#chilling adventures of sabrina part 2

[end0r4]

Zelda Spellman, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina | Chapter 𝟙𝟝 : Doctor Cerberus's House of Horror

[ladyofriverrun]

It's only Part 1 and Lilith is already tired of this shit

[blackcatfilmprod]

Next week Boys 'n' Ghouls Film Review Podcast will review The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Part 2 here. So see you all then. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbmABiphJQk via YouTube

[harveyslocket]

she’s trying her best

[mellxncollie]

Part 1 of looking into some of the technical cinematography aspects of the show

(or, why does Dead Boy Detectives look Like That?)

(update 6/30/24: there's now a part 2! check it out here)

Dead Boy Detectives has some interesting things going on with the cameras. You probably noticed it at some point while watching the show. Whether it was the weird blurs or the sort-of-fisheye, there’s something about many of the shots that doesn’t look the way many people expect TV shows to look.  

The main reason why is because it uses an anamorphic lens instead of a spherical lens. These lenses are pretty different from spherical lenses, and the recent rise of anamorphic lenses in TV has not been without some pushback, as viewers unaccustomed to them may find the look weird, distorted, or that it pulls their focus away from the content. Whether you enjoy how Dead Boy Detectives looks or find the cinematography distracting, this post is designed to explain the different effects that the lens has on the show.

This post is very long and very graphics heavy (I made lots of gifs to illustrate my points) so the rest is under a read more.

What is an anamorphic lens and what is it used for?

To begin with, a bit of history and technical info. Say you’re making a movie at most any point before the mid-'90s and you want it to be widescreen. However, the 35mm film you’re shooting on has a smaller aspect ratio (closer to a square than widescreen). You could use letterboxing (black bars on top and bottom) but then you waste the top and bottom parts of the film, and it ends up being slightly lower in ‘resolution.’ The solution: use a lens that records the full height onto the film, but squishes the picture horizontally so that it fills up the whole film frame without any letterboxing. Then, a projector (or a computer) can stretch it out again to display the whole thing in widescreen. The kind of lens that can do that is an anamorphic lens. They've technically been around since before the 1920s but were mostly used between the 1950s and the 1990s.

Up until sort of recently, television networks broadcasted using a smaller aspect ratio that they required shows to be in, and TV shows were not given the kind of cinematography budgets that movies were afforded. Anamorphic lenses are expensive and for widescreen, so they really just weren’t used for TV shows. Instead, a spherical lens was used, which is just the standard lens you think of when you picture a camera lens. 

In the 90s, new flat/spherical film formats came out that allowed for widescreen (one of the popular ones being Super 35) caused anamorphic lenses to drastically drop in popularity. However, there has been a recent resurgence, one that you’ve probably subconsciously noticed in both film and television.

In the last 10-15 years, TV has been given larger and larger budgets. Additionally, the rise of streaming services and the use of phones and computers to watch shows rather than actual televisions has meant that networks have started allowing wider aspect ratios, paving the way for anamorphic lenses to begin to be used for series. 

The history of these lens’ usage means they’re associated with a ‘cinematic’ look. They have a lot of characteristic effects that are not really ‘natural’ and depending on the viewer, this either enhances the experience or detracts from it.

Lots of recent series have been embracing these lenses (to varying degrees of success), including The Witcher, Sandman, Shōgun, Narcos: Mexico, The Mandalorian, Andor and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Doctor Who also started using anamorphic lenses at the switch to the 13th Doctor, so that may be a good reference point. For some of these, it’s a very subtle look, for others, the lens choice is glaringly obvious and overdone (I’m looking at you Sabrina), and sometimes, as is the case with Dead Boy Detectives, it’s really obvious but it remains an effective and compelling choice. 

Why use an anamorphic lens in the 21st century when you could just use a spherical lens?

Anamorphic lenses create a look that some filmmakers desire, whether for their associations with a more cinematic look or their sometimes unusual quirks. In a film and tv world filled with spherical lenses that are nice, clean, and precise, anamorphic lenses introduce some irregularity and character. Making an informed decision on what kind of lens to use can enhance different themes of the work. 

I want to briefly bring up Moonlight to illustrate this point. Go watch the trailer if you haven’t seen it, and you’ll probably see some parallels with the cinematography of Dead Boy Detectives. There’s less of the ‘radial’ look, but otherwise, there’s a lot of the same kinds of things. Moonlight uses an anamorphic lens and it makes the whole thing look dream-like, nostalgic, and a bit like we’re getting into the character’s heads. To me, it indicates that the story is being filtered through people. We’re not detached from the characters, observing them. The story we are watching is personal, emotional, and necessitates intimacy. 

