title: Shirley Hemphill

text: Following the cancellation of "What's Happening", Hemphill auditioned for the role of the cook on "Archie Bunker's Place", but the role went to Anne Meara. The day after losing the role, Hemphill was offered the starring role in her own sitcom "One in a Million". On the series, she portrayed Shirley Simmons, a taxi driver who inherited a huge corporation and fortune from one of her customers. The series debuted on ABC on January 8, 1980, but failed to attract a sufficient audience. ABC canceled the series in June 1980.


title: Shirley Hemphill

text: Afterward Hemphill spent most of the early 1980s working in nightclubs around the U.S. and making occasional guest appearances on TV shows, including "The Love Boat" and "Trapper John, M.D.". In 1985, she was invited to co-star on the revival of "What's Happening!!" entitled "What's Happening Now!!", which aired in syndication from 1985 to 1988. After "What's Happening Now!!" ended its three-year run, she again worked the nightclub scene and doing the occasional acting gig on a number of '90s comedy sitcoms, including "Martin" and "The Wayans Bros.". In 1993, she appeared in her first movie, "CB4" which starred Chris Rock. Two years later she co-starred in her second movie, "Shoot the Moon", starring Whitney Anderson.


title: Shirley Hemphill

text: Throughout her career, Hemphill performed her stand-up routine on a number of popular TV shows including "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson", A&E's "An Evening at the Improv", BET's "Black Comedy Showcase" and "Black Comedy Tonight". She was also a regular at The Laugh Factory comedy club in Los Angeles. A year before her death, Hemphill appeared in an episode of "The Jenny Jones Show" in a "What's Happening!!" reunion show; actors Ernest Thomas and Haywood Nelson also appeared.


title: Shirley Hemphill

text: On December 10, 1999, Hemphill was found dead at her home in West Covina, California, aged 52. Her body was discovered by a gardener who looked through a window and saw her lying on her bedroom floor. An autopsy determined that Hemphill died of kidney failure. She was cremated.


title: My Hero (song)

text: "My Hero" is a song by American rock group Foo Fighters. It was released in January 1998 as the third single from their second album, "The Colour and the Shape" (1997). The song reached number 6 on the US "Billboard" Alternative Songs chart.


title: My Hero (song)

text: Although the song was first released on "The Colour and the Shape" album in 1997, it had been played live as early as 1995. On July 17th, 1995 Grohl demoed the hit song for the first time by himself on an 8-track reel-to-reel in the basement of his Seattle home. The demo features only Grohl playing drums, bass, guitars, and singing — although the lyrics are not complete the vocal melody is the same as the final studio recording. In the Foo Fighters 2011 documentary, "", bassist Nate Mendel states he knew the band had a future when he heard Grohl’s demo, “because the song was great”.


title: My Hero (song)

text: According to Dave Grohl, the song is dedicated to ordinary, everyday heroes, as he himself never had musical or sports heroes growing up as a child. During Foo Fighters' appearance on "VH1 Storytellers" in 2009, Grohl explained that the song was written while watching 1980s movies like "Valley Girl". Grohl also stated that the band wrote the song about Pete Stahl and Chip Donaldson, without even knowing it.


title: My Hero (song)

text: The recording of the song itself was done using two different drum tracks played back simultaneously for the intro and verses. On one track, Dave Grohl played using the bass drum, hi-hat, snare drum, and crash. On the second track, it is again the bass drum, but plays the rack and floor toms as well as the snare. Because of the drums being recorded as double-tracked, live performances use a more simplified beat.


title: My Hero (song)

text: The music video was directed by Dave Grohl. It features a man running into a burning building to rescue a woman's baby, another woman's dog, and finally a framed picture of the first woman. The eyes of both the baby and the dog are blocked out. The camera follows the man throughout the video, with his face never being shown. It is presented in a continuous "long take" format, although actual transitional cuts are disguised by smoke. During shots inside the building, the band is seen performing the song, seemingly unconcerned about the chaos around them. It is the only Foo Fighters video to feature guitarist Franz Stahl, who replaced Pat Smear (Stahl did not appear in the video for the next and last single from the album, 1998's "Walking After You", as it featured only Grohl).


title: My Hero (song)

text: "My Hero" is widely regarded as one of the Foo Fighters' best songs. In 2020, "Kerrang" ranked the song number seven on their list of the 20 greatest Foo Fighters songs, and in 2021, "American Songwriter" ranked the song number one on their list of the 10 greatest Foo Fighters songs.


title: My Hero (song)

text: The song was featured in the movie "Varsity Blues" during the climactic scene of the final football game. The scene was later parodied in the 2001 film "Not Another Teen Movie". The song also appeared in the 2010 films "Somewhere" and "The Other Guys" when part of the song was heard during the scene where two characters (played by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Samuel L. Jackson) jump to their death (the song ending rather abruptly when they hit the ground).


title: My Hero (song)

text: In a post-September 11 episode of CBS's "The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn" (September 21, 2001), Grohl and bassist Nate Mendel performed an acoustic rendition of the song. A full group acoustic version is available on the 2006 live album and DVD "Skin and Bones". An acoustic version was also performed live on "The Howard Stern Show" by Grohl in 1999. The 2006 album "Sound of Superman" features an acoustic cover of "My Hero" by Paramore.


title: My Hero (song)

text: "My Hero" was featured in the game "Gran Turismo 2". The song, along with the rest of the album, was released as downloadable content for the "Rock Band" series of music video games on November 13, 2008.


title: My Hero (song)

text: It is also one of 38 songs included on the benefit album, "Songs for Japan" (compiled in response to the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami in Tōhoku), released on March 25, 2011.


title: My Hero (song)

text: In 2008, the Foo Fighters criticized the campaign of Republican presidential candidate John McCain for using their song at rallies without their permission.


title: My Hero (song)

text: Foo Fighters responded to the incident saying: "It's frustrating and infuriating that someone who claims to speak for the American people would repeatedly show such little respect for creativity and intellectual property. . . The saddest thing about this is that 'My Hero' was written as a celebration of the common man and his extraordinary potential. To have it appropriated without our knowledge and used in a manner that perverts the original sentiment of the lyric just tarnishes the song."


title: My Hero (song)

text: The McCain campaign noted that the song was used properly under blanket licensing (which does not require the artist's permission), and all proper royalties were paid.


title: My Hero (song)

text: However, the band played a stripped down, acoustic version of the song live, during an appearance at the end of the 2012 Democratic National Convention.


title: My Hero (song)

text: Previously, Republican President George W. Bush had used Foo Fighters' 2003 single "Times Like These" during his 2004 re-election campaign without the band's knowledge or consent. This prompted the band to perform a slew of shows in support of Democratic candidate John Kerry.


title: Eric Bristow

text: Eric John Bristow, (25 April 1957 – 5 April 2018), nicknamed "The Crafty Cockney", was an English professional darts player.


title: Eric Bristow

text: He was ranked World No. 1 by the World Darts Federation a record five times, in 1980, 1981 and 1983–1985. He was a five-time World Champion, a five-time World Masters Champion a four-time World Cup singles champion and 2-time champion of the News of the World Darts Championship. He won 22 WDF and BDO Major titles, he won 62 individual career titles, added to 20 titles in team events, winning 82 overall. In the 1980s, Bristow's skill and personality helped turn darts into a worldwide spectator sport.


title: Eric Bristow

text: In 1993, Bristow was one of sixteen top players who broke away from the British Darts Organisation (BDO) to form their own organisation, which became the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC).


title: Eric Bristow

text: He retired from competitive darts in 2007 and subsequently worked as a commentator and pundit on Sky Sports darts coverage.


title: Eric Bristow

text: In 1957, Bristow was born in the London Borough of Hackney, where his father was a plasterer and his mother worked as a telephone operator. Bristow left school at age 14. Bristow won his first world championship in 1980, defeating fellow Londoner Bobby George (regarded as the match that changed darts forever) so beginning almost a decade of domination, retaining his title in 1981 and winning it again in 1984, 1985 and 1986. Like his snooker contemporary Steve Davis, however, he also had to cope with a shock defeat in a final during this period, when young unknown Keith Deller beat him in the 1983 final; he had also lost to Steve Brennan in the previous year's first round. As well as his five world titles, Bristow also finished as runner-up on five occasions, the last in 1991.


title: Eric Bristow

text: The nickname "Crafty Cockney" was given to Bristow when he visited an English pub of that name in 1976 during a visit to Santa Monica, California. Bristow wore a shirt (which he received from the same pub) depicting a uniformed British policeman, a Union Flag and the title "Crafty Cockney" whenever he took part in a tournament.


title: Eric Bristow

text: Bristow emerged as the most successful and consistent darts player of the 1980s, reigning as number one in the world rankings most of the time from 1980 until 1987. He was fortunate to have been around at the right time as television began showing increased interest in the sport in the late 1970s, with the first world championship occurring in 1978. This, allied to the fact that a governing body had been formed in January 1973 and that Bristow had not only supreme talent for one so young but an imposing personality and uncontained self belief, enabled him to make a very successful living. Cocky and arrogant, he invariably wound opponents up before and during matches with his gamesmanship. Crowds would boo Bristow when he was on stage, no less so than in Scotland, an atmosphere in which he revelled.


title: Eric Bristow

text: During the 1982 Arrows Chemicals British International Championship match in Scotland, Bristow was subject to what "Darts World Magazine" called "the most sustained barrage of jeering witnessed at a Darts match". He played to the crowd during his game with Harry Patterson; following a treble 20, he turned to the crowd only to be greeted with boos; his next dart was a treble 20, after which he turned to the crowd who met him with even more boos and jeers; lastly, his third dart was only a single 20, but the crowd applauded and Bristow merely grinned it off.


title: Eric Bristow

text: As well as his world championship exploits, Bristow also lifted the prestigious Winmau World Masters crown no fewer than five times (1977 beating Paul Reynolds, 1979 beating Canadian Allan Hogg, 1981 beating defending champion John Lowe, 1983 beating Mike Gregory and 1984 beating Keith Deller). He also reached the final in 1989, losing to Peter Evison. He was a winner of the World Cup Singles on four occasions (1983 beating Jocky Wilson, 1985 beating Tony Payne, 1987 beating Bob Sinnaeve and 1989 beating Jack McKenna) and won the News of the World Darts Championship in 1983 beating Ralph Flatt and 1984 beating Ian Robertson together with countless other major tournaments including the British Open and Swedish Open three times each and the North American Open on four occasions.


