#Etienne ( interests )

[forestofforever]

Poor Sylvester. Looking at my old RP blog, apparently, Sylvester was still functioning as a sort of supernatural doctor on that one, often carrying a suitcase full of pills and potions to treat others.

To go from being the one giving people pills to being the one usually taking the pills, talk about a downgrade.

[pettyeti]

i always end up editing more photos than i need, so here's an extra. i like this angle because it showcases how much larger than life crystal mom is!

[soupandsorcery]

i haven't gotten to any of the meaty bits of the durge/astarion romance yet, but even with still being in act 1, this shit is so good. because etienne is just here for a good time. he is your classic always down to clown bard. and there's astarion, with his over the top pick up lines and clearly fake flirtations, and etienne is living for it. one thing he didn't lose with his memories is his flair for the dramatic, so it's just the two of them disgusting the other party members with ever increasingly sappy pet names and over the top schmoop. they're having a good time! and the thing is, etienne doesn't understand why astarion is doing this. he thinks astarion is a kindred spirit who is just here for chaos and good sex. he thinks they're both just shallow, beautiful people, and why shouldn't two shallow, beautiful people have good sex, right?

but then the guy at the inn. the inn on fire, the guy screaming for help. his dead wife on the ground. etienne can't figure out why it makes him feel so...hollow. he thinks about it for a long time afterwards, just the way that guy sobs over his dead wife's body. he obviously can't remember caring about anyone that much. he thinks about the people he's killed and wonders if they had people who cried over them that way. if he's the cause of that much heartbreak in someone.

then he thinks about astarion and realizes that yeah. if something happened to him, he'd be pretty devastated. and he has to wonder if astarion would feel the same way. or if it would just be part of the farce.

he has to wonder if anyone would weep for him if it came down to it. or if everything in his life is just a superficial game.

[uzumaki-rebellion]

"I've got a Big Chief, Big Chief, Big Chief of the Nation

The wild, wild creation

He won't bow down

Down on the ground

Oh how I love to hear him call Indian Red"

Voices of a Nation – "Indian Red"

The Backstreet Bar used to be the spot Celeste's parents went to when they were young and lively in the nineties and before they started pumping out kids left and right. Near the French Market off Esplanade in the sixth ward, it became a shrine and the iconic hub for rhythm and blues.

All things Black and New Orleans culture-wise sprang from that bar in their neighborhood. When the owner Etienne King passed away, his widow Lesli King took over. The levees broke in 2005 and nearly washed away the people and history that gave the city its culture and flavor. But the people persevered until Lesli passed during Mardi Gras of 2010. Celeste remembered 2010 well because it was the first year she started sewing with her granddaddy Big Chief Harris Profitt of the Wild Treme Mardi Gras Indians.

Thirteen and full of spitfire energy and overzealous gumption, Celeste spent all year beading and sewing using her granddaddy's jeweler's loupe magnifier over her right eye. The intricate beadwork and patches she sewed and assembled to make her first Indian suit was a proud moment, not only for Celeste, but for that side of her family who ran up and down the streets hunting down other tribes to battle in verbal dexterity and showing off how pretty they looked in their Mardi Gras finery.

Her suit was a patchwork of dark purple, lavender, and white micro beads, feathers, and sequins. She showed the fuck out among her kin and her relatives started calling her by the nickname Duchess because she strutted so high and mighty in front of granddaddy's house while the neighbors waited for their Big Chief to come outside on a fine Mardi Gras morning to represent their downtown neighborhood in his fabulous three-dimensional African-inspired suit. No one in Treme ever called her grandfather by his first name. It was always "Big Chief", "Chief", or "Chief Profitt".

Proud to be a Wild Treme Indian, Celeste sewed a new suit every year as was custom. It was expensive, time-consuming, and a true labor of love. Her grandmother had worked as a seamstress for a dress shop and her grandfather was a welder like his father before him, and she absorbed those technical skills of sewing and shaping metal under their tutelage to transform Black Mardi Gras Indian regalia into wearable art. Sadly, she lost interest in making suits by the time she hit twenty-four and began designing the fancy second line parasols, fans, and baskets for several social aid and pleasure clubs instead. That extra source of income helped carry her for over four years. Sometimes on annual Super Sundays she'd re-purpose some old suits to play in with other Mardi Gras Indian tribes that came from all over the city to commune and show off in A.L. Davis Park. It made Big Chief happy to see her on those occasions, although he wanted his youngest grandchild to sew new suits again.

The test of a true Indian was to pour your passion and creativity into needle and thread to kill 'em dead with a new suit annually. Tribes frowned on recycling an old suit and considered it lazy work to don a suit people already witnessed you in. People came out looking for craftsmanship, originality, and style—lagniappe—a little something extra each year. She poured her creative flair into the overly decorated accessories for other people and made a nice coin doing it.

After Lesli died, Grand-mère, along with a cadre of old-timers, lamented that the history of their hood would crumble if the Backstreet Bar died. Grand-mère had been one of dozens of foster-children Lesli looked after over the years, giving some jobs working at the neighborhood bar. Eventually, Grand-mère and Big Chief took over the property instead of retiring when Celeste turned eighteen. It was the bar Celeste headed toward for Mardi Gras Indian practice with her family and tribe.

She didn't want to drive through downtown, but she became the designated driver for three of her besties. Lyfts and Ubers raised their prices during the holiday season and no one wanted to pay outlandish fees when they could look cute in her brand new muscle car. Cruising through the Garden District, she picked up two of her friends and headed down to the French Quarter. They didn't have to stop for food because Grand-mère provided free red beans and rice, fried chicken, and sometimes boiled crawfish and red rice at the bar. She hoped they had a nice spread tonight because her stomach growled and she needed heavy food to soak up the liquor she planned to consume.

Her ex boyfriend committed a flagrant foul that weekend by jumping the gun and telling everyone they had broken up before she was ready. She suspected he wanted to bring out his new woman openly so no one would beat his behind once she blabbed that he'd been running around on her. Truth be told, she was tired of his boring ass anyway, but the general principal of the matter was she wanted to be the first to bail and get her lick back during carnival. Now if she turnt up and shook ass extra hard, people would say she was overcompensating for getting dumped.

"Duchess, turn right…slow down…there's a spot about to open up."

"Where?" Celeste said to her friend Mercy, who sat shotgun.

Mercy pointed to the flashing hazard lights of a taxi. Celeste zipped into the tight spot and breathed a sigh of relief. There was nothing worse than searching for parking anywhere near the Quarter or within a one-mile radius in any direction during the carnival season. Mercy checked her smartphone.

"She's on her way out," Mercy said.

Celeste checked her face in the mirror. Although it was only a practice at the bar, she still wanted to look cute. Her giant Medusa locs were pulled back with a leather hair tie high on her head, and her eyeliner and ruby lip stick gave enough sexy unbothered vibes that made her feel confident. She had her girls, a stellar whip that she worked hard for, and time with her tribe to look forward to. Lately, it seemed like carnival festivities were the only way her family got together en mass. Carnival or funerals.

Their friend Joyce hustled out of a popular bakery in the Quarter carrying a box of the popular King Cake, a ring-shaped, hand-braided cinnamon infused dessert. The plastic covering on top showed off the tri-colored icing of gold, purple, and green.

"Hey, girl!" Celeste said as Joyce climbed in the back of the Charger. She gave air kisses to Nae Nae in the back.