Dead Boy Detectives really benefits from the same visual effects. This is not because it enhances a dream-like or nostalgic quality, but because in the context of the show, it makes it look a bit otherworldly, magical, or otherwise supernatural. Additionally, the constraints of the lens means we get lots of focusing in on individual characters, with nice long looks at their faces allowing for more reflection on their dialogue and reactions.

So, here’s 5 different effects of anamorphic lenses to point out to you all. Starting with the one that allows us to easily identify that anamorphic lenses are being used in the first place.

You’ve probably heard of bokeh before. It's the way the lens renders the direct sources of light that are in the background but out-of-focus. You can see in this shot of Jenny how all the string lights are not circular, but elongated. On a spherical lens, these would be round.

In this next shot of the Cat King, the candles around the floor are all those elliptical shapes. Additionally, lots of other details in the background that aren’t from direct light sources also have an elongated shape. This is sometimes called waterfall bokeh.

Finally, check out this shot of one of the cats. Not only are the lights in the background irregular and elongated, but if you look to the left where the ‘horizon’ line is, there's a series of elliptical shapes where the light hits the edge of the docks.

The bokeh effect is one of those things that just happens because of the lens, and makes it pretty easy to identify that an anamorphic lens is being used. Unlike some of the other effects I’ll mention, I don’t have much to say about how this does or doesn’t add to the visuals.

Breathing is how the field of view changes when you refocus to a subject closer or farther from the lens. While spherical lenses also breathe, there’s a much more distorted look to the breathing that occurs with an anamorphic lens.

Lets start with this shot:

You can see how much the frame widens when the focus shifts from the jar of coins to Jenny. It affects the edges much more than the middle of the frame. Here’s the same shot, but with some of the features outlined (forgive my messy outlining, I used my laptop trackpad) so you can see the movement.

The frame widens when the focus goes from the foreground to the background. It appears like the whole shot is being stretched apart horizontally and compressed vertically.

However, it also does the reverse, narrowing as the focus moves from the background to the foreground.

(also in that last shot of hell, notice how the two points of light in the background elongate into those oval bokeh once they are no longer in focus)

Breathing is a very dramatic way of refocusing, and it forces us to pay attention to different things. In the shot of the Night Nurse, we have a light but the important thing after it turns on is not the light but the reaction that the people have to the cause of the light. In that shot of Niko and Edwin, it’s telling us: listen to Niko. In the shot of hell, it’s not letting us forget what the characters are running from. 

The next effect is the lens flare. You can get a lens flare from a spherical lens too, but anamorphic lenses typically generate strong, horizontal flares. A spherical lens would typically create a more radial flare, with multiple lines shooting out in different directions from the light source like rays from the sun.

We see these all over the show, sometimes they’re very prominent, such as in these shots with obvious light sources:

And sometimes they're a bit more subtle. Take this shot of Edwin, Charles, and Crystal on the dock:

While the lens flare at the top of the frame has a clear source, there’s a bunch of other horizontal lines cutting across near the middle and bottom half of the frame. These likely come from light sources outside of the frame.

Some directors, cinematographers, and other creators really like anamorphic flares. Others don’t. For a show with so many dark scenes that have colorful and dramatic lighting, the lens flares seem to enhance this. They are also a constant reminder of the interaction between the lights and the camera, kind of a fingerprint of the production. Sure, they make it seem more ‘cinematic,’ but I think they also ground us in the physicality of the production. (Kind of ironic given the lack of physicality of the main characters, and also you could consider the flares themselves to be the ghosts of the lights and the camera!)

Barrel distortion is where we start getting into why exactly the show looks the way it does. This is basically a subtle fisheye effect. Because of the squishing and stretching of the footage, anamorphic lenses have more distortion than spherical lenses, and it is strongest around the edges. 

You can see it most clearly in shots that have lots of vertical lines. They are relatively straight in the middle of the frame, but the closer to the edges, the more they are warped.

Looking at that shame shot of Niko in the bathroom, I have set it to stop at 3 different spots. Pay attention to the shape of the edge of the door.

At the start, it’s curved outward, like an open parentheses: (

Then, in the middle, it’s a vertical line: |

Finally, as the door passes all the way across the frame to the opposite side, it curves inward, like a closed parentheses: )

Again, notice how the lines in this shot of the Lost & Found Department change as they move from the outside towards the center. The door has an outward bulge at the beginning but becomes more 'normal’ shaped as it gets further away.

Anamorphic lenses can also have a pretty shallow depth of field and it’s used a lot in this show which is why we get a lot of those centered close-ups, and why we get that ‘radial blur.’ 

