Poll of the Day > PotdMon: Nerd/Geek

(+) Yeah! (+)

We don't need to see it every time Spiderman or Batman gets a reboot. We already know how this works, it doesn't need an explanation in sharp detail everytime.

You realize that for some people the reboot will be their first experience with the universe or its origin story. Its not pointless to cover just because you already know about it.

The Last Jedi is better than Return of the Jedi
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I got deathly Ill about 2 hours into Avengers: Endgame. Like it was coming out of me from both ends. We had to leave the theater and go home. I proceeded to spend the next two hours in the bathroom that can only be described as my Endgame.

Money is short and we can't go back for another 2 weeks.

I must avoid all spoilers.
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Unplug from the internet for the next 2 weeks, bro. It's the only way.
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Zeus posted...

Unplug from the internet for the next 2 weeks, bro. It's the only way.

Zeus is right Wave. I saw it on the second showing Thursday, and the number of spoilers I've seen in totally unrelated places since at this point is insane. Granted, I'm cursed with knowledge so they don't affect me, but I've never seen this level of...saturation so quickly and pervasively in internet culture.
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Also, just finished reading Joe Abercrombie's First Law trilogy. Loved it. Would recommend.

Like plot twists? This story is a chain. Made of pretzels. In a braiding machine. During a tornado.

And things don't even get weird until well into the second book. The first one just seems like a standard, garden variety fantasy novel. Oh no, strap in. It's going to be one hell of a ride by book 3.

I get the comparisons to ASoIaF, but GRRM keeps so many threads in the air at once it's hard to keep track of without taking notes. Plus, there's a lot of dead ends and cast off threads in ASoIaF.

Abercrombie keeps it manageable to where every character is used, and every thread is stitched by the end.

I'm pretty damned impressed.
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I haven't seen Endgame yet, and have no intention of seeing it for like another couple weeks. I've actually successfully avoiding any and all spoilers so far - so long as no one explicitly blurts anything out in this topic, or starts discussing it without spoiler tags, I feel like I can dodge it.

Not using Facebook or Twitter helps immensely with that. Social media is generally garbage at all times regardless, but avoiding it now is super-useful.


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Made it to Endgame today. I enjoyed it, but ... it is high time, in my opinion, that movies of this length start having intermissions again. My bladder still hurts.
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I had issues with the pacing in Endgame. But maaaan. The high points were SO worth it.
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Today, I discovered something that shocked me to my very core, shattering my sense of self-identity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-x0RstYEGs" data-time="



I've always prided myself on my vast store of useless pop culture knowledge, especially as it pertains to my beloved 80s. But I didn't recognize a single one of these shows!

And, I mean, I remember some really obscure shit. Like these shows!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=na9_tBeDTK0" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auQSRrk3IEE" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_Pt9Sgjos4" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dp-Lcq1TNlI" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRZWKfeN1u4" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDFF9sIT6jE" data-time="

I don't even know who I am any more!



Actually, I think I might kinda sorta vaguely remember that The Colbys was a thing. Though I don't actually remember it being referred to as Dynasty II.


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WhiskeyDisk posted...

I get the comparisons to ASoIaF, but GRRM keeps so many threads in the air at once it's hard to keep track of without taking notes. Plus, there's a lot of dead ends and cast off threads in ASoIaF.

Abercrombie keeps it manageable to where every character is used, and every thread is stitched by the end.

I kinda like having at least some dead ends, etc, since otherwise things seem too perfectly neat.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

I haven't seen Endgame yet, and have no intention of seeing it for like another couple weeks. I've actually successfully avoiding any and all spoilers so far - so long as no one explicitly blurts anything out in this topic, or starts discussing it without spoiler tags, I feel like I can dodge it.

As I may have mentioned, I inadvertently spoiled a bunch of things while just trying to find out which Avenger died. Granted, knowing that an Avenger dies is a spoiler in the first place kinda.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

I've always prided myself on my vast store of useless pop culture knowledge, especially as it pertains to my beloved 80s. But I didn't recognize a single one of these shows!

Wait, not even the Jim Henson Hour? I can't recall much about it, but I remember it being a thing.

