#and i never saw it and i never intended to! so!!! epic | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

apomaro-mellow · 23 days

Text

King and Prince 30

Part 29

Steve wasted no time appearing in town to challenge Jason. Eddie accompanied him, keeping a low profile as the horse he rode on again. Steve dismounted when they got to the butcher’s shop and Jason came out immediately as if summoned. He probably just saw them through the window the moment they arrived.

“Well look who decided to grace us low folk with his presence.” Jason’s apron was bloody and he was wiping it off his hands also.

Steve’s expression was stony. “Did I ever make you feel low? Even when we were alone?”, he asked.

“I always knew there was something off about you. That alone was enough.” Jason tossed the red stained cloth over his shoulder. “Why are you here?”

“I want you to rescind your blasphemous lies. I am no longer an agent of my homeland. I didn’t come here intending to invade this kingdom.”

People began to gather, first because of the brilliantly black horse, so rich and fine, then because of Steve who was equally fine. Folks began to murmur, speculating that this was the man who had their king so enamored. Jason was good at both gauging a crowd and turning them to his favor. And he saw opportunity.

“What happens if I refuse? I haven’t been shown any proof to the contrary.” Then he projected his voice. “Will you smite me? Or will His Majesty? If I’m wrong, reveal it to be evident. But if I am simply silenced, everyone here will know your true face.”

Steve’s frown deepened. “Will you not seek a more honorable path?”

“And what, pray tell, is the more honorable path?”, Jason questioned as his parents stepped out, curious about the wealthy looking man on their porch.

“I challenge you, Jason Carver, to a duel”, Steve said.

Jason smirked. Something about it reminded Steve of a predator. But he stood strong. The best man would win and that was him. Jason held out his hand, smears of blood still on it.

“I accept.”

Steve held his own hand out and shook it. But then Jason didn’t let go on the downswing as the crowd’s whispers began to rise. Steve tried to pull his hand back but Jason held firm. He took too many steps forward until he was in Steve’s space.

“You’re going to regret this.” He was grinning still until the horse whinnied and pushed his head threateningly between Steve and Jason, causing Jason to rear back.

“Easy, easy, I’m fine”, Steve soothed, petting the horse’s snout. He continued to shush them as he got on its back. “A messenger will be forthcoming with the details.”

----------------

The duel was set for a week’s time and in the following days, Eddie unfortunately saw Steve less and less. It wasn’t for lack of trying too. When he heard that Steve was taking on knights in the training room, he had come right over, gift in hand. They were gloves for his lovely hands so that he would never need to touch the likes of Carver ever again.

But before he could even enter, Dustin barred him, hand in his face.

“You can’t come in”, Dustin said.

“And why on this green, verdant earth, not?” He wasn’t in the mood for whatever Henderson was playing at.

“Steve told us he can’t be distracted while he trains.”

“I wouldn’t be a distraction”, Eddie argued.

“He specifically said, ‘if Eddie comes, don’t let him in’”, Dustin echoed.

“Mhm, but since when do you listen to whatever people tell you to do?”, Eddie challenged.

“Steve promised to show me a disemboweling move if I did”, Dustin said. “You got something to top that?”

Eddie highly doubted Steve was going to follow through with that promise, so he wasn’t going to one-up him just to satisfy Dustin. If Steve wanted to focus on the duel, he would respect that. The door opened and Lucas stuck his head out, allowing Eddie to hear the ruckus going on just beyond it.

“Dustin! Get back here! It’s so epic!”

There were cheers at least a dozen strong that supported Lucas’ claim and Dustin rushed to get back in and shut the door behind him, leaving Eddie all alone. He sighed, forlorn, before picking himself up. If Steve was throwing himself into this, so would he. It had been some time since he had to make a show of power to his people.

Eddie coordinated the dueling venue, erecting an arena in a dusty, flat area. During fall and winter, it was a congregation for demobeasts as it got cold and hard. During the warmer parts of the year though, it was either empty or frequented by youngsters playing their own games. By the week’s end, there was a view box for the king and his entourage, benches for the other spectators, and a ring in which the fighters would battle.

It wasn’t just people from the town immediately outside the castle that came. Word traveled fast and people from neighboring cities came as well. When dawn arrived of the duel, Eddie wondered if there would be proper accommodations. In the form of a raven, he flew over the duel grounds and saw that while the morning mist was still evaporating, people were already gathering to claim their spots.

That all suited him just fine, he decided. He would be announcing his courtship officially and the more ears the better.

The sun rose higher and the time was nearly here. Eddie had behaved and not distracted him at all, but he couldn’t resist coming into his tent as he prepared.

“Did you-did you cut your hair?”, Eddie nearly squeaked as an attendant tied leather to Steve’s shin.

“I do that sometimes for the summer”, Steve said, sitting on a stool. It wasn’t much of a change to be honest but it still drove home how Eddie hadn’t seen Steve in days. Just a couple inches off his hair felt like an immeasurable distance.

“You look as dashing as ever”, Eddie said easily, taking steps forward then realized they weren’t alone. “You may take your leave”, he ordered.

The attendant left, closing the tent behind themselves. There was a crowd ebbing and flowing outside but they were in their own little world now. Not a servant or chaperone to be spoke of. Eddie knelt down before Steve and finished the job, tying up his other leg. Steve was suddenly very conscious of his own breathing, of the way Eddie’s eyes focused on the task before him, of the tip of his nose, of the way his hands lingered.

In order to tie down the protective layer, he had to touch his calf, the back of his knee, his ankle. His clothing stood between skin to skin contact, but that didn’t stop the touch from warming him. It was the reverent way Eddie did it. It was having a king on his knees. It was Eddie adding something to protect him.

“In case you were wondering, this is why I couldn’t have you watch me train”, Steve said, his voice just ever so slightly breathless.

Just to be cheeky, Eddie kissed his clothed knee. “I heard you put on quite the performance.”

Steve moved to stand and Eddie helped him to his feet. Their only point of contact was their hands and yet it felt like so much. Not for the first time, Steve was trying to remember why he wasn’t allowed to kiss Eddie right now. He wanted to. Eddie wanted to. And Eddie seemed to have the same realization as his eyes met Steve’s. He brought the prince’s hand towards him to kiss the tips of his fingers, then the palm of his hand.

Eddie’s lips ghosted over the inside of his wrist when a blast of fanfare broke the illusion of privacy. But there was a moment still, where they both considered stealing just one more second to act on their desires. But then Eddie pulled away.

“Our public awaits”, he said, starting towards the tent’s opening.

Steve walked out with him, but they had to part ways so that Steve could enter the arena and that Eddie could go to his viewing box and announce the start of the duel, as well as lay out the terms to all in attendance.

“Enjoy the show”, Steve said with a wink.

Part 31

Taglist CLOSED

@thesuninyaface @only-evanescent @snakeorsquid @ignoremyworld @theclichefortunecookie

@goodolefashionedloverboi @just-a-tiny-void @0body0disphoria0 @cinnamon-mushroomabomination @samsoble

@jamieweasley13 @y4r3luv @xtkxkrzrizir @un-knownperson @greekgeek24

@justdrugsformethanks @potato-of-the-lord @notaqueenakhaleesi @swimmingbirdrunningrock @queenie-ofthe-void

@nebulainajar @lil-gremlin-things @nicememerino @robininblue @hornedqueenofhell

@anne-bennett-cosplayer @moomkin77 @here4thetrama @bookworm0690 @autumncrocusandladybug

@lil-gremlin-things @littlebluejane @puppy-steve

#apo writes #stranger things #steddie

77 notes · View notes

gastoninadress · 3 months

Text

Frustrating things people are getting wrong in the new Thunder saga in Epic the musical (spoilers for Thunder saga):

- Odysseus did have Eurylochus holding a torch when they passed through Scylla’s lair. He completely intended to kill him. The reason he lived is because he gave away his torch after he saw the men getting eaten.

- Eurylochus has every right to be mad. Not just because Odysseus had just shown that his crew was now disposable to him, but also because Odysseus literally just tried to KILL HIM.

- On the other side for Odysseus this was by far the safest option. The danger motif didn’t play once during Scylla because Odysseus was never in danger.

- Would a starving crew that just found out their captain was okay with letting them die just to get home mutiny? I think so, especially if he’s about to murder the second-in-command. Screaming “I won’t let you stand in my way” doesn’t look real good for you Odysseus.

- A bunch of people are saying that the crew was stupid for having killed the cows. Eurylochus was the one that killed one, and he tells Odysseus “you know we’re never making it home right”. He was prepared to die, he just wanted to die in comfort. Odysseus freaking out and trying to save them was probably a surprise for him.

- Was Odysseus right to sacrifice his crew? Debatable. His crew would have easily sacrificed him for their own lives. Odysseus had a whole arc on how he was a monster now, and how his family had become his sole motivation. Considering everything, it made complete sense for his character. Especially after the mutiny, since he now had his crew as an obstacle rather than a group he was leading.

-I’ve seen some things about how Odysseus was stupid for listening to the words of a siren for directions. In the original, Circe is the one who gives him directions, and the reason Scylla is the only option is because the other side of the route holds Charybdis. If they had gone that route him and his entire crew would have died. Circe was also the one who told him about the six torches, but I think in this one he is implied to have come up with it himself.

-People calling him stupid for listening to the siren also need to know that in the original, only his crew put beeswax in their ears. Odysseus had his crew tie him to the mast and then they basically watched him go crazy and try and get out of the ropes and into the water until they passed the sirens. Odysseus has always been this way, this is obviously why Athena chose him.

#epic the musical #epic the thunder saga spoilers

127 notes · View notes

orcasoul · 4 months

Text

That Time Again

A/N: Just a little (well it was intended to be little, but, oh well) drabble here because I can't help but think how Din, spending most of his adult life alone when not with the covert, and not knowing much about a woman's cycle, would be embarrassed when he accidentally thinks she's injured and feels bad for embarrassing her too. I think after the initial awkwardness, he'd be such a sweetheart about it :)

The hunt didn't exactly go to plan, screw that, it was an epic failure! You and Din had just managed to get away by the skin of your teeth! You'd never been so relieved as when you saw the Razor Crest come into view, Din lowering the ramp by his vambrace. Once safely inside, with the ramp secure, you slump back into the cold steel wall, enjoying the icy chill seeping through your top into your sweaty skin as you catch your breath. "Well that didn't go well," Din panted as he leaned against the opposite wall.

"No shit," You shake your head through a half chuckle, half moan, "So what's the plan, now?" With his breathing finally under control Din stands tall, every bit the confident Mandalorian, even when he's not trying to be. It just naturally oozes from him. "He's scared and desperate now. He knows we're after him, so he'll keep running. I just didn't expect him to have so many men protecting him. But I'll get him, don't worry about that." Raising an eyebrow, you counter, "You mean we'll get him." "No!" came Din's curt and authoritative relpy, "It's too dangerous for you now."

"Din...," you begin protesting but he continues. "I've been doing this a long time, so trust me when I say I have to do this alone. This one just got much more complicated. I can't focus on the target and protect you at the same time. We're lucky we got out in one piece." Reluctantly you agree, but can't help but feel butterflies in your belly at Din's protectiveness of you. It's at times like this that you think, maybe he does feel the same way.

Locking that thought away you push off of the wall and begin to walk away when you hear a modulated gasp and feel Din's gloved hands grip your shoulders, stopping you in your place. "What the-," "You're hurt!" Din's voice quavers as panic grips his chest. You turn your head, utterly confused, trying to see where he's looking. What the hell? He's looking at ...my arse? "What? I'm not hurt. what are you talk-," Oh shit! Your eyes widen and your cheeks burn red as you realise what has happened.

You spin around, slowly backing away, trying your best not to stammer, but failing miserably. "Its n... not what you... you think. I'm... I'm fine." Din straightens, surprised by your weird response. "You're not fine, your bleeding. Let me-," "No!" He stops at your raised voice. "I'll take care of it. Trust me it's nothing." "It's not nothing." Now Din is raising his voice, clearly frustrated which in turn is making things worse.

Maker can't he just let it go? Can the universe do you a favour and open a black hole to swallow you now? He's really going to make you say it, isn't he? "Why won't you just let me help?" Din's asks exasperatedly, walking closer to you as you back away. "Cause it's nothing!' you insist, your stomach in knots. "Stop saying that!" Din blusterd. You drop your head into your hands, pressing the heels into your eyes, embarrassment burning through every inch of you. "For makers sake, Din! It's my period, okay. I've bled through!"

Silence follows your outburst, causing you to look back up at Din, who's stood stock still, if you didn't know any better, you'd think he was a statue. "Oh...," he mumbled, awkwardly. "Yeah... 'oh'," you scoffed. "I... I'm sorry... I didn't mean-," "It's okay," you blurted, right now not knowing what was redder, the blood on your trousers of the blood in your cheeks, "I'm just... gonna... go," you pointed over your shoulder to the fresher. As you shower, you realised that you'd been so eager to escape that situation that you'd forgotten to bring clean clothes with you. "Aw, shit," you grumble to yourself. Well, hopefully he'll be in the cockpit.

