Year Nine…

I gotta say… this year-end piece has been pretty hard to ponder what with all the overthinking I’ve done. Keeping it simple was just as difficult for an approach to this thing, further elongating the lack of inspiration that I’ve increasingly felt in the last four months or so. That’s writers’ bloc for you. It’s a real bitch, and indeed, many things have factored into it, and it’s all still a challenge to take in.

After coping with the passing of my sister back in April, I now find myself at a point where my own health and wellness are priority, in addition to my peace of mind. That meant a great deal of convalescence, both equally internal and external. It’s also meant recurring doctor visits in the past two months and more going forward. The good news is it’s not Covid-related, in case any of you are reading this and wondering just what the heck is going on. To be truthful, I won’t lay out all the exact specifics here. I have told only a few friends though, and kept up correspondence on that end, which has also been hugely helpful in mitigating this stage of my life.

Additionally, my focus has been even more on my own family as of late. It’s been a lot to take on, and invariably, it’s definitely interfered with my role on this site in some ways. Hence, why I’ve struggled as hard as I did to gather a team of contributors to help sustain Film Combat Syndicate and its news and editorial content stream. It’s especially challenging when you’re not making a living doing this kind of thing, or making enough to pay other writers, and so it all really depends on the goodwill of willing participants who share a common interest.

After nine years, and sifting through more than a hundred people who’ve come and gone, I can earnestly say that I’m thankful for all that my current group has done for this website up to now. Christina Phillips, Edward Orndorff, Matt Essary, Cathy LaFrance, Chris Barreras and Robb Antequera here in the states, Mike Garcia over in Spain, and Vance Ang in the land down under, have been the most productive and dedicated to FCSyndicate since the website’s platform switch to Pop Geeks. It’s not enough for me to reignite The Hit List again this year, but it’s plenty in helping me broaden myself a little more in film and film coverage, primarily through festivals, and a select number of screener opportunities from PR agents.

I’d like to do more opinion editorials and other similar articles of interest, provided I can balance my time and workload a little more, and energy for that matter. It’s all been manageable up to this year, and after nearly bleeding to death twice and suffering immense chronic pain and vascular issues during this trying second-half of 2021, I’m definitely going to take it a little easier.

Consequently, and considering my group has its own individual priorities with their personal lives, you probably won’t see new pieces everyday, though not for lack of trying. This pandemic has weighed heavily on us all in some shape or form, and we’re all (save for those actively being more recalcitrant and uncooperative) just trying to get through and make it to the light at the end of the tunnel, which seemingly keeps dimming as the months pass and the politics at hand continue to decay.

And so it is. I’ll still be here at my dashboard, occasionally passing the time while writing about the very things I enjoy in film and television where and when I can, and all the same for that matter, my team as well. I can also assert that my coverage will hopefully be a little more concurrent as I take time to enjoy shows and films as well, and I have a few people to thank as well for their help in my doing so, including Keith Hayward and Anthony Elias also here in the states, as well as my good friend Martin Wan in the U.K..

To fellow writing peers Ard Vijn at Screen Anarchy, Eoin Friel at The Action Elite, Cesar Alejandro Jr. at FilmSmash, Mike Scott of the @A4EPodcast, YouTubers Phat Samurai Guy and Lady Phatblood of The Movie Dojo, and everyone encircled in the #ActionTwitter community, to Tamiko Brownlee, Irina Rumyantseva, Robert Samuels, Dennis Ruel, Z Team Films’ Fabien Garcia and Cristina Gorchon, Joey Ansah, Gary Peebles, Paul Allica, Selina Lo, Bridger Fox, Meaghan Bloom Fluitt, Ulrik Bruchholz, Laura Aguinaga, Yadi Nieves, Sui Lie Cheung, Kyle Wong, Paige Allison, Kensuke Sonomura, Joey Min and the crew at Art School Dropouts, The Paper Tigers team Alain Uy, Bao Tran, Al’n Duong, Michael Velazquez and Dan Gildark, to Jon Truei and Willie “Bam” Johnson, Phillip Ray Tommy, Ranjeet Marwa, film duo C.J. and Lorrisa Julianus, Jose Manuel and Angel Vasquez, Iván Fernández, Michael Hoad, Ricky Barksdale, Khalil Barnett, Bob Beck, Dylan Hintz and Abra Burkett and their mentees at SAGA Action Arts, the astute legal team at Lurie Strupinsky L.L.P., newlyweds Takashi Hara and Maria Tran, Frank Ziede, Perry Yung, Roger Yuan, Kurando Mitsutake, Pearry Teo, Caitlin Hutson, Tiffany Toney, infinitely huggable badass Celia Au, the good folks at Well Go USA, my old college friend Wilnelia Vega, and to anyone reading this who’ve I’ve had the honor and pleasure of interacting with in some way shape or form this year, and also, to my cousin Tara Burnett, and my parents…

…I sincerely cannot thank you all enough for your continued kindness, support, generosity and friendship. I’ve had to battle some serious shit coming into this fourth quarter of the year, and as I look back and reflect on it all, I am reminded that I have plenty to be thankful for, even if there are still those who insist on making me feel at times like my work has no real worth, or that I simply don’t belong in their circles, or even have me second-guessing who they really are in the course of deciding the fate of my friendships.

Indeed, the journey taken by Film Combat Syndicate is a tried and tested one, and thankfully, with grace and hope, and prospective betterment, the journey will continue. 🙏

Lee B. Golden III

filmcombatsyndicate@gmail.com | Web

Native New Yorker. Lover of all things pizza, chocolate, pets, and good friends. Karaoke hero. Left of center. Survivor. Fond supporter of cult, obscure and independent cinema - especially fond of Asian movies and global action cinema. Author of the bi-weekly Hit List. Founder and editor of Film Combat Syndicate. Still, very much, only human.