#2020s teen dramas

[joslincox]

Spryman On The News (Ozzy & Drix (2022) Season 1 Episode 11; Game Of Likes)

[thebirdandhersong]

The appeal of OUAT is that it's FUN. Those 2010s fantasy shows with low budgets, slightly wonky and slightly grungy CG, and some of the wackiest costume and set designs you've ever seen (OUAT, Pushing Daisies, Alice Syfy) are good because they a) are about true and beautiful things despite the Horrors, and b) they're FUN.

[blackcatfilmprod]

Hi Guys,

Fangirl Reviews is back with more reviews for you. Today we are review the remade tv series The Baby-sitters Club HERE. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYpFk0d_NdI&t=2s via YouTube

[jjsanguine]

Date me Bryson Keller × Ìfẹ́

It would be either terrible or the book/film of 17 year old me's dreams.

DMBK takes place over like 2 weeks and Ìfẹ́ over like 2 days, so we'll go in the middle and have The Mix™ happen over a week.

The boys in DMBK are in secondary school and the ladies in Ìfẹ́ are in their mid to late twenties, so the mix can have them be in University.

DMBK happens in America and Ìfẹ́ in Nigeria so the mix can have the plot happen on an ACS/Black student Union field trip or something. The ACS at my university absolutely did not have the money for week long trips, but I'm assuming one at a school with more than like 10 black people would. I don't know how either American or Nigerian universities work so it's whatever.

Both DMBK and Ìfẹ́ have one party whose family is queer affirming and another whose family isn't. DMBK is a teen romcom, so they got over it in like 2 days. Ìfẹ́ had an open ending but it's like la Haine where technically we don't know what happens but like, come on.

I'm going to conflate Ìfẹ́ + Bryson and Kai + Adaora because of this. So the characters are going to be Bọ́sẹ̀dé "Boss" and Kachiside "Kachi".

Alright, here's the story:

Boss and Kachi both go to Fairdale University. They're going on a trip organised by the ACS that formally is about [insert networking or academic opportunity related to writing here] but practically speaking, it's to have fun and maybe hook up. Boss is there for fun but Kachi's legitimately there for the school stuff.

Kachi signed up for a shared room because he can't afford a private one. He panics a bit upon finding out the vaguely androgynous Boss is actually a girl but impulsively agrees to room together anyway. Boss decides to take [insert school stuff] more seriously upon seeing Kachi, who she vaguely knows as kind of a wallflower, basically leaping out of his comfort zone in order to be able to stay in the trip.

Kachi's parents would not approve of this arrangement so he tells them he's rooming with a guy and makes up an excuse as to why Boss can't come to the phone. Boss goes shopping in Kachi's suitcase in order to sell this lie on a video call.

Kachi videocalls his friends Dani and Prakash to see if they think Boss is convincing. They think Boss is Kachi's boyfriend and are more surprised that he was able to find a boyfriend immediately than Kachi's bisexuality. Kachi is shocked because he though the closet was opaque, but also relieved he no longer has to hide from his friends. Boss is also surprised, but is supportive.

Boss's friend Diamond comes to hang out at some point because Boss is suddenly spending a lot of time with this Kachi person. Diamond is displeased about Boss getting close enough with a guy to wear his clothes without sharing the gist, and also that Boss is clearly not wearing this man's clothes in a tee hee my boyfriend's clothes are so big on me kind of way. Diamond unsubtly implies that Kachi only suggested this whole scheme because he likes boys, but Boss brushes this off.

Sean is another student who is on the trip in order to get close to Boss and hopefully date her. He and Diamond decide work together to find some reason to get Boss away from Kachi.

Boss and Kachi have been spending every lunchtime working on [insert school stuff], and Boss has started to get endeared by Kachi absentmindedly chewing pencils. The delivery driver mistakenly believes the two to be a couple which makes them both blush, but they correct her. The driver gives Boss her number and Boss clarifies that she's a girl. The wlw driver knew this, so Boss starts getting contemplative.

Boss calls her own family worriedly after her brother is in a minor car accident. Boss's brother Kányin is surprised that Kachi and not Diamond is the one being confusing to Boss at that time. Boss asks why and the Kányin concedes that he kind of assumed Boss had a thing for Diamond. Kányin notices Boss is dressed differently to usual and pointedly says he'd be supportive of she was a different flavour of queer.

Boss + Kachi try to do some [insert school stuff] to take their minds off things but end up telling each other their life stories. Boss about struggling with her parents divorce due to her mother's infidelity, being strong armed into hiding it, and the strain on her relationship with her father. Kachi talks about being mixed worrying about his brother becoming a shell of himself after entering an abusive relationship, and the pressure on Kachi to get into relationship himself since his parents wanted grandchildren.

After talking for a long while they end up staring at each other (as you do) and both blurt out that they might like the other. And then they kiss :). And then they probably engage in heavy petting but like, I'm not a romance novelist. Dani and Prakash gush about being able to go on double dates upon hearing about this.

The second to last day of the trip Boss and Kachi go to a small concert and take some pictures at a photo booth. Sean and Diamond are displeased to see that Boss and Kachi are clearly on a date. They surreptitiously take pictures of them and edit out Boss's face so it looks like Kachi is kissing a random guy. They then drop these doctored images in the trip's BaceFook album.

Kachi freaks out because he didn't want his parents to know, but Boss uploads the photo booth pictures as proof that Kachi is 100% Straight™. She also slaps Diamond and punches Sean. Dani's parents work with the organiser of [insert school stuff] and will be easily persuaded not to consider either Diamond or Sean for [insert opportunity] after they tried to defame Kachi, who is like a son to them. Boss still has disciplinary action waiting at the University though (rip)

When everyone's filing of of the bus or train or whatever after getting back to the University, Diamond sends Boss a message. Boss means to ignore the message's contents as she goes to block Diamond, but she is too curious. The message is a Instagram post captioned from Kachi's fiance, Inaya.