title: Eric Bristow

text: During the Swedish Open in November 1986, Bristow found himself unable to let go of his darts properly – a psychological condition known as dartitis, similar to the yips in golf. He was never the same player again, but did regain the number-one ranking briefly in late 1989 and early 1990 before losing his form again. He had a last hurrah at the highest level of professional darts when reaching the semi finals of the 1997 WDC World Darts Championship at the Circus Tavern, where he narrowly lost to Phil Taylor 4–5 in sets.


title: Eric Bristow

text: In the 1980s, Bristow came across Phil Taylor, then a raw young darts talent in Stoke-on-Trent. He sponsored him with about £10,000 to fund his development in the game, on the understanding that the money would be repaid. Taylor went on to usurp his mentor as the greatest darts player ever, with Bristow often on the receiving end of his brilliance.


title: Eric Bristow

text: Bristow's form deteriorated in the early 1990s and he was dropped from the Merseyside team in 1992. Bristow had joined Merseyside, his third county, in 1988, after previously playing for London from 1976–1980 and for Staffordshire from 1980–1988. With Merseyside, Bristow played with his international teammate Kevin Kenny, and after being dropped by Merseyside, he was dropped from the England national side later the same year. The split within darts saw Bristow become a founding member of the Professional Darts Corporation. At the World Matchplay event in Blackpool, Bristow made six appearances without winning a match. His swansong came in a classic semi-final at the 1997 PDC World Championship, which he lost to his protégé, Phil Taylor. Bristow's last appearance came at the World Championships in 2000, ending his 23-year run of playing in a world championship. He stopped playing professionally after the event.


title: Eric Bristow

text: From late December 1993, until November 2016, when he was sacked, he worked mainly as a spotter, a pundit and an occasional commentator for Sky Sports during televised PDC tournaments, while continuing to travel and play on the exhibition circuit. Bristow returned to TV screens as a player in 2008 on Setanta Sports to compete in the BetFred League of Legends tournament, beating Bobby George 7–5 in the opening match. Bristow failed to maintain his form, however, and did not win another match in the tournament, failing to qualify for the semi-finals and finishing bottom of the League of Legends table. In 2004, Bristow played John Lowe, with Bristow showing glimpses of his old form in winning the match 6 legs to 1.


title: Eric Bristow

text: On 29 November 2016, Bristow was sacked by Sky Sports following a series of tweets in which he responded to the United Kingdom football sexual abuse scandal centred around the football coach and convicted child sex offender, Barry Bennell. Bristow suggested the victims should have "sorted out" the perpetrators when they were older. According to him, "Dart players tough guys footballers wimps". Bristow was condemned by social media users, including alleged victims of Bennell, for his comments. Bristow apologised for his comments the following day. In a statement, he compared himself to a "bull in a China shop" and "appreciated my wording was wrong and offended many people".


title: Eric Bristow

text: Eric was educated at Hackney Downs Grammar School from 1968 to 1971, having passed his eleven-plus exam. He left grammar school at the age of 14.


title: Eric Bristow

text: From 1978 to 1987, Bristow was in a relationship with former darts player Maureen Flowers. In 1989 he married Jane Higginbotham (born 1962). They had two children, a daughter and a son. They divorced in 2005 after 16 years of marriage, and he was later in a relationship with Rebecca Gadd until his death.


title: Eric Bristow

text: In 1979, Bristow was the subject of a film directed by Scottish filmmaker John Samson entitled “Arrows” the 30-minute short got its cinema release as the supporting feature for the 1980 British gangster film "The Long Good Friday". He also played himself in 2002 film "Heartlands."


title: Eric Bristow

text: In 2005, Bristow was accused of assaulting his wife. North Staffordshire magistrates ordered him to stay away from the family home in Milltown Way, Leek, Staffordshire and he was remanded on conditional bail. Bristow was alleged to have punched her in the face during a drunken row in their bedroom on 29 April 2005. He was subsequently cleared of the charges.


title: Eric Bristow

text: In 2012, Bristow participated in the reality show "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!" He was voted out on 29 November 2012, finishing fourth out of 12 celebrities.


title: Eric Bristow

text: Eric's father, George Bristow, was a big Arsenal supporter, and was an Arsenal season ticket holder for most of his life. George and Eric would go together to almost every Arsenal game, home and away, in the 1960s and the first half of the 1970s. A rare exception to this was Arsenal's 1971 FA Cup Final against Liverpool at Wembley Stadium, a final in which George had a ticket, while Eric watched on television.


title: Eric Bristow

text: Despite Eric going to almost every Arsenal game with his dad for around a decade, Eric became a supporter of Chelsea from the late 1960s until the end of his life, and he went to some Chelsea games on his own at Stamford Bridge in the early and mid 1970s. Eric shared his father's negative opinions of London rivals Tottenham Hotspur.


title: Eric Bristow

text: Bristow died on 5 April 2018, after a heart attack while attending a Premier League Darts event at the Echo Arena in Liverpool. Bristow had finished playing some VIPs at a promotional event and was walking back to his car, when he collapsed and was rushed to hospital. Bristow's death was announced during the match between Peter Wright and Daryl Gurney. The crowd paid tribute to Bristow. Speaking to BBC Radio Two, Bobby George said: "In the afternoon, I was doing a show at a pub opposite the Premier League (darts) building, and he just came in, said 'hello' and had a pint, then said 'see ya', I said 'see ya' because I was working... he went across the road, and two-and-a-half hours later, he was gone.


title: Electra Heart

text: Electra Heart is the second studio album by Welsh singer Marina Diamandis, released under the stage name Marina and the Diamonds. It was released on 27 April 2012 by 679 Artists and Atlantic Records. Diamandis collaborated with producers including Liam Howe, Greg Kurstin, Dr. Luke, Diplo and Stargate during its recording, and subsequently transitioned from the new wave musical styles seen throughout her debut studio album, "The Family Jewels" (2010). Their efforts resulted in a concept album consisting of electropop and dance-pop music, a distinct departure from her earlier projects. Lyrically, the album discusses topics of love and identity. Diamandis created the title character "Electra Heart" to represent female archetypes in popular American culture (House Wife, Beauty Queen, Homewrecker, and Idle Teen).


title: Electra Heart

text: Music critics were divided in their opinions of "Electra Heart", expressing ambivalence towards Diamandis' shift in musical style and its overall production. However, the album retrospectively earned the status of a cult classic, with "Rolling Stone" listing it among the 50 greatest concept albums of all time. The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart with first-week sales of 21,358 copies. In doing so, it earned Diamandis her first chart-topping album there. The album was eventually certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for exceeding shipments of 100,000 units. "Electra Heart" performed moderately on international charts, including a peak position of number 31 on the US "Billboard" 200, and became Diamandis' highest-charting album in the United States at the time selling an estimated 11,000 copies.


title: Electra Heart

text: "Electra Heart" was supported by three singles, all of which were supplemented by music videos. "Primadonna" was released as the lead single from the album on 20 March 2012, and peaked at number 11 on the UK Singles Chart. Follow-up singles "Power & Control" and "How to Be a Heartbreaker" were respectively released on 20 July and 7 December, and reached numbers 193 and 88 in the United Kingdom. Promotional single "Radioactive" charted inside the top 40 in several countries. The album was additionally promoted by Diamandis' headlining The Lonely Hearts Club Tour, which visited Europe and North America from May 2012 through May 2013.


title: Electra Heart

text: After returning from the United States after the launch of her debut studio album "The Family Jewels" (2010), Diamandis considered creating a character which would become the centerpiece of her follow-up project. She commented that she was inspired by the "Tumblr generation" to photograph herself in several places across the United States, appearing as a different persona in each picture to mimick the anonymity of the "mini-stars of the internet". The final product became "a cold, ruthless character who wasn't vulnerable", which she later named "Electra Heart" and detailed as a tool to represent a combination of elements associated with the American Dream and Greek tragedy, and added that visuals would merge the differing concepts into a cohesive idea.


title: Electra Heart

text: Diamandis first announced "Electra Heart" in August 2011; it was initially planned to become a three-piece project inspired by American culture in the 1970s, although it eventually evolved into her second studio album. Diamandis originally planned to release the record as a "side project" under an entity separate from Marina and the Diamonds, although her management disapproved. The track "Living Dead" was the first recorded during its production, and approximately 22 songs were recorded for potential inclusion on the album. She later commented that the record was dedicated to "dysfunctional love", elaborating that "rejection is a universally embarrassing topic and "Electra Heart" is my response to that." Diamandis stated that "Electra Heart" was influenced by Madonna, Marilyn Monroe, and Queen of France Marie Antoinette; she described Madonna as being "fearless" and felt that she showcased a desire to be a successful artist beyond fame and wealth. Diamandis told "Glamour" that Britney Spears influenced a "double-sided" theme for the record of both "innocence" and "darkness". She described the final product as being "a bit cringe" and reflective of her personal experiences, although noted that its promotional campaign would be "pink and fluffy".


title: Electra Heart

text: "Electra Heart" is an electropop and dance-pop record with inflections of pop-punk, dubstep, rock, and Italo disco. It has been described as a concept album detailing "female identity" and "a recent breakup". It represents a musical departure from Diamandis' debut studio album "The Family Jewels" (2010), which incorporated a new wave and indie rock-influenced sonority. She later commented that the album was specifically designed as a pop record to allow her to establish a greater prominence in the contemporary music industry. The title character "Electra Heart" portrays four female archetypes in the album: "Teen Idle", "Primadonna", "Homewrecker", and "Su-Barbie-A". Their presences on each track are not clearly defined, although Diamandis acknowledged that they are more apparent on the visual aspects of the album.


