#Never underestimate a person with a film degree

[banyangulf-if]

CHARACTER INTRO — Oscar Carter (he/him)

Background — When Oscar announced over Christmas dinner years ago that he had decided to pursue a degree in filmmaking, the entire table had gone silent. His aspiration was met with disbelief, beginning the years he would face of being consistently underestimated. “You have the mind of a lawyer,” he would be told endlessly, or “Who are you to think you’ll make it in a starving world like this?” Yet no matter how much agony he’s faced for his dreams, Oscar has never given them up. He wants to become a renowned filmmaker and shock the world with his artistic visions. He’s been making progress lately, finishing his degree and moving on to directing music videos for indie artists and various short films. He specializes in mystery and romance films, but has also tried his hand at horror.

Personality — Above all, Oscar is a dreamer. He has a very specific vision of how he wants his life to look, days spent shooting films at the beach and nights spent on the red carpet at premieres for award-winning tv shows. He is a visionary, and this makes him very adept when it comes to understanding the complexity of emotions and the analyzation of those around him. Sometimes his head can get stuck in the clouds, but he is a very conscientious person and wants to live on the sensual side of life.

Appearance & Other Details — Oscar is 22 years old and 5’11. He is Black, with kind brown eyes and locs that reach just below his collar bones. He has minimal tattoos, but has a nostril piercing. His style in clothing is generally artistic, he loves button down shirts with unique, colorful patterns and will buy any pair of doc martens he can get his hands on. He’ll often pair his outfits with a watch and an assortment of rings if he feels like it. His ex-girlfriend, Lorelei Wildes, used to jokingly call him a fashionista when he picked out his outfits. As to his physical build, Oscar has a relatively muscular frame, and he is average in height.

See the Banyan Gulf Info Post or read about other characters here.

[pure-ablution]

I had to reread this several times to ensure I understood it correctly. In case you’re unaware, she is a prominent adult film actress who now seems to be attempting to rewrite her personal history. The author suggests one can simply wake up and pretend the past never happened. However, considering the extent of her public history, it’s difficult to imagine that her past wouldn’t have a lasting impact. While I don’t enjoy pointing this out, she may face significant challenges in establishing a healthy, fulfilling relationship or being taken seriously in her career.It’s unreasonable to assume that her past will have no impact on her future, and such a perspective is deeply misguided. I’m genuinely astonished by this notion.

I’ve written a little bit about this sort of thing before.

First of all, I want to make it clear that having a murky past isn’t a death sentence. Many, many people have suffered all kinds of difficulties that led them to do things that, looking back on it, they aren’t proud of. The act of doing such things, and the emotions that arise in their aftermath, can really take a toll on your self-esteem, and make you feel as though you’re worthless, as though your life isn’t worthy of anything better. I want everyone to know that this just isn’t true. You absolutely can go on to achieve great things, and you absolutely can wake up one day, and make the decision to stop in your current path. Sometimes you’re able to immediately move on, and sometimes it takes a more complex manoeuvre to disentangle yourself from the mess you’ve found yourself in, but it’s never hopeless. I have no doubt that the lady referred to by the post you linked really did go on to achieve everything that was mentioned—but I do think that it’s important to read between the lines, too, and think about what wasn’t mentioned.

You can wake up and decide to change your life at any time. You can’t wake up and pretend the past never happened.

Sex work has the potential to cause lasting and severe psychological damage. It’s clear from the tone of the anon who originally asked the question that their self-esteem has taken a significant hit, and I do think that a lot of people underestimate the long-term psychological impact of working in this industry; it affects the way you view yourself and understand your worth as a human being, not just as a commodity. As you already mentioned, there’s also the very real possibility of your past work affecting your future career and relationships; no matter how much one might like it to be otherwise, sex work carries a stigma that is highly likely to colour others’ opinions of you, especially when it comes to your professional image and your romantic relationships. This lady certainly seems to have succeeded academically, but we’ve no idea how her professional and romantic prospects are playing out—but I’m sure you know of enough similar stories to hazard a guess.

On this note, I also think it’s worth remembering that, in many parts of the world, including the US, prostitution is illegal. Other branches of the sex industry, including pornography and webcam work, are often more legal, but it can often be a grey area (especially if your age or residential status is ever called into question), and, in the public mind, the two are often confused and conflated. I do think that a lot of young people brush off the legalities of the sex industry, particularly in the light of their own liberal sentiments, but having a criminal record, or even any sort of police awareness of your information and identity, is a very, very serious matter, and it is something that can and will follow you. Another important point in the same vein is that any sort of digital presence is going to be exceedingly difficult to erase, and more so if you don’t have a certain degree of cash or influence. Videos and photos spread like wildfire; there are all sorts of private groups devoted to sharing OnlyFans content, there are forums where men willingly share private images sent to them in trust, and don’t even get me started on non-consensual upskirts and hidden cameras. The long and short of it is that you’re never really going to erase all trace of your past if it’s at all digitally preserved—and, even if you do manage to wipe everything, you’re never going to rid yourself of the fear that it might resurface.

A murky past isn’t a death sentence, but every woman I know who has managed to come out singing has had to embrace her past, not bury it. It’s impossible to totally brush something like this under the carpet—especially in the case of the lady mentioned, as such a prominent adult performer—and I think that the notion that one can simply wake up and pretend such a thing never happened is extremely naïve and misguided.

[yllowpages]

elena's go-getter attitude was born from very encouraging parents, but also a lifetime of being underestimated, even when she was young, by both peers and authority figures. she fits that girl-next-door archetype. she's sweet, funny, and has a kind heart. but she learned growing up that that was all she was seen as by many people. and elena developed this mindset of wanting to prove them wrong. so she'd become almost an overachiever, and never considered herself a quitter. she wanted to prove that she was just as smart and tough and clever as anyone else around her. she's part of the AV club at her high school, she also joins the soccer team. she secures a decent scholarship for college, then also gets her degree in just a couple of years. and then she comes in second on a survival reality show and leverages that into having her own tv show. the majority of which is filmed, written, and researched on her own. despite the numerous life-or-death situations she's already faced, elena is the one who's determined to keep going and follow drake's clues to el dorado. when her producers threaten to cancel the show due to going over-budget, she uses her share of the treasure to keep it going until she jumps into a new career path — i could go on. she's not one for showboating, but she will never downplay her accomplishments, and she'll always be proud of what she's achieved. elena is just the kind of person who sees no point in not always going for what you want. settling for a travel magazine, being relegated to "fluff pieces," and taking easy freelance writing gigs was one of the first instances of elena stepping back instead of fighting for something bigger for herself. and of course there's a lot of extenuating circumstances there. but she really does believe in the idea that "nothing worthwhile is easy."

also… something something nate is one of the only people, if not the only person honestly, who we see actively acknowledge elena’s capability from the start. he didn’t immediately underestimate her the way other people have and do. when pirates attack, he doesn’t tell her to stand behind him and let him take care of it. he gives her a gun. when sully says they should cut her loose, nate sticks up for her a bit and points out that she “can hold her own!” and when chloe initially writes elena off as a “white bread, picket fence type,” nate immediately defends elena by pointing out how tough she is. (though nate’s actions in u4 of, in sully’s words, “not giving [elena] enough credit,” are a different discussion regarding his character and i’m not sure i have the insight to touch on it extensively right now. but i don't see it as undoing anything that came before.)

[mybrainproblems]

hello, i'm finales georg. i have put entirely too much time into a) watching the finale (i'm up to ten times!) and b) digging into wtf happened with it. i'm also a destiel fan since this is a credential that seems to matter to some folks. so. here are some sources!

i have written multiple posts debunking the various finale conspiracies like the "extra ad break" (link 1, link 2 & link 3) and if you'd like a detailed breakdown of timing marks, they can be found here. as to the eleven "omitted" scenes... the 15x20 script is kind of sketchy and one of the admins from @spnscripthunt made a post about why they wouldn't be bidding on it. (i also touch on the omitted scenes in link 2 above.)

there's also this post where @swordofsun and i went back and forth about version history based on the cover page of a 15x20 script that a fan had posted to instagram (pic since deleted/made private). and ffs DO NOT contact the fan. my guess is they took it down bc of other fans hassling them.

as far as i can tell, misha was never in vancouver. there are some (sourced) images in that linked post and i'm not going to call them a smoking gun that he was never intended to be back after 15x18, but you don't throw someone a "final episode" party if they're intended to come back and you don't take pics with the daily sign board for 15x18 calling it your last day on set if (again), you are expecting to come back for the finale. from the time stamps on the posts i found those pics on, the pics were all taken pre-covid but not sent to fans until after the finale aired. a lot of the language he uses about "being back on set" in aug/sep 2020 is very vague and his references to "we" can just as easily be the cast & crew as a whole and not inclusive of him. (also, the "onion field pic" was from when they were filming 15x17)

fans were very much casbaited and probably wouldn't have been to the degree that they were if there hadn't been a six month break between 15x13 and 15x14. which tbh, a lot of that casbaiting didn't necessarily come from the network. from what i understand, it was heavily driven by "where's misha?" tweets from jake abel and a group of fans whipping ppl up about it when it was pure speculation.

also, there are a ton of outlinked sources in those outlinked posts, just in case anyone is interested in what i spent days digging up and sourcing. i cannot debunk some of the other stuff mentioned bc it's hard to prove a negative without a credible source saying "no, that didn't happen." however, i have some serious doubts about the validity of a lot of rumors/conspiracies that cropped up in the immediate aftermath of the finale bc they were almost all from one person (whose source was "source: trust me bro") with zero corroborating evidence. plus, i think ppl seriously underestimate how much COVID fucked with ppl's memories/concept of time when bringing up cast & crew's conflicting accounts. i spent almost a year waking up thinking every day was thursday.

anyway. i'm not looking for a fight, but finale conspiracies are my personal bugbear.

hi! I saw your post about the why episode title change why 11 scenes cut why lamp etc etc and I know some of it but not all, and I was hoping you could elaborate on spngate— if it’s not too much trouble— or point me in a direction where I can join you in the spn gate?

I feel ashamed for HOW LONG i let this ask just rot in my askbox (it's from january, apparently, now it's april. i thought maybe two weeks passed but NO. it was months. ANON I AM SO SO SO SO SORRY. I LOVE YOU WITH ALL MY HEART) but now with the power of this url and the wine i am currently sipping, let me give you the best, most thought-out answer that i possibly can.

I don't know how long you've been following/watching spn, so I won't get into real deep iceberg theories that go back to season 8 and jeremy carver, for the purpose of this essay answer I'll just stick to the year anno domini 2020, and will try to do my best to tell you what happened.

Okay, maybe 2019. So, in june 2019, when the first scripts and drafts for s15 are presented, these things happen: 1. apparently, according to Berens, the confession scene is the first thing that was written for season 15. 2. Jensen Ackles is sat down and asked if he would be okay with this. (question is asked: why would they ask jensen if all he does in this scene is look at cas, he doesn't say anything, he does not confess, it changes nothing about his character, etc.; if you put the real tjlc tinfoil hat on you'd ask hey , maybe they asked him if precisely that is okay, if he is okay with the fact dean is practically silenced here but that's Deep) 3. Jensen apparently is okay with that, because it happens.

also this thing happens around the same time: 1. they write the ending for the brothers, and no matter what version of the finale we're talking about, Dean dies 2. Jensen Ackles is Not Okay with this. he calls Kripke who then, in a call and/or email assures him it's a good ending (Jensen says that) and also very quickly after that Jensen is announced to play Soldier Boy in Kripke's The Boys. make of that what you want

They film, blah blah, march 2020, covid happens, they stop production right after they film the confession. Last episode to air is 15x13, last episode they film is 15x18, they almost have a plane crush when flying to vegas con, and then, a loooong break until august 2020. Now, from what we know, there were two versions of the finale - the pre-covid finale they were supposed to film if the filming schedule wasn't interrupted, and the finale that happened.

What was supposed to be in the Original Finale/Pre-Covid Finale, we still don't know exactly, but from what the cast said, there was supposed to be a big cast reunion, Harvelle's Roadhouse in Heaven, Kansas Band (why are they dead?) playing there after Dean gets there and so on.

