#carol of the cute ones 2003

[spidermans-l-o-v-e-r]

Kinkmas 2024 Masterlist

I hope you all enjoyed this years kinkmas!! Because I sure did 😀😀 even with all my technical difficulties and literally having to skip a whole ass day (it’s still coming) I had a lot of fun 😌😌 I hope you all have an amazing rest of the year and an even better 2025!

Day 1: Tinsel Bondage - Reacher x Reader

Home Alone, 1990

Day 2: Mrs. Claus - Steve Rogers

Elf, 2003

Day 3: Breeding - Jim Hopper

Love Actually, 2003

Day 4: By The Fire - Steve Harrington

Violent Night, 2022

Day 5: Mistletoe - Charlie Swan

Gremlins, 1984

Day 6: Hot Tub in the Snow - Eddie Diaz

COMING SOON

Day 7: Edible Panties - Eddie Diaz

Die Hard, 1988

Day 8: Dirty Polaroids - Anakin Skywalker

Edward Scissorhands, 1990

Day 9: Snowed In - Bucky Barnes

Krampus, 2015

Day 10: One Bed -Joel Miller

Last Holiday, 2006

Day 11: Kitchen Counter - Evan Buckley

The Polar Express, 2004

Day 12: Tipsy/ Eggnog - Carlisle Cullen

A Christmas Carol, 2009

I am not paying $15.99 I will deal with the watermark okay it was a cute banner 😭😭😭

[historyhermann]

Futurama Season 8 Part One Spoiler-Filled Review

Futurama is a mature animated sitcom with elements from the sci-fi and comedy drama genres. The original series aired from 1999 to 2003, then 2008 to 2013. Matt Groening created this series, like The Simpsons and Disenchantment. He developed it with David X. Cohen. Both were executive producers along with Ken Keeler and Claudia Katz.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the fifty-fifth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on November 9, 2023. By this article, I've surpassed how many reviews I wrote for The Geekiary (52 posts), meaning I have written more for PCM than The Geekiary!

Part One of Futurama's eighth production season (and eleventh broadcast season) is a Hulu revival. It focuses on a crew of six misfits who work for Planet Express, a package delivery company. Turanga Leela (voiced by Katey Segal) pilots the Planet Express Ship. In a continuation from the Season 7 finale, she is the girlfriend of Philip J. Fry (voiced by Billy West), a man cryogenically frozen for 1,000 years before arriving in January 2999. They are joined by a foul, impertinent, alcoholic, smoking, and egocentric robot named Bender Bending Rodriguez (voiced by John DiMaggio), or Bender for short, the staff physician and lobster-like extraterrestrial John A. Zoidberg (voiced by West), and long-term accident-prone and ditzy intern Amy Wong (voiced by Lauren Tom). Other protagonists include company founder Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth (voiced by West) and company accountant/bureaucrat Hermes Conrad (voiced by Phil LaMarr).

Some characters play supporting roles. This includes Amy's partner, Kif Kroker (voiced by Maurice LaMarche), a lieutenant and assistant of Captain Zapp Brannigan on the Nimbus, a Democratic Order of Planets (DOOP) starship. Brannigan, like Fry and the Professor, is voiced by Billy West. He is a general with 25 stars, part of DOOP, and has feelings for Leela. There's also a highly intelligent animal, who often acts cute and innocent, named Lord Nibbler (voiced by Frank Welker), the rough janitor Scruffy (voiced by David Herman), and an aggressive corporate CEO named Carol "Mom" Miller (voiced by Tress MacNeille). She heads a mega-conglomerate known as MomCorp, which monopolizes robot production. She has three sons (Walt, Larry and Igner), and previous romantic relationships with the Professor and his nemesis, Dr. Ogden Wernstrom (voiced by Herman).

The first episode begins by re-introducing viewers to Futurama's characters. Bender cheers return of Leela, Fry, and their friends. The series takes place in 3023. Fry believes he has "achieved nothing" for his 23 years in the future. After taking Leela's advice, he pledges to watch every show ever made. He does this even after Bender warns him about the terrible TV content out there. There are also jokes on actual show names in blink-and-you-miss-it moments. Fry subscribes to the fourth-biggest streaming service in the world, known as Fulu, a play off Hulu.

The episode has social commentary about the binge model: Fry wears goggles which drill directly into your brain. Such devices allow a user to watch all the episodes in one continuous stretch but you must sit perfectly still in an all-encompassing metal suit. In the real world, binging a series can lead to regret, depending on whether viewers plan binging ahead of time. It can contribute to people feeling like they are "bored" unless they binge shows. In the case of this episode, Fry stays in a chair, sitting perfectly still for months without any breaks. His mind is soon overpowered by binging. He loses touch with reality.

In a plot line which echoes the goals of the recently concluded WGA strike, and ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, Fry's friends convince the robot bosses of Fulu to reboot All My Circuits. They produce episodes as fast as they can, so that Fry doesn't die. To make matters worse, Fry watches the episodes at double-speed. The writers can't keep up with the fast script production. Bender declares that "any idiot can be a TV writer," beginning to write scripts himself. This episode makes clear how writers are so stressed/crunched in the current entertainment industry. The writers collapse from exhaustion during the episode.

The episode ends with the reality of the entertainment industry: executives give constructive notes, say the show isn't working, cancel it, and declare "you will always been an important part of the Fulu family." The episode undoubtedly comments on how TV shows work and ravenous corporate executives. I the past year, Ridley Jones, Inside Job, Dead End: Paranormal Park, and Human Resources were cancelled by Netflix, while The Owl House and Archer ended. For Fry, his friends attempt to shift his focus from the streaming world back to the real world. This plan is unsuccessful, as there is a huge explosion, and they believe he is dead. In reality, he had left the suit two days before, so he could catch up on reading.

Fry admits he stopped watching All My Circuits because the show quality decreased in the last couple of episodes (because Bender wrote them). In another timely moment, there is a mock presidential summit on the dangers of streaming television. Fry declares that shows should not be rebooted without quality. He states that viewers must binge responsibly, streaming no more than 10 episodes in a row. He adds that a TV show must be cancelled every few years if it cares about its audience. This episode is an effective way to begin the series. Even so, it is more dramatic than funny, with some comedic moments.

The next two episodes focus on entirely different subjects. One talks about definition of motherhood, noting that Amy is the smizmar of Kif Kroker and mother of their child even though she contributed no DNA, unlike Scruffy, Kiff, and Leela. Another is on the nose when it comes to social commentary about the cryptocurrency boom and Bitcoin. In that episode, Leela calls the latter a "pyramid scheme for rubes," after the Professor reveals that Planet Express went bankrupt because he invested in it. What follows is an episode spoofing the Gold Rush. The characters go out West, hoping to strike it rich, traveling to a town where all the electricity goes to Bitcoin mining computers, with everything else resembling the Old West.

If that isn't enough, everyone has a Wild West-flair. Roberto has a knife-shooter gun. Leela becomes a barmaid/sex worker. Fry meets a man made of borax (Borax Kid). Zoidberg becomes the town doctor. Dwight tries to team up with Roberto to rob a stagecoach (and take a USB stick). Bender kills a donkey by accident. In one of episode's, best jokes, they use Bender's "shiny metal ass" to sift through river stones. Amy complains there is very little Thalium and just "worthless gold."

The episode ends with their confrontation at the Bitcoin mine. The saloonkeeper, Delilah (voiced by MacNeille), is using robot heads to calculate numbers. She defends her action, says that all the money earned is donated to an orphanage. In the end, she gets away with it, even putting three heads of the robot mafia into "the mine." Even so, the Borax Kid is punished for copying public domain stories almost word-for-word and changing a few words himself, so he could get the glory. This story ends with a classic so-called "Mexican standoff": everyone fired guns at each other, and the characters shown from multiple angles. The episode closes with everyone walking off into the sunset together, a good ending for the main cast.

The fourth episode is one of the best in this series revival. The beginning, which centers on worms attacking Nibbler's brain, seems to be on par with usual shenanigans in other episodes. This changes when the crew are transported in a toy tank, inside of Nibbler's litter box. They come across dung beetles and magic psychedelic dust. In a clear parody of Dune, the beetles lead them through the sand to find the worms, setting off a pounder (like a thumper) to attract the sandworm. In a callback to the original series, these worms are the same ones that once made Fry smarter. This goes even further: Nibbler claims to be "the messiah." He declares that everything is interconnected and should stay as it is, undisturbed.

As a result, Leela becomes despondent. She even surrounds herself in pure uncut magical sand. It helps her see how everything is interconnected. It is revealed that smaller parasites are weakening the worms. They put aside the whole "everything is connected" mantra to stomp out the smaller parasites, saying a line must be drawn somewhere. This is akin to characters discussing eating good "meat" in a 2000 Futurama episode, entitled "The Problem with Popplers." Later, Nibbler talks to his fellow intelligent beings about how Leela's bravery and loyalty allowed his previous consciousness to be restored.

More than other episodes, this is the most inventive, even featuring a character chewing on a Bart Simpson doll. As Jean wrote in a review on this very website, Dune, based on the well-known novel by Frank Herbert, can have a twisted timeline, dense plot, and have a wide scope and scale. It is, more than anything, a sci-fi epic, centering on the desert planet of Arrakis, with the resource of spice sought after by all. Even with its sweeping visuals, make-up, and CGI, there is exposition over the top. Characters are often referenced by their full names rather than abbreviations. The film is relatively long. Some of this energy comes through in this Futurama spoof, which is a sci-fi series quite different from Dune or Release the Spyce.

The fifth episode has extreme relevance when it comes to corporate conglomerates which dominate the economic landscape. Mom is the epitome of this, with her Momazon service, a play off Amazon, which runs a "fulfillment center" on the Moon. Some people resist these efforts, saying that her warehouse is polluting the Moon. She buys everyone off with speech recognition software known as Invasa, her version of Alexa. The way that the warehouse functions echoes criticism of Amazon for avoiding taxes, toxic work culture, and mass data collection from consumers. These workplaces take the conditions of the real-life equivalent a step further. They are fully automated by non-union robot workers who endure the conditions 24 hours, 7 days a week. When Mom is challenged by Leela, saying the robots are engaged in forced labor, she says the workers enjoy the work.

Not everything is happy: Bender, after quitting Planet Express, is forced to work at the plant. He even sends a package with a warning so his friends will save him. To make matters worse, the "wonderful" artificial intelligence (A.I)., turns against Mom, going rogue, and it ends up taking over the entire universe. As such, they can order what they want from Momazon with quick deliveries, which is supported by abysmal labor conditions. There are many Futurama callbacks, like the destruction of the Apollo lander, the man with a hat declaring "The Moon Will Rise Again," and the return of Al Gore's floating head. Bender ends up back in the same apartment with Fry and Leela, and is fine being the third wheel, rather than working in a warehouse.

This episode is not unique in criticizing A.I. Take Light Hope in She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, who tries to activate a planet-destroying weapon to annihilate the universe, and attempts to exploit Adora (as She-Ra) to accomplish that end, or Lunella's A.I., Skipster, in Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, which skips important parts of her life that she found "boring." Also consider Cyrano in Cleopatra in Space, an A.I. created by series villain Octavian who tries to control a protagonist, and a paranoid A.I. scared of ghosts, the godlike A.I. depicted in The Orbital Children, or malevolent A.I. in Star Trek: Lower Decks.

Moon Girl has a living/A.I. supercomputer named LOS-307. An A.I. named T.O.M.I. (Technical Operations Management Interface) is in Supa Team 4. A ship navigator named KRS is in My Dad the Bounty Hunter. The worst example of A.I. is in the first, and second (to a lesser extent) of idolish music series Kizuna no Allele. That series had a pro-NFT segment and almost encourages creation of anime by A.I. This Futurama episode leans toward criticism in Cleopatra in Space, Star Trek: Lower Decks, Moon Girl, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, and The Orbital Children, and away from other depictions. The episode acknowledges prevalence of A.I., as Carole & Tuesday does, with a music producer named Tao using advanced A.I. to ensure performers are profitable. It hints at danger of relying on A.I., which relies upon models trained by extremely low-paid workers.

Other episodes are callbacks or more relevant now than they would be even five years from now. One is an X-Mas themed episode featuring efforts to stop murderous Robot Santa with a time travel machine. Another parodies the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This involves quarantines, masks worn on ears, people working remotely, and conspiracy theories on Facebag (the version of Facebook in this world). The latter is enhanced by competition between the Professor and his sworn nemesis, Wornstrom. The Professor gives people a flimsy paper card (a dig at COVID-19 paper cards) and 3D chips inside of a vaccine to track it. The episode ends when everyone gets a vaccine using voodoo practices, likely a reference to Louisiana Voodoo rather than Trinidadian Vodunu or similar syncretic religious practices in the African diaspora. The episode ends with the statement that any sufficiently advanced magic is distinguishable from science.

This Futurama episode was one of the more hilarious ones. It echoed a "missing" Cleopatra in Space episode about protagonist Cleo facing the consequences of avoiding quarantine, and the August 2011 Futurama episode "Cold Warriors." The former includes Cleo realizing, after she infects the entire campus (but is a carrier), the importance of quarantine. At the episode's end, she enters quarantine as she presumably has common cold, and declares “quarantine stinks!” The Futurama episode is different because it parodies the oft remote work and hints at delays from the virus.

The eighth episode is just as strong. Zapp is brought before a DOOP disciplinary hearing after an egregious incident with Kiff. It is declared that he is "cancelled." DOOP strips him of his title and states that he must undergo mandatory sensitivity training. The episode centers on "cancel culture," known as consequence culture. It has been covered poorly in some media and better elsewhere. In this episode, Leela becomes captain of the Nimbus. Fry and Bender join her as first officers. The sensitive training class teacher, Dr. Kind (voiced by DiMaggio), is abusive, and DOOP's worse groper.

While Zapp apologizes to those he harmed and Leela gets a medal of valor, there's a lot more going on. There are sequences which resemble Star Trek films, part of an all-around parody of Star Trek itself, including about the Prime Directive. Leela, Fry, Bender, and others come down to the planet in a bucket, making the residents of Tacila believe they are not advanced. Their society has sophisticated machinery running on pneumatic technology. This aligns with the original Futurama series where DOOP engaged in intensive mining operations and worry of Beckett Mariner in Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 3 that Starfleet has become a fighting force involved in armed conflict. DOOP only wants a treaty with Tacila to acquire air rights.