You open the fresher door, peaking around carefully. You've already had one embarrassing moment today, you don't need another. To your relief, you're alone. You sigh and look down, and that's when you see the neatly folded pile of clean clothes on the floor, right in front of the door. You smile as you pick them up, taking them with you into the fresher to change. Once you're clean and presentable, you head up to the cockpit, knowing you can't avoid each other on such a small ship. So you'll have to, as they say, suck it up. But when you open the door, your met with an empty room.

"Din?" no answer. "Din?" you shout louder, but still, no answer. That's odd. He never leaves without telling you. Maybe he's just as embarrassed as you? Maybe he can't face you right now? Before you can dwell on it any longer, you hear the ramp lowering. You slide down the ladder to the hull to see Din walking up the ramp with a brown paper bag in hand. He stops a couple of feet in front of you, the atmosphere clearly awkward.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you, Din-," you begin, desperate to dissipate the discomfort between you both. "Please don't apologise," Din lifts a hand to stop you, "I'm sorry. I didn't realise.... if I'd known, I wouldn't have...," Din clears his throat and slowly holds the bag out for you to take. "What's this?" you smile as you take the bag and look inside. Your heart melts at the sight. Inside, there are sanitary towels, tampons, a moon cup, heat up gel packs, pain relief and even a big bar of chocolate.

You feel like crying. Kriff, this man is so sweet and so kind. Could he be any more perfect? If you hadn't already fallen in love with him, you would have now. "Din...," his name leaves your mouth in a whisper, while holding in the tears. You look into his visor, hoping you're making eye contact. "You didn't have to do this. Thank you! This is... so sweet of you." "I wanted to help," he replied, softly. "I didn't mean to embarrass you earlier," he added after a moment. "It's okay," you shrug, feeling the embarrassment melt away by the second. "I think we were both a bit embarrassed."

"Yeah," Din chuckles, his shoulders losing some of the tension in them. He still feels bad about the situation, but seeing your eyes light up at his gift means the world to him, just as you do. Damn it, if only he could tell you how much he loves you. He's fearless in every aspect of his life, except when it comes to you. "Look, I don't claim to know much about 'this'," he emphasizes, "but I want you to know you don't ever have to feel awkward about it around me. We're a team, and if there's anything you ever need or anything I can do to help at this time, you can always come to me, okay?"

Your eyes soften even more and you're sure you're looking at Din like he'd hung the stars right now, but you don't care. You want him to know how much you appreciate his kindness and scincerity. "Thank you, Din. That means a lot." You can't help the beaming smile on your face right now. "You know...," you begin, teasingly, "for somebody who says he doesn't know much about 'this', you sure knew what products to look for."

"Well, I might have asked the lady working in the store if she could help me pick out the best things," Din confessed, in a playful tone. "And this?..." you wave the chocolate in front of his helmet, grinning like a fool. Din shrugged and you just knew he was grinning under his helmet too. "She also said some women have cravings, so I thought, best be prepared." "We're sharing this," you tap the bar against his breast-plate. Din chuckled, shaking his head in amusement, "Whatever you say, Cyar'ika."

#pedro pascal #din x reader #pedro pascal fandom #din djarin fanfiction #mando x you #pedro pascal fanfiction #the mandalorian fanfiction #din djarin x female reader #din djarin x reader #mando

78 notes · View notes

utilitycaster · 18 days

Text

I listened to the WBN Fireside on my way to work and there were two things Brennan said, one of which stood out to me as something I really agree with and one of which I really disagree with so I figured I'd make this post (the disagreement one) first and then the agreement one.

The latest episode of WBN had a scene that the characters were not present for nor viewing in any way. It was recorded without their knowledge, though they did listen to it when the episode came out, and on the Fireside Brennan said that such scenes should be used quite sparingly, given the nature of actual play, but (and I apologize, I haven't relistened and the transcripts aren't out) because the antagonists aren't present where the PCs are, it's useful at times to have a scene to keep them in the narrative for the audience.

I firmly disagree. I think that while it's true that actual play has a limited POV (if the characters don't see it, you don't see it), I have, in a lot of actual play fandom, never once seen a situation when it added to the story. Granted, WBN is ongoing, so I may eat my words here, but I am doubtful for a number of reasons.

Speaking as one small fraction of the audience, I am in possession of narrative object permanence. I do not in fact assume that when the PCs are in one part of the world, the rest of it grinds to a halt. In fact, something that skilled GMs do (including, frankly, Brennan himself most of the time) is quietly advance the plans of people who are offscreen. This is also not abnormal for the genre. Lord of the Rings has multiple POVs at different times, but never that of an antagonist; we learn of this through rumors, espionage, and Gandalf's retellings. Sprawling epics like A Song of Ice and Fire or the Stormlight Archives or the Wheel of Time make use of a wide range of third person limited viewpoints as well, not all aligned, but we don't see every move by every faction (and frankly, as a fan of that kind of book...I still think most of them could leave a bit more on the cutting room floor). Limited third person POV is not a weakness of Actual Play; I'd argue it is both a strength and a requirement. The story is driven by the player characters, and they cannot act on something they do not see.*

I'd also add that in this very specific situation, the audience saw the subject of the cutscene, The Man in Black, literally three episodes ago, which was a day ago in-game. He was brought up extensively in the discussion two episodes ago. If someone forgot? That's on them. We have not gone months and months without him making an appearance. I do think it's possible for villains to be poorly developed because they do not cross the paths of the characters enough (this is, as many of the people reading this likely know, a blog that loves to dunk on the cardboard-like nature of Otohan Thull's virtually nonexistent personality and motivations) but The Man in Black is sufficiently a banger of an antagonist as to not be so easily forgotten.

Finally, and this might just be me, but because I know how Actual Play and D&D work, I must admit the second I realized this was a no-PC cut scene I found it pretty hard to pay attention. In fact, it did the opposite of what was intended. Instead of eagerly awaiting news of how The Man in Black was waging war, filtered through whatever information Suvi, Eursulon, and Ame could obtain, I was zoning out while he talked. I think part of why I like Actual Play is that it usually leaves me, even with 4 hour episodes, wanting more. Cut scenes leave me wishing the cut scene hadn't happened.

*brief tangent: this doesn't, in my opinion, apply to the scenes in Downfall that the viewer sees but which weren't captured in the Occultus Thalamus. The story of Downfall is ultimately a story about the gods - they are the PCs - and the dramatic irony enhances the story-within-a-story aspect. It's important to the audience understanding of the gods to see the whole thing, and it's a valid choice that Bells Hells only see what occurred while the avatars were physically in Aeor. It does, however, apply to contemporaneous happenings in Worlds Beyond Number.

**This also doesn't apply to long DM monologues in the presence of players. The C3 solstice scene has been compared to a cut scene, but actually it's important that Bells Hells sees it. If one of the Wizard, Witch, or Wild One had managed to find a way to, even at a low level, scry or similarly learn of the Man in Black's doings? I wouldn't have minded it. I adore the Hakea vision scene. It's specifically that I'm in fact here to see what the characters see.

#wbn tag #on actual play

36 notes · View notes

howlsofbloodhounds · 10 days

Note

About Nightmare being a cult leader kind of figure, here's the thing:

Nightmare has absolute authority in the castle.

Everyone who joins him is made to change their name (none of them are called Sans anymore despite that being their actual name) (fun fact, you can absolutely read this as Something New Chara grooming Killer into a cult-like mentality way before Nightmare ever got there)

The castle itself is basically a cult compound. Only members of the cult are allowed in it, and they are not allowed to leave.

All the henchmen are cut off from their friends and families (Horror is the one who suffers from this the most, but Killer's AU also exists out there and is full of monsters, and Cross is highly discouraged from talking to Epic, Ink, or Dream).

Nightmare also has complete control over the finances of those under him, and I don't think we talk often enough about how fucked these guys are even if they ever escape because they have had no work experience for years and they have no money to help them get a new start. They're simply screwed.

Nightmare probably doesn't have the tightest grip on information control because Killer just knows stuff for no reason and that's very hard to avoid. However, by controlling Killer so thoroughly he does, at the very least, get to control what the other three learn. And he definitely has a way to spin things to make the Multiverse look even bleaker and more miserable than it is. And of making those under him feel as if they will never be accepted anywhere else. (After all, he doesn't have to make up the fact that they're wanted criminals, he just has to show them the fliers)

I don't think I even need to touch on emotional control with him. That's literally his hobby. And he's got quite a few tricks in his sleeve (direct soul tampering, emotional manipulation, tormenting his subjects with his shapeshifting, his negativity aura...).

Like, I don't think anyone intended for it, but the way Nightmare's gang is often portrayed is a cult. Of course, this can be pushed even further with Nightmare having them all practice thought-stopping techniques to keep them from having doubts, encouraging worship of him, breaking down his henchmen's boundaries, and capitalizing on their weaknesses. And none of those would feel out of place, but without them, this is still a cult setting. And these guys are gonna get fucked up in a uniquely cultish way

This reminds me of that post i saw before about how Dreamtale’s village was like a cult..looks like Nightmare really picked up a lot of tricks.

Especially the bit about killer already being groomed towards this mentality. He’d probably play the role of grooming the others too, honestly—either coming from a place of sadism or genuinely thinking he’s helping (for however much he cares to do so), them “learn” and survive.

And you’re definitely right about how all of them would be fucked if they tried to leave, and not just because of nightmare. Im honestly suprised killer even had the three people who were willing to try and help him. although the only one who seemed to have any consistent plan and approach was color.

Would be interesting if more people approached the gang from this angle.

{ @stellocchia }

32 notes · View notes

sailorsplatoon · 2 months

Note

So apparently Captain (Agent 3) has a secret gig as an underground DJ called “DJ Sango” who is popular and did an epic rap battle with Marina. How would the Agents, Idols, Four and Acht react if they found out that Captain was secretly DJ Sango? And how would Captain react to them figuring out her big secret? (For an added bonus I’m gonna say that Acht admires her musical talent and has a celebrity crush on DJ Sango)

Okay I got really excited about this ask because I learned about the existence of the Low Water Party (the rave that DJ Sango and Marina’s DJ battle happened at) at few weeks ago and I have not stopped thinking about it since.

Pearl and Marina probably already knew about Captain’s secret, since Marina was the one doing the DJ battle with her, and Pearl was at the same rave doing a rap battle with Cuttlefish. I’m going to say Callie already knew as well since she also performed at the rave, along with Octavio (which is a piece of canon lore that I am freaking out over by the way). However Marie, Shiver, Frye, and Big Man had no idea about Captain’s DJ persona. Marie is surprised both to find out that Captain can DJ and the fact that Callie went to the rave where she DJed at and didn’t tell her. Shiver thinks it’s cool, but also insists on Deep Cut being invited to perform at the next Low Water Party. Frye only uses it as an excuse to tease Captain, seeing as now she may be a threat to Deep Cut’s music career. Big Man is really impressed that Captain not only knows how to DJ, but that they were able to keep it up for 8 hours in her battle with Marina.

Eight is just mad that he wasn’t informed of the fact that this rave had happened, since he would have loved to go. He insists on hearing Captain DJ the moment he finds out because he wants to hear how good she is. Neo just thinks it’s super cool. It wants to learn how to DJ from Captain, and constantly pesters them to teach it. Four loves it. They kind of tease Captain about her DJing career, but they’re also super impressed.

Acht definitely had a celebrity crush on DJ Sango before realizing she was Captain. They were at the Low Water Party as well, despite never appearing on stage and still being sanitized then. Though they didn’t really have emotion when they first saw DJ Sango, once they got into the Memverse and started thinking about it more was when their celebrity crush started. Four even supported it before learning DJ Sango is Captain. After finding out, Acht drops the celebrity crush because it’s gotten very very awkward.

Captain is horrified that they’ve all found out. She intended to keep her persona as DJ Sango a secret forever. She didn’t like that Pearl, Marina, and Callie knew, and now everyone does. Although she does enjoy the attention, even though she’d never admit it.

Thank you for the ask!!! I kinda wrote a lot… I got excited.

#captain 3 #agent 3 #agent 3 splatoon #pearl splatoon #marina splatoon #callie splatoon #marie splatoon #shiver hohojiro #frye onaga #big man splatoon #agent 8 #neo agent 3 #agent 4 #acht splatoon #dedfour #acht x agent 4 #asks #ask box

25 notes · View notes

star-going-supernova · 6 months

Text

Glamrock Circus Baby is a thing and she operates in the ice cream parlor at Bonnie Bowl. If you wanna do the GlamMike headcanon, with Elizabeth still possessing Baby, just A LOT calmer now, then that would be an epic, and also very worrying, rivalry.