"Whew! It's been crazy in there! Some people were mad they ran out of King Cakes that weren't pre-ordered. I am ready to cut up!" Joyce enthused.

Celeste checked her driver's side mirror and pulled out, heading around the narrow block. Clogged streets packed in the tourists, locals, and plenty of cops. She parked four blocks away from the Backstreet Bar and they all climbed out feeling giddy. Normally, Big Chief didn't allow outsiders or non-tribal members to attend Indian practice. But he made an exception that year to help her get over feelings about her ex. Freddie made being in Nawlins central intolerable. He knew everyone in her extended family because he was a police officer who had connections to a political family with high ambitions for him down the road. After their unceremonious break up, she moved into a cute little over-priced cottage far from him, and took an extra part-time job at a chicken processing plant with a goal of saving enough money to head out to California for an extended visit. Celeste had relatives in L.A. and could stay with them for a vacation. Getting away from the Big Easy would help build up a new positive lease on life. Or maybe she'd take a five-day cruise to Mexico. Anywhere was good, just as long as she could escape Freddie and go to a new world for a minute.

That man had wasted her time and love. She wanted to buy a large home and get married. Start a family. Months ago, she gave him an ultimatum that their relationship needed forward momentum and her finger needed a ring by New Year's Day. Cheating was his way of humbling her, and ironically, it brought her great relief. He made life feel stagnant and dull, proving unequivocally that he wasn't The One. She just didn't have the guts to leave first before having something lined up on the horizon.

A crowd of patrons gathered outside a corner in front of the Backstreet Bar, catching the pitiful breeze that attempted to blow through the escalating muggy heat while listening to the thumping music from inside. Celeste glanced at the exterior of the bar painted with colorful images of their tribe, Creole food, and two giant beer mugs clinking together. The name of the bar was graffiti painted above the front door that stood wide open. A "Closed Until 9 P.M." sign taped to the wall kept non-tribal members out for the time being, and a blank-faced bouncer, David, stood vigil on a metal stool.

"Hey David!" Celeste said.

"Duchess!"

David hopped off the stool and gave Celeste a big belly hug because his stomach lopped over his belt.

"I brought my friends to watch with Big Chief's permission. They won't be no trouble," she said.

David looked over the women, his beady eyes taking a liking to Joyce's plump frame.

"Alright now, go get y'all a plate before the good eatin' is all gone," David said to the group. His eyes stayed on Joyce the entire time.

Inside, the raucous shouts of men showered them with the energy of the packed bar and sucked them right into the fold. Family and tribal members were already cutting up, clapping and smacking tambourines in time to an internal beat that swelled throughout the room.

On a small stage across from the bar, a second line brass band made up of young men in their twenties carried the foundational rhythm the others followed. The musical frenzy, sweaty faces, and rocking bodies enveloped Celeste in the comforts of culture. Trumpets, a trombone, and a good faith tuba blasted the familiar jazzy sounds that New Orleans was famous for. Celeste rocked her shoulders, shuffled her feet with slick footwork, and sang the old-time Indian songs.

Joyce placed the King Cake on an open table near Grand-mère who stood regally watching the action. She hugged each one of them. Celeste eyed her father drumming on stage and glanced toward her mother, who mixed drinks at the bar.

It was good to be in the Treme.

She greeted familiar faces and asked "Who dat?" about folks she didn't recognize. Inundated with love and affection, Celeste settled in, bringing a playful zeal to her dancing. Her mother handed her a tambourine at the bar, and she hopped onto the dance floor behind her grandfather and tapped a churchy beat on her left palm. Onlookers who were guests ogled the rare treat of seeing a real deal Indian practice. Their tribe's Spy Boy, Darryl, waved a white handkerchief around, yelped in his warbled tone and pretended to see another tribe's approach. A play uncle named Man-Man started strutting as their Flag Boy and the boisterous sound of voices rose, singing louder than the percussive drum beats onstage. Celeste stayed close to her grandfather, listening for his calls to change the tempo at the drop of a dime.

The Big Chief's salt and a little less pepper hair sweated out into tight curls. His dark hickory brown face stayed bathed in a sheen of earned sweat. Eyes closed and listening for the spirit to arrive, Big Chief struck his tambourine once and hooted, his cries flying overhead and joined by a tribal call-and-response that bolstered his bringing down of the ancestors.

Celeste copied his tambourine strikes to aid in catching the spirit. In four days, the tribe would take to the streets, preening and daring another tribe to outshine them. Thankful for choosing to wear a white t-shirt tied at the waist and comfy jean shorts, Celeste danced, sang, shook her hips and felt the weight of the world lift from her shoulders.

Three hours rocked by with chants, foot stomping, and plenty of drinking.

Twirling to her left to show off for her friends, she took some time to eat and gulp down a rum and coke standing in front of the stage. She caught the eye of a man lingering near her right side. Despite the many faces in the bar that blended into a chaotic blur during practice, the stranger's eyes latched onto hers and she couldn't shake them away. He was one of them pretty boys with captivating light eyes and possibly good hair that most people thought Creoles were supposed to have. Celeste's family was bone-Black Creole, the darker kind that still spoke southern, creolized French.

The man stood near some of her male cousins, and God forbid, a childhood friend named Travis X who was a five-percenter and a member of the Nation of Islam. It was impossible to miss Travis's short, high and tight fade and big shiny teeth. Still lurking in the shadows next to Travis, peeping at her moves, Mr. Light Eyes boldly stared right back at her like she was supposed to be sucked up on a plate of hot crawfish and dirty rice Grand-mère served.

Big Chief nudged Celeste to join in on the closing song. Lifting her contralto voice to support her energetic grandfather, she belted out the first opening cry of "Indian Red"

"Madi cu defio, en dans dey, end dans day…"

Their tribe repeated the words like a field holler with a tinge of the blues until everyone was on one accord. They belted out the song that represented the core of their tradition.

"We are the Indians, Indians, Indians of the nation

The wild, wild creation

We won't bow down

Down on the ground

Oh, how I love to hear them call Indian Red

I've got a Big Chief, Big Chief, Big Chief of the Nation

The wild, wild creation

He won't bow down

Down on the ground…"

Tears welled up in Celeste's eyes while singing with her grandfather. The power of the words enveloped her like a cozy patchwork quilt. Big Chief was getting to the age where he would have to pass the torch onto his oldest son. It was quite possibly his last time leading the tribe. His age was catching up to what his body couldn't carry as well anymore. The heavy tribal suits could weigh over eighty pounds or more. She wanted to dance in the streets with him one more time before a shift took place. She heard the trembling in his voice…they all did. Everyone in that packed bar knew they were witnessing the closure of an era under his leadership. Her uncle Alston would be a capable chief, but Big Chief Harris Proffit was the only chief she had known representing her people since she was a baby. He was eighty-two. Time to hand down the baton.

The last note hung in the air and Celeste broke away, grabbed her smokes from her purse, and headed outside to clear her head. Big Chief didn't need to witness her sadness. He wasn't dying, just nearing retirement. But it felt like a passing on anyway.

Back on the corner and away from David, who allowed regular patrons to come inside since practice was over, Celeste opened up a pack of Newports and tried lighting a cigarette. She flicked her lighter. It flashed and petered out. She huffed, and the cigarette dangled from her lips. A sign from God to quit, probably. A spark of another lighter glowed under her bottom lip.

Travis had followed her outside. So did the stranger and a few other men from Travis's Hotep crew.

