#but then this one sister who tbh does not dress appropriately done said something to the Woman thats over the Muslim women

[abnormallycreative]

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[coll2mitts]

#77 Grease (1978)

Slick your hair back and grab your team jacket, we’re hand-jiving our way through Grease, a movie about bunch of hot, self-motivated ladies with their whole futures ahead of them settling for a bunch of schmucks.

Grease is a strange experience to relive as an adult, because it was (as I suspect with a lot of people) ever-present in my childhood, and I didn’t understand the great majority of references then.  This movie was intended as an 8th birthday present from my mother; I came home from school one day and the VHS was sitting on our kitchen countertop unwrapped.  I didn’t recognize it, so when I asked my mom what it was, she feigned confusion for about 10 seconds before she gave up and said, “I bought it for your birthday, I guess you get it early now.”  She promised me I’d like it when I popped it into the VHS player, and she wasn’t wrong.  I hadn’t watched this movie in over a decade and I still could recite the majority of the dialogue.

While this movie is a toned down significantly from the stage show, it is still fairly raunchy in parts.  What is kind of hilarious to me is Grease’s gradual shift in categorization over time as a “kids musical”.  In 5th grade, my sister played Sandy in her elementary school’s production of it.  I asked if she remembered any of the lines they changed to keep things “appropriate” (the Kidz Bopification, if you will) and she responded, “No, I just thought it was weird I had to go out and buy a sexy outfit.”  Conversely, my 5th grade play was about the history of America and I dressed up like Martha Washington.  I’ll never forget the 50 Nifty United States from 13 original colonies... SHOUT ‘em, SCOUT ‘em, TELL all about 'em, ONE BY ONE till we’ve given a day to every state in the U-S-A.  AL-A-bama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, CON-NE-TI-CUT...

Anyway, do I think it’s weird that a movie about a bunch of horny teenagers has become Baby’s First Adult Musical?  Sorta.  Not really.  I mean, the dudes act like children for the majority of this, so I’m not surprised, at least.  It had, for sure, turned me off from wanting to date high school dudes when I was in high school.  The high school girls, however... we’ll get there.

It’s the first day of school, and the oldest high school seniors I’ve ever seen are poised to take on their last year at Rydell High.  The “T” Birds and their very uncool matching jackets are reunited after a summer apart and their super-senior leader Kenickie, played by the late Jeff Conaway, regales the tale of lugging boxes to earn money for a sweet ride, which you could feasibly do back in the 1950s.  Danny, played by John Travolta, spent his summer getting action at the beach, which he eloquently describes as “flippin’”.  

Frenchy and her new neighbor Sandy rendezvous with the Pink Ladies, who have very cool matching jackets and the unabashed confidence to go with them.  Stockard Channing, who plays Rizzo, is turned off by Sandy’s pure, seemingly holier-than-thou persona, and is dismayed when Sandy starts to describe her sickly sweet summer romance.  Her interest is only piqued when Sandy mentions her hunky date was notorious playboy and Rizzo’s ex, Danny Zuko.  

Sidenote: When I was a child, I thought Sonny asked if her “jugs were bigger than her nets”.  I asked my mother what “nets” were, since I surmised that jugs meant breasts, and she didn’t know, which I thought was weird.  It wasn’t until THIS MOMENT that I realized he was asking if her jugs were bigger than Annette’s.  Who the fuck is Annette?  Like the Mickey Mouseketeer Annette?!  Rizzo sings about her later and I’m just like.. this revelation has lead to more questions than answers.

Rizzo hatches a plan to call Danny out on his shit and reunite Sandy with Danny at the school pep rally, as they know her boyfriend is an asshat.  He predictably reacts maturely; Not wanting to admit his previous story of getting fresh with some cute Australian girl down in the sand was somewhat hyperbolic, he plays it off like he doesn’t give a shit about her, reducing Sandy to tears.  Frenchy comforts Sandy like the supportive queen that she is and invites her to join the Pink Ladies at a sleepover.

Honestly, a Pink Ladies sleepover looks lit as fuck.  As a kid (and now, tbh) I was Jan, I wanted to be Marty, I wanted to fuck Rizzo, and I wanted Frenchy as my best friend.  I would totally be down to drink champagne, eat Twinkies and mutilate our body parts with needles.  Sandy is a bit of a late bloomer and reacts to these series of events by puking.  Rizzo decides to be a bit of a slag and make fun of Sandy for being an inexperienced virgin before shimming down a drainpipe to get laid by some jerk with a shitty car and a 6-year-old condom.

Sandy, whose night has done nothing to alleviate her heartbreak, sings a song about being in love with a coward.  Part of the deal Oliva Newton-John signed to be cast in this movie specified she have her own solo number, so “Hopelessly Devoted” was written and filmed after the rest of the movie had been completed.  This feel pretty obvious, since it gives off a very strong 1970s pop Best Original Song vibe.  When I was a kid, I used this song as a break to use the bathroom or grab a snack, but as an adult I find myself humming it every so often.

