterson) is a business executive who has gotten used to being alone but doesn't like it very much. She was abandoned by her birth parents and then spent most of her childhood being raised by Stanley (S.A. Griffin), a foster father who never really loved Lisa after her adopted mother died. One day, Lisa gets word that Stanley has died. Alone in her apartment, after attempting to feed her now dead pet fish, she breaks down and cries uncontrollably. The next day at work, Lisa gets an unexpected delivery of flowers from a secret admirer. Puzzled, she presses the delivery man for information on who might have sent her the flowers. He says the sender wants to remain anonymous. Lisa asks her friends for names and visits the flower shop to no avail. After getting to know each other better, he confesses that he sent them. Lewis (Christian Slater) runs a flower shop and often takes long walks through the neighborhood at night, trying to lose memories of his deceased wife and child. He saw Lisa crying in her window and hoped the roses would cheer her up. Before long, Lisa and Lewis begin dating but each has emotional issues to resolve before their story can have a happy ending. ===== In its introduction, Oliver claims that the book had been channeled through him via automatic writing, visions and mental "dictations", by a spirit calling himself Phylos the Thibetan who revealed the story to him over a period of three years, beginning in 1883. Concerning itself with Atlantis, it portrays a first person account of Atlantean culture which had reached a high level of technological and scientific advancement. His personal history and that of a group of souls with whom Phylos closely interacted is portrayed in the context of the social, economic, political and religious structures that shaped Poseid society. Daily life for Poseidi citizens included such things as antigravity powered air craft and submarines, television, wireless telephony, arial water generators, air conditioners and high-speed rail. The book deals with deep esoteric subjects including karma and re-incarnation and describes Phylos' final incarnation in 19th century America where his Atlantean karma played itself out. In that incarnation (as Walter Pierson, gold miner and occult student of the Theo-Christic Adepts) he travelled to Venus/Hysperia in a subtle body while his physical form remained at the temple inside Mount Shasta. Describing his experience with the Hesperian adepts, Phylos relates many wonders including artworks depicting 3D scenes that appeared alive. He saw a voice-operated typewriter and other occult and technical power. Some devices mentioned have become reality (such as the TV and the atomic telescope). In a detailed personal history of Atlantis and 19th century North America, Phylos draws the threads of both lifetimes together in familiar and initiatic terms revealing equally their triumphs and failures and exposing the cause and effects of karma from one lifetime to another. His life story is written in personal testimony of the law: "whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap" and as a warning to this technological age to not repeat the mistakes of the past that led to the cataclysmic destruction of "Poseid, queen of the waves". ===== David Quixano emigrates to America in the wake of the 1903 Kishinev pogrom in which his entire family is killed. He writes a great symphony called "The Crucible" expressing his hope for a world in which all ethnicity has melted away, and falls in love with a beautiful Russian Christian immigrant named Vera. The dramatic peak of the play is the moment when David meets Vera's father, who turns out to be the Russian officer responsible for the annihilation of David's family. Vera's father admits his guilt, the symphony is performed to accolades, David and Vera agree to wed and kiss as the curtain falls. ===== A Day with Wilbur Robinson follows the story of a boy who visits an unusual family and their home. While spending the day in the Robinson household, Wilbur's best friend joins in the search for Grandfather Robinson's missing false teeth and meets one wacky relative after another. ===== The three finalists for Plaything Magazine's "Centerfold of the Year" are Inga (Raelyn Saalman), Betty (Tammy Parks) and Angel Grace (J. J. North). During a photoshoot, Betty makes some rather scathing remarks regarding Angel's appearance. Angel becomes self-conscious, and goes to Dr. Lindstrom (John LaZar) at his clinic. Angel had taken beauty enhancing treatments previously, but now wants to get back on the program. Though Lindstrom warns her that any additional doses could be fatal, Angel still pleads to be put back on the program. Dr. Lindstrom gives her a case with several vials, cautioning her to only take one a day. That night, Angel takes her first vial. The result of it causes her breasts to increase in size. Shortly thereafter, Angel, Betty and Inga go to the Plaything Mansion, and meet Bob Gordon (Jay Richardson), the founder of Plaything Magazine. The night before the photoshoot with all the girls, the shoot's photographer Mark (Tim Abell) tries to sleep with each of the girls. Though Betty and Inga shoot him down, Angel gives into his sweet talk. Angel accidentally oversleeps and misses the beginning of the photoshoot. As she checks herself in the mirror, she realizes that she didn't take a vial the previous day, and wrinkles are settling in. In an act of desperation, she takes 3–5 vials. The overdose then causes her to pass out for just a moment. When she reawakens, she has grown easily 1–2 feet taller than normal. Angel is oblivious, even though her high heels and bikini seem smaller. Making her way to the photoshoot, Angel and the girls begin posing for Mark. Everyone notices her sudden height increase despite not even being in heels. The other women get jealous Angel is getting all the attention. As the shoot continues, suddenly Angel faints. Mark, Betty and Inga go to alert Gordon while, Mark's assistant, Wilson (Ted Monte) stays behind. When the group returns, Wilson and Angel are gone. Wilson emerges from behind a nearby cliff, followed by Angel, now towering well over 60 feet tall. Sometime afterward, a circus tent is set up for Angel, who is still upset at her sudden growth spurt. Back at the Plaything Mansion, Mark and Gordon plot to use Angel's size as a major selling point for the magazine, and then turn her over to the government for experimentation. Wilson overhears the conversation, and confronts Mark about the plan; Mark shrugs off Wilson's concerns. Over the next couple days, Mark tries to win over Angel's embarrassment at being a giantess, in hopes that they can conduct her '60-foot photoshoot'. He explains that Gordon has arranged for a specialist to come in and help her, and that they have tried to call Dr. Lindstrom for her, but haven't been able to reach him. Wilson one night sneaks into Angel's tent, and explains what he overheard. It is here that Wilson finally confesses his love for Angel, and his concern over Mark and Gordon's plan. After the conversation, Angel wanders out into the nearby desert to think. The next day, Wilson manages to get a hold of Dr. Lindstrom, who agrees to come up to the Mansion to see Angel. As he finishes the conversation, Mark finds a rough-copy of the next issue of Plaything, with a 3–6 page spread, promising Plaything's 'Biggest Centerfold Yet.' Betty finds the issue and grows angry that Angel appears to have trumped her. Some distance away from the Mansion, Mark has finally convinced Angel to do the photoshoot, taking pictures of her as she bathes in a wooden watertower. Hellbent on revenge, Betty tries to recruit Inga to her cause, but gets no sympathy. Sneaking into Angel's room, Betty finds Angel's case from the Lindstrom clinic, and takes some of the vials. Meanwhile, Angel has finished her shoot in the watertank and is snuggling with Mark, when Gordon and Wilson meet up with her. Gordon continues his lie about a specialist coming, when Wilson finally exposes them as liars in front of Angel. Angel grows upset at being lied to, but the mood is shattered when Betty appears, having grown to 60 ft. Angel and Betty begin fighting, just as Dr. Lindstrom arrives. Lindstrom tries to administer a tranquilizer dart on Angel, but it instead ends up striking Betty, who pulls it out and throws it at Gordon. Angel and Betty then continue their fight which eventually leads them to downtown Los Angeles. As Lindstrom, Mark and Wilson arrive, the girls have sent a myriad of people running down the darkened streets. Wilson uses Lindstrom's special antidote, which shrinks Angel and Betty back to normal. Angel happily decks Betty, whom Mark runs to. Wilson goes to Angel's side, and the two embrace. Meanwhile, Mark forcibly tries to kiss Betty, who explodes, due to an instability with the antidote. ===== While cleaning the office of a detective agency, janitors Laurel and Hardy answer a telephone call from an inventor who claims to have created a destructive bomb he calls "The Big Noise." Posing as detectives, the duo move into the inventor's home, where they must contend with his eccentric behavior, oddball widowed aunt (who takes a fancy to Hardy) and his misbehaving nephew. The inventor's neighbors are crooks who are eager to steal the new bomb. Laurel and Hardy hide the bomb in a concertina and steal an airplane to bring it to Washington. However, the airplane is a remote control target used by the U.S. Army for gunnery training. Laurel and Hardy barely escape by parachuting to safety over the Pacific Ocean, and they dispose of the bomb by dropping it on a Japanese submarine.Allmovie review ===== On 20 July 1944, the day of the attempt on Hitler's life, Jaeger was commander of the Panzer reserve troops in defence districts II (Stettin) and XXI (Kalisch). After the briefcase bomb exploded at the Wolf's Lair in East Prussia, Jaeger received orders from Claus Schenk von Stauffenberg to arrest an SS Oberführer. Furthermore, he was also to arrest Joseph Goebbels and occupy the radio station in Masurenallee. After it became known that Hitler had survived the attempt on his life, however, the soldiers under his command would no longer take his orders. Jaeger himself was arrested by his own army on the same day when the plot failed in connection with the plot. His son was likewise arrested, being taken from an Italian military hospital and brought by train to the Gestapo prison in Berlin. On 21 August, Friedrich Gustav Jaeger was sentenced to death for treason by Roland Freisler at the Volksgerichtshof, and he was hanged later the same day at Plötzensee Prison in Berlin. His family's property was confiscated. ===== On Father's Day, Homer is unimpressed with Lisa's gift, a book she created with caricatures of herself and Homer as unicorns. Trying to make Lisa feel better, he hangs the book on the refrigerator, but it falls into the refrigerator's water dispenser and gets wet and ruined. Worse, Homer blames the magnet, which Lisa gave him for his birthday. Lisa takes out her frustrations at school, leading her into trouble, and her parents are called to talk with Principal Skinner. School psychiatrist Dr. J. Loren Pryor determines Lisa is going through a developmental condition spurned by Homer's antics and could wind up hating men for the rest of her life, which can only be resolved by Homer trying to make amends for everything. He dresses up as The Safety Salamander, a mascot meant to warn children about electrical power lines, but on the school bus, causes myriad dental injuries when he has Otto stop the bus promptly, and then a fireworks display during a school assembly causes a massive fire in the auditorium. Meanwhile, Bart--on a dare from the bullies, who plant the idea in his head that he is allowed to steal public property that has his name on it, and will endure full immunity from the law-- steals a "Bart Boulevard" street sign. This leads to a fiery multi-vehicle pileup. Homer, still dressed in his Safety Salamander costume, runs to the rescue, extricating people who were trapped in their cars. Homer gets a rousing reception, and Mayor Joe Quimby is blamed for the bumbling response. Springfield residents criticize Quimby for his many other failures and demand a recall election. On Lisa's suggestion, Homer decides to run for mayor against candidates numbering in excess of 200, playing on his popularity as the Safety Salamander and building a huge lead in the polls. However, after Marge washes Homer's salamander costume after he vomits in it, it falls apart during a debate forum, and the crowd turns on him. None of the new candidates gain the 5% of master vote needed to oust Quimby. Nevertheless, Lisa confides in Homer that she is proud of him and glad he is her father. They then dance in the deserted ballroom. ===== Confined in an Israeli jail, Howard W. Campbell, Jr. writes a memoir about his career in Nazi Germany. During the buildup to World War II, Campbell, an American playwright of German language stage productions, is approached by War Department operative Frank Wirtanen. Wirtanen asks Campbell to work as a spy for the U.S. in the approaching war, though he promises no reward or recognition. Campbell rejects the offer, but Wirtanen adds that he wants Campbell to take some time to consider, telling him that Campbell's answer will come in the form of how he acts and what positions he assumes once the war begins. In the initial stages of the war, Campbell works his way up through Joseph Goebbels' Propaganda Ministry, eventually becoming the "voice" of English language broadcasts propagating Nazism and anti-Semitism at U.S. citizens. Unknown to the Nazis, all of the idiosyncrasies of his speech - deliberate pauses, coughing, etc. - form a secret code that covertly transmits information to Allied intelligence agencies. Late in the war, after his wife, Helga, is reportedly killed on the Eastern Front, Campbell visits her family in early 1945 outside Berlin, just before the Red Army arrives. Helga's younger sister, Resi, confesses that she is in love with him. Eventually, Campbell is captured when an American infantryman recognizes his voice. Before he can be executed, Wirtanen arranges for Campbell's discreet release and helps his relocation to New York City. Campbell is shocked to learn that the United States government will not reveal Campbell's true role in the war, because that would also reveal the spycraft techniques that America may continue to need for the next war. Although that means that Campbell is doomed to be a pariah, Wirtanen is unsympathetic, reasoning that Campbell would not have wanted the truth known had Germany won the war. In New York City, Campbell lives a lonely existence for fifteen years, sustained only by memories of Helga and an indifferent curiosity about his eventual fate. Mrs. Epstein, a Holocaust survivor living in Campbell's building, is the only person who suspects his true identity; he seems to avoid her suspicions by feigning ignorance of German. Campbell's only friend is George Kraft, an elderly painter who, through an extraordinary coincidence, happens to be a Soviet intelligence agent. Over many games of chess, Campbell reveals his secret past to Kraft, who tries to use this information to improve his standing with his handlers by forcing Campbell into a position where he must flee to Moscow. He leaks information about Campbell's whereabouts, which gets the attention of a neo-Nazi organization. Representatives of this group meet Campbell and present him with a woman who seems to be Helga. However, it is not long before Campbell discovers that Helga is actually Resi, who had taken Helga's identity to escape East Germany. The neo-Nazis shelter Campbell, along with Kraft and Resi, in their Manhattan hideout. Wirtanen reappears, warning Campbell of Kraft's true identity and explaining that Kraft and Resi have put Campbell in an awkward position with the neo-Nazis to ensure his transfer to Moscow. Campbell returns to the hideout to confront the pair; in light of her exposure, Resi commits suicide. Moments later, the FBI raids the hideout but, again, Wirtanen uses his influence to ensure Campbell walks free. Upon his release, he freezes in the middle of a footpath having lost all meaning to his life, until a police officer finally tells him to move along. Campbell returns to his wrecked apartment and decides to turn himself in to the Israelis to stand trial. Campbell is taken to Haifa, where he is incarcerated in the cell below an unrepentant Adolf Eichmann. The film ends with the arrival of a letter from Wirtanen providing the corroborating evidence that Campbell was indeed a U.S. spy during the war. Moments later, Campbell hangs himself -- not, he says, for crimes against humanity, but rather for "crimes against myself." ===== Dwayne Hoover, a car salesman who is the most respected businessman in Midland City, Indiana, is on the verge of a nervous breakdown, even attempting suicide daily. His wife, Celia, is addicted to pills, and his sales manager and best friend, Harry Le Sabre, is preoccupied with his own secret fondness for wearing lingerie, worried he will be discovered. Meanwhile, a little-known science fiction author, Kilgore Trout, is hitchhiking across the United States to speak at Midland City's arts festival. In search of answers for his identity quest, Hoover decides to attend the festival. ===== The People's Republic of China is severing relations with all other nations. They have mastered the art of miniaturization, and have shrunk all their people to the height of two inches. The ambassador of China, Ah Fong (Pat Morita), announces during a press conference that the key to all knowledge can be found from twins. Caleb Swain (Jerry Lewis) and his wife Letitia (Madeline Kahn) are called "the most beautiful of all the beautiful people" by the press. However, when Letitia gives birth to twins who are called "monsters", the family doctor, Dr. Frankenstein (John Abbott) informs the parents that the twins won't live more than a few months. The Swains decide to allow the twins to live their short life in a mansion staffed with servants, including Sylvester (Marty Feldman). Fifteen years later, the twins (also played by Lewis and Kahn) are still alive. They have large heads and appear to be mentally retarded. Their parents, who have not seen them in all those years, receive a visit from the former Chinese ambassador who informs them that their children are geniuses who can solve the world's problems. Along with the President of the United States (Jim Backus), the parents pay the children a visit. They reveal themselves to be well-behaved and intelligent, explaining that they behaved "stupid" around the servants because they were simply emulating them. A series of tests reveal that there is a telepathic connection between the twins, and their intelligence is only functional when they are together. Furthermore, when their heads are touching they reach a level of intelligence that has never been surpassed. Fearful that incest may be prevalent, the parents separate the two. They become despondent without each other, and the Chinese ambassador appears again to order them to seek out each other. Once united, a spaceship appears and reveals that they are really aliens who were sent to Earth to solve all of the planet's problems. However, their alien father (voice of Orson Welles) reveals that Earth cannot handle their intelligence and returns them to their home world. ===== Wesley and Gunn eat take- out in the lobby and Fred eats her food under the table until Wesley convinces her to come out, while Cordelia waits for her next vision. Wolfram & Hart lawyer Gavin Park visits to inform them of the Hyperion Hotel's building code violations. After Gavin leaves, Cordelia gets a vision about a coin with a hole in it and a clawed beast. In the bathroom where she recovers, Cordelia informs Wesley through the door that there are five claws, but leaves out that there are claw marks across her stomach. Angel makes arrangements for Cordelia to be taken home by Fred. He knows Cordelia's visions are getting worse, but she refuses to acknowledge how bad they are. Wesley, Angel, and Gunn leave to find the coin, ending up at a herb shop owned by an elderly couple who turn demonic when they ask about the coin. The gang knock out the couple and Angel finds the coin around the neck of the elderly man. Gavin informs Lilah that he's been moved into her department, and the two share bitter