#and i will be honest guys. really not that many interesting movies on earth

[darcyolsson]

moving back in with my parents officially </3 feels like the right decision bc i'm basically constantly here and i don't think my health is going to improve enough to be able to live on my own full-time anytime soon but still weird because it feels like a very final decision (and in this housing market it sort of is lol). i'm strangely not-upset about it but maybe that will come in a few days, or maybe i am finally so grown and mature my emotions can fully be rationalised away like i've always dreamed of. who knows

[sophieinwonderland]

The Plurality of... Blue Beetle! (Movie)

Plurality: A state of multiple self-conscious agents, or "headmates," sharing a single body.

Oh, this one is going to be a little rough!

If you know the Blue Beetle, it shouldn't be surprising that they're a plural character. We've never read Blue Beetle comics, but my host was pretty familiar with Blue Beetle from Young Justice, where Jaime had a pretty big role in season 2.

I went into Blue Beetle with high hopes and, if I'm honest, ended up a little disappointed.

But before we can get into why I felt that way, let's first talk about their plurality!

Spoilers for the Blue Beetle movie ahead:

Jaime Reyes and Khaji-Da as plural characters

In the movie, Khaji-Da, often referred to as just "The Scarab," is a world-destroying weapon that found its way to Earth.

It bonds with Jaime Reyes when he touches it, fusing to his flesh and turning him into the Blue Beetle in an elaborate body horror sequence.

Khaji is established as a sentient being, and is able to communicate with Jaime mentally. Now, it's not actually clear if Jaime can communicate back mentally like many real headmates can. Every time he talks to Khaji is aloud, which I think was also how it was in Young Justice too. It's possible that while the Scarab can send messages to Jaime's mind, it can't read it. But that seems kind of a strange limitation when the movie shows it gaining access to a person's full memory after connecting with them, and is at least able to figure out Jaime's name through their connection.

It would seem weird to me if talking out loud to Khaji was necessary to be heard, but that's how the movie presents it. (This could be a comfort thing too. As part of a plural system, I'll admit we'll often talk out loud through the body when nobody is around to hear us. Words can be clearer than pure thoughts.)

A small part of the movie is dedicated to the two learning to get along, with there being some conflict around Khaji wanting to kill an enemy, and Jaime saying that they aren't killers.

This leads to an important moment later in the movie where Jaime is enraged, believing he's lost multiple family members, and is going to execute the villain.

The word "execute" is important here, because while other good characters have no problem killing (their nana took great joy in it, in fact), it's always against active combatants. Not someone who was disarmed. The movie doesn't make this distinction directly, but I think it's an important one.

It's one thing for superheroes to kill to protect themselves and others, most heroes are willing to these days, but it's another for them to kill someone who isn't actively a threat anymore.

Kahji takes just enough control to hold Jaime back from doing something he would regret, repeating back that they aren't killers, showing itself capable of learning from Jaime.

It's a cool moment, and I appreciated this little character growth.

Despite Khaji being sentient and capable of learning though...

Khaji isn't treated as a character

This was my disappointment with the movie.

Blue Beetle should have been more of a plural story, but Khaji is hardly ever treated as a character by the narrative or the other characters.

Yes, Khaji gets some funny lines here and there, ("Host overreacting" being a favorite of mine) but doesn't seem to have any real motivation, interests or really anything going for it.

And what's worse... there's not even a REAL CONVERSATION between Jaime and Khaji. Even when they really should be discussing things.

Like...

The Rooftop Scene

At one point, the bad guys have found Jaime's family. Jaime tried to activate his powers. They don't work. What's a Beetle to do?

Well, Jaime decided that since the Scarab will try to protect him, the best bet will be to JUMP OFF THE ROOF!

And while this is sorta well-reasoned, I found myself internally screaming this entire to time to just ask it to change.

Like, Khaji can talk. They literally said in the scene right before that Khaji was sentient.

And while jumping off the roof made for a dramatic scene, it eliminated what could have been a great moment with Jaime explaining the importance of his family and his need to protect them to Khaji.

It forced Khaji to help, when Kahji may have been perfectly willing to help if Jaime just talked to it, instead of trying to make Kahji to do what he wanted.

And you might wonder, does Khaji get offended at Jaime risking his life to force Khaji into doing what he wants? I wonder that too, because this moment is never mentioned again in the movie.

For a film so much about family, Khaji is never part of that

Blue Beetle is a movie centered around family.

It's about Jaime's relationship with his family who is very close, almost suffocating but in a good way. Jaime is driven to protect and fight for his family at every turn, and his family will do anything to protect him.

This is contrasted with the Kord family which is dysfunctional and broken, and Carapax who lost his family and sees familial love as a weakness.

These themes are intricately woven into the narrative.

So it is so disappointing how utterly divorced from that theme Khaji-Da ended up.

There is a great story to be told about this extraterrestrial machine that crashes to Earth, never having a family of its own or a concept of what family means, only to be bonded to Jaime and go from being treated as something to be gotten rid of to be welcomed as another member of Jaime's family.

That would be really cool. And they seemed willing to tell a similar story with Jenny Kord, being brought into the family group hug after everything was over.

But Khaji is treated less like a valued member of the family and more like an accessory. And even when Jaime fully bonds with Khaji, it's not about agreeing to integrate and share a mind so much as it's accepting his heroic destiny.

This feels like a huge missed opportunity for the type of story they were telling, and a betrayal of that story's central themes.

Jaime's Mother Addressing Khaji

This is the one exception where a character who wasn't Jaime actually treated Khaji as a person.

She first asks what Khaji's name was. Then says...

I know you can hear me, Khaji-Da. I want you both to get it together. Find your strength, mijito. Use the pain we’re feeling and turn it into power. I want you to go back in there… And kick their asses!

I love this so much. I love the mother's character for thinking to acknowledge Khaji as its own person and talk to it directly, giving her pep talk to both of them at once.

It's a fantastic scene. An incredible moment.

But it's also still treating Khaji as a weapon. The one and only time a character who isn't Jaime talks to Khaji, it's telling Khaji to go fight people.

I'm glad to have gotten this. But I feel they could have done so much more.

Khaji's feelings are never explored

We're told that the Scarab is a planet-destroying super weapon. How does Khaji feel about that?

We don't know. It never comes up.

Does Khaji have memories of worlds it's destroyed?

Does it know why it was created or who created it?

If it doesn't know those things, does the lack of awareness scare it?

Can it feel fear, and if Jaime asked if it was scared, would it understand the emotion?

The fact that these things weren't explored at all leaves me with one important and sad conclusion.

The writers weren't interested in writing a plural character

Blue Beetle's plurality is an afterthought.

The Scarab was sentient and Blue Beetle would use "we" pronouns occasionally because Khaji is sentient in the comics. But the relationship between the two wasn't a priority of the writers.

And in my opinion, the film suffered for it. Not just from a plural perspective but from a writing perspective. The film would have been so much better had Khaji been treated more like a character rather than just a weapon and plot device.

Khaji stopping Jaime from killing needed more build-up, and Khaji needed and deserved to be better integrated with the story's central themes of family.

Conclusion

All in all, I feel that Blue Beetle was a good movie. But I also feel its treatment of Khaji held it back from being a great movie.

I hope I don't come off as too hard on this particular movie. There's a lot of media that, when less explicitly plural, I might be more forgiving of. I once wrote a whole post about why I thought Kronk was plural based on his angel and demon Kronks who never get any sort of character arcs. But those aren't intended to be sentient people by the writers. Instead, they're plural by happenstance, simply by being more developed than other shoulder angels and demons in cartoons.

Meanwhile, Khaji Da is supposed to be a full character, I went in expecting a lot, and I feel Khaji just didn't live up to its potential in this movie.

I look forward to seeing what DC does with the character in the future, and if Khaji can get more development.

And I'm sad that, given the box office, it's probably not going to get a sequel of its own. I'm sure the planned Reach story would have given Khaji some much needed character development.

For more of me rambling about the plurality of DC superheroes, see: The Plurality of... Batman (Failsafe).

[shin-meddlesome-hero]

Gundam Journey Recap 2024

Last year’s recap: Here

Another year of Gundam Brainrot. This time I watched more stuff because I wasn’t watching Zeta for 8+ months like last year. Here’s a very summarized opinion on everything I watched. Once again, take my ratings with a grain of salt.

Zeta Gundam: It took me an eternity to watch and I still want to write some essays about it. I get the feeling that I need to rewatch it in order to completely understand it. I’ll be honest, it was a pain to watch but it’s the UC Gundam series I’m still thinking about long after I finished it. I love Kamille, and Char/Quattro elicits in me the same reaction that many of you guys have towards Reigen Arataka. You’re gonna hate me, but that ending was amazing, one of the greatest payoffs I’ve ever seen. On the other hand, it was an absolute mess with women (a very interesting mess but sometimes it got annoying).

