[ Video ]

[greenisthecolorof]

[ The first shot from the video is of a partial face— an eye, half of the nose, and a great expanse of cheek. ]

How do you turn this thing on—

[ The eye blinks, and then the face pulls back. ]

Wait, does that— oh! This is already....

[ Tommy laughs sheepishly. ]

Sorry about that, technology's not my strong point. Hey! I'm Tommy and I've... just arrived as of a few days ago. I thought I should introduce myself, so uh, that's what I'm doing. Heh. Soooo... it's nice to met everyone.

[ He waves slightly. ]

( ᴠɪᴅᴇᴏ )

[mantlepieces]

[ When Reggie appears on the screen, he looks a bit different than he has in recent months, or even as recently as a day or two ago -- the most telling change is that he's once again sporting his original bangs, despite getting a haircut a month or so back, and a five o'clock shadow. He's wearing a checkered red collared shirt over a black tee and there's visible backpack straps slung over his shoulders, as well as a manic-yet-exhausted energy in his eyes like someone who's been awake so long they're too delirious to even notice they're tired.

Which may be the case.

Either way, he's smiling. ]

Raise your hand if you like a good story. [ Still smiling, he pauses as if to wait, but it's just for emphasis. ] I mean, I don't have one -- sometimes I feel like maybe I don't actually know any, 'cause no one ever likes mine -- but this place can really get a guy wondering. You know... about heroes and that kind of thing. Stories are always only as good as how they end, right?

Hear me out, okay -- I know I'm not known for taking things that seriously, but I actually want to know. Like: Is a story good because of what happens, or because of the hero? And is the hero good because of how he starts off, or how he ends up? ... Maybe "good" isn't even the right word, but you know what I mean.

[ His gaze briefly swivels upward toward the sky as if in thought, his head cocking slightly to one side, and then he shrugs. ]

Anyway... I'm sure I'm only curious in the first place because I can't figure any of that out myself, and it's been driving me crazy. Go figure, right? People who tell good stories are always a big hit at parties.

[ Finally, almost perkily: ]

So, hey, who missed me? What month is it, anyway?

video;

[garrick]

[ When the video comes on it's just this guy standing there, trademark hat in his hands as he gives a smirk.]

Last time I did this we were talking about holding a barbecue sometime and a whole lotta people were interested. Well, bad news is the barbecue is cancelled. Annulled. Rescinded. Some people, they just can't deal with things these days.

[ He'll turn the hat over in his hands slowly, almost absently as he talks some more, still bemused by the whole thing. The hat is then suddenly and unceremoniously plonked on top of his head.]

That poor barbecue, goodbye potato salad, rip beers. Oh, and I suppose this is a warning to anyone who gets any ideas; I will not go down so easily. Gosh, don't worry Barry, I still have my eye on you; we don't need barbecues to hang out, do we now?