At any rate, most of those "barely memorable shows" aren't memorable in the least >_> Although I will say I saw a DVD collection for Dads at Dollar Tree some months ago. Only watched the first 2 minutes of the video, will check the rest out when I get home.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

And, I mean, I remember some really obscure shit. Like these shows!

There are countless tv shows out there so.... idg the big deal.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_Pt9Sgjos4" data-time="

Vaguely remember that, especially the theme.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

I don't even know who I am any more!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiOP4D_b828" data-time="
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Zeus posted...

I kinda like having at least some dead ends, etc, since otherwise things seem too perfectly neat.

Perhaps, but for the purposes of this story I would argue that the tight stitching is appropriate.
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ParanoidObsessive posted...

I've always prided myself on my vast store of useless pop culture knowledge, especially as it pertains to my beloved 80s. But I didn't recognize a single one of these shows!

*sees William Katt*

One might say it is time for you to put your House in order, PO. *rimshot*
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ParanoidObsessive posted...

The Prequel Trilogy was bad enough that anyone with standards was willing to fall back on the original trilogy and forsake the prequels... but it wasn't the mere existence of those movies that burned people out, it was the fact that they were terrible. Rejection of the prequels wasn't fatigue-based, it was quality based.

To emphasize this again,no one seems to suffer Marvel fatigue, despite getting about 3 films a years for years now.

Then again, to play Devil's advocate and offer a counter-point, part of that reasoning could be because audiences have known that all the films were building up to IW/Endgame for quite a while now, something basically unique in the history if film making, always giving audiences a reason to come back.

And there IS something to be said with Star Wars having 6 films in 30 years, and then 4 in as many come out. That transition IS pretty jarring, especially if it doesn't benefit from a planned giant build up, a la Endgame (and back when Disney boldly announced like 7 different SW films and TV shows before scrapping half of them after the TLJ reactions and Solo bombed, you kinda feel they might have been trying to recreate that Marvel mega-movie thread).

Don't get me wrong, anyone that has curiously glanced at my SW posts knows that I think all the recent films, minus RO can be jettisoned into the sun, and that I have very little faith that IX can salvage the series at this point. Hell, I never saw Solo, and never will. I don't want that characterization burned into my mind.
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Even the worst MCU movies are arguably better than the majority of the Star Wars movies outside of the Original Trilogy.

That's right. I said it. Thor: Dark World, Iron Man 3, and The Incredible Hulk are still better than 2/3 of the Star Wars franchise at this point.

How low the mighty have fallen.
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Zeus posted...

Wait, not even the Jim Henson Hour? I can't recall much about it, but I remember it being a thing.

When it first started, I thought it might be Amazing Stories. I definitely don't remember the Jim Henson Hour being a thing, though.



Zeus posted...

Vaguely remember that, especially the theme.

That surprises me, considering that's one of those shows that's so obscure you always sort of wonder if you fever-dreamed that it was ever a thing in the first place.

A lot of Fox's early shows were like that, though. But I remember a lot of them (where others have forgotten everything other than Married With Children) because '86-'87 was right in that prime window where I finally started watching a LOT of TV that wasn't just kid's cartoons (ie, the same reason 1987 is the first MTV Music Awards I watched/taped/remember). So I kind of have really vivid memories of anything I watched for more than a couple episodes.



I_Abibde posted...

*sees William Katt*

One might say it is time for you to put your House in order, PO. *rimshot*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yb4C7vSByMM" data-time="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQ_HuSGG_Ao" data-time="


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CyborgSage00x0 posted...

Then again, to play Devil's advocate and offer a counter-point, part of that reasoning could be because audiences have known that all the films were building up to IW/Endgame for quite a while now, something basically unique in the history if film making, always giving audiences a reason to come back.

Yeah, but to double down on Advocating for Devils, we didn't really know that until we were already like 10 movies deep, and the converse is that Star Wars has pretty much ALWAYS claimed to be telling an overarching story with an implied end we're always working towards, so in theory knowing Infinity War is supposed to be an "ending" and seeing that end in sight doesn't necessarily justify a lack of fatigue if fatigue was the only factor.

