#21st Century Monkey King

[the-monkey-ruler]

The Flying Superboard (1990) 날아라 슈퍼보드

Genre: Animation

Country/Region of Manufacture: South Korea

Language: Korean

Date: 1990-08-21 (Korea)

Episodes: 36

Single episode length: 22 minutes / 23 minutes / 24 minutes / 25 minutes

Also known as: New Journey to the West / Fantasy Journey to the West / 21st Century Monkey King / Variety Monkey King / 新编西游记 / 幻想西游记 / 二十一世纪孙悟空 ／ 百变孙悟空 

IMDb: tt4938396

Type: Reimagining

Summary:

As a punishment for causing havoc in Heaven, Sonogong is locked in a huge iron mass for 500 years until Samjang Bupsa, an old priest embarking on a mission to rid the world of evil and spread peace throughout the land, rescues him. Sonogong becomes Samjang's disciple. He meets Saojung who enviously eyes Sonogong's amazing Superboard, and a brute swine oil seller Jopalgye. After several twists and turns, they join on Samjang's journey. Wherever they go, they meet overwhelming enemies and get into trouble. But they don't get frustrated and find ingenious way to defeat monsters.

This Korean Journey to the West can be said to be a modern version of Journey to the West. Tang Seng drives a small car, Somersault Cloud turns into a super skateboard, Wukong wields a nunchuck, and Bajie uses a hot weapon bazooka. These innovative designs make it hard for those who have seen it to forget. Remember the plot, but forget the name. The name of the animation is "Monkey King". "Journey to the West" is the friend of every child born in the 80s. From childhood to adulthood, how many versions of Journey to the West have we seen, I guess you can't remember.

"The Ever-changing Monkey King", also known as "New Journey to the West". This Korean animation is quite innovative. It is still the story of Tang Monk's master and apprentice, but it is no longer about going to the West to learn Buddhist scriptures. Tang Seng's task is to eliminate evil in the world and seal all kinds of monsters. In addition to the changes in the plot, great changes have also been made in the character settings. Wukong: The Wukong we are familiar with wears a tight hoop on his head, holds a golden cudgel, and steps on somersaulting clouds. In "Variety Changes", the tight hoop turns into a helmet, and the chanting of the tight hoop spell turns into a wooden fish. The golden cudgel became a nunchuck (still very heavy), and the somersault cloud became a skateboard. Wearing hand and knee pads on his hands and feet, Wukong is like a hip-hop boy playing a skateboard.

Bajie: Bajie's back was changed into a fiery pig holding a rocket launcher and driving a motorcycle. Wujing: Wujing is not hearing very well (his ears grow under the skin), and he wants to steal Wukong's super skateboard. Use a small hammer, when fighting, shout one, two, three, four, hit with the hammer, and then it will explode. The dubbing of Wujing is very interesting, it is Stephen Chow's queen dubbing Shi Banyu.

Many people call "Monkey King" a toothbrush version of Journey to the West, because Monkey will recite a spell when he transforms, and he will change every time he changes. Later, for some reason, Wukong lost his memory and did not remember how the seventy-six changes. They gave him a toothbrush, and as soon as Wukong brushed his teeth, he chanted a spell and transformed, to be funny. Speaking of transformation, the animation has a very spoof of personal transformation. That person has 6 nose hairs (the extra-long ones), and if you pull out one nose hair, you can change it once, and you can change it 6 times in total.

Source: https://myanimelist.net/anime/32136/Narara_Superboard

Link: https://m.bilibili.com/video/BV1Us41197Dn?from=seopage

[sketching-shark]

Hello! I know you aren't a big fan of LMK, but there's a sideblog run by @digitalagepulao named @digitaldoeslmk that is doing a rewrite of the show by following book canon, and their ideas and art is FIRE so please have a look if you have the time. Also, I remember seeing a few lines that Sun Wukong has medical training during his years of learning. Would he count as having a degree in medicine in modern terms? How is he during childbirth? Do you think he'd be able to do a human childbirth successfully? Have a great month, enjoy your food, and don't forget to sleep early regularly!

As a matter of fact @angstandhappiness I am recently familiar with @digitaldoeslmk and let me just say WEH @digitalagepulao has done an amazing job at creating one of the most fun and interesting Monkie Kid aus out there!

I'm honestly really appreciative of the though and care they've put into a version of the lego show where JTTW happened according to Wu Cheng'en's version, and particularly the way this means that A) Sun Wukong is a genuinely good mentor & that therefore there's many a lovely shifu-tudi moment between him and MK (plus SWK is his book canon size here so that's an automatic improvement over LMK canon lmao), B) Red Son gets more time in the spotlight both as a character and as a source of insights into the histories of the JTTW canon characters, and C) the stakes aren't of the constant end-of-the-universe levels & therefore MK gets a Fucking Break from the Horrors & also gets to make a lot more friends in stuff like a theater group.

tbh I was pretty delighted by this plot idea @digitalagepulao put out where MK is getting ready for a theatrical production of Havoc in Heaven where he's playing Sun Wukong but then both the actor and the understudy who played Erlang Shen got ill, & that this was resolved by MK getting SWK to play his one-time nemesis. That's a really fun idea for a number of reasons, not the least being it seems like a great scenario for the Monkey King to have actually understandable stage fright & some genuine conversations about his past & what he learned from his experiences BUT ALSO for it being a great way for Monkie Kid to give a respectful nod to past retellings of Xiyouji even while letting MK & co. shine.

In conclusion people should definitely check out @digitaldoeslmk.

As for the second part of this ask, you probably couldn't say that the Monkey King has anything like a contemporary medical degree going strictly by Xiyouji canon, but he does prove himself to be a clever primate when it comes to medicine! Honestly it could make for a kind of funny JTTW future story where SWK goes through medical school to get an MD so that he can be an officially licensed doctor in the 21st century lol. And while we never see SWK helping someone with pregnancy or childbirth in the og classic (discounting the mpreg arc lmao), his status as both an extremely old communal grandpa who's seen a lot and a protector of children seem to both suggest that he'd be pretty good at assisting in childbirth for humans, monkeys, and yaoguai alike.

Enjoy your food and sleep too!

[justforbooks]

CJ Sansom

Lawyer turned novelist who enjoyed huge success with his bestselling Shardlake historical mysteries

The novelist CJ Sansom, who has died aged 71, saw the dream of many aspiring writers come true when in mid-career he swapped a routine occupation for the life of a widely acclaimed, chart-topping novelist. By 2020, the former lawyer’s Shardlake historical mysteries had sold almost 4m copies. He built up a fan-base vast enough to guarantee that a new title would enter the UK bestseller charts at number one.

Sansom’s switch, however, was no lucky break but the fruit of deep thought, hard work and struggle against stiff odds. He overcame the blight of intense early suffering to create a much-loved series of novels conspicuous for their intelligence, integrity and humanity. An underlying idealism united the two, very different, halves of his professional life.

His debut novel Dissolution (2003) introduced the hunchbacked Tudor lawyer Matthew Shardlake, who investigates a death at a Sussex monastery menaced by the assault on England’s religious orders led by Henry VIII’s chief minister, Thomas Cromwell. Over the next decade, further Shardlake titles appeared, and succeeded, at regular intervals: Dark Fire (2004), which won the Crime Writers’ Association award for historical fiction, Sovereign (2006), Revelation (2008), Heartstone (2010) and Lamentation (2014), with a plot set in the paranoid, heresy-hunting atmosphere of London during the final act of Henry VIII’s reign.

Set in London, Sussex, Norwich, Portsmouth and York, the books map not just the topographies but the mentalities of mid 16th-century England. They indirectly mirror, too, the political ferments of Sansom’s own age: Heartstone sees a spin-obsessed king unleash a disastrous foreign war. The seventh Shardlake novel, Tombland, its writing delayed by the author’s serious illness, appeared in 2018.

He claimed that the character of Shardlake, the Lincoln’s Inn lawyer disfigured from childhood, dropped into his head “fully formed”. Shardlake finds himself reluctantly immersed in the cruel and devious political intrigues of the 1530s and 40s. He remains a reflective outsider who seeks to help those bruised or crushed by the upheavals of an age of tumult. His disability gives him solidarity with outcast people.

In an interview, Sansom once spoke of the depression left by his early anguish as “the monkey on my back all my life”. The connection with his series hero could hardly be clearer.

Shardlake is both a man of his times – all the books rest on a bedrock of thorough, sometimes original, historical research – and a credible proxy for the 21st-century reader in the dogma-driven era of Henry VIII and his heirs. Sceptical, curious, free-thinking, he has sympathy with the Protestant reformers but feels alienated from the savage realpolitik practised by his patron, Cromwell.

Shardlake dwells in a sharply rendered, richly detailed Tudor England but stands outside it by virtue of his inquisitive, open-minded humanism. “I’m not saying a man like Shardlake did exist then,” Sansom commented, “but he could have, where even 20 years earlier he couldn’t.”

Born in Edinburgh, Chris was the son of a Scottish mother, Ann, and English father, Trevor, a naval engineer. An only child, he remembered his upbringing as Presbyterian, constrained and conservative (“with a small and a capital C”). Later, this private man who shunned attention-seeking gestures would nonetheless emerge as a vehement opponent of Scottish nationalism – part of his general distrust of any “politics based on national identity”, which he found “anti-rational, demagogic” and always destructive.

His Shardlake novels depict the dilemmas and ordeals that face a sensitive, compassionate man in a brutal and treacherous society. Sansom’s own, formative experience of persecution and survival under a despotic system took place at school. At the elite George Watson’s college in south Edinburgh, he endured sustained bullying that left him on the brink of suicide. Much later, he revealed that his “inattention” – which today might be diagnosed as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) – had made him the scapegoat of “vicious” teachers and pupils alike.

He described his school-age self as “seriously mentally ill: completely isolated … consumed with rage, plagued by migraines and tormented by thoughts of suicide and burning down the school”. At the age of 15, he took a “massive” overdose of his mother’s sleeping pills. Despite, or perhaps because of, this teenage misery, he developed a profound interest in history, politics and the workings of state power that would fuel both wings of his career. While still young, he recalled, “I arrived in my head at a sort of radical, independent socialist position which … I’ve basically retained.”

Sansom’s harrowing schooldays led to a spell as a voluntary in-patient at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. “I think the staff there saved my life,” he remembered, “just as Watson’s almost destroyed it.”

