#Immortal Moors

[ghostlyarchaeologist]

Forever S01E19 Punk is Dead.

[mariocki]

Parasite (1982)

"That thing on your stomach..."

"A new strain of parasite. I deserve it, in a way. I created it."

"For the Merchants? Why?"

"I thought for the government. They're so mixed up with the Merchants now, they work for one another. This 'thing', as you call it, is growing. It's dormant now but it will soon grow larger... and kill me."

[fiststornasunder]

I love leaving silly little comic references in my silly little dissertation.

[randomfusilier]

[butchdykekondraki]

since moore is a bright rewrite, is his name a joke on anything? :D

he's "im-moore-tal" :-D

[ltwilliammowett]

H.M.S. “Victory” leading the fleet into immortality; H.M.S. “Victory" at her permanent mooring in Portsmouth Harbour, by Alma Claude Burton Cull (1880-1931)

[apollosgiftofprophecy]

i question why people think Apollo permanently staying mortal is what "should" have happened.

because, well...what would that change? what difference could Apollo make if he stayed mortal?

answer: none.

sure, he'd live out a mortal life like any other demigod, and quote-unquote "keep his promise" (i'll come back to this) but nothing would change. those demigods would still die young, die with a heavy heart because either their parent didn't care enough to save them or they are too afraid of the status quo to do any saving. minor gods would still be looked down on and seen as lesser.

apollo would be 100% powerless to make a difference.

but as a god? he can. he has the power. he has the connections. he needs a little push into revolution cough athena get over here now cough apollo has what he needs to make some serious changes.

"but gods don't change" tell that to the god who did smh. "he'll just revert back to his old ways" ye of little faith. will he stumble? make mistakes? yeah, who doesn't? but apollo isn't one to give up. he'd get back up and keep going because that's who he is.

he'll go through trials to make the difference he wants in the world. and that's a very human trait. he says so himself, calls humans some of the strongest beings he knows.

and after all...isn't apollo supposed to remember what it's like to be human? isn't he supposed to keep that promise he made to jason?

that promise holds a lot more weight behind it when apollo's immortal compared to mortal. as a mortal, he's living on borrowed time. what can he accomplish in a mortal's lifetime to causes the changes jason had once wished for?

but as a god? he carries that promise with him for an eternity. it becomes his rock, his anchor, the thing that keeps him moored even after everyone he knew from his trials are gone.

you don't have to be human to be human. the gods can be human. they aren't innately born without humanity. they all have showcased it throughout their lives. stripping that from them takes away what free will and agency they have.

apollo regaining his godhood isn't the end. it's merely the beginning of the next domino.

[ewingstan]

If you had a chance to recommend (real-world) superhero comics to the Undersiders, which comics would you recommend and why?

Oh, good question. Its been a minute since I was really into comics (I gotta figure out how to reactivate my Marvel Unlimited account), but I think I have enough background to come up with some good picks.

Lotta good options for Taylor. My first thought is to give her Ewing's X-Men Red (aka "the main reason I need to catch up on Marvel comics"), since a superhero story that focuses a lot on gaining and maintaining societal power and the work of governing as a leader in a super-community seems like it would appeal to the Warlord of the Boardwalk. Plus a lot of it is "kill the previous leader in a way that ensures you have a popular mandate," which I'm sure she'd be a fan of.

If we're talking Taylor at the start of the story or younger—well, I don't know if it makes sense to give her runs of the character she's most a pastiche of, but maybe something that fits the Spider-Man niche could still be appealing for a young down-on-her-luck aspiring hero? I could see her getting something out of the Simone or Ahmed Ms. Marvel runs, for instance.

(While Watchmen might seem like the natural pick, I'm pretty sure she'd lose a lot of enjoyment just from picking out all the ways Veidt's plan was obviously gonna fail for x y z reasons. Also dark deconstructions of superhero worlds would probably seem too familiar to her world for her to enjoy it.)

If Taylor would be interested in comics statecraft, Lisa would probably be more interested in comics spycraft and intrigue. Ewing's S.W.O.R.D. would probably scratch the same itch for her that X-Men Red would for Taylor (and Storm dramatically blowing off Doom would probably satisfy her after all the ulcer-inducing negotiations with Accord.) I might also give her Ewings New Avengers and USAvengers runs (look this is gonna include a lot of Al Ewing recs, get used to it early) if only because I feel like she'd enjoy how Roberto gets characterized in those comics. Magnificent bastard solidarity.

