#WHEN THE SCORE PLAYED AT THE END OF THE TRAILER I JUMPED UP

[twinsunstars]

im nervous but excited

[agentnico]

Agatha All Along - season 1 (2024) review

Down down, down the road, down the Witches Road…

Plot: A spell-bound Agatha Harkness regains freedom thanks to a teen's help. Intrigued by his plea, she embarks on the Witches' Road trials to reclaim her powers and discover the teen's motivations.

I’m not going to waffle about my complaints with the current state of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I’ve already rambled on a substantial amount in my previous reviews regarding this subject matter, so let’s leave it at the fact that my opinion and thoughts have not changed. That being said, WandaVision was one of the few enjoyable projects in the post-Endgame MCU era, as it had that original and unique flavour with messing with different television formats, and additionally was interesting in how that show explored the effects of trauma and grief. Naturally due to its success, Disney being Disney and Marvel being Marvel meant a sequel or a spin-off was inevitable. In this case it’s Agatha Harkness, who was played with a lot of funky energy by Kathryn Hahn in WandaVision. As enjoyable as she was, I never considered her to need her own show. I guess really anyone can get their own Disney+ series these days!

Kathryn Hahn is the primary reason to watch Agatha All Along. She’s as enjoyable as ever, cackling and wincing her way through each episode, and it was entertaining to constantly question her moral code, if she’s a villain or if she was turning to the good side. Hahn is great, and I am so glad she’s getting the recognition snd good roles now. As for other cast members, they are okay. Joe Locke as the teen came off a little pretentious, and Patti LuPone was the only witch I actually cared about. Aubrey Plaza as the mysterious Rio ends up being exactly what you expect her to be, and though Plaza nails the sarcasm, it’s nothing you haven’t seen her do before.

In regard to the series’ style, it’s really campy. The trailers in my opinion promised more horror aspects which were not present in the final product, but my main complaint is with the show’s look. It feels cheap. From the costumes to the sets, the whole thing is reminiscent of a CW or SyFy show, and you can tell Disney is probably tightening their budgets following the backlash of recent releases. But with something like Marvel you still expect to see something of visually interesting style, especially as they are sourcing a lot of narratives from comics and graphic novels, which one would assume would inspire more colourful and memorable set pieces. Unfortunately this show doesn’t offer any of that. The best you get is some rip-off witch costumes from other Disney projects, which I felt was more so for Disney to show-off how much Hollywood they own.

As for the narrative, for the most part this show is dull. It’s a very repetitive concept where in every episode our witches take on yet another trial, and though some trials do stand out more than others (episode 7 where a character time-jumps using tarot cards was particularly memorable) as a combined package it meant that catching up every week with a new episode was at times a chore. The other infuriating factor was the endless foreshadowing. This show consistently would bash you over the head with clues of what’s to come, but the clues were so predictable that when the reveals finally did pay-off they were not surprising even remotely. Reminded me a little of that Walk Hard segment where the kid says “ain’t nothing bad gonna happen today” only for him to get spliced in two 5 minutes later.

Superhero fatigue is real everyone! It’s happening! I’m kidding of course, I’m still holding out hope that Marvel and DC will get back to their former glory, but evidently there is still a long ways to go. Agatha All Along didn’t do it for me, however I do admit that Witches Road song is a banger and has been stuck in my head ever since!

Overall score: 4/10

[humanrindswrites]

scary movie

pairing: kirk hammett x female reader

summary: kirk's girl is a hardened horror veteran, just like him, but even veterans have their limits.

warnings: fluff, mentions of gore (they’re watching horror movies)

word count: 859 words

a/n: little factoid about me is that i love really gory movies but sexual violence is where my tolerance for extremity ends. also, if you've never seen cannibal holocaust just know that it has real scenes of animals being killed just for the sake of it. it's not a movie for the faint-hearted.

“So, what did you say this movie was called again?” Kirk asked as his girlfriend set up the VCR in the living room.

“Cannibal Holocaust,” she said once the machine was turned on and ready for the tape. “It got banned in England recently and the director got arrested in Italy because they thought he actually killed the actors.”

“Sounds gnarly,” he said as he took the videotape box from her. “Everything gets banned in England these days.”

“That’s true, they’d probably ban a movie because somebody got a paper cut.”

When Kirk first saw her in the video rental store, he thought maybe she was a beginner looking for something tame to watch with friends and could maybe find something that would get her jumping into his arms like a little lamb. Instead, he found out that she was just as much an expert as he was and liked her movies gory and borderline upsetting.

It was pretty much love at first sight for him.

She had her finger on the pulse for all the wild new movies coming from Europe and which ones were getting banned in Europe for being ‘harmful to children’ or some other ridiculous shit that some old people were saying. He was more versed in the classics but finding these scandalous new videos was something that he never really had the time to do anymore.

They made popcorn in the kitchen while the trailers played at the beginning of the tape, making it back just in time for the movie to start. The screen showed a beautiful sweeping shot of the Amazon rainforest set to a lush orchestral score, as if it was a nature documentary or a romance, lulling them into false security of what was to come.

When she’d originally told him that the movie was a nasty one, Kirk thought that she was just exaggerating. He’d seen some gory movies before but they’d never been as grisly and realistic as this. The two of them watched in stunned silence as people were killed, raped, beaten, and animals were slaughtered before their very eyes.

The videotape’s quality added to the horrifying visuals before them, making the carnage so much more disturbing than it likely was; the poor turtle’s exposed innards were spread across the screen as the eerie soundtrack screeched. Kirk had never expected her to jump into his arms during a movie, but he could feel her tense up and her fingers curl into fists against his chest with every brutal blow.

But no matter how extreme the scenes became, neither one of them could take their eyes away from the screen. Blood was spilt, brains were exposed, bodies were hacked to pieces, women were raped, and people were eaten. She’d promised Kirk a gnarly time and that was exactly what they’d gotten.

I wonder who the real cannibals are, the television said before the camera swept up into the New York City skyline and the credits rolled. They were both quiet until the tape stopped and Kirk picked up the remote from next to him to turn it off.

“You feeling okay?” he asked her. She usually had something to say once the movie had finished, but this time she was stunned into silence. “Hey, it’s only a movie.”

“I didn’t think they were going to kill real animals,” she said, her voice quiet. “I knew it was going to be gruesome, but nobody told me they killed the animals.”

“Aside from that, did you like the rest of the movie?” Kirk asked as he ran his hand up and down her arm.

“I don’t know. It’s something I need to think about. But I know I don’t want to watch it again.

“It wasn’t a Frankenstein flick, that’s for sure.”

“Nobody got raped in any version of Frankenstein as far as I remember.”

“Did you not like that part either?”

“No,” she said, a little louder than she’d intended. “I hate seeing girls get raped in movies. It’s why I hated The Last House on the Left.”

“Mm, that one was intense.”

“At least all of that was fake, not like this,” she said as she sat up and went over to take the videotape out of the VCR. “No wonder it got banned.”

“Are you saying you support movie censorship?” Kirk teased and stood up to help her clear away the dishes that had accumulated on the coffee table.

“I’m not saying that,” she said and playfully slapped him on the arm. “I’m just saying that I can see why people had such a strong reaction to it.”

“Maybe next week I’ll pick the movie so that we don’t watch poor turtles die.”

“What’d you have in mind?”

Kirk took her in his arms and thought for a second, humming in her ear and tapping his fingers on her shoulders for comedic effect.

“How about I Spit on Your Grave?”

“Okay, now you’re just teasing me,” she said as she broke out of his arms and took the dishes into the kitchen.

“Hey, you’re the one who always picks the hardcore stuff, I thought you’d like it!”

[astoundingbeyondbelief]

Kaiju Week in Review (October 29-November 4, 2023)

Like me, you probably haven't seen Godzilla Minus One yet, making Fest Godzilla 4: Operation Jet Jaguar last week's most spectacular new watch. Kazuhiro Nakagawa's ambitions grow with each entry in this series; this time, he was helped by veteran Rider/Sentai suit actor Kenya Saito inside the great new Jet Jaguar suit. The ending wasn't quite what I predicted, but still set up what should be a spectacular showdown last year.

I wish these shorts weren't effectively the last vestiges of tokusatsu in the Godzilla series; I wish even more that Toho would allow them to stay on YouTube. This one, along with its associated behind-the-scenes videos, will stay around until the end of the year, as an apology for the Godzilla Day VOD having such awful audio as to be unsalvageable. But that still means its discoverability will take a serious hit, and it's unclear what Toho actually gets out of this artificial scarcity. Maybe they're plotting to release all the shorts on Blu-ray in a few years. In any case, download this one post-haste.

While he didn't get a new suit, Megalon still made a triumphant return in the other short film released on Godzilla Day, Godzilla vs. Megalon. A sequel to Godzilla vs. Gigan Rex, it's also directed by Takuya Uenishi. The live-action footage in this one helps ground the over-the-top monster mayhem, and a weakened Godzilla displays some cool new tricks, although I found his finisher unsatisfying. As for Megalon, well, he finally shows the world just how terrifying he can be when he takes himself more seriously.

After a mercifully brief marketing campaign, the 37th Godzilla movie, Godzilla Minus One, is in Japanese theaters (and it's making bank). I'm trying to go in relatively unspoiled (always difficult as a Wikizilla admin), but what little I have read has been promising. The basic premise, which the early promos have largely masked, sounds like a kaiju story I wrote in college, which I couldn't be more thrilled by. If you're feeling daring, there's a second trailer out.

We'll get the first episodes of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters even sooner than Godzilla Minus One. Accordingly, Apple has ramped up promotion, releasing a behind-the-scenes video (above), the opening title sequence, and the first scene of the series. We also have names for a couple of the new monsters (the new Skull Island beastie is a Mantleclaw and the critters hatching from eggs are Endoswarmers) and better looks at a couple others.

I joked after the Godzilla Day livestream that it was such a technical fiasco because Toho had put all its skill points into releasing Godzilla Minus One. Similar could be said for the Fathom Events release of Godzilla 2000: Millennium. The showing I caught was fine technically (one brief frame rate hiccup aside), just... uninspired. The preshow was the same brief behind-the-scenes footage of G2K included on the American DVD and Blu-ray; the film used the same translation as the Blu-ray. And now that the novelty of actually being able to watch it has worn off, I've soured considerably on the Japanese version of this movie. The languid score and sound design are especially glaring in a theater.

Godzilla Voxel Wars, available on Steam and Epic Games, probably should have been released in a week less packed with more attention-grabbing Godzilla news. Still zero reviews on Metacritic! Haven't played it myself, but fellow Wikizilla admin Les is enjoying it.

Godzilla: Here There Be Dragons #5 also added to the Godzilla onslaught. Still impressed at how big a role the Giant Octopus had in this (and what a brutal ending for it and Ebirah), but the miniseries wrapped up a little too neatly.

Despite backing it on Kickstarter, I had nearly forgotten about Godzilla & Kong: The Cinematic Storyboard Art of Richard Bennett. Turns out the reason the book has taken so long to be published (the campaign ended last May) is the page count jumping from "around 200" to 424! It's off to the printer now, so the wait is nearly over.

Worth posting again: the third BOSS Coffee ad featuring the new ShodaiGoji suit. Very little original footage in this one, but some first-class editing.

And a few other happenings I'll keep to bullet points so you can finally stop scrolling:

I forgot to post about Viz publishing volume 7 of Asadora! Huge props for introducing a kyodai hero without derailing the story (I won't say how, but it's quite clever).

After its brief Japanese theatrical run, the black-and-white version of Shin Godzilla is "under consideration for further development." Home video next?

The newest Godzilla Battle Line units are Super Mechagodzilla and a second version of Godzilla '54 who strafes his atomic breath and ignores most status effects. I've had virtually no time to play since the new season started (this post was typed entirely in a Georgia hotel room, put it that way), but I hear they're both stellar.

