starshine1118

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It is not that Jews are a more superstitious people I think, it's just that we have a really strong cultural taboo against expressing optimism, and an even stronger one against expressing certainty.

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What amazes - not in a good way - & perplexes me is how all those people were tripping over themselves to call out, condemn, sh*t post Elon for his apparent N*zi salute but have said Jack sh*t, Zero, niltch, Nada about the recent antisemitic tirade & rant by Kanye West. Yes, people have spoken out before but have been completely silent in the face of antisemitism since Oct 7th (and before). Those calling everything/everyone a "Nazi" are literally ignoring those who are actually Nazi supporters/worshippers ie Hamas, Hezbollah. They need to take a long hard look in the mirror & ask themselves why that is.

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I feel like normies think of tumblr as the fanart and aesthetic and gifset website but real tumblrinas know that our most culturally significant output and our lifeblood is the humble text post

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Do I care about football? No. Will I (who goes to college in Pennsylvania) rub it in my friend who lives in Kansas City’s face? Yes

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The Wizard of Oz x Wicked characters

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every year once a year captainsparklez will tweet a picture of an owl out of the blue and that is the only way i ever remember it’s super bowl day

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recognized what i thought was a taylor swift song and when i asked my boyfriend if he thought it was her too he went “no, the lyricism is too bad” which was. the very reason i thought it was one of her songs 💀

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I'm constantly impressed at people's ability to stretch anything to fit an acronym, but it's extremely impressive how well that fits.

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Read The Westing Game for the first time literally a decade ago and it only just now occurred to me that "Wrong! All answers are wrong!" Included Chris Theodorakis' answer of "Sam Westing was a good man"

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everyone loves Predynastic Egyptian Terracotta Bowl with Human Feet. shout-out to a real one

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I’m fifty papers in to this round of grading. Please enjoy a selection of out-of-context comments I’ve left on students’ papers so far:

Further updates as warranted.

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tr!Foolish asking tr!Bad if he feels guilty for all the nonsense they pull mortals into and Bad’s just like “no unless I like them” and Foolish is just like “same” my immortal assholes <3

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Hey! So I know you are a Kitty Wilde fan and she didn’t interest me much personally while I was watching the show. But your gorgeous gif sets grabbed my attention so I wanted to ask you if you could talk about the reasons you like her (if you haven’t yet already) because I want to know more about her now, if you want to talk about it of course no pressure <3

Ooooh thank you for the opportunity! I don't think I ever actually did a post that was just, here's why I love Kitty, so I'll gladly share some thoughts.

I have a really long character analysis in the works all about Kitty, her themes and her arc but at this point that's been a work in progress for an actual year and I feel like I should stop going on about it and finish it instead lol. I'm just noting this to say that I'll mention a few things about her character that I won't elaborate on right now but hopefully I can finish that at some point this century and really go in depth about what I mean.

So, Kitty. I think such a huge part, though not all of my fascination with her can be contributed to Becca Tobin and how she elevated this role that was supposed to be RM finally getting to have an irredeemably evil blonde cheerleader. She's written as such a vile person in the beginning and does arguably the most horrible thing in the show that I did start off hating her. I even said to my sister while we were watching season 4 for the first time, "wow she sucks so much." But even then I think Becca Tobin did her best trying to give some sort of depth to this intentionally one note character. I think the best proof we have, other than the whole ED storyline itself, that the creators didn't want Kitty to be more than pure evil is that they deleted what could have been a really poignant scene in Swan Song. Imagine thinking the stupid "lesbian blogger" jokes had more of a right to be in the final version than a much-needed scene between Kitty and Marley. I hate this show, anyway.

But then, whether because they saw what Becca could do with his character in this scene or some other reason, the writers decided to actually do something with this character. I think it’s understandable that for some she never quite redeems herself for the Marley mess, and in fact this initial run of Kitty’s character is probably the reason why it’s taking me so long to write her character analysis. It’s horrifying on a level that’s only second to IKAG imo. But as someone who did hate Kitty during the ED storyline, I did grow to care for her. She has a subtle but nice plot in the second half of season 4 about becoming a true part of the club, most notably in Guilty Pleasures after Brittany confronts her. She finally apologizes to Marley in Shooting Star. She shows vulnerability with Ryder and bonds with him after the shit he gets from Sam and Artie’s during their big flop moment. There’s the Wonder-ful plot with Artie, where Kitty helps someone just because she wants to. By the end of the season 4 she’s much more of a mean girl in the vein of Santana, so a bitch but with good qualities instead of being the evil incarnate she starts out as.

