#bride fight

[lonelyzarquon]

The Brides of Dracula (1960) dir. Terence Fisher

[swinging-through-the-stars]

Same time next week?

[thornswoggled]

i think there is a convo to be had about how chises dragon curse - for all of its confusing mechanics - functions less as a plot point and more of a physical manifestation of the character growth chise has yet to undertake, and an unwillingness to reckon with the person she is past the roles she serves in the lives of others

chise takes this curse on when she returns to the auction house, and location is everything here. at its core, this curse is anger, hatred, fear, pain, and a deep desire to return to comfort - destructive emotions that rip apart all it touches. when chise breaks down at the sight of the frightened dragon for sale, elias tells her that those are not her emotions, that she shouldnt let them overtake her - but they are her emotions, that dragon is her, and there was never a possibility that she wouldnt follow it on its flight over london. seeing as things have "worked out" for her til now, chise hasnt yet reckoned with the gravity of what it meant to sell her life away. she hasnt reckoned with the hatred and anger and pain that she still harbors - unfortunately, moving to a quaint little english cottage does not undo a lifetime of neglect. her attempts to fix those around her, philomela being a prime example, will only get her so far. eventually she will have to look within, and i dont think shes done more than dip her toes in. "this is my past, these sad things happened to me, now things are better" is not the end of her self-reflection. now that we know the past she carries with her, what does all of that mean for her? what kind of person is she? who will she become?

im thinking too about this recurring theme of "atavism." its a key feature in tambs dragons, who are able to evolve at will to suit their needs, and yori also mentions it when noting chises appearance. atavism is the reoccurrence of dormant or ancestral traits, and you could make the argument that its also functioning metaphorically here. evolving to suit the world around you, past burdens and trauma reemerging when its unexpected or inconvenient... my thoughts on this are loose right now

theres this concept that we've been getting, too, that chises dragon curse is something temporary. arc 1 left us with the idea that her two curses must remain in balance, in perpetuity, for her to survive. but theres this new interpretation of it being something that serves her for now, but she might shed it once it fulfills its purpose

continuing with the idea of the dragon curse as a sort of... idk, ptsd metaphor, what are these two examples from ch 98 implying? that her negative emotions will serve her when it comes time? that this sort of baggage cant be exorcised away? framing the dragon curse as temporary broaches the possibility of chise one day being cured of it, but what does that mean? and should she be?

(of course, the 'future chise' we see in ch 1 doesnt have a visible left hand, but is that meant to be a literal glimpse into the future, anyway? theres also a dragon made of vines behind her in that panel, didya notice it?)

i mentioned the auction house at the beginning because i feel that if chise sheds the dragon curse, it will be in much the same way she attained it. chise has been told that she is free, she is loved, she has told her "mother" that shes moving on with her life. but all of this is just the beginning - and lets be real, i dont think elias is putting her into therapy. joseph is the only character i can think of who is truly, earnestly pushing chise toward the difficult self-reflection she needs. im excited to see what he says when she taps into her "cursed fury"

this is why im so excited that we are being told explicitly, time and again, that things are about to go really bad for chise. tamb is such a masterwork of character writing, it is so incredibly emotionally intelligent and gives so much grace and patience to its characters. i have no doubt that chises character arc is going to go in such a spectacular direction

[shortbreadly]

ladies and gentleman, the official shortbreadly top ten film list is COMPLETE

[rinbylin]

"what is the image of the ideal person..."

[lostyesterday]

An interesting thing I noticed is that almost every single time Voyager does an evil/rogue AI episode (where an artificial intelligence of some kind is the primary antagonist), B’Elanna is a major part of the action. Obviously “Prototype” and “Dreadnought” are both B’Elanna-focused episodes, but even in rogue AI episodes focused mainly on other characters, B’Elanna is also there. “Revulsion” and “Flesh and Blood” are both primarily focused on the Doctor, but B’Elanna is the secondary character in both cases who has a lot of interaction with the AI antagonists. “Warhead” is a Harry episode, but B’Elanna is the other character held captive, and the same is sort of true for “The Thaw”. Even in “Alice”, B’Elanna is a central part of the narrative by being involved in the weird love triangle thing with Tom Paris and that spaceship. I feel like this can partly be explained by the fact that B’Elanna’s the chief engineer and therefore using her in the plot in connection with AI makes sense, but it’s still a coincidence. I guess the writers just thought B’Elanna and rogue AI made a good combination.

[fouralignments]

How the fuck did D&D: Honor Among Thieves actually look so much better costume wise than Amazon Rings of Power??? D&D budget: 150 Million; Rings of Power: 465 Million ($89.4 million per episode)

Rings of Power:

D&D: Honor Among Thieves

(Theses are extras/goons)

The villainess is bitchen!

WHY IS NO ONE TALKING ABOUT THESES COSTUMES???? THIS IS WHAT I EXPECT OUT OF A FANTASY MOVIE!

PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE! GO SEE THIS MOVIE!

