#abc still star crossed

[darklinaforever]

Ok... I'm rewatching Still Star Crossed, and this show is even better than I remember. It will surely join the list of the worst shows unfairly canceled for me, even if, I know, the spectators were not there for the show, this is mainly due to, I give it to you in thousand, the lack of promotion ! Damn... but the platforms and the channels actually learn to do their job by force !? Also, a very nice thing and there are no sex scenes (so surprising for a Shonda work) ?! Apart from kisses there is nothing, and I find that refreshing after having seen so many shows with excessive ass over and over again. Oh and I'm so in love with the princess Isabella. It had already marked me at the time, but much more after this rewatch.

[stratfordsandthestars]

honestly, with bridgerton's popularity i absolutely BEG shonda rhimes to bring back still star-crossed. please for the love of god, abc! give us a reboot! it's been long enough.

[avacoleman]

when the lights go out || a firstprince fic

summary: Henry Fox’s career is in crisis and his dating life isn’t faring much better either.  After a chance encounter with a charming man becomes memorable for all the wrong reasons, Henry throws himself into his next assignment: writing the memoir of a beloved C-list actor. Henry, however, knows Alex best for the role he played as his random, awkward one-night stand. Henry enters their professional partnership keen on keeping their relationship just that. But after Henry confesses that their hookup was less than spectacular, Alex concots an arrangement that Henry is unable to resist. In addition to ghostwriting Alex’s life story, Henry will teach him a thing or two about satisfying a man.  As they spend months out on the road together, they must decide if the connection between them is yet another story worth telling.

chapter 8/8 || rated e || read on ao3 final word count: 56.7k

Epilogue New York, NY Four months later  FROM SCREEN TO THE PAGE TO THE BROADWAY STAGE, ALEX CLAREMONT-DIAZ PROVES HE HAS THE RANGE! Vulture excerpt The Crescent Valley star’s memoir, The ABC’s of ACD, debuted at number four on the New York Times bestsellers list. With an honest look at his start in Hollywood with the role that launched him into the public eye, Claremont-Diaz’s memoir has since been dubbed a must-read for fans of the hit show and beyond. Revered for its sheer candor and care as he opens up about his sexuality, Claremont-Diaz’s memoir has struck a chord with many in the LGBTQIA+ community. Claremont-Diaz received an overwhelming show of support online from fans, many of whom have shared personal testimony that the actor’s coming out inspired them to do the same with their loved ones. It’s an honor Claremont-Diaz doesn’t take lightly.

“From the outset when dreaming about putting my story out there, I always hoped to touch at least one person, as cheesy or cliche as that might sound.. To make that kind of connection, to show them that they aren’t alone, that what they’re feeling is not only valid, but that their truth is worth living? That’s everything. Every single comment online or message that I get from someone in a similar situation feels like armor each day. I carry that with me.”

Following a two-week tour for the book’s promotions, there are no signs of Claremont-Diaz slowing down. The actor is now gearing up to add another first on his resumé. 

As mentioned in his book and previous interviews, Claremont-Diaz once did stagework as a child in Austin. These days, however, he’s finding the scale just a tad bit bigger.

“Stage was one of my first loves. It feels right to be returning to it. I couldn’t have guessed it’d be in such a major way though. Broadway,” the actor said, a clear wonder in his voice. “It’s so surreal. I still can’t believe it’s happening. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to make sense of that.”

According to sources, the bright lights of the Great White Way aren't the only thing calling Claremont-Diaz to New York City.

When asked about sightings of him with boyfriend writer Henry Fox around the Big Apple as he prepares for opening night, Claremont-Diaz only offered his signature smirk and kept tight-lipped on any details of how the two met. Though the timeline is unclear of when they initially crossed paths, one thing is for certain: They appear to be in it for the long haul.

Claremont-Diaz has been an outspoken advocate for Fox’s debut novel which is set for release next spring.

With his focus now set on embarking on a new chapter in his career, Claremont-Diaz seems assured about the road ahead, even as he settles into a brand new city in order to complete his show run.

“New York is the place I need to be right now,” he replied simply. “Everything I love most in the world can be found right here. I couldn’t ask for anything more than this.”

[buckera]

(random, sorry) I agree it could be so much better on abc now than it could have been on fox. I'm so happy they already got renewed it almost makes up for the sadness over what could have been with the shooting and the will and all...I would have loved to see what they wanted to write. I am still worried though that because time is running out, they see them as just that now – endgame. That we might not get to see their relationship, just an ending?

I don't know... when I think about it, there's always this list of circumstances, you know? things that we have to account for when considering how it is most likely to go down.

1) is Tim sticking around? was he really forcibly removed because of the buddie thing or was that just a coincidence? if someone else takes over the writing again, which way would that sway the story? also, would it be someone new or someone who worked on the show before?

2) the actors. Oliver especially has been very loud about how important it is for him to tell an authentic story for the character and for the people Buck represents; that comes with all sorts of bi and queer stereotypes they'd wanna avoid dipping into, which again would sway the story (of Buck and Eddie together at least) into specific directions. then there's Ryan, who has said many times over the years that he's open to wherever the road takes them with buddie, but he also emphasised truthfulness to the story and characters — we know Tim is interested in their input, we don't know how another writer would go about it.

3) ratings and reception. in many ways, bucktommy was a buddie soft-launch. don't get me wrong, I love bucktommy with all my heart and am very adamant on keeping their story separate from buddie because it isn't about buddie within the realms of the show, it is somewhat about buddie irl though.

making a lead (male) character canonically bisexual was a big leap of faith. yes, it is a Ryan Murphy show and yes, the show had a lot of queer rep already, but we never had a man-on-man on-camera kiss before on the show and we all know how differently general audiences react to two women kissing and two men kissing — which is, again, why this storyline on such a big primetime TV show is so so important. they calculated the risks, went for it and it all worked out; the ratings were great and the response was overwhelmingly positive. that's a great step one into the direction of canon buddie.

