#Tobey or Consequences

[fionacle]

Very long post so I’m putting it under the cut. Analysis of Tobey trying to figure out WordGirl’s identity.

When Tobey brought up “Cash or Pie” in the first episode of WordGirl (Tobey or Consequences), he was making a callback to the episode The Wrath of Tobey from The Amazing Colossal Adventures of WordGirl (the shorts about WordGirl before it became an actual full show), the third episode from the trilogy about the day WordGirl met him for the first time (the first two being Play Date and Tobey or Not Tobey). That show was on tv on the same day he accused Becky of being WordGirl, she used it as an example of a hullabaloo. But it might not have just been a callback for observant viewers, what if him confirming that WordGirl is familiar with Cash or Pie was part of him putting together that she is becky? What if he's 24/7 trying to prove that, even when not in an episode about figuring it out and being convinced he was wrong?

This happened once in the previously mentioned episodes of The Amazing Colossal Adventures of WordGirl, and once in WordGirl. It’s in my memory that in other episodes he’s been suspicious of Becky being WordGirl even if he doesn't make an explicit accusation, but upon rewatching episodes I thought had this happen, he simply makes confused remarks and completely believes Becky’s excuses, so unless it happens in other ones I forgot about, this may be a false memory. He is still, however. the only one who ever deduces that Becky is WordGirl, possibly because he is the only with a personal relationship with both, also he stalks WordGirl but it’s also a testimate to his intelligence.

You may be tempted to mention how Dr. Two Brains figured it out once, but that only happened because he made a giant ear to listen in on cheese-related conversations and accidentally heard her talking about her identity, it was by complete luck. And while Violet and Scoops have found out, both only did so because they saw Becky transform into WordGirl, and Becky admitted to it after being asked about it, they didn’t figure it out.

Tobey, however, deduced it completely on his own, and his 'Prove Becky is WordGirl' plans are always quite smart: trap becky with him while he has his robots attacking the city, which forces her into only having the options of revealing her identity and saving the city, or letting it get crushed by robots, but the in the latter the fact WordGirl wouldn’t show up would make her seem pretty dang suspicious anyway (see later paragraph). Both times they get out of it by having Huggy pretend to be her.

The first time they were in her front yard, close by in a small space where Tobey didn’t have his eyes locked on her, so she had Huggy go in dressed as WordGirl. This made him look over at Huggy, thinking WordGirl was there and Becky was still next to him, thinking Becky and WordGirl were both present, then she quickly flew over and defeated the robot before flying back beside Tobey as Becky, completing the ruse.

The second time, By Jove You’ve Wrecked My Robots!, Tobey was no longer a stranger to Becky, it’s almost scary seeing how smart he got, he took the time to go over every detail of their last encounter with the argument, he thought of everything. The robots were really far away, and Tobey was keeping his full attention on Becky. He knew trickery was up, so he didn’t take his eyes off her for a second, except for when he went to the bathroom, but that would have been an opportunity for Becky to transform into WordGirl, so if the robots had been defeated while he was in there he probably would have brought it up as further evidence.

He eventually brings up how he now has proof that Becky is WordGirl, since even though the city was full of robots, WordGirl hadn’t shown up to fight them, “…the only reason that she wouldn’t is if she couldn’t leave her own living room without getting caught by me!” He set up a situation where he had multiple chances to prove Becky was WordGirl, and any time things stacked up it only made it clearer for him. When Huggy was heard taking down robots while they talked (so Becky could again seem to be in two places at once), he CORRECTLY GUESSES the situation, “That’s probably just your annoying sidekick fighting my robits!,” and when Becky replies “How do you know?,” He replies, “Well, I realized that this might be a problem,” and we find out he even put cameras up on his robots, because he somehow figured out that last time Huggy had been involved. The only reason they were able to get out of this was by WordGirl and Huggy somehow figuring out he had those cameras, so while Huggy defeated the robots he put a wordgirl doll up to the cameras so it seemed like she was there. It even had a pullstring catchphrase, which helped sell it. A year or so of meticulous planning thwarted by a doll.

Watching the episodes Play Date, Tobey or Not Tobey, The Wrath of Tobey, Tobey or Consequences, and By Jove You’ve Wrecked My Robots! back to back really puts into perspective just how smart Tobey is.

I’d also like to bring up the added genius that this analysis reveals in the WordGirl fanfiction Saving Tobey by Night N. Gail (available on fanfic.net and AO3).

(Spoilers, by the way. It’s incredible, I absolutely recommended reading it, as well as its sequel Time To Go Home, and their technical prequel Captain’s Log which is really just a prequel to all of WordGirl so it’s not really relevant to the fanfic plot.)

