DC Comics New Releases from Lunar Distributors for February 23, 2021

DC COMICS:

Batman Black And White #3 (Of 6)(Cover A Joshua Middleton), $5.99
Batman Black And White #3 (Of 6)(Cover B Sana Takeda), AR
Batman Black And White #3 (Of 6)(Cover C Khary Randolph Poison Ivy Variant), AR
Batman Gotham Knights Contested TP, $29.99
Batman White Knight Presents Harley Quinn #5 (Of 6)(Cover A Sean Murphy), $4.99
Batman White Knight Presents Harley Quinn #5 (Of 6)(Cover B Matteo Scalera), AR
Catwoman Volume 4 Come Home Alley Cat TP, $19.99
Crisis On Multiple Earths Volume 1 Crossing Over TP, $39.99
DC Connect Checklist Poster #9, AR
Ex Machina Compendium Volume 2 TP, $59.99
Future State Aquaman #2 (Of 2)(Cover A Daniel Sampere), $3.99
Future State Aquaman #2 (Of 2)(Cover B Khary Randolph Card Stock Variant), AR
Future State Batman Superman #2 (Of 2)(Cover A David Marquez), $3.99
Future State Batman Superman #2 (Of 2)(Cover B Arthur Adams Card Stock Variant), AR
Future State Dark Detective #4 (Of 4)(Cover A Dan Mora), $5.99
Future State Dark Detective #4 (Of 4)(Cover B Brian Bolland Card Stock Variant), AR
Future State Legion Of Super-Heroes #2 (Of 2)(Cover A Riley Rossmo), $3.99
Future State Legion Of Super-Heroes #2 (Of 2)(Cover B Ian MacDonald Card Stock Variant), AR
Future State Suicide Squad #2 (Of 2)(Cover A Javi Fernandez), $5.99
Future State Suicide Squad #2 (Of 2)(Cover B Derrick Chew Card Stock Variant), AR
Future State Superman House Of El #1 (One Shot)(Cover A Yanick Paquette), $5.99
Future State Superman House Of El #1 (One Shot)(Cover B Jay Anacleto Card Stock Variant), AR
Future State Superman Vs Imperious Lex #2 (Of 3)(Cover A Yanick Paquette), $3.99
Future State Superman Vs Imperious Lex #2 (Of 3)(Cover B Skan Card Stock Variant), AR
Generations Forged #1 (One Shot)(Cover A Liam Sharp), $9.99
Generations Forged #1 (One Shot)(Cover B Rafael Albuquerque Variant), AR
Joker War Saga HC, $39.99
Nubia Real One TP, $16.99
Superman By Grant Morrison Omnibus HC, $75.00
Swamp Thing The Bronze Age Volume 3 TP, $39.99
Tales From The DC Dark Multiverse TP, $24.99
Teen Titans Volume 4 Robin No More TP, $19.99

Post Malone to Perform at Pokémon 25 Vitrual Concert

Pokémon Unveils Virtual Music Concert With Post Malone to Celebrate 25th Anniversary

Online Global Music Event to Take Place on Pokémon Day, February 27, as Part of P25 Music Program

BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pokémon unveiled plans for a virtual music concert celebrating its 25th anniversary. The pop-culture brand broke the news with help from headliner and Pokémon fan Post Malone in a video that can be seen here.

    “I’ve been a Pokémon fan for a long time, so the opportunity to headline the Pokémon Day concert celebrating 25 years is awesome”

Taking place on Saturday, February 27—better known as Pokémon Day—the event will be an online party not just for Pokémon fans, but for all music fans around the world. It will also serve as the launch activation for the franchise’s yearlong P25 Music program. The Pokémon Company International has teamed up with Universal Music Group to bring this concert and more music surprises to life throughout 2021 as part of P25 Music. P25 Music is a collaboration with some of music’s biggest names to create new songs, styles, and pop-culture moments, all through the lens of Pokémon. Pop icon Katy Perry was announced last month as the program’s premier artist.

