#This mirrors Johan and Anna | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

riewritten · 5 months ago

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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐌𝐎𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐄 𝐓𝐄𝐀 | READ ON AO3

JOHAN LIEBERT x GENDER-NEUTRAL!READER

˚ · .─ 𝐒𝐘𝐍𝐎𝐏𝐒𝐈𝐒: A reclusive man haunted by a dark past makes a routine of settling in from one remote village to another, it is until his solitude is disrupted by a warmhearted neighbor who slowly unravels his barriers.

˚ · .─ 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐓: 4k

˚ · .─ 𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐒: post-canon, neighbors, developing friendship, domestic fluff, hurt/comfort, romance but only if you squint, johan goes by a different name, a bit self-indulgent

The morning was quiet, the kind of quiet that wrapped itself around you like a heavy blanket. Johan—or the man who used to be Johan—stood by the edge of a small, weathered dock. The lake before him mirrored the gray sky above, its stillness a fitting companion to his isolation.

Here, in the shadow of the Austrian Alps, no one asked questions. No one looked too closely at the soft-spoken man who had arrived a year ago with little more than a duffle bag and a name scribbled on forged papers: Elias Meyer.

The locals in the nearby village whispered their theories about him. Some said he was a writer escaping the noise of the city; others believed he was a broken man fleeing a past too heavy to bear. No one dared to press him for details, not when his polite smiles came with an unshakable undercurrent of sadness.

Johan—Elias—had chosen this place for a reason. It was far enough from his past that even the most persistent ghosts couldn't follow.

One afternoon, as he carried firewood from the forest to his small cabin, he noticed a group of children playing by the lake. Their laughter echoed through the valley, sharp and carefree, a sound Johan hadn’t heard in what felt like lifetimes.

When was the last time he had heard it again?

With the question, memories of him and Anna running and laughing around the flower fields surged in his mind like a hidden plague aching to be let out. He tried to shake it off, which thankfully, did when a ball suddenly rolled towards him, coming to a stop near his boots.

One of the children, a boy no older than eight, hesitated before approaching him with wide, curious eyes, “Excuse me, Sir.”

Johan bent down, picking up the ball. For a moment, he froze, staring at the object in his hands. Memories of other children, other faces, tried to claw their way to the surface. But he pushed them back, focusing on the boy before him.

“Here,” Johan said softly, handing the ball back.

The boy smiled, and Johan felt something shift—a flicker of warmth where there had only been cold.

Weeks passed, and Johan began to notice the children more often. They waved to him from the village road, their carefree energy drawing him out of his solitude in ways he didn’t understand.

One day, the same boy from before approached him again.

“Mr. Meyer,” the boy said, using the name Johan had adopted. “Can you help us build a raft?”

Johan blinked, surprised. “A raft?”

“For the lake. We want to float it across and see who can paddle the fastest.”

Johan hesitated. He had spent so long avoiding attachments, avoiding the messiness of human connection. But something in the boy’s earnest expression made him nod.

As they worked together, something unexpected happened. Johan began to laugh—not the hollow, calculated laugh of his past, but something genuine, something that startled even himself.

Months turned into a year, and Johan—no, Elias—became a quiet but integral part of the village. He never shared much about himself, and the villagers respected his privacy. But he was always there to lend a hand, whether it was fixing a broken fence or helping the children with their schoolwork.

He didn’t try to forget his past; that would have been impossible. He didn't try to be a good person to reclaim himself either, as that would've been more impossible. Instead, he let it serve as a reminder of what needs to ponder as he lives the rest of his life in solitude.

One evening, as the sun dipped below the mountains, Johan sat by the lake with the boy who had first approached him.

“Mr. Meyer,” the boy asked, “why do you live here all alone?”

Johan smiled faintly, his gaze fixed on the horizon. “Sometimes, people need to start over.”

“Because?”

“No reason, really. They just need to. Maybe to see the world a lot clearer than they did in their old lives…?”

The boy nodded, not fully understanding what his blonde friend was on.

Years later, Johan’s presence in the village becomes a story the locals would pass down—a kind stranger who came out of nowhere and left with no warning. No one knew where he went or why he had left in the first place.

But those who remembered him would always recall his kindness, quiet but comforting, faint but indubitably paved more warmth in their lives.

And somewhere, in places even quieter than the village he had already gone through, Johan Liebert immersed in his new name—quite surprised that monsters like him didn’t actually need to consume another’s existence just to gain one. For the first time, he was simply a man, trying to live—at least, that was the routine he had developed for years and years. Elias Meyer, a man almost unnoticeable building himself a haven from one remote town to the other. Johan had no plans of changing it.

Even when he decided to settle in another remote village to check on an old friend (without making his old identity known, of course), he had no plans of changing it. Elias Meyer is an existence that will always be bound to leave.

The mornings in this town were colder than the last one. The frost was biting at the air before the sun had fully risen. The uncomfortable weather might’ve been too cozy for someone like him, and yet his resolve was unwavering—he is Elias Meyer, and Elias Meyer is an existence that would be always bound to leave—it is until you started appearing at his door with delectable breakfasts at hand.

You had moved to this little village years ago after graduating college, and ever since, the neighbors had perceived you as a bright newcomer with an eagerness to meet each one of them. Poor Elias, they thought to themselves humorously, because they just know his preference for solitude—even to the point of owning a cabin at the edge of town—would have no say once faced with your resolute extroversion.

You perceived Elias as that tall, blonde man whose face looked carved from stone—a beauty so ethereal it’d be a waste if he wasn’t basking in the sun for everyone to see every morning. He barely acknowledged anyone. He kept to himself, slipping into town only for essentials, his words clipped but polite. And unfortunately for you, most of the neighbors could respect his solitude.

But you couldn’t.

When you first saw him at the market buying his fair share of supplies and vegetables, he has unknowingly bewitched you. His beautiful, distant face seemed wrapped in shadows you couldn’t decipher. And perhaps you're a cat whose curiosity would someday get you killed, or perhaps a moth doomed to die by its entrancement to the fire. The neighbors were right, much to their excitement—Elias is doomed to be your project.

The first morning you knocked on his door, you had a basket in hand—freshly baked shortbread cookies, a jar of honey, and a thermos of hot tea.

When he opened the door, his expression was unreadable, pale blue eyes scanning you with a calm detachment that made your stomach flutter.

“Good morning, my new neighbor!” you chirped, holding the basket out. “I figured you might want some breakfast.”

He stared at you for a moment, his gaze cool but not unkind. “I’m fine. Thank you.”

“Oh, come on, you haven’t even tried it yet!” you insisted, pushing the basket forward. “I made it myself.”

There was a long pause, the kind that might have made anyone else shrink back. But not you. You smiled, unwavering, until he finally sighed and took the basket from your hands.

“Thank you,” he said again, quieter this time. Then he closed the door.

It was all it took for him to take note of your existence? Hell, he looked at you for a solid minute from head to toe, as though taking in your presence before his very eyes! You left his doorstep feeling victorious.

The next morning, you knocked again. And the morning after that.

At first, he didn’t seem to know what to do with you. He would accept the food with a quiet nod, barely saying a word before closing the door. But over time, you noticed subtle changes—with how he lingered a little longer at the threshold, and with how his eyes softened just the slightest when he saw you.

“You really don’t have to do this,” he said one morning, as you handed him a bowl of steaming soup.

“I know,” you replied with a grin, “but I want to.”

He stared at you, as though trying to puzzle you out. “Why?”

“Because you look like you could use a friend.”

The words seemed to unsettle him. He didn’t reply, but this time, he didn’t close the door right away.

Weeks passed, and your morning visits became a routine. He started inviting you inside—not for long, just enough time to sip tea or exchange a few words.

You learned his name was Elias Meyer, though something in the way he said it made you wonder if it was real. You didn’t press him for details; you could tell he valued his privacy, and you could at least respect that despite the things you couldn’t.

But little by little, you saw glimpses of the man beneath the quiet exterior. He was incredibly observant, noticing small details about you that no one else did. He rarely smiled, but when he did, it felt like the sun breaking through clouds.

One morning, you brought him a basket of wildflowers along with the usual breakfast.

“They reminded me of you,” you said, setting the basket on his table.

He gave you a strange look, his lips twitching as though he didn’t know whether to laugh or frown. “Wildflowers reminded you of me?”

“Sure,” you said brightly. “They’re quiet, but they still make the world a little more beautiful.”

Despite the amusing remark, Johan seemed to remember something from a long past, something that made him stare at the flowers way longer than intended. Then, you saw him smile—not a ghost of one, but a real, genuine smile. It was fleeting, but it made your chest tighten in a way you didn’t quite understand.

“You should smile more, Elias,” you blurted, which in turn dissipated Johan’s smile with a clear of his throat.

“Not my thing.”

But still! You quietly gushed. What a beautiful smile! You went home victorious yet again when dusk came.

One evening, as the sun set behind the mountains, you found yourself sitting on the porch of his cabin. He had made tea for the two of you, a small gesture that felt monumental considering how reluctant he’d been to accept your kindness at first.

“Why do you keep coming here?” he asked suddenly, his voice low but steady.

You blinked, caught off guard by the question. “What do you mean?”

He hesitated, searching for the right words. “I’m not the kind of person people like you should want to be around.”

You tilted your head, studying him. “What makes you say that?”

His eyes darkened, a shadow passing over his face, and yet he stayed silent, refusing to answer. It didn't take long for you to put the pieces together. You reached out, placing a hand on his arm. “We all have pasts, Elias. But that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve a future.” For a moment, he looked at you as though you were something incomprehensible, something he couldn’t quite believe was real.

The days turned into weeks, then months, and slowly, Johan—or Elias, as you knew him—began to change. He still valued his solitude, but he didn’t seem to mind sharing it with you.

He never told you the full truth about his past, not that you ever asked. You didn’t need to know who he had been to see the man he was becoming.

Johan was getting accustomed to his new normal, but then it changed again.

It is a change that, perhaps, would require Johan to rethink the duration of his stay in your village. How strange, one might think, for Johan had developed more disdain for permanence ever since he started living like this. And he only came here to check on an old friend, wanted to see if they’re doing well and good, then he’d be quietly taking his leave again, right? Under what instances must his agenda change?

It started the first morning you didn’t knock on his door. Johan didn’t think much of it. People had lives, after all. Perhaps you’d overslept, or maybe you were busy with something else.

The second morning, however, felt different. He found himself waiting by the door longer than he cared to admit, listening for the sound of your footsteps or the soft knock he’d grown accustomed to. When it didn’t come, he stood there for several minutes before stepping back, unsettled.

By the third day, Johan’s thoughts refused to quiet. Something about your absence gnawed at him, a peculiar weight in his chest he couldn’t name. He hadn’t realized how much he’d come to expect you, to rely on the brightness you brought with you each morning.

So that evening, just as the sun dipped below the horizon, Johan found himself standing in front of your small, weathered house.

The curtains were drawn, and the porch light was off, but he could see a faint glow from inside. His knuckles rapped against the door, firm and deliberate.

“Are you there?” he called, his voice steady but quieter than usual.

There was no answer, but the light inside didn’t move. He waited a moment longer before trying the handle. It turned easily, and he stepped inside, his footsteps nearly silent against the wooden floor.

You were on the couch, curled into yourself, shoulders shaking with quiet sobs. The sight stopped him cold.

There he goes, his hand stops around the doorframe as he processes the sight. And, perhaps, the realization that out of everyone in this unpopulated village, he might not be the one who does best at masking his real self. You, who were always so buoyant, so irrepressibly bright, were now something else entirely—small, vulnerable, broken in a way he hadn’t seen before. You were still wearing the clothes he had last seen you with three days ago. Your hair was all greasy, and your skin was oily as it wrapped around your body. It must’ve been uncomfortable on your end. Your whole house was chaotic, too. As if it had been abandoned for weeks.

He took a careful step forward, then another, stopping just short of the couch. “You didn’t come this morning,” he said softly, as though the words themselves might shatter you further.

“Please, don’t look at me…” Slowly, you turned to look at him, your face streaked with tears as you realized that it was Elias before you, the last person you’d expect to visit you such an hour—with a face hinting concern, no less. “I’m sorry,” you whispered, voice raw. “I... I didn’t mean to worry you.”