Kachi maintains that the relationship is not serious or rather not real at all, merely a way to get his parents off his back. He also maintains that Inaya knows this. Boss wants to believe him, especially since Kachi's friends know if Inaya but werr happy Kachi had an apparent boyfriend.

but even if he's telling the truth, boss is disamayed because Kachi and Inaya look good together. Inaya isn't the same size as Kachi and more willing and able to get into a physical fight. Kachi's parents clearly approve of Inaya whereas all Boss's interactions with them have included major lies by omission. Plus, rooming with Kachi wasn't the first time she'd been mistaken for a guy,,, Boss was visibly queer before she herself clocked that she was queer, while Kachi never planned to come out.

Dani and Prakash had come to pick up Kachi and are eager to meet Boss, which she finds comforting after suddenly being on non speaking terms with Diamond. Kachi's parents see the BaceFook album and start blowing up his phone, which he switches off.

In the back seat, Kachi chews on his pen as he writes and scribbles out ideas for how to formally break things off with Inaya without making Boss look like a homewrecker.

Boss leans her head on Kachi's shoulder and blinks away a tear. She thinks to herself, this might be a bad idea but I still want to see where this goes.

[schlock-luster-video]

On May 14, 2021, North Hollywood debuted in the United States.

[annabelle--cane]

i wasn’t here when tma reached the height of its popularity (i only joined last year) so could you describe the Vibes (how bad the drama was, did it feel like there were too many people, etc.)

only if you want to :]

I've said this before, so this may be a familiar spiel to longer term followers, but 2020 tma fandom was honestly not the worst fandom I've ever been in, it was just by far the biggest thing I have ever been actively into at peak popularity and so the 1% of insane people that are found in every fan space were 1% of a much bigger total population. most people were fine and chill, but there were a vocal minority who Weren't.

major ingredients in the discourse pot:

from my observations, tma had a small but devoted listener base for its first few years, then it got a little bump in mid 2018, then a considerable bump in late 2019, then hit proper virality in early 2020, so there were a lot of people with hipster complexes about being Real Fans who were there first and weren't just part of the masses.

at this point I'm not even sure if this part was true, but the above was compounded by the perception that the earlier og listener base were mostly adults and the new wave of fans were mostly tweens and teens. whether the different waves actually fell along those age lines or not, a lot of people felt like the fandom was split into 80% Cringe Zoomers Who Are Here For Ships And Memes and 20% Millennials and Gen X'ers With Media Literacy Who Are Here For Horror. nice dichotomy, idiot, now what lies outside it, etc and such and such. our blessed fandom etiquette vs their barbarous dni lists.

which isn't to say that suddenly having a huge number of people, including young people, become interested in a single piece of media at a time of global stress where everyone had to be much more online and the content of the media itself was at its darkest and most socially relevant had no downsides. oh no. Oh No.

"my headcanon is not only objectively the best headcanon but it actually invalidates all of yours and if you hc something different then it's an act of bigotry against my Correct Headcanon." / "I have drawn up a list of Good Characters you have to like and aren't allowed to criticize and a list of Bad Characters you have to hate and can't acknowledge exist unless it's to make fun of and completely condemn them." / "I saw her username in the kudos of a jonelias fic" "girl what were YOU doing in the kudos of a jonelias fic" / "this latest episode handled a social issue unforgivably badly, I haven't experienced it myself but the vibes were off, everyone demand accountability and boycott the rest of the show" "hey that one was actually based on jonny's personal experiences" "ah fuck not again. well boys let's remember this for next time. this latest epis--"

honestly most of the discourse was down to like two or three friend groups. there was one group of people who you will probably remember if you were there at the time whom I have sometimes seen referred to as the Clown Gang. Clown Gang were ground zero for a good 90% of fan discourse ("hcing melanie as ace is ableist and lesbophobic" "fan content that focuses on jon's asexuality is biphobic. what's pansexuality I've never heard of it." "desolation tim aus are inherently ableist and racist"), but eventually they had a big falling out with Clown Prime and things calmed down. to be very clear I hold no ill will towards any of these people for four year old bad takes, hence why I'm not using any names, but god was it a time.

and this is only about the tumblr side of things. I was barely active of twitter so idk what it was like there but I was on tiktok for about a year during that time and the vibes were wildly different. iirc people there were less confrontational and there wasn't really a callout culture like on tumblr, but the extremes of the takes were FAR worse.

[joslincox]

"Since when do teenagers become detectives?"

- Joslin Smith-Simpson (Osmosis Jones; 2021)

[redfortbear]

Iran Malfitano pedindo biscoito dos podolatras no Instagram 🤣🤣🤣

Iran Malfitano (Brazilian actor, got famous for a teen drama in the 2000s, turned into a daddy in the 2020s) wanting some attention from foot fetishists hehehe

[so-i-did-this-thing]

What is All Creatures Great & Small about?

Hi!

ACGAS started off as a book series by James Herriott (pen name). It is a fictionalized autobiography of a British veterinarian mostly in 1930s-40s (later eras do happen) rural England. His writing style is very accessible and full of humor, but at the same time, can get very graphic about the realities of his practice. (Content warning for a lot of animal death.)

It's a lovely snippet of pre-war and wartime England through a mostly small-scale agricultural lens. While I'm unsure if the author had specific themes in mind, a big one is the resiliency of the Dales farmers in the face of tremendous change (automation, war, etc.)

The books focus a lot on various animal cases and sparked a love for the career in a lot of vets even today. (I myself considered large animal practice as a teen, specifically horses.)

The books got adapted into a long running series in 1978 (when the inspiration for many of the characters were still alive!). The adaptation works more like a series of vingettes, with some continuity (the main character gets married and has kids, another character graduates from college, etc.).

The revival 2020 series (currently wrapping season 5) treats the material as a setting for a more traditional period comic-drama. Details are shifted around or outright changed, and the focus is on characters. But the original DNA is all there. If there's an overall arc in the new series, it's how found family is making the characters better versions of themselves.

I recommend all 3 incarnations as some cozy, comfort media, but suggest they be treated as their own things. On their strengths: The books are a great look into an agricultural world that doesn't exist anymore. The 1978 series is full of delightful characters and brings scenes from the books to life. The 2020 series invests you in the lives of the characters and how they change over time. (Fwiw, both series have strong production connections to the original author and descendants, and the actors understand the importance of the legacy they are carrying on. There is a lot of love on screen.)

Anyway, I have loved this series for 37 years now and am delighted to see it pique folks' interest.