If we're giving comics to Brian, we already need to work past his defensive avoidance of anything that seems too childish, so I don't think we're getting anything pre-dark ages. That said, he famously thinks "looking mature" means "sick-ass skulls and leather jackets," so his idea of maturity might skew a bit into McFarlane territory. Ultimately though I think he'd be most comfortable with something where he could plausibly say "this isn't just a comic, it's actually a well-respected piece of literature." I'd want that to mean Moore's Saga of the Swamp Thing, but it'd probably actually mean The Dark Knight Returns.

As a dark horse pick, I'd give Brian some early New Warriors or Ewing's Contest of Champions, if only because Night Thrasher feels so close to what he wants his vibe to be (dramatic black leather ensemble with a very 90's idea of cool, unflappable expert strategist who pulls his weight despite a powerset with limited applicability, died horribly and came back much later for weirdly impersonal reasons) while also being just ridiculous enough to make me want to see his reaction.

Given Iota's commentary on Alec's pizza habits, I'd think Alec would most be a fan of something intense and bombastic and not mind if its often repetitive. I'd almost say Berserk would be a good match for him, but parts of that that might actually be triggering for him. Maybe some other ultra-violent longrunning work; I haven't read Fist of the North Star but it seems like a safe recommendation; various X-Force runs could work if we're sticking with Western comics.

Rachel really doesn't seem like someone who'd have much appreciation for any aspect of comics. The best bet would be something visually spectacular in a way that could be appreciated on its own, and a plot that's interesting taking issues on their own and not just as part of ongoing runs. I could see Ewing's Immortal Hulk as fitting those criteria; her power gives her an artist's appreciation for Bennett's horrific depictions of the Hulk's transformations (even if praising Bennett for anything feels in poor taste).

Ewing's scripts for each issue of Hulk are clever in a way that I feel Rachel could find entertaining; they don't require an attention she couldn't keep up, but also aren't simple to the point of being condescending. Plus, the thematic focus on "what can and can't be solved through unspeakable acts of destruction" would feel familiar in a way that's less frustrating than normal comic tut-tutting about how obviously we can't attack these guys (plus the greater willingness to say "oh yeah unspeakable destruction definitely is the best way forwards here" would be pretty satisfying).

I feel like Aisha would have more patience for comic tropes than a lot of the other undersiders, (I could see her enjoying the original Fantastic Four run), but at the same time she'd probably enjoy something a bit more complicated and out-there. Ewing's Rocket might be appealing as heist-focused mini, and I feel like the mix of melancholy and absurdity would appeal to her. Rosenberg's Hawkeye: Freefall would work for similar reasons, though replace "melancholy" with "simmering rage."

Morrison's Doom Patrol and The Invisibles both have characters Aisha might relate to for the whole "society largely ignoring or wanting to go away" thing. Plus they both have big weird ideas she'd appreciate, Richard Case's art works well with her aesthetics, and they're both seen as "respectable" series to the point that she might like peppering in references to them in alongside Jules Verne jokes.

Huh, I just realized that Aisha and Brian both ended up chasing an appearance of being mature and somewhat surface-level and off-putting ways. Brian "trust me I'm a normal adult man" and Aisha "I've compiled spider-man quips for every work in the Western Canon and will get frustrated when you don't get them" Laborn, the "something ain't right about that kid" siblings.

(I will say that Morrison's Doom Patrol has some weird black stereotypes so if anyone wants to pitch me on a similar work without Morrison's occasional racism I'd be curious).

I'd give Rowell's run on Runaways to Sabah, if only because "somewhat antivillanous found family group of teens that mostly don't have to worry about anything besides relationship drama" sounds like a nice escape for her. Closer to what she wants the Undersiders to be like. Also, I feel she'd enjoy Kris Anka's focus on fashion in his art.

I don't have a lot to go off for Lily. I could see some of the more recent Captain Marvel runs appealing to her sense of true-blue militant heroism. Ayala's New Mutants or Ahmed's Black Bolt might help combat her whole "villains are ontologically evil" thing, at least to a certain extent.

