#but no it actually is very centric and has a pretty well reviewed view. and I don’t even need to skip uni to go which is ALSO crazy

[giselles-dumping-hat]

I GOT A RESALE TICKET LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOO

NEVER BACK DOWN AND NEVER GIVE UP KIDS a perseverant spirit will really get you far

Can I get confirmation that there’s any other hadestown fan living in Spain at the moment who was excitedly going to buy tickets for the obc London revival today. I need to know if someone else shares my absolute fucking DESPAIR

[freedfromthegalactichivemind]

The old Reaper Brothers stories.

So, a coincidence in @baggebythesea 's ongoing Choose Your Own Adventure poll-story got me thinking of a set of old fics of mine. Robin and Jerome's Excellent Adventures. The main OCs also show up in a few of my stray fanfictions that are not a part of the series. They premiered as random characters in a Hordak-centric fic and I borrowed their names for an idea I had an, well, it went from there. I haven't written a new fic for them in a while. This is mostly because the people who used to be interested in them aren't interested anymore. I had a falling out with most of the "clone fandom" that existed once upon a time over some misunderstandings and behaving very awful and self-destructively. I think interest was waning, anyway, and clone-fandom has never been a big subset of Spop fandom. It is very, very niche and I think most people like humor with them, not as much the drama that I like to do. At this point in my life, I do not know if I will ever write a full story / centric on them again. This is because of events in my life. It is honestly kind of weird that I basically spent 1-2 years parsing out a lot of my views surrounding the subject of Death via these stories. They started out as just an idea about the possible needs of clones in a more serious version of the She-Ra setting. I think it may have been possibly subconsciously inspired by the Covid-19 pandemic and seeing massive death-tolls in my own country as well as a comparison worldwide whenever I turned on the news. These were all people I would never know.* I probably had some switch flipped in my brain to deal with it with a fictional species who were of the "nameless mook" variety, because it felt like how most of us were at the time (us "essential" retail workers and such). Anyway, I did these stories and I'm glad I did them, even though they are often brutal and heavy and what humor in them trends pretty dark. (As I think clone-humor would, honestly. I headcanon that most Etherians cannot stomach clone stand-up shows because of the things they joke and laugh about for relief). As my life is now, well... I lost a couple of my aunts last summer. *(One a late-contractor of Covid, compounding a lung-condition). I was rather distanced from them, so I took their loss with a wistful sadness and a small, futile regret that I never got back to Arizona to see them again before they went. Last month, however, I lost my dearest friend. My 39 year old nephew (by my partner) who often came over for extended visits (and was with us for months on end during the lockdown), one of the three geeks in our "three geeks in a pod" group, my gamer-buddy, one of the few people on the planet who ever actually understood me died. I've been dealing with the Hell of grief full-on, although I feel a little better after he visited me in a dream the other night. (Those of you with a depressingly materialistic worldview are free to think that it was just my brain doing a thing, but I would like to keep this as something spiritual, if it's all the same). In any case, I am suddenly dealing with a lot of DEATH full-on in my real life, including "Okay, we have to figure out an appropriate memorial service" and it's making me just feel like I cannot continue this specific set of stories anymore. I can have Robin and Jerome show up in miscellaneous fics not having a direct connection to their job, because I like the characters, but I am not sure I have the heart anymore to continue the series. We'll see, but probably not. I think what these character needed to tell me has already been told. I do, as always, appreciate any reviews anyone wants to leave on the existing fics.

[juniperhillpatient]

Zuko Alone Re-Watch

This is one of my favorite episodes in the entire series & I DO have a lot of thoughts on it but I also feel like it is one of the most heavily discussed episodes in the series. So, I'm struggling with having anything NEW to say about it, ya know? Also, full disclosure, this is yet another re-watch post made after a few glasses of wine. I'm blaming Thanksgiving leftovers. (ETA: after typing most of this last night I’ve come back to finish the post now on my phone sober & bored at work)

Anyway, ZUZU IS ON HIS OWN! When 'Midnights' dropped I kept saying "You're on Your Own Kid" was a Zuko™ song but I somehow just now realized that he even has a whole episode about it. Agni, I can't believe Miss Swift is such an Avatar fan. She seriously has more songs about the characters by the day!

Zuko, hon, seeing flashbacks of your mom as you almost pass out from hunger & heat is sooo normal, baby boy you're doing *great* king. ♫ I know that you got mommy issuessss.🎶

Zuko dealing with those earth kingdom national guard jerks was a whole ass mood. Look, you've either worked with the public or you haven't. If you have, you understand why Zuko's repetitive, deadpan "no" responses to these jerks were so funny. Also deadpan humor Zuko you’re so special to me <3

FLASHBACK TIME!!! Azula threw rocks (or at the very least bread or something) at the turtle ducks & that's mean but not that surprising from a little kid in her environment. Azula & Ty Lee's prank on Mai & Zuko was pretty mean but also exactly what middle schoolers with fire powers would do. Azula, Ty Lee, Mai & Zuko were clearly childhood friends even if there was a lot of toxicity in the dynamic between the four of them. And honestly, I just can't get over how well-written this show is & how well it develops & explores both its protagonists AND its antagonists.

I think that this episode is really interesting in the way that it explores the imperialist culture within the Fire Family. Literally, this show is just SO fucking good, I'll start eating drywall if I get too excited or think too hard about it. Because it's spent so much time - & will spend so much more time - exploring the impact of the war & how horrific it is for all the nations being colonized & attacked. And it ALSO spends time exploring the royal family & the individuals involved & WHY they are the way they are. When Ursa, Zuko, & Azula get news from Iroh joking about "burning Ba Sing Se to the ground'" they LAUGH! This is the goal that is supported & made as propaganda for the Fire Nation, especially the royal family. It's fascinating & horrifying all at once.

The flashbacks are (in my opinion) where the real meat of the episode is, but the present day is interesting too. Zuko learns some important lessons from the family that takes him in & I think the most important takeaway is that the earth kingdom has some kind people who are being hurt by the war & the Fire Nation. It was important for him to feel that hate in the end when Lee wouldn’t even accept his gift of the knife.

I also think that this is (despite literally being an episode about Zuko I’m sorry guys I’ve never denied that I have an Azula centric view lmao) a really good Azula episode. We learn a lot about what Azula’s childhood was like & the dynamic where Ursa treats Azula with disdain & dislike giving Ozai the perfect opportunity to mold Azula into the perfect little weaponized prodigy he wants.

A dissertation could easily be written about this episode but it’s already been talked about SO much so I’ll cut this review mostly short & leave y’all with my biggest takeaway which is that Zuko & Azula actually showed signs of friendship & camaraderie (playing together & laughing right before learning Lu Ten had died, Azula taking Zuko’s hand & dragging him off to spy) even if they were also forced to see each other as rivals because of Ozai & Ursa’s favoritism. It’s so important to understand this to appreciate the show & the character dynamics at play, because Zuko & Azula are so much more than just rivals who hate each other, a hero & a villain. It’s much more complicated & interesting than that.

Also worth noting that the flashback with Zuko & Azula playing together & then learning Lu Ten has died comes right before Lee learns that his brother has died. That’s just good writing.

Iconic Behavior points: Zuko gets 100 for his actions in the present trying to protect Lee & his family. Ursa really should get some for killing Azulon but I’m still so fucking mad at her for how she acts toward Azula… ugh, fine I have to be fair, 10 points. Azula & Ty Lee each get 100 points for the prank on Mai & Zuko. Azula gets 500 points for saving Zuko’s life as a child & having her creepy villain kid sing song moment. I’m on my phone so I’m not adding up the points for the season so far .

Anyway that was an iconic episode & I could say more about it but pretty much every scene is worth it’s own essay (except the stupid doll burning scene, more than enough has been said on that lol) so that’s all I have for now!

[ducktracy]

In some of your reviews, you talk about how it was Tex Avery who made comedic villains in cartoons such a trend. Can you go into more detail about that? I find it fascinating, especially since I was sure other early toons had funny villains as well. It would be interesting to see how the evil characters in his cartoons compare to the ones other directors had.

OF COURSE!!! i'll preface this by saying my answers'll be pretty Warner Bros. specific because i still have a LOT of research to do on other studios, ESPECIALLY so early on at this time, so this'll be from a WB-centric point of view. this’ll also be long because i LOOOOOVE to talk about and explain this stuff

there were absolutely comedic touches to villains in early cartoons, primarily revolving around the way their plans were foiled. aside from the occasional snarky jab or quote, they quite often posed a very real threat whereas Tex sort of honed in the idea of an incompetent villain--some more threatening than others.

villains were a VERY prevalent plot piece in the earliest WB shorts, villains and KIDNAPPING. practically every other short had a villain kidnapping the damsel in distress and the Mickey Mouse talking young ruffian swoops in to save the day.

usually the manner in which the villain was exposed would be the funniest part (like this from Big Man from the North in 1931, which was the first WB cartoon to prominently feature a villain).

otherwise they'd usually just bare their teeth and laugh at whichever small fry they were taking on. this isn't a kidnapping picture here, but rather Bosko and the titular Big Man get in a gun fight and Bosko shoots the fur off of the villain, who's reduced to a disgusting, naked mess and runs for the hills. a happy ending! while the resolution is comic, the villain did pose a serious threat and was relatively menacing

again. HEAVY emphasis on the kidnapping aspect and lots of mustachio'd villains too. some villains were animals (bears, lions, etc) but a very prominent plot point was "villain wants girl, girl refuses, villain kidnaps girl, spunky young boy saves the day, villain gets foiled in a rather comical way" (though the last cartoon has the girl leaving her boyfriend FOR the villain because his head--he's a vinegar bottle--is replaced with a sexy head from a perfume bottle and she falls in love)

Tex also had his share of nefarious villains (like his debut with Gold Diggers of '49), but i'd say the first inkling of a comic villain was with The Blow Out, which is one of my absolute favorites from the era.

Porky doesn’t have enough money to buy an ice cream soda, but quickly discovers that doing favors for people = $$$. he returns lost wallets and lost canes and little things like that, until he unintentionally stumbles upon a mad bomber (voiced by the evil queen from Snow White!) and keeps trying to return the bomb to the bomber (not knowing it IS a bomb)

the bomber poses a threat, but MUCH of the cartoon is spent with the bomber running AWAY from Porky and yelling at him. before, villains were hardly ever scared of their opponents and only showed weakness at the last minute. here, the villain is now the victim, trying to shove this pesky kid away before he gets blown to smithereens.

the cartoon actually ENDS with the bomber willfully giving himself up the police (by that i mean running as fast as he can from Porky and jumping into the police van), and the bomb goes off in the van as Porky coyly poses for his money reward after putting the bomb in the van in the first place

it’s a FANTASTIC cartoon and one i can’t love enough. the villain still poses a very real threat, but the short revolves more around Porky inconspicuously trying to kill the villain rather than surrounding the bad deeds of the villain.

Milk and Money is another great Tex cartoon that follows a similar motif; the villain is there to collect Porky’s father’s mortgage which he can’t afford, and the villain (known as Mr. Viper--THE SNAKE!) gives him until 3pm tomorrow to pay or else he takes the farm. 

he’s dressed as a stereotypical mustache twirling villain which, as we saw, WAS a very real and persistent trope, but his authority is repeatedly diminished through fourth wall breaks. he whips towards the audience to tell them “he’ll never make it!” before slithering away onto his carriage like a literal snake. there’s certainly a very strong air of playful mischief surrounding his personality rather than a real threat.

things happen, Porky gets the money for Viper, Viper begrudgingly accepts it (he tells the audience “I’M SUNK!” after he initially sees Porky with a hefty wad of cash) and then, to add insult to injury, a horsefly from earlier in the film zings Viper right in the ass and he’s thrown right out of the film. 

ALMOST DONE I’D SWEAR. the first TRULY comic villain who poses no threat at all and is a total hack is from Tex’s Little Red Walking Hood--specifically, the wolf.

IMMEDIATELY, the wolf is introduced by cheating at a game of pinball in the pool hall--and STILL losing. his incompetency is established right from the start and is a very persistent theme throughout the entire cartoon.

he spots the titular Little Red (who is a flamboyant impression of Katherine Hepburn), and as soon as he makes advances towards her she calls him out for sexual harassment and leaves him. when he still tips her hat towards her the traffic light bonks him right on the head, which, again, makes him look like the utter loser he is.

same thing happens after a brief but befuddling encounter with Elmer Fudd (who, at this point, is just a pinhead walking across the street whistling and doesn’t say a word)... and again after picking up Red and failing once more.

even his attempts to get granny are foiled--granny stops their chase midway to take a phone call from the grocer, which causes the wolf (brilliantly voiced by Tedd Pierce) to yell “AWWWWWWW, C’MON, GRANDMAAA!”

and, because he can’t even do his job right and kidnap or eat the grandma, he BEGS her instead to “give him the stuff” and put on the granny costume--which she obliges. he’s an absolute total loser and is VERY charismatic and funny as a result.

after Red surveys his costume and talks about how silly their altercation is and after the wolf accosts a latecomer to the theater, it’s ELMER who foils the wolf after the wolf asks “now who da HECK are you anyway?” “huhuhuhh, i’m the hero in this picture! hhuhuhuhuh!”

Tex has had comedic villains as we’ve seen, but none of them had ever been established losers or failures from the start like the wolf, and it paid off MIRACULOUSLY. all of these Tex shorts are very very funny, and he really did pave the way for fresher takes broken stereotypes. while villains COULD be funny beforehand (the villain in You’re Too Careless With Your Kisses! tells the audience “i’m not crazy... MUCH!”) their credibility was never as fervently nor effectively crushed as it was with Tex Avery.

[engekihaikyuu]

View from the Top 2 - Review

Check out the Read More if you’d like to hear about this show!  Askbox is open as well if you’d like me to elaborate on anything out of this.

Before I begin my review of the final show, I do want to start with some caveats:

So as I mentioned previously, the production once again went with PIA for their live streaming platform, which means that live streaming this show is very inaccessible for anyone living outside of Japan.

PIA is a ticketing platform that requires a working Japanese phone number in order to finish activating/registering a new account because you must call the number provided to finish account verification. So without a Japanese contact or a Japanese phone number, this platform is basically impossible.

I have a generous friend in Japan who was willing to share her account information with me, which is how I was able to pay for a show and use her log-in to watch the stream. I did not see this show in-person; I do not live in Japan and obviously travel is off-limits. Even if I did live in Japan, I would have qualms about going to the theater.

There are some logistical issues with this show because of the current pandemic, with the most visually obvious one being the small face shields the actors wear on-stage. They basically serve as protection against direct spittle, but obviously they do nothing to guard against aerosol spread; putting on the play is still an incredible risk to the performers and staff. Another difficulty they face is the fact that Tokyo is still continuing to maintain a nightly curfew. Every evening Tokyo performance needed to be bumped earlier so that spectators can leave the theater in time to make it home for that curfew. Keeping that in mind, the show is a surprisingly condensed 2.5 hours long, where I would have expected 3 hours given the amount of content it covered. This does affect the pacing in Act 2 noticeably, and I get the feeling that were it not for covid and the current curfew restrictions, it would feel a little less rushed at the end.

So, with all that said, here are my thoughts on Engeki Haikyuu’s final play, The View from the Top 2!!!  This is absolutely not spoiler-free, for both the play’s content and everything that happened in the manga finale, so if you have not finished the series, this is your last chance to turn back.