Godzilla trading card update: disappointment and confusion! The Godzilla Minus One promo cards were only available for a very limited time as add-ons to a $75+ TCGPlayer order. Meanwhile, nobody can find the packs of Surreal Entertainment cards that were supposed to arrive at Five Below on Godzilla Day.

Naturally, lots of toys revealed on and around Godzilla Day. Highlights include a Super7 Godzilla figure with an Imperial-inspired paint job, a Super7 SpaceGodzilla repaint blatantly based on Super Godzilla which sold out instantly, an S.H. MonsterArts Jet Jaguar '73, and Movie Monster Series figures for *inhales* Godzilla '55, Anguirus '55, Flying Stage Hedorah, Godzilla '64, and Minilla '67. The Godzilla Raids Again figures are both getting variants inspired by a Toy Dreams set from 2006. Bandai also started up another Movie Monster Series fans-pick-the-figure poll, but what's the point? They'll have every single Godzilla kaiju represented before the decade's half over. (And maybe by the end of the decade I'll be able to afford all the ones I want!)

[goombasa]

Penny's Big Breakaway Makes Me So Happy

So about a month ago (more like a month and a half by the time this post actually goes up), a game by the studio Evening Star (made up of the same folks who helped to make Sonic Mania) called Penny's Big Breakaway dropped.

The minute I saw the first trailer for this game, it immediately got my attention for being a bright and colorful 3D platformer that wasn't a collect-a-thon, with movement that reminded me of a mix of Mario precision and Sonic speed, like a potential Gamecube platformer that never got released. And when it dropped on Switch, it was an immediate grab for me, and I am so glad I did, because this is a game that really makes me feel like I'm back in high school again, in the best way possible.

It's a linear, straightforward platformer, with each world broken up into 3-5 individual levels, each level a straight shot from the beginning to the end. While making your way through the stage, you can earn points for destroying objects, and stringing together combinations of movement options without touching the ground. It's kind of like a Tony Hawk game, where you can manual to keep a combo chain going. You can do the same thing by riding your yo-yo before hitting the ground. You can also find three hidden tokens and three side jobs in each stage.

The tokens are used to purchase bonus levels, which are usually short, challenging stints that will test you on a specific move or combo, while the side jobs are usually very basic delivery or collection quests, or occasionally a combo challenge. Sometimes any of these tasks can also have a time limit associated with them. You not only get a point bonus for each one completed, but you also get more opportunities for a bigger ‘Busker Bonus’ at the end of a stage for each one of the side jobs you complete. It's an interesting way to give you some secondary tasks to complete without requiring the player to be aware of them for an entire level.

But the real strength of the game comes from the fact that you can essentially play it two different ways. You can play it as a gentle, fun, casual platformer where you can take your time and be precise as you need to be. Your score is going to be lower, but because there's no real penalty for not getting a good score, other than not hitting the level's target score, taking the game slow and gentle is a totally viable option, especially since some of the yo-yo combinations can take some getting used to.

But once you DO get used to the controls and how to properly string together all of the moves at your disposal, this game can become very different. It is absolutely exhilarating to dash through the stage as quickly as possible while at the same time keeping your combo up, and then landing at the very top of the platform at the end to get the best Busker Bonus possible. The ability to jump, spin in the air to keep yourself in the air a bit longer, hover the Yo-yo to swing on it like a vine, AND launch yourself forward through the air with it, all in a single string, in whatever order you choose, feels great! Combine that with trampolines, the ability to ride on your Yo-yo like some kind of mounted steed make this a game that I can see a lot of potential in for speedruns and trick runs in the future.

Touching on the story a bit, it's mostly just an excuse plot, but I mean that in a good way. The game knows that its story doesn't have to be a focal point, and it gives you a nice little tale about performers who want to be in the spotlight or are trying hard to keep themselves in the spotlight. It's not complex or complicated, but it's fun and heartfelt and the various characters you interact with are entertaining and endearing, helped a lot by some very great and appealing character designs. The game has a very simple style that lends itself well to silhouettes for each of the major characters.

The more whimsical character design reminds me a lot of a more angular Mario-esque character design, while the level designs are definitely more similar to a Sonic game, there's no question about it, with every stage peppered with ramps, and half pipes, and long, angular roads, and ziplines that send you flying off at a good speed. Make no mistake though, this isn't a direct clone of either series, Penny has its own unique feel, and it's simple moveset allows for a lot of fun combinations.

We've been seeing a lot of 3D platformers as of late that have been putting together some really interesting movement mechanics in their movesets; Pseudoregalia, Goat Game, and Blue Fire to name just a few, and PBB fits in right alongside them as a game that is fun to play casually, and only gets more fun as you get more experimental and daring with the movement options it gives you. While the stages might not be as open as the other games I've mentioned, you still have plenty of options and means of not only flying through the levels super faster, but also getting really creative with skipping large chunks of land if you're careful and precise enough.

I mean this as the highest compliment, this feels like a Gamecube platformer that we never got. It feels real great to play, and it is well worth your time. The main campaign is a bit on the short side (there are a lot of stages, and bonus stages, but unless you're taking your time, they aren't going to last super long), but this is a game that is infinitely replayable, and encourages you to try and set as high a score as possible every time you play through a stage.

Penny's Big Breakaway is currently available on Steam and all major consoles. I happened to grab it on Switch, where it plays great, though the loading times are abysmal. I haven't tried it on other platforms, so I can't speak as to whether this is an issue on that one platform or not, but I'd encourage you all to get it on whatever platformer you prefer, as it is well worth it regardless of how you play it. It's just a fun time all around.

[whatyourusherthinks]

Dune Part Two Review

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT'SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS HHHHHHHHHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What's The Movie About?

SAME THING AS THE FIRST ONE!

Ahem. Sorry, excited. This is the follow up to the first Dune movie and portrays the second half of the Dune Novel. Mostly Paul and his mother imbedding themselves into the Fremen and amassing an army to take on the re-enstated Harkonnens.

What I Like.

These movies are fucking gorgeous. There are quite a few jaw-dropping compositions and the designs of all the technology and outfits are very cool. The story is excellent, although it should be a surprise since the book is a classic and as far as I can tell the movie is mostly faithful to it. The few changes they made I actually think are for the better, like not jumping the story forward or changing how a certain character dies. I really liked the Fremen society. It felt like a real society that would exist on a planet like Arrakis. The pool of water they add their dead people's water to felt like something that would actually come to be. And I dug Paul's downfall at the end. The Bene Gesserit are so sleezy that I felt genuinely bad for everyone who fell for their religion. I also felt like Stilgar is probably completely broken by the end, and that sucked because I really like Stilgar. (Sucked in a good way I mean. It was definitely intentional for the audience to feel bad.) I also weirdly like Feyd-Rautha. Like he's absolutely a villain, but I like his personality, how he's supposed to be an opposite to Paul, and I kinda liked him more than Paul at the end of the movie. He's just a silly guy, it's not his fault he was born on the German Expressionist planet to a family of snuff film makers. Christopher Walken as the emperor is also pretty awesome, very inspired casting. The score is great. I'll catch myself wanting to belt out the wailing used every so often. The action was also pretty awesome. The high frequency shields is an inspired bit of world building, because it brings more of the fighting into the realm of desperate knife fights, which I find more interesting than just people shooting back and forth. Also, as someone who's played the Dune board game before engaging with the Dune story at all, was was neat to see the characters take actions that could be done in the game and where some of the names of cards come from.

What I Didn't Like.

So I was praising how cool some of the shots were right? Well guess what. Pretty much all of them are in the trailer. Also, while I like how well built the Fremen society was, the Harkonnen planet seems like it should have flamed out in three generations. All they do is kill each other and they especially mistreat their women, so I don't know why they still exist. I get it's just supposed to be the evil guys so they took every opportunity to have them be evil, but it's kinda lazy writing. Speaking of Harkonnen, and this is gonna be petty, but I and everyone I talk to about Dune pronounces the name "Har-Ko-Nen". The movie pronounces it "Hark-En-En" and it was really distracting. There is also a major plot reveal 45 minutes before the movie ends, which happens to be when we drop checks in the theaters at my work. So I got fucking spoiled, thanks Denis Villanelle or whatever you name is.

Final Summation.

It's awesome. It's all the climax to make up for all the set up of the first movie. If you put a knife to my neck and made me choose which one I liked more, I guess I'd say Part 2 since more cool stuff happens, but like all stories split into two parts you should really treat it as a whole. And as a whole, Dune is fucking awesome. I cannot wait for the sequel.

[lifestreamsblog]

Foamstars: Splatoon is Tired. Try Square Enix.

(Click here for image source)

Before I begin, let me preface this by saying I have never played the single player story modes in any of the Splatoon games. My experiences are all about generic Turf War mode, so this has coloured my experiences.

When I first played Splatoon, I was amazed by the fresh concept, the brilliant mechanics, the unique spin on retro-future (replace “synth” with “punk,” and you’ll get the idea), and the unbelievable music. It was like the 90s met the mid-2010s in every way, and it was glorious. It was the most refreshing online shooter I’d ever played, and I couldn’t get enough. I could hardly wait for the sequels.

Then came Splatoon 2. It felt like more of the same, with a few minor changes and additions that made things better, but it felt like the same old song and dance.

(Click here for image source)

In short, it wasn’t fresh any more.

Not long after this, we got the first Splatoon-like: Ninjala. Being free-to-play, it was accessible to anyone with an internet connection and an online play subscription. I thought it was a great concept, but I let this one pass me by; I never played it. I was too afraid of the potential for toxic microtransactions, and beyond that, I felt it strayed too far from the concepts that made Splatoon so great.

Then we got Splatoon 3. Ugh. This one was a mess. They made the hub world gargantuan, and added lots of extra stuff to do. On the surface, this sounds great, but it just makes the game a confusing mess. They added gimmicks like being able to decorate a locker, but it’s purely there for your enjoyment only. It’s fun for the first ten minutes, but the novelty wears off fast (this is coming from someone who loves novelty).

Last but certainly not least: the mechanics. They’re abysmal at best and downright awful at worst. The balancing for every single weapon has been completely borked. Even if you use a weapon you are very used to using from past games, you will have to re-learn it because they changed all of the balancing. In short, nothing works properly when it comes to weapons. The absolute worst is how they weigh Splatfest results. The scoring system and its metrics are so out of whack, that the team that worked the hardest could potentially lose a Splatfest, or get absolutely no credit at all in the end.

In short, Splatoon has Jumped the Shark. It is worlds away from the original product, and it has lost everything that made it special, and replaced it with tonnes of meaningless rubbish padding.

That brings us to tonight, when I saw this:

This is the reveal trailer for a Splatoon-like called Foamstars, currently in development by Square Enix, to be released on PS4 and PS5.

Let’s begin with the aesthetic. It’s retro-future again, but this time in the synth way, making it very fresh, especially for the target market of Splatoon, which cut their teeth on a punk retro-future aesthetic.

(Click here for source)

I finally saw my classic Splatoon gameplay again (unlike with Ninjala), this time with a twist: instead of ink, you shoot foam. And instead of the foam just sitting there, it creates hills and ledges if you shoot it right, making gameplay dynamic.

In addition, tonnes of new subweapons, all of which feel like an homage to Splatoon classics. It’s as if 岩田さん (Iwata-san) had come back from the grave (Splatoon was his baby).

Long story short, Foamstars is the game I’ve been waiting for! This will be the killer app for the PS5 as much as Splatoon was the killer app for the Wii U. This game has finally prompted me to begin saving for a PS5, and I will be pre-ordering both the PS4 and PS5 versions of this when they are put up for pre-order. Time to watch news about the game’s development like a hawk.

It’s time to throw away your tired old Splatoon 2 and Splatoon 3, and pick up some Square Enix magic, along with a PS5~

[oennpellmell]

A bad ending but a good one.