Anyway. July 2020. Misha does a livestream with Michael Sheen (the SuperGood campaign) where he says he is going back to filming the last two episodes in a few weeks. he said it LIVE. it's on youtube. people analyze the background from Misha's livestreams and photos and conclude he is in Vacouver, where spn is filmed. He also says that he is going back filming in a few interviews. Also here.

August 2020. They go back to filming in august 2020 to film 15x19 and 15x20.

August 20th, 2020, Misha's birthday.

I wasn't on set TODAY. so casual. of all days i wasn't there today.

August 24th, 2020, day 6/8 of filming 15x19, Angel with a Shotgun is hash tag Song of The Day while filming scenes of 15x19 (scene 28, 31).

September 4th, 2020. ALL THEY FILM, for the whole DAY, is one scene. They usually film a few. They film one. Song of the day? The Night We Met.

Somewhere before the episodes starts to air again, Dabb says only 30% of the audience will like the finale. Anyway, everyone concludes, Misha is filming, destiel is more or less going canon, but everyone including bibros is sure Misha is filming and will be there for the finale.

Originally, "Despair" was called "The Truth".

Finale airs.

It feels shorter (apparently it's not) but it does have an additional ad break. For Walker. But it feels shorter because of the "carry on my wayward son" cover montage that lasts too long and later it's discovered thanks to scripts that dropped that there are ELEVEN scenes that were filmed,, but didn't make it to the episode. The script that drops is also very telling, where scenes are just [OMMITTED]. It was explained that they wanted to have actor there but they didn't want actors to quarantine for two weeks to film one or two scenes BUT then that's exactly what they did with Jim Beaver lmao.

So yeah. I also remember Misha at a con (DarkLight?) where, after asked about the original ending, he answers that the original ending was something that would be better explored in fanfiction anyway. Theory rises he filmed and was cut off the episode without his or Jensen's knowledge because Misha sat down his kids to watch the spn finale (which was the first episode they were supposed to watch ever, why would he do that if he's not there?) and then, CW SPN twitter posts a goodbye video that has everyone from the cast and their mother BUT MISHA AND JENSEN ARE NOT THERE. Jensens sexy silence starts.

THEN THE WILDEST THING HAPPENS.

November 25th, the Spanish Dub. 15x18 drops in Brazil and Dean says "and i you" to Cas, after he confesses. No "don't do this cas" but "and i you". Tumblr stops working for two hours, people on discords are screaming, no one knows whats happening, someone claims Jensen was called in September 2020 to record some adlibs? To record the muffled sobs Dean does while on the floor. Theory is supported by the fact that in the Bazil version? When Dean sits on the floor? The sound that plays are birds. Chirping birds. Sounds don't match, what was Dean saying while crying on the floor, question arises.

Everyone decides there was a Rogue Translator who managed to hide from The CW Sniper (who is the reason actors just dont tell us everything) and translated some kind of Original Script. Voice Actors are invited to a podcast where they debunk this saying that it was added because the translator felt this was the right response or something like that. Anyway they debunk the fact that there existed, at any time, a version of a script, that maybe was send to them, where Dean says I love you too. This was a wild night, no one slept.

And like. I could make this post longer, but I am planning to, one day, make a huge masterpost with real sources about that because honestly you could write a book about it.

But tl;dr spngate is a theory that misha did film for the last 2 episodes and the changes they made were truly last minute (september 2020), they were going for a canon destiel, possibly human!cas engame, dabb was always on our side, and it's based on stuff like jensen actively hating the ending to the point he made his prequel after 2 years of radio silence, 11 scenes just cut from the finale, misha saying he is going back filming, and people like mark pellegrino saying the last scene he filmed was with alex and misha. also the onion field. why lamp is the theory that cas is represented and symbolized by lamps throughout the show and when dean dances with a Lamp in a drug induced dream instead of, say, some kind of a lady he is actually thinking about cas.

also there are little things like when jensen at an online con before the finale says that oh yes i am wearing a grey flannel but tomorrow? who know it could be blue and green. and we all collectively lost our shit. like when he said he is most excited to "tackle" with cas in season 15. or that "dean has no taste, clearly". WHY WAS YOUR PERMISSION NEEDED JENSEN

there are a lot of things i didn't mention here because i simply can't unflod this whole thing just like that but

but if you understand this picture you might be entitled to financial compensation

[miharusilver]

What do a Criminologist, a Mystery Writer, a S.W.O.R.D Leader, and the oldest Amamyia Brother have in common?

Okay, so I just noticed something really cool about two of my favorite Jdramas that I didn’t really make a connection until today and lets just say that I AM FANGIRLING SO HARD RIGHT NOW!

The two main actors from the short TV drama called “RINSHO HANZAI GAKUSHA HIMURA HIDEO NO SUIRI” (or “Criminologist Himura and Mystery Writer Arisugawa” in english) played two of my favorite characters from a series called “High&Low”. I didn’t put the connection together until today and now it all makes sense to me! The reason that Smoky (played by Masataka Kubota and who played Arisugawa Arisu) knew Takeru Amamyia (played by Takumi Saito and who played Hideo Himura) was a little easter egg that not many people probably wouldn’t have found unless they were really looking for it! Both them were filmed back to back almost and I am so excited!

(I had to get this out of my system before I exploded because I love both the series and love when I find little easter eggs like this. They make my day a little brighter.)

[otnesse]

@karma26 wrote: "It was a pretty good one! Once again we confirm that overconfidence and underestimating others can be quite harmful, Gastón is the proof. His plans were never consistent and lacked intelligent execution, his confidence is based on his popularity and appearance which led him to fail, Belle definitely knows how to use her intelligence and own thinking and yes, she is one of the smartest girls in Disney and Gastón is one of the less brilliant villains."

Agreed that Gaston was definitely not one of Disney's more brilliant villains (honestly, he's not even that much of a threat, and if anything the only reason he got nearly as far as he did was because the rest of the cast, yes, Belle included, were complete idiots). Also agreed in regards to how overconfidence and underestimating others can be harmful (though quite frankly, we don't even need those bits with Gaston to realize that bit. I've seen far better done antagonists fall for that).

I DON'T agree, however, that Belle was even remotely CLOSE to one of Disney's smartest girls. Actually, if anything, based on some of her actions in the film, she's probably one of Disney's dumbest girls in there, DESPITE her bibliophilia (which is literally the ONLY thing she has going for her ultimately). Let's not forget, the ONLY reason Gaston was even aware of the Beast, much less tried to kill him, was because Belle stupidly broadcasted who he was in a really poorly-planned attempt at saving her father. Had she TRULY been one of Disney's smartest girls, for example, she'd realize fully that trying to expose Beast like that would only succeed in ginning up a mob against him, ESPECIALLY considering she already deduced but a minute prior that Gaston orchestrated the mob to arrest Maurice under knowingly false pretenses specifically to blackmail her into marry her. Let me put it this way, a truly smart person would fully realize ESPECIALLY after that bit that if an unwanted suitor was going to go THAT far to try and force her hand in marriage, he also would be the type to outright MURDER anyone who that person might even slightly like better than the suitor, and thus would NOT try to expose the Beast precisely BECAUSE they'd anticipate what Gaston might do. They'd instead go for a fourth way, which is more Spec-Ops stuff or even what Team Scorpion does quite a few times. And that's not even getting into the wolf incident either, where she blindingly ran into a forest during a blizzard and nearly became wolf chow, completely failing to take into account the weather, the wolves, or heck, ESPECIALLY the possibility that, even if she had succeeded regarding both, Beast most likely would track Maurice down and imprison him AGAIN precisely BECAUSE Belle went back on her word.

I'm sorry, but Jasmine, Mulan, heck, even Cinderella and Ariel were arguably smarter than Belle. At least Jasmine actually acted as a part-time teacher in the TV series, Mulan was shown to have some degree of quick thinking (a greater degree than Belle EVER did, and she'd need to as a soldier), Cinderella was implied to be a gifted historian when talking with Gus, and Ariel, aside from showing some potential at anthropology (and not the Marxist kind either) was also hinted in the Shark scene to at least have enough street smarts to anticipate possible bad elements to her (such as using reverse psychology on Flounder when he tried to fake illness, which itself implied she was indeed fully aware of the risk of possibly running into and being killed by a shark during her plundering through sunken ships. Also the deal with Ursula, where she actually MADE an attempt to question Ursula's conditions of using her voice by pointing out she won't even be able to communicate with Eric at ALL before Ursula cut her off with the second half of Poor Unfortunate Souls.).

[gmtsoyjinho]

Lee Soo Hyeok, demisexual, he/him ― hey look, it’s tsoy jin-ho! they’re 33 years old, they’ve lived in shrike heights for less than a year, and they’re currently working as a shrike mall general manager. i heard they’re pretty impassive, but i think they’re so strong-willed at the same time. can they make it out alive?

The thing about Jin: He isn’t called ‘The Shark’ for no reason...

Born to Korean immigrants, Jin was raised in Los Angeles and had a fairly ‘normal’ (if uneventful) childhood.

He was never very close with his parents: his mother was overbearing and his father could never be pleased. They expected a lot from their only son with little reward or love in return. So maybe that wasn’t very normal at all.

As such, Jin can’t help but be cold. After a childhood of never being good enough (despite being the best at most everything he did) he holds himself and others to very high standards. He contributes his career success to his ‘not here to make friends’ work ethic.

Jin had three career paths according to his parents: become a doctor; become a lawyer; or be disowned. That was it. So as he was good at debate, quick witted, and a sharp child. It made sense for him to pursue option #2.

By 16 he had graduated high school. By 24 he had finished both an undergraduate degree in corporate business and a law degree from Stanford and was practicing at a well established firm. By 31 he was a well known business advisor across the United States.

Jin fixed business. Or helped destroy their competitors. He could -- would --  burn the heart out of anyone that stood in his way. Hence his courtroom nickname: The Shark. If there’s blood in the water, any sign of weakness, Jin would be there to capitalize on it.

He stopped expecting anything from his parents by then. Though he would never admit it, his childhood left a pretty gaping hole in his chest that makes forming relationships with anyone or thing other than his work difficult.

Currently...

If you need your name cleared or someone else’s name smeared Jin is your guy. Dark PR is still PR and, like most things, Jin is very talented at what he does.

When he was contacted by Shrike after the first couple of murders he thought it would make for a quick business trip. It was easy; He’d handle it like he handled everything. He was a legend as far as big businesses went. One little mall was nothing. Or it should have been nothing. The thing was people kept dying.

So Jin’s been here longer than he had originally thought. But because of his perfectionistic near cut-throat nature he refuses to leave until Shrike Mall washes its hands clean from what was quickly becoming a gaudy slasher film.

Jin-ho Tsoy has never lost a case, a client, or a business. If he was really the best at what he did, this would not make him a failure. He would not be the weak link. Even if it meant staying as the GM for one dinky mall in Colorado. Embarrassing. But his pride won’t let him leave.

Personality...

Never underestimate Jin’s apathy about anything other than work. He’s both extremely dedicated and severely unconcerned at the same time.

In his day to day life he doesn’t go out of his way to talk to people, he finds speaking about anything other than work quite difficult.

Sometimes, when Jin’s alone, a feeling of unworthiness washes over him but he swallows it as soon as it arrives.

Jin’s demisexual and is pretty averse to touch. It takes a lot for him to allow someone to do much more than shake his hand. He doesn’t want to be this way.

Very: why am i sad? why is water coming from my eyes? am i dying?

If you see him, please do not speak to him until he’s had his morning coffee. 

This is the most well dressed mother fucker you will ever meet. Jin likes looking and smelling expensive. 

He’s not intentionally mean, and doesn’t mean to be rude, but he’s very to-the-point and is very busy. He never really had much time to have fun. Things like the arcade and skating rink and bowling alley are foreign to him. He particularly is interested in roller skating. It reminds him of ice skating which is a pass time he does quite enjoy. If only he had the time.

His weakness is a nice glass of wine or really good coffee with someone that challenges him. He likes stimulation/intellectual talk over a drink.

He also likes stupid romance novels which is a SECRET LEAVE HIM ALONE.