------ Spoiler Prevention Line! ------

When Tobey finally actually found out WordGirl’s secret identity, he used basically the same tactic, but the differences were that this time they were in his house, and Huggy wasn’t there to help, which trapped Becky so much more and actually forced her to reveal herself. I won’t go into such in-depth analysis of how he did it, but changing the factors of location and Huggy availability being all he needed to outsmart her is incredible, finally he’s been able to think of every single little detail and he has her in his clutches. It’s completely understandable how terrified Becky was of what he’d do with the information, only a criminal mastermind goes to that level. But in this case it was just a smart little boy with a creepily obsessive crush.

Smart fucking author, I tell you. What an absolutely correct choice on how to have him figure it out. Read this fic, man, fuck it’s good. There’s a reason that guy keeps trying the same tactic, he knows he’s so close, so to have him continue it but get it RIGHT this time?! It feels so good. THAT’S the Tobey move right there. If the show had continued, even if it was overall written differently, I really hope he would’ve figured it out and done so in this way, it is so completely perfect. Do you even understand how much this fic and character and show matter?

[shokuto]

I hate when people blame Raimi Peter for the woobification of Peter Parker like he didn’t have the bold faced audacity to make out with another woman in front of his girlfriend on the day he was ready to propose to her

[llamaisllama777]

I Wanna talk about today's LAES episode!

Okay, I loved this episode and am pleasantly surprised by how mature most of them handled this, especially Lunar and Moon. Lunar knows he messed up, and he really has no excuse for what he did. He made a dumb mistake with MAJOR repercussions. He takes his punishment like a man and accepts it won't be easy to earn everyone's forgiveness, and it's up to Earth if she wants to forgive Lunar or not and that's fair.

Monty and Moon are rightly mad at Lunar, and while I think Monty shouldn't threaten to punch Lunar, it's entirely fair. That's just who Monty is. He's an angry guy and doesn't like it when people hurt people he cares about, so while he shouldn't have threatened Lunar, it is to be expected. Monty loves Earth. She's one of the best things that ever happened to him, and he adores her and hates seeing her get hurt and betrayed... again. While yes, it was an accident, it was a very poorly and badly timed accident.

We don't know if Earth is gonna be okay.

-Best case scenarios

They get all the negative star power out of her and she's back to her old self again

Or she's fine, but she just feels numb like Monty's arm did for like five months.

-WORST case scenario

She dies.

Monty has all the right in the world to be mad. Everyone here does. Lunar could have killed Earth! Or hurt Moon, or Jack, or Dazzle. They have all right to be mad!

I'm glad all of them still care for Lunar and still see him as a brother and don't want anything bad to happen to him. I'm proud of Moon despite the fact that he was very hurt by Lunar's words he still loves him. If this had been how OLD old Moon he would have torn Lunar to shreds verbally... and then maybe physically.

I'm proud he's grown from his angry past.

Sun and Solar seem the most sad to kick Lunar out, but they understand his actions NEED to have consequences.

I've seen some people say that it's not fair for them to kick out Lunar and say he's dangerous...

Guys... HE IS. Lunar is basically a walking BOMB!

Yes, Monty has access to dangerous weapons, and so does Solar and Moon... but they keep those away from Earth in places she won't find them or get hurt by them.

Sun has magic.... he can control it.

(when he's not having a nightmare)

While everyone in that room is dangerous, they're all careful. Lunar wasn't.

So, now he has to face the consequences. It's sad to see Lunar be separated from his family and still have no idea who he is or what he's supposed to be... but who knows, maybe this is what Lunar needs. Plus, if Lunar doesn't want to stay in THIS universe, I can think of one universe that could be a big help to him...

*Cough! Eclipse and Puppet's! Cough!*

This could be the first step in the right direction.

I get why people are upset at the Celestial family and Monty for kicking out Lunar... BUT I can't argue that they didn't do anything wrong. I think the Celestial did the right thing.

Actions have consequences both GOOD and BAD.

Also... does anyone else think Lunar's apartment reminds them of Peter Parker's from the Tobey Maguire Spider-man movies and Spider-man No way home. It just gives me that vibe.

Also... I feel SO BAD for Earth!

The girl has been betrayed by

-Her father

-Her brother (Nexus)

-Monty for not telling Earth about his crimes (They worked that out)

-And now Lunar!

Girl probably gonna have trust issues after this.

[phyrexian-lesbian]

tobey macquire’s peter parker attracts a large fanbase of toxic masculinity and supremacy, despite his spider-man story being riddled with the consequences of toxic masculinity and supremacy.

[ryan-the-dark]

Claire McCallister knows Becky Botsford is WordGirl.

I know! I know! Give me a second to explain and break this down.

