#“you do know that Simba and Mufasa are the good guys right?”

[itsscottiesstark]

Nanny Ashtoreth holding 3 year old Warlock in her arms:

Nanny: Look, Warlock. Everything the light touches is our kingdom.

Brother Francis: *eyes her suspiciously*

Nanny: A king's time as ruler, rises and falls like the sun.

Francis: *opens his mouth to interject*

Nanny: One day, Warlock, the sun will set on our time here and will rise with you as the new king.

Warlock: And this will all be mine?

Nanny: Everything.

Francis: Are you- is- was that from Lion King?

Nanny, covering Warlock's ears: Hey, it's a good movie!

[artist-issues]

Let’s talk about this Mufasa movie.

No. Let’s not. Let’s just talk about Mufasa. This is going to be long because he’s a really good character and The Lion King is a really good movie.

Mufasa’s whole point, as a character, is to foil Simba. He’ s not just the stereotypical “great dad role model” character, or the “wise mentor who is ripped away” character.

He, as a character, is in the story because he is “Who Simba Really Is.”

Simba is our young protagonist. The whole point of Simba in the story is to start out “not yet grown into who he really is,” so that the story can teach him how to “grow into who he really is.”

So the audience needs to know “who is Simba and who is Simba supposed to be?” right at the beginning. Which is great, because all kids are trying to figure out the same question about themselves. So it’s relatable. But anyway, the storytellers make Mufasa the answer.

On a simple level, you can answer the question, “who is this Simba guy?” right off the bat in the movie with “the son of the King.” There’s the setting. There’s the set-up. There’s the title of the movie. That’s why the very first lion you’re introduced to in the movie is Mufasa, and it’s not a shot of a baby lion cub. It could have been. Lots of movies open with a shot of their main character. Encanto, for one.

Not The Lion King. The Lion King starts with, “you can’t know who Simba is without Mufasa, so Mufasa gets shown first.”

So okay, Mufasa is a King. Good to know. That’s obvious from the big rock he’s standing on and the way all the animals are coming toward him. But from there, they quickly establish a few more things about Mufasa. He smiles at this little bird that bows to him. He hugs the shaman-monkey. He goes from “big solemn lion” to “good and benevolent” immediately.

And then as it goes on, you learn more about Mufasa. He’s not an idiot; he knows Scar is up to no good, and he is very direct about it. He is not a naive dupe, trusting a schemer blindly. It’s more complicated than that. He is a better leader and a better guy than that. Mufasa knows Scar is his brother, and in a snappy little interaction with Zazu, storytellers make it clear that he worries about Scar; he knows he has good reason to worry, but hasn’t decided to give up on his brother.

Additionally, he is merciful to other dark creatures too. He beats the tar out of hyenas but doesn’t kill them. He rescues Zazu from Scar’s mouth. He scolds Simba but he does that, and more, to teach him. So what Mufasa is teaching us, according to what I just showed you the story says, is that A Good King, A Good Man (Lion, whatever) Is:

Authoritative - Makes decrees and makes decisions and yes, tells others what to do. Creates the structure his people live in.

Kind/Humble - Shows the same level of casual friendship to a revered shaman-recluse as he does a little self-important majordomo. (Humble because he’s not afraid to admit when he’s afraid if it’ll help his son.)

Teaches - Takes time out of the day to pass on what he’s learned to someone who is going to take his place—he’s not hoarding his own position or gatekeeping his life-experience-expertise. He’s not finding his identity in how he has this wealth of information that causes people to need him; he gives it away freely, purposefully.

Protects - Is willing to endanger himself and go to the trouble of defending creatures that are weaker than himself.

Shows Mercy - See Scar and the hyenas, who deserve death, but he doesn’t give it to them.

Prioritizes Family - The time he’s taking out of the day is for his son. And he follows up with his recluse of a brother instead of going, “that’s Scar, I know he don’t care about nobody but himself, his loss, not my problem.” And he extends trust to that brother, which is really just an example of gift-giving to a family member who’s done nothing to keep that trust.

Has Faith - Mufasa makes a point of not answering Simba’s question about “Will you always be there for me,” with just himself. He could’ve. Many parents do. Many parents are tempted to, to show their love. “Yes. You’ll always have me. I’ll always be there to answer your questions; I’ll always protect you, I’ll always be what you can count on, you’ll always find a need fulfilled in me.” But Mufasa doesn’t take that bait. He gives Simba an answer that is not “himself-based.” Not selfish. “Look at the stars.” I don’t care what ya’ll say. Mufasa has faith in something outside of himself. He says “and so will I,” but that’s after contextualizing himself within “something bigger than us.” (And oh my gosh, he doesn’t even answer with, “let me give you a lesson you’ll need for your whole life.” He doesn’t even take credit for this faith, for himself. He gives his own father the credit.)

And really, all of those traits can be summarized with the phrase: Lives His Life Sacrificially For Others.

That’s what a leader, a good father, a king, a good man, does. And pay attention: That is what Simba is supposed to be. Simba is supposed to be Mufasa. That’s who Simba really is, that’s where he’s supposed to go. There is a “real you.” But you have to agree with it and accept it, even though your natural bent is to give in to the illusion that you “don’t have to be that, you can choose who you are.”

Yeah, sure, in a sense you can reject Who You Really Are. You can spend your whole life playing pretend, like you’re not That. But you’ll be doing just that: playing pretend. Unfulfilled. Dissatisfied. Running from the misery that is the natural response to your silly game of pretend. Insisting that “there is no misery, this is what I want.”

Okay. Sure it is.

I’ll save Simba for another post.

The point is, Mufasa is a template for who Simba Really Is. Look at those traits. When it’s Simba’s turn to exemplify those traits, does he?

Act I: Is he authoritative? He tells characters what to. And he makes his own decisions—sometimes for good, sometimes bad. For example, he won’t let Zazu deter him from going to the elephant graveyard, so that’s a bad decision, but he does choose to go back and help Nala instead of running to save himself. Authoritative and protective. But it’s all misplaced because he doesn’t “Live His Life Sacrificially For Others.”

Act 2: He’s not. Timon and Pumbaa tell him to do something and he goes along with it. Timon and Pumbaa claim an ancient tradition and his father’s lesson is stupid and Simba goes along with that. He’s no longer making decisions of his own accord, for anything but his own comfort.

The idea is, in Act 1, you see Simba has the same traits as Mufasa, budding inside of him. But they’re all misdirected, and they’re all twisted, because they’re missing one key ingredient: he’s supposed to use those traits in the context of “Live His Life Sacrificially For Others.” Simba doesn’t want to do that. Simba wants to do whatever he wants.

Sure, there’s a part of him that combines that motive with “I want to be like my dad.” But that part dies on the vine and turns sour when his father dies saving him.

So then in Act 2, not only is Simba clinging to “I’m going to live life all my way,” but he’s changed what that means by pushing the nugget of “I want to be like my dad/I WANT TO BE WHO I REALLY AM” completely away. Because it’s too hard, and he’s got shame tangled up in it.

And worse—he starts doing basically the opposite of all of Mufasa’s traits, all of the traits that make him Who He Really Is. He’s not prioritizing family—he’s abandoning them. He’s not protecting others—he runs from the idea of going back to help Nala. (tiny glimmer of it still being inside him because he does try to protect Pumbaa from her.) Kind and humble? No. It’s unkind to tell your best friend you won’t help her because you’re afraid. Humble, no, because humility is thinking of yourself less, not thinking less of yourself.

Ask the question. When Simba’s living in the jungle with Timon and Pumbaa, is he exemplifying any of the traits of Who He Really Is? Or is he doing his best to bury that?

But then after Mufasa reminds him of who he Really Is, and Rafiki shows him how to get his past out of the way so he can accept it, Simba goes back. Into Act 3 we go

Now. Does Simba exemplify Mufasa’s traits? Does Simba start becoming Who He Really Is? There’s not a lot of time left in the movie. Look at the traits, see if he does.

Authoritative? Yep, comes up with the plan to break in and get to Scar, doesn’t back down from the confrontation.

Kind and Humble? Yeah, he willingly admits the truth (he thought it was true) that makes him look bad to give his mom closure. He’s kind to Nala and to Timon and Pumbaa, admits his mistakes, when they come to help him. Hugs the old shaman who cracked him in the skull with a stick—just like Mufasa hugged Rafiki to show us kindness and humility at the beginning of the movie.

Teaches? We don’t really see an opportunity for him to do that yet at this point in the story and his life, give me a break.

But protects? You bet. That’s why he’s there for the confrontation in the first place. Shows mercy?

Yep.

Because he’s not like Scar. He knows who he is. THE POINT.

And when he runs in for the big confrontation, he doesn’t immediately leap on Scar and rip him to pieces. Even though the storytellers make sure to show us he clearly wants to.

Instead, he runs up to his mother to see if she’s all right and show her that he is. And again, he tells her the truth because that’s what she needs even if it’s not what she wants, and he’s learned not to run from what he’s “done.” And faith in something bigger than himself?

Yeah. His father’s voice comes through the clouds just before he decides to roar and claim his title. Through the clouds. Because that whole “we’re a part of something bigger, something more important than ourselves,” was always what he was missing. He was just thinking about himself.

And all of this is because Mufasa is the example of Who Simba Really Is: Lives His Life Sacrificially For Others. That’s Mufasa.

That’s Mufasa, in the story of The Lion King. That’s his purpose as a character, that’s who he is.

So now if you make a movie that’s just about him, what you should be doing is showing how he got there. How he accepted who he Really Is instead of choosing who he wants to be, on his own. And you should make his father, and learning humility, an enormous part of that. Because self-sacrifice is such a pillar of his character. It’s the whole thing.

What you should certainly not be doing is telling a story that ends with finding self-worth or a kid who makes a name for himself. I repeat: if the Mufasa live action movie ends with Mufasa doing anything that revolves around self, they got him wrong and they set him up nonsensically for the next movie.

