u/Hall-O-Daze

Since it's Bono's birthday, I was pondering this a little earlier.

If you listen to U2's earliest demos and live recordings, there is no disputing the man has come a long, long way. If you listen to, say, the 1978 demo of Twilight, his voice is totally unrecognizable from the iconic voice that fans, neutrals and haters alike have become familiar with. He went from looking for a voice to, at his peak, arguably one of the most distinct and powerful voices in music.

It's nothing short of a fascinating progression. By the time they went into the studio to record Boy, Bono clearly hasn't found his footing yet and he gets by with his wailing - although I have always been impressed with some of his insightful and introspective lyrics on the album. With October, even with a perceived lack of stronger material, Bono sounds more confident and clear from a vocal standpoint. On WAR, he takes a big, bounding step forward. He now has the voice to lead a great album and a great band.

When I listen to The Unforgettable Fire, I am always struck by how strong Bono's voice is. Is it his best vocal performance? I don't know. But it feels like his voice is at his strongest here. Of course, many see The Joshua Tree and Rattle & Hum era as his peak vocals. Can't really argue with that: his vocals were a force of nature, and Bono's maturation as a songwriter meant the lyrics associated with those vocals heightened the impact of his voice. Maximum expression.

Then, in the 90s, the band began painting with a whole new canvas, and Bono took the opportunity to wisely expand and update his repertoire. He had a whole new bag of tricks and tones to match the creativity of the music. If his voice was no longer at its strongest, Bono was finding new ways to express emotions in deeper and murky hues, along with a falsetto that reached for the stars.

I could go on, but this post is getting pretty lengthy. So, what do you think? Which album has Bono giving his vocal performance? No wrong answers.​

who would it be?

Granted, it's been eighteen years(Jesus, that's a scary thought), so some of the characters who survived the series might not still be with us today. That's life, and The Wire, while great drama, felt very true to life. So while some characters ended the show on a good or promising note, life tells us not everyone lived happily ever after. In reality, most of them probably wouldn't.

So, who would it be? What do hope happened to them? What do you think happened to them? No wrong answers.

How do you feel about this? Cheated? At peace? Indifferent? Confused(again)?

I'm pretty sure the last time we see it, the bounty hunter is looking on contentedly and serenely as Mulder is being painfully probed aboard the craft. The bounty hunter seemed quite pleased with the whole situation. Maybe this is not a bad way to remember such a character.

I mean, one could certainly argue the bounty hunter is not a major player in the grand scheme of the show's arc. On the other hand, the bounty hunter shows up fairly early on in the series and is a relatively consistent presence throughout the series. Never let it be said the bounty hunter wasn't there for some crucial stuff.

Maybe not everything needs to be wrapped up in a nice, neat little package. Perhaps, given the show's tone, it is better this way. Besides, despite being top-tier television, the show didn't always stick the landing when it came to ending a character's story(cough, cough The Lone Gunmen cough!).

Two things I think we can all agree on: one, the alien bounty hunter made the most of its screentime and two, we were NEVER surprised when someone's face suddenly became the bounty hunter. You could count on that like clockwork!