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stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale · 4 years ago

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Top 5 Favorite Louis Moments

So... have I ever told you guys that Louis is my favorite character in TWDG? No? I didn’t have to? You could tell by the everything that is my blog that he’s my favorite?

Well your deduction skills are great because it’s true-- Louis is, indeed, my favorite character and after all the nonsense going on with last week’s T5F, I wanted to talk about my boy to get that salty taste outta my mouth, y’know?

I want to talk about some of my favorite Louis moments from The Final Season, and in turn, about why I love him so much.... also this challenge of giving myself only 5 moments was just cruel and I struggled because I love nearly every Louis moment. I had to narrow it down to the favorite moments where I believe his development as a character were at its greatest, because that’s something I love about him-- his growth through the season.

Wanna give a quick shoutout @pi-creates for letting me use some screenshots for this post! I’m also doing a bit of a collab with Pi and a few others for this T5F. I thought it would be fun if they did some lists for other characters! I’ll update this post with links to their Top 5′s as they come out. :D

Pi’s Top 5 Aasim Moments @kaylee-wolf’s Top 5 James Moments @taurusicorn2400′s Top 5 Favorite Things About Violet @akemi-rose578′s Top 5 Favorite Ruby Moments

5. Appealing to Louis

I won’t spend too much time on this one because I talked about this entire scene in great detail in my Marlon character study, but I do truly love everything about it.

When you appeal to Louis, he’s pretty insistent about staying out of it... even though you can tell this whole situation is hurting him. With Marlon still having a grip on him, Louis feels like he has to side with Marlon because he’s his best friend, he’s always had his back, he’s gotta trust him... Marlon wouldn’t kill Brody like that, it just doesn’t make sense, right?

Add that on top of the fact that Louis is already established as “Marlon’s lap dog,” as Aasim puts it, and Marlon himself even implies that Louis is irresponsible and doesn’t ever step up.

So to have Louis instinctively puts his hands up like “Oh no, no, noooo I am not involved! Sorry, I like ya Clem but yeah, you’re on your own.... sorry,” makes sense with how he’s established, and you as Clementine have to sway him to your side by giving him some much needed courage and a chance to break from Marlon’s control to do the right thing, which is executed super well.

My personal favorite choice is to ask Louis if he’s really going to just let Marlon shoot me just so that he doesn’t want to get involved. You can see from his body language and facial expressions that Clementine’s words struck a nerve... he doesn’t want that to happen, that he doesn’t want Marlon to murder Clementine like this, and that he knows this is all wrong.

Also, Clementine’s “I thought you were more than that” is just.... so good. When you consider his entire arc... as far as we know, this is the first time someone has said something like that to Louis and it shows.

So he tries to talk to Marlon the first time, and Marlon intimidates and manipulates him to where you believe he’s not going to help you... and I love it. I love the way this is shot where Louis, with his hands up, slips right in front of Clementine and talks Marlon down. He sees that Marlon has a damn gun pointed at him, but he puts himself in danger to protect Clementine [and Marlon, in a way]... someone he doesn’t know that well, and he even walks towards Marlon while the gun is still pointed at him to protect her and those around him.

There’s also the other bits where Louis tries to be reassuring to Marlon, that they’re gonna help him out, that they’re all they got, that Marlon wasn’t always pathetic.... which that last one prompts the “Yeah I was, you’re just the only one who didn’t see it,” and that’s... a whole thing.

This is the first glimpse of growth we see with Louis and I love it.

4. The talk in the dorms

Okay... this scene.

I love this scene... obviously. One of my favorite’s from Ep2. After AJ is patched up and recovering in the dorms, Louis comes by to bring AJ some new clothes since his got torn up from Abel’s magic shotgun.

At this point, we already know that Louis is dealing with a lot of shit-- his best friend of 8+ years was murdered right in front of him, he’s traumatized, mourning, and hurting buuuuuut most of the Ericson crew don’t seem to care that he’s going through this. Violet keeps invalidating this pain and calling him a shithead while talking shit about Marlon right in front of him without any care. Mitch acts like Louis should be more aggressive because he was Marlon’s best friend, which results in Louis feeling even shittier.

He doesn’t know what to do about Clementine and AJ, all he knows is that them being there makes everything feel worse and he’s scared... AND on top of that, he just learned what Marlon was really like, Brody did indeed die because Marlon hit her, the twins might be alive because Marlon traded them away, AND there are asshole raiders coming to kidnap and/or murder them.

AND because he took part in the vote that got Clementine and AJ kicked out and insisted they follow through, AJ ended up getting shot by Abel’s magic shotgun and could’ve died... and Louis feels responsible for that, but he’s conflicted because this kid literally murdered his best friend that’s why they were kicked out in the first place.

Also, presumably, he’s dealing with all this by himself.

Honestly, I’m surprised he’s still functioning because that’s a lot.

Despite all that, he still sticks with Ruby in helping patch AJ up, and is thoughtful enough to bring him new clothes so he’s more comfortable. It says a lot about him, y’know? He’s still hurting, he’s still angry, but he doesn’t hate Clementine and AJ for what happened. He never did, he just didn’t know what to do. He’s still processing what happened and sorting out his feelings.

Oh and then the talk with Clementine... okay, I love the talk.

It’s quiet, sincere, and emotional. Clementine kinda begins to pry about whether or not he’s okay with them staying after AJ gets better and the raiders are taken care of, and he avoids giving her a straight answer until she pushes, to which he answers with an honest, “I don’t know, Clementine.”

Then AJ wakes up, and I love the way Louis responds to AJ asking if they’re friends again. He doesn’t lie to make AJ feel better, but he’s not a jerk about it.

And finally, we get the final dialogue prompt with him. I usually tell him I really missed him, to which he responds with, “Missed you, too. Goodnight.” and I just... it’s so good.

Honestly, Louis could’ve turned into a real bitch and not bothered, he could’ve remained angry and took every opportunity to remind Clem and AJ of how terrible they are... I can think of plenty characters that would’ve done that in his situation, but that’s not Louis. He’s not that kind of person... which is interesting when you consider his backstory and what landed him at Ericson in the first place. He’s seen what that kind of resentment, no matter how great, can lead to.

Overall, one of the best moments in his character development.

3. Louis opening up to Clementine in the music room

Oh, where to begin?

First off, not gonna gush too much about the clouis because this is a list focusing on Louis, not necessarily his romance with Clementine... I’ll only bring it up when it pertains to his character development, y’know? Second, not gonna get into the poor lead up to this scene where the writers dropped the ball with the ‘go with Violet to protect the school vs screw around with Louis and probably die’ thing. That’s a topic for another day. Just talking about the scene itself.

Because this moment is so damn good. Honestly, these last three entries I could probably do entire posts picking them apart and analyzing everything but we don’t wanna be here for hours so I’ll try to condense it the best I can.

So Louis invites Clementine to the music room because he needs up with a project. Clementine enters to find him playing a song that he wrote, and they have a fun conversation. Right off the bat, we get Clementine mentioning that they haven’t heard any music for a while [implying that Louis hasn’t been playing] and Louis responds with, “Some say you’re not about to hear it now.” which we all know is him trying to make light of people telling him he doesn’t have any music talent and like.... his face. The way it falls as the music goes from cheery to sad. The way Clementine looks at him.

I talk about Louis having a wall around him a lot. Well, that’s because he does. It’s the irony thing where the happy, loud, funny character is actually putting that on as a façade because they’re hiding behind a wall too scared to let anyone in because it’s either bit them in the ass before or no one has bothered to ever take them seriously anyway or a number of other reasons.

Louis seems to let that wall down for little bits at a time without realizing it, then when he does, it shoots right back up. A great example of this is in ep1 when he and Clementine talk in the woods. The shift is obvious, and here he’s still doing it.

He turns around and asks Clementine how they feel about their imminent deaths in a jokey tone. My favorite thing to do is here is remain silent. When you do that, he becomes serious again and in a soft voice, he tells Clementine that he’s here for her.

I find this whole sections of the scene, including the tuning the piano part, so interesting because it’s him testing the waters with Clementine, if you will. He’s inching the wall down until they’re both sitting comfortably at the piano when he begins to play his song for her. They mark the piano, and I think that seals it for him that they’re here together, that Clementine isn’t like the others who have never taken him seriously or never bother to look below the surface.

So, he takes a chance and fully brings the wall down, opening himself up to her as he thanks her for being there with him, even after everything.

Like... Louis is just so aware of people’s perceptions of him. This is a discussion that I’ve had with people before where Louis is very much a people person in the way that he’s not just charismatic, he’s observant, too.

Anyway, you can have Clementine confess she has romantic feelings for him, establishing them as a couple, or you can remain friends but now you’re super best friends. You know me, I go the romance route because clouis.

I do wanna point out that Louis does have romantic feelings for Clementine no matter what you pick, but if you do wish to remain friends, he’s incredibly respectful of that. There’s no bitterness, there’s no pushing. He’s maybe a little sad for two seconds before he realizes that he has a new [and probably better] best friend and embraces it. He’s just happy to have Clementine at his side.

As for the romance, I will never get over his reaction to Clementine confessing. His face? So good. Then he becomes so giddy talking about how he was hoping Clementine felt that way and “Holy shit, it’s me!”

Then he names the song he wrote after her and they smooch~!

uhh sorry, said I wasn’t gonna gush about clouis but can’t help it... and hey, in my defense, it does pertain to his development because this relationship influences him greatly.

What else can I say? It’s fucking great.

2. Louis finally shares something from his past & plays Don’t Be Afraid

Yeah I’m combining them, they go hand in hand okay.

Listen.... like I said before, I could write an entire analysis of Louis in this scene, but I’m gonna reel it in.

We finally get the reason Louis was sent to Ericson in the first place-- he was stupid rich with parents who gave him whatever he wanted except singing lessons, and being the spoiled child he was he didn’t take kindly to that... so he broke into his father’s credit card accounts and faked an affair in order to break up his parents marriage, and then when it was all said and done, he threw his fathers words back in his face.

Like.... I’m pretty fucking sure not a single one of us thought this was going to be the case when it came to Louis giving us his backstory.

He finally puts it all out there and now Clementine knows what kind of person he was before he arrived at the school, what he was capable of before she met him. That wall is gone.

But this is what I was talking about before. Louis knows first hand what can happen when feelings go unchecked, when resentment is held onto, when you don’t apologize or try to repair mendable relationships, when you’re vindictive and bitter and take it out on others. He’s been there and now he’s here, and he holds a lot of that with him. You can see he does in the way he talks about himself and struggles with confidence in his abilities.

I also love the line he says when you remain silent about how he doesn’t even know the person he’s talking about, how it’s like the only thing they share is the same name. He then goes on to say that Clementine should know who she’s riding into battle, which I’ve always seen as his way of telling her she should know who he really is, good and bad, before she puts anymore effort, faith, love, etc. into him and their relationship.

Then there’s the song.

Tenn asks Louis if he can play Don’t Be Afraid for them, a song that he composed with Minerva back before she was taken by the delta, and it’s my favorite version.

Just the way he looks at Clementine before he starts and she gives him a small reassurance before he starts, and he fucking dedicates the song to Minnie... who is going to try to kill him later and that’s a whole thing, but it’s still a sweet sentiment.

Then the song plays and it’s that calm before the storm moment, y’know? Like, everyone is sitting there listening to him play this beautiful song while realizing that shit’s going down soon and this might be the last happy moment they get.... and then as he’s playing, Louis looks over at AJ’s drawing of Violet, Aasim, and Omar and just.... his expression.

Also, he looks up at the ceiling as he’s playing and given how glossy his eyes look at the end of the song.... you know he was trying to hold it together. And that last look he and Clementine share? ugh.... it hurts my heart.

I adore this scene.... We finally got something about Louis’ past, which is something he hardly shares up to this point. Anything shared is minor, like how he used to play baseball or he hates cantaloupe.... but nothing major, y’know? So good.

1. The walk back to Ericson

This is it.

When it comes to Louis’ development as a character, this is it. Let me tell you about this moment because oh my god.

To start things off, Louis gets back to the school with everyone and then alone decides he’s gonna go look for Clementine, AJ, and Tenn. Which I don’t know if that’s something he would’ve done in ep1, at least he wouldn’t’ve gone alone. This to me says that he got back, made sure everyone was taken care of based on his comment about Violet’s eyes, and then set off on his own to look for them.

Then we get the cute clouis, Louis celebrates victory a little too early, and they begin their walk about to the school... and it starts off so quiet. He and Clementine steal glances at each other before Louis brings up Dorian. Y’know, the woman he killed.

We learn that it’s his first human kill ever.... in the 8+ years of the apocalypse, Louis has never had to do that and it’s one of the things he was so scared off. We were supposed to get a bit about that during the party but y’know, it was cut for budget reasons.... which is lame but you can figure it out from his behavior before they snuck onto the boat anyway.

