#I love the voice for ciaran too AHH

[friskafriskito]

YEAHHHHHHHH!!!

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[phantomnostalgist]

Classic Phantom memories - Peter Karrie at the stage door

Thanks for all the follows! I haven't attempted to look through or follow anyone back as I'll end up overwhelmed, but I'm really glad so many people are interested in past Phantoms and POTO fandom! And that the show is going to re-open after Covid with original staging intact, hooray. (Please keep your own masks on too!)

Me standing next to the poster of Peter Karrie's Phantom, outside Her Majesty's, some time in 1993.

As Peter Karrie was my favourite Phantom, I'll have to split those memories up over many posts (including Les Mis and concerts, and at some point will scan older Karrie-related playbills I collected). So I'll start with some stage door memories, and my signed playbill from his last night at HM's in 1993.

Peter was always one of the nicest guys to meet at the stage door, pretty much legendarily so, as he was very warm and down to earth, and also used to give huge hugs! I don't have a whole lot of photos from back then, but I did find this one  of myself and another fan with Peter at the stage door of Her Majesty's in 1993. I love how darn happy she looks! Ahh, the magic of stage doors. We must have met him a few times by then, as she's wearing a t-shirt from his "Beyond the Masque" concert tour (which had been a few years earlier, but we bought the t-shirts, of course). I'm only not giving her name in case she wouldn't want it included (will of course give credit if she contacts me asking for it).

Peter also took us both backstage when we went out to Toronto to see him again in 1994, though as I was lucky enough to get backstage tours at 3 theatres over the years, I can't remember specifically how much I saw that time. But I do remember seeing the Red Death costume up close as it was hanging in the wardrobe in his dressing room. (Most amazing backstage tour I ever got was also in Toronto, but from Ciaran Sheehan - story to come in future!)

As I got to work on Peter's concert tour, doing the merchandise stand (mostly 1995), my general memories of him are mushed together in time and space. And doing the merchandise stall was great, as I got to see all the shows free, travel and food paid, and make some money - plus arrive early and sit watching the set-up and sound tests, and be legitimately allowed to generally be hanging around in theatres for hours. After one concert in Cardiff, Peter's home town, I got included in having dinner afterwards with several of his family members. As I was still basically a shy socially awkward fangirl back then it would have been pretty overwhelming to me, but his mum Jean was an incredibly warm and lovely woman, who sort of took me under her wing for the evening. So I basically sat fangirling Peter Karrie with his mum, lol. Also Peter's wife Jane was always friendly and nice to me, which I appreciated as I felt fairly self-conscious about being a starry-eyed fangirl!

I think the main thing I remember about conversations with Peter over the years, along with his generosity towards fans, is laughing a lot - he tells great stories, and has a big laugh. And I remember some time in the mid 90s, him telling me about a teenage Phantom fan who'd shadowed him in the role in Toronto, who he thought had an outstanding voice and hoped would continue on to a great future in musical theatre. As the guy's name was Ramin Karimloo, it stood out to me, being unusual - and of course now stands out as someone who's maybe the biggest favourite of modern Phantoms!

As for his performance in the role, just WHOAH on every level - but I'll get to that another time! (He was my second stage Phantom - first was Peter Polycarpou, who didn't stand out to me compared to the OLC, as of course my introduction and emotional first was Michael Crawford.)

Below are pix of my signed program from his last night in the role at Her Majesty's October 9th 1993. I remember there was much weeping (of us fans), and much hugging (us fans of each other, Peter of us), and he spent some half hour or so there with us. Christine and Raoul were Jill Washington and Simon Burke, so there's a pic of their signatures too. I really liked both of them in the roles - Simon Burke I remember managing to give Raoul a bit more passion and interest than most Raouls, and Jill Washington had a beautiful voice.

Signed “To Christine, I shall miss you - Peter, 9/10/93″ (aww).

[beyondthetemples-ooc]

1 3 and 10 c:

Ahh, thank you for the ask! c:

1. What is your favorite DC movie and why? And least favorite?

Justice League vs. Teen Titans! Because I’m simply biased as hell.

