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But that was our supposition, not hers, even if borrowing the single’s title for the whole project did seem to make a promise the full record isn’t prepared to deliver on. The new album, which came out Friday sans press previews, opens with “Bass Persuades” being followed by a second number in a faintly similar vein, “Different Religion,” but then it rarely returns to that territory until the 38-minute collection wraps up with its 10th track, a revved-up and unnecessary remix of the title track. What comes in between includes a surprising number of love ballads and a few odd outliers. It’s eclectic, but not “Endless Summer Vacation”-level eclectic. One thing no one will ever remember about it is the album having a surfeit of bass.

So how about persuasion? It’s a little light on that, too — pleasant, passable and occasionally compelling, but slight, with hooks that never quite reach the peaks you hope for out of a great pop song, and a bit of an “is that all there is?” feeling at the end of its relatively short length. It will be no one’s favorite Miley album, nor anyone’s least favorite. The overall feel is of something enjoyable on its own terms but a little undercooked in almost every regard, as if the star had been in a rush to deliver product to her new label, even as its primarily lovestruck lyrics — some of which are quite good — surely do reflect where the singer is at in her off-screen life. But for those who admired her previous album, the barely year-old “Something Beautiful,” for finding a cool and interesting retro aesthetic and pretty much sticking with it, “Bass Persuades” seems kind of centerless, more like an in-between project meant to mark time between bolder musical statements than any kind of arrival.

The core message of the album seems to be that things are going pretty well — make that extremely well — with fiancée Maxx Morando, who is a writer-producer collaborator on all but two of the tracks. Hearing Miley in a besotted state turns up mixed results. The third track, “Let’s Get Married,” is an abrupt left turn from the two bang-ier numbers that precede it into synthy easy listening/AC flavors, and what it delivers is not worth the whiplash; while it will probably be heard at some weddings to come, there may be a lot of attendees who would be itchy to please skip ahead to the vows.

Fortunately, that syrupy aside is a low point from which the album fairly quickly recovers. “Orbit,” next up, is just as romantic but one of the collection’s better tracks, as a power ballad — or even just ballad, without so much emphasis on the power — that applies some clever turns of phrase and thought to what could be a tired metaphor. Her significant other is the center of her solar system: “Place a marble on the floor / When you walk in the room, it’ll roll to you” is an image that makes for a lovely mash note.

The romantic reveries sometimes give way to things sillier and saucier. “Neon Signs” isn’t a particularly memorable tune unto itself, but the increasingly ridiculous spoken interactions between Cyrus and duet partner Andrew Wyatt may put a smile on your face before all is cooed and done. And/or make you cringe, since, as Wyatt murmurs at the end between the pair’s sexy bedroom oohs and aahs, “Some people think I’m creepy, but others think I’m just right.” An album this immersed in relatively straightforward love songs could use this moment of awkward verbal snogging.

The album’s best song, “Aftermath,” arrives halfway through, and as the one track that really accelerates into something more impassioned, it would have made an ideal climax for the record, if not for one problem: it’s the only sad song on the album, and thus would be a strange way to wrap up an otherwise cheerful collection. Still, it’s good to know that Miley can take a philosophical moment to ponder The End of All Things — including, inherently, her relationship — as a sort of intermission in an album that’s otherwise characterized by romantic buoyancy.

There is one other dark track on the album, sure to be its most talked-about number — “Innocent Ways,” which has Cyrus singing at length about a sibling, which many listeners will presume to be Noah. “I want better for my sister / She calls me only when it’s late night and she’s high / Her mind is spinning / Eight nights in a row / She’s been in a crisis / She looks just like me when she cries.” There needs to be some form of crisis to offer some dramatic tension in an album that doesn’t have much, so if she has to borrow the angst from a family member, fair enough. Amusingly, Miley seems to resent her sister for wearing a Blondie T-shirt without actually listening to Blondie music. More intriguingly, she sings, “Fall out from the fame / Claim my mother’s maiden name,” suggesting that this is a family that thinks a lot about last names and how to claim or ditch them. Besides just being legitimately lyrically fascinating, “Innocent Ways” is also the album’s most heated banger — and working out deep-rooted sibling issues over the din of the club is a concept we can get behind.

