The Answer Was 2, But ‘Pyew Pyew’ Works
Morning, Valley
The sun comes in sideways,
a slow crawl over stucco walls.
I pour water for the dogs.
Charlie circles, Jadie stares me down.
In the yard, a hummingbird drills the air—
a jeweled little bastard,
impatient with the world.
Across the street, the neighbor’s chimes catch
a breeze that isn’t really there.
The valley smells of wet grass,
old coffee, and car exhaust.
It’s perfect.
No one is awake but us.
The dogs sniff the earth
like priests at confession.
Traffic hums somewhere out,
a far-off river of fools
chasing something.
Here, though—
the leash is loose,
my cup runs full,
the air is still cool enough
to forgive.
I think of poems,
of love,
of money,
of none of it.
Charlie rolls in dirt.
Jadie licks my hand
as if to say,
This is enough.
And Jesus,
maybe it is.
‘Implosion’ Captures Terror of Hubris
Implosion: The Titanic Sub Disaster is a chilling reminder of what happens when hubris dives deeper than reason.
Directed and produced by Pamela Gordon, this BBC and Discovery Channel cproduction methodically reconstructs the 2023 OceanGate Titan tragedy, where five lives were lost in a catastrophic implosion during a dive to the Titanic wreck.
Gordon’s film, unlike the sub, is sharp and tightly built.
It draws on exclusive access to the U.S. Coast Guard investigation and presents some haunting audio from the support ship Polar Prince, which recorded the silence that followed the loss of contact with Titan.
From there, Implosion unpacks how this dive ever got approved. Engineers, former OceanGate staffers, and marine experts give damning testimony about the sub’s flaws—chief among them Stockton Rush’s insistence on using carbon fiber for a hull meant to withstand crushing pressures miles beneath the ocean surface.
Rush’s own words, captured in archival interviews where he openly dismisses standard safety practices, prove more revealing than any commentary. The documentary wisely lets them speak for themselves.
The film also gives space to the personal loss. Christine Dawood, who lost her husband and son aboard Titan, provides an unflinching account of the human cost of this disaster. Her testimony adds weight without tipping into melodrama.
If the documentary has a shortfall, it is its lack of a broader dive into how regulatory gaps allowed OceanGate to operate with so little oversight. It touches on the issue but leaves much unsaid. For a film that deals so effectively with engineering failures and personal tragedy, this missing piece stands out.
Still, Implosion is a strong, unvarnished work. It doesn’t sensationalize. It doesn’t overreach.
It tells the story like the Titanic’s fate—cold and clear.