At Birmingham University he studied history as an undergraduate, then stayed on to research a PhD on mid-century Labour party policy towards South Africa. Rather than continue with academia, however, he qualified as a solicitor and spent much of the 1980s and 90s devoted to legal aid work, seeking to help vulnerable people. Living in Brighton, he attended writers’ groups as a hobby but never considered literature as a means to earn his living.

In 2000, his father’s death left him with a small legacy. He decided, without much hope, to try his hand at full-time fiction, though allowed for the possibility that: “I would be back in the law within the year.”

To his surprise, Dissolution rapidly found an agent. Publishers bid eagerly for the title (with Pan Macmillan becoming his UK home). Inspired in part by Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose, it reached two prize shortlists, and won over not only crime-fiction fans but a broad span of readers fascinated by the Tudor period and the distant mirror it holds up to our own fragmented times. Sansom had discovered, as he said, “how like the 20th century it was in its anxiety and uncertainty, even though people thought so differently then”.

Dissolution preceded Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall by six years in its portrayal of Cromwell and his circle – although Sansom’s chief minister is a much darker figure than Mantel’s. Among authors of historical mysteries set in medieval or early-modern England, he became a rare male luminary in a genre dominated by women, from pioneers such as Ellis Peters (Edith Pargeter) to Sansom’s contemporaries, such as Susanna Gregory.

Over the next decade, the Shardlake titles became regular fixtures in the bestseller lists. Adapted versions for BBC Radio extended the books’ appeal, even though Sansom – who continued to live in Brighton – experienced more than a touch of imposter syndrome. “I still half expect to wake up in a meeting about the latest legal aid forms,” he once said.

His mass-market popularity won him some unlikely fans. Shortly before she resigned in 2019, the then prime minister Theresa May bizarrely inaugurated a miniature library (housed in a redundant phone box) in her constituency by donating her copy of one of Sansom’s books. No figure, and no event, could have been worse suited to a writer who believed in a properly-funded public sector and detested the politics of nationalism and xenophobia.

Sansom’s two non-Tudor novels proved the breadth of his talent: Winter in Madrid (2006), with its accomplished depiction of a captive nation, set in the Spanish capital during the gloomy aftermath of Franco’s victory in the civil war, and the remarkable Dominion (2012), which reanimates the hackneyed genre of counterfactual history with its chillingly believable account of Britain as a satellite state of Nazi Germany in 1952. “Given the right circumstances fascism can infest any country,” a character in Dominion remarks.

That novel presents Scottish nationalists as accomplices of fascism and ends with an afterword that excoriates the policies of the (actual) Scottish National party. In all Sansom’s books, history’s convulsions test thinking people who try to stay decent and honest in tough times. He acknowledged that he had “found myself particularly drawn to the moral dilemmas the literate classes often find themselves in at times of ideological conflict – whether Reformation England or the second world war”.

In 2012, Sansom was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, an incurable bone-marrow cancer, and began to receive chemotherapy. Lamentation followed two years later, but medical treatment inevitably slowed his pace of work.

Yet the voluminous Tombland, published in 2018, proved one of the most richly imagined and researched of all his Tudor mysteries. Shardlake is caught up in the wave of rebellions that shake the realm of the boy-king Edward VI in 1549: “A colossal event that has been much underplayed”, in the author’s words. The typically scholarly essay attached to the book framed this emphasis on poor and marginal people as an overdue antidote to “the ‘royalisation’ of popular Tudor history”.

Sansom lived quietly in Brighton, on his own, and worked with a fierce dedication. Illness put a brake on his output but never doused his determination. He avoided the limelight, and once listed among his pet hates Facebook, Twitter and Christmas – as well as the “really ridiculous” television series, The Tudors.

In 2023 Sovereign, the third Shardlake novel, was staged by York Theatre Royal as a large-scale community production at King’s Manor, York, where much of the novel is set. A four-part television adaptation, Shardlake, directed by Justin Chadwick with Arthur Hughes as the eponymous lawyer and Sean Bean as Cromwell, is due to be screened on Disney+ this week.

A good man in trying times, his Shardlake became a firm friend to countless admirers. Erudite but approachable, his creator spoke engagingly about his work in a voice that bore soft traces of an Edinburgh upbringing. Above all, the one-time solicitor ceased never to explore the meaning of justice – or to tell timeless truths about power and its victims.

🔔 Christopher John Sansom, novelist and lawyer, born 9 December 1952; died 27 April 2024

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[iamveronicabitches]

Post where Alexa talks about her and Alex's potential babies

Alexa chung is the it-girl of the moment, with an Arctic Monkey for a boyfriend and a place on every catwalk front row. All in all, things are going rather well for the television presenter Alexa Chung. Just don't ask her to be serious, says Justine Picardie

If you're over the age of 30, or don't have teenagers in the house, then you might not have heard of Alexa Chung yet. But she is, quite literally, The One to Watch: popping up on a multitude of television programmes as a presenter, having made the transition from early-morning and late-night shows to prime time. She's also been adopted as this year's it-girl by the fashion industry, with her quirky clothes sense admired by everyone from Karl Lagerfeld to Luella Bartley; plus, her boyfriend is Alex Turner, lead singer of the Arctic Monkeys, all of which makes her just about the coolest kid in town.

Alexa Chung wears a dress by APC

As it happens, she's 24, but seems younger, with the looks and language and confidence of a beautiful teenager; all long legs and wide-eyed 'wows' and gusts of laughter. On the day we meet, she has just arrived back in London after a holiday with her boyfriend - a week in Santorini, then a few days in New York - and she is dressed in an outfit that will doubtless be copied by thousands of aspirant Alexa look-a-likes, who follow her every movement through the pages of weekly celebrity magazines and frenetic online forums. 'I'm dressed like a five-year-old,' she says, cheerfully, and you can see what she means, in a little blue corduroy pinafore from APC over an embroidered peasant smock, with tanned bare legs and flat black Chanel pumps. But the overall effect is pure Lolita, and when I tell her this, she gives a squeal of pleasure. 'I love Lolita,' she says, by which she may be referring both to the Nabokov novel (cited as a favourite in a previous interview) and its namesake's afterlife as fashion icon. 'I like my hem-lines short. I can't commit to something below the knee.'

By now, there may be readers who are asking, 'What is the point of Alexa Chung?' - a reasonable question, to which I can only answer, she is at this moment a leading representative of an influential brand of quirky 21st-century Englishness. Hence her current status makes her sought-after by fashion designers, who want Alexa Chung in the front row of their catwalk shows, and television commissioning editors, who see her as providing the elixir of youth in a bottle. She looks exotic - her father is Chinese, her mother English - but speaks in the classless yet recognisably Home Counties vowels of a girl with a comfortable upbringing in Hampshire ('My dad was a graphic designer, my mum stayed at home and looked after us'). The youngest of four children (two older brothers, one sister), she had a pony, a penchant for the recorder, on which she learnt to play Guns N' Roses' guitar solos ('I can still do it! I was showing my boyfriend the other day!'), and a passion for fashion from the start.

'I definitely always had a look going on,' she says. 'I wanted to be a fashion designer, and when my sister started studying textiles I began making myself clothes - but I broke her sewing machine. Then I wanted to do fashion journalism, and they told me at school that I should do an English degree.' She passed her A-levels (two As and a B) and was duly accepted by King's College London, but never took up the place, having been sidetracked both by a burgeoning modelling career and an older boyfriend, a photographer, with whom she set off on a Texan road trip on the day she was supposed to start at university.

'I'm kind of annoyed I didn't go to college,' she says. 'But I ended up getting a few TV commercials, and I was like, "You're paying me how much?!" Stupidly, I thought that money would keep coming in. It's a bit like gambling - you go to a casting, and you're hoping that you might earn 60 grand in a day. It's weird…' She gives a little sigh, like a momentarily downcast child, and then brightens up again almost instantly. 'But it's all turned out fine now. And the road trip was amazing! I hadn't done any of the summer reading for university, anyway… So it was never meant to be.'

She modelled for teenage magazines and mass-market brands, but her first proper break came in 2006, with a job co-hosting Channel 4's Popworld, alongside Alex Zane. Her perfect blend of clever irreverence and deadpan humour was seen to best effect in an interview with the American band Panic At The Disco when she asked them about the 'bottles of wee' thrown at them at the Reading Festival, and then corrected their grammar. The clip is now a YouTube favourite, along with (in her words) 'all these comments from American kids saying "that b*tch"'. YouTube aficionados will also be aware of the numerous homemade 'Alex and Alexa' tributes, which splice together paparazzi pictures of the couple with Arctic Monkeys songs. 'So we're like the indie Ken and Barbie,' she says, when I mention these, which seems to me to be a neat description, though she also makes it clear to journalists that she won't discuss her relationship with Turner.

Fortunately, her instincts as a television pro kick in when I ask her what questions she would ask herself, if she were doing a Popworld interview with Alexa Chung. For all lovers of pop trivia, here it is, verbatim:

Alexa: Oh, what do you and Alex do in a normal day?

Me: OK, so tell me. I want to know that.

[She laughs and shakes her head.]

Me: Whose house do you stay at?

Alexa: Both. Because he's got a house, as well.

Me: What do you have for breakfast?

Alexa: Probably we don't eat. But sometimes we have Fruit 'n Fibre.

Me: Does he use your skincare products?

Alexa: No - I got him some Elemis stuff, because I love Elemis, and the men's stuff smells so great. But he had a terrible reaction to it, and I felt completely guilty.

Me: But his skin got much better when he started going out with you.

Alexa [laughing]: That's literally got nothing to do with me! Wow. So you thought he was having access to the Stella McCartney skincare range? No, I think it was when he cut down on touring and whisky.

Me: What are your babies going to be called?

Alexa: Evie. I was just thinking about that, weirdly. And Wolf, if it's a boy.

Me: And will it be Turner or Chung? Wolf Chung has a good ring to it.

Alexa: If I don't have a kid called Wolf Chung in the next 20 years, I'll be really gutted.

