#// so this is eve's first design vs her final design when i was making her up!

[edenpoise]

the rib of adam.

[existencebringsonlypain]

I went to add them all in tags but very quickly ran out of room, so here's a list

#i always tell my customers why not to buy an ev - here's five reasons they're a total waste of money

#i always get compliments when i wear this trending perfume

#i always buy my friends and family jewellery from this chic

#i always get compliments on zara perfumes -9 that could easily pass for designer

#i get up at 4am to charge my ev because i'm sick of queues at stations - but now i'm taking even more drastic action

#when is the rugby world cup final? latest odds as england face south africa

#84 incredible nail art designs to screengrab before your next salon trip

#there are serious logistical problems in administering it. said dr. ryan wynn

#horror moment customers attack worker over iphone 15 pro delay as new phone launch sparks buying frenzy across india

#kami juga bisa menerima pesanan khusus dengan rasa khusus sesuai keinginan customer

#6 cool autumn outfits that will earn you so many compliments

#28 low maintenance short haircuts that are guaranteed to earn you compliments

#bianca censori's 32g breasts are saggy - wearing tight garments or swinging them in the wind is a risk

#golden aroma food indonesia memiliki lebih dari 150 rasa bumbu tabur & non msg

#cancer weekly horoscope: what your star sign has in store for september 10-16

#ea sports fc 24 serie a best player ratings revealed - maignan cedes the top spot

#ea fc 24 trick lets you score from kick off - here's how to pull it off

#ea sports fc 24 reveals bundesliga best rated players - and harry kane tops the list

#ea sports fc 24 ranks the best players in spain's la liga and liga f

#ea sports fc 24: the 10 players for each position you need in your team including a huge boost for haaland

#ea sports fc 24 ratings leak early - and cristiano ronaldo's score hits rock bottom

#ea fc 24 trick lets you score from kick off - here's how to pull it off

#ea fc 24 has a little known trick to boost your ultimate team cards - and fans will love it

#ea fc 24 players furious at eye watering cost of in game item - and it can't be traded

Hea fc 24 division rivals rewards: when do they come out?

#ea fc 24 fans furious as new series has a disappointing launch - but changes are coming

#ea fc 24 players can grab 12 rare cards for absolutely nothing - but only for a limited time

#ea fc 24 fans have spotted this simple hack to gain xp points fast

#at least 26 dead and many trapped after railway bridge collapses while under construction in india

#gemini weekly horoscope: what your star sign has in store for august 27 - september 2

#gather to remember young woman 28 years on from disappearance

#&039;90s fashion moments: 34 memorable trends we still love

#37 of the best candles to make your home smell incredible

#former teacher found guilty of sexually assaulting male student in his home while giving him grinds 38 years ago

#these are the most successful and rich signs of the zodiac as the full moon lunar eclipse occurs

#these are the 8 best shoes to wear with wide leg trousers

#are you a cos obsessive? then you need to see these 8 other minimalist brands

#these are the 5 best shoes to wear to the pub this season

#astrid wett vs alexia grace new date announced after first fight was cancelled over onlyfans star's hospital dash

#dublin airport warn of cancellations as storm debi tracks over ireland with red level gusts

#these are the ballet flats coming out on top

#heather morris insists there's no glee curse* - but says none of her co stars were prepared for the show's huge fame

#pregnant paris fury washes baby blankets as she prepares to welcome seventh child with husband tyson

#how 'steel marshmallow' kate middleton is preparing to become queen - & why she's being more assertive with wills

#anthony joshua fight figures revealed as british boxing mogul prepares for blockbuster fight against otto wallin

#kyle richards says &039;rhobh&039; sister fights prepared her for mauricio drama

#man utd prepared to take 'significant loss' on jadon sancho amid fears of empty gesture'

#this whole case had me changing my opinions and views(at least for the moment)

#i saw the mexican ufo mummies firsthand - i don't believe they're aliens or a hoax but something much darker

#i saw how determined israeli troops are training for urban warfare in mock hamas hideout

#i saw the same one in goodwill but it needs "chin engraving"

#every cool person i follow is wearing silver slingback shoes right now

#every cool person at fashion month is wearing these cult prada shoes

#every celeb swears by augustinus bader skincare

#every star at beyonce&039;s birthday show: meghan markle

#every strictly come dancing routine that has scored a perfect 40

#every suspect in ben glenroy&039;s &039;only murders in the building&039, season 3 death

You ever start writing a tag and come across a phrase that's. Just ALL the scams

[galactic-pirates]

Strange New Worlds - Episode 1

Paramount+ launched in the UK yesterday. As a side note I have a small amount of amusement as whomever designed the Disney+ website, did this one - they are identical! Anyway, the moment I finished the episode I had to login to raid so didn't have time to ramble. Let's see if I can remember stuff I thought!

So it's been 3 months since Discovery season 2 finale and Pike sure can grow a long beard in that time. I don't quite know what the logic was for showing that woman at Pike's cabin (establishing Pike is a ladies man??) especially as that's a recognisable actress and according to IMDB that's her only appearance in the show. Very strange (no pun intended haha).

Anyway, moving on. T'Pring has some major thirst for Spock. Although I confess my initial thought was why were they kissing with their mouths? I guess that was for the benefit of the casual audience as it would have made more sense as Vulcan's for their hands to be being all sensual. I read some dates and her "I won't chase you across the galaxy" kinda makes sense as isn't it like 8 years or something until the Kirk vs Spock pon farr fight?

Let's see what is next. Oh! I enjoyed the fact that Enterprise is getting patched up from the battle, all the crew are on leave unless needed, and Number One was like "nope, give me another ship I'm bored" as I got some major Eve Baird vibes from that. I watched the Librarians show premiere AGAIN the other day (I love it so much) and Eve's all "but sir what am I supposed to do for a month??" so yes very good.

Ortegas on the conn is something I want to see more of, with her dry wit of "why is it always when I'm in the Captain's chair" plus it's just the humour as well of the Captain, the first officer, Spock (who's basically second in command) just all on the away mission. Like yes lets just send our entire leadership down and hope nothing bad happens!

Oh I adored the humour and the banter between Chapel and M'Benga when they were chasing that guy around the ship. I also loved the little peek at Uhura's character. The dude was freaking out and she just chatted to him about something from his planet and totally put him at ease. Chapel practically didn't have to sedate him to be honest.

I haven't got a satisfactory answer off google and so I remain confused. Of all the characters (apart from Pike and Spock) then La'an was the one that got the most fleshing out this episode, so I'm guessing her backstory is going to be important to the seasons overall plot. However, I still don't get whether she's related to Khan or related to the scientists that created Data, or is it both? I watched Picard and when they went back to 2024 the Soong then pulled out a file which seemed to hint at Khan.

Speaking of 2024 I had a "can't quite believe they went there" moment when they showed footage with 'audit the vote' as a precursor to the second civil war and then world war three. To be honest that made me more scared than anything because it feels a bit too possible. While I would like the Star Trek future, I definitely don't want the nuclear armageddon they endured to get there.

Ok back to Pike and his soul-searching. Every now and then I find random bits on my hard drive and apparently after season 2 of Discovery I started a Pike fanfic. I had a "I don't remember this place" when I found the doc but it's a thing. Interestingly I had Pike as a prisoner in jail having done something very reckless because "if I know how I'm going to die, then my day is not today and nothing really matters" and then I was building up to basically Number One sitting on him and reaffirming what Cornwell said which is "you can't think like that, because knowing your fate doesn't give you God-like powers to just live through anything" as a bit of a reality check. This time it was a bit more subtle and La'an and Spock provided the nudge but it seems Pike got to a similar sort of headspace in the end.

There wasn't really enough Number One in this for me, and with her being the focus of the rescue mission (and then her injury) she didn't get to do anything badass either. However, I have seen some gifs and I know her moment to shine will come.

I liked the thing about consequences. I dislike that Starfleet command are idiots that don't understand them but I'm glad that Pike did. General Order Number One (aka the Prime Directive) shouldn't be a license not to clean up their own messes. As Pike said they had already interfered, so they needed to try and make it as positive as possible. The warp weapon wasn't part of their 'natural development' so letting them blow themselves up with it shouldn't be either. So good for Pike, but a bad look for Starfleet.

This was a solid episode. It had a good plot. There was some good character stuff, some humour. I wanted more but then I always do. I think they could have cut a few minutes of Pike and Spock at the start and given them to the other crew, but I'm hoping that Ortegas and the others will get their time in future episodes. That's the problem with decent ensemble casts, they'd need to double episode lengths to really give them the time they deserve.

Oh! One last thing I actually googled this after to make sure I hadn't misheard and I hadn't - Shuttle 'Stamets' I screamed because what a cool reference! I love Stamets and it was a nice nod. I mean as far as most people are concerned Discovery either never existed or was destroyed (I'm a bit fuzzy on which given the spore drive and wiping that from the records). But either way a little memorial to Stamets who is probably thought dead was nice.

I'm going to give this I think a 4/5 rating. That might go up or down on rewatches as sometimes context makes me feel differently about stuff. However, generally it was as positive and awesome as I'd hoped! Thus far I'm not disappointed and as I've kinda over-hyped this in my head, I am so relieved about that!

[stranger-who-writes-fiction]

Back at it again with the DC solicits because there have been some neat Super-related announcements recently! And this blog is the only place I can geek out about ‘em at length and in peace. XD

ONWARDS.

Alright, so, first! The stuff I couldn’t grab cover images for! XD

Action Comics will presumably continue to be excellent; the newly solicited issue reveals that Clark is still on Warworld as of July, BUT! I think starting in...June? The backup story will focus on Lois and Steel helping Thao-La back on Earth. Woo!

Dreamer’s making the leap into the DCU for real for real this time, teaming up with...*pause for long sigh over the fact that there’s no ongoing Supergirl title for her to appear in RN* Jon Kent.

A new Elseworlds title starts in July! DC: Mech. Really hoping that this is *actually* Superman-centric, and not just another bait-and-switch Batman story in disguise. *Glares at DKoS*

Aaaand now for the stuff that I COULD grab covers for:

DARK CRISIS: WORLDS WITHOUT A JUSTICE LEAGE - SUPERMAN

So, I’ll be honest, I’m primarily interested in this because Tom King is back at writing Superman, and after Up in the Sky and Woman of Tomorrow, I ABSOLUTELY want to read his take on Jon Kent as a Robin-type figure to Superman. 

Can’t believe I’m gonna pick up a book based solely on the WRITER and not the ART TEAM, what’s this world coming to! XD

...Okay and we’re immediately back to a title that I’m interested in based solely on the art. XD

SUPERMAN: SPACE-AGE #1

I mean, the premise is very cool: Superman aging in real time through the decades, a la Spider-Man: Life Story.

The reason I’m not as gung-ho about the writer side of this is because Russell...kinda dropped the ball with Fantastic Four: Life Story, so. *shrugs*

The real draw (ha, ha) here--for me, at least--is Mike Allred on art, doing a prestige format Superman story. It’s gonna look awesome. 

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #5

Nothing revealed in the solicit text honestly, it’s a very vague, “END OF THE FIRST ARC! DRAMATIC THINGS OCCUR!”

Mostly including this because DAN MORA SUPES AND BATS!

And also Robin hitching a ride with Kara and clearly having...a time. XD

So this was kind of a surprise! I’ve not been keeping up with DC vs. Vampires but APPARENTLY--

DC VS. VAMPIRES #7

--will feature a resistance force fighting back the undead hordes, and said resistance includes Batgirl, Green Arrow, and Supergirl!

Not a horror/gore/vampire person, but I’m sure I’ll see some of the pirated Otto Schmidt art that shippers will spread around on twitter.

Not sure if there’s other ‘Super’ stuff necessarily but this is what stood out in the July Solicits this time around.

And NoooOOooow...

Some stuff that isn’t from the solicit but still of note, IMO!

First up, some old news, but good news:

Sampere is the main artist on the Dark Crisis event, and he confirmed that he’ll use the Evely design, if/when Supergirl appears.

WOOOOOOOOO!

Though TBH I’m taking this with a grain of salt--not because I don’t trust the guy actually drawing the book, but because editorial weirdness has resulted in stuff/characters being removed before.

(See: The double page spread from Superman: The Truth wherein Kara was swapped out for Jess in the final art.)

So like, cool, but also...I’ll believe it when I see it.

Alright, now for the FINAL bit of...well. Not news exactly:

TOM. TOM DON’T DO THIS. DON’T TEASE US SO. XD

Okay, anyways. 

Some context: This is a QT reply to a comment left on some Woman of Tomorrow art that King shared recently.

Now, look. I am not suggesting that he’s actually teasing a direct sequel/prequel/midquel/what-have-you to Woman of Tomorrow. 

There’s just. Way too little to go off of, here.

(Bolding that to make it EXTREMELY CLEAR that this tweet really amounts to zero concrete info. About ANYTHING.)

(Also, the comic industry being what it is: Even if there WAS some kind of project--of any kind!--in the works, it can be canned/altered/shelved for any number of reasons.)

(See: the current mess with the WB slate of films and the movie tie-in comics.)  

Anyways.

The ONLY takeaway I’m allowing myself to even be REMOTELY excited about here, is that he’s open to/wants to work with Evely again.

To which I say: I’m in. I’m sold. BRING IT ON, whatever it may possibly one day be.

(...Watch it be, like, a Harley Quinn book, or something. To really test my devotion. XD)

SO IN CONCLUSION: DC is still a veritable sea of Batman titles right now, but! There are cool Superman projects on the horizon! Definitely looking forward to ‘em! 