“I’ve been a Pokémon fan for a long time, so the opportunity to headline the Pokémon Day concert celebrating 25 years is awesome,” said Post Malone.

The concert will be free to view on the official Pokémon YouTube channel, Pokémon’s official Twitch channel, and on Pokémon’s 25th anniversary website beginning at 7:00 p.m. EST / 4:00 p.m. PST on February 27. Pokémon will unveil more P25 Music details at the end of the concert, so fans will want to tune in for more upcoming collaboration surprises.

In anticipation of the concert, The Pokémon Company International will host several celebratory activations across the brand in the week leading up to the virtual music event. In addition to the previously announced Pokémon GO Tour: Kanto event on Saturday, February 20, 2021, The Pokémon Company International will distribute a special password on February 25, 2021, for players of the Pokémon video game franchise to add a special Pikachu to their Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield games. In keeping with the music theme for the year, this Pikachu knows the move Sing, which it can’t ordinarily learn. On February 27, fans can tune in to Pokémon TV, either on the web or by downloading the app, for a curated selection of music-themed episodes of the popular Pokémon animated series as they prepare for the big Pokémon Day concert with Post Malone in the evening. Fans can expect more announcements that week from across the franchise.

To stay up to date on all the latest news as Pokémon celebrates 25 years, fans can visit Pokemon.com/25 and join the conversation online with #Pokemon25.


About Pokémon:
The Pokémon Company International, a subsidiary of The Pokémon Company in Japan, manages the property outside of Asia and is responsible for brand management, licensing and marketing, the Pokémon Trading Card Game, the animated TV series, home entertainment, and the official Pokémon website. Pokémon was launched in Japan in 1996 and today is one of the most popular children’s entertainment properties in the world. For more information, visit www.pokemon.com.

About Universal Music Group:
Universal Music Group (UMG) is the world leader in music-based entertainment, with a broad array of businesses engaged in recorded music, music publishing, merchandising and audiovisual content in more than 60 countries. Featuring the most comprehensive catalog of recordings and songs across every musical genre, UMG identifies and develops artists and produces and distributes the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful music in the world. Committed to artistry, innovation and entrepreneurship, UMG fosters the development of services, platforms and business models in order to broaden artistic and commercial opportunities for our artists and create new experiences for fans. Universal Music Group is a Vivendi company.

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93 Nations Submitted Entries for the "International Film" Oscar at 93rd Academy Awards

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILMS ELIGIBLE FOR 93RD OSCARS® ANNOUNCED

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced feature films eligible for consideration in the International Feature Film category for the 93rd Academy Awards®.  Eligibility lists by category can be viewed at Oscars.org/93rdFeatureEligibility.  Complete 93rd Academy Awards rules can be found at Oscars.org/rules.

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
Ninety-three countries have submitted films that are eligible for consideration in the International Feature Film category for the 93rd Academy Awards.  An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture (more than 40 minutes) produced outside the United States with a predominantly (more than 50%) non-English dialogue track.  Lesotho, Sudan and Suriname are first-time entrants.

Earlier this year, the Academy’s Board of Governors voted to expand the shortlist from 10 to 15 films.  Academy members from all branches are invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must meet a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category.  The shortlist of 15 films was announced on Tuesday, February 9, 2021.

93RD ACADEMY AWARDS® ELIGIBLE FOR CONSIDERATION IN THE INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM CATEGORY:

