#also that whimsy sound effect that played
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m1domaple · 1 year ago
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for a like, 50 year old guy gashu is extremely whimsical.
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ivyheartts · 10 days ago
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LET ME JUST SAY - I absolutely love what they did with Groose's theme in Skyward Sword. Like for the scenes where Groose is the main focus they used his theme but arranged it to how Groose feels at the time.
The first time you hear his theme is when Groose is acting all arrogant and brash and you feel that swagger through the music too.
Then the confidence drops when he gets chastised by Zelda for picking on Link. (Also, did they reuse the sound effect at the beginning for BotW cooking??? HAHA)
And when he lands on the surface, the music is full of amazement, wonder, and hesitancy...
And when he accepts that he isn't the hero and is of more use at the Sealed Temple, his theme plays and it's emotional and SOOO melodramatic. But that's how you can tell that underneath the brave face he is putting on he is upset about it and will come around eventually.
I think the composers did a great job of helping the player understand Groose's character transformation throughout the game by doing this.
There are more examples in the game (like when he is flustered by Zelda, or his spectacular fall to the surface) but anyways here is one of my favorites. This plays when Groose first comes to the surface and declares it Grooseland. The whimsy slowly being warped by Groose's delusions as being the main character lol.
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loverofpiggies · 6 months ago
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Oh, you watched Fiona and Cake, great!
I am curious, what were your thoughts about like Winter King or first opening? Or like about overall more mature stuff than in og adventure time
So now that I'm doing a huge rewatch of the OG Adventure Time, I will say I adore both in their own ways.
It was really cool seeing the more mature stuff in Fionna and Cake, sort of like the show 'grew up' with the audience, you know? And do NOT get me started on how much my heart was destroyed by Simons entire plight through.
See I never managed to finish the first show, mostly just got distracted, but on my rewatch I can tell I at least got through six seasons. I like how spaced out the original show is, and it makes the really sad shit with like the Ice King hit like a ton of bricks when it happens. It really feels like you're watching all these wacky people live their lives, and occasionally the horror of the Mushroom War reminds you of its effect, through Marceline, and the Ice King, and every character who was forced to live through it. I don't know, it's really nice!
Okay I'm gonna ramble so I'm putting a read more!
I was wondering if on a rewatch I'd get frustrated the way later seasons of Steven Universe made me get frustrated, but it never felt like that at all. It's just been... fun. It's just Finn and Jake on adventures, occasionally having to set down their fun and recognize the horror of things around them, and it's just. DAMN it's just done so well.
I just got to the episode where Finn meets Prismo and makes the wish, and accidentally ends up wielding the power of the crown, and all it did was break my heart. Like I was sitting there, and for a split second I was like 'wow that crown corrupted him really fast!' and then I remembered.... he was like 13 when he got the crown. He was still a child, and when Simon got the crown, he was what, in his 40s? He was just a kid, and couldn't possibly be able to handle or combat the crowns power. It just punched me in the gut.
So I very much enjoy how spaced out and silly the original Adventure Time is, because its such a unique world I love seeing more of it, and I feel like it makes the heavy scenes hit so much harder. With Fionna and Cake, I love how tight the story is and how structured things are. They're both SUCH good shows, with different ways of writing and different vibes and I adore them equally at this point.
ALSO THE WINTER KING, holy shit don't get me started, but I will rant about this mofo
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(These are keychain designs but I decided to put them together on a little canvas)
Firstly, I fucking LOVE the Winter King, and I'm really sad we didn't get more of him. I do wonder if the fact that Fionna's universe wasn't 'canon' during all the universe hopping, that if somehow the multiverse will reverse some things and 'repair' the damage. I'm not even saying that because I want to see the Winter King again, it just absolutely sounds like something that could happen in Adventure Time. Hell, look how they made Fionna and Cake just-- real! Thanks Prismo you're a cool guy.
But in terms of the Winter King as a character, and in terms of his universe? I want SO much more detail. Where is Finn, where is Jake? Marceline either left the Winter King or got killed, so I'm curious there too. The juxtaposition of genuine confidence and whimsy, and the mans incapacity to feel remorse or even real deep sadness (him saying 'Oh! The dead one?' when Simon asked about Betty was... holy shit) he was just an EXTREMELY interesting character, and I so badly want to see more of him.
Also dude was just funny. The fact he straight up admitted he thought about kissing his alternative universe self was so fucking funny, and plays heavily into his narcissistic behavior and tendencies.
On TOP of that, the idea of how he ended up cursing Bubblegum specifically would be so interesting. I read online people assuming when the Ice King did his spell, it was more like "I want Princess Bubblegum to love me, so I'll do a spell so she can understand what I'm feeling and then she'll marry me!" but then the 'understand what I'm feeling' is actually just... "Hey, I feel absolute madness, here, take it off my hands!' and might have just been a huge accident. We certainly can't trust Winter King's words about it.
I don't know. He was so fascinating, and the way he put feelers out to see if Simon would feel the way he does (Specifically talking about making an Ice Betty, then realizing Simon was disturbed so he shrugged it off with a laugh, being like 'no thats immoral obviously haha') and the fact that he was so cautious and smart about avoiding telling Simon how he conquered the crown? Like he would be glad to help and teach Simon how to keep his sanity AND his power... but obviously would have never spoken his secret the more he realized Simon would morally object to it.
I dunno. This character was in the show for 20 minutes and he was so fucking interesting I almost feel robbed. I hope maybe we can get some Adventure Time comics about the guy at the VERY least!
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trekmupf · 6 months ago
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"We're all mad here" 🐇👸🔫🐯
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Pro
The famous massage intro
Sulu and McCoy taking a lovely little walk together
Sulu is such a botany nerd; I love these small character moments
McCoy thinking he's loosing his last marbles
Spock literally thinking that humans go on shore leave to run up and down meadows like dogs
The way Kirk smiles when he thinks Bones is pranking him is lovely
Kirk's facial journey when he realizes McCoy and Spock played him
The first time Kirk calls McCoy Bones
The way the running is filmed and the way they run – and boy do they run in this episode
Sulu, gun enthusiast
The easy friendship between Kirk and McCoy- the way they joke and laugh with each other is so beautiful
McCoy is so beautiful in this episode, I could screenshot every second. He smiles so much and is so at ease, I mean
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Continuing what we know from E3 Kirk wasn't the super cool Bro at the academy but actually the bookworm people bullied
Kirk saying that Ruth hasn't aged a day since they last were together ages ago, and the actress being the same age as Shatner when we see her... canon Kirk being into older woman okay.
McCoy rolled a natural 20 on charisma
me @ yeoman Borrows being super into McCoy's flirting: same girl same
Also I actually like that for once McCoy is the one having a little romance and getting to flirt / be desired, which is rare (because he's older and not the leading man; Tumblr, of course, disagrees)
every time the tiger is on screen I remember that Shatner literally wanted to fight it and it makes me laugh
fake character death trope! (also Bones is a beautiful corpse)
Spock like no offence lady, I'm to gay for this, Spock out
“Did you have fun guys?” “Yes we did Mr Spock” wink emoji implied, like you guys know it sounds like you had group sex right
the setting and scenery is beautiful and a nice change
the score underlines the whimsy and lightness of the episode
the premise is so silly but works well. I miss episodes like this on modern TV, just some downtime with no large scale danger, war or plot, just silly crew shenanigans that gives us more time to spend with our guys
sometimes Sci-fi has great special effects, and sometimes they just hold an antenna really close to the camera and call it a day and I love that
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I'm Yeoman Borrows; Look at him being all happy
Con
McCoy's death has no lasting impact on anyone, it's just a short time plot device and then gets shelved for more adventure / silly time; Even though he does come back, I wish it wouldn't have been so trivialized here
weird wind chime sound effects of the planet
Finnegan as a character is super obnoxious and too over the top (which is saying something in the episode with Alice in wonderland)
especially the second confrontation takes ages, especially as we now have more pressing matters in the narrative
treatment of yeoman Borrows (We already know weird things are going on based on what McCoy saw, yet Kirk doesn't believe her and shows zero empathy towards her distress), also her main purpose is damsel in distress
Kirk is a bit slow to unravel the mystery and almost stupid at times? It might be excused by him using the opportunity to let go of his responsibility and being with Angela / letting out his anger with Finnegan
the amount of references and jumping between visions is too jumbled and all over the place, which is why the pacing is off. some bits are so short, they'd better be cut (Rodriguez side adventure) and some just go on (Finnegan)
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Counter: Shirt rip Kirk
Quote: "You've got your problems, I've got mine. But he's got ours, plus his, plus 430 other people" - McCoy about Kirk Moment: Opening Scene, where Kirk thinks Spock is massaging him and being super uncomfortable when its a female crew member
Summary: Silly and light episode with no deeper meaning but some great character moments, funny scenes and further development of the interpersonal relationships
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In another universe this is a classical painting
Previous Episode - Next Episode - All TOS Reviews
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cinnibunbear · 3 months ago
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The New Update
First of all, I want to say I think the quantity of stuff they're adding is fine, especially since the updates are coming smaller and more frequently. HOWEVER, the stuff in the update, specifically the pale forest one, is boring.
First of all, looking at the content by itself that I like: the wood is good, the vines are fine, and the carpet is ok. I've always liked the concept of white wood, so it's great that we're getting that, and I imagine other people will really like the wall thing that the pale garden carpet does. I like the creaking; it's a really interesting concept and some very cool design. I've heard it said that the spawning functions with the heart and everything is useless in single player, but I think the fact that you can spawn-proof an area of the creaking is great for if someone wanted to build a house there! Plus, outside of single player, the pranks are kinda nice, if not really top-Notch. I also like that there'll be ambient noises during the night. That's cool.