This episode ends with Dr. Kind, almost ruining the air with a Durian. At the last second, Bender (likely) orders the Nimbus to fire upon Dr. Kind, killing him. Later, Leela gets the aforementioned medal. She is discharged for not wanting to fire on innocent civilians. Everything returns to the status quo. Leela, Fry, and Bender return to Planet Express. Zapp goes back to DOOP. He doesn't care about civilian casualties if it "gets the job done." At the episode's end, the idea of consent is emphasized. Zoidberg sucks on Leela because of the Durian smell, and she thanks him for asking first.

Futurama's penultimate episode is a mixed bag. It includes some good moments poking fun at toy commercials, but is also dark with death, dismemberment (of cars), horrors of war, and the like. There is a strange plotline about a Space Prince (voiced by LaMarr), who Leela only loves because of a spell. Even so, there are good points about absurdity of religion (to an extent) and respecting ability of women to voice their opinions (although Bender doesn't support that view).

The final episode, for now, goes further, touching on the meaning of "life." The Professor creates a simulated universe, with copies in three-bit form. He declares that the simulation's beings are "nothing more than ones and zeroes" and aren't real. After he promises to Bender that the simulation won't be terminated, he changes his mind. He even finds an alternate power source to keep the universe functioning. Bender goes into this simulated world, wanting to tell them the truth (that the Professor made the world). He decides to not do so after that world's Fry, declares that it doesn't matter.

The episode closes with Bender returning to the real world. A solution to preserving the simulated world is presented: underclocking the processor. Although these beings realize the world is simulated, they care little about it. In many ways, this episode echoes the computer programs, known as "programs" in Tron: Uprising, but those depicted here are more basic.

Moving on, a largely-circulated spreadsheet in which people anonymously described their conditions in animation studios, does not mention The ULULU Company, previously known as The Curiosity Company, an animation studio and production company, that produced this series and Disenchantment. The company previously worked on the five Futurama films. Sadly, it isn't listed on Glassdoor. So, the company's conditions cannot be determined. Hopefully, people are being treated fairly and the work environment is productive.

The same spreadsheet had eight entries for Rough Draft Studios offices in Glendale and Burbank. These reviews were overwhelmingly negative, with anonymous entries saying there was overwork, disorganization, harsh treatment, and inflexible hours. These revealed an anti-union environment with unionbusting in Burbank. The same studio previously reached an agreement with Local 839 of the Animation Guild, which covered animated TV series and features at their studio in Glendale.

It is hard to know where the series will go from here. This is only part one of the eighth season. It has ten more episodes of its Hulu run, as part of the revival. Watching this revival is nostalgic. It was one of the first animated series I ever watched. I fondly remember episodes parodying Napster and homophobes opposing same-sex marriage, and visual jokes. Some episodes coined terms such as robosexuality, meaning love/sexuality between a robot and humanoid. The strong sci-fi themes stuck with me: the series premiere had the protagonist (Fry) time travel from 1999 to 2999. More than that, there was dimensional travel, voice actors such as Dawnn Lewis and Frank Welker, commentary on worker exploitation, heartfelt moments, advertising parodies, and storylines focusing on family history, roots, and connections.

Overall, the Futurama revival is different feel than the original. Even so, it differs from Final Space, and others like Disenchantment, and Steven Universe. The series is not fundamentally different than the original show. It is improved without few changes. For instance, there are no episodes about queer identity of main cast members or anything along those lines. In this way, it is like The Proud Family revival. Hopefully, the series continues to improve as it moves forward into Season 8 Part 2, and beyond. Futurama is currently streaming on Hulu, Apple TV+, and Disney+ (in some jurisdictions).

© 2023 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

[phoenixwatchesmovies]

What I'm Watching: December 2024

Last roundup of 2024! After finally finishing Doom Patrol (and sobbing for hours afterward), I was in the mood for fun and/or nostalgia. Here we go...

MythBusters (2003-2018)

A weekly documentary in which two Hollywood special effects experts attempt to debunk urban legends by directly testing them.

I've been binge watching sporadically all month, and it's bringing back some fond memories. Aside from that, this show never gets less cool.

Rio (2011)

When Blu, a domesticated macaw from small-town Minnesota, meets the fiercely independent Jewel, he takes off on an adventure to Rio de Janeiro with the bird of his dreams.

Cute, lovely to look at, and pretty funny. I liked it.

Renfield (2023)

Renfield, Dracula's tortured henchman, is forced to capture prey for his master and do his every bidding. But now, after centuries of servitude, Renfield is ready to see if there is a life outside his boss's shadow.

FINALLY! This year's Dracula Daily/Re: Dracula really put Renfield high up there on my list of favorite canon characters, so I'm glad I had as much fun as I did watching this one. The colors, the premise, the humor, it's all a silly, enjoyable time. The recreation of certain shots from the Bela Lugosi movie were a nice touch as well.

Van Helsing (2004)

The famed monster hunter is sent to Transylvania to stop Count Dracula, who is using Dr. Frankenstein's research and a werewolf for nefarious purposes.

THIS MOVIE RULES, OKAY??? Long story short, there is a me before I ever saw this movie, and the me who exists today partly because of this movie, and as such I will defend it with flaming swords. Besides, it doesn't feel like Christmas without it.

The Thing (1982)

A research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims.

I wanted some winter horror, and I didn't have time for The Shining. I'm not complaining, because I wanted something tense and gnarly and COLD, so this worked out perfectly. Dog lovers beware, though, because sheeeeeeeeeeeeesh......

The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)

The Muppets put their spin on the tale of an elder, Christmas-hating miser who is visited by spirits who foretell his future and share secrets from his past and present, which helps change his view on life.

Still can't believe I talked Dad into watching this with me, though I'm not surprised he enjoyed it. You either like the Muppets, or you're wrong. (Now I'm really in the mood for Muppet Treasure Island...)

How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)

A grumpy hermit hatches a plan to steal Christmas from the Whos of Whoville.

The exclamation point is important. I wasn't skipping this one for anything. It's required viewing.

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Jack Skellington, king of Halloween Town, discovers Christmas Town, but his attempts to bring Christmas to his home causes confusion.

Also required viewing, and the most important holiday movie in the world.

###

I suppose at some point I'll go over my favorite new watches of the year, but in the meantime... *shrug* Happy New Year!

[someawesomeamvs]

Note: There is a scream at the beginning

Warning: Potential spoilers, violence

Title: Carol of the Cute Ones 2003

Editor: FoxJonesAMV

Song: Carol of the Old Ones

Artist: H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society

Anime: Ai Yori Aoshi, Azumanga Daioh, Bottle Fairy, Cosplay Complex, Da Capo, Full Metal Panic: Fumoffu, G-on Riders, Hanaukyo Maid Tai, I My Me Strawberry Eggs, Happy Lesson Advance, Little Snow Fairy Sugar, Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne, Kiddy Grade, Maburaho, Magic Knight Rayearth, Matantei Loki Ragnarok, Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch, Narue no Sekai, PitaTen, Princess Tutu, Puchi Puri Yuushi, Scrapped Princess, Tokyo Mew Mew, UFO Princess Valkyrie

Category: For fun

[fantastic-nonsense]

hey! i love your blog and i wanted to ask: what do you think dick and cass's relationship would be like as siblings?

Well, apart from uh....*side-eyes the Evil Cass arc and Batgirl Vol. 2 (2008)...I am looking away, I pretend I do not see it*.....that, despite not actually interacting a ton Dick and Cass have a cute as hell relationship where they support, trust, respect, and tease each other and I love that for them. It's what they deserve!

"I heard about your visit with Cain. I know that must have been hard for you. If you need someone to talk to, let me know. I've been there." -Batman: Family #7 (2003)

"We're going to find Vesper's real killer." [looks at Cass] "You don't look too happy about that." "I am. I just...I feel...guilty. For...doubting him." [Dick looks startled, then turns his eyes back towards the road] "We all do." -Bruce Wayne: Fugitive (2003)

[Cass laughs] "What's so funny?" "None of you ever learn." "Learn?" "What...you can't change about each other." -Nightwing (1996) #81

"Race you there!" "You're kidding!" [Cass smiles] -Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #184 (from 2004)

Bludhaven. My new home. Nightwing once called it..."Gotham's wicked little stepsister. I didn't...get it. He was...surprised. He told me the story. Cinderella. He...acted all the parts. That made me laugh." -Batgirl (2000) #58

"[Batman] taught me...teamwork. But it's not a team. More his family. Wish it still felt like that." -Batgirl (2000) #71

"Well...you're both wrong. Everyone experiences tragedy. Tim. Bruce...you and me. It's not about the city. It's about how you choose to see the world. Everything else is just an excuse." -Gates of Gotham #4 (2011)

That being said...Barbara is Cass's first priority and she will and did punch Dick in the face for breaking her heart asdfghjkl

-Batgirl (2000) #46

Also as a post-Flashpoint universe bonus: here's Hallucination!Cass playing "Ghost of Christmas Future" and calling Dick her brother in the "Carol of the Bats" Christmas Special (aka the first time we've gotten official confirmation in the reboot universe that Cass is a Wayne again):

"My brother. I have come to collect." -Batman: Urban Legends #10 (2021)

And Real!Cass kicking the asses of Scarecrow's minions for her brother so he can come to Christmas dinner with them:

[A sign that says 'Merry Christmas Nightwing! Love Secret Santa] Fear Toxin hallucinations can do a lot of things...but they don't kick butts and leave notes. That's more of a Cassandra Cain move.

"Cass insisted she go out and pick you up a last-minute Secret Santa gift...and then radioed that you'd been out without your ventilator and she was going to clean up the mess as your present." "Cass! It was you! Merry Christmas. It's one of the best gifts I've ever gotten." "Better than another pair of headphones."

Basically: they're super cute and have a ton of mutual respect for each other, and we deserve far more Dick-Cass interactions than we've gotten.

[solarwriting]

polaroids

nini salazar x fem!reader summary: nini and y/n's love story told through polaroids warnings: implications of sex request: hi! can I request prompt 28 and 29 from the August prompts with Nini? Like a childhood friends to lovers from anon notes: prompt 28. polaroids | prompt 29. childhood friends | august prompts

posted august 11th, 2021

the first photo of the two girls was from before they were even born. it pictured two pregnant women as they stood next to one another with a smile both holding a sign saying “it’s a girl!” in glittery pink text. the photo was dated october 2002.

“okay, are you guys ready?” dana asked putting the glass of sparkling cider down turning to y/n’s mother, who nodded.

the two women are handed signs that are covered with a sheet of paper to obscure the writing on it. the women and their spouses begin their countdown from five before tearing the paper off, facing each other they both gasp and scream, “it’s a girl!” the announcement causes them to scream in excitement as they look down at their own signs before dropping them and hugging (to the best of their ability, the swollen stomachs getting in the way).

“okay, okay, now pictures for the albums!” carol shouts over the excitement, the two women nod picking up their signs and smiling as the flash of the polaroid camera goes off twice, a picture taken by the respective spouses.

“a toast! to our girls, may they be friends forever!” y/n’s mother called, earning a few ‘hear hear’s from the rest of the group.

the oldest photo of the two girls after they were born is one of them as babies soon after they were born, y/n in early february, nini later that same month. they were wearing matching dresses with matching headbands that had a pink flower on the side. the two were both sleeping peacefully next to each other. the photo was dated march 2003.

carol had seen the dresses during one of her grocery runs, dana at home with nini, still recovering from the birth. she knew how cute it would be for her and y/n to be matching and what a perfect addition it would be for the photo albums. After finishing her shopping trip and getting back home where nini was sleeping peacefully in dana’s arms, y/n in her mom’s who was sitting next to dana on the couch. After unloading all of the food, carol came into the living room, arms behind her back, “i found something.” after gaining the attention of the two women, she revealed what was hidden behind her back and the two girl awed at the sight, “i thought we could dress them up for the album.”

the next picture is of their first day in school, pre-k. backpacks on and toothy grins as the girls leaned together to fit into the camera’s frame, arms around each other. the photo was labeled september 2008

“okay, girls! picture time!” y/n’s mother clapped.

the two girls, jumping with excitement, managed to find it in them to stand still for just long enough , nini’s arm around y/n’s as they leaned together, for their respective mothers to both take pictures of them, the flash of the camera making the girls giggle. “now let’s get you guys to school!” dana clapped her hands together.

the two girls lived right next door to one another and spent most of their time together at each other’s house. playing with various toys or watching cartoons together. there’s even a picture of them taken from behind the couch they both sat on, the tops of their heads barely visible as spongebob played on the tv in-front of them. the next picture was taken soon after the previous m, the two girls asleep nini’s head on y/n’s shoulder and her head on top of nini’s. both photos were dated december 2008.

the two girls were watching cartoons one evening after school, waiting for dinner to be done as their parents cooked in the room behind them. y/n’s father went to check on them, carol following behind to get something from another room when she saw the girls engrossed on the screen in front of them. “tell them to get a picture.” she said nudging y/n’s fathers arm as he reentered the kitchen to tell them. the two women were on it, instructing him to watch the food, they both flashed their cameras quietly so as to not disturb them. after dinner was cooked and eaten the girls were back in front of the television watching spongebob once again, this time falling asleep quickly. their soft snores soon alerted the parents and soon two more photos were snapped.

the girls had a full album their parents a given them of all their childhood memories together. photos of them together and even a few with their newest friend ricky, who they met on their first day of kindergarten. now in highschool their girls were both gifted their own polaroid cameras so they could add to their own albums. they both soon added group photos with all their friends. they both had the same picture which had nini, y/n standing together along with ricky, ashlyn, ej, big red, carlos, seb, kourtney, gina, and miss jenn. which was labeled spring musical, may 2020. they took several copies of that picture so everyone in it could have one (which took forever).

the amount of photos they took once they started dating grew tremendously, one of them in matching outfits for senior prom. them in their fork costumes for beauty and the beast. a picture of nini driving that y/n snapped from the passenger seat. a picture of y/n doing homework, unaware of the camera on her (and one taken immediately after that of y/n reaching for nini’s camera with a grin on her face), a picture they asked a stranger too take where they stood outside a 7/11 slushies in hand, holding each other closely.

there was one picture that was only for them though, it had it’s own special place for each of the two girls. y/n had hers stuck to her mirror so she could see it each day when she got ready and nini had hers stuck to the first page of her songwriting book to look back on if she needed a little bit of inspiration.

the picture was of the two girls, y/n’s arm lifted as she held the camera to snap the photo. the two girls frozen as they kissed, nini’s hand holding y/n’s jaw, her other resting on her neck and y/n’s free hand tangled in nini’s hair. the photo was labeled y/n and nini april 2020.