“Snow” ends the album on a sweeter, if relatively inconsequential-feeling, note, and ought to be the record’s closer, but then Miley evidently thought nine is not enough and makes it an even 10 with the remix of the title track no one asked for. Ending with the most obvious form of filler is not the best look, although, as a non-fan of the original track, I could personally appreciate the amphetamine version of the number a little more.

Maybe the album seems so short because Miley has booked Hollywood Bowl shows themed around it, and those will be awfully short performances if she sticks primarily to these nine numbers, which presumably she won’t. It doesn’t feel like “Bass Persuades” is going to be an Event Album for Cyrus fans; her followers are notorious for finding her records polarizing, to the extent that an album like “Something Beautiful” earns comments calling it either one of her best or one of her weakest — and yet it wouldn’t be surprising if the fan base is unanimous in finding this new one belongs somewhere in the mid-section of any ranking. “Not bad” is probably not the reaction being sought when someone starts afresh in a business part of their career. But say this for her: she’s someone who never makes the same album twice. So if this one is neither overwhelming nor underwhelming but just kind of whelming, it won’t diminish the appetite for what mode she’ll be in come Miley Mach 11. %!s()

The governor gave his stamp of approval to AB 2319 in a ceremony at North Hollywood’s Television Academy offices on Friday.

The bill, carried by state Assemblymember Nick Schultz, rewards productions that locate their postproduction work in the state. Existing law allows projects that shoot in California to qualify for tax credits on their postproduction work. AB 2319 additionally extends tax credits to productions that shot elsewhere but choose to locate their post work in the state, or that do not qualify for California production tax credits.

“Today marks a historic new chapter for California’s post-production workforce. The signing of AB 2319 recognizes the vital role that behind-the-scenes craftspeople play in California’s creative economy,” said California Post Alliance (CAPA) president Marielle Abaunza in a statement. “We are deeply grateful to Governor Newsom who, by establishing California’s first-ever standalone post-production tax incentive, has given hope to thousands of post-production workers. We are so grateful to Assemblymember Nick Schultz and his entire team for authoring this bill and championing our segment of the industry every step of the way.”

$10 million has been allocated to the postproduction credit in the state, which Assemblymember Schultz previously told The Hollywood Reporter may not be enough but reflects a difficult budget year for the state. Still, an insider at the event said that Newsom called the initial investment in the tax credit a “down payment,” suggesting that he was aware postproduction workers would be advocating to allocate more funds to the program in future years.

The signing concludes — at least for now — a journey that began in early 2025 when Encompass Music Partners and Encompass Creative founder Peter Rotter penned an open letter raising the alarm about the state of the L.A. recording industry, triggering a larger conversation around postproduction in the city. A town hall in the spring of 2025 focused on scoring and postproduction brought even more attention to the issue.

“This is not hyperbole to say that if we don’t act, the California film and TV industry will become the next Detroit auto,” Noelle Stehman, a member of the grassroots group Stay in L.A., said at the event.

In early 2026, freshman state Assemblymember Schultz announced that he was introducing AB 2319 to address the problem. After some amendments to the bill’s language, the Motion Picture Editors Guild joined the grassroots group the California Post Alliance as a co-sponsor.

Some of Hollywood’s top state rivals when it comes to film and television production, including New York, New Jersey, Georgia and New Mexico, already offer postproduction tax incentives. So do several countries that attract a lot of production, such as the U.K., Australia and Canada.

Newsom signed AB 2319 the same day he approved a separate bill, SB 186, which will reduce Hollywood’s exposure to recent business tax credit caps legislation.

“This is a historic day for Editors Guild members and for California’s film and TV workers more broadly,” Editors Guild national executive director Scott George said in a statement. “[SB] 186 ensures that the California Film and TV Tax Credit Program continues to drive the recovery of our industry in its historic home, and AB 2319 will complement the program by making sure that even projects shooting outside of our state can come back to California to employ Editors Guild members in post-production.” %!s()

Last year, Polygon was part of a press trip that provided a behind-the-scenes look at the making of Resident Evil. I followed in the footsteps of hapless medical courier Bryan (Austin Abrams), exploring the horrors the t-virus wrought across a series of sets. Now that the movie has finally arrived, I can reveal everything I learned about its creation, with a focus on three of the film’s scariest scenes.

