Hey everyone, it’s me again Peter Lawless.

Now as we all know, the third installment in the Star Trek reboot trilogy is coming out later this year. It is called “Star Trek: Beyond”. Unlike the first two installments, this one will be directed not by J.J. Abrams, but by Justin Lin, director of the “Fast & Furious” movie franchise.

I will be going over my thoughts for the film based on the Trailer and information I’ve seen on various film websites.

Premise:

As a rising filmmaker and a huge Star Trek fan, I am both excited and worried about this movie. Why am I worried? Because after seeing the first official trailer, it almost got me “Hooked on a Feeling” that this is going to be a rip-off of “Guardians of the Galaxy” (get it?J heh, heh). Anyway, the plot of this movie involved the Starship Enterprise getting destroyed (for the third time in the franchise) and the crew gets stranded on an alien planet while there is some sort of alien invasion fleet heading to destroy Earth.

So you know, basic plot of a Star Trek movie.

 

Casting:

Another thing that bothers me about this movie is that Alice Eve might not reprise her role as Dr. Carol Marcus from “Star Trek: Into Darkness”. In the previous movie, it seemed that she and Captain Kirk would possibly fall in love in the next movie. But instead, they seemed to have replaced her with a chalk white skinned alien chick whose name I don’t even know. I hope that’s not the case when it comes out.

However, one good thing to come out of this movie so far is it’s casting for the villain. Actor Idris Elba of the 2013 blockbuster “Pacific Rim” and the Netflix series “Beasts of the Southern Wild” will be cast as some alien villain. I don’t know which species his character is. Personally, I would have preferred Elba to play a Klingon villain in this movie.

I mean that be pretty cool, right? A powerful manly voice like his speaking an alien language? I’d buy a ticket in advance just to listen to him say his epic Pacific Rim speech in Klingon.

 

Anyway, the original cast members from the first two movies are all returning with the exception of one. I think we all know who I am talking about and I hope they at least pay a tribute to him before the credits roll. L

 

Comedy:

Another thing that I have mixed feelings for is the instances of humor and comedy. I’m not going to give any examples or scenes because of spoilers, but I’m rather split on the decision to add slapstick comedy to a sci-fi movie. Well at least one that isn’t “Guardians of the Galaxy.”

 

Overall, this movie doesn’t look like a real Star Trek movie. With the franchises 60^th anniversary coming this year, this movie seems like the only tribute that Hollywood could think of.

However, I could be wrong. After all, the film hasn’t come out yet. As long as further trailers don’t spoil the movie and give away crucial scenes like “Terminator: Genisys” did, then this film could either be a decent installment in a great franchise, or the stake in the heart that would kill this franchise once and for all.

I really do hope it’s the first outcome, but at this point, I’m not too sure. Heck, I’m still waiting for a “Next Generation” film reboot.

 

So what do you think of my opinions? Do you have any thoughts on “Star Trek: Beyond” that you would like to share?

If so, leave them in the comments section and I will post them in my next blog.

 

Thanks,

Live Long & Prosper,

Peter Lawless J

Peter’s picks with comics and flicks

11/21/2015

 

This month’s flick to pick:

Spawn (1997)

 

Plot:

Based on the comic book series by Todd McFarlane, when soldier Al Simmons (played by Michael Jai White, Black Dynamite) is gunned down by his fellow soldiers and his superior officer, Jason Winn (played by Martin Sheen, The Amazing Spider-Man), he is sent to hell to become its general in the army against heaven. Five years later, he becomes a satanic superhero trying to protect his ex-wife and her new family and save the world from Winn and the devil’s right hand man, a fat blue faced clown demon known only as the Violator (played by John Lugizamo, Super Mario Brothers: the movie).

 

My opinion on this:

Despite all the negative comments that many people who have seen this movie say about it, my only problem with this movie is its crappy CGI and confusing plot.

Now I know this was made in 1997, and CGI wasn’t all that, but the effects in Spawn make the 1998 Godzilla or the 2003 Hulk look half descent. From the hero’s flowing red cape to half assed mouth movements of the main villain, the CGI looks too much like a video game based movie like “Mortal Kombat 2”.

