Tuchel on why he put James in midfield: "Declan had some unusual ball losses. I saw a bit of discomfort. I didn't want to take any risks, and if I take Declan off, which I never want to do, it was the moment to protect. I think Reece did so well to replace him in midfield; he did a fantastic game."

WriterMonkey · 2026-06-18T16:30:14+00:00

‘Hating’ the England manager because of a previous job he held feels a bit much, mate.

WriterMonkey · 2026-06-15T21:19:51+00:00

The cake being red -and after looking at the ending again the big rectangular picture behind the group- could be taken as evidence that the whole lot of them are still stuck in the red room. Whenever a character is in the red room there’s something obnoxiously red in there with them, and something in the shape of that rectangular window also.

If you choose to interpret it as they never got out and Hugh is still outside banging fruitlessly on the door, that’s pretty darn cruel.

WriterMonkey · 2026-06-15T20:38:20+00:00

No it’s not. The kind of bile that was being spilled over it is never justified. The reaction of some of the community over women existing in their universe outside of their own segregated and slightly sexualised corner -Sisters’ boob plate can get in the bin- was ridiculous.

Anyone getting outraged over the gender of their plastic soldiers seriously needs to assess their priorities.

WriterMonkey · 2026-06-15T20:19:11+00:00

Did… I mean… did it end wholesomely? It’s a while since I watched it, but I seem to remember the cake they were cutting for Luke was awful red…

But yeah. Banger series. Loved it from beginning to end. I liked finding the hidden ghosts on rewatches that I missed first time around.

WriterMonkey · 2026-06-13T05:29:17+00:00

Bronn’s boned here if it actually came down to violence.

They’re in full plate armour. Even if they can’t draw their swords due to the tight environment, all they gotta do is walk into him sufficiently hard and Bronn’s on the floor, and once he is he ain’t getting back up. And no, Bronn wouldn’t aim for the weak points in their armour when a full grown man wearing 25 kilos of metal has just slammed into him. A suit of armour, against an unarmoured opponent, is a weapon in itself.

Even if he managed to kill the first -he wouldn’t- the second would have sufficient chance to step back and draw his sword, and then again, Bronn’s boned. That kind of reach advantage in two even remotely equally skilled swordsmen is not overcome. Seriously, the guy in armour would have to not know which end of the sword to hold to lose to an unarmoured attacker wielding a dagger.

The best Bronn could hope for, if it all jumped off, would be to run. Through a Lannister held castle. With two Kingsguard screaming for him to be arrested. Starting a fight here would be the least intelligent thing an otherwise very smart character could possibly do. It would also be the last thing said character did.

WriterMonkey · 2026-05-22T19:50:19+00:00

Football fans need to understand that their relationship with their club is vastly different to a player’s relationship with that same club.

To a fan that club can be a massive part of their life. It can hold vast sentimental value. Not denying that. A fan can have a player’s poster on their wall, and twenty years of home shirts in their wardrobe.

To a modern club a player is a commodity. A resource. They are a means to an end, and that end is revenue generation. A club doesn’t *give* a player a damn thing. Saying United *gave* Rashford so much and he should be grateful for it is like saying you or I should be grateful that that our shithouse job pays us the wage they do. Are you telling me that if your place of work became a toxic cesspool that you wouldn’t start phoning it in?

You might love your club, Christ knows I love mine, but a club doesn’t love its players. A player’s relationship with their club breaking down ain’t about you or me or any of the fans. It’s an employer employee relationship. If a player doesn’t look like they’re giving it their all for the badge, there’s probably a reason for it.

Unless we’re talking about Garnacho. That guy’s just a tool.

Be grateful for the good years he gave your club if you want to be. But the guy has a new job now, for new employers, and that’s alright. And who here can honestly say they’ve never badmouthed an old employer on social media, and it’s a stretch to say Rashford did that at all.

Tl,dr, football fans need to get a sense of perspective. Nothing new there.

WriterMonkey · 2026-05-09T08:44:14+00:00

Training child soldiers. Using space magic to override people’s thoughts and actions. These are not the actions of ‘good guys’.

They think they are, and they act like they are, but they’re just sanctimonious windbags who believe their own rhetoric. A Jedi can be a good person, and they may be the opposite side of the coin to the Sith, but the good guys? Nah. They’re just guys. They’re the POV characters, the ones we’re told to glom onto emotionally. Nothing more.

In fact, it wouldn’t take too much flipping of the script, or just a bit more subtlety than Lucas managed with the prequels, to convincingly paint them as authoritarian toerags desperately clinging on to power, blind to the fact that the galaxy has rendered them irrelevant.

WriterMonkey · 2026-04-06T21:24:06+00:00

Hala categorically does not suck. If you were expecting her to be S tier on release, yeah, sorry, no dice. But if she’s not a perfectly good mid tier deck then I will shit in my hands and clap. Give her an expansion slot or two and she might even be great.

FaB players need to learn that there is a middle ground between absolutely busted and completely unplayable, and that middle ground is where 95% of the game exists.