Meanwhile, before motherhood intervenes, she is out and about, having a very good time. 'I'm going to Glastonbury,' she says, 'and the day after, I'm flying to Paris to do a piece [for a new Channel 4 series, Gok's Clothes Show, on which she is a presenter] behind the scenes at a couture show. So I'll be covered in mud when I meet Karl Lagerfeld. It's going to be excellent. And we've been road-testing heels - those Gwyneth Paltrow skyscraper heels. It was really funny - we got a team of runners to go to a racetrack and run in all the season's highest heels. It was the funniest thing I've ever seen.

hung herself is celebrated for almost single-handedly bringing back flat shoes - Russell & Bromley sold out of its traditional leather loafers after she was seen wearing them - but says she also wears heels, 'usually in my house. Yesterday I wore them to make soup. They were Moschino shiny navy shoes. I can't wear them to go out, so I just wear them in the house. I get changed about three times a day when I'm at home. Yesterday I wore a black Juicy Couture dress with the high heels when I was making the soup. It was vegetable soup, but it went wrong, because I don't have a liquidiser. So I said, "Let's pretend we're peasants," and we ate rustic bread with peasant soup.

'I think people are gonna go for the Sound of Music vibe this autumn,' she continues, with the same giddy jokiness, when I ask her about her predictions for next season's fashion. 'Hence the peasant smock today.'

A much-publicised opportunity to see Chung tackle a darker side of fashion - an investigation into sweat shops in a Channel 4 documentary titled The Devil Wears Primark - had been abruptly pulled from its scheduled slot at the beginning of June, just before I interviewed her. At the time, there was speculation that the programme had been removed for legal reasons, though Channel 4 said it simply wasn't yet ready for transmission. 'It definitely will go out,' says Chung, when I ask her about the delay. 'Panorama are putting one out, too, so there's a race to get them out. But I think they'll be different.' Working on the documentary was, she says, 'the hardest thing I've done'.

Vest by Vanessa Bruno and skirt by Sunshine & Shadow, both from Selfridges

She wasn't involved in the filming in India - 'someone else did that, with hidden cameras and everything' - nor did she actually have to work in the replica sweat shop that the programme-makers set up in this country, 'but I was hanging around there. It was boiling hot and the loo was disgusting, it was gross, and that's what made it miserable. I thought that doing a documentary would be something I'd really enjoy, but actually I didn't. I couldn't look at the camera - I found that really challenging, not to make stupid jokes. You've got to be honest, and I found it hard.'

We have a slightly desultory conversation about how to bring ethical trading to the fashion industry - 'It's difficult, because there aren't enough options or other alternatives' - and then it's as if she gathers herself together to be serious. 'We're all buying stuff we don't need, that's the problem, because of how greedy everyone has got. She says, with all her bags, laden with gifts downstairs. But it would be better to just save up and invest in one piece, rather than getting disposable clothes. Now people think it's cool to say, "I only paid £7 for this." So maybe it will flip round, and we'll say, "It cost £700."'

But we're in a difficult economic climate, I say to her. 'Yeah,' she says, but it's clear this doesn't mean much to her - and how could it, having grown up knowing only good times, and now with the world at her feet? She freely admits to having no interest in politics: 'I was watching the Clinton-Obama stuff [on the television] at the airport yesterday, and I was like, "So what's happening in Puerto Rico?" I don't understand what it means. I haven't even read a paper. I could tell you about music or fashion, but not about anything else.'

'Have you ever voted?' I ask. 'No. That's bad, isn't it? If I'm representing a generation, that's bad…' Then she laughs, and says, 'I just bought three disgusting bags in Greece because in the week that I was there I hadn't bought anything. So I bought these really gross things because I can't help but want to buy new stuff.' Then she shrugs, so prettily that it's impossible to disapprove; at least not without feeling like a grumpy old woman. Far more importantly, here is her top tip for summer footwear: 'Sebago deck shoes in brown leather.' You heard it here first.

source: telegraph.co.uk

You could find it in the great British archives because telegraph removed all their articles relating to Alexa and Alex

[2amtoday-blog]

A Pure Chinese Animation, Chinese Strange Tan,Why do so many Chinese Love it?

When mentioning Shanghai Art Film Studio, many Chinese post-80s, post-90s, and even post-60s and post-70s will smile knowingly, thinking of "Havoc in Heaven", "Nezha Trouble the Sea", "The Book of Heaven", " Black Cat Sheriff" and other classic works. Back in the day, these works accompanied generation after generation through childhood, and also represented Chinese animation, creating unique "cultural business cards" on the international stage. Time flies, and the brilliance created by Chinese animation in the era of "art films" has begun to fade in people's memory. After going through the trough and tempering, under the guidance of the "Guochuang" trend, the Chinese animation industry has finally seen the light again in recent years. However, although more and more domestic animations are "out of the circle" every year, and the market response is getting better every year, works with outstanding quality and reputation are still rare. Against this backdrop, shortly after its broadcast, a collection of short films called "China's Strange Story" received a high score of 9.5 from more than 70,000 viewers on Douban. It is the once "King of Art Films" Shanghai Art Film Studio that produced this collection of short films. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the presence of "art films" in the eyes of audiences in the 20th century has been decreasing. The style of the new generation of Chinese animation, on the one hand, is obviously influenced by mature animation markets such as Japan, Europe and the United States, and on the other hand, it is also actively catering to the needs of contemporary young people. aesthetic preference. However, the emergence and success of "China Strange Story" has made people realize that although the era of "art films" is over, the aesthetic resources, style resources, and unique Chinese cultural and ideological resources accumulated in the past by Chinese animation are still worthwhile. It has been further excavated today, and it is used as a starting point to carry out "inherited innovation". Why are the few episodes of "Chinese Strange Story" that have been aired so successful? The answer to this question, of course, must be found in the original film content. The first episode, "The Summer of Little Monsters", is the closest relative to the "art films" of the last century. Whether it is the cultural background derived from "Journey to the West", the classic art style with clear inheritance, or the highly recognizable image of Monkey King, it is enough to make audiences who are familiar with the development history of Chinese animation burst into tears. However, although "Little Monster's Summer" feels familiar, it is not an imitation of an old work. Its story line uses monster caves as a metaphor for the contemporary workplace, which young office workers can understand at a glance. With the nameless little demon instead of the quartet of Buddhist scriptures as the protagonist, the narrative style of persuading people to be kind and full of warmth is also eye-catching. In addition, the ink painting style of the second episode "Goose Goose Goose", silent film techniques, and "Liaozhai flavor" are full of open plots that are good at leaving blank space and have a long aftertaste; The bold attempt to integrate 3D animation, the romantic presentation of the natural features of Northeast China, and the thinking about the relationship between man and nature… These distinctive highlights all convey the unique insights of the main creative team and support them to transform these indirectly into works Courage and sincerity. From an industrial level point of view, the project scale of "China Strange Story" determines that it is impossible to pursue the top level. But it excels in creativity, sincerity, and the "Chinese gene" in it. "Chinese Strange Tan" first became famous, and it is closely related to the "feeling" attribute that comes with "Little Monster's Summer". piece. However, starting from "Lin Lin", we can already clearly see the courage of "Chinese Strange Tan" to explore a new world while relying on traditional resources. From the preview, it can be found that starting from the fourth episode, "Chinese Strange Tan" will even break away from the ancient background and come to the modern and even the future. At present, we don't know how long the ratings of "China Strange Tan" can be maintained, and the quality of the few episodes that have not been aired, but we might as well look forward to it and see how high they can reach. Read the full article

[heshemejoshi]

love this paragraph. Wu was cooking in the 16th century writing a monkey king as allegory for a fictional novel and academics in the 21st century research what he meant by that. i love how they must state that having a monkey bodyguard never happened to the monk the story is based on

[adhdgays]

[Image Description: Collage titled "Sun Wukong Sunday 2024" containing media depicting Sun Wukong. Media includes:

2008 Olympics Monkey Movie, 21st Century Journey to the West, 300 Heroes, Ace of Arenas, Adventures from China: Monkey King, AFK Arena, Age of Mythology, American Born Chinese, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Arena of Valor, Awesomenauts, Black Myth: Wukong, Blades of Brim, Bloons Monkey City, Cards, the Universe and Everything, Cloud Master, Dark Matter Particle Explorer, DC “Monkey Prince” and “Monkey King,” Destiny of Thrones, Diablo III, Digimon, Dislyte, DotA 2, Dragon Ball, Dragon Power, Dungeon Boss, Dungeon Hunter Champions, Empire Warriors: Tower Defense, Enslaved: Odyssey to the West, Ether Saga Odyssey, Evertale, Fate/Grand Order, Final Fantasy “Zidane,” Final Fantasy XIV, Fire Ball (2005), For Honor, Fortnite, Free Fire, Genshin Impact, Girl Giant and the Monkey King, God Game, GO Titans, Heroes Arena, Heroes Evolved, Heroes of Newerth, Heroes of the Storm, Honor of Kings, Into the Badlands, Jackie Chan Adventures, Journey to the West, Kamihime Project, Kirby, Kung Fu Chaos, Kung Fu Monkey King, Kung Fu Panda: Paws of Destiny, League of Legends, League of Masters: Auto Chess, Legend of Ace, Legend of Wukong, Legends Summarized: The Monkey King, LEGO Brawls, LEGO Fortnite, Lo Scimmiotto, Lost Empire, Love, Hina, Magic Thousand Character, Marvel “Monkey King | Sun Wukong” and “Sun Wukong (Deity) | Monkey King,” Marvel vs Capcom 2, Mega Man: The Wily Wars, Megami Tensei, Michael and the Monkey King, Minecraft: Chinese Mythology Mash-Up, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir, Mobile Legends, Monkey: Journey to the West, Monkey, Monkey Around, Monkey Goes West, Monkey King: Myth of the Skull, Monkey King, Monkey King, Monkey King and the Imps, Monkey King, Monkey King Idle: AFK RPG, Monkey King The Bottomless Hole, Monkey King The Legend Begins, Monkey King the One and Only, Monkey King Unparalleled, Monkey Magic, Monkey Magic, Monkey Twins, Monkey Typhoon, Monkey VS Er Lang Shen, Monkey with 72 Magic, Monster Land, Monster Legends Competitive, Monty the Magic Monkey, My Hero Academia, Myth: Monkey King, Nagurikomi Son Goku, Naruto, Nevermore-W: Idle Immortal RPG, New Pilgrims to the West, Ohabare Son Goku, One Piece, The Monkey Sun, The Tale of the True Monkey and the False Monkey, Ori and the Will of the Wisp, Oriental Legend, Osomatsu kun, Overwatch, Paragon, Pirate 101, Pocket Knights 2: Dragon Impact, Pokémon, Princess Iron Fan, Princess Iron Fan, Project X Zone,