Other than that, the character development of Spawn is portrayed very perfectly. Michael Jai White really took the tragic comic book character and really brought him to life.

The plot, however, is a whole different ballgame.

I’ve never read or even picked up a single Spawn comic in my life. So maybe I should have read at least the first one before seeing this movie.

The main problem I have with this plot is the bad guys’ evil plan to destroy the world. First the Violator wants Spawn to kill Jason Winn, but the Violator is also helping Jason Winn destroy the entire world. It’s just too confusing for me to even explain.

Basically, if you see this movie on TV or on Netflix, give it a watch. It may be a bit confusing and poorly animated, but it’s got good character development and awesome action sequences.

 

My rating: J Somewhat Good

Hello, everybody, it’s me Peter Lawless again. As you probably all know, I like the Avengers movies and the Star Trek franchise. Today I recently thought of what it would be like to see various Star Trek characters assume the roles of various Avenger superheroes.

So without any hesitation, I present to you…

The Top 10 STAR TREK Characters that would make good doubles for the AVENGERS

Author’s note:

For this list, I’ve picked various characters from both the Original Series and the Next Generation timelines. Also, this list doesn’t have all of the Avengers and I’m only picking the good guys. Mainly because I’m thinking of another list for Star Trek/Avengers villain combinations.

 

10. Data as The Vision

Why?: When you really think about it, Data and Vision are pretty much similar. They are both Artificial Intelligence who are fascinated by humanity and try to become more human than were made for.

 

9. Worf as Thor

Why?: Like with Data and Vision, Worf and Thor are similar. Both come from civilizations obsessed with honor and warrior values. The only difference between them is that Klingon society is a bit more violent than Asgardian society.

 

8. Spock as The Hulk

Why?: I know this matchup seems a bit… illogical (I’m sorry, I couldn’t resistJ). However, it would be pretty awesome to see the most calm, cool and collected alien in all of science fiction to suddenly turn into the angriest superhero in comic book history. Since Spock is half human, he has trouble repressing his emotions. Throw in a little gamma radiation incident on the Enterprise, and you’ve got one “Hulkin’ Vulcan” (Man, I’m on a roll todayJ).

 

7. Geordi LaForge as War Machine

Why?: LaForge is an engineer with a visor and cybernetic eyes. War Machine is basically a military man with a awesome suit of armor. Put them together, and you’ve got a recipe for success.

 

6. Kira Nerys as Black Widow

Why?: Honestly, I was going to give this role to Beverly Crusher and then to Tasha Yar, but Kira Nerys is a lot tougher than both of them. Both Black Widow and Kira Nerys can kick butt and also solve problems without the assistance of men to help them.

 

5. Deanna Troi as Scarlet Witch

Why?: Troi can read people’s minds while Scarlet Witch can control and mess up people’s minds. With the Witch’s powers, Troi could use her advanced empathic abilities to fool enemies.

 

4. Benjamin Sisko as Sergeant Fury

Why?: Sisko is a natural leader, so it would make since that he is the leader of this “Avengerprise” (I just can’t turn off the bad puns, folksJ). All jokes aside, Sisko and Fury can both get things done. Even if it means violating their orders or prime directives.

 

3. Bones McCoy as Ant-Man

Why?: I don’t know why I choose Bones as Ant-Man. Maybe I was just out of ideasL.

 

2. William Riker as Iron Man

Why?: What can I say? Chicks dig heroic guys with beards, Nuff saidJ!!!

 

1.              James Kirk as Captain America

Why?: both Captains truly represent heroic courage and leadership in their own movies. If you were to combine these two, the whole universe would be safe.

 

Do you like my list? Do you think I missed any combinations?

If you do like my list or have your own combo ideas, leave a comment in the section below and I’ll post it on my next blog.

 

And don’t worry, the next list I publish won’t have that many puns in itJ.

Hello everybody, it’s me Peter Lawless. As we all know, Halloween is just around the corner and with it comes the news that a new “Halloween” movie is coming out soon. While the whole plot is unknown at this time, this sequel (or reboot) will feature the Shape of all evil himself, Michael Myers returning to the silver screen which is a pretty big deal since his last movie sucked like a flavorless lollipop that was dropped on the ground. So I started thinking, if this new moive does well with the box office, the fans and the critics, what other sequels will be on the horizon?