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Resident Evil

The sewer

Image: Sony

As he tries to make his way to Raccoon City on foot, Bryan escapes into a sewer tunnel to avoid a tentacled monster. He’s drawn to a noise that sounds a bit like a prolonged belch, which turns out to be coming from a huge, naked, pale man sitting in his path. Bryan cautiously approaches, asking if the man is OK, before watching as his gut bursts and unleashes a swarm of bloody rats.

Like Bryan, our group navigated the sewer set by the light of our cellphones so we could get the full effect of rounding a blind corner and seeing the massive figure lurking there. The set was meticulously detailed and strewn with detritus, with fiberglass used to create the look of walking through liquid. Pneumatic elements were used to pump air bladders in the stomach of the creature dubbed the “fat man” to create the wheezing and writhing of the rats in his gut before they spill out, exposing his organs. Each rodent was an individual prop, and up close the creatures look like oversized, diseased naked mole rats.

While many props were 3D printed, the big man himself was hand-sculpted to add details like overgrown toe nails. He was the biggest singular practical effects piece Legacy Effects created for the film.

“Part of my job is to determine what technique is going to work well for what purpose,” Legacy Effects co-founder Shane Mahan said. “The sculpture just seemed like it needed to be hand-formed to get the textures right. It had an organic feeling.”

The elevator

Image: Sony

After finally arriving at his destination, Bryan is told it’s not safe to take the elevator up to Umbrella Corporation’s lab on the 24th floor of Raccoon City General Hospital. So he starts walking up the emergency stairs, which were built specifically for the film using five tons of concrete, but Bryan quickly gets winded and tries his luck with the elevator.

According to production designer Tom Hammock, building a working five-story elevator for that sequence was the biggest challenge of the whole movie, requiring sourcing tons of steel on the open market and getting special safety certifications. Each panel could be pulled out to become camera platforms. The crew also built a special rig, creating a vertical version of the cable-suspended camera systems used to film major sporting events so it could track Abrams as the elevator moved.

“The first day of shooting, Zach was like, ‘Why didn't we just do it in a blue box?’” Hammock said. “But then he got into it, and it worked, and he got some really amazing stuff.”

Image: Sony

Most of the elevator is destroyed by an acid-barfing monster the film’s special effects team called “the Puker.” An actor wore a rig over his stomach with tubes that spewed out methyl cellulose, the same slimy blend of water and powdered paper pulp used to represent the xenomorphs’ acidic saliva in Alien. Each take involved spraying 16 gallons of the stuff.

When I was on set, the VFX team gleefully showed off a cellphone video of the Puker in action.

“We get paid for this,” Mahan said. “We are very lucky.”

Enormous tubs were positioned under the elevator shaft to try to catch as much of the spray as possible, but that didn’t really work. The fake puke got everywhere and had to be cleaned up overnight so the shot could be reset in the morning.

Hammock used the same technique as Fede Álvarez’s 2024 film Alien: Romulus to replace pieces of the elevator with different sculptures as it dissolves, with the visual effects team just adding the sizzling edges. The cables in camera are constantly moving, adding extra tension to the action sequence where Bryan has to deal with both the Puker and a rampaging ball of fused limbs and tentacles that's been chasing him for most of the movie.

The maternity ward

Image: Sony

At the start of Resident Evil, Bryan gets into a fight with his pregnant girlfriend because he’s uncertain if he wants a kid. That anxiety takes an extremely visceral form in his visit to a maternity ward, where the t-virus has contaminated all the babies and staff.

For director Zach Cregger, this scene was also a chance to bring new horrors to the Resident Evil franchise.

“There’s a very thin metaphor in this movie and it’ll be immediately obvious to everyone who sees it, but the zombie babies are kind of the cherry on top,” Cregger said. “I wanted to make sure I was coming up with new enemies, new creatures, new zombies that could be in the games.”

The Legacy Effects team welcomed us to their offices on set by showing off the long-limbed blinking, three-eyed animatronic baby that crawls out of a bassinet as Bryan watches in horror. Visual effects were used to create the membrane on top of the little monster, and while Mahan demonstrated the unsettling way it moved and how its eyes could each be opened individually, you barely see it in the movie before chaos breaks out in the room.

“It’s about 45 seconds of screen time but that’s OK,” Mahan said. “It’s going to be great.”