It’s a great talk between them. I usually tell him that it’ll get easier, and he acknowledges that it’s fucked up, but he believes it will get easier and he’s just glad he has it in him at all. He tells Clementine that having a home means protecting it, he shares some things about his past, and then he and Clementine talk about a dream house together.

And this.... THIS. Okay look. Listen. I know people give Louis shit for how he behaves in ep1. You don’t have to go far before you see people writing him off as lazy, irresponsible, blah blah blah..... and like, I think people forget that character growth is a thing? That a character usually starts out flawed and over the course of a story, they change? for better or worse?

I’m perfectly okay with Louis being portrayed as irresponsible and carefree and whatnot because from that point he grows.

Remember what he said in ep1? He says he prefers to think of survival as a day-to-day task, he says that the future doesn’t exist and there’s only today, that the only thing anyone has is this moment.

Louis didn’t look at the future because he didn’t care, or rather, it wasn’t a priority for him. He slacked off because he turned away from responsibility when Marlon needed him, and while I don’t disagree with his view of appreciating the now, I do believe the future should be considered.

Now compare that to Louis in ep5.

That whole conversation is Louis telling Clementine he wants a future with her and the rest of Ericson, and while maybe they can’t build that 914-floor purple mansion, they can still try.... they can still create a home together. I think he still believes his this moment talk, but has a better grasp of what he really wants, y’know?

His whole journey when you stick with him is just.... so good. It’s not perfect, I mean y’all know that I have my issues with how some things were done, but Louis’ development as a character is one of the greatest accomplishments in TFS.

Also, Louis lost the 4th grade spelling bee because of “recommend” and he had a pet turtle named Geoff. My patience has been rewarded and I know more about his backstory.

I don’t even know what else to say? It’s #1 for a reason? Because it’s a great showcase for how far he’s come? and I love him so much? Seriously this scene is so good?

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Honorable Mentions

-Louis’ introduction in the music room. It’s a classic fave. -The walker piñata moment where Louis lets his guard down around Clementine to tell her his view point on survival. -The archery moment where Louis apologizes to Clementine and opens up a bit about Marlon. -The card games. Both of them. He’s great. -Everything in the dorms in ep3. -y’know what? Just everything that isn’t the cell scene okay? 90% of Louis scenes get honorable mentions.

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So there we go. There’s all my gushing about Louis. Could do it for much longer, but I don’t think we wanna be here for hours. So, what are your thoughts? Do you agree or disagree with any of my choices? Or have anything to add? I’m always down to chat about muh boy.

Have any suggestions for future T5F’s? Feel free to send ‘em in! :D

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Next week’s T5F Top 5 Reasons Doug Was Pretty Great

#twdg t5f #twdg louis #twdg clementine #twdg aj #twdg violet #twdg marlon #twdg aasim #twdg tenn #twdg minerva #twdg mitch

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bullshittierlists · 4 years ago

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Spoiler Warning!!! - This review will contain spoilers for all of SDR2 and the first chapter of DRV3 as well as slight spoilers for DR1. You’ve been warned.

I see no god up here other than me

Gundham Tanaka- His name is GUNDHam TaNAKA

Sonia Nevermind- This is my third time typing this rant. I literally don’t know why people hate her so much?? There are two main arguments that I’ve come across. The first is that she is boring and shouldn’t have survived, but that’s the same as Asahina and everyone seems to love her. (Don’t get me wrong, I also love her, but all she had were donuts and her relationship with Sakura) She’s just a cute girl with some occult-ish quirks and I don’t see why that has to be such a bad thing. The other, more prevalent, argument is that since she’s at the center of the infamous love triangle, she must be the root of all its problems. It’s really frustrating when people blame her for Kazuichi’s faults. I’ll talk more about Kazuichi later, but his terrible qualities are a result of his own actions, and Sonia shouldn’t be blamed for being the object of his affections. It’s honestly blaming the victim and I’m sick of it. Obviously, she hasn’t treated him perfectly and I understand why people are frustrated with it. The only example of this, though, is in chapter four when she goes back-and-forth between treating him coldly and praising him when she should’ve just rejected him a long time ago. However, I think I can understand where she’s coming from in this chapter. I think it was kind of a Shuichi/Kaede situation. She had already figured out that Gundham was the killer, but didn’t want to admit it to herself, and definitely didn’t want to tell everyone else even though he was more than ready to admit it. Therefore, she treated Kazuichi coldly whenever he was getting close to the truth (or treating her poorly) and praised him whenever he was leading the group in the wrong direction. I don’t have any evidence that these were the times she treated him this way, but that’s how I remember it. Anyway, Kazuichi should stop being a creep, and apologists should stop rationalizing it. Her one slip-up in this case when she was panicked and worried for her closest friend does not make up for all of the other times Kazuichi treated her terribly.

You’re the best

Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu- Boss baby boss baby boss baby. Also, he’s a fantastically fleshed out character and his relationship with Peko makes me cry literally every time :) I just wish his character development had been a bit more stretched out, instead of on-the-spot like it was. I also kinda wish his sudden development had been a result of the despair disease, but you can’t have everything.

Nagito Komaeda- Recently, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about how SimpleFlips calls softlocking in SM64 “gay baby jail” and Komaeda makes me think of that.

Chiaki Nanami- I’m not quite as attached to her as everyone else seems to be, but I totally see the appeal. Cute girl, cute backpack, and plot-relevant??? Incredible.

Ibuki Mioda- She’s just so fun. I don’t typically like characters who are loud for the sake of being loud, but I can’t help but love her. This was the first game I fully voice-acted for fun (the girls, at least) and Ibuki was definitely one of my favorites. It just feels good to yell sometimes, you know?

Hey, I think you’re pretty cool, I like you a lot

Peko Pekoyama- I’m a simple woman. I think of chapter two, I cry. At least, the epilogue of that case. I wasn’t the biggest fan of Twilight Syndrome Murder Case and I definitely didn’t like the, albeit fake, serial killer twist. It didn’t feel natural and just felt bad. Loved hearing Sonia say “Sparkling Justice!”, though.

Hiyoko Saionji- I totally understand why people hate her. I get it, I do. But I just can’t bring myself to hate her. She’s obviously not a good person, but I have shit taste. Byakuya and Kokichi aren’t good people, but everyone loves them anyway. I just think she’s so funny and terrible, I can’t help but get attached. I’m not usually the type to like little sister characters, or even bullies, but she’s just such a perfect combination of the two that I can’t help but love her. I also obviously am not the biggest fan of Mikan (I’ll explain, I swear) so the bullying didn’t really affect me too much.

Hajime Hinata- He’s the protagonist. I don’t really know what to tell you. I used to believe in Hajime supremacy, but I’m starting to understand the Shuichi supremacy now, so idk, Hajime might end up lower after I finish V3.

Byakuya Togami/Ultimate Imposter- He’s just such a good guy. I know that the real Byakuya is an ass, but the imposter is so nice and supportive. I can’t even take him seriously as Byakuya anymore because of how supportive he is. The real Byakuya could never. I just finished his last free-time event and he really feels like his own person now, which I can imagine is all he’s ever wanted. He isn’t Byakuya to me anymore, he’s himself. I just don’t have a unique name to call him by.

I remember you

Mahiru Koizumi- Her photography thing was cute, I liked it a lot. I don’t know the basic stance people take on her crush on Hajime, but I thought it was really cute and believable. I don’t know if I ship it, but I can see it in canon. It makes sense and works well.

Akane Owari- She’s a jock. I feel pretty neutral about jocks unless they have another prevalent thing that fits my interests.

Nekomaru Nidai- Again, a jock. I’m just not the biggest fan. I know that his backstory makes up for a lot of his inherent jock boringness, but I just can’t get into him as much as some other people can. I definitely see the appeal, though.

Usami/Monomi- She’s a mascot. Cool. Honestly preferred Monophanie.

You are literally the worst. Actual scum. Leave this planet and never return

Mikan Tsumiki- I told you I’d explain. First, I need to explain some personal reasons I didn’t like her, rather than objective characteristics. Like I mentioned with Ibuki, I voice-acted the whole game with each of the girls. Never before has a voice physically affected me as much as Mikan’s. In order to make her voice so high and quiet, I have to close my throat and tighten my jaw. It makes my throat, jaw, and head hurt all at the same time and it feels awful. The only time this wasn’t the case was during her breakdown and that’s because I couldn’t make her say those things with that voice, it didn’t make sense. Which brings me to my next point: her breakdown. I didn’t like it. At all. It wasn’t interesting and it didn’t make sense. I know that everyone else was sad because she was bullied a bunch and began to romanticize it, and yeah, I feel bad, but it wasn’t enough to make me like her. Her breakdown made a little more sense after watching the anime, believe it or not, but it was still not great. She could’ve been easily redeemed for me if she had a different motive for killing Hiyoko. I don’t really have an opinion on whether or not Ibuki should’ve lived longer, or even survived, but I definitely agree with Hiyoko dying during the third case, I just wish the motive had been different. It would’ve been so powerful if Mikan’s despair disease had made her remember her past with the bullying, and then she realized how much she hated it. She started to notice how Hiyoko was treating her and finally snaps. She kills Hiyoko in cold blood on purpose, instead of on accident, and covers it up in a more reasonable way instead the literal impossibility that we actually got. Then, in her breakdown, instead of pleading for forgiveness, she tries to rationalize her actions and convince everyone else that she was in the right by killing her. It would’ve been much more interesting and would’ve made much more sense. I also wish she had made use of Ibuki’s despair disease (which made her gullible) and commanded her to hang herself instead of staging the other thing, because it was a lot of extra work that was really unnecessary and it would’ve made more use of the despair disease other than a plot contrivance for Junko’s entrance. This kind of turned into my review for the third chapter, but still. Killers are always more fleshed out in their respective chapters, so their existence is often pretty much tied to the events of that chapter, since everything typically revolves around them. I might as well add here that her execution was really basic and underwhelming, but as far as I’ve seen, I’m not alone in that opinion.

Monokuma- It’s kind of an ironic hate with Monokuma. Sure, he makes me laugh, but he’s also fuel for the killing game, so... I don’t know. He pisses me off sometimes, but he’s also pretty funny at other times.

Kazuichi Souda- This is basically a continuation of the Sonia rant, so here we go. I would like to preface this by saying that in the context of Kazuichi’s free-time events, he’s one of my favorite characters. However, in the main story, I placed him here. I would normally average out my opinions of his different forms, but his optional events don’t make up for his actions that are required to be experienced. While some of his quips toward Sonia made me laugh, they still made me uncomfortable to some extent. It’s honestly frustrating to see him try so hard when she obviously isn’t interested in him. Some people choose to see this as an underdog story, but I think it’s just annoying and low-key creepy. He’s constantly fetishizing Sonia and keeps making moves on her even after she treats him coldly. He isn’t brave or cool for doing this, like the media would like you to believe, he’s creepy and persistent, and not in a good way. While I do agree that Sonia should’ve just turned him down from the very beginning, I still don’t put all of that blame on her. I’m sure she’s had her fair share of creepy guys making advances on her and she’s just had to take it, since she’s a princess and it would hurt her noble reputation. Kazuichi should also be able to think for himself and see that she’s not interested. It shouldn’t be completely up to her to get him to stop. He should be able to take a hint and back off, whether she tells him directly or otherwise. She definitely hints to him that she’s not interested in some of the later chapters, but he completely ignores it and keeps trying anyway. I wouldn’t have such a problem with him if he didn’t represent a very real issue that we are facing in the world today. Nice guys will, unfortunately, always be plaguing our society and it doesn’t look like they’re getting any better. It doesn’t help that the media continually raises them up and convinces them that they are in the right, even though they definitely aren’t. No man is entitled to any woman and people need to stop sympathizing with men who are rejected and keep pushing. In almost every post I’ve seen from Kazuichi apologists, they explain that Sonia should’ve given him a chance. Really? She did give him a chance. She gave him several chances, in fact, more than she was entitled to. The first time she acted coldly towards him was at the end of chapter 4. That’s four entire chapters, plus a prologue, of chances that she gave him. She was always polite and talked to him when he approached her. Maybe she saw this as her noble duty, but either way, she didn’t reject him outright the first time she saw him. She tried to be friends, he was creepy, and then she started to hint that she wasn’t interested. This is a natural progression for her character and is in no way wrong of her. He is not entitled to her attention and should learn to back off when he’s not wanted. The other big reason I see that people don’t like Sonia is because she basically ruined any chance of Kazuichi and Gundham having any sort of relationship other than rivals. Again, it’s not Sonia’s fault that they both liked her. It’s also not her fault for choosing Gundham over Kazuichi, since he treated her respectfully and they also shared interests. She also didn’t need a specific reason to choose Gundham over Kazuichi, because she is free to make her own choices based on anything she wants, including nothing. Even though I said all of this, I do actually wish that Gundham and Kazuichi could’ve had some kind of relationship. I think it could’ve been very interesting, but it didn’t need to be devoid of Sonia. I think it would’ve been just as interesting for Gundham and Kazuichi to talk with Sonia as it would’ve been for her to introduce them to each other more formally and get them to become friends. I think it could’ve been fun for Kazuichi to have a little playful resentment towards Gundham for getting the girl, but instead, he went completely off the deep end. If he had just backed off like I suggested earlier, maybe they could’ve had that relationship that everyone longed for. I am also obligated to say here that I think all of his free-time events were absolutely adorable and the fact that he gets motion sickness is the single best piece of comedy every written.

