#but i just did not take it literally at all i was like 'yeah. wright anything agency family with the worlds worst boss/dad'

[mekatrio]

GOD THEYRE RELATED ARENT THEY.... WOEGSJXHS

[snapscube]

I FINISHED TURNABOUT BIG TOP! Which means here is my updated autopsy report ranking for cases and characters!

Both have actually shifted around quite a bit so you may find it an interesting update. I'll explain some of my current thoughts on the new placements as well as my thoughts on 2-3 in general below a break if ur curious.

Okay so first thing let's just address the elephant in the room: We have an all new category on the character ranking!! One that I sure wish I didn't have to include but unfortunately Big Top made some... very Interesting decisions with specific characters. It would be one thing if this content was featured and then addressed, but it was particularly off-putting and frustrating to me that everything was played entirely straight?? So yeah. New lowest of the low category for a couple freaks who are actively courting a 16 year old!!!! yayyyyyy

OTHERWISE, I do have to say.... I was really pleasantly surprised at 2-3 as a case. I can say now I completely understand people having a distaste for it especially in regards to the unsavory age gaps, but literally..... almost everything else in this case was well put together and generally on-par with the quality of the rest of the series? As an overall package I actually still find Turnabout Samurai infinitely more dull. Like, maybe it's just because the lead-up to actually playing it was so uniquely frustrating for me and forcibly lowered my expectations by a ton, but there was so much good shit in Big Top. Maya, in particular, is in top form during this case. She is so fucking funny. I loved almost every word that came out of her mouth and it really solidified her top spot in the character ranking for me at present. But past that, I think the second half of this case is EXTREMELY strong compared to its opening half. I'll admit during the first trial section I was getting kinda tired with it and finding it hard to care given how much I just do not root for Max, so I had tentatively placed it at bottom of C tier. But then once von Karma arrives in the investigation section and then Acro's storyline enters the equation I really think it finds its footing. I actually found the last few scenes of the trial very emotionally effective, especially Acro's breakdown at the witness stand and mentioning how he couldn't follow through with taking his own life to escape his crime due to his desire to see his brother wake up. Like... I legitimately teared up.

And FURTHERMORE.... von Karma. Oh my god. I don't know if I'm picking up on anything here, nor do I want to know until I maybe see it for myself, but something about her conduct in the final trial really spoke to me. I feel like a surface read makes it apparent that she's just as frustrated as she is because she's losing the case to Wright again, and I do think that's a huge factor still to her reaction... but I don't know, I felt something else with her. Particularly when it came to her reaction towards Acro's attempted murder of Regina. I felt like she came across as PARTICULARLY disgusted towards that revelation and towards her own client in a way that subtly humanized her and had me just CHUCKLING AND CHORTLING in evil anticipation towards potential character arcs. I really hope I've grasped onto something here because... I love her so much. I love the idea that in spite of her reputation we're still gonna get to see this spark of humanity light up. AHHHHH.

Okay. Anyway. In summary:

I understand why people have a distaste for Big Top now, but it does not change the fact that I desperately wish I had been given the chance to experience the story myself going into it without that baggage. It genuinely did not help my experience in the slightest to just have that cloud of expectation over it and it is generally irritating that I couldn't even bring up that I was playing it without people jokingly apologizing to me or telling me that I wouldn't be able to handle it or whatever. Really not a great vibe.

As a case, it has a couple MAJOR, GLARING points of discomfort but I'm still really glad I gave it a chance and was able to find a lot of good in it anyway. It inspired me to unfortunately lower some of my other rankings because this is what I kind of consider a more middle-of-the-road quality for the series now. Solid B tier. I have played much worse.

Maya Fey is a god damn treasure.

As for some of the other character shifts, particularly in relation to some of the characters who got bumped from S to A rank, that's less because I decided I like them less now than I did when I first ranked them and more that I decided my initial interpretation of my feelings was incongruent in some cases. Like, for example I LOVE Mia I really do she's great, but in no way at this current time is she on the same level as Maya or Lana for me. So I just needed to adjust the ratios a bit.

Anyway, I'll be back eventually with posts about the next case and the last one of AA2! :3 I hear it's pretttyyy long but pretttyyy damn GOOD. Can't wait.

[autisticsupervillain]

Someone needs to do a thing about Phoenix Wright becoming a Tumblr celebrity/meme in universe, getting treated in a similar way to how we treat Hbomberguy irl. You cannot tell me that Tumblr wouldn't see a lawyer solve a fifteen year old cold case by cross examining a parrot and not immediately declare him our king.

_________________________________________

Werewolf--Sex:

On trial rn and my defense attorney seems to be lowkey flirting with the prosecutor and it's really killing the mood ngl.

________________________________________

Steelsamuraiass:

OP, your attorney is Phoenix Wright. He's been married to that Prosecutor for fifteen years. I even credits him for inspiring him to take up law in the first place.

_________________________________________

Werewolf--Sex:

Aw, that's actually really sweet.

_________________________________________

Engarde-Simp:

Didn't that guy once solve a fifteen year old cold case by cross examining a parrot?

_________________________________________

Werewolf--Sex:

What?

_________________________________________

Wrightworthkismesis:

Newbies discovering the pure insanity that is Phoenix Wright's career will never not be funny. Your trial is gonna be legendary.

_________________________________________

Engarde-Simp:

Did you really not do any research on your attorney before hiring him?

_________________________________________

Werewolf--Sex:

Doing research rn. This guy's career is insane. Listed in no particular order, my attorney, Phoenix Wright has apparently:

Needed to have evidence law explained to him mid-trial

Proven the existence of ghosts to win his trials(?????????)

Defended an orca in court.

Only lost three times in his entire career (absolutely fucking insane if you know how Japanifornia's legal system is. Tbh, defendants are screwed in our current system.)

Successfully proven that the prosecutor committed the crime his client was accused of by checking him with a metal detector.

Claims to have a magic necklace that can let him see lies??????

Was once nearly taken out by the mafia.

Once got impersonated by a dude with a cardboard badge.

Repeatedly been assaulted by witnesses and even prosecutors? Like, one of them straight up tazed him and he was once apparently whipped unconscious in court???

Survived getting hit by a speeding car and being sent flying, falling through a burning bridge, and all the times he got assaulted.

Also, that description of his relationship with the Prosecution really doesn't do any justice. Apparently, Phoenix only started practicing law so he could meet this man in court again.

Who gave this indestructible homosexual a law degree? He clearly has too much power.

_________________________________________

Sold-To-Gavinners:

Actually! Phoenix Wright is a fraud who got disbarred for forging evidence! I'd really appreciate it if we stopped ignoring all the bad things he did just because he's gay.

#anti-pw #freekristoph #antijurorsystem #anti-matt engarde

_________________________________________

Engarde-Simp:

Of all the Gavins, why'd you decide to simp for the one whose a creepy lawyer serial killer? The other one's the one with the band ya know.

_________________________________________

Sold-To-Gavinners:

Your name is literally Engarde-Simp.

_________________________________________

Wrightworthkismesis:

Wasn't Phoenix blackmailed into that trial and that's why he lost.

_________________________________________

Steelsamuraiass:

Yeah, apparently Matt hired an assassin to kidnap his girlfriend or something.

_________________________________________

Wrightworthkismesis:

_________________________________________

Steelsamuraiass:

Googled it. Apparently it was his co-council. They're just friends from what I can tell.

_________________________________________

Wrightworthkismesis:

_________________________________________

Warewolf--Sex:

Got declared not guilty btw. Apparently the real killer was the Judge.

_________________________________________

OfficialPWPost:

Official Phoenix Wright post.

[okartichoke]

ace avian. that’s what we’re calling this 🗣️🗣️🗣️

please let me know if you have any thoughts or suggestions or input or anything! i’m happy to bounce ideas around (i'll post DL-6 someday soon i swear)

link to masterpost || explations below cut

shoutout to the anon who sent in that ask bc i seriously fell in love with blue jay phoenix. SHOUTOUT TO TAKAHE PHOENIX TOO THO takahe phoenix, you will forever be in my heart and im glad you existed <3333,, (maybe in this au he’s got some loving adoptive takahe parents :3) (YKNOW WHAT YEAH that’s canon now)

but yeah, flight-avoidant jay phoenix still lends itself well to the common-man hardworking underdog vibe i want from him. speaking of flight-avoidant...

Phoenix's relationship with flying:

It's a bit complicated. Basically, Phoenix can fly, but he historically chooses not to. From the lack of any practice, he's an INCREDIBLY weak flier. (That hovering is really all he can manage)

For one, he's still afraid of heights. Can't help that. This fear means he was less inclined to practice flying, which made him a weaker flier. And being a weaker flier, in turn, made his fear of heights worse. And so on, in a loop. With flightless parents too (it's canon now it's canon), there's even less of a reason to learn to fly. At some point, not flying might've even become something he stuck with out of stubbornness lol, knowing Phoenix.

(I will soon be making a couple small world building posts, but) flying isn't necessary to get around in their society. Convenient, sure, but Phoenix realized he could make do without, and so he did. Phoenix, you icon. Slay. 💅💅

i know this probably isn't the popular take with wing AUs??, but Phoenix being flightless (or at least semi-flightless) sounded like a really fun take on the idea to me. His name is irony at its peak. I also look forward to exploring how other characters react to him not flying. The prosecutors are going to have so many cheap insult opportunities.

As I mentioned though, he still uses his wings a LOT, though. He's much more emotive with them than most people. His sarcastic inner-dialogue remarks are also betrayed by his wings lmao

I also imagine bird-folk never really invented bikes (riding would just be annoying with their wings, plus bikes aren't fast/efficient enough to outweigh just flying), so instead, Phoenix gets around on a little wing-powered scooter device (like scootaloo lol) (they're usually made for children who can't fly yet, but Phoenix still uses one)

finally, wow, stellar jay’s are quite literally just phoenix wright as a bird lmao? color scheme, hair, it’s uncanny. give it a pink tie and it just is Phoenix Wright, i used a blue jay since they’ve got a bit more striking wings but wow.

(ty again for the support and for reading my essay ! :3)

one more thing, but @kora-kat YES YES YES this. ^^^^ omg THIS. this is still true even though he's a jay now.

[veaspo]

Tim , Jeff , Ben (platonic) , Liu and Bloodypainter has a gf who wears false lashes damn near everyday and one day she doesnt have them and her bf is “oh em gee”

YEAH

CREEPYPASTAS X READER WHO ALWAYS WEARS FALSE EYELASHES

TIM WRIGHT / MASKY

-he thought the false eyelashes were your real ones

-one time you two were cuddling and you were ready to take your makeup off

-you took your eyelashes off while you were cuddling since you didnt need to get up to do that

-tim stared at you and his mouth was agape

-you were surprised he didn't pass out honestly

-he looked at your natural lashes and he honestly fell in love with you all over again

-he started hiding your lashes

JEFF WOODS / JEFF THE KILLER

-one time you two were play fighting

-and one of your eyelashes fell off

-he thought a spider fell off your face or something

-he was honestly so scared and jumped on the nearest surface

-you went with it being a "spider" and picked it up and started chasing him with it

BEN LAWMAN / BEN DROWNED

-you were sitting down, watching your bestfriend play zelda

-the eyelashes were irritating your eyes a bit (idk if they do that, im sorry😭) so you decided to take them off

-ben didn't notice so you had an idea

-you wanted to make him look like one of those cars that have the paper like eyelashes on the headlights

^^like this^^

-you had pinched the eyelashes together to make them look skinnyish

-to not scare him much you decided to put then under his eyebrow instead of his lid

-ben jumped and grabbed them to see what they were. when he noticed what they were he just looked at you in shock and went back to playing zelda

LIU WOODS / HOMICIDAL LIU

-liu was watching the process of you taking off your makeup

-he's never seen you put it on or take it off and he was curious to how it worked

-the first thing you did was take off your eyelashes, you could see his reaction in the mirror

-he thought you took your actual eyelashes off

-literally, he looked pale and he instantly grabbed your face to look at your eyes

-when he seen you had eyelashes still, the color slowly returned to his face

HELEN OTIS / BLOODY PAINTER

-he was painting you, he loved painting you

-the falsies kept getting in your eyes and it was uncomfortable

-"i'm sorry" you said as you quickly took your eyelashes off and then went back to your pose

-helen was speechless, he stared at you with wide eyes and his paintbrush was just hovering near the canvas

-he chuckled then raised his eyebrows and went back to painting

-he never really questioned it till after he finished, "why did you never tell me that you were eyelashes" he asked

- "i thought it was obvious" you said as you were smiling

--------

7 MORE REQUESTS LEFT TILL IM CAUGHT UP🙏🏼🙏🏼

[surging-eyes-seeing-through]

(Post DD Apollo hehehe) A lot has happened these past days but now that you've caught Clay's killer you could say its "finally over". Well, the case, at the very least but I think there's still plenty of things left out in the open. Like, how do you feel, now that that's been resolved? You barely had time to properly process or grieve your loss. Did Clay even have a funeral by now that you could attend? And is it odd to be back at the agency? Do you even feel like you're allowed to be there after everything that has happened? And what are your plans for now? Do you want to focus on healing (body and mind) or would you rather start working again? You've said you're not even sure if you're fit to be a lawyer anymore, do you still stand by that?

(sorry theses are a lot of question all at once but I just feel like...this is a -its over, but it's not- kind of situation, you feel me? love your account, pls take all the time you need to answer this 🙏)

"Yeah... the case concluding wasn't really the end, was it? I'd even say it feels worse, to not be constantly focusing on something, but... I'm still happy it's done."

"His... his funeral is next week. I know I need to go, for him and everyone else, but... I'm still having trouble processing it all. I feel like I'll panic and ruin it for everyone... I don't want that. I've been enough of a burden these past few days. I'll... I'll at least plan on going stargazing, where we used to do it together.... We were... planning to do it this weekend, and... I'm not standing him up, even if he's..."

"The Agency... I'm still on leave. Even if I wanted to work, Mr. Wright told me he wouldn't let me, not until I've taken time to rest. I'm not sure I'd be much help anyways, with a concussion and all the... emotional stuff I'm working through. And I know my apologies were accepted, but... I can't help but feel like everyone sort of hates me for what I did.

If I'm fit to be a lawyer... I guess I need to think on it. I mean, I don't want to give up my career, but... some introspection is due on my part. Maybe not now, though, my... thoughts are all scrambled, still."

//dw dw this part is literally the root of my hyperfixation i could write about it in and out of character for EONS, on god

[jotunvali02]

Playing Turnabout Goodbyes, last part

"The second bullet was never found."

Ah-ah-ah. No, no, baby.

"Tsk, tsk" as Von Karma would say.

FEE-FEE has the second bullet. It's the FIRST one that's cleverly hidden in front of everyone.

"Sorry, Maya. I was wrong."

OMFG... are you back at being stupid, even in court??

"Maybe the bullet HIT the murderer?"

Yeaaaaaah!! Congrats for Fee-Fee who needed again the intervention of a dead woman to help him figure shit out! 🥳

"Hey Nick. Remember what Grossberg said about Von Karma and his vacation shit?"

Maya, Maya... did you just find the culprit again??

My God, YOU should be a defense attorney! YOU deserve that fucking badge! Take it and scream "OBJECTION! I am the defense now!"

"I know Von Karma. Perhaps too well." My baby 😭💔

and here comes the metal detector, gracefully lent by Daddy Gumshoe!

"Mister Von Karma, get NAKED bitch!"

omg, that loud BEEP must have frozen Edgey's heart and all of his blood vessels.💔💔💔

"Who wouldv'e thought you'd dig your own grave trying to convict Edgeworth?" = "You touch my senpai, I destroy you, bitch."😊 #yanderefeefee

What kind of reaction must one have when the man you literally saw as a father for 15 years proudly admits he is the one who killed your real father and screams that he'll "bury you"?

After he managed to convince you a few minutes earlier that you had murdered your own father?

Anyone would have burst in screaming tears.

"It's all just a good memory"??? Maya, the FUCK??? did you forget-?? Nevermind.

"Larry? What happened now?" My thoughts exactly!! X)

"Wright, there are $38 in that enveloppe." "Yeah, so?" Omffffg,

PHOENIIIIIIIX !!!!

"Edgeworth?" "Hmm?" "I love you, baby." *kiss* "I'll murder Larry and I'll come back."😘

"Where does that leave me? I've become a defense attorney because of what you two did!!"