Now that I think about it, I haven’t written a full review on a show since Fly High, so I’m a bit rusty at this, and I’ll probably leave out a lot so as always, my askbox is open for people’s additional questions!

The absolute main theme of this play (and really of the entire Haikyuu story) is the friendship and rivalry between Hinata and Kageyama, and the theme: I’m not alone. Engeki really did right by our dual protagonists by framing the final show as showing both of their journeys from beginning to end. Act 1 begins with that familiar sequence from the very first show: Hinata seeing the little giant on TV, being inspired to start playing volleyball, his struggle to find a team in middle school, losing to Kageyama in his one and only middle school tournament, and finding him again at Karasuno. They repeated the scene almost exactly as it was in the first show, and I think it was very smart of them to show us Daigo’s version of it, so to speak. That way we have a more cohesive vision of Hinata from the beginning of his journey to the end. Then they absolutely FLOOD the stage with a montage of projections with footage from all of the shows from the past five-and-a-half years. So already it’s pretty emotional for me, seeing how far the play had come as well as how far Hinata had come in the story.

To parallel this, the beginning of Act 2 actually begins with baby Kageyama. Yes, the baby Kageyama flashback with his sister and grandfather and how he started volleyball. We see Kageyama’s volleyball journey from childhood (for this they used a small doll similar to the dolls they used for young Kuroo and Kenma from Revival) to playing at Kitagawa Daiichi, to losing his grandfather, to being labeled the King of the Court, to defeating Hinata, and then having Hinata find him at Karasuno. And then they once again, they flood the stage with projections with past show footage, but this time they are more Kageyama-centric in the way that the previous ones were often Hinata-centric. And it just really highlights how much these two are meant to share the stage as the two main characters.

To see this framework and to know what’s going to come at the end, with the two of them reuniting in the pro-volleyball arena… just the beginning of Act 2 alone had me in tears. Another way they paralleled their respective journeys was to show us who have influenced them. In Act 1, there’s a dance with Hinata, Hoshiumi, and Udai (all little giants… well, Tsukishima’s in there too because he’s feeling a particular competitiveness with Hinata in this part of the match). In Act 2, there’s a dance with Kageyama, Atsumu, and Oikawa, because Atsumu and Oikawa are the setters who have had the most influence on Kageyama, and he’s drawing on what he’s learned from them for this match. They are not alone in their journeys, they have had people inspire them and be inspired by them in addition to having the support of their teammates.

The Karasuno vs Kamomedai match is interspersed with bits of action from the Fukurodani vs Mujinazaka match, so the stage was pretty busy for basically the entire time. The wires are back for some sequences so that both Hinata and Hoshiumi have a chance to fly, and there are plenty of acrobatics and lifts, and the same incredible soundtrack we love. Ryuu’s Hoshiumi is the obvious standout on Kamomedai for how many lifts he had, and they definitely tried to have him running around on the stage about as much as Hinata. It was notable how much they drew on past techniques and music for various parts of this match, since this is meant to be Karasuno at their peak. When Asahi was feeling particularly stuck/trapped against Kamomedai’s defense, they incorporated the tying-up visual they had previously used in Winners and Losers, with Kamomedai basically tying up and holding Asahi in place with ribbon. There was Summer of Evolution music when Karasuno does a great synchro attack, and the extras-wearing-Hinata-masks reappeared to show us Hinata’s “afterimage” as he flashes around the stage. If you’ve seen all the plays, you can’t miss these call-backs.

The flow of the match was fast. They hit the highlight plays and the highlight emotional moments, but we are clearly past the point where they need to narrate the actual volleyball to us. There was more dancing/acrobatics than attempting to place the two teams on either sides of a physical net with more overt volleyball moves. Everything was more intertwined and fluid than that. And actually now that I think about it, they have been sparse with their usage of a physical net in the past few shows, because everything has been a little more fast-paced overall.

They definitely wanted to highlight Karasuno’s rise throughout the game, to show that they were absolutely a formidable team, that they deserved to be at Nationals, and to show us all the ways that Hinata and Kageyama had grown. For most of Act 2 leading up to Hinata’s collapse, it really feels like they could win this. And I think it makes it that much harder for Hinata to accept being benched, because the team is riding this high and doing so well, and even Kageyama’s more visibly having fun. I think Takeda-sensei easily has a third of the best lines in the series. His speech to Hinata during the Kamomedai match is one that was really gut-wrenching to read when those chapters came out, and it was great to hear it said aloud.

And here is something I’ve never been able to point out because I didn’t do reviews for the past two tours, but I think Daigo’s voice is one of the strongest aspects of his Hinata. I’m sure a lot of that has to do with the work he’s done as a voice actor, but when he cries or whimpers, it is genuinely the most pitiful noise. A lot of Kenta’s portrayal of Hinata’s frustrations throughout the story had an undercurrent of anger and frustration. He’s upset, but there’s always something behind it that says, “well next time, it’ll be different.” And I think Daigo replaces most of that with pure sadness, especially for this scene. After Takeda-sensei lectures him good and proper, and he accepts that he needs to leave, he just sounds so broken. It doesn’t have that anger and drive underneath, he’s just in despair. And why wouldn’t he be? A part of him understands this is the last match he’ll ever play with this team, his first real team.

We then see Hinata bundled up in a coat and scarf, watching the rest of the match from the tablet that Kenma gives him. Snow begins to fall on the stage as he slowly wanders through it, with Karasuno and Kamomedai finishing out the rest of the match around him. Engeki Haikyuu has always allowed for the losing team in a match to line up at the edge of the stage, say thank you to the audience, bow, and take their leave. It’s so symbolic, and it’s so emotional for the actors and for the audience who are in the theater. It’s a moment that just barely breaks the fourth wall, when they turn to us, the spectators, to say, “Thank you for your support.” And they mean it both in and out of character. And I was so so so sad when I realized that Karasuno would take their final bow as a team without Hinata in the lineup. He’s in the back of the stage, separated from his team, and he does take a bow, but it’s very lonely.

Now, I’m sure people are very curious about the timeskip material, and mostly I just have to preface with: it’s fast. It does not take up as much of Act 2 as you might think. It’s boom, boom, boom, cameo here, pre-recorded projections there, patissier Tendou interview, Kuroo in a suit doing a promotional commercial for the V-League, Kageyama’s curry commercial, a projected Osamu selling his rice balls, get the old team together, fateful encounters in front of the bathroom, GO! The only thing we see of the Brazil arc is Hinata having a brief flashback to tell Kageyama that he met Oikawa while he was in Brazil. It’s very short, and that’s all we get for his time in Brazil. Basically, the play is not the place to see Hinata’s journey and growth from those chapters because he goes through so much of it alone, and there’s just no time. The Brazil arc also brings back a lot of technical details about volleyball itself, especially as Hinata is learning the beach version, and that’s an area where the manga is the best medium to examine the finer details of the sport. I can see why a play version would gloss over the technical details to focus on the emotional arc, which is in this case, Hinata and Kageyama.

Because of how fast the ending is, it definitely feels made for the people who already read the manga; Previous Engeki Haikyuu shows have always presented the story in a way that was very friendly to those who may not have read the manga or watched the anime. You could watch just Engeki Haikyuu and not feel like you were missing out on references/jokes for the most part, but this ending would be way harder to follow for those not familiar with what’s already happened.  

It’s difficult because I do feel like Act 2 was overly condensed to wrap up this story, but I also don’t think the timeskip material is enough for a whole play on its own. If we had stopped at the end of the Kamomedai match, and had a whole separate play to cover Brazil and the Jackals vs Adlers match… the pacing would’ve been slow and low energy especially in the first half, and it would be an odd choice for the final show of a series like this. My preference would have been for this play to have been three acts, three hours, so that we could linger on some of those timeskip moments a little more, slow it down, and let them land emotionally. But clearly the covid situation prevents that in this case. That being said, I don’t think any of those timeskip moments could really hit as hard as when I first read them in the manga. Narratively, that Haikyuu timeskip was so unexpected and so outside the normal sports anime formula, that the initial shock is extremely hard to top. It was fun to see how they presented everyone in the future (seeing Noya on that boat catching a giant swordfish, or seeing Ennoshita almost break a patient’s back) in stage form, but it’s unreasonable to expect them to give us the same feeling of ?!?!?!? when we first read that Noya was in Italy of all places after waiting weeks and weeks for him to show up.

I still cried in several places, it’s still a great ending to one of the best 2.5D franchises in existence, and it still feels like the culmination of their legacy. I don’t know how it would be possible for anyone to watch that ending sequence with all of the team flags and the chanting of their names, and NOT cry.

There are no more live streams until they complete the rest of their tour and then there will be a live-stream of the very last show, which I will be watching with a towel in hand for my tears. Feel free to send in any questions if you’d like, and if you would like some Strongest Challengers or Trash Heap merch, I have a sales post that I recently made.

[space-girl-and-droids-art]

Clone Wars: Stories of Light and Dark- Book Review

“Clone Wars: Stories of Light and Dark” Is an anthology of stories narrating some of the arcs of the clone wars from the perspective of the characters. It gives more details and depth to some episodes, as well as giving us information that makes us have a different view of the events.

This is not exactly a review, but mostly my reactions to reading the book. I do recommend it, if you loved the clone wars and want another perspective on some of the arcs this will be a good read. That said, this does contain spoilers for the clone wars.

#1 “Sharing the same Face” -Jason Fry (from the episode “Ambush”)

Okay this was once one of the most light-hearted episodes of the series and now I ended up crying. I did not expect an order 66 reference here. Every time Yoda addresses Dooku is painful. Seeing how Yoda perceives the clones is really heart-warming, but knowing how it all turns out in the end is really sad and during the whole text you are really aware of that. In the show you kind of forget about what’s going to happen for a while, but this text just keeps you thinking about it constantly. It was a good read, I loved it. I found it really interesting knowing Yoda approaches the clones the same way he approached his students at the temple, and knowing what his opinions on the clone army it was a good detail. Loved this one.

Did I care that much about this episode before? No. But watching it right after reading this made me cry for half an hour. (I am a really emotional person, so take this with a grain of salt.)

#2 “Dooku Captured”- Lou Anders (From the episodes “Dooku Captured” and “Gungan General”.

This was a funny read, and the fact that the events are narrated by Dooku Himself made it even more hilarious. It’s supposedly a holorecording Dooku was doing for Sidious, and you can tell by his words that he was so done. Poor Dooku deserves a meditation day after it. You can tell how annoyed he was by the whole situation and his perception of Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi. They really are bothering for the count. I’m surprised he didn’t retire after this event, man’s gotta be really tired. Also, when they were tied together, they just shared a braincell and most of the time, Dooku was the one carrying it. The love he had for Qui-Gon does not extend to rest of the lineage, clearly.

At first it was really slow, but after they get captured by the pirates it just gets funnier. Good story to read after the sadness the previous text gave me.

Also, the fact that Dooku canonically records himself venting to Sidious is hilarious to me. Like, can you imagine being Palpatine and receiving daily vlogs from your apprentice ranting and complaining about Anakin and Obi-Wan? Dude was tired, of course he would let Anakin decapitate him in the end.

#3 “Hostage Crisis”- Preeti Chhibber (from the episode “Hostage Crisis”)

For an Anidala shipper this is a must read, because you will know exactly what Anakin thinks of his wife and how he views Padmé. This text was more Anakin centric (I believe the next one is Padmé centric) and it was a delight. I haven’t read much in canon about stuff that involves Anakin’s feelings so this was really good.

The scene from the beginning of the episode? Is hotter when you read it, trust me. For a clearly SFW text, this was intense. I’m pretty sure I can guess all of Anakin’s kink only by what was implied in his thoughts. Is also really sweet to see how much she cares, but also know why everything went downhill at the end. Good retelling.

#4 “Pursuit of Peace”- Anne Ursu (from the episodes “Heroes on both sides” and “Pursuit of Peace”)

I really love Padmé Amidala. My favorite senator. If you have seen my review of Queen’s Peril you KNOW How much I love her, and even when this text was written by another author, I still got the same feeling about her. Padmé is amazing. This arc is one of my favorite of the Clone wars because it’s the arc that let you see that it wasn’t a black and white kind of situation, both sides were being played. An none of them were really worrying about their people, they were in it for the money. I love reading Padmé’s thoughts on the whole situation. Also, the way this story is written makes what went down with Padmé and Anakin in the third episode make more sense and more in character. She is a strong, good, and smart politician. But she is also motivated to see the light in the dark and preserve the light, it gave me major Qui-Gon from “Master and Apprentice” vibes. It did make me tear up a little, because when I finished it, I realized everything she did was for nothing. She was too kind in a galaxy already so corrupted.

Also, Palpatine stop calling her “my child” you disgusting sith lord, I know you are responsible for her death and so do you, so shut the f up. Padmé was doing everything right and she hasn’t done anything wrong in her life whatsoever.

“Just because there’s darkness in something does not mean you do not love it. You show it love, you show it light, and you hope it chooses the light”.

She was talking about the senate but you just KNOW she isn’t really talking about the senate.

This story re-telling broke me, just as the first one. I am not ready for the next one. Do I have to? Man, I really don’t want to go through Umbara again.

#5 “The Shadow of Umbara” -Yoon Ha Lee (from the episodes "Darkness on Umbara," "The General," "Plan of Dissent," and "Carnage of Krell”)

I was, indeed, not ready for it. It doesn’t really add much to the story… except pain. Rex’s pain, to be precise. Let my man mourn Hardcase :C I just wanted to give him a hug, him and all of the clones to be honest. Fives was as good as always, but re-reading his lines knowing what happens to him made me sad. I hate Pong Krell, get you dirty hands off my babies. I don’t think this re- telling made me sadder, but that’s only because it was just as painful as the episodes.

Dogma my beloved, you deserve everything.

I love how this arc develops Rex character and his attitude towards the war in general.

#6 “Bane’s Story”- Tom Angleberger (from the episodes “Deception”, “Friends and Enemies”, “The Box” and “Crisis on Naboo”.)

Is Cad Bane the Regina George of the Bounty Hunters?

The answer is yes. Yes, he is.

I wasn’t really excited to read about Cad Bane at first, I felt that everything that had to be said about the guy had already been stated in the show. He was just a mean bounty hunter in space. But this was actually pretty funny to read, specially because it’s narrated in first person from Bane’s perspective on what happened with Kenobi. And it’s hilarious.

He is basically re telling the events to Boba and Bossk while he is in jail again. During his story you can learn a few things about him as well, specially what his thoughts are in relation to some important topics. You would think he is only concerned about the money and blasting people, and you would be right. But he also does have an opinion on what’s happening on the galaxy at large, on the jedi, on Palpatine and Dooku. But those opinions don’t affect how he gets the job done. It was really interesting seeing him internally judging Kenobi for being a liar, and knowing something is wrong with the jedi order if they pulled that off. He knows everyone is being deceived, but doesn’t know how. That’s why he doesn’t care, and doesn’t get involved on anything unless you offer to pay him. Money moves him, but not the people who has it.

It was a good story, and I also liked to see how Bane respects Boba and sees him as the one that’s going to take his place eventually.

