#The master literally hypnotized her and everyone gets mad at her for that

[thelesbianthespianposts]

I love Jo so much so far. Everyone is so mean to her bc she’s not that smart but she’s literally so cool.

[cora-vizsla]

Hypnotic (Taking Over Me)- Chapter 3

Pairing: Eventual Jedi!OC x Sith!Obi Wan

Word Count: 3.7 K

Story Rating: E (18+)

Chapter Rating: I’m just gonna move these up to E now because I’d rather be safe than sorry.

Warning: Swearing. Threats of violence. Cannon typical violence. Calm kidnapping. There was only one bed. Almost naked cuddling. Dare I say fluff??

A/N: Please let me know if I missed any tags!

Zara was unable to fall back asleep. She could feel when Obi Wan finally succumbed to his own exhaustion and it set her on edge. She looked around quietly, keeping tabs on his signature across the building. There had been hope she could find her saber, but he must have stashed it away somewhere.

When she looked down to see her boots by the door, she decided she had no other choice. She couldn’t stay with her captor. There was a lack of clarity she wanted to rip out of her head even if it meant doing something risky. She told herself that Anakin wouldn’t sit around and wait at the mercy of anyone. It wasn’t her normal avenue of actions but hers obviously weren’t working. She shut her eyes and spoke like a mantra that Anakin would want her to fight. He would want her to escape.

Zara quickly pulled on her boots and grabbed a large jacket by the door. She could feel the chill coming through the door but knew that was the only time it was going to happen.

“I am a Jedi knight. I can do this. I can get back and warn the counsel. I can save Anakin.”

She winced when the cold hit her face and she realized then Obi Wan would feel the air change. She pulled the door shut and started running off in the direction she thought they had come from. There were still some footprints, but it was hard to follow. Snow had drifted over part of their journey, so she stopped to look around. Between the cold and running, her chest was heaving trying to pull in air.

“Zara! Zara you are going to die trying to run off like this!”

She whipped around to her captor having already caught up to her.

“I can’t stay here! I can’t let you manipulate me and hurt Anakin. I won’t!”

“You’re smarter than this!”

“Let me go! If you have one shred of decency in you, let me go!”

He stood up tall and shrugged his jacket off, letting it fall to the ground. He tossed something to Zara, and she caught it quickly, gasping when she realized it was her saber. She looked back up at him as he ignited his blood red blade.

“Fight me. If you can best me, I’ll deliver you back to the temple myself.”

“And if I don’t?”

“Then you stay here and stop trying to get yourself killed.”

She looked down at her saber and considered what he was saying. She had yet to actually see him fight.

“Letting me go would be directly going against your Master.”

“It would.”

“Then why offer me this?”

“If I can’t best a new Jedi Knight then I don’t deserve to keep her captive.”

Resolution washed over her. She ignited her blade and a sick smile spread across the Siths face. She carefully pulled off her own jacket and set it down, not taking her eyes off her enemy. He spun his saber a few times easily and fluidly.

“Come on, darling, it’s cold out here. Time to get this over with so we can get back in the warmth of our home.”

Zara wanted to snarl but instead closed her eyes and took a deep steadying breath. She let herself feel everything within the force. She trusted herself and her abilities. When she opened her eyes, she had a new look of determination. She no longer looked at him as Obi Wan, lost Jedi. He was Lord Veth and he needed to be defeated.

Veth was the first to move forward, quicker than she expected, and their sabers clashed together. He gave her a dangerous smile and broke away, quickly striking again with a fury she was not prepared for. She was able to block every swing, but it frustrated her she couldn’t turn it, so she was on the offensive. She could tell he was holding back and only pushing forward to keep her unbalanced. He felt her frustration and laughed when they locked their sabers together again.

“Darling, have I told you how stunning you look in my clothes?”

In frustration, Zara shot her arm out, using the force to push him back. He was able to keep himself on his feet as he immediately moved forward again. With a grin, Zara raised her hand again and a bright light emanated around her. Veth shielded his eyes, temporarily caught off balance.

“Little knight you surprise me.”

“Stars, do you ever shut up?”

“How rude, we were having such a good conversation. How long are you going to keep this up? I’m stronger than you are, sweetheart. You aren’t going to best me in battle.”

She knew he was right. Between fighting off the cold and trying to use the force so much she was getting exhausted. She stepped forward a few steps, hoping the blinding light would protect her movements just a bit. When she dropped her arm and ceased the blinding light, she quickly brought her saber down. Veth seemed to be expecting it when his arm shot up, using the force to wrap tightly around her throat.

“Now, now. That wasn’t very admirable. You are so much better than cheap tricks.”

He kept the force on her long enough that she dropped her saber and clawed at herself. He watched her struggle until tears welled in her eyes.

“Do you yield, darling?”

She shook her head and he sighed in annoyance. He let go, letting her crash to the ground with a thud. When she tried to move further than up to her knees, she realized that he was still using the force to keep her in place.

“I’m not killing you. Nice try though.”

He held his saber up to her chest and watched as the red danced off her face.

“Yield.”

“Why? You said you won’t kill me.”

“I can maim you. Maybe cut one of your legs off so you can’t run anymore. You only really need one hand. Hope you get my point.”

She glared up at him in defiance. He sighed and moved the blade forward, pressing it against her shoulder. Zara cried out from the burn and he shifted his weight, clearly annoyed.

“I’m not really into torture, dear. Please just yield so we can go inside.”

“No.”

“Fine.”

He reached forward and touched her head, rendering her unconscious instantly. He caught her and pulled her limp body close to his. Once he made sure he had both sabers he started towards the cabin.

“You have so much to learn, little knight. Hopefully you can accomplish that without many more scars.”

---

Zaras eyes fluttered open to immediately seeing the fireplace. She took inventory of her body and other than the tingle of warming limbs, she seemed to be okay. There were blankets under her as padding on the hard floor and a pillow under her head. When she shifted, she realized that the blankets felt way too soft against her skin. She peeked under the blanket to see that she was wearing nothing but her breast band and underwear.

“Your clothes were wet. Not that you believe anything I say but nothing unfavorable happened to you. I may be a monster, but I am not that type.”

