#also. by GOD is glenn a good actor

[buthappysoverrated]

forever losing my mind to his reaction here in making dennis reynolds a murderer

[sofmoth]

Smooth Stuff

for her birthday, @strang3lov3 challenged me to write dennis reynolds, and to use his DENNIS system on the reader. naturally i’m nervy because who can do dennis but glenn howerton honestly??? and genuinely not to suck myself off but i feel like i met the brief LMAO

this is for all us dennisfuckers, dennisfucker nation stand up!!!

also posted to AO3 by me (@sofmoth), link here.

divider created by @animatedglittergraphics-n-more

dennis reynolds x reader. WC: 2.3k

DO NOT BOTHER INTERACTING IF YOUR BIO IS AGELESS OR BLANK.

18+ ONLY. MINORS DO NOT INTERACT. MINORS AND AGELESS BLOGS WILL BE BLOCKED ON SIGHT.

HEED ALL WARNINGS:

DEAD DOVE: DO NOT EAT. dennis is a literal sociopath, dennis is manipulative, dennis manipulates reader for sex, dubcon, reader is psychologically tortured, sober sex with a drunk person, reader gets drunk, canon-typical dennisisms, no confirmed relationship, use of the DENNIS system, smut. once more for the cheap seats, DEAD DOVE: DO NOT EAT.

“My name’s Dennis, I’m collecting donations for the Boys & Girls Club.”

That’s how it started. He’d come in to ask if there were any old toys your store was about to throw out, and if you would consider donating them instead. Unfortunately not, you’d told him, but you were pretty sure you had a phone number he could call and he might have some luck with that. You’d written it down on a Post-It for him with the name of the person he should ask for, and then you handed him a Post-It with your name and number. You’d never been so bold before; something about him inspired that in you.

He called you every other night, and you talked for a few hours each time. It felt like nothing, talking to Dennis was as easy as breathing. He was charming, and funny, and he actually listened to you bitch about the day you had at work instead of interrupting every 38 seconds to talk about himself. Friday night, near the end of your call, he asked if you’d ever been to a restaurant called Guigino’s. He’ll be taking you on Sunday.

You don’t know why you’re so nervous walking to the restaurant with him; you’ve gotten pretty comfortable with him over the phone. He can probably sense your anxiety, hooking his arm into yours as you walk. You hear it before you see it, Dennis groans and you look up. A sign on the door reads CLOSED, and Dennis holds his face in his hand. He sighs, biting the inside of his cheek.

“Unbelievable, I’m sorry. How about we take a rain check on this? We can grab a pizza or something and head back to my place, watch a movie? My roommate’ll be there but he keeps to himself. If that’s okay with you, of course.” You hum, bite your lip.

“Okay. It’s still Italian.” You stifle a nervous giggle and Dennis chuckles, wrapping his arm over your shoulder as you continue down the street.

As the apartment door opens you can see a man sitting on the couch, reading a book with the TV barely on. He must be Dennis’s roommate. Dennis clears his throat.

“Hey man. Do you mind taking that to your room? The restaurant was closed, we’d like to… y’know, get to know each other a bit. In private.”

“I’m not going in there.” Dennis’s jaw twitches.

“Why not?”

“I saw a black widow. I’m not going back in there.”

Dennis sighs, looks over at you.

“I mean, I guess we could take this to my room? Eat on the bed, watch a DVD in there?” You nod and he relaxes, smiling at you.

You sit on top of his covers with the pizza box between you, eating absently as you attempt to follow the movie. You’re not entirely sure what it is, but you think you recognize a few of the actors. You feel Dennis’s knee touch yours, looking over at him.

“Pretty good pizza.” He closes the box.

“Not the only good thing I’m looking at.”

God damn, does he fuck. You almost feel bad for his roommate, though the thought is immediately pushed from your mind as the head of his cock borderline bruises your cervix. His hand on your throat stifles your moans, your eyes roll back from the sensation. You’re practically folded in half, knees pressed closer to your shoulders than you ever thought possible, your arms around his neck as he kisses you messily.

Your legs start to tremble, toes curling as you feel the tension building in your belly. You knot your fingers in his hair, tugging hard as your back arches into his chest and you begin to see stars. He doesn’t slow down, if anything he fucks you harder, tears pricking at your lashes as the stimulation toes the line of too much. You silently thank God he had condoms, glad he won’t have to pull out and finish on you. His pace falters, hips stuttering as he grates out a near-rapturous “Oh, fuck.” 

He pants against your neck, wincing as he pulls out. You prop yourself up on your elbows, legs still shaking You look him up and down, the sheen of sweat on his forehead and the wild look in his eyes nearly doing you in again. He tosses the spent condom down into the wastebasket by his nightstand, pulling his boxers up and laying on his back next to you. You look over at him, raising an eyebrow. He raises one back at you.

“Oh, really?”

The next evening after work, you find one of your tires almost completely deflated. You groan, inspecting the rubber and locating a sizable screw lodged between the treads. Fucking fantastic. You sigh, chewing on your lip. You’ve only been talking with him for a little over a week, and you don’t want to seem too needy, but you call Dennis anyway. Maybe he’ll be able to give you a ride to the auto shop at least.

He’s there in no time, happy to help. He even offered to change the tire for you. As he stands he wipes his hands on his jeans, kissing you quickly before replacing the jack in your trunk. You feel your cheeks heating up, a grin tugging at the corner of your mouth.

“I’ve got some stuff to do this week, so how about we go to Guigino’s next week?”

“Sounds good to me. You free that Friday?” He smiles at you.

“Yes, I am. How does 7 sound?”

“That’ll be great. Give me a call when you’ve got time, I’ll see you.” You enter your car, starting the engine as he backs away and raises a hand to you.

You notice he watches you leave the parking lot before leaving himself. That’s the first time any man has bothered to make sure nothing else happened to you. Dennis calls that night, you talk for a bit before you both decide to go to bed. The next two days follow the same routine, but the third day he doesn’t call. You feel a bit dejected, and by 8:30 you’re two glasses of wine deep, nearly ready to go to bed. Your phone rings and you’re wide awake again, picking up without checking the caller ID.

“Hello?” You’re met only with the sound of heavy breathing. “Hello? Who is this?”

“I know where you are, you dirty slut. I’m gonna gut you like a fish.”

You hang up, throwing the phone almost across the living room. Your hands shake and you stand slowly, walking carefully over lest it ring and be the same man on the other end again. You call Dennis, and as he picks up you can’t control your tears attempting to explain what just happened. He arrives at your apartment shortly, holding you on the couch as you try to calm down. He offers to stay the night and you insist he doesn’t have to, he insists he wants to if it’ll make you feel safer. You gratefully accept.

Your week is filled with mishaps and threatening calls, notes left on your car in your apartment and work lots. You tell him the only person you can think of who would do this to you is your batshit crazy ex, so Dennis comes to visit for a bit most evenings. Dennis has to cancel your plans for Guigino’s, and as he leaves he kisses you at the door with a promise that he’ll call you.

He doesn’t call. You try to only call him once a day, leaving simple and short voicemails. The threatening calls start again and you try to get ahold of Dennis, still to no avail. You spend the next week almost too afraid to set foot outside, but you have obligations that must be met, phone stalker or not. By the end of the week you’ve given up. You didn’t expect this from him, don’t know what prompted it. You can’t tell whether you were too clingy, or perhaps you weren’t paying him the attention he deserved. You sit on your couch, already down three glasses of wine and working on your fourth when a knock on your door startles you.

You lean against the peephole, trying to make out who it is. Dennis. You groan quietly, holding your face in your hands. You sigh deeply, pulling the door open to face him directly. His shoulders are slack, he looks sad.

“Can I come in?” You gesture him inside, he sits on the couch and eyes the wine bottle. “I know I’ve been distant. I’m sorry.”

You sit next to him, picking up your wine glass and finishing it in one long swig.

“I just wanted to explain myself. Listen, I was being a coward. I was afraid. I’ve had my heart broken so many times, and you’re too good for me. I was scared it was gonna happen again and I was gonna lose the best thing that’s happened to me in ages, so I did a really shitty thing and cut you out before you could do it to me. That was awful of me.”

You rub your temple, sighing through your nose as he talks.

“I… I’m not afraid of that anymore. I thought about it really hard, and being away from you this week has been killing me. I wanna be with you. I love spending time with you and talking to you, when I have a bad day getting to talk to you makes it feel like it never even happened. Please, give me another chance.”

Maybe it’s the wine, maybe it’s the stress you’ve been under, but the sincerity in his eyes knocks down every emotional barricade you put up. How exactly you got into bed with him is a blur, but you remember Dennis pulling you up at some point as you made out on the couch. This isn’t like the first time you fucked him, he’s taking his time with you now.

Your eyelids flutter as he lays kisses to your neck and chest, peeling your shorts away as you toss your tank top across the room. You can’t keep your hands off of him, fingers digging into the flesh of his back as he removes his shirt. He kisses you deeply, you hear the harsh sound of his zipper and he pulls away for a moment to remove his jeans. He’s back over you in an instant, hips grinding into yours evenly.

You make out slowly, fingers tangled in each other’s hair as he continues dry humping you. His pace begins quickening, his breathing becoming shallow. You’re both getting desperate, and you push his hand down to the waistband of your panties. He removes them without hesitation, pulling away from you once again only to push down his boxers. He reaches over to your nightstand, fishing around in the drawer for a condom.

You could cry when you finally feel him push inside you, the slow roll of his hips into yours making your eyes nearly cross and your back arch. One arm holds him up just above your torso, his other hand grips your hip. You can feel his teeth and tongue on your neck and clavicle, whining at the soft bites he lays down. The hand on your hip comes up to your chest and you gasp as he squeezes, his thumb grazing your nipple as he wraps his lips around the other. The wet heat drives you fucking crazy; you bite down on your own hand to ground yourself.