Teruteru Hanamura- I’ve been doing a lot of rants and I’m kind of tired of it. You know why I don’t like him, I don’t need to explain it. He’s shitty, blah blah blah. His tiny bit of plot with his mother didn’t really do anything to redeem him for me and I just plain don’t like him. Sorry, not sorry.

Wow, this took way too long. I forgot I had so many opinions on these characters. I would’ve said a lot more about Gundham, but it’s kind of my thing here to say more about my second favorite characters and characters that I don’t like than my favorite characters, and I knew there were going to be several rants, so I decided to keep his very short. My definitive favorites list is Gundham and then Sonia, with a pending Fuyuhiko in third. The four dark devas are the best characters and I’m so upset they weren’t on here. I would apologize for my Kazuichi rant, since it had two parts, both of which were very long, but it all needed to be said because I’m sick and tired of Kazuichi apologists. They keep coming across my dash and I would like to be rid of them. If you like Kazuichi, that’s fine, I actually quite like him, too, you just need to acknowledge his faults instead of just rationalizing them in a bad way. If someone wants to send me reasons why Sonia is terrible, I’ll listen, because I’m sure I’m probably being a bit of a Sonia apologist, although I feel like her actions were a lot less impactful. Sondam supremacy, thank you, goodnight.

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mysterylover123 · 6 years ago

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My Top 10 Todobakudeku Moments

mysterylover123

So a while back I did a post about the OT3 moments of Baku/Deku/Ocha, since i’d noticed a bunch of em. But since we’re in the Todobakudeku arc in the manga right now, I figured I’d do another one for the OT3, especially since I’ve made posts about Top 10 moments for each component (a whole whopping 40 in total for BKDK, since I had 2 lists of 20). These three are basically considered the three MCs of BNHA, and I may as well talk about the bits that throw ‘em all together.

BTW I’m pretty sure this current arc will add about ten more to the list so this is a preemptive strike for now.

#10. What about our extra lessons?

Episode 61 “Deku vs Kacchan Part 2″

What happens; After the big BKDK blowout, Todoroki takes the time to ask Bakugou if he’s still gonna have time for their extra lessons. Bakugo gets annoyed and yammers about how this has nothing to do with Shoto.

Why I Like It: Both Ochaco and Shoto throw their hats into the ring after the big blowout in terms of their role in the rivalry; on the one hand, this looks like Katsuki telling Shoto to butt out of their Rivalry bromance...but it still means we highlight Shoto’s place in this group, nonetheless.

#9. "Perceptive and Dense”

Chapter 217 “One for All and All for One”

What Happens: MANGA SPOILERS Shoto goes up to Deku to ask him about his new power and how he apparently lied to him about having multiple quirks. Deku comes up with a plausible lie, while Bakugo rolls his eyes at Shoto’s inability to get it.

Why I Like it: After a big BKDK chapter, where we see their new dynamic, Shoto again pops up to remind us that he has a stake in this part of the story: he has a connection to Midoriya, and now to Bakugo, that is important to his personal growth. Also it does, as fans pointed out, look like a shot out of TDBKDK doujin.

#8. Locker room Challenge & Obstacle Race

Episode 15-16 “Roaring Sports Festival”/”In their Own Quirky Ways”

What Happens: Shoto goes over to Deku and challenges him. Bakugou gets rather jealous of this and insists that Shoto “declared war on the wrong person”. Deku surpasses them both, coming in first place by jumping on their backs and riding the wave.

Why I like it: This is kind of the official ‘beginning’ of TDBKDK as a thing, since before this Todoroki just kinda exisited in tandem with the Wonder Duo instead of being a part of their rivalry thang. It’s not entirely clear how this triangle works - is Bakugou jealous because Deku picked another rival or because Todoroki isn’t interested in him? Is Deku more keen to surpass one or the other? Would Todoroki challenge Kacchan if Deku wasn’t connected with All Might? It’s not so simple.

#7. “How sad, Todoroki Shoto”

Episode 45 “What a Twist”

What Happens: Knowing that the LOV wants to kidnap Kacchan, Todoroki, Deku and some other people band together to save him. In the moment of his kidnapping, it’s both Deku and poor, frantic Shoto who fail to save him, highlighted by “how sad, Todoroki Shoto” and “Don’t come, Deku”.

Why I Like It: While everyone in Class A is protective of Bakugou in this arc, Todoroki and Deku go the few steps beyond into Shippy territory. Not only do we have Shoto take the time to express his concern for Deku in the ep before this, but we also have Todoroki’s uber-protective giant-ice-wall attack on Compress, Deku’s “Give him back”, and this final, devastating failure, to remind us of the reciprocal OT3-ness of them. Nicely played.

#6. Hideout Raid Arc

Episodes 46-50

What happens. Following the aforementioned failure, Deku and Shoto are among the most gung-ho of all Class A to go do the incredibly stupid and reckless thing and save him. When he is before them again, they both move in sync to save him, with Iida having to stop them both. Thanks to Deku’s planning, they succeed.

Why I Like It: Continued mostly from the appeal of the previous one, but this one has: Todobaku (Todoroki risking everything to save Kacchan), Tododeku (Todoroki and Midoriya moving in sync to save him) and of course BKDK all over the place (”I can’t help feeling I have to save him” “You’re the most concerned of all” “Don’t give up All Might”, etc.) It’s very nice and circular.

#5. Deku vs Todoroki

Episode 23 “Shoto Todoroki Origin”/chapters 38-40

What Happens: Midoriya gets furious at Shoto for holding back on him, because everyone else, including OP bosses like Kacchan, is using everything they’ve got to win. Channelling Baku, Deku refuses to lose, and eventually does the “Your power” thing, which makes Todoroki have his big epiphany moment and change forever. And throughout it all, we cut back to Bakugou, reminding us of his role in this whole thing.

Why I Like It: Well, obviously first and foremost because “DEKU VS TODOROKI OMG”. But for TDBKDK, this is another one that just keeps them all inside each other’s orbits in this pivotal moment. Bakugo is deeply interested and invested in Todoroki’s deal. BKDK show their mind-mates sync think when they talk together, like they just know everything. And of course it’s the #1 big TDDK moment. But significantly, the inspiration on Deku’s side is a very Kacchan-like moment of “take me seriously” from him.

#4. Bakugo vs Todoroki

Episode 25 “Todoroki vs Bakugou”/Chapters 43-45

What Happens: Where to start? Bakugou and Todoroki brooding over Deku in the prep room; Todo losing his spark post Deku-match and Baku being jealous, Baku yelling about how there’s no point in not doing better than Deku, Deku cheering Todoroki on to do his best and Baku appreciating it...it’s more like five moments but I’m counting it as one.

Why I like It: So much TDBKDK vibe in this one. Bakugo needs to do better than Deku and wants respect from Todoroki. Deku wants Bakugo to get his respect and Todoroki to take care of himself. Todoroki feels guilty for hurting Bakugo and comes alive at encouragement from Midoriya. They all kinda benefit from each other in ways that go in all 3 directions.

#3. Wanna come intern with me? (MANGA SPOILERS!!)

Chapter 242 “Merry Christmas”

What Happens: Todoroki notices how Midoriya and Bakugou both have nowhere to intern. He offers to let them come learn from the #1 with him.

Why I Like It: This one is pure, fanservice-y fun, though it did set the direction for this new arc. But while there isn’t too much BKDK in this one, outside of their posing, Todoroki noticing his two bfs issues and offering them a way out is just pure peak Shoto. He’s so nice, ya’ll, and he cares so much about both Deku AND Kacchan at this point. If you don’t believe me on that one...

2. Training with these Guys (MANGA SPOILERS)

Chapter 247 “Progress Check”

What Happens: Todoroki, relaying his backstory after Deku and Kacchan already gave theirs, explains how his entire perspective was changed “by fighting with these guys” - not just Midoriya, but both of them. He makes it very clear that they’ve changed his life.

Why I Like It: This chapter also has some bKDK-y goodness in it too, since Baku flashes back to his adorable childhood with Deku in his motivation monologue. But here, Todoroki firmly establishes how much both characters mean to him, how they’ve affected him. I love that little correction, too, as he reminds himself there’s other people he cares about too.

BONUS:

#1. Todoroki’s Backstory

Episode 19/Season 2 Episode 6 “The Boy born with Everything”/Chapter 31

What Happens: Todoroki tells Deku his backstory and Bakugo overhears.

Why I Like It: I’m a big sucker for “I know your secret” stuff. This one has Todoroki opening up to Deku about his tragic life, which Bakugou also over hears, making these two the only people who know what Todoroki’s real deal is and therefore able to help him through with it. Bakugo followed them there, either to follow Deku or Shoto or really both, and gets a wake-up call from hearing the extremes this can bring. Deku thinks of Kacchan when he thinks of “those who have helped me” and tells Todoroki the best version of his backstory he can. It’s just...such a reciprocal moment.

#todobakudeku #todobaku #bakudeku #katsudeku #tododeku #shoto todoroki #katsuki bakugou #midoriya izuku #todoroki x bakugou #todoroki x midoriya #midoriya x bakugou #top 10

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wonderfulworldofmichaelford · 5 years ago

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Psycho Analysis: The Grinch

(WARNING! This analysis contains SPOILERS!)

What can be said about the Grinch that hasn’t already been said a million times by a million different people? The Grinch is easily one of the most iconic Christmas characters of all time, up there with the likes of Scrooge, and he even has a similar character arc in which he learns the true meaning of Christmas and becomes a better person. The original Chuck Jones animated short has gone down as one of the most beloved Christmas specials of all time as well as one of the best Dr. Seuss adaptations ever (if not THE best), and it gave the Grinch his iconic theme song which every other adaptation has seen fit to use.

The Jim Carrey live action take and the Illumination version which featured Benedict Cumberbatch in the title role both tried to bring a fresh take to the world’s most beloved classic Christmas curmudgeon, but did they succeed in making him entertaining and engaging as a villain is the real question?

Actor: In the original Chuck Jones short, none other than Frankenstein’s monster himself, Boris Karloff, portrayed the Grinch, but this is mostly due to the fact he was the narrator of the story and the Grinch is the only character who really speaks due to the tale being mostly shown from his POV. Still, let’s not pretend like Karloff isn’t the definitive voice here, especially considering his competition.

Carrey and Cumberbatch are both good actors, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t think they really do the Grinch all too much justice. Carrey, bless his heart, at least comes fairly close, with his Grinch being in line with the original, but at the same time this is a comedic Carrey character coming off of his 90s run as a wacky comic actor. Carrey injects that manic Carrey energy into the performance, and while I think it’s a good performance, I don’t necessarily find it to be a good Grinch,

Cumberbatch faces a similar issue, not helped by his decision to use a weird American accent as opposed to his natural British one, leaving his Grinch sounding like a nasally dork. Again, he doesn’t do a terrible job by any means, but his performance certainly does nothing to convince you the Grinch is a mean, rotten soul.

Motivation/Goals: The Chuck Jones Grinch sticks to the original book to a fault; the Grinch is just a cranky jerk who hates Christmas for some inexplicable reason, and so decides to ruin it for everyone out of petty spite. Yes, it lacks any sort of depth, but the Grinch is a character from a children’s book and he just puts so much darn effort into his plan that it’s really easy to forget he’s just doing this because he is just a miserable bastard.

The two other attempts at the Grinch have gone a long way to giving him some sort of tragic backstory explaining his hatred for Christmas. And… I actually really like that. Yes, yes, villains can just do villainous things because they’re jerks, but I do appreciate the other adaptations attempting to do something interesting with the character and make him a bit more engaging in a feature-length product. In the Jim Carrey film, the Grinch becomes bitter and evil due to a childhood of constant bullying, while the Benedict Cumberbatch Grinch was a lonely orphan who never got to celebrate Christmas. While obviously it’s up to the viewer to decide whether or not these backstories add any sort of interesting element to the Grinch’s hatred of Chrtistmas, it’s hard to deny that it makes a bit more sense than the Grinch suddenly and randomly deciding after half a century that this Christmas was going to be the last ever.

Personality: While this section of Psycho Analysis is going to be semi-retired, the three Grinches are actually a perfect example of where examining the personalities of the characters can actually show a lot about the overall quality. Obviously, the original Grinch is exactly what a Grinch should be, at least in my eyes: a bitter, miserable curmudgeon who takes great joy in bringing misery to others with his selfish, senseless acts of holiday thievery. He’s a mean one, Mr. Grinch.