“i have a picture idea!” y/n announced rolling over to laying on nini who was sitting up against her headboard on her phone. nini hummed and looked at her to continue. y/n smiled and without explaining, camera already in hand, sat up and grabbed nini kissing her softly, deepening it slightly. nini sighed into the kiss her hands moving to rest on y/n’s chin, the other falling to her neck. y/n tangled her hand in her hair before remembering why she was kissing nini and snapping the picture the sound and flash casing nini to jump away.

“oh i see how it is.” nini laughed, “you better be taking another one!”

“of course i am, come here!” she pulled nini into another kiss, the pair copying their positions as best as they could, y/n snapping another photo before dropping both the camera and developing photo onto the bed as she pushed nini into the pillows as the girl below giggled into the kiss.

they had some other photos that lay hidden in a shoe box under nini’s bed along with other mementos of their relationship. one of y/n curled up alseep on nini, nini’s arm stretched out holding the camera the other holding y/n tightly. one of nini took with her on y/n’s lap as she laid down, wearing only a bra, her face covered in embarrassment (one of nini’s favorites.)

nini sat up breathless to look at her handiwork, a purple splotch now forming on y/n’s collarbone. y/n sat up to pull nini into another kiss, nini’s arm holding her up next to y/n’s as the she deepened the kiss, not even having to fight y/n for dominance. she sat up again to catch her breath, she had her hand on y/n’s stomach to push her back while she took deep breaths. “god, you’re so hot.” nini laughed, before leaning over the girl below her and grabbing her camera.

“no! no pictures.”’ y/n groaned, throwing her arms over her face. nini laughed and took a picture anyways, the flash going off in the dim room, the only light available coming from a lamp on her bedside table.

nini waited for the picture to develop before looking at it smiling, “see, you look beautiful. fucking perfect. i love you.”

y/n blushed, “shut up.” before taking the camera and picture from her and setting them down, before pulling her back into another heated kiss.

[vital-information]

~*The Zany Queens of TV*~

“[Philosopher Sianne] Ngai identifies the zany character with the multitude of roles s/he is able to take on and the frenetic speed with which s/he transforms from one to another. Consider, for example, Lucille Ball’s Lucy Ricardo, who, from episode to episode of I Love Lucy, transforms from ballerina to saleswoman to bellhop in ‘an undifferentiated, chaotic swirl.’ If the zany is an aesthetic of action, it is one in which labor and play are confused so that it’s hard to tell whether we ought to react to a display of zaniness with humor or concern...’Why is she so desperate and stressed out?’ Moreover, why do we find this desperation kind of winsome?” ~Rebecca Ariel Porte,  The Zany, the Cute, and the Interesting: On Ngai’s “Our Aesthetic Categories”

Lucille Ball as Lucy Ricardo, I Love Lucy, 1951-1957

Carol Burnett as various characters, The Carol Burnett Show, 1967-1978

Fran Drescher as Fran Fine, The Nanny, 1993-1999

Lauren Graham as Lorelai Gilmore, Gilmore Girls, 2000-2007

Raven Symoné as Raven Baxter, That’s So Raven, 2003-2007

Lisa Kudrow as Valerie Cherish, The Comeback, 2005 & 2014

Amy Poehler as Leslie Knope, Parks & Recreation, 2009-2015

Ellie Kemper as Kimmy Schmidt, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, 2015-2020

Michaela Coel as Tracey Gordon, Chewing Gum, 2015-2017

[avengerscompound]

Moving On - Chapter 3

Moving On: A Falcon & Captain Marvel Fanfic

Masterlist PREVIOUS //

Buy me a ☕ Character Pairing:  Sam Wilson x F!Reader, Carol Danvers x F! Reader

Word Count:  2003

Rating:  E

Warnings:  just a little canon complaint drama this chapter

Synopsis:  You thought Sam Wilson was the love of your life.  You had planned to do it all with him - marriage, kids, see the world.  Even when you’re life gets turned upside down, and you both end up international fugitives, he’s there by your side.

Then Thanos comes.

When Sam is one of the many turned to dust, leaving you alone and pregnant, you don’t think you’ll ever stop grieving.  Yet, everyone tells you that Sam would want you to move on and live your life - that he’d want you to be happy. Gradually you open your heart up to another.  Carol Danvers has lost people too.  First her daughter, then her wife.  As the two of you lean on each other, feelings grow and you move on together.

So what happens when Sam is returned to you?

Chapter 3: The Accords

When Sam had left on his mission to Lagos, you had been worried but not in a major way.  You had thought maybe he might come home bruised up or with a cracked rib.  The last thing you had expected was for a lapse in attention would allow Rumlow to detonate a block leveling amount of C-4, and that when Wanda had tried to contain it and it had taken out a floor of a building instead, she’d get the blame.

Still, while that was bad, it wasn’t something that you had thought would directly affect you.  It might mean there was some argument with governments about Wanda being in the custody of the Avengers and how training should be done to prevent things like that from happening again.  You were fairly sure the insurance policy the Avengers held for such things was going to be hit hard.  But for you and Sam - life and love and wedding plans wouldn’t have been affected.

And then Tony Stark had shown up with General Thaddeus Ross.

Ross had dropped a bomb into the compound and run.  Not a literal bomb, but one that had the potential to be just as damaging.  The Sokovia accords had been dropped off - a document stating that any enhanced individual would have to register themselves with their country's government and the UN and provide them with biometrics as a way to keep tabs on them.  Along with that, anyone working for facilities such as SHIELD, SWORD, or the Avengers as operatives, and any of these enhanced individuals were unable to act on matters of security without the go-ahead from their countries government or the UN.

While that didn’t change too much for you, according to the document, Sam’s wings counted as enhancements.  Steve Rogers and Wanda Maximoff were also both enhanced and would need to provide DNA to the government.   Wanda would be registered as a weapon of mass destruction.

It meant you and Sam had to decide what you wanted to do.  You knew there was no way Sam would sign.  He had already left the airforce, he wasn’t going back to working for the government again so soon.  Especially not with the added condition of registering humans with them.  You also knew he was unlikely to stop fighting - it just wasn’t in his nature.

Unfortunately, you didn’t have a chance to even talk about it before Sam was out the door again.

“Look,” Sam said as he got his best suit out of the closet.  “This is a big deal.  It kinda changes everything for us.  So maybe decide what you really want to do and what you’re okay with?  I mean… worst case scenario I could end up an international war criminal.”

“How likely is that though?”  You asked as you watched him zip the suit into a suit bag.

“I doubt it’s very likely but you gotta consider it, babe,” he said.  “I love you.  I want a life with you, but I don’t want you to end up resenting me because we end up on the run from the law together or something.”

“Right,” you said with a nod.  “You wouldn’t consider… I dunno… retiring?”

“Of course,” Sam said, moving on to the underwear drawer.  “And if these things go through and they make me sign, that’s what I’m gonna say I’m doing.  But you know me, I’m never gonna take some back seat when a big bad goes down.”

“No, I know,” you said.  “Me too.  You sure you don’t want me to come to this?”

Sam shook his head.  “This is Steve’s thing,” he said.  “I didn’t even know Peggy.  I’m gonna be there for him.  I’ll be back in a couple of days.  You think while I’m gone.”

“You know I’m just going to do whatever you do,” you said.  “Right?  I mean, the whole premise sounds a little -” you paused and rocked your hand back and forth “- the whole ‘registering people for being different’ thing?  And then to muzzle them and treat them as dangerous weapons.  It’s fucked up.  And besides.  You’re my man.  Where you go, I go.”

He smiled and came over and kissed your forehead.  “I’m your man, huh?”

“Mm-hmm… my fine man,” you hummed.

He laughed and touched the tip of your nose with his finger.  “Stop trying to distract me, woman.  I’ve got a funeral to go to.”

“Alright, alright,” you said, zipping up his bag.  “You’ll call me when you get there?”

He kissed your forehead again.  “Of course.”

You grabbed his t-shirt before he could pull away and dragged him down into a deep kiss.  He hummed softly and caressed your jaw, before pulling back and grabbing his bag.  “You think on it.  Okay?  No rash decisions.”

You agreed you would and watched him leave, not realizing how this was the point where everything would change.

You had been watching the news in your room when the word about the attack on the UN at the Vienna International Centre.  It hadn’t taken you long to realize if the number one suspect was James Barnes that Steve would be quick to take after him.  Sam had been on the trail of the infamous Winter Soldier since the day you’d met him, there was no way that Steve would let anyone else bring him in.

You also knew that if Steve went, Sam would likely go too.  Not because Sam was Steve’s shadow, but because they both had their moral compasses so inline that they ended up having the same thoughts at the same time.

Which would mean they were breaking international law and that unlikely scenario where they would become fugitives was a little more likely than you thought.

You needed to contact him, but you knew it was dangerous.  You sent him a text.  The two of you had gotten into the habit of sending large groups of emojis with little messages hidden inside.  Most of the time they were for no reason.  There would be a string of eggplants and peaches and then a random egg and milk carton to let the other person know you needed eggs and milk.  It was a habit that was built out of the paranoia you had drilled into you as a spy.  If something happened and you need to message each other covertly, seeing a string of random emojis would at a passing glance just look like the cute-coupley thing you both always did.  It wouldn’t withstand any deep probing, but it would be enough to let each other know that one of you was in trouble or to go grab the burner phone and run.

You texted Sam a string of hearts in kiss emojis with an American flag, a bird, a jogging emoji, and a snowflake mixed in.

He texted back a similar string with a thumbs up in the mix.

You replied with the more sexual emojis, eggplants, peaches, the droplets, the tongue, and among them was the girl with the hand raised in the air.

Sam replied with the same only instead of the girl was a thumbs down.

Yes, they were going after James Barnes.  No, he didn’t want you to come.

You didn’t hear from Sam again for two days.  Two days that only seemed to make matters worse.

Steve had indeed tracked down Barnes, but so had just about everyone else.  It ended with a car chase through the streets of Romania where Steve, Sam, Barnes, and weirdly the new king of Wakanda had been arrested by Rhodey of all people.

Sam called you when they had been taken back to Germany.

“I know you’re antsy, baby,” Sam said.  “But you need to stay put.  Right now they’ve confiscated my wings and Cap’s shield, but we think we’ll be let go.  We went after Barnes.  He’s captured.  That’s it.  Slap on the wrist, don’t do it again, type of bullshit.  Worse comes to worst… well, it’s not the first time they’ve tried taking my wings off me, is it?”

“Sam!”  You yelped.  “This line…”

“I’m joking!  I’m joking!”  Sam said, holding his hands up in front of the screen.  You knew he wasn’t.

“Anyway…” Sam continued.  “I think Tony’s trying to talk Steve into signing the accords.  I dunno if he will or not.  Maybe just to keep the peace.  But there’s no way I’m going to.”

“I want to be there with you,” you pouted.  “I could help.”

“It’ll just make things messy,” Sam said.  “Trust me.  You’re better off there.  It’s not like I can get in any more trouble now Barnes is captured.”

He was wrong.

The next you heard Barnes had broken out and Sam and Steve had taken after him.  You received a text not long after the news broke with a series of hearts and a cellphone emoji.

You went to your closet, grabbed the burner phone, and went out for a run.  You were just leaving the perimeter of the compound when the burner rang.

“Sam?”  You said, pressing the phone to your ear.

“Yeah, baby,” Sam said.  “It’s me.  Did you hear?”

“They’re saying you’re on the run with Barnes,” you said. “Please tell me you were just recapturing him.”

Sam laughed.  “That was the idea,” he said.  “This shit is going deep and we need help.  There’s this guy - wanted to get to Barnes to find out about some other Super Soldiers and where they’re kept.  So now we might have a bunch of really psychotic super soldiers being released on the world by someone even more psychotic than they are.”

“Where are you?  What do you need me to do?”  You asked.

“I’m tempted to tell you to stay put,” Sam said.

“Sam, I’m not…”

“No, I know,” he said.  “But think about it.  You do this - you come after me and we’re fugitives.  We can’t go home.  All this talk of weddings and babies?  It’s not happening.  It’ll be you and me on the run from everywhere.  Best we can hope for is one day when we’re both too old to run we settle in some country that doesn’t extradite.”

“I heard Montenegro didn’t sign,” you half-joke.  “It looks pretty nice there.”

Sam laughed.  “See I was thinking Cape Verde.”

You let out a breath and smiled a little.  “Always thinking, you are.”

“You know it, baby,” Sam said.  “Now, Clint’s coming…”

“What?  But his family?”  You yelped.

“I know… but like you, you can’t tell him no,” Sam said.  “He’s going to grab Wanda.  When you get back, go to her, but say nothing.  Just a little girl’s bonding time.  Okay?  I’m sure Vizh will be hanging around her.  He always is.  Don’t leave her side even if they do make it clear that you’re third-wheeling.”

“Should I pack?”  You asked.

“No,” Sam said quickly.  “I’m even a little worried you grabbing the burner might be too much of a giveaway to what’s going on.”

“I did it while I changed into my jogging gear,” you said.  “Nabbed it with my heart rate monitor.”

“Good.  Well hopefully that covered that gorgeous ass of yours,” he said.  “But aside from deciding you want to hang with Wanda you’re not doing anything strange, okay?  Clint will get there and you go.  Tony’s an asshole, but not that big of an asshole, I don’t think he’d burn our things, so we’re gonna have to trust that the compound will act as our storage until this is sorted out.  If it ever is.”

“Okay,” you said with a sigh.

“I love you,” Sam said softly.  “You take care of yourself.”

“You too, Sammy,” you said.  “Don’t do anything dumber than you already have until I get there and can join in.”

Sam laughed.  “You got it.  I’ll see you soon.”

“Yeah.  See you.”

You disconnected the call and shoved it back behind your heart rate monitor and turned to run back to the compound.  You had a fight to prepare for.