“You don’t have to apologize.”

He crouched beside you, his expression calm but intense, his pale blue eyes fixed on yours. He didn’t move for a long moment, his mind working in ways it hadn’t in years. Comforting others was not something he was accustomed to. His presence had always been a harbinger of destruction, not solace. And yet, here you were, someone who had given him pieces of light he didn’t think he deserved, now in desperate need of something in return.

He reached for the blanket draped over the back of the couch and gently wrapped it around you. His movements were slow, deliberate, as though trying not to startle you.

What surprised you, however, was when he sat down beside you, leaving just enough space to make his presence felt without crowding you.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked, his voice low but not unkind.

You shook your head, clutching the blanket tighter. Minutes passed in silence, broken only by your uneven breaths. Johan sat perfectly still, his gaze fixed on some indeterminate point ahead. He didn’t press you, didn’t offer hollow reassurances. Instead, he stayed there, his calm presence steady against the storm inside you.

When your sobs finally quieted, he heated some tea on your countertop, paving his way onto your kitchen with all the familiar stock of food, all because these were all you’ve been bringing to his door first thing in the morning. Much to his surprise, he sees the familiar basket on the edge of your kitchen—two pieces of sourdough bread, a thermos of tea, and a jar of honey refilled. It means you had an attempt to get out of your house and go to his somehow; it’s just that you failed miserably.

Johan is then confused. What made you sink this low? What have you been amidst all the smiles you shine down upon everyone? The monster inside him spoke; poor human beings, to absolutely despise their real form so much to feign buoyancy and joy when out of their safe havens. How despicable.

This was the first time—since Johan had escaped that dreary hospital bed—that he had gotten confused about which voice he’d let take over inside his pretty little head.

Without a word, he handed the mug of tea to you, fingers brushing yours briefly. “Drink,” he nonchalantly said. “It will help.”

You hesitated but took the cup, your hands trembling slightly as you brought it to your lips. After you’d finished, Johan stood and moved toward the kitchen again. You watched him, confused, as he opened a few cupboards and began preparing something—toast, simple and unassuming, but warm. When he returned, he set the plate in front of you without a word.

“You don’t have to eat it now,” he said, his voice softer than before. “But you should eat something.”

The care in his actions, so understated yet deliberate, brought fresh tears to your eyes. There you go again, Johan pointed out in his mind. He never thought you’d be a crybaby. As much as you’d like to disrupt his solitude in the morning, it seemed like he has also taken a liking to observing your every action. How unusual.

Johan stayed until you fell asleep, sitting quietly in the chair across from the couch. As your breathing evened out, he leaned back, his gaze lingering on your tear-streaked face.

And again, for the first time in years, he felt something unfamiliar—a desire not to fix or manipulate, but simply to be there.

As he left the house that night, locking the door behind him, he had decided that whatever it was that fractured your smile, perhaps it would be in his best interest if he didn’t let it consume you—not if he could help it.

A few days passed, and your routine of appearing before his door first thing in the morning still hadn’t gone back.

What surprised Johan instead was the soft knock on his door in the middle of the night, waking him up from a light slumber. He had mentally thanked himself and his unhealthy sleeping habits because as soon as he opened the door, he found you standing there, shivering, your face pale and your eyes wide with a mix of fear and lingering tears.

“I’m sorry,” you whispered, clutching the edges of your cardigan. “I had... a bad dream.”

Johan studied you silently for a moment, his gaze sharp but not unkind. Without a word, he stepped aside, gesturing for you to come in.

He didn’t ask what the dream was about as he could sense the weight of it in your shoulders just well—it was in the way you hugged yourself, in your trembling as if the nightmare still had its claws keeping in its wake. It wasn’t an unfamiliar sight. It’s just that he didn’t know what to say; it's been decades since he had comforted someone who just woke up due to their own plaguing demons—it was back in the days when his sister, Anna, could still turn to him like this whenever she dreamt of the Red Rose Mansion.

So instead of pressing you on it, he heated some chamomile tea and placed the warm mug in front of you before sitting across the table, repeating his gesture the nights prior.

“You’re safe now,” he managed after a while, voice steady and calm, as if willing you to believe it.

“Am I?” you blankly stared down the ground, letting the smell of chamomile permeate your senses. It wasn’t long until your words sunk at you: Crap, he might think I’m being sarcastic, and so you muttered, “Sorry.”

“For what?”

“I didn’t mean to bother you, I just... I just didn’t know where else to go.”

"Worry not, you've come to the right place." What did he mean by that? Isn't he bothered? It's three in the morning, Elias. After a few sips of tea, Johan suggested, “Stay here tonight. The dream can’t follow you here.”

You nodded, thankful, but the lurking question was still in mind: Why? Why would the dream not follow you here?

But Johan knew the veracity of his statement all too well, albeit lost at how and why he was acting so unlikely of his character. You came to the right place, indeed, for the monster won't reach you if he’s here. No monster would dare, that much he knew, as much as he had liked the intrigue of other beings becoming a master of Johan’s own game. “Want to tell me what happened?”

You shook your head, unable to form words.

He stayed silent, as though waiting for you to form your thoughts. And when you failed, he just moved to sit beside you instead, not daring to ask questions or try to pull answers from you.

His presence was quiet but steady—a calm in the storm even—that you couldn’t help yourself but rest your head against his shoulder. He didn’t move away; if he was surprised or irked, he showed no sign of it either.

Perhaps the only lurking question in his head was that; how do people usually do this? His hand hovered for a moment before he rested it lightly against your back, his touch—perhaps—was perceived by your brain as a silent reminder: Go on, I’ll stay as long as you need.

"Thank you, Elias," you mutter. "And sorry. I'll make it up to you."

Despite Johan feeling all too unfamiliar—not only with the name but with the mere act of being thanked—he didn't show it upfront. It's as if he's a mere watcher, an observer seeing how things unfold. He's definitely not someone to be thanked, he's sure as hell you're not thanking him—as in the person that he is—but rather the person that he's showing in front of you, as Elias Meyers, as the neighbor you had quite taken a liking with.

However, he's not that kind and caring to not use it for his own gain yet. "Show yourself up on my doorstep again once you're all better, preferably with a breakfast at hand to save me the hassle of cooking for myself."

"Tch," you chuckled and rolled your eyes at how silly the payment had sounded, but you nodded anyway. You miss bugging him during the day.

For hours, the two of you sat there, the world outside forgotten. And for the first time in a long time, you felt like you weren’t carrying the weight alone. You ended up falling asleep on his couch, the blanket he draped over you smelling faintly of the pinewood walls of his cabin.

TAG LIST 🏷️ @chxrry-writes @nefarra @ellabellapumela @skexxll @melonvrs

by the way, FOR MY OIL WELL FIRES LOVERS, allow me to cook... read more here ;) also saying this before anyone asks; no i don't want to continue this yet im sorry. maybe after i finish oil well fires? but if someone wants to then pls do and pamper me some johan liebert fluff :( i am so sad

@xeiin-n @s0m4-sh4rk | SUBSCRIBE/UNSUSCRIBE TO STORIES

#johan liebert x you #johan liebert x reader #johan liebert x y/n #monster fanfiction #johan x reader #johan x y/n #johan x you #johan liebert fanfiction #johan liebert fanfic #monster fanfic #johan liebert fluff #johan liebert x gender neutral reader

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arendelle-archives · 6 months ago

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Who's in the portrait from Frozen - The Broadway musical?

A quick recap: in the original Broadway production of Frozen, during "For the first time in forever", Anna is seen next to the portrait of some unknown gentleman. Who is he?

I initially thought (incorrectly) this was a portrait of a young King Karl XIV Johan who was the king of Sweden and Norway (where he was known as Karl III Johan) during the years 1818-1844, i.e. during the time Frozen takes place!

Portrait of crown prince Karl Johan by François Gérard 1811 (cropped).

It could have been a cool easter egg to have him appear in the musical but unfortunately (for me) it was not the case!

My friend @bigfrozenfan suggested (correctly) that the uniform of the man in the Frozen portrait was borrowed from a painting of the Russian prince and military commander Pyotr Mikhailovich Volkonsky (1776-1852):

Portrait by English artist George Dawe circa 1823.

Unfortunately, this only gave us half the Broadway painting. We still needed the guy's face. Browsing image results on google, this painting of Russian politician and military commander Pavel Alexandrovich Stroganov (1774-1817) popped up, and it was a perfect match!

Portrait by George Dawe from some time before 1825.

Once we mirrored the picture...

Broadway on the left and original to the right.

Now, why Pavel decided to borrow his countryman Pyotr's uniform in the Frozenverse we can only speculate. What we do know is that they were both long dead when Frozen takes place.

Why were these portraits chosen by the set designers? Why not just use one portrait and call it a day? Why mane an edit? Probably just for fun. Maybe to confuse see if someone would figure out what it was based off of! 😄

It should also be mentioned that something strange is going on with the left epaulette. Compared to the original (right below), some elements of it has been copied and pasted in the Broadway version (left below). I have no idea why. maybe to save space in the picture. Other than that, the uniform appears to be completely unaltered.

I hope you learned something! 😁

Summary:

#frozen #frozen 2 #disney frozen #frozen musical #frozen broadway #frozen concept art #frozen lore #frozen trivia #for the first time in forever #ftftif #arendelle archives

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xxxangeleyesxxx · 5 months ago

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“I was there in the dark when you spilled your first blood

I am here now, as you run from me still

Run then, child

You can't hide from me forever” - Ptolemaea

It was always this familiar dark place she was sent to.

Anna was accustomed to this dream at this point, if you could even call it that. She once heard from someone that sleep is death playing shy, and this was fairly reminiscent of it. It’s completely pitch black dark, you couldn’t even see the tips of your fingers if you tried. No matter how far she walked, nothing blocked her from transversing further.

Disembodied hands would grab at her side and graze her cheek. She wondered if they were truly there or just her mind playing tricks on her. Still, she would swat at them. Still, she would draw back and shiver in disgust at the mild violation. Occasionally, she would hear a blood curdling scream from somewhere in the blackness. Sometimes it was far away. Others, right next to her ear. Despite mirroring their suffering and fear in this lonely place, it never made it feel any less cold and isolated.

This was hell. After reading the Bible at 12 and getting to the verse it was described, that was what she concluded. There was no demons torturing you for eternity in unspeakable ways. It was no Dante’s Inferno. It was darkness, weeping, screaming, and complete and utter despair.

The only thing missing was fire and agony, but, as Anna thought thankfully, you couldn’t feel pain in dreams. That would only wake you up.

Her only question; Why was she sent here? What had she done?

One would think after several years of experiencing this nightly torment that she would no longer be afraid of it, but no. Anna would still walk with uncertainty, her hands reaching out in front of her for something, anything to grasp onto and make the chaos make sense, but she could never find it. Even now, she still covered her ears to block out the horrible screams from countless people she had no way of saving. Her heart would still ache with the all too familiar pain of loneliness and betrayal from a source she couldn’t ascertain. It never got easier.

Tonight was different though.

There was a formless door. It opened just slightly. Precious light spilled from within onto the oak floor. Anna reached towards it.

The metallic taste of blood hit her tongue.

She hesitated. Her outstretched hand shook unsteadily. A part of her understood that what lie beyond this door was something that she did not want to see, something she was simply not ready to face. She didn’t want to enter it, but she knew she had to.

Suddenly, she was a little girl again. The delicate hands before her gave way to small, stubby ones, nail beds bitten and peeling. She carefully peered inside.

This didn’t feel like a dream anymore, it felt like reality.

And yet it just couldn’t be. The monster standing before her couldn’t be real. She had to be dreaming, cause if she wasn’t—

The beast with seven heads audibly shifted it’s haunting blue eyes to look at her. She froze, then began heaving, unable to get enough air into her lungs. She couldn’t move, couldn’t do anything to run or defend herself, though in all fairness, what could she do? There were two bodies on the floor, blood gushed out from their torn, mangled limbs. The monster’s elongated hands were drenched in blood. Gnashing teeth easily tore apart flesh from a leg. It gingerly offered her a severed arm, as if it meant nothing to indulge in the most taboo thing imaginable.

Her heart was pounding. Her mouth spilled words beyond her control.

