Opening on the train to Kyoto, the narrative, in characteristic Kawabata fashion, subtly brings up issues of tradition and modernity as it explores writer Oki Toshio's reunion with a young lover from his past, Otoko Ueno, who is now a famous artist and recluse. Ueno is now living with her protégée and a jealous lesbian lover, Keiko Sakami, and the unfolding relationships between Oki, Otoko, and Keiko form the plot of the novel. Keiko states several times that she will avenge Otoko for Oki's abandonment, and the story coalesces into a climactic ending.

The story is told in flashback as Ukridge and his friend James Corcoran stand outside the wedding of one Teddy Weeks, a successful movie star. The tale begins some years earlier, when Weeks was a struggling actor who believed all he needed to get his breakthrough role was a decent wardrobe. Ukridge, Corcoran, Weeks and others are dining at their regular haunt when one of their number reveals he has acquired accident insurance as a bonus for subscribing to a magazine, and has subsequently received five pounds after a minor cycling accident. Ukridge is inspired by this, and persuades his comrades to form a syndicate, subscribing to all magazines offering this free insurance, arranging an "accident" and splitting the insurance monies. Lots are drawn, and Weeks is selected as the one to be insured and to suffer the accident.

Time passes and Weeks shows no sign of taking any damage. Despite much cajoling, pointing out of appropriate taxi cabs and even the placing of dangerous dogs in his rooms, he remains unhurt. Finally, he agrees that he will do the honourable thing, on condition that he is first primed with a fine dinner and champagne. The syndicate scrape together the necessary funds, and watch glumly as Weeks dines and guzzles the pricey drink, abusing his friends roundly as he grows inebriated. After the feast, he laughs at his friends, tells them he had no intention of having his accident despite their generosity, and promptly slips in front of a passing truck.

Visiting Weeks in hospital, he claims to have no memory of events, stymieing any attempt to retrieve the funds. Instead he spends the cash on fine clothes, and kick-starts his career in the movies. Returning to the present, Ukridge bribes a passing vagrant (with a shilling borrowed from Corky) to throw a tomato at Weeks as he leaves the church to face the waiting throng of photographers; the good man's aim is true, and justice is restored.

J. G. Anderson, owner of the Hotel Washington in Bessemer, Ohio and the Lakeside Inn near Skeewassett, Maine, is staying at the Lakeside Inn. He is angered after a hotel guest, the famous but obnoxious actor Mervyn Potter, and Anderson's desk clerk, amiable and impressionable Cyril "Barmy" Fotheringay-Phipps, wake him at 3 a.m. to give him a frog. Anderson intends to fire Barmy, but instead decides to sell the Hotel Washington to Barmy after Potter mentions that Barmy has inherited a fortune. It is also mentioned that, before leaving London two years prior, Barmy saw a fortune teller in Wimbledon named Gypsy Sybil who predicted that Barmy would take a long journey, meet a fair girl, have some trouble with a dark man, and acquire a lot of money. Barmy, who has taken the long journey and got the money, now looks forward to meeting the fair girl, and is not worried about the dark man.

Potter tells Barmy that he should not buy the hotel but instead invest in an upcoming Lehmac Productions play that Potter is starring in. Anderson offers to sell Barmy the hotel for a hundred thousand dollars, but Barmy only has about twenty thousand. Anderson fires Barmy and Barmy goes to New York to invest in the play. There, Barmy sees a fair girl, Eileen "Dinty" Moore, looking longingly through a shop window at a fancy hat, and instantly falls in love with her. He tosses his cigar away, only for it to burn the old hat she is currently wearing. He buys the fancy hat for her to replace it. Dinty thanks Barmy before leaving. Barmy fears he will never see her again.

Barmy spends the evening in town with Potter, though Potter is drunk and domineering. He takes Barmy to see his fiancée Hermione (or Heloise) Brimble at her home in King's Point, Long Island, and makes Barmy break into the house. The Brimbles' butler hears him and fires off a revolver, causing Barmy to hide in a tree. Hermione comes upon the scene and sees Potter drunk. She declares that their engagement will be over if he ever drinks alcohol again.

At the office of Lehmac Productions, business partners Joe Lehman and Jack McClure desperately need an investor (or "angel") and deceive Barmy about their play's chance of success. The play, titled ''Sacrifice'', has a somewhat incoherent plot, but is essentially about a man who chooses to take the blame for a crime committed by the brother of the woman he loves. Barmy agrees to invest ten thousand dollars when he sees that Dinty is Lehman's secretary. Barmy gets carried away and kisses her; she slaps him and he apologizes. He explains that he was going to ask her to marry him and invested half of his money in the play to be near her, which amazes Dinty.

Just before the play opens in the try-out town of Syracuse, Potter gets drunk and leaves the troupe. He is distraught because his fiancée found out he had tried to drink in secret and ended their engagement. His understudy takes his place. The show goes badly, and after the performance, a long disorderly conference ensues in Barmy's hotel room in which the members of the troupe argue about how to improve the play. Barmy tries to speak, but is shouted down by Lehman. Dinty defends Barmy, and Barmy, who starts talking with the same assertive language and slang used by Lehman, swiftly makes a deal to buy out Lehman and McClure with the rest of his inheritance.

Dinty confesses that she loves Barmy. Together, they convince the assistant manager of their hotel, Oscar Fritchie, to invest in the play. Mervyn Potter returns, having realized that he is better off without his ex-fiancée. He suggests turning the play into a farcical comedy. The play is now a hit and opens on Broadway. However, a dark lawyer appears with proof that ''Sacrifice'' has been plagiarized. He says that the play will be closed unless Barmy agrees to give up most of the profits. Dinty convinces the lawyer to leave for half an hour. While the lawyer is out, Lehman and McClure return, intending to take over the now-successful play again. Barmy sells it to them for a hundred thousand dollars. Barmy cheerfully sets off with Dinty to marry her and buy Anderson's hotel, where Fritchie will be the manager.

The first section of the film is told from the perspective of Mrs Friese-Green telling the story of how she met Willie to a friend. They marry and have four sons but are in constant financial difficulties due to his experiments to create colour film. The three oldest boys lie about their age in order to enlist in the army in the First World War. His wife leaves him due to the stress.

Coming out of her flashback, back in 1921, William Friese-Greene, is still in dire financial straits, he attends a film conference in London. He is saddened that all those attending are businessmen interested only in moneymaking. He attempts to speak, but no-one is interested and he sits down. He thinks back to his early pioneering days and a longer flashback begins.

Young "Willie" works as an assistant to photographer Maurice Guttenberg, who will not let him take portraits his way. After an argument with Guttenberg he leaves and, with his new wife, a client of his former employer, he opens a studio. After a slow start, he does well and opens other studios, but he is more interested in developing moving pictures and colour films.

He goes to visit Fox Talbot on the same day he is meant to sing a solo within a choir with his wife. He forgets to go and she has to sing his part, but he is delighted with his meeting with Talbot. They move to London. Although he is a successful photographer he sidetracks this profitable work for his costly experiments in creating celluloid film. He is in partnership with Mr Collings who initially has faith in him but as a businessman is eventually forced to break the partnership. He mortgages his house to raise money.

One Sunday he lies to his wife and excuses himself from church and instead meets a relative and his son in Hyde Park. He films them approaching on his new camera and tripod and asks them to help carry the tripod to the parade. At night he starts to develop the first film. He waits patiently. The clock strikes 3 a.m. The film develops and he puts it in his projector, hardly daring to look. We see the flicker of light on his face.

Excited, he rushes out and drags in a passing policeman (Laurence Olivier credited as Larry Oliver), he says "it is almost as if he was alive". The policeman gets worried and draws his truncheon. He asks the policeman to witness the success of the film. The policeman is dumbfounded, not quite comprehending what he has just seen. Willie explains he is seeing eight pictures per second and it looks like movement.

He tells his wife they will be millionaires. Instead we see him in the bankruptcy court. His wife collapses in a side office. The doctor says she has a heart condition and recommends a year in bed. She tears up the list of expensive medicines on her journey home. She tells Willie she has sold jewellery to allow him to rent a new studio. It is his birthday, he has forgotten, but she gives him a prism as a present and he is delighted. The story then ends flashback.

Back at the conference, Friese-Greene again stands up to speak, clutching a reel of film. He states how film has become a "universal language" but becomes incoherent and is forced to sit down. He collapses. A doctor is called, but it is too late. Examining the contents of his pockets in an attempt to identify him, the doctor comments that all the money he could find was just enough for a ticket to the cinema.

According to the opening demo:

This implies, that the game takes place after the events of ''Robotron: 2084''. However, aside from a few oversized G.R.U.N.T. robots in the first stage, none of the Robotron characters make an appearance in ''Blaster''.

The film opens with a giant bat flying into a medieval castle. The bat circles the room, before suddenly changing into the Devil. Mephistopheles produces a cauldron and an assistant, who helps him conjure a woman from the cauldron.

The room clears shortly before two cavaliers enter. The Devil's assistant pokes their backs before instantaneously teleporting to different areas of the room, confusing the pair and causing one to flee. The second stays and has several other tricks played on him, such as furniture moving around and the sudden appearance of a skeleton. The cavalier is unfazed, using a sword to attack the skeleton, which then turns into a bat, then into Mephistopheles, who conjures four spectres to subdue the man. Recovering from the spectres' attack, the man is visibly dazed and is brought the woman from the cauldron, who impresses him with her beauty. Mephistopheles then turns her into a withered old crone in front of the man's eyes, then again into the four spectres.

The second cavalier returns and, after a brief show of bravery, flees again by leaping over the balcony's edge. After the spectres disappear, the cavalier is confronted face-to-face by the Devil before reaching for and brandishing a large crucifix, which causes the Devil to vanish.

Engineer Okuyama's face was disfigured by an explosion in an industrial accident, and wears bandages to cover the burns. Feeling isolated and being physically rejected by his wife, he consults a psychiatrist. Seeing the frustration Mr. Okuyama experiences with his facial disfiguration, the psychiatrist proposes to make an experimental prosthetic mask for him, apparently with great reluctance.

The psychiatrist and Okuyama offer a man 10,000 yen to serve as the model for the mask, and the mask is built and fitted onto Okuyama. The psychiatrist demands that Okuyama regularly reports his sensations and thoughts to him, and cautions Okuyama that the mask may change his behavior and personality so much that he will cease to be the same person. Okuyama tells no one that he has received the mask, and simply lives as a new man, telling his wife that he is traveling on business while he rents an apartment nearby. He tests the mask's effectiveness on a secretary of his company, who doesn't recognise him, and a mentally retarded neighbourhood girl, who does. During a meeting between Okuyama and the psychiatrist, the latter realises that his patient has already changed, and imagines a world where the mask goes into mass production, subsequently eliminating all sense of morality.

Okuyama decides to seduce his wife using his new identity. When he obtains this too easily, full of rage, he reveals himself to her, who in turn says she had known about his true identity from the first moment. He tries to persuade her to give their relation another chance, but she rejects him. Later, Okuyama attempts to rape a woman on the street, claiming to be nobody when arrested. He is freed thanks to his psychiatrist whose business card the police found in Okuyama's pocket, testifying that Okuyama is his patient and that he is not violent. While walking the nightly streets together, we see that everyone on the street is wearing a mask. At first the psychiatrist asks Okuyama for the mask back, then lets him keep it as he is a free man. While shaking hands to say goodbye, Okuyama stabs him to death.

Interleaved throughout the film is a separate tale (present in Abe's original novel in the form of a movie the protagonist watches at a cinema and then recounts) of a young woman whose otherwise beautiful face suffered a severe disfigurement on the right cheek and right side of the neck. She works in a psychiatric ward, whose inmates include many World War II veterans, and lives with her brother. The imagery of these sequences, her repeated worry about the coming of another war, and her asking her brother if he still remembers the sea at Nagasaki (presumably from their childhood there), all suggest that her scars came as a result of the atomic bombing of that city. Like Okuyama, she feels isolated because of her disfigurement.

The USS ''Enterprise'' receives a distress call from Dr. Howard Clarke (Paul Lambert), the leader of a Federation scientific delegation on Ventax II, where the population is in a state of panic, because they are convinced that their world will soon end. After the ''Enterprise'' arrives, they rescue Dr. Clarke who brings them up to date: A thousand years ago, according to Ventaxian history, the population entered a Faustian deal with Ardra, their mythology's devil. In exchange for ending wars and restoring the ecological balance, and improving their heavily polluted planet, the population would become the personal slaves of Ardra a thousand years later. As the millennium is about to come to a close, the planet has recently begun experiencing mild earthquakes, as well as seeing images of Ardra in the skies. These were said to be signs of her arrival.

As Captain Picard and Commander Data (Brent Spiner) discuss the matter with the Ventaxian leader, Accost Jared (Marcelo Tubert), a woman appears in the chamber, announcing herself as Ardra. She demonstrates her identity by starting an earthquake at will, and transforming into the Klingon devil Fek'lhr of Gre'Thor. Ardra states that she has come to claim the planet. Picard is instantly suspicious and orders Data to examine the contract that supposedly was signed by Ardra and the leaders of the planet a thousand years earlier. Picard returns to the ''Enterprise'' afterwards, and Ardra appears on the bridge, sitting in the Captain's chair. Security Chief Worf (Michael Dorn) is unable to remove her. Data returns just then and confirms the language of the contract as well as Ardra's claim to the planet and anything in its orbit, including the ''Enterprise''.

Later, in a meeting with the senior staff, after speculating if she is Q in disguise or another member of the Q Continuum, Picard expresses his belief that she is a con artist and points out that all of her alleged powers can be recreated with theatrically delivered technology. After the meeting, Picard goes to bed for the evening. As Picard sleeps, Ardra appears and tries to seduce him, but he rejects her. She transports him to the planet dressed in his pajamas. Data comes to collect Picard by shuttle after Worf is unable to transport him back the normal way. When Picard and Data attempt to return to the ''Enterprise'', the ship disappears. Not knowing what to do, they return to the planet.

Citing old legal precedent, Picard calls for a Ventaxian arbitration hearing, to which Ardra agrees, provided Data acts as the arbitrator, as he will act with impartiality. Picard explains to Jared that his people had actually improved their planet by themselves, through their own gradual hard work, ingenuity, and dedication. However, continued demonstrations of powers further the claim that Ardra is indeed who she says she is. During the course of the hearing, Chief Engineer La Forge (LeVar Burton) and Clarke discover that Ardra has a cloaked ship nearby, that she is indeed using technology to simulate magic, and that she is a known criminal. Picard sends an away team, led by Commander Riker (Jonathan Frakes), to take control of Ardra's ship, giving Picard control of her powers. He demonstrates the technology-based fraud and she is taken into custody by local authorities. As Ardra has voluntary withdrawn her suit, Data proclaims that the 1,000 year old contract is null and void. Now convinced that Ardra is not Ardra from his culture's mythology, Jared thanks Picard for saving him and his people from their doom. Picard however, states that Jared and the Ventaxians have saved themselves a long time ago.

This episode illustrates Arthur C. Clarke's Third Law: "any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."

''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' is split into four distinct parts, or story arcs, each loosely based on different Oz books originally written by L. Frank Baum.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (episodes 1 to 17)

The first story arc is an adaptation of the first Oz book, ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' (1900). It follows the adventures of Dorothy, an orphan girl living out in the gray prairies of Kansas with her Aunt Em, her Uncle Henry and her dog Toto. One day, after Em and Uncle Henry leave Dorothy and Toto alone in order to travel into town, a tornado appears, uproots the farmhouse, with Dorothy and Toto inside, and transports it to the Land of Oz.

In Oz Dorothy meets the Good Witch of the North, who tells her that she just killed the Wicked Witch of the East, as her house landed directly on top of her, and by doing so she freed the Munchkins from slavery. She also tells her that the only person able to send her back home is the Wizard of Oz. Dorothy is given the Silver Shoes of the Wicked Witch of the East and sent off along the Yellow Brick Road towards the Emerald City to see the Wonderful Wizard of Oz in hope of getting back to Kansas.

On her way to the Wizard, Dorothy meets the Scarecrow, made entirely of straw and lacking a brain, the Tin Woodman, made entirely from metal and lacking a heart, and the Cowardly Lion who wishes to become brave. Along their journey, the group comes to a large ditch in the road, and the Lion provides transportation by jumping across while the others sit on his back. The group then enters a dark forest and become trapped at the edge of a steep canyon, while being chased by the Kalidahs (animals with the bodies of bears and the heads of tigers). The Lion and the Scarecrow distract them as the Tin Man cuts down a tree which enables the group to cross the opening of the canyon. After escaping the Kalidahs, the Scarecrow gets caught in the middle of a river on a pole which cuts them off from the Yellow Brick Road, but luckily Mrs. Crane (an actual crane) saves him. A deadly field of poppies puts Dorothy, Toto and the Lion to sleep, but they manage to escape with the help of the Mouse Queen, and her subjects, whom the Tin Man rescued from a wildcat. They arrive at the Emerald City the next day, and thanks to the Good Witch of the North's kiss (on Dorothy's forehead) they are let in.

Once they are in the Emerald City, they request to see the Wizard of Oz. The Wizard grants an individual audience to each of them in a dark reception hall and changes his appearance with each one of them—he meets Dorothy, as a Giant Head; the Scarecrow, as a lovely angel-like lady; the Tin Man, as a terrible beast; and the Lion, as a ball of fire. He tells them that he will help them only if they kill the Wicked Witch of the West.

The friends then set off on a quest for the castle of the Wicked Witch of the West. Meanwhile, the Wicked Witch of the West is busy forcing the Winkies (her slaves) to build her a new fortress which she will use to conquer the Land of Oz. As she senses the friends coming, and confirms it by seeing them in her magic mirror, she sends out wolves, crows and an army of her Winkie Soldiers—which Dorothy and her friends easily beat. The friends meet an old Winkie, the former Mayor, who fills them in on the Wicked Witch of the West. The Witch uses her Golden Cap to command the Winged Monkeys, ordering them to bring her the Lion and kill the rest. As the group near the witch's castle, the Winged Monkeys attack who manage to destroy the Scarecrow (by emptying his body) and the Tin Man (by dropping him from a great height). They are, however, unable to harm Dorothy due to the Good Witch's kiss and are forced to take her along with the captured Lion. The Wicked Witch of the West keeps the Lion locked in a cell intending to use him to pull her carriage. She decides to spare Dorothy and keep her as her personal cook upon seeing she has the magic shoes and tries various tricks to get them off her feet, to no avail. Dorothy eventually tips a large water jar upon the Witch, and all her evil work dies with her as she melts away. The grateful Winkies then help Dorothy find her friends and restore them. Soon the friends are together again, and Dorothy discovers the Wicked Witch's Golden Cap. Her friends make her promise that she will not use the cap to summon the Winged Monkeys, as the idea terrifies them.

As the group spends a few days relaxing in the Witch's castle with their new Winkie friends, they are visited by a boy named Tip and his guardian, Mombi. Mombi is a witch in training and upon hearing that her old friend the Wicked Witch of the West is dead, she decides to steal the Golden Cap from Dorothy. She transforms herself into a large gray cat and attempts to steal the cap while Dorothy is sleeping. Her plot is thwarted by the Cowardly Lion. Tip explains Mombi's plot and apologizes to Dorothy. Dorothy uses the Golden Cap, against her friends' wishes, to have the Winged Monkeys transport Tip and Mombi back to their distant home.

Before the group leaves Winkie-Land, the Winkies declare the Tin Man as their king. As they make their way back to the Emerald City they become lost in an enormous forest and struggle against a monstrous spider. The animals of the forest are thankful that the Lion defeated the Monster Spider and make him king to show their gratitude. Dorothy uses the Golden Cap to call the Winged Monkeys who then take her and her friends back to the Emerald City.

They return to the Emerald City to find the Wizard not only invisible but still unwilling to grant their wishes, asking them to return later. However Dorothy and her friends refuse to be turned away again and start to argue with the Wizard as Toto reveals the Wizard is actually a normal man. The Wizard reveals he is actually a traveling magician from Nebraska who was accidentally swept away to Oz in his hot air balloon, and decided to pretend to be a Wizard as it was only the fear of a powerful magician that stopped the two Wicked Witches from taking over the whole land. He soon realizes that Scarecrow, Tin Man and Lion already possess what they desire and gives them items that they believe grant their wishes (Scarecrow's head is filled with sawdust and nails, Tin Man is given a wooden heart and Lion is given colored water that he is told represents courage) but cannot think of how to get Dorothy home. Scarecrow hits upon the idea to use the Wizard's hot air balloon to get Dorothy back to Kansas, and the Wizard agrees saying he will go back with her having tired of life in Oz. Before he leaves, he makes Scarecrow the King of Oz however Toto escapes from Dorothy's arms to chase a mouse and they miss the balloon's launching.

Dorothy is devastated, but remembers she has the Golden Cap and can summon the Winged Monkeys and order them to take her home. Summoning them, Dorothy is told they cannot cross the boundaries of Oz and has wasted her last wish but it is suggested she visits Glinda, the Good Witch of the South. She decides to head there straight away, and despite already having had their wishes granted and kingdoms waiting for them to rule the Scarecrow, Tin Man and Lion decide to travel with her still and ensure that she gets home. On their way to see Glinda they encounter a fighting tree, and a country full of miniature living people and animals made entirely of china. They are then nearly crushed by a pack of Hammer-Heads, but are rescued by a group of gnomes who help them escape through a series of caves. They, at last, reach the palace of Glinda who agrees to see them.

Glinda, who is kind and caring, listens to Dorothy's stories of her adventures and tells her that she will be able to return home. Before she does so, she requests that the Golden Cap be turned over to her. Useless to her now, Dorothy happily agrees and Glinda tells her that she intends to use it to return Scarecrow, Tin Man and Lion to their respective kingdoms so they don't have to face the dangers they encountered travelling to her again. She then tells Dorothy that she has had the power to return home since her first day in Oz through the magic shoes, and by clicking the heels together three times they will do whatever she commands. Despite this new knowledge, Dorothy and her friends agree it was a good thing she didn't know as they would never have met each other. After bidding a tearful farewell to her Tin Man, Lion and Scarecrow (who tells Dorothy that he feels they will meet again), Dorothy tells the shoes to return her home and they do just that, lifting her into the sky. Landing in Kansas, she wakes up to see her farmhouse in the distance. There, she is reunited with Aunt Em and Uncle Henry.

The Marvelous Land of Oz (episodes 18 to 30)

The second story arc is an adaptation of the second Oz book, ''The Marvelous Land of Oz'' (1904). Aunt Em and Uncle Henry are nearly finished building their new farm-house (after the former one was taken away by the cyclone) when Toto and Dorothy suddenly appear. Dorothy tells them of her adventures in Oz, but even though they find it hard to believe her, they are delighted that she has returned home.

Dorothy searches for one of her magic shoes, which fell off on the journey home, but is unable to find it. Later, when the family goes shopping for supplies in town, a circus being prepared has Dorothy reunited with the Wizard of Oz. Eventually, Aunt Em finds the other shoe, and Dorothy eagerly and carelessly uses both shoes to return to Oz, leaving Toto and the shoes in Kansas, but also leaving Aunt Em and Uncle Henry believing her.

Dorothy arrives back to the Land of Oz and is reunited with Tip, who is making a pumpkin-man to scare Mombi. It works, but Mombi tries out the Come-Alive Powder, and Jack Pumpkinhead comes to life. Mombi, who mistakes Dorothy for a witch, schemes to steal her powers and turn her into stone, but the children and Jack escape, with Mombi chasing after them. Later, they come across a wooden saw horse and decide to bring it to life with the Come-Alive Powder they have stolen from Mombi. They run on ahead with Jack to Emerald City, where they are reunited with King Scarecrow of Oz.

Dorothy and Tip meet General Jijnur who, with her All-Girl Army, plans to overthrow King Scarecrow and become Queen of the Emerald City. After the Gate-Guardian is defeated by Jinjur's army, Dorothy and Tip warn Scarecrow of the Invasion, and the friends make their escape, just as Mombi arrives at Emerald City. As Mombi joins General Jinjur in her plot to overthrow Oz, the friends go on to the West (despite the Saw-Horse's broken leg accident) and ask the Tin Man for help. Mombi uses her magic to surround the friends with a field of Sunflowers, which thanks to Jinjur doesn't last long. The Mouse Queen is called upon to help her friends with their mission and gives them her Secret Weapon. After more magic tricks, like a giant cliff-like wall and a circle of fire, the friends finally return to Emerald City and find it in bad shape—all the men are doing the hard work while the women can do whatever they want. In the Throne Room Jinjur, Mombi and the Army surround Dorothy & her friends, but is no match for the Mouse Queen's Secret Weapon. Jinjur attempts to attack, while Scarecrow decides for them to escape using the Come-Alive Powder.

Jack uses the Wizard's old tricks to distract and scare the girls as his friends put together and bring to life a Moose-Bed (a canopy bed with a stuffed Moose head attached). Once everything is together, the friends narrowly escape and head off to Glinda in the South. But Mombi causes the Moose-Bed and his passengers to drift away into a valley of mist, mountains and cliffs, where they are encountered, captured and eventually manage to escape one of several giant dragons. They arrive at Glinda's castle and Glinda is aware of their dilemma. Although she is willing to help free the Emerald City of Mombi and Jinjur, Glinda informs the group she will not restore Scarecrow as king having recently discovered that his claim to the throne is illegal. She tells everyone that the King of Oz died just before the Wizard arrived and it was believed that he had left no heir to the throne, bringing to an end the royal lineage. However Glinda has discovered that he did father a child just before he died; a girl named Ozma who disappeared soon after as she was removed by the Wizard due to him not wishing to lose the power he had gained by becoming ruler. Watching through Glinda's crystal ball, the group learns that the Wizard left Ozma with none other than Mombi. Scarecrow is not upset about no longer being king, having quickly tired of the position and the group decides to return to the Emerald City (accompanied by Glinda) to oust Jinjur and find out from Mombi what she did with Ozma.

Upon returning to the Emerald City, Glinda frightens Jinjur and her army into surrendering and orders Mombi to cooperate with Dorothy and her group before leaving while the Gump and the Sawhorse are left at the gate. When Scarecrow arrives, he announces that Jinjur will soon no longer rule the city but he also renounces the throne, informing then all that Princess Ozma is alive and he intends to organize a search for her. However, with Glinda gone Jinjur and Mombi take back their intention to co-operate a try a "disguise" trick which does not last long—the friends look for Mombi throughout the palace and find Jinur and Mombi arguing with each other, breaking off their 'teamwork', only to have Mombi transform herself into a dragon. Glinda appears and chases after the escaping Mombi-Dragon and easily triumphs over her.

Using her magic, Glinda has Mombi reveal what she did to Ozma. Mombi reveals that, in order to prevent anyone from finding Ozma she used a magic spell to transform her into a boy. Everyone realized the startling truth... Tip is really Ozma. Tip becomes scared at the thought, but everyone assures him that he is really Ozma and was meant to rule and will do a fine job of it. When Glinda offers Tip the choice to remain as he is or have Mombi's spell broken, Tip bravely agrees to breaking the spell and he transforms into Princess Ozma. Glinda the removes Mombi's powers and orders her and Jinjur to return to their homes and lead quiet lives which they both agree to. She then offers Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tinman and Jack a reward for their help. Tin Man asks to return to the West as does Scarecrow and will now live with Tin Man in his palace. Jack wishes to remain with Princess Ozma while Dorothy asks to return to Kansas. Glinda agrees and transports Dorothy, Scarecrow and Tin Man to their homes, and as she disappears Dorothy bids her old and new friends farewell and promises to see them again. (It is unknown what happens to the Sawhorse and the Gump, they probably could've went off on their own to have more adventures)

Ozma of Oz (episodes 31 to 41)

The third part of the series is an adaptation of the third Oz book, ''Ozma of Oz'' (1907). It starts with Uncle Henry, Aunt Em, Dorothy and Toto sleeping peacefully in their Kansas beds, but as Dorothy's Magic Shoes start glowing, causing the Shoes to transport Dorothy back to Oz, leaving Toto & her Magic Shoes in Kansas. She arrives in the Land of Ev, where a trio of Wheelers rudely wakes her up and accuses her of being a witch. Dorothy escapes the Wheelers, and finds a little mechanical robot called Tik-Tok which she winds up. She learns that Tik-Tok was on a secret mission, given to him by Princess Langwidere, to free the prince of Ev, but he got himself into trouble with the Wheelers. Then, rather than he protecting Dorothy, Dorothy defends Tik-Tok from the Wheelers and accompanied by him goes off to meet Princess Langwidere.

Langwidere locks Dorothy and Tik-Tok in the dungeon. As Dorothy and Tik-Tok ask Mr. Mouse to get help from Oz, Princess Langwidere greets Ozma, Scarecrow, Tin Man and Jack Pumpkin head. Mr. Mouse gets Lion to come to Ev and inform his friends of Dorothy's imprisonment. It is then suggested that while Ozma and Jack would return to Oz, Dorothy and Tik-Tok with the accompany of Dorothy’s friends would go to Nomeland to rescue Princess Langwidere's brother, the Prince of Ev from the Nome King. The group crosses a dangerous Desert, which consists of a sandstorm, funny looking plants, a giant beetle and only one oasis in the entire sandy waste.

They come across giant bones and a ship. While the group decides to rest in the ship for the night, they meet Billina, a Talking Hen (who acts like a Rooster), who was once the Nome King's chicken. She tells them the way to Nomeland, before giving Tik-Tok an egg. On the way to Nomeland, the friends travel through rocky caverns where they encounter and manage to escape one of two Rock Giants and a Ruined City. They arrive at the Gateway which leads down into the Nome King's Underground Kingdom. After walking alongside a River of Flowing Lava, as well as crossing over it, they walk through an Ornament Hallway and meet the Nome King.

Knowing why they are here he tells them of his power and that if they would want to free the Prince, they would have to play his Guessing Ornament Game. After Tik-Tok mistakenly turns into an ornament first, Kaliko tricks the Lion, the Tin Man and the Scarecrow in their guesses, turning them into ornaments. Dorothy, however, tricks the two Nomes into revealing the Prince of Ev and restores her friends. But when they try to leave, they end up getting trapped where Nome King & Kaliko scare them with pouring giant-tubs of lava, until they see and are terrified by the egg which Tik-Tok has secretly hidden.

With the Prince of Ev, the group tries to leave, but the Nome King isn't going to make it easy for them—he tries to drown them in a river of lava and catapults them with giant boulders. When it is finally decided that they have to follow the underground river for the way out, the Nome King, Kaliko and the Nomes attack them again with flying boulders. Fortunately, this attack gives the friends an opening to escape. They thank Billina for her help, but then the ship and the surrounding sand begins to sink by the Nome King again, but once Lion saves Scarecrow from being lost they are all finally free and safe from the Nome King, despite his displeasure. The friends then decide that it is time to go home. (It is unknown if Tik-Tok and Billina have decided to move to Oz)

The Emerald City of Oz (episodes 42 to 52)

The fourth and final story arc of the series is an adaptation of the sixth Oz book, ''The Emerald City of Oz'' (1910). Continuing on directly from the last story arc, the Nome King is now planning his revenge. Meanwhile, Dorothy is still in Oz. She and Scarecrow has been busy chasing Ozma around the Emerald City, which takes them into a Secret Chamber. Even in the darkness, Ozma discovers a door which reveals to them the Heart of the Emerald City and the history of Oz, proving to Ozma that she must prepare a coronation to be Queen of Oz. Back at the underground kingdom of the Nomes, an Invasion specialist named Guph suggests that in order to conquer the Emerald City they must make a tunnel which will take them to the Emerald City. Along with Guph's Giant Dirt-Devouring Worm, the Nomes make the tunnel and pass underneath the 'Deadly' Desert.

In the meantime, Scarecrow discovers a small box in the Wizard's Chamber which transports Dorothy and Ozma into a world where they meet Miss Cuttenclip the Paper Queen and Mr. Fuddles the Puzzle Man who creates a door which returns the girls back to Oz. As everybody gets everything ready, Dorothy and Ozma practice her magic powers by making a Giant Paper Bird come to life, so that they can ride it in the sky whenever they wish. Knowing the Nomes' fear and weakness, Guph also enlists the help of the monstrous Growleywog to ensure their victory. Practicing for the Coronation, Ozma's magic reveals where to find the Fountain of the Water of Oblivion, an important part of the Coronation.

Growleywog emerges in the West and starts devouring areas of the country. The terrified Winkies tell their King the Tin Man of the monster, and Dorothy also learns of the news. As the Tin Man battles Growleywog, Dorothy borrows the Magic Bird and tries to solve the problem without ruining any plans for Ozma. Underground, the Worm's failed attempt to go any further unto the emerald city gets Guph and the Nome King into an argument.

Nome King & his Army attempts to charge Emerald City, but Scarecrow's wondering of where and looking for Dorothy forces them back into the tunnel. After Dorothy manages to find the Winkie Timsmith to help her rescue Tin Man from the Growleywog, Guph sneaks into the Emerald City, going along the many stairs and doors, only to lose his memory in the Palace. Dorothy meets a pleasant Guph the next morning and the Nome King is worried. Ozma's Coronation is a success—despite Dorothy's exhaustion—and afterwards Tin Man talks to Ozma, the Lion and the Scarecrow on how to deal with Growleywog, which at that time is rejoined by the Nomes.

That night, Growleywog leads the Nomes in invasion of the Emerald City. As the Tin Man thwarts some of the Nomes, Scarecrow tells Dorothy his plan for a rescue. The friends do their best in scaring and attacking the Nomes with eggs, while the Lion watches over Ozma in her room, but their attempts are foiled and all seems lost for Dorothy and Scarecrow, but a voice comforts Dorothy, promising that all will be well. The next morning everybody is imprisoned by the Nome King and Dorothy wakes up to find herself alone in the Emerald City with the Growleywog and Guph, who has regained his memory but still protects her. Ozma uses her magic to save her people and trick the Nome King and his followers into defeat. Back in Oz, Glinda appears and congratulates Ozma on a job well done as the Nomes, Growlewog and Worm return home. Dorothy tells Glinda she knows it was her voice she heard, and realizes it is time to go home. However she is not sad, as she knows that she will be able to return to Oz anytime she wants thanks to Ozma's magic. Dorothy bids goodbye to her friends promising to return soon, and is then sent back to Kansas where she reunites with Aunt Em, Uncle Henry and Toto.

Camane, a Vestal Virgin, is the only one of her order to see visions of the future. Desperate to avoid the carnage she foresees, Camane sneaks out of the temple to warn Julius Caesar, his sister Atia, and nephew Octavius.

Ignoring Atia and Octavius's pleas to heed the warning, Caesar returns to the Senate, and is murdered by his conspiring fellow senators, who fear his increasing power and popularity amongst the citizens of Rome. In the process, the conspirators lose the support of Mark Antony, who is appalled at their violent treachery.

The assassination is able to happen because Tyrannus, a former gladiator who serves as Caesar's bodyguard, was distracted by the kidnapping of his young son Piso by a group of hired assassins. Tyrannus manages to rescue Piso, but returns to a fatally wounded Caesar; however, Caesar remains alive long enough to tell him that Octavius is his chosen successor and orders Tyrannus to protect him.

Tyrannus sends his wife and son away and then leaves Rome with Octavius to protect him from assassination. Outside Rome they begin to seek allies who are willing to overthrow the senate. To Octavius, Mark Antony appears a willing and eager supporter of his cause and the two quickly become close allies. Antony verbally agrees to join Octavius and even signs a document stating that Octavius has the support of his troops should he die; however, Octavius makes the naïve mistake of offering Antony leadership if he himself should perish. It is after this agreement that Antony's true intentions are made known when he attempts to have Octavius killed. Antony almost succeeds, but the weak and poisoned Octavius is saved by a young Marcus Agrippa. Camane, having seen the danger in her visions, arrives and saves Octavius' life by getting the poison out of him. It is then revealed that Camane has fallen in love with Octavius through her visions.

Once recovered, Octavius, Agrippa, and a few companions make for Gaul, where Octavius aims to enlist the help of his uncle's former Third Legion. According to the story, the Third Legion was disgraced in battle, and Julius Caesar had one in every ten men killed (decimation). The survivors have remained in the Italian hinterlands ever since, living as bandits, and are collectively known as the ‘Lost Legion’. At first these men want to avenge themselves by killing Octavius, but Octavius manages to win their support with the help of Cicero.

Meanwhile, Tyrannus' wife has died and Piso has been adopted by a noble family on the island to which they fled. Thinking Octavius dead and desiring to be able to afford the opportunity to raise his son, Tyrannus joins with Mark Antony as a centurion. As a centurion Tyrannus has the means to educate and raise his son as a nobleman, but finds the soldiers under his command to be suspicious of him and upset at being subordinant to this low-born gladiator. After he saves one of his men from being killed, an act that nearly costs him his own life, Tyrannus earns the respect of his men.

Mark Antony, having now allied himself with the Senate, hears of Octavius's survival and moves quickly to intercept him before he can gain too large a following. Antony's army is superior in size to that of Octavius, and it includes the men under command of Tyrannus.

In the ensuing battle, Octavius rallies his troops, despite being heavily outnumbered. Nevertheless, they begin to lose ground, and Antony appears to have won. At that moment Tyrannus and his men change sides and turn the tide of battle. As the conflict closes Mark Antony is disarmed, but Octavius shows him mercy and does not kill him.

For her assistance, Octavius appoints Camane matriarch of the order of Vesta, and she cries as she realized that she shall never be with him. Octavius appears unmoved.

The saddened Camane relates that Tyrannus vanished from the pages of history, having given up a life of renewed glory at Octavius's side to raise Piso and live a normal life.

The game begins three years after the events of "Hail to the King". Ash Williams is telling the story of his battles with the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis to an Asian man, and then starts to tell the story of how he ended up with the man in the first place through a series of flashbacks.

Dearborn, Michigan: Last Night

A special "Live" episode of ''Mysteries of the Occult'' starts at the local KLA2 television station (a reference to the movie ''The Day the Earth Stood Still''; KLA2 is pronounced "Klaatu," the name of the protagonist.) Trisha Pettywood, a journalist out to expose the truth of the ''Necronomicon'', is the host, with her guest, the parapsychologist and best-selling author Professor Alex Eldridge, a colleague of the late Professor Raymond Knowby, who has written a book based on the ''Necronomicon''. Ash is sitting at his favorite bar in the red-light district, having a few drinks during the broadcast, and badmouths Eldridge, claiming that he wouldn't know the '''real''' Necronomicon from "a roll of extra-fluffy two-ply". The bartender, who apparently knows Ash, gives him a free drink, telling him that he is sorry about Jenny, a subject which is apparently still very painful for Ash. Trisha also mentions a local Dearborn man (namely Ash) who claims that the ''Necronomicon'' can raise the dead and interdimensionally travel through time, but Eldridge dismisses it as the sad, depraved ramblings of a lunatic, while also claiming that it is easy to get caught up in the book's mythology. Hearing this, a drunken Ash babbles on about his remark, and also about his fights with the Deadites and how he had to amputate his own right hand. Trisha has somehow obtained the tape recording of Professor Knowby, and plays it live as a "treat" to the viewers. Ash, knowing what will happen if they do so, shouts at them not to play it, but of course, they do not hear him. The Deadites are released into the world once more, and the Evil Force floats through town, right into the bar, and possesses the bartender who is promptly shot down by Ash who strangely has his boomstick with him.

Ash goes outside to check out the seriousness of the situation, and it's pretty bad: Deadites are roaming around town, transforming civilians into Deadites themselves, and the local police are apparently going to great lengths to stop them. Ash decides to check out the KLA2 station, since that's where the trouble began, and get more weapons as well, as he is almost out of shotgun ammo. He finds a shovel nearby, and also finds that the Deadites have invaded the Kitten Club (Dearborn's local strip joint), and the police are blocking both the entrance to the bar and the part of town behind it to slay any creatures who come out. He manages to convince the chief of police to let him past after acquiring a police I.D. from a fallen officer and a chainsaw in the lumber yard. However, he discovers that the television station's gates are locked and jammed solid so that Ash cannot open them even with the key, and the station itself is on lockdown, and only the doorman has the key, and he went to the Kitten Club to "die with a smile on his face". The chief allows him in after he uses dynamite to blow up the Deadites in the club's backlot. He acquires the card key to the station, as well as a spell book, along with a spell that temporarily grants him the strength of ten men, which he uses to kick down KLA2's gates. Upon entering, he discovers Trisha and Eldridge being attacked by Deadites and saves them. He talks to Eldridge about what happened, and they unanimously agree that they need to find Professor Knowby's notes about the Necronomicon in order to discover a way to drive the Deadites back.

Afterwards, Trisha and Eldridge run and take shelter in the church, leaving Ash to do the dirty work. Around town, multiple vortices have opened up, releasing Deadites into the town, and the preacher at the church tells Ash that he needs silver to close them. He acquires some from a biker gang after saving them from the Deadites and acquires a handgun from a police officer, as well as Knowby's notes from a professor at the university; unfortunately, Knowby wrote the notes in code, being clearly aware of the dangers posed by the book, and they need a cipher to read them. Ash gives the notes to Eldridge and acquires another spell that allows him to possess Deadites, which he uses to bypass a massive horde of Deadites behind the police station and get the cipher and an envelope addressed to the local auto repairman from the trash can. He gives the envelope to the repairman, but it's only Knowby's payment for his car repairs; however, the guard gives him some explosive shotgun shells as a reward for his troubles. When he returns to the church, he discovers that the door has been broken in, the preacher has been killed, and Trisha and Eldridge are missing. He sets out to find them, and discovers that they have been taken by the Deadites to the park, along with mass numbers of civilians. Ash breaks into the park, kills the Deadites, and gives Eldridge the cipher. Eldridge reads the notes and discovers information about the Kandarian Summoning Stone, a mystical artifact that allows the possessor to control (and destroy) the Deadite hordes. They all deduce that the Stone may be in the local museum, as the museum's founder, Nathaniel Payne, was obsessed with occult artifacts and delighted in collecting them. Trisha and Eldridge go to the museum to search for it, and Ash accompanies them after closing all of the vortices around town.

When Ash arrives at the museum, he finds everything to be strangely quiet; Trisha and Eldridge are nowhere to be seen, and even the Deadites seem to be taking a breather. However, things soon heat up after Ash is locked in the basement and attacked by a small pack of undead sabre-toothed tigers, which he quickly defeats. Afterwards, he encounters more humanoid Deadites and acquires a card key from a dead security guard, which he uses to escape the basement, and two antique Greek vases. He finds a gasoline pump and a live security guard in a locker room, who at first mistakes Ash for a Deadite and orders him to stay back until Ash provides one of his famous wisecracks. The guard tells him that he had always known that something like this would happen, and states that Nathaniel Payne had built a temple believed to be used for human sacrifice under the museum and one day had gone down into the temple and never returned. He opens up all of the basement doors (although one is malfunctioning and automatically closes whenever Ash comes near it), and he stays there to continue with the broken door. Ash discovers Trisha and Eldridge, locked inside of the east wing by a power surge, and goes back to the basement to find a way to cut the power. He discovers a spell that allows him to possess hellhounds, and uses this spell to gain access to the malfunctioning door (which happens to also house the power grid) and blows up the generator with a stick of dynamite, freeing Trisha and Eldridge. He returns to the locker room, only to find that the guard has become a Deadite as well, and kills the guard. He finds a divining device hidden behind a portrait of Nathaniel Payne, uses it to find four magical gems, and uses these to gain access to Payne's chamber. He encounters Payne, who has long since been transformed into a demonic, fireball-launching monster, and defeats him by deflecting his fireballs back at him with the shovel. Afterwards, he grabs the Kandarian Summoning Stone and flirts with Trisha, though she has reservations about dating him, as people around town have claimed that he is crazy, perhaps even dangerous. It is soon revealed that Eldridge knew about the true nature of the Necronomicon all along, and plans to use its power and the Stone to take over the world. He opens up a vortex and disappears into it, and Ash decides to follow him. Trisha asks him if he is crazy, but he merely states that "crazy is as crazy does", kisses her, and follows Eldridge into the vortex while Trisha stays behind.

Dearborn, Michigan: circa 1695

Ash lands right after Eldridge, who had correctly predicted that he would follow him, in the colonial times of Dearborn. Eldridge sends a horde of Deadites after him and escapes. After killing them, a group of villagers arrive and mistake Ash for the town blacksmith, simply named "Williams the Blacksmith". Ash soon meets the blacksmith, who turns out to be his ancestor and resembles him in both appearance and mannerisms. When Ash reveals this to him, he is not the least bit surprised due to the Deadites running amok. He upgrades Ash's shotgun, allowing it to fire eight consecutive rounds before needing to reload, and also converts the gas pump into a flamethrower using some of his own moonshine. Ash looks around town for more parts and finds a piece of scrap iron, but when he returns, he finds mass amounts of Deadite bodies laying about and the blacksmith missing. Ash quickly sets out to find him, realizing that the death of the blacksmith in the past will also erase him from existence, and, after passing through the town cemetery, discovers that Eldridge has kidnapped the blacksmith. Eldridge uses the rules of time paradoxes to blackmail Ash into finding a spell scroll that will allow him to safely pass through the vortex, promising that he will let the blacksmith go if Ash complies. Ash does so, but Eldridge does not make good on the deal and escapes through the vortex, warning Ash that his two monstrous Deadite bodyguards will kill the blacksmith if he attempts to follow. Ash quickly finds a way around this by acquiring another possession spell and using it to kill the two Deadites. Ash gives the blacksmith the piece of scrap iron, and follows Eldridge through the vortex after the blacksmith coins their new family motto: ''"A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do."''

Dearborn, Michigan: circa 1863

Ash once again lands after Eldridge, this time in Civil War-era Dearborn. Eldridge quickly enters the Unionists' fort and opens a vortex. In order to get into the fort, Ash manages to convince both the Unionists and the Confederates to call a cease-fire and help him defeat the Deadites; the captain of the Unionists is Ash's Civil War era ancestor the great-great-great-grandson of Williams the Blacksmith, who is in possession of a Gatling gun that the blacksmith made from the piece of scrap iron that Ash gave him. Ash confronts Eldridge and shoots him, but this only transforms him into a monstrous dragon-like demon. Ash manages to defeat monster-Eldridge, and travels back to the present time.

Evil Dearborn

Ash arrives back in the present of Dearborn, only to discover that the Deadites have taken over the whole town in his absence and are led by their Queen, who is in possession of the Kandarian Summoning Stone, which Ash stupidly left back in the Unionists' fort. After freeing the prisoners, Ash confronts the Deadite Queen, who turns out to be Trisha. Trisha reveals that she has taken the stone to rule the world on her own. Ash explodes her by making her swallows dozens of dynamites, and reacquires the Stone.

Epilogue

Now back to where the game first began, Ash attempts to use the Stone to restore Dearborn to its former glory, but blunders and ends up warping himself back in time to feudal Japan, during the time of the Mongul's invasion of Japan, where he has been captured by guards. As it turns out, the men he has been telling the story, who turns out to be Japanese Emperor Kameyama to cannot understand a word he's been saying, though they claim that he hasn't shut up for three hours. Kameyama decide to use the Kandarian Summoning Stone against Khan and execute Ash, but before they can do so, the Evil Force returns and possesses the man who Ash has been relating his tale to, as well as some nearby samurai. Ash grabs a katana from one of the guards and tells the Deadites to "''come get some!''" in perfect Japanese, thus ending the game.

In June 1959, Louis Simo, a Los Angeles private investigator more interested in generating an income than in devotion to his clients, is spying on the wife of a man named Chester Sinclair to find if she is cheating. On a visit to his own ex-wife Laurie, Simo learns that his son is upset over the recent death of actor George Reeves, who played Superman on television. Reeves was found dead inside his Beverly Hills home with a gunshot wound to the head, which the police ruled as a suicide.

Simo learns from a former police colleague that the Reeves suicide has aspects that the cops do not want to touch. Sensing the potential for making a name for himself, Simo begins investigating and notes several apparent conflicts with the official version of Reeves' death. He also bickers with Laurie over his failures as a father, particularly now when his son seems so troubled.

Years before, in 1951, Reeves, whose acting career has stalled since appearing in ''Gone with the Wind'', catches the eye of a beautiful woman and they end the night in each other's arms. In the morning, a newspaper photo reveals to Reeves that the woman is Toni Mannix, the wife of Eddie Mannix, a fixer and the general manager of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Frightened that an affair with a studio boss's wife will destroy what is left of his career, Reeves is angry that Toni did not tell him. She claims to have an open relationship with Mannix and tells him not to worry. The much wealthier Toni begins to buy Reeves expensive gifts such as a house, a car and jewelry.

Reeves lands the starring role in the television series ''Adventures of Superman'', based on the comic book hero. The role makes Reeves famous and gives him a steady income, but he longs for more "serious" work and is uncomfortable with the public's stereotype of him as Superman, resulting in snickers from the audience when he is seen on screen in a sneak preview of the war film ''From Here to Eternity''. After film executives attending the preview heard the snickers, his formerly prominent role in the film was drastically reduced.

As the years pass, Reeves becomes bitter at being a kept man and at Toni for not using her clout to help out his career. He barbecues his Superman costume to "celebrate" the program's cancellation in 1958. He also meets a young woman in New York City, actress Leonore Lemmon, and leaves Toni for her. Toni is brokenhearted and furious and seethes at her "mistreatment" by Reeves.

Simo initially suspects that Leonore might have accidentally shot Reeves during an argument and imagines how the scenario might have played out. Simo is beaten at his home by thugs, apparently working for Mannix, who are trying to scare him off the case. This, and other evidence, leads Simo to suspect that Mannix was the one who had Reeves murdered. Simo has a vision of how that killing would have occurred.

Sinclair murders his wife, having grown impatient waiting for Simo's report. A guilt-plagued Simo gets drunk, then visits his son's school, where his inebriation scares the boy. Simo visits Reeves' manager, Arthur Weissman, who has a home movie that Reeves shot in order to promote some wrestling work. Reeves' sadness and disappointment with his life are evident in the footage. Simo's final imagined variation on Reeves' death concludes with the actor shooting himself. This is the most vivid of the three scenarios, and Simo imagines himself in the upstairs bedroom, watching the suicide.

Each of the scenes imagined by Simo begins with Reeves playing a guitar and singing "Green Eyes (Aquellos Ojos Verdes)" in Spanish for his house guests. After each of the three imagined renditions, Reeves says good night to his guests, then retires to his bedroom upstairs, just before the gunshot.