Now for the content that I don't like (that we've heard of so far): the leaves, the grass and the ambience. The fact that the leaves and grass are so similar in colour, and that that colour is GREY honestly sucks, especially since the wood is already grey. I think the biome would look interesting and actually kind of spooky if they made either of these white, or added some much darker tones to any of the new blocks/textures, but as of right now they haven't, and it's boring. The grass especially. It's like a worse version of the mountain grass, which in fact has its own sort of charm (tho imo it is (was) the most boring). The ambience overall I kind of already adressed. This is going a little into what has been said by the presenters, but the pale gardens being 'eerily quiet' will likely go unnoticed, since there's no sound everywhere else half the time. I think the only time the player would notice is if music is playing and it fades out as the enter the pale gardens. That would be cool, especially if it picked up again when they left. But otherwise, it's just kind of this boring greyscale biome with no contrast.
Now going onto how the update contradicts the words of the presenters: the presenters say that it will be 'eerily quiet' (adressed earlier), and that it will be 'spooky', as well as using other words to the same effect. They also showed some reference pictures that they used as inspiration for this biome.
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The weeping willows, very pretty, very mystical.
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Spanish moss, look how cool!
Now look at the result:
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Now, I do want to point out that they evidently didn't want the trees to actually be willow trees for some reason "this gives this drapy feeling without being willow trees", but I feel like the biome could have really benefitted from them just using the shape of willow trees. Instead of looking spooky but pretty, ominous but mystical, the tree shape they've opted for is the dark oak, which is robust and towering. They've given the biome a feeling of being a little packed in, a little claustrophobia, with hardly any frills. Of course, there are some. Let's talk about those. The new vines and moss blocks are far more grey against the already grey grass, which gives the biome an extra element of complete dullness as the new elements look the least visually appealling, which they evidently are meant to be (the presenter describes them as 'pretty' in the day time). What I'm looking right now is a shy, bland biome. There is hardly any personality other than that it doesn't want to be looked at. There is no whimsy, because everything is in solid, clumped together shapes. There is no eeriness because everything blends together with their colours so easily. This biome needs colour, and it needs more shape. For example, the dark oak forest has peonies that help to bring in both colour and shape variation from the ground level, and the giant spruce forests have boulders that complement the rich colours of the rest of the ground. The pale garden has flat grey carpet on the flat grey floor. This is boring! And I'm mad about it!
I'm aware that this biome will likely undergo some development before its official release, so I really, really hope that the Mojang team also sees these issues and does something about them, because a biome called The Pale Gardens deserves more than a monotone FOREST with the most boring greenish-grey vines you will ever see. I want to be excited about this biome, but as of right now I think that if I were to see this biome in game I would only ever go in to get wood and saplings on the outskirts before scurrying away from this greyscale horror of a biome as quickly as I can.
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leifygreeens · 1 year ago
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maybe a weird ask, but what do you think the bachelors/ettes superpowers would be?
Imagining the marriage candidates with some kind of ability was both super fun and also a pain in the ass. I didn’t want to go the obvious route with anyone, and I also didn’t want to make any of them into an actual superhero, so, under the assumption that they exist in a world where everyone is super-powered in some way or another, I came up with these. I also made sure that they all had some kind of drawback or a “catch” of some kind, so they wouldn’t be completely broken powers.
No warnings necessary this time. Enjoy!
Sam
Everyone’s favorite golden retriever boy gets Instrument Manipulation. It’s the kind of power that does exactly what it says on the tin. Sam can manipulate instruments, but unlike Musical Mastery, for example, Sam is only able to use this ability to play on instruments he’s already familiar with. We know he can play the guitar and the drums, but he wouldn’t be able to use this ability to play the violin, or something. He could probably use it to bash someone up the head with one, though.
Sebastian
Before anyone gets excited—we’ve only got room for one sorcerer in Pelican Town, and that’s Rasmodius. With that in mind, Sebastian’s superpower is Cyber Presence. The ability to exist within cyberspace, and effectively exist everywhere, all at once—as long as there’s some level of technology in that area. Whether it be a global computer network, radar or security systems, or even satellites, Sebastian would be given the freedom to enter and exist in the cyber world at his own will. However, if any of the devices have a virus of some kind, it will affect his physical form and could potentially harm or otherwise “alter” him.
Alex
You’d think he’d get something like super strength or super speed, but I think Alex would get the most use out of Enhanced Stamina. He’d be able to practice gridball for hours to days without tiring, and he’d have no issues with helping around the farm for as long as he needed to. If you chose to have children in the future, I imagine he could keep up with the kiddos without breaking a sweat either. This wouldn’t be an absolute thing—he would get tired eventually, but he’d last a while. A few days of uninterrupted activity, at most, but he'd never go that long. Granny Evelyn still worries, you know!
Elliott
Literary Travel allows the user to effectively “dimension hop” between different works of fiction. Elliott can act as himself in these fictional worlds, but cannot affect the plotline or the outcome of whatever story is being told. He would also only be able to hop into these fictional works while touching the physical medium(books, movie CDs, etc.). Elliott would use this ability in a myriad of ways, but as a man who’s constantly wrapped up in the dramatics and whimsy of life, I think he’d use it most often as a form of escapism. He’d have a limit for how much time he could spend in alternate realities, and his escapades would always be dreamlike. It would allow him the freedom to explore those places, but it wouldn’t deteriorate his perception of his reality, which I think is important.
Shane
I want him to be able to speak to his chickens, so Shane gets Zoolingualism. He wouldn’t be able to speak the language of an animal that’s gone extinct, but he can speak to every other animal with ease as long as meets a member of that species once. Unlike Marnie, who can perfectly replicate and mimic animal sounds and literally speak their language, Shane communicates in a more intangible way. Rather, he speaks to the animal, and the intentions, emotions, and thoughts are injected into the animal’s brain. The opposite is also true for him. He comes off as a bit anti-social to the people who meet him, mostly because he spends all of his time in the barn communicating with the animals instead of the humans outside. Chickens are safer.
Harvey
I thought about giving him Flight because I’m an asshole, but eventually I decided against it. Instead, Dial allows Harvey to speed up or slow down an individual’s healing by manipulating a patient’s cells. Harvey can accelerate the healing process by quite a fair margin, and after so many years of mastery, he’s completely abandoned stitches because he can seal any wound closed on his own. Further, if he were setting someone’s fractured limb, their time with a cast would be severely shortened by using his ability. However, he can not immediately cure any or all ailments, and using his ability for long periods of time will give him body aches. He may go too far or push himself a little too hard, and his body has shown the effects of that in recent years. He’s not able to bounce back as quickly as he used to.
Maru
You may have thought that I’d go with something obvious like Absolute Intelligence or whatever, but we all know intelligence isn’t Maru’s lack, so let’s ignore her brains for a moment and shift gears. Interstellar Projection would fit her best. Being able to project herself through the infinite cosmos and visit the trillions of solar systems she’s only ever been able to see fuzzy glimpses of through her telescope would be a dream come true for her. However, because she is a human and could not survive in the vacuum of space without substantial protection, she would only be able to project her consciousness into space—not her physical form.
Penny
Telekinesis is Penny’s superpower. I think due to her responsibilities and her personal interests, being able to interact with objects without ever laying a finger on them would make a ton of things easier for her. Washing dishes, cleaning her home, cleaning up the library table after teaching the children, and reading would all be far simpler for her. Her emotions would affect it, however, so if she and Pam ever got into a heated argument in the trailer, their belongings might start levitating. She can manipulate inanimate objects, but cannot manipulate living things. She couldn’t make Vincent float, for example.
Abigail
I considered Invulnerability and Weapons Mastery for Abigail, but I think both of those would kill her enjoyment of swordsmanship and adventuring. So instead, I think she would get the most use out of Tactical Analysis. With the ability to see the perfect course of action when going head to head with a floor full of powerful monsters, I imagine she’d be one hell of an adventurer, but she’d still have to train her ass off to succeed with the kinds of plans her brain comes up with.
Haley
Charisma isn’t something Haley struggles with, but I think it’s an ability that fits her best. Being wealthy, popular, and having an ability to charm people would have contributed heavily to her developing a conceited and selfish personality, but after she expands her worldview and loses her superficial tendencies, I think she’d use her ability for good. If you’ve seen her heart event after getting married, you know exactly what I’m talking about. However, this ability’s effectiveness wears off the better you know her, and doesn’t have any effect on people she’s related to by blood, so it doesn’t work on Emily, and it stopped working on Alex a long time ago.
Leah
Leah’s ability is Foresight. Being a mix of Wisdom, Future Vision, Fate Sight, and Analytical Precognition, Leah has the ability to see a short distance into the future. Her ability takes the form of visions, lasting anywhere from a few seconds to a minute long. They are usually random, but if she focuses on herself very carefully, she can induce a vision. The ones that she doesn’t call forward are far more pressing and require more of her attention. Namely, a few visions in the months leading up to the end of her abusive relationship with Kel(y’all know how I feel about them), and even some regarding the Farmer’s appearance in the valley. She always has a pretty nasty migraine after a vision though, and needs to hold warm or cold compresses against her eyes to soothe the aching.
Emily
Emily was a toss up between a few powers, but eventually I settled on Omnilingualism. This ability allows the individual to speak all human languages fluently. Emily has a few cutscenes and lines in-game that make it clear that she isn’t lacking in the supernatural department, but her most notable characteristic is her immense kindness and empathy. Her desire to help others is admirable, and so I gave her this ability in the hopes that it would make it easier for her to offer aid to a plethora of different people. However, she’d only be able to speak a language after formally meeting a person who spoke it, so she couldn’t learn any dead languages.
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amaiguri · 1 year ago
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When you're a Writer and a Vtuber...
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If you like storytelling, Vtubing, or both, this one's for you 🥰
You'd think there'd be more overlap of "People who want to be fantasy characters and hide their face" and "Writers" but there really aren't. I know like me and @moonfeatherblue and that's it for the writing/worldbuilding and Vtuber overlap lololol. I think there should be more of us!