words about their approaches to dealing with Angel. At her apartment, Cordelia tries to force Fred to leave, but another violent vision leaves her with boils on her face. The whole gang meets at her place and she tries to describe her vision, but Angel is more interested in what's happening to her. They question why The Powers That Be would inflict pain on their messenger. Wesley sends Angel to find the key that goes with the coin while Lorne tries to question the Powers That Be about their actions. Cordelia fears losing her visions, but is persuaded to try anyway. Lilah has a young man wearing a fez sign some papers before meditating on a table. Removing his hat, the man reveals a split skull and exposed brain. As a result of the man's mental efforts, Cordelia gets hit with a massive vision about fire that flings the Host across the room and burns her face and limbs. From his contact with Cordelia, the Host realizes the visions originate from Wolfram & Hart. Angel visits Lilah, who informs him that unless he uses the key and coin to free an "unfairly imprisoned" man from a hell dimension, the physical effects of Cordy's visions will worsen. Back at the hotel, Wesley tells Angel the coin and key are items of good nature, so those holding and associated with the objects are likely good as well. Wesley points out that rescuing this man is going against Angel's mission. Angel inserts the key into the coin's hole, which transports him to a hell dimension where he encounters a demon guard protecting a large fiery cube surrounding the prisoner, who is constantly aflame and in agony. The guard, Skip, is holding the prisoner in the fire with his will; he mentions that the prisoner is a particularly heinous monster who has earned such torment. Skip and Angel have a friendly conversation before they break into battle, where Skip is knocked unconscious, and the man is thus freed. Angel and the rest of the gang transport the prisoner to Lilah for the exchange. Lilah has Brain Man in the back of a limo work his magic to end Cordelia's suffering. A phone call to Fred at Cordelia's place confirms its success. The captive man is handed over to Wolfram & Hart, then Angel kills Brain Man by throwing a piece of re-bar through the limo's window and the man's skull. Lilah turns around to find Angel right in her face, threatening to kill her if she goes after Cordelia again. At the hotel, Cordelia makes food and coffee for Angel as thanks for his work and Angel convinces her the guilt she feels for what happened is unnecessary. He'll deal with Wolfram & Hart and the man he set free when it becomes necessary. Meanwhile, in Central America, Darla visits a Shaman, asking for help to get rid of her baby. She reveals that the father is a vampire. Using some of her blood and herbs, he tries to determine the baby's form and how it could exist in a vampire's body. Unfortunately, what she is carrying is something no one can rid her of, and she resolves that her last option is to seek help from the baby's father. ===== At Caritas, Angel apologizes to Merl for his cruel behavior. He goes as far as to suggest that Merl try to hit him, but the "no demon violence" spell on the bar sends Merl flying back. Merl returns home, where he is ambushed and killed. When Angel learns that Merl has been killed, Angel Investigations meets at Merl's to investigate his murder. Gunn is reluctant to waste time looking into the murder of a demon, and after a heated debate with Angel, Gunn chooses not to help with this case. He returns to his old gang's hideout, where he is met with hostility. A newcomer, Gio, questions why Gunn is working with a vampire, and Gunn learns from Rondell that the rest of the gang feels that Gunn has turned on them. At the Hyperion Hotel, Angel asks Cordelia to try to bring Fred out of her shell. Angel and Wesley investigate a bookie friend of Merl's only to find the demon murdered similarly to Merl's death. A meek, nonviolent species of demon walks through the sewers alone, but is attacked and killed, one of his killers being Gio. Gunn shows up at the bookie's apartment in response to Wesley's call for assistance. He doesn't like the idea of investigating demon deaths, thinking the murders aren't all that bad. Wesley explains that the murders are committed without any consideration of the differences between good and bad demons. Gunn pockets the arrow from a crossbow bolt used to kill one of the demons then is off to search for information. Gunn returns to his former gang and questions Rondell only to find that Gio isn't acting alone in the murders; the whole crew is involved. Back at the hotel, the source of their problems is questioned, as is the missing evidence Gunn took. At Angel's encouragement, Cordelia goes outside to talk to Fred, but has a hard time getting a conversation started. She suggests that the both of them get out on the town and live a little. Gunn returns to the hotel and talks with Angel about the progress of their investigation, then announces he needs to talk to Wesley. Cordelia has taken Fred to Caritas, and Fred sings "Crazy" on stage. Gunn and Wesley are also there and as Fred sings, a demon crossing in front of her is shot dead. Gunn hides the Host behind the bar as those who used to be his friends start randomly killing demons in Caritas. Cordelia hides behind a table while Wesley rushes to the aid of Fred to move her to safety. The gang of shooters starts to leave, but Gio suggests they stay. Gio informs Rondell about all of Gunn's associations with demons, creating hostility between the two. Everyone else figures out that Rondell and the rest of the crew were responsible for all the other murders as well. Gunn stands in the way of the Host getting shot while debating with Rondell over which of them has the more righteous mission. Trying to protect his friends, Gunn offers the keys to his truck and tells them all to leave. Cordelia tries to guide Fred out the door, but she is the only one allowed freedom and that is only until she returns with Angel. Cordelia finds Angel and he directs her to three Furies who can lift the "no demon fighting" spell on Caritas. At the bar, Gio amuses himself by singing along with the karaoke machine – mocking Gunn with the lyrics "Did you ever know you were my hero?" from Wind Beneath My Wings – unknowingly allowing the Host to psychically learn personal information about Gio's activities in Miami, referring to a 'she' who Gio somehow let down during his time there (In the original script, the Host elaborates, saying "I know why you left. Why you ran. You couldn't stay there after that, could you?...She wasn't a demon, was she?...She was just a sweet, human girl, practically a child...Right up until the end, she trusted you. Did you know that?" implying Gio killed a girl he knew, and that this is why he fled Miami.). An escaping demon, from a demon race renowned as baby-eaters, distracts Gio and he has his weapon stolen by Gunn. The taunting verbal game starts again as Gio accuses Gunn of protecting a baby killer and wanting to be a demon. While the demon himself baits the humans by describing his child-killing desires, Gio talks over him to discuss Gunn's sister, claiming that Gunn let Alonna be turned because he wanted to become a vampire himself, staking her only when she refused to turn him herself. In the face of this double taunting, Gunn snaps and kills the baby-eating demon with a gunshot, mere moments before Angel arrives. Gunn is given the opportunity to kill Angel and doesn't, but denies that they are friends; he simply states that Rondell has lost the mission—he is not protecting people from being victimized but instead simply seeking out victims of his own—but Angel retains his. Gio makes it clear that no one leaves until Angel is dead and asks for volunteers to do the job. Fred claims that she doesn't want to die, so she offers to do it and takes the crossbow from Gio, only to point it at Gio's neck, almost killing him before Angel dissuades her. Cordelia tries to persuade the Furies to lift the spell, but the three are very much obsessed with the dark vampire. Cordelia needs them to rush and finds that there is a debt to be paid for this favor and only Angel is "equipped" to do it. Finally, the spell is lifted from the bar and Angel can fight. The gang escape to safety while Angel takes care of the fighting. Gio has his head bitten off by a demon and more are killed before the fight is ended. Outside, after talking to Rondell, Gunn comments that Rondell and the crew will likely stick to their own area from now on. Wesley understands the difficulty of Gunn's situation but firmly tells him if he ever jeopardizes their work again, he'll be fired without hesitation. Angel exits the club and Gunn tries to explain he was trying to stall when insulting Angel within the club. Angel knows he spoke the truth but he doesn't mind it. Gunn thinks he has proven his trustworthiness by not killing Angel, but Angel clarifies that "You'll prove that I can trust you when the day comes that you have to kill me - and you do." ===== The youth Taran lives at Caer Dallben with his guardians, the ancient enchanter Dallben and the farmer and retired soldier Coll. He is dissatisfied with his life, and longs to become a great hero like the High Prince Gwydion. Due to the threat posed by a warlord known as the Horned King, Taran is forbidden from leaving the farm and charged with the care of Hen Wen, the oracular white pig. When the pig escapes, Taran follows her into the forbidden forest. After a long, fruitless chase he is attacked by a host of horsemen galloping toward his home, led by the Horned King himself. He manages to escape, but drops, wounded, to the ground. He awakes to find his wound treated by none other than Gwydion, the crown prince in Prydain's ruling House of Dôn, who has been traveling to Caer Dallben to consult Hen Wen. Gwydion, determined to find the pig, takes Taran along with him. Guided by Gurgi, a hairy humanoid living in the forest, they reach the Horned King's camp, and learn that his target will be Caer Dathyl, the home castle of the House of Dôn. Gwydion determines to warn the royal court, but the group is attacked by the powerful undead Cauldron-Born soldiers, who capture Gwydion and Taran, and take them to Queen Achren in Spiral Castle. The sorceress asks Gwydion to help her to overthrow Arawn (the powerful Death-Lord who was once her consort) and to join her in ruling Prydain together. When Gwydion refuses, he is imprisoned, but not in the same place as Taran. Princess Eilonwy, who lives in Spiral Castle to learn enchantment from her self-proclaimed "aunt" Achren, visits Taran's dungeon cell, and agrees to free first his companion, and then him. While travelling through a labyrinth of tunnels to join Gwydion and his horse Melyngar outside the castle, Taran and Eilonwy steal weapons from a tomb. As they emerge into the woods, Spiral Castle collapses; they later learn that this is because the weapon Eilonwy has taken is the legendary sword Dyrnwyn. Eilonwy has also misunderstood Taran's request to free his companion, for the man waiting outside is not Gwydion, but another former prisoner of the castle: Fflewddur Fflam, a king by birth but a wandering bard by choice. The three search the ruins, then mourn Gwydion's presumed death, and decide to take up his task to warn Caer Dathyl. Rejoined by Gurgi, but pursued by the Cauldron-Born, the group is driven far east of their northward course, and ends up in the underground realm of the Fair Folk, who have rescued Hen Wen. The Fair Folk's King Eiddileg grudgingly agrees to let Taran have her back, to re-equip their party, and to provide a guide, a dwarf called Doli. On their journey to Caer Dathyl, against Fflewddur and Doli's advice, Taran rescues an injured fledgling gwythaint, one of the great birds of prey that Arawn has enslaved. The gwythaint recovers quickly and escapes overnight, shortly followed by Hen Wen, who flees just before the Horned King's army spots them all. Fflewddur, Doli and Gurgi stand to fight, while Taran and Eilonwy go ahead on Melyngar chased by the Horned King. On the top of a hill, he attacks them, and breaks the boy's sword on the first blow. Taran seizes Dyrnwyn from Eilonwy, but lacks the "noble birth" needed to draw it. White flame burns his arm, and throws him to the ground. Just before losing consciousness, he sees another man in the trees and hears an unintelligible word. The Horned King's mask melts and he bursts into flame. When Taran wakens in bed, he learns that the man who destroyed the Horned King was Gwydion, who had been with Achren at another stronghold when Spiral Castle fell. After withstanding Achren's torture, he has learned to understand the hearts of all creatures, and was able to communicate first with the gwythaint, and then with Hen Wen. From the oracular pig he learned how to destroy the Horned King, by saying his secret name. Recognizing his nobility, Eilonwy has given Dyrnwyn to him, while Taran and his companions are to receive treasures from Caer Dathyl in recognition of service to the House of Dôn. Eilonwy gets a ring made by the Fair Folk, Gurgi a wallet of food that cannot be depleted, Fflewddur a golden harp string that can never break, Doli the ability to turn invisible (which he unusually lacks). Taran—who in the course of his adventures has realized that Caer Dallben is where he most wants to be—asks only to return home. Gwydion accompanies him back to Caer Dallben, along with Eilonwy and Gurgi, who take up residence there as well. ===== Instead of going to his physical, Peter goes out with Brian, Quagmire, Cleveland, and Joe to eat steaks. When Lois finds out, she takes him to the doctor herself. The doctor pronounces him healthy, but fat. Peter takes this badly, even accidentally smashing a picture of Lois' family. Trying to salvage it, Lois discovers another child in the picture: a boy. She telephones her father Carter, who tells her she doesn't have a brother and quickly terminates the call, but she persists: she breaks into her parents' house. She finally learns that her brother Patrick has been living in a mental hospital for decades, ever since he suffered a nervous breakdown as a young child, upon walking in on his mother having an affair with Jackie Gleason. Meanwhile, Peter announces to the family that he is fat and decides to create the "National Association for the Advancement of Fat People" (NAAFP). Peter hosts the first meeting of the association, but it is unsuccessful due to those attending were making too much noise, such as breathing heavily, farting, and munching junk food the entire way through. Believing Patrick to be sane, Lois authorizes his release, and arranges for Patrick to stay with the family. Patrick soon announces he has a wife, Marion, although she is imaginary and nobody else other than him can see her. This leads Brian and Stewie to believe he is crazy. Lois attempts to overlook the evidence, and instead tries to persuade Peter not to encourage people to be fat. Later Peter unintentionally frightens Patrick by dressing up like Ralph Kramden and repeatedly using one of Kramden's catchphrases "Pow, right in the kisser!" which brings back memories of Gleason telling him to get out. This triggers Patrick to start killing fat people. Lois' father, Carter, calls her and tells her how violent Patrick is, but she assures him Patrick is safe, although she becomes worried after seeing on the news that a fat man has been murdered. Lois remains in denial as more murders are committed, even though Brian tries to convince her that Patrick is the killer. Peter brings the fat men back to his home to protect them, but after learning from Brian that Patrick is the killer, a chase between the fat men and Patrick ensues. Brian, still at the house, shows Patrick's room to Lois, where several of his victims are either deceased or had been left for dead, and photographic evidence of Patrick killing them. Lois continues to make exaggerated excuses, still wanting to believe her brother is a nice person, but ultimately she snaps out of her denial and realizes that Patrick is a threat. Lois and Brian pursue Patrick and Peter into the woods, where Patrick is strangling Peter. Patrick quickly releases Peter after Lois threatens to stab Marion, his imaginary wife. Patrick apologizes, telling Lois that he never meant to hurt her, and the two agree he should be sent back to the mental hospital, where Lois and the family plan to visit him once a month. ===== During the Siege of Alesia in 52 BC, Centurion Lucius Vorenus of the 13th Legion commands his men as Gallic warriors fall on his line. In contrast to the Gauls' chaotic charge, the Roman files fight with precision, until one drunk legionary, Titus Pullo, breaks ranks and charges into the crowd of Gauls. Vorenus angrily orders him back into formation, but Pullo hits him. Later, the assembled soldiers watch as Pullo is flogged and condemned to death for his disorderly conduct. The day after, Vercingetorix, "King of the Gauls", is brought before Julius Caesar and made to surrender, ending the eight-year-long Gallic Wars. Caesar's niece, Atia of the Julii, orders her son Octavian to deliver a horse she has purchased straight to Caesar in Gaul to ensure that he remembers them above all other well-wishers. Caesar himself receives news that his daughter, married to his friend Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus with whom he shares power in Rome, has died in childbirth along with her stillborn daughter. A blood tie broken between them, Caesar orders a new wife be found for Pompey. In the Roman Senate, Cato the Younger moves that Caesar is stripped of his command and recalled to Rome to answer charges of misusing his office and illegal warmongering. Pompey, as sole Consul present, vetoes the motion, insisting on trusting Caesar. At the theater that night, Scipio introduces his daughter Cornelia Metella to Pompey as a prospective wife, while Cato warns him that he must ally against Caesar before it is too late. Pompey again asserts that Caesar means no harm, although privately, he is troubled by Caesar's rising prestige and power and gives orders to one of his slaves who is leaving on a trip to Gaul. At night in the encampment of the 13th Legion, the Aquila (Eagle Standard) is stolen by brigands. To avoid a potentially disastrous drop in morale, Mark Antony orders Vorenus to retrieve it. As Vorenus feels the mission is doomed to failure, he has the condemned Pullo released from the stockade to assist him. In camp, Caesar welcomes Marcus Junius Brutus, his unofficial stepson whose mother is Caesar's lover, Servilia of the Junii. Later, at a party hosted by Servilia, Brutus confides to Pompey that the loss of the eagle has made Caesar unusually vulnerable as his men are on the brink of mutiny. On the road to Caesar's camp in Gaul, Octavian is taken captive by brigands. For Caesar's request, Atia instructs her daughter Octavia to marry Pompey by first divorcing her husband Glabius, despite Octavia's protests that they are deeply in love. Atia then presents Octavia to Pompey at a party and offers her for premarital relations, which Pompey takes advantage of. Vorenus and Pullo set off in search of the eagle, encountering and rescuing Octavian from his captors. Octavian thanks them and promises that they will be rewarded. Vorenus and Pullo discover Pompey's slave with the eagle hiding in the bandit cart and kill him, realizing the bandits were hired by Pompey. A politically astute Octavian explains that their mission is only a gesture, since the theft of the eagle is actually a blessing in disguise to Caesar. Civil war between Caesar and Pompey is inevitable, but Caesar needs Pompey to make the first move so as not to appear the aggressor; Pompey is likely to do that if he believes Caesar's soldiers are on the verge of desertion. The trio returns in triumph to camp, where a surprised yet grateful Caesar takes the eagle back and more than adequate proof of Pompey's hostility. He sends Pompey the head of his slave and informs him of his next move, to winter the 13th Legion at Ravenna on the Italian border, in preparation for pressing his rights to the Consulship. Pompey breaks all ties with Caesar and takes Cornelia as his wife. Octavia, humiliated at being used by Pompey and heartbroken over her pointless divorce, says she wants him dead. ===== This second episode is based on events that took place in 50 BC and 49 BC. Caesar's