Your hips start to sting, you don’t even know how long you’ve had your legs spread at this point. Dennis doesn’t seem anywhere near tired or finished, his speed increased and his grip on your skin even firmer. You wrap your legs around his waist, he moans openly and fucks you harder. It still isn’t as hard as your first hookup, but you imagine this is what finding religion feels like. You feel his hand snake down between your bodies, gasping at the sensation of his thumb circling your clit.

Your eyes start to water, breathing becoming jerky as you wrap your arms around his neck to pull him closer. His pelvis slams against yours, the speed and friction only pushing you closer to your orgasm. You whimper; the rubber band is about to snap, your stomach tenses and your thighs twitch. Dennis kisses you, hard, pounding into you and stopping abruptly. Your whine becomes a broken moan as he focuses his attention on your clit, tears falling as your entire body stiffens and relaxes from the relief your orgasm brings.

You moan again into his mouth and he continues fucking into you, and you can tell he’s close. Courteous, too. His speed is unrelenting, plowing into you so forcefully it almost hurts. He buries his cock inside you one final time, pressing his face into your tits and moaning raggedly. You almost wish you could feel him cum inside you, curious to experience the sensation. Dennis pants against your chest, squeezing your hip as you release his waist from the confinement of your calves.

He doesn’t move, holding his cock inside of you for what feels like hours. By the time he pulls out, you’re wracked by a wave of exhaustion. You can barely keep your eyes open, only vaguely aware of his movements  as he throws away the condom and pulls the blankets over you both. You feel him stroke your hair and press a kiss to your cheek, and you think you hear him say something but you can’t quite understand him.

Your alarm scares you awake, on your one day off no less. You reach behind yourself, feeling only the mattress under your palm. You sit up, confused, listening for the sound of Dennis moving around anywhere in your apartment. The entire place is silent. You pull on enough clothes to cover yourself, walking to your window to look into the parking lot and searching for Dennis’s car. You don’t see it anywhere. You try to call him, immediately you’re met with the telltale chime ready to inform you you’ve dialed a disconnected phone number.

“Douchebag” doesn’t even begin to describe that motherfucker.

[grayintogreen]

Okay I've never done this for LitMoR because there's three times as many OCs and I always feel weird talking about "voice claims"" in a fandom that doesn't... do that. Or really have a huge OC culture in general, but since Hellaverse does and I HAVE seen people going "if my OC was real, they would be played by x" before, I wanted to provide the list and some references so you can hear them as I hear them.

This list is painfully biblically accurate to the casting pool Vivzie uses (either Broadway actors or voice actors who have done musicals), barring a couple exceptions. It also contains the Canon OC's, because lbr my interpretations of Eve, Crymini, Lilith, Baxter, and Arackniss are not going to be canon and I'm okay with that. Roseverse is an AU.

ANYWAY. BENEATH THE CUT ARE A BUNCH OF YOUTUBE CLIPS + long-winded explanations. ENJOY. I’ll have to do another one because there’s a ten video limit and I had more characters to cover plus there’s characters who haven’t been introduced yet.

EDEN ESPIONSA AS EVE

Listen I will fully admit this decision was spurred on by "Nothing Left to Lose" but Eden Espinosa is hella good at playing resentful second fiddle bad girlies, given her entire career feels like it comes down to "Idina Menzel but affordable" (don't listen baby girl you're amazing).

ELIZABETH MITCHELL AS LILITH (SINGING VOICE: LADY GAGA)

I've gone over this one before, but I stand by it. I know Vivzie's hc voice for Lilith for real is Lady Gaga, but it wasn't vibing with how I've been writing her, so Lady Gaga plays her when she's singing (specifically the very raw, less sylized way she sings ASiB) and Liz plays her every other time. Watch that Blonde4Blonde love scene and tell me that isn't Lucillith reunion coded.

CHRISTOPHER FITZGERALD AS BAXTER

Now if Baxter appears in canon as more than a cameo, I would want him to be played by an actual trans actor because WE CANNOT IGNORE THE FACT THAT ONLY FEMALE ANGLERFISH HAVE LURES (and Viv denotes trans characters in imps by their horns so we know she's done this kind of thing to cue the audience in), but since this is just for fun and for me to have something to refer back to when I'm writing for vocal consistency, I gotta go with this nerd.

Note: I did NOT realize he played Kimiko Glenn's love interest in Waitress until I was looking up a video.

BARRETT WILBERT WEED AS CRYMINI

This one is actually at least marginally possible because BWW already voices Octavia. Part of the reason why she and Stolas have that cute little moment in Chapter Five of OWDLIF is because she shares a VA with his daughter and it was a dumb little moment for me, personally. (The clip in there with the live version of Dead Girl Walking where she sounds a little drunk and she's reading the lyrics off her phone is the exact energy for Crymini.)

Also “Fight For Me” from the Heathers musical is the Crinomini theme.

BRENNAN LEE MULLIGAN AS ARACKNISS

Here's one of our exceptions! This came out of nowhere because at first I was using Jeremy Jordan in Newsies as the basis for his voice, but it VERY QUICKLY- like while writing the first chapter- morphed into Sean, so that's what I'm stuck with. Also I'm sorry it's so long, but trust me it's worth it. Brennan is an improv god.

LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA AS CHANCE

YEAH YEAH I KNOW. YOU LOVE CHANCE ANYWAY. I will say that Roseverse Chance is specifically closer to In the Heights!LMM, whereas LitMoR Chance is very specifically Lee Scoresby. Ergo In the Heights.

ERIKA ISHII AS DIANA

The third exception. Though Erika has been doing voice work and has been in a musical game, even if they didn't sing in it, so who knows.

Also this video clip is so Dianacore. The whole thing.

KHARY PEYTON AS AAMON

This is like the main reason I posted this, because I need everyone to be aware of just how hot Aamon sounds despite him being a giant toolbox.

REBECCA FERGUSON AS ROO

Listen. LISTEN. She can sing. She's got a sexy voice. She's NOT LIKELY TO EVER BE CAST, but Rose the Hat is like 85% of my entire aesthetic for her. Her secondary aesthetic is Kate Shindle as the Mad Hatter in the Wonderland musical who is slightly more castable.

[macaroni-rascal]

Montreal Worlds 2024 Day 2&3

HOLY WOW! What a couple days that was. This is going to be a wild ramble and bullet point list of things that I can remember and stick out in the onslaught of skating that I've seen in the past 48 hours. It's also 11:30pm, so bear with me.

MEN'S SHORT

Roman clean program? In front of me and God and all of Montreal? Utterly wild, so exciting in the building.

Aleksandr Selevko is such a force, I enjoyed his skate SO much, what a magnetic skater.

JASON BROWN. What a serve, he is so beloved, you could just tell the whole crowd was so behind him and love him so much, it was such a stunning piece of skating.

The announcer's saying Lukas Britschgi instead of Deniss was so hilarious, and he had a lovely skate to boot.

Speaking of Lukas, LOVED him, he's so fun.

YUMAAAAAAAA. That is all.

Shoma Uno made me cry and he needs to pay for emotional damages, he had such a good warm up I was buzzing and kept excitedly hitting my friend's knee whenever he landed another clean jump. QUAD TOE TRIPLE TOE!

Ilia was there.

PAIRS FREE PROGRAM

DEANNA STELLATO THE WOMAN THAT YOU ARE. The fact that she normally has such an intense reaction post good skate, but instead this time she just leaned forward, half crying, going 'oh my god' made me cry too. The roof blew off the fucking place. It was a singular moment in my life. I am just so unbelievably happy for her and all that she has achieved. Max was so good, so steady, so fucking wonderful. I am in awe of this team.

Glad M/K went back to that free program, a shame about her doubling, and wow did she ever take it hard. It's definitely their best program, for the love of God Bruno Marcotte STOP LETTING YOUR FUCKING SISTER CHOREOGRAPH EVERY SINGLE PROGRAM. DON'T ME COME TO OAKVILLE! I'LL DO IT!

So so happy for Hase and Volodin, they had such a lovely skate, a very well deserved medal, they've had such momentum all season.

Moment of silence of Conti and Macii, that was rough.

Pairs in person made me age about 15 years, so if I have grey hair in the coming months, I know who to blame. Holy shit, it's exhilarating but also tense as hell. I loved it!

RHYTHM DANCE

Hannah Lim, you're a fucking star.

Mrazkes are deeply underwhelming, like wow, they skate very small.

Lopareva and Brissaud also skate very very small. I kept looking up at the time thinking the program would be over and it wasn't. Not a fan at all.

Cpom CRUSHED IT and it was so awesome to see.

LAJOIE AND LAGHA MY LOVES! Easily the performance of the night, and not even close. So glad they got here after battling injury, so proud of them.

Gilles and Poirier are slooooooooooow. Very slow. Maybe the slowest of the last two groups. It's glaring. How have they not worked on this? They also skate small.

Guignard and Fabbri had a good lift, and a cringe everything else.

I just watched Evan during their performance and wow does he do not a lot. It's the Madi show and he's barely a supporting actor.

Fear and Gibson were there.

WOMEN'S FREE

KAORI KAORI KAORI KAORI.

Besides her heinous jumps, Isabeau created a moment, and it was lovely to experience.

Big ups to Chaeyon Kim for a solid, if boring and slightly cold, free skate. On this night, a well deserved bronze.

Leona, oh Leona. The whole crowd deflated when she fell. Such a shame.

OKAY SO CUTE MOMENT! So Kimmy Repond's dad was sitting ldown and across from me two rows, he was about 4 feet from me. I didn't know he was her dad at the start, but I knew by the end, because he was SO dad about the whole skate. Then when she skated clean, he jumped up, a man below me went and shook his hand and went "Are you her dad?" and he got tears in his eyes, put his hand on his chest, and went 'She is my daughter." I just about sobbed my brains out. So beautiful. He then didn't clap once for the next Swiss skater, which I do not fault him for, major dad behaviour.

Moment of silence for Amber Glenn.

Josefin Taljegard, I love you.