Puzzles & Dragons, Rabbids: Party of Legends, RAID: Shadow Legends, RaiRai Gokuu, Ravenswatch, Return of Wukong, Revival of the Monkey King, RWBY, Saiyuki: Journey West, Saiyuki, Saiyuki, SD Gundam World Heroes, Sealed Demon Tower, Secret Journey, Seven Fights with Nine Tail Fox, Seven Fights with Nine Tail Fox, Seven Knights Idle Adventure, Shaceng Diary, Shen Yun Production of Journey to the West, Shinzo, Sid Meier's Civilization VI, Six Eared Macaque, SMITE, Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonson, Spaceketeers, Spark: A Space Tail, Strange Tales From a Chinese Studio, Strife, Subway Surfers, Summoners War Sky Arena, Sun, Sun Wukong vs Robot, Super Monkey Returns, Tang Monk Love Story, Tears of No Regret, The Adventures of Sun Wukong, The Fallen Hero, The Fantastic Magic Baby, The Four Monkeys The Return of Sun Wukong, The Great Sage Heaven’s Equal, The Karma Saiyuki, The Librarians, The Magic Cudgel, The Magic Journey to the West 2: Conquering the Demons, The Monkey and the Banshee, The Monkey King, The Monkey King, The Monkey King, The Monkey King, The Monkey King Demon City, The Monkey King’s Daughter, The Needle of the Sea Goddess, The New Legends of Monkey, The Player, The Rising Sun Saga, The True Monkey King, The Year Of Rice And Salt, Till We Meet Again, Tokyo Afterschool Summoners, Totally Accurate Battle Simulator, True and False Monkey King, Tsûzoku Saiyûki, Unmatched, Unruly Heroes, Warframe, War Song, West Adventure, West Tour Diary and Wukong Biography, Westward Journey Online II, Wu Cheng’En and Journey to the West, Wukong-Chinese & Math, Wukong Fight, Xin, The God of High School, Fly Superboard, New Journey to the West, Omniscient Reader, The Advanced Player of the Tutorial Tower, A Korean Odyssey, “Light of the Sun (Sun Wukong),” “Sun Wukong (Asian Trap Beat Mix),” “Sun Wukong (Battle),” “Sun Wukong (Monkey King),” “Sun Wukong Intro,” “Sun Wukong,” “Sun Wukong,” “Sun Wukong,” “Sun Wukong,” “Sun Wukong,” “Super,” “Sun Wu Kong,” Doraemon: The Record of Nobita's Parallel Visit to the West, Famicom Mukashibanashi: Yūyūki, Enoken no Son Goku: Zenpen, Carddass, Force of Will, Monster Strike, Lupin the Third Part II, Surprise, Unexpectedness, The Daily Life of the Immortal King, Ganso Saiyūki: Super Monkey Daibōken, The Legends of Changing Destiny, War Sovereign Soaring The Heavens, The Forbidden Kingdom, Great Sage, Marshal Tian Peng, Dream Journey, Journey to the West The Five Elements Mountains, Great God Monkey 1: Xiang Yao Pian, Great God Monkey, Saint, Journey to the West, A Chinese Odyssey, A Chinese Odyssey: Love of Eternity, A Chinese Odyssey, Journey to the West: The Supreme Treasure, Buddies in India, Havoc in Heaven, The Monkey King 1: Havoc In Heaven’s Palace, Heavenly Legend, Journey to the West Children’s Edition, Legend of Tian Peng, Yokai Watch, Battles with the Red Boy, The Monkey King Stormed the Sea Palace, Journey to the West, Adventures of Wukong, Wu Kong, Legend of Sun Wukong, LEGO Monkie Kid, A Chinese Tall Story, Journey to the West, Journey to the West, New Gods: Nezha Reborn, Smile Pretty Cure! The Movie: Big Mismatch in a Picture Book!, Dark Journey to the West: God of Destruction, Saiyuki, Warriors Orochi 2, InuYasha, White Dragon Horse, Monkey King Reincarnation, Cave of the Silken Web, Cave of the Silken Web, Taste of Love, Journey to the West: A Duel on the Faith, The Land of Many Perfumes, Journey to the West, Journey to the West, Journey to the West, Journey to the West Legends of the Monkey King, The Monkey King Reborn, Monkey King: Hero is Back, Monkey King Myth, Journey to the West Afterstory, Journey to the West Bi Qiu Kingdom, Journey to the West Demon’s Child, Journey to the West: The Legend of the Mermaid, Journey to the West 1: Conquering the Demons, Westward Journey Kungfu Monkey God and Demon Battle, Saiyukiden Dieno, Alakazam the Great, Journey to the West, Journey to the West, Monkey, Saiyuuki, Pigsy's Marriage, The Monkey King Quest For The Sutra, The Monkey King: The Five Fingers Group, Big Trouble in Dragon Palace, 19th century illustration of the Monkey King.

Under the cut includes sixteen screenshots of text documents detailing all of the media including Sun Wukong.]

Happy Sunday to The Most Guy In Anything!

[weaversweek]

Fear of Mu21c - the top 261

This is the conclusion to #FearOfMu21c, a crowdsourced attempt to find the most popular singles of the 21st century. An index post explains further.

108 people put in their lists of singles, awarding 10 points to all of them, 11 points to the top five, and 12 points to the favourite. Contest runner Arron has wrangled these together, broken ties, and compiled a full chart. It's below the cut.

Hear it all! Spotify playlists of the top 250 in chronological order by release date... and the top 50 in countdown order

266 pts 1 - 1 thing - Amerie

223 pts 2 - Paper planes - MIA

215 pts 3 - Hey ya! - Outkast

212 pts 4 - Can't get you out of my head - Kylie Minogue

198 pts 5 - Biology - Girls Aloud

194 pts 6 - Crazy in love - Beyoncé ft Jay-Z

188 pts 7 - 212 - Azealia Banks ft Lazy Jay

186 pts 8 - Dancing on my own - Robyn

176 pts 9 - Back to black - Amy Winehouse

175 pts 10 - Umbrella - Rhianna ft Jay-Z 11 - Freak like me - Sugababes

154 pts 12 - Video games - Lana Del Rey

150 pts [inc 10 in bonuses] 13 - BOB (Bombs over Baghdad) - Outkast

143 pts 14 - Get ur freak on - Missy Elliott 15 - Overload - Sugababes

142 pts 16 - Take me out - Franz Ferdinand

137 pts 17 - Hurt - Johnny Cash 18 - Bad romance - Lady Gaga

133 pts 19 - All my friends - LCD Soundsystem

132 pts 20 - Feel good inc - Gorillaz

131 pts 21 - Since I met you - The Avalanches 22 - The fear - Lily Allen

124 pts 23 - Maps - Yeah Yeah Yeahs 24 - We live here - Bob Vylan

121 pts 25 - I bet you look good on the dancefloor - Arctic Monkeys

120 pts 26 - Toxic - Britney Spears

114 pts 27 - One more time - Daft Punk

113 pts 28 - Mr brightside - The Killers 29 - Destroy everything you touch - Ladytron

112 pts 30 - Time to pretend - MGMT 31 - Do you realize?? - The Flaming Lips

110 pts 32 - Stan - Eminem 33 - Call me maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen

106 pts 34 - Crystal - New Order

105 pts 35 - Christine / Tilted - Christine and the Queens

102 pts 36 - Pure shores - All Saints

101 pts 37 - Roscoe - Midlake 38 - Tightrope - Janelle Monaé

100 pts 39 - Blank space - Taylor Swift 40 - Chaise longue - Wet Leg 41 - Song 4 Mutya (out of control) - Groove Armada

94 pts 42 - With every heartbeat - Robyn

93 pts 43 - Fell in love with a girl - The White Stripes

92 pts 44 - Make me feel - Janelle Monáe 45 - Crazy - Gnarls Barkley 46 - Witness (1 hope) - Roots Manuva

91 pts 47 - Ms Jackson - Outkast 48 - Theme from sparta f c #2 - The Fall

90 pts 49 - My girls - Animal Collective 50 - Chewing gum - Annie 51 - Milkshake - Kelis

83 pts 52 - Archie, marry me - Alvvays 53 - Blackstar - David Bowie

82 pts 54 - Bad guy - Billie Eilish 55 - Where are we now? - David Bowie 56 - Seven nation army - The White Stripes 57 - King kunta - Kendrick Lamar 58 - Wildfires - Sault

81 pts 59 - Blinding lights - The Weekend 60 - The rat - The Walkmen

80 pts 61 - Green light - Lorde 62 - Somebody that I used to know - Gotye ft Kimbra 63 - Galvanize - The Chemical Brothers ft Q-Tip 64 - Pagan poetry - Björk 65 - This hell - Ria Lina 66 - I don't feel like dancing - Scissor Sisters 67 - Blind - Hercules and Love Affair

73 pts 68 - Alright - Kendrick Lamar

72 pts 69 - You want it darker - Leonard Cohen 70 - Heartbeats - The Knife 71 - Seasons (waiting on you) - Future Islands 72 - Losing my edge - LCD Soundsystem

71 pts 73 - Uptown funk - Mark Ronson ft Bruno Mars 74 - You are the generation that bought more shoes and you get what you deserve - Johnny Boy 75 - Sunrise - Pulp 76 - I love it - Icona Pop ft Charli XCX

70 pts 77 - American boy - Estelle ft Kayne West 78 - Out of time - Blur 79 - Boys in the better land - Fontaines Dc 80 - Portions for foxes - Rilo Kiley 81 - Work it - Missy Elliott

66 pts 82 - Come on, let's go - Broadcast

64 pts 83 - Everything is embarrassing - Sky Ferreira

62 pts 84 - House of jealous lovers - The Rapture 85 - The look - Metronomy

61 pts 86 - No one knows - Queens of the Stone Age 87 - Get lucky - Daft Punk ft Pharell Williams and Nile Rodgers 88 - Royals - Lorde 89 - Burn the witch - Radiohead 90 - The show - Girls Aloud 91 - Hung up - Madonna 92 - Bulletproof - La Roux 93 - Standing in the way of control - The Gossip 94 - Silent shout - The Knife

60 pts 95 - Last nite - The Strokes 96 - Wolf like me - TV on the Radio 97 - Dog days are over - Florence and the Machine 98 - Family affair - Mary J Blige 99 - Cranes in the sky - Solange 100 - Strict machine - Goldfrapp 101 - Rolling in the deep - Adele 102 - Zero - Yeah Yeah Yeahs 103 - Slow - Kylie Minogue 104 - The mother we share - Chvrches 105 - Say it right - Nelly Furtado 106 - Digital love - Daft Punk 107 - Someone great - LCD Soundsystem 108 - That's not my name / Great DJ - The Ting Tings 109 - Hope there's someone - Antony and the Johnsons 110 - Wet dream - Wet Leg