[arminthada]

brb. currently screaming at the DETAILS of gelboys ep 1

(SOURCE © @virtualtadpole)

text version under the cut for readers' accessibility

I'll leave the raving about Boss and his team's meticulous craftsmanship to u/ThoughtsAllDay and others, but man, there's so much detail packed in here, I had to take notes. Which wasn't easy while watching on iQiyi without VIP, as each time you inadvertently scroll back past an ad insertion point it forces you to sit through another minute of unskippable ads that just ended five seconds ago. Anyway, some thoughts:

The biggest question I had from the series reveal was whether it's going to be one of those works that could generate endless discussions of "Is this a BL?" And so far it sure looks like one of those works. This first episode is the sliciest a slice-of-life teen drama could conceivably be. Or maybe it just feels that way because it's so different, due to the fact that...

The entire series being shot on iPhone (though they just say "phone" because Apple isn't paying them) gives the whole thing such an indie guerrilla film vibe, which is interesting to say the least. The unrestrained depth of field, the sound design picking up on every little jingling of the charms and chains the boys have on their bags, result in this raw, artsy feel that is almost jarring compared to conventional production values.

The open environment alone sounds like a continuity nightmare, though not having paid much attention to the people and cars in the background, I didn't noticed anything egregious.

The opening toilet shot was... a choice.

The song Fourmod's mother plays in the beginning is เด็กมีปัญหา (Dek Mi Panha) by, of course, Four-Mod. It's one of the biggest early hits from the Kamikaze teen-oriented record label. Faye Fang Kaew is another of the label's first groups. You can tell their mother is a huge fan. (By the way, the iQiyi subtitles spelling Fourmod's name after his Instagram handle is really annoying. Hope they drop it soon.)

Fourmod said "this term" when asking to take the BTS, so it's probably the start of the second semester, i.e. November. Senanikhom Station opened in December 2019, while the entire northern extension opened in December 2020. Either Fourmod was referring to starting his P.6 and M.1 years after the station and line opened respectively, or the series is set in 2023.

I laughed at how they needed a disclaimer warning not to run up the escalators and to hold the handrail - clearly mandated by BTS the series sponsor. If you're wondering about the sponsorship, by the way, it probably just involved them making special arrangements for location access and not any cash - this was the case for the 2009 movie Bangkok Traffic (Love) Story, which revolved almost entirely around the BTS. Here, the lack of crowds during the morning rush hour points to most of the people probably being hired extras.

The BTS got plenty of indirect advertising in exchange, of course. Fourmod buying the monthly pass seemed almost forced at first, but was soon leveraged to explain why he didn't know how to tap out of the system, since he'd presumably only used single tickets before. (Like Thoughts said, the attention to detail is incredible, with things like these that you have to zoom in to even notice.)

The depictions of locations are so super specific to reality, almost as if this were a documentary. The school is fictional, of course, but it's slotted into the exact location of Watpathumwanaram School in real life, and everything around it, including the path of the students' commute, is real. Don't know why they'd take a tuk-tuk instead of walking 400 metres to Siam Square, though, as the traffic is totally impossible.

I have no idea how much creative liberty they're taking with the school's flexibility with body accessories, electronics, and transgender students. I'm sure the creators based it on what's possible at some actual schools nowadays, but I can't tell how realistic it is for the setting at all. Very much appreciate the variability in the lengths of the students' shorts as a reflection of their personality, though, as it's rarely seen on screen anymore.

I raised an eyebrow at Fourmod asking for extra MSG in his fruit dip. (The subtitles mistranslate it as "chili salt".) Didn't even know it was a thing - usually it's just sugar, salt, and chilli - but apparently recipes that also add MSG aren't uncommon.

I'm about curious about the passage of time. Their painted nails almost growing out suggests probably two months passing during each of the time jumps, but that would be almost the entire school term already.

It's funny to imagine how they got Yuedpao as a main sponsor. Their shop is actually opposite Kantima Salon, one wonders whether it's a coincidence or they found the location first, then got the sponsorship later.

The Kluay Kluay banana dessert shop was clearly included to keep older viewers connected - it's probably the only Siam Square location in the entire episode that's recognizable to someone who knew the place from the 2000s. Heck, the neighbourhood has changed so much recently, few of the scene locations would have looked like shown even five years ago.

Which brings me to my final point and main impression from the episode: Everything in it feels so deliberate in its depiction of today's youth culture. Which is of course what the creators set out to do. But the thing is, I (and probably most Millennial and older viewers) can't quite tell how accurate it is. I trust that the team did their research well, and on the whole it feels real enough, but the script's particular references, slang and vernacular might as well be a foreign language. It feels rather eerily uncanny how changed some things have become in the space of a generation, and yet how familiar some things remain.

[samantha80ssuperstar]

All About Me!!!

Hey guys!!! My name is Samantha but everyone calls me Sam or Sammy For short. & I have a lot of interests & Fun things I love to do. I love making Art, seeing the creation that comes from my heart, I love Dancing because it's my Passion, Sing ofc because that's what I Wanna do for the Future.

My Favorite Shows I like to Watch:

Adventure Time

Steven Universe/Steven Universe: The Movie

Regular Show

Powerpuff Girls

Courage The Cowardly Dog

Dexter's Laboratory

Total Drama

My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic

Spongebob Squarepants

Invader Zim

Sanjay & Craig

Hazbin Hotel

Rick & Morty

Helluva Boss

Full House/ Fuller House

Jersey Shore

Family Matters

Everybody Hates Chris

The Amazing World Of Gumball

Teen Titans/ Teen Titans Go

Uncle Grandpa

Clarence

Stranger Things

What We Do In The Shadows

Victorious

That's So Raven

Sam & Cat

Sailor Moon

Dragon Ball Z

Spy X Family

Demon Slayer

Powerpuff Girls Z

My Hero Academia

Care Bears

Rainbow Brite

Reading Rainbow

Smurfs

Tom & Jerry (The Original Series)

Looney Tunes (The Original Series)

The Flintstones

Scooby Doo: Where Are You?