So yesterday, as I was in a middle of crunch for an illustration, watching "The Click" about toxic workplace to help me go through the grinding despite my headache and my fatigue, hoping to get as much as I could in the day in hope that I wouldn't have to extend it through the night as well (spoiler I did), at one point, the post Mark was reading was the poster of "don't look up" and nothing else. I was only half listening so I forgot what was the context of it; if it was a reply or just somethin some posted on the subreddit to stir debate (or make a parallel of the toxicity of the capitalism in the movie).

Fact is, I hadn't seen that movie yet, but I knew what it was since it was on my list of things I wanted to watched. Of course, my brain searching for a distraction immediately jump on the occasion to fall down a rabbit hole by simply think "By the way, how did they handle the ending". I already knew how it end, I mean the trailer made it clear it would be something similar to "Dr. Strangelove" so even before it was out I could tell there would be no happy ending, since this was a satyr retrospective of our current situation. One of the reason I didn't go see the movie when it came out was because I didn't have Netflix, and I was a bit afraid the ending despite being logic would be treating the human extinction with the same absurdity as the rest of the movie tone set by the trailer. And seeing that it is a touchy subject for me ( causing my night terror since the age of 4), I wasn't sure if I wanted to go through something that I take really to heart presented too lightly, in the same way it was depicted in "Dr. Strangelove". Still, despite my reserve, I choose to look up if the ending was on Youtube. And boy, wasn't I not prepared to that ending. I can't describe how much gut ranching that ending was for me. It gave a horrific view of how devastating it would be, and how one choose to end in grace. The fear in everyone voice trying so desperately to have small simple talk until the end, and not letting the sorrow take over. The acceptance then the pure gaze of emptiness when finally the wave hit the Mindy's house. All of it on tune to not a grandiose orchestra music, but a simple lullaby. It literally breaks me. Not only because it is showing something I have been terrified of since a child to the point of keeping me up at night, so many times, but because for once it wasn't played as a big epic demonstration of human power, where technology, or power will save the day, soothing us in the delusion that no matter what it will be alright. No Deus Ex Machina, no heroic USA. Just pure truth and unescapable doom. And this has been haunting me for so long, that every time, I tried to express the idea of why it terrifies me I was only met with either "will figure things out", "we will have time if something happens" or "why do you care you won't be there to see it anyway". And no occasion to actually be able to channel my fear into something I could communicate because I was only met with a void or a wall. Truth, watching that as I have work o do was not the right idea, but I grateful that movie exist. I am grateful that they went for this ending, and the absurdity of the film made it so much more real. Through out the story, we see the stages of grieving being display on global scale, from denial (politic), to bargain (capitalism), to fear (Mindy) to anger (Kate), to apathy (the media) to sadness and depression, only to arrive at the dinner with the final acceptance. They did try everything. They have nothing else left, while they had everything. And I won't lie, watching the movie entirely afterward and listening to the musical score doesn't help me to get rid of that feeling. It is haunting me, but at the same time it is freeing, because I can finally see on screen something that as tormented me all my life being depicted exactly the way I am feeling. I know lots of people think that this movie is not that good, and it is another moralizing wannabe intellectual film, but from my point of view, it just nailed it right.

And I invite anyone who haven't seen that movie yet, to watch it. Not as an allegory of climate change, not as a SNL skit with a gotcha twist, but as an actual story that is not supposed to make you feel good, that is supposed to be chaotic and absurd, because that is exactly how sometimes trying to warn people and discuss heavy topic feel like. Nobody wants to have that type of conversation, because our brain has difficulty to project, and this is precisely why we need to have those type of conversation. It was a great film. It didn't made me laugh. It didn't made me feel good. It wasn't supposed to. But it made me feel heard for the first time in my life.

[thedaveandkimmershow]

In the winter, sleeping in on our birthdays makes our birthdays seem objectively shorter. You leave the house around noon or after, you've got about four hours of birthday in there.

Not really, of course. It just feels like that since we lose the daylight a little after four in the afternoon.

A seriously short day.

Two days after the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice. 

So this year we get up when we normally get up for work, somewhere between 7 and 8 with teas, coffee, and a latte. Nine-ten we're out the door and into the theater with a tub 'o buttered popcorn by 930 for a bunch of trailers and, finally, "The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes".

We were the only ones there.

We are definitely watching that again.

Friend of ours isn't a fan. A bunch of people aren't fans of the movie. But we were hooked, engaged by the head-game vibe of the story. There are definitely questions littered about like landmines and we want at least another go at watching the movie for understanding.

It feels like there's more there there.

Twelve-thirty we're out of the theater and back to the house to pick up birthday brownies that'll come into play when we're down at Linzy's place. Linzy, by the way, is working her music teacher gig that'll end at two.

Two-twenty we drive up to her place, she arrives a coupla minutes after, grabs the birthday brownies from Kimmer, sets them in her apartment, jumps into the car, and we head off to Tapster for drinks.

It's never just drinks at Tapster, of course. It's an experience.

They've got swings for crying out loud. Which are the "seats" Kimmer 'n Linzy chose once they had their first round of drinks in hand.

By the way, I didn't want to drive into town. Didn't want to deal with parking that I presumed would be impossible. My idea, which remained just an idea, was to park at Northgate and light rail into town. Instead, we picked Linzy up at her place, drove down to that parking lot in front of the Wooden Boats place and BAM.

Found our parking spot first thing.

Three-thirty we hail a Lyft that drops us on the corner of 1st & Pine fifteen minutes later. We start walking down Pine and immediately start thinking this is the exact stretch of sidewalk Tom Hanks and Rob Reiner walked up (or down) in the movie, "Sleepless In Seattle".

Halfway down the block, we're sucked into Sur La Table, the kitchen store. Not sure how long we're in there but we look at a lot of kitchen accessories.

Then we're out the door, down to the corner, across the street passed the guy playing his mini piano on wheels on the opposite corner. Up the block some more and we catch the trail to Pike Place Market Creamery, our first intended stop at the Market.

Why?

'Cause none of us has been able to score eggnog at any of our usual grocery stores. And sure enough, the Creamery has some. In glass bottles, no less.

And definitely tasty.

Next stop's across the street, over by where they throw fish, down the stairs just to the right, down a flight, down a hall, down some stairs, backtrack a little on the next floor down to Golden Age Collectibles, the Sci-Fi store of my youth... the comic book store of our friend Susan's time working at the main branch of the Seattle Public Library.

Magnets, by the way. In a store packed with people browsing a multitude of collectibles, magnets are what caught our eyes and kept catching our eyes.

We couldn't get enough. They were hysterical.

We were there a bit, then after started thinking about dinner so we headed back to the stairs with the intention of walking down to the waterfront. As we're almost to the stairs, though, Kimmer spots a restaurant down an adjacent hall. Sound View Cafe. With, yes. A wonderful view of Eliott Bay, the Sound, and the sunset behind it.

And, of course, the tasty A1 burgers set before us on the table.

Quarter to Six we walk out of the Market, across the street, making our way to Westlake Mall for a more intense Christmastime vibe slash photo op.

Eventually, we make it to Nordstrom and their Ebar Artisan Coffee shop for our evening's hot beverages. Then we're up up up to and across the sky bridge to Pacific Place where we completely disapprove of the remodel. Linzy objects on the basis of the shops are waaaaaaay out of her price range. We object on the basis of it's not as charming as it used to be.

By 'n by, we make our way to the ground floor and pop back out onto Pine, walking toward the Macy's Star. Crossing 6th toward Nordstrom, we join a group of parents and kids watching the going's on inside Nordstrom's Santa Lane.

It really is worth a moment of your time watching Santa and his visitors through the glass. It's also worth a moment of your time watching people watch Santa and his visitors. Including some little people with their noses pressed right up to the glass.

It's addicting to watch the activity both inside and outside the Lane.

Six-thirty we catch a Lyft down the block and to the left. Drops us at our car at South Lake Union. Then we drive up the hill to Linzy's place where, once again, we get excessively lucky with parking. ☺️

Inside Linzy's place, birthday brownies are immediately put to good use, preceded by a touch of candle lighting and a round of "Happy Birthday".

Linzy was pretty full from dinner by that point so it was Kimmer 'n me partaking of the chocolate-y chewy goodness.

Linzy has a friend whose birthday's the same day as mine so she has another party to attend. With that in mind, we hit the road at 730 (hugs and good wishes all around) while she gets ready.

Now, my birthday's not yet over but we are transitioning to our Christmas plans. Therefore, our next stop's at Total Wine & More in Alderwood to build up our holiday stock. Interestingly, we don't seem to be much in need... and wind up walking away with just the one six-pack of Clausthaler Grapefruit Non-alcoholic Beer.

That's okay, though. It's festive!

Eight-thirty we're home packing and wrapping presents.

That's me, by the way. Kimmer, on the other hand, is writing inside the birthday card she crafted for me and also wrapping my birthday presents.

The presents, by the way, include a glass ornament in the shape of an old television set with color bars in the screen, a black t-shirt that reads "It's Not A Dad Bod... It's A Father Figure", and a much better thermos to replace my old one.

So.

My birthday came to a close around 930 that night with the opening of my birthday card and gifts.

Beyond that?

Getting ready for the impending Christmas.

🤩🤩🤩

[latestflix]

Creed III

Release Date: March 3, 2023

SYNOPSIS:

Still dominating the boxing world, Adonis Creed is thriving in his career and family life. When Damian, a childhood friend and former boxing prodigy resurfaces after serving time in prison, he’s eager to prove that he deserves his shot in the ring. The face-off between former friends is more than just a fight. To settle the score, Adonis must put his future on the line to battle Damian — a fighter who has nothing to lose.

REVIEW:

It’s been seven years since we last saw Creed at the theaters. In a special conversation that included members of the National Association of Black Journalists, Michael B. Jordan talked a bit about the film, which is also his directoral debut.

“I finally got to this place in my career where I wanted to tell a story and not just be in front of the camera, not just execute somebody else’s vision,” Jordan said. “And having a character that I’ve played twice before, it’s been seven, eight years living with this guy. So to be able to tell a story of where I believe Adonis is at, and also at 35 years old, I had a lot to say as a young man, as a young Black man, just my life experiences and how I could actually share that, share a piece of myself with the world – through these characters and through this story. So I just felt like it was the right time. You know, I was talking to Ryan Coogler back when we were doing CREED I, and he was just like, It’s never the right time. You just gotta jump in the deep end and go for it, you know?”

The trailer for “Creed III” showcases Michael B. Jordan’s character Adonis Creed and Jonathan Majors’ character Damian Anderson. Adonis ends up getting drawn into a fight with his childhood friend Damian. The movie’s poster shares the message “You can’t run from your past”, reflecting the theme of jealousy and the consequences of one’s past actions. This new installment of the spin-off from the Rocky Balboa film classics is without Sylvester Stallone’s direct involvement (He’s still a Producer) and is expected to be a hit among fans of the franchise, with it set to release on March 3, 2023.

CAST: Michael B. Jordan, Tessa Thompson, Jonathon Majors, Wood Harris, Florian Munteanu, Phylicia Rashad

[brimbrimbrimbrim]

Eddie Munson/F!Reader -COMM

WIP Wednesday - tagged by @flaggermuser <3

Sticky grass fumes tickle your nose as Eddie stubs out the joint in the ashtray behind him. You’re sitting across from him, back against the dresser, legs akimbo while he’s stuffed between the corner of his bed and a milk crate he calls his bedside table. As if on cue, you snap your fingers and he clicks his lighter, burning the end of a cigarette between his teeth. 

Eddie grins, clicking the zippo closed and flips you the bird, one dimple in his cheek in a lopsided grin. You throw him an air kiss and pluck up a caseless cassette with a hum.

“Who’s this?” It’s unnamed, just a pentagram drawn on the paper-tape label. It’s seen better days too. Looks like someone melted the corner with a cigarette and half the label is mushy with an old water stain… or you hope it was water. Gross…

“Dunno, sweetheart. Could be some majorly underground shit… or total trash.” Eddie exhales a plume of smoke, blowing it off to the side where his window is cracked. It’s chilly outside, but the two of you can generate heat when booze, weed and music combine, so the backdraft is welcome.

