#Max and Moritz is also a story like that.

[starpros-sunshine]

I don't think people who didn't grow up with these stories can understand the sheer delight that Der Struwwelpeter is it is so so funny sometimes when you're out of the age demographic where that's supposed to scare you because the thought of a little boy going outside during the rain with his little umbrella and then just suddenly flying away like Mary Poppins with a jetpack on and it's illustrated like this

It just brings me immense amounts of amusement.

[subtile-jagden]

Aces and their pets

Most people know of Moritz, Manfred von Richthofens beloved Great Dane (he was most likely a mutt but MvR swore up and down he was a purebred). After MvRs death Moritz got taken care of by Manfreds old friend Alfred Gerstenberg.

But there are several other pets (primarily dogs) that deserve a mention as well as many of them accompanied their owners to the front.

One of them is Max Immelmanns Great Dane Tyras. Immelmann found him in an animal shelter and his name is technically a pun, as Max named him after the place he got him from (Tierasyl = Tieras = Tyras, which was also the name of Otto von Bismarcks dog). Tyras was very loved, he was regularly sketched by Immelmann and was allowed to sleep on the bed. Tyras most likely stayed with Immelmanns family after his death.

The great Oswald Boelcke also had dogs. Besides horses they were his favourite animals. Shortly before the war broke out he got Ibi, an Airedale Terrier. He left Ibi at home during the war. Missing his loyal companion he got himself a German Shepherd named Wolf.

Rudolf Berthold got gifted a small white terrier by comrades, name unfortunately unknown. But important enough to be included in the Sanke card.

Ernst von Althaus' beloved dog Mousse was with him during the whole war. He seems to be a type of hunting breed. With him in the picture is Otto Bernert with a Jack Russel.

Josef Jacobs also brought his dog Rolf to the front with him.

Heinrich Gontermanns dog also had the honour of being included in the Sanke card.

Richthofens former flight companion Graf Erich von Holck also had a small dog, who he took with them in the airplane during their patrols over Russia. That tough doggy survived the incident where they flew over a burning town and had to do an emergency landing but then got lost on the way back. Holck apparently was also a cat lover. There are several pictures of pilots (from all countries) with lion cubs, so there seemed to be a trend.

Speaking of rather curious choices of animal companions, Ernst Udet and his comrades entertained a monkey named Betty. Unfortunately, I can't find the picture right now (does anyone have it?).

Ernst Udet tells the story of his comrade Wilhelm Klinkermann whose dog always waited right at the flight strip until his owner returned. On the day of his death the dog was very nervous and when Klinkermann didn't return, they had to force the dog into the car to take him to his family. He did not want to leave without his owner.

Walter von Bülow-Bothkamp with his dog Tönnes.

And here some more (I'm not sure if these dogs belong to whom they are pictured with):

[tapejob]

who do you recommend voting for to reach max narratives & fucked up vacation plans per team?

HOOOO lets talk abt this, bc this is one of the driving factors and also one of the driving uses for this nonserious mock narrative network analysis (NMNNA) i made. we will be referencing her quite a bit tonight.

let's talk about top narrative candidates:

there is, in a sense, a sort of must in the case of bringing in leon draisaitl (edm). re our NMNNA, draisaitl nurses not one, not two, but three largely evident narrative connections, and all of those affiliated side connections snowballed on top of that. there is, as someone brought up before, matt tkachuk and draisaitl (reunited!) and brady who drai fought a while ago. drai and davo, old and gold and in love. and also, a fun little side story: draisaitl and josh morrissey, who will be reuniting from their days in juniors (and from the jets reverse sweep in the 2021 scp). if you want drama, vote draisaitl.

in the same breath, you might as well bring in tim stützle (ott) while you're at it. give drai a bro to face the tkachuks with. or at least neutralize brady.

another compelling angle to look at here: nathan mackinnon (col). yes, makar-mackinnon-kadri creates an effective 2 birds with 1 puck situation with both an avalanche reunion and also an opportunity for mac to salivate over makar again in a public forum. mac-crosby would commence, showstopping, awesome. but also something to consider: mcdavid and mackinnon together, in a room with their idol (crosby), after the avs singlehandedly crushed the oilers playoff chances last year and we ran that narrative through its course. consider.

we are as always talking about jack eichel (vgk) for jack eichel related purposes. he as always connects with mcdavid for all of the reasons that cannot be stated, but also connects to ullmark and thompson from sabres-related pasts grievances and is linked to thompson for vegas-related future hopes. gaudreau and him were also buddies. and also, a fun little hidden tidbit: the larkin-eichel of it all. this is my agenda and i am bringing her forward.

if we do not bring in claude giroux (ott) are we even allowed to be here. this is honestly a little bit of a crime because we are Cutting Into That Old Man's Vacation but crosby is here and hayes is here and brady is here and everyone who loved him so much last year is too. what are we supposed to do.

re NMNNA, that connecting bubble between jones and larkin is, you guessed it, room for zach werenski (cbj). and that also connects too to gaudreau, in true teammate fashion.

i give a sort of null amount of care about this particular narrative but for those who might be interested, hughes is surrounded by team usa olds. you can give him some company if you'd like (if you're out of ideas, caufield (mtl) connects to both suzuki and hughes relationally. but you guys know that better than i probably).

also something to look at are the "lonely" kids on the NMNNA: pettersson, beniers are big ones, but also robertson, thompson (both of them), nelson, keller, etc, etc. it's on you guys if you want to leave them lonely and looking for random conversation, or if you want to hook them up with a buddy (e.g. quinn hughes (van) connects to both jhughes and pettersson. sort of a two birds with one stone situation).

if you have a personal narrative agenda to fulfill, this is also the time to do that. good ones i've seen so far have been:

tyson jost (buf) (confronts him with both his avalanche days, a sprinkle of wild, and gives company to thompson)

anyone from the 2015 draft class you can get your hands on. wouldn't it be funny if we brought in dylan strome (wsh). wouldn't it be funny.

mats zuccarello (min) for kaprizov excitement boosting purposes

moritz seider (det) for larkin and (if so voted) draisaitl

evgeni malkin (pit) for crosby and ovechkin

literally anyone you can narratively pair to keep specifically those lonely old men company. they have to work today.

as for those of you who hope to ruin the vacations of players: there is only two-ish tips to keep in mind.