The center of the frame is where the actors are least likely to be distorted, meaning its easiest to have just one character in the dead center (pun intended). With a shallow depth of field, the background is out of focus, and since the actor is in the center, the background gets the most affected by the barrel distortion, leading to the sense that the background has been radially blurred. 

This blurred background with a strong, centered foreground really makes objects in the foreground pop. We are then able to really focus in on different objects and characters. It brings immediacy and intimacy. Here, we have nothing to do but consider Charles. He isn’t speaking so we must consider his reaction to what’s being said. 

Also, the further a character is from the center of a shot, the more they are distorted, such as Edwin and Charles in this still:

This kind of distortion definitely lends a more unnatural look to the shots, which definitely supports a show about ghosts and the supernatural. If the subjects are able to see things in our world in a way the viewers cannot, then why display the physical world the way we see it?

Finally, we have focus falloff. This is (like some of the other effects) a distortion that occurs around the edges. Here, the focus decreases the further from the center of the frame even if they’re all about the same distance from the camera.

In this shot of the Tongue & Tail, the sign 'Butcher Shop’ is clear and legible. But imagine if that sign was up in the top left or right corners, where things start to get blurry. We probably wouldn’t be able to read it.

It's also visible in this shot of Edwin. Not only does the floor get blurrier the further you get from the center, but you can see how the rope is less in focus in very top and very bottom of the frame.

The falloff (combined with the barrel distortion) is how we get the really unique dream-like look of the Edwin and Niko scene on the roof in Episode 8. (If you’re having a hard time spotting the falloff here, look at their legs)

When you start looking for falloff in this show, you start to see it everywhere. It’s easiest to spot in the corners of shots, but you can usually see all the way around the edges.

Look at the corners of this still of Edwin, or the way the top and bottom of Niko’s rent envelope aren’t as clear as the middle of it.

Or in this still, look at Charles’ jacket. The arm closest to the center has a much more defined line between it and the background compared to the arm closest to the edge. 

This blur definitely is one of the more noticeable effects in the show, and it’s good at focusing our attention on the center of the frame. It guides the viewer exactly to what we should be looking at. We get tons of centered shots in this show because of this and the barrel distortion. 

The falloff makes the show look softer and artistic, sometimes painterly or impressionistic. More than any other effect, the falloff is what makes me feel like I’m watching a dream or a vision. It puts us into the sensation of being fully immersed in a story.

I would argue that all of these effects (but especially the last two) not only enhace the supernatural aspect of the show, but they help us fall in love with the characters. They focus us on their faces, and encourage us to reflect on their motivations, reactions, and thoughts. The lens is telling us that we are not to take things at face value. It’s not letting us forget that there are multiple people and multiple stories involved, that things are blurry around the edges, and that things are not perfect and clean-cut. 

-----------

Sometime in the next week or so I’ll be working on part 2, where we’ll take a closer look at the cinematography of Edwin’s flashback to 1916 in Episode 1. It's posted! Read it here.

I really wanted to highlight the work of the cinematographers, Marc Laliberté, Craig Powell, and Pierre Gill because it’s clear that there was so much care and intention put into every aspect of this show. 

I’m so glad fans of this show are really embracing the work of different crew members, like the work of costume designer Kelli Dunsmore (and if you somehow haven’t seen @captainfantasticalright's posts about the costumes and other aspects of the show, please go check them out right now. My roommates and I have a kind of 'stop everything, new costume analysis dropped' attitude towards their posts, and their approach to show analysis was definiteily an inspiration for this)

If you want to read more about anamorphic lenses, the article Why ‘Shogun’ (and the Rest of TV) Is Slightly Out of Focus in The Ringer is about Shōgun and the rise of anamorphic lenses in TV (Marc Laliberté also worked on a few episodes of Shōgun) and it's a great place to start.

Finally, I want to first thank @skyvoice for these tags on one of my gifsets for semi-inspiring this post (I was already considering making this but these made it into a reality).

[ourflagmeansheartbreak]

So… can we all agree that last episode of Agatha All Along didn’t happen? (Literally)

Long rant incoming… (ep5 spoilers)

I am on insane amount of copium and my delusional state is saying last episode happened in Agatha’s head.

1. The goddamn screen

I already saw someone talk about it, if I can find the post I’ll tag it below. But the screen always goes full screen mode on the trials. Except for this episode, why’s that?? (P.S. because it wasn’t a trial, or at least… wasn’t a real one.)

I FOUND THE POST ALL CREDITS FOR THIS ONE GOES TO

2. Salem Seven being right there and right then, and… releasing bugs instead of killing her??

What that was supposed to accomplish? Because it wasn’t to kill her. It was to torture her.

I remember similar episode in Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, where Satan released bugs outta his mouth (very original), the bugs would crawl into people’s hair and make them see and hear things, do things they normally wouldn’t do.

