#a classic for a reason and much more thriller than horror!

[j4desblurbs]

RESIDENT EVIL CHARACTERS AT THE MOVIES

hello from your fav cinephile (ugh)

inspo from @yurozo, their restaurant au and vape shop au made me giggle

apologies in advance if i disgustingly mischaracterize your fav. i tend to only focus on one version of them in my mind cuz i’m not 100% familiar with RE yet so pls bear with me.

enjoy :)

ashley graham

ashley is the type of person to dress up for movies. not all the time, but when it’s right to do so. when barbie came out she dragged leon to the theater on opening day in an all pink outfit.

ashley also cries during movies and has no shame. she was blubbering her way through wicked.

as for the kinds of movies she likes, she’s mostly into romances, comedies, classic fantasies, and the odd animated film.

examples: 10 things i hate about you, enchanted, harry potter, moana.

carlos oliveira

carlos definitely laughs out loud in a movie theater, even if the joke isn’t very funny. he mostly catches super late shows so it’s not a rare occurrence for him to be the only one in the theater.

want to see a movie you’re not sure other people will want to see? call carlos! this guy will watch almost anything and have a good time with it. when ashley wanted to watch wicked, she went with carlos because no one else was free/interested. they ended up having a great time and he even wore whatever outfit ashley had created for him. (he also blubbered his way through the movie).

because carlos seems like he’d be into so many different genres, it’s hard narrow down specific ones. but i’ll have to go with action comedies, occasional superhero/comic book flicks, and sci-fi.

examples: the nice guys, rush hour, deadpool, star wars.

chris redfield

chris is the guy who doesn’t go to the theater on his own. it’s almost always in a group outing or if claire manages to drag him.

even so, he will be out like a light without fail. the longest he managed to stay awake was an hour. one time he even fell asleep during the previews. he vastly prefers to watch a movie at home.

chris is into the classic action movies. he also enjoys buddy cops.

examples: die hard, rambo, rocky, lethal weapon.

claire redfield

i think if anyone in this list is close to being a movie buff it’s claire. she’s at the theater the most out of everyone and always manages to drag at least one person with her too.

she enjoys the previews, loves a good post movie debrief at a restaurant, and will smack chris awake when he starts to nod off but then give up after a few times.

with that, claire is very much a “if it’s good, it’s good” type of gal so it’s hard to say exactly what kinds of movies she’d like, but i think she’d be into both sci-fi, action, and drama, as well as more lighthearted comedies.

examples: star wars, little women, the hunger games, whiplash.

jill valentine

the movies aren’t jill’s first choice of a pastime but when she’s with a group of people, she enjoys it. usually doesn’t start out too invested in whatever it is she’s watching but ends up getting more into it as time goes on.

i’d say jill would be into a good thriller and would also appreciate some sci-fi or horror movies as well.

examples: prisoners, interstellar, the silence of the lambs, se7en.

leon kennedy

leon is also like chris in that he’d prefer seeing a movie at home rather than in the theater, but he’s also less susceptible to falling asleep in the theater. leon also lets himself get dragged to movies a lot (as mentioned previously, ashley took him to barbie and he even wore a pink shirt. how sweet).

leon is a basic bitch and likes basic action movies but hey! they’re popular for a reason. he also enjoys a good comedy.

examples: the equalizer, deadpool & wolverine, the matrix, ferris bueller’s day off.

[talldecafcappuccino]

TOP FIRST TIME WATCHES OF 2024

Rules: post 9 of your favorite films you saw for the first time this year that aren't new (2023/2024) but are new to you and tag 9 others to do the same.

tagging (if you want ofc): @toast-the-unknowing @thatsrightjohngoodman @ballroompink @imagineagreatadventure @twiceshysstuff @chainofclovers @freetobegrace @serrafew @hondagirll

[cecilysass]

Undercover Smolder Mulder: Pine Bluff Variant Fic Recs

I'd describe Pine Bluff Variant as a low key fan favorite, an episode that I even feel like appreciation has grown for over the years. Oh sure, it doesn’t get the fan love that a Memento Mori or Pusher might, but we sure do see those Mulder Scully intense looks gifs popping up pretty often, right? Plus, it has partner trust angst, undercover intrigue, hurt/comfort, genuine thriller-style suspense, and serious MSR overtones.

I like PBV for all of those reasons obviously, but also because it feels like the show going with a slightly different tone. Starting from its action-based, FBI operation cold open, we know this is more conspiracy / bioterrorist thriller than classic X-file. Yes, there’s a sci fi component to the biotoxin--and the scenes that reveal its victims have a horror feel--but this episode just isn’t as much about the supernatural. It also raises the interesting--and nowadays more pointed--question: aren’t anti-government groups operating under their own rules sometimes potentially as dangerous as the government itself?

TXF tried several kinds of experiments in its later seasons, in production and structure of show (Triangle or X-Cops), in exploring all kinds of playful, self-aware and satirical comedy (lots of season 6, Hollywood A.D., etc.), in making drastic moves with its mytharc (One Son, Requiem, etc). Going in the direction of a more purely action-suspense thriller for a MOTW wasn’t something they ever tried again (that I can think of anyway). And I think that's kind of a shame? It feels like a good change up. Different without messing too much with the show’s basic DNA.

Not to mention, y'all, Scully thinks he betrayed her! And there's the scene with the finger! And Mulder thinks he's going to die! There's so much good stuff here!

Here is a list of Pine Bluff Variant fic recs. (As usual, I really think there should be more. This episode has sooooo many openings. You should write some.)

Calling Bluffs - mangokiwitropicalswirl An angsty little post ep that doesn’t flinch from the way coming close to death affects Mulder (or Scully). It also raises the question of how much their bond always puts them at risk. Moving ending.

Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One Before - pinebluffvariant Immediately post ep, Scully protects Mulder. There is some satisfying hurt/comfort. But what really shines in this fic is the ending, which ties a nice bow on season 5 and kicks me in the feels. Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, indeed: sniff.

Passing Solace - DarlaBlack An intensely romantic NC-17 scene set in the middle of the episode, focused on their deep care and need for one another. Beautifully written.

All of This (around) Us - secondsflat In this sweet fic they share whiskey before Scully sets his finger bone, and Scully voices her frustration at not knowing about his undercover work. An intimate, atmospheric little scene.