1) the more vet you are picking, the more you are in for a vacation-ruining-asg. pick any vet that you want to see get screentime and suffering, because they see the asg for what it is: a time where they need to keep working and entertain the masses instead of fucking off to cancun. do you think erik karlsson wants to be here, for the 7th time in a row. bonus points if they have kids, they are Tired of that shit.

2) it's in florida this year, which means the hot single excited young guns still clamoring for fame are Not going to see this as punishment* (with an asterisk, in that it will be punishment only if they are Alone). tread carefully.

[maochira]

Hi Mao, this is a bit of an odd ask.

My dad is German and Italian, so I grew up learning bits and bits about my German and Italian roots (I’m actually taking Italian for my foreign language). I recently learned about German children’s books like Struwwelpeter, Max and Moritz, Krampus, and not as famous Brothers Grimm stories. I only really learned about these recently because my parents stuck to bedtime stories like Strega Nona (Grandma Witch) Despite the Italian name it was made in the US. Although I was also told a lot of German mythology. But the German children’s books I brought up are mostly cautionary tales that would’ve horrified me when I was little.

The ask: The Blue Lock boy’s reaction to hearing German bed time stories for the first time

I hope you have a day as nice as you <3

This is more of a braindump rather than a proper writing thing but OH MY GOD. I'm pretty sure I still have my Struwwelpeter book somewhere at my aunt's place. I got it when I was a kid and BROOO THOSE STORIES ARE HORRIFYING💀💀💀

Struwwelpeter (the story) itself is pretty tame. Just a guy who doesn't cut his nails and doesn't brush his hair. But then the other stories in the book... Suppenkasper. Kid doesn't eat soup for a few days and dies. I forgot the name but then there's the story of the girl who played with a lighter and died. Then there's also the story of the boy who didn't stop sucking his thumb so some guy came and cut his thumbs off. AND THERE'S MORE💀 but yeah.

I barely remember anything about Max and Moritz except they were two boys messing around with everyone and causing chaos and then they got baked into a bread.

I never was taught about Krampus until I was a bit older, I think. But he was never a thing I knew about when I was a kid.

BUT UHM. BLUE LOCK BOYS REACTIONS

Honestly I just imagine little Kaiser hearing the stories and being like "Eh whatever" and not being affected at all (me back then... for some reason💀 only the being baked part in Max and Moritz horrified me... I think I was aware of everything being fictional)

Little Ness on the other hand? Nightmares. Every night for 3 weeks. His parents regret having bought the Struwwelpeter book.

When Isagi finds out about the stories... I think he'd just be like "That's why Kaiser is fucking insane" or something like that

No idea about the others tbh😭 Like yeah they'd think those are weird stories to read to a kid but there's not much more I can come up with😭

[schadenfreudich]

This will sound weird, because it is, but I have come to the conclusion that german men who lived in the 19th century, could not write normal stories.

Or the weird stories are the ones that were interesting enough to keep showing to people. So that either they were "classic children's stories" (for example all the fairytales by the Brothers Grimm, Max und Moritz) or are otherwise classic examples of german literature (for example Goethe's Faust).

I'm not saying it's good or bad, if anything I am a big fan of weird things and somehow german literature from the 19th century has a lot of that. So if it seems like I am weirdly obsessed with Germany in the 19th century, then that is true, but also it is not my fault that things I find interesting often end being from the 19th century.

[yourdailykitsch]

Is the defeated on Netflix us the edited version or full version?

'The Defeated' on Netflix is the edited down version. I've only watched two episodes so far but it is noticeably different, mainly the Claire/Max relationship. A lot of their scenes have been cut or changed which is a shame. Their story was one of my favorites in the series, particularly a scene with them in his hotel room. It's still there but the content of their conversation is different, it's shorter. It's almost like they shot two versions of the same scene in some cases. They also cut the scene they're initially introduced so a lot of his awkwardness around her seems strange to those don't know how they really met in the original. AND most importantly, they cut the love scene. It's just a kiss in this version.

There are some scenes in the edited version that are just completely different than the original. I haven't gotten there yet but I just skimmed and I believe they cut one of Taylor's best scenes with his son because in this version "Jimmy" is not Max's son, but his nephew.

On the other hand I think this edited version is better put together, it is more succinct, the story and what's going on with Max's brother Moritz is better explained with elements that weren't in the original.

My suggestion would be to watch the edited version on Netflix and then seek out the original version somehow. It is still available on SBS Australia I believe. I do hope that if a DVD is released they'll offer both versions.

[pocketramblr]

They even put a fucking soup on the grave like that'll do him any good

Ah yes good night time stories and pictures. Yes very good very good

Also max and Moritz killed the beloved chicken of a old lady once just for fun so... Take of this as you will

[skellizo]

You know we have been talking about fairytales and dark morals in german class today and man they really just read all that disturbing shit to us when we were little like some of those stories feel like premises for indie horror

Like I had a sparkly pink Book called princess stories and in that you had kind of how to behave yourself when eating you know simple manners and then there was just the more bloody version of Aschenputtel (basically Cinderella but not quite). My grandma also had this book with black moral stories like Strubbelpeter, Strubbelliese, Suppenkasper und Max & Moritz, like HOW WAS THIS ALLOWED.

Anyway I am gonna rummage through the basement tomorrow to find out if we still have that pink sparkly book

[yokoyas]

okay but whats your old “hernst lmao” wip? what were your Thoughts?

OKAY SO. i’m not 100% sure what it was going to be but i think it’s a story i started plotting in my notes app on my phone and the gist of it is that it’s a soulmate au where you get your soulmate’s name on your arm or something when you reach puberty-ish. and soulmates can be unrequited. i wasn’t as focused on, like, making things make sense. it’s about making it sad lmao.

so everything else happens roughly the way canon does, and hanschen and ernst get together like in canon. but hanschen’s soulmate was max von trenk and ernst’s was moritz (i think moritz’s was either melchior and he told ernst but ernst never told him OR he didn’t tell ernst and it’s left ambiguous i can’t remember) but that ultimately doesn’t matter bc love you build is stronger than love you’re assigned. but either way, they’ll live in the shadow of the people they’ve lost bc their names are engraved on them forever.

also it starts with them after everything’s happened and sort of goes back and tells the story in small snippets and also goes into what the other kids’ experiences with soulmates were like. it was meant to be a oneshot. but also i haven’t had Thoughts about spring awakening in a couple years and i literally stopped my wip partway through a sentence so the chances of it being written are unfortunately pretty slim. :(

here’s the list of wips this is from is anyone’s interested in hearing about any of my other stuff

[korusalka]

Hey, do you know some kid german books which are easy to find in pdf/etc?

