Peregrine: Your Hostess Speaks

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	Peregrine Verdict

Peregrine: Your Hostess Speaks

The first of what promises to be many exciting seasons of American Hero is over and I can honestly say that it has been twelve weeks fraught with suspense and drama, comedy and tragedy, all played out in grand style before the eyes of millions of fascinated viewers.

Many wanted to be the American Hero. Few were called to battle for the honor. Only one was chosen. The final choice for American Hero was balanced on the razor-thin edge of fortune, fate, and circumstance. Jamal Norwood will acquit himself superbly in the year to come. He is handsome, intelligent, caring, and committed, and will set a high standard for those who follow in his footsteps. Wheat he does after his stint as American Hero ends is entirely up to him and certainly, on whatever road he takes he’ll walk with grace and dignity.

We started on the path to glory four months ago with over six hundred and fifty hopeful contestants who tried out in seven American cities. The competitors were of all races and ethnicities and of all social backgrounds. They came from the north, the south, the east, and the west. They were young and mature, already rich and always desperately poor. They were construction workers and students, rock stars and preacher men. The hopes of hundreds were dashed when the twenty-eight were chosen, but twenty-seven of the chosen twenty-eight were destined for disappointment as they fought their way through the crucible of competition.

The contestants were divided into teams and faced trial by fire as they tried to learn how to work with each other to achieve a common goal.  Some learned that lesson more easily than others. Those that didn’t were soon lost along the way. In the next weeks unexpected heroes rose to master the challenge. Few viewers, perhaps even few judges, expected much from eleven year old Dragon Huntress or the quiet and self-effacing Earth Witch, but real heroes arise when seemingly ordinary people face extraordinary circumstances with calmness, quick thinking, and fighting hearts, which is what both of these surprising heroines used to win the prize for their team. And perhaps find some confidence in themselves, as well.

The scavenger race whose only rule was “there are no rules,” taught our budding heroes the lesson of competition not against the elements, but with others who also desired the mantle of American Hero. The lesson learned that week was that those who want it the most are the ones who get it. The winner wasn’t the unfocused rock star who took time out from duty to sign autographs for his adoring fans. It was the hard-working, nose-to-the-grindstone champions who never took their eyes of the prize, not for a single second.

Our want-to-be heroes were not immune from the foibles of the real world. In perhaps the most controversial incident in the course of the series, one claimed a fellow contestant uttered a racial slur that no one else heard. Ultimately, this claim could never be proven or denied and it colored the proceedings for the rest of the season. Was Stuntman right or wrong in going public with his claim? Should he have handled the matter privately? The disturbance certainly changed some lives profoundly, possibly even the ultimate outcome of American Hero.

The teams started to hit their strides as the weeks passed more quickly than seemed possible. Everyone learned their teammates’ strengths and weaknesses, but also the personal sides of things became important as friendships, alliances, and cliques grew, all of which would factor into contestant discards from this point on. The stakes increased, the peril ratcheted up several notches, the excitement surged when it came time for our nascent heroes to battle other wild talents. Three aces — young Lohengrin from Germany, hulking Detroit Steel, and the ultimate veteran, Golden Boy, who over his seven decades has seen more combat in more places on this Earth than any other ace — along with the mysterious stage magician Noel Matthews, confronted the now thinned ranks of our young heroes. The veterans, as so often is the case, largely proved to be too much for the neophytes.

But again, the real world intruded into our unfolding drama, first, in an earthquake that struck the mansion housing the Discard Pile, second, in an earthquake of the human spirit, when a group of Discards heard another voice calling them from halfway across the world. A catastrophe of epic proportions drew them to Egypt, where they proved themselves real heroes as they went to the battlefields of a foreign land to protect the poor and weak. Three of them paid the ultimate sacrifice and laid down their lives for their brethren. All now carry scars and horrific memories that have changed them forever. Those that are gone will never be forgotten.Their stories will be told on American Hero — Special International Edition, which will air later this fall. This will be a very special two-hour event ,not to be missed.