Image: Sony

Legacy Effects also created numerous other squirming, mutant babies for the scene, employing a wide variety of designs including bulging skulls and feet that have been replaced by tentacles. Each mutant baby was controlled by puppeteers hiding behind the walls. Little details add to the horror, like a blood-spattered white board representing the infants’ feeding schedule.

The floor was coated with 500 gallons of fake blood – with more added after every take to cover up footsteps. Red embryo-like pods surround the room, connected to the walls with tentacle-like veins. It took 15 people two weeks to hand cut and glue the components. Extras hidden in trap doors stuck their hands and feet out of the fiberglass eggs. Stunt performers trained to hold their breath were positioned against the membranes along with 50 gallons of red slime. Then, at a key moment, they burst out in a twisted version of the birthing process to chase Bryan.

Byran rushes out of the maternity ward onto the shattered skybridge, but that scene was actually shot on an entirely different sound stage where Cregger and his crew recreated the maternity ward doors.

Image: Sony

The props department built the skybridge and then wrecked it to make the damage look realistic. The entire thing was just a couple inches wide and lined with rubber rebar. Abrams did the stunt work himself for the scene, which was filmed using a mix of cranes and cameras set on tracks.

Cregger’s commitment to practical effects made Resident Evil extremely tricky to produce but also resulted in a phenomenal movie where the horror feels very real. Cregger and Hammock built models and used action figures to walk the Sony execs through scenes like the maternity ward to get approval for their wildest ideas.

“They were actually really, really supportive,” Hammock said. “They were like, ‘Oh, we think you could actually pull it off. Off you go. We’ll see you at the finish line.’ And here we are.”

Resident Evil is in theaters now.

Sony Pictures covered the cost of travel and lodging for this trip. %!s()

Now, resale value is a moving target, so rather than mixing bikes of different ages and trying to declare one eternal champion, we gave everything here the same five-year runway. We started with 2021 motorcycles and compared their original U.S. manufacturer's suggested retail price with J.D. Power's current average retail value for the same model and year. For example, J.D. Power currently puts the value of a 2021 Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP at $26,280 against a $28,500 original MSRP, meaning that five years after rolling out of the showroom it still retains more than 90% of its new-bike value.

A few of these have even crossed the depreciation Rubicon and found themselves with a five-years-later resale value that's higher than what they cost new. Nobody has ever mistaken us for financial advisers, but just to be clear, we're not taking that to mean we found a bunch of two-wheeled appreciating assets that also happen to be obscenely fast. It just means some bikes appear to be holding their value extraordinarily well, and riders who bought and sold well might have gotten away with an extraordinarily low cost of ownership. 

BMW M 1000 RR

It's been more than a decade since BMW really went down the path of putting its iconic M badge in places it has no business being, but 2021 marked the first time that BMW Motorrad got in on the action. The BMW M 1000 RR is a genuine M bike, and we don't mean "genuine M bike" in the way someone might argue that the M235i xDrive Gran Coupe is a "genuine M car". They took the already-serious S 1000 RR and turned it into a homologation machine aimed squarely at World Superbike competition. That alone gives this one a little more provenance than your neighbor's M Sport crossover, but we can reasonably guess that some combination of being a genuinely good bike coupled with the if-you-care-you-care M badge novelty has proven a formula for preserving resale value.

The 2021 M 1000 RR sold for a $32,495 original MSRP and has a current average retail value of $29,515, putting it in roughly the 91% range for five-year value retention. Not a bad deal for something that went on to win the 2024 WorldSBK riders' championship. By the way, BMW built a limited-edition carbon-packed $60,000 version to celebrate its WSBK Championship win. And considering there are only 54 of them, we're guessing they might hold their value a little, too.

Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP

If you're going to spend the kind of money it takes to get one of the quickest sportbikes on the market, it's nice if you aren't leaving your resale value in the dust along with your riding buddies. The 2021 Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP started at $28,500 when new, and J.D. Power currently pegs its average retail value at $26,280. In other words, five years later it's still hanging onto about 92% of its original sticker price.

It appears that the zeal of Honda acolytes has intersected with an objectively impressive performance machine that the broader market can't ignore to create enthusiast sentiment that translates into a financial edge. The 2021 model year that we used for our depreciation metric here happened to be an all-new redesign of a bike that had been iterating pretty conservatively since 2008. That helps explain why the Fireblade SP still feels special. It was expensive from Day One, built as a serious halo bike, and remains exotic enough that depreciation hasn't exactly mauled it. If you bought one new in 2021, the resale market has been unusually kind.