So, let me convince you to become a storytelling/worldbuilding/writing Vtuber like me...
In addition to just loving all the cool things you can do with Live2D as a software (if like art and you don't just stare at rigging showcases on YouTube, you should. It's so cool!), I also love storytelling in a social media space. Like, how do you tell a story over time? How much information should you reveal and when? What colors, images, and sounds evoke the feelings you want? And what feelings will keep people coming back for more? Basically, Vtubers have made me fall in love with marketing because the best marketing is just storytelling with some sort of call-to-action at the end.
Am I GOOD at marketing? No, lol, but maybe YOU would be! KEEP READING to find out XD
On the flipside, so so many Vtubers are like "I'm the embodiment of sin and also a gamer and a singer" or "I'm a cottagecore whale who is also the collector of lost souls and I play video games" and it's like... clearly Vtuber audiences LIKE the fantasy aspects of this. Why is the Vtuber default just gaming? Why is there not waaaaay more whimsy and storytelling? (This isn't to say Gaming Bad TM. I'm literally a game dev. I NEED streamers to play my games. I love them.) There's just so much opportunity for cool storytelling with Vtubers!
If you wanna get into being a fictional character/having a kayfabe-like wrestling persona for your writing, you should 100% get into Vtubing. You don't even need to stream to be a Vtuber -- and honestly I'm not even sure you need to post videos necessarily lol -- GIFs and pictures could probably get you pretty far on the right platforms. You could start out using a PNG --there are so many good, free PNGtuber softwares and you could use Picrew images (with the right permissions!) for your PNGtuber to start. Or if you can draw, you can just DO THAT.
Or if you have like $50 USD, Raindrop Atelier has a FULLY rigged Vtuber "Picrew" with chibi models that are so high quality and cute! Or if you have like $300 USD, you could get one of the Picrew-like Vtubers from Charat Genesis. (Yes, that's a lot BUT most Vtuber models — 2D and 3D alike — run you from $2000 to $8000 sooooo $300 is a steal in comparison.)
And then, over time, you could post and reveal facts about yourself and tidbits of your lore! And you could give writing advice or talking about your worldbuilding in-character! I've had this idea to make a fantasy creature mockumentary for actually years now and I'm just trying to find a good scope for it...
On the downside, as with all "storytelling in real time", it can a little discouraging at the start when you don't have a big audience. And this specific niche is especially underdeveloped so it's definitely hard to find a foothold. BUT I find that, because it's all play -- it's all FANTASY -- I have a lot more energy for this kind of marketing than I would if I were promoting myself as "just a writer, trying to sell my writing." Getting people to like me is exhausting. Getting people to like my writing is part of the writing process!
Cuz like, aside from just "inhabiting a fictional character" and "reducing your face presence online while still giving your personal brand a face", being a Vtuber is also a fun way to tie into your work.
Like, my Vtuber model is Arlasaire and she's the protagonist of my (probably) upcoming RPG, Untitled Yssaia Game, (Not the final name, real name pending lol). She talks about cooking and music and geography over on my YouTube channel and it's all infused with cool fantasy music and sound effects. She speaks in and teaches you about conlangs in the world. And she goes on fantasy dates or fantasy vacations! So now, I'm getting people attached to this character and her world BEFORE I even get into her actual story. And all her merchandising and stuff is really just game merchandising and so on and so forth... and that's just good branding! Hopefully some day, this translates into more people playing the game and seeing more of my work!
But obviously, I'm very new to marketing or else this blog post would convince more writers to become Vtubers and more Vtubers to write lol.
Anyway, here's some Arlasaire art (art: LexiKoumori on IG, rig: Kanijam) AS WELL AS some of her earlier model sketches before I asked for her hair to be silkier and less feathery! And lastly, a short unedited video of me being cringe so you KNOW you could do better :DDDD
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bogkeep · 7 months ago
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last year i wrote my opinions on all the movies i watched on my Very Long Flights to australia, since long flights are a great opportunity to watch some movies i probably wouldn't have bothered to seek out otherwise. here's the stuff i watched this time around
the first 13 episodes of rurouni kenshin: okay so back when i watched demon slayer for the first time i asked around like "does anyone know any other Good Sword Animes. i'm in a big mood for Sword Anime" and a friend told me that they were going to tell me about THE sword anime, but with a BIG caveat. and the caveat was such that i went "ah yeah maybe i won't look into that one". i've since heard more about this series and been very curious about the story, because it sounds like My Shit. i figured in-flight entertainment is probably one of the more ethical ways to watch it, and i have confirmed that it is indeed My Shit. extremely skilled swordsman torn between his bloody past and a new life? he can win any fight, but at the cost of his soul? yeah. yeah. will say that the subtitles left in a lot of japanese terms and words that i think i would've greatly benefited to know the meaning of - like i figured it out from context eventually, but yeah. so Now I Know. at least my curiosity is sated.
the new wonka movie - it was Fine! i appreciated the sincere efforts of whimsy and trying to stick to a roald dahl-esque tone, though in hindsight it's ENTIRELY too magical and sugary sweet (hah). could definitely have done without the fatphobia - something that is very present in the source material, so i shouldn't have been surprised that it features in the prequel, too... it just made me go "nooo noooOooooo don't do that uuughhh noooooooooooooooooooo" a lot. honestly, as far as vibes go, this movie reminded me the most of the first f*ntastical beasts movie (you know, the one that came out in 2016, when we were still young and innocent) - like, decently charming, very cgi.
the old willy wonka movie - i had never seen this one before, and it provided me a lot of context for the New movie :') now THIS really hits the Unhinged Dangerous vibes the new movie lacked. easily the best played willy wonka. a grand old time. i <3 practical effects.
3/4ths of the barbie movie rewatch - is the barbie movie still fun to watch, even after a year of Essays and Takes? i think so. i was in a practical effects mood and had less than two hours left of my flight. like, it's The Barbie Movie. it will never be That Deep because it cannot escape its corporate mainstreamness, but i love the actual play-pretend whimsy and exorbitant amount of pink paint and funky outfits.
killers of the flower moon - i'd considered watching this on my previous flight, i had heard of the movie and put it on my to-watch list, but the THREE HOURS AND TWENTY SIX MINUTES runtime scared me off. not because i didn't have time (my flights were 12 hours and 7,5 hours respectively), but because i knew it was gonna be Heavy and Depressing and you gotta have the right mood for three hours of That. both of my flights had the exact same entertainment catalogues i gave it a try first thing on flight #2, knowing i don't have to finish it if i don't want. it was very good but oh boy heavy and depressing was correct! really good buildup of dread and despair as the web of murder closes in like water circling the sink. very good period piece, and everything i've read about it after indicates that martin scorsese worked very closely with the osage people to create this movie.
the lego movie rewatch - this is one of my favourite movies that i've seen many times but haven't in a while, and after the Three Hours And Twenty Six Minutes of indigenous people getting poisoned and murdered i REALLY needed something light-hearted. i was also severely sleep deprived at this point. all this to say that i was almost overwhelmed by how fun this movie is and kept tearing up at almost every scene. it's just such a good time!!!! my critique of this movie has always been that it has two tropes that annoy me - the "highly competent girl is reduced to an assistant for the clueless 'chosen one' dude" and "person who has changed their name goes back to use their ~*real name*~ because it's more valid than whatever they picked" - that only annoy me because of how prevalent they used to be at the time when this movie came out. in isolation, the story works really well and i still like it so so much. everything is awesome!!!!!!
anyway those are my movie thoughts
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grimmmviewing · 7 months ago
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S1E17: “Love Sick”—C-/D (Watched 6/2/24)
“My butt is on its way.”
Like “Island of Dreams,” this is another crossroads episode: It brings together Nick’s heritage/Aunt Marie, Renard’s plotting and own mysterious influential background, Adalind’s seduction of Hank, Wu’s pica-like eating, and even Rosalee’s deceased brother, who gets a mention as Adalind’s love potion shopping list is dug up. This time, however, there really is no case of the week. The murder du jour relates directly to the criss-crossy other stuff, so there’s absolutely no unrelated or tangentially related material. It all matters, and that sounds like a good thing on paper. In execution, it results in an episode that ultimately feels like it lacks a lot of the usual creativity, if not also whimsy, of the Dark Fairytale Procedural concept.
There is some good Wu eating weird stuff action here, including his ultimate act of consumption—grazing on a particularly sumptuous-looking rug on his hands and knees (before Nick breaks down his door). There’s a certain cuteness in Nick trying to threaten and verbally spar with Adalind in the presence of others that don’t know about their secret natures. There’s also some unintended goofiness, that I personally enjoyed, that comes from the hardcore dramatic scenes. I felt it most keenly when Renard meets with his cousin and his cousin’s associate/servant in some nondescript concrete location and when Nick has his climactic confrontation with Adalind in the woods. There’s just something kind of funny about these situations in convoluted fantasy series like this, particularly with the wide shots where you can see the whole scene. Maybe it’s the costuming or script or some other element of cheapness or cringe in the production. Both of the aforementioned scenes also have fights, and the one with Renard, which is much briefer, looks a lot more visually credible, whereas Nick and Adalind’s brawl is pretty silly.
We also skip right past the Hank-Adalind sex—which is probably appropriate given the nature of the whole relationship (Hank being essentially drugged this whole time) and given the tone of the episode, but I couldn’t help thinking the CW would have indulged if this had been one of their, similar, shows. Nick forcefully kissing Adalind (also problematic!) during their fight to the death in the woods certainly felt like something they would have done as well.
