The Queen's Gambit

DECENT 7. i wish that, when i was younger, i invested in the things i find interesting today. it's true, i COULD start now (in fact, i pride myself in knowing that a handful of my defining hobbies have been recent discoveries). but it just takes too much time to get to the point where i feel prepared enough, comfortable enough to pursue something, especially when it involves not letting my peers down (e.g., choosing not to shoot that 3 in a game of pickup). The Queen's Gambit makes chess interesting — henry's right, that's no easy feat. it does an adequate job of tying up "loose ends" with jacob fortune-lloyd's townes, harry melling's beltik, thomas brodie-sangster's benny... but it's TOO happy of an ending? suffering makes success sweet, and i thought anya taylor-joy's beth harmon needed more failure, more penance.