You watch him flick ash in an old coffee mug filled with who knows what, and shrug. “”Found that baby at the bottom of Camelot’s dollar bin. But like,” he takes the final swig off his second beer and swallows a burp, “dumbasses also had Trouble’s ‘Skull’ on tape in there too, so what the fuck do they know, right?”

“Spooky. Kinda gives off some Evil Dead vibes,” you muse, setting it aside to resume picking through the cassettes between your legs while Eddie snaps the tab on a beer. It hisses and you hear him curse, followed by the telltale slurp as he sucks up the foam noisily. 

You glance over, just with your eyes, vision blocked by your heavy lashes, only to quickly look back at the pile of music when your heart flutters at how red and wet his lips looked gathering up the yeasty foam before it can spill over the can. You’ve been doing that more lately, stealing glances—greedy glances he could easily catch if he so much as looked up at the wrong time. 

“Ready for round two there, princess?” He asks. 

You nod, unwilling to look at him, instead fingering the new tapes he grabbed from the record store. It was a ritual for you two, going back freshman year (well, your freshman year) at least five years or so. First Saturday of the month Camelot Music refilled their dollar bin with garbage and hidden treasures. Eddie would hit it up after crawling out of bed around noon, and you’d grab ten bucks worth of snacks, enough to cram over the weekend. As the years passed, this ritual grew to involve beer, grass and, more recently… hard liquor. But tonight? Well, Eddie scored big time: some more unlabeled shit, the Trouble tape he mentioned, Witchfinder General, even an unraveled Black Sabbath that’d seen better days. 

You're too absorbed in the menagerie of metal when he places a cold beer can against the side of your bare knee. It shocks your weed-heightened senses, making you jump and squeak. Eddie cackles like an ettercap when you jerk your leg up, shooting him a glare. 

“Dickhead,” you curse, failing to keep the smile off your lips, “… you know how tender I get after smoking.”

“Mm’yeah, why you’re the best to smoke with. Plus,” Eddie settling back against his bed with a grin, “Serves you right for bustin’ out the daisy dukes all the time.” Eddie snorts, but there’s something bitter to it when he adds, “Sixty degrees outside and you’re mooning the whole trailer park like it’s summer break. Real Ms. Michelle Pfeifer of you.”

“I like these shorts, Eddie,” you flip him the bird and throw in some wet eyes, putting on the bratty girl act that always makes him chuckle cause, in his words, 'you're too metal to play the innocent card.’ And while Eddie doesn’t laugh, he does flash you a dashing grin that’s so wide his cheeks dimple into trenches. It almost makes his sweet, chocolate orbs look devilish—almost.  “Yeah, well… everyone likes those shorts, sweetheart,” he says offhanded, grabbing another beer for himself, eyes suddenly averted to his lap.

You frown, looking down at your other outstretched leg laying across his chip-crumbed floor; it’s bare to the upper thigh, your foot shoved in a red high top. Nothing to go all ham over, you think, rolling your leg by the ankle to watch the muscles flex beneath a curvy layer of fat.

“Dude,” you suddenly blurt, kicking his outer thigh with your converse, “I’ve literally worn these all through highschool and you’re bitching about them now? Besides, if memory serves, you were the one who cut them for me in the first place.”

“Yeah,” he groans, rolling his eyes, “… and that was freshman year and you outgrew them two years back. Time for a new pair.”

You grab your beer and drop your other leg back down, taking a sip before resting the chilly bottom on your thigh. 

“They totally still fit. And I’ve never heard you complain about them… well, except that one night with that bartender at The Hideout. Jesus, do you remember how he-“

“Ugh, don’t fucking remind me.” Eddie’s nose scrunches up, looking grossed out before chugging half his freshly popped beer in a few swallows. “Barry better fire that fucking creep. Should have heard the shit he was talking about you… never wanted to cold-cock someone so bad. Pretty sure Gareth had a goddamn aneruysm.”

You perk up, not all that surprised by Gareth getting pissy, what with his short fuse and all, but there’s something violent to Eddie’s words. Plus the half-empty beer can starts to dent in his fist, a little clue to what might have been said and how he feels about it even now. Things like this have been happening more and more—the whole possessive or protect vibe. Honestly, it’s hard to tell, but you know Eddie doesn’t like it when you get hit on, especially when you go on dates…

With a swallow and another sip of beer, you venture to ask, “Like what? Uh, what did he say about me?”

Eddie’s face pinches. He glares into the corner of his room, looking pensive, then scoffs. 

“Nothing. Doesn’t matter. Never mind,” he mutters, taking another swig that has his adam’s apple bobbing. He finishes his beer quickly and crushes it with a grunt. It gets tossed to the corner near an overflowing trash can of crumpled up paper and chip bags with an air of defeat that makes your chest tighten.

You eye him quietly, then blush when he looks over, gaze starting at your knees, skimming up your thighs, stomach, chest and finally meeting your eyes. He clears his throat, looks away for a second, swallows, then looks back and asks, “Anything catch your eye, sweetheart?” 

Yes, you think, growing hot again, much like the last half-dozen times you and Eddie have done your monthly weekend hangout. You look down, tracing a few cassettes, then peak up at him beneath your lashes. He’s looking between your legs, but the trajectory of his gaze is further up than the pile of tapes. You try not to blush any harder—try not to let it get under your skin—because he’s already three beers in and sometimes his eyes wander when he’s tipsy. It can’t be helped, you reason. You’re a girl and he’s a guy. Even if you’re both best friends and nothing more, it's totally… normal… and nothing to look into or obsess over or question or…

“Umm, let’s try…” you pick up the naked tape with the sharpied-pentagram, “… this creepy fucker. Kinda lookslooks like someone jizzed on it.” 

You force a casual grin and wag your eyebrows. “Maybe we’ll raise the dead and you’ll end up fighting off hot zombie chicks.”

Eddie finally grins, snatching the tape out of your hand. “If they’re as hot as Trash, then I’d rather fuck than fight.”

“Gross, Munson. Think of the STDs.”

“Sex is hotter when there’s risk involved, princess.” 

“Yeaaah,” you force a good-natured smirk, “you’d probably get your dick bitten off, though.”

Eddie chuckles, and knocks the side of your knee with his reebok. “Are you saying you’re worried about my dick again?” 

“No,” you lie, and not well judging by the wrinkle between Eddie’s brows.

[naughtygirl286]

So yes we went to see the new Horror movie "Smile" originally we were going to go see The Woman King but the person who was going to see that couldn't go so we all went to see "Smile" I wanted to see this being it look really good and different. I am liking alot of the recent horror movies that have been coming out lately from Malignant to The Black Phone to Barbarian and everything in between. stuff has been really good.

The Theater was actually packed for this! it was pretty much a sold out crowd for the time we went I was saying we were lucky to get seats all together as a group. also there was one in theater item that they were giving away for this and you can see it here. also speaking of seating I was sitting on the right end of our group there was a seat to my right that was purchased and when the trailers were playing a girl came in and sat in that seat and watched like the first quarter of the movie and then got up and left. You would think she was going to the bathroom or to get something at the concession counter? no! she left and didn't come back! why is this important? I just found it strange that you purchase a ticket to the movie and only watch like a the first quarter of it then leave and don't come back? to me its just a bit weird. anyway..

As for the movie I can honestly say it was very good! It was a bit different but at the same time it kinda reminded me a tiny bit of the movie called "It Follows" if you haven't seen that one you should right away. but as for this. but as usual I'll try to not spoil anything being you should experience it for yourself.

The movie is more a psychological horror but at the same time it does deal with a type of unknown supernatural force that stalks it victims in a way in or to posses them and spread its evil from jumping from person to person through acts of unimaginable violence.

The movie basically revolves around Rose (played by Sosie Bacon) who is a psychiatrist who works in like a psychiatric hospital and is a very serious and clinical person and a girl is brought in to her who is claiming that she is being stalked by some evil force not believing in ghost or monsters Rose tries to treat the girl violently kills herself in front of rose with a big smile on her face. traumatized she goes home to take a break but soon her world and mental state start to crumble around her and she comes to realize that the "evil" was passed on to her she begins to try to find out where it came from and how to stop it she learns everyone who dies because of this dies with a huge joker like grin on their face which of course is how the movie gets its name. as she is slowly going crazy and that is when all the spooky stuff really starts and it gets kind of intense at times but no one will believe her until she requests the help of her Ex-boyfriend who is a cop and with that she tries to confront the evil and rid herself of it.

Now I don't feel the movie was scary but I guess scary on different levels like as in shocking I do believe it was disturbingly horrific at parts. The whole movie itself was in a way terrifying the musical score and sound design and everything was just pure horror and its very good to the point where you can’t turn away

like the acting in this was excellent Sosie Bacon was amazing and watching her just mentally crack becasue of what was happening was scary in its own right.

There was only one thing I didn't like about the movie which involves Rose's cat. When you get the scene you know its coming becasue you'll have this "oh no" type of reaction. I just found that birthday sequence kinda sad it was more of a "aww..:(" type of thing other then that the movie was excellent. I can see there being a possible sequel to this maybe? I don't think I would mind a Smile 2 but I would be interested in maybe more of a prequel like something along the lines of "The First Smile" like how did it all start where did the evil come from something like that. anyway.. the acting is very well done the way its filmed, the atmosphere, the production and sound design and even the music is all horrifying! the movie as a whole is creepily terrifying So I would recommend it and you should see it in theater to truly experience it. Also if you didn't know this movie was based on the short film "Laura Hasn't Slept" which you can watch below!

[chocominnie]

Desperado — 04 (M) | JJk.

Pairing: Badboy!Jungkook X Reader

Summary : A messy situationship at it’s finest. You don’t even know whats headed your way, just even engaging in the slightest within him. See, he has an assignment to complete. A mission granted by his father thats do or die. You just so happen to be a major pawn in that assignment. He didn’t mean to take an interest in you. Surely it was an accident right? Only except. you hold much value in this game that he’ll do anything to complete it. Oblivious is what you are. Poor thing. Poor.. Poor thing. 

Genre: Mature/ Mafia!Jungkook

Trailer: xxxxx  preview 01 02 03

Word Count : 6.7k

Warnings : This honestly isn’t for the light hearted and the weak...High angst, usage of drugs, drug mentions, mental illness, switch!jungkook, Brat reader, possible stockholm syndrom, kidnapping, assault, death of side characters, weapons, usage of weapons, masturbation, physical violence, blood, alcohol, weed, unprotected and protected sex, spanking, honestly its a lot of aruging too, 

Copyright:  please do NOT repost, translate, or modify my works in any way, shape or form, on any platform. If found doing so , it is considered as plagiarism and appropriate LEGAL action will be taken

Author’s note: It’s been a while yeah? Let’s have fun reading this. Sungmin plays a large roll in this part. But please stay towards the ending of this part. It gets real... nerve wracking.. per say...

You will never get over the crowded hallways. Why does everyone like to huddle around with their friends in groups? Your phone vibrates in your hand which makes you look at the notification. Just another text message to the groupchat. Crystal’s nervous about her testing score for her biology class. You quickly type out a thumbs up gif and press send. Hopefully she did pass. It’s the only thing she’s been boring you and the group about since yesterday. 

Speaking of yesterday. He didn’t text you at all. Not even to make sure you made it home alright. Yes, Jungkook is passive agressive and a dick-head at the least, but he could’ve texted you. Does he even have your number? You shiver at the thought of him having any contact with you. It’s weird. Nevermind about that whole didn’t text thing.

 Passing by the main entrance, you spot multiple fliers taped to the wall. You didn’t even notice these days ago. You can’t help but to rip one off just for the sake of bieng nosey. Talent Show tonight! All final contestants please report to the school auditorium at 6 pm. If you’re late, fear not! The show must go on.. even without you. Ticket’s are two won. Multple food trucks will be outside near the school’s entrance by our fountain and koi pond. The artwork and pottery will be showcased there as well starting at 7 pm. Come support your classmates!