(If we believe Lucas' constant lies and "readjustments of truth over time", Star Wars has always been the tale of the Skywalker family, and it was supposed to span 12 movies, so even points where it seems to "end" are just momentary pauses in the action building to a future unforeseen conclusion. Granted, literally every single word of that is bullshit, but plenty of people have believed that over the years, and each movie after the first HAS been sort of presented as a small piece of a larger story, so in theory looking forward to "how it ends" should be hyping people up more for Episode IX, whereas the reverse seems to be true for most people. Star Wars fatigue has essentially set in because most of us are finally kind of accepting that Star Wars is never really going to be worth caring about again.)

If anything, if it's just a question of repeated releases in a short period of time, "Marvel fatigue" should be even worse, because they release multiple movies in a single year, compounded by other companies ALSO occasionally releasing comic movies (Fox and Sony putting stuff out simultaneously in previous years, not to mention DC throwing their feces into the ring, and third-party stuff like Hellboy coming out now and then). Star Wars at least has the decency to only release one movie a year in recent years (with a lot more spacing between films previously).



WhiskeyDisk posted...

Even the worst MCU movies are arguably better than the majority of the Star Wars movies outside of the Original Trilogy.

That's right. I said it. Thor: Dark World, Iron Man 3, and The Incredible Hulk are still better than 2/3 of the Star Wars franchise at this point.

How low the mighty have fallen.

When you take the original trilogy and Rogue One out of the mix, I'd be willing to argue that there are a fair number of DC movies better than Star Wars as well.

I mean, hell, I'd rather watch Green Lantern again rather than the prequels or TFA/TLJ.

But I'll also stand up for Iron Man 3 and Thor 2. The first is way better than most people give it shit for being (I'd easily rank it above Iron Man 2, at any rate), and the latter mostly just suffers from being a somewhat dull, plodding, mediocre-ish movie that has the misfortune of being surrounded by way better movies. It's not terrible on its own (whereas I tend to see Incredible Hulk as being kind of bleh even without comparing it to other movies - I ever consider the Ang Lee Hulk to be better, no matter how much people hate it because it wasn't all HULK SMASH and made people's thinky bits hurt).


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ParanoidObsessive posted...

I mean, hell, I'd rather watch Green Lantern again rather than the prequels or TFA/TLJ.

Gross
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Standing up for Green Lantern and '03 Hulk in the same post? To quote The Princess Bride:

"I give you full marks for bravery. Don't make yourself a fool."

I say this facetiously, of course.
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Hey, I never said they're good. But both are better than the average layperson likes to pretend they are.

I'm still convinced that 80% of the complaints about Ang Lee's Hulk boil down to "I want to see Hulk smash things, not be sad because he had abusive daddy issues." Because most people form their entire awareness of who and what the Hulk is based on the 70s TV show, not the actual comics (where the abusive dad stuff has been canon for more than 35 years).

The other 20% of complaints were because of the comic panel style transitions, which people found jarring in a non-comedic movie.

Bana's probably closer to the actual Bruce Banner character as well. Ruffalo's definitely more fun and likeable (and more in-line with Bill Bixby's version of the character to some degree), but Banner - especially early Banner - was kind of a socially inept uptight awkward asshole to some degree.

Also, never forget he once stayed at a YMCA and got molested in the shower by a dude.


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I thought the 70s show was even lighter on the smashing.

But yeah I actually did think Ang Lee Hulk wasn't nearly as bad as people said. Definitely made some silly decisions, but I thought they did a good job emphasizing the "anger/rage" element
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Watched Goosebumps 2 and now I kinda wish they'd do a Goosebumps 3. The films as a whole have been a pleasant surprise considering that the concept sounded like a trainwreck. The worst part of the sequel was probably Ken Jeong, but he's generally the worst part of everything. I like the guy and his backstory I like that he's been successful, but I've never liked his acting or comedy.... which makes for a weird dynamic.

I_Abibde posted...

Standing up for Green Lantern and '03 Hulk in the same post? To quote The Princess Bride:

"I give you full marks for bravery. Don't make yourself a fool."

I say this facetiously, of course.

Eh, GL had some neat effects and a few cool fight scenes. I almost bought a copy some time ago. GL vs TFA, probably GL. GL vs TLJ, I'd definitely rewatch TLJ and skip anything involving Rose.

