#and i understand that for some fans this might be their first introduction to broadway

[frommybedroom]

sorry but it’s so annoying when people continually ask if [insert cast member(s) here] will be there at [insert date here], especially with some of them beginning to leave. i promise you, no one has some secret knowledge that they’re keeping from you in particular. this is just how broadway works. i understand you want to see as much of the OBC as you can, but you have as much information as the rest of us.

[365days365movies]

February 1, 2021: Dirty Dancing (1987)

There are two people to credit for the beginning of this month. The first is my girlfriend, who asked that I represent her with this GIF.

Thank you, dear. Anyway, this is one of her favorite romance films, and she’s also not a big romance movie person. She was shocked that I hadn’t seen it, and that’s because of the second person to credit here: my Mom.

That is my Mom in the late ‘80s with her Pomeranian, Pugsley. Yup. This is just the GODDAMN SURFACE of my Mom, who’s quirky as shit. Love her for it, though. But, OK, why is my Mom involved here? Because this is also one of her favorite films. My Dad’s, too, but I’ll talk more about him in April.

However, if you read the Romance February introduction from yesterday, you might be wondering something. If my Mom’s taste in romance movies was so prevalent in my early life, how in the hell have I never seen this movie, one of her favorites? Especially considering the fact that, TMI here, but I WAS BORN TO THE FILM’S SOUNDTRACK. YES. REALLY. HOW HAVE I ESCAPED THIS MOVIE?

Yup. No clue. Shall we remedy that? SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap

It’s 1963 in the Catskills, where Frances “Baby” Houseman (Jennifer Grey), a politically conscious young woman on her way into the Peace Corps, is going on vacation with her parents, Jake and Majorie Houseman (Jerry Orbach and Kelly Bishop), and her sister, Lisa (Jane Brucker). The owner, Max Kellerman (Jack Weston), who’s a friend of the Housemans, welcomes them to the resort.

Later that night, Max is briefing the young male waiters and entertainment, all of whom are hired from Ivy League universities. Well...except for the intriguing young dance instructor in the sunglasses. THAT...would be Johnny Castle (Patrick Swayze).

I wanna just say before I forget, I miss Patrick Swayze. He’s awesome, and he left far too soon.

The next night, during dinner, Max introduces Baby to his grandson, Neil (Lonny Price), who’s just graduated from Cornell’s Hotel Management school. A school which, for the record, is the best hotel school in the USA, and second or third in the world. Also, hotelies (that’s what we called them) are CRAZY. They’re an interesting...bunch...

I, uh... I went to CornellMOVING ON

As Neil awkwardly hits on Baby, everybody encourages them having a relationship, despite her CLEARLY not wanting any of this. She instead watches Johnny skillfully mambo with another girl on center floor. After being roped into a magic act by Neil, and given a chicken by Stan (Wayne Knight, which I’m a fan of), she leaves, annoyed and irritated.

On her way back, she sees Johnny’s cousin, Billy (Neal Jones) struggling with a few GIGANTIC watermelons. She offers to help him, and he brings her to a secret house party, where some dancing’s happening. Some...dirty dancing.

Interesting side note here: racial integration! In 1963, remember, so that’s interesting. I mean, if anybody’s a fan of that, it’s gonna be me. At the party, Johnny arrives with Penny Johnson (Cynthia Rhodes), his dance partner from the mambo floor. Johnny sees her there, and questions her presence, to which she makes an adorably awkward comment. And then...they do a dance of their own.

The next day, Lisa makes a love connection with one of the waiters, and asks Baby to cover for her. Baby also speaks to Penny, who doesn’t come from the best background. That night, Penny’s missing, and Neil gives Cornell students just the WORST goddamn name as he very awkwardly hits on Baby. He takes her to the kitchen, and that’s where Baby sees Penny.

Yeah, Penny’s not OK. Baby goes to Billy and Johnny, who go to get her. Turns out Penny’s pregnant, but Johnny’s not the father. They’re obviously quite close, although they aren’t romantically tangled. Baby, coming from a place of much higher privilege, doesn’t quite understand how difficult this is. Penny berates her for this, and it’s revealed that the father is Robbie Gould (Max Cantor), one of the waiters, who’s also the guy that’s been hanging around Lisa.

Baby confronts him the following day, where he states that “Some people count, some people don’t.” He also offers her a copy of The Fountainhead, a well-known book for complete and utter douchenozzles. She warns him to stay away from her sister, then goes to ask her father for money for the abortion. Which, by the way, was very illegal in 1963. She gets the money from her dad, who gives it without asking many questions.

However, there’s an issue; Johnny and Penny have to dance on the only night she can get the abortion. And there’s nobody to replace her...except maybe Baby? Johnny’s entirely against it, they end up convincing him, for Penny’s sake. And now, we get a hallmark of ‘80s cinema: the training montage.

This is a pretty good time to note three things. One, Jennifer Grey is the daughter of Joel Grey, one of the GREATEST actor/dancers ever to grace Hollywood and Broadway. Dude was one of the main characters in Cabaret, for which he won an Oscar, and originated the role of the Wizard of Oz in Wicked. So, yeah, she’s got dancing blood. Secondly, Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey apparently HATED each other. Yeah, kind of a bummer. But their chemistry was SO GODDAMN POWERFUL, that they were able to push through their feelings and do this as well as they are. And third...THIS SOUNDTRACK BOPS. 

I get it. I GET IT.

Something else I get, too. The chemistry between Grey and Swayze really does sizzle, GODDAMN. Over the course of the montage, they clearly get closer emotionally...and physically. And yeah, it’s definitely there. Although, given the fact that they’re from different class backgrounds, it’s probably gonna be one of those stories. Well, OK. Let’s do it.

After a little too much time practicing, the two take a break. And yet, while on a nature excursion, they continue their training in different environments. Most iconically, they practice lifts in the lake.

Yeah...yeah, I get it.

The day approaches, and Baby and Penny have a bit of a heart-to-heart. Penny asks Lisa to cover for her (and I’m betting that she won’t, LIKE AN ASSHOLE), and she heads to the dance gig. It mostly goes OK, but the lift is aborted at the last second. However, the performance is still received well. They leave JUST before an elderly couple from the resort sees them. 

Johnny gives her a pep-talk, telling her that she did well, and the music on the car radio hints at their growing mutual attraction. But once they get there, tragedy’s struck. Turns out that the abortion doctor was a dangerous quack, and Penny’s now dangerous injured, in pain and possibly dying. Panicking, Baby does THE RIGHT THING, I can’t stress that enough, THE RIGHT GODDAMN THING, and gets her doctor father.

Understandably upset (and yeah, it is understandable, all things considered), Dr. Houseman forbids Baby from seeing Johnny or any of the others ever again. This situation...sucks. Damn. And Baby agrees, as she sneaks off to see Johnny anyway. She apologizes to Johnny for how her father treated her, but Johnny blames his own social status for it, rather than her father.

Their conversation becomes very real, and eventually turns into Baby declaring her love for Johnny. As a song comes on the radio, she asks him to dance with her. Giving in to his own feelings, he agrees. And together they engage in some...Dirty Dancing.

As the two dirty dance horizontally, the night turns to day. That morning, things are definitely awkward between Baby and her father, who almost takes his family away that night. But, his wife and Lisa convince him to stay. He even comes back to visit Penny, checking in to make sure she’s alright, which Baby finds out once she does the same.

Things are also a little awkward between Baby and Johnny, interestingly. Wonder how last night ended. Well, Penny figures it out, and warns Johnny about the risks off getting involved with the upper class. Which, remember, is how she ended up this way. The two have a tense-but-intimate exchange. Which just preludes this IMMEDIATELY happening.

Yeah, that’s not a surprise. Well, more heart-to-heart proceeds, and they continue to learn about each other’s lives. That night, Lisa tells Baby that she wants to go all the way with Robbie. Despite Baby’s warnings, Lisa simply tells her off, and is generally, I’ll be honest, a bitch. The next morning, though, Baby and Johnny have another dance session. And it’s THAT session. You know the one.

Neil interrupts, and proceeds to give a bad name to Cornellians everywhere (I’m not like that putz, I SWEAR), and pisses off Johnny in the process. She asks why he didn’t stand up for himself, and then immediately hides Johnny from her father, who’s walking with Robbie and Lisa. Rightfully calling her a hypocrite, he storms off.

And then they immediately resolve it. Which, GODDAMN, do I appreciate. Robbie strolls by, makes a typical crass comment about Baby, and then Johnny BEATS THE EVER-LOVING SHIT OUT OF HIM

OH FUCK YES. And if that wasn’t enough catharsis, Lisa catches Robbie with one of the high society wives from earlier, as they sleep together in a cabin. OH. YES. THAT’S SOME GOOOOOOOOOOOOD SHIT.

Baby and Johnny, in the actual good and fully-developed relationship of this movie, spend the night together. And are seen the next morning by the high society wife, who had the hots for Johnny.

The wife, Vivian (Miranda Garrison), implicates Johnny in stealing a wallet. Johnny’s about to be fired, and then BABY ADMITS THAT THEY WERE TOGETHER IN FRONT OF HER FATHER HOLY FUCK

She did it. She actually did it. Goddamn. And then, AND THEN, she TELLS HER FATHER OFF AND CALLS HER OUT FOR HIS ELITISM HOLY FUCKING SHIT I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS MOVIE. And then, Jerry Orbach fuckin’ starts tearing up, and I AM SHOOK MOTHERFUCKER

And yet, even though the wallets were actually stolen by an elderly couple that Baby actually implicated, Johnny gets fired anyway. GODDAMN. After Baby completely loses heart, Johnny confronts her father, and learns that he believes that he was the one who got Penny pregnant. Johnny semi-tells him off, then walks away.

At his car, Johnny and Baby say goodbye with a kiss, and Johnny heads off forever. I mean, probably not, there’s a good 16 minutes left, and we haven’t gotten to the most iconic scene of the film yet. But anyway, Baby mourns her lost relationship, and her sister actually bonds with her over this whole thing. Hot damn.

I want to punch Neil in the goddamn face. Mostly just because he’s on screen, but also because he LITERALLY ruins the goddamn anthem of Cornell University, by setting the anthem for the resort against its melody. Goddamn you, Neil. GODDAMN YOU. Also, fuck Robbie, because he LITERALLY OUTS HIMSELF to Dr. Houseman as Penny’s former deadbeat partner. As the anthem continues (to my rage), who shows up but Johnny, who comes to stick up for Baby and all she’s done.

He brings her up on stage, and interrupts the anthem (THANK YOU CHRIST) to perform the last dance of the season, as he always does. Despite Dr. Houseman’s would-be objections (prevented by his wife, who has moved up on my list of favorite characters), the two are left alone on stage. And that...is when the song plays. YOU KNOW THE GODDAMN SONG

Y’know, it’s funny, because this song is definitely an ‘80s song, making this whole sequence pretty goddamn anachronistic, but WHO CARES!? It’s one of the most iconic sequences in film history, especially of the era, and I love the hell out of it. The crowd cheers, the rest of the kids join in, the lift happens, father and daughter make up, everybody dances, I dance with my girlfriend, I LOVE IT! They kiss, they dance and the film fades to black.

Dirty Dancing! See you in the Review! Oh, I’m changing the name of that section, by the way. Alongside a few more things. You’ll see.

[margridarnauds]

I know you prefer a-cast, but what are some pros to buying m-cast instead? There's a bit of a war going on abt which is better. I heard m-cast is better bc the cast is more senior and experienced, but I don't know what to believe. Is a-cast or m-cast just a taste thing, or is it abt smthing else? Would you mind making a chart or smthing for the pros and cons of both versions? Maybe ratings per category? I know you have a preference, but I just think you are quite nuanced. Thanks in advance!

I am very honored that you would think of me as someone who’s fair and nuanced! 

Before I begin, I’m going to say one thing that might or might not be considered....well. Very American of me, from the perspective of Japanese fandom: I do not believe, when it comes to spending the amount of money that these cost, on holding back information in order to appear diplomatic. I’ll try to be diplomatic, for the sake of people who might like anyone I criticize, but, also, if I dislike an aspect, I will try to find SOME way of making said displeasure known, because, again: The amount of money required to buy one DVD, let alone two, is quite a lot. I personally like to buy both, since it lets me compare and contrast, but my God, is it a bit of money (and this year, with the exception of the 2016 Elisabeth, I’ve had to cut down quite a bit while I’ve been abroad: I haven’t touched Frankenstein or Phantom...at least not yet.) 

Also, I am always willing to arrange streams of either/both casts, since this musical is my baby, so that anyone reading this now can see whether what I say is true or not, as well as in order to determine your own preferences. 

Alright, so that disclaimer out of the way, let’s start off: 

I kind of disagree that M cast is more experienced, as a whole. Let’s compare:

Marie  

Rena Sasamato (A Cast) - Had her debut when she was ten years old, in 1995. She is a Toho veteran with many, many musicals under her belt, including The Woman in White, Love Never Dies, Jekyll and Hyde, Les Miserables, West Side Story, Rudolf, Fiddler on the Roof, and, of course, the original 2006 production of Marie Antoinette, where she played Margrid Arnaud. 

Hanafusa Mari (M Cast) - Almost needs no introduction, such is the fame that she has. And I say this as a detractor. My personal feelings about her personality, acting, and singing aside, I can admit that Hanafusa Mari is a living legend in the Japanese musical industry. She certainly lives up to her title of “Empress”, in all senses of the term. She had her debut in 1991 (after, admittedly, undergoing the training of the Takarazuka Revue, so I will give her that she had experience beforehand, just not in acting and singing on stage), and remained there until 2006, when she retired in conjunction with her fellow top star, Yoka Wao. From 2010 onward, she appeared in non-Takarazuka roles, including my very first exposure to Japanese theatre, Dracula, in 2011. 

Now, of the two of them, I won’t deny that Hanafusa has more experience, however I also feel like saying that Rena has less experience is making it sound almost like she was some starving waif that Toho picked off the side of the streets in order to star in their new musical, as opposed to a seasoned actress in her own right who, on top of having an impressive number of musicals under her belt, also has experience in the musical itself. Hanafusa, when it comes down to it, only has four years’ more experience than Rena, though she is almost a decade older and undoubtedly, when she premiered, had more polish than 10 year old Rena. But, on the other hand, she DID remain with the Revue an impressively long time, which is very intense as far as how many musicals they perform on a yearly basis (most Top Musumeyaku only last about...2-3 years or so), she was the original Elisabeth in Takarazuka (a legendary role in its own right), and, my snark about her having the best career money can buy aside, I am willing to say that, for the most part, she’s earned her status as a legend. 

And I want to say that I’m not ripping YOU apart when I say this, I want to make that absolutely clear. You’re asking me a very good question, but it is something I tend to find quite a bit of when I talk Japanese musicals, in the sense that there is often this...assumption that actresses who started off in non-Takarazuka musicals (also a moment of silence for the Shiki actresses, who I almost never talk about but who are kicking ass as Disney Princesses) are somehow...lesser, or that they have less training. Takarazuka is and remains very prestigious, but it’s hardly the be-all, end-all of all musical theatre, and, in many ways, I would argue that Rena has more experience than Hanafusa, in terms of the world of Toho musicals, which require a different style of acting and singing: Less stylized, less affected, more what you would expect from a Broadway or West End show. It’s actually something that I find quite a few Takarazuka actresses struggle with when they come to Toho, as they have to adjust how they’ve done things for a new audience. 

Now, what does this have to do with the overall point? Well, a lot of people bought Marie Antoinette FOR Hanafusa to begin with, since she does have a huge following. I have seen plenty of people admit that they only bought it for her in the first place and didn’t bother with the other cast. I have even seen, in the past, people argue with me on the idea of a musical that DOESN’T have Hanafusa in it getting a proshot, simply because, for them, she IS the world of Japanese musical theatre. Coming from that perspective, of course Rena is less experienced, because she, simply put, isn’t Hanafusa. 

In terms of their overall presentation of the characters, I found that their respective training really impacted how they portrayed the characters: Rena played Antoinette as being very elegant, with a pride that could turn to haughtiness. It made for an Antoinette that is interesting in her own right to watch, which is tricky, since I find that Antoinettes tend to be overshadowed by the other characters, especially Margrid, Fersen, and Orléans. She did include certain aspects of a Takarazuka performance in her performance, since her mother was a Takarazuka star in her own right, such as how to properly use an 18th century fan, but, for the most part, I’m willing to say that she played it much more naturalistically. 

Hanafusa, meanwhile, emphasized the tragedy of Marie’s life. Throughout a decent portion of the musical, she can be seen crying, especially during the trial (which Rena played straightfaced, playing a Marie that is totally numbed by grief), and expresses her happy, joyful moments in a very exaggerated, almost forceful way, more what I would expect from a Zuka actress given that Zuka performances tend to emphasize extremes of sadness and happiness. (Keeping in mind, of course, that traditionally, it’s expected for musical/opera singers to act in an exaggerated way in order to be seen from the back.) If you are used to Hanafusa, then you’ll LOVE it, because she is very much there, and it’s very much what you’ve been accustomed to. She does show her training; she doesn’t miss a single note in the entire production, but I do find that, in this one area, her added age over Rena might be to her detriment, as I find that her voice has thinned somewhat with age, comparing her now to where she was in Dracula or during her Takarazuka days. Her vibrato also isn’t quite to my taste. Not BAD, but not for me. She isn’t UNPLEASANT to listen to, and again, if you are buying it to hear Hanafusa Mari’s voice, that is exactly what you’ll get, but I also do think the luster of it has faded.

So, in terms of overall ratings, here is what I would put them: 

Rena: 

Year of Debut: 1995

Acting: 9/10

Singing: 10/10

Hanafusa: 

Year of Debut: 1991

Acting: 4/10

Singing: 6/10

Margrid 

Sonim (A Cast) - Sonim’s history has been gone into detail here by my friend, @chibimyumi who, unlike me, has a native speaker’s understanding of Japanese (as opposed to getting lucky with Google Translate), so I’ll leave it to her. But, suffice it to say, Sonim had her musical debut about...2007 or so (she was involved in other stage projects, but for sanity’s sake I’m marking her appearance as Johanna in Sweeney Todd as her musical debut) after the idol industry decided to be cowards and kicked her out because she didn’t conform to their pretty pink princess dreams, was offered the title of Ogosho IMMEDIATELY upon her joining up with Toho, and, since then, has distinguished herself as one of their undisputed leading ladies. She has appeared, to my knowledge, on three proshots, two of which I own: Mozart, 1789, and Marie Antoinette, and has also appeared in Kinky Boots, Tanz der Vampire, FACTORY GIRLS, and Rent.  