The Carrey Grinch does still have these elements, but it’s a bit outshone by Carrey’s hammy performance. His Grinch is about as wild as Ace Ventura or the Riddler, and while hammy villains are always fun – and there’s no denying the Grinch is – it makes it a lot easier to see him eventually turning to the light side, especially since he’s actually shown to have some redeeming qualities.

These issues are continued into Cumberbatch’s Grinch, and in fact here the problems peak. Cumberbatch’s Grinch from the start comes off as more as mildly irritated jerk, yet one who really doesn’t seem evil at all, and as the story continues he seems far more like a depressed, unhappy man with undiagnosed mental illness who is suffering due to childhood trauma. You don’t want to say this guy has termites in his smile or that he’s slippery as an eel or that you wouldn’t touch him with a thirty-nine and a half foot pole; you just want to give him a hug and tell him that things are going to get better. He just seems like he needs a friend, not a total life-changing epiphany.

Final Fate: We all know how it goes; his heart grows three sizes and he learns the true meaning of Christmas. Each of the adaptations keeps this in, though obviously to diminishing returns as each successive adaptation has made the Grinch nicer from the get-go in some regard due to the tragic backstories and whatnot.

Best Scene: At least for the original, his best moment is, of course, the montage during “You’re a Mean One Mr. Grinch,” in which we get to see all of the slippery ways this green meanie is ruining the holidays. Of course, this is matched by the epic moment at the end where the Grinch gains super strength from his heart growing three sizes and lifts the sleigh of stolen goods, which is equally awesome whether it’s te animated one or Jim Carrey doing it.

Cumberbatch’s Grinch manages to have a different moment to call his best: after he has redeemed himself, he gets invited to dinner in Whoville, and the scene where he nervously goes to the house and makes small talk is just very sweet and endearing. It’s easily the best scene in the movie and shows that even watered down there’s still plenty of heart to be mined from this timeless tale.

Final Thoughts & Score: I think that the fact that the Grinch is constantly being reimagined is a sign at how impressive and enduring he is as a character, and he’s easily the greatest Christmas villain of all time (with apologies to Hans Gruber, Mr. Potter, Burgermeister Meisterburger, and Kirk Cameron). The original special is obviously the definitive portrayal of the character, to the point where the Grinch became a household name and got himself two more specials, one in which he once again terrorized Whoville (this time with a wagon filled with nightmarish hallucinations) and one where he faced off against the Cat in the Hat, the latter being especially notable for beating Zack Snyder to the punch at making “Crossover Versus Movie in Which One of the Title Characters Is Redeemed By Mentioning His Mother” by 34 years.

The original Grinch even effected himself; his iconic green, almost goblin-like appearance was a departure from the book, where he sort of resembled a more mischievous Who, and it has ended up sticking for the character ever since. Throw in that iconic villain song about how foul he is sang by Thurl Ravenscroft AKA Tony the Tiger, as well as the fact that “Grinch” is up there with “Scrooge” as shorthand for someone who hates Christmas, and it’s easy to justify letting the Chuck Jones take on the Grinch steal not only Christmas, but an 11/10.

Carrey’s take on the character is different, but not bad. I’m not going to say it’s good either, though; I still think Carrey hammed it up too much and just let loose his manic energy. And it’s really weird, because I have a soft spot for the film and I love the performance, and I think the insane energy of Carrey’s performance is what elevates the film and has helped it become a sort of holiday cult classic, but I think that it kind of misses the point of how the Grinch should be. It really boils down to the usual thing with these adaptations that try and add complexities to characters that just work better when they are simple: Jim Carrey’s Grinch is a great, fun character, but he just isn’t a great Grinch. Still, the makeup and costuming is so amazing that I’d feel like a Grinch myself if I stole too many points, so I think a 6/10 is a solid score for a performance that manages to be a bit above your average villain.

And then we get to Cumberbatch. I’m just going to say it: I barely consider his Grinch a villain. He’s just too nice and sad and cranky to really be evil. Sure he has wacky inventions, sure he is a bit passive aggressive to the Whos, but god this guy is just not mean enough. The fact he can just walk into town and interact with the townsfolk and they don’t even bat an eye says a lot about how watered down and toothless this take on the character is. Not helping is the safe, soft design Illumination gave him, as well as Cumberbatch’s weird American accent. Still, I don’t think this Grinch deserves worse than a 4/10 when it comes right down to it. In this case, it’s more that what’s interesting about him as a character saves him from sinking any lower than just being subpar as opposed to the problem with Carrey being that what made him interesting as a character made him less appealing as a Grinch. This guy does still try and steal Christmas, after all… It’s just that he’s so nice to begin with that you really aren’t too shocked when he does end up turning over a new leaf.

While it’s obvious the Grinch has had his ups and downs over the years, the fact he is such a legendary figure and an enduring cultural icon really says a lot for his staying power, as well as that sometimes a simple villain that lacks any complex motivation beyond “he’s a jerk” can really resonate with people. Maybe all of these other adaptations don’t quite measure up to the original animated special, but they don’t need to; it’s just interesting to see what different visions for the Grinch look like from different creators. Whether it’s good or bad, one thing is for sure: he’s a mean one, that Mr. Grinch, and we all love him for it.

You know what we don’t love him for, though? His dental hygiene.

Merry Christmas!

#Psycho Analysis #The Grinch #how the grinch stole christmas #Dr. Seuss #Chuck Jones #Boris Karloff #Jim Carrey #Benedict Cumberbatch

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beevean · 5 years ago

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So I’ve finally given up and I started watching She-Ra, I finished season 1 yesterday

I’ve always avoided it because the fandom... really did nothing to make it look appealing to me. And, I was half-right?

(disclaimer: I am not judging the entire show, I’m sure it will get better in future seasons)

The writing is so weird. It excels in interpersonal relationships, which is the most interesting part of a story to me. People have written essays on Catra and Adora’s relationship, and I have little to add. Glimmer and Angella is a great representation of a troubled but loving mother/daughter relationship! The friendship between Adora, Glimmer and Bow, while a bit rushed, is lovely and they bounce one off the other in an endearing way. The whole dynamic between Shadow Weaver, Adora and Catra is intriguing as well as painful, and I really want to see, what pushes SW to be so obsessed with Adora and so hateful towards Catra?

I also love the main villain trio. As sad (and unexpected, although I should have guessed it) as her face-heel turn was, I’m happy Entrapta became one of the bad guys, because I fell in love with her the moment I saw her and I’m glad she gets to be part of the Interesting People gang (and I’m going to be mean and say she’s a better writter Peridot don’t @me). Scorpia is adorable but quite creepy when she wants to be and I love the dissonance, and once again I don’t need to explain why Catra is such a great antagonist. I feel about her like I felt about Bojack, constantly torn between rooting for her and screaming “what the fuck are you doing you absolute idiot”.

I still don’t know how to feel about Shadow Weaver and Hordak, mostly because it’s obvious there’s more than meets the eye. The first one spent half of the season being so Obviously Evil that I found funny how Adora never questioned her (made worse by how quickly she deflected), but then she gradually revealed some weaknesses and by the end I almost felt sorry for her so... we’ll see? Apparently she becomes more sympathetic later. I haven’t seen enough of Hordak, but he seems far more reasonable than SW so he’s probably going to be a good villain.

And then everything else goes from average to mediocre.

The plot itself made me realize how many tropes we moved away from - the Chosen One, the Magical Sword of Destiny, pastel princesses... It’s not the writers’ fault the story is so dated, but it needs something to shake it up, and so far there’s been little of it - the most interesting part of the lore is whatever happened to Mara, and the implications of the She-Ra identity. Some of the plots themselves have been a bit on the cliché side - the hero that doesn’t know how to live up to the village’s expectations, the protagonist making a fool of themselves because nobody believes them, the whole “normal people can be useful too!” moral that other cartoons did in a more subtle manner... the only cliché I forgave relatively soon was Entrapta’s Disney Death, because as the next episode showed, it wasn’t us that were supposed to believe she was dead, the protagonists were.

The heroes themselves are... okay? Glimmer got a scene where she revealed the depths of her angst, and I’m a simple person, I see a child feeling like they disappointed their parents, I immediately connect to them (hello Amethyst and Bojack). But so far, Adora and Bow are far less interesting.

Adora is like a tamer version of Korra and Aang - as soon as I saw her and her ponytail I was like “she’s going to struggle with her new identity of savior of the universe because she doesn’t feel worthy”, and, well so far I’ve been right. I do find interesting how she keeps referring to She-Ra as her own separate identity while it’s clear it’s still Adora but in a fancy costume, but so far they haven’t explained why yet (there was a chance to create a disconnect between Adora and She-Ra in that episode with the robot virus, I was so sure they were going for a corrupted, evil She-Ra, but for some reason they ignored it in favor of “shitfaced Adora”... okay).

I also wish they used the “raised by the Horde” part of her backstory more than for a couple of jokes - so far the clearest sign of her messed up upbringing is that she sometimes takes a military approach to things that don’t need it. I still can’t accept that she, SW’s golden child, took a few hours at best before accepting the fact that she was raised in an evil army and that is not her place. A protagonist raised by the “evil” faction is a really interesting trope, I was actually surprised it comes from the original She-Ra! I’d like to see more serious consequences of that.

Bow is... Bow. He’s a feminine Sokka. I like Sokka just fine so it’s not a problem, but I’ll wait for his moment to reveal his deep-seated angst. My money is on “I have no powers and I can’t compete with all these magical people”.

Anyone else is there. Perfuma’s “bloodthirsty hippie” personality was funny, but Mermista has a punchable voice that prevents me from liking her (she reminds me too much of Mai and I never liked Mai), Frosta... I don’t know, I found her irritating the first time I saw her but there are good reasons for her acerbic personality so I can’t be too mad at her, Netossa and Spinnerella apparently will become important in season 4, and Seahawk is just plain annoying - he has his funny moments, but unless the writers manage to write a character with an Awesome Ego, I can’t stand buffoons full of themselves like him. But again, this is just for now.

I must say, despite all the disappointing stuff, there is still something that pushes me to keep going. Maybe it’s really just Catra and Adora’s relationship. I really wish the writers ignored all the princesses lore and focused more on their messed up friendship, because that is easily the highlight of the show.

#spop #yes i'm two years late so you're free to ignore this #i just wanted to vent a bit

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gheckoe · 8 years ago

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JAMES’S CURATED QUALITY FANFICTION PRIMER

for @rev0lutions-of-ruin, who tumblr does not like letting me tag

foolish bird avoids ao3 for years and misses out on the Good Shit, but it will be okay! she has THIS now. ft. DUMB LONG-WINDED CAPTAIN AMERICA MOVIE EXPLANATIONS, because i don’t think you would watch those movies willingly.

lots of selection - pick and choose, but if you don’t read “out of the dead land” i will be very sad. just treat this as really weird queer genre fiction and you’ll be alright. fics with pornographic content are marked as such, but said content is easy to skip as long as you can pick up on the warning signs.

we’re gonna start with the funny stuff.

nanananana BAT-DAD! (no ships, just bruce being a dad. safe for work and hilarious,)

who needs therapy when you have microsoft excel.

tim drake (robin 3) is a transgender teenage disaster. and bruce wayne is just generally a disaster. (same series.)

okay, now let’s get kind of sad. but not TOO sad.

nananananananana BATMAN (and superman)

this one made watching batman vs. superman worth it. not quite. but kind of. it’s fantastic.

i forget what happens in this one but i know i enjoyed it!

snk? why this, james. why this.

bad show, i know, but. formative experience. i figured out i was trans by projecting my feelings onto jean kirchstein. (not sure how, that’s just what happened.)

this one is stupidly fucking huge, in first person, and still isn’t finished.

included by virtue of some weird nostalgia. it’s half a million words long. try the first few chapters; i can’t guarantee anything that happens. don’t fucking judge me.

boring, punch me in the feelings already. more angst!

STEVEBUCKY

i don’t think you’ve watched the captain america movies, so i will explain them.

the saddest, gayest shit you will ever see. will fuck with your heart, ideally! but (as per always), skip the porn. this fandom is really big on it. UGH.

BUT it’s based off of movie adaptations of comic books, so the backstory is... ridiculous. i will summarize it for you. (tumblr ate this so here goes again)

THE DYNAMIC/history/massive goddamn ship manifesto

two guys, sitting in the great depression, two feet apart because it’s not socially acceptable to be gay

steve: tiny, blonde, always mad and big on SOCIAL JUSTICE. gets into fights for SOCIAL JUSTICE, despite growing up in the great depression when SOCIAL JUSTICE was not a commonly-known phrase or a common thing. he’s a bit of a shit, and he gets into shit. with his scrawny lil fists. he has all sorts of chronic illnesses but somehow manages to survive in a time with shitty medicine, and grow up to get into MORE shit. likes art, but is (partially?) colorblind

also he’s VERY HEAVILY coded as trans.

bucky: taller, brown hair, very popular but secretly a bit of a nerd (loves scifi, and is good at math). likes dancing, girls, and getting steve out of situations that he’s clearly over his head in and talking shit about it after. a bit of a charmer, etcetera.

there are some good fics from this era (”pre-war”) but idk where they are in my bookmarks. will update later.

so wait, what happens?

bucky gets steve out of dumb situations (like fighting a guy for talking during a movie) for pretty much all of their life. childhood friends until after high school-ish.