In the very first episode of the series "Tobey or Consequences", Claire is shown to be intelligent enough to craft together devices to counter her son's robots.

This shows she's just as if not more intelligent than Tobey! There's the argument that could be made that Tobey made those devices but why would she make him? He would be able to program ways to short-wire them.

In the same episode, it was referenced that WordGirl calls Mrs. McCallister whenever Tobey commits crimes. Now I know this isn't much evidence, but let's say for this theory, she met Becky by now. This could be when she was suspicious because of how similar "Becky" and "WordGirl's" voice was.

If that ain't enough to convince you, maybe this will. In "By Jove You've Wrecked My Robot", Tobey tells Becky and I quote:

"And if you try to run off and turn into WordGirl, I'll use all the robots to destroy the city."

Now, if Claire's as smart as Tobey and we're using that for this theory, I'm pretty sure when she sees Becky, she'll put the pieces together in similar reasons. "The same hair color, the same skin tone, the same lips" as Tobey points out: "You and WordGirl are the same height, the same hair style and color... The same sparkingly smile. The same ruby lips..."

Now if Tobey put these pieces together, I think Claire, through enough time, could do so as well. I think the reason why she doesn't say anything is because one she has to make sure her son is punished for his crimes. And two, she respects WordGirl enough to not risk anyone who would use that information incorrectly to find out. The only reason she doesn't say anything to Sally who is her friend is because she either found out she doesn't know, think she knows and just playing an act and so acts none the wiser, or just don't want to ruin the current dynamic with the possibility that the Botsfords doesn't know. Another reason, she knows Tobey's happier around WordGirl and doesn't want him to be bothering Becky in her private life.

This is "Robo Camp", a fairly early episode, being season 2 episode 11. At this point, she was trying to push him to cease doing robot activities:

Claire: This is going to be an important trip for you, Tobey, because you’re going to learn to appreciate nature. And hopefully grow out of this silly robot phase.

Tobey: Yes, Mother. That would make sense, except that nature is a thing of the past! Technology and robots are--

Claire: TOBEY! No robots! I don’t want a repeat of what happened last summer at basketball camp... Or two summers ago at baseball camp!.. Or last, last, LAST summer at drama camp!... I mean it, Tobey! No giant robots, end of story! You need to be more independent, and learn to do things on your own!

Btw, I think the reason why they're not very close is because they don't understand each other not that she doesn't care about him or vice versa, but I won't get into that into this blog.

I can see Claire having a moment where she realizes: "Wait a minute Tobey's not happy around other kids. He's more lively around WordGirl and enjoys her company..." That type of thing. So she doesn't do much to try to stop him, not that she approves, but because she genuinely loves Tobey and values his feelings, even though she wishes he would stop with the robot attacks.

It would also explain the reason why she doesn't remove his robot privileges permanently. For people who follow abusive Claire, there's so many things to debunk this. Like in the "Talent Show Tobey" episode where she was cheering Tobey on and was genuinely proud of him until his robot destroyed the building. Given Tobey entrapped WordGirl into reading poems in this episode, you would think she wouldn't care about WordGirl. Well, do remember that it's not like Claire knows. She just thought WordGirl agreed, and was happy that Tobey was doing something she'd viewed as productive and WordGirl was kind enough to help him out.

(More happy Claire please! 💯💯💯)

In the "Guess Who's Coming To Thanksgiving Dinner" episode, she was trying to enjoy the holiday, and when he left, she was searching literally everywhere for him. When he came back, she was happy to see him.

(WE NEEDED MORE SCENES WITH THEM JUST BEING 😁)

In "New Year of Doom!" Tobey and Claire smiled at each other on top of a robot throughout the New Year count-probably the most touching moment between the two and shows she supports whenever he builds his robots just in a constructive way.

I think if she wanted to, she would scrap all of his robots. She literally could, but she knows she would end up breaking his heart. He would be broken because he'll be forced to quit similar to when Miss Power threatened to never allow Dr. Two Brains to have cheese again. She always gave me reluctant disciplinarian type of vibes and would never do anything that would break his little heart. Off topic for a bit, that's why I wish there were more fics about Claire redeeming Tobey instead of Becky because, while I'm all for Tobecky, I feel like that makes more sense considering Tobey pressed so many buttons and disrespects her, and Becky's still a child at the end of the day while Claire is an adult so her mind is wiser, he's her son, and has more reasons to redeem him. Most of all, WordGirl's one of the superheroes of the city and don't have any obligation to redeem any of the villains besides maybe Dr. Two Brains with the whole mouse brain dilemma. She could guide them, but I feel like she would be suspicious about Tobey's change at least for a while. One last thing, while I do like redemption stories, the characters themselves have to change. Guidance is different from forcing them to switch sides. Claire redeeming Tobey stories would allow more ground to be given if that makes sense.