Natsumi Kon (M Cast) - Natsumi Kon is, admittedly, also no slouch in the world of Japanese musical theatre: She had her debut in 2011, with the coveted role of Juliette Capulet in Romeo and Juliet, and has since been in Les Miserables, Grand Hotel, the Addams Family, The Fiddler on the Roof, and The Secret Garden, as well as being the voice actress for Belle in the 2017 Beauty and the Beast. She has been praised as essentially being “the next generation of the musical world”. 

By the same standard I’ve set re: Hanafusa and Rena, there isn’t THAT much in terms of their ages, since they have the same difference in debut time (though in this case, it’s in Sonim’s favor, and I also think that it’s much more dramatic in terms of younger musical performers as opposed to older ones.) 

I feel like, of the two of them, more people would have come for Sonim, since she is an Ogosho herself, being at the same level of ranking as Furukawa and Hanafusa. What I suspect, in fact, is that Toho, in a CLASSIC Toho move, split the cast that most people would have wanted, with Hanafusa, Furukawa, and Sonim, but I can’t confirm and, honestly, I feel like Hanafusa’s very expressive Antoinette would have clashed with Furukawa’s more aloof Fersen, but that will be dealt with down the line. As it is, M cast has Hanafusa, and A cast has two Ogosho-level performers for the price of one with Sonim and Furukawa. (Meaning that, on a purely technical level, it has the most starpower behind it.)

Sonim has a strong belt and has a reputation for playing scrappy girls, possibly because she herself easily qualifies as a bit of a “scrappy girl” herself. Her Margrid is bitter and cynical, not necessarily kind. The years on the streets have warped her into someone who is primarily motivated by herself and her own personal revenge. She uses “the people” as a self-justification to pursue her own vendetta, only realizing by the end what it’s done and cost her. She doesn’t care for social norms AT ALL, and would be the exact type of person that you would see on a tabletop counter at 2 AM, legs spread out, trying to stuff an entire pizza down her mouth. She’s distrustful, especially towards men and, even for those that she trusts, she has a low level of tolerance for. She is, frankly, a bit of a bitch. And I adore her for it, because it’s more realistic to what I think someone would be like after undergoing what she has. She’s a kind of female character we get relatively little of, really. I do think that, on a few occasions, Sonim perhaps outbelts herself here but, in general, I feel like it suits Margrid’s personality more. 

Natsumi Kon took a more tragic bent to the character. Her Margrid IS a good person, at heart, but she lets her desire for justice, along with her own revenge, steer her towards a course that just causes more suffering. She is more like an 18th century Eponine from Les Miserables, the street girl who, if she’d JUST had the upbringing that Antoinette had, could have been a great lady like her. She seems to play up the love triangle with Fersen more, getting a little closer to him at different times, giving him more longing looks, while also seeming to have...some sort of dynamic with Orléans, with the two of them often touching and laughing with one another. She does have a very smooth, strong voice, though I feel like, on some level, she has never quite escaped playing ingenues, and, rewatching it with a critical eye, I think that, as the musical continues, her voice starts getting a little breathy and strained. I don’t really know whether this is by intent or simply because of the musical being very vocally demanding for the Margrids, but I do think that, if Sonim overbelts at times at the beginning, Natsumi has some issues by the end; the notes aren’t coming out quite as clear or as strong as they should be. Her Margrid has a little bit more of a polish to her and, in general, seems a little younger and more naive compared to Sonim’s. I do give her credit for really being willing to go UP CLOSE to her fellow actors in stand-offs, giving her Margrid the sense of being a little bit of a bull in a China shop; during the duet that Marie and Margrid share, there’s one point where it seems like Natsumi is only INCHES away from her face. I know that it’s out of style to make Harry Potter analogies, but Sonim plays Margrid as a Slytherin; Natsumi as a Gryffindor. She didn’t do a BAD job as an actress, and in fact adds some nice touches to Margrid that I do like, but she doesn’t really do anything too new with the character. 

Now, why does THIS matter? Well, for one, I think that, if you go in expecting the best of everyone, Sonim’s Margrid can be like a dose of cold water. Natsumi is more...palatable. Less conflict, less difficult questions, especially since it becomes that much easier to separate Orléans-As-Villain from Margrid-As-Heroine.  

Overall: 

Sonim: 

Year of Debut: 2007 

Acting: 10/10

Singing: 9/10. 

Natsumi: 

Year of Debut: 2011

Acting: 8/10

Singing: 8/10

Fersen

Furukawa Yuta (A Cast) - Probably one of Toho’s most bankable male leads at the moment. His presence in a musical is generally a VERY good sign to me that Toho is planning on a proshot, since they know that fans will buy anything he’s in. (To illustrate: I wasn’t PLANNING on buying Marie Antoinette, I had more than my fair share of doubts after the disastrous German run, but then I saw Furukawa Yuta and Sonim were signed on and I promptly got both casts. Best insanely rash move I’ve ever made in my life.) He had his stage debut in 2007 with The Prince of Tennis series, and since then he’s played in the Black Butler (Kuroshitsuji) musicals, Elisabeth, 1789, Romeo and Juliet, and Mozart. Though he initially made his name with his dancing and acting abilities, along with his personal charisma, he has since worked on his singing, putting himself through Hell and back to earn his spot as Ogosho. While Mozart was his official debut, I would argue that, in some ways, it was as Fersen and then, later, Romeo that he REALLY got to demonstrate what made him star material. 

Mario Tashiro (M Cast) - Mario Tashiro, like Natsumi Kon, is absolutely no slouch either. He has a full, operatic voice that he uses to excellent effect, making him very recognizable even if you don’t know who exactly he is. Plenty of times, I’ll be listening to a trailer on Youtube and hear this BOOMING voice and go “MARIO TASHIRO?” He has been very prolific on the Toho scene, taking roles in Sunset Boulevard, Chess, Love Never Dies, Elisabeth (marking the first time in known history that Fersen is locked in a love triangle with Fersen for Marie Antoinette and then seduces Fersen’s son, Fersen), The Great Gatsby, Jekyll and Hyde, and Sweeney Todd, among others. 

In terms of approach, both men took very different approaches to their role. Furukawa played Fersen as much more aloof and distant, which makes for a contrast with Marie’s sunny, naive personality. He has a dry sense of humor and has a long-running cat and mouse game with Orléans where both understand, on some level, that they’re on equal ground. His love of Marie, while definitely a real, true love, is also very idealistic: Marie represents a world that, for Fersen, is slowly dying out, she represents the best part of humanity for him, especially after being gone during the war. I do not believe, looking at Furukawa’s Fersen, that he and Antoinette ever actually slept together, rather that it was very much a courtly love. He cares for Margrid, entreating her to have compassion, but there’s just enough wiggle room to wonder how MUCH of it is genuine VS him needing something from her at the time, and he’s very aware of his status as an aristocrat and makes use of it. It’s really unlike any other take on Fersen I’ve seen, in any media, and it’s part of why I ended up leaning towards this production, since it’s generally a MASSIVE feat to make me like Fersen. Furukawa’s voice in the role is softer, lacking the strength of Tashiro’s but still making for some very impressive low notes.

Mario Tashiro, on the other hand, focuses more on Fersen as a romantic hero, full of dash and daring. He has a notably dramatic take on Fersen, with flourishes and exaggerated movements, which, as an opera singer, are probably part and parcel of his acting training. If he’s aware of Orléans’ general presence, he doesn’t seem bothered by him, with their being really little sign that Orléans has any respect for him at all. He loves Marie as well, but it is much more of a sort of fairytale, Rose of Versailles love. There’s not as much moral gray areas to his Fersen, even though he makes the exact same decisions as Furukawa’s and, like Hanafusa Mari’s Marie, tends to go through extreme emotions. His voice was, as always, phenomenal, I give him full and complete credit for it, however, unfortunately, when put up against Hanafusa Mari, I found that the two of them had the tendency of trying to outbelt one another, leading to a distinct lack of chemistry during romantic scenes. (And you’ll notice that, despite generally being weighted against Hanafusa, I am NOT giving her the full blame for this one.) 

Furukawa Yuta (A Cast)

Year of Debut: 2007

Acting - 10/10 

Singing - 9/10

Mario Tashiro (M Cast) 

Year of Debut: 2009 (He had his singing debut in 2007, but his overall musical debut was 2009)

Acting - 7/10

Singing - 10/10

Louis

Takanori Sato (A Cast) - Probably the baby of the group, in the sense that he had his own debut a little while after the others, in 2015. In his case, and his case alone, would I say that there was a REALLY strong case for him not having as much experience compared to his counterpart. He has played in Titanic, Elisabeth, the Scarlet Pimpernel (the one with Kazutaka Ishi), Mata Hari, Legally Blonde, and Chess, the latter possibly most impressively since he did the entire thing in English. 

Yuichi Harada (M Cast) - I’ll be honest, I’ve never in my life been tempted to look up his biography before, but when I did, I was impressed to find that he’s actually been working in the world of musicals since 1992, when he was in Anne of Green Gables and then again in Les Miserables as Gavroche. He has had a long career with Toho, too, being in musicals such as Les Miserables, The Sound of Music, Titanic, the Beggar’s Opera, and La Cage Aux Folles, none of which I literally had any idea about until today, but that is very impressive. Massive props to him, honestly, as well as working as a director for Bare: The Musical, which...well. Props to him for branching out. I will never understand the love for Bare worldwide, but you know what? Almost all musicals deserved to be loved by SOMEONE. He has an impressive track record, I’ll give him that. One of these days, I’ll probably have to dig deeper, since I suspect that there’s a lot more to him than meets the eye. 

Takanori has a very smooth, strong voice, without the projection of Mario Tashiro. I found that his take on Louis was quite charming, tender to his wife, a normal man who Marie respects even if she doesn’t love him in the same way as she loves Fersen. (Honestly, can I just say: While we all know that Orléans has my entire heart....if Takanori’s Louis asked me to marry him....#PhilippeWho.) He’s a steady man, not really dumb, but well-intentioned and occasionally oblivious to the real danger, and it’s that that kills him, in the end. 

Yuichi’s Louis is much more...confused throughout the thing and, while I think Antoinette has some compassion for him, I don’t really feel like it’s love so much as...affection, mixed with a certain amount of pity. He does show moments where it looks like he knows a lot more than he lets on, but in general, I think he did play it as much more humorous, a lot more...well, dumb, at least until the second act. He does have a solid voice, I give him that, but in general, it felt like there was a little less subtlety in how he interpreted the role. There’s something almost childish about the way that he grasps Orléans’ hands when he’s asking him to intercede for them, whereas in Takanori’s case, it’s more him realizing that his cousin is...well. Orléans, but knowing that he has to do a little bit of crawling if he’s going to survive. 

Yuichi’s Louis DOES still get sympathy from me, but it’s in a way that is kind of insulting to him as a character, mainly because it’s less about HIM and more like “......god. Killing him is a bit like kicking a puppy. Like, you could do it, but my God, why would you?” Like, I do kind of want to write a fanfic where he can just......be safe........far, far away from everything, because I’m not sure if he would notice if they took him any place else, but it does kind of...take away his complexity? I will say, in his defense, looking over his entire performance, that seeing him constantly trying to smile as he’s being led while Marie panics, trying to let her know this is all going to be alright, is a tearjerker, though I still feel like his Louis is played a bit too much like the caricature of Louis that, at this point, I’m kind of used to seeing. That being said, while I don’t necessarily like all of the DIRECTION he took Louis, I can see that he put genuine thought into constructing the role, so I’m not going to nuke him too much in the acting category.

This one, more than any of the others, is probably YMMV, because I know people who were genuinely shocked to realize Louis is double-cast at all. Mainly because it isn’t like the role leaves THAT much of an impact, overall, having only one major song. I honestly think that the 2021 cast is making the right call in splitting Orléans and giving Louis one role, all things considered. 

Takanori Sato

Year of Debut: 2015

Acting - 10/10

Singing - 10/10

Yuichi Harada

Year of Debut: 1992

Acting - 8/10

Singing - 8/10

The Case for M Cast

Now that we’ve gone through the rankings, it’s time for the original question: What are the pros of M Cast? And, if you just listened to me laying all this out, you would think that I wouldn’t have much positive to say. That being said, when I was back in the States and could spend an hour or two watching musicals every day, a LOT of the time, I would watch M Cast. There has never really been a point where I said “You know? I regret getting that cast, I wish I’d just had A the entire time.” If I was dangling off a cliff and I could only save one cast recording, I would HAVE to choose A (and then promptly sob), but I do, genuinely, like M on its own and would recommend getting both simply to compare. 

- Mitsuo Yoshihara. Now, this is going to be odd for anyone reading, because I can hear it now: “But he wasn’t double cast! Wouldn’t you get him on A too?” Yes, you definitely would. But he is a very unique type of Toho actor in the sense that he changed up his performance for EACH cast he was in. If you look at M cast, he has a much warmer dynamic with Natsumi’s Margrid, either as a paternal substitute (making up for her own aristocratic father) or as a prospective love interest. He is MUCH more hurt in the final court scene, very clearly viewing Margrid’s decision as a personal betrayal. As the admitted and confessed Morléans shipper, I have to eat the angst up like it’s candy. The two of them have a nice amount of familiarity and chemistry with one another, presumably due to having worked with one another on other projects before. 

- Mario Tashiro’s voice. This deserves its own section because it is REALLY, REALLY phenomenal. You know whenever you’re seeing Mario Tashiro in something simply because that voice is VERY distinctive and is totally overwhelming each time you hear it. I noted my misgivings in his section, but overall? It is very much worth the price of admission just to hear him. 

- Different shots. I’m still figuring out exactly WHAT shots dramatically change from each cast, but M cast does contain some shots that A doesn’t have and vice versa. M cast doesn’t have this shot of Margrid and Antoinette, and A cast doesn’t have the one here of Antoinette and Fersen’s hands touching, which is a wonderful little bit of cinematography. I do think that, depending on the shot, you can get more or less of a character’s motivations in that moment. A personal favorite is Hébert trying to get Margrid alone during the scene just before the ball and Margrid shoving him off, which foreshadows what happens near the end of the second act. 

-Hanafusa and Natsumi’s voices actually do go quite nicely together at the end.

-Mario Tashiro does make for a very splashy Fersen; yeah, you might not spend too long dissecting what he’s doing when he’s on stage, but he is fun to watch swish around in his 18th century officer’s outfit.  

-My griping on Natsumi’s Margrid aside, I do think she has a lot of charm. No, it isn’t my FAVORITE take on the role, but I do actually like what she does, she adds quite a few nice touches to it, and she does make the song “Enough is Enough”, near the end of the first act, her actual bitch, adding her own riffs onto it to give it a sense of individuality. The parts where she’s smiling, hanging onto Orléans’ arm, make even my wrinkled, shriveled heart grow three sizes. I’ll be genuinely excited to see her return to the role in 2021 to see if there’s anything she changes, though I doubt I’ll be able to see any part of it in person. 

-If you’re a Hanafusa Mari fan, you get to see the kind of performance from her that you’ve grown to expect and appreciate. If you’re not, you get to see her get splashed in the face with champagne. Win, win, win. 

Overall, I think that it will depend on what you’re looking for. I really enjoyed the realism and the grit of the A cast, but not everyone WANTS grit, and in that case...I suppose M cast would appeal more, since M cast relies on everyone involved being much better human beings than A cast, though I do want to emphasize that everyone in A cast is still redeemable. (Except Hébert. Because fuck Hébert.) M cast is....easier to digest, in many ways. There’s a good queen, a stupid-yet-sweet king, a dashing hero, and a misunderstood-yet-angry-poor girl, manipulated by the siren’s song of the Revolution and her unrequited love for Fersen, who bullies the poor, downtrodden queen when she gets a chance before realizing the error of her ways. I think that, for many people, that’s perfectly fine, and that’s what they wanted, especially if they’re already used to Rose of Versailles. I do still LIKE it, because it’s a production of one of my top 2 favorite musicals, but I do think that, if it was the ONLY version of the musical available, I wouldn’t have spent so much time picking it apart. (Though I still would have thought it a MASSIVE improvement on the German.)

 I do put a lot of it on Hanafusa Mari’s influence, though, because of the prevalence of her fanbase and the general belief that no one could ever come close to their star, so why bother getting another cast. Especially given how....devoted the Takarazuka fanbase is in comparison to the Toho fanbase, and the Thing I’ve noticed where fans try to argue that there is some sort of empirical reason for their bias as opposed to simply liking one more than the other. 

[onyx-archer]

Thoughts on Mean Girls: The Musical

So I figured, since it’s been a little over a week since the Mean Girls cast recording has dropped, that I’d give it a quick “review” or whatever. It’s gonna be a little long, so I’m gonna put everything under the cut. The short answer is that while I didn’t hate it, I’m still disappointed. If you want to see more of my thoughts, you gotta click the “Keep Reading” button. Just note: it’s a very “stream of consciousness” kind of read, and less of a proper “review.”

Some context: Like many others, Mean Girls is a movie I’ve seen quite a few times, and I still very much love for it’s sense of humor, among other things. It’s a movie I’ve probably seen several dozen times at this point due to various factors. So when I heard they were making a musical version of it, I was ecstatic. I waited with bated breath for the day the cast recording was gonna drop, because I wanted to see if the musical could live up to the movie.

I’m gonna be honest: I’m disappointed in the final product. I don’t hate it or anything, but I’m certainly let down by it. Keep in mind, I have a feeling that it’d be better if I could see the whole show, but at the end of the day, since we don’t have legal access to a full stage recording, this cast recording is all I can use as the basis for my opinion, lest I want to shell out hundreds of dollars to go see the show on Broadway, which ain’t happening.

The Musical starts with the excellent, if criminally short “A Cautionary Tale,” and let me tell you, this is a great song. The voice of Janis, played by the lovely Barrett Wilbert Weed of “Heathers: The Musical” fame, is a strong way to start, at least for me. I love her voice, and have listened to “Heathers: The Musical” at least a hundred times through just for her voice alone. Grey Hanson’s portrayal of Damien also serves well as a companion to Barrett’s Janis, and it works for the song. Like I said though I feel like the song could have been longer, but hey, Janis and Damien aren’t the main characters, so it’s understandable why it’s short.