[readingaccountability]

snow crash - neal stephenson

my playlist (because of The Way That I Am)

final thoughts:

okay, im going to be honest right out of the gate- i cant decide whether this is a book id recommend or not. it was really fun for the most part, but personally there was a lot more exposition than id like. the early portions of the novel have exposition which feels completely fair, mostly things relating to worldbuilding. stephenson creates his own vision of future america, and some places online referred to it as cyberpunk, and some as post-cyberpunk. id be more in the latter camp, mostly due to the way he plays with tropes, leaving the reader unsure of which will be subverted and which wont.

the use of language was really fun, and i enjoyed the worldbuilding a lot. his vision of a futuristic capitalistic earth feels surreal in its immediacy and recognizability. the back jacket blurb ends with "a future america so bizarre, so outrageous, you'll recognize it immediately." which, yeah. a texan info-tech magnate? two competing corporations owning the highway system? suburban city-states? this was another enjoyable thing- everything was colorfully named, and names treated totally normally, which kind of poked fun at how we have everyday things named very ludicrously and for the most part we are totally blind to it.

one aspect i really enjoyed was that the author often doesn't make certain things clear to the audience, until he does, and then it becomes necessary to reassess the entire story and setting. this goes to underscore the theme of the importance of information and the ways we take it in and perceive the world based upon it. for example, we don't learn that y.t. is fifteen until maybe 75 pages in, at which point a lot makes sense in retrospect. the same thing occurs in the worldbuilding, as suddenly a detail is given in passing and the reader must incorporate it into the setting, which by default we assume to be similar in many ways to our idea of america. it keeps the reader on their toes as well as furthering the worldbuilding. for the most part, the tech stuff didnt feel outdated to me, despite being a future projected out from '92.

however, aspects of the book are definitely very 1992. id put these into two camps: the first, being that the book does at different times use slurs. the main character is black and asian, the n word is used a few times by racist side-character/antagonist types, as are a few other racial slurs. there was also the occasional usage of the r slur, within the narrative prose itself, rather than usage as an insult within dialogue.

the protagonist, who is named, unfortunately, hiro protagonist, is a great character and felt very fleshed out to me, though at times he reminded me more of dirk strider than normally would be ideal. (its obvious that stephenson and andrew hussie are of a similar type of writer, and play with similar tropes, lmao.) hiro is a man of many worlds. he seems to shift between them easily, though never fully existing in any of them. this is reflected in his background, both in his biracial identity and in having been raised on a myriad of army bases. this is layered further in his fluidity in interacting with both reality and the metaverse, yet remaining slightly, consistently aloof. fascinatingly the first moment i sensed this drop was when we meet juanita- aka where his real and meta realities coincide. the description of them as the adam and eve of the metaverse is both insanely romantic and thematically key (good god i wish we had more than like, two conversations between them). juanita designed the facial component to metaverse avatars, doing the majority of this work when the two were together, and hiro can see echoes of both their facial tics in the face of every avatar in the metaverse. in a way, by having done this work juanita is positioned by the narrative as one of the gods of this digital realm. she is also hiro's call to action, being aware of the coming trouble and alerting him to it, as well as connecting him to the informational database he needs to prepare.

y.t., the secondary protagonist, fucking ruled. i loved that she was just a fifteen year old punkass kid whose mom doesnt know how crazy this part time job is. y.t. being worried about her mom was a great thread throughout, and a really good balance to how obviously independent y.t. is. i do wish there had been a chance to explain more about her background (she has a dad who left who is mentioned in a throwaway sentence, and a boyfriend who is mentioned near the beginning but never again.) i really enjoyed how obviously hyperaware y.t. was at all times about her own place within the insanities of the setting, while also consistently writing her as a teen maybe in way too deep who thinks about things in typically teenage ways. but like, that wasn't ever held against her? the narrative meets her where she is. it was honestly awesome. HOWEVER,

i absolutely hated the raven and y.t. scenes. how creepy!!! he basically statutory rapes her!!! we know hes at least late 20s early 30s, because hes the same age as hiro. if this sort of content is upsetting to read for you, i definitely do NOT recommend this book. (if you want to avoid reading these bits: ch 47 y.t. meets raven, ch 50 they are in a bar eating, ch 52 things happen that result in y.t.'s anti-assault device activating- she did not activate it on purpose, but forgot it was there- and raven is knocked out.)

please PLEASE dont take any of the following analysis as like, trying to be apologetic towards this scenes. because again they were awful and hard to get through and really gross. but im also cognizant that the author was obviously trying to convey something by making the choice, like the way it was written is obviously not condoning this sort of thing.

i think maybe what stephenson was trying to get at with that, was that we see hiro internally negate any potential for anything untoward with y.t. basically immediately, since he kind of senses that she might have a small crush on him (though this doesnt last more than a fleeting moment, especially from her perspective). vs raven, whose 'poor impulse control' warning tattoo eventually elicits a sarcastic remark from hiro after he finds out raven and y.t. were "a thing". i really dont think hiro knew how far it went? like it was just suuuper weird, but i figured it was meant narratively to 1. execute the chekovs gun of y.t.'s anti-assault device, 2. contrast hiro and raven (especially considering the bike-racing argument where theyre telling the story together, which is supposed to parallel them, while contrasting the differences in how they ended up?), and 3. just to get raven unconscious, i guess. but good god it was weird and i hated every second of it, why couldnt the device have like, activated way earlier?? gah. fucking upsetting. moving past that!

honestly i was really frustrated by how little screentime juanita got, because the way she was introduced was so fucking interesting and then shes mostly off doing her own thing. the bits of explanation she gives at the end about what she was up to on the raft are so sparse and im like damn, can we get a little bit of her pov in here? please? that would have ruled. additionally, shes supposed to be hiros love interest, but we see so little of them interacting outside her intro scenes. a huge portion of why hiro is getting into the sumerian mythology is literally framed as something that will help him understand juanita, but we dont get to see him talk to her about it barely at all.

the supporting characters were quite fun, i particularly liked the librarian. big surprise, i liked the overly literal ai information-dispensor, lmfao. watching him and hiro interact reminded me SO hard of geordi laforge having honest to god conversations with the computer where he tries to coax information out of it, aka one of my favorite little aspects of tng.

and lastly, the major plot themes themselves. i adore the way stephenson approached action, it was very entertaining. usually i cant really visualize action scenes written out, but his use of language was really really effective and engaging. the plot itself was absolutely fascinating, though i found the premise pretty contrived. which isnt bad in itself, i was fully suspending my disbelief until the last hundred pages or so. which for a 550+ page book, isnt too bad.

i did like the approach of linking the ancient to the modern, that is always really neat. and i think ultimately stephenson did it in an interesting way, not how i would have done it, but definitely interesting! creating these ideas about information infrastructures, and there being words that can access those and be used to control people, was wild. not sure if i agree about the equating of religion to a virus, though he did specifically establish that it was more the approach to religion, than religion itself. (maybe if juanita had been more goddamn present in the narrative that could have been elaborated on a little more. literally her perspective would have been perfect in balancing that out!!)

ultimately what did me in was the very very very long winded MONOLOGUE where hiro re-explained the whole premise, in ways that didnt really neatly organize into a cohesive argument. a lot of the scenes where hiro talks to the librarian, which are interspersed throughout the book, are really exposition heavy, because stephenson is rooting his ideas in historical concepts that need to be explained to both hiro and the audience. and i thought all that was fine, because it was a conversation where hiro was grappling with the information, and he was figuring it out along with the reader, and most importantly it was a conversation between him and the librarian computer program.

howeverrr later on we get a full rehash of all that, where hiro makes clear some stuff that was just implied for the reader, and hes literally just telling these important men whats up in this big long monologue. utterly worthless. i kept reading it and going YEAH, we KNOW, we know this we know this. and the important men barely interjected. it added basically nothing to our understanding of the situation, other than reframing it. but everything added was already an implicit thing, and didnt really need to be said again.

the resolution to the book was stellar, the last 30-40 pages, once hiro is onto the raft, were great. ultimately after reading and giving some time to digest it, i think it was a solidly great book with a few big drawbacks near the end, but which dont carry through and sully the ending.

[chuckepisodes]

Chuck vs. The Sandworm Part 1

Halloween time was here. You were over at Chuck and Ellie's place helping her decorate for their annual Halloween party. "How's this look Ellie?" you asked as you put up some spider webs. Ellie looked over and gave you a thumb's up as she put up some herself. "Looks perfect Y/N." You then heard the door open and saw Chuck coming in. You smiled at him. "Hey Chuck!" "Hey Y/NN!" He then looked around and saw all the webs being put up. "What, we don't have enough actual cobwebs already?" Chuck joked. "We are getting ready for our annual Halloween party. What time are you getting here?" " Oh, you know what, I might be late. They finally scheduled that promotional-interview thing for that afternoon. " " Chuck that's amazing!" you cheered walking up to him. "We can just make it an assistant manager party, too, then." Ellie said confidently. "Sure, yeah, if you feel like jinxing it." Chuck said sarcastically. " You're just finally growing up, aren't you? Do you think that this year would be a good time for you and Morgan to have separate costumes?" Ellie asked. " Excuse me, but what's wrong with our costume?" " Um, I'm sorry, but the whole two-man-sea-cucumber-thing is kind of creepy." "Yeah I mean I always just did my own thing." you said. "First of all, it's a sandworm, okay? Shai-hulud, to be specific. Second of all, Dune fans have been going nuts over our costume since the eighth grade and thirdly, Y/N we have asked you if you would like to join our thing and the offer still stands. There can be a middle person." "That's sweet Chuck. But I may have to turn it down. For now." Chuck gave you a pouty face and you couldn't help but laugh a little. "Yo. Chuckster." Awesome greeted him, walking out in his costume." Guess what I am? " Awesome was only wearing nude skin underwear with a leaf on the front. "You're... " Chuck started trying to figure out while not trying to look disturbed. "Naked?" you asked. " I'm Adam. You know, like Adam and Eve, Adam. Wait till you see my snake." " I don't want to see your snake." Chuck replied quickly. " Devon, Chuck here has an interview on Wednesday." "That is outstanding." Devon said high fiving Chuck. All of a sudden Chuck's phone started ringing. "I gotta... Excuse me." Chuck said stepping out of the way to answer his phone. " Hello? Hello?" "I'm getting tense! You know I don't like being tense." Big Mike yelled. "How can I help you relax, big Mike?" " Find that jackass Morgan. Your buddy's supposed to be working a double shift today and went awol." Chuck hung up and started heading to the door. You caught up with him quickly. "What's going on?" you asked. "Oh that was big Mike. Morgan ain't at work and wants me to go find him." "Want me to come and help?" "Sure!"

You and Chuck found yourselves at the arcade at the Santa Monica pier. There you found Morgan. Chuck ran up to him. "Hey, hey, buddy, Morgan. Where you been?" Chuck asked. " What's up, buddy?" Morgan said high fiving him. " Yes. Where have you been?" you asked. " I've been trying to call you." " I, uh, I picked up the sandworm costume from the dry cleaners. The ranch dressing from last year totally came out, so we're all good. You ready to win another buy more costume contest?" "No. No, no, 'cause you're supposed to be at work, buddy." " Dude, I got ten big ones riding on this quote-unquote videogame, so can I just have, uh... This guy's been handing me my ass all week. Time to return the favor." Morgan said while getting ready to play what looked like a game of Guitar Hero along with a man who put his guitar around him as well. As they began to play you and Chuck looked over at the man Morgan was playing against and you both began to flash. This guy was not good news. "Uh, Morgan.”

“ Yeah, buddy?”

“Morgan, this guy is dangerous." Chuck warned.

"Well, Morgan's dangerous, Chucky. Morgan's dangerous. " The man stared at you both and then quickly left. "Oh, what a baby. What a loser." Morgan yelled out to the man. You and Chuck were starting to walk away when the man came up and grabbed Chuck pushing him to the side. "Chuck!" you yelled out. " How did you find me? How did you find me? Who else knows I'm here? Who do you work for?" "No one. No one. Let me go." Chuck said. "Yes please let him go. We don't know what you're talking about." you said standing beside Chuck, looking at the man. "I know you're a spy! You too!" he said pointing at you. "Your watches? I designed them for the CIA. Are there other agents waiting for me outside? Are there other agents waiting for me outside?!" You and Chuck just stood there shocked. Morgan then popped up beside you. "You're not sneaking away from me." The man looked at you and Chuck one more time before running away. " Wait, whoa, whoa. You still owe me ten bucks! " Morgan yelled out. "Morgan!" you and Chuck yelled out, chasing after him. You ran outside and saw Morgan yelling at the man still who you could all no longer see. "Whoa, hey, you still owe me ten dollars!" Morgan yelled out one last time. You and Chuck looked for him then looked back at each other, both wondering how he knew so much. "Well this is great." you said.

[gal-liveblogs]

Over in Homestuck land we get to see an interesting alien landscape. Now what is happening here I wonder?

Well that certainly was a crash landing. I wonder if anyone suffered any injuries.

HOLY SHIT, ROSEBOT, THAT IS QUITE THE LOOK! Did Dirk design it, or did you? Is the crown part of your body or a removable accessory? Why are you standing en pointe? God, you are just stunning.

Oh my god.

Terezi! You grew out your hair! YOUR SHOES! Oh my god, your pants!

Finally! A time scale! So it’s been three years since the events of the epilogue. That’s rough. Also, Rose, in your case I think it would be hard to fall off the wagon when you no longer have a flesh body to imbibe intoxicants with. For Terezi’s case she doesn’t have a clown influencing her.

See, that’s what I’m saying.

OH WAIT, SHIT, YEAH! That was a different Terezi! Homestuck’s timeline is real confusing. That Terezi was made un-happened by John’s retcon powers.

Was Dirk narrating something that we the readers can’t see since we’re in a dialogue box and not the paragraphs? What did you call Rose, Dirk? Or was it a different “her” being referenced? Was it even Dirk Terezi was hearing? OH WAIT! I JUST REALIZED WHAT IT WAS! Haha, I’m dumb. Before it had been “Rosebot”, but now it is simply “Rose”. Terezi was taking offense to Rose being othered as a bot and not simply being Rose anymore. Dirk rectified it swiftly.

Dirk... What are you doing to that map? Is that a map? How do you have a map for this planet already? What can Heart powers do with a piece of paper?

Hm, interesting. Is Dirk conflating godhood with leadership? Or are they two separate facts and it’s Rose who is combining the two? If they are one in the same does this mean that only those who can rule reach godtier? Out of all the trolls only Vriska and Aradia are true leaders?

Well he did grow up in what used to be Texas and he is gay so...

Really now, Dirk, that’s just childish.

I wish I had more to say on Rose and Dirk philosophizing, but they are both way smarter than me so I’m just kind of nodding along and waiting for them to get to the point. So Dirk wants to guide a new race from scratch, instead of leaving them to their own devices as was previously done on Earth C (and Earth A), meanwhile Rose has some reservations.

You asshole. I really do hate how he’s controlling people from behind the narration and then lying in his own character voice about the agency everyone else has. I mean, yeah, you gotta lie in his case, gotta keep up the act as just another character and not the actual narrator, but still.

I believe this is what’s called the Sunk Cost Fallacy. You may be second guessing your course of action, but you feel you can no longer turn around and stop because you’ve put in too much to make it this far. Instead of just admitting that you messed up by doing all this and wasting so many resources and time you feel like it’s more worth it to keep plowing ahead despite your misgivings about it all. Now whether stopping is the correct action to take I can’t say, but only going through with something because you’d feel guilty about giving up what you’ve already put into is not the best. See? I can ramble philosophy too.

God damn it, I lost The Game.

The joke is that since Eve was created from Adam she is, in a way, his daughter and Rose was ectobiologically created from Dirk, making her his daughter. Also both Dirk and Rose are gay. So no heterosexuality in this. That all said I wonder how Dirk plans to create a viable gene pool for a species if he’s only using his and Rose’s genes. In reality you can’t save an endangered species with only two sets of genes, and in this case we don’t even have two completely separate sets since we’ve just establish Rose is half of Dirk.