He should have to decide whether or not he wants to believe his own father, because of that one line, “let me tell you something my father told me.” That shows that he accepted his father’s lesson. And what was his father’s lesson about? Faith. In something BIGGER THAN YOURSELF. So then Mufasa grows up to be a character who lives his life sacrificially for others, and you can trace the roots back to that: “I learned a lesson about something bigger than myself from someone who was not myself, and I humbly believed and accepted that lesson.”

I mean jeez, the line is: “LOOK AT THE STARS.” Whenever you feel alone. Whenever you’re wrapped up in who you are and who you’re not and failure and the idea of what you want to be, knock it off. Quit looking at yourself and look at something bigger than you. And then you’ll get “Understanding of Who You Really Are”—no matter what mistakes you’ve made, no matter how you’ve failed, no matter what your circumstances are—thrown in.

…Of course, the Lion King remake ruined him anyway by having the point be “I’m not worthless.” And that was never the point. But whatever. I’m rambling now. You get the idea.

Mufasa is exactly what he needs to be for the original The Lion King. He’s exactly what he needs to be for Simba’s story. Mufasa is awesome.

[telvess]

Headcanons for all the characters including Jack since it’s based on Hamlet watching The lion king with the reader. (the original animated movie not the live action remake.)

Record Of Ragnarok Characters x Reader watching together The Lion King (headcanons) 🔞

You know, I haven’t watched The Lion King in… well I watched it once when I was kid and that’s it. Mulan, Hercules and Tarzan were my movies. Anyway I ended up watching The Lion King again to refresh my memory.

Qin

A what? Are you involved? Then Qin would agree to do anything.

He’s like a big kid - chill and carefree, even more than usually. Both of you goof around, Mr. Emperor tries to sing without knowing words, popcorn flies around, you pause a movie in stupid moments to make him laugh etc.

You get a stomachache from laughing too much and Qin obviously has to get infected.

Just two morons have time of their afterlife.

The only moment when there is silence is when Simba loses his father. That scene just hits too close to home and remains Qin about Chun Yan. However he doesn’t let it bother him too much.

HAKUNA MATATA

You both loudly encourage lions to battle.

At the end he asks what other movies you like.

Jack

Because he isn’t familiar with the concept of love and how to express it, spending time with you is probably Jack’s way to show his affection. If you ask him to watch an animated movie together, he’d politely agree, even if it’s not his thing.

Expect tea. And cheddar apple pie.

Jack sees Simba’s journey as a lovely and naive story. Deep inside he does compare himself to that lion cub and wonders what kind of person he would've become if he had only received help from strangers. On top of that Jack actually killed his parents, so it’s odd to him to see how much Simba struggles with remorse over Mufasa’s death which wasn’t his fault.

Truth to be told Jack might mentions some quotes from Shakespeare IF you point out similarities between the movie and Hamlet. These resemblances aren’t very visible. But it may be enough to start an interesting conversation.

The ending of the story may seems a bit bitter to Jack. Whoever was meant to be good, stayed good, and whoever was meant to be bad - stayed bad. Kinda depressing outcome for a man who’s trying to change himself, right? You’d have to talk about it and remind that it’s just a simplification made for children.

Now it’s time for a cuddle session.

Loki

Do you really want to do this to yourself? You’re very naive if you expect to have a fun with this guy while watching this kind of movie.

At first it’s just boring to him, but after awhile he amuses himself by coming up with new ways to destroy the show. He makes a loud comment every time the opportunity arises. For example, there is a scene where Zaku tells young Simba and Nala that they’d be married one day, to which Simba replies: No way! She’s my friend! You can hear a loud snort on the side, followed by She’s your SISTER, dumbass!

Loud chewing.

Hey, y/n, do you know that once Simba becomes the king, he will have kids with every lioness? Even his mom?

Do they have to sing all the time?

DON’T YOU DARE mention that you can see a similarity between him and hyenas or forget about chips, popcorn, whatever you two are eating.

Phew! It’s finally over. Wanna do something funny, y/n?

Adamas

Childish entertainment but once he sees that your eyes get wet with tears, he quickly agrees.

A cheerful start bores him but except tactless way of sitting, he doesn’t do anything to ruin your fun.

Even if Mufasa’s death was expected, it still hits hard Adamas. Basically catches him off guard. It remains him about his last meeting with Poseidon: his brother’s pure contempt towards him, that dead, indifferent expression of his face when he pierced Adamas with his trident, then cold surrounding body and Poseidon’s back as he walked away. But while the movie continues, a new digression haunts Adamas. He plays that scene again in his head and it hits him harder, because he realizes that he almost became Scar to Zeus.

So now he sits stiffly on his ass with a very depressed expression. One look at him is enough for you to know that you have to pause the movie and talk to a guy. At first he rejects your attempts, but very quickly ends up letting you hug him tight. Still plays a tough idiot tho…

Beelzebub

Most of the time he just sits next to you with lifeless expression.

Hakuna matata his ass.

Beelzebub secretly enjoys when you sing, but it’s really hard to catch him with a smile on his face. If you manage to do so, he reluctantly admits it. Good luck with convincing him to join you.

He doesn’t have any deeper thoughts about the movie.

If you mention that Timon and Pumba remain you Samael and Azazel, Beelzebub would just give you a dull look. After awhile he starts to notice that too and has mixed feelings about it.

Hrist

She finds this idea very sweet. It’s relaxing and enjoyable.

When Scar kills Mufasa: RAGE MODE ACTIVATION!

Since then you sit with angry Hrist who really does not like phrase hakuna matata. She starts to hate Simba for being so thoughtless.

Screams SHUT UP every time they start singing.

When Simba lets Scar leave, Hrist in heat of the moment chokes you and loudly screams how dumb he is. You wonder if it can get worse and the answer comes very quickly - Simba fights Scar on the TV screen and you fight for every breath on a couch.

Hermes

Hermes approaches the movie from a different angle: he focuses more on a soundtrack. The movie itself is simple story with moral, standard for humans’ approval.

You both consider an improvement of some songs and probably start doing it in the middle of a movie. Sorry, Simba.

Ares

Ares doesn’t care much about Mufasa’s death - it's necessary plot twist to move on with thread… but the ending kinda touches him. It's very climatic in his opinion.

He is NOT crying, okay?

Well you are. Or you pretend very convincingly so he doesn’t have to play tough boy. He has no idea…

Hades

Because he is a gentleman, your wish would be granted.

It’s animated movie but Hades drinks wine. No cola, no popcorn or other snacks. Please, have some dignity.

Hades has weird uncomfortable feeling in his chest when Scar kills his own brother. Scene just awakes something he doesn’t like to mention: conflict between Poseidon, Adamas and Zeus. Hades never could bring himself to blame any of them for how things turned out, so now he doesn’t try to look too deep into Musafa’s murder.

Afterwards he would share his honest opinion with you, almost like professional critic.

Poseidon

No expression throughout the entire movie.

Scar is pathetic.

Mufasa is pathetic.

Simba is pathetic.

Timon and Pumba aren’t even worth mentioning.

That movie proves that humans are lower forms of life.

At least you have chance to hug Poseidon. If he spends time with you, it means he demands it.

After a movie: Y/n, such entertainment is unworthy of the gods.

Leonidas

Books are better than movies. But fine, if you insist, the King of Sparta would spare some time.

The best comforter: Why are you crying? It’s fiction! It’s not even human! By the way - that lion could kill you with a single paw swing. These mfs are huge! Better him than you, hon!

He smokes so much that you have trouble seeing the TV screen.

Stop couching, hon! I can’t hear what they’re sayin’!

The moment Pumba approach, Leonidas starts talking about his love for venison.

You need truly heroic self-denial to not kick him out. The only option to get him to shut up is to kiss him. He doesn’t get why the kiss is angry but he likes it that way.

You two probably miss the ending. Leonidas thinks Simba isn’t worthy of being king anyway.

Apollo

Ah, y/n, aren’t you adorable for loving such innocent enjoyment? Of course he agrees!

You have to feed him snacks.

He sings along with the characters and makes the movie much better. You end up watching him showing off instead of the movie. Your dirty side may bait off a bit more mature show.

He knows exactly what you're doing and doesn't mind at all.

Later you might catch him humming songs from the movie.

Hello, dear. May I be your king tonight?

Rudra

Simba’s and Nala’s childhood brings nostalgia. Rudra spent his entire youth with Shiva and they were both free spirits. Watching these lion cubs brings back many funny memories.

Rudra’s favourite moment is Simba’s reunion with Nala. He gets mad if he notices you smirking.

Parvati, Kali, Durga and Shiva

You decide it’s time for girls’ night out.

None of you is focus on the movie, it’s just an addition. You mostly talk and laugh. Very loud that it may attracts Shiva.

He just sits down between you with Whatcha doin’? then proceeds to eats all the popcorn and other snacks like vacuum cleaner.