“Johan? You- W-What have you done!?”

The most demonic, distorted version of her brother’s voice came echoed out of sync from the many heads of that creature.

“Anna, please listen to me. We have to-“

All at once Anna was in her bed again, sweating bullets, breathing heavily and staring at the ceiling. She had her blanket clutched to her chest in a white-knuckled grip. She slowly adjusted to her new surroundings and sat up, scanning her room for anything out of place, glancing back every so often at an oddly placed coat and the closet. Anna was used to nightmares, but not ones of that caliber. She was admittedly shaken, and didn’t think more sleep was in the cards for tonight.

The bedside clock read 1:43am. Pictures of her, her family, and friends stared up at her with their mocking smiling faces, like she didn’t just go through hell and back. She picked the one of her and Johan at their high school graduation ceremony and smiled, feeling herself begin to calm down. Johan looked at her with such a gentle expression, while she beamed at the camera, her arms wrapped around her barely older brother in a vice grip.

It was one of her favorite pictures. It served as a reminder that no matter what happened, he would always be there for her.

She put the photo down and slipped out of bed, leaving the room.

Johan would probably be asleep by now, but you honestly never knew with him. He had quite the odd sleep schedule.

His door was just barely left opened, the plain, navy blue queen sized bed was neatly made and without its usual inhabitant. She could hear him scribbling something on a piece of paper and flipping through the pages of a book. Hopefully, she wasn’t interrupting his late night study session.

She knocked the side of the door frame.

“Johan? Is it ok if I come in?”

The writing paused and he called for her from his desk. She smiled warmly and entered the room. He swung his chair to face her, giving her that signature soft gaze he always carried.

For whatever reason, she felt herself tense in front of him. Sweaty hands clenched at her sides. Unable to meet his eyes, she glanced at a patchy spot on the carpet the landlord refused to fix.

“I um, I-I had a really bad dream.” Anna was awful at hiding her emotions, especially in front of him. She sat down on his bed and seemed to have his full attention. Opening up about things would always be difficult, but it shouldn’t be this difficult. Johan was her most trusted person. “I know that it probably sounds silly, and I know that I’m too old to be letting it affect me like this but it just felt so real.” She sucked in her lip and shyly popped the question.

“Can I sleep here for tonight?”

@theartifxce

#anna liebert #johan liebert #theartifxce #johan and anna #dark au #I tried to write a wholesome college au for monster #this is what I ended up with #we can’t have nice things #threads #xxxangeleyesxxx #horror

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princessgarnetxvi · 11 months ago

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II. Johan always knew that Anna was the one who went to the Red Rose Mansion.

I’d like to thank those who left comments and showed support on my first post. Consider this essay a part two of the original concept: Everything Johan did was for Anna. I want to explore another notion I briefly touched upon in my first post that was requested by some and also presented to me by my own twin brother.

The theory we are going to explore is: Was Johan aware from the beginning that Anna was the one who went to the Red Rose Mansion?

Yes.

And that brings us to another facet on what Johan’s intentions were – and that was to make sure Nina/Anna never remembered what happened to her. In reference to the Nameless Monster book, Johan consumed the other Nameless Monster who went West and was the only one left standing with no one left to call him by his name. This mirrors Johan/Anna because he left Anna with the Fortner’s under a completely different identity - a real name with real attachments as Nina Fortner knowing she would forget him. He was the ONLY one who knew his sister for who she truly was

This was his act of love

His goal was to make the world believe he was “The Chosen One” to not only lead their plans astray but to ensure that Anna would not be targeted by “The Monster.” He wanted to erase all traces of the experiment, of the horrific experiences she endured and of those who remembered them as a pair – and this also included himself.

This theory is heavily reinforced in Another Monster in this passage.

(This passage from Another Monster reinforces Johan's intention behind trying to make Nina forget her past as Anna - an act of love. Naoki made it a point to tell us "this is just like Johan.")

We will break this discussion into parts since it will be a lot of information to dissect:

I. Peter Capek and Johan’s discussion

The one question I ALWAYS asked was why Johan left Peter Capek for Anna/Nina to kill? If we run with the consensus that Johan took on Anna’s memories of the Red Rose mansion experiment out of guilt or because of Kinderheim, why would he leave it up to Anna/Nina to kill Capek?

Why would she feel the need to kill him?

It didn’t make any sense to me. So I revisited the episode again and it dawned on me - the meaning behind Johan’s words

“What am I? The monster inside of me isn’t inside of me, it was outside.”

He was revealing to Capek right there that he was not the “experimental monster” when asked why Johan was suddenly going against “THEIR PLANS.” Because Johan had corrupted their initial plan from the very start when he masqueraded as “The Chosen One.” that the eugenics/red rose mansion experiments created. (Which in its own right is deviously genius.)

it seems farfetched right?

So then, why was Capek in the next scene questioning whether he took the brother or the sister?

What made Capek question himself on something he did over 10 years prior if Johan wasn’t the one who forced him wonder?

The last person he spoke to was Johan. And if Johan induced this thought process, then that simply means that Johan knew from the start that he was not the one who was kidnapped and brought to the Red Rose Mansion.

To put it simply, if Johan was certain that HE was taken instead of Anna, their conversation would NOT have lead Capek to wonder if he took Johan or Anna. Johan would have killed him instead.

And then Capek CONCLUDED RIGHT HERE:

Johan tells Capek where to bring Anna and this is where Johan, for the first and only time, attempts to manipulate Anna/Nina and the fragments of her memories to complete his plan on ensuring Anna did not remember what happened to her at the mansion. He tells the story as his own, using specific words on purpose: “It’s MINE to tell. My own experiences of what I endured and told YOU about.”

Why else would he bring up this incident? It seemed so random to me at first that he started telling her his experiences about the Red Rose Mansion when they had PLENTY of other things to discuss. But he set up his plan from the moment he opened his mouth by bringing up how she welcomed him home after he returned from the Red Rose Mansion, as if that had been the ONE and only time she ever said those words to him despite living together after being adopted. He controlled the room as he had a goal he needed to achieve.

Out of all the times Johan successfully manipulated everyone he’s met, this was the only time he did it without any malicious intent and it is also the only time he fails.

Following his extensive plan, Johan makes sure Tenma knows where to go in the event that Nina has a mental breakdown. It’s safe to assume that if Johan succeeded in concealing the truth from his sister, he was prepared to die by the hands of Nina or Tenma as well.

But that doesn’t happen. Johan’s plan fails and it’s almost as if, everything he tried to achieve was for nothing.

“He was smiling but it looked as though, he was crying too.”

I always wondered why Johan’s expressions were so different compared to all the other scenes we’ve seen him. As always, in front of Anna/Nina – Johan appeared the most human.

With his failure, all that was left to do is kill the Monster responsible for it all – and them finally, himself.

II. The Tape Recording:

When Johan found the tape recording of his "interview" during his time at Kinderheim 511, he tells the interviewer that he was reading a picture book while waiting for Anna to come home. Johan remembered who gave him that book the moment he read it at the library and collapsed - it is what triggered the memory into finally recalling who exactly the Monster was by name and face; not just voice. If Johan truly did mixed up his memories about who went to the Red Rose, then hearing that part of the recording would have revealed to him that he was the one who welcomed Anna home, not the other way around. But this revelation doesn't hit him, because he always knew who went and who stayed at the 3 Frogs.

III. Explaining all of Johan’s other actions.

How does the rest of Johan’s actions play a part in this grand scheme?

1. Johan will wipe his existence, taking with him the dirty lie that he was the “Monster in the making” to lead the country: So he kills all of his foster parents. He tells Tenma from the start: “You must never know about the twins (he doesn’t say HIM but the twins) or the murdered couples” and this says a lot. He wants to make sure there isn’t a trace of a twin to the monster he masqueraded himself to be. No ties that Anna was a sibling to him. I wouldn’t be surprised if Johan gave the Fortners the idea to rename her. After all, when they were adopted by the Lieberts they retained both of their “original names” but when the Fortners took Anna in, they changed her name entirely and then Johan left.

2. Killing The Fortners: The author purposely shows her parents outside, talking aloud that they will tell Nina the truth – that she was adopted. Which would eventually lead Nina to question her true identity and I am sure they were aware of some parts of her origins. Anna appeared on tv with the Lieberts and their murder was a big fiasco all over the paper. (The drs also took, or tried to take a photo of the twins to put in the paper/media so I am certain they covered the twin’s story on the news after the incident.) Johan couldn’t have that because their truth would have ignited an uncontrollable flame in Nina into finding out her past. But then the author shows the pair deciding against it in the comfort of their own home. But it was too late. They had to die. I always questioned this because why would Johan leave Nina for 10 years to heal only to throw her back into the same hell?

3. Johan having Nina meet him at the castle: Since there were already a handful of people aware of how important Anna was to Johan, he simply wanted to take her and put her somewhere safe from those who would pursue her. The other points in this list will help reinforce who these people are. But throughout the show, Nina is constantly pursued and even held captive, despite her going to the Mansion on her own volition. The Baby revealed to Tenma that after they had no use for her they were going to dispose of her or worse. Which is why Johan takes the bait and meets with Geidlitz FINALLY, only to eliminate them all.

4. Opening the black markets and underground banks: Money is power. Money leads you to people in power. Johan not only needed money for his plans but he also needed to draw out the dirty, corrupted party he was after. Capek and the Baby discuss Johan’s methods in cleaning up loose ends concerning the banks so it’s evident that they operated with Johan. Now Johan was conspiring with those who lead the experiments at the Red Rose Mansion, somehow making them believe he was the one created for their “master plan.” The seed had been planted.

5. General Wulf: he was truly the catalyst to it all. Johan, instead of killing him; destroyed his credibility by taking out everyone who knew him. A man is only worth as much as his word. With everyone around Wulf who respected him and knew him dead Wulf will eventually become more of a myth than a person who actually exists. Did Johan perhaps “spare” him because he saved him and Anna’s life? Ultimately, it was General Wulf who told the others like Professor Geidlitz just how important Anna was to Johan. I don’t see how else Geidlitz, the Baby etc. got this information. Johan isn’t the type to divulge anything about himself to anyone. So, who else would have relayed this information to HIS party if not for the man who found them both on the border? I just think Wulf in general would hold a lot of merit towards Johan’s existence so he had to kill all those who knew him, so that his words became less and less of the truth.

6. Attempting to kill Shuwald: This boils down to destroying the economy that created the Red Rose. Shuwald was the backbone of the country’s economy/power. Killing him would have plunged the country into a weakened state and ignited war. But if war was something Johan wanted to achieve, then he could have easily worked with the Right winged secret police who sought for this in the first place – and would have helped him achieve this. With Shuwald being the center of the country’s economy, then it would make sense that some of his financial activities would include funding most if not all of the country’s experiments/government operated orphanages. The Red Rose mansion experiments were continuing. Killing Shuwald would plunge his enemies and their plans into the ground. The library incident was him initially attempting to claim Germany’s economy to restructure the country to be a place safe for Anna, as potentially waging war would destroy the plan set up for Anna/Nina when she was dragged to the mansion. Meaning, if Johan took the spot as the backbone of the country, he would have completed his façade of being “the chosen one” by those who conducted the experiments, there would have no longer been a need to pursue her or the truth should it came to light. (Was he going to let Christoff take his place after he died?) But after remembering Bonaparte, he sets out to kill him instead. I also believe he spared Shuwald after hearing Carl's story but that would have to be explored in another essay.

Johan erased everyone who was aware of the twins; those who knew Anna existed. If his goal was to become a ghost, why was Hartmann left alive – a man who was rather OBSESSED with Johan?

Before arriving in Kinderheim 511, the only one who knew about the twins was General Wulf. Hartmann never mentions her and neither does Christoff. I believe Johan kept his sister a secret up until the tape recording.

I found it contradicting that Johan never bothered to kill Hartmann. He very clearly deserved to get put down after all the horrible things he did. But, Johan was not out for revenge. None of this was for him but for Anna. After all, Hartmann never once acknowledged that Johan had a sister. The tape recording was done and left in the hands of the first head administrator. And what does Johan do? Johan goes all the way to Czech and kills him because not only did he know Johan’s one weakness, but he knew about Anna’s existence.