Reeves' quest for success and Simo's realization of parallels to his own existence cause the detective to reevaluate his life. Simo watches another home movie, this one of himself and Laurie and their son in happier days. He goes to Laurie's house wearing a suit and tie, greeting his son hopefully.

Misterjaw (voiced by Arte Johnson) was a blue-colored great white shark (who wore a purple vest with white collar, a black bow tie and black top hat) who liked to leap out of the water and shout "HEEGotcha!" or "Gotcha!" at unsuspecting folks who would run off in terror. He spoke with a German accent and was known to mispronounce words, such as "knucklehead" pronounced as "ka-nucklehead". He also had a sidekick, a green-scaled, brown bowler hatted Brooklyn-accented catfish named Catfish (voiced by Arnold Stang) who usually referred to Misterjaw as "Boss" or "Chief"; Misterjaw usually called Catfish either "pal-ly", "fella" or "sonny" when in a good mood, or names like "dumbkoff", "ka-nucklehead" or "macaroni brain" when irritated. At times, Misterjaw would mistakenly address his sidekick as "Dogfish", only to correct himself a split second later by saying "I mean, Catfish."

The primary goal of Misterjaw and Catfish was to catch Harry Halibut (voiced by Bob Ogle). In several instances, the duo were pursued by Fearless Freddy the Shark Hunter (voiced by Paul Winchell) in ''Merry Sharkman, Merry Sharkman'' and ''To Catch a Halibut''.

All entries were directed by Robert McKimson (who died suddenly after production was completed) with co-direction from Sid Marcus and produced by David H. DePatie and Friz Freleng. The music and score for the series were composed by Doug Goodwin. A brief version of the John Williams ''Jaws'' theme was used with the variation of the two-note theme. None of the shorts contained any credit information; only the series title, episode title, 1976 copyright and end titles were shown. All episodes include a laugh track.

The game takes place on a "steampunk" type of world. The Dark Acolytes, a mysterious organization of cyborgs and robots, is trying to find the five legendary Sacred Flames, and bring chaos to the World in the process. Meis, a womanizing "Spirit Blacksmith" with the ability to make magical weapons, finds himself chosen to find the flames before the Dark Acolytes do. However, to increase the power of his weapons, Meis must have the help of a woman, and must increase his 'intimacy level' with her by going out on dates. Along his journey, he meets a colorful cast of characters, including girls to date and allies to join his party.

A new King of Fighters tournament is announced, though the letters of invitation sent out to the fighters are no longer sent by Rugal Bernstein. There are many changes in the tournament's approach. Since the previous year, the tournament's fame has grown immensely, turning it into a major international event. Huge corporations transform the King of Fighters tournament into something widely televised, commercialized, and celebrated, drawing in many crowds from around the world. The tournament is now held by Chizuru Kagura, a descendant of the ancient Yata Clan responsible for sealing the snake demon Orochi along with the Kusanagi and Yasanaki clans (the clans from Kyo Kusanagi and Iori Yagami, respectively). Chizuru uses the tournament in hopes of finding and recruiting Kyo and Iori in order to stop the upcoming Orochi threat, but Kyo and Iori aren't willing to work together on friendly terms.

One year after both the conclusion of the World Heroes Battle Fest and the defeat of Zeus, invitations has been sent to the 16 fighters by Dr. Brown, informing them of a new World Heroes tournament that will help finally settle the question of who is the strongest fighter in history. With the 16 fighters preparing themselves in order to finally determine who is the strongest fighter in history, Zeus seeks to gain his revenge against those who had caused his downfall, but little does Zeus and the rest of the fighters know and realize that an old enemy from the past is also back and that he too has his own personal desire for revenge as well.

One year has passed since most of South Town was decimated by the now-destroyed Zero Cannon. Another KOF tournament is being held and this time, it's hosted by the NESTS cartel, the group of antagonists behind the events of the previous two games.

K′ and Maxima return to put an end to NESTS once and for all. They are now joined by former Ikari Warriors Team member Whip and the assassin Lin formerly from Benimaru's Team, both of whom are seeking the destruction of NESTS as well. NESTS sends their own team to compete in the tournament, composed of NESTS agents Kula Diamond, K9999, Foxy, and Ángel. Kyo Kusanagi joins his former teammates of Benimaru Nikaido and Goro Daimon, reuniting the original Japan Team along with Shingo Yabuki, while Iori Yagami joins a team composed of agents Seth, Vanessa, and Ramón. Yuri Sakazaki rejoins the Art of Fighting Team, while King and Mai Shiranui once again lead the Women Fighters Team along with the returning Li Xiangfei and Hinako Shijo. Heidern also makes his KOF return, taking Whip's place in the Ikari Warriors Team, while Kim Kaphwan s young student May Lee takes over Jhun Hoon's place in the Korea Justice Team, the latter being unable to compete due to an injury.

Pud Pud is trapped in Weird World and needs to escape. He must explore Weird World looking for ten puddings and avoiding the deadly kiss of Mrs Pud Pud.

The game revolves around The King of Fighters, an elite fighting tournament. The tournament at the center of the game is sponsored by an unknown patron, whose identity becomes a matter of public interest in the country. The narrative is divided when the player faces a single fighter named Kusanagi, a clone of the returning warrior Kyo Kusanagi. From one path, following Kusanagi's defeat, the player faces a young man named Adelheid who is accompanied by his sister Rose. Once Adelheid is defeated, Rose threatens the winner with locking him in the area. In other alternative road, it is revealed that Kusanagi was created by Chizuru Kagura as an attempt to test the winner. Chizuru and her undead sister Maki challenge the player to a boss fight. Following the Kagura sisters' defeat, a woman named Botan reveals herself as the true mastermind behind the 2003 tournament, having brainwashed Chizuru. Botan's partner, Mukai, becomes the final boss and despite being defeated, claims success for his superior, having weakened the seal of the ancient demon Orochi.

Ukridge, observing the wealth displayed by a prominent boxing manager, resolves to get in on the game himself, and thus make his fortune. By good fortune, an old acquaintance of his from his world-roaming days, an enormous and powerful sailor named Billson, famed for his ability to mop up stevedores by the dozen in bar fights, has landed in England and is looking for shore work, having fallen for a barmaid named Flossie. Ukridge scoops him up, and the two visit James Corcoran prior to heading to the training ground.

Arriving at his first fight, Billson (now dubbed "Battling Billson") meets his opponent, and is touched by the man's life story. In the ring, this sentimentality affects his performance, until a few strong blows enrage him; he is, however, hesitant, and is knocked out when distracted.

Ukridge hears that the champion, Tod Bingham, is offering substantial prizes to anyone who can go two rounds with him; he puts his man forward. To ensure Billson's fighting instinct is not weakened by the man's reputation for kindness to his mother, Ukridge persuades Ukridge's girl Flossie to write a letter claiming she has been wooed away from him by the other fighter. This entails taking the girl out for dinner, on their friend George Tupper, who is mortified by the girl's plebeian dress and manners.

When the day of the prize bout arrives, Corky and Ukridge stand in the crowd, excitedly awaiting Billson's fight. However, the compere announces that the champ has been hit by a truck and will be unable to fight, to the disgust of all. Outside the hall, they encounter a bystander, who describes the "truck" that hit Bingham as an enormous, red-headed man in full rage - if only he'd thought to save his fighting for the ring, says the man, he could have made a tidy sum.

Billson would return in several other Ukridge stories.

In 1981, Terry and his younger brother Andy were orphans who raised themselves on the streets. They were soon adopted by Jeff Bogard, a master martial artist, eventually living in Southtown. When Terry was 10, they both witnessed the brutal murder of their adoptive father at the hands of Geese Howard. Knowing that they needed more training to confront Geese, the brothers made an oath to spend a decade to fine tune their martial arts before trying to avenge their father. Andy decided to perfect his own martial art over at Japan to differentiate himself from his older brother by being taught the Shiranui-ryū Ninjutsu (Shiranui Style Ninja Technique) and a form of empty-handed combat called Koppōken. Terry faithfully chose to wander in his home country, combining the Hakkyokuseiken fighting skills learned from his father, his father's mentor Tung Fu Rue who is the shih-fu of both the art of Hakkyokuseiken and the art of Bajiquan, and Terry also studied other martial arts abilities gained from the street fighters of South Town.

A decade later into the present, the crime lord Geese Howard organized a tournament, dubbed "The King of Fighters". Andy returns to South Town to reunite with Terry. After the Bogard brothers pay respects to Jeff's grave, they encounter and befriend the Japanese Muay Thai champion, Joe Higashi, from Thailand and learn about the K.O.F. tournament hosted by Geese. Andy enters with the two in an attempt to avenge their father, but lost the tournament to Geese's right-hand man Billy Kane before he could reach Geese, Joe Higashi also lost to Geese's muscle-bound henchman Raiden after getting passed by his bitter rival Hwa Jai. Terry then defeated all 7 fighters including his former mentor, Tung Fu Rue, and celebrated his victory, when suddenly Terry gets captured by two henchmen and sent to Geese's Tower by force, to have a one-on-one showdown with the crime boss himself. Geese was a formidable opponent for Terry, but he gained the upper hand by defeating him with a jump kick out of his tower, causing Geese to plummet to his death. As Terry left the tournament victorious, Andy felt a mixed sense of closure and returned to Japan to continue his training.

"The year, 1994. Once again the invitations to the King of Fighters find their ways to the world's most wicked warriors. But the patron of this little party remains unknown. It cannot be Geese, nor can it be Krauser. So who could they be from...? Among all the hopes and doubts, the legendary superstars of the fighting world begin to form their mighty teams. What type of battle with these magnificent fighters sure to go down in history show us? The voltage of the fan's excitement reaches a fevered pitch as the tournament finally approaches its beginning."

Rugal Bernstein, a notorious and ruthless but skilled and influential black market weapons and drugs dealer bored of the lack of competition, he decides to host a new King of Fighters tournament after the previous K.O.F. announcements. Rugal sent out 24 invitations to certain individuals around the world. Unlike the previous three K.O.F. tournaments depicted in ''Art of Fighting 2'', ''Fatal Fury: King of Fighters'', and ''Fatal Fury 2''; the new King of Fighters is a team tournament, with eight teams of three, each representing a different nationality.

At the tournament's conclusion, Mature, Rugal's personal secretary, invited the Japan team to fight their final match within Black Noah. It is there when Rugal revealed the true purpose of his tournament: defeat the winning team and add them to his grisly collection of previous challengers who were turned into statues. Kyo sees his defeated father there and decides to avenge him. As Rugal is finally beaten, he triggers the self-destruct mechanism on his ship. The team escapes and reflects on their victory.

After the defeat of both Dio and Neo Geegus at the end of ''World Heroes 2'', the world was saved from the threatening danger and that the 14 fighters who had participated in the World Heroes tournament had returned to their own respective time periods. However, one year later, the 14 fighters had received invitations to a new fighting tournament known as the World Heroes Battle Fest and that this tournament would take place over the next five days in different parts of the world, being watched by millions of fighting fans. Surprisingly, the 14 fighters learn that Dr. Brown is not the one who is sponsoring the tournament, but rather, a mysterious millionaire who is known simply as Mr. Z to the public. As the 14 fighters prepare themselves for the World Heroes Battle Fest, all of them have no clue or idea that Mr. Z has his own callous ambition for world domination and with the assistance of his two loyal servants, he vows to eliminate anyone who dares to get in his ruthless way.

Three years have passed since Terry Bogard had defeated Wolfgang Krauser and won the second "King of Fighters" tournament. Ever since then, Terry has traveled throughout the world, meeting new friends and battling many opponents along the way. Upon returning home to South Town, Terry rendezvouses with his young brother Andy and his good friends Joe and Mai at the grand opening of the Pao Pao Cafe 2 that's being headed by Richard Meyer and his capoeira apprentice Bob Wilson. During the opening, Joe explains to Terry a disturbing rumor that he had gotten from Cheng Sinzan via a private message in that Geese Howard is supposedly alive, having survived his fatal fall from his personal tower four years prior and faking his death to the public so that he could slowly recover in secret and plan his revenge against Terry, who had defeated him in the first "King of Fighters" tournament. Upon hearing and learning of this, Terry and his friends set out to confirm on whether or not Geese is still alive, not knowing that their personal investigation is only a small part of a bigger threat which involves a dangerous Japanese criminal, two young Chinese orphans, and three sacred scrolls that could easily endanger South Town and the rest of the world.

The game is set one year after the events of the first game. Long before humanity existed, death was an unknown, equally distant concept. When death first came to the world, the "Messenger from Afar" was born. With time, the Sealing Rite was held to seal Death behind Hell's Gate. At that time, two worlds, one near and one far, were born, beginning the history of life and death. Half a year has passed since Suzaku's madness, and the underworld is still linked by a great portal. Our world has been called upon. Legends of long ago told of the sealing of the boundary between the two worlds. The Sealing Rite would be necessary to hold back the spirits of that far away world.

An ordained meeting of 28 fierce warriors begins, to precede a series of duels to the death. These individuals entrust their fates to their skill and their weapons. For those not up to the task, a cherished end in battle is their only hope.

The twenty-eight Samurai characters clash in one epic title.

Vera (Neve Campbell) is a femme fatale for the 21st century: a beautiful, capricious young woman living in New York who begins exploring the limits of her sexual and intellectual power. She picks up men on the street and has sex with them in her apartment. She also videotapes a sexual romp with a female lover and has sexually frank discussions with her potential employer. As the daughter of wealthy, indulgent parents, Vera seems to be improvising her way through the beginning of her life as an adult.

Her boyfriend, Ford (Frederick Weller), is a fast-talking hustler prepared to do anything to make a buck. Aware of Vera's promiscuity, Ford sees a chance to make big money when he meets an ageing Italian media mogul, named Count Tommaso (Dominic Chianese), who is enamoured of Vera because of her sexuality, her intelligence, and what he perceives as her naiveté. Ford cooks up an idea to pimp Vera out to the Count for $100,000, easy money, if he can only talk Vera into it. Incredibly, she agrees. Everything appears to be going even better than planned.

But both men have gravely underestimated Vera, who has an agenda of her own. Ford and the Count unwittingly play right into her hands, and when her plan of deception and manipulation comes to fruition, the results are staggering.

Sharon, a young Los Angeles woman, engages in a swinging, libidinous lifestyle. She comes into contact with a sect that advises her that the Rapture is imminent.

In time, she comes to accept this belief herself and becomes a born-again Christian. She then starts living a pious life, eventually marrying and having a daughter, Mary. When her husband Randy is killed in a senseless murder, however, she begins to question the benevolence of God. She believes God has called her to go to the desert to wait for the Rapture, and instead of leaving her daughter safely with friends, she decides Mary must come with her. Foster, a police officer, is concerned for their well-being after they are reduced to stealing food while they wait, but Sharon is insistent that the end is near.

Sharon begins to despair after a period of time, and at her daughter's urging, decides to hasten their ascendance to Heaven. She kills Mary with a gunshot but is unable to take her own life afterwards, afraid she will be condemned as having killed herself. She confesses to Foster what she had done and is jailed.

After an apparition of Mary (accompanied by two angels) appears in the night, the Rapture occurs. While Sharon sits in her cell early the next morning, a loud trumpet blast is heard all over the world, signaling the start of the Rapture. Later on, Sharon and Foster, after driving out into the desert, are both raptured to a Purgatory-like landscape. Foster, who had been an atheist his whole life, accepts God and is allowed entrance to Heaven, but Sharon blames God for Mary's death, even though God did not tell her to take Mary with her to the desert, and she cannot renounce her anger at what she sees as God's cruelty. Mary pleads with her to accept God back into her heart so she can join her and Randy in Heaven, but Sharon refuses, choosing to remain alone in the purgatory-like landscape for eternity.

Dr. John Rollason (Peter Cushing), his wife, Helen (Maureen Connell), and assistant Peter Fox (Richard Wattis), are guests of the Lama (Arnold Marlé) of the monastery of Rong-buk while on a botanical expedition to the Himalayas. A second group, led by Tom Friend (Forrest Tucker) accompanied by trapper Ed Shelley (Robert Brown), photographer Andrew McNee (Michael Brill) and Sherpa guide Kusang (Wolfe Morris), arrives at the monastery to search for the legendary Yeti or Abominable Snowman. Rollason, despite the objections of his wife and the Lama, decides to join Friend's expedition. Whereas Rollason is motivated by scientific curiosity to learn more about the creature, Friend seeks fame and fortune and wants to capture a live Yeti and present it to the world's press.

The expedition climbs high into the mountains and finds giant footprints in the snow, evidence of the Yeti's existence. As the tensions between Rollason and Friend rise, McNee is injured by a bear trap laid by Shelley to catch the Yeti.

When a Yeti is seen up-close by Kusang, he cries that he has "Seen what man must not see..." and flees down the mountain at double-speed back to the monastery, from where Helen and Fox decide to mount a rescue mission. McNee is also psychically sensitive to the Yeti's proximity, which finally leads to Shelley's shooting and killing a Yeti. The next day, McNee, hearing the haunting calls of the Yeti, hobbles from his tent and falls off a cliff.

Friend now hatches a plan to trap a live Yeti by having a steel net rigged to the ceiling of a cave, with Shelley waiting, as bait, to spring the trap. Friend has given him a rifle, but unbeknownst to Shelley, it's loaded with blanks. A Yeti does show up, ostensibly to retrieve its fallen comrade's body, and as it tangles with the net, Shelley tries firing the rifle. He dies of acute terror.

Friend finally decides to cut his losses and leave with the body of the dead Yeti. However, the Yeti telepathically plant thoughts in Rollason's mind, and then make Friend hear the dead Shelley's voice calling for help. Friend rushes outside, firing his gun and dies in a crushing avalanche that he caused.

Rollason takes refuge in the cave and watches in amazement as two Yeti arrive to take away the body of their fallen compatriot. He realizes the Yeti are an intelligent species biding their time to claim the Earth for themselves after humanity has destroyed itself.

The rescue party finds Rollason outside a halfway-point hut, where the Yeti have actually brought him. At the monastery Rollason asserts to the Lama that "What I was searching for, does not exist."

The tea party that was arranged by Hazel and Lady Prudence in ''Home Fires'' takes place in the Morning Room of 165, Eaton Place, and only three officers are there, along with Lady Berkhamstead and Mrs Vowles. Hazel befriends a shy, young airman called Jack Dyson, who like her has risen from the middle class. Lt. Jack Dyson MC and Hazel Bellamy soon start going out with each other. They go boating, see a show and go dancing, where they kiss passionately. The day before he goes back to the Front, Dyson goes to Eaton Place to say goodbye, but Hazel is out at the canteen. He then writes her a note, calling her his "only girl in the World".

Meanwhile, Georgina is now a nurse in France, along with her friend Angela Barclay and Jenny. James is now a Major, and when he arrives at Georgina's hospital, they spend the day together. When they separate at the end of the day, they kiss.

Lord Emsworth, his brother Galahad and butler Beach, hearing that devious neighbour Sir Gregory Parsloe-Parsloe has done the unthinkable and brought in a new and enormous pig from Kent, are in turmoil. Galahad and Beach are desperate to secure their savings, confidently invested in a wager on the mighty Empress, while Emsworth is as ever suspicious of his gloating neighbour.

Parsloe, meanwhile, is regretting becoming engaged to Gloria Salt, who has put him on a diet. His suspicions of Galahad lead him to put his pig man, George Cyril Wellbeloved, on a drink-ban too, a move of which Wellbeloved wholeheartedly disapproves; he also, on Connie's advice, orders a large quantity of ''"Slimmo"'', a slimming product, to aid his diet. Hearing about this suspicious purchase, a worried Galahad calls in Beach's niece Maudie, an old acquaintance and now proprietor of a Detective Agency, to keep an eye on things.

Penelope Donaldson heads up to London for the day, planning to meet up with her man, under cover of a dinner with an old friend of her father's. Jerry Vail, however, is forced to entertain his old flame Gloria Salt and cancels the date. Salt tells him Emsworth needs a secretary, and suggests talking pig to the Earl will get him the cash he needs to buy into a health farm and make his fortune.

Vail heads to Blandings, but Connie is suspicious, having heard his name when he called to cancel his date with Penny. Penny is furious, having been taken to ''Mario's'' by Orlo Vosper and seen Jerry with the attractive Gloria. When Jerry explains, she is suitably chastised, especially as, thinking her man had betrayed her, she had accepted Vosper's proposal of marriage.

When Wellbeloved visits Blandings to ask Gally to provide him with a drink (all the pubs in Market Blandings having been forbidden to serve him), Gally takes the opportunity to snatch Parsloe's pig, stashing it in the hut in the West Wood. Wellbeloved, finding the pig gone, nabs the Empress and puts her in the pen at Parsloe's place to cover up.

Vosper and Gloria Salt, their old love revived, run off together to be married, after Gally helps Vosper get out of being engaged to Penny, and Gloria writes to Parsloe ending their engagement. Wellbeloved spots Beach furtively heading for the shed, but his call to tell Parsloe of his discovery is intercepted by Gally, who has Beach move the pig to a nearby house, recently vacated by Gally's old friend "Fruity" Biffen.

Meanwhile, Emsworth, stricken with a cold, has been smitten by Maudie (posing as Mr Donaldson's old friend Mrs Bunbury), and writes a letter to her declaring his love, which he has Vail place in her room. She, meanwhile, pays a visit to Parsloe, with whom she once had an understanding, planning to give him a piece of her mind, but all is soon cleared up and the two become engaged. Emsworth, on hearing this, sends Vail to retrieve his letter, but has misdirected him into Connie's room; on finding Vail hiding in her closet, she promptly fires him.

Finding the Emsworth Arms uncomfortable, Vail lets the cottage with the pig in it. Fearing he will give the game away, Gally dashes round, but Vail has already been visited by a policeman and Wellbeloved. Gally removes the pig by car, but soon returns, having found the Empress in the Queen's sty. They head back to Blandings to tell Emsworth, leaving Beach, exhausted from cycling over, sleeping in the cottage. On their return, Parsloe is there, having been told by Wellbeloved that the Queen was in the kitchen and had Beach arrested for stealing his pig.

Gally explains to Parsloe that the Empress is in the kitchen, and the Queen in her sty, scuppering Parsloe. He then persuades Emsworth to invest in Vail's health farm, in gratitude for having found the pig, and Connie gives him another £500 for Beach, to prevent him suing Parsloe for wrongful arrest. Meanwhile, Parsloe's butler Binstead, having been refused a refund on the ''Slimmo'' no longer needed by his master, feeds it to the pig in the sty, thinking she is still the Empress...

The novel deals with teenager Vanya Smurov's attachment to his older, urbane mentor, Larion Stroop, a pederast who initiates him into the world of early Renaissance, Classical and Romantic art. At the close of the first part, Vanya is shocked to learn that the object of his admiration frequents a gay bathhouse. In order to sort out his feelings, Vanya withdraws into the Volga countryside, but his sickening experience with rural women, whose call on him to enjoy his youth turns out to be an awkward attempt at seduction, induces Vanya to accept his Classics teacher's proposal and accompany him in a journey to Italy. In the last part of the novel, Vanya and Stroop, who is also in Italy, are seen enjoying the smiling climate and stunning artworks of Florence and Rome, while Prince Orsini mentors the delicate youth in the art of hedonism.

Marnus Erasmus is an eleven-year-old boy who, with his family, lives in Cape Town, South Africa in the early seventies. The Erasmus family, as white Afrikaners, lives in a country where blacks and coloured people form the majority, but where the white Apartheid regime rules and Marnus' father is an important general in the army.

Marnus grows up believing that black people are second-class people because he has been indoctrinated by the Apartheid system and his parents' views. On the other hand we, the readers, see that all Marnus' encounters with black people have actually been positive. Marnus' father hates black people because his father, Marnus' grandfather, and his family were driven away and their land was expropriated by the black majority from Tanganyika, today's Tanzania. They fled to South Africa and, together with the descendants of other white settlers, turned it into an ostensibly modern state. Now Marnus' father thinks that the black people are going to destroy everything that they built up and that the white population has to prevent this by keeping the native Africans under control. Marnus' older sister Ilse, an intelligent and talented girl, under the influence of a stay in the Netherlands, but also of an aunt living in London, gradually begins to become more and more sceptic of her father's beliefs.

Marnus' best friend is Frikkie, who is also white. They attend the same school and they meet almost every minute in their free time. In the summer holidays Frikkie stays with Marnus in the Erasmuses' house, where Marnus' father often meets generals from other countries. He tells Marnus that he is not allowed to tell anybody else that there is a general from another country (Chile) visiting there, and that he has to call him "Mr. Smith". At dinner Marnus' father and the general speak about the political situation in the world. Mr. Smith says that he is relieved that his army has overthrown Allende's socialist government in Chile. Marnus' father tells the general that South Africa, too, is in a very bad position because the world is "against his country". He claims that the rest of the world is against them and that the white government of South Africa does not discriminate against the black population in any way.

Marnus makes an agreement with Frikkie that they will tell each other all their secrets, which is why Marnus ignores his father's warning not to tell anybody that he speaks with Mr. Smith. Marnus tells Frikkie that the whole world is against South Africa and that the coloured people are to blame for that.

One night Marnus wakes up and he notices that Frikkie is not in his bed. He can see the spare room through the floor-boards in his room and witnesses Frikkie being raped. He assumes the rapist is Mr. Smith who is supposed to have left that night, and goes downstairs to wake his parents, but finds his father is not in bed. He goes back upstairs and observes that the man who is raping Frikkie does not have a scar on his back like the General (Mr. Smith) and realises that it is his father. The next day he asks Frikkie if something happened during the night but Frikkie does not tell Marnus anything. Frikkie says that he has decided to go home and he does not want to stay longer. Marnus reassures himself that Frikkie will never tell anyone what happened.

In specially interspersed italicized sections of the novel set in the late 1980s, Marnus is presented to be a soldier in the South African Border War, in which he is apparently killed.

Jonathan "Johnny" Case (Cary Grant), a self-made man who has worked all his life, is about to marry Julia Seton (Doris Nolan), whom he met while on holiday in Lake Placid, New York. He knows very little about his bride-to-be, and is surprised to learn that she is from an extremely wealthy family, the youngest daughter of banker Edward Seton (Henry Kolker).

Then Johnny meets Julia's vivacious elder sister, Linda (Katharine Hepburn), to whom he confides his plan to take a long holiday from work to find the meaning of life. He also meets the sisters' younger brother, Ned Jr (Lew Ayres), an alcoholic whose spirit has been broken by subservience to their father. At first Julia's father is stunned when she tells him her plan to marry Johnny, but is appeased after meeting Johnny and looking into his work history. Edward Sr. plans an elaborate New Year's Eve engagement party, even though Julia had promised Linda that she, Linda, could throw a smaller party for Johnny and herself, one that would include only close friends.

On New Year's Eve, upset that she did not get to throw the engagement party she was promised, Linda refuses to come downstairs. Julia sends Johnny to get her, and he finds her and Ned in "the playroom", the one truly human room in the enormous and over-built Park Avenue mansion. They are with Johnny's off-beat friends, Professor Nick Potter (Edward Everett Horton) and his wife Susan (Jean Dixon), who had gotten lost in the house and serendipitously ended up there. The group spends a joyful time together, and Julia and Edward Sr. find them just as Johnny and Linda are completing a tumbling trick.

Mr. Seton later offers Johnny a job at his bank, and Johnny reveals his plans for a holiday from work. Julia is appalled that her boyfriend had said no to her father. After seeing in the New Year with Linda, and the announcement of the engagement to the assembled guests, Johnny tries to kiss Linda. She kindly rebuffs Johnny, reminding him that she will soon be his sister-in-law. Johnny leaves the mansion in a dark mood without saying goodbye to the family, although wishing the kitchen staff a Happy New Year as he goes. Linda tells her brother that she has fallen in love with Johnny but, because of her love for her younger sister, she will keep her feelings to herself.

Hoping to patch things up between Johnny and Julia, Linda visits the Potters, and finds them packing for a voyage to Europe. They tell her that Johnny is planning to go as well, and that he has asked Julia to go with them. A telegram arrives, informing them that Julia has turned him down. Linda returns home, hoping to change her sister's mind, but they argue instead. Julia is certain that Johnny will give up his plans and return to her. Just then Johnny arrives with a compromise: He will work at the bank for two years, but will quit then if he is unhappy.

Mr. Seton accepts this, and Julia and he begin planning the couple's honeymoon in minute detail, mixing together stops at the homes of relatives with business-related matter. They discuss hiring servants to work in Julia and Johnny's new home, which he also just finds out about. This makes Johnny realize that Julia and Edward Sr.'s plan won't work, that marrying Julia on these terms will be more of an encumbrance on his freedom than he can abide. He begs Julia to marry him that evening, and travel to Europe with him. She says no. He leaves to meet the Potters and sail.

Linda sees from Julia's reaction that she is relieved by Johnny's decision. Linda makes Julia admit that she does not really love Johnny after all. With the way now clear, and inspired by Johnny, Linda renounces her father's stifling influence and declares her independence. She asks Ned to go with her, and when he can't, she promises to come back for him. Linda rushes off to meet Johnny and the Potters to go on holiday.

Meanwhile, the Potters arrive at the ship, saddened that Johnny had decided to take the job at the bank. Johnny surprises them, and explains that he couldn't go through with it, and they cheerfully celebrate. Johnny is doing a back flip in the ship's hallway when Linda arrives. Seeing her while in mid-handspring, Johnny falls on his stomach rather than finishing. As she greets the three of them Johnny takes her hand, pulls her to the floor, and they kiss.

In 1957 Paris, a series of mysterious killings are committed against young women of the same blood type who are found dead and drained of their blood. The press reported these killings as being performed by a murderer coined "The Vampire". The journalist Pierre Lantin (Dario Michaelis) begins to investigate and becomes more involved when his fiancée, the dancer Nora Duval, is kidnapped. As Inspector Chantal (Carlo D'Angelo) examines the crime scene, Lantin arrives predicting that the crime was committed by the Vampire. Lantin investigates the school that the latest murder happened at to search for clues and finds that the woman was being followed by a tall man before the murder. Elsewhere, a man named Joseph (Paul Muller) begs for "his fix" in a dark room, but is told to go after a woman named Lorette (Wandisa Guida) and that he "knows what to do" at Rue Saint Etienne. Joseph arrives at the location and is spotted by Lantin, but manages to get away from him. Joseph arrives at the clinic of Professor Julian Du Grand (Antoine Balpêtré) and demands money to leave town or he will report what is happening to the police. He is strangled by Du Grand's assistant when a shadowed woman named Marguerite arrives and states that if the police track them down, it will be the end of Du Grand's career. A newspaper headline later reveals that Professor Julian Du Grand has died unexpectedly.

After a funeral procession for Julian, a group of men arrive and reveal that the body buried was that of Joseph. Joseph's corpse is taken to a castle, where he is experimented on by Julian who is attempting to discover the secret for eternal life. Later, Lorette meets a blind man in the street who asks her to drop off a letter. On dropping the letter off, she is kidnapped and finds herself locked in a bedroom with the skeletons of the Vampire's previous victims. As the police try and track down Lorette's kidnappers, Lantin is reassigned from following the Vampire story and is set to cover a ball at the castle of Du Grand. At the castle, he meets Gisele (Gianna Maria Canale), who expresses admiration for Lantin as he reminds her of his father. Lantin leaves the party and is pursued by the photographer Donald. Lantin states he does not want to lead on Gisele with her emotions, which leads to Donald re-entering the castle to profess his love for Gisele. Gisele turns him down as her face begins to grow old before his eyes and she reveals that each person killed restores her youth for a short time. Knowing her secret is his death warrant as she reaches for a pistol and murders Donald. Gisele then calls upon Professor Julian to make her eternally young. Julian states that under her fragile emotional state it may not work, but begins an experimental transfer Lorette's youth and beauty to Giselle.

Gisele meets Pierre the next day when she is picking up a painting where he spots odd behavior in her such as writing with the wrong hand, which leads him to return to her castle to investigate further. Gisele begins growing ill from her previous experiment and calls upon Professor Du Grand to aid her. As he leaves, Joseph awakens in Du Grand's lab. Pierre triggers an alarm, which has him race out the castle where he meets the disoriented Joseph. Pierre takes Joseph to the police station where he reveals he was the kidnapper of the young women, but the people in the castle are the real murderers. The police arrive looking for Marguerite, but only find Gisele who denies any knowledge of Joseph. Pierre and the police explore the castle without finding clues. On leaving, Gisele begins transforming back into Marguerite before their eyes, prompting for an emergency search of the castle. A gun battle ensues between Du Grand's assistant and the police, leaving the assistant and Du Grand shot. This leads the police to open his grave, where they find Lorette. Lorette is sent home and Inspector Chantal reveals that Giselle confessed to the crimes and died shortly after.

The show features the Darretts, a family of stunt-driving crime fighters, who investigated and thwarted wrongdoing while operating under the front of a traveling show known as the "Pole Position Stunt Show", which was sponsored by the United States government in order to give cover for their investigative activity and provide maintenance for the high-demand vehicles. The Darretts had two adult children and a third child who was much younger in age. A road accident ended the life of the parents, and the father's younger brother, known as Uncle Zack, took charge of the stunt show. He said that now that the patriarch and his wife were dead, it was incumbent upon the two adult children, Tess and Dan, to continue their parents' dangerous and proud work.

The vehicles feature numerous hidden gadgets like water skis and hover jets. The vehicles' computers themselves are portable and can be removed from the dashboards and carried around using handles—thus they are often referred to as "the modules". The modules are characters appearing as talking computer-drawn faces displayed on video screens.

Characters

• '''Tess Darrett''' – Tess is the older sister of Dan and Daisy and the ''de facto'' leader of the group who drives Wheels. Tess is voiced by Lisa Lindgren.
• '''Dan Darrett''' – Tess's hot-headed younger brother who drives Roadie. Dan is voiced by David Coburn.
• '''Daisy Darrett''' – The younger pre-teen sister of Dan and Tess. Daisy is voiced by Kaleena Kiff.
• '''Dr. Zachary Darrett''' – A wheelchair-using engineer and uncle of the Darrett kids. He runs the Pole Position operation and vehicle development. He is voiced by Jack Angel.
• '''Kuma''' – Daisy's pet, Kuma is a strange genetic hybrid between a raccoon and a monkey. Kuma is voiced by Marilyn Schreffler.
• '''Wheels''' – a red and black 1965 Ford Mustang driven by Tess. Wheels's AI computer is more careful than Roadie. Wheels is voiced by Melvin Franklin, who was a member of The Temptations.
• '''Roadie''' – a more futuristic-looking light-blue coupe driven by Dan. Roadie's AI computer is very smart and keeps Dan out of trouble. Roadie is voiced by Darryl Hickman.

Lieutenant Commander Data, while practicing acting in an ''Enterprise'' holodeck, is surprised when the Orient Express train drives through his set of Shakespeare's ''The Tempest''. Later, the ''Enterprise'' suddenly jumps into warp on its own; subsequent investigation shows that the ship had been undergoing a deadly theta flux distortion, and only by jumping into warp was the ship saved from destruction. Data postulates that this may be a previously unknown safety feature of the ''Enterprise'', and he and Chief Engineer La Forge investigate the ship, soon discovering one of several small nodes connecting the various ship systems within the ship, all protected by their own force fields. The bulk of the nodes connect to the holodeck, and the crew go to investigate.

Inside, they find themselves on the currently-running Orient Express simulation, where several random characters are interacting in strange manners. Data attempts to shut the program down to no avail. As they watch, a gangster character shoots and kills the train's engineer, and the conductor pulls on a cord; the ''Enterprise'' is suddenly sent into warp again. On leaving the holodeck, the crew finds many more of the nodes about the ship, connecting all the major systems save the main computer; Data believes the formation of the nodes are similar to the human brain's structure, and posits that the ''Enterprise'' is developing its own intelligence.

Data, Worf and Counselor Troi return to the holodeck to learn more. The gangster character takes a brick from the engineer and gets off at the next stop - Keystone City - which the three follow. The gangster places the brick in a wall, completing it; at the same time, La Forge detects a power surge in a cargo bay and finds a strange object being constructed atom by atom. Data attempts to access the holodeck circuits, but this causes the ship to shake violently. Troi believes that the characters are trying to act out various roles in the creation of a new entity, and Captain Picard agrees with letting the simulation run its course and the object in the cargo bay, considered to be a new lifeform, to develop.

On the holodeck, Data, Worf, and Troi return to the train, and find it is heading for Vertiform City, its final destination; meanwhile, the ''Enterprise'' has arrived at a white dwarf star and has started the collection of vertion particles from it, feeding them into the new object in the cargo bay. However, the supply of particles from the star is limited, and the object's glow starts to wane; on the holodeck, the simulated characters have a shocked response, and the conductor pulls the emergency brake, which causes not only the train to stop but cause power to drop all around the ''Enterprise''. La Forge determines without new vertion particles, the lifeform will die out.

Suddenly, the ''Enterprise'' re-enters warp, diverting power from all other ship's systems, including life support, to maintain its top speed; the conductor on the holodeck simulation states they are now heading for New Vertiform City. With time short for the crew, Data suggests to the conductor that he knows a shorter route, and gains access to the train's engine, from which he can control the ''Enterprise'' s course. With La Forge's help, Data directs the ship to a nearby nebula, and subsequently fires a modified torpedo at it, causing the generation of numerous vertion particles. The ship collects these and completes the lifeform, while the simulated passengers on the train celebrate their arrival. The completed lifeform rises on its own and leaves the cargo bay; the ''Enterprise'' returns to normal operation. After verifying their systems have returned to their control and returning to their previous mission, the crew speculate on the nature of this new lifeform.

The Swallows, Amazons and Ds are camping in the Blackett family's garden at Beckfoot. The ''Swallow'' is not available for sailing. James Turner (Captain Flint) has sent word that he is returning from an expedition to South America prospecting for gold, and has sent "Timothy" ahead. As he can be let loose in the study, the Amazons and D's have already deduced that Timothy is an armadillo, and Titty, Dick and Peggy make a box for him, but he does not arrive. Slater Bob, an old slate miner, tells them a story about a lost gold vein in the fells. As Captain Flint has been unsuccessful in his prospecting trip, the children plan to prospect for gold on ''High Topps'' instead, as a surprise for Flint.

When Mrs. Blackett shows doubts, the children prove they can stay in touch with Beckfoot using the homing pigeons that give the book its name, and earn permission to move camp to Tyson's Farm, up near the fells, to be closer to the prospecting grounds. They are disappointed in that Mrs Tyson does not permit them to cook over a campfire, owing to drought conditions and her fear of fires, meaning that they have to keep in time with her meal-schedules. Titty eventually finds a spring by dowsing, and they move closer to the Topps. They send daily messages home by pigeon.

While exploring the ground, they notice a rival prospector whom they call "Squashy Hat". After days of prospecting, Roger finds a seam of gold-coloured mineral in an old mining excavation, and crush enough of it in order to produce a golden ingot in a charcoal furnace. Unfortunately, it disappears when the crucible breaks, and Dick, the expedition's professor, has only a small amount to test. Meanwhile, Squashy Hat is consulting the old slate miner, entering through beneath the fell via an old mine working. Seeing him, the younger three children walk inside the fell, resulting in Titty having to follow them in to look for them, with very nearly fatal results. Christina Hardyment writes that venturing into the Old Level was probably the most idiotic thing that any of Ransome's characters ever did.

Captain Flint returns home, and finds Dick doing chemical tests on the putative gold in his study. Dick has read that gold dissolves in aqua regia, but Captain Flint explains "''Aqua regia'' will dissolve almost anything. The point about gold is it won't dissolve in anything else…". He shows Dick by other tests that they have found copper pyrites, a rich copper ore.

A pigeon named Sappho, whom they had previously labeled as "undependable", suddenly arrives with an urgent message from Titty, ''FIRE HELP QUICK''. Captain Flint rings Colonel Jolys, who musters his volunteer fire fighters, and they all rush to help save the Topps. After the fire on the fells is extinguished, Squashy Hat is revealed to be Captain Flint's friend Timothy, who has been too shy to introduce himself to the children. Captain Flint is pleased to find copper, as he had talked with Timothy above Pernambuco in South America about new ways of prospecting for copper on the fells, and planned to look for copper using new methods not known to the "old miners". Indeed, when the search for gold in South America was unsuccessful, their second plan was to look for the copper in the Topps.

Whilst the mining project is briefly mentioned in ''Secret Water'', the project itself recurs in the later book ''The Picts and the Martyrs'', with Slater Bob turning back to mining for metal instead of slate.

Ex-con Otis Samuel Sr. or "O2" on account of his ability to vanish from a crime scene like oxygen, has done his time and is determined to stay out of trouble and never leave his young son, Otis, Jr.

When O2 shows up late to pick Junior up from school, he swears that he will always come back for Junior. That promise is put to the test just moments later when O2's vintage 1966 Chevrolet Impala SS Lowrider convertible is stolen from him at gunpoint in the middle of a crowded Southland intersection with Junior in the back seat, kidnapping him in the process. O2 chases the car and gets into a nasty gun battle with the carjackers, but to no avail.

O2 catches up with Coco, a woman who sells stolen suits for P Money. O2 knows she is the one who marked him for the carjacking, and he forces her to help him retrieve Junior. The two steal a car (a 1996 Impala SS sedan) and Coco's boyfriend savagely beats her. Seeing this, O2 pistol whips him with his gun before the two retreat to Lucky's home. Lucky, Otis' unreliable cousin who works for Big Meat, the leader of the Outlaw Syndicate, offers to help.

After a few hours, Lucky comes back with some bad news: Meat has Junior and demands that O2 deliver $100,000 by midnight the next night, or Junior will die. Meat was once O2's partner and thinks O2 still has the $100,000 they made off their last job together.

O2 comes up with a plan: he and Coco will rob P Money's and Meat's own operations, staging it to look like one is stealing from the other, and triggering a gang war that will hopefully eliminate both and help O2 and Coco rescue Junior. After a successful robbery of one of the Big Meat's locations, O2 and Coco come across a set of safe deposit box keys belonging to numerous banks.

The next day, they stage a number of bank robberies and are able to retrieve expensive jewelry, which Lucky offers to get rid to prove his worth. When Lucky takes the jewelry to Big Meat unknowing that it belongs to Big Meat, Lucky is forced to set up a meeting between himself, O2, and Coco, with Big Meat along to end O2.

They take the car to an alley and give him the money. It is revealed that Big Meat never intended to let Junior live and signals one of his men to kill Junior. Lucky sees this and tackles him as the man shoots, one shot hit Lucky in the side of the chest. O2 kills Meat and his men and retrieves Junior.

They stop at a gas station to attend to Lucky's wound. O2 tells Lucky they will get him to a hospital, but Lucky dies from his wounds. Distress from O2’s discovery causes him to briefly lose control of the car, and alert the police. O2 hides in a parking lot and tells Coco to take Junior to the Mexican border while he outruns the cops. As Junior and Coco escape, O2 is tailed by the cops. They run him to a dead end where the lake is. O2, realizing he has no choice, drives into the water.

Later in Mexico, Coco and Junior are living in a house on a beach. They are walking on the beach when they see O2 in the distance and then reunite.

Centered on the life of Travis Jordan, ''The Visitation'' begins when miracles, ranging from a healing, weeping crucifix to sights of Jesus in the clouds, start occurring, giving way to the arrival of a man who calls himself Brandon Nichols. Nichols begins healing people; giving a man who lost the use of his legs in the Vietnam War the ability to walk, and performing various other "healings". Most of the townspeople — who are portrayed as disillusioned, post-Pentecostal farmers — begin to believe in Nichols as a Messiah.

Brandon Nichols begins to hold "revival meetings" on a large ranch outside of town every Sunday, and many churchgoers in town stop going to Sunday morning mass/services and instead listen to Brandon talk and watch him "heal". It is at this point that Nichols arouses the ire of one of the local ministers, Kyle Sherman. Enlisting the help of Travis Jordan, he seeks to prove that the so-called Brandon Nichols is not in fact a "better" Christian Messiah, but a puffed-up egomaniac using occult powers.

In the end, the team (along with the help of a few others) uncover a host of pseudonyms and a hefty helping of deception surrounding Nichols' past. Startling parallels are revealed with the life story of Travis Jordan, all of which come to light as the story progresses.

Hamar, Lord High Priest of Egypt and boyhood friend to Pharaoh Khufu, chronicles his reign. Khufu has amassed a fabulous treasure with which he is to be entombed and only wants two more things in this life: a son and heir and a secure tomb free from the threat of grave robbers. Dissatisfied with his own architects' offerings, he enlists Vashtar, whose agreement he gains by offering to free Vashtar's people when the work is completed – although Vashtar will have to die to guard the pyramid’s secrets. Later Vashtar demonstrates to Khufu and Hamar how he will seal the entire pyramid with a solid stone in a matter of moments once Pharaoh's body and treasure are within.

The years pass and Hamar, Khufu, his queen Nailla and Vashtar visibly age. Khufu now has a young son, Prince Xenon, and Vashtar's son Senta is now a young man. The people of Egypt who once thought of the building of the pyramid as holy work now view it as bringing a lifetime of misery and drudgery. When outlying territories are laid under tribute, Princess Nellifer comes as the ambassador from the poor province of Cyprus and offers herself to Pharaoh instead, eventually becoming his second wife.

While Khufu is showing Nellifer his enormous hoard, she is allowed into an inner vault where the Pharaoh is saving the finest of the treasure for his "second life." She puts on a jewel-encrusted necklace which Khufu angrily demands she remove. After he leaves, she puts it on again and dares Treneh, the captain of the guard, to take it from her. In the end he becomes besotted with her.

Due to long hours working by candlelight, Vashtar's eyesight is failing, so he shares the secret of the tomb and gets his son to help him. One day on the construction site, Senta saves Khufu from a runaway stone block. In order to get the injured Khufu out, Senta reveals his knowledge of the tomb and so must now share his father's fate. Promised anything else as a reward, Senta chooses Nellifer's slave Kyra. When Nellifer protests, Pharaoh harshly rebukes her in front of the court.

Humiliated, Nellifer conspires with Treneh to purchase a cobra to kill Queen Nailla while he is away at an oasis. After being informed of the queen's death, Khufu begins investigations. Nellifer then dispatches her servant Nabuna to kill Khufu at the oasis, but he only manages to wound Khufu before being killed himself. Seeing Nellifer's slave and now suspecting her, Khufu rushes back to the city, where Nellifer manipulates him into a sword fight with Treneh. Though Khufu wins, his old wound is reopened and he collapses from blood loss. As he lies dying, he recognizes the forbidden necklace that Nellifer is wearing and realizes her guilt.

After Khufu's death, Hamar releases Vashtar and Senta from their death sentences: once the tomb is sealed the secret will not matter. Nellifer is angered, however, to find that Hamar has already had the treasure moved to the tomb and learns from him that she will not rule in Egypt as Prince Xenon’s regent until she herself gives Pharaoh burial. To appease her, Hamar lets it be known that he and the mute priests who assisted with the building will be entombed along with Pharaoh.

At Pharaoh's funeral, Hamar has Nellifer accompany the body into the burial chamber to give the order to seal the sarcophagus, but she then realizes that she is trapped there herself by the swiftly moving machinery. "There's no way out," Hamar tells her; “this is what you lied and schemed and murdered to achieve. This is your kingdom."

At the end, Vashtar and Senta are seen on the way to their homeland and looking back to gaze at the pyramid.

Fontaine Khaled (Joan Collins) is the London wife of a wealthy Arab businessman. She spends his money on her nightclub, ''Hobo'', and her rather hedonistic partying lifestyle. She hires a handsome manager, Tony (Oliver Tobias), to run her club, but it is understood that his job security is dependent on his satisfying her nymphomaniac demands. Tony loses interest in Fontaine, as she treats him like a plaything, and turns his attention to her young stepdaughter Alexandra Khaled (Emma Jacobs), who uses him to get back at Fontaine after she discovers a video tape of Fontaine and Tony having sex in the Khaleds' private elevator, essentially cheating on her father. Fontaine then dumps Tony and is divorced by her husband for adultery.

Following from where ''The Stud'' left off, Fontaine Khaled is now a divorcee. While she still leads an extravagant jetset lifestyle and did get a rather hefty divorce settlement, she no longer has the financial security of being a billionaire's wife and her once-successful London nightclub, "Hobo", is now failing due to a newer club taking away most of the former patrons. While on a flight returning to London from New York, she meets handsome Italian gambler Nico Cantafora. In order to impress Fontaine, Nico pretends he is a wealthy businessman, though he is actually a conman who owes money to the mafia, and he covertly uses Fontaine to smuggle a stolen diamond ring through airport customs which he intends to sell in London to pay off his debts.

Nico later tracks Fontaine down in order to retrieve the ring she unwittingly carried through customs for him. They spend the night together but when she discovers that he planted the ring in her coat, she throws him out. However, when Nico later learns that the ring is a fake, he gives it to Fontaine as a light-hearted gift and she forgives him. Meanwhile, Fontaine's own financial problems continue to mount and her accountant warns her that she is rapidly running out of money. To combat this, she attempts to restore her failing nightclub to its former glory. Meanwhile, she learns of Nico's mob connections after he is beaten up by local gangsters due to the money he still owes them.

Later, Fontaine and Nico are invited to the country estate of Fontaine's best friends, Leonard and Vanessa Grant. The Grants own a racehorse named Plato that is favourite to win an upcoming high-stakes derby. Still in debt to the mafia, Nico is instructed by local gangland boss Thrush Feathers to ensure that Plato loses the race. To this effect, Nico blackmails the horse's jockey to throw the race. Fontaine overhears Nico's plan and meets with Feathers to get a cut of the deal with him which could solve her financial problems. Feathers agrees so that Fontaine will not interfere with his plans and will also be indebted to him.

On the day of the race, the jockey falls off the horse as planned and loses the race. Fontaine pretends to Nico that she gambled her entire fortune on Plato to win and is now broke, but Nico is ecstatic because he backed the winning horse and now believes he can get the mafia off his back once and for all. However, the mafia have other ideas for him and after he gives Fontaine his winning tickets to collect on his behalf, he is carted off by Feathers' henchmen. Fontaine, meanwhile, goes to collect a double payout - with Nico's winning tickets and her cut from Feathers for going along with his scam.