To ALL of its elements! Azarath! In a MOVIE! Arella’s story got RECOGNIZEd– even ANIMATED! It gave Raven’s gem a BACKSTORY! It’s everything I’ve ever wanted out of a Teen Titans animation.

(Azarath being animated in a movie fulfilled my SOUL, you have NO fucking idea. It was AMAZING. And so well animated too? So pretty? So peaceful? So nice to look at? Holy god, I want ten thousand hours of documentaries on that place??? legitimate tears in my eyes when we saw it. honestly, it was just… it was so good.)

Not to mention, while the production value was Kinda Eh, the writing was really clever and the Moments (silly, fun, heartfelt, freaky, dramatic) were all really well done. It captured the “Heart” of those feelings, emotive and raw and honest. I actually enjoyed the fun moments. Myself. And wasn’t just “distantly admiring people being happy”. Do you know how much of an ACCOMPLISHMENT that is?

The music was really cool. Not to reveal my Immortal Inner Emo Kid. But “Down to Nothing” is a really good song. (One of my only problems with this movie is that it was shoddily edited in the scene, and it’s a shame, because it really is a good song… {lD it was kinda my anthem for a long, long time after this movie. “Help me: believe in something, cuz I am: broken, I’m down to nothing. And it’s just so hard to be this way, but it’s just as hard to change. So: help me, believe in sooomethiiing….”)

(Because it’s in this movie, I grin a bit whenever Ciaran randomly shuffles it up. But also because I just really like the song itself.)

Also really cool: Trigon was an abusive asshole. Ultra mega props for that element; not just making him a Bad Guy because he’s Powerful and Wants to Rule the World, but legitimately showing that he was a BAD “GUY” *and* a Bad Parent.

Also nice, Damian felt less shoehorned in than Certain Other Really Recent Robins were in the comics…. (The reason for that may have been glossed over and a touch cliche, but it worked for the movie. It did what it needed to, nothing more and nothing less.)

Good thing too, because Damian being A Kid was really nice to see. (Raven too, let’s be real. Those kids need more “fun” in their lives.) Bond the children! BOND THEM, GODDAMN IT. That’s what any good Teen Titans story really needs; friends who are a FAMILY. They love each other, even if it’s hard-earned and hard-kept.

Focused on the PEOPLE, and their WELL-BEING, just as much as (if not MORESO!) than “ohshit, Big Bad Guy to deal with here”.

(the rest is under a cut, because godDAMN. I got rambly once I started talking about Raven.)

And perhaps most important of all to me: Raven’s characterization was amazing. Truly a masterpiece. Any time you’ve got a comic character with 7 different tones and 3-4 Literal Deaths and like 28 different writers having handled her: It takes a LOT of work to pick and choose what you want to do with them. It takes a lot of WISDOM and even prowess to triangulate your Own Characterization between such dramatic differences. Raven has been cold and distant; warm and soft; sharp and bitter; lost and clueless; wise and knowledgeable; she’s a very LAYERED and COMPLEX character even in each individual VERSION.

And the movie portrayed so many of her key characteristics so wonderfully. It’s a very “complete” picture of my absolutely Iconic Favorite Character, it encompasses so much of my Favorite Parts of her throughout her entire history, and it was just such a delight to experience. I, in my unpopular opinion (at least among my contemporary Cartoon-First Generation of Teen Titans Fans), actually really liked her voice actress, too? So subtle. So snarky. So soft, even with its edge of attitude. It was such a good fit for such a good incarnation!

And then there’s the fact that they included Jaime (who does well on his own, but honestly always seemed like a natural fit to the team), Kori (a Key Titan, let’s be honest), and even Gar (because his playfulness is a key part of Whole-Team Characterization too honestly; it wouldn’t be the same without him). It was a good setup, even with the comics this continuity’s based on being totally cracked.

And Cyborg showed up. Despite working “in the big Leagues” now. Thanks for throwing us that bone, at least. lD

And Damian? They did a great job of giving him character developement. Much needed. Good shit. If he can’t be with Dick!Bats in this verse (and I deeply prefer Dick as Nightwing anyways), that’s a really good fit for him. Learning to be human. Getting comfortable with Some Normalcy. Good and relateable.