A talent show? Nobody told you about this beforehand. It would’ve been the perfect place to show off your Piano skills. What if someone important ended up being there? Someone who would’ve noticed you? Angrily, you ball it up and throw it in the trash as you begin to walk again. The death grip on your backpack straps where enough to let everyone in the hallways know to just look away and have zero reaction. 

‘‘ Yn! Over here!’‘

The voice startles you causing you to jump a bit. Ayami waves her hand in the air to signal your attention. She looks like a short little kid trying to get their older sisters attention. Ayami’s cheeks were bright red with a huge smile that compliment her beautiful brown eyes as well. You smile a bit more when approaching her.

‘‘ What’s going on?’ You trail off, leaning against the locker next to hers. Ayami smiles even harder while pulling out that same colored piece of paper you had just thrown away. ‘‘ Look! Im a final contestant! My name is right here!’‘

Indeed it was. She points to the bottom part of which you didn’t read. There are three small lists of contestant names. Sure enough, her’s was the 4th name in the second row. ‘’ Congratulations. I would’ve entered but they didn’t tell me about it before I transferred.’’

‘‘ Right, it was like a month ago when we auditoned.’‘ Ayami says, neatly folding her piece of paper and putting it in her locker. ‘‘ Have you seen Minlee, Crystal, and Sungmin?’‘ You ask, the two of you begin to walk down the busy hallway.

‘‘ Minlee is in the art room. She is planning out her showcase for the talent show tonight. Crystal is in her first period class because she’s nervous and wants her results first. Sungmin... I haven’t seen him today at all.’‘

He just so happened to not return your text either this morning. Hmm. 

Ayami smoothes out her skirt and bites her lip, ‘’ You know.. Sungmin has been having a rough time lately. He’s sometimes never here for a while and then pops back up again. Sometimes I see...’’ She trails off, swallowing her spit with the look of sadness written all over her face.

You noticed it too. You didn’t say anything because it’s not your place. You want to help him, but you guys are freshly friends and that would be overstepping your boundaries right?

The bell rings right before you are to say something back to Ayami. She quickly says goodbye and rushes towards the other direction. Everyone is acting off today. Is it something that happend that you don’t know about? Weird. Whats going on?

3 class period’s in and you decide to skip lunch. Only because Jungkook has your lunch period. It’s still too embarassing. The thought of that night and morning will haunt you forever. Throwing up.. on Jungkook. The school basically worships him and the last thing you need is him bringing it up infront of people. You know for a fact being a decent human being doesn’t run in that cold blooded body of his. The way he walks. The way his jawline clenches in anger or to assert dominance. The way those slick words come out of his mouth as smooth as honey but can bite like a venomous snake. Don’t forget that cute dimple smirk that sometimes-

Woah.

What?

No. No. Hell no. Your mind shouldn’t have switched like that. That’s gross. Jungkook is a delusional prince that needs some grounding. You shake your head a bit and scrunch up your face at those thoughts. Geez, what is getting into you lately. 

No new notifications on your phone from the groupchat. You tried texting Sungmin again when you were in your 3rd class period. He didn’t respond. What really is going on? Usually Sungmin is quick to respond to you. Hell, you know that he texts you first usually everyday. 

The fresh, crisp winter air smells nostalgic to you. It smells like home to you. Back home. Vancouver. Nothing tops the smell of the winter over there. The amount of snow that you could just play in for days and days and still not get enough of it. Your mom’s home-made waffles for breakfast. She only serves those during the winter season. The rest is either cereal or a granola bar. You loved racing down the white, wooden stairs to the kitchen where your mother was waiting for you. A plate made for you sitting on the island counter made with all your favorites. Turkey bacon, waffles, and some fruit medely. 

Each time your mother made them, your father would watch the smile on your face as you stuffed your mouth full of the delectable food. He’d whisper to your mother a thank you and give her a kiss. Nothing made him more happy than seeing you happy. 

Tears fall down your eyes unknowingly. Dad. He’s been away for so long now. He keeps telling you he’s working hard for you and your mom. He keeps telling you that the new house is being built where he is and it’s big. Somewhere private. Somewhere where you guys can finally settle down and not keep moving. Where your mother no longer has to work, he tells you. Somewhere where you and her can do anything you want without stressing. 

By now your feet are tired of walking and each time you blink its blurry. The scenary of the school’s little garden trail doesn’t appeal to you anymore. Mascara runs down your face. It hurts. It hurts a lot. He’s been gone for majority of your teenage life. You even turned 18 without him. The pain in your chest feels like someone is stabbing you over and over in your heart. Your heartstrings feel like they can give out any second. At this point you didn’t care who sees you sobbing loudly. All you want is your father to be here. 

‘‘ Yn?’‘ 

You ignore it. The sobbing becomes louder and your keep trying to wipe your swollen eyes to rid the tears. It doesn’t stop. 

The person sighs, slowly inching closer. You know that scent all too well. It’s him. What is he even doing here anyways? Doesn’t he have pottery or something to do? ‘’ Come on Yn. You’re embarassing yourself and everyone is looking. Please pull yourself together for fucks sake. The trail is a quiet place to relax.’’

His voice raising is what makes you jump. Your crying pauses and your feet shifts over to face him. He has the weirdest look of uncomfortable on his face ever. He rubs the back of his neck and holds out a hankerchief to you awkwardly. 

Your eyes slowly looking down at it as you sniffle, and then looks right back up at him. ‘’ Fuck you Jungkook. ‘’ How insensative can his words be? Seeing you have a moment and he says such words to you? Embarassment? It’s already embarassing enough to be seen with him. But to add on to the embarassment of that night, now this interaction can go on the list of dreadful things about Jungkook. 

Jungkook narrows his eyes at you as his jaw clenches. He’s angry. But not as angry. Pissed. ‘’ I was trying to help you. Everyone is looking. You fucking interrupted my peace and quiet-’’ He begins, walking towards you with rage. Oh boy.

‘‘ You stand here on the path and cry your eyes out loud as fuck in a quiet place and everyone is got damn whispering about you. And you decide to muster up the fucking courage to try and be all big and bad.. when I offer you a fucking hankerchief as well? ‘‘ He says the last few words through gritted teeth.

Your eyes are wide as he towers over you. The scent. It’s that same scent you smelled that night at the club. Such a alluring scent. Musky, but sweet. A pleasent mixture to your nose. Snapping back to reality, you stand up straight, sniffiling in the process.

‘‘ Why are you helping anyways Jungkook. I thought we both made it clear that we dont get along nor like each other. You’re fucking rude and stuck up Jungkook. Did you know that?’‘ Your hands place themselves on your hips automatically. This boy has got some nerve. 

Jungkook sighs outloud angrily, ‘’ You’re right. We don’t get along Yn. Here i thought you were crying because of what happend that night at the club. Remember ? Drugged. You were drugged. I felt bad that I treated you such a way when you were under that influence and not up to your normal self.’’

He backs away from you, putting his hankerchief back in his pocket, ‘’ I wanted to apologize to you because you had such an expierence at my father’s club. But clearly you’re fucking stuck up and ungrateful too Yn. Did YOU know that?’’ 

Oh he has some fucking nerve. Your nose flares and your hand forms fists. So not only the imbecile bastard insults you, but the club you went to just so happens to be his father’s? Oh round of applause. Round of applause to that. What more can go wrong. 

‘‘ Jeon Jungkook.. sincerely fuck you. I hate you. I hate your existence. I hate that you attend this school. I hate that ugly fucking nickname you gave me. I hate that you think you hold yourself up to be better than everyone. I hate the way you speak. I hate everything about you.’‘ You scream at the top of your lungs. Everything you had been holding in about him simply just came out nonstop. It felt good to get that off your chest. 

Students are staring even more now. Some even recording the two of you on their phones. Wouldn’t be suprised if tomorrow it will be uploaded somewhere.

Jungkook scoffs at you, that oh so familiar smirk on his face. A cold breeze blows through you again. Its wet? You look up at the sky and realize it’s snow. Its the first snow of Seoul. Great. This is how you spend it? Just great. 

‘‘ I hate everything about you too Yn. Every. Got. Damn. Little. Thing.’‘ He says, putting the hood up on his royal blue coat and turning away from you heading back to the school. 

And just like that you’re back to normal. Back to hating Jungkook. Back to hating this school. Back to wishing to never agree to attend this performing arts school.

You let out one last scream into the cold, winter’s air. Some laugh at you. Some think you’re crazy. But you, you feel just a-okay now. 

As if things couldn’t get even worse. Why does the school end at such an ungodly hour? Back in the states, school had ended at 2:15 pm. Here in Seoul, School ends at god-damn 4:45 pm. It doesn’t help that you have to stay after school with Ayami until the talent show is over. She wants to have the same make-up look you have, because according to her ‘’ The way you do your make-up is pretty..’’

Ontop of that, you had just been snacking all day, so you’re a bit hungry for a meal. 

‘‘ Ayami, can we atleast order some food?’‘ You two are sitting inside the art room with Minlee. Both of your legs swing back and forth ontop of the desk as you watch her from outside the extra room. It’s dark and red, barely see anything in there. Her long, dyed dirty blonde hair,sways back and forth as she dips the photos in the developer mixture. You watch how steady and focused she is.

Her frail arms move steady, while she bites her lip in concentration. That only makes her two big dimples pop out on each side of her cheek. She has the prettiest smile with those craters. It makes her look young, but adorable. 

Ayami scolds, “ Yn can you please eat lunch with us next time then? We didn’t even know you weren’t going to come and you didn’t let us know you were crying. I mean we’re best fri-’’

‘‘ Just order Pizza..’‘ You didn’t want to hear it. When you told them why you were absent, minus the Jungkook part, they all immediately wanted to baby you with sympathy. Something you were just too angry for, granted because of Jungkook, at the moment.

Ayami sighs, pulling her phone out. You then remember that you still haven’t heard from Sungmin. He should be okay right? I mean, Crystal wasn’t worried about him, so maybe you shouldn’t? Then again, what kind of friend would you be to not think something is up?

‘‘ Can I break the ice guys?’‘ You couldn’t hold it in any longer. Sungmin would be the first to worry about you, so you should to him. ‘‘ Really.. why isn’t Sungmin here today?’’

Minlee pauses in the middle of her dipping process. The picture fully submersed into the liquid, hands steady like a rock. Fuck. Perhaps you did overstep your boundaries on this one. Ayami slowly looks at Minlee, who clears her throat and resumes the process again.

‘‘ I don’t think-’‘

‘‘ She’s our friend. She is going to find out eventually.’‘ Minlee’s voice is abrupt. It causes you to jump, but Ayami seem to didn’t mind it. ‘‘ I mean.. we don’t even know for sure-’‘

‘‘ He probably ran away. He does that. Whenever things get hard he leaves for about a week or two, then suddenly comes back.’‘ Minlee is visually upset. You notice how she grips the pictures in her hand. ‘’ That’s just what he does.’’

So what about Crystal? ‘’ Crystal isn’t even.. worried? Why? If my brother goes off for some weeks.. I’d be highly concerned.’’ It’s true. It’s bizzare she’s worrying more about her damn test than her own brother.

Ayami chimes in, jumping off the desk and smoothing out her skirt in the process. She walks towards the whiteboard and begins doodling, ‘’ Those two are like glue. Trust me, she always know where he is. If she was worried we would see it all over her.’’

Always huh. Still questionable considering that she allows him to do it and so does their parents.

‘‘ Can we please switch the subject.’‘ Minlee says. You feel bad for even bringing it up now. It really wasn’t your place. Your eyes drop down to the ground when you jump off the desk. ‘’ Sorry for talking about it.’’

‘‘ Whatever.’‘

The tension is thick in the air. You can cut it thick like a nice slice of cake. You hate it. The silence makes you just want to scream. You can’t help but to think its your fault. Then again, you’re just a worried friend is all. Right?