[otnesse]

Eh, regarding Gaston, giving him more sympathetic traits was a bit of an improvement since it at least allows for some plausibility for why the village would like a cretin like him (that was one failing of the 1991 film, they made him openly cartoonishly evil yet had the village like him, even when he makes it clear the village doesn't stand to benefit at all from this? In real life, Gaston if anything would HIDE his excessively evil nature and try to paint himself and his acts in a good light to try and trick the village, like Stalin, Hitler, and even Lenin did, and that last guy doesn't exactly hide his cruel nature to the public for the most part and if anything bullies his followers for not being open enough in their cruelty.). I definitely didn't like LeFou being turned gay though (ignoring it was completely inappropriate for audiences, need I remind everyone he literally was SMITTEN with the triplets in the beginning?), in fact, that was a major reason why I didn't want to watch the movie (in fact, that was a major reason why I'm boycotting Disney).

As far as Belle, unfortunately, Belle being a snooty brat was already prevalent in the 1991 film. If anything, she was even MORE of one in the 1991 film (especially when they failed to actually EXPLAIN why Belle and Maurice didn't just move out of the village, despite Belle's even being able to afford the luxury of reading all day would imply she's wealthy enough to not even NEED to work. We didn't even find out WHY she moved the village in the first place.). At least the 2017 film, as crassly as they depicted the villagers' treatment of her, GAVE her a reason to want out of the village beyond some inflated sense of superiority towards them as well as why she'd even stay as long as she did. And I personally didn't mind Belle being made an inventor in and of itself (if they kept Maurice's inventing profession, it actually would have been a neat way of actually showcasing Belle's intellect and bonding with her father). I do think Maurice should have kept his inventor status as well, though (though to be fair, it was given different applicability by him making music boxes, which DOES require some degree of technical know-how, so it's not a complete change).

I'll agree with you on her ballroom gown, however, making it plain was just unforgivable.

As far as fixing what isn't broken, I'll be honest with you, the 1991 film unfortunately had PLENTY of things that were broken about it, like some rather large plotholes, some of which were self-inflicted because they underestimated Maurice's rather big role in Belle even GETTING to the castle in the first place (just to name a few, Phillipe actually knowing where the castle was despite never even getting a glimpse of it when ditching Maurice and being pursued by wolves; the exact timeframe of the film due to the various weather patterns and dialogue not matching well at all; and also how Maurice's machine was still in working order for Chip to use to bust them out despite being broken down for ease of travel earlier and neither Belle NOR Maurice ever having a true opportunity to fix it up before then, Oh, and the song Be Our Guest forgetting to change certain lyrics from the Maurice version as well as it somehow NOT tipping off Beast despite his being established to have heightened senses earlier.). Also Gaston's being way too obvious of a jerk to even be considered a plausible villain given his reputation as the most popular guy in town, to the extent that they cheered on his blatantly singing about an obvious blackmail plan against Belle and Maurice to force her hand in marriage. And also failing to give Belle actual foils for the actual theme of the story (those triplets in the original movie, crushing on Gaston or not, were WAY too nice to qualify as appropriate foils for the moral of the tale, were arguably a LOT nicer than Belle in the beginning, and unlike Gaston, we don't even see them becoming villains, literally disappearing after the Gaston reprise, with it being left ambiguous as to whether they even KNEW about Gaston's blackmail plan due to being out of the room most of that time.). And let's not forget the film treating Maurice like complete crap throughout the film, not even being allowed to save his own daughter (at least the remake made sure he saved her at least once). If ANY movie needed a remake, it was that movie. My only real regret for the movie was their deciding to make LeFou gay, their not making the enchantress the actual main villain despite her expanded role, and to an extent upping the jerkishness of the village by trashing her washing machine and openly condemning her for literacy (though to be fair, the 1991 also had the exact same problem regarding how the film had the villagers implicitly condemn Belle for her bookish nature, and the only reason it's not a full regret is that it's also in one sense an improvement to the 1991 film in that it actually GAVE Belle a reason to want to leave, which the 1991 film never really did).

Sorry to ask but is it ok to give a full summary on what is wrong with the BATB live action remake? I only heard a handful of them from disneyfan50 so I want to hear from you if there’s anything wrong with the BATB remake.

The Beast gave it his all but Emma Watson was a bad choice she was just basically Hermoine but bland and the autotune sucked. They had no chemistry, Belle comes off as a snooty brat and somehow they made her an inventor bc gal powah apparently. Also the Beast is kinda lacking too but eh. Somehow they gave Gaston a sympathetic backstory bc that's what cool these days. They made Lefou gay because I guess being a sycophant equates to sexuality when cogsworth was right there like you could TELL he movie was made solely to appease to critics who get their information from Buzzfeed and Cracked. Like when Belle comments about talking furniture or having to explain how she and Maurice moved or the enchantress all that stuff like no one wants that extra shit! They try to make it where it doesn't come off as Stockholm but again the chemistry between Belle and Beast here severely lacks in genuine heart.

But the biggest thing i hate about the movie was Belle's ball gown Now in DP movies the "fancy" gown is often the biggest iconic part of the movie

Look what they got Hermoine to wear

Whoops!

It's so plain and boring! Sticks out like a sore thumb among the other costumes; which are actually close to historically accurate the film was aiming for. There's detailing on the skirt but you barely see it! I've seen prom dresses on ebay look better than that!

Once Upon A Time has a tv budget but YET managed to design a better dress than a multi-million dollah movie!

It's different yes But still harkens back to the original. You can actually see the gold details! The fabric is very shiny and gold not that banana colored shit! Even her hair is reminiscent of the cartoon vs that flat ass ponytail.

Now look at this multimillion dollah celeb infested monstrosity:

No pomp. No floof. No whimsy. Just a bunch of flimsy slices of homogenized cheese!

Hate hate HAAAAAAAATE!!!

But for all intents and purposes it's just one of the most obvious examples of why Disney shouldn't fix what isn't broken!

[wisdomrays]

TAFAKKUR: Part 34

Your Eyes: Part 1

The organs entrusted to you by the Creator have been describing themselves to you for quite a while now. As you have probably realized, our friends the heart, stomach, intestine, lungs and pancreas are all the display of a magnificent work of art and carefully positioned in the spaces of your body. They are not to be underestimated, for they are all superb organs that have been appointed to ensure you live a well-functioning life. The functions of these organs are called vegetative functions in modern physiology; in fact the scientists of the Middle Ages called them as such, too. To be more precise, the some of the most basic functions carried out by your body’s organs are the same as those carried out by the organs of plants.

The four main functions required for life, namely the digestive, respiratory, circulatory, and excretory systems are all found in plants but performed by different organs. If these functions are non-existent the dynamism or the essence of existence that we call life will disappear and death is inevitable. If these four functions (digestion, circulation, respiration, and excretion) are in working order, it means an organism is alive but only at the level of plant life. To reach the animal level of life, in addition to the four main functions, functions like senses, nervous and muscular systems are also required.

If these functions fail, life continues, but at the level of plant life. We sometimes hear people saying “in a vegetative state.” When you hear this, people are usually talking about a person who has lost the use of the animal functions. He or she may be unable to see, feel, hear, or move. Intelligence, comprehension, will power, conscience and the many other special aspects of human beings cannot be compared with the essential functions of living; these are additional characteristics of being human which accompany the animal system of functions and emerge in relation to a person’s spirituality. This obviously does not mean that those who have lost their abilities are less human and they do not have any rights; on the contrary, it means to say that they are not responsible any more.

The focal points of sensory functions of sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell are found within the head in the brain, which is the command center of our body and the most complex form of existence we know of in the universe. The brain is connected to the nervous system which communicates with all the organs in the human body. This is why the head is so precious; it is a very sensitive part of the body and has to be protected like a jeweler guards precious stones. If you tread on a nail, it may hurt for a while, but with treatment the wound can be cured. But if a nail were to penetrate someone’s head, this could damage any of the sensory functions or, God forbid, could even result in death.

As you have probably understood from our introduction, the head is firstly the center of animal functions then the focus point of the addition of the human senses. When you mention the head we are the first thing that comes to mind: the eyes. Did we hear you ask why? It’s because we are what you are reading these words with right now, and because you can see the beautiful creations of the universe with us-that’s why.

If my Creator had not created us and positioned us in the two cavities on your head, you would have no knowledge of the beauties of light, color, insects, flowers, roses or birds. You would be afraid to walk without us because you would have no idea where you are about to tread. The effect of sight can only be sent through us to your brain and reflected into your mind. The development of human knowledge would have been very delayed if God had not created us or the other sense organs because the only way to gain knowledge is through healthy sense organs. The sense organs are the only way of detecting and recognizing the characteristics of objects.

You need us to realize that water is transparent, apples are red, quinces are yellow and violets are purple, you need us to recognize your mothers, fathers and friends. You need us to eat, drink, read and write and so you do not bump into walls. What do you think will happen if we close our lids for ten seconds and you try to walk down the street? Try it if you want!

You see-it was harder than you thought. You were scared in case you bumped into something or fell over. Look, just take a deep breath and give praise to our Creator while our lids are closed tight, for you could not tolerate being in the dark for a mere ten seconds, so what if you never saw the light? Just think sometimes about people who are not as fortunate as you, who cannot see for one reason or another. Give praise to our Creator for not giving you such a trial, and pray for the patience of those friends who have been deprived of sight.

Yes, now we have come to our characteristics and delicate creation, so pay attention. When Darwin saw God’s magnificent skill in our creation, he realized that we could not have been just a coincidence or a self-made creation, and it was impossible for us to be a creation of unconscious nature. Due to the guilt he felt inside, he found it necessary to say that the idea that “the evolution of complex organs like the brain and the eye could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest possible degree.”

There is no artificial optical device that can match the esthetics or precision of our creation. Our operating principles depend on the optical laws God Almighty has determined for the light. As a matter of fact, just by looking at our structure, human beings worked out the rules of optics, you made the simplest of cameras, and you went on to produce the most magnificent photographic cameras possible. But whatever you do, never try to compare one of us to those cameras you have invented or you may become rather embarrassed. Your cameras are a simple toy compared to us. From the time of the invention of the old, wooden box cameras that had to be covered with a black cloth up to the modern digital cameras of the present, 175 years have passed. Many people worked for years to bring cameras to such a perfect state. Can anyone claim that the old camera made of a wooden box and a lens evolved by itself and turned into the high-quality, digital cameras of today? With all the knowledge accumulated by hundreds of scientists over the years, can this invention really be called a coincidence? So, can we be a coincidence? Could the eyes of mollusks or insects make themselves evolve and transform into the eyes of humans? Of course not! But to understand this a little better you must pay attention to our structure.

We are globe-shaped and look like covered capsules with a multi-layered structure which is quite solid and supple . Each of us is approximately 24mm in diameter. We have an outer layer made of something called sclera (hard coating). We are protected by a strong cover made up of dense ligament fibers, and beneath this is the choroid layer (a layer of blood vessels), where the blood vessels nourishing us go into; this layer covers us completely like a network of vessels. In the middle of the eye is the retina which is a layer of film. It is located in the most precious place where our actual receivers of light reside. There are other layers which each have their own duty beneath these layers, but we won’t go into too much detail.

[brindaneer]

Inspiration and positivity are what the entire human race is in dire need of during these uncertain times. The present blog acquires additional importance for us because the film it deals with is possibly one of the most motivational motion pictures produced by the Hindi movie industry in the past few years. Penned by the inimitable Javed Akhtar, and directed by Farhan Akhtar, Lakshya showcased the progression of Karan Shergil from an aimless, albeit good-hearted soul drifting through life into a dutiful officer of the Indian Army. Karan's path of self-discovery was not merely an entertaining watch; it was also about the vital role that initiative and determination could play in our lives. Thrown in the midst of a world pandemic after a hundred years, most of us have lost these amazing qualities up to some degree at least, which is probably why pondering over this film in particular seems to be a productive job at the moment. Ironically, a film that several people have drawn inspiration from over the years (people had actually joined the Army after watching Lakshya) had been declared a 'box-office flop' during the time of its release. In that aspect, Lakshya resembles classics like Kaagaz ke Phool, Mera Naam Joker, Pakeezah, Jane Bhi Do Yaaron, and Andaaz Apna Apna, all of which failed to take the box-office by storm, but went on to obtain cult status among viewers later. Astounding? Definitely. Great films sometimes fail financially without rime or reason and unfortunately, the same fate befell Lakshya.