That whole final sequence, from when the gang (Nick, Monroe, and Rosalee) find Hank unresponsive in Adalind’s bed through her defeat in the woods, just feels overly complicated and muddled to me. There’s this last-minute revelation that Adalind has altered the love potion/spell, so the antidote that worked on Wu won’t have any effect. Instead, Adalind needs to die for Hank to wake up, but then that apparently won’t work because they need the blood of a Grimm, but then Rosalee says to Monroe in a later scene that if Hank wakes up that means Adalind is dead, and then her being “dead” is just figurative anyway and just means she loses her powers. The Wikipedia summary acts like it was always clear “that the blood of a Grimm will kill the Hexenbiest spirit in Adalind and cure Hank,” but I don’t think it comes across like that in the episode. I’m not going to claim that it doesn’t make sense (Rosalee does say Nick can’t shoot Adalind)—just that I had a hard time following it initially and that it feels convoluted and like a major ass-pull that almost sounds like it’s being written as the episode is playing: “And then they, uh, had to kill her… but not really… because she was actually just dead… weight… without her powers…”
None of the above is actually why I came so close to giving this episode a D, however. There are two much larger, major problem areas, as I see it.
Major Problem #1: “THE KEY”
This one is simpler and easier to cover: The (to the best of my recollection) sudden fixation that the episode has on the key Aunt Marie left Nick earlier in the season feels like it comes out of nowhere. This is suddenly the whole point of all Renard’s scheming and Adalind’s seduction of Hank. It’s referred to with such emphasis and reverence to the point that it would probably be comical even if it didn’t also seem so weirdly sudden. It’s not “the key”; it’s “The Key.” You can positively hear the capital letters.
I think I could have bought into this anyway, though, if not for the opening scene of Nick going over every inch of the trailer to try to find what the key unlocks. It just feels like too much to only be doing now. I could have gotten on board with it if they had chosen to maybe convey that he’s been trying the key here and there “off-screen” over time (maybe even retracing his steps by revisiting every lock in the trailer), but the fact that it instead feels like the first time, in all this time, that he’s trying to find what the key unlocks just makes the whole fixation on it feel that much more random and silly overall.
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Major Problem #2: Mother Dearer
“You’re useless now. Just another pretty girl.”
Adalind’s mother is easily the worst thing about this episode and that undermines so much of the intended drama for me. Just to be clear, though, the casting and costuming and performance for the mother (played by Jessica Tuck) are all great. She looks and feels like an older Adalind in a very positive way. The problems are with just how completely and utterly she steals Adalind’s thunder in an episode that also ends with her (Adalind) losing her powers.
There’s trouble right from the opening quote, which I was immediately side-eying pretty hard for what it seems to suggest about Adalind’s role and actions by explicitly putting the blame on a mother. In part, it says, “[M]y mother drove me to it; it was done against my will.” So far, the show has treated Adalind as a major threat and a valuable asset to Renard, a key part of his plan (whatever it was). Now he’s plotting with her mother instead, behind Adalind’s back, or even over her head, in a sense. And the mother is stepping in to essentially coach or prepare Adalind in certain scenes, making her feel less competent in her own right. She is, we’re ultimately shown through this episode, not all that big of a threat in the grand scheme of things—or ultimately that important to either her mother or Renard. It's kind of remarkable just how much younger the disheveled Adalind looks after her fight with Nick, and that feels very intentional. She goes from classic sexy lawyer woman to what looks like maybe ten years younger. She’s lost all of her poise and any sense of control, which could be a good development in the right (read: different) context.
As it is, there’s definitely a certain irony to the episode description on Amazon, which is one of the shorter ones for the season: “Nick comes face to face with his worst enemy.” Presumably this means Adalind, but it’s kind of ironic that she’s so obviously upstaged and pushed aside here. This sort of escalation is to be expected for a show like this one, but I think not saving the showdown with Adalind/the introduction of an even bigger, badder version of her for the end of the season (or else a holiday break) feels like the wrong call. My backseat writer-ing is that Adalind should have failed on her own terms, and only then should the mother have been brought in by Renard as a replacement. Having her enter the story before the episode is even over just feels premature and hurts the intended drama.
Also: I’m from the internet, so of course I love a strong and evil woman, and seeing Adalind so thoroughly disgraced and defanged here (even before Nick takes her powers) is pretty personally… annoying?
I do appreciate the way Mom takes the distraught, defeated Adalind into her arms near the end of the episode. Like, she reaches out and hugs Adalind, who’s clearly looking for a hug, but you can immediately tell from her posture and her tone that this isn’t a warm gesture, and she recoils in more obvious disgust when she realizes Adalind has been depowered. Again, I think the performance is excellent, but my issues with the mother character go beyond the aforementioned upstaging and further include her characterization as a kind of tropey mother and woman both.
I’m having a hard time figuring out a more succinct, effective way to phrase this, so I’m just going to let it unfurl for a bit: Something about the look and bearing of the mother (which is glamorous but severe, still quite beautiful but also visibly mature) and the things that she says and does for Adalind just strike me as uncomfortable, and it probably has to do with how it comes off as so cold and calculating and how it intersects with matters of romance (or at least sex).
At one point, while discussing the seduction of Hank, Mom says, “You still love him, don’t you?” (I assume “him” is Renard given the full context of the conversation.) To which Adalind replies, “What difference does that make?” “I taught you well,” says Mom. Later, when Hank calls, she instructs Adalind to “Put on a smile. They can hear it in your voice.”
The use of “they” in that last example really jumps out at me because it’s a general statement about men, and about how to manipulate them. There’s a certain type of misogynist that feels all women are gold-digging schemers only interested in the highest-value Alpha catch, that makeup is a lie, and so on. Adalind’s mother feels like that particular man’s view of women made manifest, up to and including her physical appearance, from her haircut to the angle of her jaw (just replace makeup with leeches). She’s like another sort of (less problematic) Geier-type of portrayal, to me. Some kind of retrograde stereotype, though, as established, I’m struggling to think of the right label.
That’s already probably a reach, so here’s another (Why not?): I also don’t like this exchange between Nick and Monroe where they realize Hank has probably been magicked in some way. Nick says, “Could she have done something to him?” And Monroe says, “Hell yeah. That’s what they do.” In context, this is about Hexenbiests, but even lightly removed from context, that “they” feels weighty to me, like Mother Schade’s “they” from before. That Monroe is being a bit of a Bro here, with the late-night woman talk and the “Hell yeah” with a beer in hand, just makes this… weird, to me.
I’m not nearly giving “Love Sick” a D because of misogyny that I’m digging for between the lines—I just think it’s not a particularly competent execution of such an obviously important story (Nick’s decisive victory over an enemy he’s had since episode one and her subsequent replacement, raising the stakes) for at least a few other reasons, and then there’s the possible misogynistic vibes on top of that.
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cacturne · 6 months ago
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heres my epic bg3 class (+some subclass) opinions based on what ive played of them and how fun i think they are. Will give them a numeric score because its fun to do that. Keep in mind i only play on explorer and thus cant do multiclassing + im shit at strategy
Barbarian
ive played barbarian “two” times to game completion (on karlach and tav, same run but well it is two of them!) overall i think the class is super fun, no nonsense, just hit the funny yell button and beat a guys brain in. Solid 8/10 2 points deducted because its so mindless it doesnt give you much satisfaction in lategame. Not bad though. Overall i think the subclasses are more secondary to the class itself but they still stand out a bit
Wildheart: cool! I dont really do much with it but i like animal 👍 usually i go bear heart on karlach with aspect of the bear and aspect of the elk because i dont do much other than run up and hit people so the more complicated aspects are useless to me
Frenzy: honestly ive only ever used this subclass because companion guides told me to, ive got no use at all for its niche since ive never tried the tavern brawler builds which i think its mainly used for. My least favorite just because i personally see 0 use for its niche
Wild magic: my tavs subclass! Its fun honestly. Like i never fucking use the wild magic because im too busy using up my actions on hitting people but that doesnt take away the whimsy and fun and silliness of having stupid shit go off. While fighting viconia in the house of grief i got the difficult terrain around you wild magic effect and it FUCKING SUCKED but i loved it. Also being able to reroll every time you get hit at a certain level is fun too if a bit annoying with the constant pop-up. My favorite subclass of the three!
Bard
I have played extremely little of bard. Maybe up to like level 3 or 4? Got to the goblin camp little. Of course i cant properly assess what i think of it because of this but so far im a bit eeehhh about it. Obviously its a support class first and foremost which im not very good at but also you have so little spell slots… how can i support you if i can only do it like 3 times… definitely a skill issue on my part but i just dont gel with it. It IS fun though. Despite all this its extraordinarily silly. I made a bard durge and a bard drow (not ocs)(yet?) who i hope to maybe finish the game with at some point so i hope to be able to play it at full or just more power sometime and maybe understand the class a little more! Optimistic 5/10 for now.
college of swords: the only bard subclass i have played! I think its fine enough like i said i literally just got to that subclass level so i dont see how unique its play style is yet but it sounds fun!
Cleric
Cleric ive played to game completion two times because ive had shadowheart! I think its not very standout at first but once you get spirit guardians its all over. You turn into the evil giggler as you sprint into your enemies like a beyblade. Idk what shadowhearts got in her but she is CRAZY at dodging too often times ive had everyone else wiped but she is just holding out and taking the rest out herself. Its an unexpected powerhouse with great support! Solid 8/10 because its not a first pick but i do enjoy it
Trickery domain: the only subclass ive properly played for obvious reasons! Yes this is where i come out as a guy who never respecs shadowheart. I dunno i literally never really use the trickery stuff so i cant really say ive played the subclass how the game wants me to but its fine! Does its job!