Kawasaki Z900RS

A bike that looks like an old one but costs as much as a new one? That seems like a terrible deal. Or does it? Because here is proof that retro styling can meet modern sensibilities without inheriting the modern depreciation curve. Not only does the Kawasaki Z900RS do retro right, but it does it while maintaining about 93% of its original MSRP of $11,299 after five years of you looking cool on the back of it.

J.D. Power currently estimates average retail value at $10,480, and honestly the appeal is pretty easy to understand. You get the visual language of a classic Kawasaki without carburetors, 1970s brakes, or the other charming little reminders that old motorcycles were built in another century. The Z900RS has managed to turn nostalgia into something people still want to pay real money for, and that makes it one of the more convincing examples on this list of retro design doing more than just looking backward through rose-colored helmet visors.

Suzuki GSX-R600

As Suzuki's iconic gixxer celebrated 40 years of speed last year, the GSX-R600 was out there zipping along and leaving not a whole lot of money in its wake. 2021 wasn't exactly a revolutionary year for the bike, with no major changes since 2011. Sometimes that can create some downward pressure on resale, but the market appears to have decided that Suzuki got enough right in the first place.

Suzuki listed the 2021 GSX-R600 at $11,449, while J.D. Power currently puts average retail value at $10,740. That works out to roughly 93% of its original sticker price still hanging around five years later. Real-world asking prices point in the same general direction, with recent Cycle Trader listings for 2021 GSX-R600s hovering around $11,000.

Part of the explanation may simply be that Suzuki has kept giving riders essentially the same thing because plenty of them still want it. The GSX-R600 is a 599-cubic-centimeter inline-4 supersport that's great in corners and not too heavy, built around the kind of high-revving middleweight formula that used to define an entire category. Five years on, buyers appear to still want exactly that, and the GSX-R600's strong resale value suggests there's something to be said for sticking with a formula that works.

Suzuki GSX-R1000

If the GSX-R600 proved Suzuki could hang onto resale value without changing much, the GSX-R1000 makes the same case with a whole lot more motor. Suzuki listed the 2021 GSX-R1000 at $15,799, and J.D. Power currently estimates average retail value at $14,895. So, five years later, the liter-bike Gixxer is still hanging onto around 94% range of its original sticker price.

That makes a little more sense when you remember what this thing is. The GSX-R1000 is the flagship version of one of the most iconic superbikes of all time, and in 2021 Suzuki wasn't so much reinventing the segment as continuing to refine a design with results that have become pretty hard to argue with.

Real-world prices don't make the J.D. Power figure look completely outlandish, either. One current Cycle Trader listing has a 2021 GSX-R1000 with just over 4,000 miles asking $15,999, essentially back at original MSRP. That doesn't mean every used example is secretly appreciating, but it does suggest buyers still shell out serious money when even a pretty old Gixxer is still faster than the most advanced superbikes on the track.

Kawasaki Ninja 650

The Ninja 650 is a good reminder that strong resale value isn't reserved for exotic homologation specials and nostalgic collector bait. Nor do you have to spend big to hold value. The 2021 model started at $7,599, and five years later it's still sitting pretty with an average retail value of $7,180 per J.D. Power. That means that the base Ninja 650 is still worth somewhere in the neighborhood of 94% of its original MSRP. Current asking prices are a little messier, as they always are, but still point to a healthy used market: MotoHunt shows 2021 examples asking roughly $7,000 to $8,500 depending on mileage and equipment.

There's probably no great mystery behind the appeal. It's a rad bike with creature comforts and a curb weight just over 420 pounds, making it a genuinely usable middleweight rather than something that demands a racetrack to justify itself. Apparently practicality can preserve resale value too, provided you put enough Ninja stickers on it.

Kawasaki Ninja 400

The Kawasaki Ninja 400 is one of the best new motorcycles for beginners in the U.S. market, but what if you look ahead to a few years later when you inevitably start thinking wistfully about that 650 we just covered (or the ZX-6R we'll get to in a minute)? Well, it turns out newly overconfident riders can trade up without taking much of a financial beating, as the 400 started at $4,999 and is now thriving on resale at a $4,765 estimate from J.D. Power. That leaves it hanging onto roughly 95% of its original sticker price after five years.