Prompt from Hydrangea_Cherry9 on ao3! This is pre Security Breach, if SB even happens in this AU.

Sibling Rivalries Never Die

Glamrock Bella Bunny, the rebranded and redesigned Circus Baby, wasn’t a terrible host for Elizabeth Afton. At least she wasn’t stuck in a mechanical clown anymore, though she hadn’t quite decided if the red and pastel pink bunny—because heaven forbid the pizzaplex have a human-ish animatronic—was actually better.

(It did soothe something in her tormented, tattered soul that this animatronic didn’t have any mechanism for snatching innocent kids. She had maybe been in a better mood since she didn’t have to live with being stuck in her murderer’s body.)

The best part of her new twisted existence was the company. And she didn’t mean Bonnie, who Bella saw and interacted with most often. No, there was nothing like a bit of schadenfreude to lift one’s spirit (pun intended).

She threw a handful of plastic spoons at Glamrock Freddy, the current host for her older brother. It was a slow day, and there was no one at the counter to catch her misbehaving.

“Seriously?” he said, more annoyed than any child would ever hear the great Freddy Fazbear be. “Real mature, Li—Bella.”

“Get lost, Freddy. Or can you not read?” She pointed over at the hand drawn sign that Monty had been happy to make for her. A great big red X slashed over a sloppy crayon depiction of Freddy’s face, with BANNED written above it.

“Oh, for the love of—I’m here to see Bonnie. Not you. It’s not my fault you’re stuck in the bowling alley.”

“I prefer ‘defending my territory,’” Elizabeth said with a haughty sniff. “And if free roaming makes you so high and mighty, then you can go wander around elsewhere and wait for your boyfriend to join you.”

Michael sputtered. “We aren’t—Bonnie’s not my boyfriend!”

“Mhm, sure.” She roughly scooped a generous ball of strawberry and unceremoniously lobbed it at his chest. “Oops. Guess you’ve gotta go get cleaned up.”

“You’re such a brat,” he snapped, snatching up a handful of napkins to try and mop up the mess of pink ice cream splatter. “You can’t still be mad about last week.”

Bella wasn’t an animatronic particularly suited to hissing and gnashing her teeth, but Elizabeth was nothing if not furious and determined. “If it wouldn’t get me decommissioned, I’d jump over the counter right now and rip your arms off, you pathetic excuse for a—”

“What’d he do?” a child’s voice interrupted.

Circuits sparking in surprise, they both jumped. Michael stumbled to the side, revealing a boy who had been standing behind him. It was hard for an animatronic to be shocked into shutdown, but seeing the absolute spitting image of their dead younger brother staring back at them with a mischievous sort of fascination did the job.

Michael choked out a yelp before his eyes went dark, and Freddy unceremoniously toppled over to the tiled floor. Elizabeth—and she would gloat about this later—lasted a moment longer, her mouth flapping with her speechlessness before her core overheated and forced a reboot.

In the final moment before her vision cut out, she would have sworn she saw a copy of her brother beside and a bit above the boy, as if floating. And that second Evan, the see-through one, looked as surprised as Elizabeth felt.

#fnaf fic #fnaf security breach #star's stories #life and times of star

45 notes · View notes

kotamagic · 7 months

Text

Content warning for psychological distress on this week's Lore Olympus is real. Don't say you weren't warned.

Last week saw Apollo nigh-forcefully working with Persephone to fix the Mortal Realm crisis. With whatever it was Ouranos gave him, it did what it needed to do. At least, for a little bit.

Not only is the bastard clearly and knowingly making the experience miserable for Persephone, but also his plastic smile looks more fake than usual.

Is that ichor leaking out of his eyes? I hope he's in extreme pain from this little show of his. Fucker deserves all the agent he's put others through.

Next, the douche-canoe goes on a shpeal about how Ouranos "helped" Gaia control her powers. She never needed help with her powers. All that Ouranos did was use them for his own gain.

Everything Apollo says about Gaia needing "fixing" is a lie. Further, he blames her marriage to Hades for causing the extreme winter.

He uses it, as predicted, to lead into ordering Persephone to marry him. That gets him numerous ABSOLUTELY NOTs from across the board.

I can't even begin to imagine how horrifying this is for Persephone. This purple Olympian shit stain is desperate to get at her powers. He thinks he's king and can bully everyone just because Zeus is out cold and he's king's son.

I do wish Artemis would show up at some point. Technically, she's got just as much claim to the thrown as her brother, plus the benefit of common sense and decency.

THE QUEEN SPEAKS!

Welcome to the latest shit-show, Hera! She comes out spouting just about everything the other Olympians and the readers have been thinking and feeling.

I particularly love her emphasis that Persephone "so obviously despises" Apollo.

Oh, this was the cherry & icing on the cake!

With the camera still rolling, she outs Apollo for manipulating Hebe into running away. With her piece spoken, she moves onto the next matter at hand.

DAT EPIC MIC DROP THO!!!!!!

Hera intends to fix several things at once by doing what is possibly the most dangerous thing.

Kronos has stated that he won't cooperate unless he's given his "Golden Traitor" back. Hera knows it's dangerous. Her vision from a few chapters back showed her likely getting either killed or completely wrecked in a direct confrontation with Kronos.

And yet, she's willing to take that risk, not just for herself, but others as well. Persephone has been kind to her in multiple ways; the least she can do is give something back.

Maybe they'll save Hades. Maybe they'll save Melinöe. Maybe they'll kick Kronos' ass. Maybe they'll get Persephone's spring powers back. Maybe they'll even find the cure for Zeus. There's so much that can come out of this that the extreme danger feels worth the risk.

We shall see.

BONUS:

ARES VS APOLLO (with everyone else now), ROUND 2!

FUCK HIM UP, ARES! I WANNA SEE A LOT MORE ICHOR ON HIS UGLY FACE NEXT WEEK!

ANYWAY, THANKS FOR COMING TO MY LO POST!!!!!!!

#lore olympus #lo persephone #lo apollo #lo hera #lo ares #lo hecate

27 notes · View notes

queerpumpkinnn · 2 years

Text

Stain (Part Four)

2k words

In which Sirius realizes that he loves you in a different way than the other Marauders.

Part One - Part Two - Part Three - Part Four - Part Five - Part Six coming soon!

Summary: You and Sirius deal with the repercussions of Sirius' confession.

Pairing: Bestfriend!Sirius Black x reader

Warnings: none, but let me know if there needs to be!

While reading, I recommend you listen to Songs I want to have a crazy epic love to - a Spotify playlist by me!

Forty two hours.

It had been forty two hours since Sirius Black had admitted that he was in love with you. And it had been thirty six hours since you had seen his face. You never lingered in the common room, opting to sit with Lily and Mary whenever in the Great Hall, and you outright skipped Astronomy to avoid sitting next to him.

The conversation still had your head reeling, even as it played back in your mind on repeat. Pieces of dialogue came back to you in flashes, echoing in your brain and pulling you back into the whirlwind of emotions that came with it.

After you'd skipped a few classes, you retreated to the courtyard where you hoped you'd be left alone. In the span of time, you were approached by a variety of people.

First came Lily. She'd already been told the entire situation, and she was sympathetic to your lack of energy. The girl noted your wishing to be left alone, opting to give you a recap of the day's Potions class at a later time and squeezing your hand before leaving.

Next came Peter and Mary, also in your Potions class. You'd used the guise of having accidentally slept in, given it was your first of the day. They didn't seem to believe you, sharing in a skeptical look before shrugging and leaving you be.

Regulus Black was after. You weren't terribly close with him, but he was Sirius' brother and your partner in Defense Against the Dark Arts. At first he only came to provide the day's notes, but after seeing your state he didn't leave, leaning lightly against the pillar above you.

"So what has my brother done now?"

If you weren't drained of all energy you probably would have snapped your neck whipping your head around to see him. But the look in your eyes pulled a small smile to the boy's lips.

"I know the two of you are close. I also saw him in worse shape than ever at breakfast and you at the opposite end of the table. It wasn't difficult to piece together."

You clicked your tongue, leaning your head against the stone behind you. "I'm not sure, honestly. Still trying to figure that out."

Regulus hummed, turning curtly and leaving without another word.

Next came James. He was the most persistent. He plopped down next to you, surprising you a little.

"So? Why were you avoiding Sirius all day?"

Damn.

"I wasn't." You tried.

"Oh, no, I think you were. I heard the two of you shouting last night, and it wasn't the good kind. Then you sat on the other end of the house table. Of course, you do sit with the girls sometimes, so that would seem normal. If Sirius didn't look like a kicked puppy, no pun intended. Then you skipped Astronomy and Potions, and only those two- the two classes you share with Sirius, and that's too big a coincidence. So yes, you were."

Well, there goes that. "We just had a tiff, that's all. It's nothing."

Again, the bespectacled boy raised a skeptical brow. "You two never have tiffs. You've been thick as thieves since first year. And even then, tiffs aren't typically shouting matches followed by almost two days of ignoring each other."

You gave a frustrated sigh at his persistence. James' gaze softened, pulling his legs closer to his body. "I heard him crying that night. I know he told you he was in love with you."

"Huh?"

James gave a sad smile. "Yeah."

"So you know, huh?"

"As of last night, yeah." James' gaze turned from one of sympathy to realization, hands flying to his unruly mop of hair in shock. "Were you the one he was running around with?"

You nodded, shrugging.

"And he was the one you were getting all blushy about?" He pointed his thumb over his shoulder as though the boy was behind him.

You nodded again, spirits lifted a little bit at your friend's bewildered face.

"Merlin, I can't believe I didn't see it." James barked a laugh.

"Well, we were sneaking around. Remus was the only one who knew anything, really. And I think Peter, at some point, but he never told."

"You told Wormtail but not me?"

"He found out on accident!"

James groaned theatrically, grasping his heart and pretending to faint. Your soft chuckles and his laughs died down after a moment, and James rolled over to face you.

"So how do you feel about the whole thing?"

You hummed, fiddling with the hem of your robe. "I'm not sure. I miss him, though."

"Do you love him back?"

You blinked at the boy, a hollow space in your throat where words should be.

"I see. You're still mulling it over?"

You nodded slowly, the slightest of movements enough of an answer for James.

"I get it. Feelings are hard. Well, I do know that he's sorry for his outburst. He's very brazen when it comes to his feelings, you know. He's been a mess all week since your fight."

"Then why hasn't he talked to me?"

James gave you a pitying look. "Would you go talk to someone who stormed out when you confessed love?"

Again, you were at a loss for words.

"See? And I'm not saying you weren't right to be upset at his approach, but he's scared to make things worse. He's giving you your space."

"But he's the one in the wrong. He basically told me I shouldn't be with Jack and assumed I loved him back. He should apologize." You insisted, but it was a frail attempt of an argument.

James removed his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "He should. And he would if you'd stop avoiding him like the plague."

Any cutting reply you had died on your tongue. He was right. But you were stubborn.

"I'm not going to wave up the white flag for him." You finalized, crossing your arms.

James groaned. "You know what? If that's how you want to handle this, I can't force you to do any differently." The boy patted your knee before standing. "But please, be kind to him."

And so you were granted a while of silence.

You hated that it wasn't easy to be angry with him. You hated that you couldn't just say he was far out of line for assuming you loved him back. For the first half of the new day, you could. You raged. But when it dissolved, it was replaced with longing and emptiness and an ache in your chest that said you were missing a piece of your soul.

And so an hour later, you sat in the courtyard under a tree, half of your weight leaning on the trunk of a tree and the other on Jack's torso, his arm draped over your shoulders. Dorcas and Marlene were sat across from you, as well as a few friends of his who were horsing around. You weren't really listening to them.

You'd chosen not to tell your boyfriend about the argument between you and Sirius, at least for the time being. You wanted to collect your thoughts, soak in them in hopes that somehow they would compartmentalize on their own.

You were so lost in thought staring at your shoes that you hadn't processed your name being called.

"Hm?"

Jack's brows furrowed. "Are you alright? You've been quiet lately."

You nodded, sighing. "Didn't get much sleep last night."

"McGonagall's been working you that hard?"

"Yeah, I suppose so." You pulled your robes tighter over your body when a chill swept over. The clouds had been greying while you sat. You knew the upcoming weeks were sure to be stormy.

The bubble of gloomy silence that surrounded you was popped when around the bend came a huffing and puffing James Potter, bending over when he finally reached the group.

"James? Why're you in such a-" You were interrupted by his finger up to signal he needed a moment, putting his hands on his knees and heaving a breath that was, as per usual, quite dramatic.

"Remus is in the hospital wing. Last night got real bad, I think you'll want to see him."

You knew immediately what that meant. Leaping to your feet and leaving textbooks behind, you sprinted over the grass behind James into the castle. Weaving around groups of students clustered in the middle of the corridor and even almost tripping over your own feet multiple times, the two of you reached the hospital wing in record time.