proconsulship in Gaul is about to expire, which would mean a loss of the office's immunity against prosecution by his political enemies. He had faced the same situation five years prior, but at that time his command had been extended with the help of his allies Pompey and Marcus Crassus. This time Caesar cannot count on his former allies, as Pompey has openly turned against him, and Crassus was killed in 53 BC at the battle of Carrhae. Caesar instead has to rely on Mark Antony for his political maneuvering: newly elected to the office of Tribune of the People (tribunus plebis), Mark Antony has veto power in the Roman Senate. Meanwhile, Lucius Vorenus, now a first file centurion (centurio primi pili), and Titus Pullo return to Rome. After dropping off Gaius Octavian and having lunch with Atia of the Julii, Vorenus returns to his wife, whom he hasn't seen in eight years since he left for Gaul, only to find her holding a fairly new baby in her arms. When Vorenus asks her whose child it is, she tells him it is his grandson by his eldest daughter who has just newly turned 14. Meanwhile, Pullo returns to soliciting prostitutes and gambling. He's already lost most of his money in a gambling den full of Pompey's supporters when he discovers that he is being cheated by one of his opponents. He stabs the man through the throat, but is injured in the fight that breaks out. Pullo manages to drag himself to Vorenus's home, where he receives trepanation (courtesy of Vorenus) from a Greek doctor. Caesar's political enemies, led by Pompey, plan to pass a motion in the Senate that would set an ultimatum for Caesar to surrender his command, or be declared a public enemy. Pompey enlists the help of Cato the Younger, Metellus Scipio (Pompey's new father-in-law), and of the reluctant Cicero. Pompey wants the motion to pass by a large majority, so that Caesar will see that he is isolated and has no political supporters. However, Pompey also wants the motion to be immediately vetoed by Caesar's ally Mark Antony so that the blame for any subsequent escalation would rest with Caesar. The motion is passed but a brawl erupts on the Senate floor and Mark Antony's veto is not recorded, nor is the session formally adjourned. Pompey is taken by surprise, and arranges for the Senate session to be continued the next day so that the tribune's veto can be recorded. He also gives orders to his minions that Mark Antony must not be harmed in any way. Unaware of Pompey's orders and feeling threatened because of his association with Caesar, Mark Antony calls on the soldiers from Caesar's 13th Legion (Legio XIII), including Vorenus and Pullo, for protection. With Vorenus and Pullo walking beside him, Mark Antony makes his way to the Forum in order to properly record his veto in the Senate. Just as they are marching through a throng of Pompey's supporters, a friend of the man Pullo killed in the gambling den fight lunges from the crowd with a knife and attacks Pullo. Though the assailant is swiftly cut down, both sides believe that Mark Antony was the intended victim and a bloody fight erupts between the two mobs, just as Pompey emerges from the Senate House. Vorenus and Pullo escape with Antony, though the former is wounded and barely survives the return to Caesar's 13th Legion in Cisalpine Gaul (northern Italy). Having been declared an enemy of Rome by the Senate, Caesar marches his army south toward Rome, marking the beginning of the civil war. Caesar crosses the Rubicon River with the remainder of his army in January, 49 BC. As the news is cried throughout the city, Niobe breast feeds the baby, indicating that it is really hers. ===== At the opening, Caesar, at the head of his still advancing army, is sending Vorenus and Pullo, along with the Ubian cavalry for reinforcement, ahead to Rome on a scouting mission for Pompey's defenses with the strict mandate to advance only until resistance is met and, if civilians are met along the way, they are to give Caesar's proclamation to them and to instruct them to return to Rome and have it read in the forum. Mark Antony tells Vorenus that if no resistance is met and they encounter no civilians, he is to take the proclamation and nail it to the door of the Senate house. Caesar is curious as to why Vorenus is so morose and asks Antony. Antony reveals that Vorenus is a strict Catonian and believes what Caesar is doing is a "terrible sacrilege" to which Caesar responds that he is only seeking his legitimate right. Meanwhile, in Rome, a man enters Vorenus' home as Niobe is preparing food and walks straight to the baby's crib, telling Niobe that he just wants to see his son. Niobe tells him to leave but as he makes to do so, he turns back to face Niobe to try to persuade her to love him again. She resists for a moment but slowly starts to give in, but just as the two are about to exchange a kiss, Vorena the Elder enters the door and interrupts them. Niobe quickly makes the man leave. Vorena believes that if Niobe were to tell Vorenus the truth about the baby and that she thought he was dead, Vorenus would forgive her and everything would be fine, but Niobe knows full well that if Vorenus were to learn the truth, he would then have the legal right and moral obligation to kill her and his children. As the scouting mission camps for the night, Vorenus asks Pullo for advice on how to get Niobe to love him again since he's been away at war in Gaul for eight years and knows virtually nothing about women. Pullo, being the self declared consummate authority on women, jumps at the chance to tell Vorenus everything he knows. Back in Rome, Pompey, Cicero, Cato and Scipio all discuss options as they receive word of Caesar's advancement only being thirty miles from the city. Though they have four legions in Rome, they are either untrained conscripts (a unit of which is wiped out by Vorenus's scouts) or are veterans of the Gallic Wars whose loyalty can't be counted upon. They decide a tactical retreat to Corfinium is the best plan of action so that they can rally their legions and retake the city when all is ready. As Atia is holding a dinner with Servilia and Brutus in a show of unity, Pompeian supporters outside the house begin to cause a small riot and beat on the doors with a small battering ram while shouting insults through the open atrium ceiling. Meanwhile, Pompey and his family are making final preparations for their retreat from the city, during which Cornelia reminds Pompey of the treasury gold, who in turn tells his man Durio that he and a small detachment of men must go to the Capitoline vaults, which are only to be touched in cases of extreme peril, and get as much of the gold as they can. The task complete, the detachment begins to make their way from the city, but when Durio tells the driver that he's going the wrong way from the Appian gate, the man tells him they're not going to the Appian gate and proceeds to stab Durio and throw him from the ox cart. Later, as the soldiers with the stolen gold are making their way from the city, we are introduced to Eirene. She is walking down the road as the soldiers are passing and before she knows it, a legionary unceremoniously whisks her up onto the back of his horse, to inevitably become his slave. Brutus and Servilia discuss their predicament. Brutus knows that if he stays in the city because of his friendship with Caesar, he effectively declares for Caesar and rebellion. If he leaves with the Senate, he declares for them and the preservation of the Republic. Ultimately, he decides to go with Pompey and the Senate because of his family's history with the politics of Rome (his ancestors drove out the last Etruscan king). Servilia, on the other hand, is of a different mind. She wants to stay in Rome to be there when Caesar returns in order to rekindle their romance. Back on the road to Rome, Vorenus and Pullo, still unable to figure out why they're meeting no resistance, cross paths with the soldiers and the stolen treasury gold, along with Eirene being led along tied to the wagon by her bound wrists. The soldiers explain that the lack of resistance is because Pompey and the Senate have left the city, thereby permitting Vorenus and the scouting party to proceed without caution. When Vorenus questions the lead man about the cart, he's told that it's just a grain wagon. But when Vorenus points out that they're all wearing soldiers' sandals and that soldiers would have no business guarding a grain wagon, a fight ensues and all the men but the driver, who has taken refuge in the woods, are driven off and killed while Eirene remains tied to the wagon. While Atia holds court for plebeians seeking the support of the Julii, Vorenus, Pullo and the scouting party finally enter Rome and make their way to the Forum, where Vorenus nails Caesar's proclamation to the Senate door. He then heads to his home telling Pullo that he's done what was asked of him and he will sin no more. Pullo, on the other hand, still intrigued with Eirene, goes back to find the wagon. When he locates it, he finds Eirene lying on the ground with her wrists still bound to the wagon. Upon discovering she is still alive, he unties her and sets her up in the wagon before he checks to see what exactly is in it. He opens one box, takes one look and shuts it quickly, breathing heavily. He looks in the next box with the same reaction. Then he pulls back the covering to see exactly how many boxes are in the wagon and gasps at, what he thinks is, his newfound wealth. As he's surmising the situation, he hears the trumpets of Caesar's army approaching and quickly makes a getaway before they arrive. ===== Pompey receives Julius Caesar's offer of a truce. To general surprise, he accepts. This presents Caesar with a dilemma, since he confidently expected Pompey to refuse, but now needs a suitable pretext to reject a truce. Caesar uses Pompey's refusal to meet with him face-to-face, calling it a mortal insult. Atia announces that she has retained Titus Pullo to tutor her son Octavian in the "masculine arts" — how to fight, copulate, skin animals and so forth. Octavian proves to be an indifferent swordsman, but takes a liking to Pullo, and the soldier takes the boy into his confidence, confessing that he has suspicions about Niobe and her brother-in-law, Evander. The two make a pact to find out the truth, without telling Lucius Vorenus. Meanwhile, Vorenus's financial difficulties are mounting. He inspects his share of the slaves taken in Gaul, and finds that nearly all of them have died of disease, on top of which he still has to pay the bill for their transport and feeding. He asks Erastes Fulmen for a loan, but the crafty gangster demurs, and instead maneuvers Lucius into accepting a lucrative position as his enforcer. Having captured the city, Caesar seems to be in no hurry to pursue Pompey to the coast, instead spending his evenings dallying with Servilia. Jealous of her influence over Caesar, Atia hires Timon to paint rude graffiti depicting Caesar and Servilia's relationship all over the city. Mortified, Caesar's wife Calpurnia threatens to divorce him unless he breaks off relations with Servilia. Since he still needs her family's political and financial support, Caesar does so, and Servilia is livid. Caesar prepares to march on Pompey without further ado, and appoints Mark Antony prefect of the city in his absence, despite the latter's protests ("I'm a soldier, not a peacekeeper"). Late at night, Pullo kidnaps Evander, with Octavian tagging along, and they interrogate him in an underground walkway beside one of the sewers. Octavian, to Pullo's surprise, directs Pullo to torture Evander when he refuses to talk with surprising blood lust and cruelty. After losing both thumbs and being beaten severely, Evander admits that he and Niobe had become lovers after Vorenus was mistakenly pronounced dead in Gaul, and that Niobe's "grandson" is in fact her son by him. Outraged, Pullo kills Evander and dumps his body into the sewer. Octavian warns him that Vorenus can never learn what has happened. Vorenus reports for duty as Erastes's "bodyguard," but quits as soon as he sees what is expected of him: torturing, and then killing, a business client of Fulmen's who considered himself cheated in a recent deal. Despite his political opposition to Caesar, Vorenus has no choice but to approach Antony, pleading for a renewal of Antony's prior offer. Antony does not usually believe in second chances, but he needs good men around him in his new, unfamiliar role as city protector. Vorenus is reinstated into the army as Evocati prefect (with a cut in his promised signing bonus). In the most solemn terms, Servilia inscribes curse tablets against both Caesar and Atia, and a slave deposits them in their respective houses. She is now committed to destroying both of them. Caesar and his army reach the coast to find that they are too late: Pompey has escaped to Greece, no doubt to raise a new army against Caesar. ===== Continuing where the last episode left off, Rachel goes to the airport to greet Ross as he returns from his paleontology find in China and tell him she would like to give their relationship a chance. However, she sees Ross arrive with his new girlfriend, paleontologist and former graduate school classmate Julie. Chandler, feeling guilty for both telling Ross to move on from Rachel and letting slip to her Ross's feelings for her, talks with Ross to get an explanation of how everything happened and how it is going with Julie. Chandler's talk with Ross fails to console Rachel, as Ross confirms that he is having a great time with Julie. Everyone soon tires of Ross and Julie's displays of affection – including Rachel, who has a one-night stand with old flame Paolo in order to try and get over it. Rachel finally tells Ross that she and Paolo are not getting back together and that it was a mistake, and is about to confess her feelings for him. But after Ross gets his feelings for Paolo, specifically that he is "scum", off his chest, he tells Rachel he thinks she should be with someone who considers himself lucky to have her – like he is with Julie. When she hears this, Rachel has nothing more to say to him, realizing that Ross is truly happy with Julie. Chandler needs a pair of pants altered, so Joey sends him to the Tribbiani family tailor. All is fine – until the tailor measures Chandler's inseam a little too well. Chandler comes back angry and blames Joey for the fiasco. Joey still thinks that is how tailors do inseams, until Ross and Chandler convince him about the real intentions of the tailor. Joey realises and is found calling all his relatives about the problem. Meanwhile, Monica wants Phoebe to give her a new haircut, since she did such a great job with Joey's and Chandler's haircuts. Phoebe, aware of Monica's pickiness, declines at first but eventually relents. Monica requests that Phoebe cut her hair like Demi Moore; Phoebe gets confused and cuts her hair like Dudley Moore. Monica is very upset and the rest of the gang try hard to console her. In the tag scene, Julie asks Phoebe to cut her hair for her like Andie MacDowell. When she asks Rachel for advice on how to cut it, Rachel gets her revenge on Julie by describing Andie MacDowell as "the guy from Planet Of The Apes". ===== The film, as its name implies, centers on Gurneal "Neal" Ahluwalia (Uday Chopra) and Nikita "Nikki" Bakshi (Tanisha Mukherjee), two Canadians of Punjabi descent, born and raised in British Columbia. But Neal and Nikki are different in many ways. Before getting married Neal wants to spend 21 days on vacation with 21 women. On his way, he meets Nikki in a club, where Neal is with his date Kristi. Nikki gets drunk and starts dancing. Neal leaves his date and takes Nikki to a hotel where he watches T.V. while Nikki falls asleep. The next morning, Nikki thinks that Neal raped her when he didn't. She uses this to blackmail him all the time. Nikki interrupts his romantic meetings with other women from time to time, including once when Nikki interrupts Neal while he is having sex with another woman. When Neal tells Nikki the truth why he is in Canada, she gets mad and dumps him. Nikki then takes Neal to a resort town Whistler promising that she will make him meet other girls there. In reality, her ex-boyfriend Trish is there with his girlfriend Amanda, and she wants to make him jealous. When Neal learns this, he doesn't agree but eventually does. They are successful in making Trish jealous. He tells Nikki that he wants her back, but she dumps him. They later spend a night together at a campsite but are unable to express their love to each other. Neal then returns since it is time for his wedding. Later he finds out that the girl to whom he is to be engaged, Sweety (Richa Pallod), is Nikki's cousin. At the engagement ceremony just when Nikki is approaching to stop the engagement, it is revealed that Nikki's cousin had exchanged vows on the internet with her true love Happy Singh (Gaurav Gera). Sweety proceeds to run away with Happy, while Neal proposes to Nikki because they realise that they are meant for each other. ===== Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo wash ashore on a small cay, after their ship is lost at sea. Without water, food, or any sign of rescue, they are nearly resigned to their deaths, when Vorenus notices the corpses of their dead comrades floating. The two men fashion a raft using several bodies to float it, and paddle out to sea. In Julius Caesar's camp, Mark Antony and a small contingent of soldiers have arrived, but the majority of the 13th Legion has been lost at sea. Pompey's army has Caesar pinned down, and outnumbers his forces 3 to 1. Grimly, Caesar and Antony decide they have no choice but to make what will probably be their last stand from where they are. In Pompey's camp, his officers consider the war all but over. Pompey knows that they need only wait, and starvation and weariness will cause Caesar's troops to desert. However, as predicted by Caesar, the politicians in the camp, led by Cato the Younger, want a decisive victory and pressure Pompey to attack. Cato and Scipio urge Pompey to crush Caesar in a final battle, reminding him of his reputation as a war hero. Pompey eventually gives in and agrees to attack Caesar. In the ensuing battle, Caesar's forces inflict a devastating defeat on Pompey. Caesar, exhausted, staggers back into his tent and instructs Posca to send word of his victory to Rome, before collapsing. In Pompey's camp, Cato and Scipio resolve to retreat to Africa and continue the war from there, although Brutus wearily remarks that they are "running out of continents" to flee to. Sick of fighting and the constant retreats, Cicero and Brutus both declare their intentions to surrender to Caesar and beg for his mercy. "I'm not afraid to die," Cicero declares in response to a sympathetic Scipio's comment they will probably be executed, "I'm tired, and I want to go home." After they have left, Pompey consults with Scipio and Cato, and the three decide not to travel together. While the former make their way to Africa, Pompey makes his way with his wife and children to Amphipolis, posing as a traveling merchant. In Caesar's camp, Cicero and Brutus are welcomed back with open arms by an ebullient Caesar. Befuddled, they remind him they are enemy combatants, but he will have none of it: "We are old friends, who have merely quarrelled." He invites them to share the table with the rest of his staff, who are busy celebrating the victory. Caesar is also overjoyed by their news that Pompey has survived Pharsalus, though disheartened to learn his old friend turned bitter enemy has no intention of surrendering. When they reach the coast, Pompey's children come across Vorenus and Pullo washed ashore. Pullo and Vorenus recognize Pompey, though they conceal it. Pompey's party takes them in and gives them shelter and food. Out of Pompey's earshot, the leader of his escort tries to recruit Vorenus and Pullo to help overpower Pompey's guards and take the family prisoner, promising a share of the rich reward Caesar will no doubt offer. Pullo is all for the suggestion, but Vorenus rejects it as dishonorable. The guide tries to ambush Vorenus, and Vorenus stabs him through the throat, alerting Pompey. Vorenus informs Pompey that he and his family are now officially prisoners of the 13th Legion. In private, Pompey admits to Vorenus who he is. He tells an interested Vorenus how he was defeated at Pharsalus, then tearfully pleads that his family be allowed to make their