I know that production lag makes it hard to sync up but the new James Bond film released this week and on the beach scenes, Homer's bathing suit and knife calls back to Honeychile Rider (Ursula Andress's character in Dr. No)

Passes the Bechtel test!

Awesome reference to Iain Banks. Came late to his culture books and they are amazing. Will miss him a lot.
Not sure if PoI will be this convoluted but give the writers credit in establishing "bad guys" with some rationale. They are not just "bad guys" because they are "bad" and they truly do believe in what they are…

Great scenes derive from great acting, great direction and great material (writing) - so if something seems off - it isn't just the actor's problem - sometimes the direction didn't get the right tone or feel and sometimes the material just isn't that good. Often it is all three.

Good notion.

She could do a "Helena" guide - like the Michelin guide. Hard to get that first knife, and that second knife secures the place in history.

Exactly - it fits perfectly into the world where "cubes" and "spheres" of beer are sold and is just ridiculous enough to be a real campaign.

Abbiejean or aubergine?