Every time you say "IP" or "canon," it takes 12 minutes off your lifespan.

announcing ILÚVATAR, my multi-billion dollar company which will specialize in the dismantling of all other idiotically tolkien-named entities, that they shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my despite

3-panel comic. (1) (A person with a picture of a spacecraft behind head.] PERSON 1: There are now three spacecraft headed to Europe: NASA’s *Europa Clipper*, which will investigate Europa’s subsurface ocean, (2) [Person is gesturing at a picture of a different spacecraft while talking to a person with a ponytail and a person with short hair.] PERSON 1: ESA’s *Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer*, which will study the topography and chemistry of Europa and the other moons, (3) [Person with a picture behind head of a Zamboni with a rocket launcher underneath] and the NHL’s *Zamboni Voyager*, which plans to resurface Europa. PERSON FROM OFF-PANEL: Oh no. PERSON 1: We tried to stop them, but the league is set on an expansion.

Europa Missions

xkcd.com/3234/

I think before you build an Arc de Triomphe you should be able to identify at least un (1) triomphe

At @io9.com, I spoke with Rick Veitch, Tom Mandrake, Vince Locke, and more for an oral history of the most heretical DC comic of all time, now rising from its tomb after 40 years.

Comic. I’m at my desk, leaning over to the doorway, saying “Hey! Foghorn! Foghorn Leghorn! Get in here!” Foghorn Leghorn is walking past the doorway, “Boy, I tell ya, I tell ya, not so loud, boy. What, I say, I say, what d’ya want?” Next panel, I’m gesturing to my computer. “How do I find that really good manga you recommended? It’s an anime now? I keep getting Halloween costumes.” Foghorn leans over my chair, “well, boy, I say, I say, you ain’t typin the entire title.” Last panel, I turn around- “you said ‘witch hat.’ Foghorn gets in my face- “open your ears, boy!! ‘Witch Hat Atelier, I tell ya! I tell ya ‘Atelier,’ I tell ya’”

How I’ve Been Pronouncing It (Feat. Foghorn Leghorn, my… roommate?)

I see there are already two series of "The Pitt", disappointingly not called "Pitt the Elder" and "Pitt the Younger".

… "Will the Marines never come?" and finally "Hebrews 13:8," a Biblical passage that reads, “Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and today, and forever.”[13] He also held a contest for an outsider to contribute the capsule review, which Harpo Marx won with "No worse than a bad cold.""

… "Just about as low as good clean fun can get", "Showing that the Jews and the Irish crack equally old jokes", "The comic spirit of 1876", "People laugh at this every night, which explains why democracy can never be a success", …

So I saw this post, and out of curiosity looked up "Abie's Irish Rose" on Wikipedia. Turns out Robert Benchley's reaction to the play was fucking fire:

"Part of Benchley's job was to write capsule reviews each week. He described Abie's Irish Rose variously as "Something Awful", …

A flatscreen display on a "smart" water fountain, demanding to be reconnected to the internet.

In 1999, I was playing a decker in Shadowrun, and tried to distract a guard by hacking a water fountain to overflow, and my GM said "why would a water fountain be on the network? That's fucking stupid. No you can't try."

Well it's 2026 and I just want you to know, Phil, that I FUCKING CALLED IT!

The head of the FBI isn't supposed to be getting blackout drunk. He's supposed to be cross-dressing

This one's educational!

People really undersell the basic idea that Trump is just some yahoo moron who accidentally became president because he was born rich and used it to become famous, and then got really lucky.

What I want to do at some point is a triple feature of the 2019 Color Out of Space, Annihilation, and Stalker, in that order; strangeness takes over a part of the world, is explored, and then humans sorta settle in and come to terms with it. Three masterpieces of written SF, too.

I once watched La règle du jeu back-to-back with The Battle of Algiers, and it was stunningly effective. Two great films, the first a sly satire of the French ruling class, the second a much blunter indictment of the violence and imperialism that propped up the luxury of the first.

Remembering Rosewater Kurt Vonnegut’s <i>God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater</i> is effective, powerful, and important. || Matthew Surridge

At Splice Today I take a look at God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, the fifth novel by Kurt Vonnegut. It's the one with 'God damn it, you've got to be kind' in it, and in context that bit does a lot of thematic work. A short book, and a good one.

www.splicetoday.com/writing/reme...

Trying to explain St Augustine to the pope, the former head of the Augustinian order, who wrote his doctoral thesis on Augustine, on his way back from celebrating mass at the Basilica of St Augustine in Annaba, Algeria, overlooking the site where Augustine lived is peak Adult Catholic Convert.

Mysterious Giant Blobs Of Material Near Earth's Core - Astrobiology In the 1980s, geophysicists made a startling discovery: two continent-sized blobs of unusual material were found deep near the center of the Earth

the craziest thing I've read all year is this theory that 2 "continents" that used to be on Theia are now buried deep under our feet

astrobiology.com/2023/11/myst...

We have two way wrist radios draw your own conclusions

Herzog undefeated

Here's a thread about how Target sucks, and why you shouldn't shop there.

The New Twin Fossil Shock | Ember How the energy crises of the 2020s speed up the electric age

"In power, solar plus storage now costs below $60 per megawatt hour (MWh) at a global level. The variable cost of LNG-fired power in Asia, at $20 per million British thermal units (MMBtu), exceeds $160 per MWh – nearly three times the cost of never needing fuel again."

Any questions?

Clannad - Theme from Harry's Game (Official HD Video) YouTube video by ClannadVEVO

R.I.P. Moya Brennan. The Lady was the voice of Irish music if you grew up in thr 80s. Clannad were everywhere. Their haunting melodies were ingrained in my brain with Robin of Sherwood and Harry's Game. www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zHT...

Clannad - Robin (The Hooded Man) YouTube video by stereomusicvideo

Clannad's album Legend, which was the soundtrack of Robin of Sherwood is still one of my all time favourite albums. I always pop it on in the background when I am writing

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8uM...

WORD FACT

In Walter Scott’s 1820 novel Ivanhoe, “free lance” is used to describe a medieval mercenary — literally, an independent “lance for hire”.

Today, “freelance” refers to anyone who works independently.

The most convincing argument in favour of the simulation hypothesis is that like 90% of 2026 could have been dreamed up by a coked-out cyberpunk writer 40 years ago trying to be Norman Spinrad.

The thing is, "Donald Trump feuds with Pope" "Iran war drags on," and "People are constantly freaked out about computers" are all extremely 1988-coded headlines

It's so funny to me that right-wingers love to pretend to love the Middle Ages and the Crusades and all that and then complain that the Pope shouldn't get involved in politics.

AI slop. How many labels can be added to an image? And where's the joke?

This should be a no-brainer. For Christ's sake STOP Posting obvious AI-generated political cartoons! Bluesky is awash in this shit these days. There are tons of real live human political cartoonists here, posting terrific work. Repost those.

If you're unclear, here's how to spot AI slop: