Iz様 🌟

I may be a little buoyed by how soundly he ended up winning anyway but El-Sayed's victory could be one of the most important. He's a candidate who is honestly a generational talent at speaking and making his arguments on the campaign trail, very well adapted for a social media age and incredibly willing to fight for progressive causes. He also faced huge levels of ratfucking that might have sunk a lesser candidate - Mamdani's vote total was also not the most impressive, but his impact on politics in the last year - huge! Running a tad behind the other candidates feels more like an indictment of how much establishment forces are willing to deploy irrelevant questions and stumbling blocks into the campaigns of these kinds of candidates and as you say Harve, it's not by all that much in the grand scheme of things! Something that will be a consideration for running a progressive candidate for President, but if the Trump administration continues to be this unpopular, a good progressive candidate as President has the opportunity to both get in office comfortable, and once there completely overhaul American politics. Which a more standard moderate may not do.

Yes, I think so - El-Sayed and Talarico's campaigns were massively styled on his. He kind of turned the Democratic Party into one that had a bit of clarity and purpose behind it after that bruising loss in 2024. Also the emphasis on running charismatic candidates that people want to vote for, the Republican senator who's taken Misssissippi to a knife's edge is one of the most ludicrously uncharismatic politicians I've seen in my life. Kind of the American Liz Truss in a way. kind of a shame after all this that we have Schumer and Jefferies as presumptive Majority Leaders, but maybe Schumer will use this as a good opportunity to retire, he's surely gonna get primaried in 2028. Vance and Rubio are done for 2028, I think anyone close to the administration will be, either they're too hapless to disassociate from it (Vance) or too smart to run into a bad environment (Rubio). Meanwhile Dems stocks for Ossoff or AOC very high at this, still, I have to stress, ludicrously early stage.

Just woke up and everything confirmed, Iowa, Kansas, SC, Texas, omfg. Michigan pretty certain too, AES has declared victory on the ground and there's still a chance for MISSISSIPPI? what a night for Democrats, a complete repudiation of Trump

florida gone to the Reps again booo, but it's a lot closer signs across the rest of the US look incredible for Democrats, Ossoff got his race called in 10 minutes, Cooper not far behind him, as I write this SC is looking plausible for the Dems. Too early to tell in Michigan and Texas but hopeful

early results in Indiana and Kentucky showing possible ~15-20 point swings towards the Democrats yes I'm reading into early voting results in one particular part of the country but what we are seeing looks hopeful so far

MARINA - How to Be a Heartbreaker Kate Bush - Babooshka Fontaines D.C. - Starburster Sophie Ellis-Bextor - Get Over You Bananarama - Cruel Summer Texas - Halo Darin - Electric Depeche Mode - People Are People Gary Numan - Intruder Sam Smith - Like I Can Adele - Oh My God New Order - Ceremony Sam Fender - Getting Started Zara Larsson - All the Time Tom Grennan - Royal Highness

^Agreed on candidate quality in Ohio (and also Texas, Alaska and Kansas especially) and also while it's tempting, I'm trying not to look too much towards the presidential race yet as that's 2 years away with no serious candidates announced yet, and the results of this election, as well as the actions of the Republican and Democratic parties, will affect it. If it's a rejection of MAGAism, then the Republican party will try a different tack of some sort as the presidential race draws near, and that will have an effect on the sorts of voter coalition they get next time, not to mention completely new candidates on both sides - getting stuck in effectively the same voting makeup for a decade is quite unprecedented and these results are probably breaking with that, which will add context for next time. The fact that both American parties formed prior to the coalescing of ideology means that they're not as wedded to their current ideologies as most European parties are, for all European soc-dems have trended towards the centre over the past century they're likely never going to go swap with the conservative party and go further right, but that's just what the Republican party did between 1920-1960. Things could switch in unpredictable ways once Trump isn't on the ballot. dawn of the final day - 5 hours remain (am I crazy enough to stay up? probably not, but also...)

Eve of election predictions. Senate I have 52 in my mind, I'd love a reach for Iowa, Kansas and SC/FL/NE but I expect things to be close even with all the optimism we're seeing. Tbh this House prediction is a little bullish, but it's a lot of seats to look into. I flipped nearly every competitive district that made any sense at all to a lean Democrat - without looking into too many of the details too closely and if I had any priors at all, it was evaluating it against an important statewide race also going on in the state at the same time, so if you think MT-1 is doable while those ones in NC or MN aren't going anywhere, sure, fine. Numbers probably more important anyway, I think 250 is possible on a good night and I am feeling a potentially good night here. and then this one, governors, I really raced through but I think Ohio should be pretty solid on governor, Georgia could be a scrape over the line, Texas a heartbreak.