We know from the deleted episodes that Cad Bane was supposed to be killed by Boba Fett, but we haven’t seen that in canon yet. I really hope they answer what happened to Cad Bane in the current canon, I would love to see that in a comic, or in a book.

#7 “The lost nightsister”- Zoraida Cordova (from the episode “Bounty”)

I love Asajj Ventress for a million reasons and this story just made me love her even more. It’s the same story from the episodes but with an insight of what Ventress is thinking about. Which is unsurprisingly very depressing but the story itself turns out to be pretty uplifting.

It’s about her thoughts on what happened after the massacre of her sisters, her family, and how she deals with everything she had already lost. How lonely and worthless she feels. But during the course of the story, we see her reconnecting with who she is, and learning her value. Learning she is a powerful person, master or not.

It was also really sad to see how she compared herself to others. She was really sad and angry that nobody cared about what happened to her people, no one that cared about her. She saw how people wanted the girl in the box back and thought about how nobody would ever do the same for her and it was sad.

I also find very depressing that she couldn’t mourn her family.

But then she said this:

“What made her so special? What made her worth—No. She couldn’t think that way. This girl’s worth didn’t diminish her own. “

And like, I’m 100% rooting for her here.

Also, I love that once she realized the girl from the box was being smuggled to be essentially a child bride, she didn’t hesitate to scam the old creep. She may be an assassin, but during the course of this story you learn that she is disgusted by men who take advantage of female beings. I also love her internal monologue after the guy was bothering her in the cantina and how she just knows that if she can defend herself, she will do it with no hesitation.

Lovely story, I love knowing more about Ventress. Beautifully written.

#8"Dark Vengeance”-Rebecca Roanhorse (from the episodes "Brothers" and "Revenge")

It’s so on brand for Darth Maul to have his entire story be about Kenobi. It’s narrated by him, but directed towards you, like he is telling the reader a story. That in some stories could be like an awkward thing, but here it was well done. I love Maul and like, I could picture us having that conversation, well, me listening to him monologuing.

I really liked that he started telling the story from the events that happened on Naboo. You get to really see what happened from his perspective and understand why his hatred of Kenobi only grows over time.

Also, Darth Maul was like “I can excuse murder, but I draw the line at being rude”. Which is so morally wrong, but very fitting to his character. He is really upset at Kenobi for not caring about what happened to him. From what I gathered of the info that he let us know, he would probably like it more if Kenobi killed him instead of having to spend all those years in the garbage. Nobody cared for him enough to go and check up on what happened to him. That doesn’t excuse murder though.

The interactions he had with Kenobi let us know that it was not very jedi like the way he treated Maul, ignoring his rage and letting it consume him. Obi-wan just kept adding fuel to the fire because he was also really angry at Maul for the murder of Qui-Gon, not realizing that that would only make Maul be even angrier. And we know how that ended up for Satine Kenobi.

Final thoughts: Savage, I love you.

#9 "Almost a Jedi"-Sarah Beth Durst (from the episode "A Necessary Bond")

I thought this story was going to be from Ahsoka’s point of view. It was not.

I’m not mad at it though.

The story itself does focus on Ahsoka but it’s narrated by Katooni. It’s basically about how much she adores Ahsoka and wants to be like her, but also doubts herself a lot. She thinks she is not good enough to be a jedi. But her experiences both with Ahsoka and with Hondo Ohnaka makes her change her mind.

I want to say that I love the fact that it’s canon that she drew a poster of Ahsoka for her room because she really admired her that much it's so wholesome. It’s cute, and also let us see the perception the younglings had of Ahsoka.

Also, the bond between Hondo and Katooni is really wholesome. This also made me realize that this encounter with a young jedi is the reason he is immediately friendly with Ezra in Rebels. Ezra and Katooni do share similar personality traits sometimes.

Deep diving in Wookiepedia after reading this I found out that Hondo’s ship in Galaxy’s Edge is called “The Katooni” and now I’m sad thinking he was probably devastated when he learnt about Order 66 and what Vader did to the younglings. Great now I’m angsty about a chaotic evil space pirate.

I think it was confirmed by Dave Filoni that those kids are dead now. May the force be with them, they were good enough jedis.

#10 "Kenobi's Shadow"-Greg van Eekhout (from the episode "The Lawless”)

This is the re-telling of one of the saddest clone wars episodes. The episode just lets you think that everything’s going to be alright, that they are going to survive together, lets you hope that they take off just in time… and then it doesn’t happen. I’m still not over Satine’s death. And this made it even sadder. There were so many points their story could’ve gone differently, but their story was already at an end.

This is in third person but heavily focusing on Kenobi’s thoughts along the way. He really was close to turn to the dark side, but his love for Satine and his grief made him not surrender to it. But he felt an anger, a justified one, but an anger that I have never seen in a jedi other than Anakin Skywalker. And we all know what happens to him.

It was a good but sad reading. I won’t be reading this one again. It’s too much. I knew what was going to happen and it still hit me hard. I wish things would’ve gone differently for the both of them. I wonder if we will get flashbacks to this in the Kenobi show.

Also, I really need an Obi-Wan Kenobi and Satine book of their time on the run.

#11 "Bug"-E. Anne Convery (inspired by the episode "Massacre”)

I can’t talk openly about this story because it’s not actually featured on the clone wars. It’s a really good story, specially if you want to expand on the lore regarding Dathomir and the Nightsister in the new canon. It’s perfectly executed, and even when the story isn’t about any of the main characters it hooked me from start to finish. Definitely one of my favorite stories of the book and If I had to pick one story from this anthology to read again it would be this one.

It has more gruesome details than the others and the atmosphere is dark, and I loved it. I would read a whole Dathomirian Nightsister novel written by this author if it was in this exact same style. I really liked it a lot.

In summary, I really enjoyed reading this Anthology. I would really recommend it to anyone who is fond of the Clone Wars or the prequels era. Adults, Kids, Teens, Young adults. I think I would’ve enjoyed this book as a kid as well, and I enjoyed it a lot now in my early twenties. It contains a little bit of everything and that makes it a really complete anthology.

[bobbyshaddoe80]

Liberated Audio Reviews

Blake's 7 - The Liberator Chronicles Vol. 6

RELEASED OCTOBER 2013

Recorded on: 2, 10 and 30 October and 13 December 2012

Recorded at: Moat Studios

Review By Robert L. Torres

Incentive by Peter Anghelides

'The Liberator crew are recovering from a Galactic War and searching for their lost members Blake and Jenna. But it’s a search that leads them into terrible danger…'

Because this story marks the return of Steven Pacey to the role of Del Tarrant, I think it is best that I get my views on the character out of my system before getting to the rest of the review.

Honestly.... Out of the main characters that have come and gone on the show during its four season run, there are two that I do not count as my favorites.

The first is Soolin, largely due to how bland and one note the character was compared to the character she was brought on to replace in Series D... Cally.

The other character is Del Tarrant, and I shall endeavor to explain why I dislike him despite Steven Pacey's fine performance.

From the first moment he appeared on the show, there was something about him that just rubbed me the wrong way. For years I knew it was the character himself that seemed like the problem... But I could never work out why.

This story finally brought to light why I disliked Tarrant's character. He was a young, cocky, hot shot with loyalties only to himself... Basically a less charming and less endearing version of Star Lord. He was impatient, brash, and only seemed to be throwing in his lot with the resistance for no other reason than for fame and glory.

In addition, Tarrant seemed to go out of his way to get under everyone's skin (or rather just Avon's), and always bristled under Avon's command.

I understand that with Gareth Thomas having left the series, they needed to create a new character to go up against Avon on the decision making, much in the same way Avon used to butt heads with Blake. Except the dynamic between Avon and Tarrant, from what I remember, was different and far more antagonistic than it was between Blake and Avon. Avon was an Alpha dog, but Tarrant was also an Alpha dog. This is probably why most of their disagreements, from what I remember, tended to come across like dick wagging contests.

It has been a while since I saw the series proper, but there are only two things of any significance regarding Tarrant that I remember. The first was the Series C episode 'Death Watch', which I think involved his twin brother Deeta. The other was the episode 'Sand' from Series D, which involved him and Servalan being trapped on a planet together... Having conjugal relations.

While the character of Del Tarrant isn't my favorite, Anghelides does a pretty good job of at least attempting to shed a bit of light on his character. This is accomplished by focusing on his desperate desire to stand out from the crowd and make a name for himself on par with the legendary Blake and Jenna.

The story begins not long after Tarrant and Dayna have officially joined the crew. During their latest attempt to locate Blake and Jenna, Tarrant and Avon are captured and interrogated while strapped to an electro-shock lie detector. This dual focused narrative split is in itself a pretty interesting dig at unreliable narratives, especially given that both Tarrant and Avon receive electro shocks whenever they aren't being completely truthful in their recollections.

By the way, kudos to Adrian Lukis for his exquisite portrayal of Interrogator Bracheeni. The scenes that featured him interacting with Tarrant and Avon were actually some of the best parts of the story. The revelation of who and what Bracheeni is added a great deal to the narrative, especially in providing an explanation as to why the Liberator crew had to abandon the search for Blake and Jenna.

All things considered, it is nice to get an actual in-universe explanation as opposed to what actually happened: the plot thread being dropped without explanation, forcing viewers to accept the fact that Blake and Jenna weren't coming back... Ever.

While there are some interesting ideas and set ups featured in the story, the narrated recollections are not really that engaging. In addition, my problem with this story is the same problem I had with Volume Three's 'Armageddon Storm'. Its a narrated story that should have been done as a full cast audio.

Final Score: 6 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

As it stands, this story does its job of filling an hour and retroactively provides answers to lingering questions, thus making it essential. However, this is marred by being an uneven story that is only half engaging.

Jenna's Story by Steve Lyons

'Jenna's story is finally told - from her escape from the Liberator during the Galactic War, to her determination to continue the fight against the Federation alone… with the odds stacked against her.'

When Big Finish Productions obtained the rights to produce new stories set within Series A through C of Blake's 7, this not only opened up story avenues to provide greater focus stories for many of its characters, but also an opportunity to fill in a couple of gaps in the narrative.

While 'Incentive' was an uneven story, it still managed to do what the show itself was unable or unwilling to do at the time: explain why the Liberator crew abandoned their search for Blake and Jenna.

Answering lingering questions seems to be this boxset's central theme as the next two stories are focused on what happened to the characters that literally jumped ship at the end of Series B, Jenna and Blake.

According to dialogue spoken by Cally in early Series C, it was always assumed that Jenna was with Blake when they abandoned ship during the Galactic War. It was also naturally assumed that Jenna had been with Blake the whole time during Series C and D.

Turns out that wasn't the case at all... Which actually works to the benefit of this story and the next.

Here, Jenna recounts how she spent her time surviving and fighting during the events of Series C and leading into Series D. It provides Sally Knyvette with great material and also serves as a reminder of what made me, personally, fall out of love with the series during Series D... Particularly with the way the series ended.

Let me be clear, as much I personally didn't like not having Blake and Jenna around on the show anymore, Steve Lyons managed to craft an exceptional Jenna-centric story that absolutely had to be told. This story, as well as the next one, managed to do a much better job implementing the central themes of what was meant to be on display during Series C and particularly during Series D: how the crusade that Blake started with hope and optimism slowly but surely devolved into cynicism, suspicion, self-interest and ultimately self-destruction.

This is highlighted well during Jenna's dealings with Correll, played by John Banks, and his disrespectfully dismissive attitude towards people with 'noble causes', his derogatory disbelief in 'heroes', as well as his overriding, self-serving self-interest.

Kudos to Banks for portraying someone that's basically an unlikeable, selfish jerk without becoming despicable.

The crux and climax of the story is based on a line of dialogue Blake tells Tarrant during the series finale regarding Jenna's ultimate fate. While the moment itself is thrilling and well executed, I had hoped that it was a lie as part of Blake's test or something. Still, what was crafted here is suitably tragic as it showcases the depths of Jenna's devotion, and even her love, for Blake.

The ultimate tragedy being that, in the end, she never did get to tell Blake how she felt about him... and how much he meant to her.

Final Score: 10 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

A superbly satisfying sendoff and sublime swansong for Sally's Stannis!

Blake's Story by Mark Wright and Cavan Scott

'Blake's story is finally told - from his escape from the Liberator during the Galactic War, to his new life as a troubled, scarred man on a distant rebel world…'

Before getting into the review, I have to state that while I understand the reasons why Gareth Thomas and Sally Knyvette left the show at the end of Series B, it is my opinion that the show lost quite a bit of its inherent identity once Blake and Jenna were gone.

While many contend that promoting the late Paul Darrow to lead actor was the creative booster shot the show needed, there is a reason the show was still called Blake's 7 and not Avon's 7.

No matter who is given the spotlight and focus, Blake's presence is still very embedded within the show's DNA. Despite his absence, Blake's influence is still keenly felt by those that inhabit this fictional universe... Both directly and indirectly.

While the storytelling avenues may have opened up for the rest of the cast, the audience would still inevitably wonder, 'Where the hell is Blake? When is he coming back?' Largely because the audience was still interested in seeing Blake's story continue.

Both Gareth Thomas and Chris Boucher no doubt understood this to be absolutely true. As long as the Roj Blake character remained alive, but missing from a show that bared his character's name, then Gareth Thomas would not have been able to truly move forward in his career.

Which is why its no surprise that the most memorable moment in the entire series came about at Thomas' insistence.

But this isn't about how Blake's story ends... Its about the circumstances Blake experienced during Series C and D that led to his ultimate fate on Gauda Prime. And I am pleased to say that Wright and Scott do an excellent job filling in the blanks of Blake's journey.

From landing on the planet Epheron in his escape pod, to attempting to reunite with the Liberator (which includes Blake visiting the planet Shorlan post-Armageddon Storm), to being captured, tortured and accused of treachery by the Resistance (thus explaining the scar over his eye he displayed in the series finale), its all presented here brilliantly. I also appreciate how engaging these moments are, and aren't treated as plot points to check off.

The late Gareth Thomas really did a great job with this material, displaying the same charisma and intensity he had shown throughout his tenure on the show, which is doubly unfortunate that he had opted out after Series B.

The framing device utilized for Blake recounting events is brilliant, and the twist reveal is actually rather clever... If a little unsurprising. However, it serves the narrative well as it goes to the heart of the tragic and ironic inevitability that lies ahead for Blake, particularly in his connection to Avon.

Despite their disagreements and opposing ideals... And no matter how often Avon secretly wished to be rid of Blake... They still needed each other.

It often reminds me of why the Doctor chooses to travel with companions, the companions keep the Doctor grounded and keep the Doctor from going too far for the sake of selfish self interest and so on.

While neither one would ever admit it, Blake and Avon had the ability to keep each other in check. And even though Blake said at the end of 'Star One' and even near the end of this story that he always trusted Avon... Its only with the benefit of hindsight do we question whether or not that trust was warranted.

Final Score: 10 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

A truly satisfying sendoff for the original star of the show.

Final score for Volume 6 of the Liberator Chronicles, in its entirety, is 8 out of 10 Plasma Bolts.

This is an essential set of stories for longtime fans. Even though there are six more boxsets of stories left in the range, if the Liberator Chronicles audio range ended here, it would have ended on a major high note.

As an aside, while the next six boxsets have produced some outstanding stories, I personally feel that both 'Jenna's Story' and 'Blake's Story' should have been the stories utilized as the finale for the Liberator Chronicles range overall.