So for this list, I’ve made various titles from some of the sequels that I hope we might and might not be getting in the next few years.

Without any hesitation or rational thought, I proudly present:

 

Halloween: the “Shape” of things to come-

Five of the many sequels from the near future

Note: these sequels are just parodies and are nto actually being made by Hollywood. Although, the way Hollywood thinks of movies these days, we’ll probably be seeing some of these bad ideas on the silver screen someday.

 

Halloween 13: Michael versus Jason

Tagline: Two evils finally meet

Plot: When Michael follows his niece Jamie Lloyd to her summer camp which is Camp Crystal Lake, he runs into Jason Voorhees and the two both fight each other for who gets to kill all the people at the camp. Hey, this was bound to happen sometime.

 

Halloween 16: Michael takes Chicago

Plot: Haddonfield wasn’t enough!!! This time, Michael takes his murderous rampage to the biggest city in his home state of Illinois.

 

Halloween 18: Michael versus Michael

Plot: This Halloween, it’s “Thriller” against Killer!!! Michael sneaks into Michael Jackson’s compound where he encounters the spirit of Michael Jackson and the two have a fight.

 

Halloween 25: Christmastime is Fear

Plot: Evil comes home, for the holidays!!! Michael goes into a coma and misses his chance for another Halloween killing spree. So what does he do? He takes his killing spree on Christmas of course.

 

Halloween 31: The Death of Michael Myers

Plot: This time, we actually mean it!!! With 31 movies under his belt, Michael Myers finally gets shot in fifteen times in the chest, while he falls off a cliff with a rope around his neck and hangs himself over a functioning wood chipper that tears him to pieces.

 

Do you like these ideas for future sequels? What do you think would make an interesting Halloween sequel?

Leave your idea in the comments section and I will post it on my next blog entry.

 

-Peter Lawless J

10/16/2015

Hello everyone, it’s me Peter Lawless again. For the past few days, I’ve heard rumors about the proposed reboot of the most classic Godzilla crossover movie of all time. That’s right, I’m talking about KING KONG VERSUS GODZILLA!!! Also, I’ve heard other rumors about a possible Godzilla crossover with the 2013 blockbuster, “Pacific Rim”. I’m not sure when these movies will be colliding soon, however, it got me to think about all the other Godzilla crossovers that could’ve happened (and for some, probably should’ve happened). Which is why I’ve created this top ten list to be…

 

The top 10 Godzilla crossovers with other famous movie monsters:

 

For this list, I’ve chosen monsters only (so no Batman versus Godzilla, even though that would pretty awesome). Also for this list, size doesn’t matter. So whether it’s a small or large monster, as long as they could put up a worthy fight or at least find a way to grow to Godzilla’s size, it makes it on the list. Also I’m leaving out Gamera, mainly because he and Godzilla are pretty much the same and it wouldn’t be much of a fair fight.

1.        Godzilla versus Gil-Man (Creature from the Black Lagoon)

Reason: In my opinion, this is a crossover that should’ve happened a long time ago. Both where classic 1954 monster movies shot in black and white. In this crossover, it would perfect to shoot it all in black and white as sort of a throwback to both the originals.

 

2.        Godzilla versus Pumpkinhead

Reason: Since Pumpkinhead is a demon of revenge, I think it would be best to have the plot circle around Godzilla killing a person’s family and then that person would ask the old witch to summon Pumpkinhead and use some magic spell to grow to Godzilla’s size.

It might seem a bit crazy and ludicrous, but then again this whole list is.

 

3.        Godzilla versus Predator

Reason: I’ve wanted to see this kind of crossover for a long time. How cool would it be to see a Predator fighting Godzilla? The Predator would probably be like Captain Ahab and Godzilla as Moby Dick. Okay, maybe that’s taking it a bit too far, but I’d still love to see this sort of thing happen.