Johan then proceeds to, for some reason, kill everyone who is trying to get the tape. Why? If they knew what was the most important to him, then it would be used against him. Johan records over the rest of the tape that perhaps showed him admitting his guilt over Anna going to the Red Rose Mansion. The start of the tape has him saying “Everyone died there.” And Johan probably told the interviewer where she was taken from. Johan finally figured out “where he needed to go.” And then he burns down the Red Rose Mansion before Anna could piece anything together.

Which brings me to my next point.

I believe after reading the Nameless Monster, a book Boneparte gave to him the day he kidnapped his mother and sister, Johan remembered the identity of “The Monster.” and his plans shifted. Yes, he killed the Lieberts because of the monster. But Johan did not SEE Boneparte that night, he only heard him. And the sound of a voice from someone you fear is more than enough to trigger a fight or flight response. Johan knew he was the monster by his voice not his face and reacted. When he panicked and cried at the library, it was because he recalled his most painful memory, which we are shown in the final moments of the last episode. It was not Johan being dragged, but Anna being thrown away. I believe remembering that his mother was the one who made a choice AND HESITATED as well as the “Monster’s “ identity is what swayed the path of his plans.

I say this because we don’t truly know what memories were stripped from Johan after Kinderheim 511 and being shot in the head. Despite Kinderheim, Johan still retained the memories of his sister. Quite an admirable feat. We’re only assuming that Johan mixed up Anna’s story about who went to the Red Rose Mansion because Anna thinks she was responsible for making Johan who he was. Other than that, there is nothing else that points us to this concept.

( In some aspect, what she says is true*. Johan took on the role of the Monster to save her from becoming what she was tortured into being. )*

Reflecting on these points, I’d like to conclude that Johan sacrificed himself and chose Anna/Nina every single time. Every choice he made was calculated for Anna’s safety; down to killing that old couple out on the field. “I have plan.” He wanted to start over in a new country where no one would know of them. He had to kill the old couple before leaving for the border so that there wasn’t a trail for the monster; no one to tell authorities they saw a pair of beautiful blonde twins. Yet much to Johan’s shock/fear – Boneparte finds them at the Lieberts and that was the ONLY time he acted irrationality out of his own apprehension.

Was this martyrdom mentality spawned from his mother choice to throw Anna away? To the point where not even his own existence mattered? He took on the role of being her shadow, the monster in her reflection instead of allowing Anna to see herself as the beast in the mirror.

Nothing he did was ever within his own personal vendetta.

Looking at Johan from this perspective still retains the absolute horror of his actions, but also implements a tragedy that he was self sacrificing. A quote struck me after thinking it over in this light:

"A hero would sacrifice you to save the world but a villain would sacrifice the world to save you "

#anna liebert #johan liebert #naoki urasawa's monster #Monster anime #Tenma Kenzo #anime essays #anime essay #nina fortner #Johan and Anna #Franz Bonaparta #Petr Capek #anime twins #twins

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suusoh · 9 months ago

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Im so conflicted!!! Anna’s such a delicious concept but i’m so salty about Nina being insufficiently explored in monster and i feel guilty for enjoying Anna so much. I mean by all means Nina should’ve had plenty of her own batshit moments given her trauma and the fact that she doesn’t is a disservice to her and to us all. Ughhhhhhhhhhh

Look I love monster and naoki urusawa's writing. But if there's one thing. ONE thing I could criticize about it. It would be not expounding on Nina more. Like she honestly should have been the main character in my eyes. There were some characters who I've thought shouldn't have had screen time and it should have went to Nina instead. Like that's literally????? the other twin??????? like you're gonna drop a mirror analogy, make a theme about the effects of nature vs nurture, and then not- i don't know, SHOW MORE OF IT? OF NINA? If Johan shows the possibility of what could have happened to anna given certain circumstances, THEN NINA IS ALSO THE POSSIBILITY OF WHAT JOHAN COULD HAVE BEEN TOO. LIKE WHY DID THEY NOT PUT ATTENTION TO THAT.

Like it's fine if they don't want to make her main character, but it's a sin they didn't give her much... dare I say, depth. I feel like the fandom gives way more depth to nina than the actual source material. I know what they were trying to accomplish in that Czechoslovakia arc, but I still can't help but feel how repetitive their treatment with Nina was in making her just moan in pain and anguish over and over again. She really shined so much in that turkish district arc, that one episode dedicated to just her, and rurenheim.

I love dr tenma but I really do think that some moments of his could have easily just been given to Nina instead. And I do think some characters screen time could have easily been replaced with Nina time instead.

And to think the only glimpse we have of the monster "anna liebert" is just that one therapy session ARHGHGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

Like it may not be a fair comparison, but sometimes I can't help but think of Vash the stampede from trigun. Vash and Nai. Like that's what could have been for Nina!!!

Her character was so under utilized that I just wanna slump into my bed and weep.

#c.nina fortner #c.anna liebert #nina fortner #anna liebert #monster anime #suusoh answers

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robhorninginternalexile · 4 months ago

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2024 Book List

January

1. Trances of the Blast, Mary Ruefle

2. Falling Star, Patricia Moyes

3. Labyrinths, Jorge Luis Borges

4. Introduction to the Work of Marcel Mauss, Claude Lévi-Strauss

5. The Sweet Dove Died, Barbara Pym

6. The Prison-House of Language, Fredric Jameson

7. The Order of Things, Michel Foucault

8. Illuminated Manuscripts, Tamara Woronowa and Andrej Sterligow

9. Structuralism, John Sturrock

February

10. Immediacy; or the Style of Too Late Capitalism, Anna Kornbluh

11. The Dark Frontier, Eric Ambler

12. Macbeth, William Shakespeare

13. Michel Foucault: Beyond Structuralism and Hermeneutics, Hubert Dreyfus and Paul Rabinow

14. Don’t Look at Me Like That, Diane Athill

15. The Most of It, Mary Ruefle

16. The Archaeology of Knowledge, Michel Foucault

March

17. Henry IV Part 1, William Shakespeare

18. A Murder Is Announced, Agatha Christie

19. Shakespeare, Johan Gottfried von Herder

20. Literary Theory for Robots, Dennis Yi Tenen

21. Henry IV Part 2, William Shakespeare

22. Richard II, William Shakespeare

23. Lucy Gayheart, Willa Cather

24. Henry V, William Shakespeare

25. Mimesis, Expression, Construction, Fredric Jameson

26. Four-Legged Girl, Diane Seuss

27. Death of a Nationalist, Rebecca Pawel

28. The Flight From the Enchanter, Iris Murdoch

29. The Purloined Clinic, Janet Malcolm

April

30. King Lear, William Shakespeare

31. White Butterfly, Walter Moseley

32. Humanism and Antihumanism, Kate Soper

33. The Illusion of the End, Jean Baudrillard

34. Discourse on Method, René Descartes

35. Meditations on First Philosophy, René Descartes

36. Cambridge Companion to Descartes, John Cottingham ed

37. The Ordinal Society, Marion Fourcade and Kieran Healy

38. Much Ado About Nothing, William Shakespeare

39. Primer, Bob Perelman

40. As You Like It, William Shakespeare

May

41. A Midsummer Night’s Dream, William Shakespeare

42. The Ballad of Peckham Rye, Muriel Spark

43. Preface to Shakespeare, Samuel Johnson

44. The Weariness of the Self, Alain Ehrenberg

45. Harmonium, Wallace Stevens

46. Mr. Scarborough’s Family, Anthony Trollope

47. Computing Taste, Nick Seaver

48. Hamlet, William Shakespeare

June

49. On Shakespeare, Northrop Frye

50. The Taming of the Shrew, William Shakespeare

51. The Double Shift, Jason Read

52. Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare

53. La Vendée, Anthony Trollope

54. Mirror Worlds, David Gelertner

55. The Commercialization of Intimate Life, Arlie Hochschild

July

56. In Our Own Image, Fred Ritchin

57. Bending the Frame, Fred Ritchin

58. After Photography, Fred Ritchin

59. Cue the Sun!, Emily Nussbaum

60. Appointment With Death, Agatha Christie

61. The Friend, Sigrid Nunez

62. Libra, Don DeLillo

63. The Interpretation of Cultures, Clifford Geertz

64. Mimesis, Erich Auerbach

65. Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare

August

66. Antony and Cleopatra, William Shakespeare

67. Nonrequired Reading, Wisława Szymborska

68. Traveling, Ann Powers

69. Annie Bot, Sierra Greer

70. Regency Buck, Georgette Heyer

71. Coriolanus, William Shakespeare

September

72. Troilus and Cressida, William Shakespeare

73. Fools of Time, Northrop Frye

74. Bel Canto, Ann Patchett

75. Measure for Measure, William Shakespeare

76. William Shakespeare, Terry Eagleton

77. Shakespeare’s Problem Plays, E.M.W. Tillyard

78. Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare

79. The Merchant of Venice, William Shakespeare

80. Othello, William Shakespeare

81. AI Snake Oil, Arvind Narayanan and Sayash Kapoor

82. Passage of Arms, Eric Ambler

October

83. All’s Well That Ends Well, William Shakespeare

84. The Book of the Courtier, Baldesare Castiglione

85. Fables of Aggression, Fredric Jameson

86. Intermezzo, Sally Rooney

87. The Pleasure of the Text, Roland Barthes

88. Liars, Sarah Manguso

89. James, Percival Everett

November

90. Aesthetics and Politics, Bertholt Brecht, Walter Benjamin et al.

91. Protocol, Alexander Galloway

92. Sartor Resartus, Thomas Carlyle

93. The Unaccountability Machine, Dan Davies

94. Timon of Athens, William Shakespeare

95. Machines Who Think, Pamela McCorduck

December

96. Henry VI, Part 1, William Shakespeare

97. Henry VI, Part 2, William Shakespeare

98. The Triumph of Achilles, Louise Glück

99. All Shot Up, Chester Himes

100. The Saint-Fiacre Affair, Georges Simenon

101. Henry VI, Part 3, William Shakespeare

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aspoonofsugar · 3 months ago

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This may seem like a strange question but do you think you could breakdown the intro to Monster? Or just this one scene as it seems out of place from the other images we see in the intro.

It’s of a Bedroom that takes on a dark purple hue and is empty. I have heard it’s supposed to be the bedroom of Johan and Anna that they had or could have had, as it has two beds, but I’m not sure. It could also be the empty bedroom Johan always is shown to have ( empty like him).

Thoughts? Sorry if this is confusing

Hello anon!

You meant this, right?

To me the OP seems to show Tenma looking for Johan, while running away himself. As he does so, we see several places and imagery that become important later on. For example:

The vision from the doomsday

Bonaparta's drawing of the twins

The college Johan visits

And so on. There are also some symbolic shots like Tenma looking into a shattered mirror. The image you mention is difficult to point out. Maybe if we were to reread the manga or watch the anime it would become clear. I would say it is either the twins' room when Anna shoots Johan or maybe Tenma's room himself at the beginning? All in all, I do not remember, but it is probable a place that appears in the story :)

Sorry, I was not of much help, if anybody knows feel free to share!

#naoki urasawa's monster #asksfullofsugar #anonymous

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theartifxce · 2 years ago

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Through the Eyes of a Stranger

FROM THE JUICY ANON RP PROMPT HERE: (sorry this took so long)

The Copycat Killer

There was a man in the mirror - but the reflection wasn’t his; down to the hair that fell over the scar on his right temple. The pale layered blonde strands, the perfect bridge of his nose, the v-shaped structure of his face along with his sharp jawline – none of it was truly his.

Like clockwork, he got up every morning and greeted this stranger trapped in the glass with a grimace, burning his eyes upon the reflection that was his – but wasn’t really his.

His expression was always detached and mechanical as he stared into the eyes of a stranger. A rising hostility crawled along his skin at the sight of this invader.

His name was Elias Reinhardt.

He hated him.

But he could never destroy him.

Because he was him.

But he also wasn’t really him either.

While ignoring this broad shoulders and prominent muscular form – he saw the man in the marble he was meant to become. It had been etched upon his soul for as long as he could remember, drilled into him through every burn, bruise and drop of blood.

Carving up and mutilating his body wasn’t enough.

There were minor imperfections he corrected through mediocre means; like speech therapy and language studies and philosophy.