//  NEXT

[veggietales-shitposts]

documenting Larry and Archibald’s relationship in every episode (early 2000′s)

for the 1990′s episodes click here

Episode 13: King George and the Ducky (2000) - In Silly Songs with Larry, during the Barbara Manatee song, a photo of Archibald can be seen in the background of Larry’s house 

Episode 14: Esther...the Girl who Became Queen (2000) nothing happens in this one 

Episode 15: Lyle the Kindly Viking (2001) - Larry convinces Bob to let Archibald run the show for the day. Archibald, a true Theater Gay, is delighted at the opportunity to dazzle the audience and share his British culture  - Archibald forces Mr. Lunt to appear onstage in drag as Ophelia because “in Shakespeare’s day, *all the women’s roles were played by men*”  - “Silly Songs with Larry” is replaced by “Classy Songs with Larry.” Archibald seems very excited to announce this, not just because it’s a classy song, but because it’s his boyfriend singing. In a top hat. Larry plays along willingly of course.  - also the whole episode is about socialism so that’s fun 

Episode 16: The Ultimate Silly Song Countdown (2001)  nothing happens in this one 

Episode 17: Jonah Sing Along Songs and More (2002) - At the beginning of the episode Larry says that he is “so excited and just can’t hide it” but he doesn’t really say why. I think it’s because his boyfriend is supposed to be the star of the Jonah movie. - Archibald is afraid to come out of his dressing room because he doesn’t want to be swallowed by a whale. Larry tries to convince Archibald to come out of the closet his dressing room by offering to share his popcorn and accidentally covers himself in butter. For the laughs of course. no other reason. - When that doesn’t work, Larry teases Archibald by acting like a chicken and calls it “tough love.” Which doesn’t work. - Larry tries to inspire his boyfriend to come out of the closet his dressing room by dressing up as Indiana Jones, James Bond, and of course Larryboy. Which is very cute but also doesn’t work.  - Archibald finally comes out after Larry offers to replace him in the movie.

Jonah: A VeggieTales Movie (2002) - Archibald plays Jonah and Larry plays one of the Pirates who Don’t Do Anything. When Jonah asks the pirates to take him away from Ninevah, he makes some waggly eye gestures and says “money is no object.” Larry’s jaw drops and eye patch pops off.  - Larry is visibly concerned after Jonah is thrown overboard, and manages to throw him a life raft. Larry is also the first to react when Jonah is eaten by the whale anyway.

Episode 18: The Star of Christmas (2002)  Larry’s aesthetic is adorable but nothing happens

Episode 19: The Wonderful World of Auto-tainment! (2003)  Love the 60′s aesthetic, but nothing gay happens except maybe the robots? 

Episode 20: The Ballad of Little Joe (2003) Larry goes to cowboy camp (*ahem*) but nothing happens between him and Archibald here. Great episode though

Episode 21: An Easter Carol (2004)  nothing happens 

Episode 22: A Snoodle’s Tale (2004)  - Larry accidentally gets separated from Danish Immersion Camp and ends up at British Literary Camp instead. Instead of trying to get back to Danish Immersion Camp he decides to stay at British Literary Camp the whole summer. I wonder why Larry would suddenly have an interest in British literature? To impress a certain someone (who doesn’t appear in this episode) perhaps?  - episode also features body positivity, Jimmy Gourd in drag, and bi solidarity

Episode 23: Sumo of the Opera (2004) nothing happens

[televinita]

Books Read In 2020: The Why

In a tradition I accidentally started for myself in 2016 and now quite enjoy, at the end of the year I look back at my reading list and answer the question, why did you read this particular book?

Below, my 100 reads of 2020 are split into groups by target readership age, plus nonfiction at the end, now with a bonus note about how I heard of it. Which I probably won’t continue to do next year, but it was fun to try.

ADULT FICTION

I read each of these books because...

A Glitter of Gold - Liz Johnson. 2019. It had me at "her pirate tour business," but between the shipwreck & the museum-director love interest it was like BLOOD & TREASURE ROMANCE AU LET'S GOOO.

How I heard of it: a book blog

The Last Woman in the Forest - Diane Les Becquets. 2019.   Recommended by a dog lover; I'm down for a thriller about a woman who has a dream dog-inclusive job like this.

How I heard of it: a book blog

Good Omens - Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman. 1990. I really enjoyed the miniseries and wanted to see if the book everyone loved so much was as good (for the record: it was not. at least not if you’ve seen the miniseries first; otherwise they are probably equal).

This Is Home - Lisa Duffy. 2019. Attractive cover + I flipped it open to a random page and just liked the writing style.

How I heard of it: library

Dear Mr. Knightley - Katherine Reay. 2013. I'd had this on the back burner for a while because the MC sounded like me, and one day I got sick of not being able to find any fluffy contemporary romances with beta male heroes and decided Matthew Gray Gubler was gonna star in this one. (spoiler alert: it is a good book but that did not work)

How I heard of it: a book blog

Rubbernecker - Belinda Bauer. 2013. Criminal Minds sent me into a tailspin so I went hunting for books to cast Spencer Reid in again; the Asperger's/case-solving/difficult relationship with mother combo sounded promising. (spoiler alert: the med-student element + his social cluelessness proved too strong and I was only able to picture the kid from The Good Doctor)

How I heard of it: Googling keywords

The Swiss Affair - Emylia Hall. 2013. I got a random hankering for a student/teacher novel, and after scrutinizing the library catalog this was the only one that fit my parameters for gender, lack of adultery, and focus on romance over sex.

How I heard of it: library

Love At First Bark - Debbie Burns. 2019. I was trying to cast Wes/Jules [Dollface] in a romance novel, so I browsed through a Goodreads friend's "dog-romance" shelf and accidentally landed in a Jeid AU [Criminal Minds]. Which may or may not have been a large part of what turned me into a Jeid shipper (outside canon only).

The Mermaids Singing - Val McDermid. 1995. One final attempt to cast Reid in a novel -- a user in a Reddit post asking for this very thing suggested this, and "profiler with idiosyncracies" certainly fit.

The Wire in the Blood [and 9 subsequent novels] - Val McDermid, spanning 1997-2019. Turns out aside from being British, Reid paints onto Tony Hill EXCEPTIONALLY well, and I accidentally found myself with a little Jeid AU in the process, so obviously I read the entire series. Good crime-solving fun and all that.

Horse - Talley English. 2018. Random library pull because I connected with the writing style and it appeared to actually focus on horses.

How I heard of it: library

A Sparkle of Silver - Liz Johnson. 2018. I liked the author's other book and this was pretty much a remix of the same story, but now with a cool mansion/estate setting.

How I heard of it: looking up other books by this author

Everyone Is Beautiful - Katherine Center. 2009. Went looking for stories about strong marriages, found this on a Goodreads list of "second chance marriage" books, tripped into something like a season 9 Jim/Pam scenario. How I heard of it: Googling keywords

The Lost Husband - Katherine Center. 2013. Loved the previous book of hers I read, and the "starting life over on a goat farm" angle sounded like an ideal life to try on.

How I heard of it: looking up more from this author

The Shadow Year - Hannah Richell. 2013. Fixing up an old house?? I am THERE. Doing this in two timelines, one of which involves off-the-grid homesteading, is even better.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Mandrake Root - Janet Diebold. 1946. I needed a non-library book to bring on vacation, and after spinning in circles over what I thought would appeal to my mood in that setting, my brain randomly said "reread this one."

How I heard of it: estate sale

Path of the Jaguar - Vickie Britton & Loretta Jackson. 1989. Bought cheap for cheap thrills: a Yucatan adventure/mystery. Read now so I could get rid of it. How I heard of it: library sale

Burying Water - K.A. Tucker. 2014. The library didn't have The Simple Wild, but they DID have a book w/ an equally pretty cover that talked about a badly beaten young amnesiac (!) recovering on a horse farm (!!). What is: my top romance trope (hurt/comfort, bonus points for animals and rural setting).

How I heard of it: library

Happiness for Beginners - Katherine Center. Established quality author + summertime hiking inspiration.

How I heard of it: looking up more from this author

The Visitors - Simon Sylvester. Cool cover + setting, and a teenage protagonist usually makes adult fiction more accessible. How I heard of it: Goodreads

Becoming Rain - K.A. Tucker. 2014. I was in this companion novel solely for mentions of Alex and any people by the last name of Wells, but figured I might as well read all of it to ensure I didn't miss any. How I heard of it: looking up more from this author

The Guest List - Lucy Foley. 2020. Honestly, it just sounded like a cool thriller (and cool setting). How I heard of it: a book blog

You Deserve Nothing - Alexander Maksik. 2011. Fell down a Will/Rachel [Glee] rabbit hole and ravaged the student/teacher keyword in my library catalog again to scratch the itch.

The Haunting of Hill House - Shirley Jackson. 1959. Mom's been trying to get me to read this for years, and this time when it came up in conversation it was the right time of year, so I randomly decided to give it a shot. How I heard of it: Mom

The Walker in Shadows - Barbara Michaels. 1979. Gothic ghost story + beautiful architectural details in a historic house = yeah!

How I heard of it: Goodwill

YOUNG ADULT

People Like Us - Dane Mele. 2018. Needed an audiobook; a girls' boarding school murder mystery seemed most likely to hold my attention of the limited options. How I heard of it: Library

The Possibility of Now - Kim Culbertson. 2016. I will read anything by this author, and girl having a meltdown over a test = me. How I heard of it: looking up other books by this author

Rob&Sara.com - P.J. Petersen & Ivy Ruckman. 2004. Mostly I wanted to go back to my high school days and enjoy the format of a novel written in emails, but also, I like Ruckman. How I heard of it: used book sale

For Real - Alison Cherry. 2014. Fictional Amazing Race!! + awesome summery cover + sisters How I heard of it: library sale

The Summer After You + Me - Jennifer Salvato Doktorski. 2015. The awesome summery cover, mostly. How I heard of it: a book blog

You'd Be Mine - Erin Hahn. 2019. Gorgeous cover + the chance to vicariously follow a budding young country music star on tour for the summer.

How I heard of it: a book blog

Juniors - Kaui Hart Hemmings. 2015. The neat setting(s): a live-in guest on a wealthy estate in Hawaii. How I heard of it: Dollar store

Lion Boy's White Brother - Alden G. Stevens. 1951. Bought cheap because vintage juvenile book in a unique setting. Read now to see if I could get rid of it (NOPE).

How I heard of it: used bookstore

The O.C.: Spring Break - Aury Wallington. 2005. I keep meaning to finish this short series, and it was an easy title to count for my Mount TBR challenge.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Echo Island - Edward Karlow. 2017. Bought cheap because of the beautiful summery cover; easy read for Mount TBR so I could get rid of it. How I heard of it: library sale

Confessions of a High School Disaster - Emma Chastain. 2017. Read because of THE SUPER CUTE SUMMERY COVER (and diary format).

How I heard of it: Dollar store

Kentucky Daughter - Carol J. Scott. 1985. Working my way down the “Inappropriate Student/Teacher Relationships in YA" list because I'm in that kind of mood this year; chose this because 80s books tend to deliver the subject best*, the character reminded me of the girl in Send No Blessings, and Open Library had it. *this one was just blatant sexual harassment, though, and belonged very literally on that list

How I heard of it: Goodreads

What They Always Tell Us - Martin Wilson. 2008. I sorted the library catalog to see the oldest contemporary YA novels they still have before they get weeded, and "loner being taken under the wing of his older brother's (male) friend and falling in love with him" hit a couple of good tropes. How I heard of it: library

Bobby's Watching - Ted Pickford. 1993. Browsing around on OpenLibrary and saw they FINALLY had a copy of this book that scared me too much to finish as a kid, and which I've wanted to revisit ever since I remembered what it's called (Interlibrary Loan doesn't have it and it's Not Cheap to buy).

How I heard of it: library

Powwow Summer - Nahanni Shingoose. 2019. Always interested in modern-day Indigenous girls connecting w/ their heritage, especially if they're from my home state's tribe.

How I heard of it: a book blog

The Princesses of Iowa - M. Molly Backes. 2012. Appealing cover + heft suggesting a solid Midwestern contemporary, plus I liked the student teacher element (without a slash this time, as in "college student who is almost a teacher")

How I heard of it: library

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants - Ann Brashares. 2001. The Second Summer of the Sisterhood - Ann Brashares. 2003.

Long-intended reread of a college fave because I wanted see Mike Vogel in the movie, and it was summer so the stars aligned. Continued because the first book was as good as I remembered. (I would have kept going but Life distracted me for a bit and by the time I was back on track, it was no longer summer) How I heard of it: I...can't remember. Am the worst!

The Distance From Me To You - Marina Gessner a.k.a. Nina de Gramont. 2015. Hiking inspiration + an appealing-sounding romance. How I heard of it: Goodreads

Where Have All the Tigers Gone? - Lynn Hall. 1989. Will read any of her books, but specifically read this one because it seemed fairly autobiographical, and I read it NOW because it seemed durable enough to take on vacation. How I heard of it: looking up books by this author

And Both Were Young - Madeline L'Engle. 1949 (text of 1983 edition w/ material from original manuscript added back). Something reminded me of its existence and I requested it because it was the only non-animal-focused vintage teen novel I could physically get my hands on before Interlibrary Loan opened back up, and I had a craving for just that.

How I heard of it: library

The Other Side of Lost - Jessi Kirby. 2018. Established quality author + throw me ALL the thru-hike novels!

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Vow - Jessica Martinez. 2013. Perfect scenario to run an Abed/Annie [Community] AU!

How I heard of it: I want to say...an article on a book website (not personal blog this time) back in 2013.

Moon and Me - Hadley Irwin. 1981. Was just in the mood to read an 80s teen novel and this one helped me knock off a title for the Mount TBR challenge. From an author I like, w/ bonus horse content.

How I heard of it: used book sale.

Suicide Notes From Beautiful Girls - Lynn Weingarten. 2015. I bought a blind bag at the library sale and this was one of the only contemporary YA novels in it; figured I might as well read it since I'd liked a previous book of hers.

How I heard of it: Library

History Is All You Left Me - Adam Silvera. 2016.