54 pts 111 - I know a place - Muna

53 pts 112 - French navy - Camera Obscura 113 - I do this all the time - Self Esteem

52 pts 114 - Harder than you think - Public Enemy 115 - King of the mountain - Kate Bush 116 - There there - Radiohead 117 - Anti-hero - Taylor Swift 118 - Good fortune - P J Harvey 119 - The wire - Haim 120 - Int'l players anthem (I choose you) - UGK ft Outkast

51 pts 121 - There goes the fear - Doves 122 - Up with people - Lambchop 123 - The words that maketh murder - P J Harvey 124 - Emerge - Fischerspooner 125 - Shake it off - Taylor Swift 126 - Empire state of mind - Jay-Z ft Alicia Keys 127 - Two months off - Underworld 128 - One day like this - Elbow 129 - You ain't the problem - Michael Kiwanuka 130 - Love is a losing game - Amy Winehouse 131 - Mariners apartment complex - Lana Del Rey 132 - Myth - Beach House 133 - This is america - Childish Gambino 134 - Some girls - Rachel Stevens 135 - Lloyd I'm ready to be heartbroken - Camera Obscura 136 - Move your feet - Junior Senior 137 - Husbands - Savages

50 pts 138 - We found love - Rihanna ft Calvin Harris 139 - Damn, dis-moi (girlfriend) - Christine and the Queens ft Dâm-Funk 140 - Groovejet (if this ain't love) - Spiller ft Sophie Ellis Bextor 141 - Chandelier - Sia 142 - Levitating - Dua Lipa 143 - Don't start now - Dua Lipa 144 - Go! - Public Service Broadcasting 145 - About you now - Sugababes 146 - Since u been gone - Kelly Clarkson 147 - Heads will roll - Yeah Yeah Yeahs 148 - Slow life - Super Furry Animals 149 - Bootylicious - Destiny's Child 150 - This is the life - Amy MacDonald 151 - Welcome to the black parade - My Chemical Romance 152 - Pretty pimpin - Kurt Vile 153 - Go - The Chemical Brothers ft Q-Tip 154 - Days like these - Low 155 - Party hard - Andrew Wk 156 - The turning of our bones - Arab Strap 157 - Bohemian like you - Dandy Warhols 158 - Pumped up kicks - Foster the People 159 - We the people… - A Tribe Called Quest 160 - Take me to church - Hozier 161 - Williams' blood - Grace Jones 162 - Geraldine - Glasvegas

44 pts 163 - The girl and the robot - Röyksopp ft Robyn

43 pts 164 - Remember where you are - Jessie Ware 165 - Chaeri - Magdalena Bay

42 pts 166 - Evil - Interpol 167 - Hoppipolla - Sigur Rós 168 - Reflektor - Arcade Fire ft David Bowie 169 - Neighbourhood #2 (Laika) - Arcade Fire 170 - Midnight city - M83 171 - Coles corner - Richard Hawley 172 - Miami - Baxter Drury 173 - Heartbeat - Annie 174 - The modern age ep - The Strokes 175 - Lose yourself - Eminem 176 - Call the shots - Girls Aloud 177 - PDA - Interpol 178 - Loud places - Jamie xx ft Romy 179 - Don't shut me down - ABBA

41 pts 180 - Oblivion - Grimes 181 - Bloodbuzz Ohio - The National 182 - Düsseldorf - Teleman 183 - Such Great Heights - The Postal Service 184 - Precious - Depeche Mode 185 - I'm a cuckoo - Belle & Sebastian 186 - Somewhere only we know - Keane 187 - The rip - Portishead 188 - New rules - Dua Lipa 189 - Bring me to life - Evanescence 190 - Hard to explain - The Strokes 191 - Someone like you - Adele 192 - Star roving - Slowdive 193 - Lonely boy - The Black Keys 194 - Obstacle 1 - Interpol 195 - Not in love - Crystal Castles ft Robert Smith 196 - In for the kill - La Roux 197 - Queen of hearts - Fucked Up 198 - Stuck between stations - The Hold Steady 199 - Burn baby burn - Ash

40 pts 200 - Push the button - Sugababes 201 - Try again - Aaliyah 202 - Danny Nedelko - Idles 203 - Close your eyes (and count to fuck) - Run the Jewels ft Zack de la Rocha 204 - More than a woman - Aaliyah 205 - Feel good hit of the summer - Queens of the Stone Age 206 - Pyramid song - Radiohead 207 - Head home - Midlake 208 - Telephone - Lady Gaga ft Beyoncé 209 - Like I used to - Sharon van Etten and Angel Olsen 210 - Over and over - Hot Chip 211 - Into you - Ariana Grande 212 - Vampire - Olivia Rodrigo 213 - Archangel - Burial 214 - Emmylou - First Aid Kit 215 - Motion sickness - Phoebe Bridgers 216 - 99 problems - Jay-Z 217 - Clint Eastwood - Gorillaz 218 - Sea within a sea - The Horrors 219 - 1901 - Phoenix 220 - I follow rivers - Lykke Li 221 - Whenever wherever - Shakira 222 - Fake empire - The National 223 - Sprawl II (mountains beyond mountains) - Arcade Fire 224 - Frontier psychiatrist - The Avalanches 225 - Danger! high voltage - Electric Six 226 - Ladyflash - The Go! Team 227 - Katy on a mission - Katy B 228 - GMF - John Grant with Sinéad O'Connor 229 - Kids - MGMT 230 - You know I'm no good - Amy Winehouse 231 - I luv u - Dizzee Rascal 232 - Beautiful day - U2 233 - Mykonos - Fleet Foxes 234 - Lazy - X-press 2 ft David Byrne 235 - Club foot - Kasabian 236 - Fallin' - Alicia Keys 237 - Greatest hits - Jockstrap 238 - Remedy - Little Boots 239 - I believe in a thing called love - The Darkness 240 - Lies - Chvrches 241 - Leave the door open - Silk Sonic 242 - Reagan - Killer Mike 243 - Shut up kiss me - Angel Olsen 244 - Round and round / Mistaken wedding - Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti 245 - Glue - Bicep 246 - Black magic - Little Mix 247 - Hade - Charisma.com 248 - My heart is a drummer - Allo Darlin' 249 - One-armed scissor - At The Drive In 250 - Feel it still - Portugal, The Man 251 - Kryptonite - Three Doors Down

34 pts 252 - Irish blood english heart - Morrissey

33 pts 253 - Whole again - Atomic Kitten 254 - Feel you - Julia Holter

32 pts 255 - It's a hit - Rilo Kiley 256 - Papillion - Editors 257 - Summertime sadness - Lana Del Rey 258 - Everybody's changing - Keane

31 pts 259 - The middle - Jimmy Eat World 260 - Somebody told me - The Killers 261 - Editors - Munich

Performers getting at least 250 points in total were:

JAY-Z 552 pts/4 in the chart

OUTKAST 538/4

SUGABABES 499/4

ROBYN 465/3

BEYONCÉ 409/2

RIHANNA 408/2

TAYLOR SWIFT 403/3

KYLIE MINOGUE 394/2

GIRLS ALOUD 391/3

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM 345/3

AMY WINEHOUSE 339/3

DAFT PUNK 336/3

M.I.A. 333/1

YEAH YEAH YEAHS 324/3

LADY GAGA 318/2

LANA DEL REY 307/2

AMERIE 286/1

DAVID BOWIE 279/3

KENDRICK LAMAR 265/2

ARCTIC MONKEYS 263/1

GORILLAZ 262/2

(Yes, this includes nominations that didn't make the published chart.)

Observations

#FearOfMu21c was part of "Music Twttr", an accumulation of mostly-British mostly-middle-aged mostly-male posters. It reflects a particular cultural bias: primarily The Sort Of Tune They'll Play on BBC 6 Music. Almost nothing not in English, very little folk and country and roots music.

I ended up with 17 votes counting to the top 261, 16 to the top 250. This is as much as would be expected by sheer chance.

[euphoriacafe]

Somebody I Used To Know: Elvis Presley Series 1

In The End ; Chapter 1

Austin!Elvis Presley x Female Reader 

Summary: A group of Diverse adults who are singers that traveled through other countries, some would call them hippies and others would call them abominations. Alexis, who is one of the main singers for the band, met Elvis Presley when he was barely starting his career and only fate can decide whether or not Alexis will save him. 

Warnings: Lots of Swearing, Yelling, Sexual content, Twisting of history and angst/mentions of death.

Note: This series is purely inspired by the songs, I wanna Be Yours by Arctic Monkeys & Somebody I Used To Know by Gotye.

PS. THIS STORY WILL HAVE SOME DETAILS SUCH AS HOMOSEXUALITY, TRANSGENDER, DRAG QUEENS, DIVERSE GROUPS

P.P.S THIS SERIES WILL ALSO HAVE 21ST CENTURY MUSIC THAT WAS MADE BY THE “ BAND ” SO GET OFF MY ASS PLEASE AND ENJOY xx

Chapter Two 

Flashing lights, muffled screaming from fans, sweat beaming down our faces from the bright lights, the music blasting through the room. My ears ringing and all I could feel was my heart beating fast as time felt like it froze for a moment. None of this felt real yet it was, everything that led to this moment was real and even then I could still feel his heavy eyes staring at us, at me. Turning my gaze to my far right behind the huge black velvet curtain stood Elvis Presley. The king of Rock and Roll himself was in a trance peering at me. Even though I couldn’t live in this moment forever, I knew deep down I wanted to stay like this.

It was July 25th, 1955 and Elvis Presley was making a name for himself whilst I had fame to my name already. My head felt clouded with a number of emotions that I couldn’t even name. As I gazed back towards the open crowd of people in the room it was filled with people dancing, security backing people up, and of course big company representatives on a stand to see the stage. My group was only here for what felt like charity work yet at this moment I was happy I came. 

The Velvet Pristin was our group's name and we are the first diverse group that ever lived during our time. 