She turned her head to look at him. He was sitting leaning against the wall wearing fresh clothes and his hair was wet where it fell in front of his eyes. She sat up slowly making sure one of the blankets was wrapped around her still.

“I placed a bacta patch on your shoulder. It shouldn’t scar too badly.”

She nodded and continued to look at him.

“Surprised you didn’t put force binders on me.”

“Why? The force is the only reason why you didn’t die out there. I don’t think you understand how inhabitable this planet is.”

“You’re mad at me.”

He sighed and brushed his hair back, finally making eye contact with her.

“I’m disappointed that you would be that reckless. You easily could have died.”

“What does it even matter? You accomplished your goal either way. Anakin is at the mercy of your Master and I am out of the picture.”

“You.. Zara I have met many beings in my travels in my life. I have traveled to many planets and seen wars rage around me. Up until I saw you on the battlefield, I had only ever known of one person that cared so deeply for life. It.. got her killed and the galaxy is darker for it.”

“The one you were in love with?”

He nodded and pulled one knee up so he could rest his arm on it. Zara caught herself wanting to console him but kept still. Master Windu had told her multiple times that her compassion could be dangerous. She didn’t want him to be right, but she was trying to figure out how to console her Sith captor.

“S-Satine. Her name was Satine. I was a padawan still when I went to Mandalore to protect her.”

“She was a Mandalorian?”

“Yes, the leader actually. She needed help because she saw a brighter future for her people. A future free of war and loss. She saw peace when no one else could, myself included.”

“Is that why you fell?”

He scoffed and shook his head.

“No. I told you, the Jedi did that to me. Though finding out she was gone did contribute to my anger.”

“I still don’t see how this connects to me.”

“The first thing I noticed about Satine was the fact that she cared so deeply. When faced with opposition she didn’t want to raise a weapon, she wanted to figure out how to stop everyone else from doing so. I followed you and Anakin on one of your first missions. It was the first opportunity that I could get to you without a Jedi Master sensing me the moment I landed.”

“That was nearly two cycles ago.”

“I know. I stood where I could keep the high ground in case you two noticed me. I expected you two to run in with absolutely no plan.”

“That’s what Anakin wanted to do.”

He nodded and she smiled softly at the memory.

“You though, darling, you had a plan. You had a plan to keep every one of your clone troopers safe. Clones. Quite literally made to be dispensable and replaceable. Yet you talked to them and listened to them. Your plan was good. Not strategic or quick, but it was the path of least resistance.”

Zara’s face fell and she sighed.

“I lost three troopers that day. The counsel let me know it was a success but all I felt was heartache. Life had been lost.”

“I saw that too. You don’t look like her nor do you act like her. Not really. You have the same heart though. I thought it was one of a kind but here you are, shining so brightly it’s sickening.”

Zara laughed and wrapped her covered arms around her legs, resting her head on her knees.

“Wont your Master find you weak for not killing me?”

“No. I told him I could turn you to the dark side.”

“I won’t.”

“I know that, sweetheart. I knew that from the beginning. I also knew that his greed and lust for power would see two incredibly young and strong force users under his control. He only needs Skywalker. He won’t pay as much attention to you. You’re just a bonus.”

“That’s.. devious.”

He chuckled and finally smiled fully.

“What else do you expect? I thought that’s all you saw in Sith.”

“You’re openly deceiving your Master.”

“The end goal of a Sith is to overpower their Master. We don’t work with them. We don’t trust them.”

“That sounds like a very lonely life, Obi Wan.”

He gave her a genuine smile. It was free of malice and ulterior motives. Zara couldn’t help but smile back at him, feeling a strange sense of peace flowing between the two.

“So is a life devoid of love and connections. We have two different types of master’s that lead us to the same cruel fate.”

Zara wanted to argue with him. She wanted to tell him that she was happy being a Jedi and didn’t mind the compromises she had to endure because of it. There was a line she had recited a thousand times when faced with questions about her chosen life. At that moment she couldn’t seem to form it into words.

“Your silences speak volumes, Jedi.”

“So do your actions, Sith. Where does that leave us?”

“I suppose we can figure it out tomorrow.”

“Why rush it? Doesn’t seem like either of us are going anywhere anytime soon.”

“How right you are, little knight. A Jedi and a Sith climb into a ship.”

Zara laughed and grinned at her own joke.

“And somehow find a way to understand each other.”

“For now.”

“Right. For now.”

---

Zara wished she wasn’t comfortable. As she laid next to the fire wrapped in comfortable blankets, she felt warm which was something she had been missing for days. The two had fallen into a comfortable silence. When she heard Obi Wan sigh, she turned to look at him. He looked much less comfortable than when she had woken up.

“Are you okay?”

He startled and looked at her, nodding.

“I’m fine, darling. Don’t fret about me. It’s unbecoming of a Jedi Knight.”

She huffed out a sigh and looked at him closer. She noticed the small tremors in his hands.

“You’re cold.”

“You are so rather perceptive.”

“Is your room warm?”

“Not particularly.”

She looked at all the blankets she was wrapped up in and felt guilty.

“Why don’t.. why don’t you come over here?”

His head snapped up at her question and it made her stifle a laugh.

“I can see that you’re cold. Instead of being warm in your own home you’re making sure that I am.”

“What kind of host would I be if I let you freeze to death.”

“Veth.”

“Again, not that kind of monster. Can’t imagine freezing to death would be very comfortable.”

“Can’t imagine? Looks like you are right now.”

He chuckled and went to retort but Zara wasn’t having it.

“Obi Wan.”

He fell silent and looked at her.

“If you can’t look at it as an act of kindness, look at it as an act of self-preservation. You want me to make smart choices, right?”

“Self-preservation.”

“If you die, I’m stuck on the planet with no idea where your ship is. Sitting in the house with a frozen Sith doesn’t sound fun.”

He chuckled and got up, walking over to where she was curled up by the fire. He slipped his outer shirt off and hesitated. Zara held open the blankets, so he climbed in, making sure he wasn’t touching her. When he let out a sigh at the heat she smiled.

“Between the fire and how warm it is in here you should be comfortable soon.”

“It’s already leagues better.”

“Good.”