[hotvintagepoll]

Propaganda

Tita Merello (Mercado De Abasto, La Morocha, Amorina)— Was she pretty? Probably not. Was she hot? Incredibly so. She said it herself: "I was seen as ugly... Then I realized you don't need to be pretty. It's enough just to act like you are". With a highly recognizable voice and manner (which immortalized her in countless drag shows, just look her up performing "Se Dice De Mí"!), she was THE Argentinean icon during the fifties. As with so many artists she began with really humble origins (she didn't learn to read until she was in her twenties), and she was one of the few that kept truly being humble and thankful for all the luck she had and everything she worked so hard for. Despite being a proper diva Tita was a woman of the people first and foremost, portraying almost exclusively working-class women who by the strength of their determination and guts manage to keep themselves afloat in all manners of difficult situations. She openly talked about her uterine cancer at a time it was considered taboo, had the sharpest wittiest tongue in the business, was a greatly renowned performer and comedian, was notably kind to everyone who ever worked with her, but was also very much famous for taking no shit... She feared nobody but God and even that might be debatable.

Kay Kendall (Genevieve)— Absolutely amazing woman and in Genevieve she was brilliant. Got Roaring drunk and declared 'I want to play the plumpet' and promptly did, to the amazement of Kenneth Moore. Married Rex Harrison and died far far too young (32) of cancer.

This is round 1 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.

[additional propaganda submitted under the cut]

Tita Merello:

Kay Kendall:

[bethanydelleman]

The Narrator of Rebecca and Jane Eyre of Jane Eyre are so similar in some ways, but in one important thing, completely opposing.

Both come from poor backgrounds, they are women of the fringe of the gentry who must work to live, they believe themselves to be physically unattractive, they fall in love with a much older man, they come to a house haunted by that man's previous wife, and they have a rich imagination (Jane's paintings, The Narrator's flights of fancy). They are also both desperate to be loved.

But then the similarities stop. When Jane Eyre learns that Rochester has a living wife, she chooses morality and flees. She values her immortal soul over earthly love. The Narrator learns that her husband murdered his previous wife and love is all that matters to her. He never loved Rebecca, he loves her. She is willing to risk anything and everything to help him cover that crime. His confession brings her closer instead of tearing them apart.

"I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself. I will keep the law given by God; sanctioned by man. I will hold to the principles received by me when I was sane, and not mad—as I am now. Laws and principles are not for the times when there is no temptation: they are for such moments as this, when body and soul rise in mutiny against their rigour; stringent are they; inviolate they shall be. If at my individual convenience I might break them, what would be their worth? They have a worth—so I have always believed; and if I cannot believe it now, it is because I am insane—quite insane: with my veins running fire, and my heart beating faster than I can count its throbs. Preconceived opinions, foregone determinations, are all I have at this hour to stand by: there I plant my foot.” -Jane Eyre

Vs.

Our happiness had not come too late. I was not young anymore. I was not shy. I was not afraid. I would fight for Maxim. I would lie and perjure and swear, I would blaspheme and pray. Rebecca had not won. Rebecca had lost. -Rebecca

It's such a different worldview, and I also didn't feel like Maxim deserved such unlimited devotion given how he had treated her (I mean does Rochester either?), but as a Romantic love story I was down. If it was a real life choice, I have to run for the moors with Jane.

[book--brackets]

The 13 Clocks by James Thurber (1950)

The hands of all thirteen clocks stand still in the gloomy castle on a lonely hill where a wicked Duke lives with his niece, the beautiful Princess Saralinda. The Duke fancies he has frozen time, for he is afraid that one day a Prince may come and win away the hand of the Princess—the only warm hand in the castle. To thwart that fate, he sets impossible tasks for Saralinda’s suitors. But when the bold Prince Zorn of Zorna arrives, disguised as a wandering minstrel, and helped by the enigmatic Golux, the cold Duke may at last have met his match.

The Edge Chronicles by John Stewart and Chris Riddell (1998-2019)

Fourteen-year-old Quint Verginix is the only remaining son of famous sky-pirate Wind Jackal. He and his father have journeyed to the city of Sanctaphrax – a great floating rock, bound to the ground below by a chain, its inhabitants living with their heads literally in the clouds.

But the city hides a dangerous secret: deep inside the great rock, something horrible lurks. With his father away, Quint may be the only one who can save Sanctaphrax from the dreaded curse of the gloamglozer . . .

The Wandering Inn by Pirateaba (2018-present)

“No killing Goblins.”

So reads the sign outside of The Wandering Inn, a small building run by a young woman named Erin Solstice. She serves pasta with sausage, blue fruit juice, and dead acid flies on request. And she comes from another world. Ours.

It’s a bad day when Erin finds herself transported to a fantastical world and nearly gets eaten by a Dragon. She doesn’t belong in a place where monster attacks are a fact of life, and where Humans are one species among many. But she must adapt to her new life. Or die.