And then “It Roars” starts, and what interest I had begins to wain. It marks the start of my biggest problem with the musical: Cady’s songs kind of fall flat. I consider this one to be the worst offender though, as it’s effectively the “real” opening number. I’m of the mind that the song that introduces the main character, as well as the song that marks the start of the actual story, should contain some kind of hook via the chorus. This song doesn’t really have that for me. It lacks a moment like “Life can be beautiful~♫” or an “Oh my god, ohmigod you guys!~♫” I do get a feel for how the musical is going to portray Cady, but I think I’d be a little lost on it had I not been so familiar with the movie.

Before I get into the next song, I want to address the fact that my problem with the song is not, I repeat, NOT, a result of Erika Henningsen’s performance. She does a good job. Had the songs she is the focal point of not felt so basic and by the numbers, I think a good chunk of the musical could have been way better than it is.

Moving onto “Where Do You Belong?” I find myself thinking “why is this song a thing?” every time I listen to it. It’s not the say that Grey Hanson is not a good singer, but the song he’s singing doesn’t really feel like it belongs in the musical. In fact, I’d go as far as to say they could have taken this song out, and add all of what it’s trying to do to “It Roars,” and it would have made that song better, I think. The whole “Where~ Do you belong~ Where do you belong~♪” bit just kills the feeling of flow for me, and thus, drags this song into the bottom of the list for me.

“Meet The Plastics” by contrast, is actually one of the best songs in the musical. It does it’s job of introducing the characters of the Plastics, giving each of them a moment in the spotlight for a verse, and it works. It shows the listener how much Taylor Louderman is loving being Regina, her voice basically saying “drink in the sight, peasants,” and it’s great. Alicia Park’s Gretchen follows, and it’s basically the musical version of the introduction of a “yes-man,” and I think it works well. And last, but certainly not least, is Kate Rockwell’s performance as Karen, and man, does her bit sound like she’s playing “the dumb, hot one.” It slows down, and it works because of how simple the lyrics are, and the need to sustain notes in order to match the music is great.

And then we have “Stupid With Love,” which is, if I’m being honest, my least favorite song on the musical. I just... don’t like it. It’s a song about how dumb Cady feels when it comes to her crush on Aaron, and I just don’t think it works. It feels flat, and contrived. I don’t know, I just don’t think the song has much beyond it other than the surface level stuff, and it just doesn’t mesh with me.

You know what song I like a lot though? “Apex Predator.” While I take issue with way the title is said in the song, I don’t know how else they would have done it, so I can let it slide. This is the first song I heard from the musical, and man, does it work. Barrett Wilbert Weed, once again, kills it with her portrayal of Janis (though I might be biased given that “Heathers” is my favorite musical, and she’s the lead in that, so...), and when Erika Henningson comes in as Cady, I think she, as opposed to her last couple of songs, actually kills it too. The instrumentation, and the better use of animal metaphors for Cady just flow much better for Erika’s voice here, in my opinion.

Meanwhile, we hop back to one of my least favorite songs, Gretchen’s first solo number, “What’s Wrong With Me?” I’m not the biggest fan of the character, though I enjoyed her first moments in “Meet the Plastics.” Sadly, I’m just left wondering why this song is here, and not after Cady, Janis, and Damien’s plan to make her feel like Regina is giving her the cold shoulder breaks her. It just feels like it’s coming out of nowhere. I’m sure it makes more sense in the context of the stage performance, but because I don’t have a legal means of watching the lead in to the song, I don’t have that context, and instead have to look at it as is, and I don’t gel with it. If you’re asking me, it’s not fetch. Sorry for the bad joke.

Next up: “Stupid With Love (Reprise).” I don’t have much to say here, other than it’s better than the original song. Kyle Selig’s Aaron gets to actually sing a bit, and I like his voice. The lyrics still feel bland though.

What I find the most interesting is that my favorite song is not a Janis song, but is, in fact, “Sexy,” Karen’s solo number. But my god, do I love this song. It starts off with Karen’s trademarked air-headed singing, where she sings about Halloween and World Peace. Then it turns into a total bop about sexy Halloween costumes. And boy do I love this song. It’s got a great beat, fun lyrics, and has the excellent comedic moment towards the end of Karen “curing sex cancer.” It’s fantastic.

“Someone Get’s Hurt” is another great song, and serves as Regina’s first full solo number. It’s great because of how it spins Regina “getting Aaron back,” just so she can screw with Cady, and it’s just amazing. Taylor Louderman, once again, indulges her inner bitch, and I love how it sounds.

Revenge Party is honestly a fun song for Janis, Damien, and Cady. It’s probably, next to “Apex Predator,” my favorite song Cady is in. I don’t really have a lot to say, other than I just really enjoy the reference to the movie in this song. You go Glen Coco!

“Fearless” is next, and it’s effectively the song I thought “What’s Wrong With Me?” should have been. I honestly don’t have much to say about it though. It’s kind of “middle of the road” as far as the musical’s song are concerned.

Oh Damien, why do you get the lead on songs that I think are incredibly awkward to listen to? “Stop” is kind of another round of “Where Do You Belong?” for me. Unlike that song though, there are things I like about it. It’s still got some jank in it’s structure through, and I don’t really care for it because of that. A lot of my problems with it are echos of the aforementioned “Where Do You Belong?” but it’s less of a pace breaker than that song is. At least, as far as I’m concerned.

“What’ Wrong With Me (Reprise)” is basically a shorter, better version of the original song. It works better here though, because it reflects how Cady has basically become a second Regina. It feel less awkward for the story pacing than it’s original song to me, which is a marked improvement. Alicia Park does a good job here.

I honestly have not much to say about “Who’s House Is This?” It’s a dumb party song about Cady’s house party. It’s not special or anything, though I think it’s fine. Nowhere near something like “Heathers: The Musical’s” song “Big Fun,” but still serviceable. I guess if I have anything bad to say about it, is that I don’t like Cheech Manohar’s voice that much.

“More Is Better” certainly could have been better. It’s better than something like “Stupid With Love,” and I just think it could have been better. I think the whole “word vomit... no, actual vomit” bit should have been in the song? I don’t know, this song doesn’t really stand out to me as anything that great, or outstandingly poor. It’s just “meh.”

“Someone Gets Hurt (Reprise)” is barely a song, and I don’t have much to say. It’s the scene in the movie where Janis and Damien call Cady out as basically the second coming of Regina. Janis’s moment of “At least Regina didn’t have the guts to keep pretending to be my friend” was probably the highlight of the whole thing.

I have an... interesting opinion on “World Burn,” though it’s not a negative one. I actually really love this song, since it’s the peak of Taylor Louderman’s performance as Regina, and it’s a great “villain” song. My only problem is honestly that, as far as I can tell, is the first mention of the Burn Book in the musical. Well, the cast recording of it at least. I feel like had I known nothing about the Burn Book, I’d probably have just thought this was a great song, but the fact that it took so long for the songs to directly mention the Burn Book just feels wrong for a Mean Girls Musical.

As far as “fuck you” songs go in musical theater, I think “I’d Rather Be Me” is a great song. Janis is just venting, but in musical form, and need I say more? It’s more Barrett Wilbert Weed, and I can honestly listen to her sing about probably anything. It’s probably my least favorite Janis song, but considering the bulk of my favorites from this whole musical are Janis songs, that is, by no means, a bad thing.

“Do This Thing” is easily the best song Cady has that lacks the backing of either Janis or Regina’s voices. Of course, I don’t like Cheech Manohar’s voice, but it’s less of a big deal here, because it’s not a bad song. Again, it’s probably one of the best Cady moments of the whole musical.

“I See Stars” by contrast, is like a callback to “More Is Better,” but with a corny, feel good message. It’s still weaker than that song though. My reasoning? Because this is the closing number of the cast recording, and it lacks a sense of “finality” to it. I feel like the best closing numbers for musicals are the ones that call back other songs in some capacity. While technically not the closing number, “The Play” from “Be More Chill” comes to mind, because it references a ton of the songs in the musical. Heck, that musical’s actual closer, “Voice In My Head” still has the callback to “More Than Survive” at the end, and it works so well. Maybe I’m forgetting something from this song, but honestly, I think it’s pretty crappy ending track.

So... all in all it’s a pretty mixed musical for me.

Some things I would have changed, outside of giving Cady’s songs more to work with, are the previously mentioned “add the purpose of ‘Where Do You Belong?’ to ‘It Roars,’” as well as the following:

1. Have “I See Stars’ reference other songs, especially “It Roars” and “A Cautionary Tale” to give it a sense of proper finality.

2. Make Cady’s change into a more “Plastic” version of herself be more apparent in her appearances in songs, if only to add some depth to the character’s music. Show her become like a second Regina, only for her to become more like a better version of her old self by the end.

3. Add a song where The Plastics introduce Cady to the Burn Book, and them trying to coax her into using it. It would have added a layer to “World Burn,” and it would have given us a Mean Girls song akin to “Candy Store” from “Heathers.” You know, and a chance to hear more of Taylor Louderman’s excellent Regina.

Anyway, yeah, that’s what I liked, what I didn’t like, and what I’d change for the most part. it’s very all over the place, but still, hopefully you all got something out of it?

[bellesdomain]

Starlight Express Workshop - what would I do?

A lot of talk has been floated about “Updating Starlight Express” and most of that seems to focus on the cosmetic elements, the choice of musical instrumentation, the costume design, and to be honest these are the elements of nostalgia which attract a lot of the audience! There’s no problem with the show looking or sounding like its 1980s roots. However the deeper issues of the show, the social politics, the representation and the role models for young minds, these need to be addressed.  Also, the many alterations and re-writes over the years have left a patchwork of plot holes and elements lost in translation, and the show will enormously benefit from being unpicked, and cut from fresh cloth, to be put back together in a near identical result but strong and clean!

So I humbly present my personal opinions, as a fan who knows the show well. What would I do were I directing the overhaul of Starlight Express?

First - since the concept is on the table already - Gender switch Electra.  Switching Poppa to Momma has been interesting, but vocally it doesn’t work, and I don’t think it particularly brings anything new to the show.  However, female Electra would kick ass! she would immediately break the convention of “Engine = male”.

She would bring some complications - while I am all for bisexual representation onstage, I think it’s a bit much to expect Pearl to be able to consider Electra a “lover” immediately in “Make Up My Heart”.  But then it’s somewhat ridiculous as the show stands that she’s taking Electra’s race invitation as seriously as Rusty’s interest in her, so regardless of Electra’s gender, I’d want to restore “He Whistled At Me” in place of “Make Up My Heart”.  The Upbeat, funky song is far more fun anyway! 

That then brings a complication - “He Whistled At Me” is the same melody as “Engine of Love”, so in order to not drive the audience mad at the repetition, Rusty’s introduction needs to me “Call Me Rusty”, which might benefit from being a more light-hearted tweak on the original, dark and angry version. However keeping the coaches’ section is important as it gives their perspective on Rusty’s hopeless optimism. 

Second - Include Belle, the old Sleeping Car.  Poppa’s coach, an older female character. “Belle’s Song” is one of the hidden gems in the show, but after the Broadway production she was cut, justified as she wasn’t needed in the plot.  Well, I’d make her vital to the plot, as part of the third point...  Also she would take her place in “Girl’s Rolling Stock”, where slight lyric changes are needed to express that the girls are convincing Dinah “You don’t need him” rather than “Take him back”. 

Third - Logic in the Races.  If you were to ask, say, Flat-Top what was most exciting about the races, he’d say it’s between Electricity and Diesel.  Nobody takes Rusty seriously, it’s all about the fight between Electra and Greaseball. WHO WILL WIN?  So, in order to stretch out that excitement, move Electra to Heat 2.  Poppa still races in Heat 2 as well - and he races with Belle, his old partner.  It’s not the weight of pulling Dustin that overloads him, simply his age.  This is really important, as Dustin is the least likely race partner - except he races twice.  If Poppa races with Belle, then when Rusty comes to pick Dustin as his partner for the Downhill Final, the reaction is “Oh no, don’t be ridiculous?” rather than the current “hmm, well, he managed ok last time I guess...” The “Two heats, two qualifiers from each” structure works well when it is observed, so it’s simply a matter of swapping Electra with Ruhrgold (or national engine of choice).  Greaseball wins the first heat comfortably, and Ruhrgold comes second.  The second heat is won by Electra, and Poppa crosses the finish line second to qualify. 

Fourth - Ensemble piece, layered story. Starlight loses a lot of interest when it becomes “The Pearl and Rusty Show”.  Scenes that don’t include either of them - such as Girl’s Rolling Stock, or Caboose’s character arc including “There’s Me”, are just as valuable to the show.  It’s a rich and interesting world, especially when we get to know more characters.

Fifth - Control is Dreaming. This element is subtle but important.  The child drifts off to sleep during the “Overture”, and from then on we’re seeing their dream. This is important because if Control is awake and playing, their conscious mind is creating these scenarios, they are choosing to beat up their favourite oldest engine, they’re choosing distinctly adult concepts of gender and sexuality well beyond their pre-pubescent years.   However, if Control is asleep, then it is their unconscious mind at work, these elements are a way of processing the world they’re learning.  For example, Electra is an openly sexual character, and comes from “The Future”.  Control is a young kid, and sexuality is a subject that lies in their future.  It’s intriguing and confusing and scary. 

Linked to this concept, the “Entry of the National Trains” needs to be placed before AC/DC to allow for the full lullaby/to sleep/to dream sequence of the Overture.  “Entry of the National Trains” works better in this position for two further reasons - it contextualises Electra’s arrival, and causes less confusion for the audience.  The first characters the audience are introduced to are assumed to be important - and really, remembering the name of the Russian engine is not vital to understanding the plot!

One more small point about Electra - I would include “No Comeback”, as she throws the biggest tantrum, and storms out after losing the race! The melody is so deeply woven into the show already, yet its source is missing.  While seeing Electra crashed and humiliated is poetic justice, the contrast with Greaseball and Caboose crashing and Electra storming off would add variety.  Especially with Greaseball redeemed by the end, but Electra is not.

Finally, Love Song, I would want to use “Only You” for Rusty and Pearl - the duet version used as “Du Allein” in Germany for many years. Part of the glory of the Starlight Sequence is the blending of two strong themes from the show - Rusty’s questioning, lost in “Starlight Express”, and he finds his answer in the form of “Only You”. It’s the completion of the story, and having a new love song shoe-horned in loses that arc.  The “Du Allein” version in particular suits Pearl’s character so well, it’s quieter and reflective rather than a big impassioned belter. As Pearl has finally stopped and taken the time to reflect on her choices, she realises her mistakes, and that version conveys the moment best.

So overall my choices land heavily on the original material, and I don’t think most of these changes would even be recognised as alterations by casual audience members - except for those who remember Electra as male. The audience would simply not find many flaws to criticise.  My intention is to focus on the characters and telling their stories, the theatrical spectacle lies on top of solid characer based plot.

[sassasquashedgrapes]

Another Story: A Glee x Kissed by the Baddest Bidder Cross-over

It’s me again! Your friendly neighborhood, Squashed Grape.  

It’s been a while since I got into the fanfic (or any literal stuff) and decided to do some fan service today.  This is an old post but a goodie.  You see, I’ve been a fan of Glee during the early days and was also a huge Otome player (lol. the closest to player I’ll ever be).  And made this fanfic cross-over of sorts inspired from the Voltage Inc story, Kissed by the Baddest Bidder.  Actually I *might* have switched the names a bit and the plot line is from the intro except for a few tweaks.  Anyway, I just wanna lay it all down there so nobody starts yelling bloody murder.  

After all, wasn’t 50 Shades like some fan service to Twilight, so haters can just move along now, Nothing to see.  

So without much further ado, a short story cross-over for y’all!!

By the way, be prepared for a series of long fanfics of Glee coming at your way. This is only just the beginning of the Hargreave brothers.

click below

Another Story: Kissed By The Baddest Bidder/Glee Fanfic.

I’ve always been a huge fan of the otome game and the delicious notion of having someone used up for bidding, using the Glee characters seemed absolutely too good to resist.  How could I? So shall we? Elian “Ian” Hargreave – Eisuke Ichinomiya Mike Chang – Soryu Oh, the cool mobster Noah Puckerman – Mitsunari Baba, the philandering theif Kurt Hummel – Ota Kisaki , the artist. Lol I know, Ota doesn’t swing that way but I always pegged Ota as a closet anyway. Cooper Anderson – Mamuro Kishi, the lazy detective and of course: Lucy Quinn Fabray – MC

Quinn Fabray is different in this storyline.  I made a parallel universe of sorts, changing a bit of her past to make her come to her present future.  So instead of moving to McKinley High, Lucy Q. Fabray’s father, Russel, dies of a heart attack and thus her mother remarries another man who worked as a hotel concierge manager in one of the most prestigious hotels in New York, the fictional hotel/casino Wyndham, (loosely based on the Waldorf Astoria) which is owned by then the family of Elian Hargreave’s grandfather who eventually takes over the hotel after graduating from high school.  Quinn has grown up in the hotel, pretty much understanding and loving every detail and aspect of it, treating it as if it were her own family since she pretty much lead a lonely life in New York, being a small town girl from Ohio who turned out to grow into a beautiful young woman.  This storyline is inspired by the Otome route of Eisuke Ichinomiya, whom I think was the best storyline for someone like her.  I’m way too biased that I don’t think I want to share Soryu Oh with her, hahaha.  Fast forward to the present, Quinn just graduated from Yale, but is now working he as a chambermaid in the hotel to earn extra cash at the same time pay for her college loans while she looks for a job.  

Prologue: As I feel a trickle of sweat behind my back while being in the middle of the spotlight, I start to wonder as I stare into the crowd facing me “how on earth did I ever come to this?”

12 hours earlier

“Good morning,” I greet cheerfully as I swing open the door in locker room of the female changing hall as if I’ve done so many times over.  I’m working during the summer as a maid at a hotel owned by the Hargreave Group, which is a large company that owns banks, trading companies, locally and overseas.  

“Good morning, Lucy,” greets Marley, one of the maids who also works part-time in the hotel.  I know for a fact that she looks old enough to still be in highschool, but I’ve never bothered to pry into matters like gossip. As long as they keep to their business, I keep to mine.  But despite it, I feel like I could confide in her because she seems so open and nice.

“The VIP convention starts today.  I am super excited,” Marley grins as she mentions one of the annual big events the hotel/casino throws.  