With the money she made from the horse race scam, and her nightclub a success again, Fontaine is saved from financial ruin but when she arrives at her club one evening, she meets Feathers there who tells everyone he is now the club's new owner.

A poor, single woman called Ellis (Linda de Mol), with a son, who meets Susan (Joan Collins), who wrote a successful book about 'How to marry a millionaire' and who now teaches classes on the subject.

Ellis attends the course, which is offered her for free. As a result, she meets many millionaires, of which several want to marry her. For one man who seemed rich, this turns out not to be the case. Nevertheless, after all Ellis chooses him.

On a rainy Sunday afternoon in Coventry Johnny takes his girlfriend to the cinema. In the intermission between films, as Johnny gets an ice-cream, she sees an advertisement on-screen asking for girls to compete for the position of Lady Godiva in the annual street festival. She decides she will enter.

Network television executive Gavin (Nestor Carbonell) hopes to reunite celebrated Hollywood stars Piper Grayson (Reynolds), Kate Westbourne (MacLaine), and Addie Holden (Collins) in a TV special after their 1960s film musical ''Boy Crazy'' is re-released to wide public acclaim in the 1990s. Though the three women share the same agent, Beryl Mason (Taylor), Gavin's seemingly insurmountable obstacle is that they all cannot stand one another.

'The Feeble Files'' is loosely based on elements of the dystopian novel ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'' by George Orwell which describes a government and society similar to Feeble's and features a protagonist with similar ambitions as Feeble's.

Characters

'''Feeble:''' A young and able scientist at the Ministry of Galactic Uncertainty (Crop Circle Division) whose main task is to travel to far corners of the galaxy, such as Earth's solar system, in order to burn circles in crop fields (whose exact objective apart from scaring the locals, however, is never revealed). After another day at work, Feeble encounters an asteroid field on his way back and crashes into a space probe, which in turn crashes into his workplace, thus getting him in serious trouble and, consequently, into the Freedom Fighters. '''Dolores:''' A freedom fighter who recruits Feeble into their ranks, helping him out of prison first. Tough, resourceful and persistent, she makes a model of a rebel. She is of the same species as Feeble, though is much taller than him (apart from his brother, their mother and their grandfather, there are no other Grenelons in the game). Dolores is a playable character in a short sequence of the game, the only one to employ a FPS kind of gameplay. *'''SAM:''' A 13-class intercepting robot, SAM is discovered by Dolores on board the prison vessel, shortly after their crash landing on the planet Filb. As a deadly dangerous and always willing to fight robot, SAM's relationship with the peaceful Feeble is, at first, rather shaky, though after a while they learn to get along quite well. SAM is the second playable character after Feeble.

Institutions

'''OmniBrain:''' The OmniBrain is the governing power of the galaxy, controlling and seeing everything via the all-powerful OmniCorporation and its tortuous bureaucracy, and the sinister Enforcers. The game states “he considers all life forms everywhere to be his citizens, and he loves them and cares for them in the way that is best for them, and wants them all to be happy. Praise be to the OmniBrain!" This fine line between a god and a dictatorship is explored at many points throughout the game. The OmniBrain is an obvious reference to Orwell's Big Brother. '''OmniCorporation:''' Widely known as the '''Company''', the OmniCorporation is the ruling body of Feeble's universe and its actual existence, unlike the OmniBrain's, is unquestionable. One of the Company's main objectives is to ensure that all citizens remain loyal and happy. The former is achevied by providing the citizens with various types of substances that lower one's abilities to think critically of the society they see around them. The latter is implemented by the so-called Happy Bots who patrol the city of Metro Prime, killing everybody that seems upset, even if the reason for their anxiety is by no means concerned with politics. The Company's counterpart in Orwell's novel is the Party. '''Ministry of Galactic Uncertainty:''' Feeble works for the Ministry of Galactic Uncertainty (Crop Circle Division). It is his job to fly to undeveloped planets, such as Earth, and create crop circles in order to increase the indigenous population's paranoia and uncertainty about the universe. This is to stimulate greater scientific investigation and technological development, until the planet is sufficiently advanced that it is ready to be absorbed by the OmniCorporation. '''Freedom Fighters:''' A group of rebels whose main and, apparently, only objective is to bring down the Company and the OmniBrain. The rebels have spent years trying to track down the OmniBrain's exact location in order to destroy him. The Freedom Fighters try to maintain contact with the population (and, possibly, recruit new members) by spreading Traitor TV, a TV channel outside the Company's control. The group is made up mostly of partisans and the game hints that in the course of their anti-Company struggle they have not refrained from killing civilians. The Freedom Fighters' means of recruiting new members are very cautious: the potential candidate is watched closely by one of the partisans and if he or she proves able to think independently and might serve to the rebels' cause, contact is established. Afterward, his or her Oracle is uploaded with a rebel version of the Encyclopedia (which might be a reference to Goldstein's book in ''Nineteen Eighty-Four''). In such a way Feeble was recruited by Dolores. The Freedom Fighters refer to one another as comrades and they might have been based on communist guerillas. '''Cygnus Alpha:''' The Company's most prominent penitentiary colony on board which hundreds of citizens are gradually brainwashed and deprived of all independent thoughts and feelings but unswerving love for the OmniBrain. The Cygnus Alpha security system comprises a network of screens that display a hypnotyzing spiral from time to time so as to make sure that no prisoner has time to think clearly for a longer period. The inmates divide their time into sleeping, eating disgusting food, watching TV and working on an assembly line that construct Company propaganda devices. '''Filb:''' A C-class planet outside the OmniCorporation, inhabited by a race of primitive blue aliens who worship as a god the only operative of the only Company outpost on the planet, Feeble's hated brother, Filbert, who uses them as test subjects for his experiments. *'''Directives:''' Directives are rules created by the OmniBrain to make the world better; there are over a million of them. As the game progresses a record is kept of all the rules that Feeble has broken.

In occupied France early in 1941, when Werner von Ebrennac, a German lieutenant with a limp, is billetted in a house in a small village that a retired man shares with his adult niece, the pair, without having to discuss it, agree never to speak to or acknowledge the unwanted intruder. Most nights as the uncle smokes his pipe and the niece does some sewing by the fire, the officer, at first dressed in his uniform and later in civilian clothes, comes to warm himself and politely engages them in a brief one-sided conversation. Speaking good French, he reveals that he is an unmarried composer and this is the first time he has been to France, though he has long studied and admired French literature and culture, which he seems to prefer to his own (except regarding music). Loyal to Hitler, he hopes the Nazi invasion will bring about a lasting "marriage" between France and Germany that will benefit everyone, a point he comes back to day after day and illustrates by referencing ''Beauty and the Beast'' (Germany being the beast, who only needs France accept it to turn into a prince). Werner often looks warmly at the niece as he extols the virtues of France; she remains obdurately silent, but occasionally betrays her growing feelings by a faint quiver of her fingers.

Werner gets some leave in the spring and spends two weeks in Paris. When he returns to the village, the uncle and niece do not see him for over a week. Finally, one night he knocks at the door and does not enter until the uncle, breaking his silence, invites the man in. Once more wearing his uniform, Werner tells his hosts about how his excitement to see Paris was undercut by the presence of the occupying forces and finally turned to disillusionment and despair once he learned about the Holocaust and was told by a group of fanatic German officers, including an old friend, that the Nazi plan is to destroy the French spirit and culture and subjugate France to Germany forever. Stopping short of urging the uncle and niece to rebel, Werner announces that he requested a transfer to the front, and he is leaving in the morning. When he says "adieu", the niece breaks her silence to whisper "adieu" in return.

The next day, the uncle sets out a quotation from Anatole France for Werner: "''Il est beau qu'un soldat désobéisse à des ordres criminels.''" ("It is a fine thing when a soldier disobeys a criminal order.") Werner reads it, exchanges glances with the uncle, and leaves. The niece and her uncle eat lunch in silence.

During a football game, an earthquake reveals buried toxic waste, and the fumes cause all of the attendees and players to mutate, including young Bones Justice (Bones Jackson in the games) a sports federation based around the superhuman beings, the Mutant League is formed and Bones grows up to play for the Midway Monsters. Corrupt league commissioner Zalgor Prigg constantly schemes to get the popular athlete to play for any one of the four teams he owns (Slayers, Evils, Derangers or Ooze), or if nothing else discredit him for refusing to join. Bones' search for his father and his personal quest to bring order to the league, are subplots throughout the series. Several other characters from the games such as Razor Kidd, Mo and Spew, K.T. Slayer, Grim McSlam and Coach McWimple regularly appear in the show.

Unlike the games, players did not die from their unique approach to contact sports; though frequently maimed to the point of losing body parts, through treatments in a machine called the '''Rejuvenator''' which bathed them in toxic chemicals, they would soon be as returned to health. The show also has no robot players (except in one episode where K.T. Slayer was benched by robotic clones of himself) and only five teams; the Monsters, the Slayers, the Ooze, the Derangers and the Screaming Evils. It also has the teams competing in all manner of sports, not just the ones seen in the games. Most commonly Football, but also hockey, basketball, soccer, baseball, volleyball and even monster truck races and sumo wrestling. As with the video games, all of these sports were modified with deathtraps and loose rules on violence to accommodate the near-indestructible nature of the players. Some episodes end with a "grudge match" between two particular players.

A line of action figures was released based on the show, but went virtually unknown.

Rumors of a Mutant League wrestling league surfaced featuring such characters as the Polluter, the Toxic Teacher and "Dad" (or possibly Butch Justice) but apparently never entered production.

Fictitious scientist Dr. Nils Hellstrom (played by Lawrence Pressman) guides viewers throughout the film. He claims, on the basis of scientific-sounding theories, that insects will ultimately win the fight for survival on Earth because of their adaptability and ability to reproduce rapidly and that the human race will lose this fight largely because of excessive individualism. The film combines short clips from horror and science fiction movies with extraordinary camera sequences of butterflies, locusts, wasps, termites, ants, mayflies, other insects rarely seen before on film and insectivorous plants/insects.

Technical advisers Roy Snelling and Charles Hogue were entomologists at the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History.

The story of ''Star Wars: Legacy'' starts 126 years after the film ''Return of the Jedi''. The comics feature Cade Skywalker, a descendant of Luke Skywalker, who was trained as a Jedi, but abandoned the New Jedi Order following its defeat by the One Sith. He apprenticed himself to the pirate Rav and lives among bounty hunters, smugglers and pirates such as his best friends Jariah Syn and Deliah Blue. Cade, in an attempt to avoid detection and his destiny, also dropped his last name and Jedi heritage while being reluctantly guided by Luke, now a Force ghost. The series begins with an attack on the Jedi Temple and the overthrow of the Galactic Alliance and the Fel Empire by the Sith.

Along with Cade and his friends, various other characters appear who are set against the Sith; including deposed Emperor Roan Fel and his Imperial faction, the remnants of the Galactic Alliance under Admiral Gar Stazi, and the remaining Jedi. After a large and costly war with the Sith Empire, Cade and his allies manage to kill the evil Sith Emperor, Darth Krayt. However, even without their leader, the Sith remain a powerful danger.

The second iteration of ''Star Wars: Legacy'' stars Ania Solo, a descendant of Han and Leia. It takes place in the aftermath of ''Star Wars: Legacy – War'', a comic miniseries which was set in the year 138 ABY.Star Wars: Legacy—War 6 As the series begins, Solo is running a junkyard on a backwater Outer Rim planet and living a life far removed from Emperors and royalty. However, the first issue sees her come into possession of a lightsaber and an Imperial communications droid; she discovers that she has been targeted for death, and is launched into an adventure unlike any she has seen before. The backwater world serves as a microcosm for greater galactic affairs, and the story expands outward, showing the reader what is happening in the highest levels of galactic government.

The first issue opened with a "giant lightsaber duel," and it additionally features the Imperial Knight, Yalta Val—an agent of the Galactic Federation Triumvirate—running into trouble in the Outer Rim. The Mon Calamari refugee Sauk, a friend of Solo's who works at an ice mining facility and gets pulled into the adventure by Solo. In the second issue, Solo is pursued both by local police and by an Imperial Knight determined to kill in order to get the lightsaber back. She is aided by formidable friends she has made as a black market salvage dealer. The series also features Sith, and the Princess Marasiah Fel of the previous ''Star Wars: Legacy''. It may eventually include an appearance by Cade, the earlier protagonist.

The Dunder Mifflin crew goes on a cruise on a Lake Wallenpaupack ship ''Princess''—in January. Michael Scott (Steve Carell) plans to use the cruise as both a party and a leadership training exercise. However, "Captain Jack" (Rob Riggle) keeps preventing him from giving a business lecture and compromises his metaphor involving himself as "captain" of the office.

The captain puts Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson) in charge of a prop wheel, which Dwight thinks is real. Jim Halpert (John Krasinski), who has brought his girlfriend Katy Moore (Amy Adams) on the cruise, and Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) share an awkward moment alone on the deck away from their significant others. Michael continually tries to take charge of the event by standing next to the captain and interrupting everything he says. When Michael falsely declares that the ship is sinking as a training exercise, his employees understand Michael's antics and stay put. However, the passengers panic, one of them grabbing a life vest and jumping off the ship. The captain temporarily detains Michael by zip tying him to the railing on the deck outside.

After hearing a war story from the captain, a drunken Roy Anderson (David Denman) is inspired to announce a date for his wedding with Pam. Jim is crushed and breaks up with Katy, realizing that he does not want to be with her. He confesses his feelings for Pam to Michael, who acts surprised and claims Jim hid his feelings well. Michael encourages him to not give up on Pam.

A scientist studying an ancient crypt near a grand mansion accidentally unleashes an evil curse. The curse reanimates the dead buried in the area, and the zombies devour the scientist. Three jet-set couples and the son of one of the women arrive at the mansion at the scientist's invitation. Rotting corpses quickly attack the guests as they begin rising from their graves. The group locks themselves in the mansion, and the zombies begin their siege past nightfall. The zombies then start to display unusually high levels of intelligence, using tools, axes to chop through doors, etc. One of the guests, George (Roberto Caporali), tries shooting at them but quickly runs out of bullets.

Zombies then break into the mansion and attack the guests in the library. One of the guests, the young Michael (Peter Bark), has become traumatized, and his mother, Evelyn (Mariangela Giordano), tries comforting him in another room. Michael, however, seems to be becoming sexually attracted to his mother and fondles her breasts while kissing her. Evelyn slaps him, and he runs off, screaming, "What's wrong?! I'm your son!" Michael then encounters the zombified Leslie, another guest, and stands still and stares at her while she shambles towards him, snarling and covered in blood. The group then decides to let the zombies inside the house, reasoning that they can distract them while they escape. Evelyn goes off to get Michael but finds Leslie has killed him, then has a nervous breakdown. The remaining survivors escape from the mansion and hide out until morning. They then find a monastery but discover that all the monks have become zombies. The zombie monks chase the rest of the survivors to a workshop in the middle of the forest, where they encounter the zombified Michael. Evelyn offers Michael to suckle at her breast, and he bites off her nipple. The last two survivors, Mark (Gianluigi Chirizzi) and Janet (Karin Well), are assaulted and killed by zombies in the workshop; as the scene fades, the zombies put their hands on Janet's head while she screams in terror. The misspelled "Profecy of the Black Spider" then appears on the screen ("The Earth shall tremble, graves shall open...they shall come among the living as messengers of death, and there shall be the nigths (sic) of terror") as the film ends.

Michael Scott (Steve Carell) accidentally burns his foot while grilling bacon on his George Foreman Grill, which he keeps next to his bed. After he makes a distress call to the office, Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson) comes to "rescue" him, but crashes his car into a pole. Dwight becomes more easygoing and friendly to his co-workers. He and Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) strike up a friendship as a result.

Michael becomes upset with the staff's lack of compassion towards his "disability". Under false pretenses, he brings in Billy Merchant (Marcus A. York), the building's property manager who uses a wheelchair, to discuss what it is like to be disabled. Billy leaves after Michael makes several offensive remarks, but not before pointing out to Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) that Dwight has suffered a concussion from his car crash.

Jim and Michael take Dwight to the hospital. Before they go, Pam bids "goodbye" to the concussed Dwight, aware that she will probably never see the good-natured version of Dwight Schrute ever again. They take Meredith Palmer's mini-van, and as Jim drives, he uses a spray bottle to squirt Dwight to keep him from drinking liquor from a bottle he found under the seat. Jim then turns the squirt bottle on Michael to stop him from wrestling the liquor bottle away from Dwight.

At the hospital, Michael insists that his burned foot is a more serious injury than Dwight's, to no avail. To add insult to over-dramatic injury, Dwight gets in a "that's what she said" joke that makes the doctor chuckle. Jim calls Pam to report Dwight's results. Pam coyly tells Oscar Martinez about Dwight's recovery as a way of getting the good news to Angela Martin, who is between them, as Pam is the only person in the office aware that Angela is Dwight's girlfriend.

Michael Scott (Steve Carell) is the only person who looks forward to "The Dundies", his annual awards show at the local Chili's restaurant. Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) tries to dissuade Michael from once again awarding Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) the "World's Longest Engagement" award. Meanwhile, Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson) learns that there is graffiti about Michael on the ladies' room wall (later revealed to have been written by Pam), and his attempts to investigate are embarrassingly unsuccessful.

At the awards show, Michael's performance as MC falls flat. Ryan Howard (B. J. Novak) is embarrassed when Michael awards him "Hottest in the Office". Pam's fiancé Roy Anderson (David Denman) and Darryl Philbin (Craig Robinson) leave, taking Pam with them. In the parking lot, Roy and Pam argue, and Pam returns alone to the restaurant, where she begins drinking beer and margaritas. Heckled by other customers, Michael decides to end the show, but an intoxicated Pam leads the office in encouraging him to continue. Relieved upon winning the Dundie for "Whitest Sneakers" (as opposed to a demeaning and sexual award), Pam gives a drunken acceptance speech and kisses Jim on the lips. This leaves Jim surprised, but happy.

As Jim recaps the Dundies for the camera, Pam stares at Jim with dazed fascination and then falls off her stool, and Dwight springs to her rescue, thinking Pam is having a seizure. He then tries to take off his dress shirt and tie, but a Chili's employee stops him. The employee then talks to the camera and says that Pam apparently was sneaking drinks off of others' tables, which is against the restaurant's rules. He then tells the audience that he Xeroxed her driver's license and she is never welcome at Chili's again. After the party is over, Pam runs to the camera and screams "I would just like to say that this was the best Dundies ever! Whoo!". In the parking lot, Pam admits to Jim that it was she who wrote the graffiti. She begins to ask Jim a question, but stops when she notices the camera. Jim helps Pam into Angela Martin's (Angela Kinsey) car and smiles as they leave.

Michael Scott's (Steve Carell) "best friend forever" Todd Packer (David Koechner) offends the staff with crude gossip about an upper management scandal. Toby Flenderson (Paul Lieberstein) informs Michael that he will conduct a review of the company's sexual harassment policies because the CFO resigned after allegations made by his secretary. Michael's indignation that this will put a damper on his easygoing office environment rises to outrage when he learns that the corporate headquarters is sending down a lawyer to talk to him. Michael and the warehouse staff mock the sexual harassment video, but the crude remarks come to a screeching halt when Jan Levinson (Melora Hardin) and the lawyer arrive from Corporate.

While Michael angrily announces that he can no longer be friends with his staff and that he will never tell another joke again, Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) goads Michael into breaking his vow immediately, to the approval of Packer. Michael's attitude suddenly changes when he realizes that he is not in trouble, and that the lawyer's job is to protect him. After Packer tells a crude joke at the expense of Phyllis, Michael defends her, telling the entire office that he finds Phyllis attractive and that the only thing he worries about when he is near her "is getting a boner".

Meanwhile, Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) waits with anticipation for her mother (Shannon Cochran) to arrive from out of town. Pam's mother arrives and asks in whispers (shushed by an embarrassed Pam), "Which one is Jim?" Michael stops Packer when he tries to share another inappropriate joke and concludes with his misguided thoughts on sexual harassment.

While Michael Scott (Steve Carell) leaves with Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson) to sign closing papers for his new condominium, the staff fills out their expense reports. Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) "dies" of boredom, and Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) revives him by calling him to the reception desk and throwing objects into Dwight's coffee mug. Jim discovers that his co-workers have their own office games, such as Toby Flenderson's (Paul Lieberstein) "Dunderball", and Kevin Malone (Brian Baumgartner) and Oscar Martinez's (Oscar Nunez) "paper football flicking and hitting" game, "Hateball" (named because of Angela's dislike for the game). Jim and Pam organize the ''Games of the First Dunder Mifflin Olympiad'', competing for hand-made medals constructed from yogurt lids and paper clips. Some of the games include Flonkerton, a game where people race with cartons of paper strapped to their feet, and seeing who can stuff the most M&M's into their mouth.

At the condominium signing, Michael discusses the deal with his realtor, Carol Stills (Nancy Carell). Dwight finds a variety of things wrong with the condominium, and, at the very end of the deal, Michael gets cold feet but relents when he learns that backing out of the deal will cost him a substantial amount of money. When Michael and Dwight return, the coffee cup race quickly dissolves, and the office returns to normal. Michael isolates himself in his office, still upset over the closure of his condo.

When Ryan Howard (B. J. Novak) throws away his gold medal, Jim and Pam organize the "closing ceremonies", believing them important to the office staff. Michael is awarded a medal for closing on his condo, and the gesture appears to give him some reassurance of his decision. Michael feels touched by this and thanks everyone for the honor - a gesture that triggers his emotional tears during the closing scene of the episode.

In 1699, Dr Lemuel Gulliver is an impoverished surgeon who seeks riches and adventure as a ship's doctor on a voyage around the world. His fiancée Elizabeth strongly wishes for him to settle down, and the two quarrel.

Gulliver embarks on the voyage and soon discovers that Elizabeth has stowed away aboard his ship to be near him. A storm develops and sweeps him overboard. Gulliver is washed ashore on Lilliput, a land of tiny humans who see him as a threatening giant. The Lilliputians are afraid of Gulliver and tie him down with stakes to the beach, but he eases their fears by performing several acts of kindness. An old quarrel between Lilliput and neighboring Blefuscu is revived, and Gulliver lends a hand by towing Blefuscu's warships far out to sea. Lilliput's emperor then views the giant as a threat to his throne after Gulliver is critical of the reasons for the war (a debate about which end of an egg to cut). Gulliver escapes in a boat that he had previously built when the emperor orders his execution.

He makes his way to a large isle called Brobdingnag, unaware that it is inhabited by Brobdingnagians, a race of 60-foot giants. After making shore, he encounters a very kind 40-foot peasant girl named Glumdalclitch, who finds him on the shore and carries him to the castle of King Brob. Their law requires that all tiny people be brought to the king, who has a collection of "tiny animals." Gulliver is delighted to find Elizabeth, who was washed ashore following a shipwreck. The king installs the two in a dollhouse and lets Glumdalclitch look after them.

The king marries Gulliver and Elizabeth. After the wedding, Gulliver and Elizabeth go outside to celebrate but are attacked by a giant squirrel, which drags Gulliver into its burrow. However, Glumdalclitch is alerted and saves Gulliver by pulling him out of the burrow using her hair. When Gulliver later defeats the king at chess and cures the queen of a simple stomachache, Prime Minister Makovan accuses Gulliver of witchcraft. Gulliver attempts to explain science to them, but this is taken as further proof of sorcery. After Gulliver is forced to say what the king wanted to hear from him, the king orders Gulliver's execution and unleashes his pet crocodile against Gulliver, but Gulliver is able to slay the creature. The king orders him burned, but Glumdalclitch saves Gulliver and Elizabeth from the pursuing Brobdingnagians by placing them in her sewing basket and tossing it into a brook that flows out to the sea.

Gulliver and Elizabeth wake on a beach with Glumdalclitch's small basket behind them. A passerby of their own size indicates that they are only a short distance from their home in England. Elizabeth asks if it had all been a dream. Gulliver, now happy to settle down with Elizabeth, replies that the bad qualities of Lilliput's pettiness and Brobdingnag's ignorance are inside everyone. When Elizabeth asks about Glumdalclitch, Gulliver gives her a knowing look and says that she has yet to be born.

Tin Star, a six gun-armed sheriff with Mo Crash as his sidekick and Aluminum as his horse, tries to save the town of East Driftwood from an overthrow by the criminal Bad Oil Gang. Led by Black Bart, its members include four Johnson brothers, Tiny, Bugsy, Lucky, and the Kid; and two Oil brothers, Snake and Crude. Bad Oil members have different strengths and incapacities, such as Snake Oil being fast with the gun but having poor aim, and Tiny Johnson being the opposite.

Tin Star's journey is chaotic from the start; a coach ride to the town is surrounded by criminals trying to shoot him, and when he arrives, he is instantly bombarded with missions of stopping the Bad Oil Gang's shooting of a saloon and cattle stampede. The town has just built its first railroad, which serves as its route to other prisons for the town's criminals to be sent. Many of the Bad Oil Gang members are sent to jail following multiple attempted train robberies; however, as Tin Star places the gang's Snake Oil in the slammer following a showdown, the inmates escape by wearing disguises and digging the ground for exits.

The Bad Oil Gang return to East Driftwood and shoot up the town disguised as women, taking advantage of the "Good Guy Code of the West" which restricts lawmen from shooting women and children. They try to rob a bank, take over another train, and trigger another cattle stampede. He dissolves all the incidents, in the process loophole-ing around the women-and-children rule by stating it applies only when unarmed females and juveniles are together. However, Tin Star is still unable to capture the group.

Tin Star is threatened with another quick draw by the Bad Oil Gang's The Kid Johnson. However, Tin Star faces the "Good Guy Code of the West" again, as The Kid, although an experienced gunfighter, cannot be shot due to being a child. The Kid goes away without any injuries, but the gang's leader, Black Bart, requests the kid disappear, and hires a town civilian to spread misinformation about Tin Star murdering the child. Tin Star is convicted of shooting a child and has his sheriff badge revoked, only to be taken by Black Bart, who replaces him. He is then knocked out by Mo's big brother and enemy, Schemp, and the Bad Oil Gang dumps the body in the middle of the desert.

Tin Star awakes to find his love interest and the mayor's daughter, Maria, informing him Mo has been kidnapped by the Bad Oil Gang, which is also terrorizing the saloon. Tin Star rides back to town disguised in a mask and saves Mo, stops a town shootout, finds The Kid and shows the residents he's still alive, successfully finishes off Black Bart in two quick draw encounters, destroys the Bad Oil Gang's headquarters, and gets his sheriff position back. What happens with Tin Star and Maria differs depending on the final score. Having below $750,000 results in Maria refusing to marry Tin Star, and $750,000–$999,999 results in the same with her instead marrying Mo, who inherited one million from his brother's will. If Tin Star has more than one million dollars, Maria is revealed to be Black Bart in disguise. Bart reasons that he wore it to learn Tin Star's secrets.

Ten years ago, a legendary fighter named Choi Gi-dong and a timid straight-A student named Park Young-joon leave for a high school field trip to Gyeongju city. But during their journey, fate befalls on them as they experience an unforgettable incident that would change the course of their lives.

One night during a school gala, Gi-dong leads his entire school to a huge brawl against a local gang while Young-joon chickens out and stays behind at the party by himself. The streets turn out to be a battlefield with blood gushing, heads bashing and bones breaking, but the gruesome fight nonetheless becomes history in the making. Gi-dong becomes admired for his bravery, while Young-joon gets ostracized for his fear.

Ten years later, Gi-dong and Young-joon coincidentally meet each other at a club in Gyeongju. Surprisingly, Young-joon turns out to be a big time gangster while Gi-dong becomes a daunting phys ed teacher who transferred to a high school in Gyeongju. They feel glad about their unexpected reunion, but the mood gets tense as they rekindle old yet not-so-fond memories.

Before they bid farewell, both Gi-dong and Young-joon suddenly find a pretty damsel named Ju-ran in distress. In an instant, they fall headlong in love with her as Ju-ran's gleeful smile sweeps them off their feet.

Gi-dong makes his claim on Ju-ran, but Young-joon calls it a fair game. Young-joon planned to make his trip to Gyeongju a short visit, but he extends his stay to win Ju-ran's heart and to get back at Gi-dong for old time's sake. Gi-dong gets infuriated over Young-joon's decision since he won't listen to him like the good old days. Even though fighting over Ju-ran becomes a grueling test to their friendship, the situation gets worse when they practically get the whole city involved. It's a fight to the finish to win one girl's heart, even if it takes a few bones to break.

Minako Aino is a 13-year-old young middle school student who is slightly distracted, out-spoken and dreams about someday finding her true love and boyfriend. One day, she encounters a talking white cat with a crescent moon on its forehead named Artemis. He reveals that Minako possesses the magical ability to transform into a much stronger, more powerful, and more beautiful girl than anyone.

He calls her "Sailor Venus" and tells her she has a mission to protect Earth in the name of her guardian planet Venus. To help her with her new mission, Artemis gives her two items, a crescent moon shaped compact and a magical pen. The magical pen allows her to transform into the Soldier of Justice: Sailor V.

Minako begins fighting the evil agents known as the Dark Agency, who fight under Danburite's command. He is in charge of sending his many talented idols to enslave the public.

Minako has many adventures as a Soldier of Justice, some sparking the envy and admiration of the police force. She also later gains the aid of Saijyo Ace, who had for a moment taken her spotlight due to his popular TV show.

Eventually, Minako realizes that her duty is more important than romance and discovers her true identity as Sailor Venus. From there, she decides to search for the other four Sailor Guardians and the Moon princess.

When the Twin Towers went down in 2001, Charlie Fineman lost everything important in his life. Five years have passed since Charlie's wife and daughters died, and now the once-successful and sociable man has become a withdrawn shadow of his former self. He does not discuss his loss, causing his in-laws to worry for his sanity, believing that he has struck the tragedy from his mind.

When fate brings Charlie and his former college roommate Alan Johnson together once again on a Manhattan street corner, Alan is shocked to see just how far his old friend has fallen. Charlie's hair is long and he wears a headset constantly to let music drown out any mentions of his wife and children.

Though on the surface it would appear that Alan, a successful dentist, has it all, the pressures of a family and career have been weighing heavily on him. At a pivotal moment when Charlie and Alan both need a trusted friend, the restorative power of a rekindled friendship provides a lifeline needed to move forward.

Alan endeavors to bring Charlie out of his shell by convincing him to see a therapist. Barely communicative, he ends every session after only a couple of minutes. His therapist says he needs to tell the story about his family to someone eventually and Charlie soon tells Alan his tragic story. Later on, following a suicide by cop attempt, Charlie ends up in a psychiatric ward.

Legal proceedings commence, and Judge David Raines must determine whether to commit Charlie to psychiatric care. After Charlie suffers a breakdown, Raines leaves the decision to Charlie's in-laws, asking them to think of what their daughter would want for him. Charlie approaches his in-laws in the lobby of the courthouse, stating that he does not carry pictures nor discuss his family because he sees them every day, in the faces of people walking down the street. They decide that he should not be committed; instead, Charlie moves to a new apartment, leaving behind the painful memories associated with his former home.

Alan visits Charlie in his new home and his wife calls and tells him "I love you and just want you to come home." The apartment's doorman brings out Charlie's scooter, telling Alan not to leave stuff lying around. He tells the doorman to take it back upstairs, but he does not respond. Not knowing what to do, Alan decides to ride home on the scooter.

''Jaja Uma Grooming Up!'' depicts the story of Shunpei Kuze, a high-school student unsure of the future until he takes a motorcycle ride to Hokkaidō. When his motorbike runs out of fuel, Shunpei is stranded on a country road; to make matters worse, he loses his wallet. He is found and taken in by the daughter of a local rancher named Hibiki Watarai. Shunpei begins a new life on the Watarai horse-breeding ranch, learning about the horses and the ranch's lively family and workers.

Bertie has grown a moustache, which Jeeves disapproves of. G. D'Arcy "Stilton" Cheesewright, a fellow member at the Drones Club who has drawn Bertie's name in the annual club darts sweep, becomes jealous when Cheesewright’s fiancée Florence Craye says she loves Bertie's moustache. Florence and Bertie were engaged in the past, and Stilton mistakenly believes Bertie still loves her. Stilton is also jealous of Percy Gorringe, a playwright dramatizing Florence's novel ''Spindrift''.

Disappointed with Stilton after he refuses to grow a moustache, Florence asks Bertie to take her to a night club for research for her next novel. Hoping to talk her into returning to Stilton, Bertie agrees. However, the night club is raided. When Florence tries to run away, Bertie trips a policeman chasing her. Florence escapes and Bertie spends the night in jail before paying a fine of ten pounds. Shortly afterward, Florence and Stilton reconcile when Stilton agrees to grow a moustache.

At her home of Brinkley Court, Aunt Dahlia, Bertie's aunt who runs a magazine called ''Milady's Boudoir'', is trying to sell the paper to the Liverpudlian newspaper magnate Mr. Trotter, who brought along his wife Mrs. Trotter and his stepson, Percy Gorringe. Aunt Dahlia has hired the successful novelist Daphne Dolores Morehead, who is staying at Brinkley, to write a serial for ''Milady's Boudoir'', to make the magazine appear successful to Mr. Trotter. Aunt Dahlia is also trying to win over Mr. Trotter with the magnificent cooking of her French chef, Anatole, though this does not seem to be working.

Florence has also gone to Brinkley Court. Aunt Dahlia tells Bertie to come to Brinkley to cheer up Percy, who is in love with Florence and upset that she is with Stilton. Stilton discovers that Florence and Bertie went to a night club together, and breaks his engagement to her by telegram. He comes to Brinkley Court, seeking revenge on Bertie, who avoids Stilton.

Bertie learns from Aunt Dahlia that she pawned the pearl necklace her husband Tom Travers bought her to pay for the new serial, without telling Tom. She is wearing a fake pearl necklace instead, and fears that Lord Sidcup, a jewellery expert who is coming to see Uncle Tom's silver collection, will reveal the necklace as a fake. Jeeves suggests that Bertie act as a burglar and steal the fake necklace. Bertie attempts to do so but mistakenly enters Florence's bedroom. She is moved to see him and assumes that he is in love with her. When Stilton comes to return her letters, Florence says she will marry Bertie, and Stilton, finding Bertie in Florence's room, becomes aggressive. Bertie saves himself by reminding Stilton about the Drones Club darts sweep: hurting Bertie could cost Stilton fifty-six pounds and ten shillings. Uncle Tom locks Aunt Dahlia's necklace in a safe. In addition, Lord Sidcup is revealed to be the recently elevated Roderick Spode.

After selling his Drones Club darts sweep ticket to Percy Gorringe, Stilton again threatens Bertie. Bertie tries, unsuccessfully, to fend off Stilton with a cosh, though Stilton forgets about Bertie and Florence when he sees Daphne Dolores Morehead and falls for her. Seeing Uncle Tom's safe open, Bertie takes a pearl necklace he sees there. Next he talks to Aunt Dahlia, who says she took the fake necklace from the safe. The necklace Bertie took belongs to Mrs. Trotter. Bertie tries to put back the second necklace, but is unable to do so since Mr. Trotter shuts the safe door.

At breakfast, Aunt Dahlia's butler Seppings presents Mrs. Trotter's pearl necklace on a salver, stating that he found it in Jeeves's room. Though Bertie prepares to confess stealing the necklace to save Jeeves, Jeeves says he planned to find the necklace's owner, since he realized the pearls were fake and assumed the necklace belonged to a housemaid. Spode, or Lord Sidcup, confirms the pearls are fake. Percy admits that he pawned his mother's real pearl necklace to produce the play based on Florence's novel. Florence is touched, and she and Percy get engaged.

Mr. Trotter dislikes Anatole's cooking. However, he feels much better after having one of Jeeves's special drinks, and purchases ''Milady's Boudoir''. Grateful to Jeeves, Bertie agrees to shave off his moustache.

In 2007, the United States invades Turkey to gain control of its deposits of an important strategic resource, borax. After securing the principal cities in Turkey, the United States attempts to re-enact the Treaty of Sèvres by dividing Turkey up between its historic rivals Greece and Armenia. Turkey responds by forming a military alliance with China, Russia and Germany. A Turkish agent then steals an American nuclear bomb and detonates it in Washington, D.C., killing millions of people. This however, backfires and U.S. troops increase their abuse of occupied Turkish citizens and the invasion picks up in pace. When American troops reach Istanbul, the conflict degrades to urban combat between U.S. forces, Turkish armed citizenry, Turkish Army remnants and police forces. The climax turns out to be anticlimactic; the occupation of Istanbul agitates Russia, the European Union and China to sign a military alliance and threaten the United States with nuclear warfare in order to stop the invasion. The war comes to a close; U.S. forces retreat, and Turkey is saved. The agent, a member of a secret Turkish intelligence agency named "The Grey Team", trained from birth as obedient and amoral orphans, kidnaps the mastermind behind the invasion, the CEO of a corporation funding the U.S. President, and the book ends with a Central Asian torture scene with said CEO.

The video opens aboard an aircraft carrier on tumultuous waters, with squadrons of monkeys, pheasants, and dogs prepping their planes for war. These animals are not the perfect soldiers; they act silly, giving them a very human feel. At the center stands Momotaro, stoic and heroic, giving orders. The animals board their planes and take into the sky. The flight to Hawaii is uninterrupted save for a monkey helping a lost baby bird find its parent.

The animals arrive and the attack begins. The soldiers aboard the ships docked in Pearl Harbor panic and scramble, trying to flee; evidenced by a copious amount of bottles lying around, some are too drunk to move or think properly. The main soldier shown is dumb, fat, and cowardly.

The attack continues, some monkeys go on land to destroy American planes. The main American soldier literally shakes the red and blue off the American flag to wave it as a white flag of surrender. Pearl Harbor is left in smoking ruins as the animals return to the aircraft carrier to celebrate.

Our narrator Jimmy Corcoran spots Ukridge helping an attractive young girl onto a bus; intrigued, he finds the girl is one Dora Mason, secretary to Ukridge's Aunt Julia, a novelist.

Later, having won some money on the Derby, Corcoran promises his friends a night out, but returning home to dress, he finds Bowles has let Ukridge borrow his evening suit. Dismayed, Corcoran must in turn borrow an ancient outfit from Bowles, which in addition to being rather snug, smells rather strongly of moth-balls, rendering his evening less than pleasant.

Seeing Ukridge enjoying himself in his fine clothes, Corcoran upbraids him strongly, but hears that Ukridge is entertaining the pretty Dora. The next day, Ukridge arrives with the news that, attempting to smuggle the girl back into his aunt's house, they were caught by a police officer, who woke the aunt, who in turn sacked Dora. Corcoran suggests asking their respectable friend George Tupper to put in a good word for the girl.

Later Ukridge returns with the news that Tupper's appeal has failed, and further upsets Corcoran by informing him that Aunt Julia now expects a visit from the writer, posing as a journalist from her favourite magazine, ''Women's Sphere'', sent to interview her. Arriving at the house, he meets Aunt Julia in the company of another woman, introduced to him as a Miss Watterson, and finds her far less intimidating than expected. However, she soon reveals that Ukridge's thin plot has been see through, and that Miss Watterson is in fact the editor of ''Women's Sphere'', sending Corcoran away in shame and embarrassment.

Arriving home, he finds Ukridge on his couch, and hears that Dora has found work elsewhere and the scheme need not go ahead. Ukridge had known this the previous day, but had forgotten to inform his friend and spare him his ordeal.

The story takes place in an alien solar system and focuses on the history of its two inhabited planets: Parceria and Seneca. For many years, the people of these planets lived in harmony together with the seemingly more advanced Parcerians continually visiting the Senecans. However, something happened on Parceria: something caused the Parcerians to shut off all forms of communication, visitation and activity with Seneca. Over time, Parceria's environment died out, leaving only a planet-wide barren terrain. Hundreds of years have now passed and the current generation of Senecans see Parceria as nothing but a dead husk with the concept of life and companionship on it being mere, long forgotten legends.

One day, an enormous attack force flies from Parceria and attacks Seneca without warning. Confirmed to be the Parcerian Military, the invaders cripple Seneca's defense forces. Besides being well armed and equipped, the Parceria Military is also able to manipulate the wildlife to do its bidding through unknown means, ensuring no possible escape to safety. The desperate people of Seneca eventually discovered an ancient star fighter abandoned by the Parcerians called The Baldanders. Using its super-technology, the people of Seneca use the Baldanders in a counter-attack against the Parcerian invasion to destroy their main battleship: a large, mysterious warship known only as 'Mother.'

In the face of seriously declining railroad passenger travel, engineer Tom Caldwell presents to the president of the CB&D Railroad, B.J. Dexter, a design for a revolutionary diesel-electric train that will increase efficiency and lower costs. Dexter opposes change, however, and the railroad's conservative board of directors agrees with him, rejecting Tom's design. Tom quits in frustration. Sure that Tom's theory is sound, Dexter's daughter Ruth convinces Ed Tyler, a locomotive manufacturer, to look into Tom's design. Tyler is impressed with the concept and initiates immediate construction of a prototype. Soon Tom and his team prepare the Silver Streak for a well-publicized trial run with Dexter and Ruth aboard as passengers.

The Silver Streak fails to attain even half of its projected speed of , however, and is even easily overtaken by a steam-powered freight train. An angry Dexter tells Tyler that all the Silver Streak is good for is an exhibit at the Century of Progress Exposition to recover his advertising expenses. Tom is baffled by the failure since all the engine components worked perfectly during assembly but Dexter stubbornly insists that the concept will never work. Furious with Dexter's attitude, Tom quarrels with Ruth. Her brother Allen, who supported Tom's idea, tells his father that he is quitting the railroad to take a job as a civil engineer with the Six Companies, Inc. constructing the Boulder Dam.

Tom and Bronte, the engine's builder, discover that the electrical generator acquired for the Silver Streak has a manufacturing flaw. After correcting the flaw, the engine produces even greater power than he had earlier predicted. He tries to telephone Ruth with the good news to reconcile with her, but she has left Chicago to travel by train to California. Ruth discovers en route that infantile paralysis (polio) has broken out among the dam's construction crew and detours to the site only to find that Allen has contracted the disease. When a doctor informs her that Allen will die within 24 hours unless he receives treatment from an iron lung respirator, Ruth telephones her father to have the machine shipped to the dam by airplane. Dexter is told that the iron lung is too heavy for any transport airplane to carry and cannot be disassembled. Tom and Tyler persuade Dexter to take a gamble on the Silver Streak as Allen's only hope.

With less than twenty hours of time to travel , the Silver Streak is given a cleared track and takes a shipment of Drinker Respirators out of Chicago. Tom includes Bronte on his crew, unaware that he is a foreign spy wanted for murder. As radio broadcasts track the progress of the "epic errand of mercy," the Silver Streak breaks records as it races south against time through the night. Nearing Boulder City, however, Bronte is revealed as a fugitive and sabotages the engine trying to stop the train, but instead causes it to speed out of control. Tom knocks the spy unconscious and regains control of the runaway train just before it arrives at the station.

In the land of Odegan, orphaned squire Mars is employed at Odegan Castle on the strength of his father's great reputation. A series of lies and deceptions on his part unexpectedly places him as the foremost obstacle to the schemes of the dark elf wizard, Pazort. Pazort and his followers intend to destroy the world by summoning the Giant, Seeega (referred to as "the Dark Titan" in the North American translation), and to do so they first must use Princess Satera to get at an orb held by King Odegan. It is up to Mars to redeem his lies and failures by thwarting the mighty wizard's plans.

''Shining Wisdom'' takes place on the continent of Parmecia just a few years after ''Shining Force II'', and some of its plot points follow from that game. Sarah and Kazin, who were playable characters in ''Shining Force II'', are roaming the continent in a hunt for Zeon's remaining henchmen. Pazort, the main villain of ''Shining Wisdom'', is a former follower of Zeon, and Sarah and Kazin aid in the fight against him. There are also several references to the hero of ''Shining Force II'', Bowie, though he does not actually appear anywhere in the game. A book refers to the setting of ''Shining in the Darkness'', Stormsong (referred to in English versions as "Thornwood").[http://www.shiningforcecentral.com/studies.php?m=0&study=background&id=chronology Shining Force Chronology and Connections] , Shining Force Central. Due to the various name changes and omissions of the North American translation, none of the above connections to the ''Shining'' series are apparent in the USA version of the game and they can only be seen in the Japanese and European versions.

The game follows the adventures of a hero who has been resurrected by the wizard Wart to defeat Cardice (sometimes transliterated as ''Kardis'' or ''Kardiss''), the dark goddess of destruction.

Darren, Harkat, and Mr. Crepsley (Vancha going back to Vampire Mountain to inform the other Princes and Generals of their encounter with the Vampaneze Lord) go to Mr. Crepsley's hometown once again to investigate if the Vampaneze had set up territories there. But soon after their arrival Darren is discovered by the police and forced to attend school. He has trouble with most of his subjects as he only has a middle school education, but luckily his English teacher is Debbie, his old girlfriend from his first visit to this city.

Mr. Crepsley has to go back to Vampire Mountain again for Paris Skyle's funeral, leaving Darren and Harkat to continue the investigations alone. One night on his way back to the hotel room the three are staying in, Darren encounters a Vampaneze with hooks for hands and a mask wrapped around his face. The Vampaneze attacks, but Darren is saved by his old friend Steve. Steve joins Darren for the hunt of the Vampaneze, claiming he's changed his ways and now understands who the real enemy is and dropped his desire for vengeance against Darren and Mr. Crepsley long ago.

Darren later reveals himself as a vampire to Debbie, and after a long explanation and a day's contemplating she joins Darren and Steve for the fight. Mr. Crepsley comes back and helps Darren pursue the Vampaneze, but understandably doesn't trust Steve. Darren does convince him, however, that Steve will be a big help for them and lets him come with them. Vancha also joins them again a few days later.

They chase the hooked Vampaneze through the sewers at night, but the Vampaneze led them into a trap. Darren and his team are soon surrounded and the Vampaneze Lord make his second appearance. Darren tries to kill him, but is stopped by Steve, who shows his true side as being a half-vampaneze and betraying Darren and his friends. The hooked Vampaneze is also revealed to be RV (Previously known as Reggie Veggie, but now claims it stands for Righteous Vampaneze).

A fight begins between the Hunters and the Vampaneze. Vancha charges through the Vampets, scattering them and Mr. Crepsley follows, slicing with his nails to bring down many Vampaneze. Darren soon beats Steve and is about to finish him off, but RV uses Debbie as a hostage. RV, Gannen Harst, and the Lord soon leave with the threat that they will kill Debbie if they are followed. Darren and Vancha take a Vampet and Steve as their hostage and are given a warning by Gannen to leave the tunnels immediately or he'll send Vampaneze to finish them off.

Background

Though the Battle of Endor resulted in the destruction of the Emperor and Darth Vader, along with the best of the Imperial Starfleet, the remnants of the Empire are still a danger. One of the recently formed New Republic's most dire foes is a splinter faction of the former Empire, led by Warlord Zsinj. Zsinj is a cunning strategist whose skills have earned him the allegiance of almost a full third of the entire galaxy. Both the Imperial Remnant and the New Republic have dedicated considerable forces to ending his reign. But Zsinj has possession of one of the few Super Star Destroyers left, and whenever nearly cornered, slips away to a secret stronghold where the SSD ''Iron Fist'' is repaired.

Summary

At the opening of the novel, Han Solo, who from aboard the ''Mon Remonda'' has been prosecuting the search for this hidden fastness, wearily returns to the recently captured Coruscant expecting an end to the long separation between him and his beloved, Princess Leia, head of the New Republic. To his great surprise, when his vessel drops out of hyperspace and into the Coruscant system, what appears are a number of fearsome Imperial Star Destroyers, Hapan Battle Dragons, and Hapes Nova Class battle cruiser. Eventually, Han learns that the Hapes cluster had sent a delegation of some manner to the New Republic. He lands and enters the Imperial Palace, where, with the help of C-3PO, who translates and comments on the formal diplomatic reception, he watches the Hapes delegation present to Leia a number of stunning gifts: the dozen Star Destroyers Han had seen, a Hapan gun of command, a small plant resembling a bonsai which promotes longevity and intelligence, and the hand of the Hapes cluster's ruler Ta'a Chume's son, Prince Isolder, in holy matrimony.

The effect is devastating; Leia nearly accepts, driving Han into a frenzy of fear and jealousy. Han eventually wanders into a cantina in the lower reaches of Coruscant, where he participates in a high-stakes sabacc game. One of his opponents runs out of liquid financial instruments and instead proffers real estate: a deed to an entire habitable planet, Dathomir. Han thinks he has found a gift which would prove his worthiness to Leia and compare favorably with the gifts of Isolder (and provide a place to resettle the expatriates of Alderaan). When Leia examines his gift and points out that he has been conned (since Dathomir was in the section of the galaxy controlled by Zsinj), Han is further devastated. Isolder compounds insult with injury by denigrating the ''Millennium Falcon'' and offering Han a Nova battle cruiser if he abandons his quest to win Leia's heart. Han snaps. He abducts Leia using the Gun of Command, and flees with her and Chewbacca aboard his recently refitted ''Millennium Falcon'' to Dathomir. Prince Isolder pursues him with his Hapan fleet. He arrives at Dathomir shortly after Han despite Han's headstart, as Isolder is aided by the Jedi Master Luke Skywalker who uses his Force powers to navigate a shorter (but still safe) path through hyperspace, shaving time off accepted conventional routes. There they both discovered that Zsinj had truly laid claim to Dathomir—in orbit around it was the ''Iron Fist'', a number of other capital ships, and the complete orbital shipyard Han had hunted for so long.

The ''Millennium Falcon'' had been forced to land on Dathomir itself, where it is captured by the Imperial garrison Zsinj had marooned on the surface years ago. Isolder sets out in his Miy'til fighter accompanied by Luke's X-wing fighter while the Hapan fleet fights a covering action before it retreats into hyperspace to inform the New Republic, Imperial Remnant, and the Hapes Consortium of the whereabouts of Zsinj heretofore secret redoubt.

On the surface, Isolder and Luke discover the remnants of the star-borne Jedi training academy, the ''Chu'unthor''. Luke had seen recordings noting how Yoda and a number of other Jedi knights had failed to retrieve the library of the ''Chu'unthor'', due to interference by the Witches of Dathomir. The best they had been able to do was seal the vessel thoroughly, so thoroughly that only centuries later the first intruder would need a lightsaber to gain access. As they peruse the vessel, however, Isolder and Luke are captured by a Dathomiri witch, who enslaves them and takes them to her village.