Wrong! Stop blaming others for your whimsy, shitty decisions, Feenie. It's not their fault if you're a lonely, emotionally-dependent and obesessive psychopath.

Oh, and Edgey and Larry agree with me!

"If I had known, I'd become a prosecutor!" Hmm, an AU prosecutor Fee-Fee, hey?🤔

"Same for me, only the other way around..." No, no, baby.😢 Don't be sad. "If I had known the truth, maybe I might have become a defense attorney." My baby!!😭😭😭

Feenie, hug him!! WTF are you waiting for??

And stop that fucking happy tune when my baby is obviously miserable inside!!!!

"Want to switch, Wright?"

Yes!! YES!!! Follow your dreams, baby!! 😭

Aaah?? Fee-Fee didn't answer!!!! 👀👀👀

Wai-wai-wait!! So while everyone was partying and drinking their ass off, Miles was still in detention? All alone?? More than likely crying and being sad and crushed inside??

"I couldn't help you. I was useless."

Shut up, Maya! THAT'S NOT TRUE!! You helped and you nailed it more than Phoenix!!

Yeah, not just with the bullet, Feenie. SHE also suggested out of the blue Von Karma might be the murderer while you had no clue he might be!

*gasp*?? Edgey got a hug from Daddy Gumshoe?😭 (at least, I fucking hope so! that's the least he needs!!!)

Huh? No trial for two months??

WTF did you do during that whole time, Phoenix? And just how did you pay your rents? Yeah, rentS, I suppose the Wright & Co offices aren't free to use!

*gasp*! I hope for your ass you spent them visiting and comforting your boyfriend! (in exchange for the paying of your rents, maybe? like you wanted?)

Also, when 9 years-old Miles felt unconscious, the two adults with him felt unsconcious too? Like, all the three of them, at the same time??

Either baby Miles had a prodigious endurance or the two adults with him were exceptionnally weak-bodied.

Or Takumi didn't think about sth basic as that so that Gregory's murder happens easily and smoothly. Cause bitch, HOW the fuck Yogi couldn't have recognized Von Karma then and why wouldn't have Gregory tried to defend himself? And HOW couldn't they have heard Von Karma screaming?

I've just realized that whole story of Greg's murder doesn't make any sense from the begining!

[lucero-is-here]

SPRINTS OVER, JUMPS OVER HURDLES, DOES A BACKFLIP AND LANDS ONTO A STAGE DRESSED LIKE JUSTIN LAWSON FOR SOME REASON

Ladies, gentlemen and folks! I am your host, Ronnie! But today, you will call me Jules. The star guests today are the dupont family! AS A WHOLE!

And here they are! And the baby.

Requested by:

NOW LET’S DO IT!

- Charles blows up his equipment every now and then

- Maddie tried an experiment with Charles once and it ended badly- the entire room dedicated as a lab exploded

- Charles and Maddie get ice cream together sometimes. They just go on little ice cream dates.

- If Charles was alive long enough to see George a lor, he would sing to George every single night without fail.

- Charles would be a male wife sometimes if he was alive

- Maddie has cursive and very messy handwriting-

- Charles’s hand writing is kind of neat, but also quite big.

- Charles is kind of bad with people.

- Maddie loves physical activity. She does a lot of exercise and is really strong, strong enough to lift up Charles.

- Maddie gets almost no sleep sometimes- she sleeps maximum 8 hours in a week. Then there is Charles always telling her to sleep more.

- Maddie can do backflip somehow. It always scares Charles for some reason because she does it out of the blue.

- Maddie usually wears high heels cause of her mom. She hates them.

- Charles wears loafers most of the time. He has this one pair of shoes he wears all the time because that’s how much he likes them.

- Maddie’s hands are a little rough from working and taking care of George, but she loves it and finds pride in them!

- Charles’s hands are almost always covered with some kind of smog from inventions. But he always washes them, and he’s really particular about hygiene too. He won’t let himself touch George or Maddie or anyone if his hands are dirty.

- Maddie loves strawberries- sometimes though, Charles says she looks like a cute strawberry cause of her hair and her freckles.

- Charles counts the freckles on Maddie’s face for fun sometimes. He absolutely loves it and finds it so fun for no reason.

- Maddie knit herself a hat to look like the green part of a strawberry. Sometimes, she puts it on and walks around screaming: “I’M A STRAWBERRY” for fun. She does it to scare people sometimes, but mostly to make people laugh.

- Charles has squishy cheeks, and Maddie loves to squish them. She just politely asks, before squishing his cheeks.

- when Charles eats, he looks like a hamster and it’s adorable.

- Maddie is like a crow. She kind of likes shiny things. “It sparkles it glitters it shines…I MUST HAVE IT FOR MY NEST,”

- Maddie made a blanket nest once. She wanted to keep it but Charles wanted to sleep and didn’t want to destroy the nest, so Maddie destroyed it and convinced Charles she is still happy without it so he could sleep.

- OH THESE TWO GO ALL PUT IN APRIL FOOLS DAY- THEY ARE PRANKING EVERYONE AND ANYONE IT IS HILARIOUS

- The both of them would share responsibilities for taking care of George if Charles was still alive.

- Baby George likes ducks.

- Maddie makes Arthur Wright babysit for her sometimes. “Yeah you need practice cause you’re gonna have a family too one day Chief. And I need to work so have fun,” was literally what she said one time. Though she usually would just carry George around when she works for the fun of it.

- Charles gives George little kisses. Maddie picked up George by the ankle one time and dangled him in the air (don’t worry no babies were harmed. In fact this baby was 5 years old when Maddie did that and he actually had fun. Do not dangle a baby in the air by the ankle that is dangerous)

- Charles and Maddie read before going to bed sometimes.

- George becomes an inventor in the future! Like his dad!

Okay that’s it. I’m done for now. If I think of more, part 2-

Someone breaks down the door. “OH COME ON- STOP CHASING ME I HAVE AUDIENCE! YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE PROOF I PUNCHED THAT JAUBERT GUY IN THE FACE!” Jules screamed before running off.

[cornertheculprit]

Zak: Well, the prelude may have been longer than the main attraction. Shall we begin our game? My final competition?

Phoenix: Final...? Why?

Zak: As you said, I have come out of hiding today to make this document legally binding. Once that is done, I shall slip once more underground.

Phoenix: ...Without seeing your daughter?

Zak: ...... It would be best if I did not. ...Seven years ago, we played. Seven years ago, I lost. I already lost to Magnifi. I do not care to lose to another. And I have heard that you never lose.

Phoenix: ...It's just a rumor.

Zak: Yes... for it is impossible to never lose. Unless one has an ace up one's sleeve.

Phoenix: ......

Zak: As a magician, it causes me no end of irritation. To think a mere lawyer might be out there, pulling the wool over so many eyes.

Phoenix: Hey... I just signed your document for you. Maybe you could try lightening up?

Zak: That was that. This is this. For my final competition, I will destroy your perfect record, Phoenix Wright. This... will be my final performance. You are warned.

Phoenix: (This guy is beyond serious... So much for a fun evening of cards.)

my brain has been rotating this exchange around like a rotisserie chicken in the microwave for the past few days and for the life of me i can't pinpoint WHY it's driving me up a wall in an insane way so i'm just going to write everything i think and hope to god i hit the nail on the head and scratch whatever itch this is causing.

there's something to me about how trucy was the one thing that gave zak pause while he was planning the trick to abandon her and how he still wears the locket of her around his neck and yet how he refuses to even see her even though she keeps a picture of his face hanging in her home and talks to it every day so she won't forget what he looks like and then the next time she hears about him (presumably from phoenix, because she knew about it by the time of turnabout succession) he's dead. and also something about how zak is a man who prioritizes his pride above all else and how he was vengeful enough to hire someone to plant a card on phoenix so that he could either a) break phoenix's seven year win streak himself or b) expose him for "cheating". he was so genuinely pissed about the fact that a "mere lawyer" (or ex-lawyer in this case) was "pulling the wool over so many eyes" in a way that he, a fully-fledged magician, could not that he would resort to his own form of trickery. it kind of mirrors what kristoph did with phoenix seven years earlier—getting someone else to "plant evidence on him" as it were. earlier in their meeting phoenix literally described him as "dangerous" and zak is literally making phoenix go "hey man...calm the fuck down. lighten up a little" in a way that reminds me of people trying to calm a spooked horse. the dialogue when you present the wrong thing to zak (when talking about thalassa) actually reinforces just how fucking SERIOUS zak was:

Zak: ...Let me be frank. It is true I do not wish to talk of her. And now, there is another I could care less about. ...You.

Phoenix: Ah.

Zak: Take care you do not end up "missing" yourself.

Phoenix: (For some reason, it's extra scary when magicians threaten me.)

and i mean he literally did hit olga with the bottle later when he got pissed again so. hm. maybe what's still driving me so insane about it is that it all comes back to the idea of "foolish pride." because remember when phoenix was talking about edgeworth in justice for all and he said "he clutched onto his foolish pride too fiercely... and died for it" and then remember when trucy asked phoenix if he was so sad about losing his badge because of his own "foolish pride" and phoenix says "yeah that's pretty accurate" and trucy says that zak used to talk about "foolish pride" all the time and in the end it's literally zak's foolish pride that got him killed. he TRULY resurfaced from hiding to pass on the gramarye rights yes but given the context of the situation i think it's safe to say that became an afterthought when he realized where phoenix was and what he was doing and that phoenix was living on the reputation of having a perfect record. and speaking of perfect records!!! how funny is it that phoenix gave edgeworth shit for his perfect record and then proceeded to live on one himself? something about edgeworth going "i will do anything to get my guilty verdict. anything." in aa1 and zak calling phoenix out on using trucy as the "ace up his sleeve" during big games and phoenix going "er... gotta use the resources at hand, i always say" because even though he doesn't do it OFTEN he IS doing anything he can to secure his win streak. he's already sickeningly good at poker obviously (just like edgeworth is already sickeningly good at prosecuting) but sometimes you just need that little extra oomph. an extra resource to use. and zak knows. and phoenix knows that zak knows. and maybe that's part of the reason why zak was so angry? not that he has any room to speak (HE IS ALSO DOING ANYTHING TO GET HIS WIN) but that IS his daughter getting used as a "resource" and phoenix reaping the benefits (little as they may be) with his win streak and maybe maybe maybe that win against him seven years ago was a fluke. maybe phoenix wright is nothing without his luck and trucy. but then the game is played and not only does phoenix discover the planted card he even manages to win the game. zak came out of hiding for nothing and was killed for it. phoenix takes the locket (whether it's before or after zak is killed is unclear—nonetheless, he takes it) and eventually tells trucy about the fact that zak is dead. that he didn't want to see her (maybe he doesn't tell her this—but trucy being trucy would realize it). that the reason he was there was to beat phoenix in a game of fucking cards no matter what he had to do. and eventually phoenix hands her the gramarye rights and tells her the second reason zak was there that night and that doesn't really make things better but it doesn't exactly make things worse either. it all comes back to foolish pride doesn't it. foolish pride foolish pride foolish pride!

[deputy-buck]

Miscellaneous Tag game

Thank you for makin this and tagging me Mar!!! @ronald-speirs

-

Favorite place in the world you’ve visited?

I haven't been many places at all, and all of the places I enjoyed are neighboring states (Florida, SC, Tennessee, Alabama.) so it's almost the same as being home. I'll say Alabama, went to a cliff that my parents, aunt, and uncles used to climb and camp at all the time, idk what it's actually called but they always called it Sand Rock (take a guess what the rock is primarily made of...) it was entirely untouched when they used to go, but now there's fucking campsites and a huge pavilion there, I hate it bc the pictures my parents took made the place look so perfect and secluded, no trash anywhere. Now there's a fucking dumpster with shit leaking out of it and stupid "Beware! Cliff!" signs everywhere like no shit there's a cliff its a rock wall you idiots-

Something you’re proud of yourself for?

.... girl idk- I guess I'm proud of how regardless of the circumstances, I always stick to my morals and principles. Thanks for that one, dad.

Favorite books?

Oh!!! Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!! hmm-

One Bullet Away - Nathaniel Fick. Probably my favorite of all time, it's so well and personally written, made me cry every time I read it.

Islands Of The Damned - R.V. Burgin. I love how simply he wrote it, like he really put his authentic self on those pages and didn't try to seem "more educated" than he was because he was just a little Texas boy and I loved that about him.

Those are really the only ones I can recall details from so I'll stick with those, but I did enjoy Helmet For My Pillow - Robert Leckie a lot, I read that in the truck while waiting for my brother to get out of class,. Generation Kill - Evan Wright was also good but it read so... grade-school-y, ya know?

My To Read list is:

With The Old Breed - Eugene Sledge. Started it but couldn't continue bc it seems like he's censoring himself a bit and IIIIIIII don't fuck with that, I'll power through it eventually though.

Red Platoon - Clinton Romesha. It's by a Medal Of Honor recipient from The Battle of Kamdesh, the only reason I haven't read it yet is bc i will sob about it for days after and I'm not ready for that.

My To Buy list is:

China Marine - Eugene Sledge. I WANT TO KNOW EVERY LITTLE DETAIL OF HIS TIME IN CHINA AFTER THE WAR-

(switching to non-war books oops)

Call Me By Your Name & Find Me - André Aciman. I just want to kill myself really, I want to hurt so bad that I never recover. Both are written in first person though and I hate that shit...

The Power Of The Dog - Thomas Savage. I watched the movie first and now I need to base my whole life off of these pieces of ART like fuckkkkkkkk.

Fellow Travelers - Thomas Mallon. Uhhhhhh yeah I want to submerge myself in this series entirely. Supposedly there's an ass ton of changes from in the series from the book, like Hawk being in the Army in the show and not the Navy like in the book, and I need to know if there are Seaman jokes-

Something that makes your heart happy when thinking about it?

Maizie 💚💚💚💚 my goofy goopy gooby girl 💚💚💚💚 my baby 💚💚💚💚 my sweet little bully girl 💚💚💚💚 the light of my life and the hindrance of my life-path 💚💚💚💚 the most stressful thing I've ever had to deal with day in and day out 💚💚💚💚

also cock. yeah that makes my heart happy too.

Favorite thing about your culture?

The MEN- okay I'll be serious. I'm not exactly sure what my culture is since Southern culture is Black culture (no I won't fight anyone on this unless you've been here, experience life here, and looked into literally any staple of Southern culture and seen that yeah 99% of it is rooted in Black history) and I'm.... Ghostly- I love the sense of community and the general easy-going but also absolutely chaotic feel you get everywhere you go. Like yeah I could get called "baby" and "sugar" and "honey" by the sweet old cashier, and then right when I walk out of the store I could suddenly be helping some stranger pack a deer with ice and have blood all over my hands and arms, the polarity of Southern-ness is great.

When did you join the HBO War fandom? What was the first show you watched?

I want to say two and a half years ago, not really sure though- Band of Brothers was my first watched it back to back like four times, then Gen Kill and watched that one probably four times back to back as well, then The Pacific like two or three times back to back, and now I'm suffering through MOTA.

Have you read any of Easy Company’s books? If so, which ones were your favorite?

I have not. I don't really want to either bc I don't want to realize all the inaccuracies of the show vs the true events. Like the little things, I don't want to watch the show with distain-

Favorite HBO War character and your favorite moment with them?

Oh fuck you Mar, I can't choose!!

BoB: I cannot choose, I can't. I love so many of them way too much that it hurts. Loved whenever Johnny yelled "BULL!!" like yes bestie I would scream his name too-

GK: Poke <3 whenever he was on screen was my favorite. I think his "and all the love in their hearts, from their wives and children. And all that hate, dog. All the hate it took to blow these motherfuckers away. It's destiny, dog! White Man's gotta rule the world!" and that was the first time we saw Doc smile too, love that for them. Alternatively whenever he looks at Brad with his shark-like smile, I would FOLD if he looked at me that way.

TP: SID AND YOU ALREADY KNOW THIS MAR FUCK I LOVE THAT BOY SO MUCH I NEED HIM SO BAD. When he tore Gene a new one about why they were the ones that made it back and not all those other guys, like yes put your boy in line-

MOTA: *crickets*

Do you make content for any fandoms, if so; what sort of content?