GENERAL THOUGHTS

The people around me and I all started chatting about 30 minutes into the women's free skate, by the end of it, I would go to war for all of them. Camaraderie between skating fans is very fun.

Still a giant fuck you to the woman who asked me if NikS. raped me when I pointed out to my friend he shouldn't be competing, special place in hell for you, you hot garbage person.

I got very cold during the women's free, got a hot chocolate, it wasn't good, but it saved my life, and for that I thank it.

Accidentally got up late (9:36am for a rendez vous at 10am) for breakfast with my brother, still arrived at 10:01am, I am a superhero.

Still fuck the seats in the venue, they need about 4 inches on all sides to be even remotely comfortable, including 4 more inches of leg room. We are humans, not dead sardines, for the love of GOD.

Kaori's speed and power made me gasp a few times.

I can't remember anything else but I know other things happened, ah well, it's almost midnight, I ordered late night pizza take out like a boss, I'm gonna eat that, unwind, and hopefully sleep more than four hours.

GODSPEED!

[nitrateglow]

Thoughts on The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1962)

Time for another episode of "Nitrateglow didn't think the panned movie was that bad"... though this one isn't necessarily great either.

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse was MGM's attempt to remake an old hit. In 1921, under the banner of Metro, the original Four Horsemen was a zeitgeist hit and catapulted Rudolph Valentino to superstardom. It was a lightning in a bottle kind of film, a movie about the horrors of World War I released a few years after the end of that conflict.

The basic plot, because it's late and I'm tired: A lusty Argentine patriarch has two daughters, one married to a German and the other married to a Frenchman. The old man prefers the French part of his family, which causes issues even before WWI rears its ugly head and the two families are drawn into the conflict. The focus is on Julio, the son of the Frenchman. He likes partying, has an affair with a married French woman, and is apolitical, until he isn't because drama. Then he becomes a self-sacrificing hero because personal problems aren't worth a hill of beans in this crazy world.

(That sounded bad, but it's just because I'm sleep deprived. The movie is actually very good and worth watching, I promise. It was directed by Rex Ingram, one of the strongest directors of the 1920s, and it has one of Valentino's best performances too. But crap, I'm supposed to be talking about the remake!!)

Now MGM was thinking about remaking this film as early as the 1940s, but once their 1959 remake of Ben-Hur became a smash hit, they were eager to see what other old blockbusters they could dust off. Four Horsemen was pushed into production, its time period shoved from WWI to WWII, and Vicente Minnelli put behind the camera.

Minnelli wanted to keep the WWI setting, but he was ignored. To be honest, the WWII setting isn't too problematic. The heart of the Four Horsemen story is the family drama and how events outside the family threaten to tear it asunder. Also, you still have Julio's arc from apolitical partyboy to self-sacrificing hero, so the spirit of the original is intact.

This movie isn't bad screenplay-wise due to those strong thematic cores. And Minnelli's visuals are rich as always. I particularly liked the surrealistic flourishes, like the superimposition of the four horsemen over key scenes. A bit campy, perhaps, but whatever, I liked it. And the Andre Previn score is just outstanding: epic, rousing, and romantic.

However, what brings the movie down is the casting of the lovers. Glenn Ford, good an actor as he is, is just wrong for the part. He's 46 playing a role made famous by Valentino at 26, and he's lacking in the charming impetuousness that would make the character credible. (Apparently, Alain Delon was considered but he wasn't famous enough for MGM's liking.) Ingrid Thulin is okay but not exceptional, her performance marred by lack of chemistry with Ford and some obvious dubbing over of her lines by Angela Lansbury doing a French accent. These characters should break my heart but they don't have enough passion to make me care.

It's a decent movie, but not a lost gem. And sorry, I can't help but compare it to the silent film in my head. Between the famous tango scene (not replicated in the remake-- for the best, really) and the finale in the massive graveyard, the mourners lost in a sea of white crosses... God, there's just nothing as memorable in this new version, save for the music.

[thetalltranstiefling]

HEY GUYS ITS 1AM AND I HAVE SOME THOUGHTS ON THE NEW EPISODEEEEEE

spoilers obv

FIRST OF ALL. OMG. FREDDIE. NO CAUSE HE’S SUCH A GOOD ACTOR AND ILL TELL YOU WHY

ALL THAT STUFF TAYLOR SAID ABOUT THE LION KING? THAT WAS SO OBVIOUSLY ABOUT WHEN HE THOUGHT HE LOST HIS DAD, LIKE HOW HE COULDN’T IMAGINE WHAT IT’D BE LIKE TO LOSE A PARENT?? THAT LITERALLY ALMOST JUST HAPPENED TO HIM AND I JUST AAAAAAAAAAAAA

TAYLOR CONSISTENTLY STAYING UPSET ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED AND LIKE HAVING AN ACTUAL VISIBLE REACTION CREATES SUCH A SEPARATION FROM GLENN IN THE PREVIOUS SERIES WHO KEPT IT ALL DEEP DEEP IN INSIDE, AND FREDDIE HAS BEEN SO INCREDIBLY GOOD ABOUT GOING BACK TO THAT POINT OF TAYLOR’S EMOTIONAL STATE LIKE. IT GETS ME EVERY TIME. 

the standup was so funny but it was also just. sad in context. lmao.

AND ON THE S U B J E C T OF SAD PARTS OF THE STANDUP WE’VE GOT HERMIE. OH MY GOD HOW HE HAS DEVELOPED AS A CHARACTER IM SCREAMING. THE FACT THAT HE IS A DEPRESSED DRAMA KID WHO USES ACTING TO COPE WITH THIS INHERENT NATURE TO WANT TO SCAM AND TRICK PEOPLE IS JUST SO. ITS SO. AND WHEN HE LITERALLY SAID THAT HE’D RATHER KILL BOTH HIS BIOLOGICAL PARENTS THAN ACCEPT THE FACTS OF HIS ORIGIN?? IM LIKE WOAH. GODDAMN ANTHONY IS A GOOD WRITER (just imagine the kind of juicy stuff he writes in that porn script lmaoooo). 

ALSO I LOVE THE FACT THAT THE THEY ALL GOT MARRIED BECAUSE THATS SO FUCKIN ON BRAND. ITS SO GREAT OMG. 

AND THE FACT THAT NICK HAD WEEKS OF SITTING AROUND IN HELL THINKING OF WHAT TO DO AND HE WAS JUST LIKE “yep this is the only way” IS HILARIOUS. LIKE I JUST IMAGINE HIM SITTING THERE PONDERING WHAT TO DO ABOUT THE WHOLE SITUATION, WITH SOME RANDOM DEAD GUY SCREAMING IN THE BACKGROUND AND HE’S JUST LIKE “shut up! I’m trying to think!” 

I LAUGHED MY ASS OFF THIS WHOLE EPISODE IT WAS COMPLETE AND UTTER GOLD. I AM NOT VERY ARTICULATE RIGHT NOW NOR AM I HAVING ANYTHING ABOVE SHITPOST TO THROW IN HERE BUT HEY ITS 1AM GIVE ME A BREAK ALSO MOST OF THIS PROBABLY SHOULDN’T BE IN ALL CAPS BUT THATS JUST WHAT IM GOING WITH WOO

[rumandsprite]

I've binged this beautiful mess for several days and, by god, does it deliver! !!!SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Let me try going chronologically:

Zack!Cloud is absolutely adorable and shows very good acting because you can hear the difference from Zack's dialogue from Cloud's reaction when learning it's Nibelheim where they are heading to.

Definitely see those SephirothxZack fics going on rise after unsettlingly sweet expressions on Sephiroth during Nibelheim. Also those subtle changes on his face in that iconic town in flames scene, just wow.

Rufus's parade was one of the highlights, but some new guy Glenn shenaningans were there like "hello, if you'd like to know more about this subplot please consider buying some spinoff mobile game you've never heard of", because even in the end all I got from this was - Glenn is a) some dude in Wutai working for a man we never saw and who might not even exist, b) has some bitter history with Rufus and c) also is a Sephiroth clone.

Speaking of Rufus, eng voice actor is on point. He is the english equivalent of japanese voice actor who unfortunately seems to have been affected by illness. I'm very sad about that. But good job, eng va and his casting director!

While I'm on this topic, Reno's orignal va loss also saddens me. New jp va is a bit too nasal for me, and there's no Quinton Flynn to soften the blow.

Morikawa Toshiyuki is perfect as always in his rendition of Sephiroth. His gentle speech to Jenova in Nibelheim reactor is just... You just have to hear it.

Ahem. So, Rufus' offer in Junon really surprised me.

Moving on to Costa Del Sol, was nice to see the reason why Hojo appeared there of all places and, oh dear, they made him so creepy it's astounding. The way he so offhandedly and casually offered those girls to "birth a hero" is something else.

I'll skip Corel immediately to Golden Saucer. It's everything I wanted. It's everything I didn't know I wanted. The entrance introduction is Honey Bee all over again but even more cringe. There are no words for this level of cringe. I felt vindicated for the loss of that Honey Bee's bathtub scene in the Remake, that's how cringe it is. I'm sorry, I can't stop staring at Dio's chest.

Now, Cait Sith deserves its own paragraph. It's the best, the cutest, the coolest Cait Sith ever. This "Aeris-ha~n", awww. Animation and design is top-notch, from Cait's small dance to the ears to the moogle's belly jiggle. Reeve has to be some kind of animatronics genius. Also in eng version it has scottish accent. Know why? Because of this

Also, Ghost Hotel's front desk employee is hilarious. He seems to genuinely love his job, goddamn it.

Poor Rude having to work with Elena, lol. Nice sea-salt ice cream, by the way.

Some sidequests are my type of morbid humour. Check out this:

New Gi lore was interesting. Finally I learned how Black Materia was made. Also made interesting possible insight into Sephiroth, with being unable to join lifestream and all.

Vincent va is so good and in jp version I sometimes can hear Rufus's va past timbre. Also, that drip is sick.