4) writing. buddie going canon however would make 3 of the 5 lead characters queer and not only that but all of them would be in relationships, bringing in outsider recurring or even guest star characters somewhat harder to write, unless they branched out and brought new people in to be part of the lead ensemble (Ravi main, abc, I'm begging!!). not to mention the people who'd call it pandering; and even though the story between Buck and Eddie is there to see for everyone already, it'd be harder to defend when the numbers would be 3:5 compared to the intial first season's 1:5.

all that being said, we are on a good path right now; we are renewed for season 8 and that, at least, gives us time to develop the story without rushing through it and I have my fingers crossed that the stars will align and the show will do justice to this beautiful love story that has been in the making for years.

until then, I'm just immensely grateful for abc and the budget and freedom they gave to the writers, cast and crew and I'm here for whatever they'll give us, because I know it'll be great.

[kiarpennington]

Kia’s Commentary: What’s on TV Segment. In this segment, I review ABC’s Still Star Crossed. For full episode, check out the Kia’s Commentary Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube!

[simmancy]

Happy Spooky Season, pumpkaboos! 

Here’s what’s happening this month / going forward on simmancy-dot-tumblr-dot-com.

𝙷𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚘 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚏𝚘𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚜! 👋

Hi there if you’re new! My name is Kit, I am 32 now, this is my simblr, I am active on and off. If any of that bothers you, unfollow, it's okay! If you're here because I posted a mod list or a random piece of CC you like, then I have good news - I do those things occasionally! When I am actively posting, I usually dabble in gameplay. I don't do much storytelling anymore because... well, I don't have the time!

𝚂𝚒𝚖𝚋𝚕𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚂𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚍𝚞𝚕𝚎 🍬

I have SOME stuff I've been poking at in my ~spare time~. I love Simblreen, it's the best time of the year imo and it's just... a tradition. It's a tradition. So I'm going to try 🤞

I have been writing out a mod list centered around occults/spooky gameplay at least. So that's seasonally appropriate????? If you have a mod list request hit my inbox because I still fucking LOVE WCIFs and that's a sort of WCIF.

𝙾𝚌𝚝𝚘𝚋𝚎𝚛 𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚝 🎃

This year (and likely going forward), I'm going to try to use my blog to showcase the community. There's SO many cool things in the ts4 tag!! So I've been scouring it at the dead of night to refill my queue 👻 That's what you can mainly expect this month. No CAS challenges, no CC challenges, just some creepies and kookies from others around simblr.

𝚁𝚎𝚐𝚞𝚕𝚊𝚛 𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚝 🌕

Hi regular followers!! I’m so sorry if you've been here a long time, because I don't have much updates on my ~classic~ gameplays and saves and they just...... won't be. For a while.

Not So Perry... I have a bit of Gen 4 but I haven't played in a whiiiiile so. I might revisit that/redo/we'll see.

Star x Crossed is indefinitely on hold - I will probably revise how that was posting because the full episodes just aren't possible right now. I might do it more as like... an edit type thing, where the edits tell the stories or whatever. It SUCKS because I had really big hopes and dreams for that save and instead I... had a child.

The Nobel ABCs will return because I have 10 generations done in game. I just need to queue.

Maggie's Wonderful Life WILL eventually be done LMAO. I'm hoping to get back into that save soonish. I LOVE farming gameplay! So I want to play/finish it. I had about half of the introductions shot before I got distracted with other things and then... well. yeah.

New saves? When I manage to play, I play a lot of newer saves LMAO. Mostly because when I have time right now I need... something easy.

𝙻𝚒𝚏𝚎 𝚄𝚙𝚍𝚊𝚝𝚎 🔮

I decided I like doing this once a year Simmancy Newsletter during my favorite time of the year. Halloween remains the BEST season, and there's also no guarantee I won't drop off the face of the planet again.

Obv the main thing is that, as previously stated, I had a baby. A whole ass baby. She's now 3 months old, and she is so much in the best way. We're currently teething and if you're like "Kit that seems a bit early," you're absolutely right but this is the lot I've drawn in life. She likes to be sat up, and stood up, and to talk to the Baby in the Mirror. She also is obsessed with trees and the cat. I know new moms are annoying and I'm absolutely that annoying new mom, I literally cannot shut up about her and therefore make my sims blog also about her.

I go back to work next month and I'm absolutely dreading it. Can I just be a sim and have someone press motherlode for me? Please?

Otherwise, there's very little in Kit World. The past 6 simblr years remain wonderful, and I've met some of my best friends on here. I go between BG3 and Sims when I have game time (which isn't a lot because Baby Simmancy is increasingly awake and mobile). I WISH I had more time to hang around here but maybe in a year or so.

Anyway, that’s my update of the year. Happy spooky season everybody! I hope it’s a good one!

Stay safe & spooky out there!

[etherealnoir]

The fact that there’s still like 4 lost Still Star Crossed episodes that they filmed but never aired makes me want to roll up to ABC HQ AND PUNCH THINGS

[andydrysdalerogers]

The ABC's of Nick Vaughn - "F"

Pairing: Reader x Nick Vaughn (Before We Go)

Summary: Children its time to learn your ABCs. And Nick Vaughn is here to teach you the lessons. 26 glimpses in the world of you and Nick Vaughn

Warnings: S-M-U-T!!!! (under 18 please leave the chat!) descriptions of sexual activity including some themes of BDSM, loss of virginity, fluffy bits, pet name etc...

A/N: Happy Sin-day! I am finally feeling better and thought as a gift for returning from the metaphorical dead, I would give a little treat!