That kind of retention makes a little more sense when you look at what Ninja 400s offer for the money. Current asking prices back up the idea that buyers still want them, with 2021 examples on Cycle Trader clustering around the mid-$4,000s to mid-$5,000s. So while the Ninja 650 showed that practicality can hold value, the 400 makes an even simpler case: Being affordable in the first place doesn't mean you have to get crushed when it's time to sell. And it doesn't hurt that the next Kawasaki in line, and the one after that, have similar stories to tell.

Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R

Look, just buy a Kawasaki, apparently. A slow one, a ridiculously fast one — it doesn't even matter. The Ninja 400 makes a great first sportbike, the 650 gives you more room to grow, and the ZX-6R is where the family tree gets serious. The 2021 model started at $10,199 and J.D. Power currently estimates average retail value at $9,785, so it's still hanging onto about 96% of its original MSRP five years later, just a wee bit stronger than the other two Kawasakis we just covered.

Motorcyclist called it "the bargain performance deal" in the middleweight sportbike class, with the "best performance-per-dollar" among peers. That's the kind of bike math that makes great sense even if it's going to follow the usual depreciation trends. But holding something like 96% of its value after five years? Now you're inching toward no-brainer territory. Still, buying too much bike for your skill level is one of the unfortunate mistakes new motorcycle riders make, so just remember that you've got a Goldilocks-worthy spread of Kawasaki options when you're shopping with resale in mind.

Honda CBR1000RR

Spoiler alert: After that little Kawasaki parade, Honda gets one more crack at the list before Yamaha starts taking over the room. The standard CBR1000RR is a very different proposition from the Fireblade SP above, but somehow it has done an even better job of hanging onto its value. J.D. Power currently puts the 2021 CBR1000RR at $15,985 against an original MSRP of $16,499, which means it's sitting around 97%. Current listings aren't wildly out of step with that, either, with 2021 examples on MotoHunt commonly asking in the mid-$13,000s to around $16,000.

The appeal here is pretty straightforward. It's a proper liter-class superbike without the stratospheric price tag of the RR-R SP Fireblade, and apparently buyers still see enough value in that formula to keep used prices remarkably strong. That makes the CBR1000RR a nice palate cleanser before things get weirdly Yamaha-heavy. From here on out, the Yamaha name that shows up on grand pianos with the same casual credibility as on superbikes is going to own the leaderboard. We're not sure what the resale market looks like for grand pianos, but Yamaha motorcycles apparently do just fine.

Yamaha XSR700

And now Yamaha takes over. The first of four straight bikes from the tuning-fork company is the XSR700, which is basically the throwback-flavored sibling of the MT-07. It's an ethos that feels a lot like another great holder of value, the Kawasaki Z900RS we talked about before, but this time in a Yamaha wrapper. Your preference might have a lot to do with what was on the poster in your bedroom when you were 12.

Regardless, J.D. Power lists the 2021 XSR700 at an original MSRP of $8,499 and a current average retail value of $8,685. That technically puts it a little above 102% by our five-year comparison, but this is exactly where we don't want to pretend a valuation guide has discovered a secret investment strategy. Better to say the XSR700 has essentially held onto all of its original sticker price, which is already remarkable enough.

Actual listings are naturally more varied. MotoHunt recently showed a low-mileage 2021 XSR700 asking $6,899, so nobody should assume every 5-year-old example is selling for more than it cost new. Still, the broader point stands: the XSR700 is holding value unusually well, and it's about to look less like a one-off once we get to the next three.

Yamaha YZF-R1

The Yamaha YZF-R1 has the kind of reputation that makes strong resale value feel less surprising than it probably should. It doesn't take the number one spot on our list today, but that's because we're talking about motorcycles with top-tier resale value and not Yamaha's 11 fastest motorcycles ranked by top speed.

The 2021 R1 started at $17,399, while J.D. Power currently estimates average retail value at $18,225. On paper, that puts it at roughly 105% of its original sticker price five years later. However you want to characterize that, it's hard to describe a bike that has effectively refused to depreciate as anything other than an exceptional holder of value.

Current listings reinforce the broader point without pretending every example is worth more than new. MotoHunt currently shows 2021 R1s asking roughly $15,000 to $18,500, depending on mileage and condition. That's still an awfully strong market for a 5-year-old superbike, especially one buyers presumably didn't purchase because they woke up feeling financially prudent but couldn't figure out how to buy savings bonds.