title: Electra Heart

text: Alexis Petridis from "The Guardian" compared the lyrical content used throughout the pop punk-inspired opener "Bubblegum Bitch" to "the self-fulfilling I-will-be-huge prophecy" that was developed in "The Fame" by Lady Gaga. The following track "Primadonna" is a pop number that contains a "surging beat" and an "anti-chorus structure", which according to James Christopher Monger from AllMusic blends styles reminiscent of Swedish singer Lykke Li and the British band Coldplay. "Lies" is an electro ballad, which Michael Cragg from BBC Music felt that allowed Diamandis to "deal directly with her emotions", and opined that contributions from producer Diplo gave the song "extra gloom wobble sadness". Cragg classified "Homewrecker" as a "vampy" track which blends verses centred around spoken-word vocals with a "stompy" refrain where Diamandis declares "I broke a million hearts just for fun". Cragg further opined that "Starring Role" was "heart-rending in its simplicity", and noticed prominent piano and drum instrumentation throughout the recording.


title: Electra Heart

text: Monger saw the sixth track "The State of Dreaming" as a solemn offering from the record for its intellectual lyrical content, which he described as one of several tracks that "reveal the lonely rebel, defiantly eating lunch alone, secretly wishing for acceptance." "Power & Control" was detailed as an electropop track by Emily Mackay from "The Quietus", while Laura Snapes from "Pitchfork" commented that Diamandis repeatedly delivers the lyrics "I am weak" with an "increasingly ephemeral voice" as it progresses. Snapes also felt that "Living Dead" was a more "vulnerable moment" from "Electra Heart", and compared it to the "snappy [and] taut" works of English duo Soft Cell. Monger recognised inspiration from American singer Lana Del Rey in "Teen Idle" and felt that it represented "the feral blood of an army of disenfranchised high-school loners coming into their own". Bradley Stern from MuuMuse suggested that "Valley of the Dolls" drew inspiration from the 1967 film of the same name, and described "Hypocrates" as a "sparkling guitar-pop tune" that takes stylistic influences from 1960s pop music and details the power struggle between romantic partners. "Electra Heart" closes with its 12th track "Fear and Loathing", which experiments with electronic music styles; Petridis made particular note of its minimal production, which according to him, places emphasis on Diamandis' "coolly enunciated and slightly folky" vocals.


title: Electra Heart

text: On 1 March, Diamandis unveiled the album artwork for the standard version of "Electra Heart", which depicts a blonde Diamandis wearing several hair rollers. The singer later revealed that because of the dye, her hair started to fall out, so she got a boy's haircut and wore a wig. Becky Bain from Idolator complimented its "retro film stock look" and opined that it "is just a snapshot from some 1970s exploitation movie", while Bradley Stern from MuuMuse jokingly referenced the album track "Homewrecker" when stating that she "looks like a proper Suzy Homemaker! (Or should I say Suzy Homewrecker?)" The artwork for the deluxe version features the same picture of Diamandis, although it is tinted purple. The track listing for the standard version was confirmed on 1 March, while the track listing for the deluxe version was announced on 5 March. A limited edition box set of "Electra Heart" contained the deluxe version of the record, four photo art cards, a ring, perspex, necklace, and pocket mirror.


title: Electra Heart

text: Diamandis released 11 music videos through YouTube during the promotional campaign for "Electra Heart". She claimed that their production led her record label into bankruptcy, but stated that they would be released and "finish this era the way I want to." The first, titled "Part 1: Fear and Loathing", was released on 8 August 2011, and sees Diamandis cutting her long brown hair and singing the track on a balcony during the nighttime. It was followed by "Part 2: Radioactive" on 22 August, which depicts a blonde-wigged Diamandis travelling across the United States with her romantic interest. The track was released through the iTunes Store on 23 September, and peaked at number 25 on the UK Singles Chart on 15 October. The black-and-white clip "Part 3: The Archetypes" shows the close-up of a blonde Diamandis while the introduction of "The State of Dreaming" is played; it introduced the archetypes "housewife", "beauty queen", "homewrecker", and "idle teen" on 15 December. "Part 4: Primadonna" served as the music video for the lead single from the record on 12 March 2012.


title: Electra Heart

text: Uploaded on 18 May, the black-and-white "Part 5: Su-Barbie-A" is set to the introduction of "Valley of the Dolls" with overlapped commentary mentioning "Quick-Curl Barbie" and "Mod-Hair Ken"; it depicts Diamandis standing on the porch of a house with her back to the front door. It was followed by "Part 6: Power & Control" on 30 May, where Diamandis is seen engaging in a series of mind games with her romantic interest. Diamandis alleged that Atlantic Records delayed the premiere of "Part 7: How to Be a Heartbreaker" because they felt she was "ugly" in the clip; it was made publicly available on 28 September, and sees Diamandis interacting with several shirtless men in a community shower. "Part 8: E.V.O.L." introduced the previously-unreleased track "E.V.O.L" on 14 February 2013. The black-and-white visual shows a brown-wigged Diamandis looking about a room with white-tiled walls.


title: Electra Heart

text: "Part 9: The State of Dreaming", premiered on 2 March, presents Diamandis lying on a bed while "alternating between sad eyes and a big smile". It begins with a black-and-white filter, although transitions into color after the first minute. It was followed by "Part 10: Lies" on 17 July, and employs a similar black-and-white to color technique. Diamandis is first seen looking into the camera wearing little makeup, and is later shown walking into the woods and sitting at a dinner table in the rain. The final music video "Part 11: Electra Heart" introduced the previously-unreleased title track; the clip itself contains footage from the earlier music videos. It symbolically ended the promotional era for "Electra Heart", with Diamandis having tweeted "Goodbye, Electra Heart!" on 8 August, the same day the video was released.


title: Electra Heart

text: Inspired by the six-single promotional campaign for Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" (2010), Diamandis planned to release six singles from "Electra Heart"; however, three tracks were released before she finished promoting the album. "Primadonna" was announced as the lead single from the record on 13 March 2012, and was released through the iTunes Store in the United States on 20 March. Robert Copsey from Digital Spy spoke favourably of the track, complimenting its overall production and Diamandis' portrayal of its female archetype. It peaked at number 11 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Diamandis' fifth song to enter the top 40 in the United Kingdom. "Power & Control" was released through the iTunes Store in the United Kingdom on 20 July 2012 and served as the second single from "Electra Heart". It peaked at number 193 on the UK Singles Chart. In July 2012, it was announced that "How to Be a Heartbreaker" would be released as the second single in the United States and the third single in the United Kingdom. Diamandis commented that she had written the track while "Electra Heart" was being pressed in the United Kingdom, and consequently missed the cut-off for initial inclusion on the record; however, it was featured in the revised track listing for the American version. The song was released through the iTunes Store on 7 December 2012, and peaked at number 88 on the UK Singles Chart.


title: Electra Heart

text: In February 2012, Diamandis announced the launch of her headlining The Lonely Hearts Club Tour. It ran alongside the Mylo Xyloto Tour headlined by Coldplay, for which Diamandis served as the supporting act. The Lonely Hearts Club Tour was initially scheduled to begin on 4 May at the Manchester Cathedral in Manchester, although it was delayed after Diamandis sustained a vocal cord injury, and ultimately began on 18 June at The Waterfront in Norwich. The American leg of the tour began on 10 July at The Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles, while the tour itself ended on 29 May 2013 after a performance at the Rumsey Playfield in New York City.


title: Electra Heart

text: "Electra Heart" received mixed reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 57, based on 16 reviews. Writing for AllMusic, James Christopher Monger compared the record to the works of American singers Kesha and Lady Gaga, and favourably summarised it as "a brooding, sexy, desperate, overwrought, and infectious record that's both aware and unashamed of its contrivance." Michael Cragg of BBC Music felt that the recurring concept of failed romance established "a strange dichotomy" that created a sense of cohesiveness, and elaborated that it "[pulls] you sharply into her world." He considered the second half of the disc to be mildly disappointing, although concluded that this was excusable because the overall record "[balances] the ironic and the heartfelt, the quirky and the mainstream, the real and the fake with remarkable aplomb." Tim Stack of "Entertainment Weekly" complimented Diamandis for her ability to "rival Katy Perry for catchy hooks, command with the swagger of Gwen Stefani, and even come close to the ethereal vocal exhilaration of Florence Welch." Stack opined that "Electra Heart" was a healthy combination of up-tempo recordings and genuinely-delivered ballads, and placed additional praise on the female archetypes explored throughout the album.


title: Electra Heart

text: "The Guardian" writer Alexis Petridis was confident that "there's clearly an interesting pop star" emerging from Diamandis, but suggested that her creativity was restricted by the heavy integration of alter egos and an implied determination for commercial success, which he commented failed to reflect Diamandis' inventiveness. Simon Price from "The Independent" accepted that the record was "too professional to be truly terrible", although noted that Diamandis' revamped public image as a "British Katy Perry" lacked ingenuity. "NME" columnist Priya Elan summarised the album as an "expensive-sounding failure" that suffered from its lack of decisiveness. Writing for "Pitchfork", Laura Snapes questioned the decision of creating the "Electra Heart" character for the record, and suggested that it was unnecessary. She elaborated that "duller and more unbearable" tracks were unavoidable, and expressed particular disappointment because she thought that "Electra Heart" could have become "one of the year's most acclaimed pop albums." Representing "The Observer", Kitty Empire assumed that Diamandis' collaborations with Dr. Luke and Greg Kurstin were evidence of "a big label push". She compared the disc to the works of Perry and Britney Spears, although felt that Lana Del Rey was more successful in embodying the themes of "love, identity, femininity and America" than Diamandis' generic production values allowed. Emily Mackay from "The Quietus" criticised the songs' titles for being lacklustre, which she sarcastically stated caused listeners "physical pain", and was disappointed that the character "Electra Heart" was a scapegoat for expressing "all the worst parts of Marina Diamandis that she didn't want to become."


title: Electra Heart

text: "Electra Heart" debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart with first-week sales of 21,358 copies. It became Diamandis' first chart-topping album in the United Kingdom, although it was additionally distinguished as the lowest-selling number-one record of the 21st century in the country. It was later surpassed by "Write It on Your Skin" by Newton Faulkner, which debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart with first-week sales of 16,647 copies three months later. On 15 April 2016, "Electra Heart" was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry for exceeding shipments of 100,000 units in the United Kingdom. The record additionally reached number one on both the Irish Albums Chart and the Scottish Albums Chart; it was recognised with a gold certification in the former territory by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA).