[alollinglaughingcat]

i... accidentally discovered 100% Wolf and im absolutely going insane

something i like to do for fun is to watch kinda of shitty animated wolf/dog/animal movies like, yknow, like Pets United or Underdog, or, famously, the Alpha & Omega series, mostly cause i see some YT review about how bad/goofy they are and it's something to waste an hour or two

and i saw a 100% Wolf bad review and was like "ha another bad wolf furry movie! i'll watch that. oh it has a sequel movie coming out soon? cool. oh, it has a series? with two 20+ episode seasons? oof the series probably butchers the quality/integrity of the movie... i'll watch the movie but the series will probably be to bad to watch---"

AND THEN I WATCHED THE SERIES AND IT. IT WASN'T BAD.

granted im only up to like episode 14 or smthn before i HAD to take a break (literally i watched the movie this morning and i havent taken a break for ANYTHING) (except feeding my foster kittens)

BUT LIKE???? it's not GOOD quality necessarily, either in animation or plot or character development, like I'd say it's kind of like Miraculous Ladybug quality, but a little worse? but i just LOVE it. i LIKE the characters. i ENJOY the silly little plot. i LOVE that it just fucking??? does things??? and never gives you answers to them???

like hello??? Batty the 100% DOG gained the ability to go were-human and NOBODY QUESTIONED IT OR INVESTIGATED IT FURTHER??? (but i love Batty's character and i love how she got voted the pack leader instead of the main character or his rival even if it didn't stick and i love how she wanted to return to being a normal dog at first but then grew to love her werewolf pack and she doesn't wanna go back and the episode where she was like 'what is my future after the academy if i cant join the night patrol? what do i want from this new life?' was MUAH CHEF'S KISS even though that ALSO did not technically get an answer/resolve)

and what happened to Cherry????? is she on the good guys side now or is she still on the bad guys???? hello???? she was evil for like TWO episodes and then got redeemed and rejoined the good guys again except HELLO REMEMBER that she was probably in cahoots with the OTHER secretly-bad-guy-pretending-to-be-a-good-guy and said guy (Ric) just??? never confronts Cherry for abandoning the bad guys???? even though he SHOULD??? unless Cherry is secretly still on the bad guys side???? WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH CHERRY??? I NEED ANSWERS (and i hope there IS answers in the future but knowing this show its just gonna forgor about it XDD)

AND WHY IS RIC SO SIMULTANEOUSLY STUPID AND SMART??? one episode he's literally evil mastermind and it's so expertly written and i LOVED the foreshadowing for him being the secret evil guy except now that he's revealed to be the evil bad guy he's so stupid sometimes???? why'd they butcher you bro 😭😭😭

SPEAKING OF THE BAD GUYS JUST. FUCKING CHILLING ONCE THEYRE REVEALED TO BE EVIL. what's up with Hotspur??? he was literally the movie villain big baddie who like tried to literally MURDER all dogs and also imprisoned his brother and basically tried to murder his brother and his nephew (LITERALLY Scar-Mufasa-Simba style lmaoo they didnt even try to hide it and its so fuckin funny to me) and then we enter the series and he's just???? allowed to continue being a respected werewolf elder and also running his evil dog shelter??? i get that the series is almost sort of a 'separate/alternate canon' but technically at the end of the movie they also showed him just like?? doing community service?? i literally find it so fucking funny that when someone tries to commit an Evil (see: Cherry, Ric, Hotspur, etc.) the rest of the characters are all like "hey i know you tried to murder me but just do some community service and you can join the pack again kay? 🥰"

but despite the little plot holes the series still seems to run so smoothly and i just love how it knows the right amount of seriousness to take itself, and i love how all of the characters work together... like they could have just had Ivan be a stuuuupid bully forever but within the first few episodes they were already showing him being a better person and being a good member of the pack, all while still keeping his personality... like he even tried to protect Batty's secret!!! even though he was being dog racist you KNOW he would still protect Batty and Freddy with his life even though they're dogs because THEY'RE HIS PACK!!!

also i just love how Freddy LIKES being a dog! like obviously in the movie he reached the conclusion that dogs weren't bad/inferior and he was fine being a pink poodle instead of a big scary werewolf like the rest of his family, but i was afraid the series would revert him and make him all "oooo im just a stupid dog i want to be a powerful wolf!!! no one takes me serious!!" but nah, in the series he's literally like "being a dog is the fucking best and if you disagree you can fucking suck it 😎" AND in 200% Wolf the whole plot is going to be that he DOES get transformed into a wolf and he WANTS TO GO BACK TO BEING A POODLE!! i love that!!

i also love Batty, did i already mention that? i love that she is literally a dog. she is a DOG, who happened to end up being able to turn into a human because of unexplained magical shenanigans, and she still acts primarily like a dog even when human, and she's just so fucking awesome, and my only wish is that she actually got to be the pack leader instead of that being a one-off thing lol. i also love Scarlet too, and i really really really hope that as like the opposite to Batty, Scarlet ends up getting turned into a dog/werewolf lmao. let the wolf hunter become the wolf!!!! if it can magically happen to Batty, it can magically happen to Scarlet XD

also more Cherry please wtf is going on with her i love her

anyway i just needed to ramble because this is my new obsession and i am not going to be able to shut up about it 😭

[storycraftcafe]

What's your process like when writing dialogue? Has it ever happened to you that like, you know something is off about what your character said and how they said it, but have no idea what it is? and what do you do with such cases?

Hey, thanks for waiting for this!

Generally dialogue for me is fairly instinctual and I do a lot of the ground work in my head and I approach it with who and what this character is as a person in my mind. The way someone talks, the words and phrases they use, their accent, their speed and rhythm and how that shifts with mood and company can convey a lot about character in a really fast amount of time. So this means culture, age, education, personality, etc, all of which informs a lot about how someone talks. 

Are they blunt and direct or slippery and evasive, well educated or maybe less so, upper class or poor? Are they happy, playful, pissed off, talking with a friend, enemy, teacher, authority figure? Are they being honest and plain or are they hiding something?

All that guides me in writing their dialogue. 

It’s not terribly formal, and I tend to refine as I write, tinkering with a scene until I like their particular ‘voice’, until it’s distinct enough for the character and I can almost hear it in my head. Once I have that, dialogue comes pretty easily for me usually. And if I lose that sound, reviewing past examples of dialogue generally helps me to pick it back up. 

I also try to make sure my dialogue is doing ‘double duty’, by which I mean it’s conveying not just character and their wants, deceptions, etc but serves the story, gives exposition, and so on. It’s not possible all the time but that’s the goal I work towards. 

So when it comes to cases of dialogue just never quite sounding right and not knowing why? This happens to me on a fairly regular basis and it’s usually because I’m still figuring out the flow of an argument or a heartfelt conversation,  I’ve lost track of what the character’s want and are trying to achieve and sometimes just because what I’ve written is just off.

If it’s a first draft I try not to worry about it, I either retry by rewriting or flag it and move on, but if it’s during a rewrite or I get well and truly stuck, I take a step back and ask myself a few things.

What is this character trying to achieve? What’s their goal?

Why? And what are their usual methods? Are they doing something different here and why?

I also check my notes and try to remind myself what the point of this conversation and scene, both in the moment and in the larger story. I remind myself of this character’s voice, think about the way they talk and I try again. I write and rewrite and tweak until things start to click.

And if I still can’t get it, I poke at a trusted friend for their input.

Here’s some advice.

Listen to how people talk in person but also on screen and in books. Book/screen dialogue is far more refined and pointed than real life conversation so keep that in mind.

Think about some books or media that you enjoy and how the dialogue varies not only from story to story, but from characters too. Screenmedia is actually really good for this since screenplays/stageplays are mostly dialogue and that's where those characters start. 

Consider The Lion King. How does Mufasa speak and how does that change when he talks to Simba, Zazu or Scar? Contrast that to how Timone and Pumba speak and then compare with Scar. The Guardians of the Galaxy is another example of distinctive character voices (and humour) in a single film.  

If you’re fine with the genre typical violence I recommend John Wick (basically every main character has a distinct way of speaks that is instantly recognisable) and Guy Ritchie’s Snatch which is a fantastic example of giving characters all from the same ��world’, area, accent and class, very distinct dialogue that makes them stand out. (It is a ‘gangster’ film so TW again for violence and how Richie handles Irish Travellers.)

Then when you’re writing or developing a character, think about who they are and how that’d shape how they talk. Try writing them and tweak it until you’re satisfied. Then put them in a different situation with different people and figure out how they talk changes. 

Do try to avoid writing accents and overly pronounced stutters and be careful with slang you’re not familiar with and always keep in mind stereotypes and cliche. 

And if you get stuck, step back and try to pin down what they want and how they’re aiming to get it. What’s the end result that you as the writer want?

And of course, all this comes with practice and rewriting something until it works. 

Sorry for keeping you waiting on this, I hope you find something useful.

Good Writing!

[royalrazz37]

Disclaimer: I love this film. These are just my critics. I know someone else has already pointed these issues out and better than I ever could. Just wanted to get my thoughts out. Feel free to link their analysis

Post Disclaimer Disclaimer: A lot of these may be petty and have no real solution so I apologize preemptively.

Without further ado here is an aging millennial’s concerns with: The Lion King (1994)

Small nitpicks first

Incest

Usually lion prides have a single adult male that mates with all the females but in this case there are two, Mufasa and Scar, meaning, that at best Simba and Nala are first cousins and at worst siblings, getting married and having children.

On the flip side there is nothing more royal than keeping it all in the family.

Say his name

What is Scar’s real name? I know it can probably be found somewhere but i think it’s pretty messed up it’s never said in the movie. Also making someone’s physical feature their name is rude. Its like calling someone Hairy, Big Nose, or Six-Fingered Man.

Sexiest Lion

From what I remember learning about lions, the males with darker manes are seen as more attractive. So why is my man Scar not getting hole? I know its a kids movie but could we at least see a couple dark furred cubs running about? (I know about Kovu)

Choice of voice actors

Why are all the good characters voiced by white people? (Exceptions for James and Madge) and all the bad guys are POC? And its some extra ish when only the lackeys are POC. The big bad is white. Colored folk can’t even be their own boss.

And i know the remake “fixed” this but we’re not talking about the new woke Disney.

Now the real gripes

Monarchy and leadership

While the idea of a hereditary monarchy is bad enough the main plot strongly implies divine right is just and desirable.

Mufasa is supposed to be king and this is reflected by the kingdom being pristine and in balance.

Scar, who is not ordained by the sky daddies, takes the throne and all falls to ruin.

Then the “rightful king” returns, restoring prosperity to the land.

It gives credence to the idea that a higher power has to approve of a leader for things to go right. That those in power are there because that is how it’s supposed to be.

Look, little one. See what happens when you try to break the status quo? Bad things happen. Be happy with your lot in life.

If you try to rise above your station like Scar, well. You saw what happened. (I know Scar murdered fools but you get my drift)

��But Razz” I hear you say. “The reason things went bad is because Scar had the hyenas live in the pride lands and they ate everything. Those slobbering mangy stupid poachers!”

Aha! I say. You activated my trap card.

US History as a Metaphor

I think its safe to say that the hyenas are coded as POC. As such the idea of their integration into the pride lands being the catalyst for its blight is troubling.

It harkens back to the fear of the negro moving into cities during white flight. Hyenas/blacks move in and everything goes to shit.

Thats why we keep them in their elephant graveyards and shadow lands (the ghettos) so the blight doesn’t spread.

And if one of the hyenas do come into the pride lands we send our strong alpha Mufasa to beat and brutalize them.