[superbat-love]

Bruce adjusted his bow tie, sighing again, as he did a final check on his outfit in the mirror. This was supposed to be the happiest day of his life, yet he felt as if he was heading to the gallows.

The door to his room opened, and Bruce glanced up as Dick slipped in.

“Err, I know I should be congratulating you on your wedding day, but I feel bad for you, Bruce. I can see why you’re so reluctant to go through with it.”

Bruce ran a hand through his hair, feeling resigned to his fate. “I never thought I’d be in an arranged marriage either, but I’m doing it for Nana. Her final wish was to see me get married,” Bruce said.

Dick bit his lip. “Yeah, but must she choose a girl who’s so…homely?”

Bruce frowned. He may not have wanted to get married to the woman that Nana chose for him, but he was not going to deny the woman’s good looks. Kara Danvers was renowned to be one of the most beautiful women in Kansas.

Alfred walked into the room. “Master Bruce, Ms Danvers wishes to speak with you, sir,” he said.

Bruce raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t it bad luck to see the bride before the ceremony?” he grumbled, but he got on his feet anyway. Alfred led him out of the room and down the hallway to the room where the bride was supposed to be getting ready.

“Well stranger things have happened, sir,” Alfred said with a hint of a smile as Bruce knocked on the door.

“Come in,” a soft, low voice called out. Bruce opened the door and stepped in.

His first thought was that Kara was a lot taller than what he had expected. He could not tell if she was wearing heels, but she seemed to be towering a full head over him. He also could not see her face behind the wedding veil, but good lord, she looked more likely to carry him over the threshold than he was to carry her. Her shoulders were broader than his and her wedding dress seemed close to bursting at the seams around those tree trunk-sized biceps. Bruce distantly wondered if he could ask her for some workout tips.

“Hi Mr Wayne,” “Kara” greeted him uncertainly. “Umm, I just thought we should talk before the ceremony.”

Bruce felt a grin stretching across his face. Perhaps this wedding would not be so bad after all.

[myheartismadeofstars]

I am choosing to believe that Lady Incognita/Amanita Szarr:

Is a True Vampire (I believe this is connected to the "Family Rites" she refused to participate in)

Made her Uncle's life HELL while she lived with him

Made a deal with Raphael to force him to help her escape (this is why neither her, nor her body are in the house. no idea what he wanted from HER but that would explain why her book is in the House of Hope. Perhaps it was connected to the blood illnesses, as that's what her book is about?)

Is still alive and out there, living her best life as an immortal 13 year old.

Is a sarcastic and petty little shit

Is a TOUCH insane if she abstains too long from human blood

When she MUST hunt for humans, she prefers the "vulnerable child" ploy, and prefers creepy older men who are a little too friendly with her

Tries to be good, but it's not really in her nature. She settles for Neutral

Killed the others in her family, but was unable to kill Cazador for Reasons

Is Cazador's next of kin, thereby inheriting the house after his death

Makes a special trip to Baldur's Gate after learning of his death SPECIFICALLY to burn the mansion down and leave (yes she still attempts this if Astarion ascends lmao)

Would be very grateful to Astarion if he killed Cazador and stayed a Spawn (perhaps willing to make him a True Vampire if asked) but is extremely jealous and bitter if he ascended

[fave-fight]

ROUND 2, MATCH 22

NO MAGIC, POWERS, WEAPONS, OR ADDITIONAL HELP FROM OTHERS

Inigo Montoya:

“His name is Inigo Montoya. You may know his father. Prepare to die”

“Even without his weapon it's just funny to imagine him saying "hello. You killed my father. Prepare to die" to every opponent he meets”

Dick Grayson:

“He has been fighting since he was a small child and is now somewhere in his 20s, so that experience is very beneficial. He learned from Batman, who learned from the best, and he learned tactics from him too. He's good enough at tactics and strategy to lead a whole superhero team, and good enough at combat to pull his weight there too.”

“He's a trained acrobat, further trained by the Batman himself. Have you seen the silly flips and splits and shit this man can do? He also goes toe to toe with actual super-powered beings and thanks to his training can even come out on top.”

“He's sooooo cool. Soooooo cool. He can do ACROBATICS and he has a nice ass. I'm a lesbian but woooo boy that is some FAT FUCKING CAKE. I love him. He's like totally human but can beat the shit out of superpowered people..... what an icon honestly. He's sooooo silly”

“He was trained by Batman from the age of 8. He was beating up grown men before he hit double digits. He fist fights people for a living. He’s able to keep up with other superheroes who have actual super powers even though he doesn’t have any. AND he’s funny and bisexual and has a fat ass and is very smart.”

[oscarisaacasimov]

The Princess Bride swordfight - how Westley won

Inigo is a better swordsman that Westley.

Let me explain:

... No, there is too much, let me sum up:

In the books, it is explained that Inigo is a wizard. That is the only other plateau above grandmaster in sword fighting, and it is mentioned in the book that there are only 3-4 other Wizards in existence.

He is also a Spaniard, and for those of you with any knowledge of historical fencing, you'll know that the Spanish Destreza style of fencing is widely regarded as the most lethally efficacious.

