That's just too awesome. I think I broke. Thank you.

Ah, Boris, we hardly knew you.

I will have full thoughts at some point (in particular, I have a reasoned, not rebuttal, because he was right, but counterpoint to Ben Stark's impassioned keynote address) but for now I have one tiny observation:

I was very pleased that Justin Hammer didn't rate a spot in the credits despite being a named character with lines. That's a sick meta-burn, is what that is.

-Merc
Keep Rat

>I was very pleased that Justin Hammer didn't rate a spot in the
>credits despite being a named character with lines. That's a
>sick meta-burn, is what that is.

Uh, yeah, or I just forgot.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

>Uh, yeah, or I just forgot.

God dammit, Ben. I never know if I'm giving you too much credit or not enough.

It vexes me.

-Merc
Keep Rat

>>Uh, yeah, or I just forgot.
>
>God dammit, Ben. I never know if I'm giving you too much credit
>or not enough.
>
>It vexes me.

Ockham's Razor, foo'.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

After reading this thread, I was half-expecting Boris Bullski (Titanium Man). Having him be somebody else is a nice surprise, although I think it means he doesn't have as much staying power. (Bullski might survive to be a bother later; Kazanov has no such guarantee.)

Also, I like the connection between Nene and Natalia, as well as the suggestion that Nene may be a nom de guerre. It'll be interesting seeing how this turns out.

Peter Eng
--
Insert humorous comment here.

Not knowing many Borises, I was expecting Boris from Goldeneye.

>Also, I like the connection between Nene and Natalia, as well as the
>suggestion that Nene may be a nom de guerre.

It took me a second to figure out where you got that idea from, as we didn't intend to imply it. In the interest of full disclosure, "Nenya" is just a diminutive for Nene. Compare "Sanya" as a familiar form of Aleksandr/Aleksandra, "Petya" for Petr/Piotr, or any number of others. Russians love their affectionate nicknames, and unlike the equivalent phenomenon in English, they're not necessarily shorter than the originals. Heck, sometimes they're longer! If someone really wanted to cutesy it up talking to Nene, they'd call her Nenyochka.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

>>Also, I like the connection between Nene and Natalia, as well as the
>>suggestion that Nene may be a nom de guerre.
>
>It took me a second to figure out where you got that idea from, as we
>didn't intend to imply it. In the interest of full disclosure,
>"Nenya" is just a diminutive for Nene.
>

That makes more sense, actually. Thanks for clarifying.

Peter Eng
--
Insert humorous comment here.

Hahaha, somebody kept an eye on the Model 3 product launch this weekend, didn't they.

This is one of the more social-commentary-forward stories I've seen on EPU, and it's strong, funny, bright, hopeful, dramatic and inspired - just like what we've come to expect. It's also... very timely.

I want to quote Ben Stark's speech at everyone I know.

>Hahaha, somebody kept an eye on the Model 3 product launch this
>weekend, didn't they.
>

I suspect that this is coincidence, and that the Tesla Model 3 has very little to do with anything that happened here.

>I want to quote Ben Stark's speech at everyone I know.

It's no less true than it was when Ben first wrote it, (pause to check) almost four years ago.

Peter Eng
--
Insert humorous comment here.

LAST EDITED ON Apr-05-16 AT 01:03 AM (EDT)
 
>Hahaha, somebody kept an eye on the Model 3 product launch this
>weekend, didn't they.

Actually, you know what, what I was saying doesn't go here. In this context the only relevant part is the note that it's a complete coincidence; I've been working on this damn story, and the one that comes after it, since before my cancer adventure, which completely derailed it for years.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

Well, that's even better. I'm glad other people think along the same lines.