Alright, I’m going to say it straight away - you have the choice between mostly terrifying books and books you probably won’t find as free PDFs. If you’re primarily looking for free & legal downloads that are public domain, that puts the latest possible publishing year at 1945. And I’m telling you that most (popular) German books for kids that were published up to 1945 were absolutely terrifying. These are memes about them! So I’m gonna give you a list of those books you’ll probably find somewhere because they’re public domain by now, but they’re rated on a fear scale because I feel that’s the responsible thing to do for a potential kid reader …

I’ve also put authors in cursive that are very versatile, as in “you can read them as a kid, as a teen, this author is just really good with writing for children and teens in general”. Books published after 1945 might be online too but I’m not recommending illegal copies you can look for them yourself ok

public domain, probably floating around as PDFs

Wilhelm Busch: Max und Moritz - 4/5

Heinrich Hoffmann: Der Struwwelpeter - 100/5

Karl May: Winnetou series - 2/5

Gebrüder Grimm: Märchen - 4/5

Kurt Held: Die rote Zora und ihre Bande - 2/5

Erich Kästner: Emil und die Detektive - 2/5

Erich Kästner: Das doppelte Lottchen - 1/5

Erich Kästner: Das fliegende Klassenzimmer - ?/5

not public domain ‘cause published after 1945, still very worth a shot

stories about kids being kids, animals, fluff, etc. (misc)

Janosch: illustrations & stories, idk titles

Paul Maar: Das Sams

Otfried Preußler: Der Räuber Hotzenplotz

stories about friend groups

Joachim Masannek: Die wilden Fußballkerle

Cornelia Funke: Die wilden Hühner

Rolf Kalmuczak: Ein Fall für TKKG

Wolfgang Herrndorf: Tschick

stories about fantasy & stuff

Cornelia Funke: Herr der Diebe / Tintenwelt-Trilogie / …

Kerstin Gier stories, i.e. Edelstein-Trilogie (more for teens, but funny)

Kai Meyer: Die Wellenläufer / Arkadien erwacht

Christoph Marzi: Malfuria-Trilogie

Walter Moers: all of his stuff

haunting stories

James Krüss: Timm Thaler oder das verkaufte Lachen

Michael Ende: Momo

Michael Ende: Die unendliche Geschichte

Jutta Richter: Der Hund mit dem gelben Herzen oder die Geschichte vom Gegenteil

Honorable mention: Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren, wildly beloved in Germany. Books of hers I really liked are Die Brüder Löwenherz (made me WEEP) & the more famous Die Kinder von Bullerbü. She also wrote Pippi Langstrumpf.

[herzspalter]

Oh SHIT, the scissorman is REAL??? I ran across that scary bastard in the Doom Patrol comic, but when I couldn’t find him anywhere else I assumed Grant Morrison made him up. It was quite a shock to load up your tumblr and find Jojo Scissorsman staring me in the face! I swear, old school fairy tales were carefully sculpted over the centuries to give disobedient children the maximum heebie jeebies

I got several messages like this both here and on Twitter! Be warned, there’s some fucky shit in this post!

Yes, the story of the scissorman is a real children’s story, it’s called “Die Geschichte vom Daumenlutschter” (Suck-A-Thumb) and is part of the Struwwelpeter book by Heinrich Hoffmann!

“Funny stories and amusing pictures for children ages 3-6″, thanks buddy

The whole book teaches children about the consequences of bad behaviour, but while some of them make sense (if you play with matches, you horribly burn alive!), there’s also some that are just hilariously cruel (Suck your thumbs? A weird tailor comes out of nowhere and cuts your thumbs off! Don’t like your soup? Your parents will let you starve to death! ).

Those sadistic fucks even put the goddamn soup on his grave, leave him be

If you wanna explore more horrifying German children stories, I also recommend “Max & Moritz” by Wilhelm Busch, the OG “it’s just a prank bro” tale, a story about two asshole kids who “prank” people by hurting, traumatizing and mutilating them, and just generally ruining their lifes in other ways, for absolutely no reason.(Animal cruelty ahead)

They murdered her chicken, what a prank!There’s also a guy who gets disfigured with fire and it’s so brutal that I don’t really wanna show it here :’)

Wilhelm Busch has written a lot of short stories, there’s a lot to see there, I distinctively remember one about two burglars who try to escape out of a tall building by jumping with their umbrellas open, hoping it will work like a parachute, but instead they stab each other in the dick and die.

Also, the original versions of the Grimm fairy tale collection are pretty horrifying. Everyone dies for some reason. We had this really really old book and I remember even the rabbit from the rabbit and the hedgehog doesn’t just lose the race, he runs so hard that his artery explodes and he breaks his neck on a rock when he falls and bleeds out while the fucking hedgehogs celebrate (quote from my grandma while she was reading it to me: “hm, that’s pretty unnecessary”)

If you have a morbid fascination with the kind of shit kids in German speaking countries grow up with to this day, go ahead and see if you can find some translations! Please keep in mind that these are all 19th century and older, so there’s probably some really not cool shit in it. 

[omniversalobservations]

Blaise et le Chateau d'Anne Hiversere (2004)

Blaise et le cha?teau d'Anne Hiverse?re Author: Claude Ponti Language: French Summary: For Anne Hiversère's birthday, the chicks want to build a big castle for her. For this, they will go get chocolate in their chocolate mine, then sugar, flour and milk. When the castle is made, hundreds of invited friends will enter the castle to eat it. It will be a great and beautiful celebration. Blaise, the masked chick, takes care of everything.

Source: WorldCat

Blaise and the Castle of Anne Hiversère: This isn’t just any other day for Blaise and his friends. This is their best friend Anne Hiversère’s birthday, and they must bake her a grand cake castle! It will be a magnificent cake like no other, and to make it they must travel far and wide, gathering chocolate from their chocolate mine, flour from the slopes of the Flour Mountain, and sugar from the Sea of Sugar. Claude Ponti’s lush illustrations immerse children in a magical story led by the charming, unforgettable Blaise.