Snakebitten - onpaperfirst This is a riff on all of season 5 written with great skill and subtlety. So, so good. It’s canon divergent in that it seeds the Pine Bluff Variant / New Spartans storyline back earlier in the season—and it has more RST. Such a treat.

Postcards Slipped Under the Door - skuls Two years after Pine Bluff Variant, some time after the events of En Ami in season 7, Mulder begins receiving ominous postcards from the New Spartans, suggesting they have regrouped. Skinner and Scully think it’s too dangerous for him to get involved in the case again, so Scully goes instead. This is hard on Mulder, as they’re in a recently begun relationship. Angsty, plot-driven, satisfying.

[tac-the-unseen]

What the Lost boys think about vampire related media

Fluff, x reader but just barely

•While making conversation with your four Vampire lovers you were suddenly plagued with a question.

“How do you guys feel about vampire related media?”

-That question was an immediate head turner. The cave goes dead quite before Dwayne speaks up, “Well…vampires are in hiding so…”

-This sparks a conversation about how media representation of vampires may not be accurate, but that's a good thing. “If a book or movie comes out and it is shockingly accurate to what being a vampire is really like, the creator isn't going to last long.” David explained

-That's because there's a set of rules vampires have to follow and one of those rules is to never publicly reveal your double life identity

-”If something like that comes out, that means a vampire has broken that rule OR somebody knows vampires very closely and is creating media they know shouldn't exist.”

-Turns out if a vampire breaks that rule it's basically open season to kill and destroy their creations.

•You turn the conversation and begin to ask how they, specifically, feel about certain vampire representation

•Bram Stoker's Dracula

-Dwayne is the first to buy in his opinion.

-Dwayne feels that while it is a cult classic and well written, The characters are exceedingly dumb.

-”Johnathan spends a ridiculous amount of time talking about other characters ‘Breasts’ and trying to figure out why his host climbs walls ‘like a lizard's.”

-David is the next one to speak up

-David thinks it's not really worth the read

-”Unless you're trying to brag to people there's no point in reading it.”

-”Also why was Mina talking to that old sailor so much?”

-Paul laughs as he remembers “how fucking crazy he wrote Dracula to be”

-”I'm pretty sure the real Dracula thinks it's a heinous crime against him”

-Paul hasn't read it but have heard enough about it to know even the more obscure references

-Marko comments on the graceful writing style and the beautiful descriptions

-”I've only read it because Dwayne thought I would like it"

-Marko also loves how oblivious Jonathan and most of the other characters are

-All of them think the movie adaptation is hilarious and love the shitty special effects

•Interview with a vampire

-Paul chimes in immediately

-”God it's so homo erotic it hurts…in a good way.”

-Paul thinks its a nice horror novel mixed with a weird cozy atmosphere

-Dwayne thinks it's another well written classic and He actually begins to rave about all the themes involved within Anne Rice’s work

-”It's a beautiful Gothic thriller with a deep, sadly comedic energy.”

-He even offers to read it too you sometime

-Marko chimes in quickly about “Claudia’s rebellious behavior and persona”

-”imagine watching your family choose somebody else over you. It's so deeply upsetting but to an understandable level.”

-”I would have hated to turn so young. I look like a teenager and other people can respect that to a certain point. But being five years old with the mind of an adult, No one would respect you.”

-Marko relates to Claudia on an internal level and loves unraveling her character. When you ask why he quickly responds "Some people call me a cherub... You think I enjoy that?"

-David says he doesn't have much to say other than it was a decent read (That's his version of a compliments)

•Twilight

-All of them agree that it's laughably horrendous

-Almost immediately at the same time they say “This is the skin of a killer Bella”

-This leads to banshee like laughter

David speaks up immediately

-”Why do you humans want us to sparkle so bad?”

-”I personally hate the idea of being a walking disco ball, but to each their own.”

-Marko chimes in quickly

-”Would you like it if we sparkled?” He asked while leans on you affectionately

-Marko thinks the only reason to read it is to have a nice laugh

-”Why did Edward have such a violent reaction of Bella standing by a fan? That makes no sense…like I have mates and I enjoy the smell of you guys but…I'm not nearly clawing off my face at your smell”

-”Yeah yeah, I get he's trying not to overreact but running out of class to get away is crazy.”

-Paul even adds that even thought it's very dumb even he can appreciate the message it's trying to said.

-”something something, coming over adversary, something something, love wins, something something..”

-”Also that Jacob imprinting on Bella's infant daughter is super fucking creepy.”

-when you asked Dwayne about his feels he scoffed and said It's insulting at best and borderline sexual harassment at worst.

-He refused to go into depth

•You thank them for humoring you and they tell you that it's no problem

-David kisses the side of your head in an uncharacteristically soft way “We don't ever mind answering your vampire related question.” He tells you

-Marko turns to you “But seriously do you want us to sparkle?”

-”I think I have some roll on body glitter somewhere..” Paul says while getting up to look for it

Thanks for reading <3

[jossamology]

⸻ until dawn halloween headcanons!

in honor of halloween here's a halloween-themed headcanon set for each until dawn character.

samantha giddings.

sam chooses a diy nature-inspired costume like a woodland fairy, using biodegradable glitter and repurposed fabrics. think leaves, twigs, and soft, earthy greens.

she insists on going to a local pumpkin patch to pick out the perfect pumpkin and spends hours carving designs.

while the others plan for parties, she hosts a low-key gathering with candles, cozy blankets, and homemade pumpkin spice lattes.

loves classic horror but gets super into psychological thrillers. hereditary is her top pick, and she’s the one pointing out foreshadowing before everyone else catches it. josh washington.

josh goes all-out building a haunted maze in his backyard, complete with hidden speakers, fake cobwebs, and scare actors he hires just to freak his friends out.

dresses as something horrifying, like a blood-streaked serial killer. full commitment to fake blood and smudged makeup.

has a camera ready to capture each friend’s reaction when they’re scared out of their minds. keeps a scare montage video just for fun.

he's surprisingly good at carving pumpkins, but his designs are intricate horror scenes, almost like horror movie posters in pumpkin form.

ends halloween by watching obscure, disturbing horror movies that leave everyone else uncomfortable. mike munroe.

shows up dressed as a suave vampire or some other classic monster, aiming to look cool and a little dangerous.

takes his friends to a haunted corn maze and enjoys it way more than he lets on, constantly teasing the jump-scare actors and testing his bravery.

organizes a frat party bonfire in the woods with s’mores and ghost stories. he’s the one lighting sparklers and throwing on extra wood to make the flames bigger, he drinks to much and forgets he's the host of the party.