Loveless scene was astounding. I'm talking about animation quality here. Dance moves look so smooth and natural, especially cloth mechanics, just look at Jessie's skirt! I have no idea how many hours they put into these.

New Nibelheim also makes more sense than in original. No more "wdym, nothing happened here". Also, Cloud remembered Zack but his mind makes up some things.

It's nice to see Cloud's gradual descent into madness, especially with Roche becoming that. (Why SC tattoo though. I know it's probably Sephiroth Cells, but I just can't unsee SephirothxCloud, lmao). Cloud chasing Aerith for black materia sent chills down my spine.

As did Sephiroth's hysterical laugh when his sword broke but Aerith still died. Yeah, sorry, dude. This is fixed.

Those AU scenes and some unchanging points are interesting to explore for fics though.

[teddybeartoji]

and now I'm running as fast as I can to get to you >:3 you don't even have to open the door for me, I'll knock it down!!! I'm very strong!! (⁠ ⁠ꈍ⁠ᴗ⁠ꈍ⁠) I will dote you so much and take so much care of you!!! we can watch some series we like together!! or or or or inglourious bastards (hear me out I love that movie) ALL WHILE I CUDDLE YOU!!! 'CAUSE NUH UH I CAN'T BEAR TO HEAR THAT YOU'RE NOT TAKING CARE OF YOURSELF!!! IT'S OUTRAGEOUS! (taking care of you Is literally a dream mwah<3) ANYWAY!! As a twd characters I really like Rick (hehehe, I can't lie that man makes me so ANEBDBANE!!!) Daryl (he's such a sweetheart I love him so much pls let me hug you and take care of you!! DARYL JUST ONE CHANCE PLEASE) GLENN!! (MY GOD HE'S SO SWEET AND CUTE I LOVE HIM I SWEAR!!) I also really like Michonne, Carl (especially in the comic) and Beth especially in the fourth season which is one of my favorites. IN FACT ONE OF MY FAVORITE EPISODES IS THE ONE FOCUSED ON BETH AND DARYL. My favorite seasons are definitely the first four, I also really like the whole era of Alexandria and Negan, who even though his character made me suffer more than anything else in the world, I particularly appreciated the skills of the actor who managed to impersonate him so well that he made me hate him!!! WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SEASON?? OR FAVORITE EPISODE?? PLEASE TELL ME, I LOVE SEEING YOU TALK ABOUT THE THINGS YOU LIKE WITH SO MUCH ENTHUSIASM, SEEING YOU HAPPY MAKES ME FEEL SO GOOD AND ALWAYS MAKES ME SMILE!!! MWAAAH I'M ABOUT TO COME AND FILL YOU WITH KISSES AND BITES(⁠ ⁠˶⁠ ⁠❛⁠ ⁠ꁞ⁠ ⁠❛⁠ ⁠˶⁠ ⁠)(⁠っ⁠˘⁠з⁠(⁠˘⁠⌣⁠˘⁠ ⁠)

(AAAAH AND THE FACT THAT YOU SHARE BIRTHDAYS WITH RICK IS THE COOLEST THING EVER!!!)

PS: I FINALLY FOUND THE ONESHOT!! I'M GOING TO READ IT NEOOOOOOOWWWWW!!!

-Rory<3 (⁠´⁠∩⁠｡⁠•⁠ ⁠ᵕ⁠ ⁠•⁠｡⁠∩⁠`⁠)

EEEEEEEEEEEEERORYYY YOU'RE SO FUCKING SWEET WHAT AM I GONNA DO WITH YOUUU AAAAAAAAAAAHHH MY CUTENESS AGGRESSION IS SHOWINGGG I NEED TO SQUEEZE YOU SO HARDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND HELLOO I LOVE INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS IT'S ONE OF MY MOST WATCHED FILM OF ALL TIME LMAO

YESSS RICK LOVERS RISE UPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! he still lives in my head a lot like he's so fucking cool and so hot lmao i always think abt that neck bite scene it's one of my favourite things everrrrr!!!! that's definitely one of my favourite eps too!!! aaaand my other fav ep is s6 ep10 that's the one jesus is introduced in lmaoo IT'S SOSOOO FUCKING FUNNYYYY I LOVE JESUS SM:3333333333

and omfg negannnn hhhhhhhhhhhhhh i hate him sooo bad i am also applauding the actor bc i pretty much stopped watch after the seventh season ashghasahgsga i just couldn't take it anymooreeee i think i watched the 8th too but i wasn't that invested in it at that point yk? evil evil man negan i cried so much during That ep hsaghsgha

i am good with all the seasons up until the seventh one!!!! sure, the first four are definitely Better but i still think that the fifth and the sixth are still a lot of fun hehehhe loved seeing rick in that uniform and in that white shirt:3333333333

BUT EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHEHEHHEHEEE I'M KISSING U BACKKK I'M SMOTHERING YOU WITH MY LOVEE:333 THANK YOU SM FOR BEING THE CUTEST LITTLE ANGEL IN THE WORLD IDK WHAT I DID TO DESERVE YOUUU!!!!!!! I HOPE UR HAVING A WONDERFUL DAY A WONDERFUL NIGHT I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[tamarins-lair]

oh my god i fucking love this movie.

Here are a few reasons why you should watch it, featuring my thoughts while rewatching it:

Current reference counter: Twighlight, Mean Girls,

My favorite actors in GBF:

Number 1: Natasha Lyonne

Thank you for coming to my Ted talk

~~~~~~~~

Soledad: "Think of all the other gay kids at this school that are still languishing in the closet!"

Tanner: *immediately looks back at Brent who's been jealously watching in the background the whole conversation*

~~~~~~~~

Mckenzie: *quits their friendship and walks away as only the most fashionable person in this movie can*

Ashley: What's a sodomite?? 🤨

Topher: I think it's like a dust mite, but with sod. 😌

Ashley: 😲

~~~~~~~~~

Ashley: *gets her bribery brownies thrown into the trash*

Also Ashley: Carbs make gay people sparkle?

(Also like later in this movie she remembered the whole interaction and it was so cute to me like-)

~~~~~~~~~

Okay this isn't a quote but literally Ashley is like a dumber version of Karen and Heather McNamara combined, bc she gets dragged left and right in this movie by every person in it but she does not have the brain cells to even notice like-

She is so genuinely nice to everyone, I love her so much.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay again not a quote but here's the match ups to Mean Girls/Heathers

Fawcett/Gretchen/Heather Chandler Except Fawcett is actually cool and isn't a bitch.

Ashley/Karen/Heather McNamara. Except Ashley is nicer than she is dumb. And she's Mormon.

Caprice/Regina/Heather Chandler Except diversity and equality drama kid. She is slay, literally. She will slice your throat with her stiletto heels and look good doing it.

Molly/Janis/Betty Finn. The left behind best friend (more exclusively to Janis with grunge eye makeup and extreme lesbian vibes)

Glenn/Damian. I literally love this tho because the whole movie is about the gay best friend, but Glenn is the token straight friend. I couldn't actually think of a match up from Heather's, but still. Also, Glenn's last name is Cho, so I'm headcanoning the authors intended the similarities to Glenn Coco from Mean Girls.

Hamilton and Topher are Kurt and Ram

~~~~~~~~

The writing in this movie is iconic, but the fashion is chronic. I'm literally dying someone help.

~~~~~~~~~

Ms. Van Camp is so supportive of Brent, and we love that for him, BUT BRO IS SO UNAPPRECIATIVE OF HER LIKE??? SIR??? BRENT??? IF YOUR MOM IS SO ANNOYING TO YOU GIVE HER TO ME??? SHE IS LITERALLY SO WHOLESOME ISTG.