I do NOT give permission for my work to be translated or reposted on here or any other site, even if you give me credit. DO NOT REPOST MY FICS. Reblogs, comments, likes, and feedback ALWAYS appreciated

Divider by @firefly-graphics

Previous: E - Experimentation

ABC Masterlist - Main Masterlist

F - Fellatio 

This is from Nick’s POV.  

My girl was so very timid when we met. But it was a sexy shy that still reels me in. She wasn’t over the top like some girls. In fact, she was a demur sexy daisy of a girl, something that I will never take advantage of.  

I like that we have been experimenting together. Testing where the limits are. I don’t want to hurt her, of course I don’t, but I want to ride the edge every once in a while.  So we made a list and we are working through it all.  

But today, it was an off day.  She had jury duty and was almost picked, sending her spiraling. She hates confrontation and this would have been the epitome of that. When she got home, I could see she was in shock and angry.  “Sweetheart, its ok.”  

“No it’s not Nicky!”  

I love it when she calls me Nicky.  “Baby, you didn’t get picked.  I don’t see the problem.”  

“The problem is, I didn’t want to know the details of the case and now that’s all I can think about.  Ugh!” She throws herself on to the bed and looks like a starfish.  Adorable.  And then a thought crossed my mind, and I smiled a wicked grin.  I lay down next to her and she curls over to look at me.  

“I could give you something to distract you.” I pushed her hair off her face.  She nods softly.  “You wanna work on the list?” 

“You want to distract me with sex?” She squeaks.  

“Well, yes. But I want us to do something that will let you think less.” I give her my charming smile and she smiles back.  

“Yeah, what’s that?” 

I look deep into her eyes and cradle her head. “I want you to give me a blow job. I want you to try and suck my soul outta my dick.”  

She inhaled and I got worried I went too far this time. But then she smiled, that rock star smile that had me on my knees when we first met.  She got up and she pulled me up with her.  My eyes must have shown some surprise because she kissed me softly before moving to my cheek and then my jaw. I swallowed hard because then she whispered, “I accept your challenge.” 

She kissed me hard as she pulled on my belt and then the button on my jeans. I was lost in a swirl of horniness, arousal and passion for this woman. My pants hit the ground before she pushed me to sit on the edge of the bed.   She climbed on me and pushed me all the way down so she could kiss my neck.  I moved her slightly so I could take my shirt off.  

God, the way she nipped and sucked my skin, I was ready to blow. But she teased my abs and my navel like no one else has and it distracts me enough, so I don’t realize that my boxers are now around my ankles as well.  She was on her knees so fast; I was afraid she would bruise her knees. She looks up at me with a devious little smile. “Baby...” that’s all I can get out before I moan like a horny teenager.  My girl takes the tip of my cock in her mouth and gently suckles.  

My mind is totally blown.  She’s only ever given me a hand job in the few months we’ve been together, honestly admitting that she’s never done a blow job before.  I think she’s lying because right now, she is working my cock like a fucking ice cream cone.  She takes more in her mouth, the rest is being worked by her hand, the other on my balls.  Fuck, she is making it really hard not to be a minute man right now.  

She pops off my cock with a smile, still working her hand.  “Does it feel good?” 

“Uh,” I croak, trying to remember how to speak.  “I – uh, thought you hadn’t done this before.”  

“Oh, I haven’t.  But since you used porn to teach me things, I used it to teach me this.”  

And she deep throats me. 

I fucking moan louder than I have ever done in my life.  When she lets go, I whimper, fucking whimper at the loss of the heat of her mouth. And then she giggles because she knows, she owns me now.  

“Baby if you do that again, I’m gonna blow.”  

“Good.”  

Ever had your soul sucked out of you? It’s the perfect distraction. 

Next

Taglist

@patzammit @slutforchrisjamalevans @jennmurawski13-writes @firephotogrl74 @texmexdarling @tinkerbelle67 @atoosa22

[pluckysidekick]

Hello, Drewds! It’s been a while since Nancy Drew filming wrapped. Am I the only one who couldn’t have imagined being almost two full weeks into January and still not knowing when Season 4 of Nancy Drew was premiering? Me either.

In the meantime, some happenings:

The big headline is of course Kennedy McMann is starring in ABC’s massively popular ‘Good Doctor’ series’ spinoff The Good Lawyer as a young lawyer, Joni DeGroot, with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) - which Kennedy herself suffers from - opposite Felicity Huffman.

In the backdoor pilot airing March 13, we meet the “brilliant, funny and self-aware” young lawyer living with OCD, whose “attention to detail allows her to see cases through a different lens.” Sound familiar? Here’s to hoping Joni likes checked blazers and patterned scarves. If only her law firm also had a quirky tech guy…Congrats, Kennedy!

Speaking of Kennedy, she along with the writers and Riley came on Twitter to commiserate in solidarity with us on the lack of a premiere date, and to confirm that those fake episode titles (e.g. “The Whispers of the Grim” 😂) were bogus.

We also got SEASON 4 EMOJIS, her favorite scenes (in Ep. 3 and 13 after some clarification), and assurance that we will cry hard at the end of the finale.

Besides Cupid’s arrow (hopefully NACE and not some alternate love interests we have to suffer through), looking forward to the Hardy Family Hannukah Dinner, Game Night! (see below), camping out in that cool Airstream, road trip (PLEASE LET IT BE NANCY AND ACE), BABY (Carson and Jean’s perhaps?), curse breaking via a spell book Bess finds perhaps, and FIRE (oh no). Also Nancy’s gonna give some more blood, but we knew that already. I wonder if Ace is the latest blood donor….

Speaking of Game Night, here’s a little seen BTS photo from DP Nick Thomas I never posted from back in late September - Game Night is ON at Icarus Hall, and probably in the same episode with the earth shattering Nace photo Kennedy posted the same week. Does anyone recognize what game they’re going to be playing?