In CAOS, Agatha (ironically, another witch) found a bug in her hair, which made her say things she never would. Zelda (directrix of the coven) had the same bug in her hair which made her see things, slap a student.

Agatha (in here I mean) shakes out the last bug out of her hair. Either they were all affected or we’re seeing Agatha’s delusions, because she did fly through it first.

Not to mention that the house seemed far away, and the second they fly through those bugs, the house is like… right there.

3. Trial is supposed to be made for a witch and their elemental mastery/knowledge.

First trial was made for Jen, in her aesthetics and to test her abilities. Second trial was for Alice, made in her mother’s aesthetics and for her powers.

And then we have Agatha’s trial and… what? In what universe did that make sense? 90’s themed? If anything her trial would be the one from Salem.

4. Nobody’s acting normal. But when do they ever.

Everyone immediately turns against Agatha without even considering other options. Which feels less like something they’d do and more like what Agatha thinks they would if given opportunity.

Argument could be made that Teen controlled them to do that but I for once don’t believe that. (Eyes didn’t glow blue like at the end.)

Lilia didn’t blurt out “try to save Agatha” for no reason in episode 2.

5. The road never changes. It’s the only constant in their journey.

And yet somehow… after this trial it’s… green? Time doesn’t change, sky doesn’t change, road doesn’t change. Ever.

6. Teen is Billy Kaplan confirmed. Or is it?

If this is just a manipulation of reality of some sort, it could be just Agatha’s worst fears confirmed.

Her mother saying she was born evil, her only kind of friends immediately turning on her, her son is somehow connected to that. Her genuinely not being able to control her powers after being so long without them and accidentally killing another witch, no one believing her… teen being Wanda’s kid, and turning out evil.

She sniffed him out as Billy long ago, she said so last episode “you don’t need to know a person’s name to know who they are”. She never thought that’s her son. She thinks it’s Billy. She thinks she knows.

The sigil on his mouth says W when he says his name, his fingers were black in first episode (only someone who’s touched the darkhold has it), he managed to break through Wanda’s hex that only someone with darkhold’s power could do… so much pointing at him being Billy…

I’m gonna leave with the fact that the devil is a known trickster and if you flip the W upside down…

7. Everyone dies, what a jolly ending! We still have 4 episodes left.

Even if Teen is Wanda’s kid and he sought out to kill Agatha… he could’ve done that already? She was powerless, he could’ve done the whole “seek my vengeance” part already.

That whole “ok the gig’s over you must die now” made no sense. How is he gonna finish all of the trials alone? There’s no other way out. And he for a fact knows they’ll need everyone to complete it.

And what even on earth does he have to avenge?? Wanda took the darkhold herself, she left Agatha powerless and imprisoned, Agatha lost! She’s the cringe fail loser! there’s nothing to avenge, young Jedi.

8. Where the fuck is Rio

No, seriously. She’s just somehow not there at the end. How’s that even possible. If she was working with Teen then she’d be there gloating or some shit.

Closing arguments are… none. I can already see myself making a YouTubers apology about this post and how utterly wrong I was a week from now. But for now let me just… *deep inhale*

I haven’t been this obsessed with a tv show since OFMD, god bless

[stupid-americans]

Things I would change about Netflix’s Wednesday

1. The monster/students - I’d rather see spoiled rich brats than descendants of monsters. It would add to the fish out of water storyline.

2. Wednesday’s powers - Instead of visions I’d rather her being very intelligent and observant... like a certain famous detective.

3. Visual gags and puns - I’d love to see Wednesday playing the cello so hard it begins to smoke. Uncle Fester seemed to be the only one using puns to describe himself. The whole family should have been that way.

4. Gomez should always be a murder suspect. Wednesday should know and understand her father is a murder suspect. Hell, the whole family should be murder suspects.

5. Gomez would never have a hard time beating someone in a fight. Gomez is a jack of all trades. He’s good at everything. Gomez should never bleed.

6. Wednesday takes after her father. She would never be beaten in a fencing contest. Losing the fencing match would have given the Bianca character more reason to hate Wednesday other than jealousy.

7. Wednesday should have been part of a talent contest. She’d dance ballet with two swords flashing around. High speed.

8. The school should be a on a hill famous for Witch burnings and hangings. The school should have ghosts.

9. There should be no hate between Wednesday and Morticia.

10. Gomez should always start his kisses at Morticia’s hand before traveling up her arm and he should always have a full sized cigar in his hand. The cigar should be lit right when he pulls it from his pocket. No matches or lighter.

11. John Astin (the first Gomez) and Lisa Loring (the first Wednesday) should have at least one cameo each. If Astin cannot make it... a great large painting of the man should eb a part of the school.