He looked at her steadily enough that she could see all the shades in his eyes. When he wasn’t threatening or yelling at her she thought that they were almost beautiful. He reached up and gently pushed her hair back, his fingers grazing her skin.

“Stars, Obi Wan, you’re freezing.”

“I’ll survive.”

“You’ve really got to stop running out into the cold chasing stupid Jedi.”

He smirked and nodded, looking down as Zara took his hands in hers.

“Not to be crass, but you would get warmer if you weren’t wearing your clothes.”

He chuckled and shook his head.

“You’re taking all my lines, sweetheart.”

“Just self-preservation, remember?”

“Right. Not an ounce of kindness.”

“For you? Absolutely not. Never.”

He hummed and slipped his shirt off before doing the same with his pants. He was left wearing only his own underwear making it easier for Zara to see just how discolored his skin was.

“Veth, now who is being foolish.”

“I like it better when you call me Obi Wan.”

“Well, Obi Wan doesn’t sound like a fool. So, when you’re acting foolish then I’ll call you by a foolish name.”

He chuckled and shifted closer. They both told themselves it was to get more heat. Both were convinced that the only reason the other was close was to ensure they survived. Survival was smart. Sharing a bed with a sworn enemy was not. So, the easiest way to deal with their situation was to convince themselves that everything was simple.

“Then what do I call you when you’re being foolish?”

“Hmm. You usually call me Jedi.”

“It is one of the worst insults I know.”

“Watch it.”

They both laughed and Zara yawned.

“Get some sleep. Please don’t bolt out the door again.”

“I couldn’t escape without waking you regardless. You’re on the outside of this blanket cocoon. I’d have to uncover you.”

“Very true.”

“Turn around. Face the fire so you can get some heat from it.”

“You could just tell me I’m ugly.”

“Shut up, Veth.”

Obi Wan chuckled and rolled to his right, reveling at the heat of the fire on his face. He didn’t want to admit it, but he had been rather cold. When he felt a small arm wrap around him and Zara’s body press against his back, he had to stop himself from flinching. He felt her rest her forehead against his upper back and nestle in. He could have groaned at how warm she was but absolutely didn’t want to scare her off.

“Maker you’re cold. Next time you kidnap someone bring them to a more temperate planet.”

He chuckled and gently moved his arm, so he could place his hand over hers.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Good.”

He felt her nestle in deeper, getting comfortable up against him. He smiled to himself when her sigh danced across his skin right before she fell asleep. He knew that he should be trying to turn her to the dark. His Master would be furious at his weakness. The idea of trying to corrupt someone so light and kind was repulsive to him.

He could feel her breath steadily fan across his back as she slept peacefully. He hated the Jedi, that much was true. He would never be able to go back nor would he be able to escape the darkness that held him so tightly. Zara didn’t make him forgive the Jedi, but he found himself forgiving her for being one.

It had been a very long time since Obi Wan felt anything but contempt for another living being. He could hardly remember what it felt like to have someone’s arm wrapped around him, no matter the circumstance. He tried to tell himself that he shouldn’t feel anything but the physical sensation of warmth.

The truth though? That warmth meant everything to him.

---

When Zara woke, she didn’t want to open her eyes. She felt warm and comfortable regardless of how sore her body was. She nestled her face into the warmth in front of her and let out a sleepy sigh. When she felt something shift, she froze.

“Did you forget you fell asleep next to me?”

She opened her eyes and found herself looking directly at Obi Wan’s bare chest. He had his arms wrapped around her, holding her close to him.

“I guess I did. Uhm. Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. We are both warm. Survival, right?”

She nodded against him, tentatively letting herself nestle back into the heat surrounding them.

“I didn’t.. I didn’t wake you at all I hope?”

“If you had any nightmares they didn’t show. Do you have them most nights?”

“Sleep isn’t something that is usually peaceful for me.”

“Perhaps there was enough darkness around you that your mind didn’t need to manifest any of it.”

Zara looked back up as he looked down, locking eyes with her.

“Your darkness is.. different.”

“Oh?”

He had an amused look on his face but the hesitance in his eyes told Zara that he was uncomfortable. She shook her head and looked back down. They had come to a tentative peace, but he was still dangerous. A different type of darkness didn’t mean it wasn’t dangerous. Obi Wan gently hook his finger under her chin, tilting her head back up.

“You have nothing to fear, darling.”

“We both know that isn’t true.”

He hummed as he ran his thumb across her bottom lip.

“I suppose you are correct. I don’t want you to fear me though. I will not harm you outside of necessity. Now tell me, what did you mean?”

Zara took a steady breath, willing down the nervousness and trepidation. She wasn’t used to being close to people, let alone someone who was an enemy of everything she stood for. She was vulnerable which was something she just was not comfortable with.

“That first day that I saw you, when you confronted Anakin and me. I felt your darkness. I felt it long before I saw you. I’m no stranger to the dark side but I also have never felt it the way that you carry it. You’re dark but.. you’re not chaotic. I see you calculating everything. As much as you say that I am different for my reverence for life, you are different too.”

“You picked all that up when we met?”

“I picked up on it but the longer I’ve been around you the more I see it. I’ve run into other Sith. I’ve fought them. Their energy was hard to be around because it was so unstable.”

“Are you saying I am less of a Sith?”

“No. Your eyes let me know that truth. It’s not that you’re light.”

He chuckled and moved his hand, so he was cupping her face.

“Your darkness is strong. It’s powerful but it isn’t all consuming like the others I’ve come across. You have a control over yourself that rivals even some of the strongest Jedi I have known.”

“Hmm, that almost sounds like a compliment.”

“I guess it is. At the very least it’s an admittance of me being taken by surprise. You are.. not what I expected.”

“Neither are you, darling. Neither are you.”

Tag List:

@mapplestrudel​

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[zalrb]

Aladdin Review

OK so since May a few people have asked me if I saw Aladdin and while I went on my phone to blog some of my thoughts during the movie (it was NOT a packed theatre, three guesses why), I’ll write out my thoughts in detail here.

It’s super ironic that “Arabian Nights” and the opening scene were both rewritten to be less racist than the original but white extras were put in brownface, nobody thought about the loaded optics of Will Smith calling people master, and there were terrible imitations of Bollywood-esque dance numbers in a country meant to be aligned with Arab culture.