War domain: i literally only played this in the opening of the game before deleting the character after killing the intellect devourers but i do think it has fun potential with that feature that allows you to expend a point for an extra attack. Definitely still ogling it
Druid
I do not have a good relationship with druid. Its just not for me. I think it is absolutely a good class and can dish out a lot of damage but personally i struggle a lot with juggling human and animal form. Ive never been good with that kind of stuff. Ive played the class to game completion 2 times with jaheira once with her constantly shifted and now im actually rarely shifting her at all and just using her spell slots. Its obvious balancing that needs you to use one of your actions to transform but it hurts me personally because unless i do it beforehand (which fucks up cutscenes if jaheira happens to be included) i will never be able to rationalize with it being worth it. So i either always shift or never shift. 4/10 but its said pensively because its my brains fault
Circle of the moon: the only subclass i use because more shifts AND you can shift with a bonus action instead of a normal action? Kiss me.
Fighter
FIGHTER SWEEEEPPP. MY MAIN GOAL IS TO ACTION. ACTION. ACTION. ACTION SURGE. ACTION. ACTION. ACTION. AND THEN ACT LIKE I DONT KNOW NOBODY! HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH! Ive played fighter to game completion two times with lae’zel and i love it. Sure, great weapon master makes your accuracy shit, but its all worth it when every action that DOES hit does the same amount of damage as attaching a c4 to someone. Its just dumb fun, its like barbarian but even better because it has the epic highs and lows of percentage gambling and makes you laugh evilly when lae’zel hits all 6 of her actions at level 12 and takes out 3/4ths of ansurs health in a single turn. 9/10 one point deducted because its honestly kinda plain lore wise which isnt an issue but you know. I like a little cool factor.
Battle master: the only subclass ive played! Battle master is another one of those subclasses im not strategic enough to use to its full potential, but sweeping attack has really saved me against crowds of 1hp enemies. I should honestly use it more often, when lae’zels ai fucking demolished me while we were homoerotically dueling by using all her superiority die i was kind of amazed at all the potential i do not use. I like it a lot! It feels very core to its class.
Monk
Im not kidding when i say monk is my absolute favorite class in the game. I love this thing to death it is SO FUN, ive had an abandoned playthrough in act 3 and an in progress act 3 playthrough with a durge! Coming off the heels of a certain mmo i was afraid that monk was going to be miserable but i could not be more wrong. Your movement is fucking ludicrous (i got to dame aylin in the colony within the first turn by using step of the wind, freed her because jumping no longer costs a bonus action after using that, then STILL HAD MOST OF MY MOVEMENT LEFT and because i was so deliriously high on the power literally did a victory lap by running all the way back to where i started the turn for fun) and flurry of blows is even more so. This is a class for those who want to be high on the absolute joys of being a kangaroo. This is a class for those who love great sfx when you beat the shit out of people. 100/10 best class ever your damage output is stupid and nobody can run from you because you can jump up a fucking skyscraper if you wanted to.
Way of the four elements: the only subclass ive played! Sorry for thinking element magic is cool. The main character i use right now only uses fire spells so i only have a lot of experience with those, but i love starting out my turn with fangs of the fire snake to get that bonus 1d4 fire damage to all my hits afterward. I also love how using that puts your hands and feet on fire for the remainder of the turn thats just cool vfx! Yeah i like it a lot :) the cool subclass.
Paladin
Ive played a little but of higher level paladin via minthara and finished one playthrough! I cant really visualize the whole class from level 1 onward since you only get her in act 2 but i do like it! If i recall correctly my best run with her i managed to find gear that powered her up when concentrating so throwing shield of faith or bless on someone and then divine smiting people to death was SO much fun. 7/10 because i always kind of forget its there? I think if i played it on a tav or durge especially with oath lore and the like i would like it more (i promise you ive tried many times in the past but always end up deleting the character… i really gotta find a good fit)
Oath of vengeance: only oath ive played because its minthara! I dont really know the difference between oaths very much? Probably because i didnt start from level 1 with her so i dont really have much of an opinion. I feel oaths aside from some class actions are mostly lore stuff anyway.
Ranger
i have played a little bit of level 1/2 ranger and more than a little bit of level 12 ranger thanks to minsc! I feel like ranger is very customizable in what you want it to be which is really cool, but i always threw minsc into being a big heavy bow damage guy. Its honestly really fun, which is why i started a (still ongoing) run as one! I like that as beast master you can choose and switch out familiars if you want and i especially enjoy the damage output you can do with that aoe of your normal ranged attack. Great for people with sanctuary or invisible enemies (if only most of the invisible bhaalists werent before recruiting him…) it makes me become the evil chuckler because i like seeing numbers that bows should not be able to do. Solid 7/10 close to an 8 i feel like its more of a “sure ill have that as support damage” class instead of a real main party class. Its also kind of on the more boring side even with a cool animal familiar.
Beast master: only subclass ive played! Holy fuck you get a little guy! For free! Insane!!! Nothing else to say really its perfect.
Rogue
I enjoy rogue SO much more than i thought i would. I was really digging my heels in about playing it at first not wanting to AT ALL leaving astarion in camp jail but ever since i made my durge one ive become hooked. Ive beaten the game with it “twice” (two rogues on the same run, technically “three” times but like i said. Astarion used to be a camp princess. I cant count that since i literally never used him that run) its pretty simple honestly but nothing can beat the pure serotonin of scoring a like 50 damage crit and uncontrollably evilly laughing about it. Another big gambler class like fighter. 9/10 because if youre not in an advantageous position it feels a little frustrating since you cant do your funny gimmick.
Arcane trickster: i kind of hate this subclass. Ive literally never used the spells and never will so it just sucks because thats its thing. Entirely a me thing of course you control the buttons you press but this is my truth, im never using it.
Assassin: now THIS one i love. Bonus to initiative (beautiful) free advantage on enemies that havent taken a turn (beautiful) combine this with alert and the cape given to daddys favorite and you will be practically unstoppable. Literally im never looking at thief or arcane trickster again assassin rogue is my best friend now.
Sorcerer
Okay so nobody kill me but… i think ive fallen off a lot on sorcerer. I dont dislike it! But i think as someone who usually prefers magic classes over martial classes in fantasy… i just prefer the martial classes here. Ive gotten to act 3 with my very first and abandoned run and am currently in act 3 with a durge and a tav (can you tell i really tried to work with it LOL.) Ive tried really hard to like, love it, and when it clicks i do feel really good with it but the thing is that it often unclicks for me. And then i dont really see the fun in it anymore. I do like sorcerer points though, theyre a nice mechanic! 6/10
Wild magic: i LOVE wild magic, its just goofy! I think this subclass specifically elevates it to a 7/10 just because its really fun to fuck around and find out. Nothing much else to say really, its just silly! Definitely my favorite
Draconic Bloodline: i enjoy draconic bloodline. I like the damage boost to specific elements even if its kinda small come lategame (because i was planning on doing a single element run on that character anyway lol) and the choice (and ability not to choose!!) of a cool aesthetic difference is really neat! I hear you get wings at level 11(??) which if true is fucking wicked but my draconic sorcerer hasnt reached that level yet so i will still see!!! Would probably elevate it over wild magic if so.
Storm sorcerer: eehhh tbf i played this subclass on my very first run that i abandoned when i had NO IDEA what i was doing, so im giving it the benefit of the doubt but as far as i remember it wasnt all too exciting. You just get to fly after a spell.. nothing crazy about it really.
Warlock
It took me a while to realize how to really use warlock, and thats spamming eldritch blast. The thing is, its powerful, and i like warlock, but i also kind of dont like it because of this?? Its just become kind of boring to play because unless you need to do crowd control with something like hunger of hadar or cloud of daggers or wall of fire youre always fine just… using eldritch blast. Using your spell slots on hellish rebuke instead or something since thats a reaction. Ive played warlock to game completion once with wyll and have a tav warlock in act 3. I dunno! I think it can just be improved but i have no idea how. 6/10 most if not the entirety of the class feels carried by how much you like your characters lore to me. Its really so cool lore wise.
Pact of the fiend: the only pact ive played! I dont remember if the pacts are just for lore or give you specific class actions/spells… i think they do. Anyhow, i really like the fiends spells!
Wizard
I think wizard is kind of boring. Sorry. Ive played it to game completion once with gale who then subsequently blew up so you know. Anywho, i do like the sheer amount of spells you get with wizard in stark contrast to sorcerer, but i dunno i just never really find a use for that versatility. I always just kinda use the same 5 spells so the whole gimmick kind of falls flat for me. Its not a bad class! I just dont really see much appeal outside of character reasons. 6/10.
Evocation: only subclass ive played. I never respec gale and only after checking what exactly evocation spells are did i become mad about this subclass. “Oh your evocation spells are powered up” MY EVOCATION SPELLS? THE SPELLS WHERE 99% OF THEM DO NOT DO DAMAGE? As far as i know this subclass is completely useless. Bastard.
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kulaiyin · 11 months ago
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(thoughts on penacony 2.0 trailblaze mission!)