"Sister Celeste, you know you should give up the devil's ways with this smoking," Travis said.

Celeste puffed to catch the flame, and Travis removed the lighter.

"Then why help me out?" she said.

She took a long drag and blew out away from his face and noticed a dark tattoo on the stranger's muscular right arm. An eight-pointed star floating above a crescent moon. Shit. Another Muslim. Last thing she wanted was to be lectured and recruited to be the next Betty Shabazz to a Malcolm X wanna-be. At least Travis wasn't slanging his bean pies or the Final Call at the bar. A real vibe killer. One thing the Nation had right by her was how they cleaned up Black men and turned them into fine specimens of manhood. She glanced at the tall, pretty boy with the hypnotic eyes. His plush lips looked so succulent for long, lusty kisses.

As-Salaam Alaikum, she muttered in her mind.

Her stomach fluttered at the grin on his face. Like he heard her thoughts. He turned to look at a few patrons entering the bar, and she glimpsed more ink on his left arm. A marine tattoo with black USMC lettering. An eagle sat on top of a globe underneath it, and Celeste looked away when he rested his gaze on her face again. Her cheeks warmed up like she was in a hot bath, and she parted her lips to take in more air. Feeling breathless, she jabbed her cigarette against the wall and tossed it in a garbage bin near the entrance.

"You ready, Duchess? They playing the down home blues in there and the old folks are taking over the dance floor," Nae Nae said with an annoyed stank face, joining Celeste outside with Joyce and Mercy.

Joyce handed her a paper plate with a piece of King Cake on it. Grateful for the distraction, Celeste took the plate and broke off a piece of the pastry. Stuffing it in her mouth, she chewed and Mr. Light Eyes pierced her soul with another drawn-out stare. She stuck two fingers in her mouth and pulled out a tiny brown plastic baby.

"Oop, you know what that means!" Joyce said.

Mr. Light Eyes seemed to float away with Travis and their male entourage down the street.

"I gotta bring the King Cake next year," Celeste said softly, holding the plastic baby in front of her lips, eyes still tracking the round, firm ass of the stranger in his jeans

The marine glanced back at her and smiled. She dropped her head forward, feeling lightheaded.

"You okay?" Joyce asked.

Celeste pocketed the plastic baby and linked arms with her friends.

"I'll go change inside and we'll be on our way! Let's get to clubbing!" Celeste said.

Chapter 3 HERE.

Masterlist.

Author's Note:

Hey y'all, the rest will drop on Halloween as promised! I had to set up my masterlist post now to make it easier when I upload the rest of the parts. Please share/reblog so we can get another Black fandom growing!

Tag List:

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@thedondada05

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@avoidthings

@slutsareteacherstoo

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[psikonauti]

Seymour Etienne Bottex (Haitian,1922-2016)

Sensuous Reclining Nude with Interested Cat, 1960 -1970

Oil on canvas

[spaceorphan18]

The Rogue and Gambit Project: Previously On X-Men... Gambit

It's time to talk about Gambit! The nice thing about Gambit is that he was, at the time, a relatively new character, having only been around in the comics for about a year. Which means there is way less to cover! Boy, are we going to have to deal with some questionable art, though.

The Basics:

Name: Remy Etienne* LeBeau

*Okay, so, this is the funny thing about the name Etienne. Apparently, it started out as fanlore, and - as so many things that happen in fandom - gained popularity as fanon from a particularly well known piece of fanfiction from way back when. I believe it's actually been used in canon at this point. It is on Marvel.com - which is the official site. I'll keep a look out for it to show up.

Also, in case you didn't know (and I'm sure you did), Le Beau is French for The Beautiful.

Backstory: Just like Rogue, Gambit's backstory is shrouded in mystery. He's a thief. He's from New Orleans. He's Cajun. That's all your getting for now. Don't worry, we'll peel back the layers. ;)

Power Set (via uncannyxmen.net):  interkinetic power allows him to produce bio-kinetic energy within his body and use it to convert any inorganic object's potential energy into kinetic energy on contact, making the object highly volatile and explosive on contact, internal energy also grants him heightened agility and creates static interference that shields his mind from detection

I should also give the obligatory comment of - these powers are toned down from his full abilities because of /reasons/ which we'll get to eventually. He had Mr. Sinister give him a lobotomy and, we've all been suffering the consequences sense.

Alright, let's dig into Gambit's pre-Rogue run...

Uncanny X-Men 266-267

Uncanny X-Men #266

I have to start by appreciating the fact that Gambit is a thief who wears bright pink and metal boots. It's a bold look.

Anyway, the funny thing about Gambit is that the character he turned out to be ended up being a lot different from creator Chris Claremont's initial ideas. Apparently, he was supposed to be, ultimately, a villain and, while he was supposed to be a love interest for one of our characters, it wasn't Rogue, it was... Kitty Pryde. He was also supposed to be a Mr. Sinister creation and a third summers brother. Yeah, I'm kind of glad Claremont left before any of this stuff really came to fruition.

Also, I once read that Claremont claim that original artist Mike Collins made Gambit too pretty. Which is funny, because ngl, I really am not a fan of the look in his debut, and it will be a while before he really earns his name.

Uncanny X-Men #266

I also want to note that Gambit's powers were a little different back then. He didn't have playing cards yet, and instead used metal spikes as throwing devices. The powers were designated in green. And were charged from his eyes. Also, interesting to note - his eyes aren't red on black yet, either.

There's also 'hypnotic charm' thing that was kinda used in the early appearances. He does use it in his first appearance to tame some of the Shadow King's Hounds.

Uncanny X-Men #266

He's gonna be calling her 'Stormy' for years. She's gonna love it. ;) (Btw - he calls her Stormy 4 times in this issue alone.)

Okay, so... Gambit shows up, crossing paths with Storm at a mansion of some rich person. Storm is de-aged (for... reasons) and is running from the Shadow King and his minions. He's busy stealing art from the rich dude (who apparently is not home and has no security, lol).

And thus, one of my favorite comic book friendships is born. And really, this first appearance is a lot of fun as Gambit and Storm play off each other's strengths to get away from the Shadow King.

Uncanny X-Men 267

Jim Lee is going to add some of Gambit's more iconic features -- such as throwing playing cards (Gambit's Ace of Spades shows up in this next issue) and using some kind of staff (hilariously, it's a broom in this issue).

Storm and Gambit's adventures continue. He takes her to New Orleans for a while so she can recover from the Shadow King. They go thieving -- playing Robin Hood -- stealing from rich people because they can. And then the Orphan Maker comes along, who makes Storm a teenager? (Idk - the whole thing is weird - she'll become her real age again in the next story arc.)

Uncanny X-Men #267

And then Storm is like, hey, I have a crazy idea....

Uncanny X-Men Annual #14

Fun fact: Because of release dates and such, Uncanny X-Men #266 wasn't the first comic released to have Gambit in it. The Annual technically came out first, though it clearly takes place after Uncanny 266-267. But this is the first time we see Gambit among the X-Men team. Not that he does anything remotely interesting during this whole thing. He doesn't even speak, kind of hides awkwardly in the background.

X-Tinction Agenda (Uncanny X-Men #270-272; X-Factor & New Mutants)

Uncanny X-Men #270

Welcome to the X-Men, Gambit! Hope you survive the experience!