12. Pugsley should be a little older than Wednesday. He should also be hard to bully. When Wednesday opens the locker the local bully should run out of the locker crying instead of a tied up Pugsley.

13.Pugsley could play pranks while the family visits Wednesday at school. Wednesday could open a door and find Pugsley hanging, pretending he committed suicide. Maybe Pugsley will be seen in the school pool pretending to have drowned. Wednesday doesn’t seem to care or take notice.

14. Morticia should be very honest but very caring. 

15. Wednesday and Pugsley should be partners in crime.

16. Charles Addams, the creator of the Addams Family should have a painting somewhere in the school.

I did enjoy the show but if only they could have made it an Addams Family Mystery and less The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina or Harry Potter... I’d have been way happier.

[hadesoftheladies]

FEMALE MOVIE/TV RECS (PART 1 / FANTASY)

got inspired from a recommendation post so decided to make a list of movies and shows with female-centric stories/female protagonists. since i can't post all of the genres in one post, i'll split it into multiple posts and y'all can save or add to the list as you wish. (disclaimer: i have watched most of these, but i only know about the existence of others. not every movie/show on these lists will be my recommendation. my recommendations will be beneath the list with reasons. also some of these are way better than others in terms of storytelling/performance--which is why i'll list my faves separately):

#1. FANTASY/ADVENTURE (LIVE ACTION)

Common Themes of Media In the List:

-Strong female friendships

-Romance critical (or anti-romantic centrism)

-Emphasis on female-female relationships

-Warrior girls and women

-Revenge against awful men

-Distrust of male love interests

Ones I Haven't Watched:

His Dark Materials

Everything Everywhere All At Once

Paradise Hills

Crimson Peak

Outlander

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

House of the Dragon

The Nevers

Cursed

NOT LISTED BUT QUALIFIES

Pan's Labyrinth

Mary Poppins

Twilight

The Craft

The BFG

PERSONAL NOTES FOR THE ONES I'VE WATCHED

The School for Good and Evil

5/10

There were many things about it that were good. The chemistry between the two leading actresses, the primacy of friendship over romance, the effects, the costume and set design, the insane cast (Charlize Theron, Cate Blanchett, Michelle Yeoh, Kerry Washington?!) and the score. Some of the performances were good, too. The pitfalls of the film had more to do with the writing and directing. Some scenes were rushed, some dialogue was embarrassingly bad, some plot points were just nonsensical and childish. The magic system was also not well executed (though I've seen worse).

It's mostly mid, but the ending is refreshing for the fairytale genre and if you like fairytale fluff, you'll probably be more willing to forgive the film's transgressions. If you can, there'll be a lot of fun left to have with it.

2. Damsel

6.5/10

More action than fantasy and with a much smaller cast. Most of the movie focuses on Millie's character. The performances in this were pretty good, though. If you like heroines getting revenge, non-cliche fantasy stories involving princesses, and dragons, this movie is right up your alley! Also the costuming is delightful! It's predictable, but it is also entertaining.

3. Willow

7/10

This show was just fun. Fantastic effects, female heroics, tomfoolery, lesbians, action, evil forces, cool costuming, lesbians, sword-play, riddle-solving, dumbass princes, sarcastic mentors, and lesbians! This show knew exactly what it was trying to be. Aside from some poor performances, my overall impressions is positive.

4. Wednesday

7/10

I personally enjoy Wednesday Addams' character wherever I see her. Having a whole show of her was just a treat. I didn't care for the typical highschool-shenanigans (like the cliques) as much, but there were many enjoyable elements in this for me. Particularly, the effects, the crime, the other female characters, and the ending. It's entertaining and pretty to look at. Also I'm always on my wenclair propaganda.

5. Shadow & Bone

6/10

I've read the Six of Crows duology and the first book of the Shadow & Bone trilogy, so for me this show was a let down. For new watchers, however, you'll find interesting female characters, cool effects, and an entertaining (though sometimes choppy) plot. Inej Ghafa is my queen forever, regardless.

6. Renegade Nell

7/10

This is puts the fantasy in revenge fantasy. I love all the actresses from Derry Girls, and Louisa Harland is still charming in this. It's basically if Gentleman Jack (same director, I think) and Tinkerbell teamed up. Or if Little Women was also Pirates of the Caribbean but instead of taking to the sea it was highway robbery! The action sequences are so fun, the villains are nuanced (particularly the villainess) the comedy isn't overbearing (like I forgot I was watching a Disney show tbh) and the silly towel boy from Ted Lasso is here! I personally had fun. I hope it's renewed.