Jafar

OK first of all, it really irritated me that Jafar didn’t turn into a snake and that we had to see was Iago be turned into some ridiculous large murderous bird. They also did this with Maleficent, Maleficent was a badass villain because she turned into a dragon and they stripped that away. One of the best lines of Aladdin is this:

Jafar is one of my three favourite villains and this interpretation of him was just eh. Next to the fat that I find Jafar’s deadpan, steely, condescending demeanour to be just such a fundamental trait to his character

The live action did a great disservice to the fact that Jafar is supposed to be a master manipulator because in the original, he turns himself into an old man to trick Aladdin:

He actually succeeds in hypnotizing the sultan from time to time whereas in the live action, he always starts to but he never actually succeeds in hypnotizing anyone.

And Iago is a part of this too, Iago has to play a dumb parrot so no one takes him seriously

and one of my favourite parts of the animated version is that when they’re on top, we see Jafar and Iago humiliate the people, namely Jasmine

and the sultan, who they thought looked down upon and humiliated them, which included Iago shoving crackers down the sultan’s throat.

I do understand that the above scene might be considered too dark (it’s probably why I love it so much) but this Iago is just a parrot that literally did not need to be there. And when Jafar does become sultan in this live action, he doesn’t really do anything, he just says he’s sultan, people disobey him immediately, he becomes a sorcerer immediately after that and then is defeated.

There were certain additions I actually did like to the live action Jafar such as the fact that he has a bit more of a backstory but they don’t delve into the backstory enough for it to really make any sort of difference except for the fact that he steals back the lamp (because he was once a thief just like Aladdin -- I’d actually want to see a movie of that backstory if it were done properly, which it wouldn’t be) and I thought the chip on Jafar’s shoulder at needing to be the most powerful person in the room was done relatively well (although I did think the actual power-craze/power-lust of Jafar just didn’t have the same kind of mania).

Jasmine

OK so I saw this movie with my friend who is Muslim and she didn’t like the additions they made to this Jasmine because she thought they were being stereotypical and paternalistic about Muslim women not having a voice, specifically with the song “Speechless”.

My thing is, I just preferred Original Jasmine (and Naomi Scott was miscast) and not only because I liked Jasmine’s sassiness in the original, I just am perfectly fine with her and I think she gets a bad rap because people reduce her to the scene where she kisses Jafar. Like I’ve seen so many things about how as a cartoon, Jasmine has no agency but the point is that she’s smothered

and she does have agency over the things she can control

The fact that she runs away from the palace was her exerting her agency.

I felt for Original Jasmine’s plight more because they set up her isolation better. In the live action, Jasmine is with Aladdin when he sings “One Jump” for the first time, when we’re introduced to Aladdin in the marketplace, Jasmine is already in a disguise among the people and when she meets Aladdin, she pretends to Dalia, her handmaiden:

In the animated version, Jasmine doesn’t even have a handmaiden, she only has Rajah,

She’s not allowed past the palace walls and so she runs away so to speak, meets Aladdin and so when they have their connection over feeling trapped by their respective lives it packs more of an emotional punch.

The fact that in this version she wants to be a Sultan doesn’t really add anything to the character for me, it doesn’t give her more “agency” or make her or the movie (that unapologetically implemented brownface) woke because it was superficial af. Jasmine just says that no one knows the country better than her and that the people make the country and she doesn’t want Agrabah to invade her mother’s homeland but it’s not like the movie has her present wonderful, radical ideas that would help the people, revolutionize the country only for her to be shot down or for Jafar to steal her idea or something, it doesn’t go anywhere so that addition is just like ... I mean I guess but if you’re going to put that in, I just feel like you should go all the way. In fact, I feel like animated Jasmine was more active than the live action one.

Aladdin

Again, this version was fine (Fadilah -- my friend -- had a problem with his hair, she wanted it to be thicker, lmao). There were particular moments in the movie when Mena would have a certain look that to me really captured Aladdin’s good-natured yet mischievous charm

and he was good at being bumbling and uncomfortable playing Prince Ali, my issue with Aladdin is more directorial/writing choices. Again, the thing about Aladdin was that he was street smart so he tricks Genie into getting him out of the Cave of Wonders by insulting his ego,

I was disappointed that in this version you have to rub the lamp while you make a wish and so when he gets out of the Cave of Wonders it’s because Abu hides the lamp and he simply doesn’t rub it while he makes a wish, I think the movie could’ve displayed his smarts more. Even this line

I preferred when he said that to, like, a woman on the street because it showed how everyone loved the rascal Aladdin except for authority figures, which added to the whole diamond in the rough vibe.

I also don’t know why they chose to change him giving the orphan siblings his bread to giving them a bag of dates but whatever.

I also thought the movie could’ve done a better job at showing the way power can corrupt you because in the original, when Aladdin doesn’t give up the lie, he let’s Genie down after everything Genie has done for him and the bond they’ve formed, he’s on the way to becoming selfish and what really drives that in is the fact that Genie is hurt and mad and disappointed

In this version, Genie just goes “it’s not about me, it’s about you and the fact that you want to lie yadda yadda” and I just think that by taking away Genie’s disappointment after genuinely believing Aladdin and bonding with him, taking away the effect of what Aladdin’s potential choice would be, detracts from the message on the corrupt nature of power and greed.

Genie

Robin Williams will always be my number 1 Genie but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I didn’t hate Will Smith as Genie, particularly when he tapped into Fresh Prince Will. That’s kind of all I really have to say about it? 

Abu

Best part of the film by far. They got Abu’s original character down pact with that CGI monkey.

Songs

I’m sorry but I hated “Speechless” 

mostly because I didn’t think the song blended with the original Aladdin songs, like if you want to give Jasmine her own number then whatever but every time I watched it I just felt like I was in a completely different movie. Like is this Frozen?  (I also HATED Frozen so that might be a reason why the song irritated me as much as it did) Also I thought they just gave her a song instead of actually having her do anything but whatever. 

I didn’t like this version of A Whole New World, the only reason why I found that scene enjoyable is because me and Fadilah sang the song in the theatre. The point of “A Whole New World” is for Jasmine to SEE the world but we don’t actually see anything, the landscape is water and dolphins.