Source: Elsewhere Editions

Anne is six years old, and the chicks have gone to great lengths to offer her the most beautiful and most "irresistibly unbelievable" of castles.

Guests arrive by the dozen, straight out of albums, stories, cartoons, films, comics and television for this event. I know most of them: almost all of them have also been my friends for a long time! Even the picnic plates and the casting errors! But who cares: the party will be long and beautiful, and the cake engulfed until the last bite!

Source: Ginette & Caramel

(image via Twitter)

#books #Star Wars #Nonna Abelarda #Tweety Bird #Sylvester the Cat #Bibounde #The Family of Fourteen #The Adventures of Mr. Obadiah Oldbuck #The Little Tramp #Les Faceties du Sapeur Camember #Mathieu #Les Metamorphoses du Jour #Where's Waldo? #Winnie Winkle #Gremlins #Gaston #The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers #Pink Panther #Le Concombre Masque #Tarzan #The Navigator #Super Mario Bros #Les Tuniques Bleues #Bugs Bunny #Denver the Last Dinosaur #Tom and Jerry #The King and the Mockingbird #Dumbo #Wizard of Oz #Mr. Natural #Babar #The Mischievous Lili #Pinocchio #Mafalda #Yoko Tsuno #Le Gros Degueulasse #Quel Genre de Bisous? #Max and Moritz #The Incal #Screwy Squirrel #Deboires d'Outre-Tombe #Cocco Bill #Aggie et Pim #Gedeon #Mr. Hulot's Holiday #Peter Pan #Maus #Little Nemo #Roudoudou #The Secret Book of Gnomes #Addams Family #Superman #Rugrats #La Plus Mignonne des Petites Souris #Le Chat #Mimi Cracra #Telechat #Simpsons #Felix the Cat #Iznogoud #Marsupilami #Boule & Bill #Sylvain et Sylvette #Betty Boop #L'Ile aux Enfants #Dragon Ball Z #Alice in Wonderland #Petit Ours Brun #Owl at Home #The Story of the Little Mole Who Knew It Was None of His Business #Town Musicians of Bremen #Les Pieds Nickeles #Casper #Teletubbies #Mary Poppins #The Exorcist #Achille Talon #Yakari #Spiff and Hercules #Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #La Ribambelle #Le Prince de Motordu #Little Red Riding Hood #Asterix #Struwwelpeter #L'Ogre, le Loup, la Petite Fille et le Gateau #Huey Dewey and Louie #Le Petit Nicolas #Philemon #Becassine #Frankenstein #Corinne et Jeannot #Hop o' My Thumb #Buster Brown #L'Ami du Petit Tyrannosaure #Adventures of Tintin #Guignol #Kirikou and the Sorceress #Santa Claus #Lucky Luke #Victor Hugo s'est Egare #Le Genie des Alpages #The Squat Bears #Harry Potter #Smurfs #In the Night Kitchen #Mon Petit Lapin #Where the Wild Things Are #E.T. #Peanuts #Peter Rabbit #Mickey Mouse #Spip #The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec #Wallace and Gromit #Voyage to the Bunny Planet #L'horrible Petite Princesse #Calimero #Popeye #Droopy #La Coccinelle de Gotlib #Moustache et Trottinette #Mariette et Soupir #Badger's Parting Gifts #The Last Giants #Jack of Fables

[rollingthunderpouringrain]

12, 16, 43? <3

I'm so sorry xD this has been in my ask box for a long time 🙈❤

It was for this thing: invasive but general asks . Thank you! 🥰

Here we go.

12. what fictional family best represents your own?

I think there are probably choices that are more fitting but I'm gonna go with the first family that popped into my head - the Weasleys. Strong mom, nerdy dad, more than 2 siblings, household a bit messy ��😉.

16. what are your top five favorite bands/ artists/ musicians?

That's reall hard...and the answer will probably change when you ask me this again at a different time.

I'll try: 1. Imagine Dragons, 2. Green Day, 3. AnnenMayKantereit, 4. MCR, 5. Alec Benjamin.

There's so many more I really like tho...

43. what books did you grow up with?

Oof :D Many. I'll list a few titles (and I'm thinking about books I read before I was 11 because otherwise it would be too many...). In no particular order and I will forget some.

- "The Little Vampire" books by Angela Sommer-Bodenburg (part of my dna probably)

- Several books by Astrid Lindgren (Pippi is great but Ronja and Emil will have my heart forever)

- "Max and Moritz" by Wilhelm Busch (💀)

- "Friedrich" by Hans-Peter Richter (i will probably not touch this book ever again!)

- "The Letter for the King" by Tonke Dragt (gosh, love! I know you like this book also, I think?)

- "The Little Witch" by Otfried Preußler (content that inspired my child self to write a movie script. My child self failed.)

- "Frederick' by Leo Lionni (love little mice and rats because of Lionni's mouse books probably)

- the Duckburg comics (also part of my dna i guess)

- "The Knickerbocker Gang" books by Thomas Brezina (Everyone likes the Tiger Team or the "???" back then but I loved these kids and was in love with Axel) (i only liked to the "???" later on)

- "The Neverending Story" by Michael Ende (i don't have to tell you that this book is very important ♡)

- "Magic Moon" by the Hohlbeins (I even liked the 2nd part but the 1st one is special to me)

- "Famous Five" books by Enid Blyton (my whole collection is still at our parents' house and I need them in my apartement actually because i miss the Famous Five even though I don't particularly like the storie anymore)

- "Robin Hood", but I don't remember which edition. (It was a ~~grown up one though - I remember that several things about it made me upset 😂 it was a red collector's edition. I learned what the medical procedure of 'bleeding someone' was thanks to this book and I will probably never forget that fact)

- the HP books. (It is what it is. :))

And many others...

You know which books came shortly after I turned 12 lol.