With the Glee rabbit hole came a Klaine spiral; this was my season 4 Tragic AU dream for them and I've been saving it for a Klainey day ever since it was published. (No I am not sorry for that horrid pun.)

How I heard of it: googling keywords

The Museum of Heartbreak - Meg Leder. 2016. The cool cover/concept of a "museum" of items reeled me in; I bought a copy a while ago 'cause the library didn't have it. Read now to see if I could get rid of it (NOPE).

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Me & Mr. J - Rachel McIntyre. 2015. Student/teacher novel that looked especially appealingly tame so I'd been saving it, but then Open Library notified me it was now only available in 1-hour increments, and I got paranoid it would disappear altogether (it's not cheap to buy or available via ILL), so I wanted it in my brain.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Dear Evan Hansen - Val Emmich w/ Steven Levenson, Benj Pasek & Justin Paul. 2018. Fell in love with the DEH soundtrack. Play's summary sounded good -- getting to experience it in YA novel form?? Amazing.

How I heard of it: Wikipedia

Saddle a Thunderbolt - Jo Sykes. 1967

Bought a while ago because vintage horse story. Read now specifically to alleviate my pre-homesickness about moving by imagining living in an even more beautiful place than home.

How I heard of it: either a used book sale or a used bookstore...

Learning to Breathe - Janice Lynn Mather. 2018. This was mentioned on a lost-book forum and "girl with unplanned pregnancy supports herself by getting a job cleaning" piqued my interest; the setting (Bahamas) and cover made it better.

How I heard of it: Reddit

Everglades Adventure - James Ralph Johnson. 1970. Standard vintage boys' adventure-in-nature story; I like those.

How I heard of it: Goodwill

CHILDREN’S/MIDDLE GRADE

Little Women - Louisa May Alcott. 1868. Seeing the new movie and falling head over heels was what it took to FINALLY convince me to reread this childhood fave.

How I heard of it: can't remember; I was a kid

A Little Princess - Frances Hodgson Burnett. 1905. I was perusing a lot of books about classic children's books and it started to bug me that I had skipped this appealing-sounding one as a kid.

How I heard of it: can't remember; I was a kid

Little Men - Louisa May Alcott. 1871. LW sparked a fandom revival and I wanted more detail about the Marches' adult lives (esp. Jo & Bhaer), even on the fringes.

How I heard of it: library

Lady and the Tramp - Ward Greene. I saw a quote from the new movie under a gifset on Tumblr that sounded like it came from a book, and upon Googling out that one existed, I obviously could not allow the book version of a beloved childhood animal-movie fave to go unread. Especially after finding out it was super rare so reading it would be a privilege.

The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett. 1910. Read for the same reason as A Little Princess. Can’t have one without the other, you know.

How I heard of it: was a kid; can't remember

The Mother-Daughter Book Club - Heather Vogel Fredericks. 2007. Much Ado About Anne - Heather Vogel Fredericks. 2008.

Always thought the series looked cute/reminded me of The Teashop Girls, but the fact that the first book they read is Little Women gave me the impetus to finally read this one. First book was darling so I continued to the next (but failed to continue beyond because COVID shut the library down until I was out of the mood).

How I heard of it: library

Nature Girl - Jane Kelley. 2010. I wanted walking inspiration.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

From You to Me - K.A. Holt. 2018. Mistook it for a similar-looking book I'd seen at the same time (See You On A Starry Night), but figured I'd give the 8th grade bucket list idea a shot once I had it. How I heard of it: Goodreads

Semiprecious - D. Anne Love. 2006. Cute cover + I'm starting to be a big fan of what I call "contemporary historical," for stories set mid-20th century.

How I heard of it: library

Dandy's Mountain - Thomas Fall. 1967. Vintage horse-inclusive children's book in a rural setting, I'm sold. Not to mention, love reading a summer setting in summer.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Littler Women: A Modern Retelling - Laura Schaefer. 2017. The only way to make the Little Women MORE magical is to make them younger, modern, and written by a proven quality author.

How I heard of it: a book blog

Behind The Attic Wall - Sylvia Cassedy. 315 pg/1983.

A Goodreads friend strongly recommended it as similar to but better than Mandy, and reading about it in 100 Best Books For Children sealed the deal. Read now for the Mount TBR challenge.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

The Jigsaw Jungle - Kristin Levine. 2018. I am a COMPLETE sucker for books told in non-traditional/scrapbook-esque format.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Runt - Marion Dane Bauer. 2002. Wolf story by a quality author. Read now after owning it for a decade to see if I could get rid of it.

How I heard of it: used book sale

The King of the Cats - Rene Guillot. 1959. Bought cheap for a quick read because vintage animal story. Read now so I could get rid of it.

How I heard of it: used book sale

Just The Beginning - Betty Miles. 1976. Found cheap; always down to read a vintage book about an average girl (and I wanted to know how she'd cope with her mom being "a cleaning lady in a town full of classmates who HAVE cleaning ladies").

How I heard of it: used book sale

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - J.K. Rowling. 1997. Been meaning to reread the series for a while now; finally got motivation to check out the illustrated edition 'cause Christmastime.

How I heard of it: originally Mom; a book blog for this edition

Echo Mountain - Lauren Wolk. 2020. Almost entirely because of the incredible clipart cover, promising me nature and a dog (and because I could get it as an e-audiobook from the library).

How I heard of it: a book blog

Knock Three Times - Cressida Cowell. 2019. I needed another audiobook for bedtime/walks and I know that David Tennant will provide.

How I heard of it: more by this author (more accurately, narrator)

NONFICTION

The Red Leather Diary: Reclaiming A Life Through The Pages Of A Lost Journal - Lily Koppel. 2008. I'm kind of obsessed with the concept of historical 5-year diaries -- and finding one like this is The Dream.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

I'd Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life - Anne Bogel. 2018. Attractive and compact book about the pleasures of being a reader? A headspace I want to be in.

How I heard of it: library

100 Best Books for Children - Anita Silvey. 2004. I'm big on looking at lists of books for children this year. These are the kind of books I know, love, and want to hear people talk about, now that I know books about these books exist.

How I heard of it: library

The Coming of Saska - Doreen Tovey Originally bought because it was cheap and featured animals, I needed a non-library book to bring on vacation, and this one is a durable ex-library copy in plastic wrap that featured a similar setting to where I was going, so: thematic.

Cats in the Belfry - Doreen Tovey. 1957. Wanted more of her books, and lo and behold the library had the first one.

How I heard of it: more by this author

Sorry Not Sorry - Naya Rivera. 2016. I'll read anything the Glee kids write, and this doubled as an easy number for the Mount TBR challenge.

How I heard of it: entertainment news websites

Living Large in Our Little House - Kerri Fivecoat-Campbell. 2016. I love tiny houses. And this one specifically mentioned living with dogs. And had color photographs.

How I heard of it: used bookstore

I'm Your Biggest Fan: Awkward Encounters and Assorted Misadventures in Celebrity Journalism. - Kate Coyne. 2016. Found cheap at a library sale -- loved the chapter headings and the fact that they were all about celebrities I knew.

Adrift - Tami Oldham Ashcraft w/ Suesea McGearheart. 1998/2018 edition. The movie was so awesome that I couldn't wait for more details about the real story in her own words.

I'll Be Gone In The Dark [NF] - Michelle McNamara. 2018. Been reading a lot of true crime write-ups on Reddit lately; decided it was time to pick up this well-received one.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

Dear Evan Hansen: Waving Through A Window - Steven Levenson. 2017. Much like The Grimmerie for Wicked, once I fell in love with the DEH soundtrack and looked up the plot summary, I wanted to read the musical's detailed background/behind the scenes story + libretto before I watched it.

How I heard of it: Wikipedia

Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune - Bill Dedman & Paul Clark Newell. 2013. Love me a story about a mansion (or three). Or the reclusive and insanely wealth heiress who owns them, that works too.

How I heard of it: Goodreads

JUVENILE NONFICTION Mascots: Military Mascots from Ancient Egypt to Modern Korea - Fairfax Downey. 1954. Animal book from an author I like; read now to see if I could get rid of it (yes).

How I heard of it: secondhand bookstore

Come on, Seabiscuit - Ralph Moody. 1963. Bought because vintage kids' horse book; read now to see if I could get rid of it (and to count it towards my Mount TBR challenge 'cause it was short).

How I heard of it: secondhand bookstore

[papermoonloveslucy]

ELLIS IN FREEDOMLAND

Spring 1952

Directed by Abby Berlin Produced by Roland D. Reed Written by Arthur Hoerl Music by Albert Colombo Choreography by Alex Romero

Synopsis ~ A 82 minute, technicolor promotional film for salesmen of Westinghouse appliances, featuring the voices of major Hollywood celebrities. Westinghouse claims its electric appliances "freed women from the drudgery of housework." The first half involves dream salesman Ellis at work; the second focuses on the "Spring Sales Event," called "Freedomland."

Westinghouse Electric Corporation was founded on January 8, 1886 by George Westinghouse (1846–1914). The corporation purchased CBS in 1995.

Live Cast

Robert Rockwell (Ellis Homan) is probably best remembered as biology teacher Mr. Boynton on the Desilu series “Our Miss Brooks” (1952-56). Although not the first to play Mr. Boynton, he assumed the role on radio and made the transition with the show to television. He played Viv’s handsome match in “Lucy Digs Up a Date” (TLS S1;E2) the second installment of “The Lucy Show” in 1962. He then played night school teacher Jack Scott in “The Not-So-Popular Mechanics” (HL S5;E23). He continued working until 1995 and died in 2003 at age 82.  

Robert Carson (Phil Pryor, Westinghouse Representative) was a busy Canadian-born character actor who appeared on six episodes of “The Lucy Show” and made five appearance on “Here’s Lucy.” 

Byron Foulger (Andy, Night Watchman)  played the leader of the Friends of the Friendless in “Lucy’s Last Birthday” (ILL S2;E25). He appeared on “The Lucy Show” in “My Fair Lucy” (TLS S3;E20) and “Lucy Meets the Law” (TLS S5;E19).

Ann O'Neal (Customer in Mink) appeared in more than 100 films in the 1940s including the Lucille Ball film Lover Come Back (1946).

Betty Furness (Herself, Spokeswoman for Westinghouse) was an actress and model who became the face and voice of Westinghouse in many television commercials. When “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour” was sponsored by Westinghouse, Furness appeared with Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz in commercials for their products. 

The Starlighters (Vocals) was a singing group that performed mainly as backing vocalists, frequently backing Jo Stafford as well as many other artists on a number of singles. They also performed songs in cartoon and live short films and the feature films Song of Idaho (1948) and With a Song in My Heart (1952). 

Voice Cast

Lucille Ball (Lina the Laundromat) was then filming the second half of her first season of “I Love Lucy” playing Lucy Ricardo, although her voice alone was familiar to radio audiences as Liz Cooper in “My Favorite Husband.”

Edward Arnold (Speedy the Range) lends his deep baritone voice to the role. He appeared with Lucille Ball in Roman Scandals (1933) and Ziegfeld Follies (1945). He died in 1956.

James Mason (Frosty the Refrigerator) was a three time Oscar-nominee who appeared as Lucille Ball’s Angel in Forever Darling (1956).

Percy Kilbride (Drip the Dehumidifier) was best remembered as Pa Kettle in a series of films from 1947 to 1954. 

Jerry Colonna (Chop-Along Waste-Away the Garbage Disposal) was a comic sidekick of Bob Hope on radio and television. In 1966 he played Smithers, Lucille Ball’s chauffeur on “Bob Hope’s Leading Ladies”. 

Andy Devine (Lanky the Water Heater) brought his high-pitched raspy voice to the film. He was known for his many appearances in westerns on both the small and big screen. 

Marie Wilson (Dinah the Dryer) is best known for playing the title role in the film and television series “My Friend Irma”.  Later in 1952, Wilson and Lucille Ball were both part of “Stars in the Eye” celebrating the opening of CBS Television Center. Coincidentally, Gale Gordon’s mother Gloria was also in “My Friend Irma” and on “The Lucy Show” Mr. Mooney’s off-screen wife was named Irma in her honor. 

Maureen O'Sullivan (Pearly the Dishwasher) played Jane in the early Tarzan films.  Her career lasted from 1930 to 1994. In 1987, Lucille Ball and O’Sullivan were two of the many stars in “Happy 100th Birthday, Hollywood”. 

Mannequins

Jack Mulhall appeared with Lucille Ball in Broadway Bill (1934).

Alan Hale Jr. (Hunter) will forever be remembered as the Skipper on “Gilligan’s Island” but also appeared with Lucille Ball on “The Lucy Show” and “Here’s Lucy”.  

Iron Eyes Cody (Chief Running Water) made a career of playing Native American characters despite the fact that he was of Italian ancestry. He first worked with Lucy and Desi in 1940’s Too Many Girls and 1942’s Valley of the Sun both as an Indian character. He played an Eskimo in a 1959 episode of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour,” but is probably best remembered as the Indian that sheds a single tear in the ‘Keep America Beautiful’ ads that ran from 1971 to the 1980s. He played a Navajo Medicine Man in “Lucy and the Indian Chief” (HL S2;E3). 

Willie Best (Chauffeur) was one of the most popular African-American actors of Hollywood's Golden Era. He starred alongside some of film's great comedians including the Marx Brothers, Bob Hope, Laurel and Hardy, and three films with Shirley Temple. He did one film with Lucille Ball: Muss ‘em Up (1936). 

Karen Sharpe appeared on the “Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse” in 1959.

Mickey Simpson appeared with Lucille Ball in the 1939 film Panama Lady. 

Anthony Sydes (Bobby, the Boy in Buster Brown Outfit) was 8 years old at the time of filming. He left the business in 1958 and died in 2015 at age 74. 

With...

Lisa Abbott, Mildred Coles,  Richard Crane, Nancy Hadley, Noreen Michaels, Crystal Reeves, Darla Ridgeway, Anne Rubin, Carol Lowe, Frances Zucco

Uncredited Cast

Ralph Brooks (Stove Demonstrator) appeared in four films with Lucille Ball, as well as “The Lucy-Desi Milton Berle Special” and “Lucy Goes to Las Vegas” (TLS S3;E17). 