7. Alice in Wonderland/Through the Looking Glass

7/10 (i love these so much so it's 8/10 for me)

It sucks that Depp is in this, but I can never ever forsake my girl Mia Wasikowska. I just love these movies. I love the design, the music, the costumes, the irreverence toward marriage and romance, Alice's personality and relationship with her mother, how it tackles the pathologisation of female autonomy, the performances, etc. The books are one of my favorite books of all time so there's that.

8. Maleficent

7/10

I really loved the performances in this, the metaphor for rape, the satisfying revenge. I don't mind that it was cliché. I love Maleficent movies. AND the Lana Del Ray cover for "Once Upon A Dream." Also, the first one makes me tear up every time. The mother-daughter love is just so touching to me.

9. Warrior Nun

(?/10)

I love the premise of this show and I can get behind the characters. The protagonist just annoyed me so much so often I have taken multiple breaks and can't remember the story. I am all for imperfect, asshole girl characters. But this protagonist was just whiny and careless beyond reason. And it was taking too long for her to get with the nuns. Like I was not invested enough in her running away arc. Like sis get your ass to the coven you are not that main of a character!

She took up so much screentime when literally every other character in the show was more interesting than she was.

At least there's lesbians.

10. Snow White & The Huntsman

(8/10)

What can I say? Kristen Stewart was hot in this, as was stepmother. Effects? Stellar. Direction? Stellar. Performance? Mostly stellar. Drama? Action? Magic? All there. Thoroughly entertaining. Refreshingly anti-Disney. Unfortunately there are some annoying men involved (I'm talking about the dwarves of course) but it never gets too overbearing. This is, however, the least feminist of the entire list and scores lowest on the above common themes.

[flappervcmp]

KYLEE'S 𝑪𝑶𝑴𝑭𝑶𝑹𝑻 𝑳𝑰𝑺𝑻! 🦇👻🧛‍♀️🌙

comfort food(s) :   chicken nuggies, cookies (specifically triple choco chip chips ahoy), salt & vinegar chips, fruit gushers

comfort drink(s) :   tea (any kind), hot choco, ginger ale

comfort movie(s) :   avatar & avatar: way of water, twilight (all of them), pride & prejudice (2005), howls moving castle, labyrinth, crazy rich asians, lord of the rings trilogy (extended edition), beauty and the beast (cartoon)

comfort show(s) :    the vampire diaries, the walking dead, game of thrones (excluding s7-s8), gilded age, downton abbey, chilling adventures of sabrina, buffy the vampire slayer, interview with the vampire (if u havent watch it, u should bc its amazing)

comfort clothing :   a skort and a crop top for at home, or my pjs

comfort song(s) :  espresso - sabrina carpenter, better than revenge - taylor swift, endwalker (footfalls) - masayoshi soken, roses of may - nobuo uematsu, canned heat - jamiroquai, we didn't start the fire - fall out boy cover vers., phantom of the opera - ramin karimloo & sierra boggess, masquerade - phantom of the opera (25th anniversary show vers.), ain't no love in oklahoma - luke combs, 8 dates (demo version) - cast of why am i so single, long face - lestat de lioncourt (played by sam reid)

honestly my music taste is all over the place generally so its a mix of some of my fave songs, along with stuff that im listening to on repeat lately

comfort book(s) :   twilight - smeyer , the vampire diaries -lj smith, the forbidden game series - lj smith, acotar - sarah j maas, ruinous love trilogy (3rd one isnt out yet but i know ill love it) - brynne weaver , phantom of the opera - gaston leroux, vampire academy - richelle mead, lights out - navessa allen, the princess and the grilled cheese sandwich - deya muniz, ice planet barbarians series - ruby dixon

comfort game(s) :   oblivion (the superior elder scrolls), any legend of zelda game (tho OoT is my favourite overall), final fantasy x, final fantasy xiv, final fantasy ix, final fantasy x-2, final fantasy xiii-2, baldur's gate 3, stardew valley, the sims, dragon age inquisition, final fantasy 7 remake (part 1 & 2), vampire the masquerade bloodlines, animal crossing, assassins creed

tagged by the lovely @dopplgaenger 🥰

tagging (ofc feel free to skip if you're not comfortable sharing!) - @broknfeed, @little-miss-buffy, @burninq, @insanislupus, @vervainlacedveins, @wiredcapability, @twiicetheheart

[merlot-and-chardonnay]

*due to the chronic under-representation of transmasc characters in media overall, this list is admittedly a little shorter compared to my other entries.

We definitely need to work on getting more trans men rep out there.

[end0r4]

Zelda Spellman, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina | Chapter 𝟚𝟘 : The Mephisto Waltz

[dear-indies]

Hi, May I please ask for some ideas for a twenty-one to thirty year old female actress/faceclaim with a gothic look that would fit into a college/university setting, please? Thanks so much in advance for your time and help.