Also the hyenas are painted as gluttons for wanting to eat. THEY WERE IN A LITERAL GRAVEYARD.

Of course they’re hungry. Of course they’d want to eat everything they could. They were forced to live that way.

Now lets draw a line.

Hyenas are always hungry because they live in a food desert and actual desert.

They live there because of enforced segregation by the lions.

Lions who then blame the the hyenas for being hungry and use that as justification to continue segregation and harsh policing of the hyenas movements.

Sounds familiar.

And the film’s solution to all this is a return to the status quo. Yuck.

Not to mention the sequel where there’s a reconciliation between the lionesses who supported Scar and the pridelanders because Kiara says “We’re the same”. I know I’m probably grasping a straws here but that moment felt like the Irish and Italians gaining whiteness.

Ok rant over.

[lewmagoo]

Leah my friend?? If you're ok with me sending in some werewolf!rhett thoughts/thots, I'd be more than happy too. I'm so sorry if I keep spamming your inbox and spamming with the same thing over and over again (sometimes I'm afraid to send things in because I'm afraid of being pesky or that I'm sharing the same thoughts/thots with everybody and their mother).

I don't know if you've seen Yellowstone or not but lately I've been thinking about the Abbott pack being really, really close with the Duttons who are one of the most powerful packs in both Wyoming and Montana. Prepare yourself for some Perry slander because oh do I have a ton of it.

You and Rhett adopted Amy as a newborn (Rhett was very, very snuggly with her in his wolf form) but Perry was always snooping around the property even though you and Rhett took custody of her literally the moment she entered the world. After shit went down with Perry, the clan up north in Bozeman called you to come and join them to protect the land up there from both Perry and Jaime.

Oh but it gets absolutely hilarious when yours and Rhett's pups all get in with John, Thomas and Mo's grandkids. They're always out in the woods, especially at the full moon causing trouble when the grown ups are either on the prowl or off somewhere.

One night, much to your surprise, you, Beth and Monica are all coming back from a night walk and you see three male wolves, each carrying a pup or two in their mouths by the scruffs of their necks. You and the girls all are wondering what could've happened when Rhett begins rattling off what they did. For instance:

"This little shithead rolled in a pile of horse shit" (Amy)

"This little shithead took a dive in the crick" (Rip and Beth's son Joey)

"This little shithead almost ran through poison oak" (Kayce and Monica's boy, Tate)

"And this little shithead tried to chase after a skunk.....and got sprayed" (Thomas's granddaughter, Teona)

It gets even worse when John, Royal, Thomas Mo and Lloyd, the elders of the pack, all get word that Perry and Jaime have teamed up and are sneaking around. John thinks it's time that the grandpups all have some kind of pouncing lessons......basically it turns into that scene in The Lion King where Mufasa is teaching Simba how to pounce. Yeah the hands (Teeter, Jimmy, Avery, Colby and Ryan) were a little less than pleased when they became the pups' first victims.

I'm just gonna stop right there Leah. I apologize greatly if I sent in a bunch of asks that have this same idea or shared them with others. If you ever wanna talk Perry slander at any point I'd be more than happy to do so. And as always, I appreciate whenever you guys take the time to read and reply back, it means alot.

----Mary

i am all for the pups going after perry and jamie (i don’t watch yellowstone but i know he’s no good at least lol). tear ‘em up, kids! 👹

[bearpillowmonster]

you should know that I don't like the live action Lion King, and I'm not sure I would've, that's not something you can just 'do' in my head but I wanted to believe it anyway because we were in such a flowing river at the time. I accepted 2 and 11/2 and somewhat even the Lion Guard but the live action movie was a glorified tech demo to show that they 'could' make lions look convincing and move convincingly but they're emotionless, it's very cheesy and showhow despite it looking more realistic is more sanitized in the long run. I didn't expect there to be blood but it would've made more sense to me if it was there. I might complain about a lot of little bits and bobs that aren't there from the original film and alone, they're not going to seem fair but they stack up real easily. It was caught in a stalemate between changing stuff, which people would've been pissed over, or staying the same but being overall lesser because it's not animated, which people were pissed about. Needless to say, when a prequel was announced, I wasn't really convinced.

But it is entirely its own thing in a way so I feel I have to look into it, Lion King is basically apart of me, it's my favorite movie, it's my childhood movie, it's right there with Kingdom Hearts for most substantial media in my life. So, right off the bat, new director, don't know this guy but ok, don't have to. It seems to move away from the 'realism' in a way, showing those raindrops so stylistically and the way they move off his mane, it's more fantasy elements at least as far as the environment is concerned. What I really want is to see their expressions, they didn't give a good display whether it'll 'act' more animated or not. The designs seem to stay the same but at least they're varied as far as what we've seen. And for some reason there's a bunch of snow...wait...

Oh. It's a marketing strategy.

Overall, looks better but we're not there yet. As far as story, I don't know, it sounds like a side story because surprise, it's not just a prequel, it's a flashback prequel where they continue off the last one with Simba, Nala and Kiara and Rafiki tells Kiara a story or series of stories seeing as they show multiple eras of Mufasa's life. And the one description that really irks me is 'Timon and Pumbaa lending their signature schtick' like who wrote that?  You might as well say "Remember Timon and Pumbaa? they're in it and guess what? They act goofy and tell jokes. Ha."

I'm also getting really tired of using the same music all the time, even for the trailer. I know they redid tracks but it excites me to hear...Lin Manuel Miranda? Um. That's not what I expected, I thought maybe someone more in tune with tribal like Ludwig Goransson but even him I feel has been doing everything now and days so-

[majordomo-zazu]

/”Honestly give me enough time and I could probably write a ‘Twisted’-level musical but with The Lion King; ‘Majordomo: the Zazusical’”

[theredheaded-stuff]

¶Bat siblings content<

Damian when Bruce complains to him:

Bruce : Why can't you be more like Dick?

Damian Being hugged by Dick:

Jason jumping out the window : I'm tiiired of that

....

In an alternate future

Steph : so...Wayne's ex-lovers club who became family?

Bernard : Yep

Oliver : what the hell I'm doing here?

Oliver : Why are we all blonde?

....

Dick poking Tim's cheek :

Duke : What is he doing?

Cass : Big Brother job

Tim : Why did I choose this damn family?

....

Tim ready to eat a sandwich:

Phone rings and he will answer:

Tim comes back:

Duke staring at him while biting his sandwich:

Tim :

...

Damian lying on the room floor:

Jason : I'm starting to doubt your mental health little demon

Damian : But the floor is cold, it's good

Jason lying on the floor too:

Damian :

Jason : damn it's good..

...

Damian with one of his teeth missing:

Steph : Where did you get this?

Damian nervous : I kicked a kid ass on school

Cass : !

Steph : ?

Cass : The baby tooth fell out, this morning

....

Dick: This might be cute, but it's expensive as fuck and can't be removed.

Bruce : You Won't Get a Stupid Tattoo

Dick :

Jason : Let me see what stupid tattoo you want

Dick :

Jason : Hey, This is a picture of a baby

Bruce :

...

Damian : It's New Year's, I'm not going to fight with Tim anymore and I'm going to be nice to him!

Everyone : !

Tim : Will you make me coffee?

Damian : Remember the Monday three years ago when I asked you for hot chocolate and marshemelhows at two in the morning, and you declined? I remember

Tim : I did not deny

Damian : You didn't say anything!

.....

Dick: SOMEONE COMES HERE IS IMPORTANT!

Everyone runs to Dick worried: WHAT HAPPENED???

Dick : Can any of you turn off the light please?

....

Duke : Ok guys, now an exercise in trust between us, what are your biggest fears?

Steph : Bruce's food

Everyone : we agree

....

Duke : why are you smiling?

Steph : He called me beautiful!

Duke : Oh, your boyfriend?

Steph : Nah,Dami called me beautiful

Duke : !

Duke : The same Damian we know?

Steph : I gave him cookies

Duke : Makes sense now

...

Cass in damian door : I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's happening

Jason: what happened to the demon brat?

Cass : he was crying

Jason : WHAT?

Jason Knocking on the door : DAMIAN

Damian opening the door crying: mufasa died! Simba is alone now

Both : Simba?

Duke : I introduced him to the lion king, but he took it too seriously...

....

Damian wanting attention

Damian : Let's go! You promised me

Jason : I can't right now I'm reading

Damian : But why?

Jason : Reading is my hobby, I should spend time on my hobby too

Damian :

Jason :

Damian : Call me book and come to the garden with me

Jason : No

Damian :

Jason : You won't cry, won't you? I was joking! no no no

....

[artist-issues]

What other movies has chris sanders done? (Also- watched Wild Robot. It was phenomenal)

If I have my timeline right, he worked in some capacity on each Disney movie during and after "The Rescuers Down Under." I know he made big contributions to Beauty & the Beast, The Lion King, and Mulan...but his big one, the one he came up with and wrote and directed and did the storyboarding and voices for, was Lilo & Stitch.

I know he left Disney because he was working on Bolt, directing it, and it was too zany and out of pocket and they wanted to go a different direction, so they gave the project to Byron Howard (who also did Tangled, Zootopia...he's great too.) So then Chris Sanders left Disney

AND WENT TO DREAMWORKS, where he directed How to Train Your Dragon (the first and best one) and then The Croods, and now The Wild Robot.

I'm told he also directed Disney's CGI-Live-Action adaptation of The Call of the Wild on Disney+ here recently, but I never watched that because I don't think Chris Sanders' storytelling style lends itself to such a savage story and the "weird mirage of maturity" people expect to come with "Live Action." So I was afraid watching it would taint my love for The Call of the Wild, AND force me to watch Chris Sanders bent out of his natural habitat.

But maybe it's good, and I'm wrong, I haven't heard much about it.

Then he did The Wild Robot!

I don't know if that is a good official list—you can also check out his IMDB page—but to my knowledge he doesn't really miss.

I mean. To give you an idea.

If Lilo & Stitch isn't impressive enough for you? Please consider that the scenes Chris Sanders came up with were "Simba meets Mufasa's ghost" and "The Beast dies" and "Mulan jumps across the fence posts instead of walking on the bridge because she always has her own creative way of doing things."