Listed in alphabetical order by country:
Albania, “Open Door”
Argentina, “The Sleepwalkers”
Armenia, “Songs of Solomon”
Austria, “What We Wanted”
Bangladesh, “Sincerely Yours, Dhaka”
Belgium, “Working Girls”
Bolivia, “Chaco”
Bosnia and Herzegovina, “Quo Vadis, Aida?”
Brazil, “Babenco - Tell Me When I Die”
Bulgaria, “The Father”
Cambodia, “Fathers”
Cameroon, “The Fisherman’s Diary”
Canada, “14 Days, 12 Nights”
Chile, “The Mole Agent”
China, “Leap”
Colombia, “El Olvido Que Seremos (Memories of My Father)”
Costa Rica, “Land of Ashes”
Croatia, “Extracurricular”
Cuba, “Buscando a Casal”
Czech Republic, “Charlatan”
Denmark, “Another Round”
Dominican Republic, “A State of Madness”
Ecuador, “Emptiness”
Egypt, “When We’re Born”
Estonia, “The Last Ones”
Finland, “Tove”
France, “Two of Us”
Georgia, “Beginning”
Germany, “And Tomorrow the Entire World”
Greece, “Apples”
Guatemala, “La Llorona”
Honduras, “Days of Light”
Hong Kong, “Better Days”
Hungary, “Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time”
Iceland, “Agnes Joy”
India, “Jallikattu”
Indonesia, “Impetigore”
Iran, “Sun Children”
Ireland, “Arracht”
Israel, “Asia”
Italy, “Notturno”
Ivory Coast, “Night of the Kings”
Japan, “True Mothers”
Jordan, “200 Meters”
Kazakhstan, “The Crying Steppe”
Kenya, “The Letter”
Kosovo, “Exile”
Kyrgyzstan, “Running to the Sky”
Latvia, “Blizzard of Souls”
Lebanon, “Broken Keys”
Lesotho, “This Is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection”
Lithuania, “Nova Lituania”
Luxembourg, “River Tales”
Malaysia, “Roh”
Mexico, “I’m No Longer Here”
Mongolia, “Veins of the World”
Montenegro, “Breasts”
Morocco, “The Unknown Saint”
Netherlands, “Buladó”
Nigeria, “The Milkmaid”
North Macedonia, “Willow”
Norway, “Hope”
Pakistan, “Circus of Life”
Palestine, “Gaza Mon Amour”
Panama, “Operation Just Cause”
Paraguay, “Killing the Dead”
Peru, “Song without a Name”
Philippines, “Mindanao”
Poland, “Never Gonna Snow Again”
Portugal, “Vitalina Varela”
Romania, “Collective”
Russia, “Dear Comrades!”
Saudi Arabia, “Scales”
Senegal, “Nafi’s Father”
Serbia, “Dara of Jasenovac”
Singapore, “Wet Season”
Slovakia, “The Auschwitz Report”
Slovenia, “Stories from the Chestnut Woods”
South Africa, “Toorbos”
South Korea, “The Man Standing Next”
Spain, “The Endless Trench”
Sudan, “You Will Die at Twenty”
Suriname, “Wiren”
Sweden, “Charter”
Switzerland, “My Little Sister”
Taiwan, “A Sun”
Thailand, “Happy Old Year”
Tunisia, “The Man Who Sold His Skin”
Turkey, “Miracle in Cell No. 7”
Ukraine, “Atlantis”
Uruguay, “Aleli”
Venezuela, “Once upon a Time in Venezuela”
Vietnam, “Dreamy Eyes”

All dates and rules for the 93rd Academy Awards are subject to change based on national guidelines, state-mandated government orders and Academy-determined best practices.

Nominations for the 93rd Academy Awards will be announced on Monday, March 15, 2021.

The 93rd Oscars® will be held on Sunday, April 25, 2021, and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.

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ABOUT THE ACADEMY:
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is a global community of more than 10,000 of the most accomplished artists, filmmakers and executives working in film. In addition to celebrating and recognizing excellence in filmmaking through the Oscars, the Academy supports a wide range of initiatives to promote the art and science of the movies, including public programming, educational outreach and the upcoming Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.

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2021 Essence Festival Goes Virtual Over Two Weekends in June and July

Statement From ESSENCE Communications Inc. on the 2021 ESSENCE Festival of Culture

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ESSENCE, the leading and only 100% Black-owned media, technology and commerce company at scale dedicated to Black women and communities, announced plans and dates for our 2021 ESSENCE Festival of Culture.