Yes, how wondrous.

Friend Like Me was probably my favourite rendition of the entire film.

Will Smith did it justice and now the song is stuck in my head but again, the scale was super small to me. Like I get there’s a budget and there are certain things animation can do that live action can’t but I feel like you either go big or go home and Friend Like Me was Go Moderate and that was just disappointing? (Also speaking of, WHY WAS THE CAVE OF WONDERS SO SMALL???)

Other issues

Another big issue with the movie is that it goes through the motions without taking the time for emotional beats and to do little details that add to the story. It didn’t let us linger in certain moments that we needed to linger in. The iconic “Do you trust me?” scene fell flat because there wasn’t enough emphasis when Aladdin says it to Jasmine the first time around and when he says it on the carpet, it’s at hyper-speed. “Do you trust me?” “Yes.” “Cool” was basically how it went.

Aladdin has little quirks in the original that he can’t just help but do with Jasmine since that’s who he is 

In the live action, he tucks her hair behind her ear and she knows it’s him because he did it in the market too? Why change this to something so generic? You CAN keep aspects of the first movie. 

Things that were good.

The jam scene. It was genuinely funny, probably the one genuinely funny moment of the entire movie.

Will and Mena riffed off of each other well and Mena and Naomi had a charming chemistry 

I honestly didn’t go in expecting this to be exactly like the Original Aladdin, I just thought the Original Aladdin explored the themes better than the live action did and while Ritchie clearly thought he was bringing something fresh to the movie, I just felt like he watered down all of the poignant and profound parts of the original. And the dark humour, can’t forget the dark humour

[neverwatchedonepiece]

635-637: "The Fateful Reunion! Bellamy the Hyena!", "A Super Rookie! Bartolomeo the Cannibal!" and "Big Names Duke it Out! The Heated Block B Battle!"

Luffy’s entire experience of Dressrosa so far.

If I had two words to sum up these episodes, they would be: new characters.

New characters everywhere. 

And, if @mrkashkiet​ is right, some of them should not be immediately written off as battle fodder. I have done my best to keep track of all the new names  and faces (let’s face it, Dressrosa has not yet descended into HxH War of Succession level madness). 

But I think I have a better handle on the competitors now. Who knew paying close attention would work wonders?

Oh, and I forgot to mention that the influx of new characters is not limited to the Colosseum.

Trafalgar Law: Supplier of Tea and Shade

Yes.

It is the return of Cipher Pol. Except this time, the World Government have unleashed the Big Guns.

The Caesar Handover Team (Law, Robin, Usopp and Caesar) had camped at a pavement cafe near the Long Bridge they must cross to reach Green Bit. They were indulging in a bit of recon because the bridge, to put it mildly, was in a state of disrepair.

A rickey, rusting wreck is what I want to say.

A conveniently chatty waiter was only too happy to furnish them with intel. Apparently, people used to freely cross the bridge two-hundred years ago, but an influx of fighting fish ruined everything. The people tried to reinforce the bridge with iron but it never worked. Yes, people still try to cross. The waiter himself knew people who’d made the attempt. But no one ever came back. (I bet the Smile factory is on Green Bit.)

Caesar and Usopp were not keen on making the crossing. Law told them to pipe down and pulled the “we’re here now, anyway” card. The lack of unrest in Dressrosa was what worried Law. (Sanji noticed that too.) Their king had abdicated suddenly. Why was everyone so calm?

Then something awesome happened.

Robin saw something out the corner of her eye. She cringed, pulled her hat down further over her face. Caesar caught on too.

Three sinister, white-robed, masked people walked down the street like ghosts. They were heading in the direction of the bridge.

It was CP0. According to Robin, they are even deadlier that CP9 and are charged with only the highest level intelligence missions. “When they’re on the move,” Robin said, “nothing good happens.”

Except plot, Robin. Good plot happens.

I mean, come on! First Fujitora is hanging about, supposedly to deal with all the pirates in the Colosseum. Now CP0 have crawled out of the woodwork but they are lurking about the bridge. They are all in on something. They must know or suspect something is going on in Dressrosa. I’ll bet they have intel Luffy and Law don’t.

I wonder if Fujitora wants Luffy to draw out Doflamingo (or at least the proof something is going on). He definitely knows Luffy is behind the beard and he let Luffy go. Why? The plot chickenz.

Zoro , Sanji and Kinemon: Technically All Chasing After Precious Things

Elsewhere on Dressrosa, Zoro, Sanji and Kinemon have all gone their separate, chaotic ways.

Zoro has finally laid hands on Shusui again, but - and I cannot believe I am saying this - a small, thieving, invisible creature *was* behind the disappearance of Zoro’s belongings. And they referred to Zoro as a “human”, which means... I mean, are we really talking fairies here? Why do they need to steal stuff? Are they raising funds for Doflamingo? I have no idea what’s going on.  I am at the point of tin-foil hat speculation so I’ll quit before the hat is fully on.

Sanji managed to take out a sniper sixteen metres above ground with one kick. Why the need for a sniper kicking spree? He was being targeted while walking with Violet. I am still suspicious of her. I think she’s in on the whole thing and she is only just beginning to realise that, uh oh, she’s snared a really strong fighter, how do we get out of this one?

Also, Kinemon found himself surrounded by chuckling thugs who threw Kanjuuro’s location in his face. They recognised him by the “top-knot-shaped hat” (lmao). There was a, “If you don’t cooperate, we will kill you and your friend,” moment. Not super interested in this plot point, but looking forward to seeing how Oda weaves it into the wider storyline. 

Meanwhile, on The Event Horizon Sunny...

A portal has opened to another dimension.

In the grand scheme of things, everyone who went to Dressrosa got the better end of the bargain because this... this is some weird shit.

(Plus, there was another Momonosuke clue. While Momo was playing at being shogun (and Brook refused, saying he “Only takes orders from Luffy-san”) Dr Chopper observed Momo’s behaviour. Apparently, Momo is putting up a good front, disguising some sort of trauma. What happened to him a Punk Hazard could be a good bet. Maybe there was something else we didn’t get to see.)