Oh, I guess that solves the problem about lack of genetic diversity. Just magic some diverse genes in by slapping some random objects into the ecto-slime.

Rose and Dirk playing D&D together sounds like an utter disaster. Even if Terezi joined in that’s still not many players vs. the DM and honestly I’m not sure Terezi would help things go any smoother. There are all chaotic in their own special ways and would derail everything immediately.

God look at these JRPG villains as they behold the new species they just created.

Great job, Dirk, you created a drooling potted plant. I know you said this process would be trial and error, but I can’t imagine you’re very pleased with your first attempt.

God I am so ready to see what fucked up thing my queen will make.

So why did Dirk even bother bringing Terezi along if he’s not going to involve her in this little game he has going on with Rose all about creating a new species to play SBURB? Not that Terezi would be all that interested in joining, but still. What is her role in this little adventure?

[atamascolily]

One of the exercises in Julia Cameron’s The Vein of Gold is to compile a list of favorite movies--or ones with images that resonate with you--and note any patterns that arise. Here are some of mine, with observations below.

(For the purposes of this exercise, I’m sticking with live-action films, but there’s no reason why there couldn’t be animated films.)

1. Star Wars Original Trilogy (Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi)

(Yes, I know this is technically three films, with three different directors and independent histories, but I didn’t feel like listing them all separately.)

2. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Ironically, I love the first Peter Jackson movie, but not any of the subsequent ones. Which is not to say they’re necessarily bad movies, but they’re not the ones I’d want on endless loop. (Part of this is because The Two Towers and The Return of the King are essentially war movies, and also because I have to watch Faramir act OOC, which hurts my soul.)

3. The Secret Garden

4. The Matrix

I actually don’t have strong feelings about Reloaded and Revolutions--like, the actual plot is weird, but I am so not watching these films for plot.

5. Return to Oz

6. Inception

7. Labyrinth

8. The Terminator

Don’t get me wrong, Terminator 2 has a lot going for it, but it’s not the one that I can’t stop thinking about (except for that one deleted scene with Michael Biehn, which is a totally different story).

Thoughts and Themes:

So at first glance, it seems like I have two separate categories: ‘80s and ‘90s-’00s films. Or maybe it’s sci-fi and fantasy? The Secret Garden is the only one that even approaches some kind of realism, and even that is a pastoral kind of world that would not be out of place in the more peaceful parts of, say, Middle-Earth (especially Fourth Age). How about high-tech vs. low-tech, or cyberpunk vs. fairy tale? Or, even better, what about reality vs. illusion (or story vs. truth if you prefer)--which is also a major tension within every film on this list?

I’ll also note that most of these films have an epic color palette, with memorable landscapes that either serve as characters in and of themselves, or symbolize the mental states of various characters. These films are beautiful works of art, reveling in The Aesthetic, whether that’s the idyllic peacefulness of the Shire or the grimy back alleys of 1980s Los Angeles.

The thing that really got me when I laid it out like this--the thing I hadn’t noticed before--was that all of these involve a (sometimes literal) rebirth, transition, or journey from darkness to light (or light to darkness to light again, depending on the work). You could also substitute life and death here, and not change much.

This is, again, often quite literal: Sarah moves underground in Labyrinth, the Fellowship descends into the Mines of Moria, the secret garden comes to life with the spring, Dorothy confronts the Nome King in his underground lair. Neo wakes up to find himself naked and soaked to the skin, and flushed down the tubes like garbage, in a literal hellscape where the machines destroyed the sun (a motif that also appears in Terminator’s dystopian future), then literally dies and is resurrected at the end of the film. Luke goes underground to confront his own double--another recurring theme!--on Dagobah.

Duality and the exploration of one’s soul through another world is HUGE  big theme--or, to put it another way, The internal mirrors the external. This is a huge motif of Inception, which is a literal inward journey into a character’s psyche; and you could also make the argument that both Return to Oz and Labyrinth cover similar territory. Is Oz real, or is it in Dorothy’s head? Is Ozma a part of her, or is Ozma a separate entity? Is Jareth a real foe or is he the embodiment of Sarah’s fears and desires, a fantasy she concocts based on a story in a book?  And Frodo realizes he’s not so different from Gollum, that the sad shriveled creature is what he could become if he fails at his task--and, ironically, his kindness to Gollum is what allows the quest to succeed when Frodo finally succumbs to temptation.

Frodo in the The Fellowship of the Ring sees the world differently when he wears the One Ring, and it’s terrifying. Sarah Connor realizes that she’s left her ordinary world behind and crossed into Kyle and the Terminator’s reality in a moving speech, and The Matrix doesn’t even try to be subtle. Even The Secret Garden uses the eponymous garden as a metaphor for the blossoming of Mary’s own soul, and the souls of those around her (especially her uncle and cousin, but also Ben Weatherstaff).

These stories are also concerned with ecology, though it’s usually a background motif, since the main focus is on saving the world (or what’s left of it, i.e, humans). The Shire is paradise; Mordor is a desolate hellscape, dominated by a giant volcano. Kyle Reese breaks down over the beauty of the world, and Mary Lennox seeks to bring the lost garden back to life. Dorothy retreats elsewhere after the grey grimness of Kansas/the mental hospital.

There’s also a real tension concerning humans’ relationship to technology in these films. The Matrix is an illusion, and machines control the earth. Or the machines don’t even bother farming humans and aim to kill ‘em all. Saruman literally transforms Isengard from a tree-lined field to an industrial hellscape. The mental institution uses that freaky electrical machine on Dorothy. Star Wars is more accepting of droids and technology, but even there, there’s tension: Obi-wan calls Darth Vader “more machine than man,” and it’s not a compliment; the Death Star is built to obliterate entire planets and must be stopped twice.

I’d argue this theme goes deeper than human/tech--it’s really human/other, with technology providing one kind of other. There’s human-alien interactions in Star Wars and Labyrinth, not to mention Mary’s relationship with the robin in The Secret Garden, Dorothy’s friendship with Jack Pumpkinhead and the Gump. On a less friendly note, Frodo’s relationship with Gollum is the emotional crux of the Lord of the Rings.

These films also feature the classic hero’s journey, but often through a female lens. The protagonist usually has no special skills other than their strong moral character and determination--or even if they do have skills (like Ariadne*), they still serve as an audience surrogate or substitute, a stranger to the new worlds they visit. The protagonist has at least one faithful friend/companion/love interest to help them (sometimes even a team/found family), and often a mentor as well (who may or may not be a crusty eccentric). In the end, the characters must take control of their own destiny--Frodo chooses to leave the Fellowship, Luke throws away his lightsaber rather than kill his father, Sarah declares to Jareth “You have no power over me”. Sarah Connor yells, “On your feet, soldier!” and keeps going to the bitter end, and Mary Lennox is unafraid of her bratty cousin’s wrath and puts a stop to it when everyone else enables him.

*(As an aside, I know Ariadne’s not the main character in Inception, but I find the actual main character way less interesting, so she’s the one I focus on, just like I find Trinity far more compelling than Neo.)

Characters often have Meaningful Names: Morpheus, Trinity, Neo; Ariadne; Luke Skywalker, Han Solo. These films also feature a question of fate and inevitability - Luke has precognitive visions, Neo consults the Oracle, Sarah is told “there is no fate but what we make for ourselves,” with Kyle serving as an oracle of sorts with messages from the future to come. The Mirror of Galadriel shows possible futures for the Shire, too.

Another theme is that the protagonist must suffer and/or work hard for their transformation. Mary has to do the actual work of gardening; Luke has to sweat and do handstands (beautifully, I might add); Frodo has to walk to Mount Doom; Sarah has to walk the labyrinth, and Sarah Connor has to survive a fucking nightmare. Dorothy has to rescue the royal family of Ev and free Ozma; Ariadne has to design a dream-puzzle for the heist to work. Even Neo has to train with Morpheus--though he’s able to use cheat codes to download martial arts directly into his brain without having to sweat for it; his real journey is in self-confidence. 

In keeping with the stunning visuals, impossible feats are regularly featured, and excellent, cutting-edge-for-their-time special effects are prominent. Many also feature stunning fight scenes--the classic Luke vs. Vader duel on Cloud City; the “I know Kung fu” sequence in The Matrix; the clashes in The Fellowship of the Ring. Jareth has some excellent moves in Labyrinth, too, although he’s more inclined to dance than traditional battles.

I couldn’t resist contrasting my favorite moment in Return to Oz--rescuing Ozma from the mirror prison--with Ariadne shattering her own reflection in Inception, because that is such a moment for me, encapsulating all of the reality/illusion, internal/external, self/other dichotomies I mentioned above. (See also the Mirror of Galadriel above.) Inception and Labyrinth also share the motif of impossible Escher staircases, which I freakin’ adore.

It will probably come as no surprise to note that I also enjoyed films like The Dark Crystal, The Neverending Story,  and What Dreams May Come, which tap into similar themes and imagery. You’ll probably be able to guess that The Sword in the Stone is my favorite animated Disney film, too.

I also love a number of Asian films like Hero, House of Flying Daggers, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, all of which feature beautiful landscapes and color palettes, stunning fight scenes and special effects, along with a healthy dose of the fantastic, and a focus on story vs. reality (often with a plot twist or surprise reveal at the end). This is unsurprising when you consider the strong debt both Star Wars and The Matrix owe to Asian cinema in terms of style, plot, and aesthetic. In those films, the tension is more society vs. self, but duality is still very strongly present.

If you notice any other patterns or recurring themes, let me know; I’d love to hear them! Also, if you can think of any other movies I might enjoy based on this, let me know.

[kenkamishiro]

Ishida’s Q&A comments from YJ compilation, Part 8

Once again Ishida continuing to give answers that don’t actually answer the questions at all lol.

For anyone who doesn’t know about the relevant Questions to Ishida contest, please read here. You can start from Part 1 here.

The recent set of zakki:re and interview translations take a lot of time and effort, so if you enjoyed it please reblog or leave a like. Thank you!

2016

No. 1

Still 1 month left of this year! What’s something you still have left to do for 2015?

The storyboard.

Good luck.

No. 2

Sensei, please share with us a piece of news that was important to you in 2015!

I forget.

I wasn’t feeling so great in 2015.

No. 3

December 17 is Airplane Day! Now then, please share with us a memory you have that is related to airplanes!

I like the window seats.

Probably that time on the plane to head to the New Years party, when the staff was forced to stop because of me...

[T/N: Referring to his New Year’s party escapades in the volume 6 omake.]

No. 4-5

December 24 is Christmas Eve! Now then, please share with us a present that you want now as an adult!

I don’t need one since I’m an adult.

Even adults want presents too, you know!

No. 6-7

When you think of New Year’s Day...you think of New Year’s money!! Please share with us one way you spent the money you received from New Year’s when you were a child!

On games.

I was jealous of other people’s families since I didn’t have a lot of relatives.

No. 8

Sensei, please tell us your philosophy when it comes to food!

I think of meals as work.

I consider meals as work when I’m eating alone. When I go with people I eat whatever I like.

No. 9

January 28 is the birthday of the late Komatsu Sakyou! Now then, please share with us one of your favourite sci-fi works!

Gantz.

It’s not Star Wars...

No. 10

Please share with us one aspect or behaviour of the opposite sex that you unconsciously care about!

Their face.

How they use social media.

No. 11

Please share with us a Twitter account that you’re most interested in now!

Inagawa Junji-san’s for his ghost story tweets.

I find that accounts of artists are helpful for studying.

No. 12

Please share with us one of your favourite genres/videos that you end up watching on video streaming sites.

I got Netflix so I could watch Terrace House.

I still use it.

No. 13

If you were to ever film a Taiga drama who would you pick as the main character?

Siebold.

But why?

[T/N: A Taiga drama is a type of long-running TV drama period piece, often produced by NHK.]

No. 14

Graduation season is in full bloom! Now then, please share with us one of your favourite graduation songs!

“Lion” by Amano Tsuki.

Uh-huh, yup.

[T/N: "Lion” was one of the songs included in Ishida’s Spotify playlist.]

No. 15

Sensei, if you could decide the design of the 10,000 yen bill, who would it be a portrait of?

A cat.

A cat...?

No. 16

Today is Weekly Manga Day! Please tell us your number one favourite manga that is released weekly!!

I’m curious about what Ooima Yoshitoki-san will draw for her next manga.

Just how much do you care?

No. 17

Sensei, please share with us one thing that makes you go, “Man, I wanna go see this,” now?

Commentary on demonstration boards for shogi.

I went to one! Man, was it interesting.

No. 18

The final day of March is...Orchestra Day! Now then Sensei, please share with us a memory you have that’s related to musical instruments!

I bought a piano recently, and I’ve been playing it almost every day.

And I still play it.

No. 19

Entrance ceremony season has arrived! Now then, please tell us about a schoolteacher who’s left the biggest impression on you!

Some student hacked the school server and the teacher intercepted the culprit.

That’s the kind of school I attended.

No. 20

New dramas are starting one after another! Now then, please share with us a series that’s left the biggest impression on you among all the dramas that you’ve seen recently!

Right now I’m currently watching Mad Men.

I watched all of Mad Men. I can’t believe what happened at the end of “Meditations”...

[T/N: Not entirely sure what Ishida meant by that last line, but I think “Meditations” refers to the last episode of the second season, titled “Meditations in an Emergency”.]

No. 21

Sensei, please share with us one game that’s popular in your circle!

The staff and I often play Mafia a lot together.

Recently we’ve been playing table RPGs.

No. 22-23

Today is the day in which the elephant was first introduced to Japan! Now then, please share with us a person/thing/culture from overseas that you would like to come to Japan!

David Downton-san.

I don’t think that.

No. 24

It’s that time of year where it’s getting warmer even at night! Now then, please share with us something about hanging out at night that you still remember!

That time I went drinking at a bar in the outskirts of Tokyo with Takahashi Kunimitsu-kun.

I don’t want to go there again.

[T/N: Referring to that time in April 2016 where Ishida and Takahashi were at a bar and a middle-aged woman started hitting on Takahashi for 3 hours lol.]

No. 25

May 19 is Boxing Day! Now then Sensei, please share with us what you thought was the best match ever!

I like the match with David Haye.

Clearly it’s Darth Maul vs. Obi-Wan.

No. 26

Please share with us a story about a debacle that you or someone else caused at a drinking party!

The first time I met Nakayama Atsushi-sensei, I made so much of a fool of myself.

I was so piss-drunk that I fell asleep in the bathroom I think.

No. 27

When you think of June you think of June Bride! Now then Sensei, please share with us a story that you remember that has to do with weddings!

I drew the welcome board for my friend’s wedding.

That time I left early since I didn’t want to be late for my senpai’s wedding, but the flight ended up being delayed by over an hour...

No. 28

Sensei, please share with us one of your favourite literary works for children!