 

4.        Godzilla versus Jason Voorhees (Friday the 13^th)

Reason: While I think Godzilla and Predator would be like the story of Moby Dick, Godzilla against Jason Voorhees would almost be like a reversed David and Goliath. Jason terrorizes teens at Camp Crystal Lake, Godzilla stomps on over and breathes his atomic breath on him. There you go, happy ending, roll the credits!

Actually, I think this one wouldn’t work so well on the big screen. Maybe it would work as a Youtube comedy skit.

 

5.        Godzilla versus Gremlins

Reason: I’ve loved Gremlins every since I was a little kid, so I think I would gladly pay to see them fight Godzilla in a theater. While Godzilla has strength in pretty much everything, Gremlins always have strength in numbers, especially when they are exposed to water. They also have that one specific gremlin who acts as the leader of their group or army such as, Stripe from the first movie, or the Mohawk and Brain Gremlins from the second movie. With these two strengths, the gremlins might be able to subdue or even overpower Godzilla until the sun comes up and kills them all.

 

6.        Godzilla versus The Thing from another world

Reason: I’m referring to John Carpenter’s Thing and not the 1950’s Thing. The only reason I used the full title is because Godzilla versus the Thing was already taken by Mothra in the 1960s. Anyway, I think that this kind of movie would be a slam dunk for horror movie monster fans seeing the “king” against the “thing” in an Antarctic boxing “ring”

7.        Godzilla versus Galactus (Fantastic Four)

Reason: For the record, I’m not using the space cloud version Galactus from the 2007 Fantastic Four sequel because that was just terrible. The Galactus I’m using in this list is the most popular one from the comics. Because, he is an omnipotent being he can do anything. His only weakness is an alien device called the Ultimate Nullifier, which means Godzilla could possibly only slow him down. This could be a worthy fight for comic book and Kaiju fans

8.        Godzilla versus Aliens (War of the Worlds)

Reason: Just imagine, the alien tripods from the 2005 Spielberg movie are trying to conquer the Earth again but this time the only thing in their way is Godzilla.

Who would win? Well, like Gremlins, these aliens have strength in numbers and technological superiority, but then again, all Godzilla really needs to do is sneeze on them and they’re instantly killed from either Earth bacteria or his atomic breath.

9.        Godzilla versus Zombies

Reason: Also like the Gremlins and Aliens, zombies always have strength in numbers and can easily infect Godzilla with their virus from a single bite.

 

10.     Godzilla versus Stay-Puff Marshmallow Man and Statue of Liberty (Ghostbusters 1 & 2)

Reason: Like Gremlins, I’ve loved the Ghostbusters movies since I was a kid. So it’s pretty hard to pick either the Mr. Stay-Puff from the first movie or the walking Statue of Liberty from the second movie. so I decided to make this crossover idea into a tag-team both Lady Liberty and Mr. Stay Puff go against the King of all monsters in a battle for New York City.

Although, we all now how it would end, right?

 

Well, that’s it for this top ten list.

What do you think would be an epic Godzilla crossover?

Just type your idea and leave it in the comments section of this blog.

Thank you and see you next time J!!!

Peter’s picks with comics and flicks:

 

6/5/2014

 

Recently, I’ve been following the recent news about the upcoming fifth installment in the Terminator film series.

Now as we all know, Arnold Schwarzenegger is going to be returning as the iconic cyborg character, and the title has been released for quite some time. They’re calling it, “TERMINATOR: GENESIS.”

As with most people, I can’t wait to see this movie and wonder what the title means.

Then I was thinking, what if there were other models besides the T-800, T-1000, T-X and T-600? What if Skynet had its own recall line of terminators that were rejected?

Well here are my top 5 terminator rejects in honor of the fifth movie. Just so you know, these five models are based off of other characters in other movies and TV shows just for parody matter and we’ll also be pointing out there flaws.

ENJOY!!! J

 

The top five TERMINATOR MODELS that are not going to be in Terminator: genesis...

...and probably shouldn’t be!!!

By Peter Lawless

1.           MR. T-800

This models Flaw: this model’s hydrogen fuel power cells overheat way too easily when in combat or basically when asked any question about the next A-team movie. Basically, I pity the fool who messes with this model.