Enough amount of Char. 4/5

Gundam ZZ: I get why some people don’t like it, still it was a very fun ride. Unlike Zeta, I was able to watch this in a month and a half (look, I’m very slow at watching series, so this is a record time for me). It was like an 80’s Saturday morning cartoon so it gave me a lot of nostalgia. The first part was weak, but once they get to Earth and the opening song changes from “Anime Ja Nai “ to “Silent Voice”, it gets really good. I also enjoyed most of the characters.

Char only appears on the opening. 3/5

Char’s Counterattack: Guys, this movie was so hyped for me that once I finally, finally, FINALLY got to watch it I… didn’t felt much. I mean, it’s ok, I guess, and Char and Amuro are very Divorced. I don’t know, I expected a bigger catharsis, or to finally understand Char or get obsessed with him and Amuro and it just didn’t happen for me. It’s good, but I didn’t feel the same things I felt with G-Witch or with the Zeta finale.

Too much Char. By the end of the film I wished that he was punched more. 3.5/5

Hathaway’s Flash: Somehow I enjoyed it more than CCA, and it really got me interested in Tomino’s writing. Visually, it's good, and the “char clone” from the movie is fascinating. I’m not telling you more, only that this is the aftermath of Char and Amuro’s actions in CCA. Also the animation and character design is top notch. Hope that we get a second movie soon.

Excellent Char successor. 3.5/5

Gundam F91: It’s a total disaster but it’s very entertaining to watch. The first half of the movie was really good, but then everything happens so much, we have a character change sides and die in less than 10 minutes, and there’s a lot of details that aren’t explained. The protagonist is bland and no one gets too much character development. It’s kind of my guilty pleasure, because it’s obvious that they tried to cram a whole series in a 2 hour movie and they failed, but the try was worth it. Makes me wonder what It’ll be like if the story had reached its full potential. The character and mechanical design, along with the music and animation is pretty good. I would recommend it only for that.

There’s a bad Darth Vader knockoff and the actual Char clone looks like a pirate. 3/5

Gundam G no Reconguista Movies: I watched these when I got sick during summer vacation. They’re a wild ride, just like F91, everything is happening so much all the time and there’s barely an explanation. It’s a very curious experience because Tomino has A Vision he has to convey and he doesn’t mind if the plot and characters are sacrificed to achieve it. The characters had a cute design but there was not much to them, it was cartoony like ZZ, but somehow ZZ had more character depth, so it’s not exactly what I was expecting, but it was fun.

Hated the Char clone, however. 3/5

(At this point I became more obsessed with Tomino than with Gundam, I didn’t really trust that anyone else could write a good UC Gundam story besides him -I’m conflicted about The Origin-.)

Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance: Looked like a stereotypical American military story at first, but I liked where the plot went. I still think it’s funny that the protagonist is your typical soldier who lost their spouse, but this time it’s a woman. Who’s also a mom!!! (Yes, this is a very important plot point. Unrelated but it left me once again daydreaming about a story where Elnora was a Gundam protagonist). The ending fails if you’ve watched ZZ. It’s not bad, but you can skip this one.

No Char :( 3/5

Encounters in Space: One night I wanted to treat myself, and went straight to the 3rd Gundam compilation movie. This is my favorite arc from 0079 and the adaptation didn’t disappoint. Completely recommend it.

Right amount of Char. 5/5

Gundam ALC Encounter: An animation short that was projected on the walls of a shopping mall near the Nu Gundam statue in Fukuoka. Basically Lala Suneh reincarnates and becomes a lesbian tiktoker while Amuro and Char punch each other.

I didn’t like Char’s hair here but Lala has a girlfriend. 10/5

Gundam 0080/War in the Pocket: Started like your typical late 80’s kiddie adventure movie (it even sounds like one), ended like a Shakespearean tragedy. I really liked that the conflict wasn’t that big. It’s a more intimate kind of story, and the anti war message is effective. On the other hand, it’s hard for me to believe that the Side authorities just left a Zaku lying there for days, but whatever. Best Christmas special.

No Char but we don’t need him. 4/5

Incomplete series:

Gundam Build Fighters season 1: (first 10 episodes) Looks like a very fun shonen that reminds me heavily of Angelic Layer. However it sucks when it comes to female characters which is unforgivable for me considering that so far Gundam is one of the few shonen/seinen franchises that’s actually pretty decent about women (yeah, even Zeta). I’ll watch the rest once I’m able to turn my brain off for a few hours.

SD Gundam shorts: Some of them are pretty funny but they also suck when it comes to the female characters. I liked the shorts where the mobile suits are in the sengoku era.

Turn A Gundam: (25 episodes so far) Gave it another try after watching the first UC Gundam series and I absolutely love it. The series is super chill, it’s kind of my confort show right now. I really like Loran. So far it looks like it’ll be a 5/5.

Gunplas built this year:

G-Witch Kits: Full Mechanics Aerial, SDEX Aerial, SDW Heroes Aerial Onmitsu (I like Aerial), Suletta Mercury, Gundam Calibarn.

UC Kits: SDEX Nu Gundam (currently painting it), Gundam MK II, Semi-transparent HaroPla.

It’s still a pretty fun hobby. I found out that the SD kits are perfect to begin practicing painting and customization, so I’ll be trying that out. I also want to try out some RG and MG kits if I’m able to buy them.

TBR List:

So I haven’t read much of the Gundam manga and novels yet. But there’s stuff I really want to read:

*Beltorchika’s Children *The Hathaway Novels *Crossbone Gundam *Vanadis Heart *That one G-Witch spin-off *Char’s Daily Life (I would like to read the whole thing this time).

If you have more recs let me know. :)

[thorarms]

Thor is banished, stripped of his powers, and forced to live in Midgard for many years. What kind of life do you think Thor would built on Earth?

Aaaaaa this is such a fun question!!

Short answer is im not so sure lol

Longer more rambling answer full of personal headcanons under the cut :)

I mean, i presume this is after loki visits thor on earth and lies to him about frigga forbidding him from returning. Im also working under the assumption that thor doesnt actually hear from anyone from his old life again, because adding them in doesnt really feel in the spirit of the question imo.

Short term we know from canon that he feels directionless and initially focuses his energy on helping jane with her research. Thors a smart guy, and could probably help jane fill in some of the blanks in her research before she has observational evidence of like, asgard existing.

I think initally he would crash with jane, and would look into getting his own place, probably in new mexico because he's started making connections there.

Personally i headcanon that thors lightning powers manifest as a sixth sense, in that he would be able to sense electricity around him (kind of like how some sharks do with ampullae of lorenzini). So i reckon that losing that specific sense would initally be really hard to adjust to, but he would adjust.

*note. This is about where i searched "what is there to do in new mexico" because all i know about the place are it's in a thor movie and the roswell thing happened there also i kinda wanna go hiking and stargazing in new mexico now*

Honestly i think that, early on at least, thor would spend a lot of free time stargazing, partly from homesickness and partly bc apparently new mexicos an amazing place to do that. I think he would spend most nights looking up at the stars wondering if his loved ones are looking down at him.

He would probably initally make ends meet doing some sort of manual labour, maybe something with horses. He might not have asgardian strength anymore but hes still a pretty big guy. He could probably still tame a wild horse if he really wanted to (i dont know how strong you have to be to do that).

In terms of like, long term life goals, im not entirely sure. Thors entire life up to this point was about assuming the throne, and now he has to not only let the past 1000 years ago, he has to build an entire new life from the ground up. I think what would be especially challenging is the lack of time (assuming he's been turned mortal and only has like 50-60 years left). I think that realisation would force him to look inwards and figure out what he really wants in life.

To me, thor at his core is a good man. He likes helping people. He needs that sense of purpose. I think he would end up building quite a charitable life for himself. Maybe he moves, maybe he stays in new mexico, truly i have no idea. But i think at the core of his life is the need to do honest, meaningful work that benefits people.

I hope you find this an interesting answer! It feels like such a ramble of ideas (truly my brain is not working today i cant organise my ideas for shit rn). This was really fun to think about i spent a lot of time in work thinking about this, tysm for asking this!! :)

[minthandsoap]

The Interview

1250 words

Interviewer: Welcome to or welcome back to The Late Night at Godolkin! Tonight, we've got some heavy hitters in the studio - none other than the power couple themselves, Jordan Li and Marie Moreau! Ranked number two and seven, respectively, these two aren't just powerful, they're practically campus royalty! So, Jordan, Marie, how does it feel being our very own God U's favorite couple? Pressure much?

Jordan: (chuckles) Favorite? Not surprising, we’re fucking amazing, so nah, it’s no pressure.

Interviewer: (laughs) How modest! The whole campus has been talking about you guys. So, spill- tell us how two souls like yourselves, amidst the chaos of campus life while being superheroes, found their way to...well, this? Tell us your origin story!

Marie: (blushing) Oh, you know, we didn’t exactly get along at first. First time I met them, we didn’t immediately… click.

