#sam asks

He's a star!! But yeah, it definitely feels like his performance has made a huge impact on people this season and that that's really been reflected in the reviews, even less favourable ones like that NYT one, which is pretty incredible. It'd be amazing if that momentum carried through to awards season next year, but regardless, I hope he's heard how affected so many are by his work, because he deserves to. He's an incredible actor generally, but it really is a career-defining (and character defining, honestly!) performance.

They were high as kites, anon, haha.

I feel like I log off for a couple of days and I become almost desensitised to it, only to come back and just feel insane over it all over again, haha. Somehow it's even wilder in motion!! Especially because like, your shape isn't really something you can hugely change through working out? Yes, you can lose/gain weight and muscle mass, but that's not going to really change your basic figure, so his just - - really does look like that.

Oh, I love this, anons! Such a lovely review, and I hope Sam knows a critic's compared him to Gary Oldman, haha, it feels like that would be a top tier compliment to him.

Hahaha, me too, anon. I mean, I’ll miss his voice in the writers room generally too, of course, but he’s also very funny (most of the time, lol) on the press tours. And yeah! I finally watched Sam’s interview with Autumn this morning and it was interesting to hear him talk about that handover because the way he framed it, it doesn’t even really seem like Rolin’s leaving? Just that Hannah’s taking over for this arc? It’ll be interesting to see how that creative leadership continues to be shared going forwards!

He really could! From the press he did this season, it doesn't really sound like he's interested in being a musician, but I do hope that this might open up the door for him to do more musicals in the future (also a TVL world tour, haha).

And agreed! I'd only listened to The Failures through once when it was released, so it was really fun to listen to it again while I was commuting yesterday. The narrative arc in it is really so strong, which is great to unpack on its own, but Sam's voice is almost distracting in that sense in just how good it is, haha. He really is just so talented.

I need to draw this now (not right now I’m tired and I have school tmr but I WILL draw this TRUST.)