BUT, bucky is either drafted into the us army (it’s wwii now) or enlists, and steve is left alone in brooklyn, new york, to get into shit, without anyone to bail him out or prevent him from getting into MORE shit. so he finally manages to lie his scrawny, ill ass into the army, and (as one does) volunteers to get experimented on by the american government.

wait, what the fuck

comic books, okay. don’t @ me.

steve manages not to die! he finds a really pretty, badass lady to bisexually fawn over in the army (peggy carter is a fucking miracle), the experiments are a success and he ends up BIG and cured of all his ailments and with superfast metabolism (no alcohol) and superfast healing. he’s made it! (he basically just got really fast, unrealistic HRT hahaha)

... except the army can’t replicate the embiggening process they did with steve because the scientist that did it got killed, and steve is made into a glorified prettyman mascot to sell war bonds, instead of going to punch nazis, which he would be better at. he is a terrible mascot.

meanwhile, bucky has a shitty goddamn time in the european theatre. it’s terrible. he gets kidnapped by the EVIL SCIENCE NAZIS and put in a freaky camp and experimented on, poor guy.

you said you ship them, right? they’ve barely interacted so far, man. what the fuck.

alright alright i’m getting to it

steve the dancing monkey (in his words) is doing a Morale-Raising tour in europe for the troops and they hate it and he hates it. he discovers that... oh shit... bucky and his regiment (?) have been kidnapped by HYDRA! (the science nazis.)

naturally, he of little training MUST go save bucky, because the people that actually know how to save people know that it would be pointless to try. but steve “dumb shit” rogers will do it his own damn self. don’t @ him either. it’s the 1940s so he doesn’t have a phone.

steve will walk to austria, if he has to!... but he actually just gets a plane ride there, from peggy carter the badass and some other guy who’s not that relevant right now.

he KICKS NAZI ASS, SAVES THE PRISONERS, and MAKES MEANINGFUL EYE CONTACT WITH BUCKY ONCE HE FINDS HIM IN THE EVIL SCIENCE NAZI EXPERIMENTATION ROOM. bucky’s so out of it that he barely even tries to question why his old friend is suddenly hot TALL.

steve and the lads walk back from austria, and he is a Bona Fide War Hero and not just a mascot. he has the stylish grime and everything. on the way, he realizes that the lads are pretty cool, and assembles a Diverse Crack Squad of Guys That Really Wanna Kill Nazis from the cool guys he just met. upon return to wherever they were earlier, steve is made a REAL CAPTAIN now, and his Diverse Crack Squad is at liberty to... go kill nazis.

bucky tags along. he is very handsome and talented at math, so he is a SNIPER and saves steve’s dumb ass (from getting shot by nazis, instead of getting punched in the face) like he used to. the Diverse Crack Squad gears up to take down THE WORST OF THE SCIENCE NAZIS, on a train in the mountains! they can change the course of COMIC BOOK WWII!

you said it was tragic. show me the tragic.

the TRAIN INFILTRATION does not go as planned, and bucky is knocked from the train and falls to his cold, painful, (presumably) death. steve can’t watch.

they catch a REALLY BAD SCIENCE NAZI, but it is a very hollow victory. steve goes and tries to get drunk in a blown-up bar where he hung out with bucky and they were really queer together.

the OTHER really bad science nazi now has a plan to BLOW UP COMIC BOOK NEW YORK! steven will NOT allow this to happen.

he’s also kind of given up on life. he has a flair for the dramatic, and also the ambiguously suicidal.

not that being ambiguously suicidal adds to the Dramatic Romance of this. it doesn’t, and that would be creepy. the point is that steve rogers has a LOT of issues, including the ones that science can’t cure.

this SPECIFIC PLANE is headed towards new york, full of explosives. steve manages to get aboard the plane... and doesn’t even try to escape. he crashes it into the water in the atlantic ocean, saying goodbye to peggy on the radio as it hits. he is also presumed dead. it’s... basically a suicide attempt.

flash forward seventy-some years.

wait, wasn’t he in the avengers?

steve rogers is found inside the frozen plane encased in ice in the ocean. he’s revived (super healing, woop) and... doesn’t say anything, because he’s really not up to expressing feelings.

he has a TERRIBLE time. all of his friends are dead or old and went about their lives without him, and he’s alone in a confusing new world. (but the food is better, vaccines are good, and no polio.) he’s not fantastic at making new friends, because, as shown by him and bucky’s entire relationship, he’s a bit of a sad introvert and just picks one person and... holds on.

blah blah avengers one blah blah, new team and fighting BAD THINGS. but steve is too angsty to make friends. he joins the new security organization that peggy founded, SHIELD, without really inspecting it that well because... he didn’t plan to be alive past flying the plane into the ice, much less in the 21st century. he doesn’t know what he’d do otherwise.

idk that sounds a little slow

he has DEPRESSION. it is a little slow. but it’ll pick up! (not emotionally.) now it’s very anti-establishment action flick. enter CAPTAIN AMERICA (2): THE WINTER SOLDIER.

steve makes a friend. actually, two! sam and natasha are wonderful, and they have some things in common. but steve obtains friendship while realizing that SHIELD is corrupt to the core and actually infiltrated by HYDRA, so he and his new friends have to... burn it to the ground. he “died” (or tried to) to stop HYDRA, and it’s still here and worse then ever. things feel pointless.

to make it worse, he’s fighting this creepily effective impersonal masked assassin on a bridge and oh fuck, oh fuck it’s bucky and didn’t he die years and years ago and his arm is METAL what happened to him, and he’s pretending not to recognize steve.

HYDRA is planning to eliminate sources of resistance for their new world order via shooting them from the air, so steve has to take one specific FLYING DEATHMACHINE down. he does, and brainwashed HYDRA bucky, the winter soldier, is there to stop him.

steve makes an appeal to emotions. “bucky stop you can’t do this”

bucky is confused, but he’s been programmed to do this.

steve tells his coworkers to JUST SHOOT THE DEATHMACHINE DOWN ALREADY, because he’s... given up again. he’s very talented at equating heroism with self-sacrifice/suicide. but he disables the DEATH part of the DEATHMACHINE without it getting shot down.

bucky has been trapped underneath a beam, but steve’s with bucky till the end of the line, even if bucky is brainwashed and lacking memories. steve drops his shield in the water and falls.

it’s another attempt to die. stop that, steve. go to therapy.

bucky doesn’t remember who he is, but he jumps after him. steve is very injured from his fight with bucky, and wouldn’t have survived the fall, but bucky drags him to shore and... leaves.

steve wakes up in the hospital with his new friend sam. they’re going to track bucky down, even if it takes forever.

ISN’T THAT FUCKED UP? isn’t that sad? it’s terrible. now, fics. most of them are after ca:tws, because that’s when the ship got popular. a lot of them center around Finding Bucky and Getting To Know Him Again.

there’s a lot of sappy sad let’s-teach-bucky-how-to-be-a-person-again-and-get-steve-to-be-less-sad but i like the ones that are like sad action movies, or sad queer movies, and less like sad romance movies. my bookmarks are a mess, so here’s the best stuff i could dredge up.

out of the dead land: this one kills me every single time. there’s something terribly cinematic about it. but, as fandom is wont to do, there’s porn near the end. skip that part. ew. it’s an introspective scifi action epic, with just enough identity issues to make you want to cry! READ IT, IT’S IMPORTANT.

this: alternate universe, sans steve “dying.” epistolary. sad, as far as i can remember. (i’d rec the rest of this series but i think it’s best if you read this one first?)

courtroom/media fic. what if the winter soldier got arrested after the movie? (cap fandom does this kind of fake-media thing very well. i just reread it. it’s still good.)

this one isn’t exactly groundbreaking, but it’s a different take on the fandom’s typical post-winter soldier bucky interpretation. quite short, 100% safe for work.

in this one, steve successfully gets drunk, makes some friends, and gains some coping skills. good for dark humour. there’s porn somewhere but i’m sure it’s easily skippable, otherwise i wouldn’t have bookmarked it. not 100% the best thing every but it’s pretty fun.

if you aren’t team s/b all the way then we can’t be friends, but here’s some other marvel stuff i guess

lesbians, ballet, feelings? it’s a rarepair but it’s pretty lovely. au, no background knowledge required. basically a beautiful indie film that’s kind of oscar-bait. you will like this one, i think. there’s probably porn somewhere.

trans black widow. (that chapter only, not sure what the rest is). not very well-written and i have terrible memory but i’m 75% sure it made me cry.

ENJOY! or try to. don’t feel obligated to. but please at least TRY out of the dead land, it is groundbreaking.

#teya #personap #fandom

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douxreviews · 6 years ago

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Twin Peaks - ‘Pilot’ Review

“Mr. Cooper, you didn’t know Laura Palmer.”

Twin Peaks is both cultish enough and popular enough that there’s a thrill every time one fan meets another—and those thrills aren’t too far between. When it premiered in early 1990, people went wild. Remember when we were all so excited about Lost? Move those conversations to the water coolers instead of the internet, add some hairspray, and that’s about it.

And just like that, it was gone. After the initial adoration, viewers quickly drifted away or were turned off by the more surreal aspects. When the show’s second season finished (completing a total of just 30 episodes), viewership was way, way down. The follow-up movie, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me did okay…and yet the die-hard fans remained as intense as only fans can be.

I only experienced those early days by proxy. I was deemed too young to watch the show (looking back, I agree with that decision, but it made me so angry at the time—if I could watch Murder, She Wrote, why not this?), but my father loved it. My father lets himself get involved in exactly one TV show at a time. Sometimes he picks a clunker—The Event was his choice in this past season, poor guy—and sometimes he strikes gold: 24, Twin Peaks, The Sopranos. Back in the day, he loved Twin Peaks enough to buy the soundtrack, which he frequently played on our family’s only CD player, in the living room. My pre-teen years were scored by Angelo Badalamenti. No wonder I turned out so odd.

My first real Twin Peaks experience was in high school, when the boyfriend recommended we watch the prequel (made after the episodes aired) Fire Walk With Me to prepare for seeing Lost Highway in the theater. FWWM was okay, given that I had no back-story (fore-story?), but Lost Highway was great. It appealed to my desire to dissect things. (Well, not living things. I’m squeamish.)

It took me five years to finally watch Twin Peaks, the series. The only copies in the town I then lived in were on VHS, rented from the tiny independent video store housed in a house. (When they went out of business, I owed them a late fine of $2. I still feel bad about that.) I promptly got the bug, watched the tapes as fast as I could rent them, and theorized like mad with the one person I knew who also liked the show, a kindly bartender. He explained the finale to me over strong drinks, and then I was done with the show. This was before the internet was fun, so it didn’t occur to me to look elsewhere for more theories and speculations, much less a fan community. I haven’t re-watched it in the many years since.

All of that backstory is by way of warning: I’m not a die-hard Peakean. In fact, I don’t even know if TPers have a name for themselves. That’s all information I could easily find out, now that I’m used to spending my days glued to a computer screen, but I’m oddly disinclined to eavesdrop on 20-year-old arguments, get tangled up in sides, camps, or even the dreaded ‘shipper wars that every show has. When I review this show, I want to watch the show and talk about the show. I don’t want to pick sides, start fights, or invest in a SuperDuperGold DVD set. Twin Peaks isn’t that kind of show for me.

What kind of show is it, then? The pilot episode doesn’t do justice to the delightful zaniness that is to come. Frost and Lynch shot the pilot, Lynch did a movie (Wild at Heart), and then Frost and Lynch began work on the first non-pilot episode. The pilot establishes important characters and a few of their relationships. It welcomes us to the town of Twin Peaks, pulls back the lace curtains a bit—but not all the way—and leaves me with a strange impression of humor-laced tragedy. In other words, even in the face of tragedy, people still make bad jokes, still have bizarre personality tics, and generally still live their lives.

That tragedy, of course, is Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee), who is found dead in the show’s opening minutes. Laura Palmer is screen-siren beautiful even in death, and just as inscrutable. We learn in the pilot that she is a homecoming queen who dates the football quarterback, a tutor, and a beloved daughter.

But for some reason, no one seems surprised that she is dead: At the end of the episode, her secret boyfriend James Hurley told Donna, Laura’s best friend, that “It all made some sort of terrible sense that she died.” Even before that, her mother’s panic in the morning when she can’t be found feels like she had been waiting for that moment for months, and her father, once warned of Mama Palmer’s panic, tells the sheriff that his daughter is dead, rather than the other way around. Even the opening lines, when Pete Martell tells Sheriff Truman “She’s dead. Wrapped in plastic,” the first question isn’t “Who?” but “Where?” When Donna (Lara Flynn Boyle) and James (James Marshall) see the police at school, their first thought is of Laura, and their first reaction is to cry.