PENACONY!!! 😍
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just a warning, this is gonna be mostly aimless rambling about the penacony map and story. this includes spoilers!
i'm blown away on the production quality of penacony, both in the real world and the dream world. the music, special effects, skyline, whimsy... they put so much into the penacony experience and i love it
golden hour is massive and even though i took a detour countless of times from firefly's tour (I'M SO SORRY FIREFLY) there are still places i haven't fully explored! it's a pure delight ♪(´▽`) i really enjoyed how they introduced penacony gameplay mechanics so naturally in the story
penacony puzzles in general are so unique and a huge step up from past regions! my favorite one is the clockie puzzle. i actually find them hard but they reminds me of puzzle games i used to play and i like that challenge
penacony food looked so delicious... 🌈🍦🍨🍩🍟🍰 sorry firefly i picked the most expensive item hoping we could share it
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i'm called "jay" so this image is funny... i saved this pic as "ME AND THE GFS" except i forgot the f in gf, so it's just "ME AND THE G'S"
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also HOLY F they are gf... i really love how gay stelle and firefly are (´▽`ʃ♡ƪ) wlw win... i also appreciate how gay acheron is too. i know what u are... after all, i am an avid hi3rd fan--
i was very pleased with the whole "touring around with a cute girl eating french fries dipped in ice cream" vibes we got with firefly! it's very cute... especially while playing as stelle (❁´◡`❁)
firefly's story is very touching... "a dream you don't want to wake up from" seems to be a big theme that's being set up for penacony. i believe acheron at the very beginning also questioned us about our willingness to stay in a dream and risk things for ones we care about, and firefly's love and reason for staying in penacony bring this theme back
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this line thoroughly shattered me. please protect firefly...
other characters who stood out to me:
acheron. she's less of a scary badass than i expected, and she's actually really cute?! (gap moe?!) but perhaps my initial impression of her upon seeing her splash art ("spines and bloodied clothing... she looks like bad news!") might be true after all... 😳
sparkle. she is so catty and snarky! i didn't expect so much venom to come out of her mouth. i like more characters like this who deliberately antagonize others
misha. I HAVE A BIG THEORY about him ┌( ´_ゝ` )┐
i think misha is related to mikhail. this is entirely due to the voice during the trippy dream-in-a-dream sequence sounding just like misha's in the CN voiceover, so i could be totally wrong. but misha is quite special as someone who can see clockie and is the one who guided the trailblazer to golden hour
"mikhail," whoever he is, is too prominent in the trailblaze mission to be something unrelated to the mystery of the watchmaker. so my theory is also that mikhail and/or misha is involved with the origin of the watchmaker...
i have more thoughts about the latter half of the story but i'll add to this post when it comes to me later, it's late! thanks for reading!
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stonyponyofficial · 2 years ago
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hi!!!! :3 here are "some songs" ive been "listening to" that "i" think "you" should too!
spotify || youtube
notes on each below ^w^
Big Dipper - Death Grips: this song has such a good bounce to it, it makes me move no matter what, i cant help it. especially the chorus cuz ill start singing along and, well, then theres no stopping me. ill wiggle in my seat or like put some bounce in my step. which is all fun when im listening to music at home, but at work, where i mostly listen to music, i cant i have to skip the song. plus i love u songs that end with a good few minutes of noise just because, i never skip u i swear 🥺
classic j dies and goes to hell - glass beach: im fiiiinally getting around to glass beach and why didn't ANYONE say it was good? don't think ive heard the opinion that the first glass beach album is good yet. i wanted to listen to more bc of the hazel "Twinkle Park" version of the self titled song which is also very good but i put this one on this list bc it builds energy and emotion soooo well. it starts so somber but builds and builds till we're screaming about supporting each other and making a home for yourself despite despite despite.
DOGTOOTH - Tyler, The Creator: he creates once more! i always forget i had a kinda big tyler thing in high school until he releases new music. out of all his recent releases post-Flower Boy, Call Me didnt connect with me as much, but this single from the Call Me If You Get Lost "estate sale" of stuff that didnt make the album surprisingly did! it feels a little flowerboy-ish in the production but has the call me vibes of like "i can afford all these cars, buy my neighbors house, and ill still take my private plane to Switzerland for the day just cuz i was craving some nice chocolate" very braggadocio, very tyler, very good :)
Dumbass!! - Machine Girl: this song both sounds like and has similar effects as brainworms. it fuckin. got in there and made me quantifiably more insane than i was before. said brainworms make me wanna scream the lyrics and scuffle my feet and just like run into traffic and dance around the cars bc this song makes me believe i could and id be fine. i hope to fucking god they play this at the mg/100 gecs show. this song is also one of the few times ive looked up the lyrics for a machine girl song, usually content to just let the beats jar my head, and as soon as i did i couldnt get them out :) like some sort of... thought... eating... something or other idk theres probably a word for it (<-the worms are finally getting to her)
Fantastic Cat - Takako Minekawa: this song is sooooo cute, there is so much synth and whimsy to be had! unfortunately i don't know much about the artist bc this was one of the first songs i found after using Radiooooo (which u should be basically required to use if u like music and finding new music) set to Japan in the 90s, but she's part of the 'shibuya-kei' genre/subculture that was popular during that time, which sounds like an interesting topic to dive into :3 the whimsy contained in this song is almost too much tho. the melody is so sweet, that wind instrument is so silly, and the moog breakdown in the middle too is. well, its all quite fantastic.
HI 5 - Frost Children: i took too long making this post that this entry went from originally a cheeky indirect plug for their upcoming album bc i just really liked this single to just,, oh the album came out... but either way i wanted to talk about the song bc 2 me its just more proof of how exciting of a voice in hyperpop the frost children are. the bass on it is as crazy and slick as the one on the cover. this whole song just explodes with eccentricity i think ull really like it :) also check out the epic music video! its ai generated for those who'd like to know beforehand, but they use it to like. rotoscope real footage its preddy neat!
Introduce me to your family - Otoboke Beaver: i made a little post recently about Otoboke Beaver's influence on six impala's WFLYTD, and after revisiting their album, Itekoma Hits, after making that post i got this one stuck in my head for a while. the hook hooks (the main reason i had it in my head for so long), the bass is groovy, the guitars are sharp, the rage is channeled, its all here! they keep all the energy going and growing the whole time until you cant help but scream along.
こんがらがった! (Kongaragatta!/Tangled up!)- Necry Talkie: started reading the bocchi manga recently (im just past where the show ends as of now :3) and they have art at the beginning of each chapter with the kessoku band members that references visuals from like irl japanese bands and music videos which i thought was really cool! of course i had to find a collection of all the referenced songs, and what do ya know... this cute little number was in there! (if ur wondering it's the art for chapter 18 that references this song's music video :3) its such a dinky beat at first (said so so lovingly) but it evolves into a precise, energetic little jam.
One Million Dollars - 100 gecs: this fucking sonnng.. not everyones fav off 10k i know but it is for me :3 it just rattles me in such a specific way. it originated and is the only way to sate the need in my brain to hear what it was like for nic cage in that "not the bees!!!!" scene. i love it sm, but im absolutely biased from my hearing this at a gec show and falling for it right then and there. the live version and the album version are a bit different and i think the changes they made for the album make it a fuller song i just. loved the feeling of hearing this live so much. i would just search up the epic live version at terminal 5 where Laura fucking SHREDS on the guitar at the end over and over while i was waiting for the album. again, makes me very excitied to see them and machine girl soon :3
o (__*) - Hakushi Hasegawa: i dont know much about this artist but goddamn the few songs i have heard from them have made such an impression. u know a song is good when its not even dnb but uses the "yeah.. woo!" sample to keep everything going. and yeah with how crazy fucking banana bonkers jazzy and technical the drums and piano get at times it needs that tiny bit of stability at least. this song feels like the epitome of controlled chaos in the absolute best way possible.
PARTY GIRL - Angel Electronics: after rook's latest solo album came out i decided to go back and visit this collab project of hers with ash nerve i had missed at first and.... weeeeeeh ;w; this song makes me wanna cry every time. rook can obviously write some bangers but i love her more tender songs too. so many parts come together to make it just the sweetest thing. the part that stuck with me the most was the chorus, like it's sooo cute id just sing it to myself on loop bc it leads into itself so well. i wanna just keep talking about how fucking cute this song is but like George Costanza voice the love story between the party girl and the weird shy girl got to me okay?
Prime - Marnie Stern: kinda the reason im making this list hehe :3 this song was on char 'igottawin' mp3's most recent WILT (what im listening to) poast (hi char :3) and it was What Im was Listening To... too... (both of us bc of this epic animation) so here it is on MY knockoff WILT post too mwahaha hahaha! haha but seriously guys this song is quite good. it does so much with all the variations on just that one verse and i get sucked into the lyrics and the guitars. and by the fourth time im chanting this same unending verse the song is surprisingly over and i just wanna listen to it again. this one deserves a 10 hr extended version frfr
Wait and Bleed - Slipknot & 青春コンプ��ックス(Seishun Complex) - Kessoku Band: whats this? a double entry? ahaha yes! 😈 i would've put these songs here separately bc ive been getting into both slipknot (thank u char :3) and the actual kessoku band album, both of which are quite good on their own. but i only combine their entries here bc of this epic mashup of these two songs by the aforementioned rook blackdresses which makes me unable to sing either without thinking of the other song. like the first three chords of the bocchi theme start playing and my brain wants to scream the GOODBYEEEEEE from Wait and Bleed. the slipknot chorus melds with the kessoku band guitars soooo well. to me they are pieces from different puzzles entirely but they still fit together <3
wants mom to know she looks cool and doesn't plan on changing - leroy: i finally listened to the dariacore and accompanying berdlycore serieseses and ive loved diving into this little subculture of silly hyperpop meme mashups that fuck immensely. takes the silly to earnest and very good pipeline to a new level. plus having been a fan of dltzk and jane's other stuff its the one thing i never really got into but there are. so many dariacore related things i need to listen to now. i feel like theres lore i have to catch up on but im excitied :3 this is one of my faves off dariacore 2: electaria corebaloo (not what its called)
This has been... Post! thanks for your time. if u read this far i love u so much please never forget that. 'til summer music-heads! *curtsies and shows myself off-stage*
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dballzposting · 2 years ago
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I think if Goten and Trunks played Stardew together Trunks would try and min max their income but Goten would be a financial strain because he passes out in the mines and buys pizza which are 600g (my friend is a financial strain on our farm in the same way)
Oh Thank Heavens a good take on Goten & Trunks playing stardew valley in my inbox ON a monday night . HE WOULD DO THIS !
The only time it's reversed is when Goten tries to diligently save money to buy a heater for their chickens becasue it's getting cold out. And Trunks keeps blowing their money on MORE SEEDS!!!!!