Bellamy Is A New Man! Sort of...

Back at the Colosseum, the main event was underway: Block B’s battle! We still haven’t reached the end of it yet but that’s because a lot was happening backstage.

The action picked up where it left off. Luffy’s reunion with Bellamy did not go quite as I expected - in a good way. A lot has happened since Luffy kicked Bellamy’s ass at Jaya. For one, after ridiculing Luffy for his ambition to visit Skypeia, Bellamy made his own trip. He lost his crew in the attempt (I think?) but brought back a huge golden souvenir, which he presented to Doflamingo. 

I didn’t quite understand his connection with Doflamingo before. I figured he was part of Doflamingo’s crew and worked exclusively for him. But it turns out Bellamy had his own crew? Maybe they were allied with/working for Doflamingo?

At any rate, since he returned from Skypeia, Bellamy has become a changed man. He has obsessively worked for Doflamingo - who was Bellamy’s pirate hero since he was a kid - in hopes of being promoted to an executive post in the Donquixote family. 

That is why he entered the Battle Royale. Not to win the Mera Mera fruit, but for a promotion.

I have the funniest feeling he won’t be getting it.

His spring power is cool, though. Luffy was right. He’s definitely become stronger. The way he took out Abdullah and Jeet was pretty stylish. I also like the character development Bellamy has undergone. Oda has morphed him from a loathsome, one-dimensional mook into someone with ambition who will do anything to achieve his goals. Nice.

Bartolomeo

Now, this guy was a surprise.

When Oda introduced Maynard last episode, I never thought for a minute that the badass Marine who held a knife to a pirate’s throat and took him out so easily would become instant fodder in the very next installment.

That’ll teach me for trying to predict Oda’s intentions.

Bartolomeo acts like an Edgy Edgerson (that’s a bit of an understatement, to be honest) but he does look out for his crew, as all good captains should. The guy who was murked last time by Maynard was part of his crew. Unfortunately for Maynard, Bartolomeo is the revenge type. Maynard was left crumpled in a bloody heap. It was interesting that Maynard had planned to take part in the competition. Was it for intel or were the Marines seriously thinking they were in with a shot at the Mera Mera fruit?

Bartolomeo is also one of the rookies Cavendish loathes. When the commentator introduced him, we learned it only took Bartolomeo a year to become (in)famous in the New World. Apparently, he roasted a crew of pirates and broadcast the footage and bombed some innocent civilians. As you do. He also won the coveted spot of #1 Most Annoying Pirate Who Should Just Go Away (lmao).

This was backed up by the crowd. They booed him like a pantomime villain and pelted him with trash. The bomb prank did nothing to salvage the tatters of his public image. Even Dagama was like, “They hate you so much, brat.”

But Bartolomeo didn’t care. He is super edgy. “Don’t even want them to like me.” (If he met Eustass Kidd, the amount of Edge would reach critical mass and cause some sort of singularity).

I have the feeling Bartolomeo will win this fight.

Why?

He has barely lifted a finger the entire time. When the gong was struck, he lay down like Slaking, took a nap. Then he woke up, pissed in the moat (lmao) and somehow took out Hack the Fishman Karate Master with little effort. He must be a fruit user. I wonder what his power is?

It’s testament to how One Piece stretches the limits of your morality when you find yourself laughing and cheering for a guy who literally roasted his rivals and broadcast the footage over the OP equivalent of YouTube.

And the Award for Most Hostile Leading Question Goes To...

While the fighting was underway, Luffy and Cavendish watched from a balcony. Cavendish gave Lucy the low-down on who the most likely winners would be. Apart from Bartolomeo and Bellamy, there was Elizabello II, his tactician Dagama, Ricky (a mysterious Gladiator), Blue Gilly from the Longarm Tribe, Tank Lepant of Dressrosa, Abdullah and Jeet, and Hack (a Fishman Karate specialist and fan of Jimbei).

Elizabello II, Dagama and Tank teamed up with a cadre of random fodders to protect Elizabello. It turns out Liz has a King’s Punch ability that can take out entire fortresses. The only thing is, it takes ages for it to power up and he can only use it once a day. They must want the Mera Mera Fruit badly, as the restrictions of the King Punch make it pretty damned useless in this context. Even if he did get through to the next round, he might be one-on-one against Jesus Burgess. Burgess does not need to wait an hour to power up a punch. Even if it’s four fighters all in the ring together (I bet Luffy will team up with Rebecca), I don’t see Burgess helping him out.

Blue Gilly is a kick fighter with oddly hypnotic knee pads.

Ricky is a mystery. He is a gladiator other fighters have never seen but some random in the crowd claims he might have once - a warrior who fought with no shield.

The Middle Eastern trope fighters Abdullah and Jeet were taken out by Bellamy, Hack was defeated by Bartolomeo.

All very exciting. I love a Battle Royale.

But most of the action was taking place backstage.

While Luffy and Cavendish watched the battle, a hulking, craggy, mountainous figure approached. I knew he was big because Toei had given him the “Big Guy Clown Shoes” sound effect they use for guys like Moria and Kuma. He had the number 12 tattooed on his forehead. It was Don Chinjao.

He stood beside Luffy and Cavendish and said, “Hey, lovely view we’ve got here. Btw, how is Garp-san doing?”

Luffy, the honest soul, never saw the trap coming. “You know grandpa?”

Uh oh.

Well, the situation escalated hilariously quickly after that.

“Garp was like a real demon to us pirates back then. My wound still hasn’t healed, you know. I need you to pay for what your grandpa did to me. If I’d heard about Garp’s son, Dragon, sooner, you would never have been born.”

Ooft. That’s a heavy grudge.

Of course, Cavendish was like, “WHAT? YOU ARE LUFFY!”

And poor Luffy was still desperately clinging to his Lucy disguise, wondering why everyone was blaming him for things that really were not his fault. “no, really, i misheard. i am lucy, honest.”

“YOU DON’T MISHEAR YOUR OWN NAME!!”

Now both Cavendish and Don Chinjao were steamed. They ended up in a skirmish where Cavendish’s Shiny Sparkly Sword, Durandal, was shown off (to be fair, it does look awesome) and the endurance of Chinjao’s Mighty Skull was tested. Neither were going all out, which was nice.