Like any new enterprise, some mistakes were made in this first season of American Hero. We can’t do much about natural disasters and unexpected social upheavals, but some things we can correct. We received a certain amount of unfounded criticism for putting a minor in needless peril, but rest assured that cute little Dragon Huntress was never in any real danger. However, taking the concerns of our audience to heart, next season we will institute an age limit of eighteen, ensuring the safety of America’s child aces.

Other viewers were concerned about a certain lack of morality exhibited by some contestants. Rest assured that we at American Hero do not approve of such behavior, and it has always been and will remain our policy to document such behavior only to place it in the context of show continuity, so that viewers can fully understand the complex web of inter-relationships that come into play when discard decisions are made.

Other viewers were somewhat upset by the lack of jokers on the show. Committed as we are to exhibiting the great diversity of our wonderful wild card society, are talent scouts are even now combing America to find those special contestants who can hold their own against anyone and compete confidently in the next great season of American Hero.

We all learned something from this season of American Hero, contestants, judges, and producers alike.  Drummer Boy learned that it’s easier to be a rock star than a hero. Cleopatra learned that charm, like beauty, is only skin deep. Any number of contestants learned that diamonds, or at least one particular diamond, aren’t necessarily a girl’s best friend. I learned that insurance doesn’t cover “damage to property caused by insects, vermin, or aces.”

Rest assured that we’ll take our hard-won knowledge and apply it to the next season, making it even bigger, more exciting, and more heroic for you, our viewers.

Our researches are already crisscrossing the country to bring you the most colorful, the most amazing, the most scintillating aces ever to grace a television screen. Look for them in your city or town and please join us in the fall for the second great season of American Hero!

Comments

[QueenOfSpades]

I didn't know Peregrine was Irish.. I mean that is a lot of blarney on top of blarney. I hope we don't have to send Harry out to go clean that up. He just got done with the stables again.

[IronAce-TV]

Be prepared for American Hero to go up next season against Iron Ace. Watch weekly as teams of Jokers, Deuces and Aces team up together to battle one of the world's Iron Aces in a challenge selected by our council of Evil!

Iron Ace(TM) available on YouTube, iTunes, and the soon to be launched Ace Network!

[QueenOfSpades]

AGGGGHHHHH!!! Mom's on the phone to the TV company she was partnering with.. no comment SPAM of the show.. That's so lame.. especially since Uncle Eddie's coming home and the show was his idea. Sorry people.

[CryinginTexas]

Age limit of eighteen NEXT YEAR? Well that's a nice idea, but it's not going to help the kids who died this year. Simoon was under eighteen, wasn't she? And King Cobalt? He certainly looked like a man on the show, but who can tell under that mask and given the wild card? And I heard news reports that after he was killed, he turned back into a little boy.

I'm a joker. My husbands a deuce. We had one precious child who survived birth, and then last year he disappears. The police close the case because he was a latent and while he could have been abducted, they say he probably drew the black queen and melted or teleported into a volcano or turned into a rock at the side the road on his way home from school.

Or maybe he went crazy and turned into a musclebound Mexican wrestler and went on your show, then you let him go off to Egypt with your son and get killed, you evil winged bitch!

I don't know. I'll probably never know. But there are a lot of mothers out there with missing kids, kids who were latents, and you should know because you had one too. But I hope whoever King Cobalt's parents were, they find their precious little boy's body and then sue your ass off!

[WileyKoyote]

I see her talkin' but all I'm hearin' is blah blah blah blah.

I much preferred the honesty of Digger and the Hammer and Topper to the party line being blathered out by our esteemed hotness... I mean hostess.

Give me honesty or give me beer, but don't feed me carefully-packaged crap and call it pancakes. Yawn. You'd think by now Peregrine would have realized that we KNOW what kind of stuff REALLY went on... their own confessionals have taken care of that.