Also she is literally me commenting during movies

~~~~~~~~~

Tanner: Maybe everyone secretly want a GBF. Even moms.

Brent: Right now I'd settle for just a BF

Tanner: You mean like a best friend or like boyfriend?

Brent: Either/Or...

Or both.

I LOVE GAY PEOPLE

(i am 2 gay people in a trench coat)

BUT I LOVE GAY PEOPLE

Okay I have to go to bed bc sleep but I'll edit when I finish the movie later <3

[crowdvscritic]

behind the scenes // ST. LOUIS FILM CRITICS ASSOCIATION AWARDS (2023)

The winners have been revealed! The St. Louis Film Critics Association has announced its picks for the most outstanding filmmaking in 24 categories. Like all of the Nobel Prize winners in Barbie, they all worked hard for and deserve the recognition. 

If you’re interested in the mechanics of how critics’ voting works , I recently provided a behind-the-scenes look at last year’s voting with a more logistical view. (Read it here or just keep scrolling to the next post if you’re on the home page of Crowd vs. Critic.) For this year's behind-the-scenes look, I’ll be sharing more about why I chose my nominations and how I decided on final voting. Of note, I had not seen every film that ended up being nominated before I submitted my nominations ballot, so if you’re wondering why I ignored Anatomy of a Fall, Bottoms, Evil Dead Rise, The Holdovers, Godzilla Minus One, Knock at the Cabin, Menus Plaisirs - Les Troisgros, Perfect Days, Poor Things, Robot Dreams, Skinamarink, Talk to Me, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, or The Zone of Interest, the simple reason is that there are only 24 hours in a day!

Unlike awards shows, I’m starting with the big kahuna: Best Picture! The SLFCA decided to up this category’s number of nominations to 10 from 5, and you’ll keep seeing these 10 titles in my voting:

Priscilla - My favorite Sofia Coppola movie since 2006’s Marie Antoinette. It just missed a lot of nominations, which I suspect is because too few in the group had seen it, but those who had seen it ranked it highly. Unfortunately, every critic in the group only has 24 hours in a day!

Air - I rewatched this just before submitting my nominations, and it still rules! Based on chatter from my colleagues, I suspected the first six films on my list didn't have a ton of support across our group, which is why I ranked them higher. As you can see, my suspicion was correct since none of them made the final cut

BlackBerry - Another film that just missed nominations by a few votes, including Glenn Howerton’s performance as a most terrorizing boss

Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. - My first notable theater cry this year

Asteroid City - The 4th of 7 movies in my top 10 that were released before October—a rarity! I’ve been thinking about all of them for months since their release, which tells me it's not just Awards Season hyping them up in my mind

The Iron Claw - This is the most recent viewing to make my list, and it's also the one that made me cry the most

Past Lives - I ultimately ended up voting for Past Lives because its simple elegance moved me so much that it has stayed with me since seeing it in June

Barbie - The funniest movie of the year and one with big ideas...aka the heart of Crowd vs. Critic!

Oppenheimer - Practically eligible in every category—what wasn’t well-done here?

Killers of the Flower Moon - The same note as Oppenheimer, which is to say, no notes! I correctly assumed Past Lives, Barbie, Oppenheimer, and Killers of the Flower Moon would earn nominations without ranking them at the top of my noms, which was why I ranked them low even though I think they are all outstanding

Also on my long list: Creed III, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, The Killer, You Hurt My Feelings

Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor are two categories I never wavered on how I would vote. Lily Gladstone and Ryan Gosling put performances for the ages on the screen this year! I also wanted to recognize the incredible year Jason Schwartzman has had between Asteroid City, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. His lead role in Asteroid seemed like the best bet for widespread support, but basically every time he breathed in The Hunger Games, I laughed.

More actors on my long list: Matt Damon, Air; Scarlett Johansson, Asteroid City; Anthony Hopkins, Freud’s Last Session; Florence Pugh, A Good Person; Jason Schwartzman, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes; Zac Efron, The Iron Claw; Michael Fassbender, The Killer; Carey Mulligan, Maestro; Jessica Chastain, Memory; Jodie Foster, Nyad; Teo Yoo, Past Lives; Colman Domingo, Rustin; Julia Louis-Dreyfus, You Hurt My Feelings 

These categories are always difficult for me to pin down. For Ensemble, is it about the breadth of performers and the number of familiar people I am happy to see? For Director, is it the size of the production and the level of difficulty the shoot appeared to have? Those are all factors, but I think it comes down to weaknesses being nigh invisible in both categories. For example, in The Iron Claw, it was difficult to identify which actor stood out the most because they worked so well in tandem. In Past Lives, the camera work, performances, and writing aligned perfectly to support its theme in every moment. Barbie ended up being my final vote in both categories because Greta Gerwig's vision of Barbie Land was inspired and every member of the huge cast found a moment to shine.

More directors on my long list: Ben Affleck, Air; Matt Johnson, BlackBerry; Sean Durkin, The Iron Claw; David Fincher, The Killer; Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon; Bradley Cooper, Maestro; Todd Haynes, May December

More ensembles on my long list: American Fiction, The Boys in the Boat, The Color Purple, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Leave the World Behind, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One

Which stories felt clever, sharp, and authentic to the human experience? Which felt fresh with a unique point of view? Which created moments I've never seen before onscreen? Which explored its ideas with honesty, empathy, and thoroughness? It’s no coincidence 8 of these screenplay 10 nominations align with my picks for Best Film.

More screenplays on my long list: American Fiction, The Boys in the Boat, Freud’s Last Session, A Good Person, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, The Iron Claw, The Killer, May December, Memory, Oppenheimer, Polite Society, You Hurt My Feelings

There’s no such thing as objectivity in criticism, but it really goes out the window when looking at these focused categories. Animated and Documentary films aren’t as plentiful as live-action narrative films, and I’m not naturally drawn to Horror and International films as much as other genres, though I’m trying to grow in those areas. (Seeing Cocaine Bear, Renfield, and A Haunting in Venice in theaters felt like big risks for me!) Not including My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 on my ballot would have felt dishonest since I saw it three times in theaters, and Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour is one of the most fun theatrical experiences I’ve had in years. Perhaps my most unpopular vote this year was for Elemental over Spider-Verse—I'm one of the few people who liked but didn’t love that sequel.

More genre films on my long list: Cocaine Bear (Comedy), The Covenant (Action), The Equalizer 3 (Action), Extraction II (Action), Gran Turismo (Action), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Action, Comedy), A Haunting in Venice (Horror), The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (Action), Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (Action), Kandahar (Action), The Meg 2: The Trench (Action), Polite Society (Comedy), Renfield (Comedy), You Are So Not Invited to My Bar Mitzvah (Comedy), You Hurt My Feelings (Comedy)

In many ways, Stunts and Visual Effects are extensions of the Action Film category, with a few exceptions. The Iron Claw is a drama with insane wrestling stunts, and Polite Society is an action-comedy that centered on the art of stunt work.

More stunts on my long list: Creed III, Extraction II, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Kandahar, Sisu

More VFX on my long list: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, John Wick: Chapter 4, M3GAN

This is where my Spotify Top 100 comes in handy. The Air, Barbie, BlackBerry, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and Priscilla soundtracks all charted for me this year, which made those votes no-brainers. Asteroid City, Creed III, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and Past Lives all had soundtracks I spent time with as well, and May December’s score almost acts like a narrator, adding comedic and dramatic punch when needed.

More music on my long list: Creed III, A Good Person, The Iron Claw, The Killer, Killers of the Flower Moon, Leave the World Behind, Maestro, Oppenheimer, Wish

These come down to wow(!) factor, and the categories were some of the hardest to rank. I voted for Priscilla for Costume Design in the final round because I hoped that movie would win something, but to be honest, I adored the costumes in Barbie and Killers of the Flower Moon, too. Same with Production Design: I picked Asteroid City, but it's a three-way tie between Asteroid City, Barbie, and Killers for me.

More editing on my long list: Barbie, BlackBerry, The Iron Claw, Leave the World Behind, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, Missing, Oppenheimer

More cinematography on my long list: The Iron Claw, John Wick: Chapter 4, Killers of the Flower Moon, Leave the World Behind, May December

More costumes on my long list: Asteroid City, The Boys in the Boat, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Oppenheimer

More production design on my long list: The Boys in the Boat, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, The Iron Claw, The Killer, Maestro, Oppenheimer, Sisu

I saved Best Scene for last when picking my nominations since I'm better at remembering how a movie makes feel as a whole than its scenes. I started thinking through my favorite movies of the year, and these moments were the ones that left the biggest impressions (more wow factor!). Barbie’s scene of tricking the Kens made me laugh so hard I cried, but I happily voted for America Ferrera’s monologue in the end since it just made me cry, period.

More scenes on my long list: Killers of the Flower Moon, lots of choices!, Maestro, lots of choices!, May December, hot dogs; Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, the train falling; Past Lives, bar conversation

See more about the St. Louis Film Critics Association picks for 2023 at STLFilmCritics.org.

[tenpintsofsundrop]

💥

💥 What is one canon thing that you wish you could change?

Fanfic Writer Ask Game

I honestly didn't think anybody was going to send these and I'm so excited that someone did!!!

This is such an interesting question, because I don't write for one fandom consistently, so this answer would be vastly different for every fandom that I write for - and for some fandoms, like TWD, I would probably have a lot of nitpicks because the canon is so extensive.

But because I have been getting back into writing Titans fanfiction, I will talk about something from the canon of that show that I really wish I could change.

(Spoilers for Titans below, if you haven't seen the show before and you want to - this will spoil major plot points of the show for you.)

Hank's death is an easy answer, because it's stupid.

If the actor had to leave the show, then they could have just - had him leave. Especially because since their first episode, Hank and Dawn kept wanting to retire from the masked hero lifestyle, and I think this has become kind of radical in storytelling, but I think a happy/calm ending can be more shocking - especially for traumatized characters - than an ending where someone dies and their loved ones have to go on being incomplete and fucked up because of that death.

Like - give me an ending where they run a sobriety center for traumatized youth. Clearly they were good at it. Give me an ending where Hank's efforts to help Jason actually have Jason responding to that genuine kindness, and even if his plan was to kill Hank, he goes back on that plan because that kindness speaks to his heart.