Speaking of contract-obligated solos, we’re treated to a Travolta-led “Greased Lightning”, which I always thought was weird, cause like, who is going to sing a song about their friend getting tit in their sweet car?  Jeff Conaway played Danny on Broadway, he deserved better...  Also, I’m CONVINCED this song got the Pop-Up Video treatment, but couldn’t find it online anywhere.  Otherwise, how the hell else would the fact that they thought John Travolta putting the saran wrap on his crotch was too racy live rent free in my head for like 20 years?

After encountering Sandy on a date with a jock, Danny decides he’s going to join a sports team to prove to her he can be a motivated team player.  Instead, he just physically assaults several members of his school, but it’s fine because he’s wearing a uniform when he does it.  This is enough to impress Sandy, as she accepts Danny’s invitation to the school dance.

The other gang members are going through their own drama, as Rizzo is sick of giving it up to Kenickie without receiving a modicum of respect.  

“A hickey from Kenickie is like a Hallmark card.  When you care enough to send the very best.”

Danny regresses and continues to act like a shithead to Sandy in front of her friends.

“I don’t like tea.” “You don’t have to drink tea!” “Well, I don’t like parents.”

Jan and Putzie begin an innocent and adorable romance, which proves it’s possible to start off a relationship with mutual respect, even if your friends make fun of you for it.

“I also think there’s more to you than just fat.” “...Thanks.”

I love this scene, there’s so many good lines.

Frenchy, who had dropped out of Rydell to pursue a career in cosmetology, is also in crisis as her stint in beauty school went very poorly.  After hours, she somehow hallucinates Frankie Avalon advising her to get her high school degree.

As a child, I was so proud of myself when I realized all these women played other roles in the movie, as if facial recognition was an important skill.

The day of the big dance finally arrives, as National Bandstand comes to Rydell High with roofie-wielding predator and television host Vince Fontaine.  Rizzo arrives with the leader of the rival gang, while Kenickie has his best girl, Cha Cha, as his date, because they are both very well-adjusted teenagers that know how to work through conflict by communicating and not using desperate attempts to make each other jealous.  Danny and Sandy are cutting up a rug until Sonny attempts to physically assault Sandy, and Danny just lets it happen because another one of his exes, Cha Cha, starts to dance with him while Sandy is rebuffing Sonny’s advances.  Cha Cha and Danny subsequently win the contest.  Honestly, this is so fucked up, I would have dropped Danny after this lapse of good judgement.

But no, Sandy still allows him to take her on a date to the drive-in, and it’s not until he elbows her in the boob and then tries to cop a feel in front of everybody that she finally blows him off.  Then he has the absolute gall to act emo about it because he’s afraid people will think he’s a loser.  Jesus Christ.

Kenickie is also hurting, as he discovers that Rizzo is pregnant and she doesn’t want anything to do with him, regardless of what being an unwed mother will do to her reputation.  He decides to process these emotions by racing Greased Lighting for pink slips, as he likes to live his life a quarter mile at a time.  Unfortunately, Danny steals Kenickie’s thunder (road) yet again, as he’s forced to take his place in the race because of a car door-related closed head injury.  Sandy is impressed by Danny’s driving skillz and decides to sex herself up for an unreliable and emotionally manipulative teenager.  Danny has a similar inclination and decides to put on a nice sweater to win Sandy back, which is something, I guess.  They declare they’re the one each other needs, oh yes indeed.

The school year ends, and all the boys end up paired with the girls.  Rizzo finds out she’s not pregnant and reunites with Kenickie?!  Marty ends up with Sonny even though he’s a handsy creep.  Danny and Sandy are just an mess with incompatible expectations of each other.  But at least Jan and Putzie and Frenchy and Doodie are fairly inoffensive.  The end.

This movie is great, even all these years later.  The entire cast is fantastic, even those with smaller bit parts.  I was *living* for the school staff, Principal McGee and Coach Calhoun especially.  Grease also jump started my lifelong love for Stockard Channing.  She’s great in The West Wing, but her part as Sister Husband in Where the Heart Is may be my favorite performance of hers.  I’ve watched that movie so many times I can’t even call it a guilty pleasure, I love it so much.

Olivia Newton-John wasn’t even sure she wanted to be in this movie and requested a screen test so she could see if she was good at acting.  John Travolta was enamored with her and helped convince Olivia she was perfect for the part, and he wasn’t wrong.  She gives such a strong performance as Sandy; I bought her transformation from clean-cut cinnamon roll to sexpot completely.  John Travolta was also unbelievably charming as Danny, and I found myself giggling at his line deliveries constantly.

The songs are also unbelievably catchy (albeit somewhat annoying after you’ve heard them 700 times).  Barry Gibb, my favorite Pras-adjacent composer, wrote the theme for the movie and it just bops so hard.  As a well-documented detractor of Doo Wop music, there’s not a whole lot else here for me, but that’s not going to blind me to the excellence of this soundtrack.  There is a reason this movie is revered as much as it is.  10/10, fun for the whole family, as long as the kids don’t understand the references.