Things Goten does and thinks and says
- "No dude just pass out it's a free ride back home just a few coins man it's nothing valuable"
- He sleeps in Trunks's house when his own cabin is too far away (and also when it's not) and that would be fine if it werent for the ongoing inside joke where if Trunks doesnt absolutely see him out then Goten will double back and steal something out of his house
- The time Goten blocked Trunks in his own house with furniture
- Goten spending all day fishing and returning with trash and trash and trash becasue he ate the fish while he was out so that he could fish for more trash
- Goten being reluctant to put his trash in the recycling machine becasue it "takes too long" and it's easier to just leave the trash in his chests or, better yet, toss it out of his inventory and into the farm water source
- With that being said Goten doesnt like pollution and so when it makes him too sad he just puts the trash in Trunks's chests.
- He picks Trunks's crops to be "helpful" and it messes up Trunks's methods and routines
- "Listen man. I LIVE on a farm. I know what I'm doing." VS Trunks's "I GREW UP playing video games. I KNOW what I'm doing."
- trunks perpetually has the sense that Goten doesnt QUITE know how to play the game, until suddenly Goten presents Trunks with the Wedding Ring, an item that Trunks himself barely knows about and that cost a LOT of time and resources.
They're playing at a long distance becasue Goten finally got the Nintendo Switch to work on his geriatric and idiosyncratic TV and he doesnt want to move the switch and fuck it all up, so hes on a voice chat with Trunks. And Goten spent a LONG time on this gambit, he KNOWS that Trunks thinks that Goten is bad at this game, and he maintained that ruse and hid his knowledge about the ring so that it would be a surprise. Until they finally finally FINALLY had the man-hours and resources in for him to pop the question.
And Trunks barely knows about this item and it dawns on him that Goten knew something practical about the game that he didnt and he remembers only vaguely reading something abt the function of being able to marry other players and how the item was expensive and he didnt care much then. But hes on a voice chat with Goten and they were gonna go mining on Fern Island in the volcano and hes all stacked out and Goten was like "Hey you forgot your ring" and Trunks checked his inventory and was like "Nah I got both of them" and Goten was like "No you forgot this one." And then proposed on stardew valley and now Ttunks is sitting here staring at the screen slowly processing that Goten had flexed his whimsy once again
Theres a pause and Goten says "will you marry me dude" to make it real and from Goten's POV he cant see Trunks sit there and process it becasue they're playing at their own homes so from his POV theres just a loooong silence and then the dutiful sound effect of the item being accepted.
And they both literally had been talking about marrying other townspeople but the gambit was too impressive and Goten knew the risk of presenting it .. He knew that there was a 50% chance that Trunks would accept it and that they would both be stuck with this. And well. Here we are
They silently wed and that's that...
- Goten keeps cooking all the food items out of the fridge indiscriminately so theres never anything useful in the fridge. And whenever they go mining together Trunks keeps seeing Goten eating random and lavish dishes and desserts and it makes no sense becasue you're meant to go into the mines with a mostly empty inventory and clearly Goten is not doing that. Trunks has a stack of gold star cheeses to keep him going meanwhile hes hearing Goten say "hold on I gotta heal up" and put away an entire chocolate cake or "hold on I gotta clear up inventory space" and then he just eats random dishes like Autumn's Bounty and Fried Eggplant like WHAT ? Hes throwing back Seafoam Pudding in SKULL CAVERN ! He's popping a raw Super Cucumber becasue he felt a whee bit peckish while cutting down trees. WHY IS HE CARRYING A STACK OF FISH CAKES ? Why is he packing artichoke dip?? Why is he offering Trunks a Cranberry Candy as a celebration treat for breaking their depth record in the mines? Trunks accepts it of course.
- Goten loves the berry seasons. He loves picking that shit
- Basically Trunks is trying to be filthy rich while Goten is just trying to have fun and chill out
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sinceileftyoublog · 1 year ago
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This Is The Kit & Gruff Rhys Live Show Review: 10/19, Lincoln Hall, Chicago
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This Is The Kit's Kate Stables
BY JORDAN MAINZER
On This Is The Kit's latest album Careful Of Your Keepers (Rough Trade), Kate Stables asks many questions without expecting answers to all of them. "When are we gonna get there, when are they?" "If we're holding hands, will we walk at the same speed?" "Boy, I'm talking to you, are you listening?" Okay, maybe that last one is easy (he's definitely not listening), but for the most part, Stables' philosophical quandaries and mantra-like repetitions are metaphors for the uneasy and paradoxical nature of relationships and time. "This is a how shit is this measuring stick," she sings, tongue twisted, on album opener "Goodbye Bite", having difficulty pinpointing exact beginning and ending points of certain eras in her life. If vagaries are the name of the game for This Is The Kit, the band's live performance last Thursday at Lincoln Hall brought to life, via instrumentation, Stables' gently agitated state.
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This Is The Kit's Stables and Rozi Plain
Take "Goodbye Bite", and its concoction of sinewy guitars, bass, synth, and woodwinds: When you're listening to it, it feels like it's encircling your brain, threatening to wedge its way in. Stables, bassist Rozi Plain, guitarist Neil Smith, and drummer Lucien Chatin made sure it finally did when presented live, with a looser structure. Holding it all together, though, was Stables' voice, smoky in contrast to the wiry guitars of "Slider", seeming like it wanted to leap off the page on "Stuck in a Room", a song about wanting to leave where you are but having to stay. Stables' deft delivery sported the stamina of an MC, but over the band's taut music, it sounded like it was bursting at the seams. The elastic-rigid dynamic made its way to even old songs, like on the interplay between Stables' spritely banjo and Chatin's controlled toms on "Bullet Proof".
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This Is The Kit
I should emphasize one more time: Just because Stables--and really, almost all people--has trouble quantifying abstractions like time, doesn't mean the band can't show off their tightness. On the Nick Drake lilt of "This Is When The Sky Gets Big", Stables and Plain staggered their harmonies to stunning effect. "Inside Outside" captivated with a jazzy groove. Really, the main image on "Scabby Head and Legs", that of a pigeon who holds eggs too tight and breaks them, seems like a warning signal for the band itself, who instead follow Stables' repeated advice of "cutting once, measuring twice." Yet, they break the rules when they want to, as long as they know that they're breaking the rules. Or, as Stables sings on "Dibs", "Let's pretend to not know that we're out of time."
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Gruff Rhys
Though This Is The Kit's growth is certainly organic, enlisting Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals as producer on Careful Of Your Keepers is as natural a match as I can remember in recent memory, his experimental whimsy bringing out just enough circular strangeness to the band's sound. Lucky for us, Rhys gave an opening set on Thursday, which meant that he did come out to do backing vocals on a couple TITK songs like on the record. It also meant we got to hear some unreleased songs from his upcoming album Sadness Sets Me Free, the title track, "Bad Friend", and the already released "Celestial Candyfloss" among them. That Rhys played mostly an acoustic set meant he didn't give away what the new songs sound like on record. For one, he admitted to not knowing them very well. The finger-picked guitars on "Celestial Candyfloss" are totally overshadowed by the orchestral chamber pop of the studio version. Sure, some back catalog highlights, like "Lonesome Words" and the metronome-laden "If We Were Words (We Would Rhyme)", were not far cries from their respective studio versions. But Rhys was able to play with volume and his ever-changing distance from the microphone to create a sonic spaciousness on "Pang!" and the melancholy hum of "Shark Ridden Waters". Best, these versions may eventually see the light of day, as Rhys claimed he was recording for a live album, as he held up title cards to a surprisingly sparse crowd that said things like, "Generic audience reaction" so we knew when to cheer. He didn't have to, though. Those of us who were there knew it wouldn't be every day we'd be able to witness two forcefully creative entities on the same night: Our cheers were constant.
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maddie-grove · 2 years ago
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Little Book Review: General Fiction Round-Up (May-December 2022)
Maddaddam by Margaret Atwood (2013): In the final volume of Atwood's environmental dystopian trilogy (preceded by Oryx and Crake and The Year of the Flood), the survivors of a manmade eco-fascist plague, along with a population of genetically engineered humanoids, must try to make a life in the ruins. Atwood is one of my favorite authors and, while I generally prefer her non-speculative fiction, I really enjoyed the whole trilogy. She's really engaged with the ideas she explores (mostly related to GMOs and income inequality) and grounds them vividly in everyday life. I especially like the way the genetically engineered humanoids (the Crakers) process the world around them.
The Testaments by Margaret Atwood (2019): In the sequel to The Handmaid's Tale, Atwood tells the story of three women in the same universe: a Commander's daughter in Gilead, a daughter of Mayday operatives living in Toronto, and Aunt Lydia, first seen "training" Handmaids in The Handmaid's Tale. I liked The Handmaid's Tale in high school, but I can't say I came away wanting to know more about that world...yet, as it turns out, I totally did want to know more about the pastel horrors of an elite Gilead girlhood. The audiobook is also top-notch, with Ann Dowd, Ann Whitman, and Bryce Dallas Howard doing the three main POVs.
Magic for Beginners by Kelly Link (2005): In nine "short" stories (many of them are quite long), Link writes about absurd things happening in mundane settings. Pretty Monsters, another short story collection of hers with some overlap, was one of my favorite books I read in 2014, but this time I wasn't feeling it. I'd already read the three best entries: "Stone Animals" (about a nebulously haunted house in a suburb of NYC), "Magic for Beginners" (about a mysterious TV show and a teen boy whose father is maybe trying to murder him via writing a novel), and "The Faery Handbag" (about a girl whose grandmother carries around an entire lost country in her purse). The others never really came together. I might have lost my taste for whimsy.
Dune by Frank Herbert (1965): In the very distant future, fifteen-year-old Paul Atreides has to move to a different planet for his father's work, and it only gets worse from there. I resisted reading Dune for the longest time because it sounded as dry as a desert planet where you have to reabsorb your own urine to survive. However, it fucks. I loved the layers of power dynamics and game-playing, especially in the scenes with Lady Jessica. Evil, horny Baron Harkonnen and his weirdly tragic nephew Feyd-Rautha were also great. I didn't like it so much after the time skip, though, and I think I'll give the sequels a pass.