title: Electra Heart

text: "Electra Heart" performed moderately on additional record charts in Europe. The record peaked at number 11 on the Swiss Hitparade, and reached number 17 on the German Media Control Charts. It charted at number 25 on the Ö3 Austria Top 40, number 30 on the Norwegian VG-lista, and number 41 on the Swedish Sverigetopplistan. The album reached the lower ends of the Dutch MegaCharts and the Belgian Ultratop in Wallonia, respectively peaking at numbers 92 and 132 in each region. However, it reached number 31 on the Official New Zealand Music Chart and number 32 on the Australian ARIA Albums Chart in Oceania.


title: Electra Heart

text: "Electra Heart" debuted at number 31 on the US "Billboard" 200, and reached number two on the "Billboard" Dance/Electronic Albums component chart. It had sold 150,000 copies in the United States as of May 2015. On 13 April 2019, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), denoting shipments in excess of 500,000 units in the United States. Elsewhere in North America, the record peaked at number 50 on the Canadian Albums Chart. In August 2012, Diamandis commented that she believed consumers in the United Kingdom had misinterpreted her comical effort with a perceived abandonment of her original musical inspiration, thus resulting in a relative underperformance in the country. In contrast, she felt that her American audience was more receptive of "Electra Heart" and her evolving public image.


title: Electra Heart

text: In 2021, the album's opening track "Bubblegum Bitch"—despite never having been released as a single—experienced a resurgence on social media platform TikTok and subsequently was certified Gold in the United States.


title: Hamburger button

text: The hamburger button (the triple bar ≡ or trigram symbol ☰), so named for its unintentional resemblance to a hamburger, is a button typically placed in a top corner of a graphical user interface. Its function is to toggle a menu (sometimes referred to as a hamburger menu) or navigation bar between being collapsed behind the button or displayed on the screen. The icon which is associated with this widget, consisting of three horizontal bars, is also known as the "collapsed menu icon".


title: Hamburger button

text: The icon was originally designed by Norm Cox as part of the user interface for the Xerox Star, introduced in 1981; it saw a resurgence starting in 2009 stemming from the limited screen area available to mobile apps. Cox described the icon's creation, saying “Its graphic design was meant to be very “road sign” simple, functionally memorable, and mimic the look of the resulting displayed menu list. With so few pixels to work with, it had to be very distinct, yet simple. I think we only had 16×16 pixels to render the image. (or possibly 13×13... can't remember exactly).”


title: Hamburger button

text: In possibly its first use after the Xerox Star, the release of Windows 1.0 in 1985 contained a hamburger icon in each window's control menu. It was short-lived, however, as the hamburger icon disappeared in Windows 2.0 in favor of a single horizontal line denoting the control menu. Windows 95 replaced the single line with the program's icon, and the hamburger would not return to Windows until a placement on the Start menu of the one-year update of Windows 10.


title: Hamburger button

text: The "menu" button takes the form of an icon that consists of three parallel horizontal lines (displayed as ≡), suggestive of a list. The name refers to its resemblance to the menu that is typically exposed or opened when interacting with it. The wider button may be reduced to three vertically stacked dots (displayed as a tri-colon or vertical ellipsis ⋮ ), also known as a "kebab icon", "meatball icon" or "falafel icon". In the Microsoft Office 365 platform, a similar application menu consisting of three rows of three squares is displayed. Tapping, clicking or otherwise activating this button results in a menu being revealed, which distinguishes it from a menu or tab bar that is always on display.


title: Hamburger button

text: It has been argued that while the collapsed menu button is now commonplace, its functionality is not necessarily immediately obvious when first encountered; in particular, older users less familiar with modern iconography may find it confusing. The location of the hamburger menu icon depends on the specific website or app. However, the general consensus seems to be that the hamburger menu icon should be placed on the right side of the screen for most websites and apps.


title: Hamburger button

text: The menu button may increase interaction cost compared to a bottom bar menu, requiring extra clicks to retrieve the same information, albeit with the benefit of less space usage of the screen, in the context of mobile apps. It has also been argued that designers tend to overload these icons with too much hidden information.


title: Baby Blue (Badfinger song)

text: "Baby Blue" is a song by Welsh rock band Badfinger from their fourth studio album, "Straight Up" (1971). The song was written by Pete Ham, produced by Todd Rundgren, and released on Apple Records. As a single in the US in 1972, it went to #14. In 2013, the song was prominently featured in the series finale of the television show "Breaking Bad". As a result, the song charted in the UK for the first time, reaching #73.


title: Baby Blue (Badfinger song)

text: Ham wrote the song about a woman named Dixie Armstrong, whom he had dated during Badfinger's last US tour. Guitarist Joey Molland recalled, "She came to one of the shows, they got talking and Pete really liked her. I don’t know whether they fell in love straight away, but he invited her on the road with us and she came along." Ham ultimately ended the relationship, partially as a result of Armstrong's lack of interest in Badfinger's recording and touring activities. Ham composed the song on acoustic guitar and Molland claims to have helped streamline the song's linking parts.


title: Baby Blue (Badfinger song)

text: The song was recorded during sporadic sessions that started on 25 September 1971. It was further worked upon on 27 September before finally being completed on 6 October 1971, the final recording session for the album "Straight Up." All sessions were held at George Martin's AIR Studios together with producer Todd Rundgren.


title: Baby Blue (Badfinger song)

text: "Baby Blue" was released as a single in the US on 6 March 1972, in a blue-tinted picture sleeve and featuring a new mix. Because Al Steckler, the head of Apple US, felt that it needed a stronger hook in the opening, he remixed the track with engineer Eddie Kramer in February 1972, applying heavy reverb to the snare during the first verse and middle eight. It was the group's last Top 20 single, peaking at #14 on the "Billboard" Pop Singles chart. It also reached #18 in South Africa.


title: Baby Blue (Badfinger song)

text: However, the chaos that was enveloping the Apple UK operation at the time was strongly evident with regard to this song. While Apple US gave the song a picture sleeve and a remix to ensure that it was a hit, Apple UK remained unaware of its commercial potential. Although the single was assigned a release number for the UK (Apple 42), and had a scheduled release date of 10 March 1972, "Baby Blue" was never actually released as a single in the UK.


title: Baby Blue (Badfinger song)

text: The song experienced a resurgence of popularity in 2013 when it was featured in the television program "Breaking Bad" during the closing scene of the series finale. Online streams increased in popularity immediately following the broadcast. According to Nielsen Soundscan, 5,300 downloads were purchased the night of the broadcast, and the song appeared on the "Billboard" Digital Songs chart at #32 the week ending October 19, 2013. Joey Molland, the last surviving member of the classic line-up of Badfinger, took to Twitter to express his excitement at the song's use in the finale and subsequently began to retweet news articles about the song's usage in the finale. It became a top-selling song on iTunes following the broadcast. As a result, the song charted in the UK for the first time, reaching #73. It also charted at #35 in Ireland.


title: Baby Blue (Badfinger song)

text: Singer-songwriter Barbara Manning covered the song with her band, S.F. Seals, on the 1994 album "Nowhere".


title: Baby Blue (Badfinger song)

text: The song was also briefly used in the 2019 movie "Annabelle Comes Home", which is a part of The Conjuring Universe.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: γ-Aminobutyric acid ("gamma"-aminobutyric acid) , or GABA , is the chief inhibitory neurotransmitter in the developmentally mature mammalian central nervous system. Its principal role is reducing neuronal excitability throughout the nervous system.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA is sold as a dietary supplement in many countries. It has been traditionally thought that exogenous GABA (i.e. taken as a supplement) doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier, however data obtained from more current research describes the notion as being unclear pending further research.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: Neurons that produce GABA as their output are called GABAergic neurons, and have chiefly inhibitory action at receptors in the adult vertebrate. Medium spiny cells are a typical example of inhibitory central nervous system GABAergic cells. In contrast, GABA exhibits both excitatory and inhibitory actions in insects, mediating muscle activation at synapses between nerves and muscle cells, and also the stimulation of certain glands. In mammals, some GABAergic neurons, such as chandelier cells, are also able to excite their glutamatergic counterparts.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA receptors are ligand-activated chloride channels: when activated by GABA, they allow the flow of chloride ions across the membrane of the cell. Whether this chloride flow is depolarizing (makes the voltage across the cell's membrane less negative), shunting (has no effect on the cell's membrane potential), or inhibitory/hyperpolarizing (makes the cell's membrane more negative) depends on the direction of the flow of chloride. When net chloride flows out of the cell, GABA is depolarising; when chloride flows into the cell, GABA is inhibitory or hyperpolarizing. When the net flow of chloride is close to zero, the action of GABA is shunting. Shunting inhibition has no direct effect on the membrane potential of the cell; however, it reduces the effect of any coincident synaptic input by reducing the electrical resistance of the cell's membrane. Shunting inhibition can "override" the excitatory effect of depolarising GABA, resulting in overall inhibition even if the membrane potential becomes less negative. It was thought that a developmental switch in the molecular machinery controlling the concentration of chloride inside the cell changes the functional role of GABA between neonatal and adult stages. As the brain develops into adulthood, GABA's role changes from excitatory to inhibitory.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA is an inhibitory transmitter in the mature brain; its actions were thought to be primarily excitatory in the developing brain. The gradient of chloride was reported to be reversed in immature neurons, with its reversal potential higher than the resting membrane potential of the cell; activation of a GABA-A receptor thus leads to efflux of Cl ions from the cell (that is, a depolarizing current). The differential gradient of chloride in immature neurons was shown to be primarily due to the higher concentration of NKCC1 co-transporters relative to KCC2 co-transporters in immature cells. GABAergic interneurons mature faster in the hippocampus and the GABA machinery appears earlier than glutamatergic transmission. Thus, GABA is considered the major excitatory neurotransmitter in many regions of the brain before the maturation of glutamatergic synapses.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: In the developmental stages preceding the formation of synaptic contacts, GABA is synthesized by neurons and acts both as an autocrine (acting on the same cell) and paracrine (acting on nearby cells) signalling mediator. The ganglionic eminences also contribute greatly to building up the GABAergic cortical cell population.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA regulates the proliferation of neural progenitor cells, the migration and differentiation the elongation of neurites and the formation of synapses.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA also regulates the growth of embryonic and neural stem cells. GABA can influence the development of neural progenitor cells via brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression. GABA activates the GABA receptor, causing cell cycle arrest in the S-phase, limiting growth.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: Besides the nervous system, GABA is also produced at relatively high levels in the insulin-producing beta cells (β-cells) of the pancreas. The β-cells secrete GABA along with insulin and the GABA binds to GABA receptors on the neighboring islet alpha cells (α-cells) and inhibits them from secreting glucagon (which would counteract insulin's effects).