Ringing Bell by Yanase Takashi.

Stormy Night.

[T/N: Ringing Bell (Chirin no Suzu) was referenced in :re by Kaneki during Arima’s death scene. You can read about it here. Stormy Night also seems to have influenced :re.]

No. 29

June 16 is Wagashi Day! Now then Sensei, please share with us a confectionary that you like!

It’s not available in Fukuoka, but sweet mochi cake.

I want some now.

[T/N: Wagashi is traditional Japanese confectionaries.]

No. 30

June 23 is Olympics Day! Now then Sensei, please share with us a competition from the Olympics that you still remember to this day!

Uchimura Kouhei’s horizontal bar performance at the London Olympics.

I don’t really watch TV much, so questions like these are tough for me to answer.

No. 31

Please share with us your slogan for the latter half of 2016!

I won’t be late. I wasn’t able to keep that promise for the first half of the year.

Good luck with that.

No. 32

Sensei, please secretly tell us about one shop that you think is the King of Restaurants!

The Chinese restaurant by my previous workplace.

The stir-fried oyster with lettuce was perfection.

No. 33

Summer has arrived! Now then Sensei, what do you think of as “summer food”?

The spicy Mexican crispy noodle salad from Family Mart.

Ah that, that was so good. But I don’t see them sold anywhere now...

No. 34

If you could see exactly one historical event or incident live in person, what would you want to see?

I want to see Tezuka Osamu-sensei’s workplace.

The Perry Expedition.

[T/N: Tezuka is the “father of manga”, having drawn iconic manga like Astro Boy, Black Jack, and the currently airing anime Dororo.]

No. 35

When  you think of summer, you think of the ocean! If you could raise just one sea creature as a pet what would you choose?

An octopus.

So I can eat it.

No. 36

Sensei, please share with us the most nerve-wracking moment you’ve ever experienced in your life!

That time when I had to address a speech to over a hundred people for the launch of the anime.

Finishing the manuscript before the deadline of the final chapter.

No. 37-38

Sensei, please share with us a word or phrase that’s been stuck in your head recently!

“Pandas exploding in the wild.”

It’s from group_inou.

No. 39

Sensei, please share with us a small luxury that you use in your everyday life!

On days I stay up all night I buy carbonated drinks.

Feels kinda pathetic huh.

No. 40

The disbanding of idol groups nationwide is hot news, but please tell us about an experience that you’re still reluctant to part ways with.

A little while ago, I bought a copy of Jump every week for several months.

It was so I could read Hunter x Hunter.

[T/N: Question is most likely talking about the disbanding of the top male idol group SMAP which was announced around this time of the year.]

No. 41

Sensei, what item makes you think, “whoever invented this is a genius”?

The PC.

Amazon.

No. 42

What was the most interesting reception you’ve received up until now that has made you the happiest?

I got a shikishi from the staff to commemorate 100 chapters of being serialized. Though no one from that time is left anymore...

I also got a shikishi from the current staff. I was happy.

No. 43

Sensei, please share with us a moment that’s made you feel the generation gap the most!

Encountering people who were born in the 2000′s.

Sha-Mail.

No. 44

It’s Reader Autumn! Please tell us what you consider as your bible!

Recently it’s “Speak Aloud and Rhyme”.

Now it’s “Drawing the Morphological Human Body with Boxes and Cylinders”.

No. 45

Sensei, please tell us about a manga/anime/novel that you’d like to see as a movie!

I’m looking forward to “Satoshi: A Move for Tomorrow” being released this fall.

I missed the chance to watch it.

No. 46

Sensei, what were you most enthusiastic about playing with when you were in school?

Smash Bros.

Games that are updated periodically.

No. 47

Sensei, please tell us about something that you’ve used for many years and have been unable to throw away!!

I throw things away when I need to.

My Cintiq 22HD (DTK-2000/K1) LCD tablet. The size and responsiveness of it matches it better than the latest model.

No. 48

Sensei, when was the moment you felt you became independent?

If I’m living.

What? Probably when I got my pay cheque.

No. 49

November 2 is Family Culture Day! Sensei, please tell us about a rule that’s only found in your household!

Playing no more than 1 hour of games a day.

That’s proper.

No. 50

Sensei, please share with us any furniture/interior work that you want to replace right now!

The bookshelf.

Same.

No. 51

Sensei, please share with us the first CD you’ve ever bought!

Morishita Reika’s “Your Wind is Blowing�� (most likely).

Most likely, yeah.

No. 52

This year has had various movies become blockbuster hits, but in your opinion what work do you consider as a hit?

It’s actually a drama, but Game of Thrones.

I recommend it.

previous || next

[kainosite]

Les Misérables 2018, Episode 3

Les Mis fandom: Andrew Davies is a scoundrel.  What is he?

Me: ... Scoundwel.

The Good:

• I can’t believe the BBC actually filmed the “Now the people of this town can see you for what you really are” scene of a thousand Valvert fanfics.  They know what the people want.

• The Thénardiers are still fantastic.  Somehow the BBC has achieved the impossible feat of portraying them as loathsome abusers whom you hate with every fiber of your being, while simultaneously making them the fun comic relief you’re sort of rooting for in their capacity as the wacky crime duo.  On Christmas Eve I wanted the Seargeant of Waterloo to burn to the ground with everyone inside it, except for Cosette who was out getting water, Éponine and Azelma who were playing on the swings and Gavroche who was out back playing with Chou Chou or something.  I still grinned when Madame Thénardier cheerily reminded her husband to bring the pistol the next morning.  Striking this balance is a truly impressive achievement that I’ve only seen equalled by the Dallas production of the musical.

Their family dynamics are also coming across very well, sometimes through very subtle touches.  The differential treatment of Éponine and Azelma vs. Cosette and the way the Thénardier girls have been trained by all the adults around them to see Cosette’s abuse as a hilarious game, Gavroche being conscripted to fill Cosette’s role as household drudge once Valjean takes her, Mme. T slipping a bill out of Thénardier’s stash once he goes after Valjean – it’s all really good.

Their reactions to Valjean were good too.  Mme. Thénardier was thoroughly unimpressed with this roughly dressed man she’d decided was a hobo and only reacted with hostility when he was kind to her little whipping girl, but Thénardier as the criminal mastermind of the outfit decided the moment he noticed Valjean paying inordinate attention to Cosette that he must be a pedophile and they’d stumbled upon a lucrative financial opportunity.  I know some people don’t like this change, but honestly it makes a ton of sense.  Valjean’s interest in Cosette is strange, and considering the usual clientele of the inn cheer whenever Mme. T hits the kid with the strap, the Thénardiers aren’t used to seeing other people regard her plight with compassion.  Unlike in the Brick, this Cosette is a very pretty child, something discernible even beneath the dirt.  And it’s Thénardier, so of course he thinks the worst.  Valjean doesn’t volunteer that he’s representing Fantine (perhaps in this universe where he knows Javert is so fixated on him, he’s worried that would make him too easy to trace?), so really, what else is Thénardier meant to think?

• There are some priceless interactions between the protagonists and Thénardier: when he’s trying to haggle and Valjean keeps ignoring him and just repeating “How much?”; Javert’s baffled “Nothing!” when he asks Javert what Javert is planning to do for him.

• Javert and Gavroche’s preliminary encounter over the coffee cup was a nice, subtle touch.

• A+ hair analogy between Fantine last week and Valjean this week.  A+ removal of the godawful ponytail.  That prison barber in Toulon deserves the Légion d'Honneur.

• I’m enjoying Javert’s meteoric rise at the Prefecture and I love Rivette.  “But Kainosite, you love every long-suffering lieutenant.”  Yes, what’s your point?  Javert deserves a long-suffering lieutenant and so do I.  Although it’s hilarious how much Oyelowovert is Fanfic Javert, in his relationship with his subordinates as much as in everything else.

I also enjoyed Javert’s phrenology skull, which I hope he sometimes monologues at Hamlet-style.  A black Javert might hesitate a little before going all-in on phrenology, but I do appreciate his commitment to cutting-edge criminology research.

• LMAO at Javert’s fanart commission.

• Valjean and little Cosette are adorable together, and I really appreciate how much time Davies devoted to just depicting them interacting and letting the relationship breathe.  The strength of their bond is going to be very important later on, especially to Valjean, so it’s worthwhile to establish it now.  And they were suuuuper cute.  This adaptation tends to cut out Hugo’s humor sections, so it was nice to get a bit of relief from the grimness with endearing family time.

• I rather like Cosette calling people “nosy bitches”.  I mean, who socialized this kid?  The Thénardiers, that’s who.  It makes her seem more like a real child and less like a perfect little doll designed to reward first Valjean and then Marius for fulfilling their roles as protagonists.

It’s also an early hint at Valjean and Cosette’s unhealthy isolation and codependency.  The principal tenant is actually fulfilling her duty of care here in a society without any proper system for child safeguarding.  Cosette never seems to leave the apartment, certainly not to attend school or to learn a trade.  There’s no family resemblance between herself and her guardian.  (Incidentally, I’m impressed by how much Mailow Defoy really does look like the child of Lily Collins and Johnny Flynn.  All the matching between the kids and their “parents” has been superb.)  They give inconsistent stories about their relationship.  And Cosette is, as previously mentioned, an exceptionally pretty child.  The principal tenant should be worried - she doesn’t want Hector Hulot taking up residence in her building, and this pair are deeply suspicious.  But they can’t perceive her attention as legitimate concern, just as an unwarranted and unwanted intrusion into their little idyl.

• Similarly, Valjean’s early worries that he’s isolating Cosette too much by denying her all contact with the outside world or other children her own age are a nice piece of foreshadowing, as is her blithe answer that the only friends she needs are Valjean and Catherine.  Of course she’s content: she has food and warmth and security and the undivided attention of a loving adult.  To a child whose previous experience of the world has been so traumatic, their isolation must seem like paradise.  But this isn’t healthy and it isn’t sustainable, and the show is flagging that up early.  In many adaptations Valjean’s Cosette Issues seem to come out of nowhere, so it’s great that they’re laying the groundwork here.

• The whole “For a dark hunt, a silent pack” sequence is very well done.  There’s a nice piece of foreshadowing with the lamplighter hoisting up a candle as Valjean and Cosette are coming into Paris.  (Most of the Parisian lamps are nice flickery ones, although you do occasionally see those peculiar white ones we saw in Montreuil.)

I also appreciate Davies cutting Valjean’s canonical “Be quiet or Mme. Thénardier will catch you and take you back” line to Cosette from the Brick, which was an awful thing to say to a traumatized child.

• Things continue to look right.  The courtroom setup was really quite good.

The Meh:

• After watching the episode twice I think I finally understand what was going on with Javert at the trial.

His plan to entrap Valjean is no less incredibly stupid and risky than it was last week, but at least Javert has finally realized this.  He looks increasingly worried as each convict gives his testimony and identifies Champmathieu because they’re getting closer and closer to the end of the trial and Valjean still hasn’t acted.  Unlike Étienne in the 1952 movie, Oyelowovert has already testified and perjured himself, so he has no failsafe – if Valjean refuses to take the bait then Champmathieu is condemned in his place, the real Valjean is protected from legal pursuit forever, Javert’s perjury has real, long-term, perverse consequences, and Javert needs to find a new career.  The shock we see on his face when Valjean finally confesses is relief and the shock of seeing a scenario he must have played out a hundred times in his dreams becoming a reality before his eyes, or possibly a consequence of him coming in his pants, not shock at the revelation that Madeleine is Valjean.

But there are few members of the audience who are keener observers of Javert’s face than I am.  Most of those people are probably in the Valvert Discord chat, and none of them could figure out this scene on their first viewing either.  We should not have to analyze Javert’s microexpressions to determine the answer to a question as fundamental as “Did Javert sincerely believe Champmathieu was Valjean?”

• On the whole the trial was bad but I did appreciate Brevet just yanking out his suspender to show the court.  Although @prudencepaccard​ is gonna be mad it wasn’t checkered.

• The amount of time it takes Valjean to escape from Toulon is really of no great importance to anything.  Maybe this Javert gave them specific instructions to search him with care so his files kept getting confiscated and it took him longer to file through his chains.  We know the Orion incident never happened in this universe, so maybe it took two years for Valjean to spot a good escape opportunity.  Who knows?  Who cares?  It has zero impact on the plot.

People concerned about the extra time Cosette was left languishing with the Thénardiers should direct their complaints to Brick Valjean, who faffed around in Montreuil for a month while her mother lay on her deathbed constantly asking for her, and only decided to go pick her up once he was under arrest and it would obviously be impossible.  Davies’ sins pale in comparison to Hugo’s in this regard.  At least Westjean tried to send someone to retrieve her.

• ‘Rosalie’?  Okay, fine, but I’m not sure why this adaptation feels compelled to give everyone first and last names.  Thénardier could just call her ‘Darling’.

• I know they also abandon Catherine in the Brick, but in the Brick Valjean doesn’t pause in their flight to pack the candlesticks, the objects that are precious to him, and Cosette doesn’t specifically ask about bringing her.  Put the pillow under the blankets to fake out Javert like a normal person and let your child keep the one toy she’s ever had, what the fuck is wrong with you, Valjean?

On the other hand, the doll is made of dead people and it may be possessed, so perhaps this was just responsible parenting.  I’m calling it a draw.

• It’s not that I have any great objections to giving Simplice more screen time or letting the Mother Superior of the Petit-Picpus convent decide to shelter a convict, but there was no particular reason not to use Fauchelevent for the Fauchelevent plotline.  It’s a small instance of a good deed being paid forward that underlines the main theme of the book, as does Simplice’s act of self-sacrifice in lying to Javert to protect Valjean.  All of that has been lost and nothing has been gained in its place.  (Also is Cosette just... “Cosette Valjean” in this adaptation?  “Cosette Thibault”?)

The Bad:

• If Javert perjures himself to trap Valjean that is an incredibly big deal and we should see it.  I accept that this Javert might do it: Oyelowovert cares about his career and about ruining the lives of criminals, not about the rules.  If he can trap Valjean, superb.  If Champmathieu ends up in the galleys because of it, well, he’s a filthy apple thief and he deserves it.  Javert is subverting the course of justice in the service of a greater social justice.  But this monumental deviation from his Brick characterization, this enormously consequential lie, should not occur off-camera, for fuck’s sake!

Also it’s not clear what reason a Javert who is happy to lie under oath would ever have to throw himself into the Seine.

• Why the hell was Valjean so hostile to the other convicts?  He assumes they’ve been paid off, but... by whom, and to what purpose?  By Javert, to entrap him?  We the viewers at least know that can’t be true – Javert only found out about Champmathieu from the Prefecture, after Champmathieu had already been identified as Valjean.  By the public prosecutor at Arras, who is desperate to close the case of a minor highway robbery that happened almost a decade ago on the other side of the country completely outside his jurisdiction?  By the many enemies of Champmathieu the random hobo, who really want to see him go down for a felony?  It makes absolutely no sense.