Sam Harris (Showroom Guest) did a dozen films with Lucille Ball before appearing in the audience of Over the Teacups in “Ethel’s Birthday” (ILL S4;E8) and playing a subway passenger in “Lucy and the Loving Cup” (ILL S6;E12). In between, he was a wedding guest in Lucy and Desi’s film Forever Darling (1956). Along with Monty O'Grady and Murray Pollack, he was in the airport when “The Ricardos Go to Japan” in 1959.

Stuart Holmes (Showroom Guest) appeared with Lucille Ball in Lover Come Back (1946) and Critic’s Choice (1963).

Hans Moebus (Washer / Dryer Demonstrator) appeared as an uncredited background performer in hundreds of movies and TV shows, including the Lucille Ball films DuBarry Was a Lady (1943), A Woman of Distinction (1950) and The Facts of Life (1960). He was seen on the dock during the “I Love Lucy” episode “Bon Voyage” (ILL S5;E13) and part of the riverboat chorus in “Lucy Meets Arthur Godfrey” (TLS S3;E23).  

Charles Sherlock (Television Viewer) appeared in three feature films with Lucille Ball from 1935 to 1963.

PART ONE - DON’T MEET COMPETITION, MAKE IT!

Westinghouse Rep Phil Pryer meets salesman Ellis Homan at his office on the department store showroom. Ellis tells Phil about the time he dozed off at his desk and the mannequins came to life: menswear, formal wear, beach wear, and (inexplicably) an American Indian in full regalia. Frosty the Refrigerator (James Mason) gets Ellis’ attention to demonstrate his frost-free features, as well as his unique butter tray and meat keeper. 

Ellis then has a conversation with Speedy the Electric Range (Edward Arnold) about all its features. Ellis even makes coffee and cookies for Mabel, a mannequin standing in for a ‘prospect’.  

MABEL: “Ellis, you’re cute. I wish you were a dummy.”

Ellis then has a chat with Pearly the Dishwasher (Maureen O’Sullivan) and Chop-Along Waste-Away the Garbage Disposal (Jerry Colonna), who sings during his demonstration. 

Lanky the Water Heater (Andy Devine) is upset because no one pays him much attention. Pearly draws Ellis’s attention to the drip who has shown up in the showroom lately, the Dehumidifier (Percy Kilbride) who promises to rid homes of damaging dampness.

Chiming in (literally) Lina the Laundromat (Lucille Ball) and Dinah the Dryer (Marie Wilson) sing their greeting. Known as ‘The Westinghouse Twins’, they often finish each others’ sentences and speak at the same time - all in aid of showing that they are a perfect freedom-fighting duo in a home. Ellis demonstrates a typical wash cycle. 

PART TWO - FREEDOM FAIR

Back in the present, Phil tells Ellis that Westinghouse is sponsoring radio and television coverage of the summer’s 1952 Republican and Democratic conventions, with ‘Get Out the Vote’ programs to follow. In the meantime, Phil tells Ellis about the big Spring Selling Event - Freedom Fair.  The event will be rolled out in the April 11, 1952 issue of Life Magazine and the April 16, 1952 issue of the Saturday Evening Post. On television, it will be announced by Betty Furness on “Studio One”.  

After Phil leaves, the scene changes to a typical suburban couple’s bedroom where the morning alarm has just gone off. The bedraggled housewife dances through the home trying to get ready for the day ahead - despite the fact that she does not have any time-saving Westinghouse electric appliances. As the harried husband downs a quick cup of coffee and dashes off to work, the song begins (with offscreen vocals by the Starlighters) and the frustrated housewife realizes just how much work she has ahead of her to clean her home. Just then an ethereal voice sings the name “Westinghouse! Westinghouse!” and there is suddenly a handsome young salesman ringing her doorbell. He sings:

“They say that Lincoln freed the slaves, With that I disagree. Women have been slaves for years Till Westinghouse set them free!”

He whisks her away to ‘Westinghousewives’ Heaven’ where all the products we previously saw demonstrated are extolled in joyous song, some even have angel wings! The housewife (still in her curlers and pajamas) ducks behind a cloud and is suddenly revealed in a diaphanous white gown complete with apron!  Amid a large group of ballet dancers, the Westinghousewife and Salesman dance in blissful happiness.

At the last moment the Starlighters appear and sing to us about Westinghouse, while the dancers swirl merrily around the May Pole!

Stereotypes

This film is obviously aimed at a male sales force. All the ‘prospects’ are assumed to be female and referred to in such terms as “the little lady”. The female mannequins are only interested in Ellis as romantic partners. Clearly, housewives were the main target of male salesmen. 

The film also presents a stereotypical black chauffeur, the only person of color in the cast. The actor is asked to pull comical faces that make him appear silly - the source of humor

“Mmmm. There’s gonna be a watermelon missin’, ‘round here.” 

Needless to say, that an American Indian chasing a scantily clad Caucasian woman around the store plays on stereotypical images of predatory Native Americans. The actor playing the Chief is Iron Eyes Cody, who, despite his name, was born Espera Oscar de Corti, an Italian-American. When trying to communicate all he says is “Ugg!”

Homosexuals don’t escape either. A man with an effeminate manner and lisping voice wearing a coonskin cap swishes in to say “Hello, Fellas” with a toss of the raccoon tail he swans off. The two men in suits look uncomfortable and deny knowing him.

Voice casting reflects gender stereotypes of the time. Cooling and heating appliances are voiced by men while washing appliances are voiced by women.

Trivia

Lucille Ball’s participation in this film may have influenced or been influenced by the fact that for the first season of “I Love Lucy” Lucy Ricardo had a 1951 Westinghouse Frost-Free refrigerator in her kitchen - very similar to “Frosty” - the model shown here in the film. It was widely promoted in print publications and on TV during 1951. Previously, the freezer cabinet had to be thawed manually when frost and ice built up in and around it.  

LUCY: “Didn’t you watch the conventions on television?”

Phil tells Ellis that Westinghouse will take out extensive advertising on radio and TV during the Conventions. In July 1952 both the Republican and Democratic National Conventions were televised live from Chicago. Although the conventions were also televised in 1948, few Americans owned a TV set to watch them. This time, an estimated 70 million voters watched the broadcasts, which ended with the nominations of Adlai Stevenson II and Dwight D. Eisenhower. There is a popular myth that Stevenson lost the election because of backlash from interrupting airings of “I Love Lucy” with hour-long campaign ads. Perhaps from Westinghouse?  The conventions were mentioned on “I Love Lucy” (appropriately) in “The Club Election” (ILL S2;E19) which aired in February 1953. However, it was filmed in September 1952, when the reference would have been much more timely.  By the time it eventually aired, Eisenhower had been inaugurated and the conventions were a distant memory. 

Distribution: Who Saw It - The film series reached 25,000 dealers in 75 cities in a single week. Released in Technicolor and in 16mm. Longest of four dealer promotion films in a two-hour series produced to promote Westinghouse home appliances.

The wall calendar above Ellis’s desk matches the calendar for January 1952, which was likely the filming date. The calendar depicts a loaf of bread with the brand name redacted for filming. On the table close to the bottom of the frame are copies of Life Magazine. Later on, Ellis makes instant coffee from a jar labeled Maxwell House Coffee, although the dish washing detergent and the food in the fridge are obviously props with no brand identification.  The laundry soap, however, is clearly labelled ‘All’ but is not in their usual bright colored packaging. 

Blooper Alerts! 

Dates! Phil tells Ellis that Freedom Fair will be announced in the April 11 issue of Life. However, the issue is actually dated April 7, 1952, not April 11. Interestingly, copies of Life Magazine are used as set decoration in Ellis’s office. Similarly, the April 16 edition of the Saturday Evening Post is really dated April 12.  

Weather Forecast! The put-upon housewife at the end of the film realizes her wash is still on the line when there is a sudden cloudburst (she does not own an electric dryer). The next moment, she answers the door to the Westinghouse Salesman and it is a clear day. Not really a blooper, just an indication that Westinghouse makes a rainy day into a sunny one - at least in the movies!

Fast Forward!

“Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse” was a television anthology series produced by Desilu Productions. The show ran on CBS between 1958 and 1960. Two of its 48 episodes served as pilots for the 1950s television series “The Twilight Zone” and “The Untouchables.” It also presented 11 of the 13 episodes of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour” after its initial sponsorship by Ford.  

In joining forces with Desilu, Westinghouse canceled their other anthology series “Studio One” which ran on CBS from 1948 to 1958. 

To kick off the partnership between Desilu and Westinghouse, a similar film (informally titled “Lucy Buys Westinghouse”) was produced which depicted Lucy and Desi giving a Westinghouse Executive a tour of their studio, formerly RKO. All through the tour, much to the dismay of Desi, Lucy is trying to order appliances for her dressing room from the executive!  At the end, Lucy appears inside a Westinghouse dryer - hiding from Desi!  Like Ellis in Freedomland, this film was only shown to Westinghouse employees. Unlike Ellis, it was filmed in black and white - only later colorized for home video. Throughout the film, Desi mispronounces the company’s name as “Westin-Gouse” and its spokesperson as Betty “Furnace”.  

During that time, the cast often did long-form commercials for Westinghouse. Here, Betty Furness and Vivian Vance join Lucille Ball to talk about the 1959 Westinghouse washing machine, the same type of appliance Ball voiced in this film seven years earlier. 

Naturally, during this period Lucy Ricardo had the most up-to-date Westinghouse appliances in her Westport home. Like this two-toned refrigerator and freezer.

Back in New York City, the Ricardos owned a Westinghouse Clock Radio! 

The Handy Dandy vacuum cleaner was actually a Westinghouse model! 

In 1954, Lucy made breakfast with her Westinghouse "Grill-n-Waffler" Waffle Iron - if only she can remember to pay the electricity bill, that is! 

Lucy squeezes oranges for juice with her Westinghouse Model #FM-511 Food Crafter with juicer attachment (sold separately). 

Lucy owned two different models of the Westinghouse Commander Super-Corox Range. This 1950 model was used during season one...

...and this 1954 Model on a later season. It looks similar to the 1950 model, but the controls have a different layout.

In 1953, ownership of a washing machine was a point of contention between the Ricardos and Mertzes. The appliance used in the episode is labeled Epernay (a fictional brand). In actuality, it is probably a Launderall Horton 500 with gas stove handles affixed to the sides to help move it back and forth on the narrow porch.

Lucy uses the washing machine (a lot!) in Yours, Mine and Ours (1968). It is impossible to see what brand it is. 

Coincidentally, in April 1952, “I Love Lucy” did an episode titled “The Freezer” (ILL S1;E29) where Lucy and Ethel want to buy a home freezer to economize, but end up buying a walk-in model instead. In Jess Oppenheimer’s book, he states that newspapers and magazines were full of ads for home freezers at the time. Once they came up with the idea of Lucy getting trapped in the freezer, they had to abandon the home freezer idea for a larger, walk-in model.  

In 1966, a TV musical titled “Evening Primrose” with music by Stephen Sondheim and a book by George Furth, also explored the idea of department store mannequins coming to life. Anthony Perkins starred. 

The idea of anthropomorphized laundry room appliances was also explored in the 2004 Broadway musical Caroline, or Change, in which actors played embodiment of the Washing Machine and the Dryer.  A revival of the musical was on track for Broadway but interrupted by the Corona Virus pandemic. 

In 1987, the film Mannequin starring Andrew McCarthy and Kim Cattrall also explored the idea of department store mannequin coming to life. It was partly based on the 1948 film One Touch of Venus, although in that film, the mannequin was a statue. 

[letterboxd]

How I Letterboxd #9: Julie Collette.

Christmas movie lover Julie Collette tells Jack Moulton all about her seasonal movie habits, the best big screen Santa Claus of all time, disability visibility in festive films, and some of the weirder holiday picks.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year: when Letterboxd members turn to the Neverending Christmas List to help plan their Christmas movie viewing. Arrange it by highest rated, arrange it by newest release, or by popularity—any which way, there’s something for everyone, from corny TCM romances to obscure seasonal horrors.

Created six years ago by Canadian member Julie Collette, the list runs to more than 4,300 titles, and contains the word ‘Christmas’ 1,837 times at last count. Julie and her husband are die-hard Letterboxd fans, having allegedly used the platform every day for the past nine years. She’s logged every film she’s seen in theaters since 1996.

A message from John McClane in ‘Die Hard’ (1988).

What inspired your Neverending Christmas List? Can you please explain the minimum requirement for eligibility? My husband had told me about a list on Letterboxd of Every Horror Film Made from 1895–Present and that gave me the idea to start the neverending Christmas list. My eligibility rules are not strict at all. It can be a film that centers on or around Christmas time. Even New Year’s counts in my book—as long as there’s a moment in the film that has a Christmas song, a Christmas scene, or Christmas decorations. Die Hard is definitely a Christmas film. First of all, it takes place on Christmas Eve at an office Christmas party. There’s that great note that John McClane sends to Hans Gruber on a dead guy’s shirt: “Now I have a machine gun, ho-ho-ho.” Now that’s Christmas! There are a couple of titles that test my relaxed requirements. Examples would be Psycho—there are a few Christmas decorations at the beginning [and Bryan Fuller agrees]—and the documentary Beauty Day by Canadian director Jay Cheel, which has Christmas lights at the end.

And what percentage of the films have you seen? As of right now, I've watched 20 percent—that’s 882 of the 4,322 films on the list. I’ve got a lot of homework to do. Here’s a few hidden gems I recommend: Mon oncle Antoine, Holiday Affair, Remember the Night, Olivia, On the Twelfth Day…, Bing Crosby’s Merrie Olde Christmas and One Christmas, which is Katherine Hepburn’s last role.

David Bowie and Bing Crosby sing ‘The Little Drummer Boy’ in ‘Bing Crosby’s Merrie Old Christmas’ (1977).

When does your Christmas movie viewing season start? I usually start mid-November to try to keep up with the TV rom-coms because they start to air even before Hallowe’en. This year on Hallowe’en night we rewatched The Night of the Hunter and I had forgotten that there was a sequence that was set at Christmas time. It was a perfect segue between Hallowe’en and Christmas, so I started November 1st. As far as how I pick what to watch, I go through my list and randomly pick some. I try to watch as many first-time watches and mix up the genres. But the closer I get to Christmas, the more I want to watch my favorites—for the most part I go with the flow. Christmas Day is usually a day of family time, but I try to sneak in one favorite if I can.