Next, the hit horror film M3GAN with the creepy life sized American Girl doll killer helped the CW pay the bills with a cross promo with ND that gave us a tiny bit of S4 footage.

We got to see Bess performing some kind of ritual? on Nancy with a weird contraption (mask? Ghost goggle type lens?) and Nancy vomiting black ick. They’re doing this in the in the Drew house, which is strange since Nancy seems to have moved into Icarus Hall. Ace’s voiceover where he questions Nancy’s eating habits has been debated to death of whether he’s actually in the scene or if it’s audio from the Tom Swift episode (inconclusive).

Based on Nancy and Nick’s (who’s behind Bess) wardrobe, and Kennedy’s mention of filming an episode with a ‘Burning Bride’ comedy vibe back in an early August podcast, I believe this scene is from Episode 2, and related to the cause of whatever humorous curse is going on in that episode. Anyway, Ew. But still nice to see actual S4 footage.

We also saw some of our actors on much deserved vacations, with Maddison and Leah both enjoying tropical vacations with their bfs (in Mexico and Costa Rica respectively).

This will probably be my last marathon post for a while. I do still owe a breakdown of Riley’s post from the last day of filming in the Claw set with baby shower props (!). Also, I finally reached 100+ notes with a short post of just fantastic cast BTS photos.

I’ve been hard at work on Part 2 of No One Mourns the Wicked, my Secret Sleuth fic with a Season 1 AU where the crew put on a summer stock production of Wicked. It’s almost done and it’s a doozy. I will probably split it into multiple parts to make it easier to consume, as it sort of turned into a multi-chapter extravaganza. Whoops. Speaking of which, I’ll be jumping right back into The Space Between (S4 spec fic) as soon as I’m done - there’s still a lot of insanity planned for the crew post curse breaking. They still have a mystery to solve…

Thanks for sticking with me, waiting impatiently for the S4 premier date along with everyone else. Bye for now!

[mysorokuheart]

Just some SoRoku thoughts

With SoRoku week right around the corner I’m thinking back to when I first started shipping Sora & Roxas. Its almost a head scratcher of why? Why do I ship two characters who have barely any screen time & to some people still problematic to ship? Why put myself through that? & to end up putting myself out there with spending countless hours making SoRoku edits to running a fan blog with some friends I’ve made along the way.

Friendship

To answer that question isn’t of course due to much of the actual games lack of screen time which I could harp on but started from a simple thought I had while playing kh2 vanilla ps2 in 06 ish at 16 . I’m like wow who the f is this kid? He needs to meet Sora & teach him to skateboard & share this odd ice cream so at first I wanted them to be friends because didn’t have the idea to ship them that came later then forward to my utter somewhat of a disappointment, I really didn’t want them connected like this or at all. So I fell out of playing or caring until later as younger adult of feeling nostalgic from ABC’s once upon a time made me want revisit another Disney crossover Kingdom Hearts so I replayed kh2 on my still working ps2 at the time lol then played catch-up by watching play throughs of every game up to that point. kh3 had not yet this was 5+ years prior to that. I learned I don’t have the patience to play games anymore or can’t because I was starting to get early on arthritis in my right hand. I was in tears to learn of ddd’s Sora & Roxas scene on YouTube not from playing that game. Suddenly I was ok with them being connected because that one scene was my payoff for suffering years ago. It was also that one scene that changed them from friendship to romantic to me. It’s special.

Yeah Sora can’t get the beautiful blond boy out of his mind after that lol every brunette needs a blond😅🙊

Romance

Oh yeah I’m still trying to answer the question why ship them? The potential chemistry they could of had, star crossed lovers. Sora desperately wanted to save Roxas his quote “it’s not darkness not if it helps him” to xemnas & Ansem seeker of darkness didn’t go unnoticed by me but Sora’s determination to at least save Roxas is heartwarming it’s okay he was thinking of Roxas it’s interesting that something isn’t darkness bad if it helps someone who you care about 🤔 the I don’t care attitude of it is telling at the end but it started here! 😄🥹😅❤️ but it’s my 2nd fav quote from kh3 referring to Roxas when he isn’t even there the desperation & determination of it is beautiful

im with you in San Fransokyo is my 1st😭

I have no straight answer as to why I ship them lol sorry to have wasted your time 😝

[wardrobeoftime]

Thank you so much for making gif sets of Still Star Crossed

They were one of the first things I did on this blog and I still love the show. In my opinion, it would have been a hit with a streamer and that ABC's horrible airing schedule killed the show. I still hope some of the cast might get cast in Bridgerton one day since Shondaland isn't above casting actors they worked with before.

[stratfordsandthestars]

thing is i knew there was a cliffhanger when i started still star-crossed and i still tortured myself by watching it anyway 🤭 i must hate myself. please tell me someone has written a continuation fic for it i beg 😭

[90shaladriel]

My son just watched the Star Wars OT for the first time and some observations.

Ok this is a bit of cross-fandom random thoughts, but I wanted to put somewhere.

I'm a child of the 80s-90s. I grew up with Star Wars, was legitimately obsessed with it from ages 3-7 me and my brothers endlessly rewatched the Original trilogy (or just 'Star Wars' as it was known then) on VHS tapes in those years. I remember being so excited for the theatrical re-releases and later the prequels.

My son (4) doesn't watch a lot of non-educational TV or movies, partly we don't show him much, but also he tends to be easily frightened by any tension or scary villains. Probably the scariest movie he had watched before this was Cars 2 (which was weirdly violent!) I also thought that maybe the violence would be something he wasn't really prepared for, none of his books or TV shows really shows graphic deaths. The worst thing he's seen are clips from TV News about the war in Ukraine which isn't often.