That movie was just. Ahhh. SO Good. X3 As a Teen Titans fan especially, but also just as a person who likes a good Team Becoming Family story.

I love it. It has its caveats, but none of them dampen my obnoxiously heartfelt love for this thing.

*

(…yikes .after THAT essay, the rest of my answers are going to feel so shallow.)

All that bias aside though, my other favorite DC movie is definitely Wonder Woman. Hands down. Undoubtedly, no contest, no holds bar. It was a phenomenally well-told story with a lot of wit and compelling characters that used absolutely MASTERFUL rising action, and felt GENUINE. It was told from the heart as well as the camera, and it was told beautifully. Smoothly. It felt godly and human all at once. I can’t explain it very well, but it was genuinely one of the best movies I have ever seen.

I never got very into Wonder Woman, but from what I know of the 80’s and the Really Recent comics: It also captured her backstory, her personality, and her Style of Heroism really well. But even without being very familiar with her as a character? It’s a gorgeously well-done movie.

( Note: I still haven’t seen Justice League yet, but from what I’ve heard, I’ll probably end up liking that one too.)

*

Least favorite? I don’t know, honestly.

(My least favorite superhero movie is that one Marvel one with Vision, because I literally fell asleep while watching it. That’s the first time in my entire life I’ve fallen asleep while watching ANYTHING.)

But for DC, even the silly obnoxiously-radioactive-colored Batman and Robin has its place in history.

Can I just say, maybe… “the Injustice: Gods Among Us cutscenes”?- raven’s voice really grates my nerves, and not even in a Fun Creepy Way.- Whose idea was it to have SUPERMAN go evil? Like? ?? Who thought that was in any way a reasonable idea. - the story in that game felt really cobbled together. The comics are a lot more interesting, fun, and though there’s a lot of, like, Random Occurrences that seem to happen Exclusively For The Drama, in the game there are a lot of ill-explained things and general Random Chaos. Not my kinda story.

*

3. Which DC character should be introduced in movies/shows? Or have a movie/show of their own?

I mean. My automatic response is “Raven”, but I only ever want to see that if it’s being done right. The way CW wanted to do it kinda ripped the heart of everything I know/love about her to shreds. (”Relateable normal teen girl sudden has powers”? What? What??? That’s literally NONE of Raven’s backstory, shoo. Begone. Good riddance.)

That aside, I’d honestly probably watch the HELL out of a Nightwing show. Or movie. Just LET DICK BE HIMSELF. Without being attached at the history AND HIP to Bruce!

Or Death? or Sandman? I don’t know how well they’d translate to TV; Nightwing would certainly be the safer bet. Neil Gaiman’s writing is half as great as it is because of the WRITING. The style. The narrations… But, I mean: Coraline was just wonderful~ So why not a Sandman movie, too? Given the right director, and the right special effects team…?

(Constantine would’ve been next on my list, for a better movie anyway. but he’s already getting some decent recognition. So whoop whoop. Good shit. Nice Decision, DC. I Approve.)

10. Which DC character portrayal do you think is better in the comics than in the movies?

Batman. By far.

I’m just sick of all this manpain and gritty, utterly-unyielding violence, and… politics? Where’s the humanity?

Aren’t these writers forgetting that he’s someone who has suffered, and is doing all this, not just to beat up bad guys and look cool, but to save others from what theyd do? To HELP PEOPLE, not to growl like a man-tiger and punch things?

You can be badass and still have a heart, you know. Comics!Bruce does. (Most of the time.) And that’s a big part of why I like reading Batman comics so much.

And on that note, the conspicuous lack of Robins in (most) movies is an insult to comic history. Batman’s family-seeking and protect-the-children tendancies make for a much more interesting franchise, honestly. Give us a colorful cast! (Literally!) Give us diversity! Give us more stories with more characters so it has more facets than just “some guy wants to kill people; can’t have that”!)

As a sidenote: what I’ve seen of Gotham, it’s doing a really good job of encapsulating his Heroic Tendencies as well as his “sense of Duty” to Gotham and its people, while keeping him human AND super cool. That’s an important balance.