In a dangerous world where magic is real and people can level up and gain classes, Erin Solstice must battle somewhat evil Goblins, deadly Rock Crabs, and hungry [Necromancers]. She is no warrior, no mage. Erin Solstice runs an inn.

She’s an [Innkeeper].

The Moorchild by Eloise Jarvis McGraw (1996)

Half moorfolk and half human, and unable to shape-shift or disappear at will, Moql threatens the safety of the Band. So the Folk banish her and send her to live among humans as a changeling. Named Saaski by the couple for whose real baby she was swapped, she grows up taunted and feared by the villagers for being different, and is comfortable only on the moor, playing strange music on her bagpipes.

As Saaski grows up, memories from her forgotten past with the Folks slowly emerge. But so do emotions from her human side, and she begins to realizethe terrible wrong the Folk have done to the humans she calls Da and Mumma. She is determined to restore their child to them, even if it means a dangerous return to the world that has already rejected her once.

Peter Pan in Scarlet by Geraldine McCaughrean (2006)

In August 2004 the Special Trustees of Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, who hold the copyright in Peter Pan, launched a worldwide search for a writer to create a sequel to J. M. Barrie's timeless masterpiece. Renowned and multi award-winning English author Geraldine McCaughrean won the honor to write this official sequel, Peter Pan in Scarlet. Illustrated by Scott M. Fischer and set in the 1930s, Peter Pan in Scarlet takes readers flying back to Neverland in an adventure filled with tension, danger, and swashbuckling derring-do

The Many Deaths of Laila Starr by Ram V. (2022)

Humanity is on the verge of discovering immortality. As a result, the avatar of Death is cast down to Earth to live a mortal life in Mumbai as twenty-something Laila Starr. Struggling with her newfound mortality, Laila has found a way to be placed in the time and place where the creator of immortality will be born. Will Laila take her chance to stop mankind from permanently altering the cycle of life, or will death really become a thing of the past?

Wishing Chair by Enid Blyton (1937-2000)

Once Mollie and Peter have discovered the Wishing-Chair, their lives are full of adventure. It takes them to all sorts of magical places, from the giant's castle where they rescue Chinky the Pixie, to the amazing party at Magician Greatheart's castle.

Die by Kieron Gillan (2018-2020)

DIE is a pitch-black fantasy where a group of forty-something adults have to deal with the returning unearthly horror they barely survived as teenage role-players.

Poison by Chris Wooding (2003)

Poison has always been a willful, contrary girl, prone to being argumentative and stubborn. So when she discovers that her younger sister has been abducted by the phaeries, she decides to seek out the Phaerie Lord to get her back.

But finding the Phaerie Lord is just the start of it. By leaving home, Poison steps into a murderous world of intrigue and danger, where the Lords of the Realm, a sinister pantheon of demigods, are conspiring to overthrow the Hierophant- the most powerful lord of all. For the Hierophant is writing again, and his pen will decide all their fates... including Poison's.

With only her wits and her friends to aid her, Poison must survive the lethal attentions of the Phaerie Lord, rescue her sister, and thwart a plot that could mean the end of her people. What awaits her is beyond anything she can imagine.

Deeplight by Francis Hardinge (2019)

The gods are dead. Decades ago, they turned on one another and tore each other apart. Nobody knows why. But are they really gone forever?

When 15-year-old Hark finds the still-beating heart of a terrifying deity, he risks everything to keep it out of the hands of smugglers, military scientists, and a secret fanatical cult so that he can use it to save the life of his best friend, Jelt. But with the heart, Jelt gradually and eerily transforms. How long should Hark stay loyal to his friend when he’s becoming a monster—and what is Hark willing to sacrifice to save him?

[fancoloredglasses]

[RERUN] Gargoyles (Gettin’ medieval for the kids)

[All images are owned by Disney. Please don’t sue me]

(Thanks to Jan Schmelter)

(If you would like to see the wall of text that was the original review, you may do so here)

In the 90s, before there were a ton of cable stations devoted to cartoons and kids’ fare (The Disney Channel and Nickelodeon were it) and you could still watch a ton of cartoons between the time that kids would be coming home from school and the time parents came home from work (every TV station not affiliated with the “Big Three” (Fox was not yet the major network it is now, and its stations were often regarded as “independents” that happened to have Fox programming a few nights a week) had this format in the afternoon)

(Thanks to DuckTales Wiki)

In 1990, Disney decided to get in on this action with The Disney Afternoon, a two-hour block of cartoons using series previously aired on the Disney Channel, with such well-regarded shows as Duck Tales, Chip & Dale’s Rescue Rangers, Darkwing Duck, TaleSpin, and Goof Troop.