The 03 Hulk was absolute shit and I wouldn't bother with it again. I'd sooner watch Nick Fury: Agent of Shield again... or that awful Thomas Jane Punisher.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

The other 20% of complaints were because of the comic panel style transitions, which people found jarring in a non-comedic movie.

Yeah, those were really annoying most of the time. It was just one more weird decision.
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Zeus posted...

Yeah, those were really annoying most of the time. It was just one more weird decision.

That and Nick Nolte are honestly the only real problems I had with the movie. Though it helps that I liked both main actors beforehand and was always fond of the storyline in the 80s where they really explored Bruce's backstory and really firmly established the idea that a) Bruce's dad was an abusive drunk who essentially killed Bruce's mother, and b) that Bruce repressed his own anger in response, and it festered deep inside of him, with him always terrified to ever really allow himself to let loose (for fear of becoming his father), which in turn is what made the Hulk possible.

It's kind of canon that gamma radiation doesn't necessarily turn you into a rage monster as much as it taps into whatever you're repressing and gives it control (sort of like Jungian psychology and the concept of the Shadow). It's why the She-Hulk isn't really an angry rage monster as much as she's a party girl/slut (because professional lawyer Jennifer Walters always repressed her own sense of fun and humor and ability to enjoy herself in favor of always being obsessively serious, logical, and respectable - so HER "Hulk" is much more enjoyable to be, which is why she usually revels in being She-Hulk instead of fearing and hating it the way Bruce does). But if the Hulk exists because Banner was repressing every drop of his anger and frustration and his desire to lash out, then we have to ask WHY he was repressing those things in the first place.

Ang Lee's Hulk actually gives you the comic book canon answer to that question. But most people only really knew the Hulk via Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno, and that interpretation of the Hulk really jars with what they wanted out of the character.

It's kind of interesting to note that most of the MCU characters are actually kind of blurred hybrids of their normal versions and their Ultimate versions (right down to the first Avengers movie literally combining both different versions of their origin story), but Hulk is more a hybrid version of his normal character and the 70s TV Hulk. He's the one character that doesn't really draw any inspiration from his Ultimate version (which is actually kind of darker than the original version).


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My novel, "Elysium Shining," is almost 100k words in length. It is also an estimated 5/6 of the way complete on the first draft. If all goes well enough then I will likely publish it online through eBooks and Amazon.

A buddy of mine suggested that I decline any exclusivity deal that Amazon tries to present, because they will (and it'll be a bad deal).
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Entity13 posted...

If all goes well enough then I will likely publish it online through eBooks and Amazon.

*thumbs up*

If that ends up being the final title, I'll add it to my Kindle library.
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I_Abibde posted...

Entity13 posted...

If all goes well enough then I will likely publish it online through eBooks and Amazon.

*thumbs up*

If that ends up being the final title, I'll add it to my Kindle library.

It more than likely will. I've been sticking with it since I started writing it at the end of March.
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ParanoidObsessive posted...

It's kind of canon that gamma radiation doesn't necessarily turn you into a rage monster as much as it taps into whatever you're repressing and gives it control (sort of like Jungian psychology and the concept of the Shadow). It's why the She-Hulk isn't really an angry rage monster as much as she's a party girl/slut (because professional lawyer Jennifer Walters always repressed her own sense of fun and humor and ability to enjoy herself in favor of always being obsessively serious, logical, and respectable - so HER "Hulk" is much more enjoyable to be, which is why she usually revels in being She-Hulk instead of fearing and hating it the way Bruce does). But if the Hulk exists because Banner was repressing every drop of his anger and frustration and his desire to lash out, then we have to ask WHY he was repressing those things in the first place.

All the more reason we need a She-Hulk movie. Preferably with an X-rating.

Entity13 posted...

My novel, "Elysium Shining," is almost 100k words in length. It is also an estimated 5/6 of the way complete on the first draft. If all goes well enough then I will likely publish it online through eBooks and Amazon.

A buddy of mine suggested that I decline any exclusivity deal that Amazon tries to present, because they will (and it'll be a bad deal).