Possibilities that make more sense: a) the convicts are sincerely mistaken about the appearance of a guy they’ve not seen in eight years, b) they just wanted to get out of Toulon for a month and they’re willing to say anything to do it because Toulon is a hellhole, as the first episode made exceedingly clear, c) they know perfectly well Champmathieu is not Valjean and they’re lying to protect the liberty of their old comrade by condemning a stranger in his place.  The whole dynamic of this scene – Madeleine, the respected mayor and factory owner, who’s been clean and well-fed and safe for years, yelling at these filthy men in their convict uniforms, Chenildieu with some kind of open wound across his forehead, quite possibly a lash mark – is deeply unpleasant.  It makes Valjean look like a complete asshole and sets a sour tone for the whole episode.

• The entire trial is just off.  Valjean’s off-putting and inexplicable hostility to his fellow convicts, Javert’s mystifying facial expressions, the audience who keep laughing at unfunny lines – the scene just doesn’t work, it doesn’t come together.  It was at something of a disadvantage because I came into it having just watched the 1952 trial scene for the previous episode’s review post, which is the best ever adaptation of the Champmathieu trial, and any other version was likely to pale by comparison.  But this one was particularly poor.

• I said last week we’d have to see what the series made of Valjean’s externalization of his emotions.  Well, what it has made is an awful lot of shouting at everyone, starting with the poor convicts and continuing from there, and also an excess of violence.  Valjean charges into the soldiers in Montreuil-sur-Mer and bowls them over, he threatens to knock Thénardier down and then to blow his head off, he gets Thénardier into a headlock and grapples with him.  Even when Westjean is coming into the convent he has to practically break down the doors.  Everything is violent action with him.  It’s OOC to the point where it’s becoming a problem rather than merely a different interpretation of the character.

All this aggression isn’t even effective at making him seem dangerous!  The thing he does in 1978 where he gently removes Javert’s hand from his collar is vastly more intimidating because it showcases his superhuman strength.  He should have just plucked the gun out of Thénardier’s hand like he was taking it away from a child instead of all this undignified scuffling.

• Tumblr, a humble reviewer has failed in accuracy, and I have come to bring this matter to your attention, as is my duty.

I argued last week that Westjean is not a misogynist: he yells at everyone in his vicinity regardless of gender.  Well, you were right and I was wrong.  That menacing lunge he takes towards Victurnien while screaming at her, calling Mme. Thénardier “woman” and shouting at her to bring his supper, the way he bursts in on the nuns at the end – it all adds up to something pretty unpleasant.

• I have never in my life seen an adaptation that makes Fantine’s death so much about Jean Valjean’s manpain.

If you look a 1978, an adaptation that gives if possible negative fucks about Fantine, it still manages to make the confrontation over her deathbed a conversation between three people, in which she has agency and reacts to what people are saying and is present in some capacity other than that of an object to make Valjean sad.  Someone compared Collinstine to a substitute Coin of Shame, and I think that’s really apt: Valjean is distressed and guilty because he’s failed to rescue Cosette, so he goes to Fantine’s bedside to sear the image of her despairing face onto his retinas in the same way he seared the imprint of Petit Gervais’s forty sous onto his palm.  He’s punishing himself by deliberately upsetting her.  For both Valjean and the camera, this scene is all about Valjean’s feelings and not about Fantine’s.

The person in this room with the biggest problems is not Jean Valjean, for pity’s sake.  I like to see the man cry as much as the next fangirl, but this was vile.

• Valjean’s visit to Fantine on her deathbed is a stupid, irresponsible thing to do and a direct cause of her unhappy death in the Brick and in every adaptation where she survives long enough for Javert to turn up. Valjean knows he has no good news to give her, he knows that the criminal justice system will be after him sooner or later, he knows that having Fantine and Javert together in the same room is a phenomenally bad idea, and he has urgent business in Montfermeil, or if he’s resolved to stay in Montreuil-sur-Mer to await arrest then he urgently needs to designate some representative to go and pick up Cosette in his place.  Instead he loiters by a sick woman’s bedside until Javert shows up and predictably traumatizes her to death.  As a result, Fantine dies in misery and Cosette suffers under the Thénardiers for another year.

But in the Brick it was at least not an insane thing to do.  When he left Arras he was not being pursued, and he reached Montreuil well ahead of the news about the trial.  The magistrates in Arras were in two minds about how to handle the situation.  Given Madeleine’s status, the widespread affection and admiration for him in the region, and the fact that he turned himself in, it’s not inconceivable that had it not been for his little Bonapartist slip in the courtroom, they wouldn’t have issued a warrant for his arrest at all and would simply have sent him a summons to appear at the Var Assizes to stand trial, or directed him to surrender himself at the prison in Montreuil rather than sending Javert after him.  I’m not sure it’s likely, given that he’s a known flight risk and parole violator illegally occupying a public office and they seem keen to get their hands on his fortune, but it’s not inconceivable.

In this adaptation Valjean breaks away from the police in the street and leads them straight to Fantine’s deathbed.  There is no fucking excuse for this.  NONE.  Brick Valjean was a fool to come at all and a bigger fool to stage a massive confrontation with Javert while he was still in the infirmary, but his mistakes were those of a man under immense stress who never bothered to think about Javert long enough to construct a working psychological profile of him.  Westjean’s mistakes were the mistakes of a selfish asshole too caught up in his own feelings of guilt and shame to have any regard for the people he allegedly cares about and wants to help.  Valjean is an extreme deontologist and his actions are always self-absorbed to a certain degree, because they’re fundamentally more about whether he can feel he’s done the right thing than about the actual effects of his actions on other people.  (He and Brickvert have that in common.)  But it should never get to the point where he’s actively harming people to this extent.

• Brickvert doesn’t seem to care for firearms much, and Oyelowovert looks like a jackass waving his two giant pistols around, but he’s a different character and if he’s decided they make him look cool then fine, I guess.  But in that case he should not be intimidated by Valjean’s strength in the infirmary.  You have guns, idiot!  If he threatens you just shoot him in the leg!

Guns completely change the dynamics of this scene, as the Dallas staging of the musical conveys very well.  The BBC handed Javert some pistols and then forgot he had them.

• In 1862 people would probably have found the implication that Catherine has Fantine’s hair to be sweet and charming, because the Victorians loved toting bits of their dead relatives around and hair mementos were so common that no one would have considered it weird.  In 2019 it is CREEPY AND GROSS.  I know there’s no ethical consumption under capitalism but we did not need to know that Cosette’s doll was made from the body parts of desperately impoverished and now dead women, really.

• Oh, so we’re flipping over beds when we fail to catch our favorite fugitive convict now, are we?  Great, now everyone is yelling.  FFS, Javert, I thought you were supposed to be the emotionally continent one.

• Where was Marius this week???  If Davies was happy to cut that leg of the stool out of whole episodes then why the fuck not just let Georges die when he’s supposed to and let Marius have a coherent character arc?  It makes no sense whatsoever.

I’ve got to be honest, I was not a fan of this episode.  But it did get Valjean and Cosette’s relationship right, and that is the most important relationship in the story.

[fiothelemon]

december 22, 2018 soyo oka 岡素世

The word “hidden” is used a lot in gaming. Hidden gems, hidden easter eggs, etc. But what about in video game soundtracks? One example is Soyo Oka, hiding under some classic 90’s Nintendo games is an underrated composer. But despite that you may recognize her work, as she is the composer for games such as Super Mario Kart, Pilotwings, and did the arrangement for Super Mario All Stars! On the second issue of FBoGCaTW, we’ll go over Soyo Oka!

history

Soyo Oka was born on April 9th, 1964 in Nishinomiya City, Japan. Soyo’s first experience with music was at a very early age, when she was 2 and toyed with her mom’s xylophone, and enjoyed playing the toy piano. It was at age 4 when she started playing classical piano, and during then, she had a neighbor who was a piano teacher. Soyo would occasionally go over there and play piano with the neighbor’s son. Due to her enthusiasm with the piano, the neighbor helped teach her.

While Soyo was still in elementary school, she had moved from Tokyo to Kansai because of his father’s job. When she moved there she saw classmates play the electone, and compose music, too. Soyo described that discovery as “By example” in an interview with SquareEnixMusic. This inspired her, and on one Christmas eve, she wrote a letter to Santa in search for an electone of her own. She kept it a secret to her parents, and thus she didn’t receive an electone on her bedside the following morning. But when she started getting a job, she finally worked for the instrument of her dreams. She played it non-stop for about a year and a half, and then got bored with it. It was when she was in middle school when she started creating and sharing, rather than playing.

When it was time to go to college, Soyo attended a music school and majored in composition. (It really shows, doesn't it?) Her first discovery of computer music was at college, too. It was a music making program developed by yamaha that she installed on her MSX. Along this, she also used her drum machine, and a bunch of empty cat food cans that produced some sound.

After graduation, she got a job at nintendo, where she worked there for 8 years from 1987 to 1995. She’s come a long way since then, producing music for plenty of games, and now usually makes music for commercials. To help show some of her work, here are some personal favorites of mine!

music showcase

Alright. First song. Y’all might know this. This is the Light Plane theme from pilotwings! It’s quite a popular track for Nintendo fans, as it’s appeared in games in the smash series.

“Light Plane”

This one may be Soyo’s most famous piece as a video game composer, and for a reason. Not just because it’s been featured in other games, but because the song itself is pretty damn catchy and pleasant (you’ll notice that with a lot of her work.) It’s the kind of song that you really get the feel of when you’re on a sandy beach, with a cold one in one hand and a game boy in the other. Or like in the game where it’s the opposite. Nevertheless, this song is a classic and is apart of one of my favorite SNES soundtracks. If you enjoyed this track, check out the smash bros remix of it.

“Vanilla Lake”

This one, along with Light Plane, is apart of some of my favorite SNES soundtracks. Super Mario Kart is home to many, upon many beautiful compositions such as this, and really proves the mini-MIDI-game console what it’s worth when it comes to music. Soyo Oka states that one of her inspirations in music making is Chopin. And some of the Super Mario Kart soundtrack bleeds that baroque/classical composition and some songs could fit as classical if you did some arranging (I mean that’s the point of arranging music, right?)

“In Game Theme - Ice Hockey”

This one is pretty fast paced, especially for NES music. And for a game like Ice Hockey, it needs that, really. A good soundtrack (including sound design) to any type of media, whether that’s movies, shows, or games, should tie in to what the original source is about, along with bringing something new to the table. This track is a good example of that, and it’s what help makes Soyo a good composer! Think about it. The last time you played a game like Resident Evil or Silent Hill, part of that ominous, creepy aesthetic is thanks to the sounds of the game. Replace those sounds with duck quacks. Pretty fucking funny, but the atmosphere of the game is ruined.

“VS Mode - Wario’s Woods”

This track does a great job of hyping you up, and this kind of music is what Soyo is also good at. Wario’s Woods was a late release for the NES, so you may not have heard of it. By the time the SNES was in the middle of of its heyday, developers already knew the ins and outs of the NES hardware, including Nintendo! This game’s ost is quite good both on a composition end of the stick and in terms of technological ability. The same could be said about our next track, except for the fact that it was released in the late 80’s.

“Monster Dance - Famicom Grand Prix II”

I’m especially impressed with this one, mostly because of that weird bass twang going on. It’s somewhat comparable to the SEGA Master System’s FM capabilities. Overall the original game looks and sounds great, and I give Soyo a round of applause for the score. This is definitely one of my favorite tracks of hers due to its high funk levels.

“Goodnight, See You Soon!”

Of course, we end all of these by showing off (what I think) the composer’s best work is. Like it's Mario Kart younger brother, SimCity’s soundtrack is beautiful and deserves all the love it can get. What I imagine going along well with this is a lullaby, or maybe something like a music box cover. Or maybe it’s been a long night at work, you just got home and you dress down to your pajamas. You may have some spreadsheets to fill, but who cares at this point? You cook some leftovers, sit down on the couch and watch TV until you fall asleep. It gives off this weirdly nostalgic feel that I just love so much! It’s so gentle, soft, easygoing, and everything in between.

sources (in order of appearance)

Please look through some of these yourself, these interviews/articles are all way more informative than this blog!

vgmpf.com/Wiki/index.php/Soyo_Oka

squareenixmusic.com/features/interviews/soyooka.shtml

nintendo.wikia.com/wiki/Soyo_Oka

[joannalannister]

Hi there! I've been meaning to ask this for awhile now, but I was just wondering what you think Jon's reaction to finding out Daenerys is his aunt will be? I mean, in my mind, it *could* go either way ... he could just not care bc of the whole Targaryens wedding family all the time, but I'm not entirely sure. I've been waiting SO LONG for my ship to sail, and tbh, I really don't care that they're nephew/aunt, but yeah. I just wanted to get your take on it!

In the books, I think that Jon is going to find out about Rhaegar and Lyanna in TWOW, before he meets Daenerys. So I don’t think “Daenerys is my aunt” is the familial relationship he’s immediately going to focus on, although I’m sure he’ll figure that out eventually. I think Jon has to grapple with the fact that Ned isn’t his biological father, along with the fact that his biological father Rhaegar disappeared with his mother Lyanna, who was underage at the time of her disappearance. And then this disappearance ignited a chain of events that caused Jon’s Uncle Brandon’s and his grandfather Rickard’s deaths. Not to mention a war. 

Quotin myself:

idk if I would be so quick to dismiss Jon’s feelings. I think the emotional impact is kind of the whole point of the story. GRRM says he’s writing about “the human heart in conflict with itself”. It’s the emotional struggle that we relate to, more so than wielding a magical sword and slaying ice zombies. It’s R+L=J that is going to play a significant part in Jon Refusing the Hero’s Call. Jon has created a fantasy about Ned and his mother, and the pain of having that fantasy ripped away, of finding out he was Rhaegar’s design, a piece of Rhaegar’s prophecy, is gonna be a really big deal to him. Jon has to work through these feelings, and decide to save the world because he chooses to, and not because it’s something on Rhaegar’s survivalist checklist. Rhaegar was doing things because he thought it was required (”it seems i must be a warrior”), because some dusty prophecy said so. Jon’ll do it because it’s right and it’s what he chooses, and his emotional journey is gonna be the whole point of twow/ados.

See also. Also also: #r plus l equals j

So that’s. A lot of stuff for Jon to work through in TWOW.

And I don’t actually think that Dany is arriving in Westeros until near the end of TWOW, and I think that she’s going to be in the King’s Landing / Dragonstone area. 