That aside, now, let's say Tobecky happens, and they sort out their issues especially with Tobey's (there's plenty of them as Go Gadget Go shows) I can imagine something like this occurring when a teenager or adult Becky inevitably has to tell Claire she's WordGirl because let's be honest it would avoid a lot of awkwardness. I even see her telling her family eventually, but this is how I actually see it going:

"Mrs. McCallister, I'm WordGirl..."

"...I am not blind, Becky. Though I have tried to be, for Tobey's sake. And for yours. I have suspected things about WordGirl a long time ago. I have put the pieces together as he had, though we do not speak of it. I... pretend that I don't know. And I was happy to, because it made him happy. WordGirl made him happy, when nothing else ever truly could."

If a teenage or adult WordGirl series or some other thing that continues the show ever happened where this theory was true, how do you think Becky would react to Claire knowing that she was WordGirl?

This blog was inspired by:

[colorsofinquiry]

I am surprised by the random thought that hit me regarding both Tobey's and Andrew's versions of Spider-Man.

At the end of the original Spider-Man, when Norman died, he last words were : "Don't tell Harry". In a way, Tobey did keep those words, even though it might have been better to tell Harry. Why? Because keeping how Norman died a secret from Harry, resulted in the friendship between Harry and Peter breaking down to the point that by Spider-Man 3, Harry goes all out in his quest for revenge.

Similarly, in the Amazing Spider-Man, Captain Stacy makes Peter promise to leave Gwen out of his crusade. Peter tries to honor that promise but breaks it as we see him dating Gwen in the sequel. Now, he struggles with keeping the promise because it hurts Gwen, and he tries to follow through, and decides to break it and pursue her. It ends sadly in Gwen's death at the hands of Goblin.

Tobey's Peter showed the consequence of keeping a promise and Andrew's Peter showed the consequence of breaking a promise. And both events resulted in consequences that are heart breaking for them. In both cases, if the opposite action was taken, they might have had a different ending.

[pennyroks77]

ayy guys can I just talk about how much I love Tobey or Consequences

so first of all we have the Heart Eyes™ 🥰 so very cute

okay but Tobey is so funny when he keeps using bigger words than Wordgirl XD I told my mom "wow, he's just looking for a fight" and she said "don't you mean tussle? or brawl?" 💀💀💀

and the Claudius Templesmith reaction when the narrator reveals his "secret" crush

I died laughing when he dropped his accent at the end XD my sister and I think it might be the longest no-accent Tobey scene in the entire series!

now ppl get mad at Tobey for "cheating"...

first of all

Wordgirl did her fair share of cheating. she had no right to get too angry with Tobey. secondly, no one got hurt, and Tobey knew that no one would, because Wordgirl would swoop in and save them. so chill out WG

and of course

"UNSMALL!!!"

[bestwordgirlepisodepoll]

[scaryfangirl2001]

305unreal's "Amazing Colossal Rewrite" outline (crossposted with their permission)

Notes: Unrequited Becky/Scoops; Becky’s birthday is in the middle of summer; Tobey is an introverted roboticist but not a villain

2007. 5th Grade: 2-minute episodes

Summer: Movie trailer → Chuck! (1m-105a)

6th Grade, Fall: Down with Word Up → Swap Meat (105b-112b)

2008. 6th Grade, Spring: Granny’s Goodtime → Villain School (113a-123b)

Summer: Return of the Reprise → Dr. Three-Brains (124a-126b)

7th Grade, Fall: A Vote for Becky → Oh, Holiday Cheese (201a-219a)

Includes “Field Day with Robo-Tobey”

2009. 7th Grade, Spring: Ch-Ch-Ch-Change Day → Seeds of Doubt (219b-223b)

Summer: Wishful Thinking → Oh, What a Tangled Knot (224a-226a)

8th Grade, Fall: Kids Action News → The Straw That Broke (226b-309a)

Includes “Bummertime”

2010. 8th Grade, Spring: Nocan, the Evil Ingredient → Tangent Returns (309b-407b)

Includes “Cherish is the Word”

Summer: Have Snob → A World without WordGirl (408a-413)

Includes “Tobey’s Playground Calamity”

Freshman, Fall: Seize the Cheese → Say It Again, Eileen (501a-509b)

Includes “Talent Show Tobey”

Tobey is jealous of Becky being his boyfriend’s magic assistant; Tobey recites poetry while showcasing his latest robot

2011. Freshman, Spring: Hello, New Year → Dinner or Consequences (510a-513)

Summer: Rise of Miss Power → Who Wants to Get Rid of WordGirl (601-603a)