At any rate, Luffy is now hanging from a window ledge. His promise to Franky is not working out well so far. 

Ahhh, that was a good tinkle.

[dirtiersocks]

smutswap 2018 letter

Hi there! Here’s my smutswap letter for sharing purposes. let me quickly say up front that I am a porn sock. I am not new to fandom or a dental hygienist (not that there’s anything wrong with either of those things), and I’ve done a few exchanges and am a good commenter etc.

As far as general tastes go, I’m easy to please and hard to squick. Porn tastes revolve around humiliation/desperation, denial/begging, slavery, submission and obedience/dominance and control. Within those general fields I have extremely wide-ranging tastes - in a lot of cases what I’ve put in the additional tags fields is just what I could come up with off the top of my head, so if you get inspired for different/additional things please feel free to do whatever’s fun for you. (For example, I’ve read a lot of watersports because it often goes hand in hand with my kinks; I didn’t put it down because I don’t feel strongly enough to request it, but you certainly won’t put me off by including it.)

The only kink I have specific tastes around is orgasm denial - I like it best when denial lasts at least a few days. But even within that I’m flexible - could be a few days, could be months; could be a length of time dictated by the denied person’s behaviour, or determined in advance by the denier; whatever. I DNW bloodplay (except vampires), scat, and non-castration mutilation.

Critical Role Pairing: Delilah Briarwood/Sylas Briarwood/Vax’ildan Kinks: Brainwashing, Conditioning, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Mind Control, Mind Break, Mind Erasure, Vampire Bites, Used as a Party Favor, Used as a cocksleeve, Verbal Humiliation, Torture, Castration, Post-Castration Sex, Snuff, Magical Compulsions

I think everyone who enjoyed them in canon wants the same things I want: sex slaaaavery, where Delilah and Sylas slake their (hopefully cruel!) lusts and Sylas' literal hunger on Vax. I would like this ideally to be pretty creepy and at the very least dubcon, right through to noncon. Mind control, either through vampire mesmerisation or through Delilah using mind spells (I'm sure her spellbook is full of manipulative spells), ultimately breaking down Vax's mind, manipulation, emphasis on Sylas feeding from Vax (I don't mind if he finds this agonisingly painful or horribly enjoyable - if the latter, perhaps it becomes the only part of his captivity he enjoys), painplay if Sylas and Delilah are into it ... you will get mega triple bonus points from me if at any point Delilah uses Antipathy/Sympathy, Weird, Vampiric Touch, Suggestion (which I just noticed lasts EIGHT HOURS), Modify Memory, Dominate Person, or, heck, any spell from the PHB on Vax.

I would prefer it if Vax isn't freed or found by Vox Machina at any point (although the option can remain narratively open).

Pairing: Scanlan Shorthalt/Vax’ildan Kinks: Verbal Humiliation, Consensual Mind Control, Consent Play, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Magical Compulsions

I really love verbal humiliation and I think Scanlan is the mega-perfect character to deploy it on someone like Vax. I would love to see enthusiastic humiliation slut Vax, who loves to crawl as Scanlan knows the best things to say to make him squirm. I would love to see how consent play could work with Scanlan using his spells, whether Friends or Suggestion or even Modify Memory (or you don't have to use PHB spells, feel free to come up with something yourself) - consensually agreed to in advance but, of course, not really possible for consent while the spell is lasting. I could easily see a bit of spanking or impact play, unusual object insertion, whatever else, coming into play - feel free to throw anything in. Prefer no size kink.

A completely off-the-wall option: feel free (only if you'd like to) to combine this with my Vax/Grog prompts for a threesome playing on these dynamics.

Pairing: Grog Strongjaw/Vax’ildan Kinks: Size Kink, Rough Sex, Stomach Bulge, Throat Bulge, Spanking, Oral Fixation, Sex Addiction, Cock Slut

Uh, you know, this is a what-it-says-on-the-tin request. Grog, fucking Vax roughly, all sorts of ways and in all sorts of conditions, lots of size kink, rough sex, spanking, Vax being obsessed with sucking Grog's dick, etc, etc. I don't mind when in canon you set this - maybe Grog joyfully fucks Vax all over Greyskull or angrily fucks him to make him feel something as a revenant, etc etc. Feel free to throw in Scanlan and the prompts above for a threesome playing on these dynamics.

Corruption of Champions Pairings: Female Champion/Kelt, Female Champion/Hellhounds Kinks: Bestiality, Verbal Humiliation, Humiliation, Addicted to cum, Sex Addiction, Brainwashing, Objectification/Dehumanization, Oral Knotting, Bugs & Insects, Snuff

The fandom smutswap was made for! My only general request here is feel free to go absolutely overboard on humiliation and reluctant arousal.

Female Champion/Kelt - anything that continues their canon dynamic, with the constant misogynistic humiliation and force and the reluctant arousal, submission, and acceptance would be aces for me. Something like a bad end for the champion without transformation would be amazing, with the champion becoming Kelt's feeble human slave. (I don't dislike transformation fwiw, but most of the bad ends come with it, and I always want to know what they'd be like without transformation. So if you really like transformation don't feel put off including it!)

Female Champion/Hellhound - I don't think there's a hellhound Bad End, maybe because the hellhound doesn't seem sentient, but I'd love to know what it would look like if there was one. The champion becomes too into hellhound double dick and follows a hellhound back to a hellhound pack? The champion runs into the hellhounds' handler, who takes her as a slave to keep his pets happy and produce a new generation?