And you know, I do try to make the ED stuff make sense on a character level in my essay, but the truth is the writers didn’t care to make Kitty an actual character in the beginning. The immense charisma that Becca brings to the role, as well her skills as a true triple threat really help elevate Kitty into a real member of the club - best new dancer along with Jake, unique and amazing voice, acting chops on par with the best of the first gen kids. Like I say I think she starts becoming much more interesting in season 4 and then season 5 clearly knows better what to do with her. Some episodes, anyway, like the Beatles two-parter. I love Wildebrams, I love how we’re actually acknowledging Kitty’s struggle of balancing the Glee Club with the Cheerios.

And when she returns in season 6, I looove that we’re at least dealing a little bit with how she felt left behind, after how long it took for her to embrace Glee Club and how important it became. I also think she has fascinating themes of beauty and sexuality, questions of community, trust, all that. Her trauma as revealed in Lights Out is only ever mentioned in that episode but I think it recontextualizes a lot of her moments and all the little crumbs turn her into a fascinating character. I wouldn’t necessarily say “layered” or “well-written” because that would be crediting the writers and frankly, fuck them, but Kitty still ended up becoming a much more engaging character than she was initially intended to be.

I don’t know how good of a summary that was but, yeah. I find Kitty to be suuuper interesting, engaging to watch, and I am a sucker for characters who become more than what they were meant to be. I think she’s the true shining star of the later seasons and since finishing the show has become a top 4 character for me. Certainly top 3 in terms of who I could go on and on about haha. And that’s fitting because she’s basically a Quinntana love child and they’re my top 2 in this sense. I’d love to discuss her more if you or any others have particular storylines or moments of interest, or just any thoughts. I totally get if Kitty’s not your cup of tea, I just think there’s a lot of accidental greatness with her - accidental on the writers’ part, Becca Tobin deserves all the credit.

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“You really think I’m gonna come back and help you and your stupid glee club after you treated all of us. How you treated me after you went to college?”

Ngl S6 Kitty hit right on the nose with that one

Exactly!

I'm glad there was an acknowledgment of the season 4 newbies' treatment in season 6 because they were just... cast aside. Not only from a TV show perspective but in-universe, too. And when Kitty reveals that Sue bullied all the others into transferring it really makes the whole "Glee Club is a found family where you're accepted no matter what" message hollow and bleak. Yikes, they were the ones left behind. And I don't think it was any of the other characters' responsibility, as such, but it's a sad story nonetheless.

And particularly when it comes to Kitty, even as the one who stayed and eventually rejoined Glee Club and won Nationals, thinking about her junior year still makes me sad. The alumni and graduates all left without ever looking back and Artie presumably dumped her right as he moved to New York. Based on what she says, it wasn't exactly amicable. And then Marley, Jake, Unique and Ryder, all of whom she had a rocky relationship with at first had become her genuine friends which we get the sense doesn't come easy to her due to trust issues. But then they leave, too, and Sue only keeps Kitty remain a Cheerio, an aspect of her social life that Kitty didn't particularly enjoy by the end.

To your quote I'd also like to add this one to hammer the point home:

I invested everything into Glee Club. And what did it get me? They all deserted me. The only reason I'm still here is because Sue needed me for Cheerios. I miss singing and dancing and the feeling of being in the choir room. But I know Sue... and I know you. And I don't wanna jump back in just to get my heart broken again in a couple weeks when it all goes away.

Heartbreaking honesty from someone who was so reluctant, hostile even to the concept of being part of the team and letting them close. Didn't think I'd be saying this when I first started watching season 4 but I'm team Kitty, all the way.

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My new boss: “Everyone come to the team meeting with a surprising story about something you’ve done in the past. Something no one would expect of you!”

Me: Googling the statute of limitation for felonies in Texas

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Kanye West and Bianca Censori's appearance on the red carpet was something out of a nightmare. If you haven't seen the clip, go look it up.