He's in the credit roll now, must be official. ;)

Gambit joins the team just as the mega X-tinction Agenda crossover starts. (Uncanny X-Men joins New Mutants and X-Factor for this one) And, I'll be honest, this isn't one of my favorite crossovers. The whole thing revolves around the nation of Genosha, how they're using mutants for slaves, and how all the teams come together to change the status quo. And of course, mutants get capture and tortured and a few killed. Fwiw X-Men: The Animated Series did do this storyline.

Uncanny X-Men #270

Gambit and Cable don't (won't) get to cross paths very often, so I found this an interesting panel. Anyway... Gambit really has very little to do during this crossover. When Storm gets captured, he is really concerned for her (as he considers her his partner at the moment) but he's not really vibe-ing the whole team dynamic yet.

Uncanny X-Men #272

This is arguably the coolest thing Gambit's done as of yet. Dude pulls a spike out of his leg to use as a lockpick and gets himself rescued. I'm glad they give him this, because, again, for the most part he's just kinda hanging around in the background not doing much.

I will say - he and Jubilee get to cross paths, which is going to be a source of fun in the next arc.

Space Shenanigans (Uncanny X-Men 273-277)

Uncanny X-Men 273

Some of my favorite issues are when the team is regrouping. Post- X-Tinction Agenda, it's clear that things in the X-Office were changing. Claremont is at this point sort of being pushed out, while Jim Lee and Co are becoming more the driving force behind the books. On panel, the teams are kind of merging. X-Factor's first era is drawing to a close, and the X-Men are resolidifying after being in flux for so long.

We're about to get a Space Soap Opera, as Claremont so dearly loves, but this issue is a bit of a breather between the arcs. And we get this bit of tension between Storm and Gambit - where Gambit is ready to move on, but Storm is back on solid footing again. They don't explicitly state why Gambit sticks around, but he definitely does...

Uncanny X-Men 273

I swear, this is Chris Claremont's favorite joke. He's used it before this moment, and he'll do it again. It's impactful the first time, but it does get old the more Claremont does it. However, we get the first highlight of the dynamic between Gambit and Wolverine -- which will be antagonistic for a while, but is fascinating.

Uncanny X-Men #274

Doesn't Gambit look sexy in his yellow team uniform?? ;)

Btw - as I mentioned earlier, this is the first issue Gambit and Rogue appear in together. Though they be miles and miles and miles apart.

Uncanny X-Men #275

The whole crux of this arc, that I've been kind of ignoring, involves Xavier being brainwashed in space (or something) and of course the X-Men get involved in space politics (again). Honestly, space stories are Claremont's favorite trope, so it doesn't surprise me that the end of his run are filled with a couple of them.

Anyway -- if there's one person impervious to Gambit's charms - it's Jubilee. They get to hang out a lot during this arc, and it's really delightful since they team up to kind of figure out what is going on with Xavier acting weird and all the odd space kool-aide people are drinking.

Uncanny X-Men #277

I actually really like this cover. Gambit's got a sword and a spear! Plus, he looks like his 90s cool self now. The blue and yellow uniform doesn't suit him AT. ALL. But we don't have to deal with it too much longer...

Uncanny X-Men #277

See... I told you Claremont was gonna do this again, lol.

Uncanny X-Men #277

The nice thing about this whole space arc is that Gambit really gets to come into his own. He now looks cool (note the red eyes are here!). He's doing fun stuff. He's taking on Wolverine and holding his own. He's being smart and tactical and an asset. They've paired him with some great X-Men to start off with, and it's paying off.

Meanwhile, we don't really know much about him. As many of the other characters state, his background is shrouded in mystery... (whether you like what it actually is can be debated as we get to it). But for now, he's intriguing as a new comer.

And this is where we're at as two story lines come crashing together and our two romantic leads get to meet for the first time.... off panel.

But I'll get more into that next time when I discuss... The Muir Island Saga!

[thatseventiesbitch]

That ‘90s Show Part 3 - My Thoughts

Real life was real life’in this week 😅, so I’m just now able to share my thoughts re: the newest That ‘90s Show episodes.

Overall, another wonderful installment! The actors have definitely settled into their characters, and I’m invested in their storylines and relationships (beyond just Eric, Donna, and Leia). Reception to part 3 so far seems very positive. I’m going to remain hopeful it will get another season!

More thoughts beneath the cut:

It’s sort of stream of consciousness rambling, lol.

-Leia, my love. The wrestling storyline in episode 1 was funny. I loved seeing Leia’s persuasive, edgy side come out when she secured the autograph, much like back in the pilot when she got the tap from Mama. She’s really come into her own as a character this season.

-So much appreciation for the Doug Funnie and Porkchop cameos! 😆 As a child of the ‘90s, Doug was one of my favorite cartoons! And Red and Kitty’s Beanie Babies plot was… strange, lol, but funny. And it was nice to see them in cahoots. I knew Beanie Babies were going to make an appearance at some point, because they’re such a quintessentially ’90s thing. Remember how they gave away mini ones at McDonald’s for a while, and people went nuts? It was a strange time.

-Okay, the scene at the kitchen table with Red, Kitty, Leia and Donna after she broke the shower head genuinely had me cackling. And Donna gets another gold star mom award for the way she talked to Leia about it afterwards. I love how good of a mom she is. Hits me right in my feels. 🥹

-Jay and Leia… okay, probably an unpopular opinion but I just feel so lukewarm about them! 🤷🏼‍♀️ I don’t dislike them, I don’t ship them, they’re fine, I just don’t feel emotionally connected to them. Their first time didn’t elicit any big feelings or emotions from me. Their cliffhanger at the end - meh, I don’t really care if they stay together or break up. I remain more interested in seeing Leia explore other relationships - with Gwen or Nate, for instance - but she didn’t have many storylines apart from those with Jay or her family this time. Maybe it was foreshadowing to have Leia admit she expects to have a life long love like her parents do, and her friends reminding her that’s not realistic at all…

-Betsy! She reminds me of Brooke a bit and also Laurie, but mostly feels like her own character. Her relationship with Nate also reminds me of Kelso/Brooke’s relationship and Kelso/Laurie’s, in turns. She is much smarter than him but seems bemused and oddly charmed by the simple Nate, ala Brooke. And she’s manipulative, dominant, and sex-positive, ala Laurie. The scene where Nate tried to break up with her and she said no (😂) literally mirrors the Kelso and Laurie one from T70S. I definitely believed her as a Kelso, but you can tell she has intelligence her brother does not (thanks, Brooke) and seems serious about college/school in addition to having sex. A good mix of her parents, overall, and I enjoyed seeing her interactions with Jay and all the Kelso family lore we learned about this season!

-Kelso family lore: Jay and Betsy’s quibble - “Dad stayed with MY mom!” shows some underlying resentment/competition between the siblings, and also reveals that Kelso and Jackie took a 3 year break at some point (which we already kind of knew, due to their multiple remarriages) during which Kelso went back to Brooke (unclear)? Jay’s line about the time the entire Kelso family went to therapy for 20 minutes and the therapist told them they’re all afraid to love themselves was interesting, too.

-Okay, it was actually very sweet how Kitty found Isaac for Ozzie. I’ve enjoyed his arc this season: his heartbreak over Etienne, finding a queer community, his horror over being the last virgin *lol*, and now his blossoming relationship with Isaac. He seems more confident about himself and his sexuality than ever before. And his dry sense of humor always makes me laugh.