[yuukei-yikes]

lost day hour should’ve been the end of kagepro babey

what is UP it's 2019 i am NOT ONLY talking about kagepro but im also gonna talk about a comic that came out like over half a year ago. Yeah

i've just been having too many feelings about it and it's my blog and i get to post whatever i want SO:

the lost day hour comic really was what would've been the perfect end to kagepro. like, kagepro in its entirety!!! songs, anime, novels. the comic just being THE ending.

haruka was the protagonist. in the songs, the "last" one (at least chronologically in universe) was from his point of view, but despite that the novels and anime did him dirty and never gave him his screen time, even outside of str. i mean even str isn't actually about him lol. haruka was never important enough, he's just the devise to make konoha tragic. but this time, it's post/during str and he's here!!!! he's the protagonist of the story!!!!

all the members of the mekakushi dan feel SO in character and everything they say really feels like a good resolution to all of their arcs.

kido speaks of family. she's really THE family character, not ayano. she makes sure to be the next big sister after having lost TWO (2) of her own big sisters. kido is the character to have lost the most family members: first her biological mom, after having to kill her own father lol she loses rin, then her new mom ayaka and her new sister ayano, and then her new dad kenjirou. even like that, kido keeps it together. she's never the one breaking down. kido is essentially what makes the mekakushi dan what it is, because she takes ayano's game and turns it into something seto and kano can continue feeling that comfort in. she takes over to be the leader and their big sister. SO OF COURSE SHE SAYS THAT FRIENDS ARE HER FAMILY. 

kano says confusing stuff but that's just him and i. Love it. like when i read the comic and i was talking to my gf about it and the first thing i said was that i loved kano's bit and that he felt super in character and i still feel the same!!! he gets asked what a friend is and his answer is basically "whoever makes ME feel like im a friend" and really that's just The Most Kano.... and it's so rewarding to read his part because it feels like he's being super honest? like his expressions and stuff, he looks like. vulnerable or smth. especially when he says "i say good things sometimes" AHHH HIS FACE THERE!!! he's not acting at all!!!

seto and mary work in A FLOWER SHOP!!!! THIS IS CANON!!!! no more shitty part time jobs because they either got a job together or opened their own shop and this is. the best news ever. it's SUCH a cool thing to show. if this comic was the end, wouldn't it be cute to say "oh seto and mary open a flower shop together in endgame"? i love it. they're so important to each other's arc... mary basically starting to live her life after meeting seto, and seto becoming this!!! BRAVE BOY after meeting mary since he has someone to protect!! their answers are based on each other and ARE THE SAME which feels so appropriate ;_; they really did change for the better after meeting each other. they're one another's most important friend!

momo says friends are the most important thing because she spent her entire life by herself. no brother no dad and no mom. hibiya acts like she's exaggerating when she says that but tbh??? she really isn't. she was always alone! of course that now that she has friends, they're her entire world to her. hibiya meanwhile is like momo: he's still figuring out what a friend is! but he chooses to be more skeptical and looks at it from another angle, and rather than HELL YEAH MY FRIENDS ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT he's like "dammit harukas right wtf is a friend". but that's super cool because at the beginning hibiya didn't even want to be with the dan in this comic he specifically tells momo he just wouldn't be there if he didn't want to be friends

hiyori is. probably my least favorite thing of the comic. i absolutely adore her it's not that i dislike her at all!!! she just... appears for such a short moment, and based on her story and the fact that she's A REVIVED character, her answer doesn't really grab my attention. she's confusing and ??? um, i would've liked it better if her answer was somehow connected to konoha because she's still mourning him, and like isn't haruka the (in?)appropriate person to hear this? lol. but overall, if this comic had been the ending, it's still good to see hiyori made it back! 

ayano's bit really makes me want to cry because everything is perfect in it. she made it back. listen an ending where ayano doesn't come back does make sense because kagepro is about moving on and with ayano surviving shintaro's manpain makes NO sense lmao bUT HEY. SHE DESERVES IT. so she's back! and she's wearing that cute dress and she has her scarf! she's on the SWING SETS WITH HARUKA and i know that's such a silly detail but im so happy about it because it feels so right to have haruka and ayano's interaction be in a place like that KSNXKSKSK and aghhhh how she asks the question back to haruka!!!!! that's so cool lmao and it's so in character ;; but also her answer is sooo fitting, she even says "the current me" like acknowledging she's not the same she was before. since she's a chara with mental illness that's nice to hear... and another cool detail is that we see her drinking soda with shintaro while they watch the others be silly SKDNSLDK like if this were the end, that's SUCH a nice detail to put since the comic doesn't require shintaro and ayano interaction at all, and both are important characters to the story and each other. so they're clearly hanging out and talking to each other so that's really good to know

shin and haruka are probably my favorite in this comic because their interaction is the most fitting thing considering their entire history together. like ever since their friendship was introduced in novel 6 it's been something important! shintaro and haruka really represent the side of friendship in kagepro because overall it's a story about family, and their relationship always represented this other angle of finding family in a best friend. in novel 6 haruka says that if shintaro isn't his friend by now then he doesn't NEED any friends. he's the reason haruka even realises he has feelings for takane, because it felt so right to call shintaro a friend but it felt off with her. neither haruka or shintaro ever had friends because takane and ayano are their love interests, so it's their first genuine platonic relationship ever. and they just continue appreciating that always! even in their interaction in the comic shin expresses that he's still not sure what a friend is, but if haruka is one he just wants to keep it that way. so their talk in the comic is fitting and it's super nice to see shintaro gets to reunite with his best friend.