HBOwar: Sort of? Not as of late but I have written a few fics and made a few moodboards, can find all of them in my masterlist. I'm sorta working on some TP stuff but it's so hard for me to write for that while FT is consuming my every waking thought.

Fellow Travelers: HAHHAH I CAN'T STOP- Oh I've already made so many little webweaves and edits and a moodboard, and rn I'm working on a puppyplay fic hahah

UFC: I don't make content though I kinda wish I had when I was super-super into the fighters on a personally level lmao

Favorite actor/actress and your favorite film of theirs?

I don't have one, like there's not a specific actor/actress I've watched shitty film for. I usually enjoy Mads Mikkelsen in whatever he does, Jabob Pitts is also lovely, Anne Hathaway is my If I Was Straight actress

Favorite quote/s that you wish to share with others?

"Give what you get and don't complain when you get what you give."

Random fact your mutuals/followers don’t know about you?

Mm, I don't know, I'm always cold and I hate it and will never willingly live any further north than where I currently live, also no further west than Louisiana cause fuck Texas on a personal level

If you’re a writer, do you need a beta reader (say yes so I can be your beta reader 🤭)?

I don't know what a beta reader is please explain SOMEONE-

Three things that make you smile?

Actually being on a job site regardless of how anxious it makes me, I've spent way too long doing what I do from home and not being a part of the installation process.

Hearing other people laugh, idk why but hearing anyone laugh makes me smile.

These pictures of my goofy goopy gooby girl

Any nicknames you like?

Buck is a nickname and I love it cause it's so fucking HICK like ME

List some people you love to see around on tumblr!

@ronald-speirs !! even though like none of your posts from any of your blogs are showing up on my dash?? hate you tumblr-

@ableedingpen !! BRO I WANT TO KISS YOU YOU ARE SO FUCKING AWESOME TO SEE IN MY REPLIES LIKE I GET STUPIDLY EXCITED-

@corkyviolet !! your screencaps are so fucking good and I cry at all of your edits-

@verawhisk !! we don't post the same content anymore but I do still love to see you around, V you are the GOAT

What would you do during a zombie apocalypse?

Shoot myself. No joke, I don't want to deal with that.

Favorite movie?

uhhhhhhhhh, All Of Us Strangers ripped my heart out, not sure if it's my favorite though

Do you like horror movies?

No (sorry Mar) they never appealed to me, I prefer a documentary about real fucked up and gorey events-

Tagging: anyone!!! have fun y'all!!!

[mugeesworld]

Franky with a chubby partner head cannons!

Franky doesn't get posted about enough! I love Franky! And I think he would absolutely love a plus size partner so here we go! I didn't talk about y/n being chubby as much in this as I did in the luffy one. (That being said it still talks about it but i talked about it a bunch more in luffys) And the reason is I think Franky could care less and would see you as "normal" just like everyone else. I hope that makes sense. If you read both it might help??... Maybe

I randomly come back here and add any idea that pops in my head and that is fairly often. So this gets updated almost everyday!

NSFW / female y/n in mind

(Pegging is mentioned. If you don't like that skip over the part that starts with * and when you see it again it ends.)

Luffys part is on my page!

Franky grew up around kiwi and mozu so he definitely knows how to treat a lady. He sees them as little sisters and as the older brother he knows all about girl stuff.

He knows that beauty isn't just being skinny and that it comes in all shapes and sizes. And the two that raised him we're also plus sized. (Shout out to my girl kokoro. A plus size queen!)

Kiwi and Mozu definitely lectures him about stuff. Not only that but it hurt Franky to see the two of them struggle with their own insecurities and he was always there to tell them they were beautiful like a older brother does!

So Franky has never been the type the judge people based of weight. I personally think he would like a more plush partner. I can feel it in my nuggets.

He never sees size as a problem since he is tall and huge himself. Plus since he is so large I think he would like a little more to grab.

Let me explain.

Have you ever had a pillow or a stuffed animal that was really small and sorta awkward to sleep on or hold. But you have that favorite big pillow/plush that you could lay on and snuggle for day's. It's just more satisfying for him I think.

That being said franky wouldn’t only find you hot he would find you adorable. He would see you as both a goddess and a teddy bear that he wants to hug and never let go.

And not in a way that’s like one of those weird “compliments” that’s like “I bet you give the best hugs! You’re like a marshmallow I want to hug you” yeah no. He doesn’t want to in that way. At least not how that comment was interrupted

He would want to hug you and cherish you forever. Like how a kid has that one stuffed animal they’ve had since birth. Can’t imagine loosing it or leaving it behind.

When he first seen you he wanted nothing more then to throw you over his shoulder and take you. (Not in a yandere way)

His mouth would drop open and his face would blush a light tent of pink. Shocked at what’s in front of him. Stuttering over his words. Forgetting how to breath!

Scenario time!!!

Lets say you’re a ship wright that recently got a job at water 7 building ships.

You wipe your forehead as you finish hammering in a nail. “Finally done” putting the hammer down you decide to head to paulie to see what he needs done next.

In the mean time frankys out on his daily stroll around water 7 and decides to go mess with galley law cause way not. He makes his way over to the ship yard seeing paulie and heads towards him.

Just as you arrive next to paulie so does franky. “I’m done with the task you gave me paulie. Now what?”

Franky finally notices the goddess in front of him. “H-Holy smokes! What a pretty lady!”

Paulie lifts his head up from what he was currently working on sighing. “Franky I don’t have time for your crap today and…..y/n…. you really need to change clothes?! You shouldn’t be wearing something like that!”

You look at paulie confused “I’m literally wearing shorts and a tank top…. What the hell am I supposed to wear in this type of weather?"

"I say let the lady wear what she wants! YOW! Especially if it looks that good!"

Franky tilts down his glasses to get a better look. "Frankyyyyyy.... GET OUT!?"

And with that Franky scuries away leaving Paulie frustrated and you confused. Franky made a mental note to come back tomorrow to see you again... ;)

CUT 🎬

Franky loves to just sit back and watch you prance around the ship. The way you look so graceful and elegant. He can't put into words how much he enjoys watching your beautiful figure walk around.

He gets hit with straight serotonin just staring at you. He could do it all day. It makes him happy to know that that beautiful lady is his.

He would call you doll face or maybe even princess. But he always changes up with the names but he definitely has a few favorites.

He likes to catch you off guard when you're looking at something and come up behind you. Pulling you into his chest. Grabbing your waist and lifting your chin up to look at him. Sometimes to ask for a kiss or even just to tell you lunch is ready.

Or sometimes just to simply check in on what you're doing. And just stand there and watch curiously.

His love language is touch and acts of service. So if you give him a chance to do either of thoses he's on it!

Oh you're tired of walking? Hop on his shoulders for a ride. Your back hurts? He will massage you. If he hears you complain about anything even something like not being able to open a jar. He is on his way to his work shop to make a gadget just to help you.

He would love to just carry you around everywhere. Like how a queen/king is hoisted up on a chair and carried around. That's you the queen and Franky as the chair. He let you sit how ever you want. But I think his favorite way would be for your legs wrapped around his head on his shoulders. Or you sitting on one side of his head on his shoulder. Probably playing with his hair too.

And don't worry about hurting my guy. He's literal metal. You ain't hurting this man. SIT YOUR ASS DOWN. He offers you a seat on him when ever y'all walk. And if you twist your ankle he is grabbing you and putting you on his shoulder.

Imagine. You and Franky started dating recently. You haven't sat on his lap or shoulder yet and you are scared of hurting him even though he has said it won't hurt him and that you are a feather to him. While walking around a island he starts to notice you limping. He asks whats wrong and you respond saying you're fine you just twisted your ankle and it's sore.

Boom light bulb. He knows you're not gonna like what he's about to do but he decides it for the best even if it gets him punched in the head. He picks you up putting you on his shoulders and keeps walking. You start to protest and ask to be put down scared that you are to heavy but he reassures you you're fine. For the rest of the day you spent the day on his shoulders exploring the island until you could go back to the ship to let chopper check you out.....

Literally about to cry ｡･ﾟﾟ*(>д<)*ﾟﾟ･｡ that's so wholesome. I'm literally kicking my feet in the air right now twirling my hair!

He you get tired of him carrying you and decide to walk he will offer you his hand. He loves just touching you in any way. Little stuf like that means the world to him. So wholesome! 😭

He likes having you in his lap. With the size difference it's like he is sealing you away from any bad thing that might try to hurt you. He wants to keep you safe. And the only way to make sure you are 100% safe is when you are in his lap.

He loves when you come in his Workshop to see what he's up too. He could talk to you for hours about what he is working on while you're resting on his lap.

Literally anywhere he likes doing it. He don't care! He will rest his head on top of yours and pull you closer to him wrapping his arms around you.

Or if your legs are wrapped around him and your facing him. He gets so flustered if you pepper is face with kisses. He loves having you hold his face and just smooch his face all over. Especially if you wear lipstick and it leaves marks.

This man is the last person to get embarrassed.

I can picture him holding you in one arm carrying you to y'alls room cause you fell asleep in his workshop while he was working. He didn't realize till he heard soft snores while talking about his latest work.

He would loveeee to cuddle. Having you rest on his chest or having you on top of him is so comforting.

He knows the exact feeling of having you lay on him and if you move he will wake up immediately and ask where you're going. And then wait for you to get back.

That being said his chest is hard cause its metal. He would definitely have a way to change out his chest plate or something so it's soft. Just for you.

When it comes to his favorite parts of you like tits or ass. He genuinely can't decide. He loves all of you. He loves to grab and grope every inch.

Now keep in mind this man is a machine. The options for down there are endless.( He can still feel pleasure tho)

Let me explain. Franky loves to pleasure you. And he is not at all scared of toys. He encourages them tbh. He loves to build new ones knowing he will test them on you later that night.....

Franky would find every little thing that turns you on. Would know every inch of your body and know exactly how to please you. He is a master pupitier when it comes to your body.

He gets pleasure giving you pleasure. Doesn't matter what way.

He would even modify his body for you if you were comfortable with it. Like his tongue... Or.... Ya know 😉

This guy's is open to anything. If you want to try it he's down. Doesn't matter even if he thinks he might not like it. He will try it just cause it turns you on. If he doesn't like it boom he will make a gadget to try and satisfy that kink for you.

*

Now let's get into some more kinky type stuff.

One word

Pegging (don't like? Don't read it!)

I think he would dig it. He looks like the type of guy that would be comfortable with his lady taking charge. I get no toxic masculinity vibes from him.

Especially if he can't feel pleasure in his front half then definitely. Cause he said only his front was cyborg. (Pre skip)

He would help design a strap that both you and him would enjoy.

If y'all did try it and he enjoyed it he would definitely tell someone whether it's the crew or a stranger. "Aw yeah! It was amazing! 10/10 would recommend!"

Leaving you embarrassed and everyone else confused and grossed out.

*

Definitely a soft pleasure dom or switch.

Wouldn't admit it but likes being teased. Seeing you tease during sex makes him weak making him stutter.

And if you are the type to take charge and say not to touch you while you are he will listen or try too. He respects you and will listen to your every command.

He lovesss to see you on top riding. The few it's self puts him in a daze. He will let you do your own thin but he also likes grabbing your waist and pulling you down while he moves his hips up. Another reason is cause when y'all are finished you can just collapse right on top of him and cuddle.

If he's in charge tho..... He would not stop till you are a moaning mumbling mess from overstimulation and pleasure. (If you consent to that much)

He loves to hear you moan. Letting him know he's doing a good job. Definitely has a praise kink.

Loves when you play with his hair.

He always checks in with you during to make sure it's not to much or if he's moving to fast for you. Always has a safe word for you.

The only thing I think he wouldn't want to do is the basic gross stuff. (Vomit, number 1 and 2) and stuff that might hurt you. Like genuinely hurt you. Like knifes or hitting you hard hard. Spanking is fine though. He probably like that😼

[chocopinda]

10 films I love

tagged by sweet @zurdoabsurdo I'm so sorry for being so late :')

I gave it a lot of thought and in the end only the first few are big big favourites, the others are just films I've seen recently or remember enjoying otherwise I'll be thinking about this forever.

Parasite (2019). I only saw this somewhere last year but from that point on I've already had multiple friends watch it with me, it's so fun and every time I watch it I swear I notice new things. I love the plot and the way it balances it's more serious tones with the comedic ones. Big big big love for Parasite.

Snatch (2000). This and Parasite honestly share a number 1 spot together, this has been my favourite film since I was 15 or so I think. It's just so stupidly fun, there's not a single second I've been bored while watching it. It's my ultimate comfort film. Just as with Parasite, it manages to be funny but still has a few more serious moments. Soundtrack has Angel by Massive Attack so that's a good bonus too.

Hot Fuzz (2009). Another big comfort film! Though I pretty much enjoy anything that Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and/or Edgar Wright are involved in. I love the dumb humor and the town it takes place in reminds me of my own sometimes, which makes the experience so much better.

Shaun of the Dead (2004). The only reason this one is below Hot Fuzz is because of the latter's town residents. Also I just enjoy police/crime/cult stories more than apocalypse ones. World's end isn't on here because I still have not completed watching the Cornetto Trilogy.

Donnie Darko (2001). Love me a film where literally everyone (at least kind of) sucks. Gotta be one of my favourite genres. So many theories as to what the film's various scenes and ending mean and represent. Anyway, 28 days left!

Fargo (1996). Again, love me some crime in my entertainment. So strangely endearing at times for a film that's described as a thriller though, the police woman and her artist husband have completely stolen my heart when I watched it.

Midsommar (2019). Very very pretty and visually interesting film, I love all the art on the walls and the little runes embroidered in the dresses. I'm a person that's easily swayed by pretty visuals and even more so if that includes flowers/florals. So I really enjoy the costumes and aesthetic, go figure.

Call Me By Your Name (2017). Most interesting to me is the fact that it's about a temporary love, I don't feel I've seen that often without the film ending in the couple getting together at the end despite all odds or something. And to me the 'temporary' relationships/situationships/whatever you want to label or name it, are just as valuable and worth telling stories about. So I'm glad I could find that in this film, plus the pretty scenery that remind me of going on vacations as a kid.

Pulp Fiction (1994). Yeah yeah my taste is boring I know, I just like my crime drama's. Also, I want to kiss Mia Wallace.

Django Unchained (2012). Banger soundtrack with the exception of one song that felt very out of place. Again a serious film with a funny side. Western costumes drive me absolutely wild.

Anyway, tagging @nachitoesmuybonito , @jasonsnowwhitebrody , @kettleghost , @bluewaterlily , and I don't know anyone else right now that I haven't seen tagged already. Sorry in advance if it turns out you did already get tagged before :') As per usual, don't feel pressured to participate.

[azuramarigold]

The Found Turnabout Ch2

Series Summary: When Apollo Justice was literally shipped off from Khura'in back to his native country in America, he had issues from bouncing from foster home to foster home - that is until one day in the courthouse he met Phoenix Wright at the age of twelve years old. With a new found family and starting to learn the legal ropes early, Apollo joins Phoenix Wright on some of the earlier cases and the downfalls.

Chapter Summary: Apollo goes to his first official foster home - at first things seem to all fine and dandy, but things take a dark turn.

AO3 CH1

Chapter 2: Foster Home #1 – The Rodriguez’s

It’s been three days since staying in Aria’s home.

Apollo was adjusting to America a little better with the noise at night, he much rather it be silent though. Every night he was still crying about missing his home in Khuar’in, but he just had to remember to say what Dhurke always told him.

“You’re Apollo Justice, and you’re fine.”

I’m Apollo Justice and I’m fine.

I’m fine.

“Apollo, dearie,” Aria called from the living room.

Apollo was just sitting in the bedroom he was given, reading a book. Despite being from Khura’in, English was a secondary language. He learned how to read and write English very well along with Khura’inese. When he spoke English, he had an accent from Khura’in, so sometimes it was hard for Aria to understand him with certain words.

So, Apollo did as he was told. He ran into the living room, both cats following close behind his heels. When he saw who else was in the living room he stopped dead in his tracks, one of the cats running into his leg.

“Heya, pal!” the scruffy detective from the precinct called out to him with a wave. He was still friendly like before, but Apollo had an uneasy feeling.

“Hap’piraki,” Apollo greeted, his voice weary. “What are you doing here, Detective Gumshoe?”