Last year I picked up some old children's books from my parents, and I had a stack of books that were the Star Wars read along books (that used to come with a small vinyl record) for the OT and a Star Wars ABC books. I would occasionally read these books at bedtime and my son gradually became enthusiastic about them, so we would get other Star Wars books from the library, most of those were either Prequel-era or even now Sequel-era stuff which he seemed to like and get. I think what's important is that going into actually watching the films he had been "spoiled" somewhat on the basic storylines and characters, like he knew Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader, but honestly I think at his age he doesn't follow stories that well, so knowing all the characters and places upfront probably helped him enjoy it more I think?

So I thought with this I would just sort of give some observations about my son's experience and also my own re-watching the films for the first time in years. I had the Blu-ray Special Editions that were released maybe 5-6 years ago?

A New Hope

On rewatch this is by far my favorite, it's funny, gritty, action packed. It is pretty violent, dead bodies seen in the first firefight on the ship, Vader force choking people, Owen and Beru's burnt corpses, but overall this didn't seem to be harmful to my son, we did talk a bit about it being a war and that people were 'hurt'. He seemed most affected by the death of Obi-wan, and kept asking where he went. My son seemed to like Luke and R2-D2. I will say a lot of the audio was kind of uneven on this edition, I had trouble hearing dialog and my son can't read subtitles so I was explaining stuff and then the action or score would be super loud.

I think that the special edition CGI additions are the weakest in the trilogy, particularly the ones on Tatooine. IMO they don't add much and look fairly cheesy by today's standards. To be fair a lot of the Cantina alien costumes also don't look the best now in HD resolution.

Sadly one of the areas I feel suffers the most now is the continuity with all the Prequels and series. Like the way Obi-wan talks about the past makes it sound like 30-40+ years ago when it was really more like 18 and, now with the Kenobi show, things like him meeting Darth Vader was <10 years ago. I'm only 40 and events 10 years ago feels like nothing. So Vader's line "I sense something; a presence I've not felt since..." just feels like doesn't carry the weight it should. The Jedi shouldn't be an "ancient religion" they were still be hunted down in recent years and Han would have been alive when the Jedi were fighting in the Clone Wars I would think? I kind of think George Lucas backed the franchise into a corner a bit by setting the Prequels too close to the beginning of the OT, I get why to somewhat explain Luke and Leia's ages. I dunno, I would have rather ret-conned them to be mid-20s or something.

Empire Strikes Back

Very enjoyable still. Son liked the Hoth battle scenes, loves AT-ATs. Kind of less interested in some of the Dagobah planet and Yoda scenes. He didn't understand at all what was happening in the Dark side cave which was pretty scary for him, eventually the explanation that stuck was "It was a robot Darth Vader, not the real Darth Vader" that Luke killed. He had little or no commentary on the Han-Leia romance, something I remember feeling cringey about it as a boy that thought girls were like the enemy, he doesn't seem to care, but doesn't like it either as far as I can tell. My son was shocked when Vader cut off Luke's hand, because the Read Along picture books sanitize this as "Vader slashed Luke's lightsaber away" or something more PG. These are violent movies!

I don't remember as much additional scenes or CGI in this one, the old models of Star Destroyers and Rebel ships looked amazingly good I thought, I think Executor and generally imperial navy scenes overall are so good still. I think they added a few shots of the Falcon flying around Cloud City and maybe the snow monster scene looked a bit cheesy now?

Something that struck me on this rewatch in particular was how good the lightsaber duel between Vader and Luke was. I always remembered it as Luke losing pretty badly. Which is true, but he seriously held is own for most of the fight, counterattacking even getting a few glancing blows on Vader. The fight was way more intense than I remember it being and super fun to watch especially with how later jedi duels in the prequel movies get a lot of praise. This really held up in my opinion.

Which is impressive with what we now know Vader to be, like the greatest Jedi warrior ever. Again some continuity stuff bothers me more about the prequels, especially in Kenobi the Darth Vader vs Third Sister fight where in the how Vader could basically force block her lightsaber, and she was pretty much fully trained in the force. Similarly the hallway scene in Rogue One he can toss people around, it's hard to imagine Luke being able to compete with him at all. I kind of prefer the OT Vader without the prequels, strong with the force yes, but not superhuman powerful.

One nitpick though. Several times The Falcon is being chased by TIE fighters, why didn't Han or Leia go back and use the turret cannons to shoot them down like in ANH Death Star escape?

Return of the Jedi

Confession, growing up this was always my favorite Star Wars movie. On rewatch for me it kind of felt the weakest of the three. I guess you have to be an adult to kind of see it?

My son seemed to get a bit bored at parts. I think the Jabba Palace scenes were a bit more subdued and slow-paced than I remember, and so was a few of the middle scenes with Yoda or Luke's revelation to Leia, very quiet and somber, but definitely nothing like what we saw in ANH or ESB in terms of action-pacing.

My son thought ewoks were kind of silly and funny, but doesn't seem like to make an impression on him since we watched, unlike the AT-ATs or some of the human characters. He was afraid of the emperor, on some level I think he "got" the dynamics between Luke and Vader as it's clear Vader is his dad and Vader used to be a good guy (Anakin) in contrast to the truly evil Emperor so that all seemed to work well for him. I have to say, as a Dad now myself the final fight scenes and what Vader did hit way more deeply than anytime I've watched before, definitely teared up a bit. One question I got from him which I struggled to answer was "What does it mean to turn to the dark-side?" I'm not really sure I have a good answer other than "be tricked to do bad things" which is as good as I could explain it to his level. I guess that is a pretty abstract and fictional concept for a 4 year old.