😁👍

Love you. ❤️

[flowersymbolism]

Flowers of Spring - Chapter 10

AUTHORS NOTE: Guys. This is it. The end. I am so, so grateful for each and every person who took the time to read the story we wanted to tell. I’m sure Alex will make a post giving her two cents, but I wanted to say, from the bottom of my heart, thank-you. Thank-you so much for reading, liking, reblogging and experiencing our story. I want to thank you for falling in love with Lammermeier as much as I did (I love him a lot.) I want to thank you for all the times you’ve said ‘how dare you?’ to us. I want to thank so many people who have given us feedback as we’ve written this. I feel like I’m at an awards ceremony. One last thank-you! I want to thank our beautiful pals @riyis @skeletonmelodies  and @stupid-sea-pigeon for validating us. @obsessive-introvert  for being wonderful and supportive. @thatsilvermagic for being them (Thanks, lke. Sorry we killed you.) And thank-you Alex, the other half of flowersymbolism, @flew-off-with-whizzer-brown for being an amazing co-writer and sister. You’re gonna grow up to do great things, kiddo. We’ve been told a few times how canon this story feels, and we couldn’t ask for a better compliment than that. So, I hereby present to you, after my ridiculously mushy and unnessecary authors note, Chapter 10, the finale of Flowers of Spring.

Yours, forever and always, Lottie.

It was as if everything were in a haze. Hanschen threw the letter down on the bed, his knees failing him as he found himself falling onto the bed. He sat, shaking, unable to understand why this had affected him so. He was going to leave her. He didn’t want to be here. So then why was his world slowly crumbling around him? This was his fresh start. Suddenly his regret, remorse and guilt was overcome by a new emotion. An emotion Hanschen hadn't felt since childhood, not truly. A hint of it arose when his son, for the first time, had used his words against him, but it had never bubbled to the surface until now.

Hanschen felt rage.

He was angry at himself, angry for being careless and ruining things again. He was angry at his son, his stupid son, for taking things too far and getting kicked out for good. He was angry at the world for letting a villian who stole the life of a child go unpunished. He was angry at the man who had tore his family apart with his soft curls and brilliant smile. He was angry at his damned wife for once again ruining everything he wanted. He wanted to leave, and of course she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.

He grabbed the nearest object to him, a book laid on the bed, and threw it, hard against the wall. It hit the wall with a thud, clattering to the floor and falling open. Hanschen stared at the book, just for a moment, then pushed himself to his feet.

Hanschen hurried out of the room, not realizing until now that he was crying. He aggressively wiped away his tears with the heel of his palm, taking the stairs two at a time. He stormed through the hallways, straight to his study, and looked around for a moment. Darting over to his desk, he grabbed a single item: the letter. The last remaining letter he had saved all those years ago.

He clutched it in his hands, and seemingly for a moment, his anger disappeared. But he soon stuffed the letter in his trouser pocket and headed back out of the door. He moved quickly, at the front door in a second, coat in hand and then around him. He was out the door in a flash, the only things on his person a wallet and that precious, precious letter.

He wasn’t thinking, he knew he wasn’t, but somehow he could bare to spend another minute inside that house. He didn’t know where he was going, but his legs seemed to, and so he followed his heart - or his head, at this point he couldn’t tell which - all the way down the country lane he lived on. Neighbours watched as the distressed, messy and frantic Herr Rilow moved down the road and out of sight, in the direction of the train station.

The air helped clear hard, calm his range, but the distress remained. He was broken, or so he thought, never to be fixed. His family had discarded him, like a broken toy that you were once so fond of but now only see as trash, something to get rid of. Something that no longer belonged. Hanschen no longer belonged in that house. The ghosts that haunted him deserved better than his presence. He missed home. That was not his home. Home was garden parties, and soft kisses, and books, and joy, and love. The house he left was filled with nothing but silence, and remorse, and the weight of every mistake he had ever made. He filed through them in his head, Sofia, his angel, Robert, his pride, his joy, Lammermeier, and sweet, sweet Johanna.

Ernst.

All these lives, ruined. Because of him. He thought of all the lives ruined by others, ruined by fate, and cursed that he too would suffer the same fate. Wendla. Moritz.

Max.

The childhood faces he could barely remember but who’s memory pressed against his chest like a cold, dead weight.

And then he’d reached the train station. He looked up at the building, blinking away tears that hung on his eyelashes. He knew this was where he belonged. He knew that whatever happened, he would end up back here. This was the first time, Hanschen realized as he stood there, taking in the weight of the situation, that he had visited the train station on his own volition. Every other time, something had brought him here.

A letter had brought him here. But not this time. He knew that whatever he chose, stepping into this train station would lead to the end of the line.

And so he stepped inside.

“Open it, father, go on, open it!”

The two eldest children watched their father with big eyes, sat around the fire. The presents under the tree had been unwrapped and the children were sat amongst the collateral damage. Well, all except one. In Hanschen’s hands sat a long, small, neatly wrapped box, with a brown label - ‘Love Santa Claus’. It certainly wasn’t his wife’s handwriting. His wife looked equally confused at the box, but his children waited eagerly, wanting to see what Santa had brought their father.

And so he gingerly unwrapped the box, being careful not to tear the paper too much. He slowly pulled the lid off the box, scanning the contents for a brief moment. A beautiful brass fountain pen lay in a cushion of velvet. Reflecting the light of the fire, it almost seemed to glow. He stared at the pen, feeling his cheeks flushing pink and hot. The children looked disappointed.

“What a beautiful gift,” Sofia said, cooly. Hanschen looked up at his wife, whose eyes were fixed on the pen. He instantly looked back down, to his lap, and closed the box.

“Yes, quite,” he said quietly, slowly pushing himself up off the floor to his feet. “If you’ll excuse me, I-” He faltered for a moment. “...I think I left one last gift in the study.” He moved out of the room, and as soon as he was safe behind the door of his study, almost collapsed against the desk. With a shaky hand, he placed the box onto his desk, sitting down on the surface and wrapping his arms around himself.

Ernst.

He’d forgotten about him. He’d received plenty of letters of good cheer and christmas wishes that he’d forgotten that he haven't received a letter in months. Because he wasn’t sending a letter. He was sending a gift.

Hanschen shook his hard violently, clutching his shirt sleeves tightly on his upper arms as he held himself. His life was going wonderfully, with his third child on the way and two more beautiful children around him. His loving wife, radiant and wonderful, and a home that he could call his own. So why did he hurt so much whenever he thought about the sweet boy he fell in love with all those years ago? Why would he shake, and cry, and hurt? He might never know. Hanschen picked up the pen one last time, opening the box, and noticed an engraving in the brass.