Gumshoe then held up some paperwork. “We officially have a foster family for you stay with, kid,” he announced with a smile. “They’re willing to take on another kid.”

Apollo felt his heart drop. He liked it here.

“Why can’t I stay with Aria?” he demanded, his voice starting to get louder.

Gumshoe shook his head sadly. “Sorry, pal, she’s a temp,” he got up from the couch with a grunt. “She only takes on a kid for a couple of days to at most two weeks until we can arrange the more permanent solution.”

“Apollo,” Aria gently said, her voice soft. “This family has a couple of kids your age, you’ll have fun with them.”

“You’re like, what, nine years old?” Gumshoe commented. “That’s what a translator at the precinct got out of your birth certificate. We can tell it’s not your official one, but it was an official one for the country.”

Apollo pouted as he crossed his arms, his bracelet uncomfortably burying itself into his skin. “Yeah, I’m nine, so what of it?” he huffed.

Gumshoe just sighed, “You’re just too young to grasp everything right now.” He then turned over to Aria. “Sorry ma’am, about this. I know you go through this a lot.”

Aria then approached Apollo, “Come on dearie,” she whispered. “Let’s get a bag packed for you…”

“But…!” Apollo tried to object.

“Please, Apollo.” Aria’s voice soft, but stern.

He did as he was told. Aria Commons was the nicest woman he had ever met, she had opened her home to him. Apollo wondered if his own mother had ever been that kind to him at one point in his life.

Once in the bedroom he had been staying in, Aria pulled out a small suitcase that was in the closet, Apollo noticing there were multiple ones inside.

How many other kids has she done this for…?

Aria began packing some of the more common clothes that Apollo had been fond of; these included some jeans, red sweatshirts, white t-shirts, and a pair of red/white sneakers that were recently purchased for him. The small bag of toiletries was also placed in the bag as well, that had his red toothbrush, toothpaste, and shampoo and bodywash.

“I have a question, Aria,” Apollo then said.

“Yes, dearie?”

“How’d you know I liked red?”

She gave him a smile. “You just seemed to gravitate toward it,” she replied. “Did you know in Greek mythology the god Apollo’s color is actually pure white?”

Apollo scrunched up his nose. “I don’t like white that much,” he said simply.

“You coordinate it with your red though, I notice.”

“Apollo is also the god of music, archery, poetry, and the sun – I bet you knew that.” Aria winked at him. “I’ve seen you read all the books here in the house, because I have a few on mythology.”

Apollo gave a laugh, “I was told my parents were travelling musicians… I’m not good at music. They named me the wrong thing.” He knew she was trying to make a light conversation while packing, just trying to make him feel more comfortable while this was going on.

On the very top of the suitcase, she then placed the book that Apollo was currently reading – a law book introducing someone to defense law. It was something that he had asked Aria to buy for him when she out on the town the other day.

“It looks like you’re already halfway through this, huh?” Aria commented when she zipped the suitcase, seeing the bookmark in the book.

Apollo beamed, his smile large, “Of course!”

“You were serious about becoming a Defense Attorney, weren’t you?” she then asked him.

“Of course, I am!” he stated proudly.

It was then he realized that his measly possessions were all packed away in that suitcase. Now it felt more real that he was leaving the house. He didn’t want to leave.

How many people are gonna just set me aside?

Aria then held out her hand for Apollo to take, which he did gently. She gripped his hand tightly, as they left the room, her rolling his newly obtained and packed suitcase behind him. With each step, his heart grew heavier and heavier, as if stones were being placed inside.

Blood roared in his ears – he couldn’t hear the conversation between the detective and Aria at this point. All her heard was just a constant pounding.

He took a deep breath.

I’m fine… I’m fine… I’m fine…

It was then Aria dropped to her knees and gave Apollo a hug, her crushing him into her.

“You be safe out there, okay, dearie?” she whispered in his ear. “I’m sure one day we’ll meet again. Be good.”

Tears threaten to sting his eyes, but Apollo couldn’t allow that. He forced himself to take a deep breath, but no words came out. Instead, he just nodded against her shoulder.

“Alright, kid,” Gumshoe called out. “Let’s get ya to the new place.”

Apollo practically felt himself prying out of Aria’s arms as he took his suitcase and followed Gumshoe out of the house and to the police car. Gumshoe loaded the suitcase into the trunk and opened the back passenger door for Apollo, and with a glance behind him Aria gestured to him that it was okay for him to enter. Just entering the police vehicle made his stomach churn. He hated being in any type of car.

The passenger door closes, just as Apollo saw Aria sadly waving “goodbye” to him. He managed to wave back before the tinted windows obscured his vision.

Apollo buckled himself in, him remembering from the few times he had been in Aria’s coupe. He took a deep breath, bracing himself.

The scruffy detective started the police car, the sirens silent and no lights on, and he pulled away from the small house that Apollo was growing attached to. As the house began to become a dot in the distance, Gumshoe picked up speed as he left the residential area and was approaching entryway to the freeway.

Apollo’s stomach churned and his face flushed, he had to try to control his breathing by breathing through his nose and out his mouth. The few times in Aria’s car he had vomited, the motions of the vehicle were just too much for him. Even the one time they took a bus together he felt very sick; however, when they took a train to a bigger brand clothing store for something it was a much smoother ride.

“You’ll like this place, pal,” Gumshoe piped up, seemingly trying to make conversation. “This couple have two other foster kids – both boys ‘round your age, like ten and eleven I think.”

Apollo glanced out the window, barely seeing his own reflection as the other cars race by. He didn’t really care about being around other kids, it was always him and Nahyuta anyway; even though the two were not related by blood, they were close like brothers.

The scruffy detective then pulled the patrol car off the exit ramp of the freeway, but he did it with such a sharp velocity that Apollo couldn’t control his breathing anymore. He finally vomited on the floor of the patrol car, his hacking catching the eye of the detective in the rearview mirror.

“Ah!” Gumshoe yelped. “Really, kid? Ya couldn’t have told me so I can pull over?!”

“… sorry…” Apollo groaned pathetically. “I get car sick…”

Gumshoe just sighed, “I guess it can’t be helped…”

After another twenty minutes of driving, the detective finally arrived in front of large two-story home. As soon as he had stopped the car, Apollo immediately jumped out of the patrol car and proceeded to vomit once again near the tire; he felt bad for doing it in the car the first time, so he really wanted to make sure it was done outside so Gumshoe didn’t have any more to clean up than necessary.

Apollo felt a large hand on his back, it almost felt like a gentle patting. After his retching he was then handed a napkin and a bottle of water from the front seat of the patrol car by the detective. The young boy managed to utter a thanks as he wiped his mouth and chugged the water empty.

The scruffy detective popped open the trunk and grabbed Apollo’s single suitcase and rolled it to him. “Ya ready?” he asked gently.

“No…” Apollo muttered, wiping his chin from the dribble of water.

Gumshoe gave him almost a… pitiful look. “Hey, pal, I know you’re upset,” he began. “But ya gotta give this family a chance, okay?”

He has a point…

Breathe in. Breathe out.

I am Apollo Justice and I am fine.

Apollo then grasped the handle of his suitcase and started to follow Gumshoe up the path to the door of the large home. Each step felt heavier, despite his suitcase being pitifully light. Blood roared in his ears again, just like when he had to leave Aria’s house.

What if they don’t like me…? What if I get sent away again?

They were finally at the door and Gumshoe rang the doorbell. A lovely chime was loud enough to be heard from the outside. There was barking coming from the inside, which made Apollo jump; he wasn’t a big fan of dogs.

The door opened and a tall, well-built man with deep tanned skin, jet black hair, the darkest brown eyes Apollo had ever seen, and wearing a business suit that was pure gray with a black tie had answered the door. The silver glasses that framed his face looked from the detective to Apollo with a look of confusion.

“Good afternoon, sir!” Gumshoe greeted enthusiastically. “I’m Detective Dick Gumshoe, we spoke earlier on the phone. This is the Rodriguez household, right?”

The man once again glanced between Gumshoe and Apollo. “Yes… this is the home…” he answered slowly. “I thought you said you were bringing a child that was from Khura’in?”

It was Gumshoe’s turn to look confused. “Um… I did sir…?” he puzzledly replied. “This is Apollo Justice, nine years old. The precinct had sent you guys all the paperwork a couple of days ago with his info and picture…”

The man rolled his eyes. “My wife handles all of that,” he gruffly stated. “She just told me there was a kid coming from Khura’in.”

Apollo couldn’t take it anymore. He pulled on Gumshoe’s tan coat with his free hand to usher him down. When Gumshoe did bend that was when Apollo started talking in Khura’inese, just loud enough for Mr. Rodriguez to hear.

“Pal, ya know I don’t understand what you’re saying… right?” Gumshoe grumbled, him facepalming himself.

“Does he even speak English?” Mr. Rodriguez snapped angrily.

“I do,” Apollo answered, him with his Khura’inese accent.

Mr. Rodriguez glared at him. “Then why were you not speaking it earlier?” he demanded, clearly annoyed.

Apollo shrugged. “Ya didn’t ask, pal,” he retorted, a smirk on his face. He heard Gumshoe try to stifle a chuckle.

Before Mr. Rodriguez could even reply to the child, a voice from inside called, “Dear, is that the detective at the door?” A moment later a woman with caramel colored skin and copper tinted hair came to the door, her eyes the color of an almond and large like a doe’s. A pink apron was tied around her waist, covering her white skirt and blue blouse. “Ah! It is you!” she cheerfully squealed. She then glanced down and saw Apollo and she beamed a lovely smile. “And you must be Apollo!”

“Yes, I am, ma’am,” Apollo replied respectfully. “Hap’piraki,” he then greeted.

The woman giggled, “Aren’t you so polite!” There was a scoff from Mr. Rodriguez. “And you have such a cute accent!”

Apollo furrowed his face in frustration at that comment.

“I’m Luciana Rodriguez,” she then introduced. “You can call me ‘Lucy’ though, the other boys do.” She then grabbed Apollo’s suitcase and handed it to her husband. “Honey, take this to the room that Apollo is going to be staying it.”

“But-” Mr. Rodriguez tried to object, but his wife just ushered him away inside the house.

Lucy then shook Gumshoe’s hand. “Thank you, Detective. Hopefully you’ll get out of the slump and be back on the homicide cases soon!” she said gleefully.

“Uh… sure…” Gumshoe replied, not entirely sure what to make of that comment. He then handed Apollo a small business card. “Here ya go, kid. If ya need anything just call, alright?”

Apollo graciously took the card and put it in his red jacket pocket. He had a feeling maybe one day he’ll need it.

Lucy then led Apollo inside the large foyer, him seeing above him a crystal chandelier that sparkled in the sunlight that shone through the large window that was above the door. The dog that he had heard earlier had come running down the large marble stairs that were to his left, the creature being a large and yellow with brown eyes; the dog had jumped on him, startling him with a yelp, and began to try to lick his face.

“Looks like our dog, Cosmo, already likes you, Apollo!” Lucy beamed, her smile large. “It’s adorable too! His name is ‘Cosmo’ and you’re ‘Apollo’, all space themed!”

“My name is Greek… like the Greek god of the sun ‘Apollo’,” the boy tried to explain, him trying to push the dog off him. He was already not a fan of the thing. He much preferred the quiet cats that Aria had.

I miss Aria…

“If you’re name is Greek then how come you’re not a foreign kid from Greece?” Mr. Rodriguez’s condescending tone piped up as he walked down the stairs. His wife gave him a glare, but he ignored her. “I was told we were getting a kid from Khura’in, wouldn’t you be Khrua’inese which is Asian?”

Apollo deadpanned, “That’s very rude.”

Lucy didn’t miss a beat, “Emilio!” she chastised. Apollo made note that “Emilio” was Mr. Rodriguez’s first name. “Does that really matter?” she exasperated.

“He could be lying,” Emilio replied simply.

“I don’t lie,” Apollo glowered, his tone going up in volume. He was starting to get loud again. He instinctively rubbed his bracelet that was on his left wrist with his right hand, in a way it helped him calm down.

Inside voice… that’s what Aria told me to try to remember…

Lucy could tell Apollo was getting upset and she took his hand. “Let me get you to your room so you can unpack, okay?” she softly said to him. The boy nods as they headed up the stairs. A scoff and a huff were heard from the bottom of the stairs by Emilio.

The second floor had lovely dark wood flooring in the hallway, four doors to his right. The end of the hallway looked like it turned more to the right so it could go deeper into the home.

“Your room is the third one down,” Lucy told him. “The very end room is the bathroom you boys will share.” She then led and opened the door to Apollo’s new room.

The room was easily double the size of the one he had at Aria’s. It had a double bed that was completely white with its bedding next to the door where the light switch was, his suitcase laid on top. There wasn’t a window in the room, but there was a large television that was turned on that emulated outside with birds chirping and the sound of rainfall. Underneath the television was a desk and chair, it had a few notebooks and pencils neatly placed in the center. A dark oak colored dresser was on the east wall, it had six drawers – all completely empty Apollo noticed when he opened them – and at the top was a few books in regards to math and science.

The room was also bare, the walls completely white and blank. There were no shelves, no posters – just a solid emptiness a void of all emotion. The floor was still the same dark flooring as the hallway, not even a rug to fill the large empty space.

It just felt too empty. Apollo didn’t like that.

“How do you like it, Apollo?” Lucy asked him. “We of course will go shopping to get you a few things and a new bed set to something you like.”

“It’s… nice,” Apollo offered, giving her a weak smile. He then went to his suitcase and began to unpack his bag. The first thing on top was the defense law book that Aria had bought him – that cover a pale yellow with a picture of a rhino in a suit pointing to something off the cover.

“Defense Law…?” Lucy asked quizzically. “Why would a nine-year-old be reading about defense law?”

Apollo had jumped. He didn’t realize she was reading over his shoulder. “I want to be a defense attorney when I grow up…” he explained.

To his surprise, Lucy laughed. She laughed in hysterics. “A defense attorney?” she bellowed. “You realize they don’t make any money, right? They’re always trying to make sure criminals are walking our streets!” She had the look of distain in her eyes. “You would actually try to make sure a murderer was let off the hook to be with us regular people and kill again?”

Apollo tried to shake his head in disagreement. “No… no, that’s not what-”

“If you really want to be a lawyer,” she continued, her face flushed from laughter. “I suggest being a Prosecutor.”

            He felt crestfallen, his hair drooping. He felt the book being taken away from him with force. “H-hey!” he yelped. “Please… that’s mine! My first foster father… he was defense attorney back in Khura’in…”

            Lucy again laughed. “And…?” she questioned; her voice almost now snarky. It was almost like her personality did a complete 180, her now so… cold. “From what I’ve read about that kingdom is that they loathe defense attorneys and if they lose the trial the criminal and themselves are jailed or executed.” She then gave a shrug. “Seems fair to me.”

            Apollo just couldn’t believe it. The book was more special than he first thought. It was not only because he wanted to become a Defense Attorney, but because Aria bought it for him.

            Just as quickly as the iciness crept into her, the sunniness came back out. Lucy clapped her right hand into the book cheerfully. “Anyway! Please unpack your things! Dinner shall be ready in about an hour!” now it seemed like her voice was overly sweet like honey, like it was fake.

            Lucy then left his room as he began unpacking the rest of his pitiful items. It didn’t take long for him to do, his little bit of clothes only fit in one drawer. His toiletries he just kept on the desk until it was time to brush his teeth later. Now, he seemed bored because now he didn’t even have his book to read.

            “So, you must be the new kid, huh?” a rough voice asked from the doorway. Apollo looked up from the desk as he was messing with a notebook to see a kid that was a little older than him - most likely the eleven-year-old that Gumshoe mentioned - that was African American with milk chocolate skin with equally colored eyes and his hair as black as raven feathers that was in a Twists hairstyle. He was wearing a yellow basketball jersey and purple basketball shorts, and white high-top sneakers covering his ankles with a popular brand in red on the side.

            “Uh… yeah…” Apollo replied weakly. “My name is Apollo… Apollo Justice.”

            “Tyler,” the other boy replied. “Tyler Jones.” He then glanced around the room. “I’m guessing you’re new to the whole ‘foster’ thing, cause you ain’t got shit.”