Having learned about Han Solo's presence on the planet, Zsinj had dictated a combination of ultimatum and deal with the head of the Nightsisters, Gethzerion: they would give him Solo to torture and execute as he liked, and he would give them an Imperial shuttle to pilot where they like. If they did not, he would keep his "nightcloak" (an interconnected network of geostationary satellites, which reflected all solar emissions back into space) intact, which would slowly freeze Dathomir, ending all life on the planet.

Eventually, they infiltrate the Imperial garrison and steal the ''Falcon'', piloting it out into the ongoing Battle of Dathomir. Solo allows the ''Iron Fist'' to acquire the ''Falcon'' with a tractor beam; once it is within the deflector shields, he breaks it free of the beam lock, piloting his vessel over the superstructure of the gigantic vessel. Arriving upon the main bridge, he launches two concussion missiles, destroying the bridge, killing Zsinj, and knocking out the ventral shields. With ''Iron Fist'' so exposed, the Hapan Battle Dragons move into position with their ion cannons, disabling ''Iron Fist''. Defeated, Zsinj's empire soon crumbles. Shortly thereafter, Solo and Leia marry, having realized during their intrepid journey together that they loved each other. Isolder is consoled by the fact he has fallen in love with his captor, Teneniel Djo.

The Trent sisters, Teresa ("Terry"), Josephine ("Jo"), and Kate, run a farm with hens and bees in the village of Bensonburg in Long island. Henry Weems, who wants to marry Jo, works for a legal firm that has managed the sale of a play written by the sisters' late father for television, and each girl receives a large payment. Jo wants to go to St. Rocque for the Festival and to marry a millionaire, whereas Teresa, the youngest sister, wants to have fun in Roville and then return to farming. Jo and Teresa agree to pool their money and buy one set of nice clothes, with one girl acting as the rich Miss Trent and the other as Fellowes, Miss Trent's personal maid, for a month, and then vise versa. Kate, the oldest sister, disapproves of them squandering their money but accompanies them as an austere chaperone.

Nicolas Jules St Xavier Auguste, Marquis de Maufringneuse et Valerie-Moberanne ("Old Nick") has a minor civil service job in Paris. Nick is a widower by his first wife and divorced his second wife, both American. He is well-mannered but lazy and fired by his employer, Monsieur de La Hourmerie, though he inadvertently takes away a dossier with him. Nick had a son with his first wife named Jefferson "Jeff" Auguste, Comte d'Escrignon, a writer who was in the Maquis. Old Nick gets money from his son and goes to St. Rocque. Jeff follows when Nick needs more money after being tricked by his friend Prince Blamont-Chevry. Jo, who will be the rich Miss Trent first, hopes to court a rich American there, Chester Todd. Chester's wealthy friend Frederick "Freddie" Carpenter hides after his trousers are stolen. Terry gets Old Nick to assist him, and Nick is rewarded with a cruise on Carpenter's yacht to Roville. On the yacht will also be Chester's aunt, Hermione Pegler (Old Nick's ex-wife), and Chester's sister, Mavis Todd. Jo learns that Chester is married and goes home to marry Henry, while Terry and Kate head to Rovillle.

Old Nick, believing Terry is rich, introduces her to Jeff, and they soon fall in love. Mrs. Pegler has holdings in the sparkling water company controlled by Freddie and the rival company controlled by Mavis and Chester. She encourages a marriage between Mavis and Freddie to promote a merger between the companies that would increase the value of her holdings. Fearing that Old Nick will try to pair Jeff with Mavis and that Terry will steal Freddie, Mrs. Pegler pays Pierre Alexandre Boissonade, the brusque and unpleasant Commissaire of Police at Roville, to search Terry's room for anything incriminating. M. de La Hourmerie finds Old Nick and demands the missing dossier. Kate learns from him that Nick and Jeff have little money, and she tells Nick that Terry also has little money, which turns Nick against a match between Jeff and Terry. Jeff goes to Paris to see publisher J. Russell Clutterbuck, who is also a customer of the Trent farm. Terry is warned by Boissonade's sympathetic subordinate about the search, so she asks Freddie, a former American football player, to guard her room. He punches Boissonade, who escapes. Kate, Old Nick, and others discover Freddie with Terry in her room. Nick tells Freddie he must marry Terry and telephones a newspaper to announce the engagement.

Terry refuses to marry Freddie, and Freddie, who loves Mavis, gets engaged to her, to Mrs. Pegler's delight. Terry reconsiders marrying Freddie when she mistakenly thinks Jeff has gone to Paris to leave her, and similarly Jeff is misled by the newspaper announcement, but they eventually reconcile. Old Nick steals money from Mrs. Pegler under the pretense of borrowing it. Chester recognizes Terry as Jo's maid Fellowes, and Mrs. Pegler believes Terry stole the money. Boissonade confronts Terry, but Clutterbuck defends her. Nick confesses to Clutterbuck that he stole the money; Nick flees and Clutterbuck tells Boissonade the truth. Boissonade does not believe him, so Clutterbuck knocks him out, allowing Terry and Jeff to escape to America. Clutterbuck is left to explain everything to Kate. Nine months later, Terry sees Clutterbuck in New York. Jeff's novel has been turned into a successful play by Sam Behrman. Old Nick married a French cook, and Clutterbuck got him the job of head waiter at a New York restaurant, where Nick is the boss of his old friend Prince Blamont-Chevry.

Negar (Hāni'eh Tavassoli) has been kicked out of home by her mother. She is left with no choice but to spend the night walking around the streets of Tehran where she meets three men who all have different stories.

The action takes place ten years after the end of World War I in a small town in France. The protagonist, Julien Davenne, is a war veteran who works as an editor at the newspaper, ''The Globe''. He specializes in funeral announcements ("a virtuoso of the obituary", as defined by its editor-in-chief) and the thought of death haunts him. Davenne has reserved a room for the worship of his wife, Julie, on the upper floor of the house he shares with his elderly housekeeper, Mrs. Rambaud, and Georges, a deaf-mute boy. His wife had died eleven years previously, at the height of her beauty.

During a thunderstorm, a fire destroys the green room, Davenne managing to save only pictures and portraits of his wife. On discovering an abandoned chapel in ruins, at the same cemetery where Julie is buried, Julien decides to consecrate it not only to his wife but to all the cemetery's dead, having reached "that point in life where you know more dead than alive." The place is transformed into a forest of lighted candles, with photos of all the people he treasured in life.

To keep the chapel, Davenne calls a young woman, Cécilia, secretary of the auction house that has regained a ring that had belonged to Julie. The friendship between the two seems to evolve when Paul Massigny, a French politician and Davenne's former best friend, dies. The film suggests that Massigny once betrayed Davenne but does not say what constituted the betrayal. When Davenne first visits Cécilia at home, Davenne discovers that the living room is full of pictures of Massigny and, without asking for explanations, leaves.

At the chapel, Cecilia tells him that she was one of Massigny's many women and still loves him. She requests that Massigny be represented by one of the candles on the altar. After being rebuffed by Davenne, Cecilia breaks off the relationship and he breaks down. He locks himself away at home, refusing to eat, to see the doctor, or talk. The managing editor of ''The Globe'' recommends that Cécilia write him a letter. She finally declares her love, knowing he would never reciprocate, "because to be loved by you, I should be dead." Having forgiven Massigny, Davenne joins her in the chapel, but he is weakened, falls to the ground and dies. Cécilia completes the work, as she had asked the first time, dedicating one last candle to Julien Davenne.

A young doctor in Los Angeles named John Wesford becomes a suspect when a series of Jack the Ripper copycat killings is committed. He and another young doctor (Jack Pendler) are at the scene of the final crime in the series; they know each other because they both work for the same medical unit, reporting to the abusive Dr. Sidney Tannerson. Pendler seems to realize that John Wesford's testimony will likely lead to his being arrested as the killer, and in an ambiguously staged scene, murders him, staging the scene to resemble a suicide. The police quickly name John Wesford as the copycat killer and hypothesize that he killed himself out of guilt.

To the surprise of everybody involved, John Wesford's identical twin brother, Rick, arrives and claims to know his brother did not kill himself because he has seen visions of the true killer. In flashbacks, the viewer sees that Rick Wesford saw Jack Pendler killing his brother. The police humor Rick briefly, but only because his existence calls into question the eyewitness testimony that had put the identical-looking John at the scene of the crime, and Rick's suspicious knowledge of the crime scene (from his visions) make him an attractive suspect himself. Under scrutiny by the police, Rick allies himself with another of his brother's colleagues, Dr. Chris Moscari, and carries out his own investigation. He successfully identifies, tracks down, and confronts Pendler, who attacks him and is arrested. Pendler is in some regards an excellent suspect — physical evidence puts him at the scene of the final murder. But in other regards he is a terrible one, not matching known characteristics or habits of the killer.

Rick continues to dream about his brother's murder and asks the police psychologist to hypnotize him to clarify these visions. In the refined vision he again sees Pendler attack his brother, but also notices that Pendler's shoes do not match those worn by the copycat killer, and that Dr. Tannerson had been at the scene. He intuits that Tannerson will next attack Dr. Moscari and speeds to her house, attracting a string of police cars with his reckless driving. Moscari survives and Rick avenges his brother's death by killing Tannerson, who (it is implied) had manipulated Pendler into murdering the unfortunate twin.

Psychiatrist Dan Potter is appointed on the staff of Dr. Leo Bain's experimental psychiatric hospital, known as the Haven, in New Jersey. His predecessor, Dr. Merton, has taken a new position in Philadelphia. Dan, his wife Nell, and their daughter Lyla, move into a rural home in the area. At Haven, Dr. Bain uses lenient security methods, except with the third-floor patients, whom he keeps contained with an electric security door. Among them are former POW Frank Hawkes, pyromaniac evangelist Byron "Preacher" Sutcliff, obese child molester Ronald Elster, and a shy serial killer John "the Bleeder" Skagg, who refuses to show his face. Angered by Dr. Merton's departure, the third-floor patients irrationally blame Dan, believing he has murdered Merton and taken his place. The four men make plans to kill Dan, and retrieve his address from Dr. Bain's office.

Dan's younger sister, Toni, who has recently suffered a nervous breakdown, arrives to visit. Dan, Nell, and Toni go to a local rock club, while Lyla is left with babysitter Bunky. A regional power outage occurs. The security system at Haven fails, and the four men on the third floor escape, killing security guard Ray in the process, before killing another doctor and stealing his car. They stop by a local strip mall that is being looted during the blackout and arm themselves with weapons from a sporting goods store. They leave Skagg behind after he kills an innocent bystander.

The next morning, Preacher arrives at the Potter residence, pretending to be delivering a telegram, but Dan is not home. While Lyla is at school, Nell accompanies Toni to a nuclear power protest, where the women are arrested. Lyla arrives home from school and finds Ronald in the house, claiming to be a babysitter. After Nell phones Dan from jail explaining what has happened, Dan calls Bunky, who goes to check on Lyla. She finds Lyla asleep in her room, and invites her boyfriend Billy there to have sex. Preacher kills Billy by dragging him beneath the bed and stabbing him, while Ronald strangles Bunky. Lyla later awakens unharmed, but Ronald has vanished. Dan arrives home with Nell, Toni, and Tom, a fellow protester Nell and Toni met in jail, whom Toni is attracted to. They find police at the house, and Detective Barnett interviewing Lyla about the missing Bunky and Billy. Lyla explains that a man named Ronald babysat her; Dan recognizes him as one of the Haven patients.

Dan and Nell invite Detective Barnett to stay for dinner. While investigating a noise outside, Barnett is killed with a crossbow by Frank, which is witnessed by the entire family. Finding the phone lines cut, the family barricade themselves in the house. Meanwhile, Dr. Bain arrives after unsuccessfully attempting to reach Dan by phone, but is hacked to death by Preacher with an axe. Dan attempts to reason with the men, assuring them he has not killed Dr. Merton. Ronald throws Barnett's body through a window, and Preacher manages to infiltrate the basement, where he starts a fire. Dan bludgeons Preacher with an extinguisher canister before putting out the fire, locking the basement door behind him.

Ronald enters the kitchen and attempts to kill the family, but they work together to disarm him, before Tom kills him with a cleaver. Dan flees outside to retrieve Leo's car. While he does, Tom's nose begins bleeding profusely, revealing his identity as Skagg, the fourth patient. Skagg attempts to kill Toni, but Nell stabs him to death. Hearing the screams, Dan flees back into the house. Moments later, Preacher bursts out of the basement, but Dan stabs him to death. Frank appears with his crossbow, proclaiming, "It's not just us crazy ones who kill." Dan pleads Frank to spare his family. Suddenly, the electricity is restored, and Frank witnesses Dr. Merton being interviewed on a local news station about the missing patients. Hysterical, Frank smashes the television and flees into the night.

A short time later, Frank arrives at the local rock club. A drunken woman approaches him inside. He pulls out a pistol, pointing it to her neck. Assuming he is playing a joke, the woman laughs, and so does Frank.

A young, disheveled-looking man is awakened on the side of a road by passing traffic. He walks to a nearby lake and attempts to drown himself by filling his clothing with rocks and walking into the water, but is pulled out and taken to a nearby mental hospital for treatment. He is suffering from retrograde amnesia, unable to remember his name or details of his personal life, other that he lives in a house within several miles and has no father to speak of. Without any form of identification, the patient is designated “John Doe #83”, and placed under the care of psychiatrist Dr. Gail Farmer. Almost immediately, John begins to display odd behavior, with a fellow patient nicknamed “The Messiah” suddenly developing a delusion that he intends to behead him.

At her home later that night, Gail hears a window being broken and witnesses John entering her house and stealing a necklace from her nightstand. When she calls the police, they can find no evidence of a break-in, and her colleagues at the hospital tell her that John is fast asleep in his dormitory. Farmer quickly suspects that John is not all that he seems, as she continues to have strange visions while he is asleep. She theorizes to her boss Dr. Denman that John has some form of telepathy, wherein he “sends” his dreams into the minds of other people, causing them to experience semi-corporeal sensory hallucinations for the duration of the dream. Denman dismisses Gail's hypothesis as her developing a maternal bond with the young patient, and plans to have him treated with electroshock therapy against her wishes. Meanwhile, both Gail and John are haunted by the presence of a middle-aged woman named Jerolyn, apparently John's mother, who tells Gail that she must release John for everyone's well-being but disappears before she can be questioned further.

After John attempts suicide a second time, he's taken in by Denman for electroshock therapy. The moment the current is activated, John unconsciously sends violent and destructive hallucinations towards everyone in the hospital, both staff and patients. Gail rushes in and removes the electrodes. Now believing her hypothesis, Denman begins intensive study of John, while Gail continues to see Jerolyn and other cryptic visions sent by John, including one in which he lies dead with his body covered in rats. She suspects that the visions are memories of the recent past, repressed into the subconscious due to trauma. After John tells her that his mother used to lock him up in the house, she theorizes that Jerolyn, who believed that her son was a miraculous virgin birth, kept him trapped inside her house for his entire life, eventually trying to kill him with carbon monoxide poisoning when she believed he'd leave her.

John's telepathy quickly becomes more and more uncontrollable, especially after he begins “sending” while conscious. Despite Gail's protestations, John is taken into the surgical ward to have an intracranial operation to identify and neutralize the receptors causing his powers. Before the operation begins, the local Sheriff arrives to tell Denman and Gail that they found John's house and mother, but that she's been dead of carbon monoxide poisoning for five days, indicating that he killed her and not the other way around. John's placed under guard, but the moment the surgeons pierce his skull with a drill he suddenly lashes out again, this time causing the room to explode into flames. In the chaos, John steals Gail's car keys and escapes, guided by a vision of his mother.

When they arrive at their house, he turns on the gas stove to kill a swarm of cockroaches, but as he lies in bed he suddenly realizes that his mother is trying to kill him and snaps out of his hallucination. Gail bursts in and drags a suffocating John away, as they're pursued by the projection of his Jerolyn. They manage to get out of the house just before the gas ignites, destroying the house.

Some time later, John has regained his memory and tells his story – his mother tried to kill him, and when he realized what was happening, he fought her and inadvertently knocked her unconscious, leaving her to suffocate while fleeing the house. Unable to cope with what he'd done, his id took the form of a projection of his mother, trying to compel him to kill himself on multiple occasions. Seemingly cured, he leaves the hospital as Gail looks on, only to enter his truck with his mother sitting next to him, indicating he's still suffering from his condition and is bound to relapse.

During a college costume party, Peter prepares to initiate four new pledges into Alpha Sigma Rho. The four consist of Jeff, a boy from an opulent upbringing, Marti, an intelligent girl from a poor background, Denise, a promiscuous, heavy drinking party-girl and Seth, a stoner and surfer from California. The group are forced to spend the night in Garth Manor, an abandoned mansion once owned by a man named Raymond Garth, who murdered his wife Lillian and three deformed children Morris, Margaret and Suzanne. Following the murders, Garth hanged himself. While Garth had a fourth child, Andrew, his body was never found nor the body of Morris. The legend states that both Morris and Andrew still lurk within the mansion.

Peter and the rest of the students drive the four pledges up the mansion, leaving them alone at the gates. Seth and Denise leave Marti and Jeff alone to go have sex. The latter two discuss their contrasting backgrounds, before the windows in the parlor suddenly burst open and an apparition frightens Marti. In reality, Peter along with two other students, May and Scott, have set up scares all over the mansion to frighten the pledges. While walking around the side of the house, May is pulled down a hole, where she is murdered by an unseen assailant, who decapitates her. Following this, Scott is also murdered by the same figure on the roof. Peter attempts to prank Denise, but she is oblivious to his efforts. He goes to search for Scott, only to discover his body strung up on the roof. He flees and attempts to escape through the fence with his key, only to be attacked by an unknown assailant. He runs into a nearby hedge maze where he discovers a second assailant, who murders him with a scythe.

In the house, the four pledges quickly discover the tricks and pranks set up around the mansion for them. Seth and Denise return to the bedroom to have sex and consume drugs. Seth leaves Denise alone to use the restroom, only to return and discover May's severed head under the sheets. Panicked, Seth jumps the mansion gates to alert the police. Marti and Jeff also discover Scott's body. Marti locks herself in one of the bedrooms while Jeff goes to investigate a light in the hedge maze. He enters the maze, where he finds a pitchfork and Peter's remains. He flees back to the house to inform Marti of the murder, and the pair theorize that Andrew Garth could be behind the murders.

While their backs are turned, a large figure begins to emerge from the floor behind them. Armed with a pitchfork, Jeff wounds the assailant, who seemingly disappears. They remove the rug, only to discover a trap door through which the assailant has fled. The couple descends into the tunnels below, in which they discover Denise's corpse, along with the preserved remains of Garth's family members.

Seth finally arrives at the local police station, begging for help. The police do not take his claims seriously, believing him to be drunk or playing a fraternity prank, and threaten to arrest him. Seth pretends to leave the police station, only to take a shotgun and some shells, before escaping through a window. He carjacks a vehicle from a civilian, informing him that he is going to Garth Manor (hoping the police will follow him there, but they never do).

Back in the tunnels, a large and disfigured man appears and pursues Jeff and Marti. Jeff struggles with the man, who knocks him down a flight of steps, badly injuring him. Another killer appears, surprising the couple. The Garth brothers corner Marti and Jeff, but they are able to escape through a concealed door, fleeing back to the bedroom, using the pitchfork to bar the concealed door. Losing their only weapon.

Seth arrives back at the mansion, where he is ambushed by Morris Garth. They struggle, before Seth shoots him twice and apparently kills him. Alerted by the noise, Jeff and Marti meet him in the entryway of the mansion, where Andrew appears and attacks Seth, dragging him into an unlit corner of the room. Marti and Jeff are frightened by gunfire and Marti attempts to recover the shotgun. Andrew Garth emerges from the darkness and pursues Marti and Jeff through the house and back to the bedroom, where they barricade the door. Jeff urges Marti to escape out a window. Before he can follow suit, Andrew breaks through the door and hurls him to the ground below, killing him.

A frightened Marti enters the hedge maze, where she finds Peter's corpse. She pries the keys from his fingers, before escaping. She is able to get through the gates using the keys, and takes the time to relock them. She attempts to escape in Seth's stolen vehicle, but is ambushed by Andrew. He smashes the windshield and a struggle ensues, resulting in one of the spiked gates being knocked over, on which Andrew is impaled and dies.

Waking in the morning as the Sun rises over the mansion, Marti emerges from the car, and walks away.

At the beginning of the story Ray Talloway (Neale Donald Walsch) is a construction manager whose business is near bankruptcy. His semi-estranged daughter Cheryl (Sarah Rutan) quarrels with him on the slightest pretext, while her husband Alex (Gregory Linington) is one of a small group of minor criminals. Cheryl and Alex have one daughter, Grace (shared role by Meghan McCandless as older Grace and Angelina Hess as younger Grace), who is the indigo child of the story, and who eventually reunites the family.

One night, Alex takes Cheryl to a "party" that promises something exciting to happen to the participants (presumably overuse of drugs). Cheryl is worried by leaving Grace alone in the car; therefore, Alex leaves to check on her. A few minutes later, a police detachment arrests every one of the criminals. Grace, who was asleep in the car, wakes and sees her mother taken to prison. Ray, who is asleep at home, receives a call from the police station informing him of his daughter's arrest. He goes to the police station, arriving deep in telephone conversation with one of his business partners, who warns him of protest by environmentalists at the site of one of his latest projects. This causes him to abandon his daughter at the station and drive to the site. The sight of the crowd protesting his efforts to eradicate a forest to make room for a new highway, combined with the effect of having his daughter arrested, causes him to experience a small nervous breakdown.

Here, the film jumps ahead five years. In the interim, Ray has lost his job and is living at home alone, as the owner of a very old car which is on the verge of disintegration. Cheryl has been in jail for possession of illegal drugs even though she is innocent. Ray has neither come to visit her nor bailed her out of prison. Grace is living in a children's home superintended by a nurse (Saffron Henke). Alex has fled, possibly to Canada, and has not appeared since.

A visit by her lawyer leaves Cheryl afraid for Grace's safety, the lawyer having intimated that Alex might kidnap Grace in exchange for money he believes to be in Cheryl's possession. After this scene is over, viewers see the lawyer walking to a car and accepting a bribe. Cheryl, who has not seen this, calls Ray asking that he visit her. When he arrives, Cheryl tells him of the lawyer's information and asks him to retrieve Grace and take care of her until Cheryl is released on parole. Ray does so, out of a sense of duty towards his daughter and guilt at being an inadequate father and grandfather. Upon her reappearance, Grace is revealed to have developed her supermundane abilities to the point where they are unsettling to Ray, who unceremoniously kidnaps her with her consent and aid. Having escaped, the two meet with Ray's girlfriend Sally (Lynette Louise), who temporarily harbors them. Ray and Grace later drive north to Ashland, Oregon, where they think to hide until Cheryl's parole takes effect. On the way, they spend the night in a hotel and begin to develop a bond. The hotel manager is astonished next morning when Grace brings his father, who suffers a severe case of Alzheimer's disease, into waking consciousness. He reacts with the accusation that it is the work of the devil, whereupon Ray and Grace leave, while the father and son begin to reconcile.

At a park, Grace befriends a lonely boy called Nicholas, who like her is one of the indigo children. The nature thereof is explained to Ray (and thus to the viewer) by Nicholas' mother while the children play.

Further north, Ray's car finally fails to operate so that he and Grace are forced to walk. They are befriended by a group of teenagers who are on their way to Mt. Ashland, one of whom is played by Neale's son, Karus Walsch, with whom they spend the night in a cabin. Karus's character, Logan, is disturbed by Grace's telling of a story of his childhood that revives painful memories. According to her, he could communicate with angels when he was a boy but suppressed his ability when his older brother beat him whenever he talked about it. Another one of the teenagers, Emma, expresses skepticism and anger at Grace's powers, especially when Grace claims to see the spirit of Emma's mother; later, Emma accepts Grace's ways and becomes grateful.

When Ray and Grace arrive at the arranged cabin, they find to Ray's surprise that it is occupied by Ray's long-estranged son Stewart (Dane Bowman). Stewart is there to collect the money that he thinks Cheryl hid and believes that Grace knows where it is. He takes her hostage; at this, Ray claims that Grace requires a medicine that is in his suitcase. Stewart allows Ray to open the suitcase, in which is no medicine but a pistol, with which Ray intends to frighten his son. As Ray reaches for the pistol, he suddenly recalls his past and reconsiders his decision. He attempts to apologize to Stewart, but Stewart refuses to accept this. An arrival of two police officers at the cabin surprises them all, with the exception of Grace, who had summoned them. Grace reveals that the younger of the two, Officer Whitfield, was one of the officers who had captured Cheryl, and that he has illegally been using the money Stewart sought.

The film ends with the reconciliation and reunion of the family.

Oak Grove is a dry, dusty town haunted by memories of a past flood. Everyone dreads the water – except two brothers, Trevor and Eli McGill. Nicknamed Trout and Eel for their darting quickness and the mysterious webbing between their fingers and toes, the boys dream of the farthest seas and of a magical past they barely remember.

Martha Glimmer, the boys’ loyal friend, has her own reasons to help them reach their hearts’ desire. She's running away from her own memories – of her mother's death, her father's grief, and of the time before her heart was broken.

Little do Martha, Trout and Eel know that running away will lead them on a journey back to their own true natures.

The ''Enterprise'' welcomes aboard Dr. Leah Brahms, a lead designer of the ''Galaxy''-class starship engines. Chief Engineer Geordi La Forge, who also had previously used a lifelike holodeck simulation of Brahms to help save the ''Enterprise'' in "Booby Trap", is excited to meet her, but is frustrated when she complains about modifications he has made to the engines of the ''Enterprise''. La Forge also learns that Brahms is married, a fact not noted in the holodeck simulation. Brahms learns how La Forge previously saved the ''Enterprise'', and asks another crewman to show her the simulation. Alarmed, La Forge tries to stop her but is too late. Brahms discovers the holodeck simulation and accuses La Forge of invading her privacy.

Meanwhile, the ''Enterprise'' is attacked by a strange space-faring creature that is nearly the size of the ship. Taking defensive action, Captain Picard orders a low-power phaser burst on the creature, inadvertently killing it. Scanning the creature, Data finds another smaller entity inside of it, and the crew realizes the larger creature only attacked to protect its unborn. The crew performs a Cesarean section, using the ship's phasers as a scalpel to free the newborn. As the ship turns to leave, the newborn attaches itself to the ship and begins feeding off its power systems, imprinting on the ''Enterprise'' as if it were the creature's mother. As the ship's power supplies run low, the crew finds a nearby debris field toward which the larger creature appeared to have been traveling, and realize it would serve as a better feeding ground for the infant.

After the crew arrives at the debris field on the last of the ship's power reserves, they find they are unable to dislodge the creature. Worse, they also discover the creature is emitting radio signals attracting more of its kind from the debris field, and they are heading straight toward the ''Enterprise''. La Forge and Brahms put aside their differences and devise a solution: altering the frequency of energy to "sour the milk", causing the infant to leave the ship and join the other creatures. As the ''Enterprise'''s power is restored, La Forge and Brahms make up and determine they can still be friends.

Gohan visits Piccolo and shows him a new tune he has learned to whistle. Due to his advanced Namekian hearing, this causes Piccolo pain so he angrily orders Gohan to stop when they both sense an approaching threat incoming from outer space. Bulma and her father discover that a meteor harboring lifeforms is heading toward the Earth and will destroy the planet upon impact. Amidst mass panic, Goku and Krillin rush to intercept the meteor and hope to push it away by blasting it with ''Kamehameha'' waves but they are both rendered unconscious by the force of the meteor but it seemingly explodes in orbit. A spaceship then lands in one of Earth's cities.

An army of humanoid alien soldiers exit the ship and declare the Earth under the rule of their leader, Lord Slug. The soldiers attack a group of civilians but Gohan arrives to defend them. From the ship, Lord Slug observes that Gohan has a magical Dragon Ball sewn onto his hat which he loses during the scuffle. After his henchmen render Gohan unconscious and reveal the plan to convert the planet into a biological spaceship, Slug appears and uses telepathy to read Bulma's mind and learns about her radar used for tracking the Dragon Balls. Slug's men successfully gather the Dragon Balls and summon the eternal dragon Shenron who grants Slug his wish for eternal youth. Slug's forces begin transforming the Earth which begins to cause life to perish across the planet. Goku and Krillin are revived by Yajirobe who gives them each a healing Senzu bean. Gohan meanwhile resumes his assault against Slug's army and is rescued by Piccolo. Piccolo kills the henchman Wings and Gohan is overwhelmed by Medamatcha leading to Piccolo being injured when he jumps in front of an energy blast intended to kill Gohan. Goku and Krillin arrive and Goku easily kills Medamatcha and Angila. Slug appears and is attacked by Krillin who is quickly dispatched. Goku fights Slug but is overwhelmed; in a moment of rage, Goku is seemingly able to access a portion of the Super Saiyan form.

Goku pummels Slug and breaks his arm. Before Goku's eyes, Slug rips his arm off and regrows it, and removes his helmet, revealing that he is actually a Namekian. Through telepathy, King Kai warns Goku that Slug is a Super Namekian, a bloodline of violent warriors obsessed with power who were banished from their home world. Slug assumes a giant form and begins to crush Goku between his massive hands. Piccolo intervenes to rescue Goku and before he is also crushed, tears off his own ears and calls out for Gohan to start whistling. The whistling deafens and weakens Slug, allowing Piccolo to transfer his remaining energy to Goku who powers up and manages to fly straight through Slug's abdomen and incapacitates him. Goku then ascends into the sky and begins preparing a ''Spirit Bomb'' in order to destroy the pods transforming the planet, but Slug manages to pursue him. Goku launches the Spirit Bomb at Slug which sends him hurtling into his own machines, killing him and saving the planet. Yajirobe heals everyone with Senzu beans as they celebrate their victory.

Josef K. (Anthony Perkins) is sleeping in his bedroom, in an apartment he shares with other lodgers. He is awakened when a man in a suit opens his bedroom door. Josef assumes the glib man is a policeman, but the intruder does not identify himself and ignores Josef's demand to produce police ID. Several detectives enter and tell Josef he is under open arrest. In another room Josef K. sees three co-workers from his place of employment; they are there to provide evidence regarding some unstated crime. The police refuse to inform Josef K. of his misdeeds, or if he is even being charged with a crime, and they do not take him into custody.

After the detectives leave, Josef converses with his landlady, Mrs. Grubach (Madeleine Robinson), and neighbor, Miss Bürstner (Jeanne Moreau), about the strange visit. Later he goes to his office, where his supervisor thinks he has been having improper relations with his teenaged female cousin. That evening, Josef attends the opera, but is abducted from the theater by a police inspector (Arnoldo Foà) and brought to a courtroom, where he attempts in vain to confront the still-unstated case against him.

Josef returns to his office and discovers the two police officers who first visited him being whipped in a small room. Josef's uncle Max suggests that Josef consult with Hastler (Orson Welles), a law advocate. After brief encounters with the wife of a courtroom guard (Elsa Martinelli) and a roomful of condemned men awaiting trial, Josef is granted an interview with Hastler, which proves unsatisfactory.

Hastler's mistress (Romy Schneider) suggests that Josef seek the advice of the artist Titorelli (William Chappell), but this also proves unhelpful. Seeking refuge in a cathedral, Josef learns from a priest (Michael Lonsdale) that he has been condemned to death. Hastler abruptly appears at the cathedral to confirm the priest's assertion.

On the evening before his thirty-first birthday, Josef is apprehended by two executioners and brought to a quarry pit, where he is forced to remove some of his clothing. The executioners pass a knife back and forth, apparently deliberating on who will do the deed, before handing the knife to the condemned man, who refuses to commit suicide. The executioners leave Josef in the quarry and toss dynamite in the pit. Josef laughs at his executioners and picks up the dynamite. From a distance one can hear an explosion and smoke billows into the air.

The story is set in the late 1920s to early 1930s in the city of Toledo. Tristana is a young woman who, following the death of her mother, becomes a ward of notorious nobleman don Lope Garrido. Despite his advancing age, Don Lope refuses to change his playboy lifestyle, while maintaining strong yet increasingly-antiquated attitudes about honor, chivalry, and women. Claiming to defend the weak from corrupt institutions (while expressing support for leftist politics), Don Lope nonetheless preys on his new ward, entranced by her beauty and innocence. He thus treats her as wife as well as daughter from the age of 19, unbeknownst to the outside world.

While Tristana initially accepts the arrangement, by age 21 she starts finding her voice, to demand to study music, art and other subjects with which she wishes to become independent, chafing under Don Lope, who thinks women are untrustworthy and should be kept at home. While sneaking out of the house against Lope's wishes, she meets Horacio, a young artist from Catalonia. The two fall in love and Horacio asks her to come live with him in Barcelona, but she remains apprehensive because of the Don's inescapable presence. Horacio confronts Don Lope outside his apartment, Lope slaps him and challenges him to a duel, and Hoarcio responds by simply punching him in the face. He and Tristana leave the following day.

Five years later, Tristana returns, having suddenly fallen ill. She demands to be remanded to Don Lope's house so she can die there. Tristana survives but loses a leg in the process, which changes her prospects. She breaks up with Horacio and seemingly reinstates the previous relationship with Don Lope, but is now much more independent and openly defiant. Don Lope, whose health problems have only worsened, suddenly inherits money from his sister, which Tristana covets. She agrees to have a marriage of convenience with Lope in order to, as a local priest describes, "correct a previously sinful situation," but makes it clear she has no desire for a romantic or sexual relationship, taking up the housemaid's deaf-mute son Saturno as a lover.

One night, Lope suffers a heart attack in bed. Tristana pretends to get help until he's fallen unconscious, and finishes him off by opening the window to the winter cold. The film ends with a montage of scenes playing back in reverse, ending at the moment Don Lope first seduced Tristana.

Optimistic psychiatrist Dr. Donovan MacLeod wants to prove his theory that mental patients can benefit from group therapy. His method of treatment, with no violence or punishment, is met with a great deal of resistance from his unyielding and self-righteous head nurse, Lucretia Terry, who believes in traditional methods such as strait-jackets and padded cells for treating the mentally ill.

Head of the hospital Dr. Harrington is weak-willed. Terry's assistant, nurse Bracken, supports her superior's stand. After much trial and error and the harrowing near-rape of a patient, MacLeod's ideas prevail in spite of the opposition and meet some success.

Patients include distraught mother Lorna Medford, former prostitute Marion, pyromaniac Edna, and former schoolteacher Irene.

The novel consists of five chapters, titled "Thousand Cranes", "The Grove in the Evening Sun", "Figured Shino", "Her Mother's Lipstick" and "Double Star".

28-year-old Tokyo office worker Kikuji attends the tea ceremony lesson of Miss Chikako Kurimoto, with whom his deceased father once had a short-lived affair. He still vividly remembers a large naevus on her chest, which he once saw as a child. Kikuji is impressed by the beauty of one of Miss Kurimoto's pupils, Yukiko Inamura, who carries a furoshiki which bears a pattern of the thousand cranes of the novel's title. The tea ceremony lesson is also attended by Mrs. Ota, a 45-year-old widow and long-time mistress of his father, and her daughter Fumiko. Miss Kurimoto speaks disparagingly of Mrs. Ota, while at the same trying to awaken Kikuji's interest in Miss Inamura.

Kikuji and Mrs. Ota spend a passionate night together, and Kikuji wonders if Mrs. Ota sees his father in him. When she visits him again after a long pause, he learns that her daughter Fumiko tried to keep her from meeting him. Despite her deep sense of shame, she sleeps with Kikuji again. Late that night, Fumiko rings him to tell him that her mother committed suicide. He agrees to help Fumiko with covering up her mother's suicide to maintain her reputation.

Miss Kurimoto repeatedly shows up in Kikuji's house, speaking badly of Mrs. Ota while at the same time reminding him of Miss Inamura. Kikuji, annoyed by her intrusiveness, replies that he is not interested in the young woman. Fumiko bequests him a shino ware jar of her mother, and later a shino tea bowl, which allegedly bears an unremovable trace of her mother's lipstick. Kikuji develops an interest in Fumiko, asking himself if he sees her mother in her.

When Kikuji returns from a trip to Lake Nojiri, Miss Kurimoto brings him the news that both Miss Inamura and Fumiko have married another man in his absence. He learns that her story was a lie when Fumiko rings him to inform him that she will start a job and move into a flat farther away from him. Fumiko visits him later that evening and insists that her mother's tea bowl is of little value and should be destroyed. Kikuji places his father's tea bowl next to Mrs. Ota's, and they both are aware that these were the bowls his father and her mother drank from while they had their affair. Fumiko eventually shatters her mother's bowl on a stone plate. Later, Kikuji and Fumiko spend the night together.

The next day, Kikuji tries to ring Fumiko at her work, but she hasn't shown up. He goes to see her at her new flat, where he is told that she announced to go on a holiday with a friend. Kikuji speculates if Fumiko committed suicide like her mother.

Charles Boone, in letters addressed to "Bones", describes the arrival of himself and his manservant, Calvin McCann, at Chapelwaite, the neglected ancestral home of Charles's estranged dead cousin. Calvin learns that many people in the nearby Maine town of Preacher's Corners think Charles and Calvin are mad for living in the mansion. The house is said to be "a bad house" with a history of sad events, disappearances, and mysterious noises which Charles attributes to "rats in the walls". Calvin finds a hidden compartment in the library containing an old map of a deserted village called Jerusalem's Lot, a mysterious area the townsfolk avoid. Their curiosity piqued, Charles and Calvin set out to explore the village.

The two men find a decayed Puritan settlement. Nothing has set foot in the town since its abandonment, including animals. As the two explore a church, they discover an obscene parody of the Madonna and Child and an inverted cross. At the pulpit, they find a book filled with Latin and Druidic runes entitled ''De Vermis Mysteriis'', or "The Mysteries of the Worm". When Charles touches the book, the church shakes and the two feel something gigantic moving in the ground beneath them. The evil of the place overcomes both men, and they flee the village.

The Preacher's Corners' inhabitants begin fearing Charles. They chase him from one house with rocks and guns. Charles asks Mrs. Cloris, Chapelwaite's former maid, for information about Jerusalem's Lot. She reveals a rift in Charles' family caused by his grandfather, Robert Boone, trying to steal ''De Vermis Mysteriis'' from his brother, Philip (presumably to destroy it). Philip was a minister involved in the occult who, on October 31, 1789, vanished along with the population of Jerusalem's Lot. Charles dismisses it as superstition but cannot forget what he saw in the church.

Calvin discovers a diary in the library, encrypted with a rail fence cipher. Before he can decipher it, Charles takes him into the cellar to check for rats. Hidden behind the walls they find the undead corpses of two of his relatives, Marcella and Randolph Boone. Charles recognizes them as "nosferatu". The two flee the cellar, and Calvin seals the trapdoor to prevent pursuit.

As Charles recovers from the encounter, Calvin cracks the cipher. The diary, written by Robert Boone, details the history of Jerusalem's Lot and the events leading to the mass disappearance. The village was founded by one of Charles' distant ancestors, James Boon, who was the leader of an inbred witchcraft cult. Philip and Robert took up residence in Chapelwaite, Philip was taken in by Boon's cult, and acquired ''De Vermis Mysteriis'' at Boon's behest. Philip and Boon used the book to call forth a supernatural entity referred to as "The Worm". In his final entry, Robert curses the whip-poor-will birds that have descended upon Chapelwaite.

Charles feels compelled to return to Jerusalem's Lot. Calvin tries to prevent it but finally relents, accompanying his master. They discover a butchered lamb on the church altar, lying on top of ''De Vermis Mysteriis''. Charles moves the lamb and takes the book to destroy it, but a congregation of undead appears, including Philip and Boon. Charles becomes possessed and begins chanting, summoning forth the Worm. Calvin knocks down Charles, freeing him from possession. Charles sets fire to the book. The Worm lashes out from below, killing Calvin before disappearing. Before Charles can recover Calvin's body, Boon forces Charles to flee. In his final letter to "Bones", Charles announces his intention to commit suicide, ending the Boone family line.

An "editor's note" attributes Charles's letters and the death of Calvin to insanity rather than supernatural occurrences in Jerusalem's Lot. The editor notes that Charles was not the last of his line: a bastard relative still exists—the editor himself, James Robert Boone, who has moved to Chapelwaite to restore the family name. James notes that Charles was right about one thing: "This place badly needs the services of an exterminator. There are some huge rats in the walls, by the sound." The note is dated October 2, the same date as Charles' first letter.

Jake Cullen is babysitting his grandson at his house in the Australian outback when a massive razorback boar smashes through his house and carries off his grandson to devour. Jake is accused of murdering the child, and while his account of the events are met with considerable scepticism, he is ultimately acquitted due to lack of evidence. The event destroys his credibility, however, and he vows revenge on the boar.

Two years later, American wildlife reporter Beth Winters journeys to the outback to document the hunting of Australian wildlife to be processed into pet food at a run-down factory. Beth gets video footage of two thugs, Benny Baker and his brother Dicko, illegally making pet food and is subsequently chased down by them by car. They catch up, force her off the road and attempt to rape her only to be chased off by the same boar that killed Jake's grandson. Beth attempts to take shelter in her car, but the hog rips off the door, drags her out and eats her. With no witnesses, her disappearance is subsequently ruled an accident by having fallen down an abandoned mine shaft after leaving her wrecked car.

Some time later, Beth's husband Carl travels to Australia in search of her and encounters Jake, whom Beth interviewed during her initial report. Jake refers Carl to the local cannery, where he meets Benny and Dicko. He pretends to be a Canadian visitor and convinces them to take him along on their next kangaroo hunt, only to be abandoned by them when he spoils a potential kill. Carl is then attacked by a herd of wild pigs, spurred on by the giant boar, which chase him through the night and force him to take shelter atop a windmill. The next morning the pigs knock over the windmill, but Carl is saved by landing in a pond at the windmill's base, which the pigs fear to enter.

Once the pigs leave, Carl attempts to make his way back to civilization, all the while suffering from dehydration-induced hallucinations, before finally reaching the house of Sarah Cameron: a friend of Jake who has been studying the local pig population and the only person who believes his story of the giant razorback. While recovering, Carl learns from Sarah that something has been causing the wild pigs excess stress, leading them into unusual behaviour, such as increased aggression and cannibalising their own young. Meanwhile, after learning that Carl had seen the razorback, Jake sets out for the pumping station and manages to shoot it with one of Sarah's tracking darts. He also finds Beth's wedding ring in the boar's faeces, which he returns to a grieving Carl.

Benny and Dicko overhear a radio conversation suggesting that Jake knows what really happened to Beth Winters. Fearful that Jake is attempting to implicate them in her death, Benny and Dicko attack Jake at his camp, breaking his legs with bolt-cutters and leaving him to be killed by the razorback. His remains are later found by Sarah and Carl, along with marks in the dirt made by Dicko's cleaver. Realising that the brothers were responsible for both Beth and Jake's death, Carl attacks Benny at the brothers' lair, interrogating him by dangling him over a mine shaft before dropping him into it. As Sarah rounds up a posse to hunt down the razorback, Carl corners Dicko at the cannery when the razorback suddenly appears and mauls Dicko to death. The razorback then chases Carl into the factory, when Sarah arrives and is seemingly killed by the boar.

The boar continues to pursue Carl, and in its maddened rampage, the razorback ends up damaging the cannery's generator, which sends the machines running. Carl lures the boar onto a conveyor belt that throws it into a giant meat grinder, chopping it to pieces. After shutting down the machinery, Carl finds and rescues Sarah, who had merely been knocked unconscious, and the two embrace.

A small oil rig located on a small river in Louisiana hits it big and former oiler John Sanders (who quit when a blowout occurred on a rig he was the boss of and four men died) and his friend Emery are hired to take his ex-wife Kelly and her boss to the location. Nearby, some thugs go diving for stolen goods that have been dumped in the river. Unfortunately, at the same time, a huge bull shark enters the river. Emery's people, a local tribe, believe that the shark is the physical manifestation of a spirit that supposedly protects the area where the well is located, brought forth as a form of vengeance for the driller's activities.

The shark begins to terrorize the area, killing several people, and an attempt by locals to kill it only drives it right back up the river, towards the oil rig. As a result of all the chaos, a $10,000 reward is posted for the shark's death. Unfortunately, John, Emery, Kelly and her boss are captured by the three thugs, and Kelly's boss is shot in the leg and ultimately bleeds to death. The oil rig has a blowout, killing two workers. The shark arrives and kills several people, seemingly taunting the crew by swimming around the rig.

The thugs force John and Kelly to dive for and recover the loot, while the thugs drink, mock each other and plot what to do with the money. One of the thugs kills one of his cohorts in order to keep the money for himself and his partner, Jerry. John manages to escape from the thugs and, after helping Kelly and Emery to escape, shoots the fuel tank on his boat, killing one of the thugs. The only one remaining, Ice, (Coolio) is killed by the shark while attempting to retrieve the money himself.

John manages to lure the shark under the oil rig and Emery activates the drill, dropping it into the shark's mouth, finally killing it. John, Kelly and Emery retrieve a tooth from the shark as proof of its death (the shark had bitten John on the foot, breaking off the tooth), and debate whether to collect the reward, but Emery, still believing the shark to have been a spirit in physical form, suggests that now that it is dead, they should just let it rest in peace. John heeds Emery's advice and tosses the tooth into the river, where it sinks to the bottom. Seconds later, the trio are found by the local sheriff, who shows up in a helicopter to check on them.

The film is set after the fall of Sanggyeong, the capital of Balhae in 926. Dongdan Kingdom dispatches the Chucksaldan (a.k.a. Killer Blade Army) to find and kill the last remaining member of the Balhae royal family, exiled prince Jeong-hyun, to prevent the possible reconstruction of Balhae. Prime Minister Lim Sun-ji, on the other hand, sends a young, talented swordswoman, Yeon So-ha, to find Prince Jeong-hyun first and bring him back safely. Jeong-hyun, however, is reluctant to come and fight for the throne, still bitter about his unfair exile. The rest of the movie follows So-ha and Jeong-hyun's journey as they fight their way back to the capital, fall in love and whether or not Jeong-hyun manages to reconstruct the fallen kingdom of Balhae.

Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) learns that Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) and Katy Moore (Amy Adams) have started dating. Michael Scott (Steve Carell) gives Ryan Howard (B. J. Novak) a glowing checkpoint review. When Ryan expresses his interest in starting his own business someday, Michael takes it upon himself to teach Ryan the "ten rules of business". The fire alarm sounds, and while Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson) and Angela Martin (Angela Kinsey) both attempt to take charge of the evacuation, Michael pushes others out of the way in his escape out of the building.

The employees play games to pass the time, including "Desert Island Picks" and "Who Would You Do?" When Ryan reveals that he is attending business school at night, Michael becomes enamored of his newfound protégé. Dwight becomes noticeably jealous of Ryan's favor with Michael, and he is seen sulking in his car to the tune "Everybody Hurts" by R.E.M. When Michael mentions that he left his cell phone in the office, Dwight rushes back into the building to fetch it.

Michael asks Ryan to call his cell phone to help Dwight find it. The phone rings, which happens to be in Michael's pocket. Dwight emerges, coughing, from the building and reveals that the fire was started by Ryan, who left a cheese pita in the toaster-oven set to "oven" instead of "toaster". Dwight and Michael mock Ryan and dub him "The Fire Guy" by doing a song parody of the Billy Joel song "We Didn't Start the Fire".

Although informed early in October that he must fire somebody by the end of the month, Michael Scott (Steve Carell) waits until the last day of the month, Halloween, and still has not fired anyone. Meanwhile, Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) and Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) post Dwight Schrute's (Rainn Wilson) résumé on the internet, and when a prospective employer (Cumberland Mills in Maryland) calls, Jim pretends to be Michael and gives Dwight a great reference. When the company calls Dwight to set up an interview, Dwight immediately ruins his chances by arguing with the caller over the importance and relevance of martial arts on his résumé. Later in the day, Pam suggests that Jim should apply for the Cumberland Mills position. Jim is quietly hurt by the suggestion that Pam would not miss him if he left.

After several failed attempted firings of other employees, Michael calls Creed Bratton (Creed Bratton) into his office to fire him. Creed, in turn, convinces Michael to let Devon (Devon Abner) go. After Michael fires Devon, Devon angrily rebuffs Michael's attempts to save their friendship, and invites everyone in the office (except Michael, Creed, Dwight and Angela) to join him at a local bar. As Jim leaves, Pam apologizes for pushing him into taking the Cumberland job and assures him that she would "blow her brains out" if he ever left. Jim admits to the camera that Pam is the only thing keeping him there. When the group leaves the office, Devon smashes a pumpkin over Michael's car in revenge.

At the end of the episode, Michael is alone at his home in front of the television, upset over firing Devon. When trick-or-treaters come, Michael cheerfully gives them a generous amount of candy.

Michael Scott (Steve Carell) and Jan Levinson (Melora Hardin) meet with Christian (Tim Meadows), who represents the governmental paper interests of the entire surrounding county. Taking him on as a client could mean the branch will not have to downsize, a threat that has been looming for the past year. Jan is disgusted when Michael changes the meeting location from a hotel meeting room to Chili's without permission and persists in jokes and personal discussion instead of getting down to business. However, she discovers at the end of the day that there is a method to his madness, as the bonding between Michael and Christian allows him to close the deal. Afterwards, in the parking lot, Michael and the recently divorced Jan kiss and leave together.

During the meeting Michael calls Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) to read from one of the joke books in his desk, where she finds a screenplay written by Michael entitled ''Threat Level: Midnight'', starring himself as "Agent Michael Scarn". The staff perform a read-through of the script, in which the character sequence "Dwigt" appears. They realize Michael based his incompetent sidekick on Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson), but later changed the name with a search and replace, which did not affect the single misspelling of Dwight's name. Dwight is upset and shuts down the exercise to invite everyone to set off fireworks outside, but only Kevin Malone (Brian Baumgartner) follows.

When the staff discuss their worst first dates, Pam astounds them with a story of how her date forgot about her and left her behind at a minor league hockey game. Their astonishment increases when they realize the date was her now-fiancé, Roy. Later, Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) and Pam break off their respective evening plans to enjoy an impromptu dinner on the roof and watch Dwight and Kevin fool around with fireworks. The next day Jim half-jokingly remarks to Pam that this was their first date. When Pam replies bluntly that it was not a date, Jim is caught by surprise and makes a snide comment about the hockey game date. Hurt, Pam breaks off the conversation.