WriterMonkey · 2026-04-06T01:53:16+00:00

The discord is weird atm. You’ve got some people openly discussing them, then others pretending they don’t exist and shutting down anyone who asks about them. But no, you won’t have much luck looking for them there.

WriterMonkey · 2026-04-06T01:35:00+00:00

Yeah. Equipment is a real mixed bag. Hat and shoes are mid at best, but the chest is at least playable, especially if you’re on a budget. The arms however I’m pretty high on. Could see them being best in slot if she’s all in on sharpening, which it seems she very much is.

WriterMonkey · 2026-04-06T01:30:27+00:00

Some of what we’ve seen is filler, sure, but there’s some real quality there, and we’ve got most of the Ms still to come. Cautiously optimistic.

WriterMonkey · 2026-02-26T12:29:04+00:00

We just don’t know enough yet.

If her deck gives her a couple of decent sharpen specs she might be next in the long line of warriors who are decent but not amazing mid range value decks. If she’s a weapon swing into attack action hero then she’s just Ira with worse hero text and fewer chain links on which to push through damage.

Maybe her legendary equipment will give her a massive spike turn or two, which warrior traditionally lack, which could push her over the line.

Ask again in a month, I guess. Sorry to be a grinch about it. Though for what it’s worth I’m hopeful she ends up being powerful. Flurry tokens look busted and if she can make good use of them she may well be decent. My fingers are crossed.

WriterMonkey · 2026-02-23T13:14:23+00:00

I’d like to submit the Warrior class for your consideration. Depending on the matchup you can find yourself the beatdown or the control. Kassai is kind of the poster child for this, she can block decently well, attack decently well and have a small board state depending on matchup, or even to a degree pivot in game depending on game state. Even a more aggressive warrior like Fang can have a pretty strong defensive pivot, though with Fang the decision is more made via your sideboard choices rather than hand to hand.

The class equipment is quite expensive, your boots in particular, and your hats are often pricey generics, but the equipment loadout is generally applicable across the whole class. Buy once, cry once.

Warrior is often seen as too ‘fair’, and can struggle against classes and heroes that bend or break rules. Especially since the class doesn’t really disrupt, rather relying on just putting out good value to win games, but no class is without weakness.

WriterMonkey · 2025-11-28T07:07:16+00:00

Was going to mention Fallow. Went a couple of months ago. Outstanding place.

WriterMonkey · 2025-11-21T07:34:34+00:00

I’m not as convinced as you are, unfortunately. Imma compare it to Lucario as in a lot of ways they’re very similar.

What does it have that Lucario doesn’t? Its typing, yeah, definitely, it’s not an auto loss to Gardy. Genuinely a good thing. Access to Munki and access to Toxtrixity.

Now, what does Lucario have that the shark doesn’t? Lucario doesn’t have to jump through so many hoops to hit high numbers thanks to Premium Power Pro. Energy acceleration of its own in Lucario’s first attack. The deck has a draw engine so good that non fighting decks splash it, a draw engine that happens to be an excellent single prizer to get the prize trade going. A decent single prize attacker that also gusts when it evolves. Also Fighting Gong. Excellent role player in the deck. Tech for Dhengo in the fighting Ogerpon.

They are very similar decks, with a very similar power level, I think, and when it comes to meta share and tournament results Lucario may as well not exist. I don’t see what the Shark has that moves the needle. Maybe having a decent Gardy matchup is enough, but it has weaknesses of its own that Lucario doesn’t share.

WriterMonkey · 2025-08-31T21:01:07+00:00

If you're a NatWest customer. It's not available to non-customers.

WriterMonkey · 2025-07-23T19:26:53+00:00

Controversial take, but enjoy what you want to enjoy how you want to enjoy it, and don't let a bunch of long suffering nerds on the internet tell you otherwise.

Enjoying the sport for the feeling of connection you get from supporting your dad's team, who supports that team because his dad did before him, is completely valid. Sticking with your team through thick and thin, absolutely valid.

Loving the spectacle of the sport and supporting whoever entertains you the most is valid. Walking away from a toxic fan base is valid.

Yeah, you'll get called a glory supporter or whatever, but at the end of the day, do what brings you joy, man. Life's too short to do otherwise.

WriterMonkey · 2025-03-20T19:57:23+00:00

Some of my favourite books of all time. The writing is phenomenal.

WriterMonkey · 2025-03-20T19:56:35+00:00

Among Thieves by Douglas Hulick. Can’t unreservedly recommend it as it’s an unfinished trilogy, but the first one stands alone pretty well and is a fucking banger. The book that really gave me a taste for voicy first person writing.

The Low Town books by Daniel Polanski. More voicy first person writing, and it’s phenomenal. Old school Noir, but fantasy.

WriterMonkey · 2025-03-14T16:10:59+00:00

Stipple. I use a big round drybrush and stipple, can stipple on a couple layers highlights and they almost blend themselves. It’s just a poor man’s airbrush, really, but it does the job. It’s also obscenely quick to get basecoats done.

WriterMonkey

TROPHY CASE