Sophomore, Fall: Talented Mr. Big → High-Five Sandwich (603b-606a)

2012. Sophomore, Spring: Robot Problem → Dr. Two-Brains, Mr. Cheese (606b-609a)

Summer: Kitty Cat Criminals → Go, Gadget, Go (609b-612a)

Junior, Fall: Emergency Plan 999 → Accordion to Tradition (612b-710a)

Includes “It’s Your Party and I’ll Cry If I Want To”

2013. Junior, Spring: Can’t Touch This → Royally Framed (710b-713a)

Summer: WordGirl vs. Tobey vs. The Dentist → Patch Game (713b-805)

“Patch Game” is also called “El Monte”

Senior, Fall: Girls Day Out → Trustworthy Tobey (806a-807a)

2014. Senior, Spring: The Tooth Hurts → Dr. WordGirl-Brains (807b-809b)

Summer: Tim Botsford, Neighborhood → Rhyme and Reason (810a-812)

[destinyc1020]

We have to remember that many of the Phase 4 MCU movies severely underperformed, with just NWH, MOM and GOG3 being successful. The Marvels just made $206M globally despite being the sequel to Captain Marvel which made more than $1B. That performance means that Disney shareholders were coming for Feige's neck and he had to pick nice and reliable nostalgia to bring back the Marvel fans. NWH, MOM and Deadpool 3 are all nostalgia fests with little interest in developing the wider MCU story. At least there's a link between Tony Stark and Victor von Doom as brilliant scientists and inventors. So Dr Doom can be seen as a Stark variant in which Tony uses his intelligence for evil. Avengers Age of Ultron showed how a Tony creation almost destroyed the world. Initially Dr Doom was not evil, but he started making choices that turned him into a villain.

Still I'm a little sad that the MCU has to rely so much on nostalgia. I still think that NWH would have been stronger with a more grounded story that explored the consequences of Peter having his identity revealed and being accused of being a terrorist. The government hiring Kraven as a bounty hunter to apprehend Peter "dead or alive" would have been brilliant. Instead we got nonsensical magic spells that contradict the logic presented in MOM and an irresponsible Peter almost destroying the universe to get his friends to their preferred university. But the logical grounded story would not have made $2B at the box office

We have to remember that many of the Phase 4 MCU movies severely underperformed, with just NWH, MOM and GOG3 being successful.

ONLY those 3 films in Marvel's Phase 4 were successful Anon? 🥴

Lawwwd... the "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" erasure!! 😩😭

Anyway....

The Marvels just made $206M globally despite being the sequel to Captain Marvel which made more than $1B. That performance means that Disney shareholders were coming for Feige's neck and he had to pick nice and reliable nostalgia to bring back the Marvel fans. NWH, MOM and Deadpool 3 are all nostalgia fests with little interest in developing the wider MCU story.

Chiiiiilllle....I know Kevin Feige was ducking and diving rofl 🤣

At least there's a link between Tony Stark and Victor von Doom as brilliant scientists and inventors. So Dr Doom can be seen as a Stark variant in which Tony uses his intelligence for evil. Avengers Age of Ultron showed how a Tony creation almost destroyed the world. Initially Dr Doom was not evil, but he started making choices that turned him into a villain.

I'm listening..... 👂🏾

Still I'm a little sad that the MCU has to rely so much on nostalgia.

Same 😔

I still think that NWH would have been stronger with a more grounded story that explored the consequences of Peter having his identity revealed and being accused of being a terrorist. The government hiring Kraven as a bounty hunter to apprehend Peter "dead or alive" would have been brilliant. Instead we got nonsensical magic spells that contradict the logic presented in MOM and an irresponsible Peter almost destroying the universe to get his friends to their preferred university. But the logical grounded story would not have made $2B at the box office

Yeeeeaaaaa.... the plot could have been a little better in NWH, but it was def realistic? 🤷🏾‍♀️ Plus, they wouldn't have been able to bring Andrew and Tobey back lol.

I do feel that some of the reason why NWH made so much money is due to nostalgia and the fact that they brought back the old-school villains from PREVIOUS Sony Spiderman franchise films, AND because they brought back Tobey and Andrew.... which, c'mon.... who didn't have a feeling that they were coming back?? 😏 There were rumors for over a year! 🤣

If Marvel goes with your "variant" Tony Stark" storyline, then maaaaayyyybeee I can sorta see it working out. Otherwise, they'd have to explain that. ���

Even if they used prosthetics to change RDJ's face, I'd still need him to SEVERELY change his voice smthg drastic or smthg 🤣, coz all I'd be hearing is Tony Stark/Ironman in my head. 😩

He played that character for like 10 years! 🥴 He (and his voice) is forever associated with it. 🤷🏾‍♀️