‘Yours, forever and always.’

Standing on the platform, Hanschen was faced with his life. In front of him stood every path, every road taken, and those he’d chosen not to go down, too. A million lives he could’ve lived, but only one he chose. He could’ve lost himself in the dreams of what could’ve been, but he chose not to. Now he had little choice. Now, he was at the end of the road, in front of him stretching out only the woods. For all Munich knew or cared, Hanschen Rilow was dead. He decided he liked that. As the train's whistle grew louder and louder, drowning out all other sounds, Hanschen thought of two men - the one who'd been here before, a passing shadow in his life, a mirror; and a man who was miles away, whose smile was the world's greatest treasure, a dream.

That smile. A smile so bright, so genuine and warm. A smile that ruined him.

His mind always seemed to wander back to Ernst. In the years they'd known each other, they'd spent more time apart than they did together, and yet his image was as clear as day in Hanschen's mind, every detail memorized: the pale freckles on his cheeks on which Hanschen left innumerable pecks. His dark brown hair, tousled by the wind. His voice, soft and warm, but which could also spit scorching flames, jeers and criticisms that you felt for days. The way he moved as though an orchestra was playing a tune only he could hear. Though it was in Hanschen's nature to blame others for his fate, he never could it in his heart to be bitter towards Ernst.

“Hurry up, Hanschen!”

The two boys ran through the streets of the small town in which they lived, schoolbags clutched tightly so as to stop them bashing into their sides, or other people. “If we don’t hurry, my father will have finished his sermon! Hurry!”

Hanschen lagged behind. Not because he couldn’t keep up, but because, quite honestly, going to church with Ernst straight after school on a Friday evening was not his idea of fun. His idea of fun was lazing about in a field of tall grass, with the beautiful dark haired boy tangled in his arms. But Ernst wanted church, and so he would go.

He realized, soon enough, that he had gotten distracted, and had lost sight of Ernst. Frowning, he picked up his pace, close enough to the church that he reached it within a minute or two. As he was running he cursed Ernst’s long, slender legs, for the first time in his life. Hanschen finally reached the church, and slowed his pace as he made his way up the gravel path.

Ernst stood in the doorway of the church, starting with sparkling eyes at what was happening within. As Hanschen got closer, he realized that Ernst was starting at his father, up in front of the congregation preaching something or other about loving thy neighbour, whatever that meant. Hanschen loved his neighbour and was chastised for it. He’d never understood what the Bible had that made it so special, but Ernst was borderline obsessed on learning the details, the lessons, the parables, the whole nine yards. Hanschen bet every penny in his pocket that Ernst could probably tell him what Jesus ate for breakfast the day before he was crucified. Ernst was absolutely set on becoming a pastor, and Hanschen, although unhappy with his decision, supported him. Especially when it meant getting to stare at his wonderful, freckled face and his gorgeous, wide, sparkling eyes just that little bit longer without him noticing.

The sermon ended, and Ernst turned, the biggest, most beautiful smile that Hanschen had ever seen. A smile that made his heart skip a beat. “Ready to go?” Hanschen asked, casually, although inside it was taking all his strength and willpower not to grab the poor boy there and then and place his lips on his neck and tell him how much he wanted him.

“Mhm!” Ernst nodded enthusiastically, his smile seemingly growing even more, which Hanschen had previously thought impossible until he’d witnessed it himself.

“Then let’s go.” He held out his hand for Ernst to take, and he almost did, but hesitated, his smile suddenly fading from his face. Hanschen quickly realized what he’d done, and shoved his hand into his blazer pocket. ‘You’re such a fool’ he thought to himself. ‘Be more careful.’ The two stared at each other for a moment, then Hanschen lifted his chin and turned on his heel, beginning to head off. His cheeks flushed and his body ached and he wanted so badly to touch the beautiful, starry-eyed boy, to feel his skin against his. And then, as Ernst caught up, he felt his fingers brush against his and Hanschen almost doubled over, the wind practically knocked out of him. How was he so affected by this boy? He was nothing like Hanschen had ever seen before. This boy who unbuttoned the collar of his shirt which exposed his neck and soft, warm skin dotted with freckles and god, he loved him. More than his Io. More than his Desdemona. More than his fleeting crush on the good-looking boy in his class who had caught his eye. He loved Ernst, more than he’d ever loved anyone. And this evening, at the vineyard, he would tell him.

The simple realisation struck him as more and more people filed onto the platform, and though the station was filling up, he felt as though he was the last man on Earth. God, I love him.  It was then he felt the cold metal on his finger. His ring. His wedding ring. He twisted it around his finger, toying with the idea, before pulling it off. Hanschen held the ring in his hand, in a closed fist against his chest, feeling the cold, cold metal against his palm. The cold grounded him. Hanschen inhaled deeply, closing his eyes, taking in the ring of the engine, the rapid chatter and shuffling of feet. The soft tinkle of metal as the ring fell from his first to the tracks below. And the train grew closer yet.

He was prepared, now, to take the leap.

It was a pleasant afternoon, the setting sun bathing everything in a deep orange glow, the air hanging with the rich aroma of the flowers of spring. The well-trod path that lead from the church to the small house was once again being walked by Pastor Robel. He could’ve walked the snaking way home with his eyes closed. And sometimes he did, losing himself in the tranquility of pure silence, the few moments where he wasn’t expected to be anyone-not Pastor Robel, the pillar of support, not Ernst, the lover.

Years had passed since he’d last seen Hanschen, and in the predictable yet enjoyable motion of his life, that weekend stood out, the memory of it still as detailed as when it was first forged.  He’d turned it over and over in his mind, much like how he did with Hanschen’s first letter, the cold, distant goodbye and that vineyard, 20 years ago. If nothing else, Ernst could always retreat to his thoughts, taking out moments in time and replaying them as one would take out photographs and read the notes scribbled on the back.

He did, however, come to as he reached his street. Looking to the right, he could see the Pfeiffers’ house, and, on the front porch, Kurt and Dieter were huddled over homework, scratching of pens interrupted every now and then by giggles and fingers fumbling to intertwine. Seeing them so carefree brought a smile to Ernst's face and he knew they'd both taken to heart his advice. All they needed now was luck, which he could only pray they'll have. Just before continuing on his way, he saw Mathilde come out of the house and set out lemonade for them, an easy smile on her face. How the Pfeiffers managed to live unperturbed by whispers or rumours was beyond him, but he could only be happy for them, despite having never had the luxury to do the same.