Jordan: (chuckles) Yeah, she stormed into my office, demanded to speak to Professor Brink, and insulted my intelligence all within the same breath. Not before flirting with me first.

Marie: (nudges Jordan playfully) That is not what fucking happened and you know it, Jordan.

Jordan: (raises an eyebrow at Marie) Yeah? What was inaccurate about what I said then?

Marie: (rolls her eyes) Shut up, oh my god. They (Jordan had) rejected me from Intro to Crimefighting so, of course, I had to come in hot. But it ended up working out for us anyway.

Jordan: Yeah

Interviewer: (teasingly) Great how that worked out for you guys! So, who made the first move? I’m feeling like it was Jordan? Tell me it was Jordan (laughs)

Marie: (laughs softly) Actually, it was me. We were “studying” (air quotes) in Jordan’s room and (we) decided to take a smoke break. Well, Jordan did and they had asked me if I wanted a hit (of weed) as well. Anyways, like an hour and a half later, I’m high off my fucking mind and I kind of just turn to Jordan and ask “I think you’re pretty, cool, and fun! Wanna go out?”

Interviewer: Awwww oh my god, that’s so cute! And Jordan you probably immediately said yes right?

Jordan: (smiling) Nah. I told Marie to wait a few hours after she came the fuck back to Earth to ask me that again. She (Marie) didn’t remember asking me that. Kinda had geared her to ask me again. Definitely said yes the second time though.

Interviewer: So I have to ask: there are still many on this campus and to be honest the entire country who find both of your respective powers to be… interesting. What do you have to say to that?

Jordan: (raises brow) If by interesting you mean fucking weird? I mean it does suck. I wish that people could see me as me and not some freak show you know? But in the meantime, they can all just suck my gigantic *bleep* and my *bleep* cause I could give less of a *bleeping bleep* and *bleep*everyone who wants to *bleeping* say *bleeping* otherwise.

Interviewer: (laughs nervously)  Wow… you are passionate about this topic-

Jordan: True

Interviewer: —so Marie, what’s your response?

Marie: (smiles) Yeah, I agree with Jordan. I don’t particularly like the fact that my powers are seen as unhygienic and whatnot but it is what it is. So yeah, everyone can go suck it!

Jordan: You’re so cute babe.

Marie: (smiling) I know!

Interviewer: I love it! So, shifting topics slightly, what do you guys like to do for fun then?

Marie: (looks over to Jordan) What do we like to do for fun? Uhhh… what do we like to do for fun Jordan?

Jordan: We like to fuck. Hard.

Marie: (slaps Jordan’s arm) Jordan! Be serious right now.

Jordan: (shrugs) I am serious though.

Interviewer: We’ll just cut that out and try that question again-

**************

Interviewer: So what do you guys do in your free time? Movies? Dinners?

Jordan: I am being silenced so no comment. 

Marie: Yeah we have movie nights and stuff. We also train a lot together! Jordan’s been really helpful to me with that (rubs Jordan’s thigh)

Jordan: We also like to fu-

Interviewer: Moving on! So, asking some stupid questions that I got from Google-

Jordan: (interrupts) Why are you asking us stupid questions?

Marie: Jordan my god! I will hurt you, stop it!

Jordan: Oh baby, please do.

Interviewer: (nervously chuckles) Anyways, the question is: “If you had to be shipwrecked on a deserted island, but all your human needs—such as food and water—were taken care of, what two items would you want to have with you?”

Marie: Probably my knife and my journal. 

Interviewer: Yeah? Why those two things specifically?

Marie: Well, my knife goes with me everywhere, if I need blood, it's (the knife) the fastest way for me to get access to it. And I’d bring my journal so I can document everything. Keep track of how many days have passed, my thoughts, my feelings etcetera. 

Interviewer: Makes sense! Jordan, how about you?

Jordan: Easy. My phone, earbuds, and Marie.

Marie: (raises an eyebrow at Jordan) First of all; the question said two items not three and second of all, I am not an item.

Jordan: (grins) Didn’t say you were babe

Marie: But you implied it when you grouped me in your answer… with two other items Jordan.

Jordan: (grins fucking wider) No you did, just now. You referred to yourself as an item, not I (shrugs)

Marie: Jordan I will seriously fucking hurt you.

Jordan: (leans to Marie) Again, please fucking do.

Marie: Weirdo.

Jordan: I don’t deny.

Interviewer: Okayyyy so Jordan, why those three—sorry two items then?

Jordan: Bringing my phone so I can try my hardest to get the fuck off the island. My earbuds just in case I can’t escape, I can at least listen to good music while I suffer in my personal hell. And Marie so we can fu-

Interviewer: (shakes head frantically) Alright, I’m just going to move on to my last question then. (chuckles extremely nervously) How would you describe your partnership?

Marie: I’d say we're each other's anchors, a reality check when things get too…crazy. Jordan pulls me back from the edge, and I help them stay grounded. We challenge each other, support each other, and most importantly, have each other's backs.

Jordan: Definitely. Marie inspires me to be better, to never lose sight of what's truly important. And she's got this incredibly unwavering faith in me, even when I doubt myself. I couldn’t ask for anything better than that to be honest. I love her (Marie)

Marie: (smiles) And I love you!

Interviewer: Beautiful note to end with! Thank you, Marie and Jordan, for sharing your beautiful story. 

Jordan: Thanks for having us Jayda

Interviewer: (eye slightly twitches) It’s Justine.

Jordan: Oops

Justine: And thank you, to my listeners, for tuning in tonight and every Friday for The Late Night at Godolkin. Next week, we’ll have our very own Dean Shetty gracing our podcast and sharing her insights. Goodnight everyone, see you next week!

AND CUT 

******************

The air crackled with a sudden awkwardness in the podcast booth. Justine, the producer, dropped her headphones with a huff, the silence deafening after their segment. "Look, guys," she said, crossing her arms, "I know I said you could loosen up a bit, cuss here and there, but I didn’t mean in every damn sentence. This is a professional podcast.

"Well, shit, Justine," they drawled, "should've fucking clarified that from the start then-"

“What they mean,” Marie interrupted quickly, giving Jordan a pointed look, “is that we’re sorry and it won’t happen again Jasmine.” Marie finished flashing a warm smile in her direction.

“It’s Justine!” Justine snarled before storming off.

“Whoops.”

[pumpkinsy0]

twttin characters (and rusty james from rumble fish lol) in my early 2000s au :3

cathy: im gonna tell yall RIGHT now, she goes by “cat”, i cannot explain it to u but she just DOES to me, nobody rlly knows her as cathy shes just,,,cat, shes that kind of girl that always has a camera in her hand just taking pics of whatever and she posts it on flickr, she loves photography, shes always wearing those milkmaid tops or big sweaters with bell bottom jeans, and her hair is short, think of those teen movies w that “down to earth pretty chill w her walkman” girl and thats her, she was prolly watching those mlp tribute vids on her family computer, she thinks its cute, she loves collecting pins n stuff, she loves friends (the show)

m&m: gonna b so honest w u, m&m just seems so timeless to me i dont rlly have much to say for him bc i think he’d act the exact same way no matter the time period, BUT some things i can add is that he really likes the teenage mutant ninja turtles and loves comic books so theres that, hes a bit of a collector of just about anything and so cathy takes pics of his room a lot and post it on flickr so theres that, he’d be in the family computer quite a bit and since in the early 2000s barely any adult knew how to use the computer he was just on there goin crazy in chatrooms on some odd ass forum talking about figurines or somethin, god bless his soul, always has cathy’s walkman and gameboy she never gets to use them but its ok, she lives her bro, he loves pokemon and has a card collection in his binder

mark: he makes fun of ppl who use the internet (in the early 2000s the internet was seen as a more of a niche interest and it was associated with like geeks/nerds n stuff) and video games (cough cough m&m cough), literally all he watches is adult swim if not, he loves wwe, that guy whos always in a skatepark despite never??? skating???? he just has a bit of friends there and hangs out w them a but, BUT he does have a bike he uses as transportation and can actually do some pretty cool tricks like my god i cant even hate, has 1 snapback hat he wears religiously, has a bunch of posters of half naked women on his side of the room

bryon: he has so many things from abercrombie and fitch, hollister, american eagle, hes THAT guy good lord, he would be a bit into basketball, i could see that, watches myv just to be judgey but also bc pretty girls on tv, watches jackass w mark, has a playstation 1 he just NEVER touches, has THE SMALLEST interest in video games like halo and grand theft auto, action movies are his thing, if u wanna see an action movie hes the guy

rusty james: thinks hes sooooo grown for watching adult swim, he and “thinks its for losers”, hes that guy thats into bmx sports, steals a ton of magazines on it, HATES boy bands but is like “if i was in one the girls would LOVE me”

[adorerinn]

Hi Rin! Can I request a matchup please! 🤍 I'll go by the emoji: 🍈 (honeydew!)