way to freedom. Taking pity on the old man, Vorenus lets his party go, over Pullo's objections. Pullo and Vorenus make their way back to Caesar's camp. Caesar is furious that Vorenus let Pompey go, but surprises Antony by letting Vorenus off with only a reprimand. When Antony argues Vorenus should be executed for such an error, Caesar explains that he believes Vorenus and Pullo are being protected by powerful gods, having recovered his missing Eagle in Gaul, stumbled upon a wagon full of treasury gold, survived a shipwreck that drowned the rest of their legion, and then found Pompey on a beach. He will not kill men "with friends of that sort." In Rome, at Atia's urging and Servilia's invitation, Octavia has continued to visit Servilia's house. At first, Octavia is the supplicant, begging on her mother's behalf for help in keeping their house safe when the news of Caesar's defeat reaches Rome. But their positions are abruptly reversed when the news arrives that Caesar has triumphed, and Brutus's whereabouts are unknown. Servilia collapses with tears. Octavia comforts her, and then kisses her. The two women are later shown lying in bed together. Pompey's party makes its way from Amphipoli to Alexandria in Egypt, confident of a warm welcome from the reigning king, Ptolemy XIII. While Cornelia and his children watch from their boat, Pompey is rowed ashore, where he is greeted by an ex-comrade from Spain, Lucius Septimius, now serving as a mercenary in the Egyptian army. Pompey reaches out to shake Septimius's hand, but Septimius seizes his arm and stabs him in the chest, sadly stating he is acting under orders. While Cornelia shields the children's eyes, she watches in horror as Septimius beheads Pompey and lets his corpse topple into the water. ===== In Rome, Marcus Junius Brutus arrives home, and is somewhat put out to receive only a perfunctory welcome from his mother, Servilia, after his long absence. Caesar and his Legion arrives in Alexandria in pursuit of Pompey, who unbeknown to him has already been betrayed and murdered while seeking refuge there. Caesar is greeted by the ministers of the young King Ptolemy XIII, led by Ptolemy's regent, the eunuch Pothinus, and his tutor Theodotus. They are dismissive of the dispute over the throne between Ptolemy and his sister/wife, Cleopatra, assuring Caesar there will be no disruption to the Roman grain supply. In private, Posca informs Caesar that the Egyptians are lying, and that the situation is very unstable. Caesar is also clearly irritated by the petulant young king. Hoping to win Caesar's support in their dynastic dispute, Ptolemy presents him with Pompey's head, but Caesar is outraged that a consul of Rome has been "quartered like some low thief". As recompense for this insult, he demands that Pompey's killer be turned over to him, and the debt owed to Rome by the King's late father be repaid in full, although the Egyptians state that the "seventeen thousand thousand drachma" owed will be impossible to pay. Caesar decides to remain in Egypt to arbitrate between the various factions, ordering Mark Antony to return to Rome, despite Antony's and Posca's warnings that he will be left with dangerously few men in Egypt, surrounded by hostile factions that could make him into a common enemy, and that Cato the Younger and Scipio are still at large and likely gathering fresh forces. Vorenus and Pullo are dispatched to the south of the country to find Cleopatra and escort her to Alexandria. Meanwhile, Pothinus and Theodotus persuade Ptolemy to anticipate Caesar's decision by having his sister killed, while she is still under house arrest. They also decide to temporarily placate Caesar by delivering Pompey's assassin, Septimius, asking him to deliver a message to Caesar, in person, which turns out to be his own death warrant. A short time later, Septimius's head is placed on a stake outside the palace. Vorenus and Pullo wait for Ptolemy's assassins to appear, to guide them to Cleopatra's exact location. When the assassins arrive, the Romans ambush them just as they are about to kill Cleopatra. As her litter travels to Alexandria, Cleopatra confides in her servant, Charmion, that it is imperative that she seduce Caesar. "If I cannot, then I am dead." She notes that, if she could bear him a son, something his three wives have not done, her position would be much more secure. She also notes that it will be several more days before they reach Alexandria, but now is the perfect time for her to become pregnant, as her "womb is between the flood." To this end, she orders Charmian to invite Vorenus into her tent and orders him to have sex with her. Though tempted, Vorenus refuses and storms out of the tent, instead ordering Pullo to "[r]eport immediately to Princess Cleopatra and do as she says." Confused, Pullo reports for duty, but when he learns what his task is to be, he performs it with gusto. Afterwards, Vorenus warns him never to speak of it, as Caesar will likely have him killed if he finds out. Vorenus and Pullo smuggle Cleopatra into Alexandria concealed in a sack. The moment she reveals herself, Caesar is immediately smitten with her. She enters the throne room, where her younger brother quails before her. Sweetly, she tells him she does not blame him, but that he has been manipulated by his evil advisers and swiftly demands their deaths. Shortly thereafter, Pothinus and Theodotus's heads join Septimius's on the stakes outside the palace. Angered by this sign of Roman imperialism, a mob begins gathering outside the palace, and Vorenus orders his men to bar the gates and prepare for combat. Cleopatra swiftly seduces Caesar into making an alliance, sealed by enticing him to have sex with her. Scenes of Cleopatra and Caesar making love are interspersed with scenes of Servilia and Octavia in bed, and scenes of the mob laying siege to the palace. Almost a year later, in Rome, Cicero meets Brutus in the Senate House. Cicero says that, if Caesar is defeated in Alexandria, then they should do everything possible to keep Antony from assuming power after him. Brutus reminds him that they swore loyalty to Caesar when they surrendered, but Cicero parries that their oath does not extend to Antony, and suggests sending word to Cato and Scipio, who have raised a new army in Numidia. Antony then enters, telling Cicero that he's heard rumors of Cicero's planned treachery, and warns him that, if he ever hears of it again, he will cut off Cicero's "soft, pink hands and nail them to the Senate door." As he is leaving, Antony adds that he came with good news: Caesar is victorious in Alexandria. In Alexandria, we see Ptolemy floating facedown in a marsh of sedges near the river, dead. The sound of bees buzzing around the body can be heard (a sardonic allusion to his royal title of “he of sedge and bee”). Caesar presents Cleopatra's infant son Caesarion to his soldiers. As the Legion cheers, Vorenus glowers at Pullo, who pauses for a moment, knowing that there's a distinct possibility that the child is his, then goes on cheering proudly. ===== Webb Garwood (Van Heflin), a disgruntled cop, is called to investigate a peeping Tom by Susan Gilvray (Evelyn Keyes). Her husband works nights as an overnight radio personality. Webb falls in love with the young and attractive married woman. Obsessed, he woos her and, despite her initial reluctance, the two begin an adulterous affair. Webb discovers an insurance policy on the husband's life. He dreams up a scheme; one evening, he goes to Susan's house and makes noise outside which would indicate a prowler. He then leaves but, because he is in his police vehicle, hears the subsequent complaint reported from Susan's address. He returns to the house in his official capacity, and again makes noise suggesting a prowler. Susan's husband comes outside, armed, and Webb, under cover in the bushes, shoots him with his service revolver and kills him. Webb then wounds himself with the husband's pistol to make it look like the two had exchanged gunfire. Webb's ruse fools a coroner's jury, thanks in part to both Susan and Webb testifying that they didn't know each other prior to her husband's death (although his police partner believes otherwise). Susan initially suspects Webb of foul play, but becomes convinced of his innocence and subsequently marries him. Shortly after the wedding, Susan informs Webb that she is four months pregnant (a consequence of their adultery—earlier, it was revealed that her husband proved to be infertile, and that she was desperate to have children). This was problematic because the date of the baby's conception would prove the two had lied in their testimony to cover up their previous relationship and would thereby suggest that Webb's killing of Susan's husband had not been an accident at all. The two run away to a ghost town named Calico to have the baby without anyone back home knowing. They enjoy a happy life until Susan goes into premature labor. Webb finds and forces Dr. William James (Wheaton Chambers) to come out to Calico to assist in the birth. Susan realizes that Webb intends to kill Dr. James to preserve their secret, so she warns the doctor, who then escapes with the newborn. Susan tells Webb that she knows what he had planned to do and that she now believes that he intentionally murdered her husband. Realizing the doctor will send the police after him, Webb drives away, leaving his wife in Calico alone. On the way out of town, Webb finds the road blocked by his former partner who is coming to pay a surprise visit. While attempting to force his way around his friend's car Webb sees several police cars coming so he heads for the hills on foot. He refuses to stop and a sheriff's deputy shoots him dead. ===== Lisa needs a new saxophone reed for the school talent show. Homer agrees to buy her one but visits Moe's Tavern first. When he arrives at the music shop next door, it has closed for the night. Dejected, Homer returns to the bar, where he finds the shop's owner. Moe convinces him to re-open his store, but when Homer reaches the school with the new reed, Lisa has already butchered her performance. Humiliated and dejected, she ignores her father's attempts to appease her. While watching old family videos, Homer realizes how much he has neglected Lisa over the years. After Homer's attempts to mend his relationship with Lisa fail, he buys her a pony with a loan through the power plant credit union. Lisa awakes one morning to find the pony lying next to her in bed. She is delighted with it, which she names Princess, and forgives her father. Homer is glad Lisa respects him again, but Marge is upset when he ignores her warning that they cannot afford a horse. To pay for Princess's stabling, Homer takes a second job at the Kwik-E-Mart, which exhausts him over time. Marge tells the children about the sacrifices their father is making, but says Lisa must decide for herself whether to part with Princess. After watching Bart take advantage of a sleep-deprived Homer at the Kwik-E-Mart, Lisa shares a heartbreaking goodbye with her pony. She tells Homer there is a "big dumb animal" she loves even more than Princess: her father. When Homer quits his job at the Kwik-E-Mart, Apu admits he was one of his best employees, despite being crude and lazy. ===== In the wake of their escapade in the arena, Vorenus and Pullo have become heroes to the plebeians of Rome. Pullo, recovering from his injuries in an Avernum hospital, is thrilled to learn that plays, murals and other tributes to himself and Vorenus are all over the city. When one man comments that "there isn't a lady who wouldn't open her doors for the mighty Titus Pullo", he escapes from the hospital, steals a horse and heads for Rome to take advantage of his newfound fame. At the same time, Vorenus and his family have gone out with the priests of Saturn to inspect and bless the new farmland that Caesar has given him; in private, Vorenus expresses to Niobe a worry that Caesar could exile him from Rome, or worse. Upon their return home, Vorenus learns of Pullo's escape; his old friend is inside, having been found unconscious by the Appian Gate. Vorenus dismisses Pullo's desire to enjoy their fame, commenting that even if he survives his injuries, Caesar will likely have them both thrown back in the arena; Vorenus explains he has a meeting with Caesar the following day to discuss what happened. That same night, Eirene (who has not forgiven Pullo for killing her lover) sneaks into his room and tries to kill him, only to find herself unable to; Niobe stops her before she can recover, stating everyone would know it was her. Once he has recovered sufficiently, Pullo goes out into Rome, looking to enjoy himself. However, upon returning with an eager companion, he glances at Eirene and relents. Shortly afterwards, Pullo goes to the shrine of Rusina to gain a measure of forgiveness; Eirene follows him. At the Senate the next day, Caesar discusses his plans for Rome with Mark Antony and Cicero; Cicero is most perturbed about Caesar's plans to allow Gauls and Celts into the Roman Senate. Their meeting is interrupted by the arrival of Vorenus: Caesar is furious Vorenus disobeyed his order not to interfere with the execution, but remarks he cannot harm the pair without angering the people. Since he cannot simply ignore the deed, he decides he must reward Vorenus...by making him a Senator, astounding all present. Cicero is up in arms at the suggestion, but Caesar remarks that he wishes for the Senate "to be made up of the best men in Italy, not just the richest old men in Rome!". In private, Antony and Posca remark that Caesar's plans will make him a lot of enemies, but Caesar refuses their suggestion to double his guard. When they question this, Caesar replies that with the great hero Lucius Vorenus at his side, none will dare raise a hand against him. That night, Caesar's wife, Calpurnia has a nightmare of a flock of crows flying in the shape of a skull. She fears it is an omen, but Caesar dismisses it, remarking he has suffered similar dreams for years and no longer feels any need to fear them, and disregards Calpurnia's suggestion to leave Rome, insisting he has too much work to do. At the Senate the next day, Brutus and Cassius, along with Cicero and Senators Casca and Cimber disgustedly watch as the Gallic and Celtic additions to the Senate enter with Caesar. At Servilia's house that evening, they remark they must act soon before, in their view, Caesar destroys the Republic; but Casca and Cimber fear the fact that they will likely have to slay Vorenus along with Caesar. Servilia counsels the group against harming Vorenus, since killing a hero of the people will likely turn them against the conspirators. Casca and Cimber, along with Quintus Pompey propose simply poisoning Caesar or killing him in his bed, but Brutus angrily yells that their intention is an honourable act and must be done honourably. However, none of the group can answer the question Quintus poses them with: "How?". However, that night, Servilia remembers that she has heard of Lucius Vorenus before (from Octavia) and tells Brutus they can use this information to remove the threat of Vorenus. On the Ides of March, Servilia sends Atia a letter, seeking to meet and reaffirm their friendship. Atia is surprised by this, but accepts, taking Octavian with her. At the same time, Servilia's slave approaches Vorenus and tells him of Niobe's infidelity with her sister's husband and the fact the child Lucius is her son, not grandson. Furious, Vorenus storms off from the Forum as Caesar enters the Senate and returns to his house, where he angrily threatens Niobe and demands the truth. When she tells him, Vorenus reaches for a knife, but Niobe hurls herself from a balcony to her death before he can react to either attack or save her. In the Senate, while Quintus and a number of other Senators delay Posca and Antony, the conspirators make their move; Cimber, under the pretence of asking Caesar to recall his brother's exile, signals the attack and he, Casca, Cassius and a number of other Senators surround and attack Caesar, stabbing him from all directions in a frenzy. Horrified at the sight, Brutus can only watch as the man he once considered a great friend is torn apart by the mob, dropping his blade in disgust. As the mortally wounded Caesar collapses, Cassius hands Brutus a knife and tells him to finish Caesar off. As the pair stare at each other, horrified at what they have come to, Brutus stabs Caesar to the heart, putting him out of his misery, then collapses from shock. Mark Antony enters just after Caesar has died; realising he is surrounded by enemies, Antony hatefully stares at Brutus for a moment, and then flees. Brutus sinks down weeping, distraught at what he has done. At the same time, Servilia gleefully reveals to Atia and Octavian what has happened at the Senate, and promises Atia that she will hurt her as slowly and painfully as Atia had done to Servilia, then allows them to depart. Atia is dumbfounded by what has happened, but Octavian coldly glares at Servilia, contemplating what is to be done next. In the midst of all the sorrow and death, the episode ends on something of a happy note, as at the shrine of Rusina, Eirene forgives Pullo for his past transgressions, and the pair walk off hand in hand. ===== An earthquake leaves the California coastline in ruins and reduces the beaches to a state of chaos. A group of neo-Nazis led by Adolf (Brenner), the self- proclaimed "Führer of the new beach", takes advantage of the resulting chaos by fighting off several rival surfer gangs to seize control of the beaches. Meanwhile, an African American oil well worker named Leroy (Harden) is killed by the surf Nazis while jogging on the beach. Leroy's mother, "Mama" Washington (Neely), devastated by the loss of her son, vows revenge. After arming herself with a handgun and grenades, she breaks out of her retirement home and exacts vengeance on the Surf Nazis. ===== This fantasy tale tells of Totò who, found as a baby in a cabbage patch, is adopted by Lolotta, a wise and kind old woman. When Lolotta dies he moves to an orphanage. At adulthood Totò (Francesco Golisano) leaves the orphanage and ends up in a shantytown squatter colony on the outskirts of Milan. Totò's organizational ability, learned at the orphanage, and his simple kindness and optimistic outlook acquired from Lolotta bring structure to the colony. He fosters a sense of happiness and well-being among the dispossessed who live there. Businessmen come and haggle over the ownership of the land but the squatters are left alone to live there. Oil is discovered under the colony when they are making a hole for a maypole during a festival. It forms a fountain in the middle of the camp and at first is thought to be water. Mobbi the land owner hears about the oil from the scheming squatter, Rappi, and tries to evict the squatters using an army of police. During this crisis Totò is given a magic dove by the ghost of Lolotta and he uses its powers to grant wishes to those who ask. The camp takes on a surreal appearance as every secret wish is granted. Eventually the dove is taken back by two angels who object to a mortal using its magic powers. Without the protection of the dove the camp is overrun by police and its occupants taken away in police wagons to be imprisoned. Toto's sweetheart, Edvige replaces it with an ordinary dove and hands this to him through the bars of the police wagon in Piazza del Duomo outside Milan's cathedral. Totò uses the dove to wish for the freedom of his friends and because of his good faith it is granted. The police wagons fall apart and the squatters fly away on broomsticks seized from the street sweepers in Milan's central square. They circle around the Cathedral and then away, "towards a land where "good morning really means good morning." The final scene, the escape by broomstick. ===== Eddie Coyle is a low-level gunrunner based out of Quincy, Massachusetts. He supplies pistols to a bank robbery crew led by Jimmy Scalise and Artie Van, first obtaining the guns from a fellow gunrunner named Jackie Brown. At the same time, Coyle is facing several years of jailtime for a truck hijacking in New Hampshire set up by Dillon, who owns a local bar. Coyle cooperates with ATF agent Dave Foley in order to get his sentencing cleared, but is unaware that Dillon is an informant for Foley; Dillon meets with Foley in person every week to receive $20 from him. The crew kidnap Mr. Pearson, the manager of the South