It starts with them posing, then they face each other and start to talk. Their conversation is not audible, but you can see Bianca shaking her head no and readjusting her large fur coat to cover herself. After three or four words are exchanged, she turns away from the camera and starts taking off her coat slowly. Revealing her naked shoulders, then her back, then her buttocks. She turns around to finally show off the dress she's wearing, a tight, see-through piece of nylon (designed by Kanye himself) that leaves her breasts, genitals and ass exposed. She's essentially naked. During this whole scene, Kanye is just facing the cameras with sunglasses on, neutral expression on his face.

Now, I'm not shocked by nudity. Censori is definitely not the first celebrity to walk the red carpet wearing a very revealing outfit (and she won't be the last). What disgusts me is the scene they built around the outfit.

First, the little conversation they have. You can clearly see Bianca shaking her head no and tightening her coat around her before being made to undress. There's two possibilities here:

A) Either this wasn't rehearsed, so we essentially witnessed Bianca being pressured into undressing herself in front of dozens of cameras or;

B) It was rehearsed (the most likely option, in my opinion). But then why? Why act out this discomfort before the reveal?

Some could argue they were talking about something totally unrelated, but I very much doubt it. It's their big moment on the red carpet, in front of cameras, it's not the time to talk about the groceries.

What I think is happening is that they (but most likely Kanye) voluntarily chose to paint a scene of a woman being forced to undress herself in front of thousands for the amusement of her husband. It's essentially a brag, a show of force for Kanye. He's saying: "Look at my wife and what she'll do for me. Look what I can make her do. "

The last thing I haven't mentioned, and the scariest, is Censori's facial expression through it all. Neutral expression, no smile. Her eyebrows are trimmed downwards in a way where she looks slightly worried. And her stare is totally vacant. I've seen people say she looks drugged, dissociated, downright "stupid."

I think this is the main difference between Bianca's look and others who have worn skimpy outfits in front of the cameras. Whether it be Lady Gaga, Kendall Jenner, or Madonna, they all share something: confidence. A sultry look, a cheeky smirk, hell, at least a smile! Something to show that they feel desirable, that they're in control. That they choose to show us their bodies.

Whereas Bianca looks dead inside as she's posing.

After standing in front of the cameras for a little while, Kanye takes her hand and leads her away.

The whole sequence (no matter how much Bianca has consented to it) feels like a humiliation ritual. Kayne, standing there fully dressed, pressing his wife to expose her body to the entire world before parading her around. A gross display of chauvinist male domination on the body of a woman. Like, I don't know how else to say it, but it looks like he's walking around with his sex doll, still partially in her plastic wrapping.

Why are we seeing this? What is the point? I can't help but relate this to Elon's n*zi salute. It feels like we're witnessing more and more rich and powerful men pushing the boundaries of what is socially acceptable, trying to see how far they can go. How much of their toxic, repressive views they can share before we come for them.

My heart goes out to Bianca, I hope she's safe and happy in her marriage.

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The one thing that I would change about the wicked movie is I would have included a detail from the Wizard of Oz book that was referenced but not explicitly stuck to in the stage musical. The movie didn’t keep it but I wish they did because it lowkey makes no one looking twice at Elphaba in the Emerald City make more sense

In the Wizard of Oz, when Dorothy’s little posse gets to the gates of the Emerald City and a guard gives them these special glasses and locks them onto their faces, because supposedly the glasses protect them from the bright sunlight that reflects off the emerald buildings in the Emerald City, which would blind them otherwise.

They later find out that these glasses are a total sham. They’re just glasses with green lenses. Dorothy buys a green dress while they’re there that magically turns white the second she steps outside the city? It was never green in the first place. The Emerald City itself is not actually green. The Wizard just started mandating these glasses, told everyone the city was green, and they believed him. It really establishes just how much power the Wizard has, even after they realize he has no real magic.

If everyone was wearing these in the Emerald City in Wicked, I just think it would have added another layer to the whole scene when they visit. Elphaba would think everyone in the city is so much more openminded, and it’s actually that they can’t really see her at all. She’d think she’s in a safe place where for the first time in her life she can blend into a crowd, but it’s all an illusion. She and Glinda could get out on that balcony and look down and realize the city is not actually green. This is the one detail I would have changed about the movie.