The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix (2021): Paranoid and reclusive after being targeted twice by Christmas-themed killers, Lynette Tarkington's social life consists of a support group for "final girls" (women who have survived grisly massacres that were adapted into horror movies). I never quite got on board with this one, for two major reasons. The first is that I was irrationally annoyed by the idea that horror movies were seemingly all one-to-one true crime stories in this universe. That's on me. The second is that Hendrix never managed to convince me that most of these women had ever had a significantly positive relationship with each other. This novel could've been a Toast article.
Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix (2014): Amy, a cash-strapped and unhappy twenty-something working at an IKEA knockoff, is offered a transfer to a better store if she'll stay after-hours to investigate some strange recent happenings. This isn't my favorite Hendrix novel; however, it is the fucking scariest. The characterization isn't as rich as it is in most of his other novels--I would describe it as efficient--but the pacing is effectively brisk and the nature of the fake-IKEA haunting almost made me shit my pants.
We Sold Our Souls by Grady Hendrix (2018): Kris Pulaski, once a guitarist/songwriter for up-and-coming heavy metal group Dürt Würk, now lives a life of resignation as a hotel night manager. Meanwhile, her ex-bandmate Terry Hunt is still a massively successful rock star after going nu-metal...and suddenly Kris has reason to believe that he did something truly sinister to make that happen. After My Best Friend's Exorcism, this is my favorite Hendrix novel. He's unusually moderate in putting his heroine through the mill, both in terms of physical peril and self-flagellation, and balances it with the joy she finds in her creative life. The otherworldly threat she faces is nicely chilling, and I loved the bittersweet ending.
Stranger Things: The Other Side by Jody Houser (2019): In this tie-in comic to Stranger Things, we see the first season from twelve-year-old Will Byers's point-of-view as he struggles to survive in the Upside Down. There's some good characterization of Will and a few cool visuals, but overall it's pretty inessential. The writing is kind of flat and sometimes awkward, and the art style is overall muddy and unappealing.
Mysterious Skin by Scott Heim (1995): Neil and Brian, two kids growing up in the same midsized Kansas town, both have life-altering traumatic experiences in the summer of 1981. Brian doesn't remember what happened, and comes to believe in the following years that he was abducted by aliens; Neil knows exactly what went on between him and his sexually predatory Little League coach, but that doesn't mean he understands it. Several years ago, I saw the 2004 movie version, which is amazing both as an adaptation and on its own terms: nuanced, well-paced, beautifully acted and shot, and faithful to all that's good in the source material. Unfortunately, this did slightly lessen the impact of the (also stellar) novel.
Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss (2018): In the early 1990s, working-class seventeen-year-old Silvie spends a summer holiday in a Northumberland village, reenacting Iron Age life with her churlish history buff father, her downtrodden mother, a pompous anthropology professor, and three of his students. It's promising to be more miserable than your average family camping trip, between the lack of modern tech/food and Silvie's father's domestic tyrannies, but are we getting into The Wicker Man territory? This is a tense, deliciously creepy, and lyrical little novella that I finished in one evening because it was so exciting.
Normal People by Sally Rooney (2018): Withdrawn rich girl Marianne, despised at home and at school, starts a no-strings-attached relationship with working-class Connell, who's handsome and bright but kind of a follower. Thus begins an on-again, off-again thing that will follow them through college and change them forever. I really liked this romance between two troubled yet essentially sensible and sweet college students, although it's a bit slow at times. I especially enjoyed the first time that Connell and Marianne's power dynamic flips; she's kind of an It Girl at university, while he's out of his depth.
Summerwater by Sarah Moss (2020): Several families "enjoy" a miserable summer holiday by a Scottish lake over the course of a rainy day. We get the perspectives of several vacationers--judgmental moms, crotchety old men, worried newlyweds, teenagers desperate for wifi and privacy, anxious little kids--with several dark hints that someone will meet a terrible fate. Moss's writing is pleasurable to read and often funny, but I needed a damn flow chart for these people.
The Brittanys by Brittany Ackerman (2021): Brittany, a Floridian high school freshman in 2004, navigates life in her gated community and her suburban high school, hanging out with her friends (most of whom are also named Brittany) and wearing low-rise jeans. Maybe I was unduly influenced by the author being named Brittany, but this novel reads like a bunch of fond adolescent memories with the occasional gesture at some larger meaning. It feels like the author couldn't decide between trying to do an emotional mid-oughts coming-of-age story (like Lady Bird) or a slice-of-life portrait of a certain type of high school experience (like Fast Times at Ridgemont High). The stakes aren't high enough for the first (the biggest through-line is that Brittany's BFF Brittany might be a lesbian but neither of them seems to know it) and the scope isn't wide enough for the second. I think the book would've been better off as, like, two short stories.
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make-mine-movie · 2 years ago
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Fantasia (1940)
Fantasia is a Disney movie unlike any other, which is likely why they had to make it twice. The following segment addresses the 1940 version of Fantasia from Disney’s Golden Age, which will strictly be referred to as Fantasia. If discussing the 2000 version of Fantasia, I will say “Fantasia 2000.” Fantasia has received a 95% score from Rotten Tomatoes.
Fantasia is an absolutely beautiful film that perfectly captures music as a visual concept. It evokes such a raw myriad of emotions with every piece. My personal favorites were the “Russian Dance,” “Rite of Spring,” “Dance of the Hours,” and “Ave Maria,” in order of performance rather than favoritism. Despite the paleontological inaccuracies, “Rite of Spring” was exceptionally entertaining, shifting from joyous whimsy to tragic mourning with just a swift scene change. Overall, the animation of the entire film was beautiful. Sadly, though, I think the extended introduction as well as some of the scenes may be boring for small children or even some adults with little care about the beauty of fine arts. If you are picking a movie for the background of your family board game night, this is probably not it. Additionally, it is hard to ignore the frequent art style changes which are both simultaneously bothersome but also very impressive. That being said, the extensive use of flashing lights to convey loud sounds, specifically percussion is rather unnecessary, and even somewhat uncomfortable. Fantasia, like many other Disney films, also features some harmful imagery. The small lines on the mushrooms, assumably for eyes, during the “Chinese Dance” was an upsetting addition, especially considering that they other plants did not rely on stereotypical facial features to express their source material or represented nationality (for those plants that did have one during the “Nutcracker Suite”). It should also be mentioned that in the original production of Fantasia there were some exceptionally racist portrayals of a young Black girl in “Symphony No. 6” that have since been erased on account of how disturbing they are. She is presented as a servant to the older, white centaurs and repeatedly mistreated. That being said, the only Black centaurs still remaining in Fantasia are also servants (to Bacchus) but they are not shown in as much of a demeaning light.
In conclusion, beyond the racist microaggressions and questionable usage of special effects, Fantasia is a gorgeous film that perfectly blends the visual art of animation with a well-composed orchestra. While it might be difficult for those of little interest in the performing/fine arts field to enjoy, or younger audiences, it is definitely worth watching, especially if you find yourself needing to feel something (or many, different, conflicting things). Overall, Fantasia receives 8 out of 10 stars from me, an amazing score. The points removed were influenced by the harmful stereotypes portrayed in the film I watched, not including the deleted scene of the young Black centaur, as well as the flashing imagery, which I did not enjoy. However, due to its obviously fantastic music, Fantasia scored an additional point. This movie was not tested on whether or not it passes the Bechdel Test because none of the characters have speaking roles.
Summary of the film under the cut.
Fantasia has no distinct plot, but is rather a compilation of classical musical pieces performed by a live orchestra and brought to life with animated segments. Some of these segments have a determinable plot, but none of these “plots” are exceptionally distinct. In order to summarize I will list the name of the song along with a short summary of what happens while it plays. Some of these descriptions will be more in-depth than others depending on the piece. The movie begins with an introduction from the conductor, Leopold Stokowski, and the Philadelphia Orchestra, who performs all of the songs. The first song is “Toccata and Fugue in D Minor,” which is the only one unaccompanied by a specific animation but rather shows the orchestra performing in the foreground while surrounded by generalized scenery such as a sunset or clouds. The next six pieces are part of “The Nutcracker Suite,” starting with the classic “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy,” which features none other than fairies. They fly around, lighting up the flowers around them with their sparkling magic. Next is the “Chinese Dance,” which is performed by several mushrooms dancing in a circle. Then, the “Dance of the Reed Flutes,” which features flowers dancing off a waterfall. Afterwards, the “Arabian Dance;” fish swimming gracefully. The fifth is the “Russian Dance” in which thistles and orchids dance together. Finally, the “Waltz of the Flowers” in which fairies once again appear, this time changing the seasons. The most notable scene from Fantasia follows this introduction, “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice,” featuring the infamous Mickey Mouse as the sorcerer’s apprentice. Out of his laziness, Mickey creates helpful broomsticks with his magic abilities, but things get out of control and the sorcerer has to help stop the madness that ensues. Another popular piece from Fantasia, as well as one of the longer ones, “Rite of Spring,” tells the stories of dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures coexisting (or at least trying to?). The next three scenes all play “Symphony No. 6,” showing off unicorns, pegasi, fauns, puttos, and centaurs celebrating spring and a festival honoring Bacchus. After everything gets out of hand, they are punished by Zeus. Another very notable piece is “Dance of the Hours,” which features a variety of animal dancers, including ostriches and elephants, but focusing predominantly on the tensions between hippos and alligators. The movie begins to conclude with the final most notable scene, a terrifying demon called Chernabog summons spirits and turns them into his underlings: “A Night on Bald Mountain.” Fantasia finally ends with “Ave Maria,” where the aforementioned spirits return to their town and form a line of lights as the sun slowly rises. Then everything fades to black.
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