The Jetsons

Yogi Bear

Favorite Movies I Love Watching:

Wicked (2024)

Sonic The Hedgehog 1,2,3 (2020 ,2022, 2024)

M3GAN (2023)

Shrek 1, 2, 3, 4 (2001, 2004, 2007, 2010)

Puss In Boots (2012) Puss In Boots: The Last Wish (2022)

Madagascar (2005), Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (2008) Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012)

Legend (1985)

Big Trouble In Little China (1986)

Mannequin (1987)

Back To The Future (1985)

Flahsdance (1983)

Dirty Dancing (1987)

Mommie Dearest (1981)

Home Alone, Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1990, 1992)

The Breakfast Cub (1985)

Pretty In Pink (1986)

Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)

The Goonies (1985)

Ladyhawke (1986)

Stephen Kings IT (1990)

IT (2017) IT: Chapter II (2019)

Child's Play 1, 2, 3, 4 (1988, 1990, 1991, 1998)

Nightmare On Elm Street 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 (1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1994)

SCREAM 1,2,3,4,5,6 (1996, 1997, 2000, 2011, 2022, 2023)

The Last Dragon (1985)

The Karate Kid 1, 2, 3, 5 (1984, 1986, 1989, 2010)

How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring, The Two Towers, The Return Of The King (2001, 2002, 2003)

I, Robot (2004)

The Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl

Maleficent (2014)

Honey, I Shrunk The Kids!!! (1989)

Things I Like To Do:

Drawing some Art

Listening to some 80s Freestyle, Hip-Hop, Bollywood, Rock, Reggaethon , Salsa, Brazilian Music

Hanging out with my Buddies Online

Dancing to Just Dance Videos or TikTok Videos

Going Out to Dinner or Special Places like Carowinds, Myrtle Beach

Having Movie Nights With My Mom

My Favorite Apps I Like Being On:

YouTube

TikTok

Discord

Tumblr

Favorite Foods:

Pizza

PB N J Sandwich

Spaghetti & Meatballs

Meatloaf

Macaroni & Cheese

Chicken & Nuggets & French Fries

Burger (With No Cheese)

Steak & Mash Potatoes

Chicken & Rice

Chocolate Cake

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Oreos

Chocolate Muffins

KitKats

M&Ms

Hershey's Milk Chocolate

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

Chocolate Ice Cream

Favorite Singers/Rappers/Groups/Bands:

Michael Jackson

Madonna

Lionel Richie

Whitney Houston

George Michael

Lady Gaga

Rihanna

Ice Spice

Megan Thee Stallion

Gorillaz

Franz Ferdinand

Katy Perry

P!NK

Olivia Rodrigo

Taylor Swift

Bruno Mars

SZA

Adele

Ariana Grande

Cynthia Erivo

Billie Eilish

Brandy & Monica

TLC

Cyndi Lauper

Gloria Estefan

Laura Branigan

Missy Elliot

XXXtentacion

Post Malone

My Old Post Is @80ssuperstar Check It Out!!

My YouTube Page:

Here's a little of some Face Reveals: (P.S. Yes I made a Sonic The Hedgehog Drawing!)

For: @sugar-miss1 @franmxm16, @nicomxm23, @isrrael120, @siinhorhy, @nightmarereverie, @camilitamaellard, @pinkcandycatmakesart, @apollothedeity, @anifaz, @gootie, @orchestralauthor, @kiko2032, @tuxedocatfamily, @marcanimation, @charly235, @loudlyhappycupcake, @untitled14360, @sleepi-toasti, @br333, @nwn222, @moonlighteclipse17, @groovyathletefestivalegg, @cleislaspiderbat, @cariondrawing

[feelthesturmanddrangintheair]

On Nosferatu and Dracula, Mina & Ellen

I loved Nosferatu but I hate the online discourse about it. It’s literally making me crazy. This is a pic of all of you bitches right now:

I have a huge problem with literal readings of this movie at all. It’s obviously not the point of the damned thing. But, Ellen/Thomas shippers, I'm coming for you now.

I’ve noticed people online, on tiktok, tumblr etc, shipping Ellen/Thomas the exact same way I’ve seen Mina/Jonathan since Dracula Daily. And the Mina thing already frustrated me, but the Ellen one makes me crazy.

(they’re not the same character)

But I guess I understand the instinct?

Modern vampire media is obsessed with the male vampire as the sexual/romance object. Twilight, Vampire Diaries, True Blood, Buffy. (Interview with a vampire doesn’t count (lol count) cause it’s all from Vamp perspective. Also it's profoundly gay). (However Anne Rice does get enormous kudos for basically dragging the vampire from hammer horror into boyfriend material, so it is relevant i guess?).

The modern approach is that the subtext has become text “Yes we do like dracula and we do want to fuck him thank you very much”.

It’s always been the subtext of Victorian vampire stories - which were riffing off the already dark, brooding male figures in literature before that (Rochester, Byronic heroes, also Byron) and combining them with Eastern folk tales. In the original Dracula Mina and her plucky group of fuckbois slay the vampire. He is defeated and good Christian morals are preserved.

However, Dracula is that bitch - he’s an object of fascination for everyone in the book, especially Mina. The title of the book is “Dracula” not “Jonathan Harker is a good husband actually”. 

In the late 19th century gothic literature, the vampire and the monster was The Other. They were feared but also hypnotic - a beguiling, seductive other. Some women gave in to such temptation (Lucy) and some stood stoic in the face of it (Mina). But the temptation was still there. That is why it is powerful to triumph over it.

The Text: Dracula is scary and we shall defeat him The Subtext: But also don’t you think Dracula is kinda sexy?

That is and remains the subtext in all good gothic horror novels of the 19th century: you don’t literally want to fuck death or a monster but also, maybe in your subconscious, you kinda want to fuck death. You might want to fuck the monster. Maybe you want to be bad.

So when movies began making vampire stories - Dracula, Nosferatu - this theme became stronger in the visual medium. The monster was sexual, and the tension of the film was always the push and pull of attraction and horror between it and the fair maiden.

Later in the 20th century, it became more explicit, like everything else. Sexy vampire movies and exploitation movies in the 70s give way to Francis Ford Coppola’s ridiculous, fantastic, opulent “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” in the 1990s. A film that labors with every breath to faithfully adapt the novel, then throws that labour away to turn Mina into Dracula’s reincarnated soul mate. I find this movie perplexing but fabulous. I have watched it probably 6 times in the past 3 years.