Shore National Bank, in order to rob the bank. They are successful and make a clean getaway. Afterward, Coyle meets with Foley to discuss his sentencing. Coyle tells him that he knows a gunrunner, Jackie, that he could potentially have Foley arrest in order to ease the sentencing; Foley sits on this idea. Meanwhile, Jackie meets a hippie couple in Cambridge who wish to purchase M16 rifles off of him. He reluctantly agrees to sell them in a discreet location at a specific time. Jackie then meets with Coyle who requires him to acquire guns for the next day. While unsure at first that he can complete the task, Jackie complies and heads to Rhode Island later that night with an associate to get the guns, which he is successful in doing. The crew rob a second bank, this time in South Weymouth. Towards the end of the robbery, one of the tellers triggers a silent alarm and is shot dead by one of the robbers, requiring a hasty exit by the crew. They are able to flee without any police following them but become wanted for murder as a result. Afterward, Jackie meets Coyle in the parking lot of a Dedham grocery store to deliver him the guns. Once the exchange is finished, Coyle calls Foley from a payphone to tip him off about Jackie's exchange with the hippie couple at the Sharon train station. There, Foley and a group of agents watch the area from afar with sniper rifles. The couple arrive and Jackie tells them to meet him elsewhere at a later time, as he believes that he is being watched. Once they leave, Foley and his team move in to make the arrest. Jackie recognizes the agents' cars and attempts to flee but is boxed in at the exit and put in handcuffs, immediately realizing that Coyle had set him up. Coyle and Foley have another meeting, at which Foley says that Jackie's arrest was not enough to clear Coyle's sentence. In preparation for the third robbery, the crew move in to kidnap the bank's manager but are ambushed by Foley and other ATF agents and placed under arrest. The next day, Coyle decides to tip Foley off about Scalise and his crew but is unaware of their arrest. Foley shows him the arrest in the newspaper and departs, leaving Coyle anguished. Later on, Dillon is told that "The Man", a mob boss, wants him to assassinate Coyle. Dillon invites Coyle out to a Boston Bruins game at the Boston Garden along with a hood whom Dillon claims is his "wife's nephew". At the game, Coyle becomes severely drunk and eventually passes out in the car ride afterward. The hood drives them to a discreet location, where Dillon shoots Coyle in the head with a .22 revolver. They swap out cars in the parking lot of a bowling alley and leave. Dillon and Foley meet outside Boston City Hall the next day, where Foley thanks Dillon for giving him Scalise and his crew. Foley is largely unconcerned that Dillon cannot tell him who murdered Coyle, leaving the impression that he knows Dillon is involved but likely would not have pursued the killing of Coyle himself. After they finish conversing, they walk away in separate directions. ===== In 1581, Walter Raleigh (Richard Todd), recently returned from the fighting in Ireland, pressures unwilling tavern patrons into freeing from the mud the stuck carriage of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester (Herbert Marshall). When Leicester asks how he can repay the kindness, Raleigh asks for an introduction to Queen Elizabeth I (Bette Davis), to whom Leicester is a trusted adviser. Leicester grants the request. Elizabeth takes a great liking to Raleigh and his forthright manner, much to the disgust of her current favorite, Christopher Hatton (Robert Douglas). As the court ventures outside, Raleigh graciously drapes his cloak (an expensive item borrowed from a reluctant tailor) over some mud so that the queen need not soil her shoes. At dinner, Raleigh reveals his dream of sailing to the New World to reap the riches there. Elizabeth decides to make him the captain of her personal guard. He enlists his Irish friend, Lord Derry (Dan O'Herlihy). Meanwhile, Beth Throckmorton (Joan Collins), one of the queen's ladies in waiting, very forwardly makes Raleigh's acquaintance. Raleigh's relationship with both ladies is stormy. Beth is jealous of his attentions to Elizabeth, while the queen is often irritated by his independence and constant talk of the New World. Hatton does his best to inflame her annoyance, but she is too clever to be taken in. When Hatton informs Elizabeth that an Irishman is a member of her guard, Raleigh is stripped of his captaincy when he protests that his friend is loyal and refuses to dismiss him. Banished from court, Raleigh takes the opportunity to secretly marry Beth. Soon after, however, he is restored to Elizabeth's favor. Finally, Elizabeth grants Raleigh not the three ships he desires, but one. He enthusiastically sets about making modifications. In private, however, Elizabeth reveals within Beth's hearing that her intentions do not include his actually leaving England. When so informed, Raleigh makes plans to sail to North America without royal permission. Hatton tells the queen not only of Raleigh's plot, but also that he is married to Beth. Elizabeth orders the couple's arrest. Raleigh delays those sent to take him into custody so that Derry can try to take Beth into hiding in Ireland, but they are overtaken on the road, and Derry killed. Raleigh and Beth are sentenced to death, but in the end, Elizabeth releases them. They set sail for the New World. ===== JPod is an avant-garde novel of six young adults, whose last names all begin with the letter 'J' and who are assigned to the same cubicle pod by someone in human resources through a computer glitch, working at Neotronic Arts, a fictional Burnaby-based video game company. Ethan Jarlewski is the novel's main character and narrator, who spends more time involved with his work than with his dysfunctional family. His stay-at-home mother runs a successful marijuana grow-op which allows his father to abandon his career and work as a futile movie extra. Ethan's realtor brother Greg involves himself with Asian crime lord Kam Fong who serves as the plot's crux of character connection. The JPod staff are required to insert a turtle character based on Jeff Probst into the skateboard game that they are developing as 'BoardX'. The marketing manager, Steven Lefkowitz, mandates the turtle's addition to the game because he is trying to please his son during a custody battle. JPod is then drastically challenged and changed when Steve goes missing and the new executive replacement declares that the game will be changed yet again. Upper management decides to change Jeff the turtle for an adventurous prince who rides a magic carpet. The game is then renamed "SpriteQuest". The JPodders, upset that they would not be able to finish their game, decide to sabotage SpriteQuest by inserting a deranged Ronald McDonald. They do this by creating a secret level where Ronald works malevolence, thus creating, in their opinion, a culturally-suitable game for the target market. Ethan begins to date the newest addition to JPod, Kaitlin, and their relationship grows as she discovers that most of the members of the team, including herself, are mildly autistic. Kaitlin develops a hugging machine after researching how autistic people enjoy the sensation of pressure from non-living things on their skin. Douglas Coupland, as a character, is inserted into the novel when Ethan visits China to bring a heroin-addicted Steve back to Canada. This Google-version of Douglas Coupland consistently bumps into Ethan and manages to weave himself into the narrator's life. JPod finds itself in a digital world where technology is everything and the human mind is incapable of focusing on just one task. ===== Francine is tired of Stan and Hayley's constant bickering; in this instance, gun control fuels the debate (Hayley favours it while Stan is against it). Forced by Francine to make amends, Stan takes Hayley to her favorite amusement park, 'Sugar Mountain,' only to reveal on arrival that the park has long since closed. On its site is NGALand, a gun-themed park owned by the National Gun Association (a parody of the National Rifle Association). Disgusted at how America encourages kids to take up firearms, Hayley grabs a guitar and sings an anti-gun song, getting her and Stan thrown out and Stan's membership revoked. Stan stages a robbery so that Hayley is forced to use a gun to save the family. Hayley shoots the robber but feels conflicted afterwards, until she learns it was just a ploy to get her to apologize so Stan can recover his NGA membership. Angry, she grabs Stan's gun and, with what Stan mistakenly tells her are blank rounds, shoots him in the neck, rendering him quadriplegic and bound to a wheelchair. Feeling hugely guilty, Hayley agrees to help Stan by singing appalling pro-gun songs at NGALand. At the break, Francine sees what the trauma has done to Hayley and inspires Stan to rethink. For the encore, Stan defies the park's management and the pair sing Hayley's anti-gun song instead, sending out the message that guns are bad. The old NGALand mascot (sacked because of Stan) uses the opportunity to try to kill Hayley to get his job back, but Stan takes the bullet. In hospital, it is revealed that the second bullet dislodged the first bullet with the result that Stan recovers completely and, much to the appall of Francine and Hayley, believes that "guns heal the sick", once again pro-guns. Meanwhile, Roger gets angry at Steve for stealing a cookie that Francine had saved for him. Driven mad by Steve's declaration of "you snooze, you lose," he sets out to gain revenge on Steve by convincing him that he was adopted. He begins operating on a small scale, by pointing out the minor differences between Steve and his parents. As the show progresses, Roger's tactics become more demented; he even goes so far as to destroy all the photos and videos of Steve as a baby. Steve is eventually convinced that he was adopted, even going so far as to commit minor incest by French kissing his sister (leaving Hayley traumatized). Roger searches the FBI database looking for a child that fits Steve's profile, and sends him to a couple whose son was kidnapped when he was an infant. Roger insists that they are his real parents (as well as that they are a Norwegian sailing family), and coaxes him into wearing a sailor outfit. Steve greets the family enthusiastically, and they are overjoyed at the return of their "son." When Roger exposes his ploy, Steve, rather than becoming angry, congratulates him on organizing such a clever ruse, much to the horrified couple's disappointment. As the episode ends in Stan's hospital room, Hayley sits in Roger's seat and declares "the Early bird gets the worm." As before, Roger slowly repeats her words, implying that he is planning to get revenge on her as well. ===== The lander flies high in the atmosphere, shooting at an enemy Seeder which is infecting the ground, turning it red. The plot of the game is reminiscent of the arcade game Defender, in that the player, piloting a lone craft with limited firepower, must defend a finite landscape against ever increasing waves of enemy craft. In Zarch, the landscape is being invaded by aliens who are spreading a virus across the landscape. The Seeder vessels are slow-moving, predictable, and easily destroyed, but as the game progresses they are supported by increasing numbers of flying support craft, which do not scatter said virus but instead attack the player. The Seeder vessels scatter red virus particles across the landscape. As they land, they turn the green landscape to brown and red, and cause the trees to mutate. Some flying enemies shoot the mutated trees, to cause themselves to become much more aggressive and dangerous. To clear each attack wave, the player must destroy all enemy vessels. At the conclusion of each attack wave the player is awarded bonus points for the amount of landscape which remains uninfected. After four attack waves have been successfully repelled, the player is awarded a new landscape; however, there is comparatively less land and more water, making complete infection more likely. ===== Earth has been destroyed by the unfathomable Armada, giant space aliens of unknown origin with an unknown purpose. Fleeing in whatever was available, humanity took to the stars in a desperate attempt to survive. Eons later, humans have split into six distinct groups who maintain a shaky alliance against the Armada. ===== After the sudden break-in at Gabrielle's home, the neighbors are panicked when they suspect a thief in the area. Betty becomes suspicious of what the neighbors are thinking and decides to host the annual Neighborhood Watch (which was created in episode 1.05, Come In, Stranger). Each of the neighbors puts in their input about the current situation. Things begin to get out of hand however when Karen McCluskey initiates the idea of hiring professional security. Betty manages to calm the mood down a little when she wins over the neighbors with a song on the piano (the first notes of Beethoven's 5th Symphony and then Chopin's Minute Waltz). Shortly after falling down the stairs, Gabrielle suffered a miscarriage. As she sits pondering on the choices she has made she takes the time to acknowledge her unborn baby has died and decides to shroud any memory that it ever existed. At first, Gabrielle thinks that the miscarriage was something from the beyond since she was not ready but when she looks hard enough at it she knows that it has hurt her the most. On her routine trip to visit Carlos in prison, Carlos reveals to her that he has been very depressed since learning the fate of their unborn child. He continues to tell her that shortly after Gabrielle told him the news, he began to become very violent (which includes tearing open his mattress and crying in front of the other inmates). After these episodes, Carlos goes on medication and seems heavily sedated when Gabrielle visits. When he becomes emotional once more, Gabrielle reminds the prison guards that it is probably time for another dosage. As she reads the morning paper, Bree Van De Kamp comes across a very noticeable announcement in the town's wedding announcements: Bree Van De Kamp to wed George Williams. Bree scoffs at this announcement seeing that Rex has only been dead for two months and already George is pulling out the big guns. Bree visits George at the pharmacy where she explains her take on the situation. George decided that he wanted everyone to know they were a couple but is seen in Bree's eyes as showing off. Bree tells George people only read the announcement section when there's nothing important in the front page. But luckily that day, a flood in Sri Lanka made the headlines. When George notices that Bree is not wearing her engagement ring, he reminds her to put it on. Bree refuses saying that she feels uncomfortable wearing it. George forces her to which Bree does and quickly leaves. The following afternoon, Bree is visited by George's ex-fiancé Leila who informs Bree that George is dangerous and extremely jealous. Examples include George slapping her after accusing her of seeing an old boyfriend and torching his car and stalking her. Bree does not believe Leila but later comes to the revelation that maybe she is right. While dining with George, Bree meets up with an old college boyfriend, Ty who asks her to dance. George becomes envious of their platonic dance but cuts in and demands Bree put on her wedding ring. George proceeds to ask her to put it on. When things begin to get physical, Bree tells George the engagement is off and asks him to leave. George does as he is told but quietly steals Ty's valet card, steals his car and burns it in a deserted area. Susan asks Mike if he will still be her date to Sophie's wedding which takes place in a few days. Mike regretfully informs her that he will not be in attendance but has sent his apologies to her mother. Susan tries to persuade him to reconsider but Mike has his mind made up. Susan also shares with Mike the fact that she is writing an autobiography based on her life and about her father who was a merchant marine who was murdered in Hanoi during the 1960s. Mike tells Susan that merchant marines do not fight and that Hanoi was an enemy territory. Susan looks confused and proceeds to ask her mother at the rehearsal what actually happened to her father. Sophie hesitates to answer but Morty sticks around to tell her that she was the product of a one night stand. Susan gives a shock and disappointing expression but recognizes that Sophie was young and made a mistake. Little does she know that Sophie will reveal to her in front of friends and family that she had actually had an affair with a married man who was her boss and that he is her father. Susan leaves the wedding accompanied by Julie in anger and goes on a search to find her father who actually runs a business nearby. Lynette worries that her twin sons, Porter and Preston will fall prey to a stranger if one ever approaches - possibly because they are secretly sneaking out of the house without Tom's knowledge. Lynette decides to put the twins to the test when she asks Tom to talk to them about the dangers of being kidnapped by a stranger. When Tom does the bare minimum, Lynette stages a mock-kidnapping involving Stu, her secretary from work to show up and drive away with Porter and Preston. With Lynette and Tom watching at a distant, Stu approaches the boys and bribes them with candy which they fall for and jump into the car. Unexpectedly, Karen McCluskey sees the entire scene from her window and begins to tase Stu. Lynette runs out of the house to help Stu and tries to shoo McCluskey away. Shortly after her visit with Carlos, Gabrielle is visited by an ex-con who was a friend of Carlos' while in prison. Hector informs Gabrielle that he will be watching the Solis premises to protect her from any unwanted intruders. Gabrielle tries to persuade him to leave but all of her attempts fail until she bribes him. The two then leave for the bank when Hector comes clean that Carlos did not hire him. Gabrielle begins to freak out and demands she be driven home. When they arrive at a deserted park, Gabrielle makes a run for it but Hector tells her that Carlos hired him to help her with grief. A relieved Gabrielle moves towards Hector who tries to tell her to let go. Gabrielle lets out her true feelings that she really didn't want the baby at first but grew to love it. Hector tells her to let go by giving her a balloon to throw into the air. Gabrielle sobs quietly and releases the balloon into the air. Matthew Applewhite continues to search for Caleb but arrives once again with no sign. On yet another one of hunts for Caleb, instead of searching he joins Danielle Van De Kamp on a park bench where the two talk. Finally, Caleb is discovered by Mike when Bongo sees someone suspicious lurking around who is trying to break into a car. Mike comes from behind and tackles him. Mrs. McCluskey asks if he needs a taser but Mike just asks that she call the police. As the police arrive, Caleb is placed in handcuffs while the entire neighborhood watches. Caleb looks befuddled as Betty raises a finger to her mouth telling him to keep quiet about where he came from. ===== At the beginning of the 20th century, British archaeologist Professor Aitken and his son, Charles, have hired Captain Daniels and his ship, the Texas Rose, to take them to sea. The pair plan to use a diving bell designed by engineer Greg Collinson to search for proof of the lost city of Atlantis. On their first dive, Charles and Greg are attacked by a reptilian sea monster, which comes through the bottom of the diving bell. Greg sticks a live wire into the monster's mouth, electrocuting it. Immediately following this, they discover a statue made of solid gold, a sign that they have found proof of Atlantis. When the statue is hoisted up to Texas Rose, deckhands Grogan, Fenn and Jacko hatch a scheme to take the gold. Grogan cuts the line to the diving bell, trapping Greg and Charles at the bottom of the sea, and another of the mutineers shoots the Professor in the back. Suddenly a gigantic octopus known as the Sentinel, sent by the inhabitants of Atlantis, attacks. The ship's four crewman are captured by the Sentinel, along with Greg and Charles in the diving bell. Only Sandy, the ship's cabin boy, and the Professor are left on Texas Rose. The castaways are taken to a cavern beneath the ocean floor. They are