Pronouns, paired with guy or girl- she/her, paired with a man!

Traits in a partner- mature , responsible, independent, hard-working, loving, caring, and kind with a soft and funny side! >_< Someone with good communication!

Description of self- I'm sociable, outgoing, and can be loud 🤪 I like to laugh a lot! But most times I'm very down-to-earth, honest, self-sufficient, empathetic, nurturing, and resilient! I'm always looking for ways to improve myself, understand myself and others, and help anyone I can <3 I'm also a great communicator ^~^

Interests- Sports! I play tennis, pickleball, and basketball, alongside going to the gym regularly! I've also been watching every US and Japan Olympic volleyball game! I love arts and crafts- decorating photos, customizing picture frames, making keychains, and DIYing party favors!

Love languages- Words of affirmation for both giving and receiving! Quality time is a strong second!

Dream date- I'd like to do something active first like, play pickleball or go to the arcade! Then we could get some food to replenish! ᕙ⁠(⁠＠⁠°⁠▽⁠°⁠＠⁠)⁠ᕗ Afterwards, we'd take a walk around a park to digest while we continue talking and getting to know each other on a deeper level <3

Some fun extras 🤭-

I'm the life of the party! Definitely got some Bokuto energy radiating off of me~

I'm psychic! Obscure things I think of often happen soon afterwards! 🔮

I'm really good at claw machines!!! A good amount of my winnings only take a couple of tries :3

I really like watching movies!! White Chicks is my favorite hehehe ^-^

I'm a fan of Bachelor Nation hehehe 🤭

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! >.< I recently came across your blog and I've been really enjoying your writings! Keep up the great work, Rin! 🥹🤍

I match you with Daichi Sawamura!

✧ Daichi is the man for you he is superr responsible! (I mean he basically took care of a whole team)

✧ he is also independent and works very hard and tries hard to earn the things he wants

✧ he is super duper kind and caring with you and acts like you're the most fragile thing and treats you with so much love and care in the world

✧ probably has that stupid dad humor but is probably actually funny (you know what I mean?)

✧ he will always communicate if there's something he doesn't like or if he notices something off with you he will always be there and try to figure how to work things out

✧ loves your sociable and outgoing personality. he just likes it when people can be the life of the party

✧ admires how you're always trying to improve and thinks it's the best thing you could do

✧ also admires how you're willing to help people out if they're ever struggling he just thinks it's super kind of you since not many people will go out of their way to do that

✧ would enjoy playing pickleball with you (I feel like if he didn't play volleyball he would play pickleball I JUST KNOW IT) would probably let you win a couple times too

✧ probably also goes to the gym with you. he just likes being able to spend time with you it doesn't matter what you guys are doing

✧ would watch volleyball games with you whenever you wanna watch them (he probably yells at the TV he just seems like that type of guy)

✧ plays pickleball with you for as long as you want and won't stop until you get tired

✧ would take you to one of the nicest parks he found and you both would stroll there for a good few hours while just talking about who knows what

✧ HATES how good you are at claw machines (he always loses at them)

✧ enjoys watching white chicks with you. he just thinks it's the funniest thing ever

✧ overall I think you and Daichi would be the perfect match for each other and would get along very greatly!

hi anon!! I hope you enjoyed your request I had so much fun writing this one. feel free to request again!

[destinyc1020]

https://www.vox.com/culture/355242/hollywood-it-boy-diversity-problem-barry-keoghan-jacob-elordi-jeremy-allen-white

Interesting article, I wish me MOC were spotlighted lik a lot of these "white boys of the months"who can do 1 project and suddently are everywhere.

This was a VERY well-written article Anon! I enjoyed reading it! 😊 It really gave food for thought.

First off, I just wanna say that the Michael B. Jordan erasure is just.... 🥴 Seriously?? How are you all gonna act like this man doesn't exist??

Anyway...

I really do think that there are a lot of factors that play into 1) why there are so few "movie stars" of the younger generation these days, and 2) why there's such a lack of diversity.

Chiiiiiile....You're gonna need to take a seat, cuz I's got THANGS to say on this one! It's gonna be a long one lol. 🤣

RE: Movie Stars....

I think the reasons are:

We are living in a different age from the 90s. People need to keep in mind that "the 90s" was at least 30 years ago. Things have changed. People have changed.

The invention of social media, more online "presence" (something that wasn't around much in the 90s) has also played a role

Actors these days aren't living in the age of Tom Cruise, Will Smith, Denzel, or even Leo DiCaprio were when they were making it big. I don't think you can even really compare them.

I also feel like Hollywood is more so about IPs and less about nurturing movie stars. We're living in a post-Marvel world, and for a LONG time it's been the IP (not the ACTOR) that is selling these films. I blame Hollywood for placing emphasis on nostalgic films, "reboots", and IP-heavy films in order to guarantee a sure success at the box office, as opposed to nurturing actors to become movie stars. Tom Cruise didn't become an A-List movie star overnight. None of those A-list actors did. I think people tend to forget that! You have to give many of these younger actors some TIME.

Did I mention social media?? To me, social media has sort of taken away the aspect of "mystery" and "unattainability" that a lot of movie stars and A-List actors had back in the day. Now days, fans have their favorite actors at their fingertips, and they can even comment and interact w/them on social media. That was NOT a thing 30 years ago.

Being more "relatable" to fans is more of a thing than it was 30 years ago. If you're so "relatable" to fans now days, fans start to see you on THEIR level, and it might be hard to view you as a "movie star" when you're so down to earth and "relatable" Lol. 😅 Idk...just saying. You almost need an air of snobbery lol. 😅

RE: Lack of Diversity....

First of all, let's be honest, Hollywood has ALWAYS struggled in this department. 😒🙄 The article is right though, for a while there, it seemed like HW was making a turn for the better.... With films coming out staring actors like Mahershala Ali, Daniel Kaluuya, Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, etc.

What happened?? Well, let's see shall we? Umm...First of all, Chadwick Boseman DIED. 😭 I actually saw him getting to the level of Will Smith if he had stayed alive, because he was just so darn likeable, and a VERY good actor.

Ummm....Jonathan Majors had assault charges... 😭 Yet ANOTHER talented Black male actor who was starting to get a lot of hype and attention, and was even starting to gain the label from women as "hot", even though he has a Butter Face lol. 😅🤣 But charges of assaulting your gf don't seem to go over too well when you're trying to make it "big" in Hollywood. 🥴

Rege Jean Page was another one who was labeled HOT (and he IS!) after Bridgerton aired. I was excited for him too, but then, his career seemed to take a turn for the worst after he no longer was on "Bridgerton". He still has a chance though to turn this around lol... But yea....

Kelvin Harrison Jr. is super talented imo, but I feel like he needs some more bigger films (he wasn't really the main focus in "Elvis" ) under his belt in order to get more girls to notice him. I remember that he was supposed to be in Euphoria (which could have gotten him more exposure) but then he dropped out all of a sudden (maybe due to filming conflicts w/another project).

My pick to lead the way is still Michael B. Jordan. Women LOVE him! 🥰 He's hot as idk what, he's charming, and he's been in large films, and even made his directorial debut with "Creed 3"! 😁

Daniel Kaluuya is also a great pick as well... But do women really "sweat" him like that?? Idk lol... 👀 You kinda need someone who has some sex appeal. I'm sorry, but when I see Daniel, I see a good actor, but for some reason, he kinda lacks that "something" that makes me say: "Ooooo yeaaa.... I wanna get with him for one night" lol. 🤣 I'm sorry, but that is probably what is lacking lol....for ME anyway. He's a good actor though!

Another thing...Do young black women go ga-ga over actors like that? Serious question. 🤔 I always feel like as a community, we as black women tend to go HAM for the musical artists. I remember growing up I always felt like I was kind of like an anomaly cuz I always loved and crushed on the ACTORS way more than I crushed on male music artists lol. 😅 I feel like it's kinda rare in the black community for us as women (or young girls) to be crushing on male actors like that. I always felt kind of alone in that regard. Thank goodness I had a small group of other black friends around my age who felt the same way I did and shared my love of film. 🥰 (I might make a poll out of this to see what others think)

I kind of feel like SOME sectors of the population (i.e. white girls) tend to be more of the obsessive types when it comes to "internet boyfriends" lol. There are some who just fangirl over guys more than others it seems. 🤷🏾‍♀️ Some segments of the population tend to be way more obsessive with the fangirling and the fanfic writing, the going-to-see-a-movie-10x-because-so-and-so-is-in-it.

I also feel like Hollywood tends to push certain actors with a certain look, and that look very rarely includes black (or moc) men.