In 2020, in light of the COVID-19 global pandemic, ESSENCE shifted our annual multi-day celebration to an innovative virtual format to ensure continued delivery of our unparalleled Festival, the world’s largest cultural, entertainment and empowerment experience. The first of its kind and scale to be executed virtually during the pandemic, the ESSENCE Festival of Culture – which annually draws more than half a million people over July 4th weekend in New Orleans – extended its reach, engagement and impact via enhanced technology and streaming capabilities to touch more people globally. In a year of unprecedented challenges and mass isolation that made it even more critical to create and deliver the community, connectivity and engagement for which it is most loved, the ESSENCE Festival of Culture provided much-needed, only-at-ESSENCE content and experiences that informed, inspired and empowered – and our community overwhelmingly responded with 45+ million full-stream views of Festival content to date.

This year, with the theme ‘Live Loud,’ ESSENCE is thrilled to curate an invaluable hybrid experience that offers the best of in-person and virtual worlds via a celebration of the resilience, power and achievement of our community and the omnipresence of our culture. The Festival’s virtual programming will include powerful daytime interactive sessions and star-studded evening concerts and connections. Also, in continued partnership with the City of New Orleans and State of Louisiana and under strict adherence to guidance from health agencies, ESSENCE will produce live-to-tape activations available only to local New Orleans and Louisiana residents, honoring essential workers and first responders. The entire Festival, which will present a ‘taste of New Orleans’ and a jam-packed schedule of can’t-miss content centered around culture, equity and celebration, will be broadcast on ESSENCEStudios.com – Friday-Sunday over two weekends, June 25-27 and July 2-4, 2021.

For ongoing updates, including upcoming talent announcements, and additional information, visit ESSENCE.com.

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Negromancer News Bits and Bites from February 14th to 20th, 2021 - Update #29

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon:

ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE NEWS: 

MOVIES - From Deadline:  Edgar Wright ("Baby Driver") will co-write and direct a new film adaptation of Stephen King's 1982 novel, "The Running Man" (published under the pen name Richard Bachman).  It will not be a remake of the 1987 film adaptation of the novel, which starred Arnold Schwarzenegger.

MOVIES - From Deadline:  Thanks to various sexual harassment and misconduct allegations, Hollywood power house, Brett Ratner, has not directed a film since 2014's Hercules.  He is ready to make his comeback with a biopic of disgraced musical act, "Milli Vanilli." 

DISNEY - From YahooEntertainment:   Disney's new animated film, "Raya and the Last Dragon" introduces the first Southeast Asian Disney princess and heroine.

TELEVISION - From BleedingCool:  AMC and streaming service Shudder are developing a horror anthology series that showcases horror stories from Black directors and writers.

AWARDS - From Deadline: The nominations for the 2021 / 21st annual Black Reel Awards have been announced.

TELEVISION - From Deadline:  CBS has cancelled its long-running sitcom, "Mom," after eight seasons.  The finale is set for May 6th, 2021.

From Deadline:  CBS is ending "NCIS: New Orleans" after seven seasons.  The series finale will end May 16th, 2021.

TRAILER - From YouTube:   This is the first  "official restricted trailer" for the "Mortal Kombat" reboot, which arrives on HBO Max April 16, 2021.

CELEBRITY - From Deadline:  Ashley Judd is sharing photos and details about her recent African misadventure, which included shattering her leg in a jungle in the Congo last week.

MOVIES - From Variety:   Oscar-winning will produce and star in a film about Shirley Chisholm, the first Black congresswoman.  Oscar-winning screenwriter, John Ridley, will write and direct the film.

STREAMING - From ShadowandAct:   Netflix's Kevin Hart-Wesley Snipes drama series, "True Story," adds Lauren London, Will Catlett and more new cast.

MOVIES - From Deadline:   Keke Palmer will star in director Jordan Peele's next film.  Little is known about the film, and Oscar-nominated actor, Daniel Kaluuya, is in negotiations to also star in the film.

MOVIES - From IndieWire:   Oscar-winning director Martin Scorsese takes aim at streaming’s lack of curation and core: "cinema Is being devalued by content."

AWARDS - From Deadline:   The nominations for the 2021 / 73rd annaul Writers Guild of America Awards have been announced.

DISNEY - From Vulture:   Disney unveils new "Cruella" poster featuring Emma Stone.