And then the 2000s teen vampire obsession. You have Buffy obviously, with her litany of vampire boyfriends (I’m a Spike fan - Angel is BORING). Hilariously for this discussion, Buffy is a slayer who dates vampires, so it’s less Mina/Dracula and more Van Helsing/Dracula. 

(huh there is a market for that)

But where Buffy took what Anne Rice did and turned it into a weekly fun drama for teens (and tweens who probably should not have been watching), Stephanie Meyer evolves the vampire again. Twilight exploded the Vampire Boyfriend into the mainstream. In the early 2010s you couldn’t escape YA vampire and monster boyfriend fiction. You even had the CW jumping on board with The Vampire Diaries ffs

So after Twilight, wanting to fuck a vampire or monster became somewhat mainstream.

In the 2020s, vampires being the main love interest has fully transcended the subtext from the original stories. The monster has become a protective puppy in our beds. Say it with me “We have defanged the vampire”. And like all big, crazy trends, eventually they run out of steam and become unfashionable. There is nothing particularly shocking left to milk from this archetype. Vampires became dull, untrendy, old news. They were supplanted by dystopias and fairy courts.

(I think ACOTAR is more honest about what readers actually want - most people aren’t monster fuckers. Most people’s interest in vampire erotica is rooted in a powerful, sexy, somewhat feminine man magicking you away from your hum-drum life. Twilight is the dishonest version of ACOTAR. ACOTAR says “Yeah we just wanna fuck Howl from Howls Moving Castle leave me alone”)

I digress.

Dracula Daily started in 2021. A simple idea: using substack, send the text of Dracula out, on the timeline that matches the epistolary novel’s dates. Tumblr being tumblr, we latch on and from 2022, the yearly run of Dracula Daily is an integral part of the tumblr experience. 

Like a book club with thousands of members, Tumblr has basically conducted a multi-year close reading and textual analysis of Dracula.

What has been most surprising is the volume of readers who have discovered the incredible character of Mina, and her sweet and strong relationship with Jonathan.

I think, in comparison to the often milquetoast relationship between these two on screen (I'll call it the cuckification of Jonathan) and the reduction often of Mina to a swooning maiden, Stoker’s original text is a revelation. 

In the book, Mina is a headstrong, intelligent and resourceful operator. Without her, the group would have failed and Dracula would have England in his thrall. The men around her respect her. She works tirelessly to save Jonathan in the first place, then England.

Jonathan and Mina make an excellent team - once reunited, her determination to extinguish the thing that killed Lucy, and his first-hand knowledge combines to help defeat him. A now oft-quoted section shows that when Mina has been bitten and is in Dracula’s thrall Jonathan writes:

“To one thing I have made up my mind: if we find out that Mina must be a vampire in the end, then she shall not go into that unknown and terrible land alone. I suppose it is thus that in old times one vampire meant many; just as their hideous bodies could only rest in sacred earth, so the holiest love was the recruiting sergeant for their ghastly ranks.”

Very sweet stuff. Very wife-guy. Isn’t Mina lucky?

So we now have so much fandom for Mina and Jonathan.

And it’s very sweet and interesting - it’s presented often as a radical, subversive take “I think Dracula sucks and is abusive. Mina and Jonathan belong together!”. It’s a classic “only on tumblr would this be considered a radical take”. But also “Only in the 21st century is this a radical take”.

It’s like Christine/Raoul shippers in the POTO fandom (I am one but however it’s because I truly do not think Christine is right for Erik. Read the masterwork “A Stroll on Sunday” that’s what I want for poor Erik). There’s nothing wrong with thinking the canonical breeding pair are well-suited; however the fixation on them and vilification of the interloping monster is perhaps missing the point of the entire text.

I’m so sorry Tumblr, thinking Mina should be with her Good Christian Husband Jonathan is not a life-altering take. Tumblr has subverted too close to the sun and started reinforcing Victorian values. We/Tumblr should be studied in a lab I stg. The brain gymnastics involved in this one is too insane.

And now we’re seeing this bleed into the Nosferatu discussion. I really liked and agreed with a lot of what Princess said in her video about Nosferatu & the Gothic Appetite:

But to bring this shipping focus to Nosferatu, is even more insane. Eggers' Nosferatu is far more focused on Ellen’s connection to Orlok than Dracula/Mina in the original Dracula text. I really liked what Eggers' said in this interview:

“In the novel, Stoker’s Dracula is seemingly moving to London, to England, for world domination. And, but this is all a demon-lover story. Ya know, Orlok is going to Wisborg for Ellen and no other reason. And that, that’s more interesting to me as a storyteller”

Nosferatu is different to Dracula in that it strips the vampire-hunting gang out of the text. It takes a lot of the unnecessary excess of the text and pairs it down to a fairy tale. One town, cut down the plot, remove excess characters, keep it simple. For me, I feel the result is way more focused than the original plot (and the Coppola movie).

Instead of Quincy, Seward and Arthur you just have Friederich. And Friederich is not a valiant hero like our noble trio. Instead of friendship and brother’s in arms saving the day, Friederich abandons Ellen and Thomas and succumbs to the monster. There is so much more darkness and despair in Ellen’s story because of this change. 

Those changes centralize the relationship between Ellen and Orlok in a way Dracula never did. It also does it in a less shit way then the Coppola film with its terrible reincarnation storyline.  

With Ellen and Orlok central, the Ellen/Thomas argument makes even less sense. Ellen cares about Thomas of course, she doesn’t want any harm to come to him.

But she also says to him “You could never please me as he could”. 

Thomas symbolises the status quo - a husband who leaves you to go to work, to ignore your strangeness and potentially also flatten it. Ellen says “It all ended when I first met my Thomas”. She grew up abnormal, supernatural and sexual - she alienated her father and family, and had a connection to a supernatural ancient demon during her teenage years. But the presence of Thomas removed that.

Some may see that as a saving grace - symbolising Thomas’ love as healing and protecting Ellen from the forces of darkness. That is a fairly simple, Christian reading - the healing love of matrimony and gender norms. However, you can also see this as a squashing of her powers and uniqueness. As Von Franz says:

“In heathen times you might have been a Great Priestess of Isis. Yet, in this strange and modern world your purpose is of greater worth.”