Perhaps your mind was frazzled, perhaps it was the urgency in James' voice, but it didn't occur to you that Remus had been dealing with his lycanthropy for years and never before has it become so bad- mind, hours after the fact- that you'd been called to see him so urgently.

But you suddenly became hyper-aware of the odd situation when you stormed through the great doors of the hospital wing and there were nothing but empty rows of beds clad in clean white sheets, save for one, which held a very disheveled-looking Sirius Black.

You stopped in your tracks when you saw him, the sound of the doors closing being a muted background noise amongst the sound of your heart racing in your ears.

When he stood, you couldn't move. You felt frozen in place when his eyes met yours, so weary and full of sadness and fear. The boy normally sported dark shades under his eyes, sleep seemed to evade him since his youth, but this was worse. His face was devoid of the eyeliner he normally wore, but small streaks around the corners of his eyes said that it had simply faded, that he hadn't bothered to remove it by any means other than crying or natural wear. His face was blotched with red on his cheeks and nose, a stark comparison to his pale skin. He was standing like he was closing in on himself, holding his arms around himself and his feet close together. His arm was covered in doodles from borrowed muggle pens, something he only ever did when he was in need of comfort. His lips were chapped, as you noticed when he began taking timid steps towards you. He dared not look away, searching for any signs of your discomfort, hatred, disgust, something.

"Hey." Was all you could say. You wanted to slap yourself in the face for being so awkward.

"Hey. Guess James is a better liar than I thought." What was he saying?

"Yeah. You don't look so good, have you been eating?"

Sirius shrugged, hands in his pockets. "Not much."

"Hypocrite." You smiled weakly. "You're always filling Remus' plate and scolding him for skipping meals."

"No friend of mine is going to wither away for academics." Sirius insisted, his feeble demeanor dissipating ever so slowly.

You chuckled softly, finally able to stare at him comfortably. With adoration, without fearing if he'd look back your way from across the Great Hall and scowl because you'd thrown away his heart.

"Sirius..." Your mouth hung open for a moment, searching for words. "You're my best friend. And I do care about you."

Sirius braced himself for the inevitable 'but'.

"But all I can give you is friendship right now. I don't even know how I feel, so I need you to let me figure that out."

Sirius nodded slowly, and the look on his face said that through the sinking of his heart into his stomach, he understood. Truly.

"Then friends it is. I'm sorry I didn't react properly the other night."

You gave him a feeble smile, accepting his apology. In all realness, Sirius was the reason you had standards. He'd always been the one pointing out when you were being treated sub-par, making sure you knew your worth.

Sirius held his arms open, only remnants of nervousness visible in his eyes now. You nodded, closing your eyes and drinking in his scent, the solace of his arms. You'd missed him.

But you couldn't shake the feeling that there was still something yet to be resolved.

@likeshadowsinafadedlight @ourheartsofsteel

Part One - Part Two - Part Three - Part Four - Part Five - Part Six coming soon!

Sirius Black Masterlist

Harry Potter Masterlist

Main Masterlist

#sirius black x reader #sirius black angst #sirius black #sirius black x you #sirius black x fem!reader #sirius black x y/n #harry potter marauders #the marauders #marauders era #marauders #harry potter fanfiction #remus lupin #james potter #lily evans #peter pettigrew #regulus black #harry potter #stain series

244 notes · View notes

berlinini · 10 months

Text

some Thoughts about the 02 show (while the days of ltwt show recaps the length of essays are gone, I thought I'd share some stuff)(this of course got kinda long anyways, I am nothing but predictable!)

first of all it's so interesting to go online after a show and "consume" the show through different perspectives... I was in the pit close to the sound booth and could see a tiny Louis like tunnel vision (and not even always - I had to look at the screens a lot more than any previous shows). I had never been to such a big venue and it felt like the arenas I'd be previously - it's so hard to gage. Anyways when I saw Louis' IG post I realized how far I was and seeing pictures and videos of the venue - I truly hadn't realized the sheer number of people. Also the lights project from our POV seemed to have bombed but seeing the videos, it did create the intended effect. Also I was so far that I had to ask the gc for the color of the pants (#purple #slay) and only in the encore, when there was a camera on Louis' entire body, did I notice the shoes (unfortunately my eyes deceived me into thinking they were Nike). I missed all the little quirky faces and interactions that I now see in gifs. HOWEVER I did not miss the several times Louis teared up including during Chicago and during his speeches and I tell you my heart was bursting. I love that he talked a bit more than usual - I think he said something like "I can't put into words... well let me try" and he said everything so perfectly! The reference to his dreams and the "we" - I just listened to him and thought how much I love him. His special thanks to his band was super sweet.

setlist: HOTH safe! If I hadn't known DMD was back on the setlist I wouldn't have recognized it. No 7 :( I tolerate Angels Fly but tbh I don't understand how it's there and not like Headline or Always You or FEARLESS. High in Cali was hilarious because you could tell weed isn't legal in the UK lmao - the vibe was so different than back home. 505 still so good and now I can sing every single lyrics but in a very oh poor me, the show ruined my 5 x 505 streak this year since it's now 6. But 505 Laval you'll always be #1 in my Heart <3. We Made It is still the It Girl and Silver Tongues... I doubt a closer will ever come this close (hehe) to how fucking epic it is. Tbh I could hardly tell when the string section was playing but I'm glad I had a show with strings! Me still in LTWT mode wondering why the pyro didn't go off during Walls only to be told there hasn't been any for this tour ouuuups. The Megamix SLAYS so hard and the special effects were SO cool! I did miss the classic rainbow lights for SIBWAWC cuz the lasers didn't reflect on the crowd as nicely but the clouds and at the beginning of ATT were beautiful.

Talking about lasers I was eyeing this guy in the soundbooth that I'd never see before and was clowning about him being there for the LIVE ALBUM RECORDING. I even took notes to figure out later where he works (spare a thought for tumblr user bbrox who has to put up with my insanity). ONLY to figure out 1 hour later that the guy was the special lasers guy as made so obvious by the fact he packed up his stuff after Saturdays in a box that said "laser fx triangle C" lololol. Sometimes I think it's good to clown for nothing - be humbled!

I saw most of the crew in the soundbooth - the person I was with was trying to spot the Tomlinsons while I was looking for Oli and K and was mentally putting a check on names for the sound and lights guys - priorities! (Blaming Red Rocks for having us go down the rabbit hole of every single member of the crew)

Oh yeah the KMM lights! It was kinda spontaneous? He had a little shy smile like he was telling himself 'look at this lot' and it was soooo adorable. I'm glad I got to be a part of it <3 Which pretty much summarizes this whole show - witnessing a moment in history.

Finally - TANK TOP LOUIS WITH MY OWN 2 EYES!!!!!! And what a tank top!!! #blessed #cantspellslutwithoutlt

Everyone's been saying being a louie is for life and that just keep getting stronger and stronger everytime I get to see him perform! Can't wait for future shows!!!

#forgot to hit post!#lol #fitfwt london #fitfwt fan recap #mine #hehe

39 notes · View notes

nancydrewwouldnever · 2 years

Note

This is going to be the epic "SHOOT YOURSELF IN YOUR OWN FOOT" phase of his life and career.//

Nancy, this is a dumb question, but let's assume this is PR, and I believe it is. How did Chris and his team not see this backlash coming? And once his team threw his fans under the bus by calling them toxic, well this is what he gets.

Now, some of the GP think this is real, and I think they are losing interest because this relationship is giving them the ick.

Chris and his team need to have their “come to Jesus moment” soon if they want to salvage his career. The reaction he got from the Ghosted trailer was not good.

For some reason, they seem to be doubling down on the AB card. It's like they can't see or don't care she is not good for his image.

Look, here's the thing: take whatever you believe is the "true" nature of the relationship out of the equation. Just, leave that aside for a moment.

The "true" nature of the relationship at this point is completely moot, because since Pumpkingate this has now become a PR show. THIS IS NOW PR, BECAUSE IT HAS BECOME PR SINCE THEY DECIDED TO TREAT IT AS A SOURCE OF PUBLIC NARRATIVE. Once they decided to use it as a public image spinner, you have to focus on how this "relationship" is fulfilling that mandate.

So, is it fulfilling that mandate? The mandate of portraying what both PR teams attempted to sell, the "serious" "over a year" "never more in love" "private" couple of their publicly shared PR narrative? And, is that narrative, if being effectively conveyed, helping add value and positive attention to the participants? (Because, literally, that's all any PR is, a hopefully value-addictive narrative.)

Both questions answer no.

None of their attempts to craft the image have been successful in doing so. In fact, several have backfired and left many viewers with an oppositional view to the narrative. So, you have a failure to craft the PR correctly, in a way which resonates with intended target audience.

Then, you have the blowback of the PR failure: neither participant are seeing added value long-term from the PR campaign. Sure, she got a lift at the time of the WN season premiere/pap walk. But that was negated by her principle PR delivery vehicle (her IG) being shut down. And we saw her IG stats plummet after one day back. I do not think her Paris appearance will make an impact, but we'll see with the numbers tomorrow.

As for him - do I even need to summarize that? The consistent buying and cleaning show his team, at least, is aware that the plot has shifted against them, but they seem to have no good idea for how to get it back on course.

There's no point in arguing how people see this anymore, other than to say how they're seeing it is in no way benefiting either him nor her.

This whole thing is a big dud.

#ask

123 notes · View notes

the-monkey-ruler · 2 months

Note

Could we have an analysis of A Chinese Odyssey part one and two? Although I feel that the third part breaks the message of the first two a little? but I don't know, I'm very ignorant about the matter, so I'll apologize if it's more complicated.

Lucky for us there is someone who has done an Analysis of a Chinese Odyssey from the perspective of its cultural impact on other media in Transforming Monkey Adaptation and Representation of a Chinese Epic By Hongmei Sun. If anyone has the time I would highly recommend reading her book or just skipping to the chapters she talked about it in Chapter 4 From Fighter to Lover The Postsocialist Hero in the PRC and Hong Kong.

I shall try to SUMMERIZE a whole chapter below that I think really helps frame how the Chinese Odessery was interpreted though so open at your own cost. Please note this is me just REPEATING what the article says if you really don't want to read the book (BUT YOU SHOULD).

And yes you are right Anon MANY people did not enjoy the third movie as it went against everything the first two movies were about with lost love, rather feeling more like a cash grab made to milk people's nostalgia and adoration of the films. Some people might like it but PLEASE know that it was never intended for the first two films and often feels way too disconnected.

The Postsocialist Hero in the PRC and Hong Kong

Sun Wukong up to this point (the 1990s) has been framed in media as a revolutionary hero (best-known example in the Havoc of Heaven 19060s movie). Chinese Odyssey 1995 coproduced by Hong Kong and mainland China, starring Stephen Chow as the Sun Wukong was one of the first movies that challenged this image of him and redefined the character at the turn of the century. The film subverted the heroic image of Sun Wukong and replaced it with a comedic character who is also a romantic interest. This was his transformation from a "fighter" to a "lover" and while it didn't do well in Hong Kong, it was horribly popular in Mainland China due to the messaging of the movie changing dramatically. The creative "misreading" of the original film has led to its success due to the audience connection during a time of social transformation and widespread anxiety about changing sexual mores. This led to a postsocialist hero for the large population of young people who became its fans.

THE DAHUA PHENOMENON

When first released in Hong Kong and mainland China in 1995, A Chinese Odyssey was a box-office failure. The film’s slapstick humor was initially unappreciated and it was highly criticized for straying too far from the original source material. But two years later, when the film was shown on TV film channels, it caught the attention of college students and grew a large fan base on college campuses in the mainland. For a while, A Chinese Odyssey was vigorously traded in the bootleg disc market. Fans of A Chinese Odyssey, known as Dahua fans, instead of criticizing the movie for deviating from the original, or changing and subverting the images of the characters, Dahua fans found a new aspect of Sun Wukong's story that spoke to them. Audiences saw themselves represented in this Sun Wukong themselves and the story as reflecting the problems they faced in their lives. Even Academics paid attention to the popularity of the film itself but also to the special phenomenon created by its influence over popular culture, which is called “Dahua Culture.” These articles focus on a wide range of aspects, including postmodern culture, adaptation, intertextuality, cultural studies, Internet culture, performance, language, time and space, and also include creative writing, leading to A Chinese Odyssey’s appeal to both fans and academics is steady.

Many fans of the movie express the “postmodern” factors in Stephen Chow’s “nonsensical” style, and the subversive pleasure that audiences derive from the film’s excessive play with the grotesque and the violation of social norms. Stephen Chow transformed the story of pilgrimage into a slapstick comedy where gods, pilgrims, and demons were usually treated with awe and were now a humorous outlet in a political environment where authorities are supposed to always be respected.