I think Dev Patel is promising.... So are Henry Golding, Charles Melton, and Anthony Ramos. I also think that what makes a "movie star" isn't always just the movie, but also what you push them into doing. Tom Holland didn't become a movie star JUST because he played Spiderman. I mean, that certainly HELPED (don't get me wrong lol), but he also became a movie star because he was pushed into various different avenues of promotion for the film when it came out. Lip Sync Battle, radio interviews, TONS Of ComicCon appearances and Meet and Greets. I feel like Hollywood doesn't really NURTURE black male actors like this in order to become movie stars. You kind of have to be EVERYWHERE for a little while so that people will come to know you. THAT is how you become a movie star. It's not just the movie, it's all of the other little things that go along with it. And I don't see Hollywood doing that for black male actors. Some black films aren't even given HALF the amount of global press tour that white films are given. Just saying...

It's interesting that Pedro Pascal was mentioned, cuz a lot of women sweat him and he's well into his 40s. Very interesting (and good) point!

Sorry for this lengthy discourse (if you've even made it down this far ROTFL). 😅

TL;DR Version: I think there are a LOT of factors that play into why there has been a "movie star" drought in Hollywood lately, and why MOC aren't pushed as much to the forefront.

[indominusavenger]

I'm gonna come out and say it; No Way Home sucked. Sure, it had some good moments but in my opinion, it does not live up to the first two instalments of the trilogy. I liked the first part of the movie but as soon as I knew where the second part was going, I fell off that train pretty quickly.

Not only did it make MCU Spidey end up with the same tale as his two predecessors but it also undoes Peter's entire establishment in Marvel's overall franchise. What was the point of the last four movies putting him on the roster with Earth's MIGHTIEST Heroes if you were just going to take all that away and make it like he exists in a completely separate world from them? What was the point of the three cameos we had from RDJ, Samuel L. Jackson, and Benedict Cumberbatch in their iconic roles to show that interconnected universe as with every other MCU movie, only for that to be stripped away at the very last second? Might as well have been another one of Sony's solo ventures at making a series after TASM but it's not and that's why I HATE the uncertainty of Peter Parker's future in the MCU. However, given the current failing reality of the MCU with every new movie that comes out, I can already confirm it's nothing good. In fact, it probably would be best if progress stops altogether before Marvel really is stuck in the dust and just a part of a magnificent past with no legacy to carry on. (This is a side note but that is still a big issue for me anyways that I may expand upon later in another post. In the meantime, go watch all the video essays on YouTube, I'm sure you'll find many good ones.)

He had a unique story that fit into the overarching plot of the MCU and the premise he had was different from the previous Spideys which is what was so interesting about his character development. This Peter Parker had friends that weren't introduced before, or at least, they were more developed than in other series; he had a superhero as a mentor, not a scientist turned villain due to unfortunate circumstances; he had a guy in the chair who wasn't after him or turned villain because his father was one, he had two crushes that were friends, he was part of clubs and acted more teenage-like than the last two. He interacts with other heroes, joins the Avengers, fights THE villain, perishes, comes back, loses his mentor, and is still expected to keep on going.

For crying out loud, he was asked if he was going to be the next Iron Man but he knew he wasn't which is what Far From Home set out to show us. And to all those who called him Iron Man Jr. in Homecoming, I hope you know that you make no sense and I think Marvel did a wonderful job making him stand apart. He was a kid admiring one of his role models and now that he actually had a connection to him, of course he was going to want to be like his mentor but even Tony recognized that he wanted him to be more, not like him. This shows Iron Man himself had great respect for the young hero.

Now, moving onto No Way Home, two main things that annoy the heck out of me; Peter being forgotten (obviously) and Aunt May dying. I'll start with Aunt May's death. To be honest, it was a completely unnecessary death and it actually doesn't make sense for the purpose it had in the movie. The punchline "With great power comes great responsibility." loses its premise as soon as you recall Civil War's intro to Peter in the first place. Uncle Ben had already died, Peter was Spider-Man at this point, and remember what Peter told Tony when they met, why the older hero related to him so much? "When you can do the things that I can, but you don't... and then the bad things happen... they happen because of you." So he already learned that lesson on responsibility and by the time we get to No Way Home, this kid had learned lessons also involving the universe at large. Why are we rehashing Uncle Ben's offscreen death with Aunt May if Marvel literally stated that was overdone? Make that make sense. But oh, it was to make something big and dramatic happen in the movie because we needed to mOve aLoNg. Peter lost his parents, his uncle, and mentor; can you come up with something new other than parental figure losses? Why do TASM Peter and OG Peter still have their Aunt Mays and even if it was just a deleted scene, technically TASM Peter's dad? Huh, then what do you say there? Why did MCU Peter Parker have to lose ALL his parental figures?

Finally, the thing that probably broke most of us; Peter being wiped from everyone's memory. As I stated earlier, his entire existence within the MCU just vanishes, like that, in seconds. So......... what was the point of his existence up till now in the MCU? What was the point of his specific development and growth if he was just going to get forgotten? Why was he meticulously introduced at the height of the Avengers' conflict and then constantly involved with some other MCU hero/important character if he was going to be removed from that? If the Avengers were never a big deal, why make him a part of that at all and why were we still bringing them up at the climax of the film? For those who bring up the argument that he's supposed to be a solitary hero, well that was the worst way to have introduced him then, right? But Marvel chose that route, not any other. Which is why that decision still makes no sense to me. You put him in a world where he wasn't the only superhero and he was going to interact with other heroes which none of the other Spider-Men had and that already put him in a unique position. Why give him a background that was going to get swiped?

Imagine that, making five blockbuster films that gave him a firm standing in the MCU at the peak of Phase 3 and then in his sixth film, his last standalone which is supposed to be his most shining moment, he gets the rug pulled out from underneath him to give him a blank slate? You might as well have thrown every script out from 2015 to 2019 including him before they were ever written or considered. It's the equivalent of undoing everything you just worked on in a school project that's worth 40% of your final grade. Think about that for a second. Marvel just undid 6 years of work and investment in a single character for them to go back to the beginning. Why didn't you just do that then from the start? You could have had more classic Spidey a long time ago by that train of thought (which I really didn't want because we already saw that twice and this Spidey was something fresh).

Anyways, thanks for reading. This is 2 years worth of disappointment and frustration put on the page.

[castlebyersafterdark]

i honestly think its so real of you to admit that you find finn's music to be mid, and i will be one anon out here agreeing with you!

firstly, we can't help our taste, so why lie about something you think? its not intended to hurt finn. obv you appreciate his talent but it's just not your cup of joe. that shouldnt offend anyone.

and plus, you can love so many things about someone's way of going about in the world but not be a fan of certain creative expressions of theirs. for example, when i hear finn talk about his interests and passions and demonstrate his breadth of knowledge, it doesnt really match the output ive seen from him so far. meaning that what he makes is not what i would expect from him purely based on the way he talks about films and music.

but this isnt bad! i could learn from him in terms of questioning my own preconceptions, or giving his stuff another whirl to see beneath the layers. some things take a few listens sometimes. i remember giving a wedding speech once and loads of my friends came up to me afterwards and said i had seemed like a different person and they hadn't expected that speech to come from me. its fascinating how our insides translate to the outside, how people see us.

i think for me, it's finn's effort and dedication i admire most. he's a lifelong learner, and he's not lazy - and i really appreciate those qualities, because they're rare.

Right riiiiiight!!! It can be perceived as a little shade - but that's ok. It's not meant to be straight up rude. "One person's mid is another person's fave" and that's totally a sign of maturity to be honest to not let it matter? I have things I love that other people see as not great media or even cringe. And - fine! It's fun to tease and joke a little, to not be so blindly obsessed with some celeb that every single thing about them is something you fawn over. Admitting to yourself where your actual taste lies. I have some favorite actors/actresses and man they've starred in some shit movies. I'm not about to gush over the movie when I think it was bad. Still adore them. It's all ok hahaha.

Like you said - the passion and dedication and well-rounded interest aspect of Finn is what really appeals, even if I don't personally feel a connection to most of his projects to be quite honest? He's an interesting dude, without my shallow reasons of finding him attractive. He's still interesting besides that to me, and when I find a celeb to really truly follow, they've gotta be more than just a pretty face. His attitude in the Hollywood Industry is refreshing and that's what's the big appeal to me. He makes such niche references and seems so - and this is also with love - of the caliber potential of being a really pretentious indie guy. But - he actually isn't. He just has incredibly specific references and a berth of knowledge - but he's also such a guy. Down to earth. Mainstream and niche. That's the sweet spot. It makes it all genuine rather than someone putting on airs to appear "worldly" and that's cool.

He's been involved in such random stuff and I think you're right in that it doesn't always... quite reflect what someone might expect from him? But then again, he's into such niche low-impact music ventures and collabs and the fact that he plays these tiny venues and record shop shows while starring in some of the biggest movie franchises of all time is wild and fascinating. Photoshoots and campaigns with major fashion houses but he's out there in the same thrift store shirt and ugly ass South Park cap yet again. Dude's genuinely weird. That's so cool to me.

It's admirable to me and the bottom line is that if I was someone famous - I'd want a career and life like his, which is the big reason why I've latched on to following his life so much. I just think he's neat!