You had our oldest whose name was Dani Harison (29), he is the first Drag Queen to come out and be a performer. He is an African American man who is 6’2, fit yet thin, his eyes black, and his hair cut short till he puts on his wigs and clothes he designs himself. He becomes Monnet Blac and believe me when I tell you that she was fierce. Dani loved and thrived off of seeing the representatives  faces grow red and filled with hatred, because what is a little hate going to do. Then you had Scartella Wilson (25), our second oldest who was America’s sweetheart. Scartella was what every girl wanted to be thin, pale white, beautiful locks of blonde hair, filled heart lips, doe blue eyes, and her voice was like a dove singing.

Our third oldest was Kira Yuan (24), an Chinese American and she was the beauty standard and idol of China. She was graceful and fought back anything that was in our way, Kira was everyone’s back bone when they forgot who they were. Cherry Garcia (23) is the second youngest and she came from Mexico to escape the tragedy that happened, the biggest earthquake Mexico has ever had. She was tall, thin, long black hair, her tan was dark but was beautiful that it brought out her dark brown eyes. Then there was me, the youngest out of the entire group. My name is Alexis Ponce De Leon (20) I was the one who helped convince this group to happen and now we are here. My body was curvy yet some would call it provocative, my hair was to my shoulders, my skin was tanned to match my heritage of being also Mexican American.

Though the journey was a long way to go from where we started; now we are here in Memphis, Tennessee performing our latest songs that continue to shake the United States of America. Some newspapers would call us abominations and others would call us revolutionary. I looked up to view boxes where more fans were located screaming and chanting. I knocked back into my senses to finish my last note. 

“Bang, bang, there goes your heart, I know you want it, Back, back seat of my car, I'll let you have it, Wait a minute, let me take you there, Oh, Wait a minute 'til you, Oh, hey.” I breathed out the final words of the song breathing heavily. I looked back to my right to see Elvis was gone. As I closed my eyes, I threw my head back trying to catch my breath. The fans clapped and screamed trying to reach out to touch us on stage. 

“Thank you everyone, we love you all!” Dani called out into the mic hyping up the crowd further. “And thank you Mr. Representatives.” Dani winked and extended his hand to wave goodbye in a taunting way. Scartella blew kisses waving and bowing along with Kira and Cherry. As they left the stage I stood there still trying to get my breathing under control as I leaned down to touch a few people's hands. Some tried to pull me into the crowd while the security pulled them off. I smirked, pulling my hand away and doing a final little bow. 

As I strolled off the stage to see the others stand by our staff who were also our friends: Steven, Hunter, Greyson, Skye, and Rory. Steven Jones (25) was a white man who always loved wearing blue and black suits, he was 6’1, lean, and was your typical Tennessee gentleman. He was the one who would promote us and manage us. Hunter Miller (23) was a white man also but who came from Canada. Hunter was 5’9 and was a gentleman who was connected to his sensitive side. Yet, he was the one who would protect any of us from any harm whether it’s death threats or accusations. 

Rory Davis (28) was a Afro-Cuban man who found his true self through Dani. Rory was on the curvy side being almost 6’1, his English was broken yet he understood. He is the one who would design any stage outfits for the group and if needed make wigs to please his dear Dani. Rory and Dani have been lovers for 5 years but due to laws they could never marry, which angered him but being side by side with Rory is all that mattered to him.  

Greyson Begay (22) being a Native American, Navajo, to be exact he was 5’8 with black long hair that he kept braided pigtails that complimented his upswept corners and a slanted eye shape while his cheek bones were well defined. He never spoke too much yet words never went unspoken, he was the one who helped with song writing.  Finally you had Skye Rodriguez (21) Afro-Mexican American. Her hair was coily that formed into a big afro and her complexion was well defined, as if she could be a model. Clear black skin while her brown eyes were doe like. Skye worked with makeup and our hair as if it depended on it. 

“Must you be so extra Alexis?” Skye questioned handing me a glass bottle that was filled with water. I scoffed teasingly while taking the bottle. 

“If I’m not, who will be my darling?” I asked further, taking a small sip. There it was again, the feeling of being watched from afar. My eyes scanned behind my friends till I spotted him again. Our eyes met and the bottle touched my lips. I gave a small grin before looking away. Who did this man think he is to look that good and just want to stare. 

“Anyways, before we get carried away we were invited to an after party in Downtown Memphis to visit B.B King.” Steven cut off Skye from giving her sassy remarks. “You mean THE B.B King?” Dani gasped with excitement. 

“I heard he was making his way up there but formally inviting us to hang with him is beyond me.” Dani leaned his body into Rory’s side. 

“He said we are more than welcome. There will be other formal singers there so let's all head back to our hotel before we go, alright?” Hunter added as he wrapped an arm around Scartella’s waist. “I’ll be right there, let me just get something real quick.” I exclaimed walking away after the few short calls they gave. I walked to the other side of the backstage to pick up a small bag I left till I saw a shadow tower above me. I turned around looking up at the one and only Elvis Presley who was thin, his hair swept to the side, black eyeliner around his eyes and his natural soft pink lips. “Well hello there.” I tilted my head to the side gazing directly into those baby blue eyes of his. 

“Hello, I-I’m Elvis…Presley.” He stuttered and immediately his cheeks grew into a rosy color. I gave a small laugh and smiled while looking at him still. “I know who you are, you've been the talk recently I’m-” I was cut off by him quickly speaking. 

“Alexis, I know my girlfriend loves to listen to you constantly when you’re on the radio.” Did he say girlfriend? Of course, how could I be foolish. My real smile then turned into a fake smile and my eyes slowly started to zone out. As I was zoning out I swear I could see that he even noticed that my smile faded. Elvis started to stutter again but to not waste much more of my time I spoke up once again.

 “Well I’m glad she does. Now lets never meet again Mr. Presley.” I pushed gently past him leaving the poor man stunned. 

I sighed walking away as my heart felt heavy and my ears began to ring once more again. I closed my eyes a little bit seeing his baby blue eyes that were carved into my mind. Love wasn’t in my cards and it won’t ever be. I’ve been with this group for the past 6 years and the whole time flings would come and go from the group but I could never get myself to fall for one. Shame on me for finding a boy attractive to the point I forget that there could be a possible lover on the side. I felt the eyes burning into my body till I turned the corner down the steps and into the parking lot that was cut off from the public for musicians.

“What took you so long?” Greyson called out as he was leaning against the black Cadillac with a cigar between his lips. 

“I signed a fan’s book, what else do you want from me?” I bit back about his question as I was getting into the car's back seat and laid my head back since the roof of the car wasn’t there. I stared at the starry sky listening to the faded cheers from inside the building.  

“Someone’s in a bad mood already.” 

Greyson got into the front passenger seat once he closed the door the driver began to start the car and finally move. Greyson felt the heavy energy I was giving off, he hated when I would get like this due to either feeling alone or I felt like I could’ve done better for performing to a crowd. Most times it was performing but this felt different. He never liked when guys would get close to me since he saw me as a little sister all he wanted to do was protect me. Aside from everyone else, Greyson knew me inside and out and was the one who took care of me once my parents passed away. 

“Would you like to just stay at the hotel tonight instead of going out?” Greyson yelled so I would be able to hear over the wind. I contemplated the factors and shook my head while closing my eyes once again breathing heavily. 

“No.” I spoke quietly. “I need a distraction.” I whispered to myself.

After a few minutes we got to our hotel and saw the lights bright and three people leaning on the railing. It was Hunter, Dani, and Rory. “Finally they're here!” Rory called out in full confidence and smiled. They must have been drinking. I looked at them above and called out “What am I wearing mother!” I called Dani who held a glass bottle of alcohol. 

“Come and see my beauty.” Dani chirped. 

Dani loved being called mother; it was something that made him feel protective over each and one of us. I got out of the car once Greyson opened the door and walked up to the second story of the hotel. “What held you up Alexis?” Hunter questioned as he glared at me up and down trying to read my body. 

“I needed to get my bag, now where is this beautiful outfit I’m going to be wearing.” I tried to rush my answer seeing Dani turn around in his heels that Rory customized himself. Opening the black door to see bags of outfits they had laid out for me. “Pick a color honey.” Dani whispered in my ear softly. 

Baby blue, those eyes still filling my head. God fucking damnit that man looked intoxicating that he left a imprint on me. No, no, it can’t be like this. He has a girlfriend and I’m not going to be stomping into that. Fuck it.

“Baby blue.” I whispered.

“Perfect we need to fix up your makeup and your hair then we can go meet that beautiful man, B.B King '' Dani perked up and Rory showed clear jealousy smacking his lips. “But no one can beat my gorgeous babe.” Dani grabbed Rory's chin and gave him a soft peck. I gave a faint smile and grabbed the bag the dress rested in. “Okay just give me a few minutes and I will be right out.” 

As 30 minutes passed I was dressed in this beautiful baby blue silk gown that showed a bit too much of my big cleavage but hugged each curve I had. That was it, Dani did it again with another gorgeous gown, he always thinks outside the box. While Skye came in to help fix up my makeup and touch up my hair I didn’t realize I was so zoned out looking at myself. 

“You look beautiful Alexis.” She whispered, rubbing my exposed shoulder. 

“I would hope so, Dani and you did such a beautiful job.” I smiled weakly, still staring at myself through the mirror. 

“Come on, let's go to this party before it ends.” Skye noticed that something was bothering me but it was better to just avoid it to not have any outburst. We drove to the downtown side where colored and a few poor white people only resigned. The sidewalks were filled with life till we parked next to the side walks. Two black Cadillac's  and we saw people crowding around chanting as we stepped out of the cars. We waved and smiled to each fan that we passed. 

“Right through here!” The door opened with a security guard standing, as we walked into the black building we went up the stairs to see a club filled with African American artists singing, dancing, drinking, and chatting. It was so lively. Everyone dressed in either their best suits or best dresses. 

“Monnet Blac!” B.B King called out from the other side of the room to move closer.

“Oh my lord, B.B King knows me.” Dani fangirled under his breath. Dani began to touch his black wig that was long and wavy. “Mr. B.B King it’s so nice to finally meet you, our staff and the rest of the group.” Dani pointed. I smiled and waved.

“It’s very nice to meet-” I paused when I saw a pair of blue eyes that was haunting my head. Black hair, black suit, his hair was now a bit messy. He spotted me through the crowd- once again the ringing in my ears came back, the room slowed down, and my breathing was caught in the back of my throat. B.B King took notice of this and glanced back at me. 

“That is Elvis Presley, a friend of mine. Have you met him yet?” He questioned as he came closer holding out an arm. I entwined my arm with him and shook my head “No sir, I’ve only heard of his upcoming.” 