ok and........takane...... everything about takane in the comic is good. she is SO cheerful. all of you DUMBASSES who "hate" ene but "love" takane can die mad about it now because newsflash ene IS takane. if you hate ene then you dislike takane when she begins her character development. it means you hate endgame takane. it means you hate the happy takane in lost day hour!!! she has come SO far. she smiles so much and encourages haruka when he was overthinking and didn't know what to draw. she just tells him the answer is easy and friendship is the mekakushi dan. SHE'S PERFECT have you seen how INCREDIBLY HAPPY SHE LOOKS?? no one else has this impact of character in the comic, everyone kind of acts the same in regards of attitude (except kano who looks v honest and over himself but still). in the fandom we always took it for granted that endgame takane is more cheerful than she was but lost day hour just. confirms it and it's done in the best way possible.

ok and of course im talking about harutaka too because 1) im biased and 2) harutaka IS the love story of kagepro and that's not bc im biased anymore, it just is. and it never had a good resolution... until this!!!!

haruka asks everyone what a friend is but doesn't ask takane. like really he didnt want to ask her in the first place because when shin asks who's left to ask harukas like "uHHHH one person but..." and like he doesn't just imply he wasn't going to ask her, but his interaction with her is soooo different from the ones he has with the dan earlier. with everyone else he just asks what a friend is but with takane he actually... doesn't? wh. why wouldn't he ask her im just. ok.

haruka in the beginning tells kido to think of it as an interview and essentially that's the feeling there is in each interaction but with takane it's different. he's not interviewing her. 

she shows up and sits next to him while he's trying to draw. they talk about WHY he's asking and about what he wants to do with his future. during the entire comic haruka is normal and friendly, and doesn't really act any differently, but with takane he seems a lot less formal and does things like allow himself to talk or get embarrassed when she immediately figures out he heard too much and didn't know what to draw.

their love story was always just left there as this tragic thing and as a fandom we always wanted their tearful reunion in the ending, but this is better. we finally know they actually do reunite. we always knew because in str takane is running towards him but this is... an actual interaction we're seeing 

they didn't only reunite, but we get to see they still have a close and comfortable relationship with one another. out of everyone haruka speaks with, takane is special. when his face appears for the first time in the comic it's a smile for her

and um, it may be because it's my otp and i've been waiting for this str content for YEARS and you know harutaka is my lifeblood 😩😩😩 but i believe it's already established to be more than a friendship at that point. i mean haruka wasn't going to ask her so jUSt saying man im not saying they're a established couple there im SAYING i think they're Something. i mean like haruka always said in novel 6, it felt weird to put takane in the friend category so in str it's the same, just very Obvious

BUT that's exactly why it'd be a good ending. it's up to interpretation. little things like that ARE fun and good to simply allow them to be heavily implied. just like with their jobs. because okay haruka wants to be an artist, hell yeah that's a cool thing to have as canon. BUT i think it's cool that just one character gets a canon detail of his future, the one who represents what growing up means. HARUKA of all characters, the one who for a long time thought he wasn't even gonna have the chance to grow up, which is why it's incredibly fitting that he's the one to represent this.

kagepro might be a mess and just a pain to be a fan of, but it's really a heartwarming and wonderful story about friends, family and love. this comic covers all of that. while they're answering this question, it's a good way to say bye to the characters individually.... and i mean. the comic's ending is literally the most perfect thing ever for a close, with the ENTIRE mekakushi dan having fun together and finally being happy and complete.

of course it's jin's series. they're his characters. we all understand and respect that, and if he wants to make kagepro never end like he claims then so be it but personally!!! it makes me really upset that it's gonna go on

anyway. that's it bye gamers

[spaceorphan18]

Cinderella

And... we’re back to regular features! Sort of.  I still have two of the anthologies left to cover (which I’ll get to), but this felt more appropriate to cover tonight - in honor of my grandmother, who loved this movie and looked a little like the fairy godmother. 

For one, it’s nice to see Disney get back on top with the animation.  If nothing else, Cinderella is another beautiful film, and I’m really beginning to tell when Disney puts forth the effort.  Even if this isn’t anywhere near my favorite Disney film, just having lush things on screen again, paired with a coherent and (semi-) engaging plot goes wonders.  

So.  I wasn’t a huge fan of Cinderella as a kid.  I think a lot of it stemmed from this idea that Cinderella didn’t fight back against her stepmom, and just cried a lot, and then *bamphf* she gets all the things she’s ever wanted.  That’s not entirely true - and I think I have a lot more respect for Cinderella than I did -- maybe being an adult, and understanding the nature of abusive relationships and how you can’t always escape your situation, I’m less judgmental of Cinderella than I once was.  