The overall impression is of a town, and a girl, on the brink. Laura finally tipped over into something—shocking but not surprising itself. The town, meanwhile, continues on its way for a while, but might never be the same. With a population just over 50,000, Twin Peaks may be “a town where a yellow light still means ‘slow down’ instead of ‘speed up,’” but the main industry is intrigue (with a healthy dose of tourism and logs).

And the intrigue industry is definitely impacting the tourist and log economies. The Hornes, who own The Great Northern hotel, are trying to con some Norwegians into building a golf course (with houses), but son Johnny has “mental issues” and daughter Audrey (Sherilyn Fenn) is one breakdown away from a borderline-personality diagnosis. Meanwhile, Benjamin Horne is working with Catherine Martell to take down Josie Packard (Joan Chen), Catherine’s sister-in-law who inherited the mill. The Sheriff is dating Josie Packard, while his friend Big Ed (James’s uncle) is cheating on his crazy wife Nadine with sexy Norma (Peggy Lipton). Norma, of course, is Shelly Johnson’s (Madchen Amick) boss—and Shelly is married to a crazy truck-driving maniac who beats her and just so happens to come home with blood on his shirt after Laura’s death.

While the adults play those games, the teenagers follow suit. Laura was dating Bobby in public and James in private; Donna was dating Bobby’s best friend Mike in public and falls for James in the pilot. Bobby and Mike, unfortunately, are terrible actors: I sometimes wonder if the director just said, “Give up acting! Just stare and vibrate a little without blinking!” This makes their teenage rages and exaggerated misbehavior all the more disturbing, as they seem just like the cartoon villains one would find on a Lifetime special. No wonder Donna’s dad doesn’t let Mike in the house.

In life, that was Laura’s world. Now that she’s dead, her place in that world—and whatever else it might encompass—has to be discovered by a hero, a man who should need no introduction, the greatest detective who ever lived: Special Agent Dale Cooper.

Special Agent Dale Cooper is a straightforward man who appreciates good coffee, good pie, plain speaking…and absolutely loves the process of detection and discovery. In the pilot, some of his smiles seemed horribly inappropriate, until I realized he was So Very Happy that he had found a clue—he is certainly not haunted by Laura Palmer’s death, at least not in any traditional sad-detective way. How he will come to relate to Laura and the circumstances of her death is one of the main arcs of the series.

How the town relates to that death and those circumstances is equally important. In the pilot it emerges that Laura did not die alone: Ronnette Polanski lived through whatever rape and torture killed Laura, but remains comatose. Ronnette gets short shrift in the town’s imagination, perhaps because the cast of characters the show focuses on knew Laura better, perhaps because Ronnette was working-class and Laura came from Twin Peaks’s small aristocracy.

In the pilot, the town is like a live wire. When the kill site is discovered, there’s a quick shot of the train car surrounded by men who aren’t police officers, holding rifles as though they expect the killer to still be inside. The pilot effectively captures the way each member of a small community can be struck differently but with equal virulence by the same tragedy. Likewise, it introduces the idea that no one can really know Laura Palmer, not James the secret boyfriend who claims she wasn’t acting like herself, perhaps not even Donna who claims to know her better than Laura realized. And if we can’t know Laura, perhaps we can’t know anything that’s going on in this tiny town.

Bits and Pieces

• Quick shout-out to the folks at the Sheriff’s Station: Lucy, Andy, Hawk. We’ll see more of them.

• Dr. Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn), wacky shrink, was rubbing a very inappropriate place on his hula-dancer tie.

• Crazy Nadine seems to have a fixation with her drapes.

• The severed moose head on the table in the bank. Yep, it’s a David Lynch TV show.

• Zooming in on an image to catch a reflection of the person taking the film is equally Lynchian, as are the flickering light in the morgue (symbolizes a reality-shift or a personal satori) and the stoplight.

• Diane, to whom Special Agent Dale Cooper dictates his every move and every thought—I do not envy your job.

Clues?

• Laura’s diary entry for a few weeks previous said she was “nervous about meeting J tonight.” Who is J?

• Cooper says that the letter “R” under Laura’s finger matches her case to that of Teresa Banks, a year ago in another part of the state.

• Laura’s half of the broken-heart necklace was found in the traincar on a mound of dirt with a scrap of paper on which was written, in blood, “Fire walk with me.”

• Ronnette Polaski advertised her services in Flesh World, and Laura kept a copy.

• According to James, Bobby had told Laura that he’d killed someone.

For all its atmosphere, the pilot episode of Twin Peaks does not give an accurate picture of where this series is headed—and, trust me, it’s going to some very weird places. Having said that, it does a very impressive job of establishing relationships both covert and overt, and focusing on the two emphases of this show: Laura Palmer and the town itself. The final shots, of an unidentified hand taking James’s half of the heart necklace from the woods, of the stoplight, and of Mrs. Palmer’s sudden screaming as though she has seen something—in the living room? The scene in the woods?—are just a hint of the mysteries to come.

Three and a half out of four Douglas firs.

(Let’s try to keep spoilers for future episodes out of the comments. There might be someone out there who still doesn’t know who killed Laura Palmer.)

Josie Kafka is a full-time cat servant and part-time rogue demon hunter. (What's a rogue demon?)

#Twin Peaks #Dale Cooper #Laura Palmer #David Lynch #Mark Frost #Twin Peaks Reviews #Doux Reviews #TV Reviews #something from the archive #29 years old today

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cromulentbookreview · 6 years ago

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Quarantini Time!

Or: Quarantine: a Love Story by Katie Cicatelli-Kuc!

Poor, anxious Oliver is just wrapping up a Spring Break volunteering trip in the Dominican Republic. He just wants to go home, attend a party and somehow work up the courage to ask a girl out. Flora just spent the past week on a disastrous visit to her dad and her airheaded stepmom. Flora and Oliver find themselves on the same flight home from Punta Cana to Miami, and from there, back to NYC. Because they both live in Brooklyn, obviously.

Sidenote: a message to Brooklyn from the people of Portland -

And now back to the book review.

Oliver, unfortunately, gets stuck to some guy who is visibly sick, aka every fliers worst nightmare. In an attempt to get away from the obvious disease vector, he moves one row back and sits right next to...you guessed it, Flora. Sparks fly - she calms him down while he has a panic attack on the flight, she thinks his eyes are like a cool breeze. He finds her refreshingly forthright and honest.

Meanwhile, I’m sitting there reading all of this like:

There’s just one problem: the flight attendants take notice of obviously sick dude, whose backstory, name or anything like that we never learn. They call the CDC, because apparently there’s a new, fun, mutated form of infectious Mononucleosis. Gotta love that Epstein-Barr virus! But this isn’t your average mono, this is tropical mono. It’s tropical, which apparently, with diseases, makes it worse. Seriously, how come we always act like diseases from the tropics are somehow scarier or worse? There are plenty of diseases you can catch in the Northern Hemisphere that are super scary. Like the hantavirus. Or an infection with Naegleria fowleri. Also, you can catch leprosy from an armadillo. We’ve had cases of Plague here in Oregon, yet another reason why I rarely stray east of the Cascades (sorry Central, Eastern and Southern Oregon, but...come on, Plague) or visit the desert (sorry, Arizona and New Mexico, but, come on, look at that CDC map!). Anyway...I had a point here but I’ve lost it. Anyway: mutant mono. Scary stuff.

If you don’t know about mono, you’re in luck! I happen to have a thing for infectious diseases, which I may have mentioned here before. Infectious mononucleosis, sometimes but almost never called “glandular fever,” known by most as just “mono” is an infectious disease caused usually by the Epstein-Barr virus, but some can be caused by other viruses (like the human cytomegalovirus) though those are in the minority. The Epstein-Barr virus is a virus in the herpes family and is a kind-of cousin to my arch-nemesis, Varicella Zoster, the virus that causes chickenpox, and, if you’re me at 24, shingles. You can get shingles at any age, people! And it hurts! Jesus H. Christ, it hurts! It’s like having a white-hot cheese-grater just scraping off your skin at all times. If you think you have shingles, go and get treatment right away, don’t just go “oh, it’s just mosquito bites” and over a week while it feels like your skin is melting off your body...

Uhm. Get your shingles vaccine, that’s all I’m saying.

So anyway, Epstein-Barr. It can cause a ton of different conditions, including a whole bunch of cancers. Most people have had an Epstein-Barr infection at some point in their lives and probably just mistook it for a cold or the flu. But with mono, what happens is you get a fever, a very sore throat, you feel tired as all get out, your glands - especially the ones around your neck - swell up...you know. Mono. Sometimes there are complications to mono, including what is probably my favorite word in the English language but something that doesn’t sound pleasant at all: splenomegaly. That’s just when your spleen swells up. Hurray for the spleen!

Mono is primarily spread through saliva. Like, if you share a drinking glass or kiss. Fun fact: I never got mono as a teen because nobody ever wanted to kiss me or share their drinks. Or be that close to me. Or even hang out with me. Yay? Only in rare, rare cases can mono be spread through other bodily fluids, like blood or semen, so...there’s that.

And now, once again, back to the book review.

Once Flora and Oliver’s flight arrives in Miami, the plane is greeted by none other than the CDC. Yay! Frankly, if I were on a flight that was greeted on the runway by the CDC, I would geek out so hard. The CDC puts all the passengers on a 24-hour hold to see if any of them develop a fever. While they’re going through their final checks, Flora impulsively fakes a fever. She does this by taking the thermometer out of her mouth and then rubbing on it while the CDC worker isn’t looking which...you know what, suspend your disbelief for a while, OK? As soon as it becomes apparent that she has a fever and needs to go into a 30 day quarantine, Flora kisses Oliver. As one does. Now they’re both going to be stuck in quarantine for 30 days. They’re given a room together because...reasons.

Once in quarantine, Oliver and Flora don’t have much to do other than just hang out with one another. Once Flora starts the hashtag #quaranteen on social media, though, she and Oliver become online famous. Suddenly Kelsey, the girl Oliver had been crushing on back in New York, has come down to Miami and is declaring herself to be Oliver’s girlfriend. Tension ensues! Will Oliver and Flora get sick? Will Oliver finally realize that Kelsey is the absolute worst? And will Flora and Oliver finally just get together goddamn it???

Quarantine: A Love Story is the wonderfully light and fluffy read that I needed in my life right now. The past two books I’ve read were both really sad and depressing - Internment especially takes on a whole new relevance now in light of recent events - so a happyfun YA romance about two teens in a weird situation that appeals to my weird love for infectious diseases was just what my brain called for at the moment. If you happen to know anything about medicine, though, er...don’t come in to this book hoping for a medically accurate depiction of quarantine. I happen to be one of those weirdos who has spent many, many years reading up on infectious diseases and quarantine/isolation treatment in hospitals. Why? Reasons. So there are a few times where I had to go aaaagh, they’re not called hazmat suits - HAZMAT is short for “hazardous materials” in medicine, you wear Personal Protective Equipment. PPE, people! Remember your PPE! Also, did you know the CDC has videos of the proper donning and doffing of PPE? Yup, they do. And it’s not like I haven’t watched all of those videos. I mean, I’m an adult, I have a life and a job and friends, I swear! I don’t spend a lot of my spare time reading about infectious diseases and proper treatments of infectious diseases...

Also, for some reason, in this fantasyland Quarantine, they let visitors take their phones into the room with them. And let the patients touch said phones. And they let their moms bring their purses in with them. Because...quarantine? I could put on my infectious disease nerd hat and go on and on and on about how that’s not how it works, but honestly, I don’t care. I didn’t come here for an accurate depiction of a hospital quarantine situation, if I wanted that, the CDC website is right there, waiting for me. I’m here for a cute YA love story about two teens in a weird situation. And to hate on that awful, selfie-obsessed bitch Kelsey. Yeah, we all know someone like Kelsey. She’s the worst.

But what I did love about this book was both its portrayal of anxiety, and the realistic depiction of how teens communicate. Plus, the romance is adorable. Team Floriver, bitches.

However, If you, like me, are super fond of learning about infectious diseases, go listen to This Podcast Will Kill You - it’s a fantastic podcast all about infectious diseases and probably one of my favorite podcasts, ever. (Go listen to their measles episode, it’s brilliant and sadly very, very timely, particularly for me, currently in the center of a full-scale epidemic caused entirely by stupidity).

In fact, if you’re wondering about the title of this review (if it can even be called a review, I haven’t really remained on topic for more than ten seconds) I shamelessly stole the Quarantini from This Podcast Will Kill You. The Quarantini belongs to the two Erins. A Placeborita is the non-alcoholic version of the drink, and since Quarantine: A Love Story is a YA novel, I figure I should make a Placeborita in its honor.