He had to play the part, perfect his craft for when the curtains fell.

Not only for his creator – but for the world.

‘He is me and I am him.” Elias reassured, drilling and reminding the ghosts of doubt that haunted at the back of his head.

Through the cracks in the mirror, he carefully put in his bright blue eye contacts, blinking out the tears before he gleefully witnessed the parts of himself he hated were concealed with little effort. Swiftly, he lifted his eyeliner to the outer corners of his upper lash-line and gently swiped its black ink with feather strokes in order to keep the look as natural as possible.

He took his ring finger and lightly dabbed at the darker earthly eye shadow tones and applied the shading just at the inner corner of his eyelid and outer corner of his lash line to give his eyes the appearance of depth. Finally, he dabbed some concealer to hide the beauty mark from beneath his right eye and set it with powder.

Once again he looked in the mirror and was washed with a wave of relief – it was funny how a little bit of make-up could really bring out one’s true features. He curled his lashes and applied very light mascara to bring out his boyish charm. It was only then, did he have the courage to gaze down at the photo tucked in-between the wooden frame of the mirror.

Johan Liebert.

This was the only photo he had of his graven image; the beautiful devilish angel he was meant to become from the moment he was born. Elias held it up alongside the reflection of himself, comparing every aspect of Johan’s features to his own and was soothed by the realization that he could actually pass as his twin brother.

But there was still a gaping hole inside of him.

He could look like the man himself – but what of his thoughts that plagued him during the night?

What song of lamentations cantillated within his heart?

It wasn’t enough to merely look the part – he had to become down to the fibers of his being.

His father’s words haunted him in the back of his mind, the constant teaching and lashings that had been scarred upon his mind and skin were now whispers that simply wouldn’t leave. He dropped the photo in a rush to place his hands over his ears, desperate to drown out his father’s unhallowed voice.

“IT’S ALL WRONG. HE SMILED – HE SMILED AND YOU’RE CRYING?!”

A child forced to kill in order to give birth to a Monster he never wanted to greet. The image gnawed at the back of his mind – the beating he had received for crying over the deaths of his friends; the heart he was forced to throw away.

“AH!!!!!!!!” He screamed in agony as he brought his fists against the mirror, shattering the image of that stranger along with it. He panted heavily, blood and shards of glass coating his pale skin. He looked up and saw only the broken appearance through the remnants of the mirror – and it was insane how at this small angle, he truly thought he looked like him.

But it wasn’t enough.

Of course, it wasn’t enough.

Because the cruel divine angel that spawned from the Red Rose actually had someone he held dear. The media soon learned that the Monster known as “J” had a twin sister. It took some coaxing through means of torture and blackmail; but Elias learned all about her; the one Johan Liebert was lost without.

The blind old veteran was quite the chatterbox. According to the old man, ‘the one who the little boy loved more than all – was his sister.’ It didn’t take much to bash his head in with his own kettle to cover up his trail. But the information he gave is what spawned his new obsession – Anna Liebert, or better known as, Nina Fortner.

Without his other half – he would never be complete.

That’s why he never felt comfortable in his own skin.

But there was one thing that simply did not sit right with him upon making this new discovery.

Johan Liebert was a formidable darkness in the underworld; the mere mentioning of his name would shake the most despicable criminals down to the bone. The demon with the boyish charm haunted in shadows in corners of the room he never stepped foot in.

How could such a Monster be capable of something as unreasonable as love?

She was described by others as the apple of Johan’s eye - but for what reason?

What hold did she have over him?

Elias’ father was never made aware of the existence of Johan’s younger twin sister. Johan, even at a young age, was always ten steps ahead of the world. He concealed the identity of his sister because of what she meant to him.

But what was she to him exactly?

Did he value her solely because she was the proof of his existence?

Was she just the extension of his identity?

The Nameless Monster of the West?

Was that the extent of his so-called ‘love?’

Could there be any other reason?

Elias could never truly understand Johan and become him down to the fibers of his being without understanding the core of all of his evil schemes that upon closer inspection, seemed to center around his sister. But Elias needed more information to draw his conclusions; details that would never be made public due to the government’s gag order on the infamous case of “J”.

The only one who knew Johan better than anyone - was Nina Fortner.

And so he danced along the cobblestone streets, admiring her from afar at first; the way her sun kissed hair danced along the gentle winds; her lustrous pink lips, the tenderness warmth of her voice whenever she spoke, down to the sky blues that was of her eyes – she was like an angel.

Her mere existence and presence felt magnetic, the radiance surrounding her pulling him in with the desire to get closer. He felt almost desperate to get noticed by her – to feel her soft eyes resting on him and only him. But there was another part of him that left trails of goosebumps upon his skin at the thought of what her screams sounded like. Imagining that gentle face twisting into that of bloodlust solely for him filled him with the same level of excitement.

Was it the Johan inside that stirred these emotions?

Or was it…him?

He acted as phantom, purposely meeting her eyes from a distance only to disappear before she’d approach him. Each time he did this, he placed himself closer and closer to her. The temptation was like a drug – what started out as a hard coded plan was now more like a game he enjoyed playing. He found the patterns to her habits; her coffee was 3 sugars and equal parts milk, a morning jog and how she worked herself to sleep over her desk late at night.

He had broken into her home many times before; never leaving a trace of his presence as he observed the little things that left the imprint of herself upon her home. She had plenty of photos with her friends, her late mother and father – but none of Johan. He laid in her bed and took in her scent, resting his head on her pillow only to open his eyes and imagine drowning in her deep blues as she laid next to him.

He caught himself half into the idea and sat up, coughing up the choke that welled in his throat from the emotions that creeped in. He tugged at the soft fabric of his black turtle neck as if it was responsible for his inability to breathe normally.

Finding out the existence of Johan’s one and only weakness did not bring him the solace he thought he would have. Instead, he felt even more lost and confused. Being her shadow was not enough. He wanted to understand in its rawest form, why a man of the underworld was chained down by such a dainty and impractical woman like her.

If he found out its truth, would it set him free?

He dressed in Johan’s attire, down to the length of his dark brown coat and waited for her arrival. The door opened and shut and he felt a tinge of excitement crawl up his skin as he stood, composed with his back to her as he peered out the window with his arms wrapped behind his back.

“Hello Nina.” He spoke her name with a refined soft tongue.

“It’s been a long time.” The words fell from his pale red lips like a caress before he turned, the shadows hugging his form in order to perfectly conceal his act. He witnessed from her expression how she was shocked to see not Elias but the ghost of Johan Liebert.

@xxxangeleyesxxx

#verse; another monster #au #ayo #sorry this took so long #and im sorry this is so long #I HAVENT WRITTEN IN FOREVER AND WRITING AS THIS ABSOLUTE MADMAN WAS CATHARTIC WTF?#Johan Liebert #This mirrors Johan and Anna #Johan and Nina

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leovoid · 3 years ago

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More I think about it, there isn't proof that Kinderheim messed Johan up. Right? Despite his fears on the tape, he never forgets Anna or the they being pursued. He never forgot the moms Betrayal (acorn game) so like why did we all think that Johan was destroyed by Kinderheim when all else proved he rose above it like an untouchable devil? Hmmm

Honestly, I think its people jumping to conclusions and the narratives execution wrapped around subtlety. Alot of what happens in Kinderheim is within smoke and mirrors, so we can only assume what has transpired and how it affected Johan, but I believe that Johan was not affected personally, he rose to the top and became its master. Most people watch it once and give out their thoughts, so its understandable that there would be inconsistencies within those thoughts. Perhaps that sounded pretentious haha I guess what I am trying to say, is that a lot of people tend to express their opinion after watching something once, and thats fair, not everyone will want to watch a series more than once unless they really like it But for a series like Monster, it HAS to be watched twice to pick up on little things that one may have missed.

#monster #monster anime #johan liebert #kinderheim 511 #naoki urasawa's monster #anime

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asfixiafloral · 3 years ago

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So let's say you DO get a boyfriend?

You're a freshman in high school. How would Johan take the news?

A drabble perhaps?

(🦋WINDSWEPT AU with @theartifxce/ HIGHSCHOOL 🦋)

Johan gently knocks on her door to announce his presence, "Come in..." Anna is too busy to look up from the mirror, she doesn't want to make a mistake while applying her eyeliner, once she's done she turns her head and smiles at him "How do I look? Do you think it's too much?" Johan steps inside her bedroom and locks the door behind him, he approaches her to take a good look at her face and feels his heart do a little jump, "You look beautiful..." He glances at her desk, there's make up products scattered all around, she usually doesn't wear any of it, but seeing her right now, getting ready for a date makes the pain in his chest grow.

"Thank you..." She looks away to stare at herself in the mirror, she can't handle the sad look Johan is giving her right now, and she won't question him either, it hurts just as much to think about it. She starts to put everything away inside her drawer and grab her brush to figure out what she's going to do with her hair. Johan walks away from beside her to sit in her bed, next to the knee length dress she's planning on wearing "Are you... really going?" There it is, she really didn't want to deal with this.

"Yes, of course I am... I can't just bail out on him... he's so nice to me, it would be rude of me to-" She quickly gets interrupted though, this one is harder to answer, "Do you want to go? Be with him?" Anna takes a deep breath as she brushes her bangs, "I am going" It's all she can say. She likes the guy, but she finds it hard to find a romantic connection with him. It's possible though, if she tries hard enough.

"Anna, you don't like him" This gets her to put her brush down and spin around in her chair to face him, "If I didn't like him, I would've rejected his confession Johan, I wouldn't be wasting my time getting ready if I-"

"But you don't, Anna" Johan says calmly, but she can tell he's slowly losing his temper "You're forcing yourself into something you do not want... why?" He stands now, walking a few steps until he's towering over her "I thought you weren't interested in dating, or going out with anybody... you told me that night we-"

"Johan" It's her turn to rudely interrupt him, she stands too, and even then he's still taller than her "What do you want from me?"

Johan freezes at the question, he hesitates and remains silent for a few moments before finally opening his mouth, "Don't go" He's not ready to tell her the whole truth right now, but he'll at least try to be honest right now "Let me take you out, your time getting ready won't be wasted then," It's hard for him to say the next few words, he hates how he struggles to speak his true feelings in front of the only person he cares about in this world "I can't stand the thought of... someone else taking you out"

"That's selfish of you" Anna frowns, but the she can't hide the heat on her cheeks, "But I..." Should she reject him? She won't be able to handle the broken look on his face if she does. Does she want to go out with him? Yes, but their relationship can't go on like this. It's wrong. But it doesn't feel wrong. Nobody is able to make her feel the way he does after all.

"Can't... I'm sorry, brother" She looks away immediately, "Can you please leave my room? I need to change now, or I'll be late" She crosses her arms, staring down at her feet to avoid seeing his face.

"Fine" He says, "Call us when you're done... and, be safe Anna"

"Thank you, I will be"

OoOoO

Johan sits on his bed next to his night stand, he stares out the window as his anger and jealousy boils in his blood. He picks up his phone and makes a call, "Hello" He says coldly, and there's a determined look on his face "Yes, she is going" Silence, "Yes, you already have your instructions... yes, call me when it's done" He hangs up, and lays down on his bed, hands resting on his chest.

"I'm sorry Anna... at least, this will make your first date memorable" Johan closes his eyes and waits.

🦋

#theartifxce #anna liebert #johan liebert #johan x anna #windsweptau #anonask #HE CALLED ROBERTO LMAO #hes going to ruin the date so anna never wants to see the guy again

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sinemoras09 · 4 years ago

Text

His footsteps echo on the pavement as he walks, the cold night air seeping through his clothes despite his thick sweater and jacket. He puts his hands in his pockets and reflexively remembers Czechoslovakia again, Anna's cold skin and her hand in his.

It's only when he passes a storefront that he realizes he's no longer smiling. Johan stops. In the darkness, the glass shows his reflection like a mirror, and he can see his true face. Tired eyes, a mouth that's set in a tighter and tighter line. He remembers reaching out a hand to his sister only to be met with screaming. The other half of himself that's still missing.

I want to be whole again. He stares at his reflection. His eyes widen slightly as he pictures Anna's eyes in the window pane staring back at him.