He would have to do a voice synthesizer like Darth Vader or smthg rofl 🤣

[fionacle]

All Tobey episodes in order with their seasons & episode numbers (lmk if I missed any):

Tobey or Consequences (s1 e1)

Book Ends (s1 ep6)

Tobey's Masterpiece (s1 ep8)

Department Store Tobey (s1 ep11)

Princess Triana and the Ogre of Castlebum (s1 ep14)

Have You Seen the Remote? (s1 ep18)

Mousezilla (s1 ep 23)

Tobey Goes Good (s1 ep 25)

A Vote For Becky (s2 ep1)

Field Day Fun with Robo-Tobey (s2 ep2)

Robo-Camping (s2 ep10)

Monkey-Robot Showdown (s2 ep12)

Tobey's Tricks and Treats (s2 ep17)

Bummertime (s3 ep1)

Cherish is the Word (s3 ep10)

Bampy Battles Bots (s3 ep11)

Mobot Knows Best (s3 ep12)

By Jove, You've Wrecked My Robot (s3 ep 26)

Talent Show Tobey (s4 ep 5)

Tobey's Playground Calamity (s4 ep9)

WordBot (s4 ep12)

Win a Day with WordGirl (s4 ep12)

The Rise of Miss Power (s4 ep14-15)

The Robot Problem (s4 ep19)

Go Gadget Go (s4 ep25)

It's Your Party and I'll Cry if I Want To (s5 ep1)

Guess Who's Coming To Thanksgiving Dinner (s5 ep9)

Best Fan Club Meeting Ever (s5 ep10)

WordGirl vs. Tobey vs. The Dentist (s5 ep13)

Patch Game (s5 ep18)

Trustworthy Tobey (s5 ep20)

[spider-stark]

I could already imagine a story that our Peters had a love in common and that would have consequences when they met in NWH, it must be something very emotional and you brought what I imagined brilliantly with Infinitely You. I can say that I enjoyed Reader's story with all the Peters, but I secretly have a preference for Pete. Tobey Maguire is just great and adorable as Peter Parker to me and his connection with Reader impacted me that little bit more.

i agree with you!

after watching no way home i couldn't stop imagining what it would be like for all three of them to be in love with the same person in their respective universes. more than that, i wanted to explore the thought of what it would be like for them (pete and parker) to have lost the reader in their world and then suddenly be flung into a universe where she not only exists but also one where they get a second chance to save her.

and ugh. pete <3 my precious bb. i love tobey's peter so much, and i do look forward to being able to expand a little more on their relationship, especially now that the reader has learned a little bit more about parker's universe that might cause a bit of a riff in their friendship!

anyways, i'm rambling now haha i love you and thank you for reading and enjoying my story!!<3 :)

[your-pal-nebula]

Since I made the "Rip OCswap, the dead AU" post, I have decided to create this so try and revive the AU

OCswap incorrect quote compilation

-----

Silver Botsford: So, how many genders are there?

Victoria Worst: I dunno. I just got here.

Cori Best: Oh, I just learned. There's, like, fifty-eight.

Becky Boxleitner: Probably at least a million, I would think.

Theodore "Tobey" Everwood III: ONE.

Marleen "Mari" Mccallister: How many judges? Supreme Court or what?

Silver Botsford: ...Yeah.

Mari Mccallister: Supreme Court, there are-

-----

Shop Employee: What do you want the cake to say?

Becky Boxleitner, on the phone with all the other Kid Villains: Vic, Mari, Cori, Eileen, Royal Dandy, Chazz, do any of you want a talking cake?

-----

Tobey Everwood: I like writing on walls. Fuck you, society -Tobey

Silver Botsford: Tobey, this is actually a door, not a wall. Regards, Society

-----

Victoria Worst: Why do we have to go to school and learn things, the only skill we need in life is the power of lesbianism

-----

Becky Boxleitner: Silver, ask me what kind of tree I have

Silver Botsford: No.

Becky Boxleitner: Ask me what kind of tree I have

Silver Botsford: No.

Becky Boxleitner: It's a Chris Pine

-----

Mari Mccallister: “Ladies and gentlemen” is unnecessarily gendered, overly formal, lengthy, and honestly, I’m falling asleep already. “Cowards” on the other hand, is inclusive to all genders, to the point, and dramatic.

-----

Cori Best: I love being right. It's one of my favorite personality traits.

-----

Victoria Worst: Accidentally indulged in too much "me time," turns out I've been missing for six months and presumed dead by the whole city and the other Kid Villains

-----

Mari Mccallister, bleeding out on the floor: Blood loss? No, I know exactly where it is.

-----

Tobey Everwood: Well well well, if it isn't the consequences of my actions.