 

2.         Et-1000

This models Flaw: this model is able to stab its victims eyes out with his bladed fingers but can also heal them as well with his regenerated touch power.

 

3.       T-3po

This models Flaw: too shiny and too whiny. The force ain’t so strong in this one.

 

4.       R2-t2

This models Flaw: with all that space in this model for rocket boosters, grappling claws and even a small tazer, there just wasn’t enough room to attach a friggin’ mini-gun. Also, it was too cute to be taken for a threat by the human resistance.

 

5.       Terminator/Cylon hybrid

This models Flaw: seriously, guys? A hybrid? The only flaw for this one is that those two things are pretty much the same. So Why the heck would we put them together as one machine? Not much difference if you ask me. Also, it has the firing skills of an original 1978 Cylon which had as much firing skills as a drunk STAR WARS imperial stormtrooper on drugs.

 

 

 

 

Well, those are my top five ideas for rejected Terminator models.

However, if anyone wishes to submit their own idea for a rejected terminator model, post it in the comment section and I’ll add it to my next list with your username on it.

 

 

Keep reading my blogs and…

I’ll be back...

With more!!! J

 

 

 

 

Flatwings:

Episode 1: The Purpose

A cartoon series pilot by Peter Lawless

Created on: 2/23/14

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Setting:

Ext.-New York city-daytime

Show the skyline of NYC.

Fade to Times Square.

Setting:

Ext.-Times Square-daytime

Show people walking on the streets of Times Square, and then go to a sewer lid.

Flatwings’ voice-

In the classic movie, Forrest Gump, Tom Hanks has an iconic quote that I’ve remembered for a while.

Life is like a box of chocolates, because you never which one you’re gonna get.

Show the Sewer lid open and reveal a ladder to the sewer.

Go down the sewer.

Setting:

Int.-Sewer tunnel-daytime

Show the sewer tunnel.

Flatwings’ voice-

Well no offense to Tom Hanks or the movie, but I have a different theory on life.

Life is like a sewer…it may stink sometimes, but you get used to the smell.

Especially in New York.

Show a black silhouette flying through the tunnel.

Flatwings’ voice-

Sometimes, New York can be a city of monsters.

And I should know...

I’m a gremlin.

Show the silhouette flying towards an outside light and revealing itself to be a small green gremlin with wings.

This gremlin is named Flatwings.

Flatwings’ voice-

My name is Flatwings J. Eclipse…and this is my story.

A story of how I found a greater purpose in life.

This story begins on the day that I was born.

March 25^th, 2005.

Go to a flashback scene.

Setting:

Ext.-Eclipse home-daytime

Setting:

Ext.- Eclipse Cabin-daytime.

Show the house of the Eclipse family.

Cue Flatwings’ mother, Carol screaming in the background.

Doctor’s voice-

Okay Carol, one more push.

Show the inside of the living room of the house.

SETTING:

Int.- Living room-daytime.

The doctor is delivering Carol’s Baby, Carol is lying on the couch panting and sweating, while her husband Jim who’s wearing glasses and a white shirt with black pants is holding her hand.

Doctor-

And perfect!!!

The Doctor is holding a baby Flatwings.

Jim-

Doctor, is it a boy or girl?

Doctor-

It’s a boy.

Carol-

May I hold him?

Doctor-

Well he is your son.

The doctor hands the baby over to Carol.

Doctor-

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to use your bathroom to wash my hands.

Jim-

It’s down the hall to the left.

Doctor-

Thank you.

The doctor walks out of the living room.

Jim-

What should we name him, Carol?

Carol-

I don’t know. How about we name him after your father?

Jim-

You mean Flatser?

I was thinking we name him something special.

Carol-

Like what?

Jim-

I don’t know. How about your father’s name?

Carol-

You mean James?

I don’t think that would work.

Jim-

Probably not.

Jim looks at the baby’s arms.

Jim-

Say honey, what are those things on his arms?

Carol-

They look like wings.

Jim-

That’s it. We can name him Wings.

Carol-

How about, Flatwings?

Jim-

I like it. Also we can give him James as a middle name.

Carol-

That’s good.

Jim-

I know.