Yamaha MT-09

The MT-09 has always been a bit of a value proposition, so perhaps it's fitting that it also turned out to be pretty good at preserving that value. The 2021 model started at $9,399, while J.D. Power currently estimates average retail value at $9,880. That puts it slightly above 105% of its sticker price on paper, though at this point we know better than to start recommending motorcycles as an alternative to a 401(k).

It probably helps that 2021 was a particularly meaningful year for the MT-09. Yamaha gave it an overhaul that included pretty much anything you'd want and increased the price only a hair for all that work. That meant buyers weren't just getting another model-year refresh for their $9,399, and apparently that's been the gift that keeps on giving.

The real-world market is less dramatic than J.D. Power's valuation but still impressively healthy. MotoHunt currently shows 2021 MT-09s asking mostly around $8,000 to $10,000, depending on mileage and condition. It's pretty hard to argue with the broader result: This is a relatively attainable performance bike that has given depreciation remarkably little room to do its thing.

Yamaha YZF-R3

Yep. It's the Yamaha YZF-R3, the bike that serious riders and Reddit poseurs alike will resoundingly endorse as the first sportbike of choice for pretty much anybody. J.D. Power lists the 2021 YZF-R3 at a $5,299 original MSRP and a current average retail value of $5,635, or about 106% of sticker, meaning you can cut your teeth without losing your shirt when you inevitably decide that you're invincible and need a YZF-R1. MotoHunt puts the average listing price for a used 2021 R3 at about $5,062, with plenty of individual examples still asking around five grand or more.

Why do you think that is? Is it the entry-level speed with beginner-friendly agility? Maybe. Or maybe it's just that the coolest paint in motorcycling is only available on the Yamaha R3 for some reason. Whatever is going on here, it's nice to see that the go-to beginner enthusiast bike of record is likely to hold its value better than a Toyota Corolla. Honestly, you'd be kind of irresponsible not to buy one, no? %!s()

A record crowd of 31,944 were at the Amex Stadium to witness it, roaring their side on to the most comprehensive of 3-0 wins.

Pascal Gross fired them in front, Charalampos Kostoulas drilled in the second on the stroke of half-time and Chema Andres' header made it three after the break.

They had the chances to add to that lead but three was more than enough and the celebrations in the stands had started long before the final whistle.

"It was a special one, not only because we played against maybe the best team in England but because of the performance," Hurzeler told BBC Match of the Day.

"The boys started really intense, they won their personal duels, played good in possession and created chances.

"I'm really proud of my team, hopefully they enjoy it today because these kind of moments are important to enjoy."

From near oblivion to Europe and beating the champions of England on the club's milestone day, this is the Seagulls' remarkable story...

It is Thursday, 9 November, 2023. Brighton manager Roberto de Zerbi is addressing his players in the Amsterdam Arena before their Europa League tie with Ajax.

"There's 3,000 Brighton fans in this stadium tonight," said the Italian. "But there's more than twice that number in the city who have travelled over. Remember that when you go on to that pitch."

A long-standing senior Brighton official was in the dressing room that day. A fan first and foremost, but someone who has spent almost three decades working for the club.

"It made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up," he said.

For some clubs, an encounter with Ajax is commonplace. Not Brighton.

"The royalty of European football," says the official. "From where we've come from, to be in that environment. It was a pinch-me moment."

Brighton won 2-0. It was the high point of the first European campaign in the club's history.

Ask Paul Samrah for his single most memorable moment as a Brighton fan and a very different answer comes back, which goes to the heart of why, as they celebrate their 125th birthday around the visit of Arsenal, the Seagulls are almost unique among English clubs.

August 2007. "After the years of campaigning, the days and nights I spent fighting for regime change and then for the stadium, the moment I heard we'd actually got planning permission, that our objectors had decided not to continue their fruitless efforts to stop the stadium," he explained.

"We'd won our battle."

The two stories highlight the before and after reality of Brighton & Hove Albion.

Formed in 1901, Brighton were a Southern League club for almost two decades before they were voted into the Football League. They had experienced only seven seasons in Division Two when they were promoted to the top flight for the first time in 1979.