“How can I rest, when my soul is split in two pieces?” He touches the glass, his fingertips sliding on the cool surface.

-Excerpt from the fic, Shatter. Monster from Johan’s POV. Gen. Johan-centric, one-sided Johan/Nina.

#fanfic #fanfic excerpt #naoki urasawa's monster

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nanshe-of-nina · 6 years ago

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History Articles Masterpost

I was going the files on my external hard drive today and found a bunch of journal articles and dissertations I downloaded and decided to upload them for people who are interested. They're mostly about the Middle Ages, women's history, troubadours, the Soviet Union, and/or historical figures I find interesting because ... that's just how I roll. MEDIEVAL HISTORY — GENERAL

The Armagnac Faction: New Patterns of Political Violence in Late Medieval France – Timur R. Pollack-Lagushenko

Exemplar King and Doting Parent: Examining the Role of Fatherhood in the Life of Edward III, c. 1320-1377 – Nicole Harding

Harold of England: The Romantic Revision of the Last Anglo-Saxon King – María José Gómez

Jews and Cathari in Medieval France – John M. O’Brien

King Henry III and Saint Edward the Confessor: The Origins of the Cult – D.A. Carpenter

Memory and Collective Identity in Occitanie: The Cathars in History and Popular Culture – Emily McCaffrey

Murder, Mayhem, and a Very Small Penis: Motives for Revenge in the 1375 Murder of William Cantilupe – Frederik Pedersen

The “Sale” of Carcassonne to the Counts of Barcelona (1067-1070) and the Rise of the Trencavels – Fredric L. Cheyette

Stephen of Blois, Count of Mortain and Boulogne – Edmund King

MEDIEVAL HISTORY — WOMEN

The Anglo-Norman Card of Adela of Blois – Kimberly A. LoPrete

The Campaigns of Matilda of Tuscany – Valerie Eads

“Désirant tout, envahissant tout, ne connaissant le prix de rien”: Materiality in the Queenship of Isabeau of Bavaria – Yen M. Duong

Gender and the Language of Politics in Thirteenth‐Century Queens’ Letters – Anaïs Waag

Heavy Is the Head That Wears the Crown: Contemporary Reputations and Historical Representations of Queens Regent – Jessica Donovan

Isabeau of Bavaria, Queen of France (1385-1422): The Creation of an Historical Villainess – Rachel Gibbons

Negotiating Princely Power in Late Medieval France: Jeanne de Penthièvre, Duchess of Brittany (c.1325-1384) – Erika Maëlan Graham-Goering

The Piety, Power, and Patronage of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem’s Queen Melisende – Helen A. Gaudette

The Politics of Queen Philippa’s Mottoes: Five English Words – Melissa Furrow

The Reputation of the Queen and Public Opinion: The Case of Isabeau of Bavaria – Tracy Adams and Glenn Rechtschaffen

Studies in the History of Queen Melisende of Jerusalem – Hans Eberhard Mayer

Valentina Visconti, Charles VI, and the Politics of Witchcraft – Tracy Adams

The War of the Two Jeannes: Rulership in the Fourteenth Century – Katrin Sjursen

MEDIEVAL CULTURE

The Autumn of the Middle Ages by Johan Huizinga (review) – Max Staples

The Avatars of Orable-Guibourc from French chanson de geste to Italian romanzo cavalleresco. A Persistent Multiple Alterity – Philip E. Bennett, Krupina Zarker Morgan

Critical Analysis of the Roles of Women in the Lais of Marie de France – Jeri S. Guthrie

A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century by Barbara W. Tuchman (review) – Bernard S. Bachrach

Managing Medieval Misogyny – M. Wendy Hennequin

The Minor Trobairitz: An Edition with Translation and Commentary – Deborah Perkal-Balinsky

Poetry of Exclusion: A Feminist Reading of Some Troubadour Lyrics – Simon Gaunt

Private Desire and Public Identity in Trobairitz Poetry – Laurel Amtower

Writing Beneath the Shadow of Heresy: The Historia Albigensis of Brother Pierre des Vaux-de-Cernay – Christopher M. Kurpiewski

BYZANTINE HISTORY AND RUSSIAN HISTORY — MEDIEVAL AND TSARIST

Attacking the Empire’s Achilles Heels: Railroads and Terrorism in Tsarist Russia – Frithjof Benjamin Schenk

Kinship and the Distribution of Power in Komnenian Byzantium – Peter Frankopan

Lamentation, History, and Female Authorship in Anna Komnene’s Alexiad – Leonora Neville

Muscovy and the Mongols : What's What and What's Maybe – David M. Goldfrank

The Revolutionary, His Wife, the Party, and the Sympathizer: The Role of Family Members and Party Supporters in the Release of Revolutionary Prisoners – Katy Turton

RUSSIAN HISTORY — SOVIET

Agency and Terror: Evdokimov and Mass Killing in Stalin’s Great Terror – S. Wheatcroft

Between Right and Left: G. Ia. Sokolnikov and the Development of the Soviet State, 1921-1929 – Samuel A. Oppenheim

Bukharin and the Social Study of Science – Constantine D. Skordoulis

Did Stalin Kill Kirov and Does It Matter? – Matt Lenoe

First Russian Biographies of Trotsky: A Review Article – Ian D. Thatcher

“A Grand Bloodbath”: The Western Reaction to Joseph Stalin’s 1930s Show Trials as Foreign Policy – Jeffrey L. Achterhof

The Legacy of Lunacharsky and Artistic Freedom in the USSR – Howard R. Holter

Lunacharsky, the “Poet-Commissar” – A. L. Tait

Lunacharsky and the Rescue of Soviet Theatre – John J. Von Szeliski

Maria Spiridonova’s “Last Testament” – Alexander Rabinowitch

Marketing for Socialism: Soviet Cosmetics in the 1930s – Olga Kravets and Özlem Sandikçi

On the “Letter of an Old Bolshevik” as an Historical Document – Robert C. Tucker

Patronage and Betrayal in the Post-Stalin Succession: The Case of Kruglov and Serov – Timothy K. Blauvelt

“Socialism of Science” versus “Socialism of Feelings”: Bogdanov and Lunacharsky – Georgii D. Gloveli, John Biggart

Stalin and the Politics of Kinship: Practices of Collective Punishment, 1920s-1940s – Golfo Alexopoulos

Stalin’s Falsification of History: The Case of the Brest-Litovsk Treaty – Sydney D. Bailey

The Terrorist and the Master Spy: The Political Partnership of Boris Savinkov and Sidney Reilly, 1918-25 – Richard B. Spence

Trotsky’s Interpretation of Stalin – Robert H. McNeal

Tukhachevsky in Leningrad: Military Politics and Exile, 1928-31 – David R. Stone

Zinoviev: Populist Leninist – Lars T. Lih

Zinoviev’s Revolutionary Tactics in 1917 – Myron W. Hedlin

HISTORY — MISC.

Dark Religion? Aztec Perspectives on Human Sacrifice – Ray Kerkhove

The Empress Elisabeth of Austria and Her “Untidy” Collection – Beth Muellner

Isotta Nogarola: The Beginning of Gender Equality in Europe – Luka Borsic and Ivana Skuhala Karasman

Love (and Marriage) Between Women – Alan Cameron

Pari Khan Khanum: A Masterful Safavid Princess – Shohreh Gholsorkhi

#history #medieval history #medieval #journal articles #european history #russian history #french history #resources

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snarkyoracle · 6 years ago

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Best Drama *WINNER “Game of Thrones” (HBO) “Better Call Saul” (AMC) “Bodyguard” (Netflix) “Killing Eve” (AMC/BBC America) “Ozark” (Netflix) “Pose” (FX) “Succession” (HBO) “This Is Us” (NBC)

Lead Actress, Drama *WINNER Jodie Comer, “Killing Eve” Emilia Clarke, “Game of Thrones” Viola Davis, “How To Get Away With Murder” Laura Linney, “Ozark” Mandy Moore, “This Is Us” Sandra Oh, “Killing Eve” Robin Wright, “House of Cards”

Directing for a Drama Series *WINNER Jason Bateman, “Ozark” Lisa Brühlmann, “Killing Eve” David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, “Game of Thrones” (“The Iron Throne”) Adam McKay, “Succession” David Nutter, “Game of Thrones”(The Last of the Starks”) Daina Reid, “The Handmaid’s Tale” Miguel Sapochnik, “Game of Thrones” (“The Long Night”)

Lead Actor, Drama *WINNER Billy Porter, “Pose” Jason Bateman, “Ozark” Sterling K. Brown, “This Is Us” Kit Harington, “Game of Thrones” Bob Odenkirk, “Better Call Saul” Milo Ventimiglia, “This Is Us”

Supporting Actress, Drama *WINNER Julia Garner, “Ozark” Gwendoline Christie, “Game of Thrones” Lena Headey, “Game of Thrones” Fiona Shaw, “Killing Eve” Sophie Turner, “Game of Thrones” Maisie Williams, “Game of Thrones”

Writing for a Drama Series *WINNER Jesse Armstrong, “Succession” David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, “Game of Thrones” Emerald Fennell, “Killing Eve” Peter Gould and Thomas Schnauz, “Better Call Saul” Jed Mercurio, “Bodyguard” Bruce Miller and Kira Snyder, “The Handmaid’s Tale”

Supporting Actor, Drama *WINNER Peter Dinklage, “Game of Thrones” Alfie Allen, “Game Of Thrones” Jonathan Banks, “Better Call Saul” Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, “Game of Thrones” Giancarlo Esposito, “Better Call Saul” Michael Kelly, “House of Cards” Chris Sullivan, “This Is Us”

Variety Talk Series *WINNER “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver” (HBO) “The Daily Show with Trevor Noah” (Comedy Central) “Full Frontal With Samantha Bee” (TBS) “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (ABC) “Late Late Show with James Corden” (CBS) “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS)

Director for a Variety Series *WINNER Don Roy King, “Saturday Night Live” Alex Buono and Rhys Thomas, “Documentary Now!” Derek Waters, “Drunk History” Paul Pennolino, “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver” Jim Hoskinson, “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” Sacha Baron Cohen, Nathan Fielder, Daniel Gray Longino and Dan Mazer, “Who Is America?”

Variety Sketch Series *WINNER “Saturday Night Live” (NBC) “At Home With Amy Sedaris (TruTV) “Documentary Now!” (IFC) “Drunk History” (Comedy Central) “I Love You, America With Sarah Silverman” (Hulu) “Who Is America?” (Showtime)

Writing for a Variety Series *WINNER “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver” “Documentary Now!” “Full Frontal With Samantha Bee” “Late Night With Seth Meyers” “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” “Saturday Night Live”

Best Limited Series *WINNER “Chernobyl” (HBO) “Escape at Dannemora” (Showtime) “Fosse/Verdon” (FX) “Sharp Objects” (HBO) “When They See Us” (Netflix)

Lead Actress, Limited Series or TV Movie *WINNER Michelle Williams, “Fosse/Verdon” Amy Adams, “Sharp Objects” Patricia Arquette, “Escape at Dannemora” Aunjanue Ellis, “When They See Us” Joey King, “The Act” Niecy Nash, “When They See Us”

Television Movie *WINNER “Black Mirror: Bandersnatch” (Netflix) “Brexit” (HBO) “Deadwood: The Movie” (HBO) “King Lear” (Amazon Prime) “My Dinner With Hervé” (HBO)

Lead Actor, Limited Series or TV Movie *WINNER Jharrel Jerome, “When They See Us” Mahershala Ali, “True Detective” Benicio Del Toro, “Escape at Dannemora” Hugh Grant, “A Very English Scandal” Jared Harris, “Chernobyl” Sam Rockwell, “Fosse/Verdon”

SEE ALSO

Jharrel Jerome dedicates first Emmy win to ‘Exonerated Five’ Writing for a Limited Series, Movie or Drama *WINNER Craig Mazin, “Chernobyl” Russell T Davies, “A Very English Scandal” Ava DuVernay and Michael Starrbury, “When They See Us” Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin, “Escape at Dannemora” (“Episode 7”) Brett Johnson, Michael Tolkin and Jerry Stahl, “Escape at Dannemora” (“Episode 6”) Steven Levenson and Joel Fields, “Fosse/Verdon”