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Questions or comments:

Email - bobbyshaddoe3004@yahoo.com

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[elenathehun]

Watching The Clone Wars, part 3

This is a week late - tragically, the past week has been very busy, which is why my notes have laid untyped all this while.  So here are my notes on the lot of episodes from 1x06 through 1x11.  Fair warning: this was a particularly unimpressive bunch of episodes, which might have contributed to my lack of verve in typing them up.

“Downfall of a Droid” (1x06)

The episode opens on a space battle over Bothawui.  We never see a single Bothan.  That pretty much encapsulates my disappointment with this episode.  Anyway, there’s a totally bullshit battle with totally bullshit tactics, and the only point is the create a situation where Artoo is captured by the enemy.  I honestly have mixed feelings about this, because people in the GFFA clearly do not view droids as sentient beings, but the actual writers like to flip it back and forth between “droids are people too” and “hahaha how funny this bad programming is”.  As a result, I can’t care because I know there will never be any emotional payoff.

“Duel of Droids” (1x07)

And the not caring continues in this episode.  It’s amazing that Artoo can literally pull himself back together with his little clamping hands, but doesn’t have basic encryption on his memory banks.  Also love how a droid turns traitor...and is never addressed again.  Like I said, the writers make gestures at the “droids are people too” theme, but never actually follow through on this.  This is why the CIS battle droids just become tedious after awhile.  

An aside: boy, it sure would be nice if the clones had trained slicers among their population, like they seem to have for literally every other military job!  Instead, they have to airdrop in carrying a bulky astromech unit.  Makes perfect sense.

“Bombad Jedi” (1x08)

It’s a Jar Jar episode, enough said.  It’s a shame they focused on that, instead of the drama of Senator Farr choosing the CIS because they will actually help his starving people, unlike the uncaring Core-centric Republic.  Well, I’m sure his people will  dine well on Padme’s family friendship.  Did like the water caterpillar (???) that lives under the city, though!

“Cloak of Darkness” (1x09)

Now, generally I ignore complaints that Ahsoka is Filoni’s “favorite”.   It’s like complaining that Zahn loves Thrawn best, or Stackpole wrote too much about Corran Horn - what else are authors supposed to do, especially in a franchise where the main characters are essentially frozen by the events of movies beyond his control?  But in this case, there is a point: why is Ahsoka even here with Luminara?  It makes no sense!

I don’t know if Yoda killing Asajj Ventress back in 1x01 would have helped, but it sure couldn’t have hurt, given how she’s just tearing through these poor clone redshirts.  however, I will say that Luminara’s face animation = amazing.  Love her many expressions.  Very good, subtle work.  Love the train of her robes, by the way, even though it’s not practical at all.  

“Lair of Grievous” (1x10)

Dooku arranges for Kit Fisto to give Grievous a performance evaluation.  That is all. This was one of the good episodes, mostly because the plot is nice and simple, and it could focus on just introducing Kit Fisto as a more substantive character.

“Dooku Captured” (1x11)

This episode is also really good, mostly because it’s so stupid it comes back around to being funny.  Dooku has an escape slide from him rooms to the hangar bay.  Did he get them specially built into his flagships, or is it standard on all CIS vessels now?  Obi-Wan is absolutely the most annoying older brother in the world, and if Anakin wasn’t prone to murdering women and children, I would absolutely understand his falling to the Dark Side out of irritation.  Lastly, Hondo Ohnaka is somehow the least stupid character introduced so far - like, he’s stupid, but he’s stupid in a way that makes sense and is internally consistent: he’s greedy. Sad to say that makes him a winner in my book.

Well, I’ll be back in a day to so with a fresh batch of episode review from this week.  We’re getting oh-so-close to the end of season 1, but we’re not there quite yet.

[curious-minx]

Left Behind In The Halloween Parade: Late Review of Bob’s Burgers And The Simpsons.

The First Sunday of November, and the Last Sunday of the Trump and Biden election, found Hulu finally uploading the Bob’s Burgers and Simpsons Halloween episodes. So in the spirit of taking your sweet ass time that is exactly what I did with this review. The Bob’s Burgers Halloween episode is probably the weakest of the series, a series that is practically a Hallmark card company in terms of the amount of holiday-inspired content they have churned out. Episode “Heartbreak Hotel-oween” isn’t a particularly offensive in any way it just fails to live up to Halloween episodes such as my personal favorites Season 8 “The Wolf of Wharf Street,” which remains one of the most visually stunning episodes of the series,  and  Season 4, the series’ second Halloween episode,“Fort Night,” which has incredibly gruesome stakes and the most satisfying entry in the Louise versus Millie feud. 

“Heartbreak Hotel-oween” is still ultimately pretty good and though it took a second viewing to fully appreciate it I do like watching the Belcher children deftly sail through the world of adults. The tantalizing plot thread of a Bob’s Burgers Delivery service is dangled and I would like to see more Delivery based plots. Getting these characters into different areas and expanding upon the ambitious Jersey shore town. Having the kids deliver a burger to an older woman using the burger as a lure for her seance is flattened against a brown and forgettable after thought of a hotel. Everything with the Belcher kids is good and interesting and with the help of Andy Daly voicing the Hotel Manager; Lindsey Stoddart doing Quarantine duty and voicing multiple characters including the old woman Dolores conducting the seance, and Loren Bouchard Home Movies collaborator Melissa Robbins stops by as a bystander character as well. 

The episode starts getting in its own way with the adults blood bank centric B-plot. The entire plot is given in a single exchange with Teddie being excited about donating blood and everyman Bob with his everyman  O-negative blood finds giving blood nauseating and gross. That’s it. That’s the whole plot and besides the blood banker workers being dressed up as vampires there are no other comedic games being played and it is total unmemorable fluff, which has been a common issue for the ongoing series. One thing this episode does right is at least get Bob, Linda and Teddie out of the restaurant and into a new environment. A lot of the verbal exchanges between Bob, Linda and Teddie feel a lot more stilted due to Covid recordings and the lack of non-scripted banter is sorely missed. I have noticed this season having more John H. Benjamin monologue Bob by himself moments, which only work when Bob’s imagination is in full flight. Where was the talking bag of Bob’s blood? Hell I wouldn’t even had objected to hearing a dang song sung by the vampires to help soothe Bob into giving blood or something beyond: Bob doesn’t like giving blood because it makes him woozy, he gives blood and get’s woozy. 

Overall this is a perfectly serviceable episode: three Ghost-baiting cheeseburgers out of five. 

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Intermission. 

Fox is certainly using the Loren Bouchard & Molyneux sisters brand like a blood bag with the recent announcement of the new series The Great North. Wendy Molyneux is a frequent writer, (executive) story editor since Bob’s Burgers inception. She is the writer of  “The Wolf of Wharf Street” and the episode of Bob’s Burgers I have watched the most - “There's No Business Like Mr. Business Business,” because I am a cat fanatic, John Oliver fan, and have been the pet companion of a standard poodle exactly like Snoodle named Faust that I love dearly. Basically, I am excited for this show. Molyneux is also a deeply connected collaborator with Megan Mullally writing on all 74 episodes of Mullally’s forgotten by the ages The Megan Mullally Show. A show according to Wikipedia’s citation of Fox News, “viewers were disappointed to find out that Megan is not anything like Karen in real life,” and if there is any white woman out there that is an anti-Karen it is Mullally. Mullally is not the focus of the show but her more visible and commercially accessible husband Nick Offerman is finally being anointed into the annals of TV Dads. With his three sons voiced by Paul Rust, Will Forte and National Treasure Aparna Nancherla and sole daughter voiced by Bob’s Burgers alum Jenny Slate, who recently honorably stepped down from a lucrative tv series Big Mouth deal like the real champ that she is.  Mullally will show up as Jenny Slate’s character’s boss andThe cast is undeniable the backdrop of Alaska has a lot of promise for elaborate or interesting set pieces. I am ready for this show! Will this be Bob’s Burgers Futurama? That’s probably a vicious hex based on how Futurama was infamously jerked around by Fox. FOX has already given the show a promising two-season deal, which is already a lot better than what Netflix did for Tuca and Bertie. Faint nowhere discussions of the Bob’s Burgers movie were also mentioned in an interview with Bouchard who has a cantankerous “theater release only” policy, which bums out a little, but I would much prefer they take as long as possible. The Bob’s Burgers movie cannot end up carrying out the Simpson movie curse.

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I am no Simsons scholar. I could not give you an active ranking of favorite Tree House of Horror episodes. I could tell you that I really like Bart as an Edgar Allen Poe’s Raven. You don’t need to be Simpsons scholar to safely state that “Treehouse of Horror XXXI” should be ashamed to show its “funny face.” For starters the entire appeal of the anthology style of storytelling has been completely deflated by having two of the previous episodes in this season being gimmicky non-standard episodes. The only positive thing I can say about this episode is that it is an important teaching tool for what the most broken and shittiest, laziest satire imaginable would look like and the 2020 Election cold opening is actually pretty solid. All of the good will earned by the strong opening is completely squandered starting with an inexplicably CGI Toys Story sketch. I am assuming the animation department went with CGI because the source material is CGI. The CGI is really bad and makes me really miss the 3D models of Simpsons Hit And Run and perfectly charming The Simpsons Game. Instead this sketch’s particular animation looks like the animators were most inspired not by Pixar’s clean and craftsmen like CGI models but were going for more of a Fanboy & Chum Chum look. A Toy’s Story parody in this day and age is asinine in its laziness, but it’s still an evergreen territory. A good Toy’s Story parody is possible, but simply having Bart play out the role of Toy Story’s Sid except he gets lobotomized by his own toys. I did appreciate the writer’s making the explicit moral of the story to not buy toys, which for a Disney product like the Simpsons is pretty rich. 

Behold! The last recorded instance of a quality Toys Story satire from China, IL

The next two parodies go down slightly better simply because they aren’t sporting that eye bleeding animation but paying homage to Enter The Spider-verse and Russian Doll/Happy Death Day 2U in 2020 feels just as dated as Toy Story. What kind of fool is still writing about Russian Doll in 2020? The Enter the Homer-verse sketch is at least ambitious and showcases how masturbatory  the show has come whenever it is showcasing Dan Castellaneta’s various vocal talents. I get it dude, you like having dump trucks of money given to you for barely making an effort and doing Hannah Barbara impersonations that sound more like a bad Woody Allen. Regardless, this is still the one sketch that makes the most attempt to have comedic games with its multiple iterations of Homer and even throwing out some alternative universe Burns and Smithers for good measure. The final third Russian Doll sketch that let’s you know that this sketch is more Russian Doll than Happy Death Day by using the same exact Harry Nilsson “Gotta Get Up”  piano riff. This sketch had potential but once again the show writers and creatives seem to only indulge the worst possible instincts and cast Lisa as the lead of the sketch. So that means we get to watch this 8 soon-to-be 9 year old girl and fellow child Nelson get murdered in a variety of banal and brutal ways, and it’s just not fun or pleasant to watch. The obvious choice is an unexpected Springfield resident and if it has to be a Simpson having Marge or one of her sisters be the Nadia surrogate makes far more logical sense and Marge’s birthday would carry more emotional weight. 

Reminder to myself to check out this lost late series entry where Natasha Lyonne is the voice of Krusty’s daughter. 

I completely understand why The AV Club canceled their coverage of The Simpsons. The whole series has a very masochistic and sadistic pull and tug between creatives and fans. The sweet and simple souls of Den of Geek are still reviewing the Simpsons and offer a far more favorable review: https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/the-simpsons-season-32-episode-4-review-treehouse-of-horror-xxxi/.  Google results also yield one another publication reviewing this current season published on medium that has been taken by for violating medium rules. Will the Simpsons be coming for me next? 

Skip this episode! Judging by the synopsis of the season’s next ep finding the Simpsons, once again, finding themselves somewhere other than Springfield is looking to be another skippable entry. I want to be proven wrong! The latter day Simpsons seasons usually have a memorable or decent episode here or there. So far the only thing remarkable about this season is how much it wants to try to be different and think outside of the Springfield box but in the process give the season an overwhelming sense of hollowness. I shall forge ahead with my coverage, because I am either a masochist or a sadist depending on the weather. 

[quarterfromcanon]

1-4. For the asks

Thank you so much for sending these! <3 

Once I started to answer them, I realized there were comparatively few recent television shows appearing on the list. I seemed to keep gravitating toward older ones I remembered from years ago. I took a handful of days to mull it over in case I was forgetting something, but nothing else comes to mind. Maybe my ongoing list of Shows to Watch During Quarantine will turn up some fresh results but, for now, it looks like I’ll be taking a little trip down memory lane. :) 

This turned out to be a pretty long and rambly post, so I’ll stow it under the cut!

Top 5 TV Shows 

1. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend - I can’t imagine this surprises anyone who has been following this blog for the past two years or so. It brought fellow fans into my life, got me back into writing fic, and prompted countless tags of meta. It’s the show my mind drifts to on a weekly basis (if not daily) even a full year after the finale. Just when it seemed I’d reached an age where that level of intense fandom involvement and character attachment might be fading, it proved that quite the opposite was true. I’m very thankful to the series for that, and for the people whose paths have crossed mine as a result.   

2. Schitt’s Creek - This is my #1 Feel Good show and, though I’ve been dodging spoilers for the final season until it gets uploaded to Netflix, I get the impression that it will remain in that top spot. The world feels softer and more hopeful there. It’s healing for my soul. I’m going to have a dreadfully difficult time saying goodbye, but I’m glad there are six season to revisit whenever I want. 

3. Stranger Things - The theme song alone sends such a rush of excitement through me. I love the aesthetic and the atmosphere. I sometimes have mixed feelings about the romances but the FRIENDSHIPS sure do have a direct line to my heartstrings. I think the way they’ve combined media influences into their own story is really neat. You get something that’s new and engaging, but you can also go back and enjoy the sources of inspiration with fresh appreciation. 

4. Joan of Arcadia - I can’t help it. The snark, the jackets, the early 2000s songs, the performances -- the nostalgia for this show is so strong. It’s not without its problems, but it did have some really good things to offer as well. I remember an episode that was one of my earliest introductions to the concept of a trigger, and the effect it could have on a person if exposed to one of theirs. The series dealt a lot with grief and the many forms it can take (I STILL can’t hear Fiona Apple’s cover of “Across the Universe” without getting misty-eyed). I’m also surprised, looking back, at the somewhat positive way I recall them discussing homosexuality on the several occasions that it came up in the show. Not to give too much credit since I don’t think there were recurring canonically LGBTQIA+ characters but, for a kid who spent most days around closed-minded people of a certain religious leaning, it was meaningful along my individual journey. I’d like to provide the several examples that are most vivid in my memory:

A. A girl with short hair, short nails, little to no makeup, and a bulky leather jacket is generally assumed to be a lesbian by the bullies at school. The show directly confronts the fact that “gay” should not be used an insult, that identity should not be assumed without the person telling you so, AND makes sure that the character in question never pushes back by saying harmful things about lesbians despite not actually being one herself. 

B. A boy who is questioning is able to confide in his big brother and have a fairly calm conversation about it; the awkwardness mostly comes from neither of them being accustomed to openly discussing emotions, not from the possibility of a negative response regarding the subject matter. 