He does not view Ellen’s powers as an affliction but as matter-of-fact and part of who she is. He reframes those powers as something different - not a curse or possession. He compares her to the respected priestesses of an old world. 

Ellen chafes against the role of the good, noble wife. She does not want to be an angel in the house, and she does not want to be left at home while Thomas works. She clearly enjoys the honeymoon part of the marriage. The first scene we have between them Thomas gets ready to leave for work, leaving Ellen in bed crying: “The honeymoon was yet too short!”

It’s a Romeo and Juliet style scene - Thomas trying to leave the bedchamber as he must, and Ellen trying to convince him to stay and enjoy their married life. Thomas, like Romeo, does not realise the horrors that await him.

When he returns and tells her he must go away on a business trip, her reaction is less romantic and more frantic: she throws down the lilacs he bought her and eventually shrieks “Can’t you see that it doesn’t matter? If you leave nothing will matter!”

Throughout the movie Ellen fights Thomas leaving with everything she has. She has premonitions, she knows nothing good will come of his trip. She does not want to be a little wife and does not want to be left behind in domesticity. 

(this is in contrast to Anna and Friederich, who are blissfully happy in a traditional marriage. He talks of his sexual appetite, she produces babies for him. He runs a shipping business, she stays at home with their children. He is brash, masculine and doesn’t listen. She is sweetness and light, hosts their guests and never causes trouble. And they both die. Their goodness, their adherence to Christian values does not save them)

Ellen however plays the part of the hysterical woman. She does not remain quiet, she does not remain sweetness and light. She has fits, she is hypersexual, she speaks her mind and speaks about death.

If you watch Nosferatu and think Ellen would be happy as Thomas’ little wife at any point, I think you have missed the point. Thomas’ personality or qualities are besides the point - he is part of patriarchy, part of status-quo living, part of her subjugation and squashing her into a role she could never fit into. She says as much when he returns and they have their infamous fight by the fire:

“Well, where is it? Your money? Your promotion? Your house? Where is that which is so precious to you? Have you paid back kind Harding your debt? Have you repaid him with this plague that infects his wife?”

She is furious that she warned him not to leave her, that he did and the bad thing happened. That he seemingly sacrificed their love for a sack of gold. Women, in parts of culture and history, blocked from seeking work and income of their own, were therefore subjected to their spouses ambition and therefore neglect. If she was happy with having less materially, and more in her marriage, that was not a decision for her to make. Her husband made it, and the consequence was being left to her loneliness with an increasing brood of children to take care of.

Ellen does not want this. She spends the entire movie telling Thomas this. And at no point does he get it.

I think this is why it's so important that Orlok says:

“It is not me. It is your own nature… Love is inferior to you. I told you, you are not of Human kind… I am an appetite, nothing more”

Orlok is a symbol of all of Ellen that is not able to be seen, heard or appreciated in her world. She has an appetite of her own, love is inferior to power and control. In her marriage, unlike Anna’s, she is the one with the sexual appetite. She wants, she asks and calls. 

There is no future of Ellen and Thomas happily together. There is only death - either the way that played out in the film, or Orlok killing Thomas. But if Ellen and Thomas somehow defeated Orlok with both surviving, like Mina and Jonathan, I doubt they’d happily go on to have a child and name him Friederich. Ellen would leave, one way or another.

Ellen is a woman trapped in a society that does not want her, or at least wants to cut her down, contort her to the right size and shape. Reduce her expression, shut her up and leave her at home while the real men do the real work, including hunting vampires.

And this is why I find Stoker’s ending to Dracula so fucking frustrating. Mina is kept outside of the plans (for good reason - she has a channel to Dracula’s thoughts and worries he can see what she sees, but this is created by the author and so I get to critique it) and bears witness to the destruction of Dracula. While I don’t need a girlboss in every story, Mina is somewhat side-lined in this process and I don’t love it. She follows this by becoming the normal and good house wife to Jonathan and producing some progeny to name after their slain heroes.

(sidebar I think it would be more meaningful if Mina had a daughter and named her Lucy, the name of her dearest friend who was horrifically killed but don’t mind me)

Ellen is very different from Mina here. Her connection to Orlok is not the reason to keep her distance - it’s the reason she must get closer than anyone else. She takes control, speaking to Von Franz and getting what information she must to help her plan Orlok’s destruction.

Like many people, I see the final scene as both a sacred bond (a matrimony) and a heroic sacrifice. It can be both. Ellen can both know what she needs to do to save her love and the innocents around her (kill Orlok), she also knows she is the reason for their suffering (girl clean up your mess!) and knows that luckily, this is also what her dark heart has longed for.

It’s not often the thing you must do is also the thing you desperately, secretly want.

Ellen knows there’s no life after this. There’s no world where she becomes the happy mother and wife Mina Harker. There is only darkness and despair.

Eggers Nosferatu is a fairy tale that warns about the prospect for unusual, modern, sexual women. I read the ending of Dracula, of Jonathan saying “My wife is so happy now” and I think of Betty Draper shooting pigeons in the backyard. You’re telling me that educated, brilliant Mina Harker is happy being relegated to the home? There will always be something that rubs me the wrong way about Mina’s ending in Dracula, and the way the fandom has decided to blindly celebrate it. Ellen is an amazing antidote to that feeling.

Nosferatu is brilliant because it is honest about women and their status in this world. It allows room for Ellen and her own foibles. And it allows the darkness and the monstrous to coexist with the feminine. The ending is not a girlboss ending, it does not leave me feeling warm and fuzzy. It makes me uncomfortable - it is a gothic horror. The status quo is not maintained at the end of the movie - Orlok has disrupted their world, and it cannot be undone.

Ellen and Thomas are not a love story, and to pretend they are is to take the piss out of the entire thing.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Ella Yurman at Teen Vogue:

In many ways, Vivian Jenna Wilson is a lot like any other 20-year-old girl. The Los Angeles native spends hours a day on Discord with her friends; loves reading, RuPaul’s Drag Race, and Chappell Roan; and she runs late — two full hours late, to be specific, for our scheduled Zoom meeting. Also like many 20-year-olds, she has a complicated relationship with her father. But not everybody’s dad is the richest man in the world — a man who spent the last few years consolidating power, becoming one of the most prolific posters on a social media platform he purchased, and suddenly, one of the most powerful figures in the US government. Wilson is, whether she likes it or not, the daughter of Elon Musk.