greeted by Atmir, of the Atlantean ruling class, and the spear-wielding Guardians. Atmir promises to take them to safety, telling them en route that Atlantis has seven different cities, the first two of which have been to the ocean, while a third one is now deserted and empty. Atmir takes the surface-dwellers through a prehistoric swamp inhabited by a millipede-like monster called the Mogdaan, before reaching the city of Vaar. There, five of the men are thrown into a dungeon, while Charles is taken to Chinqua, the royal city. As a scientist, Charles is deemed intelligent enough to be granted an audience with King Atraxon and Queen Atsil. They wish to make Charles one of them, and explain how they originally came from Mars and are using their mind powers to shape human history. Greg and the Texas Rose crew make friends with Briggs, the captain of the long missing Mary Celeste. Briggs is the unofficial leader of the human slaves the Atlanteans' have captured, including his daughter, Delphine. Briggs informs them they will be given gills, thus will never be able to return to the oxygen-rich surface. They will then help protect Atlantis from the constant attacks of creatures known as Zaargs. A sudden Zaarg attack claims the life of Briggs, so Delphine helps Greg and the crew escape. Delphine shows the men a tunnel that will lead them into Atraxon's palace, where they can rescue Charles. Charles is enjoying his status amongst the Atlanteans, and is intrigued when they show him the "utopia" they aim to create on Earth. When the others reach him, he refuses to leave. Greg deals Charles a knock-out blow and they carry him away from the mind powers of the Atlanteans. Regaining consciousness, Charles's head has cleared and he chooses to escape with Greg and the others. The group retrace the route back. When they reach the swamp, the Mogdaan kills Jacko, but the others escape. When they reach the diving bell, Admir and the Guardians are waiting. Using telekinesis, Admir causes the sea water to erupt violently so as to scare the group, but they group continue through. Delphine, whose gills mean she can never leave Atlantis, covers their escape. The group reach the diving bell, escaping to the surface. Return to Texas Rose, they are met by Sandy. Holding Fenn and Grogan at gun point, Sandy tells Greg, Charles and Daniels about the mutiny and the shooting. Daniels convinces Sandy to hand over the pistols, but then turns the tables, revealing that it was he who shot the Professor, who had refused his offer to make a profit out of their discovery. Fenn and Grogan lock them up with the Professor, but as they ponder their next move, the Sentinel attacks and destroys the ship. Daniels is crushed by the statue, while everyone else escapes by life boat. ===== In an alternate universe, mythical creatures such as vampires, werewolves and zombies are a reality, and the people of Earth have adapted to their presence. A small group of monster hunters, comprising Hector, Doc, Miko and AJ, are hired by the mysterious organization called "Book" to exterminate these threats while investigating the source of the outbreak. ===== The film opens with a security guard named Dennis investigating a deserted film vault at an old movie studio. While inside, his fantasy of being a rock star comes to life, but he dies while performing on stage. His boss, Mr. McCreedy (Jeffrey Culver), closes the door upon discovering the body. A young man named Kevin (Tom Bartlett) takes the now-vacant job so that he can impress his girlfriend, Amy (Paige Sullivan). Upon arriving home after his first shift, he finds that his two friends, the sex-crazed Daphne (Kelley Palmer) and the dorky Kyle (Steven Boggs), are waiting for him along with Amy. Daphne's Army boyfriend Nick (Billy Frank) also arrives. Nick and Kevin spar with a rake and a garden hoe in a long, protracted, repetitive scene. After Kevin loses horribly, Amy berates him for his weaknesses while Daphne and Nick have sex in Nick's van in the background of the scene. While in pursuit of a burglar the next evening, Kevin stumbles across the vault, which is revealed to contain a small group of hairy, demonic little aliens -- the hobgoblins, who subsequently escape, leaving Kevin stunned. His boss, the elderly Mr. McCreedy, explains that the hobgoblins crash-landed on the studio lot decades earlier, and he has been closely guarding them ever since. The hobgoblins have the hypnotic power to make a person's wildest fantasies come true; however, they also kill their victims in the process when people's fantasies turn against them. The hobgoblins go straight to Kevin's house, where his friends are partying, as they are attracted by the bright lights. The hobgoblins quickly make their fantasies come true, but with dire consequences. The quiet, prudish Amy's fantasy leads her to the sleazy nightclub, Club Scum, where it turns out that Amy's deepest fantasy is to lose her sexual inhibitions and be a stripper. Kevin and the others follow her there. The nightclub erupts into chaos while Kevin and his friends try to kill the rampaging hobgoblins. Nick is given a fantasy in which he leads a commando raid. In the melee, Nick is set on fire by a hand grenade thrown by his commanding officer and is apparently killed (again, his fantasy goes to extremes and turns against him), though he returns later in the movie, bandaged and on crutches, but otherwise unharmed. Kevin kills the hobgoblin in control of Amy before she can have sex with the scruffy bouncer, Roadrash (Duane Whitaker). Although Amy is restored to her original personality, her experience leaves her less sexually repressed than she was before. Thinking that all the hobgoblins are dead, Kevin, Amy, Kyle and Daphne return to the studio lot to report back to Mr. McCreedy. Kevin is confronted by the burglar from earlier that night, and beats him in a fight, finally proving his bravery to Amy. Kevin's victory, however, is short-lived, as the burglar is revealed as yet another phantom created by the hobgoblins. As he pulls a gun from an ankle holster and aims it at Kevin, Mr. McCreedy shoots the controlling hobgoblin, thus saving Kevin's life. The remaining hobgoblins run back into the vault, which McCreedy has filled with explosives. The hobgoblins are then blown to pieces. Amy promises to have sex with Kevin, Nick returns to have sex with Daphne, and Kyle, the odd man out, asks to use McCreedy's phone, presumably for more phone sex. ===== Thomas Covenant is a young author whose world is turned upside-down when he is diagnosed with leprosy. After six months' treatment and counselling in a leprosarium, he returns home to find himself alone, divorced by his wife Joan, and outcast from his community. His son Roger has been taken to live with his ex-wife. On a rare trip into town, he is accosted by a beggar. The beggar refuses Covenant's offers of charity, including his white gold wedding band, makes several cryptic pronouncements, and leaves Covenant with the admonition to "be true." Disturbed by the encounter, Covenant stumbles into the path of an oncoming police car and is rendered unconscious. He wakes to find himself in "the Land", a classic fantasy world. He first meets the evil Cavewight Drool Rockworm, who has summoned him to the Land with the power of the enchanted Staff of Law. Drool has been instructed and manipulated by a malevolent incorporeal being who calls himself "Lord Foul the Despiser". Foul reproaches Drool for his arrogance and transports Covenant to Foul's demesne. Addressing Covenant as "groveler", Foul taunts him with a prophecy that he (Foul) will destroy the Land within 49 years; however, if Drool isn't stopped, this doom will come to pass much sooner. He tells Covenant to deliver this message to the rulers of the Land, the Council of Lords at Revelstone, so that they can make preparations to combat Drool Rockworm and recover the Staff of Law. Covenant is transported again and wakes on Kevin's Watch, a tall finger of rock attached to a mountain overlooking the Land's southernmost region. He meets a girl named Lena, who uses a special mud called hurtloam to heal the injuries from his fall. Covenant is shocked to discover that the hurtloam has also cured his leprosy. This is only the first example Covenant will see of the Earthpower: a rich source of healing energy present throughout the Land. Covenant's loss of two fingers on his right hand, a consequence of the failure to promptly diagnose his leprosy, causes him to be identified by Lena as the reincarnation of Berek Halfhand, an ancient Lord who saved the Land from Lord Foul during a war which occurred in the Land's distant past. His special identity is seemingly confirmed when Lena's mother Atiaran identifies Covenant's white gold ring - in his world a plain wedding band, which he had been emotionally unable to discard notwithstanding his divorce - as a token of great power in the Land. Believing that he is unconscious from his collision with the police car, and therefore experiencing a fantastical dream or delusion, Covenant refuses to accept the reality of the Land. Appalled and indignant at the expectations the people of the Land have for him as their new-found saviour, he gives himself the title of "Unbeliever." He is also unprepared for the sudden restoration of his health, which cures the impotence brought on by his leprosy. This, and his mental turmoil over the reality he feels but does not believe, drives him into a frenzy, causing him to rape Lena, an act which will be pivotal to all that follows. When Lena's friends and family learn of what happened to her, they are barely able to comprehend the enormity of, or reasons behind, this crime, but the Oath of Peace to which they are sworn forbids them from taking vengeance. Atiaran, with great chagrin, guides Covenant to the Hills of Andelain, a region of the land where the Earthpower is especially strong. There she entrusts Covenant to the care of Saltheart Foamfollower, one of the Unhomed Giants, who are allies of the people of the Land. The Giants, a seafaring people who live on the eastern coast of the Land, have a strong understanding of the Earthpower, especially as it relates to the Sea and other waters. Foamfollower is able to sail his stone boat up one of the great rivers of the Land to Revelstone, the Lords' mountain fortress. Covenant delivers the message of Lord Foul to the Lords. He is invited into their council as an "ur-Lord" because of his connection to Berek, and his white gold ring, which the Lords recognize as having the power to unleash the "wild magic" which may be the key to defeating Lord Foul. Despite the obvious danger, the Lords decide to make an effort to wrest the powerful Staff of Law from Drool's evil grasp. Rather than waging an all-out war, the Council sends four Lords and a band of forty warriors to attempt to infiltrate Drool's lair at Mount Thunder. Led by High Lord Prothall, and accompanied by the Lords' sleepless and ageless protectors the Bloodguard, and the Giant Foamfollower, the Lords' party sets out eastward. Covenant joins them in the hope that the recovery of the Staff of Law will somehow assist in his return to his "real" world. Along the way, Covenant attempts to come to terms with whether or not to believe in the reality of the Land. He also attempts to redeem himself for his horrible crime against Lena by commanding one of the Ranyhyn, the wild, free and intelligent horses of the eastern Plains of Ra, to do homage to her yearly. The Ramen, a tribe of humans who dedicate their lives to care and protection of the Ranyhyn, awed to see their equine companions under Covenant's compulsion, agree to assist the quest on the last leg of its journey. In the end, at the cost of the deaths of many of their companions, the Lords succeed in penetrating Mount Thunder and seizing the Staff, temporarily securing peace for the Land. Covenant destroys Drool Rockworm and saves the surviving members of the party by using the wild magic of his ring to summon the Fire-Lions, creatures of living lava which issue from the peak of Mount Thunder, although he does not fully control or even understand his power. After the death of Drool, who had used the Staff of Law to summon Covenant to the Land, Covenant feels his physical body fading away, loses consciousness, and wakes up in his own world, a leper once more. ===== The novel follows the exploits of the Snopes family, beginning with Ab Snopes, who is introduced more fully in Faulkner's The Unvanquished. Most of the book centers on Frenchman's Bend, into which the heirs of Ab and his family have migrated from parts unknown. In the beginning of the book Ab, his wife, daughter, and son Flem settle down as tenant farmers beholden to the powerful Varner family. As the book progresses, the Snopeses move from being poor outcasts to a very controversial, if not dangerous, element in the life of the town. In contrast, V.K. Ratliff stands as the moral hero of the novel. Faulkner uses the eccentricities of the Snopeses to great comic effect, most notably in his description of Ike Snopes and his carnal inclinations toward a cow. ===== We are told at the beginning of the novel that Ariane is a figment of his imagination, yet we learn her life story in intimate detail and the lines between reality and imagination are blurred throughout the story. Named for Ariadne, the heroine of Greek myth who helps Theseus escape the Minotaur, Ariane begins as the promiscuous beauty of the fictional town of Babbington, Long Island. We follow as she tries to escape her demeaning job at a clam shack and bad-girl reputation, going through several phases of personal examination and reinvention. Ariane is an energetic storyteller, and she relates her story to Leroy and the reader through a series of funny and poignant episodes that explore the power of personal fantasy. In one sequence, Leroy's grandfather, with Ariane's help, comforts his dying wife by pretending their home is a ship making the journey to the tropical destination of Rarotonga. Later, we learn that much of Ariane's life has been a public exhibition in a very literal way. As Ariane weaves her story, Leroy acts as a foil and guide, often finishing her sentences and filling in details. ===== In this latest interpretation, the characters Barb and her brother Johnny arrive late for their aunt's funeral and find the cemetery overrun with zombies. After Johnny abandons her, Barb flees the cemetery and is rescued by Ben, a local college student. The two seek refuge in the nearby farmhouse of the Cooper family (Henry & Hellie Cooper, Henry's daughter and Hellie's stepdaughter Karen, farmhand Owen, and farmhand Tom and his girlfriend Judy), and attempt to live through the night along with other survivors, including the pyrophobic mortician, Gerald Tovar, Jr. As Barb and Ben attempt to convince the Cooper family that the zombies are heading to the house, Tom and Judy are attacked while having sex in the barn. After hearing Judy's screams, Barb and the rest of the household attempt to save her, but they are too late. After recovering Henrys guns from his safe they begin to look for a missing Karen, she is later found by her mother having turned undead. She comes down the stairs as her father tries to block her from being shot by Ben. She bites her father in the neck and is promptly shot by Ben at his first opportunity. Later Tovar arrives fighting through the dead with a shovel, he explains what is happening. Owen the farmhand finally succumbs to zombie bite and becomes undead. While attempting to eat Ben Owen is killed by Tovar with a shovel. Barb and Ben leave with Tovar to what they believe is safety, while Henry and Hellie barricade themselves upstairs. Distraught over the death of their child and the eventual reanimation of Henry, they decide to commit suicide, and do so. After reaching his car, Tovar knocks Ben out and loads him into the trunk of his car. He chases Barb back to his house and reveals that he was the one who brought the zombies back to life, even so much as bringing his own father back and feeding him with his own blood. Barb sets the reanimated corpse of Tovar’s father on fire, Tovar is afraid of fire and unable to stop the small flame on his hand from engulfing him. Barb flees to Tovar’s car but Tovar catches her and punches her knocking her out. He then brings her back to the mortuary along with Ben still in the trunk. Ultimately, Tovar plans to have Barb reborn as a zombie. While handling Barb, Tovar doesn’t notice the group of zombies bind him and shoves him into them, she then rushes back to the car. Barb and Ben escape and lock the other zombies in the garage. Ben realizes that he has been impaled with a tire iron, but is apparently unharmed; moments later, he transforms into a zombie. Barb uses the last bullet to kill him, and the zombies break through the gate presumably killing her. ===== The novel is set in a small religious Mennonite town called East Village, generally considered to be a fictionalized version of Toews' hometown of Steinbach, Manitoba. The narrator is Nomi Nickel, a curious, defiant, sardonic 16-year-old who dreams of hanging out with Lou Reed in the "real" East Village of New York City. She lives alone with her doleful father, Ray Nickel, who is a dutiful member of the town church. Nomi, on the other hand, is inquisitive by nature and her compulsive questioning brings her into conflict with the town's various authorities, most notably Hans Rosenfeldt, the sanctimonious church pastor. As the story unfolds, it is revealed that Nomi's irreverent older sister Tash left town three years earlier with her boyfriend, Ian, and that Nomi's mother, Trudie, also left, though under more mysterious circumstances. Nomi is fiercely loyal to her father, and she comes to decide that she must stay in East Village for his sake. Nomi senses that when she graduates from high school, all she'll be expected to do is work at the chicken processing plant and marry a boy from the community and become "good." She develops a relationship with Travis, who in the end is not the person he appears to be. She visits her good friend Lydia in the hospital, where she gets into confrontations with hospital staff. At school, she is met with obfuscation and anger by Mr. Quiring and other teachers and administrators. When Nomi lashes out in action or outrage, she is ignored or negated. Nomi's tragedy is the slow realization that not only will she fail to bring her family together, but she will also have to change her nature to find a place in the town she loves. In the end, her father Ray makes a heroic sacrifice so that she can be free. ===== Paula Fox's children's book The Slave Dancer was published in 1973 and is an historical novel that won the Newbery Medal. It tells the story of a thirteen-year-old boy, Jessie Ollier, who is put in a position which allows him to see the African slave trade in person. Jessie is captured at his New Orleans home and brought to an American ship. There he is forced to play the fife in order to keep the other slaves dancing, and thus strong when they arrive at their destination. He is also expected to work around the ship. It is the beginning of 1840 in New Orleans. In the rain, drunken riverboat workers and slaves alike are celebrating. Jessie Bollier lives in the area with his mother and sister. One evening while he is walking home, the boy is kidnapped. After he is captured he is taken to the ship The Moonlight, a slaver. During the crossing to Africa, Jessie tries to learn as much about the ship and the way things are done there as he can. The captain, Cawthorne, seems mad, the first mate is cruel, and the sailors are concerned solely with making money through the slave trade. When they get to Africa they travel the coast and the captain uses a small boat to go and meet with the African chiefs who are selling people into slavery. Jessie cannot believe the treatment of the enslaved people that he observes. Once they are taken onto the ship, they are packed as tightly as possible into the hold, ending up on top of one another. Whenever a slave becomes ill he is thrown overboard at once so that the illness will not spread to other slaves. Many of them are still alive when they are tossed into the water, where they are eaten by sharks or drown. Jessie is shocked by what is going on, but tries to keep himself focused on staying alive and getting home to his family. As the journey to America continues, Jessie realizes how much he hates everything around