I'd imagine he's going to get involved in much different things as he gets older now with more freedom. Career trajectory of a more personal project interest route now that he's no longer maybe at the mercy of youth. And I like that's he's not an influencer or trying to be a "mogul" like so many stars of his age. (There's celebs I and many of us in this corner love who kinda fit that bill, but they also seem different than others who do the same so they get a pass 😉)

[dearer-than-i]

Valentine's Week : Familial

Ohhhh familial f/os oh my familial f/os. These guys do genuinely mean so much to me you don't even know man. I'm gonna ramble about my fictional dads and siblings to my hearts content!

I'm gonna start with the Powerful Dad Quartet!

Buggy, Mihawk, and Shanks in particular really REALLY resonate with me like. THOSE ARE MY DADS! Shanks was probably the first that I connected with like family when I watched OPLA for the first time. Then I watched Film: Red and I was sold wahah. In my head he's who hypes me up and has my back the most and that's means.. alot. Next was Buggy who happened after I started my watch of the anime and got to know him better. He reminds me a lot of the irl father figures I've had in my life, which is a trend you'll see as we go on. He's explosive and impulsive and loud and kind of an ass but that's part of the fun I think. I have problems speaking up for myself and setting boundaries especially around men so the idea of him understanding and respecting me but still being his goofy and obnoxious self is.. kind of like practicing in my head, you know? MIHAWK MY DAD MIHAWK! Okay going to be honest my connection to him mostly builds off Goth Family headcanons and inserting myself into them wahah. That doesn't mean I don't have my reason's though. Mihawk is like the soft-spoken but earnest autistic dad I didn't know I needed. The kind to listen to my rambles and interests and be supportive even if he doesn't get it at all, you know? Don't tell anyone but he's my favorite lkndalkadflnk And the most recent is Crocodile! Which I don't have enough to give proper thoughts outside of I enjoy him a lot and him being in Cross Guild was the final push to just go ahead and add him. He gives me scary-dad "my daddy's got a gun" privilege's./hj NOW I CAN TALK ABOUT MY PIRATE SIBLINGS. :D

LUFFY AND UTA MY BROTHER AND SISTER LUFFY AND UTA!

When I tell you from the BEGINNING I got some little brother energy from Luffy wahah. I can't tell you the kinship I feel with Luffy and it's not just because he also gives me gender envy. I think getting a full body arm wrap hug from him would fix me and make me the happiest person on earth. AND UTA!! I need just one movie and snacks night with her and I think we'd connect instantly. Their isn't much outside of sibling energy with these two and the connections to Shanks with both of them. I realized if Shanks is my dad these two are my brother and sister and when I tell you I WAS SO HAPPY. Absolute goobers <3 Now onto the non One Piece people!!

Silver my amazing cyborg dad Silver <3 This was probably my first emotionally charged familial f/o. I learned about Treasure Planet during the emotional rollarcoaster that was 2020 and I got attached QUICKLY! He's another one of my many fatherly f/os that really really reminds me of the father figures I've had in my real life and that effects how I interact with him. Silver was one of the few characters at the time that really said what I needed to hear, you know? I saw myself a lot emotionally in Jim and watching the pep talks he was given by Silver felt like I was getting those too. Once again I think a full body beer belly hug would fix me waha.

GLAMROCK FREDDY!!! MY SUPERSTAR!! I am not immune to big robot dad influences. For all it's faults Security Breach didn't hold any punches with the characterization of their animatronics and their is no better an example than Glamrock Freddy! I was just as affected by the "way to go Superstar!" and got attached QUICKLY! He's just such a sweetie and is such a good dad he would make sure I was so so loved and supported.

AND I NEED TO MENTION THE WACHOSKI'S !!! This group genuinely gives me such soft and sunshiney feelings for a family that only exists in two movies (not to say I don't connect with Tails and Knuckles outside of the movies but them in this family format Hits Different) They are THE definition of a comfort family for me and I can't help at look and Maddie and Tom and see parents, you know? They bring me such a sense of childlike joy and carefreeness that's unparalleled. And Tails, Knuckles, and Sonic are so like. Sweet and realistic in the sense of being siblings, you know? I would gladly sign up to be the nerdy but cool older siblings in their group. I wear the badge of being the one to get us out of trouble like a BADGE!

And some honorable mentions to Astrid, Giovanni, and Wukong as well even though I don't have the time to talk about them too much! A lot of my familial f/os come from a place of projection and healing from my unhealthy home life growing up and these three mean a lot to me in that way. Giovanni and Astrid really really remind me of my own mother and the father figures in my life and through them I come to understand that more and help myself feel better about that situation I was put in. And Wukong reminds me a lot of an unperfect dad who's at least trying and learning and growing as a person as well as being a male role model I didn't get to have.

[amazing-spiderling]

What’s some of your favorite characters to write and what’s some of your least favorite?

Friendo, please know that I have been staring at this ask in my inbox for a while and always going "HUH." because it feels like such a big question, sometimes I don't know how to answer it. skfdjs

I think, broadly, my favorite characters to write are going to be the ones who have some attribute I've managed to zero in on with some amount of personal understanding. It doesn't have to be a character I think is "just like me", (I don't know that I've felt that about many if any fictional characters) so much as one that I think I have one or two things in common with that I can focus on in a story. I guess the trick is remembering to focus on lots of aspects of their character so I don't reduce them to just that, though.

As for favorites...

From Metal Gear, I really liked writing from Otacon's POV. While he is brilliant and talented in his own right, in a lot of ways he is the best person to have an outside perspective on the crazy things that are happening in his world. Yes, he's an unparalleled engineer and hacker, but he's surrounded by genetically altered super soldiers pumped full of nanomachines, and it tends to put things in perspective. I think that's why Project Itoh chose to write the MGS4 novelization from his POV. Since I often feel like an observer around people who seem to lead more dramatic and interesting lives, I think I find it enjoyable to write stories with a "friendly outsider" perspective.

For Marvel... I think it's *easier* for me to write for Peter Parker, again, some similarities between us I feel I can tap into with ease, but I think its more *fun* to write Wade. He does get to have all the best banter, and if I want to write a joke that isn't actually that funny, well, then it's just that much more in character. I think I prefer writing Foggy to Matt, again, because of that "involved outsider" thing he has going on. He's emotionally involved in a lot of the goings on, even if he isn't in the middle of things (and then sometimes he is in the middle of things, but that's another issue). I also like writing Foggy in Earth-65 contexts because I think a lot of Murderdock comes from what he isn't saying. If we're inside his head and seeing the reasons behind his actions, some of the mystique is ruined. But if we are sitting on Foggy's shoulders, and only seeing the external (albeit, from someone who has a better understanding of Matt than most) we have to piece things together and make more inferences, and that gives me the chance to drop little breadcrumbs and easter eggs and I LIVE for that.

On the flip side, characters I've had little luck with... ugh. Hm. That's really tricky. I think I don't tend to write the characters I don't have fun with, life is too short. Sometimes it's required though, especially when I'm writing with a partner and we're splitting up the side characters, but even then... it can be fun to write characters I hate and go, UGH, THEY'RE AWFUL. (See: Huey from MGSV)

I guess the most difficult would be characters like Elektra, not because I don't like her- but because I think that we haven't got much in the way of real, solid characterization and motivation for her that doesn't revolve around Matt Murdock. (Well, not counting the Elektra movie, so maybe I should just use that as her model from now on lol.) If I'm totally honest, I feel like a lot of the meta I read about Elektra is from people who have pinged some characteristic within her (like I have for my faves) that doesn't ping for me, so I don't find it relatable or interesting to explore. But I also don't want to throw her into a fic just to make her a bad guy so my ship can kiss, you know? And it's just... bleh, it's a lot of homework, so that's probably why I've avoided it. Does that make me a bad fan? Maybe. I never claimed to be a good one.

[atomicpatrolcreation]

Catching Up With DC Comics

As the year ends in about three days, 2025 begins, and the DC live-action universe counts down to the release of its first movie under James Gunn, I've decided to catch up with DC's continuity.

To be honest, the last things I read from the publisher were the Dark Crisis and Absolute Power events. They were very good and entertaining, but I felt they could have been better.

With so many comics released this year, I was unsure where to start. For my own comfort and happiness, I decided to dive into the Green Lantern run (my all-time favorite hero along with Flash, although I prefer Hal Jordan as Green Lantern) written by Jeremy Adams.

This comic, the 7th volume, was released on September 19, 2023, as part of Dawn of DC.I haven't finished this ongoing series yet; I'm currently on issue #11, which is more than halfway through the chapters that have been released so far.

This is the first time I’ve read something written by Jeremy Adams. Honestly, I didn’t have high expectations for this run, as every time a new Green Lantern comic is launched, the publisher seems to focus on introducing new characters without depth or relevance instead of crafting great stories that develop and evolve existing characters. But I was pleasantly surprised when I read issue #1-it was so interesting, albeit a bit slow.