Then in 1994, Disney took a serious risk with its block. Instead of the kid-friendly mild adventure (and outright comedy) reruns, they premiered a show with a much darker (though still kid-friendly) tone that included characters being wounded and (gasp) killed! Needless to say, this got the immediate attention of my college-age friends and myself!

The cartoon is about a group of gargoyles (hence the series’s title) from the 10th century who, despite a symbiotic relationship with Celtic nobility (they defended the nobles’ castle at night and the humans protected them during the day when they were stone and helpless), were feared and shunned by the very humans they helped protect (almost sounds like a metaphor for racial tensions, much like the mutants in X-Men)

The clan of Gargoyles (well, the ones who the series centers on) consists of 7 warriors

...led by Goliath, the only one of them with a name (voiced by Kieth David who went on to voice Captain Anderson in the Mass Effect video game franchise)

...along with his mate (voiced by Marina Sirtis…we’ll get to her in a moment)

...his mentor (voiced by Ed Asner, who played Lou Grant on The Mary Tyler Moore Show)

...three younger warriors

...and a gargoyle-dog (dog-goyle?)

There are others, but as you’ll see they’re not that important.

When their main ally among the humans betrayed them, (though, to be fair, he was actually betraying the nobles. He assumed the invaders would leave the gargoyles alone after they won. WRONG! The invaders smashed the majority of the gargoyles while they were stone, killing them in a way that was technically kid-friendly) and the nobles blamed them for their defeat (Why? The invaders attacked during the day!) The court mage (who is known as the Magus) cursed the gargoyles to remain stone forever “until the castle rises above the clouds”. What dicks!

Fortunately, the nobles realized who really betrayed them, but unfortunately the mage could not undo the spell, so they took it upon themselves to care for the unborn gargoyle eggs as they fled (This will become important later)

Fast forward about a thousand years, when billionaire industrialist David Xanatos (voiced by Jonathan Frakes…I swear I will address this!) has the castle carefully taken down and reconstructed (making sure to use every piece) atop his skyscraper. Sure enough, this meets the conditions of the spell and the gargoyles awaken at dusk. Goliath discovers his mate was not demolished by the invaders, but was somehow still alive (after a millennium? Given Goliath’s mentor is old, they are obviously not immortal!) and told Xanatos about the spell.

As thanks, Goliath agrees to work with Xanatos, until it’s obvious that Xanatos isn’t exactly on the side of the angels.

Nor, apparently, is Goliath’s mate, who had grown more cold and ruthless (and has developed a hatred of humans) in the past thousand years (again, how? I mean, it is sorta-kinda explained in later episodes, but for now it’s a mystery). Eventually, the pair turn on the gargoyles.

(Thanks to Tooth)

About this time, Goliath meets...

...(and accidentally nearly kills) an NYPD detective named Elisa Maza.

Elisa becomes a fierce ally to the Gargoyles, eventually helping them find a new home since living over Xanatos’s roof could be hazardous to their health (and sorta-kinda becoming a mate to Goliath? Well, at least a romantic interest in a “will they/won’t they/is the biology even possible?!” kind of way)

Elisa is also inadvertently responsible for naming the rest if the Gargoyles. When she asked Goliath’s mentor what his name was, he was exasperated that humans needed to name everything, and asked if a nearby river had a name too. She replied it was the Hudson. He then threw his hands up and declared that he, too, might as well be called the Hudson, which led to the rest of the clan to choose their own names...

(Thanks to Chris bentley)

OK, time to address the Enterprise in the room. A lot of actors affiliated with Star Trek gave their voices to the series (the fact that Sirtis and Frakes played villains when so many associated them with the crew of the Enterprise-D was surreal at the very least) Every chapter in the Trek mythos to date was represented, with TNG being the most heavy.

(Brent Spiner voiced the fae known as Puck

…and LaVar Burton voiced a spider god), though there were voice actors from...

the original series (Nichelle Nichols voiced Elisa’s mother)

Deep Space Nine (Michael Dorn voiced an undead cyborg gargoyle (yes, the series had some weird characters) known as Coldstone)

Voyager (Kate Mulgrew played Xanatos’s lover’s mother,

...as well as Queen Titania of the fae)

…and even the movies! (Paul Winfield, who played the captain of the USS Reliant in Star Trek II, played a recurring role as blind man who befriends Hudson)

The show’s creator has said that, while he did cast Sirtis and Frakes for the roles, it was not originally his intent to fill the series with voices to please the Trekkies, but he did seem to favor Trek actors more as new characters were written.