Perhaps Jon will meet her there idk, perhaps not. I personally like the idea of Jon going south trying to find the Tower of Joy and spending 40 days and 40 nights wandering the Dornish desert (I would like to learn more about Dorne), but instead GRRM will probably opt for a metaphorical desert of the heart. Regardless of whether it’s a physical desert or a metaphorical one tho, I think the problem remains the same: the rejection of evil. Instead of Satan appearing to Jesus Jon, it’s indifference and despair that Jon must reject. 

To quote Elie Wiesel, 

The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it’s indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it’s indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it’s indifference. Because of indifference, one dies before one actually dies.

Indifference, to me, is the epitome of evil.

What hurts the victim most is not the cruelty of the oppressor but the silence of the bystander.

This is what I think ASOIAF is all about - having the courage to speak out and oppose what is wrong in the world. (This is why that theory about Tyrion losing his tongue is so heinous.) We see people speaking out when Tyrion stands up for one little girl, in Jon saving wildlings and letting them through the Wall in spite of the bigotry that will get him killed, in Dany freeing slaves, in Sansa speaking on Dontos’s behalf, and the stuff all the other heroes do. 

And we see a lot of evil happen in ASOIAF when people stand by and look the other way and do nothing - like the Kingsguard. 

(Remember Rhaella. Remember the men of the kingsguard who looked away. Remember Daenerys, who “dare not look away” when people are being raped or mutilated or murdered.)

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.”

Remember the call: “ARE THERE NO TRUE KNIGHTS AMONG YOU?”

“Only silence answered.”

That’s really what I think Jon is going to be dealing with in TWOW - the temptation to sit it out and do nothing as the War of the Five Kings resumes and the Wall falls, and the ice zombies invade. 

The temptation to answer all this with silence. 

(Like, if you asked me to describe how I think TWOW’s going to be like … I think it’s going to be like that moment in a movie when you’re holding your breath in anticipation and horror.)

I have a tendency to resort to Wheel of Time quotes when I run out of ASOIAF quotes, but I honestly think of these two series as sisters in the epic fantasy genre so anyways. In WOT there’s this prophecy related to the salvation of the world, “The grave is no bar to my call.” 

When ADOS asks, “ARE THERE NO TRUE KNIGHTS AMONG YOU?” Zombie!Jon has to choose to answer the call, despite his death, despite everything that happened to him. 

So anyways … The temptation to answer all this with silence … while I think Dany’s story is going to parallel Jon’s throughout TWOW, I think the very earliest they’re going to meet is at the very end of TWOW, and maybe not until ADOS. 

So by the time Jon actually meets Dany, I think he knows full well who she is, and who he is.

Sidenote - I do not think that Rhaegar and Lyanna got married in the books because 

I believe Jon’s story is about coming to terms with who he is, and that includes being a bastard - just not Ned’s bastard. 

I do not think GRRM would undermine and sideline Dany’s claim to the Iron Throne like that, when Dany’s story centers around a choice between her people vs her throne. It would make her final sacrifice at the end that much bigger, if it includes the throne that she must give up.

So when Jon and Dany finally meet … I think it’s all going to be very chaotic and desperate. 

Also. Jon will be an undead fire zombie in the books, so let’s. 

Let’s not forget that. 

Because I think that is going to be Very Important. 

I would say that death … or zombification … or whatever word you would like to use for the experience of being murdered and resurrected … is going to be a much bigger issue for Jon and Dany’s relationship than simple incest.

I think throughout GRRM’s body of work – not just ASOIAF, but everything – there’s this theme about … about … the boundaries of love, but more importantly, the breakdown of those boundaries that stop us from loving each other. It’s A Song for Lya. It’s the spider loving a human woman in Tower of Ashes. It’s Vincent in Beauty and the Beast. 

It’s GRRM saying that love is boundless. 

So with Jon and Dany … I’m hesitant to speak here because GRRM has so much left to write … I think that Jon has to realize, with Dany’s help, that death doesn’t stop you from loving. 

Think about what Jon’s been through. 

He was murdered. Betrayed by his own men. 

Murdered because he wouldn’t leave the wildlings to die on the other side of the Wall. Because he let them in, in his love and his compassion for humanity. Murdered because he loved a wildling girl. Murdered because he loved his sister, and he wanted to go save the girl he thought was Arya. 

Like, you can get into all the political reasons behind Jon’s assassination, but in the end? I think it was about love. Bigots like Bowen Marsh lack that kind of love. 

And Jon died for it. 

I think Bran’s AGOT vision is a metaphor for Jon in TWOW: “Jon sleeping alone in a cold bed, his skin growing pale and hard as the memory of all warmth fled from him.”

Warmth is love. 

Remember, “The real enemy is the cold.” The cold is slavery, abuse, murder, cruelty. The cold is all the ways that people hurt each other. The cold is indifference, despair. The cold is the absence of hope. The cold is death, dehumanization. 

So in TWOW, I think Jon’s going to have a lot of problems letting people in. 

I think Undead Jon rejects love. I don’t think he’ll remember what it is, and that’s what will make him initially reject his savior role. That’s why he’ll initially be indifferent to humanity’s fate. Zombie!Jon just can’t find it in him to care anymore imo. 

You can’t step up and save humanity if you don’t love humanity. 

I think Dany has to warm Jon up, so to speak. 

Because humanity is fire (life) and the Others and their army of the Undead are ice, and the song of ice and fire is the war between humanity and the Others. With Jon zombified and, worse, indifferent … refusing the call … he’s an (unwitting) agent of the Others, and Dany has to save him. I mean, Dany has to save everyone, but she has to save Jon first. She has to make him remember what it means to be human.** 

Like, Mel is going to bring Jon back pretty quickly imo, but … what is life worth, “when all the rest is gone?” Being back isn’t enough. Dany’s going to make Jon live again, as she never could for Drogo. (That’s gonna be a nice bookend, @GRRM, if we ever get to read it.) 

Like, ASOIAF is about second chances. Samwell failed to release the ravens on time in ACOK, but you can bet he’s gonna release them on time when it really counts. Dany couldn’t make her Sun and Stars live again in his undead state … but you can bet your ass she’s gonna make Jon Snow live again.

I don’t know exactly how that’s going to happen, but I really, really, really don’t think Jon and Dany bang until they’re beyond the curtain of light, in the Other World Faerie Realm Lovecraftian Parallel Universe of Nightmare and Death. 

If Westeros has a version of Adam and Eve, two people alone and in love at the birth of the world … well, I imagine Jon and Dany as the inverse, two people alone “at the end of all things”. 

Imagine Belle’s magic mirror, Galadriel’s basin of water, Saruman’s palantir … the Sony JumboTron … whatever far-seeing device the Others can use to demoralize Our Heroes … imagine Jon and Dany watching all the dead and dying as Winterfell’s outer curtainwall falls. Imagine them watching when … I don’t know … someone in a critical defensive position betrays them. Imagine Grey Worm dying. Imagine idk horrible things. Disheartening things. Imagine Our Heroes losing heart. (The human heart in conflict with itself!) 

(I think the Others are smart and I think they understand psychological warfare. Look how they play with people.)

Jon: “I am glad you are here with me, Dany. Here at the end of all things.”

Not a happy conversation, maybe, but a human one. Both of us needed someone, and we reached out. […I] made love to her as fiercely as I could. Then, the darkness softened, we held each other and [pushed] away the night.

–Dreamsongs

Did it matter to Adam, that Eve was born of his rib? That’s why this issue with incest is so irrelevant to me when it comes to Jon and Dany - I think the circumstances are going to be so weird, so wild, they’ll make that fish-fucking movie look normal. 

Jon is a zombie. They’re going to be in a Lovecraftian Universe. It’s the end of the world. Dany and Jon being related is not going to matter. 

In this Other World, this alien Lovecraftian dimension, I think Jon and Dany are the only two humans in this whole Other universe (with the possible exception of Tyrion, but Tyrion’s really a wildcard, more morally ambiguous than either Jon or Dany imo and therefore much more difficult to predict). 

And so Jon and Dany reach out to each other – they have sex – as a celebration of their humanity, an act of defiance against an alien species that wants to destroy humanity. 

And this act revitalizes them, gives them their second wind … and they can go do … whatever it is they need to do … to defeat the Others. 

Love, life, salvation … there’s so much bigger stuff at stake here than “She’s my aunt”.

So no, I don’t think it will matter to Jon.

I have more Jon/Dany thoughts here, if you like: #jdmeta

-

**When Aemon gives Jon that “Kill the boy” speech, I think the mistake Jon makes is that he thinks he must kill his humanity. He pushes his friends away, he becomes isolated, he heartlessly steals Gilly’s baby. It’s cold and cruel … almost Tywin-esque. And I joke about Tywin being a golden cyborg, but that’s what toxic masculinity is … it’s a denial of humanity. I think Dany will have to help Jon remember what it’s like to be human. 

[stranger-who-writes-fiction]

Aaaanyways, I wanna put on my comic-art-nerd hat and talk about panel-to-panel action in that Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow preview because yes, I have been staring at it for days, and yes, I will continue to do so until it is released next month! XD

LET’S GO:

I apologize in advance for the funky formatting, there’s an art to tumblr text posts and I...have not mastered it. XD

It’ll go image, then analysis.

Also, just to be clear: I’m not doing this so much to be like, ‘WOW THIS IS GROUNDBREAKING, STUNNING, NEVER-BEEN-DONE!’ In fact, many comics do the things I’m gonna highlight/geek out over! Rather, it’s more about, like. Appreciating the construction of the pages, panels, etc.

Okay, so! Page 1, the SPLASH PAGE

Okay, so, admittedly, I don’t have a ton to say about this opening image, largely because it is one single illustration as opposed to a series of panels. But even then! It quickly establishes that we’re not on earth--the foliage, rock formations, and GIANT WOOLY FRIEND(?) give that away. Also! Said rock formations and wooly friend’s horns frame our new character RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PAGE, letting you know that even though she is tiny, she is important. And, I will just say, I love the dust effects on the ground. The repeated semi-circle shapes evoke the feeling of rhythmic, galloping hoof beats, even without actual movement or sound. Lovely.

And now, PAGE 2!

So, I’ve highlighted panel 3, but before I get there! Panels 1 & 2 do such a nice job of giving us an idea as to the actual, physical size of these two characters, as well as the power dynamic at play. This random dude takes up the WHOLE DANG PANEL with his bulging muscles and is framed in an up-shot; in panel 2, Ruthye is not only shown from above--we’re literally looking down at her--she is also relegated to the bottom half of the panel. Additionally, it’s a great way to show the action of her turning to pull the sword from her belt, obscuring it from both our view and his, to bring out the ‘big reveal’ in the next panel.

Speaking of! Panel 3! Our establishing shot! We’re introduced to the full interior of this tavern. We see where everything is placed--walls, furniture, and perhaps most importantly, the various patrons!

Establishing shots are so important to have in visual media because they help us, the reader/viewer, to orient all of the various components within a sequence or scene.  

It’s also helpful for the artists because then they can better maintain things like screen direction and continuity.

If we don’t have a shot like this, then subsequent action can become confusing to the point of distraction.

YOU WOULD BE SURPRISED how often this is neglected or forgotten in comics! Scenes will change abruptly and it’s like, ‘wait, wait, where are we?’ 

ADDITIONALLY, the establishing shot not only gives us basic spatial information, it ~sets the mood~ XD Setting! Atmosphere! Genre! It’s all here.

I mentioned this in my prior post, that the art gives off some intense fantasy vibes, what with the organic shapes, rough textures, and color palette.

Folks who’ve read advanced copies have described the book as a fantasy/western; that extends even to the series title design! The designer revealed that the western look of the text is deliberate.

So A+ to the art team for NAILING IT!

Okay, on to page 3!

Not a ton of notes on this one, but that’s only because the prior page has done such a solid job of laying out the space, as well as the relationship between these two characters WITH JUST WITH THE ART. (Okay, okay, the words help too. XD) Once more, we see this big brute tower over Ruthye, panel- to-panel; he’s always ‘large and in charge’ regardless of the angle. Even in that final panel! Ruthye is the largest element because she’s closer to us, but the guy is still positioned ‘above’ her, literally talking down to Ruthye from over his shoulder. 

(And HMMMM. That unassuming stranger in the back there, underneath the lanterns that seem to act as an arrow pointing right at her...could she be...important?)

(Her tiny size would seem to imply that she isn’t...AND YET...)

PAGE 4!

MMMM them FRAMES within FRAMES!

Okay, but before I get into that, I do wanna briefly mention panel size and shape.

All of these pages (save for 1 and 7, which are full-page illustrations) pretty much stick to a very traditional panel structure. Each panel is completely enclosed, and there is zero variety in terms of shape. It’s all rectangles.

BUT. The size and orientation change--take, for instance, that ‘skinny’ horizontal panel up top, the way it perfectly suits the ‘shape’ of the elements/action being shown. It’s a close on Kara’s wrist/hand, reaching out for the sword in the guy’s belt. 

I mention this because often, writers don’t dictate stuff like panel layout in a script. They will give the artist the number of panels, and what needs to be included in each one, but the actual, overall organization of the page? Totally up to the artist.

So! Really knowing what you want to highlight and convey is key, because you can use the panels’ size/shape/relation to other panels to ENHANCE those images, like that sword grabbing up top!

AND! Another thing I love about that panel in particular is the way that Kara’s hand and the sword make a tiny frame for Ruthye! Who is, again, VERY TINY! 

I keep mentioning the size thing because it’s a nice bit of economical visual storytelling; the child character is going to be smaller than the adult characters anyway, but by calling attention to it repeatedly, we as the viewer are constantly reminded that this kid is small! She needs help! She needs to be protected! Which is like, the whole premise of the inciting incident. XD Good stuff!

(Also more dot eyes in comics that aren’t humor comics, please.) 

There’s another frame down in panel 3 as well! Evely uses this device several times throughout this sequence; it’s such a great use of the multiple swords in the scene, AND shows that she can really pack all of the characters in there without cutting any of them off/obscuring them behind various objects.

And like, NO TANGENTS, which takes some serious skillz.

ESPECIALLY when you consider all that beautiful linework. LOOK AT THEM INKS.

...In particular, look at them inks in panel 5! The shading on the booth is done in such a manner that the ‘grain’ of the ink defines the perspective. We’re looking down at Kara, from above. This is a helpful little bit of orientation, as there’s not a ton of room around Kara to have any other perspective lines to help sell the angle. 

ALSO, NOTE THE POSITION OF MR. BRUTE IN PANEL 4, AND THEN KARA’S EYELINE IN PANEL 5. It will be important in...

PAGE 5!

Allow me to explain:

In panel four on page 4, we see the guy reach for his sword, his body language revealing that he’s intent on moving towards Kara.

In panel 5 on the same page, we get that lovely down shot of Kara looking right up at us, the viewer. But also, the implication is that she’s ACTUALLY looking at Tough Guy, because in the next page, we see that he’s positioned himself right above her to swing that sword down!