Overall I loved the Luke - Vader rematch, again, Vader seems to be slowing down with age or wear and tear when compared to even Rogue One or ESB but Luke is getting stronger. Since Luke is the only Jedi left at the time, it was never clear how strong he was supposed to be, also being physically a small guy he doesn't seem as impressive a hero but more of an underdog in the saga, yet he took on Vader 1 on 1 and defeated him, so maybe the Force is stronger with him than I used to give him credit for? The fight was good, emotionally intense, I almost wish the actual lightsaber battle was a little longer.

One new takeaway that never really struck me before was that the ultimate climax to STAR WARS was the hero throwing away his weapon and choosing Non-Violence and ultimately being saved by (a father's) Love. That's kind of a radical notion for the 2020s let alone the 1980s. Props to George Lucas for that unconventional twist there. I almost feel like this doesn't get talked about enough compared to other aspects of Lucas' philosophy or themes in the films.

The Battle of Endor still is one of the best space battles I've ever seen. I do think the Battle of Scarif in Rogue One is probably on-par with it, but for the 1980s it's so impressive what they were able to achieve with the technology then. Also my favorite minor character of the series is Admiral Ackbar. I'm glad my son enjoyed him as well (also I felt his costume held up better in HD than the ANH alien rubber mask costumes). I wish he had his own spin-off show or movie tbh.

Overall Thoughts

I was so happy to finally be able to share this treasured part of my childhood with my son, and he seemed to take as much enjoyment from them as I did. He still asks to read the books at bedtime and we have been trying to branch out and get more Star Wars books about the Prequels and Sequels. As far as toys goes, he likes LEGO in general so we've got him a couple of Star Wars LEGO sets. It's a far cry from the collection of action figures and space ships I had in the mid-80s, but he enjoys it.

Next Star Wars to Show Him

I think that I would like to show him some of the Prequels next. Those were never my favorites, but maybe they will appeal to him at his age? The prequels were released when I was in HS/College and already had a lot of head-canon for what I thought would be in them from the EU and other sources. Maybe the Clone Wars animated show would be appropriate? I've never actually seen it myself so don't know if it's good for him to watch, maybe it's more for older kids?

I think Rogue One is also a natural fit with the Original Trilogy, but that's probably a bit too dark/adult for him right now I think. I do wonder if there are any good sanitized kids picture books about it though 😂

[90363462]

Everybody Loves Tyler James Williams

November 2, 2022

Tyler James Williams somehow looks different than he did a few years ago. Now that he’s starring in ABC’s hit series Abbott Elementary as the strict but charming schoolteacher Gregory Eddie, millions of viewers have fallen in love with him. But Williams has been around long enough to know when it’s real.

“That’s the downside of what’s happening currently. People don’t see me. They see Gregory,” the 30-year-old says. Some fans might be firing off thirst tweets, but Williams hasn’t forgotten the comments that were much less kind. “I remember in the early Twitter days, there were whole threads about how ugly and unattractive I was.” (Those unflattering tweets date back to 2012 when he was 20, and social media was roasting him for battle rapping in a Disney movie.) “Now, when I’m so shockingly attractive, people talk about it.” He laughs. It’s cool, though. “In a few years, it’s going to flip back.”

It’s a day of multiple talk show tapings around Manhattan for Williams. He’s just wrapped a photo shoot for this piece, and we’re chatting over carnitas tacos at a nearby restaurant. (“Not usually the best interview food, but let’s wild out,” he says.) He’s wearing an outfit that could have been thrifted from the set of Saturday Night Fever: houndstooth flare-leg pants and a white top unbuttoned to mid-chest — both custom-made. It’s flashier than anything Gregory would wear, but then again, he isn’t Greg.

When Abbott Elementary premiered in December 2021, its mockumentary format appealed instantly to viewers still in withdrawal over defunct workplace comedies like The Office. And similar to Parks and Recreation, Abbottinhabits a unique space as a sitcom with a moral core that’s, in this case, centered around a community of predominantly Black students — proxies of the kids often neglected by the education system in real life. Weeks before Season 2 premiered in September 2022 with quadruple the ratings, creator Quinta Brunsonearned her first Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series — the second Black woman to do so — while co-star Sheryl Lee Ralph won Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as the battle-tested teacher Barbara.

Williams picked up a Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series nomination for his performance as Greg. And though he didn’t take home an Emmy that night, his character’s Halpertian stares at the camera have become the audience’s surrogate, giving an otherwise upbeat show an irreverent edge. Then there’s what talk show host Tamron Hall calls the “swoon factor”: his slow burn will-they-won’t-they relationship with Brunson’s character, Janine. “This show leans into the fact that less is so much more, and he’s adept at doing less,” Ralph says of Williams. “There are so many subtleties to his performance.”

Ever since landing his breakout role as a young Chris Rock on the sitcom Everybody Hates Chris at age 12, Williams has been keenly aware of the connections audiences draw between himself and his characters. After shouldering the legacy of a comedic legend for four seasons, he shuffled through cameos and supporting parts: playing zombie apocalypse survivor Noah in Season 5 of The Walking Dead and gay Ivy Leaguer Lionel in 2014’s Dear White People. He first collaborated with Brunson in 2019 for a Romeo & Juliet spoof on HBO’s A Black Lady Sketch Show, where the two played star-crossed stans — he was a Barb; she was part of the Bardigang.

Abbott’s giving me room to breathe and feel safe again. I feel much more in control than I have with anything else.

A year later, at the height of the pandemic in early 2020, Brunson DM’d Williams about her pilot for Abbott Elementary. He’d been avoiding a return to network TV for years, but with Abbott, he knew he could trust Brunson to keep the material and his character honest. “Quinta protects Gregory as much as I do, and that’s something you don’t often find in network TV, where it’s a ratings game,” he says. “People will throw a character under the bus for a joke in a heartbeat. Abbott’s giving me room to breathe and feel safe again. I feel much more in control than I have with anything else.”