POLITICS - From Truthout:  An alarming revelation from a Republican senator, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, on Wednesday night suggests that former President Donald Trump continued to incite his mob of loyalists during the Capitol breach on January 6 even after learning that his then-vice president, Mike Pence's life was in danger.

MOVIES - From CBR:  As Zack Snyder awaits the release of his new film, "Zack Snyder's Justice League," he talks about developing a faithful adaptation of the King Arthur legend.

DISNEY - From THR:   Digital TV Research says that the streaming service, Disney+, will have more subscribers in 2026 than Netflix's streaming service.  However, it says that Disney+ will only have more subscribers than Netflix in only one country - India.

MUSIC - From CNN:   Rapper Nicki Minaj's father, 64-year-old Robert Maraj, dies in hit-and-run that occurred in Mineola, Long Island, police say.

BOX OFFICE - From Deadline:   The winner of the 2/12 to 2/14/2021 weekend box office is "Croods: A New Age" with an estimated take of 2.66 million dollars.  The film, from DreamWorks Animation, was originally a Thanksgiving 2020 release.

From Variety:   The Chinese New Year led to a record-breaking holiday weekend at the Chinese box office - 775 million dollars.  "Detective Chinatown 3" lead the way with a record 424 million dollar debut.

From Deadline:  Director Nate Parker's "American Skin" becomes distributor, Vertical Entertainment's highest grossing PVOD (premium video on demand) release.

From Deadline:   "The Mauritanian," "The World To Come," and "Willy’s Wonderland" battle at the specialty box office.

CRIME - From YahooNews:  Attacks on older Asians stoke fear as Lunar New Year begins

CULTURE - From CNN:  People reflect on losing parents to the QAnon conspiracy.

COMICS TO MOVIES - DC CINEMA - From YouTube:   There is a new trailer (Sun., Feb. 14th) for the film now known as "Zack Snyder's Justice League."

MOVIES - From YahooEntertainment:   This year is the 30th anniversary of the release of the eventual "Best Picture" Oscar winner, "Silence of the Lambs."  Star Jodie Foster admits in a new interview that she was afraid of co-star Anthony Hopkins, who played the infamous "Hannibal Lecter."

MUSIC - From Variety:   In the wake of accusations of sexism and misogyny against Justin Timberlake regarding his treatment of former girlfriend Britney Spears, and the “wardrobe malfunction” with Janet Jackson at the Super Bowl in 2004, he has apologized to both women in an Instagram post.

OBITS:

From Deadline:   Stage, film, and television actor, Christopher Pennock, has died at the age of 76, Friday, February 12, 2021.  He is best know for playing "Gabriel Collins" on the final season of the former ABC soap opera, "Dark Shadows" (1966-1971).  Pennock also appeared in numerous other daytime and primetime soap operas, including "General Hospital," "The Young and the Restless," and "Knots Landing," to name a few.

From YahooSports:   Former NFL player, Vincent Jackson, has died at the age of 38, Monday, February 15, 2021.  He was found dead in a hotel in Brandon, a suburb of Tampa, Florida.  He played 12 years in the NFL as a wide receiver, first for the San Diego Chargers (2005-2011) and then, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2012-2016).  He was a three-time Pro Bowl player (2009-2011).

Negromancer's Trailer-O-Rama - Movies, Television

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon:

TRAILER LINKS:

SUPERMAN & LOIS - From DCBlog: "All Right Now" trailer (posted Mon., Feb. 8th, 2021).  "Superman & Lois" debuts Tuesday, February 23rd, 2021 on The CW.

ZACH SNYDER'S JUSTICE LEAGUE - From YouTube:   "Zach Snyder's Justice League" the official trailer (posted Sun., Feb. 14th, 2021).  The film debuts on HBO Max March 18th, 2021.

