90s Class Reunion

Sequels are never better than the original, apart from a couple of exceptions that come to mind. Which begs the questions, whomsoever is directing the current thriller does he intend to keep the ending the same as the original one? 

The roles have shifted, slight changes made in the cast, mainly due to some actors/actress not being present due to Covid or have unfortunately left the world in terrible incidents. An introduction of a third force was made a couple of years ago, which was generally greeted well by the audiences but twist and turns have left many confused. As always, the villain is portrayed as everyone involved, while who actually may be the real evil genius is still a million dollar question, or is it? That's the beauty of this universe, you can turn any fanfiction into reality because of the parallel storylines that are at play. For those who have watched Flash, a DC television show, they will find that far simpler to comprehend than this magnificent piece of production. 

The 2020 edition of this ever continuous production is set in the utopian Pure Land, which by now many fans of the show understand is to be understood as mockery on the behalf of the directors. A third world nation, still confused with its national identity, overgrowing with poverty and despair, divided along all lines with little or no morality in its people or leaders, but no lack of moral policing in all divisions of society. As set in 2020, Pure Land is again in the midst of a political crisis with an introduction of a new political movement termed as PLDP. We've still not been told what PLDP stands for but its representation is filled by A-list star studded performers. The alliance would shock probably anyone who is new to the production, which is why it is recommended to watch all seasons prior to watching the 2020 edition. The question is yet to be addressed as who will be the poster boy or girl to this movement, but in contention is a religious cleric, a foreign educated boy backed by his resourceful father, one of our favorites from past seasons Mr. Brick and the daughter of another of our favorites Mr. Why. Mind you the directors intentionally skipped showing the transition of power to the two children from their fathers but it can be presumed that the transition was smooth considering blood is the main requirement when it comes to passing down of power and rarely if ever have we seen power passed to someone who is not a blood relation. On paper the son represents a secular and a leftist ideology to an extinct, while the daughter again on paper shall move on with a religious, pro-businesses rightist ideology. It is strange to see the left and right align but anything can happen in Pure Land. Another confusion among viewers is how long lasting this alliance may be considering the religious leader has in the past seasons made it clear that he is not comfortable with a woman leading Pure Land, whereas the daughter and son have baggage because of history of their fathers. But we leave that for the directors to decide. PLDM is shown to be challenging the status quo, though it will be an interesting watch to how can the status quo challenge themselves. To give you a better understanding on how to understand and love this production, always remember the people of the Pure Land have short and long term memory loss disorder. Something even the viewers of the show have to install in themselves if they plan on continuing with this. 

As for the current forces in power, our third force from a couple of years ago Justice League, pardon me DC, have consolidated power and surely through help from heavenly powers. It did not make sense when it happened and fan fiction predicted that heavenly powers were used in removing the political elite, who had ruled for over 30 years, (now in PLDM) but now we are being led by the directors towards that narrative. One aspect that I truly loved was the way the power was divided, it surely did not give away right off the bat that heavenly powers were in play. 

It is a show down now, and a ton of action is to be seen in the coming episodes. From one angle it looks as if the dysfunctional partnership of the elite have reunited to take back the power which they rightly believe to be theirs for their own gains, but that's an extremely simplistic view. On the other hand it looks as if the new blood has atone for their sins and wants to rid away the heavenly powers and the third copy Justice League. I would not bet a penny on either, but it surely will be fun to watch.


To get a better idea of a possible ending watch the 90's edition of the show. 

Love to all. 

Crisis Cricket

Ladies and Gentlemen, if I may have your attention, please.
Cricket is in danger, I repeat cricket is in danger!

Zimbabwe Cricket has been banned by the International Cricket Council on grounds of their government interfering with their cricket board. While, the quality of cricket Zimbabwe brought to the international level did not match the standard, this is a loss to the gentlemen's game. It has been over a hundred years, yet cricket has not grown as a major global sports in terms of the countries that play the game, now we've lost another country that won't be playing the sport. 

One of the few reasons that cricket is in crisis right now is not because of the quality of the game but because of administrative failures and monopoly imposed by key stakeholders. The two mentioned points require a detail analysis and a lot of self reflection and self correction, if we are to achieve the goal of making cricket a global sport in ten years time right now. Though, before that, we have another crisis about to hit us.

Cricket is losing on quality from multiple nations and the gap between the best teams is far extending. West Indies, Sri Lanka and Pakistan are in a state of crisis and this directly affects cricket. The current world cup, irrespective how exciting it was, was a show of proof. The top four teams were largely predictable before the start of the world cup and had it not been for rain, it would have remained predictable as well. That is not what the game deserves, neither is that what the fans deserve.

West Indies cricket has taken a dive since the past couple of years, but they are getting back on their feet. The gap is still very wide and the issues at the core remain in large, unresolved. The encouraging aspect is that, they have established a core squad and will continue to revolve around those players till the T20 world cup that is to be held later next year. The West Indies Cricket Board and players will have to create new relationships and strong policy will have to be implemented if they are to create an impact on the world stage in the long run. The question is, will they be able to do this or will short term victories hijack the road to recovery? Unfortunately, the past two decades of West Indies cricket don't give cricket and the fan's much comfort. 

Sri Lanka, on the other hand are in free fall. Losing on key players due to retirement has exposed their domestic structure. There is no quality present at the moment and with the board politically handled, it is hard to see how they can get back to glory days. The squad that played in the world cup displayed glimpses of excellence at times, but they are still lacking. They've reshuffled and reordered, chopped and changed. What Sri Lanka needs to do now is focus on their domestic cricket and allow the international team the comfort of time. When the foundations of a cricket team are weak, especially at international level, the first thing that has to be ensured on the road to recovery is security. The group of boys representing team Sri Lanka need to assured of their place. You can not have individuals playing for their place in the team, when the team has hit rocked bottom and expect positive results. This will be a painful process, but with patience, it will bear fruits. Sri Lanka need this and so does world cricket. 

Pakistan brings in a flare different to world cricket than any nation. A competitive Pakistan makes the game twice as good as it already is. Unfortunately, Pakistan has been in a rebuilding process since 2015. Stability is missing from its core and there is no sense of direction. Much has been said about Pakistan's domestic structure and the quality it produces, but the time has come to put those words in action. Pakistan's record in the previous two years shows how far they are lacking behind, but unfortunately, the unpredictability manages a few great wins and everyone forgets the underlying problems. The recent exist in the world cup would lead to chop and changes, but that's exactly what Pakistan has been doing this the past twenty years! It is time for stability in their international team, except a few unavoidable changes and direct all the focus on their domestic cricket. The idea of a six team domestic structure is a good one, but only if it is implemented in the best possible way. Pakistan, will have to invest in their domestic structure and improve the image of cricket, domestically, if they are to have any chance of being contenders for the next world cup. Changes at the international level will break current process that has been brought in place by the current captain and manager. Adjust policy at the international level and revamp at the domestic level, not vice versa.

World Cricket needs these three teams at their level best, because without these three and no other teams to replace them, world cricket will be at a severe loss.