Original Work: Humans, No Incest

Pairings: Female athlete(s)/Female Cheerleader, Female Human/Female Vampire, Teenage Female Mad Scientist/Her Female Best Friend, Businessman/Male Office Slut, Male Kidnapper/Male Kidnap Victim, Male Orc/Male Human, Male original character/male torturer (emotional and physical), Depraved Nobleman/New Serving Girl, Female Prisoner/Multiple Male Interrogators, Male Prisoner/Multiple Male Interrogators Kinks: Verbal Humiliation, Humiliation, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Orgasm Control, ruined orgasm, Consensual Non-Consent, Abuse of Authority, Blackmail/Sexual Coercion, voluntary castration, Post-Castration Sex, Femsub, Brainwashing, Used as a Party Favor, Sexual Slavery, Genital Torture, Breast Torture, Somnophilia, Consensual Drugging, Conditioning, Objectification/Dehumanization, Bestiality, Erotic Electrostimulation, Gang Rape, Gangbang, Human Experimentation, Hypnotism, Magical Compulsions, Magical Personality Alteration, non-consensual object insertion, Non-Consensual Somnophilia, Object Insertion, Service Submission, Snuff, Spitroasting

I love all of these pairing prompts as a setting for consensual or non-consensual sexual slavery and abuse (I'm not sure how you make prisoner/their torturers an enthusiastically consenting sex slave, but if you can do it, I can read it!) I love verbal humiliation of any kind except racial slurs, consent play like drugging and somnophilia, eager submission, submission through force, submission through conditioning and brainwashing. I love the idea of the teenage mad scientist experimenting on her best friend's body or mind (with or without telling her). Stockholm syndrome sounds fun.

Orgasm denial work best for me when the denial period lasts a few days and there are so many possibilities here, maybe associated with conditioning - only coming when doing something specific to train their sexuality, only coming in painful ways to discourage orgasm - or submission - not coming to please a dom and focus on their pleasure - or in a non-consensual context, not coming simply because nobody cares whether the victim comes or doesn't. Maybe orgasms start out more frequent and get less frequent as the relationship deepens, or occur only as rewards for extraordinary service. Feel free to focus on humiliating begging. For especially cruel relationships, perhaps one partner is manipulated into consensual castration - in this case I would really love a sex scene after the castration that really emphasised the contrast between that character's lack of pleasure and their partner's pleasure.

Enthusiastic consent would also be great - two people revelling in their shared kinks, even when they're unusual. Maybe the cheerleader loves to be humiliated, brainwashed, and passed around the team parties. Maybe the mad scientist's best friend loves to test out the scientist's crazy machines for breast torture and ruined orgasms. Maybe the office slut loves it when he lets the businessman slip him drugs in his drink at the office party. Hell yeah. I would especially love anything that emphasises the dominant partner's sexual and physical reactions as much as the submissive partner's.

I don't mind if you want to introduce more doms or tops in any of these pairings - or feel free to combine anything here with any of my pairings/prompts for other original work requests! I shoved even more ideas in the optional tags but the main set are my main faves.

Original Work: Nonhuman Group

Pairings: Adult Man Visiting His Childhood Home After Years Away/Monster Under His Old Bed, Alien Conquerors/Humans Used as Breeders, Alien Conqueror Expecting Resistance/Human Who Thinks We're Better Off Ruled By Aliens, Eldritch Abomination In A Human Skinsuit/Human Male Cultist, Eldritch Horror/Male Sacrifice, Female Human/Giant Spider, Female Human/Tentacle Beast, Female Human/Egg-laying Monster, Insect like Alien/Human, Master of Hounds & Hounds/Captured Princess, Tentacle Ovipository Alien/Male Human Character, Tentacle Monster/Male Human Kinks: Alien Biology, Bestiality, Body Horror, Sexy Eldritch Horror, Sexy Psychological Horror, Fear Kink/Play, Sexual Slavery, Breeding, Castration, Post-Castration Sex, Rape, Hunted with a sexual forfeit for getting caught (consensual), Hunted with a sexual forfeit for getting caught (rape), Raped by Monsters, Verbal Humiliation, Humiliation, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Emotional Manipulation, Brainwashing, Femsub, Snuff, Human Fucktoy

What I would love emphasised in all of these is the physical or mental, or both, contrast between the human and the alien or animal - alien or animal biology penetrating or affecting the human and them being super aware of it, whether it's a weird dick that doesn't fit without pain or tentacles where sensation normally isn't or everything being super slimy. For the psychological difference - thinking especially of the eldritch horror here - reactions that baffle the human, higher goals or purposes, cruelty or indifference to human needs or desires, manipulation ...

I guess I can think of three different consent settings, if you like - humiliated but enthusiastic consent, terrified but willing submission, and horrified noncon. I would love all of these. I think pretty much any of these pairings constitute a prompt in and of themselves!

Original Work: Femsub Incest

Pairings: Twin Brother/Twin Sister, Teen Girl/Male Family Members Who Gangbang Her Kinks: Blackmail/Sexual Coercion, Breeding a Blackmailed Person, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Orgasm Control, ruined orgasm, Abuse of Authority, Sexual Slavery, Training Sex Slave, Caning, Impact Play, Femsub, Verbal Humiliation, Humiliation, Incest Kink, Kink Discovery, Obedience, Somnophilia, Genital Torture, Human Fucktoy, Objectification/Dehumanization, Object Insertion

For this pair of requests I would especially like to receive femsub. I ticked OK with underage but prefer not younger than 15 - could go a little younger in the twin brother/twin sister pairing. I enjoy a lot of permutations of the combination of my suggested kinks with these possible pairings, pretty much anything will make me happy, but I especially like scenarios where the teen girl or sister starts out being blackmailed or coerced but through that discovers submission or other related fetishes. However, I'm also happy for her to continue hating it if you prefer that! Something else I especially enjoy in these requests is ease of accessibility - the idea that sex can happen any time or anywhere in the home. Orgasm denial note - this kink works best for me if denial lasts at least a couple of days.

Specific scenario ideas: twin brother/twin sister - ripe for sexual exploration and kink discovery. I would especially like them mutually discovering his dominance and her submission, with any attendant kink flavours. bonus for orgasm denial, bonus if they're sharing a room far later than they should be! One could discover another's phone/porn/laptop or they could simply be experimenting and make an accidental discovery. Alternatively, close tell-each-other-everything twins begin a sexual relationship after disappointment and find it's better than any other.

teen girl/male family members - I'm agnostic about whether you include father/uncle/grandfather here, equally happy with that or sticking to brothers/cousins. lots of obvious blackmail/force scenarios here - ideally minimal risk of discovery by female relatives, whether that involves divorce or holiday or whatever. teenager and her brother on holiday with her cousins discover their sexual tastes, brothers blackmail sister into servitude, girl is raised to serve male family members in all things ...