            Apollo’s eyes widened. “You shouldn’t be cussing…” he whispered. He then muttered something in Khura’inese. He knew a few cuss words in the language, and when he or Nahyuta accidentally uttered even one of them in front of Dhurke or even when Datz, Dhurke’s friend and right-hand man when it came to their group, was around there was hell to pay. Apollo shuddered internally at the thought.

            Tyler gave a shrug. “Eh, what those two assholes gonna do?” he snapped. “Send me off? Wouldn’t be the first time.”

            Another boy the popped his head from around the doorframe, who looked a lot meeker. He was blonde with pale skin, his eyes green like the grass in a meadow. The top part of a purple shirt could be seen. “The new kid is right, Tyler… lay off the cussing for a bit…” his voice was very feathery. “Emilio washed your mouth with soap last week, remember?”

            Tyler jolted. “That stuff was nasty!” He then straightened up. “You’re right though… I can’t afford to get kicked out right now… This is my second home and Lucy said I can go for the basketball team at the school.”

            “Basket… ball?” Apollo echoed, clearly confused.

            The meek boy came into full view form the doorway, revealing he was wearing jeans and white tennis shoes. “You have a strange accent…” he commented. “Do you not have basketball where you’re from?

            Tyler looked completely shocked. “How do you not have basketball!? Next, you’re gonna tell me you don’t have lacrosse or football too!”

            Apollo gave a blank stare.

            The meek boy whispered to Tyler, “I don’t think he does…”

            “Dude!” Tyler screeched. “Where the hell are you from!? MARS!?

            “Khura’in,” Apollo replied with a shrug. “Also, ‘Apollo’ in planet terms is associated with Sun Mercury.”

            Tyler looked back at the meek blonde. “Sam, is this kid fricken serious?!” he then shouted, him nearly going into hysterics.

            The meek blonde, Sam, nodded, “He is correct about the ‘Apollo’ thing in Greek mythology.”

            Tyler deadpanned, “I meant about the lack of sports in that Cure whatever place…”

            “We have bike riding,” Apollo offered. “And we also have archery…” He was considered okay at archery, which was funny due to his namesake; A few times Dhurke took him and Nahyuta hunting for chickens for the rare occasion of meat, and it was usually him and Dhurke that got the kill.

            Tyler then sighed in exasperation, “Whatever, man.” He then grabbed Apollo by the arm. “Welcome to the Hellhole known as the Rodriguez House, new brother.”

**

Tyler and Sam showed Apollo around the house, the dog Cosmo following close at their heels.

            The house was abnormally large on the inside; it seemed way too big for a family of five and one dog to live in. Despite the boys each having their own room and sharing one large bathroom, there was still Emilio and Lucy’s master bedroom and bathroom with an additional four bedrooms and three bathrooms in the house. There was also a game room, complete with a pool table and foosball table.

            “We can pretty much do anything we want here,” Tyler practically bragged during the tour.

            The kitchen put five-star restaurants to shame. It was all stainless steel, and it seemed like it had the newest appliances on the market. There were three cooks in there along with Lucy, busily cooking and baking. For the most part, Lucy was clean and was barely doing anything, she was just sipping a glass of wine.

            When Sam showed Apollo the backyard, the boy could barely tell that it was a residential backyard. It seemed like it was an outdoor bar, a full bar with every type of alcohol you could imagine stocked to the brim behind the counter. The pool was glittering like crystals, and of course there was a spot to swim up to the bar, and the pool had its own rock enclosure and waterfall.

            I know where I am not going.

            “Do you have a swimsuit?” Sam asked happily, his eyes beaming. “The pool is heated and everything! It is so much fun!”

            “I don’t swim,” Apollo replied quickly, almost too quickly, his hands up defensively.

            The memory of him and Nahyuta being swept up in the river almost engulfed him, just like the fast current that almost took them. It was a stupid mistake the two made thinking they could handle jumping on the rocks, but they both slipped and fell. The current was too strong, and as Apollo thought he was going to slip under the water with his flailing arms desperately trying to reach shore, Dhurke had grabbed him and Nahyuta just in time.

            Breathe in. Breathe out.

            “Okay,” Sam just said. “No big deal.”

            Tyler then clapped his hands, “Oh!” he shouted. “There is only one place we can’t go in the house!”

            “The basement,” Sam finished, his voice almost trembling. “It’s where Emilio does a lot of his work, so it’s private and he doesn’t want us kids bugging him.”

            Tyler rolled his eyes. “Guy’s a prick, but he makes all the money to afford it here.”

            Apollo was curious at that. “What does he do…?” he arched an eyebrow.

            Tyler shrugged. “I have no idea,” he honestly said. “Every time I ask, I get yelled at.”

            Before Apollo could ask more a voice, belonging to Lucy, called out, “Boys, dinner is ready!”

            “Finally!” Tyler bellowed out, hands on his stomach. “I was withering away!” He then grabbed Apollo by the arm. “Come on, Apollo, you’ll love the food here!”

            The table that he was seated at was big enough that Apollo thought it could put the Khura’in Royal family’s dining area to shame – not that he had ever been there himself, but he had seen pictures. He had sat next to Sam, who sat next Tyler, all three boys having a plate with prime rib with a baked potato that was stuffed to the brim with all the fixings and a side of grilled asparagus with butter and sea salt.

            Lucy and Emilio were at the very end of the table, both eating and chatting lightly. Lucy, of course, was still drinking her wine that Apollo had seen earlier. Alcohol was a thing in Khura’in, he has seen Dhurke and Datz drink once in a while, but it wasn’t a major occurrence, and it was a peach sake that him and Nahyuta snuck a sip once.

            And Dhurke was super angry while Datz laughed.

            As everyone ate, Apollo moved the food around on the plate. Since arriving in America he still had mainly a vegetable based diet like back in Khura’in. Even when Aria had made him the hamburgers his first night, he felt horrible stomach pain as he was not used to beef. Slowly, he ate the asparagus, which was honestly the best he has ever ate, as it cut with his fork so simply and effortlessly.

            “Do you not like the food?” Emilio barked angrily.

            Apollo jumped at the sudden noise, even Sam did as well. “Um… I don’t usually eat meat…” the brunette tried to explain, his face flushing red in embarrassment.

            “Who the hell doesn’t eat meat!?” Emilio sounded super exasperated. He glared at his wife. “You had to pick the broken kid, huh?” He then took a large swig of his own wine. “First he has an accent, two he wants to be a Defense Attorney, and now he doesn’t want meat.”

            Tyler muttered loud enough for Apollo to hear, “Damn… just ignore him, Apollo… he’s probably drunk…”

            Apollo wasn’t the type to keep his mouth shut. “In Khura’in, we eat mainly rice and vegetables,” he raised his voice, which to him was a little, but to mainly others it was considered “loud”. He had always been naturally a loud kid, just had the diaphragm and lung capacity to project his voice very well. Dhurke had told him if possibly he had better vocal training, he probably could’ve been a vocalist like his parents were. “The only meat we typically eat is pork and chicken, only the royal family would eat something as luxurious as beef.”

            Emilio sneered, “Then be happy you get something so luxurious.”

            “Not when my stomach isn’t used to it and I get sick,” the red-clothed boy counted. “Unless you want me to vomit all over your nice home, I rather have another helping of these very delicious asparagus, please.”

            That was when one of the chefs from earlier then brought out more asparagus for him and took away his prime rib and his potato. With a cheerful “Thank you” in traditional Khura’inese, Apollo dug into his pile vegetable; Sam and Tyler tried to mimic the word in poor pronunciation but Apollo appreciated it nonetheless.

            After dinner was not as exciting. Sam and Tyler showed Apollo the gaming room where the three played some video games, although Apollo lost horribly as he was not used to them. Finally, Lucy told the boys it was time for bed as Sam and Tyler had school in the morning.

            “I do have to get you registered for school,” Lucy told Apollo. “But they’re going to have you take some tests so they know what grade level to start you off in tutoring even though you’re technically in the fourth grade.”

            The words that were coming out of her mouth made absolutely no sense to him. Dhurke had made sure he and Nahyuta were taught very well; Apollo knew how to read in both Khura’inese and English by the time he was four, and Nahyuta knew higher math and basic science when he was six. The two boys had never gone to a place called school.

            His first full day in the new home was a rough one to say the least – he enjoyed his time with Tyler and Sam, but he had rather be either at home in Khura’in or with Aria. Once he was all set in the large bedroom, the blank walls that surrounded him seemed overly suffocating. The white bareness of it all was consuming him… complete emptiness.

            “You’ll like this place, pal.”

            “This family has a couple of kids your age, you’ll have fun with them.”

            The voices of Detective Gumshoe and Aria echoed in his mind. Was he really going to like it here? It hasn’t even been a full day and the “Foster Father” was a complete jerk to him and the “Foster Mother” was already being two-faced.

**

The next few weeks were completely uneventful to him.

            As promised, Apollo was registered at a nearby elementary school, a private one at that. He was forced to wear an all-black uniform with a white undershirt – the fabric feeling completely itching and stiff against his skin. The school even forced him to gel his hair down against his head, but it stubbornly kept trying to creep up.

            When he was given his testing he had actually exceeded the levels of expectation, keeping him at the fourth grade level, but they gave him extra work to keep him stimulated. As this was a private school he attended, he took on extracurricular activities, including another language with Sam, as he attended the same school for fifth grade; both taking on Spanish.

            I’m sure Spanish will come in handy while speaking with clients in the future… probably more common than Khura’inese.

            Tyler attended the private middle school, him being in multiple sport extracurriculars. It seemed he was aiming for being in teams and captain positions for high school so he could end up with top notch scholarships for college.

            Apollo’s relationship with the boys was going on well, they were getting along quickly. However, his relationship with the “parents” seemed to have faltered. Lucy was still insistent on trying to have him change his career path in life, her buying him many different law books that had nothing to do with defense law – every book had to do with prosecution, insurance fraud law, civil law, health insurance law, and divorce law.

            Seems she rather me become any other attorney but a Defense Attorney…

            Lucy pushed a very similar narrative on Tyler and Sam. She encouraged Tyler in sports only for a scholarship, but whenever he mentioned about becoming a professional basketball player or lacrosse player, she threatened to pull him from the team. Sam had mentioned he wanted to be a psychologist, but Lucy told him they were quacks and if he wanted to be a doctor of any kind it should be a surgeon or cardiologist as they made more money.

            Emilio was the same as ever. He ignored all three kids and for the most part was only in the basement. The man would spend hours in the basement just to come upstairs, eat a meal, and leave the house for hours on end with large suitcases only to not return with them.

            One day Apollo finally asked, “What do you even do in the basement, Emilio?”

            The man had given him a hard glare. “Adult things,” he had practically growled. He had muttered something in Spanish, and thanks to Apollo taking Spanish classes he understood what was said.

            “Nosey little asshole.”

            “What are in the suitcases when you leave?” Apollo had then asked.

            “Clothes.”

            At the time, Apollo felt an uncomfortable tightness on his left wrist. Emilio’s left nostril flared, and he sniffled as he said that word. Something didn’t seem right.

            It all came to a head one fateful day in December…

            “Yo, I hope we get that new gaming console for Christmas!” Tyler cheered, him throwing his backpack onto the floor of the foyer when the three kids arrived at home after school.

            Winter break had finally arrived, all three were off school for the next month. Apollo kept hearing the word “Christmas” thrown around for the last month since living at the Rodriguez’s. Just a couple of weeks ago they celebrated something called “Thanksgiving” where he ate turkey for the first time, which was easy on his stomach like chicken, and he enjoyed it. However, the term “Christmas” he was not used to, and everyone kept talking to him about it as if he did know.

            Sam nodded in agreement to Tyler. “Oh, I know!” he laughed. “The graphics card on the new one is supposed to be, like, eight times better than the last one!”

            Apollo gave a lighthearted, “Yes, agreed…!” and to put the icing on the cake he did a small “fist pump” he saw other kids at his school do.

            Tyler laughed at him. “Pol, that was the lamest, and I mean this in the nicest way possible as your older brother here,” he howled. “But that was truly, the lamest fist pump I have ever seen! And I’ve lived with Sam for four months!”

            “Yeah -! HEY!” Sam was about to agree but then just realized what was said.

            Tyler gave Sam a small playful shove. “Ya know I’m messin’!” he joked. He then turned to Apollo. “So, ya gave Lucy any ideas for what you want for Christmas?”

            Apollo gave a blank stare. “I… I don’t know…” he honestly said, his hand running through the stickiness of his gelled hair. He absolutely hated the gel. “We didn’t have Christmas in Khura’in.”

            Sam gave a gasp, “YOU DIDN’T!?”

            “We prayed a lot, to the Holy Mother,” Apollo offered. “Well, my family really didn’t much, we didn’t do the strict schedule the rest of the country did.”

            Sam then pondered for a moment. “Wait… I think in my class we talked about Khura’in today… that’s the country that has a lot… of Spirit Mediums, right?”

            “Yes.”

            “Like… summoning the dead…?”

            “Not really… it’s channeling a spirit and hosting the soul in your own body. It’s mainly a woman thing though.”

            Tyler scoffed. “A country of Spirit Mediums…? Sounds like a B-Ghost movie plot.”

            Sam gave an audible shudder. “That’s terrifying!” he cried. “I never want to see that!”

            Apollo agreed, it was terrifying. He’s seen it once, it was from the Master of the Kurain School when she had visited when he was four, where they do a special form of channeling. Instead of just hosting the spirit and the spirit speaking through the host, the Master of the Kurain, or anyone from that bloodline, takes on the form of that person. Their body shape changes, hairstyle, certain facial features like a mole or scar shows up, height and weight become noticeable, and their voice matches; the actual spirit is there using the body like a puppet.

            It was the most disturbing thing Apollo had ever seen, and he never wanted to see that again.

            Apollo went to his room to put his backpack away. In the past few weeks, it was as promised where there were things bought for him to make his room feel more like his own. His plain white bedding was replaced with red and black; a black rug was placed on the floor to take up space, a small bookshelf that started collecting the various law books and Spanish language books, and he was bought a small laptop to be able to do schoolwork on. The walls were still bare as ever, he had no idea what to do to fill the space – so every night when he tried to go to sleep, the bareness of it all engulfed him.

            Once he was done putting his books away from his backpack, he ran to the bathroom so he could run his head under the fairly large sink to wash out the hair gel. If there was one thing about the school that he absolutely hated was that it tried to force him to conform – they forced him to gel his hair every morning due to his “horns”; one of the teachers even tried to come at him with scissors until he ran away screaming. Once a week they try to put him in “speech therapy” with the Speech Therapist of the school to work on losing his Khura’inese accent.

            “Dinner’s ready!” Apollo heard Lucy call from the kitchen. He dried his hair quickly and ran down the stairs, Cosmo the dog suddenly at his heels.

            Everyone was accounted for at the table – all except for Emilio.

            “Apollo,” Lucy said sweetly. “Can you just open the basement door and call down to Emilio and let him know dinner is ready?”

            The boy nodded politely, and he obediently went to go do the task. He opened the basement door and called down. There was no answer. He raised his voice slightly, which in normal terms was almost shouting. There was still no answer.

            “There is only one place we can’t go in the house!” Tyler’s voiced echoed in Apollo’s head.

            “The basement!” Sam’s voice finished.

            But Emilio isn’t responding… and I don’t want to get in trouble by Lucy either…

            So, Apollo stepped down the stairs. Because the house was so new and luxurious, the stairs didn’t make one sound, so it was easy for him to go down quietly. Once he was at the bottom he saw that the lights were on and that he was in a completely furnished basement; the floor carpeted a generic tan, a couple of couches that were black leather with a large coffee table between them, and along the wall…

            Wait… what are those…?

            Apollo walked over to the large pile of what looked to be sacks of flour… Each sack had the weight of them printed on them and the amount of money of their worth… some of the bags were worth over one hundred thousand dollars. He backed away quickly, he didn’t want to even touch it. A glint caught his eye. On the coffee table in the center was a handgun with a few stray bullets lying about.

            “What are you doing down here, kid!?” a gruff voice demanded.

            Apollo spun around and saw a tall man with blonde hair wearing a black suit and tie glaring at him. The man would look like any other normal guy if it weren’t for the jagged, raised red scar that was across his face. He pulled something from his side, another flash of silver, and a handgun was produced.

            “Thought that idiot told you kids not to come down here…!” the suited man grumbled.