(My apologies for the poor attempts at drawn annotations.) 

There’s no action lines cluttering up the beautiful art; Not-Conan’s hair, rather, acts as the action line/guiding ‘arc’ so that we can better follow the movement.

Kara, likewise, doesn’t have any action lines on her, but her posture and hair act as visual cues to tell us that she slides over in the booth, out of the way of the sword.

In particular, the way her right shoulder/arm draws closer to her body, and the way her left hand comes up to offset the way she’s now positioned, really sells the ‘slide’. 

More beautiful indicators of movement in panel 2; the hair, the action line on the sword, the torn fabric of Kara’s shirt.

Panel 3 brings more FRAMES WITHIN FRAMES! And, actually, as I’m looking at it? I think it could be argued that we actually have a FRAME within a FRAME within a FRAME!

First frame: Panel border, natch.

Second frame: Goofus’ sword, arm, and face frame Kara.

Third frame: Kara’s arm and sword work with Goofus’ head again to frame tiny Krypto.

LAYERS.

And now, a note about colors!

I said before that I love the palette at play. The earthy tones give the entire setting an organic feel--this is not a high-tech locale! We’re dealing with natural materials here.

BUT THEN THOSE BLUES!

Not only do we get that nice split complementary thing happening with the yellow, but it also signals the blue of Kara’s costume, a little hint of which is revealed in the final page.

And, like. It’s night time. XD

(I just gotta say, love the cold blue outside the window next to Kara’s table, contrasted with the warm yellow of the interior. Even though this is a bar, there’s still that element of like. Coziness.)

Also! Even though the overall palette is heavy on the yellows, Kara’s hair is more saturated and leans towards a warmer yellow, while the rest of the yellows in the scene are cooler. Thus! We have CONTRAST! Our eyes are drawn right to her.

And I know--I KNOW--that SG comics twitter already hates King because Kara’s DRINKING and personally I want more of the story/context before I pass any judgement but I must admit, the shapes? In panel 5? With Kara drinking in the foreground? 

I kinda love it.

Also mmmm-MMMM, more of them SOFT BLUES.

Okay. PAGE 6!

Now THIS PAGE is what inspired this whole endeavor.

Because, okay. If I’ve not made it clear by now: I read a lot of comics.

And I generally enjoy all of the comics I read!

But, what I’ve found lately, is that if I don’t enjoy a comic, it’s because I, as a reader, find myself confused by the art.

Confused as in, the art is hard to follow.

That can be because the color design/ink work doesn’t have enough contrast, or the composition is muddled, but most frequently?

It’s poor panel-to-panel action.

When there’s no flow/connection between what’s happening in one panel vs. another, suddenly it’s on you, as the reader, to do a lot more of the work as you go through the scene. And sometimes! We don’t even have enough visual information to DO that work!

So when I read this, I was like, ‘ah, thank you, an easy flow of action for my brain to appreciate.’ XD

AND SO. Panel 1! Same stuff we’ve been seeing! The ink work, hair, clothing details, etc. all work to show us which direction each character is moving. Kara’s arm and jacket all point to her slamming that mug in the dude’s face; dude’s sword serves as a GIANT ARROW illustrating the path of his stab.

Not much to say on panels 2 and 3 other than: FACIAL EXPRESSIONS! And also, HAIR!!!

PANEL FOOOOUR!!!!

Love. This. Panel.

Again, I really love that there are no action lines slapped on top of this gorgeous art, all of the movement is conveyed in the inks, body language, clothes, and so on.

Like. There’s a conscious decision, here, to not have Kara’s hair obscuring the dude’s torso, and that’s good! Because his belt/uhh...kilt? Skirt? Is showing us the speed and direction of his jab; if Kara’s hair were in the way, it would break up the flow.

BUT THEN HOW TO SHOW THAT KARA’S DIPPING FORWARD???

Note the ties on her cuff, and the inks on her jacket!

There’s nothing special happening with Krypto, BTW. I just circled him because he’s a Good Boy who deserves to be noticed.

Panel 5, more of the same, the inks telling us how these characters are moving through space. ALSO, the length of the lines conveys speed without needing to add something distracting/obscure the art with a ‘blur’ effect.

Final panel! I. LOVE. THIS.

Particularly the movement in Kara’s hair, just. Beautiful shape language.

But in addition! You’ve got that LOVELY line of action in Kara’s spine as she flips him over, the sword likewise curved in the direction of the throw.

And of course, the dude is crumpling in the appropriate direction, bent in the middle as he collides with the table to--quite literally--complete the circle.

Also, just. The characterization here, is PHENOMENAL.

People (read: irate fans on twitter) have expressed concern (read: complained) about Kara having a sword. Some have even gone so far as to suggest that Kara’s basically a murderer now, because she’s using a weapon.

Never mind the fact that in an episode of JLU, Supergirl used both a sword AND a gun to defend herself while in Skartaris because she had no powers. 

Except we see here that Kara DOESN’T USE THE SWORD to take the guy out, she uses his own force against him. She only uses the swords in the FINAL PAGE in a type of ‘yield’ fashion.

(This particular ‘fight’ sequence reminded me of Brainy’s fighting style in the show so of course that added to my overall enjoyment.)

Like, Kara’s got no powers here, she very well could have used the sword to defend herself, and would...kinda be justified.

But she didn’t! 

Like. Even drunk and therefore out of it, Kara 1.) Steps in to help that kid and 2.) doesn’t use superpowered lethal force on the guy. (I mean, she can’t use her super powers anyway, what with the red sun, but you get the idea.)

And like, the flourish there, of the arms, the way the jacket swirls around her, like a gymnast sticking the landing, GAAAAAHHHH I just love it. It’s great.

Okay, FINAL PAGE, #7:

I mean. What more can I say? EVELY AND LOPES, MAN.

Just some top notch art.

(Also get it guys, it’s a LITERAL shirt rip! XD)

(And look! There’s that tiny bit of blue!)

But anyways, if you’ve made it this far, I applaud you, and thank you for indulging my desire to just. Geek out over one of my favorite comic artists drawing one of my favorite comic characters.

And just to like, reiterate, I’m not suggesting that this comic is THE BEST EVER or that it’s going to redefine the medium, or anything. XD Everything I’ve mentioned here is...pretty basic storytelling mechanics. Watch any movie, and you’ll see all this same stuff at work.

RATHER, this whole post is more about...admiring two artists who clearly know what they’re doing.

And they’re doing it so well! :D

TL;DR: I’m so excited that the Supergirl book has Evely and Lopes, guys. So. Excited. 

[dcarevu]

Christmas With The Joker

“It’s not relentlessly cheerful, is it?”

So, only one episode in, and they do a Christmas special. One episode into this series that they wanted to be dark, serious, and adult…and they do a Christmas special. A Batman. Christmas. Special. Huh. Well, it is becoming that time of year. So let’s sleigh right into: Christmas With The Joker

SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT

Villain: The Joker Robin: Yes Writer: Eddie Gorodetsky Director: Kent Butterworth Animator: Akom Airdate: November 13, 1992 Episode Grade: B  This episode holds the distinction of being the very first episode of Batman The Animated Series I ever saw. I had seen Mask Of The Phantasm prior (which was a glorious place to start), and eventually Warner Brothers started releasing these Batman TAS VHS tapes each featuring a particular villain. My mom bought me one featuring the Joker, which included this episode, along with The Laughing Fish. I picked it out specifically because of the screenshot of the Joker wrapped up in his straightjacket shown on the back, and I assumed this was from his origin episode. I didn’t get an origin episode, but I did get a Christmas special that I now watch every single year. I absolutely love it. 

 I’ve always been someone that enjoys the darker side of Christmas. Carol Of the Bells. A Christmas Carol. That one Twilight Zone episode featuring a drunk Santa Claus that ends up making Christmas magical for everyone. It’s funny, because despite this, I very much enjoy the more innocent side of Halloween (think of cute Beistle die cuts or Scooby Doo). This episode fits right into this archetype, and maybe that is why I love it so much. Of course, this isn’t the only reason. We also get the first appearance of the Joker, voiced by Mark Hamill (yes, that Mark Hamill), and overall a very entertaining episode, Christmas concept aside.

So it’s Christmas Eve, and Dick Grayson (Robin) is home for the holidays. All he wants to do is spend the night relaxing to Christmas dinner and It’s a Wonderful Life, but Bruce isn’t about to let up his night watch just because of the following day. He just knows that something will happen, and right as he finally gives in to Robin’s movie request, we see that the Joker has somehow interrupted pretty much every channel broadcast, and is airing a Christmas special all his own. Featuring a kidnapped Commissioner Gordon, Detective Bullock, and Summer Gleeson, a news reporter (I had no idea it was her before reading it on the DCAU wiki. Kinda cool that it’s not simply some unnamed character!). Batman, aware of the Joker’s love of destructive games sets out with Robin to find his broadcast, and put an end to the Christmas Eve havoc. Throughout the episode he gets sidetracked by an exploding train track (done by the Joker of course), a barrage of cannonballs being fired straight into the city (done by, again, the Joker), and a barrage of Christmas-themed dangers at an abandoned toy factory. At the end of the episode, with the Joker found, and the kidnapped three dangling above a vat of acid, the Joker has Batman open up a special present addressed specifically for him (complete with bat wrapping paper). “Don’t do it, Batman!” shouts Robin, but Batman knows that it’s the only way to save the three and Gotham City as a whole. What’s inside? A pie in the face, what else? Immediately afterward, although Joker tries to run, he slips on a roller skate and nearly falls into the acid himself…but is caught by Batman on the way down. Everyone is saved, and the two heroes even get to finally watch their Christmas special in peace.

Let’s talk about the two big things with this episode: Robin and the Joker. The idea of using an older Robin was obviously a way to bring some realism to the character, and to not ruin the tone that they were going for. Robin is historically kind of a goofy character, and was meant to be a role model for the kiddies. Wanting to avoid specifically kid elements in their show, they used a college-aged Robin. I think it works sometimes, and not so much at other times. It is a little weird seeing such an old character wearing the Robin outfit, but they also made an effort to tone down the silliness of it a little bit. Thank god we didn’t get those little elf shoes and those freshly-waxed legs. While Robin’s usefulness varies throughout the show, I think in this episode they work pretty well together, and for an episode like this, it gives Batman someone to talk to, and introduces some comic relief. Hearing Batman referred to as a Scrooge and seeing him bag on Robin’s choice of movies is pretty funny, and I feel like these two have similar exchanges about Christmas as a lot of us do in real life. The action scenes with Robin were also pretty good, and I never really felt like either of them had nothing to do/were a damsel in distress. That’s the one thing about Robin that bugs me sometimes, and it wasn’t until much later when they got consistently good at having more than one superhero on screen at once, balancing everything out. I will admit, some of it did get a little too corny for my liking…particularly the way Batman would bark things like, “Easy, Robin!” But it also reminded me a little bit of the Adam West show in a charming way that I accept much more with a Christmas episode. So take these comments how you take them. 

 And the Joker? Fantastic debut. He’s funny. He’s menacing. He’s batshit insane. He’s charismatic. He’s everything a classic, definitive Joker should be. I love Heath as much as anyone else, but being a great Joker vs being a definitive Joker are two different things. I wouldn’t get rid of either of them, and I think they both perfectly represent the type of character they are meant to be. I think the Joker changed a lot throughout this show. He giggles unlike later in the series here, and he’s clearly mentally unstable in a different, albeit very fun way. But then there are moments like where he laughs in someone’s face because he knows that her mother is on a train that is headed straight for a blown up bridge. He’s that character that you love to hate, and as much as you want Batman to sock each and every one of those yellow teeth out of his mouth, you also can’t help but root for him to keep getting away just so that you get more of him. It is kinda weird for me picturing this episode’s version of the Joker with Harley, and Harley Quinn may be the main reason why the Joker’s personality changed a little bit and got a hair more serious. In this episode he’s like, well, a cartoon character. More than usual. He has a stylized personality as much as he has a stylized look.

When I mentioned earlier that this episode fits alongside a lot of the darker aspects of Christmas, to clarify a little bit more, it’s not just because you have a psychotic killing clown and a scary guy dressed as a bat. It also has the vintage aspect to it. You have the “dark deco” 30′s aesthetic already in place. Then you add the vintage-looking wintery landscape...the Nutcracker music...and even the dark, snowy city that almost makes me think of Victorian England. I think all of this creates the old-timey Christmas feel without shoving religious morals, or Santa Claus, or greedy marketing down our throats. It succeeds in being a Christmas special almost exclusively through vibes, and mention of it being the holiday. Okay, and Robin’s green and red pajamas are pretty festive as well. The DCAU would do a couple more Christmas episodes later, another one of them being Batman, and while this one is also great, it communicates Christmas in a vastly different way than this one, a way which is much more modern. Both can be great, but this is the Batman Christmas special I will come back to year after year.

 As far as my girlfriend Char’s impressions, she really liked this episode too. As someone who has never seen a single episode of the DCAU before this blog, she said that she expected and was hoping for Harley Quinn, but wasn’t necessarily disappointed that she didn’t show up. Picturing a world of Batman TAS before Harley’s existence is something that I feel like we all sorta gloss over since it’s almost like she’s always existed. And while the show got better with her first appearance, I’m glad that they could do a solid Joker beforehand. Char loved the Joker’s representation, and was surprisingly very much in line with what she expected from the character. She said that he was very creepy, but in a very entertaining way. She also noted his design, particularly his color pallet (wait till she sees TNBA). Some more comments about Harley Quinn were made, and she’s scared for Harley after seeing what a maniac the Joker is. She ships Harley and Poison Ivy, something that I see a lot. I don’t necessarily disagree 100%, but, well, we’ll save a lot of that conversation for later. 

 An older Robin was something that Char was really into, and I got the impression that she never really cared for the super young Robin, as, well, yeah, it is kinda strange. Back when the character was introduced, maybe not so much, nut nowadays? Yeah. What the hell, Batman. Also, Loren Lester provides a voice that she always sorta pictures with the character, and again, she noted how definitive everything seemed. 