That morning, Dwight, having spent the night in the office, sees Jan coming by to retrieve her car, igniting gossip that she had sex with Michael. Michael reveals to the documentary crew that they made out and talked long into the night before falling asleep. Jan calls and says she regrets what happened, even accusing Michael of deliberately getting her drunk to initiate a romantic encounter with her, but Michael refuses to accept her change of heart. He and Jim share a moment of confusion at their (apparently) unrequited loves.

Confederate guerillas attempt to raid the Union Army late in the American Civil War. The guerillas are ambushed, but thanks to the sharp-shooting of Frank James and the distractions of his brother Jesse they survive. The James, along with their buddies, the Younger brothers, congratulate themselves but learn that the Confederacy has pulled out of the war and it is over. The group decides to return to Missouri to their families and farms.

When they arrive, their town is occupied by the Union Army. Jesse's childhood friend Zee has grown into an attractive young woman, and there is a man hanging in the town square. Farmers are being pressured to sell their farms to the railroad company, who are pushing across the United States. If they don't sell their land to Thaddeus Rains, and his secret-service organizer, Allan Pinkerton, the farmers are burned out of their homes, or killed.

Frank finds the railroad doesn't even need their land. The James and Younger brothers don't want to sell, and Cole Younger loses his temper when several railroad men approach him about selling, and kills two of them. The army decides to hang him, but his brothers Bob and Jim, along with Jesse, Frank, and Zee, decide to rescue him. During the rescue, Jesse is shot in the shoulder, and hides out at Zee's.

A few weeks later, when Jesse has recovered, the railroad sets fire to the James' home, killing Jesse's mother. The James and Younger brothers ride out for revenge against the railroad men but instead focus on the bank's payroll, reasoning that if they steal the money and attack supply trains, the army will notice. Dubbing themselves the James–Younger Gang, they set out robbing banks, with Pinkerton and Rains struggling to stop them. The James gang turns themselves into folk heroes in the process.

The gang struggles over leadership, with Cole feeling that Jesse is getting an overblown ego from the publicity of the gang's activities. Jesse backs down, after an argument, and lets Cole plan and execute a robbery; Cole's chosen target proves to be a trap set by Pinkerton and Rains. Jim is shot and killed, and Jesse and his brother leave the gang, with Jesse later marrying Zee.

The gang does not do well without the James'. People do not respect the Younger brothers as much as they did the James-Younger Gang. When Jesse and Zee attempt to start a new life, Pinkerton finds and arrests Jesse. During the train ride to the jail, Jesse is chained in a rear car, but tricks a deputy into showing his gun, which he takes from him and uses to escape to the top of the train car.

Zee and the remainder of the Gang shoot a cannon at the train, stopping it and rescuing Jesse. Confronted with Rains and Pinkerton, Jesse shoots neither of them but rather Rains' prized watch. Pinkerton tells Jesse that he should go to Tennessee, as 'the railroad has no interest in Tennessee'.

Jouji Gouda is a new transfer student at Hakuryo High School. On his first day of class, he fell in love at first sight for Akane Suzumiya and boldly proposed to her on the spot. The two characters conflict with each other greatly, but Jouji never gives up and would do anything to express his love towards Akane. Although his attempts to win Akane's love at first do nothing but anger Akane, he gradually starts to make an impression on her, inspiring Akane to be more honest about her own feelings.

There are two possible endings. In the good ending, Akane admits she might have developed feelings for Jouji—but confesses that she might be using him as a rebound guy since he reminds her of her sister's ex-boyfriend. He then finds a new true love in the form of ''Muv-Luv'''s Sumika, only to have his heart broken about a minute later when she goes running after Takeru. In the true ending, Jouji transforms into a hero called Dimension Knight Tekkumen (時空の騎士テックメン, "Jikuu no Kishi Tekkumen") and fights aliens. Either way, he is said to have transferred out of the school after being scouted for a baseball team in ''Muv-Luv Extra'', which Kouzuki suggests might have been Meiya's doing.

In the ending of the later produced ''Akane Maniax'' OVA, Akane told Jouji that she has been accepted by an American university and will go there to further her studies. She still said it was nice to have met him. Later, after seeing Sumika running to Takeru, Jouji was taken away by Meiya and Tsukoyomi in their long limousine, presumably arranged to get some compensation and transfer to another school as a result.

Kol (Ross Hagen), an alien criminal, escapes from a spaceship into the woods of an American suburb. The commander (Jan-Michael Vincent) of the spaceship dispatches "the Alienator" (Teagan Clive)—a deadly gynoid, to capture Kol. She relentlessly pursues Kol and a group of teenagers whom he meets up with.

Kevin and Rachel move to Los Angeles to follow their dream – making it in cinema. They can't believe their luck when they find the perfect house on a hill called Edendale – right next door to Hollywood. Here, all the neighbors are in "the business", and they have high hopes for Kevin and Rachel.

But Rachel's dreams soon turn to nightmares. First, there's something hiding in the closet, then, the awful crying in the walls, and now, Kevin is acting strange. Terrified, Rachel thinks she must be going crazy – but could her insanity extend to the hill itself?

As the neighbors eagerly await the completion of Kevin's work, Rachel must convince him to leave this place before the powerful Ghosts of Edendale reach through time to possess his very soul.

The film follows how 13-year-old Kenny, his family and neighborhood deal with the intrusion of a French-speaking Quebec crew filming a documentary about Kenny's adaptation to his unusual congenital condition, the absence of his pelvis and legs. It was filmed in the Pittsburgh suburb of West Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, United States.

In the distant future of 14672 A.D., the first year of the , the demon lord escaped from hell and plotted to conquer the surface world ruled by the . The Getsu brothers fought against Ryūkotsuki, each wielding one of the three spiritual that have been passed within the clan for generations. However, the brothers were ultimately defeated by the demon and only , the youngest of the three, survived. Vowing to avenge his slain brothers, Fūma ventures into to recover the three stolen Pulse Blades and summon the spirits of his brothers to defeat Ryūkotsuki.

Foster brothers John and Charlie Robinson are transit cops patrolling the New York City Subway. On Christmas, they chase two muggers into a subway tunnel. Nearby trains are halted, but transit captain Donald Patterson allows the money train – hauling subway revenue – to continue. One of the teenage muggers is gunned down and killed by transit cops guarding the money train, triggering a brawl between them and the brothers. Patterson blames John and Charlie for delaying the money train.

Charlie asks John for money to buy a Christmas present, but instead uses it to pay off gambling debts to mobster Mr. Brown, only to get even more into debt when Brown intends to have his men throw Charlie off a building, until John intervenes. Revealing Charlie is $15,000 in debt, John at first decides to let them drop him, yet after a brief conversation Mr. Brown accepts John’s promise to deliver the money in a few days.

John and Charlie both take a liking to Grace Santiago, a newly assigned decoy transit officer. When a serial killer known as the Torch robs a token booth and sets it on fire at risk of killing the booth attendant, John and Charlie rescue the attendant and put out the fire, but Torch escapes and knocks out Grace.

John rejects Charlie’s plan to rob the money train to pay off the debt. When they and Grace are assigned to patrol the money train, Charlie discovers a grate in the train’s floor and a maintenance ladder leading to Central Park. A brawl breaks out between John and another officer, quickly involving the entire squad. Again blaming the brothers and accusing them of taking some of the money, Patterson continues to berate them even after realizing a collection agent miscounted. Charlie tells John the best time to rob the money train would be New Year's Eve, due to looser security and the year’s highest proceeds: up to $4,000,000 that night.

John gives Charlie $15,000 to pay back Mr. Brown, but while on the train, Charlie loses it to an old lady and is beaten by Brown’s men as punishment. John is visited by Grace, having both realized their mutual attraction to each other and the two have sex. Returning home, stopping by John’s apartment, he is saddened to spot Grace and John sleeping together and walks away, with John feeling remorse for hurting Charlie (as well as disappointment after Charlie tells him he lost the money).

In a sting operation to apprehend Torch, Grace is disguised as a token booth attendant. Realizing the trap, Torch distracts police by pushing a man in front of a moving train, killing him. Torch sprays gasoline on Grace, but before he can light it, Charlie alerts the other officers, who open fire. John pursues the killer into another station, where they fight. Torch is burned by his gasoline and killed by an approaching train. Patterson fires Charlie for ruining the ambush; trying to defend Charlie, John is fired as well, leading to the brothers having a major falling out.

John storms into Mr. Brown’s club, after hearing about Charlie and defeats the mobsters using his martial arts skills, threatening Brown if anything happens to Charlie, knocking him out with a 360-degree kick into a glass enclosure.

Grace persuades John to intervene in Charlie’s robbery. Charlie enters the money train from beneath, throws out the driver and drives it to the ladder, but is unable to escape with the money due to the presence of a group of cops. Reaching the train, John persuades Charlie to drive further to avoid arrest, and they disable the brakes to prevent Patterson activating them remotely. Patterson deploys a steel barricade, but John and Charlie accidentally increase the train to maximum speed and smashes through the barricade. Transit control officer Kowalski declares the money train a runaway and starts clearing tracks, but Patterson diverts the train onto a track occupied by a passenger train, the 1220 Coney Island to prevent its riders' escape, and doesn't even tell the driver about the money train. When Charlie tries to steal the money, John attempts to stop him from doing so, leading to a brawl between the brothers. Eventually, the two stop fighting when Charlie saves John from falling off the train. The money train slams into 1220 and slows down, but speeds up again, continuing to ram the rear of the passenger train with increasing risk of derailing it and killing everyone on board, including the driver.

With no brakes and the throttle jammed, the brothers decide to throw the train into reverse to save the passenger train. Charlie positions an iron bar to trip the reverse lever, and the brothers climb on top of the train. The money train rams into 1220 again, activating the reverse lever, putting it into reverse position and the brothers jump across to the 1220 train as the money train derails, to the horror of Patterson, who is waiting at the next station with the officers.

When arriving, the brothers try to escape but are spotted by Patterson, who interrogates them. Fed up with his abuse, they both punch him in the face after he spits at John. As Patterson shouts out for their arrest, but is arrested himself by Grace for endangering the passengers’ lives, much to the brothers amazement. The brothers then exit onto Times Square just as the New Year countdown begins. During the celebration, John realizes Charlie has a bag with over $500,000, much to his dismay. The film closes with the brothers walking off into the distance arguing over the money while the credits roll.

''Without Evidence'' is based on the true story of Michael Francke, who was the Head of Corrections for the state of Oregon before being murdered. Just before his murder, Francke visits his brother and informs him of a drug ring involving his prison colleagues. When Michael is killed, his brother begins his own investigation into the murder, leading him to more lies and deceit.

An oil prospector, Henry "Hank" Dowling (Lloyd Ingraham), has raised his free-spirited daughter, Alice "Bingo" Dowling (Joan Crawford), in the jungle of South America. He asks his friend, Ben Murchison (Ernest Torrence), to come work with him on oil wells that have made him rich. Just as Ben arrives with his friend, Howard Presley (Holmes Herbert), Hank is killed by a transient oil worker who has designs on Bingo.

At a relatively young age, Bingo has now inherited her father's company and wealth and Ben is appointed her guardian. She calls him and Howard both uncles, though they are not related. She is sassy and without refinement, hitting anyone she disagrees with. Her "uncles" decide that the wild Bingo should move to New York City, learn proper deportment and enter society. While they are aboard the ocean liner, she meets the young, good-looking and well-educated charmer Andy McAllister (Robert Montgomery).

It is love at first sight for Bingo and Andy while on the boat, but because Andy lacks money to care for Bingo, Ben convinces the two to part in New York and see if they still miss each other after a few months. Life goes on in New York, but roughly a year later, the two reunite and declare that their feelings for each other have not departed. The two begin seeing each other again. Still, because she is very wealthy and he is not, he is afraid of what people might think and tells her that he cannot marry her and live off her money. To complicate the situation further, Bingo's Uncle Ben discourages the relationship and "Uncle" Howard actually has feelings for Bingo himself. As Bingo is about to declare their intention to marry, Ben even offers Andy $20,000 to start a new life, knowing full-well that would cause him to leave Bingo.

When Andy turns to second-string Marjory (Gwen Lee), an irate Bingo loses her temper and shoots him in the shoulder. They make up immediately after the shooting and forgive each other. Changing his mind about leaving her, Andy decides that Bingo is the woman for him and wants to marry her. Ben offers him a job in the oil wells making a substantial salary, and the two intend to live together now.

Jack Moniker is a Chicago firefighter who is injured on the job. Using his disability insurance payout, he retires to the small Caribbean island of Saint Nicholas, and buys a small property. Anthony Croyden Hayes, appointed by the British crown as governor of St. Nicholas, is more concerned with vacationing than governing. Miss Phillipa Lloyd, who is visiting St. Nicholas with some friends, decides to stay permanently and becomes Jack's girlfriend.

Jack befriends financially troubled reggae musician Ernest Reed and they form Club Paradise, which they market as a Club Med-style resort complete with a brochure that features photographs of Jack in various disguises on every page. This attracts a handful of tourists, including Barry and Barry who are there for the marijuana and the women. Much of the film involves the tourists' comic misadventures adjusting to island life and the low-rent facilities of Club Paradise. Also traveling to the island is ''The New York Times'' travel writer Terry Hamlin who ends up spending most of her time in the company of Governor Hayes. Adding to the fun is suburban housewife Linda White, who is vacationing with her husband Randy, who despite the very favorable surroundings and atmosphere, is not very randy.

Voit Zerbe plays a key role, as a developer who wants to run Jack and Ernest off their property so he can build a massive high-end casino on the beach as part of a deal he's making with two business partners. To do that, he uses the help of the local prime minister Solomon Gundy and the prime minister's men to cause trouble and get Club Paradise to close "legally." Jack and Ernest go so far as to sneak aboard Zerbe's yacht to provide some "useful intelligence" for Governor Hayes by finding out what is going to happen to the future of Saint Nicholas. They skin dive to the yacht where they are captured by local police and thrown in jail. When Prime Minister Gundy's strong arm tactics don't work, he orders a military takeover of the island. Ernest builds up a resistance force, and St. Nicholas is soon threatened with the possibility of civil war, which is averted at the last minute with assistance from Jack and Governor Hayes. As Gundy's takeover fails, Zerbe and his partners leave Saint Nicholas and head for the Cayman Islands.

Ellie DeWitt is a former U.S. Marine who wants to become an FBI Agent. However, while she has great physical skills, she struggles at the academic level. Conversely, her roommate Janis Zuckerman is highly intelligent, but physically very weak. Overcoming the male recruits' assumptions of them, Ellie and Janis team up to help each other through the basic training so they can both become federal agents.

During their training, Ellie and Janis must deal with an instructor who seems determined to fail the pair, a fellow trainee who seems more interested in flirting with Ellie (until Ellie asserts her Marine training and pins him against the wall in one exercise), and befriend a geeky co-trainee who seems unable to complete the smallest task.

Joining forces, the three tackle the final practice simulation, (badly) forging the instructor's signature ('he sneezed') and breaking into the telephone room to discover the location of the "hostage". They also use their radio to mislead the other agents into a swamp to make sure they don't find the hostage first.

The two graduate with honors and in the credits scene, both Ellie and Janis are assigned as partners to the Los Angeles office.

On September 10, 1929, American millionaire J. J. Bunyan hosts a dinner for other millionaires in New York. Acting on a suggestion from Mortimer Bayliss, the curator of Bunyan's art collection, the group decide to have fun with their money by making a sort of tontine: Bunyan and nine other millionaires contribute fifty thousand dollars each to a fund, and the last son of the men to get married will receive all the money plus the compound interest accumulated. The men are not allowed to tell their sons about the tontine.

The story jumps to June 20, 1955. Retired butler Augustus Keggs is the landlord of three neighbouring homes in London suburb Valley Fields: Castlewood, Peacehaven, and The Nook. Keggs's former employer Lord Uffenham and Lord Uffenham's niece Jane live with Keggs in Castlewood. Lord Uffenham has rented out his large home, Shipley Hall (near Tonbridge), to Roscoe Bunyan, the late J. J. Bunyan's wealthy son. Jane is engaged to Stanhope Twine, an unpopular sculptor who lives in Peacehaven, though Stanhope does not have enough money to marry.

Keggs was J. J. Bunyan's butler in 1929 and knows about the tontine. The fund has grown to approximately a million dollars. He tells Roscoe that he and Stanhope are the last unmarried sons. Keggs advises him to pay Stanhope twenty thousand pounds (under the pretext of getting a percentage of his future earnings) so that Stanhope can get married and Roscoe will receive the tontine money. Bayliss volunteers to speak to Stanhope for Roscoe. Keggs is annoyed when Roscoe only rewards him with fifty pounds for the information. Bayliss privately tells Keggs that he knows nobody named Twine joined the tontine, and Keggs confesses that the only other remaining son is actually named Bill Hollister. Keggs lied to Roscoe to help Jane, who wishes to marry Stanhope. Bayliss keeps his secret since he will enjoy seeing the greedy Roscoe lose twenty thousand pounds for nothing. Roscoe is secretly engaged to actress Emma Billson (Keggs's niece) and plans to end the engagement because of the tontine. He hires private detective Percy Pilbeam to get back his letters to her mentioning marriage to avoid a breach of promise case.

Unlike Roscoe, Bill Hollister is not rich and works for art dealer Leonard Gish's Gish Galleries. Stanhope and Bill are acquaintances, and Bill helps Stanhope do business with Bayliss. Jane wants Mr Gish to sell pictures from the Uffenham family collection kept at Shipley Hall. Gish tells Bill to go to Shipley and ask Bayliss about the pictures. Bill meets Jane at Barribault's and falls in love with her. Jane also feels drawn to Bill, though she keeps in mind that she is engaged to Stanhope. At Shipley Hall, Bayliss tells Uffenham and Bill that Uffenham's pictures are all fake. When Bill abruptly asks Jane to marry him over the telephone, she gasps and ends the call. Uffenham, who likes Bill, advises him to be more tactful and warns him that Jane is engaged to Stanhope.

Bayliss delivers Roscoe's check to Stanhope. Afterwards, Bayliss tells Roscoe that Keggs lied and Stanhope is not part of the tontine. To inspire Jane to feel concern for Bill, Uffenham hits him with a tobacco jar. This is successful, and Jane and Bill admit their feelings for each other. Stanhope has ended his engagement with Jane in order to travel the world freely with his new money. Keggs offers to tell Roscoe the real identity of the other remaining contender for the tontine, if Roscoe pays him a hundred thousand dollars out of the tontine proceeds. Roscoe agrees and they sign a contract. Keggs tells Roscoe about Bill. Following Keggs's suggestion, Roscoe hires Bill at a large salary to be Bayliss's assistant so that Bill can afford to marry Jane.

Percy Pilbeam recovers Roscoe's letters. Roscoe gives him another job, to recover and destroy Keggs's contract, which Pilbeam manages to accomplish. Bayliss informs Uffenham that some of his pictures are actually valuable after all. Bill learns about the tontine but still wants to marry Jane right away, which moves Jane. Keggs realizes that Pilbeam was hired by Roscoe to destroy their contract, and also learns that Roscoe was engaged to Emma and ended the engagement because of the tontine, and had his letters destroyed to avoid a breach of promise case. Uffenham suggests that Keggs bring Emma's parents, Flossie Billson (Keggs's sister) and retired boxer Battling Billson, to confront Roscoe. The intimidating appearance of Mr Billson compels Roscoe to renew his engagement to Emma, and split the tontine money evenly with Bill and pay Keggs. Bayliss decides not to tell Bill or Roscoe that Bill's father didn't actually contribute to the tontine and Roscoe didn't have to split the money with Bill.

Circus proprietor Larsen E. Whipsnade is struggling to keep a step ahead of foreclosure, and clearly not paying his performers, including Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy (Bergen's ventriloquist's dummy/alter-ego, whom Whipsnade hates) Whipsnade's co-ed daughter pays a visit and falls in love with Bergen, but after she sees the financial mess that her father is in, she decides to marry Roger, a tiresome young millionaire. Whipsnade initially approves of the marriage, and just to be sure that the penniless Bergen doesn't win out (and make McCarthy an in-law), he sets the pair adrift in a hot-air balloon. However, Whipsnade creates a scene at the engagement party, and father and daughter escape together in a chariot, with Bergen and McCarthy in pursuit.

At the Hollywood studios of Esoteric Pictures, W. C. Fields, playing himself, is seen admiring a billboard advertising his previous film, ''The Bank Dick'' (1940). He encounters various hecklers and minor calamities, including a rude, sassy diner waitress (Jody Gilbert). His devoted niece, Gloria Jean, is on her way to rehearse some songs at the studio, where she demonstrates her classically trained coloratura soprano. Fields himself is also on the premises, to pitch a script to Esoteric producer Franklin Pangborn.

Pangborn reads through the script, which comes to life in a series of scenes. Fields and Gloria Jean are flying to an exotic location on an airplane, which Fields specifies has an open-air rear observatory platform. Fields has run-ins with a couple of eccentric characters in which he tangles with a large, angry man in the lower berth and manages to hit him with a mallet and convince him that someone else did it. At one point Gloria Jean asks Uncle Bill why he never married, and he answers, "I was in love with a beautiful blonde once, dear. She drove me to drink. That's the one thing I'm indebted to her for." When Fields's flask falls out of the plane, Fields jumps out after it and his niece cries out in horror. But he lands safely in a "nest" high atop a cliff, a home populated by a beautiful, young, naive girl (Susan Miller) and her cynical mother (Margaret Dumont). Meanwhile, the plane lands, and Gloria Jean sings a traditional Russian song to a group of peasants. She reunites with Fields in the village, where Fields learns that Dumont is wealthy. He returns to Dumont's mountaintop retreat, only to find a romantic rival (Leon Errol). Fields is about to marry Dumont when Gloria Jean takes him aside and convinces him that this is a bad idea, and they make a swift exit.

At this point, Pangborn has had enough of the absurdity of the script and tells Fields to leave the studio. Fields goes to an ice cream parlor to drown his sorrows. In a rare aside to the camera, Fields remarks, "This scene is supposed to be in a saloon, but the censor cut it out!"

At the studio, when Gloria Jean learns Fields has been sent away, she tells the flustered Pangborn that if her uncle is fired, then she quits. She and Fields make plans to travel, and she goes into a shop to buy some new clothes. Just then, a middle-aged matron (Kay Deslys) asks for help getting to the maternity hospital, where her daughter is about to give birth. Fields volunteers, thinking the matron herself is in distress, and she takes the back seat of his car. He speeds her through the streets and expressways of Los Angeles, where he tangles with pedestrians, cars, and a hook-and-ladder fire truck. When his passenger passes out, Fields drives even more urgently. He arrives at the hospital, wrecking his car in the process, and his passenger is shaken but unhurt. Gloria Jean, who has just arrived by taxi, asks Uncle Bill if he's all right. He replies, "Good thing I didn't have an accident. I'd never have gotten here." Gloria Jean smiles and says to the audience, "My Uncle Bill... but I still love him!"

Freddie Widgeon is renting a villa called Peacehaven in the idyllic South London suburb of Valley Fields, and working, unhappily, in the office of Shoesmith, Shoesmith, Shoesmith and Shoesmith, solicitors. Soapy Molloy has just moved out of the house next door (Castlewood), to be replaced by the novelist Leila Yorke. Leila is published by Popgood and Grooly (a publishing firm also mentioned in other novels including ''Uncle Dynamite'' and ''Galahad at Blandings''), which is largely owned by Oofy Prosser. It turns out that Soapy has left some diamonds or "ice" (stolen from Oofy's wife Myrtle) in the bedroom of Castlewood. His wife Dolly, just released from jail, is determined to get it back. After several failed attempts, she comes up with the idea of trying to drive Leila out of her house by arranging for many people to knock on her door bearing cats, and later dogs.

Meanwhile, Freddie is keen to escape from his office job and go to Kenya to run a coffee plantation. He thinks he can finance this using oil stocks sold to him by Soapy. As usual he is in love, with Sally Foster, Leila's secretary. Sally is aware of Freddie's reputation with women and is unamused when he is repeatedly found in compromising situations with the glamorous Dolly.

In another sub-plot, Leila wants to find her estranged husband Joe. To this end she hires Chimp Twist. She also engages him to search for the cat perpetrator.

Dolly, Soapy and Chimp all break into Castlewood in an attempt to find the jewels, but they are surprised by George, Freddie's policeman cousin. The ice ends up in the hands of Freddie, who hopes that Oofy will reward him (Soapy's stock having turned out to be predictably worthless). But Oofy typically refuses. In the end, Mr Cornelius, the Valley Fields house agent, who's just come into a fortune, gives him the cash and all's well that ends well.

By the year 2001, all correctional facilities have been privatized. Lik Wong/Ricky Ho, a martial artist, and former music student who has mysterious unexplained super human strength, is sentenced to 10 years in prison for manslaughter after killing a crime lord indirectly responsible for the death of his girlfriend Keiko/Anne after a group of thugs chased her off the building to her death after witnessing their heroin deal. It is revealed in a flashback Ricky's name as a child was Rick, but his uncle, after seeing how strong he was, decided the name Ricky was more suitable. It is also revealed that Ricky has multiple bullets inside him that he received from his attack on the crime lord, which he refused to remove because he considers them souvenirs from his killings.

An elderly inmate, Ma/Omar, is attacked by the captain of the cells Wildcat/Samuel. Ricky trips Samuel, who falls face first on a well placed piece of wood with nails. After this, one of the inmates suggests that Mad Dragon/Zorro, a dangerous, morbidly obese inmate should kill him. Omar is informed by the guards that his probation was turned down after Samuel lied, telling the guards that Omar was spreading dirty prison rumors. Stricken by grief, Omar hangs himself. Zorro attacks Ricky in the shower room, but is easily killed and gutted by Ricky's bare hands. Ricky thwarts Samuel's attack, squeezing his hands until all his fingers broke before punching a hole in his stomach, killing him as well. Ricky is thrown into isolation as punishment. At night he uses chi to heal his wounds and gets flashbacks to his girlfriend as well as his training.

Shortly after, a member of the Four Heavenly Kings ("Gang of Four" in the English dub) named Hai/Oscar the leader of the North Cell, suggests that Ricky see the one-eyed Assistant Warden Dan. The warden shoots Ricky with a gun only for Ricky to slap the bullet away and retaliate by punching the air so hard the Warden starts bleeding, which intimidates the Warden. After Ricky's confrontation, Dan suggests Oscar kill him. Outside the prison yard, Oscar and Ricky engage in a fight. After losing an eye due to a backhand slap from Ricky, Oscar cuts a hole in his stomach and uses his intestines to strangle Ricky. Ricky breaks free, tosses Oscar in the air and delivers a skull crushing blow which instantly kills Oscar. Ricky soon discovers that the Gang of Four is growing illegal opium for profit. Huang Chung/Rogan, leader of the West Cell, discovers Ricky set the poppy garden on fire, leading to a fight. Brandon, leader of the South Cell, throws needles to tie Ricky up with them, leaving him defenseless. Meanwhile, the guards report to Dan that the Warden is returning from his vacation, prompting Dan to raise the Zero Alarm, causing the defense system to shoot anyone outside their cell, regardless of status. As the fight continues, Tarzan, leader of the East Cell, arrives announcing his intent to fight Ricky but leaves along with the Gang as the Zero Alarm goes off. The Gang of Four attempt to persuade Oscar's younger brother to revenge his death, but he refuses and in return he gets half of his face sliced off.

The next day, the Warden and his spoiled obese son return from their vacation. Dan informs the Warden about the incidents, including the poppy garden. This infuriates the Warden, almost transforming him into a Hulk-like creature, though he prevents it by taking medication. As the Warden tortures and questions Ricky, Tarzan bursts through the wall to fight Ricky, which ends in Ricky dismembering half of Tarzan's left arm and breaking his mandible. The Warden activates a ceiling trap on Ricky who struggles to stay alive. Tarzan regains consciousness and holds the ceiling, only to unintentionally save Ricky by being crushed himself. After escaping, Ricky finds a photo showing Tarzan had a family waiting for him. The Warden orders the inmates to bury Ricky alive, which they reluctantly obey. The Warden proposes if Ricky survives underground for a week, he will free him. Ricky does survive by eating dog meat, however, the Warden denies him freedom. Later that night, Ricky is brought food by an inmate Freddy. Another inmate informs Dan, the prison snitch, who mortally wounds Freddy. Dan then opens Ricky's cell to taunt him. However, Ricky breaks free and kills the snitch by punching the top half of his head off and then knocks out Dan's remaining eye. The inmates then rebel and violently ambush Dan, chopping off his arm. A prison riot team arrives with body armor and shields only for Ricky to easily punch holes in their bodies.

In the kitchen, Ricky, the prisoners, and Dan burst through the wall. The Warden shoots Dan with a homemade gas-pressured bullet, causing him to inflate and violently explode. Rogan and Brandon confront Ricky, who gravely injures Rogan by tying his limbs together. Brandon, realizing Ricky is far too powerful for him, flees from the scene, but not before the Warden shoots and kills him. The Warden attempts to shoot Ricky but remembers that Ricky is immune to bullets, even his own homemade gas-pressured bullets. The Warden, revealing that he too, is a martial artist who also went to the same school as Ricky, loses control and finally transforms into the grotesque Hulk-like creature and battles Ricky in a fist fight instead. The fight ends with Ricky crippling and throwing the mutated Warden into a meat grinder, turning him into ground beef. Outside, the prisoners rebel once again and start to attack the guards until Ricky reaches the prison wall, throwing the warden's mutated head at the frightened guards, and breaking the wall with a punch. Ricky declares to all the prisoners, "You're all free now," allowing the prisoners and himself to go free. Ricky steps out of prison and walks alone into the distance.

Myra Schoonmaker is staying at Blandings Castle, her London season having been cut short by Connie. Connie is not happy that Myra wants to marry the impoverished East End curate Bill Bailey. Lord Emsworth is not happy with his sister, with his latest secretary Lavender Briggs and with the houseguest Duke of Dunstable. Adding to the unpleasantness, Lady Constance invites a party of Church Lads to camp out at the lake, young boys who enjoy taunting Emsworth.

When Connie says she will be away for a day having her hair done in Shrewsbury, Myra contacts Bailey, arranging to meet in a registry office and get married. Bailey, with his friend Pongo Twistleton and Pongo's Uncle Fred, waits at the selected spot, but Myra does not appear. Uncle Fred is an old friend of Myra and her father, and he likes Bailey. Fred then meets Emsworth, who is in London to attend the Opening of Parliament), and invites himself to Blandings to help Emsworth, the unhappy earl. He brings Bailey under the name of "Cuthbert Meriweather", an old friend returned from Brazil.

At the castle, Bailey and Myra are reunited, after learning each was waiting at a different registry office. The Church Lads trick Emsworth into diving into the lake to rescue one of their number, which turns out to be a log. This leads the Duke of Dunstable to again question Emsworth's sanity, always manifest in Emsworth’s affection for his pig. Emsworth, at Fred's suggestion, takes his revenge on the Church Lads by cutting the ropes of their tent in the small hours.

Dunstable plans to steal the pig and sell it to Lord Tilbury for £2000. Lavender Briggs proposes to do the work of stealing the pig for £500; Dunstable will not sign a contract, so she insists he make a clear verbal agreement. Briggs enlists the pig man Wellbeloved to help and she has a second assistant available. She goes to London to deposit the cheque.

Myra tells Uncle Fred that Briggs is blackmailing her beloved Bailey, as she has recognised him, into helping with the pig scheme. Before Fred can come up with a plan, Bailey confesses all to Lord Emsworth, who in his wrath fires both Briggs and Wellbeloved. Emsworth then relates all of this to his sister, including Meriweather’s true identity. Connie orders Fred and Bailey out of the castle; they stay, as Fred threatens to reveal to the county that Beach cut the tent ropes, which would lead to embarrassment and the loss of a superlative butler. Upset at her failure in finding a good match for Myra, Connie cables James Schoonmaker to come to her aid from his home in New York.

When George Threepwood tells Dunstable that he has photographed his grandfather in the act of cutting the tent ropes, Dunstable realises that Briggs is no longer needed, as he can blackmail Emsworth into parting with the pig with the photos. He meets up with Tilbury at The Emsworth Arms, where Lavender Briggs, returned from her day in London and unaware she has been fired, overhears him telling Tilbury he has cancelled her cheque; Dunstable raises the price for Tilbury to £3000 for the pig, which Tilbury will consider. After Dunstable leaves, Briggs approaches Tilbury, her former employer, with her offer to steal the pig for Tilbury at a lower price; he accepts and pays her. On leaving the inn, Briggs meets Uncle Fred, who tells her that Emsworth has fired her; he advises her to head back to London to deposit Tilbury's cheque. She wants this money to open her own secretarial service.

Schoonmaker arrives, answering Connie's request. Fred intercepts him at the railway station and takes him to the Emsworth Arms, where they catch up on old times. Fred informs his old friend of Myra's engagement to Archie Gilpin, which she did after breaking off with Bailey for his rash confession). Schoonmaker reveals he loves Connie, but lacks the courage to propose. Fred tells him that she has feelings for him, encourages Schoonmaker to propose to her. Later Gilpin tells Fred he has once again become engaged to Millicent Rigby, with whom he had had a minor falling out, and now finds himself engaged to two girls at once; he needs £1000, to buy into his cousin Ricky's onion-soup business and support his future wife. Fred encourages Archie to break it off with Myra.

Uncle Fred tricks Dunstable into thinking Schoonmaker is broke, and persuades him to pay out £1000 to get his nephew Archie out of his engagement to Myra. Fred persuades him that Bill Bailey is a more suitable match for Myra. Connie is in tears on hearing Myra is engaged to Bailey, which gives Schoonmaker the nerve to propose to Connie. With help from Lavender Briggs, Fred plays for Dunstable the tape-recording of him scheming to steal the pig. In return for Fred keeping that quiet, Dunstable turns over the photos of Lord Emsworth to Fred. Fred keeps the tape so Dunstable will not stop the cheque to his nephew Archie.

With Bill and Myra off to a registry office, Archie back with Millicent and set up in business, Connie and Schoonmaker engaged and Dunstable well and truly scuppered, Fred smiles at the services he has done for one and all.

On the last day of his Paris holiday, Gerald "Jerry" Shoesmith, editor of ''Society Spice'', loses his wallet, which contains his keys. It is brought to an overly bureaucratic police sergeant, who will not return it for three days. American journalist Katherine "Kay" Christopher suggests he sleep at Henry Blake-Somerset's apartment, though Henry is cold and aloof. It is revealed that Henry is Kay's fiancé. Jerry tells Kay that he wants to marry her, but she remains with Henry. Kay's brother and Jerry's friend, Edmund Biffen "Biff" Christopher, is prone to drinking and getting into fights while drunk. He has fled Paris for London after punching a policeman. At Barribault's Hotel, Biff is served by waiter William "Willie" Pilbeam, whose son Percy runs a private detective agency, and whose niece Gwendoline Gibbs is secretary to Jerry's formidable employer Lord Tilbury. Biff discovers he has inherited millions from his godfather, Edmund Biffen Pyke, but on conditions that will be explained in a coming letter. In the meantime, Biff is low on funds and moves into Jerry's modest flat in Halsey Court. Once engaged to Tilbury's niece Linda Rome, Biff hopes to win her back. Tilbury was the late Pyke's brother and wants Biff's inheritance. Tilbury also loves Gwendoline.

Biff is struck by Gwendoline's beauty and joins Gwendoline and Percy for dinner. Biff gets drunk and plans to punch a policeman with a ginger moustache, so Jerry locks Biff in his room. The next day, Biff is grateful; he has learned his money is in a spendthrift trust and will not be given to him until he turns thirty, and he will get nothing if he is arrested before then. Biff's thirtieth birthday is in a week. Jerry hates editing a gossip paper, so Biff says that when he is rich, he will buy the intellectual ''Thursday Review'' and make Jerry editor. Coincidentally, Tilbury fires Jerry. Jerry briefly returns to Paris to retrieve his wallet and asks Kay to help watch over Biff. Biff reconciles with Linda and wants to reform for her. Tilbury hires Percy to get Biff arrested. Biff gives Gwendoline lunch to be polite. Percy wants to hire Biff to drink with a Russian spy called Joe Murphy (who is actually just a freelance journalist and heavy drinker). Biff declines, but changes his mind when Linda ends their engagement since she saw him with Gwendoline (though Percy later refuses to pay Biff). Percy informs Gwendoline about everything to warn her that Biff will not be rich. Kay comes to London, and she and Jerry see Biff return to the flat drunk and with a black eye. Jerry decides to steal Biff's trousers to keep him from going out and leave all their spare trousers with his uncle John Shoesmith. Henry suspects Kay loves Jerry.

Tilbury goes to Jerry's flat in the morning and tells Biff, who is in sleepwear, to split the money evenly, or else he will argue in court that the late Pyke was mentally incompetent to make a will. Tilbury leaves, and Jerry advises Biff not to agree. Jerry leaves after Biff realizes his trousers are gone. Tilbury returns, and Biff, desperate to see Linda, threatens him into giving him his trousers. Tilbury telephones Percy to bring him trousers, but Percy misunderstands and brings Gwendoline's dog Towser. Tilbury gives Percy his house key to fetch a pair of trousers, but Percy is offended by Tilbury's insults and instead sells his own trousers to Tilbury for a high price. Tilbury soon stops the cheque. Realising he has forgotten lunch with Ivor Llewellyn, who pays a lot to advertise in Tilbury's papers, Tilbury telephones Gwendoline. She told Llewellyn that Tilbury was at home due to illness, and suggests that Tilbury hurry home, since Llewellyn intends to visit. Tilbury thanks her and brings his solicitor, Cyril Bunting, to pose as the butler, since the staff resigned over Tilbury's bad temper.

Henry looks for Jerry, and Percy threatens him into giving him his trousers. Jerry and Kay approach the flat and Henry hides in a bedroom. He overhears Kay confess her love for Jerry. After Kay leaves, a boy employed by Percy delivers a pair of trousers, which Henry puts on before coldly exiting. Linda has married Biff. Biff does not remember how he got his black eye and thinks the police might be looking for him, so Linda hid him at Tilbury's house, since she thought it was unoccupied. At Tilbury's house, Biff threatens to tell Llewellyn about Tilbury's deception unless Tilbury takes only five percent of the inheritance. Tilbury grudgingly agrees. Percy comes because of the stopped cheque but gets locked in the cellar and arrested. Bunting warns that Percy can sue Tilbury. However, Gwendoline blackmails Percy out of it, and she gets engaged to Tilbury. The police are looking for Biff, but it turns out that the ginger-moustached policeman wants to thank Biff, who saved him in a brawl.

Our plucky narrator Corky, researching for an article in the East End, has his pocket picked and finds himself unable to pay a bill at an inn. Kicked out by the landlord, he is rescued and avenged by a huge, red-headed man - none other than "Battling" Billson. He gives Billson Ukridge's address, and next day is landed with looking after Flossie's ghastly mother and ghoulish brother Cecil, despite having no recollection of who Flossie may be.

He beards Ukridge later, and is reminded of Billson's girl, who, it seems, is preventing the huge sailor from returning to the ring, for fear of him damaging his face. Ukridge wants Billson to fight, in a deal which would net them £200, and dealing with the mother, who Flossie can't stand, is Ukridge's way of bringing her on side.

Billson enters the ring and starts strongly, but soon fades, and looks certain to lose. At the last moment, he rallies spectacularly, and destroys his opponent. Corcoran goes home happy for his friend's success, but Ukridge arrives later bewailing cruel fate. The £200, it seems, was a bribe to throw the fight, which Billson had been on the verge of doing when his opponent stepped on his ingrowing toenail, enraging the big man and making him win the fight - which netted a mere £20.

Billson was introduced in "The Debut of Battling Billson", and would return in several other Ukridge stories.

The main character of the series is astronaut Adam Archer. As the sole survivor of an ill-fated journey to Mars, Adam Archer meets the alien entities known as the Cosmic Fetus Collective, who transform him into a cosmic being and instruct him in the uses of his new powers. Archer is sent back to Earth as the first human to be touched by ''universal enlightenment''.

The series starts four years later. Archer has become a famous superhero, but is distrusted by government and the public. The military have provided him with a base, ''Infinity Tower'', from where Archer and his three sisters, Neela, Angie and Stella, protect the Earth from the invasion of robot zombies. Neela, an astronaut and military commander, resents that her brother's powers overshadow her own talents and that she is forced to keep an eye on him instead of pursuing her own career. Angie, a fighter pilot, is a rebellious spirit, while Stella, who oversees communication with her brother, is clear-headed and rational.

On his adventures, Adam comes into conflict with many bizarre supervillains like Basil Cronus, a floating skull in jar on a quest for ''the ultimate high'', Friedrich Nickelhead, Discordia and her father the Tormentor and his army of Superman-Mice.

On his first adventure, Adam saves the giant, dog-like alien Maxim, who turns out to know about the Cosmic Fetus Collective. Maxim was enhanced by his own species and sent to Earth to contact Archer and prepare him for his destiny. He is rather disappointed with the human race though, who are further from enlightenment than he would have hoped. Nevertheless he is fully committed to his task as a mentor to Adam.

There is a space-god named Iboga who plays an important part in the series cosmology.

Neela has left her family and joined up with a private consortium who want to fly to the stars. Villainess Discordia's head exploded during her trial, but Nickelhead has sent his servant to collect her body.

Adam has saved the world from an alien invasion, only to be met with distrust and lawsuits. Archer has become annoyed with humanity's distrust of him and their worship of superhero Crashman, but Maxim is about to show him more about his origin.

The book begins during Marcel's summer holiday. He describes his almost daily hunting trips with his father Joseph and his uncle Jules, and his growing friendship with a country boy named Lili. On the night before he is to return to the city to begin school, he plans to run away with the help of Lili. He leaves a note for his family saying goodbye and climbs through the window. As the night goes on, Marcel begins to grow scared, even seeing a ghost and changes his mind and returns before he is discovered (although it implied that his father had discovered the letter through a few jokes he makes). When he returns to the city, he is under extreme scholarly pressure due to his candidacy for a prestigious scholarship. He longs to return to the countryside and his wish is granted when they return for the Christmas holiday, much to Marcel's delight. Although only a few kilometers outside Marseilles the journey to the holiday home is time-consuming as public transport takes them a short portion of the way and the rest is a walk along an 8 km, winding road carrying all their possessions.

After the Christmas holiday, the family expresses desire to return more often to the countryside, but Joseph does not see the logic in leaving the city on a Saturday to get to the countryside in the late afternoon or evening and then return on Sunday. Later Marcel's mother takes it upon herself to befriend the headmistress and convinces her to give Joseph's Monday morning duties to another teacher, allowing the family to stay at the villa until Monday morning. Soon they begin to go almost every weekend.

One day, when travelling to their house, the family encounters one of Marcel's father's former pupils, Bouzigue, who now works in maintaining a canal which runs from the hills into Marseilles. The canal runs across private estates and so he is issued with a key which allows him to pass through several locked doors along the towpath. The employee points out to the family that this is a shortcut which will allow them to reach their house in a fraction of the journey time and offers them his spare key. Marcel's father, being honest and upright realizes that this would amount to trespassing, but while passing through the canals, Joseph is able to spot construction issues that Bouzigue himself did not. He is then convinced, by Bouzigue and himself, that he would even be doing a service to the people. He nevertheless accepts the key.

Despite his reservations, the family use the key more and more and the reduced journey time allows them to visit the holiday home every weekend. Joseph even begins to record his observations in a small notebook. They still have an apprehension each time they unlock a door fearing they will be caught. As time passes, however, they encounter the owner of one property and the groundsman of another, who are friendly and quite happy that they cross their land.

At the beginning of the summer holidays they make the journey again and Marcel's mother feels a great fear and trepidation of meeting the owner. When they reach the final door they discover it has been padlocked. They are confronted by the caretaker of the final property and his dog who has been watching them for some time and who decides to make an official report. He forces the family to open up all of their belongings, humiliating them, then seizes Joseph's notebook and terrifying Marcel's mother and little sister.

Marcel's father is devastated, believing a complaint could damage his career prospects and he could possibly lose his job as a school teacher. Bouzigue and two other employees of the canal however, confront the caretaker threatening him with prosecution for having unlawfully padlocked one of the company's doors. Bouzigue reveals to the family that the man is not a nobleman, but made his fortune from cattle. He and his fellow employees seize the report and destroy it.

The book jumps forward five years to a fifteen year old Marcel at his mother's funeral. It also tells of Lili and Paul (Marcel's younger brother): Paul was a goatherd in the countryside of the Provence, until his sudden death at the age of 30. Lili is killed in 1917, during the First World War. Marcel is the only one left of their childhood company, now a successful film director. His company has purchased a large old house in the Marseilles area to turn into a film studio. When walking through the grounds he sees a familiar door and realizes that this is the last property on his childhood journey to his holiday home. In a burst of rage he picks up a rock and smashes the door and thus ends a bad spell.

Lenny Smart and Kendle Bains are flatmates and work together as travel agents in Manchester. Thirtysomething Lenny attempts, with the help of old friend Gilby, to turn sensitive 23-year-old Kendle into a "real man". In one episode, Kendle receives a telescope for a birthday present and subsequently ends up looking into all the windows opposite, Gilby, Becky and her friends end up fighting over what to look at.

Ukridge's friend Jimmy Corcoran is persuaded to hire a typist to speed his writing. He meets Dora Mason, former secretary to Ukridge's Aunt Julia and now partner in a typing firm, and finds she gained her partnership based on a promise from Ukridge that he will provide the £100 she needs to buy the share. Shocked, Corcoran asks his friend how he hopes to find the money.

Ukridge reveals that Hank Philbrick, an old friend from Canada has made it big, and has been persuaded by Ukridge to buy an English country house; Ukridge has contracted with an agent, who will split the hefty commission with Ukridge. Corcoran meets Ukridge late one night, and finds with him the Canadian, who is in a state of severe inebriation. Ukridge tells Corky that he has been drinking heavily since he came into his fortune.

Some days later, Ukridge arrives at his friend's house, distraught. The Canadian, in ill health after his binge, has been advised by a doctor to repair to warmer climes, and plans to leave for Egypt, scuppering Ukridge's scheme.

A magazine editor asks Corky to attend a small dance held by the Pen and Ink Club; he goes, in some trepidation that Julia Ukridge, president of the club, will remember their previous meeting. She does, and confronts him, but on seeing his press invitation is calmed. Another author, Charlton Prout, secretary of the club, takes Corky into a side room to talk; when they emerge, the hall is packed. To the dismay of the Pen and Ink people, a party of 700 revellers have mysteriously bought tickets for the bash, for the Warner's Stores company outing.

Ukridge later reveals that he sold the tickets for the party, paying his debt of honour to Dora and netting a further £50 for himself.

Setting

''Ar tonelico'' takes place in the world of Sol Ciel (ソル・シエール), which literally translates to "Sun Sky" in Latin and French, respectively, but means "Shining Sky/World" in the game's own language. The world consists of the living Tower of Ar tonelico and the Wings of Horus, a landmass connected to the lower portion of the Tower. Each section of the world above and below The Wings of Horus is designated with a specific name. The lower world is known for its small towns and is not considered to be very technologically advanced. The upper world is very advanced, and the Floating City of Platina is even considered to be a holy sanctuary by the Church of Elemia from the lower world. The Tower exists at the center of the world and is made from technology that was available prior to the world-destroying catastrophe known as the Grathnode Inferia. There is little land left after the two catastrophes of the past, so people have become increasingly dependent on Ar tonelico. The Tower functions much like a computer program, and is susceptible to viruses which are emerging at an alarming rate to wreak havoc on both the upper and lower worlds.

The world of Sol Ciel is inhabited by two main races: Human and Reyvateil (レーヴァテイル). Reyvateils are a manufactured race who were originally created to maintain Ar tonelico. They are designed to resemble humans in every way except for their lifespan and their ability to communicate with the Tower. All Reyvateils are female regardless of their birth history. There are three different types of Reyvateils. Reyvateil Origins are the original Reyvateils who were created with a specific purpose in mind. They have a perfect connection to the Tower. They are considered the parents of all β-type and Third Generation Reyvateils because the lower class Reyvateils are in some way related to them. The second type, β-type Reyvateils, are clones of Reyvateil Origins. They are mortal, though they still live significantly longer than humans; approximately 150 years. The last type, Third Generation Reyvateils, are born from relationships between humans and Reyvateils. Due to the strain that the power of Ar tonelico puts on their bodies, they tend to have naturally short life spans of only 14 to 20 years. There is a life-extending agent called Diquility that can only be produced by the and the , but it must be applied every 3 months, and the cost of obtaining it is prohibitive. Consequently, many Third Generation Reyvateils choose to join one of the above-mentioned organizations in order to obtain Diquility for free.

Characters

''Ar tonelico'' has eight playable characters, but many more are important to the storyline. The main protagonist is Lyner Barsett, a Knight of Elemia who fell from Platina when attempting to destroy one of the viruses, who was then saved by a reyvateil, Aurica Nestmile. He meets Aurica Nestmile and Misha Arsellec Lune in the lower world, both of whom are Reyvateils. These two become very important characters, and the player must interact with them on a regular basis by conversing and Diving in order to progress through the game.

Other playable characters include Jack Hamilton, a lone gunner; Krusche Elendia, an airship grathmelder; Radolf Schnaizen, a Cardinal with the Church of Elemia; Shurelia, the Tower's administrator; and Ayatane Michitaka, a fellow Knight of Elemia. The main antagonist is Mir, a β-type Reyvateil who was created as a selfless servant to humanity, but has since developed a genocidal hatred for the human race as a result of her mistreatment at their hands.

Story

When shy Larry Hubbard (Steve Martin), a greeting card writer, finds his girlfriend Danielle (Robyn Douglass) in bed with another man, he is forced to begin a new life as a "lonely guy." Larry befriends fellow "lonely guy" Warren (Charles Grodin), who considers committing suicide.

After going through a period of terrible luck with women, Larry meets Iris (Judith Ivey), who has dated "lonely guys" before. She gives Larry her number but he repeatedly loses it due to a few mishaps.