The following example demonstrates the kind of analysis that circulates among fans:

If you double over with laughter when watching this movie, it means you have a sense of humor. But if you’re still laughing when the movie is over, you actually understand nothing of the film. When the film is over, if you find your face is covered with tears, you have come to understand the first layer of its meaning. If after all your laughter and tears you are stunned, not knowing whether to cry or to laugh, you understand the second layer of its meaning. If you sit there speechless, dejected and despondent, not knowing where you should go, you understand the third layer of its meaning. A Chinese Odyssey is an allegory. Hidden within the shell of an ancient myth, it appears to be a very funny and sad, bawdy but pure love story, but actually it is about the problems caused by the uncertainty of time and the hesitation of the individual.

Joker’s transformation into Sun Wukong represents the spiritual journey that a man experiences growing up, and Tripitaka and the Bull Demon King each represent different social powers around him. Many fans speak about their experience watching the film repeatedly, and how their understanding deepens after each viewing. Another fan writes about her understanding of love, which changes through the years in which she watched the film repeatedly:

From the 1990s, when she was in elementary school, until when she graduated from college, the film in her eyes has evolved from a horror film to a love story, from an avant-garde film to a love story that is all based on a lie.

A review about the author’s deepened understanding of the film after college:

I suddenly understood the beginning of the movie: A young guy who is talented but does not respect rules (Sun Wukong) loathes the big and important cause that he is assigned (the pilgrimage to India). He especially cannot bear the nagging preaching of his teacher (Tripitaka), but the rules and regulations in the world (Guanyin) won’t let him go. In order to transform him into a devoted pilgrim, Tripitaka - and Guanyin have reached an agreement: let him get reborn and start anew five hundred years later. Such a foreordained beginning.

The review goes on to state that Sun Wukong’s “Havoc in Heaven” takes place during the golden era of four years in college. After he leaves the campus and finds a job he realizes that all his talents and personality do not matter underneath the mountain of Buddha’s palm. In short, while A Chinese Odyssey subverted Journey to the West’s status as a revered classic, it managed to establish itself as a classic. The parody did not just ridicule the gods and teachers in the original story, but it also drew new images for the main characters, establishing new meanings related to the audience. It influenced later adaptations of Journey to the West and deeply changed the normal depiction of characters such as Sun Wukong and Tripitaka.

ABSTINENCE FROM SEXUALITY IN JOURNEY TO THE WEST

In the novel Journey to the West, themes of the body and sexuality are sublimated due to the nature of the story as a religious allegory. Sex is a formidable sin from which all of the pilgrims must abstain and Bajie is the only one who shows weakness toward the temptation of sex. For that, he is repeatedly tested, warned, and punished. In contrast, Tripitaka has sustained his virgin body for ten reincarnations, and it is believed that eating one piece of it is sufficient to grant the consumer longevity. Many demons want to eat him, and sometimes female demons want to have sex with him. If Tripitaka has to constantly work against the idea of sexuality and make an effort to abstain from it, for Wukong sex has never been an issue.

In his own words, he was born without xing. When Patriarch Puti asked him about his xing (surname), he took it as a question about his xing (temperament/nature) and responded that he did not have any temper (xing), and had never lost his temper (yisheng wu xing). This statement also holds true if we take the liberty of relating the pun of xing to sexuality. When it was clarified that the question was about the surname that he would have received from his parents, Wukong responded that he did not have any parents, since he was born from a piece of stone. Puti was delighted upon hearing this, saying that the monkey was born of heaven and earth. Although the narrative of Journey to the West never explains the ways in which Wukong’s birth from stone functions as an asset, it is clear that his parentless birth (a birth that is not as a result of sexual activity) distinguishes him as a model for religious practice. Quite relatively, throughout the journey, sex simply never constitutes a temptation for him, as if his mind cannot fathom the idea of sexuality.

The correspondence of the five members of the pilgrimage group with the Five Phases of Chinese philosophy with Wukong related to Metal (Jin) and Heart/Mind (Xin). Metaphorically Wukong functions as the mind/heart of the group, which is focused on defeating demons and directing the group toward the religious holy land. This is perhaps why the narrative of Journey to the West consistently refers to Sun Wukong as the “heart/mind monkey” (xinyuan). If the heart/mind of the pilgrims should be directed toward attaining Buddhist sutras for the world or attaining Buddhahood for themselves, the body that is attached to worldly pleasures constitutes obstacles for the heart. For Zhu Bajie, the obstacle of the body is significantly greater than it is for Tripitaka. But for Sun Wukong, his body does not stand in the way— born from stone and smelt in Laozi’s elixir furnace, his body is built for battles and transformational magic, not for the sin of desire.

Sun Wukong’s body actually contains many details —from his birth from the stone to his transformation training, to the numerous bodily tricks he plays when encountering demons during the journey— but the writing about the body is paradoxically for the purpose of eventually transcending it, and his physical capacity greatly facilitates that process. The 1960s adaptation emphasized the heroic aspects of Sun Wukong and reconstructed him as a brave warrior who fights against the oppression of the feudalist heaven controlled by the Jade Emperor, and a true pilgrim who can see through the disguises of forms and catch the White Bone Demon despite her transformations. What is unchanged from the religious “heart monkey” to the communist revolutionary monkey is the agreement in his “heart” and his body, originating from his miraculous birth and well suited to the purposes of pilgrimage and revolutionary cause alike.

BODY VERSUS HEART: HUMANIZATION OF THE MONKEY KING

In contrast, in A Chinese Odyssey, the Sun Wukong’s story becomes one of the body working against the heart. With the entire story focusing on Joker’s romantic adventures, love and sexuality become central themes of the film, and the meaning of “heart” in “ heart monkey” changes to refer to love. A Chinese Odyssey gives Wukong (reborn as Joker) a mortal human body, and Joker’s adventure involves various sorts of mistreatment of this body and a focal point of the camera. Joker appears near the beginning suffering from a severe injury where even his his legs soon give out, and he can only walk upside down with his arms. His body continues to be treated cruelly as he is seen falling into a pit of feces; trapped by a spider net; breaking his own teeth; being beaten, burnt, and repeatedly trampled on by his gang members. His private parts particularly become the target of trampling quite a few times.

When Joker and Jingjing fall in love, in the short moment when they were together, sex was never consummated. Paradoxically, the narrative of this film about love seems to focus unmistakably on castration. Whereas part 1, Pandora’s Box, tells the adventures of Joker’s body, part 2, Cinderella, becomes the story of his heart. But just like the mistreatment of the body in the earlier part, something always goes wrong with his heart in part 2. Joker spends this part of the journey in denial: of both his love for Zixia and his identity as the Monkey King. It is only by means of the literal separation of his heart from his body that he is eventually able to find and recognize his heart—he is killed by Ma’am Thirty, who cuts open his chest and takes his heart out, so he sees it with his “eyes of the heart/soul” (xinyan). At this moment, after his heart leaves his body, he becomes the Monkey King, who has to put the golden ring on his head to control his worldly desire.

Later, when the new Sun Wukong is faced with a hard choice between saving his true love Zixia and saving his master Tripitaka, the golden fillet tightens to make sure he makes the right choice. With its depictions of the body and the search for love, A Chinese Odyssey seemingly delivers a message that is diametrically opposed to that of Journey to the West until the ending, when it hits on a conclusion that is much in agreement with Journey to the West: abstaining from worldly pleasure. The last scene of the movie sees the group of pilgrims set off once again on their journey to the West, when they come across a couple, the exact replica of Joker and Zixia, repeating the scene that Joker once experienced when he refused to kiss “Zixia” and profess his love for her. Possessing the body of the replica Joker, Sun Wukong embraces “Zixia,” gives her the requested kiss, and tells her that he will never leave her. Having done this, Sun Wukong leaves the body of “Joker” and sets off on his journey, leaving the embracing couple behind. Although this ending provides Sun Wukong the chance to make up for his regret by means of the body of the substitute, it also concludes the separation of the body and the heart, permanently.

By the same token, although the film is replete with sexually charged language and images, sex is never directly represented. Sexual expectations are subverted and rebuffed. The story of the conflicting body and heart of Joker ends with a symbolical self-castrating action, when we see Sun Wukong eating a banana, on two occasions near the end of the movie, with peels dangling at his mouth and the banana bitten off. These scenes, echoing the trampling scene described earlier, epitomize the conflicting relationship between body and heart. Although they no doubt create a humorous effect, part of the “nonsensical” style for which Stephen Chow is known, the Monkey King image created by such effect forms a stark contrast to that of the successful and capable fighter in earlier adaptations.

Now that he knows love, his body is working against his heart. Thus, the new Sun Wukong must bear the vexing challenges of life, just like a normal human being. It is this contradiction between body and heart that has become the source of inspiration for many Dabua fans who see the story as reflecting their own: the dreams of the young heart and its obstructions in reality.

BETWEEN DEMON AND DEITY

Sun Wukong has lost the godly control and coordination of body and heart that he enjoyed in Journey to the West. But the film still resists a simple dichotomy between deity and demon as blurring the line between the demon and the god is a major endeavor of the narrative. Not only does the film question the categorical nature of the Monkey King, but it also ridicules the differentiation between deity and demon. Wukong is reincarnated as Joker as a punishment for his demonic behavior, but he repeatedly refuses opportunities to be transformed back into the deity Monkey King. When he realizes that he has finally become the Monkey King reincarnate, seeing the image of a monkey in the “Mirror of Demon Revelation,” he immediately throws the mirror to the ground, tramples on the mirror (and his predestined identity), and runs away. Thus the final transformation into Sun Wukong at the end concludes the human Joker’s resistance with his eventual submission to his predestination (or the pressure of the social environment, in one Dahua fan’s interpretation).

The question of “deity or demon?” as a major theme is represented by what Zixia asks Joker when she first meets him:

“Deity? Demon? Thanks.”

Indicating her immediate need to categorize Joker as a deity or a demon, the question reflects her interest in detecting disguises. In her short earlier encounter with Erlang Shen and the Four Heavenly Kings, the gods transformed into humans to deceive her. Gods such as Erlang Shen and his team are represented as quite ungodly, their conversations indicating that they all have ordinary humanlike faults and concerns. Demons identified by the mirror turn out to be as lovable as their human disguises: Jingjing is devoted to love, and Ma’am Thirty sacrifices herself to save her partner and baby. The triangle formed between Joker, Jingjing, and Zixia involves a human, a deity, and a demon, and the fact that they fall into different categories never constitutes a problem for them as the narrative presents the human side of all beings, including their frustrations, their desires, their dreams, and their fears.

The line between deity and demon is also blurred in Journey to the West itself. In the sixteenth-century text, Sun Wukong himself goes through the identity transformation from a demon (a king of monkeys who occupy a mountain and claim it as their territory without recognition from authorities), to a deity recognized by the Taoist authority (first as the imperial horse keeper, then as the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven), and finally a Buddhist pilgrim who eventually attains Buddhahood. This upward transformation from an outlaw to a recognized deity was deliberately overlooked by the socialist adaptations, which downplayed the importance of social recognition either from the Taoist or the Buddhist order but only emphasized the idea of rebel and the metaphor of the journey. Hence the Monkey King was simply represented as a heroic rebel of oppression or a devoted follower of the path for socialist construction. In contrast, Joker’s transformation in A Chinese Odyssey moves in the opposite direction from Sun Wukong in Journey to the West. Refusing to return to the monkey-deity identity, Joker prefers to remain as an outlaw.

In this film, for the first time, he is given the right to ask questions about who he is and what he is doing. His heroic halo taken away, the Monkey King once again becomes the down-to-earth nobody, a humanized antihero who speaks to the sympathetic audience.

REINCARNATION, REWRITING, AND THE STORY OF HONG KONG

The story of the Monkey King’s reincarnation can be read as one of rewriting. Guanyin and Jade Emperor were official rewriters of Sun Wukong’s story: they dislike the version in which Sun Wukong rebels against Guanyin, and give him another chance by reincarnating him as Joker. Joker, however, after being reminded of his identity in his previous life, which he has completely forgotten, chooses to run away: he does not want to become Sun Wukong, the protagonist of the “Journey to the West” story already written. Instead, he makes as many revisions as he can and tries to lead the story in a direction of his own choosing. From this point of view, the entire movie is about the tension and conflicts of the two rewriting plans operating in opposite directions. Although Joker battles to be the writer of his own life, in the end he has to give in to the dominance of Guanyin’s rewrite. Despite his resistance, in the end his memory and identity as the Monkey King is regained, or, more accurately, reconstructed. Joker’s own effort to rewrite his story can be seen from his repeated time travels.