Many sci-fi and (urban) fantasy tropes were visited, including time travel (again with the time-travel…however, I like how the series handled the concept: you aren’t altering the past by going back in time, events in the past happened as they did because your present self traveled to the past!)

The series was very well-written, especially for its time (X-Men showed that younger audiences could handle more mature content and could follow a continuing storyline…plus a series written as such could draw in an older demographic that could afford all the merchandising)

As always, let me know if there are any episodes you would like reviewed.

[mariocki]

Alexandra Bastedo goes toe to toe with Simon Templar (and bonus Philip Madoc as her employer, Alzon), as French nightclub hostess Mireille in The Saint: The Counterfeit Countess (5.20, ITC, 1967).

Bonus bonus: Philip Madoc and his lovely cat Chouchou

[lsleofthelost]

backstories for the Villains of Merlin Academy

Hades: I’m stealing Blue’s idea that Hades was sent there as a punishment by the Olympians. We’re looking at it through the Disney lens, rather than Classics lens, meaning Hades is a villainous figure. I imagine he made contracts with a number of impressionable/gullible teenagers in an attempt to use them to overthrow Zeus. When this was discovered, he was sentenced to a human existence (hence why he ages later. the Olympians didn’t interfere with his sentence to the Isle of the Lost because they agreed that it’s a part of the human life) and made him a teenager. Intellectually, he knows he’s an immortal God but the human body and brain can not comprehend it, not fully, so he feels and acts like a teen boy. Yes, he has some of his powers, like pyrokinesis and shadow manipulation but they are limited.

Merlin was informed of this by Iris and he thinks it’s a wonderful and dangerous idea. He enrolled the now boy in classes and treats him as a normal student (sometimes he does forget that this isn’t just a punk).

Hades still likes what he likes, which is loud music, black leather and pushing people around, so he organically becomes part of the villain group.

Maleficent: She comes from a proud noble line of fae. They have been preordained to birth the future Mistress of Evil generations ago, and they leaned into it heavy. Every daughter is treated as a possible fulfilment of the prophecy, so all her cruel acts, all callousness, all harsh words were encouraged. When she was younger, she didn’t believe she was the one, and argued with her mother about it. Her family didn’t initially want to send her to Merlin Academy (she could make friends! become soft!) but she won out in the end. The reason she wanted to go was because she’s actually a bookworm, a scholar if you will, and the Academy is known as having the most comprehensive library in all the realms, including otherwise banned books.

Because she herself didn’t believe she could become the Mistress of Evil, Merlin didn’t either, and he could sense her hunger for knowledge, so how could he refuse to accept her? She likes that he’s scatterbrained and easy to manipulate.

She really didn’t come there to make friends, but when she realised that she was in the same year as actual literal God of the Underworld, she decided to make an exception. Plus, he likes good music.

Morgie: I will be so honest with you, I’m afraid I don’t know enough about Arthuriana to make a really good one here but I will try.

His mother doesn’t like thinking about her son. There’s no warmth or affection, really. As a son of such a powerful fae, he’s somehow crushed under the expectations and doesn’t give a shit. He wants his mother to love him, but he kind of realises it is a lost cause.

There was no question about his attendance, not really. Sure his parent is in a very tumultuous position to the realm, sometimes benevolent, sometimes malicious, she is still respected.

He mostly spent his days before the Academy in the Moors, with the animals, so he’s not that great at socialising with people. He spent a long time trying to approach Maleficent but didn’t know how. But eventually, he strikes a connection with Hook and is adopted by the group.

Hook: He is from a completely regular family. It’s not a loving warm family by any stretch of imagination but, unlike the others, there isn’t anything inherent to him. His parents work in a pub by the port, and he spent a lot of his childhood listening to stories from sailors from all over the spectrum of legality. That is also where he got his penchant for drama, because performing for drunk, recently paid sailors is a quick way to get some coin. He’s afraid of turning out like his parents, stuck in a dead end job, where people don’t have respect for you. He contemplated just joining a crew, but he knows that to become a Captain, he would either need to work a ship for years, or graduate an academy. So he sends an application.

He is one of the many scholarship kids at Merlin Academy. Officially, his goal is to enlist in the Navy and become a privateer. Less officially, he doesn’t care if he has a paper from the Crown, he wants to sail the seas, capture ships, and get a prize.