So - I would have much rather that S3 ended with 'Hank and Dawn finally retire' instead of 'Hank dies'.

Also - another easy one: Gar is kidnapped and tortured by Cadmus.

The whole 'brain surgery' Gar storyline is something I fucking hate.

There is no proper emotional resolution to it by the end of the season - whatever comfort or catharsis Gar should get is completely distracted and trampled over by Donna's death (which is a non-plot line because a demi-god like her shouldn't have died from something like that, and they only killed her so that they could bring her back in a later episode). Gar was probably feeling intense guilt, trauma, fear, etc. over having unwillingly used his powers to kill and injure more than a dozen people, and nobody comforted him about it, nobody asked him what he was feeling, nobody tried to talk to him about it.

And then - and then, they have the nerves (especially Conner, of all people?) to mock him later on in S3 for not using his powers to their full extent and having a 'psychological block' from being able to use his powers. Like hmm, it's almost like he's terrified of his own capabilities with no resolution. It's no wonder he can't transform into a bunch of other animals at will and it seems like he's holding back.

To me, I think a much better storyline would have been - Gar hides in a closet while Conner is kindapped by Cadmus, he feels extreme guilt for 'letting' Conner get kidnapped, and then, while the team is still split apart, he is the heart that rallies everyone back together to help save Conner.

Gar is very clearly supposed to be the team's soft one. The heart, the emotional soft spot. The first time I watched S2, I was waiting for Gar to give the emotional speech (similar to Glenn's 'we don't burn them' or 'that's still who we are. it has to be') that brought everyone back together - and then Rachel conjured a fucking hallucination of Bruce Wayne in a diner.

That should have been Gar's moment.

Gar should have been the one to trick everyone into getting back together, sat them all down, and gave a heartfelt speech that got everyone working together - especially if it was for the sake of saving Conner. He shouldn't have been captured and tortured alongside Conner. It's so fucking dumb.

There's probably so many other answers, but that's what fix-it fics are for lmao. I have already written a fix-it fic for one of my biggest issues - the episode with Jason's suicide attempt. and I could probably get so many more fics out of that episode alone.

But overall, I watch the show for the characters rather than the plot lmao

[glenngaylord]

My Moments Out Of Time In Film 2023

My Moments Out Of Time - Glenn Gaylord’s Look Back at 2023 In Film

I’m of the opinion that every year can be a really good year for movies if you’re willing and able to do a little digging. But transcendent, formula-defying, unforgettable work seems to come along much less frequently. In 2023, I repeatedly saw a rare level of greatness, almost a rewriting of cinematic language. I think of how the marriage of sound and imagery achieved a type of singularity in The Zone Of Interest, or how the camera’s omniscient point of view in Poor Things seemed to reflect the mind of its protagonist. All Of Us Strangers and Past Lives seemed to run on pure emotional poetry. Bottoms and Rotting In The Sun opened up a new type of comedy in which queer people unleashed powerful levels of fury and unapologetic lust. Origin ignored most rules of screenwriting structure to forge a compelling and new way of looking at societal systems. Although not quite as trailblazing as the above-mentioned titles, I also loved The Holdovers, Are You There, God? It’s Me Margaret, May December, Killers Of The Flower Moon, Oppenheimer, BlackBerry, Air, M3Gan, You Hurt My Feelings, Passages, Huesera: The Bone Woman, Anatomy Of A Fall, Saltburn, Dream Scenario, Ferrari, Rustin, The Color Purple, Fallen Leaves, Godzilla Minus One, The Teacher’s Lounge, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, and Wonka. Now that’s just scratching the surface. It was that kind of year.

So, instead of compiling a Top Ten List, which from what you can see above, would prove nearly impossible, I like to pay homage to a long-discontinued but influential annual column called “Moments Out Of Time” from Film Comment magazine. Their critics would cite their favorite scenes, images, or lines of dialogue, even from films they may not have liked. I may have hated the sappy, Hoosiers wanna-be, The Boys In The Boat, for example, but the image of the coxswains sporting those cone-shaped bullhorns strapped to their mouths made an impression. So, here, in no particular order, are my Moments Out Of Time for 2023.

A father looks over his brood as they splash around in their backyard pool. We see the billowing smoke from an approaching train as it crosses the horizon. That the father is a Nazi commandant and the train is arriving at Auschwitz makes turns a seemingly innocuous image and makes it bone-chilling - The Zone Of Interest

“Owwwwww” a perfectly droll and hilariously delivered reaction from Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo) - Poor Things

A father (Jamie Bell) tells his grown son (Andrew Scott) that he wishes he could have been more attentive and supportive of him when he had been bullied as a child. The emotional truth on the faces of these two exceptional actors left me sobbing. It’s a dream conversation for so many - All Of Us Strangers

Two students toss a football in the wintry commons of a Massachusetts Prep School as the folk strains of “Silver Joy” by Damien Jurado plays on the soundtrack. It not only perfectly evokes films from the time such as Hal Ashby’s Harold And Maude, but feels like it was actually made in 1970 as well - The Holdovers

A high school principal uses the intercom to blare, “Could the ugly, untalented gays please report to the principal's office?”, which serves to announce a film which, dare I say, takes Heathers, upends it, slathers on layer upon layer of lesbian horniness, to result in something truly subversive and unique - Bottoms

Two South Korean childhood sweethearts reunite in Manhattan decades later, and Nora’s (Greta Lee) incredulous reaction of “Wow” as she walks beside Hae Sung (Teo Yoo) sums up the immense warmth of this gloriously poetic film - Past Lives

That insane twist midway through had me whispering to myself, “Holy Janet Leigh!” - Rotting In The Sun

Speaking of twists, the year’s biggest WTF moment happens towards the end of this film. You’ll know it when you see it as this girl crush of a story turns into something unexpectedly sinister - Eileen

A woman explains to an author why her father named her Miss. The monologue, filled with equal parts pride, anger and despair, and delivered by a never better Audra McDonald, should be studied by actors for decades - Origin

The slow-moving grocery store conveyor belt as it carries sanitary napkins for our protagonist and her friend proves to be a beautifully sustained, hilariously awkward coming of age moment - Are You There, God? It’s Me Margaret

A mom takes her teenage daughter dress shopping and traumatizes her with the cringiest, most passive-aggressive speech of 2023, “Oh Mary, I want to commend you for being so brave and showing your arms like that. That’s something I always wished I could do when I was your age. Just not care about these unrealistic beauty standards.” - May December

Godzilla’s attack on Ginza, which had a similar visceral impact on me as Spielberg’s War Of The Worlds first set piece did - Godzilla Minus One

After the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Oppenheimer gets a hero’s welcome by a roomful of cheering, stomping Americans. As their faces melt away, he sees the horrific devastation he has wrought and questions his own “heroism” - Oppenheimer

An Osage woman in 1920s Oklahoma, who truly loves her husband, knows she has to bite her tongue despite knowing he’s slowly poisoning her. The conflicting emotions on the wonderful Lily Gladstone’s face masterfully conveys her impossible situation - Killers Of The Flower Moon

The flashback which reveals Valeria (the incredible Natalia Solián) isn’t the happily pregnant, maternal, heterosexual, married woman as initially presented. It’s the moment this somewhat traditional Rosemary’s Baby homage transitions into something far more radical - Huesera: The Bone Woman

Flora (Eve Hewson) and Jeff (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) write the beautiful duet “Meet In The Middle” over Zoom, cementing their chemistry and more importantly their deeply emotional connection to music - Flora And Son

In one of my favorite transitions in cinematic history, a Nazi commandant looks down a dark hallway to see his future, a soberingly mundane yet impactful vision. We then cut back to the commandant as he descends into the dark hell of his own making - The Zone Of Interest

Canadian Jim Balsillie (Glenn Howerton in one of the best, most surprising, and scariest performances of the year) threatens the NHL board when things don’t go his way with the immortal, “I’m from Waterloo, where the vampires hang out!” - BlackBerry

A woman accused of stealing from a teacher angrily denies culpability with a series of lies. This tense tiny gem is an astute analogy for the alternative facts age we’re experiencing - The Teacher’s Lounge

“A shoe is just a shoe until my son steps into it” - Michael Jordan’s mother Deloris (Viola Davis) skillfully negotiates his Nike contract with Matt Damon’s Sonny Vaccaro, and with quiet assurance gets everything Michael deserves - Air

Entity: Put the knife in your eye - Skinamarink

The office hallway dance before the kill - M3Gan

A novelist (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) overhears her husband (Tobias Menzies) denigrating her latest work, which challenges her notions of honesty and whether it’s something she really needs or not. A great microcosm of the human condition - You Hurt My Feelings

A blisteringly narcissistic film director (Franz Rogowski), fresh out of relationship with another man, refuses to engage in a conversation with his pregnant girlfriend’s parents as they pry too much and question his motives. Bonus points for his choice of outfits during said conversation - Passages

Danielle Brooks’ Sofia mightily kicks a door in at the start of “Hell No”, cementing her legendary status in film history - The Color Purple

Pop music of the 1960s gets a lovely tribute as the strains of “A World Of Your Own” evoke The Monkees’ “Daydream Believer” with a little nod to Sgt. Pepper era Beatles. The psychedelic visuals of Willy Wonka’s shop, with its cotton candy clouds and chocolate river, only enhance the magic - Wonka

Sure, one could easily talk about the slurping of the bathtub water or the graveyard sex or the naked dance sequence, but none felt as urgent and squeamish as when Felix (Jacob Elordi) surprises Oliver (Barry Keoghan) by driving him to his parent’s house. Oliver, begging Felix not to do so and afraid of what’s to come, is the most raw, real moment in a film laden with performative interactions and deception - Saltburn

“I wish this was real” - the most heartbreaking final line of a film this year - Dream Scenario

That entire taped argument! - Anatomy Of A Fall

Bonnie (Jodie Foster) uses reverse psychology on Diana (Annette Bening) to convince her to swim from Cuba to Florida, slyly revealing the advantages of really knowing and caring about your best friend - Nyad

Barbie: You’re beautiful. The Woman On The Bench (played by legendary Costume Designer, Ann Roth): I know. - Barbie

A deadpan couple in a movie theater watch Jim Jarmusch’s The Dead Don’t Die, a cheeky homage to what clearly has influenced the fantastic filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki - Fallen Leaves

Before the March On Washington, history was really made when Bayard Rustin (a great Colman Domingo) proved himself indispensable by demonstrating every detail that went into the planning - Rustin

Rebecca-Diane: (to a roomful of tween actors) But you so deserve it on every level, you guys are so talented, so unbelievable, this will break you. This will fully destroy you - Theater Camp