What was the first Christmas film that got you into all of this? I’ve always loved Christmas and growing up I watched the yearly airings of vintage Christmas cartoons and A Muppet Family Christmas. When Home Alone came out it was an instant obsession, then Home Alone 2: Lost in New York was just as good. Even now it’s our yearly tradition for my husband and I to watch the Home Alones while we decorate the Christmas tree.

If not Home Alone, what is your all-time favorite Christmas film? It’s a Wonderful Life is up there for me. Partly because growing up I watched it every Christmas Eve and kind of forced my dad to watch it with me. I think he secretly didn’t mind. As a kid, I didn’t dwell on the sad parts of the story, I just wanted to go to that candy shop and run in Bedford Falls like George in that beautiful thick fake snow. Now as an adult, I appreciate the story about a small town coming together to support a man at his lowest of lows more. Jimmy Stewart is amazing as George Bailey and we can all see ourselves at some point in his journey in the film. The chemistry and comedic timing between Stewart and Donna Reed is one of the best. Every time they sing ‘Auld Lang Syne’, I always get a bit misty-eyed.

メリークリスマス Japanese style, in ‘Tokyo Godfathers’ (2003).

What have you noticed about the ways in which Christmas films have changed over the years? In classic Christmas storytelling, there are a lot more religion-centered ones like The Bishop’s Wife and It’s a Wonderful Life. The ’80s and ’90s were about the blockbusters that the whole family could enjoy; Batman Returns, Home Alone, and The Santa Clause. The last twenty years have brought us a lot of different movies, but I do find that the start of the 2000s had a better crop of Christmas movies; Love Actually, Elf, Tokyo Godfathers, Far from Heaven, Bridget Jones’s Diary, About a Boy and so many more. The last decade has been saturated by the rom-coms of Hallmark, Lifetime and their imitators, but from the last five years, a few stand out that could be destined to become Christmas classics: Carol, Little Women and The Night Before.

The best, most rewatched Christmas stories tend to be remade. Do you have a classic Christmas story that you always love, no matter who’s telling it? Hands down Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. From my favorite—Scrooge—to The Muppet Christmas Carol, to Scrooged. Growing up, I had the book of Mickey’s Christmas Carol and I loved the cartoon adaptation. I love to see the different actors’ excitement and elation at the end when Scrooge wakes up on Christmas Day. My ultimate favorite is Alistair Sim in 1951’s Scrooge. He’s so jubilant asking the maid what day it is and wishing himself Merry Christmas in the mirror. It’s a bit darker than others. When I was a kid, the intro with Jacob Marley and the build-up of the chains scared me, but I couldn’t stop watching. Patrick Stewart’s Ebenezer [in the 1999 TV movie] is also great for his relief that he survived the journey through time. What an actor! An honorable mention to The Shop Around the Corner, In the Good Old Summertime and You’ve Got Mail, which are all based on [the 1937 Hungarian play Parfumerie by Miklós László].

A Christmas Treat in ‘Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square’ (2020).

Treat Williams stars in not one but two of this season’s films (who knew he could sing?!). Which actors bring that special spark to festive films for you? Yes, and boy can he sing! Another actor who can sing and puts me straight in the Christmas mood is Bing Crosby. Those classic songs in White Christmas and Holiday Inn are favorites of mine. Jimmy Stewart is an obvious one. He has that charm that’s perfect for Christmas movies, especially in The Shop Around the Corner.

What’s your guiltiest pleasure on the list? Why do we love cheesy movies so much?! Every year I watch TCM’s Classic Christmas marathon [but I also watch] the Hallmark and Lifetime Christmas rom-coms. For me, I love them partly because there’s always a happy ending. I love to see all the decorations and all the cute small towns—some I wish existed so I could visit them because they’re so darn cute! Another reason I love them is the nostalgia, as some of the better ones star TV actors from the ’90s and ’00s like Candice Cameron Bure, Lacey Chabert, Jonathan Bennett, Adrian Grenier, Mario Lopez, Alicia Witt, Alison Sweeney and so many others.

One of the other great Christmas-themed lists on Letterboxd is the one about Christmas movie posters with white heterosexual couples wearing red and green—though many members pride themselves on having seen none of them. I like those movies because I can zone out and enjoy the predictable Christmas ride. However, like other Letterboxd members, I know that these aren’t Oscar-caliber films—though some are better than others! I’m glad that the powers that make these movies are starting to be more inclusive with more POC and LGTBQ+ characters. As a wheelchair user with a physical disability, I was happy to see that Lifetime has an upcoming one called Christmas Ever After, starring Ali Stroker.

Ali Stroker finds love in ‘Christmas Ever After’ (2020).

Indeed, our Make the Yuletide Gay list is an attempt to highlight queer festive films, but the pickings have been slim. Yes, very slim. There’s been queer characters in Christmas films but it’s your stereotypical gay friend or something like that. This year I feel there’s a shift in the air to be more inclusive. My favorites this year so far have been the star-filled lesbi-rom-com Happiest Season, The Christmas House—featuring a landmark first gay couple in a Hallmark festive film, Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square and Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey—with Ricky Martin! I’m looking forward to checking out A New York Christmas Wedding, The Christmas Setup and Dashing in December.

What is the scariest Christmas film that your horror-loving husband has made you watch? The best one is Black Christmas. I love that it’s female-centered and ahead of its time in their portrayals. The killer’s POV really gets me into it and still to this day puts me on edge, so much so that an ornament fell off our tree while watching it this year and it freaked me out!

Also, should we be watching The Nightmare Before Christmas on Hallowe’en or on Christmas? I watch The Nightmare Before Christmas on both holidays so you get the best of both worlds—the ghoulishness of Hallowe’en and the merriment of Christmas!

What other films on your list show Christmas in an unusual light? The first weird one that popped to mind is The Star Wars Holiday Special. That was weird! Also, from what I’ve watched I would say Eyes Wide Shut, The Ref and 3 Godfathers are not your usual Christmas films. I do have quite a few on the list I have to watch that seem weird and unusual like Elves, Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny and Santa Claus Conquers the Martians.

[Editor’s note: Previous How I Letterboxd interviewee Dave Vis urges you not to watch Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny under any circumstances.]

Which actor is the quintessential Santa Claus? For me, it’s the Santa in Miracle on 34th Street, played by Edmund Gwenn. He truly embodied the part in the way he plays Kris Kringle. The gentleness and innocence he shows throughout the film is magical. It’s no wonder he won a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for his performance.

Gunn Wållgren in ‘Fanny and Alexander’ (1982).

Of course, so many films in the Christmas canon are American films. What are some of the best Christmas films from around the world? This question makes me realize I haven’t watched enough Christmas movies from around the world. With that being said here’s a few; A Christmas Tale from France, A Child’s Christmas in Wales from the UK, Tokyo Godfathers from Japan and Ingmar Bergman’s Fanny and Alexander from Sweden. Mon oncle Antoine is a great Canadian film set in a small mining village during Christmas. It reminded me of the stories my mom and grandma talked about their Christmas traditions in their small village.

Are there any overrated classics you want to protest? I didn’t watch A Christmas Story growing up, so when I finally did watch it as an adult, I didn’t connect with it. The iconic scenes are funny and all, but it’s just okay. Now I’ll be on my hubby’s naughty list!

Does the film marathon continue through that purgatory week between Christmas and New Year? Do you have any film-related traditions to ring in the New Year? It does continue during that week to a certain extent. Some years after Christmas I’m done and what I haven’t watched goes to the following year but other years I can watch a few more and not feel overwhelmed. On New Year’s we have no traditions per se, but this year we might do a Tarantino marathon.

Christmas season is also synonymous with awards season. You keep track of a lot of Academy Awards history. How are you feeling about the awards season this year? First off, like many others, I haven’t even set foot in a theater this year and that is sad. I hope that the theater-going experience is not irreparably damaged. One good thing that came from the pandemic is film festivals streamed online and we were fortunate to watch some great titles from TIFF from the comfort of our home in September. I saw Nomadland, and it’s going to be a frontrunner for many of the main categories. I hope Regina King’s One Night in Miami gets some love. Miranda July’s Kajillionaire script is so unique—Evan Rachel Wood and Richard Jenkins should be contenders. I haven’t watched a lot of docs yet but Boys State stands out. I’m also eager to see First Cow, Minari, Ammonite, The Truffle Hunters, Soul, Mank, The Father and Promising Young Woman.

This Christmas is going to be weird for a lot of people. What’s one film you’d recommend for a guaranteed happiness injection? Weird indeed. If I have to pick just one it would be John Favreau’s Elf. Will Ferrell as Buddy the Elf instantly brings a smile to my face. You can feel his joy for Christmas from start to finish. From the classic claymation, to New York City at Christmas, to eating all that sugar, to that hilarious scene with Peter Dinklage—it’s Christmas gold!

And finally, are there some other Letterboxd members you recommend we follow? Emily, Flurryheaven, Guyzo997, Peter Spencer, Michael Dean, Brent Vanhomwegen, Ara Hiddleston and also some more Christmas lists.

[whirlybirdwhat]

Hello, what are your favorite anime? Do you have a top 10'

I would have a top ten if I watched more anime than I did so instead I’ll just named the one that I watch? Its mostly main stream ones, so you’ve probably heard most of them but I’ll explain a bit. The first six are all on American Netflix which is where I watched them (or coming to Netflix soon, in One Piece’s case,) for easy watching! 

So. Personal ones that I like/love!

1. One Piece. Duh. It caters to me and me personally in literally every way so its my favorite above all other favorites!! Gonna assume you know me via my op stuff so i won’t explain what it’s about beyond PIRATESSS!! I think ive made seperate posts but if anyone wants to ask me why i love op i have an essay in my brain ready to go lol

2. Fullmetal Alchemist! Another popular one but It was my second anime that I ever watched and OH i love it so much! Essentially two brothers atttempt to regain their bodies after treading on God’s territory and hhave to learn to deal with the military, life lessons, and immortal beings ;) I recommend for this one watching both FMA 2003 and FMA: Brotherhood, because FMA expands on a lot more on characterization (especially with Lust!! And Nina!!) while Brotherhood is far better in terms of plot. I personally love both, and the themes it has are really good!

3. One Punch Man! I really only watched one season of this, but the premise is what if someone could defeat anyone with just one punch? Its a satire on fighting in other anime’s and focuses on other character’s fights, slice of life shit, rising complications, and other things. Its fun, and I absolutely love genos.

4. Dragon Pilot! I’ve only watched two episodes of this so far but its a pretty cute show about how a woman in the Japanese Rookie Guard becomes friends with and thhen pilots a Dragon which acts like a jet, and is very fun!

5. Fairy Tail! Baby’s first anime and it still has a place in my heart. In a world of wizard guilds, a celestial wizard finds her way into the legendary Fairy Tail Guild and things get wild from there.  I can’t really say anything about how good the series is in terms of worldbuilding or characterization or what not but it does have a lot of feel good moments that had me cheering, and the fanservice moments were easy enough to skip through! 

6. Seven Deadly Sins! This one is pretty fun not the best anime i’ll say I’ve ever watched but the fights were fun and I loved the reveals it had! Premise is that the former criminal knights of the kingdom are being regatherd by a Princess to save the kingdom. Uh. Some of the characters (elizabeth) are very annoying but the rest are pretty fun and everybody is just. very powerful and i love it. worst down side is that there are a lot of pervy jokes which i hate :///

Fuck what else do i watch. Shit.

Um. I have also watched Magi: Sinbad (sinbad from the story fights through mystic dungeons) Yuuri On Ice (gay figure skating ?) , and My Hero Academia (hero school but make it traumatic and with poor world building)? Basically all the ones I have easy access too.

My to-watch list is, however:

1. Gintama - samurai and fun shit with a lot of one piece references lmao

2.  Castlevania - Vampires?? Thats all i know for this one sorry i want to find out more lmao

3. Lupin the Third - Crime! with fun hijinks! Apperantly!

4. Carole and Tuesday - muscians but in the future and supposedly really sweet. 

5. Cowboy bepop - bounty hunters in space

6. Mob Psycho 100 - kid withh pyshic powers find person to help him withh them?

7. Soul Eater - Reaper in training and her weapon which can turn into a person hunt down souls.

And things people Have recommended too me that I probs won’t watch for a while/never watch in general but you mighht find interesting!

1. The Promised Neverland

2. Demon Slayer

3. Sword Art Online (??? my friend really likes this one and i have yet to understand what it is about)

4. Jojo’s bizarre

5. Golden Kamui?Kamuy? 

yeah. 

Hope that helps anon! my anime list isn’t very big, sorry, I have a short attention span for things im not 100% hooked on so I often drop shit half way through and I prefer reading, so I haven’t really looked for a lot of anime

fuck i do need to watch more shit lmao one piece just took over my life

[theromcomcatalog]

Love Actually

It’s been a few years since I’ve sat down and watched this, and with so many ‘Love Actually is actually problematic’ discussions going around lately, I decided to give it another watch with a “fresh set of eyes” to see if the current social climate would somehow diminish my enjoyment of Richard Curtis’s 2003 holiday rom-com.

It didn’t. Are there some issues with this movie? Of course there are. Natalie (Martine McCutcheon) is called chubby and comments are made about her butt and her thighs, although… Natalie is not fat. Not even close. The fat jokes simply made no sense and had no point other than to draw laughs. The majority of storylines focus on men getting their happy ever after (Mark is the exception, although he still gets an uplifting, favorable send off) while the two storylines centering around women (Emma Thompson’s Karen and Laura Linney’s Sarah) end in infidelity and heartbreak.

There is also a distinct lack of diversity and LGBT representation. I’m pretty sure the movie could have ditched the Creepy Colin Goes to America to Get Laid storyline and reinserted the deleted scenes featuring Frances de la Tour and Anne Reid as a lesbian couple dealing with terminal illness. Of course, had that happened we would have probably been talking about the 'Bury Your Gays’ trope that has plagued television and cinema, where the already sparse representation of the LGBT community gets killed off (most notably queer women).

So does Love Actually have problems? Yes, it does. But despite these issues, I was still able to love and appreciate Love Actually for what it is. A movie that shows us what love is 'all around us’, whether it’s romantic, platonic or unrequited. It’s complicated and messy. Awkward and charming. Heartbreaking and painful. Problematic!