him, including the slaves, as they represent his own enslavement on the ship. He refuses to play the fife and goes to his quarters. He is immediately taken back on deck and flogged for being disobedient. The flogging only makes him think more about everything that is going on around him. He sees the sailors with the same lack of pity they have for the slaves. He hates himself for playing the fife and being part of the entire situation. The journey continues and conditions worsen. The crew is drunk much of the time, the ship dirty, and discipline lax. A slave attacks Nicholas Spark, one of the ship's mates, and Spark shoots and kills him. The only concern the sailors show is for the loss of the profit that the sale of the slave would have brought them. When the ship is nearing Cuba, another ship approaches it and the captain becomes afraid of what is might represent, as both British and American ships patrol to guard against the slave trade. The crew begins throwing its chains, and then the slaves, into the ocean waters. Jessie can do nothing to stop this, as much as he might like to. He sees even very young children being thrown overboard. He does manage to get a young boy of his own age back to the slave hold, where they hide while their ship sails past the other ship. A fierce storm then arises. After a few days, Jessie and the boy come out of the hold and discover that the ship is sinking. The crew members are either dead or missing. The pair then uses part of the mast to float on, and they manage to swim to shore. Jessie and the boy end up in Mississippi, where they are found by an escaped slave. The slave is an old man who is living in the woods of Mississippi. He gives them food and helps them regain their health. He then makes arrangements for some other people to take the enslaved boy to the north, where he can be free. He gives directions to Jessie so that he can walk back to New Orleans, which should take three days. The man asks Jessie not to mention him to anyone, as that could lead to the man being recaptured and returned to a life of slavery. Jessie walks back home to his mother and sister but he realizes that he is a changed person. He no longer holds aspirations of becoming rich because he wants nothing to do with anything that might have any connection to slavery. In time, he decides to become an apothecary and moves to Rhode Island, a state where there are no slaves. He sends for his mother and sister to join him and settles into a quite life. He does miss things about the South, and wonders what became of the enslaved boy he had befriended, but never learns anything more about him. In the Civil War he fights for the North. He marries and has a family of his own. One legacy of his experience on the slave ship is that he can no longer stand to hear music, as it reminds him of the dancing of the slaves. ===== The story charts the decline of a drunken and dissolute poet, Baal. Baal is an anti-hero who rejects the conventions and trappings of bourgeois society. This situation draws on the German Sturm und Drang tradition, which celebrates the cult of the genius living outside the conventions of society that would later destroy him. "The outcast, the disillusioned tough becomes the hero; he may be criminal, he may be semi-human," argues John Willett, "but in plays like Baal he can be romanticized into an inverted idealist, blindly striking out at the society in which he lives."Willett (1967, 68). Baal roams the countryside, womanizing and brawling. He seduces Johanna, who subsequently drowns herself. He spurns his pregnant mistress Sophie and abandons her. He murders his friend Ekart, becoming a fugitive from the police. Defiantly aloof from the consequences of his actions, Baal is nonetheless brought low by his debauchery, dying alone in a forest hut, hunted and deserted, and leaving in his wake the corpses of deflowered maidens and murdered friend ===== The gang returns with the baby to find the hotel a mess. Lorne announces he'll be moving in on account of Caritas being destroyed...again. Although everyone wants to hold the baby, Angel is paternally attached to his son, holds him protectively and keeps everyone at bay. Angel struggles with the father role when he cleans a cut on his son's face while the rest of the gang plan to keep the baby safe from the inevitable attackers looking to steal and kill him. A demon barges into the hotel but is quickly killed by Gunn and Wesley. Angel realizes his son is crying because he needs to be changed and attempts to change the diaper on Wesley's desk. Back at the underground lair, Sahjhan complains about Holtz's refusal to kill Angel, but Holtz is content with his behavior. They discuss Darla's pregnancy and suicide, and Holtz goes on about his plans despite Sahjhan's insistence that Angel just be staked quickly to stick with the prophecies. Sahjhan's temper rises as he discovers that Holtz poisoned all of the minions. They then use a computer to search for new minions by means of obituaries. While the Furies set up a mystical barrier around the Hyperion Hotel, Angel continues to care for his fussy child and Cordelia and Fred investigate the demon websites offering bounties for the baby. Cordelia informs Angel that the newborn needs to see a doctor, and that he can't do everything for his child - for example, be outside in the sun - and needs to accept their help. While watching the hotel via their spy cameras, the lawyers at Wolfram & Hart ponder how Angel's baby could have been born despite the prophecy's translation stating it would not happen (Lilah explains that because Darla staked herself, leaving the baby, that the child was "from his mother's womb untimely ripped"). Meanwhile, Angel can't get his son to stop crying until he changes to his vampire visage, which fascinates the baby enough to stop him from crying before Angel playfully makes silly noises to him, and thus provides the baby the attention he desires from him. In attempts to discover Holtz's identity, Lilah has "Files and Records," a W&H; employee with near-infinite total recall, retrieve information about how Angelus and Darla killed Holtz's entire family back in the 18th century. Holtz tracks a young woman named Justine, whose twin sister was killed by a vampire six months before. She had been killing vampires on her own since then, and Holtz offers to be her mentor. Gunn returns with weapons and news of the crowd forming outside waiting to break the barrier and claim the child. The Lilliad demons outside chant and break down the barrier around the hotel while inside, the gang prepares to defend themselves and retreat if necessary. Angel decides to leave with the baby, as Wolfram & Hart watch on television screens. They send their teams out to get the baby from him. The gang ready themselves for the attack as the barrier is broken down and demons are free to enter. Angel escapes through the sewers and drives away in his car. While the gang disposes of the demons and vampires who enter the hotel with a flame-thrower, Angel drives to an abandoned mine shaft. His pursuers demand the child, and surprisingly Angel throws it to them as he escapes to the surface. The demons unwrap the child to find that it's actually a teddy bear with a ticking time bomb strapped to it - the bomb destroys them and the mine shaft, as Cordelia, Wesley and Fred take the baby to the hospital for care. At Wolfram & Hart, Linwood examines footage from the hotel and discovers a moment when Lorne slipped Angel a note into his coat and in the conversation, identifies a location where Angel could read the note without being seen by the cameras. Earlier, Lorne heard a humming noise and concluded that the gang was being spied upon. The vampire alarm goes off, and Angel barges in and attacks Linwood with a knife, giving him a cut equal to the one on his child's cheek. Angel promises that any harm that comes to his son will be equally repaid to Linwood. As appointed "godfather," Linwood is given the job of keeping everyone and everything away from the vampire's child unless he looks forward to revenge at Angel's hands; in addition, he threatens Linwood for his son’s college funds; Angel hopes to see his son graduate at University of Notre Dame. At the hospital, the doctors report that the baby is healthy, and Angel shows up in time to announce the name of his son, Connor. Gunn arrives with a stroller, and the gang head home where they hope to be safe for a while. ===== The story: The year is 1793. Europe is ablaze with war. The Prime Minister, William Pitt the Elder, is under pressure to make an active move at sea from the highest authority in the realm; George III had appointed Pitt as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, a position whose incumbent was responsible for the coastal defences of the nation. In response to the pressure, despatches a squadron to appear off the French coast. To man the ships, ordinary people must be press-ganged. Thomas Paine Kydd, a young wig- maker from Guildford, is seized, taken across the country to Sheerness and the great fleet anchorage of the Nore to be part of the crew of the fictional 98-gun line-of-battle ship Duke William. The ship sails immediately and Kydd quickly has to learn the harsh realities of shipboard life fast; but despite all that he goes through in danger of tempest and battle he comes to admire the skills and courage of the seamen -- taking up the challenge himself to become a true sailor. ===== Marge makes Homer take a fatherhood quiz and discovers he knows next to nothing about his son. After a pep talk at the National Fatherhood Institute, Homer offers to help Bart build his own Soap Box Derby racer. At the qualifying race, Bart and Martin form an alliance vowing to beat bully Nelson and his intimidating racer, the Roadkill 2000. Using Homer's racer, Bart fails to cross the finish line after Nelson uses dirty tricks to beat him. Martin wins the race but loses control of his aerodynamically advanced racer and crashes. Unable to compete after being injured, Martin allows Bart to drive his car in the next race. Homer feels betrayed by Bart's choice to drive Martin's racer instead of his. When Bart tries to apologize to him, Homer denounces his son and Martin and peevishly tells Bart to do as he pleases. Marge reminds Homer that she has defended him in the past, but his recent actions prove he is a bad father. As Bart prepares for the final match with Martin's newly tuned racer, Homer realizes his selfishness and rushes to the race. At the starting line, Homer wishes Bart luck and tells him he will still be proud of him no matter who wins. The race is tough as Nelson uses every dirty trick in his arsenal, but Bart uses his skill to finish first and his team enjoys victory. ===== A newspaper man, Mark Chapman (Broderick Crawford), takes over an ailing New York daily newspaper, the New York Express and, by staging a number of publicity stunts, revives it as a scandal sheet. Chapman's wife, whom he years before deserted and left penniless, resurfaces and threatens to tell everyone who he is and what he has done to her, including driving her to attempt suicide. The two physically fight and he accidentally kills her, then tries to cover it up. From her purse, he retrieves money and a pawn shop receipt. When her body is discovered, the paper's star reporter, Steve McClearly (John Derek), begins investigating what has been determined to be a murder. As McClearly is joined by feature writer Julie Allison (Donna Reed), and they begin to dig deeper, the noose begins to tighten around Chapman's neck. Chapman goes to the Bowery to redeem the pawn shop receipt. Before he can do so, Charlie Barnes, a former Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter for the Express who has become alcoholic, stumbles upon him. Chapman gives Barnes a cash handout; accidentally included with the money is the receipt. Barnes claims the item, which turns out to be the dead woman's suitcase, in which he finds proof that Chapman is the murderer. He telephones Allison and McCleary, but McCleary thinks that Barnes is too drunk and is calling in a phony story. This angers Barnes and he says he is going to take the story to a competitor, the Daily Leader. Chapman hears about Barnes going to the Daily Leader, waits for him near the newspaper's headquarters, then accosts and kills him. McCleary and Allison take a trip to Connecticut to find the judge who married the murdered woman and the man seen in profile in a photograph from the suitcase. They bring this judge back to the Express, who identifies Chapman as the groom, but under a different name. ===== Between 4 and 5 December, a train accident near Waverley Station in Edinburgh leads to the ASLEF and RMT trade unions to declare a strike due to safety concerns, forcing the heavy Christmas rail passenger traffic to use the roads instead. Mick Rix's decision is heavily criticised by the government, particularly by Junior Transport Minister Tom Walker. On 19 December, a crossover accident on the M25 motorway in Surrey involving several vehicles forces Inspector Clive Turner, manager of the M25, to close the motorway in both directions from the site of the accident. The resulting traffic congestion spreads at such a rate that, within minutes, the motorway is blocked at the junction with the M23. Meanwhile, as British airspace runs over capacity to cope with the Christmas traffic, heavy traffic delays force the air traffic controllers to work double- and triple-shifts. Meanwhile, Julian Galt and his family are travelling into central London en route to Heathrow Airport, for their Christmas holiday to Bilbao, with their twelve-year-old son recording their adventures on a video camera. Traffic that managed to work its way through the diversion route past the Surrey accident suffers a further setback when a chemical tanker lorry jackknifes on the M25 near to Heathrow Airport, causing a pile-up and further tailbacks, resulting in a second closure on the M25, and heavy delays on the M1, M2, M3, M11 and M20, the major artery-roads leading to London. Traffic attempts to drive through Central London, without much success. Charlie Watson, whose mother's car was hit in the lorry accident earlier that day, whilst travelling to Old Trafford, becomes the first fatality when her gridlocked ambulance runs out of necessary medicine. As traffic worsens, Jerry Newell, a pilot, is forced to walk to Heathrow Airport in order to reach his flight to Toulouse. A friendly football match between England and Turkey at Old Trafford in Manchester is cancelled for low attendance, with thousands stranded on the M6 and M40, effectively shutting down Manchester and Birmingham. The message is delivered by a stunned Gary Lineker on Match of the Day. The Galt family, that were travelling to Bilbao, realise they were little more than half a mile from Heathrow Airport, after getting stuck in traffic after the chemical tanker crash, and abandon their car, against police advice, to walk to the airport over the fields. Julian vowed to stay with the car and catch a plane to Bilbao the following day. The rest of the family boarded a minibus to the airport - their flight was delayed. The father of the family kept the video camera. As police actions to force people to remain in their cars, particularly on the M25 around Heathrow, are found to be causing hypothermia, Operation Gridlock, (a fictional top secret plan to deal with such a situation) is implemented, with everyone now being instructed to leave their cars, with people most at risk airlifted to tent cities being set up on fields. Air-traffic controller Nicola Evans volunteered to work late when her replacement does not turn up. Overworked, she accidentally sends an Aer Lingus jet into the path of a Czech freighter plane. She issues an instant instruction to 'Go-Around' to the Czech jet, which does so, avoiding the Aer Lingus plane, but colliding with the British Airways plane to Bilbao Killing all onboard and sending burning wreckage spread across three miles, in much of Hounslow and the surrounding area. Due to the proximity of the disaster to Heathrow, the airport's dedicated fire services are dispatched, forcing the airport, and in turn, all of Britain's airspace, to close. Emergency services struggle to reach the scenes due to the clogged roads, and have to resort to minor roads. Jane Newell, Jerry Newell's husband, gets home to Shepperton several hours after Jerry left her car to walk to the airport, and finds news of the disaster on the television. She begins to worry and repeatedly phones anyone at all at the airport to find information about whether her husband was okay. She finds that the flight involved in the disaster was to Bilbao and is calmed. However she then receives a phone call from British Airways, telling her that Jerry's flight to Toulouse was cancelled, and was in fact on the flight to Bilbao and was killed. The Galt family, excluding Julian (who was rescued from the M25 by emergency services), were aboard the flight to Bilbao, and their deaths are implied, but not directly mentioned. Nicola Evans, and two other air traffic controllers are eventually taken to court for multiple-manslaughter charges for their negligence, though the case is later dropped after revelations over larger issues in Heathrow's air-traffic control to do with the missed approach procedure, and the similarity in the disaster to a previous near miss (also fictitious). The final death toll of the disaster was 87 people - All 64 passengers and crew, and 23 on the ground. There were also five deaths from hypothermia on the motorways, and eight elsewhere. ===== A narration by Dr. Frank Baxter, an English professor at the University of Southern California, explains the premise of the movie and its basis in reality. He briefly discusses the hollow earth theories of John Symmes and Cyrus Teed among others, and says that the movie is a fictionalized representation of these unorthodox theories. Archaeologists Dr. Roger Bentley and Dr. Jud Bellamin find a race of Sumerian albinos living deep under the Earth. They keep mutant humanoid mole men as their slaves to harvest mushrooms, which serve as their primary food source. The Sumerian albinos' ancestors relocated into the subterranean after cataclysmic floods in ancient Mesopotamia. They believe the men are messengers of Ishtar, their goddess. Whenever their population increases, they sacrifice young women to the Eye of Ishtar. These people have lived underground for so long that they are weakened by bright light which the archaeologists brought in the form of a flashlight. However, there is one girl named Adad who has natural Caucasian skin who is disdained by the others since she has the "mark of darkness." When one of the archaeologists is killed by a mole person, Elinu, the High Priest, realizes they are not gods. He orders their capture and takes the flashlight to control the Mole People, not knowing it is depleted. The archaeologists are then sent to the Eye of Ishtar just as the Mole People rebel. Adad goes to the Eye only to realize it is really natural light coming from the surface and that the men had survived. They then climb to the surface. Unfortunately, Adad dies after reaching the surface when an earthquake causes a column to fall over and crush her. ===== The Chipmunks are performing at a theme park called Majestic Movie Studios (a spoof of Universal Studios Hollywood). While taking a break from their concert, the Chipmunks get lost, and eventually get locked inside the park. They find their way to the "Frankenstein's Castle" attraction, where a real Dr. Victor Frankenstein is working on his monster. The monster is brought to life, and the doctor sends it in pursuit of the Chipmunks. In their escape, the monster retrieves Theodore's dropped teddy bear. The monster follows the Chipmunks home and returns the bear to Theodore, who quickly befriends him. The Chipmunks learn that the monster (whom Theodore has nicknamed "Frankie") is truly good- hearted. Dave goes to the park to book a concert that night to celebrate the premiere of an anticipated film. Dr. Frankenstein tracks Frankie to the Chipmunks' home, and, angered at the monster's benevolence, kidnaps Alvin. Simon, Theodore, and Frankie hurry back to the park to rescue Alvin. Dr. Frankenstein force feeds Alvin a potion and induces a powerful electrical shock. Alvin is released by Frankie, and after Simon swipes the doctor's potions book, the four of them escape