Bah, I say.

[BlackBox]

WileyKoyote,

I really don't think Peregrine does get how much the world has changed since she was doing the daily show. I get the sense she doesn't realize that since they were already charging premium for getting to watch the various cameras (just like all the reality shows) that the stuff would be leaked all over YouTube, and every file sharing tool you can get your hand on. The ShareBoards showed that the most downloaded, swapped, torrented video 4-5 weeks ago was the 'night-vision' camera of DrummerBoy and Tiffani in a hot tub... so everyone from 30 years and younger knows what was really going on...

But you get older than that.. and unless you are hip with computers you don't get it. My folks expect everyone to get their information from the TV and Radio and DVD rental store. When I show them how much you can get from computers these days they wonder why its not against the law sometimes. [Reminding Dad that people said the same thing about TV 60 years ago didn't earn me any brownie points :)]

Anyway... I am just cruising around here at 28.8 from the hospital bed. Going to be moving up to San Jose after I get out of here.. got a gig to look through satellite data.. just have to keep my brain inside my meat which is slower.. but not as gruesome ;).

[BookWyrm]

Well, it's finally over. I doubt if I'll watch the second season of this "show", but then anything is possible.

I for one am glad & greatful Eddie/DinosaurMan is on his way home. There should be some happy endings to some of this madness.

On the down side, one of our locals, Mrs. Emmajean Simmson, a.k.a. Granny Prune, passed away yesterday afternoon, taking her nap. She was a young girl when she met her future husband on the streets of Manhattan on that first Wild Card Day, but her card didn't turn until much later, after the birth of her fraternal twin children. Her husband stayed with her through almost 5 decades of marriage, through tough times & good ones, until he passed away in late 1990. Granny weathered this loss by rededicating herself to her children, & later, grandchildren & great-grandchildren & even her extended 'family' of fellow Wildcarders. Her wisdom still echoes with many of us, but we take comfort in the knowledge that she is in a better place now.

Rest well, Emmajean, you've more than earned it.

[QueenOfSpace]

I am sorry to hear about your loss Bookwyrm. I can say that it was better for Granny Prune to go that way then by some meth-heads earlier this week. Wow I hope that doesn't sound as bad as it does reading it again.

We haven't heard when Uncle Eddie will be home. He has to go to some debriefings to go over what happened and then to see if any charges and stuff will be filed for initiating conflict against a foreign government. The new Caliph's government seems to have asked for such but Mom's assistant Debra says its just formalities because the new Caliph doesn't want Eddie or any of the other Aces as it would show the problems his brother started. The only ones that seem to be in big trouble are the Wind in the Willows gang. Someone said they have gone underground.

[BookWyrm]

Thanks, QoS. Give him a hug from me when he gets back there.

Given what's been going on here, I'd have to agree. There have been two more arrests in the 'assault-on-jokers-and-minorities' case (as the scuttlebutt called it), & that seems to have quieted down a couple of the more reactionary voices in our little circle.

[DinosaurMan]

Hi, I am back in Phillie area. Got back this morning. I would like to thank my hosts outside of Dulles for my stay the last couple of days. They were real nice and listened quite well for a change. I guess the times are a changing... or something. Anyway.. not much to say.. we went off and did our best to stop some evil people who probably were heroes to others.. and got our [bleep] handed to us. Most of the guys didn't come home, and the 3 of us who did are gonna have nightmares for a long time. While my tail and stuff will grow back, others aren't so lucky.

I am real tired, but wanted to say thanks to BookWyrm and the rest for keeping my nieces and nephews entertained while I was off galavanting. And I still think this Committee thing is a good idea.. if they are looking for an Auxilliary group or something.. and the US government can volunteer some of us Jokers.. I am all go for it.

Anyway, to the producers at American Hero,thanks for reminding me what a real hero is supposed to be (even if it was by counter-example.)

Eddie the DinoMan (as the kids in Liberia called me on the way home).