(Watch The mask of Zorro to see some excellent Destreza style training)

Westley was a prodigy. If he had started fencing at the same time as Inigo we wouldn't even be having this conversation. He learned everything he learned in 5 years compared to Inigo's studying for his entire life.

But Wesley also learned on a ship, which means he more than likely learned to focus on an entirely different form of fencing. I'd wager to say that Westley was at the level of a grandmaster, but as far as the sharpness of his mind goes, he was twice as brilliant as Inigo.

Westley is always observing, and he not only learned that Inigo was a Spaniard, but saw the ornamentation of his handle, and had an up close look at his right hand's callouses just as he was cresting the cliff, and in that short amount of time, put it together that he was facing a swordsman of "inconceivable" skill, which is why he immediately plays against Inigo's ego by drawing his sword left-handed behind his back, while panting.

Inigo sees this and thinks he's going to get to fight a left-handed fighter, and wants him to be as rested as possible.

Wesley then endears himself to Inigo, treating his opponent with respect and bringing his would-be assassin to the point of actually having him say, "You seem a decent fellow I hate to kill you."

Which is leagues beyond the level of affection he had for him just 5 minutes prior.

He then proceeds to tucker him out, and uses his terrain to his advantage, forcing Inigo to fight in a more constrained close-quarters manner, instead of out in the open where he would have had the clear upper hand.

He indulged him in fighting left-handed because he wanted to encourage a protracted duel, knowing that even though that was Inigo's goal, it was also his weakest point, because a swordsman of that level of skill hasn't likely, for many years, actually had a protracted duel.

He then begins to banter about swordsmanship with him, which, in my opinion, was simply to confuse Inigo about what was going through Westley's mind, and how he was controlling the situation. (Remember, Westley wins all three of his duels with Inigo, Fezzik, and Vizzini by using his mind. Utilizing their assumptions about him against them)

It isn't until he clearly has the upper hand, and Inigo is exhausted, swinging with both hands on his sword, that he engages in his final tactic: distracting him by flicking his hair out of his face with his sword. A move that he knows Inigo is going to respond to no matter what, as evidenced by the two blade marks on either side of his face.

Westley meant what he said when he stated he would rather destroy a stained glass window than an artist like Inigo, as he recognized Inigo's skill wholly and without mistake.

Inigo was, and is, a better swordsman than Westley, he just wasn't even half the tactician.

source: Facebook group "The Princess Bride: Inconceivableposting" by Ian Patrick Pearce.

[thornswoggled]

we have got to give chise more credit for effortlessly adapting to her entire life genre-shifting in one day. she went from being a one-off character in a junji ito story to being a ghibli protagonist and she deserves a pat on the back for not losing her entire mind about it

[jils-things]

wwhat whwhwhat if sshe and blacktuliprhfhkrk lllookkoekedlikeketthis 💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥

NAHHH,,, JIL U SOUN CRAZZZYY.... ... das hella crazy bestie ...

[theredplague]

I feel like lindel (the ancient magus bride) and snufkin (moomin) would be best buddies. Both of them are Finnish nomads who have some strange thing to do with dragons.

Look at them they'd be besties!!!

Top 10 anime battles to interesting to miss...

[justice4billiam]

10 Characters, 10 Fandoms

Thank you for tagging me, @chatteringfox 🖤🌹

In no particular order:

1. Faith Lehane—Buffy The Vampire Slayer

(I’ve always had a thing for the bad guys. She’s no exception lmao)

2. Wade Walker—Cry Baby

(If you haven’t seen this and enjoy cringe movies and Johnny Depp, this movie is for you, babe. I mean, just look at him.)

3. Fran Fine—The Nanny

(FASHION ICON. Plus, she’s such a babe!)

4. Jim Halpert—The Office

(Jim, here is the reason why I’m always looking into an imaginary camera whenever something fucked happens.)

5. Anastasia Romanov—Anastasia

(Hands down, one of my favorite childhood movies. The music still has me in a tight grip)

6. Inigo Montoya—The Princess Bride

(THIS. MOVIE. Love. Love. Love)

7. Vivian Ward—Pretty Woman

(Julia Robert’s could do no wrong when she wears everything right. ICON.)

8. Tyler Durden—Fight Club

(I cannot emphasize this enough: I have a thing for asshole rat boi men. It's unfortunate, I know.)

9. Eris The Goddes of Discord—Sinbad

(I was surprised to find out that no one in my immediate area had watched this film. It's good, exceptional even. And yeah, another one in which the villain is just soooo awesome.)

10. Grim—The Grim Adventures Of Billy And Mandy

(I relate heavily to Grim here. This whole Tv show was a house fav in the early 2000’s )

💕💕💕No-pressure tagging some mutuals: @loserboysandlithium @lillianasrose @atinyliliflower @buckysgrace @xsinfullxlover666 @capricorndaydreamer @virtualwhisperscowboy @stalactitekilla @watermeezer @vyrd @freshfromhell

Toodle-loo, muthafuckas👋🏻😘

[bpdbeehive]

BPD coded quotes