A sense of control is significant to a former child actor accustomed to being told what to do. Williams booked his first gig as a regular on Sesame Street and appeared on the children’s program from age 4 through 10. His most notable role, Everybody Hates Chris, was on a set dominated by stand-up comics, who, as Williams recalls, “are known to be rather abrasive.” With Abbott, he says, “Quinta wants to build a good working atmosphere that people want to stay in and around for.”

Williams himself lends his decades of experience to his castmates, who see him as a tenured teacher of the game. “He’s been in this industry practically his whole life, and he’s really paid attention to how it works,” says Ralph. “He lets you know about the numbers, what it means, how streaming affects the Big Five, how the industry is changing. I love that he’s got that kind of knowledge.”

Talking to a former child actor is much like asking a war vet about their time in the service — it’s a group few people belong to, and even fewer survive unscathed. But Williams no longer finds it weird to reflect. “The more I talk about it, the better I feel,” he says. “For a long time, I tried to outrun it, and it made things worse.”

Growing up in Yonkers, New York, Williams attended public school until sixth grade before being home-schooled. His father, Leroy Williams, worked as an NYPD sergeant, and his mother, Angela Williams, was a gospel singer and minister who oversaw the careers of Tyler and his younger brothers, Tyrel and Tylen. At 4, Tyler told his mom he wanted to act after watching Will Smith in Men in Black with her on home video. He would ask her to rewatch the movie every day, and they made a routine of analyzing films together.

Soon after, he started auditioning for roles; within six months, he landed his first commercial for the cold and allergy medicine Dimetapp. Unlike his mother, who herself had auditioned for commercials as a child and disliked the experience, Tyler was committed to acting. Raising Tyler and his brothers while navigating the stresses of the entertainment world inspired Angela to write a book guiding other parents through the process. In My Child is Going to Be Rich and Famous: How to Successfully Balance Family, Parenting, and Entertainment, she describes Tyler as a “dry-witted, observant” kid who was wise beyond his years and “selectively social.” Like many child actors, he had trouble finding friends who could relate to him.

Years later, people still ask Williams how he’s so well-adjusted. “We’re not as chaotic as I think most child actors get the [reputation for] being, but that doesn’t necessarily mean we adjusted well,” he says of himself and his brothers. “We had a lot to work through, and a lot of therapists got a lot of money from me.” He laughs. “That was the uphill fight and what feels like the fight of my career and life. Because [acting] is the only thing that I love like this. I lost 6 inches of my intestines to that.”

At 23 and between gigs, Williams’ Crohn’s disease flare-ups hindered his ability to work and kept him hospitalized; his surgeon attributed part of his physical distress to anxiety. Williams was just making the transition into adult roles and had become obsessed with constantly working to evade the fall from grace that struck many of his child-star peers. It only stoked his anxiety that he’d briefly shared a manager with Lindsay Lohan, the industry’s textbook example of a child actor who spiraled upon hitting adulthood. “I had the stories. I knew what to attempt to avoid,” he says. “But it's kind of like telling somebody there's a bunch of land mines outside, and here’s how you avoid them.”

I knew I could fall into this trap of child actors, and I was hyperaware of that. I think I overcompensated. I was really calculated in everything I did.

Finally, he hired a therapist to help confront his fears. “As a child, it’s really weird when your audience tells you that you did such a good job at something that they don’t want you to do anything else,” he says. “I knew I could fall into this trap of child actors and [be] known for one thing and never work again and just be a nostalgia artist, and I was hyperaware of that. I think I overcompensated. I was really calculated in everything I did.”

These days, Williams knows the business better and has used that awareness to reclaim control of his career. “At first, I was coasting on raw talent and seeing what would happen,” he says. “Now, my game is refined. I know what I’m doing.”

TV is full of stories about assholes and anti-heroes, but it’s hard to resist a sitcom that genuinely makes you smile. Williams points out that creator Shonda Rhimes once said her soapy political thriller Scandal could only have thrived during the Obama years. On the opposite end, Abbott is warmth in an age of darkness. Williams asks me if I feel good after watching an episode. Yes.

“I hope so,” he says. “I was looking at a bunch of pilots at the time and was like, these are heady, and mmm, that’s smart. But it had no heart to it. And this inherently did.”

Brunson wrote Gregory with Williams in mind from the start. “He’s someone who really embodies the everyday guy I wanted Gregory to be, and also I knew he had the sense of humor to pull off certain quirks,” Brunson explains. “We both approach comedy in a similar way. For the Janine and Gregory aspect, that makes them a bit more playful than most on-screen potential love interests.”

The surplus of streaming platforms has inched Black television content closer to a percentage that reflects our daily lives. But Hollywood has always struggled to sustain and nurture a consistent number of Black stories. Williams gets backhanded compliments about Abbott all the time. “People come up to me and say, ‘The main cast is Black, but it doesn’t feel like a Black show.’ And I’m like, well, what does that mean exactly?” he says. “Usually, when people say it’s a Black show, it has to be outside of awards contention and made for a niche market. For me, it’s good TV, regardless.”

A lot has and hasn’t changed in the time between Everybody Hates Chris and Abbott Elementary — both of which feature predominantly Black actors. “Shit, you saw with Everybody Hates Chris. We got nominated for the Golden Globe with Season 1, but we were ‘the Black show’ that was nominated. We weren’t [considered] one of the elite shows at the time. We suffered after the fact because of that,” says Williams. “Sheryl’s [Emmy] win [for Abbott] validates that in a way. It’s not this old-school mentality where there’s this stuff, and then there’s your stuff. It’s all good stuff. It just so happens to have a predominantly Black cast.”