Any scene in which a couple engages in a serious discussion as a Macy’s Thanksgiving Day float glides by their window is gonna make this list - Maestro

THE SCENE - you’ll know it when you see it and will never forget it - Ferrari

The motorcycle over the cliff stunt. When Tom Cruise says he’ll die for us, believe him - Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One

Tilda Swinton meets her match in Michael Fassbender and has that haunting moment of realization that she’s not as clever as she thought she was - The Killer

The unnerving sight of hundreds of planes plummeting to the ground - Knock At The Cabin

Put Margo Martingale as Ranger Liz, with her delightfully terrible aim, on a gurney in an ambulance being chased by a bear high on cocaine, add Depeche Mode’s 80s synth classic “Just Can’t Get Enough” and you have my favorite chase sequence since To Live And Die In L.A. or maybe even The French Connection - Cocaine Bear

Remind me never to crawl across a ladder precariously propped up between two apartment buildings. I can feel the acrophobia kicking in as I type this - Scream VI

If you’ve ever experienced a maintenance request being ignored, just be grateful Hong Chau’s self-involved Jo isn’t your landlord. Every time she shrugged off Michelle Williams’ pleas, I wanted to call HUD myself - Showing Up

Maybe you’re just inviting trouble when you prop your apartment building door open with a rolled up newspaper and quickly run across the street to buy some water - Beau Is Afraid

Although I found the overall movie to be “cute” at best, the combination of Awkwafina and the word “Scuttlebutt” was comedy gold - The Little Mermaid

It broke my heart when one of television’s most beloved icons thought of herself as “a failed dancer” instead of as a successful actor - Being Mary Tyler Moore

It’s impossible to measure the courage it took for Michael J. Fox to repeatedly fall down (and get back up) on camera while working with a trainer. He risked humiliation to bring the plight of those living with Parkinson’s disease straight to our hearts and minds - Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie

Presented at first as quiet, shivering victims of sexual assault, five women kidnapped by Nazis get their slow motion stroll towards camera with rifles in hand and death glares on their faces - Sisu

Although I had long ago written him off as someone whose politics don’t align with my own, I couldn’t help but be moved by Jon Voight’s tear-filled pride in having made a queer cinematic classic - Desperate Souls, Dark City And The Legend Of Midnight Cowboy

Priscilla (Cailee Spaeny) paces alone in Graceland as she realizes the bloom is off the rose. Her marriage, as it turns out, will consist of waiting and obeying - Priscilla

Jennifer Lawrence kicking ass while fully naked on a beach, proving herself as adept at broad comedy as Rebekah Kochan’s Tiffani in the Eating Out series - No Hard Feelings

Meghan Thee Stallion as a sensational girl boss lights up the screen when she performs “Out Alpha The Alpha” - Dicks: The Musical

Bella Baxter: I must go punch that baby - Poor Things

No melodic score will surpass the genius of Mica Levi’s compositions combined with Johnnie Burn’s sound design - The Zone Of Interest

In the final shot, the camera cranes up to reveal Indiana Jones having literally hung up his hat. Why am I crying? - Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny

When Gracie loses a client from her cake business, Julianne Moore’s meltdown surpasses her amazing scene in Magnolia when she screams at the pharmacist - May December

Two book publishers (astutely embodied by Miriam Shor and Michael Cyril Creighton) envision their mysterious Black author played by Jeffrey Wright in a “do-rag and a tank top with the muscles showing”, proving stereotypes don’t die easily. When Shor caps the discussion with “Somebody call the fire department” you know you’re in the hands of a great satirist - American Fiction

Combine exploding wine barrels as two cowboys get drenched and make out as a group of women look on with disappointment, and you have a brief return to campy, over-the-top form from Pedro Almodóvar - Strange Way Of Life

Teddy Kountze: Sir, I don’t understand. Paul Hunham: That’s glaringly apparent. Teddy Kountze: No. I can’t fail this class. Paul Hunham: Oh, don’t sell yourself short, Mr. Kountze. I truly believe that you can. -The Holdovers

[punkkboyyluvrr]

just watched - fool's paradise (2023)

i honestly REALLY loved this movie. i was nervous going in due to a lot of poor reviews i had heard about when it came out, but im honestly super glad i didnt listen to those. charlie days acting and humor was, of course, amazing, and i felt that the cinematography was pretty beautiful. plus, a lot of iasip cast members show up as side characters throughout the movie, so, if nothing else, you can at least go all monkey brain from seeing glenn howerton and co. for about 2 seconds in a few scenes like i did. also, i feel that i should mention that, my god, charlie days skills in showing emotion purely through facial expressions is fucking astounding. i dont think i ever truly appreciated that while watching him perform in its always sunny, considering hes usually just doing some crazy off-the-walls shit in that show rather than showing a wide range of human emotion.

more in depth review + spoilers under cut!

i honestly didnt expect something with so much heart coming from charlie day, mainly because i only really know him from its always sunny, which, obviously, is riddled with tons of cruel and offensive jokes, but i was very pleasantly surprised. right off the bat, the coloring choices show just how aesthetically pleasing it is already. and then, we get introduced to latte, who immediately feels so human and so easy to connect to (although that could just be from my perspective as a neurodivergent person).

ken jeong is another excellent actor, and his portrayal of lenny was surprisingly endearing. his relationship with latte going from a purely business one to that of genuine friendship was a character arc i thoroughly enjoyed watching.

speaking of their relationship arc, the ending... honestly got me pretty fuckin good, i wont lie. while im not a huge fan of the misunderstanding trope in media (and this is no exception), i think the ending made up for it, at least a little bit. first of all, latte carrying around the urn of what he believes to be his best friends ashes felt very sweet, and showed how much he cared about lenny. and then the ending, where the first words he says are "i love you, too"... god. i did expect that the ending would reveal latte speaking for the first time, but i really expected it to be some shitty one-liner or something like that, and im so glad that they didnt go that route. lattes first words being that of affection towards lenny just even further shows how much the two care for each other, both going from being lost and hopeless in the world, in their own ways, to finally having just one person that understands and who actually cares about them. it was a very sweet moment.

while some of the humor can be predictable, and that part near the end about the whole electing for president thing was a bit... eh...? all in all, i think it has too much love and creativity put into it for it to be considered a purely "bad" movie. plus, who doesnt love charlie day?

[deans-asscot]

*The Walking Dead Spoilers*

Yes, I know I'm hella late but I finally got around to watching TWD. I'm only like half way through but OH MY GOD. I got to the part where Glenn died and I was so angry like I wanted to kill that other guy all over again. I was too angry to cry, but I did tear up a bit after. And then these mofos TOOK HIS NAME OUT OF THE OPENNING CREDITS for the next few eps. And I was like wow rude af. I was lowkey contemplating to stop watching cuz he's one of my favs if not THE fav. But its too good a show to stop. And these little fuqers.... when I tell you I cried tears of joy when they finally revealed he survived 😭 and then they put his name back in. I mean, I was in hopeful denial but at the same time I shoulda known cuz they never take out an actors name in the opening credits even if they die mid-season. But I was like well maybe they did it since he's an OG and to like honor him and shiz but naaaah, they was being little delinquents. Smh. I can't even imagine watching that live....I woulda been screaming on the internet like I am now 😅 I bet ppl were hella pissed and us Glenn truthers mapping out "here's how we can still win". God, then he almost got got AGAIN saving Maggie, UGH. I was like BOOOOI NOOOO. Thank u Daryl and crew coming at the nic of time as always 🤧. Also, Negan has been mentioned by name so I'm like FINALLY. I been waiting 6 seasons for this mofo to appear, so that should be soon now. Ugh, good stuff. Frustrating at times, but good.

[flotsam-gazette]

CANCEL

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2021-07-26/jackson-browne-phoebe-bridgers-downhill-from-everywhere

Jackson Browne on cancel culture, his ‘shelf life’ and how to survive rush hour in L.A.

BY AMY KAUFMAN, JULY 26, 2021 

Jackson Browne knows people think he’s past his prime. Or “way out over my due date,” as he puts it on his new album.

“I’m talking about shelf life,” he says. “But I think a lot of stuff is still good after the date that’s printed on the package.”

At 72, the musician is grappling with what his life will amount to — that’s really what the lyric is about, he says: “An admission that you’re supposed to have settled stuff by this time.”

It’s not that he had a vision for what life in his 70s would be like; he’s never looked that far into the future. But he has always been a self-reflective sort, unafraid to question whether he’s squeezing all of the juice out of the fruit. 

Even one of his first hits, “Doctor, My Eyes” — released in the midst of the Vietnam War — told the story of a man puzzling over how to digest the hardships of the world.

Browne’s eyes are still wide open on “Downhill From Everywhere,” the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee’s first collection of new music in six years. On the album, the singer-songwriter takes typically forthright stands on ocean pollution, immigration rights and gay marriage. Though he grows somber when he discusses current events, Browne also seems to have softened with age — exuding less an obstinate attitude than an equable one.

In the late ’60s and ’70s, Browne established himself as one of Laurel Canyon’s preeminent songwriters with now-standards like “These Days” (written when he was 16), “Take It Easy,” co-written with the Eagles’ Glenn Frey and “Running on Empty.” 

Back-to-back smash albums “The Pretender” and “Running on Empty” made him a full-fledged rock star, but gradually he would pivot his music and career away from pop philosophy and toward the political. He organized “No Nukes” benefit concerts against nuclear weapons and nuclear energy alongside Graham Nash and Bonnie Raitt in 1979 and condemned U.S. policy in Central America on his 1986 album “Lives in the Balance.”

Browne still champions numerous causes; he was performing at a fundraiser for the charity God’s Love We Deliver in March 2020 when he became one of the first stars to contract COVID-19. 

He likes experimental theater — he’s wearing a shirt from Tim Robbins’ Culver City-based the Actors’ Gang nonprofit — and seeing live music with some of the young artists he’s befriended, like: 

Dawes, Jenny Lewis, Inara George and Phoebe Bridgers. (Earlier this year, Bridgers enlisted Browne to duet with her on a new version of her song “Kyoto,” and she in turn then appeared in a music video for his song “My Cleveland Heart.”)

Browne, who lives in Los Angeles’ Mid-City with his longtime partner, Dianna Cohen, has two adult children from previous marriages.

This week, he heads out on a three-month tour with James Taylor that will stop in Anaheim in October. The Times spoke with Browne at his Santa Monica recording studio, Groove Masters, where Bob Dylan, Frank Ocean and David Crosby have made music.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

What made you decide to record an album after six years?