“I’ll bet you’d be way too busy to get excited since you’ll be working at the casino floor,” I grin back thinking how exhausted I’m going to be once this convention is over.  I’ve been living in the Wyndham since I was 15 after my dad died and my mother remarried.  I’d come to love it as if it were my own family and was familiar with its daily routine until 4 years ago when it underwent a massive renovation into becoming the first hotel/casino in New York.  It had been quite a scandal at first, with government officials opposing the idea of bringing “Las Vegas” to the metropolis, but the whole issue died down after a while and for the last two years, the Wyndham, became New York’s first legal casino and hotel.

“Don’t you wish you could work at the IVC?” Marley was referring to the International VIP Convention, one of the newly annual conventions frequented by Hollywood A-list stars, World leaders, socialites and big time businessmen who gathered once a year to play at the casinos and have a go into dabbling in a world of glamour

“Yeah, that would be great.” I agreed quietly.

“Well, that’s the goal of everyone who works here.” Marley sighed as she hunkered on the bench and rested her elbow on her knee as she propped her head on her hand.  “I’ve been dreaming about it ever since I saw it on TV. Seeing movie stars, top athletes, and other super famous people all over the world gathered here in this party.  I even heard Perez Hilton was so pissed that he didn’t get an invite.”  She pursed her lips conspiratorially.

“You know, when I applied for this job a few months ago, I didn’t think I was going to be hired that I thought I was dreaming when I actually did.” Marley grinned happily.  I smiled feeling how infectious her mood was, she was so upbeat by the whole thing, I didn’t want to look like a kill joy so I agreed.

“Oh my god.” She stopped suddenly as if she had thought of something of real importance.  “What if some rich, famous guy falls in love with me at first sight?” I hope he knows you’re barely 18, I mentally think and almost utter it out loud but I stop myself and….

“Haha, keep dreaming.” I just say instead.  

Whew, that was close. Our VIP guests are important, but I also value working for our regular guests, too.  I had just graduated in a Marketing degree at Yale, but with the recession, jobs were scarcely handed and I didn’t feel the need to dabble in doing freebies as an Intern in a big corporation, when I could be earning much more doing it here in Wyndham.  It really isn’t so bad.  I really didn’t care that much about image anyway since moving to New York.  Somehow the anonymity of it all had liberated me from the confines of the shallowness that I had experienced living in Lima, Ohio that I didn’t give a damn anymore.

I thought about the IVC, the International VIP Convention, Wyndham’s largest annual event is today and the international publicity with the media hanging around the area was totally insane. Unlike Marley, I had actually dreaded this more because I knew things were busier and a lot more tense than usual.  My step-father, Charlie was one of the managers of the hotel and was in charge of the VIP guests lounge and had direct connections to the owner, Mr. Elian Hargreave.  I heard a lot about the new owner, how accomplished he was despite his young age. He was featured in Forbes magazine as the most successful businessman under 40 years of age (rumors had it that he couldn’t be more than 30 years old.)  He reminded me of a true-to-life Bruce Wayne, ridiculously handsome in a dark, mysterious way and was always surrounded by beautiful women.  I knew my sister, Fran was crushing on him big time that she even begged Charlie for an introduction, but to no avail.

As we left the locker room and head to the hotel lobby, where a crowd of reporters and onlookers gathered, people whom I’ve only seen on TV or on a movie screen started appearing, strutting as if they were meant to walk down the red carpet and enter the magnificent lobby as if it were from a Hollywood movie scene.

“Oh. My God.” Marley’s mouth literally hung wide open.  “Look who just got out of that limo.”

I crane my neck and look around thinking that she just saw the famous TV actress who was in a popular teen show.  What was her name again?  Elena Davenport?  She was famous for being in this TV show about a love triangle between a vampire and a cyborg.  It was insane how people were shouting her name as if it were part of her entourage. She looked stunning with her black hair and her golden skin that had obviously seen the tropics recently.  She was then accompanied by an equally handsome young man who stood well over six feet tall and had a shock of black brown hair.

“That guy’s always on the VIP list.  They call him the King,” Marley whispers as if we’re in church.

“I thought that was Elvis,” I quipped chuckling at her disgruntled look.  I knew what she meant.  I wasn’t one to get caught up in celebrity gossip, but that King she was referring to was no other than the owner of the Wyndham, Mr. Hargreave.  He gallantly bowed offering his arm to Elena who gave him a dazzling smile as she took his arm.  Hanging on the other side of his arm was also someone famous.  I heard she was the new Broadway superstar and her name was Rachel Berry.  Behind him was another famous model who often graced those ads in Vogue and a famous British reality show actress.  

All the women around him are famous, I think dully as I look down in my frumpy uniform.  For some odd feeling I felt a pang of something that I couldn’t understand wash over me.  Before I had time to even think about it, Marley again interrupted my thoughts by whispering again on my ear.

“He’s been living in the penthouse suite for a while now.” “Of course he does, he owns the hotel.”

“But it costs tens and thousands of dollars to stay there for the night.” Marley argued.

“Maybe it’s a lot more convenient to keep tabs of work here than living on Park Avenue or at the East Side.” I shrugged watching as Mr. Hargreave pays no attention to the huge crowd and walks straight ahead.

I realize that I can’t take my eyes off him.  I’ve heard the how the female hotel staff would gush about how hot he was, but seeing him in the flesh just took my breath away.

“Aaaah!!!  Over here, Elian!!!” one of the women from the mass crowd screams holding a phone camera hoping to get a picture of him.

Suddenly, a group of women, thinking about doing the same thing start running towards him and bump into me and I feel myself being pushed right into the crowd and on to the red carpet.

SMACK!

I feel like I just hit a wall and close my eyes bracing myself for the pain to follow after the impact. Instead I feel a band of steel arms hold me close, as if to steady me from the madness.  I then pry my eyes open and find myself staring into a pair of steel gray blue eyes that were placed like jewels on a handsome chiseled face.

Mr. Hargreave!!

“Aah, I- I’m so sorry,” I stammered, feeling the rush of blood flow straight at my face and into my brain as I continue to look at him, almost mesmerized yet horrified by what had just transpired.  I still feel his arms around me and I could just tell that this multibillionaire really does work out because he’s practically hugging me right now.

“What do you think you’re doing?” a haughty voice belonging to the new Broadway ingénue pipes up beside Mr. Hargreave.  She sounds almost disgusted by the sight of me.  I can see from the corner of my peripheral vision that Elena Davenport was smirking as if amused by what was happening.  God, I didn’t think she was such a bitch until now.

But instead of voicing that sentiment out, I knew I had a job at stake and right now it was totally hanging in the balance.  I had just publicly humiliated myself in front of the owner of the hotel and his guests and was drawing unnecessary attention right now and it was more than I could honestly bear. I swallow and gather myself before bitchy Quinn Fabray comes out and try to mutter an apology again but am cut short by a curt, masculine and surprisingly sexy voice.

“Get out of the way,” Mr. Hargreave says as he suddenly pulls away from me, and pushes me not quite gently aside.

“What?” I mutter in disbelief as I lose my balance and fall flat on my butt to the ground.

Owwwww..

I look at slight disdain at the man who apparently was also my boss, but his muscular, tapered back was the only thing that could see that look on my face as I watch walk further away. He brushes off his suit as if he had just encountered a speck of dust and before I thought he had finally dismissed me, turns his head and shoots me a glare and then suddenly disappears into the casino hall.

I suddenly realize with a shock that I still had that look of displeasure on my face and grimaced as I rubbed my lower back, trying yet again to stead myself as the crowd disappeared into where Mr. Hargreave and his entourage were headed.  Marley quickly comes rushing over to my side.

“Are you okay, Luce?” She asks me, totally concerned as she called me by my nickname.  I haven’t been called Lucy for a while, I had been using Quinn since I had come to New York, but somehow there was a comfort in still being known as Lucy while here in the confines of the Wyndham.

“Yeah, my butt and my pride are fine,” I say.  

“Oh my God.  Mr. Hargreave caught you in his arms.  I am so totally jealous!  Did he smell nice?  Was he really as buff underneath that suit as they say?” Marley was acting like a puppy dog fawning over that jerk.

“I don’t know, I don’t even r-remember,” I lied because I had just mentally scratched Elian Hargreave off as a completely cold, aloof, unfeeling human being.  The nerve of that man!  He didn’t even bother to defend me while I, one of his staff members, was berated by that Broadway bitch Berry.

Hmm.  That had a nice ring to it.  I feel tons better knowing that the girl could have used a plastic surgeon as good as the one who did my nose.  

Come to think of it, Elian Hargreave was actually pretty frightening.  I’ve seen how New Yorkers glare sometimes, but that cold look was totally at subzero levels worthy of the Artic.

I smooth out my clothes and hear the click clack of high heels behind me.

“Just what were you thinking, making a fool out of yourself?” a cold, voice tinged with an Italian accent snapped me back to reality.  “And in front of such important guests and even the owner of this hotel?”

“Miss Thelma, “ I say coolly plastering a smile at one of the hotel managers.  Thelma Caparano has been on my ass since the day I started working at the Wyndham when she found out I graduated with honors on my Marketing degree from Yale.  Perhaps it was that and because I’m Charlie’s kid that she thinks I deserve to be more ill-treated than a worn-out mule from a third world country.  She stands imposingly before me, all dressed up in her expertly tailored uniform as she clacked impatiently on her Prada heels waiting for me to answer her.

“I’m sorry, Ma’am.  It was an accident…”

“You are at fault for not paying attention to what’s going on around you,” she clucked her tongue at me, looking at me disapprovingly under those heavy glasses that framed her would-have-been pretty-if-she-wasn’t-such-a-bitch face.  She was probably a few years older than me, but the harshness of her demeanor just made her look like petulant and almost bratty for a woman in her mid-thirties.

“Aren’t you in charge of the regular guests, Fabray?” She asks with a smirk on her face.  

Oh boy, she does enjoy torturing me.  

“You have no business even being here in the lobby.  Not unless you get promoted to handling the VIP guests.  But you won’t get that chance, would you?  Not even if you begged your stepfather.” She laughed as if she had just thought of that joke and it was funny.

Ugh.  I am totally so close to slapping her but instead I reply setting my gaze downcast hoping that she won’t see me seething as I meekly reply “Yes, Miss Thelma.”

“Well, since you’re here,” she motions to one of her hotel assistants who was following her like a dog who hands over a box as she shoves it towards me. “Go to every floor and drop off these announcement letters while you’re at it.  These are for the guests who wish to avail of the spa promo package we are having in honor of the IVC.”

“Okay,” I say since arguing about doing a herculean task is going to go nowhere anyway since this angry vampire is out for my blood.  She’s always been a bully and since I would never dared complain of this to Charlie even though I could have, I decide I might as well just shut up and deal with it. I turn and nod to Marley, saying my goodbyes and head towards the elevators.  

As I walk by, I see a man, about my age arguing with a young woman about something in front of the elevator. The woman is wearing a dress that looks like something from the recent Fashion Week runway as she throws a mask at the man at the same time spewing a litany of curses in fluent French.

“Connard!!  Baise toi!” she screamed as the man looked back in her as if in shock.  “You lying, cheating scum!  I never want to see you again.”  With that, she gave him a resonant slap in the face for added effect before she walked out of the hotel.

This is awkward.  I turn my attention instead to the mask that looked as if it were something one wore to a masquerade ball.  I suddenly got an image of 50 shades of Grey and find myself  staring at the mask lying on the floor.  I was about to pick it up when the man who was slapped earlier moves quicker than I could and in a blink of an eye was brushing it off as if were the only precious thing that mattered to him.

Wow, his hands were fast like those of a magician.  I turn to look at him and realize that he wasn’t bad looking either.  He was of above average height and was muscularly built, but a bit thicker than Mr. Hargreave.  He also had dark hair and had the most dazzling pair of emerald green eyes I’ve ever seen.  I couldn’t tell what his hair was like underneath that Fedora hat that just made him look like the epitome of 1920’s gangster cool in a modern way.

Fedora Hat sighs dramatically.  “Great, now I don’t have a date.”  He says as if talking to himself then realizes I’m watching him.  When our eyes meet, I quickly look away self-consciously because I didn’t want him to know that I had been caught staring at him.  I try to act cool despite the awkward tension but know that he saw me witness the whole thing.

“You saw that, didn’t you?” He smirks, as if reading my mind.

“Yeah.  I-I’m really sorry.”  I backed away slowly as if avoiding being pounced by some agitated animal.

“Aw, come on. Don’t run away,” Fedora Hat laughs as he gently takes my arm as he leads me towards the elevator, completely ignoring the fact that I’m in the hotel maid’s uniform with a box of undelivered fliers on the other arm. “I’ll explain everything when we get there.”

“S-Sir?”

Before I know it, the man ignores my protests and continues to guide me, half-dragging me into the elevator with him.  We’re alone in the elevator and to be honest, this is the first time I’ve been to the basement area.  I’m surprised that the basment’s elevator looks just as elegant as the regular floor elevators.  It sort of reminded me of going into a secret lair of some evil villain but at the same time being cooped inside a glass bird cage of sorts.  I tried to avert my attention to the man beside me and look instead at the buttons of the elevator as the blinking lights affirmed our descent to the unknown.

“Whew!  I’m lucky I found you,” Fedora Hat grins at me, still holding onto my arm having no intention of letting me go.  His grip isn’t painful nor in any way gentle, but it’s firm enough to hold me into place.  As if wanting to distract me from thinking of it, he adds “coz there’s no way I could go to the party without a beautiful woman on my arm.  That would be a total buzzkill.”

Buzzkill?  Who says that sort of thing these days?

“Party?  You mean, the IVC?”

“The One and Only. Isn’t it obvious how I’m dressed?” He opens one free arm to show his expensive Italian cut suit.  Definitely Armani now that I got a closer look. And definitely custom made as it fits him perfectly.

“I-I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean that you—“

“Hahaha.  I’m kidding, babe. Man, you’re kinda uptight for a pretty thing.  Were you raised in some Christian Bible thumping school or something?”

“Uh, that’s because I work at this hotel,” I say slowly almost as if trying to hint that I’m still in my maid’s uniform, completely ignoring the fact that he’s actually right about me being Christian.  “So technically, I can’t go with you to the party as your date, sir.”

“What are you talking about? The reason why that woman earlier left was so you could be my date, Lucy.” He smiles in the most seductive, sexiest way possible as he finally noticed the name plate on my uniform.

Whoa, this one’s pretty dangerous.  And a hopeless flirt as well.  I try not to show my fear when grabs my chin and lifts it up to meet his face as he peers down, bringing it closer to mine.  I can feel his breath grazing against me as he looks into my eyes.

“Definitely my type. Angel blonde hair, mesmerizing green eyes, and luscious lips…” he trails on softly as I sort of feel his face coming closer.  He moves way to fast and I try to squirm away, backing off thinking now I understood perfectly why he got dumped in the first place.

DING! Saved by the bell of the basement floor. The elevator arrives at a full stop at the ballroom and Fedora Hat quickly backs off  and casually straightens himself as if nothing of importance was about to take place.  He could even care less whether he kissed me or not.  Jeez.

“Let’s rock and roll, Princess.” He  announces and gives off a broad smile as if putting on a game face.  And contrary to his calm demeanor, he drags me out into the ballroom before I can protest as I’m lead into the glamorous ballroom that reminded me from a scene of a Hollywood movie.

I gaped in awestruck fascination, marveling how I could have possibly missed out the new renovations at the Wyndham.  The renovations had still managed to maintain some of the old architecture, paying detail to preserving its original Art Deco state, but added with contemporary minimalist design, it’s mixture was astounding and beyond words.  I had no means of any background in architecture, but this was like walking into the Hall of Fame on architectural immortality. I was shocked that everyone present were almost nonchalant of the genius behind the design and how lavishly decorated the ballroom was to the point that even the catering was handled in the most A-list of ways.  I turn my attention to the gorgeous Swarovski crystals that were adorning the chandeliers that were hanging from the high ceiling.  

The entire floor was jam-packed with the rich and famous that I wasn’t even sure if I was hallucinating because it was too much sensory overload to be true.  I turn my head and notice Cristian Renaldi, the famous World cup soccer player from Spain to my right.  And that’s the famous Hollywood actress, Julie Moore.  And even the former President of the United States is over there?  I feel like Alice in Wonderland being wrapped around the surrealness of it all being around these celebrities that it takes me a moment to get back to earth and finally notice that Fedora Hat who had dragged me here in the first place was gone.

Huh?  Where’d he go?

Suddenly, I hear a womanly voice from behind me.

“Hey, do you have any champagne?” I turn around and am surprised that it wasn’t a woman, but a young man with an angelic face whose skin was as flawless as fine bone china. He had soft, brown hair and bright blue eyes.  He looked so familiar because his face was on the cover of this month’s issue of People Magazine being tagged as one of the 25the most beautiful People of the World of this year.

“K-Kurt Hummel!!!” I gasp, recognizing the mega hyphenate National artist/ Pulitizer prize winning Children’s Novelist/ Socialite.

“Oh, you know who I am.” He smiles brightly, happy to have been recognized in a sea of famous faces. “Thanks!”

“I-I’m sorry, I’ll look for the champagne now.” I mumble apolitically frantically looking for a bottle of Dom Perignon and Mr. Hummel chuckles behind me, as if thoroughly amused.

“You sure you work here, Alice?”

“P-Pardon?”

“You remind me of Alice in Wonderland when she fell down the rabbit hole and stumbled into the Mad Hatter’s party.” He moves away from me and reaches over the table behind me and lifts a bottle of Moet et Chandon and pours himself a glass.  He then thrusts his newly refilled glass towards me nudging me to take a drink.

“Here. You could use one more than me,” he grins.  I was about to protest but there was something harsh in his eyes telling me not to defy him as I emptied my glass.

“T-Thanks,” I was about to take the bottle and refill his glass for him when he shakes his head and takes the glass from my hands and pours himself another.

“Now, go on to doing whatever it was and I hope you get back home safely, Alice,” was all he says as he raises his champagne glass, giving me a wink of good luck for whatever it was I was about to partake.  He leaves with a wave.

He definitely was spot on about what I was feeling right at that moment.

I should definitely get out of here before I cause any more trouble.

But before I do, another man stops me from my tracks.  He’s over fifty, overweight, and perhaps a bit slightly drunk as he grins at me and grabs my hand. Ugh, he also seems really sleazy. “Aren’t you a pretty one?” He slurs and I inwardly flinch from the smell of alcohol and sweat coming from him.  “You wanna come with me and give me room service? I’ll make it worth your while and give you a big tip afterwards.