Jim gets closer to Flatwings and holds out his finger.

Jim-

Welcome to our family, Flatwings.

Flatwings touches his father’s finger with his small hand.

The Doctor walks in.

Doctor-

So, have you considered a name?

Jim-

Flatwings, Doc…His name is Flatwings.

Doctor-

Okay…Why?

Carol-

Because he has wings.

Doctor-

Oh that is ridiculous.

No Gremlin in the history of time has ever had wings.

Carol-

Look.

The Doctor looks at Flatwings’ arms.

Doctor-

Holy hobgoblins!!! This is amazing.

Jim-

Doctor, what do you make of it?

Doctor-

If I had to guess, I’d say it’s a gift from the Gods.

Show a close up of Baby Flatwings, then flash to Regular Flatwings in the sewer.

Setting:      

Int.- Sewer-nighttime.

Flatwings is still running through the sewer.

Flatwings’ voice-

Ever since the doctor said it was a gift from the gods, people thought I was a god myself…

…but I’m not.

Sure I may have special powers other than my Wings, but everyone else has powers in my family.

I like to think that my wings are something else than a gift from the Gremlin Gods.

Speaking of which, the gods are an important part of my 18th birthday. According to beliefs, when a Gremlin turns 18, he must find his or her purpose in life and stick with it.

Everyone in my family has their purpose.

My father, Jim, was destined to be an inventor and through that purpose has gained much respect throughout our territory. My mother, Carol, was chosen to be a great cook and used that cooking to win my Father over and get him to marry her. As for my older sister, Sheryl, they say she was destined to be an actress. I honestly don’t know why the gods chose that purpose for her because she’s not very good at acting.

Show Flatwings stop at a tunnel.

He climbs inside the tunnel.

Flatwings’ voice-

Now all that left for my family is for me to find my purpose.

My parents think I could be an amazing sky patroller because of my wings, but I think I want to do something better than just flying around a sky of stalactites.

Flatwings stops at the Portal-potty (an Outhouse that is actually a portal to the Underworld City).

He opens the wooden door and walks into it.

He sits on the toilet part of the portal and pulls a chain pulley.

He goes down the portal-potty.

Go to next setting.

Setting:

Ext.- Underworld city-nighttime

The underworld city is underground with a sky of stalictites. The buildings are chrome futuristic buildings and ancient Mayan or Aztec pyramids.

Show some creatures walking around the streets of the Underworld City.

Then go to the other side of the portal-potty in the city.

Flatwings jumps out of the other side of the portal.

Flatwings’ voice-

This is the Underworld City.

A city for creatures of all kinds.

We live in peace from the human race because many creatures believe the surface world is not ready to know about us yet.

We are one of two worlds underneath this Earth.

The other world is the Netherworld Zone. Home to some of the vilest creatures known to anyone.

Most of the species there are neutral, but the Dark Elves are the worst race in the Netherworld Zone.

They have tried to destroy the Underworld City for many years in order to expand their empire.

They have also failed countless times.

So many, that they have gone into isolation for 60 years.

But the underworld has never let it’s guard down.

That’s where I come in.

Flatwings walks up to the city limit of the UC.

He looks up and sees the cliff.

He flies to the top of the cliff.

Show the giant metal entrance of his territory.

Flatwings’ voice-

My home of Gremlin Territory is the land that separates the Underworld city from the Netherworld zone.

After centuries of being nomadic tribes, the Underworld let us seek refuge in the canyons between the two worlds.

We have two giant metal wall doors on each side of our territory. They are used to seal off the Netherworld from us and the city.

We are basically the protectors of the Underworld.

Flatwings walks up to the door and presses a button.

Eddie’s voice-

Who is it?

Flatwings-

Eddie, who do you think it is?

Eddie’s voice-

Hey Flats. Hang on, I’ll open the door.

Flatwings-

Thanks, Ed.

The giant doors open and a light flashes.

Flatwings walks into the light and the doors close.

Setting:

Ext.- Gremlin territory-nighttime

Show a small village of log cabins.

Flatwings walks around the cabins and stops at his.

Setting:

Ext.-Eclipse residence-nighttime

Show Flatwings walking up the front steps to his home.