Oo
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I'm still avoiding Endgame spoilers too. However, I'm going wednesdayafternoon. Should be gun in a half empty theater.
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The local game store had a poster looking for players to jump into a D&D 2nd Edition campaign, and I could not resist. 2E has its faults, but I spent more time in that edition than in any of the others, and I look forward to playing again. All I need to remember is that characters are relatively fragile compared to 3E and 5E, though not as fragile as 0E and 1E (and all of their OSR counterparts). ... Now, if I could just find a group running a BECMI / Rules Cyclopedia game, I'd be golden.

The Wave Master posted...

Should be gun in a half empty theater.

... I admit it was tempting to make a joke about The Dark Knight here, but I stayed my mouth ...
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New Far From Home trailer has some interesting tidbits.
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It just occurred to me that I invented the setting for Fallout: New Vegas almost 10 years before the game came out.

In one Amber DRPG game I ran, there was a world that had basically gone through a Mad Max-esque style apocalypse, where most of the survivors had to wander the wastes, scavenging for resources and generally fighting each other like savages or outlaws. The one bastion of law that preserved the order and ideals of the Old World was a fortress walled off from the wastes that defended itself with robots and technology. Known as Pallisade (a pun on the word meaning "wall" and a reference to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palisades_Amusement_Park ), it was a sort of giant casino/amusement park resort complex that had been frequented by the rich and influential of the Old World, who make up most of the population there (with the rest being their descendants), who still spend most of their days in idle recreation and high society snobbery.

The fortress is controlled by a woman (though I forget her name/title) who is basically the powerful matriarch who runs everything by means of controlling the technology and the guards, and who enforces her will like an absolute monarch, using the threat of exile into the wastes to keep the population in line with her rule. She takes lovers at her whim, discarding them whenever she bores of them, and occasionally gives birth to children. At the point the game started, she had about a dozen kids, of varying ages, most of whom had different fathers, who she pitted against each other so they would vie for her favor and politic against each other rather than conspiring against her. Most of them are spoiled assholes, and at least one had been banished to the wastes as an exile in the past - the player this world was made for was one of her older children. It was the only world that player knew - at least until the larger universe starts to impinge on the story and things become more complicated than just fighting over who's going to inherit control over a casino fortress from a power-mad woman.

Meanwhile, the setting of New Vegas is a world that had basically gone through a Mad Max-esque style apocalypse, where most of the survivors had to wander the wastes, scavenging for resources and generally fighting each other like savages or outlaws. One bastion of law that preserved the order and ideals of the Old World was a fortress walled off from the wastes that defended itself with robots and technology. Known as New Vegas (as it's built on the ruins of Las Vegas and was meant to evoke its ideals and attitude), it was a sort of giant casino resort complex that had been frequented by the rich and influential of the Old World, while the modern inhabitants still spend most of their days in idle recreation and high society snobbery.

The fortress is controlled by a man who is basically the powerful patriarch who runs everything by means of controlling the technology and the guards, and who enforces his will like an absolute monarch (albeit a mostly absentee one), using the threat of exile into the wastes (or just being shot) to keep the population in line with his rule. To consolidate his rule he established three "Families" to run things in New Vegas in his name, who are generally pitted against each other so they would vie for his favor and politic against each other rather than conspiring against him. Most are kind of assholes (in different ways), and the game starts with one of the members of one of those families as the main antagonist for the player, until the larger world starts to impinge on the story and things become more complicated than just seeking revenge on the guy who shot you and left you for dead.


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107k words and counting. The chapter I'm on is turning, quickly, into two chapters out of necessity. I'm still about nine or ten chapters from the end of this novel.
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How much do you write an hour and how much each day?
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Zeus posted...

How much do you write an hour and how much each day?

It depends on how motivated I am in a given day, and how prepared I am with writing material to move a chapter forward. I typically spend three hours between morning and evening, especially the latter, which is more than enough for an average of 2200 words. So I'm looking at a week and a half or longer before the first draft is done.
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Entity13 posted...

more then enough

*Than.

If you need an editor, I know a guy.


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WhiskeyDisk posted...

Entity13 posted...

more then enough

*Than.

If you need an editor, I know a guy.

The best part is I know better and have no idea how I made that typo. Thanks for pointing it out. xD

Also, I have a buddy looking over the Google Doc version of the story for the typos and other mistakes I made along the way. He's at the end of chapter 8, though. <_<
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Just 'avin a giggle m8.
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Entity13 posted...