That said - the main issue for me is that when  the movie isn’t about the fairy tale, it’s mostly a Tom and Jerry cartoon.  I think the (human) characters in the movie are really interesting, and while somewhat two-dimensional, there’s some room to grow with them.  Instead, most of the film is from the POV of two little mice scurrying around trying to stay away from a cat.  It reminds me a lot of the middle of Snow White, where they pad out the thin story with endless dwarf shenanigans.  I get it - it’s a cartoon meant for kids, so I can’t be too critical, but I’m also now finding it a shame we didn’t get to know more about these characters.  

Perhaps I will check out the live action film, which I hear is pretty good.  

Anyway - the fairy tale part (as in the part actually with Cinderella) I think is really entertaining.  She actually has a tiny bit of personality to her as she pushes back what little she can in her own way.  The way Cinderella’s being oppressed is really quite evil in nature, even if Cinderella’s never directly in any danger.  I think it speaks to some darker aspects of human nature that situations like this do arise.  Clearly, this is a Disney cartoon for kids, but there are some darker themes that can really be explored this one. 

Once more - I’m glad that Cinderella’s whole dream for life isn’t finding a prince and settling down.  She just wants out of her horrible situation and to enjoy life a little.  She even doesn’t care about meeting the prince (and doesn’t realize that she has once she’s met him), and the makeover is more so about giving her a way to enjoy herself more than to be beautiful for someone else.  There’s more depth to it than I understood as a kid.  

The romance part of it is still... meh, though.  The prince doesn’t really get to say anything during the entire film, including not having a scene where he declares his love for Cinderella.  The king is the one who moves that plot line along more than anything.  I feel like it’s done that way to make the prince not seem like a dude who wants a wife to raise his kids but it subsequently gives him absolutely no character at all.  

While speaking of the prince side of things -- the king is kind of hilarious.  He and the Grand Duke (his bff? his lover? who knows - there’s no queen, and the king clearly doesn’t care all that much for women outside of being a baby maker) have to come up with a way for the prince to get married, because the king is literally dreaming of grandbabies.  Now.  you really shouldn’t put that kind of pressure on your children to do that kind of thing, but he’s also the funniest part of the film, so I’m giving it a small pass.  

Alright - so the step-mother and the step-sisters.  Damn.  Lady Tremaine is a bitch.  I mean, like you know how Umbridge from Harry Potter is pure evil, she’s not like Voldemort - something you can fight back against? It’s the same kind of thing.  This is established evil, evil by oppression, evil by breaking your spirit, evil that is apart of every day life.  It’s terrifying.  I kind of wonder if she’s more terrifying as an adult than to a kid, because I understand everything that she represents.  

The step-sisters are horrible, self-entitled, spoiled brats.  They’re drawn ugly to represent their ugly souls, but I kind of wish they had been just as beautiful as Cinderella - to prove a point.  

As for the fairy godmother stuff -- it’s fine.  It feels a little out of nowhere, because magic is not set up anywhere in the film, but there is talking mice, so it’s not out of the realm of possibility.  And while I still like the fairy godmother just fine, it would have been interesting if Cinderella managed to get herself out to that ball all on her own.  

My last thought is that there are some really good action sequences in the film, and while I think it’s far too padded (the story was just too thin), when it picks up it really picks up.  The whole striking of midnight thing is really captivating, and while I know how it plays out, it’s perhaps the most engaging sequence in the entire film.  

Other thoughts: 

I really want to know the story behind Lady Tremaine - why did she marry Cinderella’s dad? What turned her into such a horrible person? There’s a whole untapped story there -- I’d watch that movie over Maleficent.  (I didn’t need a Maleficent movie - I was fine with her being evil for the joy of it.) 

The hallway in Cinderella’s house looks a lot like the one that’s in Frozen - makes me wonder if Frozen was taking it intentionally.  

The voice of the step-mother is the same actress who will later do Malefacient.  Damn - she’s good at her job.  

The voice of the fairy god-mother will later be Flora the Fairy in Sleeping Beauty.  ...  Clearly, I’ve watched Sleeping Beauty a lot, these voices are so recognizable.  

Does this take place in France? There’s a lot of French-ish stuff going on. 

The king kind of reminds me of the Sultan from Aladdin.  

Cinderella’s dress is famously blue for all the merch.  Interestingly - it’s more of a silver color with a light blue tint in the film.  I kind of like that better, tbh.  

My favorite bit of animation in the whole film are the guards chasing after Cinderella during the midnight moment.  They’re black and red and kind of spooky and a different aesthetic from anything else in the film.  They’re really neat looking.  

The music of the film is a bit catchier than previous entries.  Sure, the love ballad is dull.  But most of the other songs you remember from Disney medleys your music class did back in elementary school.  

Final thoughts: It’s nice to see Disney back on its game again.  Cinderella’s never going to be a favorite film, but there are lots of things to like here.  And there’s a bigger conversation to be had buried in all of the cat and mouse shenanigans.  