 Some other stray observations she made: She agreed with me on some of Batman’s lines being corny, but she also found them a little bit creepy.It was a unique Christmas special. Batman and Robin sorta feel like father and son, but only sorta. This is something the show will get into much more as we go on. She thought the Joker would make a hilarious game show host if he weren’t, well, evil. She noted how shitty the star on the tree at the very beginning was. Apparently Arkham Asylum needs a better interior decorator. And lastly, she loved the ending. As do I. It’s so unsettling, yet so perfect. Better than what I expected when I saw the screenshot on the back of the VHS as a kid. Char’s grade: B

Major Firsts: The Joker, Robin, Summer Gleeson, Arkham Asylum, Xmas episode, we see the Batmobile has a TV, a musical number (The Joker sings) Next time: Nothing To Fear

[togreblog]

Part 4

Nessian AU

Sorry, this took so long, exam season!! (Wish me luck)

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Word Count; 1150

As it turned out, the food was amazing. Six courses had sounded overwhelming, but each course was a reasonable size portion and they were spread out, to make the meal manageable. However, Nesta found the conversation between each course tiring and by the third course, she found herself weighing the merits of staying with the larger group of people vs following Cassian to the kitchen. On one hand, there was only one other person in the kitchen. On the other, that one person was Cassian. She made it until after the main course. A beautiful beef wellington, with dauphinoise potatoes, rice pilaf and lots of hearty winter vegetables, perfect for New Year’s Eve and all flawlessly seasoned, and served with a beautiful red wine. but when Cassian got up to clear the plates, she grabbed the ones he couldn’t manage in one trip and made her way to the kitchen behind him.

“You didn’t need to do that Nesta, go sit back down and relax.”

“No it’s ok, let me help.” She tried to convey how she felt in a look, but Cassian was too busy putting dishes into the dishwasher to notice the weary, pleading look Nesta gave him. Nesta sighed, trying to swallow her pride and summon the confidence to tell him why she didn’t want to go back. “It’s a bit much for me anyway.”

He turned and frowned at her, “the food?”

He really was going to make her say it, explain it. She hated admitting it, but she really didn’t want to go back to the group of people now that she had made the decision to come across to the kitchen. “No Cassian, the people. I can’t do big groups for this long. It…” She tried to find the words to make him understand, but how could a social butterfly like Cassian ever understand. She started to wring her hands in frustration at sounding so stupid and weak. At not being able to find the words. Her thoughts were swimming now.

“I get it.” Nesta could almost cry from relief at those words. In fact, she was so sure that a sob would come out if she opened her mouth, that she kept them clamped shut and just looked t him gratefully. Cassian smiled back. “If you’re going to be over here though, I’m going to put you to work. Do you remember what I said I had brought for dessert?”

“I remember, doesn’t mean I can say it.” The laugh she earned with her comment was real, not the usual chuckle that often accompanied his smug smile, but a deep, rolling laugh from down in his chest, with a genuine smile. She couldn’t help but feel special, having him laugh with her not at her, having his undivided attention focused on her.

If she hadn’t had her back to the rest of the room, if she hadn’t been so busy watching the way his chest moved as he laughed, enraptured by the warm sound of it, she would have known that the inner circle had noticed and that money had silently exchanged hands.

“Ok, so its called Affogato. It sounds fancy, but it’s really easy. That’s kind of why I make it, after the fancy meal you tell them you’re making this fancy thing for dessert and then you bring it out and enjoy the look of confusion. Will you make coffee, please? Some really good espresso.”

“To go with dessert?”

“No. Just wait and see.”

She watched curiously as she made the coffee and he scooped ice cream, which he must have brought with him, into 8 dessert bowls. Feyre had insisted that they get a dinner set for 10 and everything in the matching design, Nesta had only ever used the small dessert bowls when the regular bowls had been dirty, but they seemed the perfect size for the generous scoops of ice cream which now filled them. When Cassian had put the ice cream away in the fridge, he turned to Nesta, “How’s the coffee coming?”

“Almost done. It’s very strong because I only keep strong coffee in the house. Hope you guys don’t find it too bitter.”

“Bitter coffee is good. Balances out the sweetness of the ice cream.”

“So, we’re having ice cream for dessert?”

“Not quite. Affogato is ice cream with coffee poured over it, I add coffee liqueur to Mor’s as well.”

He had reached around Nesta and begun pouring the coffee over the ice cream, so he didn’t see the initial shock on her face. By the time he turned around, it had been replaced by an apprehensive, almost suspicious look, as she started down the dessert. Cassian just rolled his eyes, clearly used to this reaction, but no less baffled by the idea that Nesta was confused by this combination.

“Grab the rest of the bowls, Nesta,” he called across his shoulder as he skilfully balanced five dishes up his arms and Nesta didn’t remember to scowl at his command as she picked up the remaining three bowls, with a little less grace than Cassian had and brought them over to the coffee table.

The dessert was simple and delicious. As it turned out, Cassian had made the ice cream and the sweetness did indeed balance perfectly with the bitterness of Nesta’s coffee. Cassian gave Nesta an ‘I told you so look’ regarding her scepticism about coffee and ice cream and Mor slapped him hard are told Nesta all about the first-time Cassian had been presented with it and how he had reacted the same way. He protested, but he had a smile on his face the entire time. Maybe Nesta didn’t mind having them all there after all. Alone time was good, she needed alone time, but if Feyre’s friends wanted to celebrate special occasions at her flat, if Cassian wanted to take over her kitchen every once in a while, she could get used to it she thought.

The final course ended up being served about an hour later. The final course and the final bottle of wine. With 6 courses had come 6 bottles of wine and with only 8 of them there, that was a lot of wine each. Nesta could feel them all loosening up, relaxing in each other’s presence. The more relaxed they became, the more acutely aware Nesta was of how much less comfortable she was with them than they were with each other. By the time midnight came, as Nesta had predicted, they were all very much drunk, but Nesta, less affected by the alcohol anyway, was aching deep within her, feeling more alone in her life than she had at the beginning of the night. She could surround herself with people, but they were in her home, not in her heart, her heart was lonely and she didn’t know how to change that or if she even could.

@nobah123 @aelinashgalathynius @acotar-feels

[thenumberfour]

Merry Christmas Eve!

Hey there @risatherandom! I’m your @mlsecretsanta! Hope you enjoy this cute, fluffy story and have a very happy holiday!!

His father was livid. Adrien had missed another shoot while saving the city. Gabriel screamed at him, told him he was a disappointment of a son. Now Chat Noir was now prowling the streets, looking for a place to go. He couldn’t go home for the night. He wouldn’t go back to the prison his father had crafted for him. What he really needed was a friend. Nino was out of town this weekend and Alya was off who-knows-where tracking down stories on Ladybug.

That’s why he detransformed in a nearby alleyway and stopped outside Boulangerie Patisserie. Marinette was timid around him, but she had a good heart and would undoubtedly help him forget about his problems. Plus, she had sugary comfort food, and right now, he couldn’t care less about the meticulous diet his father had put in place for him.

The warm light still glowed through the storefront windows, and he could see Marinette inside sweeping the floor. The sign on the front door had been switched to “CLOSED” so he tapped lightly on the glass. She didn’t seem to notice the sound over the brushing of the broom, so he knocked a little louder.

The girl jumped a mile at the sound, and then another mile when she took note of the person who had made it. She rushed to the door and unlocked it, seeming far too concerned about why he was here to be speechless because he was here.

“Adrien, it’s 9PM! What are you doing here?” She exclaimed, her bright blue eyes wide. “Not that I’m not happy to see you or anything.” She tacked on at the end, her cheeks turning pink.

He put a hand to the back of his neck, smiling sheepishly. “I, uh… My father and I had an argument and I needed to get out of the house.” He spotted a tray of pink and green macarons on a table behind Marinette. “Also I’m kind of hungry.” “Kinda” was an understatement. He had probably eaten three leaves of lettuce, seven crackers, and nine grapes all day.

“O-of course!” Marinette said. “My family was just about to sit down to dinner. I’m sure they wouldn’t mind setting down an extra plate.”

Adrien’s eyes widened with guilt, “Oh, no, no! I can’t intrude on your family dinner.” He thought it was past dinnertime, but failed to take into account the possibility that a family with a busy bakery would eat dinner later than the rest of Paris.

Marinette pursed her lips. “Adrien, don’t be ridiculous. Stay for dinner. I’ll go ask Maman.” The girl rushed up the stairs. Adrien waited in the same spot by the door, tapping the toe of his orange sneaker on the floor and swaying with his hands in his pockets. Not long after, Marinette raced back down the stairs, grabbing Adrien by the hand and dragging him up the stairs after her, grinning the whole time.

The way his father yelled at him turned his insides to ice and dirt and numbness, but Marinette’s friendly smile made flowers bloom in that wintry patch in his chest.

“Oh, Adrien! How lovely to see you!” Marinette’s mother exclaimed once he plopped down in a seat at the dining room table. Marinette took the seat across from him while her parents sat at each head of the table. Her mother had made a chicken stir-fry, and her father had made an assortment of cookies for dessert.

Adrien scarfed down his first helping of stir-fry and didn’t go for seconds out of politeness. Mrs. Cheng, however, noticed his longing stares at the plate of chicken in the center of the table and encouraged him to take more food.

He loved this. He’d always wished for this, even when his mother was around. A home-cooked meal, light chatter at the dinner table, a cozy atmosphere like the Dupain-Cheng apartment. He even enjoyed himself helping clear away the used plates and silverware. Marinette’s family even made the chores that had always disgusted his father fun.

As he picked up a plate to hand Marinette, he felt a gentle hand on his arm. Mrs. Cheng pulled him aside.

“Marinette told us about your situation. It’s quite late, and Mr. Dupain and I have agreed that it would be best if you stayed here for the night.” Adrien opened his mouth to protest. He knew he could make it home as Chat Noir, though he didn’t plan on saying that outright. Either that, or the Gorilla would come to pick him up. His father would be furious if he knew he’d spent the night at a girl’s house.

Before he could get a word out, he felt a much larger hand clap him on the back. “Don’t worry about it. We have spare pillows and blankets. The couch is all yours.”

Adrien smiled fully at his friend’s parents, green eyes shining with gratitude. “I can’t thank you enough.”

After dinner was spent gaming. Two vs. two Ultimate Mecha Strike III Dupain-Cheng style. Marinette’s father certainly had a knack for the game and it wasn’t hard to see where Marinette had gotten her skills from. Her mother was surprisingly good at it as well, but neither of them were any match for their daughter.

Soon enough, though, it was time for her parents to go to bed. Her father needed to be up at 4AM to prepare the bakery. It wasn’t a school night, so the kids could stay up as late as they wanted, as long as they were quiet and didn’t get up to any “funny business” as Mr. Dupain had put it. Adrien’s face had gone Ladybug red at that. Tom Dupain was a jolly, kind man, but he was downright intimidating when he wanted to be.

“Papa!” Marinette exclaimed, her face turning a similar shade of red as Adrien’s own, darkening the subtle freckles that peppered her nose and cheeks.

“Goodnight kids!” Her mother said, dragging her father along behind her into their bedroom.

Marinette looked at Adrien and smiled, more relaxed than he’d ever seen her. “Up for another game?”

“I think I’ve had my butt handed to me enough for one night.” He chuckled, setting his controller down on the table before leaning back on the sofa.

“I get it,” Marinette said with the tiniest of smirks. “Winning takes a lot out of me.”

“Starting to think that lucky charm of yours doesn’t like me.” He said, and her brows furrowed in surprise.

“You still have it?”

He took the aforementioned charm out of his pocket, turning it over gently in his palm. “I might seem like I’m the luckiest kid alive, but I can honestly use all the luck I can get.”

She blinked at him, lips quirking into a concerned frown.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m completely grateful for everything I have.” Adrien added hastily. He wasn’t spoiled, and he didn’t want Marinette to think that.

“I understand that.” She affirmed with a reassuring smile.

“I have a great education, awesome friends, the job of a lifetime… But the first two almost didn’t happen because of my father.” He sighed.

“Can you promise me something?” Adrien asked and Marinette nodded. “When you become an awesome fashion designer, don’t shut your children out. Make time for them. Don’t imprison them in their own homes.” Marinette nodded again while Adrien paused. To lighten up the mood, he added, “And for the love of God, don’t ever make your supermodel children diet at fifteen years old.”

Marinette giggled at this. “You assume I’ll have children beautiful enough for modeling.”

“Are you kidding? Of course you will. If they inherit those pretty bluebell eyes, they’ll slay all of Paris.” Adrien froze, realizing that he had just marveled at her eyes aloud instead of in his head, like he’d planned. And he was just a sucker for eyes like that.

The girl next to him let out the tiniest squeak. She covered her mouth, but he could still see some pinkness in her cheeks peeking out from behind her hand.

“I – uh, I mean…” He sputtered, his cheeks heating. She put a hand on his.

“It’s okay.” She said, then hesitantly continued, “I think your eyes are pretty too.”

They were both quiet for a while after that, and Adrien felt himself drifting off to sleep.

He woke a few hours later, probably around midnight if the clock on the far wall was correct. He tried to stretch and shift to a better position, when he noticed Marinette leaning on his shoulder, snoring softly.

Adrien wasn’t sure what to do. Her parents probably wouldn’t be too happy to find out she’d spent the night down here instead of in her own bed. After a few minutes of deliberation, he finally came to a decision. He scooped her up gingerly in his arms, one hand under her knee, the other cradling her shoulders. He didn’t have his Chat Noir super strength, but she wasn’t too heavy.

Plagg took that moment to zip out from his shirt pocket and grin smugly at his chosen. “Oh, stuff it, Plagg.” He whispered, not wanting to wake Marinette and blow his secret.

She sighed and nestled closer to his chest. His face burned. Plagg opened his mouth to make some remark like “Just a friend, huh?” Adrien gave him a warning glare before he could say anything.

**

Marinette woke up feeling weightless. Her eyes were still closed, and her cheek was pressed against something firm. She knew her family sofa was old and hard, but she didn’t remember it feeling like this. She cracked one eye open to survey the situation.

A black t-shirt with colored stripes, a strong jawline, tanned skin… she was in Adrien’s arms.

She had to be dreaming. There was no way this could be true. Adrien Agreste was carrying her up the stairs to her room. She would have squealed if it wouldn’t make things so terribly awkward for both of them, so she continued to feign sleep as the boy of her dreams carried her to bed.

When Adrien reached her room, she felt him pause, most likely since carrying her up a ladder was no easy feat. He lowered her down onto the chaise on the side of the room.

“Plagg,” he whispered. Plagg? Was he speaking gibberish? “Pass me that blanket over there.”

“Only if you let me get a wisecrack in.” Another voice piped up, clearly not too keen on being quiet. Tikki, nestled in Marinette’s pocket, seemed to jolt at the voice. Marinette tried to rack her brain, trying to remember if Adrien had any talent for ventriloquism. Where did that voice come from?

She could practically hear Adrien’s eyes rolling as he sighed. “Fine, I got it.” She heard the rubber soles of Adrien’s sneakers mildly thudding as he moved further away, probably to grab the blanket she kept on her desk. Her desk! It had pictures of Adrien ALL OVER THE PLACE. She peeked open one eye worriedly and saw something far more concerning. A kwami. Hovering around Adrien, whose back was turned as he unfolded her blanket. Plagg. It made sense. The silver ring on Adrien’s finger brought itself to the forefront of her mind. He disappeared during akuma attacks like she did. He knew

How could she pretend to sleep now that she knew that the boy of her dreams was Chat Noir!?