Lily Sullivan (Romper Stomper and Evil Dead Rise)

Juliette Motamed (We Are Lady Parts) Iranian - has spoken up for Palestine!

Naomi J. Ogawa (Wednesday) Japanese.

Lyrica Okano (The Runaways) Japanese.

Tati Gabrielle (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Uncharted) African-American, ¼ Korean.

Linnea Berthelsen (Stranger Things) Indian.

Ruth Codd (The Fall of the House of Usher) - is an amputee.

Adeline Rudolph (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Resident Evil) Korean / White.

Emma Dumont (The Gifted)

Cierra Ramirez (Drink Slay Love) Colombian and Mexican.

Blair Lamora (Shoresy) Ojibwe and Argentinian.

Mika Nakashima (Nana, Nana 2) Japanese.

Fairuza Balk (The Craft)

Pauley Perrette (NCIS)

Kim Director (Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2).

Older but played a goth:

Carrie Brownstein (Portlandia) Jewish - has spoken up for Palestine!

Sadly there's not many goth characters in media but I hope this helps!

[slasherbvnnie]

Masterlist

Welcome to my Masterlist, please check below for character works. Some characters may have poly writings with others, so please mind for cross tags. Click the character of your choice below to see what i’ve written for them.

♡ fluff

☆ smut

✧ angst

✿ misc

Harry Potter

-Harry Potter

-Draco Malfoy

-George Weasley

       Two Can Play That Game  ♡

-Fred Weasley

        Two Can Play That Game  ♡

-Ron Weasley

-Neville Longbottom (best boy)

-Mattheo Riddle

         Cinnamon and Cigarettes  ♡ ✧ ☆

Heathers

-Jason Dean aka J.D.

        Marry a Fucking Lawyer

-Veronica Sawyer

Scream

-Billy Loomis

       Until We Found You   ♡ ☆ ✧

       Who’s Watching Billy  ♡ ☆ 

-Stu Macher

       Until We Found You  (Parts 1-9)♡ ☆ ✧

       Dirty Little Secret  (Parts 1 and 2)♡ ☆

       Blood Candy Hearts  ♡ ✧

       The Perfect Girl  ☆ ✧

-Ethan Landry

-Charlie Walker

Marvel

-Peter Parker

-Steve Rogers

-Namor

Stranger Things

-Steve Harrington

-Eddie Munson

-Billy Hargrove

-Vecna (uncrispy ver.)

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

-Harvey Kinkle

-Nicholas Scratch

American Horror Stories

-Tate Langdon

Twilight

-Jasper Hale

-Edward Cullen

Random

-Brahams

-Kurt Kunkle

-Joe Goldberg

-Nate Jacobs

[harveyslocket]

[pia-writes-things]

20 questions for writers

Thanks for the tag @capybaraonabicycle, this was really fun!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

24!

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

116,345

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Mainly Doctor Who, but I write for a lot of fandoms :

Doctor Who (8) Engrenages (2) One Day at a Time (2) Kaamelott (2) ER (2) Stranger Things (2) The Wheel of Time (1) The Marvelous Mrs Maisel (1) Grace and Frankie (1) (this one is a crossover tho) Spellslinger (1) Big Little Lies (1) Les combattantes (1) Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (1) (also a crossover) HPI (1) (the counterpart to the G&F crossover)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

My extended fam : a multi-companion DW story that focuses on the companions staying on Earth and how they all deal with alien invasions and other wibbly-wobbly stuffs when the Doctor isn't around.

Ways to Heal : my current work in progress ! It's set after season 13 and deals with the aftermath of it, and more generally with all the various traumas all the companions have suffered while and after travelling with the Doctor.

Who am I if I don't have what it takes : a Stranger Things one-shot dealing with El's trauma and especially her trauma after season 4 and what happened to Max.

Night conversation : a One Day at a Time one-shot dealing with Elena's reaction to her father not accepting her sexuality.

Day two : You. Me. Handcuffs : a very short one-shot I wrote for a DW fanfic challenge. It's about Donna and the Doctor, and River.

5. Do you respond to comments?

Always !! Sometimes it's quite short, or late, or in private but I always try to answer, because I love to have conversations about what I write and what it means to people <3

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I honestly don't know tbh, because I'm very much a hurt/comfort kind of girl, and I always try to end on, at least, a hopeful note.

That being said, it's definitely Misunderstood! it's probably the only full-angst fic I've ever written but I was in my feels after WOT 207 and I wrote it through my tears (literally) 😭I think my no beta tag sums up pretty well my feelings 😬

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I think it's probably Remonter la pente. I'm still quite proud of this story, it's 6 chapters of healing and talking and processing traumas and I ended it on quite a high note, so yeah, I really like it!