The way you pose the question presupposes that there’s getting ready. I’ve had a studio for 30 years (since 1991). I’m always doing something. It’s more like there’s a residue you gather or a condensation that gathers.

You once said that your standards plague you. Do you still feel that way?

I think I was talking about the fact that it’s not a good idea to try to write a song as good as some other song you’ve already written. Because when you wrote that song that you thought so highly of, you weren’t holding it up to some other standard; you were just trying to write something new. Look, I’ve got a high opinion of some of my songs, but to write something new you have to forget everything you’ve ever done.

You sing on this album about being concerned for the future your children will inherit. What scares you?

I am in a state of grief for the world that my kids are inheriting — my grandson (son of Ryan). Elephants and tigers are in danger. The ocean’s got dead spots in it. The reefs are dying. The natural world’s ability to bounce back from what we’ve done is an existential threat. ... We’ve got these electric cars, so why don’t more people have electric cars? Why don’t we phase out fossil fuels? They won’t until they’ve sold us every last thing they have. I don’t get to talk about this stuff very much in conversation. So for me, the challenge is to write a song that people don’t mind hearing and that helps galvanize some sort of feelings or helps them find some resolve.

When you started more politically themed music in the 1980s, were you worried about losing your audience?

I know it was considered problematic by some people in the music industry to talk about politics. But they were never my people. You hear people like, ‘Oh, he’s losing an enormous part of his audience by talking about this.’ They’re talking about sales and s— like that. That never mattered to me anyway. Please.

It didn’t matter to you at all?

When you sing about stuff that nobody knows anything about, the recognition for what you’re doing is gonna drop off. At the same time, a bunch of other things were happening that are probably more responsible for the popularity declining, like punk music. 

You’re just not 25 (in 1973), now you’re 33 (in 1981), and there’s a completely different aesthetic going on and an attitude about everything that’s come before, rightfully or wrongfully dismissing you.

Many of your reviews cite you as being a really serious person. Do you think that’s fair?

I’ve had people remark on that to me, like, “Oh, I expect you to come in with sheaths of newspapers and notes and stuff.” There was this great remark that Don Was made. He was asked about a song that was political, and he said, “Oh yeah, we’re kind of political. Well, we’re not like Jackson Browne, where we’re with a pointer and talking about troop movements.” It was a funny thing to say.

I was playing at a Christmas show in Asheville a few years ago, and I sang this song about war called “The Drums of War.” Later, I was talking to one of the guys on the show and said, “Maybe I kind of sandbagged these folks. You think I shouldn’t have sang them a song about the war [at] Christmas?” He said, “People know you, Jackson. They’re not gonna be shocked that you sing a song about the war.”

How do you get your news?

I’m just kind of old school: I read. I can’t stand television. Even calling it television shows I come from another century. There are newsletters I get and books, and I really like radio. KPFK Pacifica. In L.A., I try to drive when my programs are on. I don’t mind rush hour because the Tim Ferriss program is probably on, and it’s a good way to spend an hour.

You’ve developed relationships with a lot of younger artists. How did those friendships start?

That’s the music that really moves me. I feel really lucky to know all these people, and I guess I know them because I go to their shows. I met Phoebe at a party, but I hadn’t heard her play. It was a birthday party for [Australian singer-songwriter] Tal Wilkenfeld at an escape room. I was sure we were gonna escape, but we didn’t make it. Funnily enough, the room was about a pandemic. But it was hard to figure out. But later, when I heard her music, I went, “That’s Phoebe. That’s that girl I met. Holy s—.”

What did you like about it?

If I want to use the word “gratitude” in a sentence, it would be about artists like Taylor [Goldsmith, from Dawes] and Phoebe, who are bringing an emotional literacy and prowess with words to rock lyrics again. It hasn’t been absent; Lucinda Williams and Randy Newman have been there all along. But when you see somebody young applying themselves to those kinds of skills, it’s encouraging because it makes you think that is on the rise and that a more youthful segment of the population will be exposed to that.

Did any musicians serve as mentors to you when you were young?

David Crosby agreed to sing on my first record. He absolutely showed me how to record — how to multitrack vocals. He praised me to others and to myself, and that was really important. I feel a great debt of gratitude to David.

But you no longer speak to him?

That’s true. He said nobody he’s ever made music with will talk to him anymore. I would point out that his son makes music with him, and that’s really what’s at the heart of his productivity right now, is his great relationship with his son. I don’t really want to go into the details of why we’re not talking.

There was a good documentary made about him recently. Do you ever think about being a part of a film like that or writing a memoir?

I’ve thought about it because it’s been proposed. I may eventually not be good for much else, so I’ll leave myself enough time to sound off about stuff. I kind of feel like I don’t know anything.

I’m sure people would love to hear your stories — and about dating the likes of Nico, Joni Mitchell and Daryl Hannah. Carly Simon wrote a really good memoir about her marriage to James Taylor.

Who’s interested in that though? Who’s interested in Carly talking about James?

Uh, me? A lot of people!

I’m not very interested in that stuff. Have you read Linda’s [Ronstadt] book? Now that’s a good book. It’s about music. Yes! People don’t want to know about Jerry Brown and Mick Jagger and all of the people Linda had relationships with. Besides, you have to be a really good writer. And I can’t even write a postcard.

What are your thoughts on cancel culture?

I’m not very aware of cancel culture, because I’m basically helpless about social media and the kind of quick, fast-breaking news about s—. That washes over me. I’m concerned that “canceled” has become a reflexive thing. My version of cancel culture is just turn it off or change the channel.

To use an example involving people you know, Phoebe Bridgers and Mandy Moore — they were part of an investigation alleging that Ryan Adams was emotionally and verbally abusive. As a result, some say he should be canceled.

I think powerful men have been taking advantage of their status with women and that should stop. ... I think it made a big impression on everybody that [Bridgers and Moore] came forth and talked about it. That’s their right and their responsibility to tell the truth and why we like their work.

I worry about [cancel culture] though because there are examples of actors, supposedly, who I think are tremendously gifted and I don’t know what all they did. ... In some cases, it sounds really bad. In some cases, it sounds like, really? They patted somebody on the butt and so we should not see this person’s movies now? I don’t know. I’m not just trying to wriggle out of your question. I’m just trying to say that I’m actually not a good person to [talk about this] because I’m so uninterested in that stuff. I wouldn’t watch the O.J. trial.

What are you hoping your fans will take away from your new album?

You mean, you want me to boil it down? It’s not for me to say. There are no CliffsNotes for these songs. I’m not that self-conscious. I’m not worried about what people are gonna think about me. This is not an ad for myself. This is a collection of songs with me really trying to express myself.

So you don’t think about how you’ve evolved musically?

Honestly? The things that I think about are trying to sing in tune and making the song sound good.

Why keep making new music?

[Laughs] I just thought that this morning. There’s so many other things going on. What could possibly be a more glacial f—ing process than writing a song about climate change, for instance? What it gives me is a song to sing that can be sung on an occasion, and sometimes that occasion is where people have gathered together to do something about something. I like the way I just said that, because it’s very all-inclusive. It may sound like I’m being vague, but I mean it gives me a song I can sing that reaffirms what I think.

Amy Kaufman is a columnist at the Los Angeles Times, where she writes a monthly A-1 column, “For Real With Amy Kaufman.” The series examines the lives of icons, underdogs and rising stars to find out who the people are shaping our culture — for real. Since joining The Times in 2009, she has profiled hundreds of influential figures, including Stevie Nicks, Kevin Hart, Joan Rivers, Michael B. Jordan and Lady Gaga. She also works on investigations and was part of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize finalist team that covered the tragic shooting on the “Rust” film set. Her work often shines a light on the darker side of the entertainment business, and she has uncovered misconduct allegations against Randall Emmett, Russell Simmons and Chris D’Elia. In 2018, her book “Bachelor Nation: Inside the World of America’s Favorite Guilty Pleasure” became a New York Times bestseller.

[billieboi-445420]

Family Guy: Dianne Simmons Returns part 1

This is my first story so it's gonna be bad

It was a nice, sunny day, and the Griffins were at home watching TV. "I wonder whats on the news" said Lois. She changed the channel to the news, as Channel 5 News started playing. "Good evening, I'm Tom Tucker" said Tom Tucker. "And I'm Joyce Kinney" said Joyce Kinney. "Our top story today, famous actor James Woods is visiting Quahog" exclaimed Tom. Brian was unhappy with the news. "What!? Hes alive!?" He yelled. "I thought he was murdered by Dianne Simmons!" "He was, but long story short, they had the life force of a 17 year old girl sucked out and put into him" replied Peter. "I was his agent". "You were!?" Yelled Brian. "After everything he's done to you!?"

"Here's Asian reporter Tricia Takanawa outside James Woods's cabin. Over to you, Tricia." Said Tom. "Tom, I am standing here outside of the cabin where actor James Woods will be staying while visiting Quahog. Back to you, Tom." Said Tricia. Joyce began to speak. "And here's Ollie Williams with the weather. Over to you, Ollie." "HOT!" Yelled Ollie. "Thanks, Ollie." Said Tom. "In other related news, Woods has a serum that can bring people back from the dead."

"Oh my god." Said Lois. "James Woods is back". Lois was obviously angry. "And he has a potion to bring back dead people too!?" Exclaimed Stewie. "Think of all the devastation you could cause with that" He smiled to himself. Lois stood up and picked up Stewie. "Stewie, it's bedtime." She said in a motherly tone. "DAMN YOU, VILE WOMAN!" Yelled Stewie. Lous then carried Stewie to bed.

The next day, Peter went out to the Drunken Clam with Cleveland Brown, Joe Swanson and Glenn Quagmire. Brian, Stewie, Meg and Chris went out somewhere leaving Lois alone to do the housework.

James Woods approached the cemetery, holding his potion. He approached a grave. The name said Dianne Simmons. Dianne used to work at Channel 5 News with Tom Tucker. She them tried to murder James Woods and frame Tom. She also nearly murdered Lois until she was sniped by Stewie and fell to her death. "Now, I can finally get my revenge on the Griffins" said James. He poured the potion on Dianne's grave. A hand burst out of the ground.

It was getting dark, Peter, Brian and the others weren't home yet as Lois was watching TV. "Everything in TV nowadays is just a bunch of crap" she complained to herself. The power went out. "Son of a bitch" she yelled. There was a knock at the door. She went downstairs to open it. A shadowy figure stood there in front of her. "Hello Lois" it said in a malicious tone. "Did you miss me?" Lois was shocked. "Oh my god! D-d-dianne Simmons!!?"

End of part 1