B.B King strolled with me as we got closer to Elvis . He exhaled deeply and tried to give a confident grin as if I haven’t even met him yet. Gosh it irritated my soul yet it was attractive. 

“Elvis, this is Alexis from Velvet Pristin, Alexis this is Elvis- Elvis Presley.” I gave a fake smile and grabbed Elvis' extended hand. It was soft and warm- it felt as if electricity was flowing through our bodies. We stared at each other in the eyes and time seemed to slow down all over again. Elvis took a deep inhale and gripped my hand gently pulling me towards his body. I pulled my hand away. “It’s nice to meet you Mr. Presley.” I spoke softly. “The feeling is mutual mama.” Elvis continued to stare at me as I looked away. How the tables turned in this situation was beyond me but all I could think is ways to leave the situation in hand. 

“I’ll leave you two alone.” B.B King nodded with a smile as he walked away. I finally released my breath and looked at Elvis back. He snatched my hand and opened the door that was behind him that led into an empty room filled with tables and chairs. I yelped following him as he closed the door behind him. 

“You know a normal person would usually ask to talk alone instead of dragging.” I snapped at him as I released my hand from his. 

“Well, I wanted to get a moment alone with you before you tried to walk away again on me,” He paused, eyeing me. “Which by the way I feel like I’m kind of owed a reason why you just walked off in the first place.” He spoke kind of hurt but keeping a locked gaze. “I don’t owe you anything Mr. Presl-” 

“Elvis- call me Elvis sweetheart.” Elvis leaned against the table. 

Feeling a bit disobedient I inhaled going close to his face. “Mr. Presley, I don’t owe you an explanation other than just having to be on time for events, such as this one which I should be enjoying sir.” Elvis leaned down a bit meeting me at eye level, I could feel the hotness from his breath and the poor lighting barely showing any color of those baby blue eyes of his.  

Elvis scoffed and pulled away. “Fine.” He stood up and grabbed the bottle that was on the side of the table. “I love your dress, it’s really different and very…” He paused as his eyes scanned down my body and slowly dragged up to my face again. “Scandalous.” I puff and snatched the bottle from his hands.

“So, I can wear what I want when I want.” I unscrewed the bottle cap and held it to my lips staring at his eyes as he eyed my lips. “Plus don’t you have a girlfriend to be paying more attention to than watching what other girls wear?” I finally took a sip and handed him the bottle, letting the warm liquor fall into my stomach loving the burn trailing down my throat. 

“I don’t watch what other girls wear, I’m just talking about your outfit, that's all mama.” He grasped the bottle into his hands. His fingers grazed over mine before pulling the bottle away from my grip. Elvis brought the bottle to his lips as well taking a gulp of it. “If you ask me I was just interested in the design of it.” He backed himself up. 

I smiled, fixing his hair and taking a dust bunny out of it. “Don’t talk to me then Mr. Presley- Talk to Monnet Blac.” I pulled back as well and just before I could open the door I turned around and carefully spoke. “Mr. Presley I mean it, let's never meet again. Good luck on your journey.” As I opened the door to the crowded room, the music was blasting, the singers singing on the top of their lungs, laughing and dancing. I felt my ears ringing and felt I was looking pale. I want him but I can never have him. I want him to chase me but I can’t have him. 

Mr. Elvis Presley.

[chaos-vulpix]

Aftershockshipping Playlist

After reading Chapter 40 of @weekend-whip‘s Born to Be a 21st Century Ninja, I... managed to talk myself into making a playlist for Aftershock (Cole x Jesse)... and Ren (weekend-whip) wanted to see it, so... here it is, I guess.

Just a heads up, I don’t normally share playlists, but I just needed to showcase the vibe these two together give me. It’s mostly inspired by the events of the chapter itself & what could’ve been logically playing during Tox’s set at Rockshot, but also just general vibes outside of that setting, though some may feel like they are from a specific perspective (like, you can feel which song is Cole or Jesse), or it is completely unrelated but meshed well into the vibes so I thought “screw it, throw it in”. I’m also thinking that this could be expanded on in future, but let’s keep it “small” for now.

So, in no particular but alphabetical order because I can’t curate effectively, enjoy:

Adore - Cashmere Cat ft. Ariana Grande

All For You - Rynx ft. Kiesza

Animal - Kesha

Atic - Astrid S

Audio - LSD (Labrinth, Sia & Diplo)

Beautiful Now - Zedd ft. Jon Bellion

Blue - Bad Computer

Boom Clap - Charli XCX

Break My Heart - Dua Lipa

Call You Mine - The Chainsmokers ft. Bebe Rexha

Chameleon - Mako & Elephante

Chasing Clouds - Bad Computer & Danyka Nadeau

Chasing Fire - Lauv

Chroma - Pixel Terror ft. EMELINE

Circles - Audien ft. Ruby Prophet

Daisy - Zedd ft. Julia Michaels

Dreamin’ - Seven Lions ft. Fiora

Eyes Off You - M-22 ft. Arlissa & Kiana Ledé

FANCY - TWICE

Fly - Bad Computer

Go Bang - PNAU

Gold - Koven

Goodness Gracious - Ellie Goulding

Hearts On Fire - Illenium & Dabin ft. Lights

I Don’t Do Drugs - Doja Cat ft. Ariana Grande

I Need Your Love - Calvin Harris ft. Ellie Goulding

Keep You Mine - NOTD & Shy Martin

Levitating - Dua Lipa

Light Me Up - RL Grime ft. Miguel & Julia Michaels

Lost In Your Light - Dua Lipa ft. Miguel

Love Lies - Khalid & Normani

Magic - Kylie Minogue

Make U Mine - James Landino ft. Jenny

Message In A Bottle (Taylor’s Version) (Fat Max G Remix) - Taylor Swift

Off Limits - BAYNK ft. GLADES

Out Loud - Fairlane, ROZES & JT Roach

Play - Jax Jones and Years & Years

Run Away With Me - Carly Rae Jepsen

Running In The Dark - MONKEY MAJIK

Settle - BAYNK ft. Sinéad Harnett

Shattered - MitiS ft. RUNN

Shine - Jeff Williams & Casey Lee Williams

Sight of Your Soul - Dirtyphonics & Sullivan King

Something Better - Audien ft. Lady A

Something Comforting - Porter Robinson

Spectrum - Zedd ft. Matthew Koma

Still Into You - Paramore

SuperLove - Charli XCX

The Other Side (Oliver Heldens Remix) - SZA & Justin Timberlake

There’s No Way (LZRD Remix) - Lauv ft. Julia Michaels

This Is Real - Jax Jones ft. Ella Henderson

Tie Me Down (Blanke Remix) - Gryffin & Elley Duhé

Wake Up Alone (Fairlane Remix) - The Chainsmokers ft. Jhené Aiko

When You Call - Cyrus Reynolds ft. BELLSAINT

Wings - Birdy

With You - Jupiter Project & Jetski Safari ft. Helen Corry

Now, I did say I was making an Aftershock playlist, but I also wanted to make a playlist for Jesse’s futile efforts to get over Cole because Glacier keeps getting in the way (poor thing lol, not your fault Cole is like a puppy with heart eyes when Zane is present). Just the idea of someone hopelessly in love with another, yet the object of their affections is not only oblivious, but is hopelessly in love with someone else as well, so they try to bury those feelings, try to cut it out of the heart, on for it to hurt them in the process because that love is just rooted so deeply... and perhaps, eventually realising that they can’t give up, that they can’t let go so easily (when letting go is just too hard & painful).

Aftershock - Cash Cash ft. Jacquie Lee

All for Nothing - Duumu & MYRNE

All I Wanted - Paramore

Bells in Santa Fe - Halsey

Chasing Fire (Robin Schulz Remix) - Lauv

Clarity (Virtual Riot Remix) - Zedd ft. Foxes

Don’t Leave - Seven Lions ft. Ellie Goulding

It’s Okay If You Forget Me - Astrid S

New York City - The Chainsmokers

Rush Over Me - Seven Lions, Illenium & Said The Sky ft. HALIENE

Save Your Tears (Remix) - The Weeknd & Ariana Grande

So Close - NOTD & Felix Jaehn ft. Georgia Ku & Captain Cuts

The One - Rita Ora & Imanbek

Tonight I’m Getting Over You - Carly Rae Jepsen

Velcro - spill tab ft. Gus Dapperton

Want You - Rynx ft. Miranda Glory

You for Me - Sigala & Rita Ora

[bocchithegrappler]

thank u for the tag!!!!!! @why-not-m-e

tagging @donparadiso @redinkquill @n-ehpamoi @lead-to-code @verdiiiii

Put your music library on shuffle, then list the first five songs that come up in a poll to let people vote for which one they like best.

Thank you @thelastevilregal for tagging me. Sorry I slept on it for a couple of days lolol Put your music library on shuffle, then list the first five songs that come up in a poll to let people vote for which one they like the most.

And I am tagging @dungeonsanddoormats @imptricks @crittertrekkingthroughthestars @regalyswanqueen @waterloobelivet and @lift-heavy-be-gay

[the-monkey-ruler]

I'm Not a Great Sage (2020) 我不是大圣

Director: Li Kunlin / Ding Weijian / Huang Xijia Genre: Animation / Short Film Country/Region of Production: Mainland China Language: Mandarin Chinese Date: 2020-05-31 (Mainland China) Duration: 5 minutes Type: Crossover

Summary:

The story takes place in a Beijing hutong in the early 21st century. The image of the protagonist, Xiao Wukong, is inspired by the image of Sun Wukong in the traditional Chinese handicraft "noodle figurines". He is brave and righteous. The villain "Mouse" is a dirty mouse who is cute and only wants to eat the food on the stalls. He also has his own persistence in the face of food. People say "a rat shit spoils the whole pot of porridge", so Xiao Wukong took on the mission of protecting the stall for the reputation of health and hygiene, and at the same time fought with the mouse. At the beginning, Xiao Wukong had the halo of "Monkey King" in the opera. In the fight, he gradually realized his fragility. He was just made of flour and was fragile. However, he faced difficulties head-on, and he would fight to the end even if he was crushed to pieces. In a sense, his protection of the stall's reputation also protected the stall's future.