And he conceptualized Timon like this:

which has nothing to do with anything but like. look at him.

If people considered animation directors with as much mainstream limelight as they do live-action films, Chris Sanders' body of work would place him next to like, James Cameron, Stephen Spielberg, those sorts of guys. But as it is he's just the cackling genius behind a huge and memorable chunk of our childhoods and nobody knows it.

[aurevell]

i made it

guys this was a bad time and i had to go make myself a cup of tea partway through because i was so frustrated

more good things (i tried to find some i promise)

mason was not dead after all, it was just a plot device 🥳

jackson and lydia, buddy detectives

derek being an overprotective and/or proud papa

baby eli transforming for the first time! a literal cutie

all of allison and scott's scenes together were so bland i started fast forwarding through them. this saved me a lot of time i otherwise would never get back, hence the "good things" list

more bad things

real sad that allison's whole character arc was "get manipulated into crimes." she is not having a good time and deserved better

it really sounds like stiles doesn't see his dad often and that makes me sad

eli isn't "bad" per se but he still feels like the poor man's stiles

somehow....the crux of this movie is still lacrosse

i'm not even kidding, the finale goes down at the lacrosse field while a game is in session

scott showed up wearing a lacrosse uniform and finstock let him play (during an official HIGH SCHOOL game). v confused about this but i assume the reasoning was stupid, and this is when i took my tea break so i never rewound to find out

harris is the sub-villain? and magically alive somehow? because reasons.

still genuinely distracted by the math of derek being eli's dad

stydia is broken up because of lydia having premonitions of stiles's death. i guess that's why she doesn't call stiles for backup.

this is a trauma that she has to explain to the nogitsune. i love being told and not shown all these things about their lives.

also i love that jeff davis was like "well stiles isn't here so let's make it Extra Tragic (tm)"

truly i thought we were done with the flashbacks but then allison gets her memory back and they have a flashback to the greatest scott/allison hits across the entire tv series.

hikari LITERALLY saved the day. like scott would be dead without her foxfire. and they couldn't give her more than five minutes of screen time in the whole movie as a reward smh

DEREK BURNS TO DEATH i'm sorry what the ACTUAL FUCK

NO WAIT WHAT THE FUCK i thought it was a fake out

parrish literally kills him. because he and derek are holding onto the nogitsune together. and derek tells him to burn them both up to kill the nogitsune. and he's so dead that there's literally nothing left of him not even a body.

what the fuck.

whaht

eli is an orphan now?? (who is his mom even?) this is so fucked up

no it's fine, you know what this is actually the PERFECT moment for scott and allison to start making out out

cannot overstate how cheerful/triumphant the music is after a main character just DIED

scott suddenly decides, you know what, he and derek were always brothers since day one. and despite the fact that he hasn't seen eli since he was 3, he takes eli in. and it's implied that he will eventually adopt him and i guess eli is just his (and allison's) son now??? RIP derek

they don't go into it but like...is allison okay??? where has she even been?

also there's aNOTHER flashback, this time it's Derek's greatest hits

ok so there was this line derek delivered back when he was "dying" the first time (yes he "dies" twice in this movie). and he says to his horrified son: "ReMemBeR wHo yOu ArE." if you're thinking that might have sounded like a dramatic lion king ripoff, you'd be right

and to hammer that similarity home, derek's disembodied voice echoes "remember who you are" over the very last scene of the movie where eli looks at the camera. just like dead mufasa talking to adult simba. is this camp? was this on purpose? is jeff davis just making fun of me for watching? WHY i ask you. truly unfathomable

hoo boy the second half was bad lemme tell you

2nd half chris and peter update:

surprise, surprise, they are still not besties, BUT they do team up (with melissa there!) to track the nogitsune, and there are a lot of good little shots for some gif maker to bless us with gifs of

peter hale dragging himself along the ground in THE most deranged way. indescribable. maniacally sniffing the ground to catch a scent trail . i'm guessing they didn't mean that to be as funny as it was but i almost cried laughing. if i could make gifs i would but if you do have access to this movie it's at 1:24:50 (don't watch any the rest of this movie it's not worth it)

peter attacks allison (rightfully, because she's been trying to kill people) so chris cuts him with a wolfsbane dagger. mean.

later chris and peter jump into the fray to fight the baddies and truly they are so dramatic. just giving it their all, guns blazing, hair flipping. peter in particular is such a diva about it

chris and ally are tight the rest of the movie and it's so cute like chris looks genuinely relaxed

also peter is at derek's wake or whatever so that's pretty nice of him all things considered

yes, i am truly in pain right now. thanks for asking

using the teen wolf movie to procrastinate working and unfortunately i would almost rather be working

[w4t3rgun]

//SPOILERS TO TWISTED, IT TAKES 2 HOURS AND FREE ON YOUTUBE, JUST SO YOU CAN UNDERSTAND WHAT I'M SAYING (WARNING: IT'S MATURE. VERY MATURE AND COULD HAVE POTENTIAL TRIGGERING TOPICS.//

ALSO TW/CW; DEATH, MURDER, STOCKHOLM SYNDROME MENTION, OVERBLOTS, EXECUTIONS. PLEASE TELL ME IF I MISSED ANYTHING.//

This is all serious. I'm being genuine right now. Please do read the content warnings. Thank you.

This is the final warning to scroll away for your sake, because I don't know if you will be triggered or left uncomfortable with this.

So. I recently I watched a thing called "Twisted"; a story about the Untold Story about the Royal Vizier, it's a very mature version of Aladdin but it's Ja'far's point of view. It's also to mock the movie I believe?? Idk.

But one of it's songs, "Twisted" in specific, caught my eye.

I'm a big fan of TWST (obviously, you can see it by my blog/account) but the song had... Interesting information and I'd like to analyze it.

So, if you decided not to watch or listen to the song, let me sum it up for you:

Aladdin convinced the Sultan that Ja'far is a sorcerer and the Sultan believed him. Ja'far ran away because they were planning to execute him. But then while he's being sad, the other Disney "Villains" (Ursla, Scar, Gaston, Maleficent, Hook, and Cruella)

Why am I air quoting the villains?

Their parts in the song reveal their true intentions and why they are the way they are.

Ursla was a good ruler, but overthrown by her brother, aka Ariel's dad, due to him believing "women should be seen and never heard" (exact line from the song) but she just wanted continue being a good ruler but became a "villain" to get what she lost due to her brother.

Gaston loved Bell and wanted to save her from the "buffalo monster" (his words, not mine) and thought it's unhealthy that she fell in love with the said monster. It is. And it's called Stockholm Syndrome. And if I'm honest, he's got a point. It is unhealthy that she fell in love with a capturer.

Scar was progressive. "Both hyenas and lions lived in perfect harmony" (exact lyrics) but his brother, aka Mufasa, ate his cubs and made him and the hyenas go back. Which is probably the reason he hated Simba, Mufasa ate his cubs and yet he got a cub. He just wanted everyone to be in harmony, yet his brother didn't listen.

Maleficent didn't get much but she got the fact she wanted to be included and invited to the party. "I only wanted to be invited to the party." (Lyrics).

Neither did Hook but he had a point, "I just wanted to teach the boy responsibility!" (Lyrics) and he's got a point, he wanted to teach the lost kids how to be responsible and he also said/sung, "I never knew my father!" (Lyrics) Which is probably implying that he just wanted to be a father figure to them when he never had one.

Cruella... She only got one line and she said, "I only wished to have a coat made out of puppies!" And yeah. Nothing much to say about her.

Now. Why am I bringing all this up? Is it because the musical was great and genuinely made me cry? (It did but that's not the point here)

I would've said cuz connections but there is none. Instead, I'm giving a AU idea.

Azul's cousin is Rielle (or in my case, Ari) and they, Rielle, stole the lounge or something like that when Azul was supposed to have it. Cue Azul overblot pt. 2

Leona is Scar obviously, but it does make sense in this AU that he hates kids. He got his own kid(s) who were y'know... Killed... By his brother. But he also just wanted to live in peace, it doesn't happen.

Gaston is Coach Vargas. I don't really know what to say about him?? Like Stockholm Syndrome... For his lover... I guess you can make a Male! Belle (listen my gay uncle Vargas hc is here and you can't stop me) fall in love with the Buffalo guy who kidnapped him and Vargas is just watching like "Bro.... No."

But for Maleficent... It's already canon for Malleus so it doesn't count.

Hook doesn't have a canon character. But it's implied that the fairies are like Tinkerbell and stuff so... Idk.

Cruella and Crewel... I don't have anything for the two. They're already practically the same... Minus the puppies.

But what about... Ja'far and Jamil? Aladdin dude in RSA probably convinced (more like manipulated but go off Ig.) the Sultan aka Kalim that Jamil is untrustworthy and must be executed. Kalim didn't agree but his parents did so Jamil had to run away before the execution. With Kalim's help of course!

And here we are. The unfortunate paths of them.

The Vizier TWST AU.

... :)

So in conclusion, it's 9:19 pm for me, I'm sick, and I just thought of this for no reason.

I would appreciate if you give any feedback or something but I truly don't care if you don't, I appreciate you for sitting/standing/laying/anything through this random adventure.

And I'm open for any questions, if you want to make a fanfic on this, go ahead. Just tag me cuz I like seeing other works!

Good day/night,

Void aka w4t3rgun

[honeybeeadear]

RSA’s Dorms & Values (Part 1)

(Just wanted to say upfront that none of this content is or is meant to be portrayed as canon! I simply wanted to do own take on what could be Royal Sword Academy’s “Great Seven” and if any of this proves to be either wrong/right in the future, plz don’t hate on me for it!)

As usual, I ended up building a mountain out of a molehill and decided that I wanted to figure out what the Royal Sword Academy's "Great Seven" would be and what each dorm would value in its student body. To make it easier, we'll call these dorms the *insert protagonist name here* dorm and try to stick as much as possible to the films with our current Great Seven.

First up is the "Alice Dorm"!