When Warren decides to jump off the Manhattan Bridge, Larry goes to intercept him. Upon seeing Iris on the subway, Larry uses spray paint to tell her to meet him at the bridge and they prevent Warren from jumping off, thus leading to their first date. Iris explains that she has been married six times, most of them "lonely guys" who have left her, often having a problem (e.g., gambling). Despite falling in love with Larry, Iris is unsure about going further, so she breaks it off.

At the pit of his despair, Larry writes a book titled ''A Guide for the Lonely Guy,'' which is rampantly successful and catapults him into an entirely different experience of life. He becomes rich and famous and even his relationship with Iris can begin on a new basis. Unfortunately, Iris's insecurities return, saying that Larry is now too good for her. She leaves him twice, once after they try to make love and again when they bump into each other on a cruise, where she falls in love with another friend of Larry, Jack (Steve Lawrence).

Jack and Iris get married despite Larry running through the city, over the Queensboro Bridge, asking help from a traffic cop and accidentally breaking up a wedding at another church. In a reversal of fortune, it's Larry and not Warren who wants to jump off the bridge. Warren reassures Larry that he will find someone just like he did. Wishing that a twist of fate would bring the woman he loves back to him, Iris falls into his arms from the bridge. They then meet Warren's new girlfriend, who turns out to be Dr. Joyce Brothers. Larry states that he couldn't believe how well things ended and the four go on a double date.

''Alone'' tells the story of María (Ana Fernández) and her mother Rosa (María Galiana). María is one of four adult children, all of whom moved as far as they could get from their parents and the farm where they grew up. Before the movie starts, the father (later revealed to be a violent, cruel, abusive man) has fallen ill and been brought to a hospital in Seville, where María lives. Rosa has been staying at the hospital with him, but the doctor tells her to leave before she falls ill herself. María takes Rosa to stay with her in the rundown suburban apartment where she lives, and Rosa rides the bus every day to visit her husband.

María is intelligent and wanted an education, but her father wouldn't allow it. Now, at 35, she works for a cleaning service; she is lonely, poor, angry and bitter. She discovers she is pregnant by a man who doesn't want a baby and tells María to get an abortion. When she tells him she wants to have the baby and raise it with him, the man rejects her. In her anger and despair, María starts drinking heavily.

As her mother Rosa returns from shopping one day, she meets María's neighbor (''vecino'') Don Emilio (Carlos Álvarez-Nóvoa), a kind old widower living alone with his dog. A friendship blossoms between them: he lends Rosa some money when she runs short at the supermarket, and she cooks for him after he burns a stew he forgot was cooking. He falls in love with Rosa, but Rosa is faithful to her abusive husband. (At one point she says to María about her father, "He must not have an easy conscience. I do.")

Rosa's husband recovers and she returns with him to the country, not knowing about María's pregnancy. María tells Don Emilio about the baby and tells him she plans to abort it. In a long, emotional scene, he offers to be like a grandfather to the child if she decides to keep it, but María has been so badly treated by the men in her life that she has trouble believing him.

The movie ends with María visiting her parents' grave with her baby girl and Don Emilio. He is going to sell his apartment in Seville and the three of them will move into Rosa's house in the country to raise the baby.

Naoki Ono, a 14-year-old boy murders a young girl in the suburbs of Tokyo. As a result, the large family change their names and live apart, while Naoki goes to a reformatory. Towako, his mother, stays away with her youngest son and youngest daughter, while her husband lives with other family. Three years later, Towako requests that the families reunites and go the island of her birth to be with her dying mother. Thus, the family are back together. But things aren't so simple. Katsumi, Naoki's sister hasn't been able to speak since her brother murdered the girl. Little Subaru (Otaka) has also suffered from the selfishness of his brother. And what of their uncle Satoshi and his family, his own son was killed. The family have never been a 'family' before ... Could Grandmother bring them all together?

''Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her'' consists of five stories or vignettes, tied together loosely to envision the complexity of incomplete communications about life, family, and love. We glimpse the lives of five women, each facing problems such as loneliness, dissatisfaction, longing, and or desire.

In the film's prologue, Kathy (Amy Brenneman) - a police detective - and her partner are investigating the apparent suicide of an unknown woman. Dr. Keener (Glenn Close), a middle-aged doctor, attempts to care for her aging mother while coping with her own loneliness. She avoids intimacy, but also longs for it; we see both frustration and anticipation as she waits for phone calls from male colleagues. Dr. Keener decides to seek comfort or escape in Christine (Calista Flockhart) who reads tarot cards. Christine's partner Lilly (Valeria Golino) is critically ill with an unnamed disease, possibly cancer.

Rebecca (Holly Hunter) is a successful bank manager who's "not big on regrets". After a three-year involvement with married Robert (Gregory Hines), she becomes pregnant. Before Rebecca visits Dr. Keener to get an abortion, she has a fling with Walter, (Matt Craven), a subordinate.

Rose (Kathy Baker) is a single mother who is writing children's books. She develops a sweet crush on a new little-person neighbor (Danny Woodburn), who catches Rose spying on him. Rose later experiences the shock of learning about her son's extensive sexual activity.

Kathy's sister, Carol Faber (Cameron Diaz), is a lovely blind woman who has an active social life. Kathy is attracted to the medical examiner in the suicide case, and her story ends with him taking her out on a date. In an epilogue, Dr. Keener drops into a bar, where she meets the male character, Walter, from previous stories (possibly the younger male alluded to in Christine's tarot card reading).

Carmen, a woman who appears in five scenes in the five different stories, the first is walking past Dr. Keener's house, another is walking beside Rebecca, a third time is in the grocery store while Rose is shopping, the fourth time is walking past Christine's apartment building at night as Christine looks down from her balcony, and the final time is the post mortem examination by detective Kathy alongside Dr. Sam (Miguel Sandoval). Carol's imaginative story towards the end of the film helps explain the instances throughout the movie where she appears. According to Carol, she was back in town to reconnect with her ex, whom she had been talking to for months until her move back to Los Angeles. In each scene, she is, as Carol deduces, preparing for the big date with her ex. In the first scene she is in, she is probably looking for a place to rent; the second, she is seen carrying her ill-fated red dress; the third she is shopping for toiletries; the fourth she is seen walking back to her place, in which she looks visibly heartbroken, and final scene, in the coroners lab, echoes the beginning of the film, where she is found dead. Carol's story ends with what Kathy already concluded, she resorted to suicide because of her grief over a love she, as Carol claims, could not revive, like the baby she had lost many years before.

Kitty (Adele Rein) and Tigercat (Cathy Crowfoot) are two lesbians obsessed with one another.

Theodore "Todd" Thornley IV has had enough. After being humiliated once again by his rival, Jeff "Crash" Cooney and his blue-collar buddies from Southside High School at the All-City Track Meet, he has decided to issue a challenge to Crash. Inviting two of the other elite high schools to participate in the challenge, plus an additional team sponsored by his wealthy father, Todd has seemingly stacked the deck against Crash and his boys.

If the player succeeds in winning the Street Challenge with Crash's Southside High School, the ending shows Crash being invited to a meeting with Todd's father, who congratulates Crash on his victory. He attempts to make peace with Crash, explaining that Todd's rivalry with him has made their personal relationship difficult, but Crash doubts that Todd will ever accept a peace offering. Meanwhile, Todd hatches a scheme with Skip to cause dissent amongst Team Thornley against Crash; he offers them flowers and tells them that Crash has been badmouthing them, but before leaving on their flight, they dump the flowers in the trash with a note reading "Todd is a total loser!", showing that Crash has earned their respect as well. Furious, Todd and Crash vow to settle their feud on the ice during hockey season.

''The Utopian Society'' is about a group of college students who are put together by their professor to complete a final project: create a utopian society. Like most college students, they’ve waited until the night before it is due to start working on it. They each come from different backgrounds and have pre-existing assumptions about the others, causing them to want to spend as little time working with each other as possible. But since they have waited until the last minute to start working, they are forced to cram an entire semester's work into one night, whether they like it or not.

The book details the creation and use of apergy, a form of anti-gravitational energy, and details a flight to Mars in 1830. The planet is inhabited by diminutive beings; they are convinced that life does not exist elsewhere than on their world, and refuse to believe that the unnamed narrator is actually from Earth. (They think he is an unusually tall Martian from some remote place on their planet.)

The book's narrator names his spacecraft the ''Astronaut''.

Synopsis

Acorna is found in an unusual escape pod by three galactic miners, Gill, Rafik, and Calum. Raised by the three unlikely foster fathers, Acorna, a unicorn girl, matures almost to adulthood within three years. While she is growing up, the miners discover that their 'daughter' has magical powers such as the ability to clean air and water, heal the sick, and detect the slightest scent. Furthermore, she is extraordinarily smart, picking up everything quickly. However, her unique looks and special powers make her an object of desire by many, be it for scientific studies or a rare-item collection, or sex. Gill, Rafik, and Calum, who are determined to protect their beloved Acorna at all cost, are forced to flee all over the galaxy to avoid her pursuers. The book chronicles their adventures together as they travel from system to system, planet to planet, eventually finding a planet that thrives on illegal child slavery. But Acorna is not about to let that continue without a fight, and she vows to free every last child on the planet.

Infancy

The story opens with Acorna's parents' spaceship being chased by the ''Khleevii'', insect-like creatures who have preyed on the ''Linyaari'' race for some time. The little spaceship has nowhere else to run and the despairing parents take desperate measures. Knowing that the Khleevii torture their captives, they decide to take a fatal dose of the soporific '' '', setting a compression device, that will destroy their cruiser (and anything else in its proximity), when the Khleevii spaceship comes close. They place their sedated youngling in a lifepod and eject it just before the defensive weapon triggers. She will have a chance of rescue if the lifepod is not destroyed with her parents' spaceship and that of the attackers. Otherwise, her dose of '' '' will keep her asleep until the air supply runs out and she asphyxiates.

The lifepod is transported by the compression event to an asteroid belt which is being mined by Declan "Gill" Giloglie the Third, Rafik Nadezda and Calum Baird in their ship, the Khedive. Detecting life-signs in the lifepod, they bring it on board and open it, thus discovering the alien occupant, the ''Linyaari'' infant they name Acorna. At this stage, none of the Federated Sentient Planets population has had contact with alien races, so although we, the readers, know of the ''Linyaari'' and ''Khleevi'', the humans in the novel do not.

The asteroid miners elect to continue working until they have an economic payload and then return to "base", Mercantile Mining and Exploration, to whom they are contracted. This decision probably saves Acorna from a fate worse than death. Before their return to MME, it is absorbed by Amalgamated Manufacturing, a rival corporation notorious for its questionable business practices.

Acorna is found to have unique abilities: she can purify water and air, apparently through the use of her horn, a spiral protuberance in the centre of her forehead. Although she is humanoid, she has equine features, a silvery mane of hair and hoof-like feet. Her vocalisations are somewhat horse-like and her diet is exclusively vegetarian. Initially, she attempts to communicate in her native tongue, but soon adopts Basic, the standard language of the Federated Sentient Planets.

Although she asks for "Avi", which the miners realise must mean her mother, later also stating that "Lalli" was on board the spaceship from which her lifepod was ejected, her foster fathers do not realise the extent of her language development and allow her to lose her earlier vocabulary. When Acorna is given writing materials, she seems to produce similar script to that embellishing the lifepod, but the miners do not recognise the significance of this knowledge and it falls into disuse. Acorna learns to read and write Basic instead.

She matures quickly, learns rapidly and appears to have innate mathematical talents. It is discovered that she can also sense the mineral composition of the asteroids her foster fathers are mining, detecting rhenium, a desirable resource, in "Daffodil", currently being mined. This makes her contribution to the mining venture invaluable. By the time the Khedive has a full cargo hold and the miners decide to return to "base", Acorna is an active, working member of the crew, having been with her adopted family for nearly two years when the Khedive returns to the former MME Base.

Early childhood

The Khedive docks at the Amalgamated Manufacturing Base to unload its cargo and take on supplies. The miners have notified Base of their adopted child and while they are attending to bureaucratic procedures Dr Eva Glatt, a member of the Testing, Therapy and Adjustment Department, takes charge of Acorna. Glatt makes assumptions about Acorna, based on her assessment of human children, concluding that Acorna has deformities, arrested development and mental deficiencies.

Dr Alton Forelle, a psycholinguist, recognises that Acorna may be a member of an alien species and is determined to experiment on her to further his theories on linguistic development, hoping that this work will earn him a university post. His assistant, Judit Kendoro, has sympathy for the child, but feels powerless to prevent the scientific investigations proposed.

Meanwhile, having completed the questionnaires and ancillary paperwork, the miners seek out Glatt in order to have Acorna returned to them. Glatt assures them that they are unsuitable as custodians of the child, explaining that the Personal Psychological Profiles of the miners show that Gill, Rafik and Calum are invalid guardians, based on their "obvious" problems, as evidenced by their occupation and concomitant lifestyle. Acorna, she says, needs surgical corrections for her differences and the removal of her horn is imminent.

The miners are horrified by Glatt's denial of Acorna's alien status and insistence that their ward is a retarded, deformed human in need of specialised care, with a potential future as a menial worker in a sheltered workshop. They are joined by Judit (who was listening outside the door) and Glatt is temporarily put out of commission while Acorna's rescuers hurry to the surgical unit. Dr Forelle has already rescinded the order for surgery.

Judit takes custody of the anaesthetised Acorna from the surgical team and the miners pretend to hold her hostage as they return to the Khedive. They offer to take Judit with them, but she elects to remain in her employment so that she can help her younger siblings, Mercy and Pal, escape child slavery on Kezdet, their home planet.

Late childhood

The Khedive's crew escape from Amalgamated, only to find that their ship is being claimed by the corporation as stolen. They determine to seek the assistance of Rafik's wily Uncle Hafiz Harakamian to exchange the Khedive's identity with a similar spaceship that crashed. Thus, the miners and their adopted daughter travel to Laboue, a planet known for its discretion and secrecy in such matters, taking with them the beacon exchanged with that of the dead ship.

Uncle Hafiz, an unscrupulous collector of rarities, is not to be trusted with Acorna's unusual background, so Rafik pretends to have converted to Neo-Hadithianism, a retrograde religious sect who veil their women and practice polygamy. While Gill pretends to be Rafik's business partner, an unbeliever, Acorna and Calum are represented as Rafik's wives, swathed in the hijab, voluminous white robes that make an excellent disguise. However, while grazing in Hafiz's garden, Acorna is surprised by Rafik and Hafiz, unable to cover her horn before Hafiz sees it.

The following morning, Acorna awakens before her foster fathers and returns to the garden, fascinated by the musical Singing Stones of Skarrness and attracts Hafiz's attention. He introduces her to the concept of betting odds when she reveals her mathematical understanding of fractions and is enchanted by her abilities.

Determined to acquire this rarity, Hafiz insists, with barely disguised threats, that Rafik divorce her, allowing Hafiz to marry her, as part of the business negotiations. This will provide a substantial discount on the transactions, which include re-registering the Khedive as the Uhuru, with appropriate records, converting the miners' shares in Amalgamated to Federation credits and re-supplying the ship. The miners pretend to agree to Hafiz's terms while planning their escape.

Once the economic manipulations are completed, Rafik "divorces" Acorna and a wedding banquet is embarked upon in anticipation of Hafiz's marriage to her. Hafiz provides iced juice as a celebratory drink in deference to Rafik's Neo-Hadithian non-alcoholic principles. Before any of the miners imbibe in this beverage, Hafiz is called away in response to a commotion caused by Aminah, former nurse to his grown-up son, Tapha, who has returned, minus his ears, from an unsuccessful attempt to take over the southern half of the continent.

Acorna detects that the cups provided for them are doped and purifies the drugged juice. Rafik exchanges Calum's contaminated cup for Hafiz's and when his uncle returns, the tables are turned and Hafiz falls victim to his own plot. While he snores peacefully, Rafik removes the holographic skimmer key and port pass from amongst his uncle's robes so that they can return to their renamed spaceship.

The Uhuru

Having swapped their spaceship's beacon with that of another they found crashed into an asteroid, the crew come under the notice of Ed Minkus and Lieutenant Des Smirnoff, two "Guardians of the Peace", the law-enforcement agency on Kezdet, the Uhuru's new planet of registration. The backstory is that the miners had a negative interaction with these officers and Smirnoff holds a grudge. The former owner of the beacon was Sauvignon, a member of the illegal Child Labour League (CLL), an organisation trying to end child slavery on Kezdet.

Smirnoff and Minkus were the officers who shot Sauvignon down. Their assistant is Mercy Kendoro, secretly a member of the CLL who reports to Delszaki Li, a wealthy local philanthropist who funds the CLL. Li's personal assistant is Pal Kendoro, Judit's and Mercy's younger brother. Li sends Pal to investigate if Sauvignon is still alive, so the miners now have more people hunting them than Amalgamated Manufacturing and Hafiz Harakamian.

Meanwhile, back on Laboue, Tapha learns that Hafiz plans to disinherit him in favour of Rafik. He plans to resolve this problem by killing Rafik and sends Ioannis Georghios to entice the miners into a trap, but they are suspicious and elect to go to Greifen to mine iron ore instead. Posing as Farkas Hamisen, Tapha files a damages claim against the Uhuru, so the miners travel to Nered to sell their load of titanium.

While dining out on Nered, Tapha catches up with them and shoots Rafik. Acorna revives him with her horn, witnessed by Pal, who has tracked them there. When Li learns of Acorna's action, he identifies her as a ki-lin, legendary beings revered in Li's culture and asks Pal to bring the Uhuru and its crew to Kezdet. Judit, now working for Li, is pleased to discover that Acorna is still alive, as a report to Amalgamated reported the Khedive and its crew as dead, crashed on the asteroid.

Kezdet

Shopping for clothes for Acorna on Nered the miners are rescued from their pursuers, who have been tracking their credit account, by Pal, with assistance from the shop clerk. Pal joins them on the Uhuru and releases sleep gas to render the crew unconscious after they are underway to Kezdet. Li has the mineral rights to Kezdet's moons and wants the miners to set up lunar mining operations. On arrival, Judit invites Acorna and the miners to Li's mansion. She is astonished that in the year since she last saw them, Acorna has grown from a child into a tall young woman.

Anyag

Jana, Khetala (Kheti), Chiura and other children are slaves at the Anyag mine, kept near starvation and working long hours. Cowed and beaten, the children are afraid of 'Old Black', the mythological demon of 'Below' who makes children sick and the very real 'Piper', a wealthy man in league with the 'Didis', procuresses for Kezdet's brothels.

Didi Badini and the Piper buy Kheti (now who is too big to drag ore corves) and Chiura, a very pretty little girl of about four, from Siri Teku, the shift boss. Jana is crippled by the beating from Siri Teku for trying to save Chiura and loses the will to live.

Chiura's rescue

Waking early, Acorna decides to go for a run and ends up on the other side of the river in a run-down commercial district where she encounters Chiura, who has escaped from Didi Badini with Kheti's help, but been caught stealing food. Realising, too late, that she has brought no money, Acorna is handed over to the Guardians of the Peace and insists that they take Chiura with them to Delszaki Li, who Acorna claims as her guardian.

After Li has paid off the Guardians, Pal and Acorna slowly extract her history from Chiura and resolve to track down 'Mama Jana', who cared for Chiura in the 'bad place' before the Piper and Didi Badini bought her. Acorna is horrified to learn about the conditions bonded child labourers must endure and wonders what would have happened to her if Calum, Gill and Rafik had not adopted her.

Li has already revealed his plan to rescue all the children and use the lunar mining bases as educational care facilities for the freed slaves. The three miners have undertaken the contract to implement Architect Martin Dehoney's plans for the bases, but the Kezdet authorities are obstructing progress.

The search for Jana takes them to the Tondubh Glassworks, based on Chiura's description of the 'bad place'. They are accompanied by Nadhari Kando, Mr Li's formidable bodyguard. When they draw a blank, Pal rethinks the situation and they try Anyag mine. Disguised as a new Didi, Acorna buys Jana and heals Laxme of her persistent cough, promising to return for her as soon as there is somewhere to take all the freed children.

The Piper

Delszaki Li's development of the Maganos Moon Base stalls because of obstruction at a high government level on Kezdet. He decides to introduce Acorna into society, hoping that her come-out party might throw light on the situation. All the notables are invited to a glittering gathering and the Child Labour League members circulate among the guests. Khetala (rescued from Didi Badini's 'bonk-shop'), Jana and Chiura watch the guests' arrival from concealment and Jana recognises the Piper when he arrives.

The children are terrified, but nevertheless raise the alarm by telling Calum that they can identify the Piper. When Acorna is introduced to Baron Manjari, he plants a poisoned kiss on her hand which she quickly neutralises. Calum tells Acorna that the Piper is present and she tells Uncle Hafiz, who instructs Hassim, the butler, to seal the building. Mr Li entices the baron to his study, where the children are ready to expose his identity, while Acorna pretends to be overcome by the poison.

Li's subsequent negotiations with the Piper, Baron Manjari, remove all official constraints to the Moon Base and 'Manjari Shipping would subsidise the lunar colony by providing free transport for all materials brought to the moon and all minerals mined there in the next five years' in exchange for their silence about the Piper's identity.

Manjari does not believe that the rescue of the slave children will succeed, especially since he thinks Acorna is dying, supported by mourning banners erected at the Li mansion the following day. However, he has reckoned without his host and Acorna, accompanying the fleet of skimmers and medics collecting the bond-slaves. When his portside manager calls to tell him of the children awaiting transportation to Maganos, the baron, his wife and daughter come to investigate.

Baroness Ilsfa reveals that Kisla is not the baron's natural daughter and he kills his wife in a fit of rage, then turns the on himself, leaving Kisla instantly orphaned. The rescued children are pleased, rather than traumatised, by this event and the settlement of the Moon Base goes ahead, albeit now at Li's expense. Thus, the book concludes with Acorna having redeemed her vow to free the child bond-slaves of Kezdet.

The novel follows Menolly, now apprenticed into the Harper Hall, a type of music conservatory for harpers (minstrels/educators) and other music professionals, as she begins her musical training to become a harper herself one day. The story begins within hours of the final events of ''Dragonsong'', rounding out the tale of Menolly's coming of age.

Menolly arrives at Harper Hall to find herself the center of unwanted attention and conflict. As the Hall's first female apprentice, the Masters are divided on whether or not she is worth training, causing Menolly to be greeted with various degrees of ambivalence. Due to her gender, she is not allowed to share a dormitory with her fellow all-male apprentices and must be housed with the female students, none of whom are serious musicians and all of whom shun Menolly as an outsider. Conversely, because she dorms with the students, the apprentices reject her, claiming she is not truly one of them, and leaving Menolly confused as to her true place in Harper Hall.

In spite of these challenges, Menolly excels at all aspects of her apprenticeship while continuing to compose original tunes. She also becomes helpful to the Dragonriders by teaching them what she knows about fire-lizards, and presents Masterharper Robinton and his Journeyman Sebell with fire-lizards of their own. One night Menolly is woken by her frantic fire-lizards, who show her a terrifying vision of a Dragonrider and his dragon falling from the sky in flames. It is later revealed that the telepathic Dragons actually witnessed this event halfway across the world and transmitted the image to the fire-lizards, who in turn showed Menolly. The incident confirms suspicions that fire-lizards share a telepathic link with dragons and that they may have other undiscovered gifts.

By the end of her first week, all the Masters agree that there is nothing they can teach Menolly, as she essentially completed her apprenticeship under her first Harper Petiron long before she came to Harper Hall. Much to her surprise, Menolly is promoted to Journeyman.

The novel begins with the organization of an expedition to rescue Bowen J. Tyler, Lys La Rue, and the other castaways marooned on the large Antarctic island of Caprona, whose tropical interior, known to its inhabitants as Caspak, is home to prehistoric fauna of all eras. Tyler's recovered manuscript detailing their ordeal is delivered to his family, and the relief effort is put together by Tom Billings, secretary of the Tyler shipbuilding business. The expedition's ship, the ''Toreador'', locates Caprona, and while the bulk of the crew attempts to scale the encircling cliffs Billings flies over them in an aircraft.

Billings' plane is attacked by flying reptiles and forced down in the interior of Caspak. He saves a native girl named Ajor from a large cat and a group of ape-men, and undertakes to accompany her back to her people, the fully human Galus, while she educates him in the language and mysteries of the island. They travel north, encountering various creatures of the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras, as well as additional primitive subhuman races. They pass through the lands of the Neanderthal Bo-lu (club men) and the more advanced Sto-lu (hatchet men), who are easily cowed by gunfire. But in the country of the Band-lu (spear men) he is taken captive, and despairs until rescued in turn by Ajor. They resume their journey, re-encountering and befriending Tomar, a Band-lu newly become Kro-lu (bow man). Tomar and his mate So-al are the first examples Billings has actually seen of Caspakian evolutionary metamorphosis in action.

After an interlude in which Ajor's back story is related the new friends separate. Billings and Ajor enter Kro-lu territory and save Chal-az, a Kro-lu warrior, from a group of Band-lu. Visiting the Kro-lu village as his guest, they are parted again when Billings is attacked through the machinations of the chief Du-seen, who has designs on Ajor. They escape individually, making for the Galu country. Du-seen goes after Ajor with some of his warriors.

Billings catches and tames an ancestral horse, with the aid of which he rescues Ajor from Du-seen. Pursued, they resign themselves to death, but are relieved by a force consisting of Bowen Tyler, Galu warriors, and the rescue crew from the ''Toreador'', which had successfully scaled the cliffs and entered Caspak after Billings' ill-fated airplane flight. All are reunited in the Galu village, where Tyler and Lys La Rue have been formally married by the captain of the ''Toreador''. Billings and Ajor also desire to wed, but Ajor may not leave Caspak due to her status as ''cos-ata-lo'' – she was born a fully evolved Galu rather than attaining that form through metamorphosis, and hence is treasured by her people. Billings elects to remain in Caspak to be with her.

The book follows two seemingly separate stories:

Hans-Thomas

A 12-year-old boy, Hans-Thomas, and his father are driving through Europe on a journey to locate and bring home the boy's estranged mother. Whilst on their journey, a strange little man at a petrol station gives Hans-Thomas a magnifying glass, saying mystically: "You'll need it!" and persuades them to drive the long route that takes them through a small village by the name of Dorf. Not long afterwards, Hans-Thomas and his father stop at a roadside café in this village, then Hans-Thomas wanders around the village and gets a giant sticky bun from the village's kind baker to eat on his journey. To Hans-Thomas's great surprise, hidden inside the sticky bun is a tiny book with writing so small that it cannot be read with the naked eye. Hans-Thomas begins to read the tiny book using his new magnifying glass and the story then alternates between Hans-Thomas's journey and the story in the sticky bun book.

Sticky bun book

The sticky bun book tells the story of an old baker whose grandfather gave him a drink of a wonderful liquid he called ''Rainbow Fizz'' (''Rainbow Soda'' in the American edition). It came from an island which the grandfather had been shipwrecked on as a young man. On the island lived an old sailor called Frode as well as 53 other people who did not have names and they referred to themselves as the numbers on playing cards (52 cards plus a Joker). The Ace of Hearts was particularly enchanting and Frode had quite a crush on her even though she was forever "losing herself".

Crossing over of worlds

The two stories of Hans Thomas's journey and the events in the sticky bun book start to overlap:

However, the cards' predictions as told in the tiny book begin to reveal details about ''Hans Thomas's'' own plight to find his mother. It occurs to Hans Thomas that his mother bears a striking resemblance in her personality to the Ace of Hearts in that she 'loses herself' (disappears) for long periods. Also, throughout Hans Thomas's journey, he has seen the same odd little bearded man following him about (the man who gave him the magnifying glass which proved so useful to read the sticky bun book). But whenever Hans Thomas approaches the little man, he seems to dash away and vanish. The baffling thing for Hans Thomas is that he stopped for the cake merely by chance, and chose to eat a sticky bun by chance - how is it possible that a tiny book from a random bun is telling him things about his own life?

''The Sign of the Beaver'' tells the story of 13-year-old Matthew James "Matt" Hallowell, an 18th-century American settler. He and his father build a log cabin in the wilderness of Maine, then Matt is left alone to guard the cabin and his family's claim to the land while his father heads back to Quincy, Massachusetts to pick up his mother, his sister and the new baby and bring them back to the cabin. Matt learns how to survive and deal with difficult situations, getting help from Attean, a Native American boy, and his family. When Matt fears his father will not return, Attean asks him to join the Beaver tribe and move north.

A terrorist biological warfare doomsday event has played out, killing off 90% of the world's population. Many of the survivors are sick or eventually become insane. A group of surviving soldiers attempt to care for survivors and maintain order on their military base. Over time, the situation gradually becomes so dire that the commander orders all sick transported away to an abandoned village, and orders his troops to open fire on anything within a radius.

Kat (Eileen Weisinger), a helicopter pilot with uniform markings of the American 1st Cavalry Division, returns from a reconnaissance mission to find her military base destroyed. Nighthorse (Stuart W. Yee) suggests that it was done by a nuclear weapon launched by a Soviet "boomer". Weeks later, Grier (Al Qualls) makes contact with an island away, which reported to be clear of the sick and capable of receiving refugees. Nighthorse, Grier, Kat and the player, an unnamed soldier, set off in two AH-64 Apache attack helicopters.

En route, the helicopter carrying Grier and the player develops mechanical problems and require a replacement part had by the pair on the other helicopter. The player's helicopter is forced to set down on an island, landing on the rooftop of a factory compound. As Nighthorse and Kat circle, they are fired upon and shot down by a surface-to-air missile. Nighthorse is fatally wounded and orders Kat to deliver the part to the other team.

Kat makes her way to the compound entrance where she makes radio contact with the player, who is in a factory control room. The player relays his situation to Kat: Grier was dead while he was wounded and immobile. The pair had been caught in a booby trap when trying to enter the control room. The player can observe Kat's actions through a series of security cameras as well as Kat's camera headset. However, the headset is quickly damaged, and Kat can no longer receive audio signals from the player. Relying instead on sending simple instructions to Kat through a signaling keypad, the player must guide Kat through the factory to his position. Kat reveals that she has only nine bullets for her Uzi.

The player assists Kat as she makes her way through the factory by activating or deactivating machinery, relaying directional commands and setting off booby traps. The function of the various machinery and booby traps is hinted at in the deranged ramblings contained in a black notebook the player finds on the control room desk. As time passes, the identity of the facility's operator, General Minh (Min Yee) is revealed to the player, as is its function. At first blush, it appears as though Kat is making her way through a steel mill which manufactures large metal crosses. However, Kat eventually discovers a cross partially filled with a white powder she identifies as illicit drugs. She also discovers a torture chamber and meets a prisoner (Brian Bernasconi) who attempts to kill her for her gun. The player saves Kat by electrocuting the inmate who is sitting on an electric chair, and she moves on.

As Kat approaches the rooftop, she is confronted by Minh, carrying an M60 machine gun. The player successfully distracts Minh, while Kat shoots him and makes her way to the player. As the helicopter lifts off, Minh stands up and begins firing on the two as they hover. Kat aims a TV-guided missile at Minh and fires, and the helicopter veers away. Minh is killed in a flaming explosion and Kat, in her chopper, proclaims that she has ten lives and flies off victoriously with the player into the sunset heading back to their military base and then home.

During the Walpurgis Night in the woods adjacent to the village of Passo Borgo, located at the foot of the Carpathian Mountains, a couple of young lovers, Tania and Milos, secretly meet and make love. After fighting, Tania removes the cross Milos had given her. On her way home, Tania is chased by a supernatural owl that kills her. Sometime later, Jonathan Harker, a young librarian hired by Count Dracula, a nobleman from the area, arrives at the village. Tania's body mysteriously disappears from the cemetery. In the meantime, Harker, before going to Count Dracula's castle, takes the opportunity to visit Lucy Kisslinger, his wife Mina's best friend as well as the daughter of the local mayor.

Upon arriving at the castle, Harker is greeted by Tania, reanimated as a vampire, who tries from the very beginning to seduce him; however, they are interrupted by Dracula's entrance welcoming Harker. Dracula shows Harker the library he is to catalogue. The following night Tania, having burnt Harker's photo of his wife Mina, tries again to seduce and bite Harker, partially undressing in front of him, but a furious Dracula intervenes, throwing her across the room. Dracula bites Harker's neck but allows him to live. Dracula meanwhile visits Renfield in his cell and frees him from his chains; Renfield acknowledges Dracula as "Master." That night Harker glimpses Dracula climbing unnaturally up the outside wall of the castle. The following day, a weakened but still conscious Harker attempts to escape, but as soon as he is outside the castle, a large wolf with a white lock changes into Dracula, who savages him.

Meanwhile, Mina, Harker's wife, arrives in the village and is a guest for a few days at the home of her dearest friend Lucy Kisslinger, who also gets bitten and turned. The day after, Mina, worried about her husband, goes to Count Dracula's castle. Their encounter makes her forget what happened during her visit. She is completely under the count's influence; the count had orchestrated the events leading up to their encounter; in fact Mina looks exactly like his beloved Dolingen de Gratz, who died some centuries ago.

Returning to the Kisslinger house, Mina learns of the death of her dear friend Lucy. The sequence of such strange and dramatic events summons the aid of Van Helsing, vampire expert of the techniques used to eliminate them. Being aware of the circumstances, Van Helsing decides to act swiftly and prepares the tools needed to combat vampires. He inspects Lucy's crypt and finds it empty, then kills the undead Lucy as she tries to attack Mina. He then directs himself to the center of evil, Count Dracula's castle.

Meanwhile, Dracula goes to the village and kills a group of men gathered at the tavern who plotted to betray him. At the same time, Van Helsing, inside the castle, is able to definitively kill Tania, Renfield, and a now-undead Harker. Dracula, intent on his desire to reunite with his beloved wife, leads Mina, completely hypnotized, to the castle where Van Helsing is waiting. He has decided to engage in a deadly fight with his evil foe. During the struggle, Van Helsing loses his gun loaded with a silver bullet coated in garlic, but Mina, shaking off Dracula's spell, picks up the gun and kills Dracula with it. The special silver bullet transforms Dracula into ashes, and Mina limps out of the graveyard, Van Helsing along with her. After they leave, however, Dracula's spirit lifts the ashes into the air and, uniting, they shape into a large wolf that leaps forward.

The movie sheds light on the inhabitants of Western Sydney, an area known for its cultural diversity and in the eyes of some its ethnic related gang violence. It revolves around Naima (Julie Kanaan), her romantic interest Rafi (Matuse) and her brother Ishak (NOMISe) living their run-of-the-mill middle class conservative Lebanese Muslim existence. Sharief (Anthony Hawwa) is the film's standover man, a Lebanese youth gang leader who causes trouble for Ishak, his brother Musa (Mohamed Jajatieh) and cousin Hakim (Marouf Alameddine).

Forced to flee his birthplace on the windswept coast of Brittany to escape the Baron de Tournemine, who killed his mother, and to seek his lost father, Mathurin Kerbouchard looks for passage on a ship and, although forced to serve as a galley slave initially, travels the coast and attains the position of pilot, frees a captured Moorish girl, Aziza, and her companion, then frees his fellow slaves and with their help sells his captors into slavery and escapes to Cádiz in Moorish Spain, where he looks for news of his father.

Hearing that his father is dead, Mathurin goes inland and poses as a scholar in Córdoba, but his scholarship is interrupted when he becomes involved in political intrigue surrounding Aziza and is imprisoned by Prince Ahmed. Scheduled to be executed, Mathurin escapes eastward to the hills outside the city, but before he leaves soldiers arrive and ransack and burn the place where he is staying, leaving him for dead. Mathurin returns to Córdoba and, aided by a woman he chances upon named Safia, he takes a job as a translator. However, the intrigue in which she is involved threatens their lives, and they must flee the city. Safia, through connections of her own, has gathered news of Mathurin's father, and tells him that his father may be alive but was sold as a slave in the east.

Leaving Spain, they take up with a merchant caravan and travel by land across Europe, stopping along the way at various places to trade or to fight off thieves. Reaching Brittany, the caravan tempts a raid from the Baron de Tournemine, but they are ready for his attack and, routing his forces, press on, joined by another caravan, to sack the baron's castle. Mathurin personally kills his enemy, avenging his mother, and, leaving the caravan, takes Tournamine's body and throws it into a fabled swamp rumored to be a gate to Purgatory.

Riding eastward, Mathurin befriends a group of oppressed peasants before rejoining the caravan as it approaches Paris. Safia has learned that Mathurin's father is at Alamut, the fortress of the Old Man of the Mountain (Assassin), but warns that going there is dangerous. She leaves the caravan and remains in Paris, but Mathurin must go on and seek his father. Both caravans will travel eastward and cross the Russian steppes together.

In Paris, Mathurin talks with a group of students but offends a teacher and must flee again for his life. Chancing upon the fleeing Comtesse de Malcrais, Suzanne, whom he assists in escaping from Count Robert. They meet up with the caravans again at Provins, where they are joined by a company of acrobats (including Khatib) and additional caravans from Italy, Armenia, the Baltic, Venice, and the Netherlands. The caravans join together and travel to Kiev to trade their woolen cloaks and other goods for furs. Denied passage down the Dnieper by boat, the caravans head southward from Kiev. Crossing the Southern Bug and approaching the Chicheklaya, they encounter hostile Pechenegs. Stalling for time as the caravan drives south toward the Black Sea, Kerbouchard exchanges pleasantries with the Khan, fights a duel with Prince Yury, and receives a drink, but as he leaves the camp the Khan warns him that the Petchenegs will attack the caravan in the morning.

Kerbouchard returns to the caravan, which has nearly reached the Black Sea, and assists as they contrive rudimentary fortifications, hoping to hold their ground against the Petchenegs until boats arrive to take them to Constantinople. A protracted battle ensues, by the end of which most of the caravan merchants are killed, but Suzanne may have escaped in a small boat, and Mathurin, wounded, hides in the brush and nurses himself gradually back to health, barely surviving to emerge, reclaim his horse, and ride to Byzantium by land, clothed in rags.

Casting out Abdullah, a fat storyteller, and taking his place in the market in Constantinople, Mathurin makes a couple of gold coins and an enemy named Bardas. Leaving the market with a man named Phillip, he spends the coins on clothing. In a wine shop, he meets Andronicus Comnenus and captures his interest. Perceiving that rare books are valuable in the city, Mathurin then takes to copying from memory books that he copied in Córdoba. Contacting Safia's informant, he learns that his father is indeed at Alamut, but that he attempted to escape and may be dead. Nevertheless, he is determined to go and find out. Going to an armorer who maintains a room for exercising with weapons, he meets some of the Emperor's guard and drops hints to one of them of the books he is copying, so that the emperor will hear of him. Invited to meet the emperor, Mathurin offers him advice and a book and tells the Emperor of his desire to rescue his father from Alamut.

Two weeks later, the emperor supplies Mathurin with a sword, three horses he had lost when the caravan was taken, and gold. Invited to dinner with Andronicus, Mathurin learns from him that Suzanne has returned safely to her castle and strengthened its defenses with survivors from the caravan. Bardas makes trouble, and Mathurin and Phillip must leave the party, but Mathurin has a vision and foretells Andronicus' death. Mathurin advises Phillip to leave the city and go to Saône, and he himself receives a warning note from Safia, telling him not to go to Alamut.

Leaving Constantinople, Mathurin travels by boat across the Black Sea to Trebizond and adopts the identity of ibn-Ibrahim, a Muslim physician and scholar, travelling over land to Tabriz, where he finds Khatib, who tells him rumors that his father is being treated terribly by a powerful newcomer to Alamut named al-Zawila. Invited to visit the Emir Ma'sud Kahn, Mathurin presents a picture of himself in his identity as ibn-Ibrahim, physician, scholar, and alchemist, and, learning that ibn-Haram is in the city, decides to pass on from Tabriz toward ''Jundi Shapur'', the medical school that provides his pretense for travelling through the area.

Leaving Tabriz, Mathurin and Khatib travel alongside a caravan as far as Qazvin, where ibn-Ibrahim receives gifts and an invitation to visit Alamut. Before he leaves for Alamut, Mathurin makes the acquaintance of the princess Sundari, from Anhilwara, and, learning that she is being forced to marry a friend of the king of Kannauj, promises, if he escapes Alamut alive, to come to Hind and rescue her from this fate.

Traveling with Khatib to a valley outside Alamut, where they arrange to meet again afterward, Mathurin packs rope, nitre crystals, and other ingredients from a Chinese recipe he had seen in a book in Córdoba, and gathers also various medicinal herbs, before riding up to the gates of Alamut. He is admitted but immediately taken captive and brought before Mahmoud, who reveals that he ran into trouble with Prince Ahmed, and that the prince and Aziza are both dead. According to Mahmoud, Sinan does not know that Mathurin has been brought to Alamut.

Locked in his quarters, Kerbouchard finds the rope has been removed from his pack. Unable to escape, he speaks out his window to a guard, hoping that Sinan's spies will report his presence, and that Sinan will want to meet with an alchemist and physician such as himself. The next morning, after mixing the saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur from his saddlebags, repacking the resulting powder, and mixing several preparations from the herbs, he is confronted by Mahmoud and provokes him. Brought before Sinan, Mathurin reveals to him some of the details of his past that Mahmoud had kept secret and broaches the subject of alchemy, hoping to be kept around a little longer. Promising to see him later, Sinan sends him back to his quarters and also sends a copy of a book he had requested of Ma'sud Kahn in Tabriz.

Mathurin does get to see Sinan for most of a day, performing alchemy experiments and exchanging ideas. Afterward, Mahmoud comes for him with armed guards and escorts him (along with his bags, which contains his surgery equipment) to a surgical room, telling him that he has been brought to Alamut on an errand of mercy to save a slave's life, by making him a eunuch. The slave is his father. Pretending to cooperate, Mathurin covertly cuts his father's bonds with a scalpel then, spilling boiling water on some of the guards, draws his sword and engages the remaining guards. Other soldiers, presumably those of Sinan, break into the room, and Mathurin and his father escape down the corridor and through an aqueduct into the hidden valley.

In the garden among some spare pipes, Mathurin packs his prepared powder into pipes, plugs the ends, and fashions wicks from fat-soaked string, and they hide there until the middle of the next day. Meeting a young girl in the rain, Mathurin trusts her with the gist of his situation and asks if there is any way out. She tells of a gate whereby the gardener, closely guarded, takes out the leaves he rakes up, and, eager to escape, she agrees to meet them near the gate. Soldiers searching the garden pass by their hiding place, and that evening they rush the gate and, assisted by a handful of slaves who are present, slay the guards, but the gate is closed on them. Placing his prepared pipe bombs, Mathurin lights the fuses and, as soldiers approach, tells everyone to stand back. With the gate destroyed and the soldiers stunned by his blast, they escape out and down the side of the mountain. Slaying another dozen soldiers, Mathurin and his father, with the girl in tow, meet Khatib with the horses and ride off.

Reaching the city where Khatib had been hiding, they are confronted by Mahmoud and another dozen soldiers. Mathurin fights a quick duel with Mahmoud and kills him.

At the end of the book, the girl from the valley, whose home was near the gulf, rides toward Basra with Mathurin's father, who will seek the sea again. Mathurin rides toward Hind, to fulfill his promise to Sundari.

Chris Pepper (Lawford) and Charlie Salt (Davis) own a nightclub in Swinging London, operating under the suspicious eye of the intrepid Inspector Crabbe.

One night, Pepper finds an Asian girl on the floor of the club. Assuming she's drunk or high, he makes a date with her and thinks she responds. It turns out the girl is dying, and her death sets off a chain of events that puts the unlucky Salt and Pepper onto a plot to overthrow the British government, with the girl's dying words the key.

''Keeping The Promise'' tells the story of a 13-year-old boy, Matt (Brendan Fletcher) and his father, (Keith Carradine) who, as early settlers, together build a wooden cabin in Maine in 1768. However, Matt's father must head back to Quincy, Massachusetts, to get Matt's mother, sister, and newborn sibling who were all left behind so Matt and his father could build shelter for them. Matt's father promises to return in seven weeks and Matt is left alone with his father's old watch (a family heirloom) and a hunting rifle to guard the family's newly built homestead and field crops. Unfortunately, Matt finds himself enduring many hardships for which he is unprepared. His hunting rifle is stolen by a stranger named Ben Loomis; while chasing after Ben: Matt trips and falls into a river. Luckily, Matt's misadventure has not gone unnoticed and he is pulled from the water. The Indians he has learned to fear, through tales that his father had told him, save his life in this part of the story.

His injured leg is treated by the Indian chief named Saknis. While recovering, Matt begrudgingly allows Saknis to take his book (''Robinson Crusoe'') for saving his life. Saknis later returns with book and asks Matt whether a knife or a book would win a fight - Matt says the knife would win, Saknis points out that the words of the white man have already won the land away from his people. Saknis commands that Matt is to teach his grandson to read. Although uncertain of how to teach anyone, especially the unwilling Attean, Matt accepts the task out of obligation, as he owes his life to the man.

Meanwhile, his father returns to his family only to find there is a fever in the village which kills their neighbour's daughter, the family leave quickly knowing that the town will probably be closed to stop the spread of fever. On their way the newborn and the mother come down with fever, this delays them and when they reach the boat for its last crossing before winter they are turned back because of the baby's illness. The Mother recovers, but the baby does not and has to be buried as they travel the land route.

Back in Maine, Matt does not immediately befriend Attean, although the two young boys eventually form a strong friendship as they help each other through difficult circumstances. When Matt's family has not yet returned after many months Attean invites Matt to join his tribe, who are moving west to new hunting grounds. Although Matt is good friends with Attean and enjoys Indian culture, he has not forgotten his family. Matt has to decide whether to join the Indian tribe, or return to his cabin and wait for his family to return.

Near the end of the story, Attean goes on a vision quest and becomes a brave. He visits Matt and gives him a pair of snowshoes for the winter and asks him to come with the tribe. Matt decides to wait for his family, although parting from his new friend, Attean, is difficult. The two boys trade gifts, Matt gives Attean the book of Robinson Crusoe and Attean leaves his dog behind with Matt. Sure enough, Matt's family returns in the winter snows, guided for the last few days by Ben Loomis, who makes himself absent as soon as the family are reunited.

Born in New York in 1917, attractive Clarabel (Longcope) Hoyt, the heroine of the book, is encouraged by her ambitious mother to marry "a great man," a man able and willing to make a success of his life. She succeeds in persuading her daughter to end her relationship with a young teacher with a promising career ahead of him and marry into one of the pre-eminent, old money families instead. Eventually succumbing to her mother's wishes, Clara, still a virgin, marries Trevor Hoyt, a banker, and in due course their daughter Sandra is born.

Clara, however, is not content spending her husband's money and living a life of luxury and ease. When her old school friend Polly suggests that she should work for ''Style'', a fashion magazine, Clara eagerly accepts the offer and soon becomes a household name as a trendy journalist. During World War II, while Hoyt is stationed in London and Clara remains in New York, both spouses are unfaithful to each other. On her husband's return, however, Clara is faced with the double standards of morality which exempt the man from any consequences of his infidelity while ascribing to the woman the role of sinner, of the "war wife who cheats on her fighting husband" or, as Trevor puts it, of the "cool bitch". Subsequently, and much to her mother's dismay, Clara divorces her husband, a generous divorce settlement ensuring that she does not quite have to "face the chilling prospect of depending on her own talents to support herself".

She becomes editor-in-chief of ''Style'' by exposing her predecessor's alcoholism and eventually starts an affair with Eric Tyler, the owner of the magazine. At the same time she gently but firmly turns Tyler Publications into an empire aligned with the Democratic Party. She also pulls the strings in making Eric Tyler a candidate for the U.S. Senate. However, driven by some inexplicable force, Tyler holds the "wrong" speech on tax reform, voicing what he really thinks on the matter and thus forfeiting all his chances of ever becoming a politician. It is with considerable difficulty that Clara answers Tyler's question whether she loves him—she is aware of the fact that her rather forced "Of course, I love you" is actually a lie. At this point in her life she very strongly questions her ability to love at all.

Nevertheless, Clara marries Eric Tyler, but the ailing tycoon suffers two strokes and dies. Clara is now faced with a lengthy lawsuit brought on by Tony Tyler, Eric's son by his first wife, who feels cheated out of the family money. Determined to fight to the end rather than compromise, Clara justifies, and also disguises, her luxurious lifestyle by continuing her late husband's foundation and openly and generously supporting philanthropic causes so that her public image turns into that of an "angel of beneficience".

Clara also likes to see herself as a patron of the arts, and it is in this capacity that she meets, and gets to know more intimately, Oliver Kip, an expert on the Italian Renaissance. She genuinely falls in love with him and wants to "belong to Oliver, to be appreciated by his cool, appraising eyes, to be added to his collection of beautiful objects". Their affair, however, is short-lived because he informs her that his life "is not the kind that can be improved by being shared" and also because the abuse of his power within the Tyler Foundation forces her to pay him off and hush up the scandal in order to save the foundation's reputation.

In the final scene of the novel, set in 1961, Clara is on the phone with John F. Kennedy, whose election she has supported, accepting Kennedy's offer to be made ambassador to the (fictional) island of Santa Emilia in the Caribbean.

Michael Scott (Steve Carell) is giving his annual performance reviews but, instead of evaluating the employees' job performances, he asks their opinions about a phone message from his own boss, Jan Levinson (Melora Hardin). Jan's message sternly tells Michael not to bring up their recent romantic encounter when she does his performance review, but feeling their workplace standing is on the line, the employees cater to Michael's desires by telling him the message shows Jan has feelings for him. During Michael's performance review, Jan insists he remain strictly professional and present his ideas for improving business. He plunders the employee suggestion box for ideas, but the suggestions - which Jan insists he read in front of her - mostly concern Michael's personal hygiene and include a directive to "Stop sleeping with your boss". As Jan storms out of the office, Michael continues demanding to know why she will not have a relationship with him. Jan finally breaks down and vents her feelings about Michael, both positive and negative, and says she is not ready for another relationship. Michael is satisfied by the rejection, since she implied he was worth having a relationship with.

From a tense exchange with Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson), Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) realizes Dwight thinks it is Friday instead of Thursday. Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) and Jim reinforce this misconception with casual conversation. During his performance review, Dwight asks for a raise, claiming he has never missed a day of work, even breaking into the office to work on holidays. Dwight's calendar confusion continues into the following day, and so he fails to turn up for work that morning, leading Michael to comment skeptically on Dwight's claim of never missing a day of work.