He opens the door and walks inside the house.

Setting:

Int.-Eclipse house-nighttime

Show Flatwings walking into the kitchen on the left side of the house.

Setting:

Int.-House kitchen-nighttime

Show Carol cooking a 8 legged turkey.

She turns around and sees Flatwings.

Flatwings-

Hey mom.

Carol-

Hello sweetheart.

Something wrong?

Flatwings-

What? No.

I’m fine.

Carol-

That’s good.

Flatwings-

Say, where’s dad?

Carol-

In the basement working on an invention.

Flatwings-

Cool, thanks mom.

Flatwings walks out of the kitchen and to the basement door.

He opens the door and goes down to the basement.

Setting:

Int.-Basement-nighttime

It is a dark room in the basement.

Flatwings sees his father, Jim on a workbench with a light hanging over him.

Flatwings-

Dad?

Jim turns around and sees Flatwings.

Jim-

Hey Flats, how’s it going?

Flatwings-

Fine. What are you working on?

Jim-

A confetti blaster for your birthday.

Say, can you hand me that wrench?

Jim points to the wrench on the left.

Flatwings-

No problem, dad.

Flatwings grabs the wrench and hands it to Jim.

Jim-

And…there we go.

Jim tightens a bolt on the blaster.

Flatwings sits down on a chair.

Jim-

So are you excited?

Flatwings-

Excited for what?

Jim turns around on a stool.

Jim-

Your birthday next week.

You finally get to have a purpose in life.

Flatwings-

Yeah…I guess I do.

Jim-

You don’t seem to happy about it.

Flatwings-

I am happy, Dad.

Jim-

C’mon son, I know a fake emotion when I see it.

What’s bothering you?

Flatwings-

Well…it’s just that…I don’t know why I…

Jim-

It’s okay, spit it out.

Flatwings-

I don’t want to have a purpose.

Jim-

Wait, what?

Flatwings-

I mean, I do want to have a purpose, but not one that is chosen for me.

Jim-

What are you talking about, son?

Flatwings-

Whatever purpose I have in life, it basically won’t be my own.

I want to choose my fate, instead of letting our gods choose it for me.

I know this goes against everything you believe in, dad.

But it’s the truth.

Jim-

Well... what do you want to do with your life then?

Flatwings-

I want to see the surface of New York City.

I want to see the world above us.

Not just from a sewer, but from a street.

Jim-

Flats, I respect your wishes…but you know that it can’t happen.

The surface world isn’t ready to know about what lies underneath.

Flatwings-

Yeah, but dad…whatever purpose is given to me next week, won’t satisfy my life.

Jim-

Well, what about being a guard for the gates?

They need people who can see things from the sky.

Flatwings-

That’s a thought, dad.

But I also want to fall in love.

Jim-

There are plenty of attractive young women in the territory, son.

Flatwings-

Like who?

Jim-

Well there’s…um…Greta?

Flatwings-

Greta’s only got two teeth, dad.

Jim-

Yeah well, it’s better than nothing.

Jim chuckles.

Flatwings-

Look dad, I just think that I want to do something more with my life.

Whether it’s being a guard or some other second thing, it wouldn’t be enough.

Jim-

Say you remember what I’ve told you whenever you feel conflicted?

Flatwings-

What’s that?

Jim-

Just take a leap of faith.

Only you know how far you’ll go when you start, and where you’ll land when you finish.

Flatwings (smiling)-

Thanks, dad.

Jim-

Anytime.

Flatwings gets up from his chair and walks upstairs.

Setting:

Int.-Cabin hallway-nighttime

Show Flatwings walking out of the basement and to the stairs in the center of the house.

He walks upstairs to his bedroom.

Setting:

Int.-Flatwings’ bedroom-nighttime

Show Flatwings entering his bedroom.

His bedroom is covered with superhero posters and comic book boxes.

He lies down on his bed and sticks his wings out.

Flatwings’ voice-

As I laid down on my bed, I began to think about what my dad told me…

About taking a leap of faith.

Of course he’s said to me that my whole life, but this is the first time I’ve ever taken it into consideration.