He turned right to reach his own yard, when he looked up and saw a figure on his porch. Ernst approached, getting closer so as to try and see who it was. A tall man, his back turned to him, and next to him two bags. His hair- golden, shining in the soft light of the sun. Ernst's breath was caught in his throat and a million thoughts raced about his mind, and he felt like everything inside of him, every cell and every drop of blood, was pushing him forward.

He couldn't remember moving his legs, he could've floated for all he knew. Now, Ernst was at the base of the steps, but the man with the golden hair was still lost in his own world and didn't notice anything. It must've taken Ernst years to untie his tongue, but eventually he did, and his voice broke as soon as he opened his mouth to say the name.

“Hanschen?” it was a mere whisper, but behind it were hidden a million unspoken words.

At that, the man was finally brought back to reality, and his head snapped around, coming face to face with Ernst, staring with wide blue eyes. That's when Ernst’s heart stopped. Blue eyes. Blue eyes. Blue eyes that weren’t Hanschen’s. He felt disappointment wash over him, though he knew, rationally, it was not this man's fault that he wasn't who Ernst had wished he was. Still, it took a lot for the misplaced betrayal to not show.

Ernst took a moment to look at him, and a suspicion was beginning to form in the back of his mind. This stranger, though certainly not Hanschen, reminded him uncannily so of him. The hair, the face…  something he couldn’t quite decipher. Regardless of his confusion, Ernst spoke:

“Can I help you?”

It was then that the boy seemed to snap out of his thoughts, and it dawned on him that he’d been silent the whole time. His face reddened and he looked down in embarrassment for a second, before snapping his head back up and answering:

“Hello, yes, you can. Sorry, I, um-” The boy seemed flustered. Embarrassed. Desperate. “I’m sorry to have showed up on your porch like this, but... but I need.. help. Are you Ernst-- Um, Pastor Robel?”

Ernst was intrigued, not knowing how the boy had learned his name, but decided to keep his questions for later. “Yes. And you are...?”

“I believe you know my father.” He swallowed, looking off to the side for a brief moment before looking back up at Ernst with those big, blue eyes. “My name is Lammermeier Rilow.”

[schadenfreudich]

Current state of tired is "gives you useless information on something vaguely fitting that is also definitely german", because my brain makes connections and they don't make much sense.

Got fucking reminded of "Max und Moritz" which is a weird german children's story from the 19th century, that I saw in a small theater as a child, found a website where I could just read the whole thing at the beginning of this year and I could tell you everything in there. It's so fucking weird. If you wonder why my humor is so weird, it's because I saw it in a theater at like 7 years old, and it was funny but in a very weird way.

Wilhelm Busch surely was an author. Maybe that's just how german authors in the 19th century were, but damn, that fucking book is a shitshow, a rhyming shitshow. I don't even know how Bolte is pronouced, because he rhymed it with both holte and wollte, which don't rhyme.

These fucking kids:

(under the cut because it does include multiple deaths, and near death experiences, very normal story for kids, clearly)

- kill 4 chickens, the woman (who was a widow) cooks them, the kids steal them and she blams her dog

-blow up a teacher, who survives, and only talks about his poor pipe being destroyed

- almost drown a guy, because he was annoying or something

- but bugs into their uncles bed, because they thought it was funny, I guess

- steal from a baker, hide in batter and get backed, and survived

- and then the baker takes them to the miller (?) and fucking turns them into corn

also no one mourns their death at the end, because of course not, they were little shits.

[yourdailykitsch]

Taylor Kitsch, an actor known for his roles in such Hollywood productions as "Battleship: Battle for Earth" and "X-Men Origins: Wolverine", is starring in the new Canal + series "Defeated". In an interview, the actor reveals what he remembers from history lessons, what connects the series' story with the modern world. He also explains why, according to him, every person should visit the former concentration camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau.

Taylor Kitsch started his adventure in Hollywood as a "hottie" - an actor associated with a great body and beautiful face. All because the first role that brought the popularity of the former model Abercrombie and Fitch was the character of naughty lover Tim Riggins in the cult series "Friday Night Lights".

Kitsch did not avoid tough moments in his career - for example, when the $ 250 million John Carter, his first such big role, suffered a disgusting box office failure. But the Canadian knew this taste already - after coming to the USA, he was homeless for some time before finding a job.

For years, he has been successfully playing in big titles and alongside big names. Oliver Stone ("Savages"), Ryan Murphy ("Heart Reflex"), roles alongside Chadwick Boseman ("21 Bridges"), Michael Shannon ("Waco"), Michael Keaton ("American Assassin") and Rihanna ("Battlefield ), the HBO series "Detective," starring Vince Vaughn and Rachel McAdams. Meanwhile, Kitsch finds his way to charity, especially for children.

From 1 January 2021, we will watch him in  "Defeated" . There he plays the role of Brooklyn policeman Max McLoughlin, who in the summer of 1946 is sent to Berlin, which is divided into four spheres of influence. Its task is to support the emerging police structures in the rubble. But upholding order in a space of brutality and lawlessness and clashing political forces - French, American, British and Soviet - will not be easy. Especially since Max does not know that he is used as a pawn in the game to open the Cold War, and somewhere in the maze of Berlin rubble lurks his brother Moritz, a self-proclaimed Nazi hunter who will stop at nothing ...

In addition to Kitsch, the main roles will be: Nina Hoss (local policewoman Elsie Garten), Sebastian Koch (criminal known as Engelmacher, Al Capone of post-war Berlin), Logan Marshall-Green (Max's missing brother, Moritz) and Michael C. Hall (consul Tom Franklin ).

The "Defeated" takes place in Berlin, right after the war. When you decided to play Max McLoughlin, did you have any knowledge of what the situation in Germany was like then?

The seres begins six months after the end of the war. I have the impression that this is a moment that is missing in the educational process - we learn a lot about the war itself, but about what happened immediately after it, for example, I had no idea. The plot of "Defeated" is made up, but our director Måns Mårlind (co-creator of the hit series "Bridge over the Sund") constructed it on the basis of many true stories. I have the impression that fact and fiction are perfectly balanced here. In the process of preparation, he gave us many documentaries and articles that helped to build an idea about the climate of the city from 1946. Discovering the next details of the story was fascinating for me.