-We got to meet Gwen’s dad! I enjoyed him, his backstory, and his interactions with both Sherri and Gwen. Hoping we might see him again. Also, this shuts down the ‘Hyde is Gwen’s dad’ theories for good.

-The Jay and (Not So) Silent Bob schtick is so-so to me, but I did laugh at how they were following ‘their kids’ Ozzie and Isaac at the movies 😂.

-We got some good Eric nuggets! Starting with Eric and Donna being the same height in their wedding pictures - which I would cut my pinky finger off to see, btw. He lands his dream job working with George Lucas on Skywalker Ranch (I looked it up, and yes it’s a real place) and writing a book about the new Star Wars movies. Gets him out of the picture more permanently, but still leaves the door open for him to visit/return for a holiday episode or something. Loved Donna’s conversation with him on the phone, and imagining her helping him get settled out in California and visiting. And then Kitty’s comment about Donna drooling on his chest when they sleep - 🥹. My favorite detail yet.

-(Did anybody else think of the scene in T70S where Eric and Donna were discussing going to premarital counseling and Donna said they’d learn things about each other, like for instance what if one day she gets a high paying job in California - will he move? And then Eric is like ‘Whoa, why can’t I be the one to get the high paying job?’)

-Oh my god, I loved the ending sequence of them all in the car, dressed like the T70S characters and imitating the opening credits. Loved, loved, LOVED. When Leia put her hands on the dashboard like Donna, I think my shipper heart exploded. 🥰

-Donna and Bob’s moment on the car was very sweet (as was Bob reminiscing over Midge - this feels like confirmation that she’s passed away in-universe). I also thought it was poignant how Donna realizes (and values) both Eric and Leia’s happiness and doesn’t want to take that away, yet feels lost herself and is thus having difficulty making this decision. And then ultimately, she decides to just go back and forth between her two favorite people. 🥰

-The Clueless fantasy!!!!! Yes. So much yes. (I really enjoyed all of the ‘90s references this season)

-Wow. Sherri really is a Laurie clone (*cough* replacement *cough*). The fact that she’s done it with everyone - including the judge at Kitty’s court hearing. She’s earnest and often well meaning, but trips over her words and her relationships. Red and Kitty have so much to teach her. It’s a very parental relationship. Really makes you think about what could have been…

-This season made me such a NikNate shipper. I was kind of starting to come around to them after part 2, but their arc at the end where Nate believes in her musical talent and sells his van to buy back her guitar really got me. Nate is really winning me over, in general. #OTP: You’ll Always Be My Baby

-Ooh, that cliffhanger! Will Donna let Leia stay in Point Place now? Will she have to go to Our Lady Of Perpetual Sorrow? Will Leia forgive Jay for stealing her grandma’s keys? Stay tuned to find out! 😁

[alucardrakul]

@etienneulven location: Silverlands notes: i tried really hard to think of one where he'd be shirtless, but I couldn't, so you get plaid in the woods to compensate.

Beneath the Silverlands was an ore considered precious to the elvhen, orichalcum was the make of so many of their weapons and armaments, but more interesting was the impact it had on the natural world. Duly named, the trees of this realm held a distinct, silvery hue- the canopy glistened with the light from the waning sun. It case gold through the leaves that looked as though it had set each blade on fire.

Sinewy bark in deep lines held veins of the same make, though it ran deeper than the outer layer looked almost gray. Nestled within this enchanted forest, Caer Glas Keep had been reopened to the Legion of the Dead as a bastion against the blight. Tales of what had occurred at Nornwatch Tower and Isengrim's Embrace had spread, but to most, they remained the harrowing tale of a far-off problem.

In the evening air Alucard wandered, uncharacteristically on foot, he marched through the tree line and surveyed the land for any signs of corruption. According to reports from the locals, the princes of Avalon and Lysara had sealed the tunnels below Caer Glas Keep when they discovered darkspawn below... But as they'd come to know, tunnels like those were often deep, and expansive.

As he wandered, as did Alucard's mind - this walk less official and more warranted as now and then he felt... Absent. Pulled in a variety of directions; there was still no word from Ankhuria, and now, so close to his father, he could feel Vlad through their connection more prominently than ever.

Stopping at a river, the scent of the water across the rocks, the moisture in the air, the sound of the distant waterfall- Alucard took them in and tried to focus on something other than what he was missing. Through it all he heard something familiar, the scent followed. First the steady but feathery pulse of the boy from the Wastelands, next came the smell of pears.

Alucard didn't look, not at first, he waited a beat as his usual dramatics gave way to the breeze off the river that tussled his hair. He spoke into the ozone as Alucard's red eyes gazed at a reflection of the clothes he wore and nothing more.

"Dhampirs never see their own face," Alucard admitted, "I never knew I had my father's eyes- that I looked so much like him-" except in height, "until he commissioned a portrait of me." When the dhampir turned around, he fixed his red eyes upon Etienne. "What do you see?"

[osatokun]

New Orleans chronicle [long post]

Post for the people who comes in my blog and wondering who are the characters I constantly draw (and will go on drawing).

All of them - PC and NPCS from the Vampire the Masquerade games I play. Most of them from the longest game I had with friends, with its ups and downs the game lasted almost 2 years. here is the main player crew:

Charles Arthur Drinkwater (real name Benjamin Thomas Fox) -242 years old Scottish Malkavian, personal little mew mew of the local Harpy, surgeon since he was 20, and consultant in the weirdest occult questions. I played him, he was my first serious male character and it was very interesting experience. Dakota Salmon (real name Numpai) - 200 something something (230? 240?) years old Gangrel. She was primogen of the local Gangrels until the entire clan was exiled from the city. Highly respected by the clan, strong woman with cold logic and warm heart. She came back to the New Orleans in hopes to return gangrels their place in the city. She was played by @fj0rge Veronica Sugar (real name Veronica ) - a 100 something something years old Toreador, part of the coterie Charlie is in. A singer and vampire with the most high rating of humanity in the city. Crazy enough to get into Charlie's adventures and support him. She was played by @maria-ruta

Some of the names were taken form the New Orleans by Night book, but the characters are totally different. Plus our DM added just about every splat in the game. The game was set in 2022. From the foundation of the New Orleans it was ruled by Etienne Doran, Ventrue who always dreamed of making New Orleans the new Carthage. He drove the mages away from the city, united with local werewolves and in generally kept piece New Orleans (most of the time). However he was murdered in 1997 by unknown Gangrel, the entire clan was exiled, but no one ever found the assassin. Some of the names were taken form the New Orleans by Night book, but the characters are totally different. The game was set in 2022. From the foundation of the New Orleans it was ruled by Etienne Doran, Ventrue who always dreamed of making New Orleans the new Carthage. He drove the mages away from the city, united with local werewolves and in generally kept piece New Orleans (most of the time). However he was murdered in 1997 by unknown Gangrel, the entire clan was exiled, but no one ever found the assassin.

(here is Etienne and his sheriff and Brujah primogen Simon)

Since then New Orleans was ruled by princess Marceline, supported by local harpy, adopted Etienne's childe, Rene. Rene is also one of the reason Charlie traveled to the New Orleans. They did their best, but no one had the charm of Etienne, who could stop the war with a single smile

Now, to the main plot of the game (oh I'll try to be short) The main conflict is set around the prophecies of the future where masquerade will fall and the vampires (and werewolves) become part of the human society. Think True Blood style. Technocratic union mages,led by Eureka Jones returns in the city. As we learned much later,her department is trying to bring the project of integrating vampires into society to life. If her project fails, the future of vampires going to be..very sad. Charlie knew about this possible future from the very start which scared him a ton, but he could not ignore how much technocrats made to the people. And Rene, a true son of his sire, collaborated with mages for the future that he(and Etienne) always wanted. Eureka is magnificent but I have to finish her still..