That familiar vibration in your hand lets you know that a text message has been sent to you. Unlocking your phone, a wave of relief comes through your phone. It’s him. Sungmin. Looking back up at the girls, they’re doing their own thing once more. You take this chance to leave the room for a second to get away from the awkwardness, but to also facetime him.

‘‘ I’m going to the bathroom.’‘ It’s your stupid little excuse to leave, and they bought it. 

Immediately you start a fast paced walk out the room. Your fingers shake and feel numb as you start replying back to him. Sent. Waiting for those three dots to appear feels like hell to you. Why does everything seem to go so slow in situations like this?

By the time you know it, you’re at the main entrance of the school, passing by groups of kids rehearsing for the talent show. Just a straight walk through, and then a left turn and you will be somewhere quiet enough to call. It’s too busy in the entrance. 

The three dots typing disappear. Gosh it feels like pulling teeth that won’t come out. Your destination comes to a stop, and It isn’t until you realize you’d made it to a quiet, private roomto recognize what room it is. The pottery room. You hope he’s not here. Not again. In no way shape or form would you like to see that dumb man again today. So please, please do not be anywhere in sight. You think to yourself.

The room is actually neat this time. The lights are off, and it’s slightly warmer than usual in here. You take it upon yourself to plop yourself up back on the desk. The cool surface almost like ice against your thighs. It makes you shiver a-bit. Your phone lights up again. Not him. Just Ayami saying the pizza arrived. You disregard that message and click back on Sungmin’s. Something in you just urges you to push the facetime button, so you did. 

‘‘ Please answer. Please please please..’

It feels like forever.

‘‘ Hello?’‘ That familiar voice makes you tense up and ears perk. A smile comes across your face and the butterflies fade away. ‘‘ Stupid! Where were you today?’‘ You semi-yell. 

Sungmin’s background luckily is his room. So that atleast let’s you know that he may have just been home today? ‘’ I.. am... doing something.’’ He trails off at the start, contemplating what he has to say.

That was off. Something tells you thats not right. ‘’ Well.. is it something we all should worry about?’’

‘‘ No.’‘ 

... hmm. ‘’ Oh.’’ You decide to keep it at that. You already had repercussions from snooping around before. It looks like he’s safe. So maybe he truly is safe.

‘‘ You going to the talent show tonight?’‘ 

‘‘ I have to. Crystal is performing.’‘ The look on his face seems annoyed he has to go. You nod your head, ‘‘ Be nice. She’s singing and dancing. I can’t wait to see her.’‘ 

Sungmin shakes his head and playfully rolls his eyes at you. You widen your eyes in amusement. You’ve never seen him do that so it makes you laugh as well. ‘’ She’s good. But she’s obsessed with becoming an idol.’’

‘‘ I will support her journey. I have to go though, Ayami is waiting for me. Should we all meet somewhere before the show starts?’‘ You ask, hoping he would say yes.

Sungmin nods his head, those lips curling into a small smile. ‘’ Yeah. Let’s meet outside first. See you then Yn.’’  

The phone hang’s up. You sigh in relief knowing he’s alright. Nothing more to worry about. He’s fine. Jumping off the desk, you start your journey back to the art room.  He’s fine.

From the moment you set foot out of your mother’s car, you realize that there is more people than you’ve ever seen outside. Expensive cars are lined up a few blocks over that overflows right outside the round-a-bout infront of the school. Never have you ever seen before this many people gathered.. anywhere if we’re going to be honest. Families outside taking pictures with students, who you assume are apart of the show, are dressed up nicely. Most parents and students wearing designer, latest or not, they still look like a bag of money.

Even the air smells expensive.

‘‘ You sure you don’t want me to come? I’d love to meet your new fr-’‘

Your head snaps in her direction, daring her to finish that sentence. The last thing you need is for your mom to try and parent your friends. ‘’No mom. I’m okay.’’

It doesn’t disappoint her. Good. ‘’ Well.. text me when you need to be picked u-’’

‘‘ I’m walking home. Love you! Bye!’‘ Before she can say anything else, you quickly walk away. It’s very cold outside tonight. You curse yourself for wearing thigh high boots, with no stockings or anything to keep your thighs warm.

You’re dressed in a black and white, checkered, fitted dress with a small white, ribbed, long sleeve shirt underneath. The makeup you did looks decent. A quick foundation base, concealer, and your eyebrows filled in neatly. You also had decided some highlight on your cheekbones, nose, and inside the crevice of your eyes should look good. It does. It ties your face in all together. Not too much, not too little.

Walking past all these people only makes you wish harder to find where everyone is. It’s not like you to be in large crowds. It sets off your fight or flight senses and thats not a pretty thing to see. Surely by now you would know your way somewhat around the outside and inside of the school. Im sure all the students have judged you by now. You notice, as you walk, some students point and stare. Some even looking at their phones and then back at you.

It’s nothing new. Until with each step you take, the whispering and staring becomes more apparant to you. You decide to keep walking and not to pay attention. It could be anything like a rumor. Maybe someone started a small rumor. Yeah. Sounds logical. It’s not like you did anything wrong recently. 

‘‘ She’s crazy.’‘

That one caught your attention. You furrow your eyebrows and turn towards the left of where the voice was heard. The group of kids chuckle at you before walking past you into the building. The blood inside your skin begins to boil with rage. What the fuck did you do this time? Huh? 

‘‘ The girl from the video. Look.’‘ 

Again, you keep walking and ignoring the banter that has now suceeded in becoming the topic of everyone around you. A video. What video. Being late to the talent show suddenly doesn’t bother you anymore. Not with the fact that a god damn video of god knows what you’re doing, has gone around. The thought riles you up. You frown, shaking your head. 

You spot them. They’re all standing right infront of the building, to the far left. Ayami, Crystal, Minlee, and Sungmin. All huddled together while Minlee snaps selfies of all of them together. The group looks amazing. Minlee curled her hair, Ayami tied her hair into a pretty ponytail, and Crystal has beautiful make-up on.  It seems as if it sparkles a bit, which matches her grey contacts shes wearing. Stunning. 

‘‘ Oh you look so cute!’’ Minlee says, lowering the phone in her hand that was once up in the air. You thank her as you dish out more compliments to each one of them. Sungmin though, he looks like a model. He can sure clean up. 

You like the choice of style he went with tonight. Black skinny jeans with a creme colored turtle neck, followed by a layered black coat. You’re sure its all some type of designer. All of the group’s styles suit them well. If looks could kill, they would’ve been killed everyone by now.

Sungmin reaches into his bag, ‘’ Yn, I bought you this as a sorry for worrying you.’’ In his hands holds a small bracelet. It has charms on it. Microphone, stethescope, art easle, viola, and Piano. It doesn’t dawn on you right then that it’s all charms of the arts that the group majors in. 

The rest of them all hold their arms up with a smile, revealing the same bracelets that you’ve now just gained. ‘’ Welcome to the friend group!’’ Crystal squeels. 

‘‘ Wow.. wow this is all a lot. Thank you?’‘ You say, unsure whether to be happy or shocked about a gift this expensive. Well, it looks expensive. 

Sungmin takes your hand, it surpises you a bit to where you’re tense. He rubs the your wrist with his thumb finger to calm you down. You notice his scent. It smells so good. Rich and earthy. His light brown hair blows in the wind, and you get another scent of what smells like oranges. A small smile comes upon your face. Thats just like Sungmin to have orange hair wash. 

He finishes clasping the bracelet on, ‘’ There! Now we all have bracelets. Lets keep this friendship going forever.’’ 

‘‘ Group selfie!’‘ Minlee raises her phone again. You all huddle up to take the photo. Finally, finally you feel accepted and included into a group of friends. Ones that you know won’t turn their backs on you. One that wont just use you either. It feels good to know that. They’re all honest, something you love.

A group of boys walk by again, laughing and whispering and pointing towards you. ‘’ Can’t believe they’re actually friends with a psycho like her.’’

Thats it. You break away from the group, Sungmin tries to call you back, but you keep walking towards the petty boys. ‘’ Hey! What did you say? Why don’t you say it to my face then huh? 

It’s not like you to pick a fight. Staying to yourself is a thing you always do.its better to just stick to yourself rather than to cause trouble. But clearly, a lot of people have something to say about you and that riles you up to your breaking point. 

‘‘ Look at her. Crazy bitch.’‘ One of the boys says to the others, shocked that you actually have the balls to do such a thing. ‘‘ I’ll show you fucking crazy.’‘ You say in return. 

Just before you can wind your fist up to hit the boy, someone grabs your hand from behind and lowers it down. As if you aren’t already mad enough for being the laughing stock of the damn school, things just couldn’t get any more worse right? Turning around, you face the person who stopped your process. 

‘‘ Yn, it’s not worth it.’‘ She says, shaking her head at you. ‘‘ They’re fucking calling me crazy and-’‘

‘‘ You are. Just like in the video of you yelling and crying at Jungkook.’‘ One of the other boys says, mocking your whimpers and cries at the end then laughing. It causes their friends to laugh at you as well.

Your heart drops. Someone recorded that? At your lowest? Crying because you missed your father so much that you couldn’t even help it. Jungkook just made it worse with his prescence there. Your body feels weak and that familiar lump is now in your throat again. It hurts. It hurts to swallow. It hurts in your heart. It hurts everywhere. 

‘‘ Hey! Enough! I don’t think you know how it feels for someone to not have their dad around. Yn’s dad is working away from home just for her and her mother! It’s fine to feel sad and cry about it. I know you would too. So have some respect.’‘ Crystal yells at them, pulling you into her arms.

She’s warm. Very warm. Her heartbeat races against your cheek where you find yourself resting your head against your chest, trying not to cry from being embarassed. It got passed around. The whole school now has a video of you screaming at Jungkook’s ignorance, but crying for your father. 

‘‘ Working? Pssh probably never coming back.’‘ They all laugh again. That one hurt too. 

A strong voice firmly yells from your right side, “ Wanna say that again? I dare you. I suggest you leave her alone and get out of here before I make it worth your time.” You’re on the verge of tears at this point, but you don’t look at who it is.

So much going on. So many people.  

‘‘ Sungmi-’‘

Oh.

‘‘ Leave. Now.’‘ He yells again.

You feel yourself about to burst into tears, so you break away from Crystal and leave. You let your feet guide you wherever, just running away from it all. The voices of your name is being called doesn’t phase you. You just want to get away. Away from everyone and away from it all. Hot tears roll down your face, ruining your mascara that you did work hard on. Sat in the mirror for 10 minutes trying to achieve the perfect look, only for it to be ruined just like that.

The school hallways are empty, so you slow yourself down passing through one of the corridors. Soon you’re just walking to find the nearest bathroom to clean yourself up. Pulling out your makeup bag from your purse, you sigh at the person staring right back at you in the mirror. 

‘‘ Why? Why me?’‘

A couple tissues and make-up wipes, and another round of make-up you finally look decent again. Putting your make-up back, you then zip up your purse again and make your way out the bathroom.

Only to bump into someone on the way out. You’re careful not to leave a trace of make-up luckily. “Sorry.’’ 

‘‘ Well.. well..lost puppy.’‘

Fucking hell.

‘‘ No. No. No. I don’t want anything to do with you. So please just leave me alone. Act like we never met each other. Please.’‘ You say, furrowing your eyerbows at him, already mad at his presence again.

Jungkook chuckles, ‘’ How? You literally are always where I am. I suggest YOU stop following me around.’’ Oh he had the fucking audacity again. 

“Me? Okay fine Jungkook. I’ll try my best to stay as far as way as possible.’’ You give in to him, hoping he’d finally just buy it and forget about you.

‘‘ You know..’‘ His tattoo’d covered hand reaches past your ear, ‘‘ It’s kind of funny and adorable when I find you in the most hopeless moments.’‘ His voice whispers moving a piece of hair that stuck in your earring. 

‘‘ We run into each other way to often. It’s getting too cliche now. You don’t like me and I don’t like you. ‘‘ Something about him looking down a bit on you right now makes you nervous as ever. 