When he finds out that the Moonlight Box can take people to other times, he tries to go back in time to change what happens to Jingjing and hence change his own love story. But his timetravel plan never works out and he travels back five hundred years by mistake and thus begins the unintended love story with Zixia. Joker’s plan eventually has to yield to divine intervention. Before his story reaches a happy ending, his life is taken by the spider demon, and his spirit faces Guanyin’s master plan: the Monkey King’s golden headband and golden rod are waiting for him. Although taking on the mantle of the Monkey King is presented as a matter of choice, there really is no alternative, and the film portrays this transformation as the saddest moment. Solemnly and ceremonially, Joker raises up and puts on the fillet, repeating the lines he once insincerely spoke to Zixia:

“Once there was a genuine love devoted to me, but I took it lightly. When I have lost it, I know it is too late to regret.”

It is as if he uses the last moment as Joker to redeem the lines that he performed badly before, but this time with complete sincerity. This sincerity in his last words about love proves the tragic nature of the unwilling transformation into Sun Wukong. Among all the Journey to the West adaptations, A Chinese Odyssey is probably the one that most emphasizes the tragedy of being the Monkey King.

The film’s demonstrated anxiety over transformation in general, and Joker’s frustrated effort to work against the divine plan in particular, builds a significant link to the story of Hong Kong. The transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to China in 1997 had been a great concern in Hong Kong in the 1980s and 1990s. Whereas in mainland China the transfer was expected eagerly as Hong Kong’s “return,” in other parts of the world it is referred to as the “Handover.” Anxiety and doubt about the Handover are expressed directly or indirectly in popular culture. The reference to Hong Kong in the film A Chinese Odyssey is unnoticed when it travels north, despite its popularity and the abundance of discussion about the meaning of the story. The transformation of the “Journey to the West” narrative into a love story took Dabua fans by surprise and has been a major focus of their discussions.

Fans rather relate to the story to their own social reality and seem to have neglected the abundant references to the social transformations in Hong Kong either in the major theme or through specific scenes. For instance, the film has a scene of the entire group of pilgrims stranded in a town on an isolated piece of land that has been blown up by the Bull Demon King with his magic fan and is floating slowly toward the sun. Wukong tries to push the island back with his golden rod but his individual effort cannot overpower the gusts created by the magic fan. For a few seconds the film freeze-frames on a distant shot of the bloodred sun (communist China), occupying almost the entire screen, with the small island (Hong Kong) floating irreversibly toward it, and the single Monkey King trying desperately to stop its motion. The scene poses an urgent question to the audience: Will the pilgrims be able to escape?

The answer is yes, when the magic works: all pilgrims narrowly escape using the Moonlight Box, which transports them to a different time-space right before the island explodes. As comparatist Ackbar Abbas has noted about films from Hong Kong, “almost every film made since the mid-eighties, regardless of quality or seriousness of intention, seems constrained to make some mandatory reference to 1997.” Even though A Chinese Odyssey is a spoof of a mythical story, the reference is quite clear. Joker’s situation corresponds quite closely to the “floating” identity and the problematics of the “deja disparu,” as Abbas discusses; with the slipperiness and ambivalence of his true identity and the rapid changes of status, he is unable to see what is right in front of him, and when he does see it, it is “always already gone.” The desperate scene of the floating island moving toward the sun creates a pressing sense of crisis. Despite all of Sun Wukong’s effort, the city disappears after all, indicating a quite pessimistic view of the future of the “floating city.” The image of the “floating city” (fucheng) is used frequently in popular culture as a reference to Hong Kong.

CREATIVE MISREADING, POSTSOCIALIST HERO

Many Dahua fans are college students, the film resonates with those who struggle to find their own identities in an authoritative regime. Frequently discussed themes include impossible love, the struggle of the individual against society, and eventual submission to social pressure. The Joker with whom Dahua fans identify is the rebel who is doomed to fail but who nonetheless remains the rebel— that is, until he eventually has to give in to an indomitable external force. A common analogy discussed by fans is the comparison of Joker’s resubmission to authority once he dons the golden crown of the Monkey King to the increased censorship of the Internet after 1997.

The creative misreading of A Chinese Odyssey has created a new image of the Monkey King for the mainland with Joker establishing himself as a “postsocialist” hero. This new hero replaces the images of Sun Wukong as a “revolutionary” hero that were created and popularized in the 1960s in works such as Havoc in Heaven. The term “postsocialism” develops the idea of postsocialism in response to Deng Xiaoping’s “socialism with Chinese characteristics,” indicating that the Chinese socialism in practice is not exactly socialism (nor is it capitalism), scholars in Chinese studies adopt and adapt the concept for different purposes. The postsocialist nature of the image of Sun Wukong is evident from the relationship between the people and the system. If a socialist system means people have faith in the socialist discourse, it becomes postsocialist when this faith is lost, even though ideological control from the leadership is still strong and is currently getting stronger. There exists a discord and discrepancy between the expectations from above and grassroots-level practice.

Instead of the kind of collective identification with common ideals established in the socialist period, the postsocialist hero is interested in his individual agenda, which often includes focusing on his personal struggle to challenge the authorities that want to control him. A Chinese Odyssey indicates the postsocialist turn of Journey to the West: from here on, major adaptations of Journey to the West almost always present the Monkey King as a postsocialist hero (with one exception that will be discussed below).

A Chinese Odyssey makes Sun Wukong a rebel again: he had already experienced the five hundred years of imprisonment and become a pilgrim following Tripitaka, but now he no longer wants to follow the prescribed narrative. And not only is he no longer willing to obey the command from above, but he also loudly lets the world know of his intention. This Wukong expresses a challenge to the ideological authority of the contemporary regime. Even though in the end his resubmission is unavoidable, his ridicule and rejection of authority is already enough for the audience to consider him a hero. Soon after, the rise in A Chinese Odyssey’s popularity presents an opportunity to rewrite the story of Wukong as well as other main characters in Journey to the West.

The “post” of postsocialism is reflected in the spirit of rebellion, the lack of belief in authoritarian control, and the challenge to authority; on the other hand, the “socialist” ideology and the government that represents it still maintain a strong presence. In contrast to the socialist revolutionary Monkey King produced during the 1950s and 1960s, who celebrate his victory in the end, both of the postsocialist Monkeys are doomed to lose. Joker has to fight hard for his right to disagree, and eventually, he gives in. The audeince can relate the story of Wukong to the forms of compliance they have to endure in real life. The popularity of A Chinese Odyssey lies in the sympathy that the readers share with Wukong. They grieve over these sad stories just as they grieve over their own problems.

These adaptations are all engaged with the major contradiction of Journey to the West: why would Monkey, once a brilliant rebel, become a model Buddhist pilgrim? It is the ways in which the readers approach this contradiction that determines to a large extent their understanding of Journey to the West. One common theme shared by these three texts is the central issue of thus, looking for his identity is a major struggle for Wukong, and it is a lonely one. He is no longer presented as a member of the pilgrim team—only he himself can solve the problems he experiences, and only from within. Joker refuses to become the hero Sun Wukong, and in this action he remains the rebel. It is because of his own journey/pilgrimage that he is able to accomplish his recovery. Does the ending suggest that the time for Wukong to become a rebel and troublemaker has come again? New adaptations follow the same track in which variants of Wukong, though they may be presented with varying degrees of humor or seriousness, are always marked by a shared sense of loneliness. His struggle has turned inward: finding his identity and his inner strength.

Adaptation of Journey to the West continues, and those receiving public praise have a common theme: rethinking the transition of Sun Wukong from a rebel to a pilgrim, and depicting Sun Wukong rising up as a rebel again. Wukong’s failure and dejection at the beginning and his ultimate transformation into a rebellious hero earns the audience’s sympathy, and their identification with him ensures interest in the project of such revision.

Three other noteworthy examples of postsocialist-oriented adaptation are: The Monkey King (2014), Monkey King: Hero Is Back (2015), and “ Wukong,” as sung by Dai Quan on Sing My Song (2.015).

The Monkey King (2014), was a box-office success but a critical failure. Expectations for the film were high, but the top reviews on this site point to a central issue: Monkey is not presented as a rebel but rather as a naive demon who is manipulated by Bull Demon King; he willingly admits his “mistake” and wants to help rebuild the palace for the Jade Emperor. One reviewer calls the writer of the story “a Wu Cheng’en who works for the Propaganda Department,” and The Monkey King is seen as an educational film promoting the mainstream theme of cooperating with deities.

Monkey King: Hero Is Back (2015) was a success both at the box office and in critics’ reviews. The film focuses on the moment when Monkey has just been released from the mountain after five hundred years of imprisonment. A dejected Monkey who cannot find his power all through the film, he is irritated, instigated, and finally inspired by a little boy named Jiang Liu (Tripitaka’s boyhood name), who believes in the greatness of the Great Sage he knows from legend. At the very last moment, Monkey rediscovers his magic power and defeats the demon Hundun. The short moment of Monkey regaining his magic in the end, lasting for only two minutes, wins the audience’s heart. Many popular reviews note Wukong repeatedly yelling throughout the film, “ I can’t do it, I can’t do it,” a frustration that aligns his character with normal human beings, in contrast to the radiant hero he finally becomes. The most popular review on douban.com states: “Every Chinese will fall in love with Sun Wukong. Each generation has its own Sun Wukong. I think this film can serve as a good first Monkey King film for children of the new century.”

Why does the audience respond to the Wukong in this 2015 film so positively while regarding the 2014 film as a failure? The different attitudes toward these two films point at the significance of the rebellious quality of a postsocialist hero. 2014 accepts what is offered him from both deities and demons, including evil plans that masquerade as friendly help and that eventually result in the havoc in heaven. 2015, however, does not just accept. He searches, he questions, and he fights against his limits, echoing the examples of A Chinese Odyssey.

The third example is the song “Wukong,” written by Dai Quan. The lyrics describe Wukong’s internal journey and struggle from a firstperson point of view. Explaining the reasons he wrote this song, Dai ays his identification with Sun Wukong is due to what he believes is the “spirit of Wukong” (Wukong jingshen): rebelliousness, variability, optimism, and persistence, which has encouraged him in his life as an artist. The bitterness and loneliness that Dai Quan’s Wukong experiences in his individual struggle, and the freedom this Wukong seeks, are particular traits of the postsocialist Wukons. "Wukong” sings at the refrain,

“What is the use of my Iron Rod and my transformations? There is no cure to the anxiety and frustration. Golden band on my head, unspeakable pain.”

But when it repeats at the end, the message turns positive, a victorious Wukong singing the last line:

“Watch my rod—it reduces all problems into ashes.”

The conflict between the golden fillet and the rod is notable in this short song. Engaging with this major conflict, Sun Wukong tries to use his rod to break free from the limitations of the fillet. This is a clear contrast to the socialist Wukong: the revolutionary who is invincible, and the loyal party supporter who does not complain about the golden fillet. After all his failures and frustrations, the postsocialist Wukong in the end manages to find something to celebrate, a sense of accomplishment for himself, as Dai Quan indicated in his statement:

“In the end, every monkey can become Sun Wukong.”

The monkey becomes Sun Wukong when he finds his lost ability to use his rod again. New adaptations of Journey to the West in recent years thus share several common features. The first is a clear individualist bent, as Wukong invariably goes through a personal struggle, the solution for which lies in himself, not in any external agency. Second, Wukong is no longer the filial protector of Tripitaka or true follower of Guanyin’s teaching. The once-suppressed rebellious spirit is back. And third, although Wukong still has to submit to heavenly authority, he is allowed to think, to search, and even to challenge. His signature Fillet, which is transformed into a bracelet in both Hero Is Back and “Wukong,” reflects this change

#anon ask #sun wukong #anonymous #anon #jttw #journey to the west #xiyouji #ask #monkey king #chinese odessey #monkey king hero is back #hero is back #monkey king 2015 #jttw15 #monkey king 2014

9 notes · View notes

whoreviewswho · 3 months

Text

Only One Race Can Survive! - The Daleks, 1963

Part I - The Mutants

Sydney Newman, 1986: "Being a real aficionado of science fiction, I hated stories which used bug-eyed monsters, otherwise known as BEM’s. I wrote in my memo that there would be no bug-eyed monsters in Doctor Who. And after a few episodes, Verity turned up with the Daleks! I bawled her out for it, but she said ‘Honest, Sydney, they’re not bug-eyed monsters – they’re human beings who are so advanced that their bodies have atrophied and they need these casings to manipulate and do the things they want!’. Of course, the Daleks took off and captured everybody’s imagination. Some of the best thing I have ever done are the thing I never wanted to do. It’s true! It’s worked out that way".

Like most periods of the show's history, Doctor Who's inception was a tumultuous time behind the scenes. Script editor David Whitaker, in what would quickly become a desperate hunt for reliable writers and workable scripts, approached writer Terry Nation having seen some potential in his script for ABC TV's science-fiction anthology Out of this World. Despite having, by his now admission, no faith in the programme, Nation soon found himself out of work and committed to a six-episode serial that would air fourth in the season's run.