C. Another character is accidentally discovered to be gay (he only appears in the one episode, if my memory serves), and some of the leads have the opportunity to share that for personal gain. However, even though he is a popular jock who is a bit of a jerk in the hallways, the show makes it clear that the right choice is still to leave the telling of that information up to him and him alone. 

Like I mentioned, it can’t be said that representation was in abundance here - for instance, I don’t believe anything other than straight or gay was presented as a possibility - but any accepting acknowledgement in a faith-centric series was something for me to hold on to in my still-deeply-closeted days. As a final Very Important personal side note, this show brought Judith Montgomery into my life (pictured below on the left), and that feels like it merits a shoutout for being what I consider a rather significant marker in my awakening. 

THE OVERWHELMING CRUSH I HAD - and still have - is one for the books. 

5. Pushing Daisies - This is another show with an aesthetic I adore. The series has such a fun, whimsical energy. The crime-solving! The clothes! The cast! There's a lot to love. It’s the kind of world I wish I could visit... well, minus the evidently rampant murder rate. 

Top 5 Overrated TV Shows

1. Once Upon A Time - *deep sigh* I tried to stick with it for so long. I think I’ve seen five out of the seven seasons in their entirety. It just felt like everything got mired down by excessive (and increasingly convoluted) subplots, often for the purpose of tossing in as many fairytale and/or Disney characters as possible. Plus, quite honestly, there was too much emphasis on romantic love. For a show whose first season involved a curse being broken by [potential spoiler, I suppose] a mother kissing her son’s forehead, I ultimately found myself up to my ears in romantic ships. It reached such a stifling extent that, if you were not particularly attached to those pairings, there wasn’t a whole lot else to entice further viewing. 

2. Under the Dome - I don’t know for certain what the general public opinion of this series was, but it felt like the commercials always featured alleged rave reviews, so I figured I could include it here. I was vaguely interested in Season 1, mainly as a fan of Rachelle Lefevre’s work. Season 2 pulled me in with the introduction of a new townsperson and I threw WAY too much of my heart into that attachment, which backfired when that character was killed. I made quite the spectacle of my heartbreak, so much so that my family doesn’t let me mention this show around them anymore. :P Season 3 was, to phrase it delicately, not a great time. The series did introduce me to a few new-to-me actors, though, so that was cool. 

3. Bates Motel - Even the incentive of learning that the two characters I liked most share a lot of screen time later in the series hasn’t been enough to call me back to this one. I don’t know if it was the pacing that put me off or what, but the prospect of finishing the remaining seasons feels so daunting. There are evidently five seasons in total and I believe I’ve only seen two of them thus far. I will probably muddle through it someday just to see how it goes, but the fact that I am so disinclined to prioritize it made this feel like a fair addition to the list. 

4. Lost - My interest in this series unfortunately waned right before fervent fandom spiked. I don’t have any specific complaints that come to mind about what I saw; I just sort of drifted and then stayed away. Teachers I liked and peers I spent time with were starting to latch on to the show and I couldn’t find even the slightest inclination to give it a second try. However, did I still dutifully read all the latest installments in my friend’s Sawyer Ford and Kate Austen fanfiction when she passed me handwritten copies at lunch? Sure. I was glad it made her happy, even if I was no longer a viewer. 

5. Hemlock Grove - I say this as someone who still mourns the fates of some characters in this show, so I wouldn’t go so far as to claim that the series stopped being able to make me feel anything. I’m just of the opinion that, in some ways, it might’ve been better off stopping at one season. That’s where the book it was based on ends, and things just didn’t feel as cohesive after that. Season 3 especially was - borrowing from my above review of Under the Dome - not a great time. That being said, there are also certain elements from the book that I could’ve done without in the Season 1 adaptation but... well... here we are. 

Top 5 Underrated TV Shows

1. Picnic at Hanging Rock - Another one that won’t surprise followers of this blog. I have rhapsodized about it quite frequently since I found it a little over a month ago. It’s a period piece mystery miniseries with LGBTQIA+ representation, gorgeous costumes, and Samara Weaving. This felt specifically designed to wedge its way into my heart, and I’m quite content with the space it now occupies.

2. Dark - I’m so intrigued by the overlapping timelines with all of the morally gray characters. It’s possible to like one of these people in the timeline where they’re young but dislike them as adults, or vice versa. It also makes me think of Rant by Chuck Palahniuk a little tiny bit with the idea that time travel, specifically tampering with your own timeline, might make you physically and behaviorally unrecognizable to yourself. And the SONG CHOICES! I have gotten some solid new music selections from this series. 

3. Sense8 - I still need to watch the finale. I really do. But I knew it would make me sad so I’ve avoided it for... two years now? Pretty close, I think. The concept is fascinating and the cast is so strong. Plus the cinematography! They came up with some of the coolest ways to depict the link these characters share and what it’s like when they connect over distance. The planning and careful editing it all must’ve taken... I remain in awe. 

4. Penny Dreadful - There were definitely some story/writing choices I didn’t particularly like along the way, but I did get engrossed in the creepy goodness and the performances -- Eva Green’s Vanessa Ives most of all. It left me wishing for more period piece “monster mash” stories, because having all those classic characters in one place was a blast. It also helped me understand why Helen McCrory was once slated to play Bellatrix Lestrange because she can be terrifying. Oh and Sarah Greene in her Wild West outfits? Perdita Weeks with short red hair in fencing garb, and later in all leather with boots and a long jacket? I WAS NOT PREPARED AND I HAVE STILL NOT RECOVERED. I NEVER WILL.

5. Wonderfalls - There’s some cringe-inducing handling of certain representation in the series, but I have such a weak spot for quippy outcasts who become reluctant chosen ones (Joan Girardi in Joan of Arcadia, Wynonna Earp, Jaye Tyler in this series, et cetera). I also really love the sibling dynamics here. They bicker, tease one another, help each other out of trouble, and have rare but genuine heart-to-hearts. Caroline, Lee, and Katie all did such a great job blending their characters’ adult personalities with certain childhood attributes that rise to the surface in the presence of family.  

Top 5 Movies

1. Addams Family Values - I’ve rewatched this movie at least once annually since I found it in Media Play at age 13. Usually, I’ll play it around Halloween or, at the latest, Thanksgiving. It’s mouth-along-with-every-line level ingrained in my memory. I find myself leaning forward in my seat before favorite parts because I’m still that excited to relive them. Why this movie, and why this devotion to such a degree? It’s hard to explain, even to myself. I can tell you, however, that I hold up every other portrayal of the Addams characters to the versions found in this. Everybody in the cast just feels that perfect for their part. 

2. Clue - I was already pretty fond of this movie to begin with, but then my sister got older and claimed it as a favorite of her own, so now she just supplies me with further excuses to watch it repeatedly. It’s also been a bonding piece of media with a couple of close friends and such through the years. It’s incredible to think not everyone in it was the first choice for their roles; what everybody brings to the table is so top-notch that I wouldn’t have it any other way. I also LOVE knowing that it originally went to theaters with different endings depending on which showing you attended. I gather people weren’t terribly thrilled with the stunt back then, but I kinda think some moviegoers would be into that approach these days? Then again, one hit that tried something different tends to start a fad, so maybe I’d end up regretting the suggestion after a while. :P

3. The Craft - This. Movie. Yes, Act III is a major bummer even though I know it’s coming, and I’ll always wish it ended differently. Even so. This. Movie. I tend to headcanon mostly for shows and sometimes books, but The Craft is a beloved exception. I love so much about it: the magic, the music, the clothes, the settings, the dynamics within the friend group, the performances. I had no idea when I first got the DVD at 17 that it would become such a part of my life, but I’m so glad it found its way to me. 

4. Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion - The soundtrack is a glorious ’80s and ’90s treat for my ears. The colorful costumes are perfectly suited to the main characters’ version of the world. There are so many great lines and it feels like everyone is having a lot of fun in their roles. I LOVE HEATHER MOONEY SO MUCH. She’s my awful, scathingly sarcastic, little grungy grump and she fills my heart with joy. 

5. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King - I was pretty sure at least one of the three had to appear on here. I think, if I were to tally them all up, The Return of the King features most of my favorite moments, so it wins the spot. “I can’t carry it for you, but I can carry you!”, ‘Edge of Night,’ Éowyn in battle, The Army of the Dead, ‘Into the West’... I end up crying during the end credits every time. So, yeah, ultimately, I would choose the third part of the trilogy if I could only watch one. 

Phew, that’s it! All the questions answered, all the shows and movies listed! Thank you to anyone who takes the time to read it all, and thanks again to @monaiargancoconutsoy for sending in the prompts! <3

[you-turn-it-into-light]

Wakana - magic moment (2020) Album Review

My girl releases another album less than a year after her first. What a hardworking woman! First, let’s do some overall thoughts:

I really love the title of this album, it’s a happy title for a mostly happy sounding album

I also love the cover, maybe even more than the ‘Wakana’ Album

Are those shoes the same ones from the Aki no Sakura EP?

I really love the diversity of sound in this album. One of my complaints of the first album was the lack of variety. I love me some ballads (70% of my playlist of all the music I listen to are sad songs) but it felt a bit stale after a while.

My complaints with Wakana’s singing is always going to be the same thing since her vocal delivery has not really changed technically that much. Her vibrato is actually quite nice as opposed to what some people would say as ‘Goat Wakana’ (great criticism I must say), especially at the end of 442, her lower register is gorgeous but has no support (as expected of a soprano) and her higher notes in her chest voice are quite nasally. Her falsetto however is quite grating on the ears (I’ll elaborate later)

Why is Orange on the album? To fill up space, that’s why (I get it, making an album is hard, but why not just leave it out? There’d still be 10 songs) And Wakana wrote the lyrics, I guess?

I’m really interested to see how some songs will be performed live with some overlapping vocals (in 442) and strings being in many of the songs (without a violinist for the upcoming live)

I listened to the album first when I was in a bit of a bad mood so everything seemed super average. I’m feeling a bit better about most of the songs. Also after reading the self-liner notes for the album and listening to the lyrics, I was able to appreciate some of the songs more.

Okay, now for the individual songs:

breathing 

(Lyrics: Wakana | Arrangement/Composition: Yumemi Kujira)

The orchestra sound is so gorgeous. At first it was weird hearing the japanese lyrics though lol. I like how they added different instruments for variety’s sake. The choir in the background was more hit or miss for me. During the first chorus is was really distracting but it was great for the rest of the song. My main problem is not the song itself but Wakana’s delivery of the falsetto; it’s very disconnected and screechy. It’s very hard to listen to and since the same chorus is repeated 4 times? It makes it a bit of a hard song to listen to overall. Wakana needs to develop better placement, breathing techniques and support when hitting notes in her head voice.

揺れる春 (Yureru Haru) 

Lyrics: Wakana |  Arrangement/Composition: Miki Sakurai

I don’t really like this song? The lyrics are quite nice, but it just feels like a plain upbeat song about being happy and reaching for goals and all that fun generic stuff. But what Wakana said in the self liner notes made me feel a bit better about the song:

“The hook’s 駆け出した (run off) and 君の叫び (your scream) are connected, right?”

“The urge to run off and shout. It’s exhilarating, and the canvas that you have now is white so you can draw freely and go with the urge. And the second verse’s 睫毛に触れたのは 昨日の自分の欠片 (What touched my eyelashes was the pieces of yesterday’s me) are about tears. The tears hit my eyelashes and one part stops there. The fragments that came out of itself include those that you pick up yourself (I had a hard time translating that sentence so I used google translate hehe). 

where 

Lyrics/Composition: AlbatoLuce | Arrangement: Akihito Takashi

I LOVE Wakana’s low register in this song and the verses. I also really like the acoustic guitar, it provides a really contrast to the more dance-centric feeling of the song. The first chorus still lacks the appropriate punch, but the key change for the second half of the song makes up for it. Also those ‘wooah’s’ are really awesome. Wakana’s voice during the 3rd verse (after the key change) is just gorgeous. 

442 

Lyrics: Wakana, Airi Okamoto | Arrangement/Composition: Koichi Ikekubo

I really wanted to know the meaning of the title, and apparently it’s the hertz sound of a baby crying for the first time!

“The lyrics are co-authored. First we talked about the subject (of the lyrics), we said “When we plan the song, let’s make the theme the reason why you started singing”. So when looking at the lyrics given to me, words came out from inside of me. In particular, the phrase 愛の声が聴こえた (I heard the voice of love) that Okamoto-san produced for us for the hook. [...] I thought that I was born to listen to the “voice of love”. And so, that singing voice is echoing throughout my whole body. It’s strange to cry with the same sound of when we were born. I wonder why? I thought about it, I was born to do something and I thought that your first cry was a singing voice that expressed it.”

I love the melody and instrumentation of this song, especially the chorus. The chorus holds an incredible amount of weight. Apart from her nasality, Wakana’s singing is quite solid throughout this song. I love Wakana’s ‘ai no’ at the last chorus. So much power! I also really like the violin and am disappointed that there won’t be any in the live... Also I love the last line 響き渡る歌声 (resounding singing voice) and the music stops when Wakana sings ‘singing voice’. I don’t have anything objective to say about it, I just adore that part.

ひらり ひらり (Hirari Hirari) 

Lyrics/Composition: Silence! | Arrangement: Mamoru Kuge

Bland... It might take me a few listens but I don’t know if I’ll like this song. Wakana’s singing during the verses is gorgeous, very clear and the melody of the verses and pre-choruses are lovely, but the chorus is really bland and forgettable. I like what Wakana said about the song though.

“It's a song for people who want to meet but can't meet, whether it’s because you can't meet because you're away or because you don't have the courage.”   

I’m in a long-distance relationship, so this song hits home a little bit. The lyrics are actually quite sad. If the whole song was like the verses I’d like it a lot more but the chorus is so uplifting...

アキノサクラ (Aki no Sakura) (Acoustic ver.)

Lyrics: Kei Saito, Yoshitaka Taira | Composition: Kei Saito | Arrangement: Toshio Uchida

I love the combo of bongos and accordion! There isn’t much to say about this song apart from the new instrumentation and the tempo. I really like the former but not really the latter. I don’t think I like it more than the original, but it’s a very nice song. The vocalisations during the bridge is also a pretty touch, especially when Wakana sings along with the music. and that ‘naite’ at the end was so emotional

myself

Lyrics/Composition: AlbatoLuce | Arrangement: Yoshifumi Ise

When I first heard this song, I thought it was BORING. On the second listen, I really liked it. Wakana’s voice is so gorgeous on this song. I love the melody of the line 壊れぬように抱きしめてた (I embraced it so it wouldn’t break). Her vibrato is a bit shaky with the delivery and her low register is not as clear as other tracks (but maybe that’s because of the mixing). Some of the strings sound synth, especially during the bridge but I’m not very sure. The parts with just the one violin instead of the quartet are my favourite bits of the instrumentation; it sounds really lonely. There’s nothing much else to say about it, a very solid song.

君だけのステージ

Lyrics: Wakana | Composition/Arrangement: Satoshi Takebe

I was disappointed. I really like this song and in my review of the live version I mentioned that her high register suits a song like this. But the way Wakana’s singing in the recorded version sounds different to me. The vowels are shaped in a way that sounds like a sadder song. Maybe this me being picky, but it took away from the happier experience. The nasality in her voice is the worst in this song, it literally sounds like she needs to sneeze and drink some water. Also the added noises (synth bells?) during the pre-chorus is very distracting. My review sounds very negative, but I really like this song and the lyrics are gorgeous. 