            “L-Lucy said d-dinner was ready…” Apollo stammered nervously, his brown eyes not leaving the gun.

            The man sighed with fake sadness, “Looks like things are gonna end like the last kid they fostered…” There was a sound of the man cocking the gun. “Ya see… the last little bastard that came down here cause he was all curious got a lead aspirin…” The man then forced Apollo to look at him in the eyes, the boy seeing that the man’s eyes were an unusual shade of lilac. “Luckily, I made it look like a good accident so Little Miss Housewife could still be a foster mom to kids, but only if that idiot made sure nothing like that happened again.” He gave a subtle shake of his head. “Looks like all three of you boys need to die…”

            Sweat beaded on Apollo’s forehead. America can’t really be like this, can it!? Dhurke had made it sound like he had to leave Khura’in because it was more dangerous there than anywhere else! Now there is drugs and a man threatening to kill him!?

            “APOLLO, GET OUT OF HERE!” the voice of Emilio screamed as he came out of seemingly nowhere, tackling the man to the ground.

            A loud bang! went off and there was a scream.

            Apollo ran up the basement stairs as fast as he could, him practically tripping and almost smashing his face against the steps. As he ran past the dining room he heard Lucy try to call out to him, but there was more screaming as there was another gunshot. He finally made it up to his room and frantically searched for the card Detective Gumshoe gave him the day he was dropped off. He found it at the bottom of the sock drawer and took off, running around the corner of the hallway to get to the back of the house, to the one place he knew would have a phone: Lucy and Emilio’s room.

            Another gunshot rang out and he heard wood splintering precariously close to his ear. He couldn’t think about how he was almost just shot and kept running. Once he made it to the Master Bedroom, he slammed it shut and locked it; he was panting but he had not time to catch his breath. He found the phone on the nightstand and immediately dialed Gumshoe’s number – praying to the Holy Mother herself that he would answer.

            “This is Detective Dick Gumshoe, how can I help ya, pal?” the scruffy detective’s voice greeted.

            “Detective! It’s me, Apollo Justice!” Apollo frantically cried, his voice high pitched and he could feel tears in his eyes.

            “Oh, heya, kid… is every-”

            “THERE IS A GUY IN THE HOUSE WITH A GUN!” and right on cue a shot blasted through the door and whizzed past him, shattering a picture of Lucy and Emilio on their wedding day that was hanging on the wall.

            “Whoa, pal!” Gumshoe screamed into the phone. “That explains why everyone here is scrambling – we got multiple calls from the neighborhood there! I’ll be there myself in five minutes – you get yourself holed up somewhere!”

            There was a click and dial-tone. The detective had hung up.

            SLAM!

            The door was kicked open and the blonde man was in the entry way. He clicked his tongue, “My, who knew a little foreigner orphan boy would be the cause of so much trouble in this operation…” Behind the man, Apollo saw that Emilio was limping down the hall, a gun in hand. “All that idiot had to do was just follow the rules, let his wife play ‘Mommy’ and he got to have all this money and big house – but like he said, you’re a noisy little prick.”

            “Drugs and guns are illegal…” Apollo squeaked out.

            The man then laughed, “So is murder kid, but how many trials of that do you see on television?” He gave a shrug. “All we do is frame others, and the Prosecution is so relentless… even the innocent is Guilty!”

            Apollo winced. “So, the legal system in America is messed up too, huh?”

            “Why do you care?”

            “I’m going to be a Defense Attorney – I’m going to make sure assholes like you don’t get away with this!”

            A loud bang! once again rang out, and there was a sickening crunch! A hole appeared suddenly in the middle of the blonde man’s head, and his lilac eyes widened in disbelief and shock just for a moment before they glossed over. He fell forward with a heavy thump! as scarlet pooled beneath him.

            Emilio was at the doorway, a gun raised, and him panting heavily. Blood was on his left side and there was a hole on the left side of his suit jacket; he must’ve been shot when he had tackled the man in the basement.

            “Apollo!” Emilio shouted as he limped over, concern in his brown eyes. “Hey… hey, kid! Are you okay!?”

            Apollo didn’t say anything. He just stood there, numbness creeping into him.

            “You have blood on your face…” Emilio whispered as he took a cloth from his left breast pocket. He began to try to wipe the blood from the boy’s face, but it seemed to only smear it.

            A loud booming voice then shouted, “This is the police, pal!”

            Emilio immediately stopped what he was doing and stood up, his hands raised up. The gun he had earlier was on the ground next to him.

            “Hey, Apollo, you okay, kid!?” Gumshoe bellowed.

            Again Apollo said nothing as red and blue lights began to fill the now darkening room and the night began to creep in that cold, December evening.

**

Apollo, Tyler, and Sam sat on the couch in the living room as the police swept the entire home.

            Lucy was put on a gurney, a sheet over her entire body. Scarlet stained the white sheet as the body was still seeping with blood. The gunshot that Apollo had heard while he was running past was the blonde man pulling the trigger on her, killing her instantly.

            Tyler and Sam were uninjured, and Apollo was thankful for that. But a lingering guilt clutched onto him. If he hadn’t went down to the basement… Lucy would be alive.

            It turned out that Emilio Rodriguez was part of large drug smuggling operation in Los Angeles, him being blackmailed since he was in high school. Emilio had done something in his youth that caused the head of the organization to use that to their advantage and blackmail him for years. Of course Emilio got plenty of money, ended up meeting with Lucy who was his high school sweetheart and got married – the two couldn’t have biological children, so they went into being foster parents, and Lucy wanted to make sure each child would have the best career path for them that was legitimate so they could not possibly go on this path; she seemed to be rough and maybe seemed heartless when it came to their dreams, but deep down she only had their best interests at heart.

            The reason why Emilio was so rough on the foster kids… was because of the death of the first kid that him and Lucy fostered. Just as the blonde man had said, the child had wandered down to the basement and caught sight of the illegal items. While Emilio insisted that the child would not say anything, the kid was taken care of so to speak and arranged in a way where there was an accident not tied to the home. He became cold to the next foster children that came into the picture, which was Tyler, then Sam, and finally Apollo, so that they wouldn’t meet the same fate.

            Everything was confiscated in the basement, and Emilio was arrested for illegal possession of drugs and firearms as well as murder. As Emilio was being escorted out of the house in handcuffs, it looked like he almost had the look of peace on his face along with sadness.

            “Sorry you kids have to be shipped off again…” Emilio said as one of the police officers guided him past. “I… I really wish it didn’t come to this.”

            Apollo felt a pang in his chest. It was his fault after all.

            Once officer each then escorted the boys to their rooms so they could pack their belongings. Gumshoe escorted Apollo himself, him seeing that the boy was tense and was moving very stiffly.

            Apollo packed in his suitcase clothing, the legal books he was given, and the toiletries. He didn’t bother with the laptop as it was already confiscated by the police in case of other shady business. He zipped up the suitcase and approached Gumshoe, who looked a little shocked that the boy barely packed anything.

            “You… sure you don’t have anything else…?” Gumshoe asked wearily.

            “No…” Apollo replied stoically. “This is all.”

            Gumshoe and Apollo went back downstairs, just in time to see Tyler and Sam be put in the back of two separate police cars. Cosmo the dog was put in a Humane Society van, ready to be put at a center so he could be adopted out himself.

            I guess I put the dog in the same boat as us…

            “Alright, pal,” Gumshoe said gently. “Let’s go…” as he began to lead the boy to his patrol car.

            “Where are we going…?”

            “I think I know where we are going, Apollo.”

            This time Gumshoe had a couple of plastic bags from a convenience store in the back seat for him. As the scruffy detective put the car into gear, Apollo immediately felt his stomach churn and made a grab for a plastic bag. He couldn’t hold it in anymore – from between the fright of what he witnessed earlier, the blood from the man, Lucy’s dead body, and now the car, he just let retched into the bag.

            “I… learned my lesson last time…” Gumshoe tried to say lightly, him grimacing at the sounds of the boy vomiting.

            The stomach acid stung his throat, and his face streaked with tears. Every time he closed his eyes he just the man’s face with the hole in the middle of his forehead. He saw Lucy’s lifeless body on the gurney. He saw Emilio in handcuffs. He saw Tyler and Sam being once again shipped off to another home.

            “Here we are, pal…” Gumshoe softly said as he pulled over the patrol car.

            Apollo looked up to see a very familiar looking house. He opened the patrol car door and unbuckled his seatbelt and ran up the sidewalk that led to the front door. Before he even made it to the door, it opened and the warm light poured out with a silhouette of the woman who had taken care of him before.

            “ARIA!” Apollo wailed, his eyes brimming with tears. Aria only crouched down and let the boy crash into her embrace. He started wailing in hysterics, a combination of Khura’inese, English, and now his new budding Spanish of everything. His whole body shook as he cried, but he felt comforted as Aria’s warm hands gently rubbed his back and consoled him.

            “It’s going to be fine, Apollo…” she whispered to him. “You’re fine.”

[abrthephantomq]

November 3rd, 2024 -

Decided to get high today. 6.25mg edible (gummy). Swallowed it like a pill because the idea of chewing those motherfuckers is never appealing.

Been thinking a lot on various things. Put together a playlist for the theme "Heavy is the Crown" that I've been slowly working my way through. Which really, it's a theme that comes up a lot in our writing, so I guess it's gonna have it's time with the IZ fandom, next.

(I should note that at the time of writing this, I'm no longer high; just tired as we're working through a particularly heavy period from our high school years, processing-wise. We did learn the name of #14, though! His name is Chen. Chan? I have Chan written down, but we said Chen out loud when we did our Tiktok 10 min daily vlog, so... I'm gonna go with Chen.)

I have a Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney fic I've also been poking at, too. Supposed to take place during the 7 year gap, already established Narumitsu, but they're having Problems (bc Kristoph is a bitch). And Trucy one day asks Phoenix to tell her a bed time story so she can fall asleep easier - (the first night, she falls asleep before he can even get started).

So Phoenix comes up with Phoenix Write: no, it's not him, though yeah, Phoenix Write is based on him. He originally was attending art school, specifically to get a degree in creative fiction. The whole thing, of course, got derailed by his desire to prove that Miles Edgeworth is not, in fact, the Demon Prosecutor.

And now he can't practice law, so...

It's still very much in the percolating space in our brain. It's not ready yet by any means, but I did sit down and think about how we should approach the next fic in the Encoder Zim AU series -- Class Clown.

Is it going to have timeline shenanigans and be told out of order like Canon Event? Possibly. We'll have to see how it goes. For now, though, I leave y'all with an additional teaser:

Zim stares up at Tallest Red and Tallest Purple; at the Control Brains. “My Tallest – Zim would never commit treason –”

“We literally just watched you commit it, Zim!” Tallest Purple cries, gesturing to the giant memory screens – all of them displaying the handful of moments Zim had been so deeply embedded in, just moments ago. “That human – you agreed to help him protect his planet! The planet you were in charge of Encoding!” 

Zim’s brow furrows, his antennae sinking down against his skull. “Zim had no intention of –”

“No intention of what, Zim?” Tallest Red interrupts, folding his spindly arms over his chest and narrowing an eye at him. “Of Encoding the planet? You’re our best Encoder – you’ve collected all of the important data on dozens of planets and none of them have taken you two years to do!” 

[Two years. That doesn’t sound right, does it? According to Zim, it’s been over twenty – 

Oh, right, Irken years. Got it. Yeah. I forgot that they’d be talking in our years – no, I’m good, I can go back to narrating them now. Yeah, no, I’m paying attention – I – ]

“The Earth is different,” Zim presses, stepping forward, throwing his shoulders back. “Zim has a theory that the planet is –”

“Planet Zero, yes, we know,” Tallest Red snaps, rolling his eyes. “It can’t be Planet Zero, Zim. Planet Zero doesn’t exist.”

“My Tallests,” Zim all but begs. “Please, if you let me share all of the data I’ve collected over the course of the past two years, you’ll see that the Earth is vital to the survival of the Irken race.” 

“It’s vital to our survival because it’s supposed to be part of the Empire, Zim.”

“Yeah!” 

“So unless you have definitive proof –”

“The Dib is proof,” Zim says, cutting Tallest Red off. [An unwise choice, that, but – I’m not the one standing in front of Tallest Red and Tallest Purple right now, so. I have the benefit of not being threatened with being erased from the record.] “His DNA – it does not degrade. Just like an Irken’s DNA. There’s a series of overlap between humans’ DNA structure and our own – far more than any other species in the universe. The overlap is not coincidental.” 

[Okay, I’m sure if we did go over that data we’d find that it actually is coincidental, but this is coming from Zim, the best Encoder we have – maybe, just maybe, he knows what he’s talking about? I would say something, but I know better than to open my mouth. Especially during a Defection Trial.] 

Tallest Red and Tallest Purple glance at each other. Then Tallest Red unfolds his arms over his chest. Tallest Purple brings his soft drink to his lips, sucking at the straw as Tallest Red rubs at the spot between his eyes. “How do you know it’s not coincidental, Zim?” 

Zim stares up at his Tallests. He blinks, then glances around the monitors – at the Control Brains. At us, the observers sitting in the background, the ones all Irkens are taught to ignore from the day they’re hatched and given a pak and a name. 

We’re Irkens, too, of course – in some way, shape or form, at least. We’re not perfect, though. Not like the Encoders and not like the Tallests and the Control Brains. We’re not necessarily treated as less than, but we are regulated only to a handful of roles. 

We’re the Pakless; the ones born from some other means and therefore don’t need one. 

Zim gestures to me. “You. Please come forward for Zim.” 

“A Pakless?” Tallest Purple says, incredulous, as I continue to furiously record what's being said. “You want a Pakless to come forward?” 

“Yes,” Zim answers. He stands up to his full height – the first time he’s done so since the trial began. He’s taller than I expected – not as tall as our Tallests, but they must notice his increased height as well, given the way they shrink back, just a little bit. Interesting. Zim doesn’t seem to notice this as he continues: “Humans are capable of having blue eyes – same as that Pakless over there. It’s considered a rare eye color on Earth.” 

“There are plenty of other species out there who can have blue eyes, Zim –”

“But only the Pakless Irkens can have blue eyes, correct?” he asks, cutting off Tallest Red once again. “They aren’t created the same way Irkens like us are. Their genetic material is slightly different. If my theory is correct, it’s likely that any and all Pakless Irkens are even more closely related to a human being.” 

Both Tallest Red and Tallest Purple stare down at him, silent. Well, silent except for Tallest Purple finishing the last remaining drops of his drink. “Pakless Jazz,” says Tallest Red. “Please step forward, as Encoder Zim requested.” 

I blink. “My Tallest – if this one may speak…”

“Go on,” Tallest Red says. 

“Thank you, my Tallest.” I bow, as is protocol for pakless Irkens like myself. “I’m the Recorder for today’s trial. There isn’t another one here, right now.” 

“That’s alright, Pakless Jazz. You can fill in the rest of the record once this part is complete for you.” 

I nod, and put down my recording instruments. Encoder Zim’s large, red eyes study me in a way an Encoder would never look at me as I approach the trial floor: with interest. Most Encoders won’t even meet my eyes – not that many could. 

As it is, Zim and I are about the same height. He gestures to me. “Pakless Irkens are still Irkens,” he says, “by all measures. However, they do have physical differences. Their nostrils are more pronounced. Their eyes are smaller. They are born, rather than hatched. Their DNA does not degrade, but it is also not perfect, like those who are hatched. They’re capable of falling ill to any number of diseases.”

He then reaches for my hand – his touch startling me as he holds it up, but I manage to not pull away as he spreads my fingers for them to see. “They have four fingers. And –” He reaches up, tugging at the fine, vestigial fur that covers my body – fur that only the Pakless have. “They have hair.” 

He holds up the hair, and drops my hand, his free hand folding itself behind his back as he keeps his shoulders straight. “The humans are also covered in such hair. They also have pronounced nostrils. Their eyes are smaller, and they are born. They, too, have imperfect DNA – and for most of their species, their DNA degrades. They have five fingers. They do not require a PAK to live.” 

He pauses, here. Another glance is shared between Tallest Red and Tallest Purple, before Tallest Purple dismisses me with a distracted wave of his hand. I don’t argue and make my way back to my seat, swallowed by the shadows of the Recorders station. I make a note to fill in the gap and resume my recording. 