For years, they were known outside Sussex chiefly for "And Smith must score..." - the BBC radio commentary, delivered by the late Peter Jones, at a critical point during the 1983 FA Cup final, late in extra time. It was the moment when Gordon Smith, clear on goal with a chance to earn Brighton their first major trophy, saw his shot saved by Manchester United goalkeeper Gary Bailey. United won the replay.

But in 1995, chairman Bill Archer sold Brighton's Goldstone Ground, their home since 1902, because of escalating debts that there was no obvious way of paying. Fans were not consulted and no alternative stadium was put in place.

Brighton did not leave until 1997, although their final season at the Goldstone was only confirmed by the property company who owned the stadium, after the final game of the 1995-96 campaign, which had to be abandoned as thousands of furious fans spilled on to the pitch to demonstrate against the ownership. Both crossbars were snapped amid the tumult.

After two seasons playing 70 miles away at Gillingham, and with the idea of a new stadium in the Toad's Hole Valley area of Brighton a non-starter, the club returned to the city in 1999 and started playing at Withdean Stadium, most famous for being the home athletics track of Olympic middle distance gold medallist Steve Ovett.

That brings us back to De Zerbi's pre-match team-talk at Ajax.

Brighton had more than 7,000 fans in Amsterdam that night. When they moved into the Withdean, its capacity was only 6,000. The modern Brighton really is a totally different club to the one that existed before.

"After the 1983 FA Cup final, players were sold, there was no investment, the Goldstone was decaying and the crowds were dipping," said Samrah. "There was no communication between board and fans, directors came and went. There was no continuity, no leadership, no direction. We were just rudderless."

There are some notable figures in the Brighton story.

Former Football Association executive director David Davies got involved, Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott overturned a rejected planning application for Brighton's current stadium in Falmer. Former chairman Dick Knight stabilised a club that in 1997 came within 27 minutes of being relegated out of the Football League.

Without that trio, and many more, it is quite possible Brighton would not exist.

The contemporary Brighton are different.

They began their second European campaign in the Norwegian city of Tromso last month, knowing the Conference League offers the chance of that elusive first trophy.

They play in a magnificent stadium, a short train journey from the city centre, with its new corporate areas, and, generally, inclusive family atmosphere. Their recruitment model, buying players in and selling them on for vast profits, is envied.

The new Brighton just beat Manchester United at Old Trafford for the fifth time in six visits. Four games into their 10th consecutive Premier League campaign, they sit fifth.

The contemporary Brighton exist the way they do largely because of the vision and investment of Tony Bloom.

Born in Brighton, Bloom is a lifelong fan. His connection to the club is through his grandfather Harry, a former vice-chairman, and uncle Ray, a director.

Bloom, 56, is an entrepreneur. He made his money in finance and gambling, largely through the use of data. He became chairman in 2009, and masterminded the rise from League One and move into the American Express Stadium. Last season, Brighton's average attendance was more than 31,000.

In their 125-year history, Brighton have never had it so good.

"Anyone walking into Brighton today compared to even 15 years ago would not think it was the same football club," sporting director Mike Cave told BBC Sport.

"The club has been on an unbelievable journey. We've got staff members and many fans who have done that journey. For those of us who weren't here 15 years ago, our responsibility is to ensure what's to come - and I think there's lots - is better than what's happened in the recent or long-distance past."

As for Bloom himself, he has reflected on Brighton's 125th birthday in the programme for the Arsenal game.

"Since 1901, this football club has been part of the fabric of our city and the broader county of Sussex," he said.

"It has connected generations of families and communities. Grandparents have brought their children and grandchildren to matches. Lifelong friendships have been forged on terraces, in stands and on away trips.

"Through good times and bad, Brighton & Hove Albion has provided so many of us with some of the most memorable moments of our lives.

"This club is in my blood. Some of my earliest and most cherished memories are wrapped up in the sights and sounds of the Goldstone.

"When I had the privilege of becoming owner and chairman, it was like being entrusted with something precious to safeguard and help develop for the future.

"Many of you reading these words will remember those difficult years. The loss of the Goldstone. The long journeys to Gillingham. The challenges of the Withdean era.

"What got this football club through was the determination of its fans. The bucket collections. The protests. The refusal to accept the Albion should disappear. This anniversary belongs as much to those supporters as anyone. Quite simply, without them, we would not be here today." %!s()