-----

Becky Boxleitner: Blackmail is such an ugly word. I prefer "Extortion."

-----

[hawkogurl]

I am bad at specifics (as you can see) so do you have anything about Peter mutation I think in the movie most of it was a dream sequence, but I was wondering if you had any thoughts on it as well as Peter and Harry fighting when Peter had Venom I think Peter was lying on the same couch he placed Normans body on. Finally the Picture of all three of them skating.

Just got off work so pardon my exhaustion

In order

1-the spider bite and transformation for Peter is a fairly obvious symbol for adulthood and coming of age. I think choosing Tobey Maguire, a fairly baby faced actor, was smart here, because they got to utilize the dichotomy of having Peter look very young and nonthreatening and for lack of a better word “innocent��� to have him seem more on the, for back of a better wording, earlier side of the child to adult coming of age arc. Whereas post bite, he’s physically stronger and visibly more muscular, something that can often be used to symbolize a character maturing in a lot of media that shows younger male characters aging.

Whats more, on the note of the spider bite as coming of age, it’s the catalyst for a significant amount of emotional development. After that point, through enduring extremely severe consequences for what seem like small mistakes (Uncle Ben), Peter is forced to mature very rapidly. As a result he becomes more empathetic, kinder, and iconically more responsible. As a result of the bite, Peter goes through the experiences that shape him into an adult over the course of the trilogy. A more basic analysis but I think it gets the point across especially for a topic I haven’t really thought about in depth.

But a little known fact about this plotline is how much more explicitly it’s executed in that one script with Leonardo DiCaprio as Peter. (This script is AWFUL by the way. It’s so bad.) In that, Peter has some wild ass dreams right after the spider bite and uh. Wakes up with some ~white sticky stuff~ attaching him to his sheets! That’s right baby, we got a wet dream metaphor for no fucking reason.

2-the scene in the movie did not have Peter laying on the lounge Norman’s body has been placed on, that was an alternate scene that was filmed and used in the directors cut. Wish they’d used it though! I personally find this one fascinating because I think it’s a good example of how symbioted up Peter just immediately slid into wanting to hurt Peter. I think it’s a pretty interesting way to show the symbiote intensifying some vindictiveness that’s present in Peter’s character once you peel the layers away, especially novelization Peter.

Like… in the novels this is the line.

Telling Harry he’s unloveable is a bit above what he said in the movies. It’s awful and sadistic and I love it and think it should have been in them. I think that comment about Norman in particular is wonderful because it rings true. I know that Raimi Norman has been sort of aggressively woobified and stripped of responsibility for being a classist misogynistic child abuser by our post no way home world, but he’s a bastard and I could probably write thousands of words explaining how Harry being unable to process and accept that Norman was a neglectful and abusive father contributes to why he’s so insistent on pursuing revenge even once he knows Norman was a maniacal mass murderer who nearly murdered both himself and MJ.

Another thing that I find interesting here is like… it’s remarkably easy to argue Peter was absolutely trying to cause Harry physical harm, perhaps to the degree of actually just trying to kill him. He threw a fucking bomb at Harry for crying out loud! This ends up giving me this odd impressions that, especially with him recovering from third degree burns across half his body in about 72 hours, Harry is extremely durable. Human crash test dummy. Makes more sense that Harry seemed to get a concussion from a head injury that should have snapped his neck earlier in the third movie once you take this into account.

Also there’s a crucifixion shot in this scene which I think is wonderful. Harry the hanged man tarot card real.

My absolute favorite part of this scene is an instance of the classic raimi trilogy trope: Harry trying to pretend like he’s attracted to women always makes him act like a goddamn space alien.

3-So we don’t really know a ton about this photo. It’s likely this was taken between sm1 and sm2, especially based on the state of Harry’s hair color and texture. However, one thing that destroys me here is that the cracked glass when Harry picks it up is dividing Harry and Peter. Originally, the scene with the butler isn’t in here and Harry only found the photo and that’s what motivated him to go help. I wish they’d kept it in there. It’s more powerful if it’s motivated internally. Also, see prior comments on why Harry clung to revenge so deeply. Harry would have been making the choice to defend the people who truly loved him with his life instead of mindlessly pursuing revenge he didn’t want because he thought it would make his abuser happy. Also would have been better because it would nail home the idea that Harry wasn’t an evil or malicious person, he was just like, hurting and severely mentally ill and probably actively experiencing psychosis for most of that from the looks of it. Using the butler sucked.