pulls classic halloween pranks, from fake spider webs to jumping out of dark corners. the type to keep a scary mask in his bag just to mess with people.

after a few drinks, he’s belting out rocky horror picture show songs around the bonfire with zero shame.

jessica riley.

jessica’s costume is elaborate, trendy, and slightly dark, like a glamorous vampire or a witch in haute couture. she’s all about looking spooky-chic, she went shopping early for the best costume.

stays in to watch mean girls with a couple of her girl friends referencing every qoute.

spends half of halloween snapping aesthetic photos of her outfit, snacks, and décor, making everything look flawless.

gets her halloween nails done a week before and flaunts them on her social media platforms.

matt taylor.

he’s the guy bringing pumpkin spice lattes and fall-flavored treats for everyone, unapologetically embracing the season.

suggests doing a couples costume with emily, probably as a famous horror duo. secretly excited about how they’ll look in photos together.

convinces emily(and maybe the whole group) to go on a haunted hayride, keeping a brave face while sneaking glances to see if she’s scared.

volunteers to help with halloween décor, placing spider webs and fake spiders around. he’s got a collection of led bats and ghost lights.

emily davis.

dresses as a chic witch, complete with a designer hat, intricate lace gloves, and knee-high boots. halloween is just another reason to look flawless.

sets up a dark, enchanted photo booth with crystal balls, black roses, and velvet. her instagram feed is a whole halloween masterpiece.

makes sure to get billions of stunning couples photos with matt, each one more perfect than the last. their matching costumes and chemistry are on point, making everyone else a bit envious (and they know it).

emily hosts a halloween themed sleep over with velvet pillows, and black satin sheets for an ultra-cozy but gothic sleepover vibe. the girls chat and laugh till they fall asleep, each secretly keeping one eye open.

chris hartley.

dresses as a ghostbuster or some iconic horror nerd costume, complete with all the gadgets. he’s fully committed to the nostalgia factor.

brings his gear and talks about doing a "ghost hunt." sets up his phone to record “paranormal” activity around the bonfire.

insists on watching horror classics with everyone, pausing every now and then to geek out about the movie effects or the backstory.

after everyone else goes to bed, chris and ashley stay up playing with the ouija board, half-joking but also half-believing they might make contact. they end up spooking themselves and get so scared swearing to never use it again.

ashley brown.

dresses as a character from classic gothic literature, like mina harker from dracula, complete with vintage lace and dark, dramatic makeup.

she knits little ghost ornaments and diys her own creepy decor, like mason jars filled with “witch’s brew” and spiderweb doilies.

loves telling ghost stories, candle in hand, with just the right amount of dramatic pauses and eerie expressions.

ashley, catching her breath and laughing nervously, gives chris a playful whack on the arm for scaring her so bad. “not cool, chris!” she says, but she’s grinning as he pulls off the mask, clearly proud of his successful prank.

insists on having a stash of halloween candy just for herself. she’s all about chocolate, especially reese’s and kit kats, and jokingly guards her stash from the others, even hiding a few extras in her bag.

hannah and beth washington.

hannah and beth take turns posing in different eerie setups around the cabin, snapping dramatic photos of each other in candlelight, near fog machines, and with props like antique lanterns. they especially love capturing a few shots that look like something out of an old haunted portrait.

both love the idea of exploring the mountain at night, so they plan a late-night “ghost hunt” under the full moon. they bring flashlights and spooky stories to tell along the way, daring each other to walk just a little bit farther into the woods.

beth and hannah sneak into the room with a giant rubber spider and place it right on josh’s chest. when he stirs and opens his eyes to find it staring back at him, he lets out a yell that has the girls stifling laughter from behind the door.

they have a slight obsession with candy corn and will spend halloween night indulging in it, trading their favorite types of candy and making candy corn-themed treats, like popcorn balls or cupcakes.

[nyarlathotep-thecrawlingchaos]

I got some work done on the next chapter of Flight Risk tonight, but I'm also trying to watch at least one horror movie a day until Halloween.

I watched an Argentinian one called "Terrified" that I might talk about once let it stew for a bit (not to be confused with Terrifier, totally different film). Very fun concept but I'm still on the fence about the execution.

I wanna talk about this masterpiece instead, which I'm watching a second time.

This is one of the most creative sci-fi horrors I've seen in a long time. Possibly ever. OH my gods I cannot express how much I love this movie.

I definitely feel some influence from Invasion of the Body Snatchers in this one (the 70s version with Donald Sutherland, Jeff Goldblum, and Leonard Nimoy being among my all-time favorite classic sci-fi thrillers), but No One Will Save You really takes that feeling of hopelessness to another level entirely.

And it does so with barely a single word being spoken in the entire film. Not a movie you can just throw on for background noise, it demands total immersion. It refuses to let you look away, no matter how badly you want to, for fear of missing a single moment.

The protagonist, a social recluse with a tragic past who is hated by everyone in her small town for reasons slowly revealed throughout the movie, is portrayed phenomenally. It's hard to see any hope for her as the film progresses, but she still makes you have hope. She's a strong female lead without the usual sterotyped trope of being a muscle-head tomboy—instead, she's a soft and quiet young woman. A girl that has dealt with terrible tragedy and persecution from everyone around her, but has still managed to remain kind and gentle and full of hope. Plagued with regret and a longing for acceptance, but full of determination and strength of will that make it impossible not to root for her.

The revelation of her past tragedy with the mysterious "Maude" that she writes letters to is utterly heartbreaking.

Without uttering more than one or two words in the entire film, she portrays all of this beautifully, with a poetic sort of grace that I cannot begin to do justice to with words alone.

Full of raw emotion, existential terror bred from isolation and an unknowable enemy, and perfectly executed jump scares that never once cheapen the relentless gut-wrenching suspense throughout the course of the movie. It easily is in my top five modern horrors. Probably in my overall top ten. I love character-centric plots in horror, and this one floored me.

I know alien horror isn't for everyone. It's often times stupid and cheesy and campy (which can still be fun), but anyone into serious horror/suspense i to give this one a try. I first watched it in the beginning of this year, and every time it crosses my mind it still gives me a few chills. I don't usually watch a horror film twice in the same year, but I'm watching this one again tonight. It is sincerely that good.

Like 9.8/10 for this one. I would have liked a slightly slower reveal of the aliens themselves maybe, but that's really just nitpicking on my part. It's borderline perfect.

