Although The Legend of Shen Li ended a few weeks ago, aspects of it linger in my mind. From all metrics the much touted reunion of the leads Lin Gengxin and Zhao Liying appears to be a commercial success because the showrunners which includes Zhao Liying as an executive producer know what the audiences want. The two final episodes tacitly acknowledge the problems and mistakes of the leads’ previous collaboration, Princess Agents, focusing on what the audience wants and fan services the heck of out the resolution.

I’m sounding the alarm. I’m shouting it from the rooftops. I’m telling anyone who will listen. It can happen here. The “it” in this case is fascism. In the United States, founded as a democratic republic, we now face the urgent threat of an authoritarian regime taking over our political mechanism and depriving us of our voice through the vote. The United States has never fully extended democracy to all people, but the tenuous thread of democratic freedoms we have might be severed as soon as the November 2024 presidential election.

Hello readers! This week’s tidbits: Honesty The deepest truth Lies builders tell themselves From the Archives: Seven incredibly non-intuitive things about growing your career For paid subscribers: Subscriber Mailbag: Follow-up questions to Higher Level Design How do I know if I am truly honest with myself? The well goes deep Dear readers, The idea of truth has been on my mind for some years now. As we twist wider the spigot of information running into our brains we wonder more and more: what is really true?

Happy Sunday everyone, Today's edition of Tommy Talks Marketing covers perhaps the most highly requested topic I've written about in the past few months. No pressure, right? The rise of JHBTeam as a content creator for esports organization, 100 Thieves, is a marketing masterclass. Today we'll examine what's made JHB so successful, and what 100T is getting out of catalyzing his growth. We'll also make sure you walk away with some concepts to apply in your own marketing strategy.

Dear Friend, I hope you’re having a good summer, and thank you for your patience with the slightly offbeat rhythm of my letters at the moment. As I’ve written about before, and as you probably know, summer here is a much more pronounced thing than it is in the UK because most people take several weeks off at this time of year. Locals leave the city and visitors from everywhere else in the world arrive in large numbers.