Source: https://movie.douban.com/subject/35089907/

Link: https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1cT4y1J7JJ/

[sketching-shark]

Fully aware that you can only do so much with a shorter work than with a ~1,400 page epic, but you still have to give it to the 16th century’s Wu Cheng’en for writing a more complex and nuanced version of the Monkey King than like...99.9% of all 21st century adaptations

[gayshipsandanxiety]

For the ask game: music recs?? Please??? I've listened to the front bottoms' whole discography like 5 times now i have nothing to listen to

your music taste is already iconic but here ya go <3

the psychedelic furs: i started listening to them because they're my dad's favorite band and GOD there is some gay stuff there. they do mostly synthpop (i think??? i'm bad at recognizing music genres). a lot of their stuff can be interpreted as a disdain for typical hetero white picket fence families/relationships. you absolutely HAVE to listen to love my way that song slaps so hard and some of my other favorites by them shock and soap commercial.

echo & the bunnymen: i found this band from this video (https://youtu.be/ek52acrA1lw) and lost my fucking mind. i have no idea what genre they are but they're and 80s british band and no 80s british band has ever done me wrong. some of my favorites by them are villiers terrace, it's alright (bestie you're gonna start crying when you hear it), clay, ripeness, and never stop (discotheque). the entire porcupine album slaps so fuckin hard.

tears for fears: this band has So Much Gender and they're one of the few 80s bands that i like their 21st century stuff. bestie the instruments!!! so many instruments!! pale shelter and memories fade are both mike wheeler anthems and they are very close to my heart. raoul and the kings of spain is a great album, head over heels is fantastic, and shout makes me astral project.

bronski beat: fuckin bronski beat!!! they're another synthpop band and jimmy somerville's vocal range is just *chef's kiss*. their songs are gay as fuck and their music is just so. music. i'm gonna be honest their songs kinda played a part in me realizing i was mlm. some of my favorites are why?, junk, need a man blues, punishment for love, and ofc smalltown boy.

arctic monkeys: yeah so you might not have heard of them because they're suuuper underground and indie /s. i'm pretty sure typing that sentence made me grow a beanie directly out of my skull lmao. anyway i really like vibe of their music and they go surprisingly hard. the am album is a banger, 505 is of course a classic, and the favorite worst nightmare and whatever people say i am, i'm not albums are also pretty good.

the smiths: either everyone in this band is gay or britain was just like that in the 80s idk. they have a lot of angsty gaycoded songs so ofc i'm obsessed with them. how soon is now?, back to the old house, sweet and tender hooligan, there is a light that never goes out, this charming man, and i started something i couldn't finish all gave me psychic damage but i reccomend you listen to all their songs because literally everything they make is a banger.

taylor swift: you're already gay and a byler stan so you're halfway to becoming a swiftie /hj. i can't put into words what her music does for me i'm just so in love with her songwriting. some of my faves by her are you are in love, new romantics, gold rush, exile, cardigan, cruel summer, paper rings, it's nice to have a friend, all too well, don't blame me, delicate, look what you made me do, dress, i did something bad, and wildest dreams. the midnights album comes out on the 21st!!!!

violent femmes: if you like the front bottoms you'll LOVE the violent femmes they have a lot of folk punkish queercoded songs. just like my father and mother of a girl will turn you into an angsty bisexual male character, no killing is a religious experience, love love love love love is the queer agenda, their violent femmes album i literally cannot listen to without headbanging, and their why do birds sing album could be the soundtrack to literally any steddie fanfic.

gin wigmore: i'm gonna be honest i need to listen to more of her stuff but i was soooo obsessed with her back in my mcu era. i loooove her voice it's so raspy and cool. she does country??? but Woman Country that's actually really good and about heartbreak and becoming stronger. her songs make me feel like the main character of a western. written in the water, black sheep, happy ever after, hbic, and hallow fate slay so hard.

black pistol fire: ahhhh i love them omg. they're grunge rock i think? biggg boot stomping energy. black halo, fever breaks, hope in hell, level, look alive, and well wasted are all blorbo anthems.

des rocs: ehehe i'm so obsessed with this weird little rat man (affectionate). his music is just so !!!!!!! idk how he doesn't have a million listeners already. he's a rocker and sings a lot about mental illness and toxic relationships. let the vultures in is a fantastic ep although huge tw for mental illness, mmc is great, suicide romantics absoultley Destroyed me, wayne is a Song, and his album a real good person in a real bad place is the best thing ever god i love his songs.

bishop briggs: another artist from my mcu era lol. literally every fandom has an edit to her song river but dark side, jekyll & hyde, and high water also slay. the emotion she puts into her songs is so <3333 and GOD her voice is amazing.

barns courtney: GENDER MAN GENDER MAN DOES WHATEVER A GENDER CAN <3 another rocker but he has some acoustic stuff too. his albums 404 and the attractions of youth are just incredible and sinners is also fantastic.

sleepover asks <3

[earl-of-221b]

hi!! so I've been back on a jttw kick for the first time in YEARS because i was looking for content and ran into your post about xixingji (hope that's the right spelling. there's almost NOTHING i can find about it and i think the version i found is very behind lol). I've really enjoyed both that and Saiyuki (currently looking for the new monkey king animated film but... haven't found an english version yet), and I was wondering if you had further jttw related movie/comic/show recs?

Sure! Xixingji was one of my absolute favs for a while, "What if the gang had to go west again, but this time backwards, wearing stilts, and on fire." It's on its third season now but from what I've read of the english translations, they're really good, if a bit behind.

I'm sure there are a few here you're already aware of, but here are a few recs.

Return of the Demon King that came out recently -- this one is a fun romp in jttwland, the best parts are about the interactions between the pilgrim bros, but story-wise it's a bit weak and tonally inconsistent.

Nezha Reborn focuses on the character Nezha in steampunk-1920s-fantasy-Shanghai, but there are a few cool cameos of other gods and deities -- one being a jttw character in disguise that is a must see!!

Otherwise there's always the classics, Uproar in Heaven that can be viewed on youtube, where a lot of modern monkey king iconography came from. Another classic gem is The Monkey King Conquers the Demon, which fuses a few great jttw stories together on the journey west.

The success of 2015 Monkey King: Hero is back is one of the films that basically opened the doorway to today's booming Chinese animation industry. It's about Sun Wukong and a de-aged Tang Monk. It's a B movie at best, but at the time this movie brought Sun Wukong back to animation and for that, it rocks.

Definitely also try out the three Black Myth: Wukong game concept trailers, which features incredible world building and really fun development gameplay for a future console/pc game.

Another fun one is 21st Century Journey to the West, a bit like Saiyuki in that every jttw character is imagined HOT. Also, it takes place in the 21c. Unfortunately I couldn't find a more up to date eng translation, but there are only 6 chapters out so far.

Lastly there's Lego Monkey King, where all the jttw characters are legos and the main character gets tutored by lego Sun Wukong to fight lego Red Boy and his lego demon family. Definitely aimed at kids, but there is some excellent animation!

[bellamer]

Songs On My Playlist I Think Kaidan Alenko Would Like:

Them Changes by Thundercat

Pavement by Harness

Trouble Man by Marvin Gaye

Are You Gonna Be My Girl by Jet

Careless Whisper by George Michael

Shake Your Groove Thing by Peaches and Herb

Losing My Mind by Mystery Skulls

Faint by Linkin Park

Faust by Paul Williams

Wires by The Neighborhood

Face by Brockhampton

Addicted To You by Avicii

Weird Part Of The Night by Louis Cole

Can I Really ? By Von Smith

Stop The World, I Wanna Get Off With You by Arctic Monkeys

Four Out of Five by Arctic Monkeys

Tom's Diner by Suzanne Vega

Moonage Daydream by The Last Shadow Puppets

I Don't Know by BADBADNOTGOOD

Man of War by Radiohead

Gospel of The Throttle by Minutes Til Midnight

Suga Suga by Baby Bash

Cold by Annie Lennox

Calm Like You by The Last Shadow Puppets

Sweet Dreams TN by The Last Shadow Puppets

I Periodically Lull by Mississippi Voss

Break My Stride by Matthew Wilder

Torched Song by The Real Tuesday Weld

Can I Call You Rose ? by Thee Sacred Souls

Weak For Your Love by Thee Sacred Souls

Will I See You Again ? by Thee Sacred Souls

Change by Deftones

Back on The Chain Gang by The Pretenders

As The World Caves In by Matt Maltese

Seasons (Waiting On You) by Future Islands

You Make Me Feel Like Dancing by Leo Sayer

Burn by The Cure

Just The Two of Us by Grover Washington Jr ft Bill Withers

Necessary Evil by Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Tadow by fkj ft Masego

Deceptacon by Le Tigre

Treasures of Time by Yuji Ohno ft Toku

Sydney by Caravan Palace

Shine On You Crazy Diamond (parts I-V) by Pink Floyd

Lovely Day by Bill Withers

Cry For Me from the Jersey Boys soundtrack

Take Me Out by Franz Ferdinand

Sleep Forever by Portugal. The Man

Lulu by KC Booker

Sunflower by Rex Orange County

Goodie Bag by Still Woozy

Feel it Still by Portugal. The Man

Ain't It Weird ? by The Goodnight Loving

At Least It Was Here by The 88

Pretty Wings by Maxwell

I Like It by DeBarge

No You Girls Never Know by Franz Ferdinand

Jerk It Out by Ceasers

Handclap by Fritz and The Tantrums

Harder Better Faster Stronger by Daft Punk

Parachute by Sean Lennon

Pink + White by Frank Ocean

Back To The Cave by Colonel Suns

Tighten Up by The Black Keys

Snap Out Of It by Arctic Monkeys

Afraid by The Neighborhood

Lake By The Ocean by Maxwell

On Again Off Again by Sean Lennon

Talk Show Host by Radiohead

#1 Crush by Garbage

Powerful by Major Lazer

Do I Wanna Know ? by Arctic Monkeys

Everybody Wants To Rule The World by Tears For Fears

Sweet Love by Anita Baker

Head Over Heels by Tears For Fears

The Way I Feel Inside by The Zombies

Walk Like An Egyptian by The Bangles

21st Century Schizoid Man by King Crimson

Caroline by Alex Clare

Lost In Love by Brockhampton

Put It Together by Langhorn Slim and The Law

Mr Night by Kenny Loggins

Majestic by Wax Fang

Anyways by Arctic Monkeys

Nights In White Satin by Moody Blues

Low by Foo Fighters

Paris in The Summer by Charles X

Barracuda by Heart

Coming Home by Leon Bridges

Sweet Thing by Rufus and Chaka Khan

Time Moves Slow by BADBADNOTGOOD