At its core, Lakshya was Karan's story and not a war film. The war and Indian Army provided a perfect setting for Karan to find his true calling. Nevertheless, intricacies of the Kargil war along with the destruction, desolation and pain that accompanied it, and which are also inevitably associated with all international armed conflicts in general, were far from being neglected in the story. A great writer is able to strike a balance between various dimensions of a plot without compromising on his actual intention, and who better than the legendary Javed Akhtar to achieve that? He was complimented by his talented son, the captain of this ship, who ably steered the film into a direction his father had envisaged while writing the script. Karan's metamorphosis from a lazy, casual college-going boy, perpetually confused about what he really wanted to do with life into a mature and responsible man was laced with humour and drama in equal measure, a strategy Farhan had previously employed while depicting Akash's journey in the epic 'Dil Chahta Hai'. Yet, the real genius lay in how different these two journeys actually were. Nobody could accuse Farhan of repeating what he had already done in his debut directorial venture.

Moments such as Karan listing his engagements of the day to Romi's (Preity Zinta) father upon being asked about his future plans in life and then literally hijacking that man's opinion on the importance of giving the best, no matter what the job was, to pacify his own father were examples of the witty humour we were talking about earlier. Of course, the actors took these scenes to a different level altogether. Hrithik’s delivery of ‘Main ye sochta hoon Dad’ after Karan had just rattled the ‘achcha ghaas kaatnewala’ lecture, and Boman Irani’s (Karan’s strict father) poker faced ‘Thik sochte ho’ in return have never failed to elicit roars of laughter from viewers till date. This wit pervaded most of the film’s first half as Karan continued his antics- the expression of his eternal confusion through the iconic ‘Main Aisa Kyun Hoon’ (apart from displaying Hrithik’s insane dancing skills through the choreography of the one and only Prabhu Deva, this sequence also aptly conveyed Karan’s inherent dilemmas), his decision of joining the Army only because another friend had promised he would come too, his disappointment upon being dumped by that friend, his ‘unconventional’ marriage proposal to Romi and his characteristic callousness as well as indolence even during his stint at the IMA were hilarious to say the least. Hrithik’s comic timing was pitch perfect in every scene, and perfectly suited for the nuanced, elegant genre of comedy that the script had aimed at.

Just when we thought Lakshya was a hoot, Farhan introduced the dramatic element in it; and he did so with such subtlety and ease that the ensuing sequence of events seemed to be the only natural course for the film to take. The scene where Karan fell into the pool by sheer unmindfulness during one of his drills and got punished by his commanding officer was somehow able to generate a strange mixture of sympathy as well as laughter amongst the audience and proved to be one of the watershed moments in Karan’s story. Hrithik’s masterful portrayal of humiliation as Karan knelt in front of his fellow cadets engendered such palpable discomfort within us the first time that re-watching it remains difficult even now.

The Karan that emerged on the other side of this event was somewhat different. Staying true to his fickle-minded nature, he jumped the wall of IMA and fled home. Nevertheless, regret could clearly be observed on his countenance as he sat with his parents, head bowed in shame, forced to accept defeat in front of his father- a man, who had always underestimated him. The grievance in his eyes upon over-hearing Mr. Shergill's unfavourable opinion of him hinted not only towards Karan's underlying strong ego, but also revealed his latent desire to prove himself. The hurt ego, along with his heart, was eventually completely shattered when the one person who had genuinely believed in him refused to be a part of his life anymore. Romi, played by Preity Zinta with her usual vivacity and boldness, broke up with Karan at the same place where she had once agreed to marry him because he had failed to live up to even her expectations. For Karan, someone who had probably harboured feelings of inferiority ever since childhood because of incessant comparisons with his brother, this became the ultimate betrayal. As viewers, it was our interpretation that he never really understood Romi’s point of view; he only attributed one primary meaning to her actions- her belief in his worthlessness. Looking at this entire sequence from a neutral perspective, one might say that both Karan and Romi deserved some empathy from each other. Karan’s lack of conviction in everything he did naturally upset Romi to a point where she could not imagine spending the rest of her life with him. Can we really blame her? As far as Karan was concerned, he had to bear rejection from someone, who, he had hoped, would never judge him like his dad. Before this, he had been able to bear the brunt of his father's expectations because of the security that his relationship with Romi provided him. However, when she pushed him away, he truly hit bare ground, with no one to break the fall. The scene that followed the break-up will possibly remain one of the best pieces of emotional acting in Hrithik’s career forever. As easy as it might seem, crying your heart out on screen can actually be very difficult in practice. Hrithik obviously nailed the sobs, but more importantly, he conveyed his character’s rancour towards Romi most effectively through the unspoken hurt in his eyes, thereby suitably justifying the transition Karan would undergo next.

With no comfort zone left for him to turn to, Karan did what his parents, especially his father, and Romi had always wanted him to do. He grew up. He could have sulked like a petulant child and continued to live a directionless life like he had done previously. Instead, he chose to prove himself to Romi and made that his life’s goal. Ironically, Romi had disapproved when he insisted on joining the army earlier because she felt he was doing it to rebel against his father. But this was a different Karan. He was not rebelling anymore. He was trying to show Romi that he could be much more than what everyone thought about him. Sub-consciously, it was not just she who was the reason for this transformation; rather, it was both his dad and her.

Karan’s second stint at the IMA provided viewers with some of the finest moments in the film. His dedication towards learning and training, initial isolation and finally, amalgamation into the student community were fascinatingly depicted through the brilliant title song ‘Haan yahi rasta hai tera, tune ab jana hai, Haan yahi sapna hai tera, tune pehchana hai, tujhe ab ye dikhana hai......Roke tujhko aandhiyaan, ya zameen aur aasmaan, payega jo lakshya hai tera....Lakshya ko har haal mein paana hai’. Now, let us take a brief moment to acknowledge the terrific music by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy which truly set the mood for the film. This song in particular struck a chord with us because of the simplicity and eloquence with which it expressed the inherent message of the story. The picturization was top-notch with several nuances throughout. Few moments stand out even now such as Karan passionately screaming ‘Dhawa’ during his drill, something he had been completely casual about earlier, Hrithik’s unflinching eye-contact with the CO who had previously punished him indicating that Karan was a changed man now, and Karan’s increasing camaraderie with his batch mates.

The song was followed by two important sequences, superb for the understated nature in which they expressed first Karan’s unspoken resentment towards his father, and then, his blatant grievance against Romi. In the first, Karan’s mother informed him that his dad had wanted to attend his graduation ceremony but could not ultimately, and in the second, Karan himself called Romi to inform her that he was finally a lieutenant of the Indian Army. At this point of time, talking about Hrithik’s acting probably seems redundant. So, we apologize for the redundancy (What? Did you think we would stop talking about it? 😱😱). Karan’s casual brushing away of his mother’s statement about Mr. Shergill conveyed volumes about how he had ceased to expect anything from his father; it also revealed the disappointment he felt, courtesy of Hrithik’s amazingly layered performance. Similarly, his delivery of ‘Saare faisle tum nahin kar sakti Romi’ was spot-on. It was optimally hurtful, just like it was supposed to be.

As his job brought Karan to Kargil, Ladakh, and he met his commanding officer, Colonel Damle, played to usual perfection by the enigmatic Mr. Bachchan who managed to captivate the audience completely during the few brief moments he had in the film, as well as other colleagues, the lines between proving himself to the two important people of his life and finding his true ‘Lakshya’ began to blur. By his own confession, he had never thought about the significance of being an ‘Indian’ until his senior colleague Jalal Akbar (a brilliantly natural Sushant Singh) took him to the border (pretty prophetic that Hrithik himself went on to play a different Jalal Akbar later in his career, right?). In all honesty, a considerable section of the audience probably felt the same too. The stunning Trans-Himalayan locales shot so artistically definitely added to this feeling, although any border area is usually capable of engendering such thoughts. The landscape of Ladakh has a strange haunting quality about it, and that played a substantial role not only in making the film a visual treat but also metaphorically with respect to Karan’s journey.

As he truly began to love his job, Karan realized that he was finally ready to let go of his ego as far as Romi was concerned. Unfortunately, Romi, after a lot of thought, and pining for Karan, had decided to move on with life, much to Karan’s shock and dismay. The scene where he stood outside the venue of her engagement and watched her laughing with her fiance was one of a kind for the lack of melodrama that usually accompanies such sequences. Its speciality lay in the director’s nuanced handling of emotions and the actor’s terrific portrayal of subtle poignancy.

Run down and broken by the trials of his life, Karan returned home to his parents, only to receive news that his leave had been cancelled, and that he was urgently required to return to base. The moment where he bid goodbye to his parents was the first time when his father openly expressed love and concern for him, although not exactly in those words. The visible tension on Mr. Shergil’s face as he lost his cool and asked Karan to tell the complete truth was a testimony to his worry for his son who was about to go to a border area amidst serious disturbances. The part where Karan hugged his mother and left with just an uncomfortable glance towards his dad was another of those amazing subtle moments which characterized Farhan’s direction for this film. Hrithik’s discomfort and Boman Irani’s disappointment were both heart-rending to watch and as a viewer, one really wanted to reach out and give both of them hugs. A special thanks to Farhan and whoever was in charge of casting for signing Boman Irani in this role. Hrithik and his scenes were like mini acting classes that aspiring actors could take tips from.

Sometimes, it is difficult to get on with life, more so after losing one’s love forever like Karan had, but military training had instilled a sense of duty and discipline in him that was impossible to ignore. Of course, he had already begun to find a deeper meaning in his life through his job, especially after spending time with his superiors and colleagues. And, so he marched on. Had Romi seen his sense of responsibility even during a time when his personal life was in turmoil, she would have been proud. However, the realization that this was his true calling was probably yet to come to Karan. It did, in phases as he learnt about the war situation from Colonel Damle, and then embarked upon it.

If two people are destined to meet, even the universe conspires to bring them together. The same thing happened with Karan and Romi as they crossed paths unexpectedly in Kargil, of all places. The scene where they saw each other amidst a convoy of army vehicles is absolute poetry. Kudos to Preity for being so natural with her expressions always; she was brilliant in every scene, and especially here as Romi’s eyes changed from pure surprise on finding Karan there to a subtle melancholy and probably hope ( ?) at the thought of their future interactions. Hrithik, as usual, was spot-on with Karan’s ‘seeing a ghost’ expression as he moved past her, without getting an opportunity to satisfy his curiosity regarding her presence there.

Their next exchanges were laced with intense angst, but not of the typical Bollywood kind, rather much more controlled and nuanced. The part where Karan, after knowing about the demise of his good friend Abir (from the IMA) found his other pal Saket (Abir’s closest friend) venting out at Romi requires special mention because of the seamless manner in which it shifted from a discourse on the necessity and morality of war to a fantastic interaction between the lead couple, their first face-to-face conversation since the break up. It was formal, yet intimate; mundane, yet special; filled with hope for more on Romi’s part, and discomfort as well as suppressed anger on Karan’s. This scene was followed by his a little mean ‘pata nahin’ when Romi asked him if he had decided whether they should meet or not, and his angsty ‘congratulations’ for her engagement. Of course, the poor guy had no idea that she had broken it off after finding out that her fiance who was apparently a highly motivated successful individual was also a narrow-minded chauvinist. The irony of life! Once again, kudos to the genius of Farhan Akhtar. Without even mentioning it, he managed to point out the difference between Karan and Rajeev, and it was clearer than ever why Romi loved Karan. Remember ‘Maine aj tak tum mein koi choti baat nahin dekhi’ ? However, Romi obviously did not explain the truth to Karan. It was truly frustrating at times to see these two souls so much in love with each other, and yet unable to let go of their stubornness. Nonetheless, the frustration could be borne because of the brilliant intensity of their scenes and the wonderful chemistry these two shared. Truly, we do not talk enough about Hrithik and Preity’s amazing on screen bonding. We really should!

Karan eventually found out about Romi’s broken engagement from a letter his best friemd Ashu had sent him a while back. Hrithik’s expression of shock portrayed the extent to which the news had unsettled Karan. Incidentally, just when love had given him a second chance, Karan encountered death more closely than ever. After an initial victory during the first battle (the one in which he had saved the life of a senior officer, and killed opponents for the first time; also possibly the one where he began to realize that serving his country had started becoming his passion), Karan and his battalion were massively defeated in the second and several lives were lost, including his close colleague, Captain Akbar’s. The scene where Akbar succumbed to his injuries in front of his best friend, Dr. Sudhir (played by the late Abir Goswami, may he rest in peace too) who tried desperately to resuscitate him while motivating the gasping man with remarks such as ‘aam khane jana hai na’ can make people cry anytime without manipulating their emotions or forcefully tugging at their heartstrings. In fact, this was true for every battle sequence in Lakshya, which made it one of the best war movies Bollywood had ever made. Notably, the script treated every character with sufficient respect including even the ones who had screen times of just a few minutes. Everyone had a well-crafted story arc, however small it might be but integral to the movie. Most importantly, not for one second did we feel that Karan had taken up the screen space of others.