In the same time, the Sabbat pack lead by Sascha Vykos, comes to the New Orleans. He knows about the future of vampires, but wants to play the main role himself. To ruin Technocrats he aims to find Traitor, the mysterious figure who collaborate with mages in their experiments. Dakota returns to the city to help fight with Sabbat (and possibly return Gangrels their place in the city) AND (like Sabbat war is not enough) the mysterious Gangrel courier named Mohammed arrives to the city, carrying a small suitcase. With the ancient vampire head in it. Living head. As we learned later, the head is imprisoned by the angel Gangrel named Enkidu, the angel constantly chops Gangrel's head somewhere in umbra, not letting him to heal. Both Enkidu and Angel leads courier to the unknown destination, when one courier dies, the other is chosen to continue his journey. The existence of the head was kept in secret until the end of the game (not surprising Charlie knew this secret tho..),but Sascha knew about it and wanted to get the head to help him find the Traitor.(and, well, diablerise later as a treat) Mohammed and Dakota (he quickly grew on her and they kept their loving relationships even after the game ended)

Long story short-the Traitor was Ada, Gangrel who killed and diablerised Etienne. Their souls willingly united and the developed a plan to bring new future to the vampires. In the end, Vykos pack was slain by Dakota, Ada, werewolf leader(poor lad died), Gangrels and one particularly charming Nosferatu. Gangrels was allowed to get back in the city, however Dakota and Mohammed (and Yaropolk) left to Russia, as they were sick of Camarilia and mages. However no one can deny that Gangrels led by Dakota played the biggest part in saving the city. What's Charlie's role you might ask? And where is his charming wife? Well, from the very beginning DM hooked me with a dream. Charlie saw a changeling in his nightmares, who asked him for help. And so, his personal storyline began. Of course he assisted other characters when he could, but his mine line is based around saving changeling. No one cares about them. They have no place in Technocrat's future, but now they are his family. He tried to find and then heal the changeling from his dream, who turned out to be young Balor princess, Monica. Her soul was stolen by the Settite leader(one of the two),mysterious Imhotep, who rumored to be Giovanni. Later Charlie learned that he's an actual mummy, which didn't stop him to awkwardly mess with the ancient creature. And poor Monica was in coma for the last 3 years, but thanks to her ability to travel through dreams she could try to seek help

While looking for changelings to find the one who called him, he met Glinda, the cursed Balor ex queen, imprisoned by other changeling house, Beaumayn in 1999th. Her changeling self fell asleep and she was guarded by a chimerical Dragon (who could take human form ),who acted like her abusive husband. While trying to learn who Glinda is, Charlie looked into her soul and immediately fell in love for the rest of his life. During the game they even ended up getting True Love merit Q_Q

A little backstory: as a teenage changeling queen Glinda saw the prophetic dreams about the end of the changelings. When she looked for the way to save her people, he was talked by Pentex and Nephandi into bringing a little apocalypse. Using the energy of the Red Star they'd bring a strong old spirit into the world, put it into Glinda's body and let her give birth to a new changeling-spirit creature, that will destroy the half of human population. Since Changelings get their powers from the dreams and fantasy, they will become stronger, because people will start dreaming more, hoping more, believing in magic and stuff. In fact a naive teen was talked into rape. The other house, Beumayn, freed Glinda's chimera, the Dragon, and burnt her in the chimerical flame, trying to kill her changeling soul and the spirit inside her. However, the spirit escaped to the Umbra and the connection with him helped Glinda survive. He forgot who she was, and the Dragon became her jailer, acting like her over controlling husband. However, the spirit creature lived and gained power with time, wanting to fulfill it's purpose and destroy the world.

During the game, Charlie found Monica, traveled into Umbra to the gates of Arcadia to get the healing for changelings and another Imhotep's victim. Healed them all, fought the Dragon on the Changeling court and freed a demon named Folly. With the help of the demon he turned Dragon into a simple human and won, freeing Glinda. The demon escaped in Europe and was out of the scene most of the time, but kept reminding Charlie about himself in many ways. Charlie learned that Monica's father was killed by her own mother, Imhotep's cultist, and adopted young Changeling. He also introduced her to a werewolf of the same age, Joshua, wanting her to have day-walking loyal friends wo she won't be alone. Later on they started dating, and in return Monica tried her best to represent Charlie to Gilnda in the best way possible. Glinda, Charlie and Monica quickly started to live together, Charlie tried to keep peaceful relationships between changelings and vampires/mages (or better say not making it worse).In the end, mages, vampires and Glinda united to destroy the old spirit without harming changeling. And Charlie, Glinda and their newly created chimera Jeff (who they consider to be their son) located Imhotep. Stole his power jars (I'm too tired to phrase it not in a silly way, but think of Baldur's Gate 3 quest with a mummy), destroyed most of them and watched Imhotep's army of ghosts destroying his body. Charlie offered the fame for killing Imhotep to another Settite leader, Manon, and in return she joined the ritual of the spirit's killing. Charlie knew that mummies are immortal, sooner or later he will come back, so he and Glinda dedicated their lives to the searching of the way to permanently trap Imhotep's soul and prevent him from stealing lives again. They lived +/- 6 more years in New Orleans (but traveled a lot), and then left to Egypt. Glinda stopped aging, gaining a lot of energy from their constant adventures and, possibly, connection with her true love. Monica, however, lived normal human life, forgetting she was a changeling once. She married Joshua and became a writer under the nickname Little Spider. Charlie made sure to collect savings for her, got her home, and the old Monica's home became a freehold for the new Balors. Ofcourse A LOT things happened in the game. And Charlie's story goes beyond one game, he have a lot of adventures in my imagination. But I hope that's enough..for the start! Some of the characters I managed to draw. I was so charmed by Glinda I just draw her most of the time haha

Dragon (Gregory Dequir) and Imhotep

Jeffrey

More finished arts for this game -> here Gangrel line up by @fj0rge -> here Nosferatu line up by @fj0rge -> here Veronica's references by @maria-ruta -> here and here and more Veronica here

More characters drawing by Ruta -> Jake(brujah) Jack(Gangrel) (Veronica has a J boyfriend collection) and silly guys Sad Charlie and Veronica comics by Ruta -> here

Thank you for reading!

[skyrim-forever]

WIP Wednesday!

What she's writing again??? Still bit by the writing bug, particularly for my favs Theodora and Ondolemar. Now that I've gotten the happy, lovey-dovey shit out of my system 😛, we can return to being a degenerate 😏 This snippet has no smut tho, warnings for discussion of torture (very briefly)

Tagged by: @theoneandonlysemla and @thequeenofthewinter Tagging @dirty-bosmer and @ladytanithia (not sure who else is writing rn now, i imagine some folks are taking a break after tesfest)

The party was boring, as had all the parties previously had been. Rulindil had never enjoyed any of his superior’s events and despite voicing his displeasure, Elenwen would always make an excuse for him to be there. That’s exactly what it was, an excuse. The Thalmor would have much preferred being in the dungeon making Etienne scream. He didn’t truly think the man knew anymore, there was no way he could be finding anything substantial after what he put him through. But that didn’t mean they were done. Getting the information is only the beginning of the fun, there were so many ways to break a man and Rulindil was determined to find them all. Etienne would be a good experiment. 