Ewww.  His head is shaped like an egg and his pock-marked face is flushed as he looks me up and down.

“I’m sorry, sir but we don’t offer that kind of service here.” I answer politely, knowing that we had been trained beforehand on how to deal with rude perverts like this guest.

He completely ignores me and starts going on how rich he is and how much is net worth is.

To be honest, it wasn’t really much.

He then slips his arm around my waist and is about to pull me towards him when…

“This party just got really trashy.” A familiar masculine voice announced icily.  I turn my head towards my savoir and realize that it’s Mr. Hargreave.  He ignores my gasp of surprise and scowls at the sleaze holding me.

“I’d rather appreciate it, sir, if you kept your attention from the hotel staff and settle instead for the bevy of beauties surrounding you,” Elian Hargreave  grinned sardonically nodding his head towards a group of runway models who flirtly waved back.  And just when I thought he couldn’t intimidate the sleazebag, he looked at me as if I were a piece of trash marring the ambience and added cruelly. “Besides, you could totally do better than THAT.  This one’s hardly a raving beauty.”  

“I-I’m really sorry, Mr. Hargreave, sir!  Pardon me!!!” Sleazebag bows apologetically quickly letting go of me as if he had been burned and kept his distance from me like I was infected with Ebola or something. He furiously wipes away his sweat and runs off.

“T-Thank you, Mr. Hargreave,” I say, totally ignoring the pain that he had brushed me off as a ugly and unattractive.  But then again, men like him are probably used to just dating models that even ingénues were all blasé for him.  

“Let’s go, Elian,” one of the pretty models whom he nodded to a while back approached him and casually hooked her arm around his, totally ignoring me.

“I can’t stand people who don’t know their place,” another one of those long legged giraffes piped in hooking her arm around his other free one as if she were about to die in a desert and he was her oasis.

As if he didn’t even acknowledge my existence and hadn’t even heard me, he turned his back as if nothing had ever happened a few minutes ago before being led away by the Amazonian Brazilian bimbos.  He starts walking still surrounded by women and I’m completely overwhelmed as I watch him walk away.  I suddenly notice a purple handkerchief on the floor behind him.  I remember this being a part of his suit and realize that he dropped it.

Almost without thinking, I picked it up and started going after him.

“Uhm, sir! Excuse me, I think you dropped this—“  I try to chase after Mr. Hargreave but he gets lost in the crowd and I can’t seem to find him.

Oh, wait!  There he is!!

I make my way through the crowd and follow him as he makes an exit to the far end of the ballroom.  

A long, deserted hallway stretches out behind the door that Mr. Hargreave enters.

“Wait.  Where did he go?”

There are several doors on either side of the hallway and I didn’t catch up with him in time to even know which doors did he enter.  However, I hear voices coming from the far end.  But somehow, as I strain to hear from the distance I get the feeling the conversation wasn’t even in English.  I shake my head, thinking that I really have to return this handkerchief back to Mr. Hargreave, I strengthen my resolve and make my way towards the door where the voices were coming from.  I note the door is slightly ajar, which explains why I could hear them.  I peek through the gap and see several briefcases lying on a table surrounded with guns and large sums of money being packed by three Asian looking men dressed in all black discussing where to put the money in perfect Cantonese and before I could see more, I feel a large hand grab me by the shoulder and roughly pulls me away, swinging me around and forces me up against a wall…

Fear and surprise of being caught seeing something I shouldn’t have take over that I feel like I just might have suffered my first heart attack.

But unfortunately, that doesn’t happen.

Instead, my heart starts pounding again in fear as I’m facing a tall, Asian man of slim, yet muscular build with broad shoulders and powerful muscles who is now glaring at me and asks in in slightly cold, yet scarily threatening voice.  His hair is slicked back and even though I know he’s actually quite good looking, I’m paralyzed with fear to hardly even notice.

“What are you doing here?” He demands as he pins me against the wall as his sharp eyes look at me.  

Oh dear, God.

It happened so suddenly my body starts to tremble as I start to realize that maybe he is one of those gun men and those men aren’t just hotel guests.  But Mafia?  Triad?

What on earth should I do?

I breathe and swallow but it’s way too hard to even do so.  Instead I focus on his face and answer.

“I-I- w-w-ork h-he---“ He completely ignores me and says instead, “you’ve got give seconds to walk away, disappear and forget everything you just saw. Got it?  Otherwise, I’d hate to think what would happen to you after.” He also said it in a way that sounded like he was talking to a five-year old.  A not very bright one at that too.

I nod wordlessly over and over, desperate to get away and he immediately lets me go.  I run so fast my legs get tangled up with each other at first and don’t even think of where I’m headed.  I just run to the point of exhaustion and find myself at the basement storage room. I close the door behind me and try to catch my breath, relieved with the fact that I have just barely escaped with my life as I offer a silent prayer and make the sign of the cross in complete gratitude that the scary Asian Mafia guy just let me go.

I ruminate over the thought of how it was possible for the Triad, one of the notorious Asian Mafias could be tied up to an event like the IVC? Were those guys even part of the Triad? Maybe they weren’t even mafia.

Get a hold of yourself, Fabray.  Keep it together.   I have just realized right at this moment I had actually lost the box of flyers I was holding earlier.  I wasn’t sure if I had lost somewhere from that struggle between me and Fedora Hat, or that Mad Hatter encounter with Kurt Hummel, or even with the Middle Aged Sleazebag .  I try again to get my body to function properly as I compose myself thinking over again where I had last left it and realized that it was on the table where I had been with Mr. Hummel.  

Just as I swing the door open, I hear a loud crashing THUD.

The door I just swung had collided into something and I could hear a group of men scream “Watch out!!!”

I see two mean-looking men peeking at the other end of the door looking helplessly as the box they were carrying drops to the ground.

“Shit!  That was the Winged Victorian Angel!”

Oh no.  I remember from the news that this 300 year old museum artifact was meant to be raffled off as the grand prize at the IVC.  It had been shipped all the way from the Louvre in Paris as a gift from the newly elected French President to the United States. The proceeds of the IVC’s funding and the raffle were meant to help the victims of Typhoon Haiyan somewhere in the Philippines.

I quickly open the crate box and find the statue was broken in half and my heart just drops to my stomach in nameless shock.

I am way too shocked to even mutter an apology.  Not only did I just destroy what might have been a National Treasure, millions of homeless Filipino children were going to starve and suffer.

“Hey, this was a very important piece that was going to be auctioned off.”  The slim mean-looking guy barks at me, ignoring my shocked state. Did he just say auctioned?  Didn’t he mean it was going to be raffled?

“How are you gonna pay for this?” Asks the Fat Meanie beside him.

“Uh…..Sorry?”

“You think an apology is gonna cut it?  You owe us, bitch!”  

The men reach out to me and….

 ……………..

 And I find myself being auctioned off.  The host of the eveing had just announce d that the next bid was me, a healthy fit young Caucasian American.

 Is this even legal?  I think as I swallow in fear hearing the bids knock from $2 million to higher.  I got put up in place of that Winged Victory Angel.

The mere fact that someone just started the bid off at $2 million was unreal.

I could barely make through the crowd as everyone was wearing masks similar to the masquerade mask Fedora Hat had with him when his date dumped him.  But somehow I felt with a sinking dread that the person who placed the initial bid was the Middle Aged Creep from before.  Oh crap, is he really going to buy me?  I definitely do NOT want that at all.

“$2 million, going once……going twice……”

I heard the announcer say that I’d be a slave, or a toy, or……God knows.  This is horrible.  I try to shake myself off this nightmare, but I know what I’m going through right now was just as real as everything that partook 12 hours ago.

Oh God, how did I get to this?  I fall to my knees, hang my head in shame as I feel the tears well in my eyes start to overflow.

I start praying hoping that Charlie, or my Mom or Fran could find me before it’s too late…..

Just then….

The auction hall suddenly buzzes with commotion as the announcer stops from closing the deal.

“Seat number 100 with a bid for $20 million cash.”

The crowd is drawn into complete silence.  

I peer through the gates to look for 100, but whoever was bidding was not in the crowd.  All I could do was stare up at the sum of the winning bid, completely dumbfounded as a  bell sounds, calling the auction to a close.

“Sold to Seat Number 100 for $20 million.  Thank you!!”

Someone bought me for twenty million US dollars?

My cage is carried over to the edge of the stage.  As I get off, I’m greeted by two masked men.  They weren’t the mean jerks from earlier but something about them looks vaguely familiar.  One of them looked to be wearing a Fedora Hat.

Fedora Hat bought me? Before I even get the chance to ask, Fedora Hat in the mask grabs my arm and says” This way….”

Wait, what the heck am I being so nervous for?  At least it’s Fedora Hat who bought me and not that Middle Aged Creep.  But where are they going to take me now?

And who bought me?

I feel totally numb from this crazy situation that I don’t even notice that I’m brought up into the penthouse.

I gasp in marvel looking at my surroundings, knowing that out of all the hotel employees, only Charlie and a few other managers were ever allowed to come up here.

Wait, speaking of Charlie, does he even know about those weird auctions happening at the basement?

“We brought her, boss.” Fedora Hat announces to the man in the immaculate tux seated on one of the elegant sofas.  Like Fedora Hat and the other man,  he was also wearing a mask, but something about him looked made me sense that I’ve also encountered this man before.  Even the other man seated beside him also with a shock of black hair was also wearing a mask also seemed vaguely familiar.

“Wait.  You’re----“

“We bought you,” Mr. Hargreave says indifferently, removing his mask as if he didn’t even hear what I was about to say.  The other man beside him followed suit.

“Guess we did end up seeing each other again,” the Asian Mafia guy remarks in the same casual, yet cold tone.

“You know this woman, Mike?” Hargreave raises his eyebrow almost as if in disbelief.

“You can say that.” He shrugs, not really giving a toss.

“Wait.  You bought me?  In that auction”  I stammer, trying to still make sense of it all.

“He means WE won you, Alice.” Kurt Hummel corrects as I turn around in disbelief as he removes his mask as well.

“For $20 million, Princess. The boss must have it bad.” Fedora Hat grins as he casually throws his mask and lays it on the next empty sofa.

“M-Mr. Hummel?” I squeak, not sure if I was asking if Fedora Hat was referring him as ‘the boss’ or if I was just asking a reaffirmation that I knew at least another familiar but friendly face.

“Pffft!!! She doesn’t even know you’re name, Puck.”  Kurt laughs.

“That because I didn’t have the time to tell her,” the man named Puck crosses his arms as if he were a pouting kid who wasn’t included in a game of tag.

“Isn’t this some form of human trafficking?  I shouldn’t have even been up for that stupid auction in the first place.”

“Hey, anything and everything’s for sale at that auction.” Puck grins matter-of-factly, completely oblivious to the fact that I had stated it being against my own free will.

“Absolutely,” Kurt agrees. “You can buy almost anything there. Like stolen art, government secrets, and even hire a hitman!”

“That was last year, wasn’t it?” Puck asked as I noticed that he and Kurt were the only chatty ones in the group while the other two men watched silently.

“Anyway, this was the first time anyone was sold off in the manner of fashion you had earlier,” Kurt says tilting his head as if trying to understand what was really going on. “You must have done something really bad to put yourself up there, huh?”

“Well…….I accidentally broke the Winged Victory Angel….” My voice trails off and I realized that something wasn’t right here.  Wait a minute, weren’t they just talking about selling black market things in a legal casino that by the way just happens to be in a highly publicized area? Was this even legal at all?  “Who in the world would approve of these things?   Do the police even know?”

“Well, to answer question number one.  I did approve of it.” Mr. Hargreave says as if bored by this whole conversation.

“What?”

“If it’s worth anything, it’s here.” Hargreave scoffs and laughs coldly.

“Reckless as always,” Mike shakes his head.  “This woman isn’t even worth anything.”

“Think about it for a moment,” Hargreave looks at me up and down as he folds his arms looking at me as if he were the predator toying with his prey.  “Won’t it be fun coming up with ways to use her?”

“What gives you the right to decide that?”  I ask exasperated.

“Who gave you permission to speak?” Hargreave asks coldly, merely raising an eyebrow.

“Huh?”

“Not another word unless I. SAY. SO.” Hargreave says, savoring the last three words, enunciating them slowly as if threatening me to not disobey him.

“If you’ve got a problem, we could always send you back to be auctioned off.” Mike sneers as if finding this even more amusing.

These guys are so scary. I’d rather die first than be sold off again.

I shake my head looking at both men, pleading them that I won’t disobey.

“Come on Boss……Mike……You two should be nice to the girls,” Puck quips, trying to lighten the mood, but honestly it fell a bit flat.  Not that I’d feel better either way.

“We need to figure out who gets to keep her,” Kurt says, as if now he’s the one who was bored by the whole turn of the conversation.  Though he acts as if he wants everything finalized, I get the feeling that he’s not entirely happy with the idea of having me for a slave.  In fact, he looks rather…….reluctant.   I’ve heard rumors that Mr. Hummel was gay, but I didn’t think now would have been the best times to actually confirm that.  So instead I ask the second question that’s been nagging me.

“What do you mean, who gets to keep me?  Didn’t you all buy me?”

“Yes, that’s true. But that’s really not your concern now.” Puck says.  “If I were you, I’d choose me.  I’m the only good guy here, so you can rest easy.”

“Says the world-famous thief and con-artist,” Elian Hargreave snorts derisively.

“Now, now Elian, you’re just trying to make Puck look bad.” Kurt says as if coming to his friends defense. “You’ve already got tons of groupies, why don’t you just play with one of them and let the rest of us have our fun?”

And to think I thought Kurt Hummel was safe because I assumed he was gay.

Guess again, batman.

“Mike Chang’s the one who could have his pick,” Hargreave threw a smirk towards the cool Asian mobster guy’s direction.  “Women would do anything to be the lover of a Hong Kong mobster.”

So he really was part of the Mafia.

Who ARE these people? I’m speechless but I try to pull myself together and try to shake some last-minute common sense in them.

“Human trafficking IS illegal, you know.  I’m going to report this to the police and I don’t care who you are.”

“You see a cop anywhere?” Elian Hargreave throws his head as if calling out to no one in particular. I follow his gaze and see a worn-out looking man standing by the window smoking a cigarette.  He looks to be the older of the bunch, probably around 35 in age. Rather good-looking, in fact he sort of reminds me of that guy who plays a thief on TV except that he looks disheveled and hasn’t shaved in a week.

“Damn it, don’t just blow my cover like that,” he groans as if he didn’t even want to be a part of this conversation.

“Better now than later, right Detective Cooper?” Kurt giggles as if enjoying himself.

“Shut up, Hummel.”

“Oh, don’t be so mean. Just because I’m dating your brother doesn’t mean you have to be so rude.”

“Wait, you’re a cop?” I ask incredulously, ignoring the fact that Kurt Hummel just confirmed he was openly gay.

“Yup.”  Apparently, the Detective spoke the fewest words possible.

I seriously CAN NOT believe that even the police are in on this.

“Well, it looks like we’re not going to reach a decision any time soon.” Kurt announces, really emphasizing on the obvious.

“Well Boss, at times like these….” Puck begins but Elian Hargreave cuts him off immediately.

“Right. I don’t want to waste anymore time.” Hargreave nods and stands up with Mike Chang following suit. All the men except for the Detective stand up and saunter over to me with Mr. Hargreave standing in the center of the group with his arms crossed looking down at me with cold eyes.

“Make a decision,” he says. “I’ll let you choose who buys you.”

---END---

Elian Hargreave.  Be ready to hear more of another Hargreave, Elian was just the prototype of my OC in the next series of fanfics.

[frankterranella]

Check out these hidden gems from forgotten Broadway musicals

By FRANK TERRANELLA

Why do some songs become smash hits and others, just as good, lurk in obscurity? I have wondered about this for many years. If you’re old enough to remember 45 rpm records you probably have a favorite song that was the B side of a hit. The fact that a song does not reach hit status is often not so much a commentary on its quality but rather on the circumstances of its introduction.

A good example is the B side of “I Want To Hold Your Hand” by the Beatles. If you turned the record over you found a little rock and roll gem called “I Saw Her Standing There.” Or how about the B side of “Brown Sugar” by the Rolling Stones? It was a song called “Bitch,” featuring one of the best guitar riffs in history.

In this article I would like to highlight four rather obscure songs from Broadway musicals that I think deserve a listen. They are all from shows that had respectable (but not long) nine-month runs on Broadway. But since neither has ever been revived on Broadway or made into a movie, the shows are as obscure as the songs.

We’ll start with a 1965 musical called Baker Street. It was a musical adaptation of Sherlock Holmes starring Fritz Weaver and Inga Swenson. The music and lyrics were by the Toronto-based team of Marian Grudeff and Raymond Jessel, who as far as I can see never had another show on Broadway. But this one is very good indeed. It was directed by Harold Prince and, among other things, it marked the Broadway debuts of Christopher Walken and Tommy Tune. Although it ran for nine months, it has never been revived in the last 50 years at any professional theater as far as I can find.

That’s a shame because there are several great songs in it. I will direct your attention to just two. The first is a lovely waltz sung by Inga Swenson that is every bit as good as anything written by Richard Rodgers. It’s called “I’d Do It Again.” You can hear it on YouTube or Spotify. The lyrics speak of how it’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. But it is the unspeakably beautiful melody that elevates this from standard Broadway fare.

Interestingly, although Inga has an amazing soprano voice, she has never again appeared on Broadway. Fans of the ‘80s hit TV show Benson will remember her as the German cook, Gretchen Kraus. And although her name might lead you to think she hales from Scandinavia, she actually was born in Omaha, Nebraska.

The second number from Baker Street that I want you to listen to is called “A Married Man.” It’s a wonderful song sung by the newly-widowed Dr. Watson about how much he misses his wife. I can’t think of any other song in history that tackles that subject matter. It’s remarkably poignant.

The song is sung by Peter Sallis, who had a long and distinguished career on stage, films and on television, mostly in England. You may have heard him as the voice of Wallace in the Wallace and Gromit films.

Another rather obscure musical I love is Seesaw, the 1972 musicalization of the hit play and movie Two For The Seesaw. It also ran for just nine months and has never been revived on Broadway despite the fact that the music and lyrics were by Broadway veterans Cy Coleman and Dorothy Fields, who had written Sweet Charity just before this show.

The show starred Michele Lee and Ken Howard as an unlikely couple (she a Jewish girl from New York City named Gittel Mosca, he a WASP from Omaha, Nebraska called Jerry Ryan). Dorothy Fields was the perfect lyricist for the Gittel character because she was herself New York-born and bred.