 Now you might think that the value for this dorm could be curiosity, which I wouldn't blame you for thinking! But as I dug deeper into Alice's character throughout her franchise, I realized that a more proper way to describe her value would be *originality*. Originality, the ability to think independently and creatively, is not only an excellent antithesis to the "severity" of the Queen of Hearts, but it also describes the Wonderland franchise as a whole! As such, I believe this dorm would cherish those that think outside the box, no matter how odd the idea may seem, and that it would be very diverse in terms of talents!

Next is the "Mufasa/Simba Dorm!"!

 For this dorm's value, I decided to go with loyalty! Why loyalty, you may ask? Well, I believe that the movie we love so dearly covers a lot of ground in the variations we see in such matters, such as in our nation, family, friends, and what happens when there is a lack of loyalty! As for how it would affect the dorm itself, I'd like to think that most of the students would have strong moral codes and do their best to help keep the peace around RSA! Who knows, maybe a twisted form of Zazu is the Vice Prefect?

Now the "Ariel Dorm"!

 I went for "passion" for this dorm, mainly because of Ariel's great enthusiasm for learning and collecting information about anything that interested her, specifically the human world, and her dedication to what she desired most: to be part of Eric's world. I'd imagine this dorm to be rather talented in the musical department, but the students are also intense hobbyists that'd prefer to tend to their trinkets than their grades.

The "Aladdin/Jasmine dorm"!

 Hoo boy, this one's tricky. Now, if any of you have read the translations, you'll know that Kalim has already mentioned a hero to which we can assume to be Aladdin, which means that he already has a legacy of sorts in Twisted Wonderland! So it wouldn't be too far-fetched to guess that he would be the main inspiration of this dorm, right? If so, then I would imagine that his value "wit" would leave us with quite a cast of characters! But that's not where this part of the dorm theory ends! If the story of Aladdin is true in Twisted Wonderland, then it must have some description of the royal family he married into, most importantly, the princess! If so, then I believe that this dorm could connect to Princess Jasmine and her value: integrity! In the movie, she shows us how tenacious she is towards her moral standing, refusing to marry for anything less than love, and helping others keep true to themselves! If any of this holds up, then I believe that this dorm would have an "honest thief" theme going on, where there would still be a bit of guile within the student body, but they know when enough is enough and when to think of the greater good!

I’ll talk more about the dorms in the next part, but in the meantime, tell me what you guys think! What is your theory for the RSA “Great Seven”; do any of my ideas stand out; what kind of characters would you want to see at each dorm?

[bitchybutcher]

Texts I sent a friend the first time I watched The Boys, Season 2:

-        Gird your loins

-        I’m dying to know more about Black Noir

-        Ugh ffs Homelander smarming about on stage at Translucents funeral

-        It’s an empty box but I suppose how would people know cause invisible corpse

-        WHY IS ANNIE SINGING AT THE INVISIBLE PERVS FUNERAL

-        Aw no straight in with Sad Kevin

-        Oh ok angry drunk Kevin

-        Ugh not these Samaritans Embrace fuckers again

-        Oh Annie. Parroting the company line. I hope she’s gonna fuck them all over

-        SAD HUGHIE OH NO

-        BILLY JOOOOOELLLL

-        Aw Kimiko is learning

-        Her lil smile

-        Oooh Hughie is a liiiiiar

-        Meeting on the subway like a couple shifty teenagers

-        Oh I forgot they microchipped the supes like dogs

-        Oh nooooo young love angst

-        Oh no a Sad Kevin incident

-        Aaaaand he’s been arrested

-        A nice archer bailed him out

-        Omfg the fake Butcher re-enactment

-        Oh do NOT tell me this crazy bastard is gonna drink the frozen breast milk

-        Oh fuck he is

-        What the FUCK, HOMELANDER

-        This visually impaired ninja seems nice

-        That probably means he’s gonna turn out to be a dick

-        OH FUCK

-        Homelander what the fuuuuuck

-        Ok what the shit is happening here in the motel

-        WHAT

-        What the fuuuuuck

-        I – MM is making a dolls house? That’s so cute

-        Oh shit smuggled people

-        Homelander is nuts with power

-        Uhhhh who is Carol and why is she staring at Kevin while he sleeps

-        Finally an archer who is honest about how useless they can be once they run out of arrows

-        Oh noooo are they gonna try brainwash Kevin with homeopathic stuff? And why do they keep offering him Fresca

-        OH FUCK ME NOT ANOTHER RELIGION THING

-        Oh Hughie has grown a pair since last season. Good for him

-        Where’s Butcherrrrrrrr

-        Body gore porn dude is called Gecko that’s too cute a name for him

-        Stormfront seems like fun

-        She’s gonna be pissing off Homelander so much I like her already

-        OH WHAT THE FUCK THE CIA LADYS HEAD EXPLODED

-        I like Stan

-        Giving Homelander the dressing down he needs

-        I know it’s convenient for Toni to wear the padded suit all the time but does Homelander ever wear anything else

-        Oh hiiii Becca I still think you’re a bitch and Butcher deserved better

-        BUTCHERRRRR YASSSSS

-        “Daddy’s home”

-        I’m dead. It’s official.

-        The fuckin smirk and the voice I’m fuckin dead

-        OH NO KEVIN IS TRYING THE CHURCH THING

-        Is he making shroom tea

-        Why is Patton Oswalt voicing Kevin’s gills this is delightful

-        Atrain is awake again that’s not good

-        I’m cracking up at Sad Kevin and his singing gills

-        Homelander is gone way off the deep end oh boy

-        Awwww soft Maeve in the hospital with her girlfriend

-        I want to like Becca but I can’t shake the bad feeling

-        Homelander is a terrible father

-        I mean I know he has no role models to base his parenting on, but yikes

-        It’s like if Scar was raising Simba instead of Mufasa

-        ….are the gang raiding a party city store

-        I love how Frenchie always looks a mix of horrified and amazed whenever Kimiko kills someone

-        AWWW IT’S HER BROTHER YAY

-        Oh shiiiiiiiit

-        Butcher STOP JUST SHOOTING PEOPLE

-        You were right this season is weird

-        I like Kimiko’s brothers bedazzled denim jacket

-        Butcher don’t punch Hughie wtf

-        Starting with Hughie listening to the same song again, nice

-        Butcher is terrible at apologising it’s so cute

-        I’m sorry did Hughie just fall over trying to throw a punch

-        The kid’s a dandelion omg

-        Why are they on a boat? Did Karl just decide “I like being on boats lemme go on a boat”?

-        I see what you mean about Homelander being scary

-        He’s completely insane

-        Why does this storyboard guys shirt say assbinder

-        Chace Crawford is an excessively veiny man

-        BLACK NOIR IS CRYING

-        Or possibly laughing

-        Hard to tell when they have no face

-        Annie actually leaked all the compound V stuff good for her

-        FRENCHIE KISSED HUGHIE

-        Homelander is gonna get this kid killed tryna make him fly

-        Honestly the kid looks more like Hughie

-        OH MY GOD HE PUSHED HIM OFF THE ROOF

-        OH MY SWEET FUCKING JESUS HOMELANDER YOU CAN’T DO THAT

-        Oop there’s the laser eyes

-        Oh Homelander is back at the Tower and freaking Maeve out

-        OH FUCK THE BROTHER IS LOOSE

-        Hughie don’t do it

-        Oh ok I thought he was gonna jump off the boat

-        Kevin and the cult weirdos are up to something

-        Hughie no you don’t call the girl you like crying over Billy Joel lyrics

-        Oh god boyo you don’t then drop the L word in the same voice message!

-        He’s hopeless

-        Oh nooooo Kevin is attacking the boat goddammit Kevin

-        OH FUCK A WHALE

-        For fuck sake Kevin

-        Ewwwww

-        Butcher what the fuck

-        Hughie having a nervous breakdown inside of a whale

-        No but why is Karl so hot covered in blood

-        Actually I didn’t even need to include the blood part of that question

-        Oh boy here we go, the 7 show up to find Sad Kevin crying over spilt whale

-        ….why is Stormfront tryna get all up in Homelander’s ass?? I thought she was cool but now she’s all lemme suck that radioactive dick

-        OH NO

-        Poor Kevin he’s worked so hard to accept his gills and now Homelander has knocked him back down

-        Oooo dear Atrain is having a heart attack again this isn’t good

-        Oh fuck is Hughie gon get caught

-        Oh no it’s Annie it’s ok

-        OH FUCK

-        ANNIE WHY

-        THAT’S YOUR HUGHIE

-        OH MAN KIMIKO’S BROTHER IS BADASS YES SQUASH THE SMUG PRICK

-        Oh I do NOT like Stormfront holy fuckin shit what’s wrong with this woman

-        Poor Kimiko

-        What’s with the random woman talking about calling off her wedding?

-        Why is Frenchie taking drugs

-        FUCK SAKE FRENCHIE DON’T TRY KISS A GIRL WHEN SHE’S GRIEVING

-        What the FUCK is thiiiiis

-        Is he dreaming or is this the shapeshifter tryna stay alive by granting Homelander some sick wish

-        Yikes I feel bad for Doppelganger

-        I am fascinated by whoever and whatever the fuck Black Noir is

-        MM sees right through everyone’s bullshit

-        I feel so bad for Annie

-        Ooooo Atrain getting fired

-        MM having to put up with Hughie and Annie having a we didn’t start the fire singalong 😂

-        Ok who’s in the weird group therapy sesh with these women with strange views on love

-        Vending machine date so cute

-        Omfg ahahahaha the girl with the Ed Sheeran tattoo

-        I really want to like Becca cause she stands up to Homelander but I can’t shake the suspicions about her

-        I feel bad for Butcher

-        Homelander is a scary good liar

-        Oh shit interviewer lady is pulling out the diversity questions

-        OH FUCK

-        HE’S OUTED MAEVE

-        Poor Maeve what the fuck

-        Ugh Stormfront

-        Shut your racist hole bitch

-        Oh shit Kimiko on the warpath

-        Frenchie! Kimiko listen to him he’s tryna help

-        MM is doing a lotta sharing this episode

-        Ohhhh something bad is gonna come out about this Liberty lady they’re looking for oh fuck

-        Wait WHAT. STORMFRONT IS LIBERTY

-        Stormfront is like 70????