Very much enjoying how the entire Democratic party is rounding on her, casting her out and El-Sayed has had his best fundraising day ever. May she have helped him to a blowout.

I hope that my drive to watch all the classic films (in particular all the old ones starting about 13 months ago) has helped me make a good set of inroads into this list, certainly moreso than that first one in this thread. The Shawshank Redemption (1994) The Godfather (1972) The Dark Knight (2008) The Godfather Part II (1974) The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) 12 Angry Men (1957) Schindler's List (1993) The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) Pulp Fiction (1994) The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966) Forrest Gump (1994) Inception (2010) Fight Club (1999) Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980) The Matrix (1999) Interstellar (2014) GoodFellas (1990) One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) Se7en (1995) It's a Wonderful Life (1946) The Silence of the Lambs (1991) Saving Private Ryan (1998) Seven Samurai (1954) The Green Mile (1999) City of God (2002) Life Is Beautiful (1997) Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) Back to the Future (1985) Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope (1977) Spirited Away (2001) Gladiator (2000) The Pianist (2002) Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair (2004) Parasite (2019) Grave of the Fireflies (1988) Harakiri (1962) The Lion King (1994) Psycho (1960) The Departed (2006) Whiplash (2014) The Prestige (2006) American History X (1998) Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023) Cinema Paradiso (1988) Léon: The Professional (1994) Casablanca (1942) The Intouchables (2011) The Usual Suspects (1995) Django Unchained (2012) Alien (1979) Rear Window (1954) Modern Times (1936) Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) WALL·E (2008) City Lights (1931) Apocalypse Now (1979) Memento (2000) Avengers: Infinity War (2018) Dune: Part Two (2024) Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) The Lives of Others (2006) The Odyssey (2026) Sunset Boulevard (1950) Witness for the Prosecution (1957) Paths of Glory (1957) Inglourious Basterds (2009) The Shining (1980) The Great Dictator (1940) Aliens (1986) High and Low (1963) 12th Fail (2023) Avengers: Endgame (2019) Good Will Hunting (1997) Coco (2017) Toy Story (1995) The Dark Knight Rises (2012) Amadeus (1984) Your Name. (2016) 3 Idiots (2009) Braveheart (1995) Das Boot (1981) Princess Mononoke (1997) Oldboy (2003) Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) American Beauty (1999) Capernaum (2018) Attack on Titan: The Last Attack (2024) Singin' in the Rain (1952) Once Upon a Time in America (1984) Joker (2019) Toy Story 3 (2010) Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983) Come and See (1985) Requiem for a Dream (2000) Incendies (2010) Ikiru (1952) The Hunt (2012) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) The Apartment (1960) Lawrence of Arabia (1962) Heat (1995) Scarface (1983) Up (2009) Reservoir Dogs (1992) 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) Double Indemnity (1944) Like Stars on Earth (2007) North by Northwest (1959) Full Metal Jacket (1987) A Separation (2011) I Swear (2025) Die Hard (1988) M (1931) Amélie (2001) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) Vertigo (1958) Citizen Kane (1941) The Sting (1973) A Clockwork Orange (1971) The Truman Show (1998) The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) Metropolis (1927) 1917 (2019) Snatch (2000) Shutter Island (2010) Downfall (2004) L.A. Confidential (1997) Green Book (2018) Dangal (2016) Bicycle Thieves (1948) Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) Woman in the Dunes (1964) Jurassic Park (1993) Batman Begins (2005) Oppenheimer (2023) For a Few Dollars More (1965) Hamilton (2020) There Will Be Blood (2007) Some Like It Hot (1959) Taxi Driver (1976) The Father (2020) The Sixth Sense (1999) The Kid (1921) All About Eve (1950) Ran (1985) The Thing (1982) Casino (1995) No Country for Old Men (2007) Prisoners (2013) Top Gun: Maverick (2022) Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) Pan's Labyrinth (2006) Unforgiven (1992) A Beautiful Mind (2001) Howl's Moving Castle (2004) The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) Finding Nemo (2003) Klaus (2019) Project Hail Mary (2026) Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle (2025) Yojimbo (1961) The Elephant Man (1980) The Great Escape (1963) Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) Dial M for Murder (1954) The Secret in Their Eyes (2009) Gone with the Wind (1939) Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) Catch Me If You Can (2002) Chinatown (1974) V for Vendetta (2005) Dead Poets Society (1989) Inside Out (2015) The Best of Youth (2003) Trainspotting (1996) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011) Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017) The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) Rashomon (1950) Barry Lyndon (1975) Ben-Hur (1959) The Wild Robot (2024) Hacksaw Ridge (2016) Warrior (2011) Ratatouille (2007) Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) Million Dollar Baby (2004) Fargo (1996) Children of Heaven (1997) My Neighbor Totoro (1988) Gran Torino (2008) 12 Years a Slave (2013) Raging Bull (1980) How to Train Your Dragon (2010) Memories of Murder (2003) The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) Before Sunrise (1995) Monsters, Inc. (2001) Blade Runner (1982) Gone Girl (2014) Ford v Ferrari (2019) Jaws (1975) In the Name of the Father (1993) Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc (2025) Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) Wild Tales (2014) A Silent Voice: The Movie (2016) The Gold Rush (1925) Mary and Max (2009) Sherlock Jr. (1924) Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) The Deer Hunter (1978) Logan (2017) The Wages of Fear (1953) Rocky (1976) The General (1926) Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) Tokyo Story (1953) Maharaja (2024) La Haine (1995) The Sound of Music (1965) Spotlight (2015) Jai Bhim (2021) The Terminator (1984) Wild Strawberries (1957) On the Waterfront (1954) The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) The Third Man (1949) The Big Lebowski (1998) The Incredibles (2004) Hachi: A Dog's Tale (2009) Before Sunset (2004) The Iron Giant (1999) The Exorcist (1973) Room (2015) Hotel Rwanda (2004) Platoon (1986) The Seventh Seal (1957) Rush (2013) The Battle of Algiers (1966) Stand by Me (1986) The Wizard of Oz (1939) My Father and My Son (2005) The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) Drishyam (2015) Gangs of Wasseypur (2012) Miracle in Cell No. 7 (2019) Counting 123! Nearly double what I had 5 years ago - although I again should have bolded Mononoke at least last time (?) but most of the ones I've bolded since have been recent watches. having just entered the 1960s on my film marathon (not for this list, the films for a year I want to see) I just added Psycho and The Apartment to my list in the last couple of weeks and the next film I'm watching is Judgement At Nuremberg! (after getting flashbanged by seeing William Shatner of all people in the credits) with all the time I'm spending on Letterboxd there's certainly a more 'fandom' slant to this list than one might expect from a similar list originating from there, yeah the Attack On Titan finale was quite good I guess - ahead of Ikiru (1952) though? suspecting the list might have some slight flaws.