Dunder Mifflin's tech support employee, Sadiq (Omi Vaidya), arrives at the Scranton branch. Michael Scott (Steve Carell) panics, assuming that Sadiq is a terrorist due to his being Middle Eastern. Sadiq sets up a system that allows Michael to monitor his employees' emails. When everyone in the office finds out, Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) worries that Michael will discover the party he is throwing that night, to which Michael is not invited. Inevitably, Michael notices and tries to get Jim to admit that he's having a party, while Jim acts nonchalantly as if nothing is happening. In order to keep Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson) from exposing the party, Jim tells him that it is a surprise party for Michael.

Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) notices some things that lead her to suspect that Dwight and Angela Martin (Angela Kinsey) are dating. However, she discreetly abandons her suspicions when she asks Phyllis Lapin (Phyllis Smith) if she noticed any office romances and Phyllis guesses that Pam meant her and Jim. Jim and Pam bond when she sees Jim's room for the first time and looks through his high school yearbook.

After ruining an improv class, Michael decides to crash Jim's party, much to the staff's dismay and Dwight's naïve delight. Michael awkwardly tries his hand at karaoke but Jim then joins in, easing the tension considerably. The documentary crew catches Angela and Dwight making out in Jim's backyard.

The office staffers hold a "Secret Santa" gift exchange at their Christmas party. Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) received Pam Beesly's (Jenna Fischer) name, and puts a great deal of effort into her gift (a teapot filled with some mementos and a personal letter from him to her). Michael Scott (Steve Carell) buys a $400 video iPod as his gift to Ryan Howard (B. J. Novak), far exceeding the $20 limit. He is disappointed by the handmade oven glove he receives from Phyllis Lapin (Phyllis Smith) and insists on turning the exchange into a "Yankee Swap". This goes amiss as many of the gifts, such as a decorative name plate with Kelly Kapoor's (Mindy Kaling) name on it, are specific to the recipients. The staff competes for the iPod, and Pam opts to swap for it rather than keep Jim's gift.

Jim's present for Pam ends up with Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson). Jim tries to convince Dwight to do a post-swap with him, but Dwight refuses, saying he plans to use the teapot for nasal cleansing. Pam elects to trade the iPod for Jim's gift after her fiancé Roy tells her he was planning on getting her an iPod and has no other decent ideas for gifts, but to spare Jim's feelings she tells him she swapped out of appreciation for the effort he put into it. While she goes through the various aspects of her gift, Jim sneaks the letter for her into his pocket.

After ruining his staff's mood, Michael disobeys company policy by buying vodka for the party to compensate. Everyone ends up having a good time, with the exception of Angela Martin (Angela Kinsey), who is furious over not receiving appreciation for her efforts toward arranging the party, as well as Kelly kissing Dwight, whom Angela is secretly dating. The party ends with a drunken Meredith Palmer (Kate Flannery) exposing herself to Michael, who takes a picture and then leaves.

The film follows a group of students at fictional Winfield College who butt heads with their faculty advisor while producing the annual Varsity Show. They decide to enlist help from an alumnus, Chuck Daly (Dick Powell), who is now a Broadway producer, to direct the show. What they don't know is that Daly's last three shows were big flops.

Professor Biddle, Winfield's drama professor, wants a production in the fine tradition of College Circa 1900. The students want to stage a show that is ''au courant'', backed by Professor Mason, Biddle's assistant. Inevitably, Daly and the students clash with the stodgy Biddle. There is also the complication that Hollywood wants Chuck to come out and direct a musical, and is pressing him for an answer.

A series of humorous events ensues, including an outbreak of mumps Chuck uses to temporarily get Biddle out of the picture; a counterstroke by Biddle involving exams that must be passed for the students to maintain eligibility for student activities; and a student strike protesting Biddle's continuing as producer of the Varsity Show that attracts national attention. On learning the Hollywood offer has been withdrawn and in need of money, Daly returns to New York City and signs a contract to perform in another show.

The Winfield students aren't willing to give up on Chuck. Led by Professor Mason, they follow him to the city. They take over the Stuyvesant Theater, and give their first performance to a significant percentage of the NYPD, the local National Guard unit, and the Mayor, who all came to eject them from their illegal occupation of the theater. The Varsity Show opens on Broadway with great success, and Daly's reputation as a producer is rehabilitated.

In the "Swingology" classroom at Katnip Kollege, the Professor (a parody of Kay Kyser) requires each student to sing their lessons to a jazz rhythm, all the while singing "The Merry-Go-Round Broke Down". Johnny Cat just doesn't have it, and as a result, he has to stay after class wearing the dunce cap. Kitty Bright returns his fraternity ring as she leaves the room, telling him to call her when he learns how to swing.

That night, as all the other cats jam at an outdoor caterwaul, Johnny is suddenly inspired by the rhythm of a Pendulum clock. He runs to join the group and shocks everyone with a flawlessly jazzy rendition of "Easy as Rollin' Off a Log" sung (and trumpeted) to Kitty. At the end of the song the two cats actually roll off the log they were using as a stage, and Kitty covers Johnny's face with kisses. .

Soviet intelligence officer Aleksei Fedotov by the name of Heinrich Eckert departs for German-occupied Vinnytsia. His purpose is to obtain the secret correspondence of General Kuhn with the Hitler's headquarters. When his radio operator, sent to Aleksei, is executed, Fedotov is forced to search for a contact through the local underground, but accidentally he discovers that one of the underground workers is a provocateur.

The film is based on a real event in 1994, in which two 14-year-olds—Arbel Aloni and Moshe "Moshiko" Ben-Ivgi—murdered a taxi driver (named Derek Roth). In the film, their names have been changed to Ido Ben Ze'ev and Rafi, respectively. Ido comes from a wealthy family and acts as leader, while Rafi lives with his single mother and follows Ido.

The children start committing crimes such as vandalism and theft, with the knowledge of Ofer Reinitz, a police officer, and the school councilor, Naomi. They work together to put the children in juvenile jail, although Ido's father Gidi, who is a prominent lawyer and personal friend of Ofer's from the army, does not believe the accusations against his son and stops the children from being persecuted on several occasions. After they murder a taxi driver for thrills with an old revolver, both Ido and Rafi are arrested.

The film begins with a narrator telling us that Cromwell's tyranny is coming to an end, when we see several men approaching on horseback. We learn that King Charles II and several of his Cavaliers have been on an exploratory tour in England, checking to see if the populace is ready to back his return. At the moment he is being hounded by a troop of Roundheads. King Charles stops to bid one of his supporters, a Royalist Lord Lucius Vyne (Hugh Grant) who he gives one of his favorite rings, telling Lucius to send it if he ever needs his help. Taking the ring Lucius borrows the King's distinctive plumed hat and leads the King's pursuers away, allowing Charles and Lucius' cousin, Lord Richard Vyne to reach a waiting boat bound for France. Lucius manages to lose the Roundheads in a cavernous entrance of a quarried chalk cliff face.

In the next scene Lady Panthea Vyne (Lysette Anthony) is tricked into marriage by a lecherous older tax collector Drysdale (Ian Bannen) who had been seeking her hand in marriage. He promises to intercede and save her brother Lord Richard who, he tells her, is about to be executed. Drysdale tells her he can save her brother if she agrees to marry him. Leaving the church she and her new husband, no sooner reach their waiting coach that he attempts to unbutton her dress. Her small Cavalier King Charles Spaniel barks at Drysdale, who throws it to the floor of the coach and stomps it to death. Just then a gun ball blows a chunk of wood from the coach beside Drysdale's head. The mysterious masked highwayman known as "Silver Blade" (secretly her cousin Lucius) puts a stop to Drysdale's advances and helps our heroine to bury her dog. She tells Silver Blade of her plight; he whispers that Drysdale has lied, telling her that her brother is already dead.

"Silver Blade" then duels with Drysdale, who Panthea warns Silver Blade is the best swordsman in England. Silver Blade soon runs him through and returns to the carriage where Panthea waits. Silver Blade finds gold in the carriage that Drysdale had unfairly collected during his role as a tax collector. He threatens the coachmen on pain of death to keep silent about the whole affair with Drysdale then takes Panthea home. He leaves her with two of the four bags of gold before riding off to return the rest of the money from whom it was stolen. The event will come back to haunt them both.

Next her aunt, Lady Emma Darlington (Claire Bloom) talks her into coming to live with her as Panthea is all alone now that her father and brother are dead, nevermind her dead husband. At a royal reception we learn that Aunt Emma was the King's 'second' mother. The King invites Panthea to be a lady of the queen's bed chamber. With Panthea attracting all of the males' admiring glances plus her now becoming part of the new queen's court, the King's mistress Lady Castlemaine (Emma Samms) is livid. About then Panthea asks her Aunt who is 'that' lady, pointing to Lady Castlemaine. Her aunt tells her to look away.

Next Lady Castlemaine's guest Rudolph introduces himself, reminding Panthea and her aunt that he is Panthea's cousin on her distaff side. He then introduces Lady Castlemaine, when suddenly Lady Darlington grabs Panthea and abruptly turns her back and walks away. Lady Castlemaine is fit to be tied, and swears to take revenge for the slight.

Cousin Rudolph plots to inherit the title as Duke of Manston Hall, which is Panthea's home and also Lucius' hiding place. Lucius, instead of claiming his royal title, is in true Robin Hood fashion working against the King's secret enemies. Panthea, who has been in love with Silver Blade since the day he saved her, learns he is in grave danger and is about to be captured in a trap set for that night. She rides to warn him and saves the day after declaring her love for him. However, soon after the King leaves for France, she falls victim to the schemes of Lady Castlemaine who is after her head. Meanwhile, Lady Castlemaine learns of the coach incident and pays the coachman, now a sergeant in the King's Guards, to accuse Panthea of murder. She sets her trap and soon Panthea is fighting for her life in court.

After she is condemned to death Lucius attempts her rescue and ends up arrested as well. He passes the King's ring to Panthea's maid, telling her to take it to the King, but Rudolph sees the sparkling ring and takes it from Lucius. On the morning of his execution Lucius tricks his jailer, and he and his men fight their way out of their jail and ride to the Tower of London to Panthea's rescue. As the hulking Axeman is in mid swing, an arrow from Lucius strikes his shoulder, causing his blow to miss Panthea's head, but Lucius and Panthea are surrounded; escape is seemingly impossible, but meanwhile in an amazing Deus Ex Machina, the plodding Rudolph, who can't wait till he is sure Lucius is dead, barges in before the King and demands to be declared the Duke of Manston Hall. The King, who has seemingly forgotten his friend, spies the ring and soon shows up at the tower, just in time to save the day.

Lucius and Panthea are married and all ends well.

Henry Paradene, a retired musical comedy actor, has inherited a large country house he can hardly afford to maintain, Ashby Hall near the town of Ashby Paradene in Sussex. Henry's niece Jane Martyn, a secretary for the UK office of ''Newsweek'', is spending the summer with him. Jane's brother Algernon “Algy” Martyn does not work and spends his time coming up with money-making schemes. Henry does not allow Algy at Ashby Hall (since Algy is eager to ask Henry for loans), so Algy lives off his friend Thomas “Bill” Hardy in Valley Fields. On her way to see Algy, Jane asks Bill to help a cat out of a tree, and Bill falls in love with her. Later, Jane has lunch with her fiancé Lionel Green, an interior decorator and antique furniture salesman, after six months of being apart, but Lionel is not enthusiastic to see her and annoys her by bringing his business partner Orlo Tarvin to join them.

A wealthy American named J. Wendell Stickney lives in New York with his widowed aunt by marriage, former chorus girl Kelly Stickney. A distant relative of Henry Paradene, Wendell takes pride in being part of the Paradene family. Henry hopes to sell his house to Wendell, and has Wendell and Kelly visit. Algy is visited by a broker's man named Clarence Binstead who works for the firm Duff and Trotter (a company from ''Quick Service'' and ''Money in the Bank''). Algy owes the company for alcoholic drinks, and Binstead's presence puts pressure on Algy to pay his debt. Bill goes to Ashby Paradene in the hope of seeing Jane and meets her again; she learns that, under the pen name Adela Bristow, he wrote a thriller novel both she and her uncle enjoyed reading, ''Deadly Ernest''.

Wendell, a collector of French eighteenth-century paperweights, covets one such paperweight kept in Ashby Hall. Henry would like to sell it but legally cannot, since it is an entailed family heirloom (though it seems Henry can legally sell Ashby Hall). Kelly suggests Wendell buy the paperweight from Bill and have Bill pretend it was stolen. She takes the paperweight and gives it to Wendell to mail to New York, but Wendell fears being caught as a thief when he sees Bill, mistakenly believing that Bill is a detective for the trustees ("some legal firm or other", according to Henry) of the entail. Wendell is too nervous to mail the paperweight, but fears Henry will change his mind about selling it, and so will not let anyone else mail it for him. Henry wants to marry Kelly; he eventually tells her that he wishes to sell the house to Wendell in order to have enough money to marry her, and she agrees to marry him anyway. Algy wants money to buy a house in Valley Fields and sell it to a company that desires the land for a block of flats, and decides to seek a loan from Wendell. Bill is disheartened to learn that Jane is engaged; however, this engagement ends, as Jane learns from Orlo Tarvin that Lionel is engaged to a millionaire's daughter and did not have the nerve to tell her.

Jane has discovered the paperweight is missing and believes Wendell stole it; hoping to get near Wendell to ask for a loan, Algy offers to steal the paperweight back for her (though this does not occur, as Henry later admits the scheme to Algy). Algy also tells Jane that Bill loves her. Bill gets a letter from his New York literary agent saying that ''Deadly Earnest'' has become successful and suggests Bill go to New York for his career. Wendell decides to put the paperweight in a safe deposit box at his bank, but he sees Bill again and loses his nerve. Like Algy, Henry owes money to Duff and Trotter, and the company's broker's man Binstead is sent to Ashby Hall. An ex-fiancée of Binstead's works at the house, so he agrees, at Algy's suggestion, to have Bill, who wants an excuse to be near Jane, go in his place and pretend to be the broker's man. Wendell finally puts the paperweight in a safe deposit box in his bank, and, still thinking Bill is a detective, pays him a bribe through Algy. Algy now has the money he needs to invest in the Valley Fields house. Wendell plans to buy Ashby Hall, and Bill and Jane get engaged and intend to live in America.

Horace Appleby, who lives in London suburb Valley Fields, looks and acts like a butler, so he locates jewels for his burglar gang as a butler. He does not allow them to carry guns; American safe-blower Charlie Yost carried a gun, so Horace refuses to pay him. Other henchmen include Llewellyn "Basher" Evans, another safe-blower, and Ferdinand Ripley or "Ferdie the Fly", who can climb buildings. Horace goes to the races at Wellingford, Worcestershire. In nearby Mallow Hall lives Mike Pond, who recently succeeded his late uncle as owner of the house and Bond's Bank. He employs secretary Ada Cootes, and lives with his aunt Isobel Bond, who is confined to her room with a broken leg and has a nurse, Jill Willard. Someone steals Horace's wallet and Ada hits the thief, recovering the wallet. Horace thanks her and treats her to tea. Ada tells him about Bond's Bank, and Horace plans to rob it. He becomes butler at Mallow Hall to use it as a base of operations. Jill thinks he is a burglar, but she is annoyed with Mike, who once seemed to love her yet is now distant, and does not warn him. Horace has fallen for Ada and proposes to her; at first she is thrilled, but Jill warns her about Horace being a thief, and Ada turns him down.

Jill eavesdrops on a conversation between Mike and the bank trustees, General Sir Frederick Featherstone and Augustus "Gussie" Mortlake. The bank is insolvent by a hundred thousand pounds. Originally the amount was even greater, but Mike gambled with the depositors' money to bring the amount down; he will go to prison if this is discovered. Mike also mentions that his uncle took out an insurance policy for him: Mike is insured for a hundred thousand pounds if someone injures him with the intent to kill. Jill is glad that Mike's distance was due only to business problems and wants to marry him, but Mike refuses since he may go to prison. Mike wishes someone would rob the bank to hide the truth. Jill suggests to Ada, who knows the combination to the bank's large safe, that they rob the bank. Horace shoots a window with a gun from the Hall's gunroom so the police will only focus on the house. Basher retires from crime, having become religious after a revival meeting, and gives up his ill-gotten gains; Charlie appears, takes the money as his cut, and takes Basher's place. When Charlie tries to rob Gussie Mortlake, Gussie thinks of hiring Charlie to shoot at Mike for the insurance money. A policeman comes by, but Gussie tells him everything is fine, and Charlie gratefully offers his services. Mike reluctantly agrees to Gussie's plan.

Jill and Ada start burgling the bank and put money in a suitcase. Horace arrives with subordinates Ferdie, Montgomery "Smithy" Smith, and an American named Frank. Jill hides and Ada swoons inside the safe. The gang is stopped by the muscular Basher, who has threatened Charlie into staying away. The safe is open, but Basher quickly shuts it. Ferdie saw a girl inside, and Horace realizes it is Ada. He telephones Mike and admits he is burgling the bank, though Mike initially thinks Horace is drunk, and Aunt Isobel, in the background, says "Doesn't sound likely. Do butlers burgle banks?". Horace says that Ada got locked in the airtight safe. Mike provides the combination and Horace rescues Ada. Jill is discovered and Horace politely introduces her to the gang, though Frank flees. Jill is impressed with Horace and apologizes for warning Ada against marrying him; after he agrees to retire from crime, she talks to Ada, and Ada and Horace get engaged. Superintendent Jessop of the Wellingford constabulary appears, and Horace has Ferdie, Smithy, Jill, and Ada pretend they are performing an audit. Jessop leaves convinced. Mike arrives and Jill explains everything to him. Ada explains Jill's scheme to Horace. He tells Jill to bring the suitcase to the Hall. Jessop returns with his supercilious brother-in-law, Sergeant Claude Potter of Scotland Yard, and Horace claims that the bank was robbed after the audit. Potter is suspicious.

Mike tries to cancel Gussie's plan with Charlie, but Charlie has given his task to Frank, and Frank will show up at the Hall's back door to shoot at Mike. Jessop and Potter come to the house, and Potter is just about to search the suitcase when the parlourmaid says that there is a man at the back door to see Mike. Potter goes though Mike begs him not to; Potter gets shot in the arm and is expected to be in hospital for a week. Now that the police are on to him, Mike fears he will go to prison if he keeps the suitcase, but the bank will fail if he returns it. Horace, Ferdie, and Smithy finance the bank with their savings and save Mike.

Lord Emsworth is in clover at Blandings, with the only guest, Howard Chesney, easily avoided by eating alone in the library. His peace is shattered by the arrival of his sister Connie, along with a friend she has met on the boat over from America, Vanessa Polk, and the news that Dunstable is soon to descend upon the castle adds to his misery. Desperate, he calls on his brother Gally for aid.

Gally is in London, meeting his godson Johnny , who announces his engagement to Dunstable's niece Linda. He hurries to the castle, sharing a train carriage with Dunstable, who tells Gally how he has bought a painting of a reclining nude, having heard how anxious the wealthy Wilbur Trout is to buy it; Dunstable plans to bring Trout to Blandings to sell him the picture at a large profit.

At the castle, Connie urges Dunstable to cosy up with Vanessa Polk, her father's wealth proving an easy lure, and Emsworth's woes are compounded by his beloved Empress' refusal to eat a potato. Gally hears from Linda that her engagement to Halliday is no more, and Halliday himself visits, to explain the incident, a grilling he was obliged to give Linda as a witness in a court case he was defending, which led to their split. He begs Gally to invite him to the castle, but Gally, explaining his position in Connie's bad books, sends him home, promising to do his best on his behalf.

Wilbur Trout arrives, and we learn that Vanessa Polk was once engaged to him, and still harbours tender feelings. He tells her the tale of Dunstable's treachery, and she hatches a plan to steal the painting. In London, Halliday hears from his partner Joe Bender that the painting sold to Dunstable was a fake, and he calls in Gally's help. The capable old Pelican arranges to swap the real picture for the fake, but decides to take a bath before replacing the original in the empty frame.

Emsworth, visiting his pig after a worrying dream, falls into the muddy sty, then finds himself locked out, Gally having turned the key on his return from meeting Johnny. He enters the house via Dunstable's rooms, waking up the Duke when surprised by a cat, and later returns to wake the Duke again when he sees the empty frame. When the rest of the household see the picture, now replaced by Gally, the Duke's low opinion of Emsworth's sanity persuades him to call in psychiatric help; Gally recommends Johnny, who he pretends is Sir Roderick Glossop's junior partner.

Vanessa Polk, having spotted him for a crook, persuades Chesney to help her steal the painting, but he recognises Halliday, newly arrived at the castle, as the attorney who defended him after an earlier crime went wrong. He plans to leave to avoid being unmasked and return by night for the painting, but seeing Halliday at the top of the stairs, pushes him down. Halliday falls, taking Dunstable with him, and while he angers the Duke he endears himself to Linda, who finds herself kissing his face as he lies prone in the hallway. Linda, now firmly in favour of Halliday, reveals she cannot marry without Dunstable's consent, which he refuses after the stairs incident, and also having recalled Halliday's father, who he never got on with.

Connie calls Glossop's office, finds Halliday is an imposter and ejects him from the castle. Trout and Vanessa meet up in the night to steal the painting, but Chesney fails to turn up, having crashed his car on the way. The two realise they love each other, and leave next morning to get married. Connie insists that Dunstable write to Vanessa proposing marriage; but the letter is intercepted by Gally, who shares with Dunstable his knowledge that Vanessa is not really an heiress, and makes the Duke allow the wedding of Linda and Johnny in exchange for the return of his letter, under threat of a breach of promise suit if it were to reach Vanessa. Connie is recalled to America by her husband, and the Duke returns home, leaving Emsworth once again master of his domain.

Monty Bodkin's fiancée Gertrude Butterwick refuses to marry without the consent of her father J. B. Butterwick. He dislikes Monty and will not agree to the match unless Monty can remain gainfully employed for a full year. Having spent a year working as a production advisor for the Superba-Llewellyn Motion Picture Corporation in Hollywood, Monty now returns to England. However, Butterwick insists that the job did not count because Monty got it (in ''The Luck of the Bodkins'') through dishonest means.

To appease Butterwick, Monty seeks another paid position. Sally Miller (secretly in love with Monty) falsely tells her employer Grayce Llewellyn that Monty comes from an aristocratic family, and Grayce appoints Monty as secretary to her husband, Ivor Llewellyn, who is now in England. Monty is to work at the Llewellyns' newly rented country house, Mellingham Hall in Sussex, where Llewellyn is writing a history of his film studio.

The domineering Grayce watches Llewellyn's spending closely to prevent him from gambling. He had previously acquired secret funds by selling Grayce's valuable pearl necklace without her knowledge and replacing it with a fake. Now he obtains more by borrowing from Monty.

While Grayce is away, Llewellyn goes to an illegal nightclub with Monty and Sally. When the club is raided by the police, Sally helps the party to escape by pulling a dustbin over the head of a plainclothes policeman, Wilfred Chisholm. This valiant action causes Monty to fall in love with Sally. Unknown to them, Chisholm has over the past year become attracted to Gertrude, and would like to marry her. Although attracted to him, she feels she cannot break her engagement with Monty.

Grayce is worried about the security of her valuable necklace, and employs a private detective, J. Sheringham Adair, to watch over it. He agrees to come to the house posing as Llewellyn's new valet. Unknown to Grayce, Adair is an alias of Chimp Twist, a crook. Also visiting the house are the Llewellyns' new acquaintances Soapy and Dolly Molloy, who are actually professional criminals. Grayce's daughter Mavis plans to visit, bringing her new fiancé Jimmy Ponder. This worries Llewellyn, as Ponder is a jewellery expert who will realize that Grayce's necklace is not genuine.

When Monty is mistaken for a burglar, Grayce decides to lodge the pearls at a local bank for safekeeping. To avoid the necklace being exposed as a fake, Llewellyn asks Monty to drive it to the bank, and to pretend that it had been stolen on the way by an unknown robber. Monty agrees to the deception. As Monty is leaving, Dolly asks him for a lift into town and as they near their destination she takes him by surprise, pulling a gun and demanding the necklace. Both are then surprised by Chimp, who has been hiding in the back seat of the car, and who also has a gun. Chimp takes the necklace and drives off, leaving Monty and Dolly to walk back to the Hall. Monty tells Dolly that the necklace is fake, a fact which Chimp will soon discover.

Butterwick is still trying to prevent Monty marrying his daughter. Learning that Grayce had hired Monty only because of his supposed aristocratic connections, he sets her straight, hoping that she will sack Monty. Meanwhile, Chisholm tells Gertrude of Monty's nightclub escapade, and that he had been visiting the club in the company of a girl.

Monty receives a telegram from Gertrude to announce that she is breaking off the engagement. This allows Monty to become engaged to Sally, and Gertrude to become engaged to Chisholm. Grayce announces her intention to get a divorce, an event which Llewellyn – who has already been divorced four times – regards as purely routine.

Ephraim Trout of Trout, Wapshott and Edelstein, a legal firm employed by Ivor Llewellyn, head of the Superba-Llewellyn studio of Hollywood, has handled Llewellyn's five divorces. Llewellyn is on his way to London on business, and Trout sees Llewellyn off at the Los Angeles airport. Trout warns him against any more impulsive proposals. Trout has managed to stay single since he belongs to a California group called Bachelors Anonymous, inspired by Alcoholics Anonymous. When one member feels the impulse to take a woman out to dinner, he seeks out the other members and they reason with him. He advises Llewellyn to consult the legal firm of Nichols, Erridge and Trubshaw in London, as they can find someone to act as a similar advisor for Llewellyn. Other members of Bachelors Anonymous convince Trout to follow Llewellyn to London to help. In London, Llewellyn meets Vera Dalrymple, the star of the Regal Theatre's stage comedy ''Cousin Angela'', written by Joseph "Joe" Pickering (who makes his living working for the solicitors Shoesmith, Shoesmith, Shoesmith, and Shoesmith, mentioned in other stories such as ''Ice in the Bedroom''). Joe is interviewed by Sally Fitch (from Much Middlefold) for a women's paper, and they get along well.

Vera monopolizes the show and ''Cousin Angela'' closes after only 16 performances. The Regal Theatre's stage-doorkeeper Mac (who appeared in ''A Damsel in Distress'' and ''Summer Lightning'') gives his sympathy to Joe. While waiting to see Vera, a drunk man threatens Mac, so Joe throws him out. Joe learns from his friend Jerry Nichols, of the Nichols, Erridge and Trubshaw law firm, that he can earn a lucrative salary working for Llewellyn. Joe falls in love with Sally and makes plans to have lunch with her at Barribault's. Jerry tells Sally that she has inherited a legacy from a former employer, Letitia Carberry, supporter of the Anti-Tobacco League. Carberry left most of her money to the League but left Sally twenty-five thousand pounds on the condition that she not smoke for two years. Sally is to live in a posh Park Lane apartment with a private detective, Daphne Dolby, the owner of the Eagle Eye detective agency, who will know if Sally smokes. Daphne is engaged to Sir Jaklyn Warner, Baronet, because she is interested in his title and he in her money. Jaklyn, who is Sally's ex-fiancé, hears about Sally's inheritance. Sally accidentally falls asleep and misses lunch with Joe.

Llewellyn explains the Bachelors Anonymous idea to Joe, and recognizes him as the man who threw him out at the theatre and kept him from having dinner with Vera. Impressed, Llewellyn hires him. Sally apologizes to Joe for missing lunch and agrees to dinner. Trout sees Llewellyn, who is concerned that Joe has fallen for Sally. This worries Trout, and to keep Joe from going to dinner, he slips Joe a Mickey Finn. Sally is disappointed when Joe fails to appear, believing it to be petty revenge for her missing lunch. Jaklyn proposes to her (for her money) and she accepts, not knowing he is engaged to Daphne. She mentions her engagement to Daphne, and Daphne realizes what occurred. With one of her operatives, the intimidating Cyril Pemberton, she makes Jaklyn join her at the registry office to get married.

Sally refuses to listen to Joe and goes to Valley Fields to see her former nanny Jane Priestley, who turns Joe and Trout away. Trout's hand is bitten by a dog named Percy, and the dog's owner, Amelia Bingham, bandages his hand. She is a hospital nurse. Trout falls for her, and now approves of marriage. Llewellyn is astonished when Trout accepts dinner with Vera on Llewellyn's behalf. Joe suggests that Llewellyn get a check-up at a hospital to hide from Vera. Trout, who has resigned from Bachelors Anonymous, admits to slipping Joe a Mickey Finn and apologizes to him. Trout tells Sally everything, and she reconciles with Joe. Unaware that Jaklyn is now married, Trout pays him off with fifty pounds to prevent a breach of promise case. Daphne catches Sally smoking, and Joe is fired by Llewellyn, who impulsively proposed to his nurse at the hospital, Amelia. However, all ends well when Llewellyn learns Trout has got engaged to Amelia. Llewellyn decides to make Joe's play into a movie and pays him two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and will become a member of Bachelors Anonymous when he returns to California with a letter of introduction from Trout.

On the eve of his 78th birthday, the ailing, alcoholic writer Clive Langham spends a painful and sleepless night mentally composing and recomposing scenes for a novel in which characters based on his own family are shaped by his fantasies and memories, alongside his caustic commentary on their behaviour. His son Claude appears as a cold and unforgiving prosecuting lawyer, who revels in spiteful repartee. His second (illegitimate) son Kevin features as an idealistic soldier accused of the mercy-killing of an old man who was being hunted down. Claude's wife Sonia shows sympathy with Kevin and seems eager to seduce him in protest at her husband's callousness. Clive also invents the character of Helen, as Claude's mistress, but she bears the features of Clive's dead wife Molly who committed suicide. Clive's imagination is also haunted by scenes of an autopsy on the corpse of an old man, a military round-up of elderly people who are detained in a sports stadium, and a dark tangled forest in which a hunted man metamorphoses into a werewolf. Before Clive loses consciousness, it is Kevin whom he sees as the werewolf in the forest; Claude shoots Kevin but seems to identify him with their father.

On the following day, Clive welcomes Claude, Sonia and Kevin (in reality an astrophysicist) for an idyllic birthday lunch in the sunlit garden of his country mansion, and their relationships are characterised by mutual affection and good humour, albeit with signs of self-restraint in deference to the occasion. After lunch, in what he seems to envisage as a final parting, Clive unexpectedly asks them all to leave without a word.

The story opens circa 1980 at an abandoned chateau in the Swiss Alps, once a prestigious boarding school, L'Hirondelle. Internationally famous film siren, Lili, travels from there to a private meeting with the elderly Hortense Boutin, whom Lili knows was paying money on behalf of one of the school's students to a family which adopted the student's illegitimate child. Lili is the child, now grown up.

The story flashes back to 1960, introducing schoolgirls Pagan Trelawney, Judy Hale, and Maxine Pascal. Each becomes entangled with a man – Pagan with Prince Abdullah of Sydon, Judy with banker Nick Cliffe, and Maxine with ice hockey player Pierre Boursal. All three romances fail, but one of the women becomes pregnant. Knowing it means ruin for the unwed mother, the three make a pact to protect her identity. All three present themselves to the local doctor, Dr. Geneste, and he agrees to assist in having the child adopted. When the doctor discovers the identity of the mother-to-be, he says, "Of the three of you, you are the one I least suspected." The child, Elizabeth Lace, is born on November 17, 1960. The mother's birth name is recorded as Lucinda Lace.

An attempt by the school's headmaster Monsieur Chardin to expel the girls is thwarted when they unearth photographs of him in a homosexual tryst with the school's chauffeur, Paul. They blackmail Chardin into allowing them to stay and graduating them with honors. The child is placed with a foster family. On their behalf, Maxine's aunt, Hortense Boutin, agrees to pay money to Felix and Angelina Dassin, a French couple who consent to raise the child until her real mother establishes herself and can come back for her someday.

The three girls, on the verge of success in their respective careers, receive a report that the child has been killed in an auto accident. Consumed with guilt and shame, the three friends have a falling out and go their separate ways. In fact, Lili survived. Felix and Angelina were gunned down by Hungarian Soldiers after the accident. She was placed in a detention camp on the Eastern Bloc, where she spent the next ten years before finally escaping and eventually transforms herself into a film sex symbol.

Employing a private investigator, Lili tracks the payments to her adopted parents to Hortense, and through her, finds out about the three school friends and their pact. She knows one of them is her mother. Pagan Trelawney is now Lady Swann, a British aristocrat and the wife of a cancer researcher; Judy Hale has become a journalist, war correspondent, and publisher of ''Lace'' magazine; while Maxine Pascal is now the Countess de Chazalle, a French socialite. Hortense insists to Lili that the child is dead. But Lili defiantly proclaims ''"They'll wish I was. They made their schoolgirl pact and sent me to Hell--I'll teach them what I learned there!"'' As she leaves, the revelation proves to be too much for Hortense to bear and she suffers a fatal heart attack and dies.

After Hortense's funeral, which Maxine, Pagan and Judy all attend and where she witnesses the extent of their estrangement from one another, Lili inveigles herself in the lives of the three women, promising each of them something of value: for Judy, an exclusive interview for her magazine; to Pagan, a very sizable donation to her cancer society charity and for Maxine, to stop dating her son. But she also intends to ruin them if they do not reveal which of them is her mother. She assembles the three and challenges them with the mini-series' most famous line: ''"Incidentally...which one of you bitches is my mother?"'' The second part of the mini-series is driven largely by flashbacks to the three women's young adulthood, charting their career successes and returning occasionally to the present where all three are in the company of the woman who claims to be the abandoned daughter. Lili, at the end of the flashbacks, again tries to force a confession from them, but they still remain silent. Infuriated, Lili orders them to leave, but says she intends to keep the promises she made them regardless. As she ascends to her bedroom, she shocks the women by revealing the full details of her birth to the trio.

Later in the hotel bar, Judy, Pagan and Maxine all confirm that Lili was telling the truth and they all humorously agree that she is better than all of them put together. Maxine comments that ''"Well, at least she brought us all back together. I missed you - I really did"''. That last declaration finally repairs their damaged relationship. They agree Lili must be told the truth with Judy stating that this time, Lili's real mother is on her own in doing so.

Lili receives a phone call from the hotel manager, telling her that her mother wants to see her. A pair of high heels can be seen walking up the stairs. Finally, Judy Hale comes into the room and beckons Lili to come closer. Lili slowly rises and walks toward Judy, and the two embrace.

The story is another tale set at Blandings Castle, filled as ever with romance and imposters. Galahad Threepwood uses his charm and wit to ensure his brother Clarence continues to lead a quiet and peaceful life.

A group of Native American bear cubs defending themselves from their enemies, The Meanos, led by the evil sorcerer Dark Paw. Dark Paw and his henchmen were after the Paw Paws' three large wooden totems, Totem Bear, Totem Tortoise, and Totem Eagle. The totems also served as the tribe's protectors, coming to life when needed through means of Princess Paw Paw's Mystic Moonstone, which she wore around her neck, to defend the village.

Much like other Hanna-Barbera programs of ''The Smurfs'', ''The Biskitts'', ''Shirt Tales'', ''Snorks'' or ''Pound Puppies'', the bears had names that denoted their personalities—Laughing Paw, Medicine Paw, Bumble Paw, etc. Brave Paw and Princess Paw Paw tended to be the leads, riding into adventures on their magical flying ponies, while aging Wise Paw served as tribal advisor. The mascot of the group was a tiny dog by the name of PaPooch.

A teenage girl, whose brother was the second victim of two shootings on her campus, starts painting the wall in an attempt to end such school violence. The wall also becomes a point of healing and unity for the students as other students, friends of both the shooters and the victims, start helping Taylor paint the wall. A girl's despair...a teacher's challenge. Taylor wonders why her brother had to die. Her world no longer makes sense. Rebelling against the system, she is nearly suspended from school. A charismatic substitute teacher is her only hope. The teacher and his students share powerful journal entries and Taylor decides she can make a difference by finding a creative outlet for her pain. Taylor's brother, before his death, and eventually Taylor herself work to provide a solution to the root causes of random violence and other crimes committed by teens.

The text begins with Niger talking to his father Oceanus. Oceanus asks him why he has left his usual eastward course and flowed westward, into the Atlantic. Niger tells him that he has come to request help. Niger's daughters are upset because they thought themselves to be the most beautiful goddesses in the world, only to discover that paleness is thought more attractive - and so no longer feel beautiful. The moon goddess, Aethiopia, tells the daughters that, if they can find a country whose name ends in "tannia", they will be beautiful once more.

The daughters try desperately to find the country whose name ends in "tannia", travelling as far as Mauritania (North Africa), Lusitania (Portugal), and Aquitania (France) in their quest. Despondent at their lack of success they pray once more to Aethiopia, who tells them that the country is Britannia and that they should seek out its sun-like king, who has the power to bleach their black complexions white. Aethiopia further advises the daughters that once a month for the next year, they should bathe in sea-dew and, thus prepared, at the same time next year, they should appear before the king again, whereupon his light will make them beautiful and white.

'''Manta''' (''Monarch of the Deep'') is the last survivor of the ancient civilization of Mu, which used to exist in the Pacific Ocean. Mu was destroyed by a terrible explosion, but Manta was engulfed by a wave of mysterious radiation, and placed into suspended animation deep beneath the waves. He was discovered and awoken by Moray, a human female, who became his companion. He is amphibious, but (unlike Moray) cannot be away from water for long periods of time - lest he weaken and die. He can communicate with various animals, on land as well as in the sea.

'''Moray''' (birth name unknown) was orphaned when her parents' plane crashed into the sea; the young girl was saved, and subsequently raised, by dolphins. Over the next few years, Moray learned to live in the ocean. Then she discovered and revived Manta, who became her companion. Both pledged themselves to protecting the sea-world from any who would threaten it. An excellent swimmer, Moray can hold her breath for incredibly long periods but (unlike Manta) is vulnerable to deep-water pressure. She wears a leg-baring red wetsuit with white trim, and a matching headband.

Manta and Moray's other companions include ''Whiskers'' (a sea lion) and ''Guppy'' (a gray whale).

Zack Freeman's bum is constantly detaching itself from his body and running off. One night, when he follows his bum, he learns that there is a plot by bums to take over the world. Specifically, the bums plan to create a huge, worldwide fart by building up a massive quantity of methane gas in the "Bumcano". When the ''Bumcano'' blows, all humans will be rendered unconscious. While they are unconscious, the bums will seize their chance and switch places with their heads.

Fortunately, Zack meets the "Bum-hunter" Silas Sterne and his daughter, Eleanor, and is introduced to the realities of life in a world where bums are constantly a threat. To prevent the Bumcano eruption, the friends enlist the help of ''the Kisser'', ''the Kicker'', ''the Smacker'' and ''Ned Smelly''. The characters encounter a variety of bum-related places and things, including the "Great Windy Desert", "flying bum squadrons", ''Stenchgantor The Great Unwiped Bum'' and ''the Great White Bum''.

Naturally, every possible opportunity for ''toilet humour'' is milked in this book for children, which won a number of Children's Choice awards in Australia.

It is followed by ''Zombie Bums from Uranus'' (2003) and ''Bumageddon: The Final Pongflict'' (2005).

In the Soviet Union, American reporter McKinley "Mac" Thompson (Clark Gable) secretly writes unflattering stories about the Soviet Union, attributed to "Comrade X", for his newspaper. His identity is discovered by his valet, Vanya (Felix Bressart), who blackmails Mac into promising to get his daughter, a streetcar conductor named Theodore (Hedy Lamarr), out of the country. Theodore agrees to a sham marriage so she can spread the message of the benefits of Communism to the rest of the world. However, Commissar Vasiliev (Oscar Homolka) is determined to unmask and arrest Comrade X. Eventually Theodore sees the "wicked hypocrisy of Communism" and falls in love with Thompson.

While skipping school one day, twelve-year-old Rob Peck finds himself assisting a neighbor's cow through the delivery of a pair of calves (and saving her life from her goiter). He is injured in the process, but eventually recovers and the farmer whose animals he helped gives Rob a piglet. He names the piglet Pinky. Pinky quickly becomes Rob's best friend and closest companion save for his father, Haven, a butcher working to save money to pay off the Peck family's farm. Unfortunately, Pinky is barren and they eventually decide that they have to kill the piglet if it cannot bring the family any more piglets or profit. Robert hates his father when he kills Pinky, but understands that his father is heartbroken as well. Rob's father, Haven, dies in his sleep a few months later and Rob discovers while doing random chores that his father had been trying to teach himself to write.

In a corrupt Alabama town near the Army's Fort Benning, the law can do little to stop the criminal activities of Rhett Tanner, particularly in the wide-open "red-light district" area known for prostitution, taverns, and crooked gambling. Most of the police do not even try, since they are on Tanner's payroll.

Local attorney, Albert "Pat" Patterson, initially neutral and complacent, is urged to run for State Attorney General and clean up Phenix City, but he wants no part of a thankless, impossible job. He is content to welcome home his son John from military service. However, soon violence breaks out trying to silence the reform-minded citizens committee. John gets caught in the middle when Clem Wilson, a thug who works for Tanner, and others assault innocent citizens.

Patterson finally agrees to get involved in reforming the town, but as soon as he wins the Democratic nomination for state attorney general, he is killed. It is up to John to avenge his father, but his own family ends up at risk.

Russian agents searching for something underwater find a crate as Hong Kong police close in. They accidentally open the crate and baby dolls float to the surface before being detonated. Some Russian agents and a Hong Kong detective pursuing them survive.

Downtown, Tommy Hendricks is arranging a fashion show for "V-Six" Jeans. His partner, Marcus Ray shows up late after inspecting a warehouse of their goods where he sees several knock-offs, including the exploding dolls, peddled by a Hong Kong gangster, Skinny. Marcus and Tommy then participate in a rickshaw race during which Marcus' adopted brother and friend Eddie cheats to win by switching with a body double. The body double gets kidnapped by Russian agents (looking for Eddie) and Marcus gives chase. Ultimately, they kill the fake Eddie and Hong Kong police arrest Marcus and Tommy, but release them without charges.

Back at their office, an executive from V-Six, Karen Lee claims a shipment of jeans was counterfeit and Marcus and Tommy are responsible for over $5 million of losses. She agrees to let it go if they go to the warehouse that switched the fake jeans and identify who did it. Meanwhile, the Russian bosses kill the agents who failed to reclaim the dolls and get tipped off by Skinny that V-Six is onto them and is going to their warehouse. When Tommy gets kidnapped at a restaurant, Marcus follows him and finds him talking to his CIA handlers. He is a CIA agent sent to discover the counterfeiters who used Marcus, "the king of knock offs," as his cover.

That night, before they arrive at the warehouse, a truck bursts out. Marcus gets on top of it and when it ultimately crashes they find it full of tiny discs. Tommy's boss, Harry Johansson determines they are powerful "nanobombs" at their base inside a Buddha statue. Believing Eddie to be in on it, they go to see him. Eddie fingers Skinny as the counterfeiter; he found out they had bombs in the merchandise and tried to have it dumped in the ocean before the Russians found them. He opens a safe to give them proof, but it explodes, killing him. Tommy and Marcus have to fight their way out of the building. Tommy obtains security footage on the way out.

Marcus kidnaps Skinny and takes him back to the CIA base in the Buddha. There, the security footage reveals Karen was in the warehouse just before they were. At the office, she handcuffs Tommy and prepares to question him. After Marcus leaves, the Buddha explodes, and Marcus races to the office to save Tommy. After a fight, she reveals she's CIA as well, and the three team up. While Marcus changes, the Russians kidnap Karen and Tommy, and Marcus finds a bomb detector in Karen's things. He realizes the jean studs are the nanobombs and checks the computer for the shipping manifest. He and the Hong Kong detective from the opening scene race to the cargo ship where Karen and Tommy are being held.

Tommy is relieved to see Harry on board, but Harry reveals he is a double agent intending to ransom companies for not detonating the nanobombs they have been secretly planting in manufactured goods all over the world. Marcus and the detective board the barge and fight through all of the Russians, eventually escaping just before Harry detonates it. Karen plants a handful of the nanobombs on Harry's boat as well, which explodes. They find the detonator in the water and take it.

Two hours later, Tommy and Marcus talk in a bar. Tommy still has the detonator. In a distant room, Harry, still alive, is planting nanobombs on a toy. Tommy carelessly activates the detonator, destroying the building Harry is in, in the distance.

The movie takes place in the summer of 2002 when Sean (Don Digiulio) inherits a farmhouse from his father. Sean was adopted at birth and until that point had no idea about his family. He and a group of friends decide to stay in the farmhouse located in West Virginia for a few days. When they arrive, they're attacked by three killer scarecrows.

Cameron Walker's (Goss) world revolves around him and his extended family living in Hamilton, Ohio, which includes wife Liz (Vigman), his son Ezra (Matthews), his daughter Marni (Jourdain) and his son Henry (Einhorn) who Cameron didn't know existed, his mother and stepfather, Colleen and Wendal Halbert (Wallace-Stone, Gail), and his other plethora of brothers and sisters. He is considered the only sane person in his family and tries to fix any problem that arises within the family.

Cameron's sister and brother-in-law Sharon (Quinn) and Don Fenton (Lambert) seem to create more problems for him rather than themselves. The couple are almost always in deep denial about their personal issues, such as not having sex for several years.

Jenna (Walsh), Sharon and Cameron's half-sister, is a single mother of one who is continuously attracted to the "bad boy" personality, such as "Whitey" (Pitts), and steers away from the "nice guy" types, like Wylie (Harrington).

Their parents, Colleen and Wendal, love their family but have profound complications within their own relationship. Cameron constantly tries to help them solve their issues, but it doesn't always work out the way he expects.

Cameron's great-aunt Rae (Hall) appeared intermittently, mostly in runaway gags and one-liners. A decrepit old woman, Rae was also a vocal anti-Semite who disliked Liz simply because she was Jewish. Throughout the series, Rae is the frequent butt of practical jokes and derisive comments. (This character is supposedly based on Goss' grandmother.)

After discovering new artifacts in the previous books, the team gets together again this time to search for the Zardalu unwittingly unleashed upon the galaxy during their previous adventure. This search leads them to the Zardalu Communion and the exploration of a huge space-time anomaly called the Torvil Anfract.

The novel includes excerpts from the ''Hot Rocks, Warm Beer, Cold Comfort: Jetting Alone Around the Galaxy'', a sort-of travel book by Captain Alonzo Wilberforce Sloane (retired).

The sequel to this novel is ''Convergence''.

Category:1992 American novels Category:Novels by Charles Sheffield Category:1992 science fiction novels Category:American science fiction novels Category:Del Rey books

The book takes place millennia in the future with the same group of explorers introduced in the first two books of the series, ''Summertide'' and ''Divergence''. After millions of years of apparent inaction, the Builder artifacts are changing quickly. After exploring several new artifacts, rediscovering the existence of a race thought to be dead for millennia, and finding that race's home planet in the midst of an enormous artifact, the adventures of this eclectic team become even stranger.

In this book the characters explore several old artifacts to find that they have changed. These changes all seemed to be linked to a seemingly new artifact, which may affect the future of the entire Orion Arm of the galaxy.

The sequel to this book and series finale is ''Resurgence''.

Category:1997 American novels Category:Novels by Charles Sheffield Category:1997 science fiction novels Category:Baen Books books

The wizard Erasmus introduces the player character, the Hero, to the Greece-like kingdom of Silmaria, whose king was recently assassinated. Thus, the traditional Rites of Rulership are due to commence, and the victor will be crowned king. The Hero enters the contest with the assistance of Erasmus, Rakeesh, and many old friends from previous entries in the series. The Hero competes against competitors, including the Silmarian guard Kokeeno Pookameeso, the warlord Magnum Opus, the hulking Gort, and the warrior Elsa Von Spielburg, who played a significant role in the first game.

As the Rites commence, an unknown assassin begins systematically picking off the contestants. Each contestant is murdered by a poison dagger, and they all are murdered near Dragon Pillars, the objects used to keep the Dragon of Silmaria locked up. After completing the second Rite, defeating the General of the Mercenaries, Rakeesh is attacked by the assassin and, depending on the course of action chosen by the player, either lives or dies. The conspiracy is eventually unraveled and the Dragon, having been released due to the destruction of the Dragon Pillars, is defeated.

The characters Katrina and Erana make a return in this installment, as assistance for defeating the Dragon.

This installment also marks the return of Bruno, a character from the first Quest for Glory game. He is revealed to be the assassin who has been terrorizing the streets of Silmaria, characterized as a quiet, shady character until he reveals himself to the player.

''Shadow of Darkness'' follows directly on the events of ''Quest for Glory III: Wages of War''. Drawn without warning from victory in Fricana, the Hero arrives without equipment or explanation in the middle of the hazardous Dark One Caves in the distant land of Mordavia, a world full of undead that is "a mix of Slavic folklore and Lovecraftian horror". Upon escaping from the closing cave mouth, he meets a mysterious young woman named Katrina who assists him again several times in his journey. The Hero helps the townspeople with their problems. He encounters several old foes, including the not-quite-dead Ad Avis and the ogress Baba Yaga, and makes several bizarre new allies. The Hero is ultimately coerced into assisting Ad Avis' Dark Master in collecting the Dark Rituals that will allow Avoozl the Dark One (an obvious Cthulhu pastiche, and most likely a reference to the Slavic deity Chernobog) to manifest in Mordavia's world. Naturally, the Hero escapes this control and thwarts their plan, destroying Ad Avis in the process. During the celebration of the Hero's somewhat pyrrhic victory, the wizard Erasmus appears, along with his familiar Fenrus, summoning the Hero to the land of Silmaria.

An aspiring painter named Dustin Pennett is on a search for love, sex, and inspiration when he meets a woman named Christiane at an art gallery. They spend the night together at her apartment, but the next morning she has disappeared, leaving Dustin heartbroken. He visits her family home in Southern California and learns from her younger sister that Christiane ran away at a young age after having an abortion, also finding out that "Christiane's" apartment was actually a display room she had broken them into.

Dustin returns home to Los Angeles and, after confiding in Phil, a plumber who has seen Dustin at his local pub, about his issues with Christiane, finds success painting portraits of her from memory, idealizing her as his true love. Dustin's best friend, a struggling writer named Buzz, envies his friend's newfound success. After Dustin easily beds Cathy, a woman Buzz has been chasing for two years, Buzz angrily shouts at Dustin and threatens him with a pool cue during a drunken argument.