Wilson entered the public consciousness because of her father, but not for typical nepo baby reasons. (Before you ask, Wilson says she’s been financially independent from her father since she came out as trans in 2020, so you can stop sending her Venmo requests for thousands of dollars, something she says has happened before.) At the time, she was trying to disconnect herself from Musk, eventually writing in a 2022 petition to legally change her name that she doesn’t “wish to be related to [her] biological father in any way, shape or form.” Though she’d never publicly spoken about Musk before then, her attempt to distance herself from him is what ultimately drew her into the public eye.

“I have a sharp tongue,” Wilson tells Teen Vogue in her second-ever published interview. “When you spend all of COVID [lockdown] in online communities of queer people who are constantly getting into drama and trying to read each other, [you] learn how to make a response very quickly, and you learn how to be funny and snap at someone else in a comedic way…. Getting into fights with other queer teenagers — that's how you learn how to be quick and witty.” Much like her father, Wilson is extremely online; unlike her father, she’s really good at it. It is publicly known that Musk has as many as 14 children with 4 different mothers across a 20-year span: 6 including Vivian (and a child that passed away as a baby) with his ex-wife Justine Wilson; 4 with Shivon Zilis, a top executive at the Musk-owned company Neuralink; and 3 with the musician Grimes. On February 14, conservative influencer Ashley St. Clair announced a 13th child (who, as of this writing, Musk has yet to acknowledge), and on February 28, a 14th child with Zilis was reported.

Fatherhood is a core part of the public persona put forth by the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla and owner of X (formerly Twitter), who frequently expresses alarm about declining birth rates and what he sees as their negative impact on society. As leader of Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, which has laid off huge swaths of the federal workforce and shrunk spending for essential government agencies, he has brought his four-year-old son, X Æ A-Xii, or “Lil X,” to meetings at the Capitol and a press conference in the Oval Office. Two years after Wilson filed that name-change petition (and, notably, just nine days after Musk officially endorsed now-President Trump’s campaign), her father spoke about her in a conversation with manosphere influencer Jordan Peterson, repeatedly deadnaming Wilson and claiming she’d been “killed by the woke mind virus.” During that interview, Musk built on the picture of Wilson painted in Walter Isaacson’s 2023 biography Elon Musk. In that telling, according to Wilson, she was an angry, rebellious child, blinded by radical anticapitalist ideology and hurting her father with her rash decisions.

So, for the first time, Wilson spoke up. In a series of posts on Threads (an X competitor), she described Musk’s characterization of her in an X post as “entirely fake,” called him “desperate for attention and validation,” and told him to touch grass. Since then Wilson has remained highly active on social media, posting to Threads, Instagram, Bluesky (another X competitor), and racking up millions of views on TikTok. She’s garnered a following of nearly one million people across platforms. At the same time, she’s avoided speaking to the media, doing only one interview with NBC News to share some of her side of the story after Musk's interview with Peterson. Wilson’s father certainly looms large, particularly in this moment as he continues to take on more political power than even some judges seem to think is legal. Despite Wilson's distance from Musk, she has unique insight into this precarious moment in the US’s political history. But she’s much more than the estranged daughter of the world’s richest man — in fact, she says, she barely thinks about her father. “I'm not giving anyone that space in my mind,” she tells Teen Vogue. “The only thing that gets to live free in my mind is drag queens.” [...] Wilson’s vibrant life, full of possibility, underscores the lifesaving power of gender-affirming care for young people. As a child, Wilson struggled through gender dysphoria and the attendant mental health issues it often causes. She’s horrified by the wave of anti-trans legislation targeting young people like her. In the US, her peers are being demonized by the right, and are left undefended by Democrats. One of Trump’s first executive orders upon retaking office attempted to bar federal funding for health care providers that perform gender-affirming care for young people under 19; multiple federal judges have blocked the order from taking effect for now. Wilson is compelled to speak out on trans issues, saying, “I don't feel like people realize that being trans is not a choice.”

Vivian Jenna Wilson, the estranged trans daughter of Elon Musk, is on the cover of Teen Vogue, in which she talks about her experiences as a trans woman.

See Also:

The Advocate: Vivian Wilson, Elon Musk's trans daughter, slams 'cartoonishly evil' Trump team

[the-overreactress]

I didn’t watch Gilmore Girls as it aired, and there are definitely people out there (likely some of my mutuals!) that watched it in 2000-2007. (For the record, I started watching it in syndication sometime around 2008.) But the thing is…I notice more and more that the show is intentionally misinterpreted or dissected using the standards and ideals of the 2020s. And you know, that tracks because it happens a lot with shows made during the 90s and early 00s. (Looking at you, 7th Heaven 😬)

I just…I feel like we also have to understand the cultural context for why a show like Gilmore Girls or any of the other WB teen dramas were made. The WB channel was created in the mid-1990s for several business related reasons, but one of them was to compete with teen programming made by UPN and Fox. The WB went through a lot of iterations (e.g. picking up Sister, Sister, original: the Jamie Foxx Show, Buffy, Felicity, Dawson’s Creek), but it’s primary focus at the time was making content for teenage girls. Gilmore Girls was the channel’s saving grace after a dip in viewing in 1999 until 2006 when the CW was formed with CBS.

Everyone has likely heard the story that ASP actually came up with the premise of Gilmore Girls on the spot when in a pitch meeting at WB, and it all evolved from there. The thing is…I just…other than the Connecticut setting and the WASP-y Gilmores, the references, music, and jokes of Gilmore Girls are entirely unique and pay homage to a bygone era of comedy. They’re also products of their time, both in positive ways and negative ones (i.e. any of the fatphobia jokes).