[BookWyrm]

Dino: Glad to help out, my friend. Have a cold one on me & welcome home.

[BookWyrm]

Well, as they say, one chapter ends, another begins.

The last of the joker-bashers was arrested & sentenced today, getting the maximum for multiple counts of attempted murder, assault, concealed weapons & unsafe intoxication (yeah, of all things, they get nailed for being drunk in public!) & won't be seeing anything but four grey walls for at least a decade. No community servce, no parole, just hard jail time.

Granny Prune's service was today, or I should say yesterday (this being posted after midnight, NY time). Most of us expected the local funeral home to deny us the service, but it turned out that one of the jr. directors was a nat who Granny helped set straight a long time back. We also expected a big anti-joker protest, but not one voice was raised in anger--in fact, the community turn-out packed the funeral home & semi-spilled into a couple of other services going on. The other families were not only accomodating, they also helped corral some of the more rambunctious kids.
After the services, only a few of us could follow the hearse to the cemetary where she was laid to rest next to her husband.
The wake at Granny's was, in a word, heartbreaking--but in a GOOD way. Everyone who had been at the funeral home, even some from the other two services, showed up & it was almost like one of Granny's famous Wild Card Day celebrations. People brought home cooked dishes, donations of clothes & books; a local contractor offered to fix up Granny's house for half-cost; the cops put up one of their "Protected By Precinct" signs, adding the place to their patrols; the local ice-cream truck cut his prices in half & sold out before dinner time. I had to pace myself, the food was so good. We're going to be eating leftovers at my house for about 2 weeks. (LOL)

Maybe times are changing for the better. Maybe this won't last very long. But by (whatever supreme being is out there), I'm going to enjoy it.

Until Season 2 starts, this has been BookWyrm, wildcard of Long Island, New York, wishing all a good night & a good life.

[Doppleganger]

Hello all,

If anybody was following the minor saga of the Kentucky ace who got himself into major trouble in Africa...well, I'm somewhat happy to say that saga has reached its end.

I haven't heard anything out of the "Committee" or Jayewardene yet regarding ace incursions into Africa, but the USA seems unlikely to pursue any charges against us. The Kenyan Parliment has sent representatives to talk to Barrack Obama about pressing some sort against me (because, you know, Barrack is half-Kenyan) but I doubt anything will come of it. After all--I'm a shapeshifter, and I've diligently cultivated a secret ID for the past nineteen years. For all they know, I could BE Barrack Obama!

Like somebody said, the Winds-n-Willows Gang (who call themselves "Damage, Inc.," apparently) are indeed wanted by several international police thingys (including a bunch of EU "Human Rights' Leagues) but the truth is they put a good deal of fear into the Islamist government of the Sudan. All's well and good when you're the one pointing the rifle at the peasants, but it's a different story when you're on the receiving end--and Damage, Inc. subjected the entire Sudanese Parliament to the "receiving end" of the rifle. And they're still out there, a fact that must keep the hardliners in Khartoum awake at night.

Damage Inc.'s miscaculation was their assumption that the janjaweed were controlled from Khartoum. They're not. Most of the janjaweed just kept issuing threats to kill every joker they could find if D Inc. didn't let Parliament go. For those of you interested in youtube clips, you can see one where the Barbarian and company actually went head-to-head against that one janjaweed leader who said he was going to track down and murder the Barbarian's parents, brothers, sisters, and children--Damage Inc cut through them like a knife through butter. This was filmed by a Turkish television crew, I think. The janjaweed bigwig gets blasted apart when the Barbarian fires some sort of...I dunno, little energy bolts at him, lots of them.

On the relevant topic, I suppose, I'm kind of surpised Stuntman won.

I'm eager to see what sort of ace talent comes up next season.

Angie, Laurie and myself are off to Michigan and Louisville, respectively. I hope Season 2 goes a bit more smoothly as far as international affairs are concerned...

-Yrs.,
Doppleganger