As I mentioned, I've only read up to issue #11, which means I still need to read comics like Alan Scott: The Green Lantern, Green Lantern Civil Corps Special, or the two tie-ins to Absolute Power.

I forgot to mention that I’ve already read Green Lantern: Knight Terrors, but I plan to reread it because there are fascinating details that any Hal Jordan fan would notice, which expand upon Hal as a character.

Back to the topic, this run is excellent, with wonderful writing, although at times it feels slow and heavy. Even as a die-hard reader of the character, I found certain developments exhausting. The art is unpredictable, to say the least—it’s good, really good, but there are panels that don’t fully convince me. I think it’s more about the coloring than the drawing itself.

I love how the series brings back characters like Keli Quintela, gives relevance to classic characters like Alan Scott, and canonizes characters created in other media, like Razer. That’s nice and refreshing.

However, characters like Sinestro, the Blue Lanterns, or the Star Sapphires are either sidelined without reason or not mentioned at all.There are some aspects about Sinestro that I don’t like—they’re few, but they leave me uneasy. At times, he feels like the pre-Flashpoint Sinestro, but the next moment, he’s just another villain trying to get rid of Hal or Earth. This is odd because their rivalry has always been more about how Sinestro felt betrayed by Hal for exposing his excessive methods to the Guardians, not about hating Hal or Earth out of disdain. Sinestro's disdain is generally reserved for Guy, John, and the other human Green Lanterns. It's worth noting that he doesn't see them as unworthy due to extraterrestrial xenophobia, but because he believes they are not fit to succeed or equal Hal.

On the other hand, as I’ve explained, there are things I absolutely love, and most of that revolves around Hal and Carol’s complicated relationship.

There are moments where you can feel the love between them—the way they care for each other but can’t be together because they fear (more Hal than Carol) being unfair to one another. They both love each other, and it’s clear and obvious to everyone. They’re not together simply because Hal’s life (and Hal himself) isn’t meant to stay on Earth.

He’s a hero and can’t sit still when he feels needed, whereas Carol wants happiness and stability. She wants a life free from the constant fear of whether the man she loves is alive or dead. She can’t handle that uncertainty for the rest of her life.

You see Carol trying to move on with her life—she can’t, but she genuinely tries. She tries to stop being romantically involved with Hal while remaining his friend and supporting him because she cares about him deeply.And the way they worry about each other is heartwarming.

The first seven issues, which center on Hal vs. Sinestro, are filled with Hal/Carol moments where they show how much they care for one another, especially Carol.

I can’t quite remember if it was issue #6 or #7, but there was a moment between them that gave me the “Say the word, and I’ll leave the Order for you” vibes—a line Obi-Wan Kenobi said to Duchess Satine Kryze in Star Wars: The Clone Wars.Their romance is so sweet and touching. Jeremy Adams has managed to make readers root for them and constantly hope they’ll get back together.

In conclusion, I think DC made the right choice in selecting Jeremy Adams as the writer for Green Lantern. Of course, the story could continue to progress splendidly as it has so far, or it could end as many DC stories do—poorly for both the characters and the readers. Only time will tell, but I sincerely hope it ends well. I’d love to see a Green Lantern Corps run that’s well-written, engaging, and long-lasting.

P.S: While writing this, I realized there are several elements taken directly from Emerald Twilight, The Spectre (2001), Geoff Johns' run, The New 52, and Rebirth (2016), though the latter is less prominent.

[only-a-heartbeat-away]

I definitely understand the interest in foreign language music. I am learning/know a couple languages and I get a lot of benefit from listening to music and artist interviews in the language. It keeps me engaged and wanting to understand in ways that other learning tools don't always do.

There are quite a few "metal operas/musicals' that you could check out. Aside from the more well-known Tommy by the Who, The Wall by Pink Floyd- etc

Anything by Carach Angren but Death Came Through A Phantom Ship is my favorite. It is about the Flying Dutchman

Most of Rhapsody of Fire/Rhapsody (they are the same band just name change) Legendary Tales probably the most story like

Labyrinth by Fleshgod Apocalypse This is the story of the Minotaur with a twist since a lot of it is from the Minotaur's point of view.

Fly on the Wall - AC/DC (especially if you watch the music videos)

Seventh Son of a Seventh Son by Iron Maiden

Nightfall in Middle Earth is Blind Guardian's retelling of The Silmarillion by Tolkien.

Battles in the North and At the Heart of Winter by Immortal

The Sick, the Dying, ... and the Dead by Megadeth (They literally did the music videos as a story too and together it is almost like a short movie. It tells the story of how Vic (the Megadeth mascot) came into being and continues to be reborn) They did the same thing with Dystopia and some of the other albums/songs about Vic Rattlehead too.

Diamond Dogs by David Bowie and The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust. Also Low too in a lot of ways.

Avantasia literally has The Metal Opera pt 1 and pt 2 but most of their albums are metal operas

Hammerfall has a couple Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken and No Sacrifice, No Victory come to mind.

Evilized by Dream Evil

The Crimson Idol by W.A.S.P.

The Neon God Pt 1: The Rise and The Neon God Pt 2: The Demise by W.A.S.P.

Charlemagne the Death of Omens and By the Sword and the Cross by Christopher Lee

Nox Arcana which is instrumental gothic has a few albums too.

I started this list and then didn't realize how many I was listing. Apparently, I knew more than I thought.

One of the things I heard from a reliable fan who knows Tom Keifer is that apparently his choice to not do many meet and greets currently is related to a poorly behaved fan disrespecting his boundaries. It sucks so much and I feel so bad when they are treated in ways we would, hopefully, never treat people who weren't famous around us.

One of the experiences about seeing a musician treated badly that I saw first hand is Dave Mustaine. He does awesome meet and greets where he, and the rest of Megadeth, just chat with you and answer questions. This one fan, who I assume had a cancer diagnosis or a family member did, asked Dave how he kept positive and writing music while he was dealing with his cancer diagnosis and treatment. It was very appropriate since it was during the Sick, The Dying..and the Dead tour which is the album Dave wrote while undergoing his throat cancer treatments. Very respectfully asked. Dave talked about how writing music and keeping with what he wanted to do in life kept him positive. He talked about his optimism in the care he was received from his doctors. To me a very inspiring response and obviously moving to the fan who asked. Then this other dude got in there and asked Dave if he was afraid during his treatment. Dave said no and explained that he had no feelings of fear because he knew he was going to get through it. Well this fan kept insisting that Dave had to be afraid and talking over Dave which we were expressly told by the tour manager that Dave didn't like(and really no one should have to like someone talking over them if we're honest). It was really shitty and Dave put the guy in his place verbally. Not a raised voice from Dave, not an insult, but his words cut like a razor blade when he shut that fan down. I felt really bad for Dave and the fan who genuinely asked the question to see someone be so demeaning and callous about a medical experience like that.

I have, unfortunately, seen a couple other musicians who people label as not friendly get pushed like this until they shut people down. I feel like it is fair. If you act like shit there are consequences. It has really changed my perspective on some musicians, especially hearing people say so and so is an asshole that you don't want to meet and then hear the fan go on and brag about something that wasn't nice or polite as if the musician was in the wrong.

I do find that approaching them like people, with the respect you might give a co-worker kinda, has been really positive. One that I met recently I randomly remembered it was two days before his birthday. The smile when I just came out with "Happy Early Birthday. I hope you get to do something fun in a fun city on it." was so wholesome. I think there's something to the idea that as memorable as we want the experience to be we should also try to offer something that can be a good memory for them too.

My dad always wanted to meet Slash. He got to meet Duff and Axl, I wasn't there for that, but never Slash. He seems like he would be really down to earth and fun. Out of all the GN'R boys I think I would like the meet Duff, Steven and Matt the most. Randomly, and not with GN'R, I got to meet Dizzy with The Dead Daisies. I wasn't even expecting him to be there and totally forgot that he was playing with them. I've had that happen with a couple other musicians where they were with a band other than the one they are known for being in and I get surprised out of nowhere by them.

I am not sure what the oldest is. The oldest that I remember picking out and sort of buying for myself is that Black Sabbath shirt from the 86-87 tour and the W.A.S.P. patch I got at the same show. In general though, I think the oldest piece I have is probably in my parents' records that I have. Maybe my mom's original of "My Boyfriend's Back" by The Angels which I think is 1963 or so. I don't think I have anything older than that but maybe there is a vinyl but I wouldn't know without looking through all of their dates.

What is your oldest piece of band merch? Do you have a favorite piece of band merch? Is there a piece of band merch that you would really love to get, like if money was not a concern, what would you buy right now?

-Jake

I’ve tried learning languages before, but it hasn’t worked for me. It’s very hard and I have nothing but respect for people who speak more than one language. At the same time, I like listening to songs in languages other than English. Like you said, it’s engaging. I also imagine it’s a nice tool for those who want to learn whatever language the song is in.