Initially entitled The Survivors, Nation's original pitch to Whitaker was quite different to the story that eventually made it to screen but kept a lot of the same themes and allegory intact. Nation's serial originally featured three races; the Daleks, the Thals and a third species whose ancestors were responsible for the neutron bomb that devastated Skaro and had returned to the planet to make amends. The set-pieces were more extravagant in initial drafts and the Daleks less definitively villainous but producer Verity Lambert was impressed with Nation's work, offering him a seventh episode to allow greater expansion of his ideas.

David Whitaker, 1979: "Terry Nation didn’t want to write for us, considering it rather demeaning that he’d even been asked." Terry Nation, 1987: "I had no faith in the show. It was the old writer’s axiom, ‘Take the money and fly like a thief’."

As Nation continued to work, the programme's production elsewhere became more fraught. The two serials commissioned for writer Anthony Coburn required increasing rewrites, the initial first story that would become Planet of Giants was deemed unworkable and budgetary concerns had ensured John Lucarotti's epic Marco Polo would not fill the intended third slot. Much to the dismay of Donald Wilson and Sydney Newman, two of Doctor Who's three founding fathers, Nation's The Mutants suddenly became the strongest contender for the second serial.

Verity Lambert, 1980s: “The crisis came when Donald Wilson saw the scripts for the first Dalek serial. Having spent so much time defending ‘Doctor Who’, he saw the Daleks as just bug-eyed monsters, which went against what he felt should be the theme of the science-fiction stories. There was a strong disagreement between us, in fact it went as far as Donald Wilson telling us not to do the show. What saved it in the end was purely that fact that we had nothing to replace it in the time allotted. It was the Daleks or nothing."

David Whitaker, 1979: "Actually, that Dalek story was educational in a subtle way – it showed the dangers of war, pacifism and racial hatred. It contained many admirable and idealistic truths in it, and it was also a jolly good adventure story."

To this day, Terry Nation is somewhat of a divisive figure in the Doctor Who fandom. On the one hand, we have the man who penned what is arguably Doctor Who's most important, formative and defining serial. He is the creator of, not just an iconic monster but, iconic worlds and the core spirit and characterisation of Doctor Who itself and its leading ensemble. Yet, on the other hand, we have a writer who made no bones about his disinterest in the scripts he was writing. It has not become controversial among fans to condemn Terry Nation as a lazy, even hack, writer. One of these things is probably true; Terry Nation was a very lazy writer. But to call him a hack? Not in my opinion. Terry Nation is a very simple writer, certainly. The man's approach to structure was very traditionally rooted in the sci-fi serial format, his style of dialogue would not seem out of place in then contemporary comic books and his plots could never be described as complex or involved stories.

But why should any of these things be flaws? So, the man could write in the mould of classic sci-fi serials? Doctor Who was in the mould of a classic sci-fi serial and what Nation understood so well was that week-to-week structure that so many of his successors, and a good deal of his contemporaries, failed to get a hold of. Sure, Terry Nation serials are awkward stories to binge but they were never designed that way. Ever tried reading Oliver Twist more than one chapter at a time? It is horrible. Every individual chapter is truly an episode unto itself with great moments of character and action that effectively recap the story and move the grander plot forward. This is why, despite the unusual length of seven episodes, The Daleks still holds my attention for the whole runtime. Possibly more than any other writer's work on the original programme, Nation's episodes are consistently great to jump into just as single episodes. This also goes hand in hand with the very direct and simple dialogue really works as well. It is never subtle but it is always efficient and perfectly compliments the flavour of adventure serial that Nation consistently captured. Terry Nation is a good writer. Obviously. He is so good that even when he could not care less, and most of the time he did not, he could always deliver fun and beyond competent scripts.

Terry Nation, 1978: "It was quite a good eerie beginning and, at the end of it – the last frame of the picture – we saw a bit of a Dalek. We didn’t see a whole Dalek. And the phones started to ring. People saying, “Christ, what is that thing? A week later, the Dalek appeared."

The Daleks is a masterful blend of serialised action/adventure, thought provoking science fiction ideas and positively chilling horror that is well beyond the brief that Nation was given. From the moment it begins, this serial is unsettling. There is, of course, a brilliant dramatic irony baked into the premise that operates as both a clue to what is really going on and a genuinely compelling danger for our heroes. There is a school of thought that has concluded that The Daleks is too long but, again, I feel that this is a very contemporary mindset that somewhat misses what this story is going for. Say what you will about Destiny of the Daleks, for a not-at-all random example, but the first episode of this story, titled The Dead Planet, is not an exercise in killing time until the Dalek shows up to menace Barbara at the end. Despite what we know now, The Dead Planet does not have a reveal at the end. There is no frame of reference for the audience to project onto what is happening at all. Instead, the episode is a slowly rising crescendo of intrigue and tension that spans from the sparseness of a silent, dead forest to the gradually more claustrophobic and unfamiliar terrain of the city until Barbara gets cornered in an unknown corridor by an unknown terror. It is beautifully constructed adventure fiction that plays on the natural marriage of primal horrors, being the least creatures alive on the planet, and the imagery of contemporary nuclear warfare.

An Unearthly Child is a story defined by juxtaposition and survivalism which are both ideas that Nation picks up on beautifully in his story but he also brings themes of morality, identity and action. The Daleks is an almost biblical parable. With An Unearthly Child and The Daleks, the two core identities of the show appear to emerge. The former is a cynical and unrelenting programme that believes in unstoppable forces of nature that, no matter how hard we try to escape them or destroy them, will always be there at the core of our beings. With the latter, it is something more optimistic. A programme that is insistent, no matter how devastating the situation, that we can affect our destinies and help those around us to strive for better lives where we learn from our mistakes, can change and move forward. It is this version of Doctor Who, unsurprisingly, that the majority of the franchise believes in.

One thing Wilson did insist upon this serial was an experienced director whom he could trust to steer the ship and Christopher Barry was called in to take the job. Barry, however, was in the midst of other commitments leading to the unique situation where he only directed part of the story – episodes one, two, four and five. Richard Martin made his directorial debut with episode three and went on to direct episodes six and seven as well as the following serial and the Daleks' immediate next two appearances. Barry would also return to the series directing serials infrequently until 1979. As excellent as Martin's work in this serial is, and he realises some pretty spectacular imagery and visual effects for a little programme and with no experience, I could sing the praises of Christopher Barry all day. His choice of camera shots are incredibly dynamic throughout the episodes he helms with some particularly creative uses of angles and composition that really get the best out of these tiny sets. So many classic Doctor Who stories are hampered or even ruined by flat and uninspired direction (and eventually Barry will be the culprit of such a thing) but The Daleks, for my money, stands proud as one of the most cinematic serials of its era.

The cast are all excellent with great moments to shine. William Russell is always on good form and one of my favourite moments of the serial is when he smashes Susan's flower. It's a brilliant and revealing character beat for him. Jacqueline Hill is great and has some epic girl bossing toward the end ("Do you always do what Ian tells you?" "No."). Carole Ann Ford sells the desperation of Susan's mini-quest very well but let ustake some time to single out for praise is William Hartnell who turns in possibly the defining performance of at least his first year in the leading role and steals every single scene that he’s in. Considering the overly aggressive and immoral characterisation of An Unearthly Child, it was not necessarily a given that Doctor Who would be a likeable character any way moving forward but this is the story that first truly defines him. He is still arrogant, selfish and perhaps a little morally ambiguous but he is also shown to be deeply passionate, delightfully witty and shows more than a handful of moments of genuine charm. I love how character driven the plot ultimately is with little more than the Doctor's selfish, stubbornness to please himself that puts the whole crew in danger. It is worth mentioning too how the fluid link saga things on the TARDIS' identity as a machine, in the literal human understanding of the word. Very rarely beyond this serial would the TARDIS actually be treated in this way by the narrative, as opposed to simply being a magical element that carries us from A to B. The Doctor's actions are cruel and self-interested but by the time he is encamped among the Thals and one can see his delight in getting to know their people and their science, he suddenly becomes such a fully realised person in ways that he was not before. The Doctor is a scientist and an explorer, not some vindictive wizard with indefinable motives.

While the presentation, and perhaps core value itself, is a little dated, I also appreciate the Doctor's, and the rest of the main cast's, push for the Thals to be proactive as a peoples. It is a little clunky on the whole and comes off as a pretty pure endorsement against pacifism (though Ian's line "Pacifism only works when everybody feels the same" is a difficult claim to refute) but the nature of the message, insisting that standing up to oppressive forces and taking control of one's own life, is one worth conveying and an essential step in the development of the Doctor's morality. We are not entirely there yet, this is not a heroic character (indeed, he actively causes the Daleks to die), but this is the biggest leap we will get until the Daleks' next appearance.

Speaking of, let's get into the Daleks themselves. It is remarkable how close they are to being fully formed in their debut story. It disappoints me no end that this version of the Daleks, the calculating Nazi scientists allegory, is so ill-frequently represented in subsequent media appearances. The Daleks barely kill anybody at all in this script, largely seen just deliberating and experimenting in the labs of their cities, making the few uses of their weaponry a genuinely awesome shock for the audience. It is also a lot of fun seeing the original educational edict play out, for the only time with the Daleks; they cannot leave the floor of their city for they are powered by static electricity.

The true unsung hero of this production continues to be Ray Cusick, the BBC designer who somewhat infamously took over from a young Ridley Scott who was too busy to take on the job. Before even getting to the main event, we should note that the production design all around is stunning on this story. All of the sets and costumes that are dripping in glorious futuristic aestheticism that would make Star Trek jealous. The Daleks look incredible and, again, it is too easy to take for granted how truly iconic they are. The most radical redesign in the entire barely strays at all from their original realisation here. Even watching them today, it is unbelievable watching them in action. Just how smoothly and freakishly the creatures glide around their home world. They are just so thoroughly alien and it was one of the best choices of the production that their true nature is never actually revealed. How is it possible for the Daleks to be so far from anything resembling humanity? It is left purely for the imagination and to great effect. While Nation was very keen on the image of a gliding creature, allegedly inspired by the the Georgian State Ballet, Cusick was the one who really created the visual identity of the Dalek creature.

Terry Nation, 1987: “Raymond Cusick made a tremendous contribution and I would love to be glib enough to put it into percentage terms, but you can’t do that. You start with something that’s a writer’s dream, that he’s put down in words, and amended, and added to in conversations. Something starts there... I think they may have given him a hundred pound bonus, but he was a salaried employee... The copyrights resided with the BBC and myself... he made a tremendous contribution. Whatever the Daleks are or were, his contribution was vast."

Ray Cusick, 1992: "Everyone was rushing around corridors saying ‘Oh, there’ll be Dalek films, Dalek soap, Dalek tea towels’, they thought there’d be lots of money. I was very friendly with Terry Nation and we appeared on a very famous show called ‘Late Night Line-Up’, and I remember asking him after the show ‘What about the films, Terry?’. And I never saw him again!"

As well we know, Terry Nation is not a subtle writer. In a lot of ways, Terry Nation's scripts seem to defy analysis. Funnily enough, this is something that he has very much in common with, a remarkably different Doctor Who writer, Russell T Davies – neither of them are particularly keen on subtext. As noted above and well documented at this point, there are parallels to be drawn between the Daleks and Nazi scientists. These cold and calculating survivors of a long and brutal war who skulk about in their underground bunkers, preparing to exterminate an entire race that poses no threat to them. As Ian describes them; "They're afraid of you because you're different from them" These are parallels that Nation was very intentionally drawing in his work (and would draw even more intently come Genesis of the Daleks)but there is a particular quote from Nation about his creations that I find deeply tantalising;

Terry Nation, 1978: “I can’t isolate one character [that the Daleks are based upon]. But I suppose you could say the Nazis. The one recurring dream I have – once or twice a year it comes to me – is that I’m driving a car very quickly and the windscreen is a bit murky. The sun comes onto it and it becomes totally opaque. I’m still hurtling forwards at incredible speed and there’s nothing I can see or do and I can’t stop the car. That’s my recurring nightmare and it’s very simply solved by psychologists who say you’re heading for your future. You don’t know what your future is. However much you plead with somebody to save you from this situation, everybody you turn to turns out to be one of ‘Them’. And there’s nobody left – You are the lone guy. The Daleks are all of ‘Them’ and they represent for so many people so many different things, but they all see them as government, as officialdom, as that unhearing, unthinking, blanked-out face of authority that will destroy you because it wants to destroy you. I believe in that now – I’ve directed them more that way over the years."

