> Maybe, but Howard - for whatever reason - seems to prefer this kind of
> understated material now...look backwards to Rebuilding Paradise or
> forwards to Thirteen Lives.

Yeah, there is that too, any score sounds the way it does because that's what the director wants. I still haven't listened to Thirteen Lives, and going off comments... I'm not looking forward to it lol.

> I must have laughed out loud a few times during my sole listen to the
> album (in a good way). Not something I'll probably revisit any time soon,
> but there are some memorably left-of-center things about that score.

Okay, now I'm *really* interested in hearing this sucker with that 'endorsement'

> Maybe the only thing worse than the Flag Smashers was the oh-so-bad ersatz
> Aaron Sorkin speech near the end that 'fixes' everything.

I never thought of it as Sorkinesque, but heck, you're right! Yeah, it is pretty have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too lol

(And I didn't say so before, but I'm thrilled to see this series return, I love your writings so much!)