[laufeymoar]

A reminder to the blogger [me]:

Ok, I should have done this as soon as the con was finished, but I didn’t think of it until now so whatever. This is just for me to get my thoughts together and remember what happened at this goddamn convention even when I am old and wrinkly and dying of some disease. Anyway, memories and impressions of SFCon 2017, wherein I speak to JPad’s sister (shoutout to all artists everywhere, Megan) and Rachel Miner, Jeffrey Dean Morgan harps on about Wincest for a bizarrely long time, and ‘meeting’ Jared turns out to be everything I could have hoped for.

Friday:

Melanie and I get there as soon as my class is done. We eat weird af avocado sushi and don’t have time to do anything else because we’re already like hours late lol. I did my best to look a little bit like Ruby, even though my hair was pulled back. SO. I don’t really remember the order any of this shit happened in, but I believe the first people we saw on stage were Richard Speight Jr. and Rob Benedict with Louden Swain, and I had my first freak out of the weekend by screaming ‘GABRIEL’ like a goddamn idiot and nearly falling apart right then and there. This was when Melanie would step in and remind me to behave like a normal human being, and I appreciated that. (Also, note: we sat in the front generally during the weekend, but Friday had the BEST seats because the Gold Member people weren’t there yet so we were RIGHT IN FRONT OF FUCKING GABRIEL BYE)

Anyway, next was the guy who played Adam. He was fucking HILARIOUS. I got to ask him a question, but before that I think someone asked him whether he prefers Sam or Dean as an ally or something like that, and I breathlessly whisper SAM and then cover my mouth, but the damage was done, the guy who played Adam fucking teased me (good-naturedly, of course, literally no one at this convention had a mean bone in their body) and I briefly reassessed what an appropriate level of ‘chill’ was. Anyway, I ask him if he’s heard of the theory that Adam is actually safe in heaven because Castiel blew his vessel to bits before Lucifer killed him (thereby killing Adam but not Michael). Jake (I think that’s the actor’s name?) thought about it a bit, I think ultimately decided he’d prefer hell? 

Also, to the girl who pointed out that Death confirmed that Sam and Adam’s souls were both in the cage...well played, sister, but in my defense I have for some reason been rewatching the first three seasons on repeat and not moving on, so my memory of season 5-6 is VERY BLURRY. 

Anyway, then it’s David Hayden Jones. Melanie and I had, up to this point, been playing the personality alignment game - I think Jake was Chaotic Good? Well, David Hayden Jones was TRUE GOOD. HE IS THE PUREST MAN I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE. He was FUNNY af and reeeeeally good at improv (confirmed by Melanie, a living breathing person that has experience in theater), and he remembered like fucking everyone he had spoken with online by NAME and chatted with them a little bit even though this is discouraged by Creation (but not enforced), and was just an overall great person. The ONLY Destiel question (dear god why) of the weekend was directed at him, and he handled it brilliantly (”Ketch would think of a ‘ship’ as something that floats on water...”). 

Anyway, after that, I decide to get something signed by fucking Gabriel because what do I need $35 for? Food? HA! I prove to everyone that I am a mess because I bought a ticket and lost it, this is no fucking exaggeration FS you idiot, TEN SECONDS after buying it. TEN. The subsequent ten minutes were spent trying to find it and charming the lady that had just sold it to me to give me another one for free. I managed to do the latter, but I also found the ticket before things got critical so ALL WAS WELL. 

This led to an amazing interaction with one of the Creation volunteers (take a shot for Vera everybody) who, and keep in mind she had been talking to Melanie and I for roughly ten minutes here, proclaims with all the confidence in the world that I am the ‘Jared’ and Melanie is the ‘Jensen’ of our relationship. This is because I’m scatterbrained and get lost and get LOUD, and Melanie is a planner who gets up on time and looks out for me even though I’m a grown-ass adult. Melanie and I are both shocked at this callout culture and that our dynamic is so easily displayed, though I think the loss of the stupid ticket did give Vera a pretty big hint. 

I guess I was in a one-man competition with myself for the trophy of ‘least prepared for life’ because I get in the autograph room thing and realize I have literally nothing for fucking Gabriel to sign (also there was a whole situation with pdf v physical tickets thing but you know what bye), so I gotta give the man my hot pink Michael Kors wallet, just like everyone else does duh [note: this was also when Melanie and I meet an amazing lady who let us hold the angel blade she had, and the thing was fucking authentic, THANK YOU WHY IS EVERYONE SO NICE]. 

So he gets the wallet, along with a sticky note of my name (everyone got a sticky note with their name but I was especially grateful because my name is ridiculous), and he proceeds to PERFECTLY pronounce it, better than some of my fucking friends irl (this is a callout post, do better). He asks me where I’m from. I panic because that is the identity crisis that every foreigner faces after living more than fifteen years in a new country, but I just say Bulgaria cuz it explains my name. He then proceeds to say that I don’t have an accent which is impressive and I just nod silently like a goddamn idiot. THEN he asks me if he should visit Bulgaria, because he’s never been, and this is clearly my limit in terms of speaking with a celebrity because I reply with ‘we have a sea’ and WRENCH BACK MY WALLET FROM HIS GRASP. Having zero chill, I don’t even give myself one damn second to walk away from the man before throwing my hands in the air and doing a bizarre victory lap in a quest to find Melanie again (yes he saw and no I don’t give af).

