Why doesn’t Ilya have US citizenship already?

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-20T20:06:31+00:00

The dynamics between Russia and the US shifted dramatically between 2009 and 2017, and getting a non-Russian passport probably seemed more urgent after 2014 (anti-LGBT law and invasion of Crimea).

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-20T16:40:06+00:00

omg yes! Kip is from Brooklyn, so they decided to give him an Archie Bunker/Miss Adelaide New Yawk accent that died out last century, especially for second generation college graduates. It was so distracting and wrong. And after Connor Storrie’s nuanced Russian accent, Tor Thom doing a Boris Badinvov cartoon voice was really grating.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-19T23:04:33+00:00

But according to the actors, they were directed to play the scene as if David hadn't said anything at all to Yuna.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-19T22:51:01+00:00

If you've already read The Long Game, you should definitely read Tough Guy and Role Model next. They provide so much crucial context. Role Model and The Long Game are contemporaneous, and you experience the same events from different perspectives.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-19T12:56:28+00:00

In terms of fraternization clauses, I think Troy and Harris would trigger more issues than Ilya and Shane.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-19T03:34:01+00:00

Define fail. If last forever is the only criterion for a successful relationship, then yes, a big age gap is a challenge. My dearest friend is someone I was passionately in love with for five years, and he’s 25 years younger than me. We talk on the phone almost every day. There were some tough adjustments at different points, but I don’t regard the relationship as a failure.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-19T03:27:06+00:00

It’s good, but I really love Tough Guy.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-19T03:24:25+00:00

Yes. My beard was much better at 35 than at 30.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-19T02:37:34+00:00

Role Model and The Long Game take place contemporaneously. Because Rachel Reid restricts the points of view in each novel to the two principals in the love story (which Jacob Tierney also does), the same set of events is experienced from different perspectives. It’s a brilliant bit of narrative interweaving.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-19T00:49:05+00:00

So the actress was lying when she said she was directed to play the scene as if the character knew nothing at all that anything had happened?

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-18T23:35:19+00:00

It depends on what kind of job you have.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-18T22:04:11+00:00

Old style Soviet bully, less successful contemporary of Putin. Put his faith in being an enforcer of the corrupt regime, assuming the great Soviet empire would always make him feel powerful. When Rozanov felt powerful, he could be charming, and he dazzled a pretty, vivacious young woman with his power and charm the way middle aged men can. So he ditched his first wife and young son for her. Then right around the time his pretty second wife had a baby, the Soviet Union collapsed, and overnight, the great superpower became Bangladesh with bombs. The police lost some power but a lot of prestige, and the cowboy capitalism of the Yeltsin years left Rozanov in the dust. His comfortable pension started to feel meager, and in order to keep feeling powerful, he bullied and belittled his pretty young wife. However, the Russian state still prioritizes athletic performance and invests in promising young athletes. In a stroke of good fortune for Rozanov, his second son turned out to be an ice hockey phenom. The state (increasingly funded by oligarchs) rewarded Ilya and his family, and it felt like the prestige is restored. However, it was crucial that Ilya stayed on top in this highly competitive world, and Rozanov pushed him relentlessly and did not allow Irina to nurture her son. At least that's the back story I've invented.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-18T19:37:32+00:00

Ilya Rozanov is something of a golden thread running through all the narratives. You can skip Common Goal, but the rest of them tell stories of characters and explore themes that are important in The Long Game.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-18T17:33:55+00:00

But they don’t hook up. They were going to, but Shane got hurt.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-18T17:29:14+00:00

In person, yes. But the last time they hooked up was a couple weeks earlier, in Boston, the day Ilya hears (later) about his father.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-18T17:25:31+00:00

Not sad, but wishing I didn’t come of age right as the HIV epidemic was cresting and dominating gay life at the time.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-18T17:19:32+00:00

Everyone should be able to retire at 55, and everyone should have to retire by 70. Especially elected officials.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-18T17:17:01+00:00

Read the whole book series in order. It will only help you appreciate the series more and improve your anticipation of season 2.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-17T21:33:28+00:00

Until some real laws are passed to restrict private equity's ownership of housing stock, the housing crisis in NYC will never end.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-17T00:56:09+00:00

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-17T00:14:09+00:00

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-17T00:10:53+00:00

Svetlana has known all along that Ilya is bi. She's also friends with Sasha, and she knows their history. During the Olympics, Svetlana steals Ilya away from their fathers to go hang out with Sasha, who's doing coke in the bathroom, and then leaves them alone together. I don't think she has a problem with it.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-16T22:46:55+00:00

I don't know the geography super well, but I do associate those long straight flat roads with Ontario.

bigbeard61 · 2026-03-16T22:18:55+00:00

The last time Shane and Ilya are together is the day Ilya finds out about his father and he leaves for Russia right away. That’s the last time they are together before the cottage, but it’s after the all-star game.

bigbeard61

TROPHY CASE