back into the park. Shortly after, the process Alvin underwent takes effect, transforming Alvin into a zany cartoon monster. Alvin escapes to the premiere, causing chaos and havoc in his path. Using the potions book, Simon and Theodore mix an antidote using various food items from a buffet, and feed it to Alvin during his rampage. Alvin returns to normal, and the Chipmunks go to perform their concert. Before the concert begins, Dr. Frankenstein attempts to transform Alvin back to his monster self, but is thwarted by Frankie, which leads to an explosion. After the smoke clears, Theodore introduces Frankie to the public, promising that Frankie will bring no harm if treated kindly. Meanwhile, Dr. Frankenstein is revealed to have been given the job of being the studio's mascot, Sammy Squirrel, much to his dissatisfaction, as he is trying to get the mascot's head off in a last ditch effort to kidnap Alvin. ===== The movie begins with Alvin having nightmares of meeting the Wolfman, leading to him wake up screaming in fear. Simon and Dave conclude that Alvin's been watching too many horror films at night. Alvin says that it is because their new neighbor, Lawrence Talbot, creeps him out and speculates that he is hiding something. Theodore is having trouble with Nathan, a bully, and will not go to the principal, who plans to retire due to Alvin's daily mishaps, for help. However, Alvin sticks up for him. Their school is rehearsing the play for the famous horror story Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. When yet another accident caused by Alvin when mixing unknown chemicals result in a huge explosion and mess of the school auditorium, along with Dave getting a call from Miss Miller about the Chipettes being scared silly after being spooked by something while walking home with the Chipmunks one night, Principal Milliken and Dave decide that Alvin be pulled out of his role as Mr. Hyde and is given the role of the butler instead with Dave confiscating all of Alvin's monster paraphernalia (even though Alvin purchases a monster book soon after). To boost his self-esteem, they decide to have Theodore replace the role. Millikin expects Theodore to start standing up for himself when Dave sees Nathan causing him trouble. Meanwhile, Alvin and Simon are out in search of proof that Mr. Talbot is a werewolf (Munks on a Mission). Meanwhile, no one believes that Theodore is scary enough to play the role of Mr. Hyde. However, that all changes after he gets bit by a large dog (before we later find out it was actually a werewolf) on his way home after giving a necklace as a gift to Eleanor, whom he is harboring a secret crush on. The next day at the rehearsal, Theodore does an extremely terrifying impression of Mr. Hyde. Despite this triumph, Theodore transforms into a puppy-like werewolf by night, and his personality continues to drastically change by day, becoming more vicious and mean. With their brother now a werewolf, Alvin and Simon search for a way to help Theodore and save the school play without Dave finding out the truth (Monster Out in You). Despite their best efforts, they find no solution. They eventually decide to take up some advice from known psychic Madame Raya. She says that Theodore is already close to the animal state and will turn into a werewolf soon enough. Simon and Alvin ask her if there is any way to cure him. She suggests knocking him out with a silver cane while he is still a "puppy" before the next full moon when the transformation will be complete. Heeding this advice, Alvin breaks into Mr. Talbot's home and steals his silver cane, which is then broken in two by Theodore after Alvin knocks him with it. Of course, it didn't cure him. However, as he runs away with it, he knocks into Dave. That night, Dave goes to see Mr. Talbot to apologize and explain everything to him. During the conversation where Mr. Talbot mentioned how his descendant was killed by people with silver bullets, the full moon rises and he transforms into a werewolf. Terrified, Dave runs to the school to warn the boys. However, he runs into a pole, knocking him unconscious. Having followed Dave to the school, Mr. Talbot makes his way inside and briefly chases after Alvin (who realizes he was right to suspect Mr. Talbot). During the play, Theodore changes into a werewolf while on set and starts to attack Eleanor (who finds out about Theodore). However, after cornering her, the necklace Theodore gave her earlier shines by the moon, causing Theodore to remember his feelings towards her and to flee. Eleanor follows him, determined to help him, only to almost be attacked by Mr. Talbot, who was the original werewolf that bit Theodore. Theodore quickly defends her and attacks Mr. Talbot, biting him while their werewolf forms fight. As a result of the bite, Theodore turns back into a chipmunk and Talbot returns to normal. Talbot then runs off the stage. Confused by what happened, Simon explains to everyone how the bite cured them by causing the effect to reverse on them both. With the happy news delivered, Alvin quickly runs up to the stage to join in the applause by the crowd, who believes the entire incident was just an act, though is quickly shoved back behind the curtains by Brittany. At the wrap party, they find out Mr. Talbot is going to be their new principal as Millikin is taking a more challenging job driving a truck filled with nitroglycerin. Having woke up, Dave shows up as he gives his speech about his new position and nearly attacks him as he starts to claim that Talbot is a werewolf. The boys quickly explain that Theodore took care of everything (leaving out most of the film's events), leaving Dave impressed and proud of him. As Dave hugs Theodore, Mr. Talbot (who did in fact want to be free from his werewolf curse) whispers, “Thank you.” The Chipmunks and Chipettes end the wrap party by doing their famous performances, and soon everyone else follow the rhythm as the movie ends (and continues in the end credits) with Everything's Gonna Be Alright. ===== In 1844, the British Admiralty sends Sir William Walker (Marlon Brando), an agent provocateur, to the fictional island of Queimada, a PortugueseThe film was originally set on a Spanish island called Quemada, meaning "burnt", but it was changed to Portuguese after the Spanish government found it insulting; however, the language spoken in the film remained Spanish. possession in the Lesser Antilles. Britain seeks to open the island to exploitation by the fictional Antilles Royal Sugar Company. Walker's task is to organize an uprising of African slaves against the Portuguese regime, which the British intend to replace with a government dominated by pliable white planters. When he arrives in Queimada, Walker befriends José Dolores (Evaristo Márquez), whom he entices to lead the slave revolt, and induces leading landowners to reject Portuguese rule. Dolores's rebellion is successful, and Walker arranges the assassination of the Portuguese governor in a nighttime coup. Walker establishes a puppet regime beholden to British sugar interests, headed by the idealistic but weak revolutionary Teddy Sanchez (Renato Salvatori). Walker convinces Dolores to recognize the new regime and to surrender his arms, in exchange for the abolition of slavery. Having succeeded in his mission, he moves on to his next assignment in Indochina. In 1848, Doloresdisgusted by the white government's collaboration with British interestsleads a second uprising, jeopardizing the Antilles Royal Sugar Company. After six years of the uprising, in 1854, the company returns Walker to Queimada with the consent of the British Admiralty, tasking him with suppressing the revolt and pacifying the island. Resentful of the company's exploitation of Queimada, President Sanchez is uncooperative. Sanchez is ousted and executed in a coup engineered by Walker, who establishes a regime wholly beholden to the company. British forces are invited to the island; guided by Walker, they rapidly quell the rebellion and capture Dolores. Walker attempts to save Dolores's life but the rebel leader rejects his assistance, asserting that freedom is earned, not received. The government executes Dolores by hanging. Soon after, Walker, guilt stricken, is accosted as he prepares to depart Queimada. A man greets him just as Dolores did when Walker first arrived on the island, and then stabs him to death. Before dying, Walker looks around and sees himself surrounded by accusatory or passive looks of the poor people in the port. ===== Two Evil Alien Conquerors are sent to Earth with the order to behead all humans within 48 hours. If they fail, they will be destroyed by Croker, a giant. Kenny (Michael Weston) witnesses the Evil Alien Conquerors, My-ik (Diedrich Bader) and Du-ug (Chris Parnell), as they arrive on Earth, literally falling out of the sky with their beheading swords. He offers them shelter at his home, which he shares with Ron, an unpleasant, oversexed infomercial producer. The conquering duo have a chance to experience Earth culture, where they become friends with Kenny, develop a fondness for Smirnoff Ice and unexpectedly fall in love with two local women, who have a secret of their own. They begin to doubt what they were sent to do, but know they still must attempt to complete their impossible mission despite their lack of skill, any plan or experience. The giant Croker then arrives to destroy the two inept conquerors and the rest of the Earth's population, but he shrinks down to normal size during transportation. Delusional enough to still believe he is a giant, he attempts to wreak havoc on the town, obviously without success. ===== Super Sleuth Feluda goes after a gang of smugglers - who steal and smuggle out the country's valuable treasure, the unique stone figures that adorn ancient temples of India. In the bait, he has to take up multiple disguises, encounter many shady characters, all in the land of Kailash Temple in Ellora. He does however get a little help from his able assistant & cousin Topshe and best friend Lalmohan Ganguly. ===== Joni works as a film/reel delivery man in Jakarta. One day, while waiting for the next pick-up, Joni meets a charming girl who is going to catch a film with her boyfriend Otto. The girl would only reveal her name to Joni if he successfully delivers the reels on time. However, things do not turn out well on that day as Joni faces obstacles such as the city's notorious traffic and various people that may disrupt his task. ===== Four great friends come together after a 20 years estrangement to find their once-innocent gang were no more. ===== During Cordelia's 21st birthday celebration at the Hyperion Hotel, Cordelia experiences a vision so painful that she is rendered unconscious. Fred and Gunn find Cordelia's prescription pain pills and the results of a CAT scan that reveals severe brain damage - Cordelia is dying. When Cordelia wakes, no one can see or hear her and she concludes that she has been knocked into an astral state. A friendly demon called Skip (the one that used to guard Billy) introduces himself as her guide, and says the visions which Doyle gave her were never intended for a human and that they are killing her. She has two options: go back in time and choose a different path, or return to her body and die when the next vision strikes. Skip tells Cordelia that if she hadn't reconnected with Angel at the party where she first ran into him, she would have instead become a famous actress - and she can choose to have that life instead. Skip brings Cordelia's astral body along; when she overhears Angel call her "weak", she is hurt and decides to go back in time to become a famous actress. She is instantly transported to a luxurious life where she is a celebrity, an Emmy winner, and star of her own television show. However, she is haunted by the name of the Hyperion Hotel, and heads over there after the show wraps. She makes her way up to the room she recognizes as Angel's, which triggers her memory of the vision that knocked her unconscious earlier - a young girl in danger. She goes to the girl's house, Cynthia, who confesses she was trying to use magic. A demon materializes, and they try to defend themselves, until a one-armed Wesley and Gunn burst in to kill the demon. When Cordelia explains what has happened, they take her to see Angel, who - in this timeline - inherited Doyle's visions instead of Cordelia, which appear to have driven Angel insane. In truth - it was because he didn't have Cordelia. However, depressed and saddened by her friend in such a horrific state, Cordelia takes the visions back. Skip appears, reminding her of their deal. He argues it's the fate she chose and that "it ain't so easy to shake it off." Cordelia disagrees, saying she is too valuable to the Powers. They come to an agreement: since the visions are going to kill her as a human, Skip turns her into a half-demon, so that she can keep the visions and not die. When Cordelia wakes up, she has another vision - and to everyone's astonishment she experiences no pain. The demon aspect becomes clear when Angel points out that Cordelia has accidentally begun levitating. ===== Fred works on the Angel Investigations website, while Cordelia talks to Angel about not losing sight of the mission – it is about helping the helpless, not making money. Gunn and Wesley return to report that they've distributed fliers all over town...with the wrong phone number. They correct and redistribute the fliers. Fred rocks Connor while Wesley and Gunn admire the adorable scenery. Angel comes in and starts issuing instructions, but can't figure out what comes first - making money, finding Holtz, or helping the helpless (in fact, his confusion is more than vaguely reminiscent of Monty Python's Flying Circus' The Spanish Inquisition sketch). Almost immediately the phones start ringing. Holtz and Justine lurk underground, discussing Justine's failure to follow orders - she had dusted two vampires that Holtz had told her to stay away from. He questions her commitment, and the camera shifts to show her hand impaled on a spike. He tells her to take it out if she chooses – but that if she lasts until the morning they'll continue as partners. Angel Investigations is flooded with customers. Everyone is busy, and Cordelia says they're being stretched a little thin, but Angel claims they can handle it. When Cordy tells him to answer the phones he seems more interested in the pocketbooks of the people on the other end than their problems. Gunn talks to a woman whose dead ex is stalking her, while Wesley and Lorne talk to three demons in chrome face masks who, Lorne says (translating), having read some of Wesley's work, want to buy his head. When he clarifies he tells Wes that they want him to solve a traditional puzzle for them. While they're talking Fred notices the complicated geometric pattern on the demons' tunics, and they leave suddenly to either consult their prince or eat a cheesemonkey. Angel meets with a wealthy business owner, Harlan Elster, who is concerned about a nest of vampires. He asks if Angel has any experience with vampires - to which Angel replies "some". Elster says that these ones are different - they want money, not blood. Elster says they've been putting the squeeze on local businessmen, threatening their employees for money. They've demanded $5000.00, so he offers Angel $10,000.00 to get rid of them, with 50% up front. As Angel leaves, the real Mr. Elster walks in, and the man Angel has been speaking to punches him out. Holtz returns to find Justine where he left her. He tells her to go out and find people who have the same rage they do. He pulls the spike out of her hand, and she punches him and leaves. Angel returns to find the hotel nearly empty. Cordelia expresses concern that they might miss someone who really needs help in all their cases. Lorne and Fred return – Lorne quite drunk. Lorne says that Holtz has poisoned his previous minions, and is looking to replace them with humans. Before Lorne can leave, the chrome-faced demons return asking for Fred this time – they were impressed with her before, and they've brought $50,000.00. Lorne and Fred leave for the job – it should be a couple of days. Gunn and Wesley help out the woman with the stalker ex-boyfriend. Their conversation indicates that both Wes and Gunn are interested in Fred. The boyfriend attacks, and they fight it off, confirming he's become a zombie. Fred and Lorne arrive at the boat where the demons are staying, and Fred immediately sets to work on their puzzle. Lorne is not feeling so well, and leaves to go throw up. On his way to the facilities he overhears a conversation which indicates that his original translation to Wesley was accurate - they really do want a head, to replace that of their prince, who appears unwell. They've decided on Fred's. Angel cleans out the vampire nest, but when he returns to Elster he learns that the man who gave him the – forged – check for the first $5000.00 is an ex-employee of Elster's who lost a friend and developed a "crazy" belief that this building was full of vampires. Angel surprises the fake Elster in the vampire's lair. He grabs the watch the guy is holding, which the guy says was worth more than the ten grand he had been planning to pay Angel – because it was the first thing he ever bought his friend. When Angel says he didn't kill the three vamps for nothing, the man corrects him on the number – there were seven vamps. Cordelia, watching the baby, tries to float as she did in the last episode, while explaining to him how she became part demon to cope with the visions. While putting the money away she gets a vision of what the demons are planning to do to Fred. She whispers for Fred not to solve the puzzle, just as Fred says with satisfaction that it shouldn't be long. Wes and Gunn are in full swing fighting the zombie boyfriend, and Cordy knows Angel won't answer his phone, so she heads to the marina herself to return the money and save Fred. The girl and the Zombie boyfriend squabble about their relationship - and it comes out that she killed him. He says he'd forgive her if she took him back, and after some pleading she agrees to give it another shot. The rest of the vamps attack Angel and the man, while Angel refuses to help because he hasn't been paid. The guy apologizes for lying to him, and Angel agrees to help him barricade the doors while they discuss payment options. Fred solves the puzzle, and they take her away while she asks nervously after Lorne. They take her to the room with the prince, where Lorne is tied up. He explains the plan, while the demons get ready to cut off Fred's head. Cordy shows up just in time to stop them, still holding baby Connor, and tries to give back the money in exchange for Fred, but Lorne, assuming the whole team is there, accidentally aggravates the situation in his translation. Angel smashes a window to get the guy out before the vamps can break in, but the guy refuses to leave, saying if he runs now, after what happened to his friend, he'll be running the rest of his life. Angel reluctantly slays the vamps, grousing about the lack of payment, and walks off as the guy tries to thank him, stopping to answer his beeper, but unable to work it. Cordelia tries to kick one of the demons in the groin, but a metallic clang indicates it is useless. Wesley and Gunn arrive, and take on the demons, saving Fred, temporarily, but also knocking off the prince's head. Angel arrives somewhat late and takes on the remaining demons before anyone is seriously hurt. Angel apologises to Cordelia for leaving her and Connor alone. Fred, released, quotes the first line of Kipling's "if": "If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs" and tells Gunn and Wes she could kiss them both, but when they step forward Lorne draws their attention to the fact that he's still tied up on the floor. Angel tells the gang he got carried away with the money thing because he's never had anyone dependent on him the way Connor is now and not wanting to let him down. Distracted by the pile of returned cash scattered over the floor, he continues that family, and the mission, come first. Cordelia, also looking at the money, declares that after what they tried to do to Fred the Angel team has earned it. Angel and Cordelia are lying in bed feeding the baby while talking about what to spend their money on. Angel insists they use it for Connor's college fund and Cordelia half-jokingly tries to tell him to use it for a boat or a ski home. =====