I’ve already listened to some of those, like the Iron Maiden and Megadeth albums, and I really like those, so I’ll have to check out the other ones you mentioned!

It’s fine, the more the merrier is my attitude!

It does suck. In a way I get how you could be starstruck, meeting someone you’ve been a big fan of for years, but there’s a point where you’re going too far.

The fuck was wrong with that person? I couldn’t even be like that with someone I know personally. I don’t understand how people can ask how you feel about something then insist you’re wrong about your feelings. Like shut the hell up, you don’t know shit about them or how they feel.

Same, it’s bewildering how oblivious those type of people can be. I once saw a post on Reddit in the Red Hot Chili Peppers subreddit where the OP said they met Chad Smith and said he was “a bit of a dick”. When asked in the comments to elaborate, they said he was with his family and OP asked him for a picture, he said no (and twice at that) but eventually gave in because OP wouldn’t stop asking and they were complaining about how cold he was towards them the whole time. I read that and was like “…uh, it sounds to me like YOU were the dick there, dude.”

It’s cool that your dad met Duff and Axl, and that you got to meet Dizzy. I’m sure those moments were nice surprises for you. And I would love to meet Duff and Steven too.

By oldest I meant the first you got, not the actual oldest 😅 I’m sorry, I should’ve been more clear. Still nice to know that, though. The first I got was a Queen shirt when I was 14, but the oldest is The White Album (1968) on vinyl.

If money wasn’t a concern, I’d totally get one of the Metallica album box sets. It comes with so much awesome stuff, but they’re usually around $300 and I’m not in the position where I can spend that much on one piece of band merch. Maybe someday.

What’s your answer to the same question? If money wasn’t a concern, what piece of band merch would you get?

[project1939]

200 Films of 1952

I have only TEN films left now! After almost a year of working on this, I am down to 3 comedies, 2 adventures, 2 documentaries, 1 drama, 1 western, and 1 musical...

Film number 190: Park Row

Release date: Sept 1st, 1952 

Studio: United Artists 

Genre: drama 

Director: Samuel Fuller 

Producer: Samuel Fuller 

Actors: Gene Evans, Mary Welch, Bella Kovacs 

Plot Summary: After reporter Phineas Mitchell is fired by a corrupt newspaper baroness named Charity Hackett, he meets a business partner and starts a paper of his own. He is idealistically determined to keep his new paper honest and dependable, and as it begins to find success, his old boss is just as determined to stop him.  

My Rating (out of five stars): ***¾  

Yesterday I was explaining to a friend what I liked about “newspaper movies,” and the first thing I said was, “There’s often very fast intelligent dialogue. A lot of the characters are writers or editors who are smart and shrewd and good with words. I like those fast-talking clever kinds of films.” There you go! That’s not a bad description of Park Row. It was very much in the vein of a newspaper flick, so there was a lot to like about it. It ended up being better than I anticipated given its B status and budget, but it was also not without its flaws. (spoilers!) 

The Good: 

Gene Evans as Phineas Mitchell. He was an actor I hadn’t come across before, and he made a worthy leading man. He had a Spencer Tracy vibe about him- he could be brash, tough, and scheming, but there was a lot of idealism underneath it all. 

Mary Welch as Charity Hackett. I was saddened to hear that she died young and didn’t make many films, because I really liked her in this. She was beautiful and fierce with a wicked unscrupulous side, but occasionally you got a peak of something nicer inside her. When she started wearing colorful clothes after Mitchell told her she looked like she was in mourning wearing black all the time, it was a small action that spoke volumes. 

There was a lot of smart fast-talking dialogue, which was markedly accentuated by the use of long takes. The opening 10 minutes or so were a wonderful energetic mix of newspaper guys shooting the shit and commiserating with each other while drinking. 

The plot was paced and structured well, and even the side plots worked. The invention of Linotype was surprisingly thrilling! 

I loved the camerawork. There were lots of long takes, effective closeups, good use of light and dark, and most noticeably there was a lot of interesting movement. There were sweeping pans, whips back and forth between and around characters, and some striking pull ins. It was surprising and fun. 

Most of the time this felt like a film with a bigger budget. The acting was all very good, the sound and cinematography were well above par, and the sets did not look cheap. If you compare it to Breakdown, a recent low budget film I watched, there’s a chasm between them. 

The Bad: 

The sexual tension/romance between Mitchell and Hackett didn’t work for me. It seemed almost absurd that they would fall in love under the circumstances they were in. (Although the super long kiss they shared was pretty spicy for the time.) 

It got overly earnest and preachy at times. 

The ending with Hackett was unbelievable. I totally bought the fact that she would change when she heard about the violence that had been committed in her name, but I just didn’t buy that the change would happen so fast, so utterly, and so completely.  

How on earth could Mitchell just fall right back in love with a woman who was literally trying to destroy him and had the blood of more than one of his employees on her hands? 

It made me sad about the pitiful state journalism is in today, especially the state of our local newspapers. The credits opened with a message saying there were 1,772 daily newspapers in the United States in 1952. I looked around to see if I could find a recent number, and according to a Forbes article from November of 2023, the number is probably around 1,210 today. That’s 562 fewer papers. 

[betweentwomoments]

Eulogy for Uncle

My earliest memories of you were about how you were nearly taken from us just before Caleb was born. I assume you had briefly visited heaven then and were only sent back as a guardian angel with a new name and rank: Uncle. You and Auntie were the duo that my brothers and I needed so desperately growing up. The steady handed camera that showed up at every Christmas concert, grandparents day, and birthday party. Taught me to bike and then get rewarded with spotted cow ice cream. Practiced lines and lines math equations with us before we were ushered off to see Auntie in the living room for bible memory. You were so committed to us having the best possible lives we could live. And you gave so much and humbly expected so little in return. You were sent to our family at the perfect time, and I’m so incredibly grateful for the time I had with you.

I thought a lot about your hands when I was with you in the hospital. Your transparent skin showed the yellow-white bones inside. But that wasn’t what they always looked like. Those were the hands that worked in mines and delivered mail: strong working hands. Those were musician hands, that plucked the strings of your guitar to the most beautiful hymns. Those were the hands that played Spyro and Sly Cooper with me. The hands that rubbed Vic’s on my belly when I was sick and squirmed away from you, repelled by the smell. Those were the hands that dug deep in the earth and worked our little rejected corner garden. Holding your brittle hands in the hospital I longed for them to be strong once more, but I knew that this couldn’t be.

I’ve never really done this before, I’m not sure how to grief or get closure. I’m not sure I want to close anything to be honest. I just want you to know that everything that you gave to me, every night time snack and movie night, ever Sunday afternoon Salisbury steak, every family trip to drumheller, and phone call to check if I was okay, made me who I am today.

You loved my daughter Iris. All you wanted was to hear her pattering footsteps come towards your room and to lie around watching cartoons with you. I didn’t even realize how happy it would make me to see that glimmer in your eye spark once again when you held iris for the first time. I am so incredibly lucky to have had you as long as I did. But it’s so hard to say goodbye. I feel there are still so many things I want you to see and I want to tell you. I wish you could see me till my own end, but I’m glad I got to be a part of the end of your story.

No one in the world has ever took an interest into me the way you did. You believed in me like no one else. Even when I failed at things. You just kept on loving me and encouraging me. You just thought that it was obvious that goodness would be in me. I don’t know how or why that was. But I really needed that. Even if I didn’t see it at the time. I needed you to be that person I could call and know there would never be disappointment in your voice. I love you. And I wish I could tell you that one more time, and to hear you say “I love you too”.

When I was small and Caleb and I used to sleep in your room after a full day of being completely spoiled by you and auntie, I would curl up into my little cot sized bed and we would all lay there in the dark waiting for sleep. Sometimes if I really couldn’t fall asleep we would ask for a story and you would make up a short story but mostly we would talk. I remember you being so patient with us. That space was so incredibly safe. I could wake the two of you up and ask you questions about sonic the hedgehog and what you guys thought he was doing right now, and the answers would be earnest and calm, and that is something so special to give a child. You allowed my childhood to be enchanted by video games and bedtime stories and allowed us to indulge in all things fun within this small slice of eden.

One of the last times I saw you coherent your voice was quieted to a whisper. You seemed so tired and ready for your final sleep. You kept whispering “Goodnight” just like you did when we’d all sleep in the same room together. But this time there is no waking up for questions about sonic the hedgehog, or love and loss and loneliness. Now, there is just us lying in the dark and trying to be happy that you’re finally resting. And that you don’t have to worry about us falling asleep, or bad dreams. We’ll be okay. You can rest. We’ll be here taking care of auntie. And the three of us we’ll take care of each other. And our parents we’ll hold us tight and kiss our heads. And we’ll be okay. I want you to sleep now. I hope we can play more in the morning. I love you uncle.