Because he’s attracted to power, he instantly sets his sights on the royal and noble kids. But their lives are so far away from his, and they don’t like his crude jokes so it doesn’t last long. Uliana thinks he’s hilarious, though.

Uliana: She was always the spare for the Royal House of Atlantis, ignored and forgotten. Unlike Ursula, she doesn’t have the bitter resentment of being the eldest child and being passed over in line for the throne in favour of Triton. But since Triton was raised pretty separately from them, Uliana feels more connection and competition to her sister. She knows there’s nothing she can do to be better than her brother (it’s not like she can be born a boy and challenge him for the throne) but she can be worse than Ursula. She desperately wants to be the best at something, to make people regret not paying attention to her.

She’s sent to the Merlin Academy, as is expected of a royal. But she doesn’t fit in with them. The other royal girls are either future rulers (which is partially why she disliked Bridget so much, because she takes that privilege for granted and humiliates herself with begging people to be friends), or they are perfectly happy and pampered princesses, who don’t understand her drive to be great. The nobles are too soft hearted for her taste, and she won’t lower herself to socialise with commoners.

She does connect with Hades, and Maleficent through him, and later Morgie, via James (he’s the only commoner she likes. he has drive). She’s the most motivated and initiating out of their group and becomes the de facto leader.

[snowywolf1005]

YORIICHI TSUGIKUNI X WITCH READER

Note: yoriichi fell in love with you. You are immortal and have a healing factor. You make yoriichi immortal

It was nighttime yoriichi walking the forest, killing some demon. When he heard a loud creek in the bushes, he grabbed his sword, ready to fight.

When yoriichi came closer. He was surprised to see. A female ,standing on water, not even drowning.

He thought that women is a demon. He saw the woman holding something, a dead bird.

She put the dead bird down down, but the bird didn't drown ever.

Then yoriichi came closer to attack. When he was about to, the woman began to sing.

"Flower, gleam, and glow, Let your powers shine." Then all the flowers began to bloom, even the planet began to grow.

"Make the clock reverse, Bring back what once was mine," yoriichi can't believe his eyes to see.

"Heal what has been hurt, Change the fates' design," then the water began to glow, too. Surround the birds as the birds glow.

"Save what has been lost, Bring back what once was mine, What once was mine," then the woman finished her song.

Then, after that, the birds body began to shake, and it came back to life.

And starting to fly, they give the woman a kiss in cheek. The woman smiled. Yoriichi watches the birds fly with it family.

"I know you here," she said, yoriichi freeze. He didn't know that she knew he was here.

"Don't be afraid, I'm not demon," she said, coming closer. Where yoriichi was hiding.

"Then, what are you then?" Said yoriichi, standing up holding his blade. The woman chulked little.

"My name is (y/n) (l/n), and I lm a witch, but I don't harm humans" said y/n

Yoriichi put his sword down. But he still didn't trust y/n. Then, a loud roar coming closer. Yoriichi and y/n looked to see a gaint bear.

The bear went towards yoriichi, but y/n blocks the bear by using her spell to shield. "You can do magic!?" Said yoriichi.

Y/n looked at yoriichi, but with that their eyes meet.

Like this:

She shook her head, "do something!" Said y/n, "in the count of three, I attack the bear, while you shield me" said yoriichi

Y/n nodded her head. "1... 2... 3!" He yelled. Yoriichi pulled out his blade and scratched the bear. The bear roar and was about to to scratch yoriichi but y/n shield him.

Like this: yoriichi is Connie, y/n is steven:

After defeating the bear. Yoriichi felt something weird. He didn't know why his heart was beating. He might be in love.

After years, yoriichi finally confessed to y/n. " You love me ?" Said y/n, "

"Yes, and I want to be an immortal, so we be together," said yoriichi. Y/n said yes, yoriichi grab y/n and kiss her.

Now yoriichi and y/n can live forever.

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌙 Ramadan Mubarak - Books ft. Muslims

🦇 Good morning, my beautiful bookish bats. To celebrate this Islamic holy month, here are a FEW books featuring Muslim characters. I hope you consider adding a few to your TBR.

❓What was the last book you read that taught you something new OR what's at the top of your TBR?