Good outs so far, all of them traitors who couldn't keep it together for many rounds, instantly becoming suspicious and banished at almost the first possible opportunities for each. I barely even count Ross as a Traitor given how little he did as one, and Freddie's game was just weak once recruited. Richard, Armani and Hugo all fit into the same kind of archetype that clearly loses (if you disregard Richard sabotaging himself more blatantly than the others, his game played about the same as Armani and Hugo or likely would have regardless), all were clear big personalities that production chose for some bombastic fun and very very quickly their standing out in the early stages and lack of subtlety did them in.

'Moonchild' or 'Don't Save Us From The Flames' or 'Teen Angst' or 'Farewell / Goodbye' would have been amazing to see at some point to say nothing of what 'Car Chase Terror!' would have done to everyone's minds <- delusional Before The Dawn Heals Us stan But going out with 'Lower Your Eyelids' was really some rotten luck, well played Chez; 'Outro' was a good choice and my top score for this round.

Commisserations to all the eliminated mentors, I know there are plenty here I'd have loved to hear more from (Tove Lo only getting 2 songs?!), and as a big M83 stan I know they had so many more great songs they could have used. Also knew that both Agnes and Leona had good chances of getting back in but I didn't count on Kate Bush getting knocked out and then straight back in with her classic, feel for them. Pretty decent acts getting back in but with good song choices from all so I'm happy on the round front.

as a loyal faithful looking for good game-playing here ~

I enjoyed this series, I think it was perfectly good and in fact in many areas better than Series 1 in terms of gameplay (which, for all the Alan moments was really quite genial and toothless in many areas), both Traitors and Faithful were quick to react to events and take into account past metas, but some slightly passive Traitors and easily confused Faithful mean it isn't qualitatively completely better. Which is a strength of the show, each game will be completely different. So this one had a few reluctant or outright awful Traitors, so what? Romesh and Sebastian are good winners, they weren't passengers being carried and they did seem to have a good sense of what was what about them. Bash winning especially feels nice as one of the lesser known names. Either Blunt or Sheen joining them could have happened in a slightly different world and either would have deserved it, but what will be will be. Kenny and Maya played good games but couldn't quite get themselves over the line with a couple of key errors, that seems pretty standard for some of these games.