The best example for this was provided by the great late Om Puri ji, who played the role of Subedar Pritam Singh. Of course, if you have the privilege of casting an actor of his calibre, your can rest assured of the outcome. Acting is at its best when it does not feel like enactment, and not many actors are more natural than Om Puri ji! Appearing on screen for not more than four to five scenes, he delivered some of the most profound dialogues in the film. He explained to Karan how a soldier knew better than anyone about the destructiveness of war; yet he had no other option but to be a part of it. When Karan asked why wars took place, he pointed out that human greed had drawn boundaries upon the earth’s surface and if it were in their hands, men would partition the moon too. How true it rings, especially now. People are actually talking about ‘making life interplanetary’. If it ever happens, countries are going to fight about demarcating territories there.

Moving on! Excuse the length of this blog please! A film like Lakshya has so many subtle intricacies that it becomes impossible to leave out scenes. But don’t be impatient please. We have almost reached the end of our ‘Lakshya’. A few sequences still deserve mention. First, the iconic ‘Tum kehti thi na Romi meri zindagi mein koi lakshya nahin hai?’ The defeat accompanied by the loss of close friends and colleagues had augmented Karan’s determination to win but our hero had also finally discovered his passion, his true calling. In moments when such epiphanies occur, is there anything else left to do other than crying? Probably not. That was exactly what Karan did. As usual, Hrithik’s performance elevated the quality of this scene, like so many others. The part where Karan pledged to Colonel Damle that either he would execute the mission successfully, or he would not come back alive was again equally impactful because of both Hrithik and Mr. Bachchan. The way Colonel Damle looked at his officer after this momentous declaration conveyed the immense pride, gratitude and grief he felt at that moment. Truly, Mr. Bachchan needs no dialogues to express emotions. His eyes do it all. And the same is true for Hrithik too.

Now, its time for our favourite scene in the movie. You guys must be thinking that we agree on everything. Well, we do agree a lot, but disagreements occur too. However, there was no disagreement on this one. We think its a lot of other people’s favourite too. You are right! We are talking about the scene in which Karan called his dad. This was on the night before the final mission- a mission that was near suicidal. Upon seeing his colleague Vishal take off his engagement ring and put it in an envelope, Karan finally acknowledged what he was running away from; something that he had buried deep down in his sub-conscious- his conflicted emotions towards his father. The knowledge that he might no longer be alive for a resolution made Karan pick up the phone and dial his number. Here is an anecdote in this context. When Boman Irani started shooting for his part in this sequence, Hrithik’s lines were being read by an AD, and Mr. Irani could not get his shot right because he was not able to get the proper feel. Acting is a lot about reacting, and the non-impactful delivery by the AD hampered Mr. Irani’s shot. Finally, the person in charge of the sound came to his rescue and Hrithik’s dialogues were played in audio (Hrithik’s part had already been shot by then) to which Boman Irani reacted. And what an outcome. This is the true mark of a great actor; he not only excels himself but helps others soar too. And what an honour to have helped an ace actor like Boman Irani! The performances by both in this scene were superlative and manage to leave us with lumps in our throats even today.

In his first ever heart-to-heart with his dad, Karan confessed that he had always disappointed his father and told him that he was aware of it. In return, his dad who initially had thought Karan had called his mom, finally told him how proud he was of him. A salute and heartfelt gratitude to all the parents out there who send their children to serve in the security forces so that civilians can live in peace. The smile on his son’s face was proof that he could die happy. The tears in both their eyes expressed the craving they had towards each other; the dejection that Karan had always felt upon being ‘ignored’ by his father was replaced by the understanding that his father had always loved him; the pain on Mr. Shergill’s face portrayed his disappointment for waiting so long to convey his love to Karan- so long that there was a chance he might never see him again.

Having poured his heart out to his dad, Karan finally set out to achieve his Lakshya of recapturing Point 5179 and hoisting the Indian flag on it, but not before a much needed conversation with Romi. What an amazing bond these two shared. Karan did not need to tell her explicitly that he knew about her broken engagement; she did not have to tell him that she still loved him. They just knew. Her ‘to phir main zindagi bhar intezaar karungi’ was far more intense than a conventional ‘I love you’. The beauty of this scene lay in the complete lack of melodrama which one usually associates with Bollywood scenes of this kind. No over the top background score, no hysterics, not even a hug! And the fact that they wanted to hug, but could not (because Karan’s seniors were waiting) made this moment even more poignant. Hrithik and Preity were the epitomes of subtlety here. The frustration of not even being able to touch each other before Karan left for a life threatening assignment was so tangible that even the audience imbibed it. Seriously, why did not Hrithik and Preity work more? They were so attuned to even each other’s silences!

The final mission proved the truth of Romi’s words. ‘Jis din usne decide kar liya ki use kya karna hai, aap dekhna wo kahan se kahan pohochta hai’. Indeed, Karan reached the peak of success, literally and metaphorically. The mountain-climbing scene deserves a special mention here. It was so perfectly done that the only comparison that comes to mind is the famous rock-climbing sequence in ‘The Guns of Navarone’ by the iconic Gregory Peck. And in all fairness, Captain Mallory only climbed a cliff; Captain Shergill had to climb a peak of the Trans Himalayas! Jokes aside, both scenes shall forever remain goosebump- inducing. Karan, obviously hoisted the Indian flag, and just in time. Boy, did he make Colonel Damle proud or what?!

Thanks to our friend Mita for this wonderful VM .

There is a saying that everything works out in the end, and if it does not, it is not the end. It indeed did happen that way for Karan. He found his goal, and achieved it too. As he walked out of that elevator, and hugged his dad finally, we surely did feel contented. And who said Mr. Shergill did not know his son? Well, he might have taken time, but now he understood him better than most. When Karan’s mother asked if they could go home, he objected. Go home? What NO! Karan had to go and fulfill his other 'Lakhshya’, right?

How wonderfully thoughtful of Romi to stand at a distance from Karan’s parents, wanting to give them the private space that they needed! Actually, kudos to the director for his sensitivity; such subtlety is not something that we frequently see in Bollywood. So thank God for ‘Lakshya’. Just like Karan’s story ended on a positive note as the camera focussed on him and Romi, holding hands, finally embracing each other, ready to step in to a new chapter of their lives, we also end this blog with a bit of optimism.. Let us all hope and pray that ‘Hum Jeetenge Ye Baazi’ (modifying Javed Akhtar’s line a bit) on behalf of every Indian, and every person in the world dealing with this pandemic.

P.S. This blog is dedicated to all the front-line workers (doctors, nurses, other medical personnel, medical suppliers, delivery executives, grocery storekeepers, and all other emergency personnel) who put their lives in danger everyday so that we may survive. Please know that you are always in our prayers. Also, let us all hope that no one remains shy of masks and vaccines anymore. Those are the most effective ways of countering this virus. Stay safe everyone!

[act2drama]

To be fair, I know I probably am underestimating it - though I would also say that - assuming Bryony's stage-hand in the BBC PPGW (alongside Trevor and...whatever anyone's naming Niall Ransome's stage-hand) is retroactively meant to be Vanessa - Trevor, Annie and Vanessa are specifically the ones who didn't start out intending to be acting in the Cornley plays, which suggests (to me, at least) that they're either local to Cornley or at least the general area around it - which would very firmly place it somewhere in the north - or just didn't care to travel to the polytechnic specifically for the arts side of things. Obviously that's still generalising hugely, but... To be honest, my issue about the whole "Cornley is in southwestern England" thing is that as someone who's spent the vast majority of my life down here in one county or another...there's both a distinct vibe in terms of the kinds of people ("vibe" isn't really the right word but I can't think of a better one right now) in terms of those within the arts...and there's also a distinct lack of interest/value placed in the arts both internally and externally. Neither of which seem to fit Cornley as a place because wherever it is, it seems they do have ready access to multiple TV-ready studios and an in-universe audience who is willing to repeatedly go and watch a group who turn every play they touch to (hilarious) crap.

Like...until 2019 when our major county theatre got a refurbishment to accommodate larger touring shows, and our other major theatre being beautiful in terms of a setting to watch shows but hugely impractical in terms of access, it was a regular joke down here that the phrase "UK tour" meant "won't cross the Tamar". No one comes from outside this area specifically to get into the arts because, to be honest, while there's a lot that gets filmed and produced down here it very rarely uses any local or residential talent to any significant degree. With multiple Cornley members (especially Chris and Sandra) clearly seeking and expecting to expand out of am-dram at some point...well, in a real world context, that simply would not happen down here and they'd know it - the vast majority of my arts-based friends left for uni and never came back; the only reason I came back is because I have no financial sense whatsoever so can't afford to move to where the work actually is. To me, placing Cornley somewhere around Manchester or Birmingham seems much more likely largely because of the connection in those areas to the BBC - which I think might have been enough to entice Chris there; I certainly know people just as snobby as him (for lack of a better word) who went to uni in Manchester purely for that reason (and never left Manchester purely for that reason); also I can't help but think his speech while introducing his ballet is very telling of how he sees the general area and population where he lives...like, that's a very pointed speech that I don't believe he would necessarily make if he were in a "posh" area - and access to arts funding in general. The furthest south-west I'd personally be willing to place it is Bristol and even that I'd say is a bit of a stretch.

Where do people picture Cornley as being location-wise? For some reason, I think it's in or near Oxford. Definitely outside the M25 though

If I had to put it closer to London, I'd say Hounslow or Croydon. Idk why, but Cornley just feels like Western England to me

[anonymoushouseplantfan]

Submitted: Thomas film

Saw Thomas film on youtube. Comments were mostly supportive of him and made interesting points:

-“You can understand why Sam/TomJr would be really resentful” of the love/$ lavished on Meghan and then she ghosts him. He actually admitted that Sam was the product of a brief affair and since the “other option” was not acceptable then, they married, had second child. He was working too much be around for them, they were not financially well off. When he remarried, the 2 kids came to live with him&Doria. Not blaming D, but obviously she didn’t give 2 hoots about them. With Meghan “I could finally afford to have a child”. Beyond the money it’s also about the attention.

-Thomas is a little narcissistic, but more of a “vulnerable narcissism”, not like Meghan’s extreme case. In NPD, parents will often make one child the “Golden Child”. I dread to think what might have happened if the three kids were close in age. A parent should at least try not to have favourites but Thomas never made any attempt. So to those who say: why don’t Sam and Tom look after their dad? Frankly because he never did much for them. 

-One thing that no newspaper has talked about is the degree to which Tom/Sam/Tom were hounded after M&H appeared at Invictus. I firmly believe that a) they deserved legal & PR help from BRF and b) BRF had no idea Meghan could be so despicable to her own family. When he says “they owe me”, he’s not talking about money. He’s talking about protection from being depicted as the fat/white/slob and being jeered in the media when he buys a toilet at a hardware store that it’s his new “throne”. Tom, Tom and Sam were made out to be white trash. That’s so unfair. Whatever their lives, they were living quietly. Imagine Tom Jr having his alcoholism splashed across the world. Of course at some point, you give in and capitalize on it. I don’t blame them for that and at least he has the guts to OWN IT. 

-Tinhat time: I really believe Meghan set him up with “Jeff” who proposed the pap shots to Tom. 1. She was desperate to be both: walk down the aisle alone and with Charles. 2. When a furious Tom called Jeff after the computer cafe video came out, Jeff’s response was: “Oh don’t worry, it will go away, I’m in trouble too.” This is of course nonsense. Nobody even knows who “Jeff” is. He’s probably retired by now on those photos. 3. At the time Sam was saying she had encouraged Tom. Maybe she did, but she didn’t propose it. Jeff appeared from nowhere. 4.Don’t underestimate the cruelty of narcissists even to their own children. Archie is in for a tough ride because Harry will not be able to protect him. 