Christiane returns to the gallery and finds Dustin's paintings of her, including a nude one which she slashes. She then breaks into his apartment and throws blue paint on him. Christiane says that they had a meaningless encounter and complains that the paintings are interfering with her life. Dustin responds that he painted them because their night together meant something to him and he wants to get to know her as a person.

After making up with Buzz, Dustin ditches a show planned for him in New York by his manager Paul in order to meet Christiane at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The film ends with a shot of Dustin and Christiane embracing.

Serial murderer and rapist Abbott Hayes disappears from the morgue and becomes the leader of several waves of zombies that attack his home town. Fourteen years after the last zombie attack, a businessman relocates bodies from a local cemetery to pave the way for progress, but sets in motion Abbott's next undead assault.

The game begins with Vetch (voiced by Steve Tarlow) receiving a transmission from his lieutenant, Overlord (Jason Gregory), who tells him a slave named Haven has been dreaming about the Golden Voice, something Vetch hopes to turn to his advantage. Meanwhile, in Virescent Village on the planet Ferra, Haven (Jake Rosewall-Gallagher) heads to work in the mines. There, he sees his friend Chess (Regan Kerwan) being questioned by a guard, who tries to shoot Haven. However, he misses, and causes the mine to collapse, knocking out Haven.

Upon awakening, he learns Chess hasn't been seen since the collapse. Setting out to find her, Haven reaches Darkwater Castle, home of Overlord, who contacts Vetch to tell him their plan is going well. Haven watches Overlord interrogate Chess about Haven's dreams. She refuses to tell him anything, and Haven intervenes, killing Overlord and freeing Chess. They escape, and Chess says that while in detention, she heard Overlord mention a wise old slave on the Isle of Heroes.

Haven heads there, and meets the Wise Man (Terry Bertram), who tells him the legend of Athellion; Vetch was determined to conquer Athellion's city, Aurias. However, he was unable to even approach the city, as its light would blind him. When Athellion left for the war, Vetch bribed a council member to infect the people with the virus, so they became his slaves. Over time, even the location of the Mount of Sighs has been forgotten. However, the Wise Man directs Haven to a map identifying the location of the Mount on the planet Auria. Haven reaches the Golden Voice, reading a warning stating that once the bell is rung, the person who rings it must wait there for Athellion's return. He rings it, but immediately Chess contacts him, telling him she is stranded without any antidote. He reluctantly leaves, returning to Ferra, and rescuing Chess.

However, she reveals she has been working with Vetch all along, who appears and congratulates her on her deception. Vetch tells Haven that Chess is one of his spies, deployed throughout his slave colonies to keep watch for anyone speaking of the Golden Voice. Vetch explains he had Chess call Haven away from the Mount of Sighs immediately after ringing the bell because the legend says that if the person who rings the bell does not remain on the Mount until Athellion's return, Athellion must return to wherever that person is - thus Vetch plans to wait until Athellion appears to Haven, and then kill him. With no more use for Chess, Vetch decides she can die with Haven. At this moment, Athellion arrives, telling Vetch he will surrender if Haven and Chess are spared. Vetch agrees, imprisoning them, and bringing Athellion back to the Mount of Sighs.

Haven escapes, but is unable to free Chess, and so sets out in pursuit of Vetch alone. He returns to the Mount of Sighs, where he sees Vetch kill Athellion. Haven confronts Vetch, but is defeated. However, the power of the Mount of Sighs keeps him alive. Vetch then ties Haven to a rock, pointing out "you can't live forever" and leaves him alone on the planet. The game ends on this cliffhanger.

Alexander Armsworth and his family move into an antebellum Louisiana plantation. Alexander's mother and sister become set on restoring the home to its former glory, but Alexander is unsettled by the mysterious lights he sees around the property. He also meets his new neighbor, Blossom Culp, a superstitious girl raised by her spiritualist grandmother. In spite of Blossom's strange and sometimes annoying ways, she becomes a loyal friend.

One night Alexander sees the mysterious lights once more and follows them into the old barn, where he finds the ghost of a young Creole girl, Inez Dumaine, and her dog. Inez's uncle was the notorious pirate Jacques Dumaine, former owner of the plantation. In life, Inez refused to reveal the location of her family's fortune to Jacques, who murdered her and her dog by throwing them down the well in the barn. As revenge, he cursed her ghost to remain on the property. In order to be free of the curse, Inez must solve a riddle and begs Alexander to help her, while warning him that if the riddle is not solved before All Saints' Eve (Halloween), she will be trapped forever and forced to reenact her murder every night. The riddle states:

''Sleeping lies the murdered lass.
Vainly cries the child of glass.
When the two shall be as one,
the spirit's journey will be done.
''

When he realizes that Inez herself must be "the murdered lass," Alexander enlists Blossom and her grandmother to find the "child of glass." In a vision using Blossom's crystal ball, Alexander sees Inez alive with her mother, who makes Inez promise to look after her china doll Babette. Waking from the vision, Alexander realizes that the doll Babette must be the "child of glass."

Meanwhile, Alexander's mother fires a disgruntled handyman, Amory Timmons, who burns down the barn as revenge. Alexander witnesses the fire and Amory attempts to murder him. Alexander escapes by running into the burning barn, but falls into the old well. Roused by the barn fire, Alexander's family realize that he is missing, while Amory has escaped. As the police search for Alexander and Amory, Inez's dog leads Blossom to the well house, where she sees the unconscious Alexander on a ledge. Blossom is the only one light enough to be lowered down the well to tie a rope to Alexander. While doing so, she discovers Babette on the same ledge. Both Alexander and the doll are taken safely from the well.

Alexander and Blossom located Inez's family tomb and lay the doll on her grave, freeing her from the curse. However, Amory tracks Alexander and Blossom to the tomb and is on the verge of killing them both when Inez manifests as a terrifying, wailing ghost that scares him into fleeing. Inez thanks Alexander and Blossom for their help before going to her final rest. Before Inez departs forever, the doll rises from the grave and smashes on the floor, revealing that its head is full of diamonds—the long-lost Dumaine treasure that Inez was sworn to protect. Inez has given Alexander the treasure to help his family restore her home.

The short begins with a female moose (with blond curly hair and antlers oddly enough) wading through a lake. Other odd things that make this moose strange is that she sounds her mating call with a horn and her legs are strangely familiar. The legs' owners are Donald and Goofy, disguised in a moose costume. Following them is Mickey, sounding his own moose call while being disguised as a shrub on stilts. Goofy's call is answered by an actual moose, causing him and Donald to excitedly shout "A moose!". Mickey tells them to "do their stuff" so he can shoot the moose with his shotgun. So, the duo go off to track down a moose.

We go back to Mickey, who is searching for a moose. He stands over a bush and sounds his call, which is answered by a large red bull moose who was hiding in the bush. This understandably freaks Mickey out, who drops his shotgun, which fires and breaks, briefly scaring the moose. The antlered beast, now hungry decides to eat Mickey's disguise and takes a bite. The mouse, not wanting to risk being caught, takes a few steps back, but the bull follows and takes another bite, this time taking Mickey's shorts along with a mouthful of leaves. Of course, the mouse takes his shorts back.

Meanwhile, Donald and Goofy have tracked down their quarry, a large black bull moose. Watching the male eat a bush full of leaves in one bite causes an jubilant Donald to add some makeup and lipstick to make the costume more attractive. Goofy adds in some "deer kiss" perfume to the disguise and himself and sprays a trail towards the bull, letting the wind do the rest. The moose, entranced by the scent follows it to the waiting "lady moose". A mere glance is all it takes for the rutting bull to become smitten, especially when "she" does a teasing walk for him.

When the costumed cow moose gives a "yoo-hoo", the bull moose gives a howling response, blowing off the costume. Goofy (who still has the moose head on) quickly comes up with a plan and fan dances until he and Donald can get the costume back on, which makes the lovestruck male even more smitten with the costume. Once again disguised, the pair seductively dance with the aroused bull, succeeding in getting him to follow them; unfortunately, the Donald half falls off a cliff and lands on an angry bee. The insect follows the duck into the costume, making the pair dance to the tune of "La Cucuracha". The moose, angling for a kiss, kisses Goofy on the face, as Donald tries to hit the bee, causing the moose head to fly off of Goofy, luckily landing on him just before they could be caught. They lure the ecstatic moose to Mickey so he can do the rest. However, they don't know their leading the moose right towards another.

Unfortunately for the mouse, his cover has been eaten off and the moose he has been dealing with is not pleased. As the moose prepares to charge at Mickey, he hears a flirty "yoo-hoo", which catches his attention. Turning around, the rutting moose sees an attractive cow moose trotting towards him. Smitten with the "female", the aroused bull trots over to the costumed moose as "she" unknowingly backs up into him. While the horny male licks the costume's face and cozies up to "her"(despite a disguised Goofy trying to smack the antlered beast off of him), Donald tries to move the costume... only to realise he's under the moose trying to woo the "hot blonde". Before the red moose tries any more moves with what appears to be an attractive cow moose under him, the jealous black moose challenges him for the "lady moose's" hand, which he angrily responds to in kind.

The two bulls prepare to fight as Donald and Goofy run up a tree. The moose sharpen their antlers, clash and the earthshaking body slams cause Goofy and Donald, hanging on to the tree for dear life, fall between the two bulls. The antlered beasts forget about the whole costume incident, and Donald and Goofy run for their lives while the angry moose chase them. Mickey soon joins them as they run for their lives, going on a boat and racing away, concluding the cartoon.

Mayo is a professional assassin who is hired by the "Organization" to kill the mother of a young prostitute, Shion. Shion pleads with Mayo, and convinces him to give up on his mission.

As Mayo takes pity on Shion and her mother, who offer him more money, the leaders of the Organization pronounce a death sentence on him.

Steve Peterson's wife, Nina is murdered in front of their young daughter Julie. Three years later, Julie and Peterson's new girlfriend Sharon Martin are kidnapped by the same killer, the psychotic Artie Taggart. Taggart imprisons them in a bunker below Grand Central Station, throwing the police into a race against time to save the girl.

''Sanctuary'' is a story that featured two childhood friends, Akira Hojo and Chiaki Asami, who ruthlessly struggle to set a new paradigm of living in Japan. However, the two friends take radically different paths (playing rock-paper-scissors to decide their roles): Akira chooses the dark path and joins a Yakuza gang, while Chiaki strives to become the youngest member of the Japanese Diet. As survivors of the Cambodian killing fields, the two characters develop an unmatched aggression and survival instincts, helping them to achieve their common ultimate goal: making Japan their own sanctuary.

The story starts with Hojo as a minor mob boss and Asami as a political advisor. The plot first focuses on their rise to positions of greater power. Hojo's rise is decidedly quicker than Asami's, whose struggle to get to the top lasts the entire manga. Hojo is a Yakuza Don by book 2. The story then follows his attempts to gain control over the entire Yakuza while secretly paving the way for them to become a legitimate enterprise. Asami, meanwhile, must try to enter the Diet by forming his own party that represents the younger people of Japan. He is constantly opposed by the current Dietmen, who are aging politicians intent on holding onto power (often considered to be a thinly-veiled reference to the Liberal Democratic Party).

By the end of the series, both Hojo and Asami succeed in their ambitions. Hojo successfully unites all of the major Yakuzas under his banner to extend the longevity of Yakuza (through educational reform) while Asami successfully becomes the youngest nominated politician to become Prime Minister of Japan. At the end of their journey, they return to where it all began: Cambodia. Unfortunately, Asami dies due to illness.

The story follows a young man named , who suddenly rises in the criminal world of Shinjuku, Tokyo, and becomes the leader of a group of amateurs who show no reluctance to face police and gangs alike. His successes in the Tokyo underground cause a chief and a yakuza boss to create a conspiracy to eliminate him.

The film is framed by Ray Santilli and his friend Gary Shoefield retelling the events to a documentary maker named Morgan Banner.

In 1995, Ray and Gary go to the USA to find Elvis memorabilia to sell on the market stall Ray runs in London. A former US Army cameraman, Harvey, sells them a silent black and white film of Elvis performing live, but later returns with an intriguing offer. Harvey takes Ray to Miami, Florida to see a film from 1947, showing the autopsy of an alien supposedly killed in a UFO crash in Roswell, New Mexico. Harvey wants to sell the film for $30,000.

Gary and Ray return to England to look for an investor to give them the money. Ray convinces Laszlo Voros, a Hungarian homosexual art and drug dealer obsessed with crop circles, to give him the $30,000 and retrieves the film from Harvey. Back in England, the pair discover that the film has degraded from humidity and heat and is now completely unwatchable. In order to avoid serious repercussions from Voros, they decide to make their own recreation of it. They base the content on Ray's memories of the original, and, with the help of some friends, fashion a convincing replica of the dead alien using a mannequin and meat products obtained from a friend's butcher's shop, turn the living room of Gary's sister into a film set, and shoot the film on a Bell and Howell spring-wound camera. Ray gives a copy of the final product to Voros, who believes it to be real.

Having convinced Voros, Ray and Gary decide to sell the film to other venues, earning them a large sum of money. However, when Voros hears about its international distribution, he demands 80% of the profits. A potential clash is averted when Voros is killed by a green Land Rover while standing naked in the middle of a crop circle, leading to speculation that he has been killed by a CIA agent.

Ray and Gary travel to Argentina to promote the film, followed by reporter Amber Fuentes, who seduces Ray. She eventually tracks down Harvey, who demands from Ray and Gary that they maintain his anonymity. To fulfil this obligation, they produce an interview with a homeless former actor playing Harvey, which convinces Amber. She remains sceptical, however, about the film's authenticity.

Ray and Gary are now persuaded that some of the original 1947 footage might actually be recovered by film restoration experts in order to be viewed. However, after viewing the results, the pair bury the film, telling each other that they cannot continue with the endeavour.

Greatheart Silver, the thirty-year-old first mate on Acme Zeppelin 8, is the sole survivor of an attack by the Mad Fokker, an air pirate and World War I veteran who was mothballed by the United States government because it could not undo his mental conditioning. Bendt Micawber (the CEO of Acme Corporation and the descendant of Mr. Micawber from ''David Copperfield'') cites his survival as dereliction of duty. Receiving a plastic prosthetic leg as well as his pension as compensation, Greatheart is fired from Acme. During his recovery, Greatheart's fiancee breaks up with him and his Sioux grandmother sends him a birdcage with two ravens inside. He names them Huginn and Muninn after the Norse god Odin's all-seeing ravens.

Using his skills with computers to alter his records and receive a glowing reference from Micawber, Greatheart is soon employed by the Phoenix branch of Acme Security-Southwest. Under the tutelage of Fenwick Phwombly (who describes himself, though is never identified, as the Shadow), Greatheart journeys to the town of Shootout, where many aging villains have gathered for a last great crime. However, they are stopped by a group of aging heroes including Phwombly in an action similar to the gunfight at the OK Corral.

Two years later, Greatheart (named for the character in ''Pilgrim's Progress'') is disguised as an employee of Acme W-W Cleaners and narrowly avoids averting a kidnapping. The victim of the terrorist group turns out to be Micawber's estranged daughter, Jill Micawber, who went under an assumed name so she would not be associated with her ruthless father. Greatheart traces the kidnappers, despite the efforts of Micawber to trail him, to the Fokker D-LXIX Press building, specializers in erotica owned by Acme Zeppelin.

Using a DRECC computer, executive Rade Starling can transform any printed work into a sensually appealing one (e.g. ''Glinda of Oz'' becomes ''The Secret Life of Glinda of Oz, or The Good Witch Goes Bad'') and after knocking Greatheart out reveals his plan, with a microchip embedded in the books' front covers, to overwhelm readers' emotions and make them euphoric and suggestible. With the help of Jill, a previous acquaintance of his from UCLA, Greatheart enables Starling's project to overwhelm him and his associates. Since the project was conducted on Acme-owned property, Greatheart has sufficient blackmail on Micawber to prevent his harassing him again.

With Jill's leverage, Greatheart marries her and (with Micawber's grudging blessing) becomes captain of Acme Zeppelin 49. On a trans-Pacific journey to Minerva with a cargo of iridium and platinum, another group of kidnappers attempts to abduct Jill and encounters a Brittany separatist group on board. When gunshots go off and penetrate the airbag as well as short out the computers on the bridge, the groups must work together to reach land.

Category:1982 American novels Category:Novels by Philip José Farmer Category:1982 science fiction novels

The single-player campaign places the player in the role of a new CloneMaster, visiting the Clones Planet who is to progress on a pilgrimage to visit and learn from 10 Elder CloneMasters. Each defeated Elder gives the player a segment of a medallion which once restored will unlock a final Elder CloneMaster. Each CloneMaster will present the player with 10-20 puzzles with the final puzzle being a head-to-head battle against the Elder in Multiverse Match mode. Players are encouraged to learn as much as possible from the Elders before engaging in online play, which can be very challenging.

Rachel Schpitendavel, an innocent Amish girl from rural Pennsylvania, arrives in New York's Lower East Side hoping to make it as a dancer. Rachel's dances are based on Bible stories. She auditions at Minsky's Burlesque, but her dances are much too dull and chaste for the bawdy show. But Billy Minsky and the show's jaded straight man, Raymond Paine, concoct a plan to use Rachel to foil moral crusader Vance Fowler, who is intent on shutting down the theater. Minsky publicizes Rachel as the notorious Madamoiselle Fifi, performing the "dance that drove a million Frenchmen wild", hoping it will prompt a raid by Fowler and the police. Instead, Billy would let Rachel perform her innocuous Bible dances, thus humiliating Fowler.

During the run-up to her midnight performance, Raymond and his partner, Chick, show Rachel the ropes of burlesque, and they both fall for her in the process. Meanwhile, Rachel's stern father, who even objects to her Bible dances, arrives in search of his daughter. The film climaxes when Rachel takes the stage after her father has called her a whore and she realizes that Raymond and the Minskys are just using her. Her father tries to drag her offstage, but she resists, tearing a slit in her dress. The sold-out crowd spurs her on, and Rachel begins to enjoy her power over the audience and starts to strip. She looks into the wings and sees Raymond, who senses a raid and perhaps the end of an era, leaving the theater for good. Rachel calls and throws out her arms to him, inadvertently dropping the front of her dress and baring her breasts. Fowler blows his whistle and the police rush the stage and close down the show. A madcap melee follows. In the end, most of the cast members are loaded into a paddy wagon, including Rachel's bewildered father.

Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) realizes that Michael Scott (Steve Carell) mistakenly assumed he was making his feelings for Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer) known to everyone. He tells Michael that he meant this to be a secret between the two of them. Michael concludes from this that he and Jim are friends, which leads to an awkward lunch at Hooters paid for with a corporate credit card. Michael ultimately reveals Jim's secret to everyone, forcing Jim to confess his crush to Pam himself, although he tells her that he got over it three years ago. However, Michael later tells her that he learned of the crush during the recent "booze cruise", leading her to suspect Jim is still infatuated.

Meanwhile, Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson) "investigates" Oscar Martinez's (Oscar Nunez) claimed sick day from work, learning that the co-worker is actually taking time off to ice-skate. Dwight blackmails Oscar, saying he owes him a favor in return for not revealing his unauthorized leave-taking. He then watches a movie with Oscar and Oscar's "roommate" Gil (Tom W. Chick).

Brian Keenan, a humourless bearded Irish academic, has moved to Beirut in the mid 1980s and works as an English teacher. As he leaves for work one day, four armed men in a car kidnap him and he is incarcerated. Keenan wakes up, almost naked, alone in an iron-clad room. Initially he refuses to eat until he is told why he is being held prisoner. He is kept on his own but eventually he is moved into a cell in a deserted house, where he is joined by another hostage, the English journalist John McCarthy, who had been reporting on Keenan’s kidnapping not long before he himself was abducted. The grumpy Brit-hating Irishman and the more pliable British journalist are forced to share their small prison cell.

Keenan refuses to be shaved or wear clean clothes until he gets answers from his captors. He protests about having his beard shaved off. A grumpy idealist, Keenan sees his treatment by his Muslim jailers as equaling the British historic treatment of Ireland. McCarthy is neutral and pragmatic. The two men are periodically moved around to new hiding places. The pair slowly begin to bond as they make a temporary life together, playing chess, catching mosquitoes, trapping a mouse, telling stories and imagining they are somewhere else. They become very close friends and when one man is in trouble or close to the breaking point, the other invariably helps him.

Their guards treat them with a mixture of detachment, kindness and cruelty. After another move, to a small, white-tiled cell, McCarthy is traumatized after being shown a video of his mother pleading for his return. He finds strength in Keenan's own brand of self-control.

The two men are smuggled to a house in the countryside. Keenan attacks a young guard who is trying to humiliate him by making him open and close a window repeatedly. He is beaten. McCarthy intercedes with the leader of the captors saying this should not have been allowed to happen. He too is beaten. Eventually in 1990 after more than four years of imprisonment, Keenan is released. He is reluctant to accept his freedom if it means leaving McCarthy behind. Back in Ireland a year later, Keenan receives a call in a pub: McCarthy is to be released. He is waiting at the airport for McCarthy to arrive home.

En route to Penthara IV to assist its population in combating the effects of reduced temperatures created by a dust cloud from a recent asteroid impact, the ''Enterprise'' encounters a nearby temporal distortion, and finds a small pod containing a single human occupant. Aboard the ship, the human introduces himself as Professor Berlinghoff Rasmussen (Matt Frewer), a researcher from the 26th century to witness the ''Enterprise'' complete this "historic" mission at Penthara IV. He requests interviews with the crew to obtain the full story, but reveals little about himself as he does not wish to alter history. Rasmussen's interviews are somewhat annoying to the crew but they entertain him.

At Penthara IV, the ''Enterprise'' uses its phasers to drill into the planet to release carbon dioxide, increasing the greenhouse effect to warm the planet, but this creates a side effect of increasing the seismic activity and causing volcanoes to erupt, threatening to send the planet into an ice age. Chief Engineer Geordi La Forge and Lt. Commander Data offer a solution of ionizing the upper atmosphere, but the maneuver must be done precisely or they could risk destroying the entire atmosphere and killing all 20 million on the surface. With the severity of the decision, Captain Jean-Luc Picard attempts to gain Rasmussen's help, claiming this is a scenario where the temporal prime-directive can be overridden, but Rasmussen refuses to offer advice, noting by his era, the fate of all those on Penthara IV has already been decided. Picard decides to allow La Forge and Data to go through with the plan, which is successful and returns the planet to its normal climate.

Rasmussen prepares to leave with his research done, but is met by a security team at his pod. Picard informs him several items have gone missing and requests to see the inside of his pod. Rasmussen reminds him again of the temporal prime directive, but Data offers that he can go in to look for their missing equipment without revealing anything about the future to the crew. Rasmussen agrees. Inside, Data finds the missing items but discovers Rasmussen has him at phaser-point. Rasmussen explains he is really a disgruntled inventor from 22nd century New Jersey that stole this pod from a 26th-century traveler, and intended to return to his time and profit by selling the ''Enterprise'' equipment as his inventions, and now that he has Data, he plans to take him back as well. However, Rasmussen finds his phaser does not work, as once he opened the pod, the ship's sensors were able to disable it. Data forces an anxious Rasmussen outside along with the stolen equipment, and Rasmussen tries to apologize and asks to be allowed to depart. Picard instead has Rasmussen placed under arrest, and the pod automatically disappears to leave him stranded in the 24th century.

Socially inept garbage-man Simon Grim is befriended by Henry Fool, a witty rogue and untalented novelist just released from seven years in jail for attempting sex with an underage girl. Henry opens the world of literature to Simon, and inspires him to write "the great American poem." Simon struggles to get his work recognized, and it is often dismissed as pornographic and scatological, but Henry continues to push and inspire Simon to get the poem published.

Henry carries around a bundle of notebooks that he refers to as his "Confession," a work that details aspects of his mysterious past that he one day hopes to publish, when he and the world is ready for them. Henry's hedonistic antics cause all manner of turns in the lives of Simon's family, not least of which is impregnating Fay, Simon's sister.

As Simon begins an ascent to the dizzying heights of Nobel Prize-winning poet, Henry sinks to a life of drinking in low-life bars as his own attempts at fame result in rejection, even by Simon's publisher in whose firm Henry once worked as the janitor. The friends part ways until Henry, trying to save an underage girl abused by her stepfather, kills the man and, helped by Simon, tries to flee the country.

Seven years after the events of ''Henry Fool,'' Fay Grim (Parker Posey) is coerced by a CIA agent (Jeff Goldblum) to try to locate 'the confession novel' notebooks that belonged to her fugitive husband (Thomas Jay Ryan) whom he believes to be deceased. Fay is launched into a world of espionage as she travels to Paris to retrieve some of the journals, each having mysteriously appeared in the hands of the most unlikely of people. Simon Grim, Fay's brother and Nobel Prize–winning poet because of Henry, remains home with his sister's son, the CIA and his publisher.

Even in death it seems Henry is a force of nature causing life changing ructions in the lives of those he has touched. Fay is surrounded by competing agents all vying for her help in retrieving notebooks as she and Simon start getting clues to what the unpublishable nonsense of The Confession is really all about and why the CIA believe they contain information that could compromise U.S. security. A former air-hostess befriends Fay and reveals she was similarly touched by Henry's chaotic influence and aid her in her efforts.

Fay's whirlwind culminates in a tense meeting with a notorious terrorist and friend of Henry where she has to make the biggest decision of her life.

In the buildup to World War II, Ono, a promising artist, breaks away from the teaching of his master, whose artistic aim was to reach an aesthetic ideal in representations of the 'floating world' of night-time entertainments. Ono becomes involved in far-right politics, and begins making propagandistic art. Later, as a member of the Cultural Committee of the Interior Department and official adviser to the Committee of Unpatriotic Activities, Ono becomes a police informer, taking an active part in an ideological witch hunt against a former student, Kuroda. After the 1945 defeat and the collapse of Imperial Japan, Ono becomes a discredited figure, one of the "traitors" who "led the country astray"; meanwhile, the victims of state repression, including people Ono himself had once denounced, are reinstated and allowed to lead a normal life. Over the course of the novel Ono seems to show a growing acknowledgement of his past "errors", although this acknowledgement is never explicitly stated, and his narration is marked by declarations of uncertainty in his memory of past events and a high degree of unreliability.

The book is written in the first person and hinges on the exclusive use of a single, unreliable narrator, expressing a viewpoint which the reader identifies as limited and fallible, without any other voice or point of view acting as a test. Ono often makes it clear that he is not sure of the accuracy of his narrative, but this may either make the reader cautious or, on the contrary, suggest that Ono is very honest and, therefore, trustworthy.

The self-image Ono expresses in his narrative is vastly different from the image of him the reader builds from reading the same narrative. Ono often quotes others as expressing admiration and indebtedness to him. Ono's narrative is characterised by denial, so that his interests and his hierarchy of values are at odds with the reader's. Readers, therefore, find that what they are interested in is not the focus of Ono's narrative but at its fringes, presented in an oblique rather than direct fashion. For example, Ono's descriptions of his pictures focus on pictorial technique, mentioning the subjects as if they were unimportant, although they reveal the propagandistic nature of his work. It is not entirely clear whether this focus on style rather than substance should be ascribed to Ono as narrator (showing his retrospective, unconscious embarrassment), or if it was already present in him at the time he was making the pictures (showing that totalitarianism exploits people's capacity to restrain their awareness to limited aspects of their actions). Similarly, when Ono narrates an episode in which he was confronted with the results of his activities as a police informer, it is debatable whether his attempt to mitigate the brutality of the police is a retrospective fabrication devised to avoid his own responsibility, or whether he actually did disapprove of the treatment of the person he had denounced, distancing himself from his actions and refusing to recognise the abusive treatment as a direct and foreseeable consequence of those actions.

This film is about Zach Baker (Hunt) and his quest to go back through his past experiences with women so he will have the perfect date with his lifelong friend, Abbey (Graham). Abbey would be the thirteenth woman he has gone out with and he hopes she will be "Lucky 13". The story revolves around Zach asking each woman what he did wrong in their relationship, so as to not make the same mistakes with Abbey. A recurring gag involves Zach throwing objects, representing his past affairs, into a lake. During the course of the film, Zach makes changes to his appearance and demeanor, trying to emulate the advice he gets from his past girlfriends—most of which is contradictory. After much soul-searching, Zach decides to ask Abbey to marry him—a proposal that she turns down in order to move to New York City and pursue her dream of being an artist. Zach eventually comes to realize that his life in the Mid-West is not so bad and he gains a new appreciation for his family and friends.

The series is a parody of Japanese anime, featuring a young American actor named Mikey whose appearance is styled after Western cartoons, and travels to Japan to star in a tokusatsu show called ''LillyMu'', where his anime-styled co-stars represent common anime clichés.

Each episode follows a specific formula. A typical episode starts with the cast filming a ''LilyMu'' segment, but the take is ruined, sometimes revealing the conflict that the characters deal with through the rest of the episode, with a minor subplot running beneath the main plot. After the problem is resolved, the ''LilyMu'' segment will be shot again and successfully completed the second time, often rewritten to incorporate whatever lesson was learned during the main story.

Deep into season 2, ''Kappa Mikey'' has stopped showing a ''LilyMu'' sequence at the end of an episode whenever it would make the episode too long, when the characters are in their ''LilyMu'' uniforms enough as it is, or when they successfully film a sequence without any mistakes before the ending.

"The plot of Shuriken: the Movie follows lead protagonists Eizan, Jimmy and Okuni during the summer holidays. The three friends soon engage an interesting albeit dangerous struggle for reputation, family, and a whole lot more when Eizan's dad is kidnapped by professional ninjas. Upon setting out to find and rescue Eizan's father, the kids must employ the skills and techniques they studied so fervently during their first year of ninja training. Things are difficult however, when they learn that the Jade Shuriken, an ancient symbol of extreme ninja power, threatens Eizan's dreams and potential to become a true ninja. A series of events unravel as Eizan strives to clear his name, realize his dreams and secure his place at Shuriken School."

Set in the year 1873, professional gambler Stubby Preston arrives in the Wild West town of Salt Flats, Utah with plans to work the local casino but is arrested by the sheriff the moment he steps off the stagecoach. What Stubby doesn't know is that a group of locals have planned a vigilante attack on the casino that night, which the sheriff plans to turn a blind eye to. The only criminals to survive are those who were in the jail when it happened: Stubby, a pregnant prostitute named Bunny, a disturbed but gentle black man named Bud, and an alcoholic named Clem.

In the morning the sheriff sees the four safely out of the town and gives them a wagon and horses in exchange for Stubby's $1000 stake. The four set out together, and Stubby suggests they head for Sun City, 200 miles South. Along the way, they meet up with a group of Quaker immigrants, whose patriarch mistakes the pregnant Bunny as Stubby's wife. Stubby and Bunny play along, then continue the ruse during the rest of their journey. The Quakers go their own way, and shortly after, the four witness a violent bandit raid on some unfortunate settlers.

Bunny's birthday happens, and the four stop by a river. Bud catches a fish, a cake is fashioned from the sand, and Stubby offers up some canteened water as a toast. The toast is interrupted by gunshots, and the spit cooking the fish is neatly destroyed. Demonstrating his accuracy with a gun, a wanderer named Chaco invites himself to their group. Stubby is immediately suspicious, but for a while things go well. Three gunmen approach and Chaco saves the group from them, but the gunmen turn out to be lawmen and Chaco tortures the surviving deputy. Despite this, the group accepts the peyote buttons Chaco gives them one night by the campfire. Stubby chews some, but spits out most, retaining his senses when Chaco uses the promise of whiskey to persuade Clem to tie them up...starting with Stubby. Stubby resists But is thwarted by Chaco, who binds Stubby and Bud together, and Bunny to a tree. Chaco rapes Bunny, taunts Stubby, then tells Clem to “be quick about it” if he wants to rape Bunny also and go with Chaco. Clem realizes what he did and tries to stop Chaco, who shoots Clem in the leg and leaves them all for dead. Clem manages to free Stubby, who frees the others, then Bud builds a stretcher for Clem, and the four set out again.

Chaco and his cohorts pick up and follow their trail. Chaco is about to discover them when his friends call out that they spotted a caravan of ‘bible-folk’ they can get supplies from, and the bandits set of after them. Stubby and the others later come across the remains of the caravan and the immigrants they met earlier. Chaco killed them all, and Stubby vows a second time to kill Chaco.

Caught in a rainstorm, the four take shelter in a ghost town where they remove the bullet from Clem's leg. Clem later dies from infection. This sends the already fragile minded Bud into a mad and confused state. Stubby and Bunny admit love to each other and have sex. Later Bud returns with meat he managed to find which they all cook and eat. Bud shows the extent of his madness by insisting that the residents of the ghost town have been coming out to meet him every night. When Stubby discovers the meat came from the corpse of Clem, Stubby and Bunny decide to leave Bud to his friends the ghosts as there is nothing they can do for him.

On the road, the two run into an old pastor friend of Stubby's shortly before Bunny goes into pained labor. Rushing to a snowy, mountaintop mining town populated entirely by men, the local chauvinistic townsmen are disturbed that a woman is giving birth in their home, but as they discuss it become fascinated and excited that their town would give new life instead of just taking it. Bunny dies in childbirth which leaves Stubby in shock. The townsmen, now enraptured with the child, gather round and take care him and insist that the pastor perform a baptism. Needing a name, the most enthusiastic townsman names the child Lucky. This awakens Stubby from his shock and he gratefully grants guardianship of Lucky to the townsmen.

Now alone, Stubby heads out and to seek revenge on Chaco. He spots the wagon the sheriff of Salt Flats had ‘sold’ him, and finds his shaving gear still in it. Chaco and his two friends are holding up in a barn. Stubby quickly kills two of the bandits and taunts and tortures a wounded Chaco, who taunts back by holding up the dead evangelist's cross and reminding him of Bunny's rape. Stubby shoots Chaco dead without another word, and heads off into the horizon after welcoming a stray dog to join him.

One year after the events of the second film, Maria is heading to camp. Suddenly, she is chased into an alleyway and run over by a garbage truck, driven by Angela, who throws Maria's body into the back and compacts it. Angela poses as Maria in order to board the bus to Camp New Horizons.

After arriving, news reporter Tawny Richards asks Angela to get her some cocaine. Angela gives her Ajax cleaner instead, which kills Tawny when she snorts it. After the campers have settled in, camp counselors Herman and Lily Miranda and Officer Barney Whitmore split the campers into three groups. Angela is placed in a group with Herman, Snowboy, Peter and Jan.

While camping, Angela, leaving Snowboy and Peter to fish, finds Herman and Jan having sex and kills them both with a stick. That night, Angela sets off a firecracker in Peter's nose and burns Snowboy alive, along with the other bodies.

The next morning, Angela travels to Lily's campsite, where Bobby, Cindy, Riff and Arab are camping. Angela switches places with Arab and decapitates her with an axe. Lily sets the campers out on a trust building exercise where Angela attaches Cindy to a flag pole and drops her from a high height, killing her. After killing Cindy and grabbing the trash bag Lily wanted her to take out, she has a flashback of the cafeteria scene from the second film, after luring her outside of the kitchen, Angela buries Lily in a trash hole and runs over her head with a lawnmower. Angela then rips Bobby's arms off before stabbing Riff with tent spikes.

The following morning, Angela travels to the remaining camp, where Barney, Tony, Marcia, Anita and Greg are camping. Angela tells Barney she is supposed to switch with Marcia. Barney accompanies them and Angela fakes a leg injury. As Barney tends to Angela, Marcia discovers Lily's body, after Angela tells her that Lily is just doing nothing outside and for Marcia to see. Barney yells for Marcia to run. After a tense stand-off Angela shoots Barney dead. Angela catches up with Marcia and captures her.

That night, Angela ties the remaining campers together. She shows them the body of Barney and forces them to find Marcia in one of the cabins. Upon finding Marcia, Greg and Anita are killed by booby traps. Angela decides to let Marcia and Tony live but as she tries to leave Angela is stabbed numerous times by Marcia.

Marcia and Tony summon the police to the camp. Angela is taken to the hospital in an ambulance and she stabs a paramedic and a policeman with a syringe. When the ambulance driver asks what is going on, Angela replies "Just taking care of business" and the film ends.

The book opens with the main character Omar going to visit a doctor, who was one of his friends from his youth, because he has become sick of life. The doctor tells him that there is nothing physically wrong with him, and tells him that he won’t be ill if he goes on a diet and takes regular exercise. Both the diet and a vacation make no difference to him though.

In his youth Omar was a poet and a socialist. He gave up both in order to become a lawyer, and now that he has reached the age of forty-five he can no longer find meaning in his life and he has effectively given up working. He met his wife Zeinab in his youth. She was a Christian called Kamelia Fouad and she converted to Islam, and lost her family in order to marry him. He promised that he would never desert her. She took up the role of supporting him and has proved to be the backbone of their bourgeois life together. As his malady grows he becomes more distant from her.

He tries to escape his condition through love. He first meets a foreign singer called Margaret. When she unexpectedly leaves Egypt, he gets together with an oriental dancer called Warda. He falls in love with her, and she with him and they set up home together. Initially Omar’s illness seems to pass in the excitement of love. Zeinab, who is pregnant, is first suspicious and then is told of his new lover. Omar moves out to be with Warda, who quits her job to be with him. This love however fails to lift him out of his illness for long, and he makes contact with Margaret again when he sees her back at her club. He then goes through a succession of women, including prostitutes, trying to pull himself out of his sickness, but it is all to no avail.

One dawn he is out near the pyramids and he feels a momentary joy, which connects him to all life. He feels light and at peace, but he soon feels the illness again. Although he tries to win this feeling again he is never able to.

He returns home but feels suffocated there. One day Othman Khalil turns up in his office. Othman had been his socialist comrade in his youth who had been caught by the police, but hadn’t given out his connections with Omar, despite having been tortured. He has only just been released from prison. Othman is disconcerted to find Omar as a sceptic, as he has hung onto all of his socialist orthodoxies.

As writing poetry has also failed to cure him, in an attempt to regain the peace he felt by the pyramids, Omar goes off to live by himself in the countryside. He slips into delirium but still the calm he desires escapes him. After a year and a half Othman, who has got involved in politics again, turns up at the house escaping from the police, but Omar thinks he is an illusion. Omar is shot and wounded as the police catch Othman. Omar feels he is returning to the world as he is brought back to Cairo.

Category:1965 novels Category:Novels by Naguib Mahfouz Category:Novels set in Cairo Category:Egyptian novellas

In 1943 in Burma, a unit of American and British forces under the Office of Strategic Services joins with the native Kachin to hold back a Japanese offensive. The unit, under the joint command of U.S. Army Captain Tom C. Reynolds and British Army Captain Danny De Mortimer, with guidance from Kachin leader Nautaung, remains frustrated by their grueling duty, limited supplies and lack of medical care.

After an ambush mission during which the unit wipes out a Japanese squad, Tom's aide, Bye Ya, is severely wounded. Knowing that because they have no morphine Bye Ya will die a lingering, painful death, Tom shoots him and then angrily contacts Allied headquarters in Calcutta and demands to meet with his commanding officer. That evening at dinner, the men run into the OSS regional commanding officer Colonel Fred Parkson, who introduces them to wealthy merchant Nikko Regas and his girlfriend, Carla Vesari. Tom is immediately attracted to Carla and asks her to dance, but she mocks his provincial American background. As he departs, Nikko invites the men to his country place at the base of the Himalayan Mountains. The next day at the headquarters, Tom demands a doctor for the unit but Parkson informs him that medical officers are in short supply and it will be their responsibility to secure a doctor. After Parkson then unexpectedly orders the men to take two weeks leave, Tom refuses unless the Kachin are also officially provided leave. When Parkson agrees, Tom asks to have Ringa reassigned as his new aide, as he likes the corporal's ingenuity and fearlessness.

Tom, Danny and Ringa drive to Cowaga and upon arriving at their hotel receive a note from Nikko, inviting them to a party. At the party, Tom seeks out Carla and despite her cool attitude, asks to see her the next day. The following morning after horseback riding, Tom and Carla are joined by Danny for a tour of the Himalayan villages. During the tour, Danny falls ill and, upon returning to Nikko's house, is misdiagnosed as having typhus by military doctor Captain Grey Travis. Danny insists that he is having a recurrence of malaria and after several tests, Travis reluctantly agrees. Nikko offers to put the men up until Danny recovers and, eager to be near Carla, Tom accepts. Noting Carla's attraction to Tom, Nikko cautions her of the unreliability of Americans.

After Nikko departs for China, Carla spends more time with Tom, but continues to refuse his romantic overtures. Upon Danny's recovery, Tom informs Travis that he has had the doctor assigned to their unit as medical officer. Tom then surprises Carla by insisting that she leave Nikko because Tom intends to marry her. Tom and the others return to the Kachin hills in time to spend Christmas with the troops, but their celebration is interrupted when the Japanese unexpectedly attack and wound Tom. Ringa learns from a captured Japanese soldier that the strike was planned with inside information. Nautaung is dismayed when he discovers that one of his men, Billingsley, and a native Shan girl have betrayed them. When Nautaung orders the girl to be shot and Billingsley to be "put into the Circle" and ritually executed in accordance with Kachin custom, Travis protests vigorously, but Tom insists that the dangers of jungle warfare demand harsh measures.

Travis then sends Tom and the other soldiers wounded in the attack to the air base hospital in Calcutta to recover. There, Parkson gives Tom new orders to destroy an airfield in Ubachi, near the Chinese border. When Tom objects that his small unit lacks the supplies to make a successful attack, Parkson assures him they will receive supplies from their Chinese allies. Later, Carla visits Tom and invites him to stay with her when he has recovered. The day before returning to the hills, Tom goes to see Carla, but is disappointed to find her in a luxurious hotel, which she admits is at Nikko's expense. Tom criticizes Carla's inability to put aside her desire for luxury and departs hurt and angered.

Tom rejoins his unit and they proceed on their mission. When the supply convoy fails to arrive at the designated time, Tom decides they must go ahead with the attack anyway. Although the mission is successful, Nautaung and several Americans are killed. While making their way back, the unit comes across the destroyed convoy and finds evidence that indicates that renegade Chinese from across the border were responsible. Tom decides to pursue the renegades, despite Danny's protest. The men find the Chinese camp at nightfall and locating their supply tent, come upon several dozen American dog tags and personal effects. Shocked and outraged, Tom realizes the renegades have been killing American soldiers. Danny translates one of several Chinese warrants from the Chungking government authorizing independent military forces to defend China in and outside their borders against all foreign intruders, and stating that all confiscated materials will be split with Chungking.

Tom rouses the Chinese in the camp and holds them under guard, but when he radios headquarters to report, he receives a message ordering his immediate return as the Chinese have lodged a complaint about his unit's incursion. While Tom consults with Danny about the prisoners, a Chinese soldier surprises them and kills Danny. Tom sends a message back to headquarters rebuffing their demand and orders Ringa to execute the prisoners.

Upon returning to Burma, Tom promotes Ringa to Second Lieutenant and places him in operational command of the unit, then proceeds to Calcutta where he is placed under house arrest on a charge of murder. Carla visits Tom and confesses that she could not tell him earlier that Nikko is with intelligence and she is his assistant. Carla advises Tom to say that battle fatigue caused his defiant incursion into China, but he refuses. Later, Parkson and an officer from Washington, Gen. Sloan, visit Tom, who shows them one of the Chinese warrants. Sloan advises Tom not to mention the warrants and demands that he apologize to the representative of the Chinese government. Tom refuses and offers Sloan the American dog tags found at the renegade camp as his answer to anything Sloan and his people might say. A team of military psychiatrists are then brought in to examine Tom for a possible mental discharge, but Tom refuses to cooperate and admit to anything.

The Chinese representative then arrives, and Sloan unexpectedly sides with Tom, demanding that the warlord who has killed American servicemen be reported and an apology issued from China to the U.S. Stung, the representative departs and Sloan reveals that the Chungking government had already sent an apology with a promise to investigate the murders. Exonerated, Tom is freed and reunites with Carla before returning to his Kachins.

The film diverges from the novel here, in that Reynolds dies in the book but survives in the film and will presumably go on to marry Carla at some point after the war.

Rachel Marsh, aged 14, is an indentured servant to John Adams and his wife Abigail Adams. Her father and mother have died, leaving Uncle Eb as her only living relative. However, Eb is greedy, uncaring, and often exploits Rachel. After a falling out over Eb wanting Rachel to spy on the Adamses, Eb disowns her. Rachel confides this to Abigail Adams, who comforts her and gives her money to go buy books at Henry Knox's bookstore. Rachel is inspired by Knox and begins working to better her education.

Later, a British ship arrives. Many Bostonians are unhappy with this new change and begin rioting. Nevertheless, the British post sentries outside many residences, including the Adams'. While coming back from the bakery, the sentry outside the Adams house, Private Matthew Kilroy, challenges Rachel. She notices that he is fearful and hungry looking. Taking pity on him, she gives the freezing sentry a few scraps of food.

As their friendship develops, Matthew begins pushing Rachel for more and wants her to kiss him. However, Rachel does not want to do so, and would rather remain friends. Their relationship is very tumultuous.

Rachel's close friend, Jane, suddenly drags Rachel out of bed one night. Rachel follows Jane to find a mob of citizens fighting against the British soldiers. She sees Matthew shoot and stab a defenseless man. This event would be known as the Boston Massacre. Later, Matthew is accused of murder.

Rachel sneaks food to Matthew, feeling pity for him.

John Adams defends the British soldiers, but two of them, including Matthew, are accused of manslaughter. Matthew is branded and shipped back to England. Matthew proposes matrimony to Rachel but she refuses him. Mr. Adams feels that it would be best to let go of Rachel when they move back to Braintree. He gets Rachel a position in Philadelphia which he thinks would suit her. She is about to begin a new chapter in her life.

Category:1993 American novels Category:Historical novels Category:Novels by Ann Rinaldi Category:Fiction set in 1770 Category:Novels set in the 1770s Category:Novels set in Boston Category:Boston Massacre

: ''(as revised, 1910)'' Graham, an Englishman living in London in 1897, takes drugs to cure insomnia and falls into a coma. He wakes up in 2100. He later learns that he has inherited huge wealth and that his money has been put into a trust. Over the years, the trustees, the "White Council", have used his wealth to establish a vast political and economic world order.

When Graham wakes, he is disoriented. The people around him had not expected him to wake up, and are alarmed. Word spreads that the "Sleeper" has awakened. A mob gathers around the building and demands to see the fabled Sleeper. The people around Graham will not answer his questions. They place Graham under house arrest. Graham learns that he is the legal owner and master of most of the world.

Rebels led by Ostrog help Graham to escape. They say that the people need Graham's leadership to rise against the White Council. Unconvinced, but unwilling to remain a prisoner, Graham goes with them. Graham arrives at a massive hall where the workers have gathered to prepare for the revolution. They march against the White Council but are soon attacked by the state police. In the confusion, Graham is separated from the revolutionaries. He meets an old man who tells him the story of the Sleeper - the White Council invested his wealth to buy the industries and political entities of half the world, establishing a plutocracy and sweeping away parliament and the monarchy. The Sleeper is just a figurehead. The old man thinks that the Sleeper is a made-up figure used to brainwash the population.

Graham meets Ostrog, who says that the rebels have won and that the people are demanding that the Sleeper should rule. Ostrog retains power while Graham becomes his puppet ruler. Graham gets interested in aeroplanes and learns how to fly. He sees from the air that no-one lives in the country or small towns any more, all agriculture being run like industry; and that there are now only four huge cities in Britain, all powered by huge wind-mills. His carefree life ends when Helen Wotton tells him that, for the lower class, the revolution has changed nothing. Graham questions Ostrog who admits that the lower classes are still dominated and exploited, but he defends the system. It emerges that Ostrog only wanted to take power for himself and has used the revolution and Graham to do so.

Ostrog admits that in other cities the workers have continued to rebel even after the fall of the White Council. Ostrog has used a black African police force to get the workers back in line. Graham is furious and demands that Ostrog keep his police out of London. Ostrog agrees. Graham decides to examine this new society for himself.

Graham visits London in disguise to see how the workers live. Their lives are ghastly. Unskilled workers toil in factories, paid in food for each day's work, with no job security. They speak a dialect so strong that Graham cannot understand them. Industrial diseases are rife. Workers wear uniforms of different colour according to their trade. The family unit no longer exists and children are cared for in huge institutions. Lives are dominated by "babble machines" which spread news and "pleasure cities" where unspecified joys are available. "Euthanasy" is considered normal.

Graham learns that Ostrog has ordered his troops to London. Graham confronts Ostrog, who tries to arrest Graham. The workers rise up again and help Graham to escape. He meets Helen and learns that it was she who told the public about Ostrog's treachery. Graham leads the liberation of London.

Ostrog escapes and joins his troops who are flying to London. His men still hold a few airports. The workers find anti-aircraft guns, but they need time to set them up. The revolutionaries have only one aircraft; Graham gives away all of his wealth to the rebels and proceeds to fly the one aircraft against the invaders, bringing some of them down. The revolutionaries get the anti-aircraft guns working and start to shoot down the invaders. Graham attacks Ostrog's aeroplane but fails. Graham's aeroplane crashes.

Jan Levinson (Melora Hardin) leads the female Dunder Mifflin employees in a "women in the workplace" seminar. Miffed at being excluded, Michael Scott (Steve Carell) conducts a competing “men in the workplace” seminar in the warehouse. Roy Anderson (David Denman) approaches Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) under the belief that Jim used to like Pam, assuring Jim that he is not mad since Jim apparently liked Pam a long time ago. Darryl Philbin (Craig Robinson) and his equally irritated crew are forced to participate in Michael's shenanigans, which culminates in Michael trying to drive a forklift, and knocking down several shelves.

Michael's recklessness makes a complete mess of the warehouse while jeopardizing the employees' safety. Michael's plan to hold his own seminar backfires when the 'gripe session' inspires the warehouse workers to form a union. A vacillating Michael informs Jan, who threatens to retaliate by closing the Scranton branch.

Jan urges Pam to take a corporate training program in graphic design in New York City when Pam reveals that she wants to be a graphic designer, but Roy quashes the idea. Jim rebukes Pam for listening to Roy when he is clearly wrong and acting selfish, which creates tension between them. Pam then tells the camera she is happy with her life now, and that they do not even make her dream house in Scranton, but then breaks down and cries in front of the camera. As the day comes to a close, Michael leaves the warehouse in complete disarray, and Darryl promises that “this isn’t over.”