[dionaeafl]

Ugetsu Mizoguchi Kenji Neil McInnis JPN3391

Kenji Mizoguchi's 1953 masterpiece, Ugetsu, weaves a haunting tapestry of war, greed, and love amidst the turbulence of 16th century Japan. Drawing inspiration from two tales penned by Ueda Akinari, the film seamlessly blends the stark realities of wartime hardship with ethereal encounters with the supernatural. Through the lives of two impoverished potters, Genjuro and Tobei, and their wives, Miyagi and Ohama, Ugetsu delves into the human capacity for both immense sacrifice and devastating ambition.

The narrative unfolds against the backdrop of the brutal Sengoku period, where war casts a long shadow across the lives of ordinary people. Genjuro and Tobei, driven by dreams of escaping their dire poverty, readily succumb to opportunities that promise prosperity. Genjuro, lured by the enchanting apparition of Lady Wakasa, embarks on a perilous journey, his artistic dreams morphing into an insatiable desire for wealth. Meanwhile, Tobei abandons his pottery craft, seeking glory and status by joining the ruthless warlord's ranks.

Mizoguchi's camera lingers on the devastating consequences of their choices. War's brutality unfolds in harrowing scenes: villages pillaged, families torn apart, and innocent lives shattered. Genjuro's obsession with Lady Wakasa, revealed as a vengeful spirit, leads him down a path of self-destruction, his artistic talent exploited for her own malicious ends. Tobei, blinded by ambition, commits atrocities in the name of his newfound power, losing his humanity in the process.

Throughout the film, the unwavering strength and resilience of the women stand in stark contrast to the men's fallibility. Miyagi and Ohama, left to fend for themselves in the face of war and abandonment, embody the true meaning of sacrifice and devotion. Their quiet determination to protect their families and preserve their dignity forms the emotional core of the film.

Mizoguchi's masterful use of visuals heightens the film's emotional impact. Long, eloquent tracking shots evoke a sense of unease and vulnerability, mirroring the characters' precarious situation. The film's stark yet breathtaking beauty, evident in the landscapes and the delicate brushstrokes of Genjuro's ceramics, underscores the tragedy unfolding within its frame.

Ugetsu's true power lies in its exploration of universal themes. The narrative transcends its historical setting, reminding us of the destructive nature of greed, the allure of illusion, and the enduring power of love and compassion. It delves into the complexities of human nature, showcasing our capacity for both immense good and devastating folly.

While the film ends on a note of melancholic resignation, there's a glimmer of hope. As Miyagi and Ohama find solace in each other, their unwavering connection serves as a testament to the human spirit's ability to endure even in the face of profound loss. Ugetsu thus emerges as a poignant reflection on the human condition, leaving us with a lasting impression of the beauty and fragility of life amidst the chaos of war and the temptations of personal ambition.

[noahjo]

Ugetsu

This is a strange one for me that confused and frustrated me more and more as the film continued. The men characters were infuriating, and stupid, being the literal representation of greed and its influence on man. Set in the 16th century during a time of civil war, Genjuro, his wife Miyagi, and their child Genkichi live in relative in a village. Genjuro is a farmer but crafts pottery on the side with his wife’s help. Despite being warned to prepare for the inevitable attack on their home from the invading samurai, Genjuro’s greed rules his mind when he decides to travel with his brother-in-law Tobei and sister Ohama to Nagahama to make money. This is the first dumb move. Genjuro leaves his wife and kid behind so they can find shelter because of the threat of pirates. As shown later Miyagi is killed by samurai anyway, leaving your defenseless wife out in war-torn lands is a level of stupidity I wasn’t expecting. With the money that Genjuro ends up collecting anyway, they could have survived comfortably for a while in Nagahama. Tobei wants to be a samurai desperately and does so at the expense of his poor wife who is raped by soldiers and becomes a prostitute. The level of hatred I have for Genjuro and Tobei…

The movie not only showcases the dangers of greed and how long it takes for people to notice what they have taken for granted, but it also shows the negatives of the patriarchy and the violence of men. The women are all victims of the actions of men, including the spirit lady Wakasa. The wives of Genjuro and Tobei suffer greatly because of the actions of their husbands, and Wakasa is killed due to the war that her Daimyo father was a part of.

The structure of the plot felt off at times due to the film jumping between Genjuro and Tobei story. Tobei’s story was much less interesting as he wants to become a samurai. And when he does realize the errors of this ways, not a single consequence is dealt to him specifically. Ohama suffered but Tobei keeps his wife and happily turns back to his life. It was largely uninteresting and not fun to watch. The Genjuro story was much more interesting as it slowly became a ghost story. He meets the last surviving member of a clan who is in love with him and his pottery. As he’s “seduced” into marrying Wakasa, the truth behind her origin.

One huge positive is the scenes, one in particular that confirmed my Wakasa was a spirit. Although nothing is out of the ordinary, the camera angle and the way she walks behind is ominous as if foreshadowing the reveal.