This is a deeply interesting and revealing excerpt, in my opinion. Nation was a child during the Second World War, a fact that he often mentioned in interviews and something that continued to permeate his work. It would be hard to describe him as anything other than a man with liberal political values, many of which are on display in The Daleks. That being said, it is incredibly easy to read The Daleks as a condemnation of Nazi fascism, totalitarianism and racial hatred. Perhaps not is too easy. Let us take moment to consider the politics of The Daleks as a condemnation of, not the Second World War but, the post-war climate and even more directly on the UK itself. After all, it is not without note that the Thals are of typically Aryan physicality and even had German names in earlier drafts of the story. In real-world history, we all know that it was not the Nazis who dropped the first atomic bomb – it was the Allies and, while the plight of the Thals has a great deal in common with the Jewish in World War II, it is not especially difficult to shift the lens of the Dalek allegory onto the 'good guys' watching the programme. When considering this with the above quote, there becomes something almost anarchistic about The Daleks. Nation's story is a survivalist thriller in many respects (with a lot of the natural horrors, of course, being directly resultant of man-made atrocities) but his self-confessed anxiety for the future perhaps fuels the story's optimistic insistence that when everything is torn down and destroyed, life will prevail and we can begin again, better than before.

The Daleks presents strong ideals of community which makes perfect sense given the quote above. Nation's self-proclaimed fears seem keenly tied to isolation and that paranoia runs rampant in the terror of The Daleks. Take the sequence in The Survivors where Susan is racing back to the TARDIS on her own. The journey is horrifying and tense as she has no support or reassurance on her side. She is a young woman who is already dying and anything could be out to get her.The person who does find her, of course, is Alydon, a man from a kind, supportive and united community. The kind of community that could take on the Daleks. There are a lot of problems with this too though. The Thals are presented as, in Susan's words, perfect. They are peak physical performance, they look like humans and the villains, the irredeemable monsters, are physically inhuman.

Terry Nation, 1978: "[Survival] is a theme that’s actually gone through my work enormously... I’m in that aeroplane and I’m waiting for the moment when they say, 'Can anybody fly this aeroplane?' – And I can’t, but I know that finally I’m going to be the one that has to do it."

On Saturday the twenty-first of December 1963, the fifth episode of the BBC's new science-fiction adventure serial, Doctor Who, aired in front of an audience of 6.9 million viewers. The episode was penned an up and coming Welsh comedy writer named Terry Nation and it was the first of seven chapters in a saga entitled The Mutants. Following a thrilling cliffhanger and the unexpected reveal of the serial's bizarre antagonists, something unexpected happened – Doctor Who suddenly became incredibly popular. Between episodes two and three, 2.5 million more viewers tuned in for the adventure with another 1.5 million accumulated by the serial's end. Doctor Who might have debuted four weeks earlier with An Unearthly Child but The Daleks, as it came to be known, is where the programme that has lasted sixty years actually premieres.

David Whitaker, 1979: "When it was shown, not very long after being recorded, we were, and I don’t mean this to sound smug, proved quite right."

Peter Cushing, 1970s: "I thought it was very good. Very well made."

David Whitaker, 1979: "The Daleks were a smashing invention, and I took to them at once. I would say they’re worthy of Jules Verne."

Verity Lambert, 1980s: "What was very nice, though, was Donald Wilson coming up to me after the Daleks had taken off and saying ‘You obviously understand this programme better than I do. I’ll leave it to you’."

Part II - Dr. Who and the Daleks

Terry Nation, 1987: "After the Daleks, I was for a short time the most famous writer on television. The press interviewed me, there was mail arriving in great van loads. There was stuff coming to my house that said ‘Dalek Man – London’, and I was getting lots of them. Almost all the kids wanted a Dalek, and nobody was quick enough... My God, was that to change! Within the year, there were Dalek everythings."

As we all know, the Daleks were incredibly popular with the British public. In a manner cheekily compared to the Beatles, the Daleks dominated pop culture with all assortments of merchandise and spin-off material quickly emerging on the market. Between Nation and Whitaker's The Dalek Book, TV Century 21's comic strips (also credited to Nation), Whitaker's novel adaptation Doctor Who in an Exciting Adventure with the Daleks and any number of toys, costumes and promotional tie-ins, the impact and legacy of the Dalek serial was immediately felt. Nation was swiftly commissioned for a second serial, the decidedly less culturally penetrating The Keys of Marinus, and eventually asked for a sequel Dalek story but what could have been the most high-profile exposure for his creations that one could ask, strangely enough, came without much involvement from Nation at all.

In late 1964, American film producer Milton Subotsky approached Nation and the BBC about purchasing the film rights to The Daleks. For a fee of £500, Subotsky secured the rights and set about producing Dr. Who and the Daleks. As well as co-producing with Max J. Rosenberg, Subotsky was also credited for the screenplay with not insubstantial uncredited contributions from David Whitaker. The film was one of ten theatrical efforts by prolific television director Gordon Flemyng and marks the first of only two times (to date) that Doctor Who has been adapted exclusively for the silver screen.

Tom Baker, 1975: "There have been two Doctor Who films in the past, both rather poor."

I find Dr. Who and the Daleks to be a deeply fascinating cultural oddity but that fascination surrounding its existence ultimately fails to translate to the screen itself. Even if it was just rolled into production as a quick attempt to capitalise on the enormous success of the Daleks in yet another form of media, it is admittedly impressive how much of the picture really works. Bill Constable’s art direction is quite breathtaking at times, working beautifully with the luscious technicolor presentation. This is a gorgeous film just to look at and it really effortlessly realises the fullscreen, explosive world of the Daleks that previously only truly existed in the aforementioned comic books and annuals. I particularly love the latter sequences as our heroes scale Skaro's landscape amongst some gorgeous matte painting work. That being said, there is still something that speaks to me more about the 4:3 black and white glimpses offered in the TV version. The feeling of peering through your TV screen into these small corners of what feels like a larger, more dangerous world behind and beyond the camera is much more captivating for me than these much grander sets presented without ambition or flair.

Since I neglected them in my main review, let me quickly sing the praises of Peter Hawkins and David Graham as the voices of the Daleks. With the assistance of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop's Brian Hodgson, the pair created the unique electronic tones of the creature's voices using a ring modulator. Their voices are immediately recognisable and they put in great performances though it is clear, in hindsight, that the sound of the Daleks still had some work to do. Hawkins and Graham's initial Daleks are much more monotone than they would later become with the pair only later landing upon the rising pitch and angry tones that would truly define them. They are excellent in the film as well but, it has to be said, the story is not served by how many scenes they have of dialogue amongst themselves. Obviously it makes sense to showcase the full-colour, enormous Dalek props at every possible opportunity in your big screen Dalek film but there is just no way around the reality that Daleks rolling about and talking amongst themselves as slowly as it seems possible they could is not compelling cinema.

Worse than just looking at Daleks are the flaws of Terry Nation’s incredibly serialised storytelling being put on full display here. While the screenplay effectively trims the fat, save for the Dalek scenes, the general structure of this story does not work well as a single feature film. It is a similar problem that a lot of novel adaptations have where the filmmakers just cannot get the chapters to effectively translate to scenes and sequences. Dr. Who and the Daleks also has a bit of a bland core cast. Barrie Ingham is a good Alydon and Peter Cushing works magic with his dottery version of the Doctor but Roy Castle's doofus take on Ian leaves much to be desired and Jennie Linden's Barbara feels so surplus to requirements that she just gets folded into Susan's character and then a generic love interest. The film is entertaining but a bit of a lacklustre watch on the whole. It is not a poor or even unnecessary addition to the Doctor Who canon. This is as good a 90 minute adaptation of The Daleks that could possibly exist. It is just also true that the best version of that story is, regrettably, not this.

Roy Castle, 1990: "[I]t was quite unusual. Very unlike anything I’ve ever done... [The Daleks] were brilliant. I think if you’d said to the producer, you must get rid of the humans or the Daleks, he’d have got rid of us humans in a flash."

Peter Cushing, 1990s: "Those films are among my favourites because they brought me popularity with younger children. They’d say their parents didn’t want to meet me in a dark alley but ‘Doctor Who’ changed that. After all, he is one of the most heroic and successful parts an actor can play. That’s one of the main reasons the series had such a long run on TV. I am very grateful for having been part of such a success story.”

In 2024, the prevalence of Dr. Who and the Daleks in the greater story of the programme has dwindled but it is worth remembering just how significant an event it was. While not a critical darling, the film was a box officer smash in the UK and was often repeated on television over the following decades. For so many fans, Dr. Who and the Daleks was more readily viewed than great swathes of the television show itself. Even though The Daleks is the story that happened on television, it is not unfair to say that Dr. Who and the Daleks is the story many of us remember happening.

Part III - The Daleks in Colour

Russell T Davies, 2023: "I've got to beblunt, I've watched this, as a fan, ahundred times as a black and white show andI've never enjoyed it so much as in colour."

And so, we fast forward, to 2023 and the sixtieth anniversary of Doctor Who. Showrunner Russell T. Davies has made the entire back-catalogue available for streaming in the UK, three new specials are about to air and the boldest, most publicised attempt to bring the original series to the general audience since 2005 is taking place. Thanks to the work of fans such as Rich Tipple and Benjamin Cook, RTD spearheaded an all-new colorisation and re-edit of The Daleks down to a seventy-five minute length to offer an alternative "blockbuster" version for potential new fans. How many of the uninitiated took any notice of its appearance on iPlayer and sprucing on breakfast television remains to be seen but, nevertheless, Doctor Who: The Daleks in Colour arrived in our screens on the 23rd of November, 2023.

The film in question is an interesting but flawed experiment. Certainly, the possibility of colourising the ancient history of Doctor Who has been a tantalising one for decades now and something many fans, myself included, have been eager to see. In and of itself, this is a fine thing to strive for and, in this respect, The Daleks in Colour is incredibly successful at it. The colourisation is breathtaking. Not only is the colourising itself incredible but the choice to eschew real world reference points for the sets, costume and lighting in favour of the most vibrant, almost psychedelic options that they could possibly think of is the correct choice. The entire production has a sense of 1960s pop and visual style that slots in seamlessly with then contemporary productions to the extent where it looks like this could always have been the plan.

What feels very much not like it was planned, however, is the runtime. On paper, chopping up the serial makes a good deal of sense. Seven episodes is a big commitment to somebody uncertain of the original show and with 1963 pacing being what it was, the decision to pare things down matches well with the mission statement. Alas, the editing in this film does not work but not because the idea is bad. Dr. Who and the Daleks has proven that paring down the script can lead to a generally well-received and, for many, preferential product. Yes, Dr. Who and the Daleks is, in many ways the elephant in the room. While the decision to choose the debut of the Daleks as a story to hook in new fans makes a lot of sense on paper, the fact that the Subotsky adaptation exists at all makes it a little difficult to justify.

The direct comparison is ultimately unfavourable and not just because of how many of the colour choices seem direct inspired by it. The Subotsky film's existence awkwardly lampshades the fact that what one is watching here is not an eighty-two minute feature designed to watched in one sitting. This is an almost three hour one awkwardly cobbled together with jarring new musical cues. Many of the technical choices employed such as speeding up the film, tightening up gaps in the dialogue and recording new Dalek dialogue to disguise swathes of cut material all amount to a very obviously cobbled together experience.

Still, this experiment was necessary and this is a great little curio of the franchise but the awkwardness of the production and its core appeal as an alternative proves it unlikely, in my opinion, to ever actually attain its goal – enticing new viewers to watch the Hartnell era. What The Daleks in Colour is is an alternative to the original and a glimpse into an alternate history for a captive fanbase. It could have been an amazing leap forward but remains, instead, a noteworthy first step into uncharted territory.

But what of that original serial then? Well, in my opinion, The Daleks still holds up today as one of the best stories in the history of Doctor Who and a landmark moment in science fiction storytelling. But this is not for everyone. BBC television of the 1960s is certainly not for everyone; I watched this with my partner and we both did feel the length when watching the episodes in close proximity. Even so, I do strongly implore checking out the first two episodes in the serial for some of the most intriguing and moody sci-fi adventure storytelling you might ever see in Doctor Who. In December 1963, Terry Nation and the Doctor Who team created some wonderful episodes of television. And that was not the end of the story.

Terry Nation, 1987: "I don’t know to this day what the enormous appeal of the Daleks was. I’ve heard all sorts of ideas about it, but they were slightly magical, because you didn’t know what the elements were that made them work."

Sydney Newman, 1986: “Someone once told me that there was a question in Trivial Pursuit, ‘Who created Doctor Who?’. You turn the card over and it says the answer is Terry Nation! I wrote a rather stinging letter, demanding the destruction of all the Trivial Pursuits that had that mistake in them, hinting at some fabulous compensation that they should give me for demeaning my contribution to (laughs) world culture! I got lawyers and everything, but I didn’t get anywhere. They just said they would withdraw the card. I even wrote to Terry Nation for his support, and he sent me a very nice letter back.”

*This title would be adopted by fans despite not appearing on any documentation at the time. It became officially endorsed with the 2001 VHS release

#doctor who #analysis #behind the scenes #culture #tv #history #actors #review #classic who #daleks #doctor who dalek #tardis #dr who #time lords #william hartnell #first doctor #1st doctor #susan foreman #william russell

9 notes · View notes