#28DaysofBlack: "DARWIN'S NIGHTMARE" Chronicles Ongoing Rape of Africa's Natural Resources

[The continent of Africa – and yes, it is a continent – has seen a large amount of its natural resources exploited by Western Europe and the United States.  That includes people, fossil fuels, minerals, and food, with western corporations joining the exploitation fray.  However, neither the exploitation nor sale of Africa's natural resources has helped poor Africans escape poverty.  Sometimes, the situation becomes a horror movie scenario, as seen in the Oscar-nominated documentary, “Darwin's Nightmare.”]

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 100 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

Darwin’s Nightmare (2004)
COUNTRY OF ORGIN:  Austria, Belgium, France, Canada, Finland, and Sweden; Languages: English, Russian, Swahili
Running time:  107 minutes
WRITER/DIRECTOR:  Hubert Sauper
PRODUCERS:  Barbara Albert, Martin Gschlacht, Edouard Mauriat, Hubert Sauper, Antonin Svoboda, and Hubert Toint
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Hubert Sauper
EDITOR:  Denise Vindevogel
2006 Academy Award nominee

DOCUMENTARY

Starring:  Hubert Sauper, Raphael, Dimond, and Reverend Cleopa Knijage

Darwin's Nightmare is a 2004 documentary film written and directed by Hubert Sauper.  It was a multinational production, mainly Austrian, French, and Belgian.  The documentary examines the effects of fishing the Nile perch, a predatory fish, in Tanzania's Lake Victoria, which leads to food insecurity for many Tanzania families.

In his Oscar-nominated documentary, Darwin’s Nightmare, director Hubert Sauper portrays an Africa where the fittest thrive and the weakest starve and die of disease.  The film is set in Tanzania, in the Mwanza City, one of the cities on the shores of Lake Victoria.  European interests make huge profits from the local fishing industries, feeding approximately two million Europeans per day while the locals around Lake Victoria starve.  The Tanzanians fend for themselves on fish heads and scraps, while their waters are emptied of perch – an example of globalization feeding foreign markets while locals starve.

Lake Victoria, which stretches over the Tanzanian plains, is struggling.  In the 1960’s, a scientist introduced the Nile perch into the ecosystem.  An enormous variant of the American perch, the Nile perch devour the other fish, practically wiping out all other life in the lake.  This was and remains a disaster for the local communities, but the multinational fishing factories thrive from this ecological disaster by processing and shipping abroad thousands of tons of perch every month.  While the planes leave loaded with fish, they don’t return with food and clothing for the needy.  Instead, they bring more weapons for the various wars and strife in Africa.  Meanwhile, Tanzania teeters on the brink of devastation and war.

Darwin’s Nightmare is grim, and in a sense it is one of those “important films,” a movie that seeks to inform viewers about issues and situations about which they should want to know.  The film covers how globalization harms local economies and depicts how the introduction of a single new element into an ecosystem can be disastrous.  On the other hand, Sauper’s film was hugely controversial in Tanzanian and in some quarters of Europe.  Tanzanian officials found the film’s portrayal of extreme poverty in Mwanza City exaggerated, and some claimed that a greater portion of Lake Victoria’s Nile perch was consumed locally and within Tanzania.  The controversy over the film even resulted in a book, The Other Side of Darwin’s Nightmare, by Francois Garcon.

The film is occasionally hard to watch, but riveting.  Also, listening to all the interview subjects who speak horribly broken English is distracting and occasionally aggravating.  Sauper’s lack of balance is too evident, and the film also lacks a broader context.  Sauper doesn’t interview academics or experts on any of the topics this film covers.  Where are the government officials, aid workers, and a wide range of representatives of the fishing industry?  Because of Sauper’s focus on prostitutes, glue-sniffing street kids, impoverished fisherman, the sick, and the family members of those who’ve died of HIV and AIDS, Darwin’s Nightmare comes across as a trip through a nightmare land created by Hieronymus Bosch.  It’s a spellbinding trip, but what Sauper excludes keeps a very good film from becoming a great documentary.

7 of 10
B+

NOTES:
2006 Academy Awards:  1 nomination:  “Best Documentary, Features” (Hubert Sauper)

Saturday, June 30, 2007
REVISED: Tuesday, February 16, 2021


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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