Your work gives him a chance to get to know the world, its history, extraordinary places and people. Do you appreciate it?

This is the best part of my job! With each new production, I have a chance to immerse myself in its world and get to know it thoroughly. It could be a war movie like "Survivor", a story about a cult leader ("Waco"), the world of a detective ("Detective") or the beginning of the AIDS epidemic, as in "Heart Reflex". When I was an aspiring actor learning to act in New York, I never imagined that I would be able to live and work like this. Train with Navy Seals or meet Larry Kramer [American playwright, writer and activist for LGBT rights - ed.]. I am very lucky!

Prague, where you shot "Defeated", is a cult city for many Polish filmmakers, due to the famous FAMU school, but also a popular, atmospheric excursion destination. How was your time there?

Lovely. He will refer again to the privilege of working like this: six months in such a wonderful place, it is almost immoral! The only downside was the tight schedule so I didn't discover all the nooks and crannies that I had on the agenda. Fortunately, my driver, a guy in his fifties, was a great-grandfather from Prague, very talkative, and from him I learned the most interesting things - stories about the adventures of my ancestors and friends! Besides, in Prague, if you want to take a history lesson, you go out twenty meters in front of the front door - and it's already getting started. We shot in the summer, before Covid. We had an international team - Czechs, Swedes, Russians, Germans, French ... In use - not only behind the scenes, but also on the set - several languages ​​simultaneously. Really, the only problem for me was my diet. Flour, red meat, stews ... I don't really like to eat like that. At least the beer was delicious, really amazing! In general, I really liked the culture of drinking and eating outside, these gardens, the community ... wonderful thing.

Due to the fact that the film was made in Europe, you had the opportunity to see places related to the war with your own eyes. What made the greatest impression on you? I was lucky, although it is not quite an adequate term that during the shooting we managed to visit the site of the former Auschwitz camp. Of course I knew, I had read about concentration camps before, but this direct contact with the site was invaluable, it gave me a clear idea of ​​what happened. It is difficult for a man to believe what he sees around him. He's standing right next to him, yet he doesn't quite believe it. The space made a huge impression on me. I did not realize how huge Birkenau was, how perfectly organized the entire extermination was. This architecture, the surrounding houses, barracks. Someone designed it, thought over the function down to the smallest detail, and during my visit, I had the chance to trace how and where the whole process took place, step by step. I was standing there and it felt like I was choking, my whole body ached. Such experiences helped me a lot to bring my character to life. Max did not survive the camp himself, but he appears in a place marked by this tragedy, the tragedy of World War II, it affects him. I wish everyone could visit this place because it is a life changing experience.

Movies set in the past can be a perfect mirror for what is here and now. What analogies do you see between that reality and today's world? - Division, the dictate of fear, fear of the unknown, of otherness. Different ways to work through your trauma. These are all threads that connect the "Defeated" space with our reality. For my character, especially the experience of trauma resulting from family history, from the relationship with my brother, becomes the key. They both underwent a similar shock, but their reactions were completely different. I found it very interesting. Max is still hoping for a change, Moritz, as the saying goes, "the platform is gone". They have a completely different perception of one and the same event. Again, it is also a very contemporary thread - one event, situation, and extreme different opinions about it.

Your hero comes from Brooklyn, after you came from Canada, you spent a lot of time in New York. What is so special about the atmosphere of this city that gives it such a "mythical" status? For me, it has always been, I fully agree! Scorsese's "Streets of Poverty" has always been such a cinematic quintessence of New York, with its excellent Keitel and DeNiro. This film is set in the 1940s, which is the present day of Max. He was my point of reference in terms of the accent. Those years were difficult, the inhabitants struggled to make ends meet, and that also had to affect my character's character. Besides, New York has a chic character, New Yorkers feel proud of their roots. It's also something that Max defines.

And you had to transfer this New York feeling to Berlin ... ... to the razed Berlin, which for Max becomes, in a way, another space of trauma, personal again, but this time much more intense.

For this role, you had to master not only a Brooklyn accent, but also the German language. It was difficult?

I had an amazing accent teacher from Berlin, Simone. My rock! Fortunately, Max is an American who speaks German poorly and not a German, because if I had to play a German, I would have had a nervous breakdown! German is a damn hard language, especially for someone who wasn't exposed to such sounds when growing up. I learned everything phonetically. Sometimes I was "suspended" during the scene and then I was saved by Nina [Hoss, a great German acting and screen partner of Kitsch - ed.]. In my career, I have had to play with a South African, Texas, New York accent ... I've learned that there is no such thing as an optimal effect, someone is always dissatisfied. I focus on the vision agreed with the creators and I stick to it. Language is an amazing link between the actor and the protagonist, gives a unique insight into his state of mind and view of the world. I definitely prefer to play the character with an accent than to speak as usual. It's a great transformation tool. The arrangement of the lips, the appearance of the face, and the term are changing. In "Waco" my character, the guru of the sect David Koresh, had an unnaturally high, soft voice, which immediately made the viewer feel differently.

We associate you with American hits, but you are, like Ryan Reynolds or Ryan Gosling, Canadian. Do you feel like an American, or is Canada a state of mind after all?

I started my adventure with the USA when I was 20, I came to school. Now I'm forty, so I've spent half my life here. Madness! Over time, I have grown into this space, I have settled down and I feel at home. I'm talking to you from my home in Austin, Texas. But at the same time, I'll always be Canadian. I go there often, visiting my family and familiar places. Maybe I'll go back one day, who knows?

You've had moments in your career that turned from a promise of triumph to failure, such as the high-budget John Carter, who failed at the box office. Do you have something that you already know: "I'm avoiding this"? I don't have things that, as a rule, I don't do or know that I will never do. But there are some that I don't like. These include radical weight changes. My dear friend must have gained twenty-five kilos for a small, independent film. The first week was great because you eat what you want, then depression started, joint problems, sugar jumping ... I never put my back, but I lost weight. I lost a dozen kilos for the role in "Waco", before that for the "Bang Bang Club". It's fucking hard and very exhausting, especially the older I get. My body and head hate it! Also, until Scorsese calls with some great proposal, I say: enough.