Jungkook removes his hand and backs up away from you and puts his hands right in his pants pocket. ‘’ You’re right. But you amuse me in many ways you don’t know.. Lost Puppy.’’

You roll your eyes at him due to the overused nickname, ‘’ I don’t care.’’ 

You do though. Because what can be so amusing about you to Jungkook? 

‘‘ You’re quite interesting. Fiesty and not afraid to speak up. That’s the only thing I like about you. The rest of these people around here are suck-ups.’‘ His eyes make contact with yours, a deadly smirk resting on his face. 

It makes you even more nervous. You start fidgeting with the charm bracelet on your arm. Why is he like this? ‘’ I don’t like anything about you. You cause trouble. Thanks to you, I’m the laughing stock of the school now.’’

He chuckles a bit more at your sudden bitterness, ‘’ I saw that. The video. Don’t worry I don’t like it either so it’ll somehow be removed by tonight. I’ll just ask around or something.’’

It’s quiet between you two. There’s nothing else more to say. It just feels awkward all around. You want nothing more than to leave right now.

‘‘ So you were crying about your dad. Is he away or something...’‘ Jungkook says, removing his hands from his pockets to lean against the wall casually. 

Why does he even have to know about it? ‘’ Yeah. Something like that.’’

‘‘ Oh... like Japan or something... back in the states or...’‘

You narrow your eyes at him, placing your hands on his hips. What is he doing all this prying for? What does any of your problems have to do with him. Gosh he’s one of the most nosiest, yet timid people. ‘’ Does it matter?’’

‘‘ I was just as-’’

‘‘ And now im leaving.’‘ You say, walking away from him, leaving him all alone in the dim hallways. The talent show probably has started by now, and you can’t miss your friends’ performances whatsoever. 

The auditorium is quiet, but Sungmin was waiting for you outside of it. He didn’t ask questions, just took you by the arm and guided you down the aisles to your seats. You notice the flowers sitting in his chair, which he removes and holds while sitting down. Assuming it’s for Crystal, you sit next to him and don’t say a word, waiting for the next act to come out. 

Time seems to fly by. Before you know it’s its over and everyone is clapping all around after the winner is announced. It was some student who performed on the Piano. They were alright, but everyone else was better. Ayami had performed a beautfiul poetic piece about mental illness awareness. Crystal performed Maria by Hwasa. She did very good with her back-up dancers too. 

During that two hours though, you couldn’t distract your mind from all of today’s events. Just a bad day in general. Hopefully the next wont do any more damage.

‘‘ Ayami said to meet her backstage. Im gonna go give these to Crystal and then we’re going to go home...’‘ Sungmin says, getting up from his seat with the flowers in his hand. ‘‘ Yeah, I’m gonna go home too. Today has been a lot.’‘

As if on cue, he senses your tiredness, ‘‘ I can tell Ayami that you just wanted to go straight home. I know it’s been a bit much. I can drive you?’‘

‘‘ I’ll walk. I need a breather.. and I might call my dad on the way.’‘ Yeah. The sound of that sounds nice. Perhaps it’ll helpy you deal with everything. Hearing his voice just might help.

‘‘ Please stay safe. Turn your location on for me.’‘ Sungmin reaches in, bringing you in for a small hug. You thank him and agree to do that.

It takes you no time to get away from everyone and everybody. The nearest subway station is about 8 minutes from your school by walking. Not so bad. The winter’s cold air is refreshing against your skin. Something about winter in Seoul just makes you love it here for once. Although it’s dark, you couldn’t care any less. Your phone dings, its the groupchat wishing everyone to come home safely.

You type your fathers number in your phone, it’s been a while. A good 2 months because thats when you had told him you were supposed to be transferring sometime in the winter. The dial tone begins, and you place your airpods into your ear.

‘‘ Hey love. How’s it going?’‘

Hearing that loving voice makes you instantly want to breakdown about how your day was. But you cant. Not in the middle of a neighborhood. That voice you oh so love and wish was here.

‘‘ I had a bad day. I miss you..’‘ You feel tiny talking to him. Almost like you’re a kid again. Those days when you’d come home as a child and he’d ask you if you had a sunny day or a rainy day. You miss it. Miss it all too much.

The line pauses on the other end. He’s probably going to another room to talk about it. ‘’ What happened? Where are you and your mom?’’

‘‘ My school had a talent show and I’m coming home from watching it. Mom is at home. Today was the worst. I hate the school’s students so much.’‘

It’s as if you can almost hear him smiling through the screen. You miss that about him too. His smile that can make anyone give in. ‘’ Is it boy drama? You like someone now don’t you?

The thought of liking Jungkook? Gross. ‘’ Oh my god no. The students here are real assholes. Ontop of that this boy, Jungkook has been really up my ass late-’’

Your dad cuts you off mid sentence, ‘‘ Im sorry..who?’‘ 

‘‘ Jungkook..?’‘ You say, confused.

‘‘ Jeon... Jungkook?’‘

This is weird. ‘’ Yes. How did you know?’’

He pauses again and you hear a sigh over the phone. The subway station is approaching. You can see it in your view of walking. ‘’ Please just trust me okay? Don’t say anything to Jungkook. Don’t even interact with him. Stay away from him.’’

A noise comes from behind you. It sounds like a twig or branch breaking. You turn your head back, but nobody is there. Just a thick, misty fog to hardly make out anything in it. Must be a stray dog. Those are always all over in this city. Clutching your purse tighter, you speed up a little bit.

‘‘ What do you mean? How do you know him?’‘

‘‘ Trust me. Him and his father are no good for you. They’re just controlling and mean and nasty.’‘ 

Another twig.. followed by footsteps. You don’t dare turn around. Turn around and you might die. So you start a fast paced jog towards the subway station. Only a couple of minutes to go, you can make it to safety. Surely people have to be inside the station. The heartbeat in your chest is throbbing from fear. 

‘‘ Well I figured since he’s a stuck-up person.’‘ You say, pacing your breathing so he doesn’t suspect a thing. You don’t need to worry him. ‘‘ When you coming to visit?’‘

‘‘ Soon. Maybe Christmas or New Years.’‘

The footsteps behind you match your jogging pace, getting closer and closer to you. If you could, you’d be spriting by now, but your father would know you’re in danger, and you really don’t want him to freak and call your mother who’d have a swat team, an airplane, and the whole damn city searching for your location.

‘‘ Alright. I’ll have gifts.’‘

He laughs, ‘’ So will I. Are you in the subway station yet?’’

‘‘ Yes.’‘ You lie. You’re not there yet at all. 

‘‘ I’ll hang up then. I love you. Tell your mom I love her too.’‘

‘‘ Alright. Love you so much dad.’‘

As soon as you hang up, you make a dash for it. The person behind you keeps up their pace, not letting up a bit. Fear runs through your veins along with adrenaline to keep you running faster and faster but thats no match for the person. You slightly twist your body to try and get a glimpse of the person, but before you can get a good look, your body lifts off the ground and into the air.

It all feels like slow motion. First your on the ground running but now mid-air with some person tackling themselves on you. They hit the ground first, but with a death grip hanging onto you. The way you fall has your knees scratched and bleeding but you don’t notice. Your only option is to fight back, so thats what you do.

You punch, kick, and scratch but they don’t let up. Instead, they flip the two of you over to where you’re on the bottom and their ontop. He hid himself well. He has a black hoodie hiding his hair, and black mask. A mole under his left eye and a scar on the side of his neck. A good description to give to the police.

‘‘ What do you want. Who the fuck are you.’‘ You scream, kicking your feet again to somehow get away. It doesn’t work.

‘‘ You’re wanted. They want you. This is a warning that you are in danger if he doesn’t finish and report.’‘ The voice is deep. Unormally deep. Almost as if something is being used to hide his regular voice. 

Finish and report? ‘’ Leave me alone. I don’t know you or who you’re talking about let me go you lunatic!’’ You scream, slapping his face repeatedly. He takes your arm and smacks it away from him, ‘’ You’ve been warned.’’

As if today couldn’t get any worse, the night time has fallen and you’ve got assaulted. As if the day couldn’t get any worse, the guy has left with zero trace of him behind. 

You pick yourself up and limp the rest of the way to the subway station. The scratched knees of yours bleed and sting, but you didn’t care. Home. You just want to go home. Go home and never come back out again.

[everybodylovesrand]

Rafe/Rosamund Q&A

Q: Will there be a second trailer?

Rafe: Yes! and longer! What’s the thing you’d like to see most in it?

--

Q: For both Rosamund and Rafe - How do the final visuals effects align with what you had in mind when reading the script/filming on location?

Rafe: Making a TV show at its best is about collaboration about seeing how your initial version for something is lifted and changed and made better by the people around you. So my favourite visuals in the show are the ones that are far better than I’d ever imagined writing the scripts.

Rosamund: It’s so important to have a living vivid world inside your imagination when you are shooting sequences that will be completed with CGI, and the production have always made sure that we had plenty of visual references for how things would look as we went along. We have never worked on a set on which at least part of the world is not built. We have always had elements of the texture and atmosphere of the finished world to work with.

--

Q: Can we get some information on the composer or the score for the show? SO excited for this! Thank you both so much for bringing this to life!

Rafe: If Amazon lets this answer go through, this is me proudly announcing that we have the most incredible composer working on the show by the name of Lorne Balfe. You’ve gotten a tiny hint of his music with the reveal of the Logo, and what he’s doing is really special.

--

Q: For Rosamund: how different is acting in a high-fantasy TV show from your previous work?

Rosamund: The biggest most important challenge with fantasy is making the stakes your own, making the concepts and ideas that are so outside our own experience feel real and immediate.

--

Q: How much of the myrddraal is practical effects?

Rafe: The Myddraal, like almost all elements in the show, is as much practical as we could manage, enhanced by VFX. I always think that gives a more disturbing and real-feeling quality than full VFX creatures.

--

Q: My question is – What do you think Moraine’s favourite food is? (2) Does she prefer coffee or tea?

Rosamund: I don’t think Moiraine cares too much about food. (Rafe thinks she likes buffalo wings). She eats to live. But don’t worry, you will only ever see her drink tea.

Rafe: Buffalo wings.

--

Q: For Rosamund: How did you feel seeing Moiraine’s powers visually for the 1st time?

Rosamund: I felt like a badass. I said to Rafe when I first saw it, “I need this video of me shooting fireballs to show to my sons again, and again.”

--

Q: What is the show going to be rated? Will people be able to watch it with their teenagers?

Rafe: People should certainly be able to watch with their teenagers.

--

Q: How have you kept this trailer under wraps so long? Omg – it is perfect.

Rosamund: Thank you. The only thing we wanted was that it made people feel.

--

Q: How were you able to come up with how the weaving of the One power looks?

Rafe:  All of the VFX teams looking at the One Power were going off documents of descriptions of it pulled straight from the books, and using that as jumping off points.

Rosamund: I needed to feel that you would believe Moiraine had this power if there were no visual effects- the most important thing for me, was that I felt connected to something greater than myself. Robert Jordan is so eloquent about what it feels like to channel, the feeling of the one power filling your veins, the risk of it, the risk of drawing too much and the necessity of respecting it and being trained to use it.

--

Q: For Rosamund: What’s your favourite Moiraine speech?

Rosamund: Moiraine can be very silent so when she speaks, we listen. In the books it’s the “Weep for Manetheren speech”. The idea that in the people of the Two Rivers, the “old blood runs deep”.

--

Q: Can you bring the release date back a bit to like tomorrow or something?

Rosamund: Ask Rafe.

Rafe: Ask Amazon.

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Q: How excited are you to see your audience responses after such a long wait?

Rafe: This is a complicated thing, because as a fan of many epic book series, seeing them brought to life is simultaneously thrilling and a little bit sad, as it changes forever a world that you saw in your own head while reading.

Rosamund: I love how warm and welcoming the Wheel of Time fan base have been. I hope we offer escape, excitement, mystery and something to keep people inspired through the end of the year.