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA can promote the replication and survival of β-cells and also promote the conversion of α-cells to β-cells, which may lead to new treatments for diabetes.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: Alongside GABAergic mechanisms, GABA has also been detected in other peripheral tissues including intestines, stomach, Fallopian tubes, uterus, ovaries, testes, kidneys, urinary bladder, the lungs and liver, albeit at much lower levels than in neurons or β-cells.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: Experiments on mice have shown that hypothyroidism induced by fluoride poisoning can be halted by administering GABA. The test also found that the thyroid recovered naturally without further assistance after the Fluoride had been expelled by the GABA.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: Immune cells express receptors for GABA and administration of GABA can suppress inflammatory immune responses and promote "regulatory" immune responses, such that GABA administration has been shown to inhibit autoimmune diseases in several animal models.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: In 2018, GABA has shown to regulate secretion of a greater number of cytokines. In plasma of T1D patients, levels of 26 cytokines are increased and of those, 16 are inhibited by GABA in the cell assays.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: In 2007, an excitatory GABAergic system was described in the airway epithelium. The system is activated by exposure to allergens and may participate in the mechanisms of asthma. GABAergic systems have also been found in the testis and in the eye lens.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA is found mostly as a zwitterion (i.e. with the carboxyl group deprotonated and the amino group protonated). Its conformation depends on its environment. In the gas phase, a highly folded conformation is strongly favored due to the electrostatic attraction between the two functional groups. The stabilization is about 50 kcal/mol, according to quantum chemistry calculations. In the solid state, an extended conformation is found, with a trans conformation at the amino end and a gauche conformation at the carboxyl end. This is due to the packing interactions with the neighboring molecules. In solution, five different conformations, some folded and some extended, are found as a result of solvation effects. The conformational flexibility of GABA is important for its biological function, as it has been found to bind to different receptors with different conformations. Many GABA analogues with pharmaceutical applications have more rigid structures in order to control the binding better.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: In 1883, GABA was first synthesized, and it was first known only as a plant and microbe metabolic product.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: In 1959, it was shown that at an inhibitory synapse on crayfish muscle fibers GABA acts like stimulation of the inhibitory nerve. Both inhibition by nerve stimulation and by applied GABA are blocked by picrotoxin.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA is primarily synthesized from glutamate via the enzyme glutamate decarboxylase (GAD) with pyridoxal phosphate (the active form of vitamin B6) as a cofactor. This process converts glutamate (the principal excitatory neurotransmitter) into GABA (the principal inhibitory neurotransmitter).


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: Traditionally it was thought that exogenous GABA did not penetrate the blood–brain barrier, however more current research describes the notion as being unclear pending further research.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA transaminase enzymes catalyze the conversion of 4-aminobutanoic acid (GABA) and 2-oxoglutarate (α-ketoglutarate) into succinic semialdehyde and glutamate. Succinic semialdehyde is then oxidized into succinic acid by succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase and as such enters the citric acid cycle as a usable source of energy.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: Drugs that act as allosteric modulators of GABA receptors (known as GABA analogues or "GABAergic" drugs), or increase the available amount of GABA, typically have relaxing, anti-anxiety, and anti-convulsive effects (with equivalent efficacy to lamotrigine based on studies of mice). Many of the substances below are known to cause anterograde amnesia and retrograde amnesia.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: In general, GABA does not cross the blood–brain barrier, although certain areas of the brain that have no effective blood–brain barrier, such as the periventricular nucleus, can be reached by drugs such as systemically injected GABA. At least one study suggests that orally administered GABA increases the amount of human growth hormone (HGH). GABA directly injected to the brain has been reported to have both stimulatory and inhibitory effects on the production of growth hormone, depending on the physiology of the individual.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA enhances the catabolism of serotonin into "N"-acetylserotonin (the precursor of melatonin) in rats. It is thus suspected that GABA is involved in the synthesis of melatonin and thus might exert regulatory effects on sleep and reproductive functions.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: Although in chemical terms, GABA is an amino acid (as it has both a primary amine and a carboxylic acid functional group), it is rarely referred to as such in the professional, scientific, or medical community. By convention the term "amino acid", when used without a qualifier, refers specifically to an alpha amino acid. GABA is not an alpha amino acid, meaning the amino group is not attached to the alpha carbon. Nor is it incorporated into proteins as are many alpha-amino acids.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABAergic pro-drugs include chloral hydrate, which is metabolised to trichloroethanol, which then acts via the GABA receptor.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: The plant kava contains GABAergic compounds, including kavain, dihydrokavain, methysticin, dihydromethysticin and yangonin.


title: Γ-Aminobutyric acid

text: GABA is also found in plants. It is the most abundant amino acid in the apoplast of tomatoes. Evidence also suggests a role in cell signalling in plants.


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: Lifes Rich Pageant is the fourth studio album by the American alternative rock band R.E.M., released on July 28, 1986. R.E.M. chose Don Gehman to produce the album, which was recorded at John Mellencamp's Belmont Mall Studios in Belmont, Indiana. This was the only album the band recorded with Gehman, who moved them from the more obscure and dense sound of their earlier albums to an accessible, hard rock-influenced quality. The album was well-received critically.


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: The album title is based on an English idiom. Its use is very old, but R.E.M.'s use is, according to guitarist Peter Buck, from the 1964 film "A Shot in the Dark", minus the apostrophe:


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: The cover of the album is a photograph of drummer Bill Berry on the upper part of the cover and a pair of bison, signifying an environmental theme, on the lower part. It also alludes to Buffalo Bill.


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: With R.E.M.'s fan base beginning to grow beyond its college rock boundaries, "Lifes Rich Pageant" proved at the time to be the band's most commercially successful album in the United States, peaking at number 21 on the "Billboard" charts and heralding the band's first gold record. In the UK, the album managed a number 43 peak.


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: "Slant Magazine" listed the album at #52 on its list of "Best Albums of 1980s" saying "Lifes Rich Pageant stands as a nearly seamless transition between the band's formative period and their commercial dominance."


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: The ecologically conscious "Fall on Me" (a personal favorite of frontman Michael Stipe) and a cover of the Clique's "Superman", sung by bassist Mike Mills, were the only singles released from the album (the single version of the latter removed the sample from one of the Godzilla movies that began the album version).


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: Another ecologically minded song, "Cuyahoga", refers to the once heavily polluted Cuyahoga River that flows into Lake Erie at Cleveland, Ohio. The song includes the lyric "we burned the river down", which refers to the several occasions (most famously in 1969) when the river actually caught fire.


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: At the end of "Just a Touch" Michael Stipe can be heard screaming the line "I'm so young, I'm so goddamn young", quoting longtime influence Patti Smith's live cover version of The Who's "My Generation" released on the b-side of her 1976 single "Gloria", which she also uses at the end of her cover version of "Privilege (Set Me Free)" from her 1978 album "Easter".


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: During the first half of 1986, the band took a break from touring to recover energy. They wanted to make a change from the sound of their previous album, with Mills saying "We wanted to get away from the sort of murky feelings and sounds that we got out of Joe in London". They wanted a "really hard-driving record, but we also like to throw in a lot of things: pianos and organs and accordions and banjos and what-not" and considered working with Gehman as they liked the acoustic sound of his work with John Mellencamp. They initially met for an extensive demo session at John Keane's Studio in Athens, Georgia, in March 1986 (These recordings would later be released as the "Athens Demos" on the 25th anniversary re-release of the album). After being initially skeptical, they embraced the new recording process with Gehman later stating that:"I liked to spend time on the arrangement and layer in the overdubs and comp the vocals—all this process which, to me, was normal record-making, they had never been through before. When they saw that kind of record-making process didn't take anything away—that it actually added another level of artistic expression—they were very excited by it."The album was recorded at John Mellencamp's Belmont Mall Recording Studios in Belmont, Indiana, in April and May 1986. The recording studio was larger and had newer technology than they were used to, and they enjoyed the town, attending many concerts while there. The band were also happy with the production of the record and the extra clarity of the vocals:"Don (Gehman, the album`s producer) is good at layering things so there can be a lot of things going on but you can still hear everything. And as far as Michael`s vocals go, it's a combination of things: Michael is getting better at what he`s doing, and he`s getting more confident at it. And I think that shows up in the projection of his voice. The overall sound of everything was so good, we didn`t mind having the vocals mixed as loud as they were." - Mike Mills


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: The 25th anniversary re-release of "PopMatters" included it in their list of the "12 Essential 1980s Alternative Rock Albums".


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: Anthony DeCurtis, writing a contemporary review for Rolling Stone called it "brilliant and groundbreaking, if modestly flawed", praising it as "the most outward looking record R.E.M. has made." It "carries on...the dark Southern folk artistry of last year’s Fables of the Reconstruction" and "paints a swirling, impressionistic portrait of a country at the moral crossroads". Robert Christgau gave the album B+ in a dismissive review that complained of a lack of progress from earlier albums.