- I am almost certain that Meghan has not called/texted him once since the one time she told him she was dating Harry. He always referred to “Meghan and Harry” calling me and the subtext on the film said “Although Tom said they called him, it appeared it was all through text messages”. He also said, “I’m sure Meghan cried when I said I wasn’t coming”. Meaning: the poor deluded man likes to believe she cried, but she did not even pick up the phone. 

-They interviewed Meg’s old drama teacher. It’s pretty obvious Meghan was given the best roles because Thomas did lights and scenery professionally. Her drama teacher said, I told Meghan acting is really simple. “Just listen to the other person and respond”. So now we know why Meghan is such an awful actress, narcissistic are incapable of really listening to others. 

There’s a conflict going on within Tom. I think he is still holding back on the degree to which Meghan ghosted him. On one hand he’s very hurt but on the other, it’s too hurtful to admit completely and he’s still hoping. At the very beginning he says, this film is me being on the psychologist’s couch. 

ps: Where was Meghan living right before college is a non-issue. She probably had a room with both parent’s and was seeing what she could get out of each.

_______________________________________________________________________ 

Thank you so much! I’ll look it up on YouTube. I checked last night, but they still didn’t have it.

[sinfulnature]

hello, hello, hello ! i am late but i am here finally and i’m sorry it took me so long. below the cut you’ll find little write ups for each of my muses. wanted connections will be posted later but in the meantime please take this. 

{  chris  evans,  39,  cis  male,  he/him,  pansexual  }  welcome,  henry  king   !  you  make  a  living  as  a  high  profile  director  outside  of  the  island  ?  cool.  you’ve  been  here  for  two  and  a  half  weeks,  right  ?  staying  in  room  402  ?  you’re  into  ass  to  mouth  &  worship,  but  not  gaping  &  extreme  humiliation  ?  mr.  conway  will  be  sure  to  accommodate.  i  heard  you  were  most  excited  for  the  beach,  which  makes  sense.  rumor  has  it  you’re  resourceful  &  critical,  but  i  think  people  should  get  to  know  you  for  themselves.

introducing henry king, a high profile director who flies out annually to the resort to spend his summer months relaxing with his wife and boyfriend at his side. 

he had a mostly stable childhood, one that was spent with two younger siblings in tow and a mother who was like a prototype of what a pinterest mom would be. his father spent a lot of time at work and it’s something that, while henry doesn’t begrudge him for it now, was frustrating as a child and not knowing why he wasn’t there. 

the first major thing that henry remembered his father attending was his junior year of high school when he was the student director for a one act production of snapshots, an anthology of short plays. his father, also a director, took the time to give him notes about the things that could have been done to tighten up the show. the last four words were i’m proud of you. that was the moment that henry decided that he wanted to be a director. 

fast forward to college and he goes to the goes to the university of southern california’s film school and instead of taking just the director classes, he takes the time to add a year and a half to his time in college and gets a screenwriting degree out of it. 

his first production partner was his father, who promised henry that he would fund one movie, from top to bottom, with the help of a production company that was owned by a close friend. henry wrote and directed the thing himself and, though it didn’t garner major awards, it was screened at sxsw. that was enough. 

let it be known that henry knows that his introduction into the world of filmmaking was super nepotistic. he understands that he had so many more advantages than any other person in his shoes, at his time, first starting to make movies when he did, and he was still terrified of failing. 

with the above, it should also be known that henry goes out of his way to make sure he’s telling stories that, while he has not experienced them, he can find the right people to help him tell it and amplify voices that otherwise might not be heard. not out of guilt or a need to make up for his introduction to the business, but out of an understanding that his platform should be used to reach every single person and not alienate. 

due to the stresses of his job and the level of scrutiny he’s constantly under, he’s well known to seem to abscond from the world as soon as his movies have come out for the summer. as a director of typically action packed, star studded films, he’s usually on his way to the resort by the second or third week of june. 

though he makes so many of these action packed blockbusters, he also tries to make sure that he makes movies that appeal to his soul and finds himself in the process of developing a high fantasy series that’s in the same line as the authorless harry potter books and lord of the rings. 

this is his second year at the resort and henry can see this honestly becoming an annual thing for himself, his wife, and his boyfriend to do. so many frustrations of his are squashed down throughout the year, not through anyone’s own fault, but just because there’s a lot of weight on one’s shoulders when billions of dollars sit on it every year. this is the place where his hedonistic tendencies shine through and he’s not particularly mad about it. 

{  corinna  kopf,  27,  cis  female,  she/her,  pansexual  }  hey  there,  alexandrea  conway!  you’re  still  the  financial  officer  and  you’ve  been  working  here  for  two  and  a  half  years ?  and  you’re  living  in  villa  one.  cool.  you’re  into  body  worship  &  creampies,  but  not  extreme  humiliation  &  scat  play  ?  that’s  what  i  thought.  when  you’re  not  working,  you’re  at  her  villa,  right  ?  well,  makes  sense.  people  say  you’re  even  tempered  &  prying,  but  i  think  they  should  get  to  know  you  for  themselves. 

introducing alexandrea katherine conway née douglas, the wife of oliver conway and chief financial officer at the resort. they’ve been married for about two years.

she had a relatively happy childhood and comes from a line of claimants to a scottish duchy of hamilton. she’s the youngest of six children and does technically hold the title of lady but she’s never done anything with it and it’s more a funny story that she tells at parties than it is a serious thing she buys into because she always thought it was a family joke.

prior to coming to the resort, drea graduated from the wharton school of business double major in business and marketing. post graduation she spent a fair amount of time as a prominent social media influencer. her multi million follower platform has translated into some business for the resort in the form of some of their most consistent guests. 

at the time of marrying her husband, he offered for the resort to be something they shared in ownership and it sprung some little goblin in her head to deny his offer. she wanted to earn it and not marry into it. 

the joke in that, of course, is that when most people look at drea they see incredibly soft curves, the bright blonde hair, the fact that the most articles of clothing she owns are just bathing suits, swim cover ups, and the occasionally very beautifully form fitting dress, the word bimbo appears in their mind on repeat. other words come to mind, too, but that’s the one that drea finds comes up most often. 

if we’re being really honest, in the depths of her soul, there’s something that drea finds funny about it. there is a gift in being underestimated and who cared what their perceptions were ? her happiness with her husband and job did not rely on anyone but herself.

she has incredibly open sexual preferences but with a body like hers she favors worship and the kinds of things that don’t leave bruises unless they are loves bites. drea is a switch and is happy to lead or follow, though goddess remains either way, if you’re interested in having her.  

{  inbar  lavi,  33,  cis  female,  she/her,  lesbian  }  welcome,  elodie  bram  !  you  make  a  living  as  an  international  fashion  designer  outside  of  the  island  ?  cool.  you’ve  been  here  for  two  weeks,  right  ?  staying  in  villa  two  ?  you’re  into  face  sitting  &  rimming,  but  not  food  play  &  blood  play  ?  mr.  conway  will  be  sure  to  accommodate.  i  heard  you  were  most  excited  for  the  beach,  which  makes  sense.  rumor  has  it  you’re  empathetic  &  domineering,  but  i  think  people  should  get  to  know  you  for  themselves.  {  dottie,  22,  est,  she/her  }

introducing  elodie odeya bram, an international fashion designer who makes an annual pilgrimage to the island as part of her process of designing her next year’s summer line. she had a relatively 

elodie has always strived to make sure that her brand is inclusive to all sizes and genders. another facet of her brand is that her clothes are considered kosher as they are fully made from plant or animal fibers but not both. her interest in design first came in high school when she was helping to craft costumes for a play and things spiraled from there. 

she realized that it was her passion, she attended the parsons school for design, and graduated with an apprentice ship under another designer who had long since been an inspiration for her own work.

elodie’s first collection to make waves happened a few years ago, when she was thirty and her mentor had agreed to take six pieces and let a capsule collection of elodie’s creation as part of their slot in paris’ fashion week. her luck in this mentorship was not beyond her and her good fortune has been at the forefront of her mind for years. seldom is there a night where she does not thank her lucky stars for all the things that have happened and continue to happen.

her mentor, in opening so many doors, also opened the door to the resort and has brought her into the light of one of her favorite places of inspiration. as part of her stay in the villas, she does frequently sketch her own designs and occasionally, when she brings back women to spend time with her, she’ll dress some of them up in her newest designs to see how they’ll functionally work.  

she’s quite likely to pull together a collection of women she wants to spend time with and there’s almost always some kind of sexual activity happening in her villa. whether fellow guests or employees of the villa, elodie’s indiscriminate in any girl she flirts with and wants to make a move on and we stan her for it. 

{  madelyn  cline,  23,  cis  female,  she/her,  pansexual  }  hey  there,  penny  rourke  !  you’re  still  a  lifeguard  and  you’ve  been  working  here  for  two  weeks  ?  and  you’re  living  in  room  202.  cool.  you’re  into  rimming  &  exhibitionism,  but  not  fisting  &  scat  ?  that’s  what  i  thought.  when  you’re  not  working,  you’re  at  the  spa,  right  ?  well,  makes  sense.  people  say  you’re  insightful  &  fickle,  but  i  think  they  should  get  to  know  you  for  themselves.  {  dottie,  22,  est,  she/her  }

introducing penelope jean “penny” rourke, a sweet natured girl with a petty streak who grew up in a small town in oregon and honestly only considers going back when the weather in the new york makes her forget about how bad the weather in oregon is. 

she grew up in a lovely home with a big family, her mother owning her own small business and her father a detective at the local precinct. solidly middle class, there was very little that penny craved or needed that she did not get. she took on a maternal role in her home, a natural adoption as the oldest of seven children, and she had a hand in their upbringing. while others may have seen that as a burden, it was something that penny enjoyed with her whole heart. 

when she went off to college, she applied to all of the ivy leagues and got a significant scholarship to columbia, which is where she met archibald hughes, son of a virginia senator and guy who she said, “you can’t sway my attention from my studies” to on their first day of meeting. she moved in with him in an off campus apartment their junior year of school. he was her greatest hype man and while they’d been having serious talks about marriage and their future. 

her relationship with archie ended rather abruptly when his paranoia hit an all time high at the behest of his father. insidious rumors, according to penny, accusations of things she’d promised archie long before that she would never do. her devotion to him was near unbreakable and archie had found the one straw that broke her back and everything came crumbling down: he put his trust in someone else. 

recently single, in need of a fresh start and a warm place to go for the summer, and on her summer break from law school, penny has been ready to engage in her first ever hoe phase and has already started it with some success. her ex has recently shown up on the property, though, and that’s made some of her more recent encounters awkward, to say the least, but she’s making it work. 

{  tommy  martinez,  26,  cis  male,  he/him,  pansexual  }  welcome,  jamie  flores!  you  make  a  living  as  a  famous  musician  /  drummer  for  the  raptors  outside  of  the  island  ?  cool.  you’ve  been  here  for  one  week,  right  ?  staying  in  room  401  ?  you’re  into  threesomes  &  body  writing,  but  not  bathroom  play  &  scat  play  ?  mr.  conway  will  be  sure  to  accommodate.  i  heard  you  were  most  excited  for  the  docks,  which  makes  sense.  rumor  has  it  you’re  charming  &  nosy,  but  i  think  people  should  get  to  know  you  for  themselves.  

introducing james sebastian “jamie” ibarra flores, known professionally as jamie flores. he makes a living as a drummer for the raptors, a band that has achieved critical success and have just wrapped up their first tour and the release of their first album. it was his idea to come to key passion in the first place and it honestly super tracks. 

he’s been with the raptors for about three years and prior to joining with them, he’d heard about the resort and promised himself when he had enough to comfortably afford to go after setting his parents up with making sure that their mortgage was paid for and it wouldn’t be the literally most financially irresponsible decision he’s ever made when there were other things and people to prioritize.

prior to coming to the island, though, did he drop like $3k on a girl’s amazon wishlist because he’s simpin’ real hard ? yes. can he afford to do it ? Yes. 

not particularly religious and verging on the edge of anarchist, jamie uses his platform to promote a lot of social issues and advocate for the reformation of most systems in the united states. he will not shut up when he talks about politics and one of his most used photos on his camera roll is a picture of his degree in political science from ucla. he’ll come at you with facts and an army of stans. 

though he’s typically a relaxed kind of person he’s under the belief that he’s Totally Chill and this is Not At All True. he constantly wants to know 103% of the drama without being directly involved but he’ll do it from his couch and creeping through stan twitter on a burner account so if he accidentally likes something, it doesn’t get back to the band. 

he loves ,,, reading fan fiction and reader imagines about himself. 

sexually very open and just wants to have a good time while coming off the success of his tour with his bandmates. 