Happy Hello Day

Lyrics: Wakana | Composer: Akihiro Kasuga | Arrangement: Shu Kanematsu

At this point, the strings are really nice, even if they’re getting a bit old. But the piano during the verses is very cool... I really like the strings in the chorus and the melody of it too. The message of the song is quite sweet and easily applicable to anyone in every day life. These lyrics in particular:

手を叩き軽やかに Clap your hands lightly, 口笛吹いて whistling. ありふれた幸せで僕らはできてる We are made of ordinary happiness.

君が空を仰いで涙流し You look up at the sky, shedding tears. 息を詰まらせて動けなくなったら If you get short of breath and can't move, 此処に僕が居る I'm here.

These lyrics (for like the first 2 lines) are about a performer and the audience. Creating the atmosphere of a happy and chill live (clapping lightly, still listening to the music) and everyone being the same, even the performer. The second section reflects the way some people view performers and music to be an escape from their life. But it can also be interpreted as just an everyday person being happy to have met someone they like. I love how it’s so interchangeable and up for interpretation. 

magic moment

Lyrics: Wakana | Composer: SIRA | Arrangement: Shu Kanematsu

The strings are gorgeous (why no strings for the live????!!!!) and so are the verses. I particularly love the pre-chorus. The chorus however is quite bland and boring and the changing rhythm is a bit hard to grasp. The lyrics are lovely as well. I mean, I’m biased because Wakana wrote them. But I love these ones:

いつから夢も見ない大人になったの？ Since when did I become an adult that never dreamed? 最後の場所は決めたよ　さあ行こう I've decided on the last place. So, let's go!

The song is actually quite growing on me. I’m sure I’ll keep liking it but the chorus is still weighing it down. 

OVERALL:

I really like this album. An unimpressive first impression followed by a very nice second and third one. I’m impressed with the amount of variety in the songs and her singing is mostly solid. I just wish she would improve on different places and I’ll probably keep complaining about them. I think Wakana is liking the independence when it comes to helping the creation of these songs and I’m very happy for me. 

[machinequeen4]

Fic rec bingo list!

I thought I’d fill out this fic rec bingo card, posted by @lightveils on Twitter!

It sort of turned into the History of MachineQueen in Fanfiction. All you unsung heroes who write and publish fanfic, I love you and remember your names.

Recs for Fire Emblem Fates, Fire Emblem Three Houses, Yu-gi-oh, Doctor Who, RWBY, Ace Attorney, Tales of Graces follow!

1. A fic you love without knowing the source material

Undone - codenamecynic, Dragon Age II, E rated, Fenris/Female Hawke, multichap 135k words

https://archiveofourown.org/works/482156/chapters/838851

I know nothing about Dragon Age and can’t remember why I decided to read it. TV Tropes maybe?  From what I can tell it’s the events of the game with additional sex scenes. Hawke is witty, Fenris is a tragic broken bird, I was sold.

2. A fic with a premise that shouldn’t work but it does

Trial and Error - undieshogun, Fire Emblem Fates, T rated, Subaki/Takumi, multichap 15k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/6890677/chapters/15719992

Not so much a premise but a ship I wasn’t convinced on. But it had Subaki in it so I gave it a try. It’s really cute - Subaki tries to teach Takumi social skills, much to his annoyance. 

This line alone is gold star characterisation:

"I couldn't tell you why Tsubaki has taken such a liking to you, but I do know that any time he wants to befriend someone, it's because he sees in them something he lacks."

3. A fic you’ve reread several times

Gratitude - GoldenThreads, Fire Emblem Three Houses, T rated, Hubert/Ferdinand, multichap 8k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20344273/chapters/48239686

The writing style is so beautifully layered that I find new meaning every time I read it. The scene where Ferdinand offers a hairpin for each story Hubert tells is gorgeous, one of my favourites to reread. 

4. A fic you still remember many years later

A Song I Think I Heard Before - Scribbler, Yu-gi-oh, T rated, Mai/Jounouchi (Joey), multichap 40k

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/5924028/1/A_Song_I_Think_I_Heard_Before

My favourite Mai fic. This gives her a backstory with Dartz based villainy and recontextualises her relationship with Jou (Joey in the dub, most YGO authors used the JP names to distance themselves from 4Kids’ added cheese). I was on tenterhooks waiting for each new chapter. It’s got real emotional depth, capturing Mai’s cynical nature perfectly. Also I still think about/use the phrase bumblefuck in the morning. 

5. A comfort fic

just a little stuck on you (you’ll be on me too) - flowermoons, Fire Emblem Three Houses, T rated, Hubert/Ferdinand, one chap 33k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/21875707

This brings the cast of FE3H to the modern world and drops them into reality TV show The X Factor. There’s no war or death angst, just a singing contest. I grew up with The X Factor on TV on a Saturday night so this was a delight. Like me, the author is cynical about reality TV which makes the fic even more engaging. Ferdinand mourning his long hair after he cuts it and Hubert running round London looking for him really made my day. 

6. A catharthic fic

Long and Lost - Windian, Tales of Graces, M rated, Richard/Asbel, multichap 36k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/5357546/chapters/12372899

Listen game, you can’t spend 40 hours having the protagonist’s motivation as ‘save Richard’ and then pull a no homo on me! In this fic Asbel dutifully marries Cheria only for the whole thing to collapse in on itself when he realises he’s in love with Richard after all. The snow storm scene is something I’ll always remember.

7. A fic you’d like to print and put on your bookshelf

Revival series - MyAibou, Yu-gi-oh,  T rated, multiship, many k

http://fanfiction.net/s/2681684/1/Revival-Prologue-Paradox

This is split into multiple parts and has another multipart followup. A continuation of Yu-gi-oh Duel Monsters with shipping and very decent original characters including villains. My polarshipping heart is in love with this scene on the clifftop in part 2 chapter 11 - a slow dance to the sound of the waves to help Mai remember she isn’t alone *melts into a puddle*

8. A fic you associate with a song

Who I Am Hates Who I’ve Been - darkrunner, Yu-gi-oh, rated K+, Mai/Jou, multichap 9k

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/4445992/1/Who-I-Am-Hates-Who-I-ve-Been

It’s titled after a song. This was one of the first fics I ever found, read and loved. I was way too shy to review but I loved this author dearly. Good old angst & hurt/comfort with a happy ending. A happy ending for Mai was all I wanted haha!

9. A fic that inspires you

Patience, Ponies and Pastries - GoldenThreads, Fire Emblem Three Houses, T rated, Hubert/Ferdinand, multichap, 27k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20722859/chapters/49231019

A shipping fic where the two characters being shipped spend most of the fic apart! This author is so good at characterising the pair, there are treasures hidden throughout. I never thought reading about horses of all things could make me so emotional... 

And this passage from Ferdinand’s point of view:

As long as Hubert did not truly reject such affection, did not throw him in the stocks for his bleeding heart, then he did not require reciprocation. He required that Hubert be cherished, and that was that.

10. A fic that brought you on board a new ship

Marik and Bakura Go To Censored Town - Little Kuriboh, Yu-gi-oh, M rated, multichap, 24k

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/6954805/1/Marik-Bakura-Go-To-Censored-Town

I spent most of my Yu-gi-oh fandom life wishing there were more fics about Mai and tended to avoid the big slash ships. However, Yu-gi-oh Abridged’s strongest pair were always Marik and Bakura. When I read this fic I realised yes, Marik being an idiot and Bakura being the straight man (not literally) makes this ship sing.

11. A fic you wish could be a movie

Denial & Deception - Bohemienne, Fire Emblem Three Houses, M rated, multichap, 74k (incomplete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20895731/chapters/49671050

The setting of Derdriu is so lushly described that it would make a wonderful movie setting. Additional points for the masked ball chapters! 

Hubert and Ferdinand infiltrate the Leicester Alliance using a fake relationship. It goes as well as you might expect. There is comedy, there is romance and the whole thing makes you want to smack Hubert round the face with a fish. 

12. A fic that led to you making friends with the author

Past Future Continuous - HermitsUnited, Doctor Who, T rated, multichap 20k

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/4917490/1/Past-Future-Continuous

We are not in contact anymore but we shared a love of Donna Noble. This shines through in all her alternate season 5 fics! 

13. A fic you’ve gushed about IRL

Festering Under Your Skin - Bohemienne, Fire Emblem Three Houses, M rated, multichap 52k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20465312/chapters/48559553

My poor gf had to put up with me going on about this one. Lady Edelgard is dead and Ferdinand is a Blue Lion who spares Hubert. All of this is played for maximum dramatic potential. Special marks for the scene where Ferdinand accidentally poisons himself with Hubert’s coffee. So brilliantly in character for both of them. And excellently foreshadowed earlier in the fic where an imprisoned Hubert keeps asking for his coffee... 

14. A fic you associate with a place

Heart of Defiance - battlemage15, RWBY, M rated, multichap 150k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/7896874/chapters/18038116

I downloaded this to my phone and read it on the top deck of the number 6 bus as it bumped along the country roads of deepest Devon. I was on my way to job interviews in the city and the trip was 2 hours long. The fic itself is a Yang centric shonen power fantasy that goes to pretty dark places. 

15. A fic that made you gasp out loud

Blood and Ink - ShowMeYourFury, RWBY, M rated, Cinder/Ruby, multichap 45k

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11754595/1/Blood-and-Ink

This fic is ruthless with Cinder’s villainy. Every time you think she can’t go any further, she does. I love it. 

16. A fic you found at the right time

Forward - Lyricanna, Fire Emblem Fates, not rated, multichap, 34k (incomplete)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/12747516/chapters/29075913

I love the concept of this fic so much. Subaki is selected to be a Hoshidan ambassador in Nohr and gets lumped with Niles as a guide. Neither is having a good time. There is a plot going on involving kidnapping and asassination that forces them to work together. 

17. A fic that you would read fic of

The Obligatory Hot Spring Scene - Scribbler, Yu-gi-oh, T rated, oneshot, sub 1k

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/6368612/1/The-Obligatory-Hot-Spring-Scene

Written as though the characters are actors and canon is a TV show. I love this concept and would read more in a similar vein

18. A fic that made you laugh out loud

Surrender To Your Peace - spiralpegasus, Fire Emblem Three Houses, M rated, Sylvain/Felix, one chap, 11k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20757260

“This is very unfortunate,” Dimitri says with a frown. “As the leader of this mission, I will take full responsibility and use the Swamp Bedroll.”

One does not simply sacrifice themselves to He Who Saw The Bottom Of The Earth And Lived with such a cavalier attitude. “You know your guilt complex doesn’t actually have to extend to sleeping in a gross swamp bag,” Sylvain tells him disbelievingly.

“I agree, Your Highness,” Dedue says, setting He Whose Stench Haunts The Dreams Of Man down on the ground with a delicate sort of distaste. “None of us need use this… bedroll.” He says bedroll the same way he says food when it’s Flayn’s turn to cook.

19. A fic with a line or two you’ve memorised by heart

one sentiment enlightens to another - newamsterdam, Fire Emblem Three Houses, G rated, Hubert/Ferdinand, oneshot 6k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/21074840

Ferdinand rolls his eyes. “Of course I do, Hubert. I remember very well. I just— well. Perhaps I’ve overestimated you.”

Hubert, who has spent the better part of the past few weeks believing he constantly underestimates Ferdinand, bristles.

Not the exact lines but I always keep this in mind when writing the ship. I think these hit on the fundamental misunderstanding between the two characters. Hubert is only human, not some all powerful hero/villain. And Ferdinand isn’t stupid just because he’s honest and emotional. I think the two of them have trouble getting their heads round these concepts!

20. A fic that gave you butterflies

Ataraxia - Windian, Tales of Graces, T rated, Cheria/Pascal, 13k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/7828981/chapters/17871247

"I want you," Cheria tells her, and the night catches like a rubber band. Her hands are in Pascal's hair, Pascal's arms around hers, her mouth on hers. Their kisses are sloppy and messy, noses knocking against one another, but it's everything and it's nothing at all like kissing Asbel.

When they break for air, Pascal tells her, "You don't know how long I've wanted to do this, Cheria."

Cheria asks, "Why didn't you say anything?"

"I dunno Cheria, because you were gonna marry Asbel, maybe?"

It stops her in her tracks. Voice low, she asks, "What am I going to tell him?"

Pascal cups either side of her face. Kisses her, so hot and hard that Cheria's left seeing stars, clinging at the strings of Pascal's swimsuit like a shipwrecked sailor to a spar.

"Screw it. Think about it in the morning. For once in your life, do something you want."

21. A fic that embodies something you value in life

The Truth About Love - MistressAkira, Fire Emblem Fates, T rated, Niles/Subaki, 2k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/12036081

This fic is experimental in style - the author descrbes it as a soliloquy. The sentiment I take from it is that love is compromising, inconvenient, illogical. Yet it’s still something beautiful and something worth fighting for.

22. A favourite AU

Mobius - SirTeateiMoonlight, Xenoblade Chronicles, T rated, multichap, 17k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/17845748/chapters/42111473

Melia finds a copy of Xenoblade, plays it and knows exactly what’s going on in the story. She uses this knowledge to her advantage. It’s a slippery slope. By the end of the story she’s mercilessly torturing Lorothia against her brother’s wishes. 

23. A fic you’ve stayed up late to finish reading

Dirty Sympathy - ideny, Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney, M rated, Klavier/Apollo, 130k on AO3 not sure on kink meme

https://bludhavens.livejournal.com/88397.html?thread=41790541#t41790541

https://archiveofourown.org/works/1075868/chapters/2160789

I stayed up reading this until 4am and for some reason (probably tiredness) confessed this to my not-yet-gf. She cites this as one of the moments she fell for me!

It’s a dark fic in which Klavier and Apollo are both in abusive relationships with villains. They concoct a plot to implicate the two of them in criminal activities to escape and fall for each other along the way. 

24. A fic that made you feel seen

i knew you were trouble - Magepaw, Fire Emblem Fates, M rated, Niles/Subaki, 8k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/19314568

First of all the title is one of my favourite songs. Second of all the dialogue is everything I want from the Niles/Subaki ship. Third Subaki’s pegasus makes her presence known. Fourth there is a gory battle scene and hurt/comfort gone wrong. And fifth, a happy ending. 

Niles had to turn away, hand pressed to his mouth, before his own blush betrayed him. This was too good to last. This had to be the most embarrassingly vulnerable moment of his entire life, and of course the entirety of the Nohrian and Hoshidan military combined had to be there to see Niles go soft. 

[illegiblewords]

Illegible FFXIV Story Status - UPDATED

I actually have a few stories finished, going, or in the wings at the moment for FFXIV! And people seem to like them which is very exciting and cool since it’s been a while since I was in an active fandom like this!

Normally I don’t do this kind of post but frankly I know what it’s like as a reader to be in that fidgety “WHEN ARE YOU DOING X” state haha, and I want to be considerate of that.

So I’m going to actually make a progress list this time. Also just a collection of stuff in case people are curious.

COMPLETE

From Umbra: This is the backstory for my main Warrior of Light, Cenric Asher. I essentially did a deep dive into lore for Thanalan, Ul’dah, and Nald’Thal because I love all of them to pieces and wanted to combine them to create a character who truly felt shaped by the environment. Cenric is probably delusional and thinks he’s the son of a god but most likely just has some Duskwight lineage and really bad luck.