That night we eat amazing food and play a short session of DnD, wherein my HP drops to zero and I’m pretty sure I have two angels competing to save my life because everyone realizes the odds were against my Level 1 fucking human hunter (oh, Sam...) but whatever. 

Saturday:

I remember this day the least. We were SUPER late so we missed, like, all the panels lol. There was one panel with the guy who played Henry Winchester in, and correct me if I’m wrong here, ONE goddamn episode. So at one point me and Melanie are like ‘fuck that’ and go check out the vendor’s room at the con, including the Random Acts table. We meet an amazing volunteer there (shout out to Sara, girl I will find you on twitter ok give me a hot second) and Rachel Miner, who is absolutely lovely and dedicated to bettering this black hole of a world. We talk to them for like 40 minutes (fulfilling my dream of combining fandom and real life by talking to an actress I admire about shit that matters for A LONG ASS TIME FUTURE ME OK) before leaving for Melanie’s Photo Op that I was in lol (Saturday was ‘Melanie day’ and Sunday was my day in terms of actors we came to see). 

We stand in line for the Photo Ops, and it’s about as close as I’ve ever seen Melanie to a sober ‘not in control’ form. Even though she hasn’t been in this fandom for years, she was still worried she’d cry. She didn’t, thankfully, because at the last second I realized I had brought nothing in the form of a tissue...

So:

Melanie’s directions to Misha Collins were something along the lines of, “we’re in a fight, can you mediate between us?” (inspired by the other night’s DnD catastrophe). Misha very benevolently accepts, and the beauty before you is the result (I was Sam on Saturday, btw, though I realized very quickly that my super low key interpretation did not register like most of the dedicated cosplayers’ did - and by the way? At this con, 90% of the people were dressed in some form of plaid monstrosity, obviously including me). 

After we leave (Misha said thank you to us because he is a doll and maybe socially awkward deep down inside), we are immediately accosted by Creation for an interview because obviously, we are the smoothest chicks around. We praise them to the high heavens then go off to listen to some more panels. 

OH DEAR GOD. How could I forget Mark Sheppard?! OK I don’t remember where this fits into the timeline, but Mark Sheppard comes out, gives a very lovely speech to thank Louden Swain and Rob and fucking Gabriel for the time and effort they put into these cons, then proceeds to give the most MAUDLIN talk of the whole convention. So many highlights. He expresses frustration at the fact that his final line, “even when I lose, I win,” was cut. He explains that Crowley’s character arc had run its course a while ago. He takes the piss out of any Castiel cosplayers that were there (we were momentarily worried he’d target Melanie because he was walking up the aisle right where we were sitting, but he was thankfully distracted by a cute baby). He talks about his sobriety, what God and humanity mean to him. It was very deep, very cool (one part of his speech was about the power of fandom, “it’s not just that they wear the same uniform as you, it’s that you CAN wear the same uniform”, and honestly I was near tears, the man fucking understood). This went on for quite a while, it was Mark’s last convention, and it was around this time I felt ABSOLUTELY fucking exhausted. 

I’m pretty sure-NO. Actually. Before Misha’s panel, it was the actor who plays Jack (I believe his name is Alex). It was his first convention too, though tbh, though there were more people watching him, David Hayden Jones got louder cheers. ANYWAY. I don’t remember much about Alex’s panel except that Misha crashed it using a ridiculous voice, and he crashed it RIGHT IN FRONT OF WHERE WE WERE SITTING. Night made. 

Then it’s Misha’s panel, and I honestly don’t remember anything about it, sorry future me. I remember he was pretty funny, and I liked him. 

Thennn we go home (no karaoke or concert), and after dinner and tea sleep pretty much immediately. 

Sunday:

Then, the big day (for me). It starts off pretty great. Though we were later than I wanted to be, we catch the end of fucking Gabriel and Rob’s panel (Matt was there too, the guy who plays young John Winchester). These three are fucking hilarious together, but also, super talented. They do this weird talk-sing improv that ends up AMAZING and that Melanie assures me is very hard. 

I’m gonna mess up the order now, but I think we go in the vendor’s room and we meet Jared Padalecki’s sister Megan, who has a children’s book coming out. I buy one for my sister (you’re welcome Adi) and she signs it for us. We also have a pretty productive conversation about how to get your work noticed online, and I for some bizarre reason that is completely unknown to me advise Megan to get a DeviantArt. God did not bless me with ANY reasoning skills, and I am decidedly bitter about that. 

Then...it was time.

So I’m worried the entire time I’m going to cry. I didn’t understand the phrase ‘thrumming with excitement’ until this point. I also felt slightly like throwing up, which was very uncool but just my luck. I was thankfully distracted by a very tall woman who was excited to meet someone her height.