[bloody-wonder]

do u have any book recs for morally bad characters? not grey or ambiguous or whatever. i think id use ianthe as an example of what i mean

far be it from me to decide which character is "morally bad" or merely grey so for the purposes of this rec list i focus on characters who do bad things for selfish reasons. however, ianthe, beyond just being a villain-esque character, has that iconic persona(lity) which alas only few of the characters mentioned here share. so keep that in mind in case you wanted a list of ianthes😅

okay so when i think ianthe i think unhinged girl books, specifically boy parts by eliza clark. ik ik i keep mentioning it in every rec list but truly there's no other character who reminds me of ianthe more than irina sturges, minus the sword. boy parts is sometimes described as american psycho for girls and while i haven't read that book yet i can confirm that characters in bret easton ellis' other works (less than zero and the rules of attraction) are quite morally bankrupt and entirely unlikable, especially compared to the cast in the secret history by his fellow bennington graduate donna tartt who are themselves toeing the line between grey and irredeemable. that is, if such finer distinctions matter to you🤷‍♀️

dark academia typically features protagonists who are more or less evil which is true for joanne harris' gentlemen and players as well as its sequel different class. cracks by sheila kohler is another example - it's a short and weird book about girls in a boarding school commiting shocking atrocities. aside from we have always lived in this castle by shirley jackson, which i have already mentioned, books like tender is the flesh by agustina bazterrica and we need to talk about kevin by lionel shriver are bridging the gap between litfic and horror and focus on people who range from morally ambiguous to utterly despicable and frightening (yet fascinating). if you want to go all in with this latter vibe you could try killing stalking which is an extreme horror/dark romance bl manhwa. needless to say: always check the trigger warnings.

if hannibal lecter is someone who fits your understanding of "morally bad" you should try the og book series by thomas harris. fair warning tho: they are not queercoded like the show😅 two more series following the crimes of a nasty but compelling guy are the joe goldberg books by caroline kepnes and the tom ripley books by patricia highsmith. in the latter series i will admit i only like book one which stands on its own pretty well and after it i'd rec trying highsmith's other books instead - for example, strangers on a train. another thriller author to check out is christopher rice whose melodramatic and somewhat depraved early works feature deliciously problematic side characters. start with the snow garden and see if you like his style. my last thriller rec is for your own good by samantha downing which is about a bad teacher abusing his power to punish students he doesn't like.

switching the gears to historical fiction and classics. perfume: the story of a murderer by patrick süskind is the life story of a man who by all accounts is bad but if so why does his perfume smell so good? what does he put in there?? another perfect example of a character blurring the line between morally grey and black is the protagonist of thomas savage's the power of the dog. both books have very good film adaptations which i recommend as well.

if you want to try and tackle a dusty tome foregrounding wicked antiheroes consider reading vanity fair by william thackeray or dangerous liaisons by pierre choderlos de laclos. if you'd rather start with something shorter look no further than the picture of dorian gray, who i personally think is "darker" than just grey (ha), but if you already read it consider revisiting the classic via the uncensored edition. still shorter? then you might like another work by oscar wilde - lord arthur savile's crime. it's much more humorous and satirical, as is lieutenant gustl by arthur schnitzler - a hilarious stream of consciousness novella following an odious imperial army officer as he contemplates how to restore his damaged manly honor in the wake of another man touching his sword - not a euphemism but definitely a metaphor😅

i really struggled to choose sff recs☹️ the thing is, in your typical fantasy characters like this will either be pretty one dimensional villains or side characters with not a lot of screen time, whereas those on the main cast are rather what you would probably describe as morally grey. nevertheless, here are three recs i'm not very satisfied with: first of all, empire of the vampire's jean françois gives me ianthe vibes. so far he's a character in the frame narrative only but i expect he'll play a bigger role in the final book of the trilogy. secondly, there is a secondary villain character in the winnowing flame trilogy by jen williams who is honestly my favorite part of it and they do bad things etc by virtue of being a villain but,, maybe they're just misguided? maybe their friends and family didn't love them enough but the main villain did? i mean, who's to say🤷‍♀️ finally, the main character of lynn flewelling's nightrunner books has an evil ex who has a fun poor little meow meow arc in books 4 and 5 - you decide if it's worth reading the entire series bc of it. i mean it's pretty good old queer fantasy so it's worth it for other reasons too but yeah. you see what i mean when i say it's difficult😭

[bethanydelleman]

Do you have a book that is full of the storylines/details you usually hate? But still think it's fascinating for that reason? An out of your comfort zone gem perhaps.

I don't know. I get mad at poorly done tropes because they happen too badly too much, but I don't actually hate any trope if it is done well. I recently railed against amnesia stories but I loved The Bourne Identity trilogy (books and movies). I'm a pretty wide reader/watcher of things, my usual reads are classics, fantasy, and historical fiction but I've enjoyed thrillers and popular fiction and whatever. The only thing I really avoid is horror because I don't like being scared.

I am fascinated by new takes on a tired trope or doing a trope really well. I think I just like good writing. I will even enjoy a soap opera if it really leans into being melodramatic. And I'll accept a premise if I'm meant to by the story, a writer tells me someone has total amnesia (impossible) I'll stay with them if the story is compelling. I'll just get mad about the neurological impossibility later.

I'm far more of a lover than a hater, but I think my ranty posts get more traction...

[richincolor]

Mini-Review: The Forest Demands Its Due

Title: The Forest Demands Its Due

Author: Kosovo Jackson

Genres:  Contemporary/Horror

Pages: 432

Publisher: Quill Tree Books

Review Copy: ARC by publisher

Availability: Available now

Summary: Regent Academy has a long and storied history in Winslow, Vermont, as does the forest that surrounds it. The school is known for molding teens into leaders, but its history is far more nefarious.

Seventeen-year-old Douglas Jones wants nothing to do with Regent's king-making; he’s just trying to survive. But then a student is murdered and, for some reason, by the next day no one remembers him having ever existed, except for Douglas and the groundskeeper's son, Everett Everley. In his determination to uncover the truth, Douglas awakens a horror hidden within the forest, unearthing secrets that have been buried for centuries. A vengeful creature wants blood as payment for a debt more than 300 years in the making—or it will swallow all of Winslow in darkness.

And for the first time in his life, Douglas might have a chance to grasp the one thing he’s always felt was power. But if he’s not careful, he will find out that power has a tendency to corrupt absolutely everything.