Posturing: First story in a series of Emet-Selch/Female!Warrior of Light stories called Brief Our Moments, I literally wrote this as a personal challenge to see if I could do something romantic with an ambiguous WoL. It’s fluffy and has  some humor. Warrior of Light is unnamed and only confirmed elezen so technically people can imagine their own Warrior if they feel like it. If you stop at this point in the series, The Dying Gasp has a kind of sweet undertone because the Warrior and Emet-Selch both get shown as sharing small kindnesses when they can get away with it.

Stillborn: Second story in a series of Emet-Selch/Female!Warrior of Light stories called Brief Our Moments, this is a continuation of my personal shipping challenge where I more or less went “okay but what would it take to get a kiss scene while being canon-compliant?” and discovered that the answer was angst. Can technically be read without Posturing but I wrote it with that story in-mind. Same deal on ambiguous Warrior of Light. If you stop at this point in the series The Dying Gasp is still bittersweet as per canon.

The Immortal Wound: Third story in a series of Emet-Selch/Female!Warrior of Light stories called Brief Our Moments, this the third part of my personal shipping challenge where I was all “m’kay so I know the price of a kiss what would it take to get a sex scene” and the answer was “blood sacrifice”. Very very angsty but also very very romance-y. Same deal as the previous two fics, you can technically read it all alone but I wrote it as a continuation. You can pretty much bypass The Dying Gasp with this one.

Stalemate: ANOTHER PERSONAL CHALLENGE SHIPFIC! I am a simple and easily distracted writer who occasionally needs to pause in outlining to tell more stories. This came into being for two reasons. 1) I saw someone say they wanted Warrior/Lahabrea shipfic and that’s something I’m perfectly happy to deliver 2) I saw another person lament the lack of M/M shipfics involving the Warrior of Light. I basically treat all the Ascians as bisexual anyway, so decided for Lahabrea I’d go with M/M. This is not a direct sequel to Eclipse but it is very much a spiritual successor in the sense that Eclipse can lend some context to the state Lahabrea is in here. Premise is that it’s not long after Haurchefant’s death and the Warrior of Light is both grieving and furious. Lahabrea, having not faced him since the Praetorium, takes advantage of this and antagonizes Hydaelyn’s chosen. Angst/Romance here, Warrior is unnamed but a midlander Dark Knight.

Appetite: I made a Vauthry fic for the 30 day prompt challenge. This was for “voracious” and it has cannibalism! Straight up horror story, I went stylistically trippy and played off some fun theories I saw with certain family dynamics.

Snuff: Another 30 day prompt challenge story, this one is basically a humor study on Lahabrea while he was infiltrating the Scions in Thancred’s body. He needs to go to bed. Tataru tries to tell him this and he ignores her. No one ignores Tataru and gets away with it.

Parched: And another 30 day prompt challenge fic, focusing on the Unsundered but mainly Elidibus. Humor, friendship, and bittersweetness here, basically none of them are functional people but the way Elidibus is non-functional is more subtle than the other two. Emet-Selch and Lahabrea conspire to get him smashed as a way to help with this. Pianos are involved.

Eclipse: Technically was also a 30 day prompt challenge fic. This one is from Nabriales’ point of view for the most part and explores his resentment and jealousy of the Unsundered as well as his specific animosity toward Lahabrea. It does not end well for Lahabrea. Angst and gen.

IN PROGRESS

Memento Mori: This is not online but I mentioned that I would be doing a sequel to The Immortal Wound and this is it! It is going to be very very big and AU and frankly the way I’m setting it up theoretically will allow me to adapt and keep weaving elements in as patch cycles progress. I have a lot of it mapped out already and did start the first chapter but I want to adjust certain bits in light of patch 5.1. I have some idea how I want it to end, but how will I get there? No idea. At this point I am caving and will be explicitly using my Warrior of Light Nivienne Leclair because 1) it is really difficult to keep he said/she said sounding clear and interesting even in shorter stories, let alone the monster this is bound to be 2) I have some fun references I want to make to the stories of Merlin and Nimue 3) at a certain point in a relationship you need to share backstories in explicit detail lol. So the last part (I think) for Brief Our Moments touches on the value of life as something fleeting and fragile.

Somnus: Elidibus-centric, this is essentially me slamming my hands on the table in a figurative sense and going “LET ME TELL YOU MY FEELINGS ABOUT DAD!ELIDIBUS.” It examines Elidibus’ dynamic with Unukalhai as well as the other two Unsundered, does a lot of backstory speculation, and explores difficulties all three of the Unsundered have with sleeping after the Terminus event. Technically Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, and kind of Family I guess? Worth noting that I’ve edited the bit that’s up since first posting in accordance with further information on canon. It’s probably AU anyway but oh well. I know more or less all the steps in this story, just have a bit of adjusting to account for my newer character interpretations. Plan to alternate it with Memento Mori.

Untitled Fem!WoL/Emet-Selch Shipfic Oneshot #1: Currently in cooldown mode from a medium-sized story,  I put out requests for shipfic clichés as a fun scenario and got a request for Fem!WoL/Emet-Selch courtesy of @nipuni! I don’t know that I can do all of them given I wanna pop back to Memento Mori but two I think I can pull off haha. 

Untitled Fem!WoL/Emet-Selch Shipfic Oneshot #2: Same deal as above lol, idk that I can do all of the prompts but two is pretty fair I think so gonna hit two!

Untitled Male!WoL/Lahabrea Shipfic Oneshot Sequel: This is an uncertain timing thing for me, basically I am a sucker for more optimistic endings when I can take them. If I can pull off a moderately small and optional goodish-end with the Dark Knight WoL from Stalemate, I don’t mind at all. And I do know how I’d do it. In case you haven’t noticed my impulse control is terrible and I have too many ideas for things.

Untitled Lahabrea/Emet-Selch Oneshot: Lmao this is literally “challenge accepted” for @strangefellows on an unambiguous, non-love triangle shipfic. Again, my impulse control is terrible. But I can totally do a oneshot for them.

Dead Language: Emet-Selch focused but follows the three Unsundered in the immediate aftermath of Terminus. I started this pretty early after Shadowbringers came out. At the time I knew where it was going, now I don’t and I might want to make a bunch of edits or even redo it depending. I still like bits of it, like the idea of Lahabrea obsessively reviewing his notes before summoning Zodiark so he doesn’t have to think about what’s going on around him.

With Good Intentions: A friendship fic, I decided to look at how Cenric specifically would relate to Emet-Selch because it stood out in an interesting way to me. It mostly has a bit of banter but I do have a planned direction and ending in mind that plays off the idea of conditional trust. Continues an idea I have with Cenric that he gets closest to people who treat him like he’s just a person, versus Warrior of Light.

Basically a good chunk of what I do is me going challenge accepted though lol. I honestly really love experimenting, and the whole “take X prompt and see what you can pull off” premise too. Right now I think I need to focus on what’s on my plate, but in-general I’m pretty happy to do requests!

[mostlywritersblock]

Dracula 2019 fic

Part 1

****

Is this a dream?

Of course it is.

You’re drinking my blood.

But my blood is deadly to you.

Yes.

So you’ll die.

So will you.

After all this time

Did you think I’d let it hurt?

****

Dracula awoke.

It was disorienting, not because of any lack of vision but simply because he had awaken.

Something he’d thought he’d never do again.

By all rights, he should be dead.

Well, dead-er.

He was laying on his back, comfortably mind you, staring up at the ceiling when a familiar voice punctured his thoughts.

“I thought it might happen today, or rather I’ve been telling myself that for the past two weeks.” The woman from the foundation spoke.

Bloxham was it or something other?

“Just so you’re aware it’s been a total of 19 days since your attempted suicide”

Attempted suicide? Is that what happened?

“Your lawyer has been dutifully notified of your condition and current occupation of our facility. For more economical reasons I’m sure you can see why you’ll be staying here instead of a hospital until we can safely monitor your progress and rehabilitation.”

Progress? Rehabilitation? What was wrong with him?

“What is wrong with me?” The statement came out far weaker than he intended, and by god was that really his voice? Such a pitiful thing!

Bloxham stared at him blankly. “I just told you, attempted suicide.”

She stepped out of view but he could still hear her. “Now that you’re awake I’ll have the doctors come examine you. Try not to hold back on anything, the more information you provide the better.”

A series of scenes played out suddenly before him, ripping his focus away from the present to-

A flash of light, so intense, like the sun itself-

The sun.

Agatha.

He could hear retreating footsteps.

“Wait.”

Bloxham hesitated. “Yes?”

“Aga-Dr. Helsing. Zoe, where is she?”

There was a long pause.

“She’s alive, I’m not allowed to say anymore on the subject.” And she briskly walked out of the room. Dracula listened as the soft hiss of the door sealed behind her.

Ah.

So he was back in the glass cage. Wonderful.

****

The doctors poked, prodded, and took blood samples for a sum of 75 hours before Dracula got fed up and snapped one of their necks. The rest quickly fleeing the room as he viscously bit into the dying mans jugular. It was delicious.

Keep dangling a carrot in front of a starving rabbit and they’re bound to take your finger along with it.

****

The blood seemed to have done some good, and he wasn’t the only one to notice. The next following days consisted of Bloxham gathering up as many volunteers as she could to start giving him blood. It wasn’t the greatest thing ever but he felt he should play by the rules just for a little while longer.

Just until he had regained his strength.

****

By the gods. He was going to go mad of boredom. He’d requested -what - at least a dozen times by now, for some form of entertainment. A book, magazine, some new eletro-technological gizmo. Anything. But it was as if his request fell on deff ears. Which wasn’t possible. Which meant they were ignoring him.

Dracula sighed dramatically. He’d also requested for his lawyer, though he now supposes that won’t be happening anytime soon either.

****

He kept seeing her.

Not in his dreams - because, well, that wasn’t really possible at the moment- but in the shadows of his cage.

Agatha.

He hadn’t heard anything more since he’d first asked about her. It was as if the topic of one Dr. Zoe Helsing was taboo, classified, unmerited information that he was definitely not privy to.

No matter. He was counting down the days now.

Soon.

****

He’d surmised he’s been held prisoner at the foundation for a total of 39 days, 14 hours, and 45 minutes when the alarm sounded throughout the corridor. An unnecessary red light bouncing about the walls.

He slid the key card into place and a mechanical hiss sounded as he pushed the the final door open.

Fresh air rushed to great him. Along with twenty or so armed guns.

Dracula didn’t bat an eye as he rushed them. The sun grinning down on him when he slaughtered them all.

***

All that time in the foundation and no one had been one step closer to discovering how he was still alive. The one mystery he was actually hoping they’d solve before he jumped ship. Oh well. Now to find the real answers, with the only person who could possibly provide them.

He hoped at least.

****

He was surprised to find that Zoe was not actually where he had expected her to be.

He had thought, naturally, that with all the secrecy that obviously whatever information they had was not of the positive sort. Meaning he assumed he’d find her half dead in a hospital riding out the tale ends of her cancer.

Not. Outside a cheap flat lounging in the shade with a beverage smelling strongly of alcohol.

When Zoe finally noticed his chilling presence she gifted him with a small smile.

“Took you long enough.”

*****

He was to say very bluntly. Not pleased. Not pleased at all to discover Zoe did Not in fact have all the answers.

He was pleased however to note that she had miraculously been somewhat cured of the cancer. A miracle they were both certain he had a hand in doing.

Another piece of the puzzle yet unsolved.

She’s currently undergoing chemo, a last ditch effort by her doctors to make sure the cancer never comes back. But Zoe says everyday she feels a little stronger, a little less like the poison is in her veins.

Dracula supposes he’s happy for her.

Happy to have the company now that they’re not constantly at each other’s throats.

But he’s still a vampire, a fact they’re both acutely aware of as time passes by.

Dracula leaves sometime in the night, Zoe’s warm body curling into the space he previously occupied.

It’s not goodbye. But he needs sometime to collect his thoughts and -

He needs to feed.

****

Zoe finds him not even two days later.

“You know running off in the middle of the night is not going to solve any of your problems.” She states taking a seat in his temporary domicile.

Dracula rolls his eyes, “It doesn’t unsolve them either, Zoe. I’m driving myself mad with explanations, scenarios that make no sense and facts that don’t add up.”

He paces a few steps. “By all accounts I should not be here. I should dead, not undead.”

“Careful it almost sounds like you’re regretting being a vampire.”

Dracula frowned. “You know that’s not what I’m saying. I just wish to understand, nothing like this has happened before.”

Zoe sighed, “ Look it’s not like you went around drinking sick blood all the time, or for the length you drank mine. Who’s to say you can’t die from it. Maybe it just severely weakens you, like a vampire kryptonite.”

“Like a vampire what?” Confusion crossed his face as he tried to distinguish the strange word. And here he’d thought he was doing pretty well in this century.

“It’s Superm- you know what I’ll get you the comic sometime. Anyway, we really don’t know what kind of effect sick blood may have.”

Dracula scoffed. “Oh and me practically dying isn’t effective enough for you?”

“Not when you can come back good as new, no.”

Dracula smiled dangerously, “There’s the cold nun we all love to hate. Don’t suppose you’re hoping I’ll try it out again and stay dead next time.”

“One can only hope.” Came the distinctive foreign reply.

“Well I’m not, so there’s another dead-end for you.” He sneered. Zoe took in a deep breath

“Look, I want to get to the bottom of this just as much as you do, but you ran away from the one place that could possibly offer some kind of scientific explanation.”

Dracula released a low growl, “I’m not going back there.”

“I’m not asking you to I’m just-“

A loud buzzing filled the room, Zoe frowned sharply before tearing into her purse to dig out her phone. She glanced at the screen briefly before answering.

“Yes? What is it now?”

Dracula stared intently at his shoes trying not to grow impatient.

“Again? This is the third time this month, yes I know he escaped twice thank you Margo. Yes. Yes he’s with me. Yes I’ll tell you. Look, now isn’t a good time, I’ll call you later. Tell Florence to just reschedule their meeting, I won’t be in tomorrow. Thursday? Fine, yes, whatever works. Yes, goodbye.” Zoe let out an exhausted sigh as she lightly slammed her phone face down onto her lap.

“Trouble in paradise?”

“Trouble you caused.”

“Oh what have I done now?” Dracula mock pouted

“The contributors - our sponsors are reviewing the foundation, again. Apparently the fact that you escaped twice puts us under strict scrutiny.”

“Ah, I don’t blame them, for the price they’re paying I’d put your organization under strict scrutiny too.”

“It’s your bloody fault!” Another deep breath, “And it isn’t my organization, I just help run it.”

“What happened to early retirement?”

“I’m not dying now, why should I give up when we were really starting to see a breakthrough.” She quipped sarcastically.

Dracula chuckled, “Point taken.”

****

Turns out running an organization that your not legally obligated to run takes a lot of time and effort, both of which Zoe was finding hard to balance, especially with an over demanding, narcissistic, ego-centric vampire breathing down her neck. Oh and she also wasn’t trying to kill him, or capture him, or run test on him this time.

So.

There was that.

Zoe figured her sudden lack of animosity towards the man remained largely on the fact that he saved her. Or rather drained the sick right out if her.