So, behold! The Quaranteentini!

Made out of the best non-alcoholic ingredients I could find in my kitchen while resisting the urge to add delicious, fruity vodka. (Hey, they are a local company, therefore I must drink it!)

The Quaranteentini:

Raspberry La Croix water

Lemon Juice

Grenadine

Lime Wedge

Garnish with gumdrops

Then add Huckleberry Vodka because I’m an adult. Best enjoyed with a general desire to forget the awfulness of the world and lose oneself in a cute teen romance.

RECOMMENDED FOR: Anybody in the mood for a book that is fun and happy and romantic.

NOT RECOMMENDED FOR: Infectious disease nerds and medical professionals.

SERIOUS BOOK REVIEWER RATING: 3/5

YA ROMANCE FANGIRL RATING: 500,000,000/5

RELEASE DATE: March 26, 2019

#quarantine a love story #katie cicatelli-kuc #scholastic #ya romance #ya fiction #ya contemporary #book review #mono #infectious disease #this podcast will kill you #quarantini #placeborita #mononucleosis #epstein-barr #quarantine #quaranteen #social media #anxiety in fiction #floriver

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amalgamezz · 8 years ago

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Re: Jumin Discourse | P1

Warning: Abuse TW, long post, heavy graphics content.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Submission by Anonymous

(Since you mentioned the fear of backlash, I’m gonna put you on anonymous. If you prefer any other way, please let me know.)

Hopefully you will take these into an account. As a survivor of an abusive relationship with a man who is almost scarily like Jumin, I get frustrated at Jumin stans for frequently making fun of and acting aggressive towards people who say Jumin is abusive or reminds them of an abuser. I didn’t even play Jumin’s BE2; his route alone made me feel so uncomfortable towards him and I grew to hate him even more. When I first started playing the game, knowing nothing about the game or characters, Jumin was my favorite. At face value, he seemed like my type - tall, dark, and handsome, likes cats, and gave off the impression that he would be the stern and reserved tsundere romance option who takes a while to admit his feelings for you. But boy, I was wrong.

I don’t think many people take into account how much Jumin controls your every move in his route. You don’t even get many options to tell him no to something, or that you feel uncomfortable. Like, I chose to never say the “I love you” option when it was available, but he decided you do anyway. He kisses you without your permission. There’s several points where the MC speaks to Jumin or about him as if he’s just a friend, while he is confessing his feelings for her and talking about how much he wants her. That’s very uncomfortable. Remember, you go to his penthouse in the first place as a concerned friend. Jumin is basically a “friendzoned” guy who has power and money and decides he wants this girl, so that means he talks for the both of them a lot of the time, proposes to her in front of a bunch of people giving her no room to refuse, talks about choosing her clothes, hair style, what she can and can’t do, who she can’t talk to (He expresses that he doesn’t want her talking to Zen at one point), and where she can and can’t go. Zen calling him out on his controlling nature in that chat (on Day 10 I believe) was exactly how I feel. But Jumin didn’t take it seriously, and says he’ll think about including MC in decisions more, only to promptly go propose to her without discussing it at all. In his after endings (both VDay and Good Ending after endings) she is basically his trophy wife who doesn’t do anything and stays in his penthouse all the time. That sounds horrible.

I felt like I had to say this because Jumin has so many “protect” blogs (while Zen has none - hmmm.) and is probably the most defended and over-analyzed character in the game. I barely see any Jumin hate, but I see a lot of people complaining about Jumin hate and making lengthy posts about why we should forgive all the shitty things Jumin does.

Honestly, his backstory is really not that sad. I would say it’s the least tragic in the game. The worst thing in his life is that he’s neglected emotionally. But he always says that the reason he acts rude and cold and callous is because he could never tell if people were being genuine or not because of who he is and his money. If that’s the case, why not actually be nice and caring to people so they have a reason to act genuine to you? He also is a huge misogynist, and talks all the time about how he hates women. He blames all the women that his dad goes through for their part in his dad’s affairs, but doesn’t really dislike his dad except for saying he doesn’t like his behavior? Why isn’t his hatred directed towards cheating and promiscuous men, instead of all women in general? He generalizes all women to be fake and gold diggers, save for Rika and MC. He doesn’t even see Jaehee as a woman - he’s said that specifically.

Honestly, Jumin’s behavior and character are extremely unlikeable, and I don’t think he’d be as popular if he wasn’t a conventionally attractive cis male designed to appeal to straight and bi women. The reason the whole RFA acts standoffish towards him is because his actions are terrible, and he acts like an overgrown privileged man child most of the time. The phone calls and conversations you posted of the RFA during Jumin’s route weren’t mean at all??? Literally most of them were saying “you need to put your own safety first. If you feel uncomfortable, leave. You don’t have to prioritize his feelings over your own.” Which is the proper response??? Like honestly if you’re mad about them all reacting that way - 5 characters (including V, because he tells Jumin he needs to stop) who are wildly different all thinking that Jumin is in the wrong and are worried about what he will do. That’s telling.

I hope you don’t take this too negatively; I felt like I needed to add this to the argument because it’s so one-sided right now in favor of Jumin. I’m not trying to change your opinion on him, I’m just hoping this will help you see other people’s point of view, especially those who are abuse victims. Because most of the time I’m afraid to post anything that’s anti-Jumin because I’m afraid of the backlash. You can like him all you want, but please don’t go around hating on people who dislike him because he makes them uncomfortable and/or is a reminder of past abuse. I just wanted to help Jumin stans understand where us abuse victims are coming from. We don’t have to agree, I just don’t want to keep seeing the aggression towards people who dislike Jumin anymore. It’s victim blaming.

First of all, if any of my posts gave you a vibe that I was mocking victims of an abusive relationship or victim-blaming, then you will have my sincerest apologies and I can assure you that I did not have any intention of doing that at all. Perhaps I was too salty about those who were blaming only Jumin for getting BE2 even though it was decided by their own choices, so I’ve inconsiderately used words that may be offensive to you. If that happens again in the future, please let me know so I will choose my words more carefully.

Please do know that I’m fully aware that Jumin’s Route is not for everyone. Different people will experience the same event differently due to their different past, background, or personality, etc. I’m sorry to hear that it made you feel uncomfortable. It would be a lie if I said I have never once had a moment where I arched an eyebrow at his actions.

Before I continue, I would like to straightforwardly clarify that I do not condone or ask anyone to condone any of these, as you said, shitty behaviors of his:

[HE] Control Issue:

[IS 100%] Control Issue/Possessiveness:

[FUCKED UP, FAM] Control Issue/Obsession:

His control issue, obsession, and possessiveness definitely need addressing. I’m not gonna make any excuse for him regardings this matter in this post.

Moving on. I can see why some people may feel uncomfortable or even remind of their abuser because of Jumin. But saying he himself being abusive? I genuinely cannot understand.

He does acknowledge his mistakes and keeps apologizing while you are there?

He might get paranoid but genuinely means no harm...

...and only wants to try his best to ensure your happiness.

He knows what he’s doing is wrong. That’s why he keep on fighting against his own mental illness just for you.

Side notes: Due to personal reasons, I can see where he came from and why he did what he did. But then it might come off as excuses to you, so I will just leave it at that. Again, I must stress that I do not encourage these fucked up behaviors of his or ask everyone for forgiveness. Whether you want to forgive him or not, you have the right to decide it. I’m only hoping you would understand that he sincerely does not mean any harm to you.

#jumin discourse #abuse tw #042017 #character analysis #unc.talks

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tumblunni · 8 years ago

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GODDAMMIT I CANT PICK A MARRIAGE

Rune Factory 4 why do you persist in having TOO MANY GOOD CHARACTERS I’ve narrowed it down to two but now i keep changing my damn mind again! I’ve decided I’m gonna see the marriages for the three characters I liked on different save files, but who should I marry first and go with for real on this save file?? i’ve run out of patience for waiting to pick a batchelor as the VERY LAST THING i do before I turn off the game, I need to do it now! I need to do it before I start this final bonus dungeon thing to rescue [spoilery dead character] from the afterlife. I WANT TO SHOW THEM MY CHILD WHEN THEY RETURN. And this game is SO LONG and cos of how semi random the skill levelling is, I dont think I’d have the patience to complete the same 20 so hours three times to complete all the savefiles, and it’d be really frustrating if I couldnt max out all the same skills on them :P SO YEAH GAHHH Need to FINALLY DECIDE between leon and dylas!

PROS N CONZ

Dylas:

* Has the most romantic chemistry in my opinion, and also my favourite main character after Arthur. (Tho I ended up not really feeling that ship so even tho hhe’s my fave batchelor he’s not the one I wanted to marry??) * is really fucking awkward adorable which is MY FAVE kind of ship! * also his romance route is primarily about cheesy romance rather than like.. lots of lusty flirty sexual attraction type stuff that I’m not really capable of understanding. * HAs a load of great character development and seems like he’d be the most happy to be with you. * is the coolest of the monster people, even if im still salty he doesnt look more like his monster form. They coulda just given him a unicorn horn and it would have brought the whole design together! * Marrying him would make me feel less salty sad that there’s no way to get him and doug to hook up when they are CLEARLY CANONICALLY BISEXUAL GEEZ * A minor con is that this would mean I have to play the rest of the game with the postgame cheat mode gay marriage thing switched on. Which could get a bit annoying since its just a character model swap and its a bit glitchy sometimes, but I like both genders of protagonist equally much anyway. i just feel slightly guilty thinking im somehow being disloyal to the one I picked at the beginning, but then again i literally only picked the girl because you cant romance dylas unless you’re the girl and GAHHH I was so happy to know you could cheat and have cheat mode gay marriage so IMMA GONNA DO IT * seriously its an option so i cant NOT take it * make up for lack of doug x dylas route by doing dylas x male protag * also dylas was the one I wanted to pick since before i knew anything about the game, he was my fave based on design alone and then his personality in his first scene was amazing and aaaa * also dylas’s romance route is REALLY TERRIBLE which is maybe a pro and maybe a con?? like.. i wanna marry him cos he had no plot and i wanna make it up to him, but i also DONT wanna marry him cos his route wasnt my favourite plot and aaaa why does my brain not make sense * also a pro: PORCOLINE * i get to officially marry into the restaurant fam! * i have literally got porcoline in my party right now while im holding the engagement ring, he needs to be there to see me pop the question! i just love this dad so much, i have to marry one of his kids * also I can pretend that arthur is still my friend and he isnt mad that i picked his brother over him and we can all be the best family ever

Leon:

* has the best and saddest romance route backstory thing that makes me feel so guilty if I dont marry him * is also my favourite design! like, dylas is the best monster but leon has the best human form design, i have no lil niggling complaints about how he looks like a wolf for no damn reason. * is the only bara character * ended up being surprisingly cute and genuine about his love and i actually really like the archetype of the flirty fake-playboy type guy who isnt the jerky playboy archetype but instead secretly adorable and shy when he falls in love for real! And its even better cos he’s a snarky overconfident trickster guy so its EVEN MORE CUTE when he drops his big facade and lets himself admit his emotions! * BUT admiteddly I still feel rather uncomfortable doing overly flirty innuendoy dating sims because I’m way too asexual to relate. I’ve had a few moments with leon where its just like... killed the moment kinda, and made me feel bad that im not the intended audience. This game makes me care about the characters so i feel just as awkward as when I’ve accidentally ‘led people on’ in real life in high school and had to super anxiously let them down. I just feel awkward even though I know that the character in-universe that I’m playing at probably isnt asexual, im still like ‘noooo i dont wanna trick him into a sexless marriage he wouldnt be happy aaaa’ * but also aaa he has the most chemistry with the female main character I think, he’s like the only one I think looks like a cuter couple with her, while I wanna ship dylas with the male mc. i just really liked a fanart I saw of them described as ‘fox and bunny’! thats totally it, her hairstyle just matches so well with an animal ears dude, and their colours have a good appeal together and stuff~ * Also i have more headcanons about what it would be like when they had kids and stuff! so thats a big appeal because getting to see the kid characters is the big reason i wanna marry a charrie * ALSO, its kinda... uhh... to put it lightly... well, Leon is literally the only dark skinned man in the entire world. SERIOUSLY. Rune Factory rarely ever has more than one character of a different race, and I just feel like if you’re gonna be so limited in your options I wanna pick that option like... maybe if they see they’re the popular ones then they’ll realise theyre making a dumb decision and add more racial diversity in future games?? or at least npcs?? seriously??? He’s not just the only dark skinned batchelor but THE ONLY CHARACTER IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. At least rune factory oceans had the whole dark elf race. (Tho that was weird that there’s apparantly no black humans in this world...)