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: Retrospective reviews of the album in the context of the band's later work have been positive. Gavin Edwards, writing in 2003, gave it four stars, praising Fall on Me in particular as "the finest song in the R.E.M. canon. A lullaby of modern anxiety, it's flexible enough to serve as a potent metaphor for acid rain, nuclear warfare, satellite surveillance or any other modern phobia you choose". Stephen Deusner, writing for Pitchfork calls it "invigorating", citing it as R.E.M.'s first transition album, simultaneously their "most pop-oriented and accessible album up to that point" and "most overtly political collection, with songs addressing environmental crises and political malaise". Alexis Petridis of The Guardian says it "may represent the band at their absolute zenith... imbued with a swaggering confidence absent from its murky predecessor". Petridis also singles out Fall on Me for its "beautiful opacity" and the "sumptuousness of its melody". Andrew Mueller in Uncut argues that it represents R.E.M. embracing the mainstream: "For the first time, it had occurred to REM that they had a constituency – and, indeed, that it might be possible and desirable to build on that" with an album where "Every note... fizzes and crackles with the urgency of people who’ve made their minds up"


title: Lifes Rich Pageant

text: Both DeCurtis and Deusner praise the production work of Don Gehman, comparing it favorably with their previous album Fables of the Reconstruction. DeCurtis said Gehman "has done an outstanding job of hardening R.E.M.’s sonic jolt" while Deusner stated that Gehman succeeded by "giving the melodic leads their own space, he emphasizes the muscle in Berry's beats and the intricate interaction between the rhythm section".


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel (stylized as Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!) is an action role-playing first-person shooter video game developed by 2K Australia, with assistance from Gearbox Software and published by 2K Games. It is the third game in the "Borderlands" series, and is set after 2009's "Borderlands" and before 2012's "Borderlands 2". It was released for Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on 14 October 2014. PlayStation 4 and Xbox One ports were released as part of "" on 24 March 2015.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: The storyline of "The Pre-Sequel" focuses on Jack, an employee of the Hyperion corporation; after the company's Helios space station is captured by a military unit known as the Lost Legion, he leads a group of four Vault Hunters—all of whom were non-playable characters and bosses in previous "Borderlands" games—on an expedition to re-gain control of Helios, defeat the Lost Legion, and find the hidden vault on Pandora's moon Elpis. The game expands upon the engine and gameplay of "Borderlands 2" and introduces new gameplay mechanics, including low-gravity environments, freeze weapons, and oxygen tanks, which are used to navigate and perform ground slamming attacks.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: "The Pre-Sequel" received positive reviews, being praised for its new gameplay features and character classes, but was criticized for its confusing level design and not providing enough significant deviations from the core mechanics and gameplay of "Borderlands 2".


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Gameplay in "The Pre-Sequel" is similar to "Borderlands 2", but with the addition of new mechanics. Two varieties of items have been added, including laser guns, and items possessing a cryogenic elemental effect, which can be used to slow down and freeze enemies. Enemies that are frozen take increased damage from explosive, melee or critical attacks and are smashed into pieces when killed. The game features low-gravity environments, causing players to jump higher but slower, and items such as loot and dead bodies to float away. O2 kits are added to supply air while in space; oxygen supplies can be replenished using generators, vents, and through oxygen tank items dropped by enemies. The kits can be used like a jetpack to perform double jumps, hovering, and ground slamming attacks; as with other items, different types of O2 kits can provide stat bonuses and affect how ground slams deal damage. A new "Grinder" machine allows players to deposit combinations of existing weapons to receive one of higher rarity. Vehicles were introduced, including a Moon buggy, and the "Stingray"—a type of hoverbike.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: As with "Borderlands 2", completing the main campaign with a character unlocks "True Vault Hunter Mode", a second playthrough that is higher in difficulty, while beating the mode and reaching level 50 unlocks the third playthrough "Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode".


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: "The Pre-Sequel" features four playable characters, each with a different class and abilities. All four of "The Pre-Sequel"s protagonists were non-player characters (NPCs) or bosses in previous "Borderlands" games.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Athena, "the Gladiator", is a rogue assassin from the Atlas Corporation introduced in the "Borderlands" DLC campaign "The Secret Armory of General Knoxx". As her primary skill, Athena can temporarily use a shield to absorb damage; her skill trees revolve around upgrading the shield, allowing it to be thrown at enemies, and absorb and reflect elemental damage, or towards melee attacks or elemental damage.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Nisha, "the Lawbringer", first appeared in "Borderlands 2" as Handsome Jack's girlfriend and the sheriff of the town of Lynchwood. Her primary skill, "Showdown", allows her to automatically aim at enemies for a period of time, increasing gun performance for the duration. Her skill trees revolve around increasing her survivability, Showdown performance, or gun damage.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Claptrap, "the Fragtrap", is the last remaining robot of its kind as of "Borderlands 2"; his skill "VaultHunter.exe" generates random effects depending on the current situation. These effects can have a positive or negative impact on the player and their party members; among these effects are versions of skills used by the previous playable characters in the franchise.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Wilhelm, "the Enforcer", is a mercenary who becomes increasingly augmented with technology and weaponry over the course of the game, transforming him into Jack's cybernetic minion who is fought in "Borderlands 2". He can summon a pair of drones, Wolf and Saint; Wolf serves an offensive role by attacking other enemies, while Saint defends Wilhelm by providing shields and health regeneration.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Two additional playable characters have been released as downloadable content. The first character, Jack, "the Doppelganger", is a man called Timothy Lawrence working as a body double of Jack who can summon digital copies of himself to help in battle. The second, Aurelia, "the Baroness", is the sister of Sir Hammerlock who uses an experimental "Frost Diadem Shard" to deal ice elemental damage to enemies.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Multiple characters from past "Borderlands" titles also appear. Handsome Jack, the main antagonist of "Borderlands 2", appears as a key non-playable character, with the game's story mainly centered around his descent into villainy and rise to power. Additional returning characters include Miss Mad Moxxi, Tiny Tina, Sir Hammerlock, Professor Nakayama, Crazy Earl, and Mr. Torgue. The four playable Vault Hunters from the first game, Lilith, Roland, Brick, and Mordecai, also appear in supporting roles. "The Pre-Sequel"s DLC includes appearances from "Borderlands 2"s playable Vault Hunters Gaige and Axton, Patricia Tannis, Dr. Zed, Mr. Blake, and T.K. Baha.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: "The Pre-Sequel" begins on Sanctuary after the events of "Borderlands 2" and Episode 3 of "Tales from the Borderlands", where Lilith, Brick, and Mordecai interrogate the captured Athena. Athena recounts her story via flashback, starting after the death of General Knoxx, when she received an offer to find a Vault on Pandora's moon, Elpis, from a Hyperion programmer named Jack. She joins fellow Vault Hunters Claptrap, Nisha, Wilhelm, Timothy, and Aurelia on a spaceship headed for the Hyperion moon base Helios. On the way they are ambushed by the Lost Legion, an army of former Dahl marines led by Tungsteena Zarpedon, and crash-land onto Helios. After meeting up with Jack, they try to use Helios' defense system against the Lost Legion, but there is a jamming signal coming from Elpis. They attempt to escape but are stopped by Zarpedon and a mysterious alien, so Jack stays behind and sends the Vault Hunters to Elpis via a moonshot rocket.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: On Elpis, the Vault Hunters are guided by the junk dealer Janey Springs to the spaceport town Concordia. There, they request help from Jack's ex-girlfriend Moxxi to disable the jamming signal. They discover that the signal was put up by the Meriff, a former subordinate of Jack who is now in charge of Concordia. Meanwhile, Zarpedon uses Helios' primary weapon, the Eye of Helios, to fire upon Elpis, intending to destroy it to stop Jack from opening the Vault. Jack kills the Meriff, then decides to build a robot army to retake Helios.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: The team infiltrates a Lost Legion base run by two Dahl officers, the Bosun and the Skipper, in search of a military artificial intelligence. After defeating the Bosun, the Skipper, who renames herself Felicity, is revealed to be the A.I. they seek. The Vault Hunters travel to a robot production facility, where Jack enlists Gladstone, a Hyperion scientist, to build his army. Gladstone suggests using his prototype robot, the Constructor, which can build an infinite number of robots. Felicity agrees to become the A.I. for the Constructor, but hesitates upon witnessing the violence she has to go through. She is forced into the Constructor, but takes control of it and battles the Vault Hunters. Felicity is defeated and her personality is deleted from the Constructor.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: With his robot army, Jack and the Vault Hunters travel to Helios with the aid of Moxxi and former Vault Hunters Roland and Lilith. On Helios, Jack kills Gladstone and his team of scientists, suspecting one of them to be a Lost Legion spy. The Vault Hunters defeat Zarpedon and proceed to reboot the Eye of Helios, which is revealed to be the eye of the Destroyer from the first game, turned into a weapon by Jack. Moxxi, Roland, and Lilith betray Jack and destroy the Eye to prevent him from gaining its power. Seeking revenge, Jack and the Vault Hunters travel back to Elpis, where they find its Vault already opened. They battle the Vault's alien forces and defeat its guardian, the Empyrean Sentinel.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Jack enters the Vault but finds nothing of value, other than a mysterious floating symbol. As he interacts with it, the symbol shows Jack a vision of the Warrior. However, he is interrupted by Lilith who destroys the Vault symbol, burning it onto Jack's face and disfiguring him. She teleports away, leaving a scarred and insane Jack behind, who swears vengeance on Lilith and all the "bandits" on Pandora. Seeing how low Jack has fallen, Athena leaves his employ.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: After listening to Athena's story, Lilith orders the Crimson Raiders to execute her against Brick and Mordecai's protests. However, as they open fire on her, Athena is saved by the alien previously seen on Helios, revealed to be an Eridian. The Eridian warns the Vault Hunters of an imminent war, and that they will need "all the Vault Hunters they can get".