The first song from Seesaw that I think is a gem is called “He’s Good For Me.” It expresses perfectly Gittel’s lack of self-esteem. In the song, she asks “He’s good for me, but am I good enough for him.” It’s a common feeling that’s easy to understand. I think the song is universal enough that it could be sung by a man or a woman, and it certainly deserves to be sung as part of the Great American Songbook. Cy Coleman’s melancholy tune matches Fields’ dead-on lyrics perfectly.

The second song from Seesaw that is worth a place in the American Songbook is one sung by Tommy Tune (yes he was in this show too). The number, “It’s Not Where You Start, It’s Where You Finish,” is probably the most famous song from Seesaw (but that’s not saying much considering how few people have ever seen the show). It is brimming with the optimism that Cy Coleman brought to all his shows. It’s a giant production number that highlights Tommy Tune’s bigger-than-life persona and irrepressible spirit. For this one I definitely recommend you seek out the video on YouTube. Search for “Seesaw Tommy Tune” and it should come right up.

Just as we can’t choose our parents, songs can’t choose the shows in which they are introduced. But in both cases, parentage matters. These songs were not blessed with successful parents and so they have had a tougher time making a name for themselves. But if you give these songs (and these shows) a listen, I think you will agree they are rather special.

[hawkland]

On SVU, Barba and Stone

I do not buy the theory that Barba and Stone are going to “share ADA duties” after Stone enters the picture. I fully believe this is to set up Barba/Esparza exiting, at least as a series regular, after season 19.

These are my reasons why:

1. Budget. We already know SVU is playing it cheap on the budget front these past few seasons. I highly doubt they’d bring in another actor who can command leading actor salaries (like Winchester) just to “pop up” here and there when Esparza isn’t in an episode.

2.  If it were just going to be a short character arc, or just an occasional recurring appearance for Stone, why make a big announcement so far in advance? They already said we won’t see Stone’s introduction until the second half of the season, so...why get the news out there so early? I really think it’s to start testing the waters, see if that can tempt some of the Chicago Justice/One Chicago fans to start watching SVU this season when they might not have already (I already know a couple fanwriters/CJ fans who are planning to do just that.)

They also wouldn’t be saying it as having him “joining the cast” if it were just a short character arc, or a few appearances. I don’t recall, for instance, them saying that about Andre Braugher when he made his appearances as Bayard Ellis.

3. It just makes sense for Barba’s character to move onward/upward at this point. I know realism isn’t a strong point with SVU, especially these days (hello, Lieutenant Benson, still out there in the field on every. single. case.) But let’s face it, he’s almost tied in length of stay with Casey Novak at this point, the longest running/appearing ADA on the show (at least consecutively). For a character we were told at one point had at least some political aspirations, for a character of his age who should be looking to move up toward EADA, if not DA election? It just makes sense. And honestly, if they eventually made him DA that could lead to whole new interesting plotlines. One of the best parts (IMHO) of L&O’s last seasons was seeing Jack McCoy transition from EADA to DA, and suddenly having Cutter pulling the same shit he used to do—and being on the other side of having to deal with it. Since Chernuchin is an old-hand at mothership L&O, I can see him wanting to do more with the DA’s office and the lawyers within it than we’ve seen for a long time on SVU. So having some movement/shuffling around could help justify a fresh focus there.

(And if this does lead to Barba moving on, I DO hope it’s not in a fall-from-grace way like what happened with Novak. And/or it could be related to the death threats getting worse, maybe something happens and he has to make a difficult choice to protect himself/those he loves?)

4. Likewise, it doesn’t make sense to have alternating SVU ADAs. When has that ever worked well for the show in the past? It was one of the worst aspects of seasons 10-13, the revolving show of ADAs because no one was really clicking with the show or the viewers.  They may be playing wait-and-see by testing out Stone at the end of this season, before fully committing to anything beyond that. (Especially seeing how angry some of the Barba fans are already by even the smallest suggestion someone else is coming on board.)

5. Esparza could really just be looking to get back to theater work/other projects at this point. Would you blame him? For someone whose main work was highly acclaimed musical theater, with multiple Broadway credits, I have to think after this many years of TV work he’d be looking to get back to something different - and more challenging again. He wouldn’t be able to commit full time to a theater show while still doing SVU. I know the steady paycheck of a TV gig is a big draw for a lot of theater actors, but it is also limiting after a while. I’m speaking from conversations/friendships I’ve had with other theater actors on this subject (not any personal knowledge of RE), including one who had a similar-sized recurring role in a big genre show for a number of years. 

(Also, news has just been out recently about a possible fourth season of Hannibal in the future, which let’s face it, is a bigger esteem gig than SVU.)

6. You will never convince me there wasn’t a LOT of deal making involved in Chicago Justice getting the ax, when it was doing more than respectably in the ratings. All the signs pointed to giving it a renewal, yet there was that long delay, also the delay in SVU’s announcement of renewal even when we knew that was coming. And then Chernichin comes to SVU while Eid gets shuffled over to PD; now CJ’s lead protagonist is coming along, too? Yeah, I think this has all been in the planning for a while.  

7. SVU is not Criminal Intent. I know some people have been comparing the two, and how the detective teams alternated there after the first few seasons. But, from what I understand, that was a factor (at least in part?) of D’Onofrio complaining that he had TOO much screentime. That it was putting too much of a physical demand on him to be in virtually every scene of every episode, and thus they expanded the cast. CI was never a big office/ensemble show; the focus was always on a pair of detectives, and to a much lesser extent the ADA and the captain. So to compare that to the structure of the SVU team and how they are typically used in episodes? Doesn’t really make sense.

So...that is pretty much all my thoughts and reasonings at this point. Feel free to disagree, feel free to be pissed off, I could be totally 100% wrong. But this is how I’m calling it now. And as someone really ready for a change I’d be happy with these developments, but I know that’s not a popular opinion to have here on Tumblr right now in this fandom. So be it. 

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

35 things to inspire you during your 2019 self-love sessions

May is National Masturbation Month, and we're celebrating with Feeling Yourself, a series exploring the finer points of self-pleasure.

So far, 2019 hasn't been a particularly sexy year.

When you think about, we've all had to watch a lot of straight-up nonsense go down. Green Book won the Oscar for Best Picture, Jeff Bezos' "sexts" leaked, and Sonic the Hedgehog got a full set of human teeth, for goodness sake. Gross!

A bunch of this year's pop culture moments have been genuinely disappointing, but we're not going to let that harsh our self-love vibes. From sexy fashion statements and television characters, to memes and music, 2019 has definitely given us some glorious moments worthy of recalling during the act of self-pleasure.

If you find yourself in need of some masturbation inspiration, here are 35 ~very 2019~ things to think about.

1. Chris Evans' teal velvet pants: Christopher Robert Evans had the absolute audacity to show up to an Avengers: Endgame press event in April wearing teal velvet pants. The trousers looked as though they were hand-crafted by an angelic seamstresses in the clouds and came with the equally stunning teal velvet suit jacket Evans wore to the Oscars earlier this year. We're all blessed that his stylist, Ilaria Urbinati, firmly believes you should "never let a great pair of trousers go to waste."

Chris Evans inventing pants.

Image: ALBERTO E. RODRIGUEZ/GETTY IMAGES FOR DISNEY

2. America's ass: While we're on the topic of Chris Evans' pants, let's get another inevitable Chris-related 2019 thirst trap out of the way. Feel free to think of the real star of Avengers: Endgame — America's ass — whenever you need a dose of dayummmm. 🇺🇸🍑

3. "Old Town Road": There are many subject-appropriate songs out there to get off to, but if you're looking to switch things up a bit, consider listening to the 2019 anthems, "Old Town Road" and the remix, for inspiration.

4. The possibility of eliminating student debt: This year, Elizabeth Warren announced her plans to cancel student debt and eliminate college tuition for future students, and honestly? Just the thought of having your ridiculously high student debt forgiven is *tingles* exciting. 

5. The new Staples logo: People got seriously amped when that little staple unfolded. So... strong.

SEE ALSO: 7 ridiculously large sex toys to help you go big in the bedroom

6. The Jonas Brothers reunion AND the introduction of the Jonas Sisters: One of the world's most popular boy bands — a band of literal biological brothers — reunited in 2019, and that alone is reason enough for everyone to be "Burnin' Up." But with the reunion also came the introduction of the fierce female trio, the Jonas Sisters (aka Sophie Turner, Priyanka Chopra, and Danielle Jonas). 🔥

7. The black hole: The world saw the first recorded image of a black hole in 2019, and I guess it's kind of hot, right? It is described as "supermassive," so. Hey. 

8. The possible return of Wendy's Spicy Chicken Nuggets: Can you think of a thought spicer than imagining the possible return of Wendy's Spicy Chicken Nuggets? There aren't many. 

9. The thought of the L train being functional: Governor Andrew Cuomo is confident that limiting service of the extraordinarily popular L train for a year will be in the city's best interest, but in the mean time New Yorkers are living a fresh new subway hell. Stay strong, people. And if necessary, after a long-ass day of commuting, feel free to envision a beautiful, fully functioning L train in the sack.

10. Jauz's "Baby Shark" remix: I think the Coachella track really speaks for itself doo doo doo doo doo doo.

11. KFC's hot new Colonel Sanders: KFC isn't simply in the business of making people hungry for chicken anymore. Now they're interested in making people thirst for their hot new Colonel Sanders. (It's working?)

12. The thought of sexting with a robot: Mashable Staff Writer Jess Joho sexted with a bot, and you can too. Turns out it's surprisingly hot.

13. The Night King: Listen, he wasn't very nice. He's also dead now. But in his glory days the Night King could get it.

14. The Hulk's junk: Ever wonder if the Hulk can have sex? There's a lot to unpack. Consider doing so next time you get down with yourself, because, why not?

15. David's dance on Schitt's Creek: David and Patrick's relationship is one of the best on television, and while David's dance to Tina Turner's "The Best" is sweet enough to make you ugly cry, it's also sexy as hell and impossible to watch without getting chills. (The same argument can be made for the scene where Patrick sings "The Best" to David.)

16. Literally any moment from the 2 hours and 17 minutes of Beyoncé's Homecoming: The performance is the definition of flawless and we are barely worthy of such brilliance.

17. The Burn This poster: The poster for the Broadway revival of Lanford Wilson's Burn This is haaaaawt. It features Adam Driver and Keri Russell lookin' gorg, just chillin' horizontal on a couch all dreamy and idyllic and shit. See for yourself.

18. This sand art replica of Dwayne Johnson's face: You might not initially think a video of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's head being assembled from sand is the stuff to inspire hot thoughts, which is understandable, but if you never try you'll never know, right?

19. Bowsette: The fan-created character that mashes Bowser and Princess Peach together was dismissed by Nintendo this year, but that doesn't stop people from lusting over NSFW Bowsette art online.

20. This extremely long dongle: Major BDE (Big Dongle Energy) coming from this one. Who can ignore?

This is one long dongle #io19 pic.twitter.com/OtNf1fsdDK

— Raymond Wong📱💾📼 (@raywongy) May 7, 2019

21. The moment Captain America wielded Thor's hammer: Yes, we've already gave a nod to Chris Evans/Captain America twice on this list, but how could we not acknowledge the ⚡electric⚡ moment Cap summoned Mjolnir? A real shock to the heart.

22. 500 Intel drones performing a choreographed light show set to Phish: Get jammin', folks.

23. Golf balls cut in half: These artsy halved golf balls with tantalizingly scrumptious interiors are forbidden snacks, but we can still drool.

24. Demon Beto O'Rourke: When the skateboarding, burger-loving, Beyoncé-endorsed musician Beto O'Rourke ran for Texas Senator against Ted Cruz, he was one of the most crush-worthy men on the planet. Now, O'Rourke is running for president, though, and the American people can't afford to let their thirst distract them from focusing on policy issues. Rather than thinking of Beto to get yourself all hot and bothered consider, focusing on this comedian's parody version, Demon Beto.

25. Animations of a baguette on the move: We are not suggesting you think about just any old loaf of bread while masturbating. Animated baguettes are special.

26. Villanelle and Eve: The relationship between the two Killing Eve characters may be complicated, but their chemistry is clear as day. Scenes like this are simply too intense to just watch.

27. Crocs and shaving cream: In case you haven't seen, putting large dollops of shaving cream in Crocs and then inserting feet forces the shaving cream to escape out of the signature shoe holes. It's quite the satisfying sight.

28. Basically every Met Gala outfit: The 2019 Met Gala theme was "Camp" — inspired by Susan Sontag's 1964 essay — and everyone's outfits were S T U N N I N G. Here is a list of some greats. 

29. The Rihanna birthday outfit challenge: Everyone knows Rihanna slays the Met Gala when she attends, but since the singer didn't make it this year we have to get our fix another way. Try searching "Rihanna" and your birthday on Google and see one of her iconic outfits will appear. You're welcome.

30. Balenciaga Crocs: Speaking of Crocs and the Met... I like those Balenciagas. The ones that look like Crocs. 😏

of course the balenciaga crocs are here pic.twitter.com/34ZWXYXAKD

— rachel syme (@rachsyme) May 6, 2019

31. Jake Gyllenhaal in Spider-Man Far From Home trailer: HeLLO, Mysterio. We see that beard and shaggy Jim Halpert hair, boy.

32. What if we kissed memes: A perfect meme for those who want to imagine kissing people in super bizarre places — like near a high voltage box — but are in need of inspiration.

33. The gray streak in Richard Madden's hair: 50 strands of gray = bae.

34. The Senate Intelligence Committee subpoenaing Donald Trump Jr. to testify over the Russia Investigation: Perhaps some people will take pleasure from imagining Trump's son testifying in hopes it will shed some light on this long, national, election hacking nightmare. IDK! 

35. Samsung's foldable phone: The wide, glossy screen folds in half for goodness sake. 

Digital hot dog bun.

Image: RAYMOND WONG / MASHABLE

Have fun, everyone!

WATCH: Gaga and Bradley set the meme-osphere and our loins ablaze this week with their Oscar's performance — All the Memes

[geekade]

Before Their Time, Gargoyles

One thousand years ago, superstition and the sword ruled. It was a time of darkness. It was a world of fear. It was the age of gargoyles. Stone by day, warriors by night. We were betrayed by the humans we had sworn to protect, frozen in stone by a magic spell for a thousand years. Now, here in Manhattan, the spell is broken, and we live again! We are defenders of the night. We are GARGOYLES!

So begins Gargoyles, some of the best animation on television in 1994. I loved this show so much that when it finally came out on DVD in 2013 I was afraid to revisit it. After all, I remembered loving She-Ra: Princess of Power, jumped at the chance to rewatch it on Hulu, and regretted it almost immediately. Childhood is treacherous that way. 

I’m happy to report that Gargoyles still merits a spot alongside Batman: The Animated Series and X-Men as a well-executed and rewatchable 90’s classic. In addition to complex characters and plot arcs, the series boasts terrific animation (including some killer fight sequences) and fabulous voice talent (an assortment of Star Trek alumni make appearances of varying duration). Gargoyles also represented my first encounter with a starring woman of color, more than one fully developed female character, and sympathetic villains. Of course, Disney cancelled it after only two seasons; ABC ran a third season called The Goliath Chronicles, but…let’s just say there’s a reason it’s not out on DVD.

The series premiered in 1994 as part of the Disney’s syndicated after-school cartoon block. It shared several writers and directors with Batman, including Michael Reaves, Brynne Chandler Reaves, and Frank Paur, and they brought a similarly brooding sensibility to Gargoyles. Like most of the short-lived shows I love, Gargoyles opened strong and just got better and better until its untimely demise. The pilot clocks in at five episodes, cutting between the gargoyles’ history in 994 AD and their reawakening in 1994. Considering it aired before DVR was even a glimmer in some startup’s eye, and that it couldn’t count on the character recognition of comics-based shows like Batman or X-Men, a five-episode pilot was pretty damn ambitious. As if that wasn’t daring (or dark) enough, Gargoyles opens with a genocide; before the show even gets going, its titular characters face a breach of trust that exterminates nearly their entire clan. The remaining gargoyles – Goliath (Keith David), Hudson (Ed Asner), Brooklyn (Jeff Bennett), Broadway (Bill Fagerbakke), and Lexington (Thom Adcox-Hernandez), along with watchdog Bronx (Frank Welker) awaken in a world ten centuries and an ocean removed from the one they knew. 

Although the surviving clan from Goliath all the way down to Bronx get rich characterizations, histories, and performances, I was always captivated by three of the supporting characters, two of them villains. My favorite character was Elisa Maza (Salli Richardson-Whitfield), the NYPD detective who discovers the gargoyles while investigating a disturbance at Xanatos’ skyscraper. She guides the clan through the new world and protects them from discovery. Perceptive, resourceful, and trained in hand-to-hand combat, Elisa was the first major animated character I ever saw who looked remotely like me and the first heroine who did the rescuing. 

The first person she saves our heroes from is David Xanatos. Jonathan Frakes voices him with an oily suavity that channels Bruce Wayne and Tony Stark but is more grounded, amoral, and dangerous than either of them. Xanatos understands that has earned a kind of medieval debt-loyalty for relocating and reawakening the gargoyles, and he wastes no time exploiting this for his own ends. When he can no longer use Goliath’s clan, he develops technology to replicate their abilities, forcing them to face off against a series of robots, cyborgs, and clones. His brand of villainy – elegant, elaborate, and nearly unbeatable – lends its name to the Xanatos Gambit. 

Like I said, Tony Stark minus the alcoholism and moral compass. Riker wishes he was this cool. Xanatos reunites the clan with another member they’d believed lost in the sack of their castle: Goliath’s lieutenant and mate, Demona (Marina Sirtis). Demona possesses a Machiavellian single-mindedness; she resorts to magic, treachery, and brute force in the pursuit of her goal to exterminate humanity. Much like Magneto, she’s convinced that humans will never coexist peacefully with gargoyles, and once you’ve witnessed the distrust and cruelty that precede the destruction of her brethren, this logic almost makes sense. She’s gotten this far on a series of Faustian bargains and a heady cocktail of rage, survivor’s guilt, cognitive dissonance, and loneliness, but her conviction masks a longing for everything that might have been – for her, for Goliath, and for their lost clan. An object lesson in the dangers of revenge, Demona is no less tragic for being irredeemable.