Review: There has been a fun trend of Black YA horror being published and I am here for it. Kosoko Jackson’s newest novel, “The Forest Demands Its Due” is another book to add to the list of fantastic horror being written by Black authors for Black teens. This twisty story is not so much scary (at least to me) but feels more like a funky thriller with ghosts, a creepy forest, a curse that needs to be broken, and a mystery that needs to be solved. There is so much going on in this novel but not once does it feel overwhelming. Jackson did such a wonderful job with the world building that all the different elements work together to create a seamless narrative. I was definitely into Douglas’s journey as he discovers his power. 

Douglas’s story starts out as a classic fish out of water where he is a relatively new student at an ultra exclusive private high school. After experiencing a tragedy, he is “recruited”, in a way, to the school and his mother given a job as the school nurse. As a Black Queer he doesn’t fit in and experiences bullying, but is trying to make the best of it because he knows “this is a great opportunity and he’s special.” (Yes, the racist undertones are there and are explicitly implied throughout the story.) Douglas does have a sweet heart and when he witnesses a student death that no one seems to remember the next day, he becomes determined to find out why. Douglas ends up at the Headmaster’s office who tells Douglas how special he really is and that Douglas is the key to ending the town’s curse. Douglas is clearly skeptical but goes along anyways and thus is brought into this world where nothing is as it seems. Douglas talks to ghosts, monster things, a god, and is able to wield earthen magic. Through it all though, and this is what I really liked about the novel, is Douglas’s good nature as he is exposed to all the weirdness. He has such a good heart and is always thinking of helping and protecting others. It was never to his detriment, but allowed him to fully tap into his power. I like that he was true to himself throughout the entire story and that is what made him so strong. 

Another aspect of this novel that I greatly enjoyed was its social commentary. The racist micro-aggressions that Douglas experiences is not shied away from, nor is the implied racism. Douglas makes note of it as well as the bigotry that he experiences. Even the reason for the curse is a statement on society and also propels Douglas as he tries to end the curse. I would say more but that would be giving away spoilers and this review has been hard to write without giving away spoilers as there are a number of twist and turns that makes “The Forest Demands Its Due” so interesting. 

[raindancejodi]

Halloween Movie Watchlist

Hi guys! It's spooky season so I'm trying to come up with a list of horror movies and Halloween movies to watch to celebrate! I want to watch one movie a night, and I want to watch mostly movies I've never seen before!! I've got a small list of the classics/my favorites:

Hocus Pocus - if you're American (or I guess just acitve on Tumblr) and have been paying attention to Halloween media at all in the last decade, you've definitely heard of this one! In case you haven't: a teenager accidentally reawakens 3 child-eating witches and must stop them before they eat the youth of every child in town. Sounds a bit scary like that, but it's one of the absolute best family Halloween movies around

The Conjuring - my favorite horror movie ever! So scary, so well acted. The actual story is a bunch of scammers (with the Warren's being the biggest liars/scammers of them all), but the movie's great! Synopsis: a family moves into a new house and scary/supernatural things begin to occur, seemingly focusing on the mother.

Halloweentown - back to the realm of 'family friendly', this is another absolute banger from my childhood. A teenage girl learns she's a witch and must use her new powers to save Halloweentown, a magical place where Halloween is 24/7

The Vigil - I watched this fairly recently and I was very impressed! A Jewish horror movie about a young man who must sit watch over a dead body (which is a Jewish custom I'm forgetting the name of), but supernatural forces begin to haunt him

The Nightmare Before Christmas - back to the more fun ones, this movie is probably the most quintessential 'Halloween movie' in my mind, I think I've watched it every year since I was born! Jack Skellington, the king of Halloween, grows weary of celebrating the same holiday over and over. When he discovers a portal to Christmastown, he gets filled with excitement over something new and decides to try his hand at being king of that instead

The Possession - another Jewish horror story about a Dybbuk box, a box containing a malicious spirit, that finds its way into the hands of a young girl and begins terrorizing her family. Based on a true story! Based here being the operative word, but the owners of the box do seem to consistently say they were genuinely afraid of the box (although no deaths have been attributed to it as far as I know)

Fear Street 1994, 1978, and 1666: technically 3 movies, but all part of a series based off of the books by R. L. Stine. Phenomenal movies, I loved everything about them and want to own them on DVD. This story follows a group of mostly teens as they uncover the truth of the curse of Shadyside, a town where serial killers seem remarkably common. Also has excellent LGBTQ rep (sapphic) and genuinely some of the best storytelling and 'unraveling' I have ever seen (in my opinion)

The Exorcist - a cult classic for a reason, the movie that kicked off the exorcism movie craze that continues to this day (The Exorcist: Believer, anyone?). A young girl begins to display horrifying changes in personality and her mother is desperate to find answers, so she reaches out to a priest. I like this movie a lot, but it may seem kinda hokey to those more used to the more 'modern' special effects. I also love this one because they don't let themselves get bogged down on the specifics of the 'why' and the 'how', bad things happen to good people for no reason all the time (the explanation at the end of Hereditary really undid the whole movie for me)

Halloween - it's literally called Halloween, how could I not include it? This one is my favorite of the franchise because I, personally, really dislike gore (specifically painful body horror like in Saw and later installments). Not that there's anything wrong with those types of movies, just not my personal cup of tea. This movie is much slower and much more thriller type than you might expect if your only knowledge of the franchise is the latest (2020 +) movies, but it is masterful in its suspense and its overbearing, black, ominous, foreboding feeling it evokes.

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - can't have Halloween without Dracula! This is my favorite of the adaptations, I love the music, the sets, the casting, the costuming. It's beautiful and grandiose and suffocating and terrifying (and not totally SFW so maybe look up some details before watching with kids) and also a bit long so keep that in mind. A real estate agent travels to remote Romania to settle a land deal for a wealthy recluse, only to find his life and the lives of those around him irrevocably changed when the mysterious man takes a keen interest in his fiancé

That's 12 if you count Fear Street as 3, or only 9 if you wanna watch them all together (as I usually do, I really love those movies), and I'm gonna work out a specific order if I get a few more suggestions. Please add on and give me your ideas! I'm trying to focus more on Halloween movies - some connection to the holiday or more 'traditional' Halloween monsters like vampires, witches, werewolves, and ghosts - but there's more than a few non-Halloween movies on there so don't be afraid to add your fav scary movie too!