-        She’s really good with social media for an old bird

-        Ohhh fuck Homelander is pisssssssssed

-        Christ you’d know Homelander was an only child

-        Bitch you better not be fucking Butcher over

-        I FUCKIN KNEW IT

-        BECCA YOU RAGING BITCH

-        Got her goodbye fuck then called the supercops on him cause he’s a little broken? FUCK BECCA

-        Oh no Annie don’t give Hughie the “we can’t do this” talk

-        Pick your emo ass up and stop being melodramatic

-        All these women are chatting to Kevin?? Why??

-        Also this most recent one is super weird

-        THEY WERE INTERVIEWING TO BE KEVINS WIFE

-        This cult thing is so fuckin weird omfg

-        KEVIN GET YOUR SAD BUTT OUT OF THE CULT

-        Oh gross not the Doppelganger shit again

-        Doppelganger is really bad at flirting

-        ….

-        WHAT THE SHIT

-        Nonononono don’t do the selfcest

-        Not even Homelander is that fucked up

-        This is super weird

-        Why is Homelander crying

-        OH SHIT HE KILLED HIM

-        Uhhhh are they doing a lesbian scene in a vcu movie

-        Christ that was terrible and way too on the nose

-        “Strong female lesbians”

-        Homelander you himbo fuck what other kind of lesbian do you get

-        I feel bad for Ashley

-        She just wants to do her job well

-        Poor Butcher. His lil heart is broken

-        Oh no baby you’re hurt and upset? That’s so sad let me suck your dick about it

-        Oh no what’s he gonna do

-        BUTCHER WHAT THE SHIT

-        I mean it’s really fuckin hot but still

-        There’s always a cut on the cheekbone

-        “They’ve been moving her around like a Catholic priest” omg HUGHIE

-        Aww he called Hughie his canary

-        Oh shit are Frenchie and Kimiko missing?

-        KEVIN GOT MARRIED

-        BILLY HAS AN AUNTIE

-        Doggiiiiie

-        Awwwww soft Butcher with his dog

-        Aaaand now I feel bad for Atrain cause he’s being kicked to the curb

-        Oh gross this interview with Kevin and his cult wife

-        This is so cringe holy fuck

-        Bring back the Patton Oswalt gills

-        Why are the gangsters discussing musicals specifically Hamilton

-        FUCKING HELL KIMIKO PEELED OFF THAT GUYS FACE

-        Ahahaha the boys showed up at Butchers aunties house

-        The dog’s name is Terror that’s so cute

-        Hahahaha Hughie was holding the fuck pig

-        Why is there a sniper on the roof

-        Oh shit it’s Black Noir

-        Ugh what does Annie’s mom want and why is Stormfront being her friend

-        Oh hey it’s dickless

-        These two writer dudes are hella irritating

-        Poor Elena getting dragged into this shit

-        Yes Maeve scheme against his ass

-        Heartbroken Butcher is so tired

-        He needs a hug

-        Hughie give Butcher a hug please

-        Why is Kimiko in a church

-        Oh hey its Frenchie’s other girlfriend

-        Oh ok Kimiko is doing hits that’s fair

-        The old man just looking away like “I do not see it”

-        Aw no Frenchie don’t break up with Kimiko

-        Oh fuck off Cult Kevin

-        Stormfront again?????

-        Does this bitch ever fuck off

-        DID SHE JUST CALL ATRAIN GARBAGE

-        Wait why is Homelander giving an unapproved speech

-        This is gonna end in someone getting murdered isn’t it

-        OH FUCK

-        That’s a lot more murder than I expected

-        Ohhhh phew ok he was just daydreaming

-        Ashley is gonna go bald from stress

-        I adore grumpy Butcher

-        Omg auntie Judy is a drug dealer I love her

-        Ohhhh shit Homelander is having a nervous breakdown

-        BOBBY FROM X-MEN????

-        Uhhhh why is Homelander talking to Stormfront this can’t be good

-        Ooh MM set a trap this gon be good

-        BUTCHER HAS A BROTHER???? THAT HUGHIE IS LIKE

-        Oop Lenny is dead

-        The random explosions as Black Noir trips the traps

-        Oh shit Butcher locked the others out to face Black Noir alone

-        YES MM

-        OH NO MM

-        YES HUGHIE

-        Oh fuck did he KO Butcher

-        Shiiiit shit shit shit

-        Yes Butcher save your Hughie

-        Oh good they all survived

-        For fuck sake Kevin stop with the cult shit

-        Maeve please save Kevin from the cult

-        Annie why are you sneaking around don’t do it

-        There’s a lot of shots of Annie’s bum

-        What the fuck is Sage Grove

-        Stormfront needs to go choke on a bag of dicks

-        Oh fuck no not Homelander again

-        Uhhhhhhh

-        Stormfront x Homelander was not what I was expecting

-        These two have the WEIRDEST relationship

-        They’re gonna do some really fucked up supe bdsm shit aren’t they

-        Frenchie is Betty White. Fair enough

-        Wait what is happening. Why is Annie letting Frenchie at her with a lil saw

-        Ohhh the chip

-        “This might sting a little” FRENCHIE IT’S A FUCKIN SAW

-        Oh fuck that’s a big chip

-        Oh look it’s loves psychotic dream

-        Well that’s suitably gross

-        Aww Kimiko hugging Annie

-        Butcher is so menacing I love him

-        Kevin tryna be helpful to his buddies he’s so cute

-        NO! NO BAD KEVIN! STOP TRYING TO MAKE PEOPLE JOIN YOUR CULT

-        Kimiko with her brass knuckle

-        Oh man, flowers??? Homelander has it BAD

-        Annie back the fuck off and leave Butcher alone

-        OH SHIT IT’S STORMFRONT AT THE HOSPITAL NOOOO

-        What the fuck is going on at this hospital

-        OH FUCK BOBBY FROM X-MEN IS LAMPLIGHTER

-        Oh shit who got let out

-        What does Cindy do

-        OH SHIT SHE’S THE HEAD BURSTER

-        Aaaaaaand now they’re all out

-        Good job, guys

-        Ewwwwww acid vomit

-        OH NO HUGHIE

-        Are you kidding me?? Annie can’t go all Starlight unless there’s a power source in the immediate vicinity??

-        What kinda fuckin shite superpower is that

-        Aha Butcher agrees with me

-        Ok so I’m guessing Homelander went berserk on set

-        Uhhhh apparently Cult Lunch is a therapy sesh?

-        Atrain get outta there

-        This cult leader guy is an arsehole

-        Hospital escape lookin like a horror survival game

-        Awwww flashbacks to happy times

-        Omfg Butcher with the slicked back hair

-        Welp, Annie just killed a guy

-        Oh shit a baby seat

-        Annie is gonna have a bad case of the guilts now

-        Oh fuck ok Lamplighter killed the kids by accident

-        So Frenchie went to save his friend instead of tailing

-        Oh god that’s the penis isn’t it

-        Stormfront to the…rescue? Maybe? She’s gonna kill Lamplighter isn’t she

-        Oh, no ok she didn’t kill him

-        Aw no sad Butcher cause Hughie’s hurt

-        Oh nooooo Elena found a video from the plane

-        Mallory gon kill sad Lamplighter?

-        Stormfront is coming clean to Homelander? Whaaaa

-        She was buddies with the Nazis??? SHE WAS MARRIED TO THE VOUGHT FOUNDER GUY

-        Oh fuck the head burster is still alive

-        A montage of how Stormfront is brainwashing people into racist attacks, nice

-        I hate Annie’s mom so much

-        Black Noir has just fuckin LAMPED Annie

-        Butchers mum called him 😂😂

-        Oh shit his dad died

-        Why are Hughie and Lamplighter watching knock off supe porn

-        Oh boy a racist rally

-        Homelander just threw Annie under the bus

-        Hughie that’s a really weird pep talk

-        And he’s gonna get Lamplighter killed

-        BUTCHERS MUM IS ADORABLE

-        Oh shit it’s Denethor

-        And he’s not dead

-        Oh fuck he’s why Lenny died?

-        Shit Lenny shot himself

-        Butcher was SAS???

-        WHERE ARE MY PICS OF BUTCHER IN HIS ARMY UNIFORM

-        Ah fuck he’s bringing stepmommy Stormfront to meet the kid

-        I have an urge to run my fingers through Butchers beard

-        Frenchie and Kimiko are too cute she’s teaching him her sign language

-        Is this a cult birthday party?

-        Poor Eagle the Archer. He pissed off the cult so he’s gon be excommunicated

-        Uhhhh kiddo made a Lego film?

-        Good for him

-        I know it shouldn’t be sexy when Butcher starts threatening to brutally murder people in his growly voice, I know, but hear me out: sexy growly voice

-        11/10 would let Karl Urban murder me

-        Oh FUCK Lamplighter killed himself

-        Poor Hughie

-        Why do all the bad things happen to him, like having to saw off a dead guy’s hand with a broken whiskey decanter

-        Annie versus Black Noir, beat his/her ass girl!