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: During the credits, several scenes reveal what became of the Vault Hunters afterwards. Wilhelm and Nisha join Jack; Wilhelm is transformed further into a machine and destroys the settlement of New Haven while Nisha is made Lynchwood's sheriff and hooks up with Jack; Athena discards the money given to her by Jack and leaves Elpis; Claptrap is dismantled and left for dead by Jack. In a post-credit scene, Jack, now calling himself "Handsome Jack" and wearing a synthetic mask, murders his CEO Harold Tassiter and replaces him as the new head of Hyperion.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: The Claptastic Voyage story add-on continues shortly after Handsome Jack's takeover of Hyperion, as he discovers a secret program called the H-Source, containing all of Hyperion's secrets. However, it was hidden inside the "Fragtrap" unit by Tassiter. Jack employs his Vault Hunters once more to be digitally scanned and sent into Claptrap's mind in order to retrieve the H-Source. In the process, the Vault Hunters are tricked into releasing 5H4D0W-TP, a subroutine representing Claptrap's inner evil side, who attempts to use the H-Source for his own gains. As the group pursues 5H4D0W-TP, they delve deeper into Claptrap's mind, learning of his origin and the reasons for his quirky behavior. Eventually, the group defeats 5H4D0W-TP and retrieve the H-Source for Jack. Jack reveals his plan to use the H-Source to wipe out all existing CL4P-TP units, including Claptrap himself. All CL4P-TP units are disabled and dumped in Windshear Waste; however, 5H4D0W-TP, who still remains alive within Claptrap, sacrifices himself to revive Claptrap, allowing him to be found and saved by Sir Hammerlock.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: "Borderlands 2", developed by Gearbox Software and released in late 2012, was one of the most successful video games in 2K's history. Speaking in February 2013, Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford stated that there were no plans for a third installment in the franchise, as the company believed that a sequel to "Borderlands 2" would have to be "massive", but that "when you think of what "Borderlands 3" should be... No, we don't know what that is yet. We can imagine what it must achieve, but we don't know what it is yet". The company also cited a desire to focus its attention onto new games for next-generation consoles, such as "Brothers in Arms: Furious Four", "Homeworld: Shipbreakers" (a new game in the "Homeworld" franchise, which Gearbox had recently acquired in THQ's bankruptcy auction), and new properties such as "Battleborn". Despite this, the company still believed that they had not yet met the demands of fans, or even its own staff, in regards to the franchise (even with the overall success of "Borderlands 2" and the large amount of downloadable content that had been released), prompting the creation of spin-offs such as "Tales from the Borderlands", an episodic adventure game being developed by Telltale Games, and a port of "Borderlands 2" for PlayStation Vita.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: A few months after the release of "Borderlands 2" (and shortly after it had concluded its contributions to "BioShock Infinite"), Gearbox began working with 2K Australia to develop a prequel to the game which would take place directly after the events of the original. The decision to make the game a prequel to "Borderlands 2" was centered around a desire to use the Hyperion moonbase (a location alluded to, and visible in "Borderlands 2") as a playable location; the development team felt that going to the moonbase in a sequel to "Borderlands 2" would be too "boring" for players since the relevant conflict was already resolved, and because "if we're going to go to the moonbase anyway, what if we try something completely different that people aren't expecting[?]". Pitchford noted that this setting would allow the game to address plot elements and events alluded to in the first two games that were not yet completely addressed—on the possibility that the game could introduce holes in the continuity of the franchise, he joked that the franchise already contained many plot holes to begin with. He suggested that working on "The Pre-Sequel" could be a breakout role for 2K Australia, similar to Gearbox's own "". As for the size of the game, Pitchford stated that "The Pre-Sequel"s playable world would be in between the size of the original and "Borderlands 2".


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: 2K Australia performed the majority of development on "The Pre-Sequel", but worked in collaboration with Gearbox on certain aspects of the game. The studio also provided its writing staff—including Anthony Burch, lead writer of "Borderlands 2"—as a complement to 2K Australia's own writers. The engine of "Borderlands 2" was used as a starting point, allowing the 2K Australia team to quickly prototype and implement features on top of the existing functionality already provided by "Borderlands 2". Most of the new mechanics in the game, such as ice weaponry, were conceived by the 2K Australia team; Gearbox's developers had shown concerns that freezing weapons were illogical in comparison to the other elemental weapon types, such as incendiary and acid, but Pitchford excused their inclusion in "The Pre-Sequel" because cryogenic technology was more "natural" in the space-oriented setting of the game.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: The four playable characters have an increased amount of dialogue in comparison to their equivalents in previous instalments; NPC dialogue can change depending on the characters present. Developers also felt that "The Pre-Sequel" would have more diverse humour than previous installments due to the makeup of its writing staff, and a decision to portray the Moon's inhabitants as being Australians themselves, allowing for references to Australian comedy and culture, including missions referencing cricket, the folk song "Waltzing Matilda", and a talking shotgun based upon the bogan stereotype. Bruce Spence, a New Zealand actor known for his role as the Gyro Captain in "Mad Max 2" (the second film in the "Mad Max" franchise that was cited as an influence on the setting of "Borderlands" as a whole), is among the game's voice actors–voicing a gyrocopter pilot in reference to his role from the film.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: "The Pre-Sequel" would be the final video game developed by 2K Australia, as the studio was shut down on 16 April 2015.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: "Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel" was released in North America on 14 October 2014. Initially, the game was not released on eighth-generation consoles such as PlayStation 4 or Xbox One. As porting "The Pre-Sequel" to next-generation consoles would require rebuilding the engine (and thus defeating the purpose of retaining the engine used by "Borderlands 2"), developers instead targeted the game to the same console platforms that previous installments in the "Borderlands" franchise were released for. In July 2014, 2K Australia's head Tony Lawrence stated that there was a possibility that "The Pre-Sequel" could be ported to next-generation consoles, gauged by fan demand and sales. In August 2014, financial statements by Take-Two Interactive disclosed that a Linux port of the game was also in development; these details were confirmed by 2K in a statement to gaming news site IGN.com. The port, which was accompanied by a port of "Borderlands 2" released in late-September 2014, was released for Linux through Steam.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: As part of pre-release promotional efforts for the game, Gearbox began releasing "Pre-Sequel"-inspired character skins for "Borderlands 2" in July 2014, and at San Diego Comic-Con, Gearbox partnered with "The Nerdist" to set up a "Borderlands"-themed laser tag field at Petco Park during the convention.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: On 18 September 2014, an extended 10-minute trailer featuring Sir Hammerlock and Mr. Torgue was released. On 30 September 2014, Pitchford confirmed that the game had gone gold.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: On 20 January 2015, 2K announced that it would release a compilation of "Borderlands 2" and "The Pre-Sequel", "", for PS4 and Xbox One on 24 March 2015. It includes both games and all of their respective DLC. On 26 March 2020, 2K announced that both games, as well as the original "Borderlands" game, would be released for Nintendo Switch as part of "Borderlands Legendary Collection" on 29 May 2020.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: As with "Borderlands 2", downloadable content (DLC), including new characters and story campaigns, were made for "The Pre-Sequel", which can be purchased separately or together as a "Season Pass". The "Shock Drop Slaughter Pit" was released at launch as a pre-order exclusive.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: The first DLC character, released on 11 November 2014, is a body double of Handsome Jack, "the Doppelganger"; he can summon clones of himself known as "digi-Jacks" to fight alongside him. Jack's skill trees mainly focus on granting bonuses to himself, as well as his Digi-Jacks.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: The first DLC campaign, "The Holodome Onslaught", was released on 14 December 2014; it includes missions in the titular challenge arena, which features Athena re-telling a shortened version of the game's story to "Borderlands 2"s Axton and Gaige. "The Holodome Onslaught" DLC was received poorly by the playerbase on release. The third playthrough, "Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode", raises the character level cap to 60, and includes an additional mission that ties into Handsome Jack's presence in "Tales from the Borderlands".


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: The second DLC character, Lady Aurelia Hammerlock, "the Baroness", was released on 27 January 2015; she is the elder sister of supporting character Sir Hammerlock. Her action skill is a homing ice shard which can cycle between enemies as they are killed by it: her skill trees provide enhancements to the shard, can increase cryo damage, and the ability to assign a teammate as her "servant"—allowing both players to benefit from bonuses granted by each other's kills.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: The second DLC campaign, "Claptastic Voyage" and "Ultimate Vault Hunter Upgrade Pack 2", was released on 24 March 2015, coinciding with the release of "The Handsome Collection". The DLC's title is a reference to the film "Fantastic Voyage", which has a similar plotline involving miniaturisation and travel through a body. It features the player characters being sent into the mind of Claptrap by Handsome Jack to retrieve a mysterious piece of software known as the "H-Source", hidden within it by Hyperion's former CEO Harold Tassiter, resulting in the release of Shadowtrap, the digital manifestation of Claptrap's FR4G-TP program. The story also features the CL4P-TP genocide and a deeper look into Claptrap's depression. 2K Australia's creative director Jonathan Pelling cited "Fantastic Voyage", "Tron", and the holodeck of "Star Trek" as influences on the campaign, explaining that "We thought the best way to get to know Claptrap a little bit more was to actually go inside his mind and see what he thinks. To get those perspectives, recover those memories, and dig through his dirty laundry." The DLC also raises the character level cap to 70, and feature a customisable challenge arena.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: On 28 March 2019, Gearbox announced that 4K support for PC and the "Handsome Collection" ports (on PlayStation 4 Pro and Xbox One X) would be released on 3 April 2019.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: "Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel" received positive reviews from critics. Aggregating review website Metacritic gave the PlayStation 3 version 77/100 based on 24 reviews, the Microsoft Windows version 75/100 based on 55 reviews and the Xbox 360 version 74/100 based on 16 reviews.


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Daniel Bloodworth from GameTrailers gave the game an 8.4/10. He praised the characters and the new gameplay mechanics introduced in "The Pre-Sequel". He ended the review by saying that "new playable characters are worth exploring and the tweaks to the formula have an impact across the entire breadth of the game." David Roberts from GamesRadar gave the game an 8/10, praising its diverse character classes, hilarious writing and the core combat which he stated, "has maintained the series' weird, satisfying mix of anarchic, tactical gunplay and compulsive RPG overtones". However, he criticised the weak story, as well as non-drastic changes when compared with "Borderlands 2". He described the general experience as "a hilarious, fan-focused continuation of the series' core values, but lacking any true evolution, which made it a fun diversion rather than a meaningful new chapter."


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Vince Ingenito from IGN gave the game an 8/10. He praised the gearing options and the low-gravity mechanics, which made the game "a fresh experience". He also praised the entertaining Jack-focused story, but criticised its poor pacing. Jessica Conditt from Joystiq gave the game a 7/10, praising its new gameplay mechanics, well-defined classes, as well as the interesting and comedic bosses encountered and unique environments, but criticising the confusing level design, frustrating death and predictable missions which lack variety. Evan Lahti from PCGamer gave the game a 77/100, praising its new gameplay features, which he stated had brought novelty and a gracefulness to Borderlands' combat, but criticising the mission design, which seldom made use of the gameplay mechanics introduced in "Pre-Sequel". He stated that ""The Pre-Sequel" feels like a super-sized "Borderlands 2" DLC. While the new setting, classes, and weapon types reinvigorate the experience, "The Pre-Sequel" doesn't deviate much from the feel and format of "Borderlands 2"."