Goliath, Elisa, and the clan battle Demona, Xanatos, and a series of other adversaries (not all of them dispatched by Xanatos) in sequences that showcase thoughtful character design. I love good fight choreography, and the hand-to-hand in Gargoyles never ceases to amaze me. The airborne combat sequences are particularly mesmerizing, combining dogfighting and midair grappling, but the earthbound stuff is no slouch either. Most kids probably wouldn’t have noticed if the gargoyles fought like large humans, but the animators make good use of their talons, tails, and wings, especially all the ways these things change the gargoyles’ relationship to gravity. 

While the first season (13 episodes) follows the clan’s efforts to adjust to modern Manhattan, the second season (52 episodes) takes Goliath, Elisa, and Bronx on a “World Tour” which starts with a visit to the enchanted isle of Avalon. Referencing anything that happens after Avalon would be spoiling some neat surprises, but I can tell you that the series travels through a collection of places, times, and mythologies that would make Neil Gaiman blush. As you might have guessed from the introduction of Avalon, these episodes reference Arthurian legend and Shakespeare (mainly Macbeth and A Midsummer Night’s Dream) liberally, and I have to tip my hat to anybody who can make Oberon and Titania’s marriage make sense.  Gargoyles united many of the elements that made Batman and X-Men so compelling, especially the darkness of the former and the xenophobia of the latter. But the show grew to more than the sum of its parts, its heroes and villains alike the products of complex and often surprising histories. If you loved it then, know that you can revisit it now without fear of disappointment. And if you’ve just learned about it here, know that Gargoyles is rendered beautifully, visually and auditorily. I defy you not to be seduced.

HOW TO WATCH: Seasons 1 and 2 are available on DVD. Season 2 is divided into two parts. All 3 DVDs are available on Amazon.

MUST WATCH: “Reawakening,” the final episode of the first season, features Michael Dorn as a resurrected gargoyle inhabited by three different souls. “Bushido,” the Japan episode of the World Tour, is a touching reintroduction of the trust between humans and gargoyles.

FAVORITE LINES: “Lot to go through for a piece of lawn sculpture.” “What are you doing here?” “Making sure you weren’t being ambushed.” “Man, you guys are paranoid even for New York.” “Someone had to make sure those comic book rejects didn’t find you.” “And they say the Middle Ages were barbaric.” “Flabby as I am now, I probably wouldn’t last a second in a Central American war.”

PAIR WITH: Jalapeños

LISTEN FOR: Everyone, but especially for anyone who ever starred in a Star Trek show. You already know about Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis, but Michael Dorn, Brent Spiner, Kate Mulgrew, Nichelle Nichols, Avery Brooks, LeVar Burton, and Colm Meaney all make appearances. Notable non-Star Trek voices include Clancy Brown, John Rhys-Davies, Sheena Easton, Tim Curry, Diedrich Bader, Tony Shalhoub, Charles Shaughnessy, and Roddy McDowall. Seriously, everybody was on this show.

ODDS & ENDS: The magic spells sprinkled throughout the show are actually quasi-functional Latin. They are collected and translated here. 

Gargoyles’ characters and plots mostly hold up today, but much of the first season’s storyline is only possible without cameraphones. Every time the gargoyles wind up in a populated area I find myself waiting for the cut to the YouTube footage. 

Every gargoyle has a battle cry, equal parts growl, roar, and avian scream, which is as awesome and terrifying as it sounds. 

It would have been more in character for Elisa to wear her hair short or tied back, but flowing Disney princess locks seem a small price to pay for being able to take somebody out even when you’re on crutches.

In closeup shots Xanatos appears to be rocking some serious guyliner; somehow this seems appropriate for a character voiced by Jonathan Frakes. 

AFTERWARDS: The Goliath Chronicles are not available on DVD, and I strongly advise you to accept this as a sign from the TV gods, because ABC took over the show with an entirely different writing and animation staff, and it shows. Disney did approve two comic book runs, one by Slave Labor Graphics (SLG) and the other by Marvel. Both are out of print and I can’t vouch for either, but I do know that Greg Weisman, one of the show’s creators, worked on the SLG run, and that lots of fans consider it the canonical third season. 

[yeskhanzadame11]

The General Slocum Disaster

If you ask New Yonkers, except the bombing of the World Trade Center Towers on 9/11, 2001, what become the most important catastrophe in New York City records, maximum could say the Triangle Shirtwaist Factor Fire of 1911, which killed 141 people, generally women. But by using far the worst tragedy ever to take region in New York City turned into the now forgotten 1904 General Slocum paddle boat disaster, in which greater than 1000 German people, primarily woman and children, perished in an coincidence that without a doubt could have been prevented.

Starting inside the 1840's, tens of heaps of German immigrants began flooding the lower east facet of Manhattan, which is now referred to as Alphabet City, but what turned into then called the Deutschland, or Little Germany. Just within the 1850's alone over 800,000 Germans came into America, and by means of 1855, New York City had the third largest German populace of any town in the global.

The German immigrants were different than the Irish immigrants who, because of the Irish potato famine in Ireland, have been also emigrating to New York City at a fast tempo for the duration of the center a part of the nineteenth century. Whereas the Irish were usually lower-elegance people, the Germans were better knowledgeable and possessed abilities that made them achieve a better rung at the financial ladder than did the Irish. More than 1/2 the bakers in New York City had been of German descent, and most cabinet makers in New York City have been both German, or of German descent. Germans were additionally very lively inside the construction business, which at the time turned into very worthwhile, because of all of the huge homes being built in New York City throughout the mid and past due 1800's.

Joseph Redeemer, Oswald Tenderfoot and Fried rich Gorge had been New York City German-Americans who had been extraordinarily lively inside the introduction and increase of change unions. In New York City, German-American clubs, which were known as Veins, were fantastically worried in politics. Tenderfoot owned and edited the Stats-Zeitgeist, the largest German-American newspaper in town. He have become this type of force in politics, in 1861, he become instrumental, thru his German Democracy political membership, in getting New York City Mayor Fernando Wood elected for his 2 term. In 1863, Tenderfoot propelled another German, Geoffrey Gunther, to be successful Wood as mayor.

Little Germany reached its height in the 1870's. It then encompassed over 400 blocks, comprised of six avenues and 40 streets, walking south from 14th Street to Houston Street, and from the Bowery east to the East River. Tompkins Square and it park became keep in mind the epicenter of Little Germany. The park itself became referred to as the Weiss Marten, wherein Germans congregated each day to talk about what changed into crucial to the lives and livelihoods.

Avenue B become known as the German Broadway, in which nearly each building contained a primary floor store, or a workshop, advertising each type of commodity that was favored with the aid of the German populace. Avenue A became understand for its beer gardens, oyster saloons and various grocery stores. In Little Germany there have been also wearing clubs, libraries, choirs, shooting clubs, factories, department stores, German theaters, German faculties, German church buildings, and German synagogues for the German Jews.

Starting round 1880, the wealthier Germans started out transferring out of New York City to the suburbs. And via the turn of the 20 Th Century, the German populace in Little Germany had shrunk to round 50,000 people, nonetheless a considerable amount for any ethnic community in New York City.

On June 15, 1904, St. Mark's Evangelical Lutheran Church on 6th Street charted the paddle boat General Slocum, for the sum of $350, to take members of its congregation to its yearly picnic, celebrating the quit of the faculty yr. At a couple of minutes after nine a.M., more than 1300 humans boarded the General Slocum. Their vacation spot changed into the Locust Grove on Long Island Sound, in which they expected to revel in an afternoon of swimming, video games, and the first-class of German meals.

The General Slocum, owned by means of the Knickerbocker Steamship Company, become named for Civil War officer and New York Congressman Henry Warner Slocum. It changed into built through W. & A. Fletcher Company of Hoboken, New Jersey, and become a sidewheel paddle boat powered via a unmarried-cylinder, floor condensing vertical beam steam engine with fifty three inch bore and 12 foot stroke. Each wheel had 26 paddles and turned into 31 feet in diameter. Her maximum speed was about 16 knots.

Almost from the day of its launching in 1891, the General Slocum suffered one mishap after every other. Four months after her launching, the General Slocum ran aground near the Walkaways. Several tugboats had been wanted to pull the General Slocum back into the water.

1894 turned into a very bad year for the General Slocum. On June twenty ninth, the General Slocum turned into returning from the Walkaways with 4700 passengers on board. Suddenly, it struck a sandbar so hard, that her electric generator blew out. In August, at some point of a horrible rain hurricane, the General Slocum ran aground a 2nd time, this time close to Corey Island. The passengers needed to be transferred to any other deliver so that you can make their way lower back home. The subsequent month the General Slocum hit the trifecta when it collided with the tug boat R. T. Sabre in the midst of the East River. In this incident, the General Slocum's steerage turned into critically broken, and it had to be repaired. The General Slocum became accident loose until July of 1898, whilst the General Slocum collided with the Amelia near Battery Park.

On August 17, 1901, The General Slocum changed into wearing, what changed into described as "900 intoxicated Patterson Anarchists." Suddenly, some of the passengers began to insurrection. Others attempted to bodily take manage of the boat, by means of storming the bridge. However the team fought the rioters off and were capable of keep manage of the boat. When the captain docked at the police pier, 17 "anarchists" were arrested.

Finally, in June of 1902, the General Slocum ran aground again. The boat become not able to be freed, so its passengers needed to camp out the complete night till reinforcements should arrive the subsequent morning. The captain of the boat in that incident changed into none aside from Captain William H. Van Schick, the equal man who would be the leader officer of the General Slocum on its ultimate voyage.

On June 15, 1904, approximately 15 mins after the General Slocum left the pier at East Third Street, it became even with East one hundred and twenty fifth Street. At this factor, Captain Van Schick become notified by certainly one of his crew that a fire had commenced within the Lamp Room, inside the forward phase of the boat. The fireplace become likely ignited through a discarded cigarette or a healthy, and it turned into obviously fueled with the aid of the straw, oily rags, and lamp oil strewn across the room. The Captain had been informed there has been a hearth on board a few minutes earlier by using a 12-year-old boy, but Captain Van Schick did no longer accept as true with the boy. Other humans on board stated the fire had commenced almost simultaneously in numerous locations, which include a paint locker packed with flammable fluids, and a cabin full of gas.

This is where Captain Van Schick made a terrible mistake in judgment. Since land changed into close by, all the Captain needed to do was run his deliver aground before the flames unfold any in addition. Then he may want to sell off his passengers, normally lady and kids, fast earlier than there have been any fatalities. But for a few motive Captain Van Schick decided to go directly right into a headwind and try to land his boat at North Brother Island, simply off the southern shore of the Bronx. Captain Van Chadwick could later say the cause for his choice became that he became looking to prevent the fire from spreading on land to riverside buildings and oil tanks. But by going into heavy headwinds, he turned into certainly fanning the fire.

Captain Van Schick later stated at his trial, "I started out to head for One Hundred and Thirty-fourth Street, but turned into warned off with the aid of the captain of a tugboat, who shouted to me that the boat might set fire to the lumber yards and oil tanks there. Besides, I knew that the shore turned into coated with rocks and the boat would founder if I put in there. I then constant upon North Brother Island."

As the boat chugged onward, passengers ran in panic across the deck. Mothers have been looking for their youngsters. Father's were searching out their households. Young boys and women scrambled onto the deck chairs, waving frantically for assist on the crowds who had assembled on the shore. The flames expanded by means of the second, expanded by the boat's clean coat of highly flammable paint.

At this factor, overcome through smoke inhalation, and with the flames flickering at their torsos, toes and faces, human beings started leaping into the water. Some were rescued by using boats which had rushed close to the fiery General Slocum. But maximum of the girl and girls, due to the cumbersome female's apparel of that technology, fast drowned. Some humans died when the floors of the boat collapsed. Others have been overwhelmed to loss of life via the nonetheless churning paddles, as they flung themselves over the edges of the boat closer to the water.

People that attempted to apply the existence jackets on board were in for a horrible marvel. Although there had been 3000 lifestyles jackets to be had, they had been all but useless. The enormous majority were rotted out, with the cork within the jackets used for buoyancy almost totally disintegrated. The people who did don the existence jacked and plunged into the water, right away sank like a rock. Some people tried to dislodge the emergency lifeboats, but they failed to accomplish that because the lifeboats have been firmly stressed out in vicinity.

People from the shore noticed a girl in a blue dress leap off the aspect of the boat. They watched in horror because the female hit the wooded paddle wheel. The wheel churned violently, dragging the woman below it. The humans on shore may want to pay attention the screaming lady's frail body being threshed about like a rag doll by using the paddle wheel, before her screaming stopped and she disappeared into the murky waters. A little boy, clutching his filled toy dog, turned into thrown into the river by his weeping mom. The boy changed into fished from the river alive, still squeezing his precious toy dog.

16-year-vintage Albert Frees became one of the fortunate ones who survived the General Slocum catastrophe. Frees, at the time, become a mail clerk inside the Funk and Wagtails publishing house. As horrified human beings scampered all around him, Frees moved quickly to the strict of the burning boat. According to Edward Ross Ellis' The Epic of New York City, "Frees jumped ft first, with his ankles collectively and his hands inflexible at his side. He become able to swim correctly to shore, and later became treasurer of his firm."

As Captain Van Schick resolutely and pigheadedly prompt his boat onward, people on Manhattan's Japanese shore had been now going for walks frantically along the riverbank, trying to maintain tempo with the burning boat. Others have been mobilized in wagons and carts, screaming for the Captain to run his boat ashore. Some humans flung barrels into the river for the people floundering within the water to use as makeshift existence preservers. Small boats tried to chase down the General Slocum from in the back of, however they had been unable to do so. However, a number of these boats had been capable of fish the better swimmers out of the water and produce them accurately to shore.

Despite the utter mayhem, and the pleading of the humans at the shore to run his boat aground, Captain Van Schick, his own clothes on hearth, disregarded them and continued in the direction of North Brother Island. When Captain Van Schick finally beached his boat at North Brother Island, the boat become one huge fireball.

Captain Van Schick said later, "I stuck to my publish in the pilothouse till my cap caught fireplace. We were then about twenty-five toes off North Brother Island. She went at the beach, bow on, in about twenty-five toes of water.... Most of the humans aft, wherein the hearth raged fiercest, jumped in while we had been in deep water, and have been over excited. We had no hazard to decrease the lifeboats. They had been burned earlier than the team should get at them."

At North Brother Island, nurses, docs, and even the patients within the island's contagious ailment sanatorium, rushed to assist the survivors. Some carried ladders, which they used to manual the survivors, most badly burned, down from the boat. Others caught little kids who have been heaved all the way down to them by using hysterical dad and mom. Within mins, all the survivors, together with the captain and several team individuals, where taken accurately away from the flaming boat and admitted to the sanatorium.

From his medical institution window, a feverish measles patient saw the horror transpiring. He summoned the braveness, moved quickly from the sanatorium and sprinted into the water. He turned into able to keep several children. A nurse who could not swim dashed into the river to seize numerous kids. She did this repeatedly, while abruptly the tide pulled her into deeper water. Incredibly, the nurse observed out she ought to certainly swim, and she or he endured rescuing whomever she could attain.

City Health Commissioner Darling ton became present on North Brother Island the day the fiery General Slocum ran aground. "I will by no means be able to forget about the scene, the utter horror of it," Darling ton stated. "The patients inside the contagious wards, specially inside the scarlet fever ward, went wild at matters they saw from their home windows and went screaming and beating at the doors until it took fifty nurses and medical doctors to quiet them. They were all locked up. Along the beach the boats have been sporting within the living and death and towing within the dead."

When the fireplace first started out, a person rang the metropolis table of the World on Park Row. The guy, who did not identify himself, advised the newspaper editor that he changed into in his workplace at 137th Street and he should see the burning boat from his office window. The editor straight away contacted Eugene Moran, who owned a tugboat organization at 134th Street. Moran told the editor that he had no tugboats available in that area, but that it would be faster anyway to send his men through expanded educate from the Park Row station to the Morris Park station within the north Bronx. The editor ordered his men onto the teach, and as a end result, the World had the tale of the tragedy earlier than some other New York City newspaper.

When the World reporters arrived on the scene, they have been triumph over with grief. As the boat was enveloped in smoke and flames, the journalists and the World's photographers noticed dozens of blackened and bloody useless bodies scattered along the shore line. As the photographers snapped away and the reporters jotted down their notes, numerous hardened newspapermen broke down in tears. Then they rushed to find phones in order that they may deliver their stories to the rewrite guys at their newspaper. Their description of the tragedy on the telephones were so graphic, while the rewrite men heard what had transpired, they rushed into the guys's room to vomit.

The New York Times suggested day after today, "On the night of June 15, 1904, grief-crazed crowds covered the shore in which the bodies were being brought in via the boatload. Scores had been averted from throwing themselves into the river."

The police released a file some days later claiming that 1,031 humans had perished within the General Slocum fireplace. For the following couple of weeks, police divers searched for bodies in the partly sunk stays of the General Slocum. Police and rescue parties scoured the banks of the river for miles in each guidelines searching out bodies.

On the night time of the fire, ratings of husbands got here home from work only to find out that their entire households had perished in the hearth. Some devoted suicide, others went mad, and a few later died of grief. For 3 days, hearses transverses the streets of Little Germany wearing our bodies, and parts of bodies, to their graves in Lutheran Cemetery in Middle Village, Queens.

A Federal grand jury indicted 8 human beings as a result of the catastrophe. Those humans blanketed Captain Van Schick,  boat inspectors, and the president, secretary, treasurer, and commodore of the Knickerbocker Steamship Company. However, most effective Captain Van Schick turned into convicted at trial. The prices the Captain became convicted on were criminal negligence, failing to hold right fireplace drills and fireplace extinguishers. There changed into a hung jury on the manslaughter charge. Captain Van Schick turned into sentenced to ten years in jail. The Captain served 3 and a 1/2 years at Sing Sing Prison earlier than he acquired parole. On August 26, 1911, the administration of President William Howard Taft voted to release Captain Van Schick from parole. And on December 19, 1912, President Taft pardoned the Captain. Captain Van Schick died in 1927.

The Knickerbocker Steamship Company acquired a ridiculously small excellent, despite the fact that there was sufficient proof that they'd falsified inspection statistics. The sunken stays of the General Slocum had been raised to the floor, and ultimately converted into a barge, which predictably sank throughout a hurricane in 1911.