So now she can’t help but feel a little obligated to offer aid in this troublesome mystery. Even if that means lying to half her staff the whereabouts of Dracula’s location.

However, the animosity spikes at certain moments too.

They usually coincide with Dracula’s feeding habits.

*****

TBC

[tumbler-tidbits]

March 2019

Here is March’s Fic Recs, I know I’m two days late...sue me! Anywho there is a mix of fluff, smut, angst, and crack. ENJOY!

1)I See You Left A Mark, Up And Down The Skin by @thoughtslikeaminefield

Link: HERE

Summary: see link

Pairing: Sam x Reader

Warnings: sexting, dirty talk, Dom Sam Winchester (PART 2) angst, ass play, bondage, no condoms, thorough winchester fucking, SAMHANDLING (PART 3) hand around the throat and over the mouth and nose (DO NOT DO THIS UNLESS YOU KNOW WTF YOU’RE DOING), angst, no condoms, thorough winchester fucking™ SAMHANDLING.

My Review: Oh sweet Jesus this three part series has it all! Angst, a smidge of fluff, and Oh so sexy smut! Part 2 is my favorite, but all three are definitely panty ruiners!

2)Midnight Blue by @rockhoochie

Link:HERE

Summary: Sherriff Hanscum begged the Winchesters to help Y/N with this case. With the threat neutralized and a night off, Sam and Y/N put their free time to good use. For one night, the hours they spend together are full of delight, passion, and fulfilled fantasies – a night that neither of them saw coming or would soon forget.

Pairing: Sam x Reader

Warnings: NSFW, 18+ ONLY, Light (but very sweet) dom!Sam, daddy kink, praise kink, size kink, spanking, orgasm delay/denial, fingering, squirting, M/F oral, a little angst, a little fluff, and various and sundry smutty smut smut, age gap (reader is 22).

My Review: This Fic was so fucking amazing! Precise and descriptive words paint an amazingly vivid picture that fills all your senses! You can actually see, hear, smell, and feel the things going on between the reader and Sam! I could be biased since this fic hit nearly all my kinks *fans self* but indulge in this extremely passionate sensory experience for yourself and read it!!

3)Bruised by @wayward-and-worn

Link:HERE

Summary: Dean learns that girls have sensitive parts.    

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Warnings: PWP.  Oral sex.

My Review: This is oddly sweet and fluffy with a hen pecking Dean, and absolutely fucking hilarious at the same time 😂😂 I love it!

4)Not Letting Go by @kittenofdoomage

Link:HERE

Summary: Reuniting with the Winchesters brings an unexpected change, one they’re going to need to help you with.

Pairing: Alpha!Sam x reader, Alpha!Dean x reader

Warnings: Smut, first time, knotting, unexpected presentation, threesome, unprotected sex, marking, this is probably more on the Sam centric side!

My Review: Whoo! I love a good A/B/O fic and this one is delicious! Just enough smut to please you and leave you begging for more!

5)Not a Fish by @bamby0304

Link:HERE

Summary: All fears should be faced… but not yours, and not today.

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Warnings: Fluff. Crack?? Thalassophobia.

My Review: This is so sweet and fluffy! Just a quick heart warmer 🥰

6)I’ve Got You by @winchesterprincessbride

Link:HERE

Summary: None

Pairing: Sam and Reader (brief Dean)

Warnings: Angst (it’s sad y’all), death.

My Review: Just a quick beautiful drabble to leave you’re heart shattered 😖

7)Cookie Monster by @67midnightwriter

Link:HERE

Summary: None. 777 words

Pairing: Sam x Reader x Dean x Cas

Warnings: lots o’ smut. Implied squirting. Gang bang, butt stuff.

My Review: Jesus this one is fucking hot!! And Logan leaves you with a surprise ending. She claims she doesn’t write smut...I call her a lying biatch😘

8)The Maddening Empty by @impala-dreamer

Link:HERE

Summary: None

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Warnings: NSFW. Thigh Riding. Bit o’ Dom!Dean Action. Dirty Talk.

My Review: whew. I don’t know if it’s my praise!kink or my dom!kink but this little number right here had me wishing I waited to read until after work! This ones a panty ruiner folks!

9)Holding On by @idreamofplaid

Link:HERE

Summary: Sam’s life as a hunter is taking a toll on him. The reader refuses to be scared away.

Pairing: Sam x Reader

Warnings: angst; a little smut; spoilers for season 13

My Review: This is so beautiful and so painful I was teary eyed! They never really show us how the boys deal with their inner demons on the show, but Robin does a phenomenal job of painting that picture!

10)Notes by @kittenofdoomage

Link:HERE

Summary: Your secret Tumblr blog has been rumbled… but who’s the culprit behind the notes you keep finding?

Pairing: Dean x Reader x Sam

Warnings: Smut, threesome, pretty much just pornyMcporn over here. Unprotected sex, double penetration, anal, oral.

My Review: JFC this piece is a dream come true! What would you do if Sam and Dean discovered your smutty fanfiction? Well this hot little number lets you know exactly what they would do!

11)Boyfriend and Girlfriend by @squirrel-moose-winchester

Link:HERE

Summary: It all started over a stupid popular kid’s party. Y/N had been left stranded and luckily, Sam was there to the rescue. The next day, Sam abruptly announces that he and Y/N are dating, much to Y/N’s and everyone else’s surprise. Come along for the ride, in their journey to figure things out! Being a teenager isn’t as easy at it seems.

Pairing: High School!Sam x High School!Reader

Warnings: Each chapter will have their own individual warning label, for I have no idea where this series will take me.

My Review: I love this series so much!! I love the AU that Eileen has created and how she has incorporated the characters and Story we love! Seriously so great and so imaginative! One minute I’m going “awe“ then I’m about to cry and then I’m laughing hysterically. Go check it out folks there is more to come!

12)Apple of My Eye by @bamby0304

Link:HERE

Summary: When Sam and Dean were pulled back into their world, you were left behind. Stuck in the hustle bustle of Hollywood life, you have no choice but to play along, leaving almost all of your old life behind. Seven years later when a rip in time and space opens up, you are finally able to go home… but you don’t go alone.

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Warnings: Explicit language. Angst. Panic attacks. Anxiety. Fluff. Drama. Smut. Each chapter will have its own warnings.

My Review: This series is so fluffy and sweet, with a smidge of angst, and a dash of smut! I binged the whole thing in one night and Ambers not done yet! Go give it a read.

13)Driving Miss Baby by @evansrogerskitten

Link:HERE

Summary: Things don’t go so well when the new female damages Baby.

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Warnings: Fluff, cursing

My Review: ok in my opinion this piece is hilarious! I have never read a piece from Baby’s point of view as a car. It different, interesting, and funny as hell!

14)Dean’s Girls by @ladywinchester1967

Link:HERE

Summary: None

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Warnings: Dad!Dean, smut, fluff, lovely dovey stuff. 

My Review: This is such a sweet fluffy little heart warmer and them things quickly have you sweating lol. This is the life we all wish for Dean Winchester.

15)Not Your Normal Vet by @acreativelydifferentlove

Link:HERE

Summary: your dog is unwell and a trip to the vet is in order.

Pairing: Veterinarian!Sam x Reader

Warnings: asshole ex, sick dog

My Review: This is so sweet and fluffy!! I love my fur babies and their care means so much to me! I love my vet but he’s no Sam Winchester! Seriously tooth rotting!!

Taglist:  @idreamofplaid  @dean-winchesters-bacon  @maddiepants  @pisces-cutie​ @covered-byroses @currentlyfangirling99  @spnmightkillme @spnfamily-alwayskeepfighting  @team-free-will-you-idjits-67 @xxhalfbloodprincessxx @supernaturalsammy01  @sammyimpala-67 @lunarboycas​  @ladywinchester1967 @sweetiepie-dean  @fangirl-forevers-world @thoughtslikeaminefield @supernatural-teamfreewillpage​ @ruthiesconnells​ @bobasheebaby​ @evansrogerskitten  @missjenniferb​ @sculptorofbeginnings​ @kbl1313​ @spnskinnyballs @treat-winchesterswith-kindness @justcallmeasmodeus @ain-t-bovvered @purpleskiesandcherrypies @curly-haired-disaster @getnaildbyme @thoughtslikeaminefield @gripmetight-raisemefromperdition

[theasiantvshipper-blog]

The Shadowhunters 3x19 “Aku Cinta Kamu” Theories

So apparently, all the reviewers who got their screeners of the episode are already done watching them and have started to answer fan questions on Twitter and on Tumblr and a recently released (but very sketchy) synopsis of 3x21 is out somewhere sending the entire Malec fandom into a frenzy (I'll get into that later). But after having viewed all the possible spoilers and asked all possible no-spoilery questions to the reviewers themselves, here's what I think will go down in 3x19. It's only a few hours away (more like a day, really) before we actually see the episode but I'd like to put my thoughts into writing just in case:let's start with the facts first from 3x18:

Alec broke up with Magnus to get his magic back

Clary is now Dark Clary

Sizzy almost happened

They are still trying to make Maia and Jordan happen (but why?)

Now let's proceed with the spoilers from the reviewers:

Aku Cinta Kamu will only be said in a flashback- we all saw it. Don't your hold your breath on it.

There will be no present time Malec scenes, everything will be flashbacks- because this is supposed to be Magnus' episode, and also because Alec is busy trying to save evil twin Clary with Jace. Now before you brush Alec off and say he's not hurting as much as Magnus, he is. But if we all know how Alec is, he gets himself with work so he doesn't have to confront the pain. Magnus is the opposite and that's why this episode is so character driven because you see both of them back in their old ways, their old habits.

There will be a Madzie scene with Alec and Magnus and they will talk about having kids- go on Twitter, it's already blowing up.

Asmodeus will give Magnus magic back without pretense- as evidenced in the trailer. As to how and what he will tell Magnus for giving his magic back is left to be unknown.

Jem or BZ will be in the episode to erase Alec's memories- but he won't.

Sizzy will happen (finally)- there will be a kiss as per the reviewers

Team Evil- will be in all its glory, for now.

Jace and Clary will be drugged and do things only consenting adults do- You know what it is.

One reviewer said that there is blatant foreshadowing in one of the scenes, she didn't mention what it was, but I'm pretty sure that means world-ending.

Jonathan is jealous of Jace and Clary's relationship. Still gives me the creeps. He still doesn't trust Jace, but whats new?

Asmodeus will "try to be the father" he never was to Magnus, for good and bad reasons. One reviewer said that we will grow to love and hate Asmodeus' role in all of this.

Magnus will cry a lot in this episode, the flashbacks good or bad, won't be of any help either. He is just as devastated the morning after the breakup. Like any regular person would be.

Magnus will be the star of the show. As I expected, an episode titled Aku Cinta Kamu should feature the character who said it, regardless of context and I am glad we are getting more Magnus scenes this episode. He deserves it. It gives his character even more depth, so that we understand what Alec never will. That Magnus' love for Alec is worthy dying for, even without his magic. Someone send Alec a fire message stat!

Now that we got all of the spoilers away, here are my thoughts about what's to come in the episode: First of all, I am pissed. The title of the episode is "Aku Cinta Kamu" an iconic line in the book by Magnus Bane to Alec. And we only get to hear that in a flashback? Someone fire the writer of this episode! Stat! Kidding aside, with the flashbacks confirmed as the only Malec scenes in this episode, only reinforces the level of commitment the show has to these characters. And before you chastise me for saying that, let me say this: this episode we will see Magnus shine, havent we been asking for a Magnus-centric plot ever since? We will see him take his story into his own hands. He will take his narrative back and for a character who went from B-plot to A-plot that means a lot. Magnus has always been "the other half of the Malec" ship, even when he was introduced to us in the first season, he was already being setup to be the other half of Malec. But Magnus is more than that, he's lived for centuries, he's wise, and he's a good character. He is probably my favorite character in the entire TMI series because of the layers that he has. And for us to be seeing that unravel, despite the circumstances, is really beautiful. Granted that we will not like what we see, with Asmodeus in the picture, but if there's anything we can learn from this episode is that the relationship of Asmodeus and Magnus can never be severed. He is his father, and he is his son. A father does not turn his back on his son and this might just be what we see in this episode, albeit Asmodeus ulterior motives to get Magnus back to Edom with him. But one of the reviewers said that he will do something we will hate to love, because as i said, at the end of the day, Asmodeus only wants the best for his son and for him, that is to rule Edom beside him. He doesn't see any more than that, and I can't blame him, he is a Prince of Hell. What do you expect from a manipulative prick right? Now I know what y'all are thinking, but Magnus is so vulnerable right now, with Alec gone his entire world is crushing in on him and fast- think of it this way- when a person hits rock bottom- there's really no other way but up, right? The same applies to Magnus and Alec, they are in their lowest points after the breakup, which means things can only get better from hereon end. And that's more than enough for us to be hopeful about. Remember, this is the shadow world, it always gets worst, before it gets better.,Some would argue that Alec had the better deal, he has his parabatai, his family and the Institute. I can't comment on this without seeing the actual episode but even if there is no indication of him in the episode where he mourns for the loss of Magnus in his life, the reviewers pointed out, he is back to his old Alec ways- keeping himself busy when things go awry. And truth be told, isn't that what we all do when things hit a rough patch? We hope that the craziness of everyday life will save us from the miseries of the night.He is hurting, we just don't get to see it, because it's uncharacteristic of him to show us. This is Alec Lightwood we're talking about. The rest of the episode, as the reviewers have pointed out will be Team Evil, and Sizzy finally happening. Duh. It's about time! This slowburn for Sizzy isn't really doing any good for anyone, I love me some Sizzy but this show has taken forever to build that relationship that I'd say they're a bit too late to the party, but hey, who knows, I might be wrong. As for Team Evil, we all know that they will be out doing some evil stuff somewhere in the world, getting high on drugs and doing things that only adults should be doing in the privacy of their homes, but nope, they decided that part of being Dark Clary means being risque as well. I'm here for it, but please do it tastefully. I have high hopes for this scene. Now, onto more interesting things- as one of writers of the show pointed out, 3x19 is alternately titled "The Betrayal". Now before we jump ship that this is Malec, this could very well be a Clace storyline. Really, people, Malec already had their fair share of angst last episode, I think another betrayal in the horizon would be too low a blow, even for the writers of the show. So this must be a Clace storyline- with Jonathan finding out that Jace has been spying on them for the Shadowhunters. But that's just me being hopeful that there'll be no more angst fest with Malec before 3x20 because we can only take so much before we break. My best guess on how this episode ends would be Magnus asking Jem to erase his memories, Asmodeus swoops in making him a deal he knows Magnus can't refuse and we see Magnus contemplating on it by the end of the episode. I hope Jem talks some sense into Magnus, because a person in his emotional state making decisions, we all know too well how that goes for anyone. The reviewers have already pointed out that Magnus does not end up with Asmodeus in Edom in this episode and he does not find out about the deal in this episode- and there's only one person that knows about this deal next to Alec and Asmodeus- Izzy. She could very well be the key to solving this puzzle next episode. As to how that would happen, is still left to be seen. Let's hope the promo for 3x20 shed some light on that. I haven't seen enough 3x20-3x22 spoilers to formulate my own theories but with the recently released synopsis of 3x21, let's hope the Malec wedding happens in real time and not just in a dream sequence.