However, there’s not anything basic or cliched about having the likes of The Shins or any of the other alt/indie bands Lane, Rory, Jess, et al. listen to on a tv show in that era. In terms of music/soundtrack, Gilmore Girls is actually fucking stellar and better than the vast majority. You have to imagine Amy and the other music supervisors really knew what the fuck they were doing. (I’d kill for a biopic showing the making of Gilmore Girls from this angle!) Lorelai has peak Gen X taste, while Jess, Rory, and Lane are part of that really cool generation of Gen X/Millenial cuspers who got the best of the 80s, 90s and 00s underground.

Watching Gilmore Girls practically requires you to build up a certain level of pop cultural literacy. It’s actually why re-watches of the show are so great. You see and hear things you may not have seen or heard when you were 11, 15, 18, or even 28. I just wish this part of the show was given more attention and credit, in addition to the plots, characters, and fashion. It’s just as much part of the iconography of Gilmore Girls as the other things (if not more!)

[sweetnekoheart]

My Intro Post

Okay... Here's Where I Start

Hello People, My Name Is Helen, I Came From DeviantArt, Pinterest, Wattpad, And X, I'm An Autistic Girl Who Loves Nostalgic And Other Things So It's Not Bad At All, I Only Post Any Stuff Here

💞 Information 💞

Name 📝: Helen

Gender: Female

Birthday 🎂: 13th May

Pronouns ✏️: She/Her

Zodiac: Taurus ♉️

Religion: Christian ✝️

Nationality: American-Guatemalan

🌎 Where I Live 🌎: United States 🇺🇸

Language Spoken: English, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Chinese Mandarin, Filipino Tagalog And Others

🌈🎨📖 Interests And Hobbies 📖🎨🌈

🎀💕 Stuff I Do 💕🎀

Drawing, Making Picmix And Blingee Edits, Making Templates, Making Moodboards, Sleeping, Other Things I Do For Fun, Characters Sleeping, Retro Stuff, Some Things Of My Childhood, 2000's And 2010's Media, Gyaru Stuff, Vintage Stuff, Gothic Stuff, Scene/Emo Things, Aesthetic Stuff

✅💕🥰 Favorite Things ����💕✅

📺 Favorite TV Show 📺: South Park, Sailor Moon, Precure, Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi, My Little Pony, Butch Hartman Shows, Which Are Fairly Odd Parents (Original And A New Wish), TUFF Puppy, Danny Phantom And Bunsen Is A Beast, Hailey's On It, The Ghost & Molly McGee, The Loud House, Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil Grojband And Others

🎞️🍿 Favorite Movies 🍿🎞️: UglyDolls, My Little Pony: The Movie (2017 Film) The Mitchells Vs The Machines, South Park: Bigger Longer And Uncut, Wreck It Ralph, Classic Disney Movies And Others

🖥️ Favorite Web Series 🖥️: Hazbin Hotel, Helluva Boss, TADC, BFDI Inanimate Insanity And Eddsworld

🧍🏻Favorite Character🧍🏻: Damien Thorn, Dudley Puppy, Peri Or Poof Fairywinkle Cosma, Cure Summer (Manatsu Natsumi), Kick Buttowski, Usagi Tsukino, Ami Onuki, Firey, Rayman

🎮 Favorite Game 🎮: Rayman, Gacha Club, Flash Games I Played Since Childhood, Dress Up Games, Pony Town, Cookie Run, Roblox, FNAF, Sakura School Simulator

👩🏻‍🎤 Favorite Musical Artist And Bands 👩🏻‍🎤: Taylor Swift, Shakira Michael Jackson, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, Aiza "Ice" Seguerra, Tino Rossi, Foxy Shazam, Nirvana, The Crane Wives, Melanie Martinez, Weird Al Yankovic, Any Lullaby Musical Artists,

🔊 Favorite Sounds 🔊: Anime Wow Sound Effect (Neither Other Sounds I Like I Can Say)

🍽️ Favorite Food 🍽️: Pizza, Cookies, Ice Cream, Sushi, Korean Food

🚫💔😡 Least Favorite Things 😡💔🚫

💔 Least Favorite Interrests 💔

Being Bullied, NSFW, Death Threats, Drama, Trolling, Cyberbullying, Haters Of My Fandoms, P3d0philes, Gr00mers, Pr0$h1ppers R4c1$m, 1nc3$st, Child Abuse, Bl00d, G0re, Stuff That Ruined My Childhood And Others

📺 Least Favorite TV Show 📺: Block 13, King Star King, The Problem Solverz, Teen Titans Go, Secret Mount Fort Awesome, Peppa Pig, Super Why, Barney & Friends, The Fairly OddParents: Fairly Oddler, The Powerpuff Girls (2016 Reboot), Boku No Pico, Inapropp1at3 H3nta1 Anime Series, Miracle Star, Caillou, Mr Pickles, Velma (2023 Series) And Others

🎞️🍿 Least Favorite Movies 🍿🎞️: Sausage Party, Strays (2023 Film), Horror Films (But The Omen Is The Only One I Like) Cats (2019 Film), Caillou's Holiday Movie, Foodfight (2012 Film) The Banana Splits Movie (Horror Film), Norm Of The North, Cuties (2020 Netflix Film)

🖥️ Least Favorite Web Series 🖥️: Happy Tree Friends

🧍🏻Least Favorite Character 🧍🏻: Vicky The Babysitter, Scott Tenorman, PC Babies, Flower (BFDI), Barney The Dinosaur, Verosika Mayday, Trina Riffin, Amanda Killman, Angelica Pickles, Brad Buttowski

🎮 Least Favorite Game 🎮: Baby Basher, Bubsy Bobcat, Superman 64, Crazy Frog Racer 1 And 2, Hong Kong 97, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, Fortnite And Others

👩🏻‍🎤 Least Favorite Musical Artists And Bands👩🏻‍🎤: Lottie Dottie Chicken, Pinkfong, Lil Pump, Justin Bieber, Silentó

🔊 Least Favorite Sound 🔊: Baby Kate Crying Sound Effect (I Had It Since 2020 And For 5 Years) Cat Yowling Sound Effect, Kids Cheering Sound Effect (I Lost Interrest On It 3 Days Ago) Eric Cartman Crying Sound Effect And Foop Crying Sound Effect

🍽️ Least Favorite Food 🍽️: Broccoli, Green Beans, Chili

That Is All, So Feel Free To Make Fanart And Nice Stuff For Me But No Problematic Stuff! 🤗