He took the last sip out of his goblet, happy to be freed from the low quality wine that was served at these events. Although it was still from the Homeland, Elenwen would cheap out, what would be the point in wasting good money on Nords? Luckily he knew where the Ambassador kept her personal stash and she wouldn’t notice a bottle missing, right? He decided it would be worth the consequences if she did. Walking through the crowd, the Interrogator approaches one of the doors to Elenwen’s solar, only to find it already partially open. As he goes to open it, he hears talking, a man and woman’s voice can be heard. Not talking, whispering. Something that piqued his interest. Slowly, he opens the door a bit more in order to get a glimpse at them. 

He vaguely recognizes the woman as someone he saw at the party early, initially talking to Elenwen. But other than that he doesn’t know her, although looking at her long dark hair and figure, he would certainly like to. What he did know was who the man was, or rather mer. It would seem his colleague in Markarth, Ondolemar, has snuck away with an Imperial woman. Very interesting. Normally Rulindil would have left, but this was Ondolemar, Elenwen’s favourite among them. His reports were always perfect, he was always on time, and he always got the job done. So to see him engage in such risky behaviour at the Embassy, why it took Rulindil aback is what it did. Good blackmail on him he thought, ever the interrogator. He began to follow their conversation. 

[wonder-worker]

[Agnès Sorel] has been paired with her cousin Antoinette de Maignelais in a binary relationship that flatters the former at the latter’s expense.

-Tracy Adams, "Queens, Regents, Mistresses: Reflections on Extracting Elite Women’s Stories from Medieval and Early Modern French Narrative Sources"

Different from her nineteenth-century historians, contemporary chroniclers write little that is positive about Agnès Sorel, except that she was beautiful. They are still less enthusiastic about Antoinette de Maignelais. Antoinette’s reputation worsens in seventeenth-century historical romances, where she becomes Agnès’s dark and envious double, sometimes responsible for Agnès’s death. Following Antoinette into the nineteenth century, we find nothing good about her in histories of that period, either, where she is typically depicted as motivated by the desire for wealth. […] Even some recent historians read the cousins in this way. According to one, Agnès’s “replacement was greedy and cynical;” in contrast with Agnès, who had “brightened the maturity of a fragile and tormented man, raising him above himself, Antoinette lowered him to the level of a lustful old man whose excesses outraged his entourage.”

The difference in the reputations, or afterlives, of the cousins is striking. Several factors can explain the discrepancy. The first, as I have noted, is that Antoinette later became the mistress of Duke François II. Breton chroniclers did not describe Antoinette favorably, and the relationship undoubtedly diminished her prestige, suggesting that she was motivated by greed rather than love. In contrast, Agnès died at the height of her glory, adored by the king. Another factor is the Melun diptych, commissioned from painter Jean Fouquet by one of the executors of Agnès’s will and royal favorite Etienne Chevalier, whom we have just seen with Antoinette and the king at the chateau of Ville Dieu. This gorgeous Virgin with child depicted on the left panel of the diptych is said to bear the facial features of Agnès. The image has left an enduring impression of Agnès as both pure and erotic. No image at all memorializes Antoinette, much less a fabulous one like the Melun Virgin. Still another is that Charles VII never married Agnès to anyone, which might suggest a particularly deep affection; in the eyes of historians over the years, the “double” adultery of Antoinette and the king has been regarded as the more sinful of the two relationships.

In addition to these factors, as I have noted, the king fathered none of Antoinette’s children: two of her sons, Artus and Antoine, were fathered by André de Villequier, and two sons and two daughters by Duke François II of Brittany. The king recognized his three daughters by Agnès, and all were handsomely married. This matters because Agnès’s daughters and their families took the lead in shepherding Agnès’s positive image into future generations.

...The Agnès/Antoinette binary, like its Marie/Eve counterpart, allowed the role of the royal mistress to be conceived of positively, anchoring the role in its positive guise to Agnès while pushing negative associations onto Antoinette. For the long-term effect of the binary I return to the narrative of the French royal mistress as it emerged in the nineteenth century, when Agnès and Antoinette became the two essential faces of the role: Agnès as the ideal that justifies or hides Antoinette, the political reality, or, put slightly differently, Agnès as the loving mistress persona giving cover to Antoinette, the political actor. Agnès and Antoinette, beautiful muse versus greedy opportunist, combined, offer a perfect standard for distinguishing the good mistress from the bad and promoting the good. For this reason, Antoinette’s role might be considered a sort of supplément to the role of royal mistress as realized by Agnès, who was typically assumed to have been little interested in politics. Antoinette might be seen as the active element required to complete the role; the cousins together add up to the French royal mistress of the later type.

[the-golden-vanity]

This might be an absurd question to ask, but what type of ships were the Erebus and the Terror? I've recently had an interest in Polar Expeditions (particularly the ships themselves). I would look it up myself but I have a phobia of dead/decaying bodies and mummified people, and I am almost certain looking up "Franklin Expedition" would show images of the dead.

Thank you.

Hey there, friend! That's not an absurd question at all, and if you're at all uncomfortable with images of dead people, not searching "Franklin Expedition" online is probably a very wise decision.

HMS Terror and HMS Erebus were both bomb vessels, which in the 19th century Royal Navy meant full-rigged ships (three masts, square-rigged sail plan) made with extremely strong hulls to withstand the recoil of their weaponry—mortars that fired explosive shells, rather than cannons that fired more traditional shot. This type of weaponry was usually used for the bombardment of land-based targets, as in the famous bombardment of Fort McHenry during the War of 1812, in which Terror participated.

A View Of The Bombardment of Fort McHenry, © Public Domain.

The reinforced hulls that were made to withstand mortar recoil were also able to withstand (at least, to a certain degree) the immense pressure that would come with being icebound, so during the late 18th and early 19th century, bomb vessels were the preferred ships for polar exploration.

Erebus In The Ice, © François-Etienne Musin

Later polar expeditions tended to use whaling ships, like the Nimrod and the Terra Nova, or purpose-built polar exploration vessels, like the Endurance and the Fram. I hope this helps!

[eat-pray-cry]

All the Light We Cannot See: In Defense of the Netflix Adaptation (Part 7)

PART 7: THE CHANGES THAT I LOVED

WARNING: SPOILER ALERTS

And so we’ve come to this… The final rambling. The changes that I loved.

As I mentioned in another post, I acknowledge that there were many losses when the book was translated into film (or in this case, a mini-series). But this, ladies and gentlemen, is where I discuss the gains. This is where I tell you the parts where the show gave me what the book couldn’t give me. This is where I tell you why, in addition to the book, I loved the show as well.

Without further ado, and in order from what I loved, to what KILLED ME WITH WEEPING JOY:

Madame Manec is portrayed as Etienne’s sister rather than his housekeeper. I actually think this added to the story. For one, nothing is taken away by changing her from a housekeeper to a sister. Both are figures that would have known Etienne since he was a child. Both are figures who would have been present in his home and cared for him. The real game-changer here is how the show utilized the change: moments before Etienne steps back out into the world, Madame Manec delivers a powerful line. She utters, “He looks like my little brother.” (I almost cried.)