8. Do you get hate on fics?

No, never! I sometimes have people who comment what part of the story or characterisation they don't really agree on but it's always nice and more conversational than anything ☺

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

No, and I cringe at the mere thought of it ^^

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

I do and I love it ! That's actually how I started to write fanfictions, and my first ever posted fanfiction was a DW and CAOS fanfiction.

I don't know what counts as a "crazy" crossover but the most unexpected must be Waiting on a miracle! It took a lot of liberties and interpretations on my part to imagine a situation where Morgane from HPI and Grace from Grace & Frankie could meet but I like what I came up with and it was really fun to write.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

I don't think so either!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Nope! I've wanted to, and sometimes I started planning it with friends but it never went further than that because *gestures at life in general*

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

Well, I think it's the Doctor and River! They're certainly the ones I've written the most for ^^ Then they're followed by the Ponds, Guenièvre and Arthur from Kaamelott and Joyce and Hopper from Stranger Things. But tbh, I don't write that many "shippy" fanfics? I write a loooot of found family stuffs so ships aren't what I focus on the most, or at least, I focus on them more as a part of (found) family dynamics, you know?

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

Well, I don't have that many unfinished posted wips, I tend to not post my unfinished works, or not to post until I'm sure I'm committed to finish it. I guess I'd like to add chapters and one-shots to The path of funny stories because we greatly lack fanfictions for the Spellslinger series but it's quite hard for me to write fanfictions for books, so I don't know if I'll ever get around to it ^^

16. What are your writing strengths?

I think dialogues and chracterisation? That's what I get complimented the most for in the comments at least! I also know I write stories with a big cast quite well, or so I've been told ^^ Which tracks, because dialogues, characterisation and interactions between people is what I like writing the most, and what I pay the most attention to!

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Descriptions!! It's directly correlated to my love of writing dialogues but I know I'm not very good and I struggle a lot with establishing scenes, descrbing the surroundings and what the characters are doing besides just talking. I try to pay attention to it and to work on my description and tone skills but I doesn't come as easy.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

It's hard!! I've only ever done it for my One Day at a Time fanfics but, besides my lack of confidence in Spanish at the time, I find it really hard to make it feel natural and to make the scene flow when switching between languages.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Chilling adventures of Sabrina !

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

That's haaaaard! How am I supposed to choose between my babies like that?

I have a soft spot for My Extended Fam because it was my longest fanfic for a while, and I absolutely adored writing it. I grew a lot as a writer while writing it and it's still one of my most beloved fanfic, which makes me really happy and proud.

Remonter la pente is also one of my favourite, because I think it's one of the first fanfic for which I really felt like a part of a fandom community and like I truly shared the stories with people, especially thanks to @moon-arts02- who wonderfully illustrated every chapter 🥰🥰🥰🥰

I'll tag some of my writer mutuals but absolutely 0 pressures, this was just a lot of fun to do, and I loved the retrospective it made me do through my writing :

@bourbon-ontherocks, @hemerae-ramblings, @everybodyknows-everybodydies, @bwayfan25, @thehappyegg, @saecookie, @imdefyingmavity, @cecret-with-a-c

[caos-headcanons]

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. REWRITE IDEAS:

Lilith doesn’t kill Ms. Wardwell. She puts her into an eternal sleep and wakes her up at the end of Part 2.

The Weird Sisters are more flashed out and their individual personalities are more empathized and they all have individual hobbies and interests. Prudence likes to read and expand her horizon, Agatha likes to dance and starts to get interested in being a DJ, Dorcas is artistic and loves to do creative projects.

When Sabrina goes full time to the Academy, she interacts with other witches aside from Nick and the weird sisters.

Only the Weird Sisters wear these dark dresses with lace collars. The other witches wear outfits based on the time periods of their 16th birthdays. Witches who turned 16 in the 80s wear 80s based outfits, those who were 16 in the 90s wear 90s outfits etc.

Sabrina actually explains to Harvey how the Witch World works and she also explains to Nick how the Mortal World works.

There are more interactions between Sabrina’s mortal friends and her witch friends.

We will see the familiars of Faustus, Constance, Prudence, Agatha, Dorcas, Melvin and Elspeth.

We actually get to see Zelda bringing new witches, including Heather into the coven.

After the Church of Night becomes the Order of Hecate. The witches start to pursue their personal hobbies and interests.

Mambo Marie doesn’t go to the Underworld.

Prudence uses Nagaina’s Head in order to get rid of Blackwood, because Petrification does not mean that someone is dead.