--

Q: Which location was your favourite to film at? Specifically, in the show and in real life!

Rosamund: The world inside the walls of Shadar Logoth is particularly affecting and eerier. our production designer created a powerful, sinister set for the abandoned city. But for me as an actor: the city of Tar Valon was so rich: it was built from the ground up with the most intricate detail. It is stunning.

--

Q: Is the scene with Egwene in the water about her One-Power / Wisdom testing?

Rafe: I can answer that question at the end of the Season.

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Q: What’s your favourite aspect of the WoT series?

Rosamund: My Warder. (awww!)

--

Q: How much will Season 1 cover? Book 1 or spread accross several? Looks amazing!!!

Rafe: Season One will cover Book One, plus some of Book Two and even Book Three. But also not all of Book One, as some of it is in Season Two. Cryptic enough?

--

Q: How may nightmares did that flaming Fade give you?

Rafe: Not many, as I will always remember him as Dan, who was spinning in circles on his horse on a Slovenian mountain doubling the Westwood.

Rosamund: His very feminine lips, concealing rows and rows or teeth give me nightmares… And don’t get me started on the skeleton mask his horse wears.

--

Q: What excited you the most about this series?

Rosamund: The amazing cast and the bond we all have!

--

Q: For Rosamund: Is this your first time acting with CGI effects? Is it harder than expected?

Rosamund: It was great. I did a full body scan on day one and then I never had to show up!

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Q: For Rosamund: What was it about this story that spoke to you and made you want to play such an amazing female?

Rosamund: The way women of the Aes Sedai harness the elements of the universe to unleash incredible power: that interested me a lot. Playing an amazing female is always better than playing a mediocre female.

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Q: Which parts of the trailer are you most excited for the fans to see the full version of in the show and why?

Rafe: I’m really thrilled for fans to see more of Winternight.

Rosamund: Shadar Logoth, the city where you really feel how the dark is a material substance that chases and consumes. The visual effects and the extremity of this sequence haunts me.

--

Q: How do you expect us to work today?

Rafe: Don’t! If I’m your boss, you have the day off.

Rosamund: I expect you to focus, and do your best as always. Sincerely, headmistress.

[omgkatsudonplease]

I watched Mignonnes so you don't have to, if you were at all discomfited by the way Netflix's marketing decided to sexualise children in a film critiquing the sexualisation of children.

SPOILERS BELOW

The film is about how both hyperliberal and hyperconservative cultures force girls to grow up too fast. Amy is a first-gen immigrant from Senegal. Her family's culture tells girls they are marriageable once they get their first period, and in anticipation of that she is expected to know how to prepare an entire wedding feast and provide for her two younger brothers. 

Amy is disenchanted from this culture when she finds out her dad back in Senegal has married another woman. He will be bringing her to France with him and they will live in the same apartment. Amy's mom tries to put on a brave face and accept it, but it is obvious this move is humiliating for her. Amy's excitement for her dad turns into anger, compounded by her alienation and isolation at school.

The Mignonnes are a dance clique of 4 French girls who are clearly better adjusted to Western culture than Amy. Their ringleader lives in Amy's apartment complex and Amy is clearly enchanted with her because of the way she dances. She wants to be friends with the Mignonnes, but they bully and tease her. So in an attempt to win their approval, Amy learns the dance routine they are practicing for a local competition.

(The infamous "OMG NAKED BOOBIES ON A CHILD" shot is a blink and you'll miss it moment on a music video posted by a rival dance group. The incident is treated like a wardrobe malfunction, the girl quickly covers up, and the camera cuts away. Also, breasts aren't inherently sexual in France so a lot of the morality screaming is really American puritanism at play.)

The girls' antics are rebuffed by the older boys and men they interact with. One such moment is when the girls catfish an older teenager, but when one of them turns on the camera, the boy is visibly uncomfortable and tells them to fuck off. This leads to the girl who turned on the camera to be outcast from the group, which is Amy's avenue into the group. To secure her place, she offers to teach the other girls how to twerk. 

This is where the film's dances become more notably uncomfortable. I can tell why people are upset about the sexualisation of children based on only these scenes from the film, but within the context of the film they are treated as a dangerous addiction that is destroying Amy's dignity. She acts more and more "mature" in an attempt to gain the approval of the Mignonnes. In these subsequent dance scenes the camera mimics the angles from a music video, but the child subjects make the overall scene grotesque and uncomfortable.

There is a scene where Amy is pantsed in a fight. This is when she is desperately trying to look "more mature", so the revelation that she still wears "kids' granny panties" is humiliating for her. Once again, the shot is really quick, in the context of a fight, and the Mignonnes come to her rescue quickly. This moment is the tipping point where Amy's outside activity seeps back into her home. She steals her mom's wallet so she and the Mignonnes can go on a shopping spree for more ~mature~ underwear. 

Since Amy is in a lower-income first-gen immigrant family, she doesn't have her own smartphone. The girls at her school do, though, so she steals her cousin's smartphone. This is also part of her attempts to become accepted by her peers -- that phone is her first foray into hypersexualised Western online culture and part of her first major interaction with the Mignonnes. It is also part of the worst thing she does: post an inappropriate photo of herself online.

The film clearly shows her reasoning for doing so: she is deep in social media at this point and needs more and more provocative actions to score the same high. The Mignonnes were humiliated by the pantsing incident and need something to show they're "not kids" (even though they are). Amy doesn't know it's inappropriate to post that kind of photo online. She does it anyway. And she is punished by both her home culture and Western culture for doing it.

There is a scene here where her mother and auntie sprinkle her with water, presumably to purify her from her sins. Amy becomes overwhelmed with some sort of emotion and starts half-twerking in front of them. The camera circles her entire body when she does so. It really makes her look possessed, which is why her mother calls in an imam (I think?) to check her for demons. The man tells her mother there are none, and reminds her that she is free to divorce her husband if she cannot bear the stress and humiliation of this impending wedding. "God does not burden women with more than they can bear," he says, making a clear distinction between Islam as a religion, and Islam as a tool used by a patriarchal culture to force the submission of women. 

Amy is also rejected from the Mignonnes (and they welcome the other girl back in). They tell her she acted like a slut and ruined their reputation, completely uncaring that they were responsible for her actions up to this point. The line is clearly: you can twerk and lick your finger and bite your lips and do all the other stuff that the women in music videos do, but you cannot post nudes. Amy doesn't know that's the line. She tries to justify her actions and is only pushed away by the other girls. 

(I should also mention, the actual action of her taking the pictures does not show you anything. The camera keeps itself above the belt outside of dance scenes. You know what she's doing based on the glow of the phone screen and the tops of her knees. You never see the photo itself, either. That, to me, tells me more about the film's treatment of these kids more than the dance scenes.) 

So with this further isolation from both of her cultures, Amy grows increasingly desperate. On the day of her dad's arrival and wedding, she tries to push her way back into the Mignonnes for their final dance. This feels like an act of self-harm at this point, but Amy needs that high of having friends and getting approval (since she's not getting any of it at home). The dance is horrifically provocative, and many people in the audience are uncomfortable. The fact that Netflix decided to focus on this scene in their marketing campaign subverts the entire point of the film, since anyone who only watches the trailer would not know Amy was self-harming by dancing like this at this point. 

Amy receives an awakening in the middle of the dance. She realises this is also not what she wants to do -- she doesn't want to be viewed as a prospective wife OR a prospective whore. So she runs off, rejecting the Mignonnes. 

(There is a scene earlier on when Amy gets her first period and the auntie tells her that she herself had been engaged at Amy's age, and after she got her first period she had only a couple more years before she was properly married. Also the second wife is heavily implied to be only a couple years older than Amy. This is not framed in the context of Islam but rather in the context of Amy's family's culture.) 

In the end, however, Amy manages to find a middle ground between her two cultures, and rejects the expectation from both for girls to become women before they're ready to. She rejects both the hyperfeminine dress sent from Senegal for her dad's wedding as well as the risque dance outfit, and dresses like a kid to go jump rope with other kids in the neighborhood. When she finally gets to act like a kid, she is happy. 

I could honestly say more about the film's use of that dress from Senegal as a magical realism plot point, the relationship between Amy and her mother, and how the camera is a stand-in for Amy's mental processes and perceptions. But given the current puritan fervour on the Internet about how the film is "paedobait" I felt obliged to write up the film so people can be aware of how the subject is actually handled in the film itself and make their own judgement as to whether or not to watch it. I personally thought it was more evocative of the immigrant experience; I remember making many of Amy's mistakes when I was growing up (but thankfully mostly not offline, lmao). 

So: are the dance scenes disturbing? Yes. That's the point. I would be more concerned if you were NOT disturbed by the dances. Is the film sexualising the kids? I personally think this is an example of depiction =/= endorsement. Would creeps use the dance scenes for their own ends? Yes, but creeps also used to use innocent YouTube videos of kids doing gymnastics and ballet or playing at the beach, which is why all YouTube videos for kids now have comments disabled. So dogpiling a woman of colour for talking about her own experience through film, accusing her of being a paedophile, and sending her death threats is incredibly excessive. 

Also, the original accusation of this film being paedobait originated from 4ch*n, a known internet cesspool of racist paedophiles, so really. Are we really going to take 4ch*n at their word. Do your research, everyone.

[agentnico]

Barbarian (2022) Review

Barbarian? More like Boooob-arian! Those who’ve seen the film will get that one.

Plot: A young woman discovers the rental home she booked is already occupied by a stranger. Against her better judgment, she decides to spend the night but soon discovers there's a lot more to fear than just an unexpected house guest.

Yeah yeah I know, Halloween is over, yet here I am talking about a horror movie. Yet Barbarian is one to talk about! Or not. Here’s the thing, this is one of those movies where you cannot really talk about it much without revealing too everything, as the entire film is one big spoiler. Best way to enjoy this one is to go into it blindly and let the story and the twists surprise you as they come. And don’t worry, if you have seen the trailer it does not ruin the movie, and in fact the trailer does a great job at actually hiding all the craziness as that is hidden in the final product. So with that said, what can I actually say...

The performances are all very suitable for what the movie is doing. Georgina Campbell is a likeable protagonist, and it was actually satisfying to see a main character in a horror movie not make blatantly stupid decisions. Well maybe except the major elephant in the room fact that she actually agrees to stay the night at this rental with the stranger - that’s definitely a boo-boo choice. Never trust a stranger, especially in such strange circumstances. That being said, the opening of this movie actually plays up to this a lot by actually first appearing as a romantic comedy set-up, with these two strangers trapped together overnight, yet sharing enough chemistry to suggest they may actually get somewhere with one another. And the stranger himself is played by Bill Skarsgard, and naturally its a very tactical casting choice of having the guy who played Pennywise the Dancing Clown from It to be the creepy stranger, as immediately you as the audience member do not trust him. However Skarsgard does well acting like the awkward goofy guy-next-door type in a disarmingly charming yet unsettling way, and there is a humoristic element to his act. Also, Justin Long is in this movie, but again I feel like I’ve just said a spoiler, as I didn’t realise he was in this film until I watched it. I don’t recall him being featured in the marketing, however he plays a vital role and all I’ll say is that his character is extremely dislikeable and I think exists in this primarily to underline the #MeToo undertones and cancel culture themes that are explored. 

As stated, Barbarian works best when you know nothing about it. I’d actually compare it 10 Cloverfield Lane, in that the excitement and tension comes from knowing as little as possible, as you allow this narrative to mutate into something insanely claustrophobic and unsettling. Like not gonna lie, this movie is batshit crazy, and has plenty of jump scares and frights, but to put it simply it is bonkers. Just bonkers. Is the ending a tad ridiculous? Yeah, Are there plot holes throughout? Yep. However as a thrilling suspenseful experience its humongously enjoyable. With this, Fresh, Studio 666 and X I’d say we have ourselves a decent year for the horror genre.

Overall score: 7/10