[savage-rhi]

Send ☂ for my muse to find yours injured and offer their assistance OK BUT WHAT IF JOELXPORTER DAYS!HIGGS??

@themechaneer Hope this is alright honey💙

Higgs let out a tired breath, adjusting the straps of his porter pack while trying to keep the precious luggage he was carrying afloat. He couldn’t afford to risk damage to the cargo. The medicine was too fragile to plop down as much as he wanted to slam dunk the damn thing at the rate things were going. He took a moment to bend, hands resting on his knees while allowing heavy beads of sweat dribble down his face and onto the ground. He was covered in grime, tar, and splatters of blood. Fortunately, it only belonged to him this time around and not a partner. He couldn’t bear the thought of losing another comrade. 

The run wasn’t his first rodeo, but Higgs underestimated trekking through BT territory with the bare minimum when it came to essentials. He wanted to test out his DOOMs, see if this time around the high level would stick, but he quickly found out how weak he became once again. Higgs was frustrated with himself. He never could grasp why he underwent such fluctuations. These little experiments he did on delivery runs, were his last-ditch efforts to level or at least tame his abilities. 

There were the rare repatriates, and then there was Higgs’s own kind, wavers. Those whose DOOMs level never stayed in place for too long. Sufferers had all sorts of chronic health issues. Migraines were one of them for Higgs personally. The one he was currently dealing with was almost as bad as the cuts he received from a nasty BT that could touch him without causing a complete void out. The wound on his right arm reminded Higgs of the occult movies he used to watch back in the colonies at the orphanage sector after leaving his old life: how the main characters would get attacked by some invisible force and would have the scars to prove it. He couldn’t help but wonder if such old films were inspired by BTs in the past. 

Higgs heard the sound of a vehicle from up ahead, his gaze looking upward as he stood in full. His eyes squinted while he used a hand to shield his face so he could get a better look without the sun blinding him. It looked like a junker rig pulling some recyclables. Not a MULE, which was a relief to him as he waved down the vehicle with his left arm, all the while trying not to put too much pressure onto his injured shoulder. 

When the driver pulled off to the side, Higgs smiled. “Hey, odd question but are you headin’ for South Town?” 

Joel, after adjusting some of the gears of his bike gave a nod. He quietly looked over Higgs. “Yeah. I take it you’re a porter?”

Higgs nodded. “I normally don’t ask this from random folk, but I need a ride. I kinda ran into some shit.”

Joel made a face, indicating he could clearly see that. The look made Higgs swallow nervously. He wasn’t exactly great at being social, still trying to get the hang of it, but Higgs figured he was doing a decent job being nice. 

“I promise ya’ll I don’t have MULEs chasing my ass.” Higgs chuckled, letting go of the straps on his porter pack briefly to hold his hands up in surrender before putting them down. 

“I can make it worth your while for the help. The community I’m deliverin’ to could compensate for the trouble.”

“What’s your name?” Joel asked.

“Higgs Monaghan. Yours?”

Joel hesitated, but then gave a shrug. He figured why the hell not. The porter didn’t seem like he was going to give him much trouble, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t suspicious given how beaten up Higgs appeared. 

“Joel Forges. Hop on.” 

“Thank you!” Higgs said enthusiastically, putting his hands together in a false prayer before taking off his pack and placing it along with the cargo on the wagon Joel was towing. Higgs then made himself comfortable beside it, giving the metal bin a few pats to let Joel know he was situated. The bike sped off shortly after, and Higgs let out a sigh of relief, feeling the wind blow through his hair and knock some of the debris and muck from his locks. 

“How did you get fucked up?” Joel asked, his voice loud as he put the bike on auto for the time being so he could get the scoop on his hitchhiker. 

Higgs did a double-take, not really paying attention to anything but the scenery until he looked down at his arm and furrowed his brows. He didn’t see any harm in telling the truth to a degree but didn’t want Joel to get too nosy. Higgs would never say it aloud, but he was self-conscious about his DOOMs. The fact people treated him like a pariah back with his respective community cause of it didn’t help things.

“I went through BT territory. Barely made it out. The Timefall snuck up on me and I hunkered down, then before I knew it, BAM!” He smacked his hands together for emphasis, chuckling after. 

Joel raised a brow but smiled. “You seem enthusiastic after brushing across death.”

Higgs shrugged, letting out a pained wince. “Let’s just say I’ve been through a lot of shit in my time.”

Joel could relate to that. He didn’t say anything though, not willing to share personal details with a complete stranger. As much as he admired the work porters did, Joel kept his distance from most folk but lent a hand when it was needed. 

Joel looked through one of the compartments on the bike, taking out some salve and a roll of bandages and tossed it towards the back. Higgs clumsily caught the items, letting out a phew sound as he looked over the stuff. 

“That should tide you over,” Joel said.

“Thanks, ya didn’t have to do that,” Higgs said sincerely, then started getting to work pulling off the shredded material of his porter uniform. There was no sense in trying to salvage it when he could get a new one back home. 

“Soo, what do you do Forges?” Higgs asked curiously. 

Joel shrugged. “I’m a mechanic more or less.”

“I don’t think I’ve met too many folks like yourself in that field.” 

Joel raised a brow. “Mechanics are what keep a lot of the communities afloat, repairing the shields to keep BTs out of the way. Don’t you have anywhere you’re from?” 

Higgs shook his head, making a noise. “Nah. Unfortunately, all of the mechanics in my colony upped and died a long time ago. Voidouts and all that bullshit. I’m gonna be movin’ soon out West with my boss Atomic and his porter company. Hopefully, things will be different in Edge Knot.” 

Joel chuckled, shaking his head. “For your sake, I hope so. There’s nothing but terrorists out west.” 

Higgs raised a brow, applying the salve on. A pained hiss escaping his throat. “Sounds like you’re speaking from personal experience.”

“You can say that,” Joel said, as a matter of fact, then focused his attention back on the road. They were coming towards rough terrain and he couldn’t afford to be in autopilot now. Taking control of the vehicle, Joel leaned into the bike and pressed on. 

When Higgs was done wrapping his cuts up, he dug through his pocket, taking out a small box of cigs. Carefully, and minding the bumps on the road, he stood up partly on the wagon and leaned over to tap Joel’s shoulder. 

“Yeah?” Joel asked as Higgs stretched his arm out and waved the cigs to him. 

“For the trouble of savin’ my ass.” Higgs said as Joel waved his hand away. 

“Nah. It’s no problem and I don’t smoke, really.” 

“These aren’t your standard cigs if you catch my drift. Put ya’ll at ease. I got it off a guy.” Higgs singsonged, snickering to give a hint. With that being said, Joel used a free hand to take the pack and tucked it into his bike compartment for later. He found himself smiling somewhat, then went neutral as he focused on driving. 

“That better not get me into trouble.” 

“Scouts honor, you’ll be fine.” Higgs said with a laugh, going back to his spot. The rest of the drive both men were quiet, nonetheless they enjoyed the scenery around them. The Death Stranding might’ve caused the world to end, but in some ways, it was more beautiful than what their parents had. 

**A link to my ko-fi account. If you enjoy my content and want to support me getting my monthly medication for fibromyalgia and arthritis, I would be eternally grateful. It is NOT a requirement however! All my work is free to read!**

[beesandbooks1]

Discussion: Give Readers Some Credit.

So. Let’s talk about readers, and authorial intent, shall we?

First a detour. Who here is familiar with the Hays Code? Just in case: in the 1930’s it was established for motion pictures in the USA and presented strict guidelines about what could and couldn’t be put into films. The Code lasted until the late 1960’s but its impact on film is absolutely still seen today, specifically in the rating system for films. The Hays Code dictated various moral guidelines that somewhat stripped viewers of film of their autonomy, implying that the general public wouldn’t be able to distinguish between good and bad or right and wrong without films making it very clear what those lines were. There was no grey area in the Hays Code.

Literature, for its part, has had various formal and informal rules and guidelines applied to it throughout centuries of publishing that dictate who can and can’t read certain topics. I’m not going into a history lesson on that, but suffice to say that at some point just about every person who wasn’t a white cishet man has had a restriction put on them for reading at all or reading certain things. Today, the big issues come down to censorship, banning books, and lobbying against books for a particular reason.

Censorship Today

Censorship is a big ticket issue today, both formally and informally, and internationally. I will admit to having limited knowledge and experience of the kind of censorship experienced in places such as China, but I am aware it is present, enforced, and potentially dangerous. Formal censorship worldwide comes in the form of preventing books being published or translated in the country at all, banning its sale in its original format, and sometimes going so far as to censor access to websites that sell the book and social media platforms where the book is widely discussed. Government level censorship of books generally is inspired by fear of what the books might inspire, from protests to full on coups. Usually, this act of censorship is indicative of larger systemic problems within the government not real problems within the book’s content.

Informal censorship is a bit more complicated, and comes about in a few ways, including straight out banning books in a community which I will discuss in the next section. Informally censoring a book usually comes from a community speaking out against something in the book or something about the author they are opposed to. This differs slightly from lobbying against a book because if a community quietly agrees to censor a book from those in the community that shouldn’t be exposed to it (whether with good intentions or not) they won’t also attempt to have the book banned elsewhere, or turn it into a political topic by protesting the books very existence. More on that later. Instead, this informal censorship is more in line with parents or groups of parents agreeing to forbid their children from reading certain books–usually for moral and religious reasons.

An example of informal censorship from my own life: when I was attending Catholic school as a preteen The Golden Compass was released as a movie. The school itself never released a statement or talked about the book or movie, and the farthest I got to an adult’s opinion on it was when someone asked my religious studies teacher about it and she pointed out that the books are fiction so did it really matter if the subject matter went against religious beliefs? However, the parents of my classmates at least were scared. My mother received an email from a concerned parent who was encouraging all the parents in our class to prevent us from seeing the movie, and that if for some reason one of us did see it to keep it to ourselves so as not to encourage the rest of the kids to want to see it too. This act of informal censorship resulted in a group of preteens who probably didn’t even care about this issue being prevented from reading Philip Pullman’s works or seeing the movie based on them. The parents didn’t want to try and get the books removed from the public library or the movie taken out of theaters, they just wanted to ensure their children were never exposed to it.

Fun fact: the day my mother read that email she came home with the full set of His Dark Materials and later she bought me the movie on DVD.

Banning Books

Banning books is a lot more straight forward than the degrees of censorship. Most readers are familiar with the idea of banned books. Books tend to be banned from smaller communities, such as a town’s library and school, but are rarely enforced at a higher level without censorship getting involved. I’m going to be using “banned books” to refer to that lower level, not government level censorship. Thus, banned books are still purchasable in this context through retailers such as Amazon and chain bookstores.

A banned book can be banned for any number of reasons. I see banned book lists often enough that have things such as “unrealistic female characters” referring to The Wizard of Oz. Many readers who chance upon one of these lists tend to take pride in having read much of its contents, especially depending on the context of the book bans. Some book bans are focused on schools and keeping “unsuitable” material out of students’ hands. This ranges from “this book is too pornographic to be appropriate” to “this book encourages witchcraft and we can’t have that!” While there might be something to be said about schools having age appropriate books available in the library–if the oldest kids in the school are ten then maybe Stieg Larsson’s books aren’t a priority–many book bans are comical in their ridiculous reasoning.

Book bans come from a combination of underestimating the critical reading abilities of others and from fearing what those others might do with the knowledge the book contains. For example, a highly misogynistic person might not want books that portray women in positions of power to become available for the next generation of young girls. They both underestimate the girls’ ability to choose a lifestyle for themselves by assuming any fiction they consume will immediately shape their decision making, and they also fear what the girls might choose to do if presented with the idea that they have options. While many book bans sound like silly reasoning, a lot of them are insidiously chosen as a form of disenfranchisement. Preventing Black readers from having positive role models from authors of color, for example, assists the school to prison pipeline.