Verner’s running sequence through the wall. I find it VERY interesting that some people hated this, saying that it was cheesy and overdramatized. Here’s what I think: (1) Verner running through the city to get to Marie was also in the book, (2) it was necessary to give Verner a heroic sequence because he doesn’t get to have that when he gets to Marie, who saves herself from von Rumpel in the adaptation, and (3) it was riveting to watch! 

Marie listens to the professor too. I don’t see the harm in adding this change, but I definitely see the gain. Keep in mind that the book affords us many details to see the connection between Verner and Marie. They’re the only two characters who were shown to solve the puzzle of the model house. We also saw Verner reflecting on how wonderful the house in Number 4 rue Vauborel is - the radios, the books, etc. The show, with its limited platform, can’t afford to give viewers all those details. So what do they do instead? They establish that Marie also listens to the Professor, so much that she and Verner harmonize the same lines throughout the show. So when we finally see them together, we see flashbacks to their childhood where they both listen to the professor… It tells us as viewers of their connection.

Quote added: “The most important light in the world is all the light we cannot see.” Alright, fine, this quote wasn’t in the book and many have claimed that it was silly. Personally, however, I thought it was a lovely homage to the book. For one thing, it was literally a title-drop. More importantly, it echoed the running theme of the book - the beauty of the radio signals that connected Marie and Verner, the light we cannot see. Was the quote a little too on-the-nose? Perhaps. But in the same way that many aspects of the story had to be dramatized visually, so did this running theme have to be highlighted from the book.  

Jutta’s goodbye. My god. This scene was beautiful. I know that it was vastly different from the farewell in the book; it doesn’t mean that one is better than the other. As I’ve mentioned several times at this point, the book and the show have intentionally different tones. So, naturally, the goodbye in the book was hauntingly heartbreaking, whereas the goodbye in the show was tender and sad. That said, the biggest gift of this addition is this beautiful line: “Like one of your silly radio stations. Keep the frequency the same.” This was beautiful on so many levels. Beautiful because of the wordplay (radios, frequencies), but more beautiful because of how it reflects on the Verner we know and love, the Verner whose quiet goodness will be challenged.

Verner talks to Jutta through the radio. This was a beautiful, BEAUTIFUL addition because it was something that I, as a reader, couldn’t get from the book. As we all know, Verner and Jutta never reunite in the book. So to be blessed with this scene, to be blessed with the mere POSSIBILITY that they’re going to see each other again… It made my heart weep with joy.

Etienne and his brother are merged into one professor, Etienne and Verner actually meet, Etienne dies. As surprised as I was to find that Etienne dies in the adaptation, I overall thought this was a BEAUTIFUL change when considering Verner’s story arc. Let’s think about it. The show had limited time, they needed to show that Verner carried a lot of guilt, they needed to show that his connection to Etienne (and consequently Marie) was his beacon of hope. What better way to show that arc than to have him by a dying Etienne’s side, who turns to him and kindly says, “You’re a good boy, Verner Pfennig.” It was a big change and a small moment, but said so much. It was a beautiful way to show Verner being absolved.

All additions to Verner and Marie’s time together - the kiss, the dance, the promise to reunite. Listen. I don’t care if this wasn’t in the book. Let me repeat. I don’t care if this wasn’t in the book. One more time. I DON’T CARE IF THIS WASN’T IN THE BOOK. I love the book. I love the bittersweetness of the short time they spent together. I love the haunting heartbreak from the fact that they never got a chance to reunite. This, however, is also why I loved the changes that were made to the show. The show gave me EXACTLY what I didn’t get to have from the book. I spent 500 pages waiting for Marie and Verner to meet. The show gave me what I was waiting for in those 500 pages. The dance scene. The kiss scene. The way Marie twirls her fingers in his hair. The way she touches his eyelid, similar to the way she touched her father’s eyelids a few episodes ago. The promise to return, the line, “I will be listening”, the simple and powerful HOPE that they may see each other again. This is exactly what the show gives me, what the book intentionally (albeit beautifully) withheld from me: hope.

And this, ladies and gentlemen, is why I loved both the book and the show.

The book broke my heart, the show made it flutter.

Thus concludes my defense of the All The LIght We Cannot See, Netflix version.

[collapsedsquid]

I’ll conclude by returning to a theme I brought up earlier: the shrunken time horizon of the US ruling class. The current motley crew looks nothing like the set who planned the post-World War II order. They emerged from—or recruits were assimilated to—an ethnically and socially homogenous WASP aristocracy who felt themselves above quotidian distractions and rank commercial temptations. Of course, it was all in the interest of long-term accumulation under US guidance, but it was all successfully planned and executed (at least until things started slipping some in the 1970s). Now with the US in a long process of imperial decline, our planning elite seems fragmented and lost. You have Republicans criticizing Biden for not having shot down the Chinese balloon quickly enough, and Democrats acting as if it was an act of heroism. Our rulers don’t act like they have any good idea about coping with the rise of China, except with bellicose and one hopes ineffectual gestures, because God knows, we don’t want bellicose gestures to lead to an actual war.

And we have a capitalist class that has apparently given up on the future—incapable of dealing with the climate crisis, a truly dire threat, but also consuming capital rather than investing it. Net investment—net, that is, of depreciation—by both business and government—has been falling relative to GDP for decades. The vast flow of free money and 0% interest rates from the Federal Reserve has been channeled into an impressive set of bubbles: the most extended valuations of stocks in US history, crypto, unicorns, housing. It used to be normal to have one particular asset lead the way in a speculative orgy, whether it was stocks in the late 1990s or housing in the following decade. Now we’ve got multiple and serial bubbles that have only been partly deflated by the Fed’s tightening moves of the last year. And Wall Street is dearly hoping the central bank will reverse those moves in a few months and resume the cheap money flow. The bond vigilantes of the 1980s and 1990s, always on the lookout for an inflation that needs to be crushed, have largely disappeared.

I’ll give the last word to Etienne Balibar, who has diagnosed the affliction precisely. “We realize now that our ruling class is no longer a bourgeoisie in the historical sense of the word. It does not have a project of intellectual hegemony nor an artistic point of honor. It needs (or so it thinks) only cost-benefit analyses, “cognitive” educational programs, and committees of experts. That is why, with the help of the pandemic and the internet revolution, the same ruling class is preparing the demise of the social sciences, humanities and even the theoretical sciences.” The bourgeoisie no longer has any civilizational project, national or otherwise. Live for today, and if the water rises, they can just move inland. Or to their underground bunkers.

post-nationalism

[thornilee013]

WIP Wednesday 28.8.2024

Hello! This week I'm going to be primarily focused on working toward editing and revising my current WIPs/drafts that I've been posting and compiling things into a more organized chaos than before. However! I still want to write more new things.

For those of you who are new/unfamiliar with how I do things, below will be some the file names of some of my projects that I'm working on. You can send me an ask (no prerequisites required, you can literally just send whichever one sounds most interesting to you and then ignore my response) and I'll write AT LEAST three new sentences in that file!

I use this as an external motivator to actually, you know, work on my projects and avoid letting them collect dust since I do work full-time and try my best to have a social life.

Thank you to everyone who sent in asks last week; I'll be getting to them today (hopefully) and have been working away at them, but I still need to actually post them.

PROJECTS THAT ARE ON THE BOARD FOR THIS WEEK:

1. Pulling Through 2. Etienne 3. TLC 4. Silly Little Jean Moreau Fic 5. Dealer's Choice (surprise!)

Have a happy Wednesday!