Supporting Actor, Limited Series or TV Movie *WINNER Ben Whishaw, “A Very English Scandal” Asante Blackk, “When They See Us” Paul Dano, “Escape at Dannemora” John Leguizamo, “When They See Us” Stellan Skarsgård, “Chernobyl” Michael K. Williams, “When They See Us”

Directing for a Limited Series *WINNER Johan Renck, “Chernobyl” Ava DuVernay, “When They See Us” Thomas Kail, “Fosse/Verdon” (“Who’s Got the Pain”) Stephen Frears, “A Very English Scandal” Ben Stiller, “Escape at Dannemora” Jessica Yu, “Fosse/Verdon” (“Glory”)

Supporting Actress, Limited Series or TV Movie *WINNER Patricia Arquette, “The Act” Marsha Stephanie Blake, “When They See Us” Patricia Clarkson, “Sharp Objects” Vera Farmiga, “When They See Us” Margaret Qualley, “Fosse/Verdon” Emily Watson, “Chernobyl”

Reality Competition Program *WINNER “RuPaul’s Drag Race” (VH1) “The Amazing Race” (CBS) “American Ninja Warrior” (NBC) “Nailed It!” (Netflix) “Top Chef” (Bravo) “The Voice” (NBC)

Lead Actress, Comedy *WINNER Phoebe Waller-Bridge, “Fleabag” Christina Applegate, “Dead to Me” Rachel Brosnahan, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Julia Louis-Dreyfus, “Veep” Natasha Lyonne, “Russian Doll” Catherine O’Hara, “Schitt’s Creek”

Lead Actor, Comedy *WINNER Bill Hader, “Barry” Anthony Anderson, “Black-ish” Don Cheadle, “Black Monday” Ted Danson, “The Good Place” Michael Douglas, “The Kominsky Method” Eugene Levy, “Schitt’s Creek”

Director for a Comedy Series *WINNER Harry Bradbeer, “Fleabag” Alec Berg, “Barry” (“The Audition”) Mark Cendrowski, “The Big Bang Theory” Bill Hader, “Barry” (“ronny/lily”) Daniel Palladino, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (“We’re Going to the Catskills!”) Amy Sherman-Palladino, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (“All Alone”)

Writing for a Comedy Series *WINNER Phoebe Waller-Bridge, “Fleabag” Alec Berg and Bill Hader, “Barry” Maya Erskine, Anna Konkle and Stacy Osei-Kuffour, “Pen15” Leslye Headland, Natasha Lyonne and Amy Poehler, “Russian Doll” (“Nothing in This World Is Easy”) David Mandel, “Veep” Josh Siegal and Dylan Morgan, “The Good Place” Allison Silverman, “Russian Doll” (“A Warm Body”)

Supporting Actress, Comedy *WINNER Alex Borstein, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Sarah Goldberg, “Barry” Sian Clifford, “Fleabag” Olivia Colman, “Fleabag” Kate McKinnon, “Saturday Night Live” Betty Gilpin, “GLOW” Marin Hinkle, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Anna Chlumsky, “Veep”

Supporting Actor, Comedy *WINNER Tony Shalhoub, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Alan Arkin, “The Kominsky Method” Henry Winkler, “Barry” Tony Hale, “Veep” Anthony Carrigan, “Barry” Stephen Root, “Barry”

Guest Actor, Comedy *WINNER Luke Kirby, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Matt Damon, “Saturday Night Live” Robert De Niro, “Saturday Night Live” Peter MacNicol, “Veep” John Mulaney, “Saturday Night Live” Adam Sandler, “Saturday Night Live” Rufus Sewell, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”

Guest Actress, Comedy *WINNER Jane Lynch, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Sandra Oh, “Saturday Night Live” Maya Rudolph, “The Good Place” Kristin Scott Thomas, “Fleabag” Fiona Shaw, “Fleabag” Emma Thompson, “Saturday Night Live”

Best Comedy *WINNER “Fleabag” (Amazon Prime) “Barry” (HBO) “The Good Place” (NBC) “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon Prime) “Russian Doll” (Netflix) “Schitt’s Creek” (Pop) “Veep” (HBO)

Guest Actor, Drama *WINNER Bradley Whitford, “The Handmaid’s Tale” Michael Angarano, “This Is Us” Ron Cephas Jones, “This Is Us” Michael McKean, “Better Call Saul” Kumail Nanjiani, “The Twilight Zone” Glynn Turman, “How To Get Away With Murder”

Guest Actress, Drama *WINNER Cherry Jones, “The Handmaid’s Tale” Laverne Cox, “Orange Is the New Black” Jessica Lange, “American Horror Story: Apocalypse” Phylicia Rashad, “This Is Us” Cicely Tyson, “How To Get Away With Murder” Carice van Houten, “Game of Thrones”

Structured Reality Program

*WINNER “Queer Eye” (Netflix) “Antiques Roadshow” (PBS) “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” (Food Network) “Shark Tank” (ABC) “Tidying Up With Marie Kondo” (Netflix) “Who Do You Think You Are?” (TLC)

Unstructured Reality Program *WINNER “United Shades Of America with Kamau Bell” (CNN) “Born This Way” (A&E) “Deadliest Catch” (Discovery Channel) “Life Below Zero” (National Geographic) “RuPaul’s Drag Race: Untucked” (VH1) “Somebody Feed Phil” (Netflix)

Reality Host *WINNER RuPaul, “RuPaul’s Drag Race” James Corden, “The World’s Best” Ellen DeGeneres, “Ellen’s Game of Games” Marie Kondo, “Tidying Up With Marie Kondo” Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman, “Making It”

Variety special (live) *WINNER “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear”(ABC) “The 76th Annual Golden Globe Awards” (NBC) “The 61st Grammy Awards” (CBS) “The Oscars” (ABC) “RENT” (FOX) “72nd Annual Tony Awards” (CBS)

Variety Special (taped) *WINNER “Carpool Karaoke: When Corden Met McCartney Live From Liverpool” (CBS) “Hannah Gadsby: Nanette” (Netflix) “Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé” (Netflix) “Springsteen On Broadway” (Netflix) “Wanda Sykes: Not Normal” (Netflix)

Informational Series or Special *WINNER “Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown,” (CNN) “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” (Netflix) “Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath” (A&E) “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman” (Netflix) “Surviving R. Kelly” (Lifetime)

Directing for a Reality Program *WINNER Hisham Abed, “Queer Eye” Patrick McManus, “American Ninja Warrior” Nick Murray, “RuPaul’s Drag Race” Ken Fuchs, “Shark Tank” Bertram van Munster, “The Amazing Race”

Best Short Form Comedy or Drama Series *WINNER “State of the Union” “An Emmy for Megan” “Hack Into Broad City” “It’s Bruno” “Special”

Outstanding Actor, Short Form Comedy or Drama Series *WINNER Chris O’Dowd, “State of the Union” Patton Oswalt, “An Emmy for Megan” Jimmy Fallon, “Beto Breaks the Internet” Ed Begley Jr., “Ctrl Alt Delete” Ryan O’Connell, “Special”

Outstanding Actress, Short Form Comedy or Drama Series *WINNER Rosamund Pike, “State of the Union” Ilana Glazer, “Hack Into Broad City” Abbi Jacobson, “Hack Into Broad City” Jessica Hecht, “Special” Punam Patel, “Special”

Short Form Nonfiction or Reality Series *WINNER “Creating Saturday Night Live” “Fosse/Verdon (Inside Look)” “Pose: Identity, Family, Community (Inside Look)” “RuPaul’s Drag Race’s: Out of the Closet” “RuPaul’s Drag Race’s: Portrait of a Queen”

Short Form Variety Series *WINNER “Carpool Karaoke: The Series” “Billy on the Street” “Gay of Thrones” “Honest Trailers” “The Randy Rainbow Show”

Directing for a Variety Special *WINNER Thom Zimny, “Springsteen on Broadway” Ben Winston, “Carpool Karaoke: When Corden Met McCartney Live From Liverpool” Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and Ed Burke, “Homecoming: A Film By Beyoncé” James Burrows and Andy Fisher, “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear’s ‘All in the Family’ and ‘The Jeffersons’” Glenn Weiss, “The Oscars”

Writing for a Variety Special *WINNER Hannah Gadsby, “Hannah Gadsby: Nanette” Adam Sandler, “Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh” Amy Schumer, “Amy Schumer: Growing” Matt Roberts, “Carpool Karaoke: When Corden Met McCartney Live From Liverpool” Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, “Homecoming: A Film By Beyoncé” Wanda Sykes, “Wanda Sykes: Not Normal”

The complete list of 2019 Emmy winners Best Drama *WINNER “Game of Thrones” (HBO) “Better Call Saul” (AMC) “Bodyguard” (Netflix) “Killing Eve” (AMC/BBC America)

#EMMYS #EMMYS 2019 #PRIMETIME EMMYS #The complete list of 2019 Emmy winners #tv

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cinema-tv-etc · 6 years ago

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A Viewer's Guide to The White Crow, Ralph Fiennes' Rudolf Nureyev Biopic

I caught a preview screening of The White Crow earlier this week at New York City's 92Y, and I have to say: Even with a solid grasp of dance history and a smattering of film studies knowledge, I had some questions when the credits rolled. The Ralph Fiennes–directed Rudolf Nureyev biopic dramatizes the events leading up to the ballet star's famous defection from the Soviet Union, touching on incidents from his childhood and his years at the Leningrad Choreographic School.

The meaning of the film's enigmatic title, The White Crow, is explained straightaway. It's a Russian term for someone "unusual, extraordinary, not like others, an outsider." (Aside: Has anyone else noticed Hollywood's tendency to name ballet-adjacent movies with a color and a type of bird? Black Swan, Red Sparrow, The White Crow...)

The film unfolds across three intertwined timelines

The triple-timeline structure utilized by Fiennes and screenwriter David Hare (who is admittedly fond of the device) means that we as a viewer have to work a bit harder to piece together what's happening. There are three different time periods in play: Nureyev's childhood, which stretches from his birth on a train in 1938 through his mother dropping him off at his first ballet school; the Leningrad years, 1955–61; and the weeks in Paris leading up to his defection on June 16, 1961.

Even as the film intertwines the three strands, each one unfolds chronologically (with the exception of the bookended opening scene, which features the interrogation of Alexander Pushkin, played by Fiennes, after Nureyev's defection).

Who was Alexander Pushkin? A black and white photograph of a young Rudolf Nureyev and his teacher, Alexander Pushkin, here smiling and wearing a suit and tie. Rudolf Nureyev with Alexander Pushkin

Fiennes pulled double duty on the film, not only directing but also playing legendary ballet teacher Alexander Pushkin (not to be confused with the famed Russian writer). As a teacher at the Leningrad Choreographic School (as the Vaganova Ballet Academy was then known), Pushkin shaped the leading male dancers of the Kirov for decades—and Nureyev wasn't his only famous student. Mikhail Baryshnikov, who, like Nureyev, ultimately defected from the Soviet Union (in 1974), also trained under the master teacher. "This man made me as a dancer," Baryshnikov once said.

In a scene from The White Crow, Rudolf Nureyev stands at attention in a ballet uniform as his teacher, Alexander Pushkin, considers him. Behind them is a mirror, in which other male ballet students are standing at attention at the barre and an accompanist awaits instructions at his piano.

Nureyev (Ivenko) joins the class taught by Alexander Pushkin (Ralph Fiennes) in The White Crow.

Fiennes' depiction of Pushkin's approach aligns with his students' accounts. It was "a delicate way of teaching," Fiennes said at the screening, in which Pushkin would suggest ideas or simply ask a dancer to stop and repeat what they'd done to allow them to find and fix their own errors. Baryshnikov described Pushkin as "a very quiet man. A father figure, to us."

If the dance sequences look great (which mostly, they do), it's because of a former Royal Ballet star. In The White Crow, Rudolf Nureyev, costumed in a gold costume and tights, prepares to turn during a performance.

"I don't have any interest in ballet," Fiennes said at the screening, going on to say that he was drawn to the story by Nureyev's "ferocious sense of destiny" rather than his dancing. "I'm way out of my comfort zone," he added. Though he watched hours of archival footage of Nureyev's performances in preparation for filming, the director found himself frustrated by the way all of the footage only used wide angles to show the full body, and was eager to play with camera angles and close-ups during The White Crow's dance sequences.