-        HUGHIE COME SAVE YOUR ANNIE

-        YAY MAEVE

-        Black Noir has an almond allergy that’s such an off the wall weakness

-        Annie’s favourite chocolate bar saved her life

-        Well Maeve did, technically. But still

-        Omg Hughie accidentally saving Annie’s mom

-        Hughie and Annie are too cute

-        Oh shiiiiit Homelander screwed the pooch and showed the kid everything

-        HAHA SUCK IT BECCA

-        OH SHIT HEADS ARE BURSTING ALL OVER THE PLACE

-        Butcher in his lil jumper

-        For a non-American, this school safety psa video is supremely weird

-        BOBBY FROM SUPERNATURALS CHARACTER IS CALLED BOB

-        BOBBY FROM SUPERNATURALS CHARACTER IS JUST BOBBY FROM SUPERNATURAL BUT FANCY

-        Annie’s mom critiquing her choice in boyfriends while in mortal danger is gas

-        And typical

-        The lads going nuts with weapons they’re so happy look at them

-        And Butcher in his lil jumper again he looks so comfy

-        I would very much like to cuddle him in the soft jumper and give him beard scritches

-        Annie ffs let Hughie enjoy his Billy Joel, that’s a good choice

-        Ahahaha Maeve just called Hughie a twink

-        She’s not wrong

-        Oh fuck off Becca

-        Uuuuugh OF COURSE Mr Edgar is in with the cult

-        Oop Atrain overheard all of that

-        Poor Ashley she’s going bald from stress

-        The kid is gonna have a meltdown

-        Poor Hughie with his mom leaving

-        I wonder if she’ll pop up at some point and turn out to be a supe that would be fun

-        ATRAIN YOU CAN’T JUST APPEAR IN A CAR LIKE THAT YOU COULDA KILLED SOMEONE

-        Hold the phone is Homelander actually being a good dad for a minute

-        What the actual fuck is Stormfront on with this white genocide shit

-        Ahahaha the news broke

-        Uh oh the Vought soldiers got caught by Homelander

-        OH SHIT

-        MM BETTER BE OK

-        Becca fuckin constantly squawking about Ryan is so annoying

-        WHY IS KIMIKO LAUGHING

-        It’s adorable but still

-        Oh FUCK she snapped her neck

-        She’ll be fine

-        She’s like a wolverine, snapped neck won’t keep her down

-        AYYYYY MAEVE

-        The lads just watching them kicking the shit out of her like uhhh

-        Oh hey Becca did something useful and stabbed the Nazi in the eye

-        Huh. The kid melted Stormfront

-        Good for him

-        AHAHAHA YES HE GOT BECCA TOO

-        BYEEEEE FELICIAAAAA

-        I mean yeah, heartbroken sad Butcher isn’t nice to see, but Becca sucked

-        Aaaand now Homelander covered in blood has arrived to listen to Stormfront babble in German

-        This is like in those scenes where it’s like oh who will the dog go to

-        Ayyy Atrain got back into the 7

-        Aww poor Kevin getting rejected again

-        See Kevin this is why we don’t join cults

-        Annie thought he was breaking up with her, girl don’t be daft

-        Butcher and the kid, not awkward at all

-        The one lesson Butcher can teach a kid – “don’t be a cunt”

-        Aww happy endings for all the boys

-        Aaaaand a “happy ending” for Homelander too by the looks of it

-        Oh ffs a corrupt politician in with the cult, what a surprise

-        HIS HEAD BURST

-        Wait the politician lady is the head burster? I’m so confused

-        Confusion may have been aided by it being almost 3am

-        Hughie getting a real job, bless him

-        Too bad it’s with the head burster

-        Oh this is such a good song to end the season with

-        Welp, now begins the long wait for season 3, I guess

-        Should I sleep or find fic to read

-        Body says sleep, heart says fic

-        That’s a lie, heart says Butcher

-        ….Butcher fics it is

[pizzaboat]

After a particular bad storm, Luz and king decide to have a movie night..

It should be fun, but Luz just hopes the two adults joining them don't kill each other in the next 2 hours...

"No way, I'd rather clean Hooty than watch some goofy kids movie"

"But Edaaa!" The teen whined, "There's nothing else to watch, and the storm nocked out all the power!"

Sure the power was out. Courtesy of the terrible weather. The magical grid through out the building had been temporarily shut off for hooty's safety, and so most things in the house had stopped working. But that wasn't a good enough reason for Eda to sacrifice napping time.

Eda watched as the human brought the box containing some human *VHS tape* titled "The Lion king" up to display. 

"Come on Its a classic," Luz pleaded, " and you agreed, after some persuasion-"

- Manipulation." 

"-that you'd do something with me and King," Luz pointed, "And you said I could pick. I pick movie night."

"Hey, I say alot of things. Doesn't make 'em true." Eda said with a shrug, "And don't even try to give me any puppy dog eyes kid, I'm immune now."

Luz pouted, and Eda watched as an idea formed on the girls face. Never a good sign..

"Well," Luz said, "You think your tough, but it'd be a shame if anyone in town found out you secretly like hugs!"

"You wouldn't dare," Eda gasped, "They'd never believe you!"

"Oh really? Try me." Luz challenged.

Damn it. Blackmail. She really was her kid. Eda knew teaching her would come back to bite her in the ass.

"Fine," She sighed, "But if anyone starts singing, I'm out."

"That might be a problem.. since it's a musical,"

Titan damn it.

***

And that's how thirty minutes later everyone was gathered in the living room as Luz stuffed human candies into some contraption and King dragged an assortment of snacks to the sofa, throwing them on the coffee table.

Even Lilith had been dragged out of her cave for the night.

"I didn't know you were interested in this stuff," King said to her sister as she settled in the furthest side of the couch, away from everyone else.

"Of course I'm not," She told him, "This is the only room in the house with sufficient enough lighting to read my book."

"If you say so," He muttered.

Eda plopped down onto the couch, opposite to her;

"Yeah, Lily's a nerd," She yawned, pulling a blanket over her self and settling in, "She doesn't do fun. So don't expect her to thrive in social situations."

"I'm not a nerd!" The other woman glared, " I'm trying to research a cure. For our curses."

"Save it," Eda snorted, "I'm fine the way I am, no thanks to you."

"I split the curse, what more do you want?"

"for you to take some damn accountability." 

"How can I do that if you don't let me!?"

"I don't care, figure it out!"

"OK!" Luz cut in with fake enthusiasm, "The movies starting! Who's excited!?"

Eda snapped her gaze to the teen. The two adults had missed the worried looks both Luz and King had been giving them as things had escalated.

Eda felt a wave of guilt, as Luz wormed her way into her side, deviding the two sisters in the hopes of preventing some all out fist fight, she guessed. Eda wrapped an arm around the girl hugging her back as the movie started and music played.

"Hey king, pass some snacks up," Luz whispered.

 

"Get your own, peasant," He whispered back.

***

Lilith had tried her best to focuse on words of the book infront of her in the flickering candle light, but her gaze always wandered back to the small box set on the coffee table infront of them.

The demon had been scolded multiple times by the other two, as he always managed to sit himself directly infront of the screen every five minutes, completely engrossed in its contents.

Lilith didn't do musicals. She hated them. Always had.

Edalyns loud complaints and groans of annoyance when the characters had broke into song, were more obnoxious than the movie its self.

That was new.. wasn't Edalyn big into musicals back when they both were in school?

The human had sung along to every word, boasting that she knew the lyrics to all the "Disney songs," What ever the hell a Disney was, Lilith didn't know. And she didn't want to find out.

Lilith had also noticed the wary glances the human sent her every now and then, as if she thought Lilith would pounce on them all. Lilith couldn't blame them for that one, so she did her best to keep her gaze anywhere else but the rest of the room, and focused back in on her book.

***

King could sympathise with the young creatures desire to become king and rule over all those bellow him. The young lion was the most relatable main character he'd ever seen. Much better than those characters from Luz's books. 

Someone hungry for status much like himself. Though King was already a king. Feared by all.

He clapped when Simba scratched the hyenas face. These animals names were weird he decided though. Lions. Hyenas. Elephants. The movie had even featured those freaks, the giraffes.

He understood the feeling of helplessness when both Simba and his companions had been trapped In the elephants grave yard, only to be saved by Simba's father Mufasa.

He gasped when he discovered Scar's plan to usurp his brother. Maybe Luz had chosen a good movie after all...

***

The human whiped tears from her eyes, then continued to blubber. King wailed clutching his stuffed animal. Even Edalyn seemed somewhat moved, though she didn't show it much.

The father had died apparently. Betrayed by his brother. Lured into a trap by his trusted sibling. His son used against him as bait.

OK maybe that one hit close to home. Hadn't she lured her sister to a witches duel using their apprentice against them? Seeing the broken form of the betrayed, forced images of what could have happened into Lilith's mind, and she suppressed a shudder.

Edalyn petrified. Luz skewered.

It hit her just how close she had come to getting both her sister and her sister's apprentice killed.

Damn it. She'd lost her page.

***

These guys had the right idea, "Hakuna matata", no worries. If society decides your not worth it, why not atleast relax and try to have a good time with your friends. Screw it. Y'know?

Maybe that's what she would've thought even a month ago. But she wasn't so sure that was such a great message to send kids. Abandon responsibly. She knew predictably that the movie would correct this. She was proved right of course.

***

Luz's excitement bubbled towards the end. She'd seen the movie a thousand times when she was younger. But big confrontations were always exhilarating to watch.

Though less fun when your the one confronting things in real life, that's where the beauty of fiction comes in; She was in the mood to enjoy some nice old fashioned living through fictional characters. No danger. Just movies and her family. And Lilith. She wasn't sure why Lilith was In the owl house. Not because of the storm. Just in general.

Luz would have figured Lilith would have found somewhere to stay by now. But it might be difficult for her, what with the Emperors Coven declaring her a wanted criminal, while the rest of them had been pardoned. A selfish part of Luz wished she'd just leave anyway. Her skin always crawled when the woman was around. 

Luz felt bad about this. But it didn't stop her from occasionally thinking it.

She caught a glimpse of the woman In question, when Scar had been left to be killed by the hyenas. Lilith look paler than what seemed possible with her already ivory complexion. Her gaze fixed on the old mini TV. Was she rooting for Scar or something?

Luz wouldn't be surprised.

***

The villian had recieved what he deserved. To be vanquished by his enimies. 

Lilith felt sick thinking of the similarities between her and the character.

Jealousy. Ambition. Cunning. The will to do what ever it takes. 

She knew they were different. But she couldn't help but wonder what could've happend if she were more like this "Scar" character. 

Titan. She thought this was just a kid's movie.

***

The movie finished. Eda had fallen asleep towards the end only to be gently shaken awake by Luz after. The movie hadn't been bad. She'd even enjoyed it, Eda wouldn't admit that to anyone though. Not in a million years.

Luz said goodnight with a tight, crushing hug, then carried King to bed. The little guy must have conked out at some point into the film. 

Movie night accomplished and no one had even died. A win if ever there was one.

They would clean up in the morning but for now sleep, she made her way to leave as well but was stopped by her sister.

"Edalyn, I think we should talk.."