[themosleyreview]

The Mosley Review: Longlegs

Is it strange that I long for a good serial killer film? We've had plenty of the slasher films out there recently, but we haven't had a pure and unapologetic serial killer story that was memorable. We really haven't had one that delves into the psychosis or the eerie nature of what makes a human become a monster. Well, this film takes us back down that familiar avenue of the psychological horror within the serial killer realm while having its own twist. The hunt for the killer is always the fun part and the clues that are left behind are always atmospheric and creepy. Most films gloss over these traits or rush past them to get to the next blood bath, but I enjoyed that this film took its time and let you live in the world being portrayed. I guess with modern day technology, the guess work and decryption process is expedited and looses the meticulous nature of combing over every inch of clues. This film wisely is set in the 90's and takes advantage of the limitations of the time expertly and added the correct level of creep.

Maika Monroe delivers a very restrained, quiet and dull performance correctly as FBI Agent Lee Harker. Her reserved, stoic and emotionally cold persona was excellent and gave the character a stillness and subtlety that slowly unravels as the story progresses. It was fascinating to witness the range of emotions from docile to sheer terror. Alicia Witt was excellent, weird and sad as her mother, Ruth. There is so much to the character and her protective soul was present once you get to meet her. The connection she shares with her daughter may seem disconnected, but there is love there that is shown in a specific way. Its always great to see Blair Underwood and its been a while since I've seen him on the big screen. As Lee's superior, Agent Carter, he was charming as ever and I liked the chemistry between the two of them. It was the classic buddy cop trope as you have the level headed family man that's partnered or works with the sometimes emotionally unavailable partner. Definitely one of or if not the selling point of the film was the titular character, Longlegs played wonderful by Nicolas Cage. Now you do have a few moments of his iconic unhinged nature, but it is completely character driven. Nic brings out his inner creep factor the moment he's on screen and he does not relent. The prosthetic make-up for the characters’ face was wisely covered up in the promotional material because it was essential to his over all unnerving presence. I loved the interrogation scene between him and Lee and Maika's reaction was truly real in my opinion. Longlegs had a motive that could turn some people off, but I was invested and I enjoyed the source of his reasoning as it gave him a distinction among the other killers in cinema. Its simple, but effective.

The score by composer Zilgi was unnerving, intense and playful in the right moments as the tone of the film doesn't let you experience much joy. Like I said before, the pure nature of the serial killer film genre has been missing in cinema and this film brings that back while delivering a layered finale. It wasn't predictable and felt like a homage. Its touted alot as this generations Silence of the Lambs and I particialy agree. You have the awkward detective facing off against the unnerving villain that has a sort of personal connection, but it has alot more intertwined in the story of how and why the murders occur. I can't say much more than that without walking into spoilers, but I will say I was genuinely surprised on how well the reason was executed. Writer and director Osgood Perkins, has delivered a chilling serial killer film that harkens back to the simple nature of the genre while keeping you on your tows by the end. For a considerable low budget in the horror genre these days, this was a well crafted thriller and the make-up department should take a bow. Let me know what you thought of the film or my review in the comments below. Thanks for reading!

[practically-an-x-man]

I've tried writing horror before and while I think I got some aspects down, I'd still like to ask. Do you have any advice on writing horror?

Ooooh, good question!

Once again, under the cut because this is for sure gonna be another long ramble:

So the first thing to consider is that horror is a massive genre, and there are a lot of ways it can take shape. You aren't going to write a gothic psychological thriller the same way you would an 80s-style slasher, they require completely different pacing and atmosphere. The first thing I'd recommend is figuring out what pace you need to set, and sticking to it.

Obviously there are a lot of different types of horror, and I could give you more specific pointers if you have a particular genre or theme in mind, but I think it boils down to two types: horror that is scary because of what you (the audience) see, and horror that is scary because of what the character sees.

The first type is more common in movies, since you're able to lay it all out on the screen. Since films are visual-focused, and only require the audience to pay attention to what they are physically seeing, it's much more common for a film to be scary because of what is on the screen. Examples would be The Babadook, The Thing, It Follows, A Quiet Place, American Werewolf in London, etc. - you see exactly what the threat is, and it looks scary, and that's where the fear comes in.

The second type is more common in books, since writing requires a level of reliance on the reader's imagination. You can describe your perfect horror monster in as much detail as possible, but if the audience isn't imaginative, it doesn't matter. If the reader of your book decides your monster looks like a big cartoon butterfly, you're never going to convince them otherwise. So more frequently, it relies on the character's reactions to what they experience, using emotions and experiences rather than sheer visuals to provide something scary. An example here would be Pet Sematary (the book) - we never actually see what is it that brings things back to life, all we get is a vague shadow in the woods, but we know through Louis' reactions to seeing it that this thing is very big and very unsettling.

Now, there are spillovers in both categories, of course. Movies like Bird Box and The Little Stranger don't ever show us the entities, just characters' reactions to them, and that works. And books like Jeff Vandermeer's works (Borne, Annihilation) have a lot of description into this strange, surreal world, and that works. I'm not trying to say that all horror movies are audience-focused and all horror books are character-focused. But I am saying that if you want to write a horror book, you want to write a character that the audience can connect with, since everything we see is through their eyes. Even with my earlier example of Annihilation, the descriptions are told through the biologist's experiences - we still view things through the character's eyes, but the character happens to have a perspective that allows her to describe what she sees in great detail.

So, all that to say... write a strong character to put your experiences through. Everything you write goes through that character. If the character is afraid, the audience is afraid. If the character is in pain, the audience is in pain. That's the crux of horror in writing. Movies can get by with terrifying visuals, but a book is only as good as its narrator.

My other piece of advice? Commit. If you have an idea, you commit to that idea. If you waver because you think an idea is too dark, or you think the audience won't like that, it'll show. A good idea done half-assed is still only half as compelling as a stupid idea done with full commitment. And since horror relies so heavily on tapping into the audience's emotions, they will know if there's not heart in what you're writing. I mean, the phrase "cult classic" exists for a reason.

Commit to the idea you have, tell the story the way you think it should be told. Do your research, treat sensitive topics with respect, the goal is not to be cruel to your readers (and being too explicit with it is often just seen as crass), but don't water down your story just for the sake of being marketable. Not every story needs a happy ending. Not every protagonist needs to make good choices, or even be a good person at all. Cliches are not necessarily bad, it's all in how you utilize them.

