There was a freakish element to that win at Etihad Stadium, two late goals pinching the points at the end of a dreadful game.

In addition to fueling Wednesday’s freakish bomb cyclone in the Pacific Northwest, atmospheric rivers were also responsible for a freakish Antarctic heat wave in April.

Absent extraordinary vigilance and in many cases notwithstanding it, the election could turn on freakish events or even the fruits of a probably criminal scheme.

And yet, in one form or another, bearded women continued to exist in Western society’s eyes as a freakish aberration to be gawked at in 19th century carnivals and exhibitions.

After all, the movie's premise is about a freakish series of tornadoes, and Trenberth is confident that climate change is producing exactly those types of storms.