🌙 A Woman is No Man - Etaf Rum 🌙 Amal Unbound - Aisha Saeed 🌙 Love From A to Z - S.K. Ali 🌙 Hana Khan Carries On - Uzma Jalaluddin 🌙 Yes No Maybe So - Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed 🌙 Evil Eye - Etaf Rum 🌙 I Am Malala - Malala Yousafzai 🌙 Exit West - Mohsin Hamid 🌙 Written in the Stars - Aisha Saeed 🌙 The Night Diary - Veera Hiranandani 🌙 Much Ado About Nada - Uzma Jalaluddin 🌙 The Eid Gift - S.K. Ali 🌙 More Than Just a Pretty Face - Syed M. Masood 🌙 Yusuf Azeem Is Not a Hero - Saadia Faruqi 🌙 If You Could Be Mine by Sara Farizan 🌙 Snow - Orhan Pamuk 🌙 Sofia Khan Is Not Obliged - Ayisha Malik 🌙 The Proudest Blue by Ibtihaj Muhammad 🌙 And I Darken - Kiersten White 🌙 The Last White Man - Mohsin Hamid

🌙 Hijab Butch Blues - Lamya H 🌙 The Bad Muslim Discount - Syed M. Masood 🌙 Ms. Marvel - G. Willow Wilson 🌙 Love from Mecca to Medina - S.K. Ali 🌙 The City of Brass - S.A. Chakraborty 🌙 The Love Match by Priyanka Taslim 🌙 A Map of Home by Randa Jarrar 🌙 A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi 🌙 An Emotion of Great Delight by Tahereh Mafi 🌙 The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan 🌙 The Moor’s Account - Laila Lalami 🌙 Only This Beautiful Moment by Abdi Nazemian 🌙 Salt Houses by Hala Alyan 🌙 When a Brown Girl Flees by Aamna Quershi 🌙 Jasmine Falling by Shereen Malherbe 🌙 Between Two Moons by Aisha Abdel Gawad 🌙 Sea Prayer by Khaled Hosseini 🌙 A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini 🌙 The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini 🌙 Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal

🌙 Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie 🌙 All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir 🌙 The Bohemians by Jasmin Darznik 🌙 Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin 🌙 A Case of Exploding Mangoes by Mohammed Hanif 🌙 Chronicle of a Last Summer by Yasmine El Rashidi 🌙 A Girl Like That by Tanaz Bhathena 🌙 Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga 🌙 The Mismatch by Sara Jafari 🌙 Does My Head Look Big In This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah 🌙 You Truly Assumed by Laila Sabreen 🌙 Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali 🌙 Once Upon an Eid - S.K. Ali and Aisha Saeed 🌙 Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel by Sara Farizan 🌙 Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson 🌙 The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar 🌙 A Show for Two by Tashie Bhuiyan ��� Nayra and the Djinn by Michael Berry 🌙 All-American Muslim Girl by Lucinda Dyer 🌙 It All Comes Back to You by Farah Naz Rishi

🌙 The Marvelous Mirza Girls by Sheba Karim 🌙 Salaam, with Love by Sara Sharaf Beg 🌙 Queen of the Tiles by Hanna Alkaf 🌙 How It All Blew Up by Arvin Ahmadi 🌙 Zara Hossain Is Here by Sabina Khan 🌙 Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi & Yusef Salaam 🌙 She Wore Red Trainers by Na'ima B. Robert 🌙 Hollow Fires by Lucinda Dyer 🌙 Internment by Samira Ahmed 🌙 Against the Loveless World by Susan Abulhawa 🌙 Love in a Headscarf - Shelina Zahra Janmohamed 🌙 Courting Samira by Amal Awad 🌙 The Other Half of Happiness by Ayisha Malik 🌙 Huda F Are You? by Huda Fahmy 🌙 Love, Hate & Other Filters by Samira Ahmed 🌙 Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know by Samira Ahmed 🌙 Muslim Girls Rise - Saira Mir and Aaliya Jaleel 🌙 Amira & Hamza - Samira Ahmed 🌙 The Weight of Our Sky by Hanna Alkaf 🌙 Nura and the Immortal Palace by M.T. Khan

🌙 As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh 🌙 Counting Down with You by Tashie Bhuiyan 🌙 Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor by Xiran Jay Zhao 🌙 The Yard - Aliyyah Eniath 🌙 When We Were Sisters by Fatimah Asghar 🌙 The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty 🌙 Maya's Laws of Love by Alina Khawaja 🌙 The Chai Factor by Farah Heron 🌙 The Beauty of Your Face - Sahar Mustafah 🌙 Hope Ablaze by Sarah Mughal Rana