To celebrate his 30th birthday in October, Williams attended a Bad Bunny concert in Los Angeles with his brothers and friends who also work in TV and film. Over the years, he’d been so overly cautious of his image that it felt good to let loose. “I spent so much of my 20s digging my way out of that child actor hole,” he says. “I don’t speak fluent Spanish, but I was in there hollering all the lyrics like I’m Puerto Rican. We got a box, and we partied.”

Williams lives with his brother Tylen in LA and is looking for a second place in New York. He’s single and opting for meet-cutes mainly on the exclusive, celebrity-populated dating app Raya. (“We can’t move via DM. Everything is being watched,” he says.) He was FaceTiming with a woman one day when his uncle walked into the room and, after the call, asked Williams if she would have talked to him if they met on the D train.

“I highly value people who look at me, and I’ve been able to tell since I was a child,” says Williams. “So that’s my criteria. Can you actually see me, or is this because it’s trendy?”

Top Image Credits: Tommy Hilfiger X Richard Quinn jacket and pants, Buck Mason T-shirt

Talent Bookings: Special Projects

Photo Director: Alex Pollack

SVP Fashion: Tiffany Reid

SVP Creative: Karen Hibbert

[akajustmerry]

god i LIVED for still star crossed when it was airing BLEASE ABC BRING IT BACKKKK

objectively, pop culture peaked in those 7 weeks ❤️

[laresearchette]

Friday, September 20, 2024 Canadian TV Listings (Times Eastern)

WHERE CAN I FIND THOSE PREMIERES?: LA MAISON (Apple TV+) SECRET CELEBRITY RENOVATION (Global) 8:00pm

WHAT IS NOT PREMIERING IN CANADA TONIGHT? DEADLOCK (PBS Feed) 20/20 (ABC Feed/Premiering on September 27 on CHCH/Check Local Listings at 9:00pm)

NEW TO AMAZON PRIME CANADA/CBC GEM/CRAVE TV/DISNEY + STAR/NETFLIX CANADA:

AMAZON PRIME CANADA ATUNWA COURTOIS FABRIZIO COPANO STAND UP INGEBRIGTSEN BORN TO RUN JALAS O TE RAJAS (Season 2) OLDEST BRIDE’S MAID PORNO Y HELADO (Season 2) THE TRAGICALLY HIP: NO DRESS REHEARSAL

CBC GEM THE END OF SEX KILLING EVE (Season 3)

CRAVE TV ANNABELLE BUTCHER’S CROSSING DIVINE SECRETS OF THE YA-YA SISTERHOOD EAST HARBOUR HEROES THE LOBSTER THE NEW ADVENTURES OF PIPPI LONGSTOCKING POOR THINGS SIMONE BILES STORY STILL ALICE THE TEACHER’S LOUNGE

DISNEY + STAR THE CONTESTANT

NETFLIX CANADA HIS THREE DAUGHTERS KLASS 95: THE POWER OF BEAUTY (CO) THE RESIDENT (Seasons 1-6)

WBC CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING (SN1) 12:30pm: Walsh vs. Runowski

MLB BASEBALL (SN) 6:00pm: Jays vs. Rays (Apple TV+) 6:30pm: Phillies vs. Mets (Apple TV+) 6:30pm: Tigers vs. Orioles (SN1) 9:30pm: Yankees vs. A’s (SN Now) 10:00pm: Rockies vs. Dodgers

CFL FOOTBALL (TSN/TSN4) 7:00pm: Ti-Cats vs. Argos (TSN3) 9:30pm: Roughriders vs. Stamps

THE REAL CROWN: INSIDE THE HOUSE OF WINDSOR (CBC) 8:00pm: The Queen, who is busy with state duty, must manage several crises at once; a catalog of scandals threatens the monarchy and she watches as Windsor Castle goes up in flames.

STORY OF THE SONGS (CHCH/Check Local Listings) 8:00pm (SEASON PREMIERE): Kiss: Three tracks that propelled Kiss into rock stardom.

30 FOR 30: STOLEN GOLD (TSN3) 8:00pm: The incredible true story of Ramón Torres and the Spanish intellectually disabled basketball team's dramatic journey to the gold medal at the Sydney Paralympics in 2000. Ramón discovers that some of his teammates are not what they seem, including an undercover journalist intent on revealing an outrageous scandal that will rock the world of Paralympic sport.

FRIDAY NIGHT THUNDER (APTN) 8:30pm: Victor Bomberry, number 420 is back and more entertaining than ever; he aims to level up his racing game while juggling multiple businesses and preparing for his first child.

THE JANE MYSTERIES: A DEADLY PRESCRIPTION (W Network) 9:00pm: Jane seeks justice for a teenager who's wrongfully imprisoned for murder. She and Detective John work together to prove the teen's innocence and help reunite him with his mother.

MY HAUNTED HOMETOWN (T&E) 10:00pm (SERIES PREMIERE): Exploring Strathroy, an Ontario community with a dark past plagued by fires, train wrecks and serial killers; confronting the paranormal energy that engulfs the town and makes its residents the uneasy neighbours of poltergeists and phantoms.

MARRIED TO EVIL (Investigation Discovery) 9:00pm (SEASON PREMIERE): Maria's world shatters when her husband Joel, starts an affair; she fights to save their marriage, but Joel refuses to give up his mistress, and Maria's patience runs out; when she threatens divorce, Joel makes a deadly plan to stop her.

BUTCHER’S CROSSING (Crave) 9:00pm: A mysterious frontiersman leads a group of men on a treacherous buffalo hunt in the Old West. They soon find themselves in a fight for survival as the harsh elements start to test their resolve and sanity.

THE LOBSTER (Starz Canada) 9:00pm: In a dystopian society, single people must find a mate within 45 days or be transformed into an animal of their choice.

THE NIGHT THEY CAME HOME (Crave) 10:50pm: A frontier lawman partners with an American Indian detective to hunt down a ruthless band of teenage criminals known as the Rufus Buck Gang.