GAHHH I DUNNO I JUST WANNA MAKE THESE DUMB BOYS HAPPY I wish i could have like a best friend option to select or something can I give a consolation prize... IM SORRY LEON OR DYLAS and IM SORRY ARTHUR and IM SORRY PORCOLINE IF I DONT MARRY YOUR SON

#why am i so bad at decisions #this game is designed to hit my anxieties #bunni plays rf4

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thewritinglist · 7 years ago

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Albums of the “Year”

It’s very limiting to list my favourite albums released in the last twelve months, because years are an arbitrary concept, invented by humanity, and I also struggle to get away from my comfort zone of a few bands I’ve obsessively listened to and mentally catalogued. So, here is my top ten albums of 2018. They’re not necessarily from 2018, but they defined my year.

10. After Laughter by Paramore

For a long while, Paramore existed in my cultural awareness as one song, and a post on this very site about how Hayley Williams once caused a tour to be cancelled by getting her teenage self grounded.

That’s an unfair assessment.

The one song was Still Into You, passed on as part of a mixtape made by a dear friend to celebrate my first anniversary with my girlfriend. But after hearing Fake Happy on the radio at my former place of work (I didn’t love The Co-Op, but I have to hand it to their DJs and their fine taste), I had to google some lyrics to find it. The twelve songs tell an often deceptively sad story underneath the jangling guitars and synths that throw you and Paramore back together to the eighties. I listen to the music for the lyrics, and Williams really excels in adding sadness in the tone and not as something yelled.

Best song - Hard Times.

2017 - Fuelled by Ramen - Pop rock

9. Silver Dollar Moment by The Orielles

I discovered the next two bands by a moment of delightful chance, when indie band Little Comets opened their twitter account to female fans on International Women’s Day, and one recommended these two.

Opening track Mango really nicely sets the scene for forty-five minutes of dreamily delivered indie rock, especially in Esmé Dee Hand-Halford’s vocals and bass. It’s the sort of music that makes me want to close my eyes and gently drift my head from side to side, which is why I have a soft rule to listen to it mostly in the comfort of a closed bedroom. Labelling anything indie gives an impression of competent but basic guitar/bass/drums, but The Orielles do much more than that, there’s an injection of funk and weirdness that occasionally brings to mind Talking Heads, if you played them at half speed, and replaced Byrne’s sudden manic energy with languid relaxation.

Best song: Mango

2018 - Heavenly Records - Indie rock

8. Love in the 4th Dimension by The Big Moon

The second chance discovery, The Big Moon are definitely more conventionally indie than their precedents in this list, but I like the simplicity of not adding too much to a song. This album blasts, first track Sucker building quickly and simply to a massive chorus, which is easy to imagine reverberating around Rescue Rooms or Rock City to a highly appreciative crowd.

But it slows, too. Formidable’s verses have a solemn quality, with imagery of a capsizing boat and vague references to “did she make you swallow all your pride?” changing the atmosphere to something more confrontational, before the chorus rugby tackles the subject, with still soft vocals.

Best song: Silent Movie Susie

2017 - Columbia & Fiction Records - Indie rock

7. Harry Styles by Harry Styles

“Have you listened to Harry Styles’ album?”

The same friend that brought me the Paramore song asked me this on a Texas road trip with my girlfriend, having grown understandably tired of my musical choices. I said no, with an implication of “of course not”, because he was a he One Direction guy, and I hated them and all they stood for.

That is a poor assessment of Harry Styles’ abilities as a songwriter and musician. His self-titled debut, such a classic going solo move, is a mature change-up from the former One Direction star. An aeon away from upbeat teen-pop, now Styles is singing maturely and softly about sex, not explicitly but provocatively in Carolina. The use of “Good Girl, she makes me feel so good” is not at all subtle, and the album often feels like these are ideas and feelings that Styles wanted to get off his chest. These are not One Direction songs, and much as the Harry Potter series mature as the books passed and readers aged, Harry Styles feels like an album aimed at One Direction fans who are growing less interested in the innocent, good boy image they’d cultivated.

The music is clean and engaging, but more complex than those previous recordings. In all, the album manages something tough: It reveals a former teen star’s true maturity without the need to scream it explicitly. It feels confident in its identity, which is an achievement in itself.

Best song: Two Ghosts

2017 - Columbia - Indie pop/soft rock

6. Mean Girls - Original Cast Recording

Mean Girls, the film, holds up. Comedy, as I’ve learned just across my time at university, is the first genre to age badly. Punchlines need a target, and our understanding and acceptance of who and what is allowed as a target is ever shifting. So for Tina Fey to ingeniously target not the cattiness of teenage girls, which is a cheap stereotype that the mainstream media still loves to find and blow up (see: the majority of Taylor Swift coverage), but rather the expectation that they’ll do that, and the mentalities of teenager in general, savvily keeps it fresh.

Mean Girls, the musical, opened in 2017 and moved to Broadway in 2018. Music is written by Jeff Richmond, Fey’s husband and collaborator on both the seminal 30 Rock and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Nell Benajmin provided lyrics whilst Fey wrote the book, and together they brilliantly recreated the quotable magic of the original. Fey’s credit is limited to the book but at times her voice is loud and clear in the lyrics. The dumbest plastic, Karen Smith, sings an ode to Halloween, which begins with her muddling over putting it before world peace as a priority, and builds to her love of costumes: “I’m sexy Eleanor Roosevelt or sexy Rosa Parks” is such a Fey joke, fitting of the film. It’s also delightful to hear some extra input on protagonist Cady’s initial best friend Janis (Barrett Wilbert Weed, the best performance), a wonderful character who has the backstory most ripe for exploration in any future works.

Hey, I managed not to say fetch.

Wait.

Damn.

Best song: World Burn

2018 - Atlantic - Broadway

5. Be More Chill - Original Cast Recording

Be More Chill is an honest story of teenagers and mental health. Adapted mostly faithfully from a 2004 novel by young adult author Ned Vizzini, the story is of Jeremy Heere, a high school loser whose initial goal is charmingly low-key. He just wants to be a bit less awkward and able to survive high school, but quickly decides to sign up for a school production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, following in the steps of his crush Christine Canigula, a theatre lover with, in her words, “A touch of ADD”.

It’s this detail that sets the musical’s story apart from the book. Mental health is a subtextual theme of the book, but Christine and her love of performing as someone else and occasional scatterbrain, makes it explicit. The main thrust comes when a jock named Rich offers Jeremy a Squip, AKA a supercomputer, taken as a pill, that invades your brain and tells you how to act and speak. It helps Jeremy enter the cool kids’ circle, but at the expense of his friendship with the proudly dorky Michael, who is delighted that humanity has stopped evolving because, in his words, “there’s never been a better time in history to be a looooooooooooooooser!”

In the final song, Voices in My Head, Christine and Jeremy finally bond properly over the voices they’ve both heard, and it completes a surprisingly moving story of mental health in a musical that is often bombastically big and ridiculous - the Squip is supposed to have Keanu Reeves’ voice. Joe Iconis’ music and lyrics are witty and engaging, perfectly fitting the clever and original novel, and the sadly departed Vizzini.

Best song: Michael in the Bathroom (George Salazar)

2015 - Ghostlight Records - Broadway

4. Worhead by Little Comets

Little Comets are the most exciting band in current music.

This is a bold claim, but I like to be bold. Little Comets, who hail from Jarrow in Tyne and Wear, write the most incredibly moving, lyrically dense and thoughtful songs you can find today. Every song on Worhead is affecting.

If you listen to their first album, In Search of Elusive Little Comets, the musical and lyrical progression in six years is astounding. The fun early indie rock has complicated and deepened, like a lake dug out from beneath its surface. By 2017, lead singer and writer Rob Coles’ grasp on lyrics had become masterful, and he uses images to generate feeling so well. The title and opening tack immediately point to a specific image: “Standing in a field of grass, looking for a blade of grass”. Coles is upfront about his political beliefs - a 2014 song titled “The Blur, the Line and the Thickest of Onions” explicitly denies and attacks the language of Blurred Lines, and their music is often loudly feminist. Worhead asks us “My sweetheart, can we lean more, to the left side, to the left side of everything”. À Bientôt angrily speaks to anti-migrant rhetoric from their perspective, even including the temporary sympathy caused by the image of the dead boy washed up on the beach, whilst Hunting is written from the smug, entitled view of Tory ministers, cutting, unafraid of retribution, safe from the consequences.

Density of ideas is a Little Comets staple, and the unapologetic thickness of the accents often need a trip to their website or Genius for understanding, but Coles also writes poetically when he pares his words down for romance. “Common Things” describes globetrotting, but in the context of not wanting it, because of the joys of being home, only needing an atlas under the mattress. Elegant domesticity is the only kind of love song that continually appeals to me. They are a continually astounding and unique band.

Best song:

2017 - The Smallest Label - Indie rock

3. Illinois by Sufjan Stevens

I hardly ever enjoy music purely for the feeling that the music imparts on me. Before I was listening to music critically, I saw an episode of Charlie Brooker’s excellent series Screenwipe, which discussed and took the piss out of all elements of television. In an advertising special, he mentioned that advertisers love music as it bypasses the logical part of your mind and is processed emotionally. There’s something romantic about that, but at the same time sometimes I wonder if that subconsciously put up mental guards, and I have to understand lyrics to understand the emotions.

Illinois is a rare exception.

Sufjan Stevens relased Illinois in 2005 and it serves as a sort of concept album about the American state. It covers points from its history: “Come on! Feel the Illinoise!” covers the historic World’s Columbian Exposition, and “John Wayne Gacy Jr.” is about the infamous serial killer and affords him almost shocking levels of empathy. Stevens later said that we’re all capable of what Gacy did, which is debatable.

But we’re all capable of the grief woven into Caismir Pulaski Day, which tragically tells the story of losing someone who died on the state holiday celebrating their Polish revolutionary war hero.

An independent singer songwriter with track titles as terribly long as “The Black Hawk War, or, How to Demolish an Entire Civilization and Still Feel Good About Yourself in the Morning, or, We Apologize for the Inconvenience but You're Going to Have to Leave Now, or, 'I Have Fought the Big Knives and Will Continue to Fight Them Until They Are Off Our Lands!'” seems like someone addicted to acoustic guitar, but Stevens utilises piano, strings and horns, especially effective in the aforementioned ‘Come on’. The album is vivid and alive, and is really a practical tie for second.

2005 - Asthmatic Kitty/Secretly Canadian and Rough Trade - Indie rock/folk

2. Masseduction by St. Vincent

This year, I made a real effort, admittedly only in September, to get into new music. Reading an interview with David Byrne, I was intrigued by his mention of St. Vincent, aka Annie Clark. Anyone who can engage David Byrne is worthy of attention.

Inside the striking image and colouring of the artwork, Masseduction was first introduced to me in the opening scene of Bojack Horseman’s fifth season, replacing the standard use of Back in the 90′s by Grouplove with Los Ageless. The song, Clark’s depiction of Los Angeles, feels bleak and distant, the electronic music giving an disconnected vibe. It’s her relationship to the city, and the album as a whole is a series of looks at relationships. Pills is about a relationship with drugs, the title track and Savior are about sex. Happy Birthday Johnny, both slower and acoustic, feel related, as though they’re both about the same person, Clark coming to terms with the sadness of that loss.

Masseduction is endlessly listenable. It spans various pop genres, with enough variety to reward many listens and picking on many of its songs to focus on individually. Pills really does feel like withdrawal, with pumped up verses, an almost manic chorus, and a suddenly balladish final section, where the tone becomes surprisingly sombre. It works, powerfully so.

Best song: Pills

2017 - Loma Vista Recordings - Electropop/Glam Rock

1. The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society (50th Anniversary Edition)

The Kinks released Village Green Preservation Society on the 22nd of November, 1968, which sounds fine until you learn that The Beatles released The White Album on the same day, spelling inevitable and crushing doom, and the permanent departure of founding bassist Pete Quaife from the band. Quaife, who had grown tired of the industry and the Davies’ brothers warring ways, scrawled ‘daze’ on a tape recording of Days. But he left on perhaps the band’s highest note.

I don’t know what else can be said about this album. Even if every song isn’t a standalone masterpiece, with the strange fairy tale of Phenomenal Cat and the childlike Mr. Songbird only working in context of stories of the past, but they form a collective that is masterful in painting a rich story. It has the delicacy of a great painting, something that former art student Ray Davies must appreciate. And it is so distinctly Ray Davies in its voice, something only he alone could have written. It was their first album after a still somewhat mysterious five year ban from American touring, then the only real form of promotion, but it dismisses the cultural shift towards psychedelia with an almost passive-aggressive tone.

The weighty re-release is fitted out with sixty tracks, but they’re largely alternative versions of songs from the original album and the recording sessions, many unreleased, including the finished Time Song, and a lovely demo of Days, that proves that Davies was always a better writer than singer, bless him. Harmonies with his brother Dave always lifted the words, but they stand alone, as short stories, brilliantly formed.

VGPS contributes to their stereotypical image of proud Britishness, but there’s a look to the future and underlying sadness that add depth to the album. The original final track’s closing lyirc?

Don’t show me no more, please.

1968/2018 - Pye Records - Folk Rock

#music #music criticism #best of 2018

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