And lastly... write what you want to write, but I'd advise you not to overshoot. It may be tempting to get super ambitious with it, but if this is your first experience writing horror, try to start small and focus on individual scary moments or deep emotions before you try to introduce a whole larger world. Large-scale horror can definitely work (I'm gonna cite Annihilation again but it's a great example), but some of the most effective horror pieces work with an incredibly limited scope. Ex Machina has a three person cast, and 90% of it takes place in a single glass room. Late Night with the Devil, a new favorite of mine, is a single episode of a 70s talk show. SAW takes places in a bathroom. Misery is largely just two people in a single room. Having boundaries, in the setting and the characters, allows you to establish things quickly and move on to diving into the experiences and emotions of it all, which is what really becomes scary.

TL;DR: The audience sees everything through your protagonist, so focus on them. You don't need incredible detail to make something scary, you just need to express emotion. Commit to your ideas, don't half-ass what you write. And define yourself a clear boundary, tell a simple story well instead of getting lost in lofty ideas.

[devilsskettle]

this interview from fangoria #32 (pg. 10) with c.h.u.d. producer andrew bonime was cracking me up because he basically spoils the entire movie in this 2 page interview but also it's kind of charming to see how much he believed in this movie as a contribution to the horror genre but also the political aspects of the film that drive the plot that genuinely do have value in discussing views on environmentalism and poverty and government conspiracies and fears surrounding urban life which are as relevant today as they were when this movie came out. people think i'm joking when i tell them how much i like this movie but i really do like this movie a lot, i think it really commits to the premise and finds a lot to explore in it and makes a lot of interesting connections and speaks to some cultural ideas a lot of people take for granted. in this interview, you can tell that the story was written with real thought and care! even if it's "just" a schlocky 80s creature feature. anyway..... one of the responses i get to this post about gore as a storytelling device is that filmmakers in horror don't "intend" the meaning i'm reading into it so it somehow doesn't count and they shouldn't "get credit" for it if it wasn't intentional. well, this just goes to show you that you can have all the intention in the world to create a political, super scary sci-fi thriller and every review will say it's stupid, cheap, meaningless schlock with some "unintentional" moments of humor or political relevance. maybe that makes it an unsuccessful movie, fair enough, but don't tell me you don't see the dissonance between the production of b-movies and their perception in pop culture. i see it all the time with slumber party massacre too, like people will say the humor is unintentional or they pass along this half-true idea that the original script was a comedy but the filmmakers didn't realize that so the humor doesn't land, but like! it's meant to be a satire! that "unintentional" humor is just. you getting the joke that the filmmakers intended for you to make. yes there was an original script that was more slapstick/parody, the final script was toned down in that respect but it's still comedic! intentionally! if the humor doesn't land, fine, it's not for you, but it's not because the filmmakers were somehow unaware of the intent of the script. ugh. anyway. it's also funny though because as much as c.h.u.d. is disparaged like this, bonime in turn disparages slasher movies in this interview lol it's like okay, stones and glass houses my guy. with all that having been said, uh. sorry if you don't like c.h.u.d. i guess, i definitely get that it's not for everyone but i also don't like it when people immediately have bad faith interpretations of b-movies, i think those of us who love a cult classic understand that there's a lot more to get out of these kinds of movies than what meets the eye and there's a lot more fun to be had when you go into watching them with an open mind and, well, reasonable expectations.

[grandhotelabyss]

I recently watched Donald Cammell’s WHITE OF THE EYE, which you prefer over Zulawski’s own 80s cult classic POSSESSION. When you speak highly of a film on here I take it seriously, and was not let down: a narratively, thematically, and aesthetically rich (and just remarkably weird) desert southwest giallo slasher of sorts with sinister performances from David Keith and Cathy Moriarty. As I can no longer find the post where you first mentioned it, would you speak more to why you like it?

Thank you, and I'm glad you liked it! I had trouble finding the original post too—Tumblr's tagging system used to use hyphens for spaces and now doesn't, making even reasonably labeled things hard to rediscover—but I did manage to dig it up. I hope you don't mind if I simply paste it in here since a lot of newer readers probably missed it. I only saw the movie once and won't try to recapture the (over)enthusiastic prose I wrote upon the first viewing. Tumblr is also bad at date-labeling things, but I believe this dates from summer 2021.

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I now believe White of the Eye (1987) is criminally unheralded in the semi-arty horror-thriller pantheon (do not, please, speak to me of Ari Aster). 

Being a philistine, I like White of the Eye better, for instance, than the connoisseur’s go-to ’80s cult object, Żuławski’s Possession, which I find unendurably over-stylized despite its other merits. Fun fact: Possession was co-written by novelists’ novelist Frederic Tuten, who once received the most extravagant blurb from my beloved Cynthia Ozick, as friend-of-the-blog @danskjavlarna pointed out: “What an amazing, glittering, glowing, Proustian, Conradian, Borgesian, diamond-faceted, language-studded, myth-drowned dream!” exclaimed our greatest living Republican-voting novelist (remember that Cormac McCarthy doesn’t vote). Tuten, by the way, is not to be blamed for what I call Possession’s over-stylization, which is a matter of performance not script. But I don’t want to get into a hipper-than-thou spiral, “My cult movie’s better than your cult movie,” to be trapped in a crisis of Girard’s mimetic desire or Bourdieu’s cultural capital—merde, but the French are depressing, “too human, too historical,” as Deleuze complained in acclaiming “the superiority of Anglo-American literature.” The work of art has formal, affective, conceptual intrinsic qualities, not just extrinsic social determinants, and White of the Eye is, I argue, intrinsically spectacular.

Speaking of performance: White of the Eye was directed by Donald Cammell, the co-director with Nicolas Roeg of the classic 1970 film Performance. Again a philistine, I could never get into Performance—never even watched it all the way through—even though it sits at the nexus of two of my early influences. First, in a Comics Journal interview in the mid-’90s, English artist Bryan Talbot credited Performance’s jump-cut montage techniques for inspiring the storytelling innovations in his graphic novel The Adventures of Luther Arkwright. The underread Arkwright is the lost key to comics’s British Invasion—without it we wouldn’t have had V for Vendetta, Watchmen, Sandman, or The Invisibles. (It’s also a key to this movement’s cryptic politics, as Talbot stages a Jacobite uprising as anti-fascist revolution, precursor to Moore’s much more famous but still baffling ancom in Guy Fawkes garb. Is all anarchism Tory anarchism?) Second, Performance was a particular interest of Professor Colin MacCabe’s, whose class on James Joyce, with its mind-altering 12 weeks on Ulysses, helped to make me the reader and writer I am today back in that explosive landmark year, 2001. Protagonist of an epochal affaire in poststructuralism’s history and erstwhile director of the British Film Institute, MacCabe later wrote a book on Performance, which, alas, unlike his books on Joyce and Godard, I haven’t read. 