“So the Pakless have some superficial similarities to these Human Beings,” Tallest Red says, frowning. “I suppose you wanna run some tests on Pakless Jazz’s DNA before we execute you for treason?” 

“Of course he does, Red. Why else would he even bother bringing a Pakless over like that? No one even cares about the Pakless, we –”

{You’ll have to cut that from the Record. Tallest Purple’s personal feelings about Pakless are not relevant.}

[I will not cut it from the Record. Tallest Purple’s personal feelings are likely relevant, as he and Tallest Red will both have to agree to execute Zim, if they continue to uphold their original Guilty charge.]

Tallest Red’s antennae lift in annoyance, his eyes on Tallest Purple for a moment before he shakes his head and turns his attention back to Zim. “Fine. We’ll allow it.” He elbows his fellow Tallest in the ribs when he begins to protest. “You are our best Encoder, Zim. But if Pakless Jazz’s DNA does not have a statistically significant increase of similarities to the Dib-human’s DNA from your own…”

Encoder Zim bows, still clutching at my vestigial fur and even bringing it to his chest as he does so. “Understood, my Tallests. My analysis shouldn’t take long.” 

“Oh no, you won’t be doing the analysis yourself, Zim,” Purple grumbles. He gestures to one of the guards off to the side. “We’ll be doing the analysis, thank you.”

[casspurrjoybell-20]

FOOLS IN LOVE - Chapter 4 - Part 1

BOOK THREE: 'Fools Fall in Love' Trilogy

*Warning Adult Content*

Noah Wright

"How do you think you could have responded better to seeing Sam?" I sighed, my elbows digging into my thighs to support my head that was slumped into the palm of my hands.

"By not yelling and swearing obviously," I muttered, already feeling like I wanted to yell and swear at Dr. Zinko.

Sometimes I hated therapy.

Mostly when I already had a piss-ass attitude before entering the lavender scented room.

I felt patronized like I was fucking dumb as shit and needed to be talked to like a baby.

Other days when I was in a decent mood, I quite enjoyed Dr. Zinko and though I probably wouldn't admit it, he had helped me immensely with my mood and better ways to cope when I was angry.

Obviously, I still had slip ups.

At first I shut down the idea of a therapist when my ex-boyfriend insisted they could help but then I had an incident last June.

The incident was sparked by my inability to control the strong emotions I felt, jealousy, anger, heartache, when I saw my ex-boyfriend going on a trip to Punta Cuna with his new boyfriend.

The trip he was going to take me to for my birthday.

So, to compensate for all the shitty feelings my body was overwhelmed with, my solution was to drink myself to death., literally.

Now, it wasn't my intention to off myself, I just figured I could handle a bottle of tequila and half a bottle of vodka.

I couldn't.

My roommate, Ciera found me passed out in the bathroom and got me to the hospital in time to pump my stomach, so I could live another day on this Hell hole we call Earth.

Yay. After that, I made the decision to be sober and to talk to a professional... well, Ciera changed the lock on our apartment door and told me I wasn't allowed in until I scheduled an appointment to meet with someone but the sober part was all me.

It turned out, I liked talking to Dr. Zinko and he wasn't as much as a self righteous, tool bag as I thought therapist were.

Besides on days, of course, where I was already in a piss-ass mood.

"I'm trying to understand, you've been doing so much better, you haven't had an episode like that in weeks."

'Episodes.'

That's what Dr. Zinko referred to my screaming and swearing fits.

Whenever my emotions were heightened and got too overwhelming for me, I lashed out.

Like last November when Sam and I broke up, the way I handled it was yelling over him and storming off.

Or when Ciera told me I was becoming an alcoholic like my father last February and I got in her face, screaming at her that she was a...

"Stupid fucking cunt that doesn't know shit."

So yeah, episodes.

"There must have been something beforehand that triggered you," Dr. Zinko pressed, setting his notepad down.

"That whole fucking day sucked," I confessed and switched to leaning back against the couch cushion, my knee bouncing profusely as it always did when I felt uneasy and thinking about Saturday, had me feeling far from easy.

"Start from the beginning. What was the first trigger?"

"My mom. She showed up again at my work."

My mother had been a newly, yet unwanted presence in my life.

Ever since she showed up at my doorstep back in November, I've seen her three other times.

All at my work.

"How did you approach her?"

"I couldn't do anything. I was stuck, wiping down fucking tables, my boss was on my ass all God-damn..."

"So your boss was your first trigger," my therapist pointed out.

I paused and thought.

I was working as a busboy at a restaurant downtown called Rosemary's.

It was a fancy Italian restaurant with a grade A cunt as the boss but the pay was good.

Mary, my boss, was particularly more bitchy than usual that day and for some reason kept ragging on me for every little thing I did.

"Yeah, I guess. Then my relentless mother appeared for half a second. She ordered for pick up, just to see me and then she left."

"Hmm. What is the worst that could happen if you sat down and talked to her?" he asked as though he was genuinely curious on that answer.

My stomach felt queasy.

"I don't know. The worst? She'd tell me that it was all my fault she left and she started a new and better family." 'But we already know she's not going to say that.' 'Happy birthday, baby' isn't something you say to someone you resent and who left you no choice but to leave and if she had a, quote, unquote 'better family' why would she be hanging around you?"

I scoffed.

"Gee, thanks, Doc."

He gave me his signature disapproval look.

"You know how I meant it. I mean, based on the facts, I know you see how unlikely the worst is to happen."

I shrugged.

"Okay, boss, mom, then what? Sam?"

"No. Jude," I spoke that name like it was lice on a fourth graders head, disgusting and difficult to remove.

"He also showed up at that frat party. Fuck, I shouldn't have gone but Ciera fucking insisted," I groaned.

"I wanted to hit him when he made a comment about Sam."

"But you didn't?"

"No," I confirmed.

"But, I wish I had."

"No you don't, you're nineteen. You're not in high school anymore, if you get into a fight, you're going to jail."

I grunted in response and he knew I wasn't going to speak further on that, so he continued...

"So, boss, mom, Jude..."

"Then Sam."

Sam looked mostly the same but he was definitely skinnier than the last time I saw him, which made me worry a bit when I actually thought about how he was already skinny before.

"Ah and what would you tell Sam instead? If you could go back, the first three triggers never occurred. What would you say to him?"

"I'd say..." I took a deep breath and pictured those brilliant green eyes I loved then grieved over in just a year.

"You being here is only going to make it all hurt worse."

Sacred moments of my past relationship with Sam ran through my mind like a stop motion picture.

Every detail more potent than the last.

Sam's hands gently on my face, him smiling just for me or laughing just for me.

How he laid in my arms in bed, secure and restoring.

When he'd say he loved me and meant it.

When we were most intimate with each other.

I swallowed the stiffness in my throat.

"I don't want to hurt anymore."

[stereogeekspodcast]

[Transcript] Season 4, Episode 2. Oscars 2024 Reviews and Predictions

It's Oscars season and you know what that means? Marathon-watching all the movies to have an informed opinion about which film and performance should win the accolades. Ron and Mon share their controversial takes on the Oscars picks of 2024 in this special Stereo Geeks episode. Do you agree with our choices?

Read Ron's reviews of American Fiction, Anatomy of a Fall, and The Teacher's Lounge (not mentioned in the episode).

Listen to the episode on Spotify.

Hello, and welcome to an Oscars 2024 special episode from Stereo Geeks.

I'm Ron.

And I'm Mon.

Every year, when it's Oscar season, you and I think to ourselves, we're not interested.

And then they announce the nominations.

And there's always one, sometimes two movies that I think to myself, oh wow, I really like these.

What are they up against?

Like last year with Everything Everywhere all at once.

I really wanted that movie to win.

So we ended up watching it.

It did do well.

I'm happy for that.

And this year, for me, it's American Fiction and Anatomy of a Fall.

The moment I saw those two in the best picture list, I was like, I need to see their competitors.

And so we're here.

I don't think we can escape the formal of Oscar season.

We try, we try every year.

And then it just gets you, you know?

So here we are.

We're gonna be talking about the best picture norms.

We'll also mention the extraneous acting categories and writing categories.

So yeah, let's go for it.

We're in for a ride.

Starting off with American Fiction, I literally got the last seat to watch this film at last year's TIFF.

And I loved every minute of it.

There is something to say about watching this film in a packed hall with loads of people of color who understood the references.

I just found it so funny and emotional.

It still is so relevant.

And the main character Monk played by Jeffery Wright, he is flawed, but he's also understandable.

And Wright is absolutely amazing in this film.

I'd say it's one of his best performances and this is somebody who elevates everything he's in.

Ever since you watched the movie at TIFF, I was like, this is a missed opportunity for me.

I was dying to watch it.

I'm so glad I got an opportunity to see it before the Oscars because I have an informed opinion.

And the opinion is, this is great.

This is a fantastic film.

Unlike you, I did feel like there were a few points that dragged a little bit.

But that being said, this is the kind of film that you need in a world which is just so dumb, you know?

It has so much to say about the insidiousness of racism in America without hitting you on the head with it.

Such subtlety, such brilliance.

And honestly, there is this one scene about a writer and his characters.

That scene alone deserves an Oscar.

And I agree with you, Jeffrey Wright, he sells this.

Like if you don't have that kind of gravitas as an actor to pull off this kind of character, you don't have a film.

But he is ably supported by Sterling K. Brown.

Honestly, I was a little bit surprised that he got a nomination for supporting actor because it can be a role that sort of disappears from the film.

But you know what, Sterling K. Brown, he is infuriating and endearing and he definitely deserves the nomination.

I'll end this by saying that ending sold me.

That's why it's here.

That's why it's nominated.

I want it to win.

100% agreed.

In fact, if American Fiction could win best picture and best adapted screenplay and share that with Anatomy of a Fall, I would be very happy.

Again, this is a movie that I lucked out with at TIFF 2023.

The PR team sent me a ticket literally hours before the screening.

It had been doing the festival circuit.

It was doing really well, highly awarded, both American Fiction and Anatomy of a Fall, one TIFF awards as well.

So I had to see it.

And you know what?

It's so much more than just a murder mystery.

It's a character study about family dynamics.

And the family in question is just two parents and a young boy, that's it.

But it's an examination of gender stereotypes.

And how on paper, subverting gender stereotypes sounds like a great idea, but in practice, not so much.

So there are so many questions that you have while you're watching this movie.

Did this person deserve to die?

Did they actually get murdered?

Did the person we think murdered them?

Do it.

It's a very long film.

The court case is where she takes up quite a lot.

For me, that was the most fascinating part.

And then the ending, I know people didn't really like it because it is ambiguous.

The director, Justin Trier, came out and spoke to us after the screening and she wanted to keep the ambiguous ending.

I think it was just right.

I'd also say that Sandra Huler, absolutely fantastic performance.

It's not grandiose.

She is just a normal person.

That's why I think she's not gonna get the best acting award, because it's just too normal.

She really does deserve it.

I am gutted that I haven't been able to watch this film in the run up to the Oscars.

Can I just say, whoever the distributors and owners of this film are, they are fools for not making it available on streaming before the Oscars.

Moving on.

Let's talk about this movie, Barbie.

It's actually so hard to remember anything about Barbie given that we watched it in the summer and it's been, well, an entire year since then.

With time and so many more films in me, I realized that Barbie the movie is uninteresting.

I'll admit, it deserves the Production Design Award.

Barbie world is stunningly rendered.

It's beautiful.

All that pink.

It's crazy.

I love it.

But the film itself, it left me cold.

At the time, it was fun.

I loved the fact that we got to do Barbenheimer.

We did it a little bit after a lot of people.

So some of the hype was gone.

It was a great experience.

I'm glad for the box office.

I'm glad a lot of young women and people have seen themselves, have realized so much about themselves.

Thanks to this film.

It is not Oscar worthy.

I'm sorry.

I don't see it winning Best Picture.

I would like to not see it win Best Picture.

I am upset that it got a writing nomination because the great grand monologue that everybody keeps talking about, it is pretty much stolen as far as I'm concerned.

It uses a lot of themes and dialogue, et cetera, that has been going around social media for years now.

Why should the writers of this film get the credit for that?

They stole it.

I think America Ferrera was good, but this is not her best role.

She's getting recognition and I'm very happy for her, but really for this movie?

So all I can say is, yes, it's an experience.

I'm glad it's out there, but it doesn't do feminism any justice.

It has a lot of issues and we can't ignore that.

I don't know, how do you feel?

I think I'm more annoyed now because there was such a hue and cry about Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig not getting nominations.

And honestly, if you look at it, this is a Ken movie.

It's not a Barbie movie.

I'm actually very happy for Ryan Gosling.

He should win this.

I'm not joking.

I find him such a wooden actor.

I find him uninteresting.

He's awful usually.

This movie, what a performance.

I was floored.

Give him the Oscar.

I'm happy for America Ferrera as well, but as you said, why this role?

Aesthetics-wise, yes.

Give Bobby all the prizes.

It was beautiful costume, makeup, stunning.

I just don't think this movie has aged well in 10 months.

I so agree.

But you know, there's a common theme that we're seeing in this year's Oscars, which is that people are getting so wrapped up in what they've seen.

Or maybe it's new to some people.

I don't know, but a lot of the films we're watching for the Oscars, it feels like we've seen them a thousand times before.

None more so than The Holdovers.

Listen, I knew that I wasn't gonna like this movie, that it was going to irritate me just from the trailer.

It was overwrought, it was stylized, and I was proven right.

We have seen this story so many times.

Why is it up for best picture and best original screenplay?

This is old hat.

I mean, the only thing which was unique about this film, which is weird to say in 2024, which is that we had Da'Vine Joy Randolph's character.

She's a black woman, and her story does deal with racism.

Talks about how racism can literally kill.

But the movie doesn't engage with that.

It's all about the white people.

Listen, Paul Giamatti, he is a character.

I tend to avoid his films.

He is a talented man, but sometimes talent can be too much.

He's good in this film.

He's quirky, he's interesting.

I'm not sure he's really got a win in him this year.

I'm not sure.

Now, Da'Vine Joy Randolph.

She's up for an Oscar nomination for her supporting role.

I've seen her in Only Murders in the building.

She is amazing in that.

They should make an entire show on her.

I was rooting for her.

I really was.

And I was looking forward to seeing her performance because she's been winning everything.

I didn't dig this, especially there's a scene, really emotional scene, very important.

She flubbed it as far as I'm concerned.

So I'm not sure what's going on.

I don't know.

This one irritated me.

This movie just really irritated me.

From all the Oscars films, this one was literally my least favorite.

In fact, I can't even put the word favorite there because it was awful.

And you know what?

I have seen Alexander Payne's Nebraska, which was also heavily Oscar nominated.

That was horrendous.

This is a close second.

This was like watching Dead Poets Society meets Sideways.

Those are already movies that exist and you've seen them.

It was just so boring.

And what really irritated me, aside from the three main characters, the rest of the cast was so bad at acting.

It was nigh unwatchable.

I literally had to look away from the screen.

Joy Randolph was good, in a way, very understated maybe.

At least that's what I was thinking.

But I don't fault her performance as much as I fault the film for not knowing what to do with her.

In fact, I would say, Holdovers would have been way more interesting if it was from her point of view.

And I feel like this is going to be a running theme this year.

Yeah, because on we go to the next film, Killers of the Flower Moon.

I was late to the party with this one.

I think I was trying to avoid it, to be honest.

It's three and a half hours long.

It's a commitment.

I can only say that my disappointment in this film knows no bounds.

It's basically the departed with the side of genocide.

That's the angle that we're going with for a movie featuring Native American people, an entire community that was decimated.

Here's the thing.

We tried to have this third act, which is supposed to be cathartic.

And it completely and utterly fell flat because it was so boringly done.

In fact, for me, this was a directorially uninteresting film.

I know Martin Scorsese is a huge name and I know he's made a lot of impact with his work.

But at this point, I just feel like the Oscars and the Academy are just giving him nominations because of the name, not the caliber.

Look beyond what we've always seen.

This film is uninspiring.

Robert De Niro's performance is uninspiring.

The only difference really was Lily Gladstone.

It's nice to see that a movie which features Native American stories and characters actually has somebody who has a significant role.

She does a good job.

I mean, there's only so much you can do when your job is to lie about pretending to die.