My novel, "Elysium Shining," is almost 100k words in length. It is also an estimated 5/6 of the way complete on the first draft. If all goes well enough then I will likely publish it online through eBooks and Amazon.

A buddy of mine suggested that I decline any exclusivity deal that Amazon tries to present, because they will (and it'll be a bad deal).

Best of luck. Been trying to finish a book for years, but every attempt ends with me dragging the file to the recycle bin 60k words in. Couldn't complete a story if my life depended on it.

I'm always reading novels and researching writing tips, and when I compare my work to published material, I realize how terrible my prose is and scrap the projects I'm working on. If I'm not satisfied with my work, why should I expect others to read it?

The damage I caused when I learned about adverbs, and how proper word choice for verbs should eliminate the need for most adverbs, was nuclear. Went to look at several stories, did a ctrl+f for the words "just," "very," and words ending in "-ly", and wound up trashing 200k+ words in under a minute because the stories were not salvageable. I love writing, but releasing published work is something I doubt will ever happen.

WhiskeyDisk posted...

Just 'avin a giggle m8.

I know.
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I'm nearing 115k words at the moment, and have chapter 49 in progress. What was meant to be one chapter of shit fitting the fan became three . . . three solid chapters. Ah ah ahhh...

Raganork posted...

I'm always reading novels and researching writing tips, and when I compare my work to published material, I realize how terrible my prose is and scrap the projects I'm working on. If I'm not satisfied with my work, why should I expect others to read it?

The damage I caused when I learned about adverbs, and how proper word choice for verbs should eliminate the need for most adverbs, was nuclear. Went to look at several stories, did a ctrl+f for the words "just," "very," and words ending in "-ly", and wound up trashing 200k+ words in under a minute because the stories were not salvageable. I love writing, but releasing published work is something I doubt will ever happen.

I'm usually good against "very," not really using it much inside of dialogue even. The "-ly" words are typically minimal, but then I go through my revision work to adjust as much as needed or ask myself if I'm doing the sentence enough justice. As for "Just," that might be a weakness of mine when I write fast to get the story's first draft done. As I go through to polish the story, because I'd feel justled otherwise, I'll consider how to rewrite that sentence in the event that deleting the word isn't enough. Again, if it's inside of dialogue from a character, or at least internal monologue, then I might leave it for flavor's sake since people talk how they talk.
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Just posting to keep this thread out of the purge monster's foul maw.
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And bumping again while I work on chapter 53 of "Elysium Shining." The projected ending is 59+epilogue, at this point. It's also past the 130k mark. My quick "just" revision is up to chapter 34.

As I pointed out before the 65 appearances of "just" until that point amount to adjustments, a couple references to justice, and characters saying the actual word in their dialogue. I still have another hundred or so uses to review while I run my quick revisions. This helps me spot a few typos too.

Now if I can finish this thing properly within the week it should be pretty damn good. My test audience is liking it, at least.
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I tore the hamstring in my left leg. It hurt like the Dickens for the last two weeks. The pain is slowly going away, but my mobility is still limited.

I'm just not having the best 2019 this far, and I hope it a gets better very soon.

Of anyone saw Detective Pikachu this weekend let me know if it's worth my time.
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Solving FOE-based puzzles in Etrian Odyssey puts hair on the old chest. ... Nexus made me sweat by throwing all of those giant pineapples at me in the Southern Shrine.

What really struck me about those damn things, though, is that they are clearly modeled on the beach ball monster from the old John Carpenter movie Dark Star. And they laugh like that little sumbitch, too. ... Atlus has a sense of humor.
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The past couple chapters I've written have been in the 4300-4600 range on the word count. This is during the final major conflict of the story, btw, and the end word count may or may not pass 150k. <_<
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I_Abibde posted...

Solving FOE-based puzzles

Friend or Enemy puzzles?


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FOEs in that game series are mini-bosses

Enemies that are visible on your map. They are generally strong enough to body your entire party when you first enter a dungeon, though it becomes possible to take them on if you take your time and level up.
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It's over 152k words now. I have one more chapter and the epilogue to go. Whew...
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And of course the last chapter and epilogue ended up being insanely long. The first draft of ES came out to 165k words.
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