However, Johan Kobborg, who was brought onto the film as both dance consultant and choreographer, convinced him that the scenes needed to be shot to show the dancers' full bodies, and that the camera should respect the "front" of the choreography. "The dancers are very sensitive to how they're being filmed," Fiennes said. "Johan Kobborg said to me, 'Well, it's okay, but it looks ugly to me because I'm showing you a specific angle.' " They ultimately reshot several of the dance sequences.

Who is the older ballerina who requests Nureyev as her partner? In the White Crow, Natalia Dudinskaya, an older, blonde ballerina, and Rudolf Nureyev rehearse in the studio. Both wear practice clothes and are posed in releve, arms in fourth position.

Natalia Dudinskaya (Anna Urban, née Polikarpova) and Nureyev (Ivenko) rehearse in a still from The White Crow.

Unless you just so happen to already know this key bit of Nureyev's Kirov career, it's unfortunately all too easy to miss this detail. When Nureyev graduated from the Leningrad Choreographic School, he got multiple contract offers but ultimately went to the Kirov, where he made his debut dancing opposite star ballerina Natalia Dudinskaya. She was in her late 40s and within a couple years of her official retirement; Nureyev was a 21-year-old fresh out of the academy.

In The White Crow, Nureyev asks Dudinskaya (portrayed by Anna Urban, née Polikarpova) why she requested to dance with him. "I'll make you look talented, you'll make me look young," is her wry reply. (We couldn't help but think that this comment was also meant as a nod to Nureyev's later famed partnership with Dame Margot Fonteyn.)

Yes, the actor playing Nureyev is a real dancer. As quickly becomes obvious during the film's dance sequences, the actor playing Nureyev is also an accomplished ballet dancer. His name is Oleg Ivenko, and he's a leading dancer at the Musa Dzhalil Tatar State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre Company. Much of Nureyev's technical prowess and pyrotechnics are considered par for the course for today's male dancers, but we were quite impressed by Ivenko's attention to detail—he even managed to recreate Nureyev's distinctive arabesque line. He might not have quite managed the peculiar alchemy that made Nureyev such an explosive performer, (who could?) but he did capture the famed dancer's "mischievous hauteur" (as Fiennes put it) in his interactions with the other characters.

In fact, there are lots of dancers playing dancers. In addition to Ivenko and Urban (who enjoyed an extensive career at Hamburg Ballet and now teaches at the company's affiliated school), the cast also includes Sergei Polunin (before his most recent spate of social media nastiness), Bolshoi soloist Anastasia Meskova and Belgrade National Theater first soloist Margaryta Cheremukhina.

Did Nureyev really have an affair with his teacher's wife? There are rumors that Nureyev and Xenia, Pushkin's wife, herself a former dancer, had an affair after the Pushkins invited the young Rudi to live with them. The affair is shown in the film, and while Hare is convinced that they did, it's impossible to prove or disprove.

It is worth noting that similar rumors dogged Nureyev's friendship with Fonteyn, and there is some strangeness in the fact that the film is more preoccupied with this alleged affair than it is with its nods to Nureyev's burgeoning awareness of his homosexuality. The film does seem to assert, however, that the realization of his own sexual orientation may have been one motivation for Nureyev to leave his situation with the Pushkins.

"Are you always this rude?" Clara Saint (Adèle Exarchopoulos), the French socialite who helped orchestrate Nureyev's defection, asks him this question in the film. The answer: quite often, yes, as demonstrated in multiple scenes in the film, and worse. Nureyev had a notorious temper—Dame Beryl Grey, who overlapped with him at The Royal Ballet, made headlines two years ago when her memoir detailed instances of the dancer behaving threateningly or violently toward dancers who displeased him. On the flip side, he could be incredibly charming and sweet—like everyone else, Nureyev contained multitudes.

Easter egg: Natalia Makarova's name appears on a casting sheet. It's a there-and-gone moment near the beginning of the film: Nureyev checks the opening night casting sheet in Paris to find his name not listed. But a few lines down? There's Natalia Makarova. Though she sadly does not appear as a character in the film, we love that the filmmakers included a nod to the ballerina—especially since she defected nearly a decade after Nureyev and landed at American Ballet Theatre.

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randomnotesofmyown · 5 years ago

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Urasawa’s Monster (55-56)

Episode 55 - (Or, can I trust you?)

Temma went into a bar where Eva frequented and asked for her address, then left taking away someone else's coat.

He called the hotel she stayed at, the receptionist put him through Eva's room. No answer. Temma then asked for Eva's room number and got to that in person.

Reichwein and Vardaman in a conversation, during which the counselor asked if the lawyer believed in Temma.

Vardaman's decision to continue representing Temma made his firm a hot target for interviews by reporters. And Lunge even entered his office waiting for him.

Temma went to Eva's room and found that she was no longer there.

Vardaman and Lunge in a conversation. After telling the inspector he had no information on Temma's escape, the lawyer said he had no time to socialize and asked Lunge to leave. Lunge, ignoring Vardaman’s request that he leave, took out that nameless monster picture book and talked about its author, who used many pen names, one of those, Klaus Poppe, was a German name. And Lunge's investigation of that name led him to a discovery that Vardaman's father was an acquaintance of Poppe.

Lunge went on to tell Vardaman his discovery: Poppe would hold meetings with Vardaman's father at the Red Rose Mansion instead of his other usual meeting places, and Poppe used that mansion under the name Franz Bonaparte, a big boss in the secret police force of Czechoslovakia.

Taking Lunge's words as an implication that his father was a spy, Vardaman became agitated. Lunge reiterated that he only wanted to know about Franz Bonaparte, and left.

Vardaman got a call from his wife and was going to pick her up. As the lawyer started his car, Temma entered, pointing a gun at Vardaman and demanded to know where he took Eva and what they had done to her.

Clueless, Vardaman asked Temma what he meant by "you guys". Temma said he knew their plan to kill Eva, he and Baul worked together, and Baul was the person he shot in Munich.

Vardaman stopped the car, and asked if he could trust Temma, he then talked about his father, who was imprisoned for spy charges, got vindicated after he passed away, and turned out to really have been a spy. He found out about that while studying in college. In his father's notebook was all the details that proved his father was a spy, and he was a son of a spy. The details included coded text, records of communication with the Czechoslovakia secret police, and information of people like Franz Bonaparte...

"Did he mention the Red Rose Mansion?" Temma asked.

Temma then guessed Roberto must have wanted the notebook.

Vardaman was ransacked. There was a letter addressed to Temma, asking him to go to the Red Rose Mansion. And Vardaman found the notebook safe inside the sound disc cover and passed it to Temma, saying he no longer needed it.

Outside his home, Vardaman asked if he could trust Temma. The doctor replied, "You shouldn't trust people..."

And he walked away with heavy steps. Vardaman said to himself that he wanted to believe Temma.

Vardaman arrived at the hospital, cuddled his baby and left the hospital with his wife.

End of episode 55

Episode 56 - the never ending journey (Or, blending dark fairy tales with real life)

Temma started reading the notebook. He hitch-hiked a truck and said he wanted to go to Czech border, and the driver agreed to take him. Then he handed Temma a hamburger, saying if he didn't eat it, he wouldn't make it through the long journey. Temma thought to himself, "I need to end this journey already..."

Vardaman told Reichwein he would go to the Red Rose Mansion, and the two decided to get there together.

Nina remained in Prague, still trying to recover the suppressed memories. She walked around, saw a weather vane. Wind blew.

And she found her way to the Red Rose Mansion.

Together with Dieter, who tagged along, Nina went inside the mansion.

They walked to the room behind that dismantled wall, she pushed the door open. The memory of people died in that room returned.

Vividly.

Nina fainted.

A puppet show on the street. A protagonist killed a demon. No viewer was interested in that show. The man got home, and asked how Nina felt today.

After some casual talks, the man, Mr. Lipsky, said it was time he went to work. Nina said there was something she meant to ask him. Three months ago after she collapsed in the mansion, he found her and took her to a hospital. Why was he there?

Lipsky muttered something along the line he went there to get ideas for his puppet shows and then left.

After work, Lipsky was in his room making a new puppet. Nina knocked and walked in. She asked Lipsky what his puppet show was about.

"It's the story of a devil. A devil who leaves to find the dragon that threatens to destroy this world but almost dies in the middle of his journey. A young man passing by saves his life, though. When the young man learns the true identity of the one he saved, he goes after the devil. And at the end of his journey, the young man finds the devil, and with a knife in his hand, slays the devil."

Nina voiced her thoughts about what she would do and that she wouldn't let him do that. As a human, one would save the devil, she said.

Lipsky said he thought the story would be deemed interesting by him. The author of the picture books on his shelf.

Lipsky mentioned the name Franz Bonaparte and Nina had a flashback:

Lipsky continued talking. He mentioned the book readings at the mansion. Bonaparte would read a book to children, like, "'A deal! Let's make a deal!' said the devil. 'No! Absolutely not!' said the man with big eyes. 'Yes! Let's make a deal!' said the man with a big mouth. The man with a big mouth's yard became a flower garden. The man with big eyes became destitute and starved. The man with a big mouth was cheerful every day. He was full from all his ripened fruit. That is why he did not notice his flower garden was wilting away. In the garden where no flower would ever bloom again, the man with a big mouth cried and muttered, 'I should never have made a deal with the devil.' The man with big eyes was so hungry that he thought he would die. Shedding tears, he muttered, 'I should have made a deal with the devil.' 'A deal! Let's make a deal!' said the devil. --The man with big eyes, the man with a big mouth, by Jakub Farobek."

The book readings took place every Friday, Lipsky went on. And after finished reading a book to the children gathered there, Bonaparte would ask them if they understood the meaning of the story.

After the children got it, Bonaparte would take out another book, a book titled The God of Peace by Klaus Poppe, and said "Let's read this next".

Johan got inside the mansion and went into that room, saying to himself that all the memories came together and there he disposed of his disguise as Anna.

Lipsky continued reading The God of Peace. "The God of Peace is always busy. He is too busy to look in a mirror, and blows his horn every day. The God of Peace's horn makes everyone happy. The God of Peace is always busy. He is too busy to look in a mirror and scatter magical water. The magical water creates green mountains, ripens crops, and makes flower gardens grow. The God of Peace is always busy. He is too busy to look in a mirror, and gives everyone a name. 'Your name is Otto.' 'Your name is Hans.' 'Your name is Thomas' 'Your name is Johan.' Johan gave his hat to the god as a gift in return. The god was very happy. Because he wanted to see himself wearing the hat, he stood in front of a mirror for the first time. However, what he saw in the mirror was a devil. The devil spoke to him. 'I am you, and you are me.' 'Oh no! No one can live in peace with a devil like this! What should I do? What should I do?' So the troubled God..."

"I figured that out."

In a turtleneck (he wore one when he killed Junkers and again when Richard Braun died), Johan stood in front of the oil painting of his mother and said, "We finally meet. I'm home. Welcome back. It's me, mother. I don't think even you could have told us apart, mother. I am her, and she is me. I am you, and you are me. I understand everything now. Where we came from, and where we are heading. The weather outside is wonderful, mother."

He poured gasoline onto the floor, and lit a match.

Fire started. He left the mansion.

Nina replied to Lipsky's question. "I understood. The god...pointed the gun at his forehead!"

Flashback of Johan pointing at his forehead.

"Shoot me."

End of episode 56.

Comment. Can't really think of anything to comment on episode 55, some rough thoughts for episode 56 though.

Johan deemed himself not worthy of living, and became so fixated with this thought that he would burn down the places he once was, and kill the people who knew him, except Anna and Dr. Temma.

And it seemed that his way of thinking was heavily influenced by the picture books Bonaparte read to him. Questions for this 56th episode, what was the relationship between Johan's mother and Bonaparte? What made her decide to flee? Did she find those dark fairy tales too creepy and she wanted her children free from that world view?

For some reasons, this character of Johan increasingly reminds me of the Andreas Lubitz, the pilot who committed suicide by crashing a plane into a mountain, taking with him the lives of 144 passengers and 6 crew members.

#monster #urasawa naoki

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