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: Darren Nakamura from Destructoid gave the game a 6/10, praising its fast yet tactical combat, but criticising the disappointing ending, number of bugs, as well as boring and uninteresting environmental art direction, but he still summarised the game as a "solid entry to the series." Jim Sterling from The Escapist gave the game an 8/10. He praised the combination of weapons with the use of the Grinder, a new machine introduced in "The Pre-Sequel", as well as the new vehicles available, but criticised the map design, frustrating encounters with enemies, as well as being too similar to the previous installments. Adam Beck from Hardcore Gamer gave the game a 2.5/5, criticising its bugs, loot system, script, campaign, world design and performance of characters. He summarised the game as "an unpolished, uninspired adventure where fun can be had with friends, but that time could be better spent elsewhere."


title: Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

text: "IGN" gave the "Claptastic Voyage" campaign an 8.4 out of 10, praising it for its "whimsical" setting, new mechanics, making better use of the anti-gravity mechanics that were introduced by "The Pre-Sequel", and for not containing the "excessive backtracking and pacing problems" faced by the game's main storyline. Ingenito concluded that it "[still] doesn't quite match the towering success of "Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep" for "Borderlands 2", but it still handily sets a high watermark for "The Pre-Sequel". It's lean and focused in a way the main game it belongs to sometimes wasn't, and yet it still feels substantial and complete."


title: Platinum Dunes

text: Platinum Dunes is an American production company founded in November 2001 by filmmakers Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, and Andrew Form. The company produces horror films, such as "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre", "The Purge", "Friday the 13th", "A Nightmare on Elm Street", "Ouija," "A Quiet Place", and "A Quiet Place Part II". It also produces television series, such as "Black Sails", "The Last Ship", and "Jack Ryan".


title: Platinum Dunes

text: On October 7, 2009, Paramount Pictures announced a first-look deal with Platinum Dunes. With this, they plan to branch out of the horror genre into action and thrillers. On May 27, 2010, it was announced they would work on the reboot to the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" film series of the same name. In 2014, Platinum Dunes was named "The Hollywood Reporter"s Producers of the Year. In 2015, the company was also named to "The Hollywood Reporter"s 30 Most Powerful Film Producers in Hollywood. In 2018, Fuller and Form made an amicable split from Platinum Dunes to launch a new production company, Fully Formed Entertainment. In June 2022, Fuller returned to Platinum Dunes, with the company signing an overall first-look deal with Universal Pictures.


title: Heyoka

text: The heyoka (, also spelled "haokah," "heyokha") is a kind of sacred clown in the culture of the Sioux (Lakota and Dakota people) of the Great Plains of North America. The heyoka is a contrarian, jester, and satirist, who speaks, moves and reacts in an opposite fashion to the people around them. Only those having visions of the thunder beings of the west, the , and who are recognized as such by the community, can take on the ceremonial role of the heyoka.


title: Heyoka

text: The Lakota medicine man, Black Elk, described himself as a "heyoka", saying he had been visited as a child by the thunder beings.


title: Heyoka

text: The is thought of as being in charge for above and below, or are more in charge for the dead, instead of the living. This manifests by their doing not always everything like the others. For example, if food is scarce, a may sit around and complain about how full he is; during a baking hot heat wave, a might shiver with cold and put on gloves and cover himself with a thick blanket. Similarly, when it is freezing he might wander around naked, complaining that it is too hot. A unique example is the famous sacred clown called "the Straighten-Outer":


title: Heyoka

text: The symbolizes and portrays many aspects of the sacred beings, the . His satire presents important questions by fooling around. They ask difficult questions, and say things others are too afraid to say. Their behavior poses questions as do Zen koans. By reading between the lines, the audience is able to think about things not usually thought about, or to look at things in a different way.


title: Heyoka

text: Principally, the functions both as a mirror and teacher at the same time, using extreme behaviors to mirror others, and forcing them to examine their own doubts, fears, hatreds, and weaknesses. have the power to heal emotional pain; such power comes from the experience of shame—they sing of shameful events in their lives, beg for food, and live as clowns. They provoke laughter in distressing situations of despair, and provoke fear and chaos when people feel complacent and overly secure, to keep them from taking themselves too seriously or believing they are more powerful than they are.


title: Heyoka

text: In addition, sacred clowns serve an important role in shaping tribal codes. Unbound by societal constraints, are able to violate cultural taboos freely and thus critique established customs. Paradoxically, however, by violating these norms and taboos, they help to define the accepted boundaries, rules, and societal guidelines for ethical and moral behavior. They are the only ones who can ask "Why?" about sensitive topics; they use satire to question the specialists and carriers of sacred knowledge or those in positions of power and authority.


title: Heyoka

text: In Lakota mythology, is also a spirit of thunder and lightning. He is said to use the wind as sticks to beat the drum of thunder. His emotions are portrayed opposite the norm; he laughs when he is sad and cries when he is happy, cold makes him sweat and heat makes him shiver. In art, he is depicted as having two horns, which marks him as a hunting spirit. In some visions, he also appeared as a snow bird, a swallow, a horse, a dog, a night hawk, a frog, or a dragonfly.


title: Heyoka

text: In 2013, Half Acre brewery in Chicago, Illinois, released what they called Heyoka IPA, which became one of their signature beers. It won a silver medal at the Great American Beer Festival in October 2014. Members of the American Indian Movement and other Native American activists argued that giving the name of a sacred figure in Lakota spirituality to a beer constituted cultural appropriation. Half Acre renamed their beer "Senita" (perhaps after the Senita cactus found in the American Southwest that is depicted on the former "Heyoka" beer can).


title: Chicago P.D. (season 2)

text: The second season of "Chicago P.D.", an American police drama television series with executive producer Dick Wolf, and producers Derek Haas, Michael Brandt, and Matt Olmstead, began airing on September 24, 2014, at 10:00 p.m. Eastern/9:00 p.m. Central, and concluded on May 20, 2015 on the NBC television network. The season contained 23 episodes.


title: Chicago P.D. (season 2)

text: Archie Kao's character Detective Sheldon Jin was killed in the first season's finale, thus his character will not be appearing in the second season of the show. However, showrunner Matt Olmstead revealed that "It [Jin's death] shakes everybody up...definitely for the next three or four episodes until people can re-galvanize as a family, but people have some hard feelings about how it all goes down."


title: Chicago P.D. (season 2)

text: Officer Kim Burgess would be joined by a new partner, whom Olmstead describes as being an important voice to the team in the second season and particularly for Burgess. Brian Geraghty was later announced to be portraying Sean Roman, the new partner of Kim Burgess (Marina Squerciati).


title: Chicago P.D. (season 2)

text: Jesse Lee Soffer revealed that there will be a lot more crossovers this season between "Chicago P.D." and parent show "Chicago Fire"; "I think every episode from now on, they're going to have a couple characters from one show on the other" he told media sources.


title: Chicago P.D. (season 2)

text: On September 29, 2014, it was announced that Wolf's series: "Chicago P.D.", "Chicago Fire" and "", would be involved in a three part crossover event airing between November 11 and November 12, 2014 starting with "Chicago Fire" and ending with "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" and "Chicago P.D.".


title: Chicago P.D. (season 2)

text: Another crossover event aired on February 3 and February 4, 2015 starting with "Chicago Fire" and concluding with "Chicago P.D.".


title: Chicago P.D. (season 2)

text: A further crossover event aired on April 28 and April 29, 2015 starting with "Chicago Fire", continuing with "Chicago P.D." and concluding with "".


title: Apia

text: Apia () is the capital and largest city of Samoa, as well as the nation's only city. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district ("itūmālō") of Tuamasaga.


title: Apia

text: The Apia Urban Area (generally known as the City of Apia) has a population of 37,391 (2016 census). Its geographic boundaries extend roughly from Letogo village to the newer, industrialized region of Apia known as "Vaitele".


title: Apia

text: Apia was originally a small village (the 1800 population was 304), from which the country's capital took its name. Apia Village still exists within the larger modern capital of Apia, which has grown into a sprawling urban area that encompasses many villages. Like every other settlement in the country, Apia Village has its own "matai" (leaders) and "fa'alupega" (genealogy and customary greetings) according to fa'a Samoa.


title: Apia

text: The modern city of Apia was founded in the 1850s, and it has been the official capital of Samoa since 1959.


title: Apia

text: The harbour was the site of a notorious 15 March 1889 naval standoff in which seven ships — from Germany, the US, and Britain —refused to leave the harbour, even though a typhoon was clearly approaching, lest the first one to move lose face. All the ships sank or were damaged beyond repair, except for the British cruiser "Calliope", which managed to leave port, travelling at a rate of one mile per hour, and was able to ride out the storm. Nearly 200 American and German people died.


title: Apia

text: In August 1914, the Occupation of German Samoa by an expeditionary force from New Zealand began. New Zealand governed the islands, (as the Western Samoa Trust Territory) from 1920 until Samoan independence in 1962 – first under a League of Nations Class C Mandate and then, after 1945, as a United Nations Trust Territory.


title: Apia

text: The country underwent a struggle for political independence in the early 1900s, organised under the aegis of the national Mau movement. During this period, the streets of Apia were the site of non-violent protests and marches, in the course of which many Samoans were arrested. On what became known as "Black Saturday" (28 December 1929), during a peaceful Mau gathering in the town, the New Zealand constabulary killed the paramount chief Tupua Tamasese Lealofi III.


title: Apia

text: Apia is situated on a natural harbour at the mouth of the Vaisigano River. It is on a narrow coastal plain with Mount Vaea (elevation ), the burial place of writer Robert Louis Stevenson, directly to its south. Two main ridges run south on either side of the Vaisigano River, with roads on each. The more western of these is Cross Island Road, one of the few roads cutting north to south across the middle of the island to the south coast of Upolu.