I just don't understand how this was the best we could give this person.

A Native American actress after so many years has been recognized and yeah, this is the role.

I can't say any more about this.

Every criticism that has been levied at this film is justified.

I really wanted to watch it because I wanted to know, are people justifiably vilifying this movie?

They are, they are.

Because why do we need to watch over and over again these brutal murders of indigenous people?

Has this not been part of the history of North America?

Why do we need to keep seeing it?

And we recently watched The Departed for my course and the ways that Scorsese shoots characters.

I'm sorry, The Departed is a fictional story and you're doing the same thing for a real story about a genocide?

Are you joking?

The disrespect.

And you know what?

This film was not Scorsese's to make.

As you mentioned, name recognition.

Why didn't he use that to get Native American writers, Native American directors and have them make this film?

Because then this movie would have been from the point of view of Molly Kyle, played by Lily Gladstone, and the movie would have made so much more sense.

I think Lily Gladstone does a really good job.

There's a scene near the end of the film, which I think for any other actor, they would have just chosen the easier route, shouting.

Instead, her voice stays the same pitch throughout.

And you know that this is a sick bird.

It was absolutely perfect.

That's why I was like, you know what?

She deserves the nomination.

But this movie is let down completely by Leo DiCaprio.

Not because of his acting.

He does a decent job and he hasn't been nominated.

He doesn't deserve to be, but he is hopelessly miscast.

His character is so phenomenally stupid.

And that only works if it was a younger person acting in the role.

Leo DiCaprio is 50 or something like that.

It doesn't make sense for him to be this dumb.

And he brought the whole movie down, in my opinion.

Wow, harsh criticism.

Well, I did read that the character that he plays, in real life, he was a lot younger than Lily Gladstone's character.

Talk about people bringing down an entire movie.

I don't want to be rude, but with Maestro, I don't actually know where to start with what all brought down the movie.

What was the point of this film?

We're talking about apparently a musical maestro, but it's the same old biopic story we've seen a thousand times.

Again, it comes back to those patterns that we're talking about.

Every biopic has the same cadence.

Man is genius.

Man marries strange woman.

Man has affairs.

That's it.

And this movie is no different.

There is music involved.

How does he come up with it?

What makes him a maestro, et cetera, et cetera.

None of that is there.

What is the point?

How can you not engage with the fact that this man is apparently gay?

And how does he deal with a restrictively heteronormative era?

Nope, nothing.

None of that happens.

So Bradley Cooper, he's directed this movie.

He has not got a nomination for best director.

He got a nomination for best actor.

And I don't agree with that.

He started off okay.

And then after that, I'm like, I actually can't see what you're doing because the camera is so far away.

And then there's Carrie Mulligan.

How did she get a nomination?

She is so boring and bad in this film.

She is atrocious.

All I can say is that the best actress category this year is another reminder that women get bad roles.

They put in subpar performances and are heralded as the next coming because the Oscars are governed by people who watch way too few films.

This nomination should have gone to somebody else, which we will come to in a minute.

But I am so upset that Mulligan has got a nomination.

So upset.

My disappointment in Maestro can be demonstrated by the fact that I fell asleep for 30 minutes and I woke up and I had missed nothing.

Because this movie is just about Leonard Bernstein cheats on his wife.

He is a maestro, he is a genius.

There is so much footage of him online, available now, talking about his music.

None of that is in the movie.

Why?

Bradley Cooper has made this film about a queer man and somehow he has made it homophobic.

Why didn't he make it instead about where the music is coming from?

How is Bernstein able to access these beautiful pieces?

We are not musicians, I want to know that.

And you get this 6 minute long performance at the end, which apparently Cooper took a long, long time to practice for perfect.

None of that gravitas comes through.

Generally, I liked Cooper's directing.

It's just that he made this entire movie about Bernstein being bad because he was gay.

And the focus on the domestic drama, I just, ugh, no.

As you said, it's the biopic that we have seen a million times before.

You start thinking that all those famous geniuses are all the same.

So I was very worried about this next film because it was billed as a romance.

Then I watched Past Lives and I was like, whoever said that is an idiot.

I also heard somebody say that Past Lives doesn't deserve the Oscars because it's just a student film.

I will personally hunt that person down and end them.

From the entire Best Picture category, for me, if I was giving the Oscars, Past Lives would be the winner.

It is so much more than a romance.

It is a film about immigration.

It is a film about making choices because you're an immigrant.

It's a film about love, loss, missed connections, home.

What is home?

Finding one's place.

At one point, the protagonist, Nora, played by Greta Lee, she says that she's immigrated twice to be where she is.

And she has to commit herself to that place instead of continuing these connections with the home that she left.

I have never felt that immigrant feeling so well articulated in words.

I was so massively moved by this movie.

This is my favorite film of the Oscars and probably of 2023.

And the fact that this movie hasn't got more nominations just means the Academy didn't understand the film at all.

I'm getting emotional just listening to you and thinking about how I felt about this film when I watched it.

Because this is such a beautiful moving film.

And like you, I would give it the Oscar.

It's a story about immigration and its triumphs and challenges.

All of it couched in this sad love story.

Honestly, thinking about this film actually brings out a lot of rage in me.

I am outraged that Celine Song doesn't have a directing nomination.

She is so precise and artistic with her direction.

I am also outraged that Greta Lee doesn't have an acting nomination.

You remember how I talked about Crary Mulligan getting a nomination?

She stole Greta Lee's.

How does her beautiful, expressive face not have all the awards?

And this one's got me because TOU, how does he not have an acting nomination?

I have never seen a more naturally endearing performance.

This film was absolutely magical to me.

I know it's not gonna win best picture, but it's the only one in the original screenplay category that deserves an award.

At the very least, I think it should get the screenplay award as consolation prize.

Well, after talking about my favorite film of the year and of the Oscars, let me talk about literally the worst thing I have ever witnessed with my own four eyes.

Poor Things is horrendous.

You owe me so much dude for making me watch this.

It's absolutely the worst film.

It is nothing more than a curiosity.

The director, Yorgos Lanthimos, as far as I'm concerned, the man has some kind of fetish and it comes across in his previous film, The Favorite and definitely in this one.

It's weird.

I genuinely can't believe it's got this many big nominations, especially the writing nomination.

It's based on a book.

Apparently, it's toned down a lot of the bolder feminist themes of the book.

Instead, the film has this obsolete, backward, outdated, infuriating female empowerment story.

And it doesn't help that Emma Stone, who I really don't understand what the raving about is, she's horrendous at the start.

And then she just does her own, you know, the usual stick that she has.

It was disturbing and distressing.

It was horrendous to watch.

It has a pathetic message about feminism at the core of it.

The only interesting part for me was Mark Ruffalo.

Now, I don't know if I haven't seen enough of Mark Ruffalo, but it's been a while since I saw him.

And I found his performance very interesting.

He does something different with his voice, with the accent, his demeanor.

So I'm not mad at him getting a nomination.

I am mad that this film was there anywhere close to the Oscars and that I had to witness it.

Let us please move on.

I apologize a million times for making you watch it.

The thing is, I knew that I was going to cringe throughout and I couldn't deal with it.

So I was like, you are a braver person than I.

I will buy you all the sushi in the world to make you feel better.

Well, thank you.

Let's talk about something interesting, also disturbing, but very interesting.

So the zone of interest, I really thought, you know what, it's fine.

It's a foreign language film.

I won't bother watching it.

But then, you know, the FOMO comes in, right?

You're like, I gotta complete it all.

I went into this movie completely cold.

I had no idea what I was getting into.

I genuinely thought as I started watching it, I was watching this homely period domestic drama, and then it hit me.

This was stupendous.

I have no other word for it.

You know what annoys me is that once I watched this film, it put into stark contrast everything I disliked about Oppenheimer.

I can't believe that a film was able to showcase atrocities in such a way without resorting even once to graphic imagery or torture porn.

This is next level direction and writing.

For me, Jonathan Glaser is the directing award winner.

I know he's not going to get it, but really he's the only one who really deserves it.

Damn, this was a good movie.

Unlike you though, I had actually read a few reviews before I watched it because when I saw it on the list of best fiction arms, I was like, what is this?

I don't even know what it is.

So I read a few reviews and I thought to myself, I'm not going to watch this.

But then I got the chance to see it and I was like, might as well.

Gotta catch them all.

I don't think I would have actually been able to understand this film had I not read those reviews.

I also kept it on really, really soft.

I think that was probably a better idea because it's two films basically, right?

The one that you see and the one that you hear.

And the one that you hear is very, very disturbing.

The Zone of Interest is such a smart film because the director Jonathan Glazer knows that World War II has had such a lasting impact on the world.

You don't need to see those things.

You already know.

You are the one who has to fill in the gaps.

And what we're imagining is always going to be so terrible because we have all that history behind us.

And I know that there are some people out there who watch this film and thought, why would we want to support a movie that is about Nazis living their lives?

I don't know whether they also had the sound down because this is actually a very unexpected way of showing the horrors of World War II.

And it's very easy to dismiss if you're just giving it a surface level viewing.

But I will say that some scenes which were interesting didn't really make sense until you did extra research.

And for that, I'm going to have to dock some points from the Zone of Interest, which is why I don't think Laser will get the directing award.

Interesting.

Here's my thing with Zone of Interest.

It's telling us something by focusing on a Nazi family and not the victims.

With Oppenheimer, it's the exact opposite.

It's not telling us the right things when it's focusing on Oppenheimer, the guy who created the atomic bomb and decimated Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Because that film takes the story of a villain and makes him a sad, sympathetic hero.

It's funny, can we imagine a film about Nazis and we're supposed to be sympathizing with the Nazis?

No.

But because the bomb was dropped on a bunch of Asians, we're supposed to sympathize with the white guy.

We know Oppenheimer is going to win everything.

It's been winning everything.

And it's so weird for me to knock a film that is made by and stars so many people I like.

But this was not a well-made film.

This was not Christopher Nolan's best work.

This was a sob story.

And it did not even once engage with the horrors that this man inflicted.

I don't even think that it properly engaged with his own turmoil over what he did.

Which we have heard so much about.

Oppenheimer couldn't believe he did this.

He had to suffer the consequences and his inner turmoil about it.

Even that wasn't there in the movie.

So for me, I have all these problems with Oppenheimer and then I watch Zone of Interest.

And I like Oppenheimer even less because you can see what can be done when you actually care about the people who were victimized.

It is a well-acted film.

Clareon Murphy does a great job.

Robert Downey Jr., I think he really deserves the win.

Emily Blunt, I mean, you're a fan.

But listen, I thought she was okay.

I liked her character more than I liked her performance.

But this film, I swear, it just makes me angry.

We all know this is going to win everything.

And it's annoying because this is not Nolan's best work.

He should have won it for Inception.

I am still going to say that that was a great movie, really, really well made.

And yeah, Killian Murphy is extraordinary.

He is always good, actually.

But you know, this is the culmination of a very storied career.

He is not even acting.

He's just embodying this person.

And I know you're not the biggest fan of Emily Blunt.

I love her.

In all honesty, Nolan's women are so badly written.

She's actually much better written than a lot of them.

And Emily Blunt does a good job.

It's a smaller role.

But when she's there, she gets to do a lot.

So I'm impressed by that.

I don't think she's going to win.

Sound editing, this movie is in for sure.

But I really wish that this movie had been made after Zone of Interest came out.

Nolan had seen it.

Because the way Zone of Interest handles crime and shame, this film really needed to be informed about those.

It glosses over so much.

And I'm going to be controversial when I say this, but am I the only one who wasn't impressed by Robert Downey Jr.?

What are you saying?

I'm so sorry.

Listen, our entire family loves Robert Downey Jr.

He is the best.

I love him.

But I was like, I cannot get past the RDJ of it all.

I'm so sorry.

I really don't want him to get it.

I'm shocked.

So those are the best picture nominations.

We'll go through the one offs as it were.

So I'm going to just touch on Rustin.

Coleman Domingo has got the best actor nomination for this film.

Honestly, you can't not love him.

He is so good in whatever role he's playing.

And I've seen him in a bunch of movies this year for some bizarre reason.

Each one is different, wildly different.

And with a film like Rustin, he literally carries it.

He's the main character.

This is a very important man.

And you know what?

I cannot believe that this is just the second nomination for an openly queer actor playing a queer character after Ian McKellen in 1999.

And it's this film.

Well, I haven't seen it.

Is it bad?

This movie was such a letdown.

It's during a period of history where there is so much change.

And Rustin has so many issues with Martin Luther King, and he believes that he can make a difference, but nobody's really on the same page with him.

But this film does not know how to spotlight those crucial moments.

You know that with Selma, when it had that march, when you saw it on screen, I was just like literally tightly wound.

And this movie has those moments and completely makes them go splat.

Well, it's hard to compare anything to Selma.

That is one of my favorite films.

That's so disappointing.

But a film which doesn't have any other norms for Coleman Domingo to get a nomination, do you think he even has a chance to win?

It's tough to say.

Remember when Meryl Streep won for Iron Lady?

Like that movie got nothing else, but of course she is Meryl Streep.

So there's that.

What I would have actually preferred, why not nominate Coleman Domingo for The Color Purple?

He was disturbingly good in that.

That being said, Color Purple came out pretty late, and I'm not sure how many Oscar board people actually watched it.

It's a musical.

It's about racism.

It's about the black community.

It's been done before by Steven Spielberg, of all people.

So I know there was a lot of discourse around the film.

Honestly, I didn't like it.

The only good thing in the film for me was Danielle Brooks.

She is a scene stealer.

From all the best supporting female actor nominees, she deserves the win.

However, I am biased.

I do love her.

Yeah, I have to say, Danielle Brooks was just so outstanding.

I would say from all the acting categories, you know, best actor, best supporting actor, all four of them, Brooks is my favorite performance of the entire year.

Again, I think we're both very biased because we have loved Danielle Brooks since we saw her as Tasty on Orange is the New Black.

But her performance is so powerful and measured, yet expansive, and she makes it look effortless.

I really want her to win this.

Well, it's interesting because she's up against Jodie Foster.

So Foster and Annette Benning are the only two nominations for NIAID, a random film from Netflix, honestly.

I would not have watched it if it wasn't up for the Oscars.

Now, Benning, her performance after watching so many films, I feel like it's a bit underwhelming.

Her physical transformation and the work she put in cannot be faulted.

Amazing.

Now, that being said, aside from Sandra Huler, I haven't seen Anatomy of a Fall, so I can't attest to how good she is.

Benning is the only performance in the best female actor category that I am rooting for.

I mean, I know.

It's just that Lily Gladstone deserves better.

Wow, okay.

Yeah, I was very unimpressed by Annette Benning.

I couldn't get past the fact that she was Annette Benning.

I just couldn't see Nighad.

I only saw Benning.

Whereas with Jodie Foster, it was the complete opposite.

I forgot Jodie Foster was the actor there.

She just puts in a really winning performance.

It's very natural.

Like, you can see that this is a veteran actor.

Like, she's not even acting.

She's just like Gillian Murphy.

It's just embodying this person.

If it was any other year, and Danielle Brooks is not up for the same category, I would want Jodie Foster to get it.

But Benning is a complete no for me.

But then that entire category, it's tough.

Yeah, but you know who I wanted in the best acting category?

Natalie Portman.

She was amazing in May December.

I was like, this is a shoe in.

I was wrong.

The film randomly has an original screenplay nomination.

I'm confused.

Isn't this based on some real guy's story?

How is this an original screenplay?

Can I just say, if May December had to get any nominations, it should have been supporting actor for Charles Melton.

I know he was Reggie on Riverdale, but you know what?

That was a very good performance.

He had very interesting scripts to work with, and he did a great job.

I was not at all surprised that he blew me away in May December.

He was robbed.

He is so stunningly emotional in this film.

Why didn't he get a nomination?

And also, like you said, how do you nominate a film that is based on a real person's life?

Oh, and he also never was consulted about this story about his life.

No, just no.

Just for that reason, they shouldn't have given them writing nomination.

Anyway, that's that from us about the Oscars 2024.

Yes, our opinions may be controversial, but we stand by them.

Let us know your thoughts about all things Oscars 2024.

See you next time.

Ron: You can find us on Twitter @Stereo_Geeks. Or send us an email stereogeekspodcast@gmail.com. We hope you enjoyed this episode. And see you next week!

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