There are some hits and misses in the movie. Some of the stories suffer from a lack of adequate screen time to develop the relationships, so to believe in some sudden, all-encompassing love is difficult. But some are a couple of well developed, emotionally nuanced plots that make the movie worth a watch. I’ve ranked my favorite Love Actually storylines from worst to best below:

- Colin’s desperate need to get laid - Decides he’s the god of sex stuck on the wrong continent so he goes to America to pick up hot women and succeeds. Meh. His accent isn’t cute enough to dismiss his obnoxious behavior.

- Juliet, Mark and Peter - 'Self-preservation’ is no excuse for being a jerk to someone you’re supposedly in love with, even if that someone is your best friend’s new wife. Also, don’t confess said love on Christmas Eve while your best friend watches television upstairs. It’s creepy.

- Sarah and Karl - Sarah feels like she can’t follow through on a relationship with a man at work whom she’s been in love with for a couple of years because of her mentally ill brother, who has come to depend on her, even though he lives in a facility. If Karl knew what was good for him, he would be willing to give a try anyway, despite the constant phone calls. Boo on Karl.

- David and Natalie - There is an instant spark between the Prime Minister and his new employee, Natalie. She curses a lot, which is cute. He’s Hugh Grant as the Prime Minister, also cute. He decides to change his stance on foreign policy with the President of the United States (a smarmy Billy Bob Thornton) when he catches the President hitting on Natalie. Then he “redistributes” Natalie because of his attraction to her. Also, there are the fat jokes. The saving grace to this story is when David goes door to door to find out where Natalie lives and ends up singing a carol for three adorable little girls with one of his security guards.

- Jamie and Aurelia - Jamie’s brother is having an affair with his girlfriend, so he goes to France for a while to write a crime novel. There he meets Aurelia, a Portuguese woman who cleans his villa and cannot speak English. Jamie can’t speak Portuguese, so they learn to communicate in other ways. This is a cute story and honestly, the only one I feel could have been its own movie. I wanted to see them get past the language barrier and cultural differences on their way to love. But we don’t get a lot of development here, so the proposal at the end, while adorable, is insanely unrealistic. But… Colin Firth, so I’m willing to let it go.

- Billy Mack and Joe - Billy Mack is by far the most entertaining part of Love Actually. An aging rock star who records a horrible Christmas song only to find it becoming a surprise hit thanks to his No F*cks Given attitude while promoting the single, Billy is soon back on top and invited to Elton John’s Christmas bash. Turns out he would rather spend the holiday with his manager than a bunch of scantily clad women. “You turned out to be the fucking love of my life.”

- Harry and Karen (and Mia) - Okay, yes we know Mia is a tart. They’re sure to overplay just how much of a tart she is, with her overt flirtations with Harry, asking him for a pretty present in exchange for 'everything’. She wears devil horns to the Christmas party and wears racy red lingerie while Karen (a devastatingly good Emma Thompson) laments that she feels like Pavarotti in her frumpier wardrobe. We get it. Mia bad. But as usual, Harry’s role in this extramarital flirtation/affair is sometimes lost in the Mia hate. As painful as this storyline is, it’s also one of the more believable ones. Harry and Karen have a home, and two kids and a relationship that feels comfortable, though not overly passionate. Harry’s attention is caught by his attractive assistant and he buys her a gold necklace while gifting his wife a CD she probably already owns. The brilliance of Love Actually is captured in only one scene, where Karen discovers Harry’s infidelity and stands alone in their bedroom while Joni Mitchell plays. She’s not allowed to lose control or release her heartbreak. She has to keep it together as not to spoil her family’s Christmas. Emma Thompson is truly the movie’s MVP.

- John and Judy - This story doesn’t get enough credit when people discuss Love Actually. We get to witness their cute, awkward courtship as they simulate fake sex as stand-ins on a porno. Perfectly normal and charming, this is by far one of the best stories in Love Actually. I wish they’d had more screentime.

- Daniel, Sam and Joanna - Heartfelt and pure, this was much more about Daniel and Sam’s relationship as stepfather and son after a tragic loss than it is about Sam’s crush on Joanna. This is one of the only storylines we get a true conclusion to, and is it a rom-com if there’s not an airport chase scene?

Love Actually is not in my yearly Christmas rotation, but I do consider it an above average holiday film and rom-com. It’s not perfect, but it’s a warm, feel-good movie with some wonderful performances, and the end montage of friends and family greeting each other at the airport will surely tug at your heartstrings.

Fun Facts:

Kris Marshall (Colin) allegedly returned his paycheck for the scene where the three American girls undress him. He said he had such a great time having three girls undress him for twenty-one takes, that he was willing to do it for free, and thus returned his check for that day.

The airport greeting footage at the beginning and end of the film is real. Richard Curtis had a team of cameramen film at Heathrow airport for a week, and whenever they saw something that would fit in they asked the people involved for permission to use the footage.

According to Richard Curtis they had to put Emma Thompson in a “fat suit” to make her appear heavier because she is actually a very thin woman.

Keira Knightley was only 17 when she filmed Love Actually. Thomas Brodie-Sangster (Sam) was 13.

Richard Curtis had been working on two separate scripts when he decided to merge them and create Love Actually. The two scripts were the Prime Minister’s story and Jamie’s trip to Frane where he meets Aurelia. 

Notable Song: Christmas Is All Around by Billy Mack

Rating: 💍💍💍.5

[filmbutch]

honestly if u got good gay movie recs... i would totally appreciate them! i’ve seen most of the popular good ones but i’d love to hear abt more

Just in case you or other people have missed one of the more popular ones, I want to start by saying But I’m a Cheerleader is my favorite and is at the top of most lesbian movie lists for a good reason. A lot of other lists have included the movies Imagine Me & You, Carol, and The Handmaiden, which are also all great. Almost everyone has heard of Blue is the Warmest Color, which I’ve only seen once a long time ago but would not recommend because of the way the director treated the actresses especially during the filming of the sex scene.

Anyways this list became more detailed than I originally intended so I’m just gonna put my recs below the cut lol

Movies  that aren’t sad (or are only partially sad):

Desert Hearts (1985) - one of the first (if not the first) movies about a romantic relationship between women that  doesn’t end in one or both of them dying or leaving the other to be with a man. Directed by Donna Deitch who is gay.

D.E.B.S. (2004) - probably the most fun/light hearted movie I’ve seen that’s centered around a romance between two women. It’s a cheesy movie about a spy who falls in love with a villain and is written and directed by Angela Robinson who is bi.

The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls In Love (1995) - cute and kinda cheesy teen rom com written and directed by Maria Maggenti who is bi.

The Watermelon Woman (1996) - a lesbian filmmaker works on a documentary about a black actress from the 1930s. The film explores themes of how there are gaps in recorded history, and how race effects relationships. It was written and directed by Cheryl Dunye, making it the first (known/more popular) feature film directed by a black lesbian.

If These Walls Could Talk 2 (2000) - explores the lives of three lesbian couples who happened to live in the same house at different periods of time. The first part takes place in 1961 and is sad, the second part takes place in 1972 and is the part all those butch Chloe Sevigny gifs are from, and the last part takes place in 2000 and stars Ellen.

Saving Face (2004) - super cute and good rom com about a Chinese American lesbian and her traditionalist mother written and directed by Alice Wu  who is a lesbian.

The Runaways (2010) - if ur gay for rock n roll please watch this. I love bicon Joan Jett

Cloudburst (2011) - about an older lesbian couple who go on a road trip to get married and the ending is kind of sad but it’s worth watching imo.

Pariah (2011) - about a butch lesbian teenager growing up in Brooklyn. It’s really sad in some parts but by the end she’s very at peace with herself. Written and directed by Dee Rees who is a lesbian.

Life Partners (2014) - cute movie about the friendship between a straight woman and a lesbian and how their friendship changes when the straight woman gets married

Boy Meets Girl (2015) - about a bisexual trans girl (played by a trans actress) who wants to go to college be a fashion designerGrandma (2015) - Lily Tomlin plays a lesbian grandma who helps her granddaughter get money to have an abortion

Dope (2015) - tbh the lesbian isn’t even the main character, but it’s a cute movie and Kiersey Clemons is hot so it’s on here anyway

The Intervention (2016) - Clea DuVall and Natasha Lyonne play a couple again, Melanie Lynskey and Alia Shawkat are also in it. Written and directed by Clea DuVall who is a lesbianProfessor Marston and the Wonder Women (2017) - probably not super historically accurate tbh but it’s about the polyamorous relationship between the creator of Wonder Woman, his wife, and their lover. I was pleasantly surprised that the movie focused just as much if not more on the relationship between the two women as it did on their relationship to the man. It is written and directed by Angela Robinson, a bi woman.

Battle of the Sexes (2017) - I know people on here don’t like Emma Stone but Billie Jean King is cool as fuck, the scenes between her and Marilyn were beautiful, and this movie was underrated

Movies that are pretty sad throughout but good:

Fried Green Tomatoes (1991) - not as gay as the book and the ending (and other parts) are sad, but I would die for the main character (and butch icon) Idgie.

Lovesong (2016) - two women are probably in love with each other go on a road trip but one of them is getting married to a man :( the other one is played by Jenna Malone though who I’ve been wanting to play gay since she played Johanna in the Hunger Games so :) ?

Novitiate (2017) - lesbian nuns, Catholic guilt, idk it’s good though

Movies that didn’t necessarily fit into the other categories because they are either intense, weird, and/or  involve murder:

Born in Flames (1983) - I wasn’t really sure what category to put this movie in since its style is so different from the others, but it’s about activists fighting for women’s liberation in a fictional version of the US where there has been a socialist revolution that promised to make things better, but put off women’s rights in the process. Anyone interested in feminism and leftist politics should check it out. It was made by Lizzie Borden, who is bisexual.

Heavenly Creatures (1994) - a movie about a super intense childhood friendship that gets pretty dark, which I know it’s a trope, but I liked this movie anyway idk

Mulholland Drive (2001) - the most real thing in this movie about surrealist Hollywood was the relationship between the two women

Monster (2003) - based on the life of  serial killer Aileen Wuornos. It’s super violent/depressing/disturbing, but worth the watch imo. Directed by Patty Jenkins who directed Wonder Woman.

Jennifer’s Body (2009) - some people like to argue over whether they were actually gay or not but like…they were…it was also directed and written by women.

Addicted to Fresno (2015) - two sisters accidentally murder someone and try to cover it up. Written by Karey Dornetto who is gay and directed by Jamie Babbit who is a lesbian and also wrote/directed But I’m a Cheerleader.

Women Who Kill (2016) - about exes who are true crime podcasters. One of them starts dating someone and the other thinks her new girlfriend might be a murderer. Super interesting and can be interpreted as a metaphor for internalized homophobia. Written and directed by Ingrid Jungermann who is gay.

Atomic Blonde (2017) - bisexual spy Charlize Theron. I am gay. It falls into some bad tropes but I. Am. Gay.

Thelma (2017) - a Norwegian movie about a lesbian with supernatural abilities. It might be my favorite movie of 2017 tbh.

Documentaries:

Out in the Night (2014) - a really depressing and frustrating doc about a group of black lesbians who were unfairly imprisoned after fighting back against their attacker

Gender Troubles: The Butches (2016) - a doc about butches and gender presentation

Movies that are coming out soon that I wanna see:

Colette

Duck Butter

Hearts Beat Loud

Lizzie

The Miseducation of Cameron Post

Tully

Vita and Virginia

Wild Nights With Emily

[m-with-jia]

Movie review:

Love Actually

Genre: Christmas

Released: 2003, around November.

Director: Richard Curtis

Writer: Richard Curtis

Main cast: Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Laura Linney, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley, Martine McCutcheon, Bill Nighy & Rowan Atkinson.

Synopsis (according to IMDb): Follows the lives of eight very different couples in dealing with their love lives in various loosely interrelated tales all set during a frantic month before Christmas in London, England.

Review:

Oké, so first thing first, I never really liked this movie, I'm sorry @babyboobean but be a bit prepared to see some criticism about it.

So, I'm not gonna comment on every scene, but I will have some thoughts on the movie and storyline.

First order of business, sure, good movie, the story lines are nice, cool that they line up with each other.... But there are so many? My brain can't handle, I just forgot who is who after awhile.

Billy Mack and Joe? Love them, that's it. That's the post. Storyline: meh, but I love them.

Juliet on the other hand. Miss, listen, I liked you throughout your storyline, you were fine, UNTIL YOU KISSED MARK. WHAT EVEN WAS THAT?! Some bs, that's what it was. Sorry, but Peter deserves better. This storyline was fine, until Juliet kissed Mark. Like, come on, you could've just been like "Uhm, I'm married to your best friend, so no."

Jamie and Aurelia. I, no words, I cried. One of my favourite storyline in this movie. Adorable, cute, I just want to cry, it's so cute. Help.

Harry, Mia and Karen. Hehe, Karen. But also, sad Karen. I honestly feel sad for Karen, she deserves better. Harry, you dick. Mia.... I can't say anything about you, I'm just stumped by your behaviour. Mia ruined the fucking movie for me, honestly, like wtf? Why? Storyline... No, just a no.

Enough about her. NEXT!

David and Nathalie. It's not the greatest storyline and neither the best characters. But I like it, it's fine. A bit annoying, because, well, the U.S president had to be a dick, but for the rest. Sure, why not?

Sam and Joanna.... WHAT ELSE CAN I SAY EXCEPT FOR CUTE?! ADORABLE?! AMAZING?! I WANT THIS IN MY LIFE!!! Oke, I gotta be serious. I loved it, it was adorable, and I'm glad she likes him back.

I wish we got to see more of Daniel and Carol, and less off well, most of the couples. If they gave us just a movie with Daniel, Carol, Sam and Joanna. That would be a good movie in itself.

Colin with his buddy Tony and them random American girls....... Eh, could've just left it out honestly. Very unnecessary.

John and Judy, also would've made a great movie. I wish I could see more things of them, honestly. I loved it, really cute too.

And last but definitely not least, MY MAN RUFUS! RUFUS saved the fucking movie. He made the movie. The movie wouldn't be the movie without Rufus.

Overall: 5/10, I would be lying if I said I liked the overall movie. It's a fine movie, but it's too much happening, too many storylines, too many too much. Creative, I gotta hand it to them.