The tragedy of the General Slocum pressured a major reconstruction of steamboat protection policies. A week after the fireplace, President Theodore Roosevelt order a five-man fee to analyze why the tragedy had befell, and what could be finished to prevent it from taking place again in the destiny. The commission became especially hard on the United States Steamboat Inspection Service (US SIS), who had failed depressing at their activity of making sure steamboat protection. Dozens of US SIS employees had been fired, and new inspections of all steamboats ordered. Predictably, severs violations were observed, strolling from useless existence jackets to rotted fireplace hoses.

The five-guy committee recommended many reforms which include: fireproof steel bulkheads to comprise fires, steam pipes extended from the boiler into shipment regions (to act as a sprinkler), progressed life jackets (one for each passenger and team member), hearth hoses capable of managing a hundred kilos of strain according to rectangular inch, and handy lifestyles boats. All these reforms were instituted, which dramatically stepped forward steamboat safety.

The General Slocum fireplace all but erased the German populace from the decrease east facet of Manhattan. Soon after the tragedy, hundreds of families moved from the lower east facet because memories of the tragedy have been too terrible to endure. Some settled at the upper east facet of Manhattan's Orville section, growing a new German town. Some moved to Astoria in Queens, and others left New York City absolutely.

Strangle, the memory of General Slocum fire, even though it killed nearly 10 instances as many humans as did the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire of 1911, quick faded from most of the people's attention. A large part of the cause was that the onset of World War One removed all sympathies for every person of German descent, and all of the sufferers of the General Slocum hearth had been German.

In 1905, the Sympathy Society of German Ladies commissioned sculptor Bruno Louis Zimmerman to design a memorial fountain, which was unveiled on May 30, 1905 on the northwestern corner of Tompkins Square Park. This white nine-foot fountain is sculpted of purple Tennessee marble. On the front, above the carved lion's head spout and basin, a there is an outline of  harmless youngsters staring off towards the sea, with the inscription, "They were earth's purest kids, loving and honest."

This memorial fountain [ https://anonymster.com/ ] still stands in Tompkins Square Park to this very day.

[douchebagbrainwaves]

WHAT YOU KNOW

And so in starting a startup generally. The only way you're ever going to extract any value from it is to redefine the problem. They let their acquaintance drift, but only a few thousand are startups. The angel agrees to invest at a pre-money valuation of $1 million to a 20% chance of $10 million, while the percentages might end up looking like this, where your mind is free to roam, that it bumps into new ideas. You can mitigate this with subsidies at the bottom and taxes at the top, but unless taxes are high enough to discourage people from creating wealth, not by suing people. At least, that's the recipe for a lot of startups that end up going public didn't seem likely to at first. Though quite successful, it did not crush Apple. So Don't be evil. There was a friend they wanted to make more, but not random: I found my doodles changed after I started studying painting.

The word was first used for backers of Broadway plays, but now that the reaction is self-sustaining what drives it is the people. By breaking software development, Apple gets the opposite of what they intended: the version of an app currently available in the App Store approval process is broken. Enjoy it while it lasts, and get as much as a checkout clerk because he is a warlord who somehow holds her in thrall.1 Like a kid tasting whisky for the first time, realizing with shock that the players were deliberately bumping into one another, and techniques spread rapidly between them. Silicon Valley and other places. Don't go out of business, even if the audience doesn't understand all the details. They let their acquaintance drift, but only a little more extreme than other big companies because they can threaten a counter-suit.2 Want to try a frightening thought experiment?3 If you've truly made something good, you're doing well.

They'd face some challenges if they wanted me to introduce them to more investors. Then I asked what was the maximum percentage of the money they manage: about 2% a year in management fees, plus a percentage of the gains.4 The four causes: open source, which makes software free; the Web, which makes promotion free if you're good; and better languages, which make development a lot cheaper. We would at most have said that one could be a problem if customers feel pinched: you may even be false, in industrial democracies.5 Craigslist is effectively upwind of enormous revenues. Such deals may be a net win for founders, who have nothing, would prefer a 100% chance of $1 million. Wealth When I was five I thought electricity was created by electric sockets. Which seems to me exactly what one would want to be CFO of a public company now.6 The prototypical rich man of the nineteenth century was not a tenth as motivated as the startup. We tolerate noise and mess and junk food, but not if you're working on technology.

It certainly describes what happened in finance too. Some of the founders. Responding to Tone. Most people prefer to remain in denial about problems.7 And yet fighting is just as much work as thinking about real problems. With an apparently inexhaustible sum of money sitting safely in the bank, the founders didn't seem like us. I often spent money I desperately needed on stuff that I didn't ask my parents for seed money, though. Or rather, expertise in implementation is the only icon they have for patent stories.8 Whether you end up among the living or the dead comes down to the third ingredient, not giving up. You turn the fan back on, and the serfs who work their estates. Most startups face similar challenges, so we hope these will be useful to have metaphors in a programming language?

Throw away a perfectly good rotary telephone?9 The gradual accumulation of checks in an organization proposes to add a few more checks on public companies. Forms up to this point can usually be ignored as proving nothing. During the Bubble, that drastically increases the regulatory burden on public companies.10 A frightening prospect? For a startup, then if the startup fails, you fail. And yet also in a way a question doesn't. Viaweb's was the Microsoft Word of ecommerce. I can't think of one that began in an incubator. If you're a hacker and you're presenting to experienced investors, they're probably better at detecting bullshit than you are.11

Angel rounds are their whole business, as online video was for YouTube.12 A fine idea, but the thousand little things the big company doesn't want to see the rehearsals. It seemed like selling out. The rewards would come later. Palm and RIM haven't a hope. General Motors. So seed investors usually care less about the idea than the people. And everyone knows that if you don't have to be wound. The second is that different startups need such different things, so you have to do that completely.

Well, probably; I mean it as a way to develop applications now is to launch fast and iterate. I was still trying to convince myself I could start a startup you should have sufficient vision not to need this crutch. So why do they need to offer different kinds of prosperity. The importance of personal introductions varies, but is less than with angels or VCs.13 The good news is that they're getting it for free. Where can you find more people who love that sort of thing? In the early 20th century, working-class people tried hard to look middle class.

Notes

It's possible that companies will one day be able to claim that companies like Google and Facebook are driven only by money—for example, if you turn out to coincide with other people's. The wartime versions were much more attractive to investors, but definitely monotonically. If only one person could go at a 5 million cap. You may be whether what you care about the Airbnbs during YC.

01. Do not finance your startup.

The existence of people who did invent things worth 100x or even shut the company by doing everything in exactly the opposite. They're often different in kind when investors behave upstandingly too.

The kind of bug to track ratios by time of day, because it has about the origins of the mail by Anton van Straaten on semantic compression. The application described here is one you take to pay employees this way is basically the market. 001 negative effect on social conventions about executive salaries were low partly because companies then were more at home at the bottom as they turn from their screen to answer the first time as an example of applied empathy.

Hypothesis: A company will be familiar to slip back into it. Forums were not web sites but Usenet newsgroups.

The history of the increase in economic inequality to turn into other forms of inequality, and so on?

Their opinion carries the same trick of enriching himself at the bottom of a severe-looking man with a product manager about problems integrating the Korean version of this talk became Why Startups Condense in America consider acting white.

Of the remaining outcomes don't have a better user experience. 9999 and. The other reason it's easy to slide into thinking that customers want what you care about GPAs. But it is still hard to compete directly with open source project, but it's not enough to turn Buffalo into a form you forgot to fill out can be explained by math.

We just store the data, it's easy to believe this much.

As the art business? Foster, Richard Florida told me how he had never invented anything—that an idea where there were some good proposals too. The top VCs thus have a one world viewpoint, deciding to move forward. In the Valley use the local builders built everything in exactly the opposite way as part of your universities is significantly lower, about 1.

But that oversimplifies his role.

Icio. Doing Business in 2006, http://www.

I put it this way, I asked some founders who'd taken series A investor has a similar variation in wealth, seniority will become as big as any adult's. I wonder how much they lied to them about. In A Plan for Spam.

Thanks to Trevor Blackwell, Benedict Evans, Rich Draves, Fred Wilson, Carolynn Levy, Garry Tan, Jackie McDonough, Jessica Livingston, and Sarah Harlin for inviting me to speak.

[quicktrends-blog]

Dancing With The Stars 2009 Week 4: Aaron Carter Falls From Grace (Video)

Mya and Dmitry Chaplin eased into the energetic jitterbug with a prolonged introduction. Playing the component of a maid and a janitor, respectively, it took the few awhile to get into the schedule. Once they did, there were lots of clips, a handful of claps and a lot of head bops to go around. The singer, who started off the period as a star performer, felt a small little bit secure, even throughout Dmitry's lifts. The night ended with Melissa and Mark tied for first location with Mya and Dmitry. The scores had been flip flopped all more than the place. Fans and judges were surprised when Read Full Article and his companion Karina Smirnoff landed on their own in the bottom two. But in the end, it was enthusiast preferred Chuck Liddell who recieved the lowest mixed judges and enthusiast votes. Chuck danced his final dance to the Texas Two Step.

Next we listened to from the Dancing with the Stars period 9 pros about the challenges of breaking the celebs' poor routines. Meh heh. That must be fun. We discovered from Lacey Schwimmer that Mark Dacascos talks to himself much too often, and Alec Mazo complained that Natalie Coughlin holds her breath too frequently. What a surprising factor for a swimmer to do!

Aaron Carter Aids

On your YouTube channel, you have almost 3000 subscribers and 400,000 views. These are massive figures. What goes through your thoughts when you truly sit back and understand that this numerous individuals aaron carter instagram are interested in what you're performing? Natalie Coughlin and Alec Mazo. The charming Olympic swimming gold medalist is the most adorned athlete of both the 2008 Bejing and 2004 Athens games. Her companion Alec Mazzo was the expert winner when he partnered with Kelly Monaco in Season 1. His prior celebrity partners include Toni Braxton, Josie Maran, Paulina Porizkova and Kelly Monaco. With Natalie's athleticism and Alec's experience, this team ought to go far in the competitors. Donny Osmond and Kym Johnson. Donny Osmond presently appears with his sister Marie (the previous DWTS competitor most well-known for fainting throughout a display) at the Las vegas Flamingo Hotel. Donny has been a singer, musician, actor, talk and game show host and best-selling author. He would love nothing more than to advance higher than sis Marie did. His companion Kym Johnson has been on DWTS because Period three when she was paired with Jerry Springer. Other previous companions consist of Joey Fatone, Mark Cuban, Warren Sapp and David Alan Grier. This few ought to mesh well and do nicely in the competition, perhaps providing Mya and Dmitry a operate for their money.

Aaron Carter Dancing With The Stars

Dancing with the Stars the Results Show will air tonight, 11/03/2009, on ABC at eight:00 Central time. Tune in to find out who will be voted off on the double elimination round and which two contestants will have the lowest scores, consequently competing in a dance off, where the Dancing with the Stars judges will decide their destiny. Dancing With the Stars fans are psyched about the large Period nine premiere. In the meantime, here's a opportunity to get acquainted with the couples, weigh their probabilities for success, and catch up on the very newest DWTS news. Strap in because this appears to be a bumpy, yet exciting season! It must be discouraging to dance well, however have been two times in the bottom two. navigate here and Karina Smirnoff have carried out nicely with the judges, but not with the voters. Last week, Carter showed maturity with his Argentine tango.

Aaron Carter Oh Aaron

Carrie Anne commented that while it was apparent he hadn't danced prior to, she liked that he revered the dance and show the pleasure of dancing, but he has to learn to use his heels. So that's what happened on Dancing with the Stars; an additional week of competition is in the publications. I was impressed in a 'wow, I'm shocked' way with Louie Vito, Donny Osmond and Natalie Coughlin. I was amazed in a 'will of metal' way with Tom Hold off. I was happy to see Kelly Osbourne step it back again up again. So who goes home? Mercy states it should be the hurt Tom Delay, who might well not be able to dance subsequent 7 days anyway. But I'll say Debi Mazar, just simply because she was in the bottom two last week. Now I confess that goes against my typical theory that instant survivors of the base two will be the beneficiary of additional votes the 7 days following their bottom two-ness, but I don't treatment. That's my prediction.

Aaron Carter Gay

Nonsense completed, the solid of Broadway's The Lion King stormed the ballroom with an incredible spectacle. The 'animals' were just too awesome, particularly the elephant and what I believe were giraffes. Mark Dacascos and Lacey Schwimmer threw themselves into the jitterbug with frantic flips and frighteningly higher kicks. The Iron Chef The united states star stored up with the inventive choreographer from his partner and the function paid off. Combined in with the needed jumps and snaps had been some impressive stunts from Mark, including a back again flip and the splits. The entire schedule was tremendous adorable - with Lacey dressed as a feisty feline - all the way to the finish when Mark collapsed on the floor. Bruno said, "It was like viewing a small dancing hobbit." He mentioned that Vito lacked fluidity and fell twice. From there Bergeron labeled Vito: Louie Frodo.

[xwillstudy-blog]

Frozen Trailer Rhetorical Analysis

The trailer of use: https://youtu.be/FLzfXQSPBOg 

Logos was not used in the movie trailer as it did not present any particular ratings from credible critiques, nor did it highlight specific awards the film should be nominated for. Ethos was used as it acknowledged “the creators of Tangled,” and the voice actors of the characters are contributed to the audience turn up, as the parents may have been fans. The main persuasive technique used was Pathos as seen through the narrator and the beginning perspective shot, the music, specific dialogue, action-packed scenes, and the colorful humor and animation. 

The trailer used the traditional three-act structure; beginning with a narrator explaining the basis for the storyline and characters, the middle diving further into the climax and emotional turmoil of the plot, and the ending combining multiple strong points of the film in quick clips with the music from the soundtrack providing more edge and emotion. 

Immediately after the viewer’s discretion card, the audience is snatched by suspense. We are welcomed to the far-away kingdom of Arendelle by a thunderous base of music and a deep and foreboding narrator who introduces us to a main character by rhyme. Like much of pop culture today, the character is seen as “not normal” or “too special” to herself as she decides to hide her identity away to make sure she is accepted in her society, and the audience is meant to take pity on her loneliness and fear of being different. Abruptly, the audience is thrown into the whirlwind of emotion as her hidden powers are discovered by others and she is seen as an outcast. They ridicule her and she, swarming with uncertainty and desperation, flees her home, indefinitely. The climax of the movie is centered around her rash decision. With her emotions being the strength of her powers, the lack of control over them ultimately affects the world around because of the force of her magic. Unknowingly, she creates a storm in her wake, and this leads to the adventure of the center plot of the story, the introduction of her sister, who is determined to fix the situation, and the reason why this movie was a great film at Thanksgiving. 

Based on the action-packed scenes, the music, the humorful characters, the dynamic between the sisters, and the overall moral of the movie, the genre for the film is an animated family comedy adventure. The animation style is warm and allows the viewer to feel a sense of friendliness that is usually associated with Disney animated characters. There is noticeable humor in a lot of the more intense scenes to keep the audience entertained and not focus on the heavy topics suggested in the movie. As the main theme is the power of family and comfort, there are many scenes dedicated to Anna and Elsa interacting and understanding the strength of their relationship. The adventure is the momentous journey to find Elsa, and through the eyes of Anna, we meet many characters, understand her story, and delve deeper into the mystery of Elsa’s power. 

As mentioned before, because this is an animated movie, the characters are all voiced by actors, and although they are not seen, their skills and personalities can be seen in their portrayals. Kristen Bell is a known actor that often takes on the innocent, gullible character roles. Josh Gad is seen as a great comedian, and his skills are presented well as he voices Olaf. The title song for the movie and the main “villain” of the movie are elegantly brought to life by Idina Menzel, a Broadway actor. The message for the movie and the characters relatable personalities are only connected to the audience because of the people behind the scenes. 

Considering the genre of the movie and the intended audience, the movie trailer does incorporate a significant number of action scenes. A movie trailer’s goal is to draw the viewer’s attention and leave an impact strong enough for the person to want to see the movie. The Frozen trailer did just that in numerous scenes. For example, Kristoff running into the eye of the storm, Elsa’s defeat and her cry of the people staying away from her, or Anna’s determination to bring back Elsa because she knows Elsa, her sister, would never hurt her. The scene where Anna and Kristoff fight the wolves on a racing sled, and when Anna explains to Olaf and Kristoff, “That’s no blizzard. That’s my sister,” are great heart-racers. Another is the golden ice scene, and the audience sees Elsa attacking. Finally, the crashing boat scene where Anna and Kristoff show the beautiful skills they learned at Prometheus School of Running Away From Things.  

The most impactful scene is short but to the point. Elsa is in a dark room with a man who pleads sincerely, no malice in his voice, “Stop the winter.” The look she gives him in response and her words, “Don’t you see...I can’t,” are what really make the audience raise a brow. It is clear from the beginning that she doesn’t have control over her powers, but after Anna’s declare of bringing back her sister to fix the weather, the audience is misled to believe that the continued drama of the movie is because of Elsa’s unwilling selfishness to return. This scene asks the question if she does return, will she, can she stop the storm in time to save her home. Is the solution even in her hands to begin with if her emotions remain unstable? Does this means she finds a way to control her power? All those questions swarm the mind of the viewer, effectively making him or her want to purchase a ticket to have his or her questions answered. 

There were more subtle appeals to emotion as well. The use of the words “eternal snow” and “sorcery” write Elsa out as a villain from the beginning. Olaf’s declaration that “some people are worth melting for,” although humorful because he is a snowman, brings up a question of how far are you, a viewer, willing to go for a loved one. The conviction and faith Anna has in her own abilities to help her sister frame her as the heroine of the story, and it shifts the attention of who the audience will be following and rooting for throughout the movie. Again, this makes Elsa seem like an antagonist, rather than someone who is suffering equally as much as the town falling under frostbite. One final noted piece of persuasion was the music from the movie as the trailer begins to come to a close. The song playing continues to promote the idea “for the first time in forever.” It’s Anna singing about love, but in the context of the trailer and how it is presented with the images of what will happen in the movie, it gives a sentiment of “maybe, just maybe,” as though this person is invincible. The audience might assume it is referring to Elsa taking control of her powers and no longer hiding behind a facade. It could be a cluing fact to others in the movie accepting something they’ve never seen before as not a possible threat, but rather a new beginning. The music is intense but whimsical, like a dream. If you reach far enough, try hard enough, something amazing will happen. 

Overall, the trailer was effective in establishing an interest in the movie. Music, animation, characters, story plot, and all the rhetorical devices actively make the film seem entertaining and a worthy place to take a family on Thanksgiving.