Lobbying Against Books

Lobbying against books is where book banning gets more serious. This is the middle step between book banning and book censorship, really. Lobbying against a book is when a group or sometimes an individual take it upon themselves to ban a book for their own community and then try to get it banned on a larger scale. Now, there are times that lobbying against a book is actually done with good intentions and not with the intent of banning or censoring the book. There are times where the author reveals themselves to be…lacking in some way, and that may have affected the writing they produce. I know I’m dancing around some authors in particular, but I didn’t make this post to call out specifics so.

An example of a bad lobbying idea: An upcoming YA release is announced and hyped by excited would-be readers. The book sounds awesome! It’s written by a new author, has really good Own Voices representation, and presents a unique story. It is largely regarded as an excellent contribution to literature by bookish folks. A conservative parent purchases the book upon its release with the intention of giving it to their daughter, and due to their household rules about book content the parent reads the book first to ensure it complies. The parent discovers that the book contains a relatively mild romance plot, but that the main character does have sex in this plotline, though the scene is hardly explicit or erotic. Conservative parent is very worried that reading about the idea of sex will inspire their daughter to have sex and decides this book is dangerous and not suitable for their daughter. Unfortunately, with all the excitement over the book, the daughter keeps asking to read it. Perhaps her friends have all read it, perhaps it’s being pitched by the school library as a great new release, perhaps it’s being developed into a film or TV series that her classmates are excited to watch. The parent now starts telling other parents that they shouldn’t allow their children to read this book or watch anything based on it, largely out of fear that their daughter will be exposed to it somehow. Other conservative parents jump on board, banning the book from their households and attempting to have it banned altogether so as to prevent their kids from getting their hands on it. Perhaps the ban makes it through the school and the public library, but the local Barnes and Noble continues to sell copies and they’re going fast. In order to get the book taken off of a chain store’s shelves, the parents now have to lobby to have the book banned on a much larger scale, so they do so. All because they don’t want their teenagers having sex yet.

An example of a good lobbying idea: A really popular author has come out with a new book. This is his fourth book, and many readers are excited to get a copy and devour it. Book bloggers and other voracious readers have torn through the previous three because they’re witty, have appealing characters, and a unique worldbuilding set up. However, a bisexual reader immediately recognizes that this fourth book has the main character being extremely biphobic. The biphobia is upsetting for the reader, but they persevere because up to this point the main character has been a good role model and perhaps the biphobia is a character flaw that’s going to be called out and corrected. It is not by the end of the book, and the reader is now uncomfortable. Unsure. The reader tells other bisexual readers to be careful, that the content can be triggering due to its biphobia. LGBTQ+ readers in general are warned and slowly become cautious about the books and author in general. The fifth book comes out, and the bisexual reader timidly approaches it with an open mind, hoping that it was just a multi-book character arc. The biphobia continues, reinforced by the positive reception to the character in the fourth book. It’s clear that this is here to stay. The LGBTQ+ readers who are aware of this problem start to speak out, asking others to critically read this book and not internalize the biphobia in it. The author doubles down on the biphobia, defending it when criticized. Now more readers speak out, pointing out that this is potentially harmful, asking other readers to be very critical when consuming the author’s works and to consider ending their support of the author over his remarks.

Why all of this sucks

Ultimately, a lot of this comes down to stripping readers of their autonomy. Think about people who argue that some books are bad because a character in them does bad things. The majority of those that read the book probably recognize those bad things for what they are, and know that the character is nuanced and not always right. But there are those that would lobby to have the book removed from all reading spaces because the character that does bad things might be appealing to an impressionable reader and encourage them to do bad things. This is a very narrow-minded view that is also highly condescending. Teenagers can read a book where a seventeen-year-old has sex without immediately going out and having sex themselves. Readers in general deserve the credit to know that not everything that happens in fiction is realistic or positive. If a reader can tell the difference between reality and fiction, they can certainly make their own choices in real life without being unduly influenced by the actions and thoughts of fictional characters.

This belittling fear that certain readers are too impressionable to be exposed to certain media is astoundingly simplistic. We have to give readers more credit than that. Sure, there will be books that need to come with content warnings, trigger warnings, and disclaimers. There are some authors whose racism, homophobia, transphobia, and ableism (among other things) leak into their writing and those books when read need to be read with the knowledge of that. There are even some books that are irredeemable from that standpoint and it is absolutely a valid choice to refuse to read books by an author whose morals go against your own. However, not everything someone views as morally wrong is also unnuanced when presented in a text. Additionally, not every reader takes what they read at face value. Many readers appreciate a well written villain while also recognizing why that character is a villain. Many readers also appreciate flawed main characters who aren’t always correct but are allowed to make mistakes.

As bloggers we are in a position to point out the nuance in such books. Reviews are excellent for helping readers figure out whether a book will be too far over the line for their moral compass, if there’s something in the text that matters for them or not. However, we have to give readers some credit. Just like in communities that would censor and ban books, sometimes book reviews overlook nuance. They make hard lines around characters saying that something is problematic and therefore the whole text is corrupted, or misidentifying an action or a thought as a moral or ethical opinion. I am not exempt from this, there are certainly times where I draw a hard line in the sand that I refuse to cross for any book regardless of the praise it receives. But I also recognize that there are other readers who will cross that line and read certain texts and find value in them where I didn’t. I have to give those readers credit and believe that they will also be able to see the negatives of the text and not internalize or forgive those.

[polishtamales]

It Started with the Hawkeye Initiative & Ended with Safespace & Snowflake: GAME OVER

This is how the comic book industry dies. Or is it a dawn of self-publishing?

If it wasn’t for years of horrific ad sales, it was definitely insulting the vast majority of it’s consumer base. Or more specifically for Marvel’s case, CATERING AN ENTIRE MARKET THAT DOESN’T BUY COMICS IN THE FIRST PLACE. Regardless of intentions, YOU CANNOT MAINTAIN A BUSINESS OF CONSTANTLY FLIPPING OFF YOUR FANS AND EXPECT THEM TO PAY YOU FOR YOUR VIRTUE SIGNALING.

There’s a difference between being progressive with fiction and being a radical activist for the sake of retweets and likes, followed by a selfie for more self-esteem boosts. In a society where there’s no turning back from capitalism, money is your God, whether it’s right or wrong. You could suddenly be hit with a car and you better damn respect that the more money you have, the more likely everything will be fine afterwards. It pays the bills, it puts food on the table, and you better understand, it’s not going to change, outside of an act of God or Aliens simply invading our planet and enslaving humanity. Your pick.

It’s no secret that working in comics sucks, regardless of country. The pay is bad, the deadlines are killer and it has always been the least practical way of storytelling for a mass market, especially in America. Case in point, you don’t really need a colorist, a letterer or anything else, outside of a distributor (RIP DIAMOND). Anyone with a graphic design degree knows, you can easily be a one-man publisher without the need of an entire crew of mouths to feed. Not saying it wouldn’t be helpful, but given the future economy, it will be the norm.

See, the old buzz word of digital publishing really is a big deal, especially when it comes to the incoming job market change. No longer can you simply “specialize” in just one area of expertise, but you will be expected to fill in multiple roles to be successful. Even if time is against you in certain projects, it is entirely possible to save more money by just doing everything yourself. Here are the major hurdles and solutions to creating a new comic in the new landscape of comics next year:

1. STORY - This is where EVERYONE gets it wrong. Do not follow the trend of  IDW publishing by planning out an ENTIRE world building graphic novel that will span DECADES.

Stick to what exactly you’re good at telling. Tell a short story. Polish every line of dialog. Make it shorter. Polish every line of dialog, make it shorter.

Third and most important advice is leave politics out of your story, unless it is about politics. Most older women buy trashy romance novels to escape their shitty sex life. Most middle-aged men by comics for the tits and ass and possibly the articles? Again, all ways of escape reality, yet you have Marvel comics for years that kept interjecting real world politics and views in their titles. Trust me when I say this, less than 10% of the United States is on Twitter. That means most people could give two fucks and a shit about Trump, Biden or Bearnie, BELIEVE OR NOT. So when most of America retreats after a long day of work and not TWITTER, they are spending money on things to make their lives tolerable. Being told Orange Man Bad is not one of those things, nor is bringing up Obama, again and again. Don’t make market assessments based on social media, leave politics out of your comic. Additionally, learn about basic story telling and especially learn from other mediums outside of comics. Films and actual books will teach you a lot about pacing. You can learn basic writing skills by taking a community college course or higher. The goal and mindset should be to be humbled and not a place to be bitter when you get criticism.

2. ART - KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE. If you’re catering towards a WOKE AS FUCK CROWD OF TRUMP HATING LIBERALS, make sure you book will actually sell and not retweeted... Simply collecting a check and going unemployed for months on end is not an actual goal in life, much less beg your followers for coffee money. Example, see the animation industry.

Art is your mode of presentation, the book cover (not literally), the point of sale. If you want to cater towards a crowd of people of color, who happen to be gay, trans, and dealing with PTSD, etc, then make fucking sure your art matches with the story. You cannot have “tumblr” artists doing action intensive comics, where they spend more time creating people of color of diverse identity politics, than learning to draw a simple choreographed action sequence. You can’t have an action comic with ONLY 2 small panels of action to sell your comic. Again, no shame or secret to point out that the VAST majority of comic sales are made off of issue #1s and tits and ass. Disposable income of middle-aged men cannot be underestimated, regardless of what cherry pick data you want to argue with. The older you get, the less progressive and liberal most Americans become as well. That’s called “reality” of real politics. So my advice, if you’re into action comics, learn to draw action, learn about the demography that buys those titles and don’t interject your politics in it, especially if you want to put food on the table. I’m not telling anyone to suddenly put Trump as the “good guy” president, but I am telling you that you shouldn’t include real world politics in your comic. You’re not offending either side of the political spectrum, IE, you’re not insulting your customers.

If you want to make a rom-com comic like Archie, sure those years of learning tutorials off of tumblr might pay off, but again, know your audience. Archie continues to sell steadily with a profit from the boomer generation, white women (vast majority), Christians, etc. Don’t expect your rom-com comic of a gender-less trans-protagonist that may or may not want to be dependent relationship with another person of color. You see where I’m getting with that? You’re welcomed to write and draw a book like that, but don’t expect anyone to buy it. Getting your book retweeted by your favorite SJW, doesn’t mean sales, it just spells virtue signaling for them.

My advice in the art category is DIVERSIFY your portfolio. Don’t just learn off tumblr. That boat has sailed and failed, as seen with every sale of tumblr picked artists at Marvel. Go out there (when the virus gets under controlled) and learn to draw from life. Don’t worry about gender, people of color, none of that stuff. Draw stuff that you actually care about and not for political points with your peers. If you wanna draw short men struggling to open a can of coke, then draw. If you wanna draw hot women, draw hot women. You wanna draw a cute tennis player with short shorts and looks like Swedish male model, then pack some sun screen. You’re not looking to be judged, you’re not looking for internet points of how woke you are. You are simply expanding on things that interest you and how it will indirectly help you grow.

Think Mr. Miyagi, but do it 80,000 times. You’ll master drawing short men struggling to open cans of soda!

When creating the art, DO NOT THINK ABOUT COLORING. It is way more profitable to create BW comics than color. Not only do you save money printing, but the amount of time you free up helps you to micromanage yourself better.

3. DIGITAL PUBLISHING - You don’t need anyone else if you have a computer and some basic digital programs. Once you understand how to write a short story, present marketable characters, then you’re set. The only enemy is time.

Learn Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop for art. Learn Adobe Indesign for lettering, page layouts, etc. A few talks with a local printer and you can independently self-publish any book.

So to sum things up, learn to self-publish, respect your readers and the politics/baggage that industry houses and understand that things revolve around money. If you want to be a stereotypical far-left wing tumblr artist that wants to create a superhero of a trans-black girl/binary that may or may not want to be involved in a relationship with another binary/trans person, which could be their sister/brother/internet gas, then by all means make that comic. It won’t be profitable nor will it sell compared to other titles, but I guess you can’t claim victim-hood without a self-afflicting handicap and an arrow to the kneecap.

After all, Marvel’s done it for years without profitability and look where the industry is headed towards... This was all pre-Covid-19 mind you. The virus, if anything, is just the nail on the coffin after Diamond distributors quit. The comic industry might be dead, but books as a medium will never die.