When you enter the room for the photo ops, it’s about five minutes before it’s actually your turn, so I got to watch Jared Padalecki interact with people for five minutes before it was our turn, and I have to say it was freaking incredible. The man was bouncing off the walls. He had already been doing this for TWO HOURS and he was still energetic and hugging EVERYONE. Also, since he was the one initiating, Creation couldn’t say SHIT, so pretty much everyone left with a GIGANTIC grin on their faces. Still felt a little like throwing up though. 

Ok. I know everyone says this. But he is TALL in real life. He’s not ‘huge’, it’s not season 3, but he’s very elegant looking and quite frankly beautiful. Better looking than he is on the show. And he greets us with a gigantic SMILE and his hair is so fucking SHINY and I was just ready for death at that point tbh.

...anyway. I say something along the lines of, “channel the DRUNKEST sorority girl you’ve ever seen in your life. We’re your two friends dragging you home.” He nods very determinedly, we grab him by the waist and ABSOLUTELY do not see the face he makes, and it’s over in like 5 seconds. BUT when we’re done, I catch his eye briefly (and am close to tears at this point) and he BRINGS US INTO THE BEST DAMN BEAR HUG I HAVE EVER RECEIVED IN MY LIFE. I forget if any thank you’s were exchanged because at that point my mind was mush. I do remeber he said that he channeled ‘emotional drunk’, and this was the goddamn result. Acting, folks.

(Later, when we see this picture, Melanie and I laugh so loud that some random man asks to see the photo op because we just could not chill for ages). 

As we were leaving the room, we briefly meet Clif, J2′s bodyguard, and he was very nice and very graceful about the fact that I gushed about Jared to him for like 20 solid seconds. 

Then, it’s time for the main panels. The first one was with the actress who plays Mary, and she was lovely if a bit inefficient at answering questions quickly (I’m only bitter because I was going to ask her where she WANTED Mary and Sam’s relationship to go, and what she thought about the fact that Sam felt disconnected from her), and then Jeffrey Dean Morgan came up and riffed with her a bit (I did not think I would be as excited as I was to see Jeffrey Dean Morgan). 

Jeffrey Dean Morgan is something else. First off, he’s fucking hilarious. There are many things I could say about the answers he gave, but I’m sure there’s a transcript somewhere that would do a better job, All I need YOU to remember, future me, is the fact that the man brought up fanfiction by himself (”we’re in fanfiction land now, people”), and then for some reason that will never be clear to me brought up WINCEST. And then KEPT TALKING ABOUT WINCEST. I WAS LAUGHING SO HARD I NEARLY CHOKED. Also, while I’m sure 99% of Destiel shippers were laughing along with all of us, I’m sure there was a faction of 1% that was bitter about the fact that JDM was under the impression that Wincest was still the BNS and that made me so happy inside. 

(It makes sense that JDM thought that, though. He was on the show when Wincest was at the height of its popularity, and he never kept up. APPARENTLY, J2 sent him some Wincest, and he got a kick out of it. These guys really are a lot more open-minded than I would be in their situation...JDM did call Wincest fans perverts though, so all is right with the world.) 

Thennnnn it was J2 time. The main event for me had been seeing Jared up-close, so I was relatively subdued, but it was still a great panel. The two of them are hilarious. They sound like every pair of best friends that remember shit differently and refuse to stop arguing about it (highlights of the panel: whose fault was Jared’s stabbed leg, how does one pronounce Nevada, how J2 respectively almost died, Jensen refuting a fan who implied that Sam was better as a supportive role to Dean). Jensen kept interrupting Jared’s stories with (admittedly funny) asides, and while Jared did the same occasion, it was not on the same level, which I found interesting. Idk how I felt when Rob and fucking Gabriel came back out and started jamming out hardcore with Jensen while Jared kinda hung back. I know that’s his own choice, and that they’d love him to perform with them, but idk. I wish he was secure enough to come out of his shell. 

Also - when they came down the stairs, Jared was all smiles and waves while Jensen was super subdued. We as fans don’t know anything about them so this is pure speculation but I am allowed to do that on my own blog damn it and I’m pretty sure that Jared is a genuine extrovert while Jensen is the opposite, and it really shows when the two of them are apart (together, Jensen becomes about as animated as Jared, albeit in a different way).

We stayed for the Kings of Con panel so I could stare at fucking Gabriel some more, and was heartened to find out that Richard Speight Jr. took objection to the fact that God “didn’t have time” to bring back Gabriel as much as I did. Nevertheless, fun panel, though I don’t remember any more details (Melanie probably will tbh, in keeping up with a recurring theme, she has a better memory than I do). After the panel, Melanie and I took pictures, I scored some free shirts, we went home. 

Something that didn’t really make it into this entry but I would like to keep note of is the fact that the people at this con were incredible. The volunteers, the people in the audience, every random human Melanie and I spoke to - all incredible. It was finally a group of people ready to debate the finer points of Sam’s refusal of Lucifer in the 11th season, etc., which is on one hand, like, “duh”, but on the other hand, it really isn’t. Amazing experience overall, you had fun, Melanie had fun, no one died, all was well. 

Until the next one (which, uh, we may have to end up going to New Jersey?! We will see about THAT)!