I like White of the Eye better than Performance as I like it better than Possession, though. Mysterious symbolism, desert desolation, languorous eroticism, and, yes, some montage. The scorching, doomed marriage between a fanatic Western audiophile—he looks like the young W. Bush—and his breathy, no-nonsense New York wife; a Paglia-esque misogynist rampage (“that fuckin’ black hole…if that’s not female, I don’t know what is”) in an arid outpost of the Reagan-era bourgeoisie and its multicultural fringe: it all evokes the inherent evil of the American landscape that Burroughs observes in Naked Lunch. It has that ’80s quality of emotional amplitude not just between but within scenes. At every moment you might ask, “Is this sad, funny, or horrifying?” and answer, “Yes.” I do see filmmakers today working in the same vein and aspiring to the same compass. Witness the already famous Jacques Derrida High School in David Prior’s ultimately disappointing Empty Man or the scarcely resistible vaporwave dreamscape of Anthony Scott Burns’s also ultimately disappointing Come True (can’t anybody end a movie anymore?). But White of the Eye does it without effort or self-consciousness, as the very essence of its being an artwork at all—an artifact from a lost civilization.

[marshmallowprotection]

yooo one romantic mysme matchup s'il te plaît? having gone over the rules i do apologize in advance if what i initially submit is fairly wordy of sorts, so i will save you the troubles of placing that disclaimer now 👍 thanks much

entp || aries || ravenclaw || adult || pansexual || asian || she/they

appearance: long dark brown wavy/curly hair, glasses, with dark brown eye, 5’2, with that simple light southeast asian melanin 😮‍💨

aesthetic type: dark academia yet with my own twist of things either softening up my style or making do what i can to feel eccentric and bold

music type: very alt rock, indie rock, soft rock like the Beatles, music, classical symphonies, kpop or just any music from asia for the most part, any music genre I’ll still enjoy them

favorites/hobbies : playing the violin (10+ yrs), spicy noodles, boba, kbbq, hotpots (shabu shabu), psychological, horror, mystery, thrillers, cuisines and delicacies from any culture! exploring

currently obsessed listening to: midas by skott

✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

in depth personality analysis i’m not entirely sure how i should describe myself. though in simplistic terms, i’m an over-thinker. i’m always thinking of something and how i could possibly better my opinions and opportunities in my life years from now far beyond what i could possibly imagine. it’s more than overwhelming to think so far into the future yet in a spilt second of thinking like so turns that into hours of just me pondering, daydreaming, pacing back and forth my room of what could be versus what should be. i’d like to call this my hobby and my talent. the ability to just really let time pass by without having done anything. though that’s just if i don’t have others around me to ground me and place me back into reality. which I’m more than grateful for. because i’m a natural over-thinker it’s only fair i were also the type to self indulge myself into the wonders and realms of fiction,fantasies, and religion/spirituality. and what better way to richen up my fantasy world/life than to read books of old holy prophesies, books of old folklore and mythology? i’m a reader and ever since i started working, i now currently possess a humble library. i’m a also a freshman college student majoring in biochemistry. with the potential thorough thought and impulse of me joining the navy and make use of its money to become a doctor (let me become a psychologist). that’s another great fact about me as academic or even formal as i may write and speak i absolutely love action. and will never miss an opportunity to go on some sort of adventure. just like the hobbits in JRR Tolkien’s/Christopher Tolkien’s middle earth sagas. speaking of which i’m a huge geek and nerd. i’m usually pretty fidgety especially when i’m thinking. i absolutely need to be pacing the floors or just fidgeting with one of those true genius puzzles or just plain play dough. going back to that action sometimes or actually most times the only reason why i like being in such stressful environment is because it helps me ground myself and get be back into reality and really notice what it is i need to be focusing on at the moment. and i’d say i thrive fairly decent under stress and under pressure. which some say is the reason why i can be a good leader, but i’m a jokestar, i pull pranks i pull jokes wrong time or not it’s one of the ways i cope. yet despite all this chaos of whatever is in my mind i like to think i’m a pretty approachable person except apparently my tone of voice sounds demanding and sarcastic. not my problem i’d say. though another reason some are intimidated by me is simply of the fact that i’m a boasting loud bubble of energy but will instantly shy off the moment a conversation to me feels awkward or of irrelevance. other relevance perhaps of any significance many of those who i call friends and or are close to all tend to be a lot of smart quiet people. i like people who are quiet to the point where it seems intimidating and they deem to be heartless and cold. but that’s just me as long as whoever i’m with is a decent human being who’s also pretty smart then we can hit it off right away and become friends.

I match you with...

Jumin!

People might assume that you are somebody who has everything together all the time. They think that everything might come easy to you but that's not always the case, y'know? It's very human to feel as if you're all over the place. Your thoughts are like a bouncy ball that never quits. You're always thinking about what comes next or what's behind you, and that means it can be hard to figure out what you're supposed to be doing in the present. You know what you're supposed to do and the things that you should do, but they don't always align with what you want to be doing. Sometimes, you just want to be in a world of your own where there's nothing to worry about but the dream. You need somebody in your life who can pull you back in from a daydream and show you that life is worth the trouble. Most of all, you just need somebody who makes you laugh.

That's why your match is someone like Jumin Han. People don't always understand him either. They think that he's cold or calculating but in reality, he is somebody with a great sense of humor who can make you feel safe and secure. With him, you don't have to worry about formalities. There's nothing messy in the middle. You know where you stand with him and it helps any insecurities or worries you may feel in the night. Nothing he says can be taken out of context. He says what he means and he means what he says. He knows what you mean when other people might assume that you sound dry or upset. You're cool under pressure and so is he. It's why the two of you are perfectly balanced since you can lean on each other when the other feels tired.

What he loves the most is being able to talk with you about whatever you're reading and caught up with. If there's one thing he